Event: Ice Ribbon #1183
Date: March 5th, 2022
Location: Ice Ribbon Dojo in Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance: 38
Broadcast: Streamed Live on Club Ice Ribbon

Last month, Ice Ribbon launched a new streaming service – Club Ice Ribbon. Club Ice Ribbon shows different content than their Nico Pro channel, with its main ‘draw’ being they will air live all their dojo events. Other events will also be added on a delay, and there will be other special features, but the dojo events are the main attraction for people that just want to watch as much wrestling as possible. These are smaller shows, as the name implies, and likely will not have any title matches or big matches in general as those will be saved for non-dojo events. These are more designed to help get experience for the younger wrestlers while hopefully also putting on a good show. Here is the full card:

• Ibuki Hoshi and Kiku vs. Kaho Matsushita and Sumika Yanagawa
• Totoro Satsuki vs. Yuko Sakurai
• Asahi and Misa Kagura vs. Nao Ishikawa and Rina Amikura
• Banny Oikawa and Tsukushi Haruka vs. Saran and Tsukasa Fujimoto

Lots of young wrestlers here, should be fun to see how they are coming along. All wrestlers on the event have a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it.

Ibuki Hoshi and Kiku vs. Kaho Matsushita and Sumika Yanagawa

Ibuki and Kaho start the match, they trade wristlocks and hammerlocks until Ibuki gets Kaho to the mat. Kaho quickly gets out of it and hits a dropkick, she tags in Sumika and Sumika elbows Ibuki against the ropes. Irish whip by Sumika but Ibuki hits a hard shoulderblock and tags Kiku. Kiku goes for a slam but Sumika blocks it and hits one of her own, snapmares by Sumika and she applies a stretch hold. Ibuki comes in to help but Kaho cuts her off and puts her in a stretch hold as well, before both teammates let go. Sumika pushes Kiku near the ropes and stands on her back, knee to the back by Sumika and she works a headlock. Kaho tags in, Kaho throws down Kiku by the head and kicks her in the corner. Camel Clutch by Kaho but she lets go after a moment and hits a scoop slam. She tags Sumika, Irish whip by Sumika and she hits a drop toehold. Sickle Hold by Sumika, but Kiku inches to the ropes to get the break. Sumika picks up Kiku but Kiku elbows her off, headbutt by Sumika but Kiku schoolboys her for the two count. This gives her time to tag Ibuki, shoulderblock by Ibuki to Sumika as Kaho runs in, Kaho tries to help but Ibuki dropkicks both of them. Ibuki goes back to Sumika, chop by Ibuki but Sumika catches her with a boot. Snapmare by Sumika and she applies a full nelson, but Ibuki gets to the ropes. Sumika sets up Ibuki in the ropes and hits a knee to her back, cover by Sumika but it gets a two count.

Sumika picks up Ibuki and throws her into the corner, jumping knee by Sumika but Ibuki delivers a Codebreaker. Both wrestlers end up knocking each other out, Sumika gets to her corner first and tags in Kaho. Kaho dropkicks Ibuki, she picks her up and the two trade strikes. Ibuki ends the duel by hitting a side Russian leg sweep, she quickly applies a submission hold from it but it gets broken up. Kaho ducks an elbow and delivers a dropkick, hard shoulderblock by Kaho and she follows with another dropkick for two. Ibuki slams Kaho to the mat and makes the tag to Kiku, Kiku goes off the ropes and hits a dropkick. More dropkicks by Kiku but Kaho eventually stands toe to toe with her as they trade elbows. Schoolboy by Kiku but Kaho gets out of it and applies one of her own for a two count. Dropkick by Kiku and she applies a modified Scorpion Deathlock, but it gets quickly broken up. Kiku kicks Kaho in the corner and hits a neckbreaker, but Kaho kicks out of the cover. Shoulderblock by Kaho and she puts her in a kneelock, but Ibuki breaks it up. Sumika gets rid of Ibuki, Kaho drops Kiku onto the mat and covers her for two. Leg hook slam by Kaho, but the cover gets broken up. Vertical suplex by Kaho, she picks up Kiku and nails a wrist-clutch half nelson suplex for the three count! Kaho Matsushita and Sumika Yanagawa win!

That started ok but it really went off the rails the last couple minutes, not sure what happened there. I’m never going to be but so hard on rookies/young wrestlers as there is still learning going on, but the execution here was pretty hit and miss. Sumika and Kaho both looked good in general, Ibuki had her moments but Kiku has the worst showing of the foursome with some iffy dropkicks and strikes. The sequence between Kaho and Kiku towards the end while Sumika stayed in the ring seemingly thinking a spot was coming for her but never did was awkward, clearly a misunderstanding of some sort but pretty noticeable. Good experience for all involved and Kaho shows some early promise, but not the tightest match with rookies I have seen, may have benefited by being half the time it was.

Totoro Satsuki vs. Yuko Sakurai

Yuko starts the match trying to knock over Totoro but isn’t able to, as Totoro sends her crashing to the mat. Totoro picks up Yuko and throws her into the corner, Totoro mushes her with her foot but Yuko gets away and connects with an elbow. Yuko starts on Totoro’s back and puts her in a stretch hold, she lets go after a moment and stomps her towards the ropes. Totoro stands up which sends Yuko flying, stomps Totoro and she stands on Yuko’s back. Totoro sits on Yuko’s back and stretches her, she lets go and picks up Yuko, leading to the two trading elbows. Yuko gets Totoro’s back but Totoro hiptosses her down, body press by Totoro and she covers Yuko for two. Totoro picks up Yuko but Yuko wiggles away and puts her in an abdominal stretch. Totoro gets to the ropes for the break, dropkick by Yuko and she covers Totoro for two. Lariat by Totoro but Yuko fires back with an elbow and shoulderblock. Yuko picks up Totoro and puts her in a dragon sleeper, but Totoro gets to the bottom rope. Yuko positions Totoro and goes to the top turnbuckle, but Totoro recovers and elbows her. Totoro gets Yuko on her shoulders but Yuko gets away and rolls her up for two. Yuko goes off the ropes but Totoro hits a crossbody for two. Kamikaze by Totoro, and she covers Yuko for two. Totoro goes to the second turnbuckle and nails a diving senton, and she picks up the three count! Totoro Satsuki is the winner!

A pretty standard bigger wrestler vs. smaller wrestler match. Totoro has improved over the years and works well within her limitations, although she didn’t have as much to work with here as they were really focused on the big vs. little storyline. As such, Yuko didn’t get a chance to show much, but she looked fine in what they did. A pretty basic match, nothing wrong with it but nothing particularly memorable either.

Asahi and Misa Kagura vs. Nao Ishikawa and Amikura

Nao and Misa start the match but Rina comes in too to give Nao some extra encouragement. She brings Asahi into the ring and both Rina and Nao hit shoulderblocks followed by body presses. They goof around with Asahi and Misa for a bit until things return to normally, hard shoulderblock by Nao to Misa and she tags Rina. Rina and Misa run into each other with neither going down, Rina finally knocks Misa over but Misa avoids the running senton and applies a side headlock. Drop toehold by Misa and she hits a senton, picking up a two count. Misa tags Asahi, Asahi picks up Rina and slams her head into the mat. Asahi boots Nao to the floor while Misa gets in the ring, as they double team Rina. Asahi picks up Rina but Rina chops her and the two trade blows, a battle that Asahi gets the better of. Asahi tosses Rina down by the head and pushes her down in the corner with her boot, Asahi picks up Rina but Rina catches her with a shoulderblock and a senton for two. Rina picks up Asahi and applies a backbreaker, she hangs Asahi upside down in the corner so that she and Nao can both hit running strikes. Cover by Rina, but Asahi kicks out. Rina gutwrenches Asahi but Asahi slides away and dropkicks Rina. Asahi goes off the ropes but Rina hits a rolling chop, giving her time to tag Nao. Cartwheel kneedrop followed by a body press by Nao, she picks up Asahi and hits a crossbody for two. Rina comes in, double Irish whip to Asahi and they hit a double shoulderblock. Misa runs in and hits a face crusher on both of them, but accidentally lands both on top of Asahi, so she causes more harm than good.

Nao picks up Asahi but Asahi avoids a strike and hits a Lou Thesz Press. Nao gets Asahi on her back before slamming her to the mat, cover by Nao but it gets two. Nao goes off the ropes but Asahi hits an armdrag, cradle by Asahi but Nao rolls through it and applies a leg submission hold. Asahi gets to the ropes to get out of the hold, Nao goes off the ropes but Asahi drop toeholds her into the second rope and hits the 619. Cover by Asahi, but Nao kicks out. Asahi tags Misa, stomps by Misa and she elbows Nao into the corner. Armdrags by Misa and she stomps on Misa some more, but Nao blocks the slam attempt and hits a scoop slam of her own. Nao sits down on Misa but Asahi kicks her in the head to break up the cover. Rina also comes in as Nao and Rina take back the advantage, shoulderblock by Nao to Misa and she goes to the top turnbuckle, hitting a diving crossbody for two. Nao picks up Misa but Misa throws her into the corner, lariat by Misa and she jumps on Nao’s back with a standing submission hold. Rina makes it back in to break it up, Asahi gets rid of her while Misa puts Nao in a crab hold. Nao gets to the ropes to force a break, she goes off the ropes but Rina runs in and slams her. Jackknife cover by Nao, but Asahi breaks it up. Nao goes off the ropes but Misa catches her with a dropkick, Asahi goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers a missile dropkick to Nao. Lariat by Misa, but Rina breaks up the pin. Misa picks up Nao and goes off the ropes, but Nao applies the Tachia Girl (cradle with a bridge) for the three count! Rina Amikura and Nao Ishikawa are the winners.

So if the main focus of these events is rookie/young wrestler evaluation and growth, looking at that is probably the most fair way to evaluate these matches. I’m not a huge fan of random mid-match goofiness, just a personal taste, so bell to bell not my general favorite match as they went to that “well” a few times with no real benefit. Asahi and Nao looked really good, they have all the basics down pat and have added a few intermediate moves to their arsenal as well. Misa and Rina were a step down from those two, nothing bad but a few moments that didn’t quite click right with Rina in particular at times looking a step behind. A perfectly acceptable basic match with a few bright points, but I’d like to see Nao and Asahi in a singles match to really see their potential.

Oikawa and Tsukushi Haruka vs. Saran and Fujimoto

Saran is dressed like Tsukushi, who recently announced she is retiring, making the young wrestler quite sad. If she stays in wrestling, she’ll eventually get used to the sudden retirements we see so often in Joshi. Fujimoto and Tsukushi start the match, Fujimoto pushes Tsukushi into the ropes and hits an armdrag. They trade armdrags and flash covers, but they eventually end up in a stalemate. Fujimoto tags Saran, Saran and Tsukushi tie-up before they trade wristlocks. They then trade hammerlocks as they jockey for the advantage, Saran stomps on Tsukushi’s foot repeatedly which just makes Tsukushi mad as she throws her into the corner. Tsukushi returns the favor by stomping on Saran’s foot, Irish whip by Tsukushi but Saran catches her with a dropkick. Scoop slam by Tsukushi and she knocks Fujimoto off the apron, she goes back to Saran and puts her in a Camel Clutch. Tsukushi lets go and tags Banny, Banny picks up Saran and throws her down by the head. She does it a second time before pushing her down in the corner with her boot, Banny picks up Saran and sets her up in the ropes. Kicks by Banny and she tags Tsukushi back in, Tsukushi puts Saran’s hands on the mat and stands on them.

Banny returns, she throws Saran into the corner and delivers a dropkick. Another dropkick by Banny, she snapmares Saran and kicks her in the back before applying a submission hold. Fujimoto breaks it up, Banny goes for a crab hold but Saran quickly cradles her for two. This gives her time to tag Fujimoto, Banny briefly fights back but Fujimoto puts her in an Octopus Hold. Tsukushi breaks it up but Fujimoto delivers a dropkick to both of them, Banny kicks Fujimoto in the leg and delivers a heel drop to her back. Heel kick by Banny and she covers Fujimoto for two. Banny tags Tsukushi, Tsukushi goes for a roll into a footstomp but Fujimoto reverses it and kicks Tsukushi in the chest. Fujimoto picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi elbows her and the two trade shots. Tsukushi wins the battle as she applies a step-over cradle followed by a low hurricanrana. Missile dropkick by Tsukushi but Fujimoto springs back up and hits a dropkick of her own. Saran runs in and also hits a dropkick, Fujimoto goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick for a two count. Fujimoto picks up Saran but they can’t execute whatever move they were going for (confused), snapmare by Fujimoto to Tsukushi and she kicks her in the back. PK by Fujimoto and she covers Tsukushi for a two count. Fujimoto tags Saran, dropkicks by Saran but Tsukushi bridges out of the pin. Saran pulls her back to the mat and kicks Tsukushi into the corner, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Banny grabs her from the apron.

That gives Tsukushi time to recover but Saran gets Tsukushi in a sleeper, while Fujimoto comes in and puts Banny in a dragon sleeper. Tsukushi gets to the ropes for the break, elbows by Saran to Tsukushi but Tsukushi elbows her back. Tsukushi elbows a lot harder than Saran so Saran is feeling each one, Irish whip by Saran and she hits a crossbody. Saran goes to the top turnbuckle but Tsukushi recovers and knocks her off.  Dropkick by Tsukushi but her cover gets two. Running elbow smash by Tsukushi, but that gets a two count as well. Banny comes in and both strike Saran, Tsukushi goes to the top turnbuckle but Saran avoids the footstomp and schoolboys Tsukushi for two. Irish whip by Saran, reversed, but Saran flips out of the corner and sunset flips Tsukushi for a two count. Saran quickly goes to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving crossbody, but Banny breaks it up. Saran goes off the ropes but Tsukushi catches her with a knee, low crossbody by Tsukushi but Saran rolls through the cover. Footstomp by Saran and she applies the Denden Mushi, but Banny breaks it up. Fujimoto dropkicks Banny out of the ring, Saran grabs Tsukushi’s arm but Tsukushi blocks whatever she was trying to do and applies the Tsuchigumo for the three count! Banny Oikawa and Tsukushi Haruka are the winners.

