Event: Stardom Dream Slam 2019
Date: March 28th, 2019
Location: Korakuen Hal in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 795

Time for Stardom Dream Slam! Before too much time passed I really wanted to get this review done, as going forward I want to review the biggest events from all the Joshi promotions. This was a mega event for Stardom with five singles title matches, including the first singles title challenge by their newest wrestler Andras Miyagi. Here is the full card:

• Battle Royal: Hanan, Hina, Jungle Kyona, Leo Onozaki, Natsu Sumire, Rina, and Saya Iida
• AZM, Bea Priestley, Konami, and Viper vs. Arisa Hoshiki, Saki Kashima, Starlight Kid, and Tam Nakano
• SWA Undisputed World Women’s Championship: Utami Hayashishita vs. Rebel Kel
• High Speed Championship: Hazuki vs. Xia Brookside
• ROH Women Of Honor World Championship: Mayu Iwatani vs. Natsuko Tora
• World Of Stardom Championship: Kagetsu vs. Goya Kong
• Wonder Of Stardom Championship: Momo Watanabe vs. Andras Miyagi

I will be watching the Samurai TV version of the show, so some matches may be clipped. As always, all the wrestlers above have a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it.

Battle Royal featuring Hanan, Hina, Jungle Kyona, Onozaki, Natsu Sumire, Rina, and Iida

All seven start the match together, Natsu armdrags all the rookies but can’t get Jungle over. Nao Yamaguchi trips Jungle from the apron and with Natsu they double team her, boot to the back of the head by Jungle but her cover is broken up. The rookies isolate Jungle in the corner and all connect with dropkicks, Hanan puts Jungle in a headscissors and the other rookies follow down the line, with Natsu on the end as all seven wrestlers are in headscissors. Nao comes in and rolls them over, after a moment the hold is broken up and Jungle is triple teamed by Hanan and her two sisters. Leo tries to help but just makes it worse for Jungle, so Saya comes in and finally breaks up the hold. Hanan and her sisters all hit judo throws, but Leo levels Hanan with a hard elbow. Hanan rolls up Leo and with Hina and Rina’s help they hold her down, getting the three count! Leo Onozaki is eliminated.

Hina and Rina then quickly cover their sister and get a three count as well! Hanan is eliminated. Natsu and Jungle get back in the ring but Jungle dropkicks Natsu back out of it, Rina and Hina try to double team Jungle but Jungle slams both of them. Jungle puts them both in a joint crab hold, and they both submit! Hina and Rina are eliminated. Natsu attacks Jungle from behind and kicks Saya when she returns, Natsu gets them both seated in the corner and delivers a Bronco Buster. Bridging suplex by Natsu to Jungle, but it gets two. Nao Yamaguchi comes in the ring but Jungle kicks her back, Jungle goes for a lariat on both of them but they move and Jungle falls over the top rope. She hangs on but Natsu dropkicks her from behind, sending Jungle to the floor! Jungle Kyona is eliminated. Natsu and Saya are the last two left. Saya tries to dropkick Natsu over and finally does so with a dropkick to the knee, another dropkick by Saya but it gets two. Nao slides Natsu a whip of sorts and she hits Saya with it, Nao gets into the ring but she lariats Natsu by accident. Saya quickly bridges over Natsu to cover her, and she gets the three count! Saya Iida wins!

This is the first pinfall victory in Saya Iida’s career. For what it was, they managed to squeeze quite a few fun spots into a short battle royal match. The spots with Hanan and her sisters were cute, and Nao Yamaguchi being such an active participate was fitting since this was her last appearance in Stardom. A perfectly fine way to start a show, even though its a shame Jungle Kyona didn’t have something better to do.

AZM, Bea Priestley, Konami, and Viper vs. Hoshiki, Kashima, Starlight Kid, and Tam Nakano

Viper and Starlight Kid start the match, Starlight Kid tries to dropkick Viper over but naturally fails. Jumping crossbody by Viper but Starlight Kid barely kicks out, the rest of the STARS run in to help and all eight wrestlers end up in the ring. Queen’s Quest stacks their opponents in the corner but they roll out of the way of Viper’s cannonball attempt, Queen’s Quest dropkick Viper in the legs to get her to the mat and Tam delivers a neckbreaker. Things calm down a bit as Saki is tagged in as legal, Saki goes for a headscissors but Viper catches her and hits a backbreaker. The rest of Queen’s Quest runs in as they all apply submission moves on STARS, Viper goes off the ropes but Saki avoids the senton. Saki elbows Viper but Viper headbutts her and tags in Bea. Springboard hurricanrana by Saki and she tags Arisa, Tam comes in too and they both boot Bea in the face. Tam slams Arisa on top of Bea and stands on her, Arisa returns the favor and slams Tam on top of Bea. Springboard double knee by Arisa, but Bea kicks out.

Arisa goes up top but Konami runs over and kicks her in the head, Bea gets Arisa on her shoulders but Tam kicks Bea while allows Arisa to roll her up for two. Bea picks up Arisa and hits a jumping kick out of the corner, Bea gets Arisa on her shoulders and hits a jawbreaker which gives her time to tag AZM. Starlight Kid tags in too, they go through a quick exchange which ends with AZM delivering a dropkick. The rest of STARS comes in to help, German suplex by Tam and Starlight Kid holds down AZM for a two count. Queen’s Quest arrive to swing the match back in their favor, they stack STARS in the corner and this time Viper successfully hits the cannonball. Vertical suplex by AZM to Starlight Kid and Konami connects with the sliding kick, diving footstomp by AZM and she covers Starlight Kid for two. AZM goes for an armbar but Starlight Kid quickly gets out of it, cradle by AZM and she picks up the three count! Queen’s Quest wins!

For a short eight woman tag, I was surprisingly amused by this match. Both teams have such entertaining offense and there was no weak link here as everyone hit their moves smoothly. Arisa and Saki both surprised me with their unique offense and the Starlight Kid/AZM combination was great as usual. There really aren’t any downsides here aside from just the length as it didn’t give all the wrestlers a chance to shine, an entertaining eight minutes of action.  Stardom’s undercard wasn’t always full of wrestlers as good as these eight, the quality of the matches top to bottom has really gone up and will likely continue to do so. Mildly Recommended

(c) Utami Hayashishita vs. Rebel Kel
SWA Undisputed World Women’s Championship

Rebel Kel has the height advantage on Utami which she uses to get control early on, Irish whip by Rebel Kel and she hits a spinning back elbow. Rebel Kel knocks Utami into the corner and hits a neckbreaker, strikes by Rebel Kel but Utami dropkicks her in the back of the leg. Another dropkick by Utami and she goes for the sleeper, but Rebel Kel tosses Utami down to get out of it. Elbow by Rebel Kel but Utami throws her into the corner, Utami charges in but Rebel Kel boots her in the face. Another boot by Rebel Kel and she connects with the Diamond Dust, Rebel Kel goes for a suplex but Utami lands on her feet. Rebel Kel knocks Utami into the corner and delivers a high kick, Falcon Arrow by Rebel Kel and she covers Utami for two. Utami gets her own quick two count, Rebel Kel goes off the ropes but Utami hits an armdrag.

Chokeslam attempt by Rebel Kel but Utami hangs on with a guillotine, Rebel Kel slams Utami into the corner to get her off and puts her on the second turnbuckle. Rebel Kel joins her but Utami pushes Rebel Kel off, Rebel Kel charges back with a lariat however which sends Utami to the mat. Rebel Kel climbs the turnbuckles but Utami grabs her from behind and nails a German suplex, cover by Utami but it gets two. Utami picks up Rebel Kel and gets her briefly up on her shoulders, but Rebel Kel slides off and drops Utami with a chokeslam. Utami recovers and applies a guillotine but Rebel Kel slams out of it, Rebel Kel drags up Utami and throws her into the corner, but Utami boots her when she charges in and applies the sleeper. Rebel Kel starts going to sleep, Utami quickly releases the hold and gets her up into the Argentine Backbreaker before slamming her down to the mat. Cover by Utami and she picks up the three count! Utami is still the champion.

While I can’t say I came away from the match impressed with Rebel Kel, Utami looked like a ring veteran here and kept the match together with her great selling and timing. I can’t judge Rebel Kel as a wrestler overall just based on one match, particularly one in a foreign land, but she wrestled pretty soft and there were a lot of moves that weren’t hit very crisply. Utami looked great as she tends to and showed her strength by still hitting her finisher against a wrestler much bigger than she is. Not an award winning match by any means but it does show how far Utami has already come as a professional wrestler.

(c) Hazuki vs. Xia Brookside
High Speed Championship

Xia charges Hazuki as the bell rings but Hazuki moves, spinning headscissors by Xia and she connects with a dropkick. Running double knee in the corner by Xia but Hazuki trips her and knocks Xia into the corner. Snapmare by Hazuki and she kicks Xia in the head, dropkick by Hazuki and she facewashes Xia while she is against the ropes. She goes for the boot but Xia moves and dropkicks her, Hazuki goes for a Codebreaker but Xia pushes her off. DDT by Xia but Hazuki knocks her back and this time connects with the Codebreaker, both wrestlers slowly get up and trade elbows. Elbows by Xia but Hazuki ducks one and throws Xia into the corner, but Xia jumps on the second turnbuckle and hits a crossbody. Face crusher by Xia, she picks up Hazuki and throws her into the corner, getting her into the Tree of Woe before delivering  a dropkick. Xia picks up Hazuki and hits a neckbreaker, cover by Xia but it gets two. Xia throws Hazuki into the corner and sits her on the top turnbuckle, Hazuki kicks Xia away and sneaks in an inside cradle for two. They trade flash pins with neither having any luck, Hazuki quickly applies La Magistral and she picks up the three count! Hazuki wins and is still the champion.

A lot of Hazuki’s title matches have been on the short side, and this was no exception as it clocked in at under five minutes. They are trying something a bit different with the high speed title during this reign, with shorter matches that have that “it can end at any time” feel. Xia wasn’t really weakened, she just fell to one of the most respected cradle pins in the wrestling business. There were a clunky part or two but generally this was a fun match to watch, and I enjoyed it while it lasted. Its hard to really recommend a match this short but its still an easy watch with the action happening fast enough you can’t look away or you’ll miss something.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Mayu Iwatani vs. Natsuko Tora
ROH Women of Honor Championship

Mayu and Natsuko shake hands before the match, but Natsuko tackles Mayu when she turns around and starts working on her already injured leg. Mayu rolls out of the ring to re-group but Natsuko goes out after her and slams her onto the floor. Natsuko sets up a chair at ringside and twists Mayu’s leg in it before dropkicking the leg, she then throws the chair at Mayu before finally returning to the ring. Natsuko goes out after Mayu and slides her into the ring, scoop slam by Natsuko and she covers Mayu for two. Natsuko goes up top but Mayu recovers and slaps her before she can jump off, Mayu joins Natsuko and delivers the Frankensteiner. Natsuko charges Mayu but Mayu moves out of the way, Mayu goes for a kick but Natsuko knocks her bad leg out from under her and applies a crab hold. Mayu gets to the ropes for the break, elbows by Natsuko and she goes off the ropes, but Mayu delivers a superkick as she goes for the spear. Kick to the midsection and head by Mayu, she goes off the ropes and dropkicks Natsuko while she is against the ropes. Natsuko falls out of the ring, Mayu goes up top and dives down onto Natsuko with a diving crossbody. Mayu slides Natsuko back in and goes up top again, hitting a missile dropkick.

Again she goes to the top turnbuckle and this time delivers a diving footstomp, but her knee is too hurt for her to make a quick cover, and Natsuko kicks out once she finally does. Moonsault off the second turnbuckle but Natsuko avoids the moonsault from the top, sliding knee by Natsuko and both wrestlers down. Natsuko picks up Mayu but Natsuko slides away and hits a superkick, Dodonpa by Mayu but Natsuko gets a shoulder up. Mayu picks up Natsuko but Natsuko blocks the dragon suplex attempt, spinning backfist by Natsuko and she hits a second one for a two count. Natsuko picks up Mayu but Mayu slides off her shoulders, uppercut by Natsuko and she hits the rolling fireman’s carry slam. Natsuko goes up top and delivers the diving body press, she goes up top again and hits a diving double kneedrop, but Mayu barely kicks out of the cover. Single leg crab hold by Natsuko but Mayu inches to the ropes, Natsuko goes up top and she hits a diving legdrop to Mayu’s injured leg. Natsuko sets up Mayu and connects with a dragon suplex hold, stealing Mayu’s move, but Mayu kicks out at two. Swinging side slam by Natsuko, but again Mayu gets a shoulder up. Natsuko goes off the ropes but Mayu knocks her back with a superkick, another superkick by Mayu and she knocks down Natsuko with a high kick for a two count. Another kick to the head by Mayu, she goes up top and delivers the moonsault. Dragon suplex hold by Mayu, and she picks up the three count! Mayu Iwatani wins and retains her championship.

Even though we knew who was winning, I’ll give them all the credit in the world for still putting on a compelling match with drama and intensity. This was by far the best match of Natsuko Tora’s career up to this point, as she showed a lot of fire and stayed focused on her winning condition the entire match without getting distracted. Mayu is so good at selling that she could make anyone look good, although it probably helps she has a legitimate leg injury. The best thing they did perhaps is they made the match feel important. Natsuko stepped up to win her first singles title and Mayu did not want to lose it, leading to both wrestling with urgency and meaning. A great match, far more than I knew Natsuko had in her and this may be a turning point in her career if she can keep it up.  Recommended

(c) Kagetsu vs. Goya Kong
World of Stardom Championship

Goya Kong wins the early power battle as Kagetsu can’t knock her over, while a shoulderblock by Goya Kong sends Kagetsu crashing to the mat. Leg kicks by Kagetsu also have no effect, Irish whip by Kagetsu but Goya Kong reverses it and smushes her against the ropes. Goya Kong knocks Kagetsu into the corner and hits a body avalanche followed by a Stinkface. Goya Kong tosses Kagetsu out of the ring and goes out after her, tossing Kagetsu around the floor. They return after a moment, Irish whip by Goya Kong and she tries to sit down on Kagetsu, but Kagetsu moves out of the way. Scoop slam by Goya Kong and she hits a running elbow drop, face rake by Goya Kong but Kagetsu gets out to the apron and hits a missile dropkick, finally knocking Goya Kong over. Goya Kong rolls out of the ring, Kagetsu gets a running start and dives out onto her with a tope suicida. Kagetsu rolls Goya Kong back in and sprays mist in her face, she gets on the apron and hits another swandive missile dropkick before putting Goya Kong in a kneelock.

Kagetsu releases the hold and goes up top, hitting a diving footstomp to Goya Kong’s leg. She goes back to the kneelock but Goya Kong gets into the ropes, Kagetsu goes up top again and hits the Oedo Coaster, but Goya Kong kicks out at two. Kagetsu tries to get Goya Kong on her shoulders but isn’t able to do so, Kagetsu goes for a cradle but Goya Kong blocks it and hits a release German suplex. Both wrestlers slowly get up, Kagetsu charges Goya Kong but Goya Kong levels her with a lariat. Goya Kong gets up Kagetsu and nails a hammerlock sitout slam, cover by Goya Kong but Kagetsu barely gets a shoulder up. Scoop slam by Goya Kong and she gets on the second turnbuckle, but Kagetsu sprays green mist in her face. Kagetsu gets Goya Kong on her shoulders  and hits a Samoan Drop, Kagetsu gets on the top turnbuckle and delivers a Oedo Coaster. Kagetsu quickly goes back up top and hits a second Oedo Coaster and then a third, cover by Kagetsu and she gets the three count! Kagetsu retains the championship.

To say that Goya Kong is limited would be an understatement and there is a reason that a 10+ year veteran has never won a title. This match was really simple but the story was told well enough. The random leg work by Kagetsu didn’t mean anything and could have probably been safely skipped, if you are still doing limb work 75% of the way through the match I’d prefer it play into the ending in some way. Goya Kong of all wrestlers being the one that it takes three Oedo Coasters to beat was a bit eye-rolly but they wanted Kagetsu to get an emphatic win so I guess it worked in that regard. In the end this was a forgettable title defense and was more here to satisfy Rossy Ogawa’s urges to have his wrestlers beat big Gaijins than anything else.

(c) Momo Watanabe vs. Andras Miyagi
Wonder of Stardom Championship

They tie-up to start, Miyagi works a headlock and Irish whips Momo but Momo slides behind her and they trade waistlocks. Armdrag by Momo but Miyagi avoids her kick and boots Momo out of the ring. Miyagi gets a running start to do a dive but Momo jumps on the apron and kicks Miyagi in the head. Miyagi falls to the floor and Momo kicks her chest from the apron, Momo slides Miyagi back in and kicks her, but Miyagi slides out to the apron and snaps Momo’s head on the top rope. Miyagi pulls Momo onto the apron but Momo blocks the piledriver so Miyagi delivers a neckbreaker on the apron instead. Miyagi spits water into Momo’s face, she slides Momo back in the ring but Momo ducks her boot and hits a high kick. B Driver by Momo and she kicks Miyagi in the head, but she is too hurt to make a cover. They both slowly get up and trade elbows, they then trade slaps until Momo knocks down Miyagi with a kick to the chest. Momo goes off the ropes but Miyagi puts the referee in front of her and hits Momo with a chair. Scoop slam by Miyagi and she goes up top, delivering a Swanton Bomb for a two count cover. Miyagi grabs Momo around the waist and drops her with a tombstone piledriver, but again Momo gets a shoulder up. Miyagi goes off the ropes and dropkicks Momo in the back, she picks up Momo and goes for another tombstone, but Momo blocks it and rolls up Miyagi for two. Miyagi tries to get away but Momo delivers a release Tequila Sunrise, Momo picks up Miyagi and she nails the Peach Sunrise for the three count! Momo Watanabe wins and is still the champion.

So this is really interesting – every other match on the event was shown in full or close to full, while this match had over 50% missing. That isn’t a good sign, if the main event is cut that much that likely means there was a good reason, and since they are pushing Momo as the Ace I am assuming it was so heavily clipped due to the match quality. Anyway, what they showed us (unsurprisingly) was very good, although the beginning stretch did have some clunkiness before they settled in. Miyagi’s tombstone piledriver is fantastic, and she got plenty of offense so even though I figured Momo would win it was a pretty even match. As shown, a perfectly fine match but with over 50% not shown its hard to give a hearty recommendation.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom Dream Slam 2019 on 3/28/19 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Stardom has had quite a few shows since I last reviewed one of their events, but this was one I couldn’t miss. I love crazy gimmick matches so how couldn’t I review an exploding bat death match? Even beyond the main event this was a big show for Stardom, as they stacked it up for one of their largest recent attendances outside of Korakuen Hall. They had a total of nine matches, which is a crazy high amount for Stardom, so while match times will probably be short we get a lot of singles matches to give the wrestlers a chance to shine. Here is the full card:

• Hanan and Nao Yamaguchi vs. Leo Onozaki and Ruaka
• IPW:UK Women’s Championship: Xia Brookside vs. Konami
• Future Of Stardom Championship: AZM vs. Starlight Kid
• Bea Priestley vs. Momo Watanabe
• Hana Kimura vs. HZK
• Faby Apache, Mary Apache, and Natsumi vs. Natsuko Tora, Saki Kashima, and Shiki Shibusawa
• SWA Undisputed World Women’s Championship: Viper vs. Jungle Kyona
• World Of Stardom Championship: Toni Storm vs. Mayu Iwatani
• Current Blast Exploding Bat Death Match: Io Shirai and Tam Nakano vs. Kagetsu and Natsu Sumire

What a card. All the wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it. I will be watching the Samurai TV Version of the event because I like the presentation and with a nine match card I figured some match clipping may help me get through it in a more timely fashion.

Hanan and Nao Yamaguchi vs. Leo Onozaki and Ruaka

Ruaka and Nao start off and try to knock each other over with no luck, body block by Nao against the ropes and she finally knocks down Ruaka with a lariat for two. Nao picks up Ruaka but Xia boots her in the chest, another boot by Ruaka and she covers her for two. Ruaka picks up Nao and delivers the fisherman suplex hold, picking up the three count! Ruaka and Leo are the winners.

