Over the next eternity, I will be watching and reviewing all GAEA Japan events in order, starting with their debut show on April 15th, 1995. Visit the GAEA Japan Project page for a brief history of the promotion, the roster page, my favorite matches from the promotion, and the full list of all events reviewed. I will also be uploading my favorite match from each show so that everyone can enjoy it.

If you want to watch the GAEA Japan events I am reviewing, Mike Lorefice sells the complete seasons at a very reasonable price both via download and physical copy. Mike’s quebrada.net is one of the sites I’m using extensively to write these reviews, its a great resource for learning more about GAEA Japan and wrestling in general.

For the first time, I am reviewing a GAEA Japan COMM release! GAEA Japan generally aired on GAORA TV, but they also put out commercial tapes as well. Most of their later commercial tapes are compilations, but in 1995 and 1996 they released several that showed entire events. This isn’t their first commercial tape of 1995, however I decided to just review the TV broadcast of the other shows. This event was never shown on TV, however, and since I didn’t want to miss any events I tracked down the commercial DVD (you can get it too at the link above). The show featured a one night six woman tag team tournament, here is the full card:

• Super Scramble Six Women Tag Tournament: Chigusa Nagayo, Chikayo Nagashima, and Kobayashi vs. Hikari Fukuoka, Sonoko Kato, and Kanako Motoya
• Super Scramble Six Women Tag Tournament: Dynamite Kansai, Makie Numao, and Yasuko Kuragaki vs. KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi
• Battle Royal with Bolshoi Kid, Bomber Hikari, Chigusa Nagayo, Chihiro Nakano, Chikayo Nagashima, Cuty Suzuki, Devil Masami, Dynamite Kansai, Makie Numao, Mayumi Ozaki, Rieko Amano, Saburo, Tomoko Miyaguchi, Tomori Kobayashi, Toshie Sato, Toshie Uematsu, Yasuko Kuragaki, and Yuki Miyazaki
• Super Scramble Six Women Tag Final: Hikari Fukuoka, Sonoko Kato, and Kanako Motoya vs. KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi

Since this was shown on tape and not on TV, nothing will be clipped. You can click on the names above to go directly to that wrestler’s profile here on Joshi City.

Chigusa Nagayo, Chikayo, and Tomori Kobayashi vs. Hikari Fukuoka, Sonoko, and Kanako Motoya
Super Scramble Six Women Tag Tournament Semi Final

Chikayo and Kanako start the match but Tomori quickly tags in and they double team Kanako in the corner. Kanako swats them away when they go for a double dropkick and tags in Sonoko, Fukuoka comes in too but Nagayo gets in the ring and clears house. She starts working over Sonoko and hits a suplex, but Fukuoka breaks up the cover. Nagayo casually slaps Kanako before tagging in Tomori, Tomori works a headlock on Sonoko but Sonoko suplexes her to the mat and throws her into the corner. She tags in Fukuoka, Kanako comes in too and they both dropkick Tomori. Fukuoka whips Tomori around the ring while kicking her, stretch hold by Fukuoka but Chikayo eventually comes in to break it up. Fukuoka tags in Kanako, dropkick by Kanako and she covers Tomori for two. Kanako goes for a sleeper but Tomori quickly gets out of it and tags in Chikayo. Dropkick by Chikayo and she hits Kanako with two more, she picks up Kanako and applies a crossface before tagging in Nagayo. Nagayo throws Kanako into the opposite corner so that Fukuoka can tag in, kicks by Nagayo and she drills Fukuoka with a heel kick. Fukuoka catches the next kick attempt and apples a cross kneelock, but Tomori and Chikayo both run in to break it up.

Kanako and Sonoko take care of them, Kanako goes to help Fukuoka but Tomori and Chikayo run in again. They still can’t free Nagayo as Fukuoka and Kanako won’t let go, finally Nagayo reaches the ropes and both Kanako and Fukuoka release the hold. Fukuoka tags Sonoko, Sonoko applies a kneelock but Nagayo laughs it off (literally) and slaps Sonoko to get out of it. Nagayo tags Tomori, body blocks by Tomori to Sonoko and she covers her for two. Tomori wants Fukuoka so she tags in, Fukuoka elbows Tomori to the mat but Tomori keeps firing back. Tomori tosses Fukuoka to the mat and tags in Nagayo, piledriver by Nagayo but Kanako breaks up the cover. Giant Swing by Nagayo, Tomori comes in and she gives Fukuoka the Giant Swing as well. Tomori tags Chikayo and she does the same, as Fukuoka is probably pretty dizzy by now. Cover by Chikayo, but Kanako and Sonoko break it up. Kanako and Sonoko both put Chikayo in the Giant Swing now, which is easier since Chikayo is an itty bitty wrestler, Fukuoka returns to the ring and gives Chikayo one final Giant Swing before Kanako tags in and covers Chikayo for two. Chikayo bridges out of the next pin attempt and hits the front roll push, but Fukuoka hits her from behind with a missile dropkick.

Chikayo stumbles to her corner and tags in Tomori, Bubba Bomb by Tomori and Chikayo hits an assisted crossbody onto Kanako before Tomori covers her for two. Running kick by Kanako and she tags in Sonoko, bulldog by Sonoko to Tomori but Tomori blocks the next one. Fukuoka attacks Tomori from behind, but Nagayo kicks Sonoko in the head from the apron. Tomori tags in Nagayo, heel kick by Nagayo to Sonoko but the cover is broken up. Kicks by Nagayo, Fukuoka tags in and goes for a suplex, but Nagayo blocks it. Spinning headscissors by Fukuoka, she goes for a hurricanrana but Nagayo catches her and hits a powerbomb. Nagayo tags Chikayo, roll-up by Chikayo but Fukuoka kicks out. Fukuoka goes for a Space Rolling Elbow but Chikayo moves, Tomori tries to help with a missile dropkick but she hits Chikayo by accident. Moonsault by Fukuoka to Chikayo, but Nagayo breaks it up. Fukuoka picks up Chikayo and gives her an airplane spin, but again the cover is broken up by Chikayo’s friends. Powerbomb by Fukuoka to Chikayo, she goes up top and nails the Rider Kick to Chikayo’s chest for the three count! Hikari Fukuoka, Sonoko Kato, and Kanako Motoya win!

This was an incredibly fun match and a great way to kick things off. Everything clicked so well, the rookies were going 100% from bell to bell and Fukuoka/Nagayo did their bits when needed to support them. Nagayo was a bit of a dick but only towards her own trainees, as she generally respected Fukuoka’s offense and sold her injured leg for as long as one could expect. Everyone got a chance to shine and they kept up the pace to keep it interesting. Really solid six woman match to open the show.  Recommended

Dynamite Kansai, Makie Numao, and Yasuko Kuragaki vs. KAORU, Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi
Super Scramble Six Women Tag Tournament Semi Final

Kansai throws her rookie teammates at their opponents before the bell rings to give them an early advantage, they stack their opponents in the corner but KAORU quickly gains the advantage and hits a moonsault on Kansai for a two count. Kansai quickly gets back to her feet and hits a Northern Lights Suplex, KAORU and Kansai trade strikes until Makie and Yasuko come into the ring to help. Yasuko stays in as legal but KAORU quickly takes over and tags in Tomoko. Yasuko snapmares Tomoko around and tags in Makie, dropkicks by Makie and she covers Tomoko for two. Tomoko tags in Meiko, jumping shoulderblocks by Meiko and she covers Makie for a two count. Meiko applies a bodyscissors, she then puts Makie in a camel clutch but Yasuko breaks it up. Meiko tags in Tomoko, dropkicks by Tomoko but Makie slides around her and applies a schoolboy for two. Makie tags in Yasuko, Yasuko tosses Tomoko around the ring and hits a scoop slam. Headscissors by Yasuko and she drives Tomoko’s head into the mat, Kansai returns and she kicks Tomoko around the ring. Sleeper by Kansai, she throws Tomoko into the corner and tells KAORU to tag in. KAORU does, backdrop suplex by Kansai and she covers KAORU for two. Kansai puts KAORU in a Scorpion Deathlock, KAORU’s teammates try to break it up but Kansai doesn’t budge.

They finally get Kansai off, Kansai tags in Makie and Makie delivers a diving crossbody. KAORU slaps Makie and kicks her repeatedly before tagging in Meiko, Meiko applies a cross armbreaker, KAORU comes in and applies a cross armbreaker on the other arm too, but it gets broken up. Yasuko tags in while Meiko tags in KAORU, dropkick by KAORU and she covers Yasuko for two. KAORU applies a crab hold but Yasuko eventually gets to the ropes, KAORU tags in Tomoko and hits a jumping crossbody for a two count. Yasuko hits a dropkick and tags in Kansai, sunset flip by Tomoko to Kansai and she tags in KAORU. Lariat by Kansai in the corner but KAORU ducks the next one, KAORU tries to rebound out of the corner but can’t complete the move so she applies an ankle hold instead. Kansai gets to the ropes for the break, KAORU tags in Tomoko and Tomoko dropkicks Kansai repeatedly in the leg. Meiko comes in and they both dropkick Kansai, but Kansai falls in her own corner and tags in Makie. Tomoko elbows Makie but Makie puts her in a Dragon Sleeper, Meiko tries to break up the second one but Yasuko dropkicks her. Missile dropkick by Yasuko to Tomoko, and with Makie they slam Tomoko to the mat. Yasuko kicks Tomoko into the corner but Tomoko sneaks in a sunset flip for two.

