Ring Of Honor
Date: November 14, 2024
Location: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re closing in on Final Battle but since there is probably more than a month to go before the show, nothing has been announced just yet. Odds are we’ll be seeing some seeds being planted soon though and that might start this week. Last week’s show was a bit more structured than usual so hopefully the trend continues here. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Card rundown.

Gates Of Agony vs. Undisputed Kingdom vs. Dark Order vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Kaun takes Taven down to start and hammers away but Taven is back up with a dropkick and the shout of his name. Bennett comes in and gets chopped down before some rapid fire chops let the Order knock Gibson down. It’s off to Drake for a step up dropkick to send Reynolds to the floor. Back in and Taven gets the tag to clean house, with Bennett’s Death Valley Driver setting up Just The Tip for two on Gibson. The Gates are back in with Open The Gates to Bennett before Silver gets to take over for a change. A quick Hail Mary gives Bennett the pin on Silver at 5:37.

Rating: C+. What are you supposed to get out of an eight man match that doesn’t even last six minutes? The Kingdom was the last team to go on a big run of offense and got the win as a result. As usual, this would have been better as a regular tag match, but it’s not like any of these teams are likely to get near the title situation anytime soon.

Post match respect is shown between the Gates and the Kingdom.

Dustin Rhodes/Sammy Guevara vs. Shot Through The Heart

Non-title. Rhodes and Doug (as in Love Doug, because his name is Love Doug) with Rhodes shrugging off some early right hands to take over on Crawford. Guevara comes in and flips over him before hitting a dropkick to send Crawford outside. There’s the big flip dive, followed by the middle rope cutter back inside. Rhodes kicks Crawford in the face and the GTH finishes him off at 2:43. As usual, Rhodes and Guevara show absolutely nothing that makes them feel important or better than any average team.

Post match the Righteous come in and beat down Guevara and Rhodes. We get extra serious as the cowbell is used, as well as STOLEN.

We get Chris Jericho and the Learning Tree’s promo from Dynamite accepting a challenge from Tomohiro Ishii.

Preston Vance/Griff Garrison vs. Waves And Curls

Vance shoulders Jordan (of Traevon Jordan/Jaylen Brandyn) down to start and gets in another knockdown for a bonus. Brandyn comes in and lays down rather than get chopped in what might be a smart move. It’s off to Garrison to stomp away and before Vance adds a delayed vertical suplex, allowing commentary to make a Power And Glory comparison (because Power And Glory has become a great team over the years….somehow). Jordan is sent into the barricade, followed by a discus forearm into a discus lariat to give Vance the pin at 4:19.

Rating: C. Vance and Garrison aren’t exactly a great team but it’s not like either of them have anything going at the moment. I’m assuming Cole Karter is gone or something, as Vance was just thrown in there as Garrison’s new partner. It’s not a great move, but they did well enough in their first match together.

Video on the Infantry joining Shane Taylor Promotions.

Katsuyori Shibata vs. Aaron Solo

Solo, Shibata’s student, jumps him before the bell and seems rather pleased as he suplexes Shibata on the floor. Shibata comes up favoring his ankle but it’s fine enough to kick Solo in the face. Shibata’s suplex drops Solo and they head inside with Shibata striking away. Some chops in the corner and a butterfly suplex drop Solo but he’s back with an exploder for two of his own. That’s not going to work for Shibata, who grabs an Octopus for the win at 4:01.

Rating: C+. They started fast here and had a physical match until Shibata crushed Solo, which is how this should have gone in the end. It’s also a match where they didn’t waste time, as there was no reason to believe that Solo was going to be able to hang in there long term. Shibata doesn’t have much going on at the moment, but he’s still far ahead of Solo.

Komander vs. Josh Woods

Mark Sterling is here with Woods and says the same thing he says every week (if not twice). Woods wrestles him to the mat to start but Komander is back up with a whip to the floor, setting up the flip dive. Another dive seems to hurt Komander’s knee so Sterling gets in some stomping of his own like a good villain is supposed to do.

Some Sterling choking (with Alex Abrahantes chasing him off) sets up a quickly broken chinlock as Komander kicks him in the head. A springboard crossbody gives Komander two but Woods knees him out of the air for two. They head outside again with Komander hitting a hurricanrana into the post. Sterling offers a distraction so Abrahantes spears him own, leaving Komander to grab a tornado DDT. Cielito Lindo finishes for Komander at 6:37.

Rating: C+. That’s your required Komander match of the week, though it’s not a great sign when the fans are reacting to the managers fighting more than the people in the match. Other than that, neither of them did anything out of their usual, which didn’t make for the most thrilling match. At least it didn’t go on far longer than it needed to, as is Komander’s custom.

MxM Collection has merch.

Abadon vs. Viva Van

Van goes with a slap rather than a handshake to start before snapping off a spinwheel kick for two. Abadon gets annoyed at the hair pull though and hits a knee to the face. An RKO plants Van and the Black Dahlia finishes Van at 3:06.

Rating: C. Not much to see here as they kept it short again, though this was longer than most of what Abadon tends to do. Abadon continues to feel like a star, though that doesn’t mean guaranteed future gold. For now, I’ll take a fairly hard hitting match which was a step more competitive than a normal squash.

Athena and Lexi Nair are waiting for Billie Starkz to apologize but she doesn’t want to do it. Leila Grey interrupts and challenges Athena, who laughs her off. A Proving Ground match is set for next week. Starkz is still in trouble though.

From March 16, 2023 and from a previous review.

Athena vs. Hyan

Another non-title Proving Ground match. Athena drops her to start and mocks the fans a bit, only to get kicked in the face for her rudeness. A swinging chokeslam cuts Hyan down again but she fights out of a chinlock. Athena catches her on top and spins into a powerbomb to the floor (ouch). Back in and the Crossface makes Hyan tap at 4:41.

Rating: C. They didn’t have time to do much here and a lot of that was spent on Athena playing to the fans. That powerbomb looked good though and Athena ran through an opponent who shouldn’t have caused her much trouble. This was little more than a showcase for Athena and in that regard, it went well.

Righteous vs. Matt Raymond/Sammy Diaz

Dutch has the cowbell from earlier. Diaz slugs away to start but gets elbowed in the face for his efforts. A Russian legsweep allows the tag off to Dutch for a Side Effect. Dutch suplexes Diaz down and it’s a Boss Man Slam into Orange Sunshine into an assisted Death Valley Driver to pin Diaz at 2:55.

Post match Vincent says they should have been the Tag Team Champions a long time ago and they’re coming for the belts. Dig what he is saying? Dutch mocks Dustin Rhodes with the cowbell because it used to belong to Dusty Rhodes. Apparently Dutch and Dusty were close and Dusty say potential in him. Everyone knows that Dustin is the weakest link in “our” family. Maniacal laughing ensues.

Women’s TV Title: Diamante vs. Red Velvet

Diamante is challenging in a street fight. The fight starts on the floor, where Diamante gets in some kendo stick shots to the back and then chokes on the ropes. The belt is hung on the ropes but Diamante misses a charge and goes head first instead. Diamante is fine enough to tie her in the Tree of Woe, and a trashcan, for a running dropkick and a near fall. Velvet is rammed head first into a chair a few times and it’s time to choke with a chain. That’s broken up and Diamante is sent into the corner as the fans want tables.

Instead they get a ladder from Velvet, which takes long enough that Diamante suplexes her onto the ladder for the crash. Diamante loads up the table but again it takes too long, allowing Velvet to get in some chair shots. Velvet takes too long (a pattern emerges) going up and a superplex sends her through the table for the big crash. The delayed cover gives Diamante two but Velvet is back with a flipping faceplant onto the belt to retain at 10:57.

Rating: B-. They beat each other up rather well here and it felt like a match that was built up over time. Velvet gets a win to make her seem like a more serious champion and that is good to see. At the same time, Diamante put in quite a nice performance of her own and it was a nice enough brawl. It wasn’t perfect though, as they spent too much time setting things up and it was a bunch of stuff that feels like it has been done a million or so times.

Overall Rating: C+. Overall, the show was a bit better as they trimmed the time down again (just shy of an hour and a half this week) but there is still a lot on here that feels like it could be trimmed of. I’m not sure why we needed to see Shibata beat Solo or a random non-title match from Athena from a year and a half ago. What matters the most is that it feels like they’re building some things up and that could help in the long run, assuming they stick with that style for a change.

Results
Undisputed Era b. Dark Order, Gates Of Agony and the Grizzled Young Veterans – Hail Mary to Silver
Dustin Rhodes/Sammy Guevara b. Shot Through The Heart – GTH to Crawford
Preston Vance/Griff Garrison b. Waves And Curls – Discus lariat to Jordan
Katsuyori Shibata b. Aaron Solo – Octopus
Komander b. Josh Woods – Cielito Lindo
Abadon b. Viva Van – Black Dahlia
Righteous b. Matt Raymond/Sammy Diaz – Assisted Death Valley Driver to Diaz
Red Velvet b. Diamante – Flipping faceplant onto the title belt

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

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Ring Of Honor
Date: October 31, 2024
Location: Alliant Energy PowerHouse, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s Halloween and in theory that should mean we’re getting things shaken up a bit. This is the kind of show that could include some kid of change of pace or at least some fun, even if we’re back in the Chris Jericho Era. The main event will see Abadon challenging Athena for the Women’s Title so let’s get to it.

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

Happy Halloween: this show is two hours and fifty six minutes long.

The Righteous want the Tag Team Titles and don’t think Dustin Rhodes and Sammy Guevara are family. What happens when the snake bites Dustin? The Righteous want the titles.

We run down the card.

We look at La Faccion Ingobernable beating down JD Drake and Beef.

Peter Avalon/Preston Vance vs. JD Drake/Beef

Beef makes Vance shake his hand to start before they trade shoulders. That doesn’t go very far until Beef runs him over with a shoulder. Vance’s delayed suplex cuts him off and it’s Avalon coming in for a running corner clothesline. It’s off to Drake, who shakes pinkies with Avalon and then chops him, which is kind of a mixed message.

Drake chops him in the corner and hands it back to Beef for the same thing. Another tag brings Drake back in but he seems to hurt his leg, sending Beef back in to get taken down with a hard spinebuster. Vance’s discus lariat gets two but another one hits Avalon by mistake. Drake is back in with the spinning butterfly suplex, setting up Beef’s frog splash for the pin at 7:16.

Rating: C. So Beef and the Workhorsemen are the new Action Andretti and Top Flight yes? It’s quite the similar story and if it winds up going about the same way, it means they won’t have much of an impact. That being said, I could go for something new in the six man division, assuming you actually call that a division.

We look at Chris Jericho’s promo from Dynamite, promising to elevate Ring Of Honor.

Johnny TV vs. Deonn Rusman

This is certainly elevation. Feeling out process to start with TV driving him into the corner but stopping to pose. Some kicks to the head set up a knee to Rusman’s face but a shooting star headbutt low blow (yep) misses. Rusman stomps away but gets kicked low, allowing TV to rain down some forearms. A flipping neckbreaker choke just fires Rusman up, only for TV to kick him down for two more. Rusman connects with an AA but misses a charge in the corner. The flipping neckbreaker into Starship Pain finishes for TV at 4:58.

Rating: C. This was more about featuring Rusman a bit, as you more or less know exactly what you’re going to get from TV. Rusman has done well in some previous appearances and he did decently again here, though there is only so much you can do on defense. It wasn’t quite a squash, but TV isn’t likely to move up the ladder in any meaningful way.

The MxM Collection as a fall collection.

Gates Of Agony vs. CSJ/Dave Dutra

Kaun runs Dutra over to start and Liona hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. CSJ is sent into the barricade and some running shots in the corner crush Dutra. Open The Gates finishes at 1:40.

Sammy Guevara and Dustin Rhodes are down to face the Righteous. I still have no idea why these two are the champions, but I have less idea why Dustin is a double champion.

Lady Frost vs. Reyna Isis

Frost anklescissors her down to start but Isis runs the corner for a wristdrag. A corkscrew dive to the floor drops Frost again but Frost is back with a moonsault off the steps. Back in and Isis works on the back in the corner, with some running knees connecting for two. Frost ducks a clothesline and hits a running elbow for two but Isis ties her in the ropes. The springboard legdrop finishes for Isis at 5:41.

Rating: C+. I could go for building up Isis as a challenger for one of the titles and two matches in, that wouldn’t be the worst idea. If nothing else, it’s nice to have her around for a bit before throwing her right into something. That’s how a build is supposed to work and if that’s what we’re getting, I’ve heard worse ideas.

We look at Abadon attacking Athena again last week.

Matt Taven vs. Aaron Solo

Pure Rules. Solo knocks him into the corner to start and kicks away but Taven is back with the big dropkick. A springboard is broken up though and Solo hammers him down on the mat. Taven kicks his way out of trouble and hits a DDT, followed by a springboard kick to the head. A choke sends Solo over to the ropes for his first break, followed by a Climax for the second break. Solo gets in a kick to the face but dives into another choke for the tap at 5:49.

