Pro Wrestling Superstars: Toronto
Date: April 14, 2012
Location: Doubletree By Hilton, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Bill Apter, Ken Tuccio, JJ Dillon, Tommy Dreamer, Shane Douglas

So back during the pandemic, Highspots had a crazy sale on its DVDs and digital downloads and I picked up a ton of them. Since I take forever to get to them, it’s been a bit since I’ve done one of these but here we go anyway. This is basically just a legends/independent show with whatever random lineup happens to be around (at the WrestleReunion convention), meaning you could expect anything here. Let’s get to it.

Host/boss Sal Corrente brings out Howard Finkel as a special surprise. Fink puts over the convention and Toronto and hopes the fans have a good time. It’s weird hearing him just talking instead of making some kind of announcement.

Michael Elgin vs. El Generico

Commentary sums up Generico’s entrance by saying if you don’t like it, you don’t like things that are fun. The much bigger Elgin powers Generico around to start and then shoulders him down without much effort. A leg lariat sends Elgin into the corner though and a Sami Zayn Helluva Kick connects. Generico tries another but gets elbowed in the face, only to get taken down by a hurricanrana to the floor. The dive is teased but Generico backflips into the middle before hammering away in the corner.

Generico’s high crossbody is pulled out of the air though and a powerslam gets two. Back up and Generico hits some clotheslines to limited success but a dropkick works a bit better. Now the big running flip dive can take Elgin down again but he’s right back with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Generico two, only for Elgin to muscle him up for some kind of reverse implant DDT. Elgin charges into the suplex into the corner though and another Helluva Kick into the brainbuster finishes for Generico at 7:55.

Rating: B-. This is the kind of match that is always going to work, with two talented guys working a power vs. speed style. There is something about watching an underdog like Generico fight back against a monster like Elgin and it worked well again. It helps that there are no stakes and you can pretty much do whatever, but they kept it straight here with a perfectly fine wrestling match.

Tito Santana vs. Shawn Spears

Rick Martel (there’s someone you don’t see very often) and Jimmy Hart are here as well. They fight over a lockup to start and Santana backs him into the corner, where Spears claims a pull of the trunks (as a heel often does). Spears backs him up against the ropes for a change and we get an ARRIBA off (the fans go with Santana on that one). Dillon talks about having no memory of EVER cheating as a manager and knows Hart wouldn’t either. Heels have to stick together man.

Santana headlocks him to the ground and Spears needs a breather on the floor. Back in and Santana runs him over with a shoulder as commentary talks about the 32 year old Spears like he’s about 14. Spears goes to the eyes in the corner to take over (Dillon missed it believe it or not) and stomps away, setting up the chinlock.

Back up and Santana charges into a knee in the corner so Spears can get his feet on the ropes (Dillon: “I missed that again.”) for two. The chinlock goes on again as Apter thinks there should be two referees in matches. Spears misses a top rope splash so Santana loads up the forearm, only for Hart to trip him up. Martel chases Hart off (Spears: “WHERE YOU GOING?”), leaving Santana to grab a small package for the pin at 8:16.

Rating: C. Again, this isn’t a show where the quality of the match is worth much, but for a match between a mostly unproven Spears and a mostly over the hill Santana, this was perfectly watchable. Dillon as a classic heel commentator was fine, with some of his stories being more interesting than the match itself. For a match with no story and a pretty random pairing, this went just fine.

Adam Page/Asylum vs. Rhett Titus/Caleb Konley vs. Super Smash Bros vs. Grizzly Redwood/Jake Manning

Page is better known as Hangman, Asylum would go on to VERY minor fame as Stone Rockwell in TNA, Titus and Konley (with Leah Von Dutch) were independent stars for a long time, the Smash Bros are the Dark Order (Evil Uno/Player Uno and Stu Grayson/Player Dos) and Redwood is a lumberjack while Manning is an adult scout (the Manscout). Got all that? Eh probably as it isn’t that complicated.

Redwood and Page start things off and go to the mat as Tuccio talks about eating lunch with Redwood today. Apparently Redwood ate a tree he had cut down earlier. That’s quite the level of efficiency. Neither can get anywhere so Titus comes in to face Page, who hands it off to Konley. They stomp the mat a lot and try to tag out, only for the other six to drop to the floor.

Titus drops down so Konley can cover him, with commentary saying it was like 1998 with Hulk Hogan. First of all, that was in 1999 and second of all, the better choice, from the same era, would be the New Age Outlaws who did it in a multi-team match. Asylum comes in to take over on Titus before both Bros come in to do the same. A fist drop/standing moonsault combination gets two on Titus and the Bros stop to pose, with Tuccio not being impressed.

Titus finally drives Dos into the ropes for the tag to Konley, who gets taken down by Uno just as quickly. Manning comes in with a dropkick to the knee so Redwood can add a running bulldog for two. Redwood gets sent face first into the corner though and a pull on the suspenders keeps him in trouble. A rather hard backsplash gives Konley two and Redwood almost gets dropped on his head with a release German suplex.

Konley’s top rope ax handle gets two and we hit the cravate. A catapult into the ropes gets two more and Titus puts on a bodyscissors. That’s broken up and the tag brings in Uno to clean house. Everything breaks down and Dos hits a high crossbody on Asylum before Manning feeds Dos over to a slingshot spear from Redwood. Page chops away at Manning and gets two off a powerslam but Asylum comes in with a double underhook into a neckbreaker (that was cool) to send Dos outside.

