By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Despe Invitational”
June 10, 2024 in Tokyo, Japan at Korakuen Hall
Streamed live on New Japan World
Walker Stewart and Chris Charlton provided commentary, and Chris said this show has been sold out for weeks. I can’t stress this enough… the lineup for this show was NOT released in advance. So, fans bought tickets and were unaware of who was in the lineup.
1. Toru Yano, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Kyoko Inoue defeated Dash Chisako, Isami Kodaka, and Yuko Miyamoto in a mixed tag match at 9:55. The heels beat up Kyoko. Yano entered and hit a low blow on Dash, which she no-sold. (Wrestling has taught me that women are impervious to low blow kicks!) Miyamoto hit a spin kick on Kyoko. Inoue hit a top-rope superplex on Miyamoto. Chase hit a missile dropkick on Kyoko. She couldn’t move the larger Kyoko on a German Suplex attempt. Chase hit a top-rope doublestomp on Kyoko’s gut. Tanahashi entered at 6:00 and battled Kodaka. Tanahashi hit a second-rope senton splash. He hit some Twist-and-Shout swinging neckbreakers and a Sling Blade clothesline for a nearfall at 9:00. Hiroshi then hit the High Fly Flow frogsplash for the pin.
* Desperado came to the ring and told the crowd “everyone on this card is someone I want to wrestle.”
2. Starlight Kid and Dragon Kid defeated Mima Shimoda and El Desperado at 17:25. Charlton said the masked Starlight Kid is Desperado’s “sister”; I didn’t think they are actually related but maybe he meant they fight like siblings? DK and SK wore similar green-and-black masks. Desperado and Starlight Kid opened! She slapped him in the face at 2:00. He stepped on her foot and was loudly booed! DK tied up Desperado’s legs on the mat. Desperado and Mima tore at the masks of their opponents. Mima tied up Starlight Kid and stretched her on the mat.
All four brawled to the floor. In the ring, Starlight Kid hit a huracanrana on Mima at 9:30. The men tagged back in and Dragon Kid hit a Stundog Millionaire. Desperado ducked a 619 and he hit a spear, and they were both down at 11:30. Desperado hit a back suplex and a sit-out slam. Starlight Kid hit a top-rope crossbody block on Desperado. Starlight Kid put Desperado in a Stretch Muffler! He asked and bodyslammed her at 14:00. Shimoto tagged back in. Starlight Kid hit a running doublestomp on her. Dragon Kid and Starlight Kid applied simultaneous Octopus Stretches, and Mima tapped out to Starlight Kid’s hold! That was fun.
3. Daisuke Sasaki defeated Douki, Eita and Violento Jack at 11:36. I’ve seen hardcore specialist Jack a few times on GCW shows; he wore a black shirt with yellow writing on it; he went to the back and returned with a board with cut-up cans glued to it. Eita has short dark hair. Sasaki is like a Japanese version of Raven, dark and brooding. They took turns playing to the crowd. Douki tried to put the Douki Chokey on Sasaki at 4:00 but Daisuke escaped. Jack stretched Eita on the mat. Douki tied Sasaki in a pendulum at 7:00.
Sasaki got a rollup on Eita with his feet on the ropes for a nearfall. Jack hit a side slam on Sasaki for a nearfall. Jack hit a flip dive off the apron to the floor on everyone at 10:00. Jack hit a hard enzuigiri on Douki. Three guys hit a powerbomb on Violento Jack, sending him onto the board of cans, and they all pinned him for the victory! So, three guys can win? The ring announcer said Sasaki was the winner. The crowd was into this.
4. Hiromu Takahashi and Jun Kasai defeated Minoru Suzuki and Takayuki Ueki at 19:51. I haven’t seen Ueki before; he is an older, hefty, rotund man in a blue shirt and Charlton said he’s a former police officer. The crowd popped for Suzuki’s music. Hiromu wore his NEVER Six-man tag team title belt. I’m not a big fan of the hardcore specialist Kasai but the crowd popped when they realized he was Hiromu’s partner. Hiromu somehow was bleeding from near his left eye and the match hadn’t even started yet! Hiromu headed to the back and returned with boxes of LEGOs! Everyone removed their shoes! Kasai and Minoru opened and swung chairs. They dropped the chairs and traded forearm strikes.
Hiromu and Ueki entered and dumped out the boxes of LEGOs at 2:00; they tried to walk across the ring — keep in mind they are barefoot. As a dad with boys ages 9 and 7, I know how painful this is! All four brawled to the floor, with Minoru and Hiromu fighting at the top of one set of bleachers, while Kasai and Ueki brawled in the crowd, near the railing. In the ring, Minoru shoved LEGOs into Hiromu’s mouth. Jun finally removed his shoes at 8:00 so Minoru removed his, too. More LEGOs dumped in the ring and this has been more cartoonish than violent. They all brawled back up the stairs at 12:00 and fought on the landing half-way up the seating area (if you know Korakuen Hall’s layout, you understand.)
