Tokyo Joshi Pro - Thanks, Merry Christmas (12/23/2017)

1. Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship: Miyu Yamashita (c) vs. Marika Kobashi

A solid opener. Marika used a couple of new techniques and you get a sense of her growth as a wrestler. Yamashita's workover and kicks were good, liked the backbreaker counter to Marika's springboard bulldog.

**1/4

2. Nonoko vs. Yuki Kamifuku vs. Yuna Manase

This match had a couple of really good moments, the Nonoko-Yuna segments were topnotch. I actually felt Kamifuku gave one of her best performances yet in this match, the finishing run with Nonoko was good.

***

3. Nodoka-oneesan vs. Rika Tatsumi

The crowd rallies strongly behind Nodoka, she is a wonderful underdog. Dig the narratives that Rika is building around the power of her ass and hip attacks. Good match, the crowd support added a lot.

***

4. Maki Ito vs. Yuu

This was a solid match. Maki Ito's limitations in the ring become apparent in singles competition, but I was still compelled by her performance. Yuu's offense looked fucking killer as always.

**1/4

5. Hyper Misao & Maho Kurone vs. NEO Biishiki-gun (Azusa Christie & Saki-sama)

**1/2

6. Mizuki vs. Shoko Nakajima

Didn't feel strongly about this. I did like Mizuki's facelock during the finish, Shoko's flexibility made the move look really brutal.

**

7. Reika Saiki vs. Yuka Sakazaki

Another great timeout draw involving Yuka. Miyu might be positioned as the ace, but I think Yuka is the full package. I like the way Reika carries herself, and she knows how to make those big moments count. The first half of this is pure gold, the outside segment has to be one of the best I've seen all year, and all of the cut-offs from Reika were great.

***1/4