Konley and Titus take Asylum out though until Page hits a shooting star (or most of one) from the apron onto a pile. Uno hits a dive of his own before Dos hits a corkscrew dive onto just about everyone else. Back in and what would become known as the Fatality finishes Konley to give Dos the pin at 13:26.

Rating: B. This was the “get a bunch of people on the card” match and my goodness it’s weird to see a lot of these people being such young stars. You could see that there was talent here, but only Page would go on to become a major star. It was certainly a fun match though and a nice change of pace after the previous one. It’s nothing great or groundbreaking, but it did exactly what it was supposed to do.

Gene Okerlund is brought out and a special guest: Roddy Piper. Yeah that works. We get quite the PIPER chant and says he was supposed to face Terry Funk here but thank goodness he’s not here. Instead, Piper was trying to think of something fun for these guys, because there isn’t much of a place for wrestlers to get experience. There’s really only WWE, which makes him spit.

These wrestlers are talented, so let’s let one of those young wrestlers come out here and talk to someone. A fan shouts something that I can’t understand and it makes Piper laugh. For now though, Piper invites someone down for a Piper’s Pit, so here is Caleb Konley (as Piper had requested someone from the previous match). The fans call Konley a metrosexual and Piper says Konley is doing great so far.

Piper points out that he doesn’t know much about Konley but he hands Konley the mic and tells him to see what he can do. Konley talks about how he has looked up to Piper since he was a kid and he hated Piper’s guts. Then he realized that he likes that feeling because he’s prettier than everyone else out here.

The fans’ wives and girlfriends can attest to that and they aren’t pleased. Konley asks Piper something but Piper says the rule is to never let go of the microphone. Piper wants Konley to introduce the next guest and he whispers a name in his ear. If Konley screws this up, Piper promises a clubbing. Konley introduces….BRUNO SAMMARTINO!

Piper says Sammartino still scares him and lets Konley handle the interview, with the threat of that clubbing still being a very real thing. After some basic biography questions (the fans aren’t happy), Piper whispers something to Konley, who says he thinks he can bench press more than Sammartino. Konley: “LOOK AT HIM!” Piper suggests asking Sammartino how much he has benched, which would be a then world record of 565lbs. Piper takes the mic (Konley broke the rule) and asks about Sammartino’s other record, which was benching 335lbs 38 times.

Piper wants a LEGEND chant and Konley again says he could beat Sammartino. Believe it or not, Sammartino doesn’t seem impressed and lists off the rather intense exercise regimen he still follows. With Sammartino holding Konley’s wrist, he says if Konley tries something, he’ll teach him a lesson. Piper asks Konley who he is and what he’s famous for doing. Konley: “Getting chicks!” Piper: “Maybe you should try wrestling because you lost the match.”

Piper talks about how he was treated when he started out and slaps Konley, demanding he slap back. Konley does as he’s told and then gets slapped out to the floor, with Piper saying WIN NEXT TIME. Piper says Sammartino is a legend to wrap it up. Konley went on to have a decent career, but this was probably his biggest moment ever. He did fine, but how do you stand out with those two around you?

Dave Finlay vs. Harry Smith

Finlay is of course better known as Finlay and Smith is Davey Boy Smith Jr., complete with his old Hart Dynasty theme. Feeling out process to start with Finlay taking him into the corner by the leg and then putting it on the mat, with Dreamer going into some actual analysis. Smith reverses into a kneebar into the ropes but we pause for Finlay to invite a rather passionate fan (apparently even commentary knows her by name) to be the new Hornswoggle under the ring. Said fan gets in the ring and dances with Finlay for a bit (the interlocking arm deal he did with Hornswoggle) in a nice moment.

We settle down to Finlay headlocking Smith and taking him to the mat as Dreamer talks about working out with Nikita Koloff earlier today (cool enough). Smith reverses into an armbar, which is reversed into a leglock as the match is mostly being ignored as Apter is basically interviewing Dreamer.

Apter points out that the WWE fans would probably be calling a match like this boring, though to be fair it’s a match on an independent show rather than Raw or Smackdown. It’s not supposed to be the same kind of thing, though Apter probably isn’t wrong. Smith grinds away on a headlock before being sent outside in a heap. Finlay gets in a quick shot as Smith is trying to get back in and there’s a loud ram into the post. The countout doesn’t work for Finlay so he jumps Smith on the floor and hammers away back inside.

The double arm crank goes on as we talk about how attractive Diana Smith has stayed over the years. They move on to this new thing called “social media”, which is quite the easy way to keep in touch with wrestlers and fans. Smith is sent outside again but manages to get his foot up to block a splash. Back up and Smith makes the clothesline comeback, followed by a superkick. The threat of a Sharpshooter sends Finlay to the ropes so Smith grabs the running powerslam for the pin at 13:57.

Rating: B-. Good enough stuff here, with a more traditional wrestling match to slow things down a bit. I’m sure Finlay was happy with putting over the son of a legend of British wrestling, especially with only about eight months left in his active career. Finlay could more than go at this point and he made Smith look good here, with that powerslam being a nice way to go.

Vader vs. Necro Butcher

This is….well it’s certainly a thing. Vader throws some chairs in the ring and even Butcher bails from that kind of violence. They get inside, where Vader yells at the fans and then powers Butcher into the corner for the big punches. Some hard clotheslines put Butcher down a few times and Vader pummels away in the corner.

A rake to the eyes gives Butcher an opening and he kicks away in the corner, which seems to annoy Vader more than anything else. Vader comes out of the corner with that running body block of his, setting up a Fujiwara armbar. A chokeslam plants Butcher before a Vader Bomb and another chokeslam put him away at 5:49.

