It’s another quieter month for my roundup as work started to pick up over the last few weeks, and I’ve been tired. Still, quality over quantity, and I believe the seven matches listed below are all fantastic pieces of wrestling. Read on to learn more, and, as always, if there’s anything you think I should have seen, feel free to throw it in the comments. I’m sure I’ll get to it eventually!
Rika Tatsumi vs Max the Impaler, Wrestle Princess 4 (9/10/23), TJPW
There was something deeply right about this match. Except, that’s an unusual thing to say because it was, in many ways, a twist on the formula. For decades, Japan has brought foreign monsters in to battle their underdog champions, playing off the typical size disparity between American wrestlers and their Japanese counterparts to tremendous success. It’s a history that means, on paper, we know how Max vs Rika goes. The Impaler should dominate plucky underdog Tatsumi, limiting her to defiant comebacks as she struggles against their incredible power. Of course, most people aren’t Rika Tatsumi.
You might be bigger and stronger than Rika, but that doesn’t mean you’re badder. In the past, we’ve seen her try to befriend monsters like Max and Demonio Dos, but this time, the title was on the line, so she went straight to the strangling. That was only a display of dominance, however, as Rika’s real plan involved spamming those hip attacks to open up an avenue to attack the leg. She was relentless here, never giving Max a second to get their feet under themself and bring that terrifying power into the fight. Tatsumi knew if she was going to win this, she had to keep the monster on the back foot, stopping them from taking over the match.
And I don’t know how many wrestlers could pull that off. Who else could convincingly keep control against someone like Max with the same handful of moves and make it as exciting as this? With the NWA Title on the line alongside the International belt, it secretly felt like a foregone conclusion that Max would win (it’s hard to see Rika appearing in the NWA), but Tatsumi made me forget that. Not only that, she did it without hurting Max’s aura. If anything, the wrestler the TJPW faithful have affectionately named Impaler-chan came out looking better than ever. The moment of humanity where they had to strap up their leg to continue the fight not only put over Tatsumi’s attack but brought Max to life in the same way their relationship with Pom and Yuki Aino has.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit sad to see Rika’s title reign cut off before she wrestled a million more defences, but I’m also excited to see what Max does next. What made their act exciting when they first came into TJPW could have so easily grown stale, but they’ve consistently found a way to keep it fresh, and I have every faith they’ll continue to do so. Plus, we now have the big question: who will take it off them? If they can beat the monstrous Rika, is there anyone else capable? I can’t wait to find out.
Asako Mia vs ACT, ACTwrestling Yokohama (9/10/23), AWG
I suspect that watching Asako Mia wrestle is a bit like watching me attempt to speak Japanese after a few too many pints. You can tell she’s got a grasp of the basics, but thanks to some unearned confidence (or liquid confidence, in my case), she can’t help stepping outside her comfort zone. When she does, she has no choice but to wildly improvise, which is how she ends up clapping in ACT’s face, seemingly under the assumption that might somehow lead to something good happening. For me, it ends with a look of confusion from some polite Japanese bar staff. For Asako, it tends to end with her eating shit.
Thankfully, alongside overconfidence, Asako’s other great talent is taking a beating, and ACT was more than willing to dish one out. Disdain dripped from everything she did in this match, providing a wonderful contrast to Mia’s pure, unbreakable belief that she knows what she’s doing (and might be a famous pirate wrestler). Neither one cracked a smile, as they took their roles deadly seriously, but for very different reasons.
It all lasted less than five minutes and didn’t need a second more. While Asako’s improving, she doesn’t have to go out and prove herself in matches. She’s far too good at the other stuff to worry about nonsense like that. All she needs is a space to bring her genius to the fore. This match gave her that, and if you like a bit of comedy in your wrestling, you owe it to yourself to check it out.
Suzume vs Haru Kazeshiro, Go Girl 4 (15/10/23), TJPW
It was just under a month since the last time Haru and Suzume wrestled when this took place, but for a fifteen-year-old figuring stuff out, a month can be a long time. As I’ve said a million times before, watching youngsters develop is one of my favourite things, and matches like this are why. Sure, Haru still didn’t beat her senpai or even come particularly close, but a month on, she hung on that little bit longer, showing her growth and forcing Suzume to go a step or two further to get the win. It wasn’t a huge thing, but for an obsessive like me, who watches every single show, it was a step along the road.
