Joshi Spotlight: Zenjo in Fall 2000

AJW IN FALL 2000:
* Here’s a quartet of matches, all from Sept. 30th to Nov. 19th in 2000! Come see Zenjo pull its later-year angles and stories as it settles into the “new normal”: Kaoru Ito as 3WA Champion, Momoe Nakanishi & Nanae Takahashi as Tag Champs, and Las Cachorras Orientales still kicking around as vicious heels who just won’t leave. Plus an angle where Miho Wakizawa gets showcased in some vicious beatings, both with and against Manami Toyota, who seems to be in “lecturing veteran” mode. This one also starts one of the big angles of the year with the former champions, Tomoko Watanabe & Kumiko Maekawa!

LAS CACHORRAS ORIENTALES (Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita) vs. MANAMI TOYOTA & MIHO WAKIZAWA:
(Sept. 30th 2000
* The weird pairing of Toyota/Wakizawa shows up again, probably doing the “elevate Wacky by having her ass kicked but do kinda okay in matches with veterans” thing. Toyota is now wearing a giant bee on her costume, which fits how a lot of her later moves are called the “Queen Bee” something or other.

We’re JIP with the babyfaces missing stereo flying headbutts (an old Toyota/Yamada finisher) and Wacky having to counter Mita’s DVD to a backslide. Shimoda catches Wacky up top, but here’s Toyota to set Mita up for a Doomsday Device Dropkick and Shimoda has to save. Mita recovers for another DVD attempt, gets rolled up, and immediately Toyota missile kicks her exhausted ass, so Wacky hits her Fisherman’s Buster. Again Shimoda saves (with an extra kick from the ground, lol) and ax kicks Wacky right in the forehead, and LCO sets up their DVD/Ax Kick finisher, but Wacky Germans out to Mita and rolls her up for two.

Wacky tries to finish again, but Mita shoves her into Shimoda’s yellow chair, causing her to collapse, and when Manami tries to fly in, she missile kicks her PARTNER right in the spine- good job, Manami. Death Valley… no, rollup #3! Mita looks sooooo tired getting up, but Wacky wickedly slaps her, whips her off the ropes and Mita immediately Blazing Chops her for two. The Death Valley Driver FINALLY hits for the three at (3:15 shown). Mita talks some mad shit after the match as Wakizawa is still laying, but the kid cuts a promo from the mat before rolling over face-down, defeated. Toyota now gets the mic and makes the crowd laugh by shaming Wakizawa for sucking/giving up, and the kid remains defeated.

This was quite the ending sequence! Particularly since it was 95% Mita/Wakizawa, with Mita still operating as a perfect base for even a gangly, pretty sloppy kid to be flinging her around and rolling her up (oftentimes you’d see Wacky barely have a single limb and Mita would just launch herself over into the rollup). Toyota wasn’t much of a help at all, but it was funny seeing Wakizawa counter the DVD again and again until she was just too beaten down to do it.

KAORU ITO & MIHO WAKIZAWA vs. MANAMI TOYOTA & KAYO NOUMI:
(Oct. 15th 2000)
* Now Miho & Manami are enemies, with the Champ on Miho’s side, and Toyota shored up by Wacky’s normal tag partner Noumi! Ito’s in shades of blue, Wacky’s in yellow & brown, Manami’s in black, and Kayo’s in jungle-print & light blue. Everyone does pre-match handshakes, except Wacky DISSES Toyota, who is just amused.

Manami jumps Wacky from behind for that disrespect, then hilariously dumps Kayo like a sack of shit after lifting her for a double-team, then they pose with Wacky’s stretched form. Wacky promptly comes back with goofy shit like spitting and gets an amused Ito in for a double-team pose for revenge. Ito then works over Kayo with a half-crab, then Wacky keeps flying onto her with splashes and messes with Toyota. Wacky tries, but immediately takes some falling clotheslines and in comes Toyota for an ass-kicking. She gleefully tortures the kid, taking the piss the whole time with goofy dances and stuff, Wacky remaining defiant, and Noumi hits some rolling snapmares and a half-crab, Manami running in to get the fans to clap… then stomping Wacky’s hands. lol this shitass super-escalation is funny- did Wacky run over her cat or something? Ito gets tagged in and immediately wants Manami, calls in Wacky for a double-team… except has to do a half-assed whack because Wacky’s off in the weeds for some reason. ah, there’s the double-clothesline that was supposed to be. Both hit flying moves and Ito her rolling senton, but Manami hits the pop-up dropkick and they work double-teams on Ito now. Ito completely ignores some Kayo dropkicks and brings out the old Rookieslayer Lariat for two and in comes Wacky for some rolling headscissors and hahahah her D: face as Toyota comes sailing in for a splash on her. Wacky quickly escapes her, then Ito hiptosses Manami out of the rolling cradle, but gets one after countering a powerbomb.

