Yamane looks something like a young Dynamite Kansai, but lacks the height and right now anything even slightly reminiscent of the skill. Maemura almost has enough bruises on her left leg to be in competition with Yuko Kosugi. Slow motion rookie match. At 11 1/2 minutes, this is a prime candidate for fast forward vision. As boring as this match was, it was an improvement for these two. At least they executed okay. Yamane wasn't ridiculously overselling like usual, but being the big type (in bulk) they had her totally dominate, so she really didn't have much opportunity to. The "best" spot was Maemura turning a back body drop type of suplex into a sunset flip. The finish was one of those ridiculously awful AJW rookie match finishes where Yamane tries to hold Maemura down for three in a lateral press. In amateur wrestling this might work once in a while because you only need a one count. However, Even though it's worked every time we see it in AJW the girl on the bottom obviously has one shoulder up before the two count, but the ref just keeps counting, I guess to put us out of our misery.

11:28

Rating:

Zenjo vs. JWP Tag Match: Miyuki Fujii & Mika Nishio vs. Komina Ichikawa & Kaori Yoneyama

Ichikawa is Acute Sae under a hood. The financial situation of the joshi promotions is such that a no draw "star" like Ran Yu-Yu gets a lot less bookings than a young girl with some potential like Yoneyama in spite of Yu-Yu being one of the best and Yoneyama being merely adequate. Aside from the money difference, it's also much easier to book Yoneyama because the results of her matches are irrelevant since she only fights first and second match types, matches that are about the girls gaining experience rather than the promotion attempting to make money. Fujii, who happens to be the most experienced of the four is the best worker. She's the only one that consistently executes competently. Usually she's not very interesting to watch though, but this was one of her good matches. Yoneyama doesn't have that many moves, but she does some good ones like the moonsault and a few bridging suplexes. Nishio is about the same level worker as Yoneyama, but it will take a while for her to even develop a Noumi level move set. Ichikawa actually did a couple good things like a Frankensteiner, nadare shiki no ipponzeoi, and a move that looked like it would be a flying crucifix but finished in sunset flip position. Ichikawa made Nishio submit to a somewhat clumsy dobitski udehishigigyakujujigatame. This was an adequate match that got better as it went along. While they didn't blow spots, aside from Fujii the execution was typically less than stellar. They kept up a good pace though, and the effort was certainly there.

12:45

Rating:

Black Joker's Turbulence: Tomoko Watanabe & Nanae Takahashi & Kayo Noumi vs. Rumi Kazama & Eagle Sawai & Takako Inoue

MihoKayo were feuding with Black Joker much of last year, but with Miho retiring the program switched to Watanabe & Takahashi with Rumi & Takako capturing the WWWA tag titles from them on 1/3. Watanabe gained a measure of revenge by pinning Takako on 2/11. Here Noumi was back in the program, but Watanabe could quickly be out of it because she was going to be forced to switch sides if she lost.

I'll say one thing for Black Joker, their matches in AJW usually have some heat. Actually, Rumi & Takako were at their best here and were pretty much carrying the match (especially Takako) with Watanabe's knee being in noticeably bad shape. They kept it simple, the way they are most effective, mixing brawling and low level high spots. The pace was fairly high and the intensity was above average. Noumi's execution left even more to be desired than usual. Takako probably contributed to that a little bit, but otherwise this is probably as good as she's been in the last year.

Rumi & Takako tied Takahashi to the ring post, so the focus could shift to taking the bloody Watanabe out. Noumi recovered and momentarily saved Watanabe from the triple teaming only to take her out when Eagle avoided her missile kick. Takahashi then broke free though, evening the odds and shifting the momentum right back. Watanabe nearly pinned Eagle twice with her screw driver, neither of which looked nearly as good as usual since Eagle is one big bird. Eagle was able to pin Watanabe in the second powerbomb, spiked lamely by Rumi & Takako, after Takako zapped Watanabe with her stupid stun gun. For the most part all the Black Joker matches against these girls look about the same and are average or slightly better. This was one of the best because the finishing segment played off the Watanabe being forced to join Black Joker against her will stip, and thus made it more dramatic. After the match, Black Joker carried Watanabe out with them.

