Arisa Nakajima is one of the greatest women's pro wrestlers ever, and she probably should be considered THE greatest women's pro wrestler of the 2010s. She's arguably one of the six or seven greatest women's pro wrestlers of all time. What has always made Arisa stand out so much is her display of energy, passion, and emotion that goes along with her high pace and workrate. She goes hard, and just keeps going and going. Arisa is one of the best technical wrestlers active today, bringing a no nonsense, high intensity style. Her ability to carry matches, keeping things on point and credible has helped her make matches better than they would have been without her great input. Her long list of excellent and great matches speaks volumes about her greatness.

Arisa Nakajima was born in the Heisei era on April 6, 1989 in Chichibu, Saitama, Japan. She didn't really grow up as a professional wrestling fan, but once she saw a puroresu show live, she decided that this is what she wanted to do for a living. She started training pro wrestling in 2005. Training as a pro wrestler was initially hard for her, because she didn't really have an athletic background, but she was determined to keep getting better as a wrestler. She had a couple of 5-minute exhibition matches in November 2005 for Major Girl's Fighting AtoZ, a continuation of ARSION, which was a league run by Rossy Ogawa that originally folded in 2003 before Yumiko Hotta took over and renamed it AtoZ. Her official debut came on 1/3/06 at a show promoted by JDStar. Arisa had a couple of official matches for AtoZ in March 2006, but AtoZ would end up folding in 2006, so Arisa's run there was a short one.

After the folding of AtoZ, Arisa would soon find a new home league. On 4/30/06, Arisa made her first appearance in JWP Joshi Puroresu. Command Bolshoi and Leon played a big role in helping Arisa with the training. Arisa lost all her JWP matches before officially signing with JWP in August 2006. Arisa won the JWP Junior Title tournament on 12/24/06. Arisa also made appearances in Ice Ribbon and NEO that year.

On 6/17/07, Arisa won the Princess of Pro Wrestling Title, and she started defending this title alongside the JWP Junior Title. In 2007, Arisa also started making her first appearance in several other leagues like Pro Wrestling WAVE, Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling and IBUKI. On 12/21/08, Arisa worked her first big main event at Korakuen Hall, as she defended her titles against Hiroyo Matsumoto.

On 2/22/09, Arisa made her first appearance in OZ Academy in a match against Manami Toyota. On 4/19/09, Arisa had a match in JWP, but it would be her last match until her return to pro wrestling three years later. Arisa left the pro wrestling business in 2009 for personal reasons, mainly because she wanted to live a normal life for a while, as she had just turned 20. She stopped following wrestling completely until reconnecting with JWP's Command Bolshoi in 2012. Arisa returned with full energy and lots of enthusiasm and determination in April 2012, and her return turned out to be one of the best things joshi puroresu fans could have wished for.

Her run from 2012-2018 was tremendous, as she was constantly one of the very best workers in the joshi puroresu business, oftentimes even THE very best. As you will see listed below, there are many recommended matches from this era that are definitely worth watching. It's also in this time period that Arisa had her very best matches, as you'll see listed further below in the best matches section.

From 2019 onwards, Arisa still remained a great worker, but the overall state of joshi puroresu was clearly declining, with some of the best wrestlers leaving for America, and some of the bigger leagues promoting idols they don't bother to legitimately train. It seemed like the majority of joshi puroresu started forgetting what made joshi puroresu so fascinating to begin with for example, the urgency, intensity and high workrate.

Arisa is not only a great singles wrestler, but she's also a great tag team wrestler. Her tag team with Tsukasa Fujimoto has been a great thing for the overall quality of tag team wrestling. This tag team is known as Best Friends, which is fitting because of Tsukasa being Arisa's true best friend in and outside of the wrestling business. Despite being Best Friends, Arisa and Tsukka have had several competitive matches against each other that are among the very best in joshi puroresu history. Their 12/13/17 match is a particularly outstanding one.

Arisa had won many titles in her wrestling career, but towards the late 2010s, Arisa started becoming devoted to SEAdLINNNG and her goal was to make the SEAdLINNNG title the #1 title in joshi puroresu and help make SEAdLINNNG more popular.

NEO 12/10/06 Tokyo Akatsuka Public Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Azumi Hyuga vs. Yoshiko Tamura & Aya Yuki 23:20. This appears to be some of the earliest (if not the earliest) footage available of Arisa Nakajima’s career. Azumi Hyuga and Yoshiko Tamura were two of the biggest names in joshi puroresu during the 2000s. Aya Yuki, who was still a rookie at the time, is not a famous wrestler, and she would become rather infamous as Hatsuhinode Kamen, one of the worst wrestlers of the mid 2010s. Arisa Nakajima was still a rookie at this point, but it’s interesting to see how she wrestled back then. Obviously, Arisa wasn’t quite the Arisa we’d come to know in the 2010s, but it was cool to see that she was clearly taking her craft seriously, making a good effort and trying to sell as well as she could. Arisa got stretched quite a bit by Tamura. When Arisa was in the ring with Yuki, she was able to be on offense a bit more. Arisa’s offense was still quite rough, although part of the rough-looking execution was also because Yuki wasn’t that good. There was really no reason for this match to go more than twenty minutes, but it was a good thing that it did, because it meant that Arisa got more ring time and more practice. Obviously a singles match between Hyuga and Tamura would have been way better, but it was nice that they were trying to give the rookies a chance to try to develop as workers. Yuki clearly didn’t really develop much as a worker over the years, but Arisa eventually became one of the best joshi wrestlers ever. Tamura was good, but Hyuga was the worker of the match. In the end, Hyuga got the pin over Yuki to win the match. Overall, this wasn’t a good match, but it was interesting to see Arisa during the early stages of her career. **¼ 

JWP 12/24/06 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Junior Title Tournament Final: Arisa Nakajima vs. Aoi Kizuki 8:02. The execution in this match wasn’t always very crisp, but they both showed a lot of determination. There was not even a second that either one of them gave the other a moment of rest. They were clearly motivated to give the best performance they possibly could at the time. Aoi Kizuki showed an enormous amount of enthusiasm and passion. Arisa Nakajima showed that she was trying to go for fast-paced sequences that were relatively intricate for rookie standards. This was quite decent, perhaps somewhat surprisingly when you consider their lack of experience. What made this so interesting was that they just kept going and were putting over that they were trying to beat the other. **½ 

JWP 4/15/07 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Discover New Heroine Tag Tournament II 2nd Round: Arisa Nakajima & Azumi Hyuga vs. Ayumi Kurihara & Yoshiko Tamura 12:45. The idea behind this tag team tournament was that a young wrestler teams up with a more experienced wrestler. The two younger wrestlers of this match, Arisa Nakajima and Ayumi Kurihara, started this match off. They both tried to dropkick each other at the same time. Their slap exchange was quite heated. When you watch these two battle each other in 2007, you can definitely see glimpses of their future greatness, as they displayed a lot of potential. Kurihara had been working for two years, and Nakajima had been working for over 15 months. So they weren’t exactly brand new rookies, but they were certainly still in the early stages of their respective careers. Kurihara and Nakajima worked hard, and they kept taking it to each other. When the far more experienced Yoshiko Tamura entered the ring, Nakajima made it clear she didn’t plan on backing down. Nakajima’s tag team partner, Azumi Hyuga, came to her aid, but Kurihara & Tamura helped each other out as well. That Nakajima was in a match with workers that were willing and able to go was certainly beneficial for her development as a worker. Just being in there and participating in a match like this is the best way to learn for an up-and-coming star like Nakajima was at the time. Hyuga and Tamura worked smooth sequences together, and it was clear they were the more experienced workers in the match. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as both Hyuga and Tamura actually had more than 12 years experience each at the time. The late 2000s was a transitional period in joshi puroresu history, because a lot of people who would end up playing a big role in the next decade were starting out. Hyuga and Tamura were at the peak of their respective careers around that time, as they had started their careers just at the tail end of the golden age of 1990s joshi and were still around to pass the torch to the next generation. Nakajima & Kurihara didn’t just stand by and watch, and they showed that they were willing and able to contribute more than just sufficiently. It seemed that they realized that the best way to learn is to go and keep doing it. Kurihara hit a couple of missile dropkicks on Hyuga. Kurihara also hit a dropkick off the top rope to the floor onto both opponents. The finish looked a little rough when Hyuga went for a Michinoku Driver on Kurihara, but Kurihara ended up getting spiked into the mat. It looked like Kurihara was expecting to take a bodyslam bump instead. This was a good match, and both teams would have deserved to advance, but it was the team of Hyuga & Nakajima that advanced. This would certainly not be the last time Kurihara & Tamura teamed up though. While researching joshi puroresu from the year 2010, Kurihara & Tamura were quite impressive as the #2 tag team of the year 2010 (only behind the #1 tag team of 2010, OZ Academy’s Chikayo Nagashima & Sonoko Kato). This tag team match was the first good match involving Nakajima that we have footage of. She showed lots of passion and potential. The future was looking bright for both Nakajima and Kurihara. Later that evening, Nakajima & Hyuga beat Natsuki*Taiyo & Nanae Takahashi in quite a decent semifinal match. The final of the tournament was okay, but in a baffling booking decision, the impressive tag team of Nakajima & Hyuga would lose in the final to the underwhelming and unimpressive tag team of Misae Genki & Aya Yuki. There was no real need to have Genki & Yuki in the final, because they could have easily picked Tsubasa Kuragaki & Shu Shibutani, which would have been a far better choice. ***

JWP 7/8/07 Tokyo Kinema Club: Arisa Nakajima vs. Natsuki*Taiyo 16:35. Natsuki*Taiyo is usually lots of fun to watch, because she always tries to keep the pace high and tries to keep the action going. Arisa Nakajima was certainly a decent worker at this point in her career, but the quality of the matches still depended quite a bit on who she was in the ring with. Later in her career, Nakajima became a master at carrying matches herself. These two got a good amount of time to show what they were capable of. During the early stages of the match, they certainly didn’t rush things, but they never stayed in a hold too long and kept busy. The first five minutes was mostly about testing the waters and feeling each other out. Taiyo worked over Nakajima’s left leg for a bit. At the 5-minute mark, Nakajima started showing a bit more urgency and felt the urge to start leaping at her opponent. Taiyo would interrupt Nakajima’s momentum at times, and Taiyo would see this as an opportunity to gradually start speeding things up a bit more. Nakajima executed one of her favorite moves at the time, the missile dropkick. She executed the move two times in a row. The sequences started getting a bit more intricate and exciting as the match started coming closer to the finish. They went for a cover on several occasions. Nakajima almost pinned Taiyo with a bridging German suplex, but Taiyo kicked out. Taiyo almost pinned Nakajima with a sitout powerbomb, but Nakajima kicked out. Taiyo quickly went for the Taiyo-chan Bomb, which gave her the pinfall victory. This was a pretty good match, but it’s a shame these two didn’t wrestle each other in 2012-2014, because they probably could have had an excellent or even great match together during those peak years. ***

SGPW 10/5/07 Sendai Zepp Sendai: Arisa Nakajima & Azumi Hyuga vs. Meiko Satomura & Tyrannosaurus Okuda 17:57. Since this was essentially an interpromotional battle between JWP and SGPW, Satomura felt the importance of defending the pride of her Sendai league. Shuri “Tyrannosaurus” Okuda didn’t let the pressure get to her, and relied on just going straightforward, not trying to do things that were beyond her level of ability. This helped Okuda become someone Satomura could trust on her own in the ring for a while, without needing to be rescued constantly. Nakajima seemed to enjoy the thrill of performing in a heated interpromotional battle, and her effort was strong. Nakajima’s intensity and passion made her a key performer in this match. JWP ace Azumi Hyuga stayed calm and cool, and she mostly focused on trying to beat Sendai's ace Satomura. When Meiko Satomura was tagged in, it wasn’t easy for Nakajima, but Nakajima was able to fight back. Satomura threw some of her strong kicks when she was wrestling Hyuga. The tide kept turning, and everyone tried to get out of the position they were in when they were on the receiving-end of punishment. This made it hard for either team to really stay in control for long. Okuda was the least impressive worker in the match, but she tried her best to contribute through willpower. Hyuga’s focused approach worked, as she managed to beat Satomura via pinfall. The finish came after Hyuga saw an opening to start putting more pressure, and that’s when she went in on the kill, so to speak. Hyuga pinned Satomura after a running knee strike. This was a pretty good match. It felt like the end came a little bit unexpectedly, but that shows that a finish can come out of nowhere. The match had good length, but a few more near falls wouldn’t have looked out of place. ***