Meiko is tagged in and she hits jumping shoulderblocks to Yasuko, Meiko goes up top but Yasuko avoids her dive and dropkicks her in the back of the head. Yasuko goes up top but KAORU grabs her from the apron, giving Meiko time to pull Yasuko off the top turnbuckle and apply a cross armbreaker. Short armbar by Meiko but Kansai breaks it up, things break down a bit with some of the action spilling to the floor. Yasuko and Meiko stay in the ring, Yasuko slams Meiko but KAORU breaks up the cover. Yasuko picks up Meiko but Meiko applies a short armbar, she lets go and charges Yasuko but Yasuko slaps her and tags in Makie. Irish whip by Makie and she hits a back bodydrop, cover by Makie but Meiko bridges out of it. KAORU hits Makie from the apron and Meiko tags in Tomoko, Tomoko stomps on Makie and she hits a swandive missile dropkick. Swandive crossbody by Tomoko, but her cover is broken up by both her other opponents. Meiko comes in and cradles Makie, but she isn’t legal so the referee just looks at her funny. Tomoko recovers, she goes out to the apron and hits a swandive sunset flip, picking up the three count! KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi are the winners and continue to the finals.

This wasn’t as smooth as the opening match, pretty clunky in parts. It wasn’t bad, but it went a bit too long and not enough really happened to justify its length. Tomoko looked really good and Meiko showed her usual fire, so the issue wasn’t with the wrestlers themselves, it just really didn’t tell a story and didn’t have the same exciting feeling that the opener had. Decent enough, and the rookies are really coming along nicely, but just too back-and-forth with not enough substance to really hold my attention.

18 Women Battle Royal

The match starts with Bolshoi Kid, Bomber Hikari, Chigusa Nagayo, Chihiro Nakano, Chikayo Nagashima, Cuty Suzuki, Devil Masami, Dynamite Kansai, Makie Numao, Mayumi Ozaki, Rieko Amano, Saburo, Tomoko Miyaguchi, Tomomi Kobayashi, Toshie Sato, Toshie Uematsu, Yasuko Kuragaki, and Yuki Miyazaki all in the ring. I am not going to do normal play by play for this since its chaotic, but the first part of the match is mostly ganging up on the veterans since that is the only way to pin someone like Nagayo or Devil Masami. Let’s jump ahead to the final three, which are Bolshoi Kid, Bomber Hikari, and Saburo. Bolshoi Kid is double teamed by Saburo and Bomber, Bomber goes up top but Bolshoi pushes her from behind. Bomber thinks that Saburo did it and fusses at her, Saburo charges Bolshoi but Bolshoi pushes Saburo into Bomber. This makes Bomber mad again, giving Bolshoi a chance to hit a missile dropkick to the back of Bomber’s head.

Bomber and Bolshoi end up double teaming Saburo, Bomber goes up top but she has to keep directing Bolshoi where to slam Saburo so she can dive onto her. Bolshoi finally does it right, diving double jump bodypress by Bomber, but Saburo kicks out. Saburo goes up top but Bomber slams her off, Bolshoi breaks up the pin for reasons unknown but Bomber drops Saburo with the Bombs Away. Bomber goes up top while Bolshoi positions Saburo, diving headbutt by Bomber but Bolshoi quickly covers Saburo for the three count behind Bomber’s back. Saburo is eliminated, leaving just Bolshoi and Bomber. Bolshoi wants to part of Bomber so she bails out of the ring, she finally gets back in and Bomber drops Bolshoi with the Bombs Away for a two count. Bomber goes for it again but Bolshoi reverses it into a cradle for two. Bolshoi goes off the ropes but Bomber catches her with a powerslam, rebound crossbody by Bolshoi out of the corner but Bomber kicks out of the cover. Scoop slam by Bomber but Bolshoi avoids her stomps, rebound elbow by Bolshoi and she covers Bomber for two. Bolshoi goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, but that gets a two count as well. Bolshoi tries to slam Bomber but Bomber blocks it and puts Bolshoi in an airplane spin, but Bolshoi quickly recovers. Misteriorana by Bolshoi, and she picks up the three count! Bolshoi Kid wins the Battle Royal!

As I mentioned above, this type of match isn’t something you’d have high expectations for. The veterans had fun, allowing the young wrestlers to do well but it was all with a smile on their face as losing in these matches means nothing. Bolshoi Kid back in the mid-90s was mostly comedy, she could wrestle but stayed within her gimmick most of the time. Mindless fun but nothing more than that.

Hikari Fukuoka, Sonoko Kato, and Kanako vs. KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi
Super Scramble Six Women Tag Tournament Final

KAORU and Fukuoka start the match and waste no time getting right to it, as Fukuoka hits a lariat but KAORU follows with a dropkick. Fukuoka cartwheels away from KAORU and hits another dropkick, and both wrestlers return to their feet to face off again. Fukuoka tags in Sonoko while Meiko also tags in, and both wrestlers kick each other. Dropkicks by Sonoko and she hits a scoop slam, crab hold by Sonoko but Meiko gets to the ropes for the break. Kanako tags in and she bounces Meiko off the ropes, dropkick by Kanako and she covers Meiko for two. Meiko comes back with a hard elbow and tags in Tomoko, dropkicks by Tomoko and she slams Kanako. Sleeper by Tomoko and she then applies a bodyscissors, but Kanako gets to the ropes. Tomoko tags in KAORU, suplex by KAORU and she covers Kanako for two. Another suplex by KAORU and she applies a camel clutch until Sonoko breaks it up, Fukuoka comes in too and she puts KAORU in a figure four leglock. Meiko tries to break it up but Fukuoka keeps the hold on anyway, KAORU eventually gets out of it but Fukuoka slams her to the mat and tags in Sonoko. Kneelock by Sonoko and Kanako puts KAORU in a kneelock as well, then Fukuoka puts KAORU in a headscissors. Kanako stays in as legal, KAORU finally gets a move in and makes the tag to Tomoko. Crossbody by Tomoko, but Kanako bridges out of the pin. Tomoko grabs her to stop the bridge and puts Kanako in a crab hold, Kanako gets out of it and she boots Tomoko in the chest. Another boot by Kanako and she slams Tomoko in front of the corner before tagging in Fukuoka. Fukuoka comes in the ring with a missile dropkick, but Tomoko falls in her corner and tags in Meiko.

Meiko eats a dropkick too, cover by Fukuoka but it gets two. Double wrist-clutch armsault by Fukuoka, but the cover is broken up. Side headlock by Fukuoka, she picks up Meiko and chokes her before slamming Meiko to the mat. Fukuoka tags Sonoko and they both shoulderblock Meiko, Sonoko snapmares Meiko and puts her in a headscissors. Meiko fires back with elbows and hits a running elbow smash in the corner before tagging in KAORU. Scoop slam by KAORU and she puts Sonoko in a Mexican Surfboard until Fukuoka pushes them over, Irish whip by Meiko to Sonoko and she hits a jumping shoulderblock. Another one by Meiko and she hits a third, one final shoulderblock by Meiko and she covers Sonoko for two. Double swandive missile dropkick to Sonoko, but Sonoko bridges out of the pin. Cross armbreaker by Meiko, but Kanako breaks it up. Space Rolling Elbow by Fukuoka to Meiko but Meiko avoids the second one, cross armbreaker takedown by Meiko but Fukuoka gets a foot on the ropes. Meiko tags KAORU, KAORU goes up top but Fukuoka rolls out of the way of the moonsault. Sonoko comes up from behind and hits a bulldog, missile dropkick by Kanako to KAORU and she covers her for two. KAORU is put into the Tree of Woe and triple teamed, Kanako goes to pick up KAORU but KAORU blocks her and hits a piledriver.

Elbows by KAORU to Kanako but Kanako applies a wheelbarrow roll-up for a two count. Kanako tags in Sonoko, bulldog by Sonoko and she hits the Acid Drop out of the corner. Sonoko picks up KAORU and goes for a second one, but KAORU pushes her off and boots Sonoko in the face. She goes for another boot but Sonoko catches her leg, hard slap by KAORU but Sonoko rolls her up from behind. Sonoko tags Fukuoka, and Fukuoka comes in the ring with a diving crossbody. KAORU rolls through it and tags in Tomoko, Fukuoka gets Tomoko on her shoulders but Tomoko slides off and rolls her up for two. KAORU flies into the ring with a missile dropkick, Meiko goes up top and hits a diving bodypress before Tomoko hits one of her own. Moonsault by KAORU, but Fukuoka bridges out of the pin. KAORU picks up Fukuoka but Fukuoka avoids the brainbuster and hits an Aztec Suplex Hold for a two count. Sonoko and Kanako both hit diving bodypresses onto KAORU, moonsault by Fukuoka and she quickly hits two more moonsaults, but Meiko breaks up the cover. Sonoko and Kanako put KAORU on the top turnbuckle, Fukuoka then charges her and DDTs KAORU from the top turnbuckle to the mat. Rider Kick by Fukuoka, but again the cover is broken up. Fukuoka goes back up top and dives out of the ring onto Meiko and Tomoko, she returns to the ring and goes to the top turnbuckle, but KAORU avoids the moonsault footstomp and hits a hurricanrana for a two count. Fukuoka tries to go up top but is grabbed by Meiko and Tomoko, avalanche armdrag by KAORU to Fukuoka and she puts her in La Magistral, but they end up in the ropes. While all of this is happening there is constantly interference and action around the ring, Fukuoka goes up top but KAORU dropkicks her in the middle of her moonsault attempt. Brainbuster by KAORU to Fukuoka and she nails the swandive moonsault for the three count! KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Tomoko Kuzumi win the tournament!

