Day 1: Sunday, November 22nd, from Tokyo (Korakuen Hall)
A Block
AKITO vs. MAO (7:08): I watched and reviewed the entire All Japan Carnival, Noah's N-1, and NJPW's G-1 tournaments...so I figured I should probably check out DDT's version as well. I don't know a lot about DDT, though I have watched a few matches here and there this year (there was one particular Masato Tanaka match from March that I thought was a MOTY). DDT will probably just always be known as that promotion that was awesome when Kota Ibushi and Kenny Omega were in it. Those glory days are gone, and the promotion is usually just noted as being the comedy promotion...which it is. This was the only true comedy match in the tournament tonight, though, which was good, as I can't take too much of that. This show was held at Korakuen with fans, and the place actually did look sold out, albeit the fans were socially distanced so some of the seats were empty. As far as tournaments go...this first night wasn't on par with the G1 but it was definitely more entertaining than the usual nights of the N-1 and Champions Carnival. DDT has some exciting wrestlers like Endo and Ueno and most of the guys are on the younger side which helps. This match was mostly comedy stuff so not particular much of anything to talk about. *1/2
A Block
HARASHIMA vs. CHRIS BROOKES (11:13): Brookes is the one foreigner in the tournament, though he is a DDT regular. He's very tall and very skinny and does more of a Young Bucks style of offense. This was a good match. Fast paced, entertaining. Brookes reminds me of El Phantasmo. Actually, I'd probably never guess who is who if they stood together in a line up. Harashima did a bunch of hard kicks and slammed Brookes into the metal ringside fence at one point. Brookes is wearing this protective shoulder thing so I guess he's beat up. Harashima won with a running, flying double knees to the face maneuver which was pretty cool. **1/2
A Block
DAISUKE SASAKI vs. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (13:45): This started off super slow and super boring, but by the end it got fairly entertaining. Sasaki has long hair and wrestled in a t-shirt. It was his own DDT t-shirt. Is he trying to shill his own merchandise? Takeshita did a few really dangerous looking German suplexes but he really let Sasaki go flying in the air at the end of them. I was surprised he didn't land right on his head. Takeshita tapped out to a sort of a choke submission move. After this show, DDT revealed that Sasaki injured his shoulder and is out of the tournament. Instead of replacing him they said that all of his matches will just be no contests. Considering Sasaki isn't exactly all that great...I don't think this is that bad of a thing. **
B Block
MAKOTO OISHI vs. SHUMA KATSUMATA (7:39): This was the match of the night. These two are both so quick that it made this super engaging. Katsumata tapped out. Every move they delivered looked painful. Oishi landed on the back of his head a few times hard. They did a lot of rolling, schoolboy pin attempts and a bunch of short submission attempts. I'm not sure these two could do a great, long match but this was great while it lasted. ***
B Block
YUKI UENO vs. KAZUSADA HIGUCHI (11:49): Ueno is pretty much a Kota Ibushi ripoff. That's not exactly a bad thing, though. Even his ring gear looks the same (white and gold trunks and boots). Higuchi is a tall and mean dude and came to the ring with some random title. So we got Higuchi doing all the powerful, big man stuff and Ueno doing all the crazy high flying. Ueno did an awesome finishing sequence where he did a top rope splash, a top rope moonsault, and then his DDT/slam like finisher. Good stuff. **1/2
B Block
TETSUYA ENDO vs. JUN AKIYAMA (14:00): Endo is the champion. He beat Masato Tanaka in June at the Peter Pan event to win the title. And if you're wondering...is that the same Masato Tanaka that was in those epic battles against Mike Awesome twenty years in ECW then you would be correct. It's kind of crazy that Tanaka is still alive yet alone still wrestling and still in main events (Mike Awesome, sadly, hung himself years ago). Tanaka is in All Japan at the moment, wrestling in their tag tournament. His partner is Tajiri...from ECW...which is kind of insane. Endo did a great move in this match that's Ospreay's famous maneuver: the running and flipping in the ring to flipping over the top rope onto your opponent on the floor. Akiyama is an older, bald dude. Akiyama can still go, though, so this was a decent match. It seems kind of ridiculous that Endo is even in this tournament considering the winner of the tournament gets a title shot at his title. Endo won with a shooting star press. I don't watch a lot of DDT...though I've learned that a lot of it is very fast paced with a lot of big, exciting moves. So far this tournament is shaping up to be fairly exciting. **1/2
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 1-0, Brookes 0-1, Harashima 1-0, Mao 0-1, Sasaki 1-0, Takeshita 0-1
B BLOCK
Akiyama 0-1, Endo 1-0, Higuchi 0-1, Katsumata 0-1, Oishi 1-0, Ueno 1-0
Day 2: Friday, November 27th, from Tokyo (Narimasu Act Hall)
A Block
MAO vs. DAISUKE SASAKI: As noted previously, Sasaki is injured so all of his matches are just won by the wrestler he was supposed to face.
