Marvelous Kyushu (18/11/23) Review
Takumi Iroha Returned Home And Fell Down The Stairs
Front Matter
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Marvelous were on the road again, heading south to Fukuoka for a Takumi Iroha homecoming. As usual with these trips, they’re making a weekend of it, doing two shows in two days and bringing along a couple of new faces. How did they get on? Well, let’s find out.
Tomoko Watanabe defeated Aoi and Ai Houzan in a three-way
It’s not unusual for three-ways to play with the idea of the third wrestler being stuck on the outside looking in, as a fair number of these matches open with that joke. However, very few get it as right as this one did. Ai and Aoi have feuded all year, and with Aoi recently winning the Queen of JTO title, Houzan must worry her rival is pulling away from her. That inspired them to fly at each other on the bell, showing no interest in Tomoko as they traded blows. They were only convinced to turn away from each other when Watanabe dared to get in between them, at which point they rounded on her like an arguing couple gifted a common enemy.
And Watanabe excelled in that role. She was wonderfully baffled throughout, choosing to hang out on the apron or hide behind Tommy as the two kids went at it. Tomoko is their senior in every way, and yet she was the one who seemed nervous and unsure, almost as if she was worried they’d shout at her if she got involved. It’s another example of her being a fantastic sport and showing a willingness to make herself the match’s punchline, even if she did eventually screw her head on and get involved.
As for Ai and Aoi’s battles, they continued their recent trend of being good. Aoi got a bit nastier this time, repeatedly booting Houzan in the head before delivering some stiff chops. She felt like someone floating high off the confidence of her recent successes and bringing that into a battle with an old foe who is now struggling to keep up. Whether Ai can in fact regain ground on her rival remains to be seen, but there is still more ground to cover between these two, whether it involves Tomoko being awkward or not.
Verdict: A Fun Opener
Maria and Unagi Sayaka fought to a time-limit draw
As I’ve mentioned many times before, my favourite Unagi is the one that inhabits midcard comedy matches, where her charisma can be turned towards the pursuit of laughs. If she is going to do more serious matches, however, she’s much better suited to being the scrappy underdog, showing stubborn determination as she battles from underneath. What I don’t love is watching her control the bulk of the action, which, sadly, is what happened here. Unagi wrestled this like the veteran, keeping the pace to a level best described as plodding while she worked through some rather uninspired offence. It’s not that it was awful - the vast majority of it was fine - but there was a lot of filler.
The moments where it did pick up were almost all brought to the table by Maria, as I always enjoy watching her try to find a way to attack someone’s arm. She’s got a talent for working her way into a hold from an unusual spot, and her attempts to find a route back into the match through submissions were only matched by the slap she gave Unagi late on, which was hard enough that I imagine she’s still feeling it. It felt like it woke everyone up, kicking off some of their best exchanges as the clock ran down.
Unfortunately, I never bought into any of the near falls, as my familiarity with Marvelous booking patterns had me confident this would be a draw. Still, it was perhaps proof that these two could have a good match, but probably not one that looks like this. Maybe they were intimidated by going the full fifteen and felt they had to pace it out, but the vast majority was just there, existing without doing anything to inspire excitement. If they have another round, I’m sure they’ll do better, but this is one you don’t have to go out of your way to see.
Verdict: Fine
Vinnie Massaro defeated Jet Wei
Vinnie Massaro is one of those names I’m half aware of as a middle-tier American indie talent, but if I’ve ever seen one of his matches, it hasn’t stuck with me. He’s come over to do some training alongside working a few shows, and I struggle to imagine what this lad could teach anyone that Nagayo, Takumi and Mio couldn’t, but hey, what do I know? History does suggest that you don’t always have to be great at something to teach others how to be great.
Even so, the match didn’t do much to convince me I was wrong. Massaro looked fine. The early parts were designed to show off his technical talent but fell flat, as it was all basic at best and a bit awkward at worst. As the action went on, though, he slowly adapted to playing the big bully, using his size and strength advantage to outpower Wei. While still nothing particularly mindblowing, it was a much better fit, and you can imagine in a different time and place, Japanese fans would have enjoyed booing him out of the building as he dominated their lad. Unfortunately, 2023 Marvelous won’t give you that, especially against someone who isn’t one of their guys, which did take some of the sting out of that particular shtick. To give him some credit, it might work better against Leo Isaka somewhere down the line.
As for Jet Wei, I know even less about him, but he seems to be a Taiwanese wrestler who has been working the Japanese indie circuit. He didn’t get much opportunity to impress here, as this match was never about him, and he was mainly a warm body for Massaro to introduce himself with. Still, he didn’t do anything wrong, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him pop up for a showdown with Leo somewhere down the line.
It all made for a showing that makes me regret describing the last one as fine because this was the definition of that word.
Verdict: Also Fine
Mio Momono defeated Yurika Oka
Mio and Oka have wrestled twice in Sendai Girls this year, and the youngster has set Momono up as the mountain she wants to climb. It’s a goal that we should all support her in, as both matches have hinted that these two are a pairing worth getting excited about.
