Full Version: Official ROH Discussion Thread
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whats your problem
QUOTE (Icon @ Dec 6 2011, 22:07) 
whats your problem
You are, you fucking trouser chili.
QUOTE (Icon @ Dec 6 2011, 21:50)
maybe get some noah guys like kenta or some lucha wrestlers. I dont really follow indie wrestling that much
So you dont follow indie wrestling that much yet you state they should bring these guys in? That's fucking retarded.
Tag Team Turmoil 2011 – 8/7/11
Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander – good tag team match to kick off. I complained at the last show that Cole and O’Reilly weren’t really getting a chance to stretch their legs, and it was good to see that rectified here. Coleman and Alexander looked pretty good, and need to be booked again as a team in ROH. O’Reilly hits a lariat on Alexander for the victory at 11.59. They’ll meet the winners of the next match later on in the evening to compete for a No.1 Contenders spot for the tag belts.
The Briscoe Brothers vs. The Bravado Brothers – the Briscoes predictably give the Bravados a battering, until WGTT run out and clock Mark Briscoe with a chair, leading to the Bravados picking up the fluke win. It makes sense within the context of a Briscoes vs. WGTT program; but the Bravados getting through to the finals of tag team turmoil despite looking completely useless doesn’t do a lot for your tag division.
Kenny King vs. Mike Bennett – probably the best singles match Bennett has had since his debut; which isn’t saying much admittedly, but still. Terrible finish though – Bennett wins with a handful of tights, until Titus runs down and tells the referee otherwise. Instead of re-staring the match, Sinclair awards the win to King. If Russo had booked that finish, Cornette would have flipped his lid, so why is he putting up with it here? After the match Cornette makes a Titus vs. Bennett match for later on tonight.
World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. Colt Cabana & El Generico – you know that tag title contenders are thin on the ground when El Generico and Colt Cabana get wheeled out. And the match sucked – Shelton in particular looked terrible, the number of times he was out of position beggared belief. Benjamin hits Pay Dirt on Cabana to put everyone out of their misery at 14.55.
The Bravado Brothers vs. Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly – like most of their other efforts, this was brief, but enjoyable. O’Reilly makes Harlem tap with a Guillotine Choke to earn his team a future tag team title shot, as well as $5,000 (allegedly).
Rhett Titus vs. Mike Bennett – it was supposed to be Titus vs. Hero, but Hero couldn’t make it due to travel issues. So some bright spark thought “let’s send Mike Bennett out for a second time.” Dull match, for which no blame can be put on Titus, who did his best. The amount of time Bennett took to pull a chain out of his boot summed it all up. Titus pins Bennett with an impaler DDT.
Roderick Strong & Michael Elgin vs. The American Wolves – a slightly overlong, but otherwise enjoyable main event. The Wolves did everything they could to make Elgin look like a star – indeed, hopefully this will be his breakout match. Although this one didn’t need 31 minutes to tell the story it did, it managed to hold the attention for the most part. Strong showed every sign of phoning it in until Edwards injured his shoulder for him; then he had a legit excuse. After a couple of good near falls, Richards pins Elgin with a kick to the head at 31.28.
Overall – you can pretty much always skip an ROH event in Virginia, and this one’s no different.
Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander – good tag team match to kick off. I complained at the last show that Cole and O’Reilly weren’t really getting a chance to stretch their legs, and it was good to see that rectified here. Coleman and Alexander looked pretty good, and need to be booked again as a team in ROH. O’Reilly hits a lariat on Alexander for the victory at 11.59. They’ll meet the winners of the next match later on in the evening to compete for a No.1 Contenders spot for the tag belts.
The Briscoe Brothers vs. The Bravado Brothers – the Briscoes predictably give the Bravados a battering, until WGTT run out and clock Mark Briscoe with a chair, leading to the Bravados picking up the fluke win. It makes sense within the context of a Briscoes vs. WGTT program; but the Bravados getting through to the finals of tag team turmoil despite looking completely useless doesn’t do a lot for your tag division.
Kenny King vs. Mike Bennett – probably the best singles match Bennett has had since his debut; which isn’t saying much admittedly, but still. Terrible finish though – Bennett wins with a handful of tights, until Titus runs down and tells the referee otherwise. Instead of re-staring the match, Sinclair awards the win to King. If Russo had booked that finish, Cornette would have flipped his lid, so why is he putting up with it here? After the match Cornette makes a Titus vs. Bennett match for later on tonight.
World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. Colt Cabana & El Generico – you know that tag title contenders are thin on the ground when El Generico and Colt Cabana get wheeled out. And the match sucked – Shelton in particular looked terrible, the number of times he was out of position beggared belief. Benjamin hits Pay Dirt on Cabana to put everyone out of their misery at 14.55.
The Bravado Brothers vs. Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly – like most of their other efforts, this was brief, but enjoyable. O’Reilly makes Harlem tap with a Guillotine Choke to earn his team a future tag team title shot, as well as $5,000 (allegedly).
Rhett Titus vs. Mike Bennett – it was supposed to be Titus vs. Hero, but Hero couldn’t make it due to travel issues. So some bright spark thought “let’s send Mike Bennett out for a second time.” Dull match, for which no blame can be put on Titus, who did his best. The amount of time Bennett took to pull a chain out of his boot summed it all up. Titus pins Bennett with an impaler DDT.
Roderick Strong & Michael Elgin vs. The American Wolves – a slightly overlong, but otherwise enjoyable main event. The Wolves did everything they could to make Elgin look like a star – indeed, hopefully this will be his breakout match. Although this one didn’t need 31 minutes to tell the story it did, it managed to hold the attention for the most part. Strong showed every sign of phoning it in until Edwards injured his shoulder for him; then he had a legit excuse. After a couple of good near falls, Richards pins Elgin with a kick to the head at 31.28.
Overall – you can pretty much always skip an ROH event in Virginia, and this one’s no different.
Reviews of 'old' shows, yay. "Back on the ROH trail", one might say. If they were daft. After a bit of a break following my viewing of the excellent 'Big Bang' iPPV on DVD, I'm on my way to catching up....and this is what I see:
ROH Pick Your Poison (23 April 2010)
This is the first half of ROH's next Dayton/Chicago double-header, actually coming the same weekend as Chikara presented their 'King of Trios' showcase event over in Philly. The theme of this show is that warring ex-partners El Generico and Kevin Steen are given the chance to choose each other's opponent for the night, ahead of going to war in a streetfight rematch of the 'Big Bang' tag match the following night in Chicago.
I start by watching the 'VideoWire', the sole bonus content on the disc. This is the 14 April version of their YouTube show, which recaps 'Big Bang'and previews this weekender. Pretty standard stuff, with the usual awkward backstage promos from the majority of the roster, all talking about how they are going to beat each other up.
The first thing I remember when I start the main feature is that I'd forgotten ROH releases are disappointingly still only available in 4:3 picture format. Christ's sake: it's 2010 (well, it is to me, dammit). Early signs for the show are not promising, as the first 45 minutes of the disc are comprised of worthless filler in the bland Metal Master vs. the dreadful Sami Callihan, a rather pointless and uninteresting Chris Hero vs. Petey Williams bout, and a crap tag match of Necro Butcher & Rasche Brown vs. Erick Stevens & Shawn Daivari. This is the latest chapter of the awful, never-ending Necro vs. Embassy feud that no-one could possibly care about any more. The theme appears like it is going to continue with American Wolves (Eddie Edwards & Davey Richards) vs. Dark City Fight Club (John Davis & Kory Chavis), since the first ten minutes of this tag rankings bout are totally nondescript. The match does pick up though, and the second half of this 20-minute affair actually turns out to be really good stuff. Easily DCFC's best ROH showing up to this point.
The highlight of the show so far, however, comes during the entrance of Austin Aries & Rhett Titus for their match against the House of Truth (Josh Raymond & Christian Able), in some dude in the crowd's reaction to Titus giving his girlfriend a hotel room key and receiving a kiss in return. The show quickly goes downhill again, however, as this awkward heel vs. heel match lacks momentum, doesn't get going and failed to capture my interest. The only noteworthy aspect comes right at the end, as we continue to see the escalating tension between Aries and his two proteges.
Thankfully, the show gets a much-needed kick up the arse with the 'Pick Your Poison' matches. First, El Generico is matched against Steen's choice Roderick Strong, and to two assemble a compelling and exciting cracker. Adding interest to the match is the developing intensity and selfishness in Strong as he continues to have the ROH World Title in his cross-hairs. Predictably, Generico is on the receiving end of another post-match attack from Kevin Steen & Steve Corino, leading directly into their own 'Pick Your Poison' challenge against The Briscoes (Jay & Mark). No doubt about it: this is a vicious and brutal FIGHT. Starts as a red hot brawl, but definitely longer and more drawn-out than it needs to be. It ends up disappointing in that it doesn't really change gears and doesn't really build to anything.
The main event of the DVD is Kenny King's unconvincing ROH World title challenge against champion Tyler Black. I mean, come on, does anyone buy that Kenny King actually has a chance of beating Black for the belt here on this show? If you can manage to put that thought aside, though, this is actually a pretty good match. It develops logically at an increasing pace towards the signature spots as they look to put it away. The match also does make a point of elevating King and making him look somewhat of a competitive and credible challenger. That said, the crowd is completely dead for the match beyond polite applause for big moves, probably for the exact reason I mentioned before. If this had been a mid-card non-title match, instead of trying to be a World Title main event, it would have worked better.
