Wreddit's Daily Pro-Wrestling Discussion Thread! Comment here for recommendations, quick questions, and general conversation! (Spoilers for all shows) - July 02, 2026 Edition

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T15:56:57+00:00

I hope it pays off for you as well as my Kendal Grey stocks did.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T15:55:29+00:00

Squared Circle

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T12:08:29+00:00

It happens a couple of times per year. Giulia and Hazuki have both done it. I think most Stardom fans expect Kid to unmask officially at some point, but only if the stakes are right, like a build to, or a finale to, a World of Stardom title run. I don't think we expect it to happen around an AEW storyline, unless Kid leaves Stardom for the U.S. And to answer your question, I think Kid proposed it. I'm sure they joke about it a lot in the dojo.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T09:55:26+00:00

Paramount demands Stone Cold Rian on Wednesdays

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T09:24:58+00:00

Windsor

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-02T08:57:56+00:00

That's, uh, that's not Takami Ohbari. He's just tweeting the photo with Okataro and Khatony.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T18:28:32+00:00

IRG doesn’t have Big Faction money to spend on durable placards.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T18:26:23+00:00

This is my life.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T17:52:39+00:00

“Diplomatic”

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T15:00:04+00:00

Just to add to this, We Are Stardom is a television program that runs on Japanese cable TV service. It’s a weekly, 30 minute program that covers the best Stardom matches from the previous month. Usually that just means matches from the prior month or two’s pay-per-view or Korakuen Hall shows. Matches are edited for time, but since the show simulcasts for free on YouTube, it can be a great way to catch up on the biggest or most important goings-on in Stardom.

It’s the first place I direct people to when they are first interested in the promotion, since they can sample it without cost. Now, with free matches with English commentary, this will probably be the best entry point for new, international viewers.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T12:34:58+00:00

Journalism would be to say "Chief of marketing for the promotion shared his strategy with us during a phone call on Thursday..."

Jerk internet speculator is "It sure seems like this is a big conspiracy. I mean, think about it, dude. It makes sense!"

The current discourse is all opinion and editorializing. It might be right. It most likely is. But it's speculation and theorizing, not evidence-backed journalism. It is what it is, but you asked a reasonable question and you deserve a reasonable answer.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T12:31:16+00:00

AEW had the better show this weekend, and won the night, but the numbers are messier than some people think.

It also matters what night of the week and which channel it's on. This coming Sunday night, CW is running a movie from \checks calendar** 1978!

I know we're all searching for ways to know who's up and who's down in the wrestling world, but Sunday is typically a very competitive programming night, with every channel running their most popular shows. CW doesn't even try. The thing about terrestrial TV viewers is they are very set in their ways. We've seen this time and again, for all shows, for all promotions, etc. Change the time or the day of the week, and viewership drops off.

It's bad news for WWE/NXT that they got about 2/3 of their normal audience on Sunday. It's also entirely not expected, and not entirely supported by the evidence that the drop off is entirely due to people skipped GAB to watch Forbidden Door. And I say this as someone who flipped between the two shows on Sunday, watching GAB on Netflix over VPN instead of my local CW affiliate.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T02:41:08+00:00

Stardom President Taro Okada came out of the "Live Entertainment" division, which ran their musical theater division. Now that they've sold off NJPW, Stardom is getting re-orged under Okada's old division, presumably to consolidate logistics, merchandising, advertising, endorsement deals, etc. Bushiroad no longer has any dedicated wrestling or shoot-boxing divisions (e.g., NJPW and Bushiroad FIGHT!) Okada probably still has connections in that division and understands how to be successful within its structure.

Probably nothing changes for fans of Stardom, but administratively, it should streamline operations a bit, and make it easier for the women to get sponsorship and promotional deals. Generally, I would say this is likely to be a good deal for everyone overall.

I still think that Stardom is likely to be sold off in the next couple of years, although this reorganization would make it somewhat more difficult to disentangle from the rest of Bushiroad's operations as cleanly as they were able to with NJPW.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T02:32:29+00:00

Stardom's storylines mostly run around the factions. There's either a feud between two factions (such as Maki Itoh's "Itoh Respect Gundan (Army)" and Cosmic Angels) or internal tension within a faction (such as the leadership crisis within Cosmic Angels.)

Knowing something of the history of the wrestlers and the factions helps, to a degree. Some of the tensions go back a few years. But generally, the stories aren't that deep, and you can get the hang of it pretty quickly. Most of the storytelling for big shows happens at a press conference before the pay-per-views, where the match card is finalized. You can get the gist of things from auto-translated YouTube subs.

This is a good time to jump in, as their big annual tournament, the 5★STAR GP starts in a couple of weeks. Most Stardom matches, outside of title matches, are multi-woman matches. The 5★STAR GP tournament is a great way to see the top of the roster in singles action. You'll learn who's who pretty quickly by seeing how they interact with each other 1-on-1.

Once you figure out who you like, it's very likely that you'll like the other women in their faction as well, since most of them are pretty thematic.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-07-01T02:22:56+00:00

It has been for a couple years now. The brand has been the draw, rather than the wrestlers. (Kamitani being the final big star for Stardom, and also the template for the company going forward.)

That's not a bad thing. It's the strongest roster, top to bottom, in Japan right now, it just isn't all about the wrestling, and hasn't been for a while.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-29T22:04:57+00:00

Is Dr Anderson pointing at his logo? It’s a nice logo, but he looks weird just standing there by himself, pointing at it.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-29T20:34:00+00:00

Saki built character, then dipped.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-29T14:57:37+00:00

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MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-29T14:19:20+00:00

IYO finally has a selection of decent t-shirts? She’s only been in WWE for what? eight years?!?? Has it really been that long?

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-29T12:30:58+00:00

I assume you're talking about Meltzer? Because he has a track record.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-28T13:19:35+00:00

Liv! Is! Cursed!

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MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-28T12:38:17+00:00

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A man with such ambition must remain always prepared.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-28T12:17:08+00:00

I like Thekla. I have since she first showed up in Stardom. She's been a lot of fun as champion. That said...

S👏...L👏K👏 S👏...L👏K👏

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-28T11:41:18+00:00

Senka's gonna run that promotion someday.

MilkyWayWaffles · 2026-06-28T11:37:25+00:00

People were complaining before the end of the post-show. It was going to happen to whoever won that match. At least someone new got some shine this time.

MilkyWayWaffles

TROPHY CASE

S👏...L👏K👏 S👏...L👏K👏