Event: Hikaru Shida Produce “10th Anniversary ~ REvenge”
Date: October 9th, 2018
Location: Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 550

From time to time I review something that is special and difficult to find, and this is one of those times. Last fall, Hikaru Shida produced her own event which took place at the famed Korakuen Hall. The event was released (obviously, since I am reviewing it), but only on DVD and was only sold by Hikaru Shida at live events. I’ve kept my eye out online for the last six months hoping to find it with no luck, however a friend recently went to Japan and he picked up the DVD for me. So I finally get to watch it! As with most wrestler produce events, it has a very unique line-up with unusual pairings. Here is the full card:

• Kaori Yoneyama and Koharu Hinata vs. Mio Momono and Rina Yamashita
• Buffalo, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Misaki Ohata vs. Gabai Ji-chan, Toru Owashi, and Yako Fujigasaki
• Chihiro Hashimoto vs. Maika Ozaki
• Aja Kong and TARU vs. Hagane Shinnou and Risa Sera
• Hikaru Shida vs. Naomichi Marufuji

All the Joshi wrestlers have profiles on the website, you can click on their names above to go straight to it. As this was released on DVD, all matches will be shown in full.

Kaori Yoneyama and Koharu Hinata vs. Mio Momono and Rina Yamashita

Mio and Kaori start the match, kick by Mio as they go into a fast exchange as they trade armdrags and trips before reaching a stalemate. Koharu and Rina are tagged in, Koharu asks for a knucklelock but then can’t reach Rina’s hands. Kaori comes in and puts Koharu on her shoulders, so Mio comes in also and gets on Rina’s shoulders as well to make things even. Koharu slides off Kaori’s back and they attack Rina, double Irish whip to Rina and they hit a double dropkick. Rina is put into the ropes and slapped in the chest by both of them, Koharu returns to the ring with Rina and grabs her wrist so she can walk the ropes. She walks over halfway around the ring before hitting an armdrag, tilt-a-whirl headscissors by Koharu and she goes for a slam, but Rina blocks it and hits a scoop slam of her own. Rina gives Koharu the Giant Swing, Mio comes in and ‘jumps rope’ with Koharu’s body as she swings around until she finally trips on her. Rina snapmares Koharu and puts her in a chinlock, Mio comes in and pulls on Rina’s hair to give her more torque, which Rina didn’t overly appreciate. Mio goes off the ropes before dropkicking Koharu, Rina tags in Mio and Mio throws Koharu into the corner.

Mio throws down Koharu by the hair and dropkicks her, she does it again before Rina comes over and helps her step down on Koharu’s face. Rina gets in the ring, she kicks Mio and throws her at Koharu but Koharu moves out of the way. Mio and Rina keep messing with each other as they hurt the other with Koharu taking the brunt of whatever they are doing, Mio picks up Koharu but Koharu dropkicks her and tags in Kaori. Kaori goes for a senton but Mio moves, Rina comes in but Kaori avoids their charges and throws Mio into Rina before hitting a senton/dropkick combination. Kaori drop toeholds Rina onto Koharu, running senton by Kaori and she picks up Mio so she can chop her. Mio rolls away and hits a spinning headscissors followed by a dropkick, she goes up top but Koharu runs over and grabs her from the apron. Rina comes in too and gets rid of Koharu, she helps Mio go for a senton but Kaori moves out of the way. Mio cradles Kaori and hits a footstomp, she elbows Rina to tag her in and Rina lariats Kaori in the corner. Cover by Rina, but it gets a two count.

Rina picks up Kaori but Kaori lands on her feet on the backdrop suplex attempt, Kaori goes for a crossbody but Rina catches her. Koharu dropkicks them over, Northern Lights Suplex by Kaori but it gets a two count. Kaori tags Koharu, dropkick by Koharu and she applies a hanging armbar over the top rope. She lets go after a moment and hits a diving bodypress, Kaori then hits a diving senton before Koharu goes up top and delivers a diving footstomp but Mio breaks up the cover. Koharu dropkicks Rina into the corner but Mio dropkicks her, vertical suplex by Rina to Koharu but Koharu kicks out of the cover. She goes for another one but Koharu blocks it, backslide by Koharu but Mio breaks it up. Double Irish whip to Mio but she hits a headscissors/side headlock takedown combination, double lariat by Rina and she kicks Koharu in the face. Rina goes off the ropes and nails Koharu with a lariat, and she picks up the three count! Rina Yamashita and Mio Momono win!

Humor in wrestling is pretty hard to hit with me, but Mio Momono is one of the few that does it right. Her interactions with Rina were amusing throughout, but she can also back it up with the wrestling as well which is more important. The match alternated between being funny and serious but the bulk of the humor was between teammates, not between teams so it never brought down the premise that both teams were trying to win at all times. A good way to kick off the event, its sure to be a quirky show but Mio does “quirky” right and is a pleasure to watch.  Mildly Recommended

Buffalo, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Misaki Ohata vs. Gabai Ji-chan, Toru Owashi, and Fujigasaki

They talk on the microphone for awhile to start, whatever they said must have pissed off Ohata as she mounts Yako and elbows the hell out of her. Yako returns the favor as they go back and forth, Toru separates them however and they end up doing a six wrestler chain. Gabai Ji-chan grabs Hiroyo’s butt which makes her mad so she suplexes him, curb stomp by Misaki to Yako as she is still mad about whatever she said before. Things settle down with Buffalo staying in the ring with Yako as the legal wrestlers, elbow by Buffalo and he applies a chinlock while ripping at Yako’s face. Buffalo stomps Yako and puts her in the ropes so he can stretch her some more, Irish whip by Buffalo and he hits a back elbow before covering her for two. Buffalo tags in Hiroyo, he stays in the ring and they hold Yako so that Misaki can run in and pull on her nose. Yako fights Hiroyo off with elbows but Misaki hits her from the apron, she comes in and Hiroyo picks up Misaki to assist her in kicking Yako. Buffalo jumps on Hiroyo’s back, then Misaki jumps on too before Hiroyo hits a double kneedrop onto Hiroyo. Hiroyo picks up Yako and clubs her, she goes for a powerbomb but Yako blocks it and hits a back bodydrop. Hip attack by Yako, and she makes the hot tag to Toru. Toru fights off everyone by himself, he chops Hiroyo but Hiroyo chops her back. They trade chops back and forth and then take turns trying to shoulderblock the other over until Hiroyo sends Toru to the mat.

Hiroyo tags in Buffalo while Gabai Ji-chan is also tagged in, Gabai Ji-chan hits Buffalo with his cane but Buffalo hits a vertical suplex. Cover by Buffalo, but it gets two. Misaki and Hiroyo come in and hit running strikes on Gabai Ji-chan in the corner, Buffalo goes to do one but Gabai Ji-chan collapses before he can hit a move. Toru and Yako come in and double team Buffalo, Gabai Ji-chan goes for a powerbomb but is too weak to pick up Buffalo. Buffalo tags Misaki, Misaki goes up top and hits a missile dropkick onto Gabai Ji-chan. She goes for a suplex but Gabai Ji-chan grabs the ropes with his cane to prevent himself from going over. Gabai Ji-chan trips Misaki and hits her in the butt with the cane, Toru jumps in with Yako but Buffalo and Misaki also come in. Yako hits a super oil check (with a mini drill of some sort) on both of them, Misaki drops Yako with a Stunner and gets the oil drill but Toru puts on a mask of Makoto Oishi (Misaki’s husband) and jumps in the way of Gabai Ji-chan. Misaki gives him an oil check anyway, she does the same to Gabai Ji-chan but Gabai Ji-chan drops his cane in the process and runs off the ropes, hitting a dropkick. He grabs the hand drill and gives Misaki an oil check, but Misaki blocks it and hits a standing crucifix bomb for the three count!  Buffalo, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Misaki Ohata win.

While the last match was the type of comedy I can handle, this one landed with me far less. It was 75% comedy and some of it got a chuckle out of me, but most of it just seemed overly silly and I’d have rather seen Hiroyo Matsumoto and Misaki Ohata do something more serious. Maybe a few laughs if this is your type of thing, but pretty skippable fare for me.

Chihiro Hashimoto vs. Maika Ozaki

They lockup to start but break cleanly, takedown by Chihiro and she applies an ankle lock. She switches to a side headlock, Maika Irish whips out of it and the two collide with neither going down. They take turns trying to shoulderblock each other over until Chihiro succeeds, she picks up Maika and puts her in a Fujiwara Armbar. She changes the hold to an armbreaker but Maika inches to the ropes and makes it to force the break. Chihiro applies an armlock and tosses Maika to the mat, cover by Chihiro but it gets a two count. Wristlock by Chihiro and she goes back to the armbar but Maika reaches the ropes. Chihiro throws Maika to the corner and hits a body avalanche, scoop slam by Chihiro and she hits a somersault senton. Another senton by Chihiro, and she covers Maika for two. Maika tries to get Chihiro on her shoulders but Chihiro blocks it and applies a Cobra Twist, but Maika gets out of it and hits a fireman’s carry slam.

Elbow drops by Maika and she hits a senton, picking up a two count. Maika picks up Chihiro and both wrestlers go for lariats, but both stay on their feet. They trade lariat attempts until Chihiro knocks down Maika, she goes off the ropes but Maika fires up with a lariat of her own for a two count. Maika gets Chihiro on her shoulders and applies an Argentine Backbreaker, she spins Chihiro to the mat and covers her for two. Maika goes up to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton, but Chihiro kicks out of the pin. Maika goes all the way up but Chihiro avoids the diving senton, spear by Chihiro and she covers Maika for a two count. Chihiro picks up Maika and they trade elbows, big release German by Chihiro and she positions Maika in front of the corner. Diving somersault senton by Chihiro, but Maika barely kicks out of the pin. Chihiro picks up Maika and hits the waterwheel drop, cover by Chihiro and she gets the three count! Chihiro Hashimoto wins!

A basic but fundamentally sound match. This was an odd one for this show, as neither have a real connection with Hikaru Shida or each other so I am not sure how it came about. Even though Chihiro was clearly winning, she did give Maika a few spots before putting her away. The German suplex was beautiful and painful, easily the highlight of the match. There was nothing wrong with this at all, they worked together well and everything was smooth, it just felt a bit like an exhibition for the bulk of it before business picked up in the last two minutes. Perfectly watchable but nothing memorable.

Aja Kong and TARU vs. Hagane Shinnou and Risa Sera

Things immediately break down with Hagane and Risa in control, they have a ladder and they hit TARU with it. Risa puts the ladder on TARU and hits a running kneedrop, Risa grabs TARU’s leg and puts him in the ropes while Hagane gets a giant sword, but TARU avoids the sword strike. Hagane drops the sword and gets in the ring, but Kong trips him the floor and throws Hagane into chairs at ringside. TARU goes outside the ring with Risa and stabs her in the head with I think some scissors, while Kong hits Hagane with a chair. Risa is naturally bleeding as TARU stabs her with what I have now decided is a carving fork, meanwhile Kong takes Hagane into the crowd and slams him into a wall. TARU and Risa have returned to the ring as TARU beats her with a stick before choking her with it. They exit the ring again and battle up into the crowd, Hagane finally gets the better of Kong and hits her with a chair. TARU and Risa are up by the balcony now as Mio Momono tries to shield the crowd from a rumbling TARU, as we go back to ringside where Kong is beating up Hagane. Risa and TARU return to the ring, he gets a kendo stick with barbed wire wrapped around it and pushes it into Risa’s head, Risa gets back to her feet and elbows TARU but TARU snapmares her and digs at her wounds.

Hagane come in the ring but so does Kong and she hits him with a paint can. She hits Risa with it too for good measure, Kong and TARU start to argue on who should beat up Risa with TARU finally picking her up. Risa fires up and elbows both of them but she eats a double vertical suplex for her trouble, Kong grabs Risa and bites her on the forehead. Kong hits Risa with the paint can again, cover by Kong but Risa kicks out. Risa elbows Kong but Kong absorbs the blows and smacks Risa back to the mat. Hagane comes in the ring but Kong rakes him in the eyes, she tags in TARU (guess we are doing tags now) and TARU strikes Risa in the corner. TARU chokes Risa with some wrist tape while Kong knocks Hagane off the apron for no reason, TARU goes for a suplex but Risa lands on her feet and schoolboys TARU for two. She gets the barbed wire kendo stick and hits TARU with it before tagging in Hagane, Hagane cleans house and hits a swandive dropkick onto TARU. He gets the giant sword and uses it to drive TARU into the corner. He launches off the sword and kicks TARU in the head, Hagane puts TARU on the mat and stacks a few chairs on top of him. He put the giant sword in the corner so he can stand on it up top, but Kong grabs him from the apron before he can jump off. TARU joins Hagane and hits a superplex onto the chairs, he picks up Hagane and hits a chokebomb for a two count. TARU tags in Kong, Kong picks up Hagane and drops him with a backdrop suplex for a two count.

She picks up Hagane again and hits a brainbuster, but Hagane gets a shoulder up. Kong calls for the Uraken but Hagane ducks it and hits a lariat, Kong doesn’t go down as they trade lariat attempts until Hagane finally sends Kong to the mat. This gives him time to tag in Risa, Risa throws Kong into the corner and hits a running elbow strike. She chucks a chair at Kong and then hits a running double knee into it, Risa puts a chair on Kong’s chest and hits a reverse kneedrop for two. She gets the ladder and props it in the corner, she gets a surfboard out and gets on the ladder with it, riding the surfboard down the ladder and hitting a splash of sorts. Risa picks up Kong but Kong slaps her, Kong grabs the surfboard and cracks Risa in the head with it. TARU returns and lariats Risa in the corner, Kong follows with her own lariat and gets her paint can, but Risa ducks and she accidentally hits TARU. Risa puts a few chairs on the mat while Hagane sets up a table at ringside, Risa suplexes Kong onto the chairs and covers her for two. TARU is put on the table while Risa sets up the ladder in the ring, Hagane gets on the top turnbuckle and dives out of the ring with a splash through the table to TARU while Risa jumps off the ladder with a double kneedrop to Kong. Cover by Risa, but Kong kicks out. Risa grabs Kong but Kong snaps off a brainbuster, but before she can cover Risa the bell rings as time expires. The match is a Draw.

This was an experience. First of all, I don’t love the Draw here. Its useful and necessary sometimes but this was a non-televised produce show, no real reason that someone couldn’t have been pinned as no one needed protecting. Anyway, this was one of those chaotic hardcore matches where you aren’t sure if they really had a plan going into it as the violence was prevalent but random. Neither team really worked together much, as predicted, and the match mostly focused on Aja Kong and TARU beating people up. Some of the spots worked and some didn’t, but I will say it was rather captivating and Risa Sera is great. Certainly not a traditional match, but worth a watch as long as you go in with the right expectations.  Mildly Recommended

Hikaru Shida vs. Naomichi Marufuji

Tie-up to start, Marufuji pushes Shida into the ropes and gives a clean break, but Shida chops him in the chest. Marufuji gets Shida in the corner and chops her hard in the chest, Shida gets back up and fires off a few elbows while avoiding Marufuji as he goes for knee strikes. Headlock by Marufuji, Shida eventually gets out of it but Marufuji shoulderblocks her down. Kip-up by Shida and she hits a hurricanrana followed by a knee while Marufuji is against the ropes. Shida drags Marufuji’s head over the apron, she goes out to the floor and delivers a kneelift. Shida throws Marufuji into the ring post, she set up a chair at ringside and jumps off of it to hit a jumping knee to Marufuji. Shida slides Marufuji back in, she goes for a vertical suplex but Marufuji blocks it and chops her in the chest. More chops by Marufuji, he kicks Shida in the head before covering her for two. Marufuji dumps Shida out of the ring and goes out after her, hard chops by Marufuji around the ring and he goes back in to wait for Shida. Shida rolls in too, Irish whip by Marufuji but Shida hits a step-up enzuigiri.

She goes off the ropes but Marufuji boots her in the face, chinlock by Marufuji but Shida gets a foot on the ropes. Shida fights back with elbows but Marufuji knocks her down with a lariat, he puts Shida in the corner and chops her in the chest some more. Jumping elbow by Marufuji but Shida blocks the suplex attempt and hits a vertical suplex of her own. Shida charges Marufuji but Marufuji moves, Shida tosses Marufuji out to the apron and hits a kneelift. Marufuji falls out of the ring, Shida goes to the top turnbuckle and dives out with a crossbody. Shida rolls Marufuji back in, she goes to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick. She goes up again and hits another missile dropkick before hitting a third, she climbs the turnbuckles one last time and hits a final missile dropkick for a two count cover. Shida goes for the Falcon Arrow but Marufuji blocks it, chop by Marufuji but Shida slaps him and hits a high knee. Falcon Arrow by Shida, but Marufuji kicks out of the pin. Shida goes off the ropes but Marufuji blocks the knee, strike combination by Marufuji and Shida falls hard to the mat.

The referee starts a count but Shida returns to her feet, knee by Marufuji and he goes up top but Shida recovers and joins him. Marufuji headbutts Shida back down but Shida joins him again, superplex by Shida and she covers Marufuji for two. Marufuji chops Shida but Shida fires back with elbows as they trade blows, Marufuji goes off the ropes but Shida nails him with a jumping knee for two. Three Count by Shida, but again Marufuji kicks out. Shida picks up Marufuji and hits more knees, she goes off the ropes and hits the Tamashii no Three Count but Marufuji barely gets a shoulder up. Shida goes up top and his a Diving Somato, but the pin gets another two. She goes off the ropes but Marufuji kicks her back, jumping knee by Marufuji and he covers Shida for a two count. Another knee by Marufuji, he gets Shida to her knees and knees her in the back of the head. Marufuji waits for Shida to get up and plants her with the Ko-oh, cover by Marufuji and he gets the three count! Naomichi Marufuji is the winner.

Matches like this are going to get a wide range of reactions. Due to Marufuji’s status in wrestling (he has had competitive matches against the likes of Misawa, Kobashi, Akiyama, Okada, Tanahashi, etc.), he was going to be the dominating wrestler in the match one way or the other. So a fair chunk of the match was Marufuji in control, turning Shida’s chest into hamburger and shrugging off Shida’s attempts to fight back. Its not a different dynamic than we saw earlier with Risa Sera and Aja Kong, but since they are different genders it will make some people squirm anyway. But that doesn’t mean it was just an extended squash as it clearly was not, Shida got in a fair amount of offense and several nearfalls, it was just a constant battle for her to get one over on Marufuji. Shida played a very sympathetic wrestler here, trying to win against someone who humiliated her a year ago at her own produced show, and the crowd was behind her attempts to right that wrong. A hard hitting affair but nothing that crossed the line to feeling inappropriate or excessive, overall an entertaining match even if the end result was never in question.  Recommended

The post Hikaru Shida “10th Anniversary ~ REvenge” on 10/9/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

  

• Championships and Tournaments Won: This includes any championship won during 2018, or any championship that was held when 2018 began. The prestige of the championship or tournament will be taken into account.
• Match Quality: The most subjective criteria, extra consideration is given to wrestlers that had high quality matches throughout the year, especially if it was with a variety of opponents.
• Wrestler Popularity: Being able to connect with the crowd is important in wrestling, wrestlers that have success interacting with the crowd and getting reactions will get credit for that.
• Wrestler Status in a Promotion: Generally speaking, the Ace of one promotion will be ahead of the #3 wrestler in another promotion, since wrestling on top means bigger matches, longer matches, and more opportunities. There isn’t a direct correlation, but leading a promotion or being the ‘face’ of a promotion can help a wrestler’s rank as it increases the wrestler’s visibility and importance.
• Match Frequency/Availability: How often a wrestler wrestled is taken into consideration. A wrestler with 100 matches is more likely to be on the list than a wrestler with 10 matches. Also, it is harder to ‘rate’ a wrestler if their matches rarely were distributed via TV or an online streaming service, so visibility is a factor.

One criteria I am not using, because I disagree with it, is ‘drawing power.’ In the current wrestling landscape there are very few wrestlers that by themselves are draws (I could probably count them on one hand), usually it is more the benefit of a good storyline or a hot region that impacts the size of the crowd. While the larger Joshi promotions may have more wrestlers on the list due to the other criteria (visibility being a major one), the size of the crowds will not be taken in consideration. Also, it should be noted that this ranking is based on a wrestler’s matches/participation in Japan.

1. Momo Watanabe (Stardom)

Championships Held: Wonder of Stardom Championship and the Goddesses of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Io Shirai on 5/23, vs. Jungle Kyona on 6/26, vs. Kagetsu on 9/30, vs. Mayu Iwatani on 10/30, with Utami vs. Kyona and Tora on 11/23
Best Match: vs. Io Shirai on 5/23 in Stardom

2018 was a unique year, as there wasn’t a clear-cut #1 wrestler as we have sometimes seen in the past. Deciding on the top wrestler wasn’t easy, but I went with Momo Watanabe for a number of reasons. She had a fistful of matches in the ****+ range, with her matches against Jungle Kyona and Io Shirai topping the list. She excelled in both singles and tag competition, winning major titles in both divisions and winning a tournament as both a singles and tag wrestler as well (Cinderella and Goddess of Stardom Tag League, respectively). At only 18 years old (she started the year only 17) she is poised to be the Ace of Stardom for years to come, as long as she can fend off her tag team partner Utami Hayashishita.

