Ring Of Honor
Date: July 27, 2023
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re done with a high quality but mostly skippable pay per view with Death Before Dishonor. The biggest change from the show saw Aussie Open becoming the new Tag Team Champions while everyone else retained. That should lead to something interesting, though there is no word on when the next major show is going to be. Let’s get to it.

Here is Death Before Dishonor if you need a recap.

The show is back up to just shy of two hours, the longest in about a month. I’m sure what’s what was missing from the build towards Death Before Dishonor.

Josh Woods vs. Eli Isom

Pure Rules, with Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata as a guest judge (alone with Jerry Lynn and Jimmy Jacobs). Mark Sterling is here with Woods (along with the rest of the Varsity Athletes), who would rather wrestle in front of real New Yorkers rather than fake ones in Newark. Woods wrestles him into the ropes to start and that’s Isom’s first break. Back up and Isom takes him down into an armbar, only to get kicked hard out of the corner.

Another running shot to the face rocks Isom and Woods sends him shoulder first into the buckle. Isom intentionally uses a rope to escape the beating before using some forearms to stagger Woods. A swinging belly to back suplex gives Isom two but Woods armbars him over to the ropes for the final rope. Woods grabs a sleeper into a PK into the Gorilla lock for the tap at 7:55.

Rating: C. This was more or less a pure rules squash as Woods would seem to be the next challenger for Shibata. That doesn’t make for the most interesting match but that is the case with a lot of the Pure Rules matches. They work well from a technical standpoint, but seeing a lot of the same people having not the most thrilling matches in the world doesn’t do a lot o good.

Post match Sterling challenges Shibata for a title match against Woods.

Trish Adora is ready to get back on track.

Trish Adora vs. Vita Vonstarr

Vita shoves her away to start so Adora grabs a headlock. The Air Raid Crash is loaded up but Adora switches into the kneeling stretch instead (that needs a name). Back up and Vita grabs a Black Widow but Adora isn’t having any of that and runs her over with ax handles for two. Vita’s Michinoku driver gets two, only to have Adora come back with the Lariat Tubman for the pin at 4:20.

Rating: C. Vonstarr got in some offense here, which isn’t a surprise as she used to be a regular for Ring Of Honor before everything changed. Adora gets some momentum back and still seems like someone who could be put into a heck of a title feud if given the chance. Granted it might be a bit with Leyla Hirsch back, but at least Adora didn’t lose again here.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Mogul Embassy vs. Iron Savages/Jacked Jameson

The Embassy, with Prince Nana, is defending. Commentary points out that Cage has been on 17/22 episodes of ROH thus far, because I guess we just haven’t gotten the point already. Jameson and Boulder take turns being thrown at Cage in the corner but Jameson gets taken into the champs’ corner to start the chops. A fireman’s carry is escaped though and it’s Bronson coming in to clean house.

Kaun wastes no time in cutting him off though and it’s Loa coming in to elbow Braun in the face. A superplex drops Bronson for two but he’s back up with a shot to the face, allowing the tag off to Boulder. Everything breaks down and Boulder powerslams Kaun for two but Toa is back in to wreck things. Bronson chokebombs Cage for two but he’s back up to suplex Jameson. Kaun hits a Pedigree of all things to pin Jameson at 10:10.

Rating: B-. The match was the kind of mostly wild power brawl that made for an entertaining ten minutes. At the same time though, the fact that Cage has been around that often doesn’t exactly keep him feeling interesting. It feels like these titles are being defended almost every week against one thrown together team after another. It’s not like the matches are exactly great, so why put them on over and over?

Leyla Hirsch vs. B3cca

Hirsch runs her over without much trouble to start and then chokes with the boot in the corner. A gutwrench suplex sets up a waistlock on B3cca but she’s back up with a shotgun dropkick. B3cca’s running knee in the corner sets up a missed middle rope dropkick, allowing Leyla to hit a running knee for the pin at 3:37.

Rating: C. This was a rather Ring Of Honor match with Leyla mostly dominating and shrugging off almost whatever B3cca throws at her. Leyla continues to feel like one of the stars ready to break through to the other side but, much like Adora, you have to let her move up a bit. Leyla has been back in the ring for a few weeks now and her feet should be adequately watered. Let her do something other than squash people already.

Athena wants someone to step up already because she’s tired of beating “local jobbers”.

Renegades vs. Tiara James/JC

JC slugs away at Charlotte to start but makes sure to knock Robyn off the apron. Robyn is right back up for a double suplex and the double stomping is on in the corner. That’s broken up and the tag brings in James to clean house, including a bulldog to Charlotte. That doesn’t last long though and it’s a Sling Blade Hart Attack to finish James at 3:57.

Rating: C. I still like the Renegades but like many women’s tag teams, there isn’t much for them to do right now. There is no women’s tag division and while one of them can be fine on their own, it’s a little weird to see one without the other in the ring. Find something for them to do and let the talent play out, but that might be a little trickier than expected.

Athena vs. Christina Marie

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if Marie either wins or survives the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Marie kicks her in the back to start and adds a Hennig necksnap for one. Athena gets up and blasts Marie with a forearm before hammering away on the mat.

As we hear about Tony Khan only giving title shots to people in the top five or top ten (like Aussie Open and the Best Friends, who hadn’t wrestled here in three months before getting a title shot last week), Athena knocks her outside and then chokes on the ropes. A bunch of forearms to the back set up a kick to the head, followed by the big right hand to finish Marie at 3:21.

Rating: C. Remember how Cage has been around for all but five Ring Of Honors? I’d be surprised if Athena didn’t have him beat. It’s getting really hard to get invested in Athena slaughtering someone else, especially after she beat her best challenger last week. It’s a good example of how leaving her off a show or two would help a lot, but for some reason she, and several others, are on almost every show. Marie’s minute or so looked good but what is she supposed to get out of that?

Post match Athena gives her the usual post match beatdown.

The Kingdom vs. Rhett Titus/Tracy Williams

Maria is here with the Kingdom. Bennett and Williams chop it out to start and it’s quickly off to Taven for a change. A quick middle rope dropkick takes Williams down but Titus comes in to pick up the pace. Titus gets caught in a backbreaker/middle rope elbow combination but he gets the knees up to block a Lionsault.

Williams comes back in and hits a reverse Death Valley Driver to slam Taven’s knees into the mat (that’s a new one). Bennett and Williams grab stereo holds and sit down on them, setting up the slap off. With those broken up, Titus comes in to knock Taven silly but picks him up instead of covering. The delay lets Taven hit Just The Tip, setting up the Proton Pack to finish for the Kingdom at 7:34.

Rating: B-. Another good match here as the Kingdom continues their roll, but why should I believe that this means anything? When you can get a title match at random, these matches lose the interest that they have. I still like the Kingdom a good bit, but for some reason they’re stuck either here or on Rampage while the tag division in both companies isn’t exactly deep.

Stokely Hathaway and Samoa Joe announced a new #1 contenders tournament for the TV Title. Like the one that ended last week?

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Christopher Daniels vs. JD Drake

Daniels flips him over into an armbar to start before hitting a dropkick to put Drake down. Back up and Drake hits a clothesline, setting up the chinlock with a knee in the back to keep Daniels in trouble. A swinging Boss Man Slam gives Drake two before it’s time for a chop off. Daniels kicks the knee out and hits a clothesline to the back of the head, setting up a top rope Downward Spiral for two. Drake crushes him with a cannonball in the corner for two of his own The moonsault misses though and the Best Moonsault Ever finishes for Daniels at 6:06.

Rating: C+. This was about what you would have expected from a match between these two and that means it was decent enough. What mattered here was having Daniels get a win after fighting from underneath a bit, which he can still do rather well. Him winning the whole thing isn’t out of the question and it wouldn’t surprise me at this point.

Big Bill/Lee Moriarty vs. Gabriel Hodder/Adrien Soriano

Moriarty takes over on Soriano to start but gets hit in the face for his efforts. Hodder comes in and is dropped just as quickly so it’s off to Bill for a double clothesline. The chokeslam finishes Hodder at 3:09.

Rating: C-. I’m not sure what the deal is going to be for Big Bill, as he is suddenly in two teams, both of whom are treated as a threat to win something. At the moment though, the team with Brian Cage seems to be a bigger deal and that is likely a better place for him to go. The Moriarty team is fine, but there is something about a big power team that works rather well.

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Tony Nese vs. Cheeseburger

Before the match, Nese does the same “you people are fat so we’re going to do group training” speech he has been doing for the last few weeks. Nese whips him into the corner to start but Cheeseburger slides away and climbs on top of him for an arm crank. With that broken up, Cheeseburger is tied in the Tree of Woe for some rapid fire kicks to the ribs. Cheeseburger knees his way out of a suplex and grabs one of his own, setting up a bulldog. The Shotei palm strike gets two on Nese, followed by a DDT for two. Mark Sterling offers a distraction though and Nese grabs a pumphandle driver for the pin at 5:53.

Rating: C. Nese will be fine as a second round villain to be vanquished and that should be enough for him in the whole thing. The health nut/mocking others’ looks is a classic way to draw heat, but Nese needs something else to back it up in the ring. For now though, a win over Cheeseburger is a good way to go for him and should set him up for a better second round match.

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Anthony Henry vs. Gravity

Gravity takes him down to start and then does the rapid fire nipups to escape a wristlock. Henry is back up with some forearms only to be sent outside for the big dive over the top. Back in and Henry hits a Death Valley Driver, setting up some shots to the back to keep Gravity down.

Gravity is back up with a dropkick before pulling him into kind of a reverse Koji Clutch. That’s broken up and Henry hits a PK for two, followed by a Razor’s Edge spun into a DDT for the same. Gravity shrugs it off and hits a powerslam into a top rope splash for the pin at 8:00.

Rating: C+. Gravity seems to be Tony Khan’s Flavor of the Week now as he is around on quite a few shows as of late. He’s talented enough and it’s nice to see him getting a win here and there, though I could also see him pulling a miracle run here and winning the tournament. This wasn’t exactly a classic, but as a way to give Gravity a win, it worked well enough.

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Shane Taylor vs. Serpentico

Serpentico strikes away to start until a forearm knocks him silly. There’s a big toss to send Serpentico flying and then Taylor does it again. A big clothesline gives Taylor two but Serpentico flips him off. Taylor gets staggered by a kick but a release Rock Bottom puts Serpentico down again. The big splash finishes for Taylor at 4:21.

Rating: C-. Another match without any serious doubt for the winner and that isn’t exactly something that gets my interest up this late into a very, very long show. There was nothing to make me believe that Serpentico was going to win here and it felt like waiting around until Taylor beat on him enough before getting the win.

Trustbusters vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys

Ari Daivari is here with the Trustbusters. A double hiptoss takes Kay down to start so Kiss comes in to choke away in the corner. It’s off to Castle to take Kiss in the corner, where castle gets slapped in the face. They both miss clotheslines until Brent comes in and backflips out of a pair of belly to back suplexes, allowing the hot tag back to Castle. The Boys are thrown outside and onto the Trustbusters (that’s always a cool spot) and the Bang A Rang finishes Kay at 5:19.

Rating: C. I could watch Dalton Castle all day and he looked good here, but I’m not exactly going to get invested in the idea of Castle and the Boys going after the Six Man Tag Team Titles again. I can get the idea of sending the fans home happy with these guys though, as they are about as entertaining of a team as you’re going to get.

Overall Rating: D. Before I’m told that “a bunch of B’s and C’s doesn’t make a D”, that’s not the point of this show. The problem here is that this was not an entertaining wrestling show. It was a bunch of stuff that you get almost every week with the first round of a not exactly interesting tournament added in. Commentary even flat out said something to the effect of “yeah Brian Cage is here A LOT”. See also Athena, Tony Nese, the Workhorsemen and more.

This show was long, not interesting, and felt like it could have come from any point in Ring Of Honor’s history with almost no changes. There were probably three shows crammed into one here for no reason, as the pay per view card shows how little this show means for important shows down the road.

Ring Of Honor’s wrestling is usually pretty solid to good, but the structure, the presentation and everything else is about as bad and boring as you can get in wrestling. I could not stand this show and if not for some talented people on the card, it would have been one of the worst shows that I have seen in a long, long time. Dreadful stuff this week.

Results
Josh Woods b. Eli Isom – Gorilla lock
Trish Adora b. Vita Vonstarr – Lariat Tubman
Mogul Embassy b. Iron Savages/Jacked Jameson – Pedigree to James
Leyla Hirsch b. B3cca – Running knee
Renegades b. Tiana James/JC – Sling Blade hart Attack to James
Athena b. Christina Marie – Right hand
The Kingdom b. Rhett Titus/Tracy Williams – Proton Pack to Titus
Christopher Daniels b. JD Drake – Best Moonsault Ever
Big Bill/Lee Moriarty b. Gabriel Hodder/Adrien Soriano
Tony Nese b. Cheeseburger – Pumphandle driver
Gravity b. Anthony Henry – Top rope splash
Shane Taylor b. Serpentico – Big splash
Dalton Castle/The Boys b. Trustbusters – Bang A Rang to Kay

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

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Ring Of Honor
Date: June 8, 2023
Location: Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re back to Ring Of Honor and that could mean more than a few things. The show has settled more into a pattern (save for that one nearly three hour outlier) and you can all but guarantee a few matches every week. At the same time, there are a few wildcards that pop up every now and then, and thankfully last week felt like some stories moved forward. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Christopher Daniels vs. Kyle Fletcher

Daniels works on the arm to start and then starts kicking away at the leg. Fletcher cuts off a charge with a slam but Daniels is right back with a running neckbreaker. We hit the neck crank the arm trapped as Daniels is staying on the neck for the most part. Fletcher can’t get a suplex but can send him into the corner for a running forearm.

A belly to back suplex gives Fletcher two, only to have Daniels get a boot up in the corner. The middle rope cutter sets up a Koji Clutch to keep Fletcher in trouble, sending him over to the ropes. There’s the double clothesline to put them both down and it’s Daniels back up with some suplexes. Angel’s Wings is blocked and Fletcher comes back with the spinning Tombstone for the pin at 11:23.

