JWP SUPER MAJOR QUEENS 5/22/94 TV VERSION
Total Running Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
1. Bull Nakano (AJW) & Devil Masami (JWP) vs Sakie Hasegawa (AJW) & Hikari Fukuoka (JWP)
Fukuoka dropkicked Masami before the bell. Hasegawa elbowed Masami from the apron and Fukuoka landed an elbow of her own. Both Hasegawa and Fukuoka dropkicked Masami and also dropkicked Nakano. Masami sidestepped a Hasegawa dropkick and a Fukuoka dropkick as well. Masami press slammed Fukuoka clear out of the ring onto Hasegawa at ringside. Nakano clotheslined Fukuoka and legdropped her. Nakano lifted Fukuoka and Masami came off the top rope with a tackle. Masami clotheslined Fukuoka for an early near fall. Masami no-sold several chops from Hasegawa and knocked her down with a single chop although Hasegawa kept fighting. Masami landed a series of chops on Hasegawa and applied a chinlock but Hasegawa quickly reached the ropes. Masami attacked Hasegawa’s left arm and also hooked her leg. Hasegawa fought back with some slaps and a legdrop but Masami countered a suplex attempt with one of her own for a near fall. Nakano gave Hasegawa a modified spinecrusher and applied a modified dragon sleeper. Hasegawa clotheslined Nakano twice. Fukuoka gave Nakano a cross bodyblock and applied a figure 4 leglock. Fukuoka continued to attack Nakano’s leg as did Hasegawa. Hasegawa hit a second rope dropkick to Nakano’s right leg and applied a figure 4 leglock of her own. Fukuoka continued to attack on Nakano’s leg but Nakano fought back by applying a cross armbreaker. Masami gave Fukuoka her overhead flip powerbomb twice and applied a modified Romero special while hooking Fukuoka’s neck. Masami continued to attack Fukuoka’s back and powerbombed her. Masami missed a lariat but blocked a rolling cradle attempt by Fukuoka. Masami attempted a back suplex but Fukuoka escaped and gave Masami a rolling cradle for a near fall. Fukuoka then gave Masami another rolling cradle without breaking her grip for a near fall. Masami caught Hasegawa attempting a spinning savate kick and slammed her to the mat. Nakano clotheslined both opponents and went for a second one but Hasegawa and Fukuoka countered by applying a double Fujiwara armbar. They attempted a double suplex but Nakano countered and suplexed both opponents. Masami powerbombed Fukuoka and Nakano attempted a top rope legdrop but both opponents moved. Fukuoka and Hasegawa took the fight to ringside and into the crowd. Hasegawa rammed Masami into a wall and Fukuoka gave Nakano a handspring elbow in the aisle. Hasegawa hit a plancha on Masami and Fukuoka followed with a plancha on Nakano. Back in the ring Fukuoka bulldogged Nakano and she and Hasegawa and Nakano a double bulldog. Hasegawa gained a near fall but Nakano quickly fought back with a lariat for a near fall. Nakano placed Hasegawa on the top rope and knocked her to the floor with a lariat. Nakano piledrove Hasegawa for a near fall and went to apply a sharpshooter/surfboard combo but lost her grip. Masami gave Hasegawa a top rope superplex and legdropped her. Masami gave Hasegawa a top rope dropkick and powerbombed her for a near fall. Masami applied a half crab on Hasegawa. Hasegawa kicked Nakano and bulldogged her but Nakano quickly recovered. Fukuoka countered a powerbomb attempt and applied an abdominal stretch on Nakano. Masami intervened as she jumped off the top rope and chopped Fukuoka. Nakano and Masami double clotheslined Fukuoka and Nakano suplexed her for a near fall. Nakano hit Fukuoka with her nunchuks twice and powerbombed her for a near fall. Masami press slammed Fukuoka onto the top rope in the corner and DDTd Hasegawa when she tried to intervene. Masami accidentally whipped Hasegawa into Nakano and knocked Nakano off the apron. Fukuoka gave Masami a second rope clothesline for a near fall and applied a sleeper. Fukuoka applied a bodyscissors on Masami but Masami countered with a modified surfboard and also applied a rear chinlock. Masami booted Fukuoka twice. Fukuoka tried to fight back but Masami headbutted her. Masami climbed to the top rope but Hasegawa attacked her as Fukuoka fought back against Nakano. Fukuoka then hit a handspring elbow on a trapped Masami while Hasegawa dropkicked Nakano in the opposite corner. They then repeated that sequence in reverse order. Nakano and Masami missed clotheslines and Hasegawa and Fukuoka respectively German suplexed them for a near fall. Hasegawa hit Nakano with a sharp spinning savate kick and Fukuoka German suplexed Masami for a near fall. Fukuoka launched off Hasegawa’s shoulders and moonsaulted Masami for a one count as Nakano intervened. Masami countered another German suplex attempt, moved and Hasegawa accidentally savate kicked Fukuoka. Nakano gave both opponents