Ring of Honor
Date: December 16, 2015
Location: Tennessee State Fair Grounds, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

It’s the go home show for Final Battle but the complicated TV schedule would suggest that a lot of this isn’t going to be focused on the pay per view main events. That being said, Ring of Honor has been more than entertaining enough lately and I’ve been looking forward to these shows more and more lately. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Adam Cole vs. Corey Hollis

Unfortunately no Maria with Cole. The announcers don’t try to hide the fact that this is going to be a glorified squash. Cole stomps him down in the corner to start and does his signature pose. The AA onto the knee sends Hollis into the corner again and a Shining Wizard breaks up a comeback.

Hollis tries a springboard and is quickly knocked outside for his efforts. Back in and Cole misses a superkick and has his suplex countered into a Stunner of all things. Sean O’Haire’s Widowmaker (kind of a fireman’s carry into a spinebuster) but Cole stops him dead with a superkick. A brainbuster onto the knee gives Cole the pin at 4:29.

Rating: C-. This was much more entertaining than I was expecting as they kept it moving but also gave Hollis enough offense to keep this from being a total squash. Cole continues to be probably the most well rounded performer in ROH and that’s a good choice for a showcase match like this one.

Post match we get a quick Story Time with Adam Cole where Kyle O’Reilly is guaranteed to be destroyed.

The Young Bucks vs. the All Night Express vs. the Briscoes for the #1 contendership is confirmed for Final Battle.

War Machine vs. Washington Bullets

The Bullets are Jon and Trey Williams, who decide it’s a good idea to not shake hands with the big bearded monsters about to kill them. Hanson clotheslines both of them down and it’s off to Rowe to German suplex Trey. Path of Resistance sets up Fallout for the pin on Jon at 1:33. Total squash and War Machine looked awesome.

Here’s former referee Mike Posey as a rapper and a five person posse. The fans sound stunned as he “raps” about Dalton Castle at a level equal to PG-13 from the Nation of Domination days.

Dalton Castle vs. Mike Posey

Posey tries to jump Dalton before the bell and is easily suplexed for his efforts. Some headbutts have Posey in trouble and Dalton goes after the posse to kill some time. The distraction doesn’t work as Castle belly to bellys him out to the floor, setting up the Bang A Rang for the pin at 2:50.

Post match Castle describes himself as the Aurora Borealis of the ring and says he’s as majestic as they come. Castle: “Isn’t that right Planet Peacock?” He wants Silas Young out here right now but gets the Boys instead. It’s just a distraction though, allowing Young to sneak up behind Castle for a beating.

Here’s Jerry Lynn for a special appearance. He talks about everyone calling him as he went through a recent surgery and was overwhelmed by all the support. We quickly move on to the upcoming World Title match and Lynn can’t pick a winner. Lynn has traveled the roads with both guys and he sees it as totally even. Kelly directly asks him but here’s the House of Truth to interrupt.

Lethal accuses Lynn of being too old and out of touch so Jerry picks AJ. That’s enough for Jay so he takes off his shirt but Jerry says Jay beating him up would hurt Lethal’s parents. Lethal goes on a Flair style rant about how great he is and how much he’s done this year. He says he is professional wrestling and the House of Truth walks out. I’m not a big Lethal fan but he ran circles around the pretty bad Lynn out there.

Video on Moose vs. Michael Elgin.

Roppangi Vice vs. ACH/Matt Sydal

Alex Shelley is on commentary. Sydal and Romero get things going with Matt working on the arm. Romero lands on his feet out of a monkey flip but one shot to the face sends him crawling over to Trent. That means a double tag and Trent takes over with some chops. ACH flips around a lot and dropkicks Trent to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Sydal in a Romero Octopus hold. A regular headlock doesn’t work all that well and it’s a hot tag to ACH as things speed way up. Trent gets kicked in the face to put him on the floor, setting up the Jordan flip dive. Back in and a delayed German gets two on Romero but Vice comes back with a string of knees to ACH’s head for two. Standing Sliced Bread #2 drops Sydal but ACH kicks Romero in the face to put all four down.

Romero goes up to but gets kicked in the head, setting up a quick hurricanrana from Sydal. ACH takes Romero to the floor but Sydal’s shooting star hits Trent’s knees. Trent’s running knee gets two on Matt and all four are back in. Romero distracts Trent to break up his kneeling piledriver and Code Red (a sunset bomb) is enough to give Sydal the pin at 11:31.

Rating: C. This just isn’t my kind of match. They’re flying around a lot and hitting (moderately) big spots but there’s little flow to it and the ending is about who hits the last spot. I’m not a fan of this style though and this didn’t change my mind. It’s certainly not the worst but I almost never have any reaction to this style.

One more run down of the card ends the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this one as much as it was almost all a big preview for next week’s major show but there was nothing that made me want to see Final Battle more. Lynn’s promo with Lethal was one sided and the wrestling ranged from squashes to nothing interesting. The card was almost entirely set up already though so this was just a bonus.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of the History of Wrestlemania at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0188BJRGU

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Well I talk but you get the idea.  Ok so I’m typing so maybe you don’t get the idea.

http://www.wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-lets-talk-about-final-battle/46760/

Ring of Honor
Date: December 2, 2015
Location: Wings Stadium Annex, Kalamazoo, Michigan
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly, Mark Briscoe

Final Battle is just around the corner and for the first time in a long time, Jay Lethal’s World Title really seems vulnerable. However, for some reason ROH seems much more interested in the tag team division, though that’s been some of the more interesting stuff they’ve been doing in recent weeks. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Adam Page vs. Will Ferrara

Page is still rightfully ticked off that he’s off Final Battle because of Whitmer and Corino being forced off the show as well. Will gets jumped from behind before the bell, which is totally dishonorable but the referee starts the match anyway. Page stomps him in the corner as Kelly runs down the Final Battle card instead of talking about the match. Back up and Page charges into a boot in the corner, only to come right back with a dropkick to send Ferrara out to the floor.

A bridging pumphandle suplex (that’s a new one) gets two for Page as Briscoe cheers for Ferrara. Will makes a quick comeback with a sunset bomb out of the corner for two. It’s time for a Decade meeting on the floor but Ferrara dives onto everyone. Colby offers a referee distraction and Whitmer throws in the crutch, only to have Ferrara intercept it and lay out Page for the big upset at 4:05.

Rating: C-. It’s cool to see the perennial jobber get a win like this though I’m still surprised that they’re going to leave the Decade off the big show after everything they’ve done in recent months. Corino being out changed what they had planned but there’s no one else that they could swap in there?

Post match Whitmer goes after Ferrara and the referee, drawing in Mark Briscoe for the save.

