Full Photobook Details

Title: ビジュアルショックス!! (Visual Shocks!! Sexy Queens Shots in Women’s Pro-Wrestling) Sakura Mook 70
Release: June 18th, 2004
Pages: 96
Cost: ¥1,575 (at release in 2004)
Where to Buy: Currently Unavailable

While in 2019 we are used to the Stardom-style of photobooks, this mook (magazine + book, as the name implies it is between the size you’d expect from a magazine and a book) is quite different. To start, the following wrestlers are featured in the mook:

• Kana
• Michiko Omukai
• Mika Nishio
• Mirai
• Sachie Abe
• Emi Tojo

All six wrestlers had about the same number of photos in the mook, and in addition to the wrestler photos there are also about six pages with interviews. The whole mook is in color and full-sized, however it is soft-cover like a magazine. The pictures inside are, I think most would agree, less “appropriate” than the photos seen in the photobooks released today. There is still no nudity (although some may think Michiko Omukai is straddling the line), however there are a lot of “crotch” pictures included for each wrestler. Many zoomed in to ensure that is the only part of the body one could reasonably look at by looking at the photo. These photos may make some uncomfortable, but luckily there are photos for each wrestler that do not follow the crotch-focused theme.

The bigger deal with this mook is it is the first time that Kana was involved in any gravure-style pictures, and the only release of hers before her retirement in 2005. Kana had 12 photos in the book so she is well represented, and its a unique peek back into her past. She was well over 18 at the time of the photobook, as was everyone involved, so no issues there as I know that is a concern for many Western fans. Overall just for that purpose this is a mook I’d recommend tracking down if you are a collector of such things, but just keep in mind that its not something you’d want to leave on the coffee table if company was coming over. Below is a sample of the photos, to keep the website at least somewhat SFW, I did not include the more risque pictures:

The post Visual Shocks!! (ビジュアルショックス!!) Sakura Mook 70 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Championships Held: Daily Sports Tag Team Championship and the JWP Tag Team Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• December 24th, 2006 with KAZUKI vs. Ran Yu-Yu and Toshie Uematsu
• November 3rd, 2009 vs. Emi Sakura
• September 19th, 2010 with Aja Kong vs. KAZUKI and Toshie Uematsu
• February 10th, 2013 vs. Leon
• July 6th, 2014 with KAZUKI vs. Command Bolshoi and Kyoko Kimura

Signature Moves:

• Astro Scissors
• Frankensteiner
• Jumping Hop Drop
• La Magistral

In Action:

Coming Soon 

Back to Retired Wrestlers

The post Sachie Abe appeared first on Joshi City.

When I am going through my catalog with hundreds of Joshi events, there are different reasons that I may pick any given event to review. Sometimes I want to review something quick, other times I want to review a show with Kana. This event I picked because of one move, a move you have probably seen a GIF of before and is one of the craziest spots of the last decade in wrestling. But besides that spot, this was one of JWP’s biggest events of the year and features three Championship matches plus other special matches. Here is the full card:

• JWP Jr. Championship and POP Championship: Misaki Ohata vs. Pinky Mayuka
• Over the Maximum Summer Bout: Atsuko Emoto, Tomoka Nakagawa, and Hailey Hatred vs. Tsubasa Kuragaki, Keito, and Hiroyo Matsumoto
• Super Heel Uematsu 2nd Bout Special Tag Match: Super Heel Uematsu and KAZUKI vs. Ran Yu-Yu and Sachie Abe
• Best of Pure-Wrestling: Azumi Hyuga vs. Tojuki Leon
• JWP Tag Team and Daily Sports Women’s Tag Team Championship: Command Bolshoi and Yabushita vs. Yoneyama and Emi Sakura
• JWP Openweight Championship: Kayoko Haruyama vs. Kyoko Kimura

Lots to be excited about, the event was presented on a two hour telecast on Samurai! TV so there will be some clipping.

(c) Misaki Ohata vs. Pinky Mayuka
JWP Jr. Championship and POP Championship

They tie-up to start, Mayuka pushes Ohata into the ropes and the two trade elbows back and forth. Mayuka throws down Ohata by the hair but Ohata avoids the dropkick and returns the favor. Dropkick by Ohata, she goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick. Ohata goes to the top turnbuckle again and hits a diving body press, picking up a two count cover. Mayuka goes for a roll-up but Ohata blocks it, she goes off the ropes but Mayuka catches her with an arm trap dragon sleeper. Ohata inches to the ropes and gets her foot on them to force a break, Mayuka picks her up but Ohata sneaks in a backslide for two. Ohata applies an ankle hold but Mayuka gets to the ropes, Ohata goes back to the ankle but Mayuka blocks it this time and covers her for two. A schoolboy by Mayuka doesn’t work, Ohata grabs her and hits a German suplex hold for two. Low crossbody by Ohata, she picks up Mayuka and nails the Hanamaru Dokkan for the three count! Ohata is still the champion.

This was slightly clipped, which would explain the lack of match structure. But these were also two young wrestlers that still weren’t 100% sure what they were doing, in Joshi the “Jr.” title refers to age/experience, not size. So expectations were lower. Ohata showed a lot of promise though and I loved Mayuka’s dragon sleeper, so definitely a few bright points even if overall it was a bit flat.

Atsuko Emoto, Nakagawa, and Hailey Hatred vs. Tsubasa Kuragaki, Keito, and Matsumoto

Nakagawa and company attack their opponents before match starts and takes them out of the ring as both teams brawl around on the floor. Back in the ring, Emoto chokes Keito with a chair and kicks her into the corner, Hailey comes in and they hit Keito with a double lariat. Keito is triple teamed in the ropes, Kuragaki comes in but she is hit in the face with a chair before having the chair dropkicked into her head. Kuragaki gets busted open on the bridge of the nose during all this, Matsumoto grabs Emoto from ringside which helps Kuragaki recover. Backbreaker by Kuragaki, she then gets both Emoto and Nakagawa on her back but Hailey breaks it up. Kuragaki stays in with Emoto and hits her with a lariat before tagging in Keito, kicks by Keito but Emoto gets away and hits a springboard elbow.

Emoto goes up top but Matsumoto grabs her from the apron, Keito tosses Emoto to the mat and hits a PK for a two count. She goes off the ropes again but Emoto catches her with a heel kick, giving her time to tag in Nakagawa. Scoop slam by Nakagawa and she tags in Hailey, Nakagawa goes up top and Hailey helps her hit a diving footstomp. Nakagawa stays in, Matsumoto tries to help Emoto but Nakagawa rolls up Emoto for two. Falcon Arrow by Keito, but the pin is broken up when Emoto hits Keito with a chair. Nakagawa gets the chair but hits Emoto by accident, high kick by Keito to Nakagawa but Hailey runs in and elbow Keito. Crucifix cover by Nakagawa but it is broken up, she charges Keito but Keito hits a high kick. Kick by Keito, but Nakagawa barely gets a shoulder up. Keito drags up Nakagawa and hits another high kick, Schwein by Keito and she gets the three count! Kuragaki, Keito, and Matsumoto win!

A bit too much of this was clipped but what they showed was fine. The problem with having a six wrestler tagged trimmed down to seven minutes is it makes having so many wrestlers unnecessary. I don’t know if Hailey and Matsumoto did more, but in what they showed they did hardly anything and were non-essential to the match. Kuragaki was hit with some really hard chair shots and her face showed that, pretty brutal for a match so early on the card. Some entertaining parts but not enough substance was shown.

Super Heel Uematsu and KAZUKI vs. Ran Yu-Yu and Sachie Abe

Uematsu and Abe are the first two in, Abe kicks Uematsu around the ring until Uematsu bails and glares at the crowd. KAZUKI runs in to attack Abe, Uematsu then pulls Abe out of the ring and throws her into the crowd. Uematsu attacks Ran with chairs at ringside, she finally gets back into the ring and waits for Abe. Abe returns and hits a jumping seated senton onto Uematsu before making the tag to Ran. KAZUKI comes in to take Uematsu’s place, Uematsu gets a kendo stick and hits Ran with it. Running kick by Uematsu while Ran is against the ropes, she then pulls Abe off the apron and slams her into the floor. Uematsu pretends she is going to do a dive but instead slides out of the ring and hits Ran and Abe with her stick some more. Abe and Ran are double teamed at ringside until Ran and Abe fight back, Uematsu gets on the apron but Ran slides back into the ring before she can dive out. Uematsu returns also and they trade kick attempts, enzuigiri by Ran but Uematsu avoids the next attack and hit a missile dropkick. Uematsu goes for a moonsault but Ran moves, running knee by Ran and she covers Uematsu for two. Ran gets Uematsu on her back but Uematsu jumps off, dropkick by KAZUKI and Uematsu tags in KAZUKI. Running knee by KAZUKI but Abe snaps off a hurricanrana, KAZUKI reverses it but the referee is too hurt to make a cover.