Aside from one really awkward spot towards the end, this match was pretty good. Saran is probably the smoothest young wrestler we’ve seen tonight, and even though I don’t love the idea of a new wrestler being a “clone” she did hit Tsukushi’s moves very smoothly. Obviously way too soon to say what her future holds but she seems to have a lot of potential. Fujimoto and Tsukushi acted as the vets you’d expect, looking sharp and keeping the match moving so it never wore out its welcome. Banny was just there but inoffensive, she didn’t add much to the match but she didn’t take away from it either. This mostly felt like an effort to spotlight Saran, which I think they did pretty well. A solid match and a fitting way to end a smaller dojo show.  Mildly Recommended

The post Ice Ribbon #1183 Dojo Show on 3/5/22 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: SEAdLINNNG 2021 Opening Match
Date: January 11th, 2021
Location: Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 467
Broadcast Information: Aired on Samurai TV! on 1/17/21

As I finally begin my 2021 Joshi viewing, lets start with SEAdLINNNG. I don’t watch near as much SEAdLINNNG as I should, which is something I hope to fix in 2021 as they pretty consistently put on quality shows. Their ‘home’ roster is very small but solid, featuring Arisa Nakajima, Nanae Takahashi, and Yoshiko. The best Freelancers also tend to swing by SEAdLINNNG, such as Rina Yamashita and ASUKA, giving them generally pretty complete events. This show has a big main event, as Best Friends take on Yoshiko and Sareee! Here is the full card:

• AKARI vs. Chikayo Nagashima vs. Ibuki Hoshi vs. Kaho Kobayashi vs. Leon vs. Tsukushi Haruka
• Aja Kong, Honori Hana, and Rina Yamashita vs. ASUKA, Makoto, and Riko Kaiju
• Chikayo Nagashima vs. Tsukushi Haruka
• Itsuki Aoki and Ryo Mizunami vs. Miyuki Takase and Nanae Takahashi
• Arisa Nakajima and Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Sareee and Yoshiko

All wrestlers on the event have a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it. Let’s get to the fun.

AKARI vs. Nagashima vs. Ibuki Hoshi vs. Kobayashi vs. Leon vs. Tsukushi Haruka

They start with a melee as they pair up with each other, with wrestlers from the same promotion generally working together. Everyone gets made at Natsuki and attack her in the corner before singling out AKARI, but Leon helps her promotion-mate out. Leon gets attacked for her trouble as they try to throw her out of the ring, but she lands on the apron. While that is going on, Nagashima and Ibuki go into an exchange as they are left alone in the ring, they trade holds but neither can get an advantage. AKARI and Kaho run in and dropkick them so they can go at it, hard shoulderblock by AKARI but Kaho kips up. Armdrag by AKARI but Kaho returns the favor, both go for dropkicks but they both miss. Leon and Tsukushi trip them from the floor so they can take their turn, armdrag by Tsukushi but Leon cartwheels out of the next one. Tilt-a-whirl headscissors by Tsukushi, she goes off the ropes but Leon catches her with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Ibuki  and Tsukushi take turns hitting Leon but AKARI runs in and dropkicks both of them. Leon and AKARI both apply submission holds but Kaho and Nagashima schoolboy them for two counts. Armdrag by Kaho to Nagashima and she applies an armbar, but Nagashima gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Kaho goes after Natsuki but Nagashima interrupts them, hurricanrana but Kaho but Nagashima rolls through it and they trade cradles. Tsukushi returns and they Irish whip Nagashima, making her go back and forth off the ropes before Kaho hits a dropkick. Tsukushi quickly cradles Kaho, but it only gets a two count. AKARI and Leon come in but they accidentally collide into each other, drop toehold by Tsukushi to Ibuki and she cradles her for the three count! Tsukushi wins and advances to the next match.

After a brief reset the remaining five get back into it, all five go for random cradles but none get a three count. AKARI wraps up Kaho in a submission, Ibuki tries to break it up but fails. Nagashima finally is able to free Kaho, AKARI and Leon double team Nagashima but Nagashima fights them off tries to kick Leon out of the ring. Nagashima is cradled from behind before she succeeds, senton by Kaho to Nagashima as all four wrestlers stomp out Nagashima. Nagashima fights them off with elbows before hitting a double lariat on Kaho and Natsuki (poor Natsuki), Leon dropkicks Nagashima on the apron and comes off the top but accidentally hits a missile dropkick on AKARI. Leon throws Kaho into the corner but Kaho drops her onto the apron when she charges in, Leon knocks Kaho back but Kaho avoids the Frog Splash. Kaho kicks Nagashima but Ibuki shoulderblocks her to the mat, diving crossbody by Ibuki to Kaho but AKARI dropkicks her. AKARI gets Kaho up but Kaho flips away from her, schoolboy by Kaho but Nagashima breaks it up with a footstomp. AKARI goes for a series of pins with no success on Nagashima, Nagashima reverses one into a cradle of her own and she gets the three count! Chikayo Nagashima wins and advances to the next match later tonight!

While I always viewed the High Speed matches as harmless fun, at best, sometimes I think “less is more” and this show may lean too far on the “more” side. Natsuki Taiyo has gone from occasionally getting involved in these matches to being almost an active participant, and there wasn’t a ton of substance to this match beyond the wrestlers from the same promotion tending to work together. If this was just the opener, no harm done, but since we have another High Speed match now later, it feels like a little too much of a gimmick that is cute but nothing more. Even on the High Speed match scale, this wasn’t their best effort.

Aja Kong, Honori Hana, and Rina Yamashita vs. ASUKA, Makoto, and Riko Kaiju

Rina and Makoto start the match, they trade wristlocks until Rina shoulderblocks Makoto to the mat. Makoto bridges out of the pin and hits a crossbody off the ropes, leading to Rina tagging in Kong while Riko also tags in. Riko tries to elbow Kong but it has no impact, Kong moves out of the way of Riko’s dropkick and kicks her in the ribs. Riko has had enough and tags in ASUKA, ASUKA slowly gets in the ring and lures Kong into a false sense of security before schoolboying her for two. Her teammates come in as they all stomp on Kong, but Kong fights them all off. We clip ahead to Makoto and Rina back in the ring, knee by Rina but Makoto delivers a Pump Kick. She tags in ASUKA, boots by both ASUKA and Makoto to Rina and ASUKA covers her for two. ASUKA picks up Rina but Rina gets her back, she goes for a suplex but ASUKA lands on her feet and connects with an elbow. Rina fires back with a hard lariat and tags in Kong, Kong goes for a suplex but ASUKA blocks it and hits a moonsault off the ropes for a two count. ASUKA grabs Kong but Kong ducks down and kicks her in the head. Kong goes for a lariat but ASUKA ducks it, punch by Kong and she plants ASUKA with a backdrop suplex for two. They trade strikes until ASUKA lands two kicks and nails a German suplex for a two count.

ASUKA goes to the top turnbuckle but Kong gets her feet up on the moonsault attempt, both wrestlers struggle to crawl to their corners as they tag in Honori and Riko. Honori shoulderblocks Riko to the mat, she picks her up but Riko fights back and they trade elbows. Irish whip by Riko but Honori ducks the lariat and hits a shoulderblock. Dropkick by Riko, she elbows Honori into the corner but Honori reverses the Irish whip and hits a running elbow. ASUKA kicks Honori from the apron and gets in the ring, Makoto comes in too as all three boot Honori in the head. Riko goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, but Rina breaks up the cover. Superkick by Rina to Riko, Kong comes in and hits a lariat. Honori gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Honori but ASUKA breaks it up. Heel kick by ASUKA to Rina and she goes for Kong, but Kong blocks the suplex attempt. Makoto comes in to help but Kong suplexes both of them, spear by Honori to Riko but Riko gets the shoulder up. Honori goes for a couple flash pins with no luck, she picks up Riko and hits a scoop slam for two. Riko throws Honori into the corner but Honori avoids her charge, she goes for a cradle but Riko reverses it into a triangle choke. She struggles for a moment but has to tap out! ASUKA, Makoto, and Riko Kaiju are the winners.

This was a perfectly acceptable midcard match. While most of it was just your standard fare, they mixed in some fun moments such as ASUKA suplexing Kong to at least make you pay attention when the big hitters were in the match. I still am not sold on Honori and maybe SEAdLINNNG isn’t either, since she took the pin to the newer wrestler. Something just isn’t really clicking with her. But the veterans all looked good and it wasn’t long enough to get stale. Nothing special but nothing bad either.

Chikayo Nagashima vs. Tsukushi Haruka

They get right into it with a kick from Tsukushi, Irish whip by Nagashima and she hits an armdrag. Tsukushi gets a few quick pin attempts with no luck, Tsukushi flies in to Nagashima but Nagashima catches her with a backdrop suplex. Rolling cradle by Nagashima, but it gets a two count. Nagashima picks up Tsukushi and knees her, she goes off the ropes but Tsukushi avoids her charge. They take turns running the ropes with Taiyo helping, but Tsukushi rolls out of the ring to try to catch her breath. Tsukushi returns but is met with a boot, scoop slam by Nagashima and she gets on the second turnbuckle, but Tsukushi recovers and knocks her out to the apron. Nagashima elbows Tsukushi and goes to the top turnbuckle, but again Tsukushi recovers and tosses Nagashima to the mat. Now it is Tsukushi that goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, she runs off the ropes before applying a cover but it only gets a two count. Footstomp by Tsukushi and she goes to Taiyo for help, but Taiyo powerbombs her. Not sure why. Nagashima picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi cradles her, Taiyo kicks Tsukushi instead of counting and Nagashima hits a lariat for a two count. Nagashima goes for a suplex but Tsukushi gets out of it, elbows by Tsukushi and she goes after Taiyo. Taiyo avoids her for a bit until Tsukushi catches her and elbows Taiyo off the apron. Nagashima charges Tsukushi but Tsukushi holds down the top rope, leading to Nagashima landing on the apron. Tsukushi tries to kick of Nagashima but Taiyo helps her hang on, finally Tsukushi is able to kick them both off the apron and the match is over! Tsukushi wins by Over The Top.

I assume there were some elements to this match that I didn’t get just parachuting in, with Taiyo helping Nagashima when she normally helps Tsukushi, but for a midcard nothing match it wasn’t worth my trouble scrolling through websites to try to figure it out. Or it was just random anyway, who knows. I am sure some will love it but for me its just midcard filler, just too random and short to get excited about.

Itsuki Aoki and Ryo Mizunami vs. Miyuki Takase and Nanae Takahashi

Miyuki and Itsuki start off, they lock-up and exchange holds until Miyuki gets Itsuki to the mat with a headlock. Itsuki gets out of it and the two return to their feet, quickly going into an elbow exchange. Hard shoulderblock by Itsuki, she goes off the ropes but Miyuki catches her with a dropkick. They tag out as Nanae and Ryo come in, they lock knuckles and go into a Test of Strength but break cleanly. Waistlock by Ryo but Nanae gets away and gets Ryo to the mat, kicks to the leg by Nanae and she puts Ryo in a necklock. Nanae tags Miyuki, Ryo quickly gets in control however and tags in Itsuki. Itsuki sets up Miyuki in the ropes and hits a body avalanche, double knee strike to the back by Itsuki and she covers Miyuki for two. She tags in Ryo, Ryo chops Miyuki into the corner and invites Itsuki to hold Miyuki so she can dance her way into a running lariat. Ryo picks up Miyuki but Miyuki fights back with elbows, Irish whip by Ryo to the corner but Miyuki rebounds out with a missile dropkick. Nanae runs in and they both chop Ryo in the corner, lariat by Miyuki but Ryo fights them both off with shoulderblocks and a double spear.

Elbows by Ryo to Miyuki but Miyuki hits a headbutt and applies a modified armbar on the mat. Itsuki tries to break it up but Nanae cuts her off, Miyuki keeps the hold on but Ryo eventually makes it to the ropes. Dropkick off the second rope by Miyuki and she hits a lariat followed by a cutter for a two count. Miyuki tags Nanae, lariat by Nanae in the corner but Ryo blocks the backdrop suplex attempt. Chops by Nanae but Ryo returns fire, jumping kick by Nanae and she covers Ryo for two. Lariat by Nanae but Ryo headbutts her, Ryo goes for a suplex but Nanae elbows her off. Overhead belly to belly suplex by Ryo and she hits a spear on Nanae for a two count. Ryo goes off the ropes but Nanae avoids her charge and hits a release German. Ryo quickly gets up and levels Nanae with a lariat, but Nanae returns the favor and both wrestlers end up down on the mat. Ryo gets to her corner and tags Itsuki, Itsuki throws Nanae in the corner and hits an elbow followed by a face crusher. Nanae chops Itsuki but Itsuki hits a lariat in the corner, she goes to the apron but Miyuki grabs her before she can do anything. This gives Nanae time to recover, she joins Itsuki and hits a superplex for a two count. Miyuki comes into the ring and hits a Kamikaze in front of the corner, Nanae goes for a body splash but Itsuki rolls out of the way.

STO by Itsuki but Nanae gets back to her feet quickly only to get hit with a side slam from Ryo. Ryo and Itsuki both grab Nanae and slam her to the mat, Miyuki runs in but she gets thrown on top of Nanae. Itsuki goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers a diving footstomp, cover by Itsuki but Nanae gets a shoulder up. Bridging vertical suplex by Itsuki, but that gets a two count as well. Itsuki gets Nanae on her shoulders but Nanae wiggles off, Miyuki comes in but Nanae kicks her in the face by accident. Spear by Itsuki to Nanae, and she covers her for two. Backdrop suplex by Nanae, she goes off the ropes but Itsuki catches her with a lariat for another two count. Itsuki goes off the ropes but Nanae hits a hard lariat of her own, Nanae picks up Itsuki but Ryo runs in. Nanae lariats Ryo while Miyuki comes in and hits a spear onto Itsuki. Nanae goes back to Itsuki and drops her with a reverse piledriver, but Ryo breaks up the cover. Lariat by Nanae to Itsuki, and she covers her for the three count! Nanae Takahashi and Miyuki Takase are the winners!