JWP 10/21/07 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE, JWP Junior & POP Title Match: Arisa Nakajima vs. Misaki Ohata 10:31. After becoming the Princess of Princess Champion, Arisa Nakajima was the one who started the tradition of defending the title alongside the JWP Junior Title. Misaki Ohata kept showing improvement around this time, and she certainly showed the potential to get even better. As we know, she would become one of the more reliable performers in joshi puroresu during the 2010s. When you watch Nakajima’s matches from 2007, you can tell that her confidence and her ability to work smoothly are gradually improving. The good thing about this match was that they wouldn’t give each other an inch of space, and they stayed on top of each other. Ohata surprised Nakajima by grabbing Nakajima’s arm and transitioned into juji gatame immediately after Nakajima kicked out of a cover that came after a cross body by Ohata. Nakajima even kept selling the right arm, which was the arm that took the punishment. Nakajima knew that Ohata wasn’t here to play around, so she started increasing the pressure and going for submission holds herself. They didn’t stick to a single game plan, they just went with whatever worked in the moment. If there was an opening for a missile dropkick, Nakajima took advantage of it. Ohata went for juji gatame again, but Nakajima managed to reach the ropes. Nakajima managed to get the upper hand again and score the win via the Cuty special. This was a good match. The workrate was high, and the action was intriguing. This was arguably Nakajima’s best match and best performance up until that point in her career. ***¼ 

IBUKI 11/11/07 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING: Arisa Nakajima vs. Mariko Yoshida 12:38. Arisa Nakajima kept attacking Mariko Yoshida as much as she could. Yoshida has a big reputation, so Nakajima naturally saw it as a great opportunity to prove herself in this match.  Yoshida, on the other hand, wrestled this match rather cautiously. Of course, this was the penultimate year of Yoshida as a full-time pro wrestler, so she wasn’t as hungry as she was back in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s. Also, maybe she wanted to see what Nakajima was capable of before going for the expected win. Nakajima was a pretty good worker at this point in her career, and she was clearly still growing as an in-ring performer. Things were going quite well for Nakajima in this match. However, towards the end, Yoshida gradually had things going her way more. Nakajima managed to escape defeat for a little while, but eventually, the submission expert Yoshida caught Nakajima’s arm when Nakajima went for a strike. Nakajima was like a fly caught in spider Yoshida’s web. There was no way out for Nakajima, and it was the end of the contest. Nakajima gave a valiant effort, but Yoshida showed why going into the match, she was the favorite to win. ***¼ 

JWP 12/31/07 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Hiroyo Matsumoto & Hanako Kobayashi vs. Tyrannosaurus Okuda & Aoi Kizuki & Aya Yuki 19:29. This started off pretty wild with even the teams not coming to an agreement about who was going to start first, so everyone just started pounding away. The workrate was high, as everyone wanted to impress. These six workers were all young workers who had been trying their best all year, and what better way than to end the year with going all out and delivering a match worth recommending? They worked very hard, but they didn’t necessarily always work very smart. However, the effort was so strong that this should pretty much be considered a good match just based on effort and passion alone. It helped that there were some good sequences and good moves, of course. Aya Yuki was not on the level of the others, but it didn’t matter since this match was like a blizzard hammering the prairies, as the pace and action never slowed down. Arisa Nakajima almost scored the win after a missile dropkick on Okuda. After some more high-speed action, Nakajima finally scored the victory for her team by pinning Okuda via the Cuty special. After the match, Nakajima was rightfully chosen as the MVP of the JWP juniors, and she received the fighting spirit award. ***¼    

JWP 6/13/08 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Kana vs. Tojuki Leon & Kaori Yoneyama 30:00. At this point in her career, Arisa was so dedicated to making her performances as sincere as possible. Her selling and timing were extremely good. She clearly tried to make sure that whatever she did made sense at that moment in time. Tojuki Leon gave a very focused performance, making her a real threat for the opposition. Kana worked hard and she was very good, but her style was a bit different at the time, as she didn’t do as many kicks or submission holds; her offense mainly consisted of butt bumps. Her selling and timing were certainly superb. Leon & Yoneyama worked together well as a team, and they showed no mercy for their opponents. Yoneyama was quite a serious worker at the time, especially compared to her later years. Out of all these four, Yoneyama probably stood out the least in this match, but that’s hardly a knock on her work, since the other three were three of the very best workers in joshi puroresu at the time. Both teams tried to make tags regularly to try to keep a fresh team member in the ring. All four gave a strong effort in this high-workrate bout. These four just kept going for 30 minutes straight. Excellent match! ****¼  

IBUKI 9/28/08 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING: Arisa Nakajima & Tojuki Leon vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto & Ray 8:24 of 16:36. Hiroyo Matsumoto gave Nakajima a rough time. Ray had improved a lot around that time, but she hadn’t quite hit her prime yet. All four wrestlers showed lots of enthusiasm and passion. Ray hit a beautiful moonsault that almost got her the win over Leon, but Nakajima broke up the cover. Nakajima suplexed Ray off the top, and Leon followed it up with a tremendous frog splash. Matsumoto broke up the pin. The action increasingly got more intense, and there were several close near falls. Leon almost pinned Ray after a spear, but Ray kicked out. ***¼ 

IBUKI 12/21/08 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Junior & POP Double Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto 20:49. This was wrestled at a relatively slow pace. Matsumoto’s offense looked rough and not-so-interesting when she did the more generic power-type moves, but her offense was more interesting when she tried more technical stuff and moves that require more skill than simply bumping into your opponent. What made this match good was the effort. What this match lacked in intriguing sequences during the early part of the match, it made up for in displays of struggle. Later on in the match, we got to see more fast-paced and exciting action. Matsumoto took a big bump when Nakajima pulled her off the apron to the floor. Once Matsumoto was back in the ring, Nakajima executed missile dropkicks from each corner. Matsumoto kicked out and was able to continue. Nakajima became more relentless, and showed that she wanted to put Matsumoto away as soon as possible now that Matsumoto was pretty groggy. However, Matsumoto has so much strength and energy that it’s hard to keep her down for too long. This resulted in a lot of back-and-forth action. The selling in this match was really good, and this really played a big part in the quality of the match. A hard right fist by Nakajima bloodied Matsumoto’s mouth. This didn’t stop Matsumoto, and Matsumoto got the win after a sitout powerbomb. ***½  

JWP 3/8/09 Tokyo Kitasenju Theater 1010: Kayoko Haruyama & Arisa Nakajima vs. Azumi Hyuga & Tojuki Leon 16:24. The match started off with Arisa Nakajima and Leon working on the mat. Once Hyuga was tagged in, she worked over Nakajima’s leg a bit. When Haruyama entered the ring, the matwork ended. Leon increased the pace of the match, and she hit a tremendous no-hands springboard dropkick to the floor on both opponents. Nakajima showed a lot of urgency and tried to pin Leon. Leon and Arisa were the two most outstanding workers in the match. Hyuga didn’t really get involved too much, and Haruyama was a step or three behind the others in terms of workrate. It was a good match, but it seemed like it never really hit its potential. This show being filmed from the balcony didn’t help, of course, because it doesn’t make the moves off the top rope look as impressive as they are. Haruyama pinned Hyuga to win the match, which was a good match overall. ***¼  

Arisa Nakajima took a break from pro wrestling between April 2009 and April 2012.

JWP 4/22/12 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Sachie Abe vs. Misaki Ohata & Hanako Nakamori 11:35. This show celebrated the 20th anniversary of JWP Joshi Puroresu (and during the opening of this show, they showed some great footage of the golden days of JWP). What better way to celebrate this milestone than to have Arisa Nakajima return to a pro wrestling ring? Nakajima had been a wrestler in 2005-2009, and she spent most of her time in JWP during those years. She would make a big impact on the overall quality of joshi puroresu in years to come (in a very positive way). Nakajima certainly showed no signs of ring rust here in her first match back, and she outworked everyone else in this match. Nakajima’s facials, reactions, selling and overall work added a lot to the quality of the match. Hanako Nakamori hadn’t reached her peak as a worker yet, but she had been having a pretty good year and also clearly gave a strong effort here. Her kicks were definitely quite solid. Ohata did well, but she didn’t exceed expectations. Ohata would normally have stood out more if it wasn’t for the outstanding Nakajima being in this match. Abe was just kinda there, and she was easily the least impressive one here. She was a weak link and seemed lost at times, especially when she wasn’t able to keep up with what the others were doing. In her return match here, Nakajima generously did the job for Nakamori. Although, I guess Nakajima didn’t really have a choice since she had just returned (and I guess in the long run it makes for a better comeback story for her to lose in her return bout), but I’d like to think that she was being generous anyway. It was a good match, and it was a nice warm up for what was about to come for Nakajima. She would end up reaching even higher levels of awesomeness later in the year, and she would end up elevating the entire product. As we will find out later, it wasn’t just in the year 2012 that she was an outstanding worker. ***¼   

JWP 5/20/12 Yokohama Nigiwaiza: Arisa Nakajima & Manami Katsu vs. Leon & Rabbit Miu 14:16. Katsu and Miu had a surprisingly solid opening minute together. Later in the match, Katsu and Miu continued their solid performance, as they seemed to be inspired by the quality work provided by the other two workers in this match. Leon performed well, as always, and this time she had someone to work with that would actually outshine her, Arisa Nakajima. Everyone did well in this match, but Nakajima was truly a joy to watch due to her gracious work. Joshi puroresu and its fans were really blessed when Nakajima made her return to pro wrestling in 2012. While everyone tried hard, it was Nakajima who got the well-deserved pinfall victory over Miu. This was only Nakajima’s fourth match back since returning to pro wrestling less than a month prior to this match, but her performance here already made it clear that the course of joshi puroresu had changed for the better. ***½

JWP 6/17/12 Tokyo Kinema Club, JWP Tag & Daily Sports Double Tag Title: Kaori Yoneyama & Emi Sakura vs. Arisa Nakajima & Manami Katsu 12:59. Arisa Nakajima showed a lot of intensity with every move. Nakajima has that unique quality where she is able to improve a match through her performance without it all being about her. As great as Arisa was, Manami Katsu deserves credit for being a reliable tag team partner who seemingly improved overnight. The last time we saw Katsu in action, she teamed with Nakajima, so maybe we shouldn’t think this improvement kinda came out of nowhere. After all, being around Arisa will instantly make wrestlers start finding enthusiasm and potential they didn’t know they had before. Katsu showed a lot of passion and had Nakajima-inspired gear. It almost seemed like she was trying to do her best Nakajima impersonation, and nobody would blame her if that was the case. Nakajima is a good role model. Yoneyama & Sakura wore Thai-esque gear, which probably was inspired by Sakura visiting Thailand and founding her new Gatoh Move league earlier that year. Yoneyama and Sakura, former opponents, worked hard and proved to be a strong tag team. Yoneyama won the match by pinning Nakajima. This was on its way to be an excellent match, but it unfortunately lasted only 13 minutes, and it felt like we didn’t get the finishing stretch that would have made this match even more impressive. Still, this was a really good match and it was arguably the best JWP match since 3/4/12. ***¾ 

JWP 7/8/12 Lazona Kawasaki Plaza Sol: Arisa Nakajima & Leon vs. Kagetsu & Manami Katsu 18:42. After we recently watched Arisa Nakajima and Manami Katsu team with each other, this time they were facing one another. Katsu, the least experienced worker in the match, gave a good effort. Leon, as is often the case in these JWP tag matches, was an important factor in the high energy of the match. When Nakajima was in the ring with Kagetsu, there was a cool spot where Nakajima went for an elbow smash, but was met with Kagetsu’s elbow smash instead. Kagetsu followed this up with a powerful dropkick. It was good to see Kagetsu make the most of the opportunity she had here, since working with Nakajima could help Kagetsu’s work reach a higher level. While these four kept the action going during the entire match, they didn’t rush things and made sure to have enough time for proper selling. Katsu tried to hang in there with Nakajima, but Nakajima reminded Katsu that you need to try harder if you want to even come close to Nakajima’s level of intensity. To Katsu’s credit, this didn’t stop Katsu and it seems she even learned from the lesson Nakajima was trying to teach her, as Katsu seemed encouraged to try to show up in a more intense way. The final minutes of the match saw several near falls with all four wrestlers contributing a lot. Nakajima eventually got the pin on Katsu to win the match. This was a very good match, and it had become clear that this was one of the better cards of the year and that JWP was on a roll. ***½ 

Ice Ribbon 7/11/12 Saitama Isami Wrestle Arena: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hikaru Shida 10:00. This was Arisa Nakajima’s first visit to Ice Ribbon since 2008, and this was the first time she was in the ring with Hikaru Shida. Nakajima showed an incredible amount of urgency and the desire to be as good as she could possibly be. This made the match truly fascinating to watch, and it also helped that she faced a very good opponent in Shida, who had continued to grow as a worker. Nakajima worked super hard, and the fact that she wrestled in front of only 79 fans here didn’t seem to make any difference to her. The only thing that kept this match from being excellent was the fact that this was scheduled for only 10 minutes. If they would have gone longer, it’s very likely that this would have been an excellent match. Nonetheless, this was really good overall, and it is a match that showcased Nakajima’s high workrate. ***¾ 

JWP 7/15/12 Osaka Minami Move On Arena: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hanako Nakamori 9:10. Arisa Nakajima brought out the best in Hanako Nakamori. Nakamori had been progressively more impressive in recent times, but her contribution in this match was even more smooth than usual. Everything they did was executed with excellent precision. Even the one time these two had a minor glitch in a sequence, they would cover it up very well. This was a competitive match in which both participants had to be on top of their game in order to stay ahead. Nakajima pinned Nakamori in a match that had these two make the most of the nine minutes they were given. ***¾   

