Ramblings About’s Matches of the Year 2023: The Best of the Rest

It’s been a hell of a year. Credit: TJPW

As 2023 draws to an end, people like me decide to spend far too long coming up with a match-of-the-year list. Honestly, even I think this one is somewhat excessive, as I have nineteen matches to cover in what I’m describing as the best of the rest. However, I didn’t want to let any of my favourites go, as I’d be happy to have any one of these as my number one. As usual, these are the matches I loved, so while you can feel free to throw some suggestions my way (in fact, please do), don’t waste any time telling me I’m wrong. I don’t care how good you think Will Ospreay vs Kenny Omega was – I’m never going to watch it. Anyway, on with the list!

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29/12/2023 1

Ramblings About’s Matches on the Month for September 2023

September’s matches of the month roundup is a bit shorter than usual as I’ve been experiencing some post-Japan blues, which has made sitting down to write about wrestling feel like more effort than usual. However, there are still some treats in here, including one that might make my end-of-year lists, so hopefully, you’ll find something to enjoy.

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01/10/2023 0

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for May 2023

May is a quieter month for my best matches roundup, not because there isn’t plenty to talk about (there is), but because it’s exam time in Scotland, and as someone whose job is to help kids prepare for them, I’ve been quite busy. Still, I had a lot to say about the things I did have time to watch, and there are at least a couple I will be returning to at the end of the year, so May more than held up its end of the bargain.

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01/06/2023 0

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for April 2023

April and the start of May are the busiest months of the year for me, so I haven’t watched anywhere near as much wrestling this month. However, I consume a stupid amount of the stuff on average, so let’s not pretend I haven’t still spent a lot of time watching people pretending to fight. With that in mind, here are my favourite matches from April of 2023.

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01/05/2023 0

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for December 2022

Wait, that’s not your gimmick. Credit: TJPW

That’s a wrap! My final round-up of the month for 2022 is a bit shorter than the others, thanks to Christmas, end-of-year stuff and probably a few too many beers. Still, there were a few matches that I wanted to shout out, so there is plenty to get your teeth into anyway. Plus, if you do want more, I’ve written about my wrestlers of the year, the best of the rest matches and my match of the year, so give those a read after you’re done with this.

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01/01/2023 0

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Year 2022: The Best Of The Rest

Somehow, we’ve made it through another year, and while I think it’s safe to say all is not well in the world, the wrestling has at least been very good. 2022 was a year of change in the world of joshi, a lot of which was quite anxiety-inducing for someone who takes comfort from this nonsense, but I think we’ve come out the other end of it all with the scene in strong and (more importantly) interesting health. There have also been a lot of incredible matches, and this is my list of the ones that aren’t quite my match of the year but which, on a different day, may well be so. Enjoy!

Quick note: I sorta cheated this year and snuck an extra match in by writing about it elsewhere. The brilliant and lovely Flupke (FlupkeDiFlupke on Twitter) invited me to write about the wonderful Ice Ribbon gauntlet of gauntlets as part of his newsletter. You can find my thoughts (alongside his much better ones) on that here. Then, once you’ve read that, you should also read the rest of his end-of-year stuff, which is equally great.

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29/12/2022 1

TJPW Merry Christmas! (24/12/22), Review

The last Tokyo Joshi show of 2022 doubled up as a Christmas celebration and the go-home show for Ittenyon while continuing the tradition of the bulk of the card coming via a fan draw. It’s a fun way to end the year and always throws up a few intriguing combinations as TJPW look to see us out on a high. Did they? Let’s find out.

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24/12/2022 0

TJPW Angel and Rabbit (15/12/22) Review

Those two weren’t meant to be a team. Credit: TJPW

With Mizuki celebrating her 10th anniversary as a wrestler, Tokyo Joshi decided to put on a party and celebrate their favourite demonic rabbit. Not only did they let her book the main event, but we’re getting the ‘Mizuki All Around Battle Royal’. What does that mean? Who knows! I’m excited to find out, though.

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16/12/2022 0

TJPW City Circuit Autumn (10/12/22) Review

For only the second time, the other one being earlier this year, TJPW took a trip to Hamamatsu, continuing the build to Ittenyon by hitting the road. They were short an Itoh and a Kamiyu on this show, as they were over in Malaysia, but a Rhio came in to fill the gap, and they’re treating the fans to an EVE Title match in the main event. You can’t say fairer than that, right?

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11/12/2022 0

TJPW Autumn Tour (3/12/22) Review

With TJPW’s final Korakuen Hall of the year behind us, all attention turns to the next big one: Ittenyon. It might just be another trip to Korakuen, but that date adds to its importance, and the show reflects that. We’ve already got our big title matches, but with a month to go, the rest of the card needs fleshing out, and perhaps this show will give us an idea of what to expect. Let’s find out.

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04/12/2022 0