Rating: C-. This was more or less an extended squash for Vader, as Butcher only got in a little bit in one corner. At the same time, it was just Butcher doing a regular match, which isn’t the best way to go. Not much to see here, with Vader getting to do his usual stuff and nothing really beyond that for the whole match.

Gene Okerlund introduces our next match.

Dominic DeNucci/Shane Douglas vs. Lord Zoltan/Shawn Blanchard

JJ Dillon is here too. DeNucci is a legend in his own right but is better known for training Mick Foley and Douglas himself. Zoltan is a mainstay of Pittsburgh wrestling and has some Danhausen style face paint. Before the match, Douglas grabs the mic and says some people have been asking for some shoot comments. He talks about Dillon (in a SWEET Four Horsemen jacket) and insults his association with Ric Flair before bringing out someone to be in his own corner: Bruno Sammartino.

Douglas takes Blanchard (I’m assuming he’s related to Tully in some way) into the corner to start and hands it off to DeNucci for some chops against the ropes. Douglas comes back in and tells Blanchard to get up but gets taken into the wrong corner for a front facelock. Dillon gets in some choking from the floor but Douglas fights up and cleans house. That’s broken up so DeNucci comes in for the save as everything breaks down. A low blow to Zoltan sets up the belly to belly to give Douglas the pin on Blanchard at 4:50.

Rating: C-. This was a good example of “yeah what were you expecting?”. You’re only going to get so far with something like this and the point wasn’t in having an exciting match. DeNucci was 80 years old here (yes it was his last match) and this was really just a way to have the Pittsburgh guys together. Not a good match, but seeing DeNucci and Sammartino out there was fun.

NCW Femme Fatales International Title: Kalamity vs. LuFisto

Kalamity is defending and this is from Northern Championship Wrestling, a Canadian company still around today. LuFisto is billed from “Montreal, Japan” (Apter: “Montreal…Japan?”) in what I’m assuming is a misprint. The bigger Kalamity backs her into the corner to start and we go to a standoff. They trade some slaps and armdrags before going head to head. Some kicks to the legs don’t get either anywhere so LuFisto trips her down and ties up the leg for a bit.

Back up and Kalamity kicks her down for a change, setting up some running knees to the back on the ropes. The half crab keeps LuFisto down but she fights out and pulls Kalamity into a Downward Spiral into the buckle. A middle rope dropkick gets two on Kalamity and a headscissors keeps her down. Back up and Kalamity crushes her in the corner, followed by a running forearm to the chest for another near fall.

A double clothesline gives us a double knockdown before LuFisto hits a running dropkick against the ropes. The cannonball and running boot to the face get a slightly delayed two on Kalamity but she runs LuFisto over again. LuFisto fights out of a superplex attempt and hits a top rope double stomp in the Tree Of Woe.

A nice spear drops Kalamity and LuFisto grabs something like a guillotine. That’s broken up as well and they kick each other in the face (geez) with LuFisto getting the better of things. Some rollups give LuFisto two and a German suplex into a spinning back elbow drops Kalamity again. A top rope headbutt misses though and Kalamity grabs a fisherman’s driver for the pin at 13:33.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match and easily the best one on the show so far. I’ve never seen Kalamity before but she had some size and knew how to use it. LuFisto was more than handling her own and fighting against the power. Good match here, and keep in mind that this was before the Women’s Revolution, making this even more of a total hidden gem.

Roderick Strong vs. Jushin Thunder Liger

Sweet goodness Liger’s music is great. Liger takes him to the mat to start but gets pulled into a leglock. That’s broken up for a standoff until Liger grabs a surfboard and rocks Strong back and forth for a bit. Liger ties up various limbs on the mat until Strong makes the rope and goes old school with a spinning toehold. Back up and Strong’s chops don’t do much as Liger sends him to the floor for a dropkick through the ropes.

Strong is back up and strikes away in the corner, setting up a suplex to put Liger down for a change. The waistlock stays on the ribs for a good while as Liger is in trouble. Back up and Strong misses a charge in the corner, allowing Liger to get in a German suplex. Another surfboard goes on, with Strong having to get over to the ropes. A belly to back side slam gives Strong two and it’s an Angle Slam into the Stronghold.

Liger gets out and they strike away until Strong grabs a fireman’s carry gutbuster. Back up and some running palm strikes rock Strong and a superplex gives Liger two. The Liger Bomb gets two more and a frog splash is good for another near fall. Strong knees him in the face though and a torture rack into the backbreaker gets two more. A tiger bomb finally finishes Liger at 15:35.

Rating: B. Another good match here with Strong getting a big win over a prominent name. Strong was already a big deal on the independent circuit and in Ring Of Honor but beating someone like Liger is still a feat. At the same time, Liger isn’t someone who needs to go over in any match as he’s been a legend for so long and is just so likable no matter what he does. The fact that they had a good match made it even better.

Respect is shown post match.

Raven/CW Anderson vs. Rhino/Tommy Dreamer

Believe it or not, this is indeed under Extreme Rules. Dreamer and Raven start things off, with the fans wanting blood. They circle each other but Raven brings Anderson in rather than fighting, because he’s smart like that. Both of them miss clotheslines and we have a standoff, as this is going a bit more slowly than you might have expected. Dreamer can’t get the sunset flip but Anderson can get the basement dropkick for the first good shot.

Back up and Dreamer hands it off to Rhino, which has Raven giving advice in the corner. A clothesline puts Anderson down and it’s back to Dreamer for a running elbow. Anderson gets in a left hand though and NOW Raven is willing to come in, as you might have expected. Some knees to the face keep Dreamer down and it’s back to Anderson for the reverse chinlock. Dreamer manages to send him into the corner though and it’s Rhino coming in to clean house. Raven breaks up the Gore and crotches Rhino on the post and the double stomping is on.