Manami misses a Moonsault (lol she tries that after doing only one move?) and eats that powerbomb, but ducks a double-team and… Ito/Wacky just suplex Noumi on the floor, spoiling Toyota’s attempt at a plancha. Manami gets double-teamed but gets the Manami Roll in the ring for two, Noumi gets lariated, and they try the “misdirect them for the partner’s missile kick” but now MANAMI whiffs, eating shit as the others dodge. Repeating running stomps for everyone! Wacky tries to fly onto Kayo and VICIOUSLY eats two boots to the gut, tries to no-sell her missile kick… and gets brained by Toyota’s from behind. Double-Wrist Armsault from Kayo gets two. Wacky with a sloppy super rana (Kayo lands ON her) for two. Toyota stops Ito’s powerbomb and Kayo hits a SUPER Double-Wrist Armsault for two- Ito saves. Manami missile kicks/Moonsault- same result. Wacky escapes two Japanese Ocean Cyclones, but gets dumped and Manami gets a tope con hilo off the top to both opponents- well you knew she was gonna get that highspot in. But Kayo nails Manami trying a plancha and Ito dives onto both so WACKY can get a plancha… and the crowd just seems to die. Wow, that’s weird. Ito powerbombs Manami and then front superplexes Wacky’s knee across Manami’s face (OW), then holds her… then tries a pin (wtf is with this girl?) and THEN Ito hits a Flying Stomp halfway across the ring. Wacky Fisherman’s Buster- Kayo DIVES on to save. She holds Manami for a German… but she ducks Ito’s lariat and Wacky gets waffled. She tries an awful rollup but Manami just sits on her for two, gets caught up top, but holds on from a super rana attempt and Kayo dropkicks Miho in the gut, leaving her dropping head first (OW). Doomsday Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex- Ito saves! Kayo hits the shittiest German on her ever to hold her back so Manami can hit the JOCS on Wakizawa’s corpse at (22:44), finally getting the win.

A pretty fun, clever match, with lots of interesting spots, “the second time hits” moves, and Manami trolling Wacky for half the bout like a total asshole. Stuff like this helps the execution issues (always a thing in Wakizawa matches), especially as Ito & Toyota weren’t exactly swinging for the fences either. Wakizawa & Noumi sell pretty perfectly, Miho SCREAMING at stuff and Kayo having this great “shock/horror” face coming up from taking offense as she ragdolls around. Wacky was getting REALLY rought as things went on, though, and landing head-first on the mat from Manami holding her up top probably wasn’t the best (even if it was only 2 feet). The ending sequence left a little to be desired, but the final flurry of moves was pretty good, and they sold well how Ito had to be held off, since she was fresh. This lacked Manami’s typical no-selling issues when fighting kids (she didn’t even do her “power-up” spot!) and Ito was fine, but Wakizawa was all over the place, which was a bit iffy since the match was obviously to showcase her.

Rating: ***1/4 (fun kind of in spite of the execution issues because the character stuff mostly landed- good but not great ending run)

LAS CACHORRAS ORIENTALES (Mima Shimoda & Etsuko Mita) vs. TOMOKO WATANABE & KUMIKO MAEKAWA:
(Oct. 15th 2000)
* It’s LCO vs. the former champs! Yet again! I think they fought like 4 times this year. I wonder if this finally ends the feud, now that LCO have transitioned the belts to the Miracle Rookie Squadron, NanaMomo. Mita makes one of her classic weird faces during intros like *shrug “Guess I’m jobbing, huh?” except Tomoko also looks depressed to be there. Tomoko/Kumiko both have bleach-blonde hair but aren’t in matching gear for once (symbolic of the team splitting up?)- Kumiko’s in white & blue, Tomoko’s in bright blue. Shimoda’s in pink, Mita’s in yellow.

