Column of Honor: 05.31.08: In Tyler They Trusted

Posted by Ari Berenstein on 05.31.2008

Inside is the ONLY review of ROH Take No Prisoners that compares the Pay Per View to the "Sex and the City" movie. I’m not kidding either.

Once again I'm in a bit of a rush thanks to a jam packed weekend. I've had birthday parties to attend, PPVs to watch, a bachelor party for my soon to be brother-in-law and an appearance to make with the men folk at my sister's bridal shower all yesterday, today and tonight. Bloody Hell.

Welcome to the Column.



Ring Toss
-Take No Prisoners: In Tyler They Trusted
-ROH Call
-ROH News
-My Fave 5
-Honorarium
-ROH Preview: June 6th 2008 in Hartford, CT
-My Two Cents with Chris Miccio
-Name That Tune
-Independent Buy In
-ROH @ 411

ROH "Take No Prisoners"—In Tyler They Trusted

"Sex and the City" is a surprisingly good movie about four women living and adjusting to life and relationships in the Big City. The movie joins lead character and narrator Carrie as she is about to marry…oh…wait…wrong review.

Ok, so well, Ring of Honor had to share the Friday evening with the debut of one of the bigger "chick flick" movies of the year. Over on Pay Per View it was "Movies for Guys Who Like Movies" night (Thanks TBS!) with the premiere of ROH's sixth PPV show "Take No Prisoners". Yet, there are some surprising connections between the two absolutely opposite event showcases.

Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and that other one make up a four corner survival of sorts, especially to the guys who were dragged by their girlfriends to the cinema this weekend. ROH's version of a Four Corner Survival featured four men with the first names of Claudio, Tyler Go and Delirious. Wait…is Delirious his first name or his last? Anyway, one of them would move onto the main event to fight for the ROH World Title and as it turned out, Tyler Black was Mr. Big on this show, earning a ticket to fight the champion, Nigel McGuiness.

He was given longer odds than whether or not the Mr. Big of "Sex and the City" would actually tie the knot with Carrie. However that didn't stop the fans from falling head over heels for him. The fans were cheering him and rooting him on from the moment he stepped in the ring for the title fight. It was admittedly weird to see Tyler in this situation AND to see ROH concluding their PPV with was essentially was a heel vs. heel match. Yet the fans treated Tyler Black as the baby face, because they just hated Nigel more. A whole lot more.

So the fans of Philadelphia put their trust in Tyler and that was what added to the main event situation. It was a cacophony of sound and response to every big move of Tyler and every time he kicked out of one of Nigel's. Did they like Tyler that much or did they just want Nigel to lose that much? I'd have to think in the beginning it was the latter, although by the end of the match it was the former, as the crowd chanted "Tyler's" name over and over even though it was Nigel McGuinness celebrating the victory.

The fans had witnessed Tyler's second breakout match of 2008 (the first being against Bryan Danielson at the aptly named "Breakout" show). The perplexing thing to me is what do they do with Tyler now? If anything, this shows he has the potential to do something big with the company…but what? Do you put him over the top as champion? Do you have him usurp power in Age of the Fall? There's a lot of directions that are possible, but ROH has to have the ability to firmly stand by a direction and go with it. Sometimes this year that has proven to be easier said than done with a lot of the character direction and in ring pushes of wrestlers such as Erick Stevens, Jimmy Jacobs and Chris Hero.

While "Sex and the City" prevails in the movie theaters, Jimmy Jacobs and Age of the Fall were set to recreate some scenes from what is likely one of their favorite movies—"Fight Club". Jimmy Jacobs "hacked" into the feed several times during the show as he held a pep rally / training camp / brainwashing meeting of a local chapter of AotF somewhere in Parts Unknown. You know, maybe ROH should look into that—I mean how many times do you want some renegades taking over your system? AND…if there is some sort of mole in the company helping them out with getting attention, you'd think the Keystone Cops….errrrrrr…ROH officials would set out to do one of their "official investigations" and figure out who was behind this all…and then fire them! Why would you keep someone on staff you know was purposefully being insubordinate? There's no union issue you know—everyone knows there are no unions in professional wrestling!

