Column of Honor: 09.16.06 Glory By Honor V Weekend
Posted by Ari Berenstein on 09.16.2006
ROH Tents and ROH Main Events: Huge Glory By Honor V Reviews and Previews. Plus Jimmy Jacobs Emo Tears and the Love Triangle is not to be feared. Rhyme Tyme baby!
These are the weekends I live for as a fan of wrestling.
Glory By Honor V weekend began last night in Connecticut, where of all things a monstrous storm somehow got ROH kicked out of the Sports World main building. Apparently it had to do with fire codes and leaks in the roof or something or other—there are a few stories here and I couldn't' really find out the straight answer. What that all meant is that for the first time since the May 22nd, 2004 Generation Next show, the event took place outdoors and underneath a tent. This was only the second main show to be held outdoors in this kind of atmosphere. From the reports I've been reading on the message board and other websites, the tent was pretty crappy as well, necessitating most of the wrestlers not doing diving moves or moves off of the top rope and it pretty much stayed a ground game during the matches, save for one spectacular flippy dive from Jack Evans (even the federal government aviation commission wouldn't be able to ground him)
The use of the tent and the troubles that all came with it, including fans unhappy and on edge, getting dripped on by the tent and muddy floor space, reminds us ROH fans that once again, despite how successful ROH has been over the course of it's run, there are always going to be these kinds of problems because in the end, ROH is still indie. Of course, I'm sure WWE has faced lots of technical and logistical issues due to the larger venues it runs, but it's just that we never hear about them. With the close nit community of ROH fans on the net, these news bits spread like wildfire.
ROH Results: Glory By Honor V Night One East Windsor, CT September 15th, 2006
Matches
-The Ring Crew Express of Dunn & Marcos defeated Rhett Titus & Pelle Primeau.
-The Kings of Wrestling: Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli defeated The Ring Crew Express when Chris Hero pinned Marcos in an impromptu match.
-Jack Evans defeated Jimmy Jacobs, Colt Cabana, & Ricky Reyes in a Four Corner Survival. Evans pinned Jacobs who was attacked and knocked out by Cabana.
-Nigel McGuinness defeated Christopher Daniels.
-Austin Aries defeated Davey Richards via pinfall, using two brainbusters.
-Delirious defeated Shane Hagadorn.
-Samoa Joe defeated Roderick Strong via pinfall, using a top rope Island Driver.
-KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji defeated Jay & Mark Briscoe via pinfall. KENTA pinned Mark Briscoe via the GO 2 SLEEP.
Angles and Issues
Expressly Destroyed: Those dastardly Kings of Wrestling made their move ater the tag team squash win for Ring Crew Express.
-Substitution: Rickey Reyes filled in for Claudio Castagnoli in the four corner survival due to his involvement in the impromptu tag match.
-Neck Problems Cravate Solutions: Roderick Strong taking the monstrous Island Driver from the top from Joe created a "neck problem" for the tag champion. Tonight in NYC is KOW vs. Aries and Strong for the tag titles, where both the challengers have huge moves focusing on the neck area. To use improper English, this ain't no good for Aries and Strong.
The Noah Gauntlet: ROH champion "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson cut a promo in the ring and claimed he would run the gauntlet of NOAH wrestlers present for tomorrow's event if he had to in order to retain the championship.
ROH returns to East Windsor, CT on Friday, December 22, 2006 for a double shot weekend, possibly Final Battle 2006. Hopefully it won't be in a tent or contested under rain or snow like conditions..
Reaction
As far as results go, this event pretty much ended up like I expected. I didn't think Strong would pick up two pins on Joe in a row, and I didn't expect Davey Richards to pick up the win on Austin Aries in ROH just yet. Richards did defeat Aries at the PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2006 (Nana says pick it up, you fools!) on his way to winning the whole tournament. However, Richards is still earning his stripes in ROH and has actually been on a small losing streak over the course of the last few shows. My expectation is that he wins the Survival of the Fittest '06 to become the 2006 King of Indie Tournaments. Meanwhile, KENTA avenges his sole loss on the ROH record books in defeating The Briscoes. Teaming up with his regular tag partner instead of a protégé was the solution to the problem. Daniels lost again and Nigel won again, which I also expected. As a huge fan of Daniels, I really would like to see him being more involved in ROH, especially in storylines—but it just doesn't seem to be in the cards for him right now.
And this is just in from 411's own reporter on the scene, Stuart "I hate AJ Styles and I love Hulk Hogan" Carapola:
Hey Ari, I doubt this will make it in time for the column, but the show in
CT last night was really wild. They wound up running outside the building
under a tent, and it was the coolest thing. It was totally pouring out the
entire show, and I was literally one row from being outside the edge of the
tent, everybody was getting soaked behind me. The show itself was
excellent, for one it was much better than the kind of show they usually put
on in their "fringe" markets (like a CT, Long Island, Boston, Buffalo, etc),
all the action was solid and most of the time was spent on the four main
events, with minimal time spent on the undercard matches. Made for a really
great atmosphere. Nigel looked good with a clean win over Daniels, Joe and
Roderick had a cringe-inducing stiff-fest that Joe won with a DVD OFF THE
TOP ROPE. Aries and Richards was surprisingly stiff too, and Briscoes vs
KENTA and Marufuji was off the charts awesome between two of the best teams
in the world today. All the workers were obviously handicapped by the tent
hanging so low that top rope moves weren't really mostly possible, but it
just went to show what a truly talented crew ROH really has that they were
able to work around that and not being able to do much outside the ring
(being on dirt and grass that was saturated with water) and yet still made
it probably the best show I've been to from them outside of NYC, NJ, and
Philly. I can't wait for tonight's Manhattan Center debut if that's what
they did in CT.