LCO pounces before the bell and lightly jogs around the ring giving Tomoko some of the softest chairshots ever- so light they basically lose their grip every time they “Lance Storm” them into her. A brief ass-kicking outside the ring leads to the babyfaces AGAIN looking bored, and LCO works over Tomoko with the basics. Tomoko finally boomerangs Mita and tags out, and Kumiko & Mita do a very good sequence where they keep avoiding moves (Mita grabs the ropes to stop the Pump Kick, Kumiko kicks the Blazing Chop away, then they keep blocking kicks and Germans)- Kumiko finally scissor kicks her to win. Tomoko hits a sawft lariat but Shimoda’s chairshot helps Mita hit a Northern Lights suplex (been a while since I’ve seen THAT!) for two. Shimoda accidentally beans Mita with a chair but then Kumiko VERY deliberately kicks Tomoko in the head and Shimoda hits the tiger suplex for two. An annoyed Tomoko takes LCO both on, lariating them and doing the dragon screw spot with Mita, and the Screwdriver (one-armed ligerbomb) gets two on Shimoda- Mita just bumps them over. Kumiko just stands there a bit then accidentally (this time) nails Tomoko again.

Tomoko escapes the DVD and nails Mita, but takes a Blazing Chop as she’s getting worn down without making tags. Commentary even says “communication” as Tomoko escapes the electric chair drop but takes the Wussy Double Superbomb for two. Kumiko’s like “yeah, okay” and tries a double-lariat with Tomoko, but catches Shimoda’s pink chair and VERY deliberately hits her partner with it! Kumiko makes trollface on the apron as Tomoko looks at her and eats a DVD for two. Tomoko’s bloody as she’s pulled up, Kumiko Ax Kicks her, and then Mita hoists her up for the Death Valley Driver as Shimoda AND Kumiko add their Ax Kicks to it, and that gets the three at (7:24). Kumiko has not only betrayed her longtime partner of years, but JOINED LCO to do it! Everyone talks mad shit over a bloody, beaten Tomoko, who doesn’t react (Ito & Momoe jump in and start chest-bumping LCO around to show defiance), but finally starts trying to get at them but is too weak. It’s not till the very end that we get shots of Tomoko breaking down and bawling with her face a crimson mask- ah, THERE’s the money right there! Apparently Kumiko said something like “Watanabe, I’m tired of you- that’s it”.

Mostly a means to an end- some slack-ass wrestling as it was like everyone’s going “fuck finish, so who cares?” and the fans are being super-quiet as a result, meaning the big betrayal spots seem to not get as great a reaction. The first one was flat-out weird- like it almost had the cadence of a “miscommunication” spot except LCO was nowhere near Tomoko when Kumiko charged up and booted her, and only later tried a “double-team” before grabbing a chair and braining her. And instead of selling sorrow or fury for that, Tomoko was just kinda “…” as LCO beat her up and Kumiko added her own finisher to pin her. And only THEN does Tomoko finally break. It’s just some very unusual stuff, like they had a big “betrayal” idea but pulled it off sorta weird. A more Western-style “SWERVE!” ending mighta fit better, I dunno. HOWEVER, as Tomoko & Kumiko are natives and on similar levels in the promotion, a blood feud over the White Belt is probably a really good route to try and go on, as the Red Belt and Tag Belts are somewhat occupied.

Rating: ** (more of a means to an end, with some very slack, low-effort wrestling to get to that point)

KAORU ITO & MANAMI TOYOTA vs. MOMOE NAKANISHI & NANAE TAKAHASHI:
(Nov. 19th 2000)
* It’s NanaMomo vs. two of the top stars in the company! The young kids are the Tag Champs but in WAY over their heads here, I gotta think, but it’s at least non-title. This is in a pretty puny gym that doesn’t look to be that well-attended. The sound quality sucks to the point where it sounds like everyone got the Conway Pop, lol. Long YouTube video, though!

