Final Battle 2023
Date: December 15, 2023
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Caprice Coleman, Ian Riccaboni

It’s the biggest Ring Of Honor show of the year and that could mean all kinds of things. The main event is again about the Women’s Title, as Athena, in her hometown, defends against Billie Starkz. Other than that, we’ll be getting a new TV Champion in a six way match with five wrestlers announced. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Taya Valkyrie vs. Jazmin Allure

Bonus match and Johnny TV is with Valkyrie. A hard shot to the face puts Allure down to start and it’s time to choke on the ropes. Allure’s right hand doesn’t get her very far as Valkyrie hits the sliding German suplex. The running knees in the corner hit Allure for two and we hit the chinlock. Allure fights up and slugs away but gets caught up top, meaning it’s a top rope superplex. The curb stomp finishes Allure at 4:26.

Rating: C. So this week on Ring Of Honor, Valkyrie won a match over a bigger name but on the pay per view Kickoff Show, she beats someone who has only popped up here and there. Not much to see with this one but having Valkyrie around is a good thing. She’s a talented veteran and that adds a lot to the division. I’m not sure why this needed to be on the show, but at least Valkyrie was pretty dominant.

Zero Hour: Von Erichs vs. Outrunners

The Von Erichs in Dallas and you don’t advertise it better than this? Ross (which I know because commentary is smart enough to say which Von Erich is which since they aren’t known in Ring Of Honor) takes Magnum down to start and hits a dropkick, followed by a standing hurricanrana for two. Marshall comes in and clears the Outrunners out, meaning it’s time for a meeting on the floor.

Back in and Ross scares the Outrunners back to the floor where they hit…something on Ross that the camera misses. The beating is on back inside but Floyd has to cut off a hot tag. Ross kicks his way to freedom anyway though and it’s Marshall coming in to clean house. Monkey flips have the Outrunners flying and stereo Claws make the Outrunners tap at 6:11.

Rating: C. The match wasn’t very good but this was as much of a layup as you could get. You have the most famous family in the history of Dallas wrestling in a match close enough to Dallas and they won with their family’s signature move. This couldn’t have been an easier idea and they went exactly as they should have with it. Aside from the Outrunners losing of course, because that should never happen.

Zero Hour: Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Bryan Keith vs. Jack Cartwheel

Keith grabs a headlock to start and grinds away until Cartwheel reverses into one of his own. Cartwheel cartwheels away but a headscissors is broken up so Keith can kick him down for two. An enziguri staggers Keith, who boots Cartwheel in the face for his efforts. Back up and a cartwheel into a dragon screw legwhip drops Keith and a slingshot spinning elbow gets two.

A cartwheel into a powerslam plants Keith and a cartwheel Death Valley Driver is good for another near fall. With Keith on the floor, Cartwheel hits the big rolling flip dive but misses a shooting star press back inside. Keith avoids a shooting star press though and hits a Tiger Driver 97 for the pin at 7:04.

Rating: C+. Having something on the line here helped a lot as that hasn’t been the case with the other two so far. I’m not sure why Johnny TV didn’t get this spot as he’s been feuding with Dalton Castle and is named TV but I guess we needed some Texas flavor to it instead. Keith has done well in the appearances I’ve seen from him over the years while Cartwheel is incredibly athletic, even if it seems like he’s just adding stuff to moves that would already be good on their own.

Tony Khan comes out to talk about his history around here and Jay Briscoe’s legacy at this event. For now though, we have one more bonus match.

Zero Hour: Daniel Garcia vs. Blake Christian

Feeling out process to start and they take turns driving each other into the corner for some dancing. They strike it out a bit until a butterfly suplex gives Garcia two. One heck of a chop puts Christian down again and the fans want it one more time. Christian motions for Garcia to bring it and then hits a basement dropkick.

Something like stereo kicks to the back keep Garcia down but he fights out of a rear naked choke. Garcia gets knocked into the corner and kicked in the face but he’s fine enough to suplex Christian into the corner. A backbreaker gets Christian out of trouble so he does it again and hits Garcia in the back of the neck.

They trade kicks to the face until Christian hits a running Spanish Fly for two more. Garcia is right back with a leglock into an ankle lock but Christian sends him outside for a big flip dive. A springboard 450 gives Christian two but Garcia pulls him into the Dragon Tamer for the tap at 12:15.

Rating: B-. Good stuff here, which might be due to the amount of time they received. It made the match feel a bit more important, but at the same time, there is only so much that you can get out of this kind of a match. There was no story and it was added with no notice, meaning it was only going to be so interesting, especially with a newcomer like Christian.

Tony Khan has another announcement but Ring Of Honor World Champion comes in to say he wants to be on the card. Anthony Henry comes in to say he’ll fight so the Proving Ground match is on. That’s how the World Champion is booked for the biggest show of the year, less than two minutes before the show starts.

And now, the show proper.

AAA Mega Title: El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Black Taurus

Taurus is challenging and isn’t interested in the Code Of Honor. The much smaller Vikingo is sent flying to start and Taurus knocks him out of the air. Back up and Taurus misses a running knee in the corner but the big running flip dive is countered into a powerbomb. They head back inside where Taurus hits a ripcord powerslam for two as the pace slows down again.

A clothesline puts Vikingo over the top, with his head bouncing off the apron on the way down. Taurus follows with the rather large flip dive and a reverse Sling Blade back inside. One heck of a pop up Samoan drop plants Vikingo but he avoids a big dive. Vikingo gets two fight back with a big flip to send Taurus outside.

Vikingo loads up two springboard flip dives but has to bail out and hits a standard dive, with Taurus standing there waiting the entire time (my goodness people just don’t do the dive if it takes that long). Back in and Taurus runs him over and they go upside, with Vikingo snapping off a super hurricanrana. They strike it out on the apron until Vikingo hits a not great looking running sunset bomb. Vikingo springboard dropkicks him into the corner but misses a charge into the corner.

A top rope gorilla press plants Vikingo (geez) but Vikingo kicks him in the face a few times. Vikingo hits a moonsault Samoan driver (because someone can do that) but Taurus spears him down for a double knockdown. Taurus is sent outside for a 720 (yes a 720), which thankfully doesn’t land on his head. Back in and one heck of a backbreaker plants Vikingo but he’s able to knock Taurus into the corner. The running knees and the 630 retain the title at 16:30.

Rating: B. Yes they botched quite a bit and it went a bit long, but my goodness I wanted to see Vikingo beat the monster put in front of him. This was a heck of an opener and Vikingo, despite being rather small, can get a crowd behind him like few others. This was about the entertainment value rather than the quality (which wasn’t exactly terrible) and I had a heck of a time with it. Just don’t stand there waiting on a dive like that again. Ever. That was terrible.

Commentary runs down the card.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Mogul Embassy vs. TMDK

TMDK (Shane Haste/Bad Dude Tito/Kosei Fujita) is challenging. Kaun and Fujita start things off with Kaun taking over and dropping him with a kick to the chest. Fujita is back up with a spinning kick to the face, allowing the tag off to Tito to take over on Kaun. It’s back to Fujita, who gets taken into the corner for the tag to Cage.

One heck of a powerslam plants Fujita for two and his right hands don’t do much good. Fujita does manage to punch his way out of trouble and everything breaks down. Haste kicks Toa into the corner and Haste nails a running kick to the face for two. The Gates aren’t having any of this and run Fujita over but Tito makes the save. Haste knees his way out of trouble but Toa cuts him in half with a spear for two.

Tito counters Cage’s discus lariat into a Death Valley Driver for two and Fujita springboard dropkicks Kaun for the same. Cage grabs the apron superplex to plant Fujita for two more with Tito making the save this time. Open The Gates hits Haste, leaving Fujita all alone against the champs. Running shots in the corner set up a toss sitout powerbomb to give Cage the retaining pin at 12:01.

Rating: B-. Nice match here as everything went nuts in a smart move. At the same time, and much like earlier, there is only so much you can get out of the champs defending against a team that got their build in a tournament in Japan which was only mentioned before the match. It wasn’t a bad match, but this really could have been dropped from the card without much being lost.

We recap Tony Nese vs. Ethan Page in an I Quit match. Page was on a winning streak but Nese and his friends cut it off and then got on Page’s nerves. Now it’s time for an I Quit match, which is quite the escalation after one match. Also of note, commentary calls them former friends, which certainly hasn’t been a major part of the story.

Tony Nese vs. Ethan Page

I Quit match and Mark Sterling is here with Nese but is handcuffed to the ring. Well he is eventually that is, complete with Mark Henry coming out to make sure it happens. Nese jumps Page from behind to start fast and hammers away, only to get elbowed in the face to cut him off. They head outside where a Sterling distraction lets Nese get in another cheap shot to take over again. Hold on though as Sterling grabs some protein powder, which is thrown into Nese’s eyes by mistake.

They fight outside again, where Page is sent face first into the handcuffs for a fairly creative spot. Nese grabs the mic and tells Page to quit on behalf of the people. That’s not happening so Nese stomps away at the bloody Page, who fights back again. That means Nese is knocked over the barricade but comes back with a weight (as in the kind you put on a bench press).

The big shot misses but Nese sends him into the barricade to take over. Back in and Nese grabs a jump rope for some whipping, only to have Page fight back without much trouble. Nese teases quitting but uses the distraction to hit page with the microphone. That sets up the big flip dive to the floor, meaning some tables can be set up. Page gets in a shot to break things up and heads to the top, where he is knocked back down.

Not that it matters as Page grabs the slingshot cutter to send Nese through the tables. Back in and some chairs are set up with Nese hurricanranaing Page….completely over the chairs. Thankfully commentary acknowledges that it didn’t make contact and Page doesn’t quit. Nese goes to grab the keys to the handcuffs and, after taking out the referee, unlocks Sterling.

The stomping is on and then it’s time to handcuff Page so Nese can smash him with the weight, with Sterling promising to show the tape to Page’s daughter. Well that’s the plan at least as Sterling explains the idea without actually doing anything, allowing Scorpio Sky to come in for the save. Page is able to stomp Nese’s fingers underneath the plate and then DDT him into it.

Sterling gets hit in the face with the plate (probably should have killed him) and the Ego’s Edge drops him again. Sky takes Sterling to the back but Nese is back up with a chair to the head, meaning Page can indeed be handcuffed. Nese gives him one last chance to quit but Page shouts “F*** YOU” and makes the no hands comeback. The referee uncuffs Page, who hits Nese with the chair and chokes him with the handcuffs for the win at 20:01.

Rating: C+. I have no idea what to think of this, but the thing that stands out the most is how overbooked this was. It felt like they weren’t sure if they wanted to have the violent, bloody brawl or some kind of goofy match with all of the exercise equipment. While I wouldn’t call it bad, they could have cut out a lot of this and had a tighter match. It never felt like the biggest match ever as Nese has never been more than a midcard star at best, but at least Page gets a signature win over someone other than a jobber.

Nyla Rose vs. Vertvixen

Another bonus match. Rose starts fast and loads up the Beast Bomb in less than a minute but Vertvixen punches her way to freedom. Another hard shot drops Vertvixen but Rose pulls her up at two. The top rope knee to the back and the Beast Bomb finish for Rose at 2:39. Well that happened.

We recap the TV Title match, which is the result of Samoa Joe vacating the title. Therefore Survival Of The Fittest was brought back with the winner being the new champion.

TV Title: Survival Of The Fittest Finals

Dalton Castle, Lee Moriarty, Kyle Fletcher, Lee Johnson, Bryan Keith, Komander

Elimination rules but only two are in the ring at once. Castle and Moriarty start things off with a handshake before going to the mat. Fletcher comes in and gets beaten up without much effort, meaning it’s off to Johnson vs. Moriarty. It’s Johnson cleaning house and sending Castle outside but getting headscissored by Komander. Keith comes in and cuts off Komander, meaning it’s time for a showdown with Castle. That’s broken up by Fletcher, who tells Castle to bring it.

The fans are way behind Castle as he throws Fletcher outside, much to the fans’ delight. Komander and Fletcher both go up and stare at each other until Komander walks the ropes to dive onto everyone else. Back in and Johnson takes over on Keith but Moriarty slips out of a powerbomb attempt. Moriarty pulls Johnson into the Border City Stretch for the tap and the elimination at 8:47.

The Boys warm Castle up so he can take Moriarty down, followed by a suplex. Cue Johnny TV to drop…someone the camera misses on the floor. Apparently he dropped the Boys, which distracts Castle enough for Moriarty to hit a suplex Downward Spiral for the elimination at 11:17.

The fans are NOT happy, even as Moriarty, Keith and Fletcher slug it out. Komander is back in as a mini tag match breaks out, resulting in the Tower Of Doom leaving all four down. Keith is up with a fireman’s carry backbreaker for one on Moriarty, followed by a tiger driver to get rid of Moriarty for the pin at 15:39. That leaves Fletcher, Keith and Komander, with Keith kneeing Fletcher down. The tiger driver is blocked though and Fletcher Tombstones Keith for the pin at 16:54.

Fletcher and Komander slug it out with Fletcher getting rocked up against the ropes. The spinning Tombstone is broken up and Komander kicks the leg out, setting up a poisonrana. A slingshot hurricanrana to the floor is countered as well and Fletcher hits the jumping Tombstone on the apron to leave them both on the floor. Komander barely beats the count and it’s a brainbuster to give Fletcher two.

Fletcher puts him on top but Komander kicks the leg out and hits a springboard Canadian Destroyer for a rather near fall. A rope walk 450 onto the apron sets up a regular 450 for two and they’re both down. Komander goes up again but gets caught, setting up a brainbuster onto the turnbuckle for another near fall. Another jumping Tombstone gives Fletcher the pin and the title at 26:03.

Rating: B. The big positive here was they got the Survival part right. Fletcher felt like he survived against the others and that was a heck of a finishing sequence. That being said, it was another long match on a show that is going to go late into the night and it features another heel champion. Ring Of Honor needs to give us something more to cheer about and that is rarely the case when it comes to titles. Very energetic match, but dang some of those kickouts were a bit ridiculous.

Pure Rules Title: Wheeler Yuta vs. Tom Lawlor

Lawlor is challenging in his ROH debut. They go to the mat to start with Lawlor getting the better of things and leaving Yuta a bit shaken. Lawlor’s armbreaker has Yuta going to the ropes for his first break and Lawlor seems pleased. Yuta gets in a right hand behind the referee’s back so Lawlor punches him back, earning his official warning.

Yuta takes over again and goes for the leg, sending Lawlor over to the ropes for his first break. They strike it out, with Lawlor favoring his leg, including as they trade discus forearms. Lawlor is back with a spear but Yuta goes straight back to the knee to take over again. An Octopus Hold into an abdominal stretch into a rollup gives Yuta two but Lawler suplex slams him down for the same.

A monkey flip breaks up another leglock attempt and Lawlor starts in on the arm, including a hammerlock piledriver for another near fall. Something like an Anaconda Vice sends Yuta to the ropes for another break, followed by a right hand to drop Lawlor again. They go up top with Lawlor grabbing a Kimura, which he holds while superplexing Yuta back down.

Another Kimura has Yuta using his final rope break so Lawlor goes with Becky Lynch’s Disarm-Her. Yuta reverses that into an ankle lock, which is reversed into another Kimura. That’s escaped as well and Yuta grabs the seatbelt for the…..pin at 13:12, despite Lawlor’s shoulder being a good foot off the mat and his feet being in the ropes.

Rating: B-. This was a technical battle between two rather skilled technical wrestlers and it worked well, aside from the terribly screwed up ending. The Pure Rules thing can work very well and it was good enough here, but this was another match with no backstory and an outsider getting a random title match. Hook is already feuding with Yuta, but here is Lawlor instead. That can get old fast and I wasn’t a fan of it here.

Post match Yuta stays on Lawlor but Hook makes the save. Yuta low blows Hook before leaving.

We recap Shane Taylor vs. Keith Lee. They were a monster team back in the original ROH but Lee went on to WWE and left Taylor to start over. Now Taylor wants revenge. That’s an actual story and I could have gone for it getting some more development than it received.

Shane Taylor vs. Keith Lee

They stare each other down to start before going to the test of strength. Taylor’s headlock has Lee in some trouble but he breaks out so they can run the ropes. One heck of a shoulder drops Taylor and he’s more than a bit stunned. Lee chops away and hits a slingshot crossbody for one.

Taylor is back with a Tower Of London for two and the apron legdrop crushes Lee again. We hit the chinlock back inside, followed by a knee to the face to give Taylor two. Back up and the forearm exchange goes to Lee, who hits a splash in the corner. Taylor knocks him back down and hits a middle rope splash for two more.

Lee knocks him down again and goes to the corner, only to have Lee Moriarty pop up for a distraction. The sitout powerbomb drops Moriarty but Taylor gets in a knee to the back of the head for two. Taylor goes up top and hits a super Canadian Destroyer….for two more. Back up and Keith grabs the Big Bang Catastrophe for the pin out of nowhere at 14:33.