ROH Preview: Glory By Honor V Night Two: 9/16 New York, NY
It's a weekend I've been waiting for since the beginning of August—the next ROH show I'm able to attend live and in person. There is always something extra special about attending ROH shows in my hometown—especially since that hometown in the mecca of all cities (sorry, Chi-town, LA and all the other big towns out there), NYC. ROH does a great job in Chicago and Dayton, but New York has always been up there as far as special shows—the ones where the wrestlers go the extra mile. What is also exciting to me personally is that this will be my first time inside the Manhattan Center. I've been to Hammerstein Ballroom plenty of times for concerts and even attended an ECW show there back in 2000. However, Manhattan Center, which is located above Hammerstein in the same building, is essentially the birthplace of the modern wrestling scene. As the first location of Monday Night Raw, the Manhattan Center was beamed directly into the cable households of America. On that very street, Bob Backlund walked up and down and all around like a crazy old man who forgot his meds. On that very street and in that very building, Ring of Honor now runs one of its biggest shows of the year.
Then again isn't it one of ROH's biggest shows of the year almost every time out?
7:30 pm belltime
Manhattan Center (Grand Ballroom)
311 West 34th St.
New York, NY 10001
Ring Detail: ROH World Title: "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson (champion) versus KENTA (challenger)
obsessedwithwrestling.com Bryan Danielson
Height and Weight: 5' 10"; 190 lbs.
Date of Birth: May 22, 1981
Hailing From: Aberdeen, WA
Years Pro: 6
Finishing Moves: Cattle Mutilation, Regalplex, now using Crossface Chickenwing
obsessedwithwrestling.com KENTA
Height and Weight: 5' 8"; 176 lbs.
Date of Birth: March 18, 1981
Hailing From: Saitama, Japan
Years Pro: 6
Finishing Moves: Go 2 Sleep, Busaiku Knee Kick
History: If anyone has the answer to American Dragon's dominance in Ring of Honor over the course of the last 365 days, it would be KENTA. Pro Wrestling Noah's imported star made a huge impact in ROH at Final Battle 2005 and quickly became one of the more popular fan favorites. He also began to regularly appear in ROH every few months or so. It was in March of 2006 that KENTA teamed with now GHC Heavyweight champion Naomichi Marufuji to defeat the American super team of Samoa Joe and Bryan Danielson. It may have been quite the shock to the system to American Dragon to lose at that point, especially since up then his run in ROH had been dominance. Up to that point, Danielson had just one loss in his entire stay as champion, and that was also in a tag match situation at Tag Wars 2006, taking the losing pinfall to Roderick Strong. Here, it was Danielson once again taking the short end of the stick, getting thrashed and mauled by KENTA's kicks and finally succumbing to the Go 2 Sleep (fireman's carry into a knee direct to the head or chest). Dragon could not have been happy at all to lose, much less to lose to someone only making their second appearance in Ring of Honor. However, Dragon willingly shook KENTA's hand at the time.
With a huge win against the champion, it was naturally assumed that KENTA had rocketed up to the top contender position and would soon receive a title shot against Dragon. However, Dragon had other ideas, basically claiming that since KENTA has not bested him a singles situation, he did not deserve a title shot.
Flashing forward a few months to June of 2006, KENTA was in the midst of an undefeated streak Dragon had become even more cold and stoic in his title run and was now becoming engaged in a full blown feud against Samoa Joe. Meanwhile, Samoa Joe had his own problems with KENTA centered on respect, and so a triple threat was signed and delivered in New York City. In that match, KENTA took a hellacious slap from Joe and was concussed early on. Still, the young star rebounded and recovered, and once again did what had become almost impossible—he pinned the ROH champion with the Go 2 Sleep maneuver. KENTA was two for two against Dragon and now it could not be denied that KENTA deserved a title shot. It was just a question of where and when.
On August 26th, 2006, American Dragon separated and tore his shoulder ten minutes into what would become a one hour draw against Colt Cabana. Dragon retained the title, but was on the shelf until he could be further examined. The tears have been revealed to be pretty serious and as a result a planned title match between Dragon and Austin Aries on September 15th was scratched. ROH officials even said Dragon could take more time off to heal up his shoulder and he would not be stripped of the title. However, even with the injury, the ROH champ decided to wrestle the big marquee match in New York City, the big title match against KENTA. Dragon it seems needs to prove that he can beat KENTA in a match, no matter what the cost. What he may not realize is that the cost is the ROH title and by stepping in the ring he places his title run in danger. It is now one year since Dragon won the title by defeating James Gibson, but one day may be all that is left in the year of the dragon.
Strategy: KENTA has reportedly been working on a shoulder submission (according to the ROH newswire) and since Dragon's shoulder is injured, that is the natural strategy to take against the wounded champ. KENTA also has a huge amount of knock out power and the Busaiku Knee kick and Go 2 Sleep have been very effective against Dragon in their previous tag and triple threat encounter. Perhaps Dragon has scouted for those moves, but does he have the strength and mental awareness required to dodge, reverse or block those moves? It's a big question mark. Meanwhile, the severity of the shoulder tear will determine just how Dragon attacks KENTA. The shoulder certainly limits the amount of submission elasticity and power, taking away some of Dragon's best submission moves that he has used to great success. A strike battle may be futile since both hit hard and then hit harder, but if I was Dragon I'd remember that KENTA got concussed by a hard hit to the head and target that area until KENTA is knocked out.
Intangibles: NOAH wrestlers Morishima, Sugiura & Yone will be in attendance. Their presence ringside could upset Dragon mentally.
Prediction: The shoulder injury and all the NOAH / ROH madness of the last few weeks make this one of the most difficult picks in quite some time. Before the injury, it looked like Dragon would get his revenge here by defeating KENTA. Now, however, KENTA has a great chance to the ROH title back to Japan—it's certainly a very interesting story for its international ramifications. Since KENTA is in America just about every month now, having a foreign wrestler win the title is not as inconvenient as it may have been only one year ago. With all that said, while I won't be shocked if KENTA does win (and in fact I'll be cheering heavily when it happens), I think Dragon has one more miracle in him and will take the victory here.
Ring Detail: GHC Heavyweight Title: Naomichi Marufuji (champion) versus Nigel McGuinness (challenger)
obsessedwithwrestling.com Naomichi Marufuji
Height and Weight: 5' 9"; 174 lbs.
