That Was Then 9.8.06: Ring Of Honor In 2005 Part 2

Posted by Stuart Carapola on 09.08.2006

Ring Of Honor had a great first half in 2005, but really picked up the pace in a big way as the year wore on. Once again, I am joined by Column Of Honor's Ari Berenstein as we talk about Steel Cage Warfare, the Homicide-Cabana feud, CM Punk's reign of terror as the ROH Champion and, of course, Joe vs Kobashi!

After a tough year that threatened their very existence in 2004, ROH had bounced back in a big way, and had put on as strong a six months in the first half of 2005 as any promotion could hope for. Austin Aries had dominated the ROH Title to the chagrin of the fans, who booed him in large part because of who he had taken the title from. However, the first half of 2005 saw Aries lose the ROH Title, and it instead wound up around the waist of a man who was more loved by the fans than nearly anyone, but in winning the title had become the most hated man in ROH.

Part I: The ROH Title Held Hostage (CM Punk)

Death Before Dishonor III had ended with CM Punk unexpectedly winning the ROH Title from Austin Aries in what was supposed to be his last match in the promotion, but the jubilation of the fans in attendance quickly turned to shock when Punk viciously turned on the crowd, and revealed that he had been playing them all along to get enough support to get himself to the ROH Title, and now that he had the title, he didn't need tha fans anymore. Christopher Daniels made his surprise return to ROH that night and challenged Punk to defend the title on the spot, but Punk took the belt and ran.

In the wake of this, ROH officials were able to get Punk to agree to defend the title at the next ROH show, Sign Of Dishonor, but in return the officials had to agree to let Punk pick his own opponent for the evening. At the beginning of the show, Punk came out with a big smirk on his face. He told the fans that when everybody else had left ROH in the cold after the TNA Situation in 2004, he was the only one who stood by the company when presented with the choice, and it was because of him that the promotion had regained the lost momentum it suffered when AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, and others left. But that wasn't enough, because he felt that the fans had turned their backs on him, and to throw it in their faces, he tried to sign his WWE contract on the ROH Title belt. Before he was able to put pen to paper, however, James Gibson and Christopher Daniels stormed the ring and chased Punk off.

Punk still had his title defense that night, and he chose Jay Lethal as his opponent because he wanted to avenge the fall he dropped to Lethal at Back To Basics months earlier. Lethal's mentor Samoa Joe was at ringside for the match to cheer him along, but in the end Punk defeated Lethal with Joe's signature moves the Muscle Buster and the choke, mocking Joe from inside the ring while Joe's protégé passed out from the hold. Punk announced that he had won his last match in ROH and was taking the title with him when he left, but he was confronted by Mick Foley, who said he had talked to Vince McMahon, and that McMahon said that if Punk didn't do the right thing before leaving ROH, Punk would spend the rest of his life in OVW.

So Punk returned the next night at Escape From New York, again being made to defend the ROH Title. Once again, he was allowed to choose his own opponent and this time chose Roderick Strong, who Punk had called the future of wrestling only a month earlier after their match at The Future Is Now. Punk again came close to losing the title several times, but was able to roll Strong up for the win with a little help from the ropes. Punk again tried to walk out of ROH still the champion, but this time he was attacked by James Gibson before he could get out the door with the belt. Gibson laid him out and challenged Punk to defend the title against him at the next show.

Punk's sensitive ego wouldn't allow him to just leave after suffering this indignity, so he agreed to defend the title against Gibson at Fate Of An Angel. Punk came out early in the show and started running Gibson down on the mic, prompting Gibson to run in and attack Punk. This turned out to be a trap, because when Gibson wasn't looking, Punk pulled out a chain and cold-cocked him, busting him open and leaving him a bloody mess. Even though it seemed that Punk's challenger wasn't going to make the match, Punk hung around long enough to get involved in the heavily hyped first ever singles meeting later in the night between Christopher Daniels and recent WWE castoff Matt Hardy. With the help of Punk and his chain, Hardy scored the win over Daniels, following which Punk got in the ring and gloated that he had not only incapacitated Gibson, but also taken Daniels out of title contention with this loss.

To Punk's surprise, James Gibson came out of the back, heavily bandaged, and went ahead with the match. Yet another close match ensued, and again Punk got the rollup win with the help of the ropes. Once again, however, Punk was going to be shamed into coming back when Daniels ran out of the back and stole the ROH Title belt, and said that if Punk wanted it back, he would have to face him for it. That match went off a week later at The Homecoming, and the long awaited singles match between Daniels and Punk was now for the ROH Title, but Daniels also failed to take the title from Punk, and the match ended in a one hour time limit draw.

The letdown of Punk once again escaping with the title was compounded when, in a postmatch brawl, Punk laid out not only Daniels, but Allison Danger and James Gibson as well before Samoa Joe came in to make the save. But now the stage was set for what would again be slated to be Punk's final weekend with the company. The first night he would defend the title in a four way elimination match against Christopher Daniels, James Gibson, and longtime rival Samoa Joe. If he made it through that match still the champion, he would defend the title against longtime friend Colt Cabana the second night.

Punk said this was it, if he won both matches and was still champion, he was leaving with the title after this weekend and there wasn't anything anyone could do about it. In the four way elimination match at Redemption, Gibson was taken out of the match early when Punk hit Gibson with a chair, again bloodying and incapacitating Gibson and forcing him to be taken to the back for medical assistance. Now down to three men, Joe put Daniels away with the choke, bringing it down to the two longtime rivals Punk and Joe, but Daniels came in the ring and, trying to hit Punk, accidentally hit Joe with an enziguiri, allowing Punk to roll Joe up and finally score the elusive pinfall win on him. Punk had won again, he had escaped with the title one more time and now all that remained was for him to defend the title against his best friend the following night and he could leave the promotion with a big smile on his face and the ROH Title around his waist…or so he thought. James Gibson's music hit, and he made his way back to the ring to finish the match. He was beaten up even worse by Punk, who was in much better health than Gibson, but Gibson turned the tide and gave Punk a Tiger Driver off the top rope for the three count and the ROH World Title.