Ice Ribbon 7/21/12 Saitama Isami Wrestle Arena: Arisa Nakajima & Hikaru Shida vs. Leon & Maki Narumiya 17:21. The team of Arsia Nakajima & Hikaru Shida was certainly an impressive tag team, and this was the first time they teamed up together. You couldn’t tell though, because the team functioned like a well-oiled machine. Maki Narumiya didn’t stand a chance against them. However, things got a lot more competitive once Leon got involved. Nakajima & Shida didn’t let this destroy their confidence though, as they remained focused and were determined to win this match. Narumiya seemed tired of being treated like a jobber, and after watching the other three workers steal the show, she found the inspiration to do things she probably didn’t even know she was capable of doing. The finishing minutes were certainly the climax of the match, and Nakajima eventually pinned Narumiya. This was a very enjoyable match, and it was admirable to see them give such a strong effort in front of a small crowd. ***¾ 

JWP 7/28/12 Yokohama Radiant Hall, JRIBBON Natsume Determination Tournament Semifinal: Arisa Nakajima & Hikaru Shida vs. Command Bolshoi & Hikari Minami 16:55 + 1:55. The concept of this tag team tournament was a neat one, as it featured Ice Ribbon workers teaming with JWP workers. Arisa Nakajima is so good at putting over whatever emotion or story she wants to put over, and since a lot of that comes through in a subtle way, it all feels so organic whenever Nakajima tells a story in the ring. Her tag team partner was Hikaru Shida, which was good to see, since these two recently had proven to be somewhat of a dream team in Ice Ribbon. Command Bolshoi, the veteran, teamed with the young Hikari Minami. Nakajima & Shida took advantage of every moment Minami was in the ring, but Bolshoi was there to turn things around for her team. Shida was inspired by Nakajima’s intensity, as Shida worked like a vicious machine. Minami knew her role well, and did a good job of being the young worker in peril. Bolshoi was constantly there to turn the tide, and as Bolshoi’s work was more urgent than it had been for most of the first half of the year, it became clear that there was a lot of honor and pride at stake in this tournament. They went to a 15-minute time limit draw, but the match was restarted since it was decided there had to be a winner to decide who would advance to the final. They continued the match feeding off the momentum they had set before the time limit had expired. Nakajima was one step ahead of everyone, as usual, and she was able to pin Minami to win the match. This was a very good match that featured four workers that were able to tell a good story. ***½  

JWP 7/28/12 Yokohama Radiant Hall, JRIBBON Natsume Determination Tournament Final: Arisa Nakajima & Hikaru Shida vs. Hanako Nakamori & Maki Narumiya 12:04. This had the vibe of an important tournament final, because the wrestlers showed a lot of urgency from the start. Narumiya showed a lot of courage, as she was not completely intimidated by the dream team of Nakajima & Shida, who had been on a roll during their short run as tag team, in addition to their reputation as top singles wrestlers. To further emphasize that this match mattered and that this wasn’t just another tag match, Shida placed a chair on top of the shoulders of Narumiya, who was selling on the apron, as Nakajima came crashing down off the top rope onto the chair. This was perhaps somewhat uncharacteristic, but it showed that this was a battle where the winner would have to pull out all the stops. Hanako pinned Nakajima to win the match. This was really good, but I was ready for a few more minutes of action from these four. It kinda felt like Nakamori’s team scored a somewhat lucky win over the impressive tag team of Nakajima & Shida. ***¾ 

JWP 8/19/12 Tokyo Korakuen Hall JWP & Daily Sports Women’s Double Tag Title: Kaori Yoneyama & Emi Sakura vs. Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi 13:09. Command Bolshoi was particularly motivated, and she probably felt she had to be, to prove that she still was one of the main workers. These four were among the most established names in JWP at that moment in time. Arisa Nakajima really enhanced the match by being the one who really took this match to the next level by turning things up a notch during the final minutes through her hard work. Throughout the match, Nakajima was able to put over that she doesn’t give up and keeps trying. Kaori Yoneyama & Emi Sakura were a strong tag team, and their teamwork stood out, but they were beaten here when Nakajima pinned Yoneyama. Overall, this was a really good match that is certainly among the better matches of the year 2012. ***¾  

JWP 9/9/12 Tokyo Kinema Club, JWP Tag & Daily Sports Tag Double Title: Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi vs. Leon & Ray 17:02. This was a tag team match featuring the two best tag teams of 2012. All four workers showed why they are four recognizable names in joshi puroresu. There were plenty of big moves, and a lot of exciting moments. Command Bolshoi was there to back up Arisa Nakajima as much as she could. Nakajima really put it over that she tried her best to help her team survive this battle against the spectacular tag team of Leon & Ray. Leon hit several cool-looking moves, and her tag team partner Ray moved around the ring elegantly. The final minutes featured several pinfall attempts. These two teams were so evenly matched, but in the end, it was Bolshoi pinning Ray that ended the match. This was really good, and definitely one of the better matches of the year. It’s certainly a memorable match and recommended in particular for those who want to see the two best tag teams of 2012 battle it out against each other. ***¾ 

JWP 10/21/12 Hakata Starlanes: Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi & Maki Narumiya vs. Leon & Sendai Sachiko & Tsubasa Kuragaki 16:55. Arisa Nakajima and Sendai Sachiko stole the show. Kuragaki brought her power and was a good addition to her team. Narumiya did well, especially considering she was the odd one out. Bolshoi and Leon had several nice moments together, but they didn’t stand out as much as Arisa and Sachiko. It’s a very good match that gave a good indication of why JWP was such a strong league at the time, because it’s an exciting trios match featuring notable wrestlers and a strong performance by Arisa. ***½ 

JWP 10/28/12 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE, JWP Tag & Daily Sports Tag Double Title: Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi vs. Hanako Nakamori & Morii 16:13. Arisa Nakajima and Hanako Nakamori were really laying it into each other. Their hard work and enthusiasm really made this match, even when they weren’t facing each other. Bolshoi Kid was reliable, as always. Morii continued to exceed expectations by not giving in on the label of being the default weak link, as she did give a strong effort. However, it was certainly because of the other three workers that Morii had a rare opportunity to be part of an excellent match. Nakajima gave a superb performance, showing her status as a super worker. Nakamori deserves credit for being the second-best worker in the match, even surpassing Bolshoi in the quality and effort department. **** 

MakoKana Pro 11/9/12 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE: Arisa Nakajima & Syuri vs. Kana & Kagetsu 30:00. This was the main event of a show produced by Kana and Makoto. Just looking at the four names involved in this main event match makes this a match true joshi puroresu aficionados should be seeking out. Syuri’s kicks were impressive throughout this match, and that seemed to make Kana show everyone that her kicks were super impressive as well. Syuri, who has a kickboxing background, brought some stiff looking no-nonsense strikes to this match, and some of Syuri’s most interesting moments obviously featured her interactions with Kana, since those two were quite familiar with each other and had been having a competitive feud. Kana was able to display her tremendous skill level, in particular her ability to perform tremendous escapes, counters and viciousness. Arisa Nakajima showed her versatility here, as she was able to fit in very well, and not just fit in, but also add quality to this match through her hard work and ability. Nakajima also was not afraid to make this more of a regular puroresu style match, even though Kana and Syuri had been setting a quasi shoot style vibe. Kagetsu kinda felt like the odd one out here, but she deserves credit for hanging in there and commanding respect through her effort and energy. In particular, it was cool to see her battling Syuri, as Kagetsu appeared to be seeing it as an interesting challenge to try to grapple with Syuri and bring as much to the table as she could. Nakajima and Kagetsu battling it out was arguably even cooler though, because Nakajima allowed Kagetsu to really try to take things to a new level. Whenever Nakajima and Kana battled each other, we were privileged to watch the two best in the world taking it to one another. Kana was viciously brutal and strong technically. Nakajima was so great at everything and showed she had such a great eye for detail. Near the finish, Kana attempted to make Syuri submit, but luckily for Syuri, the time limit expired. This was a joy to watch, and this match is recommended for anyone who is interested in seeing some of 2012 joshi puroresu’s top talent in action. This was arguably the best match of 2012. ****½  

JWP 12/2/12 Tokyo Kinema Club Captain’s Fall: Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi & Leon & Kayoko Haruyama vs. Emi Sakura & Kaori Yoneyama & Hanako Nakamori & Morii 17:26. The stipulation of this match was that the team captain, Arisa or Emi, would have to get pinned. This was a fast-paced match that was never dull, even though it felt a bit chaotic sometimes. It was a very good match, but I think they overdid the pinfall attempts. Near falls and pinfall attempts are cool, but when they’re done excessively, they kinda start to lose meaning, which can cause the viewer to lose interest. The overall work was really good though, as everyone worked really hard and tried to make this a spectacular main event. The final seven minutes or so were particularly intriguing to watch. After lots of action, Arisa Nakajima did the job, resulting in her team losing after Kaori Yoneyama pinned her. Everyone gave at least a good effort, but in terms of quality, the performances of Arisa Nakajima, Command Bolshoi, and Kaori Yoneyama stood out most. ***¾  

JWP 12/24/12 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Emi Sakura vs. Arisa Nakajima 21:05. This was a big match for the prestigious JWP Openweight Title, previously held by names such as Dynamite Kansai, Devil Masami, Hikari Fukuoka, Azumi Hyuga, Ran YuYu, Command Bolshoi, Tsubasa Kuragaki, Kaori Yoneyama and Leon. Emi Sakura had been the title holder since taking the belt away from Kayako Huruyama on 10/28/12. Arisa Nakajima had established herself as a top name in 2012, and she deservingly got a shot at this prestigious title on the year end show. Sakura’s thunderous chops were a main part of her dominating offense early in the match. Once Nakajima had the chance, she fought back as hard as she could. Sakura seemed pretty confident early in the match. However, Nakajima was always able to fight back, and never backed down. The best thing about this match is that these two really put over the fact that this was a big match. This was a big match indeed, since this was the main event of the biggest show of the year for JWP, which unofficially also meant this was the biggest show of the year for joshi puroresu, since JWP was the promotion of the year. Nakajima was arguably the best worker in the world at that time, and Sakura was arguably a top 15 worker at the time, when she wanted to be. This had all the makings of a match of the year candidate, and they certainly lived up to that expectation. Sakura’s offense wasn’t fancy, but it worked. The pacing of the match was deliberate, making every move feel meaningful. Nakajima’s selling was superb, and is one of the main reasons this match was so great. Nakajima’s fighting spirit was the true story of this match, as it was so intriguing to see her keep fighting and not give up. Sakura showed she was a smart veteran by being able to work a match this great, which is noteworthy since she usually isn’t involved in matches of this quality. Sakura acting arrogant and overconfident only helped Nakajima come across as even more of a sympathetic hero, as if that wasn’t already established. About 25 seconds before the finish, Nakajima delivered a brutal headbutt and started bleeding. A couple of moves later, Nakajima was able to win the match. Nakajima beat Sakura via a Dragon suplex, and Nakajima became the JWP Openweight Champion. This was arguably Sakura’s greatest performance ever, and this match was the beginning of a streak of several match of the year candidates Nakajima would have throughout the remainder of the decade, and beyond. Both these workers clearly wanted to make this special, and they succeeded for sure. This was one of the best matches of 2012. Nakajima proved in 2012 that the biggest gift joshi puroresu received that decade was her return to pro wrestling. ****¼   

WAVE 5/6/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Kana & Ayumi Kurihara vs. Arisa Nakajima & Yumi Oka 10:10 of 20:00. This match looked super interesting on paper, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. Kana’s reactions, selling and facials added a lot. Arisa Nakajima showed a lot of fire, and her interactions with Kana were a joy to watch. Kana and Nakajima were arguably the two best workers in all of pro wrestling at the time, and their work here certainly would make anyone look forward to a singles match between these two. Kana and Nakajima hit each other with a lot of intensity. Ayumi Kurihara showed great enthusiasm and certainly added a lot to the match as well. She would be retiring a few months later, but you couldn’t tell from her really good performance here. Nakajima and Kurihara hit some perfectly executed moves on each other, including a couple of German suplexes by Nakajima, and Kurihara hit a spectacular uranage. So we had the three best workers of the year in one match… and then there was Yumi Oka, who was the weak link of the match. Oka was a decent worker, at times pretty good, but she usually was quite dull and repetitive. She certainly wasn’t on the level of the other three workers in this match. However, whenever Oka was in, she made sure to keep working at the pace that had been set, and she understood she was involved in a really good match. Oka was good enough to not drag the match down too much, and she was certainly carryable. Kana made the Oka segments interesting through appropriate selling and clever counters. This really good match was arguably among the best 15 matches of the year, but it’s a shame we only got to see half of it. ***¾ 

