I’ll provide context before each match if there is anything noteworthy I can find, although of course not all matches in wrestling have a set purpose (especially with Freelancers like Kana). All the matches below took place in NEO during the summer of 2009.

• July 5th, 2009 – Kana and Ayumi Kurihara vs. Kyoko Inoue and Hiroyo Matsumoto
• July 5th, 2009 – Kana and Ayumi Kurihara vs. Yoshiko Tamura and Fuka
• July 25th, 2009 – Kana vs. Aya Yuki
• August 8th, 2009 – Kana, Natsuki Taiyo, and Nanae Takahashi vs. Kyoko Inoue, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Fuka
• August 15th, 2009 – Kana, Nanae Takahashi, and Natsuki Taiyo vs. Yoshiko Tamura, Mio Shirai, and Io Shirai

All wrestlers on the DVD have profiles on Joshi City, you can click on their names above to go straight to their profile for additional information.

Kana and Ayumi Kurihara vs. Kyoko Inoue and Hiroyo Matsumoto

We kick off the DVD with a pair of matches for the Mid Summer Tag Tournament in NEO. This was the first tournament match on the show, pitting Kana and her friend Kurihara (known as a team as KanAyu) against veteran Kyoko Inoue and young wrestler Hiroyo Matsumoto. Kyoko was one of the top wrestlers in NEO in 2009, and while Hiroyo was only three years into her career she already had several title wins so she was no slouch either. Kanayu started teaming in 2009 so they were still a new team, they would continue tagging until Ayumi retired in 2013.

Ayumi and Hiroyo start things off, Hiroyo tosses Ayumi into the corner before squashing her with her rear end. Inoue comes in and they double team Ayumi, but Ayumi gets away from them as Kana comes in to help. With Ayumi in control now, she Irish whips Hiroyo but Hiroyo hits a shoulderblock. Sidewalk slam by Hiroyo, and she covers Ayumi for two. She tags Inoue but Ayumi avoids Inoue’s charge in the corner, she goes for a double knee but Inoue blocks it. Ayumi drop toeholds Inoue into the corner, Kana runs in and hits a hip attack but Ayumi delivers a dropkick. Kana and Ayumi both try to suplex Inoue but Inoue reverses it into a double vertical suplex, Inoue throws Ayumi into the corner but Ayumi applies an armbar over the top rope. Ayumi gets on the top turnbuckle but Hiroyo grabs her from the apron, Inoue joins Ayumi and Inoue hits a superplex. Cover by Inoue, but Ayumi gets a shoulder up. Back up they trade blows, vertical suplex by Inoue but Ayumi quickly gets back up only to eat another vertical suplex. Big lariat by Inoue, she goes for a powerbomb but Ayumi slides away and hits a fisherman suplex. Ayumi tags Kana and Kana comes in with a diving hip attack, Seated armbar by Kana and she goes for a cross armbreaker, but Inoue blocks it. Kana goes for a triangle choke instead but Inoue slides out of it and kicks Kana. Inoue quickly applies an ankle hold but Hiroyo breaks it up, Inoue knocks Kana against the corner but Ayumi snaps Inoue’s neck on the top rope.

Hip attack by Kana, she goes for a German suplex on Inoue but Inoue blocks it. Ayumi elbows Inoue to help but Inoue still blocks it, both Ayumi and Kana attack Inoue but Inoue lariats both of them. Inoue picks up Kana but Kana blocks the powerbomb, knee by Kana but Inoue hits another lariat and goes for the powerbomb again. Ayumi breaks it up but Inoue hits a double lariat before tagging in Hiroyo. Hiroyo elbows Kana, body avalanche by Hiroyo to Kana but Kana kicks her in the stomach. Kana tags Ayumi, Ayumi cradles Hiroyo but it gets two. Double knee facebreaker by Ayumi, Kana runs in and hits Hiroyo with a hip attack. Dropkick by Ayumi, Kana hits Hiroyo with a German suplex and Ayumi delivers a missile dropkick for two. Ayumi picks up Hiroyo and hits another double knee facebreaker, hip attack by Kana but Inoue breaks up Ayumi’s cover. Inoue tosses Kana out of the ring, Inoue and Hiroyo hit a double shoulderblock on Ayumi, they pick up Ayumi and swing her down to the mat. Hiroyo goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Hiroyo but it gets two. Hiroyo picks up Ayumi but Ayumi slides away, Inoue lariats Ayumi and Hiroyo hits a body avalanche for two. Inoue puts Ayumi on her shoulders and drops her back-first onto Hiroyo’s knee, Argentine Backbreaker by Hiroyo and she flips Ayumi into a gutbuster, but Ayumi barely kicks out. Backdrop Suplex by Hiroyo, but Kana breaks up the cover. Hiroyo picks up Inoue and goes for a Liger Bomb, but Ayumi reverses it into a cradle for the three count! Kana and Ayumi Kurihara win and advance in the tournament.

For an early match on the card this was good, but Kyoko Inoue really brought the match down. Inoue is known for being a bit selfish and she was at her worst here, winning just about every battle with Kana and Ayumi and giving them nothing. For example, Kana teased the German suplex on Inoue, Ayumi even came in to help, Kana tried again, but Inoue just lariats both of them and never gives that rub back. So that was disappointing, but the other three were fantastic and I really enjoyed it when they were the ones interacting. Ayumi was a great wrestler that sadly retired before I really got into Joshi, but I love going back and watching her. Kana of course was Kana, and Hiroyo’s moves have so much impact. A quality match that was dragged down by an uncooperative veteran.  Mildly Recommended

Kana and Ayumi Kurihara vs. Yoshiko Tamura and Fuka

The next match on the DVD is part of the tournament on the same night as the previous match. In the Semi Final, Kana and Ayumi Kurihara face off against two of the better wrestlers in NEO – Yoshiko Tamura and Fuka. Tamura was the most successful wrestler in NEO history, with over 1,500 days holding either the singles or tag team championship. She retired when NEO closed on the last day of 2010. Fuka everyone knows today as the trainer in Stardom, she didn’t have the title success of her partner but gained a large following and produced many of her own shows. In the first round, Tamura and Fuka defeated Aya Yuki and Minori Makiba to reach the Semi Final.

Kana and Tamura start off, knees by Kana and they trade slaps back and forth. Kana gets Tamura to the mat but Tamura reverses positions with her, Kana gets Tamura in a headscissors and both wrestlers return to their feet to trade strikes again. Kana wins the battle and tags in Ayumi, dropkick by Ayumi and she elbows Tamura in the corner. Tamura elbows her back and they trade strikes, knees by Tamura but Ayumi puts her in an Octopus Hold. Fuka tries to break it up but Kana cuts her off and puts Fuka in a Scorpion Deathlock. Ayumi releases the hold after a moment, she goes off the ropes but Tamura catches her with a DDT and tags in Fuka. Fuka comes in the ring with a missile dropkick but Ayumi lands in her corner and tags in Kana, kicks by Kana to Fuka but Fuka kicks her in return and they trade blows. Kana wins that battle too and delivers a Buzzsaw Kick, she picks up Fuka but Fuka kicks her in the head for a two count cover. Fuka tags in Tamura, dropkick by Tamura to Kana and she hits a neckbreaker. Tamura goes to pick up Kana but Kana rolls her to the mat and hits a reverse DDT. Kana applies a choke but Fuka breaks it up, Kana goes for the German but Tamura blocks it. Ayumi runs in with a double knee facebuster to Tamura, and this time Kana is able to hit the release German on Tamura. Dropkick by Ayumi to Tamura, Kana follows with the hip attack but Fuka breaks up the cover. Kana picks up Tamura but Tamura elbows her off, Ayumi flies in with a missile dropkick but Fuka comes in and kicks both of them. Tamura takes out both Ayumi and Kana, Fuka comes in but she kicks Tamura by accident. Cradle by Kana to Tamura, but Tamura barely kicks out. Kana picks up Tamura but Tamura elbows her, Tamura swings Kana to the mat and rolls her up for two. Ayumi comes in but Tamura gets rid of her, Fuka grabs Ayumi while Tamura DDTs Kana. Tamura picks up Kana, Kana gets away but Fuka kicks Kana in the head. Running elbow smash by Tamura on Kana, and she picks up the three count! Yoshiko Tamura and Fuka win, advancing to the Finals of the tournament.