Rating: C. Let me guess: this puts Taven into contention for the Pure Rules Title or makes him #1 contender because he has now spent almost six minutes wrestling a Pure match. Ignore that NOTHING in this match had anything special about it that would make you realize it was a Pure Rules of course, because the Pure Rules Title is one of the most pointless titles around. The champion either doesn’t defend it for months at a time or loses in regular matches, but it just keeps existing because it was around before and therefore it has to stay around.

Post match Lee Moriarty comes out for the staredown because THAT’S WHAT WE DO in this….it’s not a division but around this title at least.

JD Drake insists he and Beef aren’t family. They’re waiting for Anthony Henry to get back. I still have no idea what the appeal of these guys is supposed to be.

Righteous vs. Jay Marston/Solomon Tupu

Marston gets dropped, Tupu gets dropped, Orange Sunshine finishes Marston at 1:19.

Post match the Righteous crush Tupu’s leg with Dustin Rhodes and Sammy Guevara running in for the too late save.

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Josh Woods

Mark Sterling and Ariya Daivari are here with Woods and plug the Premiere Athletes’ new shirt. Woods wrestles him to the mat to start but Woods is back up with a shot to the face to send him outside. Back in and Woods knocks him into the corner as commentary talks about ear injuries. Ishii’s Saito suplex gets two and he snaps off a German suplex. Woods comes back with an exploder but gets caught on top for a delayed superplex. The big lariat gives Ishii two so he headbutts Woods down, setting up the brainbuster for the pin at 7:08.

Rating: B-. Easily the best match of the night so far as they were beating each other up pretty well. Ishii is old and can’t move nearly as well as he did before but there is still a certain intensity to him that you cannot fake. That’s what we saw here and Woods was hanging in there with him well enough.

Post match the villains beat Ishii down but Kyle O’Reilly runs in for the save.

Dustin Rhodes and Sammy Guevara get jumped by the Righteous, with Dustin trying to protect Guevara. As they rush through probably three weeks’ worth of stuff in about an hour.

Top Flight/Action Andretti vs. Dante Leon/Jah-C/Trip Jordy

For the sake of simplicity, I’ll refer to Dante Martin as Dante and Dante Leon as Leon. Darius armdrags Leon down to start and hands it off to Dante for a dropkick. The slingshot hilo sets up a double backbreaker and an assisted moonsault gets two. Jah-C comes in and gets caught with an atomic drop into a springboard spinning Downward Spiral. Leon comes back in and gets dropkicked into a German suplex. The swinging full nelson slam finishes for Dante at 4:51.

Rating: C+. As usual, Andretti and Top Flight work well together but there is no reason to believe that it’s going to lead anywhere. It’s not like it ever has before, yet here we are watching them have another (albeit entertaining) match. At some point though, I need to have a reason to get interested in these matches, as they’ve been doing the same thing for a long, long time now.

From This Means War on October 29, 2005.

Jay Lethal vs. Curry Man

Curry Man has Allison Danger with him. We get a long pose off to start with the first lockup not taking place until nearly two minutes in. Curry armbars him down into a headscissors but a hammerlock sends Lethal over to the ropes. They trade hammerlocks and that goes nowhere so it’s another standoff so the fans can have their dueling chants. Lethal turns down the option to dance but does armdrag him down into a hip swivel.

They fight over a wristlock again and then trade leg kicks like a dance…and then we pause so the referee can dance too. Danger comes in to dance as well before Curry grabs the mic and says…I think something about how he loves dancing. Lethal wristdrags him to the floor for the suicide dive, followed by a neckbreaker for two.

Curry sends him into the corner for a splash and a back elbow sends Lethal outside, setting up a dive of his own. Fan: “YOU’RE BETTER THAN PEPPER!” The chinlock goes on back inside before Lethal flips out of a suplex and knocks him down. Lethal’s middle rope leg lariat gets two but he misses the top rope headbutt. They trade rollups for two each until Lethal grabs a dragon suplex for the pin at 22:31.

Rating: C. I’m sorry what? Why in the world was this match added to this show? It runs over twenty minutes, including dance off and mid-match promo and could have easily had about fifteen minutes dropped. They were trading decent stuff but the match didn’t build to anything as Lethal just suddenly beat him. There was no need for this to be this long or added to this already marathon show.

Billie Starkz vs. Blair Onyx

Starkz takes her down by the arm to start and slowly kicks away before hitting a spinning kick to the head. Some stomping in the corner has Onyx in trouble and Starkz yells at the referee. Onyx gets a boot up but Starkz catches her on top and hits something like a One Winged Angel for the pin at 4:08.

Rating: C. Just a squash here with Starkz running her over and showing more aggression now that she is seemingly on the outs with Athena. We’re likely coming up on Starkz vs. Athena at Final Battle so we can finally change the title, though that has felt like an obvious case for a long time now. Starkz did look a bit better than she did before, so maybe things are changing a bit.

The Infantry joins Shane Taylor Promotions. Well that’s consolidating losers for a change.

Spanish Announce Project vs. Infantry

Shane Taylor Promotions and Trish Adora are here with the Infantry. Dean shoulders and armdrags Angelico to start but it’s quickly off to Serpentico for a falling splash. The Infantry is knocked outside, where Adora sends Angelico into the steps. Back in and Bravo hammers away on Serpentico with a suplex getting two.

Dean sends him hard into the middle buckle and a middle rope knee/backbreaker combination gets two more. Serpentico kicks his way out of the corner though and hands it off to Angelico to clean house. Everything breaks down and Adora has to offer a distraction, allowing Moriarty to get in a belt shot. Boot Camp finishes Angelico at 9:23.

Rating: C-. The team turns heel, has multiple people interfering, including a belt shot, and they need nearly ten minutes to beat one of the lowest of the low tag teams in Ring Of Honor. That’s the Ring Of Honor mindset in a nutshell: change something around and then make sure that it has as little impact as possible. None of these teams feel like they are going anywhere and this match going so long somehow made it worse.

We look at Diamante screwing up and getting disqualified against Red Velvet.

Diamante vs. Aminah Belmont

Whip into the corner, running dropkick, rolling cutter, Diamante wins at 1:24.

Lexi Nair tells Billie Starkz to focus on Athena’s title defense but Starkz is taking the night off. Nair: “I can’t protect her. I’m just a fragile flower!”

Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages vs. Dark Order

Silver and Bronson start things off with the latter driving him into the corner. That’s fine with Silver, who knocks him into another corner for some chops from Uno. Reynolds, still with bad ribs, comes in and gets driven into the corner for some shoulders. Reynolds shoulders his way out of trouble and chokes away on the ropes.

Boulder comes in for some hip swiveling and a crash into the bad ribs. That’s broken up and Reynolds fights out of the corner, only to get taken down again. An electric chair splash misses and the tag brings in Uno to clean house. A DDT puts Bronson down and the Order’s strike sequence into the jackknife rollup is good for the pin at 8:24.

Rating: C. Nothing to see here, again, as we have two teams who have been established as nothing more than the bottom of the barrel. The Order got wrecked by the Blackpool Combat Club while the Savages lose to everyone. They argued once and now they had a match to determine the second lowest team around here. Why would I want to see these guys fight for eight minutes?

Komander vs. Ariya Daivari

Mark Sterling and Josh Woods are here again and does pretty much the same promo as their first time out here. Komander works on a wristlock to start but has to fight out of a headlock. An armbar puts Daivari down again as commentary reminds us to vote on Tuesday. Some strikes to the face have Daivari in more trouble but Sterling offers a distraction so he can knock Komander off the top.

The villains get in some stomping on the floor and a neckbreaker gives Daivari two. Komander fights out of a chinlock and hits a springboard crossbody into a headscissors. The very springboardy hurricanrana sets up a top rope splash for two on Daivari. A reverse layout DDT gives Daivari two of his own and a superkick puts Komander down. The Magic Carpet Splash is cut off and Daivari rolls outside, where Woods gets in a cheap shot on Komander. He’s fine enough to hit the rope walk flip dive onto the villains, setting up Cielito Lindo for the pin at 11:09.

Rating: C+. This was a perfectly nice match which came at a terrible time in a long show. Komander is the designated jobber to the stars around here and has to be given a win every so often. The problem with that is he beat one of the Premiere Athletes, who lose to everyone. Not a bad match, but this show has gone on WAY too long to make a match between these two work.

Chris Jericho previews the main event. So far, he’s the only one to make any reference to this being the Halloween show.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Abadon

Athena, with Lexi Nair, is defending in a Ring Of Horror match, which is a Halloween themed hardcore match. Oh and they’re chained together. A forearm just annoys Abadon to start so some clotheslines in the corner have Athena in trouble. Athena hits a baseball slide to take it outside, where some chairs are set up.

That takes way too long though and Abadon gets in some kendo stick shots to take over. Things aren’t intense enough yet so Athena whips out a barbed wire baseball bat to miss some big swings. Some pumpkins are destroyed but Abadon uses the distraction to, eventually, spear Athena through a table for two. Another whip through another table has Athena in more trouble as they head back inside for the slugout.

Athena grabs a ladder, which is dropkicked back into her and they go back to the floor. Abadon gets in a dropkick with a trashcan and lays Athena onto a ladder onto the bottom rope. The ensuing backsplash connects and they’re both down. The fight goes outside again, where Athena gets in a hard knee against the steps for two. Back in and Abadon’s bite to the head doesn’t work very well as Athena gets in a powerbomb out of the corner.

Athena manages to slip out of the chain and swings a kendo stick, which bounces off the ropes and hits her in the head to give Abadon two. Abadon goes up but gets powerbombed onto the steps for two more. Nair slides in some skewers, which are driven into Abadon’s head. That’s shrugged off and Abadon pulls her head first into a chair in the corner. A swinging Rock Bottom plants Athena onto a bunch of thumbtacks on the floor for two more, leaving Abadon frustrated. Athena gets in a bottle shot to the face and the O Face onto the chairs retains the title at 19:48.

Rating: B. This worked rather well for a variety of reasons, including the effort that they put into the match on the way here. For once, it felt like this match had been built up for weeks and then they put in a heck of a performance in the match itself. It was violent and hard hitting, with Athena feeling like she survived. Good stuff here, as Athena continues to be the best thing about Ring Of Honor by a mile.

Overall Rating: D+. Oh this did not work, pretty awesome main event aside. This was WAY longer than it needed to be, as it felt like they were trying to cram in every single thing and person they could find. At what point do you look at a two and a half hour show and think “I KNOW! WE NEED A NINETEEN YEAR OLD CURRY MAN MATCH!”

There comes a point where a show just needs to end and they hit that point way before halfway through this week. It was a bunch of nothing matches featuring low level stars who felt like they were there to fill in an overly long card. Ring Of Honor has done this before and it never works, but I guess they just had to have all of this stuff on here because we only have what, five months between pay per views these days? Terribly put together show this week, as someone needs to tell Tony Khan to stop (again).

Results
JD Drake/Beef b. Peter Avalon/Preston Vance – Frog splash to Avalon
Johnny TV b. Deonn Rusman – Starship Pain
Gates Of Agony b. CSJ/Dave Dutra – Open The Gates to Dutra
Reyna Isis b. Lady Frost – Middle rope legdrop in the ropes
Matt Taven b. Aaron Solo – Choke
Righteous b. Jay Marston/Solomon Tupu – Orange Sunshine to Marston
Tomohiro Ishii b. Josh Woods – Brainbuster
Top Flight/Action Andretti b. Dante Leon/Jah-C/Trip Jordy – Swinging full nelson slam to Leon
Billie Starkz b. Blair Onyx – Electric chair flipping slam
Infantry b. Spanish Announce Project – Boot Camp to Angelico
Diamante b. Aminah Belmont – Rolling cutter
Dark Order b. Iron Savages/Jacked Jameson – Jackknife rollup to Bronson
Komander b. Ariya Daivari – Cielito Lindo
Athena b. Abadon – O Face onto chairs

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: October 3, 2024
Location: Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re coming up on WrestleDream and that is going to include Mark Briscoe defending the Ring Of Honor World Title against Chris Jericho. That’s at least what is taking place in the championship picture around here, because the World Title situation is still nutty. Other than that, it’s hard to say hat we’ll be getting here so let’s get to it.

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

We run down the card, including Mark Briscoe defending the World Title against Matt Taven in a match that was not advertised in any significant way.

Premiere Athletes/Mark Sterling vs. Dustin Rhodes/Von Erichs

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if the Athletes and Sterling win or last the ten minute time limit, they get a future title shot. Daivari headlocks Marshall to start before a dropkick puts Daivari down. Sterling comes in to slam Ross and hands it off to Nese, who gets double dropkicked.

Back up and Nese hits his own dropkick to knock Ross into the corner so the villains can take over. Nese splashes Sterling by mistake though and an enziguri allows the tag to Rhodes to wreck the Athletes. The Canadian Destroyer sends Nese outside but Sterling breaks up the Cross Rhodes. Stereo Claws get rid of Nese and Daivari so Shattered Dreams and the Final Reckoning can finish Sterling at 6:18.

Rating: C-. Counting the match where he won the Six Man Titles, Rhodes has been involved in matches involving the Undisputed Era five times, the Dark Order four times and the Premiere Athletes two times (some of which have been combinations of multiple teams). Some of those matches have been either title matches or Proving Ground matches for the Tag Team and Six Man Tag Team Titles.