Commentary reminds us that this is an extreme rules match, despite nothing being extreme thus far. Dreamer teases the DDT on Anderson but stops to glare at Raven, who goes outside and heads up the aisle. Raven gets tossed back inside and Dreamer hammers away, with both of them going to the floor again. The fight goes into the crowd as things finally wake up a bit. Dreamer rings the bell low on Anderson before slugging at Raven back inside.

The DDT gets two on Raven so it’s time for a chair and table. Naturally that takes too long so Raven sends Dreamer into the chair for two, only to get Gored by Rhino (hey he’s still in this). Anderson’s spinebuster gets two on Rhino and the table is set up in the corner. That takes too long and the Death Valley driver through said table gives Dreamer the pin at 12:08.

Rating: C. This was an ECW match almost in name only, as they barely did anything with the weapons. You had the table in the end, because they had to get one of those in, but other than that it was just a bunch of guys doing basic stuff because it was about all they could do. Dreamer vs. Raven is a famous feud, but this was all they had?

Dreamer and Rhino leave so Raven yells at Anderson, who gives him a superkick. Then Anderson leaves and Raven stands there for a long time. He finally says Toronto sucks to wrap it up.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a show where the quality isn’t the point, but rather how much fun you have with the thing. It’s a bunch of thrown together matches with a variety of generations coming together to make the whole thing work. I had a good time watching it with no expectations, plus a few good matches to make it that much better. Throw in Bruno Sammartino and Roddy Piper in the same ring and it was hard to not have fun.

 

 

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7^th Anniversary Show
Date: March 21, 2009
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Lenny Leonard, Dave Prazak

This is another in my long selection of DVDs and this is one that shouldn’t need much more of an explanation. I know a good bit more about ROH than PWG so this is nice for a change, though this is an era that I haven’t seen much of over the years. Your two big matches are Nigel McGuinness defending the World Title against Kenta and Kevin Steen/El Generico defending the Tag Team Titles against the American Wolves (Davey Richards/Eddie Edwards). Works for me so let’s get to it.

Bobby Dempsey knows that Larry Sweeney is getting to pick his next two opponents with the first one coming tonight. It doesn’t matter who is in front of him because he’s running through them and then coming for Sweeney.

Kenta warmed up in the empty arena earlier today.

I guess that’s our show intro as there is nothing else before we head into the matches.

Kenny King/Rhett Titus vs. Erick Stevens/Roderick Strong

Titus is Addicted To Love, basically making him a male stripper. The fans however remind him that he is a virgin and Titus isn’t pleased. Strong and King start things off with a fight over the wrist control, as you do in wrestling most of the time. King gets in a headscissors on the mat but Strong is back up with the armdrags into the armbar. Stevens comes in and the fans don’t seem overly pleased, but they are right there with the WOOing for the chops.

King brings Titus in, with Stevens running him over with the shoulder. Titus gets taken into the corner for the alternating chops and is then sent to the apron, where King gets in a knee to Stevens for a breather. A suplex into some forearms to the head gives King one and it’s back to Titus, who is perfectly fine thanks to the magic of wrestling. Titus’ dropkick gets one and it’s an atomic drop into a running clothesline from King to rock Stevens again. The chinlock….mostly goes on as Stevens is up to his feet before King really gets things set. Why waste time with something that isn’t going to work anyway?

Titus comes in for a hip swiveling suplex but Stevens hits him in the ribs. A powerslam to King and a kick to Titus still isn’t enough for the hot tag so Stevens ducks a right hand and brings Strong back in. Everything breaks down and Strong’s backbreaker (pick one) gets two on Titus. Something like a Fameasser gives Titus the same on Strong but a Razor’s Edge doesn’t work.

Instead it’s back to Stevens, with King knocking Strong off the apron instead of making another save. Some running knees to the back send Stevens into the buckle as everything breaks down again. Stevens throws Titus into the air for a hard clothesline but Titus is up to save King from a superplex. The yet to be named Sick Kick saves Stevens from a powerbomb/Blockbuster and Stevens hits the Doctor Bomb to finish Titus at 8:53.

Rating: C-. The match was energetic while it lasted but there were some times where you could tell they weren’t sure what to do. This is before Strong and King would become established names so it was about as good as you were going to get here. For an opener to a major show though, it worked out well enough.

There is no pay per view intro and we jump straight to the

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Brent Albright

Claudio is better known as Cesaro and these two have been feuding for awhile without either of them getting a decisive win. Castagnoli jumps Albright before the bell and hits a running knee, only to get forearmed down into the corner. Neither can hit a hiptoss so Albright flips over him and hits a dropkick out to the floor, setting up the required dive. Back in and Albright hits a delayed vertical suplex on the much bigger Castagnoli. Albright charges into some boots in the corner and misses a charge, sending him crashing into the ropes.

The uppercut against the ropes lets Cesaro choke on the ropes, meaning he can shout about the horribleness that is the USA. We hit the neck crank on Albright for a bit, followed by a hard clothesline to drop him again. Albright fights out of another neck crank and throws Castagnoli with a suplex, only to walk into a leg lariat. The third neck crank goes on but another clothesline is countered with a Rock Bottom. Commentary completely ignores this to talk about the World Title match some more, giving me some rather annoying Nitro flashbacks.

