Ring of Honor TV – October 18, 2017: The Bullet Bites the Burger
Ring of Honor Date: October 18, 2017 Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana
We’re still in Las Vegas and still dealing with the fallout from Death Before Dishonor. It’s not clear if Global Wars, which will have ended by the time this show airs, will get any focus. That’s what keeps confusing me about this company: some of their pay per views matter and some are just big time specials. At least TV has been good lately so let’s get to it.
Addiction isn’t allowed in, despite being awesome wrestlers.
Opening sequence.
Kushida vs. Scorpio Sky
Sky is a PWG legend. A technical sequence goes nowhere so Sky takes over with a backbreaker for two. Kushida starts in on the arm and it turns out that his mom is in the crowd. Well that’s always cool. Hopefully she’s fine with her son working on the arm with kicks and a stomp until Sky takes him down with a neckbreaker. Sky goes up but his frog splash is countered into a cross armbreaker. It’s too close to the ropes though and here’s Daniels with an air horn. Kazarian comes in to kick Kushida low for the DQ at 3:27.
Rating: C. This didn’t have the time to mean much but it was nice while it lasted. Sky is someone I’ve heard a lot about but I’ve only seen him a few times. I wouldn’t be complaining about him being around here more often. At least Kushida was around as that’s always a good thing.
Kushida gets beaten down until Jay Lethal makes the save. During the break, a challenge for a tag match was made and we have a match…at some point in the future.
We look back at Jay Briscoe injuring Bully Ray and Tommy Dreamer’s promo with him last week.
Here’s Bully in sunglasses to no music. He apologizes for everything being low key and says he has to worry about the head trauma at the moment. Right now he doesn’t know if he’s ever going to get his hands on Jay Briscoe, even if he’d love to more than anything else. For the first time in his career, he’s thinking about stepping away for the sake of his family. These people have been his wrestling family all these years but for once he has to think about his family at home. Bully goes to leave and Mark Briscoe comes out to say Bully’s issues are with Jay, not the family. They’re cool with each other.
We look back at Kenny King saying he’ll fight anyone for the TV Title anytime. A small army came out to stare him down and King didn’t seem to mind. Next week, it’s a four way to crown a new #1 contender.
Here’s the Bullet Club for a celebration with the promise of a big surprise. Shane Taylor follows the team out with Cody handing him a wad of money along the way. Cody talks about having the most lucrative contract in ROH history. We hit that YOU DESERVE IT chant before Cody talks about the Young Bucks getting offers from every wrestling company in the world about two years ago.
That’s where Cody is now, but he is officially signing the exclusive contract with Ring of Honor. This….pretty much changes nothing but it’s the Bullet Club so that makes it awesome. Everyone else leaves and Cody thinks he should do something special for his first official night on the roster. How about a title defense right now? Cody hints that it’s going to be Dalton Castle but instead it’s….Cheeseburger.
Ring of Honor World Title: Cody vs. Cheeseburger
Cody is defending in a suit with Shane Taylor at ringside. Cheeseburger gets taken down and slapped in the head a few times, only to come out of the corner with a high double kick to the chest. Cody bails to the floor and that means a slingshot dive as Cheeseburger gets in his early offense. A shot with the big ring cuts Cheeseburger off though and it’s time for a belt whipping.
Cheeseburger takes it away and gets two off a crucifix but a delayed superplex cuts him off in a hurry. A quick springboard knee to the head (ala Seth Rollins) gives Cheeseburger two but the palm strike is countered into Cross Rhodes….for two as Cody picks him up. The delay lets Cheeseburger get in a few whips, only to have Cody slap on the American Deathlock for the tap at 5:44.
Rating: C+. That’s the kind of Cheeseburger match I can go for: he gets in some hope spots but is overwhelmed by the size and skill. It gets old watching him do the same things over and over again so this was fairly refreshing. Cody wasn’t going to lose here but it came off like a weaker version of HHH vs. Taka Michinoku (that’s a compliment), which is just fine.
The Kingdom is ready.
It’s time for Coleman’s Pulpit with his guests the Dawgs, Will Ferrara and Rhett Titus. Apparently they’re wearing the wrong suit jackets and Ferrara isn’t happy. So yeah, they’re a bad comedy act. Ferrara hates cheese and he hates Cheeseburger. Titus on the other hand isn’t happy with Kenny King not appreciating Titus getting him his job back. They’re ready for the Tempura Boyz next week. This team doesn’t look promising.
Kingdom vs. Search and Destroy
It’s the Motor City Machine Guns and Jonathan Gresham for Search and Destroy here. Taven jumps Sabin from behind to start and we start….well not that fast really. Everything breaks down in a hurry and the Kingdom is sent outside for a triple dive. Back in and some triple kicks take Taven down but Marseglia’s blind tag breaks up a tornado DDT attempt. The Kingdom takes over on Sabin in the corner with a variety of stomping as we’re told how interesting Marseglia really is. O’Ryan hits a good looking spinebuster and a running knee gets two as we take a break.
Back with Sabin escaping Rockstar Supernova and getting pummeled for his efforts. Sabin DDT’s and dropkicks his way to freedom as his partners have no issues with all three opponents being in the ring at once. It’s off to Gresham to clean house, including a moonsault onto O’Ryan off a belly to back from Taven in a nice counter. Gresham ankle locks O’Ryan as the Guns dive onto Marseglia and Taven. It’s Taven coming back in with a Disaster Kick for the save so Gresham tags Sabin back in for a fairly dumb idea.
The Guns come right back with the Dream Sequence and a suicide dive on O’Ryan. Marseglia takes them both down with a springboard dive, followed by Taven hitting a no hands version. Gresham moonsaults from the middle rope and grazes a few of them. Back in and Skull and Bones is broken up, allowing Taven to get in a walking stick shot for the rollup (with tights) pin at 10:24.
Rating: C+. This could have been better if I cared about the Kingdom in any way, shape or form. The Guns are starting to grow on me again, especially now that they actually got the belts off the Bucks. That being said, it’s not a good idea to have a new champion take a fall like this. Just pin Gresham.
Overall Rating: C. It wasn’t a bad show but there was nothing that blew me away. The Bully promo is good and while I don’t think there’s any secret tot he fact that this is setting up Bully vs. Jay at Final Battle, at least they’re giving us a good story along the way. Not a bad show here but it’s a filler episode, even with big names around.
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Ring of Honor TV – September 27, 2017: It’s Time to Rumble in an Honorable Fashion
Ring of Honor Date: September 27, 2017 Location: Center Stage, Atlanta, Georgia Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, BJ Whitmer
Dang it we’re at a post-pay per view show and that could mean absolutely anything. Well almost anything as it certainly won’t mean anything about the pay per view itself. Hopefully they keep this part of the schedule short and don’t spend weeks before we get back to the important stuff. Let’s get to it.
QT Marshall vs. Josh Woods
This is fallout from Marshall paying Shane Taylor to attack Woods. Yeah I don’t remember it either. Marshall is billed as God’s Gift so he comes out of a big gift box. An early armbar has Marshall in trouble but he rolls outside, only to have Woods run him over again. Woods runs over a security guard by mistake but just shrugs it off, as he should. A running knee staggers Marshall again but Woods can’t suplex him off the apron. You know, because it would kill him.
Marshall suplexes him onto the apron and we take a break. Back with Woods firing off some shots in the corner but charging into a superkick. Something like an AA into the corner drops Marshall again and a running knee gets two. Marshall gets in a powerbomb but Woods slaps on a triangle choke. That goes nowhere so Woods grabs the kneebar for the tap at 9:36.
Rating: C. As usual, Woods looked like a star who could go somewhere with some more polish. This was a good performance that showed his versatility, which is more than you get from a lot of people around here. Marshall didn’t show me much and was little more than a guy in trunks.
It’s time for Coleman’s Pulpit, with Mark Briscoe (in a tie over his Briscoe Brothers t-shirt) as his guest. Mark doesn’t want to talk about what’s wrong with his brother Jay, but Coleman suggests that the team is over. That’s not cool with Mark, but he does think Jay needs an attitude adjustment. They briefly touch on Jay turning heel at Death Before Dishonor, of course without actually saying what happened. Anyway, Mark says the team isn’t going anywhere.
Video on the War of the Worlds: UK show, which really wasn’t anything special.
Honor Rumble
This is basically a twenty man Royal Rumble with the winner getting a World Title shot at some point in the future. Cody comes out for commentary and Ian mentions that he retained at Death Before Dishonor. Jay White is in at #1 and Sho is in at #2 and will fight for two minutes, though the rest of the intervals will only be one minute.
Sho bows at him to start and even kisses White’s boots. White doesn’t seem to approve of it (jerk) and tries to toss him but settles for a good looking dropkick. That goes nowhere though and it’s Punishment Martinez in at #3. Martinez starts cleaning house but misses a charge in the corner as Jonathan Gresham is in at #4. Rhett Titus is in at #5 as Sho is eliminated. Titus starts to clean house but runs into Martinez, who would rather choke White instead. Frankie Kazarian is in at #6 to what Cody calls a nostalgia pop.
Back from a break with Alex Shelley in at #9, seemingly following Yo and Will Ferrara in some order. Gresham and White are eliminated and it’s Silas Young, the defending winner, in at #10 to eliminate Ferrara. Everyone gets together to eliminate Martinez and it’s Sal Rinauro, who was half of the Tag Team Champions over a decade ago, at #11. Shane Taylor is in at #12 to eliminate Young and Shelley with no effort. Rinauro is gone as well, followed by Yo with little effort. That leaves us with Taylor and Kazarian but Cody hops the barricade to pay Taylor off.
Flip Gordon is in at #13 and he goes right for Taylor. That’s about as successful as you would expect but he skins the cat to stave off elimination. Jay Lethal is in at #14 and we take another break. Back again with Hanson in at #15 and hitting his running corner clotheslines. Kazarian is smart enough to run the corners to avoid taking a shot, which isn’t something you see very often. Taylor runs Hanson over though and it’s Chris Sabin in at #16.
Sabin goes right after Kazarian due to old issues and it’s Bully Ray in at #17. Some right hands to almost everyone has Ray in trouble until it’s Ray Rowe in at #18. War Machine gets together but can’t eliminate Ray. Mark Briscoe is in at #19 for some Red Neck Kung Fu. Finally, in one of those dumb moves for the sake of nostalgia, freaking GLACIER is in at #20. For some reason Cody is terrified of a 53 year old former jobber to the stars as we take a third break.
Back with a final group of Glacier, Lethal, Ray, Hanson, Rowe, Kazarian, Taylor, Sabin and Gordon (How is he still in this?). War Machine tosses Taylor and Rowe kicks Sabin out as well. Ray dumps Glacier (turning Ray heel for a few seconds) and gets rid of War Machine without too much effort.
