Event: GAEA Japan “HEARTFUL BODY LANGUAGE IN NAGOYA”
Date: January 28th, 1996
Location: Nagoya City Gymnasium in Nagoya, Japan
Announced Attendance: 2,500

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

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

We continue our march with GAEA Japan with this smaller even in Nagayo. Not necessarily smaller in regards to attendance, but this event didn’t really have the big matches that the last few shows have had. We are getting two more matches in the Neo Energy Queen History Tournament, which lasted for months, so at least we will get to see the rookies in singles action. Here is the full card:

• Neo Energy Queen History ’95: Toshie Sato vs. Toshie Uematsu
• Neo Energy Queen History ’95: Chikayo Nagashima vs. Makie Numao
• Chigusa Nagayo, Meiko Satomura, and Sonoko Kato vs. Combat Toyoda, Kaori Nakayama, and Yukari Ishikura

All the wrestlers on the show have profiles on the website, you can click on their names above to go straight to it. There may be some clipping but hopefully it will be minimal since none of these matches were super long anyway.

Toshie Sato vs. Toshie Uematsu
Neo Energy Queen History ’95 Tournament

Uematsu and Sato tie-up, Sato bumps Uematsu to the mat before kicking her. Uematsu comes back with a dropkick and applies a headlock, she picks up Sato and applies a grounded necklock. Sato gets out of it, snapmare by Sato and she puts Uematsu in a crossface. Uematsu gets back up and hits a back elbow in the corner, another elbow by Uematsu and she mounts Sato in the corner before delivering a couple punches. Scoop slam by Uematsu and she covers Sato for two. Sato sneaks in an inside cradle, dropkick by Sato and she hits a scoop slam for a two count. Wristlock by Sato and she kicks Uematsu’s arm in the ropes, armdrag by Sato and she goes for a cross armbreaker. She gets it locked in but Uematsu quickly gets to the ropes and forces the break, Sato picks up Uematsu and goes back to work on her arm. Armbar by Sato but Uematsu applies an inside cradle for two. Irish whip by Sato but Uematsu hits a jumping crossbody for another two count. Uematsu trips Sato and puts her in a crab hold, she stretches Sato before covering her for two. Uematsu goes for a snapmare but Sato reverses it into a backside, stomps by Sato and she hits a scoop slam.

Sato puts Uematsu in a crab hold, she lets go after a moment and goes for a back bodydrop, but Uematsu jumps over her and the two trade flash pins. Uematsu goes off the ropes but Sato catches her from behind and rolls her up for two. Sato throws Uematsu into the corner but Uematsu avoids her charge and does a kick flip. Cradle by Uematsu, but it gets a two. Sato charges Uematsu in the corner but Uematsu cradles her for another two count, Sato slams Uematsu to the mat and hits a neckbreaker. Another neckbreaker by Sato, she picks up Uematsu but Uematsu hits a side headlock takedown. Scoop slam by Uematsu, she goes up top and hits a diving body press but it only gets two. Face Crusher by Sato, she throws Uematsu to the ropes and hits a hard shoulderblock. Sato goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, shoulder powerslam by Sato and she hits a pair of elbow drops for a two count. Sato goes up top but Uematsu hits her from behind, Japanese Leg Roll Clutch by Uematsu and she picks up the three count! Toshie Uematsu is the winner and gets a point.

Even for a rookie match, this was really basic. I’ve seen both of these wrestlers do more, maybe they really do need a veteran in the ring to string together something more complex as this was basically just submission holds and cradles. Pretty much a nothing match, both went on to have solid careers but almost one year into their careers they weren’t ready yet to put on an entertaining match on their own.

Chikayo Nagashima vs. Makie Numao
Neo Energy Queen History ’95 Tournament

Chikayo quickly gets Makie to the mat and stomps her, Makie comes back with kicks and hits a back bodydrop for two. They return to their feet, kick by Makie and she kicks Chikayo in the chest. Snapmare by Makie and a kick to the back, scoop slam by Makie and she covers Chikayo for two. Makie whips around Chikayo by the hair before applying a headlock, she lets her go after a moment and Chikayo knocks her down with a pair of dropkicks. Scoop slam by Chikayo, and she covers Makie for two. Chikayo stomps on Makie’s leg and puts her in a crab hold, but Makie crawls to the ropes and forces the break. Scoop slam by Chikayo and she throws down Makie by the hair, scoop slam by Chikayo and she covers Makie for two. Irish whip by Chikayo but Makie reverses it and kicks Chikayo in the chest. Bodyscissors by Makie but Chikayo gets a foot on the ropes, snapmare by Makie and she kicks Chikayo in the back. Scoop slam by Makie, she picks up Chikayo but Chikayo throws her into the corner and hits a monkey flip. Chikayo charges Makie but Makie moves and kicks Chikayo out of the ring, Makie goes out after her and throws Chikayo into the guard rail. Chikayo returns the favor and tosses Makie into the opposite railing before returning to the ring, Makie follows her but Chikayo dropkicks her into the corner.