They head outside with Castagnoli walking into an exploder to put them both down again. Back in and Albright snaps off a headscissors into the Crowbar (Fujiwara armbar), sending Castagnoli to the ropes again. Speaking of the ropes, Castagnoli drops him throat first across said ropes to take over. Castagnoli goes up so Albright superplexes him back down and we have one minute left. They slug it out and that’s the time limit at 14:58 (close enough).

Rating: B-. This took some time to get going and Albright caught up after Castagnoli dominated a good portion of the first half. After that it was back and forth stuff and the time limit wasn’t mentioned until near the end, meaning it was more than waiting on the time to expire. Good stuff here and you can see where people saw the star power in Castagnoli on his own.

Post match they have to be separated until Castagnoli says Americans are cowards. He wants five more minutes and Albright says it’s on.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Brent Albright

The Crowbar goes on again but Castagnoli reverses into one of his own. The fans get behind Albright as he rolls out but Castagnoli kicks him low for the DQ at 1:00 of overtime.

Post match Castagnoli hits the Riccola Bomb (double arm trap sitout powerbomb) and grabs a chair. After beating up security, Castagnoli stomps the chair onto Albright’s head, more or less guaranteeing another rematch.

Mike Quackenbush found out that Bryan Danielson is a great wrestler but he’s ready to face Jerry Lynn. Jerry is on his way to the World Title shot against Nigel McGuinness, but tonight, Quackenbush’s hand is being raised.

We look at Larry Sweeney slapping and spitting at Bobby Dempsey (seemingly his lackey), earning himself a beating inside a cage in what felt like a big face turn.

Bobby Dempsey vs. Adam Pearce

A local news anchor named George Oliphant is guest timekeeper. Pearce has Shane Hagadorn and Sara Del Ray with him and is one of Sweeney’s guys. Before the match, Pearce makes the anchor introduce himself and insults his bowtie. Pearce brings up John Stossel and shoves George into the corner but here’s Dempsey to cut things off as we’re ready to go. The handshake results in a cheap shot from Pearce….but Dempsey grabs a Death Valley Driver for the pin at 28 seconds. Well that was a surprise.

Post match Dempsey does the Hulk Hogan shirt tear. The fans seem to like Dempsey as he poses with Oliphant.

Mike Quackenbush vs. Jerry Lynn

Lynn drives him into the corner to start and we get a clean break. The waistlock goes on but Quackenbush slips out without much trouble. They go into the expected battle of wrist control with Quackenbush cranking on the arm. A hiptoss gets Lynn out of trouble and we go to the standoff. Lynn headscissors him into the corner but can’t get a bulldog as Quackenbush takes him down into a double leglock. That’s reversed as well and Lynn works on the arm until Mike (I’m done with typing that long name) springboards into a hurricanrana for the escape and takes it to the mat.

Lynn reverses again and this time it’s an armbar on Mike. Back up and Mike is sent outside, meaning it’s a springboard dropkick to put him down. They switch places and Lynn hits the slingshot legdrop over the middle rope (or “legdrop thing” as commentary calls it) but Mike sweeps the leg to put him down on the apron. Mike tries a hurricanrana on the floor but gets caught and swung HARD into the barricade to put him down again. Back in and Lynn hits a tornado DDT and German suplex for two.

The cradle piledriver doesn’t work though and Mike grabs a crucifix for two of his own. They trade reversals until Lynn sends him into the corner for a collision of heads. Mike goes up but has to roll through a slam back down. Lynn goes up as well and hits a sunset bomb to bang Mike’s head again for two more. The cradle piledriver is blocked again and it’s a belly to back piledriver to plant Lynn. Not that it matters as Lynn is right back with the cradle piledriver for the pin at 9:36.

Rating: B-. This was the technical style match that you expect to see from Ring of Honor and it isn’t surprising given who was in there. Lynn and Quackenbush are both known technicians and the story they were telling here made it clear that Lynn was on his way to the World Title picture. It might not be the most interesting story, but they had an idea and stuck with it so points for following through.

Post match Mike takes some time to get up but they shake hands.

We recap the Necro Butcher leaving the Age of the Fall and being replaced by Delirious. From what I can tell, Austin Aries is now an associate of the team but hasn’t officially joined. He’ll be in a six man tag though, facing off against three former members of the team. I think. The story was kind of all over the place and they didn’t exactly make the story clear here.

Age of the Fall/Austin Aries vs. Delirious/Necro Butcher/Tyler Black

This is Ultimate Endurance (elimination rules and No DQ) under Revolution Rules (each fall has to be by a different method than the previous. For example you can’t have two pins in a row, but you can have pin, submission, pin). The Age of the Fall is Brodie Lee (looking YOUNG here)/Jimmy Jacobs and Black is better known as Seth Rollins. The non-Age of the Fall has Daizee Haze with them just in case there weren’t enough people around. Delirious charges into an elbow from Lee to start but it’s quickly off to (the barefoot) Butcher for the slugout.

Everything breaks down in a hurry and Delirious pulls Jacobs in for some revenge. The triple teaming is on and Butcher dives to the floor to take everyone down again. Everyone fights to the floor as commentary explains the rules for the first time. Delirious steals something from a fan to rub in Jacobs’ face and Lee blasts Butcher in the face with a big boot. Everyone gets back in with Aries and the Age being whipped into each other, followed by Delirious hitting a Cactus Clothesline to Lee.

Black busts out the big flip dive onto the pile, who happened to be standing there for his big flip dive. Butcher adds his own flip dive off the top but comes up holding his ankle. Haze, wearing Delirious’ jacket, goes up but Aries pulls her down. That brings in Delirious for the save with a cobra clutch, which Aries breaks up in a hurry.