The next night in Chicago, while Gibson may have been making his first appearance as the new ROH World Champion, the man of the night was CM Punk, who prepared to face his best friend, two out of three falls, in both of their hometown of Chicago at Punk: The Final Chapter. Cabana got a good reaction, but the place went nuts for a very emotional Punk as he made his way to the ring to "Night Train" by Bouncing Souls. Although it was expected that we would be in for a classic match between the two men, that night was just about having fun, as the two went out there and put on a match that was relatively short, but was unique in that it was just two old friends having fun, and Cabana ended up going over 2-1.

Now that his last match in ROH was finally, truly over, Punk thanked the fans, who he called the greatest fans anywhere, all his fellow wrestlers, and even booker Gabe Sapolsky, who made a rare on-camera appearance. To celebrate, Punk's fellow wrestlers dumped a bottle of Pepsi on his head.

The final chapter of CM Punk's ROH career had finally ended, but even though he was gone, the legacy and memories he had created during his run in the company would never be forgotten.

Ari Berenstein: Sure, the idea of going to see CM Punk's "last match" became something of a running gag on the internet, but it got everyone talking,and more importantly it got everyone buying tickets. Almost right up to the very end, it was a battle for power and control: Punk had the power to leave anytime he wished, but there were several things he did not account for in his master plan. The insertion of Foley and McMahon (the latter by name only, but can you imagine the reaction that McMahon would get if he ever did show up at an ROH show?) as the corporate voices imposing their own will (and their own agenda) on Punk helped to keep Punk around. Then it was Punk's own flaw in the plan that was exposed as Christopher Daniels took possession of the title belt. Punk was champion, but he couldn't leave unless he had "his" belt. I wrote last time of my disappointments in the Punk-Daniels title match, but the one thing I can say I was happy to see in this storyline was the number of contenders who were given the chance to have a title match in this scenario. Lethal , Strong, Gibson, Joe and Daniels were all brought together in that month by a common goal: to win the title for Ring of Honor. It was as much the saga of ROH vs. Punk saga as it was Punk against ROH.

The heat for Punk as a heel during these few months was out of this world, because there were feelings of resentment and betrayal by the fans for his actions at Death Before Dishonor III. It burned when he signed his WWE contract on top of the Holy Grail of the Indies, the ROH World title belt. In fact, watching it on video my mouth felt like I was tasting copper. My stomach felt like it was filled with battery acid. The very act of signing a contract to the 'E on the ROH belt was akin to some one spray painting the Statue of Liberty. Punk (and by proxy the other wrestlers and the bookers) used those strong sentiments to the utmost in this story. And it was a thriller of a story.

Yes, even though we were outraged, we knew in the back of our minds that this was a storyline and that there had to be a plan in place, but as smart as we all were, we couldn't figure out when, where, who or how or why. Finally there was the deadline of August 12th and 13th, knowing that most likely these were indeed the final days of Punk's ROH run, that it was make or break for everyone involved in the story. I remember the fan reaction to Punk losing the title to James Gibson was both joyous and concerned. It was a logical choice to make considering Gibson's months long hunt for the title, in fact any title in ROH. However it was also a controversial move because it was known that Gibson himself had signed a contract to the WWE and would not be around much longer. Even thought the title was no longer in the dangerous hands of CM Punk, James Gibson was not going to be a long term option for champion. Gibson guaranteed that he would be in ROH for as long as he was champion, but that announcement still had everyone on edge, uncertain about what would happen next in the title picture.

Punk's last night remains one of the most emotionally charged moments in the short history of Ring of Honor (you can read my reactions and tribute here). The reaction he received and the way he went out, on his terms, is tremendous. When he left I was discussing how long it would take for Punk to make it to the main show of the WWE. I said that I thought it would be about a year, although I had wished it would be sooner than that. Almost one year later, CM Punk entered the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City for his debut on WWE / ECW television. He was received as a conquering hero by the diehard ECW audience, some of them fans of ROH and some just aware of him through the five week build he received leading up to the debut. You can go back and watch both Punk's Goodbye to ROH and Punk's Welcome to ECW and you realize that in a year, some good things CAN be accomplished.

Part II: Making A Name (Jay Lethal)

At Manhattan Mayhem, Low Ki had revealed to Jay Lethal that he was the one who had attacked Lethal backstage months earlier, and in the impromptu tag match that followed, Homicide and Low Ki injured Lethal's neck with a combination Cop Killa/Ghetto Stomp and put him on the shelf. Lethal returned and made a sneak attack on the Rottweilers at The Future Is Now, then faced Low Ki at Death Before Dishonor III, but the match ended in a DQ.

The feud resumed in the second half of 2005, but Lethal didn't have much initial success against the Rottweilers. Lethal lost a relaxed rules match to Homicide, then heand Samoa Joe and James Gibson faced the Rottweilers at The Homecoming, but the Rottweilers won again. :Lethal faced Low Ki again at Redemption, but the match ended in a no contest, then the Rottweilers ganged up on Lethal and beat him down yet again.

Things turned around for Lethal after that, as he teamed with Samoa Joe to get a DQ win over Homicide & Low Ki at Punk: The Final Chapter, and all four men brawled all over the building after the match. Lethal followed that match up with his first pinfall victory over a member of the Rottweilers when he defeated Ricky Reyes at Night Of The Grudges II, then set his sights on the man who started the whole thing: Low Ki. They met yet again in the opening match of Glory By Honor IV, which was won by Low Ki. However, Lethal wanted one more shot at Low Ki, and when Low Ki got in Samoa Joe's face after Joe broke up the beatdown on Colt Cabana later in the show, Lethal came out and challenged Low Ki to a rematch right then and there. Low Ki accepted and this time, Lethal scored the biggest win of his career by beating Low Ki.