While this was a shorter match than the last one, it was certainly better. Tamura is the opposite of Inoue – those spots that Inoue wouldn’t do, Tamura actually did in this match even though she is the Ace of NEO. Kana won strike battles with Tamura and in general, Kana and Ayumi dominated the match. Tamura still showed that she was the best wrestler and overcame them to get the win, but it felt like a real battle, not like a veteran going through the motions. Fast paced with lots of solid strikes, everyone came out of it looking strong. Really entertaining match.  Recommended

Kana vs. Aya Yuki

Jumping ahead 20 days, Kana opened the second night of the Summer Night Fire tour against Aya Yuki. Aya is better known to many fans as Hatsuhinode Kamen, a more comedic wrestler that was a regular in Stardom for a couple years. She had a quiet career with only two title wins, however she hold the NEO Tag Team Championship toward the end of the promotion’s run.

Kana and Aya immediately start trading elbows, kicks by Kana but Aya hits a shoulderblock. Hip attack by Kana but Aya blocks the second one and stomps Kana to the mat. Shoulderblock by Aya and she applies a headlock, Kana gets out of it and they jockey for position. Kana gets in the mount and applies a guillotine but Aya gets out of it, Kana stays in dominate position and goes for Aya’s ankle, applying an ankle hold. Aya tries to reverse it but Kana blocks it and goes back to Aya’s leg, applying a single leg crab hold. Aya gets out of it and goes for Kana’s leg, Kana blocks that but Aya gets into the mount and elbows Kana repeatedly in the chest. They finally return to their feet, elbows by Kana and she hits a hip attack in the corner. Aya comes back with a hard shoulderblock, another one by Aya but Kana avoids the third and applies a front guillotine. Kana rolls Aya to the mat and applies a short armbar, Aya gets out of it and tosses Kana down before hitting a second turnbuckle diving shoulderblock for two. STF by Aya but Kana gets a hand on the bottom rope, Aya picks up Kana but Kana hits her with a hip attack. Schoolboy by Kana, Aya kicks out but Kana drops her with a reverse DDT. A high kick by Kana is blocked, vertical suplex by Aya and she hits a rolling fireman’s carry slam for two. Kana snaps off a German suplex hold, they trade slaps back on their feet until Aya boots Kana to the mat. Another kick by Aya, she goes off the ropes but Kana blocks the boot and hits a hard elbow. Kana puts Aya in the Wakigatame, really pulling back on the arm and Aya has no choice but to submit! Kana wins!

A pretty simple match, lots of mat work that didn’t go anywhere but as the opening match that wasn’t too surprising. Some of the ground game was pretty awkward, definitely not the smoothest and I was happy when they returned to their feet. Kana looked the better of the two with crisper strikes and a more entertaining variety of moves, I wouldn’t call it a bad match but it was certainly lacking in some areas. Worst match on the DVD so far, and from looking at the matches coming up I assume it will stay that way.

Kana, Natsuki Taiyo, and Nanae Takahashi vs. Kyoko Inoue, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Fuka

The next night of the tour saw Kana teaming with Passion Red teammates Natsuki Taiyo and Nanae Takahashi. Passion Red formed in 2008 with these three as the founding members, they also promoted their own shows as well before Kana left the group in early 2010. They are against grumpy veteran Kyoko Inoue, the young but already impressive Hiroyo Matsumoto, and the striker Fuka. Since this was the main event of the show, I expect a bit more out of Inoue than we saw earlier and hopefully an entertaining match.

Kana and Fuka kick things off, they trade strikes and holds until Takahashi and Taiyo run in to help dropkick Fuka. Kana tags in Takahashi but Fuka gets Takahashi to the mat in an ankle hold, Hiroyo comes in and helps double team Takahashi. Inoue gets in on it too as Takahashi eats a double shoulderblock, but Takahashi grabs Hiroyo by the hair and throws her to the mat. They trade elbows, Irish whip by Takahashi and she hits a sidewalk slam on Hiroyo for two. She tags in Taiyo, dropkicks by Taiyo and she stands on Hiroyo in the corner. Taiyo goes up top and hits a missile dropkick, cover by Taiyo but it gets two. Hiroyo comes back with a lariat and a dropkick of her own, giving her time to tag in Inoue. Taiyo jumps over Inoue’s back and rolls up Inoue for two, she runs up the corner and goes for a crossbody, but Inoue ducks. Inoue stretches Taiyo but it gets broken up, Takahashi and Taiyo go to suplex Inoue but Inoue blocks it. Kana kicks Inoue from behind as Inoue tries to fight them off, Inoue avoid the triple dropkick and tags in Fuka. Fuka knees Taiyo but Taiyo dropkicks her and tags in Kana. Kicks by Kana but Fuka hits a pump kick, boot by Fuka and she covers Kana for a two count. Kicks by Fuka but Kana drop toeholds her into the corner before her teammates come in to help triple team Fuka. They leave after a moment, Kana goes for a hip attack but Fuka moves and kicks Kana in the head. Knees by Fuka but Kana catches her with a release German and tags in Taiyo. Running elbow by Taiyo, she avoids Fuka’s kicks and hits a leg sweep followed by a dropkick.

Fuka kicks Taiyo back, more kicks by Fuka before Hiroyo and Inoue both come in to beat down Taiyo. Taiyo is thrown in the corner but she avoids all three of her opponents, she knees Inoue before hitting an armdrag/dropkick combination out of the corner. Powerbomb by Taiyo to Fuka, but Fuka kicks out. Fuka comes back with a DDT, jumping knee by Fuka and she covers Taiyo for two. She tags in Hiroyo, missile dropkick by Hiroyo but Taiyo blocks the crab hold attempt. Taiyo spins away but Hiroyo hits a spinning gutbuster, crab hold by Hiroyo but Takahashi breaks it up. Elbows by Hiroyo, Taiyo tries to run over her back but Hiroyo briefly blocks it, Taiyo rolls her up anyway but it gets two. She makes the hot tag to Takahashi, Takahashi goes for a powerbomb on Hiroyo but Hiroyo back bodydrops out of it. Back up they trade elbows, hard shoulderblock by Hiroyo and Inoue comes in as they both hit lariats onto Takahashi. Inoue gets Takahashi on her shoulders and throws her back-first onto Hiroyo’s knee, gutbuster by Hiroyo and Inoue jumps on her back for a super double kneedrop. Hiroyo goes for a backdrop suplex but Takahashi elbows out of it, Fuka comes in and kicks Takahashi in the head, and Hiroyo delivers her backdrop suplex for a two count when the pin is broken up. Hiroyo tags in Inoue, Inoue and Takahashi trade elbows and then trade lariats, with Takahashi eventually lariating Inoue to the mat for two. Takahashi goes up top as Taiyo comes in but Inoue pushes Taiyo away and joins Takahashi. Superplex by Inoue to Takahashi, she goes up top as Hiroyo comes in the ring, but Takahashi fights off Hiroyo and joins Inoue, hitting a superplex of her own.

