McXal's Reviews

We now walk into the unknown, with last week being the final episode of original content taped by the 'era' of ROH which ended at Final Battle. We are officially on hiatus as of now, beginning with this episode which picks out some of the best matches of 2021 which weren't on ROH TV (i.e. they were on PPV or Honor Club). Quinn McKay is your host.

This comes from the 19th Anniversary Show. After losing the Six-Man belts then having his mask ripped off by Flip Gordon on television, it felt like Flamita was already disgruntled and he looked at odds with his partners throughout the MexiSquad's attempts to win back the Trios Titles during the Hour One pre-show - particularly Bandido. After being pinned by the Soldiers Of Savagery to lose, he and Bandido argued furiously prompting Horus to suggest they all get in the ring together and settle their differences during the main show...

Bandido and Rey shake hands and hug, whilst Flamita refuses - even kicking Bandido's hand away. He actually vacates the ring and watches as his partners fight back and forth at incredible speed showcasing Lucha Libre with relish. Eventually Flam runs in and dropkicks them both to the mat, then stops off Rey's face into a tornado DDT on Bandido. SLINGSHOT RANA TO THE FLOOR by Horus! And as he celebrates Flamita DESTROYS him with a step-up somersault plancha! On commentary Romero is translating Flamita, informing us that he blames Bandido for losing the Six-Man Titles...right before Bandido drops him on his face to counter a headscissors. Flamita tries to electric chair him, but as he does so Bandido grabs Horus by the head...ELECTRIC CHAIR INTO A SUPERPLEX OF FLAMITA'S SHOULDERS! It incapacitates Horus, leaving the other too alone to slap lumps out of each other. Spinning powerbomb by Flamita gets 2 before Rey returns and stomps on his face to break the pin. SLINGSHOT DDT from Flamita to Bandido! MUSCLEBUSTER LUNGBLOWER/JUMPING SENTON COMBO on both guys as Flamita innovates some absolutely whacky sh*t for 2! Flamita says 'no more Mexisquad' as he pie-faces his partners. Horus responds by throwing Bandido at him into a RANA FROM THE APRON TO THE FLOOR! POP-UP CUTTER on Rey! FROG SPLASH by Flamita! Unable to determine a winner, they all charge the ring and simultaneously all boot each other in the head before going down in a pile. TORNADO DRAGON DDT from Horus to Bandido. SUPER INVERTED CODE RED on Flamita - the move Rey used to beat Dalton Castle at the last PPV - gets 2 before Bandido breaks it up. Flam tries to electric chair Bandido again...as Rey sets up on the top rope. Horus dives hoping to make it a Doomsday Device but BANDIDO COUNTERS INTO A REVOLUTION FLY/POISON RANA COMBO! HOLY SH*T! RUNNING MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR ON HORUS! DRAGON-RANA ON FLAMITA GETS 2! X-KNEE! 21-PLEX! BANDIDO WINS! 10:47 is your time...

Rating - **** - If anything this bout, brief though it was, felt more like a statement than a match. Ian even said it on commentary 'Bandido is back'. Not only is Bandido back, he has a new enemy in Flamita (who was EXCELLENT as the antagonist here, which I hadn't necessarily expected) and still has a supremely skilled ally in Horus. Some of the innovation on display here was totally bonkers...it really is a shame there wasn't a crowd in attendance to lose their sh*t

This is a World Title #1 contendership match with the winner going on to receive a title shot at Final Battle, taped at Honor For All 2021. Brody acknowledges that a year's worth 'VLNCE vs PURE' battles now seem meaningless (presumably due to the pending demise of the company), but that means that all that matters is being left standing with the World Title when the dust settles on Final Battle. Gresham is more dramatic, calling this battle between the frontmen of their respective stables the decisive battle in the 'VLNCE vs PURE' war and says he has to win because he IS The Foundation...

GONZO BOMB BY BRODY! Gresham grabs the ropes to escape! King is looking to blitz The Octopus just like he did to Lethal at Best In The World. Jon scurries to the floor...with King in pursuit to drill him with a body slam. STALLING SUPLEX ON THE FLOOR! Gresham sells it with his entire body too! He manages to duck a chop by Brody causing VU's leader to clobber the ringpost with his arm. Brody has an injured hand now but it doesn't stop him catching Gresham trying a tope suicida and ramming him spine-first into the post repeatedly. CROSSBODY INTO THE GUARDRAILS by King! The hand is still bothering him though - he injures it again trying to get back into the ring and is instantly hit with a Tope Trilogy by Gresh, pulling a move from the repertoire of his tag partner. It leaves Brody in the empty crowd area, and The Octopus is happy to win by count-out! Brody beats the count though and starts ignoring his opponent's offence. He hurts his bad hand again throwing chops at Gresham, meaning he can't get him up for a chokeslam either. Turnbuckle belly to belly suplex nailed instead! Cannonball senton nailed, and for a second time Jon needs the ropes to escape. King's hand is too injured to pull off the Gonzo Bomb...so he hits a ONE-ARM PILEDRIVER instead! Gresham survives and hops onto Brody's back looking for a sleeper hold. He has used this effectively against Shane Taylor in the past, but King is able escape using the ropes. Gresham tries to hit a Finger Snap on Brody (shades of his former Villain Enterprise leader Marty Scurll)! Repeated head shots...into the Bayonet running elbow! Gresham wins at 10:51

