By: Jeff Brown

Photos: Masahiro Kubota

Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling held their annual January 4th show at Korakuen Hall in front of a nearly sold-out crowd. These events have become highly anticipated because they usually have debuts, fun tag matches, exciting guests, Hyper Misao and Shoko chaos, and big title matches. This show was no different as Miu Watanabe faced Mizuki in the main event, the tag titles were on the line as 121000000 were against Masha Slamovich and Zara Zakher, Suzume challenged Yuki Aria for the International Princess title, Mifu Ashida was making her TJPW debut, guests such as Matcha and Lee Ying Lee were on the card, and there was a Lumbersnake Death Match. Here are some impressions of the big show.

The show began with the Up Up Girls (sans Uta) performing a new song “Stand Up! Proof Of Love”. It’s worth noting Hyper Misao was out to announce she had written the lyrics to the song and then sat ringside to cheer the group on.

HIMAWARI & Mifu Ashida vs. Chika Nanase & Toga

A few late substitutions as Haru and Uta were both absent so the undercard was reshuffled a bit. Ashida had a run in Ice Ribbon but was among the recent group of departures. She showed up, and much like her tag partner HIMAWARI, was a perfect fit on day one. Ashida has a very athletic and flashy style that is a bit different from the rest of the TJPW crew. Chika and especially Toga were unrelenting to the newcomer and christened her with a decent beatdown. Toga hit a Rock Bottom on Ashida to win the match and welcome her to TJPW.

Ivy Steele, Kira Summer & Matcha vs. Kaya Toribami, Ryo Mizunami & Yoshiko Hasegawa

Mizunami’s entrance and Koda being exasperated by her will always be a welcome addition to TJPW shows. A really solid multi-person tag that was under 10 minutes but served its purpose of allowing everyone to get a bit of spotlight. Ivy Steele and Matcha are good fits with the roster and hopefully are not strangers to Tokyo Joshi in the future. Mizunami hit a mean-looking spear on Ivy to get the victory.

Aja Kong, Haruna Neko & Mahiro Kiryu vs. Pom Harajuku, Raku & Yuki Aino

Raku on big shows has found a nice place with her usual shenanigans and this match featured some talent that works really well in this universe. AEW’s Bryce Remsburg was a good straight man to all the comedy as was Kong. Raku not backing down to Kong was a good continuation to the storyline from Hype! Pom and Neko had some time to shine while Yuki got to be a powerhouse. Mahiro was the unfortunate target of so much of their antics and that continued in the next match as well. Yuki landed the Venus DDT on Neko to get the three-count.

Hyper Misao vs. Shoko Nakajima-New Year’s Lumbersnake Death Match

Absolute avant-garde wrestling as only Hyper Misao can produce. An argument can be made that she has missed her calling as a film director or stage producer as in recent years she has been making some of the most interesting pieces of art in any genre of entertainment. A match that felt like an extension of her HYPE! masterpieces, it began with a video of Shoko backstage drinking a mysterious drink that transformed her. From there, it’s best just to watch the match and let it wash over you in all its bizarre glory. The special referee and antagonist was Poison Sawada JULIE who had used magic to possess Shoko and the lumbersnake participants. Misao had to use all her cunning and heroics to combat the nearly insurmountable odds and bring Shoko back from the clutches of this snake cult. She also ran over Mahiro in the process. tThe epic tale saw Misao hit Hypami Returns to pin Shoko. They announced that Misao and Shoko would face each other again at next year’s New Year show, 

Moka Miyamoto & Yuka Sakazaki vs. Arisu Endo & Shino Suzuki

The return of Yuka who has been away in AEW for most of 2024. Moka came out and stunned the audience with new gear and blonde hair. Endo is such an important part of the company; she can be counted on to deliver up and down the card. Hopefully, a big singles run is in the cards for 2025. Shino still excels as the underdog babyface who gets beaten up and that is a good role to have. Yuka is Yuka and felt like she never left, as she continues to grow worldwide her returns will feel even more momentous. Moka’s transformation could be the key to her moving into the title picture and even winning a singles belt. She always has cool gear designs that are ahead of the curve in fashion. Yuka and Moka targeted Shino and Yuka hit a splash to grab the win for her team. 

Rika Tatsumi & Wakana Uehara vs. Lei Ying Lee & Yuki Kamifuku

Lei Ying Lee has a style that at first seems at odds with the roster, but that’s what made it work so well. Kamifuku and her have history but made for a good tag team. Rika was doing what she does best, and that’s being the psychotic White Dragon that strangles everyone in sight. Wakana got to be spotlighted and is building a rivalry with Kamifuku that could become something down the road. Wakana tried her best but was no match for Lee who landed a Thunder Strike to get the win for her team. 

Yuki Arai  vs. Suzume-International Princess Title Match

One of Suzume’s biggest singles matches and she was up for the challenge here. Arai carried herself like a champ and was very much the aggressor in this match against the smaller Suzume. Both had great showings here and this could very well be the beginning of Yuki moving into Princess of Princess contention. Suzume was a crowd favorite so when she hit the spring board cutter and got the pin the crowd erupted. After Daisy Monkey lost the tag titles, it felt like the right time for Suzume to get a singles belt. Highly recommended match.

Maki Itoh & Miyu Yamashita (121000000) vs. Masha Slamovich & Zara Zakher-Princess Tag Team Title Match

Itoh and Yamashita being in tag team title matches is a guaranteed hit. Masha and Zara are not strangers to Tokyo Joshi and provided some hard-hitting threats to the champs in an all-out battle. It was about 12 minutes and felt like the right length for such a loaded show. The war ended when Yamashita hit a combo buzzsaw kick into Crash Rabbit Heat on Zara to get the pinfall. These four made for an exciting title match while Itoh and Yamashita got one step closer to their goal of 10 defenses. It could be a star-making performance if a tag team ends up spoiling this quest to ten. 

Miu Watanabe vs. Mizuki-Princess Of Princess Title Match

A fantastic main event that lived up to all the expectations. Miu has had a great run of title fights and this continued the streak. Mizuki never misses and she brought her big match attitude for this outing. Miu was accused by Mizuki as being a monster disguised as a princess and played right into that as she was bordering on being a bully. In many spots she used her brute strength to shut down the Sugar Rabbit and would blast her with high impact moves. The mean streak helps Miu stand apart in much the same way Yamashita’s viciousness does. Mizuki and Miu had a war that came to a close when Mizuki executed the Cutie Special pinning Miu and eliciting a gasp from the audience. 

Miu was a fantastic champion and carried the company for most of last year, representing them all over the world. Mizuki’s previous run felt a bit short, so hopefully this is an extended reign. Itoh and Yamashita are strong title holders who always bring it. Misao and Raku both brought the TJPW-flavored chaos to the show and are so important in maintaining its identity. Daisy Monkey appears to be on separate paths for at least the start of 2025 while Suzume has a singles belt. Moka and Endo could be in that hunt, so that should be interesting. Mahiro should build off her lovable underdog story while the undercard seems ready for big leaps in the New Year. 2024 saw TJPW pull the trigger on some new faces of the brand and 2025 is a continuation of that momentum. A strong show to kick off the year and a definite must-watch.