Taiyo then hits a diving body press onto Inoue, Takahashi follows with one of her own but Inoue barely kicks out. Inoue lariats Takahashi, she goes off the ropes but Kana runs in with a hip attack. Sliding Kick by Takahashi to Inoue, but her cover is broken up. Takahashi picks up Inoue and hits a backdrop suplex, cover by Takahashi but Inoue kicks out. Takahashi tags in Kana, diving hip attack by Kana and she schoolboys Inoue for two. Kana quickly applies an ankle hold but Fuka and Hiroyo break it up, Billiken by Kana but again the cover is broken up. Takahashi sails out of the ring onto Hiroyo with a tope suicida, while in the ring Kana puts Inoue in a choke. Inoue gets a toe on the ropes to break it up, Kana goes off the ropes but Inoue reverses the hip attack attempt with a release German suplex. Inoue picks up Kana but things break down as both teams run into the ring, Inoue and Kana are left alone and Inoue hits a lariat. Powerbomb by Inoue, but Taiyo breaks up the cover. Inoue picks up Kana again but Taiyo dropkicks her, Takahashi clears the ring and helps Kana with Inoue, Buzzsaw Kick by Kana to Inoue but the cover gets two. Kana picks up Inoue but Inoue hits a short range lariat, Inoue picks up Kana and nails the Niagara Driver for the three count! Kyoko Inoue, Hiroyo Matsumoto, and Fuka are the winners.

To give credit where credit is due – Inoue had on her working boots on this night (as much as she ever did at this point in her career) and bumped around quite a bit to help Passion Red look stronger. My main complaint about the match is a selfish one, as I just wish that Kana was in the match more since Takahashi did the bulk of the work. But I enjoyed much of what they did, Hiroyo and Inoue work really well together and had some quality sections, and Taiyo is always a bundle of constant motion. It wouldn’t have been a bad main event for a small show, but nothing really popped out as overly memorable even though it stayed entertaining from start to finish. A fun match from Passion Red.  Recommended

Kana, Nanae Takahashi, and Natsuki Taiyo vs.  Yoshiko Tamura, Mio Shirai, and Io Shirai

Unlike the last match, this one was in the midcard, but still has some heavy hitters. Kana is joined again by her Passion Red teammates, but their opponents are quite different than the week before. Yoshiko Tamura was the undisputed Ace of NEO and their top wrestler, she was no spring chicken in 2009 but hadn’t lost a step. She is joined by two sisters that current Joshi fans may be familiar with – Stardom’s Ace Io Shirai and the legendary Mio Shirai. Well, legendary to me. This was pretty early in both of their careers, as they were still honing their skills. Anytime I get to watch young Io and Mio I am excited, and since the match got plenty of time I have high expectations.

Kana and Mio start the match and immediately trade kicks, Irish whip by Kana but Mio delivers a dropkick and tags in Io. Io dropkicks Kana a few times but Kana swats one away and kicks Io in the back. Dropkick by Kana and she tags in Taiyo, and Taiyo throws down Io by the hair. Taiyo slides out to the apron, Io goes for a Tiger Feint Kick around the ring post but Taiyo moves and kicks Io out of the ring. Back in the ring, Taiyo stays in control before tagging in Takahashi, Taiyo comes in too and they triple team Io. Snapmare by Takahashi and she puts Io in a camel clutch, she lets go after a moment and applies a crab hold instead. Mio eventually comes in and breaks it up, Irish whip by Takahashi and she hits Io with a hard shoulderblock. Suplex by Takahashi, but Io breaks out of the cover. Takahashi tags in Kana, Irish whip by Kana but Io hits a crossbody and tags in Tamura. Knees by Tamura, Kana fights back and takes Tamura to the mat, but Tamura puts her in an armbar. Kana manages to roll out of it and applies a guillotine, dropkick by Kana and she tags Takahashi. Takahashi stomps on Tamura but Tamura kicks her back and drops Takahashi with an Ace Crusher. Knees by Tamura and she tags in Mio, dropkick by Mio to Takahashi but Takahashi absorbs the blow and elbows Mio. Body Avalanche by Takahashi in the corner but Mio blocks her second attempt and kicks Takahashi. Takahashi catches one and the two trade blows, backdrop suplex by Takahashi and she covers Mio for two. Taiyo grabs Mio from the apron and Mio eats a triple dropkick, they all end up on the floor and Taiyo dives out onto the crowd with a triple jump plancha, but she ends up only landing on her own partners.

Io then goes up top and dives out onto Passion Red with a plancha of her own, Takahashi is slide into the ring and triple teamed until Tamura and Io finally go back to the apron. Tornado DDT by Mio out of the corner, and she tags in Tamura. Dropkick by Tamura and she plants Takahashi with a DDT, knees by Takahashi but Tamura knees her back and hits a cutter. Tamura charges Takahashi in the corner but Takahashi avoids her and hits a release German suplex, Takahashi goes for a backdrop suplex but Tamura blocks it. Lariat by Takahashi but Tamura fires back with an elbow smash, jumping kick by Takahashi and she tags in Kana. Kana kicks Tamura and applies a schoolboy into an ankle hold, but Tamura gets to the ropes for the break. Kana goes for an Irish whip but Tamura blocks it and applies a kneelock, Kana inches to the ropes and makes it for the break. Suplex by Tamura, she picks up Kana but Kana hits a reverse DDT for two. Elbows by Tamura but Kana returns fire with kicks, cover by Kana but Mio breaks it up. Kana drags up Tamura and hits a German suplex hold, she quickly applies a Wakigatame but Tamura gets a foot on the ropes. Io and Mio run in and kick Kana, Tamura picks up Kana and hits a DDT. Full nelson slam by Tamura, but Takahashi breaks up the cover. Tamura tags in Io, Irish whip by Io to the corner and Mio hits a jumping knee on Kana. Tamura hits a knee as well before Io follows with a Space Rolling Elbow and a face crusher.

Armtrap Crossface by Io, but Takahashi comes in and breaks it up. Kana slaps Io, Io slaps her back but Kana catches her with a hip attack. Another hip attack by Kana and she kicks Io repeatedly before pushing her against the ropes with her boot. Sliding hip attack by Kana, she covers Io but she gets a shoulder up. Kana tags in Taiyo, missile dropkick by Taiyo and she delivers the Iguchi Bomb for two. Taiyo goes for a kick but Io avoids it and rolls up Taiyo, Tamura snaps Taiyo’s neck on the top rope before Io hits a springboard body press. Swandive dropkick by Io and she delivers a Tiger Feint Kick for two. Io tags in Mio, kicks by Mio to Taiyo and she hits a STO for a two count. Kick by Mio but Taiyo avoids the next one, she goes for the Iguchi Bomb but Io runs in to help Mio block it. Mio and Io both slam Taiyo before Tamura dropkicks her, Mio picks up Taiyo and kicks her some more, but Taiyo dropkicks Mio in the knee. Heel kick by Mio in the corner, Kana goes up top and jumps off with a diving hip attack onto Mio. Jackknife cover by Taiyo, but Tamura breaks it up. Taiyo goes up top but Mio kicks her and pulls Taiyo back to the mat, Tamura elbows Taiyo and Mio follows with a high kick. Io comes in and they hit the assisted DDT, Tamura then goes up top and hits a somersault senton, but Takahashi breaks up Mio’s cover. Mio picks up Taiyo but Taiyo ducks the enzuigiri and cradles Mio for two. Thrust kick by Taiyo, but Io breaks up her cover. Kana and Taiyo get on the second turnbuckle and lariat Mio while Taiyo hits a powerbomb, diving body press by Taiyo and she picks up the three count! Passion Red win the match!

