Ring of Honor
Date: March 1, 2017
Location: Stage AE, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentator: Ian Riccabani

We’re getting very close to the Fifteenth Anniversary Show and now we have a main event set in stone with Christopher Daniels getting his shot at ROH World Champion Adam Cole. Other than that we have the start of the Top Prospect Tournament, which is always a guaranteed look into the future but that could be either a big hit or a big miss. Let’s get to it.

We open with a quick speech from Daniels about his tournament win.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Daniels to welcome Pittsburgh to Ring of Honor. From the day he stepped foot in this company as a long haired babyface named Christopher Daniels (“Well, I don’t know about fresh faced or long haired but I was there!”). He knew it was his destiny to be the ROH World Champion and he has his chance on March 10 in Las Vegas.

Cue Adam Cole and it’s STORYTIME BABY! Cole says he’ll beat Fish in New York City (causing Fish to crack up on commentary) but Daniels looks like he wants a fight with Bullet Club right now. Adam Page runs through the crowd to jump Daniels but Kazarian runs out for the save. Fish: “Take your time Frankie!” Make your own Teddy Long joke.

Adam Page/Adam Cole vs. Addiction

Kazarian and Page head to the floor as Fish accuses Kazarian of hanging his partner out to dry. Daniels doesn’t seem to mind as he hits a good looking suicide dive to take out the Adams. A hurricanrana over the ropes doesn’t quite work though and Cole superkicks Daniels into a commercial.

Back with Cole taking too much time posing and charging into an elbow. The STO is enough for the tag off to Kazarian and a Backstabber plants Cole. House is quickly cleaned and the champ dives into a cutter for two more. Cole and Daniels slug it out in the ring with Daniels planting him off an STO. Daniels loads up the BME but lands on a raised boot, allowing Cole to grab a rollup for the clean pin at 7:43.

Rating: C+. This was more entertaining than I was expecting and that’s always fun. Addiction was a good heel team but I’m digging them even better as faces. The match wasn’t long enough to mean much and I’m somewhat intrigued about the idea of Daniels losing instead of doing the cliched “pin the champ before the title match” bit. If nothing else, Fish was really entertaining on commentary and makes me think he has a prayer in New York, which I’d never buy otherwise.

Kazarian yells at Daniels post match.

Fish cuts a quick promo about how Cole is playing checkers against a chess master. I know that’s the common line but how would a chess player beat a checkers play? I’ve never gotten how that line is supposed to make sense (yes I get what they’re going for).

Kazarian yells at Daniels again in the back.

Bob Evans replaces Fish on commentary, which is likely going to be a theme tonight.

Top Prospect Tournament First Round: John Skyler vs. Sean Carr

Skyler has made a few NXT appearances and calls himself the Southern Savior. Carr is always being asked why he’s not on TV and now he gets the chance. Feeling out process to start as I’m trying to find a reason to care about either of these guys. Skyler wins a slugout and takes him to the mat for a backsplash. It’s off to a chinlock for a bit as Evans talks about how important the ROH seminars really are.

Carr comes back with a superkick (he’s probably getting a job based on that alone) and a second sends Skyler to the floor. A suicide dive knocks John into the barricade. They head to the apron for a kick to the face that was so far from making contact that they had to cut the camera angle. Skyler spears him on the apron (looked cool) but gets caught in a middle rope Codebreaker for two. Back up and Skyler takes him to the middle rope for a super Regal Roll and the pin at 6:12.

Rating: C. Yeah I still don’t know who either of these guys are (Skyler was never much in NXT) and I have next to no reason to care about any of them. That’s always the problem with this tournament and it doesn’t seem to be getting any better with this edition. The match was fine but nothing exceptional, which makes for a rather uninteresting match when I have no reason to care because there’s no story.

The Kingdom thinks they’ll keep the titles forever and haven’t forgotten about Dalton Castle and the Boys. These titles continue to be the most worthless belts I’ve ever seen, including the Never Six Man Titles.

Tempura Boyz vs. Motor City Machine Guns

And never mind because the Guns have been attacked. No match.

We run down the Manhattan Mayhem card with Bobby Fish and Adam Cole giving some simple promos to set up their match. Cole has gotten much, much better on the mic.

Dalton Castle and the Boys are getting a Six Man Tag Team Title shot. They lost to the champs and the Rebellion but THEY’RE GETTING A TITLE SHOT??? I know I’d normally say they should have built a division before they have champions but New Japan did it first so it must be ok.

TV Title: Donovan Dijak vs. Marty Scurll

Marty is defending after Dijak won a big elimination match a few weeks back. The Code of Honor as Scurll throws a kick instead. Dijak knocks him outside instead and nails a suicide dive followed by a great looking springboard elbow for a near fall. Scurll knees his way out of a suplex attempt and we take a break.

Back with Scurll chopping away on the floor and Dijak getting kicked in the head for his efforts. Marty loads up a running kick so Dijak moonsaults off the apron to escape. That’s just scary athleticism. Scurll doesn’t really care as he kicks Dijak in the head for a near fall. Dijak is tired of getting kicked in the head (can’t say I blame him) as he picks Scurll up for a suplex but just tosses him with ease.

The chokebreaker is broken up as we see Lio Rush (#1 contender) watching on the stage. A sitout spinebuster gets two on the champ and it’s off to another break. Back again with Scurll elbowing his way out of another chokebreaker and kicking Dijak in the head. A piledriver gets two and Dijak is getting all fired up. Feast Your Eyes is only good for two and Scurll breaks the fingers to take over again. The crossface chickenwing and another broken finger (that sound never gets old) make Dijak tap at 13:39.

Rating: B+. This was all about the evil technician vs. the athletic freak but the fact that Dijak had already announced his exit from the promotion didn’t do it any favors. Scurll is getting better and better in this role as he just feels like a villain no matter how you look at him. I could go for more Dijak though as he’s just scary with the athleticism.

Rush comes to the ring and gets kicked in the head but the Rebellion comes out to chase Scurll off. The banged up Machine Guns and Jay White come out for another save and it’s a staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Good show here which ROH has been needing for a few weeks now. The wrestling was better but more importantly than that it felt like they were actually getting ready for a big show. Fish is a good choice for the Manhattan challenger but the money seems to be in having Daniels make a run at the belt. Finally, I’m still not much of a Riccabani fan but I’d gladly take him as a neutral commentator over someone trying to play a character.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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Ring of Honor
Date: February 22, 2017
Location: Center Stage Theater, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentator: Kevin Kelly

We’re finally ready for the end of the Decade of Excellence Tournament with Jay Briscoe vs. Christopher Daniels in what should be a pretty obvious ending based on the story they’ve been going with. Other than that there’s a good chance we’ll be seeing more Bullet Club because that’s how this place works. Let’s get to it.