Somato by KAZUKI, but Abe kicks out at two. KAZUKI tags in Uematsu, Uematsu picks up Abe but Abe drops her with a snap German. Uematsu returns to her feet, Abe lands her on feet when Uematsu goes for a dragon suplex but Uematsu dropkicks her. Missile dropkicks by Uematsu, she goes up top again but this time she dives out of the ring onto Ran. Uematsu gets back in and goes up top, Abe joins her but Uematsu chokes Abe and tosses her back to the mat. Ran comes in but Uematsu hits her with a lariat, she goes to the top turnbuckle but Abe avoids the corkscrew senton. Abe goes for a hurricanrana but Uematsu catches her and hits a powerbomb. Uematsu picks up Abe and hits a dragon suplex hold, but Ran breaks it up. Uematsu drops her with a dragon suplex also, but Ran gets back up and hits Uematsu when she gets on the second turnbuckle. Abe jumps up with Uematsu and hits a Frankensteiner, but the cover is broken up. Backdrop suplex hold by Abe, but Uematsu kicks out at two. Abe picks up Uematsu again and goes off the ropes, La Magistral by Abe but again the cover is broken up. Bodyscissors into a roll-up by Abe, Uematsu kicks out and KAZUKI hits Abe with a Codebreaker. Fisherman Driver by Uematsu, and she gets the three count! Uematsu and KAZUKI are the winners.

This was an interesting period in Uematsu’s career. She was getting a bit of a push in 2008 and 2009, and having two personas was part of her renewed interest. But like a lot of gimmicks, sometimes it doesn’t stick and resonate with the crowd, and I think that is why Uematsu isn’t really remembered today as one of the high end wrestlers of the last ten years. But she was quite good, her suplexes were all on point, she reminded me of a Cassandra Miyagi type character but one that has more wrestling skills. The match was mostly about her as KAZUKI didn’t do much, and five minutes or so were clipped, but Abe and Ran looked good as well. Too much was clipped but I actually did enjoy Uematsu’s style in this match, I thought it fit her well.  Mildly Recommended (for Uematsu)

Azumi Hyuga vs. Tojuki Leon

They start with some mat work, Hyuga gets Leon’s back and applies a chinlock before applying a leglock. Leon gets into the ropes, Hyuga slams Leon’s knee into the mat and puts her in a surfboard, she lets Leon go and hits a jumping knee in the corner. Leon jumps over Hyuga and hits a backbreaker, Leon tries to pick up Hyuga but Hyuga punches her away. Underhook into a backbreaker by Hyuga but Leon pushes Hyuga into the ropes, she charges her but Hyuga flips her onto the apron before kicking her in the head to send Leon to the floor. Hyuga goes up top but Leon jumps onto the apron and hits a springboard dropkick. Hyuga falls to the floor as Leon gets back into the ring and sails out onto her with a springboard dive off the top rope. Leon slides Hyuga back in and goes up top, hitting a rope walking dropkick followed by a spear in the corner. Leon goes to the top once again and hits the diving body press, but Hyuga kicks out of the cover. Leon picks up Hyuga but Hyuga gets her back and hits a suplex. Leon recovers and applies a backbreaker and slams Hyuga to the mat, Leon goes off the ropes but Hyuga dropkicks her in the head. Rolling Germans by Hyuga and she hits a backbreaker, Leon rolls her to the mat but Hyuga reverses it and delivers a head kick.

Leon falls out of the ring, Hyuga goes out to the apron and jumps off with a knee attack. Hyuga rolls Leon back in and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Hyuga but it gets two. Armtrap Crossface by Hyuga, but Leon wiggles to the ropes to force a break. Hyuga picks up Leon but Leon blocks the Michinoku Driver and slams Hyuga into her knee. Big spinning slam by Leon, she goes up top and hits a somersault legdrop for a two count. Leon picks up Hyuga and goes off the ropes, but Hyuga elbows her in the chest and they trade shots. Hyuga catches Leon’s heel kick and hits a suplex, knee to the back of the head by Hyuga and she hits the Michinoku Driver, but Leon barely kicks out. Hyuga puts Leon on the top turnbuckle and joins her, Spider German by Hyuga but Leon lands on her feet. Leon goes for a spear while Hyuga is still hanging but Hyuga pulls herself up in time, Leon re-joins Hyuga and she hits an avalanche capture suplex. Hyuga and Leon slowly get up, half nelson suplex by Leon and she kicks Hyuga in the head. Leon goes out to the apron and hits a swandive heel kick, Leon picks up Hyuga and nails the Capture Buster, but Hyuga somehow kicks out. Leon drags Hyuga up and goes for another one, but Hyuga blocks it and rolls up Leon for two. They trade quick pin attempts with no luck, Hyuga kicks Leon in the head and hits the Michinoku Driver, but it gets two. Hyuga goes up top and nails the Takako Panic, cover by Hyuga and she gets the three count! Azumi Hyuga is the winner.

I enjoyed this match quite a bit, both really brought their A game. Lots of big moves, ranging from dives to killer suplexes, and they really kept the match moving for the entire 15 minutes. Hyuga had a fair number of injuries in her career but could still go as you wouldn’t have known from watching this match, and this is one of the better Leon singles matches I’ve seen. Really fun and a pleasant surprise. Recommended

(c) Command Bolshoi and Megumi Yabushita vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Emi Sakura
JWP Tag Team and Daily Sports Women’s Tag Team Championship

Yoneyama and Sakura attack before the match starts, but Bolshoi and Yabushita throw them out of the ring and both teams battle on the floor. They return after a moment with Bolshoi and Yabushita in control, they both roll their opponents to the mat and apply submission holds. Bolshoi picks up Yoneyama and hits a vertical suplex before tagging Yabushita, scoop slam by Yabushita and she hits a double kneedrop near the ropes. Yabushita picks up Yoneyama but Yoneyama rolls up Yabushita, she tries to tag Sakura but Yabushita grabs her leg and applies an ankle hold. She tags in Bolshoi, Bolshoi kicks Yoneyama but Yoneyama schoolboys her for two and makes the hot tag to Sakura. Mongolian Chops by Sakura and she attacks both Bolshoi and Yabushita in the corner, Yoneyama returns and they double team Bolshoi. Sakura picks up Bolshoi and hits a double underhook backbreaker, another backbreaker by Sakura but Yabushita grabs her from the apron. Yoneyama grabs Bolshoi too as Yabushita applies a hanging armbar to Sakura, Bolshoi runs over to Sakura but Sakura avoids the double dropkick attempt. Sakura crossbodies both Yabushita and Bolshoi off the apron, Yoneyama runs over and she dives out onto both of her opponents with a somersault attack. Bolshoi is rolled back in, footstomp by Sakura but Bolshoi blocks the second one and applies a triangle choke. Sakura gets out of it and elbows Bolshoi, Bolshoi applies a reverse armbar but Sakura gets into the ropes. Bolshoi tags Yabushita, Yabushita puts Sakura in a choke but Yoneyama comes in and breaks it up.

Senton by Yoneyama, Sakura rolls Yabushita to the mat and applies a submission, but Yabushita gets a foot in the ropes. Sakura tags in Yoneyama, Yoneyama comes in with a diving crossbody and she goes for a cover, but Yabushita blocks it and applies a triangle choke. Yabushita picks up Yoneyama and goes to the second turnbuckle, but Yoneyama gets away from her and tosses her off with a judo throw of sorts. Sakura comes in and hits a moonsault, Yoneyama follows with her own moonsault and both wrestlers hit another one, but Bolshoi breaks up Yoneyama’s cover. Cross armbreaker takedown by Yabushita while Bolshoi puts Sakura in an ankle hold, but Yoneyama manages to get into the ropes for a break. Yabushita tags in Bolshoi, chop by Bolshoi and she hits a Tiger Feint Kick, but Yoneyama hits the Chaos Theory for two. Yoneyama goes up top but Bolshoi smacks her before she can jump off, Bolshoi joins Yoneyama and hits an avalanche uranage for a two count. Bolshoi picks up Yoneyama and hits a tiger suplex hold, but that gets two as well. Bolshoi goes off the ropes but Yoneyama hits a tilt-a-whirl gutbuster, double Reverse Splash to Bolshoi and Yoneyama goes back up top to hit a diving senton, but Yabushita breaks up the cover. Yoneyama picks up Bolshoi but Bolshoi hits a way and hits a Shotei. Everyone is hurt, they slowly get up as Bolshoi goes for a flash pin, but Yoneyama reverses it. Sakura tosses Yabushita out of the ring but she comes back in with a springboard knee to Yoneyama’s arm, double reverse armbar by Bolshoi to Yoneyama but Sakura breaks it up. Reverse STO by Sakura to Bolshoi, Yoneyama delivers the Yone-ZOU and she picks up the three count! Yoneyama and Sakura are your new champions!