Date of Birth: September 26, 1979
Hailing From: Saitama, Japan
Years Pro: 8
Finishing Moves: Shiranui (Sliced Bread # 2), Super Shiranui
obsessedwithwrestling.com Nigel McGuinness
Height and Weight: 6' 1"; 220 lbs.
Date of Birth: N/A
Hailing From: London, England
Years Pro: 7
Finishing Moves: Tower of London, Rebound Momentum Closeline
History: Since Marufuji won the GHC Heavyweight title last week against Jun Akiyama, this match is now plenty more intriguing, if perhaps a lot more predictable in its outcome. There is no real back story between these two in Ring of Honor. There is no vendetta or even any previous interaction. This is a fresh one on one match up. The honor here is for Ring of Honor to host the first ever GHC title match in America, and the honor is for Nigel McGuinness to have the first crack at NOAH's new champion. McGuinness has wrestled for NOAH before and so is a known entity to the Japanese fans. He has been on the roll of his career over the summer, upping his game in the ring and involved in many high profile matches against Bryan Danielson. He should be able to provide great competition to Marufuji, even if realistically it does not seem he has much of a shot in winning the title. Marufuji is just starting his campaign as GHC Heavyweight champion—it must be an exciting time for him, because he gets to demonstrate his skills and abilities on an international platform. Think of the Yankees playing in Japan, only in reverse. Marufuji has an opportunity to make his home country and his fans proud by defeating England's son in America.
Strategy: Speed is the name of the game for Marufuji—he is as quick as a lightening bolt and packs almost as huge an impact. Marufuji is going to want to run circles around Nigel and attack from all sides as much as possible. The Shiranui is a known finisher in ROH, but its effectiveness here has been negligible in recent times. Marufuji may need to use another move to get the job done. Meanwhile, Nigel will want to ground Marufuji and chain wrestle around the ring. That will set up his higher impact moves, which if you've seen his recent matches have been some of his most deadly and dangerous offense. The pop from the rebound close line he does is unreal. Nigel is going to have to put all his moves together well enough to gain the momentum necessary to unseat the champion.
Intangibles: Marufuji has his big opportunity here to prove to world that he is going to be a legitimate and defending champion. He is either at his most nervous or at his most confident.
Prediction: Nigel will be in it, but he will not win it. A good showing will up his value here and internationally, but in the end, this is Marufuji's breakthrough party. The GHC champion retains in his first defense.
Also on the Card:
The Legendary BRUNO SAMMARTINO will make his return to Midtown Manhattan and he will be available to meet
Bruno Sammartino is arguably the greatest champion ever, with two title runs spanning eleven years. No one has or will ever again have that kind of dominance on American soil. Things are just too different now. Madison Square Garden (the old one, not the newest one mind you) was his home away from home and where the champ did the greatest business and had some of the greatest matches. That Bruno chose to make one of his very few wrestling related appearances at a Ring of Honor event is amazing. ROH has had many big name guests over the last four years, but Bruno is a prime "get". If he makes an in ring appearance, the roof may literally and figuratively blow off of the Manhattan Center.
ROH World Tag Team Title Match
Austin Aries & Roderick Strong defend vs. Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli
The Kings of Wrestling just will not go away. As stated in the ROH newswire, they are like roaches…you think you've killed them but then somehow they survive and continue to annoy you to no end. I can think of no better metaphor than that. Despite not wrestling together in ROH since Death Before Dishonor IV, Hero and Castagnoli received a shot so that Aries and Strong could get revenge. The Kings managed to steal the tag titles from under their noses over the summer, and the champs were none too plussed about that. Of course it was a mind game to get the title shot—if anything Hero is smarter than your average bear. He will use that mental game and Aries and Strong's physical injuries (ribs and neck) in order to pluck the title away from the dominant tag team champions. Expect the title change here and for Chris Hero to become a major thorn in ROH's side once more.
Tag Team Grudge Match
Homicide & Samoa Joe vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe
Follow the Feud:
-In 2003, Joe didn't like the Briscoes because he didn't feel they were worthy enough to challenge him for the ROH title. While Joe was successful in retaining the big belt, he could not claim the tag titles from The Briscoes with any of the partners he selected. He made peace with The Briscoes out of respect for their in ring achievements.
-In 2003 and 2004, Joe and Homicide didn't like each other. Well, actually, that would be quite an understatement. Joe defeated ‘Cide, and then Cide defeated Joe before Joe was champion by choking him out with a bullrope. To say their relationship started out on less than positive terms would also be quite an understatement.
-Joe and ‘Cide would eventually feud over the ROH World title, where Homicide was repeatedly unsuccessful in becoming the big dog in the house.
-The Briscoes didn't like Homicide in mid 2004 after the events of Reborn: Completion and the reformation of The Rottweilers. Homicide and The Briscoes would engage in several altercations as a result, until the Briscoes were out of action.
-Samoa Joe and Homicide made a sort of grudging peace in the midst of the war between ROH and CZW. Joe seemed to gain some sort of respect for Homicide for the choices he made to stick with ROH.
-The Briscoes still don't like Homicide, and seemed to be doing Commissioner Jim Cornette's bidding in repeated attacks against The Notorious One.
-Samoa Joe now doesn't like The Briscoes again, because of their cowardly attack on Homicide.
- Meanwhile, Joe and Homicide, they still don't really like each other. And that would be quite the understatement.
Did you get all that?
ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette Will Be In Attendance
Aside from sending his foot soldiers out to attack Homicide and a few choice words in online promos, there has not been all that much movement on the beef between New York's own Notorious 187 and the commish. This may all change on tonight's show—a war of words and / or physical confrontation seems like a sure thing. If there is no incident between the two, then there is not much else for the story to go. If Cornette is bloodied up and damage is done, then that is a different story.
Special Challenge Match
Jack Evans vs. Davey Richards
Richards just lost to Evans' former Generation Next teammate and is looking to rebound here. This is also a first time match up in Ring of Honor and on paper there is tons of potential in this combination. The run and gun game of Evans is a contrast to the stiff impact of Davey Richards' strikes. It should be interesting to see who controls and dominates the match with their style. Evans can bump like a super doper super ball and Richards has been the kind of guy to destroy someone to that point. Both are also extremely popular wrestlers—as Evans likes to say, he may be from Washington but he runs New York—the reaction from the crowd may help elevate the match just that much more.
