Official ROH Discussion Thread

[cobystag]

Briscoes/WGTT is for one of the Mania shows. Briscoes/Bucks is for 10th Year Anniversary.

[Big Benny HG]

ROH Final Battle 2010 (18 December 2010)

 

 

Well, this is it. ROH's 2010 culminates in the traditional way with the 'huge' Final Battle iPPV, emanating from its now-traditional home of New York City. The event sees 3 big main events, all 3 bringing year-long stories to a climax, and 2 of which conclude feuds that actually started at last year's 'Final Battle' and have rumbled on all year.

 

The top 3 matches are all absolutely awesome, but yet all so very different in style and presentation so fit perfectly at the top of the same bill. First up, the "sports-entertainment" box is ticked. I've been a huge fan of the 2010 Kings of Wrestling vs. The Briscoes feud, whether it be title matches, No DQ matches, elimination matches or 6-person tags. The year-long issue is finally settled in a 3 vs. 3 grudge match here with the addition of Jay & Mark's father Mike 'Papa' Briscoe and Kings' manager Shane Hagadorn joining their respective teams. This was all set up when Papa started becoming involved on the HDNet TV show to counteract the presence of Hagadorn. Needless to say, I got a MASSIVE kick out of this contest, loving every second of it. Papa Briscoe is such an awesome character and I was almost leaping up and down at his every involvement. This whole thing is just ridiculously good fun pro wrestling from start to finish, the perfect blow-off to a superb series. One of my most favourite things in ROH in a long time.

 

Then, Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards for the World Title is the match that most fits the stereotypical ROH main event style, being a long, hard-hitting, physical and intense scrap that starts slow, builds well and then ends up with them throwing everything they have each other with increasingly huge moves, a million signature spots and a million kick outs. They do manage to stay the right side of overkill, though, and the audience goes mental with all the fabulous false-finishes. It won't be to everyone's taste, but this is one of the best examples you'll see of the style working effectively. A stunning match set against the backdrop of the year-long story: 2010 being the year in which Richards has risen from 'prospect' to promotional ace and ending with his best chance at the title yet.

 

The actual main event is the appropriately named 'Final Battle at Final Battle' between El Generico and Kevin Steen, former tag team championship partners who have spent the entire annum telling one of the best stories ROH has ever presented. This is an unsanctioned 'Fight Without Honor' (streetfight), with Generico's mask wagered against Steen's ROH career. No doubt about it, these 2 fuckers hate each other, and this violent, graphic, bloody hardcore, stunt-based war is absolutely the match it needs to be to bring this situation to a satisfactory decisive conclusion. Chains, tables, barricades, ladders, chairs and, erm, Steve Corino all come into play, among some great visuals and symbolism. Fabulous drama in one of the very best matches of the year.

 

The undercard is no slouch either. The opening tag contest of the All Night Express vs. Kyle O'Reilly & Adam Cole is a cracker, in many ways a breakout performance for both teams. O'Reilly's double-dragon-screw leg-whip and triple-butterfly suplex are beyond goofy and need to go immediately, but other than that the action is hot and they kick start the festivities with a bang. Eddie Edwards vs. Sonjay Dutt is another very strong offering, going back-and-forth in an exciting affair. Other supporting contests of Colt Cabana vs. TJ Perkins and a Women of Honor tag attraction (Amazing Kong & a skeletal Daizee Haze vs. Sara Del Rey & Sereena Deeb) are both more than adequate, worthwhile inclusions. Homicide vs. Christopher Daniels isn't all that good, but it is hardly awful either, meaning there is not a single bad match on the entire DVD.

 

So, then, with 3 tremendous matches and several other good ones, this one has to rank up with 'Big Bang' and 'Death Before Dishonor' as the best events of the year. It meets every expectation and delivers on all of its promises. It also helps that the Manhatten Centre is absolutely rammed with a legitimate turn-away crowd that know the wrestlers, know the storylines and know what it all means. The result is an energetic, enthusiastic and responsive audience that really makes a difference and makes this come across as a red hot and exciting product. A lot of what ROH has put out in 2010 has been crap, but this just goes to show that when they get it right, they can still put on a thoroughly excellent show. Utterly essential viewing.