The feud with the Rottweilers was over after his win against Low Ki, and everything returned to normal for Jay Lethal until A Night Of Tribute. Lethal wanted to get some gold back around his waist, and teamed with his mentor, Samoa Joe, to face Austin Aries and Roderick Strong to determine the #1 contenders to the ROH Tag Team Title. Despite his confidence coming off the Rottweilers feud, Generation Next got the win. Joe tried to cheer him up, but Lethal saw his career as being stuck in a rut. He decided that if he was going to advance his career, he was going to have to get out of the shadow of Samoa Joe. He challenged his mentor to a rematch of their first meeting at Manhattan Mayhem, which saw Joe defeat his pupil to win the Pure Title. Joe accepted, and they met at Steel Cage Warfare in what started off as a friendly contest, but soon turned vicious as Lethal surprised everyone by attacking Joe's knee with a chair, allowing him to defeat his mentor. After scoring the win, Lethal continued to brutally attack Joe with the chair and left the ring to boos.

The explanation came at Final Battle 2005 when Lethal said that he had seen Joe's paycheck, and that it was a lot more than he was getting paid. He wanted the main event money Joe was getting, and turning on and defeating Joe was his ticket to the top. Joe and Lethal were both involved in a Four Corner Survival match that night, but before Joe had a chance to get his hands on his former partner, Lethal got the win and ran. Lethal had escaped and lived to fight another day, but would again be faced with Joe down the line, and when that day came, Joe was determined to put a hurting on the smug youngster.

Ari Berenstein: Besides the goodbye to Punk, another great reason to get the Punk: The Final Chapter DVD is for the Joe / Lethal vs. The Rottweilers match, including the awesome lengthy post match brawl into the crowd. The relationship between Lethal and Joe is a great example of Full Circle Booking, of course, everyone knows the age old tale of mentor-student and how that turns out. Looking back on this one, you can really pick up on the nuances. Joe took something Lethal had worked hard for and he did it very easily, then they were distracted for a number of months by a mutual cause and had to team up. There were instances where Lethal was showing growing pains, including his behavior at Glory By Honor IV, when he pushed Joe out of the way to demand and then claim an immediate rematch with Low Ki. Finally, when that feud had been cleared, Lethal and Joe came around again, only this time things had changed in their relationship. Lethal's turn was somewhat predictable, but nonetheless effective, judging by the fan's reaction live at Basketball City. There was an undercurrent of anti-Lethal sentiment by some ROH fans, in that he wasn't charismatic enough or was boring (which seems to be a constant complaint that occurs with ROH fan backlash) and that he didn't do enough to get the job done against Low Ki. The natural progression was to take all that and use it to turn Lethal heel.

Part III: Disrespect (Colt Cabana vs Homicide)

Fresh off his victory over CM Punk in Punk's final match, Cabana was adjusting to life on his own now that his longtime tag team partner was gone. During a routine edition of his talk show, Good Times, Great Memories, Cabana was interviewing Homicide, but got under Homicide's skin by trying to talk ghetto to him. Homicide took exception to what he perceived as Cabana disrespecting him and walked out. Cabana didn't seem to understand quite what it was that got Homicide so upset, and was very surprised later in the evening when Homicide attacked Cabana in the parking lot, seemingly without any real provocation.

Cabana challenged Homicide to a match ,and the two met at Glory By Honor IV, but there was no resolution that night because Homicide got himself disqualified for laying Cabana out with a chair. Even after that, it wasn't enough for Homicide, who continued the assault along with his fellow Rottweilers before Samoa Joe made the save. Even after that, Homicide wasn't done with Cabana. At Joe vs Kobashi, the Rottweilers distracted Cabana and cost him his match against Claudio Castagnoli. Cabana, however, got a small measure of revenge later in the evening as Homicide was wrestling Jack Evans. Cabana appeared on the balcony during the match dressed in street clothes, and verbally tore Homicide apart, calling him by his given name of Nelson, and also calling him Konnan's bitch. Homicide was so flustered by this blatant show of disrespect that Evans was able to sneak up behind Homicide and roll him up for the win.

As happy as this made Cabana, he wasn't laughing after Unforgettable the following evening. After Cabana defeated Jack Evans, Julius Smokes came out to the ring and told Cabana that he'd better be looking over his shoulder, because he's a dead man. Cabana needed somebody to watch his back, and the man he got was someone very familiar with Homicide, his longtime hated enemy Steve Corino. Cabana and Corino teamed up to defeat Homicide and Low Ki at Enter The Dragon when Corino went for the cover, Homicide got his foot on the ropes, and Cabana shoved it off before the referee saw it.

If Homicide was annoyed before, he was really pissed now, because now Cabana was not only disrespecting him, but actually embarrassing him by costing him matches. Homicide was scheduled to meet Cabana again at This Means War, but mysteriously backed out of the match and was replaced by his pal B-Boy. Cabana got the win, but was sneak attacked afterward by Homicide, who turned out to be at the building after all, and Homicide gave Cabana an Ace Crusher through a table. They were set to meet again as part of a Four Corner Survival at Showdown In Motown, but instead brawled out of the building and completely missed the match. They crossed paths again the next night at Vendetta as yet another brawl broke out, and this one ended when Homicide taped Cabana's arms to the ropes and stabbed him in the forehead with the ghetto fork, then tried to cut his tongue out before Ace Steel made the save.

