Stardom 5Star Grand Prix – August 22nd, 2024

Howdy!

Welcome back joshi fans, to the show that never ends.

Tonight, it’s Hazuki vs Maika on top of things!

Let’s watch some wrestling, shall we?

No time to waste, let’s do this thing.

Stardom 5Star Grand Prix 2024 – Night 8, August 22nd, 2024

Mei Seira vs Mayu Iwatani

Mayu has her IWGP Women’s title, which…..whatever. If NJPW wasn’t going to have it defended on their shows on a more regular basis, I can’t figure out the point of the belt at all.

Fast sequence that ends in a stalemate of dropkicks starts us off. Man, while I cannot deny the tread on the tires when it comes to Mayu, she’s still an absolutely terrific babyface, engaging the crowd, smiling, clapping, in general a ray of sunshine and I mean that in a totally uncynical way. She controls to start, trapping Mei in a corner and going to work.

Mei fires back and springs off the second rope with a dropkick before tying up the legs and pulling on Iwatani’s pigtails. Oooh, what a bitch. Spinkick by Mayu turns the tide, but Mei cuts her off by stomping on her foot. Interesting. Follows that with a neckbreaker for two. To the top we go and they trade there before Mayu brings her down with a superplex.

Mayu goes up, missile dropkick! 1, 2, no! A dropkick sends Mayu outside and Mei to the apron, but as Mei runs to dive off Mayu sweeps the leg to cut that off. Iwatani wants to dive, but Seira comes in off the top with a dropkick. They do a rollup reversal sequence that leads to a crucifix bomb from Iwatani for two. Another rollup reversal and Mayu ends up on top for the win. (Mayu Iwatani over Mei Seira, pinfall, 10:37)

THOUGHTS: **3/4. I love watching Mayu, what can I say? The crowd goes with her and her matches always have energy. This was a buncha moves with a bit underneath, but the execution was decent to good across the board, and Mei is quite good. I thought Mayu took a lot of the match, but she is a bigger star and in contention for the Block still. Seira isn’t out as Iwatani is her only loss, but she has two draws and will likely need a win and help to have a shot.

Konami vs Yuna Mizumori

Konami! I love her. She’s been a fave of mine since I started watching deeper a few years ago with her God’s Eye stuff. She’s a full-on heel now with H.A.T.E., and her opponent, Yuna, is high-fiving folks on the way to the ring. Oh, this should be fun.

Yuna gets the fast start and it looks like an upset for about…..five seconds, before Konami cuts her off and beats her ass. They end up outside the ring so Konami can toss her into the chairs, then back into the ring for more punishment. Yuna frees herself from a submission hold with a slam and fires up into a sliding lariat, then another lariat for two.

She puts Konami on her shoulders, which ends up quite badly and Konami wraps her up tighter than a drum by cinching the arms and taking her to the mat, but Yuna makes the ropes to break. An absolutely filthy german suplex by Konami gets two. Yuna comes back with a driver for two. Jaded by Yuna…..but Konami was goldbricking as she seizes the arm of Yuna and submits her clean. (Konami over Yuna Mizumori, submission, 6:33)

THOUGHTS: **1/2. Honestly, I wish Konami would have savagely beat her more, but that’s just me. Yuna was fine, I suppose. Just a match.

Skipping the 6-woman tag.

Momo Watanabe vs Saya Iida

The Black Peach herself, Momo. I bow only because if I don’t, she’ll hit me with the bat.

Bit of grappling to start. Momo controls with stomps before Iida comes back with a shoulderblock, only to be cut off by a dropkick. Watanabe takes control again, though, and just beats on her. And while I can understand why some don’t like Momo’s pace sometimes, she hits the music between the notes so well. The sneering, the contempt apparent on her face, she’s a fabulous heel. And then when it’s time to sell as Saya goes to work with chops in the corner on the comeback, she’s all screams and thrashes.

Reversal sequence and Saya ends up caught in a Momo uranage, followed by a Meteora for two. Momo goes up and Saya meets her there, powerslam by Saya off the top rope! They stand and trade, kick for chop, and Saya gets a suplex, then a spinebuster. She goes up, shoulderblock off the top hits! She puts Momo on top and goes for a Muscle Buster, but Momo escapes and hits a Meteora off the second rope for two.

Driver by Momo gets two. Saya catches a kick and clotheslines Momo down. Bastard Driver by Momo, Saya kicks out, but that’s the last stand as the Dragon suplex comes soon after to finish things. (Momo Watanabe over Saya Iida, pinfall, 11:12)

THOUGHTS: ***. They took a bit to get cooking in there, but they got it in the end. Saya got some good kickouts, but in the end Momo was too strong to stop.

Tomoka Inaba vs Tam Nakano

I sometimes picture the folks on this blog who hate Tam Nakano watching this year’s 5Star and feeling like Christmas has come early. Of course, she’s still getting the title shot on the Final night, so…..yeah. Inaba is currently undefeated while Nakano has lost every match and is already out.

