PRO WRESTLING WAVE on V*PARADISE #150 - #153
A Review by Kevin Wilson

We are back with another quatro of episodes of V*PARADISE for Pro Wrestling Wave!  Each episode on V*PARADISE is 30 minutes so we will do four episodes at a time.  The big matches are included from these shows but sadly they are a bit clipped.  The matches being reviewed today are:

Wave 3/15/15

- Shu Shibutani Retirement Road: Kana vs. Shuu Shibutani
- Rina Yamashita vs. Ryo Mizunami
- WAVE Tag Team Championship:
Ayako Hamada and Yuu Yamagata vs. Mio Shirai and Misaki Ohata
- Regina di WAVE Championship: Ayako Hamada vs. Mio Shirai

Wave 4/4/15

- Shu Shibutani Retirement Road: Shuu Shibutani vs. Yumi Ohka
- CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Kachinuke Battle Royal with “Kyusei” Sakura Hirota, Cherry, Mika Iida, Mio Shirai, Moeka Haruhi, Ryo Mizunami, Sawako Shimono, Tsukasa Fujimoto, and Yuu Yamagata

Pretty short event but we get Kana.  Let’s get to the matches.

Kana vs. Shuu Shibutani
This match is part of the Shu Shibutani Retirement Road.  Kicks to the chest by Kana and she kicks Shibutani into the corner.  Irish whip by Kana but Shibutani avoids her charge and snaps Kana’s neck over the top rope.  Kana kicks Shibutani out of the ring and goes off the ropes, but Shibutani gets on the apron and hits a dragon screw into the ropes.  Shibutani dropkicks Kana in the knee and they trade elbows, Mongolian Chops by Shibutani, Kana goes for a kick but Shibutani catches her leg and hits a dragon screw.  Shibutani goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, Northern Lights Suplex by Shibutani but it gets a two.  Kana applies a chickenwing but Shibutani rolls out of it, Codebreaker by Kana and she hits a double knee in the corner.  German suplex hold by Kana for two, and she quickly applies a seated armbar.  Cross armbreaker by Kana but Shibutani gets a toe onto the ropes.  Kana kicks Shibutani in the back and the chest but Shibutani catches one, Stunner by Shibutani and she hits a cutter and she applies Time Machine ni Notte but Kana is in the ropes.  Shibutani picks up Kana but Kana kicks her in the head.  Shibutani trips Kana and they trade pin attempts, head kick by Kana but Shibutani gets a shoulder up on the pin attempt.  Neckbreaker by Kana but Shibutani ducks the PK, Shibutani rolls for a roll-up but Kana blocks it with a cross armbreaker.  Modified Chickenwing Hold by Kana and she gets the submission!  As far as Kana matches go this was on the low end but I still enjoyed it. Shibutani put up a fight but she wasn’t winning this which killed some of the suspense, but the kicks were solid and I like Kana’s submission work. Nothing memorable but still fun to watch.  Mildly Recommended

Rina Yamashita vs. Ryo Mizunami
They trade shoulderblock attempts to start and then elbows until Mizunami finally shoulderblocks Yamashita down.  Yamashita gets back up, elbows by Mizunami and Yamashita falls to the mat again.  Knees by Mizunami and she hits a trio of leg drops for a two count.  Irish whip by Mizunami but Yamashita reverses it, lariat by Mizunami but Yamashita hits a judo throw.  Sleeper by Yamashita but Mizunami gets out of it, shoulderblock by Yamashita and she hits a few more.  Kick to the back by Yamashita but Mizunami catches one and slams Yamashita into the corner.  Jumping leg drop by Mizunami while Yamashita is slouched over and she applies a choke, but Yamashita gets to the ropes.  Shoulder tackle by Mizunami followed by a leg lariat, she picks up Yamashita but Yamashita blocks the backdrop suplex.  STO by Mizunami and she applies a side choke but Yamashita gets into the ropes. Mizunami goes up top but Yamashita rolls out of the way of the diving leg drop.  Mizunami is up first but Yamashita elbows her and hits a lariat. Mizunami stays up but Yamashita hits another lariat, picking up a two count cover.  Backdrop suplex by Yamashita and she applies the sleeper, but Mizunami gets to her feet and drives Yamashita into the corner.  Yamashita keeps the hold applied however, until Mizunami jumps back to slam Yamashita into the mat.  Back up they trade elbows, Yamashita goes off the ropes but Mizunami catches her with a powerslam.  Lariat by Mizunami but it gets a two count.  Mizunami gets Yamashita onto her shoulders but Yamashita slides off and applies a sleeper.  Mizunami elbows out of it and hits a lariat, elbows by Mizunami but Yamashita swings Mizunami to the mat and gets the Dojime Sleeper Hold applied.  Mizunami can’t get anywhere close to the ropes and she goes to sleep, giving Yamashita the victory!  I can’t say I liked this one even though I like Mizunami.  The layout was just all over the place as Yamashita seemed only able to do sleepers and there were about 100 leg drops and shoulderblocks as they weren’t very varied with their offense.  A moment or two of goodness but overall not entertaining.