Cabana, perhaps unwisely, signed on for another match with Homicide, this time a no DQ grudge match at A Night Of Tribute. Cabana fought bravely, but was outbrawled by Homicide, who got Cabana on the mat and began choking him out with a coat hanger. Cabana never submitted, but the ref stopped the match when Cabana passed out from lack of oxygen. Homicide still wasn't going to let it go, and kept choking Cabana even after the bell had rung. When Homicide finally released Cabana, he assumed that Cabana wasn't coming back, and that the issue was finished.

Unfortunately, he was wrong. Homicide had his long-awaited singles rematch with Corino at Steel Cage Warfare, but was cost the victory when Colt Cabana (who had been told to keep away from Homicide) snuck out to the ring under a mask and attacked Homicide, allowing Corino to get yet another victory over his rival. Homicide was now out for blood, and things took a turn toward the disturbing at Final Battle 2005. After Corino lost a match to Alex Shelley, Homicide ran in and attacked Corino. Cabana ran in to try and make the save, but was again beaten down by the Rottweilers, and this time Homicide tried putting Cabana out for good by pouring Drano down his throat, causing Cabana to violently throw up at ringside before being helped out of the building for medical help.

What had started as Cabana kidding around with Homicide by busting his chops had turned into a blood feud that only seemed like it was going to end when one of them was put out of wrestling forever. Homicide had tried to seriously injure Cabana by pouring Drano down his throat, and he hadn't expected Cabana to come back for more. However, Cabana wasn't about to let Homicide off the hook that easily. Cabana would recover, and would come back to finish things with Homicide in 2006.

Ari Berenstein: I'm not sure if I've ever admitted this before, but when Homicide is a heel, he legitimately scares me. I know he just plays a character and he comes across as a cool cat in interviews with the wrestling media, but when character is "on", he is quite intimidating. He taps into that Ghetto sentimentality, the way he dresses and the way he speaks and moves. As a geeky and dorky white guy sometimes that gets to me, and me, I live in Brooklyn! I've hung out on the streets of this city at all hours! I teach in an urban school that has equally tough and smart kids. And I still get intimidated by Homicide. Imagine what the character of Colt Cabana had to go through! At the basis of this feud was a truth of social convention: the geeky white kid who thinks he understands the 'Hood, but really he doesn't. Colt's interviews, especially the one that kicked the feud off, cements him as clueless white putz verses the tough as nails, take no shit gangsta. It's no wonder that initially, Cabana got fucked up.

Cabana = fun loving. Homicide = serious. That contrast was all that was needed to light the spark. However, things got off to a slow start and something seemed to be missing. Once all the dangerous, very realistic elements of weaponry and assault were added, such as the scissors attack and the coat hanger the feud picked up. It could have easily come off as cheesy and corny and overly fake, if not for how Homicide and Cabana managed to react to each other as a result of these incidents. As Cabana kept losing his matches, he was getting closer and closer to losing his own sanity and his hold on who he was. He was a wrestler because he chose to be, but now he was a fighter because he was forced to be.

Part IV: Warfare (Generation Next vs The Embassy)

As July began, Austin Aries was directionless. He had lost the ROH World Title to CM Punk and wasn't in line for an immediate rematch for the title. Generation Next was also in a shambles, as Alex Shelley's departure had left them short one member already, and Jack Evans took a sabbatical to heal some injuries and get his head straight following Death Before Dishonor III, leaving just Aries and Strong to hold down the fort in the meantime. Although he had lost the ROH Title, Aries showed that he was still very much a title threat by pinning Samoa Joe in a Four Corner Survival match at Sign Of Dishonor. In addition to being the third time Aries had pinned Joe, it also earned Aries a shot at the Pure Title that Joe now held.

Aries got his shot the next night at Escape From New York. Prior to the match, however Prince Nana came to the ring and offered Aries a spot in the Embassy. Aries said that he had bigger things to worry about at that moment, and to take a hike. Nana left the ring and the match went on, but despite another strong showing by Aries, Joe finally beat the man who had taken the ROH Title from him and dominated him since.

Now having not only lost the ROH Title but also a shot at the Pure Title, Aries instead turned his attention back to former partner Alex Shelley. Generation Next had spent most of the first six months mentally and physically tormenting their former leader, and in the end had put Shelley on the shelf by beating him up and continuing to attack him as he was being carried our of the building to an ambulance. But now Shelley had returned, and had challenged Aries and Strong to face himself and a mystery partner at The Homecoming. Shelley was very secretive about who he would team with, but the match came and Shelley revealed his partner to be Embassy member Fast Eddie Vegas. Shelley explained that he tried to repent for his sins after being kicked out of Generation Next, but being a nice guy was getting him nowhere, and since nobody else was going to accept him, he had no choice but to cast in with the one group who would accept him: The Embassy. Shelley finally got some revenge against Generation Next when he and Eddie scored the win after interference from Jimmy Rave. Following the match, the Embassy laid a beatdown on Strong and Aries, but were finally chased off by AJ Styles.

Up until this point, Generation Next had just had Alex Shelley to deal with. The picture had changed now that Shelley had the Embassy to back him up. Generation Next needed soldiers, and finally filled the spot Shelley had occupied by bringing in Matt Sydal. In addition to being a great athlete, Sydal was also looking for revenge since Fast Eddie Vegas, who he had been teaming with, turned on him and joined the Embassy. Generation Next won the first meeting between the two groups as Aries, Strong, and Sydal defeated Rave, Shelley, and new Embassy member Abyss at Redemption. However, although they had gotten the win, Abyss destroyed all three members of Generation Next by himself after the bell had rung.

The two groups continued trading wins and losses over the next several shows. Aries beat Rave at Punk: The Final Chapter, then teamed with Roderick Strong to beat Rave and one-night Embassy member Puma. The Embassy turned the tables at Dragon Gate Invasion when Rave and another one-night Embassy member, Spanky, beat Aries and Strong after Shelley nailed Aries with a chair, allowing Rave to roll him up for the pin. Aries and Rave met again in the qualifying round of Survival Of The Fittest. Aries came to put a hurting on Rave, but ended up getting laid out again when Rave hit him with a chair. Aries got the victory and advance to the finals, but it was a hollow victory since he neither pinned nor injured Rave as he had planned.

