If you’d asked me at the start of the year to list the things that could help Ice Ribbon get close to filling Korakuen Hall in 2024, I would have got a few hundred deep before even considering the idea of pairing up with Stardom. It’s not that I would have doubted such a strategy’s ability to work, but with Rossy Ogawa involved, the idea seemed implausible. In recent years, Stardom and Ice Ribbon have not got along, and that’s putting it mildly. I would have been more comfortable betting on myself to win the ICExInfinity title than this relationship coming to pass. Yet, here we are. Following on from Best Friends beating Eye Contact at Flashing Champions, Mayu Iwatani stepped into a proper company to take on Tsukasa Fujimoto. By now, I’m sure you all know how it ended, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still plenty to discuss.
Misa Kagura & Arisa Shinose defeated Yappy & Miria Koga
Miria Koga is SEAdLINNNG’s newest rookie, and I believe this was her first venture out of her home company. If I’m right about that, placing her under the watchful eye of Yappy was a good move. You can trust her. Then again, she did leave Koga to take a bit of a beating, watching on as Shinose and Kagura enjoyed the opportunity to gang up on the newbie. However, I think we can forgive that. It is wrestling, after all, and she came through in SEAd. Something tells me she can take it. Besides, while there were a few moments of awkwardness, including having to scoot out of the way of her partner, I thought Koga made a good impression. She took her beating well, threw some nice kicks and stood up for herself. It will be a while before she’s ready to step up into the gap Arisa Nakajima will leave behind, but she has potential.
I also wasn’t joking when I said it was smart to have her paired up with Yappy. While I haven’t watched as much 2024 Ice Ribbon as I would like, every time I see a Yappy match, I get the impression she’s at the top of her game. There’s a confidence in her wrestling that wasn’t always there before, and you can tell the company trusts her to guide these youngsters through a match. She might never be someone who main events every show or gets shots at the big belt, but Yappy is the exact kind of wrestler Ice Ribbon needs right now – a reliably good worker who can be slotted into whatever role is required. Every company needs a bit of calm to sit in the centre of its storm, ensuring these kids don’t get too ahead of themselves and putting them in their place when they do.
She was also an integral part of why this was a solid opener. They kept the pace up and, despite getting a decent amount of time to work with (just over thirteen minutes), never seemed to run out of ideas. There was nothing that was going to blow your mind or have you racing to show your friends, but it set the tone for the card nicely, gave a rookie a few more minutes in the ring and delivered some decent action. Job done.
Verdict: A Nice Opener
Ancham, Tsukina Umino & Nanae Furukawa defeated Yuna Manase, Totoro Satsuki & Asuka Fujitaki
I’m sure I’ve talked about this before, but it’s worth reiterating how far Tsukina Umino has come in the last few years. If you didn’t know it was her, you would never recognise the timid and anxious rookie she was in WAVE. Moving to Ice Ribbon helped her burst out of her shell. It’s hard to imagine that newbie ever finding the confidence to grab a chair and dress like she’d raided KAORU and Ozaki’s ’90s wardrobe. She’s living proof of just how important someone’s environment is. Not everyone fits in everywhere, and making that move can be the best thing you do.
As for the match, we had a bit of a power vs technique thing going on here. When this was at its best, it was playing off that. Whether it was Nanae getting over with the crowd from repeated attempts to slam Manase, Ancham finding an edge by dragging things to the mat or simply the hosses dishing out lariats, it was exciting when it played off the differences between these wrestlers. Styles make fights is as true in this daft world as it is MMA, and watching people with disparate ideas get thrown together to see what they can come up with is one of my favourite things. I want to see Ancham unleash all those cool transitions as she attempts to find a way to even things out by ripping away at Manase’s limbs. They’re so good that I’m even willing to forgive her for going a bit Zack Sabre Jr as she danced between arms and legs with seemingly no plan of attack.
Unfortunately, they never quite committed. Decisions like having Asuka be the one to take the heat section or Umino standing and trading strikes with Totoro cut this off at its knees. The latter, in particular, sapped the momentum out of the action, and they struggled to get it back in the final act, limping into Umino’s banana skin win. It needed just a touch more focus to keep it on track and force everyone to stick to what they do best rather than wandering down alleyways looking for adventure. If you had that, it could been a great wee undercard match. Sadly, it will go down as an alright one instead.