2. Misaki Ohata (Pro Wrestling WAVE)

Championships Held: Regina Di WAVE Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Yumi Ohka on 1/20, vs. Arisa Nakajima on 2/12, vs. Rina Yamashita on 6/3, with Mizunami vs. BORDERLESS on 11/1, vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto on 12/9, vs. Ryo Mizunami on 12/29
Best Match: vs. Arisa Nakajima on 2/12 in Pro Wrestling WAVE

The “retirement” bump in rankings strikes again as it tends to, and while Misaki’s retirement did contribute to her great year it was not the only factor. From a title standpoint, Misaki held the top title in WAVE for about half of the year, with wins over Arisa Nakajima and Rina Yamashita along the way. Even though she did not hold any tag titles, she continued to team with Ryo Mizunami and took their entertaining act to many different promotions as a farewell tour, including Diana, Ice Ribbon, Michinoku Pro, YMZ, DDT, and SEAdLINNNG. In regards to just pure match quality, it can be argued that no wrestler surpassed Ohata as she had multiple ****+ matches, including against Arisa Nakajima (twice), Yumi Ohka, and Takumi Iroha. From an emotional and output standpoint, Ohata had a hell of a run for her last year as a professional wrestler.

3. Tsukasa Fujimoto (Ice Ribbon)

Championships Held: Ice Ribbon ICExInfinity Championship and the Ice Ribbon Triangle Ribbon Championship
Biggest Matches: with Nakajima vs. Yamashita and Yoshiko on 5/16, vs. Hamuko Hoshi on 6/16, vs. Maya Yukihi on 8/26, vs. Risa Sera on 12/2, vs. Misaki Ohata on 12/9, vs. Yukihi on 12/31
Best Match: vs. Maya Yukihi on 8/26 in Ice Ribbon

Tsukasa Fujimoto won the Tokyo Sports Award for top women’s wrestler, and well deserved. Tsukasa’s year started a bit slow but once it got into swing in the summer, she was one of the best in Japan for the rest of the way. Tsukasa had two great matches with Maya Yukihi during the year, in August and in December, and she showed her versatility as she also wrestled in a Blast Queen (exploding bat) match as well. She teamed with her best friend Arisa Nakajima off and on all year, and even though they didn’t win any titles, their match quality was still top notch and they did reach the finals of the SEAdLINNNG tournament to crown their first tag champions. Overall, from her controlling Ice Ribbon for half the year to putting on a variety of entertaining matches, it was a banner year for the 35 year old veteran.

4. Kagetsu (Stardom)

Championships Held: World of Stardom Championship and the Goddesses of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches: with Natsu Sumire vs. Nakano and Shirai on 4/1, vs. Toni Storm on 6/9, with Hazuki vs. Io Shirai and Mayu Iwatani on 6/17, vs. Mayu Iwatani on 8/12, vs. Hana Kimura on 10/23
Best Match: with Hazuki vs. DASH Chisako and Chihiro Hashimoto on 11/16 in Sendai Girls’

What a year for the Oedo Tai leader. As Stardom’s roster continued to change, Kagetsu took full advantage as she won her first singles championship in the promotion when she defeated Toni Storm for the World of Stardom Championship. She also stood atop the tag division for half of the year, and had a memorable feud with former member Hana Kimura for the last few months of 2018. Kagetsu also took part in one of the most unique matches in Stardom history, a Current Blast Exploding Death Match. Kagetsu was frequently overshadowed by Momo Watanabe as she did not have much success on the tournament scene, but overall she was one of the most consistent wrestlers and focuses of the promotion and looks to continue that in 2019 as she still holds the World of Stardom Championship.

5. Miyu Yamashita (Tokyo Joshi Pro)

Championships Held: TOKYO Princess of Princess Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Reika Saiki on 1/4, with Maki Itoh and Mizuki vs. Azusa Christie, Sakisama, and Yoshiko-sama, vs. Rika Tatsumi on 5/3, vs. Yuu on 8/25
Best Match: vs. Rika Tatsumi in Tokyo Joshi Pro

The undisputed Ace of Tokyo Joshi Pro, Miyu Yamashita dominated singles action in the promotion in 2018. Miyu won the Princess of Princess Championship at the start of the year and ended the year with it as well, with a total of six successful defenses. Miyu had less luck in tournaments (losing in the second round of the Tokyo Princess Cup) and tag division (one unsuccessful attempt to win the tag champion) which hurt her year a bit, but her year-long run with the top title of the promotion can’t be ignored. She also had several matches highly regarded, with her singles matches against Rika and Yuu in particularly getting high marks. As Miyu entered 2019 still the champion, she will look to build on her successes in a new year.

6. Yoshiko (SEAdLINNNG)

Championships Held: SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Championship, OZ Academy Tag Team Championship, Blast Queen Championship, and the OZ Academy Openweight Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Mayumi Ozaki on 3/17, vs. Hikaru Shida on 6/3, with Yamashita vs. Takahashi and Fujimoto on 7/25, with Yamashita vs. Yukihi and Ozaki on 9/17, with Yamashita vs. Matsumoto and Yoneyama on 12/2
Best Match: vs. Hikaru Shida on 6/3 in OZ Academy

Yoshiko continued her return to relevance after a great 2017 with an even better 2018, as she was a force to be reckoned with in several promotions. In her home promotion of SEAdLINNNG, she became the first holder of the Beyond the Sea Tag Team Championship (along with partner Rina Yamashita) as they held the titles for 141 days before losing them late in the year. She also held the OZ Academy tag titles with Rina as well, as the two were one of the top tag teams in Japan. In singles action, she held the Oz Academy Openweight Championship for the first half of the year before losing it to Hikaru Shida, and was also the Blast Queen Champion for six months. Overall, Yoshiko had 13 title matches in 2018 as she stayed very active. Yoshiko dipped her toe in DDT as well, as she was one of the most-traveled women in Japan with appearances in seven different Japanese promotions.

7. Chihiro Hashimoto (Sendai Girls’)

Championships Held: Sendai Girls’ World Championship and the Sendai Girls’ Tag Team Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Ayako Hamada on 4/19, vs. DASH Chisako on 6/24, with Iwata vs. Miyagi and Katrina, with Chisako vs. Kagetsu and Hazuki on 11/16, vs. Meiko Satomura on 11/17
Best Match: with Chisako vs. Kagetsu and Hazuki on 11/16 in Sendai Girls’

Chihiro Hashimoto cemented her place as Ace of Sendai Girls’ on 2018, as she made her mark in both the singles and tag team division. She held the Sendai Girls’ World Championship for 10 of the 12 months of the year, and also won the tag team championship with Mika Iwata in September which they held through the end of the year. The only thing holding Chihiro back is a variety of challengers, as since Sendai Girls’ has a smaller roster she is running out of new wrestlers to beat. Sendai Girls’ online streaming service being a flop in 2018 didn’t help, as she had less matches that “made TV” in 2018 than most of the wrestlers around her on this list. Still, Chihiro continued to improve in the ring and put on some quality hoss matches during the year, hopefully she’ll get more of a chance to show her skills to a wider audience in 2019.

8. Hikaru Shida (Freelancer)

Championships Held: OZ Academy Openweight Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Rina Yamashita on 3/17, vs. Yoshiko on 6/3, vs. Aja Kong on 9/17, vs. Risa Sera on 12/31
Best Match: vs. Aja Kong on 9/17 in OZ Academy

The top Freelancer on the list, Hikaru Shida seemed to be everywhere in 2018. Freelancers are known for having very up and down years, disappearing from this list at a whim, as their successes are so reliant on promotions they are not affiliated with giving them an opportunity. OZ Academy was Shida’s main home for the year, where she won the OZ Academy Openweight Championship against Yoshiko. She also had what is considered by many the top Joshi match of 2018 in OZ Academy against Aja Kong on September 17th in a defense of the title. Beyond OZ Academy, she also had high end matches in Ice Ribbon (including a hardcore match) and Sendai Girls’. Between her great matches and success in OZ Academy, Shida is easily one of the top ten wrestlers of the year.

9. Rina Yamashita (Pro Wrestling WAVE)

Championships Held: OZ Academy Tag Team Championship and the SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Tag Team Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Misaki Ohata on 6/3, with Yoshiko vs. Takahashi and Fujimoto on 7/25, with Yoshiko vs. Yukihi and Ozaki on 9/17, vs. Arisa Nakajima on 10/3
Best Match: vs. Misaki Ohata on 6/3 in Pro Wrestling WAVE

2018 was an interesting year for Rina Yamashita. She had no singles titles and only had one challenge, however she (along with Yoshiko) had a lot of success in the tag division. Yamashita held tag titles in two different promotions and had a number of memorable matches in the process, including a great match against Avid Rival. Even though she didn’t win a championship as a singles wrestler, she had great singles matches against Arisa Nakajima and Misaki Ohata and also won the Catch the WAVE Tournament. Yamashita goes into 2019 becoming a Freelancer with no belts, so she’ll have an upward battle to maintain a Top 10 ranking.

10. Mayu Iwatani (Stardom)

Championships Held: Goddesses of Stardom Championship and the Artist of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches: vs. Toni Storm on 4/1, with Kashima vs. Oedo Tai on 6/3, vs. Kagetsu on 8/12, vs. Utami Hayashishita on 9/24, with Kashima and Nakano vs. JAN on 9/30, vs. Momo Watanabe on 10/23
Best Match: vs. Utami Hayashishita on 9/24 in Stardom

Even though Mayu Iwatani has been officially skipped over to becoming the Ace of Stardom, she still had a really solid year. She held both the tag titles and trio titles in Stardom, and most importantly she also won the 5STAR Grand Prix. The Finals of the tournament is considered by some as one of the top Joshi matches of the year, as she defeated rookie phenom Utami Hayashishita. Her feud with Oedo Tai and Kagetsu continued and kept her in the spotlight, however she did go 0-3 in singles title matches. Mayu will always be a fan favorite and will continue to put on great matches, but she may be eternally in the upper mid-card role going forward.

12. Arisa Nakajima (SEAdLINNNG) – Nakajima only held one title in 2018, and she didn’t win it until December, but in regards to match quality she was among the best. She had really well regarded singles matches throughout the year against a variety of opponents, including against Misaki Ohata, Rina Yamashita, Mio Momono, Command Bolshoi, and Nanae Takahashi. She also continued wrestling with Tsukasa Fujimoto as Best Friends, one of the most talented tag teams in the world. While Nakajima doesn’t seem to be overly concerned with winning titles, as she ended the year with one hopefully that success will continue.

13. Maya Yukihi (Ice Ribbon) – Maya Yukihi slowly is making her case to become the true Ace of Ice Ribbon. Yukihi has two personalities – in Ice Ribbon she is the fan favorite while in OZ Academy she is part of the evil Ozaki Army and wields a whip. She has success as both versions of herself which is a big plus, and even though she isn’t regularly putting on high end matches she makes a point to shine at least a few times a year. Yukihi won the ICExInfinity Championship on the last day of 2018, as she goes into 2019 the top wrestler in the promotion.

14. ASUKA (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – ASUKA made history in 2018, becoming the first openly transgender wrestler to win the top title in a Joshi promotion. She won the Regina Di WAVE Championship from Takumi Iroha in June and held it until December, with two successful defenses between. She also teamed with Hana Kimura in WRESTLE-1, and overall participated in 10 different Japanese promotions over the course of the year. ASUKA became a Freelancer in 2019, opening up her options and she will have plenty of opportunities to grow in new environments as her career continues to move forward.

15. Takumi Iroha (Marvelous) – My personal bias may be coming through a bit, but I really love Takumi Iroha’s wrestling style as she always feels fresh in whatever promotion she is participating in. She did hold two Joshi titles during the year, including the top singles championship in Pro Wrestling WAVE. She was also the top wrestler in her home promotion of Marvelous, which thanks to their streaming service is an easy promotion to watch. I’m not sure what Iroha’s ceiling is with her current situation, but since Chigusa Nagayo has a good relationship with most promotions I am sure we will be seeing much more of her next year.

17. Risa Sera (Ice Ribbon) – Risa Sera fell from her throne of Ice Ribbon Ace, but what really set her apart in 2018 was her willingness and ability to go outside the box. Whether it be in a death match or a hardcore match, Risa Sera always kept things interesting and put on matches that you were going to remember. She had some title success as well as part of Azure Revolution with Maya Yukihi and ended the year as the Blast Queen, but the main factor that got her on this list was that she brings something different to the table. She may never become the consistent Ace of Ice Ribbon but she will always put on a entertaining show.

18. Meiko Satomura (Sendai Girls’) – Aside from a brief run as the DDT KO-D Openweight Champion, Meiko Satomura was mostly quiet in Japan in 2018 as she took her talents outside of the country for a good percentage of the year. She still was on Sendai Girls’ events as well, but she mostly took a back seat to Chihiro Hashimoto and Mika Iwata. Satomura is still one of the top wrestlers in Japan skill-wise, however with her limited number of televised singles matches in Japan (six) she didn’t have as much of a chance to shine. Satomura will continue to be one of the best wrestlers in Joshi for years to come, but at 39 years old her time as the top wrestler in a promotion are likely over.

19. Utami Hayashishita (Stardom) – I will get some flack for putting a rookie with four months experience on this list, but I can handle it. Utami took the Joshi world by storm after her debut on August 12th, and just a month into her career had one of the best matches of the year against Mayu Iwatani. She didn’t miss a beat after the loss as she joined up with Momo Watanabe to win the Goddesses of Stardom League and then the belts themselves in November. Joshi hasn’t seen a wrestler like Utami in a long time, and at just 20 years old her potential is limitless. Barring an injury, I fully expect Utami to be in the Top 5 next year.

20. Maki Itoh (Tokyo Joshi Pro) – Maki Itoh is still developing in-ring and isn’t known for her technical abilities, but it is hard to deny the impact that she has had on fans just with her personality and charisma. She did win the DDT Iron Man Heavy Metal Championship so she wasn’t title-less for the year, however she made a couple attempts at the Tokyo Princess Tag Team Championship with no success. Still, it is her presence that draws people to her, and if she can improve her wrestling skills (and doesn’t retire) she may move up this ranking next year.

The post Top 20 Joshi Wrestlers of 2018 appeared first on Joshi City.

Sometimes, Pro Wrestling WAVE is really on top of uploading events to the WAVE Network, and the last few months they seem to have really put a focus on making the service worth the money. They have already added several events from the last two months, but we are going to skip ahead to the most recent event as it has a handful of matches I really want to see. I will only be reviewing the Joshi matches, here is the line-up:

• Hiroe Nagahama and Miyuki Takase vs. Mikoto Shindo and Tsukushi
• Himeka Arita vs. Nagisa Nozaki
• Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha vs. Sakura Hirota and Yuki Miyazaki
• 20 Minute Iron Woman Match: ASUKA vs. Hikaru Shida
• WAVE Tag Team Championship: Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka vs. Misaki Ohata and Ryo Mizunami

Since this aired on the WAVE Network there shouldn’t be any clipping. As always, all the wrestlers have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it.

Hiroe Nagahama and Miyuki Takase vs. Mikoto Shindo and Tsukushi

Hiroe and Mikoto start the match, Hiroe pushes Mikoto into the ropes but Mikoto fires back with elbows. Hiroe avoids the dropkick and hits a few of her own, vertical suplex by Hiroe and she covers Mikoto for two. Hiroe tags Miyuki, stomps by Miyuki but Mikoto dropkicks her from behind and tags Tsukushi. Tsukushi bites Miyuki and throws her down by the hair, Irish whip by Tsukushi but Miyuki delivers a dropkick. Hiroe comes in to help as Tsukushi is double teamed in the corner, cover by Miyuki but Tsukushi kicks out. Miyuki applies a bodyscissors and rolls Tsukushi around the ring before ending in a cradle, Miyuki goes to pick up Tsukushi but Tsukushi kicks her and hits a spinning headscissors. Dropkick by Tsukushi in the corner and she hits a drop toehold as Mikoto comes in. Mikoto and Tsukushi take turns running onto Miyuki, Tsukushi sets up Miyuki in the ropes and pulls back on her nose. Tsukushi goes off the ropes and dropkicks Miyuki in the back, cover by Tsukushi but it gets two. Tsukushi tags Mikoto, dropkicks by Mikoto and she covers Miyuki for a two count. Mikoto goes for a scoop slam but Miyuki blocks it and hits one of her own, Mikoto quickly gets back up and elbows Miyuki but again her scoop slam attempt is reversed. Mikoto finally connects with the scoop slam, but Miyuki kicks out of her cover attempts. Mikoto goes for a dropkick but Miyuki blocks it and hits a scoop slam, leg drop by Miyuki and she gets on the second turnbuckle to hit a diving forearm smash. Miyuki tags Hiroe, dropkick by Hiroe and she hits a vertical suplex. Crab hold by Hiroe but Tsukushi breaks it up, Hiroe goes up top but Tsukushi smacks her from the apron.

This gives Mikoto time to recover as she tosses Hiroe back to the mat, dropkicks by Mikoto and she hits a scoop slam. Mikoto goes off the ropes  and applies a backslide, but that gets a two as well. Hiroe goes for a lariat but Mikoto cradles her, Mikoto goes off the ropes and dropkicks Hiroe before tagging in Tsukushi. Tsukushi goes up top and hits a diving bodypress onto Hiroe, she goes for a second one but Hiroe joins her. Tsukushi gets on Hiroe’s back and applies a stretch hold while they are on the turnbuckles, Tsukushi then goes for a powerbomb but Hiroe blocks it until Mikoto hits Hiroe from the apron. Hiroe still prevents Tsukushi from taking her over, vertical suplex by Hiroe but Tsukushi fires back with an elbow and they trade shots. Spear by Hiroe, but Tsukushi barely gets a shoulder up on the cover. Miyuki comes in and slams Tsukushi in front of the corner, diving leg drop by Miyuki and Hiroe follows with the Northern Lights Suplex, but Mikoto breaks it up. Hiroe goes off the ropes but Mikoto catches her with a dropkick, Tsukushi follows with a dropkick of her own and delivers a missile dropkick for two. Mikoto comes in again but Hiroe spears both of them, Hiroe goes for a backdrop suplex but Tsukushi rolls her up for two. A hurricanrana by Tsukushi is reversed as Hiroe and Tsukushi trade flash pins, Tsukushi throws in some footstomps between covers but she only gets a two each time. Denden Mushi by Tsukushi, and she picks up the three count! Mikoto Shindo and Tsukushi are the winners!

This was a pretty simply laid out match but easy enough to watch. Mikoto just debuted a couple months ago so her offense is really basic, and since the match was built around her everyone else followed suit. Tsukushi threw in some fun tricks, she’s really unique and a pleasure to watch, but other than a few of her spots there wasn’t a whole lot to it. Perfectly fine for an opener but nothing overly memorable or special about it.

Himeka Arita vs. Nagisa Nozaki

The taller Himeka asks for a Test of Strength and Nagisa agrees, which Himeka gets the better of. Nagisa applies a headlock but Himeka Irish whips out of it and shoulderblocks Nagisa down. She goes off the ropes but Nagisa hits a drop toehold and goes for a submission, with Himeka quickly getting into the ropes. Stomps by Nagisa but Himeka hits a scoop slam, crab hold by Himeka but Nagisa gets into the ropes for the break. Himeka stomps on Nagisa’s back but Nagisa blocks the Irish whip and hits a boot. She goes for another one but Himeka moves, Nagisa lands out on the apron and she snaps Himeka’s neck on the top rope. Nagisa slaps Himeka in the chest repeatedly but Himeka blocks the suplex attempt, big boot by Nagisa in the corner and she sets up Himeka before booting her in the head again. Nagisa goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick, cover by Nagisa but it gets two. Nagisa picks up Himeka and puts her in a sleeper, but Himeka twists out of it. Nagisa kicks Himeka into the corner but Himeka avoids the boot attempt and hits a body avalanche. Shoulderblock by Himeka, she picks up Nagisa but Nagisa boots her and the two trade blows. Himeka eventually knocks down Nagisa with a shoulderblock for two, she picks her back up but Nagisa slides away and hits a series of knees. Boot by Nagisa and she hits a double underhook suplex, she goes off the ropes and hits a sliding kick for two. Nagisa knees Himeka and goes off the ropes, but Himeka swats away the boot attempt and schoolboys her for two. Running knee by Himeka, but that gets a two as well. She next tries a jumping knee, but has the same result. Himeka gets Nagisa on her shoulders but Nagisa applies a sleeper, she reverts it into a Dragon Sleeper and Himeka taps out! Nagisa Nozaki is the winner!

If you are using the “big boot” as your part of a strike exchange, I’m probably not going to take it too seriously. Anyway this match was bizarre as I was not expecting Himeka to be the dominate fighter as while she is a big bigger than Nagisa, she isn’t really enough bigger to act like its a major advantage. I get that she ‘wrestles big’ but I wasn’t expecting it to this extent. Nagisa is an average wrestler and Himeka was actually more impressive than the veteran, to say Nagisa’s offense is repetitive would be an understatement. While it is good to see Himeka progressing, this match didn’t do a whole lot for me.

Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha vs. Sakura Hirota and Yuki Miyazaki

Rin and Sakura start but Sakura immediately tags in Yuki before they both roll out of the ring. We are off to a great start. Rin and Takumi go out after them and they battle around the floor, mostly out of the camera’s view since show was shot with one hard side camera. Its manned, but they still can’t really move aside from going side to side. Sakura gets Takumi by the wrist and walks the guard rail before hitting an armdrag. More things happen we can’t really see until Yuki and Rin finally make it back to the ring, with Yuki quickly putting Rin in a Compromising Position until Takumi breaks it up. Rin elbows Yuki in the chest but Yuki swats her dropkick aside. She wants her to tag in Takumi but she won’t, scoop slam by Yuki and she throws Rin into the corner so Takumi will tag. Takumi does so, high kick by Takumi and she dropkicks Yuki. Takumi goes for a suplex but Yuki reverses it, back up Takumi punches Yuki in the head and delivers a kick combination, but Yuki ducks one and drives Takumi’s head repeatedly into her backside. She takes Takumi out of the ring as Sakura gets in it, Sakura goes for a dive but catches the second rope and bounces back into the ring. Yuki and Takumi return, kick by Takumi but Yuki delivers a sliding kick and tags in Sakura. Sakura puts Takumi into a couple submission holds while Yuki dropkicks her, she goes for the Shining Wizard but Takumi blocks it and hits a roaring elbow. Takumi goes for a suplex but Sakura lands on her feet and hits an Oil Check, she goes off the ropes but Takumi kicks her in the stomach. Sakura goes for a hurricanrana but Takumi catches her and delivers a powerbomb for a two count.

Takumi goes off the ropes but Yuki trips her from the floor and pulls Takumi out of the ring, Sakura goes for another dive but again she catches the second rope  and lands back in the ring. She tries again and has the same result, this time landing out on the floor. They battle out of our view but return after a moment, both Sakura and Yuki have green on their face so I assume they got misted along the way. Rin goes up top and hits a missile dropkick onto Sakura followed directly by a Takumi German suplex, catapult leg drop by Rin and Takumi hits a buzzsaw kick, but Sakura gets a shoulder up on the cover. Takumi picks up Sakura but Sakura cradles her for two, Irish whip by Sakura but Takumi delivers a heel kick. Jackknife cover by Rin (she silently tagged in), but it gets two. Rin dropkicks Sakura while she is against the ropes, she goes up top but Yuki pushes Sakura out of the way and eats the missile dropkick instead. Yuki and Sakura hug, Rin kicks Yuki as Takumi returns but Yuki lariats both of them. Yuki flings Sakura onto Rin and Takumi, but Rin blocks their next attempt. Takumi gets up and with Rin they superkick Yuki into the corner, she slams Sakura near the corner as well and hits a cannonball onto Yuki while Takumi nails the senton bomb off the top onto Sakura. Cover by Rin, but Yuki breaks it up. Takumi high kicks Sakura, Rin goes off the ropes but Sakura falls on top of her for two. Yuki picks up Rin and kisses her, she then throws both her opponents in different corners and with Sakura takes turns delivering running kisses. Don’t ask, I don’t know. Sakura and Yuki then both hit such vicious Oil Checks that Takumi and Rin spray red mist, Shining Wizard by Sakura but Rin barely kicks out. Sakura goes off the ropes but Rin spins and falls on top of her, picking up the three count! Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha win!

Even if Sakura Hirota and Yuki Miyazaki were my cup of tea (they aren’t), we still missed about 25% off the match which happened off camera so regardless its a disappointment. The few parts they really started to wrestle it was fine, and its always a pleasure to watch Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha, but between the action we couldn’t see and the tired comedy its not a match I can really recommend watching.

ASUKA vs. Hikaru Shida
20 Minute Iron Woman Match

They get into a fast paced exchange right off the bat but reach a stalemate, ASUKA gets Hikaru to the mat as they jockey for position until ASUKA applies a stretch hold. Hikaru struggles back up but ASUKA maintains a side headlock, Hikaru finally gets out of it but ASUKA stomps her when she pancakes. Armdrag by Hikaru and she charges ASUKA, but ASUKA holds down the ropes and Hikaru falls out of the ring. ASUKA goes to do a dive but flips back into the ring instead and does a little dance, Hikaru returns but ASUKA slams her to the mat. Another slam by ASUKA and a third, she goes off the ropes but Hikaru catches her with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Hikaru stomps on ASUKA near the ropes before picking her up and hitting a backbreaker, cover by Hikaru but it gets two. Hikaru picks up ASUKA but ASUKA elbows her and the two trade shots until Hikaru hits a vertical suplex. Hikaru goes off the ropes but ASUKA ducks the knee and hits a rebound crossbody off the ropes. ASUKA picks up Hikaru but Hikaru knees her, ASUKA backflips from Hikaru and delivers the Space Rolling Elbow. ASUKA jumps up to the top turnbuckle but Hikaru pushes her off, sending ASUKA crashing to the floor. Hikaru goes after her and takes her around the ring (luckily on the same side as the camera), they both get up on a table as Hikaru goes for a suplex, but ASUKA blocks it and boots Hikaru off the table to the floor. ASUKA then tosses chairs over and over down onto Hikaru (so we assume, we can see ASUKA tossing the chairs but not Hikaru’s body from our view), she eventually gets down but keeps throwing chairs at Hikaru. Hikaru recovers and goes for a suplex on the floor but ASUKA reverses it, she rolls Hikaru back into the ring and hits a superkick for a two count. ASUKA picks up Hikaru and hits a German suplex hold, but Hikaru gets a shoulder up. ASUKA goes up top but Hikaru hits her from behind and suplexes ASUKA to the mat. Hikaru grabs ASUKA but ASUKA knocks her back, ASUKA goes for a chokeslam but Hikaru blocks it and knees ASUKA in the back. Falcon Arrow by Hikaru, she goes off the ropes but ASUKA superkicks her and delivers the chokeslam for two. ASUKA goes up top but Hikaru avoids the moonsault and hits a running knee for two. They trade cradles with no result, Hikaru goes off the ropes and she nails the Tamashi no Three Count for the three count! Hikaru Shida is up 1-0 at 12:24 in the match.

The break is very brief as Hikaru goes back after ASUKA but ASUKA elbows her and the two trade shots. Hikaru goes for a suplex but ASUKA lands on her feet, Hikaru blocks the chokeslam attempt but ASUKA hits a superkick. Hikaru ducks ASUKA’s boot and bails out of the ring, ASUKA goes after her but Hikaru quickly rolls back in. Hikaru kicks ASUKA as she returns and knees her in the leg while it is in the ropes before applying the Stretch Muffler. ASUKA gets to the ropes for the break, Hikaru picks her up and hits a knee breaker to set up the Stretch Muffler again. Again ASUKA gets to the ropes (we are at about 16:30 now) so Hikaru applies a sleeper, ASUKA tosses her off and elbows Hikaru but Hikaru grabs her arm and applies a short armbar. ASUKA gets a foot on the ropes to break it, Hikaru drives ASUKA into the ropes with her knee, she picks up ASUKA but ASUKA catches her with a flying knee. ASUKA goes off the ropes and hits a springboard bodypress, she then follows that with a quebrada but again Hikaru rolls out of the ring before ASUKA can cover. ASUKA goes out to the apron and boots Hikaru while she is still on the floor, another boot by ASUKA and she goes up top before nailing a moonsault down to the floor. ASUKA rolls Hikaru back in and goes up top, hitting a missile dropkick. Cover by ASUKA, but it gets two. Hikaru gets away and hits an enzuigiri, eye poke by Hikaru and she cradles ASUKA for two. Hikaru goes off the ropes but ASUKA slides behind her and hits a snap German, superkick by ASUKA and she covers Hikaru for a two count. ASUKA boots Hikaru and quickly covers her again as time is running low, but Hikaru kicks out. ASUKA quickly goes up top and she nails the moonsault, cover by ASUKA and she gets the three count! The score is now tied 1-1 at 19:24.

ASUKA goes up top again as Hikaru hasn’t moved and goes for another moonsault, but Hikaru gets her knees up. Hikaru knees ASUKA in the face and covers her, but ASUKA gets a shoulder up. The bell rings before either wrestler can do anything else, as the time limit has expired. The match is a Draw.

This was a really entertaining match for a number of reasons. First, both ASUKA and Hikaru are talented wrestlers with solid chemistry, so the action was crisp and varied throughout the twenty minutes. I loved that they wrestled different, especially Hikaru, with the rules in place. If you are up 1-0 with five minutes left, you should be doing long submission holds and leaving the ring when you need a breather, its a simple story but a necessary one or the match stipulation doesn’t mean anything. The sense of urgency in the last few minutes from ASUKA was palpable and she conveyed well how badly she needed a pinfall in a very short amount of time. I wouldn’t mind seeing these two in a title match/longer time limit situation as I feel they have even more they could show, but this was a really good match that had the elements needed for an “Iron Woman” match. Recommended

(c) Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka vs. Misaki Ohata and Ryo Mizunami
WAVE Tag Team Championship

Yumi and Misaki kick things off, Misaki catches Yumi when she goes for a crossbody but Misaki drops her with a DDT. Dropkick by Misaki but Mio runs in to help Yumi, Yumi picks up Mio and slams her down onto Misaki. Double Irish whip to Misaki but Misaki pushes them both into the corner. Misaki elbows Yumi, Mio comes over but she dropkicks Yumi by accident. Yumi boots Misaki into the corner and lawn darts Mio at her, she tags in Mio and Mio hits repeated dropkicks. Misaki eventually avoids one and tags in Ryo, double Irish whip to Mio and Avid Rival run through a double team combination. Ryo chops Mio into the corner and hits a running elbow, she goes for a second one but Yumi runs in to cut her off. Ryo knocks Yumi back and hits the elbow anyway, cover to Mio but it gets a two count. Ryo goes for a uranage, Mio blocks it but Ryo drops her with a release German. Leg lariat by Ryo, but it gets a two count. Mio fights back but Ryo catches her with a powerslam, she tags in Misaki and Misaki delivers a low crossbody while Mio is against the ropes. Misaki goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Misaki but Mio gets a shoulder up. Misaki picks up Mio but Mio slides away, Mio quickly regains control however and hits a sliding kick. Irish whip by Misaki but Mio elbows her, they take turns stomping each other’s foot before Mio knocks over Misaki with a dropkick. Armdrag by Mio and she applies an armbar, but Ryo breaks it up. Ryo stays in but Mio outsmarts both of them, dropkicking them both and tagging in Yumi. Yumi boots Misaki in the head but Misaki comes back with an elbow and they trade shots, heel drop by Yumi and she covers Misaki for two.

Yumi picks up Misaki and goes for a DDT but Misaki reverses it into a bridging suplex for two. Backstabber by Misaki, Mio comes in and they both attack Misaki while she is against the ropes. Backdrop suplex by Yumi, but it gets two. Brainbuster by Yumi, but Ryo breaks up the cover. Yumi goes off the ropes but Ryo runs in and they hit the 3D, Ryo helps Misaki run up the ropes and flings her onto Yumi for a two count. Misaki tags Ryo and they both elbow Yumi while she is against the ropes. Ryo picks up Yumi and hits a series of elbows, lariat by Ryo and Misaki comes in to hit a standing crucifix bomb. Uranage by Ryo to Yumi, she goes off the ropes and hits a hard lariat, but Mio breaks up the cover. Ryo gets Mio on her shoulders but Mio slides off and footstomps Ryo in the stomach, Yumi helps Mio hit another footstomp followed by an assisted senton, Yumi covers Ryo but Ryo gets a shoulder up. Yumi goes for a suplex, Ryo blocks it but Yumi delivers a chokebomb instead. Mio comes back and goes for the Yoshi Tonic, but Misaki grabs her from behind and hits a German suplex. Misaki picks up Yumi and with Ryo hits a German suplex/lariat combination, Ryo goes up top and delivers the guillotine leg drop, but the cover is broken up. Ryo picks up Yumi but Yumi gets away from her and hits a big boot. Ryo fires back with a lariat, she waits for Yumi to get up and hits another lariat, but Mio breaks up the cover. Mio gets Ryo in the Yoshi Tonic while Yumi boots Misaki, big boot by Yumi to Ryo but Misaki breaks up the pin. Mio hits an assisted Asai Moonsault onto Misaki before rolling her out of the ring, Yumi picks up Ryo but Ryo drops her with a dragon suplex. Ryo goes off the ropes but Yumi boots her in the head, she goes off the ropes and delivers a final big boot for the three count! BOSS to Mammy are still the champions!

Avid Rival seem hell bent to go out with a bang, as even though they lost they still put on a great show. The best thing about both of these teams is how well they work together, with not only constantly helping each other but doing so in an incredibly smooth and believable way. At times it was chaotic but it was a good chaos as there was constant excitement from bell to bell. Yumi Ohka sometimes drags down matches for me if she is the focus due to her limited offense but she didn’t here, as Mio did most the heavy lifting and Yumi played her part very well when needed. Overall my only complaint is that it went only 14 minutes which is short for a main event, a thoroughly entertaining match between two of the best tag teams on the current Joshi scene.  Recommended

The post WAVE Weekday WAVE Vol. 119 ~Thanks 2~ on 10/22/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Pro Wrestling WAVE’s online streaming service can be hit or miss, but they have been on a roll this summer as they have been very timely with their updates. WAVE is in a rough situation right now, there is no other way to say it. They recently lost Ayako Hamada to a drug scandal, Misaki Ohata is retiring at the end of the year, Fairy Nihonbashi is leaving, and on top of all of that the promotion is temporarily closing at the end of the year to “restructure” behind the scenes before re-launching. They already have among the lowest Korakuen Hall attendance averages among all Joshi promotions (this event did a great number for them), and closing for a few months likely won’t help that. But even with all these issues going on, this is a very solid card up and down as they celebrate their anniversary with two big singles match and two title matches. Here is the full card (I am only reviewing the Joshi matches):

• Aoki Itsuki and Mikoto Shindo vs. Hiroe Nagahama and Miyuki Takase
• Cherry and Fairy Nihonbashi vs. Himeka Arita and Sakura Hirota
• Hiragi Kurumi vs. Rina Yamashita
• Misaki Ohata vs. Ryo Mizunami
• WAVE Tag Team Championship: Nagisa Nozaki and Yuki Miyazaki vs. Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka
• Regina Di WAVE Championship: Takumi Iroha vs. ASUKA

As this aired on the WAVE Network, matches will be unclipped. All wrestlers on the card have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it.

Aoki Itsuki and Mikoto Shindo vs. Hiroe Nagahama and Miyuki Takase

Mikoto and Hiroe kick things off, they lock up as Hiroe gets Mikoto in the ropes, but she gives a clean break. Mikoto quickly locks back up with her, this time Mikoto gets Hiroe in the ropes and hits a series of elbows. Back in the middle of the ring, Hiroe tosses Mikoto into the corner and throws her down by the hair. Miyuki helps (even though Hiroe doesn’t need it), snaomare by Hiroe and she puts Mikoto in a bodyscissors. She picks her up after a moment and puts Mikoto into the corner, Irish whip to Mikoto and Hiroe hits a dropkick. Miyuki follows with an assisted elbow strike, Aoki tries to help but immediately gets kicked out of the ring by Miyuki. Mikoto dropkicks Hiroe and quickly rolls her up for two, another dropkick by Mikoto and she makes the hot tag to Aoki. Shoulderblocks by Aoki, she picks up Hiroe and hits a bridging vertical suplex for two. Aoki goes off the ropes but Miyuki kicks her from the apron, she gets in the ring and with Hiroe they hit a double dropkick. More dropkicks by Hiroe, she picks up Aoki and hits a vertical suplex for two. Aoki blocks the suplex attempt but Hiroe delivers a spear before tagging in Miyuki. Miyuki picks up Aoki but Aoki blocks the slam attempt and punches Miyuki in the stomach.

Miyuki comes back with a dropkick, legdrop by Miyuki and she covers Aoki for two. Back up, they trade strikes until Aoki chops Miyuki to the mat. Aoki goes off the ropes by Miyuki hits a lariat, Miyuki gets Aoki on her shoulders and hits a rolling fireman’s carry slam, but Aoki avoids the diving legdrop. Hiroe comes in and spears Aoki, Miyuki picks up Aoki but Aoki lariats both of them. Short-arm lariats by Aoki, but Miyuki kicks out of the cover. Aoki tags Mikoto, dropkicks by Mikoto to Miyuki and she covers her for two. Scoop slam by Mikoto but Miyuki continues to kick out of Mikoto’s covers, Miyuki elbows Mikoto but Mikoto elbows her back. Mikoto elbows Miyuki into the corner but Miyuki connects with a dropkick out of the corner, she gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers a diving elbow smash for a two count. Miyuki picks up Mikoto while Hiroe gets on the top turnbuckle, but Aoki knocks Hiroe off and Mikoto cradles Miyuki for two. A schoolboy by Mikoto gets two as well, she tries a few more flash pins but none get the three count. Powerslam by Miyuki to Mikoto, she picks her up and hits a vertical suplex but Aoki breaks up the cover. Miyuki waits for Mikoto to get up and hits a lariat, cover by Miyuki and she gets the three count Your winners are Hiroe Nagahama and Miyuki Takase!

Considering the experience levels of those involved, this was a really solid opener. It wasn’t complicated but it didn’t need to be and everyone played their roles well without any awkwardness. The mid-match strike exchange was probably a tad too long and ultimately meaningless since the “loser” was immediately back on offense, but beyond that it never felt like it dragged. Mikoto is a firecracker as I assumed, and if she sticks with it/continues training under Chigusa Nagayo she could be something special down the road. A good way to start the show and get the crowd into it without trying to overshadow the action to come.

Cherry and Fairy Nihonbashi vs. Himeka Arita and Sakura Hirota

Its hard to do play by play on silly comedy matches but I will try my best. Fairy and Himeka begin but Fairy starts doing Fairy things so no action actually takes place. Himeka is not in the mood and puts Fairy in a Argentine Backbreaker, but her own teammate breaks it up as this is not proper Fairy procedure. Hard shoulderblock by Himeka but Fairy gets her wand, she tries to use it on Himeka but Himeka doesn’t budge. It finally works, Fairy dances around and she covers Himeka for two. Fairy goes to tag out but Himeka hits her from behind and scoop slams her, Sakura comes in but Himeka slams her on top of Fairy. Himeka tags Sakura as she makes it back to the corner, Irish whip by Sakura and everyone comes in to deliver running strikes on Fairy in the corner. Including her own partner. Sakura then tries but Fairy hits her in the head with her wand, they go through the whole thing again but it has the same end result for Sakura. Sakura gets Fairy’s arm and goes to walk the ropes, but Fairy gets away and tries to wand Sakura off the top turnbuckle. Sakura walks the ropes instead and almost makes it to the next turnbuckle, but falls off. With her its hard to tell when her crash and burns are planned.

Anyway Cherry is finally tagged in and they both chop Sakura in the chest, double Irish whip but it is reversed and Cherry ends up going into the ropes. She lariats both of them, including her own partner, but Cherry makes her feel better by giving Fairy her wand. She uses it on Sakura, Cherry covers Sakura with the wand but it gets a two count. Cherry chokes Sakura into the corner but Sakura is still under Fairy’s spell so she isn’t moving too well. Headstand by Sakura on the turnbuckle which sucks everyone towards her, until Fairy hits Sakura low with the wand. Face crusher by Sakura to Cherry but Cherry slams her into the mat as they go back and forth with face crushers. Sakura tags in Himeka while Fairy is also tagged in, shoulderblock by Himeka and she his a second one. Fairy goes for a wand shot but Himeka moves and hits a jumping knee, but Cherry breaks up the cover. Fairy hits Himeka in the head with the wand, Cherry then tries to hit Himeka also but she hits Fairy by accident. Sakura comes in but she ends up kissing Fairy before Cherry accidentally hits Fairy again. Fairy tries to hit Cherry with the wand but it rebounds back and she hits herself, Himeka puts Fairy in the Argentine Backbreaker and Fairy submits! Himeka Arita and Sakura Hirota are the winners.

This was exactly as advertised. Maybe a new wrinkle or two but it was basically a Sakura Hirota and Fairy Nihonbashi comedy match combined into one. If you like it, more power to you, but its old hat to me and I’m happy to move onto the next match which is much more up my alley.

Hiragi Kurumi vs. Rina Yamashita

They start off trading tie-ups with neither getting the clear advantage, they try to shoulderblock each other over until Kurumi ultimately wins the battle. Rina rolls out of the ring but Kurumi goes out after her and scoop slams Rina onto the floor. Rina gets some of the cold spray and sprays Kurumi with it, she takes Kurumi around the ring and throws her into some chairs at ringside. Rina sits Kurumi in a chair, she goes all the way up into the bleachers before charging at Kurumi, but Kurumi had plenty of time to recover and greets Rina with a lariat. Kurumi slides Rina back into the ring and hits a body avalanche in the corner, cover by Kurumi but it gets two. Crab hold by Kurumi but Rina gets to the ropes for the break, scoop slam by Kurumi and she hits a somersault senton for a two count. Kurumi tries to knock Rina over but Rina stays up, Rina goes off the ropes and she hits a hard shoulderblock. Rina picks up Kurumi and eventually hits a scoop slam, cover by Rina but it gets two. Rina picks up Kurumi and throws her into the corner, lariat by Rina and she hits a second one before kneeing Kurumi in the back of the head for a two count. Kicks by Rina, she picks up Kurumi and hits a backdrop suplex for another two.