ROH in 2010 is all about the TV show on HDNet, the major annual shows and the iPPV specials. 'Pick Your Poison' is none of those, but is instead the very definition of a 'nothing' show. Strong vs. Generico is a great match, and the Wolves/DCFC and Black/King bouts are good too, but that isn't enough for me to recommend this DVD to anyone but ROH completists. Everyone else should probably save their money.
Full show results:
ROH Pick Your Poison (23 April 2010)
This is the first half of ROH's next Dayton/Chicago double-header, actually coming the same weekend as Chikara presented their 'King of Trios' showcase event over in Philly. The theme of this show is that warring ex-partners El Generico and Kevin Steen are given the chance to choose each other's opponent for the night, ahead of going to war in a streetfight rematch of the 'Big Bang' tag match the following night in Chicago.
I start by watching the 'VideoWire', the sole bonus content on the disc. This is the 14 April version of their YouTube show, which recaps 'Big Bang'and previews this weekender. Pretty standard stuff, with the usual awkward backstage promos from the majority of the roster, all talking about how they are going to beat each other up.
The first thing I remember when I start the main feature is that I'd forgotten ROH releases are disappointingly still only available in 4:3 picture format. Christ's sake: it's 2010 (well, it is to me, dammit). Early signs for the show are not promising, as the first 45 minutes of the disc are comprised of worthless filler in the bland Metal Master vs. the dreadful Sami Callihan, a rather pointless and uninteresting Chris Hero vs. Petey Williams bout, and a crap tag match of Necro Butcher & Rasche Brown vs. Erick Stevens & Shawn Daivari. This is the latest chapter of the awful, never-ending Necro vs. Embassy feud that no-one could possibly care about any more. The theme appears like it is going to continue with American Wolves (Eddie Edwards & Davey Richards) vs. Dark City Fight Club (John Davis & Kory Chavis), since the first ten minutes of this tag rankings bout are totally nondescript. The match does pick up though, and the second half of this 20-minute affair actually turns out to be really good stuff. Easily DCFC's best ROH showing up to this point.
The highlight of the show so far, however, comes during the entrance of Austin Aries & Rhett Titus for their match against the House of Truth (Josh Raymond & Christian Able), in some dude in the crowd's reaction to Titus giving his girlfriend a hotel room key and receiving a kiss in return. The show quickly goes downhill again, however, as this awkward heel vs. heel match lacks momentum, doesn't get going and failed to capture my interest. The only noteworthy aspect comes right at the end, as we continue to see the escalating tension between Aries and his two proteges.
Thankfully, the show gets a much-needed kick up the arse with the 'Pick Your Poison' matches. First, El Generico is matched against Steen's choice Roderick Strong, and to two assemble a compelling and exciting cracker. Adding interest to the match is the developing intensity and selfishness in Strong as he continues to have the ROH World Title in his cross-hairs. Predictably, Generico is on the receiving end of another post-match attack from Kevin Steen & Steve Corino, leading directly into their own 'Pick Your Poison' challenge against The Briscoes (Jay & Mark). No doubt about it: this is a vicious and brutal FIGHT. Starts as a red hot brawl, but definitely longer and more drawn-out than it needs to be. It ends up disappointing in that it doesn't really change gears and doesn't really build to anything.
The main event of the DVD is Kenny King's unconvincing ROH World title challenge against champion Tyler Black. I mean, come on, does anyone buy that Kenny King actually has a chance of beating Black for the belt here on this show? If you can manage to put that thought aside, though, this is actually a pretty good match. It develops logically at an increasing pace towards the signature spots as they look to put it away. The match also does make a point of elevating King and making him look somewhat of a competitive and credible challenger. That said, the crowd is completely dead for the match beyond polite applause for big moves, probably for the exact reason I mentioned before. If this had been a mid-card non-title match, instead of trying to be a World Title main event, it would have worked better.
ROH in 2010 is all about the TV show on HDNet, the major annual shows and the iPPV specials. 'Pick Your Poison' is none of those, but is instead the very definition of a 'nothing' show. Strong vs. Generico is a great match, and the Wolves/DCFC and Black/King bouts are good too, but that isn't enough for me to recommend this DVD to anyone but ROH completists. Everyone else should probably save their money.
Full show results:
ROH announced in a newswire last week that they will be releasing "Roderick Strong: Messiah Of The Backbreaker" on DVD, No matches announced as of yet but its only footage from 2005-2008, So leaves them room to make a second volume, Much like with the Briscoes DVD.
Really hyped for Final Battle right now!
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
really can see Jimmy Jacobs turning on Corino and helping Steen. Theme two together being insane would be awesome!
Really hyped for Final Battle right now!
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
really can see Jimmy Jacobs turning on Corino and helping Steen. Theme two together being insane would be awesome!
QUOTE (Only_The_Strong_Survive @ Dec 9 2011, 10:29)
ROH announced in a newswire last week that they will be releasing "Roderick Strong: Messiah Of The Backbreaker" on DVD, No matches announced as of yet but its only footage from 2005-2008, So leaves them room to make a second volume, Much like with the Briscoes DVD.
Really hyped for Final Battle right now!
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
really can see Jimmy Jacobs turning on Corino and helping Steen. Theme two together being insane would be awesome!
Really hyped for Final Battle right now!
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
really can see Jimmy Jacobs turning on Corino and helping Steen. Theme two together being insane would be awesome!
technically this will be vol 2 as both roderick strong and the briscoes have already got a best of roh set
Best of The Briscoe Brothers: Tag Team Excellence focusing on 2003-2004 and Best of Roderick Strong: Suffering Is Inevitable focusing on 2004-2005
ROH Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2 (24 April 2010)
The second half of ROH's late-April 2010 weekender, coming from Chicago. This venue has been home to some larger and more noteworthy ROH events of recent years, and the headline attraction on this particular DVD release includes the first in-ring confrontation between El Generico and Kevin Steen since the masked man decided to fight back against his tormentor. To say I'm looking forward to this one would be an understatement.
The first two bouts (Rasche Brown vs. Sami Callihan and Dark City Fight Club vs. The Bravado Brothers) aren't anything to get excited about, but their short, squash-like nature means they can't really be deemed offensive. I wasn't initially drawn to TV champion Eddie Edwards vs. Metal Master (the masked alter-ego of All Star Wrestling's Chad Collyer) either, but it actually turned out to be a decent, solid little match. The Embassy (Erick Stevens & Shawn Daivari) vs. House of Truth (Josh Raymond & Christian Able), however, is dull as ditch water, exactly what the fast-forward button was invented for.
The DVD then picks up in a huge way, as World Championship contenders Davey Richards and Roderick Strong go to battle in a genuinely thrilling contest. The 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies' tag refers to Generico and Steen, but could equally apply to these former No Remorse Corps partners judging by the match they have. This is better than Strong's match with Generico the previous evening, and better than the match these same two had exactly 2 weeks earlier for PWG (at 'Titannica' - see my review in the other thread). It's not two guys hitting each other hard and pretending they are having a 'Japanese' style match, this is two guys in the middle of the title hunt trading holds, slams, strikes, submissions, reversals, near falls and near taps in a gripping struggle to get ahead. Fantastic match.
Like Edwards/Master, I wasn't expecting too much from Petey Williams vs. Rhett Titus. I was surprised again, though, and the two matched each other perfectly in assembling a really good match. The following bout, pitting those crazy Briscoes against squabbling stablemates Austin Aries & Kenny King, is slow out of the blocks, but ends up being another very decent scrap. The penultimate offering on the DVD is Tyler Black's latest ROH World Title defence, this time against half of the tag champs, Chris Hero. The match is unlike any other on the show, in that it has a slow, deliberate pace which draws you in and tells a great story. A terrific singles title match that had me completely engrossed.
So, onto the feature attraction: a super-charged tag team grudge match with El Generico & Colt Cabana waging war with Kevin Steen & Steve Corino. A direct rematch from the 'Big Bang' iPPV with two very important differences: Generico is now fired up wanting to kill Steen.... and the match this time is a "come as you are, bring what you want" Chicago Streetfight. A super-charged, super-heated, blood-soaked, wild, crazy brawl from start to finish, this is how a pro wrestling grudge match is supposed to be done. Punches, kicks, chairs, tables, barricades, ladders, broken bottles, barbed wire and other weapon-related violence ensure this is the ultimate depiction of pure hatred. Epic, powerful, dramatic and exciting, this is right up there as one of ROH's top few matches of the year.
With several excellent matches and other good ones, this is an superb DVD release. In stark contrast to the previous ROH DVD offering, 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2' is essential material. While the promotion has been inconsistent in 2009 and 2010, this one goes to show that when they get it right, they get it right.
Full show results:
The second half of ROH's late-April 2010 weekender, coming from Chicago. This venue has been home to some larger and more noteworthy ROH events of recent years, and the headline attraction on this particular DVD release includes the first in-ring confrontation between El Generico and Kevin Steen since the masked man decided to fight back against his tormentor. To say I'm looking forward to this one would be an understatement.
The first two bouts (Rasche Brown vs. Sami Callihan and Dark City Fight Club vs. The Bravado Brothers) aren't anything to get excited about, but their short, squash-like nature means they can't really be deemed offensive. I wasn't initially drawn to TV champion Eddie Edwards vs. Metal Master (the masked alter-ego of All Star Wrestling's Chad Collyer) either, but it actually turned out to be a decent, solid little match. The Embassy (Erick Stevens & Shawn Daivari) vs. House of Truth (Josh Raymond & Christian Able), however, is dull as ditch water, exactly what the fast-forward button was invented for.
