World Wonder Ring Stardom is currently made up of several factions in which almost all of their roster is drafted and represents one group or another. For those who aren’t exactly familiar with this, I thought I’d take a look and rank the groups by the strength of their components; how many and who they have in their faction. I’m not going to take talent and wins or losses into account today. Let’s break it down then.
Stardom currently consists of the following factions. Queen’s Quest, Stars, Donna Del Mondo, Cosmic Angels and Oedo Tai. Since there really aren’t heels and faces in Stardom, each member of the roster is given a bit more freedom to be who they want their characters to be and present themselves as they will.
Of course, some factions are more of a face or heel faction but that’s neither here nor there. That said, and without more delay, the ranking of the factions in Stardom.
5. The Cosmic Angels – Tam Nakano (L), Mina Shirakawa and Unagi Sayaka
At number five are the current Artist of Stardom Champions, and Wonder of Stardom Champion, Tam Nakano and Cosmic Angels. Cosmic Angels is also the newest of the units in Stardom. They are three immensely talented women and the fact that they hold the trios belt says a lot about them as a group. However, on recent shows, there has been some dissension in the ranks. Especially between Mina Shirakawa and Unagi Sayaka.
This divide is why I rank them as the fifth faction in Stardom. Every unit needs to be together and stand as one, even if they have to face each other, and these three ladies all have a bit of an ego that can be hard to check. All three have a background as idols and are absolutely beautiful enough to be models, I believe they are, but that hinted rivalry could spell trouble for the trio. Unless Mina and Unagi get on the same page, their next AoS title defence could very well be their last.
4. STARS – Mayu Iwatani (L), Hanan (Inactive), Jungle Kyona (Inactive), Koguma and Saya Iida
STARS are the resident babyfaces of Stardom, the only faction that is really considered face in the company. While usually, and formerly, this faction was dominant and one that ran Stardom, times have been tough for Iwatani and company. Two of their members are inactive, one due to injury and the other family circumstances and they recently lost two other members to Oedo Tai. Iwatani and company have it tough and have a long way to go before they regain the glory that once was STARS. I’ll give them the number four spot today though due to the talent this faction has in it, especially when healthy. Mayu Iwatani is, arguably, the best wrestler in the world and a master storyteller. If anyone can lead STARS back to prominence, it’s her.
3. Queen’s Quest – Utami Hayashishita (L), Momo Watanabe, AZM, Hina and Saya Kamitani
Queen’s Quest ranks third as of now in Stardom. This is despite having the World of Stardom champion as their leader. Utami Hayashishita is quickly establishing herself as a force in Stardom and is rapidly climbing the ranks of the best in the world. Then you have the immensely talented AZM and Momo Watanabe, two utterly phenomenal women who are extremely entertaining in the ring.
Especially AZM, who has a bit of a teenage attitude built into her current character. You can’t forget about Hina and Saya Kamitani, who are incredible in their own right. Despite this immense surplus of talent, Queen’s Quest just doesn’t have enough momentum right now outside of Hayashishita. If they could rack up some wins and gain some steam, they could easily be the best group in Stardom.
2. Donna del Mondo (DDM) – Giulia (L), Himeka, Maika, Natsupoi (Inactive) and Syuri
Coming in at number two is the young stable Donna del Mondo. Formed in early 2020 by Giulia after recruiting Maika, this faction has quickly caught the Stardom world by the throat. Of course, you’ve got to give credit to Giulia for bringing her notoriety to Stardom and wanting to make her own faction. If she hadn’t, who knows where these women would have ended up. DDM has a lot of momentum on their side, despite losing Natsupoi due to injury, and still are highly competitive in every match. I can’t give them the top spot because one team has been resurrected from the ashes and are clearly the best that Stardom has to offer, which given the list so far, that name should be pretty easy to come up with. That said, DDM could always surpass the number one faction once Natsupoi returns from injury, time will tell though.
1. Oedo Tai – Natsuko Tora (L), Sumire Natsu, Jamie Hayter (Inactive), Saki Kashima, Konami, Rin, Ruaka, Fukigen Death and Starlight Kid
That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, Oedo Tai is once again the best that Stardom has to offer as far as personnel. Formed by Kyoko Kimura way back in the day, Oedo Tai went through a period where they were less than prominent. However, Natsuko Tora has resurrected the stable and the bad girls of Stardom reign supreme. They may not have the belts, but they have the talent and the desire to conquer the world and it’s only a matter of time before Oedo Tai holds all the belts.
Tora has been rubbing some people the wrong way as she is targeting specific members of other factions, and winning them in stipulation matches. Notable in this is Fukigen Death and Starlight Kid, both of whom are former members of the STARS faction. They hate Stardom, they hate the other women on the roster, they hate the fans and they want to bring anarchy and chaos to Stardom. If they have to, they’ll take who and what they want to reach their goals.