Gordon slugs away at Bully but has to save himself from a backdrop. An enziguri drops Ray but a springboard takes too long, allowing Kazarian to eliminate Gordon. Kazarian and Lethal fight on the top until Frankie is shoved down, setting up What’s Up with Lethal playing D-Von.
Lethal and Ray slug it out with Bully being tossed but Kazarian saves himself on the apron again. A cutter drops Kazarian again but here’s Daniels for a distraction as Kazarian is eliminated. Naturally the referee doesn’t see it so Kazarian gets back in, only to be sent into Daniels. Kazarian bails to the floor so Daniels takes the Lethal Injection, allowing Kazarian to eliminate Lethal for the win and the title shot at 28:56.
Rating: B-. Not bad at all here as I didn’t know who was going to win until the ending and there were several possible outcomes. Kazarian winning is an interesting idea as it sets up a heel vs. heel match (kind of) next week. I didn’t think they would give us Lethal vs. Cody on such a nothing stage, but Kazarian is a fine choice for an opponent. They kept things moving here too and, save for Glacier as a stupid final entrant, there wasn’t anyone who felt out of place.
Post match the Addiction rips on the crowd and promises that Kazarian will take the title next week.
Overall Rating: B. The main event was the focus of the show but they threw in the opener to make things work a little bit better. I can live with something like this over something like a random midcard feud getting way more time than it needs. Good showing this week and having the title match next week is fine, especially with the Death Before Dishonor fallout likely coming the next week.
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Ring of Honor TV – September 6, 2017: You Can Tell It’s Pay Per View Time
Ring of Honor Date: September 6, 2017 Location: Cabarrus Arena and Events Center, Concord, North Carolina Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana
We’re rapidly approaching Death Before Dishonor and it would be nice to actually hype up the show instead of just having a single episode to build things up. They got it right with Best in the World and I have no idea why it’s so hard to repeat the success. Unfortunately it’s the end of a taping cycle so things might not be the most energetic. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of Jay Lethal vs. Silas Young, which has turned into a nice feud, assuming they finally go anywhere with it.
Beer City Bruiser vs. Jay Lethal
No DQ and we’re joined in progress with the two of them fighting in the aisle. Lethal slugs away and manages to avoid a cannonball to send Bruiser into the barricade. Jay hits one of his own and Bruiser is in early trouble. A dropkick staggers Bruiser with Jay scoring with a suicide dive to follow up.
Back from a break with Lethal missing a chair shot and Silas Young on commentary. Scratch that as he heads towards the ring, where Bruiser is hitting Lethal in the ribs with a chair. The chair is wedged into the corner and you know what that’s going to mean. Security stops Silas so he goes back to talk some more, which means we need to look at him far more often than is necessary. A basement dropkick of all things staggers Lethal and it’s time for some duct tape.
Jay fights back though and takes off his belt for a beating. Ian and Silas argue over whether or not Riccaboni is impartial as Jay sends Bruiser head first into the chair in the corner. Young heads to the ring again and we take a break. Back with Bruiser missing a top rope elbow, earning him some praise from Silas. Young: “Smart move Bruiser.” Colt: “Said no one ever.”
There’s the Lethal Injection but Jay would rather tape Bruiser to the ropes instead of covering. Jay grabs Bruiser’s keg and puts it over the knee, which he then crushes with a chair. More chair shots to the leg have Bruiser screaming in pain and it’s a Figure Four for the submission at 15:11.
Rating: B. When did Bruiser start getting good? I was buying into the hatred and the violence here with Lethal getting a good warmup before his major showdown with Young at the pay per view. When Lethal is on his game he’s as good as anyone in the promotion and this was no exception. Really solid brawl with the beating doing a great job to show off Lethal’s anger.
Post match Jay puts the hold on again as security holds Silas back.
Video on Minoru Suzuki, who is from New Japan and has an MMA background so he’s the coolest guy ever.
Cody talks about the difference between MMA and “sports entertainment”. Which one of them is real? Suzuki has 29 recorded wins in mixed martial arts. You know what else is ready? Cody is going to stretch him and Suzuki is going to call him daddy.
Earlier today Will Ferrara attacked Cheeseburger at an autograph signing.
We look at the Addiction attacking the Motor City Machine Guns and the Young Bucks last week.
Earlier today Caprice Coleman wanted to interview the Addiction but just had chairs and a microphone, much to his annoyance. Kazarian says he wanted to talk to Caprice Coleman and only Caprice Coleman because he knows what it’s like to be disrespected. Look at the lack of set that Coleman requested weeks ago. That’s why the Addiction is declaring war on respect.
Caprice asks if Daniels wants the Tag Team Titles back so Daniels takes the one mic they’re sharing (Coleman: “Be careful. It’s attached.”) to say that’s not the point. He feels betrayed by the fans, who booed him at Best in the World. Daniels was ready to lead the company but the fans didn’t want that. They’re going to find out what the fans want and that’s what they’re going to prevent from happening. If the fans want the best wrestling, the Addiction is going to burn it to the ground.
Will Ferrara vs. Howie Timberche
Howie throws him into the corner for some right hands and sings A Whole New World from Aladdin before punching Ferrara in the face. More dancing and singing sees Ferrara get slammed down, followed by a good looking dropkick. They head outside with Timberche getting pulled shoulder first into the post, followed by the suicide tornado DDT. Timberche gets in a jumping back elbow and a side slam before putting him in the Tree of Woe (complete with more singing). A backflip into an elbow gets two on Ferrara but a low blow cuts Howie off. The second tornado DDT gives Ferrara the pin at 4:26.
Rating: C-. I really hope that’s not all we see from Timberche, who should have gotten at least a second look out of that performance. He has a good look, a lot of charisma and his work is fine. Ferrara was outshined here, which isn’t surprising given how generic he is. He’s just a small guy who doesn’t have anything that makes him stand out, which is a problem for a lot of people around here. Timberche was fun and I’d like to see him again, though he definitely looks more like a WWE guy than an ROH guy.
Post match Cheeseburger comes out to issue a challenge for next week. I know he’s a cult favorite but I’ve been watching him have the same “my partner betrayed me” feud for what feels like years now.
Jay Briscoe has a concussion but Ring of Honor paid for him to be here anyway so here he is.
Mark Briscoe/Bully Ray vs. Cody/Adam Page
I love that Cody is one of the only champions around that still wears the belt. Cody does his “who wants the shirt” bit before handing it to Page. The classics never die. Mark dropkicks Page off the apron and sends Cody outside for a dropkick. The apron Blockbuster makes things even worse but Cody elbows him in the face to get a breather.
After a little spitting from Mark, Page trips him up and hits the slingshot clothesline to really take over. Mark can’t quite fight out of the corner yet as Cody forearms him in the back and stomps away. Back from a break with Mark kicking Page in the face and making the hot tag off to Bully for the house cleaning.
Bully hammers on Page and hits a Bionic Elbow on Cody (that’s rather cruel). What’s Up with Mark hitting an elbow instead of a headbutt has Cody in trouble and it’s table time. Cue Marty Scurll for a distraction but Jay comes out to take care of him. Jay sets up a table but gets punched in his concussed head, which can’t be a good thing.
Marty and Jay fight around the back of the crowd and it’s a Doomsday Device on Page. Cody breaks up the elbow to drive Page through the table but walks into Mark’s fisherman’s buster for two. Cue the Kingdom to take Mark out though and Cross Rhodes puts him away at 11:20.
Rating: C-. This was every ROH main event all over again: too much stuff packed into a match to really work, which goes against the idea of the entire promotion. Then again it’s what worked in WWE for so long and that’s what wrestling companies do, even if it gets dull in a hurry. At least the ending helped set up the Six Man Tag Team Title stuff at Death Before Dishonor, which still isn’t all that thrilling.
Post match the Kingdom lays out Mark and Bully until Jay makes the save. That just earns him Rock Star Supernova (still way too awesome of a name for such a lame team) to end the show.
Overall Rating: D+. You can tell they’re at the end of a taping cycle here and unfortunately it’s a taping cycle as we head towards a World Title match with a challenger who has no connection to the promotion. In other words, the World Champion is just a detail in the promotion while the big deal is a Japanese legend who isn’t appearing or talking until the pay per view. You know, like what happened at the last pay per view. But hey, at least the New Japan fans get what they want out of this and that’s what matters. Not a good show this week, as they’re firmly in the period of having nothing to do despite a big show coming up.
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War of the World UK 2017 Date: August 19, 2017 Location: Liverpool Olympia, Liverpool, England Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, BJ Whitmer
So this is a show that exists. I mean, you would have almost no idea about it if you just watched the regular TV show because they only mentioned it halfway through the go home show but it does in fact exist. There is such little effort being put into this show and I’m worried about how bad it’s going to be as a result. Let’s get to it.
The version I’m watching includes the announcers’ introductions (and them asking if they can hear each other in a quick sound check) and the pre-show match.
Pre-Show: The Boys vs. CCK
CCK (Chris Brookes/Travis Banks, the Commonwealth Catch Kings) are from the UK based Rev Pro promotion and their Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line. It’s a brawl to start with the Boys taking down the giant Brookes (probably a foot taller than anyone else in the match) down by the legs. It’s Banks and we’ll say Boy #1 starting things off with #1 being tossed over the corner to land on the apron.
Some double teaming drops Banks though as the announcers aren’t sure which Boy is which. Back in and Brookes puts Banks on his shoulders and launches him at #2 for a Codebreaker in a sweet spot. Brookes even drops a backsplash onto #2 for good measure as the beating begins. In what must be British humor, Chris puts #2 in a camel clutch and both members of CCK stick their fingers in Chris’ mouth and then into #2’s ears.
Some Twin Magic allows #1 to come in and grab a suplex as everything breaks down. The Boys hit stereo dives but Brookes catches #1 in a hanging swinging neckbreaker for two. #1 sends CCK into each other and brings in #2 for a Backstabber. Not that it matters as Banks grabs a fisherman’s driver for the pin on #2 at 6:36.
Rating: C-. Just a tag match here for the sake of firing up the crowd. I’m not sure how smart it is to have your champions lose to some outsiders but then again ROH has never really cared all that much about protecting its titles. I mean, why bother worrying about your own talent when you can put over someone else’s talent? The match was watchable with some nice spots but there’s a reason it was just a dark match.
Opening sequence.
Adam Page vs. Kenny King
Fallout from Page costing King his TV Title shot. They hit the ropes to start until Page misses a standing shooting star and King misses a spinwheel kick to give us a standoff. Both of them wind up on the floor with Page running him over before taking him back inside for Old School, capped off by a thumb to the eye instead of anything else. See he’s in the Bullet Club and needs to do “cute” stuff like that. A sunset flip out of the corner gives King two and it’s off to a seated abdominal stretch.
That goes nowhere so King grabs a spinebuster for two more. Since selling isn’t a thing in ROH, Page is back up with a neckbreaker over the ropes and a tabletop suplex for two. King kicks him in the head again and hits a flip dive out to the floor. The springboard Blockbuster gives King two but he gets caught with the slingshot clothesline for the same. The Rite of Passage is broken up and it’s another kick to the head to set up the Royal Flush to pin Page at 8:43.