Even though this won’t end up on anyone’s MOTY list, it was a solid match. The best thing I can say about it is that even though it was 18+ minutes, the match never slowed down or had any moments that dragged, they just kept the action going from bell to bell. Nanae Takahashi is an acquired taste – she still has an old school 90s mindset and no-sells quite a bit, and long term selling isn’t really her thing. That is not to say she doesn’t sell at all, she does, but its on her own terms. I’d have liked for one of the younger wrestlers to get the pin rather than Nanae, but again that’s part of the deal too. Anyway, a good fast paced match with four quality wrestlers, even if the structure may not have been perfect.  Mildly Recommended

Arisa Nakajima and Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Sareee and Yoshiko

Sareee and Arisa start the match, they go into a Test of Strength with Sareee ending up with a wristlock. Arisa gets out of it and applies a side headlock, Sareee tries to Irish whip out of it but Arisa keeps a hold of her hair. Irish whip by Arisa but Sareee blocks it and hits an elbow, with Arisa quickly returning the favor. Dropkick by Sareee, she goes off the ropes but Tsukasa runs in and Best Friends dropkick Sareee. Yoshiko also comes in and lariats both opponents, sending them out of the ring. Sareee goes to the top turnbuckle and dives out of the ring onto Arisa and Tsukasa, Sareee slides Arisa back into the ring and delivers a dropkick. Scoop slam by Sareee, and she covers Arisa for two. Sareee tags Yoshiko, Yoshiko grabs Arisa by the hair and tosses her to the mat. Bootscrapes by Yoshiko and she delivers a running boot to Arisa’s face, she picks up Arisa but Arisa kicks her in the stomach. Arisa goes off the ropes but Yoshiko catches her with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, Sareee runs in and hops on Yoshiko’s back while Yoshiko hits a splash. Sareee goes back to the apron so that Yoshiko can tag her in, kicks by Sareee to Arisa but Arisa blocks the suplex attempt as the two trade footstomps. Stomps by Sareee and she puts Arisa in a crab hold, she lets go after a moment and stomps more on Arisa. Dropkick by Sareee and she tags Yoshiko, kicks by Yoshiko to Arisa and she hits a running knee. Cover by Yoshiko, but it gets a two count. Yoshiko picks up Arisa, strike combination by Yoshiko but Arisa catches her with a bridging powerslam for two.

This gives her time to tag in Tsukasa, dropkick by Tsukasa to Yoshiko as Sareee runs in, but Tsukasa fights them both off. Tsukasa stacks them in the corner and hits a dropkick, kicks to the back by Tsukasa to Yoshiko but Yoshiko ducks the PK. Arisa runs in and boots Yoshiko instead, German suplex by Arisa to Yoshiko and Tsukasa applies a jackknife cover for two. Tsukasa goes for the Infinity but Yoshiko blocks it, Yoshiko gets Tsukasa on her shoulders and hits a Samoan Drop while Sareee hits a neckbreaker. Sareee gets on the second turnbuckle while Yoshiko hits a running senton, following with a diving footstomp. Reverse Splash by Yoshiko, but it gets a two count. Yoshiko tags Sareee, dropkick by Sareee to Tsukasa but Tsukasa flips away from her and kicks her in the chest. Sareee and Tsukasa trade elbows until Sareee catches Tsukasa with a fisherman suplex hold for two. Sickle Hold by Sareee to Tsukasa while Yoshiko keeps Arisa busy, Sareee lets go after a moment and stomps on Tsukasa. Sareee goes for a suplex but Tsukasa lands on her feet and kicks Sareee in the back. Tsukasa gets Sareee on her shoulders but Yoshiko comes in and saves her, Yoshiko throws Sareee at Tsukasa but Tsukasa dropkicks both of them. PK by Tsukasa to Sareee and she tags Arisa, Arisa goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick. German suplexes by Arisa to Sareee, but the last one she holds only gets two.

Arisa goes up top but Yoshiko grabs her from the apron, Sareee joins Arisa but Tsukasa runs in and dropkicks Sareee from behind. Arisa plants Yoshiko with a DDT on the apron, while Tsukasa goes up top with Sareee and hits a footstomp while Sareee is in the Tree of Woe. Arisa goes back up and hits a diving footstomp, but Sareee gets a shoulder up on the cover. Arisa knees Sareee while she picks her up, Arisa and Sareee trade elbows, lariat by Arisa but Sareee nails a dropkick. Sareee hits two more dropkicks before Yoshiko hits one as well from the apron, Sareee goes up top and hits a diving footstomp onto Arisa for a two count. Yoshiko rolls in and gets on the second turnbuckle, but Tsukasa runs over and kicks her off before she can do anything. Running double knee by Arisa to Sareee and she hits a trapped German for two. Yoshiko lariats Tsukasa but Tsukasa drops her with the Infinity, and all four wrestlers are down on the mat. Sareee and Arisa trade elbows as they get back up, German suplex hold by Sareee but Arisa kicks out. Sareee drops Arisa with a pair of Uranages, but again she can only get a two. Yoshiko comes in and holds Arisa while Sareee goes up top and hits a missile dropkick. Sareee then picks up Arisa so that Yoshiko can hit a diving lariat, cover by Sareee but Tsukasa breaks it up. Sareee grabs Arisa but Arisa elbows her off, Yoshiko tries to help but she lariats Sareee by accident. Arisa catches Sareee with a half and half suplex hold for two. Arisa picks up Sareee and hits her with elbows, Tsukasa handles Yoshiko while Arisa hits a German suplex. Leg clutch suplex by Arisa, but that gets a two count as well. Arisa drags Sareee to her feet and plants her with the DxD Suplex Hold, and she picks up the three count! Best Friends win!

I wouldn’t have minded if they had gone a few more more minutes, but this was a great match. Understandably since it was her Anniversary match, Arisa Nakajima did the bulk of the work for her team while Sareee did the same for hers, with Yoshiko and Tsukasa being pushed back to support roles. For a sub-20 minute match, they squeezed a lot into it, and even though I called the last match non-stop action this one took it to another level. What is impressive is not just the constant violence but how smooth it all was, with not a miscommunication or awkward moment in sight as there was just always something going on. And of course the hits were snug and the suplexes tight, as there was no weak link in this match when it comes to execution. I wouldn’t quite put it at the MOTYC level as it felt like they had more to give (especially since two partners still felt fresh), but still a very entertaining match.  Highly Recommended

The post SEAdLINNNG 2021 Opening Match on 1/11/21 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: Ice Ribbon New Ice Ribbon #1044
Date: May 31st, 2020
Location: Ice Ribbon Dojo in Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance: 0

Let’s jump right back to Ice Ribbon and give them another chance to impress. This is a bigger show than the last one I reviewed, as it has twice as many matches and also has a title match as well. Here is the full card:

All matches were shown in full, you can click on the wrestler’s name above to go straight to their profile on Joshi City. Let’s hop to it.

Ibuki Hoshi, Miyagi, and Yappy vs. Matsuya Uno, Ishikawa, and Tsukushi

Team Miyagi attacks before the bell rings, they isolate the rookie Nao and all attack her in the corner. The lights don’t seem to fully be on, hopefully they fix that at some point. They all pose on Nao until Tsukushi strolls in and breaks things up, Matsuya comes in too and they do the same thing to Ibuki that had been done to Nao. Things calm down with Nao and Ibuki in the ring as the legal wrestlers, Ibuki slams Nao’s face into the mat before putting her in a Camel Clutch. Miyagi and Yappy both come in to taunt Nao, Ibuki eventually lets go and hits a body press on Nao’s back for a two count cover. Ibuki tags in Miyagi, Nao tries to fight back but eats a hard elbow. cover by Miyagi but it gets two. Miyagi puts Nao in a side headlock, Nao gets to the ropes for the break but Yappy comes in to help get Nao back to the corner. Yappy tags in and hits a scoop slam, another slam by Yappy and she hits a third to Nao for a two count cover. Yappy tags in Ibuki and Ibuki throws down Nao by the hair, Irish whip by Ibuki but Nao hits a jumping crossbody for two. This gives her time to tag in Tsukushi, Tsukushi dropkicks Ibuki and Yappy but Miyagi ducks when she goes for her. Matsuya comes in to help as they hit a spear/dropkick combination on their opponents, Tsukushi sets up Ibuki in the ropes and rakes on her face before dropkicking her in the back. Cover by Tsukushi, but it gets a two count.

Tsukushi picks up Ibuki but Ibuki chops her repeatedly in the chest, Irish whip by Ibuki and she hits a body avalanche. Tsukushi blocks the cutter attempt and hits a footstomp, Matsuya and Nao come in and both strike Ibuki in the corner. Dropkick by Tsukushi, and she gets a two count cover. Tsukushi goes off the ropes but Ibuki catches her with a hard shoulderblock, Ibuki throws Tsukushi into the corner and hits another body avalanche, face crusher by Ibuki and she covers Tsukushi for two. Ibuki tags in Yappy, hip attacks by Yappy but Tsukushi elbows her back and the two trade blows. Tsukushi goes for a crossbody but Yappy catches her and slams her to the mat, Yappy picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi reverses the chokeslam attempt into a cradle for two. Tsukushi quickly tags Matsuya, dropkick to the face by Matsuya but Yappy blocks the STO and hits one of her own. Yappy throws Matsuya to the corner and hits a lariat, she charges in but Matsuya moves and hits a footstomp to her chest. Cover by Matsuya, but it gets a two count. Matsuya jumps on Yappy’s back and applies a sleeper, but Yappy slams back into the corner to break it up. Miyagi comes in and they both chop Matsuya in the corner, Bronco Buster by Yappy and she covers Matsuya for a two count.

Miyagi is tagged in, Ibuki comes in too and they both jump down onto Matsuya. Miyagi picks up Matsuya but Matsuya elbows her off and sneaks in a schoolboy for two. Cross kneelock by Matsuya as they finally turn on the lights in the arena (that took them awhile), but Tsukushi breaks it up. Matsuya waits for Miyagi to get up to go for the spear, but Nao really wants the tag so Matsuya tags her in. Nao goes for shoulderblocks on Miyagi but Miyagi stays on her feet, Tsukushi kicks Miyagi from the apron which helps Nao finally knock Miyagi over. Scoop slam by Nao, but her cover only gets two. Stunner by Tsukushi to Miyagi and Matsuya hits the F Crash, Nao hits a diving crossbody off the second turnbuckle but her cover is broken up. Nao goes off the ropes but Ibuki intercepts her, belly bump by Miyagi to the back of Nao and she covers her for two. Face crusher by Miyagi, Yappy jumps in and they both hit leg drops on Nao. Miyagi drags Nao up but Nao hits a back bodydrop, rolling cradle by Nao but it only gets two. Nao goes off the ropes but Miyagi catches her with a swinging side slam, Ibuki slams Nao to the mat and Miyagi follows with a Reverse Splash for the three count! Ibuki Hoshi, Mochi Miyagi, and Yappy

The focus of the match was on the rookie, which isn’t unusual in openers, which made it predictable but the action was decent enough. Not everyone here is a great wrestler so some parts were clunky, and I wish Tsukushi would have been more involved but its still valuable experience for the newer wrestlers in the bunch. At least they found the lights, so that should make the rest of the show easier to watch. A pretty average opener but nothing offensive.

Akane Fujita vs. Suzu Suzuki

Akane pushes Suzu into the ropes off the start, and she slaps Suzu in the belly before backing off. Tie-up again, this time Suzu gets Akane into the ropes but Akane blocks her strike and smacks her in the belly again. Akane goes off the ropes and hits a hard shoulderblock, but Suzu hits a drop toehold and slaps her repeatedly in the butt. Akane picks up Suzu and puts her across the top turnbuckle before stretching her over it, Suzu flops back into the ring and Akane hits a scoop slam. Akane applies a chinlock but releases it after a moment, she toys with Suzu before throwing her into the corner. Irish whip by Akane but Suzu slides out to the apron and snaps Akane’s arm over the top rope. Knees by Suzu and she dropkicks Akane in the side of the head, cover by Suzu but it gets a two count. Akane pushes Suzu and hits an elbow but Suzu returns fire, dropkick by Suzu and she slams Akane to the mat for a two count cover. Suzu picks up Akane and chops her in the chest, Irish whip by Suzu but Akane blocks it and elbows her. Akane charges Suzu but Suzu moves and holds down the top rope, sending Akane out to the apron. Suzu goes off the ropes but Akane quickly gets back in the ring and slams her to the mat, Akane picks up Suzu and throws her into the corner.

Shoulderblock by Akane, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Suzu recovers and kicks her off the turnbuckle and onto the apron. Suzu goes up top but Akane grabs her, she gets Suzu on her shoulder but Suzu slides off as they both end up on the apron. Suzu tries to suplex Akane off the apron but Akane blocks it, she slides Suzu back in the ring but Suzu shouldertackles her down to the floor. Suzu goes out after her and slides Akane back in, spear by Suzu and she hits a standing moonsault for two. Suzu picks up Akane and knees her in the stomach, but Akane blocks her jumping kick and applies the Texas Cloverleaf. Suzu quickly gets to the ropes for the break, Akane chops Suzu in the chest and hits a shoulderblock. Akane gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers a diving shoulderblock, cover by Akane but it gets a two count. Akane gets Suzu on her shoulders but Suzu wiggles away and cradles her for two. Jumping kick by Suzu and she hits a modified reverse STO, but Akane kicks out of the cover. Suzu picks up Akane but Akane gets her on her shoulders and hits a Samoan Drop. Suzu rolls out of the cover attempt and kicks Akane in the head, she goes for Akane’s waist but Akane grabs the ropes. Suzu gets her off of them and nails a German suplex hold, but the bell rings before Mio can finish the count as time has expired. The match is a Draw.

