Author: Alex Pavon
When you’re 147 cm tall, the world can seem like a big and scary place. However, few 4’10 wrestlers have made it as far in the industry as Shoko Nakajima has in Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling. She is a pillar of the company: winning the first Princess Tag Team Championship with Yuka Sakazaki, winning the 2015 Tokyo Princess Cup tournament with numerous finals appearances, and is currently in her second reign as Princess of Princess Champion. Over a nine-year career, she has earned a number of accolades, none more important than the moniker of Big Kaiju. I. Invasion from the…
Before one answers “who is Wrestler of the Year,” in 2022, one must answer “what is Wrestler of the Year” in the Summer of Pink. Is it championship dominance and prominence on a roster? Is it the most outstanding talent in the ring? Or is it the person whose name keeps popping up, the one who becomes the main character of any given promotion or platform? In 2022, one wrestler was all of these things for Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling: Quality. Quantity. Consistency. With the matches, the moves, and the motivation, Miu Watanabe proved that she was the best in…
New Japan Pro Wrestling has lost its top stars. The glory days of yesteryear are over. The company is in crisis. It is 1988. It is 2024. It is 2006. And a new generation is born. Wrestle Kingdom 1-5 (2007-2011) – NJPW rebrands its annual January 4th show at the Tokyo Dome after a video game from the company that purchased them, Yuke’s. Wrestle Kingdom 6-10 (2012-2016) – NJPW is bought by Bushiroad and enters the Internet Age under Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Kazuchika Okada. Wrestle Kingdom 11-15 (2017-2021) – NJPW enters the Global Age and expands its focus…
In 2021, Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling asked the question: What is love? Some say it’s when two people have enough in common that they enjoy spending time together and form a partnership. By that definition, Maki Itoh and Miyu Yamashita sound like they were made for each other. Born in Fukuoka in 1995. Yamashita grew up with dreams of being an idol, incorporating a dance routine into her early wrestling persona. Itoh, on the other hand, became a teen idol as one of many members in the girl group LINQ. Yamashita made her in-ring debut in 2013 for new promotion…
In April 2022, Konosuke Takeshita arrived on the American pro-wrestling scene and was an instant breakout star. A 6’2 superhero of a man sprinting between the ropes like he’s saving the world. A wrestler who can fly through the air, hit power moves, and captivate an audience the first time they see him. His long-term excursion in the West has made him a highly demanded talent as seen on national TV for AEW or having must-see matches every weekend for whatever promotion can book him. Of course, this one of a kind talent didn’t just appear from nowhere. To celebrate…
If there’s a royal family of Japanese pro wrestling, Akira Hokuto is the Queen. Her career is filled with legendary matches, iconic moments, and historical achievements. Since 1995, she has been married to Kensuke Sasaki, one of the most decorated champions in puroresu. In addition to their two sons, they helped train a group of young wrestlers who would go on to rule the modern landscape: Masa Kitamiya, Kento Miyahara, and Katsuhiko Nakajima. And through their eldest child, married to joshi wrestler Rin Kadokura, they welcomed their first grandchild in 2023. For being one of the greatest wrestlers to ever…
If every major promotion in Japan is going through growing pains at the moment, Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling might be the one who’s suffered the least amount of damages. The whole landscape is shifting leading into the TJWP Max Heart Tournament Finals 2024. TJPW amicably parted ways with Yuka Sakazaki in December, and so far in 2024 they’ve lost Maki Itoh and Hikari Noa to the injured list for the time being. All of which has had a major effect on the 4th annual Max Heart Tag Tournament. With three of the top teams unavailable and a fourth announced to…
January 4th is the perfect time to sample Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling for those who never have. Like any good story, you can dive right in and meet a colorful cast of about two dozen characters. Some are major players, some have minor roles, and all have personalities and histories that you aren’t expected to catch up on in one sitting. That part comes later. Speaking from experience, the Ittenyon show serves as a jumping-on point to entertain and intrigue. Especially this year, when the main event isn’t a years-long storyline. Most of the matches are new challenges in the…
January 4, 2016: lightning struck twice on the same day. One was a rare, but long-term plan. Hiroshi Tanahashi had passed the torch to Kazuchika Okada for a seamless transition of power between Aces. Meanwhile, the main event scene of New Japan was halved when Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles were signed away by WWE. The irony being that NJPW had grown so buzzworthy and competitive that, of course, their top stars got poached. Okada, Omega, and the Global Age Pt 1 The 21st-century Golden Age was at a crossroads. While providing a great product was still a priority for…
Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling’s 2023 was a historic year and for more than just being the tenth anniversary of the company. A top 10 list could be created of all the major stories on the calendar from the princess promotion. Among them being Mizuki finally grabbing the brass ring, the long-awaited debut in America, and Yuka Sakazaki’s graduation from TJPW. But while the roster may change, what remained steady is the quality of bell-to-bell action. From the intensity of workrate style to the dramatics of emotional storytelling to the bizarre adventures of interdimensional travel, Tokyo Joshi had many standout bouts.…