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ROH Presents - Man Up!
By Garoon and Ziegler | March 24, 2008
Ring of Honor tapes its third pay-per-view!
DISC 1
Introduction
BG says: The Video Wire starts with clips of Bryan Danielson’s eye injury at the hands of Takeshi Morishima. The narrator warns that the footage of Danielson at the end of the Video Wire is graphic and not for all audiences. Next up are clips of Jack Evans and the Vulture Squad’s debut at Manhattan Mayhem II. Things wrap up with Danielson getting his injured eye checked out. It’s really disturbing and I could have done without ever seeing it.
The show starts with Naomichi Marufuji already in the ring. Dave Prazak & Lenny Leonard introduce Nigel McGuinness as one of his opponents in the opening match. They hype the double main event tonight. McGuinness takes the microphone from them and says he’ll get through all three of his opponents tonight to earn a title shot. As Prazak talks about the ladder match a man in a black hoodie and ski mask rushes the ringside area, grabs the microphone and shouts, “Age of the fall, we’re starting a revolution!” Leonard tells the production team to hard cut to the opening video. The video is set to the Briscoes’ theme music and is pretty neat if I do say so myself. Back at ringside Claudio Castagnoli says he’s going to beat Chris Hero and get his hands on Larry Sweeney. He promises that he’s focused on winning the match to get into title contention. Sweet N’ Sour Inc comes out. Sweeney assures us that Hero will win this match and have an even higher price tag in ROH.
JZ says: Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard welcome the audience to the third ROH pay-per-view, and we’re going to start the show with a ROH signature, the Four Corner Survival match. They hype tonight’s card as the participants make their way to the ring. Nigel McGuinness drops in to remind everyone that it is still his dream to win that ROH World Title. Prazak and Leonard hype tonight’s main events as a guy in a black hoodie and ski mask runs out and starts screaming about the Age of the Fall, whatever that is, and security tackles him and Leonard screams for production to go to the intro video. Then we go back to the ring, where Claudio Castagnoli stops by to tell Chris Hero he’s going after him tonight, and then he’s moving into World Title contention. Sweet ‘n’ Sour, Inc. stops by as well, with Sweeney cutting the usual awesome promo. The graphics showing everybody’s goals in this match is a pretty nice touch.
MATCH #1: Four Corner Survival – Chris Hero vs. Naomichi Marufuji vs. Nigel McGuinness vs. Claudio Castagnoli
BG says: ROH shows a graphic for each man showing his goal in ROH. Marufuji & McGuinness start. They trade holds and get 1 counts off of takedowns. Hero begs McGuinness for a tag. McGuinness obliges him. Hero puts on a wristlock but Marufuji counters the hold. Hero casually pushes Marufuji to the side of the ring before going through his flip routine. Marufuji tags to Castagnoli so Hero bails. Back in the ring Hero immediately tags to Marufuji. Castagnoli pins Marufuji for 1. They put each other in the Iron Claw until Marufuji hits a cheap shot. Hero tags in and slugs away on Castagnoli. Castagnoli starts to fight back so Hero tags to McGuinness. Castagnoli and McGuinness trade European uppercuts. They trade pin attempts for 2. Hero tags McGuinness out and attacks Castagnoli from behind. He boots Castagnoli’s face. He crotches Castagnoli in the corner and hits a big boot for 2. He hits two sentons for 2. Castagnoli comes back with a back bodydrop. He hits a European uppercut. He hits a bodyslam and a legdrop. Hero bails so Castagnoli follows him out with a double axe handle. He rams Hero into the barricade. Marufuji dives out onto them. The crowd chants for McGuinness to follow suit so he dives off the top rope onto everyone. Back in the ring Marufuji and McGuinness trade shots. Marufuji hits an enziguiri and a clothesline. He dropkicks the knee and hits another clothesline for 2, though neither man is legal. Marufuji hits a superkick and the Shiranui for 2 when Hero makes the save. Hero hits Marufuji with a vertical suplex for 2. Castagnoli hits Hero with the Alpamare Waterslide for 2. McGuinness hits Castagnoli with a short-arm lariat for 2. He hits Marufuji with the handstand kick. Marufuji drives his face into the mat. He hits a superkick for 2. He climbs the ropes but McGuinness crotches him and hits the Tower of London for 2 when Hero saves. Hero hits McGuinness with a cravat facebuster. He climbs the ropes and hits a double stomp for 2 when Castagnoli lifts him off and hits a German suplex for 2. Castagnoli hits Hero with the Giant Swing He hits a European uppercut for 2. Marufuji rolls him up for 2. He hits a superkick. He hangs Castagnoli in the Tree of Woe. He climbs the ropes but McGuinness blocks the corner to corner dropkick. He hits Marufuji with a lariat. He hits Hero with a lariat. He hits Marufuji with the second rope lariat. Castagnoli hits him with a diving European uppercut. He hits Marufuji with the Ricola Bomb for 2 when Hero takes out the referee. Hero hits Castagnoli with a roaring forearm. Castagnoli comes back with the bicycle kick. McGuinness hits Castagnoli with the Jawbreaker Lariat for the win. The fact that the legal man rules got thrown out was quite annoying. However the crowd was crazy for the action, which was hot for the majority of the match.