The DVD then picks up in a huge way, as World Championship contenders Davey Richards and Roderick Strong go to battle in a genuinely thrilling contest. The 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies' tag refers to Generico and Steen, but could equally apply to these former No Remorse Corps partners judging by the match they have. This is better than Strong's match with Generico the previous evening, and better than the match these same two had exactly 2 weeks earlier for PWG (at 'Titannica' - see my review in the other thread). It's not two guys hitting each other hard and pretending they are having a 'Japanese' style match, this is two guys in the middle of the title hunt trading holds, slams, strikes, submissions, reversals, near falls and near taps in a gripping struggle to get ahead. Fantastic match.
Like Edwards/Master, I wasn't expecting too much from Petey Williams vs. Rhett Titus. I was surprised again, though, and the two matched each other perfectly in assembling a really good match. The following bout, pitting those crazy Briscoes against squabbling stablemates Austin Aries & Kenny King, is slow out of the blocks, but ends up being another very decent scrap. The penultimate offering on the DVD is Tyler Black's latest ROH World Title defence, this time against half of the tag champs, Chris Hero. The match is unlike any other on the show, in that it has a slow, deliberate pace which draws you in and tells a great story. A terrific singles title match that had me completely engrossed.
So, onto the feature attraction: a super-charged tag team grudge match with El Generico & Colt Cabana waging war with Kevin Steen & Steve Corino. A direct rematch from the 'Big Bang' iPPV with two very important differences: Generico is now fired up wanting to kill Steen.... and the match this time is a "come as you are, bring what you want" Chicago Streetfight. A super-charged, super-heated, blood-soaked, wild, crazy brawl from start to finish, this is how a pro wrestling grudge match is supposed to be done. Punches, kicks, chairs, tables, barricades, ladders, broken bottles, barbed wire and other weapon-related violence ensure this is the ultimate depiction of pure hatred. Epic, powerful, dramatic and exciting, this is right up there as one of ROH's top few matches of the year.
With several excellent matches and other good ones, this is an superb DVD release. In stark contrast to the previous ROH DVD offering, 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2' is essential material. While the promotion has been inconsistent in 2009 and 2010, this one goes to show that when they get it right, they get it right.
Full show results:
i used to be a big roh fan but over the last year or so, pwg has been the much better indy company, that cant be argued imo
QUOTE (wrestlemania @ Dec 10 2011, 3:59)
i used to be a big roh fan but over the last year or so, pwg has been the much better indy company, that cant be argued imo
PWG have been outstanding since 2009 and do a great job of putting a supercard on each month, I do enjoy there shows, Always nice to watch something more lighthearted after an ROH binge.
If we're ranking the indies, I have to put Chikara 1st, PWG second, and ROH third at the moment
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 10 2011, 13:58)
If we're ranking the indies, I have to put Chikara 1st, PWG second, and ROH third at the moment
Storyline and character wise and would say Chikara are the best, Sometimes the matches can be hit and miss but. I haven't got the time to watch all the shows Chikara does like i used to and I just can't justify paying the shipping that Smart Mark charges along alone with $20 for a DVD (Even though this has now dropped to $15) I usually just pick and choose my shows, I always pick up King Of Trios as its always awesome, Hope its a 3 Day iPPV this year.
It's been an odd year for ROH. First six months were ok, but then the SBS deal fucked everything up. If a better booker comes along they should probably upgrade, Delirious is average at best. Not putting the tag belts on King and Titus at GBH 10 was a mistake. I read somewhere/ someone told me that WGTT wouldn't put ANX over, s the plan is from the drop the belts to the Briscoes, who then presumably will put ANX over (again)
Known for his vicious chops, hard hitting forearms, and plethora of backbreakers, Roderick Strong has beaten his way into the history books of Ring of Honor and more than earned the nickname “The Messiah Of The Backbreaker”. Since his debut in 2004, Roderick has battled virtually every warrior that has ever set foot into the ROH ring and left each of them with a lasting impression, not to mention scars across their chest.
This is a collection of 18 of the matches that have solidified Strong’s presence in ROH. From his World Tag Team championship matches alongside Austin Aries against the likes of The Briscoes, KENTA & Davey Richards, or Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal to his physical singles battles against Bryan Danielson, James Gibson, Matt Hardy, and more, these are the fights that molded Roderick Strong into the warrior he is today.
Disc 1:
1. Roderick Strong vs. Hydro...Do or Die II 3/13/04 (debut match)
2. Roderick Strong vs. James Gibson...Unforgettable 10/2/05
3. Roderick Strong vs. AJ Styles...Fate of an Angel 7/16/05
4. Roderick Strong vs. Matt Hardy...Punk: The Final Chapter 8/13/05
5. Roderick Strong vs. Austin Aries (SOTF '05 Final Fall)...Survival of the Fittest 2005 9/24/05
6. Roderick Strong vs. Bryan Danielson (ROH World Title Match)...Vendetta 11/5/05
7. Roderick Strong & Austin Aries vs. Tony Mamaluke & Sal Rinuaro (World Tag Team Title Match)...Final Battle 2005 12/17/05
8. Roderick Strong & Austin Aries vs. CIMA & Naruki Doi (World Tag Team Title Match)...Better Than Our Best 4/1/06
Disc 2 :
9. Roderick Strong vs. KENTA...Throwdown 6/23/06
10. Roderick Strong & Austin Aries vs. KENTA & Davey Richards...Honor Reclaims Boston 11/3/06
11. Roderick Strong & Austin Aries vs. Christopher Daniels & Matt Sydal (closing moments- World Tag Team Title Match)...Fifth Year Festival: NYC 2/16/07
12. Roderick Strong vs. Austin Aries...Supercard of Honor II 3/31/07
13. Roderick Strong vs. Jack Evans...Good Times, Great Memories 4/28/07
14. Roderick Strong vs. Takeshi Morishima (ROH World Title Match)...Domination 6/9/07
15. Roderick Strong vs. El Generico...Proving Ground 1/11/08
16. Roderick Strong vs. Erick Stevens (Fight Without Honor)...Respect Is Earned II 6/7/08
17. Roderick Strong vs. Naomichi Marufuji...Northerm Navigation 7/25/08
18. Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards...Battle of the Best 9/13/08
Pretty good match listing! Nigel Mcguinness next? or even El Generico.
That's a great body of Strong's work there...
Dragon Gate USA: Mercury Rising 2011 - Atlanta, GA - 2/4/11
Night one of Dragon Gate USA's pre-WrestleMania offerings from Atlanta. This clashed live with the Hall of Fame, so I wasn't in attendance, though the overall crowd size is good regardless of WWE's pre-WrestleMania shindig...
Jon Moxley vs Arik Cannon - An alright way to start the show, but it was very indy from Cannon as usual, and Gabe can't seem to resist booking Moxley like Raven in ECW, which is an anachronism in 2011. Cannon has the match won, but Moxley's valet runs in for the distraction, and Moxley pins Cannon after a low blow in 7:32.
Brodie Lee vs Jimmy Jacobs vs Silas Young vs AR Fox vs Jon Davis vs Hollywood Stalker Ichikawa - Elimination style six man, erm, mayhem here. The first part is all Stalker silliness, which the crowd is sad to see end at the hands of Jon Davis at 3:19, then Fox gets some good spots in before being eliminated by Jacobs' Contra Code at 8:19. Jacobs also eliminates Silas by End Time at 10:55 and Davis with an assist from Brodie, but can't upend the Blood Warriors monster. Big Bad Brodie finishes Jacobs with a big combo of offense culminating in the Truckstop at 13:55. This was spotty fun for the most part, I liked the attempt to make Fox look good and the fact they're doing what they can with Jacobs before he goes back to ROH.
Masato Yoshino vs Sami Callihan - The card begins to take a turn for the better here, from an action standpoint at least. Callihan gets a match with the Open The Dream Gate champion off the back of an online promo video (that can also be seen in the bonus features) titled CDM, which stands for Callihan Death Machine, and would have been better if Callihan's 'crazy' laughing gimmick could be taken at all seriously. Still, he's decent enough in the ring and looks competitive before submitting to Sol Naciente at 9:28.
Open The Brave Gate Title: Pac vs Akira Tozawa - A cracking match-up here for the secondary singles title in Dragon Gate Japan. It does take quite a few minutes to get going, with Pac having a head wound from the previous night's show in North Carolina reopened, but once they have warmed up, the battle of Pac's athleticism and Tozawa's nuttiness turns out great. The only thing I really thought a bit unbalanced was the amount of Tozawa's suplexes that Pac survived before Pac won with a German suplex of his own at 19:39. Still, I guess that'd be why he's the champion, wouldn't it? Blood Warriors jump Pac and his cornerman Yoshino afterwards, ahead of their United Gate title match the next day.
Danny Steel & Charade vs The Sin City Saints doesn't even get the chance to start the second half of the show, as the teams that "looked impressive at the training camp earlier in the day" are taken out by Sami Callihan and Arik Cannon. They bitch about their losses earlier in the card, then brawl to the back with each other.