Sleeper by Rina but Kurumi hiptosses out of it, they trade elbows until Kurumi dropkicks Rina to the mat. Cannonball by Kurumi, she gets back up but Rina manages to re-apply the sleeper. Kurumi struggles but eventually makes it to the ropes, Rina goes off the ropes and hits a kick to the head, but Kurumi ducks the lariat and delivers a release German. Rina returns to her feet but Kurumi connects with a second German, which keeps Rina on the mat. They both slowly get up and trade lariats, with Kurumi winning the battle as she knocks Rina down. Kurumi picks up Rina but Rina wiggles away, she goes for the sleeper but Kurumi quickly grabs the ropes. Rina goes off the ropes but Kurumi floors her with a lariat for a two count. Kurumi drags Rina to the corner, she goes up top but Rina recovers and joins her. Superplex by Rina, she slowly covers Kurumi but Kurumi gets a shoulder up. Rina picks up Kurumi and nails the sliding lariat, but again Kurumi kicks out. Rina charges Kurumi but Kurumi catches her with a cradle belly to belly piledriver. Kurumi picks up Rina and goes off the ropes, but Rina catches her with a lariat. Rina goes to pick up Kurumi, Kurumi hits a back bodydrop but Rina turns it into a cradle for two. Lariat by Kurumi, she picks up Rina and hits a second belly to belly piledriver, but the bell rings before she can make a cover as the time has expired. The match is a Draw!

Even though it felt like they were going for the draw with the slower portions early in the match, I still enjoyed it. I was surprised how much Kurumi was shown as an equal to Rina, even getting the better of her on several occasions, but Rina has always been good at giving her opponents a lot to make the matches more competitive. Kurumi flies under the radar a bit since Ice Ribbon isn’t as popular among Western fans but at only 18 she is already great at the “hoss” style and will continue to get better. Some unique spots and numerous ‘strength’ battles makes this one worth watching, and hopefully they will get a chance to do it again sooner than later.  Recommended

Misaki Ohata vs. Ryo Mizunami

They tie-up to start, Ohata gets Mizunami into the ropes but she gives her friend a clean break. Wristlock by Ohata but Mizunami reverses it, armdrag by Ohata and they trade positions on the mat. Mizunami works a headlock and hits a hard shoulderblock, she goes for a leg drop but Ohata moves out of the way and hits a dropkick. Mizunami stomps on Ohata’s foot but Ohata hits a jawbreaker and stomps on her foot back, she goes off the ropes but Mizunami catches Ohata with a powerslam. Mizunami chops Ohata into the corner and hits a jumping elbow smash, but Ohata dropkicks her when she messes around too much and hits an elbow in the corner. Ohata mimics Mizunami before hitting another elbow, Ohata goes up top and she hits a diving crossbody for two. Stunner by Ohata and she hits a tornado DDT, low crossbody by Ohata and she nails a sliding kick for a two count cover. German suplex hold by Ohata, but Mizunami kicks out. Back up they trade strikes until Mizunami hits an overhead belly to belly suplex, lariat by Mizunami and she hits a German suplex. Jumping leg lariat by Mizunami, but her cover gets a two count. Mizunami picks up Ohata and hits an elbow combination, Ohata fires back with slaps but Mizunami hits a lariat.

Ohata charges Mizunami but Mizunami hits a lariat, another lariat by Mizunami and she covers Ohata for two. Mizunami picks up Ohata but Ohata quickly hits the Blue Dahlia, she follows with the Fisherman Buster but Mizunami gets a shoulder up on the pin attempt. Ohata goes off the ropes but Mizunami gets Ohata onto her shoulders and slams her to the mat. They headbutt each other on their knees before trading elbows, Ohata finally chops Mizunami to the mat and she hits a hard elbow for a two count. Ohata goes for the Sky Blue Suplex but Mizunami rolls out of it, Ohata kicks Mizunami in the head and hits a second Blue Dahlia, but she again only gets two. Sky Blue Suplex Hold by Ohata, but Mizunami barely gets her shoulder up. Ohata goes for a second one but Mizunami blocks it and hits a uranage, Mizunami goes for the Hot Limit but Ohata blocks it as she goes for a series of flash pins. Ohata goes off the ropes but Mizunami hits a pair of lariats, dragon suplex hold by Mizunami but it gets two. Mizunami picks up Ohata and she nails the Hot Limit, cover by Mizunami but Ohata kicks out at one. Mizunami picks up Ohata and delivers a second one, a third Hot Limit by Mizunami and she picks up the three count! Ryo Mizunami is the winner!

This match was good but something felt a bit off. Its like they were going for that epic feel but it was just a midcard match with under 15 minutes of action so there were built-in limitations. Both were going through their finishers which I have no issue with but there wasn’t a lot of build-up to it, for Ohata to kick out of the Hot Limit and Mizunami to kick out of the Blue Sky Suplex Hold it just would have been nice for them to have a slower lead-up to that. Still, these two have great chemistry obviously so everything they did was smooth and hard hitting, and the match certainly never dragged. Hopefully this match is just a primer for a bigger match between them before Ohata retires, but still an enjoyable match.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Nagisa Nozaki and Yuki Miyazaki vs. Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka
WAVE Tag Team Championship 

Yuki and Mio begin for their teams, they lock knuckles but Mio spins away and hits a series of elbows. She goes for a crossbody but Yuki catches her and hits a slam, she goes to put Mio in an unfortunate situation but Ohka breaks it up. Ohka slams Mio on top of Yuki, Mio tags in Ohka and Ohka delivers a hip toss slam for two. Ohka picks up Yuki but Yuki hits a sliding kick and tags Nagisa. Yuki stays in and helps Nagisa for a moment double team Ohka, Nagisa chops Ohka in the corner before putting her in a sleeper. Ohka quickly gets to the ropes to break it up, Nagisa charges Ohka but Ohka moves out of the way and hits a big boot. Another boot by Ohka and she tags in Mio, Mio stomps down Nagisa in the corner but Nagisa fires back with a big boot, cover by Nagisa but Mio bridges out of it. Nagisa pulls down Mio by the hair, Mio goes for a dropkick but Nagisa swats her away and applies the sleeper. Mio drives back into the corner to break it up, Ohka comes in and she stomps on Nagisa’s foot repeatedly. Nagisa tries to boot Mio but she boots Ohka by accident, Mio then accidentally dropkicks Ohka but she recovers and boots Nagisa into the corner. Ohka launches Mio at Nagisa for a dropkick, cover by Mio but it gets two. Mio applies an ankle hold but Nagisa quickly gets to the ropes, Mio keeps the hold applied anyway until Yuki knocks her off. Dropkick by Mio, and she covers Nagisa for two. Mio goes off the ropes but Nagisa drops her with a big boot, Somato by Nagisa and she tags in Yuki.

Yuki dropkicks Mio, she picks her up but Mio slides away and dropkicks Yuki in the knee. Yuki and Mio trade flash pins, they get back up but Mio ducks Yuki’s lariat attempt and hits a spinning headscissors. Dropkick by Mio and she rolls Yuki to the mat before hitting a footstomp to the chest. Mio goes for the Yoshi Tonic but Yuki blocks it, Ohka comes in and hits a chokebomb on Yuki before she gets tagged in and drops Yuki with a cross-arm DDT. Ohka goes for a suplex but Yuki blocks it and kicks her in the head, Yuki picks up Ohka but Ohka wiggles away. Ohka knocks Nagisa off the apron and boots Yuki in the head, cover by Ohka but it gets two. Ohka goes off the ropes but Nagisa trips her and pulls her out of the ring, meanwhile on the other side Mio pulls Yuki to the floor as both teams brawl. Mio goes up top and dives out onto both opponents, they return to the ring but Sakura Hirota gets in the ring too and helps Yuki with Ohka. That quickly backfires, Ohka drops Yuki with a backdrop suplex and she covers her for a two count. Mio comes in and stands on Ohka’s shoulders for an assisted senton, cover by Ohka but Nagisa breaks it up. Mio and Ohka try to suplex Yuki but Yuki reverses it, Yuki suplexes Ohka into the turnbuckles and she goes up top, but Ohka avoids the moonsault. Samoan Driver by Yuki, but Ohka kicks out. Yuki tags Nagisa, boot by Nagisa to Ohka and she drives her into the corner. Nagisa sets up Ohka in the corner and hits a boot, another boot by Nagisa and she covers Ohka for two.

Nagisa goes for the sleeper but Ohka quickly gets out of it and they trade boots until Ohka knocks Nagisa to the mat. Ohka calls for Mio, they pick up Nagisa and Ohka hits a brainbuster while Mio distracts Yuki. Mio goes up top and hits a diving crossbody onto Yuki, Ohka then goes up but Nagisa recovers and joins her. Mio grabs Nagisa from behind but Yuki tosses her aside, Yuki then helps Nagisa superplex Ohka but Mio breaks up Nagisa’s cover. Mio goes up top but Yuki joins her and gives her a kiss, which knocks Mio to the mat. Yuki wraps up Mio near the corner but Ohka breaks it up, Nagisa rolls up Ohka from behind and puts her in a grounded dragon sleeper, but Mio breaks it up. Double Irish whip to Mio but Mio tosses both opponents down and dropkicks Nagisa in the head. Yuki kisses Mio again and goes for a wheelbarrow slam, but Mio blocks. Boot by Nagisa to Ohka, but it gets two. Nagisa goes off the ropes but Ohka hits a big boot of her own, Nagisa boots her back and hits another one, but Mio breaks up the pin. Nagisa goes for a sleeper but Ohka kicks his way out of it, Mio comes in and hits the Yoshi Tonic on Nagisa and Ohka hits a boot. Ohka goes off the ropes and hits a final big boot, and she picks up the three count! Yumi Ohka and Mio Momono are the new champions!

While I am beyond excited for Mio Momono getting her first title as she is a lot of fun to watch, I can’t say that this match did a lot for me. Yuki Miyazaki is best in small doses, if at all, as while she does provide a veteran presence and can help keep things together, her offense is pretty bland and her segments tend to drag. Ohka is better but still is mostly just big boots, and Nagisa wasn’t able to do what she does best here (set up submissions) as the match wasn’t about her wrestling preferences. So a 20 minute match with the only highlights being Mio-related feels like an eternity, the wrestlers worked together well but the structure was just all over the place with Yuki’s occasional comedy. Not a match I would recommend unless you love all parties involved but still a big moment in Mio Momono’s young career.

(c) Takumi Iroha vs. ASUKA
Regina Di WAVE Championship

They tie-up to start, Takumi pushes ASUKA into the ropes and she gives a clean break. They go into a Test of Strength and go to the mat, they jockey for position but end up in a stalemate and return to their feet. Knees by ASUKA and she kicks Takumi in the arm, ASUKA goes for a boot but Takumi moves out of the way and kicks ASUKA down in the corner. Dropkick by Takumi and she hits a dragon screw leg whip as she starts working over ASUKA’s leg. Scoop slam by Takumi and she hits a body press, covering ASUKA for two. Takumi goes back to ASUKA’s leg as she goes for the Stretch Muffler, but ASUKA gets into the ropes before she can get it fully applied. More kicks to the leg by Takumi but ASUKA absorbs the blows and kicks her back. Takumi gets the better of it at first but ASUKA knocks Takumi out of the ring, she goes up top and dives down onto Takumi with a missile dropkick. ASUKA slides Takumi back into the ring, she goes up top again and hits another missile dropkick. Another missile dropkick by ASUKA, she picks up Takumi and goes for a suplex, but Takumi blocks it. Superkick by ASUKA and she hits a running shooting star press. She then goes for a Lionsault but Takumi gets her knees up, jumping heel kick by Takumi but ASUKA blocks the suplex attempt. ASUKA goes for a boot but Takumi catches her leg and hits a dragon screw, figure four leglock by Takumi but ASUKA eventually gets to the ropes for the break. Takumi goes up top but ASUKA smacks her before she can jump off  and slams Takumi down to the mat. Dropkick by ASUKA and she hits the big boot in the corner, gutwrench suplex by ASUKA and she covers Takumi for two. ASUKA picks up Takumi but Takumi blocks the chokeslam and hits a kick combination.

Release German by Takumi, she goes up top but ASUKA recovers and joins her. They trade elbows while on the top turnbuckle, Takumi jumps over ASUKA and powerbombs her to the mat for two. Takumi positions ASUKA and goes up top, diving body press by Takumi and she quickly goes up top again to delivers a somersault senton, but ASUKA barely bridges up. Takumi goes for the Running Three but ASUKA slides away and hits a snap German. Kick to the head by ASUKA, she picks up Takumi and hits a German suplex hold for two. ASUKA picks up Takumi and delivers a chokeslam, she goes up top but Takumi joins her. Takumi brings ASUKA back down with a superplex, but ASUKA kicks out of the pinfall. Takumi and ASUKA trade elbows back on their feet, slaps by ASUKA and she superkicks Takumi for a one count cover. ASUKA goes off the ropes but Takumi catches her with a high kick, kick combination by Takumi and she nails a high kick for a two count. Liger Bomb by Takumi, but ASUKA kicks out of that as well. Takumi goes for an elbow but ASUKA catches her with one first, chokeslam by ASUKA near the corner but her cover gets two. ASUKA goes up to the top turnbuckle, Takumi grabs her ankles so ASUKA hops back off to hit a series of elbows. ASUKA goes up again and delivers the moonsault, but Takumi barely gets a shoulder up. ASUKA positions Takumi and goes up top again, and this time nails the Shooting Star Press! Cover by ASUKA, and she picks up the three count! ASUKA is the new champion!

Minor quibbles aside, this was a great match. They waited until just the right time with ASUKA to give her the top belt in WAVE, as over the last three years her offensive arsenal has grown significantly and she has grown into an excellent wrestler. I would have just cut out the leg work and just kept it as a strike/suplex type battle it then turned into, Takumi doesn’t really have any finishers to target the leg and ASUKA blew it off immediately anyway so it didn’t serve a real long term purpose. Beyond that though everything worked well, and I loved the ending with Takumi grabbing at ASUKA’s leg so she just elbows Takumi a bunch of times until she stays down for good. The high spots were kept to a reasonable amount so they always felt meaningful, and it was an even back and forth with both respecting the other with their exchanges so it felt like a real struggle. This is a match worth tracking down (or subscribing to the WAVE Network for a month) as it not only is a big deal for a transgender wrestler to hold a top Joshi title, but even without the historical meaning it was a great match as well.  Highly Recommended

The post Pro Wrestling WAVE “Anivarsario WAVE” on 8/19/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Catch The WAVE 2018 Tournament
March 11th, 2018 to May 4th, 2018

Crazy Block:

• ASUKA (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 19 years old, two year veteran. A rising star in the promotion, she is the first transgender Joshi wrestler.
• Miyuki Takase (Actwres girl’z) – Age unknown, one year veteran. Regular participant in WAVE, also wrestles in PURE-J and her home promotion Actwres girl’Z.
• Nagisa Nozaki (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 27 years old, 11 year veteran. Took layoff from 2013 to 2017. Current WAVE Tag Team Champion.
• Rina Yamashita (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 29 years old, 4 year veteran. Former Regina di WAVE Champion and the winner of the Catch The WAVE 2017 Tournament.
• Ryo Mizunami (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 29 years old, 13 year veteran. Former Regina di WAVE Champion and the winner of the Catch The WAVE 2016 Tournament.
• Yumi Ohka (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 38 years old, 16 year veteran. Former Regina di WAVE Champion and the winner of the Catch The WAVE 2015 Tournament.

Violence Block:

• Arisa Nakajima (SEAdLINagisaG) – 28 years old, 12 year veteran. Former Ace of JWP with 13 title reigns in her career, one of the top Joshi wrestlers in Japan.
• Ayako Hamada (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 37 years old, 19 year veteran. With over 20 title reigns, the most accomplished wrestler in the tournament.
• Hikaru Shida (Freelancer) – 29 years old, 9 year veteran. Top Joshi Freelancer with 14 title reigns, winner of the Catch The WAVE 2014 Tournament.
• Hiroe Nagahama (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 22 years old, three year veteran. Promising young wrestler in WAVE, former WAVE Tag Team Champion.
• Mio Momono (Marvelous) – 19 years old, two year veteran. Talented young wrestler from Marvelous, also wrestles in WAVE, Sendai Girls’, and SEAdLINagisaG.
• Misaki Ohata (Pro Wrestling WAVE) – 29 years old, 11 year veteran. Current Regina di WAVE Champion and the winner of the Catch The WAVE 2013 Tournament.

Let’s get started!

It is time for the opening night of the Catch The WAVE 2018 Tournament! The first night has all all 12 wrestlers participating, here are the matches:

• Miyuki Takase vs. Yumi Ohka
• Hikaru Shida vs. Mio Momono
• ASUKA vs. Rina Yamashita
• Arisa Nakajima vs. Ayako Hamada
• Ryo Mizunami vs. Nagisa Nozaki
• Hiroe Nagahama vs. Misaki Ohata

All wrestlers in the tournament have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it. As this event was uploaded to the WAVE Network, all matches will be shown in full.

Miyuki Takase vs. Yumi Ohka

This match was basically what it needed to be. Yumi Ohka mostly just throws boots, which she threw plenty of here, and Miyuki isn’t really good enough yet to get Yumi to do anything outside of her box. Miyuki going for flash pins was the way to go, and really in a tournament setting anything can happen. Perfectly watchable but not overly exciting.

Hikaru Shida vs. Mio Momono

Simple but fun. Mio is a bundle of energy but remains pretty smooth in the process so its not pure chaos, and Hikaru Shida is good at playing the solid base. Mio won the only way she was going to, with a flash pin, as Hikaru just has too much offense for Mio to withstand under normal circumstances. Nothing memorable but an enjoyable casual watch.  Mildly Recommended

ASUKA vs. Rina Yamashita

For a midcard tournament match, this was pretty damn entertaining. ASUKA improves each time I see her as she has added a few new moves to her repertoire and Rina is always improving as well. With a good combination of hard strikes and flashiness, it stayed entertaining and they didn’t waste any time from bell to bell. These two should make WAVE worth watching for years to come, a really good match that is worth seeking out.  Recommended

Arisa Nakajima vs. Ayako Hamada

This was good but oddly structured, with the 15 minute time limit probably playing a factor. There wasn’t really a “middle” portion of the match as it went pretty quickly from opening-style action to big bombs and nearfalls with not enough padding between. But I can’t fault either one of them for lack of energy or urgency, they were on point but didn’t go into excess. Sometime in this match, Arisa got a concussion but nothing was too out of the ordinary so I’m not sure when it happened. A very solid effort, they just felt a bit restricted by the time limit from doing the type of match that they wanted to.  Mildly Recommended

Ryo Mizunami vs. Nagisa Nozaki

It is interesting that WAVE is pushing Nagisa so hard, as while she brings something different to the table, she isn’t as skilled as most of the wrestlers in the promotion. Even before her long layoff she wasn’t a high end wrestler, and since returning she still has a ways to go to reach the tier that WAVE seems to want her to be. The match wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good either with a couple miscommunications, lots of repeated spots, and a sudden ending. Ryo is good but needs the right opponent to really bring the best out of her, and she has little chemistry with Nagisa. I like what they are trying to do with Nagisa, I just hope it connects at some point as the quality of her matches is generally average.

Hiroe Nagahama vs. Misaki Ohata

Northern Lights Suplex Hold by Hiroe, but that gets a two count as well. Hiroe picks up Misaki but Misaki gets away and snaps Hiroe over her knee, low crossbody by Misaki and she goes up top, hitting a missile dropkick. Three more missile dropkicks by Misaki, she positions Hiroe and goes up top again, this time hitting a diving bodypress for a two count. Misaki picks up Hiroe but Hiroe blocks the suplex attempt so Misaki drops Hiroe face-first into the mat instead and applies an inverted crab hold. Hiroe gets to the ropes to break the hold, Misaki stomps on Hiroe’s back but Hiroe gets up and elbows Misaki. They trade elbows until Hiroe goes for a few quick pins, none of which have any luck. Misaki goes off the ropes but Hiroe hits a spear, cradle by Hiroe but Misaki reverses it into her own two count. Spinning backfist by Misaki and she delivers a German suplex hold, she quickly picks up Hiroe and nails the Fisherman Buster, but Hiroe kicks out at two. Misaki goes for the Blue Sky Suplex Hold but Hiroe blocks it, sliding kick by Misaki and she covers Hiroe for a two count. Hiroe blocks the Blue Sky Suplex Hold again, she floats over Misaki and covers her with a jackknife hold for the three count! Hiroe Nagahama wins the match and gets two points in the tournament.

I wouldn’t call this a fantastic must-see match but it told its story well and I like both wrestlers a lot. One of the benefits of WAVE vs. WAVE matches is they have such solid chemistry – they know each other’s moves well and how to reverse them smoothly so everything looks tight. They had a lot of repeated moves here, which as a viewer is a bit dull even if there was a reason for it as they tried to one-up each other. Good enough, although it didn’t feel worthy of the main event slot and it wasn’t as good as the ASUKA/Rina Yamashita match.  Mildly Recommended

The post Pro Wrestling WAVE “Catch The WAVE” 2018 on 3/11/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

One thing that I am a complete sucker for is retirement shows. I love the atmosphere, the emotion, everything about them. Sure, not all wrestling retirements stick long term (looking at you, Chigusa Nagayo) but I still enjoy them anyway, as not only are they special events but the wrestlers tend to put a little more effort to make the send-off for their friend more memorable. I purchased this event on DVD as it didn’t air anywhere, I’ll only be reviewing the regular wrestling matches on the show. Here is the card:

• Debbie Malenko, Jaguar Yokota, and Kaoru Ito vs. Kyoko Inoue, Takako Inoue, and Mariko Yoshida
• Aja Kong, AKINO, and Mary Apache vs. Leon, Mariko Yoshida, and Melissa
• Aoi Kizuki and Misaki Ohata vs. Bambi and Cherry
• Maruko Yoshida Retirement Match: Mariko Yoshida vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto

All the wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names to go straight to it. These matches won’t have a ton of backstory but I’ll at least fill in some gaps on who the wrestlers are and why they are on the card.

