Please help a newvie

[ElGringo]

I'm only just becoming interested in the noble art of joshi; can anyone reccomend tapes for me? I'm a very experienced puroresu watcher, enjoying traditional, lucharesu and shootstyle with avast collection of tapes. Please help!

Thanks in advance.

[Dr Feelgood]

Most people would probably recommend the interpromotional shows first as they're must-see in terms of wrestling and the number of stars involved (especially the Dreamslams):
-AJW Dreamslam I
-AJW Dreamslam II
-AJW St Final

It might be a good idea to see some earlier shows beforehand, to get an idea of things and then enjoy the DS. Most 90-92 AJW I've seen was very good especially:
-AJW Mid-Summer Typhoon 92
-AJW Dreamrush (another must see show)

Most Joshi is very good anyway. Mid-90s AJW and JWP shows are generally sure-shots, and so are recent ARSION and GAEA shows.
If you like shootstyle, you should take a look at Mariko Yoshida's submission skills in ARSION, her Starlet 98 match with GAMI and her recent stuff are very good IMO.
I've never seen any Jd' shows yet, so if someone can recommend some of their shows or knows where to order Jd' tapes

[wolverine]

If you're looking for more recent stuff, I'd HIGHLY recommend getting the AJW Satellite TV from 10/6/01 (taped 9/15-16). It has the AWESOME Kaoru Ito vs. Momoe Nakanishi match that's the best thing I've seen in four years. Great, great stuff.

[kkeller]

I recently purchased dreamslam 1 and 2 and you won't be sorry if you do. They are from top to bottom terrific. The GAEA tv shows tend to show a lot of clipped matches not that they're bad or anything it's just a pet peeve of mine. Purchase a Manami Toyota comp tape if you get a chance from 1992 to 1996 she put together a string of four star plus matches. I like the 2-24-02 AJW pay-per-view if you are looking for a good recent show but I don't think anyone would argue that they peaked in the mid-90's.

[dynamitekidfan]

Momoe Nakanishi vs. Ai Fujita from 03/12/2002 was a really good match, if you're looking for good stuff that happened this year.

Momoe Nakanishi vs. Kumiko Maekawa from 02/24/2002 was an excellent match. It's probably the best match of 2002 thus far.

But, there are plenty of tapes from the early and mid-90's you need to see.

[dynamitekidfan]

Here are some great joshi tapes from the 90's you might want to check out:

Dreamslam I and II from 1993 are truly must-haves. They are the greatest pro-wrestling shows ever.

AJW Big Egg Wrestling Universe from 11/20/1994 is one of the three best shows ever, only behind the Dreamslams.

AJW Dream Rush from 11/26/1992 is a show I'd highly recommend.

JWP Thunder Queen Battle from 07/31/1993 features an awesome 60-minute match.

AJW WrestleMarinepiad from 04/25/1992 and 10/09/1993 are also shows I'd recommend.

AJW Destiny from 09/02/1995 is a really good show as well.

And the AJW show from 09/21/1997 features a great cage match.

[wolverine]

"AJW Destiny from 09/02/1995 is a really good show as well."

Contrary to popular belief, the main event (Hokuto vs. Toyota) is quite a bit overrated. I would give it ***3/4.

[kkeller]

I'd go ****1/4 and that's probably low. That's a great show but the first two matches are fast foward material. Midgets and thumbtacks don't mix.

[Mutoh-Mania]

Originally posted by kkeller
Midgets and thumbtacks don't mix.

To quote Booker T: "You didn't just say that...Tell me, you didn't just say that."

Midgets and thumbtacks??? I am afraid I will live to regret this...but... ok I can't I will just have to get this tape someday to get the full picture.

[kkeller]

Did I mention the stinkface?ugh! The match lasted about 10 minutes and it seemed like an hour.

[Dr Feelgood]

Contrary to popular belief, the main event (Hokuto vs. Toyota) is quite a bit overrated. I would give it ***3/4.

Hokuto hitting the somersault senton from the turnbuckle to the outside with those long billowing robes is a sight I'll always cherish and well worth 5* in and of itself

[dynamitekidfan]

>>Contrary to popular belief, the main event (Hokuto vs. Toyota) is quite a bit overrated. I would give it ***3/4.

You might think it has been overrated by some people (I know at least two people who have given it *****). But giving it ***3/4 is definitely underrating it!

But the point I was trying to make, the AJW Destiny show from 09/02/95 was really good. And I would recommend it (to a newbie or anyone else for that matter). It was the end of an era of AJW having excellent shows on a regular basis. The Hokuta vs. Toyota main event was therefore even more historical. Other than the fact that two of the greatest workers ever were wrestling each other once again. And it was Hokuto's final chance of winning the WWWA title. I really loved the match. They called it the “Destiny Climax” and I think that’s really appropriate. And overall, the rest of the card wasn't bad either (I didn't like the midget match though).

By the way, Akira Hokuto is definitely the best wrestler to never win the WWWA title.