Event: FMWE “Battle Royal”
Date: September 12th, 2021
Location: Tsurumi Fruit and Vegetable Market in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Announced Attendance: 400
Broadcast: Streamed on zaiko.io

Before I was ever a fan of Joshi, or had even seen a single match, I was a big fan of hardcore “deathmatch” wrestling. Old school FMW, newer garbage feds, whatever I could find. I never got into Big Japan but anything with fire and/or explosions I was interested. So as you can imagine, I was really excited when Onita started a new promotion literally called FMW Explosion. As you can guess, lots of matches on their events have explosions, either from bats or barbed wire boards. Onita further got on my good side by using Joshi wrestlers in his new promotion, and they announced a “Joshi Current Blast Princess Tournament” that began on this event. So, I am going to review the Joshi matches on the show, there were supposed to be three but Thekla’s match with Akane Fujita was cancelled due to Akane not appearing. Here are the matches I’ll be watching:

• Joshi Current Blast Princess Tournament Round 1: An Chamu vs. Miss Mongol
• Dangerous Demon Stick Current Blast Match: Abdullah Kobayashi and Risa Sera vs. Isami Kodaka and Suzu Suzuki

This will be a quick review but I had to give attention to this amazing promotion. All Joshi wrestlers on the event have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it.

An Chamu vs. Miss Mongol
Joshi Current Blast Princess Tournament
One great thing about small odd promotions like this is you get random matches that you’d never see anywhere else. An Chamu is 23 years old and roams around various smaller promotions, her technical home is Shinsyu Girls but she also wrestles in Ice Ribbon as well as other places. She isn’t ranked very high anywhere she goes, but does have a following as she is quirky. She is against the super veteran Miss Mongol, who wrestled in the original FMW from 1995 to 1998 and has floated around since then mostly in indies. Miss Mongol clearly has the experience edge here and is a FMW alum so she goes in as the favorite by a significant margin.

Chamu attacks Miss Mongol first and elbows her into the ropes, dropkick by Chamu and she hits two more, but Miss Mongol stays up. Chamu dropkicks Miss Mongol down in the corner and already hits the button to turn on the Demon Stick, she gets the barbed wire bat but Miss Mongol turns it back off. Irish whip by Chamu to the corner but Miss Mongol blocks it and throws Chamu to the mat. Stomps by Miss Mongol and she throws Chamu into the corner, Miss Mongol charges Chamu and jumps down on top of her. Vertical suplex by Miss Mongol, and she covers Chamu for a two count. Miss Mongol elbows Chamu in the butt a few times, she gets a chain and drives Chamu’s head into it repeatedly. Chamu rolls out of the ring to re-group as multiple wrestlers check on her, but Miss Mongol gets tired of waiting and goes out to supervise. She eventually grabs Chamu and leads her around the ring, throwing her into the ring post. Back in the ring, Miss Mongol gets a barbed wire bat and pushes it into Chamu’s bleeding head. Miss Mongol sits on Chamu’s back and rakes her face with the barbed wire bat some more, scoop slam by Miss Mongol and she hits an elbow drop for a two count. Miss Mongol pushes Chamu’s head into the barbed wire bat some more until Chamu rolls out of the ring, holding her head. She returns after a moment on her own, snapmare by Miss Mongol and she applies a crab hold. Chamu gets to the ropes for the break, Miss Mongol gets Chamu on her shoulders but Chamu slides around and puts Miss Mongol in a sleeper hold.

Miss Mongol drives Chamu back into the corner to get out of the hold, and squishes the referee too in the process. A ref bump in a no DQ deathmatch, good times. Miss Mongol takes the opportunity to wrap her chain over Chamu’s neck and hang her over the top rope, the referee recovers and manages to get her to stop. Scoop slam by Miss Mongol, she puts the chain on Chamu’s chest and hits a running senton for two. Miss Mongol picks up Chamu but Chamu quickly applies a roll-up for two. Miss Mongol fires back with a lariat, she wraps the chain around her fist but Chamu blocks the punch and hits a DDT. Irish whip by Chamu and she hits a jumping crossbody, but that gets a two as well. Chamu then goes to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving crossbody, but Miss Mongol kicks out. Chamu pushes the button to turn on the explosive barbed wire bat, she picks it up but Miss Mongol blocks her from using it. High kick by Chamu and she hits a running knee for a two count, she grabs the bat again but Miss Mongol ducks her swing and hits a backdrop suplex. Miss Mongol gets Chamu on her shoulders but Chamu slides off, high kicks by Chamu but Miss Mongol hits her with the regular barbed wire bat. She then picks up the explosive barbed wire bat and hits Chamu in the ribs with it, setting off the big explosion! Cover by Miss Mongol, and she picks up the three count. Miss Mongol wins and advances in the tournament!

