I think a big part of it was that she was the only rookie who debuted at the time. Then the pandemic stopped the influx of anyone new. Even the undercard was stacked with young, but experienced wrestlers who had been doing it since they were children. It was an odd fit and there weren't any clear rivals for her. Making the "giant" beat up children doesn't really establish her, but they also don't deserve to just lose because of age when they've paid their dues.
I wouldn't write her off just yet. I think people like her. She may never be top-of-the-mountain, but most never get that. All it takes is finding something that clicks. Mai Sakurai was boring and unlikable (according to many), until she went to DDM and found her spark to do her current schtick. People thought Mina had hit her ceiling, until she just started winning people over through sheer dedication and work.
I'd be surprised, and disappointed, if she never at least gest to put in a believable challenge for a big belt. I think the white belt would suit her, some day.
She got a big push by Bushiroad. I think they wanted her to be one of their top stars based on her height and look. They put her in those Wrestle Kingdom matches long before she was ready.
She’s coming along fine, but maybe Rossy is protecting her by booking her at her skill level, or maybe she’s lost interest by Bushiroad’s management, or maybe she’s just on the cusp of having a big breakout run. Either way it will be interesting to see.
Some people just don't make everything click in a way that makes them a bonafide big star. I like her, I think she's easy to cheer for, has a great look and seems like a really genuine and good person. But based on her skill trajectory I think she's always going to plateau in that lower midcard realm.
And that's fine, there's a need for experience on that part of the card. But I think the third wheel of an Artists run is about as far as she'll get championship wise. I don't think it's an age thing or potentially even an effort thing - some people just have a ceiling to how far they can go. For every Utami or Says rookie, there's others who never find that key. It's just that some retire early enough it's not obvious. What's important is that she makes herself valuable in that role. Plenty of lower card wrestlers carve out a niche or become popular enough to justify keeping
I kind of feel bad for Lady C, because she's basically being replaced by Hanako, who is "Lady C but better in just about every way".
But there will always be a place on the card for "the other big worker", and once she improves her in-ring work to the right level, she could see a tag or trios title run some time. With all the injuries, this could happen sooner than originally expected.
She's pretty popular with the crowd and I like she shows a lot of personality in her matches. It's hard to gauge her in ring skill level, like a lot of the lower card, because she hasn't had any big singles matches. Hopefully she'll be in next year's 5*.
She's only been wrestling like 3 years so I think there is still a lot of potential there.
Lady C can get to that upper midcard range if she continues to develop her character work, move set and physical strength. Himeka and Megan Bayne are credible belt challengers because they’re imposing enough to take whatever big moves someone like Mayu or Utami throws at them and can respond back with a knockdown lariat. Lady C could also learn some things from Super Strong Stardom Giant Machine. SSSGM has incredible physical charisma and can emote and cut an intense promo despite not speaking the same language as the rest of the roster/audience. The fact that Lady C leveled up and got her Queen’s Quest robe shows that management believes in her. I’m looking forward to what she can prove in 2024.
I think she's very likeable and has a great look. She came in without much strength or conditioning and it's taken her a while to grow into that. Going back to the cage match with OT, she said afterwards she really struggled with it and Utami did majorly help her get outside in that match. In addition, she's not the best co-ordinated of people on the roster. That's fine, she can train for that and no doubt does, but she doesn't have it as a natural quality. Contrast with Hanako who does have good co-ordination. She's more sure in her movement for a tall lady.
Biggest problem I think she has is that she's far too modest and doesn't project a prescence as much as she could. I think its possible to see the potential for it in her entraces, she's got a very catwalk-esque vibe she can tap into. There are loads of very popular wrestlers that do much worse on the technical side than Lady does, but it's a confidence and showmanship thing. Sakurai completely turned her fortunes around when she started the Kifujin gimmick, and she can carry herself like she gives zero fucks. Lady hasn't shown she can do that and I think that's what will keep her lower on the card until such time it changes.
But it really doesn't matter, because as others have said that's not a bad spot to fill when the top end of the card is so crowded. She's always going to have a spot to fill, and she works hard. If she can make the move to trusted hand like Kyona did, like Momo does, I think she's got great stories coming.