While this felt more like a preview than a full blown match, I still enjoyed it. Since they were going the Draw route, I liked that they gave Suzu the visual pin at the end to show that really she had bettered her veteran opponent, she just needed a little bit more time to get the job done. Akane isn’t a high end wrestler but she is very good and led Suzu well here, there were a few awkward moments based around the apron spots which happens but overall it was smooth. A solid match that I hope leads to a bigger match between the two down the road.  Mildly Recommended

Risa Sera and Satsuki Totoro vs. Thekla and Tsukasa Fujimoto

Thekla and Satsuki start the match, they trade holds until Satsuki knocks over Thekla with a hard shoulderblock. She throws Thekla out of the ring while Risa does the same to Tsukasa, all four end up on the floor as Risa snapmares Tsukasa on the floor and goes for a footstomp. Tsukasa moves and gets Risa on the floor, she also goes for a footstomp off the apron but Risa moves as well. Tsukasa it appears knocks Risa into the camera, which sends them into a portal, leading to them battling on top of the Tokyo Dome. We eventually get back to reality as Satsuki and Thekla battle in the ring, Satsuki stomps Thekla into the corner before tagging in the returned Risa. Snapmare by Risa and she kicks Thekla in the back, she puts Thekla in the Rocking Horse before dropping her back to the mat and tagging Satsuki in. Satsuki clubs Thekla and slams her face-first into the mat, she sits on Thekla and applies a stretch hold. She lets go after a moment and puts Thekla in a crab hold, Tsukasa finally gets back from the parallel universe and breaks up the hold. Irish whip by Satsuki to Thekla but Thekla cradles Satsuki for two. She makes the tag to Tsukasa, Tsukasa dropkicks Satsuki but then throws Satsuki into Risa. Tsukasa pushes Satsuki down onto Risa before jumping on their back, Risa rolls out of the ring and Tsukasa hits a PK on Satsuki for two.

Tsukasa picks up Satsuki and goes for a slam, but Satsuki lands on top of her for a two count. Satsuki tags Risa, running elbow by Risa in the corner but Tsukasa fires back with a dropkick. Dropkick by Tsukasa in the corner but Risa catches her with Schwein, Risa grabs Thekla and gets her on her shoulders while also giving Tsukasa a Giant Swing. Risa pushes Tsukasa out of the ring and goes out after her, they return to the portal and end up getting attacked by a dinosaur. I worry about Ice Ribbon sometimes. They end up fighting in front of the Eiffel Tower, they eventually make it back to the Ice Ribbon Dojo and Risa throws Tsukasa into the ring. Risa puts Tsukasa on her shoulders but Tsukasa slides away and delivers the Infinity. Tsukasa picks up Risa and hits an enzuigiri, but Risa catches her with a Samoan Driver and both wrestlers are down on the mat. Both wrestlers tag out, Thekla and Satsuki trade elbows until Thekla puts Satsuki a flying armbar. She lets go after a moment but Satsuki blocks her kick, Satsuki goes off the ropes but Tsukasa catches her with a dropkick. Thekla and Tsukasa both hit 619s, cover by Thekla but it gets a two count. Spear by Thekla, but Risa breaks up the cover. Satsuki picks up Thekla and slams her to the mat, diving double kneedrop by Risa and Satsuki delivers a running senton for two. Risa takes care of Tsukasa, Kamikaze by Satsuki to Thekla but Thekla barely bridges out of the cover. Satsuki goes up to the top turnbuckle but Thekla rolls out of the way of the diving senton, quick cradle by Thekla and she picks up the three count! Thekla and Tsukasa Fujimoto are the winners.

I can’t even get mad about Risa and Thekla teleporting around the world, it was so silly all you can really do is shake your head. Beyond that, this was a little disjointed without a real focus to it. I can’t pinpoint a moment where it was bad, but the opposite is also true as I can’t think of any particular moments that were great either. It just kinda hummed along for 13 minutes, watchable but unspectacular. Too meandering for my tastes but the action was generally fine anyway.

Hamuko Hoshi vs. Maya Yukihi
IW-19 Championship

They start slow as they lock knuckles, side headlock by Maya but Hoshi reverses it. Maya Irish whips out of the hold but Hoshi hits a hard shoulderblock, Maya drops down but Hoshi drops down next to her with a pose. They get back up and trade armdrags, both trip each other and Hoshi covers Maya for a two count before posing again. They both return to her feet and trade wristlocks, chinlock by Maya and she clubs Hoshi in the head. Maya knees Hoshi repeatedly in the ribs and then in the arm, she goes for a slam but Hoshi blocks it and hits a scoop slam of her own. Running body press by Hoshi, but it only gets a two count. Hoshi puts Maya in a crab hold but Maya inches to the ropes to get the break. Knees by Maya and she hits a STO, she picks up Hoshi and throws her into the corner before hitting a jumping knee. Hoshi fires back with a hard shoulderblock, cutter by Hoshi and she covers Maya for two. Hoshi stands on Maya’s hands and stomps down on them, she sets up Maya in the ropes and dropkicks her in the back for a two count cover. Hoshi throws Maya into the corner and hits a body avalanche, butt bumps by Hoshi but Maya kicks Hoshi and spanks her.

Maya kicks Hoshi’s leg out from under her and kicks her some more while she is in a seated position, but Hoshi gets back up and hits a series of lariats. Hoshi lariats Maya over the top rope down to the floor, she goes out after her and throws Maya into the steel steps. Hoshi pushes Maya against the railing and rubs her belly in her face, but Maya hits her and throws her head-first into the steps. Maya jumps up on the apron and kicks Hoshi in the chest while she is still standing on the floor, she finally gets back into the ring and waits for Hoshi. Maya goes to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Maya but it gets two. Maya quickly applies a choke but Hoshi gets to the ropes for the break. Maya picks up Hoshi but Hoshi blocks the suplex attempt, Maya goes off the ropes but Hoshi knocks her over with a belly bump. Missile dropkick off the second turnbuckle by Hoshi and she puts Maya in a STF, but Maya gets to the ropes. Back up, elbow by Hoshi but Maya elbows her back and they trade blows. Leg lariat by Maya to Hoshi and she hits a jumping knee, but Hoshi ducks the enzuigiri and drops Maya with a German suplex. Lariat by Hoshi and both wrestlers are down on the mat, Maya recovers first and hits a series of elbows.

Hoshi comes back with belly bumps and hits the Shining Onaka, Hoshi goes up top but Maya recovers and joins her. Superplex by Maya, she goes off the ropes but Hoshi catches her with a Death Valley Bomb. Maya is up first but Hoshi blocks her kick, Hamu Roll by Hoshi but Maya fires back with a running knee. PK by Maya, but Hoshi kicks out of the cover. Maya goes for the Tiger Driver but Hoshi blocks it and hits a lariat, another lariat by Hoshi and she covers Maya for two. Hoshi goes up top but Maya gets her feet up on the diving body press attempt, superkick by Maya and she hits a back kick. Another head kick by Maya, but Hoshi kicks out of the cover. Maya goes for the Tiger Driver again and this time delivers it, but Hoshi kicks out again. Maya goes up top but Hoshi avoids the Swanton Bomb, but Maya quickly cradles Hoshi for two. Hoshi kicks Maya back and gets a quick cradle for her own two count, high kick by Maya but Hoshi cradles Maya for the three count! Hamuko Hoshi wins and is the new champion!

They were getting close to nineteen minutes at the end, which is why I think they both were going for flash pins. Anyway, this was a fun match. I’m biased as I adore Maya, I think she has both a great look and is a killer in the ring, the perfect combination. Hoshi can’t keep up with her but tried, they started slow but the last portion of the match was fast paced as both were going for the win. The match was hurt by the single cam set-up as it didn’t give the best angles on moves (such as Maya’s move on the steps, which desperately needed a camera cut), but they worked around that the best they could. Overall I enjoyed it as it was hard hitting and had very little downtime, but not a super high-end match.  Recommended

The post Ice Ribbon New Ice Ribbon #1044 on 5/31/20 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: Ice Ribbon New Ice Ribbon #1029
Date: March 14th, 2020
Location: Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 553

Since I finally got around to updating the Ice Ribbon Roster, it seemed only fitting to review a recent Ice Ribbon show. Even though wrestling events are being delayed or cancelled around the world, that isn’t stopping Ice Ribbon as they return to Korakuen Hall. This is a big event, as we see Suzu Suzuki take on Tsukasa Fujimoto and Hiragi Kurumi challenge Maya Yukihi. Plus we have a four-way ladder match! Here is the full card:

• Banny Oikawa, Miku Aono, Thekla, and Yappy vs. Matsuya Uno, Rina Shingaki, Syuri, and Tae Honma
• Hamuko Hoshi and Mochi Miyagi vs. Maika Ozaki and Tsukushi
• Aja Kong vs. Ibuki Hoshi
• Suzu Suzuki vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto
• Ram Kaicho vs. Rina Yamashita vs. Risa Sera vs. Satsuki Totoro
• ICExInfinity Championship: Maya Yukihi vs. Hiragi Kurumi

As this event aired on Samurai TV!, some matches will be clipped. All the wrestlers have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it.

Banny Oikawa, Aono, Thekla, and Yappy vs. Uno, Shingaki, Syuri, and Honma

We join the match in progress, with Rina and Banny in the ring. Rina applies a kneelock with The Joint Army running in also as all four members put someone on the other side in a submission hold. We jump ahead to Syuri being in the ring with Banny, Banny ducks Syuri’s kick and schoolboys her for two. Kick to the chest by Syuri and she tags in Uno, shoulderblock by Uno but Banny reverses the scoop slam into a cradle. Dropkick by Banny and she makes the tag to Yappy. Running leg drop by Yappy and she hits a backbreaker on Uno for a two count. Yappy goes off the ropes but Uno avoids the lariat and applies a sleeper, Joint Army protects her but Yappy rams Uno back into the corner to break the hold. Her teammates run in as Uno is attacked by all of them, Final Cut by Yappy but Syuri breaks up the cover. Yappy picks up Uno and goes for a chokeslam, but Uno blocks it and Tae hits a missile dropkick on Yappy. Diving crossbody by Rina and Syuri hits Yappy with a running knee. Uno picks up Yappy and slams her to the mat, but the cover is broken up. Uno gets Yappy up again and applies the RE:BORN Lock (cross armbreaker), and Yappy quickly taps out! The Joint Army win the match.

This was obviously way too clipped to really get a vibe of the match, but what they showed was fine. The Joint Army seems to work together really well which I think is all they wanted us to get out of this, and they effectively hid what I am sure were some awkward moments from the losing team. I wouldn’t have minded seeing a bit more of this match but considering the card I’m not surprised this match got chopped up.

Hamuko Hoshi and Mochi Miyagi vs. Maika Ozaki and Tsukushi

The Lovely Butchers attack before the bell rings and end up getting both opponents in opposite corners, but Maika and Tsukushi both make a comeback. Miyagi and Hoshi take the opportunity to pose, which Maika and Tsukushi don’t appreciate as they stomp on the Lovely Butchers. Things settle down with Tsukushi and Miyagi in the ring as the legal wrestlers, and Tsukushi stomps down on Miyagi’s hands. Tsukushi twists Miyagi’s leg in the second rope before tagging in Maika, Maika stomps Miyagi against the ropes and chokes her with her boot. Maika offers Miyagi her hand but its all a ruse as she hits a Mongolian Chop, Miyagi returns fire and throws Maika into the corner before hitting a body attack. Maika comes back with a lariat, elbow drops by Maika and she covers Miyagi for two. We jump ahead in the match to Tsukushi and Hoshi being in the ring, running body attack by Hoshi and she tags Miyagi. Miyagi sits down on Tsukushi and hits a seated senton, cover by Miyagi but it gets two. Hoshi comes in and they both hit Tsukushi with body blocks, Hoshi picks up Miyagi and tosses her onto Tsukushi for a two count. Miyagi picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi gets away and applies a flying armbar. Maika comes in too and puts Hoshi in Argentine Backbreaker, but Miyagi gets into the ropes for the break.

Tsukushi elbows Miyagi but Miyagi elbows her back as they trade shots, Miyagi knocks Tsukushi down but Maika runs in and lariats her. Dropkick by Tsukushi while Miyagi is slouched against the ropes, she gets on the top turnbuckle and delivers a missile dropkick for two. Hoshi comes in and lariats both Maika and Tsukushi, Miyagi recovers and they hit a double backdrop suplex on Tsukushi. Miyagi goes up on the second turnbuckle and hits a Reverse Splash, but Maika breaks up the cover. Hoshi goes to the top turnbuckle but Tsukushi avoids her body press, Miyagi also goes up top but Tsukushi joins her and hits a Frankensteiner for a two count. Maika goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton, Tsukushi follows with a diving double footstomp but Hoshi breaks up the cover. Tsukushi picks up Miyagi but Miyagi blocks the Tiger Suplex, hurricanrana by Tsukushi but she lets go to hit footstomps. Tsukushi goes off the ropes but Miyagi delivers the Mochiri Body Scissors, with Maika makes the save. Hoshi takes care of Maika, Miyagi picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi gets away from her and applies a jackknife cover for two. Halcaze by Tsukushi, and she picks up the three count! Maika Ozaki and Tsukushi are the winners!

A pretty by-the-numbers midcard tag match, but perfectly watchable. This was Miyagi’s first full match since she suffered an injury last July, and she didn’t seem to have any ring rust as she was her usual self. Tsukushi is one of my favorite wrestlers in Ice Ribbon and she was a bundle of fun here as always, alternating smoothly between killer moves and slick pinning situations with no hesitation. Nothing overly memorable but certainly a good enough match for where it was on the card.

Aja Kong vs. Ibuki Hoshi

They lock to to start to the match, Kong pushes Hoshi into the ropes but Hoshi switches positions with her and hits a series of elbows. Kong just looks at her when she goes for an Irish whip and blocks it, more elbows by Hoshi but Kong throws her into the ropes. Hoshi goes for shoulderblocks but Kong doesn’t budge, finally Kong clubs Hoshi with a lariat and kicks the kid out of the ring. Kong goes out after her and hits a vertical suplex on the floor, Kong gets a chair and cracks it over Hoshi’s head. She hits Hoshi with the chair again, the match clips ahead with them back in the ring but Hoshi’s situation has not improved in the meantime. Hoshi tries to fight back but Kong headbutts her back to the mat, Kong picks up Hoshi but Hoshi blocks the suplex attempt and elbows Kong in the chest. Kong doesn’t go down and fires back with a hard elbow, Hoshi struggles back to her feet and elbows Kong again, but Kong clubs her down. Hoshi slowly returns to her feet but gets elbows to the mat again, again she gets up but gets slapped in the face.