Rating: B. I’m not sure why Fletcher needs to be around so often but he’s looking good in the ring. Putting him in the ring with someone like Daniels is a good idea, as Daniels can still hang in there with just about anyone. They had a good match here as Fletcher’s kind of odd singles push continues.

Matt Sydal vs. Zack Clayton

Cole Karter is here with Clayton. Sydal strikes away and snaps off a hurricanrana, followed by a superkick for two. A standing twisting moonsault gets two on Clayton, who takes Sydal down and hammers away. Sydal scores with another knockdown and the top rope Meteora finishes Clayton at 3:07.

Rating: C. They kept this one moving and Sydal more or less squashed him, as he should with the Television Title in his sights. I have no reason to believe that Sydal is going to beat Samoa Joe as no one has in over a year, but at least they’re making it into a story. Sydal is a talented star and he got to look good here, even over a lower level opponent like Clayton.

Post match Sydal says he wants Samoa Joe and the TV Title.

Dralistico vs. Willie Mack

Dralistico won’t shake hands to start but he will knock Mack to the floor for the big running flip dive. Back in and Dralistico hits a running basement dropkick, followed by a low superkick in the corner. Mack gets up and hits a running Shining Wizard to send Dralistico outside this time, setting up the big running flip dive.

Dralistico kicks him down again back inside, setting up the standing exchange of chops. They trade shots for a double knockdown until Mack is back with the Samoan drop into the standing moonsault for two. Mack’s frog splash hits raised knees though and Dralistico knees him down. Mack gets up again but it’s a Jose the Assistant distraction, allowing Dralistico to get in a low blow. The Incinerator knee finishes for Dralistico at 7:42.

Rating: B-. They were rocking until the ending here with the low blow hurting things a bit. Mack continues to lose most of the time, which doesn’t have me expecting him to do much outside of Ring Of Honor. Dralistico getting a win is nice, but it’s still hard to imagine him as being anything more than Rush’s partner.

Here is Tony Khan to announce that Matt Sydal will face Samoa Joe for the TV Title next week. As for this week, we will now have a Board Of Directors (who he makes clear will answer to him): Stokely Hathaway and Jerry Lynn. They’re all going to have a good time! They’re not actually doing anything here, but it’ll be fun when they actually do!

NJPW Strong Women’s Title: Willow Nightingale vs. Rachael Ellering

Nightingale is defending and wastes no time in rolling some suplexes. Ellering comes back with a running forearm as commentary talks about how they would love to have Chris Hero around here. An enziguri gets Nightingale out of trouble and she hits a string of clotheslines. The Pounce sets up the Cannonball for two, with Ellering reversing the cover into a crucifix for the same. Nightingale has had it with her and hits a spinebuster into a camel clutch to retain at 6:46.

Rating: C. Nightingale continues to mix things up and adding in another good power move makes sense. You don’t see many women like her and not only is she incredibly charismatic, but she can have quality matches to back it up. Ellering is someone who can work well with anyone and I could go for having her around more often.

Embassy vs. Cheeseburger/Marcus Kross/Eli Isom

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Cheeseburger and company win or survive the ten minute time limit, they get a title shot. Isom avoids a charging Cage to start and slips out of a Drill Claw as well. A superkick drops Isom though and it’s Toa coming in for some shoulders in the corner. Another missed charge allows the tag to Cheeseburger, who is tossed from Toa to Kaun. Cheeseburger manages to bring in Kross as everything breaks down. The Embassy gets to run everyone over and a toss powerbomb finishes Kross at 5:01.

Rating: C-. You know how the Embassy has run a bunch of trios over and rarely felt like they were in any trouble? This was the most recent of those matches. The Embassy has no serious challengers and they’re just being fed various three man combinations to keep them on the show. Not much to see here, as usual.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Vertvixen

Vixen hits a dropkick to start but walks into a big boot. Martinez grabs a seated abdominal stretch, followed by a Saito suplex. Vixen is back with a rolling Stunner into a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Back up and Martinez grabs a swinging suplex out of the corner for two more, followed by a forearm to the back of the head. The Brass City Sleeper finishes Vixen at 4:18.

Rating: C. It’s nice to have Martinez back and she ran over Vertvixen here. It was just a step above a squash as Vixen barely got anything in, but at least they finished it quickly instead of dragging it out. I could see Martinez getting back into the title hunt, as it isn’t like there are many serious challengers around at the moment.

Griff Garrison vs. Lee Moriarty

This is Garrison’s first match since October. Moriarty gets sent into the corner to start and Garrison boots him in the face for a bonus. That earns him an arm snap across the top and Moriarty starts stomping away. The arm is sent into the corner as commentary starts talking about the Jericho Appreciation Society. Garrison hits a clothesline out of the corner and a discus forearm gets two. Moriarty rakes him in the eyes though and grabs a rollup for the pin at 4:06.

Rating: C. So remember when Garrison was a decent looking guy in a low level tag team? Well here he was a decent looking guy in a low level singles match. It’s cool to have him back and I’m glad he’s healthy, but this wasn’t some big, epic comeback. It wasn’t a squash, but it’s a bit difficult to get excited about Moriarty, who has been a jobber to the stars for weeks in AEW, getting a win here.

Robyn Renegade vs. Kiera Hogan

Hogan takes her down to start and hits a springboard legdrop for two. Renegade avoids a charge though and chokes in the corner, followed by the forearms on the mat. We hit the armbar for a bit before they trade chops in the corner. Hogan stomps her down in another corner but here is Charlotte Renegade for the failed Twin Magic. Not that it matters as Hogan hits a superkick for the pin at 4:34.

Rating: C. The parade of “eh, that was fine” matches continues as Hogan has to be built up again for a likely rematch with Athena. I still think there is something with the Renegades, but they’re cannon fodder for Hogan here and that is not exactly the best place to be. Let them try something, because they’re being wasted in spots like this one.

Post match Athena comes in to kendo stick Hogan, who takes it away and unloads on Athena instead.

Dark Order vs. Shane Taylor/Workhorsemen

They start the brawl during the Code Of Honor and it’s Silver kicking away at the much bigger Taylor to get things going. Reynolds comes in to slug away but Henry trips him down on the floor. It’s off to Henry to pound on Reynolds before Drake adds a belly to belly. A Cannonball connects in the corner and Henry comes back in for a chinlock.

Reynolds fights up and gets over to Uno for the tag to pick up the pace. We get the long awaited Taylor vs. Uno showdown as everything breaks down. Drake gets caught in the series of strikes from Reynolds and Silver, setting up the Stunner into the German suplex to finish Drake at 7:21.

Rating: C. I’m still not sure I get what is impressive about the Dark Order but they are around on a pretty regular basis. Beating Taylor and the Workhorsemen at least gives them a boost, but there’s just not much interesting about either group. The stuff with Stu Grayson was at least a story, but other than that, I’m not sure why they’re around so often. Allegedly they get big reactions from the fans, though that didn’t seem to be the case here.

The Righteous and Stu Grayson aren’t impressed by the Dark Order, but want them to be more aggressive. Tune in next week.

Darius Martin/Action Andretti/AR Fox vs. Trustbusters

Fox and Slim J start things off, which Riccaboni calls a “dream match for me”. Riccaboni needs to work on his dream matches. They trade flips to start until Fox gets two off a spinning suplex. Kay comes in and gets caught in the corner for some rapid fire running shots to the chest. Andretti’s shotgun dropkick sets up a missed split legged moonsault and it’s Kiss coming in to hammer away.

Kiss’ gorilla press into a standing moonsault gets two on Andretti and a splits splash is good for the same. Andretti fights up and brings in Martin for a pumphandle facebuster to Kay but an assisted Sliced Bread takes him down. Fox is back with a series of cutters and it’s back to Andretti. Something like a double swinging powerbomb finishes Kay at 6:02.

Rating: C+. They kept the pace up here and Kiss’ gorilla press was rather impressive. Andretti is much better suited in a role like this than as a singles star and he did his thing rather well in this one. The Trustbusters are still about as uninteresting as you can get, but at least they’re being relegated to jobbing status most of the time.

The Kingdom vs. El Cobarde/El Dragon

Maria is here with the Kingdom. Taven knees Cobarde in the ribs but gets dropkicked for his efforts. It’s off to Dragon for a bunch of flips as Bennett comes in to say “hit me like a man.” Not a dragon mind you, but a man. One of those shows busts Bennett open so he knocks Cobarde off the apron to blow off some steam. Everything breaks down fast and the Kingdom gets taken down by running flip dives. Purple Thunder gets two on Dragon but Aurora Borealis misses. Everything breaks down again though and it’s Just The Tip into the Proton Pack to finish Cobarde at 5:28.

Rating: C+. Cobarde and Dragon looked good int heir debuts here and that’s a nice thing to see as there is always room for a high flying lucha team. As usual with their almost weekly win, the Kingdom should be in the title hunt but instead they’re just kind of here, winning a match and staying on their treadmill. I’m still not sure why they’re not given a bigger spot, but I’m sure another midcard AEW team can get the title shot instead.

Here are Tony Khan, Jerry Lynn and Stokely Hathaway, with Khan again announcing that “this is great”. Hathaway apparently wants mass layoffs but also wants Action Andretti vs. the entire Embassy. Khan instead says Andretti/Fox/Martin vs. the Embassy for the Six Man Tag Team Titles. OF COURSE that’s what Hathaway wanted. Khan talks about how great a star Bandido is….but he’s not here tonight! Instead, here’s his brother! Jerry Lynn didn’t say a word during his appearance.

Rey Fenix vs. Gravity

They grapple into a rollup exchange for two each until Gravity runs in slow motion (because gravity you see). Fenix reverses a sunset flip into an ankle lock and Gravity certainly appears to tap but it doesn’t matter. Gravity reverses a suplex into a small package for two before sending Fenix outside for a springboard dive.

Back in and a standing moonsault gives Gravity two, followed by a torture rack Samoan driver for two. Fenix spins him into a faceplant for two of his own but Gravity muscles him up into a powerbomb for the same. Gravity misses a top rope splash and gets kicked down for another near fall. One heck of a crucifix bomb gives Gravity two more but Fenix is back with a cutter. The Black Fire Driver finishes Gravity at 10:40.

Rating: B. Take two guys, let them fly around for about ten minutes and blow the fans’ minds with some insane stuff. Fenix specializes in just such a style and he was on fire here. Gravity had some good stuff as well, but it doesn’t help to have your introduction be “well this star isn’t here but here is his brother instead!”. I will take the “Rey Fenix is better than gravity” joke though.

Overall Rating: C. The opener and main event helped but I was rather bored by a good chunk of the middle. It isn’t that the matches were bad (they were mostly good to acceptable on the bad end) but it was the same thing you see almost every week around here: a bunch of people with nothing going on, winning a match with the vague possibility of moving up the ladder for a possible title shot down the line. Almost nothing in the middle of this show stood out and it was almost mind numbing to watch the same middle of the road stuff throughout.

They desperately need to trim this down, though I’d be stunned if they actually did. As long as these shows are taped at Universal, there is nothing that is going to make them slow down, as they can more or less tape as much as they want and then air it all at once. For the life of me I have no idea how this is supposed to be the best thing they can put out there, but it’s not exactly thrilling, or even interesting, most of the time.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. Christopher Daniels – Spinning Tombstone
Matt Sydal b. Zack Clayton – Top rope Meteora
Dralistico b. Willie Mack – Incinerator
Willow Nightingale b. Rachael Ellering – Camel clutch
The Embassy b. Cheeseburger/Marcus Kross/Eli Isom – Toss powerbomb to Kross
Mercedes Martinez b. Vertvixen – Brass City Sleeper
Lee Moriarty b. Griff Garrison – Rollup
Kiera Hogan b. Robyn Renegade – Superkick
Dark Order b. Shane Taylor/Workhorsemen – German suplex to Drake
Action Andretti/Darius Martin/AR Fox b. Trustbusters – Double swinging powerbomb to Kay
The Kingdom b. El Cobarde/El Dragon – Proton Pack to Dragon
Rey Fenix b. Gravity – Black Fire Driver

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.

Ring Of Honor
Date: May 18, 2023
Location: Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back at the studio show this week and that means the show is probably going to run long. As was the case last week, there is a heck of a show in here somewhere, but adding in so many other things bogs it down. The main attraction this week is a Fight Without Honor between Action Andretti/Darius Martin and the Kingdom so let’s get to it.

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

Willie Mack and Ninja Mack respect each other and they seem ready to team together.

Opening sequence.

Gringo Loco vs. Rey Fenix

Loco slaps him during the handshake so Fenix fires off the rapid kicks. A multi springboard hurricanrana sends Loco outside and more springboards set up a dive to take him down again. Back in and a gorilla press sitout facebuster gets two on Fenix, meaning it’s time to rip at the mask. A flipping faceplant gives Loco two more but Fenix is right back with a kick to the head.

They trade kicks to the head until both of them are down for a breather. Fenix loads up a rolling cutter but Loco grabs one of his own for two more. Another kick drops Loco again and a super hurricanrana gets two. Loco shoves him away on top and grabs a twisting super Canadian Destroyer for two more. Fenix is right back with a poisonrana though and now the rolling cutter can finish Loco at 8:49.

Rating: B. This was the formula that has worked for years and still does to this day: take two high fliers and let them go nuts with one big spot after another. It made for a fast paced opener and the fans were way into it as well. Fenix can make anything look good and Loco can work very well with him. Heck of an opener here, which shouldn’t be a surprise whatsoever.

Peter Avalon and Ryan Nemeth make fun of the Iron Savages with bear puns.

Willow Nightingale vs. Madi Wrenkowski

Nightingale gyrates a bit to counter a waistlock but gets pulled down by the hair. Back up and a shoulder into a backsplash crushes Madi but she trips Nightingale down. Some slaps get one on Nightingale and we hit the chinlock. A facebuster gives Madi two more but Nightingale Pounces her HARD. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes Madi at 3:46.