Rating: B-. It was a good hoss fight with some big heavy shots, but again it ran longer than it needed to. There were too many times where they were slowing way down and it would have been better with a few minutes less. I’m not sure how much sense it makes for Keith to win here, but it won’t matter if he doesn’t get a stronger push than he has had in recent months.

Post match Keith pulls Taylor up and Taylor acknowledges the crowd.

Bryan Keith wants gold so Orange Cassidy comes in to say come collect the International Title on Collision.

We recap the Blackpool Combat Club vs. Mark Briscoe/FTR, which is a big tribute to Jay Briscoe and little more.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Mark Briscoe/FTR

After Dax Harwood goes over to glare at a fan on her phone, we start with Harwood vs. Moxley with neither getting very far. Castagnoli comes in to drive Harwood into the corner before it’s off to Danielson to strike it out with Wheeler. Briscoe gets to come in to a rather strong reaction and hammers away in the corner. It’s back to Harwood, who gets caught by the arm (now bleeding) with Danielson cranking away.

Castagnoli’s Swing has Harwood in more trouble but he German suplexes his way out of trouble. Wheeler gets the tag to clean house, including Redneck Boogie for two on Danielson. Back up and Danielson loads up the Swan Dive but gets caught with the PowerPlex into the Froggy Bow. The Doomsday Device is broken up so Danielson loads up a superplex on Briscoe. That’s broken up as well but Briscoe’s second Doomsday Device attempt lands on Castagnoli’s uppercut.

Moxley is back in with a cutter but Wheeler brainbusters him down. The Shatter Machine is broken up and it’s the running knee to Wheeler. Briscoe fights up to slug away at Moxley and Danielson but Castagnoli comes in with a Neutralizer for two. FTR is back in and a triple Shatter Machine gets the same on Castagnoli. The Jay Driller is broken up and the triple stomping has Briscoe down again.

The Club tries its own Doomsday Device but it gets broken up, meaning the brawl heads to the floor….where it’s a double countout at 19:17. Briscoe is NOT having that though and yeah we’re restarting it….as a Fight Without Honor (street fight, which I believe it was advertised as in advance). The fight is on in the crowd until Briscoe and Moxley head inside. The bloody Briscoe sends him outside and uses a chair for a step up flip dive. FTR loads up a table but let’s bring out a barbed wire ladder instead.

Moxley uses a fork on Harwood’s eye, followed by a curb stomp onto a chair back inside. Danielson is back in for a LeBell Lock to Wheeler, with Moxley adding barbed wire across the eyes. Briscoe makes the save but Moxley grabs a choke. Harwood makes the save this time so let’s throw in a bunch of chairs. A spike piledriver onto the chairs is broken up so Moxley is piledriven off the apron through a board covered in tacks. Danielson kicks away at Briscoe, who isn’t overly impressed. Briscoe fights up and hits a Jay Driller onto the chairs to finish Danielson at about 31:15 overall.

Rating: B. Yeah it was a mess and I’m not sure what was going on with the rules, but my goodness this was an entertaining fight. Much like the opener, they weren’t going for some classic match here as this was more about people beating the fire out of each other until one of them couldn’t get up anymore. At the very least, it’s great to see Briscoe getting a big win and I’m sure Danielson was more than happy to let him get something that big. Heck of a fight here, which was what they were trying to do.

Eddie Kingston vs. Anthony Henry

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Henry wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a future title shot. They start fast and fight out to the floor, where Henry hits a running boot against the barricade. Back in and a double stomp gives Henry two, followed by another kick for two. Kingston gets up and they chop it out, with Kingston snapping o the rapid fire corner chops. Henry is right back with an enziguri into a German suplex for two and they both need a breather. A top rope double stomp misses though and Kingston hits the spinning backfist. The stretch plum finishes Henry at 5:42.

Rating: C. It was a fine match but it’s a Proving Ground match, which has so far been a guaranteed win for the champion. I like the idea of Kingston being on the show, but it would have been nice to have something better for him than a midcard tag wrestler. It wasn’t exactly must see either, but at least they kept it short.

We recap the main event, with Athena defending the Women’s Title against Billie Starkz. Athena was training her as a minion but Starkz rebelled, setting up the title match. Athena has also added that she’s gone if she loses.

Ring Of Honor Women’s Title: Athena vs. Billie Starkz

Athena, the hometown star with a broken nose, is defending. Starkz knocks her fast into the corner and they fight out to the floor. Athena sends Starkz face first into the barricade a few times, with Starkz coming up bleeding. Back in and Athena keeps up the beating, including a neck crank as the blood continues to flow. Starkz gets sent to the floor as this has been much more of a brawl than a match so far.

Athena cuts off a comeback attempt but Starkz fights out of the Tree of Woe and suplexes her into the corner. They both mix kicks to the face before Starkz grabs a dragon suplex. Starkz spears her down and pulls off the mask, setting up some less than great looking forearms. The Swanton connects for two so Athena goes outside, with Starkz hitting a suicide dive into the barricade.

Athena gets in a shot of her own and loads up the announcers’ table but Starkz suplexes her down to the floor. A fireman’s carry is escaped and Starkz pulls her down by the hair. They fight onto the barricade again and it’s a reverse Sling Blade to send Starkz face first onto the floor. It’s time to really try something new so they head back inside for a top rope German superplex for two on Starkz. Back up and the ref gets bumped so Athena asks guest ring announcer (and head Minion) Lexi Nair to hand her the title.

Starkz dropkicks Athena into Nair and Starkz’s End gets two. Back up again and they fight to the apron, where Starkz hits an electric chair driver to knock Athena silly on the floor. The Swanton misses back inside and Athena punches her in the face for a double knockdown. Athena wins a slugout and hits Despicable Knee for two. They trade some rollups for two each until Athena ties her up in something like a modified Octopus hold for the tap to retain at 28:21.

Rating: B. I would bet that this had to be more of a brawl than a match due to the injury, as the style let Athena take a few long breaks in there. Other than that….my goodness who is left to take the title from Athena? This is the match that has been built up for months now and, again, Athena just retains. I’m not sure who in the world is supposed to take the title from her, but it might not be happening for a bit. It’s cool to see a milestone like the women headlining, but it would also be cool to see a heel lose a major title match around here.

Post match Starkz goes to leave but Athena pulls her back. Starkz shows respect and poses with Athena and Nair to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Wow indeed. This show, counting the Zero Hour (which I do as it was advertised and played a role in the show, plus it’s playing if you go to watch Final Battle on Honor Club), was over five hours and, as tends to be the case, the good guys/women didn’t do very well in title matches. Ring Of Honor has a really bad record of pulling the trigger on a big title change (the biggest they’ve had in months, with Eddie Kingston, wasn’t even in ROH) and that was the case again here. There were some nice moments like the six man and Lee/Taylor making up, but those were pretty few and far between.

As has been the case for months, the wrestling is far from the problem around here. Instead, the problem is in how everything is thrown together with SO MUCH CONTENT included. This show had five matches added the day of the show and even more that were only added within the last two days. That doesn’t leave me wanting to see more ROH, but rather hoping that they never do that again. The weekly show continues to feel mostly disconnected to the PPVs and there is no reason to believe that will change.

Overall, it’s a good show because the wrestlers are so talented, but this was another pay per view that felt like it was thrown together at the last minute, with Tony Khan adding whatever came to his head in the car that morning. Ring Of Honor isn’t enjoyable to watch most of the time and a lot of the reasons why were on display here. As usual it isn’t about the action, which is strong, but the way that action is presented. Fix that and you have a heck of a show, but otherwise, you have a big mess which just keeps going.

Results
Taya Valkyrie b. Jazmin Allure – Curb Stomp
Von Erichs b. Outrunners – Double Iron Claws
Bryan Keith b. Jack Cartwheel – Tiger driver
Daniel Garcia b. Blake Christian – Dragon Tamer
El Hijo del Vikingo b. Black Taurus – 630
Mogul Embassy b. TMDK – Toss sitout powerbomb to Fujita
Ethan Page b. Tony Nese – Choke with handcuffs
Nyla Rose b. Vertvixen – Beast Bomb
Kyle Fletcher won Survival Of The Fittest last eliminating Komander
Wheeler Yuta b. Tom Lawlor – Seat belt
Keith Lee b. Shane Taylor – Big Bang Catastrophe
Mark Briscoe/FTR b. Blackpool Combat Club – Jay Driller to Danielson on a pile of chairs
Eddie Kingston b. Anthony Henry – Stretch plum
Athena b. Billie Starkz – Octopus hold

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Ring Of Honor
Date: December 7, 2023
Location: Erie Insurance Arena, Erie, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re eight days away from Final Battle and the card is finally kind of starting to come together. This week should see more of the Survival Of The Fittest participants announced, plus likely some stuff that has little to do with Ring Of Honor. I’m almost scared of the wonders this show is going to have so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Billie Starkz vs. Dani Mo

Mo takes her into the corner to start and gets run over for her efforts. A snap German suplex sets up the Swanton to end Mo at 1:10.

Post match Athena runs in to beat Starkz down but Starkz fights back on the floor. Athena manages to suplex her into the post until it’s broken up…..and then they keep fighting anyway. Then it’s broken up again and they break free to keep fighting again. They go at it a third time until Athena manages a powerbomb on the floor, followed by a Starkz’s End to plant Starkz on the title to finally wrap it up. They’ve set this up well, but Athena has to finally drop the title already.

Wheeler Yuta and Bryan Danielson want to team up with a mystery partner to face FTR and Mark Briscoe as a tribute to Jay Briscoe. So not only are they bringing in another AEW star who has little to nothing to do with anything going on in Ring Of Honor, but another title won’t be defended on the show. Barring a shocking MJF Tag Team Title defense, we’re likely looking at the Women’s Title and TV Title being the only belts on the line. That’s quite a choice for a promotion with quarterly pay per views.

Johnny TV vs. Dalton Castle

The Boys are here with Castle, who is knocked outside with a shot to the face. Back in and a spinning clothesline puts Castle down, setting up a standing shooting star press for two. That means Castle needs a fan up before coming back in with a clothesline and DDT. TV knocks him right back to the floor though and drops down onto him for two. They go outside again but this time the Boys toss Castle back inside, where Castle sends him to the floor for a change.

The suplexes put TV down a few times before, believe it or not, they go outside again, this time with TV missing a charge. Castle kicks him in the face and hugs the Boys before loading up the Bang A Rang. Cue Taya Valkyrie or a distraction/a spear to take out the Boys, allowing TV to slip out. A running knee to the face sets up a missed Starship Pain but Castle goes outside to yell at Taya. Back in and TV kicks him in the face but cue Kiera Hogan to take out Taya. That’s enough for Castle to grab the Bang A Rang for the pin at 9:12.

Rating: C+. It was a fresh matchup and I can go for having Taya and TV around here, but it also wasn’t exactly great. The constant going to the floor didn’t help and there was quite a bit going on here. In theory this sets up a mixed tag, but maybe they could have waited on Castle to be done with Survival of the Fittest before starting something new for him?

Rachael Ellering vs. Nikki Victory

Leyla Hirsch and Maria Kanellis-Bennett are here with Ellering. After a handshake, Ellering takes over on the arm to start and muscles her over with a gutwrench suplex (Maria approves). Some chops put Victory down again but Maria accidentally (in theory at least) grabs Ellering’s leg. Not that it matters as the Boss Woman Slam finishes Victory at 3:11.

Rating: C. As has been the case with the Maria stuff for months: anytime they would like for this stuff to go somewhere, it would be appreciated. Between Ellering and the Griff Garrison/Cole Karter stuff, I’ve pretty much lost interest in people doing her thing/doing their own thing while she glares. It stopped being interesting a long time ago and it feels like we’ve been in this same spot for months.

Athena is happy with beating up Billie Starkz because Starkz turned on the Minions. Tony Khan has announced that they are going to main event Final Battle and Lexi Nair gets to be guest ring announcer! Now off to TGI-Fridays to celebrate!

Infantry vs. Workhorsemen

Henry and Dean fight over a wristlock to start before Bravo comes in to stay on the arm. It’s off to Drake for a DDT and the big chop puts Bravo down again. A belly to belly gives Drake two and a slingshot hilo gets the same. Bravo finally slips between the legs and brings Dean back in to clean house. Everything breaks down and a double DDT puts Henry down. Boot Camp is broken up but Drake misses a Cannonball in the corner. Bravo kicks Dean by mistake though, setting up the assisted Downward Spiral to finish Dean at 7:09.

Rating: C. It was a perfectly fine match but I cannot come up with a single reason to care about what they were doing here. There was no interest here, which might be due to these teams being on the show so frequently. There’s nothing special to seeing them in the ring and it’s really hard to imagine them going very far, especially with the Tag Team Titles not being a factor around here. Not a terrible match or anything, but I could go for something interesting instead of just four guys doing stuff.

Renegades vs. Trish Adora/Lady Frost

Frost and Robyn jump over each other to start until Frost grabs a running flip neckbreaker for two. Charlette grabs the leg from the floor though and Robyn hits a basement dropkick for two of her own. An assisted slap gives Charlette two more and we hit the chinlock. That lasts as long as the average chinlock and Frost gets over to Adora for the hot tag. Everything breaks down and the Lariat Tubman into Frostbite finishes Robyn at 5:07.

Rating: C. Another perfectly fine match which isn’t likely to mean much going forward. The Renegades lose far more often than not and it’s not like Adora and Frost have anything to fight for as a team. In other words, this was another of those matches that Ring Of Honor includes each week to extend the show without adding much value.

Rachael Ellering argues with Maria Kanellis-Bennett for almost costing her that match. Maria says it was a mistake and leaves. Leyla Hirsch and Ellering seem to make peace though.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Josh Woods vs. Lee Johnson

They go with the grappling to start and Johnson bails over to the ropes in a smart move. A headscissors has Woods down for a bit and a dropkick into an armbar makes it worse. Back up and Woods hiptosses him to the floor, setting up a ram into the barricade. They get back inside where Johnson gets an elbow up in the corner, followed by a jumping neckbreaker for two. Woods reverses a superplex into a twisting superplex (that was cool) for two of his own. A running knee to the face and gutwrench powerbomb give Woods two more but Johnson scores with a kick to the face. The frog splash finishes for Johnson at 7:35.

Rating: C+. This was one of the better matches of the show so far and for once it actually played a role for Final Battle. Johnson is probably the biggest underdog to win the title as anyone but at least he’s getting a chance. At the same time, Woods will likely bounce back and go after the Pure Rules Title in a story that has started and stopped all kinds of times over the last few months.

Righteous vs. Outrunners

Vincent hammers on Magnum to start but Magnum is right back with some chops. The Outrunners even manage to get in a double pose, which has to put them ahead on points. Dutch comes in off a blind tag and runs Magnum over with a crossbody. Vincent gets in a few shots of his own but Magnum fights up and brings Floyd in to clean house. A spinning suplex drops Vincent but Dutch is back with the spinning Boss Man Slam. Autumn Sunshine finishes Floyd at 4:19.

Rating: C. While these tag matches are coming off as filler, they are at least building up some teams. At the end of the day though, those matches need to actually lead somewhere and as long as MJF has the Tag Team Titles, I’m not sure I can imagine that happening. For now though, at least the Righteous won something, even if Jake Roberts wasn’t here (again).

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Lee Moriarty vs. Tracy Williams

Moriarty grabs a headlock to start but Williams technicals his way to freedom and a standoff. A big boot puts Williams down and it’s time to work on the arm. Williams breaks it up so Moriarty easily kicks him down again and fires off more kicks to the arm. They go to the corner where Williams manages a DDT onto the top turnbuckle. The crossface has Moriarty in trouble but he goes to the bad arm to escape. A suplex spun into a Downward Spiral finishes Williams at 6:27.

Rating: C+. Given that I don’t think Williams has won a match or two at most since returning to Ring Of Honor, there was only so much doubt about the result here. Moriarty is someone who could have a nice run if given the chance, but I can’t imagine he wins the title. Other than that, it’s another pretty nice Williams match where he still can’t win.

Respect is shown post match.

Dalton Castle is happy to go to Final Battle (which he was doing before this week) because no one is more ready for TV. Cue Johnny TV and they get in an exchange of TV show titles. Castle seems to win with Hey Dude but Taya Valkyrie comes in to say TV is a better action star.

Butcher and the Blade vs. The Boys

Brandon and Butcher start things off with Butcher ignoring some dropkicks. Brent comes in for a double dropkick to put Butcher down but it’s off to Blade for the chops in the corner. A standing Sliced Bread gets Brent out of trouble as everything breaks down. Butcher and Blade collide but are fine enough to beat up Brent on the floor. Back in and Brandon gets knocked down, setting up the chinlock. Brandon enziguris his way out of trouble though and it’s Brent coming back in to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down and the powerbomb/neckbreaker combination finishes Brent at 5:58.

Rating: C. This was another on a too long list of tag matches this week and it’s not a great sign that Butcher and the Blade took almost six minutes to beat the Boys. That being said, I can go for Butcher and the Blade being around as they have the talents to do something. Other than that though, nice enough match, but the show is already running long and this didn’t help things.