One Fall Three Way
Christopher Daniels vs. Colt Cabana vs. Jimmy Jacobs with Lacey
5 Things You Need To Know About This Match:
1. Colt Cabana has studied well at the feet of the master of macking, his good friend CM Punk by getting it on with Lacey.
2. This will be the second encounter in the ring between Jimmy Jacobs and Colt since the Lacey Scandal occurred. This one could get emo.
3. The last time Daniels fought in a three way match in NY was at Joe vs. Kobashi last October. He won that match.
4. Daniels also had a relatively recent brush with Lacey and her machinations. He took her advice to help prepare for a match against BJ Whitmer back at the Fourth Anniversary Show
5. Jimmy Jacobs still loves Lacey as much as he did before, and that could distract him and cost him a great deal in this match.
Challenge Match
Delirious vs. Adam Pearce
What Delirious Was Thinking After Jim Cornette Announced This Match:
BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH
BAH BAH BAH BAH OH SHIT BAH BAH
BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH
BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH
NOAH's Morishima, Sugiura & Yone will be available for autographs
Due to the tent issues last night, I believe these men were not able to do the autograph signings. There should not be such problems tonight.
BREAKING NEWS: GLORY BY HONOR V NIGHT TWO TO BE CONTESTED IN A TENT OUTSIDE MANHATTAN CENTER…OH WAIT, that's just the Barnum and Bailey circus playing across the street in MSG. My mistake. Column of Honor regrets this untimely error in reporting. We now return you to our regular Column of Honor honorable column…of honor…yeah.
ROH Call
ROH Champions—As of 9/16/2006 (heading into GBH V Night Two)
ROH World Champion—American Dragon Bryan Danielson (champion since 9/17/05, 30 successful defenses)*, **
ROH World Tag Team Champions—Austin Aries and Roderick Strong (champions since 12/17/05, 16 successful defenses) ***
*ROH World and Pure Titles Unified on 8/12/06, Pure Title is folded
**Dragon makes successful defense of ROH title at ETW promotion in Texas on 6/10/06.
***Aries and Strong make two successful defenses in Japan, thus turning the ROH tag team titles into WORLD tag team titles.
ROH News (via the ROHnewswire… and other sources when attributed
Dragon Breathes Fire
Danielson gave an interview with SLAM! Sports where he talks about his shoulder, the upcoming weekend, and the sacrifices he made to become the head trainer of the ROH school. Check it out, it's a fun read.
First GHC Title Match in America ROH will have the honor of hosting new GHC Heavyweight Champion Naomichi Marufuji this weekend. It will be Marufuji & KENTA vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe on Friday and Marufuji vs. Nigel McGuinness on Saturday. Marufuji defeated Jun Akiyama on 9/9 for the title. He is now the only grand slam champion in NOAH history as he has won all of NOAH's titles. The GHC Heavyweight Title is considered the most important belt in Japan and many experts call it the most prestigious title in all of wrestlilng. Congratulations to Naomichi Marufuji for the huge win.
I did not change any of the spelling in the above newsbit. Notice how the word "wrestling" is spelled. Well, I guess there IS one thing that ROH can't do right after all! The best wrestling? They can't even spell the word!
I am of course being sarcastic here. Please don't send your hate emails. I know some of you can tell, but others…have trigger fingers of HATE!
Seriously, Marufuji having won all the titles in NOAH is an amazing accomplishment and goes to show once again that in today's wrestling scene you don't have to be the biggest guy on the block in order to be successful. I am hoping that Marufuji gets a heroes welcome in NYC tonight, but more on that later on in the column.
Training Updates ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson returned to training at the ROH Wrestling School yesterday with both the advanced and beginner classes. If you are interested in joining the beginning class email ROHhelp@aol.com for info. Danielson was having some trouble with his shoulder and was in pain, but still insists he will be ready for KENTA this Saturday in Manhattan. It is becoming clear that Danielson has an almost inhuman tolerance for pain. ROH officials are becoming fearful that Danielson might make the injury worse by wrestling. They even told Danielson that he can take time off for the surgery and that he won't be stripped of the title, but Danielson refused saying he is going to be a fighting champion. Danielson told ROH officials that "pain is temporary, but pride is forever" and that he will avenge KENTA's pinfalls on him. There is no telling what will happen when KENTA lands one of his big kicks on Danielson's shoulder or chest.
ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson continued his training all week in preparation for this Saturday's huge World Title Match vs. KENTA. Danielson did tell us that his shoulder is not in pain, but it is in discomfort at all times. ROH officials are holding off scheduling KENTA's opponents for 11/3 in Boston and 11/4 in Philadelphia in case KENTA wins the title. If KENTA is World Champion he will defend the belt on both those November dates and return to ROH in December. There is no telling how Danielson's shoulder will hold up to KENTA's kicks. Rumors have even leaked out that KENTA was working on a shoulder/arm submission last week. Don't forget that KENTA has already defeated Danielson twice with Go To Sleep. The last time KENTA hit Go To Sleep on Danielson it gave him a concussion. Danielson insists that he will not lose this Saturday and for ROH officials to start planning out his October title defenses.
Some big talk from Dragon. This is a good look at the consequences and fall out from tonight's show—the directions that ROH can go if Dragon retains or if KENTA wins.
A Ban on TP? Next They'll Be Burning Books Since Jimmy Rave will not be at this weekend's events toilet paper will be banned (except in the bathrooms). If you throw TP this weekend you will be ejected.
ROH is coming down harsh on the throwing of items, which I applaud one hundred percent. There is no reason to be throwing shit in the ring randomly. Only Jimmy Rave deserves the TP. That being said, maybe ROH officials should lockdown and control the TP in the bathrooms as well. Only four sheets per person per visit to the loo! If you need more, tough shit!
Oh ho ho, I applaud MYSELF one hundred percent on that one. I rarely go scatological, but it was right there for the taking.