Here’s the Addiction to yell about how badly they’ve been mistreated around here. Daniels goes on a sexist rant against Maria who belongs in a kitchen or a nursery. Daniels: “YEAH I SAID IT!” Then they had a masked man run in which should have stopped the match immediately but it just kept going. Kazarian says if Ring of Honor wants to play checkers, the Addition will play chess……in New Japan Professional Wrestling. They’ll go win the Heavyweight Tag League and then come back to regain their World Tag Team Championships of the World.

Video on Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly which will be one heck of a grudge match at Final Battle.

Package on Brutal Bob Evans vs. Cheeseburger. WHY ARE THESE TWO STILL FIGHTING??? They were fighting like six months ago and they’re still at it. Evans broke Cheeseburger’s hand at this TV taping and they’ll be fighting again on the Final Battle pre-show in another grudge match. I’ll take that over them being on the main show.

We look back at Roderick Strong winning the TV Title last week.

Here’s the House of Truth (good night that’s a low cut dress on Hendrix) with something to say. Lethal says Strong FINALLY beat him last week after all the tries but Jay knows Strong couldn’t do it again. He’ll be TV Champion again soon enough anyway. That brings Lethal to AJ Styles, who Lethal came to for advice for most of their careers. It’s true that Styles was the best wrestler in the world for years, but that changed when Lethal became the undisputed ROH Champion.

Lethal is the only undisputed champion and now he wants Styles out here to say it to his face. This brings out AJ (who thankfully can walk here) to say that Lethal is right because of that belt around his waist. Jay losing the TV Title was the best thing that could have happened to him though because he needs to focus on AJ and AJ alone. They shake hands and stare each other down with Jay holding up the belt. Well done and very simple idea here.

It’s time for Storytime with Adam Cole which has become a highlight of these shows. Cole never saw this coming because even after he kicked Kyle with reality at All-Star Extravaganza, Kyle still didn’t get it. O’Reilly isn’t going to win the World Title as long as Cole is around because that’s just not how it works. Cole starts yelling that Kyle will never be champion because he’s not the man that Adam is. He’s going to make Kyle quit and leave ROH because he can’t handle the embarrassment of how bad things are going to get at Final Battle.

We run down the Final Battle card. I might have to watch that show.

Dalton Castle vs. Adam Cole

No Boys here and Castle is clearly not happy about it. Cole on the other hand has the whole Kingdom behind him. Kelly: “I think Cole’s greatest advantage, aside from being a former World Champion, is having three mates at ringside.” You can’t buy analysis like this people. Before we get going, cue the Boys to stand by Dalton’s side but Silas Young runs out to say not so fast. How nice is it to have stipulations adhered to?

Cole jumps Castle to start and Bennett trips Dalton to break up a comeback. Nigel: “Come on I’m right here!” Castle dives through the ropes to take out the Kingdom and Cole’s dive off the apron only earns him a suplex. The fans are way behind Dalton here but Cole shuts them up with a superkick. The Kingdom gets involved and it’s a quick DQ at 1:45.

Since the Kingdom has a Tag Team Title defense coming up, it would seem appropriate for their challengers to come out and make this a six man tag. The fans chant SIX MAN and that’s what they get, thanks to Nigel.

War Machine/Dalton Castle vs. Kingdom

The good guys take over on the floor to start with Hanson and Rowe destroying Bennett and Cole, leaving Dalton to….bite Taven’s stomach? They get inside for Rowe vs. Cole with the latter getting flipped all over the place off a clothesline. Taven and Bennett trip Rowe down and crotch him though, allowing the heels to take over. A dropkick from Taven gets two and a nice high cross body (Bennett: “TAVEN! FLY!”) connects for the same.

We take a break and come back with nothing having changed as Rowe is taken back into the heel corner. A missed dropkick allows Rowe to finally make the tag and it’s off to Hanson to clean house with knees to the chest. Cole and Castle come in with Dalton showing him how to do a missile dropkick. Taven comes back in and trades about ten Tombstone attempts with Castle until Dalton FINALLY plants him.

Rowe knees Taven and Bennett out to the floor so Hanson busts out a big top rope flip dive to drop everyone. Back in and the Path of Resistance sets up a middle rope splash for two on Cole as his partners make a save. Now it’s Hanson missing a suicide dive, allowing Cole to drop Castle with a brainbuster onto his knee for the pin at 12:00.

Rating: C+. This was your signature Ring of Honor main event with the tagging being forgotten by the end and letting it turn into a wild mess which was just coherent enough to keep track of it. You don’t want the Kingdom to lose here so having Castle take the fall was the best possible option. Good TV main event here.

The Kingdom poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Another fun show here that did a good job of setting up Final Battle, which is looking like a strong card to close out the year. It really does impress me to see how far Ring of Honor has come in just a few months as I wasn’t wild on their first Destination America shows but I’m digging their product now that it’s off the national network. This was fun stuff and worked more than well enough.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of the History of Wrestlemania at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0188BJRGU

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: November 25, 2015
Location: Wings Stadium Annex, Kalamazoo, Michigan
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

This is a big show with a big main event as we have Roderick Strong challenging Jay Lethal for the TV Title to continue their long and rather entertaining feud over the last year or so. We’re getting closer and close to Final Battle and it’s about time to have a build between AJ Styles and Lethal for the World Title so maybe they can tie it in here. Let’s get to it.

As a side note, this is the final episode on Destination America, though the show will still air in syndication as it has for years now.

Opening sequence.

Moose vs. Dominic Carter

Spear ends Carter in five seconds.

Post match Moose’s manager Stokely Carmichael says Jay Lethal will only be World Champion until Moose gets his hands on him. Carmichael thinks he heard this last week from Michael Elgin, who isn’t as big or strong or talented as Moose. Therefore, Elgin needs to go to the back of the line where he belongs.

Instead Elgin comes out here to say that Moose did win his match faster than Elgin did last week, but there’s a bit of a size difference. Big Mike is ready to give Moose some real competition any time he’s ready. Moose says we can do it right now but here’s the House of Truth (minus Jay Lethal but including Taeler Henrdix (good lord)) to laugh all this off and call them out for using Lethal’s name to get over. Elgin says he’ll be in a hotel with Hendrix later. Those are fighting words and a tag match is on.

J. Diesel/Donovan Dijak vs. Michael Elgin/Moose

It’s a big brawl to start until we take a break. Back with Elgin taking Dijak down with an enziguri and a dropkick for good measure. Moose comes in for his own dropkick and then a suplex, challenging Elgin to best that. Elgin’s suplex is in fact longer but he stops to argue with Moose, allowing the House of Truth to make a comeback. Everything breaks down and Hendrix grabs Elgin for a distraction. Dijak grabs a good looking chokebreaker on Elgin as Kelly talks about Diesel wanting to go by Joey Diesel Daddiago or however that is spelled.

