wrestling / TV Reports
Pantoja’s STARDOM at Korakuen Hall Review 6.4.23
Image Credit: STARDOM
Loading...STARDOM at Korakuen Hall
June 4th, 2023 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,167
Finally, the show with the hyped Generation Battle is available on the streaming service. Well, most of the show is uploaded so I’ll review what’s available first and cover the rest after. That won’t affect how this review looks but whatever.
Fukigen Death vs. Momo Kohgo vs. Thekla
Right off the bat, it felt like this had more energy than your typical three-way opener. The exchanges early were crisp, Thekla was hitting hard, Momo was bumping, and Fukigen Death even did an impressive walk rope. She brought her usual comedy to the affair. While I enjoyed what we got, we didn’t get much of it. As Thekla attempted something of a Doomsday Device, she got knocked off the top and Fukigen Death rolled up Kohgo to take this one in 5:42. I just can’t really get into the Fukigen Death character. [**]
Hazuki, Koguma and Saya Iida vs. Momo Watanabe, Natsuko Tora and Ruaka
Hazuki started this with Tora and their exchange was kind of awkward. However, once the fight spilled outside and Oedo Tai got to be their villainous selves, things picked up. The STARS ladies were thrown into rows of chairs and battered all around ringside. When the babyfaces took over, Koguma had a bit of fun with them, including stepping on them to the crowd’s delight. Koguma got a fair bit of shine in this one, even having the upper hand on Momo for a while. Momo had a good back and forth with Iida which I thought Momo may have had won with a rear naked choke that got broken up. Iida also nearly had it with a rollup before Momo put her away with a Tombstone variation at the 10:58 mark. That was pretty good though I wish it had more Hazuki. [**¾]
Aya Sakura, HANAKO and Miyu Amasaki vs. Lady C, Mai Sakurai and Waka Tsukiyama
So this is also listed as a “Generation Struggle.” One fun thing about this concept is that we get to see members of different stables team up. I liked getting HANAKO against Lady C because it was the two tallest women on the roster (as far as I know). I noticed that the veteran team was kind of toying with the youngsters. Waka is too sweet to do it but Lady C was casually kicking ass and Mai was sure to taunt while working over HANAKO. Considering there weren’t really any top stars on either side, you kind of bought the idea that the younger team could pull off an upset. I was surprised to see tandem offense from Lady C and Sakurai as if they were a consistent team. In the end, Waka beat Sakura with what looked like a hammerlock suplex in 9:26. That was a fun tag with everyone getting a chance to shine. [***]
Mariah May and Mina Shirakawa vs. The New Eras
Oh, this is about as interesting as it gets for a non-title match. The opening exchange between Mariah and MIRAI featured a favorite small wrestling thing of mine which is when someone breaks a hammerlock by stepping out to the apron. It’s simple and seamless but so cool. I loved how MIRAI came off as a beast here. She would send Mina back with a shot while also being able to absorb a lot of what was thrown at her. Ami was the team member with more finesse and speed, lighting up Mariah with chops and transitioning from move to move in impressive fashion. Mina slowed her down with some leg work to set up the Figure Four but she fought that off and it led to some close calls by both sides down the stretch. Then, we got the surprising finish as Ami tapped to the Figure Four in 12:10. I fully expected May to take the fall or a time limit draw. I’m assuming this sets up a title match and while this was good, it feels like there’s more in the tank for something better on a bigger stage. [***¼]
On cue, after the match, Club Venus made the challenge for a title match on 6/25.
AZM and Mei Seira vs. Saki Kashima and Starlight Kid
You just know what you’re going to get here. Four high speed wrestlers that keep things going at a ridiculous pace. SLK and AZM have remarkable chemistry, Kashima is underrated, and Seira has fit in seamlessly amongst them. AZM seemed angry about losing her coveted title and attacked Kashima with a vengeance early on after a barrage of fast exchanges from everyone. Seira eventually got isolated for a while until AZM came in with a great hot tag that the fans nearly giving her a standing ovation. We got a renewal of that AZM/SLK rivalry which I’m always down for. Or I guess it’s more of a continuation than a renewal since they did just have a match a few months back. The closing stretch shifted the focus to Kashima and Seira and they kind of lit it up with some really good exchanges. For the second straight match, a champion lost as Kashima was bested by Seira after a series of pinning combinations in 12:49. The best thing on the show so far and the usual boost of energy from these ladies. [***½]
Post-match, Mei Seira said she wanted the High Speed Title but Saki Kashima was like “nope, I’ll never give you a shot.” Classic heel.