Cole Karter and Griff Garrison complain about not doing anything in four months so Maria Kanellis-Bennett suggests new music. With her singing.

Christopher Daniels vs. Angelico

Serpentico is here with Angelico, who works on the arm to start. Daniels switches that into a headlock and cranks away for a good while. With that broken up, Angelico chokes on the ropes before grabbing a leglock to keep Daniels down. Daniels fights up and drops Angelico with some elbows, followed by the right hands in the corner. The STO gives Daniels two but Serpentico breaks up the Iconoclasm out of the corner. Angelico’s leglock makes Daniels tap at 7:29.

Rating: C+. This was the technical match with Angelico tying Daniels up and Daniels trying to keep up with him. That has been the case for a lot of Daniels matches as of late and now we get to see what is left for him. At the same time, Angelico gets a bit of a boost after losing his big title match, which he might have needed with Serpentico dragging him down as part of a team.

Post match the beatdown is on but Orange Cassidy and Danhausen make the save.

Here is Tony Khan to emcee the contract signing between Ethan Page and Tony Nese. The two of them, plus Mark Sterling, come to the ring. Khan announces that the match will be an I Quit match because Sterling says Page has quit everything he has ever started. Like his partners, his vlogs and like he’ll do with his fitness journey. Page says he’ll win but Nese says Page is just like all of these losers here: beyond helping. Nese tells him to always take your protein and some powder to the eyes blinds Page. The beating is on and Nese puts Page through the table.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Kyle Fletcher vs. Gravity

Gravity wastes no time in taking him outside and there’s the big running flip dive. Back in and Fletcher grabs a swinging Side Effect to take over, followed by the stomping in the corner. A hurricanrana and standing moonsault give Gravity two each as commentary talks about the history of Survival Of The Fittest. Fletcher is right back with a Michinoku Driver for two, followed by the spinning Tombstone for the pin at 5:29.

Rating: C+. They didn’t have time to do much here and the match felt like it was kind of tacked on at the end. Fletcher being added to the title match is fine enough as there will certainly be an interesting field in there and he could be a dark horse to win the thing. Gravity going in might make a bit more sense, though Komander will already be in there for the flips.

Overall Rating: C+. And that’s one of the last editions of Ring Of Honor before Final Battle, with a bunch of stuff that feels like it has nothing to do with the pay per view and a bunch of midcarders being added to the TV Title match. As usual, there is a good show buried under all of the extra stuff that makes the show feel so long. They did a really good job with building towards the Women’s Title match and Page vs. Nese was good enough, but the TV Title match doesn’t feel important and the rest of the card is either just there or doesn’t exist yet. Final Battle needs a lot of work and I don’t think we’ll be getting it in time.

Results
Billie Starkz b. Dani Mo – Swanton
Dalton Castle b. Johnny TV – Bang A Rang
Rachael Ellering b. Nikki Victory – Boss Woman Slam
Workhorsemen b. The Infantry – Assisted Downward Spiral to Dean
Lady Frost/Trish Adora b. Renegades – Frostbite to Robyn
Lee Johnson b. Josh Woods – Frog splash
Righteous b. Outrunners – Autumn Sunshine to Floyd
Lee Moriarty b. Tracy Williams – Suplex Downward Spiral
Butcher and the Blade b. The Boys – Powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Brent
Angelico b. Christopher Daniels – Leglock

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Ring Of Honor
Date: November 30, 2023
Location: Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

So how do you follow up on Ronda Rousey making a surprise appearance last week and having a pretty solid match? There’s a good chance you don’t, as Rousey’s appearance seems to be a one off. In a way that might be a good thing though, as we have three shows left before Final Battle, meaning it’s probably time to mostly burn off a show before we get most of the card announced with about ten days before the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

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

Athena yells at Billie Starkz for last week’s loss but this week, she can make it up against Marina Shafir. With Starkz gone, Athena yells at Eddie Kingston, saying you can’t backfist her to the future because her back is heavy from carrying this place. Lexi Nair as a not great hype woman for Athena is great.

Opening sequence.

Eddie Kingston vs. Lee Johnson

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Johnson wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a shot….at the North American Triple Crown. Well that closes a bit of a loophole. Feeling out process to start as the fans are behind Kingston. Johnson has to flip out of a wristlock to give us a standoff. Kingston snaps off a belly to belly for two and another suplex gets another two.

A DDT gives Johnson a breather but Kingston elbows his way out of a suplex attempt. Kingston’s t-bone suplex gets two more, only to have Johnson come back with a neckbreaker. The frog splash gives Johnson two of his own and that’s enough for Kingston, who snaps off a half dragon suplex. The backfist finishes Johnson at 6:30.

Rating: C. What matters most here is Kingston actually wrestling on this show on something of a regular basis. The show felt like nothing with the champions mostly missing so it’s very nice to have the top star around. That being said, it’s not quite as good with the title basically held in limbo until the end of the Continental Classic, but I can’t imagine ROH was high on the list of priorities when the tournament was announced.

The Boys vs. The Infantry

Bravo and Brent fight over wrist control to start until Brent snaps off some armdrags into an armbar. The Boys pick up the pace with a enziguri into a Backstabber for two. Bravo manages a block though and it’s Dean coming in to…well actually get armdragged a few times as well. An atomic drop gives Brandon two as everything breaks down. We settle down to Brandon getting stomped down in the corner until a roll over allows Brent to come back in. That doesn’t last long though as Boot Camp finishes Brent at 5:49.

Rating: C+. It was a fast paced match, though I couldn’t help but chuckle at commentary trying to say this might play into the Tag Team Title picture. They’re right in that it could, though there is no reason to believe that it will for a good while. The lack of having the titles around makes these tag matches feel a lot less important and that’s never a good sign.

Rachael Ellering says Leyla Hirsch’s knee is healing….and here is Maria Kanellis-Bennett to interrupt. Maria says Leyla is in good spirits but Ellering wants to know why Maria was talking to the Renegades last week. Leyla comes in to ask if one of them will have her back this week. Maria and Ellering: “Yes.”

Emi Sakura vs. Trish Adora

A collision goes nowhere to start so they try it again, with Adora knocking her down. Sakura is right back with a drop toehold into the ropes though and some chops have Adora’s eyes bugging out. The surfboard has Adora in more trouble but she’s right back up with a Bully Bomb. They chop it out again until Adora boots her in the ace for two. The Lariat Tubman connects but Sakura rolls to the ropes in a smart move. Sakura’s elbow to the face gives her two of her own and the butterfly backbreaker finishes Adora at 4:32.

Rating: C+. It was a hard hitting match and that’s the best thing you can ask for from this kind of a match. Neither of them have much going at the moment and that doesn’t give them a ton to work with in the match. The good thing is that both of them got in enough to look strong and it was a nice match as a result.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Heather Reckless

Maria Kanellis-Bennett and Rachael Ellering are here with Hirsch. Reckless is actually shorter than Hirsch and commentary says that isn’t something you see very often. Hirsch powers her down to start without much effort and a backbreaker puts Reckless down again. A suplex into a release suplex sets up the cross armbreaker to finish Reckless at 2:08. Total squash.

Post match Hirsch leaves on her own, as commentary pushes the idea of her needing to choose a side. Well at least that’s something.

Willie Mack vs. Robert Anthony

Mack snaps off some armdrags to start but Anthony elbows him in the face to take over. Some elbows have Mack down again but Mack is right back with a swinging slam. A sitout powerbomb finishes Anthony off at 3:10.

Rating: C. Not much to this one but it’s nice to see Mack getting a win for a change. He’s been beaten so many times in recent months that he needs a win like this to rebound a bit. Mack is more or less a glorified jobber to the stars around here but that might be his ceiling unless he is given the chance to do something else. This won’t be the big change, though it’s better than another loss.

Billie Starkz vs. Marina Shafir

Shafir shoves her out to the floor to start, leaving Starkz to do some jumping jacks. Back in and Shafir hits some knees to the ribs, only to get shoved outside instead. This time Starkz rips at Shafir’s face and snaps off a suplex to keep Shafir in trouble. The Swanton is broken up so Starkz kicks her in the head and grabs a German suplex for two. A hard forearm knocks Shafir silly but she’s back with a kick to the head for two of her own. Shafir ties her up in a nasty arm/leg twist until Starkz kicks her way to freedom. The Swanton only hits raised knees and Shafir plants her for two more. Starkz manages to come back with Gory Bomb and the Swanton connects for another near fall. Starkz’ End (arm trap faceplant) finishes Shafir at 8:13.

Rating: B-. They had a good fight here and it’s nice to see Starkz getting one of the biggest singles wins of her career. It still seems like she is perfect for the title shot at Final Battle but for some reason we haven’t gotten there yet. For now though, it’s nice to see her get a win, though it needs to lead somewhere.

Post match Starkz attacks her again so here are Athena and Lexi Nair, the latter in a graduation cap and gown, for their Minion In Training graduation ceremony. Athena introduces the valedictorian, who sucked when Athena met her but got better: Lexi Nair! She gets a Minion shirt and is now known as Minion: Bestie! Commentary mocks the two of them for their attire (Nair in red and Starkz in yellow, meaning we get ketchup and mustard chants) as Nair is rather pleased, while Starkz is wished the best in her future endeavors.

Starkz yells at Athena, who tells her to back down. Athena gets her way again….but then Starkz decks her and grabs the title. I’m not sure if “I turned you evil, but you’re not evil enough” is an all time face turn but it seems we’re FINALLY getting to the match that has been building for months.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Evil Uno vs. Dalton Castle

The Boys are here too. Feeling out process to start with Castle chopping away but getting sent to the floor. That means a fanning off, followed by Uno offering him some free chops. Instead Castle drops him with a running clothesline, followed by a standing splash to send Uno outside. Back in and Uno scores with a backbreaker and, after blocking a Bang A Rang, send Castle outside for a change. This time Uno decks the Boys, which is enough of a distraction for Castle to hit a suplex. The reverse Sling Blade sets up the Bang A Rang to finish Uno at 7:27.

Rating: C. While I wasn’t going to buy Uno as a serious threat to beat Uno, this could have been a lot worse. Uno made Castle work for the win, which sends him on to the match that he should absolutely be in. Castle should be a favorite to win the title as he has been building to it for months. Nice enough match, even with a not so shocking ending.

Tony Khan congratulates Lexi Nair on her graduation when Billie Starkz comes in. Starkz wants a shot at Athena so she is given the Final Battle shot. So what was Khan there to announce?

Brandon Cutler/Colt Cabana vs. GPA/Trevor Outlaw

Cabana and GPA grapple around to start until Cutler comes in for a double hiptoss. Cutler’s neckbreaker drops GPA again but he’s back with a jawbreaker to put Cutler down for a change. The villains take over on Cutler in the corner but he kicks his way to freedom. Cabana comes in to clean house and it’s a side slam/STO combination to finish GPA at 4:31.

Rating: C. I’m assuming that this was the match designed to warm up the crowd, because AEW fans are well known for being quiet and uninterested until someone steps in to wake them up. Cabana and Cutler aren’t likely to be much more than a low level team, if they are anything at that, but at least it wasn’t anything taking up much time here.

Survival Of The Fittest Qualifying Match: Komander vs. Gringo Loco

Loco flips away from him to start and gets taken down by the arm for his efforts. Komander sends him outside, where Loco chops away at him and gets in a posting for two back inside. Loco misses a dropkick though and gets catapulted to the floor, setting up the big flip dive. Back in and a springboard 450 gives Komander two, followed by a hurricanrana driver for the same.

They go to the apron, where Komander’s hurricanrana is countered into a hard powerbomb. Back in and they go to the top, with something like an inverted super Spanish Fly planting Komander hard. Loco misses a springboard moonsault though and gets kicked in the head. A backbreaker into Cielito Lindo sends Komander to Final Battle at 11:03.

Rating: B-. You know all the times where some of the luchadors have gone out there and had an entertaining match for a little while? Well this is the most recent edition, though at least there was something on the line for a change. Komander being in a multi-person match is no surprise, though at least Loco got a chance to shine again as well.

Respect is shown post match.

Tony Nese and Mark Sterling demand that Jerry Lynn (hey he still works here) let Sterling be at ringside for Nese vs. Ethan Page. Works for Lynn, though Sterling will be handcuffed to the post.

La Faccion Ingobernable vs. Spanish Announce Project

Dralistico and Preston Vance for the Faccion. Dralistico and Serpentico start things off with an exchange of chops. Stereo flip ups to their feet mean it’s off to Vance vs. Angelico for a change. Serpentico comes in to stomp on the arm but Vance fights up without much trouble. It’s back to Dralistico to go after Serpentico’s arm, followed by an exchange of Canadian Destroyers. Angelico comes back in to kick Vance in the head but the leglock is broken up. Dralistico makes the save and hits a springboard Codebreaker into Vance’s discus lariat for the pin at 8:04.

Rating: C. This was the most nothing match I can remember in a very long time. It was a pair of low level teams having a completely average match that won’t change much of anything they’re doing going forward. This is a show that could have been dropped from a show that is running about two hours and fifteen minutes without missing much and that’s not a good sign. Also, it’s nice to see Angelico right back where he was a month and a half ago after building him into something a bit more interesting.

Nyla Rose vs. Zoey Lynn

Lynn tries to jump her to start and gets taken into the corner for her efforts. A running elbow knocks Lynn silly but she manages to strike away. Rose doesn’t mind and knocks her out of the air, setting up a chokeslam and the Beast Bomb for the pin at 3:03.

Rating: C. This was Rose’s Ring Of Honor debut and she did what she has done several times in AEW. It was a total squash and did just fine, but it’s a match that could have been postponed to next week and taken away from an already long show. Rose in Ring Of Honor is better than no Rose at all, but dang this show is getting longer and longer and that isn’t helping things.

Iron Savages vs. Butcher and the Blade

Bronson wants Butcher and is driven into the corner for his efforts. A running shoulder works a bit better for Bronson so it’s off to Blade, who is sent face first into Boulder’s chest. Boulder comes in and muscles Blade up for a suplex. A discussion of Savage Sauce takes too long though and it’s Bronson getting caught in the corner for a change. Everything breaks down and Butcher hammers away on Boulder, who is back with a kick to the face. A splash gives Boulder two but the electric chair splash is broken up. The powerbomb/neckbreaker combination finishes Bronson at 6:37.

Rating: C+. It was a nice power match and it’s good to see Butcher and the Blade get a win for once. Much like Rose, if they aren’t doing anything in AEW, put them in ROH and see if they can do anything here. The Savages continue to be a fun team who never win much of anything and their value is only going to last so long.

Brian Cage vs. Action Andretti

Prince Nana is here with Cage. Andretti tries to pick up the pace to start but can’t get very far with a tornado DDT attempt. Instead Andretti kicks him in the face, only to get sent hard to the floor. Back in and we hit the chinlock, followed by a quick belly to belly. Andretti fights up and strikes away, setting up a springboard clothesline.

Cage grabs a reverse suplex faceplant (that’s a new one) and the apron superplex gets two. Andretti is right back with the tornado DDT but has to fight out o Weapon X. The torture rack neckbreaker drops Cage and the standing shooting star press gets two more. Nana offers a distraction though and a powerbomb into Weapon X finishes Andretti at 10:21.

Rating: C+. Power vs. speed worked as usual here, which is something that Ring Of Honor certainly seems to understand. Cage is the bigger star, though I’m still not quite sure what the point is in having he and the Gates of Agony win the Six Man Tag Team Titles when the Gates were on their way to Japan for the World Tag League. Not much of a main event here, but it could have been worse.

Overall Rating: C-. This is a show where the problems are entirely in the presentation and not in the wrestling. The matches themselves ranged from good to decent, but there were thirteen matches on this show and three of them felt like they had any kind of impact. Other than that, it was a bunch of stuff that was put on the card seemingly or no other reason than to extend the show. It wasn’t a fun show to watch and most of it feels like it could have been heavily trimmed down or cut entirely. Rather bad presentation and a waste of some good action.

Results
Eddie Kingston b. Lee Johnson – Spinning backfist
The Infantry b. The Boys – Boot Camp to Brent
Emi Sakura b. Trish Adora – Butterfly backbreaker
Leyla Hirsch b. Heather Reckless – Cross armbreaker
Willie Mack b. Robert Anthony – Sitout powerbomb
Billie Starkz b. Marina Shafir – Starkz’ End
Dalton Castle b. Evil Uno – Bang A Rang
Brandon Cutler/Colt Cabana b. GPA/Trevor Outlaw – Side slam/STO combination to GPA
Komander b. Gringo Loco – Cielito Lindo
La Faccion Ingobernable b. Spanish Announce Project – Discus lariat to Serpentico
Nyla Rose b. Zoey Lynn – Beast Bomb
Butcher and the Blade b. Iron Savages – Powerbomb/neckbreaker combination to Bronson
Brian Cage b. Action Andretti – Weapon X

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: November 9, 2023
Location: InTrust Bank Arena, Wichita, Kansas
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Another week, another Ring Of Honor title change taking place on AEW TV. This time around that would be Samoa Joe vacating the TV Title after more than a year and a half as champion. Odds are we’ll hear a quick mention of it this week, though we won’t be seeing much else about it for a little while. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Billie Starkz helping Athena defeat Mercedes Martinez last week to retain the Women’s Title.