This match took a bit to get going, but the last five minutes were crazy. It should be noted that even though they all had wrestled earlier, they still were going 100% full tilt the entire match, without any signs of being tired. Their cardio is insane. KAORU and Fukuoka provided the ‘veteran base’ really well and hit all their high spots, both were flying all over the place to keep the match excitement up. The double and triple team spots looked good and while I think the tag rules were pretty loose it didn’t hurt the match any since both sides were doing it. The ending stretch was just constantly something happening, and they hardly gave the viewer a chance to catch their breath with all the action going on. Maybe a smidge too long as it was almost 25 minutes, and we had already seen two similarly structured six woman tag matches, but still a fun match overall.  Mildly Recommended

The post GAEA Japan “Splash J & Running G” on 9/23/95 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Championships Held: JWP Jr. Championship, JWP Tag Team Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: Wrestling Observer Five Star Match (on 7/31/93)

Notable Matches:

• October 10th, 1991 vs. The Scorpion
• December 2nd, 1993 with Mayumi Ozaki vs. Devil Masami and Dynamite Kansai
• March 18th, 1995 with Dynamite Kansai vs. Hikari Fukuoka and Mayumi Ozaki
• June 14th, 1998 with Devil Masami vs. Hikaru Fukuoka and Tomoko Kuzumi

Signature Moves:

• Cutie Special
• Dragon Sleeper
• Dragon Suplex
• Jumping DDT

In Action:

Coming Soon 

Back to Retired Wrestlers

The post Cuty Suzuki appeared first on Joshi City.

I have a bit of a special feature today. Joshi Legend Akira Hokuto wrestled over a dozen times in WCW from 1995 to 1997, with the most activity coming after WCW and GAEA entered into a working relationship in late 1996 (which didn’t very long). During that period, Hokuto helped establish the first ever WCW World Women’s Champion (she was the only person recognized by WCW to ever hold the belt).  I have tracked down every televised match that I can find, so hopefully even if I missed one this is a good representation of her stay in WCW. Please note I am watching the matches in the order they aired, not were recorded, as that is how fans at the time saw the matches. Here are the matches I will be watching:

• November 26th, 1995 on WCW World War 3 – Akira Hokuto and Bull Nakano vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki
• November 27th, 1995 on WCW Nitro – Akira Hokuto and Bull Nakano vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki
• November 4th, 1996 on WCW Nitro –  WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Quarter Final: Madusa vs. Reina Jubuki
• December 8th, 1996 on WCW Pro – WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Quarter Final: Akira Hokuto vs. Meiko Satomura
• December 29th, 1996 on WCW Starrcade – WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Final: Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
• January 12th, 1997 on WCW Worldwide – WCW World Women’s Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
• January 19th, 1997 on WCW Worldwide – Reina Jubuki vs. Sonoko Kato
• February 9th, 1997 on WCW Worldwide – Akira Hokuto and Kaoru vs. Madusa and Meiko Satomura
• February 23rd, 1997 on WCW Worldwide – Akira Hokuto and Kaoru Maeda vs. Meiko Satomura and Sonoko Kato
• March 31st, 1997 on WCW Nitro – WCW World Women’s Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Debbie Combs
• April 6th, 1997 on WCW Spring Stampede – WCW World Women’s Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
• June 9th, 1997 on WCW Nitro – WCW World Women’s Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Malia Hosaka
• June 15th, 1997 on WCW The Great American Bash – WCW World Women’s Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa

Even though its a lot of matches, most are going to be really short so I’ll try to fill the space when necessary with some backstory on why the match is taking place.

Hokuto made a splash with her first ever WCW appearance, wrestling live on PPV at World War 3. During this time period, Hokuto wrestled in AJW with Nakano, while Suzuki and Ozaki wrestled for JWP. Technically this was not the first match Hokuto had on an event at least partially sponsored by WCW, as she also wrestled in the NJPW/WCW Collision in Korea shows, but this was her first appearance live on United States television. This was more of an Offer Match than anything else, which fans of Japanese Wrestling are familiar with as its a common practice in Japan. On the show, Mike Tenay explained the match was booked so WCW could bring the top stars of Japan to WCW, but I have no idea what the story was behind the scenes. Fans at the time may have been familar with Bull Nakano, since she had just the WWF a few months prior, but the rest were unknown in the US to the casual non-tape trading fan.

Akira Hokuto and Bull Nakano vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki
WCW World War 3 on November 26th, 1995

The best thing about this one was just listening to the crowd. They also got plenty of time (compared to most WCW midcard matches) as they had almost ten minutes. The aspect I enjoyed quite a bit in retrospect, which I doubt most fans at the time thought about, is that the heel team won clean. In mid-90s WCW, it was incredibly rare for the heel team to win without any cheating, course that was more the Japanese style but the point is nothing about this match fit into WCW at the time. Just women wrestling wasn’t very WCW, but wrestling competitively and hitting big moves to wow the crowd certainly wasn’t. This was actually a damn good match by any measure, all four of these wrestlers are great, but its one of the more unreal moments in WCW history which says a lot.

Since they were already in town, they wrestled again the very next night!

Akira Hokuto and Bull Nakano vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki
WCW Nitro on November 27th, 1995

I loved the crowd reaction to the finisher, I think its important to remember that to the casual WCW fan this was way beyond anything they’d seen before. In a promotion that at the time was promoting things like the Dungeon of Doom and other silly things, you had four women killing each other with moves many people were seeing for the first time. I was watching WCW back in 1995 and while I don’t remember these matches, I am sure they left me in awe, of course I was familar with Bull Nakano but not with any of the others. A really fun sub-five minute match, not a lot of substance but tons of sizzle.

After that, Akira Hokuto did not appear again in WCW for almost a year. In fact the only Japanese wrestler that was still active in WCW during the first part of 1996 was Bull Nakano, but she was gone from the promotion before Hokuto returned. The reason Hokuto returned was by the end of 1996 she was wrestling in a promotion called GAEA. GAEA was a very popular Joshi promotion that ran from 1995 to 2005. In 1996, GAEA and WCW entered into a working agreement where GAEA wrestlers would come to WCW and participate in an eight wrestler tournament (well, seven) to crown the first ever WCW World Women’s Champion. Then in theory the belt would be defended in both promotions.

I mentioned it was really seven wrestlers, well that is because Akira Hokuto participated in the tournament twice, once as herself and once under a mask. This of course was not acknowledged on TV and I doubt the average viewer noticed a difference, Hokuto had not been seen in WCW for a full year and while the above tag matches were fun it is doubtful anyone retained which wrestler was which and their styles after so much time passed. I am not sure why Hokuto wrestled twice, but wrestling is a strange place. Here were the brackets:

courtesy of www.prowrestlinghistory.com

Madusa vs. Reina Jubuki
WCW Nitro on November 4th, 1996 – WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Quarter Final

Hokuto wrestling and losing under a mask is really confusing on a few levels. They could have found another female wrestler in the US or Japan to be in the tournament, so it wasn’t a last minute thing where they were short. Going into the match, Hokuto as Jubuki was the CMLL World Women’s Champion but was stripped due to losing this match (I have no idea if she intended on going back to CMLL anyway but its still an odd way to lost the belt). Anyway, this was a really unusual match and not satisfying in any way, these two would go on to have good matches but this wasn’t one as Jubuki dominated until Madusa suddenly won with the German suplex. No harm done since no one knew it was Hokuto, and it got the tournament some airtime on Nitro, but nothing much to it.

Zero and Kaoru both won their respective tournament matches, leading us to Akira Hokuto as herself wrestling against Meiko Satomura. Satomura debuted in 1995 for GAEA, and was trained by Chigusa Nagayo. She is mostly in this tournament as a jobber (spoiler!) as obviously a wrestler as inexperienced as her was not going to defeat a legend like Akira Hokuto. Sony Onoo is out with Hokuto as he would be for the rest of her stay in WCW.

 
Akira Hokuto vs. Meiko Satomura
WCW Pro on December 8th, 1996 – WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Quarter Final

Not a very long match, but matches on Pro and Worldwide generally weren’t. Hokuto needed a strong win since she was entering soon into a feud with Madusa (another spoiler), whom happened to be the only American wrestler that was any good in WCW. Too short to be offensive but too short to be memorable, aside from Satomura’s crazy arm waving elbows.

I wasn’t able to locate Hokuto’s second match in the tournament against KAORU, so we are skipping straight to the tournament Finals against Madusa. Madusa defeated Zero in her next match, after Zero and Onoo had a miscommunication, leading to Hokuto being the only wrestler that he still represented. The Finals of the tournament had a big stage, as it took place on WCW’s biggest pay per view of the year. Starrcade 1996 was a massive show, with Hogan vs. Piper main eventing and it also had the first ever match between Jushin Thunder Liger and Rey Mysterio Jr.. Kensuke Sasaki accompanied Akira Hokuto to the ring even though he was a ‘good guy’ and she was a ‘bad guy’, and the commentary crew acknowledged that they were married.

It was explained at some point that the reason that Hokuto wore a oxygen mask in WCW was so that she would be in peak shape when the match began. It sounds silly but it is a different concept at least, and there is some science that would support it. Downside is that it made her look like a cyborg.

Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
WCW Starrcade on December 29th, 1996 – WCW World Women’s Championship Tournament Final

If you can tune out the commentary crew, which alternated between talking about the match and discussing the nWo, this wasn’t a bad match. It didn’t feel like the epic it could have been but it was still on the undercard on a WCW PPV, they weren’t going to get but so much time. Plus while Madusa was popular, by late 1996 she was not in Hokuto’s league and there were a few mistakes in the match. It was still very historical however, as Hokuto became the first champion and beat a popular wrestler in the process, course we didn’t know at the time that the championship would fade out of existence on WCW TV in six months.

In those six months however, Hokuto was certainly a fighting champion as GAEA’s partnership with WCW continued into the summer. Due to the interference in the match, and also the fact she was the only female American wrestler on the roster, Hokuto’s feud with Madusa continued. Next we will watch their non-title match which aired two weeks later on WCW Worldwide. The reason it was a non-title match was because it was filmed back in November, so she did not have the title at the time anyway, but it did give Madusa an ‘immediate rematch’ after the screwy ending at Starrcade.

 
Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
WCW Worldwide on January 12th, 1997

This was more of a house-show style match, a quick one for the syndicated show to get a few new eyeballs but while giving away nothing of interest. All it really did was confirm that they were still feuding.

