NEO-1 TV 6/30/03 taped 6/11 Tokyo Shibuya Club ATOM |
G Warrior vs. Miss Mongol 2:13 of 2:56. The “highlight” of the G Warrior gimmick seems to take place backstage before the match, horrifying ring announcer Ayako Ishida by chomping and gulping whatever precious resources she can get her paws on. The match, if one can call it that, was quickly ruled a no contest after Genki began chowing down on Mongol’s arm on the outside. After every match they cut to them brawling in the back trying to pass the illusion they fought for the entire hour. It was one thing to have washed up old comedy wrestlers in the days when All Japan provided something beyond a big show main event, but with one of their only worthwhile wrestlers doing comedy NEO is reduced to one legitimate match per show .
Haruko Matsuo vs. Teruko Kagawa 4:50 of 5:31. At least these two former asstresses are athletic. They are a ways from even being Sachie Abe, but from them I’ll accept short but relatively competent and surprisingly watchable action. The transitions weren’t quick nor the execution crisp, but they hit all their spots and did everything acceptably.
Tanny Mouse & Yuki Miyazaki vs. Mako Ogawa & Mari Kuwada 6:47. The NEO Machineguns regularly teased accidentally hitting each other, seeming more of a threat to themselves than the young LLPW team was to them. A light hearted and non-competitive match.
Yoshiko Tamura & Kayo Noumi vs. Mima Shimoda & Michiko Omukai 15:31 of 16:54. Obviously the primary quality was aesthetic. Wrestling wise it was consistently decent but lacked a higher gear to elevate it to something approaching their potential, much less something near main event level. Omukai was motivated and had consistently good impact on his strikes. These two were paired off, and did good work. Noumi was out of her depth, dragging Shimoda down in the process with her deliberate sequences and shaky execution. Shimoda was a big disappointment, as even though much of the problem was Noumi, their 5/11/03 AJW match was considerably less underwhelming despite the duo going at it probably five times longer. **1/4