A big turning point came at Joe vs Kobashi when Roderick Strong faced Jimmy Rave. Strong scored the submission win over Rave, but became the victim of yet another Embassy beatdown at the hands of Rave and Nana. However, the two Embassy members were surprised when their valet Jade Chung (a Vietnamese woman that Nana had bought from her family to be Jimmy Rave's slave) finally made her long-awaited face turn by tearing off the bedsheet she had been forced to cover herself up with and low-blowed Nana and Rave, allowing Strong to recover and chase them off. As Nana and Rave ran to the back, Strong got on the microphone and challenged the Embassy to face Generation Next in Steel Cage Warfare. Nana later accepted on behalf of his troops.

Leading up to Steel Cage Warfare in December, the skirmishes continued. At Unforgettable, Matt Sydal picked up his first big win by beating Jimmy Rave thanks to the distraction of Jade Chung. The October double shot belonged to the Embassy, as Abyss easily defeated Jack Evans after beating up a bunch of the ROH wrestling school students at Enter The Dragon, then Shelley, Rave and Abyss defeated Strong, Evans and Aries in a No DQ match at Buffalo Stampede. At Showdown In Motown, Aries got another win over Shelley, while Matt Sydal teamed with AJ Styles to beat Jimmy Rave and Abyss.

At Vendetta, Aries, Evans, and Sydal teamed with AJ Styles to face the Embassy, with the winning team sending in their second man first at Steel Cage Warfare. Generation Next seemed on the verge of winning, but Sydal's manager Daizee Haze shockingly turned on Generation Next and gave the Embassy the win. Finally, Steel Cage Warfare came. The rules were very much like the rules of Wargames, except that the cage covered only one ring, and the match would continue until every member of the opposing team was eliminated, either by pinfall or submission. The Embassy had the one man advantage and also got the first elimination when Abyss took out Matt Sydal. Generation Next turned things around, triple teaming and eliminating Abyss. Evans was soon taken out, leaving Strong and Aries alone against Rave, Shelley, and Nana. Even with the numbers against them, Strong and Aries wouldn't be denied, and simultaneously eliminated both Rave and Shelley, leaving them 2-on-1 against Prince Nana. Now with nowhere to go and nobody to help him, Nana was dead meat. Aries and Strong took turns kicking the crap out of Prince Nana for the months of headaches he had caused them, before finally putting him away to win the match and the feud.

Aries and Strong had won the match for their team, but before the year was out, they would earn one more big win by beating Tony Mamaluke and Sal Rinauro at Final Battle 2005 to win the ROH Tag Team Title. It had been a rough 6 months, but Generation Next had closed out 2005 with gold around their waist. Would anybody be able to stop Aries and Strong?

Ari Berenstein: Generation Next vs. The Embassy was one of my favorite feuds in 2005, as evidenced by the large amount of coverage and features I wrote in my column. It was a stable vs. stable feud at its finest, with each faction trading wins and moral victories, warfare being waged, betrayal on both sides and a final and just resolution to wrap up the whole thing. I initially hated the idea of Shelley turning heel, but it really has worked out for the best as Shelley's best parts of his personality (his Jericho like arrogance and heel goofery) were developed and brought to the forefront. Aries, Strong, Evans and Sydal were all hugely embraced by fans as babyfaces in this angle. The Embassy also really got jazzed up as formidable opponents, and the addition of Abyss and how he played off of Shelley and Rave was a nice touch. I was there live for Jade Cheung's break from Nana, and the pop was incredibly loud, the fans had waited a long time to see her give Nana what for.

There were so many great matches and great moments of wrestling and athleticism within those matches. These guys did technical wrestling, aerial wrestling, brawling and even a bit of hardcore. Jack Evans was a human highlight reel of action and his playing off of the size of Abyss in many matches worked well. Steel Cage Warfare was amazing and exactly what the fans wanted to see: big moves, Jack Evans flying around, Roderick Strong dishing out back breakers to everyone in sight and finally a Generation Next victory. It was the momentum from this match that propelled Aries and Strong to the tag titles at Final Battle. If you missed out on this feud, try to find the Generation Next-Embassy highlight package done by ROH, it gives you a great taste of the kind of things these guys did in the feud.

Part V: A Few Other Things

2005 had undoubtedly been the busiest and most action packed year yet in Ring Of Honor, but there's more! 2005 also saw…

-The Return Of Christopher Daniels

Having made a surprise return to ROH at Death Before Dishonor III, Christopher Daniels immediately tried to reestablish himself by trying to win the ROH Title from CM Punk, who had put him out of ROH a year and a half earlier. Punk's interference cost Daniels a match against Matt Hardy at Fate Of An Angel, but Daniels stole the ROH Title belt from Punk later that night to force him to defend the title. Punk and Daniels went to a time limit draw and then Daniels fell short in the four way title match at Redemption. Daniels then lost a shot at Samoa Joe for the Pure Wrestling Title and another shot at the ROH Title, this time against Bryan Danielson at A Night Of Tribute. Daniels was still at the top of the card, but hadn't beaten anyone outside of the lower card talent and had actually lost nearly every big match he was in.

