(To avoid confusion, for the post titles I am using the “Road to Destruction” sub-name instead of the “Battle Line Hokkaido” main show name. Also the number in the title is only counting televised nights.)
We open with an announcement that Yota Tsuji is off the show due to ill health. They have removed Gedo from the second match to make the teams even.
We then get the mascot and mayor of Noboribetsu to give a “thanks NJPW for coming to our little town” speech.
Noboribetsu Ranbo: Shota Umino
def Tiger Mask, YOH, Master Wato, Shoma Kato, Zane Jay, Tatsuya Matsumoto, Masatora Yasuda, Katsuya Murashima, Boltin Oleg, Don Fale, Yuya Uemura, EVIL, Dick Togo — (21:42, STF)
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Standard NJPW Ranbo rules: pins and submissions are in play as well as throwing over the top rope.
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Zane Jay and Tatsuya Matsumoto are the first two in the Ranbo.
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Masatora Yasuda is next; followed by Katsuya Murashima, who goes on a bodyslam spree. Then Shoma Kato completes our streak of YL entrants.
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Tiger Mask comes in to start teaching the kids a lesson in stomping, with Kato being the unfortunate recipient.
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Master Wato is here with plushies of the Noboribetsu mascot to give to kids. YOH then one-ups him by signing plushies before giving them out.
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Don Fale is our first heel in the match, and he brings Dick and EVIL with him. He top rope eliminates Tiger, YOH, and Wato.
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Then he distracts the ref while EVIL and Dick come in with the powder and top rope eliminate all the YL except Murashima; who is the pinned after Dick-to-dick.
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Boltin Oleg in next. He holds his own against HoT, until Dick and EVIL toss him over the top. But Oleg keeps hold of Fale and takes him out with him.
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Yuya Uemura next. Like Boltin he holds his own against EVIL and Dick, until the Shenanigans start. Shota Umino runs out to save his hopeful future tag partner.
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After a few minutes Dick Togo with a chair helps EVIL top rope eliminate Yuya.
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Shortly after, Shota top rope eliminates EVIL.
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Shota and Dick are our final two.
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After a brief sequence Shota gets Togo in the STF and wins the Noboribetsu Ranbo for a record second time (there have only been two of these matches).
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Post match, EVIL has a chair in hand and stalks around ringside, but he and Dick leave without conflict.
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Shota asks Yuya to come in to celebrate with him, Yuya hesitates for a second then comes in to just shake Shota’s hand. Shota watches him leave, then bows to the crowd and goes around ringside doing fanservice.
David Finlay[w/Gedo], Gabe Kidd def Daiki Nagai, Shingo Takagi — (10:24, Power Bomb Whip)
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Gabe goes out into the crowd during his entrance, and also briefly sits on Japanese commentary to shit talk “old man” Shingo.
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Post-announcements Gabe and Shingo get chest-to-chest and start shit talking. But it’s Nagai and Finlay who start.
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This was fine. With Tsuji out we got a lot of Finlay with Nagai.
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Post match, Finlay asks where Tsuji’s at, “bitch?” Gabe and Shingo briefly exchange words.
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As he’s leaving, Finlay does the “something on your shoe” bit with Kato and whacks him in the nuts with the shillelagh, then chases ring announcer Abe and referee Kenta Sato.
Taiji Ishimori, Knock Out Brothers (OSKAR, Yuto-ICE) def TAKA Michinoku, Taichi, Tomohiro Ishii — (7:22, K.O.B)
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OSKAR almost trips on the entrance mat while walking out (to be fair, it was bunched up).
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As soon as Ishii gets into the ring he runs right at Yuto, who KOed him on our last televised show. Very brief skirmish and we end up with Taichi and OSKAR legal to start.
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I liked the Korakuen match better, but this was good.
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Post match, Yuto and Ishii get forehead-to-forehead and then have a forearm battle until Ishii headbutts Yuto. Ishii and Taichi briefly double team OSKAR until Yuto gets back up.
