El-P Posted October 12, 2023 Report Share Posted October 12, 2023 25 years. Yumi Fukawa is 47. Way to make me feel old. I was such an ARSION mark back in those days (with some pretty awful bad faith defense of terrible booking too). It was much more fun and interesting than GAEA, which always was the ICW darling back then thanks to heavy pimping by the DVDVR. Of course they did not maintain they own style for more than one year and a half, and even then by the end only Yoshida and Fukawa (and Yagi when she showed up) were doing it. Lioness Asuka coming in really was the nail in the coffin of that fine little promotion which saw the debut of two super rookies at the same time, leading to LCO vs AKINO & Ayako Hamada, which may have been the peak of LCO's style too, amazing bloodletting match. In retrospect, interesting to see that even though ARSION did not work, Rossy Ogawa ended up succeeding anyway with STARDOM years later. Well, if anything, that's pretty cool that they are celebrating the little promotion that could have been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted November 7, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2023 A bunch of weird joshi wrestling stories the last few days: - Giulia to WWE isn't surprising when you remember that her jump from Ice Ribbon to Stardom was fueled by the desire to perform on a bigger stage, so her going from wanting to be a star in Japan to being a star world-wide makes sense. I thought something was up when she dropped the World of Stardom title to Tam Nakano in April. I figured that either something was wrong with her neck forcing her to retire or Bushiroad and her couldn't come to an agreement on a contract. Then, in the summer she starts talking about wanting to work more in the U.S. Meltzer saying she wouldn't be available till March makes sense since she jumped in October so added six months and that takes you to March. - I don't know what to make of the Sareee story. She's the current Beyond the Sea champion and just beat Sendai Girls champ Mika Iwata this past weekend. At this point, her going back to WWE wouldn't be all that surprising. Sukeban is whatever it is. I've only watched the trailer and it came off as an anime version of WOW. There will probably a Between the Sheets Patreon special about it in twenty years. - Now there is the Megan Bayne is under AEW contract story that Stardom is denying. People are really keeping the porch light on for a AEW/Stardom relationship that Stardom seems to want nothing to do with. Never mind that AEW does less than nothing with TJPW. The funniest way this could end would be Bayne lying about her contract status in order to be booked by Stardom. - Oh, I almost forgot Miyu Yamashita showing up on NXT sitting right behind the announcers but making sure to wear a hat so that no one would recognize her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted November 7, 2023 Report Share Posted November 7, 2023 1 hour ago, donsem43 said: - Giulia to WWE isn't surprising when you remember that her jump from Ice Ribbon to Stardom was fueled by the desire to perform on a bigger stage, so her going from wanting to be a star in Japan to being a star world-wide makes sense. I thought something was up when she dropped the World of Stardom title to Tam Nakano in April. I figured that either something was wrong with her neck forcing her to retire or Bushiroad and her couldn't come to an agreement on a contract. There was this story back then than Rossy wanted to give Tam a title run as he felt it was deserved and before she got past her peak (she's what ? 35 or something ? I always get a kick out of the age never being mentioned for women past 34 or something, I think Mina is like that too. Some stuff never change). But surely it reads differently now. BTW, I wonder if Mina is gonna get the big push to the top if Giulia is a goner. 1 hour ago, donsem43 said: - Now there is the Megan Bayne is under AEW contract story that Stardom is denying. People are really keeping the porch light on for a AEW/Stardom relationship that Stardom seems to want nothing to do with. Never mind that AEW does less than nothing with TJPW. The funniest way this could end would be Bayne lying about her contract status in order to be booked by Stardom. Yeah that story is quite odd. Plus if Megan Bayne really was under contract with AEW, in the wake of losing Jade Cargill, I would pretty much not have waited long to just introduce her as a new monster star of the roster. Then again, AEW and its women division is an story into itself. Can't blame Giulia for wanting to go to WWE right now. Personally I'd love to have her in TNA, but oh well. 1 hour ago, donsem43 said: - Oh, I almost forgot Miyu Yamashita showing up on NXT sitting right behind the announcers but making sure to wear a hat so that no one would recognize her. What the hell ? I really enjoyed her when she was touring the US some months ago. She's supposed to work MLW I believe, but then again, MLW be like... