Event: Stardom “NEW BLOOD 3”
Date: July 8th, 2022
Location: Shinagawa Intercity Hall in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: 419
Broadcast: Streamed on YouTube

In early 2022, Stardom announced a new concept for the promotion that gives a bigger platform for less experienced Joshi wrestlers. As part of the idea, wrestlers from other promotions would also be invited to join, giving the events a unique feel and separating it from their normal events. Called “New Blood,” the first event was well received and the series continued, with this being the third show with the “New Blood” branding. The main event has Stardom’s Miyu Amasaki, who debuted this year, against one of the top wrestlers in Stardom – Giulia. But as mentioned, this is not an “all Stardom” affair as we also have wrestlers from Ganbare, JUST TAP OUT, PROMINANCE, Diana, and COLOR’S on the show plus Ram Kaicho. A pretty interesting line-up, here is the full card:

• Mai Sakurai vs. YuuRI
• Ami Sourei vs. Nanami
• Aoi, Misa Kagura, and Tomoka Inaba vs. Hanan, Momo Kohgo, and Saya Iida
• MIRAI vs. Suzu Suzuki
• Ram Kaicho vs. Waka Tsukiyama
• Haruka Umesaki, Rina, Ruaka, and Starlight Kid vs. Mina Shirakawa, Unagi Sayaka, Rina Amikura, and Yuko Sakurai
• Giulia vs. Miyu Amasaki

All wrestlers on the show have a profile on Joshi City, you can click on their name above to go straight to it. As this aired on YouTube, every match will be shown in full.

Mai Sakurai vs. YuuRI

YuuRI forces Mai to shake her hand, then dropkickers her into the corner. She charges in again but Mai moves, hitting a big boot followed by a dropkick. YuuRI avoids Mai’s elbow drop and hits a somersault senton, body press by YuuRI and she covers Mai for two. Camel Clutch by YuuRI and she pulls on Mai’s nose too for good measure, she eventually lets go but Mai blocks the scoop slam attempt as she hits one of her own. Stomp by Mai and she applies a Camel Clutch of her own, she lets go and knees YuuRI in the back. YuuRI elbows her and the two trade blows, YuuRI goes off the ropes and she applies a flying sleeper hold. Mai gets into the ropes for the break, YuuRI goes for the 619 but Mai moves out of the way. Mai goes off the ropes but YuuRI trips her before kneeing Mai in the back. Dropkick by YuuRI and she connects this time with the 619, jackknife cover by YuuRI but it gets two. YuuRI goes to the top turnbuckle but Mai recovers and elbows her before she can jump off, tossing YuuRI back into the ring. Boot by Mai and she hits two more before dropping YuuRI with a standing leg lariat. Mai picks up YuuRI but YuuRI pushes her off and applies a rolling Schoolboy for two. YuuRI goes to the top turnbuckle again and this time hits a missile dropkick, cover by YuuRI but it gets two. YuuRI goes off the ropes but Mai boots her, but YuuRI kicks out of the pin. Shining Yakuza Kick by Mai, she goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers a diving elbow drop, but YuuRI reverses the cover. Both wrestlers get back up, YuuRI goes for a couple flash pins but they don’t work. Shining Yakuza Kick by Mai, she picks up YuuRI and delivers the Shining Buster for the three count! Mai Sakurai is the winner!

I am as impressed with YuuRI as I am unimpressed with Mai so they kinda cancelled each other out here. YuuRI has a variety of fun looking offense, I loved the running sleeper hold, and at her stage of experience she really looked good. Mai has a very limited moveset and doesn’t necessarily even hit those moves crisply, every promotion needs lower end wrestlers to eat pins and I doubt Mai will ever move past that unless she really ups her game. More good than bad thanks to YuuRI and a suitable opener for this type of event.

Ami Sourei vs. Nanami

They tie-up to start, Ami pushes Nanami into the ropes but Nanami switches positions with her and hits a series of elbows. Irish whip by Ami and they collide with neither going down, Nanami tries to knock over Ami a few more times but has no luck. Kick by Nanami but Ami hits a hard shoulderblock, Ami picks up Nanami and throws her into the corner. Ami puts Nanami across the second rope and hits a running body avalanche, cover by Ami but it gets two. Ami picks up Nanami and hits a scoop slam, crab hold by Ami but Nanami gets to the ropes for the break. Irish whip by Ami to the corner but Nanami shoulderblocks her down when she charges in, Nanami goes for a slam but Ami blocks it. Nanami eventually hits the scoop slam, but Ami kicks out of the cover. Nanami picks up Ami and drops her to the mat, rolling bodyscissors by Nanami but Ami breaks out and gets to the corner.