Rating: C-. This was the Ring of Honor “style” in a nutshell: no psychology, no storytelling, no transitions between moves and little more than “I do a spot and then you do a spot”. It completely felt like getting their stuff in and leaving, which isn’t what I’m really wanting to see. Some of the spots were good but it felt like just a bunch of stuff instead of a match and that’s not good.
Ultimo Guerrero/Rey Buccanero vs. Titan/Mistico
Under lucha rules of course. I don’t know if ROH brings in these teams because they think it’s more interesting than their roster or if they don’t have enough talent to fill out a show on their own. The more I watch their stuff, the more I think it’s the latter and that’s not good. Mistico and Buccanero start things off and it’s a LUCHA LIBRE chant to spice things up a bit.
The much bigger Rey turns Mistico inside out with a shot to the mask and it’s a quick exchange of near falls. Guerrero and Titan come in with Titan hand walking away from a clothesline and headscissoring Guerrero to the floor. Titan’s flip dive is countered into a powerbomb on the floor though, leaving Buccanero to go after Mistico’s mask.
Everyone heads to the floor with Guerrero jumping over Rey to crash onto both smaller guys at once. Back in and Buccanero moonsaults onto Titan, whose back is over Guerrero’s ribs. A slingshot dropkick in the corner has Titan in trouble but he pops back up with a double handspring elbow.
It’s off to Mistico for a hurricanrana each as everything breaks down. Guerrero superbombs Mistico but gets kicked in the head, allowing Titan to come back in. Why things settled back down isn’t clear but lucha matches aren’t exactly built on enforcing structure (not a bad thing). Titan springboards in with a dropkick to Buccanero before sending him outside for an Asai moonsault. Mistico moonsaults onto Rey as well, leaving Guerrero to hit the Guerrero Special (reverse superplex) to put Titan away at 11:34.
Rating: C+. Better match than I was expecting here though the fans cheering all four guys when Guerrero and Buccanero were trying to play heel was odd. The other problem, and I’m sure you’ve heard me say this many times (and I’ll keep at it as long as it’s a problem): I don’t know who these people are and I have no reason to care.
The background I received here: Buccanero and Guerrero were the Observer’s Tag Team of the Decade for 2000-2009. Uh, great, and what have they done in Ring of Honor? Or in the last eight years for that matter? As usual, it feels like I need to have a lot of outside knowledge coming in to get a lot of this stuff and when the show is barely advertised in the first place, that’s hardly a good way to expand your product.
The announcers talk about Sanada’s vertical leap.
Jay Lethal vs. Josh Bodom
Bodom’s British Cruiserweight Title isn’t on the line. I’ve seen Bodom’s work before and wasn’t that impressed but maybe a better opponent will help. They exchange wristlock counters to start until Lethal blocks a hiptoss and grabs a swinging neckbreaker. A springboard dropkick puts Bodom on the floor but he comes back in with a hurricanrana. There’s a dropkick to really stagger Lethal, though not enough that he can’t hit his cartwheel into a dropkick of his own.
A missile dropkick misses and Bodom knees him in the head. Bodom grabs a reverse hurricanrana to put him outside, followed by a middle rope moonsault. Back in and a top rope double stomp to the back of Jay’s head, followed by a standing shooting star, gives Josh a near fall. The Lethal Combination gets Jay out of trouble and Hail to the King gets two. We hit the Figure Four but cue Silas Young for a distraction. Not that it matters as the Lethal Injection is good enough to pin Bodom at 9:18.
Rating: C-. Ok so maybe it is Bodom. This did nothing for me, again, and that’s not a positive sign when we’re only on the third match. Lethal shrugged off the distraction and won anyway, making me think that Lethal vs. Young was the right move here. You know, a match between two people with a story and who happen to actually WORK FOR RING OF HONOR. There were some moments here but it didn’t work, again.
Young beats Lethal down post match.
Bully Ray/Briscoe Brothers vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon
Bushi/Evil/Tetsuya Naito for Los Ingobernables here. The fans are just CRAZY for Naito but he brings in Bushi to start with Mark instead. An early hurricanrana sends Mark into the corner so it’s already off to Jay for some harder hitting offense. Evil comes in to rake his eyes and shoulder Jay down, only to get kicked in the face. Bushi gets sent into the wrong corner and actually calls out Bully Ray. Well he certainly has guts.
Ray comes in and rips Bushi’s shirt open for some chops before calling in Naito. They take turns sidestepping each others’ lockup attempts as there’s no contact for over a minute. Even the lockup gets a cheer and Naito grabs a headlock with a fist going into the eye. It’s back to Jay for some stomping but Naito rips at his eye too. Bushi comes in with a missile dropkick and we finally hit a heat segment.
That lasts all of a few seconds as Jay dropkicks Evil and brings Mark back in to speed things up. Everything breaks down with Bully coming back in to clean house. Evil is in line for What’s Up but Naito dives onto the mat with his signature pose to block Mark’s dive. Ok that was clever. It’s Bully taking something like What’s Up (Ray: “OW MY BALLS!” Ian: “I didn’t know Bushi was a baller!”) but Bushi mists Evil by mistake. The 3D ends Evil at 13:35.
Rating: B-. This was starting to look really good but they spent a bit too much time with the goofiness instead of the actual match. Los Ingobernables are growing on me every time I see them and Naito is clearly one of the top stars in New Japan. Giving the Briscoes and Bully the win was a nice surprise as I would have bet on them going with the New Japan guys in one of the bigger matches so it was a nice twist.
Post match, Bully and Naito have a pose off for some reason. I’m not sure if Ring of Honor thinks Bully is on Naito’s level but that’s not quite the case….I don’t think.
Intermission eats up about twenty minutes.
The announcers talk about what’s left on the card.
Silas Young vs. Mark Haskins
Mark is a British high flier and the referee is taller than both guys in a weird visual. A drop toehold just annoys Silas (like it’s so hard) and they slug it out with Haskins actually getting the better of it off a kick to the face. Young bails to the floor and gets faked out off a dive, setting up the regular version on the adjacent side of the ring. Nice little sequence there.
Silas is right back with an apron powerbomb to take over for the first time but we slow down for the trash talk. A middle rope jumping back rake (that’s a new one) sets up a lariat (that’s an old one) for two. Haskins gets sick of being slapped in the face and comes back with some rapid fire forearms before rolling into a modified Fujiwara armbar.
It’s off to a Sharpshooter instead but Silas is way too close to the ropes. An electric chair faceplant and a short DDT give Young two and the short lariat is good for the same. Misery is loaded up but here’s Lethal for a distraction, allowing Haskins to roll into a Samoan driver for the pin at 10:14.
Rating: C+. The ending was fine as it helps to play up the Lethal vs. Young feud, which has been one of the better things in Ring of Honor as of late. Haskins was a fan favorite though he didn’t really show me anything that I haven’t seen from a lot of other wrestlers. Still though, good match as the show continues to pick up a bit.
Referees break up Silas vs. Jay.
TV Title: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Dalton Castle vs. Marty Scurll vs. Kushida
Kushida is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. Scurll is of course beloved in his home country. Kushida and Scurll head outside, leaving Takahashi and Castle to play with the former’s doll Daryl (who is apparently a big thing). Takahashi gets caught between the peacock pose and the bird pose, allowing Kushida to springboard in with an elbow to the head. Now Daryl is on commentary and the announcers ask him questions because the idea of being serious around here is just not happening.
Takahashi comes back in to take out Kushida’s knee, only to stop to meow at Castle. Dalton stops for his strut but gets superkicked by Scurll. Kushida grabs the cross armbreaker to make Takahashi tap on the floor but gets suplexed into the corner back inside. With Kushida down, Takahashi tries a sunset bomb to send Castle to the floor but the Boys make a save.
Back inside and Scurll hits a modified piledriver and a running knee for two on Takahashi. Castle breaks up the chickenwing attempt with a German suplex before Kushida comes back in for a pinfall reversal sequence with Scurll. It’s Castle suplexing everyone in sight but getting sent to the floor.
Scurll misses a moonsault and takes one from Kushida for two. Kushida flips into the chickenwing but slips out into the Hoverboard Lock. Castle and Takahashi grab stereo German suplexes for the save and everyone is down. Cue Adam Page for a distraction so Scurll can hit Castle with the umbrella, only to have Kushida punch him down. Back to the Future on Castle retains the title at 11:28.
Rating: B-. Fun match if you ignore all the nonsense with Daryl (which to be fair wasn’t all that much). Castle losing via shenanigans helps a bit though he needs to actually win something at some point. Scurll continues to grow on me a lot, even if his in-ring stuff isn’t anything great. Takahashi is just kind of there, though maybe he’s just one of those characters that I don’t get.
Kushida shakes Castle’s hand. You know, just after dropping him on his head to beat him.
Tag Team Titles: Addiction vs. Young Bucks
The Bucks are defending because Heaven forbid they’re not holding titles. Addiction jumps them during the Big Match Intros to Ian’s annoyance, which I guess means the Bucks are faces tonight. The Bucks easily fight them off with dropkicks so we hit the Rise of the Terminator pose. Matt gets sent to the apron where Daniels pulls him face first down as the champs are in some trouble. Eh I give it thirty seconds.
Back in and Matt gets stomped down in the corner, followed by a low bridge to the floor. The beating continues with a face to the knee and an STO to give Daniels two. Daniels’ Lionsault hits knees though and it’s off to Nick off the hot tag. The Bucks speed things up with the double kicks to Daniels in the corner and a Backstabber for no cover. It’s off to the Sharpshooter because the Bucks needed another finisher.
Everything breaks down and it’s an Unprettier to Nick but Matt hurricanranas his way out of Angel’s Wings. Kazarian breaks up a Sharpshooter on Daniels and it’s time for everyone to punch everyone. The Bucks get the better of it but More Bang For Your Buck is broken up. Daniels hits the BME for two on Nick, followed by a sitout powerbomb/neckbreaker combo for the same. Back up and Daniels goes up top, only to get caught in the Tree of Woe. That leaves Kazarian in trouble, meaning it’s the Meltzer Driver to retain the titles at 13:30.
Rating: B. As is almost always the case, whenever the Bucks don’t just spam superkicks, they’re far more competitive. The problem though continues to be that there’s no reason to believe they’ll win. Even if they drop the titles, you know full well that they’ll be getting them back anytime because that’s just how Ring of Honor and New Japan roll. I’m starting to like their work better, but then they’ll just do thirty five superkicks in a match again to mess that up.
ROH World Title: Sanada vs. Cody
Cody is defending and won’t shake hands to start. Jerk. We hit the long form stall to start as Cody isn’t cool with the fans being behind Sanada. No contact in the first two minutes. A nice little technical sequence really gets us going with both guys trying headlock takeovers but getting reversed into a headscissors before they try dropkicks at the same time for a standoff.