I have no idea whatsoever why there are four teams fighting over two sets of titles, with one person holding a piece of both championships. Now though we’ve reached the point where the goofy manager is getting beaten up too. The limited interest that came with Rhodes getting one final run as a champion is already worn thin as he’s out of viable challengers and is just repeating the same low level goofs he’s already beaten. Either fix this or get rid of the titles.

During WrestleDream’s Zero Hour, Atlantis Jr. will defend the TV Title against Brian Cage. To be fair, Cage has won two singles matches over no name opponents in about six weeks so that’s good enough for a title shot. Again: give me a reason to care about what happens on this show when it comes to title matches or get rid of the stupid thing. This is another title match thrown together with no rhyme or reason and it’s been that way for months now.

Nyla Rose vs. Katie Arquette

Arquette kicks her in the ribs off the handshake and is promptly knocked down. The Cannonball into the backsplash into the Beast Bomb finishes for Rose at 1:30.

The Minions are planning a celebration for Athena but Billie Starkz isn’t happy. Athena isn’t happy and tells Starkz to admit she has a problem. Starkz says Athena is the problem for leaving her with Abadon but Athena says get over it because this is her day. That’s enough for Starkz to storm off, with Abadon popping up behind Athena and reach out for her, but Athena doesn’t notice.

Anthony Henry/Beef vs. Anthony Cantena/Wes Barkley

Henry and Barkley start things off but Beef comes in to crush Barkley in the corner. A missed charge allows the tag of to Cantena, who gets dropkicked down by Beef. It’s back to Henry, who gets caught with a quick neckbreaker but is right back with a short powerbomb to Cantena. The tag brings Beef back in and everything breaks down, with Cantena and Barkley’s stereo sunset flips being broken up. Henry’s top rope double stomp finishes Barkley at 3:55.

Rating: C. Henry and Beef are a funny enough act as the team where only one member wants to be there, but it’s hard to imagine this goes anywhere. Unless JD Drake comes back and Henry has to pick his side, there isn’t much of a reason to believe it’s going anywhere. They kept this quick here, which is the right idea for a comedy act like this one.

Infantry vs. Outrunners

Bravo and Magnum start things off and get nowhere so it’s a double tag to Dean and Floyd. They run the ropes until Floyd gets in a hiptoss into an armbar. Magnum comes back in to chop on Bravo, who punches him in the face for a breather. Some loud chops and a suplex get two on Magnum and a jumping elbow connects for the same. Dean misses a charge into the corner though and it’s Floyd coming in to clean house. A boot to the head into a DDT drops Floyd but Magnum is back in with Total Recall for the pin at 7:12.

Rating: C. Give the Outrunners the Tag Team Titles. Why not? There’s no division to speak of, Dustin Rhodes has gotten his oh so special run as a double champion and can still have his meaningless Six Man Titles and the fans actually seem to like the Outrunners. Do something with them before the hype is over.

Post match the Infantry shake hands but leave in a huff.

Beef is fired up about his team with Anthony Henry, who says they are not a team. Henry is in a team with JD Drake, so Beef asks for Drake’s number. There’s a one in a million chance, which is good enough for Beef.

Since WrestleDream is a celebration of professional wrestling (….sure), here’s a classic ROH match from October 1, 2005 (and from a previous review).

Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi

Well it was going to be this or one of the Punk matches and this makes more sense. Joe gets a pop but Kobashi gets an ovation. They shake hands to start and it’s time for some high intensity circling. The feeling out process continues until Joe hits the first chop for a loud gasp from the crowd. Kobashi takes him into the corner and shows him a real chop before a shoulder sends Kobashi outside. Joe hits the big suicide elbow into the barricade for two back inside and we take a break.

Back with Joe taking him outside for the big running boot in the chair. It worked so well the first time that Joe tries it again, only to charge into a shot to the face. Joe gets planted on the floor and they head back inside for some more hard Kobashi chops. We hit the front facelock for a bit until Joe suplexes his way to freedom. They strike it out hard with the sweat literally flying off of their chests.

Kobashi gets the better of things as we take another break and come back with Joe making the comeback and striking away even faster. Some Kawada kicks send Kobashi flying into the corner and it’s time for the facewashes. The MuscleBuster connects for two and Joe is stunned by the kickout. Another kick to the head sets up Joe’s STF, which is switched into a crossface and then something like an octopus hold on the mat as Kobashi FINALLY gets a foot on the ropes for the break.

Kobashi manages a half and half suplex and they’re both down again. Back up and Kobashi goes nuts with the rapid fire chops in the corner, leaving Joe’s chest looking rather disturbed. Another half and half suplex gets two and a sleeper suplex gives Kobashi the same. Joe tries to chop away but some spinning backfists set up a huge lariat to put him away at 24:21.

Rating: A. This is a great example of a match which was made better by the crowd’s reaction. The match felt like an event, as Kobashi is a living legend and having Joe face him in such a high profile match is the kind of thing you do not get to see very often. Joe is the biggest name in Ring of Honor history and Kobashi is far above him, but Joe hung in there and had him in real trouble in a classic. Great match, as you may have heard before.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Matt Taven vs. Mark Briscoe

Taven, with Mike Bennett, is challenging. A rollup gives Taven an early two but Briscoe is back up with a headlock. Briscoe chops him down and they slap hands, with Taven knocking him into the corner. Bennett’s distraction doesn’t work though and Briscoe is back with a Blockbuster off the apron. Back in and Briscoe misses the Froggy Bow, allowing Taven to hammer away and take over.

A neckbreaker sets up the chinlock but Taven’s Lionsault hits raised knees (which oddly gets commentary to stop talking about Chris Jericho rather than the other way around). Briscoe gets two off a high collar suplex but Taven hits Just The Tip for the same. Aurora Borealis hits Briscoe for two but a second attempt hits raised knees (again). The Froggy Boy also hits raised knees (we get the concept) so Briscoe hits a fisherman’s buster. The Jay Driller retains the title at 9:32.

Rating: B-. So to recap: Matt Taven has had one singles match since ROH relaunched under Tony Khan (defeating Darius Martin in February 2022) and has lost to Briscoe’s teams in some recent AEW tag matches. This is on the same she where there Premiere Athletes get a Proving Ground match rather than an actual title match despite losing to Dustin in multiple matches in recent weeks. At the same time, Brian Cage is getting a TV Title shot based on winning a few squash matches and possibly due to being on the winning team in a six man tag almost two months ago. Eh just give Dustin Rhodes all the titles. Should be fine.

Overall Rating: B-. I can only get so annoyed when about a third of this show was Joe vs. Kobashi (I’m assuming that was put in because two matches taped for the show ended in injuries) but geez the lack of continuity and coherence around here is astounding. I have no idea how one goes about getting a title shot around here, but I also know that none of it matters as the important stuff takes place on AEW shows anyway, making this show all the more pointless. Just make it Dark again already and drop the whole ROH thing, which sounds nice but after a year and a half, it’s not exactly seeming likely.

Results
Dustin Rhodes/Von Erichs b. Premiere Athletes/Mark Sterling – Final Reckoning to Sterling
Nyla Roe b. Katie Arquette – Beast Bomb
Anthony Henry/Beef b. Anthony Cantena/Wes Barkley – Top rope double stomp to Barkley
Outrunners b. Infantry – Total Recall to Dean
Mark Briscoe b. Matt Taven – Jay Driller

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

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Ring Of Honor
Date: September 19, 2024
Location: Denny Sanford Premier Center, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re FINALLY out of Texas and that means it is likely time to do the same stuff this show usually does but in a different place for a change. There are only so many stories going on around here at the moment but maybe something else can start up here. Ring Of Honor could certainly use them so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Red Velvet vs. Allysin Kay

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Kay wins or lasts the ten minute time limit, she receives a future title shot. They miss charges to start but velvet snaps off a headscissors before choking in the corner. A wheelbarrow suplex puts Velvet down for two and a Samoan drop plants her again, setting up a fall away slam for two more. Kay works on the ankle lock before switching to the cross arm choke. Velvet hits a quick Stunner but walks into a spinebuster for another near fall. Back up and Velvet hits something like a jawbreaker into some running knees in the ropes. The Final Slice finishes Kay at 5:33.

Rating: C. Kay is someone who feels like she could be something if she was around for any significant amount of time. Instead she’s just kind of any other person around here, which is a bit of a stretch given her history both here and elsewhere. It isn’t like there are a ton of challengers to Velvet, but at least she got a win over something of a name.

Video on Sammy Guevara/Dustin Rhodes vs. the Dark Order.

Gates Of Agony vs. Dante Leon/Trip Jordy

Kaun backbreakers Jordy to start and it’s off to Toa for some shots to the ribs. A double slam sets up a big toss and it’s Leon coming in to get beaten against the ropes. Open The Gates finishes at 2:08. Short and to the point.

Preston Vance vs. Brandon Cutler

Before the match, Cutler mocks the idea of Vance not being able to hit him until the Code Of Honor is enforced. Vance shakes his hand and then hits him in the face to start fast. Cutler gets beaten up in the corner and a backdrop has him on the floor. A Stunner over the ropes gets Cutler out of trouble and he grabs the quickly broken chinlock. Vance comes back with a spinning belly to back slam for two but Cutler superkicks him into a pumphandle slam for the same. Vance isn’t having that and finishes with the discus lariat at 4:03.

Rating: C. Vance getting to appear again is something of a good sign for his future but beating Cutler isn’t going to get him very far. The fans weren’t really caring much for Vance, but Cutler is enough of a loudmouth that beating him is going to get something of a reaction. Not much to see here, but it’s better for Vance than not being on the show.

Last week, the Iron Savages jumped the Outrunners.

The Outrunners respect the Iron Savages’ muscles but they have no glitz to go with their glamour.

John Silver vs. KM

The much bigger KM poses so Silver does the same until KM punches him down. A clothesline puts Silver down again and KM chokes away in the corner. Silver trips him into the ropes though and hits a running boot. A German suplex into the Spin Cycle finishes KM off at 2:55. Silver is suddenly good again after being evil for a few weeks. Makes as much sense as anything else the team does.

Mark Sterling hypes up Josh Woods.

Rachael Ellering vs. Maggie Lee

Ellering takes her down by the arm to start and fires off some clotheslines. Maggie’s running knee is shrugged off and Ellering kicks her in the head. The backsplash and Boss Woman Slam finish Maggie at 2:48.

Video on Beef and Anthony Henry.

Infantry vs. Spanish Announce Project

Trish Adora is here with the Infantry. Bravo and Angelico start things off with a fight over wrist control. They both miss dropkicks so it’s a bit of dancing before Serpentico and Dean come in. Serpentico hurricanranas Dean down but a double hiptoss drops Serpentico as well. Angelico comes back in to work on Bravo’s arm before a belly to back suplex gets two. Bravo fights his way out of an armbar and brings Dean back in to pick up the pace. A Falcon Arrow hits Serpentico for two but the Project hits a Downward Spiral into a frog splash for two of their own. Back up and a quick Boot Camp finishes Serpentico at 7:19.

Rating: C+. So we spent about six months working on the Project vs. Griff Garrison and Cole Karter and after all that, the Project is right back to being the same low level tag team they’ve always been. At the same time you have the Infantry win something while feeling nowhere near close to a title shot, mainly because they aren’t two guys from Texas who were given a title match out of nowhere. Such is life in Ring Of Honor.

Anthony Ogogo vs. Kit Sackett

Ogogo poses to start and muscles him up with a pumphandle powerbomb. Some stomping in the corner has Sackett in more trouble and an overhead belly to belly cuts off the comeback attempt. The pop up right hand finishes Sackett at 2:59. Ogogo continues his matches that involve one move and nothing else of note.

Brian Cage vs. Deonn Rusman

Cage wrestles him down to start and then sends him flying to shift to the power. A clothesline and belly to back suplex has Rusman in more trouble but he hits a quick dropkick. Rusman hits a quick Rock Bottom for two but a frog splash misses. Allowing Cage to powerbomb him down. A Cloverleaf makes Rusman tap at 3:42.

Rating: C. It wasn’t quite a squash but at the same time it’s just a Brian Cage match. He does his same thing over and over and there isn’t much to be seen from it. There is no reason to believe that Cage is going to move forward in the slightest as he never really does, but the power stuff was ok enough.

Anthony Ogogo, with Shane Taylor, wants some gold.

Dark Order vs. Sammy Guevara/Dustin Rhodes

Another non-title Proving Ground match. Reynolds bails to the floor to burn some clock to start and Guevara poses on the top rope. We hear about Dustin’s start as part of the Texas Broncos in 1988 as Uno bails outside away from Dustin. Back in and a double Russian legsweep takes Uno down so the Order bails outside and the champs get to pose.

John Silver gets in a quick posting on Dustin though and they head inside with Dustin in trouble. The snap powerslam gets Dustin out of trouble but Silver’s distraction means the referee doesn’t see the tag. Uno hits a piledriver for two but Dustin dives over and brings in Guevara for the hot tag. Everything breaks down and Dustin gives Reynolds a Canadian Destroyer. The Final Reckoning into Guevara’s Swanton finishes at 7:26.