Michael: Going in I was really hoping they'd give me a reason to like this match, and thankfully they gave me several. Takako and Tomoko were FAR better than in their 2/11 Korakuen singles match and Noumi's work was the best I've ever seen from her. Even Nanae and Kazama looked good (especially her kicks) and Eagle did just enough not to drag down the match. I guess what surprised me the most is that they had such a good wrestling match (as opposed to just brawling most of the time). Takako stayed away from the urakens (only throwing 2) and totally was able to carry the bulk of the match for her team. Watanabe shook off the ice long enough to show that she can still move around pretty well when she's in a match for relatively short periods of time. Kayo was the real star of her team though. She was all over the place and the crowd picked up on this, really getting into the last few minutes of the match. The only drawbacks were that it took seemingly forever for Takako and Rumi to tie Takahashi to one of the ring posts but the crowd popped well for when she escaped and broke up a pin. Also, Takako didn't look too convincing with the stungun as she looked like she may've missed both Noumi and Watanabe with it. I would've preferred Takako getting the pin since she put Watanabe over less than two weeks earlier, but I was just so happy that this was a great match because I really wasn't expecting it. ***1/2

21:08

Rating:

All Pacific Senshuken Oza Ketteisen: Kumiko Maekawa vs. Momoe Nakanishi

The fourth match in this program, previously consisting of a good 30:00 draw, an excellent although seemingly out of place in the "progression" of the series 13 minute JGP win for Momoe, and a good 60:00 draw where Maekawa vacated the All Pacific title. The series is somewhat reminiscent of the great Manami Toyota vs. Toshiyo Yamada one from 10 years earlier. The big difference is, bizarre as it may sound now, Toyota & Yamada proved they could be a great pairing while working long matches while so far Nakanishi & Maekawa have proved they can be a great pairing only if they are limited. If you look at the1/4/92 Toyota/Yamada match that went over 40 minutes, you'll see a technical match that was about patience and simplicity. Although you'll also see an overlong match, they had the charisma and heart to make the fans want to see them continue, even as the quality sagged. 6/21/92 wasn't quite as long as the 30 & 40 minute draws, but they tweaked the format, doing a showstopper match where they use all their killer moves. While 6/21/92 was the best match of the Yamada/Toyota series for the actual ringwork, the other matches weren't exactly negatively effected by being more steeped in psychology and build, Yamada & Toyota had simply begun to come into their own, and with that maturity, they also figured out some of their strengths and weaknesses. Those two could work smart and sell fairly well IF they were motivated to do so; they just usually preferred the more glamorous style like almost all the other women of the time, and in Toyota's case, that was really the platform that allowed her to stand apart. If they were good enough, the 6/21/92 match was the one to shoot for because Nakanishi & Maekawa needed to double the length of their short JGP match without sacrificing quality, which obviously is much easier said than done. While Momoe can certainly be Toyota, in fact with much better execution, and Maekawa can be a version of Yamada, even if a lousy and uninspiring one, they have yet to show me than can sustain a match in any of the ways Yamada & Toyota did, and thus lead me to believe that the extra time over their well realized 13 minute effort will be anything but a negative. They don't have the move set of their predecessors or the ability to succeed through effort and emotion, and Maekawa doesn't have near the stamina.

As usual, it was a great match when they worked fast. Like the 60:00 draw they did a great full speed opening sequence highlighted by Nakanishi's Momo*racci and moonsault to the floor, but quickly slowed down because they had all this time to fill. Maekawa took control working over Momoe's knee, but the great knee spot belonged to Momoe. Maekawa had her upright in the corner and was choking her with her boot, but Momoe scooted up to the middle rope for leverage and applied a hizajujigatame that led to both going over the top to the apron. In the end, the move didn't really work, but it was a clever new spot that nonetheless seemed to set off Momoe's comeback. Momoe soon had Maekawa laying on a table, but before she could chair her Maekawa hooked a hizajujigatame. I liked that the match was starting off looking so unstructured, yet actually many of the spots were focusing on the knee or back.

They soon settled into a traditional match, but not with their usual lack of direction and focus. After a long back attack by Maekawa, Momoe tried to come back with a missile kick. However, Maekawa avoided resulting in Momoe doing further damage to her back. Maekawa kept at it, disregarding that Momoe was in the ropes and repeatedly punting her in the back.

I liked how Momoe stood up for herself when Maekawa tried to turn it into something of a brawl. Maekawa was throwing her into the guard rail on each side of the ring until Momoe jumped onto the guard rail and came off with a reverse elbow. Momoe started firing back with elbows and gave Maekawa a German suplex on the floor. Although ultimately she lost the sequence, she once again showed that despite her diminutive size she wouldn't let anyone push her around.

I don't know what came over these two, but Momoe kept selling her back and Maekawa kept going back to it. Another great counter saw Maekawa push Momoe over the top to stop her Momoe*latch, again resulting in a crash landing on the back. Maekawa wasn't lagging either; her kicks still had the same zip on them. She busted Momoe mouth up with one just before the 22-minute-mark.