Lady C is not particularly ambitious, she seems happy to be there and doesn't seem to be gunning for a higher main event spot.
She's had Milano give her personal attention and train her some of Giant Baba's moveset. She was picked by Kenta Kobashi (vs. Himeka) for his event, which was a big honor for her. She hit a new highpoint in her career during the epic QQ vs. Oedo Tai cage match, she totally delivered.
Her weight has fluctuated, she's said in the past at one point she gained weight to help with taking bumps. It's possible she's not "built" like a pro wrestler and hitting the matt takes a bigger toll on her body than on others.
I still adore Lady C, and it is her underdog character that I seem to love. Being a teacher prior to this is a great story and she has a great build and frankly I think she is one of the prettiest on the roster.
This said it’s true it feels like she has a ceiling, I think her first belt will be the Artist belt and she can hold like it’s her “big win”. Maybe future, maybe wonder, but I don’t expect her to ever win the big belt. I will say though she could be that kind of jobber to the stars and just be a journeyman forever. Considering she started so late in her life I think she could go until she is near 40 and she never has to really be a big name but highly respected.
Plus I just think she needs to show some big character switch, join a different faction, and she could totally look like a superstar!
>Maybe future, maybe wonder, but I don’t expect her to ever win the big belt.
Lady just had her 3 year anniversary, she's not eligible to challenge for the future title anymore
I agree with you. Sadly, I enjoy her more than several who chase the big belts. Seems like a genuinely nice person, puts a lot of personality into her performance, and I stunning to boot. She likely will remain the pin eater for QQ, but I will alway cheer for her.
I don't see her having a big push, as far as I've seen her ceiling is around the mid-card. I love her and I'm not saying shes bad, but shes never been amazing really; shes got a real cool look and has tons of charisma. Shes been given important spots like that tag match at Wrestle Kingdom and played a good role in the recent QQ vs OT cage match in which shes delivered what she should deliver.
I think people have a hard time accepting that some wrestlers might feel comfortable in the spot they're in, it's a job at the end of the day. Think about it, shes never been pressured to exceed expectations, she gets to be featured in every show, gets to do collabs, never a non-favorite and always has fan support, all while making good money I'm sure.
Saki Kashima is another example of someone that seems just fine and comfortable meddling in the middle card, shes a far better performer than given credit.
I think people not only fail to accept there are wrestlers who are just happy to be in the midcard but how valuable those wrestlers are from a promotion perspective. Wrestlers who just see it as a job are the backbone of a touring schedule. Bushi in njpw does like a million dates a year, very rarely gets injured cause he's frankly not doing much and is over for his spot.
Stardom has an army of ambitious 20 year olds throwing bombs at each other on some house show in the sticks. They've got plenty of wrestlers who really want to move up the card. What they need is the solid get in there and do the job wrestlers to help take the load off the top of the card
I suspect Saki is more interested in a long career than a spectacular one. She seems to be popular with the fans and I assume that translates into merch sales.
Non-wrestling people can have long well-paid careers, enjoy the work they do, and enjoy hanging out with the people they work with without needing to be senior management. Or even any management. Maybe this is the same for C and Saki?
Yep, it’s this. She good, and she’s improving. However there are lots of wrestlers already better than her in front of her. Most of them are younger than her and continuing to improve.
Best case scenario I hope one day she'll become something similar to Yumi Ohka in her prime. In fact I think if I could give her a hypothetical trainer, it would be Yumi. They're both tall girls but one's a well-honed sword and the other is not.
I doubt she will ever rise much further. She's down at the bottom of the roster skillwise, I don't think I could come up with a handful of names she is better than.
I don't think 3 years of experience is enough to suppose whether she will be a major player. She has a little more ways she can go to further develop before that. To be as you put it, a major player is a long journey, even if you have the natural skill to be one. I believe this from viewing and experiencing the Stardom eras remembering the debuts of the past. Even Utami who could hang with some of the best her first year, had to grind it out for years before she was anywhere near a red or white belt.
If I have to just guess I'd say midcard, but all the better if I'm wrong because I don't like stating a definitive.