Nanami charges in but Ami moves, body avalanche by Ami and she chops Nanami in the chest. Ami gets Nanami on her shoulders and hits a death valley bomb, she puts Nanami in a crab hold but Nanami gets to the ropes. Ami picks up Nanami, Nanami elbows her off and the two trade blows. Nanami sneaks in a backslide and a schoolboy for two counts, cradle by Nanami but that gets a two as well. Nanami charges Ami and hits a knee, neckbreaker by Nanami and she hits a body press off the second turnbuckle for two. Ami ducks an elbow and delivers a lariat, she picks up Nanami and hits a second lariat for a two count. Ami picks up Nanami and puts her on her shoulders in the Argentine Backbreaker, Nanami struggles for a moment but has to submit! Ami Sourei is the winner!

This was an interesting match. New Blood shows are kinda in their own bubble as Stardom’s most recent acquisition really shouldn’t be having a 50/50 match with a mediocre 15 year old. But since the idea of the show is to give young wrestlers a chance, I won’t complain too much. It was odd that Nanami was at times presented as almost even when it came to strength and strikes since Ami was brought in as a “bodyguard” for God’s Eye, it definitely came across more as a way to showcase Nanami than a match within the Stardom universe. Which is fine, it just seems wasted on someone like Nanami who has shown minimal improvement since debuting years ago and likely will stay low on the pecking order in Diana. Not a bad match, but kinda weird and the action was never overly interesting.

Aoi, Misa Kagura, and Inaba vs. Hanan, Kohgo, and Saya Iida

Inaba and Hanan start the match, they trade holds and end up on the mat with Hanan going after Inaba’s arm. Inaba gets away and they reach a stalemate, Hanan tags MIRAI while Aoi also tags in. Irish whip by MIRAI ad they both go off the ropes, armdrag by MIRAI and she delivers a dropkick. Aoi tags Misa so Iida also tags in, they bump chests until Iida knocks over Misa with a hard shoulderblock. She tags Momo as Hanan also comes in, and all three attack Misa. The ring eventually clears as Momo throws Misa into the corner, but Misa avoids her dropkick and hits a shoulderblock. Running senton by Misa and she covers Momo for two. Misa tags Inaba but Hanan and Iida both get in the ring too, Inaba takes care of both of them however before going back to Momo. Inaba throws Momo into the corner but Momo avoids her charge and hits a crossbody off the second turnbuckle for two. Dropkick by Momo, she goes for the Tiger Feint Kick but Inaba moves and punches Momo in the gut. Momo returns fire with a dropkick, she tags in Iida while Inaba tags Aoi.

Iida and Aoi trade strikes, chops by Aoi against the ropes and she hits a jumping double chop. Iida gets one of her own and tags Hanan, dropkick by Hanan to Aoi and they trade elbows. Judo toss by Hanan, she picks up Aoi but Aoi blocks the suplex attempt and hits a jumping forearm. This gives her time to tag Misa, dropkick by Misa into the corner and she hits a lariat. Misa jumps on Hanan’s back with a submission, the other members of JTO come in the ring and put a respective opponent in a submission hold as well. Misa cradles Hanan and puts her in a crab hold, but Hanan gets to the ropes for the break. Back up, STO by Hanan but her covers gets two. Hanan picks up Misa but Misa blocks the slam, she goes off the ropes and clubs Hanan for a two count. Momo picks up Misa and clubs her in the back, Iida goes up top and delivers a diving shoulderblock. Hanan jumps on Iida’s back as does Momo, and together they fall on Misa with a triple body press. Wrist-clutch suplex hold by Hanan, but it gets broken up. Iida and Momo clear the ring while Hanan hits a Fameasser on Misa, but Misa barely kicks out. Hanan picks up Misa and delivers a backdrop suplex hold, and she picks up the three count! STARS win the match.

More of a showcase for Stardom’s young wrestlers than doing a lot of favors for JUST TAP OUT, but not a bad match even if it was pretty basic. Every time I watch Hanan I forget how tall she has gotten, she got the most shine in this match and I wonder once she turns 18/graduates if they are looking to move her up the card. Everyone else looked fine but it Aoi didn’t get to really do anything and Inaba only got about 30 seconds to impress. Too short to really get going, mostly mid-card filler but at least Hanan looked good.

MIRAI vs. Suzu Suzuki

They tie-up to start, Suzu gets MIRAI into the ropes but she gives a clean break. MIRAI quickly pushes her into the ropes on the opposite side but also gives a clean break, headlock by Suzu and she gets MIRAI to the mat. MIRAI gets back up and escapes the hold, she applies her own headlock but Suzu gets out of it and kicks MIRAI against the ropes. Kick by MIRAI in return but Suzu knocks her out of the ring and throws MIRAI onto the floor. Hard elbow by Suzu on the floor and she throws MIRAI into a table at ringside before pushing her onto the ramp. Suzu joins MIRAI on the ramp but MIRAI blocks the scoop slam, elbows by Suzu and she finally hits the slam. She returns to the ring while MIRAI slowly recovers, MIRAI rolls back in and Suzu greets her with stomps. MIRAI gets back to her feet and elbows Suzu, she goes off the ropes but Suzu knees her and mushes MIRAI against the ropes. Suzu goes up top and delivers a missile dropkick, MIRAI lands in the corner and Suzu drills her with a running knee. Cover by Suzu, but it gets two.

