All Japan Women Best Collection: January-March 1997
Running Time: 2 hours
1. Elimination Match: Manami Toyota, Rie Tamada, Yumi Fukawa & Yuka Shina vs Kyoko Inoue, Chapparita Asari, Genki Misae & Tanny Mouse 1/4/97
All eight women fought at the start. Toyota and co. dropkicked their opponents. Toyota and Shina hit planchas. Tamada hit a plancha and Fukawa dropkicked Misae from the apron to the floor. Shina and Toyota dropkicked Kyoko in the corner but Kyoko clotheslined Tamada and Fukawa. Kyoko tried to dump Fukawa over the top rope to eliminate her but Toyota and Shina held her in. Fukawa clotheslined Misae twice for a near fall. Tamada and Fukawa double dropkicked Misae and double suplexed her as well. Fukawa gave Misae a top rope splash but Tamada missed a top rope splash in a goofy sequence. Misaw atomic dropped Tamada twice. Misae blocked a German suplex attempt and Kyoko gave Tamada a lariat. Misae suplexed Tamada out of the corner for a near fall. Toyota dropkicked Mouse and Tamada German suplexed Misae to pin and eliminate her at 2:56. Tamada gave Asari a cross bodyblock. Asari gave Shina a huracanrana out of the corner but Shina fought back with a facedrop. Shina gave Asari another facedrop for a near fall. Asari accidentally kicked Mouse when Shina moved. A mess of a fight broke out with everyone in and out of the ring. Asari took out a bunch of women with a plancha. Kyoko caught Shina on the top rope and gave her a sloppy belly to belly superplex. Asari gave Shina a top rope corkscrew splash (like a forwards skytwister but not as spectacular) and pinned her at 4:58 to eliminate her. Asari gave Fukawa two jumping knees for a near fall. Mouse gave Fukawa four dropkicks and a slam for a near fall. Kyoko no-sold some strikes from Fukawa and gave her a short lariat. Kyoko then gave Fukawa the fastest 10-revolution giant swing you'll ever see. Kyoko applied a camel clutch on Fukawa and Asari and Mouse put the boots to her. Kyoko suplexed Fukawa for a near fall and gained another near fall with a cradle suplex. Mouse did some really lame comedy with Fukawa and Fukawa gave her a backslide. Toyota stiffed Mouse with a sharp top rope dropkick and gave her a second for a near fall. Toyota and Tamada double dropkicked Mouse and then gave her a double top rope dropkick. Toyota gained a near fall on Mouse. Mouse speared Tamada in the corner and again in the opposite corner. Mouse gave Tamada a third spear (actually a direct headbutt to her body, not spectacular at all) and followed with three more diving headbutts (from the mat). Kyoko slammed Tamada but Tamada recovered and knocked Mouse off the top rope to the floor to eliminate her at 10:01. Kyoko no-sold a couple dropkicks from Tamada but Toyota scored with a top rope dropkick on Kyoko. Kyoko easily blocked a dragon suplex attempt by Tamada but missed a lariat. Tamada jumped to the top rope but Kyoko caught her and tried to eliminate her but Toyota blocked it and everyone fought near that corner. Kyoko German suplexed Tamada out of the corner for a near fall. Toyota took out Kyoko and Shina with a top rope dropkick but missed a moonsault on Shina. Asari gave Toyota her double flip dropkick in one corner but tried a second and Toyota booted her in the process. Toyota went for a superplex but Asari feel on top of her for a near fall. Toyota caught Asari in the corner but Asari countered an ocean cyclone suplex attempt. Toyota German suplexed Asari for a near fall. Toyota gave Asari an ocean cyclone suplex and pinned her for the next elimination at 12:55. Toyota took out Tamada and Fukawa with her springboard plancha when Kyoko moved out of the way. Kyoko gave Tamada a lariat and pinned her at 13:38. Fukawa and Toyota caught Kyoko on the middle rope and tried to eliminate her but Kyoko stayed in, partially with help from her eliminated teammates, which caused a fight to break out with the other eliminated wrestlers. Fukawa couldn't slam Kyoko and Kyoko then slammed her. Fukawa attacked Kyoko but Kyoko clubbed her with a punch. Kyoko knocked Toyota for a loop with a lariat for a near fall. Toyota countered a Niagara driver, ducked a lariat and hit a Toyota roll on Kyoko for a near fall. Toyota dropkicked Kyoko but Kyoko fought off Fukawa and caught Toyota on the top rope. However, Toyota held on and dumped Kyoko over the top rope to the floor to eliminate her and win the match at 15:45. This was a fun match because it was all action with very good intensity. Misae and Mouse didn't look impressive, and Shina didn't show much in terms of good work either although they worked hard. Fukawa also didn't look nearly as good as in her Arsion tenure. Tamada and Asari looked good, but only in limited action. Toyota and Kyoko were about 2 or 3 leagues better than everyone else. Toyota looked really sharp while Kyoko was good but you could tell on some spots her weight was catching up to her and sapping her agility. Good match overall, considering who was involved I was happy. ***
*They showed clips from training sessions at the AJW dojo including some makeshift matches.