Moose makes his comeback on Diesel but Dijak jumps him from behind. Without a tag, Elgin sends both of them to the floor for an apron cannonball before teasing a kiss on Hendrix. That sexual assault goes nowhere so it’s a German suplex for two on Diesel instead. Everything breaks down again and Elgin buckle bombs Diesel, followed by a spear from Moose after a blind tag for the pin at 11:33.

Rating: C. This was all storytelling instead of a good match and there’s nothing wrong with that. Moose vs. Elgin has the potential to be two guys beating the heck out of each other for fifteen minutes at Final Battle and that’s all it needs to be. Lethal vs. either one could be a fun match on a big stage so everyone wins. Well save for whichever of them loses.

Moose and Elgin stare each other down as Elgin didn’t like that blind tag.

Long video on Strong wanting one more match to prove he can beat Lethal. It’s not about either title but rather Strong’s pride. They were smart to keep this taped as Strong live can be a disaster. He’s downright listenable taped though.

Story Time with Adam Cole focuses on the Kingdom being great Tag Team Champions. War Machine will get their hopeless title shot at Final Battle and Cole will beat up Dalton Castle next week. Simple, to the point and natural here.

Here’s the Decade so BJ Whitmer can rip on Steve Corino for lying about his neck surgery. Whitmer can’t believe that Nigel McGuinness bought it because McGunniness lied about being hurt a few years back. Nigel isn’t going to take this and gets in the ring to…..say the Decade can’t be at Final Battle either.

TV Title: Roderick Strong vs. Jay Lethal

Lethal is defending and this is their third match of the year with Lethal holding a 1-0-1 lead. There’s no Truth Martini here but there are two referees to make sure it’s a fair fight. They go to the mat to start with Lethal bailing outside when he can’t keep up. An armbar frustrates the champion even more and he teases leaving, only to get dragged back in and chopped as a punishment.

We take a break with Roderick in control and come back with Jay firing off chops on the floor. Roderick tastes the barricade (needs some honey mustard) but is thrown back in at a thirteen count. Back in and they chop each other some more until Lethal takes over with a headlock. Well it’s better than the standard chinlock. A quick enziguri gives Strong a breather and he fires off his running strikes before picking Jay up for a backbreaker.

Back from another break with Lethal missing a dropkick but grabbing the Lethal Combination for two. There’s a Koji Clutch (which just looks cool) until Strong crawls over to the ropes and bails outside for a breather. Two straight suicide dives have Strong in trouble but he avoids a third. Well yeah he should after Lethal does the same thing three times. Back in and Lethal gets caught on the top for a kind of reverse belly to back suplex.

The Strong Hold is broken up and a Lethal Injection gets two. Strong comes right back with three straight knees to the face but a superplex is countered into a top rope bulldog. That only gets two more so Strong pops up for another knee to the head. The Sick Kick and a suplex into a backbreaker set up the Strong Hold to FINALLY end Lethal’s eighteen month reign at 21:48.

Rating: B+. They really didn’t have any other choice here and that’s often the best thing that can happen. Lethal had held the title for so long that it didn’t mean anything anymore and now it’s freed up for others to have their run with it instead. I’ve never been a fan of having one person as a double champion so it’s a good move to let Lethal just be World Champion. The match itself was really solid stuff too with the ending being the best part as Strong just threw everything he had at Lethal until Jay couldn’t stand up any longer.

The House of Truth pulls Lethal out as Strong poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. When a third of your show is one really solid match and the other major story is building up to what should be a fun match at Final Battle, everyone wins here. Everyone is on point right now and it’s making the build for Final Battle all the better. Good stuff here with another solid show, as it’s been for a long time now.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of the History of Wrestlemania at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0188BJRGU

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: November 18, 2015
Location: Wings Stadium Annex, Kalamazoo, Michigan
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

The Glory By Honor tapings continue as we’re gearing up for Final Battle in the next few weeks. Roderick Strong vs. Jay Lethal for the TV Title is on the horizon, along with AJ Styles vs. Lethal for the World Title. The Tag Team Title scene is still hot too with several teams fighting for the belts. Let’s get to it.

We open with Silas Young telling the Boys it’s time to become men, starting by changing his tire. They keep losing the tire and then stop to clean the grease off themselves. Silas tells them to clean their hands with spit (his spit that is) and gets annoyed when they can’t drive a stick shift. These are the kinds of vignettes they should have been doing for weeks now.

Opening sequence.

War Machine vs. Beer City Bruiser/Silas Young

The Boys are carrying Bruiser’s keg with some great difficulty. The fans chant FREE THE BOYS and of course it’s already a hashtag. Hanson and Bruiser start but no one goes anywhere off a collision. They try it again with Hanson getting the better of it and Rowe comes in for running knees in the corner. Everything breaks down and the Boys try as hard as they can to get Bruiser back to his feet.

Young comes in and takes a bunch of gutwrench gutbusters, only to have the Bruiser run Rowe down. Control changes for the first time and Rowe’s comeback is easily stopped and Bruiser, who must weigh at least 300lbs, drops a frog splash for two. Back from a break with Rowe making the hot tag so Hanson can clean house again. The Boys try to grab Hanson’s legs (they certainly are loyal) but get dragged in and put on the top rope.

Silas gets annoyed at someone hitting his Boys so Hanson stacks him on top of the Boys and pounds away with forearms to all three chests. Rowe suplexes Bruiser but Young is back up with a kick to Rowe’s face. Bruiser takes out the Boys with an apron flip dive by mistake and Young is dropped off camera, leaving the Bruiser to take Fallout (4 I’m assuming) for the pin at 9:25.

Rating: C+. I liked this one more than I was expecting to with all four guys beating on each other with big power moves. Bruiser is a big guy and totally out of shape but he can do enough fat man offense to make his matches entertaining. I’m still digging this Boys story as Dalton is going to come back soon enough and get a huge reaction for attempting the save.

Recap of BJ Whitmer vs. Steve Corino, which we haven’t gotten in the months this feud has been going on. They keep it simple with the more recent stuff this time though, which might be be better given how long these two have been after each other. Corino finally snapped and punched Whitmer out, costing him his commentary job.

Here’s Corino for his first comments since snapping. Nigel McGuinness recaps the whole thing again and says he can’t condone what Corino did due to his no tolerance policy. Therefore, Nigel can’t reinstate him as a color commentator. Instead, he can reinstate Corino as a wrestler. Therefore, at Final Battle, it’s Whitmer vs. Corino in a Fight Without Honor (street fight).

Corino felt the rush of being a wrestler all over again in San Antonio and it’s all he’s ever wanted to do. He never would have guessed that he would still be here at 42 years old. The tours of Japan have taken a toll on his body and now it turns out he needs to have neck surgery. That means his in ring career is over but like any pro wrestler, he won’t retire until his last breath.