Debbie Malenko, Yokota, and Ito vs. Kyoko Inoue, Takako Inoue, and Mariko Yoshida

Yoshida and Malenko start the match, they grapple until Malenko gets Yoshida to the mat, but Yoshida switches positions with her as struggle for control. Malenko gets a short armbar applied but Yoshida quickly gets into the ropes for the break, Yoshida tags in Kyoko while Ito is also tagged in. Ito immediately hits a big lariat, she picks up Kyoko and the pair trade elbows. Short range lariat by Ito but Kyoko doesn’t go down, she returns fire as the veterans go back and forth with lariats. Kyoko wins the battle and tags in Takako, double Irish whip to Ito and she eats a double kick to the gut. Yoshida comes in too and poses on top of Ito, she stays in and tries to suplex Ito, but Ito blocks it and hits a back bodydrop. Ito throws Yoshida into the corner and hits a lariat, running senton by Ito and she covers Yoshida for two. Crab hold by Ito but she lets go after a moment, Irish whip by Ito but Yoshida flips over her back and cradles Ito for two. Yoshida tags in Takako, boots by Takako to Ito but Ito lariats her to the mat. Takako elbows Ito away and delivers a high kick, but Ito eventually has enough and drops her with a uranage. Ito tags in Yokota but Takako catches her with a backdrop suplex. Yoshida comes in but Yokota sends them both down, they recover however and Takako cradles Yokota for two. Yokota recovers and shoulderblocks Takako into the corner, Irish whip by Yokota but Takako hits a bridging backdrop suplex for two.

She tags in Kyoko, lariat by Kyoko but Ito runs in and lariats Kyoko. Things break down as all six come into the ring, Kyoko gets Yokota onto the top turnbuckle and hits a superplex for two. Kyoko picks up Yokota and goes for a powerbomb, but Yokota reverses it with a hurricanrana. Somersault legdrop by Yokota and she tags in Malenko, who comes in the ring with a diving face crusher for two. Running back elbow by Malenko and she hits a second one, but Kyoko chops her to the mat. Malenko goes for a cutter but Kyoko pushes her off and tags in Yoshida, double underhook facebuster by Yoshida and she covers Malenko for a two count. Irish whip by Yoshida but Yoshida is grabbed from the apron, giving Malenko a chance to deliver a boot. Yokota comes in and helps Malenko hit a double backdrop suplex onto Yoshida, before Ito follows with a diving footstomp. Malenko picks up Yoshida and delivers a Northern Lights Suplex, but the pin is broken up. STF by Malenko but Yoshida crawls to the ropes to get the break. Everyone runs in the ring as the action breaks down, Kyoko lariats both Ito and Malenko and Yoshida cradles Malenko for two. Yoshida picks up Malenko and puts her in the Spider Twist, and she has no choice but to submit! Double Inoue and Mariko Yoshida are the winners!

A fun way to kick off the show. What I loved the most was the maximum effort shown by everyone, I mean Kyoko hit a superplex while 56 year old Yokota was flying around with a hurricanrana and somersault legdrop, they didn’t hold anything back. Malenko looked great in her first official wrestling match since 1993, and Kaoru Ito is still really solid as well. Even though it was a ‘reunion’ match they didn’t wrestle like it as there were no lighthearted moments – they were all in from start to finish. Better than I would have imagined, enjoyable in every aspect.  Recommended

Aja Kong, AKINO, and Mary Apache vs. Leon, Mariko Yoshida, and Melissa

Yoshida and AKINO start the match, AKINO immediately sneaks in a backslide but it gets a two count. AKINO goes off the ropes but lll kicks her from the apron, Yoshida and AKINO grapple on the mat and trade submissions until they reach a stalemate. lll and Apache tag in, armdrag by lll but Apache returns the favor as they go back and forth. They reach a stalemate as well as they return to their feet, Irish whip by Apache but lll delivers the spear. lll tags in Melissa, elbow drop by Melissa and she applies the Kondo Clutch, but Apache gets into the ropes. Apache gets away from Melissa, Melissa goes for a scoop slam but Apache blocks it and lands on top of her. Heel kick by Apache and she tags in Kong, Irish whip by Kong but Melissa hits a lariat. Kong doesn’t budge, they both try to knock the other one over but Kong outsmarts Melissa and knocks her to her knees. Kong picks up Melissa but Melissa knocks Kong to the mat with a lariat, diving strike by Melissa and she tags in Yoshida. Kong punches Yoshida in the throat and kicks her in the head, she goes for a suplex but Yoshida lands on her feet and applies a sleeper. Kong almost goes to sleep but gets a hand on the ropes in time, Yoshida goes for a suplex but she can’t get Kong over. Leon comes in to help but Kong suplexes both of them instead, giving her time to tag in AKINO. Kicks by AKINO to Yoshida but Yoshida blocks a lariat attempt and puts AKINO in the Spider Twist.

AKINO rolls out of it and puts Yoshida in the Spider Twist instead, but Yoshida also rolls out of it and applies an ankle hold. AKINO gets out of it and puts Yoshida in a cross armbreaker, but Yoshida pins down AKINO’s shoulders for a two count. High kick by AKINO, Apache runs in but Yoshida blocks her powerbomb attempt and throws Apache out of the ring. AKINO has gone up top in the meantime but Melissa joins her and hits an avalanche Samoan Drop, Leon goes up top and nails a somersault senton onto AKINO for a two count. Leon picks up AKINO but AKINO blocks the Capture Buster, Apache runs in and lariats Leon before Kong drops her with a backdrop suplex. High kick by AKINO, she covers Leon but Yoshida breaks it up. AKINO picks up Leon but Leon slides away, she goes for a sunset flip but AKINO blocks it. Melissa runs in and elbows AKINO, double underhook facebuster by Yoshida to AKINO and Leon delivers her diving body press for another two count cover. Leon picks up AKINO but AKINO avoids her kick and punches Leon in the head. Yoshida tries to help but boots Leon by accident, Melissa comes in but she is shoulderblocked by Kong and Apache. Kong and Apache accidentally run into each other, Leon goes off the ropes and delivers a high kick, but AKINO snaps off a hurricanrana for the three count! Aja Kong, AKINO, and Mary Apache are the winners.

Not as good as the last match but still solid. There were some chemistry issues, which isn’t surprising since some of these wrestlers don’t wrestle each other very often (if ever), but it all came together for the home stretch. AKINO was the workhorse here, she was really on top of her game and helped tie the match together. Too disjointed to recommend too strongly but I still an easy and entertaining watch.  Mildly Recommended

Aoi Kizuki and Misaki Ohata vs. Bambi and Cherry

Aoi and Misaki attack before the match starts and double team their opponents in the corner, double vertical suplex to Bambi and they then suplex Cherry on top of her. Ohata and Cherry stay in as the legal wrestlers, Misaki tags in Aoi and Aoi hits Mongolian Chops onto Cherry. Elbow by Aoi in the corner and she hits a face crusher, running senton by Aoi and she covers Cherry for two. Misaki returns but Cherry hits a jumping neck drop on both of them, Cherry picks up Aoi but Aoi snaps her back over her knee before slamming Cherry fast-first into the match. Aoi goes for a diving senton but Cherry moves, Cherry goes for an armbreaker and gets it locked in, but Aoi quickly wiggles to the ropes for the break. Cherry tags Bambi, Bambi chops Aoi in the corner and Cherry returns as both hit running hip attacks onto Aoi. Irish whip by Bambi, reversed by Aoi but Bambi avoids her charge and hits a high kick. Running boot by Bambi, and she covers Aoi for two. Bambi charges Aoi but Aoi kicks her back and applies a sunset flip for two, Bambi goes off the ropes but Aoi chops her in the chest and hits the double wrist-clutch armsault. Jumping lariat by Aoi and she tags in Misaki, Misaki elbows Bambi in the corner and delivers the low crossbody. Misaki goes up top but Bambi ducks the crossbody and boots Misaki in the face. Misaki fights back and dropkicks Bambi in the face, she goes off the ropes but Bambi delivers a big boot again. Bambi tags Cherry, Cherry goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, double Irish whip to Misaki and she is knocked down by a double shoulderblock. Body press by Bambi, Cherry goes to the top turnbuckle and nails the Swanton Bomb, but Aoi breaks up the cover. Cherry goes off the ropes but Aoi elbows her, Misaki cradles Cherry but it gets a two count. Bambi tries to help but boots Cherry by accident, lariat by Misaki to Cherry and she hits a German suplex hold for a two count. Misaki picks up Cherry and nails the Fisherman Buster, but Bambi breaks up the pin. Misaki picks up Cherry but Cherry gets away and chops her in the face, uranage by Cherry and both wrestlers are down. Cherry recovers first but Aoi dropkicks her, double Irish whip to Cherry but Cherry avoids them both and cradles Misaki for two. Bambi is back but Aoi throws her out of the ring, Misaki cradles Cherry from behind but Cherry reverses it as they trade flash pins. Spinning chop by Ohata and she applies a hammerlock into a cradle for the three count! Misaki Ohata and Cherry win the match.

This felt like a standard midcard tag match, which is to say it was perfectly fine but nothing memorable about it at all. Bambi can’t really keep up with Aoi and Misaki so the pace wasn’t quite what you’d expect, and some of the strikes were a bit loose. Cherry looked inspired though and had a lot of emotion, and generally speaking nothing was really wrong with it and they kept it short. Decent enough but nothing more than that.

Mariko Yoshida vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto
Mariko Yoshida Retirement Match

Yoshida asks for Matsumoto’s hand as the match starts, Matsumoto goes to shake it but Yoshida cradles her for a quick two count. Starting her retirement match with a bang. Kick to the stomach by Yoshida and she throws down Matsumoto by the hair, another kick by Yoshida and she covers Matsumoto for two. Choke by Yoshida and she puts Matsumoto in a headscissors, but Matsumoto quickly gets out of it. Bodyscissors by Yoshida but Matsumoto gets out of that as well and puts Yoshida in a crab hold, Yoshida crawls to the ropes and she reaches them to force the break. Chops by Matsumoto, she gets Yoshida on her shoulders and tries to decide where to toss her, with the wrestlers at ringside trying to discourage her. Matsumoto eventually tosses Yoshida out of the ring anyway and down onto the wrestling mob at ringside, but the wrestlers help out and hold Matsumoto out on the floor so that Yoshida can go to the top turnbuckle and dive down onto Matsumoto. Back in the ring, Matsumoto puts Yoshida in the corner and all the wrestlers at ringside come into the ring to take turns on Yoshida, with a variety of strikes, hugs, and even a kiss. Yoshida comes out of this two minutes later in pretty rough condition, Matsumoto covers her but she only gets a two count. Crab hold by Matsumoto but again Yoshida reaches the ropes, scoop slam by Matsumoto and she delivers the reverse double kneedrop, but Yoshida gets a shoulder up.

Matsumoto goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, another cover but she only gets two. Yoshida slaps Matsumoto but Matsumoto slaps her back, Matsumoto goes for a powerbomb but Yoshida gets out of it and applies the sleeper hold. Spider Twist by Yoshida but Matsumoto gets up while still in the hold and slams Yoshida into the turnbuckles. Yoshida flips Matsumoto and applies a cross armbreaker, but Matsumoto gets to the ropes. Boots by Yoshida but Matsumoto hits a body avalanche against the ropes, she goes for the sliding lariat but Yoshida ducks it and puts Matsumoto in an armtrap facelock. Yoshida reverts it into the Spider Twist but after struggling for a bit, Matsumoto is able to make it to the ropes. Yoshida picks up Matsumoto and goes for the Air Raid Crash, but Matsumoto blocks it and goes for a powerbomb. Yoshida rolls out of it, Matsumoto goes for the backdrop suplex and eventually hits it, but is too hurt to make the cover. They slowly get up and trade strikes, with Matsumoto winning the battle with a hard club to the head. Matsumoto picks up Yoshida but knocks her back down with an elbow, she drags Yoshida to her feet and nails the powerbomb, but Yoshida gets a shoulder up. Matsumoto picks up Yoshida and goes for the backdrop suplex, but Yoshida reverses it with the Air Raid Crash! She’s too hurt to make the quick cover, she eventually does so but Matsumoto kicks out. Back up, hard lariats by Matsumoto and she nails the Backdrop Driver for the three count! Hiroyo Matsumoto is the winner!

As I mentioned at the top, I love retirement matches, and this one certainly hit the spot. Obviously Yoshida isn’t the force she was in her prime, but she still can bring it when she needs to and mostly kept up with one of the top Joshi wrestlers on the scene. Yoshida had a few really close calls, with the Air Raid Crash and Spider Twist, but realistically speaking she wasn’t going to win against her younger trainee even though she put up a good fight. The match was played pretty straight, as it went almost 20 minutes and only a few minutes of that was spent doing retirement match type spots, and they really delivered. Yoshida went out holding nothing back (and taking lots of damage in the process), showing why she in her heyday was one of the top female wrestlers in the world. Really entertaining match and worth tracking down.  Highly Recommended

The post Mariko Yoshida Retirement Mariko Final – 11/19/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Since I am hellbent on Joshi City not becoming Stardom City, lets watch something else from 2018 – SEAdLINNNG! This was a big event for SEAdLINNNG, as not only is it at Korakuen Hall but the event aired on Samurai TV. Nanae Takahashi was not able to wrestle on the show due to an injury sustained at WAVE the week prior, and Sareee is gone, but they still have enough talent available to them from other promotions to put on a full show. SEAdLINNNG’s events are more “inter-promotional” than anything else since their roster has exactly two active wrestlers, as this event features four Ice Ribbon wrestlers, three Marvelous wrestlers, and six WAVE wrestlers. Anyway, here is the card:

• Rin Kadokura vs. Satsuki Totoro
• ASUKA vs. Mika Iida vs. SUGI
• Captain’s Fall Tag Match: Mio Momono, Akane Fujita, Nagahama, and Ryo Mizunami vs. Saki Akai, Kurumi, Takumi Iroha, and Tsukasa Fujimoto
• Arisa Nakajima vs. Misaki Ohata
• Ayako Hamada vs. Yoshiko

All the Joshi wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names above to go straight to it. I think all the matches are shown in full even though its on Samurai TV, but if any are too clipped I’ll make a note in the review.

Rin Kadokura vs. Satsuki Totoro

Satsuki immediately goes after Rin and hits a shoulderblock, but Rin gets back up and the two trade elbows. Dropkick by Rin and she hits two more, Satsuki ends up against the ropes and Rin dropkicks her two more times. Scoop slam by Rin, and she covers Satsuki for two. Rin goes up top but Satsuki recovers and elbows her, headbutt by Rin and she connects with the missile dropkick. Rin jumps on Satsuki’s back but Satsuki shakes her off, Rin flings Satsuki to the mat and covers her for two. Hurricanrana by Rin, but that gets a two as well. Satsuki knocks down Rin with a lariat, sentons by Satsuki and she covers Rin for a two count. Satsuki gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton, she then goes all the way up top but Rin jumps up and elbows her before she can jump off. Rin throws Satsuki to the mat and the two trade flash pins with neither getting the three. Sloppy La Magistral of sorts by Rin, and she gets the three count! Rin Kadokura is the winner.

My opinion of Satsuki remains unchanged. Just a really rough match, lots of mistakes, and a botched ending. Since Rin is generally pretty solid, I’ll assume most of the blame goes to Satsuki, this felt like a match with two debuting wrestlers which both are past by now. Sub-par way to start the show.

ASUKA vs. Mika Iida vs. SUGI

ASUKA boots Taiyo before the match even starts for reasons unknown while SUGI and Mika go at it, ASUKA comes over but SUGI flips away from both of them. Mika gets the better of things and puts ASUKA in a figure four, SUGI tries to break it up but he misses, leading to Mika putting him in a facelock while still maintaining the figure four. She lets go after a moment, SUGI and ASUKA both attack Mika and drop her with a double vertical suplex. ASUKA hits a body press on Mika, both she and SUGI bounce off the ropes until SUGI hits a swandive hurricanrana. ASUKA lands on out of the ring, SUGI goes off the ropes but does a fake dive instead of sailing out of the ring. Mika and ASUKA trade elbows on the floor, Mika gets on the apron and snaps SUGI’s arm over the top rope. ASUKA goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, dropkick by ASUKA and she chokes SUGI in the corner. SUGI throws ASUKA into the other corner but ASUKA springboards out of it with a moonsault, Space Rolling Elbow by ASUKA but Mika returns and knocks her to the mat. SUGI puts a submission on Mika over the top rope but ASUKA boots him, Mikai dropkicks ASUKA while she is against the ropes and she trade elbows with SUGI. SUGI wins the battle but Mika breaks up the cover, drop toehold by Mika and she dropkicks SUGI in the head. SUGI kips up but Mika hits him with a running uppercut, SUGI kips up again and he superkicks Mika in the head. SUGI goes off the ropes but Mika rolls him up for two, another cradle by Mika but SUGI reverses it and they go back and forth. ASUKA gets back in and dropkicks Mika, but Mika drops her and SUGI with a DDT/reverse STO combination. Octopus Hold by Mika but ASUKA breaks it up with a missile dropkick, ASUKA picks them up and goes for a double chokeslam, but they push her off. ASUKA superkicks SUGI before hitting a gutwrench suplex, she goes off the ropes but Taiyo trips her. Cradle by Mika to ASUKA but that gets two as well, victory roll by Mika to ASUKA and she gets the three count! Mika Iida wins!

Even by High Speed standards, this was pretty lackluster. It didn’t have the charm that most of the High Speed matches have, no real “sprint” moments and Taiyo was less a part of it than she usually is. While I enjoy seeing SUGI again, a disappointing match.

(c) Mio Momono, Akane Fujita, Nagahama, and Ryo Mizunami vs. (c) Saki Akai, Kurumi, Takumi Iroha, and Fujimoto
Captain’s Fall Match

Mio and Saki start the match but Mio immediately bails out of the ring and Saki is triple teamed by the rest of her team instead. After getting dropkicked repeatedly, Mio is brought back into the ring and Ryo throws Mio onto Saki for a two count cover. Mio goes off the ropes but Saki catches her with The Claw, Mio breaks free however and delivers a dropkick. Mio tries for multiple covers with no luck, Kurumi runs in and decks her, giving Fujimoto time to drag Saki to her corner so she can tag in. Hiroe also is tagged in and she dropkicks Fujimoto, another dropkick by Hiroe and she hits two more for a quick cover. A Northern Lights Suplex but Hiroe also gets a two, she goes for a backdrop suplex but Fujimoto lands on her feet and rolls up Hiroe before kicking her in the chest. Fujimoto goes up top but Hiroe avoids the diving body press, scoop slam by Hiroe and she tags in Akane. Akane hits a scoop slam as well, Ryo is then tagged in and she does the same. Mio tries a slam as well but Fujimoto cradles her for a two count, Mio is collected by her team as Ryo returns as the legal wrestler and chops Fujimoto into the corner. Fujimoto switches positions with her and hits chops of her own but Ryo takes back over, jumping elbow by Ryo in the corner and she hits a lariat. Cover by Ryo, but Fujimoto kicks out. Ryo tags in Hiroe, snap verticals by Hiroe and her team runs in to help, but Fujimoto dropkicks all of them and tags in Kurumi.

Shoulderblocks by Kurumi to Mio’s team but she can’t knock over Ryo as the two go back and forth with shoulderblock attempts. Kurumi wins the battle, body avalanche by Kurumi and she hits the somersault senton for a two count. Kurumi tries to pick up Ryo but Ryo slides away, hard elbow by Ryo but Kurumi catches her with a swinging side slam. Kurumi tags in Takumi, Saki comes in too and they both kick Ryo. Release German by Takumi but Ryo ducks the superkick and hits a series of elbows. Irish whip by Ryo but Takumi connects with a spinning heel kick, Takumi goes up top but Ryo joins her and hits an avalanche powerslam. Ryo picks up Takumi but Takumi elbows her off, kick by Takumi but Ryo hits an overhead suplex followed by a lariat. Uranage by Ryo and she tags in Akane, chops by Akane against the ropes and she tosses Takumi to the mat. Hiroe and Mio come in to help, elbow drop by Akane and she covers Takumi for two. Takumi delivers a kick combination, Fujimoto comes in and they double team Akane. Ryo tags in Saki and Saki boots Akane in the corner, the rest of her team also comes in to attack Akane in the corner before Saki kicks Akane in the head. Akane ducks the next kick attempt and hits a modified Samoan Drop, Akane picks her back up and hits an over-the-shoulder powerslam for two.

