TNA have decided to rename Angle Williams (Angle Love) and Talia Madison (Velvet Sky) presumably for contractual reasons (meaning TNA can control their copyright etc.)

Sadly, I haven't been able to watch any recent Joshi ever since the guy who used to upload the torrents went on an indefinite sabbatical...

Dude, torrents are an absolute piece of cake to use. Just open the torrent, select a folder to save it into and and press go!

What is it about your PC that is so bad? Is it old? Lack of HD space? Memory? Please tell!

Well, the price of PCs are falling all the time so if you lay off the DVDs for a while you could afford a decent one with all the latest updated features - including anti-virus software and firewalls.

Flash images are due to the plug-ins like Javascript, Macromedia and that lot. You probably need to just update them. If you are running Windows XP then Windows updates should automatically run and then you can check your other applications for updates too.

Whatever browser, media player or whatever you are using got to "Help" and "check for updates". that should solve some of your problems.

No problems. BTW - that guy I mentioned earlier with the torrents? He's just returned from out of the blue with a load of All Japan torrents!!

I don't know if "sexy" is the right word but she is certainly toned.

I'm not really into toned athletic bodies to be frank. And while she is a great wrestler she never really did it for me in the looks department I'm afraid.

Amazing/Awesome Kong interview:

The Amazing Kong (TNAs Awesome Kong) was the guest on the In Your Head show on November 28, 2007, hosted by Jack, One Inch Biceps and Barbie Richards at _http://www.inyourheadonline.com_ .

She showed a very different side than youll ever see on TNA. Kong was on the show to plug her womens title match with Gail Kim at TNA: Turning Point on December 2nd, with PPV replays throughout December.

Kong said she goes under Awesome Kong in TNA because of property rights. They own that name, I own mine. She said she prefers Amazing Kong on the indies and Awesome Kong when shes in TNA.

Kong said winning the TNA womens title would mean validating the last five years of Hell in Japan and the American indies. Her training in Japan was very rough, and now its time to cash in, she said. She began training under Jesse Hernandez in the School of Hard Knocks, before impressing All Japan Pro Wrestling at a tryout and going overseas permanently to train. All Japan Womens dojo put her through the most rigorous routine Ive ever experienced, far above any high school sports she had tried, as the trainers wanted to see how much she could take.

Kong was a fan of wrestling as a kid. Undertaker was her favorite as a kid, and as she grew up she liked Steve Austin and the Rock. Kong liked living in Japan. The first time she was there she pulled a George Bush, getting sick at Disney Land. She said Japanese food is an acquired taste, and that Japanese people love to make Americans try everything to see their reactions. A caller asked about Amazing Kong being the last All Japan Womens Pro-Wrestling tag team champions with Aja Kong. Kong said it meant a lot to be the champions, but it was bittersweet, because she felt partially responsible for the companys failure, even though it was beyond the talents control.

Kong said shed heard of Aja Kong before trying out, but didnt know about her importance. It wasnt Aja Kongs idea to give her the Kong name, but rather All Japan Womens Pro-Wrestlings idea so that even if Aja Kong wasnt there, there would be a Kong at the show. She said Aja Kong is very happy with it now. Kong enjoyed her time All Japan Womens Pro-Wrestling immensely. While patriotic, she learned how many different ways people do things that arent wrong, but simply different. When she overcame all the pains of the business and her peers said she had the fighting spirit, it meant the world to her. A caller asked what female wrestler had the biggest impression on her. Kong said Joanie Laurer (Chyna in WWE).

A caller congratulated her on being the biggest hit in TNA, and Jack asked how it felt to arrive at her first PPV and already have people chanting her name. Kong joked that when she steps into the ring she goes deaf and doesnt hear the crowd, but she enjoyed the vibe. A caller asked what American womens wrestlers could benefit TNAs womens division. Kong gave a shout-out to SHIMMER, an all-female American indy, calling its roster the hardest-working women in America. She listed Ms. Chif, Sara Del Ray and Cheerleader Melissa as people she would like to see in TNA. While she didnt want to disrespect WWE, she doesnt consider WWE Divas to be wrestlers. She doesnt watch WWE much, if at all, and did not recognize Beth Phoenixs name.