Rating: C. Madi got in a lot of offense here and has been around a few times in AEW/ROH before, so the success shouldn’t be that shocking. That being said, there was no reason to have Madi be a real threat here (which she wasn’t), as Nightingale is a much stronger star. I’m not sure what kind of major push she can get, but she does need to beat some bigger names (and eventually get some gold) at some point.

Peter Avalon/Ryan Nemeth vs. Iron Savages

Jacked Jameson is here with the Savages, who seem rather interested in lifting weights these days. Bronson shoves Avalon down to start and then hits a shoulder for a bonus. Nemeth comes in and gets beaten up as well, with Avalon taking a backdrop for trying to interfere. It’s off to Boulder for a running splash in the corner but Nemeth gets in a chop block for a breather. That doesn’t last long as it’s back to Bronson, who gets to run some people over. The middle rope moonsault misses but Avalon can only get a bunch of near falls. Boulder picks Bronson up on his shoulders for an electric chair splash to end Avalon at 5:14.

Rating: C. It wasn’t quite a squash but the Savages are nice for a big man team who can move well enough. Nemeth and Avalon aren’t exactly a top team but they have been around long enough to get in just a bit of offense here. I could see the Savages going somewhere though, and Ring Of Honor really needs to build up some teams, making this a nice fit.

Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal vs. Cole Karter/Zack Clayton

Daniels and Karter trade wristlocks to start until Daniels hits a leg lariat. Sydal comes in with a standing legdrop and an assisted moonsault for two. Daniels drop toeholds Clayton into a basement dropkick and Sydal fires off some kicks to the shoulders. That doesn’t do much though as a whip into the corner has Sydal upside down and Karter tosses him into Clayton’s powerslam (that looked good). A frog splash gives Karter two but Sydal DDTs his way out of trouble.

The hot tag brings in Daniels to clean house as everything breaks down. Daniels hits a bulldog/clothesline combination but Clayton blasts Sydal with a clothesline. Sydal is right back up with a dive onto Karter on the floor. Daniels plants Clayton and hits the Best Moonsault Ever for the pin at 6:30.

Rating: C+. Perfectly nice match here and it was a fine enough workout for Daniels and Sydal. I’m not sure they’re going to become a major team again or get back near the title picture, but having a veteran team with some previous success is always a good thing. They can also make anyone look good, which was the case here for a pair of guys without much going on. This went as it should have, as Sydal and Daniels needed to get a win after a few weeks away.

Video on the Kingdom vs. Darius Martin/Action Andretti, who have been feuding for a few weeks now, meaning it’s time for a Fight Without Honor.

Lady Frost vs. Miranda Alize

Alize sends her into the corner to start and adds a running elbow to the face. A butterfly suplex gives Alize one but Frost is back with a jumping knee to the face. Alize drops her again with a release suplex, followed by a tiger driver for two more. Back up and Frost cartwheels over into something of an Air Raid Crash, setting up a corkscrew moonsault (and a good looking one at that) to finish Alize at 3:21.

Rating: C. This didn’t get much time but Frost would be a nice addition to the roster. I’ve liked what I’ve seen from her before and she has a rather unique look that would make her stand out. Other than that, Alize still feels like a star who could be someone when she gets the chance, and adding her into the Ring Of Honor women’s division would be a good idea. I could have gone for more of this, but what we got worked well enough.

Angelico/Serpentico vs. Eli Isom/Cheeseburger

Luther is here with Angelico and Serpentico as part of the Spanish Announce Project. Cheeseburger climbs onto Serpentico’s back to crank on the arm to start but it’s quickly off to Angelico. A quick leglock has Cheeseburger in trouble but he slips out and sends them together for a big crash. Isom comes in as everything breaks down, including a suicide dive onto Serpentico on the floor. Back in and Angelico ties up Cheeseburger’s legs again, this time for the tap at 3:40.

Rating: C. It was fast paced, but neither team really had the chance to show off what they can do. Angelico and Serpentico aren’t exactly a top level team and Isom and Cheeseburger have been around for a long time. That doesn’t make or the most thrilling match, but at least they kept it short here.

NJPW TV Title: AR Fox vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre is defending and they trade arm control to start. A cravate doesn’t get Sabre very far as Fox sends him into the corner for a running clothesline. With Sabre on the floor, Fox hits a big dive over the top to take him down again. Back in and Sabre gets serious about the arm cranking but a cross armbreaker attempt sends Fox into the ropes. Fox kicks him in the face and grabs the swinging suplex for two.

Sabre comes right back with a running kick to the chest but Fox snaps off a running hanging DDT for two of his own. Lo Mein Pain gets the same on Sabre as we have five minutes left. Fox sends him outside for the big running flip dive but the 450 misses. Sabre goes right back to cranking on the leg, including something like a stretch muffler on the mat to make Fox tap at 11:19.

Rating: B. It’s amazing how much easier it is to get into a Fox match when he isn’t doing something ridiculous like shrugging off getting dropped on his head four times. Granted it helps being in there with Sabre, who is one of the better in-ring technicians going today. Good match here, with the technical exchanges being rather entertaining.

Post match Sabre says he feels bloody marvelous and knows he is the most active TV champion anywhere. Cue Samoa Joe to say there can be only one champion around here and the challenge is on. Hold on though as here are Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal, with the former saying Sydal is overdue some gold. A tag match is set up and if Sydal can beat either of them, he gets a shot.

Gates Of Agony vs. Dalton Castle/The Boy

Prince Nana is here with the Gates, who seem to have taken out Brent (the other Boy, as opposed to Brandon here). Castle starts with Khan but Brandon asks to come in instead. This actually goes well for a few moments before Khan hands it off to Toa to run Brandon over. Khan’s chinlock keeps Brandon in trouble and Toa adds a running kick to the face. The seated abdominal stretch keeps Brandon in trouble but he finally fights up. An enziguri gets Brandon over for the hot tag to Castle, who twists Toa’s nipple. A series of splashes get one on Toa but a Nana distraction lets him hit Castle with a fireman’s carry gutbuster. Open The Gates finishes Brandon at 9:30.

Rating: C+. This was your usual big monsters squashing a smaller guy until the real star comes in to do something. Castle is still someone who feels like he could break out if he was ever given the chance but for whatever reason, he is stuck teaming with one or more of the Boys. Even though it seems that we have run the main course of that angle, Castle keeps getting stuck there instead of letting him be a star on his own.

Post match Castle says he was the legal man, because the Embassy and Castle/the Boys must feud for all time and eternity in an effort to validate the existence of the Six Man Tag Team Titles.

Workhorsemen/Shane Taylor vs. Schaff/Ricky Gibson/Eddie Pearl

The Workhorsemen take over on Pearl with some stomps and a suplex but he gets over to Schaff. Taylor cuts off that comeback, setting up the package piledriver to finish Schaff at 2:43. They didn’t waste time there.

The Righteous are in the back when Stu Grayson interrupt. He wants to know what is going on but here is Evil Uno to say the Righteous need to leave Grayson alone. Grayson says no one speaks for him though, and tells the Righteous they have one chance. The Righteous seem giddy with gladness.

Ashley D’Amboise vs. Mercedes Martinez

Ashley moves away from him to start but Martinez snaps off some suplexes to take over. Martinez misses a charge in the corner though and a running flip neckbreaker drops her fast. As we get a comparison of Vader/Ron Simmons/Bronco Nagurski to Ashley (because they’re all two sport athletes, with Ashley’s other sport being dance), a reverse AA gets two on Martinez. That’s enough for Martinez, who takes her down for a curb stomp into a surfboard dragon sleeper for the tap at 6:24.

Rating: C+. D’Amboise continues to look pretty good in the ring, but Martinez is still one of the best stars in all of the women’s division. Having Martinez back and active would be a good thing, as she can make anyone look better while also easily being slotted into the title picture. You don’t get too many like her and letting her do something more would be a good thing.

The Kingdom vs. Darius Martin/Action Andretti

Fight Without Honor meaning anything goes and Maria Kanellis is here with the Kingdom. The fight starts on the stage before they get down to ringside. The weapons are brought in rather fast, with a double dropkick sending a chair into Bennett’s face. A trashcan is put over Taven’s head and various weapons crush it around him. It’s time for a ladder, but Maria’s distraction lets Bennett hit a NASTY chair shot to Andretti’s face, knocking him onto the ladder.

Back in and a spinebuster drives Andretti onto a trashcan as Bennett is busted open. Just The Tip onto a ladder onto Martin’s face lets the Kingdom set up a table in the corner. The Doomsday Flight Of The Conqueror doesn’t work for the Kingdom though and Andretti is right there with an Arabian press. Back in and Martin hits a springboard Downward Spiral on Bennett, meaning it’s time to set up some chairs.

Hail Mary onto the open chairs gets two, with Andretti making the save. The Proton Pack is broken up and a springboard 450 hits Bennett on the table, though it doesn’t quite break. Back up and Bennett Death Valley Drivers Andretti through the table in the corner. Purple Thunder onto a chair gets two on Martin, who is knocked outside. Maria holds Martin up for chops from Bennett, who accidentally forearms Maria down. Back in and a low blow hits Taven, before Bennett comes back in to spit at them. A bunch of kicks knock him silly and it’s a powerbomb/clothesline off the ladder combination to finish Bennett at 15:09.

Rating: B. It was your pretty run of the mill yet still good weapons match, even if having a thrown together team taking out former Tag Team Champions is a little weird. The Kingdom has been back for a bit now and for some reason just hasn’t clicked. You would think someone with their credentials and in-ring skills would have more success or at least be more prominently featured in a promotion being built from the ground up, but instead they’re putting people over. It’s a fine use for them, but I’m not sure it’s the most logical.

Respect is shown post match and the winners post on the ladder to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I liked this one a bit better than last week, even though it was somehow even longer, clocking in at just over two hours (second longest show yet). There is enough good wrestling in here to make it work, but there is also a good deal of stuff that you might want to fast forward through instead. That is the signature of this show and I’m still not sure why a lot of this stuff needs to be included every week.

Results
Rey Fenix b. Gringo Loco – Rolling cutter
Willow Nightingale b. Madi Wrenkowski – The Babe With The Powerbomb
Iron Savages b. Peter Avalon/Ryan Nemeth – Electric chair splash to Avalon
Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal b. Cole Karter/Zack Clayton – Best Moonsault Ever to Clayton
Lady Frost b. Miranda Alize – Corkscrew moonsault
Angelico/Serpentico b. Eli Isom/Cheeseburger – Leglock to Cheeseburger
Zack Sabre Jr. b. AR Fox – Stretch muffler
Gates of Agony b. Dalton Castle/The Boy – Open The Gates to Brandon
Workhorsemen/Shane Taylor b. Eddie Pearl/Schaff/Ricky Gibson – Package piledriver to Schaff
Mercedes Martinez b. Ashley D’Amboise – Surfboard dragon sleeper
Action Andretti/Darius Martin b. The Kingdom – Powerbomb/clothesline off a ladder combination to Taven

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Spring Break In Sellersville
Date: March 7, 2020
Location: Forrest Lodge VFW, Sellersville, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Billy Avery, Doc Diamondfire

This is from Star Pro and seems to be another combination of former Chikara and indy wrestlers. These shows can be fun, but it depends on how much they lean into the goofy. The former Chikara wrestlers have some completely insane gimmicks, but you never know what you might be getting. Let’s get to it.

As usual, I have no idea on any characters or plot points coming in so please bear with me if I miss something.

Our unnamed and tuxedoed host welcomes us to the show, though I can barely understand anything he is saying.

Fenix Fury vs. Icarus

Oh yeah it’s a former Chikara crowd alright. Feeling out process to start until Icarus takes him into the corner and comes out with a belly to back suplex. We hit the seated abdominal stretch, followed by a belly to back suplex to drop Fury again. The neck crank goes on for a bit before Icarus chokes away in the corner. Fury finally gets back up for some flying forearms and a tornado DDT gets two. Back up and Icarus ducks a right hand, setting up a quick Wings Of Icarus (Pedigree) for the pin at 7:23.

Rating: C. Nice stuff here, though Fury doing some more high flying might have been a better idea. Icarus is someone who has been around this area for a very long time and it makes sense to start with someone the fans are going to know. I haven’t seen much of Icarus as a heel, but he was certainly getting on the fans’ nerves here. Maybe not the best choice for an opener, but a good enough match.

South Philly’s Finest vs. Shinobi Shadow Squad

That would be Jimmy Konway/Luca Brazzi vs. Eli Isom/Ryan Nova, the latter of whom were regulars in the last few years of Ring Of Honor. Before the match, the Finest want to know why Nova is missing part of his pants. Brazzi takes Nova into the corner to start and it’s an early standoff. Nova takes Brazzi down but lets him go and chills on the top rope. That doesn’t work for Brazzi, who slaps him in the back of the head, causing Nova to…throw a ninja star? Eh it brought Edge and Christian together.

Since that didn’t work (I’m as shocked as you are), it’s off to Isom, who gets elbowed in the face and has his nipples twisted in the corner (yep). Nova is dragged in as well and send into Isom in the corner to put them both down. Another shoulder to the ribs puts Nova on the floor but Isom is back up with a dropkick to send Brazzi outside. Isom chokes Brazzi a bit so Nova can get in a suplex as I’m not sure who the fans are supposed to be behind here.

The chinlock goes on, with Isom even stomping his feet on the mat for…well ok it doesn’t add anything. Other than maybe some percussion. Brazzi fights up and tries to dive over for the tag but gets caught in a release northern lights suplex. Some headbutts to the ribs aren’t enough to get Brazzi over to the ropes and a dive through Isom’s legs is cut off as well. Brazzi FINALLY kicks Isom away….but Nova pulls Konway to the floor. That leaves Isom to hit a release German suplex for a rather arrogant two as the beating continues.

The arrogance wakes Brazzi up enough (make your own Rick Martel jokes) for him to get over to gag in Konway, meaning house can be cleaned. Isom breaks up Sliced Garlic Bread (awesome) but Brazzi punches both of them in the face over and over. A wheelbarrow faceplant with a Stomp gets two on Brazzi with Konway making the save. Konway is sent outside, leaving Brazzi tho hit Sliced Garlic Bread to finish Nova at 13:45.

