This is part of the “Stardom’s Favorite Daughter—Icon or Illusion?” watch series, which you can find here.

This is a A Block match in the 2014 5Star Grand Prix, with both women sitting at zero points.

It is not a bad match.

There will be plenty matches from Stardom’s annual round robin that are poor down the road, and some of them, Mayu will take part in. It’s frustrating, tournament wrestling has always felt exceptionally easy to get right. Injuries can be set up for opponents to go after, stakes that make every match have some kind of importance, the shorter length of the matches, and on and on. These tournaments are, or at least should be, breeding grounds for good/great matches, and a easy place to find success.

The 5STAR, at least to my knowledge, never gets it right.

Start and end with the haunting list of winners as proof, but beyond that, the most celebrated peaks of the company have nothing to do with the tournament they dedicate a significant chunk of the summer to. Take the best peaks the company has ever seen—off the top of the head, Meiko Satomura’s title reign, Bazler’s run, Momo’s first trip in the main event scene come to mind—all detached from the 5StAR. Even Io Shirai’s whole Stardom career, which is overwhelmingly the greatest positive the company is responsible for, has her runs in the 5Star be nothing more that minorly supplemental. Sure, she wins this year, and then they decide she should unsuccessfully challenge for the tag belts with Mayu, of all things.

But, I digress.

Like so many instances after this one, this match is underwhelming. It should’ve promised more, instead we get something that’s misguided. It never attempts to be or feel like a major champion vs. champion match (Yoshiko holds the red belt at this point, Mayu with white), nor does Yoshiko commit to working on top, or Mayu commit to the role of underdog. There are hints and sparkles or what should be here and there, and we’re nowhere near the soulless move fests of Bushiroad stardom either, so there are still things to like.

First, mechanically this is pretty good. It’s been a pretty big jump in time from Mayu’s last singles match I’ve reviewed until this one, and her increase in fluidity and level of execution have noticeably increased. Mayu looks and feels more like the high-flier she wants to be, but like old times, her greatest strength in this is getting crushed. Some of the more simple cutoffs of her just getting knocked, kicked, and shoved over look simple, but are interesting as a potential dynamic to play with. Some of the early wrist locks and stand up hand fighting too, she sells the strength disadvantage real well, and there’s some attempts early on the establish a certain bit of craftiness that’ll be essential to her eventual win. Yoshiko, while being a plainfully bland and deadpan wrestler, does manage to thrive on her look alone. She looks damn mean cinching some of those chokes in, and her offense that relies on nothing more than her body weight looks pretty damn good on someone as thin as Mayu. The problem arises when it’s time for them to transition into Mayu’s offense. Yoshiko just isn’t good at being something to overcome. She’s not actually a mean wrestler—you know, minus the time she decided it was a good idea to assault Act Yasukawa—she’s just emotionless, so it never feels satisfying when Mayu’s the one who has to turn it up. I think because of that, the match plays up as 50/50, even if it’s Iwatani who’s working a bit more to get her stuff in. Don’t get the wrong idea though, we’re not in the area where the struggle of the thing feels anything but accidental, if anything Yoshiko seems a bit lazy.

In the end, Mayu steals the win with a top rope rana maneuver, and picks up the two points. Again, the match is solid, good maybe. But still a hollow shell, a bit too unsatisfying, and so painfully on brand with how directionless the feel is after watching it.

Rating: Meh