McXal's Reviews

It feels like a smart decision for ROH not to run their post-Supercard Of Honor TV taping over WrestleMania weekend - in front of a diminished house with most smart fans knowing the drawbacks of the TV taping format and having multiple other companies to go and watch at competing times in the near vicinity. Instead they've waited a week to and now come back to tape all the follow-up to the biggest Ring Of Honor event of all time. The line-up for the first episode is certainly interesting. The 2017 Top Prospect Tournament hasn't been overly noteworthy, but it ends tonight as John Skyler and Josh Woods collide in the finals. Our main event will see Marty Scurll put the TV Title on the line against Frankie Kazarian...and we also have Lio Rush's last ROH match too. Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana are in Baltimore, MD.

Christopher Daniels is in the ring as the show begins, proud to announce that he overcame Dalton Castle at Supercard. Up next he has defences against Matt Taven, and the winner of the Vegas wildcard four-way - both during the War Of The Worlds Tour. But he also wants ROH officials to book him in a match with Cody Rhodes 'as soon as possible'. Cody comes out and decides he doesn't want to wrestle for the World Title in Baltimore...but does want to be a part of the championship match in New York, at the Hammerstein Ballroom, during the War Of The Worlds Tour. He floats the possibility that he - a non-contracted talent - could ruin the integrity of ROH by winning the belt...

We see highlights of the exciting Scurll/Cole TV Title Match in Florida, which saw Marty emerge victorious after illegally using his umbrella. Frankie Kazarian challenges tonight and gets some interview time to call himself an 'unsung hero' of professional wrestling...

Fittingly Lio makes his final ROH appearance in his home state. This match brings the curtain down on a tremendous year in Ring Of Honor, which has seen him excel regardless of situation and will see him leave without ever really gaining the respect and admiration he deserves. He is loosely part of Search & Destroy, and at the Pittsburgh tapings messed around with their rivals The Rebellion - ultimately costing them the Six-Man Tag Titles. The Rebellion got their revenge when they revealed Taylor as their newest member and had him decimate Lio in the middle of the ring. Rush wants payback, whilst Taylor wants to put him out of Ring Of Honor...

Lio slaps the monstrous Taylor in the face...and buzzes around him like a gnat as Shane struggles to put a finger on him. He tries to spring off the apron with a headscissors, and when Taylor blocks that he tries a springboard crossbody instead. Sadly Taylor catches him with a violent slam into the ringpost. Back in the ring Lio blocks a chokeslam, only to be Irish whipped so hard he explodes through the turnbuckles and collapses out of the ring. Some illusive near-miss running sequences bring Rush right back into the fight, until he hits an explosive satellite DDT for 2. Caprice Coleman appears on the apron to prevent him climbing the ropes...so Lio gives him a handspring kick and a TOPE SUICIDA! Dragon's Call dodged into a brutal lariat! CHOKEBOMB wins it for Shane at 04:39 (shown).

Rating - *** - It was a shame that Lio had to leave ROH so unceremoniously and in a relatively uneventful match. But, to award praise where it is due, the actual wrestling content we got here was really enjoyable. Lio is so comfortable working bigger guys, and the unique manner in which he works makes him such a natural opponent. Taylor - who seems to be in better shape with every appearance at the moment - had no problem keeping up with him, and came off like a real monster with the win here. It is only right that the guy on his way out of the company leaves making someone else look good.

The Motor City Machine Guns come out to check on Lio, but are of course mauled by Taylor and Caprice. Rather strangely, it ends with Shane crushing Sabin - rather than brutalising Lio, which would've made more sense as he was on his way out.

Curt Stallion had a cult following, and as of writing in 2019 continues to be acknowledged as a genuine rising star, but in a really weak year for the Top Prospect Tournament, given the talents in the line-up this is probably the final I'd have booked too. Skyler has had the two best matches, with his balls-to-the-wall effort against Stallion during the semi-finals in the Hammerstein Ballroom standing out as the best match from the tournament this year. Former WWE NXT star Josh 'The Goods' Woods is a multi-sport hybrid fighter with a great look and clear athletic pedigree. He has an obvious x-factor and clear upside if ROH can sand off the rough edges and help him improve as a pro-wrestler. He has shown glimpses of real talent during wins over Chris LeRusso and Brian Milonas, but has also looked like he is still struggling to nail down the correct approach to blend his MMA credentials within a worked performance environment.