2. Yoshiko Tamura vs Rie Tamada 2/1/97
Tamada double arm suplexed Tamura for a near fall but Tamura surprised her with a rollup for a near fall. Tamada missed a dropkick and Tamura gave her a second rope sunset flip for a near fall. Tamada missed a cross bodyblock and Tamura gave her one. Tamura gave Tamada two more flying chops ala Mascaras for a near fall but missed a second rope dropkick. Tamura hit three second rope dropkicks for a near fall. Tamada countered a German suplex with a rollup for a near fall. Tamura caught Tamada on the top rope and superplexed her for a near fall. Tamura german suplexed Tamada for a near fall. Tamada elbowed Tamura but Tamura dropkicked her. Tamura gave Tamada a northern lights suplex for a near fall. Tamada caught Tamura on the top rope and slammed her to the mat. Tamada gave Tamura a weird released German suplex and gave her two more German suplexes for a near fall. Tamada slammed Tamura and went for a top rope splash but crashed onto Tamura's knees. Tamura slammed Tamada and went for a flying bodypress but Tamada dropkicked her in mid-air. Tamada kicked Tamura out of the ring and hit a plancha. Tamada top rope dropkicked Tamura and hit a top rope missile dropkick for a near fall. Tamura countered a dragon suplex with a rollup for a near fall. Tamura landed some kicks and elbows but Tamada German suplexed her. Tamada German suplexed Tamura for the pin at 18:09 (5:51 aired). Based on what aired, this looked like a really nice match for these two, maybe ***. In particuar the last 3 or so minutes were really good with decent heat. Tamada looked sharp although her offense was still pretty similar to what it had been the previous couple years. Tamura already looked good on offense and showed some of her potential here.
3. Rie Tamada vs Yumi Fukawa 2/8/97
They exchanged slaps and Fukawa attacked Tamada before the bell. Tamada dropkicked Fukawa in the corner but Fukawa fought back with punches. Fukawa gave Tamada a cross bodyblock. Tamada dropkicked and slammed Fukawa. She snapmared Fukawa and applied a sleeper. Tamada dropkicked Fukawa in the head twice for a near fall. Tamada applied a Boston crab for a lengthy period of time. Fukawa gave Tamada a sunset flip out of the corner for a near fall. Fukawa gave Tamada a cross bodyblock for a near fall. She clotheslined Tamada and gave her an x-factor and a second clothesline for a near fall. Fukawa snapmared Tamada and applied a sleeper but Tamada escaped and applied a double chicken wing of sorts. Tamada applied a surfboard. She jumped to the middle rope but Fukawa knocked her over the top rope to the floor and hit a plancha. Fukawa slammed Tamada and hit a top rope splash for a near fall. Tamada rolled up Fukawa for a near fall. Tamada missed a top rope dropkick but recovered and gave Fukawa a second rope dropkick for a near fall. Fukawa countered a German suplex with a rollup for a near fall. Tamada caught Fukawa on the top rope and superplexed her for a near fall. Tamada hit a plancha and Fukawa hit very hard on the floor taking the bump. Fukawa didn't move and Tamada won via countout at 18:52 (7:24 aired). Looked like a decent match but nothing special. Fukawa was okay but not as advanced work-wise as Tamura, while Tamada didn't turn in a strong effort. Probably **ish in full.