Rating: ***½
JZ says: This is very much an international four-way, with Marufuji from Japan, McGuinness from England, Castagnoli from Sweden, and Hero from the United States. McGuinness and Marufuji start it off and wrestle to a stalemate. Hero shows off his athleticism, so Marufuji tags in Castagnoli when Hero isn’t looking, but he still manages to narrowly escape his arch rival. Marufuji comes in and he and Castagnoli exchange holds until Marufuji tags out to Hero, who cheap shots Castagnoli and then pays for it so he runs to the corner to tag McGuinness in. They exchange European Uppercuts and McGuinness tries a lariat but can’t hit it so they exchange pinning combinations. Hero and Castagnoli finally get in the ring together and Castagnoli gets aggressive with Hero and they go to the floor. Marufuji hits a dive over the top rope onto both Hero and Castagnoli, and McGuinness follows suit by going up to the top rope and hitting a dive from the top rope over the guardrail onto both Hero and Castagnoli as well. Marufuji and McGuinness are back in the ring now. They exchange a few moves until Marufuji hits the Shiranui, only to have the pin broken up by Hero. He hits a release vertical suplex on Marufuji, and Castagnoli breaks up that pin. He hits the Alparmare Water Slide on Hero but only gets two. McGuinness is back in and hits a lariat on Castagnoli but it gets two as well. Marufuji and McGuinness end up the only two in the ring, and McGuinness eats a face full of boot for a two count. Marufuji goes to the top rope but McGuinness knocks him down and hits the Tower of London, and Hero breaks up that pin. Hero hits a double stomp from the top on McGuinness but Castagnoli breaks that up with a German Suplex but he too can only get two. He delivers the Giant Swing to Hero. The action continues at a furious pace, with everyone trying big moves on whoever they can get their hands on. McGuinness finally ends the madness with a Jawbreaker Lariat on Castagnoli for the pin at 17:59. That was an excellent opener and made all four guys look like big deals in the company. This beats almost any TNA or WWE opener this year.
Rating: ***½
Arrrrr, Matey
BG says: “Captain” Bryan Danielson talks about the injury he suffered at the hands of Takeshi Morishima. The injury made his mother cry and his sister angry. They show Danielson’s messed up eye, which makes me so angry; why would they make a huge point out of telling us that the footage of the injury isn’t for everyone and then show a clip of it here without any warning? That’s not cool. He talks about his father but my mind is swirling because of the injury footage. He says the wrestling life, injuries and all, is the life he always wanted. Tonight he’s taking the title from the man who tried to take his eye. Great promo, but I call BS on the pop up eyeball shot.
JZ says: Bryan Danielson cuts an emotional promo about the injury he sustained at the hands of Takeshi Morishima, and how it’s affected his family. He says that his dad is the one who encouraged him, because even with all the hardships, this is the life he’s always wanted. He promises to win the ROH World Title for the second time tonight.
MATCH #2: Rocky Romero vs. Matt Cross
BG says: Cross blocks a knee kick to start. They trade strikes until Romero hits a cheap shot. Cross hits a head scissors takedown. Romero hits a big boot. Cross hits a swinging facebuster. Romero bails so Cross fakes a dive. He hits a baseball slide. He rams Romero into the post. He hits the Flagpole Press, getting 2 back in the ring. Romero puts on the cross armbreaker but Cross gets to the ropes. Romero spits on the referee. He hits a Manhattan drop and a dropkick. He throws Cross into the air and then hits a running knee. Cross slaps Romero across the face. He hits a split legged elbowdrop for 2. He hits an enziguiri. He hits a springboard double stomp and a standing moonsault for 2. He hits a neckbreaker and climbs the ropes. He misses a corkscrew moonsault and Romero hits a running knee. Romero hits a German suplex and the buzzsaw kick for the win. This had a ton of steam left in it and could have used five more minutes to develop.
Rating: **½
Aries gets into the ring to square off with Strong but Strong decides to let Richards take the leader of the Resilience on instead.
JZ says: Both men start off on fire, exchanging slaps to the chest, a battle that Romero wins and then he goes to the headlock. That doesn’t last long, as both guys go for their bread and butter – Cross with the aerial moves and Romero with the strikes. Romero dominates the early goings until Cross is able to make a comeback. He gets a few moves in and a near fall. He tries a twisting press off the top but Romero moves out of the way and hits the kick to the head to get the pin at 4:41. That was decent enough to start the series out.
