wrestling / TV Reports
Pantoja’s STARDOM Midsummer Champions 2023 Review
Image Credit: STARDOM
Loading...STARDOM Midsummer Champions
July 2nd, 2023 | Yokohama Budokan in Yokohama, Japan | Attendance: 1,307
I totally didn’t even realize this show was coming up but I’m pretty stoked to have access to it. I did watch the first two matches on the STARDOM YouTube channel and then the rest on the streaming service.
Of note, I plan on reviewing the 6/18 show before the Grand Prix starts since that has some implications for the tournament.
Hina and Miyu Amasaki vs. Waka Tsukiyama and Yuna Mizumori
This is technically a pre-show match. It’s interesting to see Waka and Yuna team up here given Yuna’s recent association with Cosmic Angels and Waka’s choice to leave them for Club Venus. The story here seemed to be that on their own, Waka and Yuna had the advantage because of their experience individually but the Queen’s Quest duo worked a bit better as a team. There wasn’t much else to this and nothing really stood out before Waka won with her finisher in 5:38. It was fine and inoffensive. [**¼]
Aya Sakura, Hazuki and Saya Iida vs. HANAKO, Mei Seira and Suzu Suzuki
Hazuki is fantastic and my appreciation for the Suzuki/Seira pairing (and just them in general) made me interested in this one. It feels like Suzu is on the cusp of something big. The early portions of this match saw her team isolate Sakura though that didn’t last long and soon, Iida was in to lay in strikes. Things picked up when Hazuki got the tag and watching her against Seira was pretty fun. In the end, it came down to HANAKO and Aya, giving them some real time to shine. Both ladies came close to winning it but it was HANAKO who pulled it off by using the JP Coaster, which was apparently adopted from Himeka. This went 11:31 and was a fun little opener with a fair bit of action. [**¾]
AZM, Lady C, Saya Kamitani and Utami Hayashishita vs. Hanan, Koguma, Mayu Iwatani and Momo Kohgo
Queen’s Quest is coming off a huge cage match victory that kept their unit intact, while some of this Stars team fell in an Artist of Stardom Title match. For the most part, this was the typical tag you’d expect at this point in the card but it was boosted by the fact that it involved the likes of Mayu, Utami, Saya, and AZM. Those four are usually a safe bet to bring it. The Mayu/Saya exchanges were interesting to me and they can work as a preview for the upcoming Grand Prix. Saya really looked like she was out to stand out from the pack, hitting sweet offensive moves throughout including a nice spinning kick on Momo. She actually beat Momo with the Star Crusher in 9:21, capping a good tag match here. [***¼]
The most interesting bit came after the bell though. Utami got on the microphone and said that despite leading Queen’s Quest to victory at the last major show, she recognizes that she struggled and lacked as a leader in recent months. So, she’s taking some time to rediscover herself and leaves QQ in the hands of her stablemate. That’s an intriguing development and I think she returns for the Grand Prix as a favorite to win it all.
Giulia, Maika, Mai Sakurai and Thekla vs. Momo Watanabe, Natsuko Tora, Rina and Ruaka
My first look at Oedo Tai since they lost to Queen’s Quest and Saki Kashima was ousted. I’m a sucker for Thekla, so I wish she was in the Grand Prix. She started this match off well but quickly ended up as the person in peril who got isolated for a while. I liked how the hot tag to Giulia was quickly cut off by Oedo Tai jumping her. You don’t see that often and it furthers how well this group works as a unit. Still, Giulia wouldn’t be kept down for long and she fought back to turn this into a more level playing field. From there, Maika did her thing and then DDM showed that they too are a well-oiled machine. In the end, it was Mai Sakurai who bested Ruaka with a crucifix pin at the 11:18 mark. I preferred the previous match but this was still quality stuff. [***]
Nanae Takahashi vs. Starlight Kid
I love the idea of the Passion Injection match because I really dig matches where a youngster steps up against a cocky or dominant veteran. While this was up that alley, it wasn’t labeled as such because Starlight Kid said she was above that and that felt like it only added to this. SLK had a smart strategy, not backing from the challenge and trying to cut Nanae down to size with some leg work. Alas, the brute strength of the veteran was enough to keep her at bay and give Nanae the upper hand. SLK got in plenty of hope spots but Nanae was always a step ahead or could thwart her momentum with a single move. Despite getting walloped and overwhelmed at times, SLK never backed down and never gave up. The sequence were SLK fired up only to get knocked silly by a forearm before coming back with a barrage of forearms of her own was great. The closing stretch saw SLK come close several times, including an incredibly close near fall with the Momoe Latch (Momoe Nakanishi was SLK’s second for this match). Once Nanae survived that, she won with what I believe was One Second EX in 14:28. It’s a tried and true story in wrestling for a reason and while I’ve seen it done better, this was still very good. [***¾]