Rating: C+. This was a great example of the problem with Rhodes and Guevara as the champions: there is no real connection to them other than they’re from Texas and their chemistry is just pretty basic. Throw in the fact that they’re facing the Dark Order, who have been rather low level for a long time and there wasn’t much to see here.

Post match the Cage of Agony runs in wrecks the champs to end the show. Oh joy: the Gates of Agony being featured again.

Overall Rating: C. Well sweet goodness look what happens when you cut off about an hour of the show. It’s still not particularly good and certainly not worth watching, but it’s far less infuriating. It still felt longer than it needed to be but the matches were mostly short and they were a bit more focused this week. Far easier sit here, but that doesn’t make it interesting.

Results
Red Velvet b. Allysin Kay – Final Slice
Gates Of Agony b. Dante Leon/Trip Jordy – Open The Gates to Leon
Preston Vance b. Brandon Cutler – Discus lariat
John Silver b. KM – Spin Cycle
Rachael Ellering b. Maggie Lee – Boss Woman Slam
Infantry b. Spanish Announce Project – Boot Camp to Serpentico
Anthony Ogogo b. Kit Sackett via knockout
Brian Cage b. Deonn Rusman – Cloverleaf
Dustin Rhodes/Sammy Guevara b. Dark Order – Swanton Bomb to Reynolds

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: September 12, 2024
Location: Esports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

The Texas residency finally comes to an end with the last of one heck of a marathon taping. That being said, there is almost no way of knowing what to expect here as the shows do not exactly build week to week. Odds are the action will be good, if not a bit overdone though. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Atlantis Jr. vs. Peter Avalon

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Avalon wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a future title shot. Avalon goes after the arm to start before Atlantis does the same to take over. Back up and they shove each other until Atlantis gets an early two off a Falcon Arrow.

Avalon seems to bang up his knee on a leapfrog attempt but appears to be goldbricking and takes Avalon down. Atlantis is right back up and hits a high crossbody, followed by a clothesline out to the floor. The big dive gets two on Avalon back inside and Avalon’s top rope moonsault press gets the same. Atlantis shrugs that off and hits a frog splash for the pin at 6:20.

Rating: C. This was the same issue that always plagues Atlantis as there is nothing about him that stands out in the slightest. He’s a perfectly adequate star but is seemingly there to boost up the relationship with CMLL. That doesn’t make for much of a championship run, especially when he doesn’t have any kind of a feud or story going on.

Billie Starkz asks Athena what is going on but Athena praises Lexi Nair instead. Maybe Nair should be Minion #1! Starkz loses it because Nair is getting all of her credit but Athena threatens violence for that kind of jealousy.

Harley Cameron vs. Queen Aminata

Aminata takes her down with a headscissors to start and shakes a bit for a bonus. A running knee to the chest gives Aminata two and they head outside where Cameron strikes away. Back in and a Russian legsweep gives Cameron two but Aminata grabs a suplex. The running hip attack misses in the corner though and Cameron hits a clothesline for two of her own. Back up and Aminata hits a headbutt for the fast pin at 7:00.

Rating: C. As usual, Aminata is only so interesting and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. She had her big run at the title and now that seems to have stopped mattering. It doesn’t help that Cameron is little more than the division’s designated jobber, which is all she was here. Not a bad match, but not something that is going to inspire much interest. In other words, it’s Ring Of Honor.

Top Flight/Action Andretti vs. Vin Parker/Dante Leon/CD Bennett

Lexi Nair is here with the good guys and for the sake of simplicity, I’ll only refer to Dante Martin as Dante. Andretti and Parker start things off with the former grabbing a hammerlock. A running kick to the chest gives Darius two but he gets taken into the wrong corner. That’s broken up with a dropkick and it’s off to Dante for a slingshot armdrag. Dante gets knocked outside for a stomping but he’s fine enough for a double hurricanrana back inside. Andretti is back in to clean house and a running shooting star press gets two on Leon. Dante’s swinging half nelson slam finishes Leon at 5:47.

Rating: C+. This was the latest match where Top Flight and Andretti looked good as a three man team, but there is no reason to believe that they are going to get a serious run at either title. We’ve been here so many times before and it hasn’t gone anywhere. The team is talented, but it doesn’t matter if the team isn’t getting in any real run at the titles. I have no idea why they don’t, but here we are again.

Rachael Ellering interrupts an annoyed Harley Cameron and mocks her for losing.

Outrunners vs. Fly Def

Erica Leigh is here with the Outunners. Fly starts in on Floyd’s arm before handing it off to Def for more of the same. Floyd fights up and hands it off to Magnum for the Paisan elbow. The Outrunners clear the ring in a hurry and Total Recall finishes Def at 2:33.

Post match Jacked Jameson and the Iron Savages jump the Outrunners because fun isn’t allowed on this show. The Infantry saves the Outrunners and we get the big handshake.

Robyn Renegade vs. Angelica Risk

The much bigger Renegade drops to her knees to even things up a bit, which earns her a slap. Risk takes her into the corner but gets dropped by a running knee. A suplex sets up an early chinlock but Renegade misses a charge into the corner. Back up and Renegade’s powerslam gets two but Risk manages a quick 619. Renegade shrugs it off and grabs a pumphandle Downward Spiral for the pin at 3:44.

Rating: C. Yes the woman who is occasionally brought in to put others over needed a win on this show. This is a great example of the kind of match that absolutely did not need to be on the show and only makes a long show even longer. The match was perfectly fine, but it’s just adding content to the show, which is rarely a good idea.

Jacoby Watts doesn’t like EJ Nduka and tells him to come find either himself or Nick Comoroto.

Righteous vs. James Blackheart/JC Valentine

Vincent hugs Blackheart to start and then runs him over in a bit of a mixed message. Valentine comes in and gets crushed by Dutch, with Blackheart getting the same. Orange Sunshine finishes Valentine at 2:41.

Ariya Daivari vs. Sammy Guevara

Daivari, with Mark Sterling, is going to beat up Guevara rather than all of Texas. Commentary says Guevara is on “the winning streak of his life”, roughly 24 hours after he lost on Dynamite. Daivari’s running shoulder has limited success to start before they fight over wrist control. Guevara dropkicks him out to the floor but spins into the pose rather than dive.

They brawl on the floor with Daivari taking over and sending him into the buckle a few times back inside. Sterling even gets in some choking before Daivari grabs a sleeper. Guevara fights up on the second arm drop and they chop it out with Guevara getting the better of things this time. Some right hands in the corner set up a delayed brainbuster to give Guevara two but it’s too early for the GTH. Instead Guevara goes up for the 630 but the Premiere Athletes break it up. Daivari’s hammerlock lariat gets two but Guevara dives onto the Athletes. A springboard cutter into the GTH gives Guevara the win at 11:03.

Rating: B-. This was the first match on the show that felt somewhat important, but it also makes me wonder why Guevara needs to be a champion. He hasn’t teamed with Dustin Rhodes as a regular team very often and is already losing on AEW TV, but he’s a Ring Of Honor champion anyway. Oh right he’s from Texas, which is all that matters in recent weeks.

Lexi Nair does not like Red Velvet but Diamante comes in to unofficially challenge for the title.

Lady Frost vs. Promise Braxton

Frost grabs a headlock to start but Braxton hits her in the back and hits something like a reverse Meteora. The chinlock doesn’t keep Frost down for long and she comes back with a running clothesline. A hurricanrana out of the corner into a cannonball gives Frost two and Frostbite finishes Braxton at 3:16.

Rating: C. More of the main theme of the show here, as someone whose main function is to make someone else look good gets a win. Again, that’s fine once in awhile but it can be rather tedious to watch a show mainly comprised of that kind of match. Frost feels like someone who could be a player, but since that isn’t going to happen, it makes matches like this feel rather tedious.

Willie Mack vs. Exodus Prime

Mack flips over him to start and grabs an armdrag before hitting a splash for two. Some chops in the corner set up a double nipple twist, with the fans approving of Mack’s actions. Exodus gets in a shot of his own and drops a knee, setting up the slingshot legdrop for two. A suplex gets Mack out of trouble and the standing moonsault gives him two. Prime’s comeback has no effect and it’s the Six Star Frog Splash to give Mack the pin at 7:20.

Rating: C+. This show is rapidly losing me as there is zero reason for a someone who hasn’t been here since February to need seven minutes to beat someone whose name sounds like a knockoff Transformer. It’s another example of this show just going and going with no reason other than because the person running it feels like it should. You can also add Mack to the list of people who are not likely going to go anywhere but needed a win anyway.

Beef interrupts Anthony Henry, who still doesn’t like him. Henry warns Beef that JD Drake is going to come back and slap Beef in the face.

Preston Vance vs. KM

Vance actually gets an insert promo, talking about how he wants to show what Brodie Lee saw in him. Vance knocks him down to start and takes it to the apron, where KM gets in a Stunner over the top. That doesn’t bother Vance, who sends him into the barricade and steps to cut off the comeback. A suplex on the ramp sets up a spinebuster back inside, followed by the discus lariat to finish KM at 3:19.

Rating: C-. I’m sure this will be the start of the big run for Vance, who has wrestled four times this year and hadn’t won a singles match in about a year and a half. It’s another thing that was added onto the show with no additional value, which has been the case with almost everything on this show. I’m going to guess that Tony Khan saw Vance in catering and put him on the show because he suddenly remembered Vance worked here, because why else would he be put on this far too long show?

Fuego del Sol/Spanish Announce Project vs. Ace Of Space Academy/Joe Alonzo

Angelico and Alonzo fight over wrist control to start, with Angelico getting the better of things and taking him into the corner. The rather large Charles comes in and is quickly dropkicked out to the floor. Back in and Serpentico gets caught in the wrong corner with an enziguri into a splash giving Charles two.

Alonzo slams him down for…nothing as Serpentico’s shoulder isn’t down. A running Downward Spiral gives Serpentico a breather and Angelico comes in to kick LSG into a small package for two. Everything breaks down and Fuego tornado DDTs Charles to the floor. Angelico grabs a Sharpshooter with an arm trap to make LSG give up at 6:03.

Rating: C. Fuego is your We’re In Texas addition to the show and the Project has to be on almost every Ring Of Honor show ever so they check a pair of boxes. Other than that, it’s more of the same on this show, as people who have nothing going on are put in a match just to add onto the card. Alonzo has looked decent in his appearances, but it’s hard to stand out in a six man tag.

AR Fox/Komander vs. Ariel Dominguez/Brilliante RB

Komander knocks Dominguez into the corner to start and hits a standing moonsault for an early two. RB comes in to float over Fox in the corner and a moonsault over him increases the frustration. Fox’s sunset flip gets two so it’s already back to Dominguez. Fox snaps off a jumping cutter to RB and hits the big flip dive to take both of them out on the floor. Komander hits his own dive and Cielito Lindo finishes RB at 4:50.

Rating: C+. They’re kidding right? The show was already pushing two hours so let’s put in another thrown together pairing of people who are on the show occasionally but never do anything. I’m sure they’ll be in the thick of the Tag Team Title hunt though, because every team who wins a match gets the same reaction, whether they are brand new or established as a team.

Lio Rush vs. Rocky Romero

Student vs. teacher. Romero armdrags him down to start and this a running basement dropkick, setting up an Eddie Guerrero dance. A shot to the face staggers Rush in the corner but he’s back with his running dodges into a dropkick. Back up and Romero kicks the leg out to send Rush face first into the buckle. A spinning backbreaker has Rush’s back in trouble and the beating continues on the floor.

Back in and Romero stomps away to set up a suplex, followed by a surfboard as the back focus keeps going. Rush jawbreaks his way to freedom but Romero pulls him right back into a chinlock. Another comeback sees Rush hit a tornado DDT and he cuts off the Forever Lariats. Romero kicks him into the corner and scores with a knee to the ribs but has to block a springboard cutter. Rush is right back with the springboard Stunner though and the Final Hour finishes at 11:23.

Rating: B-. This was the main event of the show and got the most time of any match. Here’s the problem with that: last night on Dynamite, Rush was thrown into a random TNT Title match and lost in about eight minutes while Romero has never won anything of value in either AEW or Ring Of Honor. Yes Romero mentored Rush off camera, but why in the world would that make me want to see them have a match? They’re people who have been presented as next to nothing in either promotion and that takes away the interest their behind the scenes story might have.

Overall Rating: D. This show did the worst thing a wrestling show can do: it felt like I wasted my time. Up and down the card, you had people who have either been spinning their wheels for months or doing nothing (again: Preston Vance has wrestled THREE TIMES this year but got a match here) and I’m supposed to want to watch them have matches for two hours.

This was episode 81 of the new Ring Of Honor and they have a very clear method of operation. You know what you’re going to get and you know that the people regularly presented as not often going to be elevated into the title picture. It’s a bunch of people with nothing better to do being thrown on here because of this really annoying mentality of “everyone should be presented as often as possible”.

It comes off like Tony Khan does not care about the quality of the show but rather just expects you to sit through whatever he throws out there because he knows you’ll either put up with it or he doesn’t care because you’ve already paid (BECAUSE THIS SHOW IS BEHIND A FREAKING PAYWALL!).

