McXal's Reviews

The 're-imagining' hiatus continues, this week with an episode to celebrate the winners of various awards as voted on by the ROH Experience social media group. Perhaps of more interest is that the day I'm writing this review (10th January 2022) is also the date that Ring Of Honor officially announced their intention to run WrestleMania weekend with Supercard Of Honor 13 in Texas. For those of us - myself included - who were sceptical about whether ROH would ever return after the 'End Of An Era' at Final Battle it was an intriguing glimmer of hope in the distance that maybe this isn't the end. ROH has been as prominent in the news in recent weeks as it has been in a long time, with titbits like Bryan Danielson saying he'd have worked the Final Battle 2021 main event if he'd been healthy and been asked, Jon Gresham's Terminus promotion sold out their debut event and confirmed they would broadcast it on Fite TV (with ROH alumni Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard commentating), Terminus also announced that they continue to acknowledge Bandido as the ROH World Champion and he will be defending the belt on their show alongside a Gresham defence of the 'Original World Title', the Briscoes continuing to raise hell in GCW whilst stoking the fires of their ongoing rivalry with FTR over social media thus making their arrival into AEW feel almost inevitable...plus Ring Of Honor playing a major part in Impact's 'Hard To Kill' PPV with Gresham defending the World Title against Chris Sabin, bringing Ian Riccaboni and Bobby Cruise with him to commentate and ring announce respectively, before a faction of released ROH wrestlers lead by Matt Taven, Mike Bennett and Maria Kanellis hijacked the show. For now, on ROH's own TV show we are settling in for a few months of canned, studio-produced, filler content however. Tonight we'll find out who won the votes to be crowd ROH male wrestler of the year, female wrestler of the year and tag team of the year. Quinn McKay is your host...

Death Before Dishonor 18 - This is included because Rok-C has been voted Women's Wrestler Of The Year, whilst this match specifically was in ranked within the Top 5 of the ROH MOTY vote. It was the finals of the tournament to crown a new Women's Champion, the pinnacle of a remarkable team effort to rebrand and relaunch ROH's women's division - which we'll be seeing in more detail in a special documentary episode next week. 

Alize looks incredibly focused, and slaps her opponent's hand away to decline the Code Of Honor. On the opposite side Rok looks rather more cautious...and it shows as Miranda drops her on her face after the first lock-up. She grows into the match with a bridging hammerlock, then a spinning toehold showing her prowess as a wrestler if Miranda allows her to slow the match down. They scrap ferociously on the ground, each fighting to lock in a Crossface before mutually backing off to the ropes to re-evaluate. Miranda wants to quicken the pace, but Rok-C matches her; flipping out of a headscissors then landing a lucha armdrag on the Lucha Baddie! Backflip knee drop blocked, but Rok cartwheels away and poses confidently. SLAP by Alize! As expected that fires The Prodigy up and she starts throwing strikes and trying to brawl with Alize...who pounces to hang her in the ropes then drop her on her neck for 2. Rok tries another lucha armdrag except this time it is countered by Alize biting her hand. She goes back to the neck again, putting a knee right into it as she chokes the teenager over the ropes. A guillotine over the ropes soon follows, setting up a slingshot sliding rana into the canvas for 2. Alize's unique combination of lucha, street fighting and rule-breaking has seen her to a commanding position. She tries to press it home with a surfboard - but in doing so slows back down to Rok-C's level and she quickly counters out and lays in a few strikes. She lands the 'Rok-Knees' (back flip knee drop)...so Alize levels her with a ripcord knee smash. Go To Sleep gets 2 for the Lucha Baddie. She starts to taunt the crestfallen youngster; headbutting her in the corner and spiking her with a HANGING DDT out of the turnbuckles. Miranda Rights applied...and even though she holds it for a almost a minute she can't tap Rok-C out before she makes the ropes. The Prodigy rolls outside - which proves to be a genius move as she gets some time to recover before hitting a HEAT SEEKING MISSILE! Alize retaliates by dropkicking her off the apron...then hitting a LOPE KNEE STRIKE TO THE FACE! Both women barely beat the count back in, then rise from the canvas right in each other's faces and wildly striking at each other. ACE CRUSHER by Alize, crunching down on the neck again! NO SOLD! Rok-C gets up to block the Drive-By with her own knee strike. MIRANDA RIGHTS! ROK-C COUNTERS! Alize escapes Rok's crossface with a crucifix pin for 2. DRIVE-BY BLOCKED! CODE ROK! Rok-C wins! She is the champion at 18:12

Rating - **** -  The match was smart; they used Alize's charisma and skill to cover for some of Rok-C's inexperience and lack of presence. Rok-C started the match strongly and frustrated Alize - forcing the Lucha Baddie to get nasty. She used strikes, she bit, she broke rules, but she did what she had to do with the championship on the line. It was a stellar showing from her (perhaps the best individual wrestling performance on the entire Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view), providing the platform for a stirring babyface comeback from Rok-C and an uplifting victory for the talented teenager. For those of us who have complained and pushed Ring Of Honor to give female performers more opportunities to work longer, higher profile matches - this was a joy to watch. 

Highlights of the Shane Taylor vs Kenny King Fight Without Honor from Final Battle and the Briscoe vs Briscoe Fight On The Farm are shown. Both of those were in the Top 5 MOTY list

ROH on SBG Episode 521 (9th September 2021) - This one is included as part of the announcement that the Briscoes are the 2021 ROH Tag Team Of The Year.