Even without clipping this match was pretty damn short so we didn’t miss much. Hopefully next time I’ll get a chance to see Leo and Hanan participate, Ruaka is still pretty rough around the edges which was even evident in a clipped three minute matches. Nothing to see here.

(c) Xia Brookside vs. Konami
IPW:UK Women’s Championship

We join this one in progress as the pair trade strikes, dropkick by Xia and she knees Konami in the corner. Face crusher by Xia and she dropkicks Konami again, covering her for two. Head kick by Xia and she sits Konami on the top turnbuckle, but Konami kicks her away and applies a hanging armbar. Armdrag by Konami and she applies the cross armbreaker in the middle of the ring, back up Konami delivers a head kick and hits a fisherman suplex hold for a two count. Konami goes off the ropes but Xia catches her with a Codebreaker, but Konami barely kicks out of the cover. Xia puts Konami in the Tree of Woe and hits a sliding kick, Xia flings Konami off the top turnbuckle and applies the Leg Roll Clutch for the three count! Xia retains the championship.

We only got to see half of this but what they showed was fine. Xia gets a bit better each time I see her, she is still a teenager but has shown some natural ability (not surprising) early in her career. And the crowd has taken to her quite a bit which is always a plus. Konami continues to be proficient but still hasn’t gotten anywhere in Stardom, we’ll see if that ever changes or if she’ll have to go elsewhere to find success. Too clipped to recommend but both are solid wrestlers.

AZM vs. Starlight Kid
Future of Stardom Championship

Starlight Kid charges AZM as the match starts, AZM goes for an armdrag but Starlight Kid lands on her feet. AZM connects with the next armdrag and they trade trips before reaching a stalemate back on their feet. AZM fakes a handshake and goes for a kick, Starlight Kid catches it and they take turns throwing each other to the mat by the head. They trade elbows and dropkicks, Starlight Kid kips up but AZM kicks her in the chest. Kicks to the back by AZM and she puts Starlight Kid in a camel clutch, after a moment she releases the hold and sets up Starlight Kid in the ropes. Dropkick to the back by AZM but Starlight Kid trips her when she goes for a second one, she goes for a Tiger Feint Kick but AZM ducks. Starlight Kid hits the move on the lower ropes instead, standing moonsault by Starlight Kid and she covers AZM for two. Irish whip by Starlight Kid to the corner and she delivers a dropkick, but AZM dropkicks her back. Rebound crossbody by AZM but Starlight Kid dropkicks her, and both wrestlers are down on the mat. Starlight Kid is up first, she trips AZM and puts her in a crab hold, but AZM rolls out of it and they trade flash pins. Back up, high kicks by AZM and she covers Starlight Kid for a two count. AZM runs to the corner and goes for a triple jump attack, but Starlight Kid kicks her in the stomach and hits the cyclone suplex. Starlight Kid goes up top and she nails the swivel body press, cover by Starlight Kid and she picks up the three count! Starlight Kid is the first Future of Stardom Champion!

For a short match, I thought this was good. AZM was pretty iffy the first few years of her career (to be fair, she is a child) but has gotten a lot better in the last year or so. Starlight Kid has always had the flashy moves but just didn’t always string them together well, here though she was pretty tight with everything and they played off each other well. I’m not sure if another title was really necessary just for the children but at least they got a good match out of it.  Mildly Recommended

Bea Priestley vs. Momo Watanabe

We join this one in progress as they trade elbows while on their needs, they get to their feet and Momo hits a quick side slam followed by the Somato for a two count. Momo picks up Bea and goes for the B Driver, but Bea blocks it and superkicks Momo in the head. Bea traps Momo’s arm and elbows her repeatedly, she lets go and goes for a kick, but Momo catches her leg and delivers a head kick of her own. A second Somato by Momo, but Bea is too close to the ropes and grabs them when she goes for the cover. elbows by Momo but Bea grabs her and slams Momo into the mat. Bea steps off of Momo’s back and crushes her face into the mat with a double footstomp, cover by Bea and she picks up the three count! Bea Priestly is the winner.

This was way too clipped to really judge but everything they showed was solid. Momo stood no chance here, she is too far down on the totem pole to beat someone that Stardom will be building up to lose in more title matches down the road. All hope isn’t lost for Momo, she’ll be fine if she continues improving, but it isn’t her time yet.

Hana Kimura vs. HZK

Hana ducks a HZK boot early on and takes the time to pose to the crowd, which HZK doesn’t like as she dropkicks Hana in the back. Hana spits at HZK, HZK goes off the ropes and she hits an armdrag. Hana bails out of the ring, HZK follows her but Hana quickly slides back in. Armdrags by HZK but Hana sends her out of the ring, Hana follows her out and throws HZK into the ring post. Hana scoop slams HZK onto the floor and returns to the ring with HZK slowly following, stomps by Hana and she puts HZK in the Mexican Surfboard. Hana goes off the ropes but HZK catches her with a springboard dropkick, bootscrapes by HZK and she boots Hana in the face. HZK elbows Hana but Hana elbows her back as they trade blows, Hana grabs HZK and gets her in the Ground Manjikatame but HZK gets a toe on the ropes for the break. Hana goes off the ropes but HZK avoids her boot and drops her with the Codebreaker. HZK goes for a running senton but Hana moves and boots HZK while she is against the ropes, a second boot by Hana and she hits a series of elbows. Vertical suplex attempt by Hana but HZK blocks it, Hana delivers on her second attempt and she covers HZK for two. Back up, another boot by Hana but HZK decks her with the Pump Kick, she waits for Hana to get up and hits a running elbow in the corner. Tornado DDT by HZK and she covers Hana for a two count. Scoop slam by HZK, she goes up top and goes for the Bombs Away, but Hana moves. Hana quickly applies the Small Package to HZK, and she picks up the three count! Hana Kimura wins!

While there is no way to know what the future holds for these two, I can say that so early in their careers both are progressing well. They are getting a lot more crisp with their respective offense while expanding it, as I really love Hana’s Ground Manjikatame and HZK’s tornado DDT was on point. It wasn’t perfect as some of the bigger moves were recovered from a bit too quickly, and it was a little clipped, but overall a fun match between two of the rising stars in Stardom.  Mildly Recommended

Faby Apache, Mary Apache, and Natsumi vs. Natsuko Tora, Kashima, and Shibusawa

We join slightly in progress with Saki and Natsumi in the ring, stomps by Saki but Mary comes in help her daughter. Natsumi attempts a slam and eventually succeeds in hitting her, giving her time to tag in Mary. Boots by Mary to everyone, Faby comes in too with Natsumi and all three put their opponents in a submission hold. Team Apache all hit dropkicks before continuing their assault, the ring eventually clears expect for Saki and Mary and Mary tags in Faby. Saki hits a spinning headscissors on Faby and applies a cradle, but it only gets two. Saki grabs Faby and hits the Unprettier, but Mary breaks up the cover. Saki tags Shiki but Faby promptly kicks Shiki in the chest, Shiki comes back with a dropkick followed by a face crusher for a two count. Faby drives Shiki into the corner and she boots Shiki in the face, giving her time to tag in Mary. Natsuko tags in as well, knees by Natsuko but Mary hits a lariat followed by a scoop slam. Heel drop by Mari, she picks up Natsuko and with Faby they place Natsuko on the top turnbuckle. Double Muscle Buster to Natsuko, but Mary’s cover is broken up. Saki stays in to help and they hit a double face crusher, Natsuko runs in with a knee and she goes up top to hit a diving frog splash for two. Natsuko goes off the ropes but Mary blocks the spear, Natsuko gets away however and she cradles Mary for two. Another roll-up by Natsuko also gets a two, she goes off the ropes but Mary plants her with a lariat. Mary gets on the top turnbuckle and nails the diving kneel kick, cover by Mary and she gets the three count! Team Apache are your winners.

In a continued trend on this card, this was short but ok. One of the downsides of having so many matches on a card is they weren’t going to get a ton of time, but honestly I’m not sure I would have wanted this particular match to be any longer. The Apache sisters were fine but Natsumi and Shiki in particular are still pretty rough and Saki is still working things out after such a long layoff. So there were some issues with technique here. The youngsters still have a ways to go but having Mary and Faby in the match at least gave it some structure so it wasn’t a bad watch.

(c) Viper vs. Jungle Kyona
SWA Women’s Championship

Kyona tries to knock over Viper as the match begins without any luck, elbows by Kyona but Viper swipes her to the mat. Viper pushes Kyona into the ropes but she gives a clean break, hard shoulderblock by Viper but Kyona wiggles away and goes for the sliding lariat. Viper blocks it but Kyona trips her, quick cover by Kyona but it gets a two count. Kick by Kyona but Viper blocks the scoop slam and hits one of her own, running senton by Viper and Kyona rolls out of the ring to re-group. Viper goes out to the apron but Kyona knocks her legs out from under her, Kyona pulls Viper out of the ring but Viper throws Kyona into the ring post. Viper gets on the apron and dives down onto Kyona (and other wrestlers) with a cannonball, she returns to the ring with Kyona slowly following. Headbutts by Viper and she hits another cannonball in the corner, cover by Viper but Kyona kicks out. Viper gets on the second turnbuckle but Kyona recovers and elbows Viper before she can jump off. Kyona powerbombs Viper off the second turnbuckle to the mat, but Viper barely gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kyona elbows Viper but Viper elbows her back as they trade blows, Kyona goes for a lariat but Viper absorbs the blow. Kyona finally knocks down Viper with a lariat, she slowly makes the cover but it only gets a two count. Kyona picks up Viper but Viper knocks her down with a lariat, Reverse Splash by Viper but Kyona gets a hand on the rope to break up the cover. Viper picks up Kyona and hits the Michinoku Driver, but Kyona reverses the cover into a cradle of her own for two. Viper goes up top but Kyona avoids the diving body press, lariat to the back of the head by Kyona and she body slams Viper. Kyona goes up top and delivers the diving body press, but she only gets a two count. Kyona goes for a powerbomb but Viper blocks it, headbutt by Viper and she hits a backdrop suplex. Cannonball by Viper in the corner, she picks up Kyona and nails the Michinoku Driver for the three count! Viper is still the champion.

The layout of this match was predictable, but it was still an entertaining match. While for the bulk of it I felt that it was too lopsided to Viper and Kyona wasn’t getting enough in, they got the crowd into it a bit towards the end as Kyona had some quality near falls and even in defeat she didn’t look weak. Kyona wasn’t going to hit her finisher on Viper but she has enough in her arsenal that she could have won without it, and it helps keep the Hammerthrow Bomb stronger anyway that she didn’t do a finisher spam on the way to defeat. The match stayed pretty well paced and the Hoss vs. Hoss spots were fine, even if the Hossness between the two is lopsided. Overall I liked it, Kyona isn’t quite ready yet to take down someone like Viper but she is slowly getting there, and perhaps she will get another chance at her down the road.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Toni Storm vs. Mayu Iwatani
World of Stardom Championship

They circle each other to start, Toni gets Mayu to the mat but Mayu recovers and they end up back on their feet. Springboard armdrag by Mayu and she dropkicks Toni, she goes for another dropkick but Toni gets back up and boots Mayu in the head. Toni goes for a dropkick by Mayu moves, Toni feigns injury but rolls up Mayu before delivering a hip attack. Uppercut by Toni and she starts on Mayu’s previously injured arm, Toni knocks Mayu into the corner and chops her in the chest before covering her for two. Toni drags Mayu back up and sends her into the corner, but Mayu kicks her back and rolls Toni to the mat before kicking her in the face. Northern Lights Suplex by Mayu, but it gets a two count. Mayu knocks Toni against the ropes and delivers a hard dropkick, sending Toni out of the ring to the floor. Mayu goes up top and dives down onto Toni with a plancha suicida, she rolls Toni back in the ring and goes up top, hitting a missile dropkick. Hurricanrana by Mayu, but it gets two. Superkick by Mayu and she hits a diving footstomp, she goes up top again and delivers a diving body press, but Toni barely gets a shoulder up on the pin attempt.

Mayu goes for the dragon suplex but Toni elbows out of it, she then goes for the piledriver but Mayu blocks it and hits a super kick. German suplex hold by Mayu, but it gets two. Toni grabs Mayu and delivers a quick Strong Zero, but is too hurt to capitalize. They trade elbows on their knees as they recover, Mayu goes for a kick but Toni catches it and hits a snap release German Suplex. Hip attack by Toni in the corner and she hits the reverse neckbreaker, cover by Toni but Mayu kicks out. Toni quickly applies an armbar, but Mayu gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Toni picks up Mayu but Mayu cradles her for two, Mayu scoops up Toni and goes for the tombstone, but Toni reverses the hold. Mayu slides away from Toni and applies a quick backslide, but Toni gets out of it and delivers a Strong Zero for a two count. Toni goes to the top turnbuckle but Mayu hits her before she can jump off and joins her. Toni slides under Mayu and hits a Buckle Bomb, Strong Zero by Toni and she rolls Mayu into a second Strong Zero for the three count pinfall! Toni Storm retains the championship.

This was a really good match but something was missing from letting it hit that next level. Maybe just not being the main event/focus of the event alone hurt it, and it is a shame that such a big (on paper) title match got overshadowed by the Exploding Bat Death Match. Everything they did was great, I enjoyed the arm work as a throwback to how Toni won the title, it had lots of hard strikes and memorable spots and big moments. I wish it was longer of course, 13 minutes is a bit shot for a title match, and it just didn’t have the aura of a title grudge match. Which isn’t really their fault and I won’t take away from them that it was a really well executed and entertaining match. It just felt a bit flat, I hope they get a re-match in the future on a bigger stage where they can go all out and have the type of match I know they are capable of.  Recommended

Io Shirai and Tam Nakano vs. Kagetsu and Natsu Sumire
Exploding Bat Death Match

Oedo Tai attack before the bell rings and the action immediately spills to the floor, as they use chairs on both of their opponents. Tam is isolated in the ring, Kagetsu gets the exploding bat but Tam kicks her from behind and hits a series of elbows. Backdrop suplex by Tam, Io comes in but so does Natsu, Io dropkicks both of her opponents out of the ring before kipping back up to her feet. Io goes off the ropes and dives out onto both Kagetsu and Natsu with a tope suicida, Io slides Kagetsu back into the ring and delivers a dropkick. Io goes off the ropes and hits the Tiger Feint Kick, she goes for a swandive move but Kagetsu gets out of the way and kicks her to the mat. Kagetsu gets the exploding bat and waits for Io to get back up, but Io blocks it when Kagetsu tries to use it. Io gets the bat but gets distracted before she could use it, Kagetsu gets the back bat but Io ducks her swing and hits a palm strike. Tam runs in and hits a double kneedrop onto Kagetsu, dragon sleeper by Tam and she hits a Stunner. Tam goes off the ropes but Kagetsu catches her kick, Tam slides away however and kicks Kagetsu in the head anyway.

Tam grabs the exploding bat while Io knocks Natsu off the apron, Tam goes to hit Kagetsu with the bat but Kagetsu ducks. Kagetsu gets the bat but Io hits a swandive dropkick on her, running double knee by Io to Kagetsu in the corner and she hits a second one, cover by Io but it gets a two count. Io goes up top but Kagetsu knocks her to the apron, she superplexes Io back into the ring and covers her for two. Kicks by Kagetsu, she picks up Io and drops her with a chokeslam. Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu, she goes up top and nails the Oedo Coaster, but Tam breaks up the cover. Kagetsu picks up Io and kicks her in the head, she gets the exploding bat and hits Io in the chest with it a few times before she hits the button to make it explosive. Kagetsu finally hits the button, she then hits Io in the chest again with the bat, sending sparks flying everywhere. Io rolls out of the ring and gets water poured on her before she is rushed to the back, temporarily leaving Tam alone. Natsu slides Tam into the ring, Kagetsu gets the bat again and gives it to Natsu, but Io is suddenly back and hits a missile dropkick onto Natsu. Io hits Natsu repeatedly in the chest with the bat (its not explosive at the moment), cover by Io but it gets a two count. Io goes for the double underhook facebuster but Natsu gets out of it and whips Io repeatedly. Natsu scoops up Io but Io slides away, waistlock by Io but Natsu gets into the ropes and Kagetsu hits Io with the bat. Roll-up by Natsu to Io, but Tam breaks it up.

Kagetsu gets the bat but hits Natsu with it by accident, Io and Tam take turns striking Kagetsu before taking care of Natsu as well. Diving senton by Tam to Natsu, but Natsu kicks out of the cover. Tam gets the bat and hits the trigger in the corner, she waits for Natsu to get up and hits her in the chest, causing another massive explosion. Io picks up Natsu and hits a double underhook facebuster, moonsault by Io but Kagetsu breaks up the cover by spitting red mist in her face. She tries the same with Tam but Tam kicks Kagetsu in the head, Kagetsu kicks her back however and hits the Ebisu Drop for two. Io and Kagetsu trade blows until Io hits a hurricanrana, Kagetsu falls out of the ring and Io dives out onto her with a moonsault from the top turnbuckle. Back in the ring, Natsu is up and knees Tam in the head, boot by Natsu but Tam boots her back. High kick by Tam and she nails a spinning heel kick, Violent Shooting (running knee strike) by Tam and she covers Natsu for the three count! Io Shirai and Tam Nakano are the winners!

Even though this had a few of the common pitfalls of wild gimmick matches, I still enjoyed it a lot. The main issue of course with the bat is for the middle chunk of the match they did a lot of the ‘one wrestler gets the bat, another steals it, another steals it’ etc. without a lot of actual action going on. But the explosions did not disappoint, the “exploding bat” is the gimmickiest of all gimmicks but its still fun as its so over the top, and seeing a different match style in Stardom was a treat. The last five minutes of the match was really hot as it became less about the gimmick and more about four talented wrestlers executing a really well done home stretch, and that really helped put over the match as more than just a big boom. There were a lot of little things here that were done well and only a few small annoyances, overall definitely a match worth a watch and probably one of the most ridiculous yet entertaining matches we will see in Joshi wrestling this year.  Highly Recommended

The post Stardom Dream Slam In Nagoya on 4/1/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

And we are back to Stardom, as I still plan on reviewing all their Korakuen Hall events in 2018. This is a really big show that got a fair amount of buzz online, as the promotion has hit onto a few hot storylines. The split we saw last month with Oedo Tai comes to a head as Tam tags with Mayu to go for the tag team titles, and we also get Meiko Satomura vs. Toni Storm in a mini dream match. In the main event, Momo Watanabe has her first Korakuen Hall main event singles match as she goes for Io Shirai’s Wonder of Stardom Championship! Here is the card:

• Hanan, Ruaka, and Shiki Shibusawa vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Konami
• Elimination Match: AZM and HZK vs. Jungle Kyona and Natsuko Tora vs. Miranda and Nicole Savoy vs. Starlight Kid and Xia Brookside
• Hiromi Mimura vs. Natsu Sumire
• Goddesses Of Stardom Championship: Hana Kimura and Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano
• Meiko Satomura vs. Toni Storm
• Wonder Of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai vs. Momo Watanabe

All the Joshi wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names above to go straight to it. I am watching the Stardom World version of the show for the first three matches so I can see the matches unclipped, then for the bigger matches I’ll switch to the Samurai TV airing for the better camera angles. Here we go.

Hanan, Ruaka, and Shiki Shibusawa vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Konami

Ruaka and Konami start the match but Yoneyama immediately attacks Ruaka from behind, Shiki and Hanan run in and hit dropkicks, giving them a chance to triple team Konami. The extras leave as Ruaka elbows Konami, but Konami kicks her back and delivers a dropkick before making the tag to Yoneyama. Yoneyama tosses down Ruaka by her hair, chops by Yoneyama and she punches Ruaka in the gut. Ruaka comes back with a big boot and tags Shiki, dropkicks by Shiki and she covers Yoneyama for two. Knee by Yoneyama but Shiki blocks the Irish whip and hits a face crusher, scoop slam by Shiki but Yoneyama bridges out of the cover and boots Shiki in the face. Yoneyama tags in Konami, kicks to the chest by Konami but Shiki catches one. Konami quickly applies a short armbar things break down as all five wrestlers end up in the ring. With the odds in their favor, the rookies take over as Shiki tags in Hanan and everyone attacks Konami in the corner. Missile dropkick by Shiki, Ruaka picks up Konami and hits the fisherman suplex before Hanan delivers the STO for a two count. Hanan goes for a suplex on Konami but Konami blocks it, Ruaka comes in to help but Yoneyama and Shiki come in too and they end up in a stalemate. Yoneyama and Konami dropkick all three of their opponents, fisherman suplex by Konami to Hanan and she nails the Buzzsaw Kick for the three count! Kaori Yoneyama and Konami are the winners!