Waistlock by Suzu but MIRAI grabs the ropes to block the suplex, Suzu pulls her back but MIRAI elbows herself free. Kick by MIRAI and she rolls Suzu to the mat in a cross armbreaker, but Suzu gets to the ropes just as the lock is applied. MIRAI picks up Suzu, her Irish whip is reversed but MIRAI knocks down Suzu with a hard shoulderblock. MIRAI puts Suzu in a wrist-clutch Scorpion Deathlock, she releases the hold after a moment and covers Suzu for two. MIRAI keeps on Suzu’s arm and slams Suzu in front of the corner, she gets on the second turnbuckle but Suzu elbows her from behind and joins her. Headbutt by Suzu and she delivers a Frankensteiner, head kick by Suzu and she covers MIRAI for two. Suzu picks up MIRAI but MIRAI spins away and slams Suzu face-first into the mat. MIRAI picks up Suzu and hits a headbutt, Suzu headbutts her back and both wrestlers collapse to the mat. They slowly return to their feet and trade elbows, Suzu wins the battle and picks up MIRAI just to elbow her some more. MIRAI ducks the next elbow attempt and hits a lariat, mounted elbows by MIRAI and she hits a half nelson slam for two. MIRAI puts Suzu in an armlock, she picks up Suzu but Suzu gets away and hits a superkick. Another kick by Suzu, and she covers MIRAI for two. Suzu gets MIRAI up but MIRAI elbows free, lariat by MIRAI and she hits a second one for a two count. MIRAI picks up Suzu, Suzu gets away as the bell rings but Suzu hits a German suplex anyway. Still, the match is over and declared a Draw.

As expected, a damn good match. The Draw here wasn’t surprising, no need for either of them to drop a fall on a throwaway show as both have bigger things going on. This was a fairly even match but MIRAI generally felt more on control, as Suzu wasn’t able to hit the German until the match was over while MIRAI rocked Suzu on several occasions. The action was smooth and they mixed in different offensive methods to keep the match interesting. These two have a better match in them on a bigger stage, but still a good showcase for both, really looking forward to seeing more of Suzu in Stardom.  Recommended

Ram Kaicho vs. Waka Tsukiyama

Waka avoids Kaicho’s elbow to start and goes to flip her off, but Kaicho blocks her from doing so. Kaicho tries to then flip off Waka but she blocks it as well, trip by Kaicho and she goes off the ropes, but Waka delivers a dropkick. Waka picks up Kaicho but Kaicho kicks her in the knee, elbows by Waka and the two trade blows. Stomps by Kaicho and she gets Waka into the corner, kick by Kaicho and she drags Waka back to the middle of the ring to start working on her leg. Waka gets to the ropes for the break, Waka goes for an elbow by Kaicho moves and chokes Waka. Kaicho slams Waka’s head into the mat repeatedly, she picks up Waka but Waka jumps out to the apron and trips Kaicho when she charges at her. Dropkick to the back by Waka and she puts Kaicho in a stretch hold, but Kaicho gets to the ropes. Kaicho quickly hits a Codebreaker, she picks up Waka but Waka ducks the Rainmaker and hits a Complete Shot. Waka goes to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick, she goes up top again and hits a second one for a two count. Waka argues with the referee so Kaicho dropkicks her from behind, she gets a hand full of powder and throws it into Waka’s face. Onryo Clutch by Kaicho, and she gets the three count! Ram Kaicho is the winner.

Just to address the elephant in the room – Waka came out with face paint that was meant to play mind games with Kaicho as it was basically the inverse of the face paint that Kaicho wears. Unfortunately the inverse looks like blackface, and while that was not the intent, it certainly upset some Western fans. Even though no offense was obviously intended, since Stardom does market to US fans its probably best if they were a little more aware of such things and err on the side of not offending part of their fanbase. Anyway, this match was pretty pedestrian. A fair bit of the action looked slightly off without being straight botched, it was like they were on different parts of the same page so they didn’t completely click. It was also short, but that may have been for the best. Not quite the spotlight I would have liked for Kaicho but she did her best, luckily this won’t be the last time we will see Kaicho in Stardom.