This was like watching two different wrestlers. Momoe kept going back to the knee, while Maekawa kept going back to the back. They sold and had stamina and focus. I have no idea where it came from, but I came into this match expecting to point out the same old flaws and none of them were present. Momoe still did all her great spots like the backflip out of the corner into the German suplex hold, but they came at opportune times. It wasn't about waiting for these spots, it was about pulling them off as a way to get back to the actual focus of the match. They cared about the weardown and submission this time, you could see it in the intense and often energized way they were doing it. They obviously didn't become great sellers overnight, but you could tell it was on their mind that they should be selling.

The obvious problem with this match is Momoe doesn't have a knee submission and Maekawa doesn't have a back submission. The result is, for the most part, they had to just leave this for the last 15 minutes and focus on their regular high spots and ways of winning. There was a segment with four hizajujigatames, but the fans didn't take them all that seriously because they've never seen either wrestler win with this move.

I love how Momoe uses her quickness and athleticism to avoid moves. Momoe learned from the first time Maekawa countered her Momo*latch, so this time she was able to land on her feet. Maekawa tried to immediately take her out with the Hashimoto spinning leg sweep, but Momoe simply jumped over it and dropkicked Maekawa in the face before she could get back up.

As in any good series, a key theme of the later matches is that they've learned what their opponent is going to do. This match had tons of counters. While most were simple but effective, Momoe is so fast that many of them look spectacular anyway. One of the more impressive spots saw Momoe try to counter a whip into the corner with a climb-up reverse body attack. Maekawa ducked, but Momoe switched into a sunset flip in midair for the first completely legitimate near fall of the match. I'm sure Momoe knew she was going to do the sunset flip all along, but the illusion was legitimate.

The biggest problem with the match is that it was so obvious that it was going long. Not that you'd expect a 15:00 match after they'd just had a 60:00 match, but they didn't use their short JGP match to their advantage. That match proved that any length was possible for them, but this match wasn't as dramatic as it should have been because 30 minutes went by before they started teasing the finish. Once they went to the near falls it was like everything had to result in a near finish. This was obviously the most exciting portion of the match, fantastic work, but for the most part it existed separate from the rest. It was almost like at the 27-minute-mark they decided to tack their 8/17/01 match on as the end of today's match.

Overall it was a gigantic step up for both wrestlers. They showed they could work a smart focused long match. While the entire match could have been connected better, this was the best you could ask for on this given day. Hell, it was the best match of both of their careers and better than any women's match we saw last year. To really put it all together they will have to get a submission move over so people will take an attack to that body part seriously. Figuring this is the blow-off to the series, the one thing that surprises me is with Momoe capturing the All Pacific title by pinning Maekawa in her Momo*latch, Maekawa is left 0 for the series.

Michael: This has to be the front-runner for joshi match of the year. Going in I expected at least a pretty good match between them, but I wasn't sure if they could really have a great match over 43 minutes. They certainly were able to though. Momoe was flawless here and the crowd was totally behind her for the entire match. While Momoe obviously carried this match, Maekawa was on with almost everything she did as well. Her kicks were as stiff as usual but she was actually accurate with them all and she didn't get sloppier as the match progressed (though there was a very brief segment during the 32 minute mark where she laid on her back and it took Momoe a second or two to realize what she wanted to do next). There were tons of great near falls and pretty good heat throughout and I highly recommend this match (and really the entire show) to anyone wanting to see how good the current scene can still be. ****1/2

42:34

Rating:

Dream Tag Match ~super collaboration~: Shinobu Kandori & Yumiko Hotta vs. Etsuko Mita & Mima Shimoda

If we can compare a wrestler to a product, watching Hotta these days is nearly the soporific equivalent of trying to sit through a WWF PPV. I'd probably have the same love for Kandori's work if any LLPW footage was available. At least they tried to sell some for LCO, although Kandori's selling today was far more ridiculous than rookie Yamane's. Aside from supposed shooter Kandori's stuff looking so phony, it's hard to put my finger on just why this match wasn't very good or interesting other than to say it had Kandori & Hotta. This wasn't a bad match technically. The execution was fine. It wasn't slow. It was just kind of lifeless.

Aside from Shimoda being unable to get the guard rail loose, LCO looked good. However, it didn't feel like one of their matches. It was too controlled and standard. That you knew they were going to lose didn't help any. Mita never had a large moveset, but today she seemed stuck using the same moves over and over. She used 3 Death Valley bombs in a row, yet Kandori was still able to get up. While it's true that Hotta made the save, it's also true that Kandori came right back turning what would have been Mita's 5th Stone Cold stunner into a sleeper.

I don't know where this match was supposed to be going. I'd say it like it was pieced together, but that might imply that the pieces fit. I guess the good thing about the match was Kandori & Hotta didn't make LCO look weak or inferior like I expected. Kandori was the one that looked foolish, but basically that was all self imposed. Kandori, of course, got the win when she made Shimoda submit to a sleeper hold. Not really disappointing, but certainly one of LCO's worst.