Ari Berenstein: As mentioned in part one, the return Styles and Daniels in and of itself (and both making appearances on the same show) was a huge moment. However, as much as Daniels was greatly received by the fans upon his return, in my mind ROH dropped the ball in featuring him in late 2005. It's not just that he could have or should have won the ROH title, that's immaterial. When Daniels' program with Punk was over, he was sort of directionless, lost in the middle of the pack. The supposed feud with Samoa Joe during this time was never clearly focused and as a long term fan I would have trouble remembering why at this particular time Daniels and Joe were fighting in Ring of Honor (can you remember? Stu mentions it above). As it was, their matches were booked on and off during this time frame, they may have dislike each other, but they certainly weren't doing a lot about it. Their matches were not nearly as memorable as their bouts in TNA at the same time. Finally, the one on one at Vendetta got these two back on the same page with an excellent quality match that got the focus back not only on their current hatred, but finally included references in promos and video to their past history of Daniels bringing Joe into ROH through the Prophecy. It's clear at this point that Daniels was not going to be brought back in the same capacity he was used before he was forced to leave in 2004. This was a disappointment for me, even if in the overall picture Daniels was still doing well for himself in ROH. Oh, and I wonder if he ever did catch up to Curry Man?

-Matt Hardy

After the famous scandal that saw Matt Hardy lose his job with WWE in the wake of Lita's affair with Edge, Hardy signed on for a series of matches in ROH. Although he signed a new WWE contract before any of those matches occurred, he honored the three commitments he made, beating Christopher Daniels at Fate Of An Angel and Homicide at Redemption, but lost his last match to Roderick Strong at Punk: The Final Chapter. Even though his stay in ROH was short, he had made an impact and Roderick Strong greatly raised his stock with the victory over Hardy.

Ari Berenstein: This short run is still a source of great debate, much like his brother's one shot appearance back in '03. Oh, those Hardy Boyz. Aside from how Hardy's story has turned out, a year ago it was cool enough of Hardy to shout out ROH on Monday Night Raw (even though you couldn't really understand what he was saying with that North Carolina drawl) and it was cool enough of Hardy to live up to his commitments to ROH. This included staying at the end of the night to shake hands and sign autographs. Say what you will about how Hardy did in an ROH ring by wrestling the WWE style, he was professional enough to do his job and then some while he was in ROH.

-Tag Title Turmoil

Even though the ROH Tag Team Title had a shaky history, it had never been as unstable as it was in the second half of 2005. BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs started the period off as champions, but lost the title to the Carnage Crew at Escape From New York. The Carnage Crew only had one title defense, in an Ultimate Endurance Match at Fate Of An Angel before losing the title back to Whitmer and Jacobs at The Homecoming. Whitmer and Jacobs then only had a short run before taking a break for over a month, then returned and immediately lost the title to the unestablished team of Sal Rinauro and Tony Mamaluke at Joe vs Kobashi. Mamaluke and Rinauro then went on a series of unspectacular defenses that were all successful, but none of which made them look like great champions. They finally lost the title to Austin Aries & Roderick Strong in a one-sided match at Final Battle 2005. Would Aries and Strong be able to restore stability to the ROH Tag Team Title in 2006?

Ari Berenstein: The tag division really was at its weakest at this point in 2005, necessitating the Great Tag Revival of '06. Jacobs and Whitmer were a solid team but at this point it seemed they had maxed out what they could do as tag champs during their run. Rinauro has a great amount of potential, but his team with Mamaluke just didn't work. These two were not clicking right with chemistry, fan acceptance and in the ring. Aries and Strong as tag champs has turned out to be one of the better second half of '05 moves in the tag division.

-AJ Styles vs The Embassy

After suffering the embarrassment of being attacked by Jimmy Rave following his victory over Petey Williams at Death Before Dishonor III, Styles came back and finally scored a victory over his former protégé at Sign Of Dishonor. However, when he tried to get his hands on Prince Nana after the match, Rave put a plastic bag over AJ's head and tried to suffocate him. Rave and Styles met a third time at The Homecoming, and Rave once again beat his mentor thanks to interference from Alex Shelley. Styles and Rave met for the last time at Glory By Honor IV in a match where the winner would be the first one to hit the Clash. Styles won, and as a result, Rave was no longer allowed to use the Rave Clash in ROH. Styles had soundly defeated Rave, but they would cross paths again. After Styles defeated Austin Aries at This Means War, the Embassy stormed thering and beat up Aries. Styles decided to help Generation Next in their war with the Embassy, and teamed with Matt Sydal to defeat the Embassy's Jimmy Rave & Abyss at Showdown In Motown, but was on the losing end of an eight man tag that pit Styles and Generation Next against the Embassy at Vendetta.

Ari Berenstein: The summer and fall had a very good follow through to the Rave vs. Styles issue that had been built up for quite some time. Some of the matches were better than others; in particular I thought the Sign of Dishonor match was inspired by was disappointed by their match at The Homecoming. Mick Foley being in Styles' corner at Glory By Honor IV was a nice bit of fun dream team fanboyism come to reality, and also played off of Foley and Nana's interactions one year before at Glory By Honor III. Styles as an ally of Generation Next was a logical enough development and made sense given that bad feelings will linger in a long lasting feud such as the one Styles had with Rave. It was a nice bridge to set up Styles interacting with Matt Sydal, which would be an important part of ROH in early 2006.

-James Gibson

James Gibson was one of CM Punk's top challengers during his short title reign, and was the man who eventually ended Punk's reign. Even though he had already signed a contract to return to WWE, Gibson said he wouldn't leave ROH as long as he held the title. However, Gibson would soon learn the cutthroat nature of being champion, as on his first night after winning the title, Gibson teamed with Spanky to challenge BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs for the Tag Team Title. Gibson had granted his good friend Spanky a shot at the title, but despite getting the opportunity he craved, Spanky turned on Gibson and left him 2-on-1 against the champions, and after Gibson finally lost, Spanky came in and beat up his former friend. Spanky said that the ROH Title meant more to him than friendship, and once he got his shot at Gibson, he didn't need the Redneck Messiah anymore. Spanky got his shot at Night Of The Grudges II, but despite being in two different title matches against Gibson that night (one of which was a three way with Homicide), Gibson walked out with the title. Gibson then successfully defended the title against Colt Cabana, but finally lost the title to the returning Bryan Danielson at Glory By Honor IV. During his last two weeks in ROH, Gibson lost to Christopher Daniels in a qualifying match at Survival Of The Fittest 2005, beat former WCW tag team partner Jimmy Yang at Joe vs Kobashi, and lost his final match to Roderick Strong at Unforgettable. All three were excellent matches, and although Gibson left after Unforgettable, he said he'd be proud to come back if he ever got the opportunity to return to ROH.