a double clothesline. Hasegawa gave Nakano a spinning savate kick and applied a sleeper as heat mounted. Masami intervened by stomping Hasegawa but Hasegawa maintained the hold. Masami intervened again but Hasegawa then gave her a urunage. Nakano blocked a urunage attempt and she and Masami double chokeslammed Hasegawa and then Fukuoka. Nakano powerbombed Hasegawa for a near fall. She powerbombed Hasegawa again but Masami missed a top rope legdrop. Hasegawa gave Masami four spinning savate kicks for a near fall. Fukuoka top rope dropkicked Masami but Masami responded with a lariat and elbowed Hasegawa off the apron as well. Masami whipped Fukuoka into the corner and in a neat spot Fukuoka gave Nakano a handspring elbow. Masami caught Fukuoka on the top rope and gave her a back superplex for a near fall. Nakano then gave Fukuoka a top rope legdrop and Masami followed with a top rope legdrop of her own for the pin at 28:54. I actually enjoyed this match more than in previous viewings, which perhaps is because many Bull or Devil matches look better in repeat viewings because they’re a bit closer to old-style than other top women of this era. Although Nakano and especially Masami did a bit too much no-selling early, they did give their opponents plenty of offense. The pacing varied a bit, and I thought the match lost a bit of momentum after the 20 minute mark, but then it picked up again for a very good closing stretch. Crowd heat also varied, but never died during the slow segments. Masami was solid and Nakano was really good in her role. Fukuoka was a bit hit and miss in terms of execution, but worked really hard and was not disappointing. Hasegawa was perhaps the best worker since she showed lots of intensity and had one of her better days execution-wise. I could understand why some might not like this match, and I think it went a tad long, but this one has really grown on me over time. A long, grueling and very enjoyable underdogs-veterans match. ****
2. Chigusa Nagayo vs Mayumi Ozaki
Ozaki attacked Nagayo before the bell and DDTd her twice. Ozaki hit a tope on Nagayo, hit her with an object of some kind and took the fight into the crowd. Ozaki slammed a segment of the barricade onto Nagayo repeatedly. Ozaki attacked Nagayo with the aforementioned object, which turned out to be a screwdriver and busted her open. Ozaki returned to the ring and taunted/called out Nagayo on the mic. Nagayo blocked a tequila sunrise suplex attempt and fought back with a kick and a tilt-a-whirl into a powerbomb. Nagayo spin kicked Ozaki and punted her hard right in the face. Nagayo then slowed the pace and applied a headlock. Nagayo then gave Ozaki somewhat of a DDT/snap suplex and applied a chinlock. Nagayo belly to belly suplexed Ozaki and reapplied the chinlock. Ozaki fought back and clotheslined Nagayo. She then bit Nagayo on the forehead in a heelish move. Nagayo tried to fight back but Ozaki continued to dominate her in heelish fashion. Ozaki repeatedly hit Nagayo with the screwdriver but Nagayo no-sold the shots before finally going down. Ozaki continued to attack Nagayo with the screwdriver and focused on Nagayo’s bleeding forehead. Ozaki DDTd Nagayo and applied an armbar. Ozaki gave Nagayo a flying kick and continued to attack her head. Ozaki repeatedly kicked Nagayo’s head but Nagayo fought back and scored with a series of kneelifts. Nagayo then gave Ozaki a suplex for a near fall before applying a sharpshooter. Nagayo took the fight outside the ring and hit Ozaki with a chair in the crowd. Nagayo scored with a roundhouse kick and applied a sleeper. Ozaki escaped and left the ring but Nagayo hit a plancha. Nagayo then took the fight into the crowd and hit Ozaki with a segment of the barricade. Nagayo then pointed to her own head and piledrove Ozaki on what I believe was a table in the crowd, busting her open in the process. Nagayo then returned to the ring and called out Ozaki on the mic. A bloody Ozaki slowly returned to the ring. Nagayo gave Ozaki a bunch of kneelifts and kicked her. Ozaki kept trying to get back up but Nagayo met her with a kick each time. Ozaki caught Nagayo off-guard and DDTd her. Ozaki gave Nagayo a tiger suplex but Nagayo rolled through and responded with a knee to the head. Nagayo gut wrench suplexed Ozaki for a near fall but Ozaki fought back and bit Nagayo again. Ozaki came off the top rope with a somersault body attack and applied a sharpshooter of her own. Ozaki then turned and applied an STF. She took the fight out of the ring again and suplexed Nagayo in the aisle. Ozaki attacked Nagayo with a chair and returned to the ring, her own face a bloody mess almost reminiscent of Akira Hokuto from Dreamslam 1. Ozaki gave Nagayo a cradle suplex for a near fall but Nagayo fought back and