Nothing showed that off better than this moment that DK1105 helpfully GIFd and put on Twitter. It’s a spot where you can see Haru learning in real-time, spotting Suzume going for a trick she’d already pulled and executing a counter she couldn’t have done a month ago. It’s a tiny detail, one that you could have easily missed if you weren’t paying attention, but it told the story of the match. The youngster is adapting, watching her seniors and figuring out their patterns. It’s the kind of thing that will one day see her sneak out the upset win that kickstarts her career.
Right now, we have no idea when that might be. It could be next year, or it could be four years from now. As I mentioned, Haru is only fifteen, so if she sticks it out with wrestling, she’s got plenty of time. Whenever it is, we get to follow her on every step of that journey and watch her develop through matches like this one. Whether she goes on to be a multiple-time champion, an undercard joker or retires at 17, we’ll have watched it all, which is pretty damn cool.
The Great Asako vs Muscle CHIAKI, Actwres Korakuen Hall (15/10/23), AWG
Not to flood the list with Asako matches, but she had a hell of a month, and this one was very different from the first. In that, she came up against a serious wrestler who proceeded to do serious things. Here, she was up against a fellow purveyor of nonsense, and while ACT was out to put Asako away as quickly as possible, Muscle Chiaki was much more interested in doing her own thing.
It meant there were moments in this match where the two of them appeared to be occupying different worlds. Take The Great Asako vanishing under the ring as Chiaki did press-ups to the ref’s count. It was a short period where both seemed somewhat unbothered with actually wrestling, so much so that when Asako emerged from under there with a weapon, it was so she could stare it a bit and then return it to where she’d got it. She was more interested in the act of seeking it out (and in doing so, channelling her presumed Papa) than she was in actually following through with the violence. You could call that silly, and I certainly wouldn’t argue, but it’s the best kind of silly. The kind you get when two weirdos are left to do whatever they want.
On top of all that, it’s just fucking funny. The simple idea of Chiaki morphing into some muscle-obsessed jock to battle a wee weirdo in Muta face paint is enough to get me started laughing. When you then get into it and watch the genius of Asako attempting Moonsaults and Shining Wizards or Chiaki stopping to chug a protein shake, you can’t help but fall in love. AWG are on the path to creating a nonsense division that matches even TJPW’s, and it’s a joy to watch it come to life.
Miku Aono vs Asahi, Actwres Korakuen Hall (15/10/23), AWG
I don’t want to go too heavy on the TJPW and AWG comparisons (although it is a natural one to make), but Mika Aono is in the midst of a Miyu Yamashitaesque title reign – one that’s establishing her as the company’s undisputed Ace.
Now, your more cynical types might dismiss that as simply meaning that she’s beating everyone, which is partly true. However, what’s always made Miyu special is that everyone who wrestles her levels up in the process, as trying to defeat the unbeatable forces them to find something different inside themselves. Unfortunately for them, that pushes Yamashita to level up herself, matching her opponent step for step and keeping just far enough ahead of them that they can’t wrench that belt from around her waist. Aono, right now, is doing the same thing. She’s fought the cream of AWG, and every single one of them has brought something different to the table, but she keeps finding a way to adapt and overcome, holding onto that title and setting herself as a goal that the roster must chase.
The challenge Asahi brought to the table reminded you of where she came from. Yes, things didn’t end well for her at Ice Ribbon, but her wrestling soul was shaped in that environment, and there was a lot of Tsukushi in this. You saw it the first time things went to the floor, where Asahi brought the nasty, dropkicking Aono off the apron before forearming her against the ring post. So often, matches make that trip for the sake of filling time, but this felt like them ramping things up, and when Aono responded by one-upping Asahi, launching her through some chairs, the fight was on.
And that’s the role of an Ace. Sure, outside of kayfabe, a lot of it is about who sells the most merch and gets the most fans through the door (and AWG is more open about that than most with the nature of points matches), but within it, it’s the wrestler who can take on any challenge. Who represents the company and stands as the one to beat. It’s why I’m never annoyed when Miyu wins the belt again and why, if five years from now, Aono is on reign number three and still kicking people in the head, that won’t bother me either. She makes other people better and, in the process, becomes better herself. If someone else wants to hold that title, she’s the one they have to surpass.