Rating - **** - I would obviously have preferred they got more time and could have worked a more effective, longer-form match, but that doesn't change the fact that this ten minute sprint was packed with quality. From Brody trying to reprise his annihilation of Lethal at Best In The World from the opening bell, Gresham attacking the hand, or utilising the sleeper hold he's successfully used on other big men in ROH over the years, to even trying to use Marty Scurll moves on one of his former henchmen in Villain Enterprises - it was a great match. On commentary Riccaboni says that Gresham is the man who has embodied the 'Ring Of Honor style' since the Pure Tournament and it felt like a fitting celebration of his skill to watch him pummel a man a foot taller and 100lbs heavier to unconsciousness. If this was the climactic battle of 'VLNCE vs PURE' then the purity of The Foundation wins - but only by getting as violent as Gresham could possibly get within the confines of the rules.

We end this 'Best of 2021' episode by jumping back to Death Before Dishonor 18. This is the renewal of what was an incredibly intense rivalry going back to Bennett's previous run in the company, climaxing during the 2015 Winter Warriors Tour when Bennett and Taven defeated the Briscoes in a 'Tag Team Armageddon Match'. It was also the first time we'd seen Taven since he lost a gruelling, blood-soaked Cage Match against bitter enemy Vincent (losing his World Title rematch as a consequence). Will Matt's head be in this match? Have the Briscoes repaired their strained relationship sufficiently to defeat a team the calibre of The OGK?

We start hot and heavy, strikes flying and finishers attempted inside the first thirty seconds. Bennett gets out-gunned in a strike battle with Jay and is punished with a 2-on-1 beatdown in the Briscoe corner. They methodically hammer Bennett into the ground, barely letting him get up to his feet or even catch his breath as they rain shots down on him. The Kingdom show their own skill as a team though - rushing Mark with a couple of rapid-fire double-teams and immediately turning the match in their favour. It's only momentary relief though since Jay does the same thing and rushes the ring to take out Taven as Mark knocks Bennett off the apron. The OGK tease an Air Taven Doomsday Device, but Jay saves his brother then superkicks Bennett on the floor. MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR BY TAVEN! Mark follows out with a FROGGY BOW TO THE FLOOR! DVD/Just The Tip combo on Jay, into the superkick/Spear combo on Mark. Piledriver blocked though and Mark unleashes a Redneck Kung Fu flurry to drive The Kingdom back. Blockbuster off the apron lays Taven out and he is still reeling from that when Jay levels him with a lariat. Froggy Bow nailed - and Bennett breaks the pin. He Spears Jay to block the Redneck Boogie...but Mark blocks the Hail Mary in turn. Step-up somersault plancha off a chair. Inside the ring Matt counters the Jay Driller into a small package and wins the match for The OGK at 13:17

Rating - *** - A condensed greatest hits highlight reel package of some of their best work together, thrown through a blender and aired in double speed. That isn't a bad thing at all, as a match it felt wild and absolutely lived up to the legacy of their very best matches (Tag Team Armageddon in 2015 and Survival Of The Fittest 2014)...but it was very unashamedly an offence-laden spot-fest rather than an attempt to deliver a match of genuine substance. One thing this definitely proved is that these teams do still have great chemistry together and have more matches in the tank - as we'd see at Final Battle 2021.

Tape Rating - N/A - A perfectly adequate compilation of matches to end ROH's 2021 television season. It wasn't so much a 'Best Of' as it was a collection of enjoyable, TV-length matches but there's no real problem with that. Bandido/Flamita/Horus in particular is exceptional.

This is the final Women’s Division Wednesday bout, with ‘Kick Demon’ Janai Kai returning after her impressive debut against Trish Adora a couple of weeks earlier. Green is the star attraction in ROH’s Women’s Division and has spoken warmly of her time working for the company. The reality is that she currently enjoys the freedom that comes with being an independent wrestler and is working for multiple high profile companies simultaneously – so if ROH does manage to make it to a relaunch in Q2 2022 then she is actually one of the women who could end up being part of it. That means she’ll be looking to end strong with a victory. Miranda Alize is on commentary and is a surly presence who is not shy about voicing her dislike of the Hot Mess.