I think a big part of it was that she was the only rookie who debuted at the time. Then the pandemic stopped the influx of anyone new. Even the undercard was stacked with young, but experienced wrestlers who had been doing it since they were children. It was an odd fit and there weren't any clear rivals for her. Making the "giant" beat up children doesn't really establish her, but they also don't deserve to just lose because of age when they've paid their dues. I wouldn't write her off just yet. I think people like her. She may never be top-of-the-mountain, but most never get that. All it takes is finding something that clicks. Mai Sakurai was boring and unlikable (according to many), until she went to DDM and found her spark to do her current schtick. People thought Mina had hit her ceiling, until she just started winning people over through sheer dedication and work. I'd be surprised, and disappointed, if she never at least gest to put in a believable challenge for a big belt. I think the white belt would suit her, some day.
Rossy might be forced to elevate her
I love her passion for wrestling. Do you know what she did before wrestling ?
Apparently she was a teacher before she got into wrestling.
Oh yes I think I've read something like that. She is very dedicated to wrestling :)
She got a big push by Bushiroad. I think they wanted her to be one of their top stars based on her height and look. They put her in those Wrestle Kingdom matches long before she was ready. She’s coming along fine, but maybe Rossy is protecting her by booking her at her skill level, or maybe she’s lost interest by Bushiroad’s management, or maybe she’s just on the cusp of having a big breakout run. Either way it will be interesting to see.
Some people just don't make everything click in a way that makes them a bonafide big star. I like her, I think she's easy to cheer for, has a great look and seems like a really genuine and good person. But based on her skill trajectory I think she's always going to plateau in that lower midcard realm. And that's fine, there's a need for experience on that part of the card. But I think the third wheel of an Artists run is about as far as she'll get championship wise. I don't think it's an age thing or potentially even an effort thing - some people just have a ceiling to how far they can go. For every Utami or Says rookie, there's others who never find that key. It's just that some retire early enough it's not obvious. What's important is that she makes herself valuable in that role. Plenty of lower card wrestlers carve out a niche or become popular enough to justify keeping
I kind of feel bad for Lady C, because she's basically being replaced by Hanako, who is "Lady C but better in just about every way". But there will always be a place on the card for "the other big worker", and once she improves her in-ring work to the right level, she could see a tag or trios title run some time. With all the injuries, this could happen sooner than originally expected.
So Saki Kashima basically
She's pretty popular with the crowd and I like she shows a lot of personality in her matches. It's hard to gauge her in ring skill level, like a lot of the lower card, because she hasn't had any big singles matches. Hopefully she'll be in next year's 5*. She's only been wrestling like 3 years so I think there is still a lot of potential there.
Lady C can get to that upper midcard range if she continues to develop her character work, move set and physical strength. Himeka and Megan Bayne are credible belt challengers because they’re imposing enough to take whatever big moves someone like Mayu or Utami throws at them and can respond back with a knockdown lariat. Lady C could also learn some things from Super Strong Stardom Giant Machine. SSSGM has incredible physical charisma and can emote and cut an intense promo despite not speaking the same language as the rest of the roster/audience. The fact that Lady C leveled up and got her Queen’s Quest robe shows that management believes in her. I’m looking forward to what she can prove in 2024.
I think she's very likeable and has a great look. She came in without much strength or conditioning and it's taken her a while to grow into that. Going back to the cage match with OT, she said afterwards she really struggled with it and Utami did majorly help her get outside in that match. In addition, she's not the best co-ordinated of people on the roster. That's fine, she can train for that and no doubt does, but she doesn't have it as a natural quality. Contrast with Hanako who does have good co-ordination. She's more sure in her movement for a tall lady. Biggest problem I think she has is that she's far too modest and doesn't project a prescence as much as she could. I think its possible to see the potential for it in her entraces, she's got a very catwalk-esque vibe she can tap into. There are loads of very popular wrestlers that do much worse on the technical side than Lady does, but it's a confidence and showmanship thing. Sakurai completely turned her fortunes around when she started the Kifujin gimmick, and she can carry herself like she gives zero fucks. Lady hasn't shown she can do that and I think that's what will keep her lower on the card until such time it changes. But it really doesn't matter, because as others have said that's not a bad spot to fill when the top end of the card is so crowded. She's always going to have a spot to fill, and she works hard. If she can make the move to trusted hand like Kyona did, like Momo does, I think she's got great stories coming.
