TJPW City Circuit ~ Yokohama Performance ~ (23/9/23) Review
With Wrestle Princess Just Around The Corner, TJPW Take A Trip To Yokohama
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We now know the card for Wrestle Princess, and while there will always be quibbles, it’s, on the whole, a good one. Everything from the kids battling in the opener to Miyu vs Mizuki in the main event could deliver something exciting. Whether they’ll live up to that promise is to be seen, but with this trip to Yokohama, there was the opportunity to build momentum before the big one.
Kaya Toribami defeated Haru Kazashiro
It’s always interesting to see two people who spend most of their time working from underneath get the chance to face off. Toribami, who is still technically a rookie herself, is suddenly in the position of leading someone else through a match, controlling the bulk of the action and setting the pace. It’s not a position she’s been in often, but with wee Haru across from her, she had to step up.
If we’re being honest, it didn’t start great. The opening section of this match, where Toribami worked over Haru, was rough. She seemed to run out of ideas quickly, forcing her to fall back on the basics, and even those were stilted and awkward. You could see their brains buzzing away in every transition, trying to remember what to do next and, in the process, making everything feel clunky and off.
Thankfully, things did pick up as they moved into the final act, Haru’s comeback allowing them to slip into well-established grooves. It wasn’t enough to make this a match you need to see, but it was proof that these two could have a decent showing at some point. Right now, though, Kaya isn’t quite at the point where she can lead a youngster like Haru to greatness. However, the only way to get better at it is to do it, so let’s hope she gets more chances to give it a go.
Verdict: It Got Better As It Went Along
Yuki Aino defeated Runa Okubo
There was a comfort to this match in comparison to the last. Where Kaya was unsure about being put in control, Aino was at home with it, happy to take this rookie to task. Although even she found herself flinching back when Runa started dropping those big forearm shots.
Not that anyone was complaining. I can only assume that everyone else also wanted to see how this new, hard-hitting Runa handled being in the ring with Aino. It’s one thing for her to start laying down heavy blows on Haru, but how does she fare against someone who can hit her back? Thankfully, I can report that she showed no qualms about starting that fight, hammering away at Aino’s chest. It caused everything to ramp up as Yuki suddenly had to deal with this child screeching away while she hit her as hard as possible.
Of course, she would eventually figure it out, but there is potential in this pairing. It took Aino a while to settle into the role she now occupies, particularly after starting as primarily a tag wrestler, but she’s become the perfect person for Runa to learn from. This hinted at that idea, as she took those blows before showing the rookie how to do it. Let’s hope they keep being paired up going forward because while this was a short and sweet affair, there is a future where they put on a banger.
Verdict: There’s Potential There
Hyper Misao defeated Pom Harajuku and HIMAWARI in a three-way
UNLEASH THE NONSENSE!
What could be better than this? Three of TJPW’s great nonsense merchants let loose to see what they could come up with. There was no hesitation either. Less than a minute in, Pom had already betrayed HIMAWARI to seemingly pair up with Misao, only to turn the tables on Misao mere seconds later. We also got another new wrinkle to HIMAWARI’s dropdown spot as Misao grabbing Pom’s ankles caused her to come crashing down on top of the Powerful Cheeky Chappy.
On top of the silliness, they were wrestling at a hundred miles an hour. There wasn’t a second to breathe, every spot leading to the next, as these three operate on the same wavelength. Importantly, though, it never felt messy. There was a flow to the action, epitomised by the finish where Misao timed sneaking in to drag HIMAWARI away from a Pom de Justice before shoving Pom out the ring and getting the pin herself to perfection, every beat landing exactly where it needed to.
Of course, this is the kind of match people will dismiss as frivolous nonsense, and in many ways, they’re right. It wasn’t playing into an epic story or setting anything up for the future. It aimed to be fun, and that’s what it was. However, there is a skill to that fun, and these three have mastered it. Anyone who has watched a lot of comedy wrestling can tell you that not everyone is capable of getting a laugh, but they are, and that shouldn’t be dismissed.
Verdict: An Amazing Time
Daisy Monkey (Suzume & Arisu Endo) & Raku defeated Moka Miyamoto, Wakana Uehara & Toga
Sometimes, I watch a match like this, have a perfectly pleasant time, and then, when I come to write the review, I realise I don’t have much to say. It’s not necessarily a reflection on its quality (this was decent enough) but on the fact that not every outing can have a hook worth talking about. Sometimes, wrestlers go out, do their thing and go home, job done.