This one was missing something from the last match I can’t put my finger on, but it was still a good match. Young Io and Mio are always entertaining, they aren’t necessarily refined yet but all the pieces are there. I think the match just had too many parts where they appeared to not know what was next or they were filling time, lots of stomping/kicking sections that felt like filler. Not everything felt like it had a purpose, and parts of the middle dragged. But it really picked up by the end and I like that both teams worked together so well, like they were real units and not just randomly thrown together for a match. The wrestler quality was certainly there and generally the action was exciting, but it definitely felt more like a midcard match (which it was) than a main event.  Mildly Recommended

The post Kana Special #2 DVD Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Championships Held: AJW Jr. Championship, NEO Tag Team Championship, NWA Women’s Pacific & NEO Championship, and the TWF World Women’s Championship
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• May 18th, 1996 vs. Tomoko Kuzumi
• September 20th, 1997 vs. Sugar Sato
• August 24th, 2000 vs. Nicole Bass
• May 5th, 2003 vs. Azumi Hyuga
• December 24th, 2006 vs. Azumi Hyuga
• July 16th, 2007 with Emi Sakura vs. Haruka Matsuo and Misae Genki
• December 23rd, 2010 vs. Kaori Yoneyama
• December 31st, 2010 vs. Ayumi Kurihara

Signature Moves:

• Elbow Smash
• GUST
• GUST Lock
• Hungary
• Mount Cook
• Patriot Bomb

In Action:

Coming Soon 

Back to Retired Wrestlers

The post Yoshiko Tamura appeared first on Joshi City.

NEO Ladies was a Joshi promotion that had many re-starts but was running in some form from 1998 to 2010. Originally it was a break-off promotion from All Japan Women, and the name was supposed to be Nippon Women’s Wrestling but they had a trademark issue with New Japan Pro Wrestling.  So they went with NEO Ladies instead as the promotion name. Kyoko Inoue was the Ace of the promotion, but over the years many wrestlers made their name in NEO including Natsuki Taiyo, Nanae Takahashi, Hiroyo Matsumoto, Ayako Hamada, and others.

This show was condensed down to one hour on Samurai TV, but luckily instead of showing all the matches heavily clipped, they opted to just show the three main matches. This was a big event for NEO, as it featured a defense of both of their major titles as well as the Retirement Match of Yuka Nakamura. Here are the matches we’ll be watching:

• NEO Tag Team Championship: Kyoko Inoue and Etsuko Mita vs. Amazing Kong and Kyoko Kimura
• NWA Women’s Pacific Championship and NEO Singles Championship: Yoshiko Tamura vs. Kayoko Haruyama
• Yuka Nakamura Retirement Match: Yuka Nakamura vs. Mima Shimoda

This wasn’t the match order on the show live, but was re-arranged on the broadcast so that the retirement match went last.

(c) Kyoko Inoue and Etsuko Mita vs. Amazing Kong and Kyoko Kimura
NEO Tag Team Championship

Kimura and Kong attack Mita and Inoue from behind before the match starts and both hit running strikes in the corner before pulling their opponents out of the ring. Kong and Kimura throw Mita and Inoue into the chairs at ringside, Kimura gets a chain and she chokes Inoue with it while Mita manages to fight back against Kong with chair shots. Kimura drags around Inoue with the chain before choking her with it from the apron, they finally get back into the ring as Kimura goes up top and hits a missile dropkick on Inoue. Kimura hits Inoue with the chain some more, Inoue finally fights back and goes for a powerbomb but Kimura gets out of it by repeatedly hitting her in the head with the chain. We jump ahead in the match to Mita and Kimura trading strikes, sunset flip by Kimura but it gets two. Kong comes in and kicks Mita, Inoue then comes in too and hits a German suplex onto Kimura while Mita applies a jackknife for a two count. Mita picks up Kimura and hits the Death Valley Bomb, but the cover only gets a two. Mita drags up Kimura, Kong comes in but she accidentally hits Kimura with a Uraken. Mita picks up Kimura but Kimura whips off a backdrop suplex, backfist by Kong and Kimura hits another backdrop suplex but Inoue breaks up the cover. Kimura goes up top, Kong picks up Mita but Mita gets away from her and joins Kimura. Avalanche Electric Chair by Mita, but Kong breaks up the cover by kicking the referee. Inoue runs in but she lariats Mita by accident, Big Boot by Kimura but Mita barely gets a shoulder up. Kimura goes off the ropes, Mita blocks the Big Boot and goes for a Death Valley Bomb, but Kong pushes them over. Kimura gets her chain and hits Mita in the face with it, Big Boot by Kimura and she gets the three count! Amazing Kong and Kyoko Kimura are your new champions!

This was way too clipped to get excited about as only about 6 minutes of 23 were shown, but I liked what I saw. I mean there would be no excuse to show anything that wasn’t entertaining when the match is condensed by that much, but it seems like they kept the entire beginning and end uncut so it didn’t just feel like a highlights collection. Kimura was one of the baddest wrestlers in Joshi for a decade, whether it was diving off of balconies or hitting people with chains, she didn’t mess around. Everyone played their role well and none came out of the match looking weak (although we didn’t see much from Kong). A fun condensed match but too clipped to recommend.

(c) Yoshiko Tamura vs. Kayoko Haruyama
NWA Women’s Pacific Championship and NEO Singles Championship

We join this match well in progress, with Haruyama dragging Tamura to her feet off the mat. Tamura elbows Haruyama and hits an Alabama Slam, cover by Tamura but it gets a two count. Tamura picks up Haruyama but Haruyama blocks a suplex and hits a trio of STOs. Haruyama picks up Tamura but Tamura hits a quick DDT, backdrop suplex by Tamura and she covers Haruyama for two. Tamura picks up Haruyama but Haruyama avoids her charge and clubs her repeatedly in the corner. Haruyama puts Tamura on the top turnbuckle before joining her, but Tamura elbows Haruyama off. Haruyama re-joins her but Tamura hits an avalanche side slam, Tamura quickly goes back up top and she hits a somersault senton for a two count. Tamura picks up Haruyama, elbows by Tamura but Haruyama ducks one and kicks Tamura in the head. Haruyama goes up top but Tamura elbows her before she can jump off and joins her. Knees by Haruyama while they are still up top and Haruyama jumps off with Orange☆Tomahawk. A diving leg drop follows, cover by Haruyama but it gets a two count. Haruyama goes up top once again but Tamura kicks her in the head and goes up as well, avalanche backdrop suplex by Tamura and she slowly covers Haruyama for two. The referee checks on Haruyama as she seems out of it but Tamura kicks him out of the way and hits a series of elbows. Cocky cover by Tamura, and Haruyama barely gets a shoulder up. Haruyama ducks Tamura’s high kick and hits the Keene Hammer, but Tamura kicks out. Haruyama drags Tamura to her feet and goes for another one, but Tamura gets out of it and rolls up Haruyama for a two count. Heel kicks by Tamura but Haruyama lariats her in the back of the head, she goes off the ropes but Tamura nails an elbow smash. Tamura picks up Haruyama and delivers a cobra clutch suplex, another cobra clutch suplex by Tamura and she hits a third, but Haruyama kicks out of the pin. Tamura picks up Haruyama and connects with elbows, she takes off her elbow pad and hits one final elbow smash, picking up the three count! Yoshiko Tamura is still the champion.