Lexi Nair calms Starkz down before Athena comes in. Starkz tells Athena that she is trying but Athena says if she has to beat Starkz up to get some violence out of her, so be it. Athena is impressed though and for now, Starkz is no longer a Minion In Training.

Opening sequence.

Here’s what’s coming on the show.

Tony Nese vs. Serpentico

Mark Starling is here with Nese, who mixed it up a bit by saying the group training will be AFTER the match. Nese drives him into the corner to start and gets in some much needed jumping jacks. Some slams and a hard whip into the corner have Serpentico in more trouble, followed by the situp kicks to the ribs. Nese loads up a pumphandle slam but cue Ethan Page (in some rather flashy workout gear) to say he’ll do his own group training. That’s enough for Serpentico to grab a rollup pin at 3:32.

Rating: C. This was a squash until the ending, as Page’s feud with Sterling and company continues. Serpentico isn’t likely to become a major part of the story and is little more than someone who beat Nese so Page can laugh at him about it. Again though, the best thing here is that the story is actually moving, which is more than can be said for several feuds around here.

Post match Page and Serpentico say group training is canceled.

Darius Martin and Action Andretti are ready for their eight man tag with the Infantry.

Athena vs. Heidi Howitzer

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Howitzer wins or survives the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Howitzer shoves her down to start and Athena needs a breather on the floor. Athena manages a whip into the steps though and the beating is on back inside. There’s a German suplex for two and the big right hand finishes for Athena at 3:33.

Rating: C. Remember when Athena has done this about twenty times before? Well this is the latest version. At some point they really could go with having one of the challengers survive the time limit to give these things at least a little drama. Then again why do that when you could do the exact same thing over and over?

Post match Athena beats Howitzer up even more.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Lee Johnson

Fletcher pulls a posing Johnson off the ropes and we start fast. They fight over a lockup with Johnson driving him into the corner until a small package sends Fletcher bailing to the floor. Back in and Johnson dropkicks him right back outside, where Fletcher wants a timeout. Fletcher comes back inside and takes over for a change, with stomping and a slam putting Johnson down.

A shot to the face rocks Fletcher so commentary talks about how bad a broken nose can be. Johnson hits some running clotheslines and a Blue Thunder Bomb gets two. Some running chops in the corner have Fletcher in more trouble but he’s back with a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. Fletcher gets caught on top and superplexed back down, setting up a frog splash for another near fall. Back up and Fletcher scores with a kick, setting up the jumping tombstone for the pin at 11:32.

Rating: B-. This was starting to roll near the end as Johnson got to showcase some of his talents for a change. Other than that though, it was another Fletcher match, meaning the wrestling was good but it wasn’t so interesting. There is only so much you can get out of a guy in tights doing good enough moves and that was on display here.

Final Battle ad.

Charlette Renegade vs. Leyla Hirsch

Robyn Renegade is here with Charlette. Hirsch powers her into the corner to start but Charlette takes it over to the ropes for a cheap shot from Robyn. A fisherman’s suplex gives Charlette two but Hirsch is back with a German suplex. Robyn’s distraction lets Charlette get in a right hand and it’s time for a chair. Cue Rachael Ellering for the save though, allowing Hirsch to grab the cross armbreaker for the win at 3:45.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go very far but they did manage to get in two people interfering and a teased chair shot in less than four minutes. The Renegades being featured a bit more often is a good thing, but as usual, it would be nice if they actually won something. Otherwise, these wins over them don’t have nearly the impact.

Athena demotes Lexi Nair from Bestie status and gives Billie Starkz a pep talk.

Iron Savages vs. Cole Karter/Griff Garrison

Maria Kanellis-Bennett is here with Karter and Garrison. Bronson shrugs off some running shoulders from Garrison but it’s too early for the Nasty Boys’ Pit Stop. Boulder comes in to flapjack both villains at the same time. Everything breaks down and Bronson hits a dive to take both of them out, meaning it’s time for some Savage Sauce. Bronson gets dropped onto the ramp, which has Ian trying for a Ghostbusters reference but he can’t quite pull it off.

We settle down to Karter suplexing Bronson for two and Garrison hammers away. The abdominal stretch goes on but the referee catches the cheating. Bronson fights away and brings Boulder back in to clean house. A powerbomb/World’s Strongest Slam combination gets two on the villains but Boulder misses a middle rope moonsault. Karter’s 450 gets two so he and Garrison strike away at Boulder, who crossbodies them down. The electric chair splash finishes Karter off at 9:50.

Rating: C+. If there is a point coming to this Garrison/Karter team coming anytime soon, I’d be delighted to see it. These two have been doing the same mediocre stuff for months now, with the only changes being whether or not they’re getting along that week. I’m still not sure what the point is in wasting Maria on them, but it would be nice for this story to go somewhere sooner than later.

We look at Samoa Joe retaining the ROH TV Title on Dynamite and then vacating the title after his win. Tony Khan will have an announcement about the title next week. If this is another Final Battle ladder match, I will not be even the slightest bit surprised.

Rachael Ellering vs. Billie Starkz

Athena (fourth appearance tonight) is here with Starkz. Ellering powers her into the corner to start before cranking on the wrist. Starkz comes back with a running sunset flip for two but Ellering takes her down without much trouble. A suplex into a backsplash has Starkz crawling into the corner, followed by a brainbuster for two.

Starkz strikes back but gets dropped with a single right hand. Some German suplexes have Ellering in trouble for a change but she catches Starkz going up. A TKO gives Ellering two, only to have Starkz send her outside for a not great looking suicide dive. Back in and a Swanton gives Starkz the pin at 7:49.

Rating: C+. Starkz continues to look more and more polished in the ring and we should be in for an interesting showdown with Athena, likely at Final Battle. On the other hand, I’m a bit surprised that Ellering lost here. She’s been on a bit of a roll as of late but losses clean here. I’m fine with Starkz getting a win, but Ellering was the only option for an opponent?

Post match Athena demands and gets violence from Starkz but Leyla Hirsch runs in for the save.

Full Gear ad.

Josh Woods vs. SK Bishop

Mark Sterling is here with Woods. Bishop knees his way out of a suplex to start but Woods unloads with knees in the corner. A jumping knee knocks Bishop out of the air and rolling Chaos Theory finishes for Woods at 1:18.

Infantry/Action Andretti/Darius Martin vs. Shane Taylor Promotions/Wingmen

The villains jump them to start but get sent outside for quadruple dives. Back in and Bravo slugs away at Taylor, who sends him face first into the corner for a nasty crash. The Wingmen come in for a double fist drop and a near fall. Bravo fights out of trouble though and hands it off to Andretti for a double handspring elbow. Everything breaks down and Boot Camp finishes Avalon at 4:38.

Rating: C+. Much like the recent four way tag matches, there is only so much that can be done with so many people and so little time. The Wingmen taking the fall was the only good option as the other three teams are either doing something or just not the Wingmen. There was good action here, but they need more time and less people.

Rachael Ellering didn’t have a good night but she hopes she getting through the Leyla Hirsch. Cue Hirsch to say they’re even and not friends. Maria Kanellis-Bennett comes in to suggest they should both join her team.

Dralistico vs. Gravity

Dralistico (who looks a lot like a mini 2002 Kane) flips him off to start and they trade some rapid fire armdrags. Gravity is sent outside and taken down with a dive, followed by a ram into the barricade for two. A dropkick knocks Dralistico outside and there’s a no hands dive to take him down again. Dralistico is back up with a sitout powerbomb for two before winning a strike off. Gravity fights back but gets caught with a springboard spinning Canadian Destroyer for the pin at 8:52.

Rating: B-. Dralistico recently signed with AEW so it makes sense that he would get a nice first win here. This was your normal lucha match with a bunch of dives and a crazy big move for the finish. It’s nothing that hasn’t been done before, but for a match that went just shy of ten minutes and popped the crowd, it could have been much worse.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Eddie Kingston vs. Angelico

Kingston is defending with his suspension lasting one week. So they did a suspension angle to explain why someone who is almost never here in the first place was gone for one week before his title match? They go with the grappling to start until Kingston is allowed to chop away. Angelico gets the better of things and they go to the mat for an exchange of kicks to the head.

Kingston actually manages to out kick him and strikes away in the corner to put Angelico down. The chinlock goes on but Angelico reverses into a choke to slow him back down. Angelico kicks him to the floor and hits the big flip dive. Back in and a high crossbody gives Angelico two and a rolling cradle gets the same. Kingston’s spinning backfist gets two, followed by another backfist and the Northern Lights Bomb to retain at 10:04.

Rating: B-. The most important thing about this match is that it felt like a main event. It was very nice to have a show that hyped a traditional main event match and then delivered on said match. It wasn’t a great one or anything but Kingston’s charisma shined through and Angelico has been built up (not overly well but he has been built up) in the last few weeks. In other words, it was nice to do this like other shows do it for once and that was a rare treat.

Respect is shown post match.

Dalton Castle (with a taped up nose because he headbutted the window at a fondue restaurant (Castle: “I WANTED SOME CHEESE!”)) wants Kingston for the title. Kingston is giving the fans too much ordinary and that is NOT cool with Castle.

Overall Rating: C+. Say it with me: Athena is great, the show runs too long, we’ve seen these people before, you don’t need to have everyone on the show every week, wrestlers who weren’t interesting last time aren’t interesting this time. That should cover the usual issues with this show, though Castle vs. Kingston is interesting. We have five shows left before Final Battle, which makes me think at least three of them will have nothing to do with hyping up the show. Look for the match announcements on AEW, like almost everything else important around here (save for Athena oddly enough).

Results
Serpentico b. Tony Nese – Rollup
Athena b. Heidi Howitzer – Right hand
Kyle Fletcher b. Lee Johnson – Jumping Tombstone
Leyla Hirsch b. Charlette Renegade – Cross armbreaker
Iron Savages b. Cole Karter/Griff Garrison – Electric chair splash to Karter
Billie Starkz b. Rachael Ellering – Swanton
Josh Woods b. SK Bishop – Rolling Chaos Theory
Infantry/Action Andretti/Darius Martin b. Shane Taylor Promotions/Wingmen – Boot Camp to Avalon
Dralistico b. Gravity – Springboard spinning Canadian Destroyer
Eddie Kingston b. Angelico – Northern Lights Bomb

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; November 2, 2023
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Unvasvillee, Connecticut
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’ve had another Ring Of Honor title change on AEW TV and this time around it might actually matter. We might be seeing the new Six Man Tag Team Champions around here for once, though that will not be happening until next week at the earliest. Other than that, we have less than two months to go before Final Battle and that means it should be time to start getting things ready. Let’s get to it.

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

Stokely Hathaway announced that Eddie Kingston is suspended for attacking him. If he tries to touch Hathaway again, he’ll be fired. First: Kingston has wrestled two matches in Ring Of Honor since March so that’s not exactly a huge loss. Two: As long as Kingston has been away, Jerry Lynn has been away even longer and hasn’t been mentioned in the better part of ever.

Here’s a quick preview of what is coming.

Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal vs. The Righteous

Daniels and Dutch start things off with Dutch taking him into the corner for an overly clean break. As Ian gets in the required “the winners of this might be in line for a title shot”, Daniels sends him into the ropes for a running hip attack and it’s off to Vincent vs. Sydal. Vincent is quickly taken down and Daniels adds a running clothesline to the back of the head for two.

Something like a slingshot Meteora gives Sydal two but Vincent sends him into the corner. Dutch gets in a cheap shot from the apron and the villains take over. Vincent’s basement Downward Spiral gets two but Sydal avoids a charge. That’s enough to get over to Daniels for the tag into the house cleaning, with a Death Valley Driver getting two on Vincent. Everything breaks down and Sydal is sent outside, leaving Daniels to get caught with Autumn Sunshine for the pin at 7:24.

Rating: C+. Daniels and Sydal are not the most successful team these days but they are always good for putting someone over in a good match. The Righteous continue to be the resident creepy guys but they aren’t exactly going anywhere at the moment. Granted it might help if they had champions around for them to go after but that isn’t likely to be the case for a good while.

Ethan Page is ready for Josh Woods tonight but he also wants to get his hands on Tony Nese again. The old Ethan Page would get more violent but he’s trying to be a different version. He wants Nese to be watching tonight though because he’ll be thinking of hurting him very badly.

Robyn Renegade vs. Leyla Hirsch

Charlette Renegade is here with Robyn. Hirsch takes her down without much effort to start but Robyn hits some chops in the corner. That’s reversed for some rather hard forearms to the face but Robyn gets two off a faceplant. A rolling German suplex sets up Hirsch’s armbar for the tap out of nowhere at 1:43.

Post match Charlette comes in to jump Leyla but Rachael Ellering makes the save.

Lee Moriarty vs. Darius Martin

No Shane Taylor here after he helped Moriarty beat Martin last week. Moriarty works on a headlock to start but Martin takes him down for an early two. An elbow to the face lets Moriarty send him to the apron and a kick to the ribs makes it worse. Back in and Moriarty starts working on the arm before switching to an abdominal stretch.

Another arm snap seems to wake Martin up and he hits a bulldog into a kick to the head. Martin gets caught up top but misses something, setting up an arm trap neckbreaker for two. The Border City Stretch is countered into some rollups to give Martin two. A release German suplex followed by a frog splash gives Martin the pin at 7:39.

Rating: C+. This is what Ring Of Honor has been needing to do more often: have a match that ties into what they did last week. Moriarty vs. Martin isn’t exactly a red hot feud but they’ve got a little story going, which is a lot better than just random matches that lead nowhere. I’ll take what I can get from these two and they had another perfectly fine match here.

Final Battle ad. They’re hammering home the idea that the show is available for free with an Honor Club subscription which is a very good idea.

Josh Woods vs. Ethan Page

Mark Sterling is here with Woods. They fight over wrist control to start and can be heard conversing in the process. Page armdrags him into an armbar but Woods is right back by sending the arm into the corner. A hammerlock slam gives Woods two but Page gets in a shot for a breather. Cue Tony Nese to watch as Page hammers away and hits a big boot. The Ego’s Edge is blocked though and Woods snaps the arm over the rope to cut Page off. Page is right back with another shot but this time it’s a Sterling distraction to break up Ego’s Edge. Page grabs a small package but Nese turns it over so Woods gets the pin at 5:55.

Rating: C. This didn’t have the time to go very far but it keeps the Page vs. Sterling N Pals feud going. That being said, Page felt like he was on a roll and now he’s fighting Nese and company, which doesn’t feel like that interesting. Nese hasn’t been presented as anything all that impressive (despite being on the show so frequently) and I’ve lost a good bit of interest in Page since this feud began. Hopefully things turn around, but at least there is a story here and that is a lot better than nothing.

We look at the Mogul Embassy winning the Six Man Tag Team Titles on Dynamite.

Slim J vs. Gringo Loco vs. Angelico vs. Metalik

So Slim J and Loco were in a four way last week while Angelico and Metalik had a singles match so this is kind of a merger of two matches. The fans are behind Loco to start and it’s a brawl early on with J and Loco clearing out the other two. Loco sends J outside though and there’s the big running flip dive. Metalik dives onto the pile but Angelico breaks up a springboard.

Back in and Angelico suplexes J for two before cranking on J’s arm. Angelico grabs a nasty looking bridging leglock on J but Metalik makes the save and hits a reverse Sling Blade for two. Loco comes back in and gets caught with Metalik’s rope walk hurricanrana for two more. A series of covers and saves leaves everyone down until J hits Loco with Zack Ryder’s old Zack Attack for another near fall. Everyone gets another two until Angelico and J are the only two left. Angelico rolls J out of the corner and gets a wacky crucifix variation for the pin at 5:45.

Rating: B-. This wasn’t as fun as last week’s insane four way but dang it was entertaining while it lasted. Angelico gets to showcase a bit of his submission prowess, but that might have been better suited in another singles match as he’s getting ready for his World Title shot. Other than that, very fast paced match here and that’s a good thing to put onto a show, especially with this kind of talent.

Sonjay Dutt has known Jay Lethal and Eddie Kingston for a long time and knows the talent Lethal has always had. Kingston on the other hand is a garbage wrestler and here is Stokely Hathaway to say he wants to be there with Lethal beats Kingston. Hathaway will look into when the title match takes place. He’ll email Dutt so look for the Angelfire address.

Rachael Ellering vs. LMK

LMK is Little Mean Kathleen, a popular local star. They fight over wrist control to start until LMK’s running shoulder has no effect. Ellering’s shoulder works just fine, though the fans are not pleased. A gutwrench suplex (LMK screams) gets two but LMK manages a headscissors into the corner. LMK misses a Cannonball though and it’s an uppercut into the Boss Woman Slam to give Ellering the pin at 2:41. LMK certainly had some fire in there.