4. Takako Inoue & Yumi Fukawa vs Yumiko Hotta & Yoshiko Tamura 2/11/97
Amazing how dark Korakuen Hall was- either someone forgot to pay the electric bill or the attendance was pretty bad. Tamura snapmared Fukawa and applied a headscissors, then flipped Fukawa around while maintaining the hold. Fukawa escaped and stomped Tamura. Takako applied a Boston crab on Hotta while Fukawa added some stomps on Hotta's legs. Takako turned the hold into an STF on Hotta and Fukawa applied a half crab on Hotta's other leg. Fukawa jumped off the top rope but Hotta kicked her in mid-air. Takako gave Hotta a top rope kneedrop to her injured leg and Fukawa followed with a roll-through into a leglock. Fukawa whipped Hotta into the corner but Hotta came out of the corner and spin kicked her. Hotta gave Fukawa a high-angle tiger driver (not quite a TD-91) for a near fall as Takako made the save. Tamura German suplexed Fukawa for a near fall and attempted a northern lights suplex but Takako intervened. Takako lifted Tamura on her shoulder and Fukawa gave her a top rope dropkick for a near fall. Fukawa gave Tamura a second rope dropkick but Tamura caught her on the top rope. Fukawa regained her bearings and gave Tamura a very sloppy tornado DDT for the pin at 16:42 (4:52 aired). The finish proved that Fukawa wasn't a highspot artist in the making. She was much smoother on the mat and with simple highspots, and showed that here. Overall, what aired looked dull with the work on Hotta's leg taking up half of the clip.
5. Tomoko Watanabe & Kumiko Maekawa vs Aja Kong & Rie Tamada 2/11/97
Kong overpowered Watanabe early. Kong landed a couple stiff kicks but Watanabe gave her a dragon screw. Watanabe applied a figure 4 leglock on Kong for a while. Maekawa missed a kick and Tamada gave her a victory roll for a near fall. Maekawa gave Tamada a bicycle kick for a near fall. Kong threw Maekawa out of the ring and whipped her into a sea of chairs on the floor. Kong rammed her opponents' heads together in a spot that's rare in puroresu. Kong threw Watanabe into a sea of chairs as well. Maekawa went after Kong but Kong hit her with a chair. Kong also bashed Watanabe with a chair and hit Maekawa with a section of a barricade. Kong slammed Watanabe on the barricade segment. Tamada hit a plancha on kong when Maekawa moved out of the way. Maekawa lifted Tamada and Watanabe gave her a top rope modified Thesz press for a near fall. Tamada German suplexed Watanabe for a near fall but Watanabe blocked a dragon suplex attempt. Kong hit Watanabe with her trash/oil can but hit Tamada with it when Watanabe moved on a second attempt. Kong gave Watanabe a backdrop driver and Tamada dragon suplexed her for a near fall. Maekawa gave Tamada an ax kick from behind and Watanabe gave Tamada a screwdriver (or was it a blue thunder powerbomb?) for the pin at 20:23 (5:55 aired). Looked like this turned out to be a good match after a slow and dull start. In particular the last 2-3 minutes shown were good.
*The next segment showed Manami Toyota at an exhibition for her photo book. They showed her in an exhibition match with Takako Inoue as well as signing several autographed pictures for fans. Then a segment with Rie Tamada and Yumi Fukawa aired. It was mainly a personality profile showing them on "vacation" or something of that sort. Neither segment added anything to the tape.