Taking a Bite out of the Big Apple Ring Of Honor will have a table at the Big Apple Con this Saturday at the Penn Plaza Pavilion across the street from MSG. Check http://www.bigapplecon.com/index.htm for info on the huge comic book, art, toy and sci-fi convention.
This is an incredibly smart move and I'm surprised ROH hadn't done stuff like this sooner. They should have booths at nearby conventions wherever they run. The Big Apple con just happens to be right nearby Manhattan Center and as the newswire says right across from MSG. If someone is interested enough in ROH, all they have to do is walk the two blocks down to 8th Avenue and catch the show!
The Victory of Love…Is Not Victorious Jimmy Jacobs has sent in a new promo and music video. It contains some shocking news about Lacey.
The shocking news as revealed by Jacobs is that he caught Lacey and Colt Cabana "having sex" during one of the shows! Not only that but, it was sex in the shower! Wild! This is indeed a heart breaker of an incident, but not for Jacobs, who claimed he still loves Lacey ad will do anything to win her back (which is nice since she was never really with him romantically in the first place). Jacobs then unveiled his new video "The Victory of Love", which may be even more emo than his first hit single, "The Ballad of Lacey." I'd recommend checking out the video, even if just for a good laugh to see Jacobs emo hurting, including sitting right next to a tombstone that bears his last name and one of the most awesome endings to a video you will ever lay your eyes on.
And for Jimmy, I've got some really good advice for you on your quest to win back Lacey. Since you're such a big music guy, I'd thought I'd put it into song. So, here goes:
The power of love is a curious thing
Make a one man weep, make another man sing
Change a hawk to a little white dove
More than a feeling that's the power of love
Tougher than diamonds, rich like cream
Stronger and harder than a bad girls dream
Make a bad one good make a wrong one right
Power of love that keeps you home at night
Chorus 1 :
You don't need money, don't take fame
Don't need no credit card to ride this train
Its strong and its sudden and its cruel sometimes
But it might just save your life
That's the power of love
That's the power of love
First time you feel it, it might make you sad
Next time you feel it it might make you mad
But you'll be glad baby when you've found
That's the power makes the world goround
Chorus 2 :
And it don't take money, don't take fame
Don't need no credit card to ride this train
Its strong and its sudden it can be cruel sometimes
But it might just save your life
They say that all in love is fair
Yeah, but you don't care
But you know what to do
When it gets hold of you
And with a little help from above
You feel the power of love
You feel the power of love
Can you feel it ?
Hmmm
Chorus 3 :
It don't take money and it don't take fame
Don't need no credit card to ride this train
Tougher than diamonds and stronger than steel
You won't feel nothin 'till you feel
You feel the power, just the power of love
That's the power, that's the power of love
You feel the power of love
You feel the power of love
Feel the power of love
Feel My Pain.
Better Than The ROHbot Arm This week will feature the last ever ROH Video Recap at ROHvideos.com. The ROH Video Recap will be replaced with the ROH Video Wire, which will have better production values, a more defined format and continuity, hosts and more. The ROH Video Wire will take the ROH Video Recap to the next level and it will still be FREE at ROHvideos.com.
I'm thinking this will be sort of like the Chikara Podcast a Go-Go which you can get for free via iTunes. If you haven't check THAT out, go, check it out now! Anyway, better video features are always a plus in the modern IWC age where many fans can get free matches and such via You Tube. If ROH ups their production, that can only be considered a good thing.
Strike a Match The first matches have been announced for 10/7 when ROH returns to Detroit. A grudge match will have Homicide vs. Jay Briscoe and a special challenge match will see Samoa Joe vs. Mark Briscoe!!!
ROH World Tag Team Champions Austin Aries & Roderick Strong have sent out open contracts all over the wrestling world for 10/27 in Dayton and 10/28 in Chicago. If they get past this weekend, there is no telling what teams will challenge them in the future.
Where have I seen these matches before…hmmm:
-"Samoa Joe defeated Mark Briscoe to retain the ROH World Title" (Final Battle 2003)
-"Homicide defeated Jay Briscoe in a Survival of the Fittest qualifier." (Survival of the Fittest 2004)
Well, at least it's been quite some time ago since we last saw these two combinations, two to three years. Just surprising how sometimes, the more things change, the more there is the same.
I tend to think that the "open contracts" deal for the tag title is a red herring. Kings Reign Supreme tonight.
Also, I have no idea how many more "match" related puns I have left in my brain…but I'll keep trying to come up with more.
…Now it's time for Hero's Sandwich
Well, actually, Chris Hero didn't send in any of his diatribes this week, as it seems he's rather busy…doing whatever it is he does when preparing to get his ass handed to him in a match in Ring of Honor. If we're unlucky, we'll get to catch up with Chris Hero once again next week. I'm holding my breath.
The Apocalypse is NOT Happening Today
The End is not near.
Once a month, this is my place and my time to tell you all out there why Ring of Honor is still doing a-okay and why even set backs are not necessarily the end of the world for the company. If I can find some reasons why the ROH fans shouldn't be apoplectic about the company's situation, I'll put it here. Once a month I'll comment on the talent roster of the company and other items of note that will help all you negative Nancy's get over your big bad dose of Ilhonoraphobia—the fear of losing Ring of Honor.
Jacobs-Cabana-Lacey Love Triangle = Not the Apocalypse
Kurt Angle - Stephanie McMahon - Triple H
Randy Savage – Elizabeth – Ric Flair
Tommy Dreamer - Beulah McGillicutty - Raven
Love Triangles have been a part of wrestling for a long time, even further back than the three examples I listed above. Yet why is it that I feel deep reservations about this upcoming love triangle storyline in ROH between Jimmy Jacobs, Colt Cabana and Lacey?
Is it because this is too close to sports entertainment for my smart sensibilties?
I admit it, I'm worried. I don't want these storylines to become the norm in Ring of Honor. When done right, romance storylines are great. And when done wrong…they are really brutal, really painful to watch. And Mae Young gives birth to a hand.
