TJPW Princess Cup Final (13/8/23) Review
It All Comes Down To This
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So here we are. The Princess Cup has been whittled down from sixteen to two, and while my choice stumbled in the semi-finals (Rika Tatsumi), it’s a damn good pair. Miyu Yamashita vs Yuki Kamifuku. On the one hand, the Ace, who has done everything except put her tournament curse to bed. On the other, Kamiyu’s first trip to the final and a chance to prove, once and for all, that she belongs. Damn, shit’s exciting.
Hikari Noa defeated Runa Okubo
Someone appears to have encouraged Runa to start laying into everything, and it is paying off. When she started, she was almost featherlight, her offence looking like it would struggle to swat a fly away. Now, she was hammering Noa’s chest and charging into the corner to hit that back elbow. It’s a surprising but enjoyable development, as she’s on course to become something of a wee bruiser.
Hikari, meanwhile, relished the opportunity to bully a child. She was grinning from ear to ear as the fans booed her for grabbing hold of Runa’s hair, enjoying that rare reaction. She also does deserve some credit for letting Runa use her as a punching bag, as her chest was bright red by the end. The whole thing barely made it over the five-minute mark, and Noa would eventually pick up a straightforward win, but it felt like a fitting end to a productive Princess Cup undercard run for Runa. She’s found her feet over the last few weeks, and it’s paid off in a huge improvement in her wrestling.
Verdict: Bruiser Runa
Nao Kakuta defeated HIMAWARI and Haruna Neko in a three-way
God, this match was an utter delight. You put the bullying Nao in there with two of the more cheerful, fun-loving members of the Tokyo Joshi roster, and what you end up with is her surfing on their backs in turn (Neko saw her doing it to HIMAWARI and asked for a go, which Kakuta somewhat willfully misunderstood). These three had instant chemistry, the kind that almost allowed them to ignore the wrestling part and mainly focus on having a laugh. Although, the wrestling wasn’t half bad either, with Nao’s bullying ways allowing her to be the glue that held it all together.
I don’t want to spoil the punchline of the finish for anyone who hasn’t seen it, but it was the perfect encapsulation of what this match was. A joyful, little nonsensical romp where everyone was having a lovely time. It’s not going to make any match of the year lists, well, apart from maybe mine, but it was a small delight, and sometimes that’s better than any epic masterpiece.
Verdict: I Loved It
Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Shino Suzuki & Haru Kazeshiro
Pom, who was announced as missing this show at one point, decided it was time to give the world a tour of Shino Suzuki’s shins, as she’s been working on her guiding skills. If Shino isn’t careful, she’ll have her gimmick nabbed. Hopefully, she’s keeping a close eye on the wee flag.
Pom’s horrific shin abuse aside, this was some straightforward, gentle fun. Shino and Haru were never going to win, but they showed a bit of fire, including Haru pulling out an armbar variation for the first time. Suzuki, meanwhile, is developing a bit of a talent for milking the hell out of a sleeper spot. It wasn’t quite as dramatic as the day before, but she still put the work in.
I don’t want to call this an easy skip because Pom and Raku are never easy skips, so I’ll stick with saying that it’s perhaps not the most essential match in the world. However, I still had a pleasant time with it, so let’s not complain too much.
Verdict: A Nice Time
We got a quick announcement that they will crown new tag team champions at Wrestle Princess. The titles have been vacant since MagiRabbi gave them up, so it will be nice to get those back, but we didn’t get any further elaboration on how it will go down.
Karate Pals (Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano) defeated Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami
It’s the battle that every child has debated for hours. Karate masters vs people in masks. Who will win?
Incredibly, this was Juria’s first introduction to Hyper Misao, and she quickly learnt that just because she pulls a karate pose doesn’t mean she’ll be honourable enough not to kick you in the gut and strangle you with a cape. They all figure it out eventually.
And having praised Juria for starting to round out her talents as a wrestler on the previous day’s show, I figure it’s only fair to talk about how badass she looked when she smiled before kicking the shit out of Kaya. Improving your technique and figuring out all the mechanics is important, but never underestimate the power of looking really fucking cool. In most places, that will take you further than knowing how to execute a perfect arm drag ever could.
To give Juria some actual wrestling credit, this was another strong performance, as I suspect Moka is a good influence on her. Not in the moral sense, but because she’s the perfect person to lead her through a match, picking up the slack in areas where she’s not as polished. It’s also clear that the push is back on for her after her injury, as she picked up the victory over the more experienced Kaya. That’s perhaps not the biggest upset in the world, but Toribami is her senior and has been picking up some momentum this year, so it means something.
It all made for a solid slice of action that, on a purely technical level, was probably the best thing on the show so far. It doesn’t quite top Nao surfing on a cat for my personal taste, but hey, you can’t have everything.
Verdict: Good Stuff
We got another announcement, as we’re getting Maki Itoh vs Nyla Rose at Wrestle Princess. That should be fun.
Yuki Arai & Mahiro Kiryu defeated Wakana Uehara & Toga
Yuki Arai followed up her career-best performance with another solid showing, as I found the team of her and Mahiro incredibly endearing. They are two people you can’t imagine meeting and becoming friends in any other situation, as they seem to come from completely different worlds. Despite that, they have quite a natural chemistry, messing around during their entrance and coming up with a fun apology spot where Mahiro got embarrassed because she forgot who the legal person was.
