Marvelous (9/4/23) Review
Leo Celebrates His Birthday
Front Matter
The image used in these reviews are linked to the Twitter account responsible for them: simply click through to bring up the original post. If you are a photographer whose image I have used here, and you do not grant me permission to reproduce your work, please let me know (Twitter: @FlupkeDiFlupke) and I will remove it. Thanks!
写真家さん、ここにイメージが写すことが許可しなければ聞いて下さって私は大至急除きます (ツイターの @FlupkeDiFlupke です)。ありがとうございます！
Subscribe now!
Subscribe to Marshmallow Bomb for free to receive all our posts direct to your inbox, or donate $5 a month to access the full archive. A portion of every subscription supports Amazon Frontlines, an organisation dedicated to working with Indigenous peoples to defend their way of life, the Amazon rainforest, and our climate future.
To celebrate the 6th anniversary of his debut, Leo Isaka headed home to Oyama, where he got the rare opportunity to headline a show. It’s not often Marvelous’s token male takes centre stage, so it’s always nice to see him get his chance in the spotlight. How did he do? Let’s find out.
Takumi Iroha & Chikayo Nagashima defeated Hibiscus Mii & Yuko Sakurai
After several Mii-less months for Marvelous, it was lovely to have her and her bumbag back, but I’m not sure Takumi and Chikayo did anything to convince her to hang around. At the start of the match, Mii wanted to take a second to say hello to the fans, but Iroha was having none of it, cutting her off with a series of stiff kicks. How could she do that to her Mezzoforte partner?
It set up a rough afternoon for poor Mii. She got kicked around the ring, had Takumi sell a kiss like she had been poisoned and was even beaten black and blue with her own slipper. Not that the champs showed any remorse. Their response was summed up by Takumi powerbombing a crying Mii. Okay, it was the second time she’d pulled out the crying trick (the first time lead to her stamping on Iroha’s toes), but you would think she would at least check that everything was alright before going straight to violence.
All of which did mean Sakurai somewhat faded into the background, forced to play second fiddle to Mii’s nonsense, but I don’t think that was an awful sin (as much as I like her). After a few months without Mii, it was fun to have her play the hits, and even drop a few remixes of classic material. Takumi and Chikayo, meanwhile, were a strong support act, playing the straight bullies to her increasingly out-there shenanigans well. It was an enjoyable opener, and fingers crossed that it’s not quite as long before we see Mii again.
Verdict: Good Fun
Mio Momono & Tomoko Watanabe defeated Unagi Sayaka & Ai Houzan
Mio and Tomoko picked up Takumi and Chikayo’s baton and ran with it, continuing the bullying theme. The two of them isolated Ai Houzan for a good chunk of this match, putting her through the wringer as they took turns slamming her to the mat and twisting her up. When Nagayo offered to take Unagi under her wing on the last show, she also asked her to keep an eye on Houzan, and judging by this, The Eel might not be the best parent. She did a lot of hanging out on the apron, watching on as Ai took a beating.
Still, watching Ai struggle against impossible odds is one of my favourite things, so I’m not complaining too loudly. Plus, it built to the amusing moment where Unagi finally got a tag, only to be flattened by Tomoko shortly after. I’m not sure if it was what they were going for, but Unagi deciding to mentor a rookie when she can barely get a win herself is 100% in character for her, and they have some potential as a gutsy underdog tag team that loses all their matches.
I am slightly inventing a fictional narrative there, as The Eel had her moments with Mio, the two of them having a quick but impressive back and forth where Unagi looked good. The temptation is to put that on Momono, who can drag something out of anyone, but I think that’s unfair, as Unagi held up her end of the bargain, delivering some hard-looking boots. Perhaps that inspired Ai’s own heroic last stand, as she slapped Mio hard across the face and pulled out a desperation bridge to kick out after a splash from the top, only to be taken out by a lovely bridging German. Either way, it meant that while they went down, they left their mark in the process, and this was a strong match.