Snapmare by Chikayo and she applies a chinlock, camel clutch by Chikayo and she switches it into a bodyscissors. Makie gets into the ropes for the break, Chikayo picks up Makie but Makie sneaks in a cradle for two. Kicks to the chest by Makie, cover by Makie but it gets a two count. Snapmare by Makie and she applies a wristlock, armdrags by Makie but Chikayo hits a quick crossbody. Irish whip by Chikayo and she hits a series of front rolls into headbutts, high kick by Chikayo but Makie blocks the next one and kicks Chikayo in the back. Cover by Makie, but Chikayo gets a foot in the ropes. Irish whip by Makie but Chikayo reverses it and hits a cutter, she gets on the top turnbuckle and delivers a missile dropkick. Chikayo goes off the ropes but Makie puts her in a dragon sleeper, but Chikayo quickly gets in the ropes. Kick to the chest by Makie and she goes for the sleeper again, but Chikayo gets in the ropes Makie goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, but Chikayo barely kicks out. Irish whip by Makie but Chikayo rolls her up for a two count, kick by Makie but Chikayo catches the next one. Irish whip by Chikayo but Makie knees her in the stomach, more kicks by Makie and she covers Chikayo for two. Makie goes up top but Chikayo catches her with an armbar when she jumps off. Makie gets a foot in the ropes, Chikayo charges her and hits the Corbata for the three count! Chikayo Nagashima wins and gets one point in the tournament.

This was a step up from the last match but still a bit clunky. The issue here is that they both have very different styles, which is fine for veterans but rookies have more issues meshing with someone doing something totally different than they are. So the transitions were rough between spots and they used a lot of the same moves to switch who was on offense. Still, Makie has a nice dragon sleeper and Chikayo looked the best of the four rookies we saw today as she is smooth with her offense. Not a great match but a watchable one between two rookies.

Chigusa Nagayo, Satomura, and Kato vs. Combat Toyoda, Nakayama, and Ishikura

Toyoda and Nagayo start the match, they lock knuckles and get into a shoulderblock battle until Nagayo takes Toyoda to the mat. Sonoko and Meiko both come in and dropkick Nagayo, Nagayo tags in Sonoko while Meiko stays in the ring too but Toyoda rams their heads together. Scoop slam by Toyoda and she hits a bodyblock, lariat by Toyoda in the corner on Sonoko and she tosses Sonoko over her head. Cover by Toyoda, but Meiko breaks it up. She tags in Yukari, dropkick by Yukari but Sonoko reverses a back bodydrop attempt into a sunset flip and tags in Meiko. Running elbow by Meiko to Yukari and she hits a second one, cover by Meiko but it gets two. Meiko charges Yukari but Yukari tackles her, stomps by Yukari and she tags in Kaori. Kaori snapmares Meiko around the ring and slams her head into the mat a few times, but Meiko gets away and tags in Nagayo. Kicks by Nagayo and she hits a vertical suplex, but Yukari breaks up the cover. Nagayo picks up Kaori and hits a uranage, she tags in Sonoko and Sonoko dropkicks Kaori in the corner. Another dropkick by Sonoko and she hits a scoop slam, but Kaori fights back and tags in Toyoda. Irish whip by Toyoda and she floors Sonoko back a back elbow, backbreaker by Toyoda and she gives Sonoko and airplane spin before tossing her to the mat. Toyoda charges Sonoko in the corner but Sonoko moves out of the way and kicks her, she tosses Toyoda into the corner and tags in Nagayo.

High kick by Nagayo but Toyoda ducks the heel kick and tags in Yukari. Yukari goes for a missile dropkick but hits Toyoda by accident, Nagayo lariats Toyoda but Kaori runs in and with Yukari they double team Nagayo. Space Rolling Elbow by Kaori in the corner but Nagayo kicks Yukari back and throws her into the corner. Toyoda tags in, she clubs Nagayo but Nagayo kicks her and hits a powerbomb. Piledriver by Nagayo and she covers Toyoda for a two count. Nagayo kicks Toyoda but Toyoda blocks one and applies a sleeper, but Meiko breaks it up. Both Nagayo and Toyoda’s teammates run in and hit dropkicks, Meiko and Kaori are both tagged in and Meiko dropkicks Kaori. Kaori comes back with a cutter, diving crossbody by Yukari and she slams mm in front of the corner so that Kaori can hit a moonsault. Kaori picks up Meiko but Meiko applies a seated armbar, Kaori quickly gets to the ropes but Meiko applies an armbreaker in the middle of the ring. Toyoda breaks it up, Yukari and Sonoko are both tagged in and Sonoko hits a Lou Thesz Press. Bulldog by Sonoko but Yukari delivers a diving crossbody, double underhook suplexes by Yukari but Meiko breaks up the cover. Toyoda comes in and lariats both Meiko and Sonoko, she then drops Sonoko with a backdrop suplex. Toyoda picks up Sonoko while Yukari goes up top, and together they hit a powerbomb/diving crossbody combination for a two count when Nagayo breaks it up. Nagayo suplexes Toyoda and then hits a sidewalk slam on Yukari, Kaori dropkicks Meiko but Sonoko scoops up Yukari and nails the Kamikaze Bomb for the three count! Chigusa Nagayo, Meiko Satomura, and Sonoko Kato win!

