Earlier this year, Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling implemented a new initiative known as ChocoPro. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, wrestling companies had to restructure their content. Gatoh Move started 2020 on a busy note; during the beginning of this year, they unveiled their own streaming service known as Gatoh Move Experience. ChocoPro, which airs on YouTube, was developed post-COVID as the latest venture for the company. ChocoPro‘s line of events maintain the same lighthearted nature the company has become known for since its foundation in 2012. Said events have been complemented further by the familiar, intimate venue of Ichigaya Chocolate Square.
Gatoh Move is no stranger to the YouTube space. Prior to the release of Gatoh Move Experience, they relied on YouTube as their sole means of releasing content. In fact, there was a period of time when old and new matches alike were uploaded on a regular basis. It was through these matches that many fans became familiar with the colorful, energetic, and talented crew. ChocoPro has been no slouch, either. Previous episodes have featured Gatoh Move regulars and guest stars, the latter of which included Masato Tanaka and Minoru Suzuki. For both consistent ChocoPro viewers and those that are tuning in for the first time, a promising main event awaits.
Yuna Mizumori vs. Mei Suruga
In recent weeks, however, the lighthearted nature in question has been tested. Specifically, the once jovial “Pineapple Girl” Yuna Mizumori recently entered a professional slump. It seemed like victories were next to impossible to maintain. Not only was she losing matches, but she found the involvement of Emi Sakura, Gatoh Move’s founder, to be frustrating. Ultimately, Mizumori’s frustration came to a boil on ChocoPro #15. Mizumori wrestled Baliyan Akki in a heated time-limit draw, but upon losing the post-show janken tournament, she attacked winner Mei Suruga and stole her celebratory piece of ChocoPro chocolate.
While Yuna Mizumori struggled from week to week, her opponent seemed to take even the biggest losses in stride. Considered by many to be the “ace” of Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling, Mei Suruga had seen incredible development since her debut in 2018. The fact that she participated in last year’s Pro-Wrestling: EVE SHE-1 tournament speaks to the trust that Sakura and company instilled in her. Given her prominence in Gatoh Move, the involvement of “Mei-chan” as a Gatoh Move regular should come as little surprise.
Show must go on #gtmv #chocopro https://t.co/cJnGUyj6sN pic.twitter.com/wBUbtTJ36U
— Emi Sakura🍫 (@EmiSakura_gtmv) May 23, 2020
To say that this match features contrasting personalities would be an understatement.
Throughout her young career, Suruga has been nothing short of positive, wearing a bright smile before each match. This has only made her more endearing to Gatoh Move newcomers and long-time viewers. Meanwhile, Mizumori’s demeanor has soured so much that she broke a cardinal rule of the company when she took to social media to drop expletives. If Suruga is the company’s sunshine, Mizumori is the dark cloud that threatens to unleash a thunderstorm. Given the high number of draws in recent weeks, Sakura has declared that there will be a winner. To this end, Mizumori and Suruga will compete in a 30-minute ironman match. If the score is tied by the end, they will wrestle under sudden death rules. In other words, there must be a decisive victor.
Each episode of ChocoPro concludes with a janken tournament. The “AEW!! Dark Tournament,” as it’s known, features the show’s competitors in sequential rounds of rock paper scissors. Whoever comes out on top in the tournament wins a celebratory piece of chocolate. A less competitive endeavor, to be sure, but the tournament ends each show on a lighthearted note. However, following the aforementioned post-janken attack by Mizumori, competitors are advised to watch their backs. ChocoPro airs at 8 PM JST (7 AM EST) on the official Gatoh Move YouTube channel.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can watch Mei Suruga at Gatoh Move on YouTube and via the Gatoh Move Experience.
