Event: JUST TAP OUT “Queen of JTO Tournament”
Date: December 6th, 2020
Location: Isami Wrestling Arena in Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance: Unknown

So you are wondering, perhaps, why I am giving so much attention to JTO recently when they not only aren’t a Joshi promotion but aren’t a major indie either. I don’t really have an explanation, it may just be because I like masked wrestlers and JTO has a handful of masked wrestlers. Maybe I just want to watch something different. Who knows. But this is a fun show from JTO as it is a complete Joshi event, as the entire card is the Queen of JTO Tournament! Not only is it a tournament but it is being used to find the official rankings of their female roster to end the year. We get to see a number of new wrestlers on the show so that should be fun, here is the full (and unspoiled) card:

• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Aki Shizuku vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Black R vs. rhythm
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Black Changita vs. Misa Kagura
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Tomoka Inaba vs. YuuRI
• Queen of JTO Semifinal: Shizuku or Yanagawa vs. Black R or rhythm
• Queen of JTO Semifinal: Black Changita or Kagura vs. Inaba or YuuRI
• Four Way Elimination Match (wrestlers eliminated in Quarterfinals)
• Queen of JTO Final

I recently updated the JTO Roster page, so all the wrestlers on the show have a profile on Joshi City. You can click on their name above to go straight to it. Since this aired on NicoPro, all matches will be shown in full. Let’s hop to it.

Aki Shizuku vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa

They tie-up to start and Aki easily throws Sumikaba to the mat, Sumikaba gets back up and hits a few elbows, but Aki elbows her hard in the chest to send her back down. Returning to her feet, kicks by Sumikaba but Aki boots her to the mat. Sumikaba goes for a snapmare but Aki blocks it and hits a series of snapmares of her own, Sumikaba continues trying to fight back but Aki kicks her back down. Elbows by Sumikaba and she goes for a snapmare but Aki blocks it and hits a scoop slam. Aki goes for a scoop slam but Sumikaba slides away and kicks her in the head, Sumikaba finally delivers the snapmare she wanted so badly but Aki swats away her dropkick. Argentine Backbreaker by Aki, and Sumikaba quickly taps out! Aki Shizuku is the winner and advances in the tournament.

They definitely went hard down the “veteran vs. rookie” path. A very one-sided match, which isn’t a surprise but for a lower level promotion it wouldn’t have hurt them any to give Sumikaba a little bit of a chance to show more. Nothing really to it, a skippable opener.

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Black R vs. rhythm

They circle each other to start before locking up, they trade wristlocks until rhythm puts Black R in a headlock. Black R Irish whips out of it, rhythm goes for shoulderblocks but Black R stays up and hits a hard shoulderblock of her own. rhythm gets back up and knocks Black R over, scoop slam by rhythm and she hits a running elbow in the corner. Another elbow by rhythm and she hits a third, she goes off the ropes and hits an elbow drop. rhythm picks up Black R but Black R blocks the slam attempt, hitting her own scoop slam. Footstomp by Black R and she puts rhythm in a modified chinlock, she switches it to a stretch hold before releasing her. Black R avoids rhythm’s charge in the corner and snaps her head on the top rope, running kick by Black R and she throws rhythm into the ropes before kneeing her in the back. Crab hold by Black R but rhythm gets to the ropes for the break. rhythm spins away from Black R and hits a series of elbows, bulldog by rhythm and she covers Black R for two. rhythm applies a choke but Black R gets to the ropes, rhythm picks up Black R and hits a few elbows, Black R ducks one and goes for a slam but rhythm lands on top of her. Backdrop suplex by Black R, she goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a body press to rhythm’s back. Black R gets rhythm onto her shoulders into the R Special (Canadian Backbreaker), and rhythm submits! Black R wins and continues on in the tournament.

The main takeaway from this match is that these two don’t have very good chemistry yet. They are both rookies, or rookiesque so its not the end of the world, but I wouldn’t say this was a quality encounter. rhythm’s moves lack impact and while Black R looked better, they weren’t really able to put on a cohesive match with any flow to it. Both still have a little ways to go, some base talent is there but improvements need to be made if they want to progress.

Black Changita vs. Misa Kagura

Misa charges Black Changita as the bell rings and elbows her repeatedly in the chest, but Black Changita kicks Misa to the mat and puts her in a crab hold. Misa gets to the ropes for the break, stomps by Black Changita and she elbows Misa in the head. Black Changita chokes Misa with her own pigtails before applying a cross-arm choke, she lets go after a moment and chokes Misa in the corner. Snapmare by Black Changita and she elbows Misa in the top of the head again, chinlock by Black Changita and she kicks Misa in the back. Kick to the chest by Black Changita and she knees Misa into the corner, Black Changita charges Misa but Misa knocks her back and hits a dropkick. Misa clubs Black Changita into the corner and goes for a move but never can get it locked in. She tries again but Black Changita walks her out of the corner, cradle by Misa but Black Changita kicks out of the hold. Kick to the head by Black Changita and she puts Misa in the Changi Hold. Misa struggles for a moment but has to tap out! Black Changita wins the match and continues on in the tournament.

