Stardom - Champions Around the World in Nagoya (3/5/2017)

1. Arisu Nanase vs. AZM

Solid minis opener.

**1/2

5. World of Stardom Championship: Io Shirai (c) vs. Kagetsu

This actually felt more like a High Speed match than it did a Red Belt match, if that makes sense. Really enjoyable action and some Dragon Gate-style heel tactics from Kagetsu. A good semi-main.

***1/2

6. Goddesses of Stardom Championship: BY Ho (Kairi Hojo & Yoko Bito) (c) vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto & Jungle Kyona

Kyona's the hometown hero so she got a lot of shine. I thought her offense looked soft until the third act where she started laying in her stuff against Hojo, who was egging her on. Hiroyo assisting Kyona with the finishing powerbomb was a great moment. Solid stuff.

***1/4

Gatoh Move - Japan Tour・210 (1/31/2016)

2. DJ Nira vs. MIZUKI

There's clever limbwork and submissions with comedy bits spliced in. Nira employing the use of an electric fan to work over MIZUKI's hand was great.

***3/4

3. Antonio Honda, Riho & Sayaka Obihiro vs. Emi Sakura, 「Kotori」& Masa Takanashi

Another really fun GM trios. Not much to say about this one except that it was thoroughly enjoyable.

****

Emi Sakura & Sayaka Obihiro vs. Makoto & Riho (Gatoh Move, 2/7/2016)

Gatoh Move - Japan Tour・211 (2/7/2016)

Emi Sakura & Sayaka Obihiro vs. Makoto & Riho

Riho having to lead a tentative Makoto during double team maneuvers was cute. Obihiro is one of the most enthusiastic performers in modern joshi. Super fun and unpredictable, I'm always looking forward to what interesting things she'll do next. Her energy takes these tag matches to the next level.

***3/4

Gatoh Move - From the Prince Games (2/11/2017)

1. Mitsuru Konno vs. Riho

Mitsuru is Gatoh Move's newest trainee. She's tall. Decent opener where they trade cool submission holds.

**1/4

3. Aasa Maika vs. Kaori Yoneyama

Fun match with heat and rookie fire. I dig Aasa's body attacks. I really liked Yoneyama working on top, bullying Aasa with hair pulling and knee strikes.

***

4. Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi vs. Happy Makers 2 (Aoi Kizuki & Sayaka Obihiro)

This was a very good match. The overselling of Hiroshi & Honda was funny. Obihiro was exploding with energy as usual, her tag team with Kizuki is a fun.

***1/2

5. IWA Triple Crown Championship: Makoto (c) vs.「Kotori」

「Kotori」did a lot of neat things here. The size dynamic was well played and this builds to a heated climax. Makoto's Death Valley Bomb is beautiful.

***1/2

JWP - Fly High in the 25th Anniversary (1/29/2017)

1. Sareee vs. Yako Fujigasaki

Sareee's violent streak and Yako's visual hunt are on a collision course. Great way to open a show. Possibly the best match of Yako Fujigasaki's career.

***1/2

2. Judo Rules: KAZUKI & Rydeen Hagane vs. Hiiragi Kurumi & Megumi Yabushita

JWP's version of YAWARA WAVE and its one of the cutest matches of the year.

***3/4

3. Command Bolshoi vs. Kagetsu

There's some was fluid and smooth grappling here, but it was a heatless affair. It's fun to watch Kagetsu evolve, she's been learning how to connect more with the crowd, thanks in part to her heel work in Oedo Tai.

**1/2

4. Hamuko Hoshi & Manami Katsu vs. Manami Toyota & Tsukushi

I dig this Hamuko-Katsu dream team, they wore matching leopard-print and did double hip attacks. This was a fine match, nothing special.

**1/2

5. JWP Openweight Championship: Hanako Nakamori (c) vs. Leon

The near-falls were effective, and the head drops and head-kicks were brutal. An awesome first defense for Hanako-san.

***3/4

「Kotori」, Emi Sakura & Sayaka Obihiro vs. Riho & Buribato♡ (SAKI & MIZUKI) (Gatoh Move, 12/31/2015)

Gatoh Move - Japan Tour・206 (12/31/2015)

「Kotori」, Emi Sakura & Sayaka Obihiro vs. Riho & Buribato♡ (SAKI & MIZUKI)

This was a very kinetic trios match, the action accelerates towards a very exciting peak, moves and sequences are seamlessly strung together in an incredible way. It was so simple and yet delivered so much, amazing match.

*****

Stardom - Io Shirai 10th Anniversary Show ～ＩＯＩＯ～ (3/9/2017)

2. HZK vs. Kagetsu vs. Kris Wolf

This was proper high speed; an improvement over the similar Nagoya trio. This turns into a de facto handicap match with HZK looking strong fending for herself.

***

3. Midnight Angel & Minoru Suzuki vs Black Midnight Devil & KAI

This was a fun mesh of wacky gimmicks.

***

4. Toni Storm vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto

There were some bombs thrown at the end, including a nice German suplex from Storm, but overall I didn't get much from this.

**1/4

5. Kairi Hojo, Yoko Bito & Konami vs. Hiromi Mimura, Aoi Kizuki & Jungle Kyona

Fun trios. The draw here is obviously Aoi Kizuki making her Stardom debut. She looked good and fit in well with the rest of the girls.