This was good enough mindless fun. And at least it was structured differently so it wasn’t the same literal match we have been watching in the opening of Stardom for the last six months. While not all the rookies are great, they kept the match short (about five minutes) so each got a little bit of a chance to shine without being asked to do too much. Nothing special but at least it was watchable.

AZM and HZK vs. Miranda and Nicole Savoy vs. Jungle Kyona and Natsuko Tora vs. Starlight Kid and Xia Brookside
Elimination Tag Team Match

The rules of the match are that each team still in the match has one wrestler active, so it starts with four legal wrestlers in the ring. Natsuko is triple teamed to start but quickly turns the tide as she stacks all her opponents in the corner. Natsuko goes for a body avalanche but everyone moves so she just hits the turnbuckle, Kyona tries to do the same but she accidentally hits Natsuko. Miranda hits a spear on both Starlight Kid and AZM, Miranda dropkicks Starlight Kid in the knee and delivers a DDT for two. Elbows by Starlight Kid but Miranda shrugs them off, Nicole comes in to help but is quickly sent back out of the ring as things quickly (and predictably) break down. Starlight Kid and Xia isolate AZM in the ring, Codebreaker by Xia and Starlight Kid hits a standing moonsault for two. HZK breaks up the next cover attempt, AZM rebounds out of the corner with a crossbody and holds down Starlight Kid for the three count! Starlight Kid and Xia Brookside are eliminated.

AZM tags in HZK as Kyona comes in the ring, they trade elbows until HZK DDTs Kyona for a two count. Nicole comes in and suplexes both HZK and Kyona, she then puts them both in a stretch hold but after she lets go both her opponents toss her to the mat. We end up with HZK and Kyona alone again, hard headbutt by HZK and both wrestlers are down. AZM and Natsuko replace them, HZK boots Natsuko and AZM applies the Wing Clutch Hold for two. Natsuko goes for a suplex but AZM reverses it, AZM picks up Natsuko and goes off the ropes, but Kyona runs in and lariats her. Spear by Natsuko and she nails the swinging side slam for the three count! AZM and HZK are eliminated.

We are down to the final pair, Team Jungle dropkick Nicole and Miranda and Kyona goes for the powerbomb on Miranda, but Miranda slides away and hits a cutter. Tilt-a-whirl something by Miranda gets a two count and she tags in Nicole, sliding knee by Nicole and she covers Kyona for two. Nicole goes for the suplex but HZK blocks it, cradle by Nicole and she puts Kyona in a single leg crab hold. Natsuko breaks it up, Nicole goes off the ropes but Kyona hits a lariat. Nicole stays up and goes off the ropes but finally is sent off her feet with another lariat, Natsuko comes in and they both hit body blocks. Diving bodypress by Kyona and then Natsuko, cover by Natsuko but it gets two. Fallaway Slam by Nicole, she picks up Natsuko and goes off the ropes, but Kyona cuts her off with a lariat. Miranda runs in and spears Natsuko, she then kicks Kyona in the head before Nicole goes back to Natsuko and delivers a backdrop suplex for a two count. Nicole picks up Natsuko and delivers a fisherman suplex hold, and she picks up the three count! Nicole Savoy and Miranda win the match.

I have to give credit where it is due, this match was more entertaining than I was expecting. The vast majority of this was solid, they worked together really well and it stayed fast paced and interesting. Miranda was the only one that lagged behind as she isn’t quite as skilled as everyone else on the match, but aside from a few of her segments, everything else was gravy. About as good as a Stardom undercard match can get, it kept me amused which is all I can ask for.  Mildly Recommended

Hiromi Mimura vs. Natsu Sumire

After some mic work, Natsu manages to trick Hiromi into thinking she is emotional and sad about this match but quickly suplexes Hiromi and knees her in the head. Natsu stomps Hiromi and elbows her in the corner, running elbow by Natsu and she puts Hiromi in a camel clutch. Headscissors by Natsu and she slams Hiromi’s head into the mat, Natsu lets go after a moment and gets her whip, but Hiromi avoids the whip blows. Natsu pulls the referee in front of her to stop Hiromi’s charge and hits a lariat, she then drinks some water to try to spit it onto Hiromi but Hiromi kicks her back and hits a scoop slam. Now it is Hiromi that get some water and spits it onto Natsu, stomps by Hiromi and she goes for the Acid Drop, but Natsu shoves her off. Natsu picks up Hiromi but Hiromi gets away, she goes off the ropes and hits a low crossbody followed by a dropkick. Hiromi goes up top and delivers a diving crossbody and she delivers a… modified Acid Drop to Natsu, Hiromi charges Natsu but Natsu whips her in the face. Natsu keeps whipping Hiromi as the referee tries to get her to stop, Natsu pushes the referee away as she continues her assault, but Hiromi dropkicks Natsu back into the referee. Hiromi charges Natsu but Natsu drop toeholds her into the referee in the corner. Bronco Buster by Natsu and she chokes Hiromi with the whip, the referee gets her to stop but Natsu whips the referee. The referee has finally seen enough and calls for the bell, giving Hiromi the victory by DQ.

Well this match certainly had lots of “style” to it. For what it was, it was decent enough and was kept short, but neither of these two will ever win any awards for their in-ring ability. Still, variety on  a card isn’t a bad thing and it certainly is different than the other matches on the card. Oedo Tai to me sometimes walks the line too close between being a goofy stable and being an ass-kicking one but at least Natsu has her character pretty down-pat so love it or not she is consistent. In a vacuum, not a good match, but a bit of a perhaps necessary breather before the big matches on the card get going.

(c) Hana Kimura and Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani and Tam Nakano
Goddesses of Stardom Championship

Mayu and Tam try to shake hands before the match, their efforts are rejected so they jump Oedo Tai from behind instead. Hana is double teamed in the corner and gets kicked both both opponents in the stomach, Tam kicks Hana into the corner but Hana blocks the suplex attempt. Leg sweep by Tam and she stomps on Hana’s back before hitting a running senton. Fisherman suplex hold by Tam, but Hana gets a shoulder up. Tam hits a backdrop suplex, but that gets a two count as well. Mayu comes in and they hit a double vertical suplex, superkick by Mayu and Tam hits a high kick. Kagetsu runs in but she eats a double superkick, as does Hana, before Tam delivers a heel kick to Hana for a nearfall. Tam gets on the second turnbuckle but Hana avoid the diving senton and makes the hot tag to Kagetsu. Kagetsu throws Tam into the corner so that Mayu can tag in, Mayu does and they go through a quick exchange with neither getting the advantage. Strike combination by Kagetsu but Mayu kicks her in the leg, dragon suplex hold by Kagetsu but it gets a two count. Mayu picks up Kagetsu and hits an Ebisu Drop, but Kagetsu fires back with elbows. Superkick by Mayu and she nails a Buzzsaw Kick, German suplex by Mayu but it only gets a two count.

Mayu gets on the top turnbuckle but Kagetsu elbows her and chokeslams Mayu to the mat. Both wrestlers roll to their corners to tag out, Kris gets on the apron and spits water at Tam before Hana hits a dropkick. Running boot by Hana and she hits a vertical suplex, she applies a seated armbar but Mayu breaks it up. Hana goes for a boot but Tam moves and hits a high kick, Hana returns with a big boot before booting Tam in the head again for a two count cover. Tam avoids the next boot attempt and hits a heel kick, Tam goes up top but Kris hits her from the apron with a board. Big boot by Hana and she flings Tam back to the mat, cover by Hana but she pulls up Tam’s head before the three count. She then tags in Kagetsu, high kick by Kagetsu but Tam kicks her back. More kicks by Tam but Kagetsu doesn’t go down until she is hit by about a dozen of them. Kagetsu still recovers first as Tam is feeling the effects from previous damage, strike combination by Kagetsu and she nails a Buzzsaw Kick. Kagetsu goes for the Ebisu Drop but Tam rolls away, kick to the stomach by Tam but Kagetsu catches her with a chokeslam. Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu, she goes up top and she delivers the Oedo Coaster for the three count! Oedo Tai retain the titles.

As a general rule, matches start slow and build to a climax, but I thought in this match they did the opposite. The match started super hot and I loved the frantic pace and urgency shown by Mayu and Tam as they dominated the first portion of the match, but it did slow down once Oedo Tai took over. Not that the match got bad but I wish they had gone ahead and just maintained that pace since it wasn’t a very long title match anyway (about 12 minutes). The story here of Tam trying her damndest but not being good enough yet was well done and Hana was really great both in her move execution and expressions. For a short midcard title defense, they really delivered an exciting match, hats off to all of them.  Recommended

Meiko Satomura vs. Toni Storm

They start with a grappling session and end up on the mat trading holds, but they reach a stalemate and shake hands back on their feet. Meiko kicks Toni in the face but lets Toni recover, Toni applies a wristlock on the mat but Meiko reverses it. Kicks by Meiko and she hits a double kneedrop, but Toni kicks out of the cover. Meiko charges Toni but Toni ducks behind her and drops Meiko with a release German. Hip attack by Toni and she hits a reverse neckbreaker, armbar by Toni but Meiko gets to the ropes. Toni picks up Meiko but Meiko blocks the piledriver, elbow by Meiko but Toni returns fire. Kick to the gut by Meiko and she hits a series of uppercuts which sends Toni to the mat. Meiko goes up top but Toni headbutts her down to the floor, she goes off the ropes and sails out onto Meiko with a tope suicida. Toni gets Meiko back into the ring but still can’t hit the piledriver, Meiko goes for the Death Valley Bomb but Toni slides down her back and hits a Backstabber. Toni goes up top but Meiko joins her, Toni slides under her legs however and hits a Buckle Bomb. Meiko comes back with a Pele Kick, kicks to the chest by Meiko and she drops Toni with a DDT. Meiko goes for the cartwheel kneedrop but Toni moves and applies the armbar. Meiko gets out of it and goes back to kicking Toni, slingshot footstomp by Meiko and she finally hits the cartwheel kneedrop. Meiko picks up Toni but Toni blocks the Death Valley Bomb attempt, snap piledriver by Toni but Meiko kicks out of the cover. Toni goes for a kick but Meiko swats her away and applies a sleeper, but Toni gets to the ropes. Death Valley Bomb by Meiko, but it only gets a two count. Meiko goes for another one but Toni hits the Strong Zero, she goes for another one but Meiko reverses it into a Death Valley Bomb. They slowly get up and Meiko delivers another one, but Toni rolls out of the ring before Meiko can make the cover. The bell rings as Toni reaches the floor, as time has expired. The match is a Draw.

Somewhere, hiding within this match, was a great match just waiting to come out. But it never really did. Part of the issue, as I mentioned above, is that everyone and their mother knew this match would be a draw. Now matches can overcome that, being predictable doesn’t automatically equal not entertaining, it just makes it harder. The beginning mat work dragged a bit wasn’t a big deal, but it felt like it went from the feeling out process straight to trading finishers without much ‘meat’ to the match. That isn’t to say it was bad, I’m just explaining why it wasn’t the epic I think these two could have based on their talent. They are both super smooth wrestlers with killer strikes, and I loved Toni’s suplex to Meiko. Plus her snap piledrivers are some of the best in the business. Certainly a good match but it never really did anything to go beyond that.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Io Shirai vs. Momo Watanabe
Wonder of Stardom Championship

Momo immediately starts elbowing Io and throws her into the corner before hitting a dropkick, she goes to charge Io again but Io catches her in the face with a dropkick. Kicks by Io and she hits a scoop slam, footstomp by Io and she kicks Momo in the leg. Io keeps on Momo’s leg, Momo gets back to her feet and hits an elbow but Io elbows her back. More strikes by Io in the corner, Irish whip by Io but Momo springboards out of the corner and hits a dropkick. Double backflip into a dropkick by Io, Momo rolls out of the ring and Io goes off the ropes to do a dive, but Momo rolls back in and kicks Io in the chest. Momo gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a tornado DDT, kicks by Momo and Io bails out of the ring to regroup. The Stardom referee seems overly concerned as he continues being biased towards Io (which is a common theme in Stardom title matches), Momo finally goes out to the apron and kicks Io in the chest as she stands on the floor. Momo slides Io onto the apron, she gets Io on her shoulders and nails the B Driver. Back in the ring, dropkick by Momo in the corner and she hits a second dropkick, hard kick to the back by Momo and she covers Io for two. Momo picks up Io but Io elbows her off, dragon screw leg whip by Io and Momo rolls out to the floor.

Io goes to the apron and sails out of the ring with an Asai Moonsault, Io slides Momo back in and hits a swandive dropkick. Running double knee by Io in the corner followed by a double underhook facebuster, and she covers Momo for a two count. Io goes up top but Momo kicks her leg out before she can jump off, Momo joins Io and slaps her before hitting a superplex. Momo picks up Io and hits a side slam, another side slam by Momo and she delivers the Somato for a two count. Momo puts Io in a modified chickenwing choke but Io gets a foot on the bottom rope for the break. Momo picks up Io and goes for the B Driver but Io blocks it, cradle by Momo and she hits another Somato for two. B Driver by Momo, she goes up top and nails the avalanche Somato before putting Io back in the submission hold. Io gets to the ropes again but Momo keeps a hold of her arm and hits a dragon suplex hold for a two count. High kick by Momo, she puts Io on the top turnbuckle and goes for an avalanche B Driver, but Io reverses it into a powerbomb. Io grabs Momo from behind but Momo elbows her off, she goes for a kick but Io catches her leg and applies an ankle hold. She reverts it into a pair of German suplexes, Io then hits the package German but Momo kicks out at two. Io picks up Momo and nails a palm strike, busting open Momo’s lip in the process. Tombstone Piledriver by Io, she goes up top and she nails a moonsault for the three count! Io Shirai is still the Wonder of Stardom Champion.

First of all, its a good thing the match was already ending because Momo’s lip was cut open something fierce. This was a great match and honestly I didn’t know that Momo had this in her. By far the best match in her career and it isn’t even close. Io Shirai gets a lot of credit for that but Momo was on point from start to finish, hitting everything under the sun to try to keep Io down. Io did her usual superwoman act at times but I’ve never had an issue with that, she’s the Ace and that is what Ace’s do, they are supposed to be incredibly difficult to keep down for the three count. But they still wrestled with a purpose, as Io kept after Momo’s leg and Momo kept throwing every bomb she has in her arsenal. A must see match and my favorite Stardom match of 2018 so far, I’d recommend going out of your way to see it.  Highly Recommended

The post Stardom Queen’s Fes on 2/18/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Now this should be a better event than the Stardom show I reviewed from the week before. There are a lot of possibilities for goodness here, as we get the amazing Kay Lee Ray in a title match plus the return of The Icon Mayu Iwatani! The main event is a big ten woman elimination match, with the last wrestler to be pinned for her team being kicked out of their faction. High stakes indeed. Here is the full card:

• Hanan, Shiki Shibusawa, and Starlight Kid vs. Hiromi Mimura, Konami, and Ruaka
• Jungle Kyona, Kaori Yoneyama, and Natsuko Tora vs. Miranda, Nicole Savoy, and Xia Brookside
• High Speed Championship: Mary Apache vs. Kay Lee Ray
• Mayu Iwatani vs. Rachael Ellering
• Elimination Tag Team Gauntlet Match: AZM, HZK, Io Shirai, Watanabe, and Viper vs. Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, Kris Wolf, Natsu Sumire, and Tam Nakano

I am watching the Samurai TV version of this match, as if I watch another full Stardom rookie match I will literally die. Plus I like the replays. All the wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names to go straight to it. Onto the fun!

Hanan, Shiki Shibusawa, and Starlight Kid vs. Hiromi Mimura, Konami, and Ruaka

Shiki and Hiromi start the match, dropkick by Shiki but Hiromi hits an armdrag and puts Shiki in a stretch hold. Shiki’s friends run in to help and triple team Shiki in the corner, they put Hiromi into the ropes to attack her some more but she manages to tag in Konami. Shiki teams in Hanan and Hanan gets all three of her opponents to the mat, standing moonsault by Starlight Kid and she hits Konami with a Tiger Feint Kick. Konami gets Hanan to the mat and goes for a triangle choke, but it is quickly broken up. Hanan tags in Starlight Kid but Konami kicks her in the head, cover by Konami but it gets two. Konami hits a vertical suplex and tags in Ruaka, Ruaka boots Starlight Kid in the corner and boots her in the chest for a two count. Ruaka picks up Starlight Kid but the fisherman suplex is blocked and Ruaka hits a reverse STO. Hiromi comes in and dropkicks Starlight Kid, Ruaka comes in and she hits a fisherman suplex hold onto Starlight Kid for two. Ruaka picks up Starlight Kid but Starlight Kid rolls her up for two, dropkick by Starlight Kid and Shiki hits a missile dropkick. Standing moonsault by Starlight Kid on Ruaka, but Ruaka barely gets a shoulder up. Cyclone suplex by Starlight Kid, Konami and Hiromi come in but they quickly get cleared out. Starlight Kid goes up top and nails the Frog Splash on Ruaka, and she picks up the three count! Hanan, Shiki Shibusawa, and Starlight Kid win!

They did as well as could be expected, as they kept the speed up with very limited downtime/silliness (except when Hiromi Mimura was around). Not as much was clipped as I was expecting but what they showed was perfectly fine. I’ll give Konami much of the credit since she by far was the best person in this match, but everyone played their roles well. Not bad for an opener.

Jungle Kyona, Yoneyama, and Natsuko Tora vs. Miranda, Savoy, and Xia Brookside

Team Jungle attacks before the bell rings, Xia is isolated in the ring until Savoy runs in to help even the odds. Savoy slams Natsuko before suplexing Kaori onto her, she then grabs Miranda and tosses her onto Natsuko for extra measure. Xia and Kaori stay in as the legal wrestlers, chop to the throat by Kaori and she connects with the running senton. Kaori tags in Natsuko but Xia drops her with a headscissors, knee by Xia in the corner and she slams Natsuko’s face into the mat. Dropkick by Xia, and she covers Natsuko for two. Xia tags in Savoy, butterfly suplex by Savoy and she hits a gutwrench suplex onto Natsuko. Natsuko quickly rolls up Savoy but it only gets a two, Savoy boots Natsuko but Natsuko hits a running shoulder tackle in the corner. She goes for the spear but Savoy catches her and hits a suplex, Savoy picks up Natsuko but Natsuko hits a back bodydrop. Spear by Natsuko and she makes the hot tag to Kyona, Kyona shoulderblocks Savoy and goes up to the second turnbuckle, but Savoy avoids the bodypress. Sliding Kick by Savoy, but Kyona kicks out of the cover. Knees by Savoy to the midsection and she delivers a backdrop suplex, Savoy tags in Miranda while Xia comes in as well. Kyona is triple teamed, ending with a satellite roll-up by Miranda of sorts for a two count. Miranda picks up Kyona and hits an enzuigiri, cutter by Miranda but Kyona barely kicks out of the cover. Miranda picks up Kyona but Kyona levels her with a lariat, Savoy and Xia come in but so does Natsuko and she spears both of them. Kaori comes in as Miranda is now isolated, Hammerthrow Powerbomb by Kyona on Miranda and she picks up the three count! Team Jungle are the winners.

Just a short fun midcard match. I will say that Xia was really fired up and Savoy looked good with her suplexes. No surprise that Team Jungle won, no reason for them not to since Miranda is basically in Stardom for this tour to eat pins. Not long enough to get excited about but fine for what it was.

