HZK, Io Shirai & Momo Watanabe vs. Jungle Kyona, Mayu Iwatani & Yoko Bito (Stardom, 11/27/2016)

Stardom - Goddesses of Stars (11/27/2016)

HZK, Io Shirai & Momo Watanabe vs. Jungle Kyona, Mayu Iwatani & Yoko Bito

This was the debut of the unit that would become known as "Queen's Quest", the first in a series of awesome trios involving them. The heat between Mayu and Io was tremendous, with Io's final boss aura adding to the drama. HZK and Bito have a really cool segment, and Momo, the junior of the group, was a great bully. Everyone looked amazing in an awesome match.

***3/4

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 x Champions (9/24/2017)

3. High Speed Championship: Mari Apache (c) vs. Hiromi Mimura

This was solid, probably one of the better HS matches I've seen recently. Mari's offense looked deadly, and Hiromi did good too.

***

4. Wonder of Stardom Championship: Yoko Bito (c) vs. Jungle Kyona

Good. There's continuity to this match (that neither competitor mentions) since Kyona won the tag belt from Bito the last time they were in Nagoya. They put on an engaging performance, and it's Kyona's hometown so the crowd was hot.

***1/2

5. Artist of Stardom Championship: Queen's Quest (HZK, Io Shirai & Viper) (c) vs. Oedo Tai (Kagetsu, Kris Wolf & Tam Nakano)

There were some timing issues/awkwardness here, but nothing too bad. I love this feud between HZK and Nakano, they had a good segment here.

**3/4

HZK & Io Shirai vs. Mayu Iwatani & Momo Watanabe (Stardom, 11/20/2016)

Stardom - Goddesses of Stars: Winter Darkness Road (11/20/2016)

HZK & Io Shirai vs. Mayu Iwatani & Momo Watanabe

This had massive heat. Segments between Mayu and Io were obviously good, but I liked how the match wasn't just about them. This was also HZK's return from hiatus, and she was better than ever, and worked very well with Momo. 

****

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (9/18/2017)

4. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Kris Wolf

Hana used a variety of meats to distract Kris, and things got heated between them. Fun little match, loved the aggression Hana-chan showed.

**3/4

5. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Tam Nakano

The crowd was lively for this one. Tam is green, but she makes up for that with her charisma. Kyona's leg gives out when she lifts Tam for her powerbomb finisher and the move falls apart. She doesn't know how to lift. She needs to work on lifting!

***

7. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: HZK vs. Io Shirai

Good! The best of HZK's tournament (for what that is worth). She went toe-to-toe with Io in counters and kicked out of the moonsault.

***

8. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Viper vs. Yoko Bito

Viper ambushes Bito, and they're just going back and forth with big moves. Viper's offense could have looked better... I wasn't really into this until Bito's comeback.

**1/4

9. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani

Kagetsu tries to murder Mayu by pushing the entrance gate on top of her. Mayu's neck ends up sandwiched between the structure and a guardrail, it looked horrific. This was good, these two obviously have amazing chemistry and they put on a fresh installment to their feud.

***3/4

10. 5★STAR GP - Finals: Toni Storm vs. Yoko Bito

bad

Mayu Iwatani vs. Momo Watanabe (Stardom, 3/12/2016)

Stardom - Stardom Grows Up Stars 2016 (3/12/2016)

High Speed Championship: Mayu Iwatani (c) vs. Momo Watanabe

This was magic. Momo puts on a spectacular performance in her first title match. Mayu wrestled like she had some place else to be until Momo shows that she is to be taken seriously. Everything just falls into place here, it is mesmerizing.

****3/4

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (9/16/2017)

1. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Konami

This started off strong with Konami hacking away at Kyona with kicks, and they kept an exciting pace, but it becomes pretty conventional as it unfolds. Still solid.