Chigusa Nagayo, Mio Momono & Tomoko Watanabe vs Seiki-gun (Mayumi Ozaki, Saori Anou & Kakeru), YOKOHAMA Burning Destiny (22/10/23), Oz Academy
What a pleasure it is to see Mayumi Ozaki and Chigusa Nagayo wrestle in 2023. They’re 54 and 58, respectively, but when the time comes, they can still make magic. Sure, Chig spent a chunk of the match on the apron, saving herself for the dramatic final act, but if you’re moaning about that, you’re being a cunt. She was getting stabbed by Dump Matsumoto in the 80s, so she’s earned the chance to pick her spots. However, it does highlight just how incredible Ozaki is, as she was in the thick of the action. Few people have put their bodies through the stuff she has, and yet she’s still capable of the extraordinary. Mayumi Ozaki is (and always has been) exceptional, and while I’m Marvelous through and through, I can’t help but admire her.
Of course, with wrestling brains that big involved, it’s no surprise the match was brilliant. Even its biggest fan couldn’t deny that it got a bit sloppy at times, but with weapons flying about, that’s no bad thing. Besides, there was a clear throughline here, starting with Tomoko playing the role of Marvelous’s tank, throwing herself at Ozaki when the bell rang to try and take her out as quickly as possible. When that didn’t work, she ate up a ridiculous amount of damage, Seiki-gun lining up to smash chairs over her head as she refused to let Chigusa or Mio protect her, aware that she could take more than either of them. It was a heroic performance from a wrestler who is so often taken for granted, and she rightly got to eliminate a bloodied Kakeru before she fell.
However, heroic or not, this match wasn’t about her. It was about Ozaki. And while that has infuriated the usual suspects, it was never going to be about anyone else. She watched her two underlings fall, shrugged her shoulders and went to work, taking out Mio (who, incredibly, was dressed in white dungarees and brought a barbwire pink llama wearing sunglasses as one of her weapons of choice) and finally putting down Nagayo, cutting her former boss down to size and proving Oz-supremacy once and for all. The Marvelous gang dared to step into her world, and as she’s shown throughout this feud, it doesn’t matter how talented they are. When it comes to fighting dirty, they have nothing on her.
Most of all, though, this was a blast. The bell rang, and everyone went for it, charging about the place, spilling blood and hammering away at each other. It wasn’t subtle or clever, but it was a spectacle – full of big spots and cool ideas. It reminded me of the main event of the first-ever GAEA show (a match both Ozaki and Chig were in), and while I don’t think it was as good as that (it’s a personal favourite), it had that same touch of chaos running throughout. Plus, it saw Ozaki cementing herself above Chig once and for all, being placed on a pedestal by one of wrestling’s all-time greats. It’s a spot she deserves, even if I’ve still got my fingers crossed that someone Marvelous-based is eventually going to stamp on her head and take that title home.
The main event was undeniably the highlight of Mio Momono’s Halloween Nonsense (not the official title), but really, I’m talking about the whole show here. It was two hours of pure Mio. From her sitting ringside during the opener, blasting away on a whistle whenever anyone broke her rules, through Tomoko’s unusual makeup right up to Momono repeatedly kneeing Maria in the head towards the end, it was everything you’d expect a show put together by Mio to be.
And that’s what makes Mio special. Plenty of other wrestlers can do both silly and serious – many of them are on this list – but I don’t think anyone can do both the way Mio can. Switching between them on the same show and even in the same match. In the opening minutes of this main event, Mio and Kyuri were being chased around Shinkiba by Magenta, their goblin ways having already wound their opponents up enough to convince them that was a good idea. Yet, when it escalates, and we get to the point where Mio is throwing people around with mental Germans or putting every bit of herself into a strike, it doesn’t feel like a different person. It’s all wrapped up in the package of the wee wrestler that Chigusa Nagayo jokingly refers to as Chucky (which was also her costume for the non-wrestling parts of this show).
It’s why I’m happy to continue calling her the best wrestler in the world, even if such a title is nonsense in the first place. Sure, the larger consensus might point to your Ospreays, Danielsons and Syuris, all of whom have more than enough going for them (well, maybe not Will, but that’s a discussion for another day), but none of them make me as happy as Mio. I doubt any of them could have put on this show. And for me, and what I care about with wrestling, that’s as important as anything. Mio Momono is the best, and her Halloween nonsense and this match are as good a proof of that as anything.
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