I’m not really sure what to say about this match. I liked it, but it just had no cohesion whatsoever. There wasn’t a structure or a feeling that either team had a plan, it was just random moves. One time in particular Yabushita had a solid submission locked in, but she just released it for no reason to go for something else, which no doubt didn’t work since neither team had a control segment worth mentioning. It was really fast paced and most things were hit really smooth, but it was a bit too unfocused for my personal preferences. Some good parts and exciting moves, it just didn’t feel like a championship match and was a step down from the match we just saw in terms of excitement and suspense.

(c) Kayoko Haruyama vs. Kyoko Kimura
JWP Openweight Championship

No pleasantries here as they start off trading hard elbows, they trade shoulderblock attempts until Haruyama knocks Kyoko to the mat. She goes off the ropes again but is pulled out of the ring by Emoto (Kyoko’s crew is Emoto, Hailey, and Nakagawa from the previous match), Kyoko goes out too and she throws Haruyama into the bleachers. She takes Haruyama into the bleachers and hits her with a weapon before bringing her back towards ringside, but instead of taking her into the ring she takes her up into the bleachers again and rams her head into the wall. Haruyama is bleeding at this point while Kyoko bites her in the head, she finally brings Haruyama back to the ring and stabs her in the head repeatedly with scissors. Kyoko gets her chain and chokes Haruyama with it, Kyoko charges Haruyama but Haruyama drops her onto the apron. Kyoko wraps the chain around Haruyama’s neck and gets a chair, Haruyama ducks the shot and goes off the ropes, but Kyoko doesn’t miss the second time as she hits Haruyama with the chair. She gets her scissors but Haruyama gets the chair and hits Kyoko with it, she throws the chair out of the ring and kicks Kyoko repeatedly while she kneels on the mat. Punches by Haruyama and she lariats Kyoko in the corner, mounted punches by Haruyama and she hits the double underhook facebuster. Haruyama hits a second one, she goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, but Kyoko avoids the diving guillotine legdrop. Kyoko then goes up top but Haruyama hits her before she can jump off and joins her, delivering an avalanche powerslam for a two count cover. Kyoko is slid her chain and she hits Haruyama in the head with it, she throws Haruyama out of the ring and Haruyama is attacked by Kyoko’s crew. JWP wrestler try to help to even the odds, but they ultimately get beaten down too. During all this, Kyoko has climbed all the way up to the high balcony at Korakuen (not the one that Io likes jumping off of, but on the other side), Kyoko is fed the chain and she hangs Haruyama from the balcony. Haruyama is freed, but she is laid down on the bleachers while Kyoko is perched above. Kyoko then dives off the balcony, hitting a diving footstomp over 20 feet down onto Haruyama’s midsection why she is lying on a wooden bleacher.

   

Kyoko goes back into the ring and sets up a barbed wire board across two chairs while she waits for Haruyama. Haruyama finally makes it back in, Kyoko puts Haruyama on the top turnbuckle and she superplexes Haruyama through the barbed wire board. Cover by Kyoko, but Haruyama barely kicks out. Running boot to the face by Kyoko, she goes up top but Haruyama gets a bundle of lighttubes and hits Kyoko in the head with it. Keene Hammer by Haruyama, but Kyoko gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kyoko and Haruyama trade elbows, they go off the ropes and Haruyama levels Kyoko with a lariat. Sliding lariat by Haruyama, but Kyoko grabs the ropes when Haruyama goes for the pin. Kyoko headbutts Haruyama and hits a big boot, another big boot by Kyoko and she covers Haruyama for two. Kyoko goes off the ropes, but Haruyama grabs her and slams Kyoko to the mat. A second Keene Hammer by Haruyama, and she picks up the three count! Kayoko Haruyama is still the champion!

Rating a match like this is hard, but I will say that it was very brutal and violent, one of the more violent matches you will see in a non-deathmatch promotion. I mean we had Haruyama hung by a chain, hit with a chain, put through barbed wire, stabbed with scissors, hit repeatedly with chairs, and on top of that a little balcony dive footstomp that no one else in the world is crazy enough to do. The only knock of sorts on the match is the ending, as after all that brutality they went though the usual ‘trade finishers’ conclusion that works fine in most matches but seemed a bit out of place here. Also, the brawling outside the ring by the two factions looked weak at times and didn’t really aid the match. But I still really enjoyed it, the match was a hell of a spectacle, even though I never want to see a match quite like it happen again. Once was the perfect number. Recommended

The post JWP Pure Slam 2009 on 7/19/09 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Time to review a new promotion! Major Girl’s Fighting AtoZ (short for “ARISON to Zenjo”) was a short-lived wrestling promotion that ran shows from 2003 to 2006. ARISON was a popular Joshi promotion that went out of business in 2003, it was taken over by Yumiko Hotta who changed the name to AtoZ. “Zenjo” was a nickname for AJW, which is where Hotta originally wrestled, hence the name. Anyway, Hotta led the promotion with Mariko Yoshida, and current Stardom boss Rossy Ogawa was involved backstage as well. The promotion did not have a lot of its own contracted wrestlers but did have a world title, and also was the starting place for many future stars including Arisa Nakajima and Kana/Asuka. Finding information on the shows is difficult as they were one of many smaller Joshi promotions at the time, but I’ll do the best I can to gather the information available.

I picked this event to review for two reasons. First, it is the earliest recorded match I could find in Kana’s career, as she just debuted the month prior in AtoZ. Second, this was a major show for the promotion as it had a number of big singles matches, a retirement road match, and what may be a classic main event. Here is the full card:

• Bullfighter Sora vs. Ofune
• Flesh Girl’s Fighting: Kana vs. Natsumi Mizushima
• Battle of J-Connection: Sachie Abe and Teruko Kagawa vs. The Bloody and Maru
• Rie Tamada Retirement Road 3rd: Rie Tamada, GAMI, and PIKO vs. Azumi Hyuga, Yoshiko Tamura, and Misae Genki
• Future Manifest: Mirai vs. Saki Maemura
• Revive Violence: Amazing Kong vs. Mima Shimoda
• Battle of A-Connection: Leona vs. Mariko Yoshida
• Battle of Z-Connection: Mika Nishio vs. Takako Inoue
• CLIMAX: Momoe Nakanishi and Nanae Takahashi vs. Yumiko Hotta and Kumiko Maekawa

They somehow squeezed all this into a two hour show, so I think it is safe to assume there will be clipping. Hopefully not in the matches I want to see the most.

Bullfighter Sora vs. Ofune

The match is Joined in Progress with Sora body blocking Ofune, but Ofune kicks out of the cover. Sora goes up top but Ofune shakes the ropes and Sora falls out of the ring. She returns after a moment, tornado DDT by Ofune but the cover gets two. Ofune chops Sora but Sora headbutts her, vertical suplex by Sora and she covers Ofune for another two count. Sora runs up the corner and goes for a diving elbow but Ofune moves, Ofune goes up top and hits a diving knee strike for two. Ofune picks up Sora but Sora hits a backdrop suplex, Ofune quickly rolls up Sora and she gets the three count! Ofune wins the match.

As I figured, pretty clipped, but at least the ending stretch was all shown in full instead of just doing random cuts. Ofune was a rather beloved wrestler the few years she was around so its always fun to see her, but not enough was shown to be memorable.

Kana vs. Natsumi Mizushima

Kana and Mizushima get right into it as the bell rings, trading elbows until Mizushima throws down Kana by the hair. Kana boots Mizushima and dropkicks her, snapmares by Kana and she starts working on Mizushima’s arm. Mizushima gets away and dropkicks Kana, knees by Mizushima but Kana hits mounted elbows. Mizushima returns fire and headbutts Kana before throwing her down by the hair, modified Camel Clutch by Mizushima  but Kana applies a backslide for two. Dropkick by Kana, she picks up Mizushima and dropkicks her into the corner before dropkicking her some more. Mizushima finally is tired of being dropkicked and headbutts Kana in the gut, she goes up top but Kana pulls her back into the ring. Hip attack by Kana and she hits another one, they trade chops until Mizushima hits a scoop slam. Mizushima gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a diving headbutt, cover by Mizushima but it gets a two count. Mizushima picks up Kana but Kana sneaks in a schoolboy for two, Irish whip by Kana but Mizushima applies a backslide. Mizushima goes up top but Kana joins her, Mizushima headbutts Kana back to the mat and hits a diving headbutt for the three count! Natsumi Mizushima is the winner.