Kong goes for a lariat, Hoshi ducks it and goes for a schoolboy, but Kong blocks it. Hoshi moves when Kong tries to sit on her and delivers the Hamu Roll, but it only gets a two count. Kong drops Hoshi with a backdrop suplex, she picks Hoshi back up but Hoshi reverses the brainbuster attempt into an inside cradle for two. Hoshi delivers a series of mounted elbow strikes, she goes off the ropes but Kong lariats her. Kong gets on the second turnbuckle but Hoshi recovers before she can jump off and hits Kong from behind before tossing her to the mat. Hoshi hits a hard elbow and finally knocks Kong off her feet, cover by Hoshi but it gets two. Hoshi goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits the diving body press, but Kong kicks out of the cover. Hoshi picks up Kong and ducks the Uraken, elbow strike by Hoshi but her cover gets a two count. Hoshi goes up top but this time Kong avoids the diving body press, Kong gets her paint can and hits Hoshi in the head with it. Brainbuster by Kong, but Hoshi barely gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kong positions Hoshi, she gets on the second turnbuckle and nails the back elbow drop for the three count! Aja Kong wins!

There are few things in life I enjoy more than Aja Kong beating up a younger and smaller wrestler. It just fills me with happiness. So I enjoyed the bulk of this match, with Kong going way beyond what was needed to defeat a child just to prove a point. In a way its a compliment to Hoshi that instead of just putting her in a crab hold and winning, she hit her with a chair and dropped her with a brainbuster before driving her elbow into her soul. My only complaint actually is I think Hoshi had maybe one or two too many hope spots. The first elbow that knocked over Kong was fine, and the diving body press, but throwing in the second elbow strike just felt like overkill. But its hard to complain about a veteran giving a younger wrestler a bit of an extra rub. This over-delivered what my expectations were, a really fun quasi-squash match.  Recommended

Suzu Suzuki vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto

Suzu and Tsukasa tie-up and trade standing submissions, armdrag by Tsukasa but Suzu avoids her charge and rolls up Tsukasa for two. They end up reaching a stalemate, Tsukasa gets Suzu to the mat and puts her in a kneelock, but Suzu quickly reverses it. Tsukasa reverses it back and starts working over Suzu’s leg, she sets up Tsukasa in the ropes and dropkicks her in the back. Cover by Tsukasa, but it gets two. Tsukasa throws down Suzu by the hair but Suzu cartwheels out of it when she tries again and delivers a dropkick. Tsukasa bridges out of the pin attempt and hits a dropkick of her own, she throws Suzu into the corner and knees her in the face. Running cutter by Tsukasa, and she covers Suzu for two. Tsukasa kicks Suzu repeatedly in the back but Suzu catches the PK and hits a dragon screw. Suzu tries to roll up Tsukasa but Tsukasa rolls through it, she goes for a PK again but again Suzu catches it and hits another dragon screw. Suzu applies a kneelock, she grabs Tsukasa’s arm to try to slow her down but Tsukasa gets to the ropes for the break. Running shoulder tackle by Suzu in the corner, she gets on the top turnbuckle but Tsukasa hits her before she can jump off and flings her back to the mat. Tsukasa rolls through it and tosses Tsukasa into the corner, she charges Tsukasa but Tsukasa catches her with a dropkick. Suzu throws Tsukasa into the corner but Tsukasa flips out of it and dropkicks Suzu, she follows up with another dropkick before hitting a scoop slam for two. Tsukasa applies a crossface but Suzu inches to the ropes to get the break.

Tsukasa runs up the corner but Suzu slides out to the apron and grabs her, she tries to throw her off and finally manages to do so as Tsukasa lands on the apron. Tsukasa rolls out to the floor, Suzu goes to the top turnbuckle and dives out onto her with a plancha suicida. Suzu slides Tsukasa back into the ring and hits a swandive missile dropkick, cover by Suzu but it gets two. Octopus Hold by Suzu, but Tsukasa walks to the ropes to force the break. Suzu goes for a suplex but Tsukasa blocks it and puts Suzu in a cross-arm submission. Suzu gets a toe on the ropes to force Tsukasa to let go, Tsukasa goes up top and hits a missile dropkick for a two count. Tsukasa picks up Suzu but Suzu blocks the Yoshi Tonic, dropkick by Tsukasa and she hits a step-up enzuigiri. She goes off the ropes but Suzu catches her with a jumping front kick, and both wrestlers are down on the mat. Tsukasa and Suzu return to their feet and trade blows, spinning kick by Suzu and she hits a standing moonsault for two. Suzu picks up Tsukasa goes for a German suplex, but Tsukasa lands on her feet and kicks her in the back. PK by Tsukasa, but Suzu kicks out of the cover. Tsukasa goes up top and hits a diving neckbreaker, but the cover gets two. Tsukasa picks up Suzu but Suzu avoids the Infinity, jumping kick by Suzu and she covers Tsukasa for a two count. German suplex hold by Suzu, but Tsukasa gets a shoulder up. Suzu picks up Tsukasa but Tsukasa quickly rolls her up, getting a two count. PK by Tsukasa, but that gets a two count as well so she hits another one. A third PK by Tsukasa, but Suzu won’t stay down for three. Tsukasa goes for the Venus Shoot but Suzu ducks it, cradle by Suzu but it gets two. Suzu picks up Tsukasa but Tsukasa hits an enzuigiri, Infinity by Tsukasa but Suzu kicks out. Tsukasa goes for the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex but Suzu reverses it into a front cradle for the three count! Suzu Suzuki wins!

Quite a big win so early in Suzu’s career. Even though she won with a cradle, it was a highly competitive match up to that point so it wasn’t a fluke victory. The match started a bit rough as the early exchanges weren’t great, but the next 15 minutes flew by. For someone at her experience level, Suzu is really smooth, the only thing she is missing is a ‘super’ finishing move but her offense feels fresh and she certainly does feel like a future star in the promotion. Tsukasa led her well, I wouldn’t say it was her best performance as she spent much of the match trying to make Suzu look good but she was solid. It needed more drama or suspense to really elevate to a high end match, but still very entertaining and a good showcase for Suzu Suzuki.  Recommended

Ram Kaicho vs. Rina Yamashita vs. Risa Sera vs. Satsuki Totoro

The match starts the ladder already set up in the ring, all four charge for it but they stop each other. Totoro knocks over the ladder for… reasons and gets into a tug-of-war over it with Rina, with Kaicho and Sera helping. We clip ahead to Totoro climbing the ladder, but Rina stops her and pulls her out of the ring. Kaicho and Sera then both climb the ladder but Kaicho flips off Sera once they reach the hop. Totoro and Rina both return and tip over the ladder, with Sera being “trapped” underneath it and Kaicho on top of it. Totoro and Rina trade shoulderblocks until Rina knocks over Totoro, she then grabs Kaicho off the ladder and puts her down. The ladder is set up in the middle with Kaicho and Rina going to climb it, but they are stopped by their opponents. Sera powerbombs Kaicho into the corner and hits a double knee strike, but Rina hits her from behind. She tries to suplex Sera onto the ladder but Sera blocks it and the two trade elbows. Knee by Rina but Sera gets her on her back and hits a Schwein onto a ladder. She picks Rina back up but Rina wiggles away and hits a backdrop suplex onto the ladder. They both get back up and Rina hits a hard lariat on Sera, but Sera comes back with a Samoan Driver and both wrestlers are down on the mat. Totoro gets on the second turnbuckle but Rina avoids the diving senton, Sera puts a ladder on top of Totoro and tries to suplex Rina on it, but it is blocked. Kaicho then runs over to help Rina, and they suplex Sera onto the ladder that is on top of Totoro. We clip ahead to Rina tries to climb the ladder, but Totoro grabs her from behind and hits the Kamikaze. Totoro goes to climb the ladder but Kaicho throws chalk in her face, Kaicho and Rina both climb the ladder but Sera stops Kaicho from behind. Kaicho dives off the ladder with a crossbody onto Sera, Rina keeps climbing and she gets one of the cards! Rina Yamashita moves on to the title match.

Kaicho quickly tries to climb the ladder but Sera grabs her from behind and drops her with a Schwein. She goes to climb the ladder but Totoro gets back in the ring and stops her. Totoro picks up Sera and slams her in front of the corner, she goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton. Totoro puts the ladder on top of Sera and goes up top, but Sera recovers and joins her. Superplex by Sera (partially on the ladder), Sera sets up the ladder near the corner and climbs up to the very top before delivering a diving double kneedrop. Sera pushes Totoro out of the way, she sets up the ladder and climbs to the top, grabbing the other card! Rina Yamashita and Risa Sera win the match and will advance to the title match in May.

I’m not saying this was the worst ladder match I’ve seen, but it is probably pretty close. There were a lot of things not to like here. Ranging from the lack of selling for the few “big” bumps of the match, the occasional comedy elements, the weird spot with Sera acting like she was pinned under the ladder when she wasn’t… it just had a lot of issues. On top of that, with a third of the match cut, it was hard to really get invested in whatever they were doing as there were constant jumps in the action. There were some quality wrestlers in this match, but the final product simply wasn’t very good.

(c) Maya Yukihi vs. Hiragi Kurumi
ICExInfinity Championship

They get into a knuckle-lock to start, knees by Maya but Kurumi knocks her down with a hard shoulderblock. Maya trips Kurumi and dropkicks her, she goes off the ropes but Kurumi does too and Pounces her out of the ring. Maya gets back on the apron but Kurumi goes out to the apron also and drops her with a modified piledriver. Maya drops down to the floor with Kurumi joining her, Kurumi throws Maya into the chairs at ringside before picking her up and doing the same on the opposite side. Kurumi goes for a suplex on the floor but Maya blocks it, Kurumi clubs Maya but Maya ducks an elbow and Kurumi hits the ring post by accident. Maya wraps Kurumi’s arm around the post and pulls on it, she lets go but only to get a chair and press it into Kurumi’s arm. Maya slides Kurumi back in and kicks her in the back before going back to Kurumi’s arm. Maya charges Kurumi but Kurumi moves, Maya slides out onto the apron and snaps Kurumi’s arm over the top rope. Maya goes up top but Kurumi avoids her dive, STO by Kurumi and she hits a few footstomps on Maya.

Kurumi throws Maya into the corner and hits a lariat, she goes for a dropkick but Maya moves out of the way and hits a kneedrop onto her arm. PK by Maya and she applies a choke, but Kurumi gets to the ropes for the break. Maya goes off the ropes and knees Kurumi in the head, she goes up top and hits a missile dropkick for two. Maya kicks Kurumi and goes off the ropes, but Kurumi catches her with a powerslam. Dropkick by Kurumi and she covers Maya for two. Kurumi picks up Maya but Maya elbows her and the two trade shots, kick combination by Maya but Kurumi catches her with a superkick. Kurumi ducks the enzuigiri attempt and hits a snap German, but Maya gets back up and delivers the enzuigiri, leaving both wrestlers down on the mat. They slowly get up and trade elbows again, Maya takes Kurumi to the mat and goes for a cross armbreaker but Kurumi prevents her from fully locking it in. Maya switches to a Triangle Choke attempt instead but Kurumi slams her way out of it, Nut Driver by Kurumi and she covers Maya for two. Kurumi goes up top but Maya avoids the diving body press, Omiwatari to the back by Maya and she kicks Kurumi in the arm. Superkicks by Maya and she hits a Buzzsaw Kick, cover by Maya but Kurumi gets a shoulder up.

Maya waits for Kurumi to get up and hits another Omiwatari, cover by Maya but that gets a two as well. Maya goes up top but Kurumi gets up before Maya can jump off and joins her, superplex by Kurumi but she is too hurt to capitalize. Maya recovers first and kicks at Kurumi, but Kurumi slaps her and stomps Maya into the mat. Turnbuckle Cannonball by Kurumi, she picks up Maya but Maya sneaks in a cradle for two. Kick by Maya and she kicks Kurumi in the arm, she goes off the ropes but Kurumi levels her with a lariat for a two count. Kurumi picks up Kurumi and nails the reverse piledriver, but Maya gets a shoulder up. Modified piledriver by Kurumi and she follows that with a German suplex hold, but it only gets a two count. Kurumi sets up Maya and goes to the top turnbuckle, she delivers a diving body press but Maya reverses the cover into a two count. Maya goes for another flash pin before putting Kurumi into a Triangle Choke. She rolls Kurumi over so she can apply the Icicle Back Triangle, and Kurumi has no choice but to submit! Maya Yukihi wins and retains the championship.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but this match was pretty damn great. Kurumi may be young but she has been wrestling for a long time so she knows what she is doing, and Maya Yukihi is one of the most under-rated in-ring wrestlers in Joshi right now. I loved the arm work and the constant focus on it, and Kurumi respected that by giving the occasional arm shake which is all it takes to remind viewers that her arm is hurting even if she is on offense. Both wrestlers really stayed on task, with Kurumi going for high impact moves while Maya just wanted to knock Kurumi loopy enough to lock on a submission hold. Even though the match was 21 minutes there was no downtime, and the ‘outside the ring’ part was short and they stayed active so it didn’t feel like just wasting time like we sometimes see. Hard hitting and well-executed, this was one of the better Joshi matches I’ve seen so far in 2020.  Highly Recommended

The post Ice Ribbon New Ice Ribbon #1029 on 3/14/20 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Since I am behind a few hundred events, I asked Twitter which event I should review next and this show won. So here we are! I am watching this event on NicoPro, a streaming service in Japan that streams wrestling events from a wide range of wrestling promotions (the show is no longer available on the service at the time of this review, since shows are only available for seven days). I have written a guide on how to sign up for NicoPro, highly recommended! Both the service and the guide. Ice Ribbon #1008 isn’t one of Ice Ribbon’s bigger events, however it does have two title matches so it is not your average house show either. Here is the full card:

• Asahi vs. Tequila Saya
• Maika Ozaki and Ram Kaicho vs. Nao Kakuta and Yappy
• Akane Fujita and Hiragi Kurumi vs. Miku Aono and Satsuki Totoro
• Ibuki Hoshi, Syuri, and Tae Honma vs. Risa Sera, Tsukasa Fujimoto, and Tsukushi
• Triangle Ribbon Championship: Matsuya Uno vs. Banny Oikawa vs. Cherry
• ICExInfinity Championship: Maya Yukihi vs. Suzu Suzuki

As this aired on NicoPro, the matches are unclipped. It also has that annoying commentary box in the corner, which I will tolerate. All the wrestlers have a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their names above to go straight to it.