Misa is still of course early in her career but she didn’t show a lot here. Black Changita looked better but mostly by comparison. This first round is rough as these wrestlers are so inexperienced, and the matches are so short that any type of mistake feels amplified. Another match in this tournament with limited need for viewing.

Tomoka Inaba vs. YuuRI

YuuRI attacks Tomoka before the bell rings and elbows her to the mat, mounted elbows by YuuRI and she snapmares Tomoka a few times. Drop toehold by Tomoka, she finally gets her judogi off before YuuRI goes for a takedown, which Tomoka blocks. They trade waistlocks until Tomoka gets the better position and snaps on YuuRI’s ankle. Tomoka stays on YuuRI’s ankle as she works it over with submissions and kicks, YuuRI fights back with an elbow and the two trade shots. Tomoka goes off the ropes but YuuRI applies a sleeper, Tomoka elbows her off but YuuRI gets it re-applied. YuuRI keeps the hold applied while she sits on the top turnbuckle but the referee gets her to break the hold, however YuuRI immediately jumps back on Tomoka’s back and puts the hold back in. She lets go after a moment and kicks Tomoka in the back, she goes for a Tiger Feint Kick but misses it (Tomoka was going to block it anyway). Ankle hold by Tomoka but YuuRI stands up and hits an enzuigiri to get out of it, she goes off the ropes but Tomoka does as well and applies a sleeper. YuuRI kicks out of the hold but Tomoka puts her in an ankle hold, Tomoka locks it in and YuuRI has no choice but to submit! Tomoka Inaba wins and advances in the tournament.

This was definitely the best match of the first round, although that was a pretty low bar to clear. Its hard to tell what Tomoka’s future will be as JTO is too small of a promotion for her to really get much attention or quality opponents, but she looks pretty good concerning her experience/opponent level. YuuRI is still raw and not everything she did was smooth, but at least she was aggressive and didn’t look as out of place as the other November debuting wrestlers. I still wouldn’t say this was a great match but it told a logical story and kept things moving, so it ended up decent anyway.

Aki Shizuku vs. Black R

They jockey for position to start as Aki gets Black R to the mat, Black R gets out of her grasp however and hits a hard shoulderblock. Black R applies a leg submission hold but lets go after a moment, snapmare by Black R and she puts Aki in a stretch hold. Black R picks up Aki and clubs her in the back, Irish whip by Black R but Aki avoids her charge. Lariat by Black R and she hits a Stunner followed by a boot before putting Aki in a Fujiwara Armbar. Aki rolls out of it but Black R gets the hold re-applied, she switches the hold to the Cattle Mutilation but Aki gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Black R stays on Aki’s arm but Aki hits a sidewalk slam, elbow drop by Aki and she hits a body press. Aki applies a keylock but Black R wiggles to the ropes for the break, wristlock by Aki and she clubs Black R into the corner. Lariat by Aki, she flings Black R to the mat and puts her in the Fujiwara Armbar. Black R gets back to her feet and gets out of the hold with a backdrop suplex, German suplex by Black R and she puts Aki in a single leg crab hold. Aki gets to the ropes for the break, Black R picks up Aki but Aki rolls her to the mat and applies an ankle hold. Black R gets out of it but Aki blocks the R Special attempt and applies an armbar. Black R gets Aki’s back and hits another German suplex, but Aki returns to her feet and delivers a lariat. Another lariat by Aki, she picks up Black R and hits a death valley bomb. Argentine Backbreaker by Aki, and Black R submits! Aki Shizuku advances to the Finals of the tournament.

I refer to Black R as a rookie but there is no way of knowing if she really is. JTO claims her as such but her identity isn’t known, they could just be messing with us. She doesn’t really wrestle like one, using a wide variety of moves that we simply don’t see from the other JTO rookies and at times controlled the action against the veteran Aki Shizuku. Also the longest match on the show so far, the match went by quickly as they kept things interesting, with Black R seeming to be just a R Special away from picking up the upset. An even back-and-forth match, my only complaint is Black R never got payback on Aki for her no-sell spot but otherwise a solid match.  Mildly Recommended

Black Changita vs. Tomoka Inaba

Kick by Black Changita to start and she goes for Tomoka’s arm, wristlock by Black Changita and she wraps Tomoka’s arm in the top rope so she can twist on it. Irish whip by Black Changita and she puts Tomoka in an armbar, Tomoka rolls out of it so Black Changita switches to a cross armbreaker attempt. She gives up and kicks Tomoka in the arm before going back to the hold, Tomoka rolls away again but Black Changita goes for a double armbar. Tomoka gets into the ropes for the break, kicks to the arm by Black Changita and she applies the cross armbreaker. Tomoka quickly inches to the ropes to get the break, stomps by Black Changita and she hits a series of vertical suplexes. Black Changita goes for a submission but Tomoka quickly slips away and puts Black Changita in the ankle hold. Black Changita gets to the ropes for the break, Black Changita goes for a kick but Tomoka ducks it. Black Changita goes for Tomoka’s arm but Tomoka gets away and delivers a PK. Ankle hold by Tomoka and she switches it to the T Lock (modified Figure Four Leglock), getting a quick tap out from Black Changita! Tomoka Inaba wins and advances to the Finals.