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted November 8, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2023 There seems to be a weird stigma surrounding age in Japanese culture concerning women in entertainment. A woman can be seen as stale in her early 20's and washed by her mid-20's. There's a few of the other women in Stardom who give the month and day of their birth but not the year possibly for that reason. Personally think the biggest beneficiary of Giulia leaving would be Maika. She seems to stuck in Giulia's shadow at the moment and her moving up to being the leader of DDM could provide the jolt that she needs to get to the next level. While I'm not the biggest Mina fan, she deserves a more consistent push than what she has gotten this year, that is much more likely to happen if Giulia leaves. Speaking of Stardom, another weird story was that something went down between the wrestlers and Bushiroad staff at their show on the weekend. They had to postpone the show with Kidani and Bushiroad Fight president Harada showing up to apologise and promised to interview the employees and the wrestler in order to prevent something like whatever happened from happening again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norwegian Rudo Posted November 8, 2023 Report Share Posted November 8, 2023 On 11/7/2023 at 6:51 AM, donsem43 said: - Now there is the Megan Bayne is under AEW contract story that Stardom is denying. People are really keeping the porch light on for a AEW/Stardom relationship that Stardom seems to want nothing to do with. Never mind that AEW does less than nothing with TJPW. The funniest way this could end would be Bayne lying about her contract status in order to be booked by Stardom. I haven't seen anyone saying Bayne isn't under AEW contract. The disagreement is whether she was sent to Stardom on excursion, which the original report said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted November 8, 2023 Report Share Posted November 8, 2023 4 hours ago, donsem43 said: There seems to be a weird stigma surrounding age in Japanese culture concerning women in entertainment. A woman can be seen as stale in her early 20's and washed by her mid-20's. There's a few of the other women in Stardom who give the month and day of their birth but not the year possibly for that reason. That's the Idol culture for you. When you think back at the old rule of retirement at 25 in Zenjo, it sounds so completely ridiculous on all levels. I think the "oldest" one who gives her age is Syuri, born in 89. I wonder if that's their choice or the promotion though. Mina Shirakawa is gonna turn 36 at the end of the year, she looks basically 10 years younger then she is, so I guess not giving her birth date plays a role, not that it should make any difference. It kinda blows my mind how good she became in the last two years or so, because when I started watching some Stardom it was obvious she was there for reasons that had nothing to do with in-ring talent (she wasn't bad, but). Then again, she started wrestling at 30, which is way late, especially in Japan. But even in the US, who started that late and became really good ? I can think of DDP off the top of my head, but not that many. Yeah, Maika is a good one to give a strong push too. Then you have the AZM/Starlight Kid/Suzu Suzuki who are ridiculously awesome. It's not like Stardom is not loaded with talent if Giulia leaves (although apparently, that "news" was kinda nothing solid, the try-out isn't happening as long as she's under contract and WWE had their eyes on her since 2019. Of course it's like Ospreay, a case of contract ending soon). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted November 21, 2023 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2023 Good and bad news on the Stardom injury front. First the good news, Starlight Kid (ankle) returned on the weekend working the PPV in a 3-way with Suzu Suzuki and AZM. Both Utami Hayashishita (cervical hernia) and Saya Kamitani (elbow) are returning on the November 28th show at Korakuen Hall. The bad news is that Tam Nakano (knee) has vacated the World of Stardom title, while Natsupoi (cervical hernia) and Saori Anou have also vacated the Goddesses of Stardom tag titles. Kidani stated at PPV that Stardom won't run non-tournament related shows during their tournaments going forward in an effort to try and reduce injuries. There will be a mini-tournament at the November 28 to determine one of the challengers for the vacate World of Stardom. The two semi-finals matches are Maika vs. Ami Sohrei and Mina Shirakawa vs. Momo Watanabe with the winner advancing to the main event on the December 29th show at Sumo Hall. While Suzu Suzuki does have a contract to challenge for the World of Stardom title, Hazuki challenged her for that contract on the same November 28th show. So, in a sense, they are running a six woman tournament with Suzuki and Hazuki getting a bye. For the Goddesses titles, recent tag league winners Maika and Megan Bayne will face a team to be announced (Hayashishita and Kamitani?) at the PPV in Nagoya on December 2nd. Surprising that they are doing the world title stuff at Korakuen rather than at the PPV in Nagoya. Stardom has usually draw pretty well at Korakuen under Bushiroad ownership, although this show is on a weekday where they don't typically draw quite as well as they do on the weekend. Still, they need more help trying to draw outside of Tokyo and this be an easy way to do that. Granted, if you really wanted to hype up the Sumo Hall show, you could quickly whip up a YouTube livestream even if it's just the typical 2 or 3 camera setup that they use for Stardom World exclusive shows. That would be a good way to attract non-regular fans, especially foreign fans that are flying in early to watch Wrestle Kingdom, to get tickets for that