There were a few bits and pieces. The final stretch was handed over to Toga vs Suzume, and while she’s not there yet, there is a future where Toga chucking the bee about the place could be very entertaining. Daisy Monkey also continue to be an exciting tag team, and they can probably feel a tad aggrieved at not being in the Wrestle Princess match (although I am excited for Free WiFi vs Toyo Mates). Plus, Raku was there, and can life ever be awful when Raku is around?
Overall, though, this was just a solid wee match, something you could happily watch in the background but probably don’t need to give your full attention to. If you do, however, you won’t regret it. Like me, you’ll have a good time, there’s just no guarantee that you’ll come away with anything to say about it.
Verdict: Decent
NEO Biishiki-gun (Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel) defeated Miu Watanabe & Shino Suzuki
It turns out Mei Saint-Michel and Miu Watanabe are a magical pairing. The wee pest vs the wee hoss kicked off with Mei getting excited about Miu’s muscles, but by the end, having been on the receiving end of them, she might have been less of a fan. Not that it all went Miu’s way either. MSM’s silverware shenanigans were on full display, as the tray was dropped on Watanabe’s head and slipped into place at the exact moment to send her flying as she tried to cave in Sakisama’s chest.
For all Mei’s antics, this was the story of Bii-gun’s two opponents. In Shino, you had someone massively out of her depth as Sakisama casually booted her around the ring. Thankfully, she had Miu as a partner, and while she had to deal with the pest, she was also a tank. Watanabe’s strength kept the two of them in this, as she lifted both of Bii-gun for a slam and consistently found a way to even the odds. That work then set up Shino for another fantastic sleeper spot, as she refused to give up on it after being removed the first time and only let go of Sakisama when she also met Mei’s damn plate.
In the end, taking Miu out was the difference maker for the aristocracy, and the result became inevitable when Sakisama was left alone with Shino. However, as tends to be the case with Bii-gun, this was a lovely time. They not only brought their classic shenanigans but also coaxed the best out of Miu and Shino, casting them in the roles they were born to play. You may not like their aristocratic ways, but you can always rely on Sakisama and her minions to deliver in the ring.
Verdict: Let’s Make Miu Wrestle More Pests
Mizuki, Rika Tatsumi, Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu
Our main event was all about the big matches at Wrestle Princess, as we had both sides of the Princess of Princess Title match and the teams competing for the vacant tag titles. Itoh and Rika, meanwhile, will be facing foreign opponents, so they had to put up with being paired up with each other.
In my last TJPW review, I floated the idea of Mahiro being the difference maker in the tag-title match, and those seeds continued to be planted here. Early on, when Nao was throwing her around the ring by her hair, Kiryu fired up, returning the favour. Sure, she quickly apologised, and it only meant Free WiFi attacked her hair even more viciously, but it was a start! Even her taking the pin to Noa felt like it played into this narrative. Mahiro needs to tap into her nastier side and find that edge, squashing down to the need to say sorry, and then Toyo Mates might have a chance. If she lets herself get bullied, the odds are Free WiFi will be taking those belts home.
Elsewhere, we got some fun interactions between Mizuki and Rika, but the real intrigue was in the champ vs Miyu. They held off on that confrontation for a chunk of the action, but when it came, it didn’t take long for things to get tasty. Neither side can definitively claim to have come out on top, but Mizuki might have claimed the points victory, as she hit a double stomp in their early interactions before clearing Miyu off the apron with an Emi Sakura-esque crossbody through the ropes late on. Despite being the champion, Mizuki is the underdog in this match, but these tags have seen her close that gap, proving that she’s closer to Miyu than ever before.
Even when we weren’t in the territory of setting up future interactions, this was still great. I mean, look at it. It’s packed with homerun pairings. Whether it’s Mizuki vs Itoh, Rika vs Miyu or Kamiyu vs Kakuta, no one felt they were playing catch up to the rest. You’re almost guaranteed to get something good with this many big hitters in one ring, and unsurprisingly, it delivered.
Verdict: Good Match, Good Build
Overall Show
That was a strong show that had a bit of everything. The opener was a little dodgy, and the six-person tag a tad forgettable, but neither was atrocious. Plus, when you’ve got good rookie showings, nonsense, and fun builds to bigger matches, it’s easy to forgive slight slips. TJPW are in good form heading into Wrestle Princess, and with the way that card is shaping up, I’d be shocked if they came crashing down to earth there.
Watch Tokyo Joshi Pro: https://www.wrestle-universe.com/en/videos?labels=-tjpw.