That aside, I have to be honest and admit I don’t have much to say about this one. It was a solid tag match between two decent teams. There were no fuck ups or big mistakes, but there also wasn’t anything particularly memorable. It’s cool to see Arai now being positioned as the lead character in these matches, as she’s ahead of the rest in the pecking order, but that aside it was a simple ten minutes of solid but not particularly memorable wrestling. While those who watch it will end up having a nice enough time, those who skip it aren’t going to be missing out on anything monumental.
Verdict: Fine
The announcements continued as they revealed TJPW will be doing a joint show with Prestige in America. Rika, Miyu, Itoh and Mizuki were confirmed to be making the trip, so it looks like it will be a smaller contingent rather than a whole roster thing.
Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima & Suzume defeated Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Yuki Aino
Matches like this remind me of how special Rika Tatsumi is. Not only is she an incredible main-event wrestler, but if you’re looking for someone to elevate a match, there are few, if any, better. The ceiling for this was always high, and with that much talent, I expected it to be great, but Rika brings that crucial element of chaos to proceedings. From almost chasing Miu to the back when she didn’t tag her to her fantastic interactions with Shoko and Mizuki, the match came alive whenever she was involved.
She was working with good material, to be fair. The opening sequence between Miu and Shoko set the scene, as not only were they as crisp as can be, but it had a sense of competition. I think there is something to be said about the idea that you can tell how good a match will be by how they treat those opening sections. Are they going through the motions, bouncing through the same movements we’ve all seen a million times before, or are they competing, battling for who can get that first slither of an advantage? Even in what was ultimately a meaningless tag, Miu and Shoko felt like they weren’t willing to give an inch.
Ultimately, though, Miu did give an inch, as it seems we’re in the bringing her back down to earth part of her push. There’s been a sense recently that Watanabe’s getting a bit too cocky and sure of herself, perhaps losing the edge that brought her to the Princess Cup Final last year. She’s been handed flowers in Japan and overseas, but the results aren’t always going her way recently. The same was true here, as Mizuki put her away with the Cutie Special, continuing a run of form that isn’t atrocious but is showing cracks that weren’t there a few months ago.
It all came together to make this a fantastic semi-main event. This show was sold on the promise of the final, and that was the only match on the card with any real build to it, but when you can send this six out to put on something like this, you can get away with that shit. They smashed it, and there was more than enough to get your teeth into here.
Verdict: Great Work Everyone
Miyu Yamashita defeated Yuki Kamifuku to win the Princess Cup
Early in this match, Miyu Yamashita took control, kicking Kamiyu around the ring before dismissively pinning her with her knee on her chest. Yamashita never came out and said it, but it was a moment that hinted at the gap between them. Miyu is the indestructible Ace, the embodiment of TJPW, while Kamiyu is someone who stumbled their way into wrestling and still, at times, acts like she’s just a bit too cool to care. At that moment, it felt like Miyu had this. She would boot this upstart into next week and remind everyone in TJPW who she is. Fortunately, Kamiyu had different plans.
Because this Kamiyu cared, she cared a lot. We’ve seen this version of her before, back during her fantastic run with the International Title, but in recent times she’s been allowed to, if not coast, at least take it easy. Now, though, she had a chance to win the Princess Cup by beating the Ace, and you could tell that meant everything to her. There is still sometimes a sense that Kamifuku doesn’t quite believe she belongs in the world, that she still has to prove herself to the people who love this weird sport she’s found herself in, and there would have been no better way to do that than to beat Yamashita here.
And while she would ultimately fail to do that, she would push Miyu to her limit. Every time it seemed like Yamashita was in control and dictating the tempo, Kamiyu found a way back in, using those long legs to her advantage. Whether dragging Miyu over the ropes to spike her on the apron or thrusting up into a kick, she was starting to crack her armour and open up a potential path to victory. She was never the one in charge, but when she got an opportunity, she struck as hard as possible, and in those seconds, Miyu was vulnerable.
It was summed up by the final minutes, when those legs again came to the fore, allowing her to survive a clean, perfect Skull Kick (something practically no one does) by finding the bottom rope. From there, Kamiyu was playing with borrowed time, but Miyu was taking her seriously now. The final onslaught was brutal in its violence, as Yamashita pulled out all the big guns to put Kamiyu down, and as weird as it is to say this about having someone drive their boot and knee into your skull, that’s the respect she deserves. The Ace unloaded both barrels to put her away, which not many people can claim.
It’s also worth saying that while that was Kamiyu’s story, this wasn’t all about her. TJPW have a talent for making these finals be the culmination of two arcs, and this was also Miyu stepping up to finally get the monkey that is ten years without a Princess Cup off her back. Perhaps more importantly, it was the brutal full stop on the reminder of who she is after her tour in America. TJPW might have survived in her absence, even flourished, but this is still her company, and if you hold that belt and haven’t beaten her, then you’ve just got it on loan until you do.
Verdict: Outstanding
Overall Show
You can perhaps pick and choose with the undercard on this show, as not all of it goes down as essential, but do not miss that main event. It was a stunning piece of work, and the closing seconds, as Kamiyu finally ran out of steam, made me cry a little bit. The 2023 Princess Cup was already special, but that was a hell of a way to close it off, and they’ll have to do something incredible to top it next year.
Watch Tokyo Joshi Pro: https://www.wrestle-universe.com/en/videos?labels=-tjpw.