Column of Honor: 05.16.09: The List Issue 2009

Posted by Ari Berenstein on 05.16.2009

Making some lists and checking them twice, including the fresh matches I want to see in 2009 and twenty-five reasons to buy Jim Cornette’s Midnight Express 25th Anniversary Scrapbook. Plus: news on Lance Storm returning to the ring for Ring of Honor and a look at Stylin and Profiln and the debut of Ric Flair!



Ring Toss
-The List Issue 2009
-Results and News
-ROH Call
-Honorarium
-Get with the pROHgram
-ROH @ 411
-Buy or Sell Quickies


The List Issue 2009

Exactly one year ago I had my first list issue, covering a whole bunch of topics from the serious to the sublime. It was a good time the first go around, so why not go with a sequel? Welcome to The List Issue!



5 Fresh Matches I'd Really Like to See in ROH: 2009 Version

Every year I like to give my list of matches I'd like to see happen in ROH. I think fresh (and well-booked) matches are the key to the lifeblood of ROH or any wrestling promotion, and whether it's a grudge feud or a dream match, there always seems to be plenty of great possibilities. Here's what I'm thinking about what Id like to see go down in ROH at some point in 2009.

1.Round Robin Challenge—Jerry Lynn, Bryan Danielson, Davey Richards: And we begin with a match type often requested by many old school ROH fans but has not resurfaced in years. Three men fight it out in round robin singles matches, with the man who wins two of those three matches winning the challenge. Bryan Danielson was involved in the original RRC match way back on the second ROH show ever. Jerry Lynn, the current ROH World Champion, would be a very honorable fit for this series. Meanwhile, Davey Richards has been on a hot streak over the last three months. He has upped his promo game and has delivered big-time in big-match situations for ROH, both on the singles scene (like his match against KENTA at Supercard of Honor IV) and in the tag division as one-half of the ROH World Tag Team Champions. Richards has worked hard and earned this level of spotlight. While we have seen Jerry Lynn vs. Bryan Danielson before, the other two combinations, Lynn vs. Richards and Danielson vs. Richards, are very fresh and relatively untapped in Ring of Honor competition. I'd love to see both of those matches and what both Lynn and Danielson can do to represent the babyface side as Davey Richards demonstrates his aggressive behavior and offense.

2. Austin Aries, Kenny King & Rhett Titus vs. Roderick Strong, Erick Stevens & Brent Albright: Aries, King & Titus have formed a loose association based on mutual admiration. In fact, I'd like to see Aries, King and Titus form a more cohesive stable, because together they could easily rise to the level of main event threat against the company's top babyfaces, but that hasn't happened yet. Meanwhile Strong, Stevens and Albright bonded out of the experienced of fighting mutual enemies in Sweet & Sour Incorporated. Strong and Stevens have deep history with Austin Aries, with both at one time being partners with Aries. Strong and Aries were one of ROH's most successful pairs, while Stevens' run with Aries in The Resilience…not so much. Throw in some bitter feelings on both sides and you've sparked the fuse for a hell of a six-man war. All six of these men know how to work tag matches and have excellent combination moves that could really get the crowd popping. Seeing the faces go to work on Aries, King or Titus would be excellent, considering it's a great thing to see arrogant and egotistical heels get what's coming to them.

3. Tyler Black vs. Joey Ryan: Sure, Mr. Sleazy has just found his way into ROH and has only two matches under his belt in competition compared with Black, who is now firmly in a main event / top of the card position. Still, this one would be a very unique pairing, perhaps even a surprisingly competitive one for Ryan. I think a traditional heel-face format for the match would work well, with Black in command in the beginning until the dastardly Ryan cheats his way into control, followed by a massive comeback for Black. I'd also think if these two were to engage in a longer feud that Ryan could make it a habit to push Black's button pretty well, and that could lead to Black becoming more unstable and out of control in his search to upend Ryan.

