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.

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Year 2022: The Best Of The Rest”

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for September 2022

Fear the monster. Credit: TJPW

The UK might have spent September doing the political version of loudly shitting itself while screaming and pointing in the opposite direction to distract us, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t some great wrestling. This month I go deeper on Stardom than I have in a long time, find a new favourite bear and still have time to talk about a load of other stuff. So, if you’re looking for something to distract you from the UK’s incompetence (or any other country’s), here’s some good graps to watch by candlelight as you try to save money.

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for September 2022”

Yuna Mizumori: Finding ChocoPro’s Identity

One last Ichigaya photo.

It’s sometimes easy to forget that when ChocoPro began, there was no feeling (at least as a fan) that this would be a long-term thing. At the time, we thought COVID would be over sooner rather than later, and Emi Sakura throwing a live show on YouTube to highlight Baliyan Akki vs Minoru Suzuki felt like a fun way to pass the day. Those first few shows had no unique identity or distinguishing features but came across as Gatoh Move without the fans and with added squats. However, as it became clear COVID wasn’t going anywhere, ChocoPro began to search for what made it unique. And while they went through a few ideas (Mei Suruga’s arts and crafts period was a personal favourite), they eventually settled on the formula that exists to this day. And the key to finding that formula? Yuna Mizumori vs Emi Sakura.

Continue reading “Yuna Mizumori: Finding ChocoPro’s Identity”

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for August 2022

August has been a hell of a month for the old wrestling. Between the Princess Cup and the 5STAR, we’ve had loads of high-profile singles matches in the two big joshi companies, plus a load of exciting stuff helping elsewhere. It means this is a long one, but fingers crossed it’s also a good one, and there will be plenty for you all to get your teeth into.

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for August 2022”

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for July 2022

Not even Aja Kong can resist Raku’s charms. Credit: TJPW

Somehow, we’ve finished up another month, which means it’s time for my favourite matches from the last 31 days. As usual, there is probably all sorts of cool stuff that I’ve missed, so if you have anything to recommend, pop it in the comments below and feed my disturbing wrestling habit. If not, enjoy the article, and if you have a few quid going spare, consider throwing it in the pot.

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for July 2022”

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for May 2022

Don’t let them fool you, they’re menaces. Credit: ChocoPro

I was doing so well on keeping up with wrestling, and then we hit the summer months, which meant I started having to go outside and see other people, and now I’m behind again. Despite all that, there is plenty of action to get your teeth into from the last month with multiple returns, at least one goodbye and a special tribute show. Enjoy!

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for May 2022”

Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for July 2021

Lulu Pencil is a wrestler. Credit: ChocoPro

How are we at the end of July? Where the fuck is 2021 going? Anyway, I feel like I’ve watched less wrestling than usual this month, mainly because of my newfound love of 3×3 Basketball and Volleyball, but that’s a different round-up. And, even if I have been taking it a bit easy, I’ve still seen more than enough to give you all a round-up of my favourite stuff. So, what are you waiting for? Get reading.

Continue reading “Ramblings About’s Matches of the Month for July 2021”

SEAdLINNNG Nanae Takahashi 25th Anniversary (11/7/21) Review

Credit: SEAd

Twenty-five years is a long time to do anything, never mind something as physically demanding as wrestling. That’s doubly true when you are Nanae Takahashi, who hasn’t exactly taken it easy. Thankfully, she’s made it this far in one piece and chose to celebrate her 25th Anniversary by putting together one hell of a card. Although, I would question the logic of booking herself against Arisa Nakajima, who, let’s face it, probably wants to hurt her. But hey, what do I know?

Continue reading “SEAdLINNNG Nanae Takahashi 25th Anniversary (11/7/21) Review”

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