WAVE 5/15/13 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING, Catch the WAVE Slender Block: Arisa Nakajima vs. Shu Shibutani  7:07 of 8:33 shown. This Catch the WAVE tournament block called “Slender Block” was particularly interesting because it featured Arisa Nakajima, Syuri, Hikaru Shida and Shu Shibutani. Those four really stood out in this tournament. The other three workers in this block (Mio Shirai, Cherry and Moeka Haruhi) did well for themselves, but didn’t quite have matches as memorable as the main four. I expected Mio to have better matches, but Mio’s matches in this tournament were quite short, so she ended up not standing out as much. Obviously this match between Nakajima and Shibutani was going to be at least good, and it turned out to be very good, but ideally these two would have met in a longer match. Ironically, these two would have a match that was arguably just slightly better on 7/15/13 in a match that was even shorter than this one (the 7/15/13 match was at a further stage in the tournament though and exceptionally good for a match of its length). Here in the round robin portion of the tournament, they both really put each other’s moves over very well, and especially Nakajima’s selling was great. Both workers showed a lot of intensity behind every move. Nakajima put so much force and effort behind every move, and Shibutani showed that she really cared about every second this match lasted. These two were so subtle and smooth at working a good match that they made it look easy. ***½ 

WAVE 6/2/13 Nagoya Club Diamond Hall, Catch the WAVE Slender Block: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hikaru Shida 8:59 of 15:00. Arisa Nakajima’s selling was of top-notch quality, as usual. Hikaru Shida executed a nice huracarrana and a nice jumping high knee. Nakajima hit several nice looking suplexes. Shida used her bamboo kendo stick once, but referee Tommy Ran was used to a lot more violence than that, so it didn’t result in any warning of sorts. It’s nice these workers got 15 minutes after watching several good tournament matches that were considerably shorter, it’s just a shame we didn’t get to see all of the action. The extra time seemed to help though, because even though what we got to see was edited down (we got to see just a little over half of the match), it felt a bit more satisfying of a match than some of the shorter matches in this tournament. ***½ 

WAVE 6/19/13 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING, Catch the WAVE Slender Block: Arisa Nakajima vs. Syuri 8:33 of 15:00. This had a bit more variety in terms of moves and overall approach of the match than most of Syuri’s matches had in this tournament, which I think is a great example of Arisa helping her opponents to bring out some hidden abilities, even when Nakajima is facing a top 6 worker like Syuri. Nakajima bumped well for Syuri’s awesome jumping high knee. They both did a great job of making the final minute or so more dramatic, as the match was nearing the time limit. It’s good to know these two got 15 minutes, despite the fact we only got to see half of it. Overall, this was some very good pro wrestling. ***½ 

WAVE 7/15/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Catch the WAVE Quarter Final: Arisa Nakajima vs. Shu Shibutani 5:52 of 6:43. Syuri had the most points (8) in her block, and was placed automatically in the semi final of the tournament. Arisa had the second-most points (7) in the block and faced Shibutani, who had won a four-way match over Shida, Mio and Cherry to determine Arisa’s quarter final opponent. This quarter final match between Arisa and Shibutani was a little bit more energetic than their match in the round robin portion of the tournament. Shibutani’s tope suicida was spectacular and emphasized her will to win. Arisa excels in emphasizing the importance of matches, and she worked this match with tremendous urgency. The way Nakajima took Shibutani’s DDT gave me chills up and down my spine, as these two workers performed it to such perfection. It’s a shame it was only a 6-minute match, but what they did with these six minutes was more worthwhile than what most workers do with 15 minutes. ***½ 

WAVE 7/15/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Catch the WAVE Semi Final: Arisa Nakajima vs. Syuri 9:15 of 11:02. This was the semi final of the tournament, which means the winner of this match would win the Slender Block and would go on to face the winner of the Glamour Block. This match was of similar quality and of similar length as their 6/19/13 match. The execution of the moves in this 7/15/13 match seemed slightly more crisp and the overall work in this 7/15/13 match felt more intense, which was to be somewhat expected since this was a semi final match. ***½ 

WAVE 7/15/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Catch the WAVE Final: Arisa Nakajima vs. Misaki Ohata 12:04 of 13:06. It was good to see these two make it to the final, because they were the most impressive performers of their respective blocks. A stiff kick by Nakajima to Ohata’s back made people on the front row cringe. Ohata was good, but Nakajima carried the match and pretty much made this match as good as it was. It took Ohata a while to start feeling some of the energy she felt earlier in the tournament, which was perhaps understandable given this was the third match of the night for both these two. Shibutani received the bronze medal for finishing third. Arisa Nakajima refused her silver medal, and walked away. I can’t blame Nakajima, since she deserved gold instead of silver. Ohata received the gold medal and trophy for winning the tournament. This was arguably the best show of the year, because it had three very good matches on it. ***½  

JWP 7/28/13 Nagoya Club Diamond Hall, JWP Openweight & CMLL-REINA International Double Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Command Bolshoi 18:31. This is the type of match that shows how good Command Bolshoi still could be in 2013. Although, it still wasn’t quite as good as the work Bolshoi showed in previous years. It started off with both wrestlers focusing on mat-based wrestling. This can help us remind ourselves once again that Nakajima is so versatile. It was nice to see Bolshoi try to work a technical singles match more sincerely again, since we hadn’t really seen that from her in a while. However, it felt like she seemed very comfortable with relying a bit too much on Nakajima doing most of the work. If Bolshoi would have shown a bit more intensity and urgency, it would have been a bit better of a match. It was a very good match overall though, because Nakajima gave a strong effort, and the technical wrestling was really good throughout the match; also near the end of the match, Bolshoi seemed more fired up. In the end, JWP Openweight Title holder Nakajima defeated Bolshoi to win the CMLL-REINA International Title. ***½

JWP 8/18/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Kana 13:56. After not having appeared on JWP shows in quite a while, Kana had reappeared a few times earlier in the year. Kana became the challenger for one of the most prestigious titles in joshi puroresu, the JWP Openweight Title. When Arisa Nakajima and Kana faced each other in this big singles match on 8/18/13, they were the two best workers in joshi puroresu. Kana showed up with crazy face paint and multi-coloured hair. This new look made her even more dangerous than she already was, since now her opponent not only had to worry about her great in-ring skills, but the somewhat crazy and intimidating appearance could potentially give Kana a psychological advantage as well, especially if Kana’s opponent would perhaps start to worry whether Kana had actually gone crazy. Kana was in control for a large portion of the match, as she displayed her mat wrestling skills, her striking skills, and her ability to show all of that offense in an intriguing manner at a deliberate pace. In the meantime, Nakajima’s selling was great, and she really put over Kana’s offense very well. This was an excellent match, but it could have been better if Nakajima would have had a proper comeback later in the match. However, that didn’t happen, and Kana won this match quite decisively. Of course, this helped establish Kana as a big threat to everyone in the JWP, but I feel that this wasn’t really necessary to happen in this manner. Luckily, these two would have another match, so in hindsight, this match from 8/18/13 was basically a tasty appetizer preceding the main course that would be delivered on 12/15/13. ****

JWP 9/22/13 Yokohama Radiant Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Leon 12:51. From the way they started this match, you could tell this was going to be more than just good by default. After some of the feeling out stuff, Nakajima started being all business, and Leon didn’t want to be outdone. Both workers are top 10 workers, and one of the things that makes them so good, along with always giving a strong effort, is their eye for detail. They aren’t the type of workers that would go through the motions. These two tried to make every move have some sort of meaning. Nakajima’s selling was phenomenal and a joy to watch. Nakajima was also phenomenal when she was on offense though. When you pay close attention to Nakajima’s work, it certainly becomes clear why she is an all-time great worker. They were on their way to having a match that potentially could have been excellent, but then the match was over after 12 minutes. I think they needed a few more minutes to make this excellent, but that didn’t happen. Still, this was a really good match. Leon had a match of similar high quality against Kurihara on 5/3/13, and while that match probably had a bit more spectacular moves, this match from 9/22/13 was a bit more able to pull the viewer into what was happening, thanks to Nakajima’s ability to get people invested in what’s going on in the ring more so than most workers are able to do. ***¾ 

JWP 11/24/13 Osaka Minami Move On Arena: Arisa Nakajima & Hanako Nakamori vs. Kana & Meiko Satomura 19:40. It’s always a joy whenever Arisa Nakajima and Kana are facing each other. When Nakajima was in there against Meiko Satomura, Nakajima made Satomura work on the mat. Satomura quickly tagged in Kana, who tried to play mind games with Nakajima, but Nakajima stayed focused. These two gave a little preview of their upcoming singles match. These interactions between Nakajima and Kana were very interesting, and they certainly made the viewer want more. Nakamori showed a lot of courage by trying to face Kana and Satomura head-on. Nakamori found herself in a lot of trouble on the mat against both opponents. Once Nakamori saw the opening to tag Nakajima in, Nakajima took care of business in the ring with her never-say-die attitude. Later in the match, Nakamori occasionally managed to surprise the opposition with some fancy offense. Satomura was good and solid, and Nakajima managed to bring out some more fire out of Satomura. This was a really good match and a good way to get people to want to see more of Nakajima vs. Kana. ***¾

JWP 12/15/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Kana 28:35. This was the main event of one of the best shows of the year. Even though they shook hands before the match out of respect for each other, immediately after the handshake, they weren’t too friendly with each other. The match started off as a wild brawl and they beat the living daylights out of each other on the floor. Kana not only visually somewhat resembled the Joker here, but she also showed a lot of violence and aggression. Nakajima took the beating like the superhero that she is. On 8/18/13, Kana had taken the JWP Openweight Title away from Nakajima, and Nakajima wanted revenge. Nakajima finally snapped and threw a bunch of chairs on top of Kana. These two really put over that they wanted to destroy each other through the way they brawled. These two workers are so versatile, because they not only were able to convincingly brawl better than most workers, but they also showed they were able to have a completely different type of match than their previous singles match. This was the perfect culmination of their work previously in the year. Once they were done brawling on the floor, the battle continued in the ring, with both workers now focussed on attempting to beat each other through the use of submission holds. Nakajima’s selling for Kana’s viciousness was amazing. Kana’s matwork was great as always, but Nakajima was able to be competitive on the mat with Kana. They continued the high level of intensity they had set early in the match for pretty much the entire duration of this match. They never stopped fighting and they never let the other have a moment to rest, which helped give this match a realistic feel to it. At some point in the match, Nakajima even started biting Kana’s arm to escape a hold. In the end, this match came to an end after what felt like a grueling battle. Nakajima had regained her championship, but she had to go through a war to get it. This was the best match of 2013, and arguably the best joshi match of the decade up until that point in time. *****  

STARDOM 12/29/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight & World of STARDOM Double Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Io Shirai 25:18 of 30:00 shown. This was a big match that featured Arisa Nakajima’s only match on a STARDOM show. Nakajima, who was arguably the best worker in the world at the time, defended the main singles title of the promotion she represented, JWP. Io Shirai defended the main singles title of STARDOM. The match started off with both participants trying to get the upper hand, and both were struggling against each other. Once Io Shirai found an opening to start using more of her amazing high flying skills, she started getting more of an advantage. Arisa Nakajima showed her determination and fought back. Both workers battled like they were involved in a match that would settle a war. The work was intriguing, and both wrestlers really drew the viewers into this match. The selling was superb and the intensity was tremendous. It’s a shame this was the final time these two were in the same ring together, because a rematch would have been really interesting. This match is a great example of why Arisa Nakajima is one of the very best at working a great joshi main event type of match. ****½ 

JWP 1/5/14 Itabashi Green Hall, JWP Tag League The Best A Block: Arisa Nakajima & Kana vs. Tsukushi & Rabbit Miu 14:38. Arisa Nakajima & Kana were a dream team based on their ability. However, as they had been rivals, there was quite a bit of dissension between the two. They did a really good job of putting over their angle as tag team partners who didn’t get along, while still delivering top quality puroresu. Their opponents were two happy underdogs who tried to score a massive upset win. Kana made her two opponents work hard, and even bullied them around quite a bit. Their underdog opponents lacked size and credibility, and the only way they would have a chance of winning was if the tag team of Nakajima & Kana would lose focus and start fighting amongst themselves too much. In the end, Miu scored the huge upset pinfall over Nakajima after Kana hit Nakajima with a kick. ***½ 

Kana Pro 6/16/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hikaru Shida 15:00. They kept taking it to each other, not giving each other a moment to rest. It was a hard-fought battle that was put over well by both competitors through their excellent selling. It was quite a balanced match with neither really getting the upper hand over the other. This made it interesting for the viewer, as things could go either way. There was a true sense of struggle, and this really felt like a true battle. They sold things well, and they executed things well. The near falls near the end were also exciting. All in all, this was a really good match. We didn’t get a decisive winner, as they went to a time limit draw, but it didn’t feel as unsatisfying as time limit draws often do, which is probably because both workers fought really hard, and it felt like they were out there to win. ***¾ 

JWP 8/17/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Hanako Nakamori & Kayoko Haruyama & Leon vs. Arisa Nakajima & Kana & Meiko Satomura 12:55. It was good to see Leon show some of that enthusiasm she used to show more often, and it’s hard not to get enthusiastic about a match with this line-up. Arisa Nakajima was the worker of the match, as she gave the most effort and showed the most intensity. She executed everything superbly. Meiko Satomura was good while she was in, but she didn’t really seem to care too much. Kayoko Haruyama was probably the least impressive worker in the match, but she tried to contribute as well as she could. Luckily, we didn’t get too much of Satomura or Haruyama. Hanako Nakamori gave a strong performance. Her selling was good, and her offense looked good as well. In particular, her work with Kana was some of the best stuff this match had to offer. It’s always worthwhile watching Kana and Nakamori wrestle each other. Kana sold really well for Nakamori’s offense. The final minutes involving Nakajima and Leon resulted in a strong finishing portion, and it was a nice culmination of this really good match. ***¾   