show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blehschmidt Posted December 5, 2023 Report Share Posted December 5, 2023 I've been watching a lot of Stardom lately and really enjoying it, but I am having trouble understanding the "battle royal" rules that seem to pop up in some matches, but not all matches Like, I figured out during the Cinderella Tournament, that if you got thrown over the top rope and touched the floor, that counted as a loss But tonight I was watching a 3 way trios match, and about half way through, they all of a sudden started trying to pitch each other to the floor. Then some of the girls hit, and the bell rang, but other team members continued wrestling. So Yeah.... Can someone in the know please explain this part of the Stardom rule book to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted December 19, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 On 11/21/2023 at 1:32 AM, donsem43 said: Granted, if you really wanted to hype up the Sumo Hall show, you could quickly whip up a YouTube livestream even if it's just the typical 2 or 3 camera setup that they use for Stardom World exclusive shows. That would be a good way to attract non-regular fans, especially foreign fans that are flying in early to watch Wrestle Kingdom, to get tickets for that show. Well, they didn't livestream it but Stardom have put up the whole 11/28 show up on YouTube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted December 29, 2023 Report Share Posted December 29, 2023 So Maika won the title. Not a bad choice, she's really fucking good. I kinda checked out of Stardom this year though. Probably being burned out by too much wrestling. The promotion is fun and easy to follow and watch, and there are tons of talent there but I dunno. Maybe something about the presentation that just won't appeal to me to some degree. I wish I could say I'm not the target audience but the reality is I probably am, which in some respect kinda bothers me I guess. The fact Tam Nakano got hurt kinda hurt my interest too since she basically was, more than anyone else, my real entry point with the promotion, I really got into her defense of the white belt when she was working just under the Utami main events. With Suzu Suzuki they eventually have yet another awesome main event star looming, and honestly she could have won the red belt already. If they lose Giulia it's gonna be tough though, she's head and shoulder above anyone else in term of star power perception. And again, no Stardom presence at WK this year is too bad and seems like two steps back after one step forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted December 30, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2023 (edited) Apparently, there were issues with the PPV stream so Stardom uploaded the two singles matches just hours after the show. Edited January 4 by donsem43 Matches taken down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted January 4 Author Report Share Posted January 4 If you're making an all encompassing match of the year list, make sure to check out Chihiro Hashimoto vs. Natsupoi from Sendai Girls 7/16 show which has now been uploaded to Sendai Girls YouTube channel. Also, if you have Wrestle Universe, check out the main event of the 12/1 TJPW 10th Anniversary Show which is a 2/3 falls 10 woman tag match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted January 5 Author Report Share Posted January 5 Donna Del Mondo is no more, Giulia has disbanded the unit. So... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 Damn... Sucks for Stardom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blehschmidt Posted January 10 Report Share Posted January 10 So, I probably just don't understand Joshi politics or something, but I decided fo start watching Stardom from the beginning of 2022 and as I am making my way through these shows, someone is sticking out to me as a missed opportunity. Lady C stands a full head taller than nearly everyone else in the promotion, and yet she is treated like an absolute jobber. I understand that size isn't everything in wrestling, especially in Japan. But for a woman, her size makes her unique, and it just seems she could be utilzed so much better. I mean, send her state side and have her work with some tall mothefuckers over here for a few months and she could come back with a style none of the other girls are working. I dunno, maybe I am totally off base here. But she just really stands out as something different to me, and it seems a shame that she is always taking falls in tag matches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ma Stump Puller Posted January 10 Report Share Posted January 10 58 minutes ago, Blehschmidt said: So, I probably just don't understand Joshi politics or something, but I decided fo start watching Stardom from the beginning of 2022 and as I am making my way through these shows, someone is sticking out to me as a missed opportunity. Lady C stands a full head taller than nearly everyone else in the promotion, and yet she is treated like an absolute jobber. I understand that size isn't everything in wrestling, especially in Japan. But for a woman, her size makes her unique, and it just seems she could be utilzed so much better. I mean, send her state side and have her work with some tall mothefuckers over here for a few months and she could come back with a style none of the other girls are working. I dunno, maybe I am totally off base