This match was definitely something. I can’t tell if An Chamu is a great seller or didn’t know what she was getting herself into, as she was reacting very strongly (and sometimes in non-traditional way) to some of the hardcore spots. I think the barbed wire bat explosion legitimately hurt her and a few times wrestlers at ringside appeared to be checking on her more than you’d expect. But it fit the theme of the match anyway, with the experienced veteran controlling the younger wrestler that was out of her element. The match was mostly about the explosion, which didn’t disappoint, and I enjoyed Chamu’s unique take. Miss Mongol is very limited so there was a definite ceiling on how good this match could be, but it was fascinating in its own way and kept me hooked even if the action itself was generally lackluster.  Mildly Recommended

Abdullah Kobayashi and Risa Sera vs. Kodaka and Suzu Suzuki
Dangerous Demon Stick Current Blast Match

This isn’t a tournament match but it is the continuation of Suzu Suzuki’s trek to being the best Joshi deathmatch wrestler. Needless to say, it is incredibly rare for a young and successful Joshi wrestler to strive to be a deathmatch wrestler, but so far in 2021 that is exactly what Suzu is doing. She competed in a series of deathmatch matches this year against some of the best (male) hardcore/deathmatch wrestlers on the scene, and has said in interviews that this is what she really wants to do which is pretty awesome. She is still one of the top young wrestlers of Ice Ribbon, I can’t help but feel that at some point she is going to have to choose but for now I am enjoying both versions of Suzu. She teams with Isami Kodaka, a 20 year veteran of hardcore matches best known for his long career in Big Japan. On the other side, they face Risa Sera, also an Ice Ribbon wrestler known for her hardcore style, and Kobayashi who is a limited but respected hardcore wrestler also best known for his work in Big Japan. I don’t know if this match will be “good” but with a Dangerous Demon Stick I am still excited.

Suzu and Kodaka attack before the match starts and the action immediately spills out of the ring. Kodaka gets a trashcan full of weapons and gives it to Suzu in the ring before he throws Abdullah into the ring post. Risa joins Suzu in the ring and gets her barbed wire kendo stick, but Suzu ducks her swing and delivers a dropkick. Suzu rolls out of the ring with Risa while the guys get in the ring, Abdullah and Kodaka trade strikes but Kodaka sidesteps when Abdullah goes for a jumping chop. Kodaka finds a guitar and hits Abdullah in the head with it, while outside the ring Risa controls Suzu with her kendo stick. Kodaka knocks Abdullah out of the ring and goes out after him, as all four are back on the floor. Abdullah tries to hit Kodaka with a spinning fan but Kodaka blocks it, meanwhile on the other side Risa rubs her barbed wire kendo stick into Suzu’s bleeding head. Kodaka and Abdullah get back in the ring, Kodaka gets a regular barbed wire bat and scrapes Abdullah across the face with it. Abdullah takes it from him but accidentally ends up hitting himself and they end up on the floor again. Risa and Suzu are in the same situation, but Risa comes over and hits Kodaka with her barbed wire kendo stick to help her partner. Kodaka and Risa return to the ring as Risa hits Kodaka again with the kendo stick, she picks up Kodaka but Kodaka blocks the suplex attempt. Risa eventually connects with it while outside we see Suzu hit Abdullah low with a kendo stick. Suzu and Abdullah get in the ring so now all four are in, while Risa pokes Kodaka with the barbed wire kendo stick.

DDT by Abdullah on Suzu, she picks her up but Kodaka comes over to help. He doesn’t help much as Abdullah levels Kodaka with a lariat, Suzu charges in but Abdullah punches her to the mat. Risa turns on the explosive barbed wire bat by hitting the BIG BUTTON, she grabs the bat but Kodaka turns it off before she can use it. Frankensteiner by Kodaka to Abdullah, and Suzu dropkicks Abdullah out of the ring. Kodaka grabs Risa but Risa elbows him off, fireman’s carry slam by Risa and she gets the trashcan. Kodaka takes it from her and hits Risa repeatedly with the trash can, he puts the trashcan over Risa’s head and goes to the top turnbuckle. Risa takes it off before he can jump and hits Kodaka with it, she puts the trash can in the middle of the ring and throws Kodaka onto it from the turnbuckle. Suzu drops Risa with a missile dropkick but Risa ducks her kick and powerbombs her into the corner. She puts the barbed wire kendo stick on Suzu before nailing a running double knee strike, she gets Suzu over her shoulder but Suzu slides away and hits a jumping kick. German suplex by Suzu, she grabs the explosive barbed wire bat and turns it on. She faces Risa but Abdullah pushes the button and turns the bat back off, double Irish whip to Abdullah but he breaks through a double lariat and thrusts both Suzu and Kodaka in the throat. Double elbow drop by Abdullah, while Risa hits the button and grabs the explosive bat. Abdullah holds Kodaka and Suzu for Risa, while Risa takes a swing and hits both Suzu and Kodaka in the stomach with the explosive barbed wire bat. BIG EXPLOSION. Suzu and Kodaka writhe around in pain, Risa covers Suzu and she picks up the three count! Risa Sera and Abdullah Kobayashi are the winners!

Well at least we got that big explosion which is the important thing. The bulk of this match was pretty uninspired and it was slow to get going, but once all four were involved towards the end it got better. The outside-the-ring walk and brawl isn’t my favorite type of wrestling and they did a fair amount of that, and with Abdullah’s limitations whatever he was doing tended to not be overly exciting. When Suzu briefly got a chance to get a good exchange going with Risa Sera, the match picked up, and while the teases with the explosive bat were predictable its a necessarily element in these matches to build some drama. As always, I came away from the match impressed with Suzu and whatever she was doing, and I did enjoy the big explosion at the end, but I just wish the rest of the match had a little more to it so I could recommend it more highly.  Mildly Recommended

The post FMWE “Battle Royal” on 9/12/21 Review (Joshi Matches) appeared first on Joshi City.