6. Etsuko Mita, Yumiko Hotta & Genki Misae vs Kumiko Maekawa, Rie Tamada & Yoshiko Tamura 3/2/97
Tamura attacked Hotta's injured leg and Hotta was triple teamed about 10:00 into the match. Tamura gained a near fall on Hotta and Maekawa applied a figure 4 leglock. Tamada and Tamura hit top rope splashes on Hotta while Maekawa maintained the hold. Maekawa superkicked Hotta and Tamura German suplexed her for a near fall. Tamada gave Hotta a second rope dropkick and Tamura gave her a top rope dropkick. Maekawa gave Hotta a top rope knee drive and Tamura gained a near fall. Hotta fought back with a spin kick on Tamura for a near fall. Tamura countered a Death valley driver but Mita gave her a blazing chop and a powerbomb for a near fall. Tamura countered a Death Valley driver with a sunset flip on Mita for a near fall. Maekawa missed a roundhouse kick but hit Mita with a couple high kicks. Tamada's team missed a triple dropkick on Mita and the action left the ring. Mita took out all three opponents with a sloppy tope suicida at 20:00. Mita lifted Maekawa on her shoulders and superplexed her for a near fall. Maekawa missed a couple kicks but blocked a Death Valley driver attempt by Mita. Maekawa scored with a great bicycle kick on Mita for the pin at 20:58 (4:32 aired). Looked like a decent match, but fans hardly cared. Only Maekawa's offense looked fresh and while Mita and others looked solid, everyone had seen the veterans perform at a higher level before, so they didn't respond to their offense like they would have even a year previous. That had become a trend in AJW crowds in recent months.
7. Manami Toyota vs Saya Endo 3/2/97
Toyota immediately caught Endo and gave her a rolling cradle for a near fall. Toyota slammed Endo but Endo caught her on the top rope and threw her to the mat. Endo applied a bodyscissors on Toyota and rolled with the hold around the ring for a near fall. Endo threw Toyota into a bunch of chairs at ringside and rammed her into the announcers' table. Endo then ripped up one of Toyota's photo books and Toyota reacted with this proceless look as if to say "we've degenerated into this crap?". Endo worked on Toyota's arm but Toyota fought back and applied an armbar of her own. Toyota bit Endo's arm and dropkicked her. Toyota hit a springboard plancha on Endo. Toyota slammed Endo but missed a moonsault and Endo German suplexed her for a near fall. Toyota countered a German suplex with a rollup for a near fall. Endo rolled up Toyota again for a near fall. Toyota German suplexed Endo for a near fall. Endo caught Toyota on the top rope but Toyota won an exchange of slaps and Endo fell to the mat. Toyota hit a sharp top rope missile dropkick for a near fall. Toyota slammed Endo and moonsaulted her for the pin at 16:55 (5:37 aired). This looked like a solid match when they were working seriously but some of the lame antics in between hurt the quality. Also, the match was clipped a few times, so my guess is that it was pretty boring in segments.
8. Aja Kong & Kaoru Ito vs Kyoko Inoue & Tomoko Watanabe 3/2/97
Ito missed a top rope foot stomp and Kyoko German suplexed her for a near fall. Kyoko powerbombed Ito for a near fall but Kong intervened and gave her an uraken. Watanabe gave Kong three lariats for a near fall. Kong countered a screwdriver with elbows but missed an uraken and Watanabe and Kyoko gave her lariats to her front and back simultaneously. Watanabe gave Kong a screwdriver for a near fall but Kong countered a second by falling on her for a near fall. Ito gave Watanabe a top rope foot stomp and Kong followed with a brainbuster for a near fall. Kong flattened Watanabe with an uraken and pinned her at 19:22 (3:01 aired). Too bad this was a short clip because what aired was very good by four workers who could go and whose offense was far from stale at the time. Looked better than ***.