Aries misses a running corner dropkick but here’s Lee to make the save, earning himself a hurricanrana out of the corner. Delirious hits some running knees in the corners to Lee and Aries until Lee is back up to save Jacobs from the cobra stretch. The swinging Boss Man Slam (always looks good) plants Delirious and Aries’ brainbuster finishes him off at 7:05. Since that was a pin, the next fall has to be submission, countout or knockout.

Lee kicks Black in the face to put him outside, followed by a slow motion Boss Man Slam to send Butcher into the ramp. Back in and Jacobs and Aries get in a bit of a fight over who gets to beat up Black. Since Black is smart enough to take advantage of it, he beats on both of them until Lee makes the save. Butcher comes back in to sent Aries and Jacobs outside before slugging away at Lee in the corner. The fight takes them to the floor as well as commentary can’t understand why Butcher doesn’t wear shoes.

Butcher and Lee go into the crowd (With ROH being smart enough TO GO SPLIT SCREEN!!! WHY IS THIS SO FREAKING HARD FOR EVERY OTHER COMPANY????) with Butcher getting in a good right hand to the face. Aries and Jacobs double team Black but stop to wonder where the other two are. The referee wants to know too but since they’re that far gone, both Butcher and Lee are eliminated at 11:41.

So pinfalls are allowed again as Black is double teamed some more. Aries stops to tell a fan that they’re ugly and Jacobs pulls out some of Black’s hair. That’s enough as Aries and Jacobs get in a fight over who gets to beat up Black but are smart enough to let it go and beat on Black again. Black is sat in a chair at ringside but they get in a fight over who gets to go for the suicide dive. This time they actually slug it out, allowing Black to springboard in with a double clothesline.

The Phoenix splash hits Aries but Jacobs catches Black on top. Aries holds Black in the Tree of Woe for a running hip attack and a slingshot dropkick gets two. The Contra Code (sitout Sliced Bread) is broken up though and Aries’ running dropkick hits Jacobs by mistake. Aries is back up with a shinbreaker to Black and throws him on his head with a release belly to back suplex.

Thankfully Black can still move and blocks the brainbuster with some knees to the head. Black nails the buckle bomb and the low superkick sets up the End Time (Jacobs’ guillotine choke) to get rid of Aries at 17:55. So we’re down to Jacobs vs. Black and it cannot end with submission. Jacobs brings in a chair but Black takes him down to start the brawl. A heck of a chair shot to the back puts Black down again so Jacobs pulls out his trusty railroad spike.

Black kicks it away but Jacobs nails a low blow, setting up the Contra Code for two. The End Time goes on again and Jacobs is dumb enough to let go even though there is no submission. Black powers up though and hits God’s Last Gift (fisherman’s buster into a small package) for the pin at 20:53.

Rating: B. Yeah this was good and the best thing on the show so far. The Age of the Fall was pretty much done at this point and would be done for good in June. Black is clearly the breakout star though and is moving up the ranks in a hurry. Good match here with a nice mixture of wrestling and brawling, so well done on the whole thing. Jacobs is someone who has grown on me as I’ve seen more of his work, though he still seems more like the guy who always comes up short more than anything else.

Nigel McGuinness is warming up for the main event.

Ring of Honor is coming to Nashville. By that we mean the show has taken place and we have clips, one of which seems to include Kenny Omega.

Jay Briscoe has been here since day one and he is ready to face D’Lo Brown, who he grew up watching. No disrespect to Brown, but he is going to have to man up.

Bison Smith/Jimmy Rave vs. Bryan Danielson/Grizzly Redwood

Smith and Rave are part of the Embassy with Prince Nana and Ernie Osiris. Before the bell, Nana says we need to think Barack Obama for his economic stimulus package because that money has allowed him to rebuild the Embassy. That includes the Crown Jewel of the Embassy, which sets up a huge entrance for Rave (making a big return). Bryan charges to the ring but gets caught by Smith in a spinning backbreaker. Redwood, the rather small lumberjack, fails to make the save but we have a surprise run-in return to take his place.

Bison Smith/Jimmy Rave vs. Bryan Danielson/Colt Cabana

The fans are VERY happy to see Cabana and he starts with Rave, who is pelted with toilet paper instead of streamers. Feeling out process to start with Rave seeming a bit tentative so Cabana shoulders him out to the floor. Some shoulders to the chest give Cabana two back inside as commentary goes over Cabana’s ROH history. Danielson comes in for the surfboard, sending Rave’s head into the ropes for the save. Some kicks in the corner connect as we hear about Bryan’s history against Smith.

Everything breaks down for a bit and it’s an STO to Cabana on the apron as Smith gorilla presses Danielson into the corner. Rave stomps Danielson down for two and we hit the chinlock. It’s back to Smith for the hard shoulder and he cranks on the neck as well. Bryan finally gets in a kick to the face and dives over for the hot tag to Cabana, though the fans don’t respond that loudly. The Flying Apple connects but Smith’s running shoulder (Prazak: “That’s the Flying Bison.”) cuts him down.

Everything breaks down again and Danielson sends Smith outside. The slingshot dive is pulled out of the air and Smith comes back in with a claw slam onto Rave’s knee to Cabana. A running knee gets two and Smith claws Cabana until Bryan breaks it up with a knee. Cabana and Bryan baseball slide Smith over the barricade, setting up a heck of a dive from Bryan. That leaves Cabana to elbow Rave in the head but Rave pulls him into the heel hook. Cabana slips out in a hurry and grabs the Superman Cover for the pin at 10:35.