However, to some extent ROH has always had its fair share of sports entertainment storylines. Just last year Jade Cheung (or is it Chung? I never could quite get that one right) was fighting for her freedom from the clutches of Prince Nana. When she did eventual rebel and became an independent woman, the hardened hardcore wrestling fans, the anti-WWE like sports entertainment crowd at the New Yorker, exploded in joy and excitement. It was the same time of shout that was emitted when Randy Savage reunited with Elizabeth at Wrestlemania VII, the same type of fan pop for when Beulah admitted to the world that "It's Tommy's."
I love that stuff as a fan back then…so why am I so cautious about this storyline now? I don't think it's too terrible to have these sorts of storylines, especially if it helps to give Jacobs and Cabana something new and fresh to accomplish. One of the things that make ROH great is that they actually give their lower card guys something to do as opposed to just saving everything for the main event players. As long as ROH keeps itself mostly wrestling match oriented and uses these sorts of issues as the parsley to the main course, what is so bad about a love triangle?
As much as I have to admit it, the Jacobs-Cabana-Lacey storyline that is about to come through the ROH landscape is hardly the apocalypse. It really is the natural progression for the Jacobs-Lacey storyline. After all, this star crossed match of the year has only existed in Jacobs' mind. The thing to do would be to play with those emotions and incorporate another wrestler in the storyline, and see where it goes. That it has to be Colt Cabana who is involved as the "bad guy" of the triangle is personally disappointing for me. I don't want to boo Colt and I don't want to view him as a heel right now.
Come to think of it who really is the bad guy in the situation? Is it Cabana, who saw who he wanted, someone unattached (in a kayfabe sense, obviously) and went out and got it? Or is it Jacobs, a man delusional enough to believe he was romantically involved with his manager, when everyone else could clearly see it was just a business relationship? No matter how much Lacey led Jacobs on, they in fact were not getting it on. It was Jacobs who fawned over her like a school boy with a crush…and then got crushed. That is something I'm sure many of us who have been through that type of situation, including myself. This is why I feel for Jimmy. This is a tough situation to choose from a fan's perspective.
So imagine how tough it would feel if you were actually Jimmy Jacobs or Colt Cabana or Lacey, and you were actually going through this sordid affair.
That kind of deep question and drama is probably why this whole storyline is going to work out after all. Just ask Jade Chung.
Honorarium
-Why did it take so long for so many ROH fans to come around to Naomichi Marufuji? Well, personally speaking, I was ready to give Nao a HUGE ovation even before he won the GHC Heavyweight title. I came around to him a while ago (hence all the poor Marufuji comments I've made in past columns) and really hoped he would make more appearances in ROH, perhaps at the same rate as KENTA. However, I have to come to the defense of the ROH fans. Sure there are times when we bandwagon jump, but there is a very rational and logical reason why it took so long for some fans to band on this particular wagon.
It all goes back to Final Battle 2005, when Marufuji took on Danielson for the ROH World title and KENTA faced Low Ki in his defense of the GHC Junior Heavyweight belt. Both men came in with TONS of hype about how great they were and how amazing their in ring performance would be when they came to Ring of Honor. However, the Dragon-Marufuji match was below expectations—and just average. Marufuji didn't look all that comfortable in the ring and had blown a few moves (although the finish to the match was quite fast, clean and effective). Meanwhile, KENTA blew the roof off the building with his insanely athletic and hard hitting performance. A few week's later, the DVD of the show came out, and people who probably had never watched these guys before got to see their stuff. Who do you think they were more impressed with?
I don't think as many people follow Puro as is assumed. There are some very knowledgeable ROH fans who also dig Puro and spread that knowledge, but until last year even I, a fan of many, many years, wasn't tuned into the Japanese scene. I'm still not a big Puro guy, although I know more than I did before. What about the average joe ROH fan, who loves wrestling, but only has enough money for ROH and not for Japanese videos?
It was Marufuji's average performance at Final Battle 2005 compared with how KENTA performed that impacted people's reaction. Attending live at the March Best in the World show it was plain to see that people had come to see KENTA fight Samoa Joe. Especially live attendees and casual fans. That influences the way people think of someone. However, the ROH fans were coming around to Marufuji and I think he would have been very greatly received tonight in New York whether or not he was GHC champion.
-In my weekly reaction to how CM Punk's been doing: it makes me feel great pride that NYC did right and gave a great response to Punk at MSG. You could tell Punk right now is genuinely appreciative of how he is being received. There was so much worry that he wouldn't get the chance to prove himself. However things are going just about as well as they possible could have for Punk. He is realizing his potential in the ring and in his promos, and therefore he is getting the ball and scoring each time out. Last year I didn't even know if he would make it to WWE TV.
-As for Cryme Tyme, I wasn't so hot on their latest skit—it wasn't as entertaining as the first one.Maybe it's that white boy fear inside of me that I spoke about in the That Was Then: ROH in 2005 Part Two column.
**The Independent Buy In**
Support independent pro wrestling, ROH or non ROH, I don't care. But if you out there are spending so much time complaining about how WWE sucks, then dammit, spend some money so you won't have to spend so much time complaining. This list stays in the column and will be added to as the year goes on. Remember: don't bow out, BUY IN!