Rating: **
MATCH #3: Davey Richards vs. Austin Aries
BG says: Aries hits a shoulder tackle to start. He hits a Japanese armdrag and puts on an armbar. He counters the arm kick to a takedown for 1. He gets a headlock takedown. Richards dodges the dropkick out of the head scissors. Aries catches a kick and hits a shinbreaker. He hits the basement dropkick. Richards hits a hurricanrana and a running knee. Aries hits a clothesline and a slingshot senton. He hits an elbowdrop for 2. Richards hits a northern lights suplex for 2. He misses an elbowdrop. Aries hits the Powerdrive Elbow for 2. He sets Richards up top. Richards pushes Aries to the floor and follows him out with a double axe handle. Back in the ring Richards hits a backbreaker. He pokes Aries’s eyes. He legsweeps Aries into a crossface. He kicks Aries’s chest for 2. They trade forearms until Aries puts Richards down with one of the roaring variety. Richards bails so Aries follows him out with the Heat Seeking Missile. Back in the ring Aries hits a slingshot splash for 2. He hits the Lionsault for 2. Richards hits the handspring kick. He hits a hammerlock brainbuster for 2. He hits Kawada kicks but Aries counters a chest kick to a shinbreaker and a back suplex for 2. He climbs the ropes but Richards cuts him off with a kick to the head. He hits a German superplex for 2. Aries fights back but misses a dropkick in the corner. Richards hits a running forearm and a clothesline. He gets a roll up for 2. Aries gets a backslide for 2. He hits the Aries Flurry for the win. I dig that they played up that these two have wrestled more than once in the past. This was much more enjoyable than their previous matches, which really goes to show that the lack of crowd heat I cited as the problem in those matches was indeed hampering them.
Rating: ***½
JZ says: Aries wants to fight Strong but will have to settle for a lackey. Richards makes a few moves but Aries mostly stays in control with a headlock. Richards makes the comeback and starts unloading with kicks. They trade control and go up to the top rope, and Richards knocks Aries to the floor and comes down off the apron with a double ax handle. Back in the ring Richards maintains control and even gouges the eyes to thwart a comeback. Aries won’t give in as they exchange forearms in the center of the ring. Aries finally lands a roaring forearm and knocks Richards to the floor and follows with a dive between the first and middle ropes. Aries tries the 450 but Richards is able to stop Aries and hit a release super German Suplex but Aries actually kicks out. Aries finally recovers enough to hit the Joe-Killer combo to get the pin at 11:55. That was about on par with their other matches together back in 2006.
Rating: ***
MATCH #4: Roderick Strong vs. Erick Stevens
BG says: Strong attacks Stevens at the bell. Stevens comes back with a shoulder tackle. He hits a back elbow. He hits the Oklahoma Slam for 2. He hits a back suplex for 2. He hits an elbowdrop for 2. They trade forearms until Stevens hits a suplex. Strong hits a forearm and a back suplex on the apron. He whips Stevens into the barricade. He presses Stevens’s side against the post, getting 2 back in the ring. He chops Stevens to the mat. He hits a dropkick for 2. He hits a fall away slam for 2. He hits a backbreaker and then stretches the back over his knee. He chops Stevens in the corner. Stevens hits a shoulder tackle. He hits the Choo Choo Avalanche and the TKO for 2. Strong hits a chinbreaker. He hits a running forearm and a clothesline. He hits a vertical suplex for 2. Stevens hits the Original for 2. Strong blocks the Doctor Bomb and hits an enziguiri. He hits the gutbuster and a pumphandle suplex for 2. They trade chops until Strong hits a forearm. Stevens hits a German suplex. Strong pops up only to get clubbed down. Stevens hits a pumphandle powerbomb for 2. Strong goes to the eyes. He sets Stevens up top and hits a superplex. Stevens pops up but eats the Sick Kick. Strong hits the half nelson backbreaker for 2. He goes for a second rope tiger driver but Gibson counters to a second rope powerslam for 2. Stevens goes for a second rope Doctor Bomb but Strong pounds him with forearms and hits the Razor’s Edge off the second rope. He hits the tiger driver for the win. This just as hard-hitting and intense as their fantastic Florida Heritage Title match, with just an ounce less emotion.
Rating: ***¾
Clips are shown of BJ Whitmer joining Adam Pearce and destroying Delirious with a staple gun.
JZ says: Both men come in with guns blazing, trying to win this deadlocked series. Strong’s FIP Title is not on the line in this match. The Oklahoma Stampede by Stevens gets two. Stevens controls the early portions of the match until it goes to the floor, where Strong is able to deliver a belly-to-back suplex on the edge of the apron. He does some more damage to Stevens on the floor, focusing on the ribs. Back in the ring Stevens tries to fight back with chops but Strong nails him in the kisser with a dropkick. The crowd is very behind Stevens here. Strong continues to dominate, but Stevens comes back with a launching powerslam for two. He motions of the Doctor Bomb but his ribs are too hurt. Strong hits the gut-buster and a pump handle snap slam for two. Stevens makes a big comeback now and hits a few moves in succession but still can’t keep Strong down. A sick half nelson backbreaker by Strong can’t get the pin. Strong tries a Tiger Driver off the ropes, which Stevens reverses to a huge powerslam for a very near fall. The crowd loves the match. They fight back up on the ropes and Strong looks to be going for a Splash Mountain and he hits it. He rolls it right into the Tiger Driver to finally get the pin at 22:57. That was really good back and forth stuff and the right team went over. I’d say that Erick Stevens had a really good weekend.