Rating: C+. This worked for a double surprise, though having both teams include a special appearance kind of left them in a tough place. That being said, Smith seemed like a monster and you don’t want him losing either, meaning that Cabana going over Rave was the only way out of it. Granted any match from 2009 with Danielson is going to be entertaining and the fans loved Cabana so it was a pretty strong reaction to everything.

Post match Cabana says he loved hearing Copacabana when he came out here, but there is only one song he wants to hear right now and it belongs to Danielson. The Final Countdown begins and the fans seem rather appreciative, including singing the lyrics as Bryan and Cabana pose (which is always cool).

Jay Briscoe vs. D’Lo Brown

Mark Briscoe is here with Jay and it’s still weird to see Brown as kind of a legend. And without his head shaking everywhere. Before the match, Brown talks about being future endeavored from WWE after a very uneventful comeback and a complete waste of time. So what does he think of those guys up north? Thank you. He thanks them for wishing him good luck because his future endeavors are now here in Ring of Honor. Feeling out process to start with Briscoe taking over off a test of strength.

Brown drives him into the corner but gets shouldered out to the floor in a hurry. Back in and Brown’s running knee is blocked so they slap hands and reset. An exchange of legsweeps get one each and Brown isn’t sure what to do with Briscoe. A dropkick puts Brown down but he has the referee step aside and gets in a cheap low blow. Brown stands around for a good bit before hitting Jay in the head. Jay is fine with a slugout but Brown drops him with a big shot to the jaw.

They chop it out for a change and this time Brown goes to the eyes to cut him off. The cobra clutch keeps Jay in trouble before Brown goes with three straight standing clotheslines for two. Jay is sat on the apron for some forearms, plus a springboard dropkick to the floor. Brown goes back to the apron but gets dropkicked out of the air, leaving both of them rather staggered.

Back in and Brown gets Downward Spiraled into the top turnbuckle, followed by a hard clothesline for two. The Jay Driller is blocked though and Brown grabs a good Sky High for two. Jay is right back with a Death Valley Driver for his own two so it’s up top for a missed guillotine legdrop. Brown is right there with a rollup (including tights) for the pin at 12:38.

Rating: C+. Perfectly watchable match here, though it’s weird seeing Briscoe waiting to break through to the next level instead of being one of the biggest stars the company has ever seen. The match was good enough action and I’ve always liked Brown so we’ll call it a learning experience for Jay, which you have to have at one point or another.

Post match Mark yells a lot, both at the referee and Brown. Jay isn’t pleased either.

Tag Team Titles: American Wolves vs. Kevin Steen/El Generico

No DQ and the Wolves, with Sara Del Ray and Shane Hagadorn in their corner. The champs hit the ring in a hurry (chasing off the ring announcer mid introduction. Steen hits a Cannonball to Edwards, followed by the yet to be named Helluva Kick. The Wolves are on the floor so Steen hits a big dive as I don’t think the bell ever rang. Generico throws some chairs into the ring and then throws Davey into the barricade. They get inside and it’s a drop toehold to send Eddie face first into the chair.

Steen puts another on the back of Eddie’s head for a running flip legdrop. Generico’s running flip dive only hits chairs and Davey Tombstones him onto the chairs (more like a Tombstone into a powerslam but close enough). It’s time to start in on Owens’ knee as thankfully they aren’t bothering with tagging in a No DQ match. There’s a dragon screw legwhip to take the knee out again and some kicks to the ribs to keep him in trouble. Richards grabs a title and says they’re the next champs, which is enough to bring Steen back to life.

Granted he is knocked right back down, but at least he was up for a second. Steen low bridges both of them to the floor though and it’s Generico hitting a double springboard flip dive to take everyone out. That means the OLE chants start up again, even as Generico hits Eddie in the ribs with a chair. Instead of the rope walk armdrag, Generico drops down and pelts the chair at Eddie’s head. Well that was effective.

A splash out of the corner gives Generico two….and it’s time for a ladder. Hagadorn: “THAT IS CROSSING THE LINE!” Generico’s split legged moonsault onto Davey onto the ladder gets two and Steen limps around to pick the ladder up again. The ladder is set up against the rope but Eddie kicks Steen in the face. Generico kicks him down but the springboard flip dive hits the ladder.

Eddie throws Generico into the air for a kick to the chest and a chair to the head into a German suplex with a flipping jackknife cover gets two with Steen lightly shoving the Wolves for the pin. Back up and Steen powerbombs Davey out of the corner and suplexes Eddie into the corner. The Cannonball hits both Wolves at once and Sami goes Coast to Coast with a springboard flip dive into a ladder for two of his own.

Rating: B+. Now that was a surprise as I would have bet on the Wolves taking the titles here. That’s one of the fun parts about watching these older shows without knowing the results: you get a surprise ending like this and have a cool moment which could just as easily have been spoiled. These four beat the heck out of each other with some good violence so the idea of Steen returning the favors on the knee and winning the match as a result was a great way to finish things off. This was a lot of fun and I can see why the tag division was well received for a long time.

Post match the champs pull themselves up but the Wolves jump them again. Eddie chairs Steen in the head and a belt shot drops Generico. The Wolves put Generico through the table hard but the bloody Steen is back up. That doesn’t last long either as they tape him to the ropes and chair away at the knee, followed by a Conchairto to knock him silly. The Wolves pose with the belts and the champs are destroyed. It takes a good while to cut Steen free and he has to be carried out of the arena. The Wolves would win the title the next month.

Buy All Star Extravaganza with Bryan Danielson vs. Jerry Lynn! And some other stuff!

