Notes
- Ami Sohrei will be absent from all cards as she begins the process of recovering from ACL and meniscus tears in her knee.
- Kaori Yoneyama – more commonly known as Fukigen Death in Stardom – has also suffered an ACL tear and will be out of action for a year.
- Miyu Amasaki will be absent from the cards in Kaminoyama on the 22nd and Niigata in the 23rd September due to ‘poor health’ – the card has been changed accordingly.
- 33rd Artist of Stardom Champions Cosmic Angels have been champions for for 49 days – in their first reign as a team. This will be their first title defence of their reign.
- This is Tam Nakano’s fourth individual reign, Natuspoi’s third and Saori Anou’s second.
Quick Results
- Tag Team Match: AZM & Xena def. Koguma & Ranna Yagami w/ Diving Double Footstomp (12:22)
- 6-Woman Tag Team Match: EXV (Mina Shirakawa, Waka Tsukiyama & Rian) def. Cosmic Angels (Aya Sakura, Sayaka Kurura & Yuna Mizumori) w/ Implant DDT (9:52)
- 6-Woman Tag Team Match: NEO-GENESIS (Starlight Kid, Mei Seira & Suzu Suzuki) def. STARS (Hazuki, Momo Kohgo & Hanan) w/ Shooting Star (10:36)
- 8-Woman Tag Team Match: H.A.T.E (Momo Watanabe, Rina, Konami & Thekla) def. God’s Eye (Syuri, Saki Kashima, Lady C & Hina) w/ Buzzsaw Kick (12:23)
- Tag Team Match: STARS (Mayu Iwatani & Saya Iida) def. EXV (Maika & HANAKO) w/ Dragon Suplex (16:40)
- Artist of Stardom Championships Match: Cosmic Angels (Tam Nakano, Natsupoi & Saori Anou) (c) def. H.A.T.E (Natsuko Tora, Saya Kamitani & Ruaka) w/ Pottering (16:44)
The Undercard
Considering a lot of this must have been put together on the fly so to speak due to Miyu’s injury necessitating the last minute card changes, this is a lot of fun. Koguma is the lynchpin of the entire match, while her ongoing miscommunication with Ranna makes for an entertaining dynamic, with Syuri telling the latter under no circumstances is she to partake in any Kuma shenanigans. Xena and AZM on the other hand make for a deceptively cohesive unit, and it seems right that the match ends courtesy of a double team move. AZM comes off Xena’s shoulders with a Double Knee Drop, before hastening to the top rope and landing the Diving Double Footstomp for the win. (***)
At first, I was slightly confused when Sayaka Kurura and Aaya Sakura came out to the ring on their own. Then Yuna Mizumori arrives, accompanied by the Pine Cider Man, both clad in rather fetching pineapple hats, and everything – sort of – makes sense. Even though this is the first real time we’ve seen Rian in her brand new surroundings, it’s actually Sayaka Kurura who shines during this match, and especially during her closing sequence with Mina. The Venus looks almost impressed after blitzing Kurura with a forearm and a Spinning Back Fist, only for the Excited Spear to kick out at two, especially having already withstood the Figure Four Leglock. One Implant DDT later however and the match is over with EXV walking away with the victory. (**3/4)
Progress has been made with Hazuki courtesy of that backstage Koguma slap following the show in Sendai; The Wildheart comes out to the ring without her hood up! It’s a small victory admittedly, and the fact she still looks cripplingly unsure of herself is quite upsetting, but she performs her signature taunt for the first time since Namba Grand Fight, even it looks like it takes everything she has to actually do it. Kid is taking no prisoners however, demanding Hazuki start the match with her. It takes a while for Hazuki to fight back, much to Kid’s annoyance and even after Momo and Hanan enter the match to swing the tide, Hazuki can’t bring herself to join. NEO-GENESIS pretty much run the rest of the match as a result, in spite of a spirited performance from Momo Kohgo at the end, and she’s eventually rolled up by a Mei Seira Shooting Star. The Hazuki saga continues… (***1/2)
God’s Eye’s clearly untreated emotional state surrounding Konami’s defection appears to completley imparting their judgment. Another clash between the two groups leads to another brawl on the outside, with H.A.T.E immediately introducing all members to the chairs around the ring. It’s a prolonged beatdown, with Syuri eventually coming to Saki’s aid when the action does eventually move back into the ring. Lady C looks good once again, especially in her interactions with Momo Watanabe, but God’s Eye as a team find themselves stymied at every possible turn by H.A.T.E’s teamwork and numbers game. Hina tries to stem the tide somewhat, but is ultimately overpowered by both Thekla and Konami, the latter laying a vicious Punt Kick followed by the Buzzsaw Kick for the victory. With Syuri and Saki challenging Momo and Thekla for their Goddesses of Stardom Championships, the run of losses and setbacks that they’ve had in the run up to this match must beg the question as to whether they are ready, both emotionally and physically, for this challenge! (***1/4)
Main Event Matches
STARS (Mayu Iwatani & Saya Iida) def. EXV (Maika & HANAKO) – When you have a tag team match that includes both Mayu Iwatani and Maika, the fact that the MVP of the match is HANAKO goes to show the rapid and all-consuming change that a single month in America has brought on for the Wonder Tower. Her exchanges with Saya Iida during the opening of this match, and then her closing stretch with Mayu that sees her both toss around the Icon of Stardom, and allow herself to be thrown around should be applauded.
