Official ROH Discussion Thread

[Dearly Devoted Dexter]

No Escape

[Dearly Devoted Dexter]

Final Battle 2011 Results :

 

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Michael Elgin d. TJ Perkins with the spinning powerbomb

 

Tomasso Ciampa d. Jimmy Rave w. Project Ciampa

 

Jay Lethal d. El Generico & Mike Bennett. Bennett eliminated Generico with handful of tights, Lethal pinned Bennett with a handspring elbow

 

Kevin Steen d. Steve Corino with Package Piledriver onto steel chairs. Jacobs counted to 2, then looked at Cornette, who told him to count to three. After the match Steen and Generico brawl, and Steen gives Generico the PP off the top rope through the timekeepers table!

 

Tag Team No.1 Contenders Gauntlet -

 

Cedric Alexander & Caprice Coleman d. The Bravados w. Inside Cradle

Adam Cole & Kyle O'Reilly d. Alexander & Coleman w. modified Total Elimination

Young Bucks d. Cole & O' Reilly w. More Bang For Your Buck

Young Bucks d. King & Titus due to referee stoppage

 

Roderick Strong open challenge answered by...Chris Hero!

 

Roderick Strong d. Chris Hero w. Sick Kick

 

The Briscoe Brothers d. WGTT to win ROH Tag titles w. Doomsday Device

 

Davey Richards d. Eddie Edwards w. kicks to the head. After the match Kevin Steen says in 2012 he's going to win the ROH world title.

 

 

[close spoiler]

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Edited December 24, 2011 by Dearly Devoted Dexter

[Professor Paul's Bin]

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?

[cobystag]

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.

[gadge]

EVOLVE 7: Aries vs Moxley - Manhattan, NY - 19/4/11

 

Shiima Xion vs Jimmy Jacobs - We open EVOLVE's first ever iPPV with the first of three spoiler matches, as the three men tied on 4-2 records face EVOLVE debutants who are trying to spoil their records. There's no Lenny Leonard on commentary for this one, as instead Rob Naylor has Austin Aries as co-host. The crowd are into Jacobs in a big way, and therefore turn completely against Xion when he manages to be the spoiler with a La Magistral cradle at 7:19. The match itself was solid for an opener, but not long enough to be anything more. Hilariously, the crowd just keep on booing when Xion cuts a post match promo that was pretty nonsensical in places.

 

Tony Nese vs Silas Young - Short, but inoffensive filler. Silas wins with the headstand into Arabian Press in 5:39 to go 2-1.

 

Johnny Gargano vs Jon Davis - Simple storytelling executed well here. Jon Davis, the big tag team dude, tries to transfer to singles and relies on his power, while Gargano tries stick and move tactics and slick combinations to neutralise him and advance his 4-2 record. Crowd support is good for both men, though Gargano had the interminable Larry Dallas and Reby Sky cheering him on from a ringside table. Ugh. They really manage to turn things up a notch in the closing minutes, with Davis almost being the spoiler after a spinebuster/Jackhammer combo, before falling to a very neat counter into the Gargano Escape for the submission at 13:19. The first really enjoyable bout of the show. Gargano cuts a post-match promo about being wins leader at the end of the night, and doesn't seem happy when Larry Dallas says the plan is for him and Chuck Taylor to be sharing the wins leader position. Ooh, controversy is brewing...

 

Jigsaw & Frightmare vs Facade & Jason Gory - "Where do EVOLVE keep getting these crappy tag teams from?", I hear you ask. The team of Facade and Gory do indeed have a dreadful minor league look. It's really all about the CHIKARA duo here, who have a ton of crowd support and the majority of the cool spots, though Facade and Gory do have a couple of good moments as well as a couple of bad ones. Overall this is a pretty fun bout, though many will find it trash. Jigsaw puts Gory away with a twisting Jig 'n' Tonic at 8:35.

 

Sami Callihan vs Zack Sabre Jr - While I'm not usually a massive fan of Sami, I'm a huge fan of Zack and I saw these two guys have a match a month prior to this in IPW:UK which was really fun live, so I had pretty high hopes for this. I wasn't at all surprised then, when both guys started this one by going to war right from the opening bell and knocking seven bells of you know what out of each other. The hybrid of styles used generally works really well, with Zack getting in some small joint manipulation and a bunch of attempts at his flying armbar, though it's a bit of a shock when they break off from the hard hitting for an extended rollup reversal sequence in the closing minutes. Much like their bout in IPW:UK, Zack is defeated by the Stretch Muffler of Callihan, though this time Sami has to stomp Zack's head in as well for a KO victory at 11:45. It won't be to everyone's tastes, but personally I loved the hell out of this. I definitely need more of Zack's US (and NOAH) matches in my life...