Kana Pro 10/7/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Rabbit Miu vs. Hikaru Shida & Kaho Kobayashi 9:27. This match had a lot of high energy, and everyone involved in this match worked hard. Rabbit Miu was the weak link, but she refused to be treated as such, as she tried her best to hang in there with the other three. The opening minute with Kaho Kobayashi and Rabbit Miu doing some sort of lucharesu-esque feeling out stuff was quite good. Kobayashi was quite impressive in general, not seeming out of place in a match featuring the more experienced Arisa Nakajima and Hikaru Shida, who both were two of the top names of 2014 joshi puroresu. This is one of the matches in which Kobayashi really showed that she was a top 20 worker in 2014, as her selling was really good, and she showed lots of energy when she was on offense. Nakajima was the worker of the match, as her outstanding work and energy enhanced the match the most. Fans of Nakajima should definitely check this match out. Shida deserves credit for being able to step up her game quite a bit whenever she was in there working directly with Nakajima, who really managed to get the best out of Shida here. ***¾  

REINA 12/12/14 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING: Arisa Nakajima & Kana & Lin Byron vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto & Maki Narumiya & Makoto 19:30. This was basically JWP vs. Ice Ribbon at a REINA Show. Of course, Makoto appeared more at REINA shows than Ice Ribbon shows that year, but Ice Ribbon was the league she had her start in and continued to appear in occasionally, so we could still see her as part of “team Ice Ribbon” here. Also, Ray didn’t appear as Lin Byron in JWP (that’s the gimmick she used in REINA and WNC), but her teaming with two JWP workers really makes it “team JWP”. Anyway, this was a very interesting match-up, because it allowed us to see more of Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto, arguably the best in-ring feud of the year. Whenever they worked together, it was magic, but they weren’t the featured match-up here. Also, you can’t go wrong with having top talent like Kana and Lin Byron (Ray) added to the mix. Despite being REINA World Tag Team Title holders together, Nakajima and Kana continued to have disagreements, just like they had been having in JWP. It’s nice to see the consistency with storylines getting carried over into matches at shows of other leagues. Maki Narumiya had really proven herself as a hard worker in Ice Ribbon, so it was cool to see her get to work in this match. She wasn’t a great worker, but she was a young enthusiastic talented performer who was fun to watch. She did quite well for herself against Byron, who was one of the main featured wrestlers in this match. Makoto was kind of the odd one out, but she wasn’t a bad worker, plus she’s always been kinda likable, and this opportunity was certainly great for her own personal improvement. This was a joy to watch, and this is a true hidden gem that took place at a random REINA show. Kana was the worker of the match, closely followed by Arisa and Tsukka. Kana worked well with underrated talent Narumiya, and Kana’s work with Tsukka was particularly interesting, making the viewer wish for a singles match between the two. Kana dominated when she battled Makoto, but Kana also tried to see if she could get Makoto to step up her game a bit. If there’s one main criticism for this match, it’s that Arisa didn’t get enough time in the ring. Overall, this was a really good match. ***¾

Ice Ribbon 12/28/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, ICExInfinity Title Match: Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Arisa Nakajima 13:42. Tsukasa Fujimoto was the main champion and main star of Ice Ribbon. Arisa Nakajima was the main champion and main star of JWP. They met each other twice that day in the same building, once at Ice Ribbon’s biggest show of the year for Ice Ribbon’s main championship and once at a JWP’s biggest show of the year for JWP’s main championship. This was a hard-fought battle from start to finish. They definitely made the most of the 13 minutes this match lasted. They both showed a lot of intensity. They kept the combat going and, and they made this feel like a competitive fight, with both wanting to win and both having a chance to win, making this very exciting contest for the viewers. Nakajima was no-nonsense, and she just kept trying to take it to her opponent. Tsukka showed that she had improved significantly over the past few years, and this is a match that showed that 2014 was the year she was truly coming to her own. The workrate was extremely high, there wasn’t a dull moment ever in this match, but the execution and timing was a bit better in their JWP match. To give you an indication of the tremendous ability of these two workers, this was truly an excellent match, but it wasn’t even the best match they had that day, as they had an even better match that very same day at JWP’s year-end show. ****

JWP 12/28/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: JWP Openweight Title Match: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 16:03. Just like their Ice Ribbon match that very same day, these two kept taking it to each other. The intensity level was incredibly high. They were seemingly out to destroy each other, and neither of them wanted to leave as the loser. Tsukka had gotten so far, so now she wanted it all. Nakajima had somewhat of a reputation to maintain, and she fought hard not just to keep that reputation, but more so to just beat and destroy Tsukka, which was the only thing on her mind. Even the brawling portion early in the match didn’t seem out of place thanks to the way they put it over. It definitely wasn’t just about Nakajima here, as Tsukka’s strikes generally looked good, and appeared to make good contact and impact most of the time. Nakajima took the strikes well. To prove that she was here to beat Tsukka, Nakajima smashed Tsukka’s head on the apron via a swinging DDT off the top rope to the apron, followed up by a vicious double footstomp off the top rope to the floor onto Tsukka. Nakajima’s ankle had to get taped up, but she didn’t let anything get in the way, and kept going. Later in the match, the stiffness became even more evident when Tsukka started bleeding hardway from the mouth. Both workers tried to be the best wrestler they could possibly be in this match, and this resulted in this match becoming one of the best joshi puroresu matches of the 2010s. This felt like a culmination of what these two and the other hard workers of this year had been trying to collectively work towards. It is fitting that the name of the show is JWP-Climax, as it truly felt like it was the climax of the year, just like it was the previous year when the 2013 MOTY took place at JWP-Climax 2013. ****½

Kana Pro 2/25/15 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, REINA World Tag Title Match: Arisa Nakajima & Kana vs. Syuri & Hikaru Shida 19:52. This tag team match featuring four top 10 workers was one of the best matches of 2015. The workrate was high in this non-stop, action-packed battle between two excellent tag teams. Arisa Nakajima & Kana had won this championship at a REINA show on 11/20/14. Syuri & Hikaru Shida would end up becoming one of the top 5 tag teams of 2015. Syuri vs. Nakajima was a great way to open this match, and their interactions were also great later in the match. It was interesting to see Kana give one of her final great performances in Japan, because she would unfortunately leave for the United States in the fall. When Syuri and Kana battled, they showed that stiff brutality they used to show in their feud against each other in previous years. Their kicks and suplexes on each other were some of the best highlights of this match. Nakajima and Shida were familiar with each other as well, and it showed in the fast-paced sequences they had against each other. Nakajima hit some wicked moves near the end, including released German suplexes on both opponents and a top-rope double footstomp on Shida. Nakajima, Kana and Syuri all gave a super strong performance. Shida really did well for herself, but she was the weak link by default, only because of the other three being exceptionally excellent. In spite of that, Shida ended up scoring the pinfall over Kana to win this excellent match. The pinfall didn’t come easy though, as Kana and Shida showed a lot of struggle when they battled each other during the final minutes, with both workers countering and trying to avoid each other’s moves. What really enhanced the feel of this championship match was that everyone was trying to help their partner as much as possible, with everyone trying their best to get their team the victory. ****¼

Kana Pro 5/27/15 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Mixed Tag Team Match: Arisa Nakajima & Yuko Miyamoto vs. Hikaru Shida & Koji Kanemoto 19:36. This was a very good mixed tag team match, and this was mainly because they worked this like a serious wrestling match. They didn’t do any sleazy or silly stuff, they worked this like a serious contest, which was worked somewhat realistically, at least for mixed pro wrestling match standards. The two women’s wrestlers started the match off first, while the men were on the apron looking on, as Nakajima and Shida worked at a fast pace against each other to show that the two joshi workers were the main reason to watch this match. However, eventually, Nakajima got to wrestle the legendary Koji Kanemoto, which was a particularly interesting battle, especially since Kanemoto wasn’t giving Nakajima an easy time. Kanemoto slapped Nakajima really hard, but Nakajima wouldn’t back down and kept fighting back. Kanemoto and Shida proved to be quite a solid tag team, and Shida took advantage of all the damage Kanemoto had done to Nakajima and proceeded to beat up Nakajima some more. Shida hit a jumping high knee and executed a Boston crab among other moves. Nakajima managed to fight back thanks to her never-say-die attitude. Nakajima and Kanemoto once again battled a bit later on in the match. Kanemoto once again gave Nakajima a rough time, as he hit a pretty stiff elbow smash, a hard slap and even the Otani-style face wash. Nakajima briefly got some offense in, which Kanemoto sold nicely, but it was mostly Kanemoto beating Nakajima up in this match. Eventually, Kanemoto hit a moonsault on Nakajima, and it was Yuko Miyamoto, who had barely been involved in this match, who made the save. Once he was tagged in, Miyamoto hit some offense on Kanemoto. Nakajima hobbled around a bit, because she was still selling the ankle lock Kanemoto had put on her earlier in the match. In the end, Miyamoto pinned Shida for the win. After the match, it seemed that Nakajima certainly earned Kanemoto’s respect through her fighting spirit, and the two shook hands after the match. ***½

Hiroyo Matsumoto Produce 6/28/15 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto 23:14. It was interesting to see Nakajima bring out the best in Matsumoto in this really good and competitive singles match. Hiroyo Matsumoto showed her power early on, but Arisa Nakajima never backs down from any challenge. Nakajima’s determination helped her get the upper hand on multiple occasions in this match. Matsumoto seemed to enjoy this challenge, and was a bit more resourceful than we’ve seen her be recently. Nakajima pretty much kept showing why she’s one of the greatest, by giving a top-notch performance. Matsumoto tried to use big impactful moves to get Nakajima to stay down. Not only was the action in the ring very good, when they went to the floor and started brawling, they kept showing the intensity that had been showing inside the ring. This was a big battle taken seriously by both competitors. This wasn’t about flashiness, as both workers mainly focused on wearing each other down as much and effectively as possible. They did this while executing every move they did as well as they could, and they added strong selling to everything they did. While this bout didn’t really have the vibe of a war, it was cool to see them both beat each other up in a rough manner as a way to show mutual respect for each other’s toughness. ***¾

JWP 10/25/15 Tokyo Shinjuku Face: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Tsukasa Kuragaki & Kayoko Haruyama 15:49. This was a tag team match between very established tag teams. Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto, Best Friends, had won the Ice Ribbon tag team title just eight days prior to this match. They brought the belts with them, but this was a non-title match. Tsubasa Kuragaki & Kayoko Haruyama were quite no-nonsense in their approach, and they had the size advantage. However, Best Friends were such a cohesive unit that working together as a tag team looked so natural to them. Of course, both Nakajima and Tsukka are top workers, and they fit so well together as a team. All four participants played their role well, and they all seemed to have a good idea of how they could add quality to this match. Kuragaki & Haruyama focused on power and size, and this was a nice contrast to Best Friends focusing on an intense display of fighting spirit and a smooth display of technique. Best Friends were so good at putting it over that they had superior technique, yet still had to keep overcoming the size and power of the opposition. Nakajima was particularly good at showing that extra intensity that made it clear she wanted to do her very best and get the best result possible. To their credit, Kuragaki & Haruyama knew and understood their role well, which really helped this being an actual good match, and not just the Best Friends show. Kuragaki hit a big moonsault on Nakajima, and Haruyama followed it up with a big guillotine leg drop off the top, but Tsukka was luckily able to break up the pin attempt. One of the main reasons this match was so good was the respect these four athletes had for each other, combined with a drive for competition and the determination to make this match stand out. The storytelling was well executed, and all four helped make this a memorable match. ***¾

JWP 12/27/15 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: JWP Tag & Daily Sports Tag Title Match: DASH Chisako & Sendai Sachiko vs. Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto 14:07. Jumonji Sisters vs. Best Friends, two of the very best tag teams in the world at the time (and not just in joshi puroresu) battled it out at the final JWP show of the year, JWP Climax. Both teams displayed strong teamwork throughout the match. Arisa Nakajima’s selling and bumping was exceptional, and one of her best bumps in this match was a wicked bump for a flying dropkick off the top rope by Sendai Sachiko. Both teams knew about each other’s reputation, so they were both slightly cautious during the early stages of the match, and neither team wanted to make a mistake. One of the coolest things about this match was how this really felt like a serious contest, because these workers didn’t go through the motions, they put care into each move they were executing. The action got gradually more intense, as more high impact moves were slowly introduced as the match progressed. Nakajima was the best worker in this match, because she really got over how grueling of a contest this was, putting over the ability of her opponents and showing her own fighting spirit. Tsukasa Fujimoto deserves credit for being a great right-hand-person for Nakajima, as Tsukka was very useful and helpful in getting Nakajima to achieve the big victory. Chisako & Sachiko were a great sister team, but the tenacity and perseverance of Best Friends proved to be too much for the Jumonji sisters. It was an excellent match, but it never reached the greatness that these two potentially would have been capable of reaching. While the struggle of these four competitors was sold well by everyone involved, it seemed like there wasn’t really a finishing stretch needed for Best Friends to get the somewhat relatively easy victory here. Obviously, the Jumonji sisters were competitive and not super easy to beat, but it was a little bit surprising that Best Friends were able to beat them in under 15 minutes without the amount of back-and-forth action you’d expect. Although, this was still excellent overall, not only because of the talent displayed by all four, but also because everyone was able to put this over as a battle of significance. If there’s any criticism that should be made for this match, it’s that it was somehow perhaps a bit too crisp, as it maybe lacked a bit of that grittiness required for true warfare. Also, it felt that there should have been a decent portion of the match dedicated to the Jumonji Sisters being in control, because that would have enabled DASH to get some more of her strong storytelling ability incorporated. Either way, this should have been the main event of the night and the final big main event of the year, but Kayoko Haruyama’s retirement was picked as the main focus of the night. ****