Akane puts Saki in a choke but Takumi breaks it up, things break down as both teams are in the ring trading blows. Takumi and Kurumi both go up top and hit body presses, Fujimoto dropkicks Mio in the corner but Mio takes down both Fujimoto and Saki. Mio is tagged in, she cradles Saki but it gets two. Mio goes off the ropes but Takumi grabs her from the apron, Saki goes for a boot but Mio moves out of the way. Mio goes up top but Kurumi grabs her from the apron, Hiroe tosses down Saki and helps Mio hit a senton for two. Knee by Mio but Takumi superkicks her when she goes for the Code Red, everyone jumps on Kurumi’s back as she hits a body press onto Mio, cover by Saki but Mio gets a shoulder up. Saki picks up Mio and hits a strike combination, she goes off the ropes but Akane runs in and chops her. Lariat by Ryo, Mio covers Saki but it gets broken up. Fujimoto goes up top but she dropkicks Saki by accident, roll-ups by Mio but Saki keeps kicking out. Mio goes off the ropes but Saki boots her in the face, pump kick by Saki as Mio gets up and she covers her for the three count! Team Saki Akai are the winners!

So I am not too sure what the point was of having this as a “Captain’s Fall” match since the first person pinned was a captain, but wrestling is weird sometimes. This match was a bit hit and miss but it had more highs than lows, as overall the story was well told. The action was constant with lots of interference, which I have no issue with in a match like this, as both teams were constantly helping when necessary. A bit chaotic but it kept things interesting. Kurumi and Takumi both looked great, the match would have been tighter if it was 3 vs. 3 as not everyone was really necessary but everyone still got a bit of a chance to shine. As a somewhat lighthearted midcard match, I enjoyed it, although in the grand scheme of things not something that will stick in your brain for very long.  Mildly Recommended

Arisa Nakajima vs. Misaki Ohata

They feel each other out to start, Arisa gets Misaki to the mat first but Misaki switches positions with her as they jockey for position. They trade wristlocks until they end up on the mat again, they trade headlocks but reach a stalemate as they return to their feet. After trading elbows, Sling Blade by Arisa but Misaki shoves her to the mat and knees Arisa in the midsection before flinging her down by the hair. She does it again, stretch hold by Misaki and she delivers a curb stomp. Another curb stomp by Misaki, she kicks at Arisa as she returns to her feet and elbows her into the corner, Misaki knocks Arisa out to the apron but Arisa knocks her back and slingshots back into the ring. Dropkick by Arisa and she boots Misaki in the head, dropkick by Arisa and she goes to the top turnbuckle, hitting a missile dropkick. Cover by Arisa, but it gets a two count. Arisa knees Misaki but Misaki rolls her up for two, elbow by Misaki and she hits a low crossbody while Arisa is against the ropes. Misaki gets on the top turnbuckle but Arisa hits her before she can jump off and joins her, elbows by Arisa but Misaki elbows her back and crossbodies her down to the mat. German suplex hold by Misaki, she rolls Arisa up and hits two more, but Arisa gets a shoulder up on the last one.

Misaki picks up Arisa but Arisa delivers the Cutie Special, knees by Arisa but Misaki slides her to the mat and goes for a cross armbreaker. Arisa gets out of it, sunset flip by Arisa but Ohata reverses it. Arisa puts Misaki in a submission but lets go after a moment, running boot by Arisa and she connects with the double underhook facebuster. Arisa goes up top and nails a diving footstomp, cover by Arisa but it gets a two count. Arisa goes back up top and goes for a moonsault, but Misaki gets her feet up. Both wrestlers slowly get up and begin trading elbows, Package German by Nakajima but it gets two. Arisa goes for a full nelson suplex but Misaki blocks it and hits a full nelson suplex of her own, they get up and trade elbows again, Arisa goes off the ropes but Misaki catches her with a spinning backfist. Fisherman Buster by Misaki, but Arisa barely gets a shoulder up. Misaki picks up Arisa but Arisa slides away, Misaki cradles Arisa but Arisa kicks out. Misaki goes for a backfist but Arisa comes back with elbows, kick to the head by Arisa and she delivers he full nelson suplex for a two count. Arisa goes for the DxD but Misaki blocks it and hits the Schwein, she picks up Arisa but Arisa rolls away and kicks Misaki in the head. Release dragon suplex by Arisa and she nails the DxD Suplex for the three count! Arisa Nakajima wins the match!

The only real knock on this match is that I wish it was longer, as these are two great wrestlers with lots of chemistry. The match started a bit slow, as you’d expect if it was a much longer match, but once they got into it everything was nonstop. Every strike and suplex was so crisp, and they did a good job mixing it up so it always felt fresh. The last few minutes in particular were hot as both had convincing nearfalls leading to the conclusive ending. Misaki Ohata has flown under the radar due to the fact WAVE doesn’t make air very often, but she is one of the better Joshi wrestlers and deserves more attention. Entertaining match.  Recommended

Ayako Hamada vs. Yoshiko

Yoshiko acts like she is going to shake Hamada’s hand but pulls her down to the mat instead, Hamada gets back up and they go into a Test of Strength. Hamada gets the better of it and applies a leg submission into a STF, but Yoshiko gets into the ropes. Irish whip by Hamada but Yoshiko springboards out of the corner with a lariat, she charges Hamada but Hamada moves and Yoshiko tumbles out of the ring. Hamada goes out after her and tosses Yoshiko into the crowd as they make a tour around the ringside area. Hamada takes Yoshiko up onto the stage but Yoshiko blocks the suplex attempt and hits a vertical suplex of her own. They eventually both make it back to the ring and trade elbows, kick by Hamada and both go for shoulderblocks with no success. Yoshiko finally knocks over Hamada with a shoulderblock, bootscrapes by Yoshiko and she boots Hamada in the face. Kick by Yoshiko and she hits a running senton, she picks up Hamada but Hamada applies a standing armbar. Yoshiko gets out of it and applies an abdominal stretch, but Hamada reverses the hold. Hamada reverts it to an Octopus Hold and rolls Yoshiko to the mat as she also applies a headscissors, Yoshiko gets out of the hold, Hamada goes off the ropes but Yoshiko catches her with a Samoan Drop. Running senton by Yoshiko, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Hamada avoids the diving senton. Kick by Hamada, she gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers a moonsault. She then goes all the way up but Yoshiko recovers and tries to powerbomb her, but Hamada reverses it into a hurricanrana for two.

High kick by Hamada, Yoshiko falls out of the ring and Hamada goes up top, but Yoshiko pulls her down onto the apron. Hamada drops Yoshiko face-first onto the apron, she goes up top again but Yoshiko rolls back into the ring and joins her. Yoshiko gets Hamada on her shoulders and hits an Avalanche Samoan Drop, she quickly gets on the second turnbuckle but Hamada shakes the ropes so she doesn’t jump off. Hamada joins Yoshiko but Yoshiko headbutts her and flips over her before dropping Hamada with a powerbomb. Lariat by Yoshiko, she goes off the ropes and hits a sliding lariat, but Hamada kicks out of the cover. Yoshiko goes of the ropes but Hamada catches her with a heel kick, leaving both wrestlers down on the mat. Both wrestlers slowly get up, high kick by Hamada and she delivers a lariat for a two count. Hamada picks up Yoshiko but Yoshiko levels her with a lariat of her own, she picks up Hamada but Hamada catches her with a Liger Bomb for two. Hamada quickly drags up Yoshiko and hits another powerbomb, but Yoshiko again kicks out. Hamada drags Yoshiko to her feet but Yoshiko hits a chokebomb, lariat by Yoshiko but Hamada kicks out at one. Yoshiko drives Hamada to the mat with a fireman’s carry slam, she goes off the ropes and hits a lariat, but Hamada doesn’t go down. High kick by Hamada and she hits two more, with a final heel kick sending Yoshiko to the mat. Another jumping kick by Hamada and she nails the AP Cross for the three count! Ayako Hamada wins!

My main issue with matches like this, and perhaps it is because I watch too much wrestling, is it followed a predictable pattern. The brawling segment around the crowd wasn’t needed as it had nothing to do with the story – as soon as both got into the ring it was as if nothing happened and they continued on as usual. Both wrestlers were at fault of at times recovering way too quickly, whether it be from a long submission hold or power move, and it felt like they were just going back and forth with little story. That being said, the action itself was solid and both were putting in maximum effort, with lots of hard strikes and exciting moments. The end stretch felt a bit too stretched but was probably necessary to make sure Yoshiko looked strong even in defeat. Certainly not a bad match, but not as entertaining as the last few matches, as it felt like they were trying to put on an epic match that never fully clicked.

The post SEAdLINNNG “Now or Never” on 1/14/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

  

• Championships and Tournaments Won: This includes any championship won during 2017, or any championship that was held when 2017 began. The prestige of the championship or tournament will be taken into account.
• Match Quality: The most subjective criteria, extra consideration is given to wrestlers that had high quality matches throughout the year, especially if it was with a variety of opponents.
• Wrestler Popularity: Being able to connect with the crowd is important in wrestling, wrestlers that have success interacting with the crowd and getting reactions will get credit for that.
• Wrestler Status in a Promotion: Generally speaking, the Ace of one promotion will be ahead of the #3 wrestler in another promotion, since wrestling on top means bigger matches, longer matches, and more opportunities. There isn’t a direct correlation, but leading a promotion or being the ‘face’ of a promotion can help a wrestler’s rank as it increases the wrestler’s visibility and importance.
• Match Frequency/Availability: How often a wrestler wrestled is taken into consideration. A wrestler with 100 matches is more likely to be on the list than a wrestler with 10 matches. Also, it is harder to ‘rate’ a wrestler if their matches rarely were distributed via TV or an online streaming service, so visibility is a factor.

One criteria I am not using, because I disagree with it, is ‘drawing power.’ In the current wrestling landscape there are very few wrestlers that by themselves are draws (I could probably count them on one hand), usually it is more the benefit of a good storyline or a hot region that impacts the size of the crowd. While the larger Joshi promotions may have more wrestlers on the list due to the other criteria (visibility being a major one), the size of the crowds will not be taken in consideration.

1. Hiroyo Matsumoto (Freelancer)

Championships Held: OZ Academy Openweight Championship, Artist of Stardom Championship, Sendai Girls’ World Championship, and the Goddesses of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches:  with Kagetsu vs. Shida and Syuri on 1/25, with Kyona vs. Hojo and Bito on 3/5, vs. Chihiro Hashimoto on 6/10, vs. Chihiro Hashimoto on 7/15, vs. Yoshiko on 10/29
Best Match: vs. Chihiro Hashimoto in Sendai Girls’ on 6/10

What made 2017 so special for Hiroyo Matsumoto is not only did she dominate, but she dominated in multiple different promotions. Hiroyo held the top title in two different promotions (OZ Academy and Sendai Girls’) and held two additional titles in Stardom all during the year. Over the course of the year, she had singles wins over Kyoko Kimura, Meiko Satomura, Arisa Nakajima, Chihiro Hashimoto, AKINO, Hikaru Shida, and Mariko Yoshida. In addition to her success against a variety of opponents, in-ring she was on the top of her game, putting on high-end matches throughout the year. No one could have expected that Hiroyo would have the type of year she had in 2017, just showing how unpredictable the Joshi landscape can be.

2. Risa Sera (Ice Ribbon)

Championships Held: Ice Ribbon ICExInfinity Championship and the Ice Ribbon Tag Team Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Rina Yamashita on 3/26, vs. Akane Fujita on 5/28, vs. Maya Yukihi on 8/27, with Yukihi vs. Lovely Butchers on 10/29, vs. Kurumi on 12/31
Best Match: vs. Rina Yamashita in Ice Ribbon on 3/26

Risa Sera was the undisputed Ace of Ice Ribbon in 2017. She won the main title in the promotion, the ICExInfinity Championship, on the last day of 2016 and did not lose it until the last day of 2017. During that span, she had seven successful defenses against seven different opponents, including Rina Yamashita, Mochi Miyagi, and Maya Yukihi. In addition to the singles championship, she also won the tag team championship with Maya Yukihi in October and held it until the end of the year, with one successful defense during that time. Of all the wrestlers in 2017, none dominated their promotion like Risa Sera did in 2017, so while she didn’t go outside the promotion like I would have preferred for different types of challenges she still had a year to remember.

3. Io Shirai (Stardom)

Championships Held: World of Stardom Championship, Wonder of Stardom Championship, and the Artist of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Shayna Baszler on 2/23, vs. Kagetsu on 3/5, vs. Kairi Hojo on 3/20, with AZM and HZK vs. Oedo Tai on 4/15, vs. Toni Storm on 5/14, vs. Mayu Iwatani on 6/21, vs. Yoko Bito on 11/19
Best Match: vs. Mayu Iwatani in Stardom on 6/21

It was an interesting year for Io Shirai. She started on top, where she always seems to be, as she held both the Wonder of Stardom Championship and the Artist of Stardom Championship early in the year. Then the rumors started of her going to WWE, leading to her dropping all her titles in mid-June. But she didn’t go, and she ended up winning two more titles before the end of the year, as she concluded 2017 the Ace of Stardom just as she started it. All told, she had 19 title matches in 2017, with big wins over Viper, Shayna Baszler, Kagetsu, Kairi Hojo, and Yoko Bito. Io Shirai also continued being one of the top in-ring wrestlers in Japan, with many great and memorable matches.

4. Chihiro Hashimoto (Sendai Girls’)

Championships Held: Sendai Girls’ World Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Aja Kong on 1/9, vs. Aja Kong on 4/6, vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto on 7/15, vs. Meiko Satomura on 9/24
Best Match: vs. Meiko Satomura in Sendai Girls’ on 9/24

By far the least experienced wrestler in the Top 10, Chihiro Hashimoto had a big year in 2017. She held the Sendai Girls’ World Championship three different times during the year and picked up some big wins along the way, including singles victories over Aja Kong, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Meiko Satomura. She also branched outside of Sendai Girls’, with fun matches against WAVE’s Rina Yamashita and Takumi Iroha from Marvelous. In-ring, Chihiro showed a lot of improvement in 2017 compared to 2016, and I expect her to continue working to solidify herself as one of the top Joshi wrestlers in 2018.

5. Manami Toyota (OZ Academy)

Championships Held: Ice Ribbon Triangle Championship
Biggest Matches:  Gauntlet Match on 11/3
Best Match: vs. Aja Kong on 10/29

Placing Manami Toyota on this list was hard, as even though I knew she deserved to be on it, her 2017 arch was very different than everyone else. Manami Toyota is one of the most legendary female wrestlers in the world, period, and the impact she had on Joshi wrestling can not be overstated. Toyota announced early in the year that she was retiring on November 3rd, which lead to her having a lot of “farewell” style matches throughout the year. Her farewell tour was grand, as she made stops by virtually every promotion (with Stardom noteably missing) including OZ Academy, ZERO1, Big Japan, WAVE, Ice Ribbon, PURE J, and multiple wrestler produced shows. Along the way she had singles matches with many old foes and current stars, including Shinobu Kandori, Yumiko Hotta, Aja Kong, Takako Inoue, Hikaru Shida, Sonoko Kato, Nanae Takahashi, and many more. She ended her career with a very entertaining 50 Match Gauntlet, refusing to ease her way into retirement. A true living legend, Manami Toyota ended her career with a bang, and gave us many happy memories in the process.

6. Ryo Mizunami (Pro Wrestling WAVE)

Championships Held: Regina Di WAVE Championship, WAVE Tag Team Championship, and the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Misaki Ohata on 2/11, with Ohata vs. Kurumi and Tsukushi on 3/26, vs. Rina Yamashita on 7/2
Best Match: with Ohata vs. Best Friends in SEAdLINNNG on 8/24

Ryo Mizunami had the longest run with WAVE’s biggest title in 2017, and for much of the year acted as the face of the company. She had stiff competition from Rina Yamashita and Misaki Ohata, but when also taking in considering her work in the Avid Rivals tag team, she had the best year of any wrestler in the promotion. Ryo entered the year with both the singles and multiple tag championships, but quickly lost the WAVE Tag Team Championship in January and then the Ice Ribbon Tag Team Championship in March. She held onto the singles championship until July however, and picked up wins over Misaki Ohata, Yuki Miyazaki, and Moeka Haruhi along the way. She cooled off the second half of the year however and lost singles matches to Nagisa Nozaki and Yumi Ohka, keeping her out of the title scene. Ryo will look to climb back to her old spot in 2018.

7.  Mayu Iwatani (Stardom)

Championships Held: High Speed Championship, Wonder of Stardom Championship, and the World of Stardom Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Kairi Hojo on 5/14, vs. Io Shirai on 6/21, vs. Yoko Bito on 7/16, vs. Kagetsu on 8/13, vs. Yoko Bito on 9/23
Best Match: vs. Io Shirai on 6/21

Sometimes the perfect story gets spoiled by a force outside anyone’s control, which was the case for Mayu in 2017. She should be much higher on this list but fate was not on her side. The first half of the year was set up to position Mayu as a potential Ace of the company – she defeated Kairi Hojo for the Wonder of Stardom Championship in May and then beat Io Shirai for the World of Stardom Championship in June, making her the undisputed top wrestler in Stardom. But then Io Shirai didn’t leave for WWE as expected, and even worse, Mayu was injured in September and missed the rest of the year. So 2017 concluded with Mayu holding no titles, and Io Shirai back to resume her role as Ace. Mayu still had a very good year but it could have been better, she’ll look to rebuild in January 2018 when she returns from injury.

8.  Misaki Ohata (Pro Wrestling WAVE)

Championships Held: Regina Di WAVE Championship, International Ribbon Tag Team Championship, and the WAVE Tag Team Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Ryo Mizunami on 2/11, with Mizunami vs. Kurumi and Tsukushi on 3/26, vs. Rina Yamashita on 10/9, vs. Nagisa Nozaki on 11/16
Best Match: with Ryo Mizunami vs. Best Friends in SEAdLINNNG on 8/24

Like Ryo Mizunami, Misaki Ohata entered the year with both the WAVE and Ice Ribbon Tag Team Championships. She also won the Regina Di WAVE Championship, defeating Rina Yamashita in October, but lost the belt before the end of the year against Yumi Ohka. Ohata was a very active champion however, and in less than three months had five successful defenses, including wins over Nagisa Nozaki and Manami Katsu. Ohata ended the year with no belts, so she’ll have her work cut out for her in 2018.

9.  Hanako Nakamori (PURE-J)

Championships Held: JWP Openweight Championship, JWP/Daily Sports Tag Team Championship, and the PURE-J Openweight Championship
Biggest Matches:  with Kimura vs. Bolshoi and Leon on 1/9, vs. Yoneyama on 3/8, vs. Kuragaki on 4/2, vs. Manami Katsu on 10/9, vs. DASH Chisako on 12/27
Best Match: vs. Manami Katsu on 10/9

Nakamori is in an interesting position, as she was the clear leader of a promotion with very little TV time, so most of her matches were not available for easy viewing. I purchased some JWP/PURE J DVDs just so I could keep up, but I certainly recognize that even more hardcore Joshi fans may have only seen a handful of Hanako matches in 2017. Still, she had a very good year, as she easily transitioned from being the JWP Openweight Champion to the PURE-J Openweight Champion when JWP officially closed and PURE-J was launched in its place. As JWP Champion, she had wins over Leon, Kaori Yoneyama, and Tsubasa Kuragaki, while she did not have any successful defenses with the PURE-J Championship before losing it to DASH Chisako. I wouldn’t consider Hanako a great in-ring wrestler, but she still had a year worth discussing as she helped lead the struggling promotion.

10.  Rina Yamashita (Daijo Pro/Pro Wrestling WAVE)

Championships Held: Regina di WAVE Championship
Biggest Matches:  vs. Risa Sera on 3/26, vs. Ohata on  6/4, vs. Mizunami on 7/2, vs. ASUKA on 9/17, vs. Misaki Ohata on 10/9
Best Match: vs. Yoshiko in WAVE on 8/12

While Rina Yamashita did not have the numerous title reigns of most others in the Top 10, she asserted herself in so many promotions in 2017 and really raised her stock overall more than perhaps any other wrestler. Rina invaded SEAdLINNNG, Marvelous, Ice Ribbon, and OZ Academy throughout the year, and had big matches against Yoshiko, Hikaru Shida, and Risa Sera. In WAVE, Rina won the Catch the WAVE Tournament, defeating Misaki Ohata, and then beat Ryo Mizunami in July for the Regina di WAVE Championship. She had three successful defenses before losing the title to Misaki Ohata in October, including wins over Yoshiko and ASUKA. On top of all that, Rina in-ring was fantastic in 2017, with many memorable matches. Keep an eye out for Rina Yamashita in 2018, her stock is only going to go up.

    

12. Yoshiko (SEAdLINNNG) – Yoshiko had a resurgence in 2017, as she had success in a number of promotions outside of her home base. She feuded with Rina Yamashita from Pro Wrestling WAVE, Takumi Iroha in Marvelous, and Hiroyo Matsumoto in OZ Academy, with a fair amount of success whenever she went. She won the OZ Academy Openweight Championship in October, her first title since leaving Stardom in 2015.  Yoshiko has also continued to excel in ‘hoss’ style matches, with entertaining brawls against a variety of opponents throughout the year.

13. Yoko Bito (Stardom) – Bito had an interesting year and would have had a chance of being higher on the list, but she missed a few months due to injury and was simply outranked by too many other wrestlers in her own promotion. She did win two titles in the Stardom, including the Wonder of Stardom Championship which she won from Mayu Iwatani. Yoko Bito retired on December 24th, ending her wrestling career for a second time.

14. Tsukasa Fujimoto (Ice Ribbon) – While still the veteran face of Ice Ribbon, Fujimoto took a bit of a back seat in 2017. She held the Triangle Ribbon belt for half the year, which is a less serious title in Ice Ribbon, while concentrating on building up the younger wrestlers such as the DATE sisters. She did do a ‘tour’ of other promotions with Arisa Nakajima as Best Friends, perhaps for the last time, and still was putting on high end matches even though she wasn’t in the main event scene.