4. Street Fight: Necro Butcher vs. Eddie Kingston: Geez, do I really have to write anything here at all? Just let that visual marinate in your mind for a while. Necro and King, beating the ever-loving crud out of each other in a no disqualification environment…yeah, that would be a hellafun time. Punch for Punch, fist for fist, barefoot for boot. We don't need a reason, or a bitter grudge. Just let these two go at it, and may the better street fighter win.

5. KENTA vs. Naomichi Marufuji: I always end these types of lists with the most far-fetched and least likely possibility, but hey, that's why it's called a dream match. KENTA and Marufuji have been involved with Ring of Honor since 2005, but they have never actually squared off against one-another in singles action on a Ring of Honor show. The closest they have come is being on opposite sides of the tag team match during Misawa's appearances in ROH at the end of 2007. Of course, both men have fought each other several times in Japan in singles and tag action over the years and have a very healthy and competitive rivalry. They bring out the best in each other, when they were partners and as opponents. Let's bring that rivalry overseas to America, where Ring of Honor fans have long supported them in matches against American opponents and will likely thrill to see these two in a genuine singles bout. Both have incredible moves that dazzle and awe the fans and just look completely devastating. It's an even-steven comparison of the two when it comes to speed, agility and impact, but Marufuji may have the tactical advantage while KENTA the edge on stamina. Of course, what prevents us from seeing this match in the first half of the year is that Marufuji is currently laid up thanks to an injury and will be out for likely another four to five months or so. When he is back from injury, let's hope ROH can book him once again for a series of appearances in the U.S. and perhaps even, in this dream-match combination.




Fresh Matches 2008 revisited (as seen in Column of Honor: The List Issue Part One)

1. Eddie Kingston vs. Jack Evans

What I Said: "It's a match that could be as terrifically barbaric as the recent Kingston vs. Shane Storm match from CHIKARA's "Two Eyebrows Are Better Than One" or it could be more of a chess match, with Evans looking to take to the air while Kingston pounds and grounds the tar out of him. Depending on whether or not they want to further the storylines, we could even see Ruckus get involved here and make a firm choice about who he stands with."
Did It Happen?: I also wrote last year there was very little chance that this one would happen, as King was dealing with the dreaded personal issues and Evans was on hiatus, later to resurface down in Mexico for AAA. Therefore, The Vulture Squad's internal crisis had no pull to it, and was soon dropped. Evans doesn't seem to be coming back anytime soon due to his consistent work dates in Mexico, but interestingly enough, if he did come back, Kingston is being used semi-regularly and we could perhaps see it at that point. I'd contend it would be just as awesome as I suggested it would be when I wrote about it last year.


2. Brent Albright vs. Chris Hero

What I Said: "Here is a match that seems far more likely now that Albright has turned face and looks to go to war against Sweet & Sour Incorporated. I'd expect to see plenty of matches with these two wrestlers over the next few months and that's alright with me."
Did It Happen?: Yup…at Fueling the Fire and for the most part they were "eh-okay". Nothing offense, but nothing too special either. Albright's most exciting and crowd-electrifying moments against Sweet * Sour Inc. actually happened when he was clearing house against the entire members of the agency or when he was fighting against Adam Pearce.


3. Danielson & Aries vs. Steen & Generico

What I Said: "A no brainer match if I've ever seen one and IF Steen & Generico wind up winning the titles in the upcoming tag tournament (again, see below), then I would LOVE to see a series of matches for the title between these two teams over the summer. I think it would rival the Briscoes vs. Styles & Red series from years back in terms of excitement."
Did It Happen? : The no-brainer ended up being a no, as when Gabe Sapolsky received the heave-ho, so did any plans to go with this match. Steen & Generico did win the tag titles, not in the tag tournament, but during September. Danielson & Aries as a team ended up peaking earlier than that…and Aries was already on the way to being transformed out of the Jacobs feud so that this match wouldn't quite have fit if it took place.


4. Davey Richards vs. Go Shiozaki

What I Said: "I'd be very happy to see these two trading chops and holds for fifteen minutes or so. Richards has done well as of late in matches against international talent (including a fabulous match against Marufuji from Final Battle 2007). Shiozaki has performed up to and past expectations and has been embraced and accepted by the ROH audience."
Did It Happen? : Nope, as Richards and Shiozaki wound up on the same side, working together as a part of Sweet & Sour Incorporated. Interestingly enough, by the time Shiozaki was to say goodbye to his year-long run in ROH, Richards had enough of his losing matches for Sweet & Sour Inc. and yelled something fierce at Shiozaki before leaving ringside with Edwards.