Wingmen vs. Gates Of Agony vs. Infantry vs. Iron Savages

The Wingmen come out first and keep trying to talk but the other entrances cut them off in a funny bit. We get a nice save from commentary as we’re told the Six Man Tag Team Titles are off being cleaned and polished (as this was taped before the title change). Boulder runs Avalon over to start but misses an elbow, allowing Avalon to get three straight near falls. It’s off to Dean vs. Kaun with the former charging into an elbow in the corner.

Toa sends Dean outside though and it’s back to Avalon as these tags are rather rapid fire. Nemeth’s pendulum DDT gets two on Dean but a clothesline gets him out of trouble. The tag brings in Bravo to clean house as the Gates drop to the floor to avoid tagging Avalon. Bravo hits a wind up DDT on Avalon but the Gates are back in to clean house. Everything breaks down and there’s Boot Camp to Nemeth. The Savages come back in and wreck the Infantry but the Gates tag themselves in and Open The Gates finishes Avalon at 6:24.

Rating: C+. This was similar to the four way from earlier as it was pretty much all action throughout. That’s a lot of fun and the Gates continue their roll, though I do wonder if the Six Man Title win will dethrone the whole thing. Otherwise it would seem to be building to the Gates winning the regular Tag Team Titles, which would at least be an improvement for the division. Either way, fun match here, as ROH seems to want to get as many people on these shows as possible.

We look at Mark Briscoe returning at Rampage.

Nick Comoroto vs. Lee Johnson vs. Action Andretti

Johnson and Andretti go after Comoroto to start and a low bridge sends Comoroto to the floor. The other two trade rollups for two each until Comoroto is back in for the save. Comoroto hits a DDT to Andretti and a one armed gorilla press to Johnson at the same time for an impressive crash. A missed charge doesn’t slow Comoroto down as he suplexes both of them at once. Comoroto gets knocked down though, leaving the other two to slug it out. That’s broken up by a double crossbody but Johnson is back up with a middle rope forearm. Andretti makes the save with a springboard missile dropkick though and pins Comoroto at 5:00.

Rating: C+. That’s quite the choice as Comoroto was looking like a monster throughout this whole thing. I’d assume this was to get Andretti back on the winning ways after his loss to Miro but if you’re going to have Comoroto look that dominant, just let Johnson take the fall. Another action packed match, but the lack of time hurt it.

Charlette Renegade vs. Kiera Hogan

Robyn Renegade is here with her sister. Charlette works on a headlock to start and then runs Hogan over. A flapjack gives Charlette two and we hit the camel, uh, face pull. Hogan is back up with a hip attack and a running dropkick in the corner for two of her own. Charlette gets a rollup with feet on the ropes for two but Hogan grabs Face The Music for the pin at 3:23.

Rating: C. Another short match here as Hogan gets a win despite not doing much lately. The Renegades have not been doing so well lately and they could use a win or two to give them a bit more value. For now though, there wasn’t much to this one but Hogan has improved a bit in recent months.

Rachael Ellering checks on Leyla Hirsch, who doesn’t want to see her. Ellering says no one else was there to help her but Hirsch seems to insist that Maria Kanellis-Bennett has her back. Hirsch says Ellering was wrong and leaves.

Workhorsemen/Cole Karter/Griff Garrison vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys/Gravity

Well this is something and Maria Kanellis-Bennett is here with the villains. Gravity (in a peacock mask) avoids Henry’s charge to start and gets two off a slingshot rollup. Karter comes in and gets elbowed down by Brent, who is powered straight into the corner. A dropkick hits Brent and it’s off to Drake to hit some hard chops.

The Workhorsemen strike away until Drake’s DDT gives Henry two. Brent avoids a charge though and the diving tag brings Gravity back in to pick up the pace. Garrison sends Gravity into the corner though and it’s the Workhorsemen getting to beat Gravity up for a change. That’s escaped with a few rolls though and it’s Castle coming back in to pick up the pace.

Suplexes drop the Workhorsemen and Castle gets to throw some Boys around. Hold on though as Gravity wants Castle to throw him around too, only for Henry to break it up. Drake runs Castle over but the Boys make the save. NOW Gravity gets thrown onto the Workhorsemen, setting up the Bang A Rang to finish Drake at 7:25.

Rating: B-. This was another match where what we got was fun but there was too much going on for it to really work. That being said, I don’t quite get how this is the best use of Castle. He’s still good in the ring and the fans love him, so unless his injuries are still bugging him, he should be a heck of a lot higher than being stuck in this kind of match. Gravity being the willing and enthusiastic partner worked well for him, but Castle felt a level above everyone else here.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Mercedes Martinez

Martinez, with Diamante, is challenging and there is no Billie Starkz to be found. Athena forearms away to start and they go outside, where Athena rips up a sign held by Martinez’s sister. They go back in, where Martinez hammers away in the corner but Athena flips out of a spider suplex. A baseball slide puts Martinez on the floor and there’s a suicide dive to send her into the announcers’ table.

Diamante offers the distraction though and Martinez scores with a right hand to take over. A chair is loaded up and Athena is laid on it, only to kick her way to freedom. Athena superplexes her off the barricade (that’s not something you see very often) and they both beat the count (after waiting around a bit so the referee can get to 19).

They strike it out with Athena getting the better of things until Martinez’s Saito suplex puts them both down. The O Face is broken up and the OG Drop gives Martinez two. Athena blocks the Brass City Sleeper with a bite of the arm though and one heck of a forearm puts Martinez down.

Now the O Face connects but Diamante offers a distraction. Athena takes her out as well and rips off a turnbuckle, only to have Martinez send her into the exposed steel. A fisherman’s driver gives Martinez two (that’s a bit much) but here is a woman in a hoodie to deck Martinez. That’s enough to set up the Wing Splitter to retain the title at 13:30.

Rating: B. Easily the match of the night here, even with the rather obvious Billie Starkz interference at the end. Other than that, the match was the kind of hard hitting fight you would expect from these two. Martinez is dangerous enough to feel like a threat to the title and that is what they needed here. This worked as a main event as the women steal another ROH show.

It’s Billie Starkz, who hands Athena the title as commentary treats this like a big heel turn to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show had it usual ups and downs, including some rather odd choices. First of all, the main event was rather good and it feels like they are stringing more stories together from week to week. The latter is very good as there have been too many one off matches that don’t go anywhere and rarely feel like they matter when the next show airs. Fixing that would give you more of an incentive to watch the next week’s show and that has been lacking for a long time.

At the same time, I’m not sure what was with all of the multi-person matches but my goodness it was overload this week. This week’s show featured a four way, a four way tag, a triple threat and an eight man tag, plus all of the regular matches. That’s 23 wrestlers in four matches, none of which got a significant amount of time. It was a good bit too much and felt like they were trying to get as many people on the show as possible without doing a battle royal of some kind.

Overall, it was a good enough show, but the longstanding underlying problem continues: there is way too much going on in any given show. There were multiple matches that could have been trimmed off of this show without losing anything overly important. The shows are too long and it takes away from the impact some things can make. This week’s show was good and had some improvements, but after a few weeks of shorter shows, that near two hour run time was a bit of a punch to the stomach.

Results
The Righteous b. Matt Sydal/Christopher Danielson – Autumn Sunshine to Daniels
Leyla Hirsch b. Robyn Renegade – Cross armbreaker
Darius Martin b. Lee Moriarty – Frog splash
Josh Woods b. Ethan Page – Small package
Angelico b. Slim J, Gringo Loco and Metalik – Crucifix to Metalik
Rachael Ellering b. LMK – Boss Woman Slam
Gates Of Agony b. Infantry, Wingmen and Iron Savages – Open The Gates to Avalon
Action Andretti b. Lee Johnson and Nick Comoroto – Springboard missile dropkick to Comoroto
Kiera Hogan b. Charlette Renegade – Face The Music
Dalton Castle/The Boys/Gravity b. Workhorsemen/Cole Karter/Griff Garrison – Bang A Rang to Drake
Athena b. Mercedes Martinez – Wing Splitter

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 12, 2023
Location: Maverik Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

This show continues to be searching for a purpose as there is very little going on around here. Maybe they can find something this week, but the easiest way to do it would have something feel like it matters. Outside of the Women’s Title, almost none of the champions are around here and it makes the show feel that much less important. Hopefully that changes this week so let’s get to it.

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

Serpentico is ready to survive ten minutes against Eddie Kingston because that’s all you have to do in a Proving Ground match.

Opening sequence.

Eddie Kingston vs. Serpentico

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Serpentico wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a future title shot. Kingston lets him fire off some chops to start but Serpentico grabs a jumping Downward Spiral. That’s too far for Kingston, who grabs a belly to back suplex for two. The Stretch Plum makes Serpentico tap at 2:50. Well at least the champ was here.

Post match Angelico comes in to check on Serpentico but Eddie tells him to move so he can shake Serpentico’s hand. Somehow this makes Eddie think Angelico wants a title shot so….yeah sure Angelico is in.

Gates Of Agony vs. Fresco/Watson

Prince Nana is here with the Gates and the other two are part of Lights, Camera, Faction. The Gates beat up Fresco to start and pull Watson in as well. Kaun blasts Fresco with a clothesline and the Gates knock them outside. Back in and the Gates beat up the rest of Lights, Camera, Faction, setting up the double standing clothesline to finish Fresco at 2:32.

Daga is ready to win the Latin American Title back.

Athena vs. Mazzerati

Another non-title Proving Ground match and Billie Starkz is in Athena’s corner. Mazzerati takes her down with a rollup for two as commentary explains the Proving Ground rules for the second time in less than fifteen minutes. Athena takes her into the corner for a running knee and grabs a release gordbuster.

They head outside where Mazzerati’s hurricanrana is countered into a heck of a powerbomb, leaving the referee to check on her. Back in and Athena unloads with hard shots to the face but Mazzerati cuts off a charge with a kick to the ribs. Athena ties her in the Tree of Woe and fires off some kicks, only to have Mazzerati strike away. She makes the mistake of turning her back on Athena though and gets choked out at 5:15.

Rating: C+. Mazzerati looked impressive here, which is about all you can hope to get out of a Proving Ground match. It’s not like you’re going to see the champ lose in something like this so this was as good as it was going to get. Athena continues to be the star of the show though and it’s nice to see her around, as it’s not like much else gets to stand out.

Post match Athena loads up the post match beating but Starkz steals Mazzerati and hides her underneath the ring.

Lee Johnson is cut off by a Shane Taylor Promotions recruitment pitch.

AAA Latin American Title: QT Marshall vs. Daga

Daga is challenging and gets trash talked by Marshall to start, though Marshall doesn’t get that fans are swearing at him in Spanish. Daga knocks him down to start but they head outside where Marshall fires off some chops. Marshall hits a dropkick and yells a lot but Daga is right back with a brainbuster. A running Backstabber gives Daga two but Marshall’s tornado DDT gets the same. Daga kicks him in the leg though and muscles Marshall up for a gutwrench powerbomb. That’s enough for Daga to go up, only to dive into a cutter. The Dirt Sheet Driver and la majistral retain the title at 7:11.

Rating: C+. It’s a shame that Marshall has such a lame reputation because he’s downright pretty good in this role. He’s always been good as a middle of the road heel and if he hadn’t been wedged into the wrong spots so many times, it could have worked. The match here was a pretty nice back and forth showcase, though Daga has always been just kind of there for me.

Video on Dalton Castle, who is losing his mind under the pressure of making the fans happy.

The Infantry vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Moriarty headlocks Bravo down to start and grabs a hammerlock to hold him in place. Back up and Bravo hands it off to Dean for a double hiptoss into a double fist drop. Taylor comes in for the hard clotheslines to Dean as commentary brags about Taylor’s high level of awesome. Dean’s comeback is cut off by a release Rock Bottom and a splash for two. Moriarty misses a charge in the corner though and it’s back to Bravo to clean house. A rolling Downward Spiral gets two on Moriarty but Taylor breaks up Boot Camp. Taylor is back in with a release Rock Bottom to Bravo and the big right hand finishes for Taylor at 6:31.

Rating: C+. Another good enough match here as the Infantry kept the speed up but eventually got caught by Taylor’s pure power. Taylor is getting a rather strong push as of late and it’s cool to see him being treated as a monster. Moriarty did well too, as he makes a good contrast to Taylor’s size and strength.

Billie Starkz is ready for her match but didn’t think much of Lexi Nair saying she sucked at Minion Training. Diamante and Mercedes Martinez come in to mock Starkz.

Angelico vs. Martin Casaus

Casaus was Marty The Moth in Lucha Underground and gets quite the welcome. Angelico starts with some hip thrusting before punching him in the face. Casaus laughs a bit and gets dropped with a right hand to the head. Some face first rams into the buckle seem to please Casaus and he comes back with a hard elbow for two. The clothesline comeback gets Angelico out of trouble and a twisting leglock makes Casaus tap at 4:30.

Rating: C. Given that Angelico is somehow the new #1 contender for the World Title, it makes sense that he needs a win or two to build him up. That leglock looked good and as usual, the dancing was entertaining, but he might need something beyond that. Casaus popped the crowd and that’s more than you usually get from the guest stars on this show.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Lady Frost

Diamante is here with Martinez. Frost gets hit in the face a few times but comes back with some knees to the stomach. Martinez knocks her straight down and into the corner though, with some hard right hands keeping Frost in trouble. Ian thinks a shot to the eye might have been accidental and Caprice has to mock him for that. A butterfly suplex gives Martinez two but Frost kicks her in the face. Frost’s running kick in the corner sets up a twisting Vader Bomb for two more. Frostbite takes too long though and Martinez grabs a Razor’s Edge Dominator for the pin at 5:29.

Rating: C. Believe it or not, Martinez gets to look dominant again while not really moving up the ladder in the slightest. That’s just kind of what she does around here and while she’s good at what she does, it’s kind of hard to get interested in seeing the same running on a treadmill situation that she’s been in for months. See also Frost, who is talented enough to do something or be build up as a nice opponent for Athena but gets beaten like this over and over.

Mark Sterling offers Josh Woods Pat Buck as a coach, but Woods isn’t interested. They’ll have a match next week instead. It’ll even be a Pure Rules match for once!

Leyla Hirsch vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale blocks a drop toehold to start and grabs a hiptoss to put Hirsch down. Hirsch is able to pull her out of the corner for a crash into the turnbuckle though and it’s time to work on Nightingale’s arm. A Rock Bottom is countered into a basement dropkick from Hirsch and she grabs a Kimura. Nightingale reverses into a suplex and a spinebuster gets two. Back up and Hirsch snaps off a German suplex into a clothesline for two of her own. A release Rock Bottom puts Hirsch back down and the Pounce does it even worse. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 6:54.

Rating: C+. Speaking of people on the treadmill, I give you Nightingale, who feels like she has been in the same spot for months now. Commentary mentioned the Owen Hart Tournament here and that feels like it was a lifetime ago. The fans go nuts for her, she’s good in the ring and feels different enough to stand out. Why not, I don’t know, do something with that???

Post match Leyla jumps Nightingale but Skye Blue runs in for the save.

Gringo Loco vs. Action Andretti

They go to the mat to start with Andretti getting a rollup for two and grabbing an armbar. With that broken up, they shake hands, only to have Loco hit him in the face. A seated arm/leg crank has Andretti in trouble before a hard suplex gives Loco two. Andretti is back up with a pop up dropkick to send him outside, where an Asai moonsault connects again. Back in and a Spanish Fly gives Andretti two but Loco nails a springboard cutter for two. It takes too long for Loco to go up though and he gets caught with a super hurricanrana. Andretti moonsaults him for the pin at 7:16.

Rating: C+. These two doing well isn’t a surprise but it’s another case of two people with talent who aren’t likely to do anything important in the near future having a match. It’s not a bad match by any means and the high flying was good, but it would be nice if these matches felt like they meant anything. Figure that out and this show gets so much better.

Eddie Kingston wants better competition and is happy to face Christopher Daniels. They’ll show respect afterwards, but he wants a win to show Eddie Kingston what he’s about.

Billie Starkz vs. Rachelle Riveter

They wrestle around to start with Starkz getting the better of things. A lifting double underhook facebuster sets up a Bank Statement to finish Riveter at 1:13.

Post match Diamante and Mercedes Martinez run in to beat down Athena and Starkz.

Kip Sabian vs. Anthony Henry

Penelope Ford and JD Drake are both here too. They fight over a test of strength to start until Henry tries a failed cross armbreaker attempt. Sabian sends him outside for an Arabian moonsault, which only hits Drake. Back in and Sabian scores with a reverse Cannonball in the corner, followed by a chop off for some skin slapping. A running kick to the chest puts Sabian down and Henry’s Michinoku Driver gets two. Sabian is right back with Deathly Hallows for the pin at 6:30.

Rating: C. If there is a better example of a match that felt like it was there to extend the show, I’ve yet to see it. There was no reason to have this match on here as the action wasn’t exactly great and it was Sabian, who doesn’t really mean anything beating half of a tag team. This is how you make a show longer for the sake of making it feel longer and that’s not a good thing.