 

AR Fox vs Rich Swann - Some of these lower card DGUSA/midcard EVOLVE guys sure can fly. The likes of Fox and Swann are a bit like the next generation of Jonny Storm, Jody Fleisch and Amazing Red, and while I wouldn't call this a wrestling match for the most part, it's impressive as a short but sweet acrobatics display. Fox wins to go 2-0 with an insane Arabian Press/C4 combo at 5:54.

 

Akira Tozawa vs Chuck Taylor - Your usual Tozawa match, albeit condensed into 10:54 which makes it really enjoyable, if no classic. Taylor survives the third spoiler match of the show, pinning Tozawa with the Awful Waffle. That brings Larry Dallas into the ring to celebrate, only referee Mike Kehner announces there WILL be a play-off to determine a clear wins leader. And so....

 

Chuck Taylor vs Johnny Gargano - This is more of an angle than a match. Gargano hits Taylor with the Hurts Donut at just 0:30, but Taylor kicks out. Taylor then hits the Awful Waffle at 1:00, but after Taylor takes time selling his own neck, Gargano is able to kick out. Gargano then hits Hurts Donut again, locks Taylor into the Gargano Escape, and Larry Dallas makes Reby Sky throw in the towel for him, making Gargano the wins leader at 6-2 in just 2:30. The crowd do not like that. I actually liked the angle, though it was very much like the Prophecy disrespecting the Code of Honor in early ROH in terms of exposing the "sport" concept of the promotion as a sham. I would say though, anyone expecting different from the booking must have been pretty short sighted.

 

Before the main event, Sami Callihan and Zack Sabre Jr show respect for each other backstage. Zack definitely fits in this promotion.

 

Austin Aries vs Jon Moxley - A decent, straight ahead effort from both guys here, but as with most matches when it's one guys last, it's not all out from an action standpoint. There's one weird moment when both guys tumble to the floor at about 6:00, and seem to take longer than expected to regroup. I liked a spot where Moxley goes and grabs the wrench used for ringing the bell and has an internal struggle as to whether to use it. The final sequences are plenty dramatic enough to make this feel like a worthy main event. As you could have predicted, Moxley is defeated on the way out, as Aries counters an attampted sunset flip for the winning pin at 15:14. Afterwards Aries lets Moxley have his leaving for the big time speech, which is as pro-indie wrestling as you'd expect. I noted that the wrestlers who came out from backstage here seemed genuinely very happy for him.

 

Overall - One of EVOLVE's best efforts, with several worthy matches. DVD run time is 2 hours, 8 minutes.

[Big Benny HG]

ROH Death Before Dishonor VIII (18 June 2010)

 

 

ROH returns to iPPV for the first time since 'Big Bang' back in April for their huge 'Death Before Dishonor' event, traditionally one of the biggest and most important annual shows on their calendar. The home DVD release version of the event comes in what is possibly the best-looking ROH DVD packaging for some time. This is actually a 2-disc set, with the extra DVD full of bonus content in support of the main show.

 

Taking up most of the first disc is actually the entire 8 match, 2 hour 30 minute 'Buffalo Stampede II' show from the previous night, an event deemed so craptacular it didn't deserve its own DVD release. You can't say there are any truly awful bouts on offer, but you can see why this show should never have been released as a stand-alone DVD. The first 5 bouts (Delirious vs. Ernesto Osiris; Eddie Edwards vs. Tyson Dux; Colt Cabana vs. Shawn Daivari; Roderick Strong vs. the awfully indyriffic PEE WEE (who you may remember me tearing to shreds on his last ROH DVD appearance) and Kings of Wrestling vs. Up In Smoke) are a stream of utterly pointless, seemingly randomly thrown together extended squash matches no-one could possibly care about, played out in front of a crowd completely indifferent to what they were seeing. The undoubted highlight of the show is Austin Aries coming out to Europe's 'Final Countdown', genuinely fooling everyone into thinking Bryan Danielson was making a surprise ROH comeback (remember, he had been fired by WWE at this point). Aries' subsequent match with Kenny Omega, however, is slow and uneventful, not a patch on their terrific World Title bout from 'The Omega Effect'. Exactly the same can be said of The Briscoes vs. Rhett Titus & Kenny King, which is just nowhere near as good as their impressive bout at 'Supercard of Honor V', the last DVD release

 

The final match of 'Buffalo Stampede II' is Tyler Black vs. Steve Corino in a main event which is decent enough for what it is, but still a completely forgettable nothing match.Further bonus footage on the disc includes loads of promos around DBD8 and the entire very good Richards vs. Black bout from Proving Ground . Unsurprisingly, this is by far the best thing on offer on this disc. If anything, 'Buffalo Stampede II' is evidence that ROH probably shouldn't release all of their 'house shows' on DVD, but could instead use the odd match filmed there on their TV or as DVD extras for the bigger events.