***

6. Io Shirai & Meiko Satomura vs. Mayu Iwatani & Chihiro Hashimoto

My God, this was an excellent main event. Chihiro was looking very strong against Io, Mayu gets mauled by gruesome kicks and suplexes. The energy, the sequences and the drama here are absolutely grand.

****3/4

Gatoh Move - One Night in Prince Basement (11/19/2016)

1.「Kotori」& Aasa Maika vs. Madoka & Mitsuru Konno

There's a great heated moment where Aasa and Konno are trading kicks while applying kneebars on each other. Aasa knows how to bring the drama in the ring. Madoka held nothing back against these girls. This match ruled.

****

2. DJ Nira vs. Hikaru Shida

The Ass God goes on a shinai-swinging rampage.

**1/2

3. IWA Triple Crown Championship: Riho (c) vs. Makoto

I like Makoto as this overconfident heel who is holding GM's top singles belt captive and fighting against the roster. Riho shows great fire, and I dig how she makes use of the somato as both an offensive and defensive maneuver.

***3/4

4. Asia Dream Tag Team Championship: Happy Makers 2 (Aoi Kizuki & Sayaka Obihiro) (c) vs. Heart Move Kei Reform (Emi Sakura & Kaori Yoneyama)

A whirlwind of innovative tag maneuvers and counters with plenty of character from the performers. The workrate was mesmerizing; a near-perfect tag match.

****3/4

Stardom - Grows Up Stars 2017 (3/4/2017)

1. AZM vs. Hiromi Mimura vs. Natsuko Tora

I usually skip Stardom openers, but I didn't this time.

*1/2

2. Arisu Nanase vs. Konami

Arisu ambushes Konami before the bell and quickly realizes her mistake when Konami out-grapples her. Cool opening. Nanase's greeness showed in some of the transitions, but this was otherwise a cozy squash.

**1/4

3. Christi Jaynes & Zoe Lucas vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto & Jungle Kyona

This was more or less a showcase for the Hiroyo & Kyona tag team. Dug Kyona's use of sumo palm strikes.

**1/2

5. Oedo Tai (Kagetsu & Kris Wolf) vs. Queen's Quest (HZK & Io Shirai)

This was a very fun match. Oedo Tai were bamboozling Io through and through and keeping HZK out of the action with cheap shots. Oedo Tai put on a really cunning and cohesive tag performance, and vulnerable Io is always great.

****

Tokyo Joshi Pro - AT THIS TIME, GET EXCITED IN NERIMA! (3/12/2017)

1. Mil Clown vs. Maho Kurone vs. Maki Ito

Ito played off of Mil Clown and Maho's characters well. Really fun match.

***

2. Nodoka-oneesan vs. Yuna Manase

This was a meh debut for Yuna Manase, to be honest, but I suppose it did its job in establishing her moveset and finisher. Nothing much going for it.

*1/4

3. Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima vs. Bust Deluxe (Nonoko & Akane Miura)

Bust Deluxe reunited for one last time as part of Akane's graduation road. Akane did not wear her old gear. Some decent tag action, I liked the Miyu-Nonoko segment and Shoko was generally interesting.

**1/2

4. SIN Biishiki-gun (Saki-sama & Masa) vs. Rika Tatsumi & Azusa Takigawa

Biishiki-gun is one of my favorite joshi puroresu acts going today. Takigawa is determined to pin Saki-sama after coming so close the last time they met, scoring near-falls, but ultimately falls short to the very hold that beat her before.

***

5. TOKYO Princess of Princess Championship: Yuu (c) vs. Reika Saiki

I liked when Reika started laying in those kicks in response to Yuu's stiffness. The judoka bear Yuu was on a different level with those throws and submissions, though. Yuu's last ride looked frightening.

***1/2

Tokyo Joshi Pro - Yokodai Station Event Wrestling (3/4/2017)

Tokyo Joshi Pro - Yokodai Station Event Wrestling Part 1 (Day) (3/4/2017)

1. Nodoka-oneesan vs. Nonoko

The outside setting at Yōkōdai Station and the blowing wind creates an interesting atmosphere. This had all the makings of a modern joshi puroresu standout. Unfortunately, Isogo-ku wasn't into the story being told here, they barely participate in the performance happening before them, hurting its narrative. TJPW should never run this town again.

N/A

2. Akane Miura vs. Azusa Takigawa

**

5. Mil Clown & Miyu Yamashita vs. Maho Kurone & Shoko Nakajima

Decent match with an interesting mishmash of characters. The referee was getting pissed with Mil Clown's shenanigans. Calm down, buddy.

**1/4

Tokyo Joshi Pro - Yokodai Station Event Wrestling Part 2 (Night) (3/4/2017)

1. Azusa Takigawa vs. Mil Clown

Is marriage only a piece of paper?

**

2. Rika Tatsumi vs. Akane Miura

Two joshi wrestlers having a competitive match at night outside of a railway station. Rika hits a billiken, which as a hip attack connoisseur I like seeing.

**

5. Yuu & Shoko Nakajima vs. Miyu Yamashita & Nodoka-oneesan

Nakajima & Yuu's work over session on Nodoka was good. Miyu's presence is as strong as her Inoki jawline, she always creates a special feeling in her matches. Yuu's plants Nodoka with some vile throws for the finish.

***1/2