Why do the dumbass cameras keep zooming in on Bandido's belt even though it still has Rush's nameplate on it? Why not just take that name-plate off? It makes ROH look so foolish - this isn't a live show. Jay demands he start the match with the champ, then proceeds to trade hurricanranas with him at speed. During commercials the Briscoes isolate Horus instead, showing all their experience as a tag team. They take the luchadors outside for a brawl where they do all they can to incapacitate the champion so he can't help his partner. Bandido makes the save with a frog crossbody...then THROWS Rey into a rana on Mark to send him packing. But Bandido is still wounded from the brawl outside, so Jay is easily able to take him down with a boot to the face before once again the Briscoes use all their years of experience to single out an opponent for abuse. Horus tags, joining the champ for a double superkick on Mark. Everyone takes turns trying to cave in an opponent's face with a big running strike, until they all lie motionless on the mat. Iconoclasm from Mark to Horus, but Bandido flings his body into the ring with a Tornillo moments later. Pop-Up Cutter drops Mark, and he then counters the Day One Neckbreaker too. RUNNING MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR by the Most Wanted Champion. Roll Of The King gets 2 on Mark. The Briscoes shove Bandido to the floor and give Horus the Doomsday Device to win at 09:33 (shown)

Rating - *** - I'd possibly set my expectations a little too high for this one. It got lost in 2020 what with the pandemic, the hype around the Pure Tournament and Scurll's sacking, but the Briscoes vs MexaBlood match from Free Enterprise was one of my favourite ROH matches of that year. They got nowhere near those heights this time; it felt very much like what it was, i.e. a TV undercard, empty arena version of the same match. The Briscoes win to further their claim for a Tag Title shot, and I did like the quiet reminders that Jay is a former World Champion - they did enough here to lay the ground for a future Bandido/Jay title match should they feel the need to. 

Heavily censored highlights of the Matt Taven vs Vincent Steel Cage Match are shown; another in the Top 5 MOTY voting.  Next they show clips from the Tag Title OGK vs Briscoes match from Final Battle which also made the Top 5. Those two are probably my picks for ROH MOTY as well...

Best In The World 2021 - Jonathan Gresham is voted male ROH wrestler of 2021 for his stirring, memorable performances as Pure Champion, before ending Final Battle with the 'original' ROH World Title in his possession. His match with Bennett at Best In The World (ROH's first event with fans in attendance since February 2020) is selected but in truth they could have picked multiple matches here to prove just how impeccable he has been.

 

Gresham barely acknowledges Bennett's existence during the most cursory of pre-match handshakes. He goes right for the Octopus Stretch as well, as if he doesn't think Mike has any kind of ability at all. It means that he reacts with complete shock when Bennett grabs at a version of the London Dungeon, forcing Gresh to utilise his first rope-break. He legit looks like he wants to break the challenger's arm; almost snapping the elbow and wrist from Bennett's body whilst in a mount position. As he tears at the arm more and more his demeanour starts to change - smiling sadistically, mugging to the crowd and acting entirely dismissively of his opponent. Every time Bennett even escapes Gresh goes straight to an armdrag to haul him down again. Kimura applied, finally forcing the challenger to use his first break. Pescado by Gresham...caught by Bennett...COUNTERED BACK TO THE KIMURA! Mike walks all the way around the ring and even back into it all with Gresham clinging to the hold. He collapses against the ropes using his second break to escape it. London Dungeon again by Bennett, perhaps opportunistically...but it forces Gresham to use his second break (and buys Mike time to recover). Gresham grabs the bad arm to block the Piledriver, so Bennett hits a DVD instead...back to the London Dungeon! The Octopus escapes without using a break...but is weakened and walks into a lariat for 2. Running punt to the bad arm by Gresham! Octopus Stretch blocked again...so Gresh quebradas across the bad shoulder and lunges into a bridging pin for 2. PUNT TO THE ARM AGAIN! Octopus Stretch applied, and Mike immediately utilises his final rope-break to escape. He tries to trade strikes with the champion, only for Gresham to cling to the bad arm like a limpet and continually strike at it too. Tope suicida by Gresh...but as he tries to springboard back in Bennett counters with a superkick! CROSSFACE! Bennett is out of breaks so he STANDS UP AND CANNONBALL SENTONS GRESH INTO THE TURNBUCKLES! LARIAT! JUMPING PILEDRIVER! GRESHAM IS IN THE ROPES! Joe Mandak actually counted three, but spots Gresham's boot in the ropes for his final break! A desperate Bennett goes for the Piledriver again and is again confronted by Gresham kicking at his arm. He pops the knee as well! ANKLELOCK! Bennett tries to pull himself to safety but the arm Gresh has worked on all match gives way...and Bennett taps at 19:21

Rating - **** - There is a solid argument to be made that this was Bennett's best ROH singles match ever. Certainly if I gave quarter stars and the like you'd be looking at a ****1/4 rating from me on this as it really was good. Gresham was at his absolute best here, not only as a sensational wrestler, but as a character as well. He lived, breathed and completely embodied his Pure Wrestling mantra - flawless as a wrestler and so determined to promote his pure values that he was an absolute asshole to Bennett (whom he doesn't feel meets the standard he has set). What Bennett did so brilliantly was to elicit sympathy. Gresham was the draw here, but Bennett's ultra-sympathetic babyface performance really suckered people in and made them cheer him on. It might not be something you'd expect Mike Bennett to be good at, since he has spent most of his career being a cocky prick heel, but the way he conveyed desire, heart, the will to fight through injury and a determination to win the respect of his foe was compelling (even if the actual physical selling of his arm wasn't necessarily the most consistent). 

Tape Rating - N/A - A somewhat bland, whirlwind dash through various 2021 highlights here. Some of the match content was good if you'd not seen that previously, but there's nothing here which merits a watch if you saw the bouts last year. There is nothing 'new' to speak of here, and no long-term plans for how ROH plans to manage this period of hiatus were discussed on air.