Now it’s Sanada who won’t shake hands as they’re mirroring each other so far. The Beautiful Disaster is countered with a dropkick and Cody takes another breather on the floor. Cue Naito to cut off an escape attempt so Cody throws Ian into Sanada. Did England not get the notice about Cody turning face? Back in and Cody flips off the fans before getting two off a delayed gordbuster.
An armdrag pulls Sanada off the top but Cody would rather channel his inner Scott Steiner with some push-ups. After more stalling (WAY too much of that so far), Cody grabs a quickly broken half crab. Instead it’s that modified Indian Deathlock to send Sanada slowly crawling to the ropes and then the floor. Cody switches places with him but gets knocked off the apron and into the announcers.
Back in and Sanada ties him up for the dropkick to the hip, only to get caught with the Beautiful Disaster. Cody misses the moonsault press though and la majistral gives Sanada two. A TKO gives him the same but Cody spits at him. That just earns the champ some right hands to the jaw and we have a ref bump.
Cross Rhodes gets no count but Sanada’s rollup gets two, only to be countered into a LeBell Lock. With that broken up, Cody shouts that he’s waiting on Brian Danielson. Cody loads up a superplex but gets countered into a powerbomb for two. Back up and Sanada grabs the dragon sleeper, only to have Cody flip over into Cross Rhodes to retain at 20:02.
Rating: D+. This was WAY too long and felt like a televised midcard title match instead of a pay per view World Title defense. The ref bump didn’t need to be there and Cody looked like he was more interested in wasting time than defending the title. Not a good match at all, even with Sanada doing whatever he could to make it work.
Post match Cody grabs the mic and insults the Liverpool fans for being so poor. He’ll defend the title against anyone so here’s Dalton Castle (thankfully with his title) to interrupt. Dalton doesn’t understand why Cody doesn’t like these people because he loves them. Castle is no silly goose and the only reason he’s not the TV Champion is Cody sending Page out during their match. If Cody wants to know who’s left, Dalton Castle is left. Cody bails and Castle thanks the fans for coming out to end the show.
Overall Rating: D+. This did not need to be a pay per view and it was clear that there wasn’t a ton of effort put into it (into the build, not the wrestlers/wrestling). There was almost nothing in the way of story advancement outside of the ending with the wrestling not being enough to carry things. Things got better in the second half but I really wasn’t feeling most of the show. The fact that I didn’t know about the pay per view until less than a week before the show tells you almost everything you need to know about the card and that’s really not a good thing. There are worse shows, but few more lifeless ones, which is a lot worse.
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Ring of Honor TV Results – July 19, 2017: The Low Card Hits a Low Level
Ring of Honor Date: July 19, 2017 Location: Lowell Memorial Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Colt Cabana
We’re coming up on War of the Worlds in the UK and that means we need a pay per view card. You can almost guarantee that Cody will be defending the World Title against Christopher Daniels at some point but it might not be at the pay per view. If not, I have no idea who would be getting the shot instead. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Here’s Cody to open things up after Christopher Daniels’ comments were deemed inappropriate to air on television. Cody agrees that he does deserve it before moving on to Daniels, who isn’t that popular with the crowd at the moment. Daniels isn’t happy at the moment and it’s almost like he’s lost his smile (this is the same building where Shawn Michaels gave the Lost My Smile speech).
Cody still hasn’t signed a Ring of Honor contract and that means his family owns the ROH World Title. Fans: “TOO SWEET!” Back to Daniels, he’ll get his rematch but let’s make it 2/3 falls. Ring of Honor doesn’t care too much for him because he’s steroid free full time….and that’s it. Kind of an abrupt ending.
Punishment Martinez vs. Jonathan Gresham
The monster Martinez shoves him around to start but Gresham keeps charging at him, including a failed attempt at a guillotine choke. Martinez misses a running boot in the corner though and Gresham gets in a kick to the leg. He’s sticking and moving to start and it’s working about as well as that style can. Something like a headlock takeover frustrates Martinez again but Gresham yanks on his knee and it’s time to go after a target. A spinning backbreaker cuts Gresham off though and it’s time for a break.
Back with Gresham getting in a DDT and moonsaulting to the floor to drop Martinez again. The one footed stomp to the chest out of the corner puts Gresham down again though and a Falcon Arrow gets two. Jonathan is right back on the knee though including something like a reverse Indian deathlock (they’re both on their back) to send Martinez over to the ropes. A shooting star press gets two but Gresham goes right to an ankle lock. Martinez rolls outside though and counters Gresham’s dive into a Last Ride onto the apron. Back in and the Psycho Driver (inverted Samoan driver) ends Gresham at 9:25.
Rating: C+. Gresham is talented but he’s another name on a very long list of Ring of Honor talents who are little more than a guy in boots and tights. There’s nothing special about his character (Does he even have one?) and that keeps him from standing out from the crowd like he needs to do. The match was good, though I really don’t know about Martinez selling so much.
Martinez goes after Gresham post match until Jay White runs in for the save.
We look back at Best in the World where the Briscoes and Bully Ray lost the Six Man Tag Team Titles. After the match, Bully yelled at the Briscoes for the loss because Jay lost his cool and Mark got pinned. It’s a TEAM you see. Well so are the Briscoes Bully.
Mandy Leon announces a Women of Honor show in two weeks but Silas Young comes in and announces 22 days since Jay Lethal was injured.
Tempura Boys vs. Cheeseburger/Joey Daddiego
Riccaboni: “Listen to the ovation here in Lowell.” All I heard was pure silence but that’s just me. The announcers ask where the beef is and make Burger King references as the Boyz jump Cheeseburger and Daddiego to little effect. Daddiego throws Sho with a fall away slam and does the same to Yo for two. The Boyz come back in with a Backstabber to Cheeseburger and Yo gets two off a standing moonsault.
Cheeseburger gets beaten down even more as the announcers talk about the tag division. Sho gets thrown onto Yo and there’s the hot tag to Daddiego. It’s right back to Cheeseburger as everything breaks down. A spear drops Yo as the stupid fast food jokes continue. The Shotei palm strike ends Sho at 3:58.
Rating: D. The Tempura Boyz continue to be one of the least interesting tag teams I’ve seen in a long time. I have no idea what’s supposed to be interesting about the two of them, save for the fact that they’re from New Japan and therefore must be awesome. No one in this match feels important as Cheeseburger comes off as someone they put out there for the sake of a smile without being comedy relief. Cheeseburger just kind of comes and goes while still being popular and it’s still nothing I can bring myself to care about.
Post match Will Ferrara jumps Cheeseburger.
We look at Jay White beating Punishment Martinez a few weeks back.
Bullet Club vs. Bully Ray/Briscoe Brothers
Young Bucks and Adam Page here in what was supposed to be a title match until Bully and the Briscoes lost the titles. Jay forearms Adam to start before it’s off to Mark for some forearms of his own. The Bucks get in some double teaming, including a springboard crossbody, to take the Briscoes down and it’s off to an early break.
Back with Bully staring the Bucks down and Matt making the mistake of chopping him in the chest. Matt offers up his own chest but pokes Bully in the eye before the big chop can hit. Again, the Bucks are presented as the smartest heels in the history of ever and the faces all have to look stupid for the sake of TOO SWEET chants. Bully comes back with the chops and stereo Flip Flop and Fly jabs. Say it with me though: double SUPERKICKS put him down and it’s back to the too sweet chants.
The Rise of the Terminators is loaded up but the Club is pulled outside for a suicide dive from Jay. Mark adds a moonsault to the floor and Bully loads up a dive of his own, only to have to deal with Page. More superkicks put him down though and it’s time for the Bucks to hit some dives because they haven’t gotten to show off in all of a minute. Things settle down with Bully getting triple teamed, including the kicks to the head in the corner.
We take another break and come back with Bully breaking up What’s Up. The hot tag brings in Mark for a fisherman’s buster on Nick but the ref gets bumped. The three man 3D gets two from a replacement referee, earning himself a double superkick. Cue Marty Scurll to hit Jay in the back with the umbrella to give Page the pin at 10:01.
Rating: C-. It really is amazing how much different the ROH Bucks are to the New Japan Bucks. This version is nothing but superkicks and flip dives while making themselves look as cool as possible. The New Japan version is actually a polished high flying team that I have fun watching. I guess that doesn’t sell as many t-shirts though so this is what we’re stuck with stateside.
The Briscoes beat up security and Bully is disappointed to end the show. I could go for a Briscoes heel turn.
Overall Rating: D+. This one missed pretty badly as it was definitely the B level guys (at best) doing their thing while the bigger names were too busy. Cody’s cameo and speech were the best parts of the show but that’s not enough to make up for some lackluster stuff elsewhere. The fact that we’re also coming up on another Women of Honor show doesn’t help things. The women try but when they’re on TV two or three times a year, it makes the shows feel like a waste of time. They’re trying though and that’s on the company rather than the talent. Anyway, nothing to see here but that’s often the case around here.
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Ring of Honor TV – June 7, 2017: We Can Only Hope to Be Double Cheeseburgers
Ring of Honor Date: June 7, 2017
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Colt Cabana, Ian Riccaboni
We’re continuing on the road to Best in the World and it’s pretty clear that we’re getting Cody vs. Christopher Daniels one on one for the ROH World Title. That makes sense after what we saw at War of the Worlds and they actually have some time to build this show up for a change. Let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Cheeseburger/Will Ferrara vs. War Machine
War Machine’s IWGP Tag Team Titles aren’t on the line. Cheeseburger forearms Rowe to start for no effect. That means it’s off to Ferrara, who has exactly the same result. Rowe snaps off rapid fire headbutts to both guys before belly to belly suplexing them both at once. It’s off to Hanson for a spinwheel kick, followed by easily blocking a bulldog from Cheeseburger.
Ferrara’s hurricanrana sends Rowe into Hanson for a breather but that’s about it for the offense at the moment. Cheeseburger gets planted but Ferrara eats something like a springboard spinning Hart Attack. One heck of a powerbomb drops Cheeseburger……FOR TWO? That was a heck of a kickout and the fans went nuts as a result.
I can’t say I blame them as my head snapped back on the kickout. That’s quite impressive when I already knew it was coming and was surprised anyway. Cheeseburger comes back with the palm strikes (see, it’s from Japan so it’s a lot more effective) but gets tossed into one heck of a powerslam for the pin at 4:16.
Rating: C+. That’s for the kickout alone, which was enough to actually surprise me. War Machine is a great choice for two power guys, which you don’t see very often around this place. You can only have so many fast paced flippy guys so going the opposite direction makes for a nice change of pace. Not bad here and one of the more entertaining squashed I’ve seen in a good while.
War Machine talks about their history in Philadelphia and this building in particular. They won the ROH Tag Team Titles here for the first time and now they want them back. That means a call out to the Young Bucks, which could be an entertaining match.