Normally I would say “Ring Of Honor needs to do this and this and this” but it’s not going to change anyway, so why waste even more of my time in a week where AEW already had an extra five hours of pay per view time, following another two hours of Ring Of Honor last week? Horribly put together show here and another great example of why Ring Of Honor is the biggest waste of time vanity project in wrestling today.

Results
Atlantis Jr. b. Peter Avalon – Frog splash
Queen Aminata b. Harley Cameron – Headbutt
Top Flight/Action Andretti b. Vin Parker/Dante Leon/CD Bennett – Swinging half nelson slam to Leon
Outrunners b. Fly Def – Total Recall to Def
Robyn Renegade b. Angelica Risk – Pumphandle Downward Spiral
Righteous b. James Blackheart/JC Valentine – Orange Sunshine to Valentine
Sammy Guevara b. Ariya Daivari – GTH
Lady Frost b. Promise Braxton – Frostbite
Willie Mack b. Exodus Prime – Six Star Frog Splash
Preston Vance b. KM – Discus lariat
Spanish Announce Project/Fuego del Sol b. Ace Of Space Academy/Joe Alonzo – Arm trap Sharpshooter to LSG
AR Fox/Komander b. Brilliante RB/Ariel Dominguez – Cielito Lindo to RB
Lio Rush b. Rocky Romero – Final Hour

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: August 8, 2024
Location: Esports Arena Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re still in Texas and the big story coming out of last week is Sammy Guevara showing up to join the other Texans because we all love Texas around here. Odds are we get some fallout from that this week as we build towards pretty much nothing for the foreseeable future. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Dark Order vs. Dustin Rhodes/Sammy Guevara

Fallout from last week’s show closing angle. Guevara drops Silver down to start and it’s off to Dustin for a clothesline to send Reynolds outside. Everything breaks down and Guevara’s teased dive turns into a break dance into a pose. Dustin does the same and the fans are rather pleased. We settle down to Dustin getting caught in the wrong corner but he manages the powerslam, only to bang up his knee in the process. Dustin and Reynolds head outside, where Evil Uno gets in a cheap shot to give Reynolds a quick two.

Silver’s DDT on the knee gets two and the knee is wrapped around the middle rope. The Order takes turns working on the knee, including a half crab from Silver. That’s broken up and Dustin low bridges Reynolds outside, allowing the tag off to Guevara to pick up the pace. Back to back dives take out the Order but a superkick into a bridging German suplex gives Silver two. Guevara and Reynolds trade knees to the face until a DDT drops Guevara for two. Everything breaks down and Dustin’s knee is fine enough for the Canadian Destroyer. The GTH finishes Silver at 12:01.

Rating: C+. This was a completely by the book tag match and that’s perfectly fine. Dustin and Guevara fill in the Texas quota for the night while the Order has been around for so long that they’re kind of packaged into the whole thing. Hopefully this wraps up the feud though, as there isn’t much left for them (or the Von Erichs) to do here.

We look at the Women’s Title matches at Death Before Dishonor.

Athena is sick of Billie Starkz’s disappointments. Starkz’s MIT degree is revoked and she is officially Minion #400,237 ¾ in training again. Queen Aminata and Red Velvet come in and say it’s a tag match tonight because Athena and Starkz aren’t ducking them anymore. They JUST SHOWED a clip of the four of them in a pair of title matches from two weeks ago! How have Athena and Starkz been ducking them???

Taya Valkyrie vs. Hyan

Johnny TV, looking like he just finished a match, is here with Taya, who isn’t overly interested in the pre-match handshake. Hyan forearms her into the ropes to start and gets caught with a running elbow in the corner for her efforts. Taya knocks her down and cranks away on both arms before hitting a spear. Shania Pain finishes for Taya at 2:38.

Griff Garrison and Maria (minus Cole Karter) are cut off by the Spanish Announce Project. They want one more match for Serpentico’s mask, with Serpentico putting his mask on the line. This has to be it for this feud right? It has to be.

Tag Team Titles: Infantry vs. Kingdom

The Infantry, with Trish Adora, is challenging and it’s a brawl at the bell. The Kingdom tries to bail up the aisle but get pulled back to keep the brawl going at ringside. Bravo throws Taven inside to start properly and a double fist drop gets two. Bennett comes in and gets chinlocked down, followed by an armdrag into an armbar on Taven. A cheap shot from Bennett lets Taven grab a suplex and the villains take over. Bennett’s pop up right hand gets two and a Russian legsweep gives Taven the same.

Bravo fights out of a chinlock but gets dropped for two, with a grab of the rope being necessary. Back up and the diving tag brings in Dean to clean house. A frog splash gets two on Taven with Bennett making the save. The Death Valley Driver into Just The Tip gets two with Bravo making the save. The spike piledriver is broken up but so is Boot Camp. Bennett’s low blow sets up the spike piledriver to finish Dean and retain at 11:46.

Rating: B-. These teams have enough chemistry but that’s the second loss from the Infantry to the Kingdom. Normally I would say that it’s enough to end their feud but it isn’t like the tag division has that much depth. The Kingdom is more likely to lose the titles to an AEW team, as that is where they wind up spending most of their time in the first place.

Rachael Ellering vs. Brooke Havok

Ellering goes after the arm to start and powers her way out of a headlock. That’s enough for a standoff before Ellering runs her over, only to get tripped down so Havok can pose. Back up and Ellering fires off some chops in the corner but Havok takes her down and hits a basement dropkick. A neckbreaker gives Havok two but the Boss Woman Slam finishes for Ellering at 4:47.

Rating: C. Not much to this one here but Ellering matches are always going to b at least decent. That was the case again here, with Ellering needing to get a boost as she is still getting established around here. Havok was smooth enough out there and could be a nice choice for a spot like this going forward.

Respect is shown post match.

Lee Moriarty wants to face Action Andretti again and will put the Pure Rules Title on the line.

Outrunners vs. Stephen Wolf/Barrett Brown

Erica Leigh is here with the Outrunners, who shake hands with each other to start. Magnum chops the heck out of Brown in the corner to start and it’s off to Floyd to stay on the arm. An elbow drop sets up more posing and a powerbomb/neckbreaker combination finishes Wolf at 2:19.

Robbie Eagles vs. Darian Bengston

Eagles cranks away on the arm to start but Bengston takes him down and does some basketball poses. Back up and a spinwheel kick drops Bengston and a rather slow spinning toehold is broken up. Bengston’s forearms are broken up and Eagles kicks him in the leg. A 450 onto the leg sets up…something kind of leglock called the Ron Miller Special for the win at 5:21.

Rating: C+. Eagles is a star over in New Japan and looked good here, though it was little more than a squash with Bengston not being able to get very far. I could go for more of Eagles around here as the show could desperately use some more star power, but this might just be a cameo from an international star. That leglock certainly looked cool if nothing else.

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Tony Nese

Mark Sterling and Ariya Daivari are here with Nese. For some reason Nese tries to chop away to start and gets knocked into the corner for his efforts. Nese’s forearms don’t get him anywhere so they head outside, where Nese manages to get in a quick dive for a knockdown.

Back in and Ishii fights out of a chinlock but gets caught in the Randy Savage jumping neck snap over the top. Ishii snaps off a belly to back suplex for two, followed by one heck of a clothesline for the same. Sterling is dealt with and the brainbuster is enough to finish for Ishii at 8:23.

Rating: C+. This felt like a way to have Ishii on the show and since the Premiere Athletes are the designated jobbers in AEW and ROH at the moment, the result wasn’t quite in doubt. Ishii can still do well enough, but like many others either here or in AEW, a lot of the special feeling goes away when he’s around so often. At least this one was a singles match instead of another big tag though.

Rachael Ellering is glad to be back after her injuries. Harley Cameron interrupts and seems happy to meet Ellering, who doesn’t seem impressed.

Johnny TV vs. Fuego del Sol

Taya Valkyrie is here with TV, who gets armdragged and dropkicked to start. TV knocks him down but it’s way too early for Starship Pain, allowing TV to hit a hard knee out to the floor. The flipping neckbreaker keeps del Sol down and we hit the chinlock back inside. A spinning knee to the face gives TV two and we’re back to the chinlock.

Del Sol fights out and hits an enziguri, setting up some running dropkicks in the corner. TV is back with a seatbelt for two, followed by a jumping kick to the head op top. Del Sol is fine enough to crotch him on top for a double stomp but TV easily gets in a knockdown of his own. Starship Pain finishes del Sol at 6:22.

Rating: C+. The del Sol push comes to a halt here and that isn’t the biggest surprise. Del Sol coming back was a nice surprise and it was nice to see TV actually get a win for once. At some point his status is going to fall with all of the losses so changing the results up a bit is not a bad idea.

Red Velvet/Queen Aminata vs. Athena/Billie Starkz

Both teams have matching gear, which is impressive for a match that wasn’t set when the show started. Starkz and Aminata start things off with Aminata taking her to the mat in a front facelock. It’s quickly off to Athena, who gets hammered down into the corner. Athena fights out and starts in on Aminata’s arm, setting up a Codebreaker for two. Starkz slams the bad arm into the mat a few times and, with Velvet being drawn in, some double stomping ensues.

Aminata fights up and gets over to Velvet, who tornado DDTs Athena for a fast two. A Codebreaker/German suplex combination sets up a running knee to give Aminata two. Back up and it’s off to Athena, who fires off superkicks to stagger Aminata and Velvet. A fall away slam/Samoan drop (at the same time) sends them flying again and Athena knocks Aminata silly with the big right hand. Velvet takes Athena down and hits the Mix on Starks but Athena makes the save. Aminata won’t let Athena use the microphone but Starkz gets in a belt shot for the pin at 12:11.

Rating: B-. The ending is a nice way to get Starkz back in Athena’s good graces, which she is going to need after losing last moth, which is not something Athena will like. The cheating is certainly an Athena way to go as well and it should set up a potential title rematch. At the same time, I could go for seeing some fresh challengers to either title, though I’m not sure that is going to take place for a good while.

Overall Rating: C+. The action was fine enough, and as usual, after about an hour and forty five minutes of decent/mediocre wrestling, I’m not overly interested in most of what I’m seeing around here. The World Title still might as well not exist most of the time and we’re back to the same Tag Team Title match that we saw over Wrestlemania Weekend.

The Women’s Titles are still in the same stories they’ve been in for a few months now, making this show feel like it is running a treadmill while being lost at the same time. As usual, it’s not a bad show, but an hour and forty five minutes of this stuff wears out its welcome very fast.

Results
Dustin Rhodes/Sammy Guevara b. Dark Order – GTH to Silver
Taya Valkyrie b. Hyan – Shania Pain
Kingdom b. Infantry – Spike piledriver
Rachael Ellering b. Brooke Havok – Boss Woman Slam
Outrunners b. Stephen Wolf/Barrett Brown – Powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Wolf
Robbie Eagles b. Darian Bengston – Ron Miller Special
Tomohiro Ishii b. Tony Nese – Brainbuster
Johnny TV b. Fuego del Sol – Starship Pain
Athena/Billie Starkz b. Queen Aminata/Red Velvet – Belt shot to Velvet

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Death Before Dishonor 2024
Date: July 26, 2024
Location: Esports Stadium, Arlington, Arlington, Texas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s the second of three pay per views from Ring Of Honor and the show has quite the variety. First up, the World Title will be on the line as Mark Briscoe defends against Roderick Strong. Other than that we have Athena defending the Women’s Title against Queen Aminata and the Undisputed Kingdom defending the Tag Team Titles against Tomohiro Ishii and Kyle O’Reilly. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: MxM Collection vs. Spanish Announce Project

That would be Mason and Mansoor, formerly known as the Maximum Male Models in WWE. Mansoor shoulders Serpentico down to start and it’s time to strike a pose. A finger tip tag brings Mason in as we keep hearing audio from the production team. Serpentico can’t do much so it’s off to the bigger Angelico, who gets caught in the corner.

A standing legdrop gives Mason two and it’s back to Mansoor for a spinebuster. Mason’s running hip attack sends Angelico outside and more pose striking ensues. Back up and Serpentico takes over on Mansoor’s arm, with Angelico adding a middle rope elbow to the shoulder. Serpentico mocks the posing, allowing Mansoor to bring Mason back in. Mason gets low bridged to the floor but is fine enough to come back in with a spinebuster.

Everything breaks down and Mansoor is dropped back first onto the turnbuckle. Serpentico hits a big suicide dive for two but Mansoor flips back over to Mason for the tag. House is cleaned in a hurry and an assisted double underhook implant DDT (the Centerfold) finishes Serpentico at 9:08.

Rating: C+. This was all about the Collection’s charisma and it was on full display, as it should have been. They were a lot of fun and had the crowd loving what they were doing, which is a great sign for their future. At the same time, the match went longer than it should have and they could have cut out of the heat segments from the Project, as it felt like they just did the same thing twice.

Post match Maria Kanellis comes out to applaud, with the Collection seeming intrigued.

Zero Hour: Angelica Risk vs. Marina Shafir

Mother’s Milk ends Risk at 58 seconds.

Zero Hour: Infantry vs. Griff Garrison/Anthony Henry

Maria is here with Garrison and Henry, the latter of whom is a substitute for Cole Karter. Henry gets knocked into the corner to start and it’s ff to Garrison. Bravo gets sent into the wrong corner so Henry can stomp away, setting up a leg crank. The posing STF goes on for a bit, followed by the running knees in the corner for two.