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They have an outside brawl, Ishii gets KOed by Yuto, everyone is separated, then Ishii gets up and they start brawling again; this time OSKAR takes him out.
DOUKI, SHO, Yujiro Takahashi, SANADA, Ren Narita def Kosei Fujita, Robbie Eagles, Hartley Jackson, Ryohei Oiwa, Zack Sabre Jr. — (11:53, Hell’s Guillotine)
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During HoT’s entrance SHO takes one of the Noboribetsu mascot plushies from YOH (who’s on Japanese commentary) and stomps on it. After the entrances he cuts his usual promo talking down this shitty town, while also talking up Ren as the next WHC.
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TMDK run the last stretch of the entrance ramp to jump HoT. Brief outside brawl then Ren brings Zack back to the ring to start.
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HoT Shenanigans level: moderate. There was a second outside brawl, SANADA tried to use the guitar, Ren tried to use the push-up bar, Hartley got hit in the Big Jags.
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Post match, Ren goes to hit Hartley with the push-up bar but Zack grabs him by the ankle and drags him out of the ring. Once again they brawl to the back.
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Meanwhile SHO and DOUKI try to hit Robbie with the wrench, but Fujita with a chair saves him. Robbie gets a chair as well and HoT bail. That Junior Tag title match is on our next televised show, the 24th.
Hiroshi Tanahashi Final Road ~Kinship~: 3 match challenge
The deal with this is it’s 2/3 falls but each fall is a different match type. Also the competitors in matches 2 and 3 (should fall 3 be necessary) were not set in advance. The challenge was made from Yano to Tana, but they are not required to participate in every match.
Match 1– 6-man Tag: Tomoaki Honma, Togi Makabe, Toru Yano def Ryusuke Taguchi, El Desperado, Hiroshi Tanahashi — (Oni Garoshi)
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Team Yano gets a cool entrance with two demons playing drums. Blonde Yano with the parasol has returned for this Great Bash Heel reunion.
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GBH wait until the faces are just finishing disrobing to jump them. After a brief beatdown, Hontai get control and gang up on Makabe.
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This was a prime GBH match, for better and for worse.
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It looks like the next match will be Despe and Tana will face Yano and Makabe, but then Takashi Iizuka’s music starts playing.
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Iizuka runs through the crowd, Yano gets a mic and declares it’ll be he and Iizuka in the tag match.
Match 2– Normal Tag: El Desperado, Hiroshi Tanahashi def Takashi Iizuka, Toru Yano — (DQ)
- Lots of Iizuka against his old Suzukigun comrade. Eventually he gets DQed for using the Iron Fingers, then runs out through the crowd.
Match 3– Singles: Hiroshi Tanahashi def Toru Yano — (8:53, High Fly Flow)
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This was alright. Yano seemed a bit gassed and messed up a spot or two.
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Post match promo from Tana: “Thank you all for coming today! We didn't come here for a long time, but the connection we have with Noboribetsu exists now because of Toru Yano. 23 of my 25 year career has been with Yano, and I'm grateful to be able to fight him like I did today. Thank you, Yano-kun. I really want you to keep working hard.”
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He gives the still selling Yano the mic. “Oi Tanahashi! No, Tanahashi-san. Thank you.”
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“I'm glad I could fight you like this one more time. I'm sorry to put you in a spot like this, to say this in this spot, but I'm Noboribetsu ambassador, and now I'm going to be ambassador for Muroran. I'd like to do the swearing in right here.”
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Two government officials come in and present Yano with a certificate and sash anointing him an ambassador for Mororan, another Hokkaido town.
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Yano cuts another short promo about his brand new dual ambassadorships, and then turns the mic over to Tana.
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Tana thanks Yano again. The other 6-man participants come in the ring, except Despe who’s still selling the Iron Fingers. Tana encourages him to come to the ring and the YL help him do so.
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Tana thanks the crowd one more time, and leads them in an “Aishitemasu” and “Yano! To Ru!” call.
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Everyone else leaves, Tana takes time to do a bunch of fanservice.
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by EffingKENTA