Open The Freedom Gate Title: YAMATO vs Austin Aries - This one goes for more of an epic feel than the Brave Gate title match earlier, and the storyline that Aries would quit DGUSA this weekend if he fails to win the title here gives it more of an emotional level than the earlier bout and its "This is Awesome" and "This is Wrestling" chants. The history of Aries in ROH is stupidly referenced a couple of times, particularly when Aries hits the brainbuster and 450 at the 3:30 mark for a couple of early nearfalls and the commentary mention his "winning the World title" in "2004 in Philly". IF YOU CAN'T SAY ROH, DON'T MENTION MATCHES THERE. The pace evens out after that until they build back up for the final few minutes and the finisher-trading insanity you'd expect from this sort of thing. YAMATO survives a second *and* third brainbuster, while Aries kicks out of a brainbuster at one, then survives Gallaria, both of which have the crowd going mental. YAMATO then hits Gallaria for a second time for the pin and V1 defence at 25:25. This is the sort of match DGUSA has been lacking lately to make it essential viewing for the independent wrestling fan. Good stuff, shame the Aries stip turns out to be a nonsense...
CIMA, Naruki Doi & Ricochet vs Johnny Gargano, Chuck Taylor & Rich Swann - or Blood Warriors vs Ronin, if you prefer. Once again they can't help but refer to ROH (albeit without saying those three initials), as they talk about the WrestleMania weekend tradition of the six man tag, directly mentioning Blood Generation vs Do Fixer in 2006. They then claim this is the first time an American team has participated in a DG six-man on these weekends. I guess Blood Generation vs Generation Next from the night before the aforementioned "five star bout" doesn't count? Anyway, the Ronin crew have come on leaps and bounds since forming their unit, and while this match isn't anywhere near perfect from an execution standpoint (that includes Ricochet on the BW team who messes up a dive right at the finish), they have the character to fit in, and the crowd buy them in this spot, which makes it all work overall. Extra points to Gargano, who is definitely becoming the standout of the group. Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this from the start, when CIMA jumps Gargano before the opening bell, to the finish, where Swann eats the Schwein and Meteora from CIMA before taking the ever devastating-looking Muscular Bomb from Doi, giving Blood Warriors yet another victory this weekend at 25:53.
Overall - DGUSA looks like a must-see promotion for the first time in ages. The title matches in particular are essential viewing. DVD run time is 2 hours, 42 minutes.
Dragon Gate USA: Mercury Rising 2011 - Atlanta, GA - 2/4/11
Night one of Dragon Gate USA's pre-WrestleMania offerings from Atlanta. This clashed live with the Hall of Fame, so I wasn't in attendance, though the overall crowd size is good regardless of WWE's pre-WrestleMania shindig...
Jon Moxley vs Arik Cannon - An alright way to start the show, but it was very indy from Cannon as usual, and Gabe can't seem to resist booking Moxley like Raven in ECW, which is an anachronism in 2011. Cannon has the match won, but Moxley's valet runs in for the distraction, and Moxley pins Cannon after a low blow in 7:32.
Brodie Lee vs Jimmy Jacobs vs Silas Young vs AR Fox vs Jon Davis vs Hollywood Stalker Ichikawa - Elimination style six man, erm, mayhem here. The first part is all Stalker silliness, which the crowd is sad to see end at the hands of Jon Davis at 3:19, then Fox gets some good spots in before being eliminated by Jacobs' Contra Code at 8:19. Jacobs also eliminates Silas by End Time at 10:55 and Davis with an assist from Brodie, but can't upend the Blood Warriors monster. Big Bad Brodie finishes Jacobs with a big combo of offense culminating in the Truckstop at 13:55. This was spotty fun for the most part, I liked the attempt to make Fox look good and the fact they're doing what they can with Jacobs before he goes back to ROH.
Masato Yoshino vs Sami Callihan - The card begins to take a turn for the better here, from an action standpoint at least. Callihan gets a match with the Open The Dream Gate champion off the back of an online promo video (that can also be seen in the bonus features) titled CDM, which stands for Callihan Death Machine, and would have been better if Callihan's 'crazy' laughing gimmick could be taken at all seriously. Still, he's decent enough in the ring and looks competitive before submitting to Sol Naciente at 9:28.
Open The Brave Gate Title: Pac vs Akira Tozawa - A cracking match-up here for the secondary singles title in Dragon Gate Japan. It does take quite a few minutes to get going, with Pac having a head wound from the previous night's show in North Carolina reopened, but once they have warmed up, the battle of Pac's athleticism and Tozawa's nuttiness turns out great. The only thing I really thought a bit unbalanced was the amount of Tozawa's suplexes that Pac survived before Pac won with a German suplex of his own at 19:39. Still, I guess that'd be why he's the champion, wouldn't it? Blood Warriors jump Pac and his cornerman Yoshino afterwards, ahead of their United Gate title match the next day.
Danny Steel & Charade vs The Sin City Saints doesn't even get the chance to start the second half of the show, as the teams that "looked impressive at the training camp earlier in the day" are taken out by Sami Callihan and Arik Cannon. They bitch about their losses earlier in the card, then brawl to the back with each other.
Open The Freedom Gate Title: YAMATO vs Austin Aries - This one goes for more of an epic feel than the Brave Gate title match earlier, and the storyline that Aries would quit DGUSA this weekend if he fails to win the title here gives it more of an emotional level than the earlier bout and its "This is Awesome" and "This is Wrestling" chants. The history of Aries in ROH is stupidly referenced a couple of times, particularly when Aries hits the brainbuster and 450 at the 3:30 mark for a couple of early nearfalls and the commentary mention his "winning the World title" in "2004 in Philly". IF YOU CAN'T SAY ROH, DON'T MENTION MATCHES THERE. The pace evens out after that until they build back up for the final few minutes and the finisher-trading insanity you'd expect from this sort of thing. YAMATO survives a second *and* third brainbuster, while Aries kicks out of a brainbuster at one, then survives Gallaria, both of which have the crowd going mental. YAMATO then hits Gallaria for a second time for the pin and V1 defence at 25:25. This is the sort of match DGUSA has been lacking lately to make it essential viewing for the independent wrestling fan. Good stuff, shame the Aries stip turns out to be a nonsense...
CIMA, Naruki Doi & Ricochet vs Johnny Gargano, Chuck Taylor & Rich Swann - or Blood Warriors vs Ronin, if you prefer. Once again they can't help but refer to ROH (albeit without saying those three initials), as they talk about the WrestleMania weekend tradition of the six man tag, directly mentioning Blood Generation vs Do Fixer in 2006. They then claim this is the first time an American team has participated in a DG six-man on these weekends. I guess Blood Generation vs Generation Next from the night before the aforementioned "five star bout" doesn't count? Anyway, the Ronin crew have come on leaps and bounds since forming their unit, and while this match isn't anywhere near perfect from an execution standpoint (that includes Ricochet on the BW team who messes up a dive right at the finish), they have the character to fit in, and the crowd buy them in this spot, which makes it all work overall. Extra points to Gargano, who is definitely becoming the standout of the group. Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this from the start, when CIMA jumps Gargano before the opening bell, to the finish, where Swann eats the Schwein and Meteora from CIMA before taking the ever devastating-looking Muscular Bomb from Doi, giving Blood Warriors yet another victory this weekend at 25:53.
Overall - DGUSA looks like a must-see promotion for the first time in ages. The title matches in particular are essential viewing. DVD run time is 2 hours, 42 minutes.
It is quite funny how ROH is the elephant in the room on DG:USA commentary
ROH Civil Warfare (7 May 2010)
ROH returns to Manassas, Virginia (the town with an irrational love of snapmares and fall-away slams) for an uninspiring-looking 'house show' on the eve of their annual Supercard of Honor event from New York.
After a quick Eddie Edwards showcase against Bobby Dempsey in a 'Ten Minute Hunt' (a massively potentially interesting new Edwards gimmick where anyone who can last 10 minutes with him will earn a future shot at his ROH Television Title), the DVD turns its attention to the Kings of Wrestling vs. Briscoes feud, with two separate singles bouts between the members of the opposing teams. A good way of building a tag title rematch between them... except The Kings are defending their belts against the Motor City Machine Guns tomorrow, not the Briscoes. Oh well. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Jay Briscoe is a disappointing non-event as a match. Chris Hero vs. Mark Briscoe is better, but don't expect any fireworks. In effect, all these bouts do is tell you that nothing here matters, and the important stuff will happen elsewhere.
The show moves on with 3 consecutive singles matches in the Pick Six contenders' rankings series, starting with a bout between Roderick Strong and Erick Stevens, who I remember having a decent little series some years ago (including a real cracker in FIP). Here, the pair contest a decent and solid, if rather insignificant, match. It's a similar story with Kenny King vs. Colt Cabana: a good, enjoyable match while it lasts, but instantly forgotten when it's over. 'Fallen Angel' Christopher Daniels' first match back in ROH, against 'Mr Wrestling' Kevin Steen, however, just doesn't work. It just failed to connect with me on any level and keep me interested.
The main event is a tag affair, pitting ROH World Champion Tyler Black & Delirious against Austin Aries & Rhett Titus. This is based around the fact that Aries was responsible for injuring Delirious and putting him out of action a few months. They have their singles grudge match tomorrow at 'Supercard of Honor'. Titus is Aries' buddy, and Black is involved for, well, I guess, no better reason than he's got to be on the show somewhere. I found this to be a good, enjoyable, well-worked tag match. Despite that, however, it is undoubtedly more a "television" match than one you would pay $15 to $20 dollars to see on DVD.