While the match had some hot moments, generally it just felt really disorganized and not in the good way. There wasn’t a lot of rhyme or reason to what they were doing, the tags didn’t have any heat and at times the transitions were non-existent. On the plus side, anytime Toyota and Nagayo squared off it felt like a big deal, and also whenever the rookies got one better on their veteran counterparts. On the low end of the GAEA Japan multi-woman main events they have had since they opened shop, it wasn’t bad but didn’t feel particularly fresh or captivating.

The post GAEA Japan HEARTFUL BODY LANGUAGE on 1/28/96 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

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

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

We have finally reached the final event of 1995! That took awhile. GAEA Japan returns to Korakuen Hall for their pre-Christmas show, with a big main event as Chigusa Nagayo takes on Combat Toyoda. We also get the first appearance by the legendary FMW wrestler Megumi Kudo here as well, as Team FMW takes on Team GAEA Japan. Three of the matches were shown on the one hour broadcast, here are the matches:

• Chihiro Nakano vs. Chikayo Nagashima 
• KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Toshie Uematsu vs. Megumi Kudo, Kaori Nakayama, and Yukari Ishikura
• Chigusa Nagayo vs. Combat Toyoda
  

The main event in particular should be interesting as Chigusa Nagayo tends to bring her best when defending her home turf, although Toyoda isn’t always easy to work with. All the wrestlers have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names above to go straight to it.

Chihiro Nakano vs. Chikayo Nagashima

Chikayo and Chihiro circle each other to start, back bodydrop by Chihiro but Chikayo trips her and delivers a stomp. Chihiro gets Chikayo’s ankle but Chikayo slides away and hits a scoop slam. Kicks by Chikayo and she hits a few snapmares before applying a crossface. Chihiro gets into the ropes for the break but Chikayo applies a side headlock, Chihiro gets out of it and hits a scoop slam for two. Crab hold by Chihiro and she grabs Chikayo’s arm to further stretch her, armbar by Chihiro but Chikayo gets to the ropes. Chihiro elbows Chikayo’s arm and goes for across armbreaker, but Chikayo blocks it. Chikayo kicks Chihiro away and hits a pair of dropkicks, but Chihiro bridges out of the pin. Crossface by Chikayo, she throws Chihiro into the corner but Chihiro avoids her charge and pushes Chikayo out of the ring. Chihiro goes out after her but Chikayo moves when Chihiro goes for a knee, and Chihiro collides with the guard rail. Chikayo slides Chihiro back in and puts her in an ankle hold, but Chihiro gets to the ropes for the break. Snapmare by Chikayo and she goes back to Chihiro’s leg, but Chihiro recovers and returns the favor as she goes for Chikayo’s leg as well.

Chikayo gets into the ropes, Chihiro picks her up but Chikayo hits a crossbody for two. Chikayo throws down Chihiro by the hair and hits a dropkick, scoop slam by Chikayo and she covers Chihiro for another two count. Front roll by Chikayo but Chihiro catches her and they trade quick pins. Back up, Stunner by Chikayo and she hits an Ace Crusher for two. Chikayo throws Chihiro into the corner but Chihiro jumps up the turnbuckles and hits a sunset flip for two. Chihiro goes for Chikayo’s leg but Chikayo quickly grabs the ropes, running knees by Chihiro and she covers Chikayo for a two count. Jumping knee in the corner by Chihiro but she accidentally flies out of the ring in the process, she quickly gets back in the ring and hits a scoop slam for two. Chihiro slams Chikayo in front of the corner, she goes up top and hits a diving kneedrop, but Chikayo kicks out of the cover again. She goes for Chikayo’s knee but Chikayo gets to the ropes, Chihiro picks up Chikayo but Chikayo snaps off a Corbata for the three count! Chikayo Nagashima wins the match!

They certainly get an A for effort, they were going all out in this match. Not always effectively, but they tried. The story was loose at best so its easier watching these matches remembering both are rookies, so you wouldn’t expect rookie wrestlers even in fake-world to have a real plan on winning. They are just doing the best they can with their limited knowledge. So even though it was all over the place, it was exciting and interesting throughout so its hard to have too many complaints. All things considered, a pretty entertaining way to kick off the TV airing.  Mildly Recommended

KAORU, Meiko Satomura, and Uematsu vs. Megumi Kudo, Nakayama, and Yukari Ishikura