If this is goodbye though, he wants to thank Ring of Honor for keeping him around when he didn’t have to. Corino thanks a lot of people who have been there for him in ROH, including all of the boys in the back who have busted their backs, necks and heads for the fans. Finally he thanks the fans and says that he will always be an evil man. Really, really good stuff here as Corino sounded like he was speaking from the heart which always makes for a better speech. That might be it for him and if so, this was a great promo to go out on.

The Boys don’t know how to use a urinal. Seriously?

Story Time With Adam Cole is about how he isn’t on the list of World Title contenders. Kyle O’Reilly is though, even after he beat Kyle a few weeks back. Maybe he just needs to whine like Roderick Strong did to get his World TV Title shot. After a clip of Strong being granted his title shot and Cole plugging next week’s title match, he promises to take Kyle out of ROH forever. Again, Cole is one of the best talkers in the company.

Silas leaves the bathroom and hands the Boys a plunger.

Michael Elgin vs. Kevin Lee Davidson

Davidson is a big guy…..who gets pinned off a clothesline in nine seconds? There was an edit in there so either something horrible happened or it was cut for time. You really don’t see that in ROH too often so I’m curious to know what happened there.

Elgin, breathing heavily to really imply that something was cut there, talks about competing in the G1 Climax tournament in Japan. It made him realize that he wanted the ROH World Title back so now he wants to face Jay Lethal sometime soon.

We look back at the Kingdom stealing the World Tag Team Titles at All-Star Extravaganza.

Tag Team Titles: Kingdom vs. Addiction

Heels vs. heels here. Side note: it’s interesting how much catchier some of these songs are than any of the TNA ones. TNA has a few good ones but so many of them are forgettable. I’m already singing Kingdom’s song with them as they come out after hearing it maybe three times.

The Addiction is challenging and have Chris Sabin in their corner. Daniels is in a military uniform which makes him look quite different from his partner Kazarian. The Kingdom still has pink on because these tapings are from October when people still care about breast cancer. As usual, Nigel is far too happy to see Maria, though at least he has great taste.

Taven and Daniels start things off and Kazarian starts cheating early with a knee to the back. Bennett and Kazarian both try to come in but both guys catch each others kicks. They make a truce and both punch each other in the jaw because they’re all villains. A standoff takes us to an early break and we come back to Daniels stomping Taven down in the corner. Kazarian gets driven across the ring though and it’s off to Bennett for the first time. You just can’t buy good help these days.

Daniels comes in again and takes over but makes the mistake of insulting Maria, causing Bennett to get all fired up. That’s fine with Daniels as it turns into a slugout on the floor, leaving Taven and Kazarian to both bring in belts. That’s another standoff so they both do the Eddie Guerrero fall. Kazarian sits up and yells at Maria before collapsing again when the referee comes in. Maria: “OH MY GOD ARE YOU KIDDING???”

They run the ropes but Sabin and Maria both trip them up, earning them a double ejection as we take another break. Back with Bennett cleaning house and saying he saw this on TV before diving on Daniels. Everyone else hits a dive of their own and the fans are way too excited for an all heels match. Back in and Kazarian runs Taven over for two but gets caught in a backpack Stunner/running boot combo for two more.

Daniels is still down as Bennett loads up a spear (Bennett: “On this day, I see clearly!” I like this guy.) which takes out the referee by mistake. Cue Maria again as everything breaks down but Daniels grabs her by the hair. That’s enough for a low blow and superkick (not bad either) from Maria, followed by a Disaster Kick to take Kazarian down. Cue the guy in the red mask to superkick Kazarian again, setting up a spear from Bennett to retain at 17:05.

Rating: B-. Another match where I had a lot more fun than I was expecting to. The heel vs. heel stuff actually worked and I laughed at Bennett singing Edge’s music. Fun match here, though I’m hoping they wrap up this red mask thing pretty soon. It’s been done long enough now and they need to go somewhere with it.

War Machine comes out to stare the champs down to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This is pretty easily the best ROH on Destination America show to date, which comes right before they’re leaving the network. The wrestling was all good tonight and we had a solid promo to back it up, plus setting the stage for Final Battle. Everything had a point tonight and I want to see where some of this is going, making the show a success on its own. Really good show this week which flew by as it always does.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of the History of Wrestlemania at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0188BJRGU

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: November 11, 2015
Location: Wings Stadium Annex, Kalamazoo, Michigan
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly

We’re on a new taping cycle now as we’ve hit Glory By Honor. These should be some better TV shows as most tapings with names tend to be. The big story continues to be the build towards Lethal’s next title defenses against Roderick Strong and AJ Styles, but we also have Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly likely about to be announced for Final Battle. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Cedric Alexander vs. ACH

Cedric has Veda Scott in his corner and that’s always a good way to open a show. ACH is coming up on the final match in his best of five series against Matt Sydal. Cedric isn’t interested in a handshake here so we have a feeling out process to start. A few kicks send Cedric to the ropes for a quick meeting with Veda and they trade flips over each other. ACH misses an enziguri and Cedric slams him head first into the mat.

Never one to sell for very long, ACH kicks him out to the floor but Veda blocks a dive, allowing Cedric to hit a running STO onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Alexander hitting some rolling suplexes and smiling a lot. It’s a bit too much smiling though as ACH grabs a downward spiral into the top turnbuckle. The same missed enziguri works a bit better this time as ACH bounces back with a kick to the jaw.

Cedric rolls to the floor but another Veda distraction blocks the dive. You know they’re getting in their dives on this show though as ACH hits that Jordan dive (Kelly: “Like a young Nigel McGuinness!”) of his. Back in and a German suplex gets two on Cedric and another kick to the head puts Alexander down again. The Dub Dub Stomp (egads the names in this place) misses and Cedric nails a running dropkick in the corner. He slips off the springboard though and ACH hits a superkick for indy darling move #1. It’s followed by indy darling move #2 with a brainbuster, followed by the Midnight Star to pin Cedric at 11:25.

Rating: C-. I know that’s something that’s going to get me yelled at but I really don’t like this kick and flip style. Alexander and Scott make a good pair, though it would be nice if he won something big after the feud with Moose. ACH on the other hand…..I just can’t get behind him. He’s the definition of a flippy guy (though to be fair they’re good flips) which makes for exciting matches, but they seem to be setting him up for something bigger. If that’s the case, he needs to change his style a bit.

Post match ACH says he’s going to beat Sydal.

After a break, Veda blames Nigel for the slip because of so much baby oil on the ropes.