Since the running time for the main feature is a mere 2hrs 10mins, there is room on the DVD for ROH to squeeze on the evening's dark match a (Kings of Wrestling squash versus The Set), as well as 4 bouts taken from the first couple of months of the weekly TV show on HDNet. A nice to have, and a great idea for bonus DVD content, except for the fact the chosen footage is nearly a year out of date from the main show on the DVD, so completely irrelevant (e.g. Steen and Generico solid as the tag team champions....).
Overall, a completely unremarkable DVD release. This was nearly 3 hours of my life that I'll never get back. Avoid.
Full show results:
Next: Supercard of Honor V
ROH returns to Manassas, Virginia (the town with an irrational love of snapmares and fall-away slams) for an uninspiring-looking 'house show' on the eve of their annual Supercard of Honor event from New York.
After a quick Eddie Edwards showcase against Bobby Dempsey in a 'Ten Minute Hunt' (a massively potentially interesting new Edwards gimmick where anyone who can last 10 minutes with him will earn a future shot at his ROH Television Title), the DVD turns its attention to the Kings of Wrestling vs. Briscoes feud, with two separate singles bouts between the members of the opposing teams. A good way of building a tag title rematch between them... except The Kings are defending their belts against the Motor City Machine Guns tomorrow, not the Briscoes. Oh well. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Jay Briscoe is a disappointing non-event as a match. Chris Hero vs. Mark Briscoe is better, but don't expect any fireworks. In effect, all these bouts do is tell you that nothing here matters, and the important stuff will happen elsewhere.
The show moves on with 3 consecutive singles matches in the Pick Six contenders' rankings series, starting with a bout between Roderick Strong and Erick Stevens, who I remember having a decent little series some years ago (including a real cracker in FIP). Here, the pair contest a decent and solid, if rather insignificant, match. It's a similar story with Kenny King vs. Colt Cabana: a good, enjoyable match while it lasts, but instantly forgotten when it's over. 'Fallen Angel' Christopher Daniels' first match back in ROH, against 'Mr Wrestling' Kevin Steen, however, just doesn't work. It just failed to connect with me on any level and keep me interested.
The main event is a tag affair, pitting ROH World Champion Tyler Black & Delirious against Austin Aries & Rhett Titus. This is based around the fact that Aries was responsible for injuring Delirious and putting him out of action a few months. They have their singles grudge match tomorrow at 'Supercard of Honor'. Titus is Aries' buddy, and Black is involved for, well, I guess, no better reason than he's got to be on the show somewhere. I found this to be a good, enjoyable, well-worked tag match. Despite that, however, it is undoubtedly more a "television" match than one you would pay $15 to $20 dollars to see on DVD.
Since the running time for the main feature is a mere 2hrs 10mins, there is room on the DVD for ROH to squeeze on the evening's dark match a (Kings of Wrestling squash versus The Set), as well as 4 bouts taken from the first couple of months of the weekly TV show on HDNet. A nice to have, and a great idea for bonus DVD content, except for the fact the chosen footage is nearly a year out of date from the main show on the DVD, so completely irrelevant (e.g. Steen and Generico solid as the tag team champions....).
Overall, a completely unremarkable DVD release. This was nearly 3 hours of my life that I'll never get back. Avoid.
Full show results:
Next: Supercard of Honor V
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 17 2011, 10:51)
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
I hate the black box way of doing spoilers. You have to do "reply" to read them on phones.
I'll have something to say about that guy in my next review...
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 17 2011, 10:51)
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
The guy was irrelevant when they bought him back in 2009, let alone 2011/12. Needless to say, this is not the answer to ROH's undercard problems
SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read
Makes sense though, The guy was addicted to painkillers on his last run so ive heard. Him feuding with the Embassy interests me
Hopefully that means the other mystery challenger on Friday can be someone huge like a Low-Ki.
That was a fine ROH video wire! Apart from WGTT (whose promo was shit) everyone cut a good to decent promo. Everyone's character is in some way interesting.
Kevin Steen particularly is intriguing. I am really curious to see what happens when he returns.
And..... do I really have to label this a spoiler? What are the terms in this thread anyway?
Kevin Steen particularly is intriguing. I am really curious to see what happens when he returns.
And..... do I really have to label this a spoiler? What are the terms in this thread anyway?
QUOTE (Oliver @ Dec 17 2011, 13:52)
That was a fine ROH video wire! Apart from WGTT (whose promo was shit) everyone cut a good to decent promo. Everyone's character is in some way interesting.
Kevin Steen particularly is intriguing. I am really curious to see what happens when he returns.
And..... do I really have to label this a spoiler? What are the terms in this thread anyway?
Kevin Steen particularly is intriguing. I am really curious to see what happens when he returns.
And..... do I really have to label this a spoiler? What are the terms in this thread anyway?
I just did it out of consideration to anyone who hasn't got that far yet, But then again they should be read the ROH thread then if they don't want to know current events.
Dear lord - it's just been confirmed that Maria will be managing Mike Bennett at Final Battle. Apparently she's banging him in real-life.
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 18 2011, 0:36)
Dear lord - it's just been confirmed that Maria will be managing Mike Bennett at Final Battle. Apparently she's banging him in real-life.
Rather her then having Brutal Bob Evans by his side, Can't stand him! He's not a boxer! Plus having a beautiful woman by his side fits in with his gimmick.
I liked Maria in a friendly airhead presenter/interviewer gimmick in WWE, but managing Bennett in ROH is a million miles from that. TV execs in mark for big names shocker?!?
Dragon Gate USA: Open The Ultimate Gate 2011 - Atlanta, GA - 3/4/11
Dragon Gate USA's pre-WrestleMania offerings from Atlanta continue. This was at midday on WrestleMania Sunday, so I was able to attend this one. Live, I thought this was really bad compared to ROH's shows that weekend. Let's see how it seems on DVD...
Johnny Gargano vs Jimmy Rave - One of the things that really was noticable at the ROH shows of the weekend was how undercard matches were just that. They were solid, but didn't overdo the moves and stuff, so the big matches stood out more. This could have benefitted from the less is more attitude, as 10-12 minutes would almost certainly been sufficient, yet they go 16:32 here. In the 8 months since the show, I have seen the more of the development of Gargano, and was more into his work in this DVD viewing than I was at the time. Rave however is still a guy who appears here and there almost at random, so by the time he kicked out of Hurts Donut I was ready for him to disappear again. Thankfully, he then taps to the Gargano Escape. An acceptable match, but nothing to write home about.
Sami Callihan vs Arik Cannon vs AR Fox vs Rich Swann vs Lince Dorado vs Silas Young - Six way freestyle action, with one fall deciding it this time. Callihan and Cannon get in each others faces again before the opening bell, then everyone gets a chance to do some moves in a seemingly random series of spots, with some nicely executed and some messy. Callihan and Cannon end up beating each other up until they realise they're being more effective with their efforts to clear the ring of everyone else. After they walk out at 8:30, there's a few more moves, and then Swann pins Dorado with the standing 450 splash at 10:00 even. A below average spotfest, as no-one had any particular crowd support, or did anything to change anyone's minds.
Brodie Lee vs Hollywood Stalker Ichikawa - Comedy squash, Brodie wins with the Truckstop at just 2:08. Blood Warriors continue to humiliate Stalker afterwards, until Ronin come out, and we move on...
Chuck Taylor vs Brodie Lee - Despite being 2-0 on this show, Ronin have had zero success against Blood Warriors this weekend. The pattern doesn't change here, and not only that, this is simply an extended squash, with Taylor only having one notable flurry of offence. Chuck does get to kick out of the Truckstop, but then goes down to a sitdown powerbomb at 6:48. Following that, CIMA calls out the tag champs...
Open The United Gate Title: Pac & Masato Yoshino vs CIMA & Naruki Doi - Despite their efforts of the weekend, Blood Warriors are still getting more of a positive reaction than a negative one. That kills the dynamic they're trying to create here, and the crowd are subdued for most of the first two thirds of this. I hoped the match would play out better on DVD than I remembered live, but it didn't happen. Of course, there's more noise as the action picks up in the final third, but even then the match doesn't come close to the upper echelon of DG tags. World-1 retain the gold as Yoshino makes Doi submit to Sol Naciente at 23:02. Post-match, Ronin return so Gargano can poke fun at CIMA with some childish jokes, which falls pretty flat.
Sami Callihan & Arik Cannon vs The Dark City Fight Club - The setup for this is that Lenny Leonard interviews DCFC about their DGUSA debut. They talk about considering themselves one of the best teams in the world, but then go down to Callihan and Cannon in just 5:11. The crowd didn't care much about either team, but do embrace Callihan and Cannon christening themselves the Dirty Ugly Fucks afterwards. Well, kinda. This was just there, really.
Austin Aries vs Jimmy Jacobs - After failing to beat YAMATO the previous evening, this is supposed to be Aries last DGUSA match, so with Jimmy Jacobs as his hand-picked opponent, they basically work the same match structure as the final Punk vs Cabana ROH match. This is actually more fun that I remember at the time, though I could do without them allowing each other one of their trademark spots each in the early going. Of course, tempers then flare a bit, but they never really go beyond the realms of an athletic match into some of the violence that their big ROH rivalry had. The finish is right out of the Punk: The Final Chapter playbook, as Aries goes for the kick to the head into the brainbuster, and Jimmy counters with a small package for the three count at 14:24. The crowd start a moronic "What the F**k" chant at that. Ugh. Of course, the ridiculous thing about all of this is that Jacobs is never seen in DGUSA again, whereas Aries sticks around for a bit after turning on Ronin and siding with Blood Warriors in a post-match angle. The match itself was good, however.
