McXal's Reviews

We are less than a month away from Final Battle, dubbed 'The End Of An Era'. It means wrestlers up and down the roster are jostling for positions, looking to solidify spots on the card and cement lasting legacies in this promotion before they strike out on their own in 2022. Men like Brian Johnson, who faces former Pure Champion John Walters as he looks to face Josh Woods for the belt at Final Battle. Women like Trish Adora, Mandy Leon and Allysin Kay who meet tonight in the race to challenge Rok-C at the pay-per-view. And loyal stalwarts like Dalton Castle; a man who has literally broken his back for the company, and now looks for one last shot at title glory when he challenges TV Champion Dragon Lee in the main event. Quinn McKay is our host with Ian Riccaboni and Caprice Coleman at the announce desk in Philadelphia, PA.

The Mecca has entered the Pure Division and has made it his mission to go straight to the top. Nothing could better prepare him for a potential Pure Title Match with Josh Woods at Final Battle than a win over a former Pure Champion tonight. Walters held the title all the way back in 2004 but has impressed everyone with his evergreen performances since returning after the pandemic. 

Johnson talks a big game but, initially at least, doesn't look to have the chops to hang with Walters. Hurricane picks apart his arm, eventually leaping over the ropes to wrench the arm over the top. Brian finally catches him getting overly ambitious on the top rope; crotching him before delivering a Tower Of London - shades of a move Walters felt at the hands of Nigel McGuinness in years gone by. Brian's offence isn't elaborate or fancy, but he really puts the boots to Walters - even whilst delivering volleys of abuse into the camera at the same time. Next he balls up a fist and punches his opponent in the face, gladly accepting the warning as the illegal punch sets up the Mecca Locomotive clothesline for 2. Superplex blocked...and Walters goes back to the arm with a FLYING leg lariat to the shoulder! The Mecca's arm is really bothering him now - he screams in pain as John applies a Rings Of Saturn. Johnson takes his first rope-break to escape the hold. He then tries to roll Walters up using the tights in a desperate bid to escape with a win. Walters blocks that and goes to a Sharpshooter. That necessitates a second rope-break from The Mecca...and he needs a third moments later to block another Sharpshooter attempt from the veteran. He pokes Walters in the eyes and lands The Process to win at 11:26 (shown)

Rating - ** - My rating may seem a little bit harsh, but I felt this match was a bit too 'gimmicky'. The Pure Division has been a sanctuary or bastion of hope for us who really enjoy well-structured, high level technical wrestling and whilst Johnson has a lot of skills, he isn't a great technician and his charisma alone wasn't enough to elevate this one. Walters did what John Walters has done going back to his earliest appearances, i.e. wrestle a solid, technically sound but rather unexciting style. It worked as a vehicle to put Johnson and his character in the Pure Division over before Final Battle, but nothing about this was particularly interesting within the context of a standalone match.

The winner of this match will advance to face Willow, in a match which will determine who challenges for the Women's Title at Final Battle. Adora eliminated Kay in one of the best bouts from the Quest For Gold Tournament, which is a loss that the current NWA Women's Tag Champion will be looking to avenge. Marti Belle is in AK's corner, and Kay also has Chelsea Green cheering her on from the commentary desk as well.

Leon rolls out of the ring to hang out with Angelina Love, leaving Trish and Allysin to start out together. AK tries to control the technican skill of Adora; using her height to maintain leverage on side headlocks. Mandy returns to the ring to break a pin, and is of course ambushed by both competitors as soon as she enters. It means she immediately slides out again, as Adora blocks Kay's lariat with a strike to the arm. She lands a spear, although Leon is still on hand to prevent her pinning Kay. Anklelock on Mandy...whilst Allysin applies a kimura as well. They stretch the sh*t out of Mandy - whilst continuing to throw strikes at each other! The Exotic Goddess escapes and powerbombs her foes into a Tower Of Doom spot - from which they both kick out much to Leon's irritation. Angelina attacks Kay from behind (whilst the ref is distracted) and Leon hits the Astral Projection to win at 06:54 (shown)

Rating - * - A rather plodding pace, typical 'one person stands - two people fight - then we all swap' triple threat formula and lay-out, leading to a bogus outside interference finish. This was like watching the 2019 version of ROH's Women Of Honor division unfortunately, with Adora and Kay getting dragged down to The Allure's level rather than lifting the quality of the bout. 

Castle holds a pinfall victory over Lee, defeating him at Best In The World 2019 in the midst of his feud with Lee's brother Rush. They reconvene in entirely different places by 2021. Castle has rebranded himself as an entertainer, and therefore feels he needs to control ROH's Television Championship moreso than any other belt. Can he win the bout and add this title to the World and Six-Man Championship gold already on his resume? Castle's associate Dak Draker joins commentary.