Meiko and Yukari start the match, armdrag by Meiko but Yukari puts her in a headscissors. Kaori runs in and they hit a double dropkick onto Meiko, Yukari tags in Kaori and she dropkicks Meiko again. Another dropkick by Kaori and she applies an armbar, she tags in KAORU and KAORU continues on Meiko’s arm. Yukari returns as Team FMW takes turns on Meiko’s arm, but knocks her back and makes the tag to Toshie. Dropkick by Toshie to Yukari and she rams her into the turnbuckles before applying a chinlock. Side headlock by Toshie and she puts Yukari in a Indian Deathlock, she tags in KAORU as Meiko comes in as well so they can all boot Yukari. Meiko and Toshie both come off the top with attacks to Yukari’s arm, arm wringer by KAORU to Yukari and she tags in Meiko. Meiko goes for a cross armbreaker but Kaori breaks it up, dropkick by Meiko to Yukari and she covers her for two. Meiko tags Toshie, Toshie stays on Yukari’s arm before delivering a jumping kick to her face. Yukari comes back with a dropkick and tags in Kudo, crossbody by Kudo to Toshie and she hits a scoop slam. Kudo stretches Toshie and puts her in a camel clutch, Yukari and Kaori run in and stomp on Toshie while she is on the hold.

Kaori is tagged in, stomps to the leg by Kaori and she twists on Toshie’s leg. Kudo returns and puts Toshie in a figure four but Meiko breaks it up, Kudo slaps Meiko and goes back to Toshie as she throws her into the mat. She tags in Kaori, face crushers by Kaori but Toshie sneaks in an inside cradle for two. This gives her time to tag in KAORU, front dropkick by KAORU to Kaori and she puts her in a Camel Clutch. Meiko and Toshie come in and take turns dropkicking Kaori while she is in the hold, Mexican Surfboard by KAORU but Kudo eventually breaks it up. KAORU tags Meiko, elbows by Meiko and she covers Kaori for two. Kaori comes back with a Space Rolling Elbow but Meiko hits a running elbow smash and applies the cross armbreaker. Yukari quickly breaks it up, scoop slam by Meiko and KAORU goes up top to attempt a moonsault. Kaori moves out of the way however, Kudo dropkicks KAORU from behind and plants KAORU with a backdrop suplex. Kaori goes up top and hits a moonsault onto KAORU, she tags in Kudo and Kudo boots KAORU in the face. Enzuigiri by Kudo, she goes up top but Toshie grabs her from the apron. That gives KAORU time to recover, she gets Kudo on her shoulders but Kudo slides off and puts KAORU in a dragon sleeper.

That quickly gets broken up, Kudo picks up KAORU but Toshie and Meiko run in an dropkick her. Double missile dropkick by Meiko and Toshie, KAORU picks up Kudo and hits a leg clutch backdrop suplex hold for two. Scoop slam by KAORU and she nails the swandive moonsault, but Kaori breaks up the cover. KAORU tags Toshie, Meiko comes in too and all three attack Kudo in the corner. Toshie charges Kudo but Kudo puts her in a sleeper hold, she swings Toshie around while in the hold before dropping her to the mat. She tags in Yukari, dropkick by Yukari in the corner and Kaori hits a Space Rolling Elbow. Face crusher by Kudo, Yukari goes up top but Toshie recovers and joins her. Yukari pushes Toshie away and hits an avalanche sunset flip, but Meiko breaks up the cover. Kaori comes in and they double team Toshie, but again her cover is broken up. Kaori hits a diving crossbody on Toshie, Yukari goes up top as Kudo holds Toshie, but KAORU hits a swandive dropkick onto Kudo. Yukari dives off anyway but Toshie gets out of the way, Toshie crucifixes Yukari from behind and she picks up the three count! Team GAEA Japan wins!

I wouldn’t say this was the most fluid and smooth match, but it was fun. The rookies got confused a few times, which isn’t incredibly unusual, but they kept the pace up. Megumi Kudo, to the surprise of no one, controlled the match and team GAEA Japan was only able to win by getting a flash pin after knocking Kudo out of the way for a moment. Lots of style, a little bit of substance, but generally speaking they all came out of it looking fine and it made me want to see Megumi Kudo in a bigger match as she brought something a bit different to the table than we have seen recently in GAEA Japan.  Mildly Recommended

Chigusa Nagayo vs. Combat Toyoda

We join this match in progress, with Nagayo working over Toyoda’s leg on the mat. Figure four by Nagayo but Toyoda rolls to the ropes and grabs them to force a break. Scorpion Deathlock by Nagayo but again Toyoda gets to the ropes, kicks by Nagayo and she headbutts Toyoda, but Toyoda hulks up and absorbs the blows. Toyoda headbutts Nagayo repeatedly and they reach a stalemate, headbutt by Nagayo but Toyoda blocks the slam attempt. Nagayo finally manages to hit the slam, she challenges Toyoda to try to slam her back and Toyoda manages to do so. Vertical suplex by Toyoda, she covers Nagayo but it only gets two. Scorpion Deathlock by Toyoda but Nagayo gets out of it and rolls out of the ring, she returns after a moment but Toyoda tackles her soon after. Nagayo goes for Toyoda’s arm from the bottom and gets an armbar applied, Toyoda gets to the ropes so Nagayo picks her up and hits a heel kick.