Ari Berenstein: Gibson's title win was extremely emotional, the culmination of months of coming out on the losing end of things in title situations. However, the "Redneck Messiah" kept plugging at it and finally got what he wanted. The extra nice touch was Spanky's behavior in the post win festivity as well as Gibson celebrating with his wife at the end of Redemption. I also liked the short "pulling back the curtain" that was done at the very end of that DVD. From there, Gibson's actual title run was a bit of a disappointment. I knew it would be short and so for me these defenses didn't have the same dramatic impact. Night of the Grudges II came under fire for the Homicide DQ and because of that I think the fans already had made their minds made up they wouldn't like the singles match between Gibson and Spanky later in the night. Danielson/Gibson was one of my personal favorites of the year and really represented everything right about a title fight. It was also the dream match fans had asked for ever since Gibson came into ROH. Ultimately, Gibson's second half of his stay in Ring of Honor was more amazing than his already excellent first half run. The matches against Yang and Strong are must watch, there is so much joy and satisfaction on the face of Gibson after both of these matches. That he wrestled at his best in his last matches than at any other time is quite the accomplishment.

-Lacey's New Angels

Following the breakup of Special K in early 2005, Lacey had taken the group of Izzy, Deranged, Cheech, and Cloudy and renamed them Lacey's Angles. However, they didn't have the most stellar record, and Lacey suspended them at The Homecoming. Months passed, but Lacey finally brought the Angels back at Unforgettable, only to reveal that they were fired and being replaced by former ROH Tag Team Champions BJ Whitmer and Jimmy Jacobs, who laid the former Angels out, and they haven't been seen since. With their new manager, Whitmer and Jacobs were now ready to try and win the title for a third time.

Ari Berenstein: Lacey, despite her fine looks, tends to overrate her abilities as a manager. She was the "Yoko Ono" to Special K's "The Beatles" and then she self-destructed her own team! She even messed up the long standing union of Whitmer and Jacobs when she brought them under her wing. I miss Cheech, he was really starting to come along and had a nice cult following during the summer of '05. He was quite entertaining and really cool with the fan interaction at ringside. Cheech, Cloudy, Izzy, Deranged, Azriael and Dixie: all these guys had been with ROH for the longest time, but one by one they were dropping off, and by the end of '05 only Azriael was left as any kind of ROH regular. It's a shame.

-The Japanese Invasion

Several big name wrestlers from Japan competed in ROH in late 2005, making ROH stand out as a truly international destination for great wrestling. At Dragon Gate Invasion, two of Dragon Gate's stars made appearances, as CIMA defeated AJ Styles and Shingo Takagi lost to Curry Man. After Dragon Gate Invasion, perhaps the most memorable Japanese visitor in ROH history made two appearances when Pro Wrestling NOAH's Kenta Kobashi beat Samoa Joe in a brutally stiff classic at Joe vs Kobashi, then teamed with Homicide to defeat Joe and Low Ki at Unforgettable. In a sign of things to come in 2006, Naomichi Marufuji and GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion KENTA appeared in the final two matches at Final Battle 2005. Marufuji lost to ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson, while KENTA closed the evening with a huge win over Low Ki to close the show. Both the Dragon Gate group as well as Marufuji and KENTA would return to ROH in 2006, and they were ready to make an impact that surpassed what they accomplished in 2005.

Ari Berenstein: The appearances of wrestlers from DG and NOAH were the first steps of longer term relationships with each company. It did cement ROH as the place of international exchange. I hadn't seen much of any of these wrestlers when watching their ROH matches, but by the end of each of them I came away impressed.

At this point what HASN'T been said about Joe-Kobashi? It was my Match of the Year and still my favorite match that I've seen live, even surpassing the Benoit-Michaels-HHH three way at WM XX. If anyone reading this still hasn't picked up Joe v. Kobashi, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? Go, Go! Buy NOW! Meanwhile, KENTA came in and did his thing with Low Ki and it blew everyone away, nearly stealing MOTY away from Joe-Kobashi, setting up more of his appearances in 2006. The match itself was a blast and helped ROH to go out of 2005 in style.

-Bryan Danielson's Destiny

Bryan Danielson had walked out of ROH after failing to win the ROH Title from Austin Aries at Nowhere To Run, but was lured back when he was granted one more shot at the ROH Title, this time against new champion James Gibson. Danielson defeated Gibson that night to finally win the title he seemed destined to win from day one, and after winning the title, he told the live crowd that unlike the last few ROH Champions, he had no aspirations to go to WWE or TNA because ROH was the only place where he had the freedom to wrestle how he wanted without being told what he could and could not do. After winning the title, he embarked on a very impressive series of title defenses through the late fall and early winter, first avenging his loss to Austin Aries at Enter The Dragon, then blowing through Steve Corino, Roderick Strong twice, Chris Sabin, Azrieal, Christopher Daniels, and Rocky Romero, then wrapped the year up in pmressive fashion by beating Pro Wrestling NOAH's Naomichi Marufuji. Through all these defenses, Danielson had proven himself one of the top technical wrestlers in the world by putting on mat wrestling clinics in which he literally dominated and soundly defeated everybody he had been thrown in the ring with.