 

Full show results:

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

All Night Express (Rhett Titus & Kenny King) beat Kyle O'Reilly & Adam Cole

 

Colt Cabana beat TJ Perkins

 

Sara Del Rey & Sereena Deeb beat Daizee Haze & Amazing Kong

 

Eddie Edwards beat Sonjay Dutt

 

Homicide beat ROH TV Champion Christopher Daniels in a non-title match

 

The Briscoes (Mike & Jay & Mark) beat Kings of Wrestling (Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli & Shane Hagadorn)

 

Roderick Strong beat Davey Richards to retain the ROH World Championship

 

El Generico beat Kevin Steen in a 'Fight Without Honor'

 

[close spoiler]

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Up next: my summary of the year

[gadge]

Ooh, looking forward to that. You're absolutely right about those two O'Reilly sequences. The rolling suplex combo has annoyed me since the first time I saw it.

[Only_The_Strong_Survive]

OH SHIT!

 

 

Controversial, out-spoken, brash

Edited February 21, 2012 by Only_The_Strong_Survive

[Big Benny HG]

~~Big Benny's Big Gay Guide to ROH 2010~~

 

It may have taken me a while, but I'm finally through my 2010 ROH viewing n' reviewing project, so it's time to look back and summarise what the hell it was all about.

 

Index of the Shows

 

SoCal Showdown - 29 Jan

Really good Austin Aries vs Jushin Liger and Wolves/Kings vs. Briscoes/Bucks matches. "Overall, this was an enjoyable show. Nothing spectacular, but plenty enough to make it a worthwhile viewing choice. Sets a good direction for ROH in 2010."

 

8th Anniversary Show - 13 Feb

"8th Anniversary Show was nowhere near as good as the last ROH major event, which also happened to be in this building just 2 months earlier, in terms of being a better overall event. Having said that, Richards/Generico and Aries/Black are cracking matches better than anything on Final Battle and the Steen/Cabana/Corino/Generico situation is absolutely enthralling. Worth checking out."

 

Gold Rush - 19 Mar

"Pretty great main event (Black & Briscoes vs. Hero & Wolves), standing out on a pretty nondescript, totally irrelevant show. As such, I find it hard to recommend this disc to anyone but ROH diehards/hardcores and collectors."

 

Epic Encounter III - 20 Mar

"Overall, this was a pretty good show and worth watching. Although many of the undercard matches are pretty meaningless in the grand scheme of things and you won't have missed anything essential if you don't see them, they are all decent at worst, very good at best. The main event (Richards vs. Omega) is great, and the way the Steen/Generico situation develops (including, believe it or not, Steen's performance in the PLAYER DOS match) is tremendous." Also, the fantastically wonderful BOBBY DEMPSEY GAUNTLET, one of my favourite things from all of 2010.

 

From The Ashes - 26 Mar

Briscoes vs. Wolves, King vs. Lynn Anything Goes "All-in-all, a decent enough show where just about everything on offer is more than acceptable. If you buy it and watch it, you'll enjoy it. Still, for a WM weekend event from ROH, this isn't essential viewing and you could easily get away with skipping it and not feel like you've missed anything critical (assuming the Steen/Generico angle is replayed on VideoWire and such). That is a major step down from ROH's WM weekend events of the past."

 

Phoenix Rising - 27 Mar

Aries vs. Black vs. Strong. "Overall, I could sum up this event exactly the same as last night's - a decent enough event with some good stuff on it that you will get a kick out of, but you can't honestly say you'd miss anything essential or particularly jaw-dropping if you didn't bother. Again, the first time that ROH's WrestleMania weekend events are entirely miss-able. The main focus of the weekend seemed to be about building and previewing 'Big Bang', which it admittedly did do in the same way that 'go-home' TV would before a WWE or TNA PPV (well, less so in the case of TNA, who don't build to anything but next week's TV rating). However, the main problem with that approach is that these were just DVD tapings/house shows, and the DVDs would never be available to actually see this build before the iPPV is broadcast the next weekend. You could argue that they actually then hype the DVD release of 'Big Bang', but I would expect that most people who get these shows would be getting 'Bang' anyway. As such, as stand-alone events, 'From the Ashes' and 'Phoenix Rising' have to come off as disappointments."

