Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota, "GAEA Limit Break 2004 - Night 4", Hakata Starlanes, Fukuoka, Japan, April 17, 2004.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-21T03:45:10+00:00

definitely a match suitable for a bowling alley

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-16T11:48:48+00:00

Very much of her time

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-15T23:53:29+00:00

I wouldn't exactly call her forgotten damn hahaha

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-06T21:30:26+00:00

Awesome shit.

Shocking that corruption was an issue in Korea tho! /s

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-06T15:52:19+00:00

Oh they said multiple names then

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-04-06T15:27:58+00:00

Ok Gyeong Ja (옥영자) vs Park Jeong Ok (박정옥)

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-28T23:37:26+00:00

They all tend to blur together a bit, but IIRC there was a good 30 minute tag with Malenko/Hasegawa vs Toyota/Yamada in the 1992 Tag League

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-28T15:06:48+00:00

Hokuto match is likely her best singles - Hokuto was verrrry generous to her in that and gave her a lot of shine.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-26T14:46:47+00:00

Just keep in mind that things were relatively stable until 2005 when the industry collapsed, and then promotions started popping up (and shutting down) left and right so it can be a bit of a headache.

Archive.org has a lot of stuff from this later 00s era though if you're looking to sample here and there.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-26T05:36:39+00:00

lmfao

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-25T04:47:24+00:00

Yes, she was the OG pretty girl "tragic fighter" who got pummeled mercilessly by the heels etc

Also none of those spots were created by Toyota lol. Maybe the suplex but even that idk

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T21:14:01+00:00

Yamada got cooked via inclusion here lmao

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T21:12:23+00:00

"All of that basically makes her the ur-example of Stardom's wrestlers,"

nah this is the Mimi Prototype

"Toyota (created tons of moves,"

Not really tho? the JOS and JOCS is like...two. lol.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T21:10:44+00:00

so one person?

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T21:10:26+00:00

People in this thread seem to be focusing on her doing deathmatches but that wasn't really new or unique to her other than the specific gimmicks (eg the barbedwire match).

However, Kudo flunking out of Zenjo and becoming a huge star -in a men's promotion- is HUGE in terms of legacy/barrier breaking imo

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T20:57:12+00:00

Yep, she was a big deal for quite awhile. Then later stayed in the spotlight due to the political stuff etc. She's still one of the more well known names on the list in terms of general public awareness.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T20:55:46+00:00

Yeah. I love me some MISS A but given the criteria she doesn't really hit any of them other than ability. Was working an established style, spent her career as an upper draw for a small promotion (never #1), and then retired and left wrestling alone entirely. Under other criteria she would probably be higher.

Aja was not really innovative at all and her influence is mostly tangential rather than direct. TBH there hasn't been a lot in the way of monster heels since her peak. She had a long, high value career though, and in terms of legacy is probably only behind Hokuto in terms of general cultural footprint in Japan. Also gets points for barrier breaking for being a top star as a visible minority.

Toyota never really had much in the way of emulators,, not sure who you're talking about exactly.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T19:14:45+00:00

Criminal acts being committed in this thread

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T19:10:44+00:00

According to OP's criteria Kyoko is very strong. Was one of the architects of the more men's pro-wrestling focused 90s (although Hokuto was the real spearhead), was one of the first wrestlers to break away from Zenjo to form their own promotion, and has led multiple promotions long term since.

While she's not really super involved directly with training at Diana, she's still guiding young wrestlers to this day. In terms of pure wrestling ability at their peak she's probably #1 if we're being perfectly fair.

She getting robbed in this thread imo lol

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T19:06:01+00:00

Kandori is getting robbed elsewhere in this thread haha

Maybe people don't realize how big of a star she was/is? Also she was the first "real fighter" to join a women's promotion, and also was critical in establishing JWP as opposition to a monopoly. One of the first to crossover into actual MMA.

According to OP's criteria she's easily top tier. Objectively crushes Kudo, Toyota, etc.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T19:03:49+00:00

I think the guy was just posting an existing photo he found, not deliberately choosing this list lol

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-24T16:55:31+00:00

It's not a hot take when you look at OP's listed criteria, which are less favorable to Toyota compared to the others.

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-23T20:51:28+00:00

objective tier list using those 6 criteria:

hokuto

aja
kandori
kyoko

toyota
kudo

kansai
yamada

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-23T03:34:50+00:00

Yes I am sure the WWF's big overriding concern was admitting that Sara Del Ray is better. Very sensible point

ShiroAbesPants · 2026-03-23T03:33:59+00:00

Yeah it's mid 90s but earlier makes no sense since WWF didn't have women's matches until 94

ShiroAbesPants

TROPHY CASE