The match had some clear structural issues, with Tomoka doing very little limb work to weaken the leg as Black Changita controlled the submission game for much of the match, but I did come away impressed with Black Changita. In previous matches I saw with her, she was mostly a lackey but once she got to show her skill on her own she seems to really know what she is doing. Like with Black R, I don’t know for 100% certain that she is actually a rookie, but if she is, she is pretty smooth. The match was too short and poorly laid out to recommend, but both wrestlers themselves looked pretty good.

Misa Kagura vs. rhythm vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa vs. YuuRI

Everyone goes after rhythm to start the match, rhythm fights them off at first but eventually is stomped down in the corner. All three hit running strikes on rhythm in the corner, Misa then knocks over both YuuRI and Sumikaba before kicking rhythm. Armdrags by Misa to rhythm and she dropkicks rhythm, lariat by Misa and she gets on her back to apply a submission hold. Cradle by Misa and she puts rhythm in a crab hold, but Sumikaba breaks it up for unknown reasons. YuuRI kicks Sumikaba and the two trade elbows, Misa tries to interrupt but she gets knocked to the mat. YuuRI and Sumikaba keep going at it until Misa has seen enough and puts them both in a crab hold. rhythm breaks it up as now I hate the match, but Misa lariats rhythm. rhythm elbows Misa in the corner and connects with a running back elbow, but Sumikaba boots rhythm. Sumikaba kicks over YuuRI as well before putting Misa in the Sickle Hold. Misa submits, so Misa Kagura is eliminated from the match. YuuRI quickly puts Sumikaba in a sleeper but rhythm breaks it up, so she puts rhythm in the sleeper instead. rhythm gets out of it, YuuRI puts the sleeper back on Sumikaba before letting go and kicking her in the back. Tiger Feint Kick by YuuRI but rhythm grabs YuuRI and hits a bulldog. rhythm puts YuuRI in a cross arm submission, and YuuRI submits! YuuRI is eliminated from the match. rhythm picks up Sumikaba but Sumikaba hits a heel kick, she applies the Sickle Hold  but rhythm quickly gets out of it and puts Sumikaba in the rhythm Lock. Sumikaba struggles for a second but has to tap out! rhythm wins the match.

There are fewer bigger sins in professional wrestling than wrestlers breaking up pins/submissions in elimination matches. Unless they are BFFs going into the match, there is no reason for it, it breaks all logic and is an inexcusable wrestling trope. So that alone annoyed me, and nothing they did action-wise overcame that annoyance. Course, a six minute four wrestler elimination match was a tough sell anyway. None of the wrestlers looked particularly bad here but still a skippable match.

Aki Shizuku vs. Tomoka Inaba

They trade holds on the mat to start the match, side headlock takedown by Aki but Tomoka reverses it into a headscissors before both return to their feet. Aki slams Tomoka and goes for a cross armbreaker, but Tomoka quickly rolls to the ropes for the break. Scoop slam by Aki and she hits another one, a third scoop slam by Aki but this one Tomoka blocks and applies an ankle hold. She lets go to slam Aki’s knee repeatedly into the mat, kneelock by Tomoka but Aki gets out of the hold. Kick to the chest by Tomoka and she twists on Aki’s leg before applying the ankle hold. Aki gets to the bottom rope for the break, stomps by Tomoka and she elbows Aki repeatedly in the chest. Pump Kick by Tomoka but Aki fires back with a lariat, Aki picks up Tomoka and gets her on her shoulders to throw her into the corner. Lariat by Aki and she puts Tomoka in a Fujiwara Armbar, she switches to a keylock but Tomoka gets to the ropes. Aki picks up Tomoka and yanks on her arm, she gets Tomoka on her shoulders but Tomoka slides away and hits a Pump Kick.

Tomoka jumps on Aki’s back and applies a sleeper hold, but she lets go to kick Aki repeatedly. PK by Tomoka and she snaps on Aki’s leg before applying a submission hold. Aki gets to the ropes for the break, Tomoka goes off the ropes but Aki blocks the kick. Lariat by Aki but Tomoka kicks her in the head and both wrestlers end up on the mat. Tomoka applies a kneelock but Aki gets out of it and twists on Tomoka’s arm before clubbing her in the back. Aki grabs Tomoka but Tomoka knees her in the head, lariat by Aki and she gets Tomoka up in the Argentine Backbreaker. Tomoka squeezes on Aki’s head to get out of it and puts her in a sleeper hold, but Aki gets away and hits a sliding lariat. Aki picks up Tomoka and hits a lariat, death valley bomb by Aki and she gets Tomoka up in the Argentine Backbreaker. Tomoka is too weak to get out of the hold and has to tap out! Aki Shizuku wins the match and the tournament.