 

The Big Bang - 3 Apr

"Overall, this DVD is superb. The World Tag Team Title match (Briscoes vs. Kings) is the best on offer here for me, but the 3-way main event, Richards vs. King, Titus vs. Cassandro and the Generico/Cabana/Steen/Corino tag are all truly excellent as well. Stevens vs. Necro and Zack Salvation vs.Gunner/Murphy are the only real downers to the main feature. A real showcase event, it comes over as a big, significant show and, while I've been rather critical of the 'less important' smaller ROH shows, this is far from that and comes with my highest recommendation."

 

Pick Your Poison - 23 Apr

"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."[/i

 

Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2 - 24 Apr

"With several excellent matches (Generico/Cabana vs. Steen/Corino; Strong vs. Richards; Black vs. Hero) 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."

 

Civil Warfare - 7 May

"Overall, a completely unremarkable DVD release. This was nearly 3 hours of my life that I'll never get back. Avoid."

 

Supercard of Honor V - 8 May

"As a complete package, this is a very good DVD indeed. With several excellent matches (Cabana vs. Steen; Kings vs. MCMG; Black vs. Strong) and the advancing of numerous feuds and storylines, this is an 'A' show that you really should see."

 

Death Before Dishonor VIII - 18 June

Overall, this is pretty much an essential DVD package from ROH. The 'Buffalo Stampede' bonus event is a bit shit, the Toronto Gauntlet and the Aries/Delirious match are a bit dull and the Omega/Daniels bout isn't up to much but, on the other hand, but everything is else is more than worthwhile. All Night Express vs. Up In Smoke is good, but Steen/Generico, Kings/Briscoes and Black/Richards are all superb, and will probably be among the best ROH matches of the entire year. This DVD really shows all aspects of ROH - when it's bad, it's painfully, awfully irrelevant but when they get it right, they get it right. On this occasion, while there is plenty of both, the 'good' is so very, very good that this has to be considered a great DVD, which comes highly recommended from me.

 

Bluegrass Brawl - 22 Jul

"So, then, it would be hard to recommend 'Bluegrass Brawl' as an essential DVD release as being a fantastic top-to-bottom show, since the undercard is beyond nondescript. The top two matches (Black vs. Castagnoli; Briscoes vs. Wolves) do deliver in a big way and are definitely worthwhile checking out, but do they justify the price of a full DVD? I don't think so..."

 

Hate: Chapter II - 23 Jul

Kings & Del Rey vs. Briscoes & Kong; Generico vs. Steen; Bucks vs. Wolves. "Overall, this is a rare example these days of one of the minor ROH events being really, really good and delivering in a big way. A DVD that comes with my recommendation, and an encouraging sign that ROH 'B' shows in 2010 aren't completely worthless."

 

Salvation - 24 Jul

"'Salvation' continues the theme from this weekend triple-header of showcasing ROH's tag team division in a great light (Kings vs. Bucks), as well as providing one of the best 'B' show main events of the year (Black vs. Steen). While there is nothing on this DVD which could be considered unmissable, 'Salvation' is just like 'Hate: Chapter II' the night before in that it is a really strong showing for one of ROH's secondary events. From a series of shows I wasn't expecting much from, this was pretty damn good. "

 

Champions Challenge - 27 Aug

"While the July weekender seemed to indicate there was still such a thing as a decent ROH 'B' show, 'Champions' Challenge' manages to go some way in completely undoing that. A thoroughly rotten DVD, avoid like the plague."

 

Tag Wars 2010 - 28 Aug

"Overall, this is a huge improvement on the previous night's event. Aside from the 6-man tag, there isn't a single bad match on the show, with the main event (Black vs. Richards) being tremendous and the 4-way Tag Wars final being particularly good too. As such, this is an ROH 'B' show DVD that comes with my recommendation."