She calls her version of the Torture Rack the Accordion Rack. One Inch Biceps asked if anyone had ever complained about her style. She said if they hadnt liked it, they were too scared to mention it. Jack asked about injuries. Kong has had a lot of back problems. In her first month in Japan, she sprained her ankle. Like most wrestlers, shes suffered concussions. At one point, she had to have part of her tongue removed. A caller asked if Kong was still allowed to go to SHIMMER, considering TNA has an embargo on ROH and ROH runs SHIMMER. Kong said she does her own bookings and will still do SHIMMER, but she would respect TNAs requests if she was contacted. If anyone wants to book Amazing Kong, they can contact Ed Chuman at edchuman@midwestwrestling.com . She also has an official website at _www.amazingkong.com_ , and a myspace at _http://myspace.com/carsonhomecomingqueen_ .

A caller asked if she ran into xenophobia in Japan. Kong said the Japanese were very receptive. Sometimes she was stared at, asked if she was Queen Latifah or asked to help practice their English, but nothing bad. Kong is fluent in Japanese. Steve Corino was a close friend in Japan. Kong told a story about when Corino pretended to be her agent and got her a tryout as a dancer for an Evian water commercial. She got a callback, but also got in trouble with Zero-1 over it. On the vital topic of head sizes, Kong said CW Andersons head was bigger than Steve Corinos. Barbie asked how fun it is to destroy Ms. Chif, in particular in their match on SHIMMER Womens Athletes Volume 9 (available at _http://www.visuex.com/shimmer/_ ). She said it was more fun than you could imagine. Just imagine having your very own Stretch Armstrong. Her grandmother was actually in attendance for the SHIMMER match, and she got a standing ovation from the crowd for it. She said shell never forget that match.

A caller asked about Meiko Satomura from Japans GAEA promotion. Kong thought she was a hard worker and a great leader. Kong said she was the sort of person you aspired to be like. Another caller asked if she would ever be interested in creating her own company. It would be interesting to her for an anniversary show, but not regularly. Theres a lot that goes into a wrestling promotion, she said. Right now she is focused on work in the ring and proving the ability of womens wrestlers.

Kong wasnt particularly happy with eating fake fruit on the Thanksgiving TNA Impact, but wouldnt speak against it. She said the fake fruit was surprisingly easy to bite through. Better than some cafeteria food, she said. Kong said stepping into the six-sided ring for the first time was disorienting, but she found her bearings. It essentially gave her six directions to throw people. She did some MMA in Japan, but it was a lot of training and hardwork. She wont return to that sport soon. She had trouble with some rules, like not pulling hair or fish-hooking. She retired undefeated. WWE did actually contact her, but she liked TNAs overall product better, and TNA offered her bookings first. Jack asked about what it was like to win the All Japan Womens Pro-Wrestling world heavyweight title. She said it was a huge sense of accomplishment, as other wrestlers went years without so much as a title shot.

The chat room wanted to know if she would get promo time in TNA. She said her character was all about food and whooping ass right now. She loves the HUSTLE promotion in Japan. When she was approached to wrestle in a yellow tutu, she knew she had to do it. She has a sense of humor and likes HUSTLEs antics. They also gave her the chance to face her tag team idols, Team 3D. Jack asked about the wardrobe malfunction on her TNA PPV debut. She said it wasnt that embarrassing, and that shes been in much more embarrassing situations than having her girls pop out. Kong is up for wrestling men. Shes done it in Japan and sees no problem with it.

They plugged TNA: Turning Point again, and Amazing Kong thanked all her fans for the support. You can listen to the full-length interview at _http://www.inyourheadonline.com_ and new episodes Wednesdays at 8 PM EST.

My trip to Japan is scheduled for 5 weeks time...the plan is currently...

5 nights Kyoto
6 nights Tokyo
6 nights Kyoto

Im trying to organise a ticket for a Joshi show at the moment hopefully one with Mariko Yoshida...that would be such a moment for me...fingers crossed!

Domo arigato Totoro-san! Wish I could stay for two months like you. Kyoto would be a totally different flavour of Japan to what Ive experienced before.

There is an Ibuki show on 27th January, and thats the one Im hoping to see.

Which airport do you generally fly into Totoro...I used Narita last time, but Im hoping for Kansai this time...

