Tokyo Joshi Pro - Brand New Wrestling ~The Beginning of the New Era~ (8/26/2017)

1. Yuna Manase & Yuki Kamifuku vs. Mizuki & Nonoko

*

2. Idol Lumberjack Death Match (Referee: Sanshiro Takagi): Azusa Takigawa vs. Maki Ito

*1/2

3. Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship: Yuu (c) vs. Nodoka-oneesan vs. Marika Kobashi

This was a fun 3WAY match. I was really into the Marika-Yuu chop battle.

***1/2

4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Solo Darling

**

5. Miyu Yamashita vs. Meiko Satomura

Satomura was mowing down Miyu with kicks, but Miyu manages to cut Satomura off and rallies with head stomps. I liked Miyu's aggression when she locks in the cobra clutch. Satomura gave Miyu more than I expected, so kudos to that.

****

6. Dream Dragon Bombers (Rika Tatsumi, Maho Kurone & Shiro Koshinaka) vs. NEO Biishiki-gun (Saki-sama, Masa & Yukio Saint Laurent)

Koshinaka was the most over performer in the building. I'm liking Yukio in this doctor gimmick. Rika getting her big win over Saki-sama was a nice moment.

***3/4

7. TOKYO Princess of Princess Championship: Yuka Sakazaki (c) vs. Reika Saiki

This is one of those matches that has a gradual build up to a great finishing run, and it makes everything that happened leading up to it worth it.

****

HARASHIMA vs. KUDO (DDT, 5/31/2015)

DDT - Audience 2015 (5/31/2015)

KO-D Openweight Championship: HARASHIMA (c) vs. KUDO

Oh man, these guys work so well together. They start off tenderising each other's midsections with kicks, knees and punches, and the match only gets more and more intense as it continues. HARASHIMA was the perfect asshole here, using punches to the face and smiling when he had the advantage. KUDO had to make well-timed counters to gain the win, having learned from previous encounters. This was incredible.

*****

Isami Kodaka vs. MIKAMI (Union Pro, 6/2/2011)

Union Pro - Nimomakezu Rain

DDT Extreme Championship - Best Two out of Three Falls Match: Isami Kodaka (c) vs. MIKAMI

Honestly, I was concerned for Kodaka watching this match. MIKA was wrestling like the worst type of indie shitter. He botches a Tornado DDT on the outside, he lands directly on top of Kodaka's head with his over-rotated moonsault, he powerbombs the back of Kodaka's head onto a ladder.. lots of nasty stuff. It made the match in a way, because I was anticipating what type of reckless dumb shit he would do next. The ending was weak.

***1/2

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

Golden☆Lovers (Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi) vs. Danshoku Dino & Yoshihiko (DDT, 5/4/2009)

DDT - MAX BUMP 2009 (DDT, 5/4/2009)

KO-D Tag Team Championship: Golden☆Lovers (Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi) (c) vs. Danshoku Dino & Yoshihiko

This felt like it went a bit long for a Yoshihiko match, but I never got bored of it. The Lovers obviously have excellent chemistry as a tag team, and their bumping for Yoshihiko was incredible. Fucking Dino probably has the most underrated punch in the business. Very fun, wacky tag match. 

***3/4

Smile Yankees (HARASHIMA & Yuko Miyamoto) vs. DAMNATION (Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo) (DDT, 10/9/2016)

DDT - Sapporo Wrestling Festa ~ DDT Sea Urchin ~ (10/9/2016)

KO-D Tag Team Championship: Smile Yankees (HARASHIMA & Yuko Miyamoto) (c) vs. DAMNATION (Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo)

The sequel to their match at Korakuen... this one wasn't quite as good, but it was still enjoyable; Smile Yankees make for a very fun and interesting team. The groin attack spot with Yuko and Sasaki was neat.

***1/2