Castle goes grapple crazy in the early-going, in the knowledge that he is better than Lee on the mat whilst also negating any of Dragon's fast-paced, explosive offence. Lee channels his brother and uses a little brawl on the floor to get ahead, then drops Dalton right on his bad back with a falcon arrow for 2. We go back to the ring where Castle essentially lies fully on top of Lee; holding him down in a front facelock to prevent any more explosiveness. Dalton even jabs and pokes at the ear-drum which Lee ruptured earlier in 2021. NECK DROP German nailed! Lee recognises he needs to quicken the pace - and launches into a frantic flurry of strikes in the corner which culminates in the Dragon's Fire for 2 (shades of the move Rush haunted Dalton with in 2019). Dragon tips Castle into the crowd...and when the Baby Chickens try to protect Dalton Lee hits a TOPE ATOMICO ON TOP OF THEM! Incinerator COUNTERED into a capture suplex by the challenger...which Lee defies and rattles off a snap German suplex of his own. Bare Knee Incinerator blocked with a clothesline. BANG-A-RANG! Kenny King and La Bestia run out trying to help Dragon...but get cut off in the aisle by Shane Taylor Promotions! Bare Knee Incinerator nailed - but all the refs are distracted trying to break up the LFI/STP brawl on the floor. Dak Draper leaves commentary and sprints to the ring; shoving Lee into another Bang-A-Rang...and Castle wins the title at 10:56 (shown)

Rating - *** - If you can get past the cheap finish, this was a really effing good television match. The way Castle and Dragon approached this was so logical and simply fascinating to watch. Castle tried to wrestle with Lee, at times outright holding him down so he couldn't quicken the pace. He assaulted Lee's back looking to even the playing field given Dalton's own perennial back issues - and rolled back the years to produce such an impressive display that he looked to have the match won on his own before the rest of LFI showed up. After that the match was derailed in the name of promoting King/Taylor for Final Battle. I have no issue with that necessarily, but it is a shame to see a GOOD championship derailed in such a manner and frustrating that the TV Title is bounced around yet again. As this was taped in Philadelphia before the 'hiatus' news was announced, you can't even excuse this as ROH management putting the belt on Dalton as a 'thank you'.

NEXT WEEK - Rok-C defends the Women's Title against Gia Scott (why is that a f*cking title match?) and Jay Lethal faces EC3 in the main event. 

The show ends with an EC3 promo, calling Lethal a failed locker room leader and a tired, spent force having carried the company and its roster for so long. 

Tape Rating - ** - A rather blah episode in my opinion. The bulk of the work in the Lee/Castle main event is very strong and that match ends in a title change so this certainly isn't a complete bust - but unfortunately yet again Ring Of Honor television just fails to find or capture that magic formula that turns a solid product into a can't-miss promotion. Nothing about this episode screamed 'best wrestling on the planet'...and I feel like I keep having to say that. The women's triple threat was a major step backwards and a particular disappointment. The show does at least have perhaps the best promo of EC3's Ring Of Honor run, so that's something...

We saw Team Sea Stars' Ashley Vox on WDW in a competitive but unsuccessful effort against Chelsea Green six weeks ago. She now returns to face a former Women Of Honor Champion in Sumie. As someone who made her ROH debut back in 2002, the pending hiatus will hit Sakai hard. As will the fact that she is very much distant and disconnected from the championship picture where three years ago she was at the heart of it as champion. Can she deliver a timely reminder of her skills with a win over one half of the SHIMMER Tag Champions? Vita VonStarr joins Ian and Caprice for commentary

Lucha armdrag from Ashley tosses the veteran straight out of the ring, and she gives chase to score with a lope as well. Sakai blocks the Fish Hook and drills a knee into her midsection then gets vicious with a flurry of strikes. She drags Vox around by the hair and chokes her in the corner too, recognising that she needs to be aggressive to overcome Ashley's grappling skill. Cloverleaf catapult scores, jarring Vox's knee and causing her to hobble straight into a missile dropkick. Ashley tries to fight fire with fire and unleashes a barrage of strikes at Sumie. The former WOH Champion bites her finger to evade the Fish Hook again though...then plants Vox with a fisherman buster for 2. But Vox retaliates by fish hooking her in the corner! Fisherman Suplex gets 2 for the SHIMMER Tag Champion! Sumie drills her with a German in response then hits Smash Mouth for the win at 08:11

Rating - *** - This will be one of Sumie's last ROH matches (if not her last), and this was a fitting exhibition of what value she has added to ROH's women's division over the last few years. Whilst I may have felt she was a poor, 'safe' choice to be the first Women Of Honor Champion - and the decision to have her win that belt was the first step on the road to the ultimate failure of that championship, one should not understate how hard she has worked and how revered she has been as the matriarch of women's wrestling in ROH over the last 3+ years. She is a hard working veteran whilst also being both skilled and adaptable enough to consistently produce solid bouts with all kinds of opponents. That was typified here as she switched up her game to counteract the smooth, unorthodox, silky grappling skills of Vox. She blasted Vox away with a battery of big strikes and higher impact moves because she realised inside the very first minute that Vox was capable of out-wrestling her. Sure this wasn't the most exciting or dynamic bout you'll ever see but it was fundamentally sound and extremely smart wrestling. It's a shame we won't get to see more of Vox (and Delmi Exo) in the Women's Division for now.