Pantoja’s STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 2024 Night 11 Review

STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix Night 11

August 28^th, 2024 | Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 506

NOTE: For anyone following all of my reviews, my WrestleMania Series is still ongoing. It’s something I’m doing in my free time though so reviews from 2024 (like this one) take precedence. Also, I’m up to the Manias that are like, 7 hours long so it takes a while.

Block play is over and we’re now up to the playoffs. Before we get to the quarterfinals to end this show though, we’ve got to wrap up two play-in matches.

Red Stars B Block Play-In: AZM vs. Mei Seira vs. Tomoka Inaba

The winner of this gets Maika later for a spot in the semifinals. The rules of this are that we’d get individual mini singles matches and to win, you have to get two straight falls. AZM and Mei started with a ridiculous pace. There were a bunch of flash pin attempts until Mei scored a three count in 2:39. Next up was Tomoka vs. Mei. This was another high energy matchup with some entertaining back and forth and near falls. Tomoka took this one with a modified Michinoku Driver in 5:53 and we moved on to AZM/Tomoka. Again, this was another good battle that got more hard hitting than the previous two, allowing it to stand out. AZM used a pinning combination to get the win in 8:53. That brought us back to AZM and Mei going at it. Again, this was really good and I loved the sense of urgency. They were both going for pins at every turn to either win this outright or keep it going. When Mei countered the Destroyer into a cutter, I truly believed she had this one in the bag. AZM survived and won it all with the Azumi Sushi in 11:47. A super fun, exciting match that kept me engaged throughout. [***¾]

Blue Stars B Block Play-In: Hanan vs. Suzu Suzuki

Their match earlier in the tournament was good but disappointing (***). Suzu charged at Hanan before the bell, tripped her up, and started a fight on the outside. That allowed Suzu to setup her big running dropkick spot to a pop. Suzu beat down on Hanan with that advantage, working more heel than we usually see from her. That worked because she can be vicious and Hanan is one of the best babyfaces around. She rallied with the crowd firmly behind her and gave the strikes back to Suzu almost as hard as she was receiving. There were a few sloppy moments in there but they made up for it with intensity. There was a point where their strikes led to both being laid out on the mat. The closing stretch was outstanding and saw them trade big moves including German Suplexes. Hanan then hit her back suplex, held on and added another to secure the win in 10:34. Yeah, that ruled. They really are all in on this Hanan push, huh? [****]

I skipped over the tag match here of Natsuko Tora and Rina against Tam Nakano and Hina. It was meant to build toward the two upcoming title matches and the most important bit I saw from it online was that Tam went off like a loose cannon of sorts.

5STAR Grand Prix Quarterfinals: Mayu Iwatani vs. Natsupoi

Oh baby, it’s two of the best on the planet. They had a great short match in last year’s tournament (****). It was clear within the opening minute that these two were bringing it. Fast exchanges and some stiff shots (especially from Mayu) stood out. Mayu even threw herself hard into a tope suicida that Natsupoi avoided. Poi worked over Mayu’s arm from dropkicking it to putting it in submissions. There was an awkward moment when Poi looked for a top rope move but Mayu got up and came close enough that she kind of just calmly got down and booted Mayu. Things to better as this neared its conclusion, with Natsupoi delivering a sick spin kick right as Mayu tried her own kick. The timing on it was something special. They did a great tease on a flash pin (STARDOM has so many matches end that way that it’s a very believable finish). Natsupoi blocked the Two Step Dragon Suplex so Mayu simply hit a wheelbarrow German before nailing the Two Step variation to win in 11:28. Just an absolutely great match and the best of the tournament in my eyes. They did so much with the time given, putting on an excellent back and forth showing worthy of two of the best in the world. [****½]

5STAR Grand Prix Quarterfinals: Saya Kamitani vs. Starlight Kid

This was a real test for Saya’s heel stuff as she was in there against a red hot, popular face in Starlight Kid. It worked. Granted, she didn’t overdo the HATE stuff and instead was kind of just the Saya we all knew and loved except with a mean streak, but we’ll take it, especially since the HATE stuff hasn’t really worked. Saya took control after a brawl outside and was on her game. She was stopping to talk trash and taunt the fans as she beat on SLK. Starlight Kid found some success by attacking the leg, doing some serious wrenching on her Stretch Muffler. This is where Saya really felt like she came into her own as a heel, making slight alterations to her signature moves in ways that didn’t change her style too much but were just heel enough. I loved the late spot where SLK popped up after eating a boot only for Saya to put her down with a spin kick. From there, they started trading bigger moves, capped by Saya winning with the Star Crusher in 15:53. An awesome match and the best work we’ve seen from Saya as a heel. But the real story to me is Starlight Kid. The crowd was way behind her and she needs to be a legitimate top face asap. [****¼]

5STAR Grand Prix Quarterfinals: Hanan vs. Syuri

A lot of this match was built around the idea that Syuri was too much for Hanan. She dominated the majority of the action, putting the focus on Hanan’s arm and wearing her down while adding in some stiff strikes and kicks. Hanan looked overmatched, possibly due to the earlier battle against Suzu Suzuki. Hanan had her hope spots but whenever she started getting something going, Syuri had an answer and she was back in trouble. They both threw some big strikes late and Syuri locked her in a rear naked choke but Hanan was able to get to the ropes. Still, Syuri pounced and kept up the pressure. In the end, Hanan ducked a big kick and pulled Syuri into a pinning combination to win at the 13:02 mark. That was good but not on the level of the previous few matches. Also, I like Hanan but this feels like too much. She already won the Cinderella and now she beats Suzu and Syuri in one night to make the semis. Syuri has kind of done a lot of nothing this year and a spot in the semis or further would’ve been welcome for her. [***]

5STAR Grand Prix Quarterfinals: AZM vs. Maika

These two had a very good match in last year’s tournament (***¾). AZM tried to pull Maika into a quick pin but the former champion kicked out and the fight spilled to the outside. Once back inside, it became the expected battle of speed against power. Maika could just run through AZM was battered from her matches earlier and had to face a seemingly unstoppable force. That was the crux of the match as AZM had to fight through so much and showed a ton of resilience. For example, she fired up and got to her feet after a superplex only to get flattened by a powerbomb. She charged at Maika with all her might only to get run over with a lariat. Part of me believed when she hit the Destroyer but the last match kind of made me feel like an upset wasn’t coming. AZM had one final shot but ran into a Michinoku Driver. Maika added a second yet AZM got her shoulder up and the crowd was chanting her name. Maika then delivered a third and it was over after 11:11. I really liked that match. A great David vs. Goliath style story featuring AZM putting on one hell of a performance. [****]

9.0

The final score: review Amazing

The 411

That was the STARDOM I’ve come to know and love. Just a barrage of great matches and even the stuff that wasn’t all that special was still very good. We got great showings for the people I want to see near the top of the promotion like Starlight Kid and AZM, while we set up an interesting final four. I didn’t agree with every booking decision but the show ruled either way.