We look back at the end of War of the Worlds, along with Cody’s promo from last week to continue his issues with Daniels.
The title match is official.
Daniels says he’s ready.
Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Bully Ray/Briscoe Brothers/Dalton Castle
Castle is the only one here without a title as Sanada/Bushi/Evil are the IWGP Never Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champions and Naito is the Intercontinental Champion while Ray and the Briscoes are the ROH Six Man Champions, which certainly aren’t knockoffs of the New Japan versions. Naito and Mark Briscoe get things going and it’s already time for Naito to fake the dive and pose, naturally turning him into an even bigger face.
Now things get interesting as it’s off to Bully vs. Naito and remember we’re in the former ECW Arena. Bully runs the ropes and rolls into the Naito pose, followed by Naito running the ropes and then tagging out. The fans applaud the lack of wrestling and it’s off to the smaller Bushi, who gets his shirt ripped open for a chop to the chest.
The rest of Los Ingobernables get the same, save for Naito who chills on the floor. Everything breaks down as Los Ingobernables tie Castle up ala Jack Gallagher. We settle down to Castle punching Evil in the face and getting his eyes raked for his efforts. Evil drops a backsplash for two and we take a break. Back with the hot tag bringing Mark in to clean house.
Everything breaks down again with Mark mostly missing a Blockbuster to Evil and Jay CRUSHING Naito with a suicide dive. Mark and Dalton hit stereo What’s Ups on Evil and Sanada but now it’s time for tables. Bushi loads up some mist so the Boys come in to save Castle (who would have had his hair covered in mist), leaving Jay to take it instead. Naito grabs a rollup for the pin at 9:57.
Rating: C-. Well that was…..interesting. This was much more about the performance than the match and I’m rarely a fan of that style. To be fair though, ROH would be crazy to not get Bully Ray out in front of an old ECW crowd in any way they could. There wasn’t exactly a lot of wrestling here but that’s about what you have to expect for the most part. Not bad but more of a performance than a match.
Jay yells at Castle and the Boys scram.
Adam Page is ready to end Adam Cole.
Punishment Martinez video. It’s amazing how much better he’s been since the Kevin Sullivan/BJ Whitmer garbage was dropped.
Jay Lethal is ready to team with Bobby Fish to face Beer City Bruiser/Silas Young in two weeks. Lethal didn’t have to look far for Fish to help him but wants Bobby to leave Young for himself.
The announcers, now joined by Kevin Kelly, talk about the Young Bucks vs. Roppangi Vice coming up in Japan.
Roppangi Vice is ready for the Bucks and say it’s illegal for the Bucks to attack them backstage like they’ve been doing. A six man is teased but when they open the door, SUPERKICKS! As usual, the Bucks are treated as the smartest, most amazing people in the promotion. Also ignore that this is far more about a match in JAPAN and not here.
Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole
They slug it out to start with Page being sent outside for a quick suicide dive. Back from a very early break with Page hitting his own dive and shouting “ADAM PAGE BAY BAY!” Cole misses an enziguri and a tabletop suplex (bridging fall away slam) gets two. Back up and Cole tells him to swing away and spits in Page’s face, triggering the forearm exchange.
The fireman’s carry neckbreaker gets two and Cole superkicks the knee. Cole grabs a Figure Four for a bit but Page is right next to the ropes. Page tries the slingshot lariat, only to walk into a superkick, followed by a Shining Wizard for a rather hot two. I mean not Cheeseburger level but everyone strives to reach that level. Maybe one day they could even, dare I say, double Cheeseburger? Page takes his head off with a clothesline and we take another break.
Back again with Cole getting two off a sunset flip and hitting another superkick. That’s no sold (of course) and Page gets two off a piledriver. Cole is right back up with three more superkicks and another Shining Wizard, only to have Page hit his own Last Shot for two. Starting with the piledriver, that whole sequence took less than eighty seconds. And people wonder why old school wrestlers criticize new stuff.
Page takes him to the apron for the Rite of Passage but eats a loud superkick. That’s not enough though as Cole hits a CANADIAN DESTROYER FROM THE APRON TO THE FLOOR to pretty much kill Page dead. Back in and Cole tries a regular version but gets countered into the Rite of Passage (less than seventy five seconds between the Destroyer and the Rite of Passage connecting). A hard lariat sets up a second Rite of Passage for the pin at 13:29.
Rating: C+. The match was entertaining but GOOD GRIEF the rapid fire selling was making me long for an old cruiserweight match. A guy takes a piledriver, pops up and hits three superkicks and a Shining Wizard before taking his own finisher in about a minute and twenty seconds? Followed by a flipping piledriver ONTO THE FLOOR not even keeping someone down for a minute?
That Destroyer probably should have not only ended the match but kept someone off TV for two weeks selling it. The problem is simple: if that barely has any effect, it’s a bit hard to buy any of this as being realistic. If the wrestling isn’t realistic, why should I believe the stories are either? This isn’t complicated: either don’t do the big spots or stop trying to cram so much stuff into a match that isn’t even fifteen minutes long. Let the stuff breathe and it’s going to be a lot more memorable than the fact that you did ten superkicks.
Post match Page whips Cole with the belt until Kazarian makes the save to end the show.
Overall Rating: C. Just a run of the mill show here with the build to Best in the World continuing. Daniels vs. Cody officially being announced is a good thing as they actually have time to set things up now instead of cramming it all into one week. Now if only they can keep up this trend instead of turning the show into some big New Japan showcase, everything should be fine.
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Ring of Honor TV – May 17, 2017: Back in Five Minutes
Ring of Honor Date: May 17, 2017
Location: William J. Myers Pavilion, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Colt Cabana, Ian Riccaboni
And now for something completely different because we have a post-pay per view show. We’ll likely get to the next batch of TV tapings in three more weeks but for now we have a one off show with the Six Man Tag Team Titles on the line in the main event. While that might sound entertaining, the Rebellion is getting the shot. Now that your interest has been crushed, let’s get to it.
Opening sequence.
Will Ferrara/Cheeseburger vs. Chris Sabin/Jonathan Gresham
Didn’t Ferrara and Cheeseburger split like three times now? Before the match, Alex Shelley tells us that he’s injured thanks to the Rebellion so Gresham is his replacement at the moment. Shelley puts Gresham over as a great talent who deserves a chance to get over. Gresham and Ferrara go to the mat to start with an early standoff so it’s off to Sabin vs. Cheeseburger, the latter of whom has to tag himself in.
The threat of the palm strike scares Sabin a bit so Cheeseburger hits him in the face a few more times. Sabin and Gresham both get kicked out to the floor but Cheeseburger’s dive is pulled out of the air. Gresham dives onto all three though and we take a break. Back with Sabin cranking on an abdominal stretch/Octopus Hold hybrid to make Ferrara scream.
Everything breaks down with Sabin giving Ferrara a hanging neckbreaker off the apron to the floor. Back inside, Sabin enziguris Cheeseburger into a German suplex from Gresham, only to have Cheeseburger come back with the palm strikes. Not that it matters as Gresham grabs an Octopus Hold to make Cheeseburger tap at 9:38 with Ferrara watching from the floor.
Rating: C-. Just a match to further the split between Cheeseburger and Ferrara, though as usual most of these characters seem to be there for the sake of filling in both time and roster spots instead of being interesting. The matches are fine enough but they’re nothing I ever look forward to seeing and I rarely get excited over them.
Ferrara walks out on Cheeseburger.
Jay Lethal was getting ready for a commercial but Silas Young came in and beat him down, especially focusing on his leg. I’m not sure if this is a major downgrade for Lethal or a major upgrade for Young.
Silas Young vs. Bobby Fish
Speaking of downgrades, what the heck has happened to Fish? He looked like a World Title contender and now I barely remember his last important match. Young says he won’t make any excuses for his failures, unlike Fish, who will be a huge failure in this match. Feeling out process to start with Fish’s headlock not working as Young hits a good looking dropkick. A very quick kneebar sends Silas outside and we take a break.
Back with Young hitting a slingshot double stomp and laying in the trash talking. A springboard clothesline drops Fish again as this has been almost one sided. Back in and they trade some running shots with Fish getting the better of it, only to have a double clothesline drop them both.
Silas grabs a cutter for two as Colt talks about Fish going after the knee but not sticking with it like the old Bobby would do. Hokey smoke: an actual analysis. Silas shrugs off some more shots to the head and grabs a hanging neckbreaker for two. More kicks to the knee give Fish a breather but the Beer City Bruiser offers a distraction. Silas takes off his knee brace and knocks Fish cold for the pin at 13:39.
Rating: C+. Not bad here as Young continues to get better and better every single week. I can’t believe it but I’m starting to get into the Young/Bruiser team as they actually work well together. Fish continues to fall through the floor though, which really does seem to be setting up something (possibly a heel turn, as almost always seems to be the answer). Nice match here.
Dalton Castle lost once but he’s ready to become World Champion.
Six Man Tag Team Titles: Rebellion vs. Briscoe Brothers/Bully Ray
The Briscoes and Ray are defending and Alex Shelley is on commentary. It’s Rhett Titus/Caprice Coleman/Shane Taylor for the Rebellion here with King nowhere in sight. Mark headlocks Titus to start but one heck of a left hand puts Briscoe down. A brawl breaks out in a hurry though and we take a break with the champs in control.
Back with Titus still in trouble but he’s still able to save Coleman from What’s Up. Taylor and those terrifying thighs come in to take over for all of two seconds and it’s Jay getting beaten down in the heel corner. Taylor’s hard clothesline gets two as Coleman dances on the apron.
We hit the big man standard in the form of a bearhug and take a break. Back with Shane missing a charge in the corner and getting hit in the face, allowing the hot tag to Bully. That means a string of clotheslines before it’s back to Mark to really clean house. Jay adds the big suicide dive but the Froggy Bow hits knees. Not that it matters as 3D ends Titus at 17:01.
Rating: D+. Hey, did you know the Rebellion sucks? I didn’t know if we had made that clear enough yet but they certainly do. There’s no reason to believe that they’re going to win anything and it doesn’t help that they’re just another team now. It completely defeats the point of the characters but that’s never stopped ROH before.
Coleman gets powerbombed through a table to end the show.
Overall Rating: C-. Just a run of the mill post-pay per view show here which is all that you can expect. They put in whatever they can find to fill in the time here, which makes for some rather skippable shows. I’m sure we’ll have a few more of these and then we’ll get to the important stuff, which means the next few weeks really don’t mean too much. I’m really not a fan of these shows but at least they’re quick.
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Ring of Honor TV – April 12, 2017: Now Just A Month Behind
Ring of Honor Date: April 12, 2017
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Kevin Kelly
I’m not even going to pretend that I know what’s going on at the moment. I know we’re past the Anniversary Show but I’d assume we’re not up to Supercard of Honor yet, despite it taking place nearly two weeks ago. All I know is we’ll still be seeing Top Prospect Tournament stuff because that thing just won’t end. Let’s get to it.