As a side note, I just realized on this entire event there was maybe one or two pin attempts. I know the name of the promotion is JUST TAP OUT but they really seem to embrace that method of winning matches. Anyway, this was fine. Aki is never going to have matches that go beyond a certain level, she is a competent but not an overly exciting wrestler. Tomoka looked ok but I wish she did more to weaken her opponent’s leg as her first leg move was the ankle hold which is also one of her finishing holds. Slam the leg into the ring post, jump on it, do something different to set everything up. The ending stretch was entertaining as I like matches that have a definitive ending, which this one certainly did. A good enough way to end the tournament, but it won’t set the world on fire.  Mildly Recommended

The post JUST TAP OUT “Queen of JTO Tournament” on 12/6/20 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: JUST TAP OUT GIRLS 2
Date: February 18th, 2020
Location: Ice Ribbon Dojo in Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance: 104

While this is a very small show, I didn’t want to miss it for a few different reasons. First, I always enjoy seeing new wrestlers and I haven’t seen a lot of Tomoka Inaba or Maika yet since both are still in the first year of their careers. Second, I dunno who Black Changita is but I am intrigued. And finally, with Kagetsu retiring I want to see as many of her matches on her final tour to different promotions as I possibly can. Plus we have an Andras Miyagi appearance as well. Here is the full card:

• Black Changita vs. Tomoka Inaba
• Aki Shizuku vs. Andras Miyagi
• Kagetsu vs. Maika

As this aired on NicoPro, all matches will be shown in full. All the wrestlers on the show have profiles on Joshi City except for Black Changita, you can click on their name above to go straight to it.

Black Changita vs. Tomoka Inaba

Black Changita immediately catches Tomoka with a strike combination, punch to the gut by Black Changita and Tomoka crumbles to the mat. Black Changita picks up Tomoka and hits more punches, knees by Black Changita and she hits a running knee for a two count. Black Changita applies an armtrap crossface but Tomoka quickly gets to the ropes to force the break. Black Changita kicks Tomoka into the corner and stomps on her, she stands up Tomoka and kicks her some more. She charges at Tomoka but Tomoka moves and boots her in the face, leg kick by Black Changita and Black Changita bails out of the ring to re-group. She eventually returns but Tomoka knees her as she gets on the apron, Black Changita punches her in the midsection and connects with a series of kicks.

Head kick by Black Changita, she covers Tomoka but Tomoka barely kicks out. Black Changita applies the armtrap crossface again, but Tomoka gets a hand on the ropes. Black Changita waits for Tomoka to get up but Tomoka blocks her kick and hits a kick of her own, high kick by Tomoka and she kicks Black Changita in the back. She goes for a PK but Black Changita ducks it and applies a Cobra Twist. Tomoka gets to the ropes again, Black Changita picks her up but Tomoka delivers a quick head kick. Tomoka sits up Black Changita and hits a PK, cover by Tomoka but it gets a two count. Tomoka applies a knee lock but Black Changita muscles into better position and holds down Tomoka for the three count! Black Changita is the winner.

What an odd little match. For the bulk of it, Black Changita was attempting to assert her will with strikes, some looking good but most not so much. Then she wins with basically a submission cutback, which is fine in most cases but she went from dominating heel to winning almost by fluke in a span of five minutes. Tomoka looked ok I guess but she still has a lot of room for growth. Not a good match, or a particularly interesting one, would have preferred Black Changita just dominate Tomoka and pick up the win with a strike to make it a more memorable victory.

Aki Shizuku vs. Andras Miyagi

They are slow to engage with Andras in particular being in no rush to get things started, so Aki attacks her from behind. Andras exits the ring and walks around the crowd, she eventually returns but Aki exits the ring as she does as they play mind games. Aki gets back in the ring but Andras exits it again. Aki finally gets tired of this and goes out to get Andras, she brings her back into the ring and clubs on her back. Aki goes for a shoulderblock but Andras stays up, Andras tries as well but has the same result. Finally Aki shoulderblocks Andras over, elbow drops by Aki and she puts Andras in a stretch hold. She lets go after a moment but Andras gets her to the mat and applies a modified armbar with a headscissors. She lets go and stomps on Aki, snapmare by Andras and she applies a headlock. She only lets go so she can complain to the referee, about what I am not sure, before going back to Aki and choking her with her boot. Aki tries to fight back but Andras clubs her and puts Aki in a chinlock. Andras kicks Aki in the back of the head and tries to throw her into the corner, Aki reverses it but Andras gets her from the back.

DDT by Andras and she kicks Aki out of the ring, she goes out after her and goes for the piledriver, but Aki blocks it. Andras charges Aki but Aki moves and hits the ring post by accident, lariat by Aki and she gets back into the ring. Andras slowly returns as well, lariat by Aki but Andras blocks the fisherman buster. Spear by Aki, she waits for Andras to get up and hits a lariat in the corner. Fisherman buster by Aki, and she covers Andras for two. Aki picks up Andras but Andras slides away, she uses the referee as a shield before dropping Aki with a tombstone piledriver. Cover by Andras, but the referee won’t count due to the Shield Incident. Andras gets a chair slid to her by Black Changita and hits the referee with it, she then hits Aki in the head with the chair before hitting a tombstone piledriver on it. The referee has seen enough after that, and DQs Andras. Your winner is Aki Shizuku!