However, it’s not just about HANAKO, as that would be going Saya Iida a great disservice. Maybe from a height perspective she sees herself as the underdog, but she completely squashes that idea by managing to impressively hit Vertical Suplexes on to both Maika and HANAKO as well as being able to lift the latter clean into the air and charge her into the corner; an act that even impresses Mayu on the apron.
The only real downside to this match is that we don’t quite get to see enough of Maika and Mayu together, though this is a selfish desire more than anything in the wake of their excellent 5Star Grand Prix match. What we did get from the limited exchanges though is a really innovative piece of tag team offence from the EXV team, with Maika hoisting Mayu into the a Vertical Suplex and bringing her down back-first onto HANAKO’s leg as a Backbreaker. All-in-all, it’s an excellent tag team match, easily the best match on the card so far in my opinion, and did wonders in highlighting both HANAKO and Saya, whilst quietly reminding us of just how good Mayu and Maika are together. Definitely – in the paraphrased words of Mayu Iwatani – check this one out. (****)
Artist of Stardom Championships Match: Cosmic Angels (Tam Nakano, Natsupoi & Saori Anou) (c) def. H.A.T.E (Natsuko Tora, Saya Kamitani & Ruaka) – At what point will people learn that attacking H.A.T.E before the bell never ever works for the other team? We see it again here as Tam leads the charge, and it’s mere seconds before all three members of the Cosmic Angels are lying among the wreckage and detritus of the front row of chairs. Of course this is where H.A.T.E thrive and the early portions of this match sees them completely dominate Cosmic Angels, Saya Kamitani taking the time to choke out Saori with Cosmic Angels towel.
When the action moves back into the ring, the challengers isolate Saori Anou and begin the slow process of grinding her down. Anou is able to rally as the match goes on, with Cosmic Angels then taking the opportunity to do the exact same to Ruaka, cutting her off from the H.A.T.E team entirely. All of this culminates in a telling-yet-brief stare down between Tam Nakano and Saya Kamitani, which could be an early teaser for where we are heading for Sumo Hall in December.
It’s only when Saya and Saori Anou come face-to-face once again that the pace and intensity ramps up significantly, with the pair proving themselves to be a very good fit for each other. The fact that we may indeed be building to a singles outing for the pair, potentially as early as Nagoya Golden Fight at the start of next month, is incredibly exciting, and the way they close out this match is perfect. As an almost mirror image to the flash pin that led to this challenge in the first place, Saori Anou is able to surprise Saya with the Pottering for the victory, with Cosmic Angels achieving their first successful title defence of this reign. (***3/4)
You can check out the Stardom roster win/loss records for 2024 right here; https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/103h_Y27csTgcS-CcBwswaj-D7hVazTC_Wn0SPn0BZBM/edit
You can check out a comprehensive run down of the Stardom Championship Histories here; https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-Dk6T0ukSXm6R8eOTQU96i4rsfoy34wnz0-rKP5mwmQ/edit
Upcoming Shows
- Monday 23rd September – Stardom in Niigata, Niigata City Industrial Promotion Center, Niigata (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
- Saturday 28th September – Stardom in Korakuen 2024 Sep 2., Korakuen Hall, Tokyo (LIVE)
- Sunday 29th September – New Blood 15, Saitama Tokorozawa Sakura Town Japan Pavilion Hall, Saitama (LIVE)
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