15. Takumi Iroha (Marvelous) – After a quiet year as she trained and grew in Marvelous, Iroha branched outside the promotion more in 2017. She won her first title since leaving Stardom in 2015, winning the WAVE Tag Team Championship with Rin Kadokura in September and they kept the titles through the end of the year. She also challenged for both the Regina di WAVE Championship and the Wonder of Stardom Championship during the year. In-ring, Iroha continued to improve as well, and overall for someone that is affiliated with a promotion with no TV deal, she had a fair amount of exposure and success.

    

17. Meiko Satomura (Sendai Girls’) – Meiko Satomura took the Tsukasa Fujimoto route in 2017, letting the younger wrestlers take over Sendai Girls’ while she mostly took a back seat. Satomura had a high number of singles losses (compared to past years) and only once challenged for the Sendai Girls’ World Championship, losing to Chihiro Hashimoto. Still, Satomura continued to excel in match quality and is one of the top in-ring wrestlers in Joshi wrestling.

18. Hikaru Shida (Freelancer) – Shida mostly had success in the tag scene in 2017, with her and Syuri dominating the first half of the year. Unfortunately for Shida, Syuri stopped wrestling in July to concentrate on MMA, leaving Shida with less of a purpose. She challenged for the OZ Academy Openweight Championship in August, but failed, and that was her last title match in Japan for the rest of the year. Shida is still a force in the ring and had many entertaining matches, but she’ll need to find her place next year to have more success.

19. Arisa Nakajima (Freelancer/SEAdLINNNG) – When I was compiling this list and doing research, I was shocked to see how much of a drop Nakajima had in 2017 compared to past years. Nakajima had no titles in 2017 and only had one title match period, which was a failed defense at the Ice Ribbon Triangle Ribbon Championship. She is only on the list at all because her matches as part of Best Friends were great, and she had some entertaining matches in SEAdLINNNG. I don’t know what the future holds for Nakajima, but she is still a high-end wrestler so I hope we see more of her in 2018.

20. Reika Saiki (Freelancer/TJP) – I really wanted a wrestler from Tokyo Joshi Pro here since the promotion got more popular in 2017, but they didn’t have a real dominate wrestler and since their wrestlers rarely go outside the promotion, they have limited visibility. Reika Saiki won the Princess of Princess Championship on August 26th from Yuka Sakazaki and held the title the rest of the year, with two successful defenses. She also had a fair amount of exposure outside of the promotion, as she is also a body builder and model. Saiki is definitely one to keep an eye on next year, however I think Miyu Yamashita will likely have the bigger year so watch for her as well.

The post Top 20 Joshi Wrestlers of 2017 appeared first on Joshi City.

It is pretty rare for Pro Wrestling WAVE to upload a full event to their WAVE Network, so when they do I feel obligated to review it. This is a big show for WAVE, with multiple title matches, a hardcore match, and an appearance by Chihiro Hashimoto! I will only be reviewing the Joshi matches, here is the card:

• Hiroe Nagahama, Mika Iida, and Moeka Haruhi vs. Miyuki Takase, SAKI, and Tae Honma
• Fairy Nihonbashi and Kyusei Ninja Ranmaru vs. Miki Tanaka and Sakura Hirota
• ASUKA vs. Chihiro Hashimoto
• Hardcore Match: Ayako Hamada and Yuki Miyazaki vs. Ryo Mizunami and Rina Yamashita
• WAVE Tag Team Championship: Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha vs. Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka
• Regina Di WAVE Championship: Misaki Ohata vs. Nagisa Nozaki

All the wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it.

Hiroe Nagahama, Mika Iida, and Moeka Haruhi vs. Miyuki Takase, SAKI, and Tae Honma

Mika and SAKI start the match and trade elbows, SAKI gets Mika to the mat first but Mika comes back with a side Russian leg sweep. Dropkick by Mika and she tags in Moeka, Hiroe comes in too and they both dropkick SAKI. Everyone poses on SAKI before Moeka gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a crossbody for two. SAKI sneaks in an atomic drop and tags in Tae, Tae pushes Moeka into her corner so Miyuki and SAKI can help attack her. Elbows by Tae but Moeka elbows her back and hits a running footstomp, she tags Mika back in and Mika hits a series of uppercuts. Tae avoids an elbow and applies a short armbar, but Mika quickly gets out of it. Irish whip by Mika but Tae hits a DDT, she picks up Mika but Mika rolls her to the mat and applies an ankle hold. Tae reverses it into an ankle hold of her own but Mika reverses it back, Miyuki eventually breaks things up and Tae drags Mika to the mat with a cross armbreaker takedown. That gets broken up as well, Tae tags in Miyuki and Miyuki dropkicks Mika a few times in the chest. Uppercut by Mika and she nails a sliding uppercut before making the tag to Hiroe. Dropkick by Hiroe and she hits a vertical suplex for a two count cover. Back up they trade strikes, Miyuki wins the exchange and Tae and SAKI both come in as they triple team Hiroe. Headbutt by Miyuki, she gets Hiroe on her shoulders and hits a rolling fireman’s carry for a two count. Miyuki gets on the second turnbuckle but Hiroe rolls out of the way of her dive, Moeka runs in and she hits a double wrist-clutch suplex. Dropkick by Mika to Moeka, and Hiroe follows with a missile dropkick for a two count. Hiroe picks up Miyuki and delivers a spear, but Miyuki barely kicks out of the cover. Backdrop suplex hold by Hiroe, and this time she gets the three count! Hiroe Nagahama, Mika Iida, and Moeka Haruhi win!

As much as a pleasure it is to see Hiroe Nagahama slowly grow into a solid wrestler, this match was a bit rough around the edges. Tae and Miyuki are still early enough in their careers that they could be great wrestlers one day, but they aren’t yet, and Moeka still has issues on some of the fundamentals. It was too short to be offensive, but a pretty skippable opener even though it was more painfully average than bad.

Fairy Nihonbashi and Kyusei Ninja Ranmaru vs. Miki Tanaka and Sakura Hirota

Now before the match starts, they switch teams, so it ends up being Ranmaru and Miki vs. Fairy and Sakura. I’m not sure how they officially handled this for their official results, but since it is a comedy match it doesn’t really matter. They end up switching again as Miki and and Fairy stand on the same side, but that also ends up backfiring and all four stare at each other again. They are taking “goofy” to a whole new level, I have no doubt this appeals to some people but I am not one of them. The teams go back to how we started, Fairy does Fairy things and Miki follows suit with a fairy dance of her own. Ranmaru comes in, shoulderblock by Miki to Ranmaru and Ranmaru does some slow motion comedy ala Kikutaro/Kamen. Fairy comes in with her wand and tries to toss Miki with it but Miki doesn’t go over. Sakura tags in and Fairy promptly throws her around with the wand, Sakura grabs Fairy’s arm and goes to walk the ropes, but Fairy breaks away and tries to wand her off the turnbuckle. Sakura ends up crotching herself on the top rope, she tags in Miki and Miki hits a few shoulderblocks onto Fairy. Ranmaru comes in but gets knocked to the mat as well, Sakura returns and Miki catapults her onto Ranmaru and Fairy. Miki and Sakura are thrown into each other, Miki chops all three of them in the head before pushing all three opponents to the mat. Miki covers all three with a single foot, and she picks up the three count! Miki Tanaka and Sakura Hirota win the match.

Even by Fairy and Sakura standards this seemed subpar, I wouldn’t recommend anyone to watch this match.

ASUKA vs. Chihiro Hashimoto

They tie-up to start and jockey for position, but neither can get a clear advantage. They go at it again, both wrestlers end up on the mat switching positions until Chihiro applies a guillotine. ASUKA gets out of it and Chihiro goes for a fireman’s carry, but ASUKA lands on her feet. ASUKA goes for one on Chihiro but Chihiro returns the favor, Chihiro goes for a stretch hold but ASUKA gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Fireman’s carry takeover by ASUKA and she applies an armbar, but Chihiro gets to the ropes. Back up, waistlock by Chihiro and she applies a modified abdominal stretch, but ASUKA gets the break. Gutwrench suplex by Chihiro and she covers ASUKA, getting a two count. She goes for a second but ASUKA reverses it into a suplex of her own, she goes up top and she delivers a missile dropkick followed by the Space Rolling Elbow. Dropkick by ASUKA, and she covers Chihiro for two. Chihiro drives ASUKA into the corner and hits a few shoulderblocks, scoop slam by Chihiro and she delivers a couple sentons for a two count cover. Chihiro picks up ASUKA but ASUKA slides away and hits a superkick, dropkick by ASUKA and Chihiro rolls out of the ring. ASUKA goes off the ropes and sails out onto Chihiro with a tope con hilo, ASUKA slides Chihiro back in and hits a series of elbows. Boot by ASUKA but Chihiro flips her to the mat and applies a cross armbreaker, but the bell rings as the ten minute time limit has expired. The match is a Draw. They continue to fight after the bell until they are finally separated, ASUKA wants five more minutes and it is granted, so the match re-starts!

Chihiro immediately tackles ASUKA and hits a rolling fireman’s carry, she gets on the second turnbuckle but ASUKA avoids the senton and dropkicks Chihiro into the corner. ASUKA goes for a moonsault out of the corner but Chihiro moves, ASUKA lands on her feet and she hits a dropkick followed by a springboard moonsault for a two count. ASUKA and Chihiro trade elbows, body block by Chihiro and she goes for a German suplex, but ASUKA lands on her feet and hits a suplex for two. ASUKA goes off the ropes but Chihiro hits a spear, she gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers the somersault senton for a two count. Chihiro scoops up ASUKA but ASUKA slides away, lariat by Chihiro but the cover gets two. Chihiro goes off the ropes but ASUKA dropkicks her, she goes off the ropes again but Chihiro lariats her and hits the waterwheel drop, but ASUKA barely gets a shoulder up. Chihiro goes up top and nails a diving somersault senton, but ASUKA applies a quick crucifix pin for two. Chihiro drags up ASUKA but ASUKA blocks the suplex and rolls up Chihiro for a two count. Boot by ASUKA and she slams Chihiro in front of the corner, she goes up top but Chihiro rolls out of the way of the moonsault attempt. Short range lariats by Chihiro but she can’t get the three count, another lariat by Chihiro but the bell rings before she can attempt another cover. The match is officially a Draw.

This match started slow and they made it too obvious they were going for a Draw, but once it picked up it really got going. The best part of the match was the five minute overrun, as they went from feeling each other out earlier in the match to just throwing bombs and trying everything to win. Both are still developing as wrestlers but they are getting there quickly, and in this case I don’t mind the Draw as it is a good starting point if they battle again later on. A quality midcard match, it had its flaws but overall it was entertaining.  Recommended

Ayako Hamada and Yuki Miyazaki vs. Ryo Mizunami and Rina Yamashita
Hardcore Match

In the ring with the wrestlers is already a table and various other weapons, so they won’t be wasting any time. There appears to not be tag rules as immediately start battling on the floor, throwing various weapons at each other. Miyazaki puts a ladder in the ring while Hamada takes Mizunami up into the crowd and tosses her into a wall. Miyazaki sets up a table at ringside, she drags Yamashita onto the table with her and drills her with a piledriver through it. Mizunami fights back against Hamada but gets kicked in the head for her troubles, she sets up Mizunami on a chair and goes for a lariat, but Mizunami moves and drop toeholds Hamada onto it. Yamashita has regained the advantage on her end and gets the push cart, Mizunami grabs a tire and hits Hamada with it. They finally all end up back at ringside, Mizunami hits Hamada with a trash can lid but Hamada boots her in the face. They all get in the ring with Hamada and Miyazaki in control, they both sit their opponents into a chair before delivering dropkicks. Yamashita is bleeding pretty good at this point while Miyazaki throws a chair at Mizunami’s head, Hamada lays the ladder over the top rope, she tries to throw Mizunami into it but Mizunami slams on the breaks. Hamada gets a chair while Mizunami gets the trash can lid, Hamada throws the chair at Mizunami’s head again and throws Mizunami face-first into the ladder. Mizunami gets hit in the head again with a chair as she is bleeding also, she gets tossed out of the ring while Hamada stays in with Yamashita, but Yamashita throws Hamada into a chair. Miyazaki returns and DDTs Yamashita, she gets the ladder and pins Yamashita into the corner with it but slips when she tries to run up the ladder. She hits Yamashita anyway before setting up and climbing the ladder, but Yamashita recovers and joins her, hitting a superplex down to the mat. Knee to the back of the head by Yamashita, she gets a board and cracks Miyazaki repeatedly in the head with it.

Yamashita goes up top while Mizunami feeds her a trash can, Yamashita puts on the trash can but Miyazaki moves when she goes for a dive. Miyazaki goes up top and tries to hit Yamashita with a sign, but she hits Hamada by accident. Mizunami finally gets back into the ring and helps double team Hamada, elbows by Mizunami to Hamada and Yamashita delivers a superkick. Lariat by Mizunami and she covers Hamada, but it gets a two count. Mizunami and Yamashita set up a table and a ladder in opposite corners, Hamada charges Mizunami but Mizunami suplexes her onto the ladder. Miyazaki returns with a chair and knocks down both her opponents, Miyazaki picks up Yamashita but Yamashita suplexes her onto a chair. Mizunami goes up top and tries to catapult the ladder into Miyazaki, which misses. Yamashita hits a backdrop suplex anyway for a two count, Mizunami puts the table across the corner and goes up top while Yamashita feeds her Miyazaki, but Miyazaki recovers and elbows Mizunami. Miyazaki gets Mizunami on her shoulders while standing on the table and hits an avalanche Samoan Driver, but Yamashita breaks up the cover. Miyazaki goes up top but Mizunami avoids the moonsault, Miyazaki blocks her lariat attempts with a chair until Mizunami punches through it, nailing Miyazaki in the head. She goes for a dragon suplex but Hamada runs in and breaks it up, lariat by Mizunami to Miyazaki and Yamashita follows with one of her own. Dragon suplex by Mizunami, but Hamada breaks it up. Mizunami picks up Miyazaki but Hamada tosses Yamashita into her, Miyazaki picks up Mizunami but Hamada kicks Miyazaki in the head by accident. Lariat by Yamashita to Miyazaki, Mizunami picks her up but Miyazaki sneaks in a kiss/cradle for two. Gedo Clutch by Miyazaki, and she picks up the three count! Ayako Hamada and Yuki Miyazaki are the winners.

While I do appreciate some variety on my wrestling cards, this one really didn’t hit the mark. It had some good spots in it, but also had some very noticeable mistakes and wrestlers would just disappear for long chunks of time. The ending was also really anti-climatic for a hardcore match, while it was a typical way for Miyazaki to win, I wouldn’t have minded something a bit more memorable to fit the match stipulation. It wasn’t necessarily bad, just random carnage with little purpose.

(c) Rin Kadokura and Takumi Iroha vs. Mio Momono and Yumi Ohka
WAVE Tag Team Championship

Takumi and Mio start the match, Takumi takes Mio to the mat and applies a side headlock before pushing her into the ropes. Rin comes in and they both elbow Mio, drop toehold/dropkick combination by NEW-TRA and Takumi hits a scoop slam. Snap vertical by Takumi, and she covers Mio for two. Takumi tags in Rin, Rin twists up Mio in the ropes and delivers a dropkick to the back. Another dropkick by Rin, Takumi comes in but Mio avoids a double dropkick and sends both her opponents to the mat. This gives her time to tag in Ohka, Ohka boots Rin a few times in the face but Rin snaps off a DDT before dropkicking Ohka. Ohka comes back and boots Rin again in the corner, Ohka tags in Mio and Mio scoop slams Rin. Rin blocks the next one and hits a slam of her own, but Mio grabs her and hits another scoop slam before applying a short armbar. Cross armbreaker by Mio but Takumi breaks it up, Mio tags in Ohka and Ohka puts Rin in a camel clutch. Mio runs in and dropkicks Rin, cover by Ohka but it gets two. Ohka tags Mio back in, assisted dropkick to Rin and Ohka slams Mio onto Rin for a two count cover. The beatdown of Rin continues until Mio accidentally dropkicks Ohka (twice), cannonball by Rin to Ohka and she covers the veteran for two. Rin tags Takumi, shoulderblock by Takumi to Ohka but Mio comes in to try to help. She doesn’t and Takumi handles both of them, kicks and elbows by Takumi to Ohka until a superkick sends Ohka to the mat.

Takumi picks up Ohka but Ohka switches positions with her and hits a DDT. Heel drop by Ohka and she boots Takumi in the face for two. Ohka tags in Mio, Mio goes up top and she hits a diving crossbody onto Takumi. Running crossbody by Mio, but Takumi kicks out of the cover. Takumi gets Mio on her shoulders and hits a helicopter slam, she goes for a powerbomb but Mio gets out of it. Superkick by Takumi and she goes for another powerbomb, but Mio slides down her back with a cradle for two. Mio goes off the ropes and applies the bodyscissors cradle, but Rin breaks it up. Mio charges Takumi and goes for the Code Red, but Takumi blocks it and drops Mio with the B Driver. Takumi tags in Rin, jumping DDT by Rin and she delivers a missile dropkick for a two count. Ohka comes in and boots Rin, Mio goes for another Code Red but Rin blocks it and slams Mio onto Ohka. Takumi comes in and they hit a catapult Fameasser, cover by Rin but Mio gets a shoulder up. Rin goes off the ropes and cradles Mio, but Ohka breaks it up. Hurricanrana by Rin, but that gets broken up as well. Mio sneaks in a cradle of her own for two, Takumi tries to kick Mio but she hits Rin by accident. Chokebomb by Ohka to Rin, Mio applies a jackknife but Takumi breaks it up. Ohka gets Rin up and hits a delayed vertical suplex, Code Red by Mio but Takumi breaks it up again. Mio jumps on Ohka’s shoulders but Rin avoids it when Ohka tosses Mio down onto her, Mio goes off the ropes but Rin pops her up so that Takumi can hit a superkick. Rin grabs Mio and delivers a standing crucifix bomb for the three count! Rin Kadokura and Takumi Ohka are still the champions!

A decent match but I think they over-played the Mio/Ohka miscommunications to the point it was almost comical. Not all the spots were timed well so it looked like Mio was intentionally hitting her own partner, and there was just a lack of chemistry in general between Mio and Ohka. NEW-TRA looked good as they tend to however, and when they were in control the match was solid. Rin continues to improve and I think she has quite a future if she keeps at it as her moveset is really fun. Certainly more good than bad, the Mio/Ohka dynamic just took me out of the match a few times with how over-the-top or awkward some of their interactions were.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Misaki Ohata vs. Nagisa Nozaki
Regina Di WAVE Championship

Nozaki asks for a handshake but pulls in Ohata in the process to go for a choke, Ohata rolls out of it however and goes for a lariat, but Nozaki ducks it and goes for the choke again. Ohata bounces off the ropes to break out of the hold and hits a hard elbow, cover by Ohata but Nozaki applies the sleeper. Ohata manages to slide out of the ring to get out of it, Ohata snaps Nozaki’s neck over the top rope as she gets back in the ring but Nozaki applies a choke while Ohata is still on the apron. The referee forces her to break the hold, back in the ring Nozaki slaps Ohata in the chest but Ohata chokes her before slamming Nozaki’s head into the mat. Nozaki takes back over and puts Ohata in an abdominal stretch, single leg crab hold by Nozaki but Ohata gets to the ropes for the break. Kicks by Nozaki and she puts Ohata in a modified camel clutch, she lets go after biting Ohata’s arm but Ohata blocks her elbow attempt and stomps on Nozaki’s foot. Nozaki avoids Ohata’s dropkick attempts and applies a sleeper, but Ohata quickly gets into the ropes. Running boot by Nozaki, she goes onto the apron and tries to kick Ohata in the back of the head, but Ohata catches her leg and applies an ankle hold through the ropes. The referee eventually gets her to let go and she knocks Nozaki down to the floor, Ohata goes up top and dives down onto Nozaki with a plancha suicida. Back in the ring, Ohata goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick, picking up a two count cover.

Ohata gets on the second turnbuckle but Nozaki recovers and joins her, Ohata slides under her and delivers a powerbomb for two. Ohata quickly goes back up top and hits a diving body press, but Nozaki kicks out of the cover again. Stunner by Ohata and she hits a low crossbody against the ropes, she charges Nozaki again but Nozaki hits her with a big boot. Another boot by Nozaki and she snaps off an underhook suplex for a two count. Nozaki goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, she goes for a suplex but Ohata pushes her off and the two trade strikes. Nozaki finally wins the battle with a big boot, she kicks Ohata in the back of the head before applying a roll into the sleeper hold. Ohata appears to go limp, Nozaki covers her but Ohata gets a shoulder up. Somato by Nozaki, but that gets a two count as well. She goes for the sleeper again but Ohata kicks her in the head and hits a release German, Nozaki pops up but Ohata drops her with a second release German suplex. Back fist by Ohata but Nozaki blocks the suplex attempt and slaps on the sleeper. Ohata rolls out of it this time and holds down Nozaki for a two count, boot to the face by Nozaki but Ohata kicks out of the cover. Nozaki goes off the ropes but Ohata avoids the boot and hits a back fist, Fisherman Buster by Ohata and she covers Nozaki for two. Ohata picks up Nozaki but Nozaki slides away, Ohata catches her with the Schwein however before nailing the Sky Blue Suplex Hold for the three count! Misaki Ohata is still the champion.