Well that was a match. I know a popular heel shtick is to waste time, thus making the crowd hate you, but its 2020 and I am over that method of getting boos. I want to watch two people wrestle, not someone kill five minutes. And the payoff wasn’t really worth it anyway as they went straight into introductory trading of holds instead of anything interesting. Then they traded long submissions, all to get to the point which was Andras not caring about the rules and getting herself DQed. I have no issue with the ending, it puts over Andras as being a loose cannon, but the path to get there with the long submission holds and meandering action wasn’t worth it. Have her do that five minutes into the match, not after applying a two minute chinlock. Just a poorly structured match and I continue to be concerned about the immediate future of Andras Miyagi.

Kagetsu vs. Maika

They circle each other to start before locking up, armdrag by Maika and she applies a headlock. Kagetsu reverses it into a headscissors but Maika gets out of that and goes back to the headlock. Kagetsu reverses it but Maika gets into the ropes, forcing the break. Back up, kicks to the chest by Kagetsu and she snapmares Maika before applying a chinlock. She lets go and tosses Maika out of the ring, she takes Maika up into the crowd and throws her into a row of chairs. Kagetsu buries Maika under a bunch of chairs, giving no one a place to sit down, before taking Maika back to ringside and into the ring. Kagetsu gets on the apron and hits a swandive missile dropkick, she taunts Maika and throws her into the corner, hitting a jumping elbow. Running single leg kick by Kagetsu, she snapmares Maika and covers her for two. Kagetsu applies a submission hold but Maika gets into the ropes, Kagetsu gets a bottle of water and takes a drink before spitting some into Maika’s face. Kagetsu goes off the ropes but Maika catches her with a toss and applies a cross armbreaker. Kagetsu inches to the ropes and quickly makes it to get the break, Maika stomps on Kagetsu’s arm in the corner before delivering a running kick to it. Fujiwara Armbar by Maika which she switches to an armlock, but Kagetsu gets to the ropes again.

Back up, strike combination by Kagetsu and she hits a vertical suplex, cover by Kagetsu but Maika kicks out. Kagetsu picks up Maika and hits a Samoan Drop, but that gets a two count as well. Kagetsu goes off the ropes and hits a running knee, cover by Kagetsu but Maika gets a shoulder up. Kagetsu picks up Maika but Maika slides away and goes back to the cross armbreaker. She reverts it to a Triangle Choke attempt and she gets it locked on, but Kagetsu manages to stand up and get out of the hold. Maika goes for the STO but Kagetsu blocks it, elbow by Kagetsu but Maika elbows her back and the two trade strikes. Maika pulls down Kagetsu by the hair and armdrags her around the ring, monkey flip by Maika and she hits the STO. Cover by Maika, but it gets a two count. Maika picks up Kagetsu but Kagetsu knees her in the midsection, Kagetsu charges Maika but Maika slams her to the mat. Kagetsu tosses Maika into the corner towards the referee but the referee moves to avoid the collision, Kagetsu tries again but this time hits the referee. He doesn’t go down though and is staring at Kagetsu when she spits red mist into Maika’s face (I guess he didn’t get the memo), Kagetsu slams Maika in front of the corner and nails the Oedo Coaster for the three count! Kagetsu is your winner!

Even though it may not have been a main-event quality match, this was still pretty solid. As I figured, Kagetsu gave the rookie quite a bit of offense and it was far from one-sided, with Maika having several opportunities to win and Kagetsu selling for her offense pretty hard. The match started slow, for a short-ish match I think the “outside the ring” brawling could have been reduced some, but once they got back into the ring it stayed pretty engaging the rest of the match. The funniest part was the referee either not knowing the spot or not knowing he was supposed to look away when Kagetsu did the mist as he was not only looking at her but reacted to it. Its a *wink wink* thing since obviously the referee will always see the mist everywhere afterwards, but in theory its an illegal move so they should be looking in a different direction when the move is done. Anyway, a little clunky at times but overall a fun match, Maika still has a ways to go but the foundation is there to be a great wrestler down the road.  Mildly Recommended

The post JTO GIRLS 2 on 2/18/20 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

So I found out just a few days ago that Marvelous, a promotion run by Chigusa Nagayo, started live-streaming their events in June. This makes Marvelous just the second Joshi promotion to live stream any Joshi events, with DDT’s Tokyo Joshi Pro being the first. This isn’t a big show, however it is a bit special as Queen’s Quest from Stardom invade. They are also celebrating KAORU’s anniversary, plus we get Best Friends action! Here is the full card:

• Hiroe Nagahama vs. Miki Tanaka
• Aki Shizuku and Yako Fujigasaki vs. Yuiga and Natsu Sumire
• Mio Momono and Maruko Nagasaki vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto and Arisa Nakajima
• AZM and HZK vs. Takumi Iroha and Rin Kadokura
• Chikayo Nagashima and KAORU vs. Yuu Yamagata and Tomoko Watanabe

All matches are shown in full! All the wrestlers on the show have profiles on the website, you can click on their names above to go straight to their profile.