Championships Held: AWF World Women’s Championship, TLW International Women’s Championship, and the GWC Six Man Tag Team Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• March 15th, 1997 vs. Megumi Kudo
• November 22nd, 2010 with Onita, Tanaka, and Kuroda vs. Hosaka, Mr. Pogo, Fuji, and The Winger
• May 7th, 2011 vs. AYUMI  (title challenge)
• May 8th, 2011 vs. Kellie Skater  (title win)
• February 25th, 2012 vs. Courtney Rush  (title defense)
• June 21st, 2016 vs. Dump Matsumoto
• July 15th, 2017 vs. Tam Nakano

Signature Moves:

• Bronco Buster
• Mongolian Chop

Sample of Matches Reviewed on Joshi City:

• None

In Action:

Bronco Buster

Back to Joshi Freelancers

The post Aki Kambayashi appeared first on Joshi City.

Every now and then, there are Joshi matches on non-Joshi shows that sometimes fly under the radar. Promotions such as DDT, K-DOJO, Mr. Gannosuke, FMW, and FREEDOMS all either have Joshi wrestlers on their roster or frequently bring in Joshi wrestlers for special matches. Once a few Joshi matches have taken place in various non-Joshi promotions, I will review them to help get some exposure for some of the lesser-known wrestlers that don’t make TV as often. Plus you never know, there may be a hidden gem that is just waiting to be uncovered.

I am a bit behind in doing this, so I have a lot of recent matches to review today! I will be reviewing:

• June 21st, 2016 – Dump Matsumoto vs. Miss Mongol on FMW “June Blood”
• July 13th, 2016 – Ayako Hamada and Ryo Mizunami vs. GENTARO and The Winger on FREEDOMS “Tokyo Death Match Carnival 2016”
• July 19th, 2016 – Manami Kanda vs. Micro on GUTS World “Vol. 98: Bukotsu War 2016”
• July 19th, 2016 – Drake Morimatsu vs. Konaka = Pehlwan on GUTS World “Vol. 98: Bukotsu War 2016”
• July 21st, 2016 – Emi Sakura and Hibiscus Mii vs. Riho, Kotori, and Sayaka Obihiro on HEAT-UP “Dream-Up 2016”
• July 26th, 2016 – Koharu Hinata vs. Micro on Mr. Gannosuke Produce “Kishindo Returns 20”
• July 29th, 2016 – Hana Kimura vs. Reika Saiki on WRESTLE-1 “Symbol Tour”
• July 31st, 2016 – Alex Lee and Tiran Shisa vs. Ayumu Honda and Bambi on K-DOJO “Super In TKO Garden City Chiba”
• August 28th, 2016 – Akane Miura, Miyu Yamashita, and Yuka Sakazaki vs. Hyper Misao, Syoko Nakajima, and Yuu on DDT “Ryogoku Peter Pan 2016”

Lots of wrestling! Sleaze! Hardcore! Intergender! Babies! Everything you could ask for.

Dump Matsumoto vs. Miss Mongol
FMW “June Blood” on June 21st, 2016

Mongol attacks Matsumoto outside the ring before the match starts, which quickly backfires as Matsumoto hits Mongol with a kendo stick and stabs her repeatedly in the head with a spike. We clip ahead to them being in the ring and Mongol hitting Matsumoto with a metal pin, cover by Mongol but it gets two. We jump to Matsumoto trying to throw Mongol into the barbed wire, but Mongol slides down to stop her momentum. Matsumoto does care and rakes her into the barbed wire anyway before Irish whipping her into the barbed wire ropes on the other side. Koharu Hinata runs in to try to help Mongol but she elbows Mongol by accident, leading to Mongol kicking Hinata out of the ring while Matsumoto watches. Lariat by Matsumoto and she hits a body press, but Hinata breaks up the cover. Matsumoto gets mad and approaches Hinata, but Mongol sneaks up from behind and pushes her into the barbed wire ropes. Inside Cradle by Mongol, and she picks up the three count! Miss Mongol wins!

This was a six minute match clipped down to two minutes, so obviously not enough was shown to get excited about. It is always fun to see Matsumoto though, she moves slower than she used to but she still has that violent streak that we know and love. A few fun spots and both took a ride into the barbed wire so the pain felt evenly distributed. I enjoyed it for what it was.

Ayako Hamada and Ryo Mizunami vs. GENTARO and The Winger
FREEDOMS “Tokyo Death Match Carnival 2016” on July 13th, 2016

Hamada and Mizunami charge their opponents to start but the idea quickly backfires as they are both attacked with chairs. They set up chairs in the corners but Hamada and Mizunami throw them into the chairs, Hamada grabs Winger and tries walking the ropes, but she is knocked out of the ring. Mizunami is thrown out of the ring too but Hamada takes the chair from GENTARO and throws him into the ring post. Winger avenges GENTARO by doing the same to Hamada and then chokes her with a chair, while GENTARO gets another chair and hits Mizunami in the head with it. Hamada boots GENTARO and goes to check on Mizunami, while the men return to the ring to wait. Hamada gets in too and takes the chair from GENTARO, but she gets double teamed before GENTARO covers her for two. Mizunami gets in the ring, bleeding from the head, which GENTARO makes worse by biting her. Winger picks up Mizunami and he bites Mizunami in the head too, DDT by Winger onto a chair and he covers her for two. GENTARO returns and hits a splash on Mizunami, but he gets a two count as well. GENTARO goes for a piledriver but Mizunami blocks it with a back bodydrop. Mizunami hits GENTARO with a chair but Winger runs in and attacks her from behind.