Kai drives Chelsea back to the corner with an opening volley of kicks. Green is unsettled, so repeatedly tries to use her experience as a pro-wrestler and trap Kai in assorted pinning combinations. HEAD KICK by Kai gets 2! She punishes the body with more kicks to the back and ribs, making it harder and harder for the Hot Mess to breathe. They set up a Dragon Clutch, but unfortunately Green still has enough power to stand up out of it and batter her way free. Janai throws repeated open palm strikes to the upper body…only for Green to run straight through them and lariat her to the ground! A Chelea lungblower gets 2, followed by a HUGE missile dropkick. Kai drops her across the back with a version of the Eye Of The Hurricane and that sets up another flurry of kicks all planted right between the shoulder blades. Kick rush by Kai…only for Chelsea to block a final spinning heel kick and grab one of the legs to put the Kick Demon into a half crab. Kai is slowed as a result…and walks into an Ace Crusher! I’m Prettier nailed – giving Chelsea the win at 08:39

Rating - *** - This was a lot of fun. Green was incredibly generous and gave Kai a lot of offence. Alize and Riccaboni were openly discussing how Chelsea has played a part in Janai’s training, so that does make sense. As a result Kai looked even better here than she did in her match with Trish Adora, almost channelling a 2002-era Low Ki as she punished her opponent with seemingly endless volleys of kicks. I really liked that she was targeting her work too; precise and repeated blows to Chelsea’s upper body which really got over how dangerous an opponent she really is. I actually could have done with Chelsea selling those injuries a little more, but can readily acknowledge she’d already given Janai a lot with this match and ultimately she did need to win and to look strong given her status as one of the bigger names in independent wrestling on the US scene right now (plus a prominent female athlete on both NWA and Impact programming).

1st January 2022 - I've listed the premiere date that it was broadcast on YouTube, but actually Ian Riccaboni revealed in various interview posts that this was taped during the Honor For All 2021 tapings (so November 2021). In those interviews Ian revealed that Brody King (Gresham's scheduled opponent at Honor For All) was ill with a non-Covid ailment and they taped this in case he couldn't work the match with Gresh. That perhaps provides some context as to why Gresham/Brody turned out to be only ten minutes long too. Being taped in November means this is before Gresham became World Champion, and also before The Mecca would challenge Josh Woods for the Pure Title at Final Battle. For Johnson there could be no better 'warm-up' for the Technical Beast than to face the man who has become synonymous with the Pure Championship in Gresham.

An on-screen graphic refers to Gresham as the World Champion. The Mecca has plenty to say for himself as always, delivering a full-blown tirade in his opponent's direction before the bell. His antics cause Gresham's temper to fray but he retains his composure and comprehensively out-wrestles Johnson, causing him to leave the ring to sulk. The Mecca continues to struggle against Gresham's total dominance on the canvas. Much of the work centres on the arms of course, but Gresham's main focus seems to be simply showing off just how much better he is than his opponent. He even rolls out of the ring and literally RIPS Johnson out after him by the arm he has been targeting. Brian defends himself with a guillotine over the top rope followed by a running clothesline. For the first time he's able to keep The Octopus grounded and pepper him with assorted attacks whilst staying out of his clutches. He uses that leverage to work a lengthy surfboard spot - his longer arms ensuring he stays out of the reach of Gresham, despite multiple counter attempts. Gresh blocks the Tower Of London, crotches Johnson on the top and hooks the bad arm to deliver a back superplex. Johnson is really feeling that arm now, which Gresham picks up and keeps attacking it. Brian starts going for frantic pinfalls - and almost shocks The Octopus in a La Magistral counter! Mecca Locomotive lariat leaves both men down. They come up both looking angry and throwing aggressive forearm strikes at each other...until Johnson delivers the type of closed fist strike he has been utilising in his Pure Rules Matches. Gresham no-sells it and kicks out the arm again! Johnson pokes the eyes instead and gets 2....so Gresham mounts him into the Octopus Stretch! WITH REPEATED FACE PUNCHES! Johnson tries to power out - so Gresham runs at him with the BAYONET! Gresham wins at 15:29

Rating - *** - Heaps of fun for a free YouTube match, and one which demonstrated a couple of things. Firstly it showcased just how much improvement Johnson has made. He's been a good talker for a while, but his ring-work has always been a few steps behind - here he demonstrated he can lock up with a world class talent and not be entirely overshadowed. Secondly it serves as an example of just how good Gresham is. He never really felt like he was working in top gear for this, yet still assisted Johnson to deliver his best Ring Of Honor match. I never felt like there was any real jeopardy and nothing about the presentation made me feel like Johnson had a realistic chance of winning, but these are reasons why my rating wasn't higher, not reasons not to enjoy it for what it was. Considering it was little more than an 'end of series' bonus match I liked this a lot.