The third edition of the Max Heart “This Tag Team is Princess” Tournament is here!
It’s time for fun tag wrestling with clear stakes and for fans of certain squads to get their hearts squashed. Only one team can claim the Max Heart crown and earn a tag team title shot. Team Free Wi-Fi, Reiwa AA Cannon, Raku and Yuki Aino are all involved.
My body is ready!
Do people still say that? That’s a dead meme, right? I apologize. Consider my age when judging me.
But really, this tournament is going to be a good one. This first show had some standout action and showed off the solid depth of the teej tag division. Things only promise to get more interesting as more teams are knocked out.
Wakana Uehara vs. Shoko Nakajima
Man, I’m so happy about all these new faces on the scene. There’s a freshness to TJPW in 2023 with folks like Wakana trying to make their mark.
Wakana battled hard against a dominant Shoko here. The rookie looked solid in the fighting spirit department in the process. She came off well albeit not prodigious.
The TJPW Rookie of the Year race is going to be a lot more competitive this time around. Wakana ain’t got near the level of swagger that HIMAWARI does, but she’s definitely got potential.
And who do I talk to about getting both HIMAWARI and Wakana a CageMatch.net page by the way? I have match ratings to enter! (6.0 if you’re wondering)
Mizuki vs. Hyper Misao vs. Pom Harajuku
Get you a partner who loves you the way Pom hates shins.
I will never enjoy the spot where she softly “pounds” her opponent in the chest, but I sure as hell appreciate the disdain she has when kicking someone’s legs. We got plenty of that in this three-way match, the latest reminder of Pom’s in-ring improvement.
Surprising that Mizuki didn’t take this one considering she’s won just about everything as she charges toward her Princess of Princess title match.
The other surprise is Misao relying less on her usual chaos and shenanigans here. Just like in her bout against Trish Adora (Jan. 8), we saw very little in the way of underhanded ridiculousness from her. I say that now and watch, Misao’s next match is going to feature a cream pie and a handgun.
Miu Watanabe, Rika Tatsumi, HIMAWARI vs. Arisu Endo, Suzume, Kaya Toribami
TJPW sure does believe in HIMAWARI already. She had singles matches on each of the last two City Circuit Shows, not to mention opening the Jan. 4 show against Yuki Aino. She’s getting booked on just about every event including this six-woman situation heavy on the rising stars.
Rika, though, is not a partner you want to have. The absolute menace started beating on HIMAWARI (They are on the same team, I remind you!) before using her as a weapon to pin Endo.
This was an action-heavy fun bout. If you’re going to watch the show just for the tournament matches, I’d say give this one a go, too.
Also, side note: Damn, is Miu good.
Juria Nagano and Moka Miyamoto vs. Yuki Kamifuku and Mahiro Kiryu (Tournament Match)
Listless match; cool result.
Nobody provided much juice to the action here. I just watched it a few seconds ago and have already forgotten most of what happened.
But people aren’t going to be talking about the slow pace and lack of fireworks in this one. Instead, the buzz is going to be about The Karate Girls making it into the second round.
Toyo Mates are the more established, more experienced team. Juria and Moka, meanwhile, are works in progress, but absolutely the kind of talent TJPW should be pushing.
Raku and Yuki Aino vs. Yuki Arai and Saki Akai (Tournament Match)
The award for most effective use of a pillow in a wrestling match goes to…Reiwa AA Cannon vs. Raku and Aino in the first round of the Max Heart.
This was a certified banger, y’all. Fun pace. Lots of good saves/near falls. A general sense of urgency and importance.
Plus, I loved how Raku’s lullaby routine was played up as a dangerous threat. Arai and Akai were desperate to escape it, helping infuse it into the flow of the match rather than just be a standout alone comedy shtick.
Raku’s in-growth continues. She’s looking increasingly reliable in there.
Maki Itoh and Miyu Yamashita vs. Hikari Noa and Nao Kakuta (Tournament Match)
The Team Wi-Fi bandwagon is going to be pissed, but TJPW made the right move here. 121000000 is the superior team with bigger names and a more interesting duo to advance in the tourney.
The path to Maki and Miyu getting the win was entertaining.
They overwhelmed a feisty Hikari. They rode their best weapons, namely Miyu’s kicks and Maki’s headbutts, to victory. They survived some good team chemistry and a creative double pin on Yamashita.
The action was hard-hitting, and everything flowed well. This is well worth a watch unless seeing Hikari and Nao get booted out of the Max Heart is going to elevate your blood pressure.
Next up, on the 19th, we get Reiwa AA Cannon vs. Rika Tatsumi and Miu Watanabe plus Moka Miyamoto and Juria Nagano vs. Daisy Monkey in the second round. Everything is lining up for the 2023 Max Heart to outdo the 2022 edition.
Ryan Dilbert is a columnist for Wrestle Inn, the host of Flight of 5, co-host of the Ocean Cyclone Show, and a below-average social media user. You can find links to his work on his linktr.ee.