As the year draws to a close, TJPW starts to set the foundations in place for the Ittenyon Korakuen. It might not be their biggest show, but when it comes to symbolic importance, it can’t be beaten. Plus, you always want to start the year off with a bang. Anyway, the ground was broken for that event at All Rise, so let’s have a look at what went down.
As tends to be the case these days, I was at this show and not taking notes, so this is more of a vibes-based review.
It’s a bit later than I would have liked, thanks to life, but I finally managed to sit down and gather my thoughts on Wrestle Princess VII. As has recently been the norm with these big shows, I decided not to go match-by-match, but instead focus on the broader themes. It was a good one! While these tent-pole events aren’t my favourite TJPW shows (more on that below), that doesn’t mean I don’t have a lovely time at them.
It’s slightly late again (sorry, life is busy), but here are my matches of the month for August. We’ve got rookies convincing you of the impossible, a hybrid wrestling-and-judo fight and another banger of a main event from Big Hash. That’s before we even talk about two lads taking swings at each other in a basement. It was a good month, but if that’s not enough for you, I also did a recap of the Princess Cup last week (hence none of the matches appearing here), so you can always read that afterwards.
Better late than never, I have decided to ramble about my favourite matches from this year’s Princess Cup (the final will be covered in my review of the Korakuen at some point in the next few days). I know some people have had issues with the booking, but I thought, from an in-ring perspective, it was a very good tournament. There were some matches I didn’t get into here that were also really good (mainly because that was all I had to say about them), and I don’t think there was anything that left me feeling like I wasted my time. Anyway, on with the rambles.
TJPW were back in Korakuen with their final big show before the Princess Cup. I missed reviewing the last TJPW trip to that famous venue because, while I was there in person, I was horrifically hungover. It meant I came out the other side having enjoyed the show, but feeling unqualified to try and unscramble my thoughts on it. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case with this one. Although, as is now the norm, these rambles are all based on opinions formed in the building, so there’s a chance I missed something, or will feel different on a rewatch.
After several trips abroad and a huge show in Ryōgoku Kokugikan, TJPW returned to the more comfortable sights of Korakeun Hall. As is now often the case, I was at this one live, so I apologise if this is a more general review. I ain’t taking notes while the show is going on, especially as it was the first of two that day. Still, hopefully I’ll stumble onto something you find interesting regardless!
If you follow me on some form of social media, you might be aware that I moved to Japan this month. If you don’t, well, I did. It would be a weird thing to lie about.
It’s relevant here because it means a lot of my wrestling viewing is going to change. I’m living in Tokyo, so now when an event like Grand Princess rolls around, I’m probably going to be in the building. That’s obviously a lovely thing for me, but it does mean having to rethink how I approach writing about this stuff. Being there live doesn’t really lend itself to a match-by-match review. Maybe, once I’m settled in, I will figure out a way to do it, but not having easy access to a pause button and enjoying a lemon sour or four makes picking apart the action in intimate detail difficult. I could, of course, rewatch when I’m home, and I may do that with shows down the line, but I’m quite busy at the moment, and this was a long one.
So, instead of going over individual matches, I’ve picked out a few big talking points to dive into. Let me know if you love, like or hate this format because I’ll inevitably be tweaking it as we go.
You’ve got a wee koala hanging off you. Credit: TJPW
The Max Heart final is always an unusual Korakuen. Positioned before Grand Princess, the gears tend to be turning for bigger matches elsewhere, so we end up with a lot of filler or build-up stuff. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean the show has struggled in the past. Let’s see how they did this year.
I make the same joke every year that it’s time for the most important show to happen on Ittenyon, so why would I stop now? Sure, Tanahashi has sold out the Dome, but is that as important as Pom and Raku teaming with Max the Impaler? I think not.