***

2. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Mandy Leon vs. Tam Nakano

*

3. Toni Storm, Kay Lee Ray & Xia Brookside vs. Mari Apache, Tora Natsuko & Shiki Shibusawa

**

4. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kagetsu vs. Kris Wolf

**

5. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Viper

I enjoyed how Hana approached this, trying to knock the bigger wrestler off of her feet with big boots and dropkicks, and she manages to brainbuster Viper. Sugoi stuff.

**1/2

6. Queen's Quest (Io Shirai, HZK & AZM) vs. Mayu Iwatani, Yoko Bito & Hiromi Mimura

**1/4

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (9/10/2017)

4. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kris Wolf vs. Yoko Bito

***

5. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Xia Brookside

**1/2

6. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Tam Nakano

Tam looked strong with her dragon sleeper and near-fall. Love the somato Io has been using lately. Good match, the crowd reaction was strong.

***1/2

7. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: HZK vs. Jungle Kyona

This was easily HZK's best match of the tournament so far. Loved the callbacks.

***

8. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Kagetsu

This was a strong performance for Kagetsu, she gets the crowd into the match with her shenanigans. 1stRING was eating this up. The in-ring was solid and the story was very compelling.

***3/4

Stardom - 5★STAR GP 2017 (9/3/2017)

1. Queen's Quest (AZM & Viper) & Tora Natsuko vs. Mari Apache, Hiromi Mimura & Shiki Shibusawa

**1/4

2. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Kay Lee Ray

**

3. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: HZK vs. Mandy Leon

*

4. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Tam Nakano vs. Toni Storm

*1/2

5. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Xia Brookside vs. Yoko Bito

**1/4

6. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Konami

Another awesome match between these two -- they've got good chemistry. Konami stepped it up here.

***3/4

7. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kris Wolf vs. Mayu Iwatani

**1/2

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (9/2/2017)

1. Hanan vs. Kris Wolf vs. Ruaka

***1/4

2. Queen's Quest (AZM & HZK) vs. Team Jungle (Jungle Kyona & Tora Natsuko) vs. Yoko Bito & Mari Apache vs. Shiki☆d (Starlight Kid & Shiki Shibusawa)

***

3. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Viper vs. Xia Brookside

**1/2

4. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Konami vs. Tam Nakano

Very good match between these GPS girls. Konami was the aggressor, and Tam was selling those kicks. This had a feel of tension and urgency, and I was impressed with the raw emotion/conviction coming from Nakano.

***1/2

5. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Mayu Iwatani

***1/4

6. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Mandy Leon vs. Toni Storm

DUD

7. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Kay Lee Ray

***

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (8/26/2017)

1. Konami & AZM vs. Shiki☆d (Starlight Kid & Shiki Shibusawa)

**1/2

2. Mandy Leon & Kay Lee Ray vs. Mari Apache & Tora Natsuko

*1/4

3. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: HZK vs. Toni Storm

**

4. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kris Wolf vs. Viper

**3/4

5. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Hiromi Mimura

I enjoyed Hana's control segment in this. The heel work was amazing, and she was very aggressive throughout, really laying in those strikes. Hiromi's the perfect target for bullying.

***

6. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kagetsu vs. Xia Brookside

The middle part of this could have been better, but I thought it otherwise flowed well and they were throwing awesome strikes. Best match of Xia's career.

**3/4

7. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Jungle Kyona

Io's injured neck is the MVP of this tournament! I'm liking the matches being built around it so far. Kyona brought her wild energy as the aggressor. Io was bumping hard, and there were nifty spots, like the tombstone counters and Io's springboard dropkick sequence. 

***3/4

8. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Yoko Bito

***1/2

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (8/20/2017)

1. Queen's Quest (Viper and AZM) vs. Mari Apache & Tora Natsuko vs. Xia Brookside & Ruaka vs. Shiki☆d (Starlight Kid & Shiki Shibusawa)

**1/2

2. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hiromi Mimura vs. Kris Wolf

**3/4

3. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Kay Lee Ray vs. Tam Nakano

**

4. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: HZK vs. Konami

I've been waiting for this match all year, and when it's finally booked it's only 4 minutes! I got some enjoyment out of this. I always enjoy HZK, and Konami too, but I wish they had worked quicker.

