2. Miyu Yamashita vs. Juria Nagano
There were a couple of interesting moments from Nagano in this but overall it felt like a match that was not formatted to allow the new rookie to shine. Or maybe what she showed is all that she is capable of at the moment. Nagano was quickly and easily defeated by Yamashita. The way they were promoting this match, I expected something more from it.
6. Yuki Arai & Saki Akai vs. Rika Tatsumi & Mahiro Kiryu
The selling point of this match was the super tag of rookie award winners and tall Kyoto natives Yuki Arai and Saki Akai, but Rika Tatsumi stole the show. Rika found interesting ways to use her leg targeting offense to counter Akai's long kicks and created a fun dynamic with her tag partner. She did a good job building a theme for the match. Surprisingly great tag match with an effective layout. ***3/4
7. Princess of Princess Tag Championship: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) vs. Suzume & Arisu Endo
Youth vs. experience, with the lesser experienced Suzume & Endo fighting an uphill battle against veterans Sakazaki & Mizuki. Suzume & Endo both did an exceptional job of creating a sense of fighting with desperation and urgency. Endo was especially good at that. The match felt like it was on the cusp of being a truly great match, but I think the lack of suspense in the finishing sequence weakened the ending a little. ***1/2
8. Princess of Princess Championship: Shoko Nakajima (c) vs. Yuki Aino
I wasn’t actively anticipating this match, but I thought it had a chance of being great. I enjoyed the past singles matches between these two and them in the main event of Korakuen Hall together was a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately the match didn’t offer much. It seemed to lack a defined theme, mostly revolving around generic trading of moves with limited emotional expression. The match also had a similarly abrupt and weak finish as Shoko/Miyu. Maybe there is a reason Shoko isn't using the bridging Northern Lights suplex as her finisher anymore, but I'm still not convinced by the diving senton. **1/2
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