A highlight reel of Kairi and Io's match at World Wonder Ring Stardom event The Highest 2015. At first, I wanted to make it just because I've found an epic soundtrack and thought it would go perfectly with a fittingly epic battle of two best female wrestlers to walk the Earth right now. But, as I've come to understand, making a highlight reel is the single best way to appreciate a pro wrestling match, by far, bar none. When you are forced to look for details and inspect the action frame by frame, you come to see every move and bump in all their finery and ruthlessness of impact, and just how much work, pain and dedication it takes to be a pro wrestler, especially in Joshi Puroresu, e-freaking-specially if you are deemed the best at what you do and are pressured by high expectations. I could say I inadvertently became a much bigger fan of these two fantastic women as I edited this lil' tribute.
Soundtrack: Titan Slayer - Seven Sisters
The "sister" theme in the soundtrack name also hit me right in the feels when I put it in context, since Kairi and Io are friends, sure, but, maybe it's just me, but I can't help but feel something like sisterly love between them, which in turn makes watching them fight like their lives depend on it all the more heartbreaking.
Kairi's exceptional in-ring storytelling, both during and after the match, is something out of this world. That moment when she's holding the trophy and her face melts from the "I will kill you without a second thought" into her trademark captivating smile (in other words, When She Smiles capitalized, 'cause it's a trope name) had me shedding a manly tear. No kidding. Because I then knew damn well what it took her to make her way there, and from that alone I could imagine how much this victory, this title and this sport mean to her. That and her breaking down in tears in the middle of the ring. But even then, she'd smile in the end. How can you not love her?
A word for Io: it broke my heart every time I had to pick out a moment where she'd do cruel stuff to Kairi. But, I wanted this to be something more than just a highlight reel: I wanted it to convey the essence of that battle and that rivalry. And Io seems to enjoy the heel role, so why not showcase her as such? Goes without saying that Io's sheer in-ring ability perfectly complements Kairi's charisma and in-ring storytelling: every time they're in a ring together, be it allies or enemies, it's an instant classic.