Nakano with an early cutter and a neckbreaker. She keeps control with kicks and gets two. Running knee sends Inaba to the apron, they fight there and Tam kicks her back into the ring. Tam tries to get in and Inaba hits a dragon-screw against the ropes to send Nakano tumbling to the floor.

Tam rolls back in and Inaba circles the knee like a shark hunting a baby seal. Stomping in the corner, Nakano crashes to the mat off a whip, so Inaba puts her in anklelock, then a kneebar, Tam makes the ropes. Morale has not improved, so Inaba continues the beatings.

Nakano makes a comeback and hits a spinkick, which considering she was pivoting off the hurt leg is kind of inexcusable, and both hit kicks for the double down. Nakano with a bridging German suplex and she holds a perfect bridge despite not being able to walk 60 seconds earlier. Inaba escapes and it’s back to anklelock with the leg grapevined, but Tam makes the ropes.

Nakano with a kick, but she stumbles coming off and gets hit with one for two. Michinoku Driver by Inaba gets two. Inaba back to the kneebar and Tam stretches, reaches…..Inaba pulls her back to the center and turns it into a figure-four, and Nakano taps to remain winless. (Tomoka Inaba over Tam Nakano, submission, 11:36)

THOUGHTS: **3/4. I’m torn because the knee was the finish, so that was good. Nakano just ignoring it for a sequence after selling it like she would never walk again and then going right back to it didn’t light my world on fire. Match wasn’t boring.

Manami vs Natsupoi

Yay! Natsupoi! She’s great. She does my favorite version of the Wonder Girl Princess theme stuff.

Stalemate sequence to start, so Manami dropkicks her to take over. Hair-assisted toss by Manami and monkey flip, but Natsupoi avoids a splash. Hammerlock/Cloverleaf by Natsupoi, and Manami does an excellent struggle to the ropes. More punishment by Natsupoi until Manami finally reverses to cut her off.

Manami sends her to the apron and then the floor with a dropkick, then dropkicks her on the floor from the apron. Then dropkicks her on the floor. The lady does love her dropkicks. Back in and Manami hits a missile…..dropkick for two. Natsupoi tries a comeback, but gets put in a Boston Crab. Natsupoi makes the ropes from that, so Manami goes up. Natsupoi tries to cut her off and we get a bit of a wardrobe malfunction from Manami, but she suplexes Natsupoi off.

Manami up again, but misses a splash completely, and Natsupoi comes off with one of her own before putting on an armbar. She traps the other arm and scissors the head, but Manami makes the ropes. She cuts Natsupoi off on a charge with a jumping knee, then a second one. She misses a lariat and Natsupoi hits a German suplex, both women down. They both charge and Natsupoi ends up messily taking her down into the Fairy Princess lock for the submission. (Natsupoi over Manami, submission, 12:56)

THOUGHTS: ***. Not the best Natsupoi match I’ve ever seen, but not bad. Was not super impressed by Manami, but she was fine.

Hazuki vs Maika

Oh yeah. This should be very good and with the new haircut and red coloring, if you told me there were trying to make Maika into an Utami clone on looks, I wouldn’t even question it.

They rush at each other as soon as the bell rings, then it’s Hazuki with a dropkick. Senton gets two, then a missile dropkick into a crossface by Hazuki. Hazuki fires knees, but comes off the ropes right into a powerslam by Maika for two. They trade off a bit and Hazuki sends Maika outside, then follows her out with a dive.

Back in now and Hazuki with a missile dropkick for two, then back to the crossface. Woman has a plan. They do a nice struggle off that as Maika finally makes the ropes. Both end up on top, and Hazuki hits a double stomp off the top to escape, then superplexes Maika! Excellent sequence. Hazuki goes up and now Maika cuts her off into a superplex of her own, then rolls that into two more before Hazuki reverses one to put both women on the canvas.

They slug it out from their knees with Hazuki winning that one, but she comes off the ropes into a discus lariat from Maika. Maika looks to finish, but Hazuki escapes and goes up, top rope senton! 1, 2, no! Michinoku Driver, 1, 2, no! Hazuki is throwing the kitchen sink at her here. Hazuki hoists her up, Maika escapes, Rainmaker by Maika! Michinoku Driver by Maika! 1, 2, no! Second attempt and Hazuki attempts to counter with La Majistral, but Maika stops that and hits a second Michinoku Driver! 1, 2, NO! And finally, Maika has had enough of this shit, so she puts her in a hammerlock and then hits a 3rd Michinoku Driver for the pin with less than 30 seconds to go in the time limit. (Maika over Hazuki, pinfall, 14:39)

THOUGHTS: ***1/4, match of the night, yet I still was a bit underwhelmed. I like both women and really felt like they had more to give in this one. It was a good match, but both women are capable of a great match. I think that Maika is a really good wrestler, although I am on the fence about her being the ace that they seem to be pushing her as.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Decent show with some good wrestling, nothing to complain about but nothing blowaway either.

I have work for the next few days, so I’ll likely get caught up on things next week as hurtle towards the finale. See you all then!

As always, thanks for reading this thing I wrote,

Rick Poehling
@MrSoze on Twitter
[email protected] for email