(c) Ayako Hamada and Yuu Yamagata vs. Mio Shirai and Misaki Ohata
This match is for the WAVE Tag Team Championship. Hamada and Yamagata charge to attack the match, assaulting them in the corners.  Ohata and Shirai get the upper hand but it doesn’t last long as Shirai is booted in the corner. Double dropkick to Ohata and Yamagata trades strikes with Shirai as things settle down. Yamagata picks up Shirai and she hits a sliding kick, kick by Shirai but Yamagata catches one and takes Shirai to the mat to apply a kneelock.  Ohata breaks it up, Shirai rolls up Ohata but it gets two.  Shirai kicks Yamagata in the head but Hamada stops her from tagging Ohata.  Shirai gets away from Hamada and tags in Ohata, and Ohata hits a diving crossbody off the top turnbuckle.  Hamada attacks Ohata, but Ohata walks the ropes and hits an armdrag/headscissors combination.  Shirai applies a dual necklock over the top rope, and Ohata hits a crossbody on both of them, sending Hamada and Yamagata out of the ring.  Shirai goes to do a baseball slide but Hamada pulls out the ring apron cover to trap her.  Hamada rolls up Shirai in a mat (literally) while Yamagata and Ohata return to the ring.  Ohata hits Yamagata with the cat o’ nine tails repeatedly and she hits a release German suplex.  Yamagata comes back with an enzigieri and she tags in Hamada.  Missile dropkick by Hamada but Ohata gets her waist and throws her into the corner.  Ohata goes for the crossbody but Hamada gets her foot up and kicks Ohata to the mat.  Hamada goes off the ropes but Shirai kicks her from the apron and hits a tiger feint kick.  Running crossbody by Ohata, but it gets a two count.  Ohata dives off the top but Hamada kicks her on the way down.  Double knee to the gut by Hamada, she goes up top but Ohata avoids the moonsault. 

Hamada grabs Ohata and hits a sit-down powerbomb, but Ohata gets a shoulder up.  Yamagata puts Ohata in a stretch hold, Hamada goes up top but Shirai hits her with a stick.  Shirai squirts syrup in Yamagata’s eyes, both Ohata and Shirai join Hamada up top and hit a double superplex.  Boot by Shirai and Shirai helps Ohata up on the ropes, but Hamada moves and Ohata falls off.  Hamada goes up top and hits the moonsault, but Ohata rolls through it for two.  Kick to the back of the head by Hamada and then from the front, but Ohata sneaks in a victory roll for two.  Spinning backfist by Ohata and she rolls up Hamada for two.  Hamada ducks the next one and delivers a head kick, crucifix hold by Ohata but it gets two.  Shirai steps on Ohata and kicks Hamada in the head, backfist by Ohata and she tags in Shirai.  Kick to the head by Shirai, cover, but it gets two.  Another high kick by Shirai, she hits Hamada with the stick and delivers a hurricanrana for a two count.  Heel drop by Shirai but Hamada picks her up, Shirai gets away but Yamagata smacks her.  Backstabber by Yamagata, high kick by Hamada, and Hamada nails a cross arm sitout powerbomb but Ohata breaks it up.  Yamagata takes care of Ohata, she stretches Shirai on her knees as Hamada jumps off, but Shirai moves.  Body press by Ohata to Yamagata, and Shirai hits an assisted tornado DDT on Hamada.  Head kick by Shirai to Hamada and she applies Tsuchigumo for the three count!  Shirai and Ohata are your new champions! This was pretty edited so I can’t recommend it too highly but I enjoyed what I saw.  Shirai and Ohata are two of my favorites and Hamada is no slouch either, lots of hard hits here from all involved.  Loved the stretch run too.  Definitely worth a watch, just wish more was shown.  Mildly Recommended