Hiromu and Minoru fought back into the ring, and this time, Hiromu put LEGOs in Minoru’s mouth and superkicked him, so the toys went flying. Jun suplexed Minoru onto the pile of LEGOs for a nearfall at 14:30. Minoru ‘danced’ across the ring to avoid stepping on LEGOs and hit a Yakuza Kick on Jun. Jun and Hiromu suplexed Minoru onto the pile. Ueki missed a Kokeshi on Hiromu. Ueki hit a Samoan Drop on Hiromu. Hiromu hit a Death Valley Driver on Ueki for a nearfall. Ueki hit a dropkick on Hiromu. Jun hit an Angel’s Wings face plant on Ueki. Hiromu hit a frogsplash on Ueki for the pin, with Suzuki making no effort to break it up. Like I said, this was more comedy than an actual death match.
5. Chris Brookes vs. Mao vs. El Phantasmo vs. Masashi Takeda went to a time-limit draw at 20:42. Mao has made frequent appearances in GCW in the past two years; he has short, shaggy hair. Takeda came out last and had a board with forks pointing straight up. No thanks! He has short blond hair and he is COVERED in scars. All three opponents were intimidated by him, but then they charged together at him. ELP walked the top rope, so Brookes grabbed a stapler and used it on ELP’s foot at 4:00! Several guys vanished under the ring, so Brookes got a fire extinguisher to ‘gas them out.’ They all brawled up the stairs. ELP dove off the top of a corridor onto Brookes on the landing at 8:00. Mao hit a flip dive off the top of the corridor onto everyone!
Mao and Takeda traded blows on the floor, and Masahi was bleeding from his forehead. Brookes face is covered in blood, too. Brookes splashed onto a plastic crate in the ring at 11:30 and it shattered. Takeda got a staple gun and used it on his opponents. Brookes grabbed it and stapled Takeda’s tongue, which is just gross (and unrealistic.) ELP got clamps and put them on Brookes’ nipples. This is absurd action, as Mao hit a superkick that pulled the clamps off. Takeda made a bridge with the fork-covered board.
Mao hit a top-rope 450 Splash that pushed the forks into Takeda’s chest at 17:00. Everyone traded rollups. Mao hit a package piledriver on ELP, jumping off the ring apron through a table on the floor. Takeda got some chairs and hit Brookes with them and got a nearfall at 19:00. Brookes applied a crossarm breaker (hey, a wrestling hold!) on Takeda. Takeda held on until we had a time-limit draw. (As you can see by my clock, they didn’t call it at 20:00 even.) The match had violence, but some of it was really cartoonish, asking people to stay in place to set up a bump.
6. Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Hikaru Sato at 10:57. I don’t know Sato, who wore a blue karate outfit and blue pants. They traded quick mat reversals and this is already much different than the prior two matches. Sabre tied him in a crossarm breaker. He switched to a Rings of Saturn at 7:30, then an anklelock. Sato grapevined the leg and Sabre dove to the ropes. Sabre went back to an anklelock. Sabre cranked on the ankle while he had the left leg tied up, and Sato tapped out. Good mat wrestling but not much to describe. They shook hands and bowed afterward.
7. Dick Togo and Gedo defeated El Desperado and Danshoku Dino at 18:14. The pink-haired, flamboyant Dino walked through the building and kissed any willing man on the lips. Dino got on the mic and announced that El Desperado will be his partner in the main event, so Despe is wrestling a second time! Desperado went to the back and returned in a similar shiny, purple flamboyant vest. Clearly, this one will be all comedy. Despe and Togo opened. Dino tagged in and squared off with Gedo at 3:30. Dino put his hand down the back of Gedo’s pants, then he grabbed his groin; he’s just committed third-degree sexual assault and the crowd was laughing along. Dino removed his shorts to reveal a thong and he sat down on Gedo’s face. I’m not amused.
Togo forced Desperado’s face into Dino’s (nearly bare) butt. More laughs. Gedo and Togo began working over Desperado. Desperado hit a back suplex at 11:00. Dino got the hot tag and cleared the ring. He grabbed both heels by their groins and yanked them face-first to the mat at 13:00. He removed his thong to reveal an even smaller thong. Desperado and Dino began fighting! Desperado sighed and removed his trunks to reveal a thong, which pleased Dino. Dino began kissing Gedo and Togo. Togo hit a Pedigree on Dino, and Gedo rolled him up for the pin. I liked absolutely nothing about this match.
Final Thoughts: Well, the show started great, with Desperado and Starlight Kid having some really fun exchanges. Sabre-Sato was a good mat-based match. The four-way draw was fun and had some good action, but it also had a lot of non-believable spots. Make no mistake, the crowd loved the cartoonish ‘hardcore’ matches and the flamboyant main event, it’s just not what I expected going in.
Be the first to comment