5. Steel Cage Warfare 2: The Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs, Tyler Black, Necro Butcher & Joey Matthews) vs. Generation Next (Austin Aries, Alex Shelley, Roderick Strong & Jack Evans):

What I Said: "ROH fans loved the first Steel Cage Warfare match and every so often talk returns to the idea of bringing the concept back. Now I don't believe in using stipulations just for the sake of have a stipulation, but I definitely could see this match being warranted with a blood feud like Aries vs. Jacobs and the directions it could go in the future. Not only that, but hell, a Generation Next reunion would be incredible, even just as a one time deal made out of necessity by Aries."
Did It Happen?: No Generation Next reunion for us fans who would have loved to see this band get it back together. Although, amazingly it looked like it might have happened last Summer…as in storyline Aries and Alex Shelley agreed to put aside their past differences. Roderick Strong turned face thanks to being betrayed by Davey Richards and the disbanding of the No Remorse Corps. Aries and Shelley were set to team up in a tag team match against Jacobs and The Age of the Fall, but Shelley and Sabin were pulled from their appearances due to a booking for a Japanese convention. Jack Evans wasn't anywhere close to coming back to ROH, but that match would have been a decent consolation prize. Funnily enough, fans did get the return of the Steel Cage Warfare format and Aries did fight Jacobs in such a match, but not with the above combination of men.

In addition, it should also be noted that one more match from my wish list from 2007 actually did take place. Nigel McGuinness fought and defeated KENTA at the Seventh Anniversary Show. Even though Nigel was injured, it was a hell of an effort and ended up being a really good bout.