OZ Academy 3/14/16 Tokyo Shinjuku Face: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Kagetsu & Kaho Kobayashi 14:50. Tsukasa Fujimoto and Kagetsu started the match off and worked some fast sequences together, including some cool lucha-esque arm drags. Arisa Nakajima had a less merciful approach to start things off, as Arisa started kneeing Kaho Kobayashi viciously. Kagetsu came to Kobayashi’s aid though, and this gave Kobayashi a chance to breathe. Best Friends tagged in and out frequently while they beat up Kobayashi. Tsukka and Kobayashi had a cool dropkick exchange. Arisa continued to be vicious and certainly didn’t give Kobayashi an easy time. Kagetsu would occasionally try to break up Best Friends’ assault on Kobayashi, but Best Friends were determined to keep going. That’s not to say that Kagetsu didn’t get beat up herself though, because at some point Arisa & Tsukka came flying each from a different corner of the ring to missile dropkicked Kagetsu. It took a big springboard dropkick from Kagetsu to really start turning things around, at least temporarily. The action went back-and-forth, and everyone executed their moves well. Arisa executed a really nice double underhook suplex into a bridge that almost led her to victory. Arisa and Kagetsu worked smooth and fast sequences together. Kagetsu seemed to be in top form here, delivering crisp-looking offense, including well-placed kicks. Kobayashi was enjoyable, as always, and her role was mostly of the underdog type. Tsukka wrestled with urgency and precision. Tsukka’s great overview of the big picture of the match helped her be there at the right time and place. This meant she was a great backup for her tag team partner. Arisa was vicious and showed no remorse. Arisa eventually scored the pin on Kagetsu via a dragon suplex. This was an excellent match with non-stop action from start to finish, and one of the coolest things about this match is that there was no outside interference even though this took place at an OZ Academy show. ****¼ 

JWP 4/3/16 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Mayumi Ozaki vs. Arisa Nakajima 15:36. Mayumi Ozaki had finally won the JWP Openweight Title on 7/11/15 by beating Command Bolshoi. Ozaki and Arisa Nakajima had been teaming up occasionally, but this time we got to see these two all-time greats battle each other one-on-one in the main event of JWP-Mania X 2016. Since this was 2016, the only way this was going to be a memorable match was if it was going to be a violent match, because Ozaki would then be able to combine her tremendous knowledge of wrestling psychology and her affinity for garbage wrestling to create something worth recommending. This is exactly what we got, as Ozaki incorporated her knowledge and at the same time was able to satisfy her thirst for blood. Nakajima juiced and sold the onslaught tremendously through facials and overall selling throughout this grueling battle. Nakajima showed her amazing fighting spirit by trying to counter weapon attacks with technical wrestling moves. Ozaki showed no guilt or remorse in her vicious attack on Nakajima. This wasn’t the fastest match, and it wasn’t the match with the most spectacular moves. However, this match featured great intensity, timing, and execution. They put this over as a true war. It’s a good thing this match took place in JWP and not in OZ Academy, because that meant we didn’t get outside interference. This match is one of those rare hardcore-style wrestling matches that are actually really good, because the blood and gore added something to the match. It’s nice to see a really good match involving Ozaki from 2016, which was the year she celebrated her 30th anniversary as a pro wrestler. ****

JWP 12/18/16 Tokyo KFC Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Command Bolshoi 30:00. This was intriguing right from the start, because they were constantly countering each other on the mat. Neither would really have the upper hand for too long. It was an exciting match that constantly went back and forth. They constantly kept moving, and constantly kept doing something that felt like it was a logical thing to do in the moment. This really helped put over that they both were fighting to win this match. They were constantly struggling to survive, that’s how competitive this was. There were times when Bolshoi would go for a suplex that Nakajima would try to hold on for dear life, trying to block the move. This really helped to indicate that every move had meaning and was treated as something that could potentially lead to a win for someone. This is a rare example of a match that was actually justified to go this long, because the struggle was so intense that neither woman would let the other get away with a victory. When it was announced that there were three minutes left, it became clear that they had been having such a great match that it felt time had flown by super quickly. From that moment onwards, it was clear that it would go to a draw, but at least it wasn’t clear from the start. Overall, this was a great match because it was a 30-minute match filled with intense wrestling and no dull moments. ****½  

JWP 12/28/16 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title Match: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hanako Nakamori 15:29. JWP had a couple of other shows that were quite good overall, but this was arguably their best one in 2016. It’s a shame that things were about to change in JWP. This JWP Openweight Title match was the main event of JWP-CLIMAX 2016. Arisa Nakajima showed a lot of intensity, even during the portion when they were brawling on the floor, which helped sell the fact that it wasn’t just a brawl on the floor because it is an unwritten rule that it’s mandatory, but it was more that Nakajima made it clear that no matter where the fight went, she had only one thing in mind and that was beat her opponent as decisively as possible. In the ring, Nakajima continued her attack, and she gave Nakamori no time to rest. Since Nakamori wasn’t going to receive a break from Nakajima, Nakamori had to fight back hard in order to stand a chance. It took Nakamori a while to get warmed up, and she’s given better performances in the past, but she eventually made the story of her becoming a real threat to Nakajima’s plans to make this a decisive victory a somewhat justifiable and somewhat believable story. Nakajima’s work was obviously the main reason this was a really good match though. Despite Nakajima’s strong showing, it was Nakamori who got the win and the title in the end. This was Nakajima’s final match in JWP, as SEAdLINNNG was going to be the league she would mainly compete in from 2017 onwards. ***¾

Ice Ribbon 3/26/17 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 20:00. They started right off with some brawling on the floor. This emphasized that Best Friends were not going to take it easy on each other. What really set these two apart from the majority of the joshi scene at the time (and in general) was their level of urgency. They weren’t just going to sit back and relax. They just kept taking it to each other, not giving each other an inch, knowing that the other could fight back at any given moment. The execution was excellent. The intensity and speed were high. Tsukka was particularly excellent at following up quickly with the right answer at the right time. Arisa was arguably the more vicious of the two, although Tsukka certainly showed her fair share of vicious strikes. Of all the singles matches they had against each other, this might be the one that resembled a war the most. If you would watch this match without knowing their history, you wouldn’t have a clue that these were Best Friends and great tag team partners, because that’s how much intensity they showed in this battle. This is one of those matches where you can’t keep your eye off the action, because they worked it in such an urgent manner that you want to know what is going to happen next all the time. It seemed Arisa became more vicious as the match progressed, which really made it feel like she was about to win. However, Tsukka would show her quickness, which made it plausible that she could pull off a win at any time. In the end, they went to a time limit draw. This was an excellent match! ****¼

SEAdLINNNG 5/24/17 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto 15:26. The work shown in this match was very good overall. Arisa Nakajima was quite a bit quicker than Hiroyo Matsumoto, who relied more on her power and size. Both participants definitely gave a good effort. Of course, despite being a pretty good singles wrestler, Matsumoto really is mostly a tag team expert. Arisa not only worked hard, she also showed very good precision and timing. The final minutes were particularly good because of the way they were able to build up the drama. Despite Arisa’s effort, Matsumoto was able to win the match via a well-executed backdrop suplex. ***½   

Ice Ribbon 6/10/17 Hakodate City Kameda Welfare Center: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Maruko Nagasaki & Maya Yukihi 15:24. Best Friends gave Maruko Nagasaki a rough time, as they showed no mercy for the youngster. A good old fashioned beating by one of the greatest tag teams in joshi puroresu history was probably exactly what Nagasaki needed for her own progress as a worker. It seemed that Tsukasa Fujimoto was more vicious whenever Arisa Nakajima was around that year, as we hadn’t seen this level of stiffness from Tsukka since the excellent 3/26/17 singles match between Arisa and Tsukka. Nagasaki was eventually able to make the tag to the fresh Maya Yukihi, who was eager to show her stuff against Best Friends. Yukihi showed that she was definitely willing to work hard and try to improve. She always showed lots of potential, basically from the start, but she has been improving at a relatively modest pace. That being said, this match was significantly better whenever Yukihi was in the ring, as she was quite a lot more advanced as a worker compared to her tag team partner Nagasaki. Unlike Nagasaki, who sold and played the role of underdog well, Yukihi got quite a decent amount of good-looking offense in against Best Friends. When Nagasaki was tagged back in, Best Friends had lots of fun showing some of their stuff. Things got surprisingly exciting near the end, as Nagasaki almost scored an upset pin over Tsukka. In the end, the match ended with the expected Best Friends win when Tsukka pinned Nagasaki with the Japanese Ocean Cyclone suplex. This was a very good match with very good execution, but it wasn’t super competitive, mainly because of Nagasaki’s relatively low rank in the Ice Ribbon hierarchy. Still, this was one of the more seriously worked matches that also is worth recommending of the Ice Ribbon matches from the first half of this year. And what made the match work so well was the strong effort given by all four participants. ***½ 

WAVE 8/12/17 Tokyo Ota-ku Taiikukan: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Misaki Ohata & Ryo Mizunami 12:31. Best Friends to the rescue. WAVE didn’t have too many memorable moments in 2017, but this match was a very good one, thanks to the hard work by Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto. It was nice to see Misaki Ohata give more of an effort, reminiscent of her work from previous years, thanks to Best Friends’ encouragement to step things up a notch. Ryo Mizunami didn’t get in the way too much, which was also a plus. Best Friends were so good at making this match seem important. This was easily the best WAVE match of 2017. ***¾   

SEAdLINNNG 12/13/17 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 30:00. You wouldn’t know they were Best Friends and great tag team partners if you didn’t know their history, as they beat the living daylights out of each other from the start of this match. They clearly went into this match with the intention to put their respective competitive nature at display here. Perhaps the best aspect of this match was that everything was done with a lot of intensity. Holds were applied in a very snug manner, and they were both constantly trying to make the other fight to get the upper hand. The workrate was high, and the execution of the moves was done superbly. There were several moments where things looked very uncooperative, which really enhanced the feeling that this was not just another match. Tsukasa Fujimoto’s kicks were thrown in a ferocious manner and looked very stiff. Tsukka also threw some amazing dropkicks, which were reminders of her dropkicks arguably being some of the best in all of pro wrestling. One of Arisa’s most effective-looking moves in this match was a tremendous DDT on the apron while coming off the top rope. Later in the match, Arisa executed a beautiful moonsault that was one of the best-looking moonsaults Arisa has ever executed. It looked like a finish was going to happen, as Tsukka was ready to put Arisa away with the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex, but then the time limit expired. Despite this match going 30 minutes, they were able to keep the action going at all times. What a great pro wrestling match! This was the best Arisa vs. Tsukka singles match they ever worked together, even better than the excellent Ice Ribbon 12/28/14 match, the great JWP 12/28/14 match, the excellent Ice Ribbon 3/26/17 match, the excellent 4/29/22 SEAdLINNNG match and the excellent 4/30/22 Ice Ribbon match. ****¾