Haruka Umesaki, Rina, Ruaka, and Starlight Kid vs. Shirakawa, Unagi Sayaka, Amikura, and Sakurai

Team Mostly Oedo Tai attack before the bell rings with general chaos taking place, eventually Unagi is isolated and quadruple teamed. Rina stays in as the legal wrestler, she puts Unagi in the ropes and she is attacked by all four of her opponents again. Rina throws down Unagi by the hair and stomps her in the corner, she tags in Ruaka but Unagi hits a Codebreaker and makes the tag to Amikura. Body avalanche by Amikura to Ruaka and she hits a running senton for a two count. Amikura goes off the ropes but Ruaka does go over with the shoulderblock attempt, they take turns trying to knock each other over until Amikura hits a crossbody. The rest of her team comes in the ring as they hit a double body press on Ruaka, Amikura picks up Ruaka but Ruaka shoulderblocks her over and reluctantly tags Haruka. Unagi tags in too, they both miss moves until Unagi hits a heel drop. Unagi picks up Haruka but Haruka elbows her, and the two trade shots. Kick by Unagi but Haruka hits a jumping neckdrop followed by a footstomp. Mina runs in and helps out, leg drop by Unagi but Haruka kicks out. Unagi tags Mina, Mina picks up Haruka and hits a series of elbows. Mina goes off the ropes but Haruka catches her with a dropkick, hard elbow by Mina and she hits a Reverse DDT for two. Mina picks up Haruka and applies a front headlock, Haruka gets away and Runa comes in and hits a hip toss.

Senton by Ruaka to Mina and Haruka follows with a neckbreaker for a two count. Mina sneaks in a cradle which also gets two, suplex by Haruka but Mina drops her with a backfist. Starlight Kid and Sakurai are tagged in, shoulderblock by Sakurai and she hits a dropkick. Elbows by Sakurai but Starlight Kid connects with a jumping forearm, kicks by Starlight Kid but Sakurai hits another shoulderblock. Sakurai charges Starlight Kid but Starlight Kid moves, the rest of her team runs in and everyone hits running strikes on Sakurai. Cover by Starlight Kid, but it gets a two count. Double Irish whip to Sakurai but Amikura comes in and they knock down Rina and Starlight Kid with shoulderblocks. They fall out of the ring, Mina goes to the top turnbuckle and dives out onto the Oedo Tai blob at ringside. Amikura rolls Starlight Kid back in where her teammates are waiting, and Haruka helps Amikura slam Starlight Kid. Elbow drop by Sakurai, but the cover is broken up. Dragon Sleeper by Sakurai but Starlight Kid gets to the ropes, Sakurai grabs her but Starlight Kid slides away and Haruka dropkicks Sakurai. Starlight Kid goes off the ropes and hits a quebrada, but Mina breaks up the cover. Amikura and Mina go off the ropes but get tripped from ringside, Unagi knocks down Starlight Kid but she eats a dropkick from Haruka and Starlight Kid. Starlight Kid goes up top and hits the swivel body press on Sakurai, but Sakurai barely gets a shoulder up. Starlight Kid picks up Sakurai but Sakurai sneaks in a small package for two. Dropkick to the knee by Starlight Kid and she puts Sakurai in the Kuro Tora Leg Killing, with Sakurai quickly tapping out! Starlight Kid, Rina, Ruaka, and Haruka Umesaki are the winners.

I was worried at first they were going to let everyone but Starlight Kid get a chance, luckily they were just saving her for last. Starlight Kid is a step above the others here in terms of general excitement to watch, but there were several other quality wrestlers (Haruka, Unagi, Mina in particular) to hold the match together. Much of it was too random without a real story, but that is what happens in an eight wrestler tag match that only goes eleven minutes. The COLOR’S wrestlers aren’t high end but are fine with the basics, but coming out of the match per usual I was focused on how crisp Starlight Kid is. She’s really good. Anyway, a perfectly fine match with a few good peaks, but nothing to get too excited about.  Mildly Recommended

Giulia vs. Miyu Amasaki

Giulia and Miyu lock-up, Giulia works a headlock and she gets Miyu into the ropes. Giulia gives a clean break, she blocks Miyu’s tackle attempt but they end up on the mat anyway with Giulia in the dominate position. Giulia goes for an armbreaker but Miyu quickly gets to the ropes for the break. Back up they lock-up, Miyu gets Giulia into the ropes this time but Giulia switches positions with her, she gives a clean break but Miyu elbows her in the chest. Giulia elbows her back which sends Miyu to her knees, she gets back up though and returns fire. Hard elbow by Giulia, Miyu connects with a few in return but Giulia tackles her and gets her back. Sleeper by Giulia but Miyu switches places with her, Giulia quickly rolls out of it however and Miyu grabs the ropes. Slam by Giulia and she gets in the mount position, Miyu tries to fight out of it and eventually rolls into the ropes to get the break. Giulia knocks Miyu into the corner and hits a dropkick, snapmare by Giulia and she applies a sleeper. Giulia picks up Miyu and hits a scoop slam, cover by Giulia but it gets two. Giulia picks up Miyu but Miyu snaps off a vertical suplex, she goes for the Space Rolling Elbow but Giulia moves. Miyu hits a dropkick anyway but Giulia doesn’t go down, a second dropkick doesn’t knock her over either.