They actually showed the bulk of this match as only a couple minutes were clipped. This was a really solid match considering both were rookies, both showed fire with their strikes and the action was pretty smooth. I won’t say the obnoxious “from watching this match it is no surprise both turned out to be big stars” as that would be silly, but I will say that both showed a natural ability early in their careers. A fun match.  Mildly Recommended

Sachie Abe and Teruko Kagawa vs. The Bloody and Maru

Bloody and Abe start the match for their teams and quickly end up in a strike battle, Abe elbows Bloody into the corner but Bloody kicks her in the head. Abe gets back in control and hits mounted elbows on Bloody, but Bloody hits a release German suplex. Abe dropkicks Bloody and throws her into the corner, Bloody jumps up onto the second turnbuckle but Abe joins her. Bloody stretches Abe on the top turnbuckle, she lets go after a moment and Abe hits a springboard elbow followed by a missile dropkick for a two count. Abe gets on the top turnbuckle but Bloody avoids the diving body press, Bloody boots Abe but Abe flips her out to the apron before kicking her out of the ring. Abe goes out after her while Kagawa gets on the top turnbuckle and dives out of the ring onto Bloody. Abe then goes up top and dives out onto Bloody and Maru, Bloody is slid back into the ring and Abe hits a diving victory roll for a two count. Snap dragon suplexes by Bloody to Abe, she kicks Abe in the head before tagging in Maru. This quickly backfires as Abe applies quick flash pins for two, Abe puts Maru in the Victory A Clutch and Maru has no choice but to submit! Abe and Kagawa are the winners.

While I love me some Bloody, the match was too short and random. I am assuming the end was clipped and Maru wasn’t literally pinned 30 seconds after getting into the ring, I’ll forgive the oddness of the layout if it wasn’t the wrestlers’ fault. Abe and Bloody both looked good with their high spots, but we didn’t get to see much from Kagawa and Maru. Just too clipped to be good.

Rie Tamada, GAMI, and PIKO vs. Azumi Hyuga, Yoshiko Tamura, and Misae Genki

Tamada and Hyuga are the first two in, after some shenanigans dealing with GAMI things settle down with Hyuga being triple beamed in a comedic way. For a ‘Retirement Road” match this one didn’t start overly serious. GAMI puts Tamura in a crab hold, they do the thing where someone at ringside grabs GAMI’s arm to provide extra pressure but they do it in a chain all the way into the crowd and up into the balcony. GAMI eventually lets go, PIKO goes for a dive out of the ring but Misae and Tamura catch her before sliding her back into the ring. Tamada and Hyuga end up in the ring, tornado DDT by Tamada and she tags in PIKO. PIKO applies an armbar before rolling up Hyuga, and we clip ahead to Tamada being in the ring with Misae. Release German by Tamada, and we clip ahead again to Tamada and GAMI double teaming Hyuga. PIKO comes in too and they triple team Misae in the corner, Frankensteiner by GAMI and PIKO hits a diving hurricanrana. German suplex hold by Tamada, but the cover gets broken up. Tamada goes for another suplex but Misae blocks it, Tamada goes off the rope but Misae catches her with a chokeslam. Tamura runs in and elbows Tamada, G-Driver by Misae and she covers Tamada for a two count. Misae picks up Tamada but Tamada ducks the discus lariat and hits a German suplex hold for two. GAMI tries to help but it backfires, another G-Driver by Misae and she gets the three count! Azumi Hyuga, Yoshiko Tamura, and Misae Genki are the winners.

Too odd of a match for my personal tastes, when matches try to be a hybrid of comedy and straight up wrestling it tends to not really work out. The clipping didn’t help of course, as if there was any type of structure to it we wouldn’t know from the way the match aired. I liked Misae Genki a lot and appreciated she took the match back to a more serious level, but I was hoping for a bit more in one of Rie Tamada’s last wrestling matches.

Mirai vs. Saki Maemura

They lock knuckles which the much taller Mirai easily gets the better of, Mirai takes down Maemura with a headlock but Maemura quickly reverses it. Mirai gets in the mount and rains down elbows while Maemura applies a bodyscissors, Mirai chokes Maemura to get her to release the hold before hitting a pair of jumping lariats. Back up they trade strikes, atomic drop by Mirai and she hits the Giant Swing on her smaller opponent. Bridging scoop suplex by Mirai, she goes up top but Maemura ducks the diving crossbody. Maemura dropkicks Mirai out of the ring, she gets out on the apron and hits a missile dropkick. She then goes up to the top turnbuckle and delivers a diving plancha, she slides Mirai back in before going back up top and hitting a missile dropkick. Diving body press by Maemura, but Mirai kicks out of the cover. Mirai elbows out of the German and chops Maemura, Maemura slaps her however and hits a release fisherman suplex. Hard chop to the chest by Mirai and she applies an Octopus Hold before rolling Maemura to the mat while keeping it applied, but Maemura gets a foot onto the ropes. Mirai quick re-applies it, she lets go after a moment and goes for a scoop slam, but Maemura reverses it into a roll-up. Mirai chops Maemura into the corner but Maemura ducks one and hits a release German suplex, fisherman suplex hold by Maemura and she picks up the three count! Saki Maemura wins the match.

This was a really fun match, I enjoy watching two young wrestlers that have passion for wrestling going non-stop with a variety of strikes and suplexes. Mirai used her height and size advantage well, winning a few exchanges with it, but Maemura was too slick to keep down and her high flying moves helped make the difference. A bit clipped but a good percentage of it was shown, no real complaints as it was an entertaining match bell to bell.  Mildly Recommended

Amazing Kong vs. Mima Shimoda

Shimoda attacks Kong before the match starts and the streamers fly, pink streamers are literally everywhere as Kong and Shimoda battle at ringside. Kong takes Shimoda into the crowd and throws her around before they return to the ring, she goes for a powerbomb but Shimoda reverses it with a back bodydrop. Kong fires back with a lariat, Shimoda drives Kong into the corner but Kong avoids he charge and nails a Buckle Bomb. Shimoda takes back over with kicks to the back of Kong’s head, Shimoda stomps down Kong in the corner and takes her out of the ring before assaulting her with chairs. Shimoda slides some chairs in the ring and brings Kong in with her, Shimoda throws Kong onto the chair pile and goes up top, hitting a diving footstomp onto Kong. Kong blocks the slam attempt and lands on top of Shimoda, and we get a good shot of Shimoda’s face which at some point got busted up all the hell. Shimoda goes up top but Kong pushes her out of the ring to the floor, Kong goes out after her and takes her up onto the balcony (Joshi promotions during this time period loved the balcony at Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium), she tries to throw Shimoda off of it but Shimoda hangs on by the railing.

Kong goes back down to the floor to try to pull Shimoda off the railing, but Shimoda kicks Kong away and with help drops down to the floor unscathed. Kong isn’t on the defense for long and she rolls Shimoda into the ring before going to get a table, she sets up the table at ringside before continuing to toss Shimoda around the floor. Kong brings Shimoda up onto the apron and tries to powerbomb her through the table, but she partially misses it and Shimoda barely touches it before going straight down to the floor. Somehow she isn’t injured, she gets on the apron but Kong lariats her from inside the ring. Double underhook facebuster by Kong, Kong get on the second turnbuckle but Shimoda avoids the body press. Lariat by Kong, she goes for a powerbomb but Shimoda reverses it with a hurricanrana. Kong hits another lariat, she goes up top but Shimoda hits her before she can jump off. Shimoda joins Kong and tosses her to the mat, somersault legdrop to the back of the head by Shimoda but Kong kicks out of the cover. Shimoda picks up Kong but Kong pushes her off, both wrestlers connect with punches but Kong connects better as Shimoda is knocked out. She barely makes the referee’s count, Kong promptly lariats her before hitting a Uraken. Powerbomb by Kong, she goes up top and she nails the diving body press for the three count cover! Your winner is Amazing Kong!

Well I enjoyed the hell out of this match. Kong at the time was still pretty raw, she was a solid wrestler but was mostly a brawler as she wasn’t always super smooth with her moves. Shimoda being the underdog was fun as normally she is the one using weapons and being the heel, here she was outdone by Kong in both of those departments. These types of matches work well as a change of pace, lots of brawling and chair shots and general chaos. Kong almost killed Shimoda with the missed powerbomb and the balcony spots always add a degree of excitement since you never know what will happen. An entertaining crowd brawling match, with a convincing win by Amazing Kong.  Recommended

Leona vs. Mariko Yoshida

Yoshida quickly takes Leona to the mat but Leona repeatedly wiggles away from her, Yoshida generally stays in control but she can’t get a hold locked in. Yoshida finally gets a kneelock applied while also kicking Leona in the back, but Leona gets a hand in the ropes to force a break. Yoshida takes Leona back down and kicks her in the back, Irish whip by Yoshida but Leona reverses it before Yoshida flips Leona out to the apron. Diving armdrag by Leona, Yoshida falls out of the ring and Leona dropkicks her when Yoshida gets on the apron. Leona charges the ropes, she jumps straight to the top rope and springboards out onto Yoshida with a Plancha. Back in the ring, diving somersault senton by Leona but it gets a two count. We jump ahead to Yoshida being back in control, Air Raid Crash by Yoshida but Leona barely gets a shoulder up on the somewhat cocky cover. Yoshida goes to pick up Leona but Leona puts her in the Spider Twist, which is one of Yoshida’s finishing moves. Yoshida gets a toe on the ropes, back up Yoshida kicks Leona in the chest but Leona hits a spear for a two count. German suplex hold by Leona, she goes off the ropes but Yoshida boots her hard in the chest. Yoshida picks up Leona in a vertical suplex position before dropping her with a kneeling tombstone piledriver, picking up the three count! Mariko Yoshida wins!