Rating: B-. This was your straight formula tag match and once I figured out that the Squad were the villains, the match got a lot better. I wouldn’t have bet on the two of them being effective heels but they managed to make it work well enough here. The Finest have been around for a few years but I haven’t seen them before, which is kind of a surprise as they’re not bad.

Isom has to carry Nova out.

Star Pro has a dojo. Well of course they do.

Frightmare vs. Dan Champion

Frightmare is a bit supernatural and Champion is a rather muscular guy. The much smaller Frightmare’s running clotheslines have no effect so Frightmare goes to the eyes to stagger Champion. A running shot knocks Champion to the floor and Frightmare follows him out with some sauntering in between each shot. Back in and Champion cuts off a crossbody, setting up a rather delayed suplex (that’s what you get for sauntering).

The running corner clotheslines work a bit better for Champion, at least until Frightmare kicks him in the shoulder. For some reason Frightmare tries a suplex, even though Champion has about eight inches and a hundred pounds on him. Frightmare goes after the knee to take Champion down and there’s the standing moonsault for two.

A running boot in the corner rocks Champion again and his knee gives out on a whip from corner to corner. The Kneecalepsy (moonsault knees) misses for Frightmare though and Champion low bridges him to the floor. Back in and a heck of a TKO gets two on Frightmare, leaving Champion a bit stunned. Some more kicks to the leg put him down and now Kneecalepsy can finish for Frightmare at 9:20.

Rating: C. Another completely watchable match here, though the smaller Frightmare as the villain was a little odd. Granted that is because Champion is bigger than Drew McIntyre, which makes for some limited options. Frightmare was one of the top heels in Chikara, but it doesn’t work as well without the complete insanity that the company could offer. Champion is an ok big man, but I’m not sure I can imagine him going much further.

Veda Scott vs. Logan Easton LaRoux

LaRoux is a rather obnoxious (and rather rich) heel who I’ve seen good things from before. He is from “a gated community inside a gated community surrounded by a gated community” and is billed as the Champion of the 1% in case you need a better idea. Feeling out process to start, with LaRoux working on the finger for some small joint manipulation.

Scott sends him to the floor, only to have LaRoux snap the throat across the rope. Back in and some arm cranking on the ropes ensues, setting up the chinlock. Scott fights up and kicks him in the head a few times, setting up a bulldog for two. Back up and LaRoux hits a spear for two, followed by Scott hitting one of her own for the same. LaRoux misses a charge into the corner and it’s a fisherman’s suplex to give Scott the pin at 7:03.

Rating: C-. This was one of those intergender matches where you could tell that things weren’t going at top speed and it hurt things a bit. The good thing is that Scott is talented enough to make something like this work. I haven’t seen her in the ring in a bit and I had forgotten how good she can be when she is out there. LaRoux is someone I could go with seeing more of as well, but he might need to change things up a bit in a world where MJF exists.

Junior Heavyweight Title: Billy Avery vs. Jixx vs. Joe Clyde vs. Markus Skyler

Jixx, with his painted face, is defending and it is one fall to a finish. Avery left the commentary booth for the match and appears to weigh about 130lbs. Skyler has a large bag with him and seems to be popular. Clyde on the other hand looks like Trevor Murdoch if you deflated him a bit. Before the bell, Jixx, who seems to be about Rey Mysterio’s height, grabs the mic and insults Sellersville. He then turns around and has all three challengers waiting on him with a triple dropkick.

That’s enough to send Jixx to the floor, with Clyde joining him for…uh, a beer. Avery takes Skyler down but it’s Clyde coming back in to tackle Avery up against the ropes. Jixx is back in with a dropkick to Clyde and it’s a moonsault onto all three challengers on the floor at once. Back in and Jixx gets two on Skyler before they both head back in. That leaves Clyde to suplex Avery for two, followed by a DDT for the same. They switch off again, leaving Jixx to rake Skyler’s eyes and choke in the corner.

A running shot in said corner gets two and Jixx is frustrated, at least partially due to losing his face paint. Clyde comes back in to take Jixx down for a change, meaning it’s time to go up for the required Tower Of Doom. It’s Avery up first and getting to clean house, including a chop off with Jixx. Avery knocks Jixx down but gets F5’d by Clyde, who is taken down by a Canadian Destroyer from Jixx. Skyler is back up as well though and it’s a bridging northern lights suplex to pin Jixx for the title at 11:48.

Rating: B-. It was a fun match with some good high flying, but it’s also the kind of match that you have seen done a hundred times. Skyler stood out a bit here, while Avery is just WAY too small to take seriously and Clyde feels like he should be a heavyweight. Jixx felt like the latest in a long line of spooky/supernatural characters and seeing him lose was kind of nice as a result.

Razerhawk/Green Ant/Wheeler Yuta vs. Young Dumb N Broke

That would be Ellis Taylor/Griffin McCoy/Jordan Oliver with manager Charlie Tiger. Ant sends Taylor running to the floor to start before grabbing a full nelson back inside. A springboard armdrag takes Ant down but it’s quickly off to the technical stuff. That doesn’t go well for Taylor, so we’ll try McCoy vs. Yuta instead. The technical off goes to Yuta again (shocking I know) before they do a weird mirroring sequence.

Yuta rolls him up for two so it’s off to Razerhawk vs. Oliver to complete the trilogy. Razerhawk takes him down by the arm and cranks on the wrist so it can be back to Yuta. Tiger offers a quick distraction though, allowing the villains to collectively drop Yuta and take over. McCoy stomps on the mat and in the corner and it’s Oliver coming back in with a front facelock. Yuta can’t slip through Oliver’s legs but he can catch Oliver’s kick…only to get poked in the eye.

Taylor and McCoy start taking turns on Yuta’s arm, causing Razerhawk and Ant to have to be held back. The chinlock goes on but Yuta fights up and FINALLY dives over to Ant for the hot tag. House is cleaned rather quickly, at least until Taylor knees him in the face. Everything breaks down and Razerhawk hits a missile dropkick on McCoy. A splash off of Yuta’s shoulders gets two and Yuta Angle Slams Oliver for a bonus.

The villains fight up and clear Ant out, leaving McCoy and Yuta to slut it out. Taylor is back in with a kick to Yuta and a brainbuster onto the knee puts him down. Ant grabs a Samoan driver on Taylor but gets Tombstoned by Oliver. Back in and Razerhawk hits a backslide slam for two on Oliver. McCoy gets pulled into Yuta’s Sharpshooter, which draws in Tiger. That’s broken up as well and it’s a running Meltzer Driver (minus the springboard) for the pin on Yuta at 18:01.

Rating: C+. This got some time to make the match work a bit better, but it was a bit much to watch that long of a sequence without anything resembling a tag. I know it’s the style and expected and all that jazz, but couldn’t you at least pay it some lip service? Oliver will be getting better at his size, though the other five are all so small that it is difficult to get that invested.

Ophidian vs. Danny Duggan

During the entrances, Duggan says he hopes the ring announcers gets the Coronavirus so he never has to see him again. Duggan, who looks like an Anderson, bails to the ropes to start but powers Ophidian into the corner. Ophidian misses a spinning kick to the face but is fine enough to take it to the mat for the required arm control exchange. Back up and Duggan grabs a headlock before chopping him into the corner. Duggan grabs him by the throat but Ophidian tries a sleeper of his own.

That isn’t working so some spinwheel kicks rock Duggan instead. The middle rope broke somewhere in there so Duggan is easily sent outside. As Duggan staggers a bit on the floor, Ophidian grabs a chair and has a seat, which doesn’t sit well with Duggan. Back in and Duggan chokes on what is left of the middle rope before slapping on the chinlock. Ophidian fights up and gets a sunset flip, meaning Duggan’s trunks come most of the way down.

Some kicks rock Duggan again but thankfully he gets a clothesline in and fixes the gear. Duggan grabs a spinebuster (again, Anderson) for two and now his arm (which was bandaged coming in) is busted open. A suplex into the corner (which is broken as well) FINALLY finished Ophidian at 13:29, even though the referee didn’t seem to get the count right.

Rating: C-. The fact that the ring literally broke kind of holds this back but it wasn’t a great match in the first place. You can only get so far when things are this limited, though I kept getting bored by the match anyway. Maybe they could do better under the proper circumstances, but dang this wasn’t a great main event.

Post match Duggan thanks the fans for coming out, even if his native Canada is that much better.

Ophidian says something I can’t understand to really wrap up the show.

Overall Rating: C. As you can clearly see, this show feels like the end of the movie The Producers. After nearly doing everything they hoped for, the main stars’ plan falls apart and they lose everything. That doesn’t stop them from trying the same thing again, at least on a smaller budget. That’s what I was feeling here, as this came off like the latest example of trying to put together a Chikara style show without the Chikara presentation. In other words, you’re left with a pretty ok show that I feel like I’ve seen a half dozen times now, often with a similar lineup. Check it out if that’s your thing, but you’re better off finding Chikara.

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 15, 2021
Location: UMBC Event Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re around Final Battle, with this show officially debuting before the show took place. At this point though, it isn’t like the date matters since there are only a few shows left in the first place. I’m not sure what to expect here, but odds are we’ll get some good wrestling to go with the rather limited storylines. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Quinn McKay gives us the welcome and rundown.

Sledge vs. PCO

Falls Count Anywhere/no DQ, which is probably better than these two having a regular match. Before the match, Sledge teases attacking Brian Zane over (jokingly) calling him Steve. Business will be taken care of instead. PCO on the other hand shouts IT’S ALIVE. They slug it out with Sledge hitting a jumping back elbow to the face to take him down. It’s already time to put a trashcan on PCO’s head for a charge in the corner.

The fight heads to the floor (I’m surprised it took them this long) for the chop off until PCO Russian legsweeps him into the barricade. Commentary is nice enough to point out that the weapons were placed outside at the wrestlers’ requests, which is more than you usually get. A backdrop against a ladder gives Sledge two on the floor and we take a break.

Back with PCO hitting a top rope splash (after hitting a rope walk hurricanrana during the commercial) for two but the PCOsault hits raised knees. They chop it out on the floor again but this time PCO just yells at him and takes over again. A chair shot to the back lets PCO put him on a table for the big Swanton and the near fall (Caprice: “Why did he kick out of that?”).

Some chair shots to the head rock Sledge, giving us a “do not try this at home” graphic. Sledge puts him on the barricade for something like a spear down onto the concrete for his own two. Now it’s up to the stage for more chopping, setting up Sledge’s Detox DDT. PCO is back up so it’s another Detox DDT off the stage through a table (and apparently some pizza) to give Sledge the pin at 14:59.

Rating: B-. PCO was already leaving even before the shutdown so it makes a lot more sense to have Sledge go over. I know it doesn’t mean much in the short term, but at least they are trying to build someone up for the future. Sledge has been a good monster and having him beat someone like PCO means a little something. PCO was a solid addition to Ring of Honor, with perhaps the most improbably World Title run in modern history. It’s nice to see him get such a career renaissance, but you have to build up the future at some point.

Miranda Alize vs. Chelsea Green

The Allure is on commentary. Alize flips out of a wristlock to start and it’s an early standoff. A fireman’s carry takeover sets up an armbar on Green, which is broken up just as fast. Something like a running Hennig necksnap sends Alize outside so the chase is on in a bit more comedy than I was expecting. Alize sends her into the barricade a few times to take over and it’s a basement hurricanrana driver for two back inside.

We take a break and come back with Alize cranking on both arms until Green fights up for a Codebreaker. They slug it out from their knees until Green makes the clothesline comeback. A missile dropkick gives Green two and she grabs the half crab, only to have the Allure offer a distraction. Alize grabs a cutter into the Drive By for the pin at 9:54.

Rating: C. This was your normal women’s division match around here: technically fine, but not exactly the most interesting. There is only so much you can get with one cold match after another and that is what they had here. The Allure distracting Green doesn’t add much to it, and that left this as just another match in the division, as tends to be the case.

Eli Isom vs. EC3

Dalton Castle is on commentary. Before the match, EC3 talks about being free in more babbling that only he understands. Isom says he wants to prove to EC3 that honor is real in a pretty fired up promo. They go to the mat with EC3’s headlock countered into a headscissors without much effort.

Back up and Isom is powered into the corner but comes back with armdrags into an armbar. More armdrags out of the corner keep EC3 rocked but he breaks up a springboard to take over. Some forearms to the chest keep Isom in trouble as the Baby Chickens are here to kiss Castle’s hands. EC3 hits a hard whip into the corner and then does it again for a bonus. Isom needs a breather on the floor so EC3 follows him out for a hard kick to the ribs. Back in and that forward DDT plants Isom (still not sure how much that would hurt), setting up a powerbomb (that would hurt more) for no cover. Instead, EC3 hits another powerbomb and we take a break.

We come back with Isom forearming his way out of trouble, setting up an enziguri. Castle has to be held up as EC3 makes the comeback with a necksnap across the top. A dropkick sends EC3 outside again and there’s a moonsault to drop him again. Back in and a high crossbody gives Isom two but EC3 takes out the knee. An Angle Slam drops Isom so EC3 can crawl over to him for a chat. The knee is taken out again and it’s a double underhook faceplant to knock Isom silly. The Purpose makes Isom tap at 16:15.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match and a tale of two of the more interesting people from the final year of Ring of Honor. Isom is one of those guys who has worked hard to get the fans behind him and you can tell that they see something in him. He never got that big win, but it felt like it was something you could see happen at any time. Then you have EC3, who looks great and can go in the ring, but I have no idea why this Control Your Narrative stuff is supposed to be interesting. That’s how wrestling works though, as annoying as it is.

Overall Rating: B+. Now that’s a good wrestling hour, with a pair of pretty awesome matches and a watchable women’s match in the middle. The lack of fans (or anything that matters) hurts it a lot though and that’s where Ring of Honor has fallen in recent months. The wrestling has been quite good, but you can only get so far when the stakes are non-existent. I’m not sure what the rest of their time is going to bring, but I’ll miss shows like this, because they’re very entertaining more often than not.

