Ruaka def. Hanan

The opening bout was a very average match. Lock-up to start the match, back and forth elbows. Hanan dominated most of the match with her strikes, dropkicks and a standing boston crab. Ruaka hit a helluva kick and a bridging fisherman suplex for the finish of the match. I don’t think matching these young girls against each other is going to help them develop into stars. I’m not saying they need to be going theatrical with Kaori Yoneyama, but these short matches feel counter-productive to actually developing these girls into professional wrestlers.

Team Jungle def Starlight Kid, Konami, and Shiki Shibusawa

This was a simple and fun Jungle match. Konami is impressive as always, Kyona is entertaining as hell, and Kid is constantly improving. There is a really confusing spot where Shiki is running the ropes, but Hiroyo is there so she spins and hits to rope to her right and gets grabbed by Kyona, but Kyona was already there to grab Shiki, so the rope switch is pointless. I’m not sure who’s fault it was, but it left me baffled and I had to go back and rewatch it 3 times to figure out what the intention was. Shiki is pinned after taking a senton and 2 splashes by all of Team Jungle. It wasn’t anything special, but I am always happy to hear some “JUNGLE JUNGLE”.

I will give some Shiki credit: Her bumping and selling has gone from being god-awful to being pretty decent.

Momo Watanabe def. Kris Wolf

This is the first match of the show that is a genuinely a great wrestling match. Kris set-up Momo on the second rope in splits and drop kicked her gooch. P was thrown into to Momo’s face and used in a superkick. Momo hit her comeback and won clean with a diving double knee drop. The match wasn’t spot heavy, but the basics of the match were top-notch. Both of these women should be in higher positions on the card.. I see Momo slowly working her way up, but I’m not sure where Kris goes after this. Regardless of where both of them go, this was a fantastic showcase for both women.

HZK and AZM def. The Beautiful Ones

This was definitely not match of the night. It was a bit of a clunky mess, but it still managed to be entertaining. The Beautiful Ones tried to do about a million butt spots, but it became more irritating than endearing after the first couple of… Butt strikes. They were done to death.. There is a brilliant spot where HZK locked Chardonnay’s legs and AZM ran the ropes and ran her over repeatedly. HZK hit a senton on both Beautiful Ones. AZM is pinned by Chardonnay after a cutter from the top rope. If there is one thing to take away from this match it is that AZM is an amazing bumper and seller.

Sumire Natsu def Hiromi Mimura

Sumire’s debut singles bout is no half-baked spot match to get the audience familiar with her. As strange as this sounds, this match is akin to AJ Styles vs Brock Lesnar. This is an intense and heavy-hitting competition that feels like a legitimate struggle. Sumire did a brilliant job working as the arrogant monster heel, and Hiromi played the underdog to a t. Every spot felt like Hiromi was fighting an uphill battle, and every strike and slam was sold like death by Hiromi, and Sumire sold Hiromi’s fast offense perfectly. This isn’t the type of wrestling match I was expecting from a singles debut, but it was a perfect David and Goliath story told by these two women.

Kagetsu and Hana Kimura (Champions) def. Kelly Klein and Bea Priestley – Goddesses of Stardom Championship Title Match

I don’t think anyone can deny that Kagetsu is the best pure wrestler in Stardom today after this match. She can simultaneously look like a monster while giving credibility to her opponents by putting them through the best match of their career. I am not going to spoil any of the wrestling in this match. You need to watch this match. Oedo Tai went over, but Kelly Klein and Bea Priestley both look like credible stars that could be in the main event scene on their own. This is one of Stardom’s must-watch matches of 2017.

Io Shirai def. Yoko Bito – Wonder of Stardom Championship Title Match

Two of the best in the world going head to head. What could go wrong? Well, besides death…

Yoko Bito’s retirement tour has been spectacular and this match with Io is a perfect way to end her Wonder of Stardom title reign. From belly-to-back piledrivers on concrete to Io’s insane athleticism, this match let both women show off their ability without feeling over-worked. This is one of those matches that feels like a true clash of superstars. Yoko Bito looked like a true reigning and defending champion and a superstar, and Io masterfully put herself over in between making Yoko look like she could wrestle anyone in the world and have a fighting chance. This could easily be Stardom’s Match of the Year if it weren’t for some competition from the Mayu vs Kagetsu matches.

It’s unfortunate that we’ll more than likely never so Yoko Bito in the ring after the 12/24 show, but she has cemented her legacy as a joshi legend after this fantastic 2017 run.