The Briscoe Brothers take us back to Manhattan Mayhem where Bully Ray saved them from a Bullet Club beatdown. Tonight they’re going after the Six Man Tag Team Titles.
Opening sequence.
Punishment Martinez vs. Hanson
Martinez is now completely on his own, which should be a better fit for him. Hanson blocks a spinning kick to the face to start and sends Marintez to the floor for a suicide dive. A ram into the post sets up a Whoopee Cushion from the ramp to really have Martinez reeling. Back inside and Martinez runs him over in the corner before hitting a spring Swanton of all things.
We take a break and come back with Hanson winning a fight over a suplex. Martinez is laid on the top rope for some forearms (think Sheamus’ ten forearms) but one heck of a right hand puts Hanson outside. Since Martinez is an athletic freak, we hit the Taker Dive over the corner, followed by a top rope spinwheel kick for two (should have been the finish).
A chokeslam doesn’t work though and Hanson gets two off a powerslam. Hanson’s own spinning kick gets two and as you might expect, it doesn’t mean as much after Martinez’s huge one earlier. Cue Davey Boy Smith Jr. for a distraction though, allowing Martinez to avoid a moonsault. The sitout chokeslam ends Hanson at 8:45.
Rating: B-. Martinez is the kind of guy that ROH needs to push as he’s a bit different than the run of the mill guys you see around here so often. Hanson wasn’t bad and I’m glad they’re letting War Machine do their own things as there’s only so much they can do in the tag division. Hopefully Smith sticks around too as he’s an entertaining guy. Good opener here and the right guy won.
We look back at TK O’Ryan breaking his leg at the 15th Anniversary Show.
Hangman Page attacked Kazarian in the parking lot earlier this week.
Top Prospect Tournament Semifinals: Curt Stallion vs. John Skyler
From Manhattan Mayhem as we flash back to March 4. A lockup goes nowhere to start as I’m going to have a hard time telling these guys apart. Stallion rolls through a sunset flip and hits a jumping double stomp while shouting YOU’RE STUPID. So he’s the heel here. Fine enough and at least there’s something to set them apart. They head outside with one heck of a dive sending Skyler into the barricade and us to a break.
Back with Skyler getting two off a backsplash and grabbing a chinlock. Skyler gets two off a tiger bomb but stops to spit at him. Stallion is all fired up and no sells a German suplex before grabbing one of his own for two. Some running knees in the corner get two and Stallion no sells a superkick. Skyler gets two off a slingshot spear through the ropes, only to get caught in White Noise onto the knee for the good near fall. Stallion loads up something on the top, only to get caught in Southern Salvation (the middle rope Regal Roll) for the pin at 10:14.
Rating: B. I liked the match more than I was expecting to but I’m REALLY sick of this tournament. For some reason we’ve been stuck watching a match a week so the tournament has to drag on for nearly two months. It’s been getting better but I’m WAY past the point of being interested in anyone involved with the whole thing.
Adam Cole has recorded a video for the Young Bucks, asking for things to go back to the way they were.
Six Man Tag Team Titles: Bully Ray/Briscoe Brothers vs. Kingdom
Kingdom is defending and have Silas Young replacing the injured O’Ryan. The champs bicker before the match so Bully asks if they know who the three of them are. The fight is on in a hurry with Taven taking the worst of it in the for of a hard clothesline to the floor. Back from a break with Bully hitting those loud chops to Marseglia’s chest. Mark comes in to keep up the beating, followed by a facewash from Jay. The other champs finally get it together and crotch Jay against the post to take over for the first time.
Marseglia and Taven choke in the corner, followed by Young dropping a knee for two. Taven gets the same off a top rope elbow with Mark making the save. We take a second break and come back with Mark cleaning house. A cheap shot from the apron slows him down though and it’s time for the champs to argue again. The distraction allows the hot tag to Bully, who hits a quick triple 3D on Vinny for the pin at 10:41.
Rating: C+. That’s the right call as the Kingdom wasn’t doing anything at full strength so getting the titles off a weakened version was almost a requirement. Bully and the Briscoes are a more entertaining option but they still don’t solve the issue of there not being enough teams to warrant the titles in the first place. At least they got the booking right here.
Overall Rating: C+. That’s one of the better shows they’ve done in a good while, assuming you can ignore the ridiculous scheduling issues. We’re just now setting up the finals of an eight man tournament that started two months ago. I have no idea when the finals are going to air but I’m not sure why I’m supposed to care at this point. ROH tries to do WAY too much with one hour a week, especially when they have so many throwaway episodes. At least something happened this week, which makes things a bit better.
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Ring of Honor 15th Anniversary Show: You Can’t Rely on This Forever
15th Anniversary Show Date: March 10, 2017
Location: Sam’s Town Live Casino, Sunrise Manor, Nevada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Kevin Kelly, Colt Cabana
This was a recent request and for once I’m actually trying to get some of those knocked off. Ring of Honor has been around for a long time and the fact that they’ve made it this far is really quite impressive. Since it’s a major milestone show, the main event is an ROH legend in Christopher Daniels trying to win the ROH World Title for the first time. Let’s get to it.
The opening video looks at some of the bigger names in the company’s history (the only logical way to go) before switching up to Daniels talking about starting wrestling in 1993 and getting here. Champion Adam Cole says 1993 was important for him too as he learned to color. This is your classic young punk vs. veteran and there’s nothing wrong with that. It worked for Raven vs. Terry Funk and it can work well here. As a final note, Daniels’ best friend Kazarian joined the Bullet Club, which sounds rather swervish.
Jay White vs. Caprice Coleman
Great. We’re starting with a bonus match and a bonus REBELLION match on top of that. This show isn’t looking very promising. Ian: “Collar and elbow tieup to start here.” Colt: “Great call Ian!” They fight over wristlocks and armdrags to start with King getting the better of it and driving some knees into the back.
White gets in a few Tomoaki Honma spots to pop the crowd (Honma was badly injured and out of action at this point). Since it’s just a headbutt, King knocks him to the floor for a flip dive. A chinlock goes nowhere so White gets up and dives on fellow Rebellion member Caprice Coleman.
This proves to be a bad idea (as is almost always the case) as King hits a running dropkick, followed by a bridging capture suplex for two. White comes back with a Downward Spiral but charges into a spinebuster for no cover. Jay gets dropkicked on the top but shoves King away for a high crossbody. That’s rolled through as well with King trying the Royal Flush, only to have White small package him for the pin at 9:52.
Rating: C+. Nice match here with both guys looking good, or at least as the Rebellion is capable of looking. White is one of the many talented people in ROH who can wrestle a solid match but doesn’t really have a character, meaning he has a bit of a firm ceiling to how far he can go. The match was a good opener and the ending was exactly what it should have been.
We recap the dissolution of the Addiction with Kazarian joining the Bullet Club.
The Club welcomes their newest member.
Kazarian vs. Hangman Paige vs. Chris Sabin vs. Punisher Martinez vs. Cheeseburger vs. Silas Young
One fall to a finish, tags required, lucha rules and the winner gets a future TV Title shot. We start with Kazarian and Sabin trading probably a dozen one counts off a rollup. They’re on the floor in a hurry and that means we hit the parade of dives with the 6’7 Martinez hitting a step up dive of his own to really freak the crowd out (I’m not sure if that’s really easy or really hard to do around here).
Kazarian and Page take Martinez down, leaving us with a short lived Bullet Club showdown. Cheeseburger comes in to break it up but gets beaten up by Young, leaving the announcers to make food jokes. Martinez chokes Cheeseburger (Colt: “What a pickle!”) but everyone comes back in, allowing Sabin to hit a springboard tornado DDT on Young. Page loads Cheeseburger up for the Rite of Passage on the apron but Martinez breaks it up for no apparent reasons.
Adam spits at him for reasons of general stupidity, earning himself a chokeslam onto the apron. Back inside, Sabin German superplexes Kazarian but gets caught in Young’s Misery for two. Cheeseburger escapes the same thing and kicks Silas from the apron. The palm strike drops Young but Kazarian grabs the Ace of Spades (twisting Stunner) for the pin on Cheeseburger at 10:19.
Rating: B-. It was fun but this is one of Ring of Honor’s major problem areas: throwing a bunch of people into a match and thinking that’s good enough for a story. Kazarian was the only one in the match that had a real chance of winning (based on the story) so why did four others need to be there? Let Kazarian fight any of them (build someone up so they seem like a real threat to beat him) and tell a better story. Just throwing a bunch of people together feels like the easy way out and while the match was fun, it could have been better.
Jay Lethal and Bobby Fish both say they need to win the match so they can go after the World Title.
Bobby Fish vs. Jay Lethal
The match is billed as a top contenders match which may or may not mean a #1 contenders match. It’s pretty early in the show for something that big so I’ll assume it’s just another one of ROH’s ideas that might mean someone gets a title shot on some house show. They hit the mat to start before Fish starts in with the kicks. One big kick puts Lethal on the floor for a second thought on his strategy.
Back in and Lethal scores with a dropkick to send Fish outside. Another dropkick sends him into the barricade but Jay misses the suicide dive and hits the barricade as well. That means a bad arm but Jay gets in a third dropkick to keep control. Fish kicks him hard in the chest a few times though, shrugs off a European uppercut (why yes, we are watching an indy wrestling match) and hits another kick to the chest to drop Lethal.
Jay comes right back with a superkick (make your own jokes) and this time the suicide dive works. They get back inside for the big serious exchange of forearms with Fish driving him into the corner for an ankle lock. That’s not the brightest idea so Lethal grabs a cutter but Hail to the King is countered into the heel hook. A quick Lethal Combination sets up Hail to the King, only to have Fish grab another heel hook. Jay reverses into a rollup for the break, followed by the Lethal Injection for the pin at 15:12.
Rating: B. The matches are getting better and this one told a good story with the submission grappler against the natural all around performer who comes up biggest on the grand stages. I had a good time with this match, which isn’t the most surprising thing in the world given that I like both guys. Fish is a very solid hand but I think he’s pretty much resigned to the position of making the stars look good. Not the most horrible thing in the world to be sure.
We recap the Six Man Tag Team Title match. The Kingdom have the titles and since Dalton Castle and the Boys are a three man combination, they get a title shot. These belts continue to be one of the worst ideas possible for a company like this but hey, New Japan has them right? Both teams have a quick promo, saying they’ll win for the obvious reasons.
Six Man Tag Team Titles: The Kingdom vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys
The Kingdom is defending and Castle is just crazy over, being accompanied to the ring by an army of Boys. Thankfully Cabana is there to insult Castle and the Boys after their long feud. It’s a brawl to start and I don’t remember hearing a bell. The Boys start fast with double suplexes and the Kingdom bails to the floor for a meeting.