Will Ferrara vs. Caprice Coleman

Before the match Caprice asks the fans to cheer for Ferrara but says he hasn’t taught him everything yet. They trade some armdrags with Ferrara getting control with some armbars. Caprice slams him back down but Will snaps the arm to stop him again. An STO (we get it: you played No Mercy) puts Ferrara into the turnbuckle for two and some knees to the chest keep him in trouble.

Ferrara comes back with a tornado DDT (I’m sick of that move) for two as Prince Nana comes out to watch. Back up and Will misses a charge into the post but Caprice doesn’t mind as he sends Ferrara’s shoulder into the steel again. A one arm camel clutch (the Judgment Seat) gives Caprice the win at 6:01.

Rating: C. This told a much better story as Coleman couldn’t hang with Ferrara as well as he thought he did so he cheated to win. Presumably this leads to a heel turn and a spot in the Embassy for Coleman, which is probably a good idea for him as the midcard veteran is only going to get him so far.

Nana gives Ferrara an envelope of his own post match.

It’s Storytime with Adam Cole where he gets to talk about whatever he wants. In this case it’s his issues with Kyle O’Reilly, even though everyone knows that Cole is the better man. After a clip of Cole pinning Kyle last week, we see him making Kyle tap back in 2012 in New York. Adam says that’s all the proof you need, but he’s not done until Kyle is out of ROH. Cole is far and away better than most of the roster on the mic.

Prince Nana says the envelopes contain the secrets to life. He is far from done in Ring of Honor.

We look back at the All Night Express (Kenny King and Rhett Titus) beating the Briscoe Brothers at All-Star Extravaganza.

All Night Express vs. Briscoe Brothers

Kenny and Mark get things going with Mark grabbing a headlock but taking a right hand to the jaw. It’s quickly off to Titus who walks into a belly to belly, allowing Jay to come in but he’s quickly taken down with a double shot to the face. Titus’ splash gets two and we’re already in the chinlock.

That goes nowhere so Jay comes back with a boot to the face, allowing for the hot tag (this early?) to Mark. Chops and a big flip dive have the Express in trouble and Titus gets stomped down in the corner. A quick Snake Eyes drops Mark but Jay is smart enough to break up the tag before Titus can go anywhere. Back from a quick break with Titus rolling over for the tag to speed things up.

Kenny cleans house and drops Jay off the apron to keep Mark in trouble. I love smart wrestling. King takes too much time posing though and walks into a forearm from Jay. The Doomsday Device to Titus is broken up but so is the One Night Stand. Jay’s suicide dive sends Titus into the barricade and Mark adds a Blockbuster off the apron to King. The Jay Driller and Froggy Bo put Titus away at 11:32.

Rating: B-. Much better than the other two matches here as they went with a tag formula of keeping it moving the whole time. The Express is a good team but the Briscoes are running into the problem that so many dominant acts have had to deal with over the years: what do you do when you’ve won everything? I know it’s been awhile but is winning another title going to mean much?

They shake hands to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. As usual Ring of Honor is a really easy forty five minutes to sit through as it comes and goes with a few good matches and some simple, well done stories. It helps so much that they have an hour on TV a week because it doesn’t have time to get weighed down. Unfortunately we might be coming up on another weird schedule due to Survival of the Fittest, but that’s one of the things you have to deal with in ROH. Still though, fun show this week as is becoming the norm.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B015IN12I2

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: November 4, 2015
Location: San Antonio Shrine Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas
Attendance: 600
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness, Mark Briscoe

We’ve got a big main event this week with Adam Cole vs. AJ Styles vs. Kyle O’Reilly. Kyle was added last week because he wanted to get his hands on Cole no matter what he had to do to get there. We also have an upcoming showdown between Jay Lethal and Roderick Strong over the TV Title. Let’s get to it.

Kyle O’Reilly says he’s in a match with a man he respects and a man he once considered a friend. If he has to go through Styles to get his hands on Cole, so be it. All that matters to Kyle is seeing Cole flat on his face, completely broken at his hands. Still not good delivery but the message worked very well.

Silas Young/Beer City Bruiser vs. Young Bucks

Silas now has the boys in jeans and regular shirts. Briscoe thinks he’ll go as the Beer City Bruiser for Halloween but that might mean eating more chickens. Nick and Silas get things going with Jackson easily taking over. Bruiser tries to come in but gets dropkicked in the face to put him on the floor. Matt comes in and gets caught in the corner for some running knees to the face.

The Boys try to fan Matt off but wind up doing it to each other instead. It’s back to Nick for his dropkicks all around and a slingshot X Factor to take Silas down. After a dive to the floor gives him a breather, Silas comes back up with a Regal roll to Nick but he takes too much time setting up his corner moonsault, allowing Matt to superkick him down. That’s enough for Silas as he tells the Boys to get in there and finish the match. I guess that’s a no contest at about 4:00.

Rating: D+. Well at least there weren’t a bunch of superkicks. This is much more of an angle than a match and they did a good job of keeping it short. It gets really old watching matches that go on for a long stretch of time and then have the ending go nowhere because it’s an angle. Keep it short like this and it’s a lot easier to sit through.

The Boys vs. Young Bucks

I guess we’ll go with Boy #1 and Boy #2. Matt puts #1 in a headlock while throwing up the Too Sweet sign. A superkick puts #1 down so #2 pulls him over for a tag. It’s off to Nick who scoops up #2 to break up a headlock. Nick offers a Too Sweet but pokes #2 in the face with it instead. Silas and the Bruiser take quick superkicks on the floor before it’s back to Matt to continue the squash.

Mark and Nigel talk about trick or treating as the Bucks actually screw something up by kicking each other. #1 comes back in with a double missile dropkick, only to eat a double superkick. A buckle bomb/superkick combo sets up a double More Bang For Your Buck (impressive, even though the Boys might weigh 280lbs combined) for the pin on both Boys at 3:48.

Rating: C-. It’s amazing how much easier it is to sit through a Bucks match when you don’t have Corino screaming his head off all night long. The cool heel characters are already old but I guess that’s the point of the act. The squash was entertaining but I’m really not sure about spending over a fourth of the show on this one story.

The Bucks superkick the Bruiser again but Silas bails before he can get his.

House show ads.

BJ Whitmer comes out and wants Nigel to fire Corino so we look back at Corino knocking Whitmer out cold a few weeks ago.

That’s not it for McGuinness as Veda Scott has officially served him papers for the lawsuit about the unsafe working conditions.

Will Ferrara vs. Roderick Strong

I like Ferrara so this could be good. Strong charges into a boot to start but comes back with a great looking dropkick. Off to an early chinlock with Strong ripping at Will’s face, followed by a butterfly suplex for two. Totally one sided so far. Some elbows and a neckbreaker give Will an opening and a tornado DDT (another move that is getting far too common) to send Strong to the floor. Another tornado DDT onto the floor (see what I mean?) has Strong reeling but he comes back with a gutbuster and the Strong Hold for the submission at 5:03.

