Marvelous Kyushu (19/11/23) Review
Magenta Warm-Up For Their Title Shot
Front Matter
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After a fun day in Fukuoka, Marvelous finished their trip south with a show in Nakatsu. They’d also, somewhere between the first and second event, picked up a set of standees featuring the roster members, all of which lined the back of the venue. Unless my memory has failed me (or, equally as likely, I’ve been unobservant), we’ve never seen those before. Either way, they looked cool, so I hope they use them (or continue using them) on more shows. Anyway, on with the action!
Itsuki Aoki & Ai Houzan defeated Unagi Sayaka & Yurika Oka
Would I have preferred if Marvelous had given us the long overdue Mystic Young Fox reunion to kick things off? Of course, but I guess we can’t have everything. Plus, out of that mistake came a pleasant surprise, as Oka and Unagi were an impressively coherent team. While they’ve paired up in a handicap match against Big Hash before, I wouldn’t have thought that was enough to have them backing each other up quite as smoothly as they were here, and I was genuinely impressed by the feeling of cohesion between them. It stood in contrast to Aoki and Ai, who didn’t have anywhere near the same fluency in their tag work.
Off the back of her impressive performance against Mio the day before, Oka was the standout again. Her interactions with Itsuki were, in many ways, typical rookie vs veteran stuff, as she fired off dropkicks with blustery bravado. However, Oka is starting to look like someone who knows what they’re doing, shedding that awkward rookie energy. It stood out even more when she was in there with Ai. They were still wrestling like equals, but you always felt like Oka was in control, ready to turn it on and take over at any second. She was always the more experienced half of that team, but the gap may have widened.
There was another wrinkle of interest in the aftermath, as Itsuki celebrated by slamming Houzan, causing the rookie to give chase, only to be sent back with a stiff forearm. Ai is at a point in her career where every match she’s part of feels like a test, and while I think her performances are generally good, there’s a sense that she still hasn’t taken the next step. Aoki refusing to let her celebrate her victory and instead dishing out some punishment feels like more of the same, and if this is leading to a match between them, I hope it’s what finally gets her up to the next level.
Anyway, this was a solid opener. Oka’s performance aside, there wasn’t anything to get too excited about, but everyone delivered to their position on the card. Next time, let’s make it a Mystic Young Fox match, though.
Verdict: Solid Work
Vinnie Massaro defeated Leo Isaka and Titus Alexander in a three-way
I gave Vinnie Massaro a bit of a kicking in my review of the previous day’s show, but I’ve got to admit, people love doing the stereotypically Italian hand gesture. If nothing else, the shtick is getting over, and I can’t hate on anyone for that.
It wasn’t only that, though, as this match was a big step up from what Massaro showed us in Fukuoka. In there with two young studs, he started by playing the veteran goof, unable to keep up with them, before transitioning to use that experience and his power advantage to do some damage. Vinnie was the glue that held this whole thing together, allowing Titus to hit his big dives and Leo to Moonsault off stages before pulling them back to earth and stopping them from getting carried away. He couldn’t keep up, but he could ensure he was everywhere he needed to be.
As for Leo and Titus, they fired off their fireworks nicely, hitting the fancy spots and providing the sizzle to Vinnie’s steak. Alexander, in particular, has some impressive offence, and you could tell he and Massaro have been in the ring together before. It all meant that this match, which I came into slightly dreading, smashed through all my expectations. It’s still not something you need to go out of your way to see, but it was a lot of fun, so all the credit to them.
Verdict: Vinny Might Be Changing My Mind
Chikayo Nagashima defeated Takumi Iroha and Aoi in a three-way
Of all the matches on Marvelous’s trip south, I think this is the one that has most embodied the idea of everyone being on a bit of a holiday. We got an extended sequence involving them whacking each other with a sandal, during which Aoi put it on her foot to do a big boot, a move that I’m not sure had quite the effect she thought it would. It is still just a shoe.
It was Chikayo who introduced said sandal, which summed up her afternoon, as she was in the mood to menace. The tag champions have always had a degree of dysfunction, and Nagashima showed no qualms about rolling Takumi up at every opportunity. Worryingly for their chances of holding onto those belts, the Ace wasn’t particularly quick on the uptake, with it ultimately leading to her defeat. Chikayo left her to hit the Running Three on Aoi, only to pop over the top into a sunset flip and bundle up her partner for an amusing win. I’m not saying Takumi should have seen it coming, but, well, she probably should have seen it coming.
It means Aoi came out of this match against two incredible veterans without being pinned. Sure, she also didn’t win and would have lost if Chikayo wasn’t there, but you’ve got to look on the bright side, and that she held her own throughout is a good sign. She’s not on Takumi and Chikayo’s level in-ring yet, but very few people are, and she managed to keep up for most of the match. Even more impressively, their personalities didn’t swallow her up. It would be easy to become the third wheel when those two are messing around, but Aoi held her own, showing the charisma that has helped her stand out since day one.
Most of all, this was just a lot of fun. It’s easy to overthink this stuff and start looking for the thread to unpick, but they were riffing off each other and having a laugh, and who can begrudge them that? Especially when it’s this entertaining.
Verdict: A Good Time
Magenta (Maria & Riko Kawahata) defeated Mio Momono & Tomoko Watanabe
Mio and Tomoko’s relationship is a beautiful thing. At one point, Watanabe almost got rolled up, causing Mio to stubbornly refuse to let her tag out. Unfortunately, while Mio was making that clear, poor Tomoko almost got rolled up again, which I can’t imagine would have improved her partner’s mood. Momono might be half her size and have a fraction of her experience, but she’s in charge.
Not that you should mistake this for a comedy match. With Magenta’s title shot just around the corner, this was a chance for them to build momentum against prestigious opposition, and Mio and Tomoko wanted to be the ones to spoil that. When they weren’t bickering, they controlled the bulk of the action, using those years of experience to keep Magenta from building momentum. Time after time, Riko and Maria got cut off before they could get going, as Tomoko’s power and Mio’s smarts repeatedly frustrated their attempts.
However, even as they struggled, Magenta refused to stop. It didn’t matter how many times they got put down because Maria and Riko helped each other back up, regrouped and came again. Right now, they are not better wrestlers than Mio, Tomoko, Chikayo or Takumi. But they can be a better team. When they started to get their feet under them, it was by working together, as one opened the space for the other to take advantage of. There were still moments of individual greatness from both (Maria and Mio are one of my favourite Marvelous pairings), but the best stuff always comes when they’re in sync, bouncing off each other.
It also led to their victory, as some ducking and diving saw Tomoko accidentally remove Mio’s head with a lariat before Riko took advantage by bundling her up. Having gotten annoyed at Tomoko for nearly being caught at the beginning, Momono ended up having the same thing happen to her, and she didn’t kick out before three (although there were some mitigating circumstances). It meant this match came full circle while also working as a dry run for Magenta’s title shot, showing us how they could take the belts from Chikayo and Takumi next month (a team who love a misfire). It’s a dream that is starting to feel possible, and this was a fantastic warm-up for it all.
Verdict: They Can Do It!
Overall Show
There were individual matches I think I liked more on night one of this trip, but as a whole show, this was the better of the two days. It was a more consistent couple of hours of wrestling, with even the people who hadn’t impressed me the previous day pulling off something good. There’s now only one more show before Korakuen (and quite a lot of matches left to be announced), so it will be all excitement between now and then! I can’t wait.
Marvelous have a Nico channel where you can watch older shows and a YouTube Membership where they upload videos. You can also buy access to live streams here.