Ring Of Honor
Date: May 2, 2024
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Things have been getting back more towards the pre-Supercard Of Honor ways around here and that has not made for the most entertaining shows. What matters is getting some interest going, which will likely be centered around Athena/Billie Starkz vs. Queen Aminata/Red Velvet. Other than that, there is work to be done. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Of note: the sun is setting at Daily’s Place so the whole venue looks really, really cool.

We run down the card.

We recap the Outrunners and the Infantry copying each other’s stuff for weeks.

Outrunners vs. Infantry

Laser Linda (debuting) and Trish Adora are here too. Adora runs Linda over to start and the Outrunners are dropkicked out to the floor before we get the opening bell. We settle down to the Infantry working on Floyd’s arm, followed by a double hiptoss to Magnum as commentary is impressed by the basic offense. Everything breaks down and Bravo hits a slingshot dive onto Magnum, followed by an old Valiant Brothers middle rope fist drop to Floyd.

Magnum is back in with a cheap shot on Bravo though and the villains (I think?) take over. Floyd grabs the leg to Magnum can hook a headlock, setting up the Outrunners’ double hiptoss as the blatant copying continues. Bravo gets up and manages a slingshot Stunner of all things, allowing the tag off to Dean to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down again and Dean hits a top rope splash, with Magnum’s save hitting Floyd by mistake. The Outrunners load up Boot Camp but get it broken up, allowing the Infantry to hit the real thing for the pin on Magnum at 8:50.

Rating: B-. The action was good, but what made this more interesting than usual was it had a story/some stakes to it. These teams have a reason to be mad at each other and I wanted to see the Infantry get the win. It wasn’t a classic or anything close to it but I’ll definitely take a good match with a reason to see the teams fight.

Nyla Rose vs. Camron Branae

Branae is better known as Amari Miller from NXT and slugs away at Rose to start. This goes very badly as Rose launches her into the corner but Branae manages to knock Rose to the floor. Back in and Rose hits a knee, setting up the Beast Bomb for the pin at 1:24. Branae showed some fire but Rose crushed her in the end.

Angelo Parker says he was going to retire when Ruby Soho told him he was going to be a dad. Now Parker has something to fight or and Matt Menard thinks it’s time to come after the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles.

Undisputed Kingdom vs. The Qrown

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if the Qrown wins or survives the ten minute time limit, they get a future title shot. Bennett slugs away at Leonis to start and the Kingdom takes turns stomping away in the corner. Leonis blocks a double suplex attempt and snaps off a belly to belly but it’s too early for the tag to Maximus. Some hard clotheslines allows the tag to Maximus and house is quickly cleaned. That doesn’t last long though as the Kingdom is right back with the Hail Mary to finish Maximus at 4:17.

Rating: C+. The Qrown were a big deal in OVW when they were known as King’s Ransom, which might not be a good name but it’s a heck of a lot better than Qrown. The team definitely has potential as they are a good looking power team and I could go for seeing more of them. For now though, it was just a quick cameo and it worked pretty well.

JD Drake talks about being lost in the last month, to the point where his bowling game was messed up. He has a $2 bill and that means he has two choices. Now he is ready to come back and give a $2 bill worth of a beating as a Workhorseman.

Toa Liona vs. Jimmy Wild

Liona runs him over and chokes on the ropes, setting up an overhead belly to belly. Wild’s comeback is cut off with a superkick and a backsplash on the apron makes it worse. Liona hits a Pounce for the pin at 2:14. Total squash.

Dark Order vs. Zicky Dice/Sean Maluta/Adam Priest

Silver runs Maluta down with some shoulders to start and backdrops a charging Dice. The Order triple team Maluta for two but Dice gets in a cheap shot to Uno from the apron. Dice comes in for some mocking kicks to the head, only to have Uno neckbreaker his way out of trouble. Reynolds gets the tag to clean house and a butterfly powerbomb gets two on Priest. Everything breaks down and a Canadian Destroyer into the triple flipping slam finishes Priest at 4:42.

Rating: C. The Dark Order being on the show in Daily’s Place is a fine way to go as they were beloved here during the pandemic shows. Let the fans have something of a treat in a six man tag that isn’t going to hurt anyone. It’s not a match that took up any significant time and it was perfectly watchable so this was a fine addition to the card.

The Iron Savages are tired of being goofy without having success, so it’s time for a change of pace. They’re done trying to win over the stupid fans.

Aaron Solo vs. Jon Cruz

Solo wastes not time in stomping him into the corner and suplexing him right back out. Cruz is back with a slam as commentary praises Tony Khan for appearing at the NFL Draft in a neck brace. Solo shrugs it off and hits a spinning kick to the head for the pin at 1:31. Pushing Solo is a choice and he only looked so good here.

Queen Aminata vs. Robyn Renegade

They fight over a headlock to start with Aminata taking her down. Renegade gets up for a kick to the head into a Backstabber but Aminata drops her with some clotheslines. A running kick against the ropes knocks Renegade silly for two but a faceplant gets Renegade out of trouble. Renegade’s Death Valley Driver gets two, only for Aminata to German suplex her into the corner. The hip attack and an Air Raid Crash finish for Aminata at 5:14.

