Previously on Sekatsuyo:

Pop idol Sakura Hagiwara bites off a bit more than she can chew when she challenges pro wrestler Rio Kazama to a match after Rio hurts her friend Elena. Losing the match and most of her hair, Sakura impulsively decides to become a pro wrestler, resolving to both restore honor to her idol group Sweet Diva and to defeat Rio in a rematch. Spoilers Ahead!

Sakura begins her wrestling training under the discerning eye of Ryo Nishihara. After working her body to the limit for three months, Sakura is finally ready for her first official match as pro wrestler, but will she be victorious?

Sekastsuyo is certainly at a fork in the road between wanting to be a serious show about pro wrestling and your typical ecchi fodder. Although there is merits to both, Sekatsuyo is still trying to find a balance.

Ryo

Sakura gets right to the grind during her training session. Mostly consisting of strength and weight training, these scenes do show just how determined Sakura is to attain her goal. She even manages to surprise Ryo’s other students by doing the same workout’s they do. Running and squats aren’t the only thing on Sakura’s agenda as she also takes some moves from Ryo in the ring including but not limited to: a back suplex, a cross arm bar, a traiangle choke, and a stf. While Sakura’s goal is still one track (beating Rio and returning to Sweet Diva) she is still training hard.

This determination is what leads to her final test, Berzerks “Hell of 100 Holds”.  What is basically super hazing, the test consists of Sakura taking 10 moves from 10 of Berzerk gyms pro wrestlers (Rio being her last opponent), if she survives she gets to become pro, if not she starts again. This is the ultimate test of endurance as Sakura takes throw after throw with no breaks. Despite the grueling ordeal Sakura manages to overcome and wins both the right to be a pro and the respect of her peers.

Just some of the pain Sakura endures in training

We get a look at a couple of the other female wrestlers during the episode. While none of the women in Sakura’s test leave much of an impression, Rio does start to show more respect for Sakura, even going easy on her on the 100th hold so she could go pro. Ryo is your typical no nonsense trainer who sees Sakura’s potential, Misaki Toyoda (Berzerk’s retired top wrestler and current reporter) sees things differently and thinks Sakura isn’t ready for the big time.

She makes her pro debut against Chinatsu Suzumoto, a 2nd year wrestler who is one of the more promising rookies to come out of Berzerk. Despite a nice showing early in the match Sakura lets her guard down which eventually leads to her defeat via submission, but judging by the end it seems that Chinatsu may become another rival for Sakura. The match is pretty decent as it goes back and forth for a minute and it gives Sakura some development as she realizes just what she has gotten herself into.

Sakura (Left) & Chinatsu (Right) after their match

“Pro Debut!” is definitely a step up from the first episode and does a good job of showing just how much work Sakura has to put in to become pro. While there are still a few cheesecake shots and more than a little orgasmic moaning, they aren’t as irritating as the first episode as the shots do have a purpose this time. The animation is still average at best but when the wrestling matches and moves occur it does shine a bit, showing the mechanics involved from start to finish.

3/5