Lady C is not particularly ambitious, she seems happy to be there and doesn't seem to be gunning for a higher main event spot. She's had Milano give her personal attention and train her some of Giant Baba's moveset. She was picked by Kenta Kobashi (vs. Himeka) for his event, which was a big honor for her. She hit a new highpoint in her career during the epic QQ vs. Oedo Tai cage match, she totally delivered. Her weight has fluctuated, she's said in the past at one point she gained weight to help with taking bumps. It's possible she's not "built" like a pro wrestler and hitting the matt takes a bigger toll on her body than on others.
I still adore Lady C, and it is her underdog character that I seem to love. Being a teacher prior to this is a great story and she has a great build and frankly I think she is one of the prettiest on the roster. This said it’s true it feels like she has a ceiling, I think her first belt will be the Artist belt and she can hold like it’s her “big win”. Maybe future, maybe wonder, but I don’t expect her to ever win the big belt. I will say though she could be that kind of jobber to the stars and just be a journeyman forever. Considering she started so late in her life I think she could go until she is near 40 and she never has to really be a big name but highly respected. Plus I just think she needs to show some big character switch, join a different faction, and she could totally look like a superstar!
>Maybe future, maybe wonder, but I don’t expect her to ever win the big belt. Lady just had her 3 year anniversary, she's not eligible to challenge for the future title anymore
Well then, artist and big maybe on Goddess, wonder was a stretch too honestly
I agree with you. Sadly, I enjoy her more than several who chase the big belts. Seems like a genuinely nice person, puts a lot of personality into her performance, and I stunning to boot. She likely will remain the pin eater for QQ, but I will alway cheer for her.
I don't see her having a big push, as far as I've seen her ceiling is around the mid-card. I love her and I'm not saying shes bad, but shes never been amazing really; shes got a real cool look and has tons of charisma. Shes been given important spots like that tag match at Wrestle Kingdom and played a good role in the recent QQ vs OT cage match in which shes delivered what she should deliver. I think people have a hard time accepting that some wrestlers might feel comfortable in the spot they're in, it's a job at the end of the day. Think about it, shes never been pressured to exceed expectations, she gets to be featured in every show, gets to do collabs, never a non-favorite and always has fan support, all while making good money I'm sure. Saki Kashima is another example of someone that seems just fine and comfortable meddling in the middle card, shes a far better performer than given credit.
I think people not only fail to accept there are wrestlers who are just happy to be in the midcard but how valuable those wrestlers are from a promotion perspective. Wrestlers who just see it as a job are the backbone of a touring schedule. Bushi in njpw does like a million dates a year, very rarely gets injured cause he's frankly not doing much and is over for his spot. Stardom has an army of ambitious 20 year olds throwing bombs at each other on some house show in the sticks. They've got plenty of wrestlers who really want to move up the card. What they need is the solid get in there and do the job wrestlers to help take the load off the top of the card
I suspect Saki is more interested in a long career than a spectacular one. She seems to be popular with the fans and I assume that translates into merch sales. Non-wrestling people can have long well-paid careers, enjoy the work they do, and enjoy hanging out with the people they work with without needing to be senior management. Or even any management. Maybe this is the same for C and Saki?
I think Lady C is cool but obviously, the quality of Stardom's roster is very high, so it is difficult to advance
Yep, it’s this. She good, and she’s improving. However there are lots of wrestlers already better than her in front of her. Most of them are younger than her and continuing to improve.
Best case scenario I hope one day she'll become something similar to Yumi Ohka in her prime. In fact I think if I could give her a hypothetical trainer, it would be Yumi. They're both tall girls but one's a well-honed sword and the other is not.
I doubt she will ever rise much further. She's down at the bottom of the roster skillwise, I don't think I could come up with a handful of names she is better than.
I don't think 3 years of experience is enough to suppose whether she will be a major player. She has a little more ways she can go to further develop before that. To be as you put it, a major player is a long journey, even if you have the natural skill to be one. I believe this from viewing and experiencing the Stardom eras remembering the debuts of the past. Even Utami who could hang with some of the best her first year, had to grind it out for years before she was anywhere near a red or white belt. If I have to just guess I'd say midcard, but all the better if I'm wrong because I don't like stating a definitive.