She goes for another one but Toyoda catches her and hits a backdrop suplex, another backdrop suplex by Toyoda and she delivers a missile dropkick. Nagayo falls out of the ring, Toyoda goes up to the top turnbuckle and dives out onto her with crossbody to the floor. Toyoda goes to get back in the ring but Nagayo grabs her from behind and hits a backdrop suplex onto the floor. Now it is Nagayo that goes up and dives out of the ring onto Toyoda with a crossbody, she gets back into the ring and waits for Toyoda to recover. Toyoda eventually returns, Nagayo goes for a powerbomb but Toyoda blocks it. Head kicks by Nagayo but Toyoda fires back with a lariat, German suplex by Nagayo and she goes up top, delivering a diving heel kick. Cover by Nagayo, but it gets a two count. Nagayo puts Toyoda on the top turnbuckle and joins her, hitting an avalanche DDT for another two.

Nagayo goes for a kick but Toyoda catchers her leg and elbows her in the knee, she does it a second time and puts Nagayo in a sleeper. Nagayo backs Toyoda into the corner to get out of the hold, high kick by Nagayo and she gets on the turnbuckles, but Toyoda joins her and hits an avalanche backdrop suplex for a two count. Scoop slam by Toyoda, she goes up top and nails a diving body press for another two. Toyoda puts Nagayo on the top turnbuckle with Nagayo facing the crowd, Toyoda gets up with her and slams her back into the ring, but Nagayo gets a shoulder up on the cover. Nagayo recovers first and puts Toyoda in a sleeper, but Toyoda crawls to the ropes and gets there for the break. Elbow by Nagayo, she goes for the powerbomb but Toyoda lariats her to the mat. Toyoda gets on the second turnbuckle but Nagayo kicks her from behind, she gets Toyoda on her back and she nails the Running Three for the three count pinfall! Chigusa Nagayo is the winner!

We missed about half the match, so we basically went straight to the meat of the match and didn’t see how they introduced it. From what we saw, this was a very… Chigusa Nagayo match. If you like things such as selling big spots and transitions, this is not the match for you as they blew off things that usually have no business being blown off. Toyoda is really good at the hardcore style but an average “normal” match wrestler, I almost wish they had gone to more of a brawl style as it probably would have been a better match. It still had some drama and memorable sections, the effort was there to put on something special, but the work was lacking at times. I still liked it as I am a big Chigusa Nagayo fan and it did have the big match feel, I just wish it was a more cohesive match as not everything clicked.  Mildly Recommended

The post GAEA Japan “Come On Hurry! XMAS Fighting” on 12/23/95 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

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

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

I mentioned last week that GAEA Japan’s TV slot on GAORA was only one hour long, so some matches had to be excluded from the broadcast while others were clipped. For this event, it was a big enough show that they spread the event over two different TV broadcasts, giving them an extra hour. I’ll be reviewing both TV shows to give a complete picture of what aired from the event, instead of breaking it up into two really small reviews. Some matches were still excluded, but more was shown than usual. Anyway, this event is highlighted by a big main event match between Chigusa Nagayo and Devil Masami! Here are the matches that aired:

• Maiko Narita and Yukari Ishikura vs. Toshie Sato and Kaori Nakayama
• Meiko Satomura vs. Toshie Uematsu
• Mayumi Ozaki and Hiromi Yagi vs. Sumio Toyoma and Bomber Hikari
• Chigusa Nagayo vs. Devil Masami

Brief profiles for all the wrestlers above have been added to the website, you can click on their names to go straight to it.

Maiko Narita and Yukari Ishikura vs. Toshie Sato and Kaori Nakayama

We join this match in progress, as Maiko works over Kaori on the mat. Yukari comes in and they double team Kaori, Maiko goes for a dropkick but Kaori avoids it. Toshie runs in now as it is Maiko’s turn to get double teamed, but Maiko manages to tag in Yukari. Yukari elbows Kaori against the ropes but Kaori switches positions with her and returns the favor, kicks to the back by Kaori and she hits a scoop slam for a two count. Kaori picks up Yukari and hits a dropkick, she tags in Toshie and Toshie dropkicks Yukari in the chest. Another dropkick by Toshie but Yukari sneaks in an inside cradle. This gives her time to tag in Maiko, Maiko goes for Toshie’s arm but Toshie gets into the ropes. Maiko bites Toshie’s arm, she flings Toshie to the mat and puts her in a cross armbreaker, but Toshie rolls out of it and puts Maiko in a leg submission. Toshie picks up Maiko and tags in Kaori, Kaori throws down Maiko by the hair but she manages to tag in Yukari after landing. Kaori stretches Yukari’s arm but Yukari ducks a lariat attempt and rolls her up for two. Snapmare by Yukari and she tags in Maiko, and Maiko puts Kaori in a stretch hold. Toshie eventually breaks it up, Kaori kicks Maiko and hits the Space Rolling Elbow in the corner. She hits a second one, Toshie tries to hit a missile dropkick to help but she hits Kaori by accident. Yukari runs in and holds Kaori so that Maiko can hit a missile dropkick, but the cover gets two. Maiko tags in Yukari, Irish whip by Yukari but Kaori applies a sunset flip for two.