Rating: ***½
A highlight package airs of a four-way match of Delirious vs. Nigel McGuinness vs. Adam Pearce vs. BJ Whitmer that recently happened in Hartford. The aftermath of that match was the formation of a new faction consisting of Pearce, Brent Albright, and Whitmer, with Shane Hagadorn. They call themselves the Hangmen Three. Yikes. It’s a very obvious segment, with no suspense as to what Whitmer will do.
MATCH #5: ROH World Title Match – Takeshi Morishima vs. Bryan Danielson
BG says: On Ring of Honor’s website Morishima made a promise not to attack Danielson’s eye during this match. Danielson hits a running forearm at the bell. Morishima stands strong and beats Danielson into the corner. Danielson hits a running knee but Morishima won’t allow the takedown. He puts Danielson down in the corner and boots his face. He hits a running boot to the face. They fight to the floor where Morishima levels Danielson with a forearm. He whips Danielson into the barricade. He hits the Olé Butt Splash. He shoves Danielson back into the ring so Danielson hits him with a suicide dive. Back in the ring Danielson hits running forearms. He kicks Morishima to the mat for 2. Morishima tries to sit on Danielson’s chest but Danielson moves out of the way and hits a clothesline for 2. He climbs the ropes but Danielson catches him coming down with a folding press for 2. Danielson goes for the triangle choke but Morishima gets to the ropes. Danielson can’t get the Mexican surfboard on so he hits the thigh stomp. He puts on the bow and arrow but Morishima rolls over for 2. Morishima sits on Danielson’s chest. He hits a big boot for 2. Danielson puts on a sleeper hold. Morishima tries to counter to the backdrop driver but Danielson blocks it. Morishima hits a bodyslam. Danielson hits a back superplex for 2. He lays in the unprotected elbows. He hits a tiger suplex for 2. He puts on the Cow Killer. Morishima won’t quit so Danielson grabs his arms and stomps on his face. He puts on the triangle choke but Morishima escapes with a powerbomb. Morishima hits a lariat for 2. He hits the backdrop driver for 2 when Danielson gets his foot on the bottom rope. Morishima hits a clothesline in the corner and slugs Danielson’s eye. Danielson gets a roll up for 2. Morishima hits the backdrop driver and forearms Danielson’s face until the referee calls for the bell. This was a brutal match that could have used five more minutes to match their first encounter. The crowd is infuriated by the decision.
Rating: ****
JZ says: Morishima has been the champion since 2.17.07, and this is his nineteenth defense. Danielson charges at the champion right at the bell, but the champion is almost unfazed. The champ takes advantage and starts throwing Danielson around. Danielson’s eye patch is already causing him problems. Danielson gets abused outside the ring for a few minutes, but as soon as he gets back to the ring he dives right back to the outside on the champion. Back in the ring Danielson delivers a series of strikes to knock Morishima down for a two count. Danielson keeps going for big moves and hits a few of them, including a back suplex from the top rope for a near fall. Morishima is able to thwart many attacks as well. Danielson gets frustrated and starts hitting the elbows to the face. That doesn’t work so he tries a Tiger Suplex and gets two, so he rolls into the Cattle Mutilation. Morishima escapes it and recovers to hit a Back Drop Driver but Danielson gets his foot on the bottom rope. Morishima finally gets pissed and rips off Danielson’s eye patch, after he promised not to attack the eye. Morishima narrowly avoids getting pinned with a small package and hits a Back Drop Driver. Then instead of going for the pin he does directly to Danielson’s eye and the referee stops the match at 12:43. The crowd doesn’t like that finish, but they didn’t like it in a good way. The match was really well put together and felt suitably epic even with a relatively short running time.
Rating: ****
MATCH #6: ROH World Tag Team Title Ladder Match – The Briscoe Brothers vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico
BG says: A video package chronicling the feud between these teams is shown before the match. It certainly has been a vicious rivalry. Everyone brawls to start. Steen press slams Mark into the crowd as Jay hits Generico with a chair to the head. Mark suplexes Steen over the barricade. Generico throws a chair at Jay’s head. Steen and Mark have a brutal exchange but there are no microphones on their side of the building so much of the brutality is lost. Back at ringside Generico busts Jay open with a chair. Mark hits Steen with the Ace Crusher off the barricade. In the ring Generico climbs a ladder towards the belts but Jay pulls him down. Generico hits Jay with a chinbreaker. Generico hits a dropkick to the face. Mark keeps Generico from climbing after the belts. He hits a bodyslam and a kneedrop. Generico whips him into the ladder. He climbs again but Jay pulls him down and pancakes him. Jay climbs the ladder but Steen pulls him down and goes for the package piledriver. Jay blocks it and hits a big boot. Steen hits the pumphandle neckbreaker. He climbs the ladder but Mark brings him down with the springboard dropkick. Mark climbs the ladder but Steen pulls him off of it. He throws the ladder at Mark, busting him open. The Briscoes hit the double toss on Generico into the ladder. A second, taller ladder makes its way into the ring. Jay climbs it but Steen pushes it over, knocking Jay onto the first ladder. Steen hits Jay with a back suplex on the ladder. He hits Mark with a superkick. Mark gets fired up so Steen hits anther superkick and a low blow. Generico sets Jay on a ladder and hits a split legged moonsault. Jay looks like he’s crying blood. Mark hits Steen with a leg lariat. Jay beats on Steen until Generico throws a ladder at him. He Yakuza kicks the ladder into Jay’s face. Steen powerbombs Mark over the top rope onto a ladder