The next few matches were also taped on November 10th, 1996, which is why we are seeing wrestlers that haven’t been in WCW since November. For example, Sonoko Kato did not fly back to the United States just to have a match on Worldwide. This was a good idea of course, as it gave WCW a handful of matches with the champion to keep her on television without her having to keep coming back to the United States. In fact, Hokuto did not have any live appearances in WCW between Starrcade and her match on Nitro in late March. All her matches shown in January and February took place the previous November but with new commentary so they could talk about her being the champion (although one that never carried her belt).

Course, her next match was under the mask so they couldn’t even acknowledge it was Hokuto, which makes it an interesting choice to air at all. Kato was still a youngster at this point, not the star that she is today in Oz Academy, so it was more ‘small show filler’ than anything else.

Reina Jubuki vs. Sonoko Kato
WCW Worldwide on January 19th, 1997

Not much to that one, even though it is fun seeing a really young Kato wrestling in WCW. So we can skip right to the next match, with Madusa teaming with Satomura (I guess Madusa decided which one was the least evil to team with) facing Hokuto (back wrestling as herself) and KAORU. This match was actually the main event of the show, which demonstrates the popularity of Madusa and her battle against the evil foreigners.

Akira Hokuto and Kaoru vs. Madusa and Meiko Satomura
WCW Worldwide on February 9th, 1997

This was more about Madusa hating Onoo than anything else, Onoo was also the manager of Nakano when Madusa battled her so they had a long history together. Course as soon as she was distracted, Satomura was no match for both Hokuto and Kaoru so the match quickly ended. But this is what the syndicated shows were good for, a quick match that continued the bigger storyline of Hokuto vs. Madusa without any real harm being done, even if it was a really quick match.

One more of these, and then we get back to new content. The next tag match was done at the same recording as the past few matches, which again is why Hokuto does not have the title with her. Madusa wasn’t even in this one, as its an all Japanese affair with only one wrestler (Hokuto) that was still an active part of the promotion. Definitely filler.

Akira Hokuto and Kaoru Maeda vs. Meiko Satomura and Sonoko Kato
WCW Worldwide on February 23rd, 1997

That was basically a squash, as they continued attacking after the bell rings. That brings out Madusa, she gets in the ring to face off with Hokuto but Onoo keeps them apart. They eventually get to each other and trade strikes, but its a stalemate and Madusa leaves with Kato and Satomura. This angle was just done like everything else the last few weeks, to keep in the public eye their simmering feud.

That was the last Worldwide taping with the Japanese wrestlers present so we didn’t get to see more of Hokuto until she returned to Nitro over a month later. But when she did return on March 31st, she returned with a bang as her match kicked off the second hour of Nitro. Debbie Combs was put over a bit by Mike Tenay on commentary, referring to her as a second generation star. She started wrestling in 1975 so she is definitely a veteran of the ring. This is the first time we’ve seen of Hokuto holding the title coming down the ramp, and she no longer has the oxygen tank or the headpiece. In fact she is noticeably more “Japanese” now as she is wearing a kimono and fanning herself with a fan with the Japanese flag on it. It is interesting that she went from having a unique look to being more stereotypical, perhaps they were afraid she would get cheered and wanted to emphasize her nationality more. Can’t say I am a fan of the change, hopefully her in-ring work is the same as it was before.

 
(c) Akira Hokuto vs. Debbie Combs
WCW Nitro on March 31st, 1997 – WCW World Women’s Championship

After the match they interview Madusa (they refer to her as ‘prior title holder’ which isn’t true) but Hokuto interrupts it and they battle in the entrance until they manage to be pulled apart. Course this was just to set up their match the following week, but why in the world they had Combs in for this match I have no idea. She wasn’t familar to the crowd but she wasn’t really of the right age for Hokuto to throw her around and impress anyone. The issue wasn’t just that it was short but Hokuto didn’t get much of a chance to really show off which should have been the point.

But that led straight to Hokuto defending her title against Madusa the following week on WCW Spring Stampede. The match didn’t need much set-up considering their history, however Madusa did defeat Malia Hosaka two weeks prior on Nitro which was her first appearance on Nitro or PPV since Starrcade. With how much WCW had going on at the time with nWo, it wasn’t unusual for the other storylines to get pushed aside (or to Worldwide) until there was a bigger match to promote. Madusa came out fully decked out in USA attire, as they wanted to emphasize the America vs. Japan aspect of the match.

(c) Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
WCW Spring Stampede on April 6th, 1997 – WCW World Women’s Championship

Funny how just a few months have passed but the quality has dropped so much. The Starrcade match was short but at least the commentators talked about the match and Hokuto didn’t win in such a weak manner (she still got help, but it was done better than it was here). It was hard to concentrate on this match and it felt like nothing important, rather than the first defense of the title on PPV since December. A step down from their other matches and it felt more like filler.

After this match, Hokuto got a bit of a break. Madusa had to take care of Luna Vachon, which is a match that took place at the next PPV, and WCW wasn’t capable of having multiple women feuds going on at the same time. Hokuto went back to Japan, wrestling for GAEA, and was not seen again in WCW until June. In the meantime, WCW and GAEA were still working together fairly well as they had a four woman tournament to crowd the first ever WCW Women’s Cruiserweight Championship, which was won by Toshie Uematsu. Besides that though not a lot was going on, as Akira Hokuto was the only GAEA wrestler with any type of presence on the more watched programs in World Championship Wrestling.

Akira Hokuto made her return to Nitro the week before her big match against Madusa at the Great American Bash. Just to give the crowd a bit of a reminder on who she was. She faced off against the veteran Malia Hosaka, who had participated in the WCW Women’s Cruiserweight Championship. Oddly enough, Hokuto is back to her old attire for this match, wearing the headpiece and oxygen mask as she had when she returned to WCW in November of 1996.

Akira Hokuto vs. Malia Hosaka
WCW Nitro on June 9th, 1997

After the match she hits another one on Hosaka and poses over her, out runs Madusa from the back and she hits a German suplex on Hokuto. Another German suplex by Madusa and she hits a third, but Onoo manages to get Hokuto out of the ring. This was just to hype up their match at the Great American Bash, which it did a decent job in doing as the crowd popped pretty good when Madusa came out and hit the German suplexes. I had forgotten until I re-watched these matches how popular Madusa was, the fans definitely enjoyed watching her.

The set-up for the next match is that in order to get another title shot, Onoo forced Madusa to put her career on the line to make it a Title vs. Career match. If Hokuto lost she wouldn’t have to retire, she would just lose her belt, so the pressure was on Madusa to pick up the win. Up to this point, Madusa had been in WCW regularly for a year and a half, and while she was the only regular female wrestler during that stretch they always managed to find her competition. Up to this point, Madusa had never beaten Hokuto in WCW, but with her career on the line that was sure to change here, right?

(c) Akira Hokuto vs. Madusa
WCW Great American Bash on June 15th, 1996 – WCW World Women’s Championship vs. Madusa’s Career

After the match, even though Madusa was now forced to retire, Hokuto kept beating on her anyway just for giggles. This was my favorite match of the set and a good way to end their feud. First, as I mentioned, the commentators all did a good job putting over what was going on and giving them respect, which wasn’t always the case during Hokuto’s run (to be fair, they were better than I remembered throughout). The match had a story, with Madusa’s knee being the focus, and Onoo didn’t have as much of an impact. It is still rather shocking that Madusa lost, the crowd didn’t seem to know what to think as the obvious story was the injured fan favorite coming back and winning to save her career and win the belt. But that didn’t happen, as Hokuto pinned her in the middle of the ring and Madusa is done forever.

And that was it, Akira Hokuto never appeared in WCW again, nor did the WCW World Women’s Championship. I am not sure why the partnership between WCW and GAEA ended but that was the last match with any GAEA wrestlers in the promotion. Devil Masami won the suddenly vacated championship while in GAEA but it was not recognized by WCW, and in 1998 the belt was referenced as still being held by Hokuto. Madusa really did retire, at least for two years, which is probably the longest a “Loser Must Retire” stipulation has ever been honored.

When you think about it, it is pretty amazing that Hokuto had over a dozen matches in WCW and she never lost (wrestling as herself). She came in and battled the best female wrestler that WCW had and not only beat her, but forced her into retirement. Then left like it meant nothing, one could even kayfabe that she left WCW because there was no more competition there since she retired the only great wrestler they had. Normally, it always appears that the larger company ‘gets over’ on the smaller company, but here that was certainly not the case as Hokuto was the clear victor in the GAEA/WCW partnership.

After leaving WCW for good, Hokuto continued wrestling in GAEA until 2002, when she retired from wrestling (aside from a few quick comeback matches, of course). WCW never got serious about a women’s division again, as this would be the only women’s title that the promotion ever had (I’m not even counting the Women’s Cruiserweight since it was forgotten by WCW even faster than Hokuto’s title was), making Akira Hokuto the most accomplished woman wrestler in the history of WCW. Looking back it is very unusual but Akira Hokuto’s stay in WCW was definitely memorable, as she showed the WCW fans a side of wrestling they had never seen before and left the promotion undefeated. In the end, WCW was just another promotion that fell to the immortal Danger Queen.

The post Akira Hokuto in WCW Retrospective appeared first on Joshi City.