25 Reasons to Buy the Midnight Express: 25th Anniversary Scrapbook
(on sale through Cornette's Collectibles)


1. It's a book co-written by Jim Cornette, and Jim Cornette has always been an entertaining and compelling prognosticator when it comes to professional wrestling. Cornette shoots straight from the hip and doesn't mince words and that means you're dealing with an authentic and reliable narrator in the story of the Midnight Express's run.
2. There are a ton of fantastic pictures from the last thirty years of wrestling history, including of course posed and action shots but also some really unexpected ones, such as Cornette sleeping on his bed with a fan-made "Midnight Express" sequined blanket, visiting Motown, boxing with Nick Patrick and yes, even Cornette in the most-ridiculous looking wrestling tights.
3. Reprints of advertisements, newsletters and programs for wrestling cards that the MX appeared on throughout the past twenty five years—just a really cool look at how these matches were promoted. You get the sense that these kinds of promotional tools are what is missing in independent and the mainstream wrestling companies—the extra effort that makes these programs spring to life and seem "real", even now on the printed page.
4. A look at booking sheets that Cornette wrote in his brief foray of working on the WCW Booking Committee—it's awesome to see how the mind of a booker works on and sets up a wrestling show, even one like WCW Saturday Night, which was mostly a show that featured stars against jobbers.
5. If looking at backstage booking documents isn't enough for you, how about a look at some of the mind boggling idiotic corporate letters and reminders Cornette was sent over the years? Yeah, that'll do Jim Herd, er, Pig, that'll do…
6. A year-by-year list of almost every MX match as compiled by Cornette himself.
7. Big matches in MX history spotlighted, of course including the Rock n' Roll Express feud and the "Night of the Skywalkers" Scaffold Match.
8. Reprints of Pro Wrestling Illustrated Year-End Awards that Cornette and the MX won for Manager and Tag Team of the Year respectively. Just awesome to see how a "kayfabe"-centric tabloid like PWI still played an important role in pushing the wrestlers to the mainstream public and how even wrestlers did paid some measure of attention to them.
9. A memo to talent from Bill Watts explaining what it took to "get over" with the crowd.
10. A memo to talent from Bill Watts explaining how you make a gimmick match make sense to the crowd. Sounds like something ALL three top promotions could use nowadays.
11. Several reprints of Cornette's pay stubs, so you could see not only what but how the wrestlers and employees were paid in that era…and you can see for yourself if the pay was commensurate to the house gates and the effort given by JC and the MX.
12. Crockett Cup Bracketology!
13. A nice and solid selection of some of Cornette's most gut-busting one liners, including "Nikita Koloff is so ugly he couldn't get a date on his tombstone", "Arn Anderson was the proud winner of the Dom DeLuise look-a-like contest" and "Sunshine—the football team retired HER jersey." Awesome.
14. A nice dig at the current head of talent relations in WWE with a picture of Stan Lane "throttling Johnny Ace" as the caption reads. Think James E. put that one in on purpose, I do…
15. Awesome Christmas poems, wrestling themed of course and poking fun at of Crockett and the NWA.
16. Stories of the MX and Jim Cornette being attacked by fans and having to fight their way to the back…and how in some cases they were the ones with presses charged afterwards!
17. A reprint of a program that shows J.Y.D. in a mask as "Stagger Lee". I wonder if he knew The Midnight Rider?
18. The awesome—caps lock on, AWESOME, "Hate Mail" would be putting it lightly—sent to Cornette by marks, err…very passionate fans. Cornette reprints them here as is, with a bevy of swear words and antagonistic remarks that would make Andrew Dice Clay blush. These are gut-busting letters and absolutely amazing to see that actual people wrote actual letters to Jim Cornette filled with such vitriolic verbiage, expecting it would make a difference.
19. Being able to look at old school wrestling programs from all around the territories.
20. All the wonderful variations and misspellings of the wrestlers on the advertisements and programs—spell check wasn't available back in those days.
21. A reprint of an article by Tony Schiavone—YES, THAT Tony Schiavone—writing about Jim Cornette's "antics".
22. Stan Lane's sweet mustache.
23. The story of the Midnight Express reunion in 2004.
24. An in-depth retelling of an incredulous lawsuit Jim and the MX had to fight off in Beckley, West Virginia, including an excerpt of the case abstract from a law book!
25. Descriptions of common spots the MX did during their matches, and the reaction each received from the fans.





Wrestling Move Names that Sound Like You're Committing a Crime

1. Crowbar—vehicular theft, just slide it in and lock it on.
2. Slapjack—ask Stevie Ray about all the "fruit-booties".
3. Dark City Street Cutter—weapon of choice for Dark City residents.
4. The Desecrator—someone likes messing around with graves.
5. The Cop Killah—well, that one's bloody well obvious.
6. The WMD—terrorist alert is now orange, for that nice shade of coloring on a wrestler's fake tan.
7. The Codebreaker—someone's a hacker!
8. Anything with "Bomb" in it—terrorist alert is red! RED ALERT!
9. Go Flasher—sounds like the guy with the trench coat on the street.
10. Cattle Mutilation—that's just disgusting. SHAME ON YOU!





Anagrams for "Hogewood"

1. Who do ego
2. He go wood
3. We go hood
4. Dog he woo
5. Owe oh god
6. How go ode





Uses for Chris Hero's Elbow Pad

1. Protection for when you go skateboarding
2. Dishrag
3. Sock Puppet
4. Substitute for ShamWow (I know they say accept no substitutes, but WHAM! There's a Chris Hero KO elbow for you Mr. VINCE SHAMWOW).



Rules of Dark City Fight Club

Rule Number One: You do not talk about Dark City Fight Club!
Rule Number Two: YOU…DO NOT…TALK…ABOUT… DARK CITY FIGHT CLUB!!!


"Got a problem with that? Do something about it! We dare you."