Miyu runs at Giulia and this time hits a jumping DDT, cover by Miyu but it gets a two count. Miyu picks up Giulia and applies a double underhook, but Giulia gets out of it and hits a back bodydrop. Giulia goes for a cocky pin but Miyu grabs her leg and goes for a cross kneelock, she finally gets it locked in and Giulia gets to the ropes. Miyu stomps on Giulia’s leg and twists it in the second rope, dropkick to the knee by Miyu and she covers Giulia for two. Double underhook by Miyu but Giulia blocks it again, Giulia pushes Miyu off but Miyu delivers a dropkick. Miyu goes off the ropes but Giulia does too, Miyu spins Giulia around and nails a double underhook sit-out facebuster for a nearfall. Miyu elbows Giulia as they get up but Giulia hits a front dropkick, covering Miyu for two. STF by Giulia, but Miyu gets a hand on the ropes. Giulia picks up Miyu and drops her with a backdrop suplex, which Miyu is very slow to recover from. She eventually gets back up and is promptly dropkicked in the back for her trouble, Giulia goes to the top turnbuckle but Miyu doesn’t get up for a bit. Giulia patiently waits and hits a missile dropkick when she finally does, cover by Giulia but Miyu gets a shoulder up. Giulia picks up Miyu but Miyu gets her back and quickly cradles Giulia with a jackknife for two. Giulia quickly recovers, Miyu elbows at Giulia but Giulia grabs her and nails the Glorious Driver for the three count! Giulia is the winner.

Either Miyu is the best seller in wrestling or she was in serious pain by the end of this match. Probably the latter. Giulia was very giving here but also clever in how she did it, with her cockiness directly leading to Miyu getting in control. First was the cocky cover, allowing Miyu to get her to the mat, but Giulia also didn’t take Miyu’s kneelock seriously until it was locked on and too late. That little segment helped lead to Miyu getting a minute or two to show off and get a close fall or two, not that anyone thought they’d work but it was far from a squash match or a traditional “Veteran vs. Rookie” match. Its hard to recommend a match too highly when the winner is clear and one of the wrestlers is still pretty basic, but Miyu looked good in defeat and Giulia showed why she isn’t your typical top star. Overall a pretty good match and a fitting main event for this type of show.  Mildly Recommended

The post Stardom “NEW BLOOD 3” on 7/8/22 Review appeared first on Joshi City.

Event: JUST TAP OUT “Queen of JTO Tournament”
Date: December 6th, 2020
Location: Isami Wrestling Arena in Saitama, Japan
Announced Attendance: Unknown

So you are wondering, perhaps, why I am giving so much attention to JTO recently when they not only aren’t a Joshi promotion but aren’t a major indie either. I don’t really have an explanation, it may just be because I like masked wrestlers and JTO has a handful of masked wrestlers. Maybe I just want to watch something different. Who knows. But this is a fun show from JTO as it is a complete Joshi event, as the entire card is the Queen of JTO Tournament! Not only is it a tournament but it is being used to find the official rankings of their female roster to end the year. We get to see a number of new wrestlers on the show so that should be fun, here is the full (and unspoiled) card:

• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Aki Shizuku vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Black R vs. rhythm
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Black Changita vs. Misa Kagura
• Queen of JTO Quarterfinal: Tomoka Inaba vs. YuuRI
• Queen of JTO Semifinal: Shizuku or Yanagawa vs. Black R or rhythm
• Queen of JTO Semifinal: Black Changita or Kagura vs. Inaba or YuuRI
• Four Way Elimination Match (wrestlers eliminated in Quarterfinals)
• Queen of JTO Final

I recently updated the JTO Roster page, so all the wrestlers on the show have a profile on Joshi City. You can click on their name above to go straight to it. Since this aired on NicoPro, all matches will be shown in full. Let’s hop to it.

Aki Shizuku vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa

They tie-up to start and Aki easily throws Sumikaba to the mat, Sumikaba gets back up and hits a few elbows, but Aki elbows her hard in the chest to send her back down. Returning to her feet, kicks by Sumikaba but Aki boots her to the mat. Sumikaba goes for a snapmare but Aki blocks it and hits a series of snapmares of her own, Sumikaba continues trying to fight back but Aki kicks her back down. Elbows by Sumikaba and she goes for a snapmare but Aki blocks it and hits a scoop slam. Aki goes for a scoop slam but Sumikaba slides away and kicks her in the head, Sumikaba finally delivers the snapmare she wanted so badly but Aki swats away her dropkick. Argentine Backbreaker by Aki, and Sumikaba quickly taps out! Aki Shizuku is the winner and advances in the tournament.