**

5. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Jungle Kyona vs. Mandy Leon

**1/4

6. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Mayu Iwatani

Mayu has been wearing a more revealing attire lately, so this became something of a sexy battle, and Hana nailed it with her character work. The boob-targeting is classic Stardom.

***

7. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Kagetsu vs. Yoko Bito

This is easily the best Beatrice has looked since returning from injury. She messes Kagetsu up with those deadly kicks. They worked a fast paced. Very good sprint.

***1/2

8. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Toni Storm

Toni is the unbeatable superwoman, and Io is in a vulnerable state due to her neck injury. They play up the danger of the Strong Zero piledriver that caused the injury and it led to intense moments. Io does this counter to the piledriver that was stunning.

***1/4

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2017 (8/19/2017)

7. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Hana Kimura vs. Yoko Bito

This was hurt by timing issues/awkwardness, but there are still things to be enjoyed here, like Hana's octopus hold, and the impact of Bito's kicks. The closing segment where Hana destroys Bito with relentless boots was awesome.

**3/4

8. 5★STAR GP Blue Stars Block: Io Shirai vs. Mandy Leon

***

9. 5★STAR GP Red Stars Block: Mayu Iwatani vs. Viper

Viper's offense works well with Mayu's ragdoll selling; her body attacks and slams looked destructive, especially that finish (!).

***

Stardom - Midsummer Champions (8/13/2017)

2. 5★STAR Grand Prix 2017 Qualifying Match: Natsuko Tora vs. Tam Nakano

Pretty solid performance from both wrestlers, especially for Tamu, who made a strong impression in her Stardom debut. Tora gets a crazy close near-fall.

***

3. Gabby Ortiz & Hiromi Mimura vs. Konami & Yoko Bito vs. Oedo Tai (Hana Kimura & Kris Wolf) vs. Shiki Shibusawa & Starlight Kid

***

4. SWA World Championship: Toni Storm (c) vs. Xia Brookside

*1/2

5. High Speed Championship: Shanna (c) vs. Mari Apache

**1/2

6. Artist of Stardom Championship: Team Jungle (Hiroyo Matsumoto, Jungle Kyona & Kaori Yoneyama) (c) vs. Queen's Quest (HZK, Io Shirai & Viper)

A solid match for Io's return. I thought she looked great, and she did some new flippy stuff. Viper ends up crushing Kyona's face and causing a nosebleed, and I thought it added to the match visually. It's also nice to see HZK pick up the win.

***

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

Mayu and Kagetsu had a great High Speed match last year, but this was horrendous. It wasn't connecting with me, and by the end of it I stopped caring. The action was dull, the pacing felt very off, and of course they have to shoehorn a stairwell spot in every single Stardom Korakuen main event. This was no good!

bad

Stardom - Stardom X Stardom in Osaka (7/23/2017)

1. Hanan & Ruaka vs. Shiki Shibusawa & Starlight Kid

**

2. Gabby Ortiz & Xia Brookside vs. Team Jungle (Kaori Yoneyama & Natsuko Tora)

**

3. AZM vs. Hiromi Mimura

**1/4

4. Mari Apache vs. Shanna

**1/2

5. HZK vs. Jungle Kyona

This match has a vile-sounding headbutt in just the opening sequence! It's amazing that they were able to keep up the pace, because that looked like it hurt bad. HZK's bully-esque offense was great, and Kyona brings an emotion to her performances that draws you in. Great, hard-hitting match.

***3/4

6. Konami, Michiko Ohmukai & Yoko Bito vs. Oedo Tai (Hana Kimura, Kagetsu & Kris Wolf)

Oedo Tai are breakdancing ninjas now. Alright. At least they've gotten a new and better entrance theme. Bito breaks out a Splash Mountain for the victory. This was a fun match.