The kids pounce the vets before the bell, Manami counters them, then she & Momoe do a lightning-fast routine, mostly Momoe speedblitzing around her and Manami hanging on and “holding her off”. Manami does the “lol, you short” hand-raise but gets beat on for it, and NanaMomo works the arm. It’s so funny seeing Nanae try to follow Momoe’s lead- she’s SO much slower and less effort-laden. Momoe accidentally potatoes Manami on the chin during an armbar reversal sequence and HOO BOY is she gonna get it for that one. Manami pretty much shoot-trips her out and tags Ito, who leaves ass-shaped holes in Momoe’s chest with a HUGE ass attack. Another one and the crowd is “ahh”-ing at the effort and Ito cranks on a figure-four for a bit before restholding it. Giant swing & rolling cradle keep up the punishment, and Manami does the “lol look at the piggy!” nose-pulling until Nanae comes in and they double-dropkick her. Nanae gets her fallaway slam but Manami dropkicks her. Ito adds the release uranage and they hit a figure-four/splash. Ito ignores her move with a lariat for two, but eats shoulderblock spam as Nanae can actually outmuscle the veterans, and they hit their own figure-4/splash to Ito. Momoe even jogs in place on Ito’s chest and disses Manami. Ito hits the corner ass attack and ignores the Mongolian chops with another lariat, then Momoe pinballs around for Manami’s missile kicks. however, she hits a run-up press to avoid a corner whip and NanaMomo hit a trio of missile kicks to MANAMI for two.

I get a kick out of “weird building layouts”. They’ve got another set of bleachers way up on the second level on what looks like 2-3 sides of this arena… but there’s only three dudes in this section. And you can see them sorta lurk and wander around while keeping huge amounts of distance from one another. Like, they thought this was the best view and didn’t want to move, lol? Don’t ask me why this amuses me.

Nanae with some restholds until Ito runs in and beats on her, taking special care to crush her leg with stomps. Man listen to her HOWL- Nanae is working hard tonight, too! She manages a backbreaker & counter-backdrop suplex against Manami as I marvel at the three weird dudes who are the only people in their section, lurking a mile away from one another in the upper deck above the basketball hoop. Nanae backdrop suplexes Manami at a high angle but misses a Vader Bomb, gets missile kicked in the back, and then flattened by Ito for two. Ito misses the flying stomp, but gets Momoe to missile kick Nanae so a Powerbomb gets two. Momoe saves her and Nanae lands a dive onto the vets- Momoe follows with a plancha, but Nanae has to stop Ito’s Flying Stomp, hitting a superplex. Momoe’s splash sets up the Vader Bomb for two, but Momoe charges into the uranage. She manages a run-up moonsault to Manami, who gets revenge with her Running Springboard dive to NanaMomo, Ito adding a tope. Manami misses a moonsault, but dodges Momoe’s next run-up moonsault, only for the kid to land on her feet and SEAMLESSLY German Suplex her. Holy cow what a spot. Ito has to stop a Dragon Suplex finisher, then the NanaMomo Assisted German spot, then Momoe lands on Manami’s feet and gets CRUSHED by Ito’s Flying Stomp & Manami’s Moonsault, Nanae having to save. It deals with her so the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex finishes Momoe at (18:00).

This was House Show 101, with lots of slower “fun spots”, revenge spots, restholds with character, crowd-pleasing stuff etc. without necessarily swinging for the fences, though we still got some of that with Momoe (who is young AND crazy, thus she can still do that). Ito also hit some stiff offense and Manami appears to take excited children as a personal challenge to ramp up her own attacks, and wasn’t even in her usual Get My Shit In mode, missing most of her shit and bouncing around for Momoe. They actually did a good job of showing the kids pressing them without necessarily getting near-falls, as it took a pronounced double-team effort and getting rid of Nanae to crush Momoe with three straight big moves and pin her. So the Tag Champs eat a loss, but as it’s 2 of Zenjo’s Top 3, it’s not so bad.

Rating: *** (actually much better than most matches at shows like this, elevated through sheer effort)