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Post by carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army) on Feb 23, 2019 15:41:25 GMT -5
I have very recently dipped my toes back into joshi after years away, and, although STARDOM seems to get the most hype, I'm kinda getting more into Tokyo Joshi Pro. I rewatched this year's King of Trios and was super-impressed by all three of the wrestlers there (Yuka Sakazaki seems like an utter phenom in terms of ring work, and Miyu Yamashita is just a star, fullstop), and I randomly caught a match on youtube with Mizuki, and she impressed the hell out of me.
How do people feel about TJPW? Any favorite wrestlers? Do the storylines hold up, even when you don't have no idea what's going on? Any good places to start to get a feel for the roster?
EDIT: I just watched a Maki Ito match, and.... I think I have a new favorite wrestler now?
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Post by AwamoriRock on Feb 23, 2019 19:02:23 GMT -5
TJPW is one of my favorite promotions. It might be pound for pound the most fun women's wrestling promotion in Japan with very colorful characters/gimmicks and a great mix of comedy and emotionally charged storylines. If you liked King of Trios I would strongly suggest following it however you can or signing up for DDT universe. In any case, they have a perception of not having the best in-ring wrestlers but more character. This is true to an extent, but is getting less so and is quite understandable given that anybody with five years experience would be considered a grizzled vet on their roster. It’ll have good matches but I wouldn’t watch it hoping for work rate epics, it isn’t very concerned with that. They've had some unfortunate losses recently though, and have been doing their best to recover/build new talent pretty well. (Yuu, one of their better in ring wrestlers, went freelance to focus overseas, Maho Kurone, their popular zombie girl wrestler, retired due to anxiety and then became a pro dominatrix, and the popular Azusa Christie retired to become an announcer I think.) Maki Ito is hugely popular and who I consider the best character actor in wrestling. Her gimmick is also great, obnoxious but somewhat sympathetic. A completely failed idol obsessed with being recognized as cute but also taken seriously, so she joined wrestling for attention, and was then devastated by how many other cute girls there were and how better everyone is at wrestling than her. Her back and forth friendship/betrayal stuff with Mizuki is great. If you don't know Japanese, I highly recommend following DDTpro English on Twitter (https://twitter.com/ddtpro_eng). They live translate everything in TJPW as well as DDT. If you're a Maki Ito fan, her Twitter adds a lot of depth to her and this account translates her Tweets: twitter.com/itohrespectarmyFinally, this primer is outdated (it includes wrestlers no longer in the company, obviously no recent signings and some gimmicks/storylines that ended--a lot of big stuff happened at the show last night), but it's a good introduction to the majority of the roster and their stories. www.reddit.com/r/stardomjoshi/comments/86s9rk/introduction_to_tokyo_joshi_32018/
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Post by carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army) on Feb 23, 2019 22:50:16 GMT -5
I have never wanted a wrestler to succeed more than Maki Ito. I'm not sure I've ever seen exactly that dynamic before: She simultaneously expects everything to be handed to her, and also is willing to work harder than everyone else.
I a little bit worry about the in-ring ceiling for Miyu Yamashita and Reiki Saki (I get it, Reiki, you can do a drop kick), but even THEY aren't very experienced, and both just ooze charisma. From what I've seen, I feel like the best workers are Mizuki, Sakazaki, and Nakajima.
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Post by AwamoriRock on Feb 23, 2019 23:18:32 GMT -5
I have never wanted a wrestler to succeed more than Maki Ito. I'm not sure I've ever seen exactly that dynamic before: She simultaneously expects everything to be handed to her, and also is willing to work harder than everyone else. I a little bit worry about the in-ring ceiling for Miyu Yamashita and Reiki Saki (I get it, Reiki, you can do a drop kick), but even THEY aren't very experienced, and both just ooze charisma. From what I've seen, I feel like the best workers are Mizuki, Sakazaki, and Nakajima. Two good Ito moments outside of the Mizuki stuff:
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Steveweiser
Dalek
Mickie Mickie You're So Fine... Hey Mickie!
THE GRAPS
Posts: 50,249
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Post by Steveweiser on Mar 2, 2019 4:20:10 GMT -5
Yuu has had a solid run in Europe, but she had food poisoning during the tour that really affected her in ring.
Miyu Yamashita will be over in the UK during the summer, so I should see her at least once while she's here.
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Facetious
King Koopa
ADAM COLE BAYBAY
Posts: 12,420
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Post by Facetious on Mar 2, 2019 12:36:09 GMT -5
I love Yamashita. I accidentally stumbled upon this promotion a year ago on a random stream and it was weird, but fun enough to keep my interest.
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Crappler El 0 M
Dalek
Never Forgets an Octagon
I'm a good R-Truth.
Posts: 58,479
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Post by Crappler El 0 M on Mar 3, 2019 9:04:24 GMT -5
It's one of my favorite promotions.
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Post by HMARK Center on Mar 4, 2019 19:08:28 GMT -5
Watched a bit.
I now officially have to add DDT Universe to my "new monthly expenditure" list alongside AJPW.tv once I hopefully get my pay raise this summer.
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Post by mattyc on Mar 17, 2019 12:57:27 GMT -5
I've just recently signed up with DDT Universe and TJPW was my main incentive for doing so. Thanks to this thread, as well as a video I saw on Youtube that sold me on the promotion (a Youtuber by the name of 'Strokavich Okametal'. He's made some great videos about STARDOM also.)
Outside of a few brief clips I've watched on Youtube to get the vibe of the promotion, I'm going into this 100% cold. I don't know any of the talent or storylines. I'm thinking that the first show of the Spring Tour (Ready, Set, Go) may be a good starting point? But if any of you guys can recommend me a specific show that I should check out, please let me know!
Edit: I decided to start with the March 2nd show and I think I picked a good starting point. Thanks to some great roster guides and the DDTPro English Twitter (which I didn't need much for this specific show, but it was very helpful when I did) I didn't feel lost at any point. Maki Ito, Mizuki, Yuka Sakazaki and Miyu Yamashita were the four standout talents to me on this particular show. I also enjoyed the duo of Yuki Kamifuku and Yuna Manase. This was my first experience of TJPW outside of a few short clips, so I have nothing to compare this show to....but every match entertained with some very accessible characters, with just enough promos and storyline development to hook me in for more while not overwhelming me as a first time viewer.
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