Akira Tozawa vs Jon Moxley - Once again here the booking of Moxley leaves a lot to be desired. He promises Tozawa that his match with YAMATO will be a title match if he can first overcome Moxley himself in a no rules, Bunkhouse style match. They brawl through the crowd briefly, Trina Michaels gets involved on Moxley's behalf, then Tozawa turns the tables on Moxley by suplexing him onto two chairs then pinning him with one of those beautiful bridging Germans at just 3:57. That's it. Reby Sky emerges afterwards to take out Michaels with a DDT. ECW ECW ECW! Or, erm, something.
Open The Freedom Gate Title: YAMATO vs Akira Tozawa - Thankfully, the resulting title match is free of shenanigans and given plenty of time to develop in the usual DG singles title match style. It's not a blowaway bout or anything, but develops steadily enough to a pretty heated final few minutes. I really like YAMATO, but I'm kinda used to him outright heeling it up, rather than the tweener-ish fighting champion story they seem to be starting for him what with Moxley's imminent departure and Blood Warriors taking the top heel spots in Japan. It'll be interesting to see if he becomes a full blown fan favourite, something he understandably can't do against Tozawa here. Tozawa himself cuts out the diving headbutt spot for this main event, which is fine by me as I usually think it looks stupid. His repertoire of dives and German suplex variations is more than enough to get the crowd behind him, and he gets a big pop when he kicks out of Gallaria at one(!), though YAMATO blasts him with some forearms and a second Gallaria for the pin at 22:26. The show ends with YAMATO saying he respects Tozawa, and doing the obligatory "Did You... Enjoy... The Show?" gimmick. YAMATO.... YAY!
Overall - The main event is solid, and to a lesser extent Aries vs Jacobs and the tag title match are alright, but quality-wise this is barely recognisable as the same promotion from the night before, and easily the weakest of all the shows I saw that weekend. One for completists only, sadly. DVD run time is 2 hours, 53 minutes.
Dragon Gate USA: Open The Ultimate Gate 2011 - Atlanta, GA - 3/4/11
Dragon Gate USA's pre-WrestleMania offerings from Atlanta continue. This was at midday on WrestleMania Sunday, so I was able to attend this one. Live, I thought this was really bad compared to ROH's shows that weekend. Let's see how it seems on DVD...
Johnny Gargano vs Jimmy Rave - One of the things that really was noticable at the ROH shows of the weekend was how undercard matches were just that. They were solid, but didn't overdo the moves and stuff, so the big matches stood out more. This could have benefitted from the less is more attitude, as 10-12 minutes would almost certainly been sufficient, yet they go 16:32 here. In the 8 months since the show, I have seen the more of the development of Gargano, and was more into his work in this DVD viewing than I was at the time. Rave however is still a guy who appears here and there almost at random, so by the time he kicked out of Hurts Donut I was ready for him to disappear again. Thankfully, he then taps to the Gargano Escape. An acceptable match, but nothing to write home about.
Sami Callihan vs Arik Cannon vs AR Fox vs Rich Swann vs Lince Dorado vs Silas Young - Six way freestyle action, with one fall deciding it this time. Callihan and Cannon get in each others faces again before the opening bell, then everyone gets a chance to do some moves in a seemingly random series of spots, with some nicely executed and some messy. Callihan and Cannon end up beating each other up until they realise they're being more effective with their efforts to clear the ring of everyone else. After they walk out at 8:30, there's a few more moves, and then Swann pins Dorado with the standing 450 splash at 10:00 even. A below average spotfest, as no-one had any particular crowd support, or did anything to change anyone's minds.
Brodie Lee vs Hollywood Stalker Ichikawa - Comedy squash, Brodie wins with the Truckstop at just 2:08. Blood Warriors continue to humiliate Stalker afterwards, until Ronin come out, and we move on...
Chuck Taylor vs Brodie Lee - Despite being 2-0 on this show, Ronin have had zero success against Blood Warriors this weekend. The pattern doesn't change here, and not only that, this is simply an extended squash, with Taylor only having one notable flurry of offence. Chuck does get to kick out of the Truckstop, but then goes down to a sitdown powerbomb at 6:48. Following that, CIMA calls out the tag champs...
Open The United Gate Title: Pac & Masato Yoshino vs CIMA & Naruki Doi - Despite their efforts of the weekend, Blood Warriors are still getting more of a positive reaction than a negative one. That kills the dynamic they're trying to create here, and the crowd are subdued for most of the first two thirds of this. I hoped the match would play out better on DVD than I remembered live, but it didn't happen. Of course, there's more noise as the action picks up in the final third, but even then the match doesn't come close to the upper echelon of DG tags. World-1 retain the gold as Yoshino makes Doi submit to Sol Naciente at 23:02. Post-match, Ronin return so Gargano can poke fun at CIMA with some childish jokes, which falls pretty flat.
Sami Callihan & Arik Cannon vs The Dark City Fight Club - The setup for this is that Lenny Leonard interviews DCFC about their DGUSA debut. They talk about considering themselves one of the best teams in the world, but then go down to Callihan and Cannon in just 5:11. The crowd didn't care much about either team, but do embrace Callihan and Cannon christening themselves the Dirty Ugly Fucks afterwards. Well, kinda. This was just there, really.
Austin Aries vs Jimmy Jacobs - After failing to beat YAMATO the previous evening, this is supposed to be Aries last DGUSA match, so with Jimmy Jacobs as his hand-picked opponent, they basically work the same match structure as the final Punk vs Cabana ROH match. This is actually more fun that I remember at the time, though I could do without them allowing each other one of their trademark spots each in the early going. Of course, tempers then flare a bit, but they never really go beyond the realms of an athletic match into some of the violence that their big ROH rivalry had. The finish is right out of the Punk: The Final Chapter playbook, as Aries goes for the kick to the head into the brainbuster, and Jimmy counters with a small package for the three count at 14:24. The crowd start a moronic "What the F**k" chant at that. Ugh. Of course, the ridiculous thing about all of this is that Jacobs is never seen in DGUSA again, whereas Aries sticks around for a bit after turning on Ronin and siding with Blood Warriors in a post-match angle. The match itself was good, however.
Akira Tozawa vs Jon Moxley - Once again here the booking of Moxley leaves a lot to be desired. He promises Tozawa that his match with YAMATO will be a title match if he can first overcome Moxley himself in a no rules, Bunkhouse style match. They brawl through the crowd briefly, Trina Michaels gets involved on Moxley's behalf, then Tozawa turns the tables on Moxley by suplexing him onto two chairs then pinning him with one of those beautiful bridging Germans at just 3:57. That's it. Reby Sky emerges afterwards to take out Michaels with a DDT. ECW ECW ECW! Or, erm, something.
Open The Freedom Gate Title: YAMATO vs Akira Tozawa - Thankfully, the resulting title match is free of shenanigans and given plenty of time to develop in the usual DG singles title match style. It's not a blowaway bout or anything, but develops steadily enough to a pretty heated final few minutes. I really like YAMATO, but I'm kinda used to him outright heeling it up, rather than the tweener-ish fighting champion story they seem to be starting for him what with Moxley's imminent departure and Blood Warriors taking the top heel spots in Japan. It'll be interesting to see if he becomes a full blown fan favourite, something he understandably can't do against Tozawa here. Tozawa himself cuts out the diving headbutt spot for this main event, which is fine by me as I usually think it looks stupid. His repertoire of dives and German suplex variations is more than enough to get the crowd behind him, and he gets a big pop when he kicks out of Gallaria at one(!), though YAMATO blasts him with some forearms and a second Gallaria for the pin at 22:26. The show ends with YAMATO saying he respects Tozawa, and doing the obligatory "Did You... Enjoy... The Show?" gimmick. YAMATO.... YAY!
Overall - The main event is solid, and to a lesser extent Aries vs Jacobs and the tag title match are alright, but quality-wise this is barely recognisable as the same promotion from the night before, and easily the weakest of all the shows I saw that weekend. One for completists only, sadly. DVD run time is 2 hours, 53 minutes.
ROH Supercard of Honor 5 (8 May 2010)
The red n' black crew return to the Manhattan Centre for the first time since the 8th Anniversary Show in February. New York City shows from ROH are usually a big deal, with big-time matches that mean something, cool angles and a red hot crowd.
The DVD gets off to a fine start with a really good little match between The Briscoes and Rhett Titus & Kenny King. I really enjoyed this one - just decent old fashioned character-driven faces vs. heels pro wrestling, containing a nice story in the continuing dissension between King and Titus. The bout seems to go down equally well with the live fans and is probably Titus & King's best tag effort to date. Moving on, an Erick Stevens basic destruction job on Grizzly Redwood is more notable for the unexpected post-match run-in from ECW favourite Balls Mahoney, before the show gets back on track with a very physical, very intense and pretty damn good Amazing Kong vs. Sara Del Rey match which the crowd go Radio Rental for. Definitely several pegs higher than your usual US indy women's matches.