(c) Mary Apache vs. Kay Lee Ray
High Speed Championship

They get right into it, as KLR springboards off the ropes, but Apache moves and knocks her to the mat. Camel Clutch by Apache, she picks up KLR and swings her around in the Gory Special but KLR gets away and rolls her up for two. KLR rolls Apache to the mat and kicks her in the chest, KLR elbows Apache but Apache elbows her back and they trade blows. Heel Kick by Apache, they trade elbows again until Apache slams KLR to the mat with a spinebuster. Mexican Surfboard by Apache but KLR spins out of it and applies a choke. Apache goes off the ropes but KLR trips her and slides out of the ring, she pulls Apache up on the apron but Apache knocks her down and puts KLR in a Surfboard while still on the apron. Apache picks up KLR but KLR superkicks her down to the floor, KLR gets a running start in the ring and sails out onto Apache with a tope suicida. Apache stands up but KLR dives out onto her again, KLR goes up top and dives onto Apache a third time with a cannonball. KLR slides Apache back into the ring, she goes off the ropes and dropkicks Apache in the chest for a two count. Gory Bomb by KLR, but Apache kicks out of the cover. KLR puts Apache in a submission, but Apache wiggles to the ropes and forces the break. KLR chops Apache and goes off the ropes, but Apache catches her with a sit-down powerbomb for two. Apache gets on the top turnbuckle and delivers a diving heel kick, Apache picks up KLR and drops her with a Michinoku Driver II for the three count! Mary Apache retains the championship.

While I wouldn’t have minded if the match was a bit longer, it was still entertaining. KLR is a pleasure to watch, she’s such a firecracker and flies around the ring like few other female wrestlers can. Apache is more old school but really solid as well, her submissions are always on point and she doesn’t mind dropping people on their heads if necessary to pick up victories. I loved KLR going the reckless route since Apache was stronger, and even though it didn’t work out she came out of the match looking strong. A really solid midcard championship match.  Recommended

Mayu Iwatani vs. Rachael Ellering

They lock-up to start, Rachael pushes Mayu into the ropes and she gives a clean break. They trade shoves, wristlock by Rachael but Mayu rolls out of it and reverses the hold. Snapmare by Rachael and she puts Mayu in a headlock, Mayu elbows out of it and she delivers a dropkick. Elbows by Mayu and she dropkicks Rachael again, she goes off the ropes but Rachael boots Mayu in the face. Rachael stomps on Mayu’s still wrapped up arm, she pulls Mayu’s arm while it is in the ropes and continues to focus on it with kicks. Rachael picks up Mayu, superkick by Mayu and she dropkicks Rachael while she is against the ropes. Rachael falls out of the ring, Mayu goes up top and she dives out onto Rachael with a plancha suicida. Mayu slides Rachael back into the ring, she goes up top again and delivers a missile dropkick for a two count. Mayu picks up Rachael and goes for the dragon suplex, but Rachael blocks it and boots Mayu in the head. Spinebuster by Rachael, she charges Mayu and hits a jumping elbow. Another elbow by Rachael and she hits a scoop slam, slingshot leg drop out of the corner and Rachael covers Mayu for two. Rachael picks up Mayu but Mayu hits a crucifix slam, she charges Rachael but Rachael takes off her head with a lariat. Swinging Side Slam by Rachael, but Mayu barely kicks out. Rachael picks up Mayu but Mayu gets away and hits a German suplex, she goes up top and delivers the diving footstomp. Mayu kicks Rachael in the head, another high kick by Mayu and she nails her dragon suplex hold for the three count! Mayu Iwatani wins!

It is so nice to have Mayu Iwatani back, she is such an important part of Stardom now and cards have been noticeably lacking something during her time away. Mayu makes matches exciting just by being her natural self, such as bumping like a crazy person and showing so much emotion. For her part, Rachael was pretty great here too and executed her moves in such a way that I almost was sold on the idea she could win the match. Just almost of course, but it was a very back and forth match with both getting a chance to show off. I am not sure if this match was super great or if I just missed Mayu, but either way I was really entertained by this one. Definitely worth a watch.  Recommended

Queen’s Quest (Io, AZM, HZK, Viper, and Momo) vs. Oedo Tai (Kris, Sumire, Kagetsu, Hana, and Tam)
Elimination Tag Team Gauntlet Match

AZM vs. Kris Wolf – We start with the recently injured Kris against the youngest wrestler in the match, Kris charges AZM and hits a knee, but AZM rolls her up for the three count! Kris Wolf is eliminated and Queen’s Quest is up 5-4.

AZM vs. Natsu Sumire – Natsu quickly runs into the match and starts beating on AZM, she put AZM in the ropes and all the members of Oedo Tai attack her. The cheating continues as the referee has already lost control, Natsu gets some water in her mouth and spits it down onto AZM. AZM slides behind Natsu and tries to throw her over the top rope to the floor, but Natsu lands on the apron. AZM tries to kick Natsu off but Natsu slides back into the ring and lariats AZM to the mat. Knees by Natsu but AZM fights back with an elbow as they trade blows, they both go off the ropes until Natsu boots AZM in the face for two. A Cutie Special gets a two count for Natsu as well, she picks up AZM but AZM cradles her for a two count. AZM charges Natsu but Natsu catches her and nails the Yoran (cradle DDT) for the three count! AZM is eliminated and the teams are tied 4-4.

Natsu Sumire vs. Io Shirai – Hard elbow by Io, she goes after Natsu but Natsu grabs the top rope to get a break. Natsu wastes some time and lays down on the mat, Io covers her but Natsu quickly rolls up Io for two. Natsu goes for the Yoran but Io blocks it and applies an armtrap crossface, Natsu rolls out of it but Io knees her in the head. Io drags up Natsu and slams her on front of the corner, she goes for the moonsault but Natsu recovers and tries to push Io from the top to the floor, which would eliminate her. Io holds onto the top rope as Natsu tries to pry her fingers off, Natsu goes to charge at Io but Io skins the cat before Natsu reaches her. Dragon screw by Io and she puts Natsu in the Texas Cloverleaf. Natsu struggles for a quick moment but has to tap out! Natsu is eliminated and Queen’s Quest is up 4-3.

Io Shirai vs. Kagetsu – They feel each other out and end up grappling on the mat, but neither gets a clear advantage. Irish whip by Io but Kagetsu shoulderblocks her down, she goes off the ropes but Io avoids her charge and does a backflip into a dropkick. Io goes to pick up Kagetsu but Kagetsu slams her into the corner, running elbow by Kagetsu and she hits a vertical suplex for two. Kagetsu picks up Io and goes off the ropes, but Io catches her with a hurricanrana for a two count. Kick attempts by Kagetsu but Io blocks them, palm strike by Io but Kagetsu blocks the double underhook facebuster. Io flips away from Kagetsu and hits a German suplex hold, but Kagetsu gets a shoulder up. Io goes for the Texas Cloverleaf but Kagetsu quickly gets to the ropes for the break, running double knee by Io in the corner and she hits the double underhook facebuster. Io goes up top but Tam Nakano hits her with a sign before she can jump off, Kagetsu then dropkicks Io off the top turnbuckle down onto the apron. Io gets up on the apron but Kagetsu dropkicks her as she tries to return to the ring, Kagetsu picks up Io while still in the ring but Io hits a palm strike. Tiger Feint Kick by Io while she is still on the apron, she goes to springboard back into the ring, but Kagetsu spits blue mist at her face. Kagetsu then slides out to the apron and chokeslams Io off the apron down onto the floor (and a mob of wrestlers), giving her the win! Io Shirai is eliminated and the match is tied 3-3.

Kagetsu vs. Viper – Kagetsu immediately goes for the chokeslam but it doesn’t work, Viper throws Kagetsu into the corner but Kagetsu avoids her charge and applies a few flash pins for two counts. Viper returns the favor but also gets a two, kick by Kagetsu but Viper catches the next one and hits a backdrop suplex. Viper goes off the ropes but Kagetsu avoids the senton, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Viper catches her hurricanrana attempt and powerbombs Kagetsu to the mat for a two count. Natsu gets on the apron to distract the referee while the rest of Oedo Tai sneaks into the ring to attack Viper. It doesn’t help for long as Viper is quickly back in control, she goes off the ropes but Kagetsu spits water in her face. Kagetsu jumps up to the top turnbuckle but Viper runs into the ropes to send Kagetsu out onto the apron. Kagetsu tries to springboard back in the ring but Viper knocks her back to the apron, Kagetsu almost falls out but Oedo Tai catches her and pushes her back to safety. Viper also almost tumbles out but she catches herself, and both wrestlers end up safely back in the ring. Viper picks up Kagetsu but she gets away, running crossbody by Viper and she delivers the senton followed by a low crossbody for a two count cover. Viper picks up Kagetsu but Kagetsu gets away and kicks Viper in the head. Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu, but Viper gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kagetsu positions Viper and goes up top, but Viper avoids the Oedo Coaster. Viper picks up Kagetsu and headbutts her repeatedly, Viper Driver by Viper but the bell rings before she can make the cover, as time has expired. Both wrestlers are eliminated, and the match is tied at 2-2.

Hana Kimura vs. HZK – Hana and HZK trade elbows as soon as the bell rings, HZK goes off the ropes but Hana catches her with a dropkick. Hana picks up HZK and they pull each other’s hair, Hana goes off the ropes and she pulls HZK down to the mat. Stomps by Hana and she knees HZK against the ropes before connecting with a running boot. Cover by Hana, but it gets a two. Hana picks up HZK and hits a delayed vertical suplex, she goes to the second turnbuckle but HZK recovers and hits a Codebreaker. Now HZK gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers the diving senton, HZK slams Hana to the mat and covers her for a two count. HZK charges Hana but Hana avoids the pump kick and pushes HZK onto the apron. Hana tries to boot HZK to the floor but HZK moves and she pulls Hana out onto the apron with her. Hana and HZK trade elbows on the apron, Hana goes for a suplex but HZK blocks it. Hana puts HZK on the second turnbuckle but HZK kicks her back and nails a sunset flip powerbomb down to the floor! Hana is hurt and both wrestlers are eliminated, as we are down to the last members of each team.

Momo Watanabe vs. Tam Nakano – The loser of this pairing must leave their respective faction. After a stare down they trade strikes, snapmare by Tam and she kicks Momo in the back. Momo returns the favor, more kicks by Momo and she covers Tam for two. Momo kicks Tam into the corner and delivers a dropkick, she goes for a second one but Tam moves out of the way and hits a dropkick of her own. Irish whip by Tam and she hits the Space Rolling Elbow followed by a running cutter, kicks by Tam and she dropkicks Momo in the chest. Senton by Tam, and she covers Momo for a two count. Elbows by Tam but Momo dropkicks her, vertical suplex by Momo and she holds down Tam for two. Momo gets Tam on her back but Tam rolls out of the hold, high kicks by Tam and she finishes Momo with a spinning head kick. Another spinning kick by Tam, but Momo kicks out of the cover. Kicks to the chest by Tam, she goes for another high kick but Momo ducks this time and delivers two high kicks of her own. Somato by Momo, but when she goes for the cover, Tam reverses it into her own pin attempt for two. Momo picks up Tam and slaps her, she goes up to the second turnbuckle and nails the diving Somato for the three count! Queen’s Quest wins the match and Tam Nakano must leave Oedo Tai!

That was a hell of a match, and there is a lot to digest. First, I should note that since I watched the Samurai TV version, some parts were clipped with Viper/Kagetsu’s portion being the most notable. But top to bottom this was an enjoyable match with the Kagetsu/Io pairing being the highlight. Both are just so good and I loved the ending with Io getting the mist (I’m a sucker for mist in matches, its one of my weaknesses). I can’t say I loved the Hana/HZK ending, not because it was dangerous since I enjoy dangerous spots, but it didn’t make a lot of sense for HZK to intentionally eliminate herself. That was the only real logic fail of the match though, as everyone else acted as one would expect in a match with such high stakes. Momo/Tam wasn’t quite as good as I was hoping, Tam is a great character but is a bit hit-and-miss in the ring while Momo is still working off some rust, but the emotion was there anyway. Top to bottom a really entertaining match, not without its flaws but as a package deal a quality effort by all involved.  Recommended

The post Stardom 7th Anniversary on 1/21/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

On to 2018! I know that I missed a lot of events from late 2017 but I don’t want to get even further behind so we are just moving on to the new year. I’ll have another Stardom review very shortly but I wanted to watch one event leading up to their big Korakuen Hall show. This show has a big main event, as Io Shirai accepts a challenge from Rachael Ellering! Here is the full card:

• Hanan vs. Miranda vs. Ruaka
• Hiromi Mimura and Mary Apache vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Natsuko Tora
• Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, and Natsu Sumire vs. Kay Lee Ray, Nicole Savoy, and Xia Brookside
• AZM, HZK, Momo Watanabe, and Viper vs. Jungle Kyona, Konami, Shiki Shibusawa, and Starlight Kid
• Wonder Of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai vs. Rachael Ellering

All the wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it. As this was shown on Stardom World, all matches will be shown in full.

Hanan vs. Miranda vs. Ruaka

Hanan and Ruaka double team Miranda to start, they get her into the corner and Hanan delivers a dropkick. Hanan tricks Ruaka and rolls her up for a two count, she tries again but Miranda gets her from behind and all three trade flash pins with no luck. Miranda and Ruaka stomp on Hanan, but Hanan slams Ruaka to the mat and Ruaka gets double teamed instead. Hanan puts Ruaka in a crab hold before Miranda kicks her in the head, they switch positions but Hanan dropkicks Miranda instead. Hanan is not one to trust in this match. Miranda rocks Hanan with a hard elbow, Ruaka attacks Miranda but Miranda elbows her to the mat as well. Hanan and Ruaka Irish whip Miranda but Miranda hits a spear on both of them, Miranda covers Hanan but it gets two. Miranda chops Hanan into the corner before hitting a running elbow, Miranda throws Hanan to the mat and delivers a sliding kick for another two count. Miranda elbows Hanan against the ropes but Hanan hits a hip toss, Ruaka finally returns and they both slam Miranda, but Hanan schoolboys Ruaka for two. Reverse STO by Ruaka to Hanan, she picks up Hanan and delivers the fisherman suplex hold for a two count when Miranda breaks it up. Miranda kicks Ruaka into the corner, dropkick by Miranda and she hits a second one on Ruaka for a quick cover. Cutter by Miranda, but Hanan breaks up the cover. Hanan and Ruaka both grab Miranda and hit a double fisherman suplex hold, but Miranda kicks out. Big boot by Ruaka in the corner, superkick by Hanan and she hits a STO on Ruaka. Another STO by Hanan, but Ruaka barely gets a shoulder up. Hanan gets on the second turnbuckle but Ruaka recovers, she hits a fisherman suplex back to the mat before delivering a second fisherman suplex hold for the three count! Ruaka is your winner.

I will say this – I expected this match to be really disjointed and awkward but it was pretty smooth overall. A minor hiccup here and there but Miranda didn’t seem out of place in the ring with two wrestlers that have faced off on a very regular basis in the last year. Nothing to get excited about of course, but all three got a bit of a chance to shine and it was a respectable way to start off the show.

Hiromi Mimura and Mary Apache vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Natsuko Tora

Yoneyama and Apache start off trading armdrags and trips before reaching a stalemate, Apache tags in Hiromi while Natsuko also tags in. They do a pose-off before trading elbows, hard shoulderblock by Natsuko and Yoneyama comes in to help double team Hiromi. Yoneyama stays in and throws Hiromi by the hair into the corner, chops by Yoneyama and she chops Hiromi in the throat. Hiromi fights back with a dropkick, she kicks Natsuko off the apron but goofs around too much and doesn’t capitalize. Yoneyama charges Hiromi in the corner but Hiromi hits a tornado DDT, giving her time to tag in Apache. Apache puts Yoneyama in a Mexican Surfboard, Hiromi returns and she helps Apache jump down on Yoneyama against the ropes. Natsuko runs in and helps Yoneyama turn the tide on Apache, Yoneyama tags in Natsuko and she hits a running shoulder tackle on Apache in the corner. Apache recovers but Natsuko delivers a spear, Yoneyama comes in and hits a diving senton onto Apache. Tora follows with a diving senton of her own, Natsuko picks up Apache but Apache nails Natsuko with a jumping heel kick, cover by Apache but Yoneyama breaks it up. Apache lariats both of them, Hiromi comes in and she dropkicks Natsuko in the face. Lariat by Apache, and she covers Natsuko for two. Ligerbomb by Apache, and she picks up the three count! Hiromi Mimura and Mary Apace win!

Almost literally a nothing match, with very little substance. Natsuko and Yoneyama work well together but nothing else can really be pulled out of this match, aside from Hiromi being goofy and Mary Apache not really being given a chance to add anything of note. Skippable match.

Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, and Natsu Sumire vs. Kay Lee Ray, Nicole Savoy, and Xia Brookside

Oedo Tai attacks before the match starts, Kagetsu stays in with KLR but Savoy runs in and drops Kagetsu with a gutwrench suplex. Xia comes in too to help, neckbreaker by KLR to Kagetsu and she puts her in a quick submission. Hana and Natsu come in but the Gaijin Team stays in control, KLR elbows Kagetsu in the corner and tags in Savoy. Xia is tagged in but Tam pulls her out of the ring and beats down Xia at ringside. Natsu helps Tam before Xia is rolled back into the ring as all the members of Oedo Tai pose around her. Kagetsu kicks Xia before tagging in Hana, Hana kicks at Xia and tags in Natsu, as Xia plays the Face in Peril, Natsu gets her bottle water and spits water down onto Xia. Natsu suplexes Xia into the corner and hits the Bronco Buster, but Xia comes back with a jumping knee and a face crusher for a two count. Xia tags in Savoy, butterfly suplex by Savoy and she drops Natsu with a German suplex. Kagetsu runs in but she gets suplexed as well, she then hits a Fallaway Slam on Hana before booting Natsu. Natsu schoolboys Savoy which gives her time to tag in Hana, drop toehold by Hana and she boots Savoy in the head. Fisherman Buster by Savoy to Hana and she tags in KLR, KLR slaps Hana in the chest and delivers a high kick for a two count. Dropkick by Hana to KLR and she puts her in the Ground Manjikatame, but KLR quickly gets to the ropes. Hana elbows KLR but KLR nails her with a superkick, she tags in Xia while Kagetsu is also tagged in. Spinning headscissors by Xia and she kicks Kagetsu in the head for a two count. Xia gets Kagetsu on her shoulders but Kagetsu slides off, Codebreaker by Xia and she covers Kagetsu for another two. Xia picks up Kagetsu and puts her on the top turnbuckle before flinging her to the mat, but Hana breaks up the cover. Elbows by Xia but Kagetsu tosses P-chan at her and kicks Xia in the head. Hana runs in and boots Xia, Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu but KLR breaks up the pin. Kagetsu picks up Xia and hits a vertical suplex, chokeslam by Kagetsu and she covers Xia for the three count! Oedo Tai are the winners!

A fun midcard match. The wrestlers are capable of more than that of course but with the match length and placement on the card, this was about all we could hope for. All the gaijin team members looked great in limited action, with Savoy and KLR being particularly impressive. Natsu on a skill-level is below everyone else but was well protected here, and everyone played their part well. Solid, but nothing overly memorable long term.  Mildly Recommended

AZM, HZK, Momo, and Viper vs. Jungle Kyona, Konami, Shibusawa, and Starlight Kid

Momo and Kyona kick things off, Kyona boots Momo in the stomach and hits a hard shoulderblock. Armdrag by Momo and she rolls up Kyona for two, but Kyona gets her to the mat and they end up in a stalemate. Kyona tags in Starlight Kid while Viper is also tagged in, Starlight Kid stomps on Viper’s foot and hits a few dropkicks, but Viper catches her on the crossbody attempt. Viper tries to sit on Starlight Kid but Starlight Kid moves, dropkick by Starlight Kid and she covers Viper for a quick two count. Starlight Kid goes for a tilt-a-whirl headscissors but Viper catches her, she goes off the ropes but Shiki runs in and stops her from hitting a bodypress. Queen’s Quest stacks up all their opponents in the corner before Viper hits a cannonball, Viper then picks up Starlight Kid and headbutts her. She tags in AZM, scoop slam by AZM and she kicks Starlight Kid in the back. AZM tags Momo, Momo dropkicks Starlight Kid in the corner and hits another scoop slam for two. Starlight Kid elbows Momo but Momo knocks her to the mat and tags in HZK. HZK picks up Starlight Kid and elbows her against the ropes, but Shiki runs in and dropkicks HZK. Tiger Feint Kick by Starlight Kid and Shiki hits a face crusher, double dropkick to HZK and Starlight Kid makes the hot tag to Konami.

