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A typhoon: Momoe Nakanishi & Miyuki Fujii vs. Rie Tamada (ARSION) & Mika Akino (ARSION team) |
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It's too bad AJW forgot how to book Momoe because, aside from Tag League The Best'98, she was not elevated much during the entire year of 1998. You don't just roll your best young wrestler out in a nothing match when you are running a major show, especially when you currently have very few major shows. This was a decent match due to Momoe & Akino, who are definitely two of the best prospects that have come along in this decade. The idea of this match was to build a rivalry between these two, although that never went anywhere, probably because ARSION doesn't really want to work with the other leagues. In any case, the match focused on Momoe vs. Akino, and Akino challenged Momoe after the match. Their execution wasn't perfect, but they did some nice things including Momoe doing an Orihara moonsault (although she came up a little short on it) and Akino doing a no touch tope con hilo (no touch means that she jumps clear over the top to the floor on the move instead of using the top rope for a boost like most wrestlers have to). The spot where Akino countered Momoe's bridging suplex with a wakigatame was probably my favorite though. As far as spots you'd see in just about every match, Akino's reverse diving body attack where she then goes into an udehishigigyakujujigatame is one of my favorites. What makes it stand out is that it's done so fluidly and smoothly, as just about all Akino's spots are if you come right done to it. Beyond that, the thing that makes Akino's flying look so good is that she's so graceful, extending her arms while soaring through the air like a bird would extend their wings. Unforunately, the match didn't have much to offer beyond the spots. Beyond that, even though the spots were nice, the main problem was that they didn't flow together all that well. Rie wrestled like she'd never left AJW, which isn't a compliment. She blended in fine, but considering she has more experience than the other three combined, she really needed to step up here. Fujii showed nothing, but I think I've written this in my notes every time I've seen her wrestle, so it's certainly nothing new. Luckily, Fujii barely worked so she didn't convert the match to fodder. Tamada pinned Fujii with a missile kick. Miko: One compliment I'll give this match is it made me want to see a Momo-Akino singles match. They worked very well together. Both are agile and can fly, but they aren't limited to just that. Momo uses suplexes more, while Akino works submissions, which adds contrast to their styles. I can't remember being as impressed by a rookie as I have been by Akino. I love the way she counters pin attempts with submissions. Very smooth and believable. Tamada hit her moves, and even the rolling forearm looked decent enough, but did nothing to stand out. Michael: I really liked this match even though it was too short. Momoe was very impressive here, and they did a good job of building anticipation for a match between her and Akino. I thought the finish came out of nowhere, but I guess it worked. James: This was a reasonable match. It could have been a bit longer because, with the exception of Fujii, everyone is at least a decent worker. It's true to say that AJW have done little to elevate Momoe, but at least she didn't have to do the job here. If Momoe had to do the job in this match that certainly would have "inspired" me to write another couple pages. I suppose by the standards of this show, ARSION did AJW a favor by pinning Fujii. Special thanks to: Michael Smith, Miko Kubota - Michiku Pro, & James Phillips- Japanese Women's Wrestling8:52
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