The opening recap of course looks at the tournament, as it should.

Opening sequence.

Silas Young vs. Bull James

An early Beer City Bruiser distraction lets Silas get in a few early cheap shots but James puts his feet on Silas’ shoulders and pulls him out to the floor. That was supposed to be an ankle scissors but the lack of ANY grip around Silas’ head made it clear he was flipping himself. Another Bruiser distraction lets Silas hit a flip dive to take James down and we take a break.

Back with Young working on a cravate as the fans tell someone that they’re fat. It’s not a good sign when you can’t tell if they’re yelling at the face in the match or the heel manager. Bull makes his comeback with a Flip Flop and Fly followed by an elbow for two (you’re no Dusty Rhodes kid). James goes up but opts to run (work with me here) at the Bruiser for a tornado DDT off the apron instead. Back in and Misery puts James away at 7:48.

Rating: D-. Matt Borne told Bull James that he would make a million dollars in this business. I think this is proof that Borne wasn’t that bright. This is a rare match where all the good is on one guy and all the bad is on another. James is just big, slow and completely uninteresting. Young was doing what he could be he was limited by dealing with a horrible opponent.

Jay Briscoe was the first man to come through the curtain at a Ring of Honor show and it’s all about the numbers. It’s been fifteen years, ten years, eight time Tag Team Champion, three time World Champion or whatever. All that matters now is one, and that’s Christopher Daniels.

We look back at Bobby Fish’s rise to the main event, including winning Survival of the Fittest and then making Adam Cole tap last week. Those were just steps towards becoming World Champion because that’s the only thing that matters. No one works harder than he does and he promises to win the World Title on March 4. Fish has dominated every title he’s ever set his sight on and this will be no different. He gets in a good catchphrase with “Being Bobby Fish is good enough.”

Colt Cabana vs. The Boys

Yes this feud is still going. Before the match, Cabana laughs off the idea of Dalton Castle (on commentary here) thinking he’s the better man. Cabana: “I’m a legend!” Dalton names them #1 and #2 as the beating begins, despite the lack of an opening bell. Colt easily works them over until a double pose sends him outside. Back from a break (In this match?) with Cabana doing some Bionic Elbows and hiptossing #1 over the top for a big crash. Colt throws #1 into Dalton, hits the Chicago Skyline on #2 and grabs the Billy Goat’s Curse for the tap out at about 6:00. Not enough to rate but it was a long squash.

Daniels lists all of his accomplishments but none of them matter without winning the World Title. It is his destiny to win the title and it will cement him as the best instead of the best that never was.

Video on the history of the Top Prospect Tournament, which starts up next week.

Mark Briscoe and Frankie Kazarian come out for commentary on the main event. That’s a good idea actually.

Decade of Excellence Tournament Finals: Jay Briscoe vs. Christopher Daniels

The winner gets a World Title match at the Fifteenth Anniversary Show. Before the match, Daniels says Briscoe is the last obstacle between him and destiny. Briscoe says this isn’t personal at all. Feeling out process to start and both guys fail at an early finisher. Back from a break with Jay having to fight out of a headlock with the announcers keeping things calm.

Briscoe starts swinging and kicks Daniels in the face to take over as it seems he’s playing the default heel, though it’s not like the fans dislike either guy. Daniels gets in an STO and scores with a Lionsault for two. There’s a Koji Clutch (love that move) for a good bit until Jay makes the rope.

Angel’s Wings have to be broken up and Kazarian is quoting Karate Kid. Back from a second break with Jay hitting a suicide dive but getting caught with a springboard moonsault to put both guys down on the floor. The seconds both head to ringside and it’s a double crossbody to put both guys down inside. Double clotheslines have no effect so it’s time for a slugout. A quick Angel’s Wings gets two on Jay and frustration is setting in.

Jay is slow to get up but grabs the Death Valley Driver for a breather. Daniels misses the BME and gets his head taken off with a clothesline for two more. The drama is getting really strong here and the fans are split, as you might expect. With the Jay Driller not working, Jay takes him to the top but gets crotched for his efforts. A super Angel’s Wings is enough to give Daniels the tournament at 18:03.

Rating: B. Good, clean ending here and that’s all it should have been. This didn’t need to be an angle filled match because Daniels is going to be the mega face going into the title match and you don’t need some stupid cheating to get him there. I’m actually wanting to see Daniels win the title and that’s not something I expected. I’ve never been a big Daniels guy but they’ve nailed the story here and that’s what matters.

They shake hands to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. That main event was good but it’s not enough to make up for the rest of the show being such a disaster. It really is telling to see how horrible the rest of the show is compared to the one good thing they have going at the moment. Ring of Honor is a mess at the moment and I can’t imagine things getting much better anytime soon. We’re coming up on Wrestlemania season, which should be the biggest time of the year for any promotion, but there’s nothing even lukewarm right now around here and that’s a very bad sign.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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Ring of Honor
Date: February 15, 2017
Location: Center Stage Theater, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Mark Briscoe

We’re still getting ready for the Fifteenth Anniversary Show and that means we’re still getting ready for the finals of the Decade of Excellence Tournament. The big story from last week is Donovan Dijak earning a TV Title shot against Champion Marty Scurll, which may or may not take place at the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Cody Rhodes is sitting in a dark room smoking a cigar. He goes over some of his former gimmicks and asks if the world is ready for the American Nightmare.

Opening sequence.

Adam Page vs. Matt Sells

Page jumps him during the entrances and hits a Helluva Kick in the corner. A toss into the post sets up the Rite of Passage for the pin at 1:14. The match was such a squash that we cut to the commentary team twice in less than seventy five seconds and Page never took his jacket off.

Post match the rest of the Bullet Club comes out, including Cody as the big deal. Cody gets a huge face reaction from his hometown fans but rips on the crowd because this is such a garbage city. Ever since he moved in to the richer neighborhoods, Cody knew that he and his family were better than the rest of the people in the town. Right now though, he’d like to have Jay Lethal come out here for a chat. Cue Lethal who charges into the ring after some trash talk. Cue Bobby Fish to try and help (he and Lethal are teaming up tonight), followed by Alex Shelley, Lio Rush and Jay White for the real save as we take a break.

Jay Lethal/Bobby Fish vs. Adam Cole/Cody

This was scheduled for later but we’re doing it right now. Fish clotheslines Cody down to start as Kelly praises Mark for not jumping in and helping on the brawl. We head outside with the Club taking over on Fish as Lethal should be a bit more helpful than that. Cody suplexes Cole onto Fish for two and we hit the chinlock.

The beating takes us into a break but we come back with the illegal Lethal chopping Cole down. It’s not enough for the hot tag though as Cody dances a bit and stomps Fish back into the corner. Fish gets in an exploder suplex and there’s the hot tag to Lethal. Everything breaks down (as it always tends to do) and the Lethal Injection hits Cole….who isn’t legal.