Best J.D.Dunn (The Dunn List) Animal Abuse Memes (In Tribute to Mike Hogewood)

9. Give a monkey a purple nurple! [It's Over!]
8. PUT SUGAR IN THE GAS TANK OF A YAK! IT'S OVER!
7. GIVE A WALRUS A PAPERCUT AND POUR LEMON JUICE IN IT! IT'S OVER!
6. RUIN THE CREDIT OF A GILA MONSTER! IT'S OVER!
5. REFUSE A FACEBOOK REQUEST FROM A GECKO! IT'S OVER!
4. BLAME A PIG FOR THE ORIGINS OF SWINE FLU! IT'S OVER!
3. HAVE SEX WITH A GIRAFFE AND DON'T CALL IN THE MORNING! IT'S OVER!
2. Verbally abuse a woodchuck! It's over!
1. Destroy an ocelot's sense of self-worth! [It's Over!]




Recommended ROH DVDs: January - March 2009

Which Ring of Honor shows from the first quarter are worthy of your dollar bills? Here are my suggestions for DVD pick-ups so that you can get your money's worth. Note: I haven't seen Steel City Clash Insanity Unleashed as yet.

1. Stylin & Profilin: It starts with an awesome one-two-three combination of matches and doesn't let up until the end of the show. Even though there is a count out and a DQ in two of the last three matches, the rest of the card is so strong that it can withstand those finishes and still be one of the better ROH shows of the year. Ric Flair's debut in ROH is well handled, with a great reception from the crowd. Nigel McGuinness really makes the most of the situation by taking every opportunity to put himself over and put Flair down.
2. Proving Ground 2009 Night One I've put over both nights of the Florida double shot plenty already; it is a lot of fun, back-to-basics style ROH action, putting a premium on clean finishes and great interactions between the wrestlers and the fans. Richards and Black shine in the main event spotlight, although it is Lynn & Danielson vs. The Age of the Fall that really steals the show.
3. Proving Ground 2009 Night TwoYou'll come for the Danielson vs. Generico semi-main and the awesome pre-match hug fest; you'll stay for the surprisingly great six-man tag and Richards vs. Steen matches.
4. Caged Collision: A necessary Pay Per View to obtain on DVD given that this is the end of the Sweet & Sour Inc. feud against Stevens, Strong, Albright and you also have Tyler Black scoring his "money in the bank" shot in a Four Corner Survival. This is one of the weaker ROH Pay Per Views in that there is no "classic in the making", but I actually found this one to be one of the more consistent shows in the ring, not to mention one of the better paced as far as transitioning between matches and backstage segments.

---

ROH Results

Friday, May 9th, 2009 in Edison, New Jersey
The Big News: Jerry Lynn retains his ROH World Title by defeating Jay Briscoe in the main event; The American Wolves retain the ROH World Tag Team Titles by taking care of the makeshift Danielson and Steen, isolating Danielson and ending when Eddie Edwards submitting him with a half crab; Colt Cabana, Chris Hero and Eddie Kingston were all successful in their singles matches.

Live Experience: Jerry Lynn took a heckler fan to task after his match against Briscoe, saying if he didn't like it he could go watch WWE (I don't know about that line these days, especially if you're talking about Smackdown)… The Super Smash Brother impressed the Edison, NJ crowd and received "please come back" chants…Chris Hero reminded Eddie Kingston that he had his number (looks like that we'll get more of those two fighting it out real soon, which is fine by me).

Return Date: November 28th, 2009


Honored News

Super Smash Brothers will return to ROH with appearances in Canada; Sonjay Dutt will return with appearances in Edison and New York; Roderick Strong vs. Jay Briscoe rubber match will be taped for ROH on HDNet

Colt Cabana tapes "Art of Pro Wrestling" for HDNet with help from Dave Lagana; Toronto weekend officially Death Before Dishonor VII: Legends Edition

Petey Williams returns to ROH; Roderick Strong vs. KENTA spotlight match for HDNet tapings; Tyler Black vs. Jimmy Jacobs in "First Blood" match June 13th in NYC

Lynn vs. Hero as a main event for HDNet tapings; El Generico could be back in action soon; Dutt vs. Jacobs in Manassas, VA June 12th, vs. Roderick Strong in NYC; Briscoe vs. Richards and Rave / Castagnoli / Osiris vs. Cabana / Necro / Grizzley in Manassas

Ric Flair wants to un-retire, puts over ROH


The Big News: Lance Storm Returns to In-Ring ROH Action!