Griff Garrison agrees that he hasn’t been pulling his weight in the team with Cole Karter but Maria Kanellis-Bennett tells them to figure it out. With Maria gone, Karter praises her skills and looks, with Garrison agreeing to work harder.

Christopher Daniels vs. Ethan Page

Page grabs a headlock to start but Daniels reverses into one of his own. A slam puts Daniels down but he drops Page and steps over his chest. Daniels whips him into the corner and grabs a waistlock, followed by the abdominal stretch. With that broken up, Daniels hits the STO but it’s too early for the BME. Page boots him in the face and slugs away, setting up a powerslam for two. Daniels low bridges him to the apron but has to block the springboard cutter. Angel’s Wings is countered as well and it’s the Ego’s Edge to finish Daniels at 7:18.

Rating: C+. As has been the case in recent weeks, Page looks good and now he gets his “I Beat Christopher Daniels” merit badge. That is only going to get him so far but it does seem like he is ready to move up the ladder a bit. I’ll believe it when I see it, but at least Page seems to have some kind of a story around here.

Post match Mark Sterling and Tony Nese come out, with the former offering Page a spot on the team. Page says no and, after some bickering, gets a match with Nese next week instead. With Sterling and Nese gone, Page shows respect to Daniels.

Scorpio Sky vs. Darius Martin

Commentary says they’re both on “absolute tears”. If Sky’s two straight wins and Martin’s four wins (two in tag matches) constitute tears, sure they are. Sky rolls out of a wristlock to start before some headlocks and headscissor counters don’t go anywhere. Martin armdrags him into an armbar but Sky slips out and kicks him in the ribs. Sky grabs the neck crank but Martin fights his way up and strikes away. A running bulldog sends Sky throat first into the middle rope but Sky’s Sky High gets two. The TKO finishes Martin at 6:10.

Rating: C+. Why was this the main event? The wrestling was fine, the wrestlers are both talented and they had a completely fine match. That being said, there was no build to this, there was no hype to this and it was just two people having a match. The show was just meandering along and then after one random match, it just ends. That’s not good structure, and having it be another perfectly fine match doesn’t help things.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s Ring Of Honor for the week and again, it’s just the same stuff we always see: a bunch of good enough matches with so many people who don’t feel like they’re going anywhere. We might hear some lip service about them moving up the card, but with Eddie Kingston making his first appearance and beating up Serpentico before moving on to Angelico, why should I buy any of these other people being elevated? The wrestling isn’t the problem around here, but if they don’t fix the way they set this show up, it’s going to get even less interesting and important, if that is somehow possible.

Results
Eddie Kingston b. Serpentico – Stretch Plum
Gates Of Agony b. Fresco/Watson – Double standing clothesline to Fresco
Athena b. Mazzerati – Choke
QT Marshall b. Daga – La majistral
Shane Taylor Promotions b. The Infantry – Right hand to Bravo
Angelico b. Martin Casaus – Twisting leglock
Mercedes Martinez b. Lady Frost – Razor’s Edge Dominator
Willow Nightingale b. Leyla Hirsch – Babe With The Powerbomb
Action Andretti b. Gringo Loco – Moonsault
Billie Starkz b. Rachelle Riveter – Bank Statement
Kip Sabian b. Anthony Henry – Deathly Hallows
Ethan Page b. Christopher Daniels – Ego’s Edge
Scorpio Sky b. Darius Martin – TKO

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Ring Of Honor
Date: October 5, 2023
Location: Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

The era of searching for the new champions continues and that could make for quite the different show. In the last six or so weeks, Ring Of Honor has crowned new World, Tag Team and Six Man Tag Team Champions, but none have appeared during their new reigns. It would be nice to have that change, but that might imply this show matters in the grand scheme of things. In other words: Save us again Athena. Let’s get to it.

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

We get a clip from after WrestleDream of Eddie Kingston talking about how much he loves the Japanese style. Now he wants to deal with future challengers and have Snickers pie. This aired on Youtube the night of WrestleDream.

Opening sequence.

Women’s Title: Leyla Hirsch vs. Athena

Athena is defending and has Billie Starkz in her corner. Hirsch sends her into the corner for a slingshot dropkick out to the floor. Athena dives over a charge and hits a dropkick before dropping Hirsch off the steps. Back in and Athena stomps away but Hirsch manages a quick choke. With that broken up, Athena kicks away but stops to dance, allowing Starkz to grab a rollup for two.

Athena isn’t having that and drops her with a single shot, setting up a surfboard. Hirsch manages a quick suplex into a hard clotheslines for two more. That’s broken up with a Regal Roll but the O Face is countered into a triangle choke. Athena breaks out and they slug it with Hirsch getting the better of things.

A cross armbreaker has Athena in more trouble but she slips out and unloads with right hands. Hirsch catches her up top though and cartwheels into a German suplex for the big crash and another near fall. Athena has had it with this though and grabs the Despicable Knee to retain at 12:23.

Rating: B. This was the big match feel that has been missing from Athena’s matches as Hirsch gave her a run for her money. While it still seems likely that Starkz will be the one to take the title from Athena, Starkz at least gave her a sweat here and that’s better than you will get in a lot of Athena’s title matches these days. Good stuff here and it felt like a main event level match.

Post match Athena loads up the post match attack but Starkz convinces her to calm down. Maria Kanellis Bennett comes out to shake her head at Hirsch.

Christopher Daniels and Rocky Romero are ready to fight, though they respect each other.

Josh Woods vs. Tyler Payne

Mark Sterling is here with Woods, who grabs a snapmare but stops before kicking Payne in the back. Payne flips over him out of the corner but now Woods hits the shots to the back. The Tilt-A-Woods finishes Payne fast, as commentary says that this non-Pure Rules match should get Woods closer to a Pure Rules Title shot. Sure.

Rocky Romero vs. Christopher Daniels

Daniels works on a headlock to start and then runs Romero over with a shoulder. Back up and Romero snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor, setting up the big dive to drop Daniels again. Daniels is fine enough to drive him into the corner back inside, followed by a suplex for two.

The chinlock doesn’t do much good for Daniels as Romero is back up with a springboard tornado DDT. A middle rope double stomp gives Romero two but Daniels crotches him on top. Angel’s Wings is countered and a kick to the face sets up the running Sliced Bread to finish Daniels at 8:07.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of a match that you knew was going to be good based on who was involved. Daniels and Romero could have a fine match with each other in their sleep and they did more than well enough here. The match might not have meant anything and Daniels continues to lose, but there are far worse ways to use show time.

Dalton Castle is panicking over the pressure from the fans and his heart is beating rather fast. He knows he makes the ratings spike so he wants to give the people what they want. Lexi Nair: “I don’t know what that was.”

Scorpio Sky vs. Fred Rosser

Rosser is better known as Darren Young (though he’s gotten a lot better since then). They fight over wrist control to start until Sky pulls him down into a headlock. Back up and a backbreaker gives Rosser a breather, setting up some hip smashes in the corner. The cravate holds Sky down but he’s right back up with a Sky High. The TKO is blocked though and Rosser drops him back first onto the apron for two. Sky shrugs it off and grabs the TKO for the pin at 5:57.

Rating: B-. Another good match in a series tonight as Rosser is someone who can work well with anyone. I’m not sure why he hasn’t gotten a shot on a bigger stage but he has built up a bit of a reputation in recent years. Sky is the same, as he is able to have a solid match with any opponent and that was the case again here. Go with more of these two, but maybe, with something important perhaps?

Lady Frost/Renegades vs. Willow Nightingale/Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan

Nightingale blocks Frost’s whip to start and hits the basement crossbody. Hogan and Blue come in for a double basement superkick but Blue gets taken into the wrong corner. A double suplex gives Robyn two and it’s back to Frost for a release fisherman’s suplex. Blue gets stomped down but rolls away from a double suplex. The hot tag brings in Hogan to clean house but Charlette cuts her off with a Samoan driver. Everything breaks down and Frost hits Blue with an Air Raid Crash. The Renegades are sent into each other and Nightingale gives Robyn the Babe With The Powerbomb for the pin at 5:54.

Rating: C+. They kept this moving and it made for an entertaining match. Nightingale continues to be as charismatic as any woman in AEW/ROH today and the Renegades are still smooth in the ring. Blue is treated like something of a star and Frost is a good hand, with Hogan having the fire to keep the energy up. Fun match here, even if there is no reason to believe any of them are going anywhere.

The Infantry and Trish Adora are ready for their matches tonight.

Ethan Page vs. Invictus Khash

Page grinds away on a headlock to start but gets his hair pulled. That earns Khash a series of right hands but he knocks Page out of the corner. Page gets rocked with a discus forearm, though he’s fine enough to send Khash outside. A shoulder off the apron sets up the slingshot cutter to give Page the pin at 2:59.

Mark Sterling and Tony Nese are ready for Satoshi Kojima, who likes bread. Carbs are the enemy you know.

TMDK vs. The Infantry

Bravo hugs Haste to start and they run around with neither being able to get anywhere. A double hiptoss into a double fist drop gets two on Haste but Nicholls trips Dean from the floor. The villains take over on Dean in the corner but he slips out of a belly to back suplex and kicks his way over to Bravo. House is quickly cleaned and a spinning faceplant gets two. Bravo goes up top but gets caught in a powerbomb/superplex combination for two. Everything breaks down and a diving DDT/Big Ending combination finishes Bravo at 7:36.

Rating: C+. TMDK is a good team who are the week’s guest stars, but it doesn’t help that they’ve already had their Trios Titles match and lost, making them a bit less interesting. Beating the Infantry doesn’t mean much around here, though they did put up a good fight. The main appeal was having a New Japan team here and while talented, they were another match on an already long show.

Ethan Page wants competition and if that happens to be Eddie Kingston, cool.

Tony Nese vs. Satoshi Kojima

Nese, crowd insults, group therapy, opponent interrupts. This time things go a bit further though, as Kojima loves bread, which Nese hates because of the carbs. Nese bounds off of Kojima to start and Kojima pops his pecs a bit. Mark Sterling trips Kojima down though and Nese sends him outside, where Sterling can get in a cheap shot.

Back in and Nese ties him in the Tree of Woe for the crunch kicks to the ribs. The bodyscissors stays on Kojima’s ribs but he fights up and hits the rapid fire chops in the corner. The top rope elbow gives Kojima two but Nese is right back with the neck snap across the top. Nese’s springboard moonsault gets two, only to have Kojima come back with a Koji Cutter. The lariat finishes Nese at 7:21.

Rating: C. This was another match featuring a guest star and while it’s cool to see Kojima here, there is only so much to be gotten out of having him beat up Nese. It’s the same match and series of crowd insults that we’ve seen for months and it’s not exactly fascinating in the first place. At least they had something with the Bread Club stuff but there wasn’t much else here.

Athena is NOT impressed with Billie Starkz’s minioning so more training is needed. Lexi Nair doesn’t like it either. As a result, Starkz has to go to Tony Khan’s office, shout “My name is Willow Nightingale and I’m a big loser!” and leave. As usual, these things are great.

Trish Adora vs. Billie Starkz

Athena is here with Starkz, who is knocked outside and gets some Athena yelling. Back in and Starkz drives her into the buckle over and over but Adora kicks her in the face over and over. Adora hits some hip attacks in the corner, until Starks comes back with a hard forearm. The Swanton hits raised knees but Starkz shrugs it off and grabs a lifting Pedigree. A Bank Statement finishes Adora at 4:05.

Rating: C. This would be your third Starkz segment of the night and while they’re still the best thing on the show, they might want to spread her stuff out a bit. Adora continues her fall down the ladder and I’m not sure how much further she can fall. The match didn’t have time to go very far but it could have been worse.

Lee Johnson vs. Darius Martin

Commentary starts talking about the pandemic shots as the guys go technical to start and trade some legsweeps for two each. Martin slips out of a hiptoss and knocks him down but Johnson manages a shove into the corner. A belly to back suplex gives Johnson two and we hit the chinlock. Martin suplexes his way to freedom and a springboard faceplant gets two on Johnson. Johnson’s Blue Thunder Bomb gets the same but Martin grabs a suplex. The frog slash finishes Johnson at 6:47.

Rating: C. The action was fine, the wrestlers are both talented and they had a completely watchable match. The problem here is it’s the tenth match an hour and forty minutes into a show and they came in ice cold. It’s kind of hard to get into a match between two people who are going nowhere when the show has already run long as it is and it really hurt things here. Not a bad match at all, but it was stuck in a horrible spot.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Cole Karter/Griff Garrison vs. Iron Savages vs. Workhorsemen

One fall to a finish. Henry and Moriarty start things off and technical to a standoff. Bronson comes in and is taken into the corner so Drake can slingshot in with a hilo. A forearm into a DDT gets two on Garrison as the rapid fire tags continue. It’s off to Taylor to headbutt Henry and a splash gets two. Drake comes back in and beats up Karter as everything breaks down. The Savages clean house and consume some Savage Sauce, which Maria Kanellis-Bennett steals. Taylor uses the distraction to blast Karter with a right hand for the pin at 7:35.

Rating: C+. This was one of those matches where there were so many people flying around that it was difficult to keep track of everything that was going on. Taylor getting the pin continues his rise back to the higher levels of Ring Of Honor and that is a good thing for a lot of people. Other than that, Karter and Garrison continue to be a waste of Maria and I do not get why whatsoever.

Komander/Gravity/Metalik vs. Spanish Announce Project/Gringo Loco

Loco and Metalik start things off with Metalik kicking him in the head and snapping off a rope walk hurricanrana. Loco flips out of a headscissors though and it’s off to Komander vs. Angelico. It’s quickly off to Gravity, who gets flapjacked into a splash on Angelico before snapping off a hurricanrana of his own.

Everything breaks down and a triple basement dropkick hits Gravity. Loco hits a powerbomb for two and Komander gets beaten down in the corner. Komander is fine enough to use Loco as a launchpad for a hurricanrana and it’s back to Metalik. Loco super Spanish Flies Komander and hits a dive onto the floor. Back in and Komander hits a springboard spinning Canadian Destroyer to drop Loco, followed by the rope walk shooting star press for the pin at 8:47.

Rating: B-. As has been the case for years, there is something to be said about taking a bunch of luchadors and letting them go nuts for a little while with the flips and the dive. It continues to work here, with everyone getting to do at least a little something. It could have been better served earlier in the show, but this kind of thing is always fun and it worked great here.

Overall Rating: C. Let me get this out of the way first: the wrestling here was absolutely not the problem. Everything was perfectly watchable at worst with some good matches sprinkled throughout. Match wise, nothing on here was even close to bad and all of the action was fine…but there is a lot more to a wrestling show than that.

I didn’t think it was possible, but they have somehow made this show feel even less important. Save for a pre-taped interview which had aired on AEW’s Youtube page four days earlier, there was no appearance from any champion here outside of Athena. That leaves you with a bunch of people fighting for possible title shots down the line, even though title shots tend to go to guest stars or AEW wrestlers with nothing else to do. On top of that though, despite having almost nothing of note to a lot of these matches, the show has somehow gotten EVEN LONGER, clocking in at 2:06 this week.

I’m not sure what the point is for having the show go this long, but it’s like they’re trying to make it feel less important. Throw in a lot of the ROH champions not even having their belts this week on Dynamite and it feels like ROH is getting the spotlight shifted away from the little space that it has. But then the show goes longer while filling it with less important stuff. As usual, this show is a mess, and it has nothing to do with the wrestling.

Results
Athena b. Leyla Hirsch – Despicable Knee
Josh Woods b. Tyler Payne – Tilt-A-Woods
Rocky Romero b. Christopher Daniels – Running Sliced Bread
Scorpio Sky b. Fred Rosser – TKO
Willow Nightingale/Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan b. Lady Frost/Renegades – Babe With The Powerbomb to Robyn
Ethan Page b. Invictus Khash – Slingshot cutter
TMNK b. The Infantry – Middle rope DDT/Big Ending to Bravo
Satoshi Kojima b. Tony Nese – Lariat
Billie Starkz b Trish Adora – Bank Statement
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Iron Savages, Griff Garrison/Cole Karter and Workhorsemen – Right hand to Karter
Komander/Gravity/Metalik b. Gringo Loco/Spanish Announce Project – Rope walk shooting star press to Loco

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 28, 2023
Location: Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We’re back to the weekly show and there have been a lot of changes around here. In addition to Eddie Kingston winning the World Title last week, there are also new Six Man Tag Team Champions to go with the new Tag Team Champions, who won the belts a month ago and haven’t been on the show yet. Maybe that will change with the other new champions. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Josh Woods vs. Brayden Erving

Mark Sterling is here with Woods, who drives Erving into the corner to start and hammers away. Erving misses an enziguri and gets German suplexed. The Tilt-A-Woods (Anarchist suplex) finishes Erving at 1:15.

Prince Nana is excited about the Gates of Agony and Brian Cage in separate matches tonight because they’re ready to be awesome again.