Kaori tags in Toshie, shoulderblocks by Toshie to Yukari and she goes up top, but Yukari slams her back into the ring. Yukari goes up top and hits a diving sunset flip, but Toshie barely kicks out. Yukari Irish whips Toshie and hits a dropkick, another dropkick by Yukari and she hits a third for a two count cover. Yukari tags in Maiko, Maiko hits a pair of single leg monkey flips but Toshie blocks it when she goes for another one and hits the face crusher. She tags Kaori, Kaori slams Maiko’s head into the mat twice before Toshie comes off the top with a missile dropkick. Yukari comes in to help and slams Toshie, while Maiko spins around Kaori and drops her onto her partner. Maiko tags in Yukari, diving crossbody by Yukari to Kaori but the cover is broken up. Double arm suplexes by Yukari to Kaori, but again Toshie breaks up the cover. Yukari goes for a diving crossbody but Kaori moves, Kaori tags in Toshie and Toshie hits Yukari with a neckbreaker. Yukari blocks the next attempted one and tags in Maiko, but Toshie quickly drops her with a swinging neckbreaker. Maiko drives Toshie into the corner and hits a running powerslam, but Kaori breaks up the pin. Maiko hits a running powerslam on her as well, she tags in Yukari as Yukari goes for a diving crossbody, but Toshie moves and she hits her partner by accident. Kaori and Toshie grab Yukari and hit a double vertical suplex, an assisted standing moonsault follows before Toshie comes off the top rope with a diving elbow drop. Cover by Toshie, and she gets the three count!

As far as I can tell, this was the last match of Maiko Narita’s career, so I hope you enjoyed all three matches of it. Not everyone makes it as a wrestler, although she looked perfectly fine in this match so it wasn’t due to her struggling to catch on. This was some quality rookie action, as Toshie already has grown quite a bit since we first saw her two months ago. She looked shaky on the diving elbow drop but connected with it, as both she and Maiko were advancing past just doing “rookie” offense. Both FMW wrestlers looked solid with Kaori getting a bit more of a chance to shine, overall this is probably the best all-rookie match we’ve seen so far in GAEA.  Mildly Recommended

Meiko Satomura vs. Toshie Uematsu

We join this one in progress also as Toshie is stretching Meiko on the mat, she picks her up but Meiko rebounds out of the corner and an elbow and covers Toshie for two. Meiko puts Toshie in a crab hold but Toshie eventually makes it to the ropes, dropkick by Meiko and she hits another one for a two count cover. Toshie gets back in control and hits a series of running elbows, more running elbows by Toshie into the corner and she hits a scoop slam for a two count. Toshie charges Meiko and dropkicks her, she dropkicks Meiko out of the ring and goes for a dive off the apron, but Meiko moves out of the way and Toshie splats to the floor. Meiko jumps off the apron with an elbow to Toshie, she rolls her back in and hits a couple hard elbows followed by a jumping shoulderblock for two. Elbows by Meiko in the corner but Toshie elbows her back, they both avoid each other’s charges until Toshie hits a back elbow. Meiko fires back but Toshie hits two side headlock takedowns, she goes for a scoop slam but Meiko lands on top of her. Jumping shoulderblocks by Meiko and she covers Toshie for two. Toshie kicks Meiko and delivers a sunset flip for two, dropkick by Toshie and she hits a back elbow. Jumping back elbow by Toshie, but Meiko bridges out of the pin. Scoop slam by Toshie, she goes up top but Meiko tosses her back to the mat. Stomps be Meiko and she throws down Toshie by the hair before ramming her head-first into the mat. Mounted punches by Meiko, and she gets a two count cover. Irish whip by Meiko but Toshie dropkicks her, another dropkick by Toshie but Meiko applies an inside cradle for two. Scoop slam by Meiko, she goes up top and hits a diving body press for a two count. Cross armbreaker by Meiko, but the bell rings as the time as expired.

We get an overtime period! Meiko charges Toshie as soon as the referee signals the period has behind, elbowing her hard to the mat. Stomps by Meiko and she goes again for the cross armbreaker, but Toshie quickly gets a foot on the ropes. Boot to the chest by Meiko and she applies the cross armbreaker again, but again Toshie is able to get into the ropes. Meiko picks up Toshie but Toshie blocks the Irish whip attempt and applies a Japanese Rolling Clutch for the three count! Toshie Uematsu is the winner.

I loved the overtime period, as it showed that Meiko had Toshie beaten but maybe got a bit too loose and Toshie was able to sneak in the win. Very well done. The bulk of the match was pretty basic, Meiko showed her usual fire but it didn’t have the variety that the opener had. Overall fun and reasonably crisp, but the last minute or so was the only part that really stood out.