In what was the somewhat shocking news of the week, ROH announced that Lance Storm would be making a comeback, wrestling for them during the July 24th and 25th weekend in Toronto. This is the first time in almost two years that Storm will be wrestling, as he had decided to retire and focus on training students at Storm Wrestling Academy. As the saying goes, "there is no retirement in professional wrestling" and well, Storm proves it again, although kudos to him for giving it the old college try and lasting longer than most.
Storm released a statement saying that his decision came about because it was the right place at the right time. He actually was turning down plenty of offers from other independent promotions, but this was one he took because it was in between his school sessions and he would be able to visit with both Ric Flair and Bret Hart on the same weekend. He promised he would be training very hard for this match and that as it was he wasn't too far out of "wrestling shape" as far as what he expected for himself.

He last worked for ROH last year at the July Detroit-Toronto double shot, including an appearance on New Horizons on Pay Per View. He became involved in an issue against Chris Hero and Larry Sweeney, and while he superkicked the hell out of Shane Hagadorn, was also attacked from behind from Hero during this weekend. One would assume that the two return matches would involve an encounter in some form with Hero. It would also make sense for Storm to cross paths with Jerry Lynn in either tag or singles action, given their connection to the original ECW and that Lynn came back to fight Hero for the "honor" of Storm after the latter was downed by Hero at the Pay Per View.

This is a boon for ROH, which is looking to use special guest stars to help boost attendance and attention for their shows. The July double shot will be called "Death Before Dishonor VII: Legends Edition" gven the focus on Flair, Hart and now the returning Storm. What is also especially interesting to note is that this will take place on the same weekend as DragonGate USA's return to the United States. That show will take place in Philadelphia, and will be the first show booked by former ROH booker Gabe Sapolsky. DGUSA is looking to use the Dragon Gate name and wrestlers to gain attention from the internet fanbase. It will be interesting to see who presents the better show(s) that weekend.

For more on Storm's reaction and reasons for coming back to action in ROH, click here.


ROH Call

ROH Champions—As of 05/16/2009

ROH World Champion—Jerry Lynn (champion since 04/03/09, 6 successful defenses)


-defeated Nigel McGuinness in Houston, Texas via pinfall to win the championship.

Next Defense: TBD

V.1 Four Corner Survival: defeated Bryan Danielson, D-Lo Brown and Erick Stevens (04/04/09, Houston, TX)
V.2 Four Corner Survival: defeated Bryan Danielson, Austin Aries and Jimmy Jacobs (04/10/09, Philadelphia, PA, airs June 6th, 2009)
V.3 defeated Roderick Strong (04/24/09, Dayton, OH)
V.4 defeated Colt Cabana (04/25/09, Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.5 defeated Chris Hero (05/08/09, Boston, MA)
V.6 defeated Jay Briscoe (05/09/09, Edison, NJ)

**

ROH World Tag Team Champions—American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) (champions since 04/10/09, 3 successful defenses)


-defeated Kevin Steen & El Generico on April 10th, 2009 in a Tables are Legal match in Philadelphia, PA to win the championship. The match will air on May 30th, 2009.

Next Defense:TBD

V.1 fought to a 45-minute draw against Bryan Danielson & Tyler Black (04/18/09, Markham, ONT, Canada) *champions retain on a draw.
V.2 defeated Kevin Steen & Jay Briscoe (04/25/09, Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.3 defeated Bryan Danielson & Kevin Steen (05/09/09, Edison, NJ)

**

Top Feuds & Pairings:

-Jerry Lynn as the new ROH World Champion
-Tyler Black vs. Austin Aries vs. Jimmy Jacobs
-Tyler Black has a title shot "in his back pocket"
-Claudio Castagnoli vs. Brent Albright
-Necro Butcher vs. The Embassy
-Prince Nana & The Embassy vs. Bryan Danielson & Colt Cabana
-Claudio Castagnol is now an "associate" of The Embassy


ROH Home Theatre Station

ROH Videowire: May 13th, 2009

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Honorarium

-Glad to see that Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith finally have been brought together with Natalya Neidhart to form the next generation Hart Foundation. I think these three will work best together as a trio and finally, Davey Boy's boy will be able to start living up to his potential. They're just starting in ECW, but if they dominate that brand I could see them being drafted over to Raw or Smackdown next year…or even challenging for the Unified tag titles sooner than that.