Woods gets pyro during his entrance, which is ridiculous and badly telegraphs the result. He smartly goes right to the ground and showcases his amateur wrestling skill by tossing Skyler around. Smiling broadly and not allowing John to get any room be dominates the opening minutes and almost knocks his opponent out with a climbing knee strike. Skyler profits from his inexperience though - luring him to the ropes then guillotining him over the top. He takes the match to the floor to negate Woods' fighting skill, controlling throughout the commercial break and almost snapping his back around the ringpost. He punishes the midsection and core of The Goods, presumably setting him up for the Southern Salvation, which he has used as his finish throughout the tournament. Out of nowhere Josh COUNTERS a jumping senton into a cross armbreaker! It's a glimpse into the danger Woods continues to pose, so John shuts him down again with a Finlay roll down onto the ribs. Strikes and suplexes from Woods once again have Skyler hiding in the ropes. Again it's a trap and he almost hits the Southern Salvation. The Goods counters with a springboard elbow...so Skyler ploughs into the midsection with a Spear on the apron. Slingshot Spear follows and gets 2. Skyler attempts it a second time, but Woods catches it into a fireman's carry knee strike. Both men look gassed, so it is genuinely impressive that Woods busts out the CHAOS THEORY! KNEE BAR! Skyler taps, and Woods is your winner at 07:59 (shown), becoming the 2017 Top Prospect as a result...

Rating - *** - I thought Skyler/Stallion was a more exciting match, but I definitely appreciated the story they went for here. It was smart, it made sense, it covered the weaker points in the game of both participants and it was easy to follow which allowed an unfamiliar crowd to get involved quickly. Woods is a dangerous fighter so Skyler used pro-wrestling tricks and skills to weaken him but couldn't force the win before he was made to tap out. I haven't been impressed with the 2017 field (as I've said), but I would definitely have considered signing both of these men up based on their performances. 

Before Woods has a chance to celebrate, David Starr runs in and levels him. He calls himself the 'top international star' and leaves having made a statement and stolen Josh's moment.

The Young Bucks still haven't returned Adam Cole's calls it seems. He implores them to join him in reforming the SuperKliq...

Frankie won a #1 contendership match at the 15th Anniversary to earn this opportunity. He is the latest challenger to the reign of the Villain - who has been so dominant in his run as TV Champion that he has started to question the calibre of competition Ring Of Honor is able to offer him. He bested Sonjay Dutt, Lio Rush and Adam Cole in quick succession during the Manhattan Mayhem/Anniversary Show/Supercard trilogy of shows, and ROH have even started lining up non-contracted talent to pose a new challenge. Kazarian is an admirer of his villainous ways...but will be eyeing up joining his tag partner Christopher Daniels but putting ROH singles gold around his waist. 

Kazarian methodically stalks the champion, probing him for weaknesses and working conservatively to avoid a mistake. He blasts Scurll with the Jerry Lynn leg drop in the ropes...followed by a SLINGSHOT DDT TO THE FLOOR! Scurll is rattled, as evidenced when we return to the ring and Frankie is able to repeatedly out-wrestle him. Hiptoss DDT rattles Marty's neck again, setting him up for the lungblower then the TOMIKAZE for 2! Just Kidding blocked, allowing Kaz to dump Scurll right on his face for another nearfall. Marty kicks a leg out from under Frankie and tries to go right to the Chickenwing to demonstrate his desperation to escape the match. BRAINBUSTER DROPS KAZ ON HIS HEAD! Scurll grabs his umbrella...delaying the match, allowing Kazarian to recover and opening the door to pile into his neck again with the slingshot cutter. FINGER SNAP! Frankie cowers in the ropes trying to recover, and grabs the umbrella. Marty tries to bring powder in instead, but accidentally throws it into referee Paul Turner's face! ACE OF SPADES! No referee to count the pin though, and Hangman Page runs in to NAIL Kaz with a chair. Scurll retains at 07:13 (shown).

Rating - *** - The finish was bogus obviously, but I enjoyed the preceding match far more than I'd expected to. I don't have much interest in Kazarian as a singles worker at this stage in his career, but the way he carried himself as a strategic veteran picking apart the excitable younger champion's neck was really enjoyable. Scurll is amongst ROH's MVP's for 2017 thus far. Even this - on the low end of the spectrum of his work this year - kept me thoroughly entertained. Scurll profiting from Bullet Club interference was a nice piece of foreshadowing too.

Marty watches as Bullet Club and Addiction vacate ringside, leaving him to once again bemoan the lack of competition in Ring Of Honor. Matt Sydal returns - with crappy new music - appearing for the first time since his 'legal issues' in Japan. He clearly wants a shot at the TV Title!

NEXT WEEK - Jay White, Silas Young, Jay Lethal and Adam Page compete for a shot at the ROH World Title in the main event...

Tape Rating - *** - Three very different matches; all very good and all ending with a hook to keep us watching in the coming weeks. We were left wanting to see more in the Search & Destroy/Rebellion war after the first match. David Starr crashing Josh Woods' Top Prospect Tournament celebration was certainly interesting. A fun main event, a continuation of the Addiction/Bullet Club issue and the return of 'Reborn' Matt Sydal meant the show had an intriguing end. The show opener, setting the stage for Daniels/Taven and Cody crashing the Hammerstein War Of The Worlds main event wasn't terrible either. My biggest gripe with this show was how bad the presentation looked. ROH have run this building for TV before, but I can't remember it looking this bad. It is grimy, dirty, poorly lit (poor in the sense that it is far too bright and therefore exposing the sparse crowd) and looks like the production team had just binge-watched Wrestling Society X and thought the Bunker was the direction they should go in.