Verdict: Flawed, But With Upsides
Arisa Nakajima & Makoto defeated Yoshiko Hasegawa & Saran
It says a lot about the power of Arisa Nakajima that when I saw her name on the card next to Saran’s, a part of me was genuinely worried. Nakajima is a terrifying legend of brutality, and the thought of letting her loose on wee Saran with her bubbles and bouncy theme song sent a chill down my spine. I know Arisa Nakajima is not going to murder a teenager, but a part of me can’t help feeling like she might. Years of violence have built up an aura around her that, no matter what she might be like outside of the ring, makes it hard for me to view her as anything other than terrifying.
Thankfully, Saran showed no such fear. It’s not that long ago she was a tiny wee rookie, dwarfed by the hardly giant rest of the roster as she tried to figure this stuff out, and yet here she was, not only daring to step up to Nakajima but slapping her across the face and stamping on her head. I’m not going to call it a smart move. To be honest, it was dumb as hell, but damn did I respect it. Maybe it’s the confidence of being fifteen and thinking you’re invincible, but Saran was pure defiance here, throwing herself at Arisa with a scream of desperation. While I was moaning about the strike exchanges in the last match, they made perfect sense this time around. Nakajima was testing the youngster, allowing her to ineffectually throw forearms before showing her how to do it. And yet, after every blow, Saran got up and hit back that little bit harder. She was determined to give Arisa everything she had, and in doing so, she forced the Violence Queen to treat her like a real opponent and not just a bug to be swatted aside. It’s not a huge victory, but it’s a victory all the same.
Elsewhere, Yoppy and Makoto felt like they were playing second fiddle to that arc, but they did it well. Makoto is one of the best tag wrestlers in the scene, and is no soft touch herself, as she dished out plenty of hard boots when required. As for Yoppy, it’s been a while since I’ve seen her, but I was impressed by what we got here. She knew this match wasn’t about her, but she filled the spaces nicely, keeping the momentum going and stealing the right amount of the spotlight for herself. It would be very easy to sulk about having to play second fiddle to a fifteen-year-old, but there was no sign of that in the ring, as she and Makoto made sure to play their part.
It all made for something a little bit special. I’ve had a soft spot for Saran since her early days, as her final match with Tsukushi is a quiet favourite of mine, and I love how much Skoosh lives on in her. This match felt like a levelling-up. She dared to face down the biggest bully in the yard, and while she wasn’t successful, she proved she had that fight in her. It joins that Skoosh match as my favourite performance of her career while hinting at a future where she can be even more than that.
Verdict: All About Saran
Mayu Iwatani defeated Tsukasa Fujimoto by referee’s decision to retain the IWGP Women’s Title
I imagine everyone reading this already knows how it ended. Tsukasa Fujimoto dislocated her elbow off a Venus Shoot, and the dream was cut short. Not that Tsukka was happy about it. She tried to fight on, despite her arm facing in the wrong direction, and even took a German after it had happened. Thankfully, Barb Sasaki was there to do the right thing, stepping in and calling for the bell. A wrestler like Fujimoto will never throw away a big match while she can still stand, which is why it’s so important to have a ref there who is brave enough to put an end to things. He did a fantastic job.
And I came in knowing how this ended, which makes it hard to review. There was a sense of doom hanging over it that obviously wouldn’t have been there if I’d watched it live and unspoilt, and it’s impossible to stop that from seeping into how I view the action. Watching Tsukka line up for the move that would cause the injury, I couldn’t help but turn away, not wanting to watch it go crashing down. However, there were still things that were worth talking about. We got over fifteen minutes of two generational wrestlers going at it, which gave them time to lay the seeds for what this match could have been.
Those seeds were promising, too. The recent spate of dream matches have all fallen a bit short for me, but having gotten to know each other during Best Friends vs Eye Contact, Tsukka and Mayu were going for something bigger. They were building the action, the early feeling-out process escalating into stiff kicks that drew the more violent side of Iwatani. I watch so little Stardom these days that the chance to watch Mayu feels like a rare treat, and I always forget how vicious she can be. She’s a clutz who goes dead behind the eyes when the situation calls for it. Importantly, though, she also knows when to cede ground. She didn’t stoically shrug off Tsukka’s kicks but squirmed and bounced, making it clear they hurt like hell.
It built to the first extravagant spot of the match, Fujimoto lifting Mayu onto her shoulders on the apron before dumping her down to the mat. They’d unleashed the first of those fearless Iwatani bumps, and it was the moment that made you sit forward in your seat, anticipating what would come next. Of course, what came was Tsukka landing awkwardly, her arm twisting around and the match shuddering to a halt. They both deserved better, but that’s life. Mayu knows it more than most, having been there before herself. They’ve vowed to do it again, and while things have a habit of getting in the way of hopes like that, fingers crossed that it’s a promise they can keep. What we saw here suggested this match could be special, and I want them to prove me right.