There’s a Lethal Combination to Cole as Fish runs over Cody, putting all four down at the same time. Back from a second break with Lethal hitting the suicide shove on Cody, which even the announcers acknowledge didn’t have a ton of effect. Fish ducks a Shining Wizard and Cole taps to the kneebar at 14:02.

Rating: B-. The idea here was to set up Fish’s title shot in Manhattan and while I don’t buy Fish as having a prayer at winning there, this was as good of an idea as they could have used to set it up. Unfortunately the multiple breaks really cut things off here and there’s only so much you can do when such a large portion of the match is cut off like that.

Since this was the main event, Dalton Castle/the Boys vs. the Rebellion has been switched into its place. Therefore, Dalton wants to see some angry teeth from the Boys.

Mark Briscoe is ready to see his brother become #1 contender and win the title in Las Vegas.

Frankie Kazarian wants to see Daniels win because it’s Daniels’ last chance. One day Daniels is going to run out of tomorrows and the business is going to tell him it’s time to go. That’s what the business does and this is Daniels painting himself into a corner with his own blood. After this tournament, Daniels could either be at the peak of his career or he could be on his way out.

Quick hype for the Hardys vs. the Young Bucks. I still love the fact that there has been no mention of the Bucks going to TNA in this whole thing.

Mark Briscoe vs. Sal Rinauro

Kelly not knowing this match was coming was rather amusing. Sal dances to start and gets headlocked for his efforts. Mark sends him outside for the Blockbuster from the apron but Rinauro (who is a former Tag Team Champion but gets a LET’S GO JOBBER chant) grabs a Michinoku Driver for two. That just earns him a fisherman’s buster, followed by the Froggy Bow to give Mark the pin at 2:59.

Bobby Fish talks about how great of a tag team wrestler he was before ReDRagon broke up as both guys wanted to pursue singles careers. He made the TV Title important and now it’s no longer as important, at least until he decides to win it again. I’m assuming this was to hype up the Cole match but he never mentioned Cole or the title match.

Rebellion vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys

Beer City Bruiser and Silas Young are on commentary. King strikes a pose in front of Castle to start so we have the third dancing sequence of the show (kind of at least). Dalton gets chopped to officially get things going but he takes Kenny down with a waistlock for his efforts. Titus comes in for a staredown but it’s quickly off to one of the Boys (names would be appreciated). Unfortunately the match is ignored at this point because Beer City Bruiser is out of beer. King talks trash but here’s Colt Cabana with a six pack for the Bruiser.

Back with Bruiser drinking beer (just labeled “beer”) and Cabana taking his place on commentary. The beating of Boy #1 continues as the announcers argue over whether Cabana should go in and beat Castle up. Kelly calls them Boy #1 and Boy #2 (Cabana: “Boy oh boy.”) as #1 gets over and makes the hot tag to Castle. Dalton’s lifting German suplex gets two on King as everything breaks down. Castle hits back and forth running knees until he gets launched out to the floor. That leaves Boy #2 to take the Sky Splitter and the frog splash from Titus is good for the pin at 10:04.

Rating: D-. Where do I even begin? First of all: the Rebellion sucks and there’s no other way to put it. They’re not a good team and the wrestlers aren’t all that great but above all else the gimmick is just horrible. How many indy companies have something like that and how many of them are nothing compared to ROH? Other than that most of this match was set up to be a story about Cabana and the Bruiser instead of ANYTHING else. It had no business being the main event but for whatever reason, they switched this with a match that had actual star power and a decent story.

Overall Rating: D. What in the world is going on with this company right now? The World Title is barely a thing, the TV shows are all over the place, the big story is about waiting on a #1 contender and right now the big draw is bringing in a TNA team to face a team that would rather be in Japan.

When did Ring of Honor go flying off the rails like this? The show is a huge mess and I have no idea what the heck the point of this promotion is anymore. Right now it’s a big combination of everyone leaving and trying to throw things together with the leftover pieces. If an argument over who should be the co-commentator on the main event is the best story they’ve got, they’re in major trouble.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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Ring of Honor
Date: February 8, 2017
Location: Center Stage Theater, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Colt Cabana

We’re getting closer to the 15^th Anniversary Show and tonight it’s about the minor titles. First up we’ll have the Young Bucks defending the ROH Tag Team Titles against the Tempura Boyz. After that though we have a six way match to crown a new #1 contender to Marty Scurll’s TV Title. Let’s get to it.

BJ Whitmer/Punishment Martinez vs. War Machine

It’s a brawl to start as Cabana is in full on heel mode, talking about how awesome he is at everything in life. Rowe takes over on Martinez to start but misses the shotgun knees in the corner, allowing Whitmer to get in a cheap shot from the apron. We take a way too early break and come back with Hanson cleaning house with back and forth corner clotheslines to Whitmer and Martinez.

To make things even worse, Hanson puts Martinez on the top rope and rams Whitmer’s head into Punishment’s ribs over and over. An overhead belly to belly makes things worse for Whitmer as everything breaks down. Whitmer gets in his exploder suplex but grabs a table instead of covering. Cabana doesn’t care for the lack of disqualifications but settles for a double countout at 9:43.

Rating: C+. This is what the match should have been as War Machine is a great power brawling team. Whitmer is fine once they cut off the Kevin Sullivan nonsense and Martinez is capable of doing some very horrible looking things to jobbers if given the chance. I had fun with this one and the ending was one of the only logical ways to go.

They brawl to another break after the match.

Kingdom vs. John Skyler/Corey Hollis/Joe A’Gau

Non-title. The Kingdom doesn’t waste time as they take Joe to the floor for a triple bomb. Hollis gets sent into the post and it’s Skyler alone against all three champions. That means a triple teaming but a double underhook backbreaker only gets two. A superkick into an enziguri gets the same as we hear about T.K. O’Ryan being a sassy horse. Skyler finally slips out and of a pumphandle and dives over for the hot tag to Hollis. Everything breaks down and the Triple Bomb ends Hollis at 5:03.

Rating: C. Better than I was expecting here with the jobbers getting to put in a little more offense than you would have thought. The Kingdom is still not all that interesting because it’s just Matt Taven (who wasn’t that interesting in the first place) plus two guys who just debuted as part of the team. Give us a little more and maybe I’ll care but that isn’t the case yet.

Post match the Kingdom says they’ll never lose the titles but here are Dalton Castle and the Boys to interrupt. Taven isn’t impressed and says bring it on, which shows how short the aisle really is in this arena. Dalton gets in but Cabana shoves the Boys down.

We look back at the Young Bucks agreeing to defend against the Tempura Boyz.

