Masahiro Kubota | MP | 04.27.24
By: Jeff Brown
STARDOM was at Yokohama Bunta to put on the All Star Grand Queendom 2024, which is arguably the biggest show in Joshi and was headlined by Maikia defending against Momo Watanabe in a 3 stages of Hell match for the Red Belt. A number of departures and returns, along with newer roster members stepping up, fill the story of the company this year. The main card has a good mix of veterans and fresh faces, with some very big guest stars and legends as 2024 and beyond take shape.
In a nice opener with Ranna getting to utilize some of her hard strikes, Momo wins with the Nectar Peach. Momo has come a long way in her career, and hopefully the underdog gets to have a good run this year. Ranna has improved very quickly and is definitely a future player for the company.
Fun tag, with Lady C really showing confidence and taking on a more commanding style in the ring. Rian and Aya are finding their way, as Yuna really helped with her experience and massive charisma. Yuna picks up the win the TP Sunshine.
Rina has really found her stride with this reign, each defense is a mini-epic that has her challengers desperately trying to dethrone her. After landing a Double Knee drop off the top rope, Rina retains and continues to grow as a wrestler, just as important as a champion.
Konami wins on her return.#stardom #小波
2024.4.27 📸@_MasahiroKubota pic.twitter.com/tE0tbuaq97
— Monthly Puroresu (@MonthlyPuroresu) April 27, 2024
This was very much a showcase for the returning Konami, and rightfully so. Ami has added some aggression and fire to her matches, and she feels close to reaching that next level. eXv were fine and perfect opponents for Konami to beat up, the majority of God’s Eye have that shoot-style background and really stand out on the roster.
This was a bit of a hodgepodge, but all four know how to work, and this was a fun match. Considering where she was a year ago, Kamitani is in an interesting spot. She takes pride in everything she does, so this will likely elevate the division, which is not a bad thing at all. Kamitani starts a new chapter in her career and is adding a lot of star power to the High Speed title.
Mina is an absolute star and is starting to become one on an international level; it was merely a matter of time before that happened. Tora made Mina fight her style, but Mina is versatile and can brawl, so this was more of an angle for the returning Thekla. While she teased being with Mina, she attacked her and joined Oedo Tai.
This match was pure spectacle, with the classic David and Goliath formula. Kong and Ito were moving quite well and doing everything they could to turn back the clock for this match. Double foot stomp on Poi, and Kong hits a top rope elbow drop on Nakano for the pin.
Suzu Suzuki & Mei Seira
goddess tag champion
2024.4.27 #stardom pic.twitter.com/RZE2mmWzeZ— Monthly Puroresu (@MonthlyPuroresu) April 27, 2024
This match highlighted the deep roster and tag division, allowing everyone to shine. It was complete chaos at times and started out full throttle, never letting up. Crazy Star gets the win as things break down, and then FWC asks for a singles match. Starlight Kid is jumped and kicked out of Oedo Tai. Tam comes down to protect her, whispers in her ear, and helps her to the back.
This match had a lot of anticipation and was something fans had dreamed about for nearly four years. It was two of the very best, putting on a master class, completely vicious and downright ugly in spots as they both indulged in ultraviolence. Mayu is a generational talent, and Sareee has been on a roll since returning to Japan with fantastic matches throughout all of Joshi. Mayu grabs the 2 Step Dragon Suplex and gets the victory to retain the IWGP title. Tsukasa Fujimoto from Ice Ribbon walks in quite the shocking moment and confronts Mayu with a tease of Best Friends (her team with Arisa Nakajima) having a tag match.
It was a very tough spot to be in, having to follow such drama and big happenings, but this was Hanan’s biggest match of her career. Everything, including the kitchen sink, was used here, and Anou has the main event IQ that made this a special bout. Hanan was just about to back-drop Anou into oblivion when she countered with Pottering to retain the White Belt. Hanan took a huge leap towards the future here and gained a ton even with the loss. Ami and Natsupoi argued about getting the next title shot against Anou.
Maika entered like a massive star, with a grand entrance that included her carrying a giant fan. The 1st fall was an all-out war that never felt like part one of a multi-fall stipulation. Momo grabs the first fall with the Peach Thunder Driver, and after a brief respite, the hardcore match begins. After lots of brawling out of the ring with a garbage can, barbed wire baseball, boxes of gems, and chairs, Maika blasts Momo with her fan and then executes a Michinoku Driver 2 on the pile of chairs to win the second fall. They entered the final stage, which was a Last Woman Standing match, and both seemed nearly spent. There were so many big moves, including a top rope brainbuster, that Maika then continued into multiple brainbusters in the style of the three amigos. Momo hit some disturbing head kicks, but Maika answered back and hit a spinning Michinoku Driver 2 to keep Momo down for the 10-count. Maika celebrates to end the show after a great main event that will likely be on many people’s match of the year list.
The entire Joshi world is changing, with many new alliances forming, but STARDOM put on a grand show across the entire card. This new era is very promising and will likely continue to be full of twists and turns. Many of the young roster members took strides to help the company as it moves forward, while the veterans showed the world that STARDOM is the criterion of Joshi, with a great mixture of production values, storytelling, and incredible matches. What the rest of 2024 brings is anyone’s guess, but STARDOM is looking to stay at the top of the mountain.
All photos Masahiro Kubota | Monthly Puroresu 04.27.24
Date:
April 29, 2024
Category:
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