The last classic event that I reviewed, Jd’ Stir The Blood 1997, saw Lioness Asuka in the main event against Jaguar Yokota. While Asuka was tearing it up in Jd’, her old partner Chigusa Nagayo was still putting on high quality matches as well since returning from retirement in 1993. Here she invades JWP at their biggest event of the year at the famous Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan. Joshi was still booming in 1995, and even though AJW had the lion’s share of the market, JWP was still a well respected promotion that had many big stars including Dynamite Kansai, Devil Masami, Candy Okutsu, Cutie Suzuki, and many others. Interestingly there was only one title match on the show, however it is still an event with lots of potential. Here is the full card:

• Sonoko Kato, Chikayo Nagashima, and Maiko Narita vs. Tomoko Kuzumi, Tomomi Kobayashi, and Yuki Miyazaki
• Fusayo Nouchi and Kumiko Maekawa vs. Rie Tamada and Kanako Motoya
• Rookie of the Year Tournament Final: Rieko Amano vs. Tomoko Miyaguchi
• Bomber Hikari and Sumiya Toyama vs. Toshie Sato and Yasuko Kuragaki
• Bolshoi Kid vs. Cutie Suzuki
• JWP Jr. Championship Gauntlet Match: Candy Okutsu vs. Hiromi Yagi vs. Hiromi Sugo
• Devil Masami and Mayumi Ozaki vs. Hikari Fukuoka and KAORU
• Chigusa Nagayo vs. Dynamite Kansai

A long show, however for the release it was condensed to two hour so some matches will be clipped. But it still will take me forever to do this review as I have a lot of research to do, so I hope the 20 or so people that will read it will enjoy it. There are a handful of inter-promotional matches, which I’ll be sure to point out when they take place. Also this is the worst quality video-wise I have ever reviewed for the site, so apologies in advance.

Sonoko Kato, Chikayo Nagashima, and Maiko Narita vs. Kuzumi, Kobayashi, and Yuki Miyazaki

We join this one in progress, with Kuzumi dropkicking Narita and putting her in a crab hold. Narita is triple teamed until she gets away and tags in Kato, Kato goes after Kuzumi’s arm but Kuzumi’s teammates run in and break it up. Kato is isolated for several minutes as Kobayashi works her over with various submission holds until Narita comes in to assist. This gives Kato time to tag in Nagashima, Kuzumi is tagged in too and Nagashima hits front rolls into headbutts until Kuzumi sneaks in a backslide for two She tags Kobayashi back in, and Kobayashi hits a series of body blocks until Nagashima tags in Kato. A lot is happening but not a lot is happening, if that makes sense. Kato’s team runs in and everyone dropkicks Kobayashi in the corner, bulldog by Kato and she covers Kobayashi for two.

Kato goes up top and hits a diving body press, but that cover is broken up as well. Kobayashi hits a Butt Bomb and tags in Miyazaki, hip attacks by Miyazaki to Kato and she covers her for two. Narita blind tags in and hits a couple one legged monkey flips until Kuzumi comes in to help. Narita gets dropkicked by everyone then eats a triple big boot, but she gets away and drops Miyazaki with a running powerslam for a two count. Missile dropkick by Miyazaki and both teams trade missile dropkicks (well, Narita fell off when she went for hers, but what can ya do). More dropkicks! The time limit expires but they fight on! All six brawl in the ring, things settle back down with Kobayashi hitting body blocks on Nagashima. All three hit diving body presses on Nagashima, but the cover is broken up. Nagashima and Kobayashi stay in the ring while everyone else fights outside of it, Irish whip by Kobayashi but Nagashima quickly rolls her up and she gets the three count! Sonoko Kato, Chikayo Nagashima, and Maiko Narita win!

Just your typical fast paced rookie opener. No one got too much of a chance to shine but all looked solid, Narita had the only slip up of the match but they recovered well and kept on moving. Kato looked the best here so no surprise she ended up being so good down the road, but no one looked bad either. Not a bad way to start a show, giving young wrestlers a chance to wrestle at Sumo Hall is never a bad thing.

The next tag match wasn’t included on the release I have, so we will move right onto the Rookie of the Year Final.

Rieko Amano vs. Tomoko Miyaguchi

We join this in one in progress as Amano has Miyaguchi in a leg hold, but Miyaguchi gets to the ropes. Jumping crossbody by Miyaguchi and she puts Amano in a stretch hold, they return to their feet and Miyaguchi hits a dropkick. Amano avoids the next dropkick and goes up top but Miyaguchi knocks her off the top to the floor. Miyaguchi goes out after her and slams Amano into the apron before they return to the ring, sunset flip by Amano but she gets a two count. They trade slaps, Amano mounts Miyaguchi and rains down elbows onto her chest. Diving crossbody by Amano, but it gets two. Amano goes up top but Miyaguchi flings her back to the mat. Miyaguchi goes for a running boot but Amano catches her leg and takes her down, Miyaguchi lands in the ropes however and gets her own leglock applied. Both wrestlers trade quick pin attempts, mounted slaps by Amano but Miyaguchi sneaks in a backslide. Miyaguchi goes to run off the ropes but Amano grabs her from behind and rolls her up for the three count! Amano wins the Tournament!

Clipped down but I liked what I saw. Amano in particular seemed really on point, the submissions were smooth and she showed a lot of fire with her strikes. Miyaguchi looked fine but was a bit upstaged in what they showed, but still was pretty crisp with her offense and neither looked out of place. Only a few minutes was missing, one of the better rookie vs. rookie matches I have seen in awhile and both would go on to have great careers.  Mildly Recommended

Bomber Hikari and Sumiya Toyama vs. Toshie Sato and Yasuko Kuragaki

This match is only slightly joined in progress, with Hikari in the ring with Kuragaki. Kuragaki tags in Sato but Sato has no luck with Hikari as she eats a headbutt. Sato tags Kuragaki and Kuragaki connects with a dropkick, Sato returns and they both dropkick Hikari to the mat. Kuragaki applies a single leg crab hold but Hikari gets out of it and tags in Toyama. Hard shoulderblock by Toyama and she hits a scoop slam, covering Kuragaki for a two count. Kuragaki fires back with an elbow and tags in Sato, dropkick by Sato and she covers Toyama for two. Shoulderblocks by Sato and she hits a neckbreaker, but Toyama kicks out of the cover. Kuragaki and Hikari end up in the ring too with Sato and Kuragaki maintaining control, Toyama hits a judo throw on Sato and she tags in Hikari. Sato tags in Kuragaki, Hikari powerslams Kuragaki and Toyama comes in so they can drop Kuragaki with a double military press. Kuragaki dropkicks Hikari three times, and she covers Hikari for two. Fireman’s carry slams by Kuragaki and Sato hits a missile dropkick. Hikari lands by her corner and tags in Toyama, and Toyama boots Kuragaki in the chest for two. Side Russian Leg Sweeps by Toyama and she tags Hikari back in, missile dropkick by Toyama and both Hikari and Toyama slam Kuragaki and Sato. Diving headbutt by Hikari, and she covers Sato for the three count! Hikari and Toyama are the winners.

While all four wrestlers looked good here, the match structure was all over the place. To say that the transitions were iffy would be a compliment, at any given moment the winning team could shift to the other team for really no reason. So there wasn’t much of a flow, the carnage was good but I prefer carnage that has a bit more of a purpose. Solid action but just a bit meandering.

Bolshoi Kid vs. Cutie Suzuki

Suzuki is mad as hell at Bolshoi and I have no idea why, as she attacks her before the match starts and knocks her out of the ring. Suzuki dives out onto her with a jumping knee before sitting Bolshoi on the apron and pulling at her goofy hat. Back in the ring, Bolshoi finally gets away from Suzuki and she hits a quick hurricanrana for two. Bolshoi goes up top and hits a diving chop to the head, but Suzuki dropkicks Bolshoi out of the ring and hits a jumping knee from the apron down to the floor. Suzuki returns to the ring and waits for Bolshoi, German suplex hold by Suzuki but it gets two. Package German by Suzuki, but that gets a two count as well. Suzuki puts Bolshoi up top and hits an avalanche backdrop suplex, she goes up top again and hits a diving footstomp. Bolshoi hits a headscissors takedown and snaps off a quick suplex, she dropkicks Suzuki out of the ring and sails out after her with a plancha suicida. In the ring, Bolshoi hits a missile dropkick but Suzuki rolls out of the way of the moonsault. Avalanche Uranage by Bolshoi Kid, but Suzuki bridges out of the pin. German suplex hold by Bolshoi, but it gets two. Bolshoi goes up top but again she misses the moonsault, missile dropkick by Suzuki and she hits a second one before dropping Bolshoi with a dragon suplex hold for the three count! Cutie Suzuki is the winner.

I liked this match quite a bit. Really fast paced, hard hitting, high flying… about all you could ask for. Suzuki was more vicious here than I remember, although I haven’t seen a ton of her matches. So either this is normal for her and I didn’t know, or she just really hates clowns. It felt like it got the right amount of time and was a really good showcase for someone that they really wanted the crowd to take seriously as a wrestler even though she was an idol as well. Quality midcard match and worth a watch.  Recommended

Candy Okutsu vs. Hiromi Yagi vs. Hiromi Sugo

Hiromi Yagi and Hiromi Sugo are the first two in the match. Yagi quickly puts Sugo in a short armbar and stomps on her, jumping knee by Sugo in the corner but Yagi comes back with a rebound crossbody. Judo throws by Yagi and she goes for Sugo’s arm, but Sugo dropkicks her and hits a series of stomps. Sugo rams Yagi into the turnbuckles, Yagi goes for a quick roll-up but Sugo blocks it and holds down Yagi for the three count! Sugo wins the pairing and goes on to face Okutsu.

Sugo attacks Okutsu before their match starts but Okutsu kicks Sugo in the head and hits a missile dropkick. Okutsu runs up the corner and goes for another one, but Sugo swats her away. Sugo goes up top but Okutsu quickly joins her and hits a suplex to the mat for the three count! Okutsu wins the pairing and goes on to face Yagi.