Asahi vs. Tequila Saya

They circle other to start before trading wristlocks, Saya kicks Asahi and works a headlock, but Asahi reverses it. Snapmare by Saya and she slams Asahi’s head into the mat before hitting a kneedrop to the face for a two count. Saya puts Asahi in the ropes and presses her boot against her face, she lets go after a moment but Asahi quickly returns the favor and does the same to her. Saya throws Asahi into the corner and hits a running back elbow, another one by Saya but Asahi knocks her back with a dropkick. Saya throws Asahi into the corner but Asahi flips out onto the apron, she comes back in with a sunset flip before slamming Saya’s head repeatedly into the mat. Short armbar by Asahi but Saya gets into the ropes, Asahi goes for a Tiger Feint Kick but Saya moves out of the way and hits a crossbody. Scoop slam by Saya, she picks up Asahi but Asahi elbows her and the two trade shots. Asahi goes off the ropes but Saya catchers her with a knee, low crossbody by Saya and she drives Asahi’s face into the mat with her knees for a two count cover. Saya gets on the top turnbuckle but Asahi avoids her dive and connects with a series of dropkicks. Scoop slam by Asahi, and she covers Saya for two. Cross armbreaker by Asahi, but Saya quickly gets to the ropes for the break. Tiger Feint Kick by Asahi and she covers Saya for two. Asahi goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, but that gets a two count as well. Asahi goes off the ropes but Saya avoids the dropkick, they trade flash pins but both get two counts. Both wrestlers get up, Saya quickly applies the Gran Maestro de Tequila for the three count! Tequila Saya is the winner.

I am generally out of the loop with Ice Ribbon so I blame Ice Ribbon Twitter for me not knowing that Asahi is pretty damn solid for a 17 year old. She is in good condition so she had no issues keeping up with the slightly more veteran Saya, and she has a wide variety of moves that she does very smoothly. Since Saya is retiring they should have just had Asahi win, she doesn’t really have any big wins in the promotion and while this wouldn’t have counted as “big” it would have been something. Saya is who she is, perfectly capable but she wouldn’t blow anyone away with this match as she kept it basic. A good opener but I’d like to see Asahi in a more advanced match to see if she as good as she appeared to be here.

Maika Ozaki and Ram Kaicho vs. Nao Kakuta and Yappy

Maika and Yappy start off, Yappy gets Maika into the ropes but she gives a clean break. Yappy and Maika try to knock each other over with shoulderblocks until Maika wins the battle, cover by Maika but it gets two. Maika clubs Yappy in the back a couple times, she goes for a shoulderblock but Yappy comes off the ropes with a shoulderblock of her own. This gives her time to tag in Nao, mounted elbows by Nao and she chokes Maika while the poor referee (Mio Shirai) tries to get her to stop. She finally does, she picks up Maika but Maika drops Nao with a scoop slam and tags in Kaicho. Kaicho ducks a lariat and flips off Nao, but Nao grabs her and they struggle for control. Kaicho stomps on Nao’s hands and hits a jumping crossbody, she throws Nao into the corner and hits a running elbow. Kaicho throws Nao into the other corner but Nao jumps on the second turnbuckle, she grabs Kaicho and applies a hanging necklock. Nao snaps Kaicho’s neck on the top rope, she gets back in the ring and hits a DDT for a two count. Nao tags Yappy, Yappy picks up Kaicho and applies a swinging front necklock slam. Cover by Yappy, but it only gets two. Back up, Yappy throws Kaicho into the corner and hits a lariat, Nao returns and boots Kaicho in the face.

Yappy picks up Kaicho and sets her up in the ropes but Kaicho avoids her charge and hits a Tiger Feint Kick. Irish whip by Kaicho and she hits a double chop to the chest, she crawls to Yappy and covers her for two. Kaicho tags in Maika, and both of them take turns stomping on on Yappy. Maika picks up Kaicho and slams her onto Yappy, cover by Maika but it gets two. Maika puts Yappy in a crab hold but Yappy crawls to the ropes and forces the break. Maika picks up Yappy but Yappy elbows Maika off of her and delivers a backbreaker. Maika lands against the ropes, hip attacks by Yappy and she hits a seated senton for two. Yappy tags Nao, boot to the face by Nao and she boots her again for a two count. Yappy returns, side Russian leg sweep by Nao and Yappy hits a running leg drop. Nao goes off the ropes but Maika gets her on her shoulders, Nao slides off and applies a rolling cradle for two. Crossface by Nao, but Kaicho gets past Yappy and breaks it up. Nao tries to get Maika on her shoulders but can’t, Kaicho comes in and nails the Rainmaker on Nao. Diving senton by Maika, but Yappy barely breaks up the cover. Maika goes off the ropes and levels Nao with a lariat, but Nao barely kicks out. Maika drags up Nao and gets her on her shoulders, Argentine Buster by Maika and she picks up the three count! Maika Ozaki and Ram Kaicho win!

Another fun match. I love Kaicho so I am biased from the start, but all four here played their roles well and the time passed quickly. Not everyone in the match is a great wrestler and most (if not all) will never be main event wrestlers, but they stuck to what they knew how to do, kept the action fast enough, and kept the wrestlers fresh so no one was exposed. Another relatively simply laid out match but still a good one, so far this card is shaping up very well.

Akane Fujita and Hiragi Kurumi vs. Miku Aono and Satsuki Totoro

Kurumi and Satsuki start off, Miku immediately comes in to help but Kurumi shoulderblocks them both down. Akane comes in the ring as Kurumi gets Miku on her back, Akane jumps on her back as well as they go for a body press onto Satsuki but Satsuki moves out of the way. Satsuki puts Kurumi in a camel clutch but Akane breaks it up, footstomp by Kurumi to Satsuki and she tags in Akane. Akane puts Satsuki in the camel clutch, Kurumi returns to the ring and she dropkicks Satsuki in the face while she is still in the hold. Cover by Akane, but it gets two. Akane picks up Satsuki but Satsuki blocks the scoop slam, Kurumi holds Satsuki for Akane and she hits a running shoulderblock for two. Irish whip to the corner by Akane but Satsuki fires out of the corner with a shoulderblock and tags in Miku. Dropkicks by Miku to Akane, more kicks by Miku and she throws Akane into the corner. Miku charges at Akane but Kurumi intercepts her, Satsuki also is in the ring by now and Akane lariats her in the corner. Satsuki and Miku are stacked in the corner but Miku avoids their opponent’s charge, leading to Satsuki getting hit instead. Miku kicks Akane in the back repeatedly, cover by Miku but it gets two. Double underhook by Miku, she can’t pick up Akane up however and Akane chops her to the mat. Akane tags Kurumi, dropkick by Kurumi to Miku and she covers her for two.

Satsuki gets in the ring to help Miku hit a vertical suplex, cover by Miku but it gets a two count. Miku goes off the ropes but Kurumi hits a body avalanche, Miku comes back with a dropkick however and makes the tag to Satsuki. Satsuki goes off the ropes and hits a running senton on Kurumi, body press by Satsuki and she gets a two count. Satsuki goes for a seated senton but Kurumi moves, Kurumi hits a seated senton of her own and holds down Satsuki for two. Kurumi picks up Satsuki and kicks her in the head, jumping crossbody by Satsuki but it only gets two. Miku comes in and hits a fisherman suplex on Kurumi, Satsuki picks up Kurumi and hits a rolling fireman’s carry slam. Satsuki goes up to the top turnbuckle while Miku stands in the corner, Miku tries to assist Satsuki in hitting a senton but Kurumi moves. Kurumi and Satsuki trade elbows, Satsuki goes off the ropes but Akane runs in and drops her with a shoulderblock. Cannonball by Kurumi to Satsuki, but Satsuki barely kicks out of the cover. Akane gets Satsuki on her shoulders and hits a Samoan Drop, footstomp by Kurumi and she hits a somersault senton for two. Kurumi goes off the ropes and levels Satsuki with a lariat, but again Satsuki gets a shoulder up. Kurumi goes up to the top turnbuckle and nails the diving body press, and she picks up the three count! Akane Fujita and Hiragi Kurumi are the winners.

Not unwatchable but a step down from the last two matches. With the wrestlers in this match one could only expect so much, Satsuki and Akane are pretty average wrestlers (although Akane can be fun in hardcore matches) and with this being Miku’s first Ice Ribbon match there was going to be some feeling things out. For a shorter match it took too long to get going, and then they went straight to Joshi Chaos which is fine but it was more fast-paced than really entertaining. Nothing really wrong with it but the definition of a match that is “just there.”

Ibuki Hoshi, Syuri, and Tae Honma vs. Risa Sera, Fujimoto, and Tsukushi

Team Tsukasa attacks before the bell rings, they stack their opponents in the corner and Tsukasa’s teammates kneel in front of them so she can catapult off their backs with a dropkick. Things calm down with Tsukasa and Ibuki staying in as the legal wrestlers, with Tsukasa putting Ibuki in a submission hold. Risa is tagged in and she takes over on Ibuki, putting her in the Rocking Horse while Tsukasa plays defense. Double kneedrop by Risa, and she covers Ibuki for two. Tsukushi is tagged next as Ibuki continues getting beat down, while Syuri finally gets free and breaks it up. Tsukasa returns, she puts Ibuki in the ropes and with Tsukushi they both dropkick her in the back. Irish whip by Tsukasa but Ibuki hits a quick crossbody, Tsukasa bridges out of the pin and kicks Ibuki to the mat. Tsukasa goes off the ropes and she elbows Ibuki in the chest, cover by Tsukasa but it gets two. Scoop slam attempt by Tsukasa but Ibuki reverses it into a slam of her own, giving her time to tag in Tae. Diving crossbody by Tae, Tsukushi and Risa come in but Tae dropkicks both of them. Tilt-a-whirl headscissors by Tae to Tsukasa, Tae goes for a strike but Tsukasa blocks it and applies in Octopus Hold. Tae slowly walks to the ropes and forces the break, snapmare by Tsukasa and she kicks Tae in the back. More kicks by Tsukasa, she goes for a PK but Tae blocks it and elbows Tsukasa in the knee. Tae goes off the ropes but so does Tsukasa and she cradles Tae to the mat before kicking her in the chest.

Tsukasa tags in Risa, Risa elbows Tae in the chest and the two trade blows. Tae applies a short armbar but Risa quickly rolls out of it, Irish whip by Tae to the corner and she hits a running elbow followed by a dropkick. Tae gets the short armbar re-applied, but Risa gets to the ropes for the break. Tae goes up top but she is grabbed from the apron by Tsukasa, Risa gets Tae on her shoulders while Tsukasa goes up to the top turnbuckle while Syuri runs in the ring. Tsukasa jumps off the top turnbuckle and catapults off Tae’s back to hit a diving crossbody on Syuri, Tae wiggles off Risa’s back however and puts her in a submission hold. Risa gets to the ropes for the break, Tae tags in Syuri as Tsukasa also comes in, but Syuri fights them both off. Knee by Syuri to Risa in the corner, cover by Syuri but it gets two. Syuri goes for a cross armbreaker but Tsukushi quickly breaks it up, Syuri stomps on Risa’s back but Risa elbows her. The two trade elbows and knees, dropkick by Risa and she drops Syuri with the Schwein for a two count. Risa quickly gets a reverse double kneedrop off the ropes, but that gets a two as well. Risa tags in Tsukushi, dropkick by Tsukushi and Tsukasa comes in to slam Tsukushi onto Syuri. Tsukushi picks up Syuri, elbows by Tsukushi and she catches Syuri with a knee. Murder Dropkick by Tsukushi while Syuri is against the ropes, Tsukushi goes off the ropes again but she is kicked from ringside.

Double underhook suplex by Syuri, Tae dropkicks Tsukushi and Syuri connects with a kick to the chest for two. Syuri tags in Ibuki, Ibuki and Tsukushi trade elbows until Tsukushi knocks down Ibuki for a two count. Tsukushi goes up to the top turnbuckle but Ibuki avoids the diving footstomp, Tae runs in and drops Tsukushi with a DDT. Running knee by Syuri, Ibuki slams Tsukushi to the mat but her cover is broken up by both Tsukasa and Risa. Ibuki goes up top but Tsukushi avoids the diving body press, Tsukasa nails Ibuki with a missile dropkick and Risa hits a double knee strike in the corner. Tsukushi goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, she covers Ibuki but Syuri breaks it up. Tsukasa and Tsukushi both dropkick Syuri and then Tae out of the ring, Tsukushi knees Ibuki repeatedly in the head before stomping her. Tsukushi goes to the top turnbuckle and nails the diving footstomp, cover by Tsukushi but Ibuki barely bridges out of the cover. Tsukushi picks up Ibuki but Tae gets out of the double underhook, cradle by Tsukushi but Ibuki reverses it and the two trade flash pins. Jumping footstomp by Tsukushi and she goes for the Harukaze, but Ibuki rolls through it and holds down Tsukushi for the three count! Ibuki Hoshi, Syuri, and Tae Honma are the winners.