Despite the fact I usually think Christopher Daniels is a bit shit, his non-title match here against TV Champion Eddie Edwards is actually really good and exciting. Much, much better than Daniels' craptastic match with Kevin Steen the night before. This show continues down the right road with Austin Aries' various hilarious attempts to get out of his singles grudge match with Delirious. Of course, it doesn't work, so Aries is left fighting Delirious in his suit trousers and tremendously flamboyant shirt. What a fabulous man this is. As a match, this doesn't even get going, but as an angle to set up future events (including Aries, Titus and King going after Delirious' valet Daizee Haze), it is perfectly adequate and a welcome change of pace from the rest of the show. That change of pace continues with a crazy '34th Street Last Man Standing Deathmatch' between Colt Cabana and Kevin Steen. This picks up very much from where the tag match at 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies' left things and is another thrilling and often jaw-dropping fight. The thing I like is that ROH doesn't do hardcore-style often, but when they do, it isn't done for the sake of it. It is done because the guys involved hate each other with a passion and the feud has escalated to the point where it is necessary. An awesome stunt-filled brawl, and the next chapter in the best feud of the year so far.
Those who like tag team wrestling should get a massive kick out of the World Tag Team Title bout of Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) vs. Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin). For the most part, this is an absolutely stunning effort, right up there with the Kings' bout with the Briscoes at 'Big Bang'. Two of the best tag team acts in the entire world doing what they do best and tearing the house down. The finish which eventually comes after all this is kinda deflating (and one that probably has more to do with inter-promotional politics than anything else) but up until then this was a stellar, world-class scrap.
Capping off the disc is the latest ROH World Title challenge from Roderick Strong as he takes on Tyler Black. There used to be a time when it seemed every ROH World champ got to notch up the traditional meaningless defences against Strong and Jay Briscoe on 'B' shows before being tested by stiffer competition, but those days are long gone and Strong has risen to the point where he now comes across as a credible, legitimate title threat. Indeed, the pair contest a hard-fought, dramatic and compelling big-time main event title battle, which manages to be somewhat decisive at the same time as leaving room for more.
As a complete package, this is a very good DVD indeed. With several excellent matches and the advancing of numerous feuds and storylines, this is an 'A' show that you really should see.
Full show results:
The red n' black crew return to the Manhattan Centre for the first time since the 8th Anniversary Show in February. New York City shows from ROH are usually a big deal, with big-time matches that mean something, cool angles and a red hot crowd.
The DVD gets off to a fine start with a really good little match between The Briscoes and Rhett Titus & Kenny King. I really enjoyed this one - just decent old fashioned character-driven faces vs. heels pro wrestling, containing a nice story in the continuing dissension between King and Titus. The bout seems to go down equally well with the live fans and is probably Titus & King's best tag effort to date. Moving on, an Erick Stevens basic destruction job on Grizzly Redwood is more notable for the unexpected post-match run-in from ECW favourite Balls Mahoney, before the show gets back on track with a very physical, very intense and pretty damn good Amazing Kong vs. Sara Del Rey match which the crowd go Radio Rental for. Definitely several pegs higher than your usual US indy women's matches.
Despite the fact I usually think Christopher Daniels is a bit shit, his non-title match here against TV Champion Eddie Edwards is actually really good and exciting. Much, much better than Daniels' craptastic match with Kevin Steen the night before. This show continues down the right road with Austin Aries' various hilarious attempts to get out of his singles grudge match with Delirious. Of course, it doesn't work, so Aries is left fighting Delirious in his suit trousers and tremendously flamboyant shirt. What a fabulous man this is. As a match, this doesn't even get going, but as an angle to set up future events (including Aries, Titus and King going after Delirious' valet Daizee Haze), it is perfectly adequate and a welcome change of pace from the rest of the show. That change of pace continues with a crazy '34th Street Last Man Standing Deathmatch' between Colt Cabana and Kevin Steen. This picks up very much from where the tag match at 'Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies' left things and is another thrilling and often jaw-dropping fight. The thing I like is that ROH doesn't do hardcore-style often, but when they do, it isn't done for the sake of it. It is done because the guys involved hate each other with a passion and the feud has escalated to the point where it is necessary. An awesome stunt-filled brawl, and the next chapter in the best feud of the year so far.
Those who like tag team wrestling should get a massive kick out of the World Tag Team Title bout of Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli) vs. Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin). For the most part, this is an absolutely stunning effort, right up there with the Kings' bout with the Briscoes at 'Big Bang'. Two of the best tag team acts in the entire world doing what they do best and tearing the house down. The finish which eventually comes after all this is kinda deflating (and one that probably has more to do with inter-promotional politics than anything else) but up until then this was a stellar, world-class scrap.
Capping off the disc is the latest ROH World Title challenge from Roderick Strong as he takes on Tyler Black. There used to be a time when it seemed every ROH World champ got to notch up the traditional meaningless defences against Strong and Jay Briscoe on 'B' shows before being tested by stiffer competition, but those days are long gone and Strong has risen to the point where he now comes across as a credible, legitimate title threat. Indeed, the pair contest a hard-fought, dramatic and compelling big-time main event title battle, which manages to be somewhat decisive at the same time as leaving room for more.
As a complete package, this is a very good DVD indeed. With several excellent matches and the advancing of numerous feuds and storylines, this is an 'A' show that you really should see.
Full show results:
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 18 2011, 0:36)
Dear lord - it's just been confirmed that Maria will be managing Mike Bennett at Final Battle. Apparently she's banging him in real-life.
You don't approve?
Of appearing at FB. Naturally it's none of my business what either of them do in their personal life! 
Why not? I actually thought she was one of the few "not-a-capable-wrestler" Divas that actually showed a shred of personality and charisma, was outraged when she got released so soon after winning the (FAN voted for) Slammy for Diva of the Year, and would actually grab some attention for pretty much any group she appeared for?
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 18 2011, 22:41)
Of appearing at FB. Naturally it's none of my business what either of them do in their personal life!
Too much personality?
Yeah. It's pretty clear if you listen to watch she says that she really cares about her wrestling and she's appeared in things like Celebrity Apprentice, and it appeals to the base crowd of single 18-34 year olds.
It's better than Dan Severn being there. PURE SPORTS BUILD!
It's better than Dan Severn being there. PURE SPORTS BUILD!
Doesn't Cornette hate her? I'm sure it was the Power Slam interview where he chewed her out (so to speak) about being shit at her job and pretty fucking clueless.
Cornette'll say or do anything for 50p. When he's finished trying to sink ROH (he's doing a terrible job, really is) he'll be back in WWE burying ROH and TNA, before WWE get rid of him and he'll be burying them again.
QUOTE (spotlightmagnet1 @ Dec 19 2011, 2:14)
Doesn't Cornette hate her?
Who doesnt Cornette hate?
QUOTE
Too much personality?
Naturally. I prefer everyone who wrestles in ROH to be generic indy guys without a shred of charisma.
Final Battle full line up:
Very good line up imo, Guessing that Rodericks opponent will be Nigel McGuinness
QUOTE
World Title Match
Davey Richards with Team Richards defends vs. "Die Hard" Eddie Edwards with UFC Hall of Famer Dan "The Beast" Severn
World Tag Team Title Match
Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas defends vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe
World TV Title Match
Jay Lethal defends vs. El Generico vs. "The Prodigy" Mike Bennett with Brutal Bob
Grudge Match
Steve Corino vs. Kevin Steen
*If Steen wins he is reinstated.
**Jimmy Jacobs is the guest referee
***Jim Cornette will be in attendance at ringside
Roderick Strong Invitational Challenge
Roderick Strong with Truth Martini vs. ????
Tag Team Gauntlet Match
The All Night Express vs. Future Shock vs. The Bravados vs. The Young Bucks vs. Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander
*The winning team will receive a future shot at the World Tag Team Titles
Special Challenge Match
"Unbreakable" Michael Elgin with Truth Martini vs. TJ Perkins
Special Attraction
Tommaso Ciampa with The Embassy vs. Jimmy Rave
Davey Richards with Team Richards defends vs. "Die Hard" Eddie Edwards with UFC Hall of Famer Dan "The Beast" Severn
World Tag Team Title Match
Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas defends vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe
World TV Title Match
Jay Lethal defends vs. El Generico vs. "The Prodigy" Mike Bennett with Brutal Bob
Grudge Match
Steve Corino vs. Kevin Steen
*If Steen wins he is reinstated.
**Jimmy Jacobs is the guest referee
***Jim Cornette will be in attendance at ringside
Roderick Strong Invitational Challenge
Roderick Strong with Truth Martini vs. ????
Tag Team Gauntlet Match
The All Night Express vs. Future Shock vs. The Bravados vs. The Young Bucks vs. Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander
*The winning team will receive a future shot at the World Tag Team Titles
Special Challenge Match
"Unbreakable" Michael Elgin with Truth Martini vs. TJ Perkins
Special Attraction
Tommaso Ciampa with The Embassy vs. Jimmy Rave
Very good line up imo, Guessing that Rodericks opponent will be Nigel McGuinness
QUOTE (Dearly Devoted Dexter @ Dec 19 2011, 10:54)
QUOTE
Too much personality?
Naturally. I prefer everyone who wrestles in ROH to be generic indy guys without a shred of charisma.
You must be de-fucking-lighted right now, then!
ZING!, etc
You don't care what other people think do you? 
According to Jim Cornette in the new issue of Power Slam, the new ROH tv show is seen by approximately a million people a week ...
Which makes the fact they deleted my acount even more bafiling.
I just rejoined thogh.
I just rejoined thogh.