Recommended for purchase:
**IWC No Excuses (Styles vs. Matt Hardy, John McChesney vs. Claudio Castagnoli, Jason Gory vs. Shima Xion)
**FIP New Years Classic (Strong vs. Joe, Homicide vs. James Gibson)
**Hardcore Homecoming (2 Cold Scorpio vs. Kid Kash, 3 Way Dance Barbwire Match Funk vs. Douglas vs. Sabu)
**TNA Lockdown (AJ Styles vs. Abyss, Daniels vs. Skipper, Lethal Lockdown 6 Man Tag, AMW vs. Team Canada + Bonus Chris Candido tribute)
**ROH Fate of an Angel (James Gibson vs. CM Punk, Christopher Daniels vs. Matt Hardy, Roderick Strong vs. AJ Styles, Samoa Joe vs. Jimmy Rave)
**TNA Anthology: The Epic Set (available only through Walmart and Walmart.com at a ridiculously cheap price) (Victory Road 2004, Turning Point 2004, Lockdown 2005)
**ROH Redemption (4 Way Title Elimination—Punk vs. Gibson vs. Joe vs. Daniels, Matt Hardy vs. Homicide, Gen Next of Aries, Strong and Sydal vs. The Embassy of Rave, Shelley and Abyss)
**ROH Punk: The Final Chapter (CM Punk vs. Colt Cabana plus post match celebration, Matt Hardy vs. Roderick Strong, Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal vs Low Ki and Homicide, Austin Aries vs. Jimmy Rave)
**IWC Summer Sizzler 2 (AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe, Steve Corino vs. Shirley Doe, Glen Spectre vs. Chad Collyer, Shima Xion vs. Nigel McGuinness)
**ROH Glory By Honor IV (Dragon vs. Gibson, Styles vs. Rave, Low Ki vs. Jay Lethal) **ROH Joe vs. Kobashi (Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi, Christopher Daniels vs. Matt Sydal vs. Azriael, Gibson vs. Yang)
**TNA Best of the X Division MATCHES Volume 1 (Joe vs. Sabin, Ultimate X AJ vs. Williams vs. Sabin, Ironman match: AJ vs. Daniels)
**FIP Bring the Pain (Punk vs. Danielson 2/3 Falls, Aries vs. Strong)
**OVW October 2005 Television Showcase (Ken Doane vs. Brent Albright III, Johnny Jeter vs. Matt Cappotelli, and CM Punk, CM Punk, CM Punk, CM Punk)
**OVW November 2005 Television Showcase (CM Punk vs. Ken Doane (c)—TV Title, CM Punk vs. Brent Albright, Matt Cappotelli vs. Johnny Jeter (c) II-Heavyweight Title)
**ROH Unforgettable (Samoa Joe / Low Ki vs. Homicide / Kenta Kobashi, Dragon vs. Strong, Daniels vs. Yang, Cabana vs. Evans)
2006 List
*ROH This Means War (Bryan Danielson / Roderick Strong, AJ Styles / Austin Aries, Claudio Castagnoli / Alex Shelley)
**ROH Vendetta (Bryan Danielson / Roderick Strong, Eight Man War: Generation Next + AJ Styles / The Embassy, Samoa Joe / Christopher Daniels)
**ROH A Night of Tribute (Bryan Danielson / Christopher Daniels, Aries + Strong / Joe + Lethal, Colt Cabana / Homicide, Claudio Castagnoli / Milano Collection AT)
**OVW December 2005 Television Showcase (CM Punk (c) vs. Ken Doane vs. Brent Albright—3 Way Dance TV Title, CM Punk vs. Brent Albright—TV Title)
**SHIMMER WOMEN'S ATHLETES Volume 1 (Cheerleader Melissa vs. MsChif, Sara Del Rey vs. Mercedez Martinez, Lacey vs. Daizee Haze)
**TNA Bound For Glory 2005 (Iron Man 2: Styles / Daniels, Monster's Ball 2, Joe / Liger, 10 Man Gauntlet, Jarrett vs. Rhino)
**TNA Genesis 2005 (Jarrett & AMW / Rhino & Team 3-D, Styles / Williams, Elimination X: Joe, Daniels, Shelley, Strong / Sabin, Dutt, Aries, Bentley; Christian Cage Debuts)
**ROH Steel Cage Warfare (Generation Next / The Embassy, Dsanielson / Romero, Joe / Lethal, Corino / Homicide )
**ROH Final Battle 2005 (Low Ki / KENTA, Danielson / Marifuji, Claudio / Nigel, 4CS: Daniels / Joe / Lethal / Whitmer )
**ROH Tag Wars 2006 (All three Trios Tournament 2006 matches, Generation Next / Danielson and Lethal, Low Ki / Christopher Daniels )
**BCW International Incident (Jarrett / Raven, Daniels / Sabin, Petey Williams / Jerry Lynn, Bobby Roode / Abyss)
**SHIMMER WOMEN'S ATHLETES Volume 2 (Four Way Elimination Match: Daizee Haze vs. Sara Del Rey vs. Lacey vs. Mercedes Martinez / MsChif vs. Beth Phoenix / Alison Danger vs. Rain)
**PWG Astonishing X-Mas (December 16th, 2005) (Super Dragon vs. Kevin Steen / Eight Man Tag / Strong & Evans vs. Human Tornado & El Generico / Colt Cabana vs. Scorpio Sky)
**ROH Fourth Anniversary Show (Generation Next / Styles & Sydal, Danielson / Rave, Homicide / Cabana Ghetto Fight, CZW all out brawl)
**ROH Best In The World (KENTA &Marifuji / Joe & Dragon, Strong & Evans / Briscoes, Shelley / Daniels, Shimmer 4 Way)
**ROH Dragon Gate Challenge (Daniels / Joe, Generation Next / Blood Generation, Styles & Sydal / Dragon Kid & Horiguchi)
**PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2005 (2 DISC) (Steen/Dragon, Styles/Evans, Dragon/Reyes, Romero/Kazarian and tons more)
** ROH SUPERCARD of Honor (Danielson / Strong III, Do Fixer / Blood Generation, AJ Styles & Matt Sydal / Austin Aries & Jack Evans, Joe / Jacobs / Daniels)
**ROH Better Than Our Best (the whole damn card. No really, the whole damn card)
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 3 (Knox / Danger, Del Ray / Haze, Cheerleader Melissa / Shantelle Taylor)
**FIP Big Year One Bash Night 1 (Strong / Gibson, Spanky & Rinauro / Rave & Lethal Homicide / McGuiness)
**IWC Super Indy V (Low Ki / Abyss, Sydal / Petey Williams, Delirious / Sydal, Shelley / Reyes, Gambino Bros. Moving Co. / Burning River Brigade—M Dogg 20 and Josh Prohbition)
**Hardcore Homecoming: November Reign PLATNIUM EDITION. (Lynn / Polaco Cage Match, Douglas / Pitbull Gary Wolfe Dog Collar, Matt Hyson / CW Anderson. Bonus DVD: Sabu / Al Snow, Chris Benoit / 2 Cold Scorpio, Psicosis / Rey Mysterio Jr., Lynn / Polaco)
**UWF-TNA Hardcore War July 9th, 2006 (Styles / Joe / Daniels, James Gang / AMW / Team 3-D (No Finish), Jarrett / Rhino, Lynn / Williams, Lethal / Dutt, Abyss / Runt)
**UWF-TNA Monster's Ball July 10th, 2006 (Rhino / Joe / Abyss, AMW / Daniels & Styles, Homicide / Lynn, Lethal / Jarrett)
**Colt Cabana's European Vacation II - World of Cabana
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 4 (Rain / Sara Del Rey, MsChiff / Cheerleader Melissa Falls Count Anywhere, Daizee Haze / Rebecca Knox).