Castle and Marseglia start things off with Dalton wrestling him down and slamming the Boys onto him. Cabana actually knows how to tell the Boys apart and it’s #1 being taken to the floor for a beating. Colt: “THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN!” #1 gets slammed back first onto the apron and Marseglia follows up with some running forearms to the head. Since he’s a good boss, Castle offers a distraction so the Boys can switch.
Colt is losing his mind as he tries to get the referee’s attention but the hot tag brings in Castle anyway. The Bang-a-Rang plants O’Ryan for two so the Boys come in for a double dropkick on Vinny. O’Ryan sends the Boys outside and tries an Asai moonsault…..which hits the barricade, giving him a legitimate broken leg. Taven and Marseglia throw #1 back inside for a double powerbomb (Rockstar Supernova, an awesome name) to retain at 7:54. You can tell they were home REALLY fast and that’s completely understandable.
Rating: D+. This wasn’t any good and would have been boring on a regular TV show, let alone a major pay per view. I can’t imagine it would have been much to see even with the regular ending but you can’t fault them for ending the match soon because of a broken leg. The titles need to go away in a hurry though because they’re just not working.
We recap Marty Scurll vs. Lio Rush for the TV Title. Scurll has been a dominant champion and Rush is his latest challenger, having beaten him in a non-title 2/3 falls match. Assuming Scurll was champion then, why in the world was a 2/3 falls match non-title?
TV Title: Lio Rush vs. Marty Scurll
Rush is challenging and they’re quickly on the mat with a series of headlocks into headscssiors. Things speed up a bit with Rush tripping him to the floor for a hurricanrana off the apron. That’s fine with the arm flapping Scurll who superkicks him from the apron. Back in and Scurll start sin on the arm, including a stomp to the hand. Rush blocks the finger break though and hits a Tajiri handspring into a body block to take over.
Something like Sister Abigail into a DDT instead of a Downward Spiral gets two on the champ but he sends Rush shoulder first into the post. Rush speeds things up again and sends him outside for a double stomp to the back. Back in and Marty kicks at the legs for a change of pace (with the announcers explaining that he’s trying to break Rush down piece by piece and that he can always go back to the arm later).
One heck of a forearm puts Rush outside but he storms back in for a rapid fire exchange of forearms. Rush’s Tajiri handspring is pulled into the chickenwing but Rush makes the ropes. Scurll gets two off a piledriver but Rush comes right back with a running C4 (Rush Hour) for the same. With nothing else working, Rush heads outside and grabs the belt (Colt: “You have to win that first.”).
Not that it matters as he throws it right back outside and kicks Marty in the head for two. With nothing else working, Rush loads up a chair on the floor. A super Rush Hour is broken up though and Scurll takes him down with a Tower of London (hanging cutter out of the corner). The finger is snapped and Marty chickenwings him to retain at 18:38.
Rating: B. Really solid stuff here as Rush continues to grow on me in ways I never would have expected. Scurll is so much fun to watch though I could go for him doing more villainous things than just saying he’s a villain. To be fair though, when the setup for your finisher is breaking a finger, you’re quite evil in the first place. Good match here and probably the best thing all night so far.
We look at Bully Ray helping the Briscoes in Manhattan, which is all you’re getting for a recap.
Briscoe Brothers/Bully Ray vs. War Machine/Davey Boy Smith Jr.
This was supposed to be Smith/Lance Archer vs. the Briscoes but Archer is injured so this is a replacement match. War Machine and Smith don’t get along though so this might not be the most competitive match. It’s a brawl to start (of course) with Bully sending Davey into the corner a few times. The Briscoes come in and get suplexed at the same time in quite the power display.
Smith gets slammed down for What’s Up with Mark hitting an elbow instead of the headbutt. That means it’s time for some tables but War Machine makes a save and takes over on Mark. Kelly tries to explain the backstory with all the New Japan stables and as usual, I need a good sized chart to make sense of all this (please don’t explain it to me). A series of stomping sets up Smith’s camel clutch and a delayed vertical suplex.
Hansen tries one too many right hands and gets caught in a suplex, allowing the hot tag off to Jay. House is cleaned for a few moments until a pop up powerslam plants Jay for two but a clothesline allows the real hot tag to Bully as everything breaks down. Bully actually goes up top for a high crossbody (!) to take out everyone at once. The Jay Driller into the Froggy Bow sets up a three man 3D to finish Rowe at 11:45.
Rating: C+. This was the kind of fun match that you would expect. They beat each other up for a bit and didn’t bother wasting time on anything more than they needed to. Bully is best used as a featured attraction like this as he’s a legend who can just come in, do his signature stuff, and go to the finish. The match was fine and entertaining, which is all it needed to be.
Smith and War Machine fight on the floor which I’d assume will be resolved in another promotion in Japan.
We recap the Tag Team Title match. The Young Bucks were the champions and successfully defended at Manhattan Mayhem. Post match the Broken Hardys appeared and won the titles in an impromptu match. Roppongi Vice was already scheduled to challenge in a street fight so we’ll just make it a three way.
Tag Team Titles: Roppongi Vice vs. Young Bucks vs. Broken Hardys
Matt and Jeff are defending in a street fight. This is just after the TNA lawsuit, meaning the Hardys can only be kind of Broken because TNA is annoying and petty because they seem to think they can just throw the Broken gimmick on anyone and it’ll work (it won’t work because no one else can play the characters like Matt and Jeff). But hey, TNA gets to stand by its principles and if they just happen to look like penny pinching imbeciles, so be it.
Vice is knocked to the floor to start so they bring in some weapons to put the bigger teams down. A springboard dropkick drives a trashcan lid into Jeff’s back. The Bucks can’t hit a Meltzer Driver but the Hardys come back in to beat up Vice instead. Vice breaks up another Bucks vs. Hardys showdown so Nick powerbombs Romero off the apron and onto the ramp. The Bucks and the Hardys start brawling….and let’s hit the replay!
The champs get dropped with superkicks but the Bucks miss the stolen Hardys’ top rope shots. It’s time for the first ladder because I’m not sure the Hardys know how to work a long match without one. Jeff brings in a trashcan but gets superkicked with Matt taking one as well. A third superkick knocks Jeff off the ropes and into a big pile, only to have Nick get shoved off the ladder into a springboard flip dive onto the same pile.
Nick is right back in with a springboard 450 onto a trashcan onto Trent for two. More Bang for Your Buck is broken up and Jeff’s Swanton hits raised knees. With everyone down, Romero grabs a sleeve (as in from a shirt) covered in thumbtacks for a string of clotheslines in the corner. Strong Zero gets two on Nick with Matt making the save. Beretta pours out another bag of tacks but due to wrestling law #1, that means he’s sent face first into them, this time via something like a Steiner Bulldog.
The Five Star Driver (or maybe it’s the Meltzer Driver or whatever their insider name is for it that the fans cheer for because it makes them feel smart) sends Trent into the tacks, setting up another slugout with the Hardys. The champs get the better of it and bring out a table and a second ladder for various hardcore reasons. Matt and Jeff send the Bucks to the floor and a flip dive (not exactly a Swanton through Trent through the table is enough for the pin to retain at 17:14.
Rating: B+. These matches, along with most Bucks matches, are like junk food: there’s no quality to them but they’re a lot of fun to watch. I’d rather watch them just do their stuff with the superkicks and flips than try to have people tell me how great a match it is because they know how to put together better matches than any other team. The match was a fun, violent brawl and that’s all it needed to be. It was designed to pop the crowd and I got into a lot of those big spots, though the ending felt a bit flat. Also, well done on putting this together so quickly with the surprise addition of the Hardys.
The Hardys take the Young Bucks’ Superkick Titles too.
We recap the World Title match. Christopher Daniels won a tournament designed for older competitors to earn his shot. The idea is Daniels has given his all to the business but has never actually won the World Title. He’s put in everything he’s had for twenty four years and absolutely cannot lose.
This includes another outstanding promo from Daniels where he breaks into tears, talking about how he just has to win. Daniels has been on fire with the promos lately and I actually want to see him win after really not being a fan for years on end. The other detail is Daniels’ best friend Kazarian turning on him to join the Bullet Club to side with champion Adam Cole.
ROH World Title: Adam Cole vs. Christopher Daniels
There are no seconds here. Daniels is challenging and we’re ready to go after some Big Match Intros. We actually get a Code of Honor as the announcers talk about Daniels being 0-8-1 in World Title matches. Cole takes him down and makes a face before doing it again and slapping Daniels in the back of the head. The feeling out process/mind games continue as Cole sends him into the ropes for an ADAM COLE BAY BAY!
That earns him a right hand to the jaw so Adam stomps away in the corner. A backdrop sends Cole outside to give Daniels his first major offense nearly five minutes in. That’s quickly wrapped up though as a superkick knocks Daniels’ head into the post to draw some blood. Thankfully Adam is smart enough to stay on the cut and we hit a chinlock, which should squeeze more blood out of his head.
More kicks to the head have Daniels reeling but one too many poses allows Daniels to get in a Koji Clutch for a big hope spot. Daniels can’t follow up though so Cole talks trash about Daniels’ wife, which gives us the expected result. We hit the slugout with Daniels getting in an STO and a Blue Thunder Bomb for two.
The BME misses though and Adam scores with a superkick for two more. A Shining Wizard sets up the Last Shot for a near fall but Daniels hits him in the face again. Angel’s Wings is countered and it’s a double clothesline to put both guys down. Cole’s Canadian Destroyer is countered but he grabs Angel’s Wings on Daniels for two.
As you might expect, Daniels hits a Last Shot of his own for the same, followed by a Styles Clash of all things for a very near fall. Back up and the referee gets superkicked so heeeere’s Kazarian. We nearly get some heel miscommunication but instead Kazarian rips off the Bullet Club shirt to reveal a Daniels shirt. A Rock Bottom into three straight BME’s give us a new champion at 21:47.
Rating: B. I liked this more than I was expecting to with a great story as Daniels survived until he got one shot, just like he had done for his entire career. The Kazarian stuff was really well done (a bit predictable but still good) and Daniels did everything himself (Kazarian never touched Cole). They nailed the big moment and that’s all that mattered here with a good match to make it work even better.
The long celebration with a lot of the locker room coming out ends the show.
Overall Rating: A-. This really was a great show with the worst thing being the Six Man Tag Team Titles and even that was far from bad. They nailed the big ending which is all almost anyone is going to remember from this show and that’s the most important thing. However, it also brings up one of ROH’s major problems.
Aside from the main event and the Tag Team Titles to a lesser degree, almost nothing on here feels like it has a story that has either been thoroughly explained or even exists at all. I watch every episode of ROH TV and I couldn’t begin to tell you where a lot of these matches came from. Yeah Rush beat Scurll in a 2/3 falls match. Not only do I have no idea when/where he did that but I don’t remember it being mentioned on TV unless it was in passing.