Colt Cabana leaves commentary due to a zero tolerance policy.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Tempura Boyz

The Bucks are defending and it’s Nick cleaning house on Sho to start, including an assisted superkick to send him outside. Back from an early break with the Bucks in full control (duh) and a big highlight reel from the champs. Matt kicks Nick by mistake though and we get stereo deadlift German suplexes on the floor.

Things settle down again with the Bucks actually in a bit of trouble…which of course lasts all of ten seconds before some kicks and dives get them out of trouble. That means a SUCK IT/DELETE chant from Matt but Nick gets caught in a Boston crab. Cue the superkick for the save and the corner enziguri sets up the 450 to retain the titles at 9:27.

Rating: C-. Not much to see here but that’s so often the case with Young Bucks matches. I’m not entirely sure on the idea of the Bucks vs. the Hardys but it’s one of the biggest indy matches you can do at this point. If nothing else it gives me a great chuckle at the idea of the Bucks never showing up in TNA, making them look even worse by comparison, which is always a good thing.

Post match Hangman Page comes out to help the Bucks lay the Boyz out.

Marty Scurll loves the idea of six people fighting for a shot at his title.

Lio Rush vs. Chris Sabin vs. Alex Shelley vs. Donovan Dijak vs. Jonathan Gresham vs. Jay White

One fall to a finish and all six hug before the match. Scurll, on commentary, wants to gag at the sight. Thankfully there are tags here so it’s not quite as insane, though it’s under Lucha Rules, meaning going to the floor counts as a tag. Speaking of which, that exact rules quickly gives us Rush vs. Dijak with Marty saying he can do everything Lio can do. I’m already liking Scurll and I’ve heard him talk for all of a minute and a half.

Everything breaks down and we wind up with Shelley calling a spot to Rush, who can’t quite fight his way out of the corner. With Scurll, who is holding an umbrella, talking about the Power Rangers, Sabin and Shelley argue for a bit, only to quickly hug us to a break. Back with Sabin knocking Shelley to the floor but getting Stunned by Gresham. White and Rush get into a very fast paced exchange with Jay getting the better of it as Rush is knocked out to the floor.

Dijak gets Rock Bottomed (Scurll: “I would kick out of this.”) for two and it’s time to hit the dives. Scurll: “THEY’RE ALL GONNA DIE! I could do that!” Dijak adds a springboard corkscrew dive so Gresham and Rush double team the big guy down. Gresham goes up top but the freaking Rebellion comes out to get in a big brawl. Back in and Rush kicks Dijak in the head but his top rope dive is caught by the throat. Feast Your Eyes gives Dijak the shot at 9:45.

Rating: C+. This was the usual over done match with too many people involved. The action was good though and that’s what matters most here, along with Dijak getting the title shot. I mean, he’s not going to win the thing because he’s leaving but it’s a nice bone to throw him on the way out.

Scurll stares him down.

War Machine is brawling with Whitmer/Martinez in the back to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Just a show really as they’re still setting up the pay per view with a long time to go. I’m not sure how interesting that show is going to be with all the names that are rumored to be leaving the promotion but it’s nice to have a show focused on the ROH names instead of everyone else possible for a change.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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Ring of Honor
Date: February 1, 2017
Location: Center Stage Theater, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentator: Kevin Kelly

I’m not sure what to expect from this show other than probably the other semifinal match in the Decade of Excellence Tournament. We’re getting closer to the 15^th Anniversary Show and that means we need to start putting together a card already. This could be anything and that means it could be fun. Let’s get to it.

We open with Adam Cole bragging about winning the World Title for an unprecedented third time. Not much to see here other than “Cole is awesome.”

You might be more familiar with Center Stage as WCW Saturday Night’s home.

Tempura Boyz vs. Coast to Coast vs. Cheeseburger/Will Ferrara

Coast to Coast is Leon St. Giovanni and Shahim Ali. The Tempura Boyz (Yo and Cho) send Coast to Coast outside to start but get kicked in the face for their efforts. Leon gets back in and fires off some elbows to the face so here are the Boyz again to clean house for the first time. Cheeseburger dives on a bunch of people and Cho does the same for an even bigger crash.

This time it’s Leon hitting a big corkscrew dive but here are the Young Bucks to watch (and take all the attention of course) as we take a break. Back with Ferrara taking a Shatter Machine to give Yo two and the Bucks on commentary to talk about the Hardys. The Bucks decide that the winners of this match are the new #1 contenders as Coast to Coast starts taking over. Stereo Coast to Coast dropkicks get two on Ferrara but a quick package piledriver puts Ali away at 7:24.

Rating: C. Just your standard indy style three way with no particular rhyme or reason to anything but that’s how it works around here. The Boyz aren’t all that interesting so that’s why they won and therefore get the title shot. At least the match meant something for a change, which is more than you can say about a lot of ROH matches. The double dropkick wasn’t bad but other than that it was a bunch of flip dives by people I had issues telling apart.

Post match the Bucks announce the title match and superkick the Boyz. This brings out Adam Cole for his first comments as champion. That means STORYTIME with Cole calling himself a legend and a history maker. Cole laughs off the idea of having various challengers, such as Dalton Castle, who is just a gimmick. Then there’s Bobby Fish and Cole might as well get rid of the other half of ReDRagon. Finally, he’s beaten Jay Briscoe and Jay Lethal so he can just do it again. For some reason Cole left off Christopher Daniels, which suggests that he’s winning the tournament.

Video on Juice Robinson.

TV Title: Marty Scurll vs. Juice Robinson

Robinson is challenging and Alex Shelley is on commentary. Scurll mocks Robinson like a bird for some reason and it’s already off to the left arm work. A shoulder goes nowhere so Marty slaps him in the face and does the bird a bit more. Scurll cranks on the arm some more and we take a break.

Back with Robinson hitting a top rope headbutt and a heck of a clothesline for two. I’m not much on Robinson but he certainly does hit hard. A good powerbomb gets two more but Juice grabs a superplex, followed by a superkick, to send Juice outside. Marty whips him hard into the barricade and gets two off a piledriver. That means it’s time to snap a finger and the crossface chickenwing makes Robinson tap at 10:34.

Rating: B-. Much better than I was expecting here as Robinson certainly has some fight in him. Marty is a good choice for a champion but I’d like to hear some more from him instead of just watching him do chickenwings every match. He’s still good (at being evil that is) and it’s hardly too late to make him work.

Post match Marty issues an open challenge for a title shot. Cue Chris Sabin, Jonathan Gresham, Donovan Dijak, Jay White and Lio Rush to answer for a nice change of pace. If there’s an open challenge like that, you would think more than one person would answer. Why doesn’t that happen more often? After a break, all of the challengers (plus Alex Shelley) agree to a six way match for the title shot next week.