here. But she just really stands out as something different to me, and it seems a shame that she is always taking falls in tag matches. Mainly comes down to A. She's not that good (she's not TERRIBLE, but not really someone you wanna be doing a whole lot with) B. Her working more of a heavy-set Taue style wouldn't really befit the house style of the promotion (which is 90% just running through spots at a fast pace) so she functions as the pin-eater instead. Could she get better? Probably, but ehh I can imagine them not throwing so much behind someone who seemingly has a low ceiling given her showings Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted January 10 Author Report Share Posted January 10 She debuted in the early days of the pandemic and right before Stardom ramped up the number of shows that they ran. So she got ran out there more often then she should have with less training than she should have had at that point. Plus, her debut came right at the start of Stardom bringing in a lot of outsiders that they eventually signed. Hemika got a big debut right around the same time. She's not much smaller than Lady C but a much more convincing power wrestler. Ami Sohrei is a comparable because she debuted roughly around the same time in Actwres girl'z but since they run less shows Sohrei probably got to train more to work on fundamentals without being exposed working matches. Then when she came to Stardom she had enough of a handle on the basics that she really benefited from the increased show schedule. With every new wrestler they would sign from other groups, Lady C would get further pushed down the pecking order even further. Her height is just a novelty now. There is a trend developing in the Bushiroad era of Stardom that the in-house rookies haven't nearly developed as well as some of the wrestlers that they brought in from the outside that had a little experience beforehand. Something to keep an eye on with the women who have debuted in the last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kadaveri Posted January 10 Report Share Posted January 10 If you love Mio Momono clap your hands♫♫ She is on such a roll at the moment having good matches with absolutely everyone. Watch her 1/7 match against AKINO in Oz Academy for the latest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted January 23 Author Report Share Posted January 23 On 1/3/2024 at 8:56 PM, donsem43 said: Also, if you have Wrestle Universe, check out the main event of the 12/1 TJPW 10th Anniversary Show which is a 2/3 falls 10 woman tag match. Well what do you know, TJPW threw this up on their YouTube channel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted February 5 Author Report Share Posted February 5 So Meltzer reported Rossy isn't going to WWE. If he was fired for trying to poach talent then I would imagine that he would end up at either end up at Actwres girl'Z, which seemingly has a partnership with AJPW now, or Evolution, which had Shuji Ishikawa quoted as saying “Our aim is to overtake Stardom." Well the easiest way to do that is to literally take Stardom's talent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted February 5 Report Share Posted February 5 I have a feeling between "Bushiroad execs have to apologize to the roster for some unknown indecent" and "Rossy gets tossed out the door early" there's probably another part of the story dropping soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donsem43 Posted February 5 Author Report Share Posted February 5 There are many shoes yet to drop. Knowing specific examples of what Meltzer referred to as "outlandish booking decisions" would probably explain a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted February 5 Report Share Posted February 5 Since Rossy is the talk of the day, I did watch that ARSION reunion special. Ahhh, those insanly cringe bad dance music theme from the 90's/early 00's, did I miss you ! It's insane how Yumi Fukawa and Michiko Ohmukai, who are basically my age, look EXACTLY like you'd expect them to look at when they were 24 years old. And that is, basically the same persons, only 24 years older (ditto Etsuko Mita BTW ! So cool to see her again). Amazing. I had no idea Fukawa's daughter was a pro-wrestler. That was kinda cool to see. AKINO is still AKINO, and by that I mean awesome. Yoshida looks like the most in shape person at 53 ever. I have no idea what the deal was with Ayako, it seems like some people weren't aware she was gonna be there, Ohmukai literally jumped when she heard her name and they hugged for ever in tears. This was nice. Overall, that was quite the quarter of a century later closure. Cool stuff, although obviously I did not get even close to what the night was all about, since a lot of it was talking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted February 5 Report Share Posted February 5 And now news of several workers expressing worries or intentions to leave. If that turns into another mass exodus like it happened in the late 90's for Zenjo and AJPW, that's quite the shake-up in the landscape. Maybe Rossy still owns those ARSION trademarks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted February 6 Report Share Posted February 6 And now news of Giulia postponing her WWE debut to help Rossy jumpstart his new promotion. Loyalty is her middle name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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