They definitely went hard down the “veteran vs. rookie” path. A very one-sided match, which isn’t a surprise but for a lower level promotion it wouldn’t have hurt them any to give Sumikaba a little bit of a chance to show more. Nothing really to it, a skippable opener.

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Black R vs. rhythm

They circle each other to start before locking up, they trade wristlocks until rhythm puts Black R in a headlock. Black R Irish whips out of it, rhythm goes for shoulderblocks but Black R stays up and hits a hard shoulderblock of her own. rhythm gets back up and knocks Black R over, scoop slam by rhythm and she hits a running elbow in the corner. Another elbow by rhythm and she hits a third, she goes off the ropes and hits an elbow drop. rhythm picks up Black R but Black R blocks the slam attempt, hitting her own scoop slam. Footstomp by Black R and she puts rhythm in a modified chinlock, she switches it to a stretch hold before releasing her. Black R avoids rhythm’s charge in the corner and snaps her head on the top rope, running kick by Black R and she throws rhythm into the ropes before kneeing her in the back. Crab hold by Black R but rhythm gets to the ropes for the break. rhythm spins away from Black R and hits a series of elbows, bulldog by rhythm and she covers Black R for two. rhythm applies a choke but Black R gets to the ropes, rhythm picks up Black R and hits a few elbows, Black R ducks one and goes for a slam but rhythm lands on top of her. Backdrop suplex by Black R, she goes to the second turnbuckle and hits a body press to rhythm’s back. Black R gets rhythm onto her shoulders into the R Special (Canadian Backbreaker), and rhythm submits! Black R wins and continues on in the tournament.

The main takeaway from this match is that these two don’t have very good chemistry yet. They are both rookies, or rookiesque so its not the end of the world, but I wouldn’t say this was a quality encounter. rhythm’s moves lack impact and while Black R looked better, they weren’t really able to put on a cohesive match with any flow to it. Both still have a little ways to go, some base talent is there but improvements need to be made if they want to progress.

Black Changita vs. Misa Kagura

Misa charges Black Changita as the bell rings and elbows her repeatedly in the chest, but Black Changita kicks Misa to the mat and puts her in a crab hold. Misa gets to the ropes for the break, stomps by Black Changita and she elbows Misa in the head. Black Changita chokes Misa with her own pigtails before applying a cross-arm choke, she lets go after a moment and chokes Misa in the corner. Snapmare by Black Changita and she elbows Misa in the top of the head again, chinlock by Black Changita and she kicks Misa in the back. Kick to the chest by Black Changita and she knees Misa into the corner, Black Changita charges Misa but Misa knocks her back and hits a dropkick. Misa clubs Black Changita into the corner and goes for a move but never can get it locked in. She tries again but Black Changita walks her out of the corner, cradle by Misa but Black Changita kicks out of the hold. Kick to the head by Black Changita and she puts Misa in the Changi Hold. Misa struggles for a moment but has to tap out! Black Changita wins the match and continues on in the tournament.

Misa is still of course early in her career but she didn’t show a lot here. Black Changita looked better but mostly by comparison. This first round is rough as these wrestlers are so inexperienced, and the matches are so short that any type of mistake feels amplified. Another match in this tournament with limited need for viewing.

Tomoka Inaba vs. YuuRI

YuuRI attacks Tomoka before the bell rings and elbows her to the mat, mounted elbows by YuuRI and she snapmares Tomoka a few times. Drop toehold by Tomoka, she finally gets her judogi off before YuuRI goes for a takedown, which Tomoka blocks. They trade waistlocks until Tomoka gets the better position and snaps on YuuRI’s ankle. Tomoka stays on YuuRI’s ankle as she works it over with submissions and kicks, YuuRI fights back with an elbow and the two trade shots. Tomoka goes off the ropes but YuuRI applies a sleeper, Tomoka elbows her off but YuuRI gets it re-applied. YuuRI keeps the hold applied while she sits on the top turnbuckle but the referee gets her to break the hold, however YuuRI immediately jumps back on Tomoka’s back and puts the hold back in. She lets go after a moment and kicks Tomoka in the back, she goes for a Tiger Feint Kick but misses it (Tomoka was going to block it anyway). Ankle hold by Tomoka but YuuRI stands up and hits an enzuigiri to get out of it, she goes off the ropes but Tomoka does as well and applies a sleeper. YuuRI kicks out of the hold but Tomoka puts her in an ankle hold, Tomoka locks it in and YuuRI has no choice but to submit! Tomoka Inaba wins and advances in the tournament.