 

Fade To Black - 10 Sep + The Best of Tyler Black

"If you pick up this DVD for the live show, you'll be sorely disappointed with this release. As such, it is probably best to think of 'Fade to Black' purely as a Best of Tyler Black set and actually treat the show itself as bonus content in support of that. Even then, it's only the last two bouts which should be of interest since the rest of the card is completely and utterly worthless. So then, if you ignore the actual show, 'Fade to Black' is a fantastic collection of some of Tyler Black's finest ROH work all in one compilation. If you don't already have these on original DVDs, then, rather bizarrely when you consider the event itself was poo, I have to give this release a very strong recommendation indeed."

 

Glory By Honor IX - 11 Sep

Generico/Cabana vs. Steen/Corino chain match; Kings vs. WGTT. "So, all-in-all, this is another splendid iPPV event from ROH. There is quality to be found up and down the card and the tag match is worth going out of your way to see. An essential release."

 

Allied Forces - 15 Oct + The Joe vs. Punk Trilogy

"So, while the show itself is pretty underwhelming, the 3 hour+ bonus disc goes a long way in making up for it. Overall, then, this is similar to the recent 'Face to Black' release in that the show itself is very weak indeed, but the inclusion of the bonus material almost makes it an essential package. If you don't already have the Joe vs. Punk matches in your collection, this comes recommended for that very reason. If you do, then 'Allied Forces' is missable in every possible way."

 

Richards vs. Daniels - 16 Oct

"'Richards vs. Daniels' is a pretty good show. The top 3 bouts (Richards vs. Daniels; Kings vs. Briscoes; Cabana vs. Corino) are all well worth going out of your way to see, and the opening tag is decent too. Recommended."

 

Survival of the Fittest - 12 Nov + The Best of Nigel McGuinness

"So, this ends up being another of those bizarre 2010 ROH DVD releases where the main show isn't up to much at all, but the overall package is made to taste so very sweet by throwing in a first-rate themed bonus disc. If you pick this up for the 'Survival of the Fittest', you'll be sorely disappointed, but if you come here looking to check out the McGuinness showcase, you will be left more than satisfied."

 

Fate of an Angel II - 13 Nov

"While 'Fate of an Angel II' doesn't feature anything that could be considered particularly excellent or must-see, there's some decent entertainment to be found here. If you skip this one, you won't have missed much, but if you do pick it up, you're likely to enjoy what is on offer. Vastly, vastly superior to the previous evening's 'Survival of the Fittest' event, anyway..."

 

Tag Title Classic II - 17 Dec

"Overall, this is a very good effort from ROH. The undercard is much like the previous show: nothing special, but definitely solid and enjoyable. The main event (Kings vs. Wolves) is the main meat of this one, though, and is thoroughly worthwhile checking out. Thumbs up for what at first looked like a rather unassuming DVD."

 

Final Battle 2010 - 18 Dec

"So, then, with 3 tremendous matches (Generico vs. Steen; Strong vs. Richards; Kings & Hagadorn vs. The Briscoe Family) and several other good ones, this one has to rank up with 'Big Bang' and 'Death Before Dishonor' as the best events of the year. It meets every expectation and delivers on all of its promises. It also helps that the Manhatten Centre is absolutely rammed with a legitimate turn-away crowd that know the wrestlers, know the storylines and know what it all means. The result is an energetic, enthusiastic and responsive audience that really makes a difference and makes this come across as a red hot and exciting product. A lot of what ROH has put out in 2010 has been crap, but this just goes to show that when they get it right, they can still put on a thoroughly excellent show. Utterly essential viewing."