B Block
KAZUSADA HIGUCHI vs. MAKOTO OISHI (9:07): There was a decent size crowd for this show even though it was at a small, gymnasium looking building. They did have announcers but a weird camera from high up looking down at the ring that made this kind of look like a lame, B-show from a state fair or something. Higuchi, the big, tall dude beat the young, fast pup here in a totally forgettable match. The first night of this tournament was pretty great and this show was pretty terrible. Oh, well. *
B Block
SOMA TAKAO vs. YUKI UENO (12:01): There really wasn't much to this match except being a showcase for Ueno's high flying. He did the standing, backwards flip into a pin that Jeff Cobb always does. And Ueno did his moonsault and then his shooting star press. I'm kind of wondering if Ueno ever wrestled Endo for the title because that match would be awesome. **
B Block
TETSUYA ENDO vs. SHUNMA KATSUMATA (11:45): This was by far the most memorable match on this show simply because it turned into a hardcore Lego match. Katsumata came out with Joker/clown face paint on for some unknown reason. Then he dumped Legos outside of the ring and eventually dumped Legos inside the ring. He also had a bat with Legos. Both guys got slammed onto the Legos multiple times. The ref seemed to not care about any of this so I guess DDT is like New Japan and AEW and never DQ's anyone. I have seen Legos used before in hardcore matches. I guess the thinking is that when you step on a Lego with your bare feet it really hurts so of course if you get body slammed onto a pile of them it will be incredibly painful. Not that this match was great or anything, but it was at least something unique. **1/2
A Block
YUKIO SAKAGUCHI vs. CHRIS BROOKES (10:45): Brookes tapped out so he's 0-2. He's the one resident white dude/foreigner on the roster. Maybe he did what Omega did and saw DDT online and wanted to join so he flew out to Japan and his dreams came true. He'll never be a star on Omega's level because he's not that good but he's at least serviceable. This match wasn't that great, though. 1/2*
A Block
KONOSUKE TAKESHITA vs. AKITO (29:32): I kind of figured this match was going to go long when one of them stood outside the ring and waited until the 19 count and then ran in real fast. They also brawled a bit in the crowd to kill time. The first 25 minutes of this match were an utter bore. The last few minutes were fast and great but by then it was kind of too late. *1/2
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 1-1, Brookes 0-2, Harashima 1-0, Mao 1-1, Sakaguchi 1-0, Sasaki 1-1, Takeshita 1-1
B BLOCK
Akiyama 0-1, Endo 2-0, Higuchi 1-1, Katsumata 0-2, Oishi 1-1, Takao 1-0, Ueno 1-1
Day 3: Saturday, November 28th, from Tokyo (Narimasu Act Hall)
A Block
YUKIO SAKAGUCHI vs. DAISUKE SASAKI: No contest...because Sasaki is injured. Sasaki was actually in the main event of their last big show, Ultimate Party, where he lost to Endo. I guess that means losing Sasaki in this tournament is kind of a big blow. Kenny Omega was supposed to face Endo on that show but thanks to the pandemic that never happened.