applied a sleeper. Nagayo dropped Ozaki gut first on the top rope and hit a tope through the ropes. Ozaki fought back and prevented Nagayo from reentering the ring. Ozaki then hit a corkscrew quebrada onto Nagayo at ringside. Ozaki attempted what looked like a springboard huracanrana but whatever it was the spot was botched. Nagayo attempted a tilt-a-whirl into a powerbomb but Ozaki countered with a huracanrana for a near fall. Ozaki gave Nagayo a tequila sunrise suplex for a heated near fall and another tequila sunrise suplex for another near fall. Ozaki hit a third tequila sunrise suplex for a near fall as crowd heat reached a fever pitch. Ozaki hit a fourth tequila sunrise suplex for a fourth consecutive near fall. Ozaki missed a corkscrew dive off the top rope and Nagayo gave her a running powerbomb for the pin at 27:02. For the most part this was an excellent match, super in spots and pretty close to being a classic. However, there were a couple things that annoyed me or just hurt the match itself. First, both women immediately fought back after nearly being pinned by their opponents at various times. Also, the botched spot late in the match took down an otherwise sharply executed match offense-wise. The finish also came off a bit too sudden, although since the match was so long fans were ready for it. In spite of some of the aforementioned gaps in psychology, there were also many aspects of psychology that really added to the match. The selling in terms of facial and body language was really good as you might expect, and the spots with one wrestler dominating the other, returning to the ring and calling her out worked well. I thought the match was well-paced, with perhaps more cohesive pacing than the opener with the signature moved teased early but mostly saved till the end. Also, the fact that much of the match was an FMW-like streetfight worked really well to Ozaki’s strengths while hiding Nagayo’s growing weakness of not being able to work a long scientific match due to declined conditioning compared to her peak years. Some definite weak points, but overall an excellent match. ****
3. Candy Okutsu (JWP) vs Kyoko Inoue (AJW)
Kyoko was brought out as a mystery opponent and received a huge pop when her music hit and fans realized who Candy’s opponents was. Kyoko overpowered Candy early by tossing her around the ring. Candy landed some elbows and dropkicked Kyoko. However, Kyoko immediately responded with a dropkick of her own. Kyoko landed some windmill chops but Candy took her down. Kyoko fought back, applied a torture rack and slammed her to the mat. Kyoko attacked Candy’s right leg and applied a Romero special before bending her back with a chinlock. Kyoko hooked Candy’s legs, turned her onto her back and stretched her by lifting her legs. Kyoko slammed Candy but Candy fought back with a clothesline. Candy DDTd Kyoko twice for an early near fall. She then applied a Boston crab on Kyoko and then a half crab. Kyoko missed a running lariat in the corner and Candy monkey-flipped her. Candy attempted a second monkey flip but Kyoko placed her on the top rope. Candy kicked Kyoko away and hit a top rope dropkick for a near fall. Candy snapmared Kyoko and applied a sleeper, which Kyoko escaped by backing Candy into the corner. Kyoko dropkicked Candy and applied what could best be described as a rocking surfboard. Kyoko applied a camel clutch on Candy and legdropped her back. Kyoko hooked Candy’s legs and applied an over-the-knees surfboard. Okutsu fought back with a flying bodypress. Kyoko blocked a German suplex attempt but missed a lariat. Candy attempted a German suplex but Kyoko elbowed her. Kyoko attempted to dive off the middle rope with an elbow but Candy caught her and German suplexed her. Candy dropkicked Kyoko out of the ring and hit a running plancha. Candy then German suplexed Kyoko on the floor in a neat show of force on the part of the two-year pro. Candy then gave Kyoko a second German suplex on the floor as heat mounted. Back in the ring Candy German suplexed Kyoko for a heated near fall. Kyoko quickly fought back with a DDT. She chopped Candy and DDTd her out of the corner for a near fall. Kyoko charged towards the corner but Candy kicked her and gave her a flying bodypress for a near fall. Kyoko caught Candy on the top rope and gave her a top rope belly to belly superplex for a heated near fall. Kyoko gave Candy a lariat for another heated near fall. Candy fought back and applied a sleeper. After back and forth German suplex counters Candy applied a dragon sleeper and then a regular sleeper while maintaining somewhat of a bodyscissors. Candy jumped to the top rope, reversed direction and hit a top rope dropkick. She gave Kyoko a rolling (three) German suplex for a dramatic near