Jay Lethal and Jay Briscoe are ready to fight in the tournament.

Decade of Excellence Tournament Semifinals: Jay Lethal vs. Jay Briscoe

Frankie Kazarian is on commentary this time as I think we’ve got a running theme. They lock up to start but nothing of note happens until Cole comes out to watch. That means an early break and we come back with the slow pace picking up a bit as Briscoe grabs a hurricanrana. They seem to hit head, setting up an early Jay Driller for two. Lethal bails to the floor which means one heck of a suicide dive.

Back in and a hard clothesline gets two more as this is all Briscoe so far. Briscoe slowly hammers away as Cole rips on the fans at the upcoming Texas house shows. Back with Lethal getting two off a Lethal Combination and shoving Briscoe off the top to set up Hail to the King. That doesn’t quite work so let’s hit a Figure Four instead (Cole: “I INVENTED THAT MOVE!”). After the rope grab, Lethal misses the Injection and gets his head clotheslined off for the pin at 13:28.

Rating: B-. These two have some awesome chemistry but the time issues hurt things a lot here. Briscoe vs. Daniels will be a solid match though that promo earlier really suggests that they’ve spoiled the ending. I could go for Daniels getting a shot at the title and beating Briscoe would make him seem feel like more of a main event player.

Cole says he’ll be facing Briscoe for the title, again overlooking Daniels.

Overall Rating: B. That’s one of the best TV shows they’ve had in a good while, which says a lot considering there’s a lot on here that feels like it really doesn’t matter. I’m looking forward to seeing where they go with the Anniversary Show, which is a lot more than I can say for several of the most recent pay per views. Good stuff this week, which sounds rather strange to say around here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the History of the WWE’s Big Four Pay Per Views, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:

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Ring of Honor
Date: January 25, 2017
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

Tonight we’re looking at the Brits as the TV Champion Marty Scurll and his archnemesis Will Ospreay are both here tonight. It would be nice if that doesn’t turn into something about Japan for a change but Ospreay is part of the Chaos stable so I don’t have my hopes up. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video on Scurll and Ospreay for a really good visual of how different they are.

Opening sequence.

Jonathan Gresham vs. Marty Scurll

Non-title. Marty sends him into the corner and of course tells him to bring it on, which might have included some rather rude British hand symbols. Gresham works on the arm for a bit before getting chopped in the corner for his efforts. Scurll bounces out of a headscissors on the mat and sends Gresham outside for a hard superkick to the head. Back from a break with Marty standing on Jonathan’s legs and ripping on his nose. That really is villany.

They trade strange chokes on the mat until Marty is sent to the apron, only to miss a slingshot….something. Some very fast standing switches allowing Gresham to grab la majistral for two. A rollup gives Gresham another very close two but Scurll slams him onto the ropes. Marty superkicks him into a broken finger, setting up the crossface chickenwing to retain the title at 11:26.

Rating: C+. Gresham is a pretty dull guy but he can go out there and wrestle a very solid match when he’s given the chance. I had more fun with this one than I was expecting and Scurll is a solid choice for a heel champion, especially when he gets to be evil with stuff like breaking the fingers. Good little match here, which is surprising.

We get clips of Adam Cole winning the World Title back from Kyle O’Reilly at Wrestle Kingdom.

Jay Lethal is ready to beat anyone left in his quest to get the World Title back.

Jay Briscoe is ready for the other Jay….which means Lethal of course and not Jay White or any other Jay that I can’t remember around here.

Decade of Excellence Semi-Finals: Christopher Daniels vs. Chris Sabin

Kazarian is on commentary. Feeling out process to start with neither guy being able to get anywhere off a wristlock. Sabin sends him outside by the leg and hits a quick suicide dive, followed by a chinlock which doesn’t exactly fit with a speed guy. Chris takes him outside and gets sent head first into the barricade to send us to a break.

Back with Daniels putting on a chinlock but Sabin hurricanranas his way out of the Angel’s Wings. A running flip dive from the apron to the floor drops Daniels again and some more kicks have him in more trouble. Not that it matters as he grabs the Koji Clutch for a breather. That goes nowhere of course so Sabin misses a charge into the corner and takes the Best Moonsault Ever to give Daniels the pin at 11:47.

Rating: C+. Another good match here and that’s the best thing that you can get out of Daniels right now. He’s been on a roll since right before Ladder War and I’d love to see him get a quick title reign, just for the sake of all those years that he’s spent stuck in the midcard. It would be a cool moment and while I don’t think they’ll do it, there’s always a chance and that would be awesome.

Daniels helps Sabin up.

Kevin Sullivan’s Dark Army is standing around a barrel of fire with Sullivan being angry at Corino. Steve can get out of trouble if he brings Sullivan the golden one. Laughter ensues.

Dragon Lee vs. Will Ospreay vs. Kushida

One fall to a finish and sweet goodness I’m not even going to try to keep track of what’s going on in this thing. Everyone flips and spins around to start and it’s a big standoff for a standing ovation. Back from a very early break with….more clips of Cole vs. O’Reilly. Back to the actual match, Kushida gets in a shot to Will’s arm to keep him on the floor, only to have Lee pull Kushida into an STF.

Kushida, with light-up shoes on, cranks on Lee’s arm until Ospreay comes back in. Lee is sent to the floor as Ospreay gets caught in an armbar, only to have Ospreay come right back with a handspring into a kick to the face. Ospreay dives out to the floor to take Kushida out but Lee dives onto both of them for a huge crash.

It’s time to crank it up with Ospreay trying a shooting star off the apron and landing on his feet outside. Lee takes both of them out and we head to another break, this time with no Cole vs. O’Reilly. A suplex into a powerbomb gives Lee two on Kushida but Ospreay tries two moonsaults, only to switch up into a standing shooting star for another near fall on Kushida.

Lee muscles Kushida up in a German suplex but Ospreay drops Lee and all three are down. Back up and Lee snaps off a reverse hurricanrana on Ospreay and there’s the Hoverboard Lock on Will. That goes nowhere so Ospreay tries a springboard cutter, only to get caught in another Hoverboard Lock. One heck of a spinning DDT plants Ospreay and Kushida FINALLY puts Ospreay down for the pin at 14:43.

Rating: B. Now this was more like it with the Super Crazy vs. Tajiri vs. Little Guido formula from ECW. There’s just something cool about watching three talented high fliers spin around and do all kinds of spots that only the three of them can do. This was entertainment for the sake of entertainment and there’s nothing wrong with that.

We see the end of Cole pinning O’Reilly to win the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was the kind of entertaining show that it needed to be with a lot of entertaining wrestling and some moderate story progression. I like the idea of having some new characters brought in and everything was a lot of fun. Just do more stuff like this instead of doing the same boring stuff that this show has a tendency to put on.