Since I have not seen Yoshida finish a match with that move, I will assume that was her way of sticking it to Leona for trying to take her finishing move. Leona put up more of a fight than I was expecting, which made the match a lot more fun to watch as she is a really solid high speed wrestler. The match was too short/clipped to make it worth seeking out, but it was a fun back and forth match and Yoshida’s reaction when Leona put on the Spider Twist showed that she realized Leona wasn’t going to be as easy to beat as she may have originally thought. Overall entertaining, I just wish more was shown.  Mildly Recommended

Mika Nishio vs. Takako Inoue

Takako and Nishio circle to start, armdrag by Takako and she attacks Nishio in the corner. Kicks by Takako from the apron and she hits a double underhook suplex, picking up a two count. DDT by Takako but Nishio fires back with elbows, they trade slaps until Takako sends Nishio to the mat. Backdrop suplex by Takako but Nishio ducks the spinning backfist, Takako connects with the next one and goes for the Takako Panic, but Nishio ducks it and hits a jumping heel kick. Nishio picks up Takako but Takako blocks the suplex, another jumping heel kick by Nishio and she gets another two count. German suplex hold by Nishio and she picks up Takako, but Takako rolls her to the mat and covers her for two. Back up, tiger suplex hold by Nishio but Takako gets a shoulder up. She goes for another one and hits it, but again it gets a two count. Nishio goes off the ropes but Takako nails her with a spinning backfist, she hits a second one and covers Nishio for the three count! Takako Inoue is the winner.

A step down from the last few matches but still not a bad one. It was just a bit disjointed, the transitions were shaky at best as they seemed to mostly take turns hitting moves on each other with little rhyme or reason. Nishio must not have had a deep pool of moves as she kept going for the same two or three during the last half of the match, and without a ‘bigger’ finishing move it was hard to believe she would beat Takako. Some solid parts and its always good to see Takako, but overall a bit underwhelming.

Momoe Nakanishi and Nanae Takahashi vs. Yumiko Hotta and Kumiko Maekawa

Nanae and Momo have no time for streamers and attack Hotta and Maekawa before the match starts, as the battle spills out of the ring. Nanae and Momo control the action on the floor and into the crowd, eventually they bring Hotta back into the ring but Hotta hits a double face crusher on them. Hotta gets her chain but Momo dropkicks her in the knee, elbow drop by Nanae and they both attack Hotta in the corner. Momo stays in but Maekawa gives Hotta her chain again and she hits Momo in the head with it. More chain shots by Hotta, she wraps it around Momo’s neck and applies a choke with it while Maekawa kicks Momo in the chest. Maekawa is tagged in and she kicks Momo in the face, but Nanae comes in and they both dropkick Maekawa. Missile dropkick by Nanae but Maekawa kicks her into the corner and tags in Hotta. Nanae greets Hotta with elbows but Hotta applies a sleeper until Momo breaks it up. Well she tries anyway but Hotta keeps it locked in while Maekawa grabs Momo, Momo gets away from Maekawa and chokes Hotta with her own chain until she lets go of Nanae. Nanae elbows Hotta against the ropes but Hotta comes back with a spinning heel kick, she hits a second one before Maekawa chokes Nanae in the corner with the chain. Hotta Irish whips Nanae but instead of bouncing off the ropes she sails out of the ring with a tope suicida onto Maekawa. Momo comes in the ring with a missile dropkick, she goes up top again and dives out onto Maekawa while Nanae hits a backdrop suplex onto Hotta. Dropkick by Nanae to Hotta, she goes for the Reverse Splash but Hotta moves and kicks her in the head. Tiger Driver by Hotta, but Nanae kicks out at two. Maekawa comes in but Nanae gets away from her and they trade strikes, big boot by Maekawa but Nanae fires back with a shoulderblock. A superkick sends Nanae to the mat but she pops back up and hits a lariat for a two count cover. Hotta comes in and kicks Nanae, they both boot Nanae in the stomach but she avoids Maekawa’s rolling kick. Maekawa hits a high kick anyway, Nanae finally hits the Reverse Splash but Maekawa bridges out of the pin and kicks Nanae out of the ring. Momo lays out Maekawa on the floor, she slides her back in and Nanae hits a reverse double footstomp for a two count.

Momo stays in and dropkicks Maekawa in the head, but Maekawa comes back with a high kick. Jumping kick by Maekawa, and she covers Momo for two. Rolling kick by Maekawa, but this time Nanae breaks up the cover. Drop down kick by Maekawa and she hits a running boot in the corner, she goes up top but Momo joins her, Nanae comes in and she superplexes Maekawa. Diving body press by Momo, Nanae picks up Maekawa and delivers a backdrop suplex. Lariat by Nanae, German suplex hold by Momo but Maekawa kicks out. Mom picks up Maekawa but Hotta runs in and slaps her, kick by Maekawa and she tags in Hotta. Hotta comes in with her chain and shoves down the referee, but Momo sneaks in a victory roll for two. Maekawa returns but Nanae does too and they dropkick Hotta and Maekawa. Momo goes up top and goes for a diving body press, but Hotta gets her feet up. Hotta picks up Momo but Momo slides away and hits a German suplex hold for a two count. Momo picks up Hotta again and dumps her out of the ring, but Maekawa runs in and hoots Momo out of the ring as well. Maekawa then kicks Nanae out of the ring and follows her out, as all four brawl on the floor. Maekawa grabs she chairs and throws them in the ring for Hotta, Momo is slid back in and Hotta puts her on the second turnbuckle. Hotta joins her and hits a German suplex down onto the pile of chairs, cover by Hotta but the referee is not interested in counting due to all the cheating. Nanae runs in and lariats Hotta, Momo and Hotta trade elbows until Hotta punches her in the face and hits a Liger Bomb for a two count. Hotta picks up Momo but Momo gets away, punch by Hotta as Maekawa runs in but Maekawa boots Hotta by accident. German suplex by Nanae to Hotta, Momo jackknifes over Hotta as she picks up a two count. Momo☆OK by Momo and she hits a second one, but Hotta kicks out of the cover. Momo☆Latch by Momo, but Hotta barely gets a shoulder up. Momo picks up Hotta she is hit by a fireball from Hotta’s help at ringside, Hotta picks up Momo and drops her with the Pyramid Driver. Momo comes back with another Momo☆OK but Hotta hits her with the chain. Pyramid Driver by Hotta, but Momo gets a shoulder up on the pin attempt. Hotta picks up Momo but Momo elbows her, Nanae tries to help but Hotta swats her away. A Momo☆Latch gets a two count, Hotta gets Momo up on her shoulder and she nails a Pyramid Driver EX for the three count! Hotta and Maekawa are the winners!

I don’t even know where to begin for a match like this. It had an old school feel, lots of being stubborn and generally not selling things nearly long enough considering what they were doing to each other. Hotta has a reputation as being a selfish worker, likely deserved, and its just odd watching her as its like a relic from the old days where wrestlers didn’t want to ever look weak. She wasn’t uncooperative, she just wasn’t putting a lot of effort into making her opponents look good. Momo and Nanae were the better team as they were putting a lot more effort into making the match entertaining, Maekawa was fine but was mostly just doing kicks and otherwise letting Hotta do the heavy lifting. I enjoyed parts of it, rolled my eyes during other parts and scratched my head more than once, just an oddly put together match. More good than bad for sure but not exactly a classic, watching Hotta is a bit of a chore in of itself unless she is in the ring with someone that doesn’t put up with her shit, which wasn’t really an option for Momo and Nanae. Maybe worth a watch but mostly for Momo and Nanae.  Mildly Recommended

The post AtoZ “1st Anniversary Mainstream” on 7/19/04 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

A few months ago I purchased tons of older Joshi events so I could catch up on all I missed as I didn’t start following Joshi until 2014. As I watch them, I figured I may as well review the events as well so others can join me in my walk through the past. This was a big show for the now defunct promotion Jd’ (or JDStar) that ran from 1996 to 2007. Jd’ was run and owned by Jaguar Yokota, the former AJW superstar that came out of retirement to form the promotion. Their events didn’t often appear in full form, as this is a television airing that clipped many of the matches. But the main event was shown in full, as Jaguar Yokota and Lioness Asuka battle for the TWF World Women’s Championship! Here is the full card:

• Alda Moreno vs. Yuki Lee
• Ryuna and Fang Suzuki vs. Yuko Kosugi and Kazuko Fujiwara
• Jd’ Junior Championship: Megumi Yabushita vs. The Bloody
• Cooga and Leoga vs. Esther Moreno and Sachie Abe
• Kyoko Inoue and Sumie Sakai vs. Michiko Omukai and Chikako Shiratori
• TWF World Women’s Championship: Lioness Asuka vs. Jaguar Yokota

As I mentioned, a lot of these matches are clipped, and I don’t have match times for many of these matches so I won’t know how much they are clipped. But we are going to watch it all anyway.