Rating: C. Aminata gets a win on the way to her likely title shot against Athena. That should make for a good showdown whenever we get there and this was her warmup. Other than that, there wasn’t much to it, though Renegade was firing back and had her usual intensity to make it decent.

Overall Rating: C+. They cut way back on the time this week and for the most part that was a good thing. While the opener is by far the best part of the show, it was nice to have things wrapped up so quickly. They featured some lower level stars this week but kept the show moving well enough that nothing overstayed its welcome. As usual, the brisk pace helps a lot around here and that was certainly true this week.

Results
Infantry b. Outrunners – Boot Camp to Magnum
Nyla Rose b. Camron Branae – Beast Bomb
Undisputed Kingdom b. Qrown – Hail Mary to Maximus
Toa Liona b. Jimmy Wild – Pounce
Dark Order b. Zicky Dice/Sean Maluta/Adam Priest – Triple flipping slam to Priest
Aaron Solo b. Jon Cruz – Spinning kick to the head
Queen Aminata b. Robyn Renegade – Air Raid Crash

 

 

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American Dream 2024 In The Keystone State
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Lawlor, Veda Scott

So this is from Stardom, the Japanese women’s promotion, who are in town for Wrestlemania Weekend. I was in town for the weekend and since I’m not likely to ever see something like this again in person, it was worth a look. I’m not sure what to expect from this and that’s part of the fun. Let’s get to it.

I was sitting in the corner of the arena for this show with the entrance on my right and the ring pretty much straight in front of me. Keep in mind that I do not follow Stardom whatsoever and will likely have no idea what is going on as far as characters or storylines. I apologize in advance for any errors but I’m coming in mostly blind.

The opening video runs down the card, which is only five matches.

High Speed Title: Mei Seira vs. Ram Kaichow vs. Saki Kashima

Seira is defending and from what I can tell, this is similar to the X-Division/Cruiserweight Title. The audio mix is really missing as commentary is barely audible over the entrance music and I can’t make out more than a few words of what they are saying. Seira has two belts and Kaichow has one, making things all the more confusing. The fans seem to like Kaichow, who might be a bit dead.

Kashima locks up with Kaichow, who has dust flying off of her to scare Kashima away. More dust gets Kaichow out of a double wristlock before they pick up the pace with Seira hitting a running basement dropkick on Kaichow. They run the ropes until the challengers fall down, leaving Seira as the only one standing. Kaichow rolls Seira up for two and an exchange of rollups give not-Kaichow two each. Back up and Kaichow throws more dust, allowing Kashima to pin Seira for the title at 5:06.

Rating: C+. Well they weren’t kidding about the HIGH SPEED part as this was rather fast paced until the ending, which came out of nowhere. I got the concept well enough and Kaichow’s dust thing made her stand out, but the other two didn’t do much to separate themselves from the other. Either way, it was a nice introduction to the show as it was flying by and kept me interested.

AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae vs. Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe

Saya and Kid start things off, which is apparently a big rivalry. They go to the mat and get nowhere so they both flip up for a staredown. Branae comes in for part of a triple Gory Bomb to put Kid down for two and it’s back to Saya, who gets caught with a headscissors. Watanabe crushes Saya in the corner but gets cut off with a spinning kick to the face. A springboard crossbody gives Saya two and a triple dropkick takes Watanabe down again.

Back up and Watanabe kicks Saya in the head and the double tag brings in AZM and Vaquer. AZM kicks Vaquer in the head and it’s back to Branae, who gets caught with Eat Defeat. Some running knees give Branae two but the villains (I think?) take her into the corner for the train of running shots. Everything breaks down and Kid dives onto the floor to take out AZM and Saya. That leaves Vaquer to headbutt Branae in the corner and go after her recently injured knee. Branae manages a neckbreaker but walks into a package piledriver onto the knee to give Vaquer the pin at 9:11.

Rating: C+. Another fast paced match here as they had a bit more time to showcase the people involved. Six women spread over nine minutes isn’t much but it’s better than cramming it into even less time. Vaquer felt like a star and that makes sense as she is the New Japan Women’s Strong Champion. Not a great match, but if the idea is to get as many people on the show as possible, they’re doing well.

Willow Nightingale/Saki vs. Konami/Syuri

Syuri is one of the most revered names going today and I might have seen her once before. Saki and Syuri start things off with Syuri grabbing a rollup for a fast two, giving us an early standoff. Nightingale comes in for a double shoulder to Syuri but she’s back up t kick Saki in the back for two. Konami comes in for a dropkick and a one kneed cover gets two. It’s already back to Syuri for a kick to the back but Saki suplexes her way to freedom. Nightingale comes back in to run Syuri over, setting up a spinebuster for two.