Rating: C. Repeat DDT’s aside, I had fun with this one. Strong may be one of the weakest talkers that I’ve seen in years but at least he can go in the ring. Ferrara is a small guy who doesn’t wrestle like a regular cruiserweight which makes him a lot more fun to watch. Good little match here as the night of squashes continues.

We look at Strong vs. Lethal over the last few weeks. Lethal hopes that when he has a kid with the hottest woman in the world, they have Strong’s determination, though they won’t be a loser like Strong is. How many times does Strong have to lose to get it through his head? Lethal accuses Nigel and Roderick of being in cahoots (I love that word). This isn’t some card game because it’s Lethal’s life and he’s going to stay the champion as long as he wants.

Final Battle is coming.

Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. AJ Styles

Lethal is in on commentary because of his upcoming match against Styles. Maria, Taven, Bennett, Fish, Elgin and the Bucks are all at ringside so Nigel ejects everyone other than the three people in the match. Cole immediately drops to the floor and tells the rest of them to go at it. That earns a chase from Kyle so AJ knocks Cole back to the outside for some kicks from O’Reilly.

Back in and Kyle catches AJ in an armbreaker but lets it go to put Cole in a leg lock. When that doesn’t work, Kyle suplexes them both at the same time for two each. More kicks to Cole’s chest has him in trouble but AJ low bridges Kyle to the floor and hits the moonsault into the reverse DDT. Cole takes AJ down as well and goes back inside to crank on Kyle’s leg, followed by a superkick to the knee.

AJ eats a Shining Wizard as soon as he gets back in but grabs the Calf Killer out of nowhere. Kyle breaks it up with an armbreaker so Cole puts AJ in the Figure Four at the same time. O’Reilly breaks it up to put Cole in the armbreaker but AJ makes the save. Back from a quick break with Styles and Cole kicking at each other until Kyle no sells one ala Dean Ambrose and hits the rebound lariat for two. Now it’s AJ and Kyle slugging it out until Kyle counters a right hand into a triangle choke. Cole breaks it up though and sends Styles to the floor, setting up a brainbuster onto the knee to pin Kyle at 12:03.

Rating: B. This was fun with Kyle trying to get at Cole but having to deal with AJ at the same time. Styles was just kind of there for the most part as Cole vs. O’Reilly was the focus for most of the match. It’s good that they didn’t have AJ get pinned because you don’t want to make the #1 contender look weak (right Ryback?) going into a major title match. Good match but it never hit a great level.

Post match Kyle goes after Cole again but Fish, Elgin, the Bucks and the Kingdom come out for a huge brawl. The Bucks give Cole and Taven a double IndyTaker (Sweet goodness I hate that move. Not as bad as the Meltzer Driver but still bad.). Lethal comes in to hold up the title in AJ’s face to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was your normal fun and easy show to get through though it’s rare to see Ring of Honor get anywhere above “eh that was pretty good”. You can probably figure out most of Final Battle from here so they have time to build towards it, which is a good sign with about six weeks before the show. Good show this week, as has been the norm recently.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B015IN12I2

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: September 30, 2015
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: King Corino, Kevin Kelly

It’s another stand alone episode with the New Japan guys coming in to help bridge the gap between the pay per view and the start of the new taping cycle. Tonight we have a dream match with Adam Cole facing Shinsuke Nakamura, who is one of the best in the world right now. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Matt Sydal vs. Kushida

Kushida’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title isn’t on the line. I’m not a fan of Kushida’s in ring work but the Back to the Future theme is awesome. The fans start the THIS IS AWESOME chants at the bell which always gets on my nerves. Feeling out process to start with Kushida taking him down off a headlock and floating around Sydal’s back until it’s a standoff.

They trade armdrags until Kushida no sells a hurricanrana and blasts him with a dropkick. Sydal gets smart and goes after the knee with some kicks and a bridging Indian deathlock as we take a break. Oddly enough WCW would always go to a commercial whenever anyone else put on those holds. Back with Kushida diving into a spinwheel kick but he comes back with a front flip into a kick to the head. So much for selling the knee of course but that’s such a common problem in wrestling and Japanese wrestling in particular.

Back in and a moonsault gets two on Sydal but Matt kicks the knee out. His standing moonsault is countered into the Hoverboard Lock (sweet name for a Kimura) but Sydal makes the ropes. They trade big strikes to the head and both guys are down. Sydal is up first with a reverse hurricanrana for two but the Hoverboard Lock goes on again. Matt rolls out of it and kicks Kushida in the head, setting up the Shooting Star (which still takes forever) for the pin at 12:14.

Rating: C. I’m not a fan of either guy and this really felt like a very stereotypical ROH match. The knee work went nowhere because Kushida wouldn’t sell the thing. Sydal is better than just a single finisher but I’m still not a fan of his since he left WWE. This wasn’t a bad match or anything but it’s not my style.

Watanabe vs. Will Ferrara vs. Moose vs. Adam Page

One fall to a finish. Before the match, BJ Whitmer says Page should get some better competition because he beats everyone he fights. Page goes right after Watanabe to start and the fans aren’t pleased because Watanabe is Japanese and therefore the ROH fans worship him. Ferrara comes in and knocks Page around the ring like he stole something. Off to Moose who throws Ferrara around but Page tags himself in to pick the bones. A belly to belly gets two on Ferrara but it’s quickly back to Watanabe for a backsplash.

Moose breaks up a cover and backdrops the much smaller Ferrara over the top and out onto Watanabe. Colby gets on the apron and is promptly kicked back to the floor. Page comes back in and gets speared in half, only to have Ferrara tornado DDT Moose. Back to Watanabe for a German suplex to Moose and an STO to pin Ferrara at 5:45.

Rating: C+. This would have been better with more time and I like Watanabe a little bit better than Kushida so this didn’t get to me as much. Moose is kind of in a free fall at this point and could use a big win but as usual Watanabe needs another win that doesn’t seem to get him anywhere. Ferrara continues to be spunky which is about as good as you can get for someone his size.

Bushwhacker Luke marches around the ring. This is a semi-regular thing in ROH.

We see Cheeseburger getting beaten down by Brutal Bob Evans earlier in the night because these two are destined to be fighting forever. Luke came in for the save with a Stunner (yes a Stunner) and used Cheeseburger for a Battering Ram.