Alda Moreno vs. Yuki Lee

This match was joined in progress, as Moreno knocks Lee out of the ring to the floor. Moreno charges the ropes and sails out onto Lee with a Tope con Giro, as they return to the ring she goes for a crossbody but Lee catches her and hits a fallaway slam. Yuki chops Moreno repeatedly before hitting a powerslam, covering Moreno for two. Lee puts Moreno on the top turnbuckle and hits an avalanche powerslam, picking up another two count.Lee picks up Moreno, Moreno gets away but Lee levels her with a superkick. Lee charges Moreno but Moreno kicks her way and hits a Tope con Giro off the top turnbuckle. Diving heel kick by Moreno and she applies Casita for a two count. Lee grabs Moreno and hits a leg trap German suplex for two, she waits for Moreno to get up and kicks her repeatedly. Piledriver by Lee, but Moreno barely kicks out of the pin. Lee puts Moreno on the top turnbuckle and she delivers an avalanche fallaway slam, and she gets the three count pinfall! Lee wins the match.

For an opener they had no issues flying around and doing high spots, which will probably continue for the entire card. I am surprised that Lee didn’t ‘make it’ so to speak, she had some really good moves and I loved all her fallaway slams, quite impressive. Moreno looked fine too, and for a clipped up opener I have no complaints.

Ryuna and Fang Suzuki vs. Yuko Kosugi and Kazuko Fujiwara

The intro I just typed may be longer than the match, as it is joined in progress with Kosugi being double teamed by Ryuna and Suzuki. Suzuki body blocks Kosugi into the corner twice, she gets a chain and wraps her around her fist before hitting Kosugi repeatedly in the head with it. Ryuna comes in with a chair but accidentally hits Suzuki in the head with it, giving Kosugi time to tag in Fujiwara. Back bodydrops by Fujiwara to Suzuki, but Suzuki bridges out of the pin. Suzuki slams Fujiwara and tags in Ryuna, and Ryuna promptly takes Fujiwara out of the ring as all four wrestlers brawl on the floor. Ryuna gets the better of both Kosugi and Fujiwara, Suzuki gets a chair and hits Kosugi in the head with it. Kosugi is bleeding and looks like she has been for awhile as Ryuna and Fujiwara return to the ring, diving crossbody by Fujiwara but it gets a two count. Bubba Bomb by Ryuna to Fujiwara and she hits a lariat, another lariat by Ryuna and she covers Fujiwara for two. Ryuna gets a chair and hits Fujiwara in the head with it, fireman’s carry slam by Ryuna and she picks up the three count! Ryuna and Suzuki are the winners.

Ryuna and Suzuki sure are mean, just terrorizing Kosugi throughout the match as she bled all over the place. Like the last match, I was surprised by how fast this card ramped up, I am used to wrestling promotions now starting slow and reaching a climax but apparently Jd’ did not believe in that philosophy. While it was fun to see baby KAZUKI, she didn’t do a whole lot here as most of what they showed was Kosugi being attacked with weapons. Certainly fun to watch but still too clipped to get overly excited about.

(c) Megumi Yabushita vs. The Bloody

Yabushita’s knee is heavily bandaged coming into the match, which will be Bloody’s main focus in the match. Yabushita quickly goes for a short armbar, but Bloody gets to the ropes and immediately starts attacking Yabushita’s knee with stomps and a dropkick. Yabushita rolls out of the ring but Bloody goes out after her and hits Yabushita’s leg with a chair. They return to the ring after a moment and Bloody hits a backdrop suplex, she goes up top twice and hits two consecutive reverse splashes for a two count. Bloody gets a chair again and slams Yabushita onto it, she goes for another reverse splash but this time Yabushita moves. Yabushita goes for a cross armbreaker but Bloody lands on the ropes, she tries again but Bloody blocks it. Bloody goes up top and hits a diving senton, and she covers Yabushita for two. Kneelock by Bloody, Yabushita is in a lot of pain as Yabushita’s friends run into the ring to break up the submission. The referee tries to clear the ring as Bloody gets the chair, and she throws it at Yabushita’s leg. Bloody re-applies the kneelock but Yabushita manages to get to the ropes, she rolls out of the ring clutching her knee and the referee goes out to check on her. The referee determines she can not continue, and calls for the bell! Since the referee stopped the match and it wasn’t a count out, The Bloody is your new champion!

Two things real quick – first, this match was shown in full, it was just a really short match. Also, you may be picturing The Bloody as a heel with face paint or weapons or something but actually she is a very attractive woman that happens to have a name that implies otherwise. I think Yabushita had a legit leg issue since her knee had a brace on it, so this may have been an easy way to get the title off of her while she healed up as it was a quick match. Yabushita’s seconds acting like Yabushita was in serious pain helped the realism factor, and I liked that Yabushita kept going for quick submissions to sneak in a win since she knew she wasn’t 100%. Quite enjoyable for a five minute match, The Bloody can really move and they laid the match out well all things considered.  Mildly Recommended

Cooga and Leoga vs. Esther Moreno and Sachie Abe

We join this one in progress as Moreno hits a hurricanrana on Cooga for a two count, another quick pin by Moreno but that gets a two as well. Cooga has enough and hits a German suplex, she goes for a cannonball off the top turnbuckle but Moreno moves and she hits Leoga by accident. Abe comes in, Abe and Moreno go to different corners and both hit diving splashes. They go up top and hit splashes again, cover by Moreno but it gets a two count. Abe stays in but Cooga hits a crossbody on both of them and she makes the hot tag to Leoga. Leoga gets on the second turnbuckle but Moreno jumps up an hits a Frankensteiner to the mat. Abe is still hanging around, she goes up top as Moreno does as well and both hit a diving splash onto Leoga for two. Abe comes in but Leoga gets away from her, Northern Lights Suplex by Leoga to Abe but Abe kicks out. Bridging backdrop suplex by Abe, but that gets a two count as well. Cooga comes in and they double team Abe, as Leoga hits a somersault guillotine legdrop off the top. Leoga tags Cooga and Cooga hits a handstand kick in the corner. Moreno runs in and hits a crossbody on Cooga, Cooga still tries to suplex Leoga but Leoga reverses it. Cooga kicks both Abe and Moreno out of the ring, Leoga goes up top and hits a plancha down onto both of her opponents. Abe and Cooga return and Cooga hits a Tiger Driver, but Moreno breaks up the cover. Cooga puts Abe on her shoulders, Leoga goes up top and they hit an avalanche face crusher. Cooga goes up top and dives on top of Abe, she goes up top again and hits a diving knee strike for the three count cover! Cooga and Leoga are your winners.

Aside from the end of the match being a bit botched looking, overall I enjoyed it. Lots of high flying and dives, maybe an excessive amount but I can’t complain about a midcard match that is exciting. Both masked wrestlers delivered, neither had any notable success in Joshi but they were clearly well trained and knew what they were doing. Moreno was virtually flawless in what they showed us, and Abe looked solid as well. I don’t know how much was clipped since we almost immediately had a nearfall as soon as we joined the action, but overall I thought it was a pretty fun match.  Mildly Recommended

Kyoko Inoue and Sumie Sakai vs. Michiko Omukai and Chikako Shiratori

We join the match as Inoue stretches Shiratori in the ring before tagging in Sakai. Dropkick by Sakai and she applies a cross armbreaker, but Shiratori gets a foot on the ropes to force a break. Judo throws by Sakai and she goes back to the arm, but Omukai breaks it up. Double underhook suplex by Sakai but Shiratori bridges up, only to get hit by rolling backdrop suplexes. Dropkick by Shiratori, she goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick. She goes up top again and hits another missile dropkick, cover on Sakai but it gets two. Shiratori puts Sakai on the top turnbuckle and hits a DDT down to the mat, but Inoue breaks up the cover. Inoue lariats Shiratori, which gives Sakai time to crawl to the corner to tag her in. Shiratori tags in Omukai, Inoue immediately kicks Omukai but Omukai applies a backslide. Shiratori comes in but Inoue lariats both of them, Sakai comes in and they both dropkick Omukai. Inoue goes up top but Shiratori grabs her which gives Omukai time to recover and hit a superplex. She goes up top again but Inoue whacks her, Shiratori comes in too and Omukai hits a diving knee. Omukai goes up top yet again and hits another diving knee, she then goes a fourth time and hits another one for a two count cover. Inoue avoids it when she tries again and hits a German suplex, tiger suplex by Omukai and she tags in Shiratori. Shiratori goes for a suplex but Inoue blocks it, Omukai returns and they both knock Inoue out of the ring. Sakai tumbles out too, Shiratori goes out top and dives down onto Inoue and Sakai. Omukai then does the same, they return to the ring and Shiratori hits a dropkick while Inoue is on Omukai’s shoulders. Shiratori grabs Inoue and delivers the cross-arms suplex, but Inoue barely gets the shoulder up. Inoue clubs Shiratori but Shiratori sneaks in La Magistral for a two count. Irish whip by Shiratori but Inoue rocks her with a lariat, Niagara Driver by Inoue and she picks up the three count! Inoue and Sakai are the winners of the match.