We recap Kenta vs. Nigel McGuinness for the ROH World Title. Kenta pinned him in a tag match and gets a title shot as a result (or he might have already had it). If there is anything else, it isn’t important enough to show here.

Ring of Honor World Title: Kenta vs. Nigel McGuinness

Nigel, with a bad arm, is defending and has the title on backwards as is his custom. We get the Big Match Intros and we’re ready to go. Kenta takes him up against the ropes and slaps him in the face, which doesn’t set well with Nigel. Nigel tries to do the same but gets slapped again. A kick to the arm takes Nigel down but he is back up with a headbutt. The big lariat is loaded up, which only hurts the arm again. Nigel is sent shoulder first into the post and it’s off to a logical armbar. That’s broken up so Kenta hits some kicks to the arm and head, with Nigel telling him to bring it on.

Kenta does just that and Nigel goes down in the corner, as you might have expected. Nigel slips out of a Kimura by getting to the rope so it’s time for more kicks. Kenta misses a top rope stomp to the head though and it’s a Tower of London (hanging cutter) to the floor. Back in and Nigel kicks him between the shoulders and an arm wrench takes Kenta down. Nigel slowly strikes away, including some headbutts to Kenta’s arm.

A suplex by the arm gives Nigel two and it’s off to the crossface chickenwing. Nigel takes him down with a dropkick but bangs up the arm on the landing, meaning the near fall is delayed. More arm cranking ensues with Nigel bending backwards into kind of a makeshift Rings of Saturn. Kenta fights up again and hits a running boot to the chest, followed by a not very snappy suplex. There’s the keylock again but Nigel makes the rope for the pretty fast save.

The running boot in the corner misses though and Nigel kicks him down. Another kick to the chest cuts off Nigel’s charge so Kenta goes up top, only to get knocked outside in a big crash. Kenta misses a big boot against the barricade and hits his own to knock Nigel over the barricade. Nigel is draped over the barricade for the BIG double stomp to the back and they’re both down again. It takes Nigel a long time to get back in and Kenta hits a fisherman’s buster for two.

The running knee (which Daniel Bryan copied) gives Kenta two more and it’s off to a pinfall reversal sequence. Nigel gets the London Dungeon (Zack Gibson’s Shankley Gates….which you might know better as a seated armbar) but Kenta backs to the rope. Another Tower of London drops Kenta for two but he blocks a third attempt. Instead Kenta runs the ropes for a super Falcon Arrow for a very near fall. The Go To Sleep is countered so Kenta settles for a heck of a bridging German suplex for two.

Go To Sleep connects on the second attempt for a very close two with Nigel getting a foot on the rope. They go to the floor with Nigel hitting (mostly) another Tower of London to the apron/floor. Back in and another Go To Sleep is blocked so Nigel hits his own Go To Sleep for two more. The London Dungeon goes on again but Nigel lets it go to pull him back to the middle. That lets Kenta roll him up for two but another Go To Sleep is blocked. It’s back to the London Dungeon but this time Nigel bends backwards to put Kenta’s back over his knees, this time for the tap at 26:20.

Rating: A. This was GREAT as they beat the heck out of each other for the better part of half an hour. Commentary pushed the idea that Nigel was practically wrestling without arms so he had to come up with another way to hang onto the title, including a submission that involved using his hands and knees. Kenta was a monster here too with the strikes looking great. I don’t know how they screwed him up in NXT but it must have been an amazing series of injuries. They pulled off a heck of a trick here by sucking me into a match where I already knew the ending. Check this one out because it’s really great stuff.

Kenta gets the big applause as commentary thanks the fans for the last seven years to end the show.

We’re not quite done though as the DVD includes the ROH Video Wire, which is a collection of bonus videos.

From March 13 in Collinsville, Illinois.

Here’s Ric Flair for a special appearance….or at least his entrance as we cut off after about thirty seconds.

We see some highlights from a show on March 18.

Back to Collinsville with Jimmy Jacobs vs. Delirious. Jacobs says Delirious has failed him for the last time and pulls out the spike, which hits Daizee Haze instead. Delirious blocks the spike to his own head and stabs Jacobs instead. We’re clipped to Delirious hitting a bunch of running knees to the head in the corner before stopping to stare at Daizee. They have the big hug and the fans certainly seem to approve.

Nigel McGuinness is ready for a tag match between himself/Davey Richards vs. Kenta/El Generico, which would have been the night before the Anniversary Show.

From Indianapolis, Indiana on March 14, Bison Smith beats up Bryan Danielson with referees and agents having to separate them.

Claudio Castagnoli talks about Brent Albright wanting to step up his game but getting kicked in the face like a stupid American.

From the same Indianapolis show, the American Wolves jump Kevin Steen and El Generico but get chased off by someone with a chair.

The American Wolves promise to take the Tag Team Titles from Steen and Generico at the Anniversary Show.

Kevin Steen and El Generico are ticked off at the Wolves, with Steen saying someone else injured his knee eight years ago. He’ll be back up for the fight though because hurting his knee isn’t going to stop him.

That was a rather random assortment of videos and it felt a lot more like a commercial for the Video Wire than something that really added much to the show. It’s hardly anything that brings it down though either, making it pretty much a meaningless bonus feature.

Overall Rating: B+. There is a reason that this version of Ring of Honor is held in so much esteem and it was on display here. This was a heck of a show with the last two matches cranking it up to another level. It was a bit long at times and there are some matches which could have been trimmed a good bit, but I had a really good time with this and it was one of the better ROH shows I’ve ever seen. I could go for more from this period and that’s not something I get to say very often. Check this one out if you have the chance.

 

 

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