 

'Buffalo Stampede II' full show results:

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Delirious beat Ernesto Osiris by tapout to a cobra clutch.

 

10 minute hunt: Eddie Edwards beat Tyson Dux with feet on the ropes

 

Colt Cabana beat Shawn Daivari by submission with the Billy Goat

Edited December 31, 2011 by Big Benny HG

[Dearly Devoted Dexter]

Another one of them 'outlaw' promotions....

 

 

Evolve 7 : Aries vs. Moxley

[PowerButchi]

Do you know what an outlaw promotion is, Barricade Slapper?

 

Anyway, Tony Nese is somewhat average. He's currently doing a bit in TNA.

[Dearly Devoted Dexter]

Do you know what an outlaw promotion is, Barricade Slapper?

 

Are you still here? There's only so many of your posts my sides can take before they need to be stitched back together

Edited January 1, 2012 by Dearly Devoted Dexter

[PowerButchi]

That's a no then. You might want to read about stuff like ICW.

[jackhennessey]

Not stirring here but "barricade slapper" is the best wrestling based insult I've heard in years!

[Dil|kid]

Anyone know the deal with DVD releases?, they havent had one since Death Before Dishonor in september and I know most events have been TV tapings but surely they are still releasing house shows on DVD like Survival of the Fittest etc?

[gadge]

The fact there's only three DVDs out past "Best in the World" is the reason I haven't ordered from ROH in months. When I do, I think I'm giving up ordering every show.

 

On another note, I was tempted to report Butch for winding up Dexter like a cheap watch, but the Barricade Slapper insult made me laugh so I decided against.

[Big Benny HG]

Yeah, I'm about to put my order in for the 2011 shows, but there is no way I'm going for the full collection like I have to date. As I said in one of my reviews, ROH these days is all about the major 'A' shows and the weekly TV - the other live 'house' shows are pretty much inconsequential. I'm therefore planning on picking up the following:

 

 

9th Anniversary Show

Manhatten Mayhem IV

Honor Takes Centre Stage: Chapter One

Honor Takes Centre Stage: Chapter Two

Supercard of Honor VI

Best in the World 2011

Death Before Dishonor IX

 

...plus Glory By Honor X and Final Battle 2011 when they are released.

[gadge]

EVOLVE 8: Style Battle - Union City, NJ - 20/5/11

 

Without a clear main event to title the show after, EVOLVE goes for a new tournament concept. It clearly didn't draw, as the ACE Arena is half empty, with 100 or so people in, 120 tops. Lenny Leonard returns to commentary duty alongside Rob Naylor. This is also the same day as day Randy Savage died

 

Rich Swann (Rich Swann style) vs AR Fox (High-Flying) - The deal here is that Swann was selected to be in the tournament in a fan poll, as Fox already had the High-Flying spot. They should have called this rematch style, as they have a similar bout to EVOLVE 7. That is to say, it was short, at just over five minutes. Fox beats Swann again, this time with a flying Codebreaker, to advance to the semis. Swann pulls out of a handshake afterwards.

 

Tony Nese (Standing Combat) vs Jon Davis (Power) - I quite liked this, Nese is more than competent and will probably make a good fit for the X Division if his TNA stint lasts. Davis is good when doing his power stuff, but lacking when it comes to filling in the gaps in between. Some personality would fill said gap nicely. The crowd like the finish, as Davis chains a spinebuster, 'Buckle Bomb and Rack Bomb ("Three Seconds Around The World", which is a cool name) for the pinfall at 10:02.

 

Brodie Lee (Super Heavyweight) vs Sami Callihan (Hard-Hitting) - The small crowd are hot for this one and for Sami in particular, but I didn't like it much at all. Lots of chop exchanges and fake "Fighting Spirit" that I really didn't get into. Callihan then survives two Truckstops and a Liger Bomb, by which time I was tempted to throw things at the TV to make it stop. Callihan wins at 12:38 with a leg grapevine Horse Collar and stomps to the head combo for the submission.