Yagi quickly armdrags Okutsu as their match starts and applies a cross kneelock, but Okutsu gets a hand onto the ropes. Wing Clutch Hold by Okutsu, she picks up Yagi and she hits a backdrop suplex. Yagi blocks the next attempt and gets the kneelock re-applied, but again Okutsu gets to the ropes for a break. Missile dropkick by Okutsu and she hits a rebound crossbody out of the corner for two. Okutsu goes off the ropes but Yagi catches her arm with a short armbar, Okutsu inches to the ropes and gets a toe on the bottom one to get a break. Jumping elbow by Yagi but Okutsu hits a missile dropkick for a two count. Running kicks by Okutsu and she hits a snap German suplex, Irish whip by Okutsu but Yagi rolls her up for a two count. German suplex by Yagi, she goes up top but Okutsu gets her knees up on the diving body press. Irish whip by Okutsu, she springs out to the apron and goes up top but Yagi armdrags her off the top turnbuckle to the mat. Yagi goes up top but Okutsu quickly joins her and hits a big suplex to the mat, but Yagi bridges out of the pin. Okutsu goes for a suplex but Yagi slides away and hits a pair of suplexes. Okutsu grabs Yagi’s leg a however and applies a kneelock, and Yagi submits! Your winner and new champion is Candy Okutsu!

I love the speed and smoothness of the match, I just wish it lasted longer as the whole thing clocked in at well under ten minutes. Okutsu’s method of getting to the top turnbuckle was flawlessly done, perhaps overdone, but it is still a neat trick she does apparently on command. I also really liked Yagi’s throws and submissions, she looked polished for someone so inexperienced. The ending was sudden and didn’t make a ton of sense as Okutsu hadn’t done any work to the leg at all, but this was during the age where armbreakers/leglocks were getting more respect as instant finishers. Overall I liked it, it just deserved more time for such a big occasion on a massive card for JWP.  Mildly Recommended

Devil Masami and Mayumi Ozaki vs. Hikari Fukuoka and KAORU

Fukuoka and KAORU immediately hit stereo hurricanranas as the match starts, they go to double team Masami but she headbutts both of them. Ozaki comes in and powerbombs KAORU, then Masami slams Fukuoka on top of KAORU for extra measure. Masami and KAORU stay in, but they reach a stalemate and tag in their partners. Fukuoka suplexes Ozaki but Ozaki comes back with a jumping lariat, powerbomb by Ozaki and she covers Fukuoka for a two count. Headscissors by Fukuoka to Masami and she hits a hurricanrana for two, but Masami avoids the moonsault out of the corner and KAORU knocks her down with a missile dropkick. Moonsault by KAORU, Fukuoka goes up top but Ozaki hits her and Fukuoka suplexes Fukuoka to the mat for a two count. Masami tags in Ozaki, Fukuoka slides away from Ozaki and throws her to the mat before tagging in KAORU. KAORU flips out to the apron and hits a missile dropkick on Ozaki, but Ozaki bridges out of the pin. Spinning backbreaker by KAORU, but Masami breaks up the cover. Double diving attack to Ozaki, KAORU covers her but again it gets two. KAORU goes for a quebrada but Ozaki gets her knees up, she quickly tags in Fukuoka while Masami runs in and they hit suplexes on Masami and Ozaki. Masami and Ozaki roll out of the ring to re-group but Fukuoka and KAORU dive out of the ring onto them, KAORU and Ozaki return to the ring and KAORU hits a Northern Lights Suplex for two. Brainbuster by KAORU, but Masami breaks up the cover.

Fukuoka picks up Ozaki but KAORU hits her with a moonsault by accident, Masami then goes up top and hit a diving leg drop onto KAORU. Masami picks up Fukuoka but hits a sit-down powerbomb, getting a two count cover. She quickly hits three more powerbombs on Fukuoka, but the pin attempt is broken up. KAORU comes in and drags Masami but Fukuoka elbows KAORU by accident. Masami goes for another powerbomb but KAORU knocks her over before she can hit the move, Fukuoka slams Masami and KAORU hits a moonsault. Fukuoka then goes up top too and nails the moonsault footstomp, but Ozaki breaks up the cover. Fukuoka goes up top again and is fed Masami but Masami suplexes her to the mat. Masami tags Ozaki, somersault senton by Ozaki to Fukuoka but KAORU breaks up the pin. Running boots by Ozaki and she hits a stunner. Elbow by Ozaki and she drops Fukuoka with a sit-down powerbomb, she goes up top but KAORU grabs her from the apron. Fukuoka joins her but Ozaki slams her down to the mat for a two count cover. Masami is in the ring but KAORU hits a hurricanrana on her, Ozaki knocks KAORU out of the ring and then sails out onto her with a springboard somersault senton. Masami then picks up Fukuoka and tosses her out of the ring onto KAORU, Ozaki rolls Fukuoka back into the ring and hits the Tequila Sunrise for a two count. Tiger suplex hold by Ozaki, but KAORU breaks it up. Masami takes care of KAORU, she picks up Fukuoka and Ozaki hits her with an assisted lariat, but again the cover is broken up. Masami throws KAORU out of the ring again, she sits on the top turnbuckle and Ozaki stands on her shoulders. Diving footstomp by Ozaki and Masami following with a diving legdrop, Tequila Sunrise by Ozaki on Fukuoka and she gets the three count! Ozaki and Masami are the winners.

Another really solid match, JWP is going all out to deliver on their big Sumo Hall show. What this match lacked in time (it went about 13 minutes) it made up for by being constant motion. Masami looked great with her power moves, she hits a mean powerbomb, and the rest were all on point with their aerial assaults. They hit all their big moves much to the crowd’s delight and certainly nothing was held back, just an exciting and hard hitting match from bell to bell. A really fun match.  Recommended

Chigusa Nagayo vs. Dynamite Kansai

They cautiously shake hands before the match starts but the pleasantries don’t last long as Nagayo kicks Kansai to the mat. Head kick by Nagayo and she goes for a powerbomb, but Kansai slides away and kicks Nagayo’s leg out from under her. Mounted elbows by Kansai and she kicks Nagayo in the head but Nagayo whips off a belly to belly suplex. They lock knuckles as they get to their feet, Kansai goes for Nagayo’s arm and applies an armbreaker, but Nagayo gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Kicks by Kansai, which Nagayo tries with little luck to block, Nagayo finally manages to catch one and she applies a leglock. Kansai reaches the ropes, Nagayo goes for a heel kick but Kansai catches it. Hard kick to the ribs/lower back area by Nagayo, which sends Nagayo crumbling to the mat in pain. Kansai takes full advantage and she continues kicking Nagayo in the lower back, but Nagayo fires back with a high kick, more kicks by Nagayo to the head and she waits for Kansai to get back up. Nagayo gets Kansai to the mat and applies a sleeper but Kansai gets out of it and hits mounted elbows. Nagayo recovers and gets the sleeper re-applied, kick to the head by Nagayo and she drills Kansai with another one. Kansai comes back with a backdrop suplex and she hits a jumping knee, high angle backdrop suplex by Kansai and she covers Nagayo for two.

Kansai goes up top but Nagayo kicks her in the head, sending Kansai out to the floor. Nagayo goes outside as well but Kansai nails her with a lariat. Kick to the head by Nagayo, Nagayo gets in the ring as Kansai gets on the apron and both wrestlers lariat each other. Nagayo applies an armbar but Kansai gets to the ropes, Nagayo applies a sleeper before planting Kansai with a piledriver. Nagayo comes up top but Kansai kicks her from behind, Kansai joins her and goes for Splash Mountain but Nagayo blocks it. Nagayo dives off the top and drives Kansai’s face into the mat, elbow drop by Nagayo and she covers Kansai for two. Nagayo goes up top again but again Kansai kicks her, she goes for Splash Mountain again but Nagayo blocks it and knees Kansai back down to the mat. Nagayo picks up Kansai but Kansai gets out of the Running Three attempt, Kansai goes for Splash Mountain but Nagayo wiggles away. Kansai kicks her in the head for her trouble, she goes for a powerbomb but Nagayo blocks it and hits a high kick. Kansai sweeps out Nagayo’s legs, she picks up Nagayo and she delivers a backdrop suplex for a two count. Nagayo fires back with her own backdrop suplex, she picks up Kansai and she nails the Running Three, but Kansai kicks out of the cover. Kansai gets a second wind and elbows Nagayo repeatedly in the corner, Kansai picks up Nagayo and she delivers the Splash Mountain, but Nagayo gets a shoulder up. Head kick by Kansai, she drags Nagayo to her feet and hits another Splash Mountain for the three count! Dynamite Kansai is the winner!

Well this was certainly a hell of a match, doubt either one were feeling 100% in the morning. Lots and lots of hard strikes, so if hard kicks are your thing then this match is for you. It wasn’t perfect but it was what it needed to be, this is both wrestler’s styles so they were going to put on the best version of their style that they could. Kansai working on the lower back/ribs area of Nagayo was logical since that is the area that Splash Mountain hits, and Nagayo’s kicks to the head were on point. My main squabble would be basically Kansai’s ‘fighting spirit’ spot leading directly to the end after Nagayo hit her big signature move, but since it is the main event of JWP’s biggest event of the year with their hometown star, those types of things are a bit more forgivable. It didn’t reach that ‘epic’ level but it was incredibly stiff and full of action, a perfect way to cap off the show. A solid “four star” match for sure.  Highly Recommended

The post JWP Thunder Queen Ryogoku Wonderland on 6/16/95 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

All Japan Women’s Pro-Wrestling is one of the most important and influential Joshi Puroresu promotions in the history of the sport. At one point in the early 90s, AJW was drawing crowds similar to the most popular male promotions in Japan (with the clear exception being New Japan Pro Wrestling) and the promotion had some of the most recognizable Joshi wrestlers with Manami Toyota, Aja Kong, Bull Nakano, and Akira Hokuto.