Back in the arena and Luke says Corino looks like a bucket of sardines (a compliment) and licks his face. As someone who has experienced that as well, I don’t know why Corino is wincing.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Adam Cole

Nigel McGuinness is in on commentary. Cole is full on heel here and thankfully the commentary knows it for a change. Unfortunately they can’t say what he did but that’s the danger of a taped show. I still get a Mick Jagger vibe from Nakamura. Cole works on a wristlock to start but they stop to take in some crowd reactions. Nakamura does Cole’s pose in a funny bit but Cole kicks him in the leg and does an awkward little dance as we take a break.

Back with Nakamura driving Cole into the barricade but Adam scores with a superkick. Corino misses it though and sounds downright depressed. He’s really starting to grow on me and I’m not sure if I like that. Back in and Cole sends him hard into the corner before going into that evil smile of his. Nakamura starts driving the hard knees into the head and gets two off a gordbuster. We could all use a bit more Arn Anderson in our lives so I heartily approve.

Cole comes back with a superkick to both knees and a low one to the jaw for two. More kicks to the knee take us to a break and we come back with Cole slapping on the Figure Four. Nakamura gets the ropes so Cole busts out some dragon screw leg whips, only to get caught in a cross armbreaker. That goes nowhere so Nakamura comes back with knee strikes (gah) and an overhead belly to back suplex. The knee gives out though, allowing Cole to come back with a running knee to the face.

A Shining Wizard gets two for Adam and a superkick to the back of the head into a cross arm German suplex for two. Cole freaks out and goes after the referee but charges into a knee in the corner. Nakamura’s middle rope knee drops Cole but he can’t cover. An ax kick sets up the running knee to the side of Cole’s head for a close two. Cole spits in Nakamura’s face so Shinsuke comes back with the Landslide (sitout Death Valley Driver) and another running knee for the pin at 22:50.

Rating: B. Good but not great match here which felt like a major showdown as it was supposed to. Nakamura has more personality than anyone else in New Japan and it’s always fun to see him in the ring. Cole has that it factor and the smile when he had Shinsuke in trouble was great. The match was certainly good and well worthy of the spot they were going for here though I’ve seen better. The constant knee strikes from Nakamura after Cole spent the time working over the knee got annoying in a hurry but at least Shinsuke sold the knee a bit in between. That’s a lot better than some people would do.

Overall Rating: B. This was a solid, wrestling heavy TV show. When one match takes up nearly half the show it’s going to dominate the rating and that’s exactly what happened here. That being said, I could go for some more stories as I had them built up for weeks and now I have to wait more weeks to see where they go. I’d really like them to fix this problem because it gets on my nerves every single time. Still though, fun show here with a lot of solid to good wrestling.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B015IN12I2

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: July 8, 2015
Location: Terminal 5, New York City, New York
Commentators: King Corino, Kevin Kelly

This should be an interesting show as it’s FINALLY just a new ROH show instead of a co-promoted show with New Japan. The main story is the fallout of Jay Lethal winning the World Title at Best in the World to go with his TV Title. Now it’s time to get ready for Death Before Dishonor in a few weeks so let’s get to it.

After a quick opening sequence, we get a stills package on Lethal vs. Briscoe at Best in the World with Jay walking out with the titles. That was a pretty safe bet all around.

Regular opening.

Dalton Castle vs. Watanabe

The fans are almost entirely behind Castle here. Castle dances around to start but gets dropped by a shoulder. I still don’t get Watanabe. He’s really just a guy in tights who does moves, which actually would get him way over in Ring of Honor so maybe I just don’t get the point. Castle gets knocked into the corner so his guys fan him off, only to have Watanabe get knocked into the corner where Dalton’s guys fan him off too. Ok point for a funny spot.

We take a break and come back with an exchange of small packages without many counts in between. A backsplash gets two for Watanabe but Dalton grabs a suplex to get a breather. Castle follows up with a German and we get a cool, Lucha Underground style overhead shot to show Watanabe sprawled on the mat. Watanabe pops up (a Japanese wrestler not selling that much?) and hooks a Cloverleaf….into a catapult? That’s a new one on me. Watanabe spends a bit too much time posing though and gets caught in a reverse sitout powerbomb for the pin at 10:10.

Rating: D+. Castle isn’t bad but again, I have no idea why I’m supposed to care about Watanabe. Something about Watanabe being on a training mission which I know is a real thing in Japan, but I see no reason to care about him training to go and become a bigger deal in Japan.

Castle says there are a lot of boys out here tonight, but after Best in the World (at this point he lays back on his guys’ bent over chests), he’s the only real man in Ring of Honor. Cue Silas Young as we go to a quick break.

Nigel McGuinness brings out Jay Lethal for his first chat as champion. The fans tell the heel champion that he deserves it because smark fans don’t understand the difference between faces and heels. Truth Martini says the fans aren’t Lethal’s people, because the House of Truth are his people. Jay is clearly the best in the world because he is the undisputed World Champion. Fans: “TIE YOUR SHOES!”

Lethal is about to leave but Nigel asks him which of those titles is he going to be vacating. That’s fine with Nigel, but it’s a bit more complicated than that. See, Lethal may see the titles as the same thing, but Ring of Honor sees them as two different things. Therefore, Lethal will be defending the World Title against Roderick Strong at Death Before Dishonor, but he’ll be defending the TV Title next week against Mark Briscoe. Jay rants about how he knows he’s the greatest and if he has to wrestle twice in a night, so be it.

This brings out Roderick Strong to a better reaction than Lethal. Strong tells Lethal to look him right in the face like a man. On July 24, Lethal is walking in as champion but Strong is walking out with the belt. That was one of the most generic, lame face promos I’ve heard in a very long time, but at least Strong can usually back it up in the ring.

Kingdom vs. Michael Elgin/Red Dragon

That would be Matt Taven/Adam Cole/Michael Bennett with Maria, who is as gorgeous as ever. Before the match, Maria tells Cole not to worry about what happened at Best in the World (not important enough to specify) because tonight they’ll prove that this Kingdom shall never fall. After a break and they shake hands for the Code of Honor and therefore we don’t miss any action. That’s a good ROH.

Bennett vs. Elgin to get things going with Mike’s (Bennett) shoulder having no effect. Elgin’s shoulder on the other hand works a bit better and he loads up a suplex. Taven and Cole come in to kick him in the ribs but he won’t go do, so Red Dragon slaps on a pair of submission holds as this is one sided so far. The rest of the Kingdom finally gets together to take Elgin to the floor so Bennett can hit a flip dive.

Back in and a high cross body gets two on Elgin as Taven takes over. We take a break and come back with Elgin diving over for a tag, only to have Cole and Taven pull his partners down to the floor. Elgin finally takes the Kingdom down and makes the hot tag as everything breaks down. Taven eats a DDT into a wheelbarrow suplex for two but pops up and dives onto O’Reilly and Fish.

