Review: Stardom – 2018.01.07

Momo Watanabe vs. Shiki Shibusawa
A fairly decent opener. Momo hit hard throughout and Shiki did fine. Momo Watanabe pinned Shiki Shibusawa. 2/5

Kay Lee Ray & Xia Brookside vs. Konami & Mari Apache
Another decent match. Mari Apache and Kay Lee Ray had a couple of really nice exchanges and Xia and Konami both did fine. Kay Lee Ray pinned Konami after a swanton. 2.5/5

Hiromi Mimura vs. Hana Kimura
This wasn’t bad but was a little disappointing. The match took a long time to get going with a lot of posing, “Shouta!” and comedy spots that didn’t quite work. Once they actually started to wrestle there really wasn’t a lot that notable. Hana Kimura pinned Hiromi Mimura for the win. 2.25/5

Oedo Tai (Kagetsu & Sumire Natsu) vs. Team Jungle (Jungle Kyona & Natsuko Tora)
Great match. Kagetsu continued to prove she is quite possibly Stardom’s MVP with some incredible selling, especially from Jungle Kyona’s power moves, as well as providing her own great offence and character. Sumire Natsu was also very good and showed a little more wrestling ability with a couple of nice counters. Jungle Kyona and Natsuko Tora also added a lot to the match with their energy and power. Kagetsu pinned Natsuko Tora after an Oedo Coaster. 4/5

Queen’s Quest (Io Shirai, HZK & AZM) vs. World Selection (Rachael Ellering, Nicole Savoy & Miranda)
Most of the work in this match was fine, some of it was sloppy, in a couple of spots it was dangerous but none of it was particularly compelling. There was just never any sense of tension or stakes in the match. Near the end Rachael Ellering tried to roll out of the way of an Io Shirai moonsault but didn’t make it and Io was lucky to not have had a nastier landing as her head and collided with the moving Ellering. Everyone showed some glimpses of good work but the match never felt like it meant anything. Rachael Ellering pinned AZM for the win. 3/5