 

Austin Aries (Hybrid) vs Bobby Fish (Puroresu Jr. Heavyweight) - Yes, they really did bill Bobby Fish as having that style. On paper I thought this was more my style of match than the one before, but they go way, way too long (22:31) and rarely get above a lethargic pace. Aries does the Power Drive elbow tease, then goes up top for a Macho Man elbow instead, which was nice. Fish hilariously overshoots a moonsault and almost lands on his face in addition to missing Aries completely. The finishing stretch then has similar problems to the previous match on the card, as Fish survives more then one brainbuster and several other Aries trademarks before getting a submission win with a heel hook.

 

With the quarter finals complete, it's really bad segment time. Lenny Leonard brings out the dreadful Larry Dallas, but reveals that after the events of EVOLVE 7, anyone inside the ringside barriers must be licensed, so Dallas can't be there or will be removed from the building. Here's hoping, eh? Dallas reveals he has a new charge however, who is the final entrant in tonight's FRAY! Did I mention that I hate the FRAY! concept? *sigh*

 

AR Fox vs Jon Davis - Semi-final #1 is High-Flying vs Power, then. You'd think this would be an easy enough formula, but the first five minutes are boring, trainee-level stuff. I'm always convinced AR Fox is going to land on his head when he goes for his moonsault off the ringpost. Davis then kicks out of Fox's springboard 450, Fox survives the Pounce of Davis, then scores a quick pin off the flying Codebreaker at 7:17. Not a good match.

 

Sami Callihan vs Bobby Fish - It's saying something that I enjoyed this more than either guys first round match even though this one only goes 4:10. Both guys just go after the other with everything they have, until Callihan grounds Fish and batters him (sorry) with forearms to the back of the head until the referee stops it. No Fox vs Fish final, then, but at least Fox and Callihan have a bit of crowd support.

 

The New Havana Pitbulls vs The SAT - What the hell kind of bizarro world have I fallen into here? Anyway: both teams have new members here on what you may remember. The SAT are now Joel and Will Maximo, while the New Havana Pitbulls are Ricky Reyes and Alex Colon. Execution isn't bad here, but seriously, why would anyone care? The SAT put away Colon with the Spanish Fly at 5:29.

 

FRAY! - We start this with Scott Reed and Cheech Hernandez, the latter of the two sadly hasn't done much since his team with Cloudy ended. 90 seconds elapse and Brian XL of all people enters, and promptly blows three big high flying moves in succession. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry by the third one. The procession of nobodies continues with Blain Rage at #4, who even the crowd can only respond to with a "Who Are You?" chant. Thankfully, entrant #5 is Kory Chavis, who quickly eliminates XL and Rage. Pinkie Sanchez brings some much needed momentum to the match as entrant #6, the crowd boo as Scott Reed eliminates Cheech, and entrant #7, Derek Ryze, soon follows Reed to the back as Chavis eliminates them both.

 

Despite 4 eliminations of his own, Chavis is then himself quickly ejected by entrant #8, Larry Dallas' mystery man Ahtu, after a big spear. That leaves Ahtu with Pinkie, who barely beats the 20-count on the floor after being military pressed over the top by the musclehead. Based on this, Ahtu's repertoire seems to involve standing around looking muscley, staring at the fans chanting "You Can't Wrestle", then occasionally moving to deliver something powerful. However, in a twist that was probably the best thing I've ever seen in one of these FRAY! matches, Pinkie finally blocks one of Ahtu's charges with a boot, leaps out of the corner, Ahtu takes a killer bump off a swinging DDT, and Sanchez gets the pin at 14:56 as the crowd go ever-so-slightly mental. Great stuff. The rest of the match wasn't up to much, though.

 

AR Fox vs Sami Callihan - A solid final to an underwhelming tournament, the best thing I can say about it as it shows the Style Battle concept better than any match so far. Fox avoids Callihan's opening charge and takes control with several big dives, then Callihan has a longer period in control where he does indeed hit Fox hard. A couple of moves off the ropes don't quite work for Callihan, though he does manage to nail Fox with a monster Saito suplex off the top, then he survives the flying Codebreaker that won Fox his first two matches. Instead, Fox busts out the insane Arabian Press C4 last seen as he beat Rich Swann at EVOLVE 7 to be crowned Style Battle winner at 10:13.

 

Overall - One of the low points for EVOLVE so far. It's certainly beginning to prove a trend that the odd numbered shows are the best. It'll be interesting to see if AR Fox can translate this tournament success to anything more, as his matches were only five, seven and ten minutes long. DVD run time is 2 hours and 15 minutes.