There is some debate on when the exact heyday of AJW was, but few would argue that the promotion was not at the top of their game in 1993. In April of that year, AJW promoted two of the biggest events in Joshi history, All-Star Dream Slam and All-Star Dream Slam II. The first event drew over 16,500 fans, the largest recorded attendance at a Joshi event at that time (a record that would be smashed the following year at Big Egg Wrestling Universe). AJW ended 1993 wrestling in Sumo Hall for the first time, with an announced crowd of 11,500. Between those events, on August 25th, 1993, AJW had their first event at Budokan in almost 15 years called “Legacy of Queens.”

As was not unusual at the time, JWP sent some of their best wrestlers over to enhance the card, as did LLPW and FMW. While the promotions competed against each other, there was also an understanding that these big events were good for all promotions in terms of exposure. Plus I am sure money exchanged hands to make it worth their time. AJW was one of the first promotions to get regular cooperation from multiple promotions in order to put on ‘super cards’, and these events helped build the legacy of many Joshi legends. Here is the full card for the show:

• Tomoko Watanabe, Numacchi, and The Goddess Chikako Shiratori vs. Utako Hozumi, Kurenai Yasha, and Mizuki Endo (LLPW)
• Infernal KAORU and Chaparrita ASARI vs. Bolshoi Kid and Candy Okutsu (JWP)
• Elimination Match: Bull Nakano, Suzuka Minami, Etsuko Mita, Mima Shimoda, and Bat Yoshinaga vs. Eagle Sawai, Harley Saito, Miki Handa, Yukari Osawa, and Leo Kitamura (LLPW)
• Takako Inoue vs. Cuty Suzuki (JWP)
• Toshiyo Yamada and Kaoru Ito vs. Megumi Kudo and Yukie Nabeno (FMW)
• Kyoko Inoue vs. Shinobu Kandori (LLPW)
• Yumiko Hotta, Manami Toyota, and Sakie Hasegawa vs. Mayumi Ozaki, Plum Mariko, and Hikari Fukuoka (JWP)
• All Pacific Championship: Akira Hokuto vs. Rumi Kazama (LLPW)
• WWWA Championship: Aja Kong vs. Dynamite Kansai (JWP)

As you can see, every match pits AJW against an ‘invading’ promotion but there would be no outside interference or cheating, just wrestlers from different promotions squaring off to see who was the best. Before each match below, the wrestlers are standing in the same order as I have listed their names to help with identification, and the AJW team will always be listed first.

 
The Goddess Chikako Shiratori, Numacchi, and Tomoko Watanabe vs. Utako Hozumi, Kurenai Yasha, and Mizuki Endo (LLPW)

This was probably an easy way to get LLPW a win without doing any damage to AJW (LLPW was at best the 3rd ranked Joshi promotion, with JWP being second). I think it was longer than it needed to be but aside from one mistake from Numacchi it was fluid. Simple, but fluid. An average and forgettable match, but non-offensive.

 
Chaparrita ASARI and Infernal KAORU vs. Bolshoi Kid and Candy Okutsu (JWP)

Mariko Yoshida is refereeing this match for reasons unknown, I am sure it is known to someone but not to me. Unlike the last match, this one started with fireworks as team JWP both dive out of the ring onto their opponents, Bolshoi Kid and Okutsu goof around too much so Team AJW leave and walk up the ramp. Bolshoi Kid and Okutsu apologize and we then have a normal match after that. An unusual way to start but things settle down into the normal arm work and limb work, with Bolshoi Kid getting the brunt of it. Bolshoi Kid is tied to the ropes at one point by her hat, and is generally clowned by KAORU until escaping to tag in Okutsu.

Okutsu has more luck against KAORU, but ASARI is a different story. Both teams have trouble gaining an advantage, in this match Okutsu is clearly a step ahead of everyone else as she flies around with dropkicks. Some of this is ugly, such as an attempted catapult kick and some of the interactions with Bolshoi, and it has very little structure to speak of. KAORU and Yoshida get into it, so Yoshida hits a crossbody on her which is counted by Bolshoi for two. This is in the middle of the match, mind you. About ten minutes in, KAORU gets the first real nearfall of the match with a hurricanrana on Okutsu, but Bolshoi hits an avalanche Uranage onto ASARI. ASARI very quickly recovers and hits a dive out of the ring onto Bolshoi, soon after she she nails a top rope twisting something but Okutsu breaks up the pin. Okutsu hits ASARI with seven straight rolling Germans that makes me cringe each time, and she picks up the pinfall! Bolshoi Kid and Candy Okutsu win!

This was not as bad as I had read. It wasn’t good but man was Okutsu bringing it, I was incredibly impressed with her. She just debuted in 1992 when she was only 17, but she showed a lot here. Bolshoi Kid was fine at her thing but it didn’t mesh well in this match, the spots were cute but it would have worked better in the opener. A step down from the last match but with some bright spots.

 
Bat Yoshinaga, Mima Shimoda, Etsuko Mita, Minami, and Bull Nakano vs. Eagle Sawai, Harley Saito, Miki Handa, Osawa, and Kitamura (LLPW)

This match is traditional Tag Team Elimination Rules, like Survivor Series. It starts chaotically, as it would have to with 12 wrestlers from two different promotions facing off against each other, but it does settle down.  They take turns in pairs so everyone has a bit of a chance to shine with no one wrestler taking offense for more than 30 seconds before getting some help from their teammates. Unfortunately for Kitamura, she is the first to be isolated by Team AJW and she soon is planted by a Death Valley Bomb by Mita, and she gets the three count! Kitamura is eliminated. Handa is in next, she hits a beautiful fallaway slam hold but Shimoda comes back with a Tiger Suplex Hold for the three count! Handa is eliminated.  Osawa comes in for her but Minami comes in for the All Japan Women and within a minute she plants Osawa with a powerbomb to get another three count! Osawa is eliminated. This very temporarily puts Sawai and Saito in a 5 vs. 2 situation, but it won’t last long. Eagle Sawai runs in and knocks Minami to the mat, she covers her and gets three! Minami is eliminated.  Sawai lariats Shimoda and covers her as well, getting another quick three count cover! Shimoda is eliminated. Sawai powerbombs Mita but the cover is broken up by Nakano and Yoshinaga. Sawai catapults Saito at them so she can hit a dropkick, Sawai powerbombs Mita again and she gets a three count! Mita is eliminated.

It is 2 vs. 2 now as Nakano comes in, and she faces off with Sawai. Sawai knocks down Nakano first but Yoshinaga comes in and they hit a double powerbomb. Sawai avoids the Diving Guillotine Drop and tags in Saito, diving spinning heel kick by Saito to Nakano and she covers her for two. Saito kicks Yoshinaga in the back of the head but Yoshinaga kicks out of the cover, and Yoshinaga hits a head kick of her own. Yoshinaga hits a heel kick on Nakano by accident, but then she immediately hits one on Saito and covers her for the three count! Saito is eliminated. Missile dropkick by Yoshinaga to Sawai and she tags Nakano, powerbomb by Nakano but it gets two, as does the Diving Guillotine Drop. Sawai hits a superplex on Nakano but Yoshinaga comes in and hits a heel kick. Somersault Diving Guillotine Leg Drop by Nakano, and she picks up the three count! Sawai is eliminated, Team AJW wins!

This match accomplished a lot. First, even in defeat it put over Sawai as an invading force to be reckoned with, as she pinned three wrestlers and took a lot of offense before going down. Second, it established that Nakano is still badass, we knew this but a reminder every now and then never hurt anyone. And finally it introduced some new wrestlers to the AJW crowd, all the wrestlers got at least a few minutes to show what they could do. The downside of the match is that it did not need twelve wrestlers, as it meant some really solid wrestlers got pinned really easily. It may be forgotten in the grand scheme of things but Shimoda and Mita were pinned too quick for wrestlers of their stature. A really solid match overall as I think it accomplished what it was going for, but not without its faults. Recommended

 
Takako Inoue vs. Cuty Suzuki (JWP)

This match was billed as “Over the Idol ~Summer Heroine Series.” Basically this match is both promotions’ resident hottie battling against each other, both did gravure videos and were known as much for their ‘other media’ as for their wrestling. But both are solid wrestlers also so this should be a fun one. They go right to slapping each other and hard elbows, there is no love here between these two as Suzuki hits a quick German suplex hold for two. I like when matches don’t have five minutes of limb work, I am not against that but its enjoyable when matches go in their own direction. Suzuki controls the action on the mat but Inoue drops her with a sudden tombstone piledriver. Inoue works on Suzuki’s leg for a minute, but it doesn’t go anywhere and soon Suzuki is back in control.

Suzuki quickly hits two backdrop suplexes, she then applies a Dragon Sleeper but Inoue gets into the ropes. She gets it re-applied but Inoue gets to the ropes again and applies her own Dragon Sleeper. Guess the legwork is out the window. Suzuki sneaks in a suplex and hits some quick footstomps, but Inoue avoids the diving footstomp. Chokeslam by Inoue and she hits another one, but Suzuki bridges out of the pin. Avalanche Armdrag by Inoue, she goes up top but Suzuki joins her, allowing Inoue to hit an avalanche chokeslam for two. A backdrop suplex hold also gets two for Inoue, and Suzuki sneaks in a dragon suplex hold for a two of her own. Inoue comes right back with a German suplex before punching Suzuki right in the face. Diving kneedrop by Inoue, and she gets the three count pinfall! Takako Inoue wins the match.

I can’t say I particularly enjoyed this one. If they wanted to just trade bombs, they should have done that, as the first two minutes were solid and the last few were good also, but the middle portion really dragged. There is no need to do five minutes of leg work if it is going to be immediately forgotten by both wrestlers, it is just time filler at that point. I liked the passion, both show emotion very well, but as a wrestling match it was lacking.