Konami applies a seated armbar to HZK but it gets broken up by Momo, Viper tries to break it up too but Konami puts all three in an armbar. Knees by Konami to HZK and she delivers a dropkick, back kick by Konami and she hits a fisherman suplex hold for two. Konami tags Kyona, Kyona and HZK trade elbows until Kyona swings HZK to the mat with a sleeper. Momo breaks it up and with HZK they suplex Kyona, double knee to the back to Kyona and Momo delivers the Somato. Pump Kick by HZK and she hits Michinoku Driver on Kyona for two. HZK gets on the second turnbuckle but Kyona avoids the senton, lariat to the back by Kyona but HZK avoids the next lariat and hits a headbutt. Kyona comes back with a hard shot but HZK sneaks in a DDT and both wrestlers are down. Shiki and AZM are tagged in, dropkicks by Shiki and she scoop slams AZM. Standing Moonsault by Starlight Kid and Konami delivers a sliding kick to AZM, Shiki follows with a missile dropkick and she covers AZM for two. AZM gets away from Shiki and hits a triple jump crossbody out of the corner, giving her time to tag in Viper. Elbow by Viper and she hits a low crossbody, but the cover is broken up. All of Queen’s Quest stay in the ring, triple dropkick to Shiki and Viper follows with a running senton for the three count! Queen’s Quest win the match.

A small step down from the last match but still decent enough, even though it wasn’t an ideal match for a semi-main event. They kept the pace up, as you’d expect in a pretty short eight wrestler tag match, but it lacked anything resembling a structure as it was mostly just random carnage. Perfectly fine for a casual watch, but nothing more than that here.

(c) Io Shirai vs. Rachael Ellering
Wonder of Stardom Championship

They tie-up to start, wristlock by Rachael but Io applies a headlock. Rachael gets out of it but Io drops her into the ropes, she goes for a Tiger Feint Kick but Rachael slides out of the way. Irish whip by Rachael and she hits a shoulderblock, Io kips up but Rachael elbows her back down to the mat. Chops by Rachael but Io avoids a senton, Io goes for a dropkick but Rachael moves out of the way. Io blocks a piledriver but Rachael snaps off a cutter for two. Rachael grabs Io around the waist and flings her to the mat, kicks by Rachael and she shoulder tackles Io in the corner. Rachael scoops up Io and hits a shoulder breaker to the gut, cover by Rachael but Io kicks out. Elbow by Rachael and she hits a scoop slam, senton by Rachael and she covers Io for two. Rachael kicks at Io and connects with a few elbows, she goes for a kick to the back but Io catches it and dropkicks Rachael in the knee. Io charges Rachael in the corner, Rachael drops her onto the apron however and boots Io down to the floor. Io quickly gets back into the ring and hits a scoop slam, she goes up top and hits a flying body press for two. Rachael rolls out of the ring, but Io goes off the ropes and sails out onto her with a plancha suicida. Io slides Rachael back in and hits a missile dropkick, running double knee by Io in the corner and she covers Rachael for two. Io goes up top but Rachael hits her from behind, Rachael pulls Io off the top and hits a STO. Leg drop out of the corner by Rachael, but Io kicks out of the cover. Io lands on the apron, Rachael goes for a boot but Io catches it and snaps Rachael’s leg on the top rope. Io goes up top but Rachael joins her and delivers an Avalanche Falcon Arrow for a two count cover. Rachael picks up Io and elbows her, but Io elbows her back and they trade blows. Palm strike by Io but Rachael boots her in the face, spinebuster by Rachael, but Io gets a shoulder up on the cover. Rachael picks up Io but Io gets away on the powerbomb attempt and delivers a German suplex hold for two. Io picks up Rachael and hits a dragon screw, Io picks up Rachael and delivers a tombstone piledriver. Io goes up top and she nails the moonsault, cover by Io and she picks up the three count! Io Shirai is still the Wonder of Stardom Champion!

While obviously I adore Io and think she is one of the best wrestlers in the world, this match was a bit disappointing. I am not faulting Rachael either, she was on point, but at times they just didn’t mesh well and it didn’t feel near as fluid as I expect from Io’s matches. The biggest slip-up was all Io but other times I couldn’t fault one or the other, it just didn’t always feel natural. I did love Rachael’s dangerous looking Falcon Arrow and the big spots were executed well, it just didn’t get enough time (about 13 minutes) for them to overcome the issues early in the match. It was still “good” overall because current day Io isn’t capable of not having a good match, but for a title match it didn’t fully deliver.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom “New Years Stars 2018” on 1/13/18 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Welcome to the final show of the Stardom FIVE STAR GP! I realize I didn’t review any of the events leading up to the finale but it was just way too much to watch so we are skipping right to the good stuff. Here are the standings going into the show:

This event has all the wrestlers’ last matches in the tournament, then the Finals will immediately take place. Here is the full card:

• AZM, Mari Apache, and Shiki Shibusawa vs. Natsuko Tora, Ruaka, and Starlight Kid
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block B: Hiromi Mimura vs. Xia Brookside
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block A: Konami vs. Mandy Leon
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block B: Hana Kimura vs. Kris Wolf
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block A: Jungle Kyona vs. Tam Nakano
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block A: Kay Lee Ray vs. Toni Storm
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block A: HZK vs. Io Shirai
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block B: Viper vs. Yoko Bito
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Block B: Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani
• FIVE STAR GP 2017 Final

A long event, and since it was shown on Stardom World, all matches are unedited. The hard cam is slightly elevated which may annoy me, but a ten match card like this will be too clipped on Samurai TV to enjoy so I am going to push through it. As always, you can click on the wrestler’s name above to go straight to their profile on Joshi City.

AZM, Mari Apache, and Shiki Shibusawa vs. Natsuko Tora, Ruaka, and Starlight Kid

AZM (in new gear) starts the match with Natsuko, Natsuko attacks her from behind and AZM is triple teamed in the corner. Natsuko goes off the ropes and hits a hard shoulderblock, she picks her up but AZM whips off a hurricanrana. AZM tags in Mari, who promptly boots everyone in the face. Shiki and AZM get in the ring and all three put their opponents in submission holds, Mari cradles Natsuko but it gets a two count. Kicks by Mari but Natsuko elbows her back and hits a spear, she tags in Ruaka (also in new gear) while AZM is tagged back in. AZM throws down Ruaka by the hair but Ruaka comes back with a boot, another boot by Ruaka and she covers AZM for two. Shiki hops in and hits a missile dropkick, suplex by AZM and she covers Ruaka, but the pin is broken up. Ruaka tags in Starlight Kid but Mari is also tagged in and she quickly puts Starlight Kid in a submission hold. Starlight Kid gets out of it and hits a hurricanrana, dropkick by Starlight Kid and she hits the Shiranui. Body Press from the second turnbuckle by Starlight Kid, but Mari kicks out of the cover. Things break down as everyone runs in the ring, but Mari lariats both Natsuko and Ruaka. Mari puts Starlight Kid in the Atlantida (spinning backbreaker rack) and Starlight Kid submits! AZM, Mari Apache, and Shiki Shibusawa win!

This was simple, and at times a bit sloppy. Mari was the star as she should be, hitting her strikes soundly while also giving Starlight Kid quite a bit of offense as well so it wasn’t too one-sided. Ruaka hasn’t improved since I last saw her and Shiki didn’t do enough to get a feel of. Just a short opener with nothing particularly memorable.

Hiromi Mimura vs. Xia Brookside

After they confirm that Xia is taller than Hiromi, Xia picks up Hiromi but Hiromi wiggles away and applies a sunset flip for two. They trade flash pins with neither having success, Hiromi stomps down on Xia near the ropes before hitting a scoop slam. Camel Clutch by Hiromi, she picks up Xia but Xia puts her in the Tree of Woe and hits a dropkick to her face. Irish whip attempt by Xia, Hiromi reverses it but Xia hits a high knee in the corner. Face crusher by Xia and she dropkicks Hiromi for a two count. Xia picks up Hiromi and hits the Codebreaker, but again Hiromi kicks out of the cover. Xia picks up Hiromi again but this time Hiromi slides away and hits a jumping crossbody, dropkick by Hiromi and she dropkicks Xia again for a two count. Hiromi goes off the ropes but Xia delivers a high kick, sunset flip by Xia but Hiromi reverses it and they go back and forth with quick pins. La Magistral attempt by Hiromi, Xia blocks it but Hiromi puts her in the Endless Waltz for the three count! Hiromi Mimura wins the match and ends the tournament with four points.

They might have put on an even more basic match than the last match. No one will ever accuse Hiromi of being a high-end wrestler but in the right situations she can be entertaining as she is cute and has good comedic timing. But this was more a ‘dropkicks and flash pins’ style of match that didn’t do a whole lot for me. Technically sound, just not particularly interesting.

Konami vs. Mandy Leon

Lock-up to start, they end up on the mat but Mandy pulls Konami to her feet and hits a shoulderblock. Dropkick by Konami but Mandy quickly gets back up and they lock knuckles, monkey flip by Mandy and she keeps their knuckles locked so she can fling Konami to the mat again. Konami gets out of it and applies a short armbar, but Mandy rolls away and covers her for two. Cross armbreaker by Konami but Mandy gets a foot in the ropes, lariat by Mandy in the corner and she hits a running elbow. She goes for another one but Konami kicks her away and applies a hanging armbar, missile dropkick by Konami and she covers Mandy for two. Seated armbar by Konami but Mandy gets to the ropes, Konami goes off the ropes but Mandy catches her with a lariat. Elbow drop by Mandy, but her cover gets a two count. Mandy picks up Konami and throws her to the mat, DDT of sorts by Mandy but Konami kicks out of the pin. Mandy goes for a wrist-clutch slam but Konami reverses it with a cradle for the three count! Konami wins the match and ends the tournament with two points.

We have reached the part of the event that I regret not just watching the clipped up Samurai TV version. Like the last two matches, it wasn’t actively bad, it just wasn’t interesting or memorable or good either and was the least fluid match so far. Mandy’s offense is rough, and while I love Konami she isn’t really at the stage of her career where she is going to be able to elevate a wrestler much past where they already are. A watchable match in execution, but a skippable match in regards to entertainment value.

Hana Kimura vs. Kris Wolf

Hana has meat with her to taunt Kris with, I guess her sexy dancing wouldn’t work on her friend so she had to go in a different direction. Hana kicks Kris when she goes for the corn dog she is holding, stomps by Hana and she pulls back on Kris after twisting her in the ropes. Hana puts Kris in a Camel Clutch while waving some meat in her face, Irish whip by Hana but Kris ducks the lariat and hits a spinning headscissors. Jumping knee by Kris in the corner followed by a face crusher for a two count cover. Kris picks up Hana but Hana gets the meat out, Kris grabs it which gives Hana time to elbow her in the chest. Kris elbows her back and they trade blows on the mat, Kris gets the better of it but Hana blocks the suplex attempt. Eye poke by Kris and she applies a small package for two. Suplex by Kris, she gets on the top turnbuckle but Hana joins her and hits a superplex. Running boot by Hana, but the cover gets a two count. Hana picks up Kris but Kris applies a cradle and they go back and forth with flash pins. Kris goes off the ropes but Hana catches her with a dropkick, but boot by Hana and she nails the missile dropkick for the three count! Hana Kimura wins and ends the tournament with eight points.

I love both of these wrestlers. I was the first person on the Kris Wolf Bandwagon (I have documented proof), and I think Hana brings a lot to the table. They certainly weren’t trying to put on an epic match here as it barely went five minutes, and like every other match so far it was mostly strikes and flash pins. The meat thing was a bit too silly for me, I am not sure where the line is but Oedo Tai in general has been more “vicious” lately so I’d rather not it be a long term thing that Kris forgets to wrestle if she gets meat waved in her face. Its always a pleasure to see Hana and Kris, but not much of a match.

Jungle Kyona vs. Tam Nakano

They start the match trying to knock each other over with Kyona having success, cover by Kyona but Tam bridges out of it and hits a dropkick. Snapmare by Tam and she kicks Kyona in the back, Kyona returns to her feet and blocks Tam’s kick. Backbreaker by Kyona and she drapes Tam over the top rope before delivering a body avalanche. Single leg crab hold by Kyona, but Tam eventually makes it to the ropes for the break. Kyona goes off the ropes and hits a lariat, but Tam blocks the next one and applies an abdominal stretch. Sunset flip by Tam, but it only gets a two count. Stomps by Tam to Kyona’s already wrapped up arm but Kyona hits a body avalanche in the corner followed by a dropkick. Sliding lariat by Kyona, and she covers Tam for two. Kyona goes up top but Tam elbows her from behind, kicks by Tam and she suplexes Kyona back to the mat. Cover by Kyona, but it gets a two count. Tam picks up Kyona but Kyona blocks her kick and clubs her in the face, she goes off the ropes but Tam delivers a head kick for two. Tam picks up Kyona but Kyona elbows her off, Tam returns fire and nails another head kick, but Kyona is too close to the ropes and grabs the bottom one to break the pin. Elbows by Tam but Kyona hits a hard lariat, Kyona picks up Tam and drops her with a short range lariat. Hammerthrow Powerbomb by Kyona and she hits another short range lariat, she goes up top and delivers the diving body press for the three count! Jungle Kyona wins the match and picks up two points in the tournament.

Now we are getting somewhere, this was a really good match. Tam really looks better each time I see her, hanging around Stardom wrestlers and training with them seems to be helping. Easily the longest match on the show so far, they had a chance to tell a bit of a story so it wasn’t just strikes and pins. Tam’s kicks were on point and Kyona showed a lot of fire throughout, an exciting match from bell to bell. Really enjoyable and worth the watch.  Recommended

Kay Lee Ray vs. Toni Storm

Lock-up to start, Irish whip by KLR but Toni shoulderblocks her to the mat. Toni goes off the ropes but KLR trips her with a pancake, Toni trips KLR and she rolls her up for two. KLR gets Toni on her back but Toni cradles her before both wrestlers return to their feet. KLR fakes a handshake but kicks Toni in the head instead, KLR throws Toni into the corner and chops her in the chest. KLR rolls Toni to the mat and applies a front necklock, Toni muscles out of it however and hits a vertical suplex. Northern Lights Suplex by KLR, she rolls through it to hit another one but Toni reverses it with a DDT. They slowly get up and trade elbows, snap German by Toni and she hits a running hip attack in the corner. Suplex by Toni, she gets on the top turnbuckle but KLR kicks her before she can jump off, sending Toni to the floor. KLR quickly jumps on the top turnbuckle and sails out of the ring with a Swanton, she slides Toni back in the ring but Toni blocks the Gory Bomb. Toni goes for a kick but KLR catches it and hits the Gory Bomb anyway, cover by KLR but Toni gets a shoulder up. KLR gets on the top turnbuckle but Toni hits her before she can jump off, Toni grabs her but KLR wiggles away. KLR goes for a springboard off the ropes but Toni catches her with a German Suplex, piledriver by Toni but KLR barely kicks out of the cover. Toni picks up KLR and goes off the ropes, but KLR dropkicks her in the knee and hits a neckbreaker. KLR applies a choke but Toni gets a hand on the ropes, KLR gets on the top turnbuckle but Toni recovers and joins her. KLR goes for an elbow but Toni blocks it, and she nails the Strong Zero from the second turnbuckle. Cover by Toni, and she gets the three count! Toni Storm wins and now has 11 points in the tournament.

For a short tournament-style match (meaning more flash pins), I thought this was pretty damn good. KLR and Toni Storm are two of my favorite wrestlers period, and this was really smooth as they have great chemistry. Since it mattered for who won the Blue Block, they went a bit further with big moves and kicking out of finishers than we had seen thus far, raising the drama and excitement. The piledriver off the second turnbuckle was sick but a very definitive way to end the match while keeping KLR strong in the process. Fast paced and entertaining, wish it was longer but I can’t find any fault with the action itself.  Recommended

HZK vs. Io Shirai

They trade holds to start, they go off the ropes until HZK throws down Io by her hair. Bootscrapes by HZK, she goes off the ropes but Io dropkicks her in the face. Io returns the favor and boots HZK in the head, cover by Io but HZK kicks out. Stretch hold by Io, she lets go after a moment and stomps down on HZK’s stomach. Scoop slam by Io, and she covers HZK for a two count. Io picks up HZK and Irish whips her, but HZK slides out to the apron and snaps Io’s neck over the top rope. Dropkick by HZK into the corner and she finally hits the running kick that Io had prevented earlier, choke by HZK and she drives Io’s head into her knee. HZK picks up Io and hits a full nelson slam, cover by HZK but it gets a two count. She goes for the crossface but Io blocks it and applies her own armtrap crossface, she lets go after a moment and delivers a Tiger Feint Kick. Swandive dropkick by Io, she picks up HZK and elbows her in the face. They trade shots, Io gets the better of it and goes for a suplex, but HZK reverses it and hits a double stomp to Io’s stomach. HZK knocks Io into the corner and hits a running elbow, cover by HZK but it gets a two count. HZK goes up top but Io knocks her to the apron, Io joins HZK but HZK slides back in to avoid her palm thrust and knocks Io to the floor. HZK goes to the second turnbuckle and dives out onto Io with a diving lariat. HZK slides Io back into the ring, she gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a diving senton to Io’s back. Armtrap crossface by HZK but Io gets a foot on the ropes to force a break. Boot by HZK and she headbutts Io, scoop slam by HZK and she nails the Bombs Away, but Io barely gets a shoulder up. Armtrap crossface by HZK but again Io gets to the ropes. Io recovers and hits a German suplex hold, running double knee by Io and she hits the double underhook facebuster. Moonsault to the back by Io, she covers HZK but HZK kicks out of the cover. Quick roll-up by HZK but Io kicks out and boots HZK in the head. Texas Cloverleaf by Io but the bell rings, as the time limit has expired. The match is a Draw.

And Io is officially eliminated from winning the tournament. Another really good match, we had to get through some fluff but once the meaningful matches started this show has really delivered. HZK has improved tenfold since returning last December and looked like a legitimate challenger to Io here. Io did kick out of the Bombs Away, but HZK kicked out of the moonsault so they were even. Maybe too many armtrap crossfaces since neither ever win with the move so it felt a bit excessive that both kept using it, but otherwise everything made sense and it was an entertaining match. Keep an eye on HZK, if she sticks around this time she may be a future main event star.  Recommended

Viper vs. Yoko Bito

Viper dropkicks Yoko Bito while her streamers are flying in the ring, getting an early advantage in the match. Viper picks up Bito and clubs on her, sit-out slam by Viper but Bito rolls out of the ring to try to recover. Viper immediately goes out after her however and slams Bito into the apron, lariat against the post by Viper and she gets on the apron before hitting a cannonball down to the floor. Viper returns to the ring to wait for Bito, Bito slowly gets back in but Viper quickly puts her in a cobra clutch. Viper clubs on Bito some more, but Bito goes off the ropes and hits a jumping lariat. Running elbow by Bito and she hits a vertical suplex, Viper gets back up but Bito delivers a head kick for a two count cover. Viper and Bito trade elbows as they return to their feet, Bito goes off the ropes but Viper knocks her back with a headbutt. More headbutts by Viper and she hits a low running crossbody for a two count. Running senton by Viper, but that gets a two count as well. Viper throws Bito into the turnbuckles, cannonball by Viper and she goes for the Reverse Splash, but Bito rolls out of the way. High kick by Bito and she hits a second one, a third head kick by Bito and she nails the B Driver for the three count! Yoko Bito wins and gets two points in the tournament.

A step down from the last few matches. It was a simple story but told well, my main issue is that due to the time length, Bito’s comeback was really short in comparison to the amount of offense she took. I mean Viper threw everything at her but Bito won with a few head kicks and the B Driver with very little beforehand to weaken Viper. But that happens sometimes in tournament matches, these two could have a better longer match but as presented a bit disappointing.

Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani

Kagetsu attacks Mayu as soon as she gets through the curtain, and with Oedo Tai’s help she beats her down on the stage. In an insane spot that has to be seen, Kagetsu tosses Mayu near the railing and then pushes over the entrance rigging on top of her, trapping her neck between the rigging and the guard rail. Mayu miraculously survives this and they finally make it back into the ring to officially start the match, Mayu immediately goes up top but Mayu manages to roll out of the way of the Oedo Coaster. Mayu grabs Kagetsu but Kagetsu gets away and hits a dragon suplex hold, picking up a two count. Mayu snaps off a quick Ebisu Drop for her own two count, as the wrestlers both steal each other’s signature moves. Both wrestler kip-up, they go off the ropes until Mayu hits a jumping elbow. Triple jump dropkick by Kagetsu and she hits a running elbow, vertical suplex by Kagetsu and she puts Mayu in a cross-arm submission hold. Mayu gets to the ropes for the break, the rest of Oedo Tai get on the apron as they all attack Mayu as she is in the ropes.

Kagetsu gets a bottle of water and dumps it onto Mayu, but Mayu regains the advantage with a dropkick. Elbows by Mayu and she kicks Kagetsu in the stomach before hitting a Sling Blade. Cover by Mayu, but it gets two. Mayu picks up Kagetsu, they both block each other’s strikes until Kagetsu delivers a high kick. Another high kick by Kagetsu and a third, Buzzsaw Kick by Kagetsu but she doesn’t go for the cover. Kagetsu goes off the ropes but Mayu hits a superkick, another superkick by Mayu and she hits several more until Kagetsu finally ends on her knees. Buzzsaw Kick by Mayu, and she covers Kagetsu for a two count. Iwatani goes off the ropes and gives Kagetsu a hard dropkick, she goes up top and nails the diving footstomp. Mayu drags up Kagetsu and goes for the Sakauchi but Kagetsu blocks it, kick combination by Kagetsu and she drops Mayu with a chokeslam. Kagetsu goes for the Ebisu Drop but Mayu reverses it with the Sakauchi, but Kagetsu barely kicks out of the cover. Kagetsu pushes Mayu into the referee, knocking him off his feet, allowing Kagetsu to spit blue mist into Mayu’s face. Kagetsu slams Mayu in front of the corner, she quickly goes up top and she nails the Oedo Coaster for the three count! Kagetsu wins the match and ends the tournament with ten points.

After the hot start the match dipped a bit in excitement, but still a great match. The stage spot looked incredibly dangerous and painful, which almost made the fact Mayu was fine a minute later doing a fast paced exchange difficult to believe. It was certainly a memorable moment though. The rest of the match was really fluid, they have great chemistry and every match they have they just ramp up the things they do to each other. Lots of hard strikes and snug suplexes, which is all one can ask for in life. I wouldn’t have minded if it was longer or if the opening killer move felt a bit more important to the match overall, but still a high end match between two of the best in Stardom.  Recommended

I don’t know what convoluted method Stardom used to determine who won the Red Block, but it is Yoko Bito! The finals of the FIVE STAR GP will now immediately take place!

Toni Storm vs. Yoko Bito
FIVE STAR GP 2017 Final

They shake hands but Bito immediately hits a pump kick afterwards, running elbow by Bito in the corner and she delivers a series of kicks. Bito puts Toni in the ropes and chops her in the chest from the apron, she charges Toni but Toni moves and Bito ends up stuck in the ropes. Toni kicks Bito out of the ring, she goes off the ropes and sails out onto her with a tope suicida. Toni chops Bito down onto a chair, she gets a running start and hits Bito with a jumping knee. Toni goes for a piledriver but Bito blocks it and hits a B Driver on the floor. Bito and Toni slowly return to the ring and they trade elbows, Bito goes off the ropes but Toni boots her in the chest. Neck crank by Toni and she hits a series of hip attacks, cover by Toni but it gets two. Toni goes back to the neck to help set up Bito for the Strong Zero, she picks her up but Bito ducks the lariat attempt and hits one of her own. Bito goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick, cover by Bito but it gets two. STF by Bito but Toni crawls to the ropes and forces the break. Bito picks up Toni and delivers a high kick, elbows by Bito but Toni headbutts her and hits a quick Strong Zero. Cover by Toni, but Bito barely kicks out. They both slowly get up and Bito drops Toni with a B Driver, he picks Toni up but Toni ducks her kicks and hits another Strong Zero. Toni rolls through it and hits a second Strong Zero, she then hits a third Strong Zero and covers Bito for the three count! Toni Storm is the new FIVE STAR GP Champion!

Its rough having the finals on the same event as nine other matches, as the show is already long so you know the main event is going to be a bit condensed. I liked what they did during the match though, I didn’t mind Toni hitting her finisher three times for the win as it wasn’t like Bito was kicking out between them, Toni was just being extra thorough. Toni is just so much fun to watch, between the dives and the hip attacks and her piledriver its hard for me not to get into her matches. Bito was mostly along for the ride in this one but she held her own as well, I never really got the sense she was winning as the match wasn’t long enough to have an epic end run. A solid match overall, I just wish the match was on a future event so they could have had more time.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom FIVE STAR GP Finale on 9/18/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

And we are back with Stardom! This event is their last before the big tournament starts, and features four championship matches. Io Shirai has returned after a brief absence due to a neck issue, and Kagetsu challenges for the World of Stardom Championship! Here is the full card:

• AZM vs. Hanan vs. Ruaka
• FIVE STAR Grand Prix 2017 Qualifying Match: Natsuko Tora vs. Tam Nakano
• Gabby Ortiz and Hiromi Mimura vs. Hana Kimura and Kris Wolf vs. Konami and Yoko Bito vs. Shiki Shibusawa and Starlight Kid
• SWA Undisputed Women’s Championship: Toni Storm vs. Xia Brookside
• High Speed Championship: Shanna vs. Mari Apache
• Artist Of Stardom Championship: Hiroyo Matsumoto, Jungle Kyona, and Kaori Yoneyama vs. HZK, Io Shirai, and Viper
• World Of Stardom Championship: Mayu Iwatani vs. Kagetsu

All wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their name to go straight to it. I start off watching the Stardom World version of this event, but by the end I’ll be reviewing the Samurai TV version, I’ll explain why when I get there.

AZM vs. Hanan vs. Ruaka

Hanan and Ruaka tie-up while AZM watches, elbows by Hanan but Ruaka elbows her back. AZM gets involved, Hanan elbows her in the corner but Ruaka rolls up Hanan for two. AZM tosses Hanan by her hair, AZM grabs Hanan’s arm and applies a wristlock. Hanan kicks AZM but AZM trips her and hits a dropkick. Ruaka kicks AZM from behind but AZM drops Hanan, AZM avoids Ruaka’s big boot the first time but Ruaka connects the second time for a two count. Dropkick by AZM, she throws Ruaka into the corner and delivers another dropkick. Crab hold by AZM but Hanan breaks it up, AZM and Hanan trade elbows until AZM kicks Hanan out of the ring. AZM goes for a crossbody on Ruaka but Ruaka catches her and tosses AZM to the mat, big boot by Ruaka in the corner and she hits a fisherman suplex hold for two. Hanan returns and helps Ruaka on AZM, judo toss by Hanan to Ruaka and she hits a STO. Cover by Hanan, but Ruaka kicks out. Hanan picks up Ruaka and elbows her into the corner, vertical suplex by AZM to Ruaka but Hanan quickly covers AZM for two. STO by Hanan to AZM, Ruaka comes back and they double team AZM. Hanan dropkicks AZM but Ruaka rolls up Hanan for two, she goes off the ropes but Hanan rolls Ruaka to the mat and cradles her for the three count! Hanan wins!

Short and to the point, I will say that there were no issues of miscommunications here which is no small feat when dealing with a fast paced match with three really young wrestlers. I still see Hanan as the best of the bunch, but too early to really tell for any of them. At least AZM is back where she belongs on the card, so that’s one plus.

Natsuko Tora vs. Tam Nakano

Tam and Natsuko run into each other as the match starts but neither wrestler goes down, they trade elbows until Natsuko puts Tam in a headlock. Tam Irish whips out of it and hits a hard shoulderblock, but Natsuko returns the favor. Snapmare by Natsuko and she hits a dropkick, leglock by Natsuko but Tam gets into the ropes for the break. Natsuko charges Tam and dropkicks her into the corner, cover by Natsuko but it gets a two count. Tam comes back with her own dropkick, kick to the back by Tam and she applies a Dragon Sleeper. She lets go after a moment and goes off the ropes, but Natsuko hits a shoulderblock. Jumping elbow by Natsuko but Tam dropkicks her, running shoulder tackle by Natsuko and she levels Tam with a spear. Natsuko applies an armbar with a headscissors, cradle by Natsuko but it gets two. A backslide by Natsuko gets the same result, Natsuko goes off the ropes but Tam ducks the PK and kicks Natsuko in the head. Kicks to the chest by Tam and she kicks Natsuko in the head for a two count. Tam throws Natsuko into the corner and hits the Space Rolling Elbow, she follows with a Stunner and running footstomps. Senton by Tam, but Natsuko gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kick to the chest by Tam, she gets on the second turnbuckle and delivers a diving senton for another two count. Tam goes up top but Natsuko joins her, Natsuko gets Tam on her shoulders and hits a Samoan Drop. Natsuko goes off the ropes and knees Tam in the stomach, running knee by Natsuko but Tam kicks out. Natsuko picks up Tam but Tam blocks the slam and kicks Natsuko in the head. More kicks by Tam but Natsuko mostly blocks them and slaps her, two more kicks by Tam but Natsuko gets a shoulder up. Spinning Back Kick by Tam, and she picks up the three count! Tam Nakano wins and is in the FIVE STAR GP.

For two inexperienced wrestlers, this was a really solid match. Natsuko looks really smooth already in her career and showed some fire, she’s really progressed a lot since joining Team Jungle. Tam for most of the match looked really good as well, a few kicks at the end had too much hesitation but its their first ever match together so I can excuse some minor communications issues. A well done match, excited to see what Tam Nakano can do in the tournament.  Mildly Recommended

So I started this show watching the Stardom World version, which is why those two matches I saw in full, but I’m switching over to the Samurai TV version now because there is something wrong with Stardom’s hard cam. Everything looks tinted and weird, which is distracting. It normally isn’t like that so I’ll assume it was just a one-time issue.

Gabby Ortiz and Hiromi Mimura vs. Hana Kimura and Kris Wolf vs. Konami and Yoko Bito vs. Shiki Shibusawa and Starlight Kid

The match begins with Hana, Hiromi, Bito, and Shiki in the ring so naturally they have a pose off. Which Samurai TV did not clip. After everyone gets a turn they start fighting, with Hana being triple teamed in the corner. Everyone runs in to attack Hana, with them all having success except for Hiromi. Konami stays in the ring and helps Bito attack Shiki, but Starlight Kid re-enters and both deliver dropkicks to Konami and Bito. Gabby and Hiromi enter and both hit DDTs on Starlight Kid and Shiki, but Hana and Kris attack them from behind. We clip ahead to Bito hitting a double lariat on Gabby and Hiromi, Bito drops Hiromi on Gabby and covers her for two. Bito goes off the ropes but Kris trips her from the floor, Konami goes outside the ring and kicks both Hana and Kris while Gabby drops Bito with a Cyclone Neckbreaker. Small package by Gabby, she goes off the ropes but Bito kicks her in the head. Bito picks up Gabby and delivers the B Driver, but Hana boots Bito when she goes for the pin. Kris runs in and quickly covers Gabby, and she picks up the three count! Kris Wolf and Hana Kimura win!

Samurai TV kindly clipped this one quite a bit. The pose off is cute and fine for a midcard thing, and I laughed pretty good when Hana booted Hiromi in the face, but nothing else here was really memorable. I am glad Oedo Tai got the win though, it may not seem like much but every pinfall counts when trying to get a faction over. Quite skippable but harmless.

(c) Toni Storm vs. Xia Brookside
SWA Undisputed Women’s Championship

This match is joined very in progress, as Xia drops Toni with a spinning headscissors. Running knee by Xia and she hits a face crusher, cover by Xia but it gets a two count. Xia goes for a kick but Toni ducks it and hits a release German, running hip attack by Toni in the corner and she hits a snap vertical suplex. Toni goes up to the top turnbuckle but Xia elbows her before she jumps off, Xia tosses Toni to the mat and covers her for two. Crucifix slam by Xia, she picks up Toni and elbows her in the chest, but Toni throws her into the corner. Buckle Bomb by Toni, and she nails the piledriver for the three count! Toni Storm is still the champion.

Since the match was clipped down to under three minutes its hard to give a real opinion on it, but everything they showed was fine. Toni Storm is one of the best, she hits everything so crisp and I love watching her. Obviously too short to really recommend not a bad way to spend a couple minutes.

(c) Shanna vs. Mari Apache
High Speed Championship

Apache quickly armdrags Shanna around to start the match, but Shanna hits a spinning bodyscissors and dumps Apache out of the ring. Apache returns after a moment, Shanna elbows her into the corner before snapmaring Apache and kicking her in the back. Sleeper by Shanna, she lets go after a moment and knocks Apache into the corner. Irish whip by Shanna but Apache kicks her when she charges in, kick to the back by Apache and she puts Shanna in an armlock. She lets go of the hold after a moment, she tosses Shanna towards the corner but Shanna reverses it and hits a running elbow. Elbow smash by Shanna, and she covers Apache for two. Back up they trade elbows, drop toehold by Apache and she puts Shanna in the rolling Mexican Surfboard. Apache ties up Shanna’s legs, she then picks up Shanna and stretches her over her back. Shanna spins out of it and hits a hurricanrana, cover by Shanna but it gets a two count. Superkick by Shanna, Apache rolls out of the ring but Shanna quickly goes to the top turnbuckle and dives down onto her with a plancha suicida. Shanna and Apache return to the ring, elbow by Shanna but Apache blocks the suplex attempt. Enzuigiri by Shanna, she goes up top but Apache avoids her dive and delivers a heel drop. Shanna temporarily regains the advantage but Apache knocks her down with a lariat, sit-down powerbomb by Apache but Shanna barely gets a shoulder up on the cover. Apache picks up Shanna but Shanna reverses the slam attempt into a DDT. Shanna goes up top and hits a diving crossbody, but Apache rolls out of the pin and covers Shanna for two. Tiger Suplex Hold by Shanna, but Apache kicks out at two. Shanna goes off the ropes but Apache catches her with a Michinoku Driver, she goes up top and nails the Swanton Bomb for the three count! Mari Apache is the new champion!

For whatever reason, this match never really clicked. I think part of the reason the match wasn’t gripping is there was just no clear structure to it, I never was sure what either wrestler’s plan to win was as the offense was so random. Apache knows what she is doing but her offense here had no rhyme or reason to it, and Shanna wasn’t very crisp as several moves didn’t connect as she intended. I think I actually liked their match on July 23rd better, something just felt off here. No lack of effort, it just never hooked me and didn’t have that title match feel.

(c) Hiroyo Matsumoto, Jungle Kyona, and Kaori Yoneyama vs. HZK, Io Shirai, and Viper
Artist of Stardom Championship

Io and Kaori begin the match, they quickly get into a fast exchange with Io being Io, as she shows that she hasn’t lost anything in her month off. She tags in Viper while Hiroyo also tags in, Hiroyo works a headlock but Viper takes Hiroyo to the mat. Hiroyo quickly gets out of it, HZK and Kyona tag in next and Kyona hits a body avalanche in the corner. Scoop slam by Kyona but HZK avoids the body press, Viper comes in but Kyona avoids her body press as well. Io kicks Kyona from the apron and comes in the ring, and  Kyona is triple teamed. Kaori and Hiroyo come in to help but they all end up being cannonballed by Viper in the corner, dropkick by HZK to Kyona and she covers her for two. Bootscrapes by HZK in the corner and she hits a running boot, she tags in Io and Io hits a running boot as well. Cover by Io, but it gets a two count. Io kicks Kyona and hits a double knee in the corner, she goes for another one but Kyona meets her with a hard shoulderblock. Kyona tags in Kaori but Io avoids her running senton, HZK comes in but Kaori fights them both off. Kaori picks up Io and hits Mongolian Chops, throat trust by Kaori but Io trips her and hits a slingshot dropkick. Io hits a running knee on Kaori in the corner and tags in Viper, bodyblock by Viper on Kaori but Kaori hops on her back and applies a sleeper. Viper drives Kaori into the corner to get her off, Viper charges Kaori but Kaori moves and goes for a suplex. Viper blocks it, Kaori goes off the ropes and she drops Viper with a DDT. She tags in Hiroyo, Hiroyo throws Viper into the corner and hits a body avalanche. Viper and Hiroyo trade lariats, Hiroyo crushes Viper against the ropes and goes for a suplex, but Io dives in the ring with a sunset flip onto Hiroyo.

Crossbody by Viper and she hits a running senton onto Hiroyo for a two count. Viper picks up Hiroyo but Hiroyo hits a German suplex, sliding lariat by Hiroyo and she covers Viper for two. Hiroyo tags in Kyona but Viper also tags in HZK, Kaori goes up top and hits a missile dropkick onto HZK. Pump Kick by HZK and she applies a rolling cradle, but Kyona kicks out at two. Kyona sneaks in a pin on her own two count, lariat by Kyona and she gets another two count cover. Kyona goes for the powerbomb but Io flies in the ring with a swandive missile dropkick, Io dropkicks Kaori and Hiroyo but Hiroyo fires back with a lariat. Double lariat by Kyona and Hiroyo to HZK, Kyona goes for the cover but Viper comes in to break it up. Viper lands on top of HZK by accident, diving attacks by Kaori and Kyona but Kyona’s cover gets broken up. Kyona picks up HZK for the Hammerthrow Bomb but HZK gets out of it, Viper comes in and hits a jumping crossbody on all three Team Jungle members. Pump Kick by HZK to Kyona, but Kyona barely gets a shoulder up. HZK picks up Kyona but Kyona hits a lariat, Io runs in and kicks Kyona before dives out of the ring onto Hiroyo. In the ring, Viper knocks Kyona into the corner and hits the Michinoku Driver, then Io goes up top and nails a moonsault. Bombs Away by HZK to Kyona, and she covers her for the three count! Queen’s Quest are the new champions!

Trios matches generally aren’t my favorite, but I do enjoy them a lot more if they are just pure chaos like this match. There was always something going on, it wasn’t a match about limb work or submissions, it was about playing the odds game and seeing which team could hit the winning combination of moves first long enough for the pinfall. Which I think they did a great job of, I have no idea how they do what they do so smoothly but everything flowed really well. Kyona got legit knocked hard in the face and started bleeding but it had no impact on the match as she kept on trucking as if nothing was wrong. An exciting match, I’m glad Queen’s Quest upgraded their third member for trios and it really helped here as all six wrestlers looked fantastic. I still prefer a quality singles match, but this was pretty damn entertaining.  Recommended

(c) Mayu Iwatani vs. Kagetsu
World of Stardom Championship

They start in the traditional fashion, with a tie-up, Kagetsu pushes Mayu into the ropes but she surprisingly gives a clean break. Kagetsu gets Mayu to the mat but Mayu springs up, hard shoulderblock by Kagetsu and they run off the ropes until Mayu hits an armdrag. Dropkick by Mayu but Kagetsu hits a back bodydrop, another dropkick by Mayu and both wrestlers kip-up. Snap German by Mayu but Kagetsu moves when Mayu goes for her dropkick and Mayu falls out of the ring. Kris and Hana beat on Mayu at ringside before sliding her back in, Mayu throws Kagetsu into the corner but Kagetsu avoids her charge and dropkicks Mayu in the knee. Kagetsu picks up Mayu and slaps at her, running knee by Kagetsu and she goes for a swandive dropkick, but Mayu dropkicks her mid-air which sends Kagetsu out of the ring. Mayu dives from the top turnbuckle down to the floor but Oedo Tai jumps her, Natsuko and Jungle come over to help though and Mayu gets free and chops Kagetsu into the crowd. Mayu pulls Kagetsu up near the balconies and they trade elbows, vertical suplex on the floor by Mayu and she goes up to the balcony. She goes to do a dive but Kris grabs her leg, Kagetsu joins Mayu up at the top of the balcony and Kagetsu hangs Mayu off the balcony.