***3/4

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

This was good. An obvious filler match, from the moment it was announced, but good. Mayu puts on a great performance as she fights hard for her big comeback; she's getting cut off and ragdolled before she rallies for her second wind, and Viper bumps like crazy.

***3/4

Arisu Nanase vs. Jungle Kyona vs. Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani (Stardom, 9/3/2016)

Stardom - 5★STAR GP2016 (9/3/2016)

Arisu Nanase vs. Jungle Kyona vs. Kagetsu vs. Mayu Iwatani 

An immensely fun 'get your shit in' type of match, where they're just stringing together signature spots and quick-pins. The highlight is Arisu getting whacked over the head by Kagetsu's traffic sign and Mayu's reaction to it.

***

Stardom - Stardom x Stardom 2017 (7/16/2017)

2.  Shiki Shibusawa vs. Tora Natsuko

**1/2

3. Mari Apache, Gabby Slays & Xia Brookside vs. Hiromi Mimura, Konami & Starlight Kid

**

4. High Speed Championship: Kris Wolf (c) vs. Shanna

*1/2

5. Goddesses of Stardom Championship: Oedo Tai (Kagetsu & Hana Kimura) (c) vs. HZK & Jungle Kyona

**3/4

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

I wanted to like this more, but there was too much awkwardness, and during big spots too. They were throwing heavy strikes; Mayu's legwork and the way Bito sold it was great. It had an intense feel, but the big moments they built to would have been so much more effective if they weren't so sloppy in execution. Bito just seemed off her game.

***

Jungle Kyona, Mayu Iwatani & Yoko Bito vs. Queen's Quest (HZK, Io Shirai & Momo Watanabe) (Stardom, 1/8/2017)

Stardom - New Years Star 2017 (1/8/2017)

Jungle Kyona, Mayu Iwatani & Yoko Bito vs. Queen's Quest (HZK, Io Shirai & Momo Watanabe)

Watching this now has made me realize just how much I miss seeing Momo in action! The Io-Mayu, Momo-Mayu stuff was great. Beatrice connected awesome kicks; HZK beat the hell out of Kyona. An enjoyable trios match.

***3/4

Stardom - Shining Stars 2017 (7/2/2017)

2. Gabby Slays & Shanna vs. Oedo Tai (Hana Kimura & Kagetsu)

Shanna has moments of awkwardness, and should stop doing that standing moonsault before she hurts herself.

**3/4

3. Queen's Quest (AZM & HZK) vs. Team Jungle (Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora)

Awesome slugfest. AZM connects gnarly kicks and puts on her best performance yet. HZK brings the hate, Kyona brings the explosiveness, Tora continues to look impressive -- great match!

****

4. Hiromi Mimura & Mayu Iwatani vs. Konami & Yoko Bito

***1/4

Stardom - Shining Stars 2017 (6/28/2017)

2. Hana Kimura vs. Gabby Slays

*1/4

3. Kagetsu vs. Shanna

**3/4

4. Hiromi Mimura & Mayu Iwatani vs. Team Jungle (Hiroyo Matsumoto & Natsuko Tora)

***1/2

5. Konami & Yoko Bito vs. Team Jungle (Jungle Kyona & Kaori Yoneyama)

Damn good main event. I love this kicker team of Bito and Konami. Yoneyama was putting in work here, which I feel she doesn't do often in Stardom. It was great to see.

****

Stardom - Shining Stars 2017 (6/25/2017)

3. Shanna vs. Gabby Slays

Thought this built well into Gabby's comeback, and Shanna had great strikes.

**

4. Oedo Tai (Hana Kimura & Kagetsu) vs. Queen's Quest (AZM & HZK)

Hana's arm is targeted after Kagetsu accidentally hits her with a chair, and she does a great job selling it throughout. This was a decent match.

**1/4

5. Mayu Iwatani & Yoko Bito vs. Team Jungle (Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora)

Tora catches a beating from Mayu & Bito; I liked their workover session of kicks and knees. Bito strikes looked especially good. Great main event. 

***1/4