GENTARO picks up Mizunami and goes for a chair shot, but Mizunami ducks it and spears him. Lariat by Mizunami in the corner, Hamada comes in with a chair while GENTARO is put in the Tree of Woe. Hamada throws the chair at Winger before hitting a baseball slide on GENTARO. They then use the chairs to hit Winger low before doing the same to GENTARO, Mizunami picks up GENTARO and slams him to the mat before going up top and deliver the diving leg drop for a two count. Lariat by Mizunami to Winger, they set up chairs in the ring and sit both GENTARO and Winger onto them, but when they charge them they are drop toeholed onto the chairs. GENTARO throws Mizunami out of the ring and picks up Hamada, hitting a brainbuster onto the chair for a two count. Double flapjack to Hamada onto a chair, cover by GENTARO but Mizunami breaks it up. Mizunami is thrown out of the ring while Winger breaks a lighttube into the ring, but Hamada takes it from him and hits Winger in the head. Hamada grabs a chair before going up top, and she nails a moonsault onto Winger with the chair. Cover by Hamada, but Winger gets a shoulder up. Hamada picks up Winger and she delivers the AP Cross on the chair, picking up the three count pinfall! Hamada and Mizunami are the winners.

That was definitely a crazy match. It was a little over ten minutes long but never slowed down for a second, there was constantly someone being hit with a chair or having some other act of violence done against them. Mizunami and Hamada are about the same size as GENTARO and Winger so it never felt like an uneven match, Hamada is more than capable of holding her own which she showed by easily putting away Winger. The amount of chairs used was due to it being GENTARO’s primary weapon of choice but it just made it all the more meaningful the one time a lighttube was used as it felt like something fresh. A chaotic and fun bloody brawl.  Recommended

Manami Kanda vs. Micro
GUTS World “Vol. 98: Bukotsu War 2016” on July 19th, 2016

They tie-up to start, Kanda kicks Micro and she bounces the little one off the ropes. Kanda throws down Micro by her hair and slams her head into the mat before applying a Camel Clutch. Irish whip by Kanda but Micro hits a trio of crossbodies for a quick two count. Micro throws Kanda into the corner and hits a dropkick, but Kanda comes back with a lariat and hits a scoop slam. Crab hold by Kanda but Micro gets into the ropes, scoop slam by Kanda but Micro rolls her up for a two count. Micro picks up Kanda but Kanda hits a scoop slam, she goes off the ropes and hits a bodypress for two. Kanda throws Micro into the corner and hits an elbow followed by a face crusher, Kanda gets on the second turnbuckle but Micro shakes the ropes to send her back to the mat. Now Micro goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Micro but Kanda gets a shoulder up. Kanda and Micro trade elbows, shoulderblock by Kanda and she covers Micro for two. Kanda picks up Micro but Micro applies an inside cradle for two. Micro tries a few more quick pins with no luck, hard shoulderblock by Kanda but Micro applies a crucifix pin for two. Micro tries more quick pins but can’t hold Kanda down, running footstomp by Kanda and she knocks down Micro with a lariat. Sliding lariat by Kanda, and she gets the three count! Manami Kanda wins!

All I can say is that this was an actively average and bland match. It was just not engaging or interesting in any way, there is probably a reason that they have stayed on smaller indies. Neither were bad, there weren’t any mistakes, but there was nothing really positive about it either. Thoroughly skippable.

Drake Morimatsu vs. Konaka = Pehlwan
GUTS World “Vol. 98: Bukotsu War 2016” on July 19th, 2016

The match starts really slow as they are in no rush to get started, Drake finally stops messing around and hits Konaka with a baseball bat. Chops by Drake and she chokes Konaka against the ropes before throwing him down into the corner. Drake starts on Konaka’s arm as I regret watching this match, chinlock by Drake but Konaka gets into the ropes. Now it is Konaka that works on Drake’s arm but Drake snapmares him and hits a leg drop. Konaka kicks Drake back and applies a necklock over the top rope, swandive chop to the head by Konaka and he does a quick post before going for the cross armbreaker. Drake gets into the ropes but Konaka quickly applies an armbar, Drake again inches to the ropes and she forces another break. Stomps by Konaka but Drake fires back with a lariat, Konaka rolls out of the ring but Drake goes out after him. Konaka attacks Drake from behind but Drake chops him and they battle into the stands. They return to the ring and Drake hits Konaka with a chair but Konaka takes it from her, Drake takes it back and tosses the chair out of the ring before hitting a lariat. Another lariat by Drake and she covers Konaka, but picks him up before the three count. Samoan Driver by Drake, she picks up Konaka and hits a Michinoku Driver, but Konaka grabs her arm when she goes for a cover and applies an armbar. Drake struggles for a moment before she taps out! Konaka = Pehlwan wins the match.