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Ring of Honor
Date: January 18, 2017
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a bit of a big week around here as we have the final first round match in the Decade of Excellence Tournament to go along with whatever BJ Whitmer meant by a sacrifice. If that means we don’t have to watch any more Kevin Sullivan ever again….well that wouldn’t be so much a sacrifice but rather a very nice surprise. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Jay White/Lio Rush/Donovan Dijak vs. The Rebellion

They’re in military gear now because this thing needs to keep going. It’s a big brawl to start with the Rebellion being thrown to the floor with ease. Back in and Rush gets triple teamed so the Rebellion can take over. An elbow drop/legdrop/splash sequence gets two on Rush before a quick sprint around the ring allows for a diving tag off to White.

House is cleaned for all of thirty seconds before a spinebuster gives King two. Back from a break with everything breaking down again and the Rebellion getting taken down with a cool looking stereo triple dive. Dijak gets to clean some house and it’s Lio getting on the big man’s shoulders to splash Coleman for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: C. Good enough match here but the Rebellion is so horribly uninteresting. This could have been a lot worse but at least White and Dijak looked good. Rush has some solid dives but I’m still not sold on him in general. I’m still not seeing the point of the trios matches either but the Rebellion losing is a good thing.

Post match the Rebellion destroys the winners but take it easy on Rush. Chris Sabin comes in for the save.

Video on Marty Scurll, who is a natural villain.

Video on Cody (Rhodes) turning heel at Final Battle.

Here’s Cody for a chat. He thinks he’s gotten off on the wrong foot with the fans because they thought they were going to judge him. Really, he’s there to judge all of them because there was this horrid smell of mediocrity at Final Battle. A heckling fan shouts something about Brandi but Cody says they don’t deserve that. Take your chance now to take his picture because it must be nice to finally have a star that hasn’t faded in this building.

Cue Steve Corino in wrestling gear of all things as Kevin Sullivan and company come out. Cody: “You’re taller than I thought you would be.” He brings up Corino saying he never respected Dusty Rhodes in this very building back in 1999. The fans chant for Dusty and after talk of a sacrifice in a story I probably don’t care about, the match is ready to go.

Cody vs. Steve Corino

One bionic elbow is enough to take us to a break because that’s how wrestling works. Back with Corino baseball sliding him into the barricade and they fight on the floor. Apparently Corino has officially joined Kevin Sullivan as we hear about the Dusty Rhodes vs. Kevin Sullivan feud from THIRTY YEARS AGO IN FLORIDA which is the whole reason Cody is involved here.

Corino gets beaten down for a bit until a right hand sends Cody outside. A quick spit of water blinds Corino and it’s time to go after his bad knee. The Bionic Elbow and Flip, Flop and Fly from Corino (who I think is supposed to be the villain here as he’s joined the heel stable….which also includes Cody) set up the package piledriver for no cover. Steve goes outside and gets the golden spike but the referee says no, allowing a low blow to set up the Disaster Kick. A Dusty elbow gives Cody the pin at 5:33.

Rating: D+. I’m assuming this is Corino’s swan song in ROH and it’s a shame that he’s stuck ridiculous story. Let me make this very clear: to really get this story, you probably had to be watching the Florida territory back in the 80s. How in the world does ROH think that’s the best possible idea? What do we need Sullivan in there for anyway? How does that make things better?

Jay Lethal runs in and chases Cody off. Back from a break, Jay goes on a rant against Cody for trying to cheat his way to the top around here. Cody is just smoke and mirrors and one day soon, Lethal will get his revenge. For now though, it’s Decade of Excellence time.

Recap of the tournament.

Decade of Excellence Tournament First Round: Jay Lethal vs. Jushin Thunder Liger

After a handshake, Lethal stomps him down to start and gets two off a dropkick. Another dropkick puts Jushin on the floor and that means three suicide dives. Those are only good for two and Lethal can’t hit a superplex. Liger grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and there’s a running flip dive off the apron to take Jay down again.

Back with the Lethal Combination dropping Liger but Jay can’t follow up. An enziguri sets up a torture rack of all things but Lethal turns it into a reverse Regal Roll to set up a Crossface. An awkward looking Hail to the King is reversed into a crucifix for two and that means running palm strikes. Jay will have none of this and it’s the Lethal Injection for the pin at 10:15.

Rating: C-. This was just two guys doing moves to each other until one of them won and that’s not exactly thrilling stuff. Liger is a legend but this felt like “hey I’m Jushin Liger and I am in fact here”. Lethal going forward makes sense and this is little more than a way for him to advance to the second round. Nothing great here though it was fine.

They bow to each other to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Not every show can be major and that was certainly the case here. It wasn’t exactly interesting and the matches were nothing special. What we had was a trio of mostly forgettable matches with stories that aren’t exactly thrilling. There’s a firm gap between the top stories and the lower level stuff and that was firmly on display here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Ring of Honor
Date: January 11, 2017
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back to the regular schedule this week and that means the Decade of Excellence tournament continues. The winner gets a World Title shot at the 15^th Anniversary Show against new World Champion Adam Cole, who won the title for an unprecedented third time at Wrestle Kingdom 11. Let’s get to it.

We open with clips of Christopher Daniels defeating Mark Briscoe in the first tournament match.

Daniels talks about being around for the start of Ring of Honor. He’s been around for fifteen years because there is no expiration date on destiny. I’ve never been a big Daniels fan but I could really go for him winning the tournament and the title. He’s earned it with some excellent promos recently and it would be cool to see.

Opening sequence.

Decade of Excellence Tournament First Round: Jay Briscoe vs. BJ Whitmer

Unfortunately this means we get to hear about Kevin Sullivan, who is still at ringside. Whitmer pokes Jay in the eyes to start and chops him in the back of the head a few times. Jay’s running clothesline in the corner rocks Whitmer but they head outside where Punishment Martinez offers a distraction so BJ can take over.

Back from a break as I continue to loathe all things associated with this Sullivan story, save for Martinez of course. Whitmer runs into an elbow and it’s time for some snap punches. A suicide dive takes Whitmer into the barricade but Jay might have banged up his elbow. Whitmer seems to be enjoying the pain so Jay punches him a few more times, only to get caught in an exploder suplex for two. It’s time for the spike but Mark Briscoe comes out for the save, allowing the Jay Driller to score the pin at 9:57.

Rating: C-. Not bad here and the lack of Sullivan doing anything of note helped a lot. Briscoe advancing is a big deal as he’s still one of the top stars in the company and can be turned into a big dragon (albeit a friendly one) for someone to vanquish. It’s not bad and the right winner helped a lot.

Whitmer says everything ends with a sacrifice next week.