This was definitely the best match of the first round, although that was a pretty low bar to clear. Its hard to tell what Tomoka’s future will be as JTO is too small of a promotion for her to really get much attention or quality opponents, but she looks pretty good concerning her experience/opponent level. YuuRI is still raw and not everything she did was smooth, but at least she was aggressive and didn’t look as out of place as the other November debuting wrestlers. I still wouldn’t say this was a great match but it told a logical story and kept things moving, so it ended up decent anyway.

Aki Shizuku vs. Black R

They jockey for position to start as Aki gets Black R to the mat, Black R gets out of her grasp however and hits a hard shoulderblock. Black R applies a leg submission hold but lets go after a moment, snapmare by Black R and she puts Aki in a stretch hold. Black R picks up Aki and clubs her in the back, Irish whip by Black R but Aki avoids her charge. Lariat by Black R and she hits a Stunner followed by a boot before putting Aki in a Fujiwara Armbar. Aki rolls out of it but Black R gets the hold re-applied, she switches the hold to the Cattle Mutilation but Aki gets a foot on the ropes for the break. Black R stays on Aki’s arm but Aki hits a sidewalk slam, elbow drop by Aki and she hits a body press. Aki applies a keylock but Black R wiggles to the ropes for the break, wristlock by Aki and she clubs Black R into the corner. Lariat by Aki, she flings Black R to the mat and puts her in the Fujiwara Armbar. Black R gets back to her feet and gets out of the hold with a backdrop suplex, German suplex by Black R and she puts Aki in a single leg crab hold. Aki gets to the ropes for the break, Black R picks up Aki but Aki rolls her to the mat and applies an ankle hold. Black R gets out of it but Aki blocks the R Special attempt and applies an armbar. Black R gets Aki’s back and hits another German suplex, but Aki returns to her feet and delivers a lariat. Another lariat by Aki, she picks up Black R and hits a death valley bomb. Argentine Backbreaker by Aki, and Black R submits! Aki Shizuku advances to the Finals of the tournament.

I refer to Black R as a rookie but there is no way of knowing if she really is. JTO claims her as such but her identity isn’t known, they could just be messing with us. She doesn’t really wrestle like one, using a wide variety of moves that we simply don’t see from the other JTO rookies and at times controlled the action against the veteran Aki Shizuku. Also the longest match on the show so far, the match went by quickly as they kept things interesting, with Black R seeming to be just a R Special away from picking up the upset. An even back-and-forth match, my only complaint is Black R never got payback on Aki for her no-sell spot but otherwise a solid match.  Mildly Recommended

Black Changita vs. Tomoka Inaba

Kick by Black Changita to start and she goes for Tomoka’s arm, wristlock by Black Changita and she wraps Tomoka’s arm in the top rope so she can twist on it. Irish whip by Black Changita and she puts Tomoka in an armbar, Tomoka rolls out of it so Black Changita switches to a cross armbreaker attempt. She gives up and kicks Tomoka in the arm before going back to the hold, Tomoka rolls away again but Black Changita goes for a double armbar. Tomoka gets into the ropes for the break, kicks to the arm by Black Changita and she applies the cross armbreaker. Tomoka quickly inches to the ropes to get the break, stomps by Black Changita and she hits a series of vertical suplexes. Black Changita goes for a submission but Tomoka quickly slips away and puts Black Changita in the ankle hold. Black Changita gets to the ropes for the break, Black Changita goes for a kick but Tomoka ducks it. Black Changita goes for Tomoka’s arm but Tomoka gets away and delivers a PK. Ankle hold by Tomoka and she switches it to the T Lock (modified Figure Four Leglock), getting a quick tap out from Black Changita! Tomoka Inaba wins and advances to the Finals.

The match had some clear structural issues, with Tomoka doing very little limb work to weaken the leg as Black Changita controlled the submission game for much of the match, but I did come away impressed with Black Changita. In previous matches I saw with her, she was mostly a lackey but once she got to show her skill on her own she seems to really know what she is doing. Like with Black R, I don’t know for 100% certain that she is actually a rookie, but if she is, she is pretty smooth. The match was too short and poorly laid out to recommend, but both wrestlers themselves looked pretty good.