No lie, this match kinda bored me to tears. Konaka doesn’t show a lot of emotion and Drake is obviously limited so for a ten minute match not a whole hell of a lot happened. I am not sure who the target audience for this match is but it wasn’t me, just a flat mid-card match.

Emi Sakura and Hibiscus Mii vs. Riho, Kotori, and Sayaka Obihiro
HEAT-UP “Dream-Up 2016” on July 21st, 2016

Sakura is jumped before the match starts and is triple teamed, Mii comes in the ring to help but Kotori requests her to leave so she does. I bet being able to understand the pre-match talking would have helped. Sakura comes back and hits a crossbody on all three before tagging in Mii, Kotori stays in to face her and immediately puts Mii in the cross armbreaker. Mii gets into the ropes but Sakura runs up the corner and hits an armdrag before tagging in Obihiro. Obihiro floors Mii but Mii bridges out of the cover, elbow by Obihiro but Mii bridges out again. They go through this a few times until Mii collapses, Mii manages to hit a Stunner and she dropkicks Obihiro in the head. Sakura isn’t around for her to tag while Riho is also tagged in, Kotori comes in too and they all roll over Mii. Mii gets away and manages to tag Sakura this time, and they double team Riho. Riho dropkicks Mii out of the ring and tags in Kotori, Obihiro also comes in but Sakura rams them into each other and hits a crossbody in the corner on them both. Double underhook slam attempt by Sakura but Kotori slides down her back and applies a sleeper. Mii runs in but Riho grabs her, Obihiro comes in but Sakura kicks her away. Riho and Kotori get on the second turnbuckle and hit dual footstomps onto Sakura, cover by Kotori but it gets two. Kotori goes off the ropes but Sakura catches her with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, giving her time to tags in Mii. Riho is also tagged in and slaps Mii, dropkick by Riho and she hits a jumping knee in the corner. Eye poke by Mii but Kotori hits a diving crossbody as does Riho for a two count. Northern Lights Suplex by Riho, but Mii kicks out again, Riho throws Mii in the corner but Mii slides out to the apron and hits a missile dropkick. Mii tags Sakura, she picks up Riho and hits the double underhook backbreaker. Sakura goes up top but Riho moves when she goes for a senton, tilt-a-whirl roll-up by Riho but Sakura kicks out. Kotori comes in and hits a judo throw on Sakura, Somato by Riho and she covers Sakura for the three count! Riho, Kotori, and Obihiro win!

This was a cute short little mid-card match. Kotori and Riho are a lot of fun to watch, I always enjoy it when I get a chance to watch them. Two young wrestlers with a lot of potential. Sakura and Mii are great too, and the match was really fluid for a crazy match with tons of interference and quick offense. Not a ton of substance but enjoyable.  Mildly Recommended

Koharu Hinata vs. Micro
Mr. Gannosuke Produce “Kishindo Returns 20” on July 26th, 2016

Unlike the last match, this one starts slowly as they feel each other out with Micro hitting the first move of the match with a bodyslam. She picks up Hinata and throws her down by her hair, but Hinata returns the favor and stomps down Micro in the corner. Scoop slam by Micro and she puts Hinata in a crab hold, but Hinata crawls to the ropes and forces the break. Micro at one point trapped Hinata’s arms too so she couldn’t grab the ropes, which is a smarter tactic than I am used to seeing in my pro wres. Hinata comes back with a kick, Micro scoops her up but Hinata falls on top of Micro for a two count. Now it is Hinata that puts Micro in the crab hold, she then lets it go only to put Micro in a Surfboard. Back up they trade elbows, Micro goes off the ropes but Hinata catches her with a dropkick. Another dropkick by Hinata, she picks up Micro and hits a few slaps before kicking her again. Scoop slam by Hinata and she covers Micro for a two. Knees by Hinata and she kicks Micro out of the corner, diving crossbody by Hinata but that gets a two as well. Bodyscissors into a roll-up by Hinata and she also tries an inside cradle as well as a backslide, but Micro kicks out each time. Micro charges Hinata and grabs her by the leg, she hits a unique leg sweep roll-up and she gets the three count! Micro wins!

I enjoyed this a bit more than I probably should have, it wasn’t anything special and wasn’t overly exciting, but Micro does so many little things that I had a good time watching it. Trapping the arms when putting on a crab hold is so smart but rarely done, and I loved the leg sweep pin which I have never seen before. Hinata was solid too, both wrestlers are itty bitty so they are limited in what they can do, but overall it was still a pretty solid match.  Mildly Recommended

Hana Kimura vs. Reika Saiki
WRESTLE-1 “Symbol Tour” on July 29th, 2016

They begin with a knuckle lock and a Test of Strength which Hana gets the better of. Hana applies a headlock on the mat before applying a leg submission, Hana then gets in the mount position and goes for an armbreaker but Reika gets to the ropes. Scoop slam by Hana and she applies a crab hold, but again Reika gets to the ropes to force a break. Back up they trade elbows, dropkick by Reika and she dropkicks Hana into the corner. Kicks to the chest by Reika and she hits a scoop slam, kicks by Reika to Hana’s leg and she hits another slam for a two count cover. Reika goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, but Hana bridges out of the pin. Hana applies a stretch hold before tossing Reika off and slams her into the corner. Double knee to the back by Hana and she dropkicks Reika for a two count cover. Hana picks up Reika but Reika sneaks in an inside cradle, kicks by Reika and she nails an enzuigiri for a two. Head kick by Reika, and she picks up the three count pinfall! The winner of the match is Reika Saiki.