Silas Young/Beer City Bruiser vs. Alex Reynolds/Jon Silver

Silver actually suplexes Young for two to start until the massive Bruiser comes in with a clothesline to knock Reynolds into a German suplex for two. Bruiser adds a cannonball for two more on Alex but he avoids a charge and rolls over for the tag off to Silver. The much smaller Jon manages a suplex on the Bruiser in an impressive display of strength. A Codebreaker into a German suplex gets two on Young but he kicks Silver in the head. Bruiser adds a Banzai Drop and Young gets the pin at 4:50.

Rating: C. This was better than it had any right to be and that’s always a nice surprise. Silver and Reynolds are on a long list of names of smaller guys who don’t have much of a look but can put on an energetic enough match to get by. They need some more polishing (ok a LOT more polishing) but at least it was a good first performance.

Post match Young says he and Bruiser want another partner to go after the Six Man Tag Team Titles (oh yeah those exist). They call out Bull James and then beat him up for not being the guy. Ok then.

Kingdom vs. Cheeseburger/Will Ferrara/Joey Daddiego

Non-title. The Kingdom jumps them to start with Marseglia beating up all three at once until Daddiego gets in a fall away slam to put the champs on the floor. Back from a break with Ferrara getting stomped in the corner as the Kingdom continues to be difficult to tell apart because no one bothered to tell us anything about them.

O’Ryan spears Taven by mistake and the hot tag brings in Cheeseburger. Everything breaks down and the Kingdom starts firing off kicks, only to be taken down by the palm strikes. There are a bit too many members of the Kingdom though and a kick drops Cheeseburger so Taven can frog splash him for the pin at 7:53.

Rating: D+. Here’s the problem: Kelly said the Kingdom rules the six man division and I guess that’s true, assuming you can name more than three or four six man teams. There’s just NO need for these titles and it’s becoming more and more clear every single time they’re brought up. The Kingdom is fine enough but that doesn’t mean they’re in need of titles.

We look at Matt Hardy promising to come after the Young Bucks. I still love the fact that, at least so far, TNA doesn’t seem to be gaining anything at all from this match.

Here are the Young Bucks with something to say. Matt can barely talk because he’s been screaming for joy over their new contracts. They’re not spot monkeys and they won’t be deleted. The lights go out and a drone (not Vanguard I) flies in, earning itself a superkick.

Decade of Excellence Tournament First Round: Colt Cabana vs. Chris Sabin

Alex Shelley is on commentary. They fight over a wristlock to start until Chris kicks him in the chest and gets two off a high crossbody. What looked like a thumb to the eye allows Colt to send him outside and we go to a break. Back with Colt putting on a one armed camel clutch but missing a middle rope splash. Instead Chris gets in a missile dropkick to send him outside, setting up a running kick to the chest. Back in and Cabana scores off a hip attack but here are the Boys to fan Cabana a bit. The distraction lets Chris get a small package for the pin at 8:14.

Rating: C-. This was fine again though I’m not wild on Sabin, who was hardly beaten down, using a very heel style rollup to win a match. Neither guy seems to have even the slightest chance of winning the thing, which hopefully is being loaded up for a Daniels win, though Jay Lethal is also a possibility.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t the worst show in the world but it’s much more about setting up things for the future instead of being a major show this week. There weren’t a lot of big names involved this week and, save for a longer squash, most of it didn’t do anything for me. It’s still fine but that’s not really noteworthy.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Ring of Honor
Date: January 4, 2017
Host: Kevin Kelly
Commentators: Steve Corino, Kevin Kelly

It’s another special week here despite already doing the Final Battle fallout show. This is billed as a Best Of show which apparently means airing house show matches for the first time ever. That can be all over the place and maybe we can get something a bit more fresh instead of the dull Women of Honor stuff.  Let’s get to it.

Kevin Kelly runs down what we’ll be seeing and throws us to our first match.

Keith Lee/Shane Taylor vs. War Machine

This is No DQ and we’re joined in progress with all four fighting on the floor. War Machine takes over and Lee is powerbombed hard through a table for a big crash. Taylor gets beaten up inside and we take an early break. We come back (after hearing from the Briscoes about how they’re going to win all the titles this year) with Lee escaping a Death Valley Driver through a table.

Corino says we’re over fifteen minutes in and it’s Hanson flip diving off the top to take everyone down. They load up something near the announcers’ table but let’s clip it to Kelly getting bumped off a suicide dive instead. Eh I’ll take that over a table spot. Clipped again to Taylor going through the table in the corner, only to have Lee come in and Last Ride Rowe though a table for the pin at 13:36 shown.

Rating: C+. It’s really not fair to rate this one as it was so chopped up that you couldn’t get a feel for what they were doing. These teams have fought so many times though that it’s hard to care about what they’re doing. It’s not bad or anything but it’s something that’s been done so often that even a violent match like this doesn’t have the biggest impact.

We take a look at the building of the ring for the Honor Rising show in Japan.

Highlights of Ladder War with the Young Bucks winning the titles at All-Star Extravaganza.

Video on the Women of Honor. As much as I enjoy looking at a variety of them, this division is such a waste of time.

We get an extended clips of Sumie Sakai vs. Deonna Purrazzo and Taeler Hendrix vs. Mandy Leon in a No DQ match.

It’s Bullet Club time with a focus on the end of Global Wars which eventually set up Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal for the World Title at Death Before Dishonor.

The match is clipped on the broadcast but here’s the full version.

ROH World Title: Jay Lethal vs. Adam Cole

Lethal is defending and they’re both here alone. Apparently Nigel has told the referee to relax the rules here so there must be a winner. Cole pulls out some of Lethal’s shaved hair and the fight is on in a hurry. Lethal hiptosses him down and cartwheels into a basement dropkick. Cole comes back and it’s time to SHOUT A CATCHPHRASE.

They head outside with Lethal taking over again and setting up a table, which is kind of outside his nature. A cutter on the floor knocks Cole silly but he’s still able to roll off the table, sending Jay’s flying elbow through the table instead. Adam very slowly takes his time getting back inside so we can hit the chinlock.

Lethal finally gets up and hits a middle rope leg lariat to start the first of probably multiple comebacks. There’s a springboard dropkick to knock Cole off the apron and Lethal hits three straight suicide dives. That’s WAY too common of a move around here and it doesn’t get any better when he does it a fourth and fifth time. The sixth (this is reaching superkick levels) hits the barricade though and Cole is suddenly fine. To be fair they’re really just flying shoves so this isn’t a huge stretch.

Back in and Cole kicks him in the face to cut off a second comeback, followed by a Shining Wizard for another near fall. A superkick misses (I’m sure he’ll get to throw more) and Lethal takes him down with a clothesline. It’s way too early for the Lethal Injection though and Cole hits him low for two more.