9. Mariko Yoshida vs Emi Motokawa 3/2/97
Yoshida gave Motokawa a hairmare but Motokawa fought back with a hard slap. Motokawa won an exchange of slaps but Yoshida then scored with a hard slap of her own. Motokawa gave Yoshida a backslide for a near fall and then went for a cross armbreaker but Yoshida countered. Yoshida applied a leglock but Motokawa bit her foot to break the hold. Yoshida responded in kind in a weird spot. Motokawa gave Mariko a frankentoyota for a near fall but Yoshida got right up and stomped her. Motokawa kicked Yoshida and gave her a sloppy fisherman buster for a near fall. Yoshida caught Motokawa off guard and applied a Fujiwara armbar but Motokawa reached the ropes. Motokawa went for la magistral but Yoshida countered with a la magistral of her own and pinned Motokawa at 12:26 (2:25 aired). This didn't look good, but fans were into it. I think Motokawa improved greatly after this match, just my guess.
10. Mima Shimoda vs Emi Motokawa 3/4/97
Motokawa attacked Shimoda before the bell and amidst a sea of streamers. Motokawa tried to choke Shimoda in the ropes but Shimoda just dumped her out of the ring. Motokawa hit a top rope dropkick before they clipped forward. Shimoda applied a camel clutch and raked Motokawa's face. Motokawa threw Shimoda into a bunch of chairs on the floor and hit her with a chair. Motokawa blocked a tiger suplex attempt and German suplexed Shimoda for a near fall. Shimoda German suplexed Motokawa for a near fall but missed a top rope dropkick. Motokawa gave Shimoda la magistral for a very near fall. Shimoda caught Motokawa on the top rope and gave her a top rope double arm superplex for a near fall. Shimoda tiger suplexed Motokawa and pinned her at 15:04 (3:03 aired). Looked weaker than the previous match, but the final minute was fine.
*The next 7 matches are from a trios tournament held in Osaka on 3/20/97*
11. Yumiko Hotta, Yuka Shina & Nanae Takahashi vs Takako Inoue, Rie Tamada & Yumi Fukawa
Hotta gave Tamada a couple kicks. Hotta spin kicked Takako in the corner and again in the opposite corner for a near fall. Hotta held Takako as Shina and Takahashi took turns kicking her. Tamada and Fukawa dropkicked Hotta and legdropped her. Takako DDTd Hotta. Fukawa went for a cross bodyblock but Hotta easily caught her and slammed her. Fukawa missed a lariat and Takahashi ran through her for a near fall. Takahashi gave Fukawa a spinning side slam but Fukawa countered a second one with a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Fukawa clotheslined Takahashi twice for a near fall. Takako and Tamada lifted Shina and Fukawa gave her a top rope dropkick. Tamada German suplexed Shina for a near fall. A 6 way fight broke out. Shina superplexed Tamada for a near fall. Shina went to German suplex Tamada but Fukawa dropkicked her from behind. Tamada German suplexed Shina for a near fall and gave her an overhead double arm suplex for the pin at 19:02 (3:43 aired). Looked like a decent match except for Takahashi's work, which looked really weak.
12. Kyoko Inoue, Genki Misae & Tanny Mouse vs. Plum Mariko, Tomoko Kuzumi & Kanako Motoya
All three JWP women dropkicked Kyoko in the corner. Mariko attempted a top rope huracanrana but Kyoko superbombed her for a near fall. Motoya gave Misae a top rope clothesline for a near fall and four flip sentons for another near fall. Genki slammed Motoya into the corner and powerslammed her for a near fall. Kuzumi and Mariko attacked Kyoko but the JWP women missed a triple dropkick on Kyoko. Kyoko slammed Motoya and gave her a running top rope elbowsmash for a near fall. Kuzumi hit a springboard missile dropkick on Kyoko. Kyoko recovered, caught Motoya on the top rope and gave her a belly to belly superplex for a near fall. Mouse slammed Kuzumi and Misae also attacked Kuzumi. Misae lifted Kuzumi on her shoulders and suplexed her. Mouse missed a top rope headbutt. Kyoko gave Kuzumi a lariat and Mouse slammed her. Kuzumi caught Mouse on the top rope and superplexed her for the pin at 16:02 (3:39 aired). Looked like a pretty good match, but Mouse was really out of her league and her work was weak. At least Misae worked well enough to fit in.