 

Top 5 ROH Shows of 2010:

(date order)

The Big Bang

Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2

Supercard of Honor V

Death Before Dishonor VIII

Final Battle 2010

 

Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2 just pips Glory By Honor to make it into the Top 5. As I've been saying throughout the reviews, ROH in 2010 is all about the weekly TV on HDNet, building towards a few 'big' showcase events in the year. A lot of the smaller events can really be disregarded, and it is at the big annual titled shows that the best stuff goes down. It is therefore no surprise to see my Top 5 shows made up nearly entirely of the major cards (with the big Glory By Honor and 8th Anniversary Show events being my 6th and 7th choices too). For 2011, I've already made the decision that I'll be sticking to the "larger" shows for my DVD viewing pleasure, and this more than validates that choice. A big surprise, however, was that in 2010 the traditional WrestleMania weekend shows, usually a couple of their biggest of the year, were really low-key, flat and disappointing.

 

Top 15 ROH Singles Matches of 2010:

Davey Richards vs. El Generico (8th Anniversary Show)

Austin Aries vs. Tyler Black (8th Anniversary Show)

Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries vs. Roderick Strong - 3-way elimination match (The Big Bang)

Roderick Strong vs. El Generico (Pick Your Poison)

Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards (Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2)

Tyler Black vs. Chris Hero (Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2)

Colt Cabana vs. Kevin Steen - Deathmatch (Supercard of Honor V)

Tyler Black vs. Roderick Strong (Supercard of Honor V)

Kevin Steen vs. El Generico (Death Before Dishonor VIII))

Tyler Black vs. Davey Richards (Death Before Dishonor VIII)

Tyler Black vs. Claudio Castagnoli (Bluegrass Brawl)

Tyler Black vs. Kevin Steen (Salvation)

Tyler Black vs. Davey Richards (Tag Wars 2010)

Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards (Final Battle 2010)

El Generico vs. Kevin Steen - Fight Without Honor, Mask vs. ROH Career (Final Battle 2010)

 

With no Danielson, no McGuinness and no Pro Wrestling NOAH guest stars, ROH in 2010 has been about trying to get over new stars as the headliners. What did we learn? Well, even though a lot of 2010 has been wildly inconsistent, there is still some real top level quality to be found. The 15 above are the matches I enjoyed the most in the year, which seems to suggest I've found Strong, Aries, Richards and Black the most entertaining this year. It was only in composing this list that I noticed that Black, with 8 of my 15 favourite singles matches, actually had one hell of a run here in 2010 that I maybe didn't actually realise at the time. Thing is, he's gone now as well. Aries has gone too, meaning it looks like ROH may struggle to find legitimate, credible headliners in 2011 without rehashing the same combinations again and again.

 

Also featuring prominently in my list are many of the key bouts from the Generico vs. Steen feud. As I alluded to in my reviews, I was absolutely gripped by this story from start to finish and absolutely engrossed in everything they did. The way it developed was brilliant storytelling and arched perfectly over the course of a calendar year. First, Steen turned on Generico and broke up their team, taking Corino as his mentor. Steen and Corino then goaded Generico at every opportunity, but Generico refused to fight back against his former friend, despite Colt Cabana urging him to. Generico was a distracted emotional wreck, which carried over into his other matches. The moment Generico snapped at Big Bang and finally fought back was incredible. From there, Generico showed new levels of aggression and determination and the pair went at it in some of the bloodiest, most violent grudge matches in ROH history. The Cabana/Corino side feud was almost as compelling, and it all led perfectly to the final battle at Final Battle. Just fantastic storytelling.

 

Top 10 ROH Tag Matches of 2010:

Briscoes vs. Kings of Wrestling (The Big Bang)

El Generico & Colt Cabana vs. Kevin Steen & Steve Corino (The Big Bang)

El Generico & Colt Cabana vs. Kevin Steen & Steve Corino - Streetfight (Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 2)

Kings of Wrestling vs. Motor City Machine Guns (Supercard of Honor V)

Kings of Wrestling vs. Briscoes - No DQ match (Death Before Dishonor VIII)

Kings of Wrestling & Sara Del Rey vs. Briscoes & Amazing Kong (Hate: Chapter II)

El Generico & Colt Cabana vs. Kevin Steen & Steve Corino - double chain match (Glory By Honor IX)

Kings of Wrestling vs. Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin (Glory By Honor IX)