Goddesses of Stardom Championship: Rose Gold [c] vs. Ami Sourei and Syuri
Rose Gold were the breath of fresh air the titles needed but now Ami Sourei attempts to win them back with Syuri instead of MIRAI. During introductions, Ami looked like she wanted to murder the champions and she backed it up once the bell rang, coming at Rose Gold with pure aggression. It actually seemed like she might not ever tag out because even when she was getting hit, she was determined to take it to Rose Gold. The numbers overcame her though and she had to tag out, allowing Syuri to be the badass that she is. A few moments in this match were a bit off, like Mariah trying to powerbomb Syuri onto a crowd which looked incredibly soft. Rose Gold are starting to put together some solid tandem offense too. With a few more matches they could really fine tune them. The Mina/Syuri exchanges were probably the highlight here but unfortunately, they’re in opposite blocks in the Grand Prix. The surprising bit was that they were involved in the finish, with Mina countering Syuri, sending her into Ami, and beating her cleanly with Glamorous Collection Mina in 14:45. I’m really liking Rose Gold, Ami as the aggressor worked here, Mariah May continues to improve, and Mina/Syuri rocked. [***¾]
High Speed Championship: Saki Kashima [c] vs. Fukigen Death
Saki Kashima handpicked this opponent but that was before she was kicked out of Oedo Tai. You could FEEL that she was no longer with the group during her entrance as members were around the ring but a sad Saki came out alone. The crux of this short match was simply Fukigen Death messing with the champ and Oedo Tai doing what they could to beat her up and throw a wrench in her plans. Saki withstood it and won in 3:30 with a pinning combination. As a match this was a lot of nothing but it was key for Saki’s story. [*]
After the match, Oedo Tai attacked until Syuri and Ami Sourei made the save. Saki thanked Syuri for saving her and pleaded to be in God’s Eye. Syuri was surprised but agreed and Saki hilariously said, “I don’t have to fight Syuri anymore,” which is fitting given how she’s been scared of facing her in the past.
Wonder of Stardom Championship: Tam Nakano [c] vs. MIRAI
Shocked this isn’t the headliner. MIRAI has won her second straight Cinderella Tournament and finally has a chance to be a singles champion but to do so, she must beat the company’s double champion who holds the top two titles. This opened with one of the most vicious forearm exchanges you’ll see anywhere as Tam ROCKED the challenge but MIRAI responded with some rapid-fire ones that saw her get so aggressive that she shoved the referee down multiple times. Though Tam slowed her and the pace down a bit, it never got less hard hitting. They fought on the aisle with vicious knee strikes and a lariat from MIRAI that floored the champion. MIRAI gave me ROH Nigel McGuinness vibes here, throwing lariats at any chance she got to stop Tam in her tracks. Tam held serve on the mat for a bit but then MIRAI trapped her in an armbar that she had major trouble trying to escape. Tam escaped and started hitting bigger offense but the bad arm prevented her from being able to fully capitalize and get possible three counts. The final few minutes were explosive with both ladies throwing bombs. MIRAI ate a huge kick but popped up and delivered a trio of lariats, only for Tam to come back with a Tiger Suplex. It was that level of back and forth. In the end, MIRAI got over the hump by nailing a spinning Miramare Shock after 22:16. Big Match Tam does it again, adding to her impressive list of performances this year and MIRAI was the striker I like her to be here, like she was against Hashimoto earlier in 2023. A spectacular match and a heartwarming crowning moment. [****½]
Indian Strap Match: Natsupoi vs. Saori Anou
So a Strap Match isn’t the norm for this company and there were some convoluted rules involved which, I’ll say right off the bat, was more of a hindrance than a help. I appreciate the idea since these two have been VIOLENT with each other and this was far from something I’d call bad but given what I’ve seen from Natsupoi in big matches, I’d have preferred this to be a physical, straight-up bout. Some stuff worked like when they used the straps in creative and violent ways but other stuff, like just seeing them throw each other across the ring with the strap over and over, missed the mark. The fighting outside was well done as it felt like two people who really don’t like each other. Once back inside, this really got going with each woman picking up pinfalls and trying to secure the win with the addition of some of the most brutal shots with a strap I’ve ever seen in wrestling. The moment where Saori had Natsupoi tied up and was choking her with the strap, upside down in the corner was especially sickening. They traded some fantastic German Suplexes before Saori used a neckbreaker and touched the four corners to win in 26:36. This was an interesting one to rate as it had a lot going for it but also a fair amount of things holding it back from being as great as it could’ve been. [***½]