Mayumi Ozaki and Hiromi Yagi vs. Sumio Toyoma and Bomber Hikari

Yagi and Toyoma start the match for their teams, Yagi gets the early advantage with a crossbody out of the corner before throwing down Toyoma by her ears. She tags in Ozaki, elbows by Ozaki and she applies a Camel Clutch. Yagi runs in to dropkick Toyoma a few times while she is in the hold, Irish whip by Ozaki and she hits a jumping neck drop for a two count. Ozaki works over Toyoma on the mat and then chops Toyoma in the ears before tagging Yagi back in. Double elbow to Toyoma’s ears (apparently that is her weak point), but she finally manages to make the tag to Bomber. Yagi stomps Bomber and hits a jumping crossbody, covering Bomber for two. Yagi charges Bomber but Bomber moves and squishes Yagi in the corner before hitting a body block. Another body block by Bomber and she puts Yagi in a crab hold while Toyoma comes in and stomps on Yagi’s head. Ozaki comes in and breaks up the hold, giving Yagi time to tag her into the match. Ozaki DDTs Bomber but Toyoma breaks up the cover, Ozaki chops her ears but this lets Bomber recover and she tags Toyoma in. Ozaki tags in Yagi, crossbody by Yagi and she hits a few snapmares on Toyoma before going back to her ears. Yagi and Ozaki both bite Toyoma in the ears, cover by Yagi but it gets two. Yagi punches Toyoma in the ear while trying to convince the referee that she is using an open palm, which somehow fools him, she tags in Ozaki and Ozaki hits a somersault kick off the top turnbuckle for a two count. Ozaki goes back up top but Toyoma avoids the somersault senton and puts Ozaki in a bodyscissors.

Now it is Toyoma that pulls on Ozaki’s ears while Bomber come sin and bites Ozaki in the nose. The referee finally gets her to stop, Ozaki gets in the mount position and chops on Toyoma’s ears. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an ear-based offense like this before. Toyoma manages to get a crab hold applied and tags in Bomber, double shoulderblock to Ozaki and Bomber hits a few shoulderblocks on her own for a two count. Ozaki tags in Yagi but Yagi eats a couple hard shoulderblocks as well, Bomber tags Toyoma and Toyoma kicks Yagi in the chest. Backdrop suplex by Toyoma, and she covers Yagi for two. Yagi gets away from Toyoma and puts her in a short armbar while biting her hand, Ozaki keeps cheating and finally the referee forces the break. Judo throw by Yagi to Toyoma, and she gets a two count cover. Ozaki comes in as the legal wrestler but Bomber comes in too, Toyoma elbows Bomber by accident but then Ozaki does the same to Yagi. Ozaki hits a jumping neck drop on Toyoma, but Bomber breaks up the pin. Ozaki tags in Yagi but Toyoma knees her and hits a Side Russian Leg Sweep. She picks up Yagi and tags Bomber, Bomber tries to sit on Yagi but Yagi moves out of the way and dropkicks Bomber in the butt. A couple more dropkicks by Yagi but Bomber reverses the last one, Yagi goes for a crucifix but Bomber blocks it by falling backwards. Toyoma comes in and they both throw Yagi into the air before hitting a double headbutt. They go for the alley-oop but Yagi rolls out of the way, Bomber picks up Yagi  and hits a couple headbutts. Toyoma has recovered and they both headbutt Yagi, but then they start arguing which gives Yagi time to tag in Ozaki. Ozaki hits a double neck drop on both of them, scoop slam by Ozaki to Bomber but Toyoma grabs her when she goes up top.

Bomber joins Ozaki and hits a powerslam back to the mat, but Ozaki bridges out of the pin. Bomber puts Ozaki on the second turnbuckle and Toyoma hits an avalanche chokeslam, cover by Toyoma but Yagi breaks it up. Scoop slam by Toyoma, she goes up top as does Bomber but Ozaki avoids both of their diving headbutts. Ozaki tags in Yagi who hits a missile dropkick on Toyoma, she goes back up top but Toyoma joins her. Yagi jumps over Toyoma and powerbombs her to the mat, she applies a heel hook but Toyoma gets into the ropes. She goes for it again but this time Bomber breaks it up, dropkicks to the leg by Yagi but Bomber hits her from the apron which gives Toyoma time to tag her in. Bomber picks up Yagi and delivers an alley-oop slam, she goes for a second one but Yagi reverses it into a cradle for two. Ozaki tries to help but Yagi hits her by accident, Over The Top by Bomber to Yagi but Ozaki barely breaks it up in time. Bomber gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a body press to Yagi, but again Ozaki breaks it up. Bomber goes off the ropes but Yagi catches her with a judo toss and tags in Ozaki, somersault cannonball by Ozaki but the cover gets two. Ozaki charges Bomber but Bomber slams her in front of the corner, she gets on the top turnbuckle but Ozaki avoids the Reverse Slash. Ozaki now goes up top but Bomber avoids the somersault senton, Toyoma comes in but Ozaki gets away from them and applies a bodyscissors roll-up for two. Release German by Ozaki to Bomber, then Yagi hits one as well. Another German by Ozaki and Yagi, Ozaki then hits a German suplex hold but Toyoma breaks it up. Toyoma is thrown out of the ring before Yagi dives out onto her, Ozaki goes back to Bomber and hits a powerbomb, but Bomber kicks out. Ozaki picks up Bomber and nails the Liger Bomb, and this time she gets the three count! The winners of the match are Mayumi Ozaki and Hiromi Yagi!