This comes back to ROH’s TV being all screwed up. The go-home show for this (dated March 8) featured Kazarian turning, the Kingdom defending against the Rebellion with Dalton Castle on commentary and a Top Prospect Tournament match. Before that it was Addiction having issues, another Top Prospect Tournament match and the setup for Rush vs. Scurll, which involved about six more people. Finally, the last show of February featured Colt Cabana (on commentary here) squashing the Boys (title contenders here), an unrelated match and Daniels becoming #1 contender.
In the three weeks of build to this show, three out of the eight matches (World Title, TV Title, Six Man Tag Team Titles) got any kind of significant mention on TV. Maybe the other five matches were mentioned on the ROH website or something but I really should have a better idea of a pay per view by watching the last three weeks of TV. Run down the card or give us some promos (maybe you could get rid of the horrible Top Prospect Tournament matches or move them to a later date or something) or do SOMETHING to help build these matches up.
The formula worked here but you’re not going to be able to rely on the wrestlers knocking it out of the park every time. So much of this show worked because the main event (which was well built and told a great story) rocked and the ladder match had people who know how to work that match to near perfection. You can’t rely on that every single time and a big solution to that problem is to fix their freaking TV. I mean, they haven’t in years and it’s not going to get better anytime soon but it need to get better. Anyway, really strong show here and one of ROH’s best in a long time.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the NXT: The Full Sail Years Volumes I and II, now in PAPERBACK. Check out the information here:
Impact Wrestling – July 29, 2015: Oh Shut Up Already
Impact Wrestling Date: July 29, 2015
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: D’Angelo Dinero, Josh Matthews
The big story coming out of last week is Matt Hardy earning the #1 contendership in a tables match over Bobby Roode. This was the result of the night’s main story being thrown out due to the Hernandez issue, which is likely going to cause even more problems tonight. Other than changing things up though, we do get Jeff Jarrett’s Hall of Fame induction. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s major events, including Jeff Jarrett being announced as the next Hall of Fame inductee, Serena being announced as James Storm’s partner and Matt Hardy becoming #1 contender.
Here’s Austin Aries with something to say. Aries may not have a title right now, but politics and backstage issues aside, there is no one on the face of this planet who is better than he is. Therefore, why wasn’t he involved in the #1 contenders match last week? Bully Ray may be in charge but he’s already off to a bad start with mistakes like that.
Cue Bully Ray, who says his opinion is the only one that matters. Sure Aries is great. He’s so great that he even beat Bully himself at one point. Aries is going to get another shot at what he deserves. Austin interprets that as a World Title shot but Ray says Aries already lost that chance. In that case, Aries will settle for a Tag Team Title shot with Bobby Roode. That’s a no as well, so Aries can challenge for the X-Division Title later tonight.
Aries isn’t happy because that title is beneath him. The X-Division Title is for people like Rockstar Spud, who comes out in objection. Spud is a big Aries fan, but a statement like he just made hurts. Option C gave people like Spud a chance to be World Heavyweight Champion because it gave them a reason to believe in themselves. Austin laughs this off because Option C was made for people like himself, not Rockstar Spud.
Yeah Angle beat him once, but that would only happen one out of ten times. Spud on the other hand would lost to him every time. Since Aries has nothing to do tonight, why doesn’t he beat Spud up instead? Spud thinks he can beat Aries instead of just hanging with him, which makes Aries say he’ll leave if he loses tonight. Ray accepts that as a contract and the match is on for later tonight. Aries agrees, but wants the Rockstar moniker if he wins.
The Jarretts are here.
Chris Melendez tells Kurt Angle that he has to beat Eric Young to move forward in his career.
Sgt. Chris Melendez vs. Eric Young
Angle is out with Chris. Before the match, Melendez says he’ll keep fighting no matter what, just like he did overseas. Young comes out and says Melendez doesn’t want him coming in there because it will end badly for him. The bell rings and Eric slaps him in the back of the head a few times as we’re suddenly told Aries vs. Spud is next week at No Surrender. Is there even a point to having specials when they’re the same shows we get every week? Young stays on him and drives some elbows into the back of the head before a quick piledriver is good for the pin 3:12. Well that was a waste of time.
Rating: D. TNA, I know Melendez is a cool story, but there is nothing interesting about him. He’s nothing special in the ring, he’s nothing special on the mic and his one legged gimmick is long past its expiration date. What is there about him that is supposed to interest me? Nothing to see here and I have a feeling it’s going to keep going.
Sting Hall of Fame video.
Matt Hardy doesn’t know what stipulation he’s picking for his title match against Ethan Carter III. “We will announce the stipulation later.” JB wants to know who the other half of we is, even though it was already announced next week.
Knockouts Title: Brooke vs. Marti Bell
Brooke is defending yeah this is just the token title defense against the former champion’s lackey. The champ cleans house to start but goes after Taryn (in a tutu), allowing Marti to get in a cheap shot to take over. Brooke comes back with a quick shot to the face for two, only to have a kick to the jaw change control back to Marti. A superplex is broken up though and Brooke nails a middle rope clothesline. Brooke gets two off a Russian legsweep but the Dollhouse tries to interfere, only to have Gail Kim…..play her entrance video for a distraction, allowing Brooke to hit the Butterface Maker on Marti to retain at 4:40.
Rating: D. I’m so sick of this division. They had something interesting in the Dollhouse but they take the title off Taryn for the sake of pushing Brooke, who is there for one thing and one thing only. Oh and we get Gail Kim being all serious because what else is she supposed to do? Lame match too.
Kurt Angle Hall of Fame video.
More from Tigre Uno in Tijuana, this time talking about what TNA has done for his family. He loves lucha libre and thinks it’s better than anything in the world. These aren’t exactly thrilling statements.
Tigre Uno calls Donald Trump a coward.
Ethan Carter III isn’t worried about what stipulation Matt picks.
Here are Carter and Tyrus for Matt’s announcement. Remember when World Title matches were just wrestling matches? After saying Bully sucks eggs, Carter rips on the Hardys for being a couple of North Carolina hillbillies. If this was against Jeff Hardy then maybe Ethan would be worried but Jeff broke his leg on a motocross bike. Ethan says Matt isn’t a World Title contender so here’s Jeff to object.
Jeff admits that he cried from the pain of his broken leg but he conquers fears. Before Carter knows it he’ll be dropping titanium shins on Ethan’s face. Before Carter knows it, Jeff will be the next World Champion. It’s nice to see Jeff admitting that his brother has no chance. This brings out Matt who draws a NEXT WORLD CHAMP chant.
Matt talks about the Hardys being told they can’t do it and always proving people wrong. It’s not a competition between the brothers to see who is best, which is why Jeff is supporting him this week. Jeff gets to make the announcement but instead of saying anything, he asks Matt to pull some stuff out from under the ring. Matt pulls out a table, a chair and a ladder because WHAT ELSE WOULD THE HARDYS PICK??? In case it’s not clear, next week is Full Metal Mayhem. On top of that, no one is allowed at ringside during the match. This took WAY too much time for the only possible conclusion.
Team 3D Hall of Fame video.
Magnus and Mickie James are ready for James Storm and Serena.
James Storm/Serena vs. Mickie James/Magnus
This is a result of Storm being a psycho who tried to get Mickie in the ring for one last match as a way to get inside her head and make her join the Revolution. The guys officially get things going with Magnus in control until Storm gets in a knee from the apron. Storm slaps on a chinlock and we take a break.
Back with Mickie chasing Serena around, only to allow Storm to plant Magnus with a Backstabber. Storm throws his sweat on Mickie and puts Magnus in a quickly broken chinlock. Magnus can’t get anything going though as he charges into Closing Time (Codebreaker) to keep him in trouble. Josh thinks it’s a gutbuster for reasons not entirely clear.
Both guys try cross bodies and it’s off to the girls with Mickie cleaning house. Everything breaks down and Storm goes after Mickie, only to get speared down for his efforts. Serena calls out Khoya, who hits Storm with the stick by mistake. Magnus adds a powerslam to Storm and the MickieDT ends Serena at 12:15.
Rating: D+. I don’t know if it’s been the boring show that led up to it but MY GOODNESS I did not care about this match. Serena could have been any warm body out there and she didn’t add much to the match. It doesn’t help that this feud basically ended a few weeks back but they dragged them out there one more time for the “blowoff”, which really didn’t do anything. Boring match which was mainly about the men while trying to be about the women.
Storm gets a MickieDT for good measure.
Mr. Anderson is worried about facing Bram because of the depths he’ll have to sink to.
Bram suggests Anderson kiss his kids goodnight and tell them goodbye because he isn’t going home.
We run down the No Surrender card.
Video on Jeff Jarrett’s career. I do get a good chuckle of TNA trying to make Jarrett seem like someone on Rock and Austin’s level, especially after they spent so much time ripping on him over the years.
Here’s Dixie Carter to induct Jarrett into the Hall of Fame. She tells a story of meeting Jeff when she lived in Tennessee and compares him to George Bailey from It’s A Wonderful Life. Dixie welcomes the Jarretts to the ring and after a break, it’s time to hear from Jeff. Jeff thanks everyone who has ever bought something from TNA and everyone who has ever worked for TNA. He leaves off people who have done work for them but haven’t actually gotten paid but I’m sure they’re included too.
Jeff lists off a bunch of production guys and office workers in what felt like something special. Mike Tenay gets thanked for holding things in place when they fell apart at times. “Don West not so much.” Then you have the X-Division, Knockouts and tag teams who all work so hard and prove that it can be more than just heavyweights main eventing. The heavyweights get a thank you as well, including AJ Styles.
Jarrett talks about a falling out with his dad (a legendary promoter in his own right) over this company but thanks him so much for getting him here. His children are the reason he’s here and even though they drive him crazy, they keep him going. Last but not least in family is Jeff’s wife Karen, who has been Jeff’s rock. A quick thank you to the fans leads to a THANK YOU JEFF chant and the roster (like 15 people) come out to applaud as the show ends. This was a nice ceremony and speech, but it felt really rushed because of the lack of time.
Overall Rating: F+. This was awful. With under twenty minutes combined of actual wrestling (if you count the commercial in the tag as ring time they crack it by less than ten seconds) and a bunch of last second building to a “special” that was announced tonight, what was the point of this show? To show that Jarrett is still a big deal? They did that already with all the packages and Slammiversary main event.
This show felt like it went on forever and built up nothing interesting. No Surrender feels like a show that is there to pop a rating, which TNA has kind of almost sort of done what, once or twice ever? I really didn’t care for this show and I didn’t want to sit through the rest of it, but that’s all we get these days in TNA. The wheels are falling off and the TV is getting worse and worse every single week. GFW getting here is supposed to be their saving grace, but TNA is barely worth saving at this point.
Results
Eric Young b. Sgt. Chris Melendez – Piledriver
Brooke b. Marti Belle – Butterface Maker
Mickie James/Magnus b. James Storm/Serena – MickieDT to Serena
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