They took the easy way out by having Ibuki be the focus of the match, but this was still pretty damn good. Tsukasa is probably the best Joshi wrestler that Western fans don’t talk about much, she is fantastic at everything she does and all her segments were quality. Tsukushi has so much anger and fierceness, you’d have thought her opponents owed her money the way she fights, and she was fun to watch as well. Everyone else kind of blended in together, Syuri and Risa Sera both looked fine but mostly just came in for a few spots, same with Tae Honma. A match designed to have a rookie/child beatdown doesn’t need six wrestlers, but it did keep the action fast paced and everything was crisp. Even though I would have changed the format a bit, Tsukasa and Tsukushi alone made this match worth watching.  Recommended

(c) Matsuya Uno vs. Banny Oikawa vs. Cherry
Triangle Ribbon Championship

All three lock knuckles to start, they do a wristlock chain until the Ice Ribbon wrestlers stop to double team Cherry. It doesn’t work as Cherry fights them both off, Cherry and Matsuya have a chat until Cherry chokes Matsuya into the corner. Banny dropkicks Cherry and then Matsuya, another dropkick by Banny but Cherry covers her for two. Banny and Cherry argue, Matsuya breaks that up and they run through a sequence ending with Matsuya dropkicking both of her opponents. Matsuya puts both opponents in the ropes and takes turns chopping them, she picks up Banny and slams her head-first into the mat. She then puts Cherry on top of her and applies a submission to both, she lets go after a moment and stacks both in the corner. Matsuya charges in but Cherry moves, she still hits Banny but Cherry grabs her from behind and hits a monkey flip followed by mounted elbow strikes. Cherry goes for a scoop slam but Matsuya blocks it and hits one of her own, Cherry quickly goes for a Triangle Choke but Banny breaks it up. Banny dropkicks Cherry and Matsuya in different corners, she stacks them in one corner and hits a final dropkick.

Banny picks up Matsuya and kicks her in the chest a few times, jumping back kick by Banny but Cherry grabs her from the apron. Matsuya tries to dropkick Banny but Banny moves, cradle attempts by Banny but Matsuya kicks out of each. Banny goes up top as Cherry gets back in the ring, she eventually just falls off while Cherry beats down Matsuya. Cherry drop toeholds Banny onto Matsuya, Cherry covers her but it gets a two count. Cherry cradles Matsuya and hits mounted punches, but Banny picks her up from behind and they trade waistlocks. A double schoolboy attempt by Matsuya gets a two count, dropkick by Matsuya to Banny but Banny blocks the F Crash so Matsuya rolls her up instead for another two. Banny puts Matsuya in a crossface, she lets go and attempts a few flash pins, but Cherry breaks it up. Cherry tries to pin both Banny and Matsuya but can’t get the three count, she slams Banny in front of the corner and then slams Matsuya next to her. Cherry goes up top but both avoids the Swanton Bomb, Cherry is sent out of the ring and Banny schoolboys Matsuya for two. Matsuya quickly puts Banny in a cradle of her own, and she gets the three count! Matsuya Uno wins and retains the championship.

Since this title has been around forever there is clearly an audience for this style of match, but I am not the audience. I’m not a huge fan of triple threats and I’m not a huge fan of the vast majority of comedy matches, so if you combine those two together its not really my cup of tea. No one really got a chance to show off as the match was relatively short, although there weren’t any noticeable issues which is a plus. The match was exactly what I expected, if you enjoy these types of matches you’ll like it as there was nothing wrong with the action but skippable for me.

(c) Maya Yukihi vs. Suzu Suzuki
ICExInfinity Championship

Suzu dropkicks Maya right out of the gate but Maya dropkicks her back, running knee by Maya in the corner and she knees Suzu in the back. Backbreaker by Maya and she hits a few more knees before covering Suzu for two. Maya stretches Suzu for a moment, back up Suzu goes for a slam but Maya blocks it. Chops to the chest by Maya, Suzu goes for a dropkick but Maya sidesteps her. Maya picks up Suzu but Suzu reverses the scoop slam into one of her own, Suzu goes off the ropes and she hits a series of dropkicks. Irish whip by Suzu and she hits another dropkick, she charges Maya in the corner and hits a shoulder tackle. Suzu goes for a swandive move but Maya hits her before she can jump off, she grabs Suzu while she is still on the apron and brings her into the ring with a backbreaker. Maya knees Suzu while she is against the ropes and charges her, but Suzu moves out of the way and dropkicks Maya from the apron. Cover by Suzu, but it gets two. Suzu goes up top but Maya hits her before she can jump off, she tosses Suzu back in the ring but Suzu rolls to her feet and goes for a spear. Maya blocks it but Suzu slides behind her back and the two trade elbows. Suzu bridges to avoid an elbow and hits a spear, cover by Suzu but it gets a two count.

Suzu picks up Maya and goes for a suplex, but Maya blocks it and applies a Cobra Twist. Maya slams Suzu to the mat to end the hold before putting her in a Scorpion Deathlock, but Suzu crawls to the ropes for the break. Maya charges Suzu while she is against the ropes and nails a running knee, Maya goes up top but Suzu avoids the missile dropkick and hits a modified reverse STO. Suzu goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, cover by Suzu but it gets two. She goes out to the apron and delivers a swandive dropkick, cover by Suzu but it gets another two count. Suzu goes for the German Suplex but Maya grabs the ropes to block it, elbows by Suzu but Maya kicks Suzu in the chest. Suzu recovers and goes for a few flash pins, but Maya kicks out of each. Kicks to the chest by Maya and she hits a vertical suplex, Scorpion Deathlock by Maya, but Suzu makes it to the ropes. Maya picks up Suzu but Suzu slides away and she plants Maya with a release German Suplex. Suzu picks up Maya and nails the German Suplex Hold, but Maya gets a shoulder up. Strike combination by Maya, Suzu tries a cradle but Maya rolls through it and kicks Suzu in the head. Crystal of Snow by Maya, but Suzu gets a shoulder up on the cover. Maya picks up Suzu and delivers the Tiger Driver, and she picks up the three count! Maya Yukihi wins and retains the championship.

For a match with an obvious conclusion, still a pretty solid defense for Maya. As expected, Maya spent the bulk of the match on offense and focused on Suzu’s back, which was done well as she has a good variety of offense to stay on task. Suzu’s hope spots were few but solid, and when she finally hit the German Suplex Hold it was almost a believable nearfall. Sadly that was the climax for Suzu as she went down soon after, with Maya finishing her off without too much of an issue at that point. Both wrestlers are fun to watch and Maya looked good as she always does, it didn’t really feel like a championship match but it was enjoyable nonetheless and was probably a fitting main event for a smaller show.  Mildly Recommended

The post Ice Ribbon New Ice Ribbon #1008 on 11/23/19 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: Ice Ribbon “New Ice Ribbon #962 ~ Osaka Ribbon 2019 II”
Date: May 25th, 2019
Location: Hirano Kumin Hall in Osaka, Japan
Announced Attendance: 286

I am finally reviewing my first Ice Ribbon event of 2019! I don’t intentionally neglect Ice Ribbon on the site. One of the reasons I watch less of them is that the main way they make “TV” is via Nico Pro, and they air their events with a little commentary box on the screen and it annoys me to no end. And its hard for me to watch a 2+ hour event that annoys me. At some point I’ll make a big Ice Ribbon DVD order and catch up. Anyway, I am putting up with the commentary box for this event because the matches are fire and I didn’t want to miss it. Here is the full card:

• Kyuri and Miyuki Takase vs. Makoto and Tsukushi
• Banny Oikawa vs. Matsuya Uno vs. Miyako Matsumoto
• Akane Fujita, Hiragi Kurumi, and Mochi Miyagi vs. Hamuko Hoshi, Ibuki Hoshi, and Tsukasa Fujimoto
• Rina Yamashita vs. Satsuki Totoro
• Maika Ozaki and Tequila Saya vs. Risa Sera and Suzu Suzuki
• ICExInfinity Championship: Maya Yukihi vs. Giulia

I love 65% of these wrestlers so this has to be good. As this aired on Nico, all matches should be shown in full. Every wrestler above has a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their names to go straight to it.

Kyuri and Miyuki Takase vs. Makoto and Tsukushi

Kyuri and Miyuki attack before the bell rings, Makoto is isolated and attacked by both in the corner. They pose on Makoto until Tsukushi run in to even the odds, Makoto and Tsukushi take control and take turns doing front rolls over Kyuri’s body. Makoto stays in with Kyuri, Makoto chops Kyuri in the corner and hits a boot to the chest. Kyuri swats Makoto away and hits a Backstabber, but Makoto avoids her cartwheel kneedrop. Kyuri then avoids Makoto’s as well, she goes for a suplex but Makoto blocks it and applies an armbreaker. She switches it to an armbar but Kyuri wiggles to the ropes and forces the break. Makoto goes off the ropes but Kyuri hits a judo toss, Kyuri applies a submission before letting go and tags Miyuki. Miyuki picks up Makoto and dropkicks her in the corner, missile dropkick by Miyuki off the second turnbuckle and she hits a lariat. She gets Makoto on her shoulders but Makoto slides off, elbows and chops by Miyuki but Makoto catches her with a butterfly suplex.

Cartwheel into a double kneedrop by Makoto and she makes the tag to Tsukushi. Tsukushi dropkicks Miyuki in the corner and hits a second one,  cover by Tsukushi but it gets a two count. Tsukushi stomps on Miyuki’s foot but Miyuki catches her with a powerslam and tags Kyuri. Kyuri boots Tsukushi in the head and the two trade elbows, Makoto runs in and elbows Kyuri, with Tsukushi following with a dropkick. Tsukushi goes up top but Kyuri grabs her before she can jump off and drives Tsukushi chest-first into her knees. Miyuki connects on Tsukushi with a diving elbow, fisherman suplex hold by Kyuri but the cover is broken up. Kyuri picks up Tsukushi but Tsukushi slides away, Makoto boots Kyuri and Tsukushi hits a missile dropkick for a two count. Tsukushi picks up Kyuri, she goes for the Denden Mushi but Kyuri rolls through it and cradles Tsukushi for two. They trade flash pins with neither having any luck, Kyuri goes off the ropes but Tsukushi catches her with a lariat. Tsukushi goes up top and nails a diving footstomp, and she picks up the three count! Makoto and Tsukushi are the winners!

A fun way to kick off the show. They didn’t get a lot of time so they did what wrestlers should do when there are time constraints – they got to the point. No feeling out process, just straight to the action. The teams worked well together but didn’t go overboard, which makes sense as neither are regular tag teams so they just did the best they could. Kyuri and Tsukushi have a very high ceiling and they got to show a few flashes of their skills here, a good way to open the event.  Mildly Recommended

Banny Oikawa vs. Matsuya Uno vs. Miyako Matsumoto

Triple lockup to start but they break cleanly, they create a headlock chain until they start trading armdrags and leg sweeps. After reaching a stalemate, Miyako is double teamed and eats a double dropkick. Matsuya holds Miyako while Banny goes off the ropes, but Banny dropkicks Miyako in the back. Banny throws Miyako into the corner but Miyako recovers and all three run at each other a few times in the corners. Banny goes for a cartwheel move but does it poorly, she goes for a crossbody on Matsuya but Matsuya catches her. Matsuya and Banny trade flash pins until Miyako comes in and puts them both in a submission hold at the same time. She lets go after a moment to focus on Banny, putting her in a Mexican Surfboard. Matsuya sneaks in to cover Miyako so she has to let go of it, she turns her attention to Matsuya but Banny recovers and Banny gets double teamed again. The union doesn’t last long as Banny dropkicks both her opponents, she covers them but she only gets two. Banny goes up top and hits a diving crossbody on Miyako, but Matsuya breaks up the cover as she continually schoolboys Banny for two counts. Matsuya picks up Banny but still can’t keep her down, she goes for the F Crash but Banny blocks it and Miyako cradles her for two. Heel drop by Miyako, she puts Banny and Matsuya next to each other and goes up top, but Matsuya recovers first and scoop slams Banny for a two count. Miyako dives off the top but ends up hitting a footstomp on Banny, Matsuya slams Miyako onto Banny and then puts Miyako in a triangle choke while also having Banny in an armbreaker. Miyako gets into the ropes to force the break, Matsuya spears Miyako but Miyako jackknifes over both for two. Banny dropkicks Miyako out of the ring but Matsuya cradles her and gets the three count! Matsuya Uno is the winner.

This was pretty rough. It was doomed from the get go, as Miyako isn’t anywhere near good enough to keep this match together and triple threat matches are hard to pull off anyway. Banny didn’t do well, but its her first month of being in matches so I’ll cut her some slack. It had a couple cute spots but not enough to really justify the match happening at all, definitely skippable.

Akane Fujita, Kurumi, and Mochi Miyagi vs. Hamuko Hoshi, Ibuki Hoshi, and Fujimoto

Tsukasa and friends attack before the bell rings and attack their opponents in different corners before posing, triple bulldog and they isolate Mochi. Hamuko puts Mochi in a crab hold but Kurumi breaks it up, Hamuko picks up Mochi and tags in her daughter. Ibuki tries to slam Mochi but Mochi blocks it and hits a slam of her own. Mochi tags in Akane, Akane slams Ibuki and hits an elbow drop. Kurumi is tagged in as they work over the young Ibuki, Ibuki is put in the ropes and triple teamed by the Frank Sisters. Mochi returns and hits Ibuki with Mongolian Chops, but Ibuki hits a crossbody and makes the tag to Tsukasa. Tsukasa dropkicks everyone before focusing on Mochi, kicks to the back by Tsukasa but Mochi catches the PK account and hits a dragon screw. Bodyblock by Mochi, and she covers Tsukasa for two. Mochi knees Tsukasa but Tsukasa hits a dropkick, but Kurumi runs in and hits  hard shoulderblock. Triple body avalanche in the corner, face crusher by Mochi to Tsukasa and she covers her for two.

Mochi tags Kurumi, Kurumi goes off the ropes and dropkicks Tsukasa in the head. Seated sentons by Mochi and Kurumi, and Kurumi covers Tsukasa for two. Tsukasa recovers and applies an Octopus Hold, The Hoshis come in and apply submission holds as well. Kurumi gets out of the hold, step-up sunset flip by Tsukasa and she tags in Hamuko. Kurumi knocks over Hamuko with a hard lariat but Hamuko fires back with a lariat of her own. Hamuko is knocked down against the ropes and Kurumi hits a somersault senton before tagging in Akane. Shoulderblock by Akane, she picks up Hamuko but Hamuko blocks the slam. Hamuko hits a slam of her own, Tsukasa and Ibuki both come in and Ibuki is used as a weapon. Ibuki and Tsukasa pick up Hamuko but they can’t throw her onto Akane, but Tsukasa catapults off Hamuko’s back with a dropkick to Akane. Shining Onaka by Hamuko and she tags in Ibuki. Crossbody by Ibuki to Akane, Akane recovers and they trade elbows, Ibuki knocks down Akane with a rolling elbow before Tsukasa and Hamuko both come in to lend an extra hand.

