Photo Credit: Netflix
by Alan Wojcik
Today the fans of professional wrestling are used to seeing international female stars like Kairi Sane, Asuka, Io Sky, Hikaru Shida on their televisions. But in the 1980’s of WWF (now called WWE) NWA or even AWA; the Japanese faces were men like the Great Kabuki and Tiger Mask. That all changed through VHS tape trading (ask your parents) done by fans in Japan and the United States. That led to names like Bull Nakano, Lioness Asuka (not the modern one) & Nagayo Chigusa (known as the Crush Gals) and the legend known as Dump Matsumoto becoming seen by the masses.
Now in 2024 we get to see how the ladies all got to their legendary status in the NETFLIX series QUEEN OF THE VILLAINS (debuting September 19th.) The five episode project is the partnership of writer/producer Osamu Suzuki (who grew up watching the sport in Japan), teaming up with director Kazuya Shiraishi.
Episodes one and two takes the viewer from the troubled childhood of wrestling fan Kauro Matsumoto (played to perfection by Yurigan Retriever) to her chance audition with All Japan Women’s wrestling in the early 1980’s where she meets her tag team idols “Beauty Pair” (Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda). Along the way we get to meet Asuka (Goriki Ayame) and Chigusa (Katara Erika) along with a locker room of hard working ladies traveling through Japan and appearing on TV and music videos (again ask your parents) while the men running the promotion fight for its very survival.
This needs to be said big time. This is not a straight biography of Ms. Matsumoto. It is about the entire women’s locker room. I was intrigued how the creative team showed how the sweet and innocent Kauro morphs into the maniacal Dump persona (SPOILER ALERT it doesn’t happen until episode three). The ladies go all out in the wrestling ring as do the men behind the scenes; namely Jun Murakami as Takashi Matsunaga, Daisuke Kuroda as Kunimatsu Matsunaga, and Takumi Saitoh as Toshikuni Matsunaga, the brothers who founded All Nippon Women’s Pro Wrestling. Plus Takuma Otoo plays Shiro Abe, the promoter and referee for the wrestling promotion.
This show should be watched alongside the critically acclaimed (and long canceled) GLOW; as they take place in the same time frame (at least episode 4 and 5 of this program.)
Thanks so much to Netflix Japan, namely Yuki Shiba. Alan Wojcik can be followed on Twitter/X @MyNameIsWojcik or Facebook.com/KayfabeWrestlingRadio