A Block
CHRIS BROOKES vs. AKITO (13:10): They did one good sequence where they did a bunch of reversals and schoolboy pin attempts for a minute or two non-stop. Other than that, this was pretty monotonous stuff. Brookes gets his first win. Brookes had the secondary title earlier this year but lost it to Ueno at Ultimate Party. I should note that most of the title names in this company are pretty ridiculous. The main title that Endo has is called the KO-D Openweight Championship. I mean...would it kill them to just call it the DDT Championship? The one strange thing in this match was that Akito got on the mic before the match and said something and then set up his phone in the corner and both guys were looking at the phone during the match. I'm guessing it had something to do with setting the timer on the phone...like Akito said he'd beat Brookes in five minutes or something. I don't speak Japanese and DDT doesn't have English commentary so that whole aspect of this match was lost on me. Maybe it would've been better if I knew what the fuck was going on? Eh, I doubt it. *1/2
A Block
HARASHIMA vs. MAO (12:49): This was actually the best match on the show, although it wasn't spectacular or anything. They both worked fast and Harashima delivered a bunch of brutal chops. **1/2
B Block
SOMA TAKAO vs. MAKOTO OISHI (2:30): This was short but they both worked at a frenetic pace. They did a bunch of quick schoolboy pin attempts...which is seemingly something everyone in DDT loves to do for some reason. Takao won after both guys ran the ropes and Takao just slammed into him and got the pin. **
B Block
JUN AKIYAMA vs. SHUNMA KATSUMATA (9:53): They brawled outside in the crowd a bit. Katsumata gave Akiyama a DDT on the concrete floor though it didn't look all that devastating. Katsumata must have been watching Yano matches lately because he taped Akiyama's feet together outside the ring and Akiyama had to beat the count. Jun Akiyama is 51 years old, and apparently is currently in AJPW (he was a 2 time champion in All Japan...probably a long time ago I'm guessing). He wasn't in this year's Champions Carnival and I'm not sure why he's in a DDT tournament...although Noah's Go Shiozaki was in last year's DDT Grand Prix for whatever reason. *1/2
B Block
KAZUSADA HIGUCHI vs. TETSUYA ENDO (20:56): Nice! A double KO finish! In the main event! What is this? A Last Man Standing Match? Both guy's were out and the ref counted to ten. I'm not sure why that's a ten count when the outside the ring count is 20. Endo didn't do any of his high flying in this match, although he did take off the ring post barrier thing (more shades of Yano) and brought some chairs into the ring (he slammed Higuchi's knee into a chair after slamming him from the top rope). Kind of a dull main event. This tournament has pretty much fallen apart since the good first night. The tournament isn't that long so they'd better get going. *
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 1-2, Brookes 1-2, Harashima 2-0, Mao 1-2, Sakaguchi 2-0, Sasaki 1-2, Takeshita 1-1
B BLOCK
Akiyama 1-1, Endo 2-1, Higuchi 1-2, Katsumata 0-3, Oishi 1-2, Takao 2-0, Ueno 1-1
Day 4: Sunday, November 29th, from Osaka (Azalea Taisho Hall)
A Block
HARASHIMA vs. DAISUKE SASAKI: This was a pretty forgettable show for one reason: it was a one-camera, no announcers show. Kind of surprising, since the card was pretty good. This was another DQ win since Sasaki is injured. Or "no show" win. It's called nichtantritt...which is "not showing up" in German. I'm not sure why it says that on the cagematch website...which I use to see the match times for all these shows. I mean...it's not like Germany is known for their history of pro-wrestling.