Hiroe Nagahama vs. Miki Tanaka

Hiroe and Miki lock up, Hiroe pushes Miki into the ropes and gives her an elbow instead of a clean break. Dropkick by Miki and she hits a few more, but Hiroe regains the advantage and snapmares Miki to the mat before applying a stretch hold. Bodyscissors by Hiroe, she picks up Miki but Miki blocks her slam attempt. Hiroe Irish whips Miki into the corner and hits a dropkick, another dropkick by Hiroe and she hits two more for a two count cover. Crab hold by Hiroe but Miki gets to the ropes, stomps by Hiroe but Miki returns to her feet and the two trade elbows. Miki tries to shoulderblock Hiroe over, she isn’t able to but she knocks Hiroe to the mat with a hard push and hits a scoop slam for two. Miki picks up Hiroe and hits a dropkick, rebound crossbody by Hiroe out of the corner but it gets a two count. Vertical suplex by Hiroe, she goes up top but Miki bops her in the head and tosses her back to the mat. Dropkick by Miki, and she covers Hiroe for two. Miki goes off the ropes but Hiroe rocks her with an elbow, Miki sneaks in a few flash pins but can’t keep Hiroe down for three. Dropkick by Hiroe, she goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick for a two count. Hiroe picks up Miki and delivers a Northern Lights Suplex, but that gets a two as well. Hiroe puts Miki in the Long Beach, and Miki submits! Hiroe Nagahama is the winner.

About what you’d expect from a rookie opener. Hiroe continues to improve, she looked better here than last time I saw her, but she is still missing that something special that is needed to really climb up the card. Still, she led young Miki well here and there weren’t any miscommunications. Not a bad way to kick off the show.

Aki Shizuku and Yako Fujigasaki vs. Yuiga and Natsu Sumire

Yako and Shizuku double team Natsu to start the match since she was being rude to them, but Natsu hits a jumping neck drop on both of them and tags in Yuiga. Scoop slam by Yuiga to Yako and she rolls over her a few times before covering her for two. Yuiga goes to tag in Natsu but Natsu isn’t interested, Yako takes over on offense and makes the tag to Shizuku. Shizuku elbows Yuiga but Yuiga elbows her back and they trade blows. Camel Clutch by Shizuku and she throws Yuiga into the corner so she can choke her with her boot. Shizuku tags Yako back in, Yako puts Yuiga in the Muta Lock and then into a stretch hold but Yuiga gets out of it. She tries to tag in Natsu but Natsu still isn’t interested, suplex by Yuiga to Yako and she gets a two count. Yako knocks Natsu off the apron and hits a hip attack onto Yuiga, Yuiga tags Natsu against her will and Yako knocks her down with a hip attack. More hip attacks by Yako, she picks up Natsu but Natsu elbows her off. Yako returns fire and they trade shots until Natsu hits a neck drop. Hip attack by Yako and she hits a Northern Lights Suplex, but Natsu kicks out at two.

Yako tags in Shizuku, lariat by Shizuku to Natsu in the corner and Yako returns to help Shizuku hit a body avalanche. Natsu comes back with a running boot, bridging suplex by Natsu and she gets a two. Natsu throws Shizuku down in the corner and hits the Bronco Buster, she goes up top and delivers a diving crossbody for a two count. Big lariat by Shizuku and she hits a chokeslam, cover by Shizuku but Natsu barely gets a shoulder up. Shizuku picks up Natsu while Yako goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, Natsu lands in her corner and tags in Yuiga. High kick by Yuiga and she hits a swinging neckbreaker, she picks up Shizuku but Shizuku elbows her off. Shizuku goes for a Death Valley Bomb but Yuiga slides away and rolls her up for two. Fisherman suplex hold by Yuiga, she goes up top but Yako runs in and tosses her to the mat. Spear by Shizuku to Yuiga, Yako goes up top and hits a diving bodypress, cover by Shizuku but it gets a two count. Shizuku picks up Yuiga but Yuiga knees her off and hits a German suplex hold for two. Yuiga picks up Shizuku but Natsu boots Yuiga by accident, lariat by Shizuku to Natsu, she then nails a Death Valley Bomb onto Yuiga for the three count! Aki Shizuku and Yako Fujigasaki win!

There was a bit of a storyline coming into the match that I didn’t fully grasp since I don’t understand Japanese, but it was an odd match. Natsu didn’t want to be Yuiga’s partner so she wasn’t being overly cooperative, and its hard to win a tag match when your partner isn’t breaking up pins and what not. Shizuku looked pretty solid though, she stuck out the most in the match, but overall not a whole lot to it.

Mio Momono and Maruko Nagasaki vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto and Arisa Nakajima