(c) Ayako Hamada vs. Mio Shirai
This match is for the Regina di WAVE Championship.  This match immediately followed the previous match so they both did double duty.  Shirai boots Hamada in the corner to start and hits a knee before applying the necklock over the top rope.  Shirai goes up top and hits a missile dropkick but Hamada ducks the enziguri.  Punch by Hamada in the corner but Shirai hits her back and hits a tiger feint kick. Sliding Kick by Shirai, cover, but Hamada kicks out.  Hamada blocks Shirai’s big boot, Shirai applies a sleeper but Hamada throws her off.  Heel drop by Hamada  and she dropkicks Shirai right in the face.  Shirai falls out of the ring, Hamada goes up top and attempts a moonsault but Shirai moves out of the way.  Back in the ring, diving hurricanrana by Shirai followed by a jumping knee, but the cover gets two. Hamada quickly wraps up Shirai in a submission but she gets into the ropes.  Hamada goes off the ropes but Shirai moves, as Hamada tumbles  out of the ring.  Shirai goes for a boot when Hamada gets on the apron but Hamada catches it and snaps her leg over the top rope.  Hamada elbows Shirai in the leg but Shirai hits a high kick.  Shirai gets on Hamada’s shoulders but Hamada hits a sitout powerbomb for a two count.  Hamada goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, she goes up top again but Ohata hits her from the floor.  Shirai joins Hamada up top and she hits a Frankensteiner.  Kick to the head by Shirai, cover, but Hamada gets a shoulder up.  Hamada gets Shirai on her shoulders and hits the AP Cross Diamond.  High kicks by Hamada but Shirai ducks one and hits a headbutt.  Shirai goes off the ropes but Hamada catches her with a lariat for two.  Shirai sneaks in a roll-up, but Hamada kicks out and hits a heel kick.  AP Cross by Hamada, and she picks up the three count!  Hamada is still your champion.  This was a heck of a match, especially considering they just got done wrestling a 20 minute match.  Lots of big moves, no real downtime, only thing bad I can say about it is that it was clipped.  Still worth watching for sure, great performance by both.  Recommended