They have also given us something of a template, as Oka is desperate to beat Mio at her own game. That continued here when she came flying out of the blocks, attempting to swarm Momono before she could react. It culminated in her dragging Mio outside the ring, slamming her on the floor and then trying to prevent her from getting back in so she could win via countout. That’s an idea Momono has used with younger wrestlers before, most notably in the AAAW Title Tournament with Ai Houzan, but it’s one that I have no issues with her returning to. Oka desperately defending the ring, trying to cut off every Mio attempt to enter, was a fantastic bit, which set the theme for the action. The youngster was a pest, and while that’s what Mio typically excels at, she was now the one who was being forced to grab a submission and slow it down.
Oka’s issue is that while she’s desperately chasing Mio, she’s still a lap or two behind. When Momono did take control of this, she began to get cocky, doing everything Oka could do but better. There was a streak of nastiness to her game, particularly when she started no-selling moves by kipping up, and it suited her. For all the smiles and bubbles, Mio does have it in her to be a dick, and this was the perfect time to bring that to the fore, punishing Yurika for thinking she could outdo Mio at her own game on her turf. She was making a point.
Not that it ever stopped the Sendai youngster. She kept coming, refusing to be bullied, and forcing Mio into one of those fantastic frantic back-and-forths that ended in a Momoe Clutch. For now, Momono reigns supreme, and Oka has a long way to go if she wants to get on her level. However, these two (fingers crossed) have long careers ahead of them, and there’s every chance that one day, Mio will look over her shoulder and find Oka right there, bearing down on her and ready to take her place.
Verdict: More Of This, Please
Titus Alexander defeated Leo Isaka
I was vaguely aware of the concept of Vinnie Massaro, but Titus Alexander is entirely new to me, to the point where I initially had him muddled up with Josh Alexander. However, young Titus (he’s only 23!) had a damn good showing here. He came in looking to play the big nasty heel, slowing down the action as he bullied Leo early on. However, he seemed to quickly click that it wouldn’t get the reaction he wanted and switched things up, drawing on the more over-the-top comedic side of things as he bickered with Tommy and took the action into the crowd. Maybe it was the plan from the start, but it felt like someone adapting to their environment and figuring out what your typical Marvelous crowd is interested in.
Their pacing was also spot on, as that slow opening let Alexander get his feet under him before they started escalating things nicely in the final act. There was a bit of indie-style move spam towards the end, but that slow early build made this feel at least somewhat earned, especially when it came to Isaka’s big comebacks. As I’ve said in a million other reviews, his best work comes in those bursts of offence that see him try to get out from underneath someone, and Alexander set him up for that well.
Plus, the finish looked awesome, a brutal Chaos Theory-style German picking up the win for Titus as he gave a strong account of himself on his first appearance. It all left me hoping that it’s not just Leo we get to see him mix it up with, and while it takes a lot to get me interested in watching American independent promotions, I certainly wouldn’t say no to being pointed in the direction of a few of his bigger matches.
Verdict: An Impressive Debut
Takumi Iroha & Chikayo Nagashima defeated Itsuki Aoki & Riko Kawahata
The Chikayo and Takumi main event formula is something that regular Marvelous watchers will be starting to get familiar with. These things almost always start with a bit of comedy before heading outside for a brawl, getting up close and personal with the fans as they set up the rest of the match. However, this one was slightly different. Not in structure, but content, as Takumi seemed extra fired up in front of her hometown crowd and ended up rolling down a flight of stairs, a bump I can’t imagine she’d typically take on a show this small.
I suspect that energy was what had everyone in this match working a bit harder than you might expect. It certainly seemed to rub off on Itsuki, who was throwing some stiff old forearms. Kawahata, meanwhile, looks like she is loving life at the moment. I don’t want to suggest she was miserable before, but you can tell she’s right at home as part of the Marvelous family, and that comfort comes through in her wrestling. She stood her ground as she traded kicks with Takumi, never managing to win one of the exchanges but making sure she at least took her pound of flesh in the process. I had her earmarked to be one of the freelance lynchpins of the scene, but I am more than happy to see her find a spot here.
Sadly, despite the impressive performance, she couldn’t find the finish, as she missed a Moonsault and Chikayo and Takumi got on the same page (after some early misfires) to put her away. You could argue that having the champs pin one of their challengers ahead of the December Korakuen is a mistake, and I’d get it, but it bothers me less in this environment. She wasn’t paired up with Maria, which naturally gives the champs an advantage, and Magenta will be coming in as underdogs regardless. If anything, it makes sense to play up that idea.
Whatever you think of the booking, this was a strong main event that saw Takumi impress in front of her hometown crowd. Marvelous might not want to run shows down here too regularly if she’s going to keep throwing herself down the stairs, but you can’t blame her for wanting to go big.
Verdict: A Really Good Main Event
Overall Show
That was a bit of a mixed bag of a show, but there was nothing awful about it. I probably sounded like I hated the Unagi vs Maria match more than I did, as I was hoping for something more, but it was better than Massaro’s debut. Plus, that last run of matches saw everyone deliver, so while there are quibbles, I can’t claim to have had anything other than a good time.
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