I was enjoying this match until the sudden ending. I knew the end result but Inoue just shrugged off a few big moves and nearfalls before easily hitting two big moves to get the convincing win. I would have liked a slightly longer ending stretch, giving Inoue a proper amount of time to recover before finishing off Shiratori. Lots of flying around and I was surprised how much offense that young Sakai got, but overall not a great match mostly due to how it was structured.

(c) Lioness Asuka vs. Jaguar Yokota

I want to apologize in advance, I am not familar enough with Jd’ to know who each wrestler’s “seconds” are that keep getting involved in the match, so I just refer to them as “friends.” Anyway, Yokota is distracted early on by Asuka’s friends at ringside, but she still manages to hit a quick German suplex hold followed by a moonsault for a two count. Asuka retorts by picking up Yokota onto her shoulders and dumps Yokota over the top rope down to the floor. Asuka then hits a top suicida out onto Yokota before suplexing her back into the ring, but Yokota bridges out of the pin and hits a sunset flip. These two are going one hundred as Asuka kicks Yokota in the stomach and in the back before knocking her out of the ring. Their friends brawl with each other while Asuka takes Yokota and throws her into a row of chairs. Asuka hits a backdrop suplex on the floor, Jd’ wrestlers check on Yokota and help her back into the ring where Asuka is waiting with a chair. Asuka sets up the chair, she sits Yokota in it and kicks her in the chest. Piledriver onto the chair by Asuka, and she covers Yokota for two. Asuka knocks Yokota out of the ring again where she is tended to, but she is rolled back in and Asuka kicks her again. Asuka goes up top and hits a moonsault, but Yokota kicks out of the cover. Scoop sit-out slam by Asuka, a table is slid into the ring and Asuka piledrives Yokota through the table. The table breaks, so Asuka takes the jagged part of the table and hits Yokota in the head with it, cutting her open in the process. Irish whip by Asuka and she connects with a high kick, she gets a chain and hits Yokota in the head with it repeatedly.

Asuka goes for a Liger Bomb but Yokota flips over her back and covers Asuka for two. Asuka doesn’t like this and hits Yokota a few more times with the chain, delayed vertical suplex by Asuka but she pulls up Yokota before the cover so she can hit a gutwrench powerbomb. Asuka gets a chair again, Yokota fights back for a moment but Asuka hits a heel kick and throws the chair at Yokota’s head. Asuka goes up top but Yokota hits her from behind with the chair, she then joins Asuka up top and hits an avalanche backdrop suplex for two. Double underhook tombstone piledriver by Yokota, but Asuka gets a shoulder up on the cover. Asuka’s posse tries to help but she hits Asuka by accident, Yokota wraps the chain around her boot and hits a missile dropkick from the second turnbuckle. Asuka falls out of the ring, Yokota gets on the apron and she hits a Tope con Giro to the floor. Yokota goes for a tombstone piledriver but Asuka reverses it and hits a tombstone piledriver of her own on the floor. Asuka then picks up Yokota and plants her hard with a Liger Bomb onto the floor. Yokota is rolled back in the ring, Liger Bomb by Asuka but Yokota barely kicks out. Asuka picks up Yokota and nails the Towerhacker Bomb, but again Yokota gets a shoulder up. Trying to put Yokota away, a table is set up across the second turnbuckle, they get on the table and Asuka suplexes Yokota for another two count. This time, they set up the table all the way on the top turnbuckle, Asuka gets up top as Yokota is fed to her and goes for a super avalanche Liger Bomb, but Yokota reverses it with an Avalanche Frankensteiner and she picks up the three count! Jaguar Yokota is your new champion!

After the match, Yokota asked for Asuka’s hand but Asuka sprayed mist in her face, so the picture above is what she looked like after the match ended. Anyway, this match was literally breath-taking. I don’t normally make audible noises while watching wrestling alone at home but this match got several gasps from me as they were just doing crazy shit. The types of moves you may see maybe once a year they had several of in this one match, and I can’t remember the last time I saw an avalanche Frankensteiner like that. These two were killing each other and it fit well into both of their strengths – Asuka brings the destruction while Yokota is the fierce underdog that takes a beating but finds her spot to come back. No sane person would complain about Asuka losing to a ‘flash’ avalanche Frankensteiner, yes she had done more damage in the match but that was a match-ending move, plus since it was a quick pin it didn’t get Asuka’s friends a chance to react and interfere. Really it only came about due to Asuka’s frustrations, as she kept having to ramp up the violence since Yokota wouldn’t stay down, which led to her going for a ‘final’ move so risky that it was easy for Yokota to reverse. Just an exciting and special match the likes you don’t see these days due to concerns for wrestler’s health, I loved it.  Highly Recommended

The post Jd’ Stir The Blood 1997 on 10/22/97 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

This is not a large event, and it may seem to be an odd one to pick out of a hat. My main interest was seeing Kana in a new environment, but I also like to sometimes watch the smaller shows as that is a better representation of what a promotion is all about. Almost all promotions can put on a good show once a year at their largest event, but watching wrestlers on the ‘off days’ shows what they are really made of. This event took place in their familiar Itabashi Green Hall, in front of 170 fans. Here is the full card:

• Leon and Risa Sera vs. Nana Kawasa and Raideen Hagane
• Kayoko Haruyama vs. Sareee
• Kana vs. Tsubasa Kuragaki
• JWP Tag League The Best – Block B: Manami Katsu and Rabbit Miu [0] vs. Sachie Abe and KAZUKI [1]
• JWP Tag League The Best – Block A: Arisa Nakajima and Command Bolshoi [2] vs. Hanako Nakamori and Morii [2]

This taping is not clipped, which is good since it wasn’t very long in the first place. Onto the fun.

Leon and Risa Sera vs. Nana Kawasa and Raideen Hagane

Hagane and Sera start the match, as the veteran Leon watches from the apron. Hagane is quite a bit bigger than Sera and uses her size to get an early advantage until she tags in Kawasa. Kawasa has Sera beat in the size department too (Sera isn’t micro sized but is a bit smaller than most) and works Sera over, Sera fights back after a moment and the two trade blows. Shoulderblocks by Kawasa but Sera blocks the suplex, Hagane comes in but so does Leon, and both Leon and Sera hit dropkicks on their opponents. Sera tags in Leon, dropkick by Leon to Kawasa but Kawasa back bodydrops her. Backbreaker by Leon and she starts on Kawasa’s back until Hagane lends a hand to turn the match into Kawasa’s favor. Back up they trade blows, powerslam by Kawasa and she gets a two count.

Kawasa gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a body press, but that gets two as well. Hagane is tagged in, she shoulderblocks Leon around and she hits a backdrop suplex for two. Hagane goes up top but Sera grabs her, Leon recovers and tosses Hagane to the mat. Springboard bulldog by Leon and she hits a spear in the corner, followed by a missile dropkick. Leon tags Sera, dropkicks by Sera but Hagane hits a pair of dropkicks on her own. Judo throw by Hagane and she hits two more before applying a side choke. Leon breaks that up, Hagane picks up Sera and she hits a backdrop suplex for a two count. Kawasa runs in and hits a second rope body press, Hagane goes up top but Sera avoids the dive. Sera tries to pick up Hagane by fails, shoulderblock by Hagane but she can’t keep Sera down for a three count. Leon runs in and spears Hagane, Sera picks up Hagane and hits the Ayers Rock for the three count! Leon and Sera win the match.

This was a bit sloppy to put it mildly. Part of that can be attributed to their ages/skill levels but I think another part was not a lot of effort was put into structuring a match that opened on a small show. There were just a lot of miscommunications throughout, some small but some bigger, that prevented the match from ever getting a flow. A few of the moves were hit well and it never was overly boring, it was just dull and uneventful.

Kayoko Haruyama vs. Sareee

Sareee dropkicks Haruyama as soon as the bell rings and throws her down by her hair before stomping Haruyama in the corner. Haruyama has had enough and takes back over, chopping Sareee mercilessly in the corner. Sleeper by Haruyama but Sareee slips through it and hits mounted forearms. Dropkicks by Sareee, she is getting a lot more offense in this match then I expected. Another dropkick by Sareee but Haruyama slaps on a side headlock on the mat. Haruyama controls the next few minutes of the match until Sareee jumps up on the second turnbuckle and hits a dropkick. Dropkick to the knee by Sareee and she dropkicks Haruyama a few more times, she goes up top but Haruyama joins her. Sareee pushes her off and hits a missile dropkick, another missile dropkick by Sareee and she gets a two count. Haruyama finally catches a dropkick and hits a facebuster, she goes for a suplex but Sareee hits a bulldog. Kick to the head by Haruyama but Sareee sneaks in a cradle for two. Back up they trade blows, Haruyama hits a backdrop suplex and she hits a missile dropkick of her own. Sareee reverses the suplex attempt and sneaks in a few more pin attempts with no luck. Lariat by Haruyama, she goes up top and she nails a Diving Guillotine Drop for the three count! Haruyama is your winner.