Ari Berenstein: Danielson as champion could have happened in the first year of Ring of Honor, the second year, the third year, but it all came to a head in this fourth year. All the effort Danielson put in when he wrestled for Ring of Honor and around the world made his win at Glory By Honor IV just that much sweeter. What's more, he began a run with the title based on wrestling the way he wanted to wrestle and doing things his way, not the corporate way. That was the mantra of Ring of Honor in a nutshell, a perfect synergy of the wrestling and the wrestler itself. Danielson's defenses started off solid if unspectacular, and his goofy interviews were a bit off of what I expected out of a champion. However, the big change that occurred in the first Dragon-Strong match helped turn things around. Dragon's run as champ became more about being the best and proving it to be the case in every match. Dragon's offensive arsenal and his ability to withstand being hurt has been the dominant theme in the ring during this title run. In addition, Danielson's charisma started to shine through, his goofiness was cut down in favor of a confident, almost arrogant champion who demanded he be known as "The Best Wrestler in the World." If anyone can prove that they are better than him in the ring, then that person will be the new ROH World champion and the "Best Wrestler in the World." And until then, it's Dragon at the top of the heap in the United States, and everyone else is a distant second place.

-Nigel The Pure Champion

Nigel McGuinness was also one of the top technical wrestlers in the world, and he proved it in late 2005. First he defeated Colt Cabana in a European Rules match at Escape From New York that disheartened Cabana so much that he left and went to England to learn more about Nigel's wrestling style. Although he lost to Cabana in a Soccer Riot Match when Cabana eventually returned, he bounced right back by beating Samoa Joe cleanly to win the Pure Wrestling Title at Dragon Gate Invasion. He went on to successfully defend the title against Roderick Strong and BJ Whitmer, but lost a non-title match to newcomer Claudio Castagnoli at Enter The Dragon. Nigel regained his momentum with a second win over Joe at Buffalo Stampede, but was faced with Claudio twice more, defending the title at Showdown In Motown and Final Battle 2005, but retained the title by DQ both times. Nigel had been lucky to make it out of 2005 with the Pure Title, but he would be faced with the challenge of Castagnoli and many others in 2006.

Ari Berenstein: As much as the Soccer Riot featured Colt Cabana's comedy, it was playing off of Nigel and his European ways that helped max out the entertainment and atmosphere in their blow off match. Nigel did indeed improve a ton during 2005, but initially many didn't buy or want the Pure title win over Samoa Joe. Nigel eventually made the title his and people hated him for it. The Nigel/Claudio feud was good wrestling booking 101-build up a man as a worthy challenger, then throw a bunch of stuff in his way to build up to the final match. At Final Battle 2005, Claudio's title win was taken away. I was upset because they had gotten me. I had bitten on the Dusty Finish and damned if I wasn't mad at Nigel for it.

-Ricky Reyes vs The ROH Wrestling School

After being left to twist in the wind when his partner Rocky Romero embarked on a career in Japan as Black Tiger, Reyes decided to make a name for himself by squashing the ROH School students. Every single show, Reyes would defeat one of the students in under a minute, and after beating up all of the students by himself at Steel Cage Warfare, beat Top Of The Class Trophy holder Davey Andrews in a short match at Final Battle 2005. However, the actions of Reyes drew the ire of Austin Aries, head trainer at the school. He ran down Reyes for picking on the students, then belittled him for his lack of success since Romero left. Would there be a Generation Next vs Rottweilers feud in 2006?

Ari Berenstein: My memories of these matches? Squash. Squash. Squash. Mega Squash. Fans were chanting "30 Seconds!" and calling for the quick tap. I don't know how much this got over the students or Reyes at all. It was worth it all for Austin Aries' promo where he called out Reyes for getting over only when he was drunk.

Conclusion

The entire face of ROH had changed in 2005. Several top names including CM Punk, James Gibson, and Spanky had departed the company. However, AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels had returned from their forced exiles, although they hadn't reclaimed the top spots they once occupied. Who else would step up and make their name in 2006?

Colt Cabana was just having fun, but struck a nerve in Homicide that drove the street thug from Brooklyn over the edge, and now it seemed that Homicide would not be happy until Colt Cabana was out of ROH, dead, or both. Would Colt Cabana have any chance against a foe such as this, much less be able to come out ahead?

Jay Lethal had gone from being a lower-midcarder at the beginning of the year to beating his mentor and former ROH World Champion Samoa Joe as the year came to an end. Would his rise continue in the new year? Also, Generation Next and the Embassy had a very hotly contested feud, but that was now behind them. What was next for the two groups? Would Austin Aries and Roderick Strong be the dominant Tag Team Champions ROH has needed for its entire existence, but had yet to find?

Speaking of champions, Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness and World Champion Bryan Danielson had both come back strong from shaky records in the first half of the year to claim the two top singles titles in the company. Both are very good mat wrestlers, possibly too good to be beaten, and both had strangleholds on their titles. Who, if anybody, would be able to beat them and take their titles?

Ring Of Honor certainly seemed to have the most dominant group of champions at one time in its history, but as if that wasn't enough to make things interesting going into the new year, ROH had also hired a troubleshooting commissioner to handle some of the harder to control situations, and that man was Jim Cornette. Fresh off years running WWE's developmental territory at Ohio Valley Wrestling, Cornette was a highly respected mind in the world of professional wrestling, and he had literally been everywhere and seen it all. Aside from that, he is also known to be one of the most opinionated men in the business today, and has never been shy about expressing his thoughts. How would his presence affect the direction of ROH in 2006?

As huge a year as 2005 was for Ring Of Honor, 2006 would be even bigger, more successful, and certainly more surreal than anything yet seen in ROH. Major things happened and some unexpected guests began popping up to crash the party. As I write this in the last days of August 2006, the first eight months of ROH have been quite a wild ride indeed, and to find out what happened, just check right back here…in 2007.