B Block
KAZUSADA HIGUCHI vs. SOMA TAKAO (11:30): This was decent, albeit just a standard wrestling match. Higuchi is a big guy so all of his big slams look oh-so powerful. He won with just a running, push slam, like he was an NFL linebacker or something. *1/2
B Block
JUN AKIYAMA vs. MAKOTO OISHI (10:49): Sting showed up on AEW Dynamite this week...which was a huge surprise. Sting is 61. Will he actually wrestle again? Or just, like, be a manager type? Akiyama is 51 and still in good enough shape to have somewhat okay matches. It does seem like wrestlers in Japan keep wrestling for longer. Is it the diet? They seem to have a better diet with all of that rice and fish and you don't tend to see too many overweight folk there, not that I've been. Akiyama just won with a roll up and Oishi just sat there on his knees in the ring for awhile like he was shocked. Should be, since he lost to a fifty year old. *
B Block
TETSUYA ENDO vs. YUKI UENO (22:56): I had said previously that these two should be in a main event title match. I guess DDT doesn't think so, as this wasn't even in the main event on a random tournament show. They did go over 20 minutes, though, so they at least gave them more time than usual for non main events. This was good, not great, but it was the best match on the show. While they did all of their high flying, there wasn't much drama and these two don't seem to have much chemistry together to ever produce a masterpiece. **1/2
A Block
MAO vs. YUKIO SAKAGUCHI (9:53): Mao needs a haircut. It's not long, just a mound of hair. Sakaguchi has dyed blonde hair and tattoos all over. They worked pretty fast. Mao won with a body slam. I think he needs a more spectacular finisher. This was okay. *1/2
A Block
CHRIS BROOKES vs. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (21:41): The surprise was that when Brookes won he did the usual talk on the mic to the crowd and he spoke in Japanese. Will Ospreay has been wrestling in Japan for two years or so and he doesn't even do that. Maybe Brookes has been there longer...or took Japanese lessons...or is just smarter. As for the match...it was pretty exciting by the end but took awhile to get there. I'm still unsure as to why this was the main event and Endo/Ueno wasn't. Maybe these two have a big feud that goes back years or something. **
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 1-2, Brookes 2-2, Harashima 3-0, Mao 2-2, Sakaguchi 2-1, Sasaki 1-3, Takeshita 1-2
B BLOCK
Akiyama 2-1, Endo 3-1, Higuchi 2-2, Katsumata 0-3, Oishi 1-3, Takao 2-1, Ueno 1-2
Day 5: Friday, December 4th, from Tokyo (Narimasu Act Hall)
A Block
AKITO vs. DAISUKE SASAKI: They're back in Narimasu Act Hall. Huh. I wonder if they get the same people that come to these shows. Tokyo is a big city and all but, still, they already did two shows in this building a week ago. I think this was the free show...but are tickets to DDT even that expensive? And are there people that are big DDT fans and don't watch New Japan? I'd like to meet them. This match was another DQ win since Sasaki is injured.
B Block
YUKI UENO vs. MAKOTO OISHI (17:23): I thought Ueno was pretty impressive on that first night but he hasn't really impressed me much at all since then. This tournament has also taken a nose dive in quality since that first night. Endo seems to be the only wrestler that's one to watch...but even he isn't at the same level as Kento Miyahara...who saved the Champion Carnival this year. So far Endo has not saved the D-Ou Grand Prix. Wikipedia calls it the D-Oh Grand Prix. I'm assuming the "D" has something to do with Dino, the wrestler that started this tournament. This match was a bore since Oishi put Ueno in a headlock for like ten minutes. *
B Block
SHUNMA KATSUMATA vs. KAZUSADA HIGUCHI (10:59): This was the classic, big vs. little guy battle. Eventually they both crawled under the ring and when Katsumata, the big dude, came back out his arms were taped to his chest. So then Higuchi beat him up and did a tope rope leap on him while Katsumata couldn't move his arms. Since he's the Hulk he broke free of the tape but still lost by a quick schoolboy. I mean...the ending was kind of amusing. **
B Block
JUN AKIYAMA vs. SOMA TAKAO (8:22): They used these big, metal, trashcan looking lids in this match for some unknown reason to hit each other with. They might have been, like, cooking pots. I'm not sure...but even tables in Japan look different than the ones they always break in American wrestling. Akiyama won after a few brutal knees to the head. I probably should go look up some of Akiyama's old matches when he was in his prime and see if he was a worthy champ. *1/2
A Block
YUKIO SAKAGUCHI vs. HARASHIMA (10:17): These two just grappled on the mat the whole time like it was an MMA match or something. I'm not sure what, exactly, they were trying to prove unless it was how fast they can put people to sleep. -No Stars-
A Block
KONOSUKE TAKESHITA vs. MAO (22:46): This was long and fairly dull. The only memorable moment came when Mao slipped on the top rope trying to jump and fell right on his head, thankfully the back of his head so he wasn't paralyzed for life. Takeshita won quickly after that. *
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 2-2, Brookes 2-2, Harashima 3-1, Mao 2-3, Sakaguchi 3-1, Sasaki 1-4, Takeshita 2-2
B BLOCK
Akiyama 3-1, Endo 3-1, Higuchi 2-3, Katsumata 1-3, Oishi 1-4, Takao 2-2, Ueno 2-2
Day 6: Sunday, December 6th, from Tokyo (Narimasu Act Hall)
A Block
CHRIS BROOKES vs. DAISUKE SASAKI: Chris Brookes gets the points for a win in this match even though it was just a DQ win because Sasaki is injured...but Chris Brookes wrestled in a singles match on this show for some unknown reason anyway. I watched it, too, because I thought it was part of the tournament. And it was a pretty good match. Chris Brookes is not a great wrestler or anything, but he's one of the more watchable wrestlers in DDT. He started in the summer of 2019 in DDT, so he hasn't been with the company that long. I wondered...because he was speaking Japanese that one night where he won in the main event. Maybe he grew up in Japan. I should investigate this. Or maybe Japanese is easier to learn than I thought. I doubt that, as I've watched Japanese wrestling with Japanese commentary for the last five or so years and I've only learned one word: "High" means "Yes." Granted, it's not spelled "high." It's probably some weird symbol.