Nanae Takahashi vs. Yuna Mizumori
This is another Passion Injection match and I’ve come to learn that it basically is like a proving ground match where someone must prove themselves against the veteran Takahashi. That makes sense here since these two have been on the same team often and Yuna is typically the one eating the pins. In theory, the match lines up and told a story that I always appreciate, which sees someone giving their all against a tough veteran. The only problem is that Yuna isn’t something who I find totally engaging so I didn’t connect with a lot of what was going on. Nanae kicked her ass and was relentless about a lot of what she did. Yuna fought back with fire but things like her corner chops didn’t have that extra something behind them. There was a point where Nanae applied this modified half crab that looked particularly vicious and was a high point of the match for me. Yuna responded with a twisted submission of her own and a series of slaps but I never bought her as a winner in this. Try as she may, Yuna was no match and Nanae won with a splash in 12:10. [***¼]
After the match, Nanae and Yuna went back on the forth on the mic with a show of respect and Yuna saying she’ll bring passion to her future matches. Nanae then called out Starlight Kid, who called her a “past wrestler” on Twitter. Nanae said SLK is unmoved by anything and needs passion. SLK agreed to face her but not with the “Passion Injection” title for the match because she’s above those who Nanae has faced in those bouts before.
Jessie and Xena vs. Natsupoi and Saori Anou
Natsupoi might be the world’s cutest wrestler. The way she mocked Jessie’s posing with her own funny twist was a delight. Saori teased doing the same but got right down to business. They continued to showcase some tension between the Cosmic Angels as Natsupoi did an aggressive blind tag at one point and Saori continues to not be too interested in some of their antics. Xena and Jessie aren’t exactly the most polished wrestlers around and it showed. Things like their double dropkick or their take on Poetry in Motion came off awkwardly. That was during the heat on Saori which wasn’t strong. Natsupoi’s hot tag picked things up a bit and I really like Saori’s suplex from the corner into a fisherman suplex. Classic miscommunication late as Saori accidentally hit Natsupoi with a missile dropkick. They still came together for a tandem kick and then Saori pinned Jessie in 10:27. A bit disappointing because of the Club Venus pairing. [**¾]
After the bell, Natsupoi and Saori both tried to hit each other with offense. Natsupoi went to cut a promo but was whispering so Saori said she couldn’t understand her and walked off. Natsupoi said she’ll let her voice heal before addressing this again.
Giulia, Mayu Iwatani, Syuri & Tam Nakano vs. Maika, Saya Kamitani, Suzu Suzuki & Utami Hayashishita
On paper, this is pretty exciting. It’s meant to be the established veteran top ladies against the rising stars of the company. We got Giulia/Suzu to start (after their awesome title match this year) followed by Maika/Syuri, Mayu/Saya, and Tam/Utami with nobody really interrupting each exchange or even waiting on the apron for a tag for most of it. They just let it all play out. There were so many intertwining and intriguing stories here from rivalries being reignited to the last three World of Stardom Champions all being on the same team. Everyone got a chance to get their shit in and everyone took time to bump and sell for their opponents, showing that there were no egos getting in the way of the action here. The Giulia/Utami back and forth was a prolonged one and one of the better parts of the contest. Maika continued her streak of being extra aggressive, especially as she battled Giulia, taking it right to the former champion. At one point, Utami and Maika avoided tandem offense from Giulia and Tam, which resulted in them stopping only for Tam to just clock her teammate because of their history. The Suzu/Tam exchange was probably my favorite part of the match. In fact, Suzu showed out big time here and stole the show. Tam and Mayu also worked seamlessly together. The closing stretch saw things break down with tons of action and big moves. Saya was hit with a barrage capped by a Mayu moonsault but the 30:00 time limit expired before a pin could be made. A fantastic match with the expected result but everyone delivered with non-stop great exchanges and so many storylines coming together. [****¼]
It looks like we’re getting a rematch under elimination rules based on the post-match promo.