Scorpio Sky vs. Tony Nese

Mark Sterling is here with Tony Nese, because we need him in the first two matches of the show. Nese does his usual group training deal before we’re ready to go. Sky cuts him off so Nese is right there to jump start the beating, only to get knocked to the floor. Back in and Nese bails to the floor again but gets tossed back inside this time. Sterling offers a distraction though and Nese manages a whip into the steps.

Nese ties him in the Tree of Woe for some crunches kicks to the ribs. The neck snap over the top rope and we’re off to a bodyscissors. A belly to back suplex gets Sky out of trouble and a clothesline drops Nese as well. Sky hits Sky High for two but Nese kicks him in the head for two more. Back up and Nese grabs a suplex, followed by the TKO for the pin at 9:08.

Rating: B-. I’m still not sure why Sky keeps falling lower and lower. While the injuries are a problem, seeing him facing Nese on Ring Of Honor isn’t the best sign for his career. There almost has to be a better use for him somewhere across AEW or ROH. He can clearly still go in the ring, but it needs to be in another ring.

Gravity vs. Lee Johnson

The wrestling doesn’t go to either of them so we have an early standoff. Johnson has to flip out of a wristlock before Gravity runs him over with a shoulder. A flipping armdrag pulls Lee out of the corner but he drops Gravity without much effort. Johnson whips him into the corner, gets in some pushups, and grabs the chinlock.

Gravity fights up and sends him to the floor for a springboard dive, followed by a top rope armdrag for two back inside. A standing moonsault gets two more but Johnson is back with some superkicks. Gravity hits his own superkick though and the top rope splash finishes Johnson at 9:21.

Rating: C+. Gravity is another guy who seems like he could be something if given a chance and he’s getting some pretty significant TV time. I’m not sure if he’s ever going to move up to the next level, but he’s doing well with getting out of Bandido’s shadow. Granted it helps when Bandido isn’t here, but Gravity is doing well either way.

The Outrunners aren’t impressed with Action Andretti and Darius Martin.

Billie Starkz vs. Lady Frost

Athena is here with Starkz. Frost is sent to the floor to start where Athena offers a fast distraction, allowing Starkz to nail a dive. Athena yells at Starkz for a bit, allowing Frost to hit a cartwheel kick of the apron to put Starkz down. Back in and Frost stomps away in the corner before flipping over her back for a dropkick. Starkz is back up with a Death Valley Driver for two but Frost throws in another cartwheel into an Air Raid Crash. The moonsault connects for Frost but Athena offers a distraction to break it up. Said distraction lets Starks hit something like a Neutralizer for the pin at 6:59.

Rating: C+. The more I see of Frost, the more impressive she becomes. She has a unique look and the athleticism to back it up. In short, she feels different and that helps her stand out a lot. If she was able to string some wins together, I could see her having a nice run somewhere. This was still all about Athena and Starkz though, as their big match is coming one day.

Post match Athena takes Frost outside for a ram into the barricade as Starkz begs Athena to stop. Starkz takes the title away before Athena can slam Frost into it, which doesn’t sit well with Athena.

Allysin Kay is ready to face Mercedes Martinez because she wants to end her losing streak.

Outrunners vs. Darius Martin/Action Andretti

Andretti works on Magnum’s arm to start before Martin comes in to do the same. It’s off to Floyd, who gets headlocked rather quickly. Andretti takes both of them down at once and stereo dropkicks send the Outrunners outside. The stereo dives are broken up though and it’s Floyd hammering away on Andretti back inside. Magnum drops a knee on Andretti but he breaks up Total Recall. The tag brings Martin back in to clean house as everything breaks down. Floyd is sent outside and a double swinging slam finishes Magnum at 6:49.

Rating: C+. The Outrunners are the definition of goofy, harmless fun and I can always go for more of that. They aren’t out here getting wins over big teams but rather losing every time and giving the fans a bit of a laugh. Martin and Andretti aren’t going anywhere, but at least they’re filling in a nice spot around here while they aren’t.

Griff Garrison is interrupted by Maria Kanellis-Bennett and Cole Karter but says he believes the team can work. They agree to do it the right way.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Laynie Luck

Maria Kanellis-Bennett comes out to watch as Luck scores with some kicks to start. Hirsch shrugs those off though and snaps off a German suplex into the Fujiwara armbar for the tap at 1:12.

Post match Maria leaves and Hirsch says she wants Athena.

Mercedes Martinez, with Diamante, thinks Allysin Kay must be sick of losing.

Shane Taylor vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Lee Moriarty is here with Taylor and Jacobs is the hometown boy. Jacobs slugs away to start and it goes as well as you would expect. Taylor misses a charge and gets sent outside though, where Jacobs grabs a front facelock. That’s broken up as well and Taylor crushes him in the corner.

The splash gives Taylor two and he slowly forearms Jacobs down over and over. Jacobs actually scores with a clothesline but Taylor’s clothesline is a little bit better. Back up and Jacobs tries Sliced Bread but is easily reversed into Welcome To The Land to give Taylor the pin at 5:31.

Rating: C+. Jacobs is a name and Taylor beating him is better than a win over some nobody. It also helps when Jacobs was able to get in some offense of his own and turned it into a decent match. Taylor is still a monster though and ROH seems interested in turning him into a big deal, meaning a Jacobs win wasn’t exactly in the cards.

Maria Kanellis-Bennett is interrupted by Leyla Hirsch, who wants more competitive matches. That hasn’t happened, so Hirsch has gotten her Women’s Title shot against Athena next week.

Dalton Castle/The Boys vs. Ren Jones/Trenton Tormenta/Xavier Walker

Castle takes Jones down without much effort to start before the Boys come in for a dropkick. Jones drives Brent into the corner though and it’s Walker coming in to knock Brandon and Castle outside. Brent rolls over without much effort and Castle gets the tag to clean house. Everything breaks down and the Bang A Rang into a knee to the back (that’s a weird bonus) finishes Tormenta at 3:38.

Rating: C. Nothing much to see here, save for Castle adding a mostly unnecessary move after his big finisher. Castle and the Boys have absolutely nothing to do at the moment as the Six Man Tag Team Titles don’t mean much and for some reason Castle can’t get a singles run. Not quite a squash here, but the Boys squashing someone wouldn’t make sense anyway.

Griff Garrison/Cole Karter vs. The Infantry

Maria Kanellis-Bennett is here with Garrison and Karter. Garrison hiptosses Bravo to start and adds a boot to the face. Karter comes in and gets caught in the wrong corner, allowing Dean to come in for an elbow. The Infantry alternates on the beating until Karter hits a dropkick to take over on Bravo.

Garrison won’t listen to Maria’s orders to choke from the floor, leaving Bravo to roll over for the tag to Dean. A high crossbody gets two on Karter with Garrison having to make the save. Boot Camp hits Karter but Maria distracts the referee. Trish Adora chases Maria off, leaving Karter to roll Dean up (with feet on the ropes) for the pin at 7:02.

Rating: C. I’m still not sure why this Maria/Carter/Garrison story is supposed to be interesting but it’s falling pretty short. It feels like they have taken months to get very little accomplished and Karter/Garrison still aren’t exactly gelling. Maria is capable of so much more but here she is because….I have no idea really.

Ethan Page says if he wins tonight, he’s on a roll. Rohit Raju (Page’s opponent tonight) comes in to say you can’t spell Rohit without ROH, but Page promises a beating.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Allysin Kay

Diamante is here with Martinez. They fight to the floor rather quickly before Kay grabs a belly to back inside. Diamante breaks up a charge in the corner and Martinez gets in a cheap shot. After some posing inside, Martinez heads outside to beat Kay up on the floor. Kay manages a quick German suplex for a breather and a swinging neckbreaker takes Martinez down again. A missed charge sets up a Cheeky Nandos kick though and Diamante blasts Kay again. The fisherman’s buster finishes for Martinez at 5:38.

Rating: C. I’m not sure why they needed to go outside the ring that many times in a five minute match but it happened over and over. Other than that, Martinez is someone who can look good against anyone and she did it again here against a talented Kay. Again though, if you just keep winning matches and don’t move up the ladder into something more important, it doesn’t matter that much.

Lexi Nair and Billie Starkz aren’t happy with Athena’s interference early, but Athena pops up to say it’s time for some more minion training. Starkz can watch her beat up Leyla Hirsch next week.

Iron Savages vs. Gates Of Agony

Jacked Jameson and Prince Nana are here too. Kaun dropkicks Bronson to start before it’s off to Toa and Boulder for an exchange of clotheslines. Everything breaks down and Bronson’s dive is blocked, setting up a drop onto the apron. Back in and Bronson gets caught in the wrong corner, with the Gates getting to take turns. An elbow drop misses though and it’s Boulder coming in to clean house. Bronson hits a top rope elbow for two on Toa but Kaun shoves Boulder off the top. Nana steals Jameson’s Jacked Juice, leaving Bronson to take Open The Gates for the pin at 6:44.

Rating: C+. Nothing but a hoss fight here and that is something that will work most of the time. The Gates dominated the Six Man Tag Team Title scene for so long that it makes sense for them to be a successful two man team in their own right. Then you have the Savages, who are as over the top as you can get and it’s still entertaining, they aren’t likely to be getting a big win in the near future. Still though, pretty fun fight here.

Rohit Raju vs. Ethan Page

Raju jumps him to start but Page gets in a running shoulder. A delayed running suplex plants Raju and the capture belly to back suplex puts him down again. The Ego’s Edge is broken up though and Raju hits some running shots in the corner. A big boot cuts Raju right back off and it’s the slingshot cutter to give Page the pin at 2:37.

Brian Cage vs. Metalik

Prince Nana is here with Cage. Metalik starts fast and sends him outside but a dive is pulled out of the air. Back in and Cage snaps off a kick to the head in the corner, followed by a German suplex. There’s a 619 to drop Metalik again but a missed charge sends Cage into the corner.

Metalik snaps off a springboard hurricanrana, followed by the reverse Sling Blade. A big rope walk dive to the floor hits Cage again and a Code Red gives Metalik two. The rope walk Swanton misses though and Cage grabs a sitout powerbomb for two. Cage Drill Claws him for the pin at 8:01.

Rating: B-. Pretty nice power vs. speed match here and as usual, the formula worked well. What matters is getting Cage back on track after the surprising title loss and it isn’t like Metalik is going to be hurt by the loss. Cage has long since needed to get away from the Gates and if this is the start of that change, it is a good move for everyone involved.

Overall Rating: C. Within the last five weeks, Ring of Honor has crowned a new World Champion, Tag Team Champions and Six Man Tag Team Champions. None of them (or the TV/Pure Champions) were on this show, but I’m sure they’ll be on the upcoming AEW shows. In other words, ROH continues to be nothing more than a plot device for AEW and that is not making this show (the longest episode they’ve had in over a month) any easier to watch.

As for this show, it was exactly what you should expect from ROH: a bunch of mediocre to ok matches with so much stuff taking place that very little gets to stand out because it’s so bogged down by everything else. There was some minor storyline advancement, but as usual it takes either no time or the better part of forever to get anywhere. I’m running out of ways to make the same complaints every week but ROH keeps doing the same annoying things, making this show less and less interesting every single week.

Results
Josh Woods b. Brayden Erving – Tilt-A-Woods
Scorpio Sky b. Tony Nese – TKO
Gravity b. Lee Johnson – Top rope splash
Billie Starkz b. Lady Frost – Faceplant
Action Andretti/Darius Martin b. Outrunners – Double swinging slam to Magnum
Leyla Hirsch b. Laynie Luck – Fujiwara armbar
Shane Taylor b. Jimmy Jacobs – Welcome To The Land
Dalton Castle/The Boys b. Ren Jones/Trenton Tormenta/Xavier Walker – Knee to Tormenta’s back
Griff Garrison/Cole Karter b. The Infantry – Rollup with feet on the ropes to Dean
Mercedes Martinez b. Allysin Kay – Fisherman’s buster
Gates Of Agony b. Iron Savages – Open The Gates to Bronson
Ethan Page b. Rohit Raju – Slingshot cutter
Brian Cage b. Metalik – Drill Claw

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 21, 2023
Location: Bryce Jordan Center, State College, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Things have gotten a lot more interesting around here as we have a new Ring Of Honor World Champion in the form of Eddie Kingston. The problem with that is it might not have much of an impact on the show as not much happens around here, plus the whole this show was taped before the title change. Let’s get to it.

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

Eddie Kingston opens the show and talks about what a great champion Claudio Castagnoli is. He’s proud and happy but that will change as soon as he gets back to the hotel and realizes he has to defend the title. This is dedicated to Xavier, the second Ring Of Honor World Champion and someone people don’t remember.

Opening sequence.

Pure Rules Title: Nick Wayne vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Wayne, who has never wrestled in ROH or had a Pure Rules match, is challenging. They go to the mat with Shibata working on a bodyscissors before switching over to the arm. It’s too early for the PK so Shibata pulls him into an ankle lock, sending Wayne to the ropes for the first time. They head outside with Wayne being sent into the barricade for a running boot to the face.

Back in and Shibata kicks him in the face a few times but Wayne fights up with a jumping elbow. There’s a shotgun dropkick into the corner so Wayne can forearm away, setting up a basement dropkick. Shibata isn’t having that and unloads in the corner, setting up a suplex for two. The cobra twist goes on but Wayne uses a second rope break, with the third being used seconds later. Wayne gets in a shot of his own but Wayne’s World is countered into the sleeper. The PK retains the title at 9:17.

Rating: C+. Not a bad way to open the show, but as commentary pointed out: it was Wayne’s first ROH match as well as his first Pure Rules match. That makes the idea of him winning the title more than a little hard to buy and Wayne felt like he was in over his head. In other words, it felt like a match for the sake of getting a title match on the show and that’s not a great idea.

Lee Johnson is interrupted by Shane Taylor Promotions and Lee Moriarty is ready for him tonight.

Diamante vs. Catie Brite

Diamante runs her over to start and fires off some elbows to the chin. Brite gets a rollup out of the corner for two but Diamante is back with a Cross Rhodes for the pin at 1:57. Not much to see here.

The Infantry and Willie Mack are ready to win the Six Man Tag Team Titles tonight.

Lee Johnson vs. Lee Moriarty

They fight over a lockup and wristlock to start until Moriarty sends him into the corner for a shot to the face. Back up and Johnson sends him outside but Moriarty stomps away on the way back in. The seated abdominal stretch goes on but Johnson fights up and makes the clothesline comeback. A Blue Thunder Bomb gives Johnson two and a superkick into a frog splash gets the same. Back up and Moriarty hits a dropkick into an enziguri for the pin at 7:18.

Rating: C. Well Moriarty wasn’t going to lose so soon after joining Shane Taylor Promotions so this was about getting him in the ring and having him break a sweat. The good thing is that Johnson did get in some offense so this wasn’t a squash. Johnson continues to be a nice hand who needs a few wins to establish himself as a bigger threat, but I’m not sure those are going to come.

And now, Minion Training with Athena training Billie Starks and Lexi Nair in tasks such as running the steps, giving her a standing ovation and booing people don’t like. Nair is dubbed the Minion Bestie, but Starkz still sucks. More funny stuff here.

Trish Adora vs. Mercedes Martinez

Martinez grabs a headlock to start and takes Adora down, only to have Adora escape without much trouble. A spinebuster gives Martinez two and a forearm staggers Adora again. Martinez hits a suplex for two more but Adora gets a suplex of her own. That’s too much for Martinez, who hits a running knee into a Hidden Blade into the Brass City Sleeper to make Adora tap at 4:39.

Rating: C. Almost a squash here as Martinez gets to look like a monster again. She’s someone who could easily be slotted in or a title shot and hopefully that comes sooner rather than later. At the same time you have Adora, who has fallen pretty far through the cracks. She felt like someone ready to move up the ladder yet here she is instead, losing in less than five minutes with so little offense. That’s kind of disappointing but not everyone can can a push.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Angelina Love

Athena, with Billie Starkz, is defending. They go with some standing switches to start until Love takes her down into an armbar. Athena breaks out and hits a basement Meteora but gets dropped hard on the floor. Back in and Athena’s head gets slammed onto the mat before they trade rollups for two each. Love gets the better of things and pulls her into a chinlock before taking it to the mat again to cut off a comeback attempt.

Athena fights up again without much trouble, setting up a kick to the face. The O Face is broken up (partially due to Starkz’s cheering) and the Botox Injection (pump kick) gives Love two. Back up and Starkz offers a distraction, allowing Athena to grab an over the shoulder backbreaker into a Codebreaker for the retaining pin at 6:21.

Rating: C+. Love is someone with enough of a history to hang in there with Athena but this was still about Athena and Starkz. That all but has to be the big match at Final Battle but my goodness that’s a good ways off. For now though, Athena gets a win over a name rather than devouring another nobody/midcarder.

Maria Kanellis-Bennett is ready for Griff Garrison and Cole Karter’s first match as a team. Garrison already doesn’t seem confident.