QUOTE (gadge @ Dec 21 2011, 22:31)
According to Jim Cornette in the new issue of Power Slam, the new ROH tv show is seen by approximately a million people a week ...
Is there any data supporting that, or is it another 93,000 at WrestleMania III thing?
I'd imagine it certainly has a reach of a million. Far more. I'm skeptical it gets that many at silly o'clock on Saturday Nights though. WCW was at 6:05. ROH isn't. Quite a bit later.
But it's a pretty shit deal, to be fair. Sinclair have put ROH in markets where they aren't strong and Jim Cornette in his eternal "It's 1984" glory was apparently the bright spark behind having an 80 minute match in their first house show in the Carolinas. Matt Morgan to be ROH Champion in the next 12 months. You've heard it here first.
But it's a pretty shit deal, to be fair. Sinclair have put ROH in markets where they aren't strong and Jim Cornette in his eternal "It's 1984" glory was apparently the bright spark behind having an 80 minute match in their first house show in the Carolinas. Matt Morgan to be ROH Champion in the next 12 months. You've heard it here first.
QUOTE (King Pitcos @ Dec 22 2011, 1:47)
QUOTE (gadge @ Dec 21 2011, 22:31)
According to Jim Cornette in the new issue of Power Slam, the new ROH tv show is seen by approximately a million people a week ...
Is there any data supporting that, or is it another 93,000 at WrestleMania III thing?
I honestly have no idea, I guess they must have some data by now but I was sceptical when I read it. They must know how many views it's getting online and I bet that figure is added in.
No Escape – 9/7/11
Andy Ridge vs. Mike Bennett – good lord, what a terrible choice for an opener. It only lasts 5 minutes, but even so. Bennett wins with a piledriver.
Kenny King vs. Mark Briscoe – the gimmick for the next two matches is that the respective tag partners are handcuffed to the ringposts. Naturally this doesn’t prevent any interference whatsoever. It did make for a fun little singles match though. For a guy that never used to have good singles bouts, Mark has had a couple of decent outings recently. Kenneth gets the win with the Coronation.
Rhett Titus vs. Jay Briscoe – again, a decent singles outing. Jay produces a pair of bolt cutters from under the ring, lamps the referee and cuts his brother free. The Briscoes beat down Titus. Jay takes off his belt to whip Titus, and his trunks fall down. After what seems like an age WGTT run in to make the save, causing the fans to break into a huge Briscoes chant. As an angle to build towards the King/ Titus vs Briscoes blow-off this was fine – but the reaction WGTT got when they came out suggests that the Briscoes will be babyfaces in that particular feud, whether ROH likes it or not.
The American Wolves vs. Kyle O’Reilly & Adam Cole – the latter’s pre-match promo is terrible – if ever a team needed a manager to do their talking for them, it’s Cole & O’Reilly. Cracking tag team effort, probably the best tag outing in ROH of 2011. As with last night, the Wolves do everything they can to make Cole and O’Reilly look like players. In fact, you might even argue that they gave them a bit too much, given the way they’ve been booked so far. But in matches like this you’d rather the veterans gave too much than not enough. The finish was a nice touch as well; Edwards locks in the single leg crab on O’Reilly and stamps on his head a couple of times. The referee calls for the bell; but it doesn’t ring for some reason, and Edwards keeps the hold on. Richards goes ballistic at Edwards for trying to cripple his protégé, and yet another Wolves match ends with Richards and Edwards at odds with each other. Good bit of storytelling.
Michael Elgin & Chase Owens vs. Cedric Alexander & Caprice Coleman – Chase Owens is a local jobber who is getting on opportunity to earn a spot in the HOT. You know how this story ends. A fairly forgettable tag bout, although C & C did just about enough to earn another booking. Alexander pins Owens with a frog splash at 9.14, and the latter inevitably gets battered afterwards by Elgin.
Chris Hero vs. Colt Cabana – no goofiness from Cabana in his pre-match promo; and its one of the best things he’s done in ages on the mike. This was ok for what it was - a mid-card filler match. That’s as much as you can say about it. Hero wins with the Cyclone Kill after a fairly unnecessary ref bump.
World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. The Bravado Brothers – as one half of the companies babyface tag team champions, Charlie Haas tells some woman in the front row “shut up you old bitch.” What a prat. As you’d expect, WGTT run through the Bravados in six minutes, which makes you wonder quite what the point of the match was – the champs didn’t benefit from it, and the Bravados looked like jobbers. After the match the Briscoes and WGTT brawl, and Haas gets put through a table, provoking a huge pop.
Roderick Strong vs. El Generico – Steel Cage Match – ok while it lasted, but nothing amazing, that’s as much as I can say about this main event. Started off slowly, but picked up down the finishing stretch. The outcome was a bit of a given, as the lack of crowd heat for Strong’s nearfalls showed. Generico pinned Strong at 17.57 with the turnbuckle brainbuster.
Overall – apart from the Wolves/Cole & O’Reilly tag match, the rest of this was pretty blah.
Andy Ridge vs. Mike Bennett – good lord, what a terrible choice for an opener. It only lasts 5 minutes, but even so. Bennett wins with a piledriver.
Kenny King vs. Mark Briscoe – the gimmick for the next two matches is that the respective tag partners are handcuffed to the ringposts. Naturally this doesn’t prevent any interference whatsoever. It did make for a fun little singles match though. For a guy that never used to have good singles bouts, Mark has had a couple of decent outings recently. Kenneth gets the win with the Coronation.
Rhett Titus vs. Jay Briscoe – again, a decent singles outing. Jay produces a pair of bolt cutters from under the ring, lamps the referee and cuts his brother free. The Briscoes beat down Titus. Jay takes off his belt to whip Titus, and his trunks fall down. After what seems like an age WGTT run in to make the save, causing the fans to break into a huge Briscoes chant. As an angle to build towards the King/ Titus vs Briscoes blow-off this was fine – but the reaction WGTT got when they came out suggests that the Briscoes will be babyfaces in that particular feud, whether ROH likes it or not.
The American Wolves vs. Kyle O’Reilly & Adam Cole – the latter’s pre-match promo is terrible – if ever a team needed a manager to do their talking for them, it’s Cole & O’Reilly. Cracking tag team effort, probably the best tag outing in ROH of 2011. As with last night, the Wolves do everything they can to make Cole and O’Reilly look like players. In fact, you might even argue that they gave them a bit too much, given the way they’ve been booked so far. But in matches like this you’d rather the veterans gave too much than not enough. The finish was a nice touch as well; Edwards locks in the single leg crab on O’Reilly and stamps on his head a couple of times. The referee calls for the bell; but it doesn’t ring for some reason, and Edwards keeps the hold on. Richards goes ballistic at Edwards for trying to cripple his protégé, and yet another Wolves match ends with Richards and Edwards at odds with each other. Good bit of storytelling.
Michael Elgin & Chase Owens vs. Cedric Alexander & Caprice Coleman – Chase Owens is a local jobber who is getting on opportunity to earn a spot in the HOT. You know how this story ends. A fairly forgettable tag bout, although C & C did just about enough to earn another booking. Alexander pins Owens with a frog splash at 9.14, and the latter inevitably gets battered afterwards by Elgin.
Chris Hero vs. Colt Cabana – no goofiness from Cabana in his pre-match promo; and its one of the best things he’s done in ages on the mike. This was ok for what it was - a mid-card filler match. That’s as much as you can say about it. Hero wins with the Cyclone Kill after a fairly unnecessary ref bump.
World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. The Bravado Brothers – as one half of the companies babyface tag team champions, Charlie Haas tells some woman in the front row “shut up you old bitch.” What a prat. As you’d expect, WGTT run through the Bravados in six minutes, which makes you wonder quite what the point of the match was – the champs didn’t benefit from it, and the Bravados looked like jobbers. After the match the Briscoes and WGTT brawl, and Haas gets put through a table, provoking a huge pop.
Roderick Strong vs. El Generico – Steel Cage Match – ok while it lasted, but nothing amazing, that’s as much as I can say about this main event. Started off slowly, but picked up down the finishing stretch. The outcome was a bit of a given, as the lack of crowd heat for Strong’s nearfalls showed. Generico pinned Strong at 17.57 with the turnbuckle brainbuster.
Overall – apart from the Wolves/Cole & O’Reilly tag match, the rest of this was pretty blah.
Final Battle 2011 Results :
I used to watch ROH back in the TWC days and have kept up to date abit over the internet with it since then. I've began buying the dvds and was wondering if I could have any recommendations for dvds to buy?
Briscoes/WGTT was awful. I thought they were doing the right thing with the start, but then the injury angle happened (which went against the crowds reaction entirely) and I hated it from there.
Really enjoyed Richards/Edwards III, the crowd seemed a bit sub-dued at times and I get the fighting spirit vibe they were going for, but seen as the crowd didn't react it felt like one of those "Americans emulating AJPW because they can" that I know a lot of people on here hate. Still a great match tho, I may need to rewatch it tho as I was tired and not in the best mood, but it had my attention and I could watch these two wrestle endlessly.
Really enjoyed Richards/Edwards III, the crowd seemed a bit sub-dued at times and I get the fighting spirit vibe they were going for, but seen as the crowd didn't react it felt like one of those "Americans emulating AJPW because they can" that I know a lot of people on here hate. Still a great match tho, I may need to rewatch it tho as I was tired and not in the best mood, but it had my attention and I could watch these two wrestle endlessly.
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