This was a very rookiesque match. A little rough around the edges, pretty basic, and nothing incredibly exciting. Some moves were executed really well, Reika has nice kicks and Hana’s ground game is solid, but other moves looked a bit weaker and they seemed to get a bit lost at least once. A necessary match for their growth but not something I could recommend.

Alex Lee and Tiran Shisa vs. Ayumu Honda and Bambi
K-DOJO “Super In TKO Garden City Chiba” on July 31st, 2016

Shisa starts with Honda, they bounce off the ropes until Shisa hits an armdrag followed by a dropkick. Lee and Bambi are tagged in and trade wristlocks, they both go for shoulderblocks until Lee knocks Bambi to the mat. Lee tags in Shisa, he goes for a scoop slam but Bambi lands on top of him. Honda comes in the ring and they both boot Shisa, Bambi puts Shisa into the ropes and both she and Honda kick Shisa in the chest. Bambi tags in Honda, Honda dropkicks Shisa and hits an armbreaker followed by a body press onto Shisa’s arm. He tags Bambi back in, kicks by Bambi and she covers Shisa for a two count. Bambi gets her whip and chokes Shisa with it, she lets go just to whip him and makes the tag to Honda. Honda dropkicks Shisa in the corner, another dropkick by Honda and he tags Bambi. Shisa kicks Bambi when she charges her and delivers a dropkick, giving him time to tag in Lee. Lee knees Bambi but Honda hits her from the apron, he comes in the ring but Lee kicks them before hitting a double face crusher. Kick to the face by Lee, and she covers Bambi for two. Lee and Bambi trade elbows, Lee goes off the ropes but Bambi catches her with a boot. Another boot by Bambi, and she gets a two count cover. Bambi applies a double reverse armbar, but Lee gets a foot on the bottom rope. Bambi tags in Honda, armbreaker by Honda and he hits a hammerlock Backstabber. Lee kicks Honda in the chest and hits a high kick, she tags in Shisa and Shisa hits a jumping elbow in the corner. Running seated senton by Shisa in the corner and he hits a gutwrench suplex for two. Shisa goes off the ropes but Honda catches him with a kick, Northern Lights Suplex by Shisa but Honda kicks out. Shisa goes for a corkscrew quebrada but Honda avoids he, he knocks Lee off the apron as Bambi comes in the ring, and they double team Shisa. Bambi hits a running knee on Shisa, Honda gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers a missile dropkick, but Lee breaks up the cover. Shisa sneaks in a schoolboy on Honda for a two count, he also tries a backslide and La Magistral but those get a two count as well. Shisa charges Honda but Honda hits a cross armbreaker takedown, and Shisa submits! Ayumu Honda and Bambi win the match!

As everyone that knows me is aware I have a natural liking of wrestlers in wrestling masks, so I naturally thought that Shisa was by far the most impressive wrestler in this match. Bambi and Lee are both pretty stiff/awkward, they are competent wrestlers but don’t really do anything to set themselves apart. Honda wasn’t impressing me until the cross armbreaker takedown, which I will admit looked really nice, but otherwise this was just a match on a small show that felt like it went a bit too long. Some solid moments but overall lackluster.

Akane Miura, Miyu Yamashita, and Yuka Sakazaki vs. Hyper Misao, Syoko Nakajima, and Yuu
DDT “Ryogoku Peter Pan 2016” on August 28th, 2016

Nakajima and Yamashita are the first two in, Nakajima takes Yamashita to the mat but Yamashita applies a headscissors. Nakajima bridges out of it, knee by Yamashita and she tags in Akane. Yuu tags in too, Yuu and Akane try to shoulderblock each other over which Yuu gets the better of. She tags in Misao but Akane catches her crossbody attempt and slams her to the mat. Akane tags in Sakazaki, spinning headscissors by Sakazaki but Misao chokes her with a handkerchief. Snapmare by Misao and she puts Sakazaki in the Rocking Horse, cover by Misao but it gets a two count. She tags in Yuu, Yuu chops Sakazaki and she hits a spinning side slam. She tags in Nakajima, flipping neckbreaker by Nakajima but Sakazaki elbows her away. Nakajima stops her from tagging out though, Sakazaki tries to shoot a streamer gun at Nakajima but Nakajima reverses it. Dropkick by Sakazaki and she makes the hot tag to Akane, Akane shoulderblocks everyone and hits a double lariat on Nakajima and Misao. Nakajima comes back with a springboard armdrag, Nakajima puts Akane in a few quick pins but Akane kicks out each time. Nakajima goes for a double underhook but Akane back bodydrops out of it, hurricanrana by Nakajima and she tags in Yuu. Yamashita tags in too, chops by Yuu and she hits the Oklahoma Stampede for a two count. High kick by Yamashita but Yuu catches her with a Judo Throw and tags in Misao. Jumping crossbody by Misao and she hits a few weak uppercuts, another crossbody by Misao and she slams Yamashita onto her knee for a two count. Misao gets on the top turnbuckle and hits a diving crossbody, but Yamashita rolls through it and hits a Buzzsaw Kick for two. Misao tags in Nakajima, Akane comes in and she blocks Nakajima’s Tiger Feint Kick. Akane holds Nakajima so that Yamashita can hit her Magical Girl Kick, jumping lariat by Yamashita to Misao and she nails the Attitude Adjustment for the three count! Akane Miura, Miyu Yamashita, and Yuka Sakazaki are the winners!