Leyla Hirsch/Renegades vs. Willow Nightingale/Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan

Hogan hurricanranas Robyn out of the corner and it’s off to Blue for a basement superkick. Charlette comes in to take over on Blue and grab a chinlock before Leyla tags herself in for some German suplexes. Blue manages to come back with another kick and it’s Nightingale coming in to clean house. A double suplex drops the Renegades for two as everything breaks down. Hogan kicks Robyn in the head and grabs a neckbreaker. Everyone else heads outside and it’s Code Blue to finish Charlette at 7:11.

Rating: B-. This was the fun six person tag and that’s what they were trying to do here. Nightingale and Blue are good for a spot like this and Hogan has grown quite a bit. Unfortunately the Renegades have fallen through the floor in recent weeks after a rather promising start. Hirsch is someone else who should be given a chance and could have a spot with that style but instead she’s here filling in a three woman team.

Tony Nese and the Spanish Announce Project are ready for their debut as a team. If they win, Nese will give them free group training. They aren’t impressed.

Ethan Page vs. VSK

They trade headlocks to start until VSK has to go to the eyes to escape. The Ego’s Edge is broken up and VSK fires off some strikes. Page catches him in a kind of cobra clutch belly to back suplex, setting up a slingshot cutter for the pin at 2:11. Not much here but Page is someone worth pushing around here.

Tony Nese/Spanish Announce Project vs. El Hijo del Vikingo/Gravity/Metalik

Well that’s kind of one sided. Mark Sterling introduces Nese for his usual stuff, though he does mock the local college football team. Serpentico and Metalik turn up the speed to start with Metalik grabbing a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Angelico comes in and gets flipped over by Gravity but it’s too early for the dive.

Instead Vikingo springboards in to take over on Nese, including a missile dropkick. Vikingo loads up the big springboard dive but lands HARD on his hip and oh yeah that’s going to be a problem. Metalik and Gravity hit their own big flip dives before Metalik takes Nese back inside for a running knee. Nese dropkicks him down though and slap tags Angelico in, which doesn’t seem to go well.

A legdrop keeps Metalik in trouble as Vikingo is nowhere to be seen. Metalik’s sunset bomb gets him out of trouble and the hot tag brings Gravity back in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Metalik powerbombs Serpentico for two with Nese making the save. Nese goes for Gravity’s mask but that’s too far for Serpentico and Angelico, who walk out instead. That leaves Metalik to come in with the rope walk Swanton for the pin on Nese at 8:32.

Rating: B-. Another entertaining match here, Vikingo injury aside. That is the kind of thing that is going to happen at some point as Vikingo’s style is so high risk in the first place. Then you have Nese going too far and annoying his already not so interested partners. Sometimes it’s nice to see a villain get what is coming to them and that is what they did here.

Ethan Page is glad to have a bit of a winning streak around here and talks about how great it was to challenge for the World Title in his hometown. It’s been downhill from there though and now it’s time to rebuild himself around here because this is the place for competition. This is a Page I could see going somewhere and that’s a good thing.

Griff Garrison/Cole Karter vs. Action Andretti/Darius Martin

Maria Kanellis-Bennett is here with Garrison and Karter. Martin armdrags Martin to start before it’s off to Garrison to grapple it out with Andretti. Martin comes back in for a top rope double stomp to the back of the head but Maria offers a distraction so Garrison can score with a big boot.

Garrison doesn’t like that interference and doesn’t like her choking on the ropes any more. It’s back to Martin to pick up the pace, including a double handspring elbow. Karter grabs a rollup and puts feet on the ropes, which is broken up by Garrison. Maria and Garrison yell at each other so Andretti dives onto Garrison. Martin’s suplex sets up Andretti’s springboard 450 to finish Karter at 4:52.

Rating: C. I’m really not sure I get this Maria story. She’s an experienced and successful manager who is billed as a mastermind but she picks these two goofs to be her army to protect the Kingdom, who aren’t even on this show. I’m assuming the story is she can make anyone good, but if she’s that talented, why not just give her an established team. LIKE THE KINGDOM?

Post match Garrison shows respect but Karter isn’t having that and makes him leave.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Mogul Embassy vs. Infantry/Willie Mack

The Embassy, with Prince Nana, is defending. Kaun shoulders Dean down to start but Dean snaps off a dropkick so Bravo can come in for a wishbone. Toa comes in to miss a charge in the corner but runs Bravo over with a shoulder. It’s back to Kaun for some rolling suplexes and an early near fall.

Cage hits the clotheslines in the corner but Bravo gets over to Mack to take over. The swinging slam puts Cage down and there’s a running boot in the corner. That doesn’t work for Cage, who suplexes Mack down in quite the power display. Everything breaks down and the Infantry kicks away at Toa, leaving Mack to hit his frog splash for two on Cage. That’s broken up and Open The Gates finishes Mack at 9:26.

Rating: B-. They had another fast paced match here but this was the latest case of a three man team being put together over a few weeks and then losing to the champs. The Embassy has been built up as being almost unbeatable and that makes for some less than dramatic title matches. Granted that might change with the Young Bucks and Hangman Page coming for the belts, but for now it’s just pretty good action without much drama.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a great example of Ring Of Honor in a nutshell. Yes there was good action and the wrestling was good enough to work, but it’s another hour and forty five minute show with a lot of things being lost in the shuffle. There were ten matches on this show and you could have probably cut almost half of them without missing much. Even the title matches, which are nice to have around, were just kind of there for the sake of having them included, as Wayne, Love and the Infantry/Mack didn’t feel like viable challenges. The wrestling carried it again, but this show is just not very fun most of the time.

Results
Katsuyori Shibata b. Nick Wayne – PK
Diamante b. Catie Brite – Cross Rhodes
Lee Moriarty b. Lee Johnson – Enziguri
Mercedes Martinez b. Trish Adora – Brass City Sleeper
Athena b. Angelina Love – Spinning facebuster
Willow Nightingale/Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan b. Renegades/Leyla Hirsch – Code Blue to Charlette
Ethan Page b. VSK – Slingshot cutter
El Hijo del Vikingo/Metalik/Gravity b. Tony Nese/Spanish Announce Project – Rope walk Swanton to Nese
Action Andretti/Darius Martin b. Cole Karter/Griff Garrison – Springboard 450 to Karter
Mogul Embassy b. Infantry/Willie Mack – Open The Gates to Mack

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 14, 2023
Location: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Ring of Honor continues to be in a weird place as the top titles, meaning the World and Tag Team Titles, are being defended in AEW (at least the important title defenses), with the Tag Team Champions not having actually appeared here since winning the titles. I’m not sure if they ever will, but maybe we can get something from Claudio Castagnoli this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Rocky Romero

Castagnoli is defending. They go with the grappling to start with Castagnoli cranking on the arm. Romero slips out of that and snaps off a hurricanrana to send Castagnoli outside. The big dive is cut off by an uppercut and a gorilla press snake eyes has Romero in more trouble. We hit the armbar until Romero fights up, earning himself a Swing for two. A suplex is countered and Romero snaps off another hurricanrana to put Castagnoli down.

Romero hits a tornado DDT into a 619 into a standing Sliced Bread ford two. Castagnoli powers him up into a backbreaker for two before firing off forearms in the corner. A hard lariat gives Castagnoli two but Romero backslides him for the same. An enziguri staggers Castagnoli but he nails a hard uppercut to retain the title at 10:36.

Rating: B-. This picked up near the end and it’s nice to have the World Champion in action on the show. At the same time, this was an ice cold match coming in and commentary spent a good chunk of the match hyping up Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston at Grand Slam. This would have been a good choice for a Proving Ground match with Romero lasting the time limit, as they really do need to have one of those go the distance at some point.

Outrunners/Kevin Ku vs. Infantry/Willie Mack

Mack and Ku start things off with Mack shrugging off a chop and grabbing a running hurricanrana. Dean comes in for a bulldog/flapjack combination to Ku so it’s off to Floyd. Everything breaks down and Dean hits the big flip dive onto all three villains. Back in and some double teaming puts Dean down and we hit the double arm crank. Stomping ensues and Dean is sent outside so Floyd can dance a bit. The villains take so long posing that Dean brings Bravo in to clean house. A twisting DDT drops Floyd as everything breaks down. Mack slugs it out with Ku and it’s the Stunner into Boot Camp to finish Ku at 8:00.

Rating: C. Odds are the Infantry and Mack are going to be the next serious challengers for the Trios Titles and I’ll certainly take a team getting some wins to build them up for the shot. The Outrunners and Ku aren’t the highest level challengers, but at least they’re opponents losing to the Infantry and Mack, who certainly need the wins.

Ethan Page is here and wants to regain his competitive edge. He’s here to prove himself to the fans.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Zoey Lynn

Lynn grabs the wristlock to start but Martinez knocks her into the corner for the stomping. A rather delayed brainbuster gets two on Lynn but she avoids a charge in the corner. Lynn scores with some kicks but charges into a spinebuster. Martinez pulls her up at two and hits a running forearm to the back of the head. The Brass City Sleeper finishes Lynn at 5:21.

Rating: C. This was just shy of an extended squash for Martinez, though Lynn did get in a few shots of her own. Martinez continues to be someone who could be moved up the card in a hurry but instead she’s here winning matches like this one. The good thing is she could be moved up at any time, but at some point that elevation has to happen.

Gates Of Agony vs. Cole Radrick/Matt Brannigan

Prince Nana is here with the Gates and it’s Kaun running Brannigan over to start. Radrick gets taken out on the floor and it’s a Backstabber into a Samoan Drop. Open The Gates connects but Radrick tries to make a save. That earns him a drop onto Brannigan and it’s a double pin at 1:46. Total destruction.

Video on the history of Athena and Billie Starkz. This is still probably the most interesting thing on the show.

Starkz is officially served her Minion To Do List, including items like a tongue twister and finding a single banana. Lexi Nair warns her that bad things will happen if the tasks aren’t completed and gives her an MIT (Minion In Training) shirt. Starkz is off to work.

Christopher Daniels vs. Darius Martin

Feeling out process to start with Daniels’ headlock not getting him very far. Martin gets whipped hard into the corner for a running forearm into a Side Effect for two. They fight over a suplex until Daniels drapes him over the top rope for a middle rope shot to the neck. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by a clothesline to stay on said neck. Martin fights up with an atomic drop and a kick to the face. A high crossbody gives Martin two but Daniels pulls him into the Koji Clutch. Martin rolls out and escapes the Angel’s Wings as well, setting up a rollup to pin Daniels at 5:59.

Rating: C+. This match had a story with Daniels working on the neck and then trying a neck submission. It might not be an epic story or anything close to one, but I’ll take a basic story being done well enough over a story that is way too complicated and doesn’t work out. Daniels can still go in the ring, but these losses almost have to start going somewhere eventually.

Post match Daniels endorses Martin in a nice moment.

Shane Taylor vs. Lee Johnson

Taylor, the hometown boy, gets a heck of a reaction. Johnson scores with a single right hand to start and Taylor just glares at him. A sunset flip doesn’t work either and Taylor punches him into the corner. The tosses out of the corner have Johnson in even more trouble and they head outside.

That goes nowhere so they head back inside with Taylor dropping him again for two. The neck crank goes on as Johnson is in even more trouble. One heck of a chop puts Johnson down again and a release Rock Bottom gets two more. Some running clotheslines stagger Taylor and a running DDT gives Johnson two of his own. Cue Lee Moriarty for a distraction though and a package piledriver finishes Johnson at 8:22.

Rating: C. Johnson got about as much out of a series of right hands and a DDT as you could get here and that wasn’t the most thrilling match. At the end of the day, Taylor has been presented as a monster in recent weeks (save for the match with Samoa Joe) and he wasn’t about to lose here. Not a bad match, but Johnson could have varied up his offense a good bit.

Post match Moriarty shakes Taylor’s hand and Taylor seems to have a new associate.

Lady Frost vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale kicks her in the face and gets two off a slam to start. Another kick misses though and Frost cartwheels over her for a kick to the face of her own. Nightingale gets knocked out of the corner, setting up some running shoulders to the ribs. Frost grabs the chinlock but Nightingale fights up and hits the Pounce. Some clotheslines give Nightingale two but Frost hits a spinning kick to the face. A moonsault gives Frost two, only to have Nightingale come back with the spinebuster. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes Frost at 5:16.

Rating: C. Frost is someone with a rather specific gimmick but she has enough skill in the ring to back it up. If nothing else, that moonsault looks good enough to carry her a pretty long way (even if she needs to work on the accuracy). For now though, Nightingale almost has to be on the shows to bring up our spirits that much more as she is the most delightful thing I’ve seen in years.

Shane Taylor confirms that Lee Moriarty is officially on the team.

Josh Woods vs. Dominic Garrini

Woods immediately takes him to the mat for an armbar but Garrini grapples his way into one of his own. A rollup gives Woods two and they’re back up for a standoff. They fight over a gutwrench and then a wristlock until Woods starts snapping off suplexes. The Anarchist suplex finishes Garrini at 2:58.

Griff Garrison vs. Ethan Page

They fight over wrist control to start until Garrison actually runs him over with a shoulder. Page is back with an elbow to the face as Cole Karter and Maria Kanellis-Bennett are here to watch from the stage. Garrison avoids a charge in the corner and drops Page again, setting up a knee drop for two. Back up and Page hits a running clothesline into a running powerslam for two of his own. The Ego’s Edge is broken up and Garrison hits a heck of a forearm for two more. A kick to the face staggers Garrison though and a springboard cutter finishes For Page at 4:22.

Rating: C+. The more I see of Page, the more he’s growing on me, especially with that stupid contract storyline seemingly behind him. There’s a certain charisma to him and it’s making him that much easier to watch. The Maria stuff…my goodness do something with it with someone who matters already. Like Page maybe.

Post match Maria seems to smile at Page. So there we go. Maybe.

Workhorsemen vs. The Boys

The Boys avoid being sent into each other to start and Brandon takes Henry down for an early two. Henry’s missed charge sends him to the floor but Brandon charges into a sneaky right hand from Drake. Back in and the Workhorsemen take Brandon into the corner to take turns with the beating, including Henry’s abdominal stretch. Drake’s assist gets caught though and Brandon’s small package….is missed, allowing Henry to kick out after about five seconds.

Brandon slips out of a suplex but Henry is right there to cut off the tag again. A missed clothesline allows for the hot tag to Brent though and the pace picks way up. Everything breaks down and Brent is sent into a right hand from Henry. A superkick sets up a top rope double stomp to give Henry the pin at 5:32.

Rating: C+. The power (at least of Drake) vs. speed formula continues to be about as basic of a way to go in wrestling as you can find and it also continues to work. The Workhorsemen are still on this show almost every week but them winning is certainly new. It gives them a bit more status and that could be helpful down the line.

Maria Kanellis-Bennett tells Griff Garrison that she told him so and he might need some friends. Cole Karter comes in to make a pearl necklace joke, with Maria saying look it up. Lexi: “Don’t look that up.”

Tony Nese vs. AR Fox

Nese (with Mark Sterling), fat insults, group training, Fox interrupts so we can start. They trade headlocks to start and Nese grabs a rollup with tights (er, pants) for two. Fox kicks him in various places and gets in some jumping jacks for a little insult. Is it an insult when that’s what Nese wanted him to do?

Anyway Fox hits a running clothesline into the corner, followed by a basement dropkick. Back up and Nese hits a running clothesline for two of his own, allowing Sterling to get in a cheap shot from the floor. Fox gets powered into the corner but blocks a superplex attempt. A super sunset flip doesn’t work for Fox as Nese rolls through and kicks him in the head.

Nese grabs a bodyscissors but Fox gets up and sends him outside. A hanging DDT gives Fox two on the way back inside and they forearm it out. Fox’s twisting brainbuster into a Stunner sets up a cutter for two more but Nese snaps off a German suplex. The running Nese misses as well though and Fox hits Lo Mein Pain for the pin at 9:24.

Rating: B-. It was a competitive back and forth match and that made it so much more interesting. Neither guy is on fire at the moment but Fox seems to be getting a bit of a build. Granted it only means so much when Nese has lost time after time, but any kind of a win for Fox, especially in a main event, is better than nothing.

Overall Rating: C+. The important part of this show was the fact that it felt as if more things were happening. They were happening at a rather slow pace, but it felt like there were fewer unimportant matches on the show. It’s still a mostly skippable show, but I’ll take some positive adjustments where I can get them. Now just shorten the show and cut some of the matches and it’s that much better. For now though, not a bad show this week.

Results
Claudio Castagnoli b. Rocky Romero – Uppercut
Infantry/Willie Mack b. Outrunners/Kevin Ku – Boot Camp to Ku
Mercedes Martinez b. Zoey Lynn – Brass City Sleeper
Gates Of Agony b. Cole Radrick/Matt Brannigan – Double pin
Darius Martin b. Christopher Daniels – Rollup
Shane Taylor b. Lee Johnson – Package piledriver
Willow Nightingale b. Lady Frost – Babe With The Powerbomb
Josh Woods b. Dominic Garrini – Anarchist suplex
Ethan Page b. Griff Garrison – Springboard cutter
Workhorsemen b. The Boys – Top rope double stomp to Brent

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.