Sareee Produce Sareee-ISM Chapter II (4/8/23) Review
Sareee Calls On Some Friends For An All-Star Main Event
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Having delivered a damn good show to mark her return to Japan, Sareee decided to keep the good times rolling with Sareee-ism Volume 2. This time, she called up some high-profile friends to flesh out her main event, making it perhaps the tastiest-looking match on paper this year. Would it live up to those expectations? Let’s find out.
Ibuki Hoshi defeated Chi Chi
Chi Chi has nailed the timing on the whole Barbie gimmick, hasn’t she? Who says wrestling is always years behind the mainstream? That shit is hot property. Sadly, it might have also influenced Ibuki’s treatment of her in this match, as she seemed ecstatic at the opportunity to put a living doll through the wringer. Early on, she shuffled Chi Chi around to ensure each side of the room got a good look at her face as it was being stretched backwards by the nose, a situation that would have no one looking their best.
However, by the final bell, Chi Chi must have been dreaming of those days. Ibuki’s heavy hands have built up a reputation, and the rookie was the latest to have them come raining down on her. It wasn’t the most chops Hoshi has ever delivered in a match, but she must have been connecting sweetly because, by the end of this, poor Chi Chi’s chest had been stripped of its skin and left a bloody mess. I’d praise her selling, but honestly, at that point, it’s not selling anymore. It’s just pain.
Whether she can take credit for that might be debatable, but Chi Chi put in a solid performance. Her main job was to take a beating, which she did admirably, but more impressive was how comfortable she is in front of a crowd. There’s a natural charisma there that will surely take her far. At the moment, her wrestling is rudimentary, and there was an awkward moment where I think she was supposed to duck a Hoshi chop, which made her opponent look a bit silly for flailing over her head, but it was recoverable. I’ve only seen a few clips of these Evolution rookies, but they seem to have started their careers well, and this match hinted at a bright future.
Verdict: This Barbie Gets Chopped
Kaoru Ito & Cohaku defeated Jaguar Yokota & Kizuna Tanaka
Bless Kizuna Tanaka, who, having spent most of this match getting the shit kicked out of her, fired off a barrage of dropkicks at Kaoru Ito and decided (when they were about as effective as headbutting a brick wall) that the next best plan was to try to slam the veteran. It didn’t work, but I adore the enthusiasm. Her fire probably played a part in Jag seemingly taking a liking to her young partner, going out of her way to give her moments to shine and saving her from an Ito Double Stomp by, accurately, pointing out that she’d probably end up vomiting. It’s good to have a legend in your corner.
Not that she could save her from everything in this match. Ito and Cohaku spent a decent part of it being dicks, isolating the youngster and keeping Yokota on the apron. Poor Kizuna was being twisted and tortured, with Ito seeming to be particularly enjoying testing her flexibility. Cohaku’s interactions with Jag, meanwhile, were brilliant. I’ve never considered the idea of her having heel potential, as she seems too exciting to be anything other than a fan favourite. However, she was a right pain in the arse here, constantly winding Yokota up and bailing from the fight. The repeated charges across the ring, only to stop just before knocking her off the apron, were particularly enjoyable, and it was no surprise the legend was still intent on getting her hands on the wee pest after the match was over.
It meant this match was an absolute blast, where everyone played their role brilliantly. They let the legends deliver the hits while also showing Cohaku off and, most importantly, giving the rookie a chance to mix it up with everyone. It shouldn’t be surprising that a match with this much wrestling intelligence was a masterpiece of construction, but it still smashed through my expectations.
Verdict: Really Good Fun
Mio Momono defeated Miyuki Takase
Mio and Takase were part of one of my favourite Catch The Wave blocks of all time when they and Sakura Hirota put on a series of bangers before topping the lot with a match involving all of them. What made it so special is that every combo had near-immaculate chemistry, as all three have a similar ability to embrace the sillier side of wrestling while also being incredible workers. That same chemistry meant that even with the stacked main event, this was the match I had circled coming into this show.
Thankfully, they delivered. From the opening flurry, where Mio’s attempt to pull off what appeared to be a Mei jump saw her being thumped out of the air, this was a hard-hitting, fast-paced humdinger of a match. That CTW block I mentioned earlier saw everyone being separated by the thinnest margins, a theme which continued here. Early on, Takase took control, taking things out into the crowd and giving everyone a show. However, the deeper into the match they got, the more Mio began to assert herself. She was starting to find the space to escape Takase’s hammering blows and return fire with some of her own.
Then, when push came to shove, Mio was willing to go deeper. Takase delivered a headbutt, hand on Mio’s head to partially protect herself, only for Momono to return with a wild one that cracked home, setting the scene for a frantic final few minutes that ended in victory for the then AAAW champion. It was the kind of home stretch that had me oohing and aahing, wincing away from the blows, and I loved every second of it. Mio and Takase are one of those magical pairings I could watch forever, and I hope Marvelous had an eye on this because if they’re looking for a reliably good match to throw together somewhere down the line, this is one of the best.
Verdict: Fantastic
Sareee & KAIRI defeated Arisa Nakajima & Takumi Iroha
You can talk about great technical wrestling all you want, and these wrestlers are certainly capable of it, but when you see those four names in a main event, you are turning up for one reason. Violence. You want to see them smack the shit out of each other, an act they are more than capable of. It felt like a foregone conclusion that this would be incredible. Sadly, sometimes foregone conclusions don’t come to pass.
Okay, that’s harsh. It was a good match. At times, it flirted with being a great match. In the final stretch, Arisa and Sareee continued the excellent build to their upcoming Beyond the Sea title showdown by doing Arisa and Sareee things, which was thrilling. I also thought Iroha did an impressive job of being the match’s designated workhorse, spending a decent chunk of time in the ring as she tried to pull all the various threads together. However, a lot of this was just there. It would occasionally flare to life via a stiff exchange or a vicious suplex, but it was never sustained, and a lot of it felt oddly flat.
And while I hate to say it, a chunk of that was down to KAIRI. I still haven’t watched much of her post-WWE work, so maybe it was a weird night, or she’s saving herself for that rumoured return to the US, but she was the prime suspect for failing to deliver on that violence. She took some of it (she was wrestling Arisa, so she didn’t have much choice), but when it came time to give it back, she fell short. I think it was summed up by Nakajima crushing her with a double stomp in the corner, only for KAIRI to return the favour with a somewhat tamer effort of her own. Whenever it felt like she was required to escalate the action, she brought it back to safer ground, cutting the momentum off in the process.
Look, a match featuring these four is never going to completely shit the bed, and this didn’t break that rule, but I think it was a victim of heightened expectations. I see those names and expect the incredible, which makes the merely good disappointing. They still did a lot of stuff right, and as a buildup match to Sareee vs Arisa, it did the job (although I’d argue the main event of the last SEAd show did it even better). But when you’ve got that much talent involved, doing the job falls short of what most people will be hoping for.
Verdict: Good, But Not These Four Good
Overall Show
Even with a main event that didn’t match my lofty expectations, this was still a cracker of a show. The first two matches did a fantastic job of introducing a couple of rookies to a potentially new audience, on top of being entertaining in their own right, before Mio and Takase did Mio and Takase things. Sure, the main event never quite clicked for me, but I wouldn’t let that put you off, as I’ve seen a few people raving about it on Twitter, so perhaps I’m in the minority. Either way, it’s a show that is well worth your time and, like the first one, suggests Sareee has a flare for this booking malarky.