draped between the apron and the barricade. Steen climbs after the belts but Jay shoves Generico into the ladder. Jay hits Generico with a German suplex. He hits both opponents with the ladder until Steen grabs it and shoves it back in his face. Mark dropkicks it into Steen. He sets it up in the corner and suplexes Generico onto it. Jay hits Steen with the DVD onto the side of the ladder. Mark hits Steen with a vertical suplex. He puts the ladder on Generico and hits the shooting star press. Jay climbs the ropes and puts Steen through a table on the floor with a legdrop. Mark climbs the ladder until Generico shoves it out from under him. Jay asks for the maintenance ladder so the crowd surfs it over to him. Mark sets up the gigantic ladder in the ring. Generico hits him with the Yakuza kick. Jay hits Generico with a big boot. Mark dives under the ladder to help Jay hit the Doomsday Device on Generico. Both Briscoes climbs after the belts but Steen brings them down with shots from another ladder. He sets that ladder up between the huge ladder and the middle turnbuckle. Mark hits him with two superkicks. He climbs the ladder until Steen brings him down and hits him with the package piledriver on his ladder bridge. Generico climbs the ladder until Jay brings him down and hits the Jay Driller on a quickly assembled ladder bridge. Steen and Jay climb the ladder and slug it out until Steen falls. After a bit of a struggle Jay gets the belts for his team. The best part about the match was that all four men were always going for the belt and not just looking for high spots. Of course the high spots that did occur were unbelievable.
Rating: ****½
JZ says: The Briscoes have been champions since 3.30.07, and this is their fourteenth title defense. A video package effectively shows the brutality of this feud so far, which should be coming to an end tonight. The champions waste no time in getting the fight started, right on the outside of the ring. The action pretty much immediately becomes too fast for me to keep up with. Ladders and chairs are used freely as weapons and both Briscoes are busted open early. There’s not much more I can add to this match that hasn’t already been written. The Briscoes retain the title when Jay grabs the belts at 27:22. The crowd chants “Match of the Year” and it’ll probably be near the top of any list. It was a brutal, disgusting match that made everyone look like big deals in ROH, and show why ROH has the best tag team scene in America.
Rating: ****½
Project 161
BG says: Screaming comes over the sound system. A group of men in black hoodies, masks and bandanas run up to the front row and shout at the Briscoes. Tyler Black and Jimmy Jacobs jump over them to enter the ring. They stare down the Briscoes, distracting them long enough for the Necro Butcher to rush in and hit them from behind with a fist full of barbed wire. Black hits Jay with the small package driver. Necro rips Jay’s face open with the barbed wire as Jacobs ties his foot to the chain that previously held the tag titles. Jay’s motionless body starts to ascend as ROH cuts away and ends the show. However if you bought the show on DVD you get to see what happened. Jay leaves a bloody trail as his body is dragged into the air. Jacobs stands underneath Jay, letting the blood cover him. He talks about his history with Lacey. He was miserable for a year but thought if Lacey loved him he’d be saved. When Lacey said she loved him he felt nothing and his world shattered. As such he brought in the Necro Butcher, who ROH had stopped using because of the way he looks. He brought in Tyler Black because despite his ROH-friendly look he was still never given a chance. So he and his new friends are taking out the Briscoes, who have had everything handed to them by ROH. He drinks some of Jay’s blood and spits it at Mark. They’re obnoxious, arrogant and drunk but still they’re embraced as the tag champs. Jay is lowered as the crowd turns on the promo. Project 161 is over, but the Age of the Fall has just begun. I thought the crowd started chanting boring prematurely when I was there live (in costume) and though the DVD was probably edited it seemed even more premature here.
JZ says: That ends the pay-per-view portion of the show, with the Briscoes celebrating in the ring. A woman’s scream comes over the PA and a bunch of fans dressed in all black with their faces covered create a diversion, allowing Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black to come in from the crowd. Turns out that they’re also a diversion, because Necro Butcher sneaks in from the back with barbed wire, and the trio begins decimating the tag team champions. And we are out of time!
But there is a bonus feature showing the grossest angles of the promo Jimmy Jacobs cut after the main event of the pay-per-view. Jay Briscoe is hung upside down above Jacobs, bleeding profusely. Jacobs cuts an embittered, passionate promo about how the Briscoes were hand picked by the fans to be bred for glory, while people like himself, Tyler, and Necro have had to fight for everything because nothing was handed to them. Some people chant “boring,” which I think is pretty unfair, but hopefully the stable will be booked strong because there really is a lot of potential greatness there. The matches in this one should be fun.
DISC 2
MATCH #7: Top of the Class Trophy Match – Mitch Franklin vs. Alex Payne
BG says: As is always true in Chicago Payne is more over than he has any right to be. Payne gets a fireman’s carry to start. Franklin comes back with a headlock. Payne hits an armdrag and a hiptoss. Franklin dropkicks the knee and hits a legdrop for 2. He puts on a sleeper hold. They trade strikes, Payne getting cheered and Franklin being booed. Payne hits a double knee strike. He hits a fisherman suplex for 2. Franklin hits a hurricanrana into the corner. He hits a facebuster for the win. Too short to matter, like most student matches, but Franklin’s finisher is cool.