Misa Kagura vs. rhythm vs. Sumikaba Yanagawa vs. YuuRI

Everyone goes after rhythm to start the match, rhythm fights them off at first but eventually is stomped down in the corner. All three hit running strikes on rhythm in the corner, Misa then knocks over both YuuRI and Sumikaba before kicking rhythm. Armdrags by Misa to rhythm and she dropkicks rhythm, lariat by Misa and she gets on her back to apply a submission hold. Cradle by Misa and she puts rhythm in a crab hold, but Sumikaba breaks it up for unknown reasons. YuuRI kicks Sumikaba and the two trade elbows, Misa tries to interrupt but she gets knocked to the mat. YuuRI and Sumikaba keep going at it until Misa has seen enough and puts them both in a crab hold. rhythm breaks it up as now I hate the match, but Misa lariats rhythm. rhythm elbows Misa in the corner and connects with a running back elbow, but Sumikaba boots rhythm. Sumikaba kicks over YuuRI as well before putting Misa in the Sickle Hold. Misa submits, so Misa Kagura is eliminated from the match. YuuRI quickly puts Sumikaba in a sleeper but rhythm breaks it up, so she puts rhythm in the sleeper instead. rhythm gets out of it, YuuRI puts the sleeper back on Sumikaba before letting go and kicking her in the back. Tiger Feint Kick by YuuRI but rhythm grabs YuuRI and hits a bulldog. rhythm puts YuuRI in a cross arm submission, and YuuRI submits! YuuRI is eliminated from the match. rhythm picks up Sumikaba but Sumikaba hits a heel kick, she applies the Sickle Hold  but rhythm quickly gets out of it and puts Sumikaba in the rhythm Lock. Sumikaba struggles for a second but has to tap out! rhythm wins the match.

There are fewer bigger sins in professional wrestling than wrestlers breaking up pins/submissions in elimination matches. Unless they are BFFs going into the match, there is no reason for it, it breaks all logic and is an inexcusable wrestling trope. So that alone annoyed me, and nothing they did action-wise overcame that annoyance. Course, a six minute four wrestler elimination match was a tough sell anyway. None of the wrestlers looked particularly bad here but still a skippable match.

Aki Shizuku vs. Tomoka Inaba

They trade holds on the mat to start the match, side headlock takedown by Aki but Tomoka reverses it into a headscissors before both return to their feet. Aki slams Tomoka and goes for a cross armbreaker, but Tomoka quickly rolls to the ropes for the break. Scoop slam by Aki and she hits another one, a third scoop slam by Aki but this one Tomoka blocks and applies an ankle hold. She lets go to slam Aki’s knee repeatedly into the mat, kneelock by Tomoka but Aki gets out of the hold. Kick to the chest by Tomoka and she twists on Aki’s leg before applying the ankle hold. Aki gets to the bottom rope for the break, stomps by Tomoka and she elbows Aki repeatedly in the chest. Pump Kick by Tomoka but Aki fires back with a lariat, Aki picks up Tomoka and gets her on her shoulders to throw her into the corner. Lariat by Aki and she puts Tomoka in a Fujiwara Armbar, she switches to a keylock but Tomoka gets to the ropes. Aki picks up Tomoka and yanks on her arm, she gets Tomoka on her shoulders but Tomoka slides away and hits a Pump Kick.

Tomoka jumps on Aki’s back and applies a sleeper hold, but she lets go to kick Aki repeatedly. PK by Tomoka and she snaps on Aki’s leg before applying a submission hold. Aki gets to the ropes for the break, Tomoka goes off the ropes but Aki blocks the kick. Lariat by Aki but Tomoka kicks her in the head and both wrestlers end up on the mat. Tomoka applies a kneelock but Aki gets out of it and twists on Tomoka’s arm before clubbing her in the back. Aki grabs Tomoka but Tomoka knees her in the head, lariat by Aki and she gets Tomoka up in the Argentine Backbreaker. Tomoka squeezes on Aki’s head to get out of it and puts her in a sleeper hold, but Aki gets away and hits a sliding lariat. Aki picks up Tomoka and hits a lariat, death valley bomb by Aki and she gets Tomoka up in the Argentine Backbreaker. Tomoka is too weak to get out of the hold and has to tap out! Aki Shizuku wins the match and the tournament.

As a side note, I just realized on this entire event there was maybe one or two pin attempts. I know the name of the promotion is JUST TAP OUT but they really seem to embrace that method of winning matches. Anyway, this was fine. Aki is never going to have matches that go beyond a certain level, she is a competent but not an overly exciting wrestler. Tomoka looked ok but I wish she did more to weaken her opponent’s leg as her first leg move was the ankle hold which is also one of her finishing holds. Slam the leg into the ring post, jump on it, do something different to set everything up. The ending stretch was entertaining as I like matches that have a definitive ending, which this one certainly did. A good enough way to end the tournament, but it won’t set the world on fire.  Mildly Recommended

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Championships Held: None
Tournaments Won: None
Awards Won: None

Notable Matches:

• None

Signature Moves:

• 619
• Sleeper Hold

Sample of Matches Reviewed on Joshi City:

• None

In Action:

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