Pantoja’s STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 2024 Night 9 Review

STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix Night 9

August 24^th, 2024 | Paruse Iizaka in Fukushima, Japan | Attendance: 305

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.

One night after the Red Stars put on a hell of a show, we’re back for the Blue Stars. The two wrestlers off tonight are Saori Anou and Saki Kashima. Maika clinched Red Stars A yesterday while B is still wide open. We’ll see how things shake out here if anyone can cement a playoff spot.

Blue Stars B Block: Hanan [5] vs. Ranna Yagami [2]

A win for Hanan puts her alone in second place for now, while a Ranna upset makes things even tighter in this block. This could’ve just be any other Grand Prix match against a rookie like Ranna but instead it was filled with competitive fire and was closer than most. Ranna showed more in this match than any other so far, putting on her best performance. She threw her usual solid array of kicks and strikes but incorporated armbar attempts and kept things fresh. Hanan got going and hit a Fameasser, looking like she was on the verge of another win. That’s when Ranna tripped her up as a counter and pulled her into a tight pinning combination, securing the upset in 6:50. A very entertaining sprint, a surprise result, and a big moment for Ranna. [***¼]

Blue Stars A Block: Anna Jay [4] vs. Koguma [4]

It’s the final match of the tournament for Anna Jay. Koguma tried to get her in on the taunts at the start, as always. Anna heeled it up and didn’t really join in but got put in her place for it, getting trapped in a submission and having Koguma step all over her back. Anna got back into it and thy traded stuff for a few but nothing too fancy. Anna attempted to take Koguma down with her rear naked choke. I thought Koguma did well to try and fight out of it, getting the crowd behind her as she got close to the ropes a few times. However, she passed out in the middle of the ring at the 6:41 mark. Not much to this. Anna Jay ends her run and didn’t really do anything to stand out though I’m sure she learned a fair bit. [**¼]

Blue Stars A Block: Miyu Amasaki [2] vs. Starlight Kid [5]

Neo Genesis collides! These two met last month (***¼) and it was Miyu’s best work at the time. Intrigued to see if she matches it here. Similar to that match, this had a good pace to it as these two clearly know each other well. SLK put a focus on the leg as she looked to set up her submission finisher and Miyu had to work through that. She also threw some surprisingly stiff forearms, going toe to toe with SLK who I know can throw some when she needs to. In a lot of ways, this really felt like Miyu trying to prove herself as being on the same level as her stable leader. This got better as it passed the 10 minute mark with Miyu coming close on a handful of flash pins. Miyu actually nailed her finish just as the 15 minute time limit expired, resulting in a surprising draw. Intrigued by the booking decisions tonight and I mean that in a good way. This now means that Saori remains just a bit ahead of the rest of the block. Very good match and the best I’ve seen from the rapidly improving Miyu. [***½]

Blue Stars B Block: Risa Sera [6] vs. Thekla [2]

Two heels here but Thekla won the first award for bigger villain by jumping Risa during her entrance. That set the stage for a match that was kind of riddled with heel antics. As expected, this wasn’t very interesting as a match. Risa remains banged up and this version of Thekla hasn’t been hitting so I had low expectations that were met. Risa rebounded from the early assault and slowed the pace, wearing Thekla down with a modified Boston Crab. A ref bump led to Thekla whipping Risa with her belt and attempting to use a chair. Risa stole the chair and hit Thekla just as HATE woke up the referee, resulting in a cheap DQ after 7:44. Yeah, that didn’t work. [*½]

Blue Stars A Block: Syuri [4] vs. Xena [4]

Earlier in the year, this would’ve felt like a top star against an undercard girl but Xena has worked hard to move up the card and establish herself as a legitimate threat. Xena used her power game to overwhelm Syuri in the early goings so the former champion resorted to her quickness and kicks to level the playing field. They was the crux of the match and it was entertaining from start to finish. A lot of Xena’s moves are looking better and better these days. Her bridging German Suplex looked particularly impressive and it got her a near fall. Syuri sensed danger and opted to wear Xena down with a guillotine choke that was nearly countered into an impressive suplex. Still, that spot helped set up the finish was Xena was indeed worn down and Syuri fired off some big moves, capped by her modified Emerald Flowsion in 12:00. We bounce back with a very good match here. Xena likely isn’t winning this thing but she’s putting on some very strong performances. [***¾]

Blue Stars B Block: Saya Kamitani [6] vs. Suzu Suzuki [5]

A win for Saya clinches a playoff spot while a win for Suzu puts her in first place. Both ladies are trying to round into form. Suzu hasn’t been at her best since her return from injury and Saya is still looking to strike the right balance needed for her new heel persona. Thankfully, this was a step in the right direction for both of them. Suzu looked sharper and hit her moves cleanly while Saya was the jerk she’s been throughout the tournament but still managed to throw in things like a springboard dive to the outside to keep things interesting. They built to a strong finishing stretch that saw Saya kick out of a German Suplex which has won many matches for Suzu. They were really throwing themselves into everything, especially a nasty pump kick by Saya that Suzu folded on when bumping. Saya picked Suzu up and then beat her with a spinning Star Crusher in 10:38. Their styles worked very well and we got a pretty great back and forth main event out of it. [***¾]

BLUE STARS A	POINTS	BLUE STARS B	POINTS	RED STARS A	POINTS	RED STARS B	POINTS
Saori Anou	7 (3-1-1-)	Saya Kamitani	8 (4-1)	Maika	10 (5-0)	AZM	8 (3-0-2)
Starlight Kid	6 (2-1-2)	Risa Sera	6 (3-3)	Natsupoi	8 (4-1)	Mayu Iwatani	8 (4-1)
Syuri	6 (3-2)	Hanan	5 (2-2-1)	Hazuki	6 (3-2)	Tomoka Inaba	8 (3-0-2)
Anna Jay	6 (3-3)	Suzu Suzuki	5 (2-2-1)	Konami	6 (3-2)	Mei Seira	6 (2-1-2)
Xena	4 (2-3)	Saki Kashima	4 (2-2)	Manami	5 (2-2-1)	Momo Watanabe	4 (2-4)
Koguma	4 (2-3)	Thekla	4 (2-3)	Ruaka	1 (0-4-1)	Saya Iida	2 (1-4)
Miyu Amasaki	3 (1-3-1)	Ranna Yagami	4 (2-3)	Yuna Mizumori	0 (0-5)	Tam Nakano	0 (0-5)

7.0

The final score: review Good

The 411

Three very good matches, a strong opener, and then two matches that didn’t really work. That equals a good show and these six match cards have typically moved along quickly and are easy watches.