Rating: *
JZ says: Big lockup to start. They trade a few basic moves and both guys look pretty awkward. They blow one spot pretty badly, so they respond with punches. Payne almost gets the pin with a Perfect-Plex. Franklin makes the comeback and hits a face-plant maneuver on Payne and rolls him into a victory roll to get the pin and retain the trophy at 2:24. That was brief and pointless.
Rating: ½*
MATCH #8: Amazing Kong & Daizee Haze vs. Lacey & Sara Del Ray
BG says: It’s weird to see Kong as a babyface out of the gate, as she carries Haze to the ring. Haze and Del Rey start. Del Rey shoots Haze across the ring. She blocks a takedown and gets one of her own. Haze gets a roll up for 2. She climbs the ropes and hits an armdrag. She hits a head scissors takedown. Del Rey hits four backbreakers for 1. Lacey tags in and gets caught with an armdrag. Haze hits a clothesline and a dropkick. Kong and Del Rey tag into the match, previewing the SHIMMER Championship match that was coming up. They lock up and Kong powers Del Rey to the corner. Del Rey ducks a chop but not a clothesline. Kong hits a splash for 2. She hits a headbutt. She hits an avalanche for 1 with a cocky cover. Del Rey hits a dropkick but Kong walks right through it. She hits another and Kong stands strong. She kicks Kong to her knees. She hits a snapmare for 2. She goes for a cross armbreaker but Kong powers out of it. Del Rey hits a crossbody for 2. Lacey tags in and goes for forearms. That just serves to wake Kong up. She hits a clothesline and tags to Haze. Haze hits two elbowdrops for 2. She hits a bodyslam but Del Rey catches her with a cheap shot. Lacey attacks Haze from behind and Del Rey hits a headbutt. Lacey kicks Haze’s back for 2. Del Rey tags in and hits a snap suplex for 2. She sets Haze up top and flings her back down to the mat for 2. Haze gets a roll up for 2. Lacey tags in and hits a roundhouse kick for 2. She puts on a full nelson. She hits a facebuster for 2. Del Rey tags in and they make it easier for Haze to give birth. Del Rey puts on a leglock. Haze gets a roll up for 2. Del Rey hits a legdrop and tags to Lacey. Lacey hits a clothesline for 2. Del Rey tags in and tries to pin Haze out of the Gory Special. Haze counters to a facebuster. She victory rolls herself into the corner and tags to Kong. Kong cleans house with clotheslines. Kong press slams Haze onto Lacey & Del Rey on the floor. Back in the ring Kong hits Del Rey with a sit-out powerbomb for 2. She hits the swinging back fist. She hits the Amazing Press for 2 when Lacey makes the save. Haze hits Lacey with a forearm and Kong hits the back fist. Del Rey rolls Kong up for 2. She hits two big boots and a forearm for 2. Kong hits a double underhook facebuster for 2. Del Rey hits a pair of kicks and a German suplex for 2. Lacey tags in but Kong takes out both opponents with clotheslines. Haze tags in and stands on the top rope. Kong hoists Lacey up, lets Haze hit the heart punch and then hits a powerbomb. Haze comes off the top with a splash for 2. Lacey rolls Haze up for 2. Haze comes back with the Mind Trip for the win. Without a doubt this was the best women’s match in ROH and up there with the best matches in SHIMMER’s history. Given the result the match really should have ended with the combo out of the corner.
Rating: ***½
JZ says: Del Ray is still the SHIMMER champion, and she starts off the match with Haze. They do some mat wrestling until Lacey gets tagged in, and Haze gets the better of her and tags to Kong, causing Lacey to run and tag Del Ray. Kong dominates Del Ray early on, and pretty much brushes off her offense. Del Ray gets beat up for a few minutes before making the tag to Lacey, who goes right after Kong but can’t faze her much larger opponent. Del Ray and Lacey are able to take over when Haze gets in the ring. Haze takes abuse from both of her rivals for several minutes before tagging out to Kong, who throws both Lacey and Del Ray outside the ring and then launches Haze on them. Back in the ring she hits a sit-out powerbomb on Del Ray for two. Kong hits a big splash from the second rope but Lacey breaks up that pin and ends up eating a backhand to the face. Del Ray is actually able to German Suplex Kong for a two. They fight on the outside of the ring, leaving Lacey and Haze in the ring. Haze hits the Mind Trip to get the pin on Lacey at 14:48. That was a good formula tag match.