This Jimmy Jacobs, ranting, raving, commanding, was the brash leader, the big talker, the man with all the confidence that we had seen on previous PPVs. He was a far cry from the Jimmy Jacobs fans will currently see off of PPV--a man whose spirit was crushed by losing the love of his life (Carrie would sympathize). This is again the problem with some of what we see on ROH PPV—it's hard to accept that the characters are being shown one way and yet the storyline and character presentation has moved on in the DVD series.

There were quite a few presentation choices that bugged me about this show, both in terms of production and in the organization of the show. Of the six Pay Per Views shows thus far, "Take No Prisoners" was for me the weakest. In fact, up until the really good tag title match and the spectacular main event double bill, I was very ho-hum and unimpressed with the show. Luckily the last hour kicked in with some fantastic matches, but boy, like Mr. Big said to Carrie, ROH, "we have got to talk".

First of all, the picture quality was unacceptably bad on this show. A while back I expressed my favoring of the Danielson vs. McGuinness match from "Driven" for how well the match was filmed. I was stumping for ROH to hold an entire PPV in Philadelphia. "Take No Prisoners' was that PPV, but for some reason it didn't work out to be the same quality at all. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times, but the white washing of the picture is a huge problem that NEEDS to be addressed, like right now. The wrestlers being washed out by bright spotlights isn't just a Pay Per View problem, but boy does it make ROH look ten times worse than any of its competition on PPV for having that problem. When Brent Albright looks like a giant white silhouette or when Dave Prazak looks like a huge Mr. Potato Head thanks to the lights; that's a huge problem.

The lighting issue extended once again to some backstage segments, as Nigel McGunness being filmed from the back looking on a TV monitor looked horrible, as did a shot of Tyler Black in the darkness pacing back and forth. Once again, ROH filmed a segment at night that was undecipherable. Black looked like a huge black blob, a form of a human to be sure, but hell I almost thought it was Austin Aries. I couldn't be sure it wasn't by the end of it. Or maybe it was Big Foot… who could tell? Again, this is not the first time this has happened on an ROH show and since they have to know about this kind of defect in their filming I find it absolutely stupid that it continues to happen. I mean I don't get really angry about much that ROH does, but this absolutely does.

Another issue for me was the music—not so much the choice of song to be the thematic soundtrack (Ministry) but how once again it became the backdrop of many backstage segments (Tyler Black mentally prepping for his match). It worked on "Rising Above" but for me, this use of music seems to be a one and done gimmick—you don't want to constantly do it for PPVs because it overexposes the production trick. Not to mention that I found the sum of the parts silly, similar to how I felt about when ROH did the same thing for BJ Whitmer mentally preparing for his fight against Necro Butcher back at "War of the Wire II".

The pacing of the Pay Per View was also off in my book—with a lack of entrances and not enough breaks in between the action. While this format worked for me for "Rising Above", this time around it just felt to me to be all too much.

All of this could have been excusable for past Pay Per View events considering that ROH has put on top notch matches in the ring, but well, the first hour didn't particularly deliver all that much to me…it felt at times like I'd been there and done that, many times before. It also felt that the wrestlers in the ring were being sloppy in execution and slow for the sake of being slow rather than telling a story. There was also a lot of move repetition—I think I saw about 70 billion super kicks on this show…and when the first one I saw delivered by Go Shiozaki was so brilliant and so brutal, the others just paled in comparison.