I also hoping to meet a Japanese email pal for the firstvtime she is from Osaka. Its quite nerve wracking...I envy you and your legion of J-pals!

Back on topic...Id certainly like to see other shows while Im there, though it might prove too difficult to get tickets. I know Ive asked this before, but what sources do you normally use for Joshi tickets?

Back on topic, Sunny, Trish, Lita and MOLLY HOLLY were on the RAW 15th anniversary show last night!!

Also, Tokyo Sports posted their annual wrestling awards and under Joshi they put "No suitable winner"!!

Considering some of the winners they anounced it makes me wonder if they watch wrestling at all.

-- Edited by Man In Black at 10:03, 2007-12-11

Raw sounds nostalgic fun...wish Molly would come back for good...

She works for a rehabilitation centre or something now and travels around the work doing Christian aid work.

Also, in the Divas tribute video package they gave a mention to Bull Nakano!

Sadly the context was a bit suspect. It was from an old show a few years back with new clips added for the current lot.

They said that before the women used to wrestle (cue Alundra Blaze & Bull) but then they got sexy! Huh? In other words the two things never came together until the likes of Trish and Molly?

Bull spit I say!

Alaundra Blaze was supposed to face Aja Kong for the Women's title at the 1996 Royal Rumble but they scratched the feud after they discovered that Blaze was unhappy in her role and had been talking with WCW.

This lead to the famous belt dumping spot on Nitro in December 1996.

Well she had no regular competition did she? It was alwasy Alundra vs Bull, Alundra vs Luna, then Alundra vs Bertha then Alundra vs Kong.

There was no woman's division and the only other woman in the company was Sunny who didn't wrestle. It was a worthless title and if Alundra did drop it to Aja then you know she would have got it back at WM 12 or something and then face...erm...See what I mean?

-- Edited by Man In Black at 16:57, 2007-12-12

Debra "Madusa" Micelli remarried in 1999 and for the best few yeasr has been involved in Monster truck racing.

WCW tried to create a women's division in late 1996 after making a deal with GAEA but it didn't last long an the belt disappeared when the GAEA girls returned to Japan.

BTW - check this out. It's a spinning kick from Layla on ECW this week that actually looks good:

Dude, what is the quality of your Joshi DVDs like? And do you have a DVD writer on your PC to make copies?

I was always fond of Malia Hosaka in WCW and indeed the LPWA, but she was never given much to do other than look up at the lights for Madusa and the rest.

The GAEA girls in WCW were a breath of fresh air.

My fave Alundra Blaze match was the one where she beat Heidi Lee Morgan to win the title.

Malia was very pretty, I just wish she could have won a few more down the years...

I agree - Alundra's best matches were against Bull Nakano. There is a match on a WWF home video between them which went 10 minutes and it blows away all of their TV and PPV matches. They both broke out stuff they didn't elsewhere yet this only ended up on home video from a house show. Tch!

Hey Totty, have you seen this show?

ARSION.1998.02.18.Grand.Opening
Commercial Tape 2/18/98 Tokyo Korakuen Hall

The 1st Memorial: Yumi Fukawa vs. Candy Okutsu
The 2nd Memorial: Mikiko Futagami vs. Jesse Bennett
The 3rd Memorial: Aja Kong vs. Michiko Ohmukai
The 4th Memorial: Rie Tamada vs. Reggie Bennett
The 5th Memorial: Kong & Ohmukai & Fukawa vs. Futagami & Tamada & Candy

A torrent has been posted and I'd like to know if it's worth my time or not.

Yo Totty - I've just downloaded this NEO show (and blown my download limit in the process):

NEO "STAND OUT 2007", 04.11.2007
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
974 Fans

1. Aya Yuki vs. Sonoko Kato

2. Etsuko Mita & Makoto vs. Michikio Omukai & Lingerie Muto

3. Nagisa Nozaki, Aoi Kizuki & Toshie Uematsu vs. Manami Toyota, Miki Ishii & Cherry

4. Tanny Mouse & Yuki Miyazaki vs. Dick Togo & Chou un Shiryu

5. NWA Women's Pacific Title & NEO Singles Title: Haruka Matsuo (c) vs. Emi Sakura

6. NEO Tag Team Title: Kaoru Ito & Ayako Hamada (c) vs. Yoshiko Tamura & Misae Genki