Rating: ***
MATCH #9: BJ Whitmer & Brent Albright vs. Chasyn Rance & Kenny King
BG says: Albright and Whitmer’s matching entrance attire is cool. To be honest I think this group would be better of as just a tag team without Adam Pearce. They attack King and Rance before the bell. They hit King with a double back elbow. Rance hits Whitmer with a hurricanrana for 2. Whitmer comes back with a powerslam. Albright tags in and destroys Rance with forearms. Whitmer tags in and slaps Rance across the face. Albright tags in and hits a butterfly suplex. He hits a snap suplex and a senton. Whitmer tags in and hits a bodyslam. Albright tags in and hits a top rope kneedrop for 2. Rance hits an enziguiri and tags to King. Whitmer tags in and gets caught with a springboard clothesline. King hits a cartwheel kick on Whitmer and a baseball slide on Albright. Rance distracts Whitmer giving King a chance to hit a springboard maneuver but he botches it and Whitmer hits him with a brainbuster. King hits a chinbreaker and tags to Rance. Whitmer hits Rance with a back elbow and Albright tackles King to the floor. Whitmer hits Rance with a turnbuckle powerbomb. Albright throws Rance into a gutbuster from Whitmer. Albright and Whitmer hit a double Alabamaslam for the win. Why bring the YRR in to be jobbers? Florida and Chicago aren’t exactly close to each other. Whitmer and Albright certainly came off looking like killers at any rate.
Rating: *½
After the match Shane Hagadorn drops the microphone while trying to get it for Albright. Albright slaps him in response. Whitmer talks about the sacrifices he’s made for ROH. He says Adam Pearce showed him that he should only make sacrifices for himself. Albright dubs the group the Hangmen 3. You can actually hear laughter coming from the crowd, followed by a “Change Your Name” chant.
Jack Evans comes out to the ring, presumably to cut a promo, and is attacked by Tyler Black. That leads to a match.
JZ says: The YRR refuse to shake hands, so Whitmer and Albright rush after them and start unloading. Albright fights King outside the ring while Rance and Whitmer fight inside the ring. The match calms itself down to where it’s Whitmer and Albright working over Rance in their half of the ring. Rance finally makes a tag to King, and he takes control if only for a minute. The much larger Whitmer and Albright don’t allow the YRR much offense, and finally end it with a double Alabama slam on Rance at 5:19. That was a little awkward being that both teams are heels, but it was mostly there to establish Albright & Whitmer as a force. They get on the microphone after the win to talk about the gist of their new group. Albright announces that the group will be called “The Hangmen Three,” to which audible laughter sprouts up. I’m sorry but that’s just a terrible name.
Rating: *½
MATCH #10: Tyler Black vs. Jack Evans
BG says: Black starts out in control, dropping Evans on the top rope. He hits a bodyslam and a kneedrop. He hits a legdrop. He hits a forearm but Evans catches him with a dropkick. He hits a springboard spinning kick. He hits a handspring elbow, sending both to the floor. Jacobs and Necro run out with weapons. Evans goes for a dive but Necro knocks him down with a chair. The new faction destroys Evans until the Irish Airborne makes the save. Why them? The crowd demands a six-man tag so that’s what we get.
Rating: ¼*
JZ says: Black comes out of the crowd and assaults Evans when he’s not looking. Black takes the obvious advantage due to his chicanery, and this is his actual in-ring ROH debut. Evans tries to flip his way out of trouble but Black counters him. Evans finally hits a spinning kick to the head and a handspring elbow to the floor. Jimmy Jacobs and Necro Butcher run out and since there’s no bell it’s hard to determine match time, but I guess this one is a no-contest around two minutes in. Evans takes a 3-on-1 beating until being saved by Irish Airborne of all people, and now we have a six-man tag team match.
MATCH #10: Jimmy Jacobs, Necro Butcher & Tyler Black vs. Jack Evans & Irish Airborne
BG says: Evans starts the match by somersaulting onto the Age of the Fall on the floor. In the ring the Crists double-team Black. Necro takes out both Crists. He hits Jake with a neckbreaker. Black follows Jake to the floor with a dive as Necro hits Dave with the chair-assisted bodyslam. Jacobs (still covered in Jay Briscoe’s blood) gets his shots in on the floor. Necro covers Evans in chairs. In the ring Jacobs hangs Dave in the Tree of Woe and hits a momentum kick. On the floor Evans dives off of some audio equipment onto Necro. Jacobs makes a chair bridge. Evans dives off the barricade to kick Necro. Jacobs hits Dave with a chair to the face. Necro dodges a dive from Evans. In the ring Necro turns the chair bridge into a chair peak and goes for a backbreaker on it. Evans makes the save. He props Necro over the chairs and climbs the ropes. Jacobs cuts him off, allowing Necro to hit Evans with a second rope backbreaker onto the chair peak. Black hits Jake with the small package driver. Jacobs puts Dave in a guillotine choke for the anticlimactic win. It’s a good thing this didn’t appear on Pay Per View because it did a lot to suck the mystique out of the Age of the Fall. This made Evans look like Superman more than it made the Age of the Fall look scary. You have the Irish Airborne right there, why let Evans overshadow an obvious squash? Oh, and by the way Jacobs didn’t win the match with the guillotine choke, the referee just threw the whole thing out. That makes absolutely no sense.