Triple bodyblock to Akane, Ibuki scoop slams Akane and goes up to the second turnbuckle, but Mochi grabs her from the apron. Akane grabs Ibuki and hits a shoulder powerbomb, but Ibuki kicks out. Texas Cloverleaf by Akane but it gets broken up, Tsukasa and Hamuko go off the ropes but are intercepted by Mochi and Kurumi. Scoop slam by Akane to Ibuki, Akane and Mochi both get on Kurumi’s back and together they all hit a splash. Cover by Akane, but it gets broken up. Akane goes off the ropes but Ibuki slides between her legs and cradles Akane for two. Ibuki charges Akane but Akane gets her up, Ibuki slides off and both Tsukasa and Hamuko run in as all three roll over Akane. Cover by Ibuki, but Kurumi breaks it up. Mochi and Tsukasa take care of them, rotating Samoan Drop by Ibuki but Akane barely kicks out of the cover. Ibuki goes off the ropes but Akane catches her and delivers a modified Samoan Drop. Cover by Akane, but Ibuki barely kicks out. Akane picks up Ibuki and nails the Mikan de Pon, and she picks up the three count! Akane Fujita, Kurumi, and Mochi Miyagi are the winners!

A pretty entertaining midcard match. It wasn’t perfect as there were some rough spots and transitions, but generally speaking the teams worked together really well. I haven’t seen much of Ibuki but she seems to have a good foundation, and Akane Fujita is solid. I’m not sure if Kurumi’s push is stalled or she just doesn’t have a storyline right now but I’d like to see her in bigger matches, she provides something a bit different than a lot of the other Ice Ribbon wrestlers. Fast paced and chaotic, with all the wrestlers getting a chance to shine. About all you can ask for from this spot on the show.  Mildly Recommended

Rina Yamashita vs. Satsuki Totoro

Rina and Satsuki immediately charge each other after the bell rings, colliding with both wrestlers staying up. They take turns trying to knock each other over until Rina sends Satsuki crashing to the mat. Rina kicks Satsuki out of the ring and cracks her with a water bottle, Rina gets a chair and sits Satsuki onto at ringside. Rina runs all the way around the ring but Satsuki has recovered and hits Rina with the chair, scoop slam by Satsuki on the floor and she slides Rina back. Scoop slam attempt by Satsuki but Rina blocks it and hits a scoop slam of her own. Rina throws Satsuki in the corner and hits a lariat, another lariat by Rina and she covers Satsuki for two. Scorpion Deathlock by Rina, she lets go after a moment and knees Satsuki in the back. Rina picks up Satsuki and tosses her down, kick to the ribs by Rina but Satsuki gets back up and they trade strikes.

Satsuki pushes Rina into the corner and they go back and forth with elbows, Rina throws Satsuki into the corner but Satsuki fires out of it with a hard shoulderblock. Body press by Satsuki and she puts Rina in a crab hold, but Rina gets to the ropes for the break. Satsuki picks up Rina but Rina puts her in a sleeper, Satsuki wiggles to the ropes and makes it to force a break. Rina goes off the ropes but Satsuki hits a hard shoulderblock, rolling fireman’s carry slam by Satsuki but Rina kicks out of the cover. Satsuki gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton, she gets back on the second turnbuckle and delivers a second one, but Rina kicks out of the pin. Satsuki goes all the way up this time but Rina recovers and joins her, hitting a superplex. Rina and Satsuki slowly get up, trading strikes as they do so, until Satsuki hits a crossbody for two. Satsuki goes off the ropes but Rina catches her with a lariat, she goes for a cover but Satsuki cuts it back for her own two count. Back up, kicks by Rina and she delivers a sliding lariat for two. Rina picks up Satsuki and hits a final lariat, picking up the three count! Rina Yamashita wins!

This wasn’t perfect, but it was good. There were a few minutes in the middle that they seemed to not be on the same page, or someone got the breath knocked out of them, but generally this was a fun hoss battle. Both have the size and believably to have this style of match, and when they were on their feet slugging it out, everything worked. I still am not sure if Satsuki is really ready yet as at times she looked lost, but a good effort by Rina Yamashita to put her over some and pull her through the match successfully. Mildly Recommended

Maika Ozaki and Tequila Saya vs. Risa Sera and Suzu Suzuki

Risa and Suzu attack before the match, they stack their opponents in the corner but Maika surprises them with a lariat. Risa and Suzu are stacked on top of each other and are posed on, but things eventually get to normal as Saya stays in with Suzu. Saya stretches Suzu before tagging Maika, stomps by Maika and she puts Suzu in a Camel Clutch. Saya puts Suzu in a crab hold at the same time while Risa just watches, they eventually let go and Maika stomps on Suzu before tagging Saya back in. She attacks Suzu in the corner with Maika, Risa keeps wanting to help but Maika knocks her off the apron. Saya comes in but Suzu dropkicks her and tags in Risa, Maika enters but Risa lariats both of them. Risa gets Maika on her shoulders and then grabs Saya’s legs, giving her the ‘ol Giant Swing. That spot made no sense but it kinda looked cool so I’ll let it slide. She gives Saya another Giant Swing, Risa picks up Saya but Saya hits a back elbow. Schwein by Risa and she tags Suzu, dropkicks by Suzu and she covers Saya for two.

Risa runs in and they take turns hitting running double knees on Saya, cover by Suzu but it gets a two count. Suzu throws Saya in the corner but Saya hits a running crossbody, Maika comes in and she slams Saya onto Suzu before hitting a senton. She leaves, Saya charges Suzu while she is against the ropes but Suzu avoids her charge and dropkicks her in the back. Cutter by Saya and she sits down on Suzu’s head before tagging Maika. Elbow drops by Maika, she picks up Suzu and puts her in a bear hug. Backbreaker by Maika and she applies a stretch hold, she picks up Suzu but Suzu elbows her. They trade elbows until Suzu hits a jumping crossbody for two. Suzu throws Maika in the corner, Risa comes and they both hit running strikes. Scoop slam by Suzu, she picks up Maika but Maika blocks the suplex attempt. Maika lariats Suzu in the back of the head and hits a Karelin Lift, cover by Maika but it gets two. Maika goes off the ropes but Suzu hits a spear, Risa runs in to keep Saya away and Suzu goes for a few flash pins with no luck. Suzu clubs on Maika, she goes up top but Saya hits her from the apron. This gives Maika time to recover, she gets Suzu on her shoulders and tosses her to the mat while Saya hits a cutter. Saya gets on Maika’s back and they hit a senton, cover by Maika but it gets a two count.

Lariat by Maika but Risa breaks it up with a diving double knee. Suzu tags Risa, Risa picks up Maika but Maika slides away and cradles her for two. Boot to the head by Risa, she tries to toss Maika into the corner but Maika reverses it and both she and Saya hit running strikes. Maika throws Saya on top of Risa, she tries to get her up her shoulders but Risa elbows out of it and puts Maika in the Combine. Maika tries to get to the ropes but Risa picks her up and powerbombs her into the corner, running double knee by Risa and she hits a reverse double kneedrop for a two count. Suzu goes up top, she gets on Risa’s back and Risa hits a double kneedrop. Cover by Risa, but Saya breaks it up. Risa kicks at Maika, she goes off the ropes but Maika catches her with a spinebuster. Maika gets Risa on her shoulders but Suzu runs in and breaks things up, Saya takes care of Suzu before powerbombing Risa. Suzu knocks Saya out of the ring but Maika shoulderblocks Suzu, she goes off the ropes but Risa catches her with a dropkick. Ayers Rock by Risa but Maika gets fired up and hits a lariat for two. Maika goes off the ropes but Risa gets Maika on her shoulders and delivers the Schwein for the three count! Risa Sera and Suzu Suzuki are the winners.

Something felt a bit off with the ending but the journey to get there was enjoyable. Suzu may not be too experienced but you wouldn’t know it from watching this match, some wrestlers just “get it” quicker than others and she is clearly one of those that gets it as she fit right in. Maika on the other hand was a bit off a few times but nothing that really impacted the match, and Risa was her usual incredible self. The match didn’t really have a structure to it of note but they kept the action going and for a match with no deeper purpose it worked fine. The end felt really sudden as Maika blew off Ayers Rock, successfully hit a move/got a near fall and then promptly got pinned, after a long-ish match I was expecting a hotter and more complex end stretch. Still, lots of great action here and a solid match, looking forward to watching Suzu’s career grow as I am sure she’ll just get better and better.  Recommended

(c) Maya Yukihi vs. Giulia
ICExInfinity Championship

They circle each other and lock-up, Maya pushes Giulia into the ropes and she gives a clean break. Giulia gets Maya into the ropes next but she elbows Maya instead of breaking, Giulia gets Maya in the corner and hits more elbows. Running boot by Giulia in the corner but Maya delivers a high kick, snapmares by Maya and she applies a chinlock. Giulia gets into the ropes, Maya lets go but quickly puts Giulia in an armbar. Giulia gets out of it and applies a headscissors, Maya reverses it but Giulia bites her hand. Snapmare by Maya and she kicks Giulia in the back and chest before kicking Giulia out of the ring. Maya goes out after her but Giulia chops her and the two trade blows. Maya gets the better of it but Giulia spits water in her face, Maya goes for a high kick but Giulia ducks and Maya kicks the ring post. Giulia works over Maya’s leg on the floor before rolling her in, she pulls Maya’s leg to the ring post and rams it into the post. Giulia gets back into the ring and keeps on Maya’s leg, she boots Maya in the back of the head and covers her for two.

Irish whip by Giulia but Maya reverses it, Giulia boots Maya back and hits a diving crossbody. Giulia and Maya stay on the mat and jockey for position, Maya applies a seated armbar but Giulia gets out of it and goes back to Maya’s leg. Maya slides away and applies an armbar, but Giulia gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Maya picks up Giulia, slaps by Maya and she knees Giulia against the ropes. Maya charges Giulia but Giulia avoids her running knee, she goes for a boot but Maya ducks it and kicks Giulia in the head. Maya goes for another kick but Giulia catches her leg and applies a leglock. Maya wiggles to the ropes to force the break, big boot by Giulia and she hits two more. Cover by Giulia, but Maya kicks out. Back up they struggle for position, reverse DDT by Giulia but she only gets a two. Maya comes right back with a STO, she goes off the ropes and boots Giulia hard in the head. Elbows by Maya, Giulia elbows her back but Maya catches her with a kick and a knee. Maya knees Giulia again, she puts her against the ropes and destroys her face with a running knee. Maya goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Maya but it gets two.

Maya goes off the rope but Giulia boots her, Maya boots her back but Giulia delivers a pump kick. Giulia goes up top but Maya recovers and tosses her off, Maya then goes up but Giulia joins her and powerslams her to the mat. Hammerlock by Giulia but Maya armdrags her and hits a high kick. Both wrestlers are slow to get up, they exchange elbows until Giulia hits three big boots. Giulia goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Giulia but it gets a two count. Giulia picks up Maya and delivers the Glorious Buster, but Maya kicks out of the pin. STF by Giulia but Maya makes it to the ropes, bootscrapes by Giulia but Maya breaks away from her and kicks her repeatedly. Buzzsaw Kick by Maya, she picks up Giulia but Giulia drops her with the Glorious Driver! Cover by Giulia, but Maya barely kicks out. Giulia picks up Maya and goes for the Spider Nest, but Maya slams her way out of it. Crystal of Snow by Maya, she picks up Giulia and drills her with a sit-out Tiger Driver ’91 for the three count pinfall! Maya Yukihi wins and retains the championship!

This far exceeded my expectations, both really elevated beyond their usual level to put on something memorable. Giulia’s leg work was well done and she went back to it enough that it didn’t feel like just wasted time, she was more than satisfied to win with a kneelock or STF as she wore Maya down. Maya’s strikes were just killer and it is possible she really did knock Giulia loopy as by the last minute or so the wheels came off a little as things were a bit sloppy. I’m willing to overlook that after such a grueling 25 minute match, Giulia clearly gave all she had and then some. The Tiger Driver was sick but a fitting exclamation point, after all that they had done to each other they needed something special to get the three count. A great display by both, it may not end up on a MOTY list but for their experience/skill levels I thought this was a great match and effort by both. Worth watching for sure, as long as you can tolerate an occasional commentary box in the corner.  Highly Recommended

The post Ice Ribbon #962 ~ Osaka Ribbon 2019 II on 5/25/19 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Championships Held: None
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• June 11th, 2017 with Hamuko Hoshi vs. Hiragi Kurumi and Tsukushi  (title challenge)
• April 21st, 2018 vs. Miyako Matsumoto (title challenge)
• October 28th, 2018 vs. Mochi Miyagi
• August 10th, 2019 vs. Hamuko Hoshi
• September 15th, 2019 with Hamuko Hoshi vs. Sakura Hirota and Tequila Saya  (title challenge)
• December 31st, 2019 with Suzu Suzuki vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto and Tsukushi   (title challenge)

Signature Moves:

• Crossbody
• Diving Body Press
• Dropkick
• Elbow Strikes
• Ibu Roll

Sample of Matches Reviewed on Joshi City:

• May 25th, 2019 – Akane Fujita, Hiragi Kurumi, and Mochi Miyagi vs. Hamuko Hoshi, Ibuki Hoshi, and Tsukasa Fujimoto in Ice Ribbon
• November 23rd, 2019 – Ibuki Hoshi, Syuri, and Tae Honma vs. Risa Sera, Tsukasa Fujimoto, and Tsukushi in Ice Ribbon

In Action:

Crossbody

Diving Body Press

Back to Ice Ribbon Roster

The post Ibuki Hoshi appeared first on Joshi City.