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Final Battle 2021
Date: December 11, 2021
Location: UMBC Events Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s the end of an era and quite possibly the end of a company, or at least the end of the company as we know it to be. Ring of Honor is going into hiatus after this show for about four months, leaving a pretty big cloud over their future. I’m not sure what that is going to mean, but hopefully they can have a great show on their way out. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Six Man Tag Team Titles: Righteous vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Promotions (Moses/Kaun/O’Shay Edwards, with Ron Hunt) are defending. Dutch and Moses fight over wrist control to start, which isn’t something you often see between hosses. Moses gets flipped into the corner, which is even more rare, so he knocks Dutch outside in a hurry. Everything breaks down in a hurry (you knew that was coming) and the three way brawl is on until it’s Vincent suplexing Kaun.

That doesn’t work for Kaun, who is back up with a running elbow to the face. Moses comes back in and gets caught with a Side Effect as commentary shouts out to Kyle O’Reilly and the Hardys. It’s off to Edwards, who gets a rather nice reaction as he beats on Bateman. Vincent tries his luck but can’t knock Edwards over the top. Instead he throws Edwards through the ropes as everything breaks down again.

Vita VonStarr gets on the apron for a distraction but Moses knocks her onto the pile and flip dives onto them. Not to be outdone, Dutch hits a BIG flip dive over the top onto everyone else. VonStarr hits a dive of her own, leaving Vincent to Redrum Kaun for two back inside. The elevated DDT plants Bateman and Edwards drops a good looking moonsault for two more, with the bell ringing by mistake. Edwards plants Dutch but walks into Orange Sunshine to give Vincent the pin and the titles at 10:42.

Rating: C+. That was a pretty wild six man tag to start and that’s often the best way to get the fans going. One of the cool things about tonight is that the title changes don’t mean anything, so we could be in for a bunch of title changes. Not exactly a classic, but it was fun and a good choice for an opener.

Pre-Show: Miranda Alize/Allure vs. Chelsea Green/The Hex

Allure is Mandy Leon/Angelina Love and the Hex is Allysin Kay/Marti Belle. Miranda kicks Belle in the head for a fast two but Marti is back with a running kick to the face of her own. Kay comes in and the threat of a powerbomb sends Alize over for the fast tag to Leon. Green gets her chance and rolls Leon up for two of her own so Leon dropkicks her down for two. A suplex into the corner gets another near fall on Green and there’s a running basement dropkick from Alize.

The villains take turns hitting some running splashes in the corner on Green, setting up Love’s Complete Shot for two more. Green fights out of the corner though and it’s a double missile dropkick for a much needed breather. The hot tag brings in Kay to clean house until Belle grabs Hex Marks The Spot for two more. Everything breaks down, including the parade of secondary finishers, capped off by Green hitting a huge dive onto the pile. Marti’s dive is cut off though and Mandy hits Astral Projection for the pin at 6:52.

Rating: C-. Kind of a messy match here and it’s a bit of an eye roll to see Leon get the pin on the last show. She has been one of the focal points of the women’s division for a long time now and has more or less stopped developing since the Allure deal started. The match wasn’t bad and had some good spots, but less than seven minutes for six women is a lot to cover in such a short amount of time.

Pre-Show: PJ Black/Flip Gordon/Bouncers/World Famous CB vs. LSG/Sledge/Max The Impaler/Demonic Flamita/Will Ferrara

Ferrara and CB trade wristlocks to start and the exchange of not being able to get an advantage gives us a standoff. Gordon and Flamita come in to trade clotheslines and armdrags for another standoff, which has commentary and the crowd equally pleased. LSG comes in and hits the Rocket Bye Baby for two on Black so it’s Milonas coming in for the showdown with Max.

That’s good for a cheap shot from Milonas so Bruiser can have a quick slugout. Max hands it off to Sledge for a slightly more fair slugout and it’s time for people to start coming in sans tags and hit each other in the face. Max hammers on Milonas and unloads on him in the corner, setting up a spear.

Bruiser pulls Max outside and takes her down and it’s time to set up the series of dives. Flamita teases a dive but opts to flip off the fans instead, leaving Bruiser to…not hit a powerbomb actually. Instead Flamita slips out and hits a superkick, setting up a big corkscrew dive to the floor. Back in and Gordon cutters LSG out of the air, setting up a Doomsday Canadian Destroyer to give Black the pin at 10:22.

Rating: C+. I can go with a match where there is nothing to suggest that it is anything more than a big mess. They weren’t trying anything else here and that’s how it should have gone. Let these ten people get on there and go nuts for a little while, which is a good way to go on the pre-show. Sometimes you need some insanity and that’s what you got here, so well done.

The opening video talks about the meaning of honor, even when you are looking into a future of nothing. It is the end of an era, but it is not the end of honor.

Dragon Lee vs. Rey Horus

They hug to start and fight over a lockup, setting up some rope running minus the contact. Horus can’t get a sunset flip so he rolls to the floor, where Lee hits a heck of a dive. Lee throws him over the barricade, allowing Lee to have a seat at ringside. Back in and Lee spinebusters Horus into a half crab, with Horus going straight to the rope.

The running knees in the corner are broken up by Horus’ raised boot though, with Lee bailing to the floor. Now it’s Horus hitting the big flip dive to take Lee down for a change, setting up the overhead belly to belly into the corner back inside. Lee is back up with a pair of tilt-a-whirl backbreakers to set up another half crab to put Horus back in trouble. It’s time to slug it out, including an exchange of kicks to the face.

A Spanish Fly plants Horus but Lee can’t follow up so it’s a double breather. Horus crotches him on top and it’s a super victory roll for a close two. Now it’s Horus going up but slipping, allowing Lee to get his knees up to block the splash. Lee rolls into a Falcon Arrow for two on Horus and the Incinerator gets a very close two. Another Incinerator finishes Horus at 11:19.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of all action match that you would expect from these two and it was an entertaining match as a result. These two have been excellent for a long time now and one of the better series that you’ll see. I’m glad they got a chance to tear it up again and it was a fun way for both of them to get on the card, while opening the show.

Former Ring of Honor Triple Crown Champion Eddie Edwards thanks Ring of Honor for the chance and for changing the business.

TV Title: Dalton Castle vs. Rhett Titus vs. Joe Hendry vs. Silas Young

Castle is defending and it’s one fall to a finish, with Castle bailing to the floor to walk into the crowd. Hendry (who is looking jacked compared to his old days) gets taken outside so Young can send him into the barricade. Back in and Castle t-bone suplexes Young, meaning it’s time for a lap around the ring. Titus comes in for a quick rollup but gets sent outside for an apron flip dive from Young.

Hendry blasts Titus with a clothesline but gets belly to belly suplexed into the corner. Castle is back in with the Bang A Rang to Titus, who reverses into a cradle for two. Titus sends Young outside but Hendry pulls Titus’ high crossbody out of the air, because he’s strong enough to do that.

A double fall away slam sends Young and Titus flying so it’s Castle coming back in with a big smile on his face. It’s Titus coming back in and getting planted by a heck of a Hendry powerbomb. There’s the Bang A Rang to plant Titus but Hendry belts Castle in the face. Cue Castle’s friend Dak Draper to take Hendry down though, leaving Titus to avoid Young’s moonsault. The dropkick gives Titus the pin and the title at 8:51.

Rating: C. They kept this fast and that’s probably the better idea. It was another one of those wild matches that was only there to be as exciting as possible and that is often better than letting things go long. Titus winning the title after trying for so long is a feel good moment and I liked what we got here. Granted that might have been Castle and his Dancing Chickens.

Hangman Page is going to miss Ring of Honor.

Pure Rules Title: Brian Johnson vs. Josh Woods

Pure Rules (of course) and Woods is defending. As usual, Johnson runs his mouth before the bell, talking about how it doesn’t matter if you’re a Punk, an American Dragon or a Peacock, because Johnson is better than you. Woods scares him into the ropes and Johnson has used his first break in about thirty seconds. The second break is used up less than a minute and ten seconds in but Johnson sends him into the corner for a chop.

That earns him a hard knee to the ribs though, allowing Woods to grab a choke over the ropes. Johnson Stuns his way to freedom and hits a heck of a dive to the floor (which doesn’t feel very Pure). Back in and Johnson has to break another choke, setting up some knee drops. A running splash sets up Spike Deskin (I think? It’s a hanging cutter to the floor.) and Woods is rocked.

They get back inside to fight over a suplex, with Woods finally taking him over the top for a double crash. The slugout on the floor almost gives us a double countout but they head back inside to slug it out there instead. Woods grabs another choke and Johnson has to use his third rope break.

A cheap shot lets Johnson hit the Process for two so he grabs the title. The referee takes that away so Johnson takes the turnbuckle pad off, only to get caught in a German suplex for two. Since the referee has to put the pad back on, Johnson gets a brass knuckles shot for two more. With nothing else working, Johnson puts him on top but gets caught in a choke. Since there are no rope breaks, Johnson has to tap at 12:58 to retain Woods’ title.

Rating: B-. The Pure Rules division has become a major focal point in the last year or so and it is great to see it getting this kind of a focus again on the last show. Woods is kind of perfect for the division and he deserves to be on this show in this spot. I could go for more of Johnson’s trash talk though, as it has made him a lot more memorable than anything he does in the ring.

Jimmy Jacobs loved his time in Ring of Honor. He certainly is a legend around here.

We recap Kenny King vs. Shane Taylor. They were friends, then King turned on him, meaning it’s time for a Fight Without Honor.

Kenny King vs. Shane Taylor

Fight Without Honor, meaning anything goes and weapons are provided. Riccaboni makes it more serious by talking about how these two are fighting to get their next paycheck elsewhere. A quick slugout takes things outside, with Shane sending him hard into the barricade a few times. The chair shot only hits post but Shane is fine enough to hit a backdrop on the floor.

Back in and King hits an enziguri but Shane hits him in the face over and over. Shane takes him up top, earning himself a super Blockbuster through a pair of tables at ringside. It’s already time for the required kendo sticks (you knew they were coming), with King cracking him over the back and choking away. King takes his sweet time bringing in a trashcan and charges into a Rock Bottom out of the corner onto said can.

Now it’s Taylor getting in his own stick shots, with Riccaboni rapid firing off some Cleveland Indians names. A heck of a splash puts King through another table at ringside so we need another table. Back in and King manages to drive him through the table in the corner for two in an impressive power display. Shane is right back up with the BIG ladder, but takes a bit too long and gets hit in the back with a kendo stick.

King gets in a few more shots and manages to build a rather ridiculous structure, with one ladder bridged between two more. Taylor is laid across the bridged ladder for a splash from the big one, which doesn’t look as impressive as it should. Taylor is right back up with Greetings From The Land for two of his own so King bridges a ladder between the apron and the barricade.

They stand on said ladder and slug it out until Taylor grabs the Marcus Garvey Driver….but the ladder slips, so King gets dropped HARD onto the floor. Well that was terrifying, and of course gets two back inside. Taylor grabs a chair so King tells him to “f****** do it”, meaning it’s a chair to the head. The Marcus Garvey Driver finishes for Shane at 18:01.

Rating: C-. I really couldn’t get into this one as it was longer than it needed to be and a lot of the spots felt rather contrived. You can only get so far with a match like this, with so many weapons set up in the right spots to make such a match work. Throw in that terrifying crash on the floor and this wasn’t exactly the most fun to watch.

Post match, the rest of Shane Taylor Promotions and some other wrestlers get in the ring as Taylor and King make up.

CM Punk talks about his time in Ring of Honor and how special it was. It was a spirit that he loved and he will continue to foster it in AEW.

Rok-C is ready to defend the Women’s Title against Willow Nightingale.

Women’s Title: Willow Nightingale vs. Rok-C

Rok-C is defending but gets taken down to start, allowing Willow to bust out a cartwheel. Willow blocks the running knees but Rok-C manages to snap off a running headscissors. Back up and Willow can’t quite hit Three Amigos, so she plants Rok-C for two instead. This time Rok-C fights up with a Russian legsweep but Willow plants her for two more. A Pounce rocks Rok-C, sending commentary into various Monty Brown impressions and Rok-C down for another near fall.

The fans are split here, but the Willow chants are a bit louder. The Code Rok is countered into a belly to back kneeling piledriver to give Willow two more. Willow still can’t hit her moonsault as Rok-C jumps her from behind, setting up a heck of a powerbomb for two on Willow for a change. Back up and Willow catches her on top, setting up a superplex. Now the moonsault can connect for two but Rok-C is right back with the Code Rok to retain at 9:42.

Rating: C. The match was fast paced but Willow absolutely came off like a bigger star here and I would have thought about changing the title. Rok-C is a young star but she doesn’t exactly have anything to her besides being young and talented. Willow might not be the next big thing, but she stood out way more than Rok-C.

Post match here is Deonna Purrazzo to challenge Rok-C for a title for title (AAA Reina de Reinas/Impact Knockouts whenever she gets it back vs. Ring of Honor) match. Rok-C is in.

Adam Cole loved his time in Ring of Honor because it is why he became the wrestler he is today.

Violence Unlimited/Rocky Romero vs. EC3/Eli Isom/Taylor Rust/Tracy Williams

Romero and Williams go technical to start (as you probably expected them to do) until Williams misses a charge into the corner. The Forever Clotheslines are countered into a kneebar, sending Rocky straight to the ropes. Tony Deppen and Taylor Rust come in, with Rust running him over in a hurry. It’s already back to Williams, who gets to Crossface Homicide (in the same jumpsuit he wore on the first Ring of Honor show in a great bonus) for a change.

With that broken up, EC3 comes in to lose a strike off with Homicide. Brody King gets to come in and t-bone suplex EC3, only to get forearmed by the blindly tagged Isom. The choking doesn’t do Isom much good as King takes him down for a heavy backsplash, allowing the Violent ones to take turns on Isom. That doesn’t last long as it’s back to EC3 as everything breaks down in a hurry. Isom hits a bit dive but King’s is broken up by Rust and Williams hitting Total Elimination.