I think in a bigger arena this would have been more of a hit, as Sareee played the part of underdog well and Haruyama was shockingly willing to bump around for her. This was basically a 50/50 match which was the last thing I was expecting, and aside from from a miscommunication at the end it was very smooth. Sareee was still new to wrestling at this point but had the basics down pat, and Haruyama led her well. I like when rookies show spunk against veterans so I liked the match, but with a more vocal crowd it would have made more of a lasting impression. Mildly Recommended

Kana vs. Tsubasa Kuragaki

This one starts slow, as they spent the early portion of the match feeling each other out on the mat. I thought this one would be a bit more heated but apparently Kana hadn’t gone heel at this point in the JWP storyline, it seems that comes a bit later. Kana briefly gets the cross armbreaker locked on but Kuragaki gets to the ropes, Kana starts working on Kuragaki’s arm but Kuragaki gets away and starts working a side headlock. Kuragaki hits a thrust kick but Kana fires back with a knee, dropkick by Kuragaki but Kana catches her arm as she charges in and applies a short armbar. Back up, Kuragaki goes for a suplex but Kana takes her back down with an armbar but Kuragaki gets to the ropes. Strikes by Kana in the corner and she hits a dropkick, but Kuragaki fires back with a lariat. Helicopter Toss by Kuragaki and she goes up top, Kana joins her but Kuragaki gets Kana on her shoulder. Kana slides off while still up top and applies a headlock, but Kuragaki gets out of it and slams Kana to the mat.

Second turnbuckle body press by Kuragaki, but it only gets two. Scorpion Deathlock by Kuragaki with a headlock, but Kana gets to the ropes. Back up they trade elbows, Kuragaki gets Kana on her back but Kana rolls off and applies an ankle hold. Kuragaki gets out of it but Kana goes back to the armbar, Kuragaki inches to the ropes and makes it to force the break. Kana grabs Kuragaki but Kuragaki whips off a backdrop suplex, release German by Kana but Kuragaki blocks her kick and hits a short range lariat. Kuragaki goes for a powerbomb but Kana slides away and hits a buzzsaw kick. Backdrop suplex by Kuragaki, Kana retorts with a high kick but Kuragaki plants her with a lariat. Kana slowly gets up first but Kuragaki hits another backdrop suplex, she goes up top and nails the moonsault, but Kana barely kicks out of the cover.  She picks up Kana but the bell rings, as time expires. The match is a Draw.

This was a really solid match between the veterans and smartly worked. It started slow so I was a bit worried, but then they got into it with Kana focusing on the arm while Kuragaki was going for power moves to put Kana away. Kuragaki sold the arm just enough, it didn’t need excessive selling since Kana wasn’t able to focus on it for long before being cut off. There was no hatred here at all, just two well schooled wrestlers putting on a clinic, with it climaxing at just the right time. I’m not a big fan of draws outside of points-based tournaments, but I thought this match delivered and is on the high end of my ‘Recommended’ scale.  Recommended

Manami Katsu and Rabbit Miu vs. Sachie Abe and KAZUKI

Miu and Abe kick things off, Miu is so itty bitty next to Abe (and still technically a child at this point), and the match starts slow as they all yell at each other. I don’t speak Japanese, maybe they are making fun of her for being old. We finally get started as both teams go for quick pins before Abe throws Miu down by her hair and stomps her in the corner. Katsu comes in to help but it backfires pretty quickly, KAZUKI comes in and they stack Miu and Katsu in the corner before KAZUKI hits a reverse double knee drop. Double underhook suplex by Abe to Miu, but it gets two. Quick pin attempt by Miu followed by dropkicks, Miu hits a vertical suplex and tags in Katsu. Hard shoulderblock by Katsu to Abe (Katsu is young but massive) and they trade elbows, Katsu gets the better of the exchange and hits a backbreaker near the corner. Katsu goes for a reverse splash but Abe rolls out of the way, Abe goes for a quick pin but Katsu reverses it. Sling Blade by Abe and she tags in KAZUKI, Katsu kicks KAZUKI and hits a bridging suplex for two. Miu goes up top but KAZUKI pushes Katsu into her.

Miu hits a missile dropkick anyway, reverse splash by Katsu but it gets two. Samoan Drop by Katsu and she tags in KAZUKI while Miu comes in also, footstomp by KAZUKI and she hits a double kneedrop for two. Miu gets out of the backbreaker and hits her own footstomps, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Abe grabs her. KAZUKI gets Miu up on her shoulders but Katsu comes in and helps Miu hit a DDT. Tornado DDT by Miu followed by missile dropkicks by both wrestlers, Katsu gets on the top turnbuckle and she hits a reverse splash. Diving body press but Miu, but Abe breaks up the cover. Codebreaker by KAZUKI and she suplexes Miu, getting a two count. Miu gets on KAZUKI’s shoulders but KAZUKI slams her to the mat, Miu avoids the diving kneedrop but KAZUKI plants her with a cutter for a two count. Katsu runs in and elbows KAZUKI, they trade roll-ups but neither gets the three count. Abe goes up top, KAZUKI puts Miu on her shoulders but Miu rolls through it. Abe trips KAZUKI by accident, she goes to help her but Miu pushes Abe onto KAZUKI and covers her for a three count! Katsu and Miu get two points in the tournament.

Really awkward ending aside, this wasn’t a bad match but it wasn’t good either. Katsu and Miu were a bit rough around the edges, perfectly acceptable for their ages but noticeable nonetheless, with not everything coming off smoothly. Add in the time wasting in the beginning and the general lack of structure, and I had trouble getting into the match. I liked the young wrestlers getting over on the veterans and the strategies by both teams were sound, it was just missing something to put it all together. Not unwatchable and not boring, but not what I’d consider entertaining.

Arisa Nakajima and Command Bolshoi vs. Hanako Nakamori and Morii

No time for pleasantries as they brawl to start, with Nakamori and Morii gaining the first advantage. Bolshoi  takes back over and tags in Nakajima, and Nakajima stands on Nakamori near the ropes. Nakamori hits a crossbody and tags in Morii, DDT by Nakajima and she kicks Morii in the head. Bolshoi is tagged in but Morii shoulderblocks her and they trade chops. Rolling suplexes by Bolshoi but Morii hits a suplex of her own for a two count. Irish whip by Morii but Bolshoi kicks her and hits a modified DDT for a two count. Bolshoi tags in Nakajima, elbow by Nakajima but Morii elbows her back and they trade strikes. Sliding kick by Nakajima which sends Morii to the floor, Nakajima gets on the top turnbuckle and dives out of the ring with a plancha. They battle around the ring, mostly off-camera, until Nakajima and Morii return to the ring. Missile dropkick by Nakajima and she hits a German suplex hold for two. Knees by Nakajima but Morii slams her to the mat for a two count.

Nakajima and Morii trade chops, Morii tags in Nakajima and she kicks Nakajima in the head. Nakamori goes up top and hits a diving knee while Morii slams Nakajima for a two count cover. Nakamori goes up top again but Nakajima moves and hits a bridging suplex for a two count. Rolling Germans by Nakajima but Morii breaks up the cover. Hard elbow by Nakajima and she tags in Bolshoi, dropkick by Bolshoi but Bolshoi is double teamed. Nakamori kicks Morii by accident and Bolshoi kicks Morii out of the ring. Tiger suplex hold by Bolshoi to Nakamori, she goes up top but Nakamori joins her, hitting an avalanche fisherman buster for two. Morii goes up top and hits a diving senton, Nakamori picks up Bolshoi and delivers a fisherman buster, but Nakajima breaks it up. Nakamori goes up top but Bolshoi joins her and hits an Avalanche Uranage. Now Nakajima and Morii go up top, Morii is pulled down and with Bolshoi they hit and double footstomp to both their opponents for two counts. Bolshoi hits a palm strike on Nakamori but Morii breaks up the pinfall. Backfist by Bolshoi but Morii hits her with a lariat.Requiem Driver by Nakamori to Bolshoi, but she barely gets a shoulder up. Back up, Bolshoi gets away but Nakajima elbows Bolshoi by accident and Nakamori applies La Magistral for the three count! Nakamori and Morii win two points!

This was a fun fast paced match, what it lacked in structure it made up for with non-stop action from bell to bell. The tag rules were pretty loose here as they didn’t waste time with limbs or beatdown segments, it had a nice chaotic feel of two teams just trying to see who could hit the biggest move last to win the match for their team. It probably isn’t for everyone as structure pretty much went out the window, but the “miscommunication” ending into a quick roll-up was a fitting ending for this style of match. It wouldn’t have been on any end of year ballots but still solid.  Recommended

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