-With Petey Williams coming in and Sonjay Dutt just completed his return to ROH along with the use of D-Lo Brown, Sylvain Grenier and others for special appearances, ROH needs to make sure that even while they are using some of the names from WWE and TNA that they don't forget to shore up their main roster. ROH is essential in a rebuilding phase right now as they have a huge "cast" of characters that they bring in, but they need to quickly choose which wrestlers will get the majority of their attention. Hopefully, Williams and Dutt will be used well, but I'm hoping for the guys who haven't received a chance in the big two, like Eddie Kingston, Dark City Fight Club, The Super Smash Brothers and Chris Hero are the ones who get the consideration.

Thoughts on Stylin & Profilin:

-Roderick Strong and Jay Briscoe open up Stylin & Profilin with an exciting and fast-paced fifteen minute bout. Their "friendly competition" series actually hearkens back to the "olden days" of Ring of Honor in that there is a focus on the back-and-forth competitive aspect. The idea of doing a "series" of matches with the wrestlers has been there since the beginning, and this is a very good combination to do just that. The standing ovation they receive from the crowd is well deserved—I hope that is a message that is received from those in charge. Fans want more of this style of wrestling back on the shows.

-MsChif and Daizee Haze continue a streak of good to very good women's matches that have taken place in Ring of Honor this year (not counting the TV show). Okay, the streak is at two in a row, but that's more than it has been in previous years. These two build a very good face vs. heel match, with MsChif dominating the match but Haze's athleticism being the central point in her comeback. Some sweet exchanges in and out of the Descreator / Mindtrip set ups to end this one.

-Then we get perhaps THE dark horse match of the show, a Four Corner Survival with Austin Aries vs. Kenny Omega vs. Claudio Castagnoli vs. Silas Young. All four men go all out in this one, running a fantastic pace and using the old school "can you top this?" mentality that used to frequent these types of matches. Aries and Castagnoli fully play up their heel act, even at the beginning when it seems like they might fight each other, but play the fans like a fiddle with a stall session at the beginning of the match and then when Omega and Young have enough of the mutual admiration society, they let the heels have it and its faced-paced right onto the end. Omega and Young especially shine with their high risk moves, and at one point Omega does quite the insane dive onto the other three from the top turnbuckle to the outside of the ring. This and Strong vs. Briscoe are the must-sees of this show.

-Speaking of the "stall", Larry Zybyzko is on commentary for this and Insanity Unleashed, filling in for Lenny Leonard who was sick at the time. After watching the full show, I have mixed feelings on the use of Zybyzko, especially given some of the comments he made. First of all, there is the somewhat incredibly misogynistic comments he makes during the MsChif vs. Haze match. These women are tearing it up in the ring and Zybyzko has to go and equate the pain they are feeling to childbirth. Gee, thanks Larry, "we've come a long way baby". Larry also has this horrible habit of making subtle comments about what the good guys are doing that is not working, like when someone doesn't follow up on a leg injury or when he complains that these guys aren't working on a body part That's a sure fire way to bury your hero figure. Prazak had to do most of the heavy lifting during the first half of the DVD, which means "Goodbye Heel Prazak" and "Hello Democratic Prazak". That may be a good thing actually, because I'm not much for Prazak as a heel on these DVDs and everything he says helps not only Zybyzko as a good introductory on ROH (and he needs it) but for all the fans watching as well.

On the other hand, I think Zybyzko becomes more comfortable as the show goes on, and by the halfway point he has significantly improved, even able to make fun of himself at certain points. He also has some good tete-a-tete with Nigel McGuinness, who is on guest commentary for the second half of the show, especially taking him to task and challenging him about what he said to Ric Flair. That makes sense in a "legends sticking up for the legends" moment. In the end, you get what you expect from Larry, especially if you heard him in the booth during the WCW days—mentions of wrestling as the "human game of chess" (I counted FOUR), Larry's golf game, the match against Sammartino at Shea Stadium, all the standards.