Back up and King is fine enough to hit a dive anyway but everyone runs over everyone else anyway. Homicide busts out his fork to stab EC3 but King is back in to MuscleBust Isom. We hit the parade of tribute finishers, including a Brian Kendrick Sliced Bread and a Jerry Lynn piledriver. Cattle Mutilation is broken up though and Isom hits Deppen with a Helluva Kick. Homicide and Isom slug it out until the Cop Killer gives Homicide two. Homicide freaks out so King comes back in, only to miss a clothesline as Isom collapses. The Ganso Bomb finishes Isom at 14:43.

Rating: C+. The tributes sequence might have been a little corny but it’s the kind of thing that should be taking place on this show. The fact that it came from one of the old school stars around here made it better and I was smiling at some of those tributes. You don’t get to see something like that very often and it worked well here, though I could have gone for Isom FINALLY getting that big win.

Post match Violence Unlimited poses before leaving. That means EC3 can rant about how there is no honor in what they do because of three letter organizations. WHERE ARE OUR LEADERS??? Dak Draper and Brian Johnson are mentioned so they hit the ring, with EC3 telling them to control their narrative.

Cue Wesley Blake (from WWE/NXT) and someone else in the aisle as EC3 keeps going on about being free and controlling your narrative. EC3 says free the Titan….and here is Adam Scherr (Braun Strowman) to wreck Isom.. EC3 says this is an awakening as I try to figure out why they are bringing in an expensive wrestler for an invasion angle on a final show. Throw in that Strowman in ROH feels rather wrong and this is even weirder. Also the Control Your Narrative stuff continues to fail miserably as I still couldn’t tell you what the heck EC3 means.

The Young Bucks love ROH.

Tag Team Titles: Briscoes vs. OGK

OGK, with Maria Kanellis-Bennett, is defending. Mark powers Taven into the corner to start so Bennett comes in for the slugout. Taven is back in with a middle rope dropkick to put Mark down and the champs clear the ring in a hurry. Taven’s Flight of the Conqueror only hits Bennett though, allowing Mark to grab a chair. That means a big dive to take out both champs and it’s Taven in trouble back inside.

Bennett makes the save with an elbow to Jay for two as commentary even thanks Jim Cornette for his time around here. The tag brings Mark back in for Redneck Kung Fu, plus Redneck Boogie for two. Jay (already bleeding) can’t hit the Jay Driller as Bennett saves Taven and chops away. Bennett hangs Jay over the apron so Taven can hit a heck of a top rope splash for two back inside.

Taven Climaxes Mark but can’t cover, sending Maria into a half lap around the ring. The Briscoes send them outside for the big dives, setting up the Blockbuster off the apron to drop Bennett again. Back in and the Froggy Bow gets two on Taven, with Maria pulling the referee out. Maria gets dropped but it’s a Flight of the Conqueror Doomsday Device (dang) to drop Mark on the floor, setting up another near fall.

Hail Mary gets the same with Jay having to make the save. A quick Jay Driller sends Bennett rolling back to the floor but Taven hits Just The Tip on Jay. The top rope splash hits knees though and the Jay Driller gets two. The Doomsday Device gets the same as commentary is SCREAMING at these near falls. Another Jay Driller into the Froggy Bow gives the Briscoes the titles back at 15:36.

Rating: B. I know it’s a bit overdone but there is absolutely no one who should be the final ROH Tag Team Champions. The Briscoes are so far and away the greatest team in the company’s history that you could probably cut their careers in half and still have them at the top of the list. Heck of a match too, and that’s what you would have expected from these teams.

Post match respect is shown, with Jay thanking all of the fans. The Briscoes aren’t done and are ready to face any team in the world…so there go the lights. Back up and AEW’s FTR of all people are here for the big brawl. Referees break it up and a lot of swearing ensues. FTR holds up the titles and the next fight has to be broken up.

Bryan Danielson says he wouldn’t he be here without Ring of Honor, especially Final Battle. He thanks the fans for making the shows and hopes that Ring of Honor will stick around.

We get a cool look at all of the Ring of Honor World Champions.

Ring of Honor World Title: Jonathan Gresham vs. Jay Lethal

For the vacant title, as Bandido is out with Coronavirus. The fans are rather happy with this one as they trade wristlocks to start with no one getting anywhere. A headlock takeover doesn’t do much for Lethal either as they’re certainly starting technical. Gresham manages to send him outside and catches Lethal with a kick in the arm on the way back in. A headlock takeover with an armtrap keeps Lethal down but Lethal cartwheels into the basement dropkick to get a breather.

Lethal slams him down to work over the back a bit more but Gresham small packages him for two. A slap to the face drops Gresham and a flapjack does it again. It’s too early for the Lethal Injection and the Figure Four, as Gresham rolls him up for two more. Another kick to the arm cuts Lethal back down and Gresham needs a breather. They chop it out with Lethal getting the better of things but telling Gresham to chop him again.

A ripcord powerslam plants Gresham again but he catches Lethal on top. What looked to be a superplex is broken up so Lethal tries Hail to the King. Lethal is ready for Gresham’s raised knees but can’t get the Figure Four either. Instead it’s a reverse Regal Roll to set up Hail to the King to give Lethal two more.

Gresham is right back on the arm and grabs a crossface chickenwing. Lethal flips forward for a cutter and they’re both down again. That means it’s time for the locker room to come out and watch as Gresham hits some running forearms for two each. The arm gives out and Gresham hits another forearm for two. The Lethal Injection is countered into a rollup for two, setting up the Octopus to make Lethal tap at 15:35.

Rating: B. Gresham absolutely had to win here as that is the story that has been set up for months. I can imagine that this would have been the ending whether Bandido had been around or not and that is the right way to go. Gresham has been the workhorse of the company since its return and going with the Pure Rules wrestler as the final shot at the final show is a smart move.

The celebration is on, including Gresham’s wife, Jordynne Grace, getting in the ring. Commentary thanks the fans, with Coleman saying “see you in April” to end the night.

Overall Rating: B. This might not have been a great show, but it was something more important: it felt special. The show felt like it was a bunch of people saying goodbye to a company that meant a lot and that absolutely should have been the case. The good thing here is that there was no truly bad match (though some came close) and it felt like a fun way to go out rather than something dull and dry. It was nice to see something be more about the fans and the company’s legacy, which is how things should have gone. The last two matches are worth seeing and that’s not bad on a three hour show.

No matter what its fate may be, Ring of Honor is one of the most influential companies in modern wrestling history. You can see it style (and a lot of its wrestlers) everywhere from PWG to Impact to AEW to WWE and the style is even more prevalent. This place has meant a heck of a lot to the wrestling world and it is going to be sad to see Ring of Honor go away. I’m glad it went out on a pretty good show too, with the big ending and tributes making it all the sweeter.

Results
Righteous b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Orange Sunshine to Edwards
Allure/Miranda Alize b. Chelsea Green/The Hex – Astral Projection to Belle
PJ Black/Flip Gordon/Bouncers/World Famous CB b. LSG/Sledge/Max The Impaler/Demonic Flamita/Will Ferrara – Doomsday Canadian Destroyer to LSG
Dragon Lee b. Rey Horus – Incinerator
Rhett Titus b. Silas Young, Joe Hendry and Dalton Castle – Dropkick to Young
Josh Woods b. Brian Johnson – Choke
Shane Taylor b. Kenny King – Marcus Garvey Driver
Rok-C b. Willow Nightingale – Code Rok
Violence Unlimited/Rocky Romero b. EC3/Eli Isom/Tracy Williams/Taylor Rust – Ganso Bomb to Isom
Briscoes b. OGK – Froggy Bow to Taven
Jonathan Gresham b. Jay Lethal – Octopus

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

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AND

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

Ring of Honor
Date: October 20, 2021
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re still in the post Death Before Dishonor TV taping and that means we still have no crowd. I know Ring of Honor likes to do their marathon tapings but isn’t there some way we could get some fans in there for a change? It has made a world of difference for everyone else and the fans not being there makes Ring of Honor seem like a promotion from another universe. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Quinn McKay (hey she’s back) welcomes us to the show and gives us the preview.

Tag Team Titles: Soldiers of Savagery vs. Dragon Lee/Kenny King

Lee and King are defending. The fact that Lee is also the TV Champion and the Soldiers are part of the Six Man Tag Team Champions might make you think Ring of Honor needs to spread out its titles a bit more. The Soldiers jump them to start so the champs bail to the floor for an early breather. We settle down to Lee getting in Moses’ face for no effect. It’s the Soldiers being sent outside for a change and that means the champs get to hit the Tranquilo pose. Back in and Khan runs King over for two as we take a break.

We come back with Lee getting stomped down but King pulls Khan’s leg to break up a suplex. Back in and King pounds away on Khan for two, setting up a double basement dropkick to the back of the head. Moses gets drawn in, allowing the champs to kick away at Khan even more. A half crab sends Khan over to the ropes in a hurry but King puts it on again.

We take another break and come back again with Khan hitting a quick belly to back suplex. That’s enough for Moses to come in and clean house, including a powerbomb for two on Lee. King is back up with a clothesline to Khan and Lee counters a superplex into the Alberto double stomp on Moses. Cue Bestia del Ring as Khan kicks Lee down without much effort. The assisted elevated DDT plants Khan but Bestia has the referee. That’s enough of a distraction for King to rake Khan’s eyes and hit the Royal Flush. Lee adds the Incinerator to retain the titles at 12:53.

Rating: B-. These guys work well together and while having another stable is not the most exciting thing, it is nice to have some fresh names involved. Shane Taylor Promotions at least offers something new, even if that just made for another stable on a long list of them. The match was rather entertaining, though I’m kind of over all of these teams trading wins.

Next week: Violence vs. Pure, as the stables continue to take over the company.

World Famous CB/Joe Keys/Taylor Rust/Eli Isom vs. Foundation

The Foundation is Tracy Williams/Rhett Titus/Jonathan Gresham/Jay Lethal and their opponents were all at ringside for Lethal’s speech about the greatness of pure wrestling at Death Before Dishonor. Williams and Rust get things going and they take their time to start. They go with the technical rolling until Williams takes him into the corner for a double suplex from Titus.

Back up and Rust takes Titus into the corner so CB can hammer away. Titus is bleeding from the eye as CB reverses a headlock into one of his own. A shot to the eye and the Fuji Splash (which is a headbutt) gets two more on Titus and it’s Isom coming in for a waistlock. For some reason Isom lets him go though and Lethal comes in for a change. Lethal gets serious by taking the straps down but Isom dropkicks him anyway.

A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker drops Lethal and we take a break. Back with Lethal and Isom staring at each other until Gresham and Keys come in (meaning teacher vs. student). They waste no time in striking away until Keys kicks him in the back and drops him hard onto the top rope. Gresham is back with a running dropkick to send Keys outside and it’s off to Williams to work on the arm. The Foundation starts taking turns on the arm but Keys gets over for the tag to Rust to pick up the pace.

Rust can’t suplex Lethal out to the floor but he can throw Lethal out there, meaning the Foundation surrounds their partner. Back in and Lethal’s arm is worked over and we take a break. We come back with Lethal shrugging off Isom’s beating and hitting the Lethal Combination. The hot tag brings Williams back in to work on CB’s leg. Titus gives up the tag over to Rust though and the Perfect Circle connects, with Williams having to make the save.

A double tag brings in Lethal and Isom, with the latter hitting his own cutter. Everything breaks down and it’s Keys uppercutting Williams to little avail. Gresham comes in for an enziguri and German suplex but Keys plants Gresham for two. That’s enough from Keys, as Gresham pulls him into a kneebar for the tap at 17:50.

Rating: B. This was pretty awesome and that’s about all you could expect. The Foundation can work well with anyone and Ring of Honor has the kind of roster that can be tossed together into any combination for a solid match. Good stuff here and the Foundation continues to roll, which has been quite the fun part over the last several months.

Vincent, in a white robe and a crown, says he has been cleansed and is ready to win the World Title. Dig what he is saying?

Overall Rating: B. And that’s why Ring of Honor puts on a good show almost every week. This was a two match show and both matches worked very well. That’s about all you can ask for out of a wrestling show and this was more good stuff. I’m almost wondering if they have to run the stable stuff because they’re the only people around though, and that isn’t a good sign for the future.

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Death Before Dishonor 2021
Date: September 12, 2021
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s back to pay per view and it’s actually out of Baltimore for a change. As tends to be the case in Ring of Honor, the show has not exactly been built up well, but the company has the ability to throw out a bunch of stuff and make it work. The main event is a four way elimination match for the World Title so let’s get to it.

In Memory of Daffney. That’s a nice touch.

Pre-Show: Honor Rumble

Fifteen man Royal Rumble with ninety second intervals and the winner gets a future World Title shot. Brian Johnson is in at #1 (and gets to talk about how amazing Philadelphia, his hometown, really is) and Brian Milonas is in at #2. The fans are behind Johnson, which has commentary very confused. The much bigger Milonas grabs a front facelock and takes him over to the ropes as he thinks this is a Pure Rules match. Johnson has to escape but it’s Beer City Bruiser in at #3 to put Johnson in real trouble.

A few shots in the corner don’t get Johnson very far as he charges into a side slam/running boot to the face combination. There’s a Vader Bomb elbow to crush Johnson as Danhausen is in at #4. Danhausen seems to curse (without swearing of course) Milonas, who accidentally gets crushed by Bruiser’s charge in the corner. A double chokeslam is countered into a double spinebuster to crush Danhausen as Caprice Coleman leaves commentary to be in at #5.

The Bouncers miss Coleman and crash into each other, leaving Coleman to kick Johnson in the face. Danhausen is confused about Coleman being in the ring but gets shut up by a cutter. Brian Zane joins commentary to replace Coleman, who knocks out Bruiser. Everyone gets together to toss Milonas as well as Sledge is in at #6. Johnson tosses Coleman as Sledge and Danhausen team up. A running boot sends Johnson through the ropes (not eliminated) and it’s PCO in at #7 (out of sixteen apparently, despite everything saying fifteen otherwise).