First, the good stuff. Misaki Ohata is a treat to watch and I’m happy she finally got a run of big matches in WAVE as she has deserved it for awhile. She has a variety of ways to beat down an opponent and her arsenal keeps her matches interesting. The pair have pretty good chemistry and there weren’t any noticeable miscommunications or issues. Now the not so good stuff – while I think it is cool that Nagisa Nozaki came back to Joshi, she really isn’t good enough for this level of match. Her offense is extremely one dimensional as the bulk of her moves are either boots or sleeper attempts. I hate when wrestlers release their submission holds for no reason, she beat Mizunami with the sleeper so why would she let go of it against Ohata? It just got a bit repetitive with her continually going for the same move, and because of that the match felt a bit too long (even though it wasn’t a long match). Overall I enjoyed it as it was pretty well-worked and exciting, I just hope that Nozaki grows her arsenal a bit before she has more high level matches.  Mildly Recommended

The post Pro Wrestling WAVE “Topaz” on 11/26/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

*I am slowing bringing my Joshi Reviews from Puroresu Central over to Joshi City so I can have all my Joshi reviews in one place. Some features of my current reviews on this site may be missing as my style has changed over the years, however I will have it match the Joshi City review format as closely as I can. The original review date can be found at the bottom of the review, I will try not to make any major changes to the text unless I see something that needs clarifying or correcting.*

After a few long months we are returning to Oz! That might be a bad pun. Anyway this is an Oz Academy super show of sorts as it is a joint show with Pro Wrestling WAVE and Zuban (Zuban is the parent company of Pro Wrestling WAVE). So we get some matches from the Catch the Wave Tournament and other random matches as well as wrestlers from both promotions collide. Here is the full card:

• Kagetsu and Kaho Kobayashi vs. Kana and Konami
• Manami Toyota, AKINO, and Rina Yamashita vs. Tsubasa Kuragaki, Hikaru Shida, and Sawako Shimono 
• CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Round 3: Cherry vs. Ryo Mizunami
• Aja Kong and Mei Lee vs. Dynamite Kansai and Fairy Nipponbashi
• Chikayo Nagashima and Ayako Hamada vs. Sonoko Kato and Yuu Yamagata
• CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Round 3: “Kyusei” Sakura Hirota vs. Misaki Ohata
• Mayumi Ozaki, Miyako Matsumoto, Mio Shirai, and Yumi Ohka vs. Moeka Haruhi, Tsukasa Fujimoto, Hiroe Nagahama, and Mika Iida

Most of the Joshi wrestlers above profiles on the website, you can click on their names to go straight to it.

Kagetsu and Kaho Kobayashi vs. Kana and Konami

Konami and Kagetsu start off the match and they trade holds on the mat, Kagetsu gets the better of it and she throws Konami into the corner because she wants Kana.  Kana tags in, Kana gets Kagetsu to the mat but Kagetsu applies a side headlock.  Kana Irish whips out of it but fails at the shoulderblock.  They trade elbows but Kana hits a hip attack.  Kana picks up Kagetsu, Irish whip, but Kagetsu hits a dropkick.  Kagetsu tags in Kobayashi, dropkick by Kobayashi and she hits another one, but Kana stays up.  Kobayashi dropkicks Kana in the knee and then in the head, but Kana elbows her and kicks Kobayashi in the back.  Kana tags in Konami, and Kagetsu kicks Kobayashi in the corner.  Snapmare by Konami and she kicks Kobayashi, but Kobayashi hits a scoop slam.  Crab hold by Kobayashi but Konami makes it to the ropes.  Kobayashi tags in Kagetsu, Kagetsu knocks Kana off the apron and they both kick Konami.  Face crusher by Kobayashi and Kagetsu dropkicks Konami in the face.  Senton by Kobayashi and Kagetsu drops Kobayashi onto Konami.  Double elbow drop to Konami, Kagetsu picks up Konami and drives her into the corner before hitting a jumping elbow.  Konami fights back with kicks and she hits a schoolboy for two.  Konami tags in Kana and she hits a missile dropkick on Kagetsu. Kana kicks Kagetsu in the chest repeatedly, Irish whip to the corner and she hits a hip attack. 

Elbows by Kana and she applies a cross armbreaker, but Kobayashi breaks it up.  Kagetsu hits a high kick to Kana and she goes for a suplex, but Kana blocks it and spins her down into a short armbar.  Front necklock by Kana but Kagetsu suplexes out of it.  Kagetsu tags in Kobayashi and they trade elbows, Kobayashi grabs Kana but Kana gets the cross armbreaker applied.  Kagetsu quickly breaks it up and she rolls up Kana for a two count.  Fisherman suplex hold by Kobayashi, but Kana kicks out.  Kobayashi goes off the ropes but Kana hits a back kick followed by a sliding kick before tagging in Konami.  Konami kicks Kobayashi in the chest and she nails a high kick, she wraps up Kobayashi in a submission hold but Kagetsu breaks it up.  Konami applies an Octopus Hold to Kobayashi while Kana takes care of Kagetsu, but Kagetsu gets away from Kana and breaks it up.  Kana and Konami Irish whip Kobayashi but Kobayashi gets away and Kagetsu hits a swandive crossbody on both of them.  Senton by Kobayashi, she goes up top but Konami avoids the missile dropkick.  Schoolboy by Konami, but it gets two, as does the backslide.  Kick by Konami, she goes off the ropes but Kobayashi catches her with the 120% School Boy for the three count! Kagetsu and Kaho Kobayashi win!

This is one of the best openers I have seen in a good while.  First of all this was serious Kana, not face paint Kana, and while I enjoy her no matter what it is always nice to see her ass kicking side.  Lots of smart submissions and hard strikes here and the young wrestlers really held their own.  The only thing that hurt it was the one hard camera as the action was on point throughout, great way to start the show.  Recommended

Manami Toyota, AKINO, and Yamashita vs. Kuragaki, Hikaru Shida, and Sawako Shimono

Yamashita and Shimono start off but AKINO promptly come in to help and Shimono is double teamed.  Yamashita clubs Shimono and she hits a running double chop for a one count.  Back up they trade shots, lariat by Shimono but Yamashita returns the favor.  Judo throw by Shimono and she hits a seated senton for two.  Shimono tags in Shida and Shida hits a hip attack.  Irish whip by Shida but Yamashita blocks the next hip attack, hurricanrana by Shida and this time she connects with the hip attack.  Knees by Shida but Yamashita boots her for a two.  Yamashita tags in Toyota, Toyota wraps up Shida in the ropes but Shimono intercepts her.  Toyota puts her in the ropes also, but Kuragaki intercepts her this time.  Toyota hits a crossbody on all three of them as AKINO and Yamashita come in the ring, and all three hit dropkicks.  Shida hits an enzuigiri on Toyota but Toyota catches the hip attack.  Shida hits a vertical suplex and she tags in Kuragaki.  Jawbreaker by Kuragaki and she throws Toyota to the mat.  Toyota is triple teamed in the corner and Kuragaki hits a hard lariat.  Toyota rolls Kuragaki around the mat and she covers her for two.  Toyota goes up top and kills both herself and Kuragaki with a moonsault and she tags in AKINO. 

Missile dropkick by AKINO, she picks up Kuragaki but Kuragaki hits a backdrop suplex.  AKINO hits one of her own and she hits a bulldog.  Superkick by Kuragaki but AKINO hits a kick combination.  Lariats by Kuragaki but AKINO delivers a high kick.  Big lariat by Kuragaki and she tags in Shimono.  Shida runs in too as Shimono hits shoulderblocks on AKINO, Shimono picks up AKINO and she hits a Samoan Drop for two.  AKINO kicks Shimono in the head and she hits a backdrop suplex.  Cover, but it gets two.  AKINO goes for a PK but Shimono ducks it, AKINO applies a stretch hold but Shida hits her with a kendo stick.  Yamashita knocks Shimono into Shida, Toyota boots AKINO and Shimono applies a schoolboy for a two count.  Shimono positions AKINO, she goes up top but AKINO joins her.  Kuragaki throws AKINO back to the mat and Shimono hits a seated senton for two.  Shimono picks up AKINO but AKINO delivers a high kick.  Another kick by AKINO but Kuragaki breaks up the cover, the ring finally clears out, Shida hits AKINO from the floor with the kendo stick but AKINO snaps off a hurricanrana on Shimono for the three count! Manami Toyota, AKINO, and Rina Yamashita win the match.

This match way exceeded my expectations.  The middle section with Kuragaki and AKINO was just awesome.  Everyone looked good, it was fast paced, and it felt important.  Could have used more time and it took a bit of time to get going but still an entertaining tag match.  Recommended

Cherry vs. Ryo Mizunami

This match is part of the CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Tournament.  Mizunami hits a spear right off the bat, she then hits a leg lariat but it gets a two count.  Mizunami picks up Cherry and she hits a lariat, but Cherry fights back and hits a STO.  Mizunami hits a back bodydrop followed by a pair of leg drops but Cherry avoids the third. Dragon sleeper by Cherry and she hits a Final Cut for two.  Cherry goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, she picks up Mizunami and she hits an armdrag. Northern Lights Suplex hold by Cherry but it gets a two count.  Elbows by Mizunami and she hits a spear for a two count.  Cherry goes off the ropes and she kicks Mizunami in the head, powerslam by Mizunami but Cherry rolls her up for a two count.  Mizunami gets Cherry up on her shoulders and she hits the Argentine Facebuster, but Cherry rebounds and hits a series of chops.  Lariat by Mizunami and she hits a dragon suplex hold for two.  Diving Guillotine Leg Drop by Mizunami and she picks up the three count! Ryo Mizunami wins the match.

I won’t say this was a great match but a sprint was the right way to go.  Cherry doesn’t do much for me and if this was 15 minutes it wouldn’t have worked.  Mizunami is really good though and her moves were really on point. Too short to get excited about but still solid.

Aja Kong and Mei Lee vs. Dynamite Kansai and Fairy Nipponbashi

Kong and Nipponbashi start off but Kansai comes in the ring too and dancing around the ring. She gets Lee to dance too and it is Kong’s turn, but she leaves. They get her to come back but she won’t dance so Kansai kicks her.  Crossbody by Kong to Kansai and she pounds on Nipponbashi.  Kong tags in Lee so she can dance around with Nipponbashi.  Scoop slam by Nipponbashi and she hits a second one.  Nipponbashi tags in Kansai, and Lee and Kansai share a dance (this is not an overly serious match), but Lee punches her in the chest and tags in Kong.  Kong kicks at Kansai but Kansai takes off her mask and powers up.  Kansai and Kong trade lariats until Kansai knocks Kong off her feet.  Kansai picks up Kong and she delivers a high kick, but Nipponbashi gets her to put the mask back on.  Kansai covers Kong with the wand, but it gets two.  Kansai tags in Nipponbashi, Nipponbashi has the wand but Kong hits her and tags in Lee.  Nipponbashi throws around Lee with the wand so Lee tags Kong back in.  Nipponbashi tries the wand on Kong but Kong just shrugs.  Lee comes in, and she flies across the ring via wand wave.  It still doesn’t work on Kong but after a talking to, Kong finally is knocked over by the wand.  Kansai comes in and they all comfort Kong, and Nipponbashi gives Kong the wand to use.  Kong tries to use the wand but it doesn’t work for her, so she gets a metal box and hits them all in the head with it.  Kong hits a brainbuster on Nipponbashi, and she gets the three count! Aja Kong and Mei Lee win the match.

Ok so this was silly but Kong helped make this match by not playing along, finally doing it, and getting annoyed when no one else returned the favor.  So while it isn’t my thing it had a good story anyway, if you are a fan of Fairy’s comedy you’ll enjoy it.

Chikayo Nagashima and Ayako Hamada vs. Sonoko Kato and Yuu Yamagata

Nagashima and Kato start off and they lock knuckles, kicks by Kato and she hits a shoulderblock.  Kato kicks Nagashima in the back, Yamagata comes in the ring and Nagashima is double teamed.  Kato tags in Yamagata, Yamagata elbows Nagashima and she kicks Nagashima in the head.  Yamagata throws Nagashima into the corner but Nagashima applies an armbar over the top rope.  Nagashima tags in Hamada, Hamada headbutts Yamagata and she locks knuckles with her before stomping on Yamagata’s hands.  Hamada picks up Yamagata but Yamagata chops her.  They go back and forth  until Hamada knocks Yamagata into the corner, Yamagata ducks the rolling chop as Kato runs in but Hamada knocks Kato back.  Hamada grabs Yamagata’s arm, she walks the ropes and flips both Yamagata and Kato to the mat.  Nagashima runs in and hits a double face crusher, enzuigiri by Hamada but Yamagata hits a headscissors.  Yamagata tags in Kato, kicks by Kato to Hamada and she knocks her to the mat.  Nagashima grabs Kato from the apron to help, Kato ducks Hamada’s heel kick and Yamagata hits a jawbreaker on Hamada.  Cannonball by Kato to Hamada, she goes up top and Kato hits a cannonball off the top turnbuckle for a two.  Kato picks up Hamada, kick by Kato but Hamada punches her back.  Hamada wins the kick battle, she picks up Kato and hits a sit-down powerbomb for a two count.  Hamada tags in Nagashima, Nagashima goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick.  Cover, but it gets two.  Nagashima picks up Kato and knees her, she goes off the ropes but Kato catches her with a release German suplex.

Kato goes for a kick but Nagashima catches it and hits a quick leg whip.  Hamada runs in to help but she accidentally hits an enzuigiri on Nagashima.  Yamagata comes in and boots Nagashima, then Kato hits a rolling kick for two.  Kato goes to the second turnbuckle but Hamada rolls in and smacks her.  Nagashima climbs up with Kato and she hits a Frankensteiner.  Hamada goes up top and she hits a moonsault on Kato, Nagashima picks up Kato and she hits an uranage but the pin is broken up.  Nagashima goes off the ropes but Kato catches her with a powerbomb.  Head kick by Kato, cover, but it gets two.  Kato hits a dragon suplex hold by Nagashima, but the pin is broken up.  Yamagata is tagged in and she elbows Nagashima in the corner.  Yamagata goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick on Nagashima.  Nagashima catches Yamagata with an uranage, but Yamagata kicks out.  Nagashima picks up Yamagata, Hamada and Kato both run in, and Hamada helps Nagashima hit a tornado DDT.  Nagashima picks up Yamagata and she hits a fisherman buster, but Kato breaks it up.  Nagashima goes off the ropes and she hits a hurricanrana, but Kato breaks it up.  Head kick by Yamagata, she picks up Nagashima and she hits the Schwein, but Hamada breaks it up.  Enzuigiri by Yamagata to Nagashima but Nagashima rolls her up for two.  Kato goes up top and hits a diving leg drop on Nagashima, Yamagata picks up Nagashima and she delivers the La Ayakita for the three count! The winners are Sonoko Kato and Yuu Yamagata.

This started slow but really picked up by the end.  Lots of fun back and forths and the end was just chaos but in a good way.  It could have used some tightening up but all four of these women can go, definitely a fun watch.  Mildly Recommended

“Kyusei” Sakura Hirota vs. Misaki Ohata

This match is part of the CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Tournament.  Hirota and Ohata shake hands to start, they go to the mat but neither can get an advantage.  Back up they lock knuckles and Ohata flings Hirota to the mat.  Ohata boots Hirota in the corner but Hirota applies a grounded necklock.  Crab hold by Ohata and she gives Hirota a curb stomp for a two count.  Irish whip by Ohata but Hirota hits a back splash off the ropes, wristlock by Hirota but Ohata shrugs her off.  Small package by Hirota but it gets two.  Face crusher by Hirota, she grabs Ohata’s arm and walks the ropes and hits a springboard armdrag.  Ohata goes off the ropes and hits a crossbody, back elbow by Ohata and she hits a running crossbody in the corner.  Ohata goes up top and she hits a diving crossbody.  Waistlock by Ohata but Hirota rolls her up for a two count.  Ohata elbows Hirota but Hirota hits a lariat.  Hirota and Ohata trade elbows but Hirota applies a small package for two.  Irish whip by Hirota and she hits a rebound elbow strike.  Hirota kicks Ohata, she picks her up and Ohata hits a series of elbows.  Release German by Ohata and she hits a second one.  Another one by Ohata, she goes for a crucifix roll-up but Hirota blocks it.  Hirota goes to the ropes and hits a quebrada, but it only gets a two count.  Hirota goes up top and does a handstand but Ohata powerbombs her.  Ohata gets Hirota’s back and hits a crucifix bomb, but it gets a two count.  Ohata grabs Hirota and hits a fisherman buster, but Hirota barely gets a shoulder up.  Hirota trips Ohata and she hits an Oil Check, La Magistral by Hirota but it gets two.  Ohata picks up Hirota but Hirota hits a one arm suplex hold for two.  Hirota goes off the ropes, Ohata goes for a fisherman buster but Hirota cuts it back and rolls up Hirota for the three count! Sakura Hirota wins!

This is probably the best Hirota singles match I’ve seen, Ohata is great.  Hirota still had her silly moments and I don’t think she is a good wrestler, but Ohata controlled this one very well.  I liked the ending, cutbacks are a good way for underdogs to win and Hirota got in enough offense that it didn’t seem fluky.  Solid match, better than I expected.  Mildly Recommended

Mayumi Ozaki, Miyako Matsumoto, Mio Shirai, and Yumi Ohka 
vs. Moeka Haruhi, Tsukasa Fujimoto, Hiroe Nagahama, and Mika Iida

Matsumoto and Iida start off and they trade some introductory holds until Iida hits a dropkick.  Armdrag by Iida but all her teammates come in to help.  The action spills outside the ring, chairs are thrown around but it’s hard to see with the lighting.  Iida and Matsumoto return to the ring and Iida hits a missile dropkick for two.  Iida tags in Nagahama but Matsumoto beats down Nagahama and hits a scoop slam.  Iida tags in Shirai, and Nagahama is quadruple teamed in the corner.  Shirai grabs Nagahama and hits a vertical suplex for a two count.  Shirai applies a crab hold but it is broken up, Ohka gets in the ring and they take turns booting Nagahama.  Big boot by Ohka, cover, but Haruhi breaks it up.  Ohka tags in Matsumoto but Nagahama rolls up Matsumoto for a two count.  Dropkick by Nagahama and she tags in Fujimoto.  Fujimoto dropkicks all her opponents, snapmare to Matsumoto and she kicks her in the back.  Fujimoto tags in Haruhi and Haruhi applies a camel clutch to Matsumoto.  Haruhi tags in Iida, and Iida throws Matsumoto down by her hair.  Iida scoop slams Matsumoto and he does it a second time for a two count.  Iida tags in Nagahama, Nagahama slams Matsumoto and she delivers a dropkick.  Nagahama tags Haruhi and Haruhi throws down Matsumoto by her hair.  Iida is tagged in but Matsumoto gets away with help from interference and tags in Shirai.  Shirai boots Iida and covers her for two.  Short armbar by Shirai but Iida hits a reverse STO.  Dropkick by Iida but Ozaki chokes her with her whip.  Shirai goes for a kick but Iida catches her leg and applies an ankle hold. 

Shirai gets to the ropes, Iida hits a capture suplex hold but it gets two.  Iida tags in Fujimoto and she dropkicks Shirai in the corner.  Fujimoto picks up Shirai but Shirai elbows her and they trade shots.  Dropkick by Fujimoto but Shirai boots her back and applies a necklock over the top rope.  Shirai goes for a missile dropkick but Fujimoto moves out of the way.  Kicks to the back by Fujimoto and she hits a PK for a two count.  Fujimoto applies a crossface but it is quickly broken up.  Shirai gets a stick and bops people with it, cover by Shirai but it gets two.  Shirai tags in Ohka, Ohka stomps on Fujimoto but Fujimoto hits a dropkick.  Fujimoto applies a cross-arm submission but Ohka gets out of it.  Ohka swings Fujimoto around the ring, and Fujimoto is triple teamed against the ropes.  Diving Crossbody by Ohka, cover, but Fujimoto kicks out.  Ohka hits a heel drop but the pin is broken up.  Fujimoto fights back and tags in Haruhi, and Haruhi hits a diving crossbody on Ohka for a two count.  Haruhi hits a hurricanrana out of the corner and then she applies a headscissors into an armbar, but it is broken up.  Big boot by Ohka and she hits a backdrop suplex.  Ohka picks up Haruhi and she hits a brainbuster for another two.  Fujimoto runs in and hits a Shining Wizard, then Iida dropkicks Ohka against the ropes.  Haruhi hits a diving footstomp (lots of random stuff is happening, I’m keeping up the best I can), chaos ensues but things settle down with Haruhi and Ohka still in the ring.  Haruhi goes off the ropes but Ohka catches her with a chokebomb for two.  Big boot by Ohka, cover, and she gets the three count! Ozaki Army wins!

This was a bit crazy but it had to be as not all of these wrestlers are particularly great.  So it helped hide the flaws, even though the match did go so long that some of those flaws started peeking through anyway.  This could have been condensed but it is a very typical Oz main event, this is just the kind of match they enjoy.  Wrestling-wise it was pretty average but it kept my attention.

The post OZ Academy X ZABUN ~dagaya~ [ZEN] on 5/10/15 Review appeared first on Joshi City.