**ROH The 100th Show (Team ROH vs.Team CZW, Danielson / Delirious, Aries & Strong / Homicide & Reyes, Daniels / Castagnoli)
**ROH Ring of Homicide (Homicide / Necro Butcher, Aries & Strong / Briscoes, Daniels / Sydal, Danielson / Delirious, McGuinness / Lethal)
**ROH In Your Face (KENTA / Joe / Danielson, Homicide / Hero, Whitmer / Jacobs, Richards / Rave)
**ROH Throwdown (KENTA / Strong, Danielson / Whitmer / Jacobs, Pearce / Necro Butcher, Rave / Joe / Delirious / Richards)
**ROH Chi-Town Struggle (Danielson / Cabana, KENTA / Aries, ROH vs. CZW, Briscoes / Rave and Kennedy III)
**IWC Summer Sizzler 3 (Shirley Doe / Dennis Gregory IWC World Heavyweight Championship, Delirious / Troy Lords IWC Super Indy Championship, Kings of Wrestling / Rickey Reyes and John McChesney, McChesney / Shima Xion, Burning River Brigade / Cleveland Mafia / Gambino Brothers Moving Company IWC Tag Team Championship)
**FIP Impact of Honor (Aries & Strong / Fast & Furious ROH Tag Team Title Match, Bryan Danielson / Colt Cabana ROH World Title Match / Davey Richards / Shingo Takagi, Steve Madison / Erick Stevens)
In a follow up to a few columns back when I recommended IWC Summer Sizzler 3 and said I would watch No Excuses 2. I have watched it and can't give a recommendation to buy. Even with the big match potential of the show, with a double main event of Christian Cage vs. AJ Styles and Team IWC vs. The Unholy Alliance in a double ring Wargames match…I have my reservations about this one.
First of all, there are repeated camera problems—small one second black outs that occur in several matches. I don't know if this is a technical problem or a problem with editing (but I'd assume the latter) but it gets very annoying and takes away from the in ring product.
As for the in ring product, for some reason most of it just didn't click for me. In usually enjoy the IWC matches I've watched, but I didn't enjoy this one. It starts off with Jason cage vs. Jimmy DeMarco in the opening match, where they are throwing out big move after big move—all high impact, but no selling. I was pretty mad about that right off the bat, and I'm not one to get mad about selling or no selling—but in this case it was so obvious and so annoying that I couldn't get over it. Other matches such as The Cleveland Mafia vs. Shima Xion and Jason Gory as well as Spectre vs. Vendetta and Sexual Harrassment vs. The Gambino Brothers is that there were flashes of brilliance and just very good wrestling, but there were also many awkward moments and botched spots mixed in and really threw off the enjoyment of watching wrestling.
The other major problem I have is with the main event, which was the big blow off to Team IWC vs. Unholy Alliance. Now the rules were that wrestlers were supposed to come in every two minutes, but wrestlers seemed to be coming in every one minute and even faster than that! I mean I know Royal Rumble has messed up timed entrances all the time, but here it was really noticeable and really frustrating. The match itself was decent—just a knock down drag out brawl with plenty of blood and some big high spots. There was even a pay off with the storyline between the refs and Norm Conners—booker / owner of the company.
That's not to say there weren't quite a few bright spots on the DVD, matches and moments that are probably worth the price of the DVD. I just came away disappointed in the overall presentation of the product and the in ring quality. Christian vs. AJ Styles in the ring as far as actually wrestling goes was very disappointing and I expected more from them. However it was quite entertaining to see them do some before match shenanigans as far as choosing what side of the ring to wrestle on and doing rock paper scissors. Delirious and John McChesney have the best match on the show from a wrestling standpoint. It's also always fun to see Eric Xstacy back in IWC. He's quite the personality.
It was also fun to see the wrestlers playing with the concept of the double ring, including moves from one side to the other. Those were great to see and made the show seem different and special.
In the end though, I have to hold the Indie Buy In list to a high standard and it just doesn't add up to me adding the show onto the list. If you want to check out the IWC product, check out one of the other recommendations up there.
ROH @ 411
411's toughest ROH reviewer, Mike Campbell reviews an oldie but a goodie, Weekend of Thunder Night Two. Campbell looks for so many of the small details that he can even see the fine print in those car commercials.
Stu Carapola with That Was Then responds to the AJ Styles fan mail.
Honor Bound Links
Bryan vs. Vinny: BATTEL of THE EMPIRE~! is THIS SUNDAY, September 17th, and available for free via F4W Online and You Tube. Check it out at 8PM Eastern / 5PM Pacific. It's guaranteed to be better than at least the Spirit Squad vs. Highlanders match at Unforgiven!
Rajah and Sat discuss Ric Flair. Speaking of which, the funniest fan created Ric Flair video-song is here. I laughed so hard the first time I saw this and I'm sure you will as well.
Cook admits that CM Punk will become ECW champion one day in this week's Fact or Fiction. Good job, Steve-O I knew you'd come around soon enough.
Finally, my condolences go out to Larry. I only know a part of the pain he is going through, but all of my heart and prayers go out to him.
With that we end this action packed edition of Column of Honor. I'm off to the Manhattan Center for the show and I'll have results and reaction and all that other good stuff next week. Also next week—the first part of my huge three part Survival of the Fittest 2006 preview! Time to take the train into Manhattan from… Brooklyn!
--Ari--