Johnson is knocked down again but Danhausen tries to break up PCO vs. Sledge. PJ Black is in at #8 as the ring is starting to fill up again. Black cleans a bit of house and joins forces with Johnson to clean some more house. Dak Draper (Zane’s pick) is in at #9 and it’s time for people to pair off. Silas Young is in at #10 but can’t quite get rid of Danhausen. Draper is sent to the apron but manages to backdrop Sledge out. Rey Horus is in at #11 and it’s time to pair off again. With nothing else happening, Dante Caballero comes in at #12 to clean house.

Johnson gets rid of Danhausen and the fans aren’t sure what to do. Everyone gets together to go after PCO, who knocks them all away….and eliminates himself. Flip Gordon, back in his old look, is in at #13 and tosses Young in a hurry. No one can get rid of anyone else and it’s Joe Keys in at #14. Keys and Caballero get together to go after Draper before fighting among themselves. Then they reunite to superkick Gordon and it’s World Famous CB in at #15.

Palm striking abounds and Draper gets rid of Keys and Caballero. The final entrant is Alex Zayne in at #16, giving us a final field of Johnson, Black, Draper, Horus, Gordon, CB and Zayne. We start fast with Zayne going after Draper but getting caught in the Mile High Muffler. That’s reversed into a hurricanrana though and Draper is out as Zayne is already rolling. Johnson Stun Guns Zayne, leaving Horus and CB to slug it out. Horus gets rid of CB but Johnson tosses him as well to clear out more of the ring.

That leaves us with Johnson, Black, Gordon and Zayne and the fans are VERY behind Zayne here. Gordon and Zayne superkick the other two down but neither can get very far by flipping the other. Johnson is back in to take the two of them down but spends too long going after Black, allowing Gordon to get in a quick elimination.

Black elbows Gordon and Zayne in the corner and everyone winds up on the same corner. That means a double hurricanrana from Zayne (egads) but Gordon is back up with the reverse Regal Roll to Black. The running shooting star press makes it worse but Gordon’s Kinder Surprise is countered into an elimination to get us down to two. Black gets a running charge at Zayne but crashes out to the floor to give Zayne the win at 32:07.

Rating: C+. They kept this moving well enough despite the long run time. Zayne returning and winning is fine, as he can have his title match at a one off event somewhere. The rest of the match was just kind of there, but it is always fun to see who is coming out of that curtain when the clock runs out.

Opening sequence.

The opening video focuses on the wrestlers coming into the building and how this is a historic venue. If the walls could talk, they would choose death before dishonor.

Dalton Castle vs. Eli Isom

Castle has the Dancing Boys with him but no Dak Draper, who is listed on his chiron (but winds up on commentary). An early takedown attempt doesn’t work for Castle as Isom strikes away and dropkicks him out to the floor. The Boys (or the Dancing Chickens, according to commentary) offer a distraction though and Castle gets in a cheap shot. Back in and Isom snaps off a suplex but gets dropkicked off the top and out to the floor. There’s a knee against the barricade and we hit a ten second chinlock back inside.

Castle throws him down with a suplex and gets two off a knee to the head. Isom slips out of another suplex though and scores with a running forearm in the corner. A Sidewinder slam gives Isom two and it’s time to slug it out. That means a trip to the floor, with Castle trying something like a 619 onto the apron into a hurricanrana to drop Isom (that wasn’t bad). Hold on though as Draper comes out to deal with the Dancing Chickens so Isom moonsaults onto all of them. Isom has to kick an invading Draper low, allowing Castle to hit the Bang A Rang for the pin at 9:38.

Rating: C. The more I see of Isom, the more I like him and the more over the top villainy we get from Castle, the better he is. It was a good choice for an opener as Castle is a big name around here. Isom got in some offense too and had to deal with the numbers game so this went pretty well for everyone.

Jake Atlas vs. Tyler Rust

They’re both newcomers and recently released from WWE. Commentary makes it clear they are fresh out of the company, which still feels weird to hear (though there is no reason to not mention it). Feeling out process to start with Atlas taking him to the mat and getting in a slap to the face. They trade arm cranking until Atlas grabs a crucifix for two.

Rust’s ankle lock sends Atlas bailing to the floor for a breather, only to get caught with the Shayna Baszler arm stomp back inside. Rust spins him around by the arm but Atlas comes back with a superkick. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Atlas’ arm gives out on a fireman’s carry attempt. Rust loads up the Perfect Circle (bulldog driver) before settling for the Rings of Saturn with his legs to make Atlas tap at 6:55.

Rating: D+. This was little more than a squash for Rust and it wasn’t exactly interesting either. Atlas didn’t do much here and the match was mainly Rust working on the arm until Atlas gave up. I get that this was supposed to be a showcase for both of them, but it felt like something that should have been a warmup for the live fans. Not long after this match, Atlas announced he was stepping away from wrestling, seemingly retiring. I mean….the match wasn’t THAT bad (and yes I know there was probably way more to it than that).

Violence Unlimited vs. Lee Moriarty/LSG/John Walters

It’s Tony Deppen/Homicide/Chris Dickinson for Violence Unlimited here. Moriarty has been on fire as of late and was signed by AEW less than a week before this show. The fans are VERY happy to see Deppen here, as he is the hometown boy. Homicide and Walters start things off with Walters grabbing a headlock to keep him down. Back up and Homicide tries an STF but gets pulled right back into the headlock. Dickinson comes in and gets caught by the arm, allowing LSG to come in and trade rollups.

LSG’s ankle lock is broken up so Deppen comes in to go technical with Moriarty (which seems like a bad idea). Deppen’s leapfrog is pulled out of the air and the abdominal stretch goes on. That’s broken up by Dickinson, who gets caught in an abdominal stretch as well. The rapid fire tags bring Walters and Homicide back in, with Walters tying up Homicide and Deppen in separate holds at the same time.

That’s broken up and it’s a double elbow to drop Walters for a change. Back up and Walters wins a slugout with Homicide, setting up a Backstabber. LSG comes back in to Stun Dickinson and Moriarty gets two off a sunset flip. Rocket By Baby knocks Dickinson silly but Deppen knees LSG in the face to cut him off. Moriarty is right back up with a suicide dive to Deppen and a springboard clothesline for two on Dickinson.

Everything breaks down and Walters ties up Dickinson and Homicide in a double Muta Lock. Deppen breaks that up but gets taken down by LSG as everyone is down again. Back up and Dickinson slugs it out with Moriarty but Homicide sends Moriarty outside. A big running flip dives takes down every non Violence member, leaving Dickinson to Death Valley Driver Moriarty for the pin at 10:57.

Rating: C+. Take a bunch of people and let them go nuts for a good while. It has worked before and it always will, even when you have a team who doesn’t have much of a change at winning. Moriarty and company were outmatched but still managed to hang in there, with Walters looking like a step above everyone else. Nice stuff here, even if it felt like a TV main event.

Post match the losers are left in the ring when the Foundation comes in. Jay Lethal praises all three of them, because they are the kind of guys who make the future bright. Lethal talks about people like Eli Isom and the upcoming new Women’s Champion. He puts over each member of the team on their own, even though Moriarty is leaving. Lethal talks about loving wrestlers like Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Samoa Joe and AJ Styles.

We’re still not done as Lethal talks about Reckless Youth and Alex Shelley. They all love professional wrestling, including Jonathan Gresham. Lethal doesn’t get why the Pure Rules division is considered exciting and new when it is what they all grew up on. the Pure Rules division comes out to applaud from the stage. Pretty awesome speech here, even if it came a bit out of nowhere.

OGK vs. Briscoes

It’s a brawl to start with Mark having to save Jay from the Climax. Things settle down to Taven taking Mark down but missing an elbow to the head. A discus forearm rocks Bennett and it’s time for some Briscoes double stomping in the corner. Mark adds a running forearm and it’s Jay coming in to chop Bennett down. Bennett gets in a shot to the face though and Taven comes in with a missile dropkick to the face. Jay sneaks in off a blind tag and scores with a running big boot as everything breaks down.

OGK loads up a Doomsday Device on the floor but Jay cuts Taven off in a fast save. Taven has to cut off the same thing and then moonsaults down onto Jay (and Bennett, while sticking the landing). Mark isn’t done and dives onto everyone, setting up a big boot for two on Taven back inside. Jay’s neckbreaker gets the same but Taven scores with a knee to the face. That means a seated armbar can keep Jay in trouble, at least until Mark comes in to clean house.

There’s a dropkick through the ropes to drop Taven and another does the same to Bennett. Back in and the Froggy Bow gives Mark two on Taven with Bennett making the save. A chair is thrown in but Bennett breaks up Redneck Boogie, which would have given Taven an extreme case of pain. Mark uses the chair for a springboard flip dive onto Bennett but Taven rolls Jay up for the pin at 13:21.

Rating: B. Ring of Honor knows how to do big tag team matches and the Briscoes are as good as anyone else going right now. That makes a win over them like this feel like such a big deal and OGK got something out of this. It was a hard hitting, back and forth match so well done on doing exactly what they should have done. I liked this and I’m not even a bit surprised.

We recap Josh Woods vs. Jonathan Gresham for the Pure Wrestling Title. Woods is an amateur wrestling champion and Gresham has been Pure Wrestling Champion for the better part of ever. This is a dream match in this kind of wrestling so it wasn’t hard to set up.

Pure Wrestling Title: Jonathan Gresham vs. Josh Woods

Woods is challenging. The fans are split to start and believe it or not, they start with some grappling. Woods takes him down by the arm but gets pulled into a test of strength, meaning it’s time to flip around with the hands interlocked. Back up and they fight over some grappling with neither being able to get anywhere. They go over to the ropes and we’ll call that a double rope break, which doesn’t sit well with either of them. Woods takes him down again and goes for the leg, which is broken up in a hurry.

Another try, this time with Woods going after the arm, is countered into a headscissors. Back up and Gresham scores with a kick to the arm but Woods is fine enough to suplex him out of the corner. They grapple into the ropes and the referee yells a lot over them not breaking. For some reason that isn’t another rope break so they trade armbars until they both go to the ropes again, which this time calls for their second break each. That means another standoff until they fight over a small package…until it’s a double pin at 11:46.

Yeah that’s not happening, as Gresham says we’re not done yet. The bell rings again and they slap it out until they go to the mat and grab each others’ legs. A roll to the ropes means they both use their third and final break. Gresham gets two off a sunset flip and a cradle but Woods pulls him into a sleeper with a bodyscissors. That’s broken up as well with a shot to the arm and a headscissors but Woods knees him in the face for a double knockdown.

Gresham goes right back to the arm and drives in elbows to the neck. They fight over an ankle lock until Woods grabs Rolling Chaos Theory for two as…..it looked liked Woods just dropped the cover. A slugout goes to Gresham with a bridging German suplex into an armbar. Woods reverses that as well into a Tombstone, which he flips backwards into a suplex to pin Gresham for the title at 20:01.

Rating: B-. I get the appeal of a match like this but I wasn’t feeling the mirroring each other deal. That doesn’t feel so much like a classic match as much as it feels like two people having a match they put together really intricately backstage and then performed it out here. Throw in the rope breaks being a little weird (especially with the referee not calling it every time) and this was only good when it could have been great. Gresham had to lose the title at some point and Woods gets a heck of a rub from the win too.

Respect is shown post match.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Shane Taylor Promotions vs. La Faccion Ingobernable

Shane Taylor/Soldiers of Savagery (with Ron Hunt/O’Shay Edwards) are defending for the Promotions against Dragon Lee/Kenny King/La Bestia del Ring, under Lucha Rules. Hold on though as King jumps Taylor with a chair, meaning Edwards will be taking his place. Khan takes Lee down to start and it’s already time for the slugout. That goes badly for Lee, who gets hammered down in the corner but Lee knocks him outside for a breather.

Moses comes in and kicks Lee in the face so it’s off to Bestia to drop Moses with a shoulder. That isn’t enough of a slugout so we’ll try Shane vs. King for a change. They trade hard shots to the jaw until Shane plants him with a spinebuster. Everything breaks down until Lee takes over on Khan in the corner. King adds a legdrop for two as the villains take over…for at least a few seconds as it’s back to Moses to really clean house.

Everything breaks down again and Lee knees Khan in the head for two with Shane making the save. King gets caught in the old MNM Snapshot but Bestia dives onto Shane. Lee hits a heck of a running dive onto Khan and King tries his own running corkscrew dive, which hits Lee by mistake. We settle back down to King spinebustering Moses and adding a springboard Blockbuster. Cue Shane to chair King in the head though and Moses gets the retaining pin at 11:33.

Rating: C+. This was your required faction war and, as usual, it was entertaining but not the most interesting. It feels like we have been doing these things for the better part of forever now and that gets repetitive in a hurry. The match was fun and Shane interfering made sense, but factions trading wins and losses over and over again gets a little old.

We recap the Women’s Title match between Rok-C and Miranda Alize. It’s a tournament final to crown the next inaugural champion so it’s back to back “we worked hard to get here” speeches.

Women’s Title: Miranda Alize vs. Rok-C

For the vacant title so we get the Big Match Intros. Feeling out process to start as they head to the mat, with Rok-C grabbing a headlock….and let’s look at commentary for a bit for some reason. Rok-C cranks on a hammerlock before switching over to the leg. That doesn’t last long either but Alize escapes the Fujiwara armbar, giving us a standoff. Rok-C flips out of a headscissors and takes a quick bow, followed by a cartwheel to escape again, meaning it’s another bow.

Alize pulls her out of the corner for a crash though, allowing her to chop away in another corner. Some running kicks in the corner rock Rok-C for two and we hit the chinlock (with Alize mocking some LET’S GO ROK-C chants). Back up and a hurricanrana gives Alize a slightly delayed two and it’s time for a double arm crank. Rok-C fights up and hits a middle rope Thesz press (with an actual press for a change).

