SHOW REPORT: Stardom in Komatsu 2024 Oct (Saturday, 12th October 2024)

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.
• Saki Kashima will be absent for the next set of Stardom shows as she begins the process of recovering from a ‘nagging’ injury, though she will still be present as a ringside second and at photo signings. There is currently no information regarding a return date.
• Attendance Note: This is only the second time in Stardom’s history that they have run this venue, and the first time this year. The last time Stardom ran the venue was on the 5th August 2023 (the fourth night of the 2023 5Star Grand Prix) where they drew a house of 502, meaning that there is a significant drop of just over 50%. However, it is worth noting that this is a comparison of a 5Star Grand Prix show and what is effectively a house show, so take the comparison with a pinch of salt. 
  

Quick Results

• Singles Match: Saori Anou def. Ranna Yagami w/ German Suplex (9:20)
• 6-Woman Tag Team Match: NEO-GENESIS (AZM, Mei Seira & Miyu Amasaki) def. Cosmic Angels (Yuna Mizumori, Aya Sakura & Sayaka Kurura) w/ Shooting Star (11:49)
• Three-Way Tag Team Match: H.A.T.E (Momo Watanabe & Saya Kamitani) def. EXV (Waka Tsukiyama & Xena) & STARS (Hazuki & Saya Iida) w/ B-Driver (11:05)
• 8-Woman Tag Team Match: STARS (Mayu Iwatani, Momo Kohgo, Koguma & Hanan) def. EXV (Maika, Mina Shirakawa, HANAKO & Rian) w/ Diving Body Press (11:04)
• Tag Team Match: meltear (Tam Nakano & Natsupoi) def. God’s Eye (Syuri & Lady C) w/ Fairial Gift (15:23)
• Tag Team Match: NEO-GENESIS (Starlight Kid & Suzu Suzuki) def. BMI2000 (Natsuko Tora & Ruaka) w/ Gran Maestro de Tequila (13:53)

The Undercard

Another immensely improved performance from Ranna Yagami who, between the Catch the Wave tournament and her debut in the 5Star Grand Prix, feels less and less like a rookie with every passing show. This is something that Saori Anou notes aswell, both immediately after securing the win, and in her subsequent backstage interview. (***)

Seeing AZM as the only member of the NEO-GENESIS trio without a belt is rather jarring, but that doesn’t seem to matter to the Komatsu crowd, with one man in particular howling her name rather terrifyingly. However, it does lead to NEO-GENESIS then hilariously playing with the echo in the building before the match starts. Just as she was on the previous night, Yuna is undoubtedly the MVP, with her exchanges with Mei and in particular AZM being impressive highlights of a fast-paced match. With Mizumori attempting the TP Sunshine that got her the win in Osaka, Mei is able to reverse it into the Shooting Star, with both women now having a win apiece ahead of their High-Speed Championship match at Korakuen on the 27th. (***1/2)

The match opens brightly enough with Xena and Saya seemingly making a silent pact to see who can chop who the hardest, while watching Xena later on repeatedly avoiding Saya on the apron by simply leaping over her is very entertaining. Unfortunately, the match is blighted somewhat by an injury to Xena, who hits a Slingshot Plancha to the outside and seems to do damage to her knee. There’s obvious immediate concern, with credit going to Waka for immediately darting around the ring to try and get an ice pack, and to Momo for taking the match home as professionally as she could. After rolling Xena back into the ring and it becoming evident that she would not be able to continue, Momo took a chair and gave some of the lightest and most well-protected chair shots to the injured limb in an attempt to give Xena an excuse to leave the match. After the bell she would leave the match in a knee brace, but with both Ami Sourei and Kaori Yoneyama currently sidelined with long-term knee injuries, our sincerest thoughts go out to Xena and hope that it’s not as serious as it seems. (Not Rated)

Momo – buoyed perhaps by her own determination to prove herself after lambasting herself yesterday for being the reason the faction kept losing – immediately calls out the biggest opponent on the opposite team; HANAKO. Following this, STARS completely isolate Rian, with Mayu in particular taking delight in landing as many thumping blows to the rookie’s back as she can muster. Even after timely interventions from both Mina and Maika, with the latter having an extended sequence with Koguma, Rian finds herself isolated for a second time when Hanan takes out the rest of the group with a Plancha from the apron. Koguma secures the win with the Diving Body Press to complete a fairly standard – but needed – victory for the group. (***)

