For a long time, I didn’t have an obvious choice for my match of the year. There was loads of stuff I’d loved, but nothing that instantly cemented itself at the top of the pack. On top of that, I didn’t make a trip to Japan, and the only shows I saw live were AEW and EVE, neither of which I care about enough to place in that strata, even with the elusive in-the-room magic. However, when I sat down to start rewatching my favourites, I quickly realised that the answer had been staring me in the face the whole time. There was a match I loved above the rest, and it was the one that, in a lovely rarity, took place between my two wrestlers of the year.
And I think the reason it didn’t instantly leap to mind is that this isn’t your typical match of the year fodder. There were no belts on the line, and Shoko vs Uta isn’t some long-running feud. They weren’t even the main event. It was a senior vs junior match, the kind you can find on countless cards across Japan on any day of the week. If you want proof, look at the fact it took place in the middle of two others, as TJPW had put together their LEVEL UP TRIAL Best of Three Series, which also saw Shino Suzuki take on Miyu Yamashita and Haru Kazashiro take on Mizuki. It was, on paper, about as unremarkable as you can get. The only slight twist was that it took place in Korakuen rather than Shinkiba, giving it a touch more gravitas.
However, Uta and Shoko aren’t unremarkable, and that’s what makes it special. It’s, predictably, Nakajima who takes the wheel here, pulling the action to the mat early on as she works rings around Takami. There is a moment, in those early seconds, when Uta tries to headstand out of a head-scissors, only for Shoko to respond by breaking something of a social contract around that move. Typically, wrestlers sit back, allowing fans to appreciate their opponent’s form, before letting their knees be pushed apart, leaving their victim’s head free to slip out. Shoko was having none of that. She instead grabbed Uta, holding her in place, before aggressively shoving her loose, causing her head to pop out violently rather than elegantly. While it’s the look of shock and pain on Uta’s face that really sells it, it’s backed up perfectly by Nakajima’s grin as she follows up by putting one hand behind her back. There is no taking it easy here.
What’s impressive is that it would have been all so easy for Uta to run from it all. To not dare to go to the mat with Shoko and fall back on the rookie staples of dropkicks and forearms. I’m sure there was a part of her that was tempted to at least try to steer her senior towards a more typical match. However, whether that feeling was there or not, she never gave in to it. Instead, she continued to get down there with Shoko, grappling with her and finding her own ways to make this exciting. For every intriguing Shoko decision, Uta matched her, including a great rolling counter of a Paradise Lock that ended in what wasn’t quite the old Lady in the Lake shtick, but certainly felt like a distant cousin. In my wrestler of the year ramble, I mentioned Uta’s ability to absorb new ideas and information, and I don’t think that’s ever more evident than in this match. Shoko pushing her only seemed to make her more creative.
Unfortunately for the squeaky one, the more Uta did that, the meaner Shoko got. The Big Kaiju’s heavyweight kickout has been GIFed countless times since, but it’s still a delight. There is a wonderful look of awe on Uta’s face as she finds herself going from pinning someone to sitting on the outside. However, the moment directly afterwards was the really cruel one. Shoko yanked Uta, stomach first, into the cables connecting the ropes to the post, a moment that is as wince-inducing as it is simple. We don’t often get to see Shoko engage in such casual bullying, but there is something about Uta that brings it out of her. Maybe she enjoys watching her squeak and flop as much as I do?
That’s the magic of a match like this, though. One where there isn’t much in the way of stakes or jeopardy (Uta was never going to win, and Shoko’s eventual victory has the feeling of her getting bored and deciding to wrap it up), but where both wrestlers click, tapping into something magical. Nakajima is mean and aggressive, but always in a way that feels like a challenge. She’s daring her to try and keep up. Uta, meanwhile, is the perfect counterpoint, small and sympathetic, while also proving willing to go down those roads. She is overwhelmed here, but nowhere near as badly as she should be. Not because she can suddenly wrestle as well as Shoko Nakajima, but because she’s willing to push herself, unlocking new ways to respond as she goes. I don’t know if our future includes many big-time Shoko vs Uta matches, although I hope it does. However, I would be equally content with a dozen more of these – smaller, quieter efforts, where Nakajima gets to test just how far the Wee Koala can go.
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