Verdict: Unagi Has More Mentoring To Do
Afterwards, we learnt that the final two opponents in Mio’s trial series will be ASUKA and Tomoko, giving Momono a chance to finish it off with revenge for the defeat that inspired it all in the first place. I could probably list the narrative beats of those two matches now, but predictable is not the same as bad, and they both have the potential to be brilliant (in quite different ways). Mio also reiterated her desire to challenge Chikayo for the AAAW Title, something they seem to be setting up for the May Korakuen (which is earlier than I expected, but we’ll see how it goes).
Maya Yukihi & Itsuki Aoki defeated Magenta (Maria & Riko Kawahata)
There was an intriguing dynamic at play throughout this match. Itsuki and Yuki aren’t a standout tag-team yet. There were hints of it, and they could become one, but there is still too much bickering for that to be the case. However, they are two great wrestlers who had a significant experience edge over their opponents, and that would prove important as this match went on.
Because while Itsuki and Yuki haven’t figured things out as a pairing, Magenta have. They were at their best when they swarmed their opponents, working together to fire off some rapid offence. On the flip side, when they were left to battle one-on-one, they struggled. In those individual fights, Itsuki and Maya could slow things down, taking that frantic edge out of the action and turning it into something that played to their strengths, regardless of their weaknesses as a pairing.
It made for a match that felt like it could go either way, as both teams’ flaws helped negate their strengths. And, as is often true in real sports, it came down to a moment of magic to break the deadlock. Here, it was Itsuki slipping out of Excalibur and bundling Maria into an elaborate pin, trapping her shoulders to the mat and sneaking out with the three as Maria yelled in frustration. It was a moment of technical brilliance and exactly what was needed to end a damn good contest between what felt like two even teams.
As a final aside, I must admit to being slightly confused about Marvelous’s plan for Magenta. Since they put themselves forward for a tag title shot, they’ve lost every big match, which isn’t exactly what I would have done, but hey, Chig and co have earnt my trust, and I’m sure they will get where they’re going eventually. As things currently stand, Ituski and Maya having a shot at those belts will get no complaints from me, especially if they continue to improve as a team.
Verdict: A Brilliantly Put-Together Match
Leo Isaka & Shoki Kitamura defeated Takumi Baba & Astro
Leo’s opponents all work for Zero1 and appeared in Marvelous in January, having a tag match with a similar setup to this one. Back then, Leo was going to team with Kitamura but caught the flu, so he dropped out for Baba (Ryo Hoshino took the other place in the match), making this something of a do-over alongside a chance for Isaka to celebrate his sixth anniversary.
And with those three lads having worked together a lot, I expected this to feel a bit like a Zero1 showcase, but that wasn’t how it went. Instead, Astro and Baba played to the room, dickheading it up as they laid heavy chops down on the hometown lad and Kitamura. Yes, there was a bit of showing off what they could do (if they’d fully committed to the bit, Astro wouldn’t have been hitting impressive dives to the outside), but you can forgive that. Plus, Kitamura didn’t exactly settle for playing the battling underdog, clearly preferring to come across as a charismatic hero as the fans got behind him.
It all made for a decent main event that rightly cast Leo as the main character, letting him battle back to get the win. However, I was never going to care about this as much as the rest of the card because it lacked the same emotional stakes. I can appreciate it as a decent match that would be the best thing on 90% of indie shows, but it struggled to ever be more than that.
Verdict: It Was Decent
Overall
If, like me, you’re not particularly invested in the Leo Cinematic Universe, you can probably stop watching this card at the semi-main. However, that doesn’t change the fact that it was a good show. From the comedy of the opener to Magenta vs Itsuki and Maya, everything hit, and even the Leo match isn’t something I can imagine hating. Isaka celebrated his anniversary in style, and with a Korakuen around the corner, Marvelous has started moving pieces into place to figure out their card.
Marvelous have a Nico channel where you can watch older shows and you can buy access to live streams here.