13. Toshiyo Yamada, Etsuko Mita & Mima Shimoda vs Tomoko Watanabe, Kumiko Maekawa & Saya Endo
Shimoda dumped Watanabe out of the ring and hit a tope suicida. Mita took out Endo with a dive of some sort but the camera missed it. Mita suplexed Watanabe and Shimoda and Yamada gave her top rope headbutts. Shimoda gained a near fall on Yamada. Shimoda knocked Mita off the apron when Watanabe moved out of the way. Shimoda tiger suplexed Watanabe for a near fall. Shimoda gave Watanabe a double arm superplex for a near fall. Watanabe blocked a tiger suplex attempt and Maekawa gave Shimoda an ax kick. Maekawa lifted Shimoda and Watanabe gave her a top rope Thesz press for a near fall. Watanabe gave Shimoda a screw driver for a near fall and a second one for the pin at 13:38 (2:43 aired). What aired was good work-wise but fans were really quiet again. Also, the depressing atmosphere for this show came across even more in this match, caused by the terrible lighting where not even the ring was very well-lit and the rest of the arena couldn't be seen clearly.
14. Manami Toyota, Kaoru Ito & Mariko Yoshida vs Aja Kong, Yoshiko Tamura & Momoe Nakanishi
Nakanishi dropkicked Ito but Nakanishi and Tamura missed a double dropkick. Ito dropkicked Nakanishi. Kong gave Toyota a running lariat in the corner and slammed her. Kong elbowsmashed Toyota for a near fall. Toyota gave Kong a Toyota roll for a near fall. Kong headbutted Yoshida and she and Nakanishi gave Yoshida a double dropkick. Yoshida missed a handspring elbow and Nakanishi gave her some Mongolian chops. Yoshida gave Nakanishi a flying bodypress for a near fall. Ito gave Nakanishi three foot stomps and a senton for a near fall when Kong hit Ito with her trash can. Tamura went to give Yoshida a northern lights suplex but Ito attacked her. Kong and Tamura missed a clothesline and Toyota took out both of them with a top rope dropkick. Ito lifted Tamura on her shoulders and Toyota gave her a top rope dropkick. Yoshida top rope splashed Tamura for a near fall. Yoshida slammed Tamura and she, Toyota and Ito hit a triple top rope headbutt on Tamura after which Yoshida gained the pin at 15:37 (3:01 aired). Work-wise, this looked like a really good match as you would expect but not great because Toyota and co. were saving some of their best work for the future rounds. Best first round match of the trios tournament.
15. Plum Mariko, Kanako Motoya & Tomoko Kuzumi vs Takako Inoue, Yumi Fukawa & Rie Tamada
Fukawa clotheslined Mariko twice for a near fall but Kuzumi gave her a springboard missile dropkick. Mariko gave Fukawa a cradle suplex for a near fall. Fukawa gave Mariko a rolling leglock but Mariko quickly reached the ropes. Fukawa cradle suplexed Mariko for a near fall. Mariko countered a German suplex and elbowed Tamada. Mariko gave Tamada a rolling leglock off the second rope but Tamada and Takako interfered and broke the hold. Motoya knocked Tamada off the top rope and hit a plancha while Kuzumi hit a springboard plancha on Fukawa. Mariko gave Motoya a top rope Thesz press when Tamada moved. Tamada dragon suplexed Motoya for a near fall. Takako missed a Takako panic and Motoya gave her la magistral for a near fall. Mariko jumped off the top rope and elbowed Takako. Motoya gave Takako la magistral for a near fall. Mariko German suplexed Takako and Motoya gave her a top rope senton for a near fall. Motoya stomped Takako and launched Kuzumi with a top rope somersault senton on Takako for a near fall. Kuzumi gave Takako a sloppy modified top rope frankentoyota for a near fall. Takako back suplexed Kuzumi for a near fall as Fukawa took out Motoya and Mariko with a plancha. Takako lifted Kuzumi on her shoulders and Tamada and Fukawa gave her a double top rope dropkick after which Takako gained a near fall. Takako gave Kuzumi a Takako panic and pinned her at 18:07 (4:14 aired). From what aired this was a nice match with everyone working hard, although there were a few sloppy spots that hurt the match. Fukawa looked really good in spots as the trios format hid her limitations well.
