Forever Forward Fridays

Mayumi Ozaki VS Akira Hokuto - JWP Thunder Battle Queen in Yokohama II 11/18/1993

CJD: John last week you talked about those matches that you are on the fence about for the first half but hook you for the second half. Well this was a different type of hot and cold match for me, Act 1 I was all in, Act 2 not so much, Act 3 brought things home nicely enough that I still enjoyed the ride overall. Watching more Ozaki she has a ton of charisma, even in a field of GOAT joshi wrestlers in her generation, but she definitely suffers from some of the tendencies I don't love about the style. Hokuto is one of those GOAT peers though and especially excels in big match settings so she helps reign in some moments of this one that go off the rails a bit. Phil talked about the traditional joshi narrative last week and what I like most about this match is how it's a heated interpromotional match like we've seen the Dangerous Queen in many times over but it's not pandemonium from start to finish like we often would expect. The nasty competitive edge is there but this is more of a pot that's simmering forever but you can never tell when it's going to boil over. So it skirts the line of that traditional joshi psychology but I think still presents something pretty different. And there are some little moments that I won't spoil but really drive home what great personalities both of these women are. And man I really loved those first 8 minutes or so. Very curious what you think about this one!

JJZ: Now this is the wild ass Joshi I was first used to. Quick, stiff, a little sloppy (not knocking it) with random technical work. Love it! Also love the foot biting spot again!!! This match has a charm to it I can't really put into words. To me it's just joshi and I Iove the ride it takes me on. There is beauty in the madness that this match brings. The rapidness of it really confuses me to the point that I can't not watch every single second. The anything you can do I can do better back and forth leaves you wondering what the fuck is next. Great crowd btw. Both ladies sell very well and make me say by the end what is it gonna take to finish one of them off??