Garrison chops away so Henry can get in a kick to the back. Bravo gets in a quick knockdown though and the diving tag brings in Dean to clean house. Book Camp is broken up though and a superplex into a double stomp gets two on Dean. The screaming Maria gets on the apron but gets knocked into Garrison’s arm, allowing Boot Camp to finish Henry at 9:08.

Rating: C. The problem here is it felt like a match that we’ve seen before, even if it wasn’t a regular team. The Infantry has been bouncing around the tag division for the better part of ever and never feel like they’re getting anywhere. The match was completely run of the mill as well and could have easily been dropped without adding even more content to the needlessly packed pre-show.

Zero Hour: Top Flight vs. Outrunners

Erica Lee is here with the Outrunners. Darius gets knocked into the corner to start and Floyd gets to pose a bit. Magnum comes in and gets dropkicked down, meaning it’s off to Dante for a headlock. The fans are split as Floyd gets double legtripped down but Erica grabs the foot so the Outrunners can take over.

Alternating beatings have Darius in trouble and a clothesline gets two. The sleeper is broken up though and it’s Dante coming in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Floyd is kneed to the floor, setting up stereo running shots to Magnum in the corner. Dante dives onto Floyd and what looked to be an F5 (the camera missed the setup) finishes Magnum at 8:33.

Rating: C. This was pretty boring for the most part with Top Flight’s comeback being the highlight. The Outrunners work best in short spurts or the joke starts to wear thin in a hurry. That was the case here, as you can only watch so much of the same beatdown before it stops being interesting. At least the right team won.

The opening video takes a pretty standard look at the main matches.

Komander vs. Beast Mortos

Mortos wastes no time in knocking knocking him down but Komander is back up with the kicks to the legs. A dropkick sends Mortos outside but the big running flip dive is pulled out of the air. Komander gets powerbombed into Alex Abrahantes against the barricade and they head back inside. Mortos chops the spit out of him but Komander grabs a quick rollup for two. Back up and Mortos drops him again, meaning it’s time to pull off a turnbuckle cover.

Komander gets in a quick shot for a breather but gets caught on top to cut him off again. A step up hurricanrana off the apron sends Mortos to the floor and a tornado DDT off the apron makes it worse. Komander walks the ropes to set up a big flip dive, followed by a poisonrana for two back inside. A dive hits raised feet though and one heck of a pop up Samoan drop gives Mortos two.

Komander reverses a backbreaker into a crucifix driver and then spins into a Canadian Destroyer. Mortos shrugs that off and hits a spear to leave them both down. They slowly get up and head to the same corner, where Mortos hits the super gorilla press slam. Komander is back with another Destroyer, only to miss the Cielito Lindo. The spinning piledriver gives Mortos the pin at 13:30.

Rating: B-. It was a good speed vs. power match and that made for a nice opener, though it never quite hit that next level. What mattered here was giving the fans something to get them going. Komander is a fun high flier, but there are a lo of them running around and it makes it difficult to really stand out. Mortos on the other hand always stands out, but his lack of success holds him back a bit. That being said, nice job of getting things going here.

The MxM Collection calls out FTR for Collision. These guys are great but that’s probably a loss.

We recap the Tag Team Title match, which is pretty much just an announcement.

Tag Team Titles: Kingdom vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly

Ishii and O’Reilly, in their second match ever as a team, are challenging. Bennett and Ishii start things off and chop it out, with Ishii getting the better of things to take over. O’Reilly comes in to crank on Taven’s arm but Taven is back up with a nice dropkick. Back up and O’Reilly takes over on the arm and Ishii comes in for some cranking of his own. O’Reilly adds the abdominal stretch with the knuckles to the ribs, followed by strikes to both champions.

Bennett manages to knock Ishii into the corner, including a slap. The fans know he screwed up and Ishii fights over to O’Reilly to take over. Everything breaks down and Ishii is sent outside for a suicide dive, only to have O’Reilly hit a running knee off the apron. Back in and Bennett cuts off O’Reilly’s Rebound lariat, allowing Taven to crush him back to the floor. The champs take turns with the beating back inside and Taven adds an elbow for two.

O’Reilly finally kicks his way to freedom and it’s back to Ishii to clean house. A pair of suplexes gets two on Taven but Bennett is back in with the Hail Mary…but Ishii pops back up. Everything breaks down again and Ishii’s brainbuster sets up a top rope knee to Bennett’s back. Taven makes the save and hits the frog splash before all four are knocked down.

They all get up for the slugout with the champs getting the better of the exchange of strikes. O’Reilly is back up with some kicks of his own, setting up Ishii’s super brainbuster. Chasing The Dragon gets two with Taven having to make the save. O’Reilly and Bennett fight over a suplex but here are Kyle Fletcher and Don Callis to interrupt. The distraction lets Bennett hit a low blow to retain the titles at 19:41.

Rating: B. The biggest problem here was the lack of drama, as it was really hard to buy the idea that a new team was going to take the titles here. The Undisputed Kingdom isn’t a great team but they’ve been champions for a long time and it is going to take some time to get the titles off of them. Ishii and O’Reilly did well, but they aren’t a regular team and probably shouldn’t have gotten the shot here, as it made all of the other tag matches coming into the show feel worthless.

We recap Leyla Hirsch vs. Diamante. They hate each other, they’ve had a bunch of matches, tonight it’s a Texas Death Match.

Diamante vs. Leyla Hirsch

Texas Death Match, meaning submission or Last Man Standing rules to win (again, not a Texas Death Match but it’s what Tony Khan calls it). Diamante jumps her on the ramp to start fast and throws her off the stage and through a table for nine. They go to the ring where Diamante sends in a bunch of chairs. Hirsch is tied in the Tree of Woe and one of the chairs is dropkicked into her face.

The bloody Hirsch comes back with a chair shot of her own to take get a breather and the now bleeding Diamante is sent into a chair in the corner as well. The thumbtacks are poured out and a sunset German superplex sends Diamante crashing into them for the nasty landing. Hirsch’s moonsault only hits tacks though (geez), allowing Diamante to grab some duct tape to attach Hirsch to the rope. Diamante whips out a shoe to keep up the beating and then grabs a shoe with tacks embedded.

The tacks go into Hirsch’s head and, since she’s tied up, Diamante can set up a bunch of chairs and a barbed wire board. Diamante has to loosen her up to do anything though, allowing Hirsch to hit a Samoan drop through the board. It’s ladder time and let’s throw in a table as well. That takes WAY too long to set up but Hirsch manages to tape Diamante to the table and go up for a huge moonsault off the top of the ladder through said table for the win at 15:39.

Rating: B-. Maybe it was the fact that we just saw them have a hardcore match a few weeks ago or how long it took to set up a bunch of the spots but I couldn’t get into this one. The bleeding made things more interesting and it was certainly intense, but this missed that high level for some reason. It kind of felt like violence for violence’s sake, and when I just saw the thumbtacks and bleeding in Blood & Guts on Wednesday, this didn’t have the same impact.

We recap the Pure Rules Title match, with Lee Moriarty surviving a Proving Ground match to earn the shot. This is Wheeler Yuta’s first title defense since January.

Pure Rules Title: Wheeler Yuta vs. Lee Moriarty

Yuta is defending and they waste no time in going to the grappling. Moriarty takes him down and cranks on the arm, even throwing in a bicep pose. Yuta reverses into a leglock and Moriarty has to use his first break. A headscissors slows Moriarty down even more and Yuta switches over to a hammerlock. Moriarty reverses into a hold of his own and Yuta uses his own break to even things up.

Yuta backs him into the corner and tries to sneak in a right hand but gets caught, earning his official warning. Moriarty uses the distraction to get in a right hand of his own and since this is a Pure Rules match, it’s absolutely devastating. Yuta is back up with an armbar to make Moriarty use his second break. Back up and they slug it out with Moriarty grabbing a suplex to take over.

Moriarty catches him on top again and grabs a top rope superplex for the big crash and a double down. Back up and Moriarty punches him (official warning) into the Border City Stretch, with Yuta using his second rope break. They fight to the apron and crash out to the floor for another double breather. Back in and Moriarty faceplants him down, with Yuta’s shoulder giving him trouble.

A neck and arm crank makes Yuta use his last rope break. Yuta puts on a quick Cattle Mutilation and Moriarty burns his last break as well. Moriarty muscles him up for a crash down onto the apron and out to the floor, only to have Yuta come back in with a Fujiwara armbar. That’s reverses into a rollup with Moriarty using the ropes (legal, as they were out of rope breaks) to steal the pin and the title at 19:57.

Rating: B. They were going back and forth and it was a technical showcase, but it’s kind of hard to suddenly get interested in a title that hasn’t been defended in almost seven months. It doesn’t help that neither guy is all that interesting in the first place and it added up to a match where I was interested in some of the things that we being done but not the people doing them.

We recap Billie Starkz defending the Women’s TV Title against Red Velvet. Starkz cheated to win the title and Velvet doesn’t like it, so it’s time to come after the belt herself.

Women’s TV Title: Billie Starkz vs. Red Velvet

Starkz is defending. Velvet starts by hammering on the ribs, only to have Starkz grab her by the hair to take over. An electric chair drop onto the top turnbuckle rocks Velvet and Starkz ties her in the Tree Of Woe. After Velvet crashes back down, Starkz chops away in the corner and gets in some choking. A suplex out of the corner gives Velvet two and her belly to back gets two.

Velvet grabs a DDT for two more and there’s a running knee to the back of the head against the ropes. Starkz gets in a quick shot and goes up but a super victory roll gives Velvet two. Another knockdown lets Starkz grab a choke, followed by a brainbuster onto the knee for two more. Starkz: “I’m gonna kill you!” Riccaboni: “You’ll go to jail if you do that.” Velvet slips out and hits the Mix for two.

They go up top and Starkz is knocked to the floor, where she injures her neck again. Commentary doesn’t buy it and since it’s a real, legitimate injury, the medics put her back inside. Starkz is of course fine and hits a knee to the head to drop Velvet again. Velvet pops up and then plays dead, setting up a slam off the middle rope. The flipping faceplant (basically Natural Selection) gives Velvet the pin and the title at 14:53.

Rating: B. Thankfully they didn’t go too far with the faked injury as it would have been terrible to see Velvet fall for the obvious ruse. Velvet winning is a nice moment, though it’s hard to get around the idea of thinking of her as the woman obsessed with cooking. Athena and her Minions had to lose something though and this works as well as anything else.

We recap the Dark Order vs. Dustin Rhodes/the Von Erichs. This is for a spot in the Six Man Tag Team Title match at tomorrow’s Battle Of The Belts, which has so much wrong with it that I don’t know where to start. Other than that, it’s an established team vs. three Texans.

Dark Order vs. Dustin Rhodes/Von Erichs

The Order jumps them to start and the fight heads to the floor, with none of the six in the ring as the opening bell rings. We settle down to Ross Sling Blading Uno and it’s off to Marshall for a slam on Silver. Everything breaks down and Dustin clotheslines Reynolds to the floor. Uno uses the distraction to get in a cowbell shot to Ross and the slow beating begins.

Ross manages to flip out of a double belly to back suplex though and it’s Marshall coming back in to clean house. The villains cut him off and knocks him to the floor though, with Uno’s suplex into a front facelock keeping him in trouble. Rhodes tries to make a save but gets sent into the steps, allowing the Order to mock the cowboy hat. Back in and a piledriver gets two on Marshall but Reynolds misses a moonsault.

Marshall powerslams his way out of trouble and it’s back to Rhodes to clean house. Cross Rhodes gets two on Reynolds with Uno making the save. Everything breaks down and Marshall is sent over the barricade, leaving Dustin to get enziguried into a Stunner into a bridging German suplex for two. Rhodes slips out of a Shattered Dreams attempt and hits a Canadian Destroyer into his own Shattered Dreams. Well the attempt at least as Silver breaks it up, only to get clawed by Marshall. The Claw goes on as Rhodes hits Shattered Dreams into the Final Reckoning to finish Reynolds at 14:22.

Rating: C. Remember how I said it was hard to get interested in a hardcore match when I saw Diamante and Leyla Hirsch have a street fight a few weeks ago? Well it was even harder when I saw the Von Erichs and the Order have a match this week on the regular Ring Of Honor show. It also doesn’t help that the Von Erichs are still not that interesting and that was on full display here.

Post match Katsuyori Shibata comes out to praise the Von Erichs.

We recap the TV Title match, which is a six way elimination match without much in the way of a setup.

TV Title: Atlantis Jr. vs. Johnny TV vs. Lio Rush vs. Shane Taylor vs. Brian Cage vs. Lee Johnson

Atlantis Jr. is defending and this is under elimination rules. Rush knocks Atlantis to the floor to start and hits a big slingshot dive to take him down fast. The villains consider an alliance but it winds up with Cage and Taylor trading clotheslines and neither going down. Atlantis is back in to take over on Cage and send him outside. Rush gets caught in an inverted Gory Special but Rush slips out and hits a Stunner for two.