Well that was certainly something. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a long segment focusing on a wrestler’s ear, for no reason really since it had nothing to do with the last third of the match. It was an odd way to go as at times I wasn’t sure if they were doing comedy or not. When they weren’t doing that, the match was good but never felt like it had a story since no one team controlled the action for very long. Wrestlers were tagging in and out even if they were on the defense, and it never felt like anyone was in danger. The ending was solid, bit was just a long journey to get there. More unusual than necessarily good.

Chigusa Nagayo vs. Devil Masami

Masami quickly gets the advantage in the match and headbutts Nagayo a couple times, Masami goes for the powerbomb but Nagayo back bodydrops out of it. Masami lariats her to the mat and goes up top, Nagayo tries to joins her but Masami headbutts her back down. Masami goes for a senton but Nagayo rolls out of the way, both wrestlers get up and Masami lariats Nagayo into the corner. Enzuigiri by Nagayo and now she goes for the powerbomb, but Masami back bodydrops out of it as well. Nagayo applies the sleeper, she lets go of the hold and throws Masami into the ropes before hitting a lariat to the back of the head. Masami goes out to the apron but Nagayo hits a high kick, sending Masami down to the floor. Nagayo gets on the apron and hits a diving crossbody onto Masami, she picks her up and throws Masami into the guard rail, but Masami fires back with a bodyblock and both wrestlers are hurt. Nagayo throws Masami into another railing and high kicks her over the rail onto a table at ringside. Nagayo gets on the table and hits another kick, she knees Masami and both of them fall off the table. Nagayo returns to the ring with Masami slowly following, Nagayo goes for a kick as Masami gets on the apron, but Masami blocks it and kicks her back. Masami goes up top but Nagayo joins her, Nagayo goes for another kick but Masami catches it and hits a leg drop onto Nagayo’s leg for a two count cover. Masami picks up Nagayo and nails a powerbomb, cover by Masami but Nagayo gets a shoulder up. Masami charges Nagayo but Nagayo leg sweeps her, she goes for a kick but Masami blocks it again and kicks Nagayo in her injured leg. Masami goes for a diving leg drop onto Nagayo’s leg but Nagayo mostly rolls out of the way, Nagayo is up first and she puts Masami into the sleeper.

Masami manages to get a hand in the ropes to force the break, Masami slowly gets up but Nagayo promptly delivers a high kick to her head and the referee starts a count on Masami. Masami makes it up but eats another high kick to the head, knee drop by Nagayo and the referee begins another count. Nagayo grabs Masami as she gets to her feet and goes for a powerbomb, Masami slides away but Nagayo kicks her in the head again. Nagayo goes for another kick but Masami catches it this time and she puts Nagayo in the sleeper hold. Masami picks up Nagayo but Nagayo reverses the powerbomb attempt by landing on Masami, she goes off the ropes but Masami kicks her and this time hits the sit-down powerbomb. Cover by Masami, but Nagayo reverses the cover into her own pin attempt for two. Nagayo picks up Masami and hits the Running Three, cover by Nagayo but Masami barely gets a shoulder up.  Nagayo is up first but Masami ducks her lariat attempt, Masami goes for a kick but Nagayo ducks it and her leg gets caught in the ropes. High kick by Nagayo while Masami is still in the ropes, the referee starts the ten count but Masami barely makes it up in time. Nagayo puts Masami on the top turnbuckle, Masami pushes her off once but Nagayo kicks her three times to knock her loopy. Nagayo gets Masami up and delivers the Running Three, cover by Nagayo and she gets the three count! Chigusa Nagayo is your winner.

Even with the full hour broadcast, this match was clipped, as according to the official match time about ten minutes as missing. The match felt very old school but it wasn’t as exciting and heated as I was hoping for. I am all for KO spots and I think they should be used more in wrestling, but they went several minutes with long referee counts and submissions which seemed to take the crowd out of it a little bit since it slowed things down so much. Another issue is that how it was presented, Nagayo was pretty much always in control and I never got the sense that Masami could win. That being said, it told a solid story, with Nagayo continuing to kick Masami in the head until she was groggy enough to succumb to the Running Three. Masami’s leg work was fine, ultimately it didn’t stop Nagayo but it was a sound strategy that just didn’t work out. Hard to really recommend a match so clipped but it was a smart match between two legends in the business so you can’t go too wrong.  Mildly Recommended

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Championships Held: WEW 6-Man Tag Team Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• August 25th, 1999 vs. Emi Motokawa
• October 9th, 1999 vs. Meiko Satomura
• September 17th, 2000 with Jado and Gedo vs. Kodo Fuyuki, Mr. Gannosuke, and Shinjuku Shark
• November 12th, 2000 with Jado and Gedo vs. Brad Elliot, Damian Blade, and Pat Tanaka
• October 23rd, 2002 vs. Shark Tsuchiya

Signature Moves:

• Diamond Dust
• Exploder
• Moonsault

In Action:

Coming Soon 

Back to Retired Wrestlers

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