1. Four Corner Survival: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Delirious vs. Tyler Black vs. Go Shiozaki (***1/4). I will say that the opener was a good start to the show in and of itself, with a good dynamic early on of Delirious and Claudio pairing up for comedy spots and Tyler and Go going at it in serious exchanges. Go's chops were highlighted, as they should be considering they are one of his trademarks and the fans always get up for it. Nigel was on commentary, which was a pleasant surprise and effective considering they needed to explain his heel turn somehow. I would have rather he cut an in-ring promo about it, but this was a decent second option. Tyler Black looked good, but not as spectacular as he would later on. He did get a nice high spot with his back flip into a spinning heel kick that hit flush. As stated above, Go's superkick out of a dodging volley hit right on the button and looked sick as hell. Being a relative rookie to ROH it makes sense when he makes the mistake of getting too close to Delirious, who tags in and prevents Go from taking advantage of it. Black hits the twisting phoenix splash on Delirious for the three and in one of the good production moves of the show they put on a replay of the move to plant it in the audience's mind as Black's trademark.

-ROH does a breaking news montage THANKFULLY going through the title changes in between this PPV and last as well as stating that the Vulture Squad has worked their way up to number one contention for the belts. They explain Morishima's upcoming extended absence on ROH PPV's with his attack on ref Bryce Rembsurg earning him an indefinite suspension for PPV shows, but not on DVDs. Sounds wishy-washy to me, but it fits within ROH's concept of honor and respecting the referees.

2. Roderick Strong vs. Kevin Steen (**1/2): This was decent but slow. Steen was entertaining and kept me into the match for the most part with his MOCKERY! The camera caught most of his funny comments, including him screaming out unceremoniously "Who wants to see him die!" Okay, maybe it's not all that funny out of context, but it worked. As far as in the ring…meh. I was unimpressed as it just seemed to be a back and forth match throwing moves out for the sake of moves. I really couldn't get into the flow of it. At one point Steen looked like a beached whale and once again the lighting didn't help. There is a superkick Steen throws that Strong immediately no sells and boy did I not like that. Strong comes back with a boot and a 2 count. Soon after Steen gets the Steenalizer and a Package Piledriver for the 3 count.

-Age of the Fall continue their boot camp and try to work in the rallying cry "We are the people we've been waiting for". Which is almost as bad as Jay Lethal, fist clutched in the air shouting "Tonight is the night I've been waiting for."

3. Philadelphia Street Fight: The Briscoes (with Daizee Haze) vs. Joey Mercury and Necro Butcher (With Lacey) (***): Unprotected chair shots ahoy! The only match where a lack of entrances helped rather than hurt as it helped sell the impromptu nature of the match. However, this was just a standard Briscoes brawl with a more than standard bleeding situation from Mark Briscoe. He once again proves the axiom "Mark Briscoe is totally insane" to be true. I swear the gash on the back of his head made me gag more than once, it was that bad. I was not digging this brawl and truth be told, probably because I had just come off of seeing two far better Briscoes matches from the Dragon Gate Challenge II / Supercard of Honor III weekend. Necro takes plenty of protected chairshots including two in a row late in the match where Jay and Mark alleyooped the chair down onto Necro. That admittedly looked impressive, but then again that just means he should have saved the earlier shots for that series. Daizee Haze and Lacey were very weak in this match, and I'm a big booster of the women wrestling in ROH, but it was pretty awful here. Sloppy and all over the place. I did like Joey Matthews' facial expressions in this one, especially where he was crotched on the top turnbuckle. The Briscoes botched the Springboard Doomsday on Matthew but get some of it. Necro blocks the springboard doomsday with a punch to the face as Mark jumps off the rope. That's funny too. A few minutes later Mark does the CRAZY SNUKA DIVE from the top of the stage structure to the floor through a table. Yeah. Then Jay hits the J-Driller back in the ring for 3. Much respect to Mark for being cut open very early in the match and still doing the rest of the match. However, I felt like I'd seen this before, more than once and some of the spark was gone for me. This brawl was just okay, but if you REALLY want to see a street fight, check out the Supercard of Honor III match.