16. Tomoko Watanabe, Kumiko Maekawa & Yuka Shina vs Manami Toyota, Kaoru Ito & Mariko Yoshida
Ito missed a top rope foot stomp on Watanabe and Maekawa gave her an ax kick. Maekawa lifted Ito up and Watanabe gave her a top rope Thesz press for a near fall. Toyota gave Watanabe a top rope missile dropkick and Ito followed with a top rope foot stomp for a near fall. Maekawa knocked Ito to the mat. Maekawa and Watanabe went to double clothesline Ito but Toyota took them out with a top rope dropkick. Ito and Yoshida hit tope suicidas on Maekawa and Watanabe. Toyota then hit a springboard somersault plancha on all three opponents. Back in the ring Toyota and Yoshida gave Watanabe a double top rope DDT and Ito hit a top rope foot stomp for a near fall. Ito gave Watanabe a top rope brainbuster for the pin at 13:53 (3:04 aired). This was definitely a really good match as expected, although not enough aired to tell if it was anything more than very good. Fan heat was once again disappointing.
17. Trios Tournament Final: Takako Inoue, Rie Tamada & Yumi Fukawa vs Manami Toyota, Kaoru Ito & Mariko Yoshida
Fukawa and Tamada went after Ito but missed a double dropkick. Ito dropkicked Fukawa. Ito attacked Tamada's knee and stomped her in the corner. Ito applied a half crab on Tamada but Tamada reached the ropes. Tamada was triple teamed and Ito applied a half crab on her again. Yoshida applied a figure 4 leglock on Tamada and Toyota gave her a top rope splash while Yoshida maintained the hold. Yoshida ducked a lariat aned sunset flipped Takako for a near fall. Takako kicked Toyota and DDTd her. Takako and co. gave Toyota a triple dropkick but Toyota fought back and knocked Tamada off the ropes to the floor. Ito hit a tope suicida on all three opponents. Takako back suplexed Toyota for a near fall. Toyota caught Takako on the top rope but Takako gave her a destiny hammer for a near fall. Takako missed a Takako panic on Toyota. Toyota kicked Yoshida off the apron when Takako moved. Toyota German suplexed Takako for a near fall. Even though Tamada and Fukawa attacked her Toyota still gave Takako a cross arm German suplex . Toyota moonsaulted Takako, Ito gave Fukawa a top rope foot stomp and Yoshida top rope splashed Tamada. Toyota gained a near fall on Takako. Toyota gave Takako an ocean cyclone suplex and pinned her at 17:57 (4:30 aired). Good match to end the tournament but nothing great. Actually, most of the tournament looked solid but fan heat was lacking and the overall atmosphere was really depressing considering how hot joshi puroresu had been in the past few years.
Overall this is not a tape I would recommend to anyone except for diehard joshi puroresu collectors or those really interested in this time period. Most of the action was solid with pockets of great work, but so much of the flare, excellence and fan heat characteristic of joshi puroresu from 1992-1996 was missing. Most of the matches had a depressing atmosphere with terrible lighting. Another weakness in the product at this time appeared to be that AJW had a tough time balancing the pushes of the young women and the established veterans in such a way that the young women could continually improve while the veterans' workrate would not be sacrificed. If you've never seen joshi puroresu before you might like this tape, otherwise you shouldn't bother checking this out.
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