Shuu Shibutani vs. Yumi Ohka
This match is part of the Shu Shibutani Retirement Road.  They trade elbows to start, kick by Ohka but Shibutani hits a DDT.  They trade move attempts, Ohka takes Shibutani to the mat but Shibutani quickly gets out of it.  Ohka throws down Shibutani by her hair and gives her a bootscrape in the corner.  Scoop slam by Ohka and she hits a second one before hitting a double knee drop.  Shibutani gets away and dropkicks Ohka, she picks up Ohka and she hits Mongolian Chops.  Ohka boots Shibutani and puts her in the corner, and she hits a running big boot.  Another boot by Ohka but Shibutani catches the next boot and snaps Ohka’s leg over the top rope.  Slingshot DDT by Shibutani, she picks up Ohka and she hits a running cutter.  Shibutani goes up top and she hits a missile dropkick, and she hits a second one.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Shibutani picks up Ohka but Ohka hits a vertical suplex.  Ohka goes off the ropes and boots Shibutani in the face, she goes outside the ring with Shibutani’ head draped over the second rope and delivers a running kick.  Diving crossbody by Ohka, but it gets two.  Ohka goes off the ropes and hits a running boot, cover, but it gets another two count.  Ohka picks up Shibutani but Shibutani hits a Stunner, and she rolls up Ohka for two.  Chokebomb by Ohka but Shibutani gets a shoulder up.  Elbow by Ohka but Shibutani snaps off a DDT.  Back up, elbows by Shibutani but Ohka hits a big boot.  Shibutani comes back with a rolling cutter but Ohka blocks the roll-up attempt.  Backdrop suplex by Ohka and she hits a heel drop.  Ohka goes off the ropes but Shibutani catches her with a Northern Lights Suplex for two.  Big boot by Ohka but Shibutani rolls her up for two.  Schoolboy by Shibutani and she applies Time Machine ni Notte for a two count.  Back up, Ohka rolls away from Shibutani and she plants her with a brainbuster.  Cover, but Shibutani barely kicks out.  Ohka picks up Shibutani but Shibutani reverses a chokebomb with a hurricanrana for a two count.  Tiger suplex hold by Ohka, but Shibutani kicks out.  Big boot by Ohka, and she gets the three!  I am not a big fan of Ohka, I find her offense to be a repetitive and not overly interesting. Shibutani is good but not the type to elevate someone else.  The match itself was fine, but just fine, by the end I was ready for it to be over even though the action was generally solid.  A skippable match even though it wasn’t a bad one.

CATCH THE WAVE 2015 Kachinuke Battle Royal with “Kyusei” Sakura Hirota, Cherry, Mika Iida, Mio Shirai, Moeka Haruhi, Ryo Mizunami, Sawako Shimono, Tsukasa Fujimoto, and Yuu Yamagata
The way this works is the first four wrestlers to get a pinfall are entered into Catch The Wave Tournament.  Chaos to start, Hirota almost gets a pinfall but it gets broken up.  Hirota starts Oil Checking people but Iida blocks it and pins her for the three count.  Iida is now in the Catch The Wave Tournament!  Everyone else keeps fighting as Fujimoto hits a missile dropkick on Shimono.  She slams Hirota to the mat, cover, but Hirota kicks out.  Shirai drills Fujimoto but Fujimoto returns the favor, then Mizunami spears both of them.  Dragon suplex hold by Mizunami on Hirota and she gets the three count!  Mizunami has advanced to the tournament and is now out of the Battle Royal.  Everyone keeps attacking Hirota because she is the weak link, Haruhi goes off the ropes but Hirota accidentally falls on top of her, picking up the three count!  Hirota advances to Catch The Wave.   Everyone is more urgent as Shirai and Fujimoto pair off, double underhook facebuster by Shirai but it gets two.  Kick to the head by Shirai but Cherry breaks it up.  Shirai throws Cherry out and goes up top, but Fujimoto dropkicks her out of the ring.  Fujimoto then dives out onto Shirai while in the ring Cherry chops Shimono.  Cherry covers both Shimono and Haruhi and she gets the three count!  Cherry is the fourth and final entry into Catch The Wave 2015.  This seems like a really silly way to determine who is in the tournament.  Catch The Wave is a bit deal in Wave and is one of their premiere events, and they are deciding the entries in a random chance Battle Royal?  The stuff with Hirota was well done for a comedy match, it just felt weird that this was a comedy match at all.  A disappointing way to end the 2015 portion of the DVD.

The last 30 minutes of the DVD recaps last year’s Catch The Wave.  While a fun clip show, it doesn’t really fit into the 2015 Reviews I am currently doing.  So if you buy it, there is more content to watch, but that is all for 2015.

Final Thoughts:

This one started hot but fizzled out. I really enjoyed the two title matches but everything else was skippable (obviously I adore Kana and I liked the match, but I can’t pretend it is a must-see affair).  It didn’t help that the fourth episode was just a highlight show for last year’s Catch The Wave, the action was solid but nothing reviewable.  It is worth a watch just for the title matches but the rest isn't anything special.

Grade:  C+

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event reviewed on 6/5/15