Rating: **
JZ says: This one must have relaxed rules, because no tags are being enforced, and no one stops Necro Butcher from executing the chair slam. The fight spills to the floor, and the crowd doesn’t really seem to be into it. This is just a very messy brawl. The Age of the Fall start using their finishers on the Crist brothers, and Necro punches the referee in the face to draw the no-contest at 6:51. I don’t see how Necro didn’t get straight up disqualified, but whatever. The match was nothing special.
Rating: *¾
MATCH #11: Matt Sydal vs. Delirious
BG says: This is Sydal’s last match in ROH, having signed on with WWE. Delirious does not freak out at the bell in an attempt to make the match feel big. Sydal hits a cheap shot to start, showing that Sweeney’s money means more than sentiment. Delirious hits a shoulder tackle and Sydal bails. Back in the ring Sydal hits an armdrag into an armbar. Delirious gets a crucifix pin for 2. Delirious forces Sydal to chase him from corner to corner and hits Sweeney with a somersault off the apron. Sydal misses a dive and Delirious hits an elbow. Back in the ring Delirious hits a back suplex for 2. He hits a bodyslam and a senton for 2. Sydal dropkicks the knee and the face. Delirious falls to the floor so Sydal dives out after him. Back in the ring Sydal hits a running backdrop for 2. He hits a bodyslam and a legdrop for 2. He puts on the bow and arrow. He hits a second rope dropkick. He spits a lot of water into Delirious’s face. He climbs the ropes but comes down into a headbutt. Delirious hits clotheslines. Sydal tries to dive over him but Delirious jumps into a headbutt to the torso. He drops Sydal to the floor and dives off the top rope onto him. Back in the ring Delirious hits a hiptoss into the corner. He hits the Bizarro Driver for 2. Sydal hits the pumphandle piledriver for 2. He hits a head scissors takedown and a kick to the face. Delirious hits a drop toehold and the Panic Attack. He goes for the Shadows but Sydal blocks it with a spin kick. Sydal hits his corner combo and goes for a top rope hurricanrana. Delirious blocks it and hits the Shadows for 2. He goes for the Cobra Stretch but Sydal gets to the ropes. Sydal hits the Slice for 2. He hits a guillotine DDT. He misses the shooting star press but hits a big boot. Delirious hits a back elbow and a big boot. He climbs the ropes but Sydal brings him down with a hurricanrana. Sydal hits the shooting star press for 2. Sweeney gets in the ring and Garvin Stomps his sports coat. He shoves the referee so the referee shoves him back. Well, that was awkward. Sydal sets Delirious up top but Delirious shoves him to the floor. Sydal comes back with a roll up for 2 after some Sweeney interference. He hits a reverse piledriver for 2. Delirious hits the Cobra Clutch Suplex for 2. He puts on the Cobra Stretch but Sydal gets to the ropes. Moments later Delirious hits Chemical Imbalance II for the win. The crowd was exhausted after hours of eventful wrestling and didn’t get into this at all. I don’t envy the position that these two were put in. Sweeney was obviously trying to cover up for Sydal’s concussion but it still came off as very disjointed.
Rating: **¾
JZ says: This is Sydal’s last ROH match before heading to WWE developmental. Sydal tries cheating to gain an early advantage and soon they’re trading shoulder blocks. Sydal powders and Delirious desperately tries to keep the tired crowd into it. Every time Delirious takes a slight advantage Sydal rolls to the outside. Sydal finally takes control and hits a diver to the floor and drags Delirious around by his mask. Back in the ring Sydal goes on offense, and withstands a brief comeback. He chokes Delirious with his own tassels. A few moves later Sydal uses the Bow and Arrow submission but Delirious won’t give up. Delirious makes the comeback and starts hitting lariats. They trade a few more moves and Delirious winds up with a Bizarro Driver for two. These poor guys having to go out last after everything we’ve seen tonight. Sydal hits a beautiful shooting star press (kiss that move goodbye) for two, which angers Larry Sweeney so much that he gets into the ring to shove the referee and deliver the Garvin Stomp to his own jacket. Delirious puts the match out of its misery with the Chemical Imbalance II to get the pin at 21:51. That should have just been a quick 15 and out, given the structure of the show and it going on last. It wasn’t bad so much as it was just dreadfully dull and the crowd was very worn out by this point.
Rating: **¾
Overall
BG says: The PPV is worth the price of the DVD, but you already knew that so let’s talk about the bonus section. On the positive side it has a few historically significant moments including the first Age of the Fall Match, the naming of the Hangmen 3, the best women’s match in ROH history and Matt Sydal’s final match in ROH. However the Hangmen 3 and Age of the Fall matches are filled with booking issues and the main event was affected by Sydal’s concussion. Still I’d say if the amazing PPV isn’t enough to sell you on this DVD then the novelty of the women’s tag match should be.
JZ says: The pay-per-view portion of the event is amazing and well worth the price of admission on its own. Both the World and Tag Team Title matches are terrific, and the Resilience versus No Remorse Corps matches are all pretty decent, and the opener was an excellent four-way. But then disc two has some good stuff on it, like the uncut Jacobs promo (which I guess you can also find online), the SHIMMER tag match, and Matt Sydal’s admittedly disappointing last match in ROH, but it’s still his last match in the company, so it’s worth checking out.
Topics: ROH Reviews |