Verdict: Let’s Do It Again
Yuuki Mashiro defeated Unagi Sayaka and Mio Shirai in a three-way to retain the Triangle Ribbon title
Is there any promotion Unagi hasn’t wiggled her way into? If we’re talking well-known joshi companies, I think we’re down to just Gatoh Move, and having interacted with Mei recently, I wouldn’t be shocked to see her tick that one off the list. She made her way to Ice Ribbon after Mashiro called her out, but it was Mio whose skin she got under, the two of them clashing thanks to a series of boob-related comments. Ah, wrestling.
Mio has wrestled here and there over the last few years, but this seems to be the start of a more regular comeback, and it was the right spot to do it in. She wasn’t required to do a lot of heavy lifting, and with Yuuki and Unagi to pick up the slack, any stumbles were brushed under the carpet before they became an issue. I never want to suggest wrestling is easy, but her and Unagi’s boob-based shenanigans are probably fairly safe, even for someone who has a bit of ring rust.
Besides, despite this story revolving around Mio and Unagi, Mashiro stole the show. Not being part of the central narrative almost pushed The Gacha King to unleash her creativity, finding ways to wedge herself into the action. At points, that meant going route one, livening up a forearm exchange by jumping into the middle, happy to take a blow if it meant she was included. At others, she was a bit sneakier, darting around the edge of the action before dashing in to try and get the win. She might not have been the narrative focus of this match, but she provided the forward momentum, reminding everyone that there was a title on the line that she wanted to keep around her waist.
Mashiro’s performance was a big part of why this didn’t fall flat after the disappointment of Tsukka vs Mayu being cut short. When Unagi’s in that ring, the chants tend to be for her, but Mashiro stole her thunder. Her creativity is unstoppable, which is why she’s the perfect fit for this title. The Gacha King brings something different, crafting unique wee matches that play to her strengths and stand separate from the more serious showdowns surrounding them. She’s one of a kind, and after a moment that could have lost the crowd, she was the perfect person to draw them back.
Verdict: Long Live The King!
YuuRI defeated Hamuko Hoshi to win the ICExInfinity Title
Honestly, if I were choosing who would win this title, neither Ham nor YuuRI would be at the top of the list. As much as I like them both, they feel like more of the same. Kyuri was my choice, but as she wasn’t even on this show, maybe there’s a reason she didn’t get the nod. Still, I can’t imagine many mums have challenged for the belt their daughter had to vacate after falling pregnant so it was at least a unique way to crown a new champion.
Perhaps it was my lack of excitement about this pairing, but it took a while for them to get their claws into me. They played it how you would expect, YuuRI’s youthful energy coming up against Ham’s veteran wiles, and there were some fun moments. It felt like Hoshi was tiring around the midpoint, allowing the younger wrestler to slowly exert her influence on the action, dragging Hamuko down to the mat with that great running transition into the sleeper that she uses. However, it wasn’t until the final act that it gripped me, as it joined quite a few recent Ice main events in struggling to hook me onto the emotion of the action.
When it did, the switching point came from our future grandmother. I think it’s easy to view Ham as a cheerful veteran, more disposed to comedy than hard-hitting action these days. However, a bit like Tomoko Watanabe in Marvelous, there’s a reason she’s lasted so long. When the moment came, Hoshi flicked the switch, and that smiling energy barrelled towards YuuRI. Spots that are usually comic, like the belly attacks, suddenly had a bit of oomph behind them, and the youngster was scrambling to get back into the action. Only a couple of well-timed counters, including a good escape from the Ham Roll, kept her in the hunt.
And despite the temptation to complete that mother-daughter circle, it was the right call for YuuRI to get the win. Towards the end, that energy started to reassert itself, and she was able to unleash a series of kicks before a brace of Swantons got the three. She’s a good wrestler, one who Ice can trust with that belt, even if she’s perhaps not the most exciting choice. Those feelings almost echo my thoughts on this match. It was decent, at times better than that, but when I look back at this show, it’s probably not the one I’ll remember.
Verdict: Good, But Not Great
Afterwards, Umino challenged YuuRI, and that’s a pairing I am interested in. We were also introduced to a new rookie, whose name I sadly didn’t catch, but she’ll be making her debut soon.
Overall Show
I had more to say about that show than I realised. The undercard stole it for me, and I’ll be thinking about Saran defiantly slapping Nakajima across the face for a while. Injury robbed us of something that could have been special, but the taste we got was good, and the two title matches both had things going for them. With Ice reporting that over 1000 people were crammed into Korakuen, I hope they did enough to keep some of them coming back. This company deserves it.
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