I really love the Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers, they all have unique characters and show a strong ability on the mat to go with their flashy moves to wow the crowd. Misao was the clear weak link of the teams as she got lost once and has weak strikes, but everyone else looked solid. Yamashita is someone that more Joshi fans would be talking about if she “made TV” more often, hopefully DDT will allow/encourage them to take bookings other places at some point so she can get out in the wild a bit more. A fun exhibition match with memorable spots and some quality wrestlers.  Mildly Recommended

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Every few weeks, I will review Joshi matches that took place in non-Joshi promotions. Promotions such as DDT, K-DOJO, Mr. Gannosuke, and FREEDOMS all either have Joshi wrestlers on their roster or frequently bring in Joshi wrestlers for special matches. Usually there is just one match per show (at the most), so as soon as a few take place I will review them in an attempt to not miss any great matches that may have flown under the radar. It also allows me to take a look at some Joshi wrestlers I don’t see as much, as not all Joshi wrestlers are active in the larger promotions that frequently have their events make TV.

I only have two today, I am mostly using this as an excuse to review Ohata vs. Takahashi, it was released on one of their collection shows but it was the only match from 2016 shown. So it goes in a Medley. Today I will be reviewing:

• Kagetsu and Cherry vs. Miss Mongol and Miss Koharu in Super Battle FMW on 1/24/16
• Misaki Ohata vs. Nanae Takahashi in WAVE on 1/3/16

Short review, let’s get it rolling.

Event: Super Battle FMW
Date: January 24th, 2016
Location: Shin-Kiba 1st Ring in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 302

Kagetsu and Cherry vs. Miss Mongol and Miss Koharu

Kagetsu and Koharu begin the match but Cherry attacks Koharu from behind and things immediately break down. Cherry and Kagetsu knock their opponents down in the corner and do some comedy tag spots on Koharu before things go back to Kagetsu and Koharu. Kagetsu elbows Koharu in the corner and hits a missile dropkick for a two count cover. Irish whip by Kagetsu but Koharu hits a spinning headscissors followed by a low Tiger Feint Kick. Crab hold by Koharu and she puts Kagetsu in the Muta Lock, but Cherry breaks it up. Cherry is tagged in and she pulls out Koharu’s hair before hitting a dropkick. Koharu rolls away from Cherry and hits a spinning headscissors, she covers her but Cherry grabs the ropes. Running footstomps by Koharu but Cherry hits a Northern Lights Suplex. Koharu kicks Cherry away and hits a tornado DDT, and she finally tags in Mongol. Mongol hits jumping lariats on Cherry before hitting a backdrop suplex, covering her for two.

Dump Matsumoto appears at the top of the ramp to watch as the action continues, Cherry chops Mongol in the neck and tags Kagetsu. Swandive missile dropkick by Kagetsu and she knocks Mongol onto the ramp. Everyone starts to battle on the ramp in front of Matsumoto, but they return to the ring with no damage done. Mongol is double teamed but she lariats both her opponents, Kagetsu picks up Mongol and she hits a Samoan Drop for two. Koharu hits a diving crossbody and then Mongol suplexes Kagetsu, but Kagetsu still won’t stay down. Kagetsu finally gets away from Mongol but Mongol immediately puts her in a crab hold. Dump Matsumoto and her helper have seen enough, she comes in with a kendo stick and hits everyone she sees. Lariat by Matsumoto on Mongol and they throw Kagetsu onto Mongol, allowing her to get the three count! Kagetsu and Cherry win! After the match Matsumoto continues to beat everyone with kendo sticks, making a lasting impression.

I appreciate Dump Matsumoto trying to make this match interesting but there just wasn’t much here to get excited about. I have never been impressed with Cherry, Koharu is still a bit rough even though she is adorable, and Mongol is in twilight of her career. That left Kagetsu to do the bulk of the work, and she looked good when she was in there, but too much of it was just uneventful. Matsumoto and Zap T (I am assuming) coming out at the end to set up a future match at least made it somewhat memorable, but just an average experience overall at best.

Event: WAVE Happy New Year WAVE ‘16
Date: January 3rd, 2016
Location: Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 377

Misaki Ohata vs. Nanae Takahashi

They start with a knuckle lock and end up on the mat with Ohata in control, but Takahashi gets into the ropes. Back up, shoulderblock by Takahashi and she hits another one, followed by an elbow drop to the head. Takahashi slaps Ohata in the corner but Ohata comes back with an elbow. Takahashi rolls Ohata to the mat and applies a modified stretch hold, Ohata gets out of it and they trade elbows back on their feet. Headscissors by Ohata and she hits a running crossbody while Takahashi is against the ropes. Ohata goes for a tornado DDT but Takahashi pushes her off, Ohata hits a DDT anyway and delivers a diving crossbody for a two count cover. Snap German by Takahashi and she kicks Ohata in the side of the head, but Ohata comes back with elbows. Lariat by Takahashi in the corner but Ohata reverses the backdrop suplex into a German suplex.