Mio and Maruko attack Best Friends before the match officially starts, they dropkick their opponents into the corners repeatedly but Best Friends recover and return the favor. Tsukasa stays in with Mio and tosses her around before tagging Arisa, Arisa armdrags Mio to the mat before putting her in an armbar. Scoop slam by Arisa and she tags Tsukasa back in as they take turns on offense against young Mio. Mio finally gets away and tags in Maruko, but Arisa immediately scoop slams her, Tsukasa comes over but Maruko fights them both off and dropkicks Tsukasa in the chest. Elbows by Maruko but Tsukasa dropkicks her, she puts Maruko in the ropes and dropkicks her in the back. Tsukasa tags in Arisa, big boot by Arisa to Maruko and she hits a dropkick off the second turnbuckle. Maruko elbows Arisa and they exchange shots, scoop slam by Maruko but Arisa stops her from tagging out and hits a backdrop suplex. Dropkick by Maruko and she finally tags in Mio, Mio dropkicks Arisa a few times but Arisa boots Mio in the head. Dropkick by Mio, she picks up Arisa but Arisa knees her in the head and hits a running boot. Maruko comes in and with Mio they dropkick Arisa, Cutie Special by Arisa and she makes the tag to Tsukasa. Maruko again comes in and they double dropkick Tsukasa, diving crossbody by Mio and she picks up a two count. Elbows by Mio but Tsukasa doesn’t go down, Maruko again comes in and they both take turns elbowing Tsukasa. Tsukasa dropkicks both of them to the mat, Tsukasa puts Mio in a crab hold but Mio gets into the ropes. Tsukasa gets Mio on her shoulders but Mio rolls out and cradles Tsukasa for two. Mio goes off the ropes and rolls up Tsukasa, but Tsukasa kips up and kicks Mio in the head. Arisa comes in and they both dropkick Mio in the corner, Tsukasa goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick for a two count. Arisa suplexes Maruko to get her out of the ring, PK by Tsukasa to Mio but Mio kicks out of the cover. Tsukasa gets Mio on her shoulders again and this time she delivers the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex Hold for the three count! Best Friends win!

I wish the match was longer but I really loved it while it lasted. Mio and Maruko worked together so well in attempting to overcome Best Friends, with constant teamwork that never felt forced or out of place. Best Friends of course was solid but the story was Mio and Maruko and them doing everything possible to pull off the upset. It didn’t work of course, but it was a fun journey along the way. A fun match that just needed more time to really develop.  Mildly Recommended

AZM and HZK vs. Takumi Iroha and Rin Kadokura

Rin and AZM are the first two in, Rin pushes AZM against the ropes but she gives a clean break. AZM quickly takes Rin to the mat and they struggle for position before reaching a stalemate. Takumi and HZK are tagged in, Takumi goes for a waistlock but HZK quickly reverses it as they go back and forth. Irish whip by HZK but Takumi shoulderblocks her down, HZK kips up and goes off the ropes, but Takumi hits an armdrag. HZK rebounds off the ropes and hits an armdrag of her own, and they too end up facing off across the ring once again. Takumi and HZK lock knuckles, knee by Takumi and she hits a scoop slam followed by a body press, but AZM breaks up the cover. AZM stomps on Takumi and with HZK they double team her until Rin runs in to help. Kick to the chest by Takumi  to HZK, double Irish whip and HZK eats a double back elbow. Dropkick by Takumi to the face, leg drop by Rin and they hit an assisted face buster onto HZK for two. Takumi tags Rin, Rin goes for a dropkick but HZK side steps it and hits a scoop slam. She tags in AZM, AZM puts Rin by the ropes and hits a series of footstomps. Scoop slam by AZM, HZK returns as legal and dropkicks Rin in the chest. Kick to the back by AZM but Rin hits a dropkick and tags Takumi. Takumi elbows both AZM and HZK, she goes for a suplex but HZK gets in the ring to help. Takumi instead hits a vertical suplex on both of them, kicks by Takumi to HZK and then then superkicks AZM to make her DDT AZM. Takumi kicks AZM in the back, scoop slam by Takumi and she tags Rin. Dropkick by Rin but AZM bridges out of the pin. AZM goes for a crossbody but Rin catches her, scoop slam by Rin but AZM slaps her in the face. AZM goes off the ropes and applies a hanging armbar, schoolboy by AZM but it gets two. AZM dropkicks Rin in the corner but Rin returns the favor, two more dropkicks by AZM and she covers Rin for a two count. AZM tags HZK, dropkick by HZK and she applies a dragon sleeper. Rin gets to the ropes for the break, HZK goes off the ropes but Rin dropkicks her.

Another dropkick by Rin, she picks up HZK but HZK sneaks in a cradle for two. HZK goes for the Pump Kick but Rin ducks it and tries a few flash pins of her own, none getting her the three count. Rin goes off the ropes but HZK chops her to the mat, HZK slams Rin in front of the corner but Rin avoids the diving senton. Hurricanrana by Rin, but HZK gets a shoulder up. Rin tags Takumi, kicks to the chest by Takumi and she dropkicks HZK in the corner. HZK avoids her next charge however and hits a dropkick of her own, bootscrapes by HZK and she nails the running boot to the side of Takumi’s head. Takumi elbows her back and the two trade blows, slap by HZK and she delivers the full nelson slam for two. Armtrap crossface by HZK while AZM takes care of Rin, HZK lets go after a moment but Takumi slaps her in the face. Superkick by Takumi, but HZK kicks out of the cover. Takumi deadlifts HZK and hits a release German, Rin comes in and they double team HZK. Takumi gets on the top turnbuckle but HZK recovers and joins her, elbows by HZK but Takumi knocks her back to the mat and delivers the Frog Splash for two. Takumi picks up HZK but HZK blocks the powerbomb, Takumi goes off the ropes but HZK hits the Pump Kick for a two count cover. Codebreaker by HZK and she applies a bodyscissors into a cradle for two. HZK tags in AZM, diving crossbody by AZM and she hits a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Dropkick by AZM and she goes for a suplex, but Takumi reverses it into a suplex of her own. Takumi goes for a powerbomb but AZM reverses it into a cradle, bridging cover by AZM but Rin breaks it up. AZM picks up Takumi and hits a vertical suplex, she gets the Wing Clutch applied but Rin breaks it up again. Takumi kicks AZM in the head, she picks her up for the powerbomb but HZK breaks it up. Rin comes in too and they both superkick HZK, kick to the head by Takumi to AZM and she covers her for two. Takumi positions AZM, she goes up top and nails the Swanton Bomb for the three count! Takumi Iroha and Rin Kadokura win!