 
Kaoru Ito and Toshiyo Yamada vs. Megumi Kudo and Yukie Nabeno (FMW)

Nabeno eats some hip attacks as she is a bit out of her league, she gets away to tag in Kudo and Kudo trades bombs with Ito. Sleeper by Kudo, Nabeno comes in and they double team Ito. Tiger Driver by Kudo, she picks up Ito and hits another one followed by a third but Yamada comes into help. Kudo gets rid of Yamada but she comes back again, but Kudo hits a hurricanrana for two. Kudo tags Nabeno and Nabeno hits a missile dropkick on Ito. Ito has finally had enough and hits a cannonball, she tags Yamada and Yamada dives down onto Nabeno. Yamada hits four jumping kicks on Nabeno, then Nabeno is double teamed until Kudo comes in and lariats Ito. Ito goes up top with Nabeno and hits a superplex followed by a series of footstomps. Kudo interferes, so Ito hits a diving footstomp off the top turnbuckle to the floor onto Kudo. She then gets back up top and hits one on Nabeno, and she gets the three come! Ito and Yamada win the match.

I liked this match, mostly because of Yamada. I haven’t seen a lot of Yamada but her strikes and suplexes are so good, she is just the type of wrestler that I enjoy watching. Everyone played their parts right though and unlike some previous matches they didn’t waste time doing things that ultimately meant nothing. A bit predictable on whom was taking the fall but a solid tag match. Mildly Recommended

Kyoko Inoue vs. Shinobu Kandori (JWP)

Kandori does finally get the first big break in the match as she spins around Inoue with a sleeper, powerbomb by Kandori but it gets two. Kandori goes back to the sleeper but Inoue gets out of it, Inoue quickly springs to the top turnbuckle and she hits a diving back elbow drop. Missile dropkick by Inoue and she hits another one, but Kandori blocks the powerbomb attempt. Elbow by Inoue but Kandori catches her arm to go for an armbar. Inoue gets away and hits an enzuigiri, but Kandori hits the Tiger Driver for two. Kandori gets Inoue’s back but Inoue rolls her up and they trade quick pin attempts. Powerbomb by Inoue, Kandori manages to get the Fujiwara Armbar locked in but Inoue reaches the ropes. Kandori drags Inoue to the middle of the ring, she applies a double armbar submission and Inoue is forced to give up! Shinobu Kandori is your winner.

This was a great match that even if you don’t know their history (I am not sure where the hate comes from) it was palpable from start to finish. They both brought something different as Inoue went for power moves while Kandori was more into strikes and submissions, so it led to an interesting dynamic as either could have won at any point with their preferred methodology. Kandori targeting the arm was on point and the finishing submission had that feel of “well Inoue isn’t getting out of this” which is always the right reaction. Really entertaining, just two top end wrestlers in their prime putting on a smart and entertaining match. Highly Recommended

 
Sakie Hasegawa, Manami Toyota, and Yumiko Hotta vs. Mayumi Ozaki, Plum Mariko, and Hikari Fukuoka (JWP)

That ends the JWP portion of the match, as AJW takes over with the slow destruction of Fukuoka. And a glorious destruction it is as she is suplexed around the ring in rapid fire fashion with her teammates occasionally coming in to break things up. Finally Mariko is tagged in and she has more luck, powerbombing Toyota to turn the tide back to the invading team. Toyota’s leg is worked on, but soon she breaks away and gets back to her corner. Toyota tags in Hasegawa, she gets Ozaki in a submission but Ozaki gets out of it. There really are no long breaks here, its pretty much non-stop tagging and big moves to whomever is unlucky enough to be in the ring. Fukuoka drops Hotta with a missile dropkick but Toyota flies off the top with a crossbody on all of Team JWP, Oklahoma Roll by Ozaki to Toyota but it gets a two count. Toyota returns the favor but Ozaki tags back out and all six women take turns hitting big spots again. The higher flying wrestlers take dives out of the ring, ending with a Toyota moonsault, Hotta gets Ozaki on her shoulders and she eats a double missile dropkick. Hotta gives Ozaki a hard powerbomb but accidentally hits Hasegawa with a heel kick, bodypress by Mariko and Ozaki delivers the moonsault for two. Cross-arm suplex by Ozaki to Hasegawa, and she gets the three count! Team JWP wins the match!

There was a lot to love about this one, mostly the lack of downtime in a 25 minute match. They were just going hard from bell to bell, it wasn’t as strike based as the last few but more suplexes and double (or triple) teaming. The ending actually came out of nowhere as Hasegawa had just recovered from the previous moves done to her when she took the suplex that kept her down, since wrestlers have been kicking out of everything all night I’d have preferred it take a bit more to get the three count. Still, a hectic and fast paced match, not a ton of psychology but lots of goodness nonetheless. Recommended

(c) Akira Hokuto vs. Rumi Kazama (LLPW)

This match starts with a bang, as Kazama hits Hokuto to the mat but Hokuto fires back with two straight piledrivers. That’s how you kick things off. Hokuto tries to choke out Kazama with no luck so she sits down on the Scorpion Deathlock instead. Kazama gains the upper hand with some kicks and starts on Hokuto’s already injured knee, they roll out of the ring together and Kazama lays in with the leg kicks. Back in, Hokuto delivers some kicks of her own but Kazama hits a German suplex hold for two. Tiger suplex hold by Kazama, but that gets a two as well. Spinning heel kick by Kazama and she kicks Hokuto out of the ring, Kazama goes up top and dives out of the ring, but Hokuto moves. Hokuto then goes up top and hits a somersault splash down onto Kazama, but back in the ring Kazama kicks Hokuto when she goes for a Northern Lights Bomb. Hokuto goes for a gutwrench bomb but Kazama reverses it with a hurricanrana, Hokuto goes up top but Kazama kicks her as she jumps off. Kneebar by Kazama but Hokuto gets in the ropes, gutwrench bomb by Hokuto but Kazama kicks out. Missile Dropkick by Hokuto but Kazama hits a German suplex hold for two. Powerbomb by Kazama but Hokuto drops Kazama right on her head with an inverted powerslam. Northern Lights Bomb by Hokuto and she retains her championship!

Hokuto matches are always a pleasure because she is high energy and high impact. Kazama learned that the hard way as she was dropped on her head several times, while all she had to retort with was leg submissions and an occasional suplex. Kazama was good with the reversals though, it showed that she had scouted Hokuto which is a degree of realism that I appreciate. Hokuto could have sold the leg better between holds but it was an exciting and fun match. Recommended

 
(c) Aja Kong vs. Dynamite Kansai (JWP)

This match started slower than the last few as both were feeling each other out, looking for a way to get the advantage. Kong’s headbutts send Kansai reeling, she picks her up and drops Kansai with a piledriver. Kong concentrates on Kansai’s leg and back but Kansai takes back over and locks in a chinlock. This won’t go anywhere but the crowd is enjoying it and a slow build in title matches isn’t a bad thing. Kansai hits her own piledriver before going after Kong’s leg but Kong knocks Kansai to the mat and applies a Scorpion Deathlock. Kansai boots Kong and hits a lariat, but Kong fires back with her own lariat and the champion is back in control. Body Avalanche by Kong but Kansai ducks the Uraken and slams Kong for a two count. Kansai kicks Kong out of the ring and then dives out onto her with a pescado.

Back in, Kansai slams Kong and hits a diving bodypress for a nearfall. Kansai hits a lariat as the champion is on the ropes, but Kong decks Kansai with a Uraken. Kong goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a body press, but the challenger gets a shoulder up. She goes up again, Kansai goes for a kick as she jumps off but Kong crushes her leg instead. Kong drops Kansai on her head with a backdrop suplex but Kansai ducks the Uraken. A high kick by Kansai sends Kong to the mat, Kansai charges Kong but Kong hits a suplex. Kong goes up top, Kansai grabs her from behind however and nails the Splash Mountain but Kong barely kicks out. A STF by Kansai doesn’t get the submission so she goes back to kicks, but Kong catches one and hits a German suplex hold. Backdrop Driver by Kong and she hits a Uraken, another Uraken by Kong and she takes off the gloves to hit another one. Kong puts Kansai up top, she gets Kansai behind her back and drops down to the mat, squishing Kansai underneath her. Kong quickly covers Kansai and she gets the three count! Kong retains the championship!

Another great match, these inter-promotional cards were just stacked with talent. The crowd was really eating up some of the nearfalls, especially the Splash Mountain, and Kansai was hard enough to put down that it didn’t hurt her stature in JWP to lose. I wasn’t surprised the match had a slow start since title matches are usually more likely to have a ‘feeling out process,’ partly to increase the length and partly to push the idea that its such an important match that neither wants to make the first mistake. Once the bombs started there was no going back though, and the atmosphere was incredible. Perfect way to end the show and a must-see match between two Joshi legends. Highly Recommended

Results Recap:

• Utako Hozumi, Kurenai Yasha, and Mizuki Endo defeats Tomoko Watanabe, Numacchi, and The Goddess Chikako Shiratori
• Bolshoi Kid and Candy Okutsu defeats Infernal KAORU and Chaparrita ASARI
• Bull Nakano, Minami, Mita, Shimoda, and Bat Yoshinaga defeats Eagle Sawai, Harley Saito, Handa, Osawa, and Kitamura  – Recommended
• Takako Inoue defeats Cuty Suzuki
• Toshiyo Yamada and Kaoru Ito defeats Megumi Kudo and Yukie Nabeno  – Mildly Recommended
• Shinobu Kandori defeats Kyoko Inoue – Highly Recommended
• Mayumi Ozaki, Plum Mariko, and Hikari Fukuoka defeats Yumiko Hotta, Manami Toyota, and Sakie Hasegawa  – Recommended
• All Pacific Championship: Akira Hokuto defeats Rumi Kazama  – Recommended
• WWWA Championship: Aja Kong defeats Dynamite Kansai – Highly Recommended

The post AJW Legacy of Queens on August 25, 1993 Review appeared first on Joshi City.