Takahashi bounces back with one of her own but Ohata hits a series of rolling Germans. Ohata goes up top but Takahashi slaps her and goes up top also. Superplex by Takahashi, she goes up top herself but Ohata avoids the diving body press. Ohata gets on the second turnbuckle, Takahashi joins her but Ohata slides between her legs and hits a powerbomb for two. Ohata gets on the top turnbuckle but Takahashi gets her feet up when she dives off. Blue Thunder Driver by Takahashi, she picks up Ohata but Ohata hits a standing crucifix bomb for two. Fisherman Buster by Ohata but Takahashi kicks out of the cover again. Ohata goes for the Black Dahlia but Takahashi blocks it and hits a Nana☆Racka. Takahashi picks up Ohata but Ohata hits another standing crucifix bomb. Backdrop driver by Takahashi, she charges Ohata but Ohata catches her with a quick roll-up for two. Back up, Takahashi hits a big lariat, they trade blows on their feet and Takahashi hits another lariat for a two count. One Second EX by Takahashi, and she gets the three count! Nanae Takahashi is the winner.

The only thing missing from this match was simply time. Over 30% of the match was missing from this airing, and it made the match a bit disjointed at times since so much of the action was clipped out. Ohata and Takahashi are two of the wrestlers in Japan I enjoy the most, and it was a great combination with Takahashi’s strength vs. Ohata’s speed. They fought like it was a title match, not just a normal match in front of under 400 people, and it made it feel important. I can’t give it too high of a recommendation simply due to the clipping but still worth a watch as it was presented.  Mildly Recommended

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Back in the early 90s, FMW was the first predominantly male promotion in Japan to have a women’s division, as up to that point men and women were separated into different promotions. That is largely how it still is today with large promotion, however many indy promotions have men and women wrestling together (now they wrestle against each other, however in FMW the divisions were kept separate). FMW died back in 2001, but the latest version popped up this year and use many of the same wrestlers that old school FMW did.

Since it wouldn’t be a true FMW event without women wrestling on the card as well, two of the seven matches featured Joshi wrestlers. This included a “inter-promotional match” with FMW facing off against JWP. Here are the two Joshi matches I will be reviewing:

– Kayoko Haruyama and Tsubasa Kuragaki vs. Miss Mongol and Miss Koharu
– Ayako Hamada vs. Ray

This naturally won’t be a long review, but since women were an important part of FMW I did not want to neglect the event altogether. Let’s get right into it.

Kayoko Haruyama and Tsubasa Kuragaki vs. Miss Mongol and Miss Koharu

Team FMW attacks before the bell rings but it immediately backfires, as Haruyama isolates young Koharu for a beatdown. Kuragaki takes a turn as well but Koharu hits a headscissors on Kuragaki and tags in Miss Mongol. Haruyama comes in the ring too but Mongol lariats both of them while the crowd voices their approval. Haruyama and Mongol trade strikes but they crush the referee in the corner, Mongol goes for the Bronco Buster on Haruyama but Haruyama moves and the referee is hit instead. The referee is hit again as he has now taken the most damage in the match, but he recovers pretty quickly as the action continues. Koharu comes in and they hit a double vertical suplex on Haruyama, but Haruyama hulks back up as Kuragaki comes in the ring. Double shoulderblock to Koharu and they put her in a double backbreaker, Mongol runs in but Haruyama takes Koharu so Kuragaki can put Mongol in a backbreaker as well. Diving leg drop by Haruyama to Koharu, but Mongol breaks up the pin. Mongol gets the whip but hits Koharu by accident, double underhook facebuster by Haruyama to Koharu but Koharu barely gets a shoulder up. Koharu sneaks in a backslide for two, Mongol comes back in but Kuragaki suplexes her. Haruyama goes up top as does Kuragaki, moonsault by Kuragaki and Haruyama hits a diving guillotine legdrop for the three count! Team JWP win the match.

This one started really slow but it picked up and the last few minutes were solid. Koharu is this adorable little thing and she almost didn’t fit in with three power wrestlers, which meant of course she was the one taking damage most of the match. Some of the transitions and strike portions didn’t look great as they weren’t being snug, but for a midcard tag match there was nothing wrong with it. Haruyama and Kuragaki are still awesome, Haruyama will be missed when she retires.

Ayako Hamada vs. Ray

This match was pretty clipped, which is disappointing since I enjoy both wrestlers. After feeling each other out (they didn’t clip that part), Hamada kicks Ray hard in the face for the first big move of the match. Hamada quickly goes for the moonsault but Ray moves, now Ray goes up top but Hamada gets her feet on on the moonsault attempt. High backdrop suplex by Hamada but Ray gets out of the powerbomb and they trade kicks. Tiger feint kick by Ray and this time she hits the moonsault, but Hamada kicks out of the cover. Hamada roars back with a lariat, sit-down powerbomb by Hamada but the cover gets two. AP Cross by Hamada, and she gets the three count! Hamada wins the match.

I am not sure what was clipped as only half of the match was shown, but it may explain why we went from “feeling out” to “dropping bombs” with no middle portion. What we saw was fine, both are quality wrestlers and Ray still flies around very well. A good showing by both but I can’t recommend a match clipped in half.

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