Johnson is back in with a neckbreaker and kick to the chest for two but TV is in to rake Johnson’s eyes. TV is back in for a superkick to Taylor, who chokebombs him for two. Back in and Rush dodges Taylor until Taylor hits a running shooting star press for two of his own. Atlantis gets back up and hits a suicide dive onto Taylor, setting up Johnson’s big running flip dive. TV adds his own big flip dive and Cage hits one of his own. Taylor’s dive is cut off and everyone goes after him for the big beatdown. Taylor cleans house but gets knocked down, setting up Rush’s frog splash to get rid of Taylor at 9:52.

Johnson avoids another frog splash and grabs the Big Shot Drop for the elimination of Rush at 11:24. TV and Cage stomp Johnson down in the corner and a double suplex gets two, despite the referee’s hand hitting the mat a third time. The beating is on in the corner again until Johnson sends TV out to the floor. Back in and a powerbomb/Flying Chuck combination gets rid of Johnson at 15:01.

TV sends Cage to the floor bu Atlantis is back up with the chops. Cage grabs the apron superplex to plant Atlantis but Taya Valkyrie comes in for a distraction. The low blow staggers Cage, who is right back with the Drill Claw to get rid of TV at 18:24. We’re down to Cage vs. Atlantis for the title and Cage nails a discus lariat. The Drill Claw is loaded up but Atlantis reverses into a cradle to retain at 19:00.

Rating: B. The action was good and there were some cool spots, but I’m still having trouble getting into Atlantis. He’s still just kind of there but happens t have a title. I could still go for Johnson to win the title and finally get somewhere, but that doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon. Odds are someone wins it back in Mexico, but for now, just another long match on a long show full of them.

We recap Athena vs. Queen Aminata for the Women’s Title. Athena has been champion for the better part of ever but has been faking a knee injury. Aminata doesn’t like this and is coming for the title.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Queen Aminata

Athena is defending and gets a big intro from Lexi Nair, telling a story about a legendary warrior’s destiny. They go to the mat with Aminata not being able to break Athena’s bridge. Athena sends her outside and hits the running dive and adds a ram into the barricade. The running knees only hit steps but so does Aminata’s running hip attack.

A gordbuster plants Aminata on the floor but she chops away back inside. Aminata strikes her down and hits a running boot in the ropes. A double stomp gets two on Athena, who is back up with the big right hand for two. Aminata is back up with a German suplex into the corner but a springboard spinning…I think stomp misses.

They forearm it out until Athena pulls her into a half crab, which she swaps out for a crossface. That’s broken up too so Athena throws her over the top and onto the steps. Back in and the O Face retains the title at 20:03 as the seemingly never ending reign is going to continue.

Rating: B-. I can go with Athena retaining the title over Aminata but Athena has to lose that thing sooner or later. That being said, Aminata winning the title wouldn’t have been the best fit. She is only starting to get over her pretty lame start in AEW/Ring Of Honor and having her get the huge win would seem weird. Someone is going to have to beat Athena at some point but Aminata didn’t feel like the right choice.

We recap the World Title match, with Roderick Strong winning a #1 contenders match and then attacking Mark Briscoe.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Mark Briscoe vs. Roderick Strong

Briscoe is defending and they take their time to start. Strong takes over on the mat but Briscoe slips out and it’s an early standoff. They head to the floor with Briscoe sending him into the barricade but the Froggy Bow hits raised knees back inside. Back up and Strong strikes away in the corner, only for Briscoe to fire off some chops.

A running big boot staggers Strong again and he goes outside, where Briscoe hits a running dropkick through the ropes. They fight back to the apron where Briscoe is rammed into the steel to give us some blood. Strong grabs a backbreaker into an Angle Slam into anther backbreaker. The Stronghold sends the rather bloody Briscoe over to the ropes. Briscoe makes the clothesline comeback and goes up, only to get super Angle Slammed back down for two more.

We get the required exchange of strikes with Briscoe getting the better of things. The Jay Driller is broken up and cue the Kingdom, with Mike Bennett getting in a belt shot for two. The Sick Kick gives Strong two so here is the Conglomeration to chase the Kingdom off. Briscoe fights up again and they head up top, where Strong gets knocked bard hard. The Froggy Bow retains the title at 19:30.

Rating: B. This felt as big as it could have on such short notice. There was almost no build to the match and that wasn’t going to help anything going in. While Briscoe doesn’t need to be champion and it doesn’t really add anything to him, it wouldn’t have felt right to give Strong the title either. I’m not sure if it was good enough to headline a pay per view, but it was a perfectly fine World Title match, albeit with a ton of blood.

Overall Rating: B. The theme that I kept coming back to here is the same thing that has been a problem with Ring Of Honor since its inception: so many things on here felt thrown together at the last minute. The majority of the matches either had no story or very little story (TV Title, Tag Team Titles, World Title and so on).

As is always the case: the wrestling is good because the wrestlers work hard to make the biggest shows feel important, but if you’ve watched week after week, this show felt like it was from another promotion. I would hope there was a reason to believe that is going to change, but there is nothing to indicate that is going to happen. Solid show, but not exactly the norm week to week around here.

Results
MxM Collection b. Spanish Announce Project – Centerfold to Serpentico
Marina Shafir b. Angelica Risk – Mother’s Milk
Infantry b. Griff Garrison/Anthony Henry – Boot Camp to Henry
Top Flight b. Outrunners – Faceplant to Magnum
Beast Mortos b. Komander – Spinning piledriver
Undisputed Kingdom b. Kyle O’Reilly/Tomohiro Ishii – Low blow to Ishii
Leyla Hirsch b. Diamante – Moonsault through a table
Lee Moriarty b. Wheeler Yuta – Rollup with ropes
Red Velvet b. Billie Starkz – Flipping faceplant
Dustin Rhodes/Von Erichs b. Dark Order- final Reckoning to Reynolds
Atlantis Jr. b. Shane Taylor, Johnny TV, Brian Cage, Lee Johnson and Lio Rush – Rollup to Taylor
Athena b. Queen Aminata – O Face
Mark Briscoe b. Roderick Strong – Froggy Bow

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Ring Of Honor
Date: July 11, 2024
Location: Landers Center, Southaven, Mississippi
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We are less than a month away from Death Before Dishonor and last week saw the announcement of a bit of the card. There is of course a lot more that needs to be done but I’ll take something of a start over nothing. In theory we get more of that this week, but stranger things have happened. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Robyn Renegade vs. Taya Valkyrie vs. Marina Shafir

Johnny TV is here with Valkyrie. Renegade powers Shafir into the corner to start and hits a running dropkick to send her outside. That lets Valkyrie fire off some knees to Renegade but we stop for a kiss to TV. Back in and Renegade gets double chopped, only to have her kick her way to freedom. Renegade ties Shafir in the ropes for something like a springboard stomp before superkicking Valkyrie into the corner. Mother’s Milk goes on but Valkyrie makes the save and spears Shafir. Shania Pain finishes Renegade at 6:02.

Rating: C+. They packed a good bit of action into a little amount of time and Valkyrie continues her bit of momentum. In theory that would set her up for the next title shot after Death Before Dishonor, but that could be several weeks away. Other than that, Shafir and Renegade both get slowed down, which isn’t a great sign for either of them.

The Kingdom wants to have a night off at Death Before Dishonor. They have a bad history at that show so let’s just not do it this year.

TV Title: Serpentico vs. Atlantis Jr.

Atlantis Jr. is defending, having defeated Kyle Fletcher for the title a few weeks ago. Serpentico grabs a headlock at the bell and they head out to the floor where Atlantis gets knocked down. Back in and Atlantis is fine enough to grab a rolling cutter for two, only to get caught in a Downward Spiral for the same. A missed charge leaves Serpentico in the Tree of Woe for a running dropkick to give Atlantis two more. Serpentico is back with his own kick for two but Atlantis hits a powerslam into a frog splash to retain at 4:21.

Rating: C+. This is where a lot of the problems with these crossovers come from: what about this was supposed to stand out? Atlantis Jr. is talented, but it isn’t like there was anything here that made me really want to see more of him. We don’t know anything about him other than he beat Fletcher and has a famous dad. That doesn’t matter though, as we’re just supposed to go with Atlantis as a big deal because we’re told that he is without seeing it. That doesn’t work, but it’s all we get most of the time.

Skye Blue vs. Laynie Luck

Blue starts fast with a rollup and then takes Luck into the corner for some choking. Luck is right back with a Death Valley Driver for two, only to have Blue slug away to knock her back. A quick Code Blue gives Blue the pin at 3:40.

Rating: C. This was the latest attempt to get Blue in the ring as often as possible, albeit it in a rather cold match. Luck has shown that she can be better than a lot of the local jobbers but she didn’t have much of a chance to showcase herself here. It was kind of a random match and that rarely helps anyone.

The MxM Collection (Mansoor and Mason) is coming. These guys look very fun, just due to how over the top they’re going.

Billie Starkz vs. Mackenzie Morgan

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Morgan wins or survives the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Starkz (with Athena) works on the arm to start but stops to pose, allowing Morgan to grab an armdrag into an armbar. That’s reversed into a quickly broken chinlock but Morgan misses a dropkick. Athena, still on crutches, gets in a cheap shot before remembering that she’s injured. Back in and Starkz slips out of a fireman’s carry, setting up the fish hook chickenwing for the win at 5:22.

Rating: C+. Starkz is already set for a title match at the pay per view so the chances of her winning here didn’t seem that high. At the same time, Morgan got in some offense here, which is surprising given that Starkz probably needed a stronger showing. It wasn’t a bad match, but they put it together in an odd way.

Diamante vs. Nyxx

Diamante doesn’t waste time by hammering away to start, only to walk into a side slam for two. Back up and Diamante grabs her rolling cutter into the cross armbreaker (which she dedicates to Leyla Hirsch) for the win at 1:39.

Athena celebrates, only to remember that her ankle hurts.

Roderick Strong and Dalton Castle are having a #1 contenders match, with the winner getting the World Title shot at Death Before Dishonor. It’s taking place this weekend on Collision, because this is the most useless show in wrestling.

Lee Johnson/Infantry vs. Dark Order

Silver grabs a headlock on Bravo to start with Bravo ducking and dodging to set up a running elbow. It’s time to go after Silver’s arm as commentary talks about Broadway. Reynolds and Johnson come in as everything breaks down. The Order gets sent outside for a series of dives but manage to take over, with a suicide dive/suplex combination dropping Johnson.

Back in and the Order take turns beating on Johnson, with the other two holding him so Silver can get in a big boot. Johnson enziguris his way to freedom and it’s off to Dean to clean house. Everything breaks down again and Johnson gets triple teamed into a German suplex for two. They trade stereo shots to the face but Johnson escapes the triple flipping slam. Johnson’s frog splash finishes Uno at 10:06.

Rating: B-. Probably the best match on the show this week, but it’s another case where I don’t quite believe that any of this is going to matter. Beating the Order hasn’t meany anything in forever and the other three feel like the latest makeshift team. We have two shows left until Death Before Dishonor but they’re still burning off main event slots for pretty meaningless six man tags. That’s part of this show’s problem in a nutshell and I have no reason to believe it’s going to get better.

Overall Rating: C. This is a show where, as usual, the wrestling wasn’t the problem. The problem here is they have two weeks to go before one of their three pay per views and they did NOTHING for the show. What did we get here? Some people building momentum, a nothing TV Title match and a six man that has no bearing on anything. Where do we go to get the build to Death Before Dishonor? Collision, where Ring Of Honor’s World Title will be used as filler to take up part of that show’s two hours.

This show actually made me mad because it felt like Ring Of Honor saying “yeah this show doesn’t matter, but make sure you pay to watch the big show, which isn’t going to have much of a build because we can’t bother but TRADITION IS REALLY, TOTALLY IMPORTANT TO US!” The pay per view will be fine, but this show, which I remind you that you have to pay to watch monthly, is somehow getting more useless, which I didn’t think was possible.

Results
Taya Valkyrie b. Marina Shafir and Robyn Renegade – Shania Pain to Renegade
Atlantis Jr. b. Serpentico – Frog splash
Skye Blue b. Laynie Luck – Code Blue
Billie Starkz b. Mackenzie Morgan – Fish hook chickenwing
Diamante b. Nyxx – Cross armbreaker
Lee Johnson/Infantry b. Dark Order – Frog splash to Uno

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Collision
Date: July 6, 2024
Location: Landers Center, Southaven, Mississippi
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

The big story this week is going to be focused on talking, as Maxwell Jacob Friedman is set to open the show with an explanation for what he did to Daniel Garcia on Dynamite. Other than that, we have the second semifinals of the men’s Owen Hart Tournament, as the winner of Jay White vs. Hangman Page will face Bryan Danielson next week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of MJF turning on Daniel Garcia on Dynamite.

Here is MJF to explain what he did. MJF laughs off the idea that he and Daniel Garcia would be friends because Garcia is a Make-A-Wish Kid at best. Of course he isn’t going to give Garcia a match at All In and now Garcia might never wrestle again. With that out of the way, MJF shows us a clip of himself talking about his condition with rejection and how scared he is to let anything go wrong.

Back live, MJF says he let everyone in and then he lost it all. He was sitting on his couch watching Dynamite and saw his fans turn on him for Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland and WILL OSPREAY. Garcia was just the tip of the iceberg because he is going to take everything they love.