A really entertaining match, hopefully a feud that will continue down the road. This is the best I’ve seen of AZM, so either she just needs a new environment to come out of her shell or she felt inspired being in a notable inter-promotional match (this was just her second match outside of Stardom). Takumi is great and was really bringing the hate, lots of hard strikes as she just has an aura around her that she always means business. HZK kept up with her fine and they had some quality back and forths. They also got plenty of time, which is always appreciated. This match is on Stardom World, so its pretty readily available, definitely worth tracking down.  Recommended 

Chikayo Nagashima and KAORU vs. Yuu Yamagata and Tomoko Watanabe

There are weapons scattered around as the bell rings, which happens prematurely as Chikayo and KAORU attack their opponents as they are getting into the ring. Chikayo and KAORU take their opponents into the crowd and around the ring before finally returning, with Chikayo holding a chair while KAORU has her ladder. Tomoko gets in the ring first but it immediately double teamed, KAORU puts the ladder around her neck and helicopters it into both of her opponents. Tomoko is driven into a chair, another chair is put on top of her before both Chikayo and KAORU drive the ladder down on top of her. They then set up the ladder, KAORU climbs it but Yuu runs in and pushes it over, sending KAORU crashing out of the ring. Yuu stays in as the legal wrestler and trades blows with Chikayo, kick to the head by Yuu and she chops Chikayo repeatedly in the chest. Yuu charges Chikayo in the corner but Chikayo boots her back and hits a headscissors, running boot by Chikayo and she tags in KAORU. Double boot to the face to Yuu and they hit a double vertical suplex, KAORU picks up Yuu and delivers a delayed brainbuster. Cover, but Tomoko breaks it up. This gives Yuu time to recover, high kick by Yuu but Chikayo grabs her lag before she can tag in Tomoko. Yuu kicks Chikayo back and tags in Tomoko anyway, Tomoko clears house with lariats before covering KAORU. KAORU bridges out of the pin, she gets her wooden board and whacks Tomoko repeatedly in the head with it until the board breaks.

She hits her with it some more for good measure, Tomoko is bleeding at this point while Chikayo drives the board onto her head. Frankensteiner off the top but Chikayo, hurricanrana by KAORU to Tomoko but Yuu breaks up the pin attempt. Yuu stays in to help but gets a chair thrown at her, Tomoko drops KAORU with Screw Driver but Chikayo breaks it up. Another one by Tomoko, but KAORU kicks out at one. Chikayo comes in and hits Tomoko with a chair, she takes another board shot but Tomoko fires back with a lariat to KAORU. Tomoko finally tags in Yuu while Chikayo is also tagged in, Chikayo drives Yuu’s head into the mat but Yuu fires back with a dropkick. Yuu goes up top and she nails a missile dropkick, but KAORU hits Yuu with the board which allows Chikayo to hit an uranage. Chikayo goes up top but Tomoko hits her from the apron, Yuu recovers and joins Chikayo, hitting a superplex. Somato by Yuu, but KAORU breaks up the cover. Yuu goes for a high kick by Chikayo blocks it and hits the fisherman buster, but Tomoko interrupts the pin. Chikayo picks up Yuu but Tomoko lariats her, front suplex by Yuu to Chikayo but KAORU breaks up the pin. Buzzsaw Kick by Yuu but KAORU hits her in the back of the head with the board, Tomoko hits KAORU but Chikayo spits mist in he face. KAORU returns and spits red mist into Yuu’s face, fisherman buster by Chikayo to Yuu and she picks up the three count! KAORU and Chikayo Nagashima win!

This wasn’t billed as a “hardcore” match but it may as well have been, as KAORU was not being shy about hitting people with her board. Tomoko in particular was on the wrong end of many shots, its a good thing she is hard headed as I think I got a concussion just from watching it. Definitely a crazy match and none of these four have lost a noticeable step, they were still diving off objects as always and Tomoko still drops a mean Screw Driver. It wasn’t a long main event but probably went about the right amount of time for what they were going for, and there was certainly always something going on to keep the match entertaining. I enjoyed it as its a nice change of pace from what we normally see on Joshi events, a fun match between four long time vets and a fitting match for KAORU’s anniversary.  Recommended

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Championships Held: TLW International Women’s Championship, REINA X World Tag Team Championship, and the IW-19 Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• November 5th, 2011 vs. Kana
• August 10th, 2012 vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto  (title win)
• May 5th, 2013 with Hailey Hatred vs. Command Bolshoi and Rabbit Miu  (title win)
• May 25th, 2014 with Aliya vs. Kaho Kobayashi and Makoto  (title win)

Signature Moves:

• Death Valley Bomb
• Spear

In Action:

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