Alize knees her down for two more, setting up a Go To Sleep for the same. A hanging DDT out of the corner gets another near fall and it’s off to something like a Crossface in the middle of the ring. The feet on the ropes get Rok-C out of trouble so they head outside with Rok-C hitting a suicide dive. Back up and Alize hits a running dropkick off the apron and another suicide dive leaves them both laying.

They dive in to beat the count and Rok-C wins a slugout, only to walk into a cutter. Rok-C is right back with a running shot to the face, leaving both of them down. The Crossface goes on again but this time Rok-C reverses into one of his own. That’s broken up as well so Alize hits back to back superkicks but Rok-C kicks her right back, setting up Code Red for the pin and the title at 18:15.

Rating: B. This started slowly but they did an amazing job of turning a match with virtually no story into a heck of a back and forth fight. I was into this by the end with the young prodigy getting the big win. Good stuff here and one of the better matches of the night. The division has a LONG way to go but at least they had a heck of a match to crown the first champion.

Maria Kanellis-Bennett presents Rok-C the title and her parents come in for the celebration.

We recap the main event. Bandido is World Champion, Demonic Flamita is his former stable mate, and Brody King/EC3 are top challengers. Go have a four way for the title.

Ring of Honor World Title: Bandido vs. Demonic Flamita vs. Brody King vs. EC3

Bandido is defending and this is under elimination rules (as it should be). They stare at each other for a bit until Flamita drops outside, leaving the other three to fight among themselves. Bandido is sent outside as well so EC3 hammers on King. A Cactus Clothesline puts them on the floor so Bandido and Flamita take their places to pick up the pace. Bandido spins around Flamita into a headscissors to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. Bandido isn’t done so he hits a big dive onto EC3, only to keep going and land in the crowd.

We settle down to EC3 brainbustering Bandido and it’s off to the neck crank. Flamita breaks that up (because reasons) so EC3 clotheslines him down for a change. Bandido comes back in and gets suplexed for his efforts so King is back in as well. That earns him a powerbomb out of the corner and EC3 powerbombs Bandido onto King for a bonus. Flamita’s chair shot to EC3 has no effect so he takes it away and chairs Flamita….which is a DQ to eliminate EC3 at 8:57. IN A FOUR WAY??? Flamita thinks it’s brilliant, which I’ll take as it gets rid of EC3.

We get the big sad walk off from ECW, leaving Flamita and Bandido to reform Mexiblood to take King down. Unfortunately this means the return of the Floss Dance but King isn’t having any of this and punches both of them in the face. A Doomsday Canadian Destroyer takes King down but Bandido turns on Flamita (as he should) for a near fall. Flamita is then launched at King on the floor, leaving Bandido to moonsault onto both of them. King saves Bandido from the MuscleBuster and it’s the All Seeing Eye to finish Flamita at 13:47.

Bandido and King shake hands and then start the brawl in a hurry. King drives Bandido’s pile for two and then chops the heck out of him on top. That just earns King a top rope hurricanrana for two and the crucifix bomb is good for the same. A shooting star press gives Bandido one and King turns him inside out with a lariat. The Ganso Bomb is loaded up but Bandido rolls around about thirty seven times until la majistral retains the title at 17:12.

Rating: B-. The action was good, but the match felt rather tacked on and that’s not a good thing. I couldn’t begin to tell you why these three people were getting a title shot in a four way elimination match and that’s one of the places where Ring of Honor needs some work. They are very light in storylines (which is a fine direction to take), but it can make for some weird moments when people aren’t wrestling on TV for months at a time and are suddenly getting pay per view title shots. Bandido is still awesome, but this wasn’t the most thrilling main event.

Post match the Foundation comes out to congratulate Bandido, with Jonathan Gresham taking a long look at the title. Cue the Righteous to applaud as well, because stables are cool.

Overall Rating: B-. As much as I wasn’t thrilled with it coming into the show, the Women’s Title match should have headlined here. It really was a good match and felt like a big deal, which was not the case with the main event. There wasn’t anything truly bad on the entire show and I liked what I saw for the most part, but there was nothing on here, save for maybe the Women’s Title match, that I am going to remember in just a few days.

Ring of Honor is in a weird place at the moment, as they still have rather good TV, but there is nothing going on that would make me want to see what happens next. You know you’re going to get some solid action, but they haven’t had a hot story in years. The stable/faction wars are beyond stale and seeing two more of them coming out at the end made me roll my eyes more than anything else. Overall it’s a good show because of the wrestling itself, but some upgrades in the stories would be a very welcome change.

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Ring of Honor
Date: September 29, 2021
Location: UMBC Event Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Last week was a rather unique show as everything was focused on the Pure Rules division. That worked for a one off, but I could go for something else this week. Hopefully that is the case, as it should be time for the fallout from Death Before Dishonor. You never know what you’re getting around here though so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Quinn McKay gives us the welcome and the rundown.

Brian Johnson is ready to take over the Pure Rules division. PJ Black comes up and says if he wins, Johnson has to shake his hands. Deal.

PJ Black vs. Brian Johnson

Pure Rules and Johnson says Black is the only non-bozo on the roster. He even handles his own entrance to save Bobby Cruise some time. Black, Johnson’s former mentor, says he didn’t teach Johnson everything. They go to the mat to start with Black working on the arm, setting up a front facelock. A headscissors has Johnson in more trouble and Black headlock takeovers him to make it worse. Back up and Black sweeps the legs, setting up a dropkick for a fast two.

That’s enough for Johnson to need a breather on the floor but he gets caught in another armbar back inside. The first rope break is used and Johnson gets kicked right back to the floor. Black hits a dive on the floor, followed by a top rope ax handle to the head back inside. There’s a high crossbody for two more on Johnson, who avoids a springboard as we take a break.

Back with Johnson hitting a knee to the ribs and spelling his nickname. Black scores with a backdrop into the rocking horse, but carries Johnson over to the ropes, which actually counts as Johnson’s second break. A belly to back suplex lets Black go up top but Johnson is up with a double clothesline for the double knockdown. Back up and the slug it out until Black throws him down by the beard (geez).

A kick to the face means Johnson has to use his final rope break, but he knocks Black into the corner. The referee almost gets bumped and the distraction lets Johnson get in a thumb to the eye. Black goes to the ropes so the referee tells the announcer that’s a break, allowing Johnson to punch Black in the face. The Process finishes Black at 10:58.

Rating: C. The ending was a little more complicated than it needed to be as the rope breaks are getting quite a bit of emphasis. The Pure Rules stuff is starting to take over a lot of television time, which can get a little annoying when there is so much that barely ever gets any focus. At least it is pretty good though, which matters quite a bit.

Post match Black says he isn’t happy with losing, but he shakes Johnson’s hand for a smart move.

Post break, Johnson doesn’t think much of Brian Zane, who is actually dumber than Quinn McKay. PJ Black comes back in to endorse Johnson again, which isn’t surprising.

Video on the women’s division.

Eli Isom loves to see Ryan Mooney showcase himself, but he isn’t winning.

Ryan Mooney is fired up about how much he loves Eli Isom, but Isom isn’t beating him.

We see the last few minutes of the Foundation vs. Violence Unlimited in an eight man tag at Glory By Honor. Looks like a heck of a match, with Jay Lethal pinning Tony Deppen with the Lethal Injection to give the Foundation the win.

Kenny King vs. Jay Lethal vs. Brody King vs. Shane Taylor

One fall to a finish, everyone gets a pre-match promo talking about how great they/their faction is, and Ring of Honor REALLY loves their faction stuff. Brody shoves Lethal down to start so Lethal starts pounding on the arm. That’s enough to send Brody into the corner, where Taylor tags himself in. Lethal gets powered into the corner and Taylor blasts him with a clothesline.

That means Lethal needs a new plan so he dragon screw legwhips Taylor into the corner, where Kenny can tag himself in. Lethal is sent into the corner for the third time, allowing Kenny to hit the cartwheel into the basement dropkick (ala Lethal’s trademark). Brody comes back in, drops Lethal with a right, and does the same to Kenny for good measure. Kenny is sat on top and chopped back into the ring, setting up Brody’s backsplash for two.

Back up and Kenny manages to kick him into the corner, setting up the Blockbuster for two of his own. Taylor grabs Kenny’s foot though and Brody hits a hard clothesline. It’s back to Taylor to slug it out with Brody, with Shane knocking him outside. Back in and Taylor catches Kenny in a hanging Stunner, followed by the Marcus Garvey Driver to Lethal. Somehow Kenny manages a Blue Thunder Bomb on Taylor, but Brody runs him over. Brody lariats Taylor for the pin at 12:54.

Rating: B-. They kept this moving, though it never quite felt like all four were involved at once. This was a lot of singles matches bunched together, which doesn’t make for the most thrilling stuff. I’m rather over the faction stuff, as it has been going on for a long time and doesn’t really go anywhere other than trading titles back and forth. Brody getting a World Title shot would not surprise me though, as Final Battle is starting to loom.

Brody and Taylor shake hands, but a singles match seems likely.

Overall Rating: C+. This did have a little bit better of a mixture, but there is only so much going on around here at the moment. We’re fresh off of a pay per view, but there are still very few storylines going on. That has long since been a problem in Ring of Honor and it can make for some dry stretches. It’s still rather good wrestling though and that is more than enough to keep me interested for a very long time going forward.

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Ring of Honor
Date: September 1, 2021
Location: UMBC Event Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Lenny Leonard

The rather long road to Death Before Dishonor continues and that means we are going to be seeing more of the Women’s Title tournament. The level of interest took a bit of a hit last week as Quinn McKay was eliminated, so I’m not sure what to expect going forward. We have some more things to cover on the way though and maybe that can pick up some of the slack. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ian Riccaboni welcomes us to the show and runs down the card, featuring the other two quarterfinals matches.

Angelina Love talks about how great she is and how she deserved her first round bye. Why shouldn’t she be the Women’s Champion?

Women’s Title Tournament Quarterfinals: Angelina Love vs. Max The Impaler

Amy Rose is in Max’s corner. Before the match, Rose warns Angelina that this is going to hurt. Love goes after Max and gets scared by the glare she sees looking back at her. They head outside with Love being sent into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Love mostly destroyed on the floor but Max chops the post by mistake.

Love gets back in and hits a running elbow so Max just looks at her. A torture rack has Max in more trouble and a toss sends her throat first across the top. Love bails to the floor again and gets posted, setting up a choke over the ropes. Max doesn’t let go though and that’s a DQ at 5:53. Rose doesn’t seem to mind.

Rating: D+. This tournament continues to be weird and not in the best way. This was a complete squash with Love getting destroyed until Max went too far in the end. I’m assuming someone beats Love in the finals and then gets wrecked by Max later, but this hasn’t exactly been the most thrilling stuff so far.

Love is dropped on her arm and the shoulder seems banged up.

Women’s Title Tournament Quarterfinals: Allysin Kay vs. Trish Adora

Both of them say they’ll win. They go with the aggressive grappling to start with Adora taking her down into a headscissors. That’s reversed into a front facelock but Adora spins up, only to get caught in a wristlock. Kay tries an armbar on the mat and we take a break. Back with Kay kicking at the leg to put Adora in more trouble and dumping her over the top. They head back in and Kay kicks her into the corner, setting up the chinlock.

That’s broken up in a hurry and Adora hits a running crossbody, setting up a backbreaker for two. A DDT gives Adora the same and it’s time to go after Kay’s arm. Kay tries a Kimura but switches into a rear naked choke to keep Adora in trouble. The rope is grabbed so Kay kicks her in the head for two. Neither can hit their lariat so Kay elbows her in the head over and over. Back up and another lariat misses, allowing Adora to hit Lariat Tubman for the pin at 13:50.

Rating: C+. Technically solid and the ending sequence got better, but I’m still having issues caring about most of the women in the tournament. Adora has a unique look and charisma, but it’s not like most of the field has any kind of character. They have showed up, cut some very short promos, and are most of the way towards a title. That has been the problem with the women’s division around here for years and it is the case all over again.

Here are the updated brackets:

Rok-C
Angelina Love

Trish Adora
Miranda Alize

Death Before Dishonor rundown.

TV Title: Dragon Lee vs. Eli Isom

Isom is challenging and talks about how he promised his father that he would win the TV Title. Lee knows Isom is good but he isn’t taking the title. Dalton Castle is on commentary but stops to answer a phone call. They fight over a lockup to start and Lee rolls away, setting up the Tranquilo pose. We take a break and come back with Isom grabbing a headlock but getting caught in a quick hurricanrana to the floor.

Back in and Lee slams him down to set up a chinlock, followed by a half crab with a boot on Isom’s neck. That doesn’t last long and Isom is right back with a quick armdrag to the floor. Isom nails his own big dive and a high crossbody gets two back inside. They slug it out and get a little more heated until Lee scores with a dropkick. A slingshot dropkick in the corner rocks Isom again and we take a break. Back with Isom winning a slugout this time but getting caught with a poisonrana.

A snap German suplex doesn’t do much to Isom so they hit each other again for a double knockdown. Back up and Isom snaps off a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two more. The Promise is broken up and Lee drapes him over the top, setting up a top rope knee to the back. Lee hits another knee to the back of the head for two (Castle: “THE DRAMA!”). Isom is right back up with the Promise for a VERY near fall but Lee knees him in the face again. There’s another knee to the face, followed by another knee to the face to retain Lee’s title at 12:25.

Rating: B. Isom is an underrated gem these days and he can do no wrong at this point. Throw in Lee as one of the better performers in all of Ring of Honor today and you have the makings for an awesome match. That Promise was one of the hottest near falls you could have asked for and it was an awesome match as a result for a heck of a TV main event.

Lee offers some rare respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This tournament continues to hit some bumps, mainly due to the lack of top stars involved. The women’s division has been a major problem for a long time and they seem to be doing the same thing all over again. Now granted the main event bailed out the rest of the show (as much as it needed to be bailed out that is) and it was another perfectly watchable week of wrestling.

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