fall. Kyoko countered another German suplex attempt and powerbombed Candy. Kyoko slammed Candy and hit a running top rope elbow for another heated near fall. Kyoko then applied her version of the camel clutch and made Candy submit at 15:31. I hope I’m not overrating this match, but I absolutely loved it. You had borderline main event All Japan Women star against a second year pro from the smaller JWP. One should have expected a one-sided, less-than-dramatic match under such circumstances but this was anything but lackluster or one-sided. Kyoko should be given lots of credit for giving Candy so much offense and letting her both gain several dramatic near falls but also kick out of several pin attempts that “should have” defeated such an “inferior” opponent. Although she wasn’t perfect, Candy really rose to the occasion, putting forth one of the best performances of her career, and hitting almost every move perfectly. Her psychology was also surprisingly strong and sensible late in the match, as she knew that it would be safer to use a sleeper or other submission hold than go for a spectacular and riskier finisher. Kyoko’s psychology was also really good in that, unlike Ozaki and Nagayo earlier, she would often reach the ropes or lift her shoulder to escape a submission hold or pin attempt rather than immediately fight back. The crowd also contributed to this match, as they were really into it and popped huge for some of the near falls down the stretch, which was also a credit to the wrestlers involved. Definitely not a classic, but I thought this was at least in the same league as the previous two matches.
****
4. Rie Tamada & Kumiko Maekawa (AJW) vs Fusayo Nouchi & Hiromi Yagi (JWP)
Nouchi sunset flipped Tamada as footage began. Nouchi gave Tamada a high kick. Tamada missed a clothesline and Yagi gave her a crucifix for a near fall. Yagi hiptossed Tamada five times but Tamada bridged out of a pin attempt. Yagi and Nouchi gave Tamada a double top rope dropkick and Nouchi went for a pin but Maekawa intervened. Tamada dropkicked Yagi twice and gave her two second rope dropkicks for the pin at 15:23 (1:46 aired). What aired looked decent, in part because Tamada was in the entire way, and fans were really into it for a youngsters match.
5. Boirshoi Kid vs Commando Boirshoi
I think Commando was actually Chapparita Asari. Commando hit a cross bodyblock after which they did some comedic mirror spots. They also dropkicked each other. Commando applied a Fujiwara armbar but Kid escaped and Commando’s hair extension fell out/off of her mask. Kid attempted a tombstone but Commando countered with one of her own. Commando completely missed her target on a skytwister attempt as time expired, I believe at 15:00 (1:34 aired). This looked like a pointless match, as many Boirshoi Kid matches were.
6. Takako Inoue (AJW) vs Cuty Suzuki (JWP)
Takako won an exchange of slaps at the start but Cuty fought back. Takako dominated Cuty early in heelish fashion. She tied up Cuty upside down in the corner and stood on her. Takako snapmared Cuty and applied a chinlock. After numerous Irish whip counters Cuty landed several slaps and a couple high kicks. Takako blocked a third kick and landed a slap of her own. Takako gave Cuty a cross arm back suplex and bridged for a near fall. Takako missed a clothesline but gave Cuty a chokeslam. Takako charged towards the corner but ran into a boot and Cuty fought back with several more boots to her face. Takako caught Cuty on the top rope and gave her a belly to belly superplex for a near fall. Cuty blocked a back suplex attempt but Takako dumped her clear out of the ring. Takako rammed Cuty into the barricade and suplexed her in the aisle. Back in the ring Takako attacked Cuty’s left leg. Cuty tried to fight back but Takako held her ground. Cuty finally scored with a top rope dropkick and Takako bailed out of the ring. Cuty jumped off the apron with a kick on Takako and hit a top rope foot stomp to the floor. Takako blocked a dragon suplex attempt but Cuty then German suplexed her. Cuty hit a top rope headbutt for a near fall. She back suplexed Takako but missed a top rope foot stomp and Takako immediately gave her an enzu-lariat. Takako attempted a back suplex but Cuty escaped her grip and German suplexed her for a near fall as heat picked up a bit. Takako caught Cuty on the top rope with an elbow. Takako gave Cuty a knee to the head and suplexed her out of the corner for a near fall. Takako missed a Takako panic and Cuty German suplexed her. Cuty then hit a Takako panic of her own and a dragon suplex for a heated near fall. Cuty attempted a second Takako panic but Takako punched her in the gut. Cuty countered a back suplex and rolled up Takako for a near fall. Cuty gained a heated near fall with a dragon suplex. She gave Takako two Takako panics and pinned her at 19:09 (10:33 aired). Fans popped for what was a minor upset. This was not as good a match as they were capable of. From what aired the early and some of the middle portions were not very focused with sluggish execution. The match got really good in the final 3 or 4 minutes with the near falls, so it was a decent match. However, given both, especially Cuty’s limitations the match went perhaps 5 minutes too long. **1/4