Kings of Wrestling vs. American Wolves (Tag Title Classic II)

Kings of Wrestling & Shane Hagadorn vs. The Briscoe Family (Final Battle 2010)

 

So, what does this tell us? Well, it shows that I've absolutely loved the reformed Kings of Wrestling over the year, and their brilliant year-long series with the Briscoes. It also underlines the point I made above about the Steen/Generico story, with several entries. What is also illustrates, though, is the complete lack of depth within the tag division. Indeed, it is the same few teams cropping up again and again and again. Beyond the Kings, Briscoes and Wolves, ROH didn't really have much in the way of credible, top-line regular tag teams. Sure, the guest appearances of Haas/Benjamin and Shelley/Sabin were superb, but they will need more in the way of regular teams in the future. Thankfully, All Night Express look set to step up, and O'Reilly/Cole have started to look alright too.

 

So, that is that. On with 2011, it seems. 2010 was really hard work at times, a real arduous task. However, while the days of every ROH show offering story development and at least one unmissible match are long gone, there is still a fair bit to keep my interest for now, even if it does mean reducing the amount of ROH shows I actually bother taking a look at. If they can create interest in new headliners to replace those that have moved on and new storylines to replace those that have just ended, ROH in 2011 should be worth a look every now and then...

Edited February 21, 2012 by Big Benny HG

[jackhennessey]

Match announced for the 10th Anniversary show:

House Of Truth vs Amazing Red and TJ Perkins, so thats the name from the early days. Anyone else able to turn up? So that's 3 tag matches now, I like tag matches but some times it can be a bit over kill with the same tricks and tactics.

 

It's only $10, what that's like 7 quid? Yeah I'll be getting it anyways.

[ROHSteven]

The 10th Anniversary Show is slowly becoming a great card. The newly announced tag match should be great, the Tag Title match will be awesome, I'm looking forward to Ciampa/Lethal and even the main event should be good despite the awful build-up.

 

$10 is an absolute steal.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

10 Years Today - two men had a vision:

[PowerButchi]

Cor. What super duper studs!

[ozzfan]

10 years ago today, a paedo and a guy who looks like a paedo created a wrestling company... for paedos.

 

Paedo.

[jackhennessey]

10 years ago today, a paedo and a guy who looks like a paedo created a wrestling company... for paedos.

 

Paedo.

This had me creasing up! If ROh were a person would RF chat it up on line yet? Or would he wait a little longer say 4-6? Oh you said "18" wink wink nudge nudge.

Edited February 24, 2012 by jackhennessey

[Only_The_Strong_Survive]

Caught up on my ROH tv last night (Apart from the 18th February which was unwatchable due to skipping) and i have to say im loving the Embassy Limited angle! Looks like Nana will get pissed off! Gotta love RD Evans, Great on the mic! Steen is priceless as always, Looking forward to the 3 iPPVs next month!

[Only_The_Strong_Survive]

Out today:

 

[Dearly Devoted Dexter]

2010 was a bit of a mixed year for ROH - not quite as dire as some of its low points, while never threatening to reach the heights of the glory days. The big spanner in the works of course, was Tyler Black's departure - or rather, that and the fact Richards wasn't around to take the belt in September, which led to Roderick Strong getting a run which you suspect would otherwise have never happened. Steen and Generico had a cracking feud, although I still think they should have blown it off at GBH - the last few months before FB felt a bit eked out. Kings vs Briscoes started off amazingly, but petered out towards the end will all the Papa Briscoe crap. Chris Daniels had a decent little run in 2010 before running back to Orlando. But then we also had stuff like the fabulously dire Aries vs Delirious feud, which essentially finished Aries in the company. (Delirious survived by becoming booker - not a bad antidote to poor in ring work.) 2010 also saw Homicide's disastrous return to the company. So yeah, a mixed bag.

[gadge]

Daniels also had a good first half of 2011 in ROH, certainly much better than his work in TNA in the second half of the year.

 

The Homecoming 2012 actually looks like a fairly exciting effort by the standards of ROH as it is now..