Michael: I was really excited to see this match because being a Kandori mark I always wondered how her and Hotta would look as a team. This started out as a pretty fun match to watch as they really seemed to enjoy teaming up for the first time. It was also helped by the fact that Kandori is still the biggest heat machine in joshi puroresu. Unfortunately, the match soon disintegrated into sloppiness and confusion. It went from being really cool to a minor car wreck seemingly in the blink of an eye. There was one stretch in particular towards the end of the match where Shimoda became obsessed with using the guard rail as a weapon. The problem though was that she couldn't get it unhinged. Instead of just going to something else she went crazy trying to pull it apart. She put so much emphasis on this that she actually fell backwards pulling the railing on top of her. It was made worse by the fact that the audience began laughing at her and everyone else was just standing outside the ring doing nothing. Finally Mita convinced her to forget about it and get back to the actual match, but the damage was already done. Despite the varies problems here I'd like to see a rematch between these four as long as they remember how to work with each other (in the case of LCO and Hotta). **1/2

21:24

Rating:

WWWA Sekai Single Senshuken Jiai: Kaoru Ito vs. Manami Toyota

Toyota doesn't take too many of her matches all that seriously like she used to, but she still brings her A game for the big show main events. This match definitely benefited from the fact that she was winning because that allowed Ito to take most of the offense, especially early on where Toyota has problems putting something meaningful together. While the fast opening might have been better if dominated by Toyota, no one could complain about Ito's diverse brutal impact attack. Where Ito stands above Toyota is that she can pick a point of attack, in this case the back, and stick with it. Ito's early highspots, nasty jackknife powerbombs and a diving footstomp with Toyota lying on her stomach, were not only fun to watch but also served to set up her back attack. Toyota would have used some dropkicks then started stretching four different body parts.

What surprised me about Toyota's performance is she was selling on her comebacks rather than getting right into her offense. She "hurt her back" giving Ito a dead weight style German suplex on the floor after avoiding a diving footstomp off the apron, but Ito sold this long enough that Toyota recovered first. She was also injured landing hard when she turned a press slam into a dropkick. This delay allowed Ito to come back with a jumping elbow. Ito could have used more back submissions, but I'd much rather have her keep going back to crabs than use some ultimately pointless holds. Ito even used a 1/2 crab outside the ring. Although crabs are normally boring, Toyota is so flexible and Ito loves to be so nasty that they were actually interesting just to see how crazy Manami's body would get contorted.

One of the most exciting segments saw Toyota try to dropkick Ito, who was standing on the apron, through the ropes. Ito avoided, sending Toyota crashing to the floor, then followed with a suicida. As it's become a requisite that someone use the lighting rig if it's present, Ito gave Toyota a footstomp off of it.

One of the benefits of Ito dominating the match is that she executes so superbly. Ultimately, the quality of a Toyota big match is going to come down to how well she executes her big moves because you know in the end she's going to give you a ton. Well, with so much back work by Ito maybe we only got half a ton, but Toyota was hitting them so who cares? Toyota did her missile kick to the floor, the Hokuto tope con hilo, and so on. That said, my favorite spot was actually Ito's nadare shiki no fisherman buster. It was just brutal.

The match was rather moderately paced for Toyota. This pace fit the match they were doing though. It had it's share of big spots, but Ito always slowed it down by going back to the weak point. This match certainly isn't going to go down in the annals of Toyota's most exciting matches, but largely due to Ito it was one of her most effective. It didn't have any of the meandering, the pointlessness, or the artifice that kept their 8/17/01 match from being excellent. While I certainly won't say that every spot had a point, this is about as close to that as a Toyota match ever gets.

I thought this match was going to go longer. Toyota made her share of brief comebacks, but never really took over. What she did was drop Ito on her head twice in a row with a deadly northern lights bomb variation called the Japanese ocean queenbee bomb. Toyota avenged her title loss to Ito on 9/17/00 to begin her 4th reign with the coveted red belt.

This was Ito's match, and Ito did a great job. Toyota put her ego aside to a level she rarely has. Not that she's an egoist by any means, but in a way this was like some of her old matches with Aja where Aja would just pound her the whole time and Toyota was just happy that it made for a great match. Recent Toyota has been too much of a routine, and one that would be better if she strayed from. Here Ito got her to do just that and it resulted in the expected big improvement. Now if only Toyota would stick to matches like this and bring back something close to her old level of emotion...While four of the six matches were nothing special in my opinion, I'd quickly recommend this PPV above most any recent women's stuff because it's been ages since a joshi show had two matches of such high quality.

Special thanks to: Michael Smith

27:03

Rating:

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