7. WWWA Title: Aja Kong (c) (AJW) vs Dynamite Kansai (JWP)
Kansai scored first with a spirited series of palm strikes but Aja fired back with some strikes of her own. Kansai then fought back by applying a headlock and took down Kong by her leg. Kansai applied an STF and then a rear chinlock briefly. Kong took Kansai down and landed a stiff roundhouse kick. Kong won a test of strength but Kansai held her own. Kansai landed a series of kneelifts and a couple kicks. Kong landed some punches and a stiff kick. She gave Kansai a running lariat in the corner and elbowed her before applying a rear chinlock for a lengthy period of time. Kong landed several knee strikes and followed Kansai out of the ring but Kansai quickly returned. They traded hammerlocks after which Kong applied a modified crossface chicken wing. Kansai escaped but Kong held her ground and tried to apply a cross armbreaker. Kong headbutted Kansai twice and gave her a couple stiff roundhouse kicks. Kong slammed Kansai and elbowsmashed her for an early near fall before applying a chinlock. Kong rammed Kansai into a couple corners. Kansai fought back but Kong responded with a headbutt. Kong attempted a corner splash but ran into a superkick and Kansai gave her a lariat. Kansai attempted to apply a cross armbreaker but Kong countered and maneuvered herself onto Kansai on the mat. Kong then applied another facelock for a lengthy period of time and continued to ride Kansai. Kong then applied an STF. Kong gave Kansai a headbutt, punch and a roundhouse kick. Kong landed a couple more kicks and piledrove Kansai for a near fall. Kong lifted Kansai and slammed her upside down into the corner, splashing her against the corner as well in the process. Kong charged Kansai but Kansai raised herself up and met Kong with an elbow. Kansai then hit a top rope splash for a near fall as heat picked up. Kong ran into a kick but Kansai then missed a lariat and Kong gave her a dangerous backdrop for a near fall. Kong piledrove Kansai three times and hit a second rope splash for a near fall. Kong attempted a superplex but Kansai fought back and kicked her to the canvas. Kansai attempted a top rope splash but crashed onto Kong’s knees. Kong back suplexed Kansai for a near fall. Kansai fought back with a couple kicks as Kong was climbing the ropes and attempted a splash mountain but caved in under Kong’s weight. Kong snapmared Kansai and hit a top rope elbow for a near fall. Kong missed an uraken, Kansai blocked a second and Kansai fought back by applying an abdominal stretch. Kansai back suplexed Kong and applied a cross armbreaker as heat picked up. Kansai landed some stiff kicks and applied a Fujiwara armbar. Kansai landed another kick and attempted a powerbomb but Kong blocked it. In response Kansai gave her a very stiff kick to the head. Kansai then nearly scored a knockout win. She attempted a splash mountain but Kong escaped and gave her an uraken, with which Kong nearly scored a knockout win of her own. Kong landed four more urakens but Kansai fought back with a great desperation lariat for a huge pop. Kansai kept trying to fight back but Kong landed six more urakens and pinned her at 22:03 to retain the title. A lackluster first half, but a very dramatic final stretch. In some ways this was like the Bull Nakano-Kong match from 11/26/92 in which Kong won the title. The first 10-15 minutes were entirely solid, but a bit flat. In this case, perhaps a bit too flat as there was little heat. The action picked up around the 16 minute mark and built to a great final few minutes. In particular, the closing sequence with all the urakens and near-knockouts was very dramatic. Kansai’s execution overall was not quite as sharp as usual, while Kong was generally as sharp as usual with her offense. They were definitely capable of a better match, and of the three Aja-Kansai matches I’ve seen this was easily the weakest. This was the kind of match you’d think was a classic if you only saw the last 5-6 minutes, but when you see the rest you might be in for a letdown. Very good match, but below expectations and potential. Hard to believe that, while this could have been the show-stealer, it turned out to be only fourth-best on the card. ***1/2
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