A Cannonball misses though and Syuri gets two off a DDT. Everything breaks down and Syuri and Konami grab stereo holds, both of which are broken up just as fast. Syuri chokes Saki on the floor, leaving Konami to missile dropkick Nightingale. Saki is back in to make a save and Konami is tossed onto Syuri. Nightingale has had enough of this and hits a heck of a Pounce on Konami, setting up a DDT for two. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 8:28.

Rating: B-. Another fun match here but they were blazing through it again. That’s been a trend with this show, which isn’t the best idea for a five match card. Nightingale continues to be a ball of energy no matter where she is and it’s great to see her getting a win like this. Now give her a win with some gold on the line and it’ll be even better.

Mayu Iwatani/Tam Nakano/Momo Kohgo vs. Mina Shirakawa/Mariah May/Xia Brookside

This is Stars vs. Club Venus, the latter of which comes off as some kind of pop band/Mean Girls deal. Venus seems to be mainly about Shirakawa, with the other two being her henchwomen. May ducks Kohgo’s running dropkick to start and plans her with a very spinning side slam. Brookside comes in for the running knees to the back and we get a triple Venus pose.

The fans approve of Shirakawa coming in and grabbing a quickly released surfboard. May comes back in but gets caught with a dropkick, allowing Kohgo to hit a crossbody. Iwatani comes in and gets to pick up the pace, including a double springboard wristdrag to May and Shirakawa. May is back up with a Sling Blade and it’s Shirakawa coming in for a kick to the head. Nakano comes in for the first time for a shake off (just go with it) with Shirakawa.

A hanging suplex gives Shirakawa two and it’s Brookside coming in with a neckbreaker for the same. Everything breaks down and a double 619 hits Brookside to give Nakano two. Venus is back in with a double Paige Turner to give Brookside her own near fall on Nakano. There’s a running Codebreaker to drop Nakano as everything breaks down again. Iwatani hits a big dive to the floor and a kick to the face gets two on Brookside, with the rest of Venus making the save. Nakano has had it with this and grabs Twilight Dream (tiger suplex) for the pin at Brookside at 12:13.

Rating: B-. This was another case where the extra time helped but the other thing here was it felt like Venus came off as a full time team rather than two people thrown together. Everyone got a chance to shine here and it felt like more of a showcase, with Brookside getting a lot of time in there. Good stuff here, and probably the best match of the show so far.

Post match the winners leave….and here is Toni Storm, with the AEW Women’s Title and a bouquet of flowers. She talks about the time she has had in Philadelphia, where she started with Easter Championship Wrestling. Storm: “I’ll have you know that this is the very place where I entered Sandman.” She puts over Stardom and praises May, even giving her the flowers. As for Mina Shirakawa, who is standing in the ring as well, the Forbidden Door is always open. Shirakawa is game.

We recap the main event. Maika is the World Champion, Megan Bayne is a power monster, they’ve teamed together and fought before, title match on.

World Of Stardom Title: Maika vs. Megan Bayne

Bayne, billed as the Megasus and the much larger of the two, is challenging. Maika tries some running shoulders to no avail so she tells Bayne to come on. An armdrag works better but Bayne is back up to run her over with a real shoulder. A butterfly suplex gets two, followed by a Samoan drop for the same.

Back up and some running clotheslines in the corner give Maika two and she goes after the arm. Bayne powers up and suplexes her way to freedom, setting up a side slam for two more. Maika puts her up top for a superplex and another near fall, followed by a cutter for the same. Bayne is back with a big boot and a heck of a running clothesline to leave them both down.

Back up and they slug it out until Maika snaps off a powerslam. Maika catches her up top with a powerbomb for one but Bayne is back with a heck of a spear. An apron German suplex gives Bayne two more with an F5 getting the same. They go up again and this time it’s a super Michinoku Driver to give Maika two of her own. A Michinoku Driver II gives Maika the pin at 14:24.

Rating: B. This was just starting to cook when they went home, with Maika being a good fighting from underneath champion. Bayne is a monster with something of a Beth Phoenix look/style so there was an obvious story to be told here. Good match and the best part of the show, though they could have gone longer.

Post match respect is shown and here is Momo Watanabe to say she’s the next challenger. Watanabe pulls back her baseball bat to swing at Maika but Bayne gets in her way and sends Watanabe bailing. Maika says they’re on for April 27 in Yokohama before leading the fans in the WE ARE STARDOM chant to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s it? The show didn’t even run an hour and forty five minutes, with the longest match out of five lasting less than fifteen minutes. I’m not sure if that is Stardom’s style, but this was really short and felt like it could have gone another hour or so. What we got was good, but I was sitting in the crowd wondering what else they were going to do because it wasn’t even two hours and then the show just ended. For the prices being charged, this should have been more, as it just didn’t last long enough. What we got was good, but egads give us more than that.

Results
Saki Kashima b. Ram Kaichow and Mei Seira – Crucifix to Seira
Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe b. AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae – Package piledriver onto the knee to Branae
Stars b. Club Venus – Twilight Dream to Brookside
Maika b. Megan Bayne – Michinoku Driver II

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.