On one hand, I liked that they just cut the match in half and showed the last ten minutes in its entirety, as I hate it when clipped matches just do clip-clip-clip so its hard to get into a match. The downside is that we joined them after both were already hurt/exhausted but without seeing anything that made them hurt which took some of the fun out of it. Tamura is one of the better Joshi wrestlers from the 2000s that many fans don’t know much about, she was a great striker and had an aura to her that either a wrestler has or they don’t. They went to the top turnbuckle a bit more often than seemed necessary, it felt like every 30 seconds someone was going up top for some reason or another, but this was the main event of the show and the title match so you can understand both wrestlers going “all out” to pick up the win. I liked it as I enjoy the head-drop suplexes and snug elbows, but I do wish I could have seen the match in full instead of just the long home stretch.  Mildly Recommended

Yuka Nakamura vs. Mima Shimoda
Yuka Nakamura Retirement Match

After a feeling out process and basic limb work, Shimoda boots Nakamura in the chest and puts her in a camel clutch. Shimoda gets Nakamura into the corner and chokes her with her boot, Shimoda throws Nakamura to the mat but Nakamura catches her with a jumping lariat. Shimoda returns the favor, she picks up Nakamura but Nakamura knocks her down with a jumping knee. Nakamura picks up Shimoda and throws her into the corner, jumping knee by Nakamura but Shimoda boots her in the chest. Shimoda gets on the second turnbuckle but Nakamura kicks her out of the ring, Nakamura goes up top and dives onto Shimoda with a diving crossbody to the floor. Face crusher by Nakamura and she puts Shimoda in a camel clutch with a bit of hair pulling, she lets go after a moment and stretches out Shimoda’s back. Stomps by Nakamura and she hits running boots to the head, cover by Nakamura but it gets a two count. Shimoda slaps Nakamura and they get into a slap battle, which Nakamura wins as she sends Shimoda crashing to the mat.

Nakamura picks up Shimoda but Shimoda elbows her off, Nakamura gets on the second turnbuckle and she delivers a Tornado DDT for a two count cover. Heel drop by Nakamura but Shimoda hits one of her own, another one by Nakamura and she hits a release German suplex. Seven more heel drops by Nakamura, she goes up top and she nails the diving footstomp for a two count cover. Nakamura goes up top but Shimoda joins her, Nakamura knocks Shimoda off but Shimoda avoids her dive and applies a folding backslide for two. Shimoda picks up Nakamura but Nakamura blocks the suplex attempt, Nakamura applies a couple flash pins but both get a two. Running knees by Nakamura, she covers Shimoda but Shimoda barely gets a shoulder up. Nakamura goes up top but Shimoda recovers and approaches the corner, Nakamura hits a modified Calf Branding and Shimoda falls out to the floor. Nakamura goes back to the top turnbuckle jumps out of the ring with a diving footstomp to the floor, she gets back in the ring and patiently waits for Shimoda to recover. She finally drags her back in, Nakamura goes to the top and hits another diving footstomp, but Shimoda kicks out of the cover. Nakamura picks up Shimoda but Shimoda whips out a backdrop suplex, they trade elbows until Nakamura crumples to the mat. Heel drop by Shimoda, and she covers Nakamura for two. Shimoda puts Nakamura on the top turnbuckle and joins her, but Nakamura elbows her off. Shimoda moves when Nakamura jumps off the top, but Nakamura delivers a running knee and applies the Romantic Clutch for the three count! Yuka Nakamura wins the match.

The post-match ceremony was condensed since they had to squeeze it onto a one hour show, but included wrestlers saying farewell to Nakamura, a bell salute, and of course lots of streamers. This was a unique retirement match as Nakamura not only won, but controlled the bulk of the action. Not that Shimoda needed the win but most of the time a retiring wrestler loses their last match. Nakamura hit all of her signature moves, including the always fun diving footstomp out to the floor, and held nothing back in her final wrestling match. An entertaining match and a fitting end to Nakamura’s career.  Recommended

The post NEO Summer Stampede 2006 on 7/17/06 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

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

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

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

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

Bullfighter Sora vs. Ofune

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

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

Kana vs. Natsumi Mizushima

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

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

Sachie Abe and Teruko Kagawa vs. The Bloody and Maru

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

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

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

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

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

Mirai vs. Saki Maemura

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

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

Amazing Kong vs. Mima Shimoda

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

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

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

Leona vs. Mariko Yoshida

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

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

Mika Nishio vs. Takako Inoue

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

NEO Ladies was a Joshi promotion that had many re-starts but was running in some form from 1998 to 2010. Originally it was a break-off promotion from All Japan Women, and the name was supposed to be Nippon Women’s Wrestling but they had a trademark issue with New Japan Pro Wrestling.  So they went with NEO Ladies instead. Kyoko Inoue was the Ace of the promotion, but over the years other wrestlers made their name in NEO including Natsuki Taiyo, Nanae Takahashi, Hiroyo Matsumoto, Ayako Hamada, and many others.

This show took place towards the end of NEO’s run, but they still had a great roster. A bit of everything is here, including a title match, some comedy, some legends, a debut, and Kenny Omega in an Intergender Match. Here is the card:

• Aya Yuki vs. Natsumi Kawano
• Fuka and Asami Kawasaki vs. Hikaru Shida and Tsukasa Fujimoto
• Dump Matsumoto vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto vs. Miyako Matsumoto
• Kenny Omega vs. Natsuki*Taiyo
• Mima Shimoda, Kyoko Kimura, Atsuko Emoto, and Tomoka Nakagawa vs. Makoto, Mio Shirai, Io Shirai, and Yukari Ishino
• Emi Sakura vs. Kyoko Inoue
• NEO Tag Team Championship: Nanae Takahashi and Kana vs. Yoshiko Tamura and Ayumi Kurihara

I am skipping one match since it is a battle royal against West Gate Pro Wrestling, a promotion I am not overly familiar with and it was more of a comedy match anyway. Since the event was squeezed down to two hours, some matches will be clipped.

Aya Yuuki vs. Natsumi Kawano

Yuuki pushes Kawano to the ropes to start, Kawano fires back with an elbow but Yuuki throws her around by her hair. Kawano sneaks in a schoolboy but it doesn’t work, dropkicks by Kawano and she covers Yuuki for two. Scoop slam by Yuuki, she picks up Kawano and boots her in the chest before posing to the crowd. Shoulderblock by Yuuki and she hits a second one, a third shoulderblock by Yuuki and she covers the rookie for a two count. Running elbow drop by Yuuki, but again Kawano kicks out of the cover. Yuuki chokes Kawano and throws her to the mat, rolling fireman’s carry slam by Yuuki and she gets the three count! Aya Yuuki wins!

Even though it was short it was actually more even at the beginning than I was expecting. Either Yuuki is ranked even lower than I thought or they had some hopes for Kawano, as the veteran took it pretty easy on her. Kawano didn’t show anything here to make you think she’d be a star, her dropkicks wouldn’t have passed the Meiko Satomura Test, but it was only her first match after all. Nothing much to it.

Fuka and Asami Kawasaki vs. Hikaru Shida and Tsukasa Fujimoto
Super Dimension Encounter ~ Athtress vs. Muscle Venus

Kawasaki and Shida start off the match but both are promptly jumped from behind, Shida and Fujimoto isolate Fuka but Kawasaki returns to help her partner out. Fuka and Kawasaki both hit knees to the chest but things settle back down, judo throw by Shida to Kawasaki and she hits a second one. Kawasaki kicks Shida in the back but Shida ducks the PK, another judo throw by Shida and she tags in Fujimoto. Fujimoto hits a rebound crossbody on Kawasaki but Kawasaki levels her with a boot to the face. Northern Lights Suplex by Kawasaki, but it gets a two count. Fujimoto sends Kawasaki into the ropes but Fuka kicks her from the apron, giving Kawasaki time to recover. Kawasaki tags in Fuka, kicks by Fuka to Fujimoto but Fujimoto hits a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Sunset flip by Fujimoto but Fuka reverses it and they go back and forth with quick pins. Tiger Feint Kick by Fujimoto, she covers Fujimoto but Fujimoto bridges out of the pin. We clip ahead to Shida being in the ring with Fuka, lariat by Shida and Fujimoto hits Fuka with a Tiger Feint Kick. Shida picks up Fuka but Fuka kicks her, Kawasaki comes in but Kawasaki kicks Fuka in the head by accident. Shida picks up Fuka and hits a delayed vertical suplex, but Fuka kicks out of the cover. Kawasaki walks over and hits Shida with a heel drop, Fuka picks up Shida and she delivers the Fisherman Suplex Hold, but Fujimoto breaks up the cover. Fuka picks up Shida and hits the F Crash for the three count! Fuka and Kawasaki are the winners.