SEAdLINNNG 2/9/18 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto & Misaki Ohata 18:12. This was an action-packed match from start to finish. While Best Friends were doing their ring entrance performance, they were attacked by their opponents. Arisa Nakajima and Misaki Ohata were the most impressive ones on their respective teams. Arisa’s intensity and level of involvement was top-notch. Tsukasa Fujimoto certainly was a great tag team partner for Arisa, but it didn’t feel like Tsukka was in the zone as much as Arisa was when it came to the overall performance level. Tsukka was like the bass player who just follows the overall line of the song, without really coming up with anything too special, but at least did whatever she did very well. Tag team specialist Hiroyo Matsumoto always manages to contribute at least adequately to each tag team match she’s in, because that’s her thing, but she was the least interesting performer in this match. The match relied a lot on Ohata’s input, because she was the one who was going to decide if this was going to be a very good match or not, since, despite her solid work, Matsumoto wasn’t going to be relied upon enhancing the match quality in any significant way. Matsumoto did some standard powerhouse-type stuff, and her days of giving strong performances in excellent tag team matches in OZ Academy feel like they was ages ago. Whatever she did here, it was all good enough to never drag things down in any way though. Ohata’s selling was certainly very good, which was helpful, because Best Friends got quite a good amount of offense against her. Ohata’s execution was good, but it wasn’t always very urgent. The match was generally quite good. There was one spot that was a bit silly though, despite it being a creative spot. It’s one of those moments where trying to be too creative sometimes works against you. This spot had Matsumoto trying to powerbomb Arisa, but as they were in the corner, Tsukka tried to hold on to Arisa, in an attempt to prevent the powerbomb, but then, with some help from Ohata, Matsumoto used her strength to then powerbomb Arisa, which subsequently meant Arisa ‘accidentally’ suplexed Tsukka off the top rope in the process. It wasn’t a completely terrible moment, but it certainly was a “what the hell is going on here?” type of moment. A much cooler spot happened when Arisa leaped off the top and drove Ohata’s head onto the apron via a DDT. Ohata sold this well-enough, as she managed to find enough strength to suplex Arisa on the floor before both needed a minute to sell on the floor. Arisa and Ohata traded forearm smashes as they were trying to make their way back to the ring. Things got out of control as Arisa and Ohata kept fighting and never made it back into the ring on time. The result was a double count out. While this was a disappointing result, as double count outs usually are, at least it was a good set up for the upcoming 2/12/18 singles match between Arisa and Ohata. Arisa’s passion and care for detail is admirable and inspiring, and it’s really what made this match memorable. Very good. ***½

WAVE 2/12/18 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Regina di WAVE Title: Misaki Ohata vs. Arisa Nakajima 14:25. 2018 was the final year of Misaki Ohata’s 12-year career. Despite being in her final year as an active wrestler, she was still a top competitor. Here she was even the Regina di WAVE Champion, a title she had won by defeating Yumi Oka on 1/20/18. As Ohata made her way towards the ring in this match against the tough challenger Arisa Nakajima, it already became clear this wasn’t going to be an easy match. Arisa didn’t even let the champion enter the ring, as Arisa attacked Ohata right away. Arisa aggressively attacked Ohata on the floor, but Ohata wasn’t going to let Arisa get away with this too easily, as Ohata fought back intensely. The match kept going back and forth at a moderately fast pace. This match had exactly what their 3-star SEAdLINNNG 1/14/18 match lacked, and that was urgency. Neither wrestler let the other rest or stall for too long, and the action kept moving. Arisa hit a brutal-looking double footstomp off the top rope onto Ohata on the floor. This no-nonsense approach further emphasized that neither participant wanted to walk away without the title belt. Ohata persevered and kept fighting back, no matter what Arisa did. The back-and-forth forearm smashes didn’t feel like the mandatory ones where they just stand and wait for the other to hit them, because what we got here was both of them trying to find every bit of strength left in them to nail the other until they would go down. As Ohata came charging towards Arisa, it was Arisa who countered Ohata’s attempted offense into a Dragon suplex. Arisa immediately hit another Dragon suplex, and this time it was one that ended with a bridging pinning combination. Ohata kicked out though. The match got even more intense and urgent now, as they just wouldn’t stop attacking each other. Ohata hit a fisherman’s buster for a near fall. They kept throwing bombs, and the near falls kept coming. In the end, it was the champion who was able to pin the challenger via tiger suplex. Excellent. ****

PURE-J 8/11/18 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Command Bolshoi 15:00. During the early minutes, Command Bolshoi did whatever she could to try to remain in control on the mat. Arisa Nakajima tried her best to outdo the master technician, but Bolshoi was always one step ahead, at least when it came to the matwork early on. Once Arisa managed to escape and get the match turned into a less submission-oriented style, we luckily still got the same amount of intensity and urgency shown. It was nice to see Bolshoi, whose career was winding down, give a strong effort for this excellent singles match against arguably the best women’s wrestlers in the world at the time, Arisa. The execution was excellent. The countering and escaping was all executed excellently as well. There was a really cool spot where Arisa hit a suplex, and Bolshoi immediately countered with an armbar. Arisa then tried to suplex her way out of Bolshoi’s clinginess, but Bolshoi kept holding onto Arisa’s arm. What was so fascinating about this match is that they didn’t just do a regular walkthrough-type match, but they had a match that was competitive and had intriguing harmony and dynamics. This was probably one of the better 15-minute draws you’ll ever see, because it felt like they gave it all they had in those 15 minutes. We also got a good few minutes of near falls that helped make things even more exciting than they already were. And instead of being disappointed, which is often the case with time limit draws, here the viewer is left with admiration and the urge to give these two a standing ovation. This was a truly excellent match. ****¼ 

SEAdLINNNG 9/18/19 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Title: Takumi Iroha vs. Arisa Nakajima 24:28. Marvelous’ Takumi Iroha had been the SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Title holder since defeating Nanae Takahashi on 5/29/19. Iroha tried to get Arisa Nakajima in the Running Three, but Nakajima had this well schooled and managed to avoid it by getting tangled up in the ropes. There was a ‘mandatory’ brawling the crowd section, which actually wasn’t very exciting. Once back in the ring, things picked up with Nakajima hitting some aggressive strikes. Iroha sold the leg, but still fought back eventually. Nakajima’s Las Fresa de Egoistas stablemate Maria distracted Takumi Iroha, and Nakajima hit a superplex. The match went back and forth. Nakajima kept going for an ankle lock, and it seemed like Nakajima was determined to make Iroha submit. Iroha hit some pretty good strikes that stopped Nakajima in her tracks. Nakajima was able to answer the ten count, but Iroha immediately hit her with a Liger Bomb. Iroha wasn’t able to score a pinfall, so she tried to go for the Running Three, but Nakajima once again was able to escape Iroha’s finishing move. Nakajima came leaping off the top rope and hit Nakajima with a DDT on the apron. When Nakajima went for the moonsault, Iroha got her feet up to block the move. Iroha hit another Liger Bomb and a swanton bomb.  Iroha once again went for the Running Three, but Nakajima escaped again. Nakajima was now determined to make it to the finish line as the winner. Nakajima hit a Dragon suplex for a near fall. The match kept going back and forth, and the near falls also kept coming. Iroha again went for the Running Three, but Nakajima once again escaped. Iroha never ended up hitting her finisher, because the match came to an end when Nakajima executed a bridging half nelson suplex for the win. Nakajima had finally become the new SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Champion! It was a very good match that potentially could have been excellent if a bit more urgency would have been shown during the first half of the match. The near falls towards the end were certainly exciting. It was a relatively long match that was on the verge of becoming slightly too long, but in the end, it had a strong finale that made the viewer able to walk away as a satisfied one. Iroha gave quite a decent showing, but it felt like Nakajima was doing the majority of the hard work, and it was certainly Nakajima’s display of intensity and willpower that made this a very good match. ***½  

Ice Ribbon 7/25/20 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukushi vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto & Maya Yukihi 13:20. Tsukasa Fujimoto and Tsukushi started this match off with fast-paced sequences. For a few seconds, Arisa Nakajima & Tsukka did some double-teaming despite not teaming together in this match. Obviously, this was a reference to their history as Best Friends, one of the best tag teams in joshi puroresu history. They soon started focusing on teaming with the tag team partners selected for this match though. When Maya Yukihi was in the match, the match slowed down slightly, but she still did a good job overall. The other three were working super smooth sequences together. Tsukka’s kicks were quite vicious. This wasn’t a super long match, but they made the most out of the time given, as they kept the pace high. This was a very good match, but they probably could have used another five minutes or so to make this even better. Still, it felt satisfying in the end. The match ended when Arisa’s team won, as Tsukushi scored the win over Tsukka. ***½ 

SEAdLINNNG 10/3/20 Yokohama Radiant Hall, Beyond the Sea Tag Team Title: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Hiroyo Matsumoto & Yoshiko 28:03. This match was obviously less interesting whenever Yoshiko was in the ring, because she was the least skillful wrestler in this match by a mile. Best Friends did a good job selling for their opponents, which emphasized the struggle they were trying to overcome. After some extensive selling by Arisa, Tsukka was tagged in, and was a house of fire. Near the end of the match, Arisa went for a moonsault, but Yoshiko rolled away. The best part about this match was the finish, which resulted in Best Friends becoming the new champions. Best Friends showed a lot of urgency during the final minutes, as they realized they were coming closer to victory. In the end, Arisa pinned Yoshiko. It was a good match overall, but Hiroyo Matsumoto & Yoshiko never got close to matching the level of intensity displayed by Best Friends. As always, Arisa was into what she was doing and gave a strong performance. ***¼ 

Ice Ribbon 10/31/20 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Tsukushi & Saori Ano 17:37. Best Friends gave a strong performance, which kinda goes without saying. There was a cool spot where Saori Ano had Tsukasa Fujimoto tied up in a figure four while Ano was bridging, and Arisa Nakajima broke the bridge with a double footstomp. It is always fun to see Best Friends in action, but Ano, who was the weakest worker in the match, never seemed to be much of a threat. Tsukushi’s dropkicks and top-rope huracarrana looked very good. Best Friends didn’t give Tsukushi an easy time, which only lit a fire underneath Tsukushi to fight back harder. This was a good match overall. Despite Best Friends’ opposition not being the most competitive team, the match got increasingly more intriguing thanks to Tsukushi’s effort and the smart work by Best Friends. Arisa & Tsukka were dominating in a way, but they gave their opponents enough chances to try to be more competitive. What helped make this match enjoyable was that these wrestlers were really into what they were doing. What kept this match from being very good was Ano never really being able to step up enough and Tsukushi’s team not being able to come close to victory, which led to a relatively heatless finish. ***¼ 

SEAdLINNNG 1/11/21 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Sareee & Yoshiko 16:59. Sareee was counting down the days, as she was about to leave Japan to pursue a career as a sports-entertainer in the United States. It wouldn’t be until 4/20/21 that Sareee would start that U.S. run though. The recent title win of the team of Sareee & Yoshiko seemed to have helped their enthusiasm, because they gave a stronger effort here in this non-title match than in the match that saw them win the title on 11/27/20. It was nice to see that Sareee & Yoshiko were more fired up this time. Sareee put a lot of intensity behind her offense. Yoshiko was the least impressive worker in the match, as expected, but at least she tried to contribute. Arisa Nakajima’s selling played an important role in making this a good match, because she made Sareee & Yoshiko look like a top tag team. Tsukasa Fujimoto was a joy to watch, as she often is. Nakajima encouraged Sareee to hit harder, which Sareee was able to accomplish. This helped make Arisa vs. Sareee the most interesting and most intense parts of the match. Sareee being able to be more competitive this time is exactly the main reason this match was slightly better than the 11/27/20 match. In the end, Best Friends were able to win this match through their superior teamwork, and they proved once again that they were the #1 tag team. This normally would mean that they were in line for a chance to win the title back again. However, Nanae Takahashi’s ego got in the way and took Tsukka’s place as Arisa’s tag team partner in the 1/22/21 match that ended up seeing Arisa & Nanae win the title from Sareee & Yoshiko. ***¼   

SEAdLINNNG 9/22/21 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE: Arisa Nakajima & Rina Yamashita vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto & Hanako Nakamori 15:58. Despite the top names involved here, this was somehow not the main event of the show. This probably was because it was a somewhat random tag team match-up without any titles on the line. However, no matter whether Arisa Nakajima teams with Tsukasa Fujimoto or wrestles against her, you know it’s going to be interesting when they are both in the same match. When they were in the ring together, the match peaked in quality. They tried to beat each other, but that obviously was not an easy task, since they know each other so well and. Rina Yamashita was the weak link, because she slowed things down and had to rely on her unsophisticated moves when she was on offense. Tsukka and Hanako Nakamori gelled well together, and enjoyed kicking Yamashita. Nakamori worked hard, which was helpful because it meant that Arisa and Tsukka didn’t have to do all the carrying. Despite Yamashita’s shortcomings as an in-ring performer, at least she’s carryable and not annoying. After some solid action, Arisa pinned Nakamori. After the match, Arisa and Nakamori wanted to continue fighting, which showed that the heat between these two competitors was far from over. ***¼  

SEAdLINNNG 10/13/21 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Hanako Nakamori 22:33. These two were certainly no strangers to each other, as they had battled several times before over the years. Arisa Nakajima, arguably the best women’s wrestler of the 2010s, was still an excellent in-ring performer by 2021. Her enthusiasm, passion and smooth work makes her stand out, especially in a league like SEAdLINNNG that relies a lot on Nakajima. Because of SEAdLINNNG’s sparse roster, it’s nice to see Hanako Nakamori, who spent most of her 2021 in Pure-J, come into SEAdLINNNG to have a match with Nakajima. At this stage of her career, Hanako Nakamori is now quite the no-nonsense worker, and she was able to show she’s a tough opponent here. Of course, Nakajima loves challenging herself, and she made sure to give it her all during these 22 minutes. There was a German suplex exchange that perfectly showed the never-say-die vibe of this match. While the pace was not super high, the action kept going and they kept going for impactful moves. Nakamori’s effort was appreciated, and Nakajima showed her excellence. Nakajima’s hard work in SEAdLINNNG over the past year eventually got rewarded later that year, as a little over two months after this match, on 12/29/21, Arisa Nakajima would win the Beyond the Sea Title by beating Ryo Mizunami. ***½ 