Main Event Matches

Tag Team Match: meltear (Tam Nakano & Natsupoi) def. God’s Eye (Syuri & Lady C) – Natsupoi looks incredibly pleased with herself as she seems to outthink Lady C when the latter looks to use her height in a test of strength, and the High-Speed Fairy ascends to the second rope to make herself big. She looks decidedly less happy when Lady C loses patience and just chops her in the chest and drags her into an attempted Chokeslam. God’s Eye then work hard to isolate Natsupoi from Tam, with Lady C utilising the Giant Swing before tagging in Syuri, who embarks on her usual brutal kick-based destruction. Lady C is the MVP of this match, and the highlight in many ways, with her evident growth in confidence leading to her feeling like she belongs in these matches as more than just the token ‘pin-eater’. Her exchanges with Natsupoi, and later Tam, are excellent examples of this, and it will be interesting to see if this year’s Goddesses of Stardom Tag League tournament is the breakout one for the Human Tower. That being said, the sequences between Syuri and Tam evoke a real sense of excitement inside the venue, with the pair embarking on a furious forearm exchange that sees the World of Stardom Champion more than hold her own. It’s an exciting and brief insight into what a Red Belt match between the pair would look like, with Syuri chomping at the bit to be back in the main event picture; her last match for the top prize in Stardom being all the way back in December 2022! Despite Lady C’s impressiveness, it’s meltear’s tag team chemistry that ultimately wins out. The pair manage to eject Syuri from the ring before crashing into Lady C with a pair of Stereo Superkicks., before Natsupoi connects with the Fairial Gift for the win. (***1/2)

Tag Team Match: NEO-GENESIS (Starlight Kid & Suzu Suzuki) def. BMI2000 (Natsuko Tora & Ruaka) – An interesting little tidbit is that the last time Stardom ran this venue, Starlight Kid and Suzu Suzuki were facing each other in 2023’s 5Star Grand Prix. A lot has changed since then, and the pair now stand united as one of the most entertaining factions in Stardom. It’s an interesting dynamic they present as well, with Kid provided the high-flying athleticism, while Suzu offers the gritty brawling style that melds very well with Tora, highlighted by their fierce chairs battle when the opening of the match makes it’s inevitable way to the outside. Even though BMI2000 do their best to isolate Starlight Kid, she’s still able to hold her own, and begins her own assault on Tora’s knee. In fact, it’s only when BMI2000 use the numbers game that they are able to begin to dominate proceedings. Every time NEO-GENESIS threaten to build their own momentum, the non-legal person for BMI2000 will appear on the apron to drag someone out, or interfere in the actual match. However, this is a double-edged sword, and actually ends up costing BMI2000. After more interference has allowed Ruaka to hit Suzu with the Choke Bomb, before the Violent Freezer inexplicably drags her up before the count of 3, Momo Watanabe enters the fray to put a final emphasis on the match with a bat shot to Suzuki. However, she misses with her wild shot and ends up completely wiping out Ruaka, allowing Suzu to roll her up with the Gran Maestro de Tequila as Starlight Kid hangs onto Momo in order to stop her breaking up the pinfall. It’s a statement win for NEO-GENESIS, and one that leads to the pair hypothesising about what a team between the pair would look like in the upcoming Goddesses of Stardom Tag League. (***1/2)

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 14th October – Stardom in Toyama 2024 Oct, Bolfert Toyama, Toyama (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
• Saturday 19th October – New Blood 16, BelleSalle Shinjuku Grand, Tokyo (LIVE)
• Sunday 20th October – Stardom in Fuji 2024 Oct, Fujisan Messe, Shizuoka (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
• Saturday 26th October – Goddesses of Stardom Tag League 2024 ~Opening Round~ in Shinjuku, Shinjuku Sumitomo Hall, Tokyo (LIVE)
• Sunday 27th October – Goddesses of Stardom Tag League 2024 in Korakuen, Korakuen Hall, Tokyo (LIVE)
• Thursday 31st October – Goddesses of Stardom Tag League 2024 in Takamatsu, Takamatsu Symbol Tower, Kagawa (VIDEO ON DEMAND)