A Block
KONOSUKE TAKESHITA vs. YUKIO SAKAGUCHI (11:26): Another show in Narimasu Act Hall. I should probably note that DDT has been having other shows not part of this tournament while this tournament is going on. They had a show with an exploding ring and exploding barbed wire bat gimmick and Onita was in the match. I watched it and the exploding ring was stupid...just looked like they put a bunch of fireworks above the ring. I used to have an Onita VHS tape with all of his big matches. I still can't believe they filled stadiums to see exploding barbed wire matches. The Japanese are sick fucks. Funny how that never caught on in the U.S. I guess we have, like, safety codes and standards. I honestly don't even remember most of this show even though I watched it yesterday. Show was a bore. The Chris Brookes match was decent but that wasn't part of the tournament. The main event was 4 minutes...kind of anti-climatic. They had a match where a girl was wrestling guys. They don't do that in the U.S., either, which baffles me. I should note, since DDT is the comedy promotion, that during that intergender match they had four wrestlers sit on each ring post and stick their butts out while the other wrestlers tried to throw their opponent face first into the ass. Vince McMahon would've loved it. Right up his alley. As for this actual match, which I'm not even talking about...Sakaguchi has bleached blonde hair and tattoos and always does MMA grappling stuff. I guess he used to do MMA? Yawn. 1/2*
A Block
AKITO vs. HARASHIMA (16:26): This was a double pin finish. I haven't seen that in awhile. I recall the WWE doing that once or twice and then you have to watch RAW the next night to find out who won and what happened. Harashima kept trying to deliver his double knees to the face finisher but Akito moved first and then rolled out of the ring second. They at least worked fast for the most part. **
B Block
YUKI UENO vs. SHUNMA KATSUMATA (13:56): Ueno slammed Katsumata off of the ring apron down onto a pile of chairs at ringside. Katsumata also hit his head on the ring post in what looked like a botch when he was running at Ueno and Ueno moved and Katsumata went too fast than he probably wanted to. There was also a spot where Katsumata put two chairs at ringside and sat down and wanted Ueno to come and sit with him but Ueno wouldn't so Katsumata kept breaking the count to go and sit back down. Finally Ueno sat down and of course Katsumata choked him with a towel. Katsumata also gave Ueno a DDT out on the concrete floor. I suppose this match was eventful...though kind of just average. **
B Block
SOMA TAKAO vs. TETSUYA ENDO (16:37): I should probably go watch the match from June where Endo won the title from Masato Tanaka. It was probably terrific. I did watch the Endo/Sasaki title match from Ultimate Party, their other big show, in November and was bored. This was just okay and pretty forgettable. *1/2
B Block
KAZUSADA HIGUCHI vs. JUN AKIYAMA (4:03): The two big guys are in the main event. It was good but so fucking short it was kind of pointless. They did a bunch of running collisions. Higuchi won with his stupid face claw. Higuchi also did a top rope splash that was extremely awkward looking. This probably would have reverted to a slow bore if they had gone longer so I suppose I can't complain. **1/2
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 3-2, Brookes 3-2, Harashima 4-1, Mao 2-3, Sakaguchi 3-2, Sasaki 1-5, Takeshita 3-2
B BLOCK
Akiyama 3-2, Endo 3-2, Higuchi 3-3, Katsumata 1-4, Oishi 1-4, Takao 3-2, Ueno 3-2
Day 7: Saturday, December 12th, from Tokyo (Narimasu Act Hall)
B Block