Back in and a hot tag brings in Elgin to clean house with suplexes, followed by a fireman’s carry to Taven and Bennett at the same time. Cole’s kick to the ribs doesn’t break it up again so Elgin swings their legs around to hit Adam in the face. The Kingdom takes them down again and Bennett loads up a Backpack Stunner with Taven adding a running boot to the face for two.

Red Dragon dives on Cole and Bennett, leaving Elgin to powerbomb Taven onto all four of them. Back in and a superbomb gets two on Taven with Cole diving in for a save. Cole plants Elgin with the Canadian Destroyer and a big spike piledriver gets two so Kyle actually tags out to Kyle. Yeah tagging still exists in this thing. A guillotine choke has Cole in trouble but he has to settle for a Dean Ambrose rebound lariat, followed by Chasing the Dragon for the pin on Cole at 17:16.

Rating: C+. I had fun with this but I’m really not a fan of the big messy tag matches. These are basically ECW tag matches without the weapons, which isn’t something that’s really appealing for me. It’s certainly entertaining, but it’s nothing that I’m ever going to want to watch again. Well other than Maria of course.

Cole walks out on his partners to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. I liked this show more than the previous few weeks because now I’m going to have a chance to get to know the Ring of Honor roster instead of some all star team they have. It’s good that there’s a continuing relationship with New Japan, but I’m glad that it’s limited instead of dominating the shows anymore. Fun episode this week and another shot that flew by.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XOUNBEA

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Ring of Honor
Date: July 1, 2015
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: King Corino, Kevin Kelly

We’re finally past the Global Wars stuff so it’s time for something actually Ring of Honor instead of a co-promoted show. Therefore tonight….it’s War of the Worlds, which is another Ring of Honor/New Japan co-promoted show from before Global Wars took place. They’re entertaining, but I’m more interested in their storylines instead of shows from two months ago. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Kelly promises fallout from Best in the World next week, meaning it’s FINALLY a new, all ROH show.

Addiction vs. Gedo/Kazuchika Okada

Addiction’s ROH World Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line, but they do insist on being called the World Tag Team Champions of the World. Gedo and Okada are part of the Chaos stable. Kaz and Gedo get things going with Gedo firing off some Flip Flop and Fly (with the punches missing) before it’s off to Okada vs. Daniels. The fans are split but Okada wins some points by teasing a big chop to the chest but stopping to gently pat him.

Gedo books his team into control with a poke to the eye but it’s quickly back to Kaz. The Addiction screws up to give Gedo a rollup (with tights) for two. At least Gedo is showing some personality here. He’s one of those guys where I just don’t get it so this is a mild improvement. Back from a break with Kaz putting Gedo in a freaky arm/leg hold but Daniels shoves the referee and almost gets in a fight with him, which might be an homage to Tommy Young boxing with Jim Cornette back in the day.

A top rope stomp to the chest gets two on Gedo but he grabs a quick Downward Spiral, finally allowing the hot tag to Okada. House is cleaned and the White Noise onto the knee gets two. Some double teaming slows Okada down until a double cross body gives us a breather. Back to Gedo for a jawbreaker and low superkick for two but Celebrity Addiction (belly to back into a gutbuster) is enough for the pin on Gedo at 14:41.

Rating: C+. This is where I get tired of Ring of Honor fans. The match was really nothing all that great, but Gedo and Okada are from Japan so the fans are going to act like this was one of the most amazing things they’ve ever seen. Yeah it was fine, but it was just a run of the mill tag match. Okada has his moments of awesome, but Gedo is just a guy for the most part.

Daniels takes the Rainmaker post match, and it’s still just a clothesline.

Adam Page vs. Watanabe

This is joined in progress. Watanabe takes him down with a neckbreaker and backdrops Page to the floor. Page backflips out of a German on the floor to prevent a broken….well probably multiple brokens, and a Colby Corino distraction lets Page mostly miss a shooting star off the apron. Back in and Page breaks up a half and half suplex but gets caught in a belly to back superplex. I’m still waiting on anything but a spot fest here. My suspicions are confirmed as Page hits his Right of Passage reverse piledriver for the pin at 4:54 shown.

Rating: D+. Well that happened. This is another good example of the problem with these shows: who are these people and why should I care? If you don’t follow New Japan, there’s very little reason to care about what these people are doing. I know both guys are young stars, but that’s about all I know of either guy. You could have any guy fill that role, and that’s not a good sign. The match certainly wasn’t bad, but I have no connection or reason to care about either guy and that hurts a lot.

AJ Styles vs. Adam Cole

Styles’ IWGP World Title isn’t on the line. They shove each other around and run their mouths a bit to start before Cole cranks on a weak armbar. Styles shrugs it off and comes back with an AA into a backbreaker to take over. A seated version of the Superman forearm (minus the springboard) gets two and the drop down into the dropkick sends Cole to the floor and us to a break. Back with Cole hitting a nice wheelbarrow suplex onto the apron for the first really cool spot of the match.

A knee to the face gets two for Cole and we hit the chinlock. Cole spits on the commentators and flips off the fans (censored) but AJ will have none of that and comes back with a torture rack powerbomb for two of his own. Corino thinks AJ is sexy. Ok then. Cole’s recently injured shoulder is sent into the corner but he superkicks AJ out of the air for two more. We hit the Figure Four and Corino is in full on fanboy mode. Fans: “THIS IS WRESTLING!” Oh shut up.

Styles makes the rope and kicks him to the floor as we take another break. Back with a VERY fast paced kick exchange, capped off by AJ missing the Pele and taking a low superkick for a near fall. A Canadian Destroyer doesn’t work very well so Cole busts out a Styles Clash for an even nearer fall. How exactly do you nearly fall anyway? Is it like slipping and catching your balance at the last minute? Now the Pele connects and AJ is mad enough to hit a kneeling piledriver and the Clash for the pin at 22:45.

Rating: B-. I liked the match and they picked it way up later in the show, but again this was more for people who are long time watchers of the show than a good initiation for new fans. I’ve seen enough of Cole to know he’s good (though not as good as he’s made up to be) but they didn’t do a great job of making me know that. Still though, good main event.

They shake hands to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The show was fun, but I’m REALLY not a fan of this style of show. Like I said, if you don’t know how things are going in Ring of Honor or New Japan, this was mainly just a collection of wrestlers having matches with no stories or anything to make me care about them. It was a fine show for an hour, but these guys really needed some video packages or promos to let us connect to them.

A lot of wrestling companies forget about how important it is to care about the wrestlers and think it’s all about the in ring action. You’re almost always going to be able to find better wrestling, but wrestlers you care about having good matches are far more interesting than wrestlers you don’t care about having a slightly better match. I’m really glad we’re finally moving forward next week, because this stuff is getting tiresome.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete Monday Nitro Reviews Volume III at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XOUNBEA

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6