She drops her after a moment and Mayu falls down onto the steps below, Kagetsu brings Mayu to the steps and kicks her down them. Literally, Mayu tumbled down the stairs end over end like a bag of potatoes. Kagetsu slides Mayu back into the ring, she picks her up but Mayu slides away. Kagetsu kicks Mayu in the head, she goes up top but Mayu recovers and joins her. Frankensteiner by Mayu, she goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick. Cover by Mayu, but it gets a two count. High kick by Mayu and she delivers a German suplex hold, but Kagetsu kicks out. Mayu goes back up top and hits the diving body press, but that also only gets a two. A dragon suplex hold also doesn’t get a three count. Mayu drags up Mayu but Kagetsu gets away and Hana hits a missile dropkick while Kris has the referee distracted. Chokeslam by Kagetsu, and she covers Mayu for a two count. Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu, she goes up top but Mayu gets her knees up on the Oedo Coaster attempt. Mayu picks up Kagetsu but Kagetsu lands on her feet on the dragon suplex attempt, Sakauchi by Mayu and she drops Kagetsu on her head with a dragon suplex. Mayu nails her version of a dragon suplex hold, and she finally picks up the three count! Mayu Iwatani is still the champion!

The main takeaway from this match is that Mayu Iwatani is insane. Kagetsu isn’t much better but some of the things Mayu did in this match aren’t really things I’d recommend any wrestler doing. I mean it was entertaining and exciting, so I am not complaining, but she is certainly risking her health for my amusement. Them doing crazy bumps was the highlight of the match, whether it was Mayu tumbling down the stairs or Kagetsu landing on her head on a dragon suplex, but there wasn’t a lot connecting those moves. A few minutes was clipped which may explain some of the issues, but at times it was mostly a match about big spots. Certainly no lack of effort, both were going all out, and since they have long time feud they have great chemistry. It felt like it was lacking something to really be a ‘must see’ match but it was still very enjoyable.  Recommended

The post Stardom Midsummer Champions on 8/13/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

The Stardom 5★STAR Grand Prix starts next week, and after today’s show in Stardom the Blocks are finally set. Here is everything we know about the tournament so far, plus I’ll throw in some predictions at the end based on years of extensive Joshi research.

The 5★STAR GP is a round-robin tournament, similar to the G1 Climax in New Japan. Every wrestler has a match against all the other wrestlers in their Block (spread out over several weeks), with the winner of each Block meeting in the Finals. Traditionally the scoring is done in traditional fashion as well: two points for a win, one point each for a draw, with each match having a 15 minute time limit. You can click on the wrestler’s name below to go to their profile here on Joshi City if you need more information on the individual wrestlers. Here are the Blocks this year:

Red Block:

• Hana Kimura
• Hiromi Mimura
• Kagetsu
• Kris Wolf
• Mayu Iwatani
• Viper
• Xia Brookside
• Yoko Bito

Blue Block:

• HZK
• Io Shirai
• Jungle Kyona
• Kay Lee Ray
• Konami
• Mandy Leon
• Tam Nakano
• Toni Storm

Stardom has also released on which dates each match will happen, so you can plan your Stardom viewing accordingly:

August 19th

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Viper
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Hana Kimura
• Red Block: Kagetsu vs. Hiromi Mimura
• Red Block: Kris Wolf vs. Xia Brookside
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. Mandy Leon
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Toni Storm
• Blue Block: HZK vs. Tam Nakano
• Blue Block: Konami vs. Kay Lee Ray

August 20th

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Hana Kimura
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Kagetsu
• Red Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Kris Wolf
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. Toni Storm
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Mandy Leon
• Blue Block: Kay Lee Ray vs. TTam Nakano
• Blue Block: HZK vs. Konami

August 26th

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Yoko Bito
• Red Block: Kagetsu vs. Xia Brookside
• Red Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Hana Kimura
• Red Block: Viper vs. Kris Wolf
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. Jungle Kyona
• Blue Block: HZK vs. Toni Storm

August 27th

• Red Block: Kagetsu vs. Viper
• Red Block: Hana Kimura vs. Xia Brookside
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Hiromi Mimura
• Blue Block: HZK vs. Kay Lee Ray
• Blue Block: Konami vs. Toni Storm

September 2nd

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Hiromi Mimura
• Red Block: Viper vs. Xia Brookside
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. Kay Lee Ray
• Blue Block: Toni Storm vs. Mandy Leon
• Blue Block: Konami vs. Tam Nakano

September 3rd

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Kris Wolf
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Xia Brookside
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. Konami
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Kay Lee Ray
• Blue Block: Toni Storm vs. Tam Nakano
• Blue Block: HZK vs. Mandy Leon

September 10th

• Red Block: Kagetsu vs. Hana Kimura
• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Xia Brookside
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Kris Wolf
• Red Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Viper
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs.. Tam Nakano
• Blue Block: Kay Lee Ray vs. Mandy Leon
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. HZK

September 16th

• Red Block: Kagetsu vs. Kris Wolf
• Red Block: Hana Kimura vs. Viper
• Blue Block: Mandy Leon vs. Tam Nakano
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Konami

September 18th

• Red Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Kagetsu
• Red Block: Yoko Bito vs. Viper
• Red Block: Hana Kimura vs. Kris Wolf
• Red Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Xia Brookside
• Blue Block: Io Shirai vs. HZK
• Blue Block: Toni Storm vs. Kay Lee Ray
• Blue Block: Konami vs. Mandy Leon
• Blue Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Tam Nakano
• 5★STAR GP Finals

Predictions

Tournaments like these are always hard to predict, which is part of the fun of watching. But here are my general predictions for the tournament:

• Mayu Iwatani wins the Red Block. Stardom isn’t known for being subtle, if they want to push someone as an Ace they don’t generally lose very often. Also, the Red Block in general is pretty weak this year. Hana, Kris, Hiromi, and Xia have no chance of winning, and since Yoko Bito won last year I don’t think they’d put her in the finals two straight years. Kagetsu just had a title shot against Mayu on August 13th and lost, which hurts her chances of winning the tournament. Viper I’d have as my #2 pick, but she also recently had a title shot and just won the Trios Championship. They do like to have gaijin in the finals so I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Viper did win the Red Block, but Mayu is still my pick.
• Io Shirai wins the Blue Block and the Tournament. Remember I mentioned that Stardom isn’t subtle? One of their greatest booking tendencies is putting over their best wrestlers as strong as possible, so now that Io is back, I suspect she will win the tournament to go straight after Mayu again for the belt. This is a harder block though to predict, as both Toni Storm and Jungle Kyona I could see arguments for winning as well. I just don’t see Stardom passing up having Io in the Finals of their biggest fall show, I suspect she will pick up right where she left off.
• Oedo Tai comes out strong. Last year, only one Oedo Tai wrestler was in the tournament, and Kris Wolf only got one point. This year they have three wrestlers, with Kagetsu, Hana Kimura, and Kris Wolf. I don’t see any of them winning the tournament, but I do expect them to get at least 12 points between them and to score an upset or two in order to put over the faction as one to be reckoned with. If the opposite happens and they are just fodder, it would pretty much be the end of the faction as a serious threat, which I don’t think Stardom wants to happen. It is odd they put them all in one Block so I have no idea what they have in mind, they may work together to try to dethrone Mayu which could lead to a tournament-long storyline to keep things interesting.
• Kay Lee Ray and Toni Storm will be the MVPs. Last year, KLR and Toni Storm were in some of the best matches of the tournament, and I expect the same to happen again this year. Kay Lee Ray is one of my favorite gaijin that Stardom uses, but since she only comes in a couple times a year,  her matches always feel fresh. Toni Storm is starting to get appreciated globally as one of the best female wrestlers in the world for a good reason, she’s fantastic. I don’t think either will reach the Finals, but I suspect when the tournaments ends any “Best Matches” list will have their names mentioned many times.

The tournament starts next weekend with a full slate of matches, with the Finals taking place on September 18th, so we have a long journey coming ahead. Joshi City will be there every step along the way, so keep checking back for reviews of each show as they are added to Stardom World!

The post Stardom 5★STAR Grand Prix 2017 Preview and Predictions appeared first on Joshi City.

While normally I don’t review Stardom house shows, Michiko Omukai making a return was enough to get me to watch it. But its actually a pretty big show in general, as there are seven matches which is very unusual for Stardom. We also get a title match between Viper and Mayu Iwatani, and a grudge match between Jungle Kyona and HZK. Lots of potential on this show, here is the full card:

• Hanan and Ruaka vs. Shiki Shibusawa and Starlight Kid
• Gabby Ortiz and Xia Brookside vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Natsuko Tora
• AZM vs. Hiromi Mimura
• Mari Apache vs. Shanna
• HZK vs. Jungle Kyona
• Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, and Kris Wolf vs. Konami, Michiko Omukai, and Yoko Bito
• Wonder Of Stardom Championship: Mayu Iwatani vs. Viper

All the wrestlers have profiles on the site, you can click on their name to go straight to it. Since this aired on Stardom World, all matches are shown in full.

Hanan and Ruaka vs. Shiki Shibusawa and Starlight Kid

Hanan and Starlight Kid start off, they go through a sequence off the ropes but they reach a stalemate. Shiki comes in briefly to help Starlight Kid get the advantage, Starlight Kid tags in Shiki and Shiki puts Hanan in a crab hold. Hanan gets to the ropes to force a break, scoop slam by Shiki and she puts Hanan in a sleeper. Hanan slides out of it and they trade front necklocks, Shiki goes off the ropes and she dropkicks Hanan to the mat. Another dropkick by Shiki and she covers Hanan for two. Shiki goes off the ropes but Ruaka grabs her, but Starlight Kid grabs Hanan too. STO by Hanan to Shiki, and she gets a two count cover. Hanan tags in Ruaka, Ruaka goes for the big boot but Shiki moves out of the way. Reverse STO by Ruaka to Shiki and she nails the big boot in the corner, she goes for a fisherman suplex but Shiki blocks it. Hanan and Starlight Kid both come in, Hanan is knocked out of the ring and Starlight Kid hits a standing moonsault onto Ruaka. Missile dropkick by Shiki, but Hanan breaks up the cover. Shiki tags Starlight Kid, Starlight Kid goes for a crossbody but Ruaka catches her and throws Starlight Kid to the mat. Tiger Feint Kick by Starlight Kid but Ruaka mostly blocks it, Ruaka and Starlight Kid trade elbows until Ruaka hits a side Russian leg sweep. Ruaka tags Hanan, dropkicks by Hanan to Starlight Kid and she covers her for two. Hanan and Starlight Kid trade waistlocks, Shiki comes in but she dropkicks Starlight Kid by accident. Ruaka boots Shiki while Hanan throws Starlight Kid to the mat. Fisherman suplex by Ruaka to Starlight Kid, Hanan goes off the ropes and she hits Starlight Kid wit a STO for a two count. Hanan goes off the ropes but Shiki trips her from the floor, Tiger Feint Kick by Starlight Kid to Hanan, and she hits a standing moonsault. Starlight Kid gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a diving crossbody, cover by Starlight Kid and she picks up the three count! Shiki Shibusawa and Starlight Kid win!

Some definite miscommunications but considering their experience levels that is to be expected. Its hard to criticize a bunch of wrestlers with less than a year of experience (some much less than a year), its all a learning process. Some good spots and a few of them show some early promise, but I wouldn’t say it was a good match.

Gabby Ortiz and Xia Brookside vs. Kaori Yoneyama and Natsuko Tora

Team Jungle attacks before the match starts and attack both of their opponents in the corner. Double body block by Team Jungle, scoop slam by Natsuko on Xia and she slams her a couple more times. Xia elbows Natsuko and hits a dropkick, she tags in Gabby and they hit a double face crusher onto Natsuko. Gabby picks up Natsuko and hits a flipping neckbreaker, dropkick by Gabby and she covers Natsuko for two. Stretch hold by Gabby, Kaori comes in to help but Xia puts her in an Octopus Hold. Irish whip by Gabby to Natsuko but Natsuko hits a shoulderblock and tags in Kaori. Kaori boots Gabby in the head, Xia comes in but Kaori hits a crossbody onto both of them followed by a senton. Kaori picks up Gabby and they trade strikes, back elbow by Gabby and she tags in Xia. Xia goes off the ropes and hits a spinning headscissors onto Kaori, jumping knee by Xia and she hits a face crusher for a two count. Northern Lights Suplex by Kaori and she tags Natsuko, shoulderblocks by Natsuko and she covers Xia for two. Gabby comes in but Natsuko hits a spear onto both of them, another spear by Natsuko to Xia and she covers her for two. Kaori comes in and gets on the second turnbuckle, but Xia avoids her diving senton. Xia tosses Natsuko off the top turnbuckle and applies the Japanese Leg Roll Clutch, picking up the three count! Team Jungle wins the match.

Pretty short, just a hair over six minutes, so still not a great look at the wrestlers new to Stardom. I was surprised to see Xia pick up the pinfall, not sure if they have something in mind for her or if they just didn’t put too much thought into a midcard house show match. Solid action, and Kaori looked great as she tends to, but too short to recommend.

AZM vs. Hiromi Mimura

They get right to it as AZM quickly gets Hiromi to the mat and dropkicks her, AZM throws Hiromi into the corner and connects with another dropkick. Footstomps by AZM near the ropes and she puts Hiromi in a camel clutch, she lets Hiromi up but Hiromi delivers a dropkick. AZM tosses Hiromi out to the apron but Hiromi elbows her back, she returns to the ring but AZM hits a satellite cradle for two. AZM and Hiromi trade elbows, sunset flip by AZM but Hiromi rolls through it and hits a crossbody for two. AZM blocks a suplex and hits rolling verticals for two, she jumps on Hiromi’s back but Hiromi shrugs her off and applies La Magistral for a two count. Hiromi goes off the ropes and delivers a DDT, she charges AZM in the corner but AZM moves and cradles her for two. A backslide by AZM gets a two count as well, she goes for the Japanese Leg Roll Clutch but Hiromi blocks it. The two trade flash pins, until Hiromi is able to hold down AZM for the three count! Hiromi Mimura is the winner!

This match was even shorter, but I am not complaining since these are not two of the better in-ring wrestlers in Stardom. I am not sure what the long term plan can be with either, AZM is still a kid but Hiromi hasn’t improved much in the last year and her last singles win in Stardom (which was also against AZM). The flash pins I guess were done well and nothing stuck out as bad, just nothing was particularly memorable. Short and inoffensive.

Mari Apache vs. Shanna

Shanna hits the first big move of the match with a hurricanrana, dropkick by Shanna and Mari rolls out of the ring to re-group. She returns after a moment, Shanna goes for another dropkick but Mari avoids it and hits a backbreaker. Mari puts Shanna in the Mexican Surfboard while rolling her around the ring, modified STF by Mari but Shanna gets a hand on the ropes for the break. Kick by Mari in the corner but Shanna snaps off a hurricanrana for a two count. Mari pushes Shanna against the ropes and boots her in the head, heel drop by Mari and she covers Shanna for two. Camel Clutch by Mari, she lets go of the hold after a moment and puts Shanna in a single leg crab hold. Shanna eventually gets to the ropes, stomps by Mari and she puts Shanna on the top turnbuckle, but Shanna kicks her back and hits a diving hurricanrana. Stunner by Shanna, and she covers Mari for a two count. Shanna puts Mari in a cross armbreaker but Mari gets a foot on the ropes for the break, Shanna picks up Mari but Mari rocks her with a lariat. Sit-down powerbomb by Mari, but Shanna gets a shoulder up on the cover. Elbow by Shanna and she delivers a high kick, sending Mari rolling out of the ring to the floor. Shanna gets a running start and dives out onto Mari with a tope suicida, but Mari grabs her and stomps Shanna in the head. Mari throws Shanna into the chairs at ringside but Shanna returns the favor, Shanna goes to re-enter the ring but Mari grabs her from behind as they take turns trying to get back into the ring. Neither can make it however in time, as the referee reaches a 20 Count with both still on the floor! The match is a Double Count Out.

I was enjoying this until the overly telegraphed ending. Its always suspicious in Stardom when the referee is obviously counting since Stardom wrestlers are known for taking forever on the floor without the referee caring. Plus the spots with both wrestlers pulling each other by the leg to prevent the other from getting back in weren’t very well done. Up to that point it was a pretty fun match, a bit mat-based but Mari has some quality submissions so it was entertaining. Impressed that Shanna managed to squeeze three hurricanrana variations in such a short match, but it was more a Mari match than a Shanna match in structure. Above average overall, the ending was just a bit lame.

HZK vs. Jungle Kyona

HZK asks for a knuckle lock to start, which Kyona accepts, and they go into a Test of Strength. They both end up on the mat while still locked up, they get back on their feet and HZK gives Kyona a hard headbutt. Both are staggered but recover at about the same time, hard shoulderblock by Kyona and she hits a second one. Cover by Kyona, but it gets a two count. Kyona throws HZK into the corner but HZK catches her with a dropkick, HZK tosses Kyona into the corner and gives Kyona some bootscrapes. Running boot by HZK and she kicks Kyona in the back, more strikes by HZK but Kyona keeps fighting back. Kyona gets HZK’s back and puts her in a sleeper before spinning her around, Kyona keeps the hold applied on the mat. HZK manages to get back to her feet and falls backwards to get Kyona off of her, running elbow by HZK in the corner and she covers Kyona for two. Kyona goes for a powerbomb but HZK gets out of it and kicks Kyona in the head before jackknifing her for a two count. Hard lariats by Kyona but HZK ducks one and hits a release German. HZK nails the Pump Kick, she picks up Kyona and hits a backbreaker in front of the corner. HZK goes up top and delivers the diving senton, but Kyona gets a shoulder up on the cover. She goes up top again but Kyona recovers and joins her, they trade elbows until Kyona powerslams HZK off the top down to the mat. Kyona picks up HZK but HZK snaps off a DDT, they trade elbows as they return to their feet until Kyona levels HZK with a lariat for a two count. Kyona goes up top and delivers the diving body press, but she gets another two. Kyona deadlifts HZK up and nails the Hammer Throw Powerbomb, and she picks up the three count! Jungle Kyona wins the match.

A great match, which was expected as they have really solid chemistry. Some complained about the headbutt spot but I have no issue with it, I’m not their mother and adding an occasional bit of realism to wrestling is welcome in my book. A very back and forth match, both came out of it looking strong as the dominating wrestler constantly changed as they ramped up the violence. Plus they protected HZK’s finisher which they can use down the road when they inevitably have a rematch. This one will fly below the radar since it was a shorter midcard match on a smaller show, but they both delivered.  Recommended

Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, and Kris Wolf vs. Konami, Michiko Omukai, and Yoko Bito

Oedo Tai attacks before the bell and knocks all of their opponents out to the floor, they quickly join them as the brawl spills to ringside. Kris pairs up with Omukai but it doesn’t go well for her for long as Omukai quickly gets the advantage. Konami and Kagetsu eventually return to the ring as the legal wrestlers, and all the members of Oedo Tai attack Konami near the apron. Dropkick by Kagetsu to Konami, she tags in Hana and Hana chops Konami in the corner. Kris is in next, she sets up Konami in the corner and dropkicks her in the midsection. Kagetsu returns and spits water (I assume) into Konami’s face, kicks by Kagetsu but Konami delivers a kick of her own and makes the tag to Omukai. Omukai boots Kagetsu and knocks Kris out of the ring, she goes back to Kagetsu and throws her down by the hair. Bito comes in and they double team Kagetsu, Konami comes in too and all three pose on their opponent. Konami stays in and kicks Kagetsu, dropkick by Konami and she goes for Kagetsu’s arm, but Kagetsu slams her into the corner. Konami applies a hanging armbar and dropkicks Kagetsu, she goes for a suplex but Kagetsu reverses it with a suplex of her own and tags in Hana. Hana hits a jumping knee on Konami before delivering a dropkick, running boot by Hana and she covers Konami for two.