Lethal can’t get a Figure Four but the Lethal Combination breaks up a choke and puts both guys down. The top rope elbow connects for two more and it’s time to trade big strikes. Cole’s Canadian Destroyer is countered but the Lethal Injection is blocked with, of course, a superkick.

The suplex backbreaker gets a VERY close two and the fans are way into this. Cole actually takes the time to talk trash and the Lethal Injection only gets two on Adam. Both guys are spent so Cole flips him off, sending Lethal into a rage. That’s exactly what Cole wants though as he grabs another suplex backbreaker for the pin and the title at 24:00.

Rating: B. They did a very good job with the ending as I was waiting on the Bucks to run in and then Cole just pinned him clean by getting inside Lethal’s head and throwing him off his game. Cole winning was the only real option here as Lethal can’t do anything else with the belt and it’s WAY past the point where the Bullet Club should have gotten the title. If nothing else now they’re not just on the sideline and dominating the show. Besides Cole is rather awesome and made a good champion the first time around.

We get some highlights of Kyle O’Reilly winning the World Title from Cole at Final Battle.

Cole is ticked off and promises to get the title back.

Overall Rating: C+. This was kind of all over the place with the World Title match being the only thing that really needed to be here. The opening match was really random and there was no need for the Women of Honor thing (though the more Mandy Leon and Kelly Klein on screen the better). It’s a bit of a mess though and really doesn’t do much to showcase what ROH is all about. Not bad but just watch the main event and move on.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Ring of Honor
Date: December 28, 2016
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness, Steve Corino

Since this year seems to be immune to traditional Best Of shows (even ones we were promised), this is another show featuring matches from a recent house show tour. In this case it’s the Reach for the Sky tour of the UK which saw a lot of action surrounding the TV Title. Let’s get to it.

We open with a package on the tour.

Opening sequence.

Kevin Kelly welcomes us to the show and tells us where we’ll be going on the tour (Liverpool, Leicester and London).

TV Title: Bobby Fish vs. Will Ospreay

Fish is defending and this was originally only a Proving Ground match until ROH said “eh just make it for the title”. Bobby puts the Union Jack on the mat next to the title, which seems to be a big sign of disrespect. The champ goes for the arm to start but Ospreay starts spinning around to escape, including knocking Fish to the floor, setting up a Tajiri handspring into a backflip.

We take a break and come back with a Space Flying Tiger Drop (cartwheel into a moonsault out to the floor) dropping Fish again and freaking the crowd out. Back in and Ospreay goes up top but Fish knocks him down to bang up Will’s knee. An exploder suplex into the corner gives the champ two.

Fish loads up a brainbuster but Ospreay spins out into a Stunner for a very fast counter. A middle rope Phoenix splash (the knee wasn’t that banged up) hits Bobby’s knees so he twists Ospreay’s knee down again. Ospreay is fine enough to hit a rolling kick to the head, only to moonsault right into the kneebar. Will stands up though and bends back onto Fish, giving him the pin and the title at 8:50.

Rating: B-. I’d like to see the full version of this as I’m sure the knee work will build up a bit better than it did here. What we got was fine enough though and the ending was a nice idea with Ospreay shifting gears and going with the wrestling instead of the high flying to surprise Fish. I liked this more than I was expecting and Ospreay could be awesome in Ring of Honor.

Fish is upset but hands Ospreay the title.

Tag Team Titles: Will Ospreay/Marty Scurll vs. Young Bucks

Joined in progress. Ospreay and Scurll are challenging despite being huge rivals. Scurll takes Matt to the mat to start and it’s too early to try Marty’s crossface chickenwing. They poke each other in the eye and dive over for the double tag, giving us a standoff. Ospreay does a lot of nipping up to get out of a wristlock and it’s time for all of the flips without much contact actually being made.

A double armdrag sends the Bucks to the floor and Ospreay does his moonsault into the pose, followed by Scurll running over do pose next to him in a funny bit. Back in and the Brits start taking over on Matt with Marty grabbing a surfboard and Ospreay adding a sliding dropkick to the face.

Nick gets the tag and does all his flips to take over again because he’s sold enough so far. A double suicide dive drops the challengers and we take a break. Back with Scurll getting caught in the corner and DDT’ed onto the apron. A 450 gets two for Matt and it’s Ospreay coming back in with the shooting stars and a middle rope moonsault for a very close two. All four are down and that earns a standing ovation.

The Bucks offer a double SUCK IT so Scurll BREAKS THEIR FINGERS. Now it’s time for the evil umbrella but Ospreay says not so fast. As you might expect, Ospreay hits Scurll by mistake and that means a double superkick. More Bang for Your Buck gets two on Marty and that means the Meltzer Driver, only to have Ospreay springboard in to hurricanrana Nick out of the air…..and right into the spike on the Tombstone to pin Scurll at 13:04.

Rating: B-. Ok yeah the ending rocked. I mean, it wasn’t perfectly executed but it certainly looked good and that’s what matters here. I’m not big on throwing two rivals together and having them become the number one contenders but it actually makes sense here. They work very well together and that’s what matters the most. Good match here, even with the Bucks’ usual issues.

That loss resulted in a challenge being issued for the final night of the tour.

TV Title: Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay is defending and this is joined in progress with Scurll fighting out of a wristlock. The bouncing escape gives us several more counters as this is British wrestling to the letter. Scurll avoids the moonsault and they flip into a kneeling standoff. The fans are split on who to cheer for but seem to shift towards Ospreay as he grabs an Octopus Hold and twists Marty down into a rollup for two.

Scurll is sent outside for a running shooting star off the apron with Ospreay looking like he had to pop his thumb back into joint. In an old school move, Scurll hides under the ring and sneaks up on Will to take over. That’s enough for a lap around the ring as we take a break. Back with Scurll cranking on Ospreay’s fingers and doing that freaky CRACKING bit again.

A suplex into a Stunner and back to back shooting stars into a moonsault have Scurll reeling but he catches Ospreay out of the air in the chickenwing. Sweet, sweet sequence there with Will backflipping out to escape. One heck of a clothesline drops Will for one (yes one) and both guys are down. It’s umbrella time but Scurll opts to break more fingers and STOMP WILL IN THE HEAD. Another chickenwing gives Marty the title at 9:34.

Rating: B. These two really do work well together and there’s something very cool about swapping people in and out with the title on a house show tour. Both of these guys are signed to some form of a deal with ROH and I’m sure we’ll see Scurll vs. Fish at some point in the future. Good match and a good way to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Quite the show here and I had a lot of fun watching it. British wrestling is one of the hottest things in wrestling at this point and it’s a good idea for ROH to sign up some of the top stars in the area. It helps that a lot of their wrestlers can wrestle that style as well, making this a very natural fit. If nothing else, it’s not New Japan all over again and that’s a good thing.

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