The only way to do that is with him on top and Ospreay is a guy who only cares about ratings from Meltzer. MJF cares about ratings from Nielsen so get out here right now. Ospreay’s music plays but MJF laughs, as there is no Ospreay tonight. He is MJF (and he doesn’t like the fans chanting his name) and you can thank him later. Good enough explanation and rather in line for MJF.

The Conglomeration is ready for another fight and to get back up after a bad Forbidden Door. Orange Cassidy doesn’t care.

Conglomeration vs. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages

Roderick Strong, with the Kingdom, joins commentary. Briscoe grabs the Savage Sauce to start and gets even zanier than usual. O’Reilly comes in and gets run over as we take an early break. Back with O’Reilly getting over for the tag to Briscoe to clean house. Cassidy comes in and starts rather quickly, including the tornado DDT for two on Bronson. Everything breaks down and Briscoe hits a big flip dive to the floor, leaving Cassidy to hit the Orange Punch for the pin on Boulder at 7:56.

Rating: C+. I like that they’re doing something different with Cassidy, as he hasn’t had much in the way of a different trajectory in a long time. This is the kind of thing that could lead somewhere for him, though we’re still at the beginning. Other than that, it’s nice to see the Savages and Jameson get beaten up, though I could go with them not being around as much. Or at all really.

Jack Perry talks about the sacrifices that he has made to become TNT Champion. Now he to give someone else a chance to make the same sacrifice.

Video on Swerve Strickland beating Will Ospreay to retain the World Title at Forbidden Door.

Hangman Page is asked why he is back, sending him into a near meltdown over how much he wants to destroy Swerve Strickland.

Toni Storm vs. Trish Adora

Non-title and Mariah May and Luther are here with Storm while the Infantry is with Adora. They fight over headlocks to start until Adora runs her over with a shoulder. Adora ties her up for some neck cranking but Storm escapes and hits the hip attack to the floor as we take a break. Back with Storm hitting a running hip attack in the corner, setting up the forearm off. Storm gets the better of things and hits Storm Zero for the pin at 8:24.

Rating: C+. This was the traditional short and to the point women’s match with the commercial break eating up even more of the time. Adora is someone who can work well with anyone but doesn’t seem likely to win much on her own anytime soon. On the other hand you have Storm, who is being kept warm before her big showdown, likely against Mariah May, at All In.

Willow Nightingale and Mariah May are ready for the Owen Hart finals.

The Patriarchy wants the Trios Titles but Christian Cage had to look up who held the titles. That’s how unimportant the Bang Bang Gang really is. Colten Gunn has some promise but that’s beside the point. He’s going to take the titles and revive them. Kip Sabian comes in to say he’s just lost his father and implies he wants some guidance. Cage says it’s a good thing Sabian’s dad isn’t here to see what kind of a loser he is and has Killswitch wreck him. Cage’s delivery here was great as usual.

TNT Title: Jack Perry vs. Marko Stunt

Stunt, the home state boy, is challenging and Perry is stunned. Perry knocks him down to start and hits some hard forearms before planting Stunt for a fairly near fall. Stunt fights up and gets two off a hurricanrana but Perry buckle bombs him. The running knee finishes Stunt at 3:21.

Rating: C-. They weren’t exactly hiding what they were going for here and while I would usually want a bit more time for this kind of a call back match….it’s Marko Stunt. The idea here was to have Perry get an easy win because the Young Bucks are treating him favorably, which is fine enough, but it’s not going to give us much of anything for a bit. I’m sure he’ll get a better challenger one day, but we could be a long way off from that.

The House Of Black is ready to hurt the Patriarchy.

Video on Bryan Danielson’s path in the men’s Owen Hart Tournament.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Beast Mortos

Castagnoli flips out of a wristlock to start and hits a quick backbreaker. Back up and Mortos sends him into the corner for a running elbow and an early two. Mortos’ running knee misses though and the crash to the floor takes out the cameraman for a great visual. Mortos is right back up and sends Castagnoli outside for the corkscrew suicide dive. Castagnoli gets in his own knockdown back inside and we take a break.

Back with Castagnoli getting the better of a slugout until Mortos headbutts his way to freedom. Castagnoli knocks him outside for the running uppercut against the barricade as the fans want the Swing. Back in and Mortos’ torture rack backbreaker gets two but Castagnoli uppercuts him out of the air. Now we get the Swing and a big clothesline finishes Mortos at 11:35.

Rating: B-. This felt like “hey, Castagnoli is still around”, and that’s not a bad thing. There is always going to be a place for a strong man to throw around a big guy and that is exactly what we got here. Castagnoli has been kind of floating without much to do as of late and it would be nice to see him have a little something. Hopefully this is a start, but I’m not sure if I would get my hopes up.

Matt Menard says Daniel Garcia lost all of the strength in the left side of his body but he’ll get better. Garcia is going to get his revenge on MJF and it’s going to be Red Death.

Someone dives into a vortex and will apparently be loading soon.

Serena Deeb is willing to run it back with Riho, but she’s grown since their first match in 2021.

Lady Frost vs. Riho

They trade escapes to start until Frost gets two off a neckbreaker. Riho drop toeholds her to set up a 619 and we take a break. Back with Riho fighting out of a double arm crank and sending her outside for a dive, which hits Frost’s feet. Back in and Frost kicks her in the head for two, with frustration setting in. Frostbite is broken up via a grab of the leg but Frost knocks her down again and hits a regular moonsault for two. Riho is right back with a dragon suplex into Run Hey (Kofi Kingston’s SOS) for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: C+. Frost seems to be one of the better designated jobbers to the stars around here and that’s not a bad role for her. She has a unique look and can do almost anything asked of her in the ring so it went well enough. At the same time you have Riho, who is likely going to go over Serena Deeb, win another match or two and then go away for a few months, so it’s hard to get that invested in whatever she does.

Shane Taylor Promotions is ready for Top Flight and Action Andretti on Rampage. They’re ready to fight tonight but nothing happens.

Samoa Joe wants to hurt Chris Jericho on Dynamite.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament Semifinals: Jay White vs. Hangman Page

The rest of the Bang Bang Gang is here with White. Actually hold on, as the Young Bucks send in an order to get rid of everyone else to make it one on one. Page knocks him to the floor for some chops to start, followed by a hard forearm back inside. There’s the fall away slam to send White to the apron again but he manages a shot of his own. They head back outside with White being sent into the barricade, followed by some rapid fire right hands back inside.

We take a break and come back with Page busted open and White starting in on the knee in the corner. White chops away and rakes at the eyes, setting up a DDT for two. They slug it out until a Downward Spiral into a German suplex plants Page. White drops him on the apron but gets powerbombed back inside for two.

The Buckshot Lariat is countered into a spinning Rock Bottom for two more but the Blade Runner is blocked. The referee gets bumped and Page chokes White with a belt. Cue Jeff Jarrett to take said belt away, allowing White to suplex Page. Another referee gets rid of Jarrett, allowing Christian Cage to come in with a spear to take out White. The Buckshot Lariat finishes White at 15:41.

Rating: B. Easily the best match on the show here and that shouldn’t be a surprise. The match having some actual stakes helped and they managed to pull off quite the feat here. It’s rather impressive that this turned into a competitive and engaging match when Page couldn’t have been a more obvious winner. That takes some effort and talent and they pulled it off here. Good stuff to wrap up the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a great example of a show that would have been much better at just an hour. They had enough stuff in there that felt like it mattered and had the quality to back it up, but then there was almost just as much that felt like “ok who else can we throw out there to fill in time”. That’s been an issue for Collision for a long time now and while the show wasn’t bad by any means, a lot of it didn’t feel overly important.

Results
Conglomeration b. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages – Orange Punch to Boulder
Toni Storm b. Trish Adora – Storm Zero
Jack Perry b. Marko Stunt – Running knee
Claudio Castagnoli b. Beast Mortos – Lariat
Riho b. Lady Frost – Run Hey
Hangman Page b. Jay White – Buckshot Lariat

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: July 4, 2024
Location: PPL Center, Allentown, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re rapidly approaching Death Before Dishonor and there are a few matches you can probably guess from here, though nothing has been announced. In this case, there is a good chance that we will see some of them officially set, though some of the titles do not exactly have apparent challengers. Let’s get to it.

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

The Infantry welcomes us to the show, which they will be hosting. After confirming that this isn’t about the Will Smith movie, they send us to the opening sequence.

Opening sequence.

Dark Order vs. Bang Bang Gang

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if the Dark Order wins or survives the time limit, they get a future title shot. Oddly enough, this is the Juice Robinson/Gunns version of the team, meaning they can have a Proving Ground match but not defend the titles. Austin and Uno trade shoulders to start with Austin being taken into the Order corner. Everything breaks down and the Gang misses triple splashes in the corner, allowing the Order to hammer away.

Colten gets caught in a triple pose, with Robinson breaking it up for a distraction. That’s enough for Colten to take over on Reynolds in the corner with a snap suplex getting two. Robinson’s clothesline gets the same and we hit the chinlock. Reynolds fights up and hits a neckbreaker, allowing the tag to Uno to pick up the pace. The Gang all wind up in 619 position and get kicked in the head for two on Robinson. Reynolds kicks Robinson to the floor but walks into 3:10 to Yuma to give the Gang the pin at 7:23.

Rating: C+. That’s about the ceiling for the Dark Order and it isn’t a bad idea. They tested the champions just enough before the loss and that’s all they should have done. The Gang is better than the Dark Order and there was no reason to set up a title match. Perfectly fine stuff here and it didn’t overstay its welcome.

The Infantry talk about the rest of the card.

We look at Atlantis Jr. winning the Ring Of Honor TV Title in Arena Mexico. Fletcher wants a rematch.

Athena and the Minions have recruited Tony Deppen (not named) as their security guard. Queen Aminata and Red Velvet come in to say that Aminata is getting the Women’s Title shot against the still injured Athena at Death Before Dishonor. Billie Starkz will defend the North American Title against Velvet too. Athena wants Tony Khan. Those are the matches you knew were coming.

The Infantry talks about various places in Washington DC and plug Honor Club.

Komander/Metalik vs. Kingdom

Another Proving Ground match. Taven chops Komander to start but misses a splash in the corner. Komander strikes away but Bennett comes in for the double teaming. That’s broken up and Komander hands it off to Metalik for the rope walk dropkick and two on Bennett. Everything breaks down and Metalik hits a dive to take both of them down on the floor. Komander adds a springboard moonsault to drop the champs again as commentary is getting into this.

Back in and Metalik gets catapulted into a kick to the head from Taven as we get the five minute call (which we didn’t get in the first match). A sunset bomb gets Metalik out of trouble and it’s back to Komander to pick up the pace. Komander hits a tornado DDT to plant Taven and Cielito Lindo gets two with Bennett making the save. An assisted moonsaults the same, albeit without the save this time. Back up and Rockstar Supernova out of nowhere gives Taven the pin at 8:05.

Rating: B-. This was about as good as it was going to be as Komander and Metalik might as well have been “and here are our resident luchadors”. That is a team who can do well enough with just about anyone and it worked well enough here. The Kingdom really needs some fresh challengers though and I don’t quite see these two as those challenges.

Mason Madden and Mansoor, the MxM Collection, are coming.

The Infantry go to Mount Rushmore and hype Death Before Dishonor.

Wheeler Yuta vs. Lee Moriarty

Another Proving Ground match under Pure Rules as Ring Of Honor remembers Yuta is a thing around here. Yuta takes him down for an ankle crank to start before hitting a basement dropkick for two. Back up and Yuta cranks on a cravate but Moriarty reverses into an armbar. Moriarty even bridges back onto the arm for a rather nasty looking bend. The cross arm choke has Yuta in more trouble but he reverses into the elbows, with Moriarty needing his first rope break.

Yuta snaps off a German suplex for two but Moriarty pulls him into the Border City Stretch. That means Yuta has to use his first rope with less than three minutes to go. The Stretch goes on again and is quickly reversed into a cradle to leave them both down with under two minutes to go. They trade rollups for two each and keep going with a minute left. The reversals go on for over a minute until they slug it out as time expires at 10:00. Therefore, Moriarty gets a future title shot.

Rating: B-. This is only the second time a challenger has survived a Proving Ground match and that is a great thing to see. The concept is still overused but having it actually set up a title match, likely at the pay per view, is a good thing. At the same time though, the six month hiatus of the title which didn’t really seem to matter is a very bad sign for the whole thing. It just doesn’t feel important and that is something they might want to address. Like say by getting rid of the thing.

Post match Yuta stares Moriarty down but Shane Taylor Promotions scare him off to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Well it certainly felt somewhat more important. The show was taking place on the Fourth of July so it wasn’t like it was going to be drawing a huge audience in the first place. They set some things up for Death Before Dishonor, though not having a World Title match with three shows left before the pay per view is not a great look. They felt like they went with the easiest path this week and that makes sense given the circumstances of the holiday, plus what needed to get done.

Results
Bang Bang Gang b. Dark Order – 3:10 to Yuma to Reynolds
Kingdom b. Komander/Metalik – Rockstar Supernova to Komander
Wheeler Yuta vs. Lee Moriarty went to a time limit draw

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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