SEAdLINNNG 11/10/21 Tokyo Shinkiba 1st RING, Beyond the Sea Tag Team Title Tournament Semi Final: Arisa Nakajima & Hanako Nakamori vs. Kaori Yoneyama & Yuu 15:21. Kaori Yoneyama is a veteran who can still be useful. It was good to see Yoneyama wrestle as herself, because while that still means some silliness, at least it’s not nearly as limiting as her Fukigen Death gimmick in STARDOM. Hanako Nakamori was focused and was all business, which meant it was no laughing matter for Yoneyama when they were in the ring together. Despite being the least experienced worker in the match, Yuu certainly had a big size advantage over everyone. Nakajima was certainly not intimidated by Yuu’s size. After all, Nakajima has survived many battles over the years. Yuu is a bit slow, but at least her koshi guruma looks good. As always, Nakajima was willing to take and dish out a lot of punishment. Nakajima’s passion, enthusiasm and smooth work made her stand out the most in this match. ***¼ 

Pure-J 3/20/22 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall, Daily Sports Tag Team Title: Arisa Nakajima & Hanako Nakamori vs. Miyuki Takase & Rina Yamashita 20:01. Before the match started, Miyuki Takase walked over to Arisa Nakajima and greeted Arisa with a slap in the face. Arisa has been a regular opponent and regular tag team partner for Hanako Nakamori. Here they were the tag team champions defending their belts. Being the true professionals they are, they purely focused on being a cohesive team. Miyuki Takase showed a lot of aggression when she was in the ring with Arisa. Arisa worked hard, as always. Hanako gave a solid performance, and certainly was a good tag team partner for Arisa. Rina Yamashita’s execution wasn’t the most crisp, but her effort and enthusiasm made up for it. Arisa came to Hanako’s rescue when Hanako was stuck in a half Boston crab by slapping Yamashita in the face. The pace was high from start to finish, and it had the feel of a title match because of the urgency displayed. It definitely felt like both teams were trying their best to show they were the better team. The 111 people in attendance definitely got their money’s worth. Takase hit a nice missile dropkick off the top and a flying forearm off the second rope. The execution was at its crispest when Arisa wrestled Takase. They tried to put over that every time they hit each other, it had an impact. This was definitely one of the most memorable joshi puroresu tag team matches of the year. Takase continued her hard-hitting approach after Hanako was tagged in. Takase doesn’t necessarily really excel at anything specific, but she really puts a strong effort in making each move she executes seem impactful. Both teams just kept going at each other. As the match went on, they showed more and more desperation with the finish seemingly near. In the end, Hanako was able to pin Yamashita with an assist from Arisa. ***½  

Joshi Puroresu Dream Festival 4/15/22 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Yurika Oka & Ai Hozan 9:34.
This match was part of the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the legendary Korakuen Hall venue, and it was the best match of the show. Arisa Nakajima, Tsukasa Fujimoto, Yurika Oka and Ai Hozan represented SEAdLINNNG, Ice Ribbon, SGPW and Marvelous respectively in this match. Arisa & Tsukka, also known as Best Friends, are one of the best tag teams in joshi puroresu history. It’s a shame they got less than 10 minutes, but they made the most of it. Arisa did a particularly good job putting over the opposition, through her great selling and positioning. Both members of Best Friends executed their moves excellently. Yurika Oka & Ai Hozan are both 18 years old and only have 2.5 years and 1 year experience respectively. Even though the underdog team worked hard and clearly tried their best, along with Best Friends trying their best to make their opponents as good as possible, this was one of those matches where you already knew that there was no way the underdog team would win. Hozan was one of the three best joshi puroresu rookies of 2021 (along with TJPW’s Arisu Endo and Kaya Toribami). Hozan’s work is relatively basic, but she has good potential as a worker, since she shows a lot of determination. Oka did a pretty good job doing the right things at the right time. After the younger team had a pretty good run of doing the best they could, their experienced opponents didn’t need too much time to put them away once they were being more firmly in control of things. Even though this wasn’t a very competitive match, it was an enjoyable match, and it was a good one overall. The opportunity to wrestle against two of the best ever was obviously a great and useful learning experience for Oka & Hozan, who hopefully have learned a great deal from this match. ***¼ 

SEAdLINNNG 4/29/22 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 22:21.
Not only are Best Friends one of the best tag teams in joshi puroresu history, they have also had several memorable one-on-one battles against each other. It became clear early on in the match, that even though they are semi-regular tag team partners, they are also true professionals who don’t like to take it easy on each other. You’d expect tag team partners to take it easy on each other, but for these two it would have been an insult to each other to not try to challenge each other to take things to the next level. This was one of the best joshi puroresu matches of 2022 so far, because the overall execution is so much more crisp and intense than what we get to see from most joshi puroresu matches these days. They kept taking it to each other, and they didn’t do any melodramatic overselling like a lot of wrestlers do these days. This match came across as a fight that both were trying to win. Arisa hit a dropkick off the apron, and a plancha off the top rope. However, Tsukka rolled out of the way, and Arisa hit a couple of other wrestlers that were standing on the floor. Tsukka took advantage of this situation and hit a top rope plancha off her own. There were some forearm exchanges and there were some pinfall attempts. Tsukka hit a dropkick in the corner. Tsukka hit several of her signature low kicks that looked to have a pretty good impact. The way they were going at each other made it seem like they were going to go on for maybe another five or seven minutes or so, but instead it ended a bit abruptly. The fact that the twenty minutes seemed to fly by says a lot about how enjoyable it is to watch these two against each other. This wasn’t the best singles match they had against each other, but considering that Arisa and Tsukka both have been wrestling for approximately 14 years, it’s inspiring to see them still going strong and taking what they do seriously. These two would actually have yet another singles match against each other the next day at an Ice Ribbon show. Tsukka is going on an indefinite hiatus after getting married. Let’s hope that when she returns one day that we will get another Arisa vs. Tsukka match. ****¼

Ice Ribbon 4/30/22 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 19:45.
We are fortunate enough to get to watch yet another Arisa vs. Tsukka match. Some of Arisa's biggest moves in this match were a vicious-looking DDT on the apron and a couple of top-rope dropkicks. Tsukka’s offense also looked very good. The best part about this match was that they were able to put this over as a fight that had two wrestlers trying to push each other to the limit. They kept taking it to each other with intensity. Also, their selling and execution was on point. Unlike a lot of other wrestlers these days, it was so refreshing to see them not oversell during elbow and slap exchanges. They were not acting melodramatic, instead they showed excellent intensity. Yes, they are Best Friends, but they are arguably better enemies since their singles matches are always so excellent. In these singles matches against each other, they really are not taking it easy on each other. They are pushing each other harder than they would most other opponents, because these two know about each other’s capability of greatness. Arisa’s knee strikes really showed that she was like “we can’t be friends when we wrestle each other.” They both were putting over that they were trying to win this. Even though Tsukka is going on an indefinite hiatus, they realized that having a match where they go all out against each other is the best way to have somewhat of an end of an era for them. This 4/30/22 match was very close in quality to their 4/29/22 match, but this 4/30/22 match arguably had slightly more intensity and more impactful-looking action. The fact that they worked two high-quality matches two days in a row speaks volumes about the greatness of these two workers. This is arguably the best joshi puroresu match of 2022 so far. ****¼ 

SEAdLINNNG 5/13/22 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE, SEAdLINNNG Beyond the Sea Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Riko Kaiju 19:58.
Arisa Nakajima gave a strong performance, as usual. She showed lots of intensity behind everything she did. Riko Kaiju has been wrestling for nearly two years now. When Kaiju tried to escape Arisa’s attack, Arisa made sure to attack even more. Kaiju managed to get a good amount of offense in though, because she realized she had no choice but to try her absolute best against Arisa, who is one of the all-time greats. Arisa would always regain control because of her experience and confidence in her ability. When Kaiju kicked out of a double footstomp off the top rope, Arisa kinda had a look on her face that said: “this girl is tougher than I thought she was.” So while Arisa was being the confident veteran, she definitely helped put over Kaiju as a worthy challenger. This was a very good match, because both participants fought hard, and the level of urgency helped enhance the title match feel of this match. Kaiju’s work wasn’t too special technically, but what made her performance work was her fighting spirit. Arisa’s execution was superb, and her performance made this match a match that was worth watching. This was Arisa’s third successful defense since winning the title in December. ***½ 

2006: Decent [4.5-5.5]

2007: Pretty Good [5.5-6.5]

2008-2009: Extremely Good/Excellent [6.5-8.0] 

2010-2011: N/A (Arisa Nakajima took a break from joshi puroresu)

2012: Great/The Best of the Best [9.0-10.0]

2013-2018: The Best of the Best [10.0]

2019-2023: Great [9.0] 

Arisa Nakajima is one of the all-time great pro wrestlers, not just in Japanese women's pro wrestling, and not just in women's pro wrestling, but in all of pro wrestling ever.

In her first few years, she showed that she was a promising young talent. After her break from pro wrestling, when she made her return in 2012, she was consistently one of the very best women's wrestlers in Japan (and thus by extension, one of the very best women's wrestlers in the business). 

Arisa's great display of intensity and passion have helped her become one of the absolute best workers of the 2010s. In 2012 and 2013, Arisa was THE best worker in joshi puroresu, with only Kana being a somewhat serious threat for Arisa's #1 position that year. Ayumi Kurihara was another great wrestler during those years, but not quite as great as Arisa (and Kana).

In 2014, Arisa was once again THE best worker in joshi puroresu, this time it was Kana and Io Shirai who were somewhat serious competition for the #1 spot.

In 2015 and 2016, Io Shirai was probably the best worker in joshi puroresu, but Arisa was at worst a very close #2 (and certainly an argument could be made for Arisa being #1 once again for those years). Mayu Iwatani was another great wrestler in 2016, but she was not quite a #1 contender yet.

In 2017, Arisa Nakajima was easily THE best worker in joshi puroresu. Mayu Iwatani, Io Shirai and Tsukasa Fujimoto were also great, but none of them truly came close to the #1 spot that year, other than Arisa, of course.

In 2018, Arisa Nakajima was once again the best worker in joshi puroresu, but the overall joshi puroresu scene was experiencing a decline in terms of overall in-ring quality and talent. Io Shirai leaving Japan certainly didn't help. Mayu Iwatani and Tsukasa Fujimoto were the only workers who came close to Arisa's #1 spot that year.

In 2019, Arisa was still great, but she couldn't quite reach the unbelievable greatness she had been able to reach in 2012-2018. And again, the overall joshi scene appeared to be declining even further. Arisa was arguably still the best in joshi that year with Mayu Iwatani and Kagetsu being other top wrestlers that were the only wrestlers that were also potentially worthy of the #1 spot. During the 2020s, Arisa has continued to be one of the few reliable joshi workers, while a large part of the rest of joshi puroresu seems to be more concerned about performing BS Road Style Epics ( i.e. the typical modern match that lacks everything you'd want from a match, namely urgency and intensity, and instead offers not much more than overlong sluggish melodrama ripe with inactivity) instead of providing high-quality work.

JWP 10/28/12 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE, JWP Tag & Daily Sports Tag Double Title: Arisa Nakajima & Command Bolshoi vs. Hanako Nakamori & Morii 16:13. **** 

MakoKana Pro 11/9/12 Tokyo Shinjuku FACE: Arisa Nakajima & Syuri vs. Kana & Kagetsu 30:00. ****½  

JWP 12/24/12 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Emi Sakura vs. Arisa Nakajima 21:05. ****¼  

JWP 8/18/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Kana 13:56. ****

JWP 12/15/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Kana 28:35. *****  

STARDOM 12/29/13 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight & World of STARDOM Double Title: Arisa Nakajima vs. Io Shirai 25:18 of 30:00 shown. ****½ 

Ice Ribbon 12/28/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, ICExInfinity Title Match: Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Arisa Nakajima 13:42. ****

JWP 12/28/14 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: JWP Openweight Title Match: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 16:03. ****½

Kana Pro 2/25/15 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, REINA World Tag Title Match: Arisa Nakajima & Kana vs. Syuri & Hikaru Shida 19:52. ****¼

JWP 12/27/15 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: JWP Tag & Daily Sports Tag Title Match: DASH Chisako & Sendai Sachiko vs. Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto 14:07. ****

JWP 12/18/16 Tokyo KFC Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Command Bolshoi 30:00. ****½

OZ Academy 3/14/16 Tokyo Shinjuku Face: Arisa Nakajima & Tsukasa Fujimoto vs. Kagetsu & Kaho Kobayashi 14:50. ****¼

JWP 4/3/16 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, JWP Openweight Title: Mayumi Ozaki vs. Arisa Nakajima 15:36. ****

Ice Ribbon 3/26/17 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 20:00. ****¼ 

SEAdLINNNG 12/13/17 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Tsukasa Fujimoto 30:00. ****¾

WAVE 2/12/18 Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Regina di WAVE Title: Misaki Ohata vs. Arisa Nakajima 14:25. ****

PURE-J 8/11/18 Tokyo Korakuen Hall: Arisa Nakajima vs. Command Bolshoi 15:00. ****¼ 

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