-Yes I know that Ric Flair was paid handsomely to make his appearances for Ring of Honor, but when he puts over ROH, he does a great job of making you believe it. This is his first and it does feel special. McGuinness gets some good cracks at Flair not being a good father, and Flair's comeback that Reid could take him out, well, it does stretch credulity…but it seemed like a good retort at the time.

-Collinsville is the site for Delirious finally turning face again. Daizee Haze is stabbed by Jimmy Jacobs with the Spike and finally Delirious snaps and turns against his "master". Delirious goes postal and launches repeated Panic Attack knees to the corner, to the delight of the crowd. Haze and Delirious give the long stare down but then finally rush into each other's arms for a very important reunion hug. It isn't exactly Randy Savage / Miss Elizabeth, but it will do. A very touching moment…excuse me, I think about to cry (grabs hankerchief)…

Seriously though, this moment was probably way overdue, but I'm glad it did happen. Manic Delirious under Jacob's control was a means to an end in the "boy meets girl" story, but I'm glad that we weren't deprived of the ending to such a story.

-McGuinness and Albright give it a really good go in the main event—a very physical match. It isn't spectacular, but it's a solid enough main event that picks up nicely at the finish. The camera work is very good here, as you are able to see Ric Flair watching at ringside and the reactions he has as McGuinness continues to work on Albright, including using some underhanded tactics. There is a nice little tribute to Flair in this one as well, with the press off the top rope. The "ouch" moment of the match comes when McGuinness uses the Tower of London from the second rope to the outside and Albright lands with a SMACK! Even though we get the Claudio Castagnoli run-in, Flair coming in for some punches and chops makes up for it…and the fans loved to see him giving it to McGuinness.

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Going Home


Get With the pROHgram:

One Year Ago: ROH ran its first show after moving from the Grand Ballroom down to the Hammerstein Ballroom at the Manhattan Center.

Tonight: ROH on HDNet main events with a Claudio Castagnoli vs. Brent Albright rematch and Steen & El Generico's first HDNet match together as a team versus Kenny King & Rhett Titus.

May 29th & 30th, 2009: ROH Television tapings in Philadelphia, PA with KENTA & Ric Flair making special appearances.

May 30th, 2009: ROH on HDNet main events with Steen & Generico vs. The American Wolves for the ROH World Tag Team Titles

June 13th, 2009: ROH returns to Manhattan, New York at the Hammerstein Ballroom.

July 24th & 25th, 2009: ROH presents Death Before Dishonor VII weekend with special appearances from Bret Hart, Ric Flair and the return to the ring of Lance Storm.


ROH@411

The Ring of Honor ROHport by J.D. Dunn for last week's show with Danielson vs. Black II. Csonka has the play by play and the 4R's.

Aaron Hubbard gives his review of ROH Driven on DVD, which not only has one awesome Bryan Danielson match, but two!


While I don't usually go the "cheap plug" route, only when I feel its worth it and I feel this one is worth it. Check out my friends at JOLLY through myspace or their website Jollyband.com. They're prog-rock, they're really good and they're taking preorders on their debut album "46:12", which you can sample five tracks from for free through their myspace.




Buy or Sell Quickies

Twenty years from now, Go Shiozaki will be a legend in Japan, and Takeshi Morishima will be remembered as a solid worker but nothing more: SELL. It all depends on how well they are pushed in the next five to ten years. If they are given true opportunities to become THE names for Pro Wrestling NOAH as opposed to being the understudies to established wrestlers such as Misawa, Akiyama and Sasaki, then maybe there's a shot.

For more on Japan, Petey Williams and other topics of conversation, click here for this week's Buy or Sell!

NEXT WEEK: Questions about Ring of Honor in Summer 2009!

Thanks to everyone for reading—it is as always, much appreciated.

BROOKLYN!
--Ari--