I am not sure if this is a sacrilegious thing to say but I have never been really impressed with Fuka in-ring. Very attractive, apparently a solid trainer, but her strikes never had a lot of impact and the F Crash is not a good finisher since it looks weaker than what we expect from wrestlers in Japan. Its a WWE-looking finisher if you will. I am not too familar with Kawasaki but she looked good here, solid kicks, and Shida is always a treat. A short match made shorter by clipping, a few fun moments but that is about it.

Dump Matsumoto vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto vs. Miyako Matsumoto
Matsumoto #1 Decision Match

Dump goes right after Miyako and levels her with a lariat, body press by Dump and she kicks Miyako out of the ring. She turns to Hiroyo, Hiroyo tries to knock over Dump but Dump absorbs her blows. Hiroyo tries to pick up Dump but can’t, Miyako returns and tries to help Dump but Dump shoulderblocks Miyako back to the mat. Dump flings Miyako by her hair and Hiroyo dropkicks Miyako, Miyako keeps sliding to the apron to escape but Dump pulls her back in so that Hiroyo can hit another dropkick. Hiroyo dropkicks Dump but it has no impact, release German by Dump to Hiroyo but Miyako has returned and tries to elbow Dump. Meanwhile Hiroyo goes up top and hits a missile dropkick on Dump, finally knocking her to the mat. Miyako dances around while Hiroyo holds down Dump, Dump eventually gets up and gets her kendo stick, hitting both Hiroyo and Miyako. Miyako rolls out of the ring but Dump goes out after her and throws her into the stands. Miyako runs away from Dump and returns to the ring, she celebrates but Hiroyo grabs Miyako from behind and hits the backbreaker into a gutbuster for the three count! Hiroyo Matsumoto wins and is the best Matsumoto.

As I mentioned this was more goofy filler than anything else, Dump Matsumoto does a lot of ‘comedy matches while still killing people with weapons’, it is almost one of her things these days. I always enjoy seeing Dump and Hiroyo is great, but just a short match with limited valuable aside from a few possible laughs.

Kenny Omega vs. Natsuki*Taiyo
High Speed Alternate World

Omega tosses Taiyo to the mat after the bell rings and poses, Omega applies a wristlock but Taiyo reverses it before Omega throws her to the mat again. Armdrag by Taiyo and she hits another one, Omega applies a front necklock but Taiyo gets onto the ropes to force a break. The referee tries to step in but Taiyo pushes him away, armdrag by Taiyo and she hits a dropkick. Taiyo kicks Omega into the corner, Irish whip but Omega flips away from her. Omega goes for a hurricanrana but Taiyo reverses it into a powerbomb for a two count. Kicks and slaps by Taiyo but Omega comes back with a jumping kick of his own, Aoi Shoudou by Omega but Taiyo kicks out of the cover. Headbutts and another jumping kick by Omega, he goes to the apron and hits a swandive dropkick to Taiyo’s back. Snap dragon suplex hold by Omega, but Taiyo gets a shoulder up. Omega picks up Taiyo, slaps by Taiyo but Omega hits a release snap dragon suplex. The referee starts a ten count, Taiyo tries to get up but he can’t, and she gets counted down. Kenny Omega wins by KO.

This was too clipped down to recommend, since the match went almost ten minutes I assume that Taiyo got in a bit more offense than this. As it was, the point was for Taiyo to show how tough she is and she did, kicking out of several of Omega’s moves and almost making the ten count at the end. Omega has never minded selling for much smaller wrestlers since he is one of the few that understands it helps everyone to make your opponent look good, and everything they showed was crisp. In full this may have been a match worth hunting down, but not so much in this abridged form.

Mima Shimoda, Kimura, Emoto, and Nakagawa vs. Makoto, Mio Shirai, Io Shirai, and Ishino
Shimoda and Amandora Blitz Union

Shimoda and company attack before the match starts and there are still streamers everywhere, Shimoda stays in with Io and she kicks her in the chest. Shimoda chokes Io in the ropes and throws her down by the hair, her teammates come in the ring and they all post on Io. We clip ahead to Io hitting a missile dropkick on Shimoda, giving her time to tag in Makoto. Armdrag by Makoto and she kicks Shimoda in the chest, jumping kick by Makoto and she covers Shimoda for two. Makoto goes for a double underhook but Shimoda gets out of it, roll-up by Makoto but it gets two. Shimoda’s teammates keep trying to help but it backfires each time, Io sails in with a missile dropkick on Shimoda and Nakagawa and they all stomp on Shimoda. The young underdogs take turns attacking Shimoda in the corner, handstand kneedrop by Makoto and she hits a second one for a two count. Makoto picks up Shimoda and nails the cross arm fisherman suplex hold, but Shimoda barely gets a shoulder up. Makoto’s friends return but they all miss dropkicks, then Shimoda kicks each one of them in the head. German suplex by Shimoda to Makoto and she hits a heel drop for a two count. Shimoda picks up Makoto and hits a tiger suplex hold, but Io breaks up the cover. Shimoda’s friends clear the ring while she puts Makoto on the top turnbuckle, avalanche suplex by Shimoda and she gets the three count! Shimoda and friends win the match.

As is a recurring theme on this show, it was just too clipped to get a real feel of the action. The only legal wrestlers we saw the entire match were Shimoda, Io, and Makoto, which is disappointing when there were five other wrestlers around (I am assuming in a 15 minute match that there were more tags than that). It was fun to watch, a few things were silly like everyone waiting for Shimoda’s heel drops and not everything was smooth, but I always enjoy seeing Joshi babies. Not great since Shimoda was the focus but not bad either.

Emi Sakura vs. Kyoko Inoue
Joshi Puroresu MVP

Sakura dropkicks Inoue right as the bell rings which sends Inoue to the floor, Sakura gets on the top turnbuckle and sails out onto her with a plancha suicida before sliding back into the ring and hitting a tope suicida. Sakura gets on the top turnbuckle and hits a moonsault down to the floor, making three dives by Sakura in the first 20 seconds of the match. Sakura puts Inoue on a table at ringside and goes up to the top turnbuckle, she hits the Nyan Nyan Press but the table doesn’t break, probably making it even more painful for both. Sakura doesn’t care and gets back in the ring, Inoue joins her and Sakura hits a somersault senton for a two count. Sakura goes up top again but Inoue has had enough and clubs her in the head, Inoue joins Sakura but Sakura hits a sunset flip powerbomb for a two count. Sakura goes up top again but again Inoue joins her, and this time Inoue delivers a superplex. Lariat by Inoue, she picks up Sakura but Sakura chops her in the chest. Inoue absorbs the blows and floors Sakura with a hard elbow, Sakura gets back up but Inoue hits a lariat. Big powerbomb by Inoue, but Sakura kicks out of the cover. Inoue picks up Sakura but Sakura slides away and applies La Magistral for a two count. Lariat by Inoue, she waits for Sakura to get up but Sakura ducks the lariat attempt and hits a low flying crossbody for the three count! Emi Sakura wins!