Hana picks up Konami but Konami sneaks in an inside cradle for two. Konami tags in Omukai, Hana elbows her but Omukai elbows her back and they trade shots. Omukai wins the battle, she kicks Hana in the back but Hana boots her and both wrestlers end up down on the mat. Omukai tags in Bito while Kris is also tagged in, vertical suplex by Bito and she covers Kris for two. Bito goes off the ropes but Kagetsu trips her from the floor, she comes in the ring and Bito is triple teamed in the corner. Bito fights off all three of them but eventually eats a triple dropkick, spear by Kagetsu and Hana dropkicks Bito against the ropes. Suplex by Kris, and she covers Bito for two. All six wrestlers end up in the ring, Bito eventually regains the advantage and hits a missile dropkick onto Kris. Cover by Bito, but Kris gets a shoulder up. Kris and Bito trade elbows, Bito knocks Kris to the mat and she hits a dropkick. Hana comes in and boots Bito in the face, quick cover by Kris but it gets a two. Kris goes for a footstomp but Bito moves, Omukai comes in to kick Kris and Bito delivers the B Driver for a two count. Omukai and Bito both kick Kris, buzzsaw kick by Konami and Omukai nails a Shining Wizard. Bito picks up Kris and nails the BT Bomb, picking up the three count pinfall! Konami, Michiko Omukai, and Yoko Bito win.

While not a ‘high end’ match, it sure was fun to see Omukai again. Omukai still looks great, its been a long time since she was a regular wrestler but they were able to protect her a bit from any ring rust in a six woman tag. A few minor miscommunications, oddly not with Omukai but with some of the regulars, and as one would expect there wasn’t much of a structure as it was mostly just random violence. Still, I couldn’t help but enjoy it just seeing Omukai mix it up again. A solid match overall, nothing to get excited about but a fun watch nonetheless.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Mayu Iwatani vs. Viper
Wonder of Stardom Championship

Mayu tries avoiding Viper to start the match, with limited success, Mayu goes for a scoop slam but Viper easily blocks it. Viper picks up Mayu but Mayu wiggles away, she goes for a crossbody but bounces off of Viper. Running senton by Viper and she throws Mayu out of the ring, where she is beaten down by Oedo Tai. They roll Mayu back in and she is attacked more by all the members of Oedo Tai while the referee is distracted, cover by Viper but she gets a two count. Viper twists on Mayu’s arm and puts her in a cobra clutch, short range lariat by Viper and she covers Mayu for two. Snapmare by Viper and she hits a running crossbody, but Mayu bridges out of the cover. Viper throws Mayu hard in the corner and hits a body avalanche, she goes for a second one but Mayu moves and hits an enzuigiri. Viper doesn’t go down so Mayu goes for a hurricanrana, but Viper catches her and nails a powerbomb. Viper picks up Mayu and throws her head-first into the corner, cannonball by Viper and she goes up for a reverse splash, but Mayu recovers and elbows her back to the mat. Mayu goes up top but Viper joins her, Mayu slides away and she delivers a superkick. Dropkick by Mayu, she goes up to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving footstomp. Cover by Mayu, but it gets two. Mayu picks up Viper but Viper blocks her dragon suplex attempt and hits a Michinoku Driver. Viper gets on the second turnbuckle but Mayu rolls out of the way of the reverse splash, kick combination by Mayu but Viper lariats her when Mayu goes off the ropes. Viper positions Mayu and gets on the turnbuckles again, but Mayu grabs her from behind and delivers a release dragon suplex. Mayu goes up top and nails the Frog Splash, but Viper kicks out of the cover. Mayu picks up Viper but Viper blocks the dragon suplex, superkick by Mayu and she delivers a Reverse Hurricanrana for the three count! Mayu Iwatani retains the championship!

A good match, but its a bit hard to take Viper seriously at this point as a title challenger, with her historical levels of failure in them. They really need to get her a title in Stardom, even if its just the Trios title, to give her a bit of legitimacy. Viper as one would assume dominated the match, Mayu is an A+ seller and a few times you’d have been convinced she was genuinely hurt. They stayed away from doing the “dumb gaijin” stuff they sometimes do with Viper, which was much appreciated, and while Mayu’s win seemed sudden that was the only way she was realistically beating Viper anyway. It was also a bit short for a main event title match, one of the downsides of having a seven match card is the matches get less time. Pretty fun, but it definitely felt like a ‘house show’ main event with its telegraphed ending and match time.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom “Stardom X Stardom in Osaka” on 7/23/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Welcome to the first big event in the post Kairi and Io Era. Io may be back, we aren’t sure of her long term situation, however Kairi has left Stardom for the greener pastures of WWE. Mayu Iwatani defeated both of them in the last few months, and currently holds the top two singles titles in Stardom as she looks to assert herself as the Ace. She is challenged by Yoko Bito for the World of Stardom Championship, Yoko Bito was considered the Ace Candidate before she took a four year break from wrestling. Also on the card, both the tag titles and High Speed Championship are defended as well, plus we get a look at a new rookie and new Gaijin. Here is the full card:

• AZM vs. Hanan vs. Ruaka
• Natsuko Tora vs. Shiki Shibusawa
• Gabby Ortiz, Mari Apache, and Xia Brookside vs. Hiromi Mimura, Konami, and Starlight Kid
• High Speed Championship: Kris Wolf vs. Shanna
• Goddesses Of Stardom Championship: Hana Kimura and Kagetsu vs. HZK and Jungle Kyona
• World Of Stardom Championship: Mayu Iwatani vs. Yoko Bito

I am watching the show on Samurai TV this week, so hopefully the clipping won’t impact my enjoyment. All wrestlers above have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names to go straight to it.

AZM vs. Hanan vs. Ruaka

Ruaka and Hanan both attack AZM off the start but she stacks them in the corner and delivers a dropkick. AZM kicks both in the back as the 14 year old dominates her juniors, but Hanan and Ruaka soon recover and Hanan ends up double teamed by her opponents. Hanan kips up and knocks down AZM but she kips up too. AZM rolls up Ruaka when she goes to do her own kip up and they all trade roll-up with no one getting the three count. AZM ends up alone with Hanan, armdrag by Hanan but AZM hits a dropkick. Ruaka returns and puts Hanan in a crab hold, but AZM puts Ruaka in a sleeper from behind. Hanan recovers and puts AZM in a sleeper as well, AZM gets out of it and hits a double DDT on both her opponents before hitting rolling verticals on Hanan. AZM charges Hanan but Hanan blocks the Rolling Clutch, Ruaka runs in and boots AZM in the corner. Judo toss by Hanan to AZM, but Ruaka drops Hanan with a side Russian leg sweep. Fisherman suplex hold by Ruaka to AZM, but Hanan breaks it up. Hanan and Ruaka trade elbows until Hanan hits a running STO, she picks up AZM but AZM sneaks in an inside cradle for two. Hanan tosses AZM to the mat again, Ruaka boots Hanan and rolls up AZM for a two count. Japanese Rolling Clutch by AZM to Ruaka, and she picks up the three count! AZM wins.

This is probably exactly what you’d expect – a few miscommunications, some cool moves from Hanan, and then a quick ending. Hanan continues to impress me the most of the rookies, the judo background really comes in handy, but nothing else really stood out. A typical start to a Stardom card, nothing offensive but nothing really worth noting.

Natsuko Tora vs. Shiki Shibusawa

Natsuko has now cut her hair short, which I assume means she is stepping up her game. Natsuko starts with a wristlock and they trade holds, Natsuko stretches out Shiki before Shiki goes for a dropkick, but Natsuko avoids it and hits a hard shoulderblock. Sleeper by Natsuko but Shiki gets out of it, dropkicks by Shiki and she covers Natsuko for two. Shiki goes for a scoop slam but Natsuko reverses it into a slam of her own, she puts Shiki back in the sleeper but she releases her after a moment for two count cover. Natsuko tries to go up the turnbuckle but Shiki keeps grabbing her, Shiki dropkicks Natsuko to get her off the turnbuckle before dropkicking her into the corner. A final dropkick by Shiki, but Natsuko kicks out of the cover. Shiki gets on the second turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick, but another pin fails as Natsuko gets a shoulder up. Shiki elbows Natsuko but Natsuko elbows her back, slap by Shiki and she rolls up Natsuko for two. Dropkick by Natsuko, she picks up Shiki and the two trade elbows. Natsuko drops Shiki with a series of running knees, she picks up Shiki and nails the F Crash for the three count! Natsuko Tora wins the match.

Obviously, you can’t really judge a wrestler based off their first match. I will say that she faces an uphill battle, as she doesn’t have the background that generally leads to a successful career. She seemed a bit awkward at times with her movements, so while she may go on to have a long and successful career, there isn’t anything here that I can pinpoint as a sign of potential. Natsuko looked fine as the one ‘leading’ the match and I am sure they practiced this quite a bit, it wasn’t a bad match but a pretty typical debut match.

Gabby Ortiz, Mari Apache, and Xia Brookside vs. Mimura, Konami, and Starlight Kid

Apache and Hiromi start the match for their teams, Apache pushes Hiromi against the ropes and she gives a clean break. She does it a second time as well, Hiromi finally learns not to try to lock up with Apache and go through a fast sequence before squaring off again. Starlight Kid and Xia are tagged in, they trade armdrags but then tag out themselves as the last pairing comes in. Gabby goes for a few flash pins on Konami with no luck, Starlight Kid and Hiromi run in the ring and all three triple team Gabby in the corner. We clip ahead a bit with Starlight Kid now being the legal wrestler, Gabby and Xia double team Starlight Kid before Gabby covers her for two. Dropkick by Gabby, she picks up Starlight Kid but Starlight Kid elbows her away. DDT by Gabby, but the cover is broken up. Gabby tags in Apache, Apache puts Starlight Kid in a rolling Mexican Surfboard before knocking her back into the mat. Modified STF by Apache but it gets broken up as well, Irish whip by Apache but Starlight Kid hits a spinning headscissors.

Dropkick by Starlight Kid, she goes off the ropes but Apache levels her with a lariat. Apache picks up Starlight Kid but Hiromi and Konami run in to stomp her down, double dropkick to Apache and Starlight Kid hits her with a Tiger Feint Kick. Hiromi follows with a crossbody, standing moonsault by Starlight Kid but Apache kicks out of the cover. Starlight Kid tags in Hiromi, Hiromi goes up top and hits a diving crossbody for another two count. A La Magistral gets the same result, Hiromi picks up Apache but Apache hits a lariat. Heel drop by Apache, but Hiromi barely gets a shoulder up. Apache puts Hiromi in a modified Argentine Backbreaker, she drops her to the mat but Hiromi reverses the Michinoku Driver with a DDT. Konami runs in and kicks Gabby, but Xia hits her with a Codebreaker. Starlight Kid dropkicks Xia out of the ring but Apache levels both her and Konami with a lariat. Hiromi goes off the ropes but Apache rocks her with a lariat, Michinoku Driver by Apache and she gets the three count! Gabby Ortiz, Mari Apache, and Xia Brookside win!

Most of this was pretty useless, but the one aspect I did love was that Mari Apache was working really snug which stood out since no one else was. Gabby, Xia, and Hiromi are all young and/or somewhat new to wrestling, so they are barely hitting each other, while Apache was happy to knock people’s heads off their shoulders. Besides that, the match was disappointing as I got to see very little of the young Gaijin do anything at all, and I’d like to see Konami doing something a bit more important. A forgettable match, aside from Apache destroying people.

(c) Kris Wolf vs. Shanna
High Speed Championship

Kris and Shanna quickly get into it, and living up to the titles name they have a high speed exchange which ends with a string of flash pins with neither getting the three count. They go into a Test of Strength, which Kris gets the better of, but Shanna hits a monkey flip before spinning Kris to the mat. Another monkey flip by Shanna and she hits a hurricanrana, cradle by Shanna but it gets two. Sliced Bread #2 by Shanna, she hits a trio of running elbow in the corner before applying a sunset flip for two. Double underhook backbreaker by Shanna, she goes up top but Kris rolls out to the apron before she can jump off. Shanna returns to the ring but Kris snaps her neck over the top rope, Kris stays on the apron too long however and Shanna boots her down to the floor. Kris trips Shanna and pulls her out with her before throwing her into the chairs at ringside. Chops by Kris but Shanna reverses an Irish whip and throws Kris into the ring post. Now it is Shanna that throws Kris into the chairs, she gets up onto the stage and jumps off of it with a crossbody onto Kris. Back in the ring they trade slaps to the chest, eye rake by Kris but Shanna applies a rolling cradle and holds down Kris for a two count. Release Tiger Suplex by Shanna but Kris gets back up and suplexes Shanna twice to the mat. Shining Wizard by Kris, but Shanna gets a shoulder up on the cover. Kris picks up Shanna and delivers a strike combination, release German by Kris and she hits a diving double knee from the second turnbuckle for another two. Kris gets on the second turnbuckle but Shanna clips her from behind with a crossbody, she goes up top but Kris climbs up with her. Shanna elbows Kris into the Tree of Woe but Kris avoids the diving footstomp, Kris pushes Shanna against the ropes but Shanna connects with a roaring elbow. Dragon Slayer by Shanna, she picks up Kris and nails the tiger suplex hold, but Kris barely gets a shoulder up. Shanna drags Kris back up and hits a second tiger suplex hold, and this time she gets the three count! Shanna is the new champion!

Several minutes of this was clipped, which is never ideal for a title match. This was really oddly laid out, and I am not certain if that was due to the clipping or how they planned it. Kris no-selling the first tiger suplex seemed off, Shanna never have a receipt for it so it came across as a lazy transition. On the plus side, I loved Kris’ new offense and she was deadly serious here, showing that she isn’t all fun and games. This probably is the best singles match of Kris’ career, as usually she is in tag or triple threat matches, and I think she showed a lot of ability while Shanna looked good too. The structure and/or clipping hurt the match a bit, but still a fun watch overall.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Hana Kimura and Kagetsu vs. HZK and Jungle Kyona
Goddesses of Stardom Championship

Kyona forces HZK to shake her hand before the match starts, but while they do so they are jumped by Hana and Kagetsu. Double dropkicks by Oedo Tai but HZK and Kyona roar back with strikes in the corner. HZK and Kyona accidentally collide with each other, and Oedo Tai takes the action out to the floor. HZK and Kyona are both thrown into the chairs at ringside. Hana eventually rolls HZK back into the ring and double teams her with Kagetsu, Kyona tries to help but gets choked by Kagetsu for her trouble. Hana picks up HZK but HZK fires back with elbows, Kyona comes in to help but HZK kicks her away. Elbows by Hana to HZK and she clubs her to the mat, Hana goes off the ropes but HZK catches her with a dropkick. HZK rolls to her corner and tags Kyona, shoulderblock by Kyona to Hana as Kagetsu comes in, but Kyona fights them both off. Kyona sets up both Hana and Kagetsu in the corner, she invites HZK back into the ring and suplexes HZK onto Hana and Kagetsu. Cover by Kyona to Hana, but it gets two. Kyona goes for a lariat but Hana ducks it, Hana goes for a high kick but Kyona blocks it and goes for a powerbomb. Hana punches out of the hold and boots Kyona in the face, dropkick by Hana but Kyona falls back into her corner and HZK tags in. HZK puts Hana in the crossface while Kyona keeps Kagetsu at bay, but Hana makes it to the ropes for the break. HZK facewashes Hana against the ropes, cover by HZK but Hana gets a shoulder up.

HZK goes for the pump kick but Hana avoids it and hits a series of mounted punches. HZK returns the favor as they go back and forth, dropkick by Hana and she nails HZK with a running boot to the face. Hana goes for a sleeper but HZK spins out of it and hits a Codebreaker, giving her time to get to the corner to tag Kyona. Kagetsu is tagged in too and she dropkicks Kyona in the face, high kick by Kagetsu and she deliver the Ebisu Drop for a two count. Kagetsu tries to go up top but Kyona grabs her from behind, elbows by Kagetsu and she elbows Kyona until HZK comes in to help. Hana comes in too but HZK dispatches her, HZK slaps Kyona I guess to motivate her and they both toss Kagetsu into the air before hitting a double shoulderblock. Lariat by Kyona, but Kagetsu kicks out at two. HZK slams Kagetsu in front of the corner and Kyona hits a diving body press, but Hana breaks up the cover. Kyona picks up Kagetsu but Hana goes up top and drops her with a missile dropkick, HZK runs in and hits a Pump Kick onto Hana, but Kagetsu kicks HZK in the head and all four wrestlers are down. Kyona lariats Hana while Kagetsu takes care of HZK, Kagetsu and Kyona trade elbows until Kyona hits a pair of lariats for a two count cover. Kyona goes for the Hammer Throw Powerbomb but Hana comes in and boots her, chokeslam by Kagetsu to Kyona but Kyona gets a shoulder up on the cover. Hana and Kagetsu both boot Kyona, Ebisu Drop by Kagetsu in front of the corner and she nails the Oedo Coaster for the three count! Kagetsu and Hana Kimura are still the champions.

The action itself in this match was good, bordering on great, but I still can’t say that I love the decision to have the match in the first place. Two enemies suddenly being on the same page to challenge for the tag team titles, just to go back to being enemies again, is not my ideal way for a match to be constructed. Still though, all four looked great and everything was hit smoothly, HZK and Hana are really coming along and Kagetsu has just been on a tear since returning. Despite my opinion of the way the match came together, I can’t fault anything that happened between the bells, as they kept the HZK/Kyona oddness to a minimum and concentrated on the fight. Definitely a fun match, and probably even better for those that don’t follow the storylines since at least then you wouldn’t know it wasn’t a particularly logical match to happen.  Recommended

(c) Mayu Iwatani vs. Yoko Bito
World of Stardom Championship

Bito kicks Mayu as the match starts, they get into a fast exchange but end up squaring off on their feet again. They tie-up and struggle for position, Bito pushes Mayu into the ropes but Mayu hits a running elbow and kicks Bito against the ropes. Mayu picks up Bito and kicks her in the back, she puts Bito in an armbar before pushing her into the ropes and chopping Bito in the chest. Mayu dropkicks Bito in the corner, another dropkick by Mayu and she covers her for two. Bito pushes Mayu back and goes for a kick, but Mayu catches it and hits a dragon screw. Mayu works over Bito’s leg, she grabs Bito’s arm and hits a split-legged springboard armdrag. Bito lands against the ropes, dropkick by Mayu and Bito falls out of the ring. Mayu quickly goes up top and dives out onto Bito with a plancha suicida, she picks up Bito but Bito nails her with a kick to the head. Bito rolls back into the ring with Mayu slowly following, high kick by Mayu but Bito hits a release dragon suplex. Mayu and Bito trade elbows as they slowly get up, kick to the chest by Bito and she covers Mayu for two. Bito goes off the ropes but Mayu catches her with a superkick, Northern Lights Suplex by Mayu but it gets a two count. Mayu goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving footstomp, she then goes all the way up but Bito recovers and joins her. Mayu knocks Bito into the Tree of Woe and hits a footstomp down onto Bito, she goes back up top but again Bito recovers and brings Mayu back into the ring with a superplex. Now it is Bito that goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, cover by Bito but it gets two. Bito goes for the B Driver but Mayu reverses it with a sunset flip, high kick by Bito and this time she delivers the B Driver. A second B Driver by Bito, she picks up Mayu but Mayu ducks the high kick and drops Bito with a release German. Kick to the head by Mayu, she goes up top and nails the Frog Splash for a two count cover. Mayu picks up Bito but Bito nails a spinning head kick, push kick by Bito but Mayu comes back with a superkick. Dragon Suplex Hold by Mayu, and she picks up the three count! Mayu Iwatani is still the champion.

So about four minutes of this match was chopped, as Samurai TV opted for this show to knock a few minutes off of each match instead of just heavily clipping a couple matches. I wanted to love this match, but either because of the structure or the clipping they didn’t make it easy. Bito continues to improve since returning but still is a bit clunky at times, the double B Drivers in particular looked a bit off. Some moves got blown off quickly and I was surprised how much Mayu dominated the first half of the match. The ending stretch was really good but ended suddenly, as Bito connected with a few kicks but Mayu shrugged them off with little reasoning to quickly win. Mayu is so much fun to watch and they were trying to make it memorable with big moves and suspense, it was just lacking in execution, which may partly be blamed on a chunk of the match missing. Worth a watch but far from the best World of Stardom match this year.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom “Stardom X Stardom” on 7/16/17 Review appeared first on Joshi City.