-Larry Sweeney & Bobby Dempsey come to represent Sweet & Sour Incorporated. Sweeney announces the corporate takeover of ROH on PPV, although he wants contracts and not the company itself. He brings out the Hangmen 3, which has ceased to exist in real time for so long now that I forgot that name until it appeared on screen. The more I think about it, the more I'm rethinking what's in the briefcase. I thought it was Nigel McGuinness's contract, but Sweeney says it was something that he and Adam Pearce agreed upon, so that would seem to have nothing to do with it and out of place. I think those fans who have said it's the NWA title belt may be onto something. Anyway Erick Stevens comes out once again and shows that on PPV he is truly an idiot (or booked that way at least) as he spends so much time screaming at Sweeney that he leaves himself open to an attack by Brent Albright from behind. Really, that's now two PPVs in a row where Stevens looks like a dummy…what is up with that? He is shown in a very good light on the DVD product with his physical skills and propensity for effective in-ring violence on display. Here he looks like a dumb big man. I don't want that label to stick, but here I am using that label three times now.

4. Brent Albright vs. Erick Stevens (**1/2): Nothing really to this match aside from power moves on either side. Stevens has a cool move when he catches Albright jumping from the top rope and uses the momentum to carrying him into a samoan drop. I liked that one a lot. Then not too much happens until Albright gets a wheelbarrow suplex. Lenny Leonard talks about Sweeney's buyout process being divisive to the locker room, which is a great point to make and something I hope ROH follows up on in the future. I like how Sweeney's eyes bulge when Stevens gets a hold on him, but once again, distraction proves to be the big man's undoing as it allows Albright to get the half nelson suplex for the win.

Leonard gets one of the weirdest lines of the night out there as he says "the purity of ROH may never be the same again."

5. ROH World Tag Team Titles: No Remorse Corps (Davey Richards & Rocky Romero) vs. The Vulture Squad (Jigsaw & Ruckus w/ Julius Smokes) (***3/4): Now this is what I'm talking about. This was the first match since the opener where I really felt captivated and into the action. A good first minute of volleys and flippery between all four men. Sloppy and awkward moments early on into the match aside, this one gets really cooking leading up to the finish and has a strong sequence of big time moves that left a good impression in my mind. We're in Orlando Florida (taped during the awesome Supercard of Honor III event) and the hot audience and improved video quality help with the presentation of this match. I really enjoyed Romero's begging routine in this one, especially when he begs hanging upside down in the tree of woe right before Jig and Ruck blast him with the double Van Terminators! Romero and Richards come back with a kick into a sunset flip bomb which looks great. Romero has a wicked hurricanrana into the Diablo armbar that even though I telegraphed from a mile away looked awesome and got the crowd all off of their feet. A spike DR Driver gets the pin to end an awesome sequence of moves and we get replays! Then Romero has some brilliance with his wacky whirling punch drunk routine to sell his being worn down during the match. Good stuff.

-Black again paces back and forth between the building ovens and fridges…or is it a morgue? I dunno. Nigel stares at his belt in the locker room, which is good character consistency since he is all about being the champion right now.

They show clips of the beat down Sweet & Sour gave to BJ Whitmer. Poor fellow didn't even get any mic time.

6. Austin Aries vs. Bryan Danielson (****1/2): Match of the night in my book. It's hard to believe that these guys can go out there every year and continue to build upon their rivalry in the ring, but they go out there and do it. They acknowledge current continuity as Leonard and Prazak even make sure to note these two are now regular tag team partners but look to make each other better by fighting in the ring. I do have to say SHAME on ROH for not using the one minute trailer that they released on the net to promote the match. That was a thing of beauty and no doubt would have helped to get over the enduring nature and quality of the rivalry for the PPV audience. Surely they could have cut out something else to put that on the show. At least it should be on the DVD as a bonus feature.

