Pantoja’s STARDOM Triangle Derby I In Joetsu Review 2.11.23

STARDOM Triangle Derby I in Joetsu

February 11^th, 2023 | Duo CEREZO in Joetsu, Niigata | Attendance: 602

After the fun that was Supreme Fight, the Triangle Derby is back! Unfortunately, we enter this following the recent news that Himeka is retiring soon at the age of 25.

Lady C and Miyu Amasaki vs. Mai Sakurai and Thekla vs. Mariah May and Mina Shirakawa vs. Ruaka and Starlight Kid

Various stables collide in this multi-team opener. This match won me over almost immediately because four women were legal at a time and I’m a sucker for that in a situation like this. That allowed there to be constant movement and action from bell to bell. Everyone got a moment or two to shine and some cases of that were better than others. For example, Starlight Kid and Thekla felt like the standouts and I think Mariah May has continued to do pretty well. Her performance in the gauntlet the other day was strong and this was solid. Near the end she launched Starlight Kid with a wheelbarrow suplex of sorts that looked great. We got a big move barrage late before Shirakawa started lighting up Sakurai. I thought that might lead to the finish but it came soon after when Ruaka pinned Amasaki after a splash in 10:39. A fun little opener to start things out. [**¾]

Giulia, Himeka and Maika vs. Hazuki, Koguma and Saya Iida

Our first look at Himeka since the retirement announcement. Just the simple moment of her stepping out through the curtain felt kind of special and this is someone who I’m only just starting to see compete. It was clear from the start that this would be lighthearted as most of the girls posed together and we got a ring around the rosy style spot with Giulia and Hazuki in the middle. That led to them facing off with their teammates outside rooting for them. That said, I think I enjoyed Iida vs. Giulia a bit more. The teams continued to trade stuff until Maika beat Iida with a really cool single leg spinout sidewalk slam. Or something like that, I honestly don’t know how to describe it. This went 10:10 and was pretty fun throughout. [**¾]

Hanan, Mayu Iwatani and Momo Kohgo [0] vs. Rina Amikura, Waka Tsukiyama and Yuko Sakurai [0]

Onto the tournament, baby! Something’s gotta give here as we have the only two winless teams going head to head. Off topic but I really like the look of this venue. I’m a sucker for arenas that look different. I’ve been in a baseball mood lately so Mayu bringing a ball and glove to the ring is something I appreciate. Anyway, onto the match. I was surprised at how much fire Kohgo brought to the opening exchange. She was laying in shots. I loved that because they might not be able to win the tournament anymore but pride is important too. Unfortunately, I felt like most others here were kind of just going through the motions and it never got out of second gear. In the end, it came down to Waka and Hanan, with the latter scoring her team’s first two points on a bridging back suplex in 11:15. This was kind of just there. [**½]

Momo Watanabe, Natsuko Tora and Saki Kashima [6] vs. Natsupoi, SAKI and Tam Nakano [6]

I like the look of this from the start because you had the Cosmic Angels dancing and then there were the serious Oedo Tai ladies. That played into the opening stuff here with the Cosmic Angels getting beaten up around ringside for a while. That set the tone for a match where the smaller team had to fight from beneath. It’s an easy story to tell and it’s one I love so I was here for it. SAKI really got the crowd into it by managing to slam Tora and bringing energy to her run. Alas, Momo was able to come in and stall her momentum, turning the tide again. The biggest tag went to Natsupoi, who really went at it with Kashima. She had to overcome some trios attacks but absolutely WRECKED Kashima with a running dropkick. It looked brutal. I loved that the finish saw Natsupoi counter a crucifix by Kashima into her own pin at the 9:29 mark. That was the best match of the night by mile and one of the better tournament bouts. Lots of action and a great story told. [***¾]

Ami Sourei, MIRAI and Syuri [9] vs. Nanae Takahashi, Yuna Mizumori and Yuu [8]

This God’s Eye trio looks like a real threat to win it all, while the trio with our Tag Champions is a consistent highlight. Things were pretty even at the start before Sourei became legal and kind of took a beating. She was isolated and worn down. That didn’t last too long though and Syuri came in to help even the score. The standout here was getting to see Yuu and MIRAI go at it. They waged a war like women who hate each other. Yuu’s association with Chihiro Hashimoto likely added to it and now I feel like they should totally book 7UPP against MIRAI and Syuri for the Goddess Titles, especially after MIRAI’s performance at Supreme Fight. MIRAI had Yuu trapped in an armbar for a long time to the point where I bought that it might be the finish. It finally got broken up and the fight continued with Yuu picking up steam and getting in some offense. MIRAI survived a big splash and went back to the armbar but the 15:00 time limit expired before we could get a result. Another really good match and one that helped further my fandom of MIRAI. [***¾]

AZM, Saya Kamitani and Utami Hayashishita [7] vs. Maika Ozaki, Maya Yukihi and Ram Kaichow [6]

So far, Yukihi has looked like a bit of a killer in every match but she’s up against an All-Star team here. A Queen’s Quest win here would put them in first place. I wanted to like the AZM/Yukihi exchange more but parts of it felt too telegraphed and you could tell they don’t have history together. That was actually kind of how I felt about this entire match. There were good ideas in there but a lot of the actual action kind of missed the mark and looked goofy. Things got better as the match went on though it never fully moved into anything I’d consider great. I did like Kamitani’s springboard dive into a crowd as they fell into the fans too and it made for a cool visual. The finish was also cool as it saw AZM beat Kaichow with a sweet pinning combination in 13:41. A good main event that never really reached that next level. [***]

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

One of the lesser shows of this tournament since several matches finished under *** and the main event peaked there. However, you do get two of the better tournament matches thrown in there for good measure.