This match wasn’t clipped, it was just a short match. Sakura sure knows how to get the most out of a match that goes less than five minutes, hitting half a dozen high spots within the first 30 seconds of action. It was an entertaining heavyweight sprint, a spotfest for sure but it came across as a special attraction match between two veterans. Inoue getting beaten like this shows the respect she had for Sakura, since technically she was the founder of a rival promotion. I actually enjoyed it for what it was, as I like seeing Sakura fly around the ring, but not long enough to get too excited about.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Nanae Takahashi and Kana vs. Yoshiko Tamura and Ayumi Kurihara
NEO Tag Team Championship Match

Kana and Kurihara begin the match and immediately trade strikes, Kana jumps on the second turnbuckle but Kurihara dropkicks her out of the ring. Kurihara goes up top and dives out of the ring onto both Kana and Takahashi, she slides Kana back in where Tamura is waiting and they both attack Kana in the corner. Double cutter to Kana but Kana avoids the double vertical suplex only to eat a STO. Takahashi has also come in the ring, they are tied together on the mat and both are dropkicked in the head. Tamura stays in with Kana and hits a bridging vertical suplex, picking up a two count. Kana fights back with elbows and kicks but Tamura blocks one and hits a DDT. Suplex by Tamura, she picks up Kana but Kana slaps her in the face and kicks her in the chest. Kick to the head by Kana, and she covers Tamura for two. Kana tags in Takahashi, lariat by Takahashi in the corner but Tamura avoids the next one and delivers a high kick. Kurihara runs in and dropkicks Takahashi, Takahashi lariats out of the ring while Kana knocks Tamura out as well. Kana hits a hip attack off the apron onto Tamura, Takahashi gets a running start in the ring and sails out onto both of her opponents with a tope suicida. Kana waits while Tamura is slid back in and hits a diving hip attack onto Tamura off the top. Takahashi then goes up top and hits the Refrigerator Bomb, but Tamura gets a shoulder up. Takahashi goes for a backdrop suplex but Tamura lands on top of her and then hits a backdrop suplex of her own. Takahashi quickly comes back with a backdrop suplex but Tamura then hits another one. A final backdrop suplex by Takahashi ends the series as both are slow to get up, both wrestlers elbow each other until Takahashi hits a lariat for a two count. Tamura blocks the next lariat attempt and rolls Takahashi to the mat, fancy inside cradle by Tamura but it gets a two count. Tamura picks up Takahashi but Takahashi drives her back into the corner, neckbreaker by Tamura and she goes up top, but Takahashi joins her. Avalanche side slam by Tamura, Kurihara goes up top and Tamura helps her hit a somersault senton. Cobra Clutch Suplex by Tamura and she covers Takahashi, but Kana breaks it up.

Tamura tags in Kurihara, Kurihara goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick. Double knee by Kurihara in the corner and she slaps Takahashi to the mat, dropkick by Kurihara but Takahashi kicks her back and slaps her hard in the face. Cutter by Takahashi, but Kurihara kicks out. Takahashi goes for the reverse splash but Kurihara gets her knees up and hits a Codebreaker. Dropkick by Kurihara while Takahashi is against the ropes, Kana runs in to kick Kurihara and she trips Kurihara while Takahashi hits a lariat. Takahashi goes off the ropes but Kurihara sneaks in an inside cradle for two. Kana comes in but she kicks Takahashi by accident, Tamura then comes in and she elbows Takahashi. Dropkick by Kurihara to Takahashi, but the cover gets two. Kurihara goes off the ropes but Takahashi levels her with a lariat, Takahashi kicks Kurihara in the head but Tamura breaks up the cover. Takahashi tags in Kana, Kana picks up Kurihara and kicks her into the corner. Kana kicks the shit out of Kurihara for a bit but Kurihara catches one and slaps Kana in the face. German suplex hold by Kana, but Kurihara gets a shoulder up. Takahashi comes in and they both hit running kicks to Kurihara, punt kick by Kana and she hits a second one, but Tamura breaks up the cover. Kana goes off the ropes but Tamura intercepts her with an elbow, Takahashi tries to help but she lariats Kana by accident. Uranage by Kurihara, but Takahashi breaks up the pin. Jumping kick to the back of the head by Takahashi to Kurihara, then she hits a Blue Thunder Driver on Tamura. Spinning backfist by Kana to Kurihara, but Kurihara barely kicks out of the cover. Kana goes for a high kick but Kurihara ducks it and hits a uranage, she then drops Takahashi with one as well. Kurihara picks up Kana and hits another uranage, Tamura comes in and they nail the Tamashii wo Hitotsu Ni (Kudo Driver/Back to Belly Piledriver) that I’ve never seen done in my life. Cover on Kana, but Takahashi breaks it up. Kurihara waits for Kana to get up and nails an elevated running double knee strike, and she picks up the three count pinfall! Your winners and new champions are Yoshiko Tamura and Ayumi Kurihara

I mentioned this match had to deliver, and God did they. This was just as stiff as you may imagine, but what was more impressive was that they just went non-stop from bell to bell while keeping the action smooth. I loved that the younger/less experienced wrestlers got the chance to shine by leading the final stretch of the match, and while Tamura was towards the end of her career here her skills had not diminished. The match had everything I could ask for – high flying, Kana kicks, suplexes, “Holy Shit” moments, and suspense. A high end tag match for sure, it is no surprise that Kurihara and Kana’s success and popularity continued to grow after this, both were great in this match. Definitely worth tracking down.  Highly Recommended

The post NEO Women’s Wrestling Carnival 2009 on 12/31/09 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

This event, titled “Summer Night Fire” includes the last day of the NEO Japan Cup. The winner of the points-based tournament would go on to face Kyoko Inoue for the NEO Singles and NWA Pacific Championship. Going into today, Genki led the Red Zone with four points while in the Blue Zone Takahashi held a two point lead over her opponent Tamura. Both Taiyo and Tamura could tie their Blocks with a win, however if they lost or the match was a draw, then Genki and Takahashi would move onto the finals. Only five of the matches on the event were shown but all were shown in full, here is the line-up:

• Kana vs. Aya Yuki
• Kyoko Inoue vs. Tomoko Nakagawa
• NEO Japan Cup – Red Zone: Kyoko Kimura vs. Haruka Matsuo
• NEO Japan Cup – Red Zone: Misae Genki vs. Natsuki*Taiyo
• NEO Japan Cup – Blue Zone: Yoshiko Tamura vs. Nanae Takahashi

Let’s get to it!

Kana vs. Aya Yuki

After trading holds, Kana gets right to it with a stiff kick to the back before dropkicking her in the corner. Yuki comes back with an atomic drop and applies a crab hold. Kana gets to the ropes and hits Yuki with a pair of hip attacks before applying a crab hold of her own, but Yuki also gets to the ropes. Kicks by Kana and they trade elbows, scoop slam by Kana and she applies the cross armbreaker. Yuki gets out of it and they trade mounted elbows, Kana gets in better position and hits Yuki with a series of stiff slaps. Back up Yuki regains control and gives Kana some slaps of her own, but Kana scores with a kick and hits a face crusher.

Yuki hits a series of shoulderblocks for a two count, she slams Kana to the mat but her cover gets another two. Kicks to the legs and ribs by Kana and she applies an ankle hold, but Yuki gets out of it. Kana does one too many kicks as Yuki catches one and applies a STF, but Kana gets to the ropes. Yuki slaps at Kana and applies a sleeper, but again Kana forces the break. Kana blocks a suplex and hits a hip attack, vertical suplex by Yuki but Kana snaps off a neckbreaker. Kana goes for a piledriver but Yuki blocks it and hits a fireman’s carry roll for a two count. Yuki goes for a suplex but Kana rolls through it and applies an ankle hold. High Kick by Kana, she picks up Yuki and hits a German suplex hold for two. Kana picks up Yuki and drills her with a piledriver, picking up the three count! Kana wins the match.