A double arm butterfly early on by Danielson looks to link into the Cattle Mutiliation, which would be teased several times throughout the match. The headscissors sequences is awesome as usual, with Danielson getting the head piledriver but Aries working everything back to his advantage with a great spin and rolling reversal into a headlock and then the dropkick. Aries has a vicious looking knee left when Danielson is on the apron and then goes into a slingshot double axehandle to the outside. Later on Aries works in some sharp elbows and his flurry that knocks Danielson out of the ring and they work in some unique sequences involving the turnbuckle post and the torque used to stretch someone from that position. The major theme of this match is Danielson's work on the arm in order to get to the submission. He does some small but interesting new things to get there, including knocking Aries' arm into the corner post with his legs and the incorporation of MMA submissions such as the oomaplata (I think that's what it was anyway) to nearly get Aries to tap multiple times. Danielson uses the arm damage to easily snake into the chicken wing and then the Cattle Mutilation. Aries gets out of it. He tries for the roaring elbow, but Danielson avoids it completely and maneuvers into the triangle choke! Aries maneuvers into a roll up for a 2 count but Danielson gets a vicious armbar out of it and Aries gets the ropes. An O'Connor roll sequences is next and its incredible how both men use it as base to get into reversals and chains. By this point Aries is selling a dead arm. Danielson gets a flying dropkick straight to that arm and the kick up! Lots of other small but great things that I can't possibly hope to do justice to happens here. Aries gets a super brainbuster (!) for 2. Horns of Aries is locked but isn't as effective because of the weakened arm. Knees to the head land but then Danielson grabs Aries and twists him into an arm bar, but Aries recovers into the running knee strike! Danielson takes the blow and chains into the position for the MMA elbows, then puts on the fujiwara armbar and twists and twists until Aries has to tap!

This was just a terrific back and forth match that showcases the talent and ability of these men. You can literally watch them wrestler forever and ever and it won't get tired, because they find new ways to jeep it interesting.

7. ROH World Title Match: Nigel McGuinness (c) vs. Tyler Black: (****1/4): Nigel from behind right away throws Tyler's shoulder into the corner post. Now THAT is smart. Some arm work early on to take advantage of that and if you think two matches in a row where the arm is a focus would be boring, well, you'd be wrong. Tyler gets a bit of a hope spot with another back flip that this time goes into a back body drop, but Nigel goes right back to the attack. On the outside, Nigel gets a running European uppercut to the corner railing—love that spot. Tyler comes back with a sick Superkick Van Daminator move and Nigel falls into the crowd in a measure of poetic justice given his tumultuous relationship with the fans. Tyler senses his chance and goes for a Springboard plancha but Nigel is UP and smashes him with a chair…right to the arm! Prazak calls it an epic fail and I'm sure there are a million keyboard jockeys pissed off that he dare use that phrase whereas when they use it, that's okay.

Tyler takes a long…lonnnnnng time to get back in the ring but the commentators make good sue of the time to sell the drama of him coming back into the ring to fight on when he likely shouldn't do so. Right here is where the crowd comes completely unglued and from then on they are trusting in Tyler and believing in any move he does as the finish to the match. I have to say I'm impressed at that. A Tyler kick out gets a huge pop. Nigel calls him the "Stupidest idiot in the land" and calls out the crowd to draw even more massive heat. The waiting lariat gets two and he transitions right into the London Dungeon. Tower of London is blocked and Tyler looks to regain momentum. However there is a bit of a mess up on his flip diamond dust / blockbuster as Nigel doesn't sell it exactly right and his launch into the Jawbreaker Lariat attempt therefore looks silly. Tyler flurries back with the pele kick and the paroxysm for 2. A superplex from Tyler is floated up into a wicked looking fireman's carry DDT. That's a cool move and something I hope we see a bit more from Black in future matches. Fans are repeatedly chanting "that was 3" for Black's big moves whenever there is a two count, but really, its not all that close here. It would be more so right at the very end of the match. A Tower of London by Nigel gets a two count and there is a great facial reaction from Nigel on that one. Jawbreaker Larita is countered into a small package for 2. A phoenix splash gets ‘no water in the pool" and Nigel goes into the London Dungeon