SHUNMA KATSUMATA vs. SOMA TAKAO (10:05): They did the Yano ending here. Both guys went behind the curtain to the back and Takao came out wrapped in tape and couldn't make the count. They also used those big, steel pans again to hit each other over the head with. One of the pans had Legos and they fell all over the ring. I guess this was a spectacle. *1/2
B Block
JUN AKIYAMA vs. YUKI UENO (11:51): Akiyama, the 51 year old, bald dude won here and everyone else contending in the B block lost so Akiyama made the final. That's a little bit surprising. You kind of want the final to be exciting and dramatic and not featuring a 51 year old man. Maybe he's a bigger star in Japan than I realize. They should have put Ueno in the final, as he's at least an Ibushi-lite. *1/2
B Block
MAKOTO OISHI vs. TETSUYA ENDO (19:26): Endo lost, eliminating him from the final. That kind of makes sense since he's already the champion. He lost by submission, which is kind of a lame way for the champ of your company to lose. Endo did do the Ospreay running cartwheel flip into a flip over the top rope which is always awesome to see. I wonder who did that first, Ospreay or Endo? Endo was supposed to wrestle Omega this year but that didn't happen. That'd be a hell of a match if it ever occurs. **
A Block
AKITO vs. YUKIO SAKAGUCHI (8:56): This show wasn't terrible or anything but it was forgettable. DDT did a show on Dec 23rd that featured a match at a swimming pool and another match with explosions and Onita. So maybe DDT just doesn't really care too much about this Grande Prix tournament. They certainly didn't seem to put much thought into it. Why even do it then? Just because every wrestling company in Japan does a tournament? I watched 4 tournaments this year and the G1 was the only one worth watching. Akito won and was tied with Takeshita by the end of this show but Takeshita beat him earlier in the tournament so he was eliminated. These two just did a boring mat wrestling match. -No Stars-
A Block
MAO vs. CHRIS BROOKES (14:28): Mao is one of the DDT guys that is kind of exciting. Maybe he'll transform into a star one day, who knows? I like Chris Brookes, too, but there's just something missing with him. That's probably why he's in DDT. This had it's moments but was kind of forgettable like the rest of this show. **
A Block
KONOSUKE TAKESHITA vs. HARASHIMA (20:39): Whoever won this match would win the A block. Takeshita won. They started off really slow but the last few minutes were exciting with kicks and near falls. This sets up a Takeshita vs. Akiyama final which, let's face it, nobody wants to see. **
Standings:
A BLOCK
Akito 4-2, Brookes 3-3, Harashima 4-2, Mao 3-3, Sakaguchi 3-3, Sasaki 1-5, Takeshita 4-2
B BLOCK
Akiyama 4-2, Endo 3-3, Higuchi 3-3, Katsumata 2-4, Oishi 2-4, Takao 3-3, Ueno 3-3
Day 8 (Final): Saturday, December 27th, from Tokyo (Korakuen Hall)
JUN AKIYAMA vs. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (23:39): The 51 year old won the tournament...which is kind of a surprise, although the crowds did seem to like him and I'm assuming he was somewhat of a big star twenty years ago. Akiyama will face Endo for the title but not until February. As for this match...it was pretty boring. They brawled a bit out of the ring. They traded suplexes. Akiyama won with a chickenwing armlock. Takeshita didn't tap out, though, the ref just stopped it. Akiyama is kind of a tough, old, brute of a heel...so his matches these days are more beatdowns than anything. I would have rather seen two, young, fast guys do an exciting 30 minute match than this. This tournament was pretty much a letdown, although the first night was enjoyable. *1/2
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