The main issue here is that Yuki isn’t very good, some of her offense was awkward looking, plus the transitions were non-existent. On the positive side, this was grumpy stiff Kana at her best as she was really laying in the kicks and slaps to poor Yuki. The piledriver finisher is one I haven’t really seen before (it started Gotch-Style, then she switched it to regular once she had Yuki up), and the match stayed exciting. Come for the badass Kana but don’t expect a lot of structure from this one.  Mildly Recommended

Kyoko Inoue vs. Tomoko Nakagawa

Nakagawa starts as underdogs do, hitting a series of dropkicks, but the suplex attempt was ill-advised and didn’t work. Scissors kick by Nakagawa and she applies a rolling necklock, but Inoue gets out if it. Headscissors by Nakagawa and she slaps Inoue, and she finally hits the fisherman suplex hold for two count. She hits another one for two but Inoue has finally had enough and hits a lariat. Back up Nakagawa sneaks in a schoolboy which doesn’t work, Irish whip by Nakagawa but Inoue hits another lariat. Powerbomb by Inoue, and she picks up the three count! Inoue is your winner.

Nakagawa got in a bit more offense than I expected but otherwise it followed the script. Inoue basically put away Nakagawa with two moves, so even though she took some offense she surely wasn’t going to make her own offensive look weak against a lesser opponent. I have no issue with matches like this, sometimes the champion needs to beat someone easily, not only be in competitive matches. A good match for the undercard but nothing I could recommend by itself.

Kyoko Kimura vs. Haruka Matsuo

Matsuo dropkicks Kimura but Kimura dumps her out of the ring and throws her into the crowd. Kimura beats Matsuo on the floor some more before they return to the ring, and Kimura tosses Matsuo by her hair. Kimura tortures Matsuo on the mat and in the ropes, shoulderblock by Kimura but Matsuo attacks her from behind. Kimura locks on the sleeper but Matsuo gets in the ropes to force a break, knees by Kimura in the corner and she hits a backbreaker. Another backbreaker by Kimura and she puts Matsuo in a crab hold, but again she gets into the ropes. Kimura stays focused on Matsuo’s back, she throws Matsuo back out of the ring and rams her back-first into the ring post. Kimura charges Matsuo on the floor but Matsuo whips off a hurricanrana before hitting a suplex. Back in, missile dropkick by Matsuo and she delivers a diving body press for two. German suplex hold by Matsuo but that gets a two as well, she goes for the dragon suplex but Kimura elbows out of it. Spinning backbreaker by Kimura and she keeps the pressure on before covering Matsuo for two. Texas Cloverleaf by Kimura but Matsuo gets out of it, she goes off the ropes and hits a satellite roll-up for two. She goes off the ropes again but Kimura levels her with a big boot. Headbutt by Kimura, Matsuo goes for a hurricanrana but Kimura reverses it into a modified STF and picks up the three count!

A solid match, hurt more by the hard camera setup than anything else. It was hard to tell the full impact of the strikes, and the action of the floor was difficult to see, which is always a shame. But the match was structured well, with Kimura staying focused on Matsuo’s back and Matsuo relying on sneaky things to try to pick up the victory. Kimura already had everything sorted out by 2008, there were no mistakes and everything flowed well. A good midcard match. Mildly Recommended

Misae Genki vs. Natsuki*Taiyo

They start slow with Taiyo just trying to stay away from Genki, Genki tries charging Taiyo but Taiyo dumps her over the top rope. Taiyo goes to do a dive but Genki gets on the apron and stops her before she jumps. Taiyo knocks Genki back to the floor, but Genki moves when Taiyo jumps off the top turnbuckle and Taiyo crashes to the floor. Genki beats Taiyo around the ring before they go back in, and Genki hits a series of knees. Scoop slam by Genki and she hits a second turnbuckle elbow drop followed by a backdrop suplex for two. Taiyo blocks the chokeslam and goes for a schoolboy, but Genki sits down on her. Taiyo uses her speed to avoid Genki’s attacks but Genki levels her with a big boot. Backdrop suplex by Genki and she delivers the chokeslam, but Taiyo barely kicks out of the cover. Kimura headbutts Genki a few times, Taiyo goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick. Taiyo goes for the Taiyo☆Chan Bomb but Genki blocks it and hits a hard lariat. Roaring Lariat by Genki and she picks up the three count! Genki wins the match and reaches the Finals of the NEO Japan Cup!

I liked this for what it was, Taiyo is a natural underdog because she is so small (5 feet even) and Genki played her role well. I wouldn’t have minded if it was a bit longer, with the time spent outside the ring there wasn’t a lot to sink your teeth into, but for the story they were telling it worked fine. A good match for what it was, I would imagine wrestling someone like Taiyo would be a dream for any power wrestler, she just takes all offense so well. Mildly Recommended

Yoshiko Tamura vs. Nanae Takahashi

Takahashi attacks Tamura right away, hitting a quick German suplex for a two count. They keep the pace up as Tamura hits knees in the corner but reach a stalemate and the match resets. After some mat work, Tamura gets Takahashi against the ropes and kicks her out of the ring. Tamura knees Takahashi as she gets back in the ring and kicks her in the corner, but Takahashi hits a quick Stunner. Figure four by Takahashi but Tamura gets to the ropes, kicks by Tamura and she starts focusing on Takahashi’s leg. Takahashi regains her footing and they trade elbows back up, Irish whip by Tamura but Takahashi hits a hard shoulderblock. Takahashi applies a sleeper before hitting a missile dropkick, she goes up top and she hits another missile dropkick for a two count. Reverse Splash attempt but Takahashi but Tamura gets her knees up and hits a bridging suplex for two. Tamura charges Takahashi but Takahashi dumps her out of the ring, she goes off the ropes and she sails out onto Tamura with an elbow suicida. They get on the apron, head kick by Tamura and she hits a cutter off the apron down to the floor!

Both wrestlers are naturally hurt but Tamura is up first, and she throws Takahashi into the chairs at ringside. Back in the ring, double arm DDT by Tamura and she hits two more, getting a two count cover. Reverse STO by Tamura, Takahashi tries to fight back but Tamura hits a second one.  A third reverse STO by Tamura and she hits the Alabama Slam for two. Takahashi ducks a strike and hits a quick lariat, she goes for a backdrop suplex but Tamura blocks it. High kick by Takahashi, and she delivers a suplex for a two count. Sliding kick by Takahashi and she nails a Blue Thunder Driver for a nearfall. Takahashi pick up Tamura and hits a suplex, facelock by Takahashi but Tamura gets out of it and hits a neckbreaker. Backdrop suplex hold by Tamura but it gets two, as do the quick pins. Takahashi quickly hits the Original Shining Wizard (!!!) but Tamura gets a foot on the ropes on the cover. Takahashi puts Tamura on the top turnbuckle and slams her to the mat, she goes off the ropes but Tamura hits an elbow. Tamura hits stiff elbows in the corner and a high kick, cobra clutch suplex by Tamura but the bell rings as she goes for the cover as time has expired! The match is a Draw, Takahashi goes on to the Finals of the NEO Japan Cup.

Tamura and Takahashi did a great job making this match feel important, they wrestled the same match in front of 150 people in an auditorium as they would have fought in front of 10,000 people at Sumo Hall. Just a hard hitting and cohesive match, I don’t mind draws when it is during a points-based tournament and they didn’t go the flash-pin route which can be a bit boring. Both of these wrestlers have killer offense, I love the cutter off the apron and the cobra clutch suplex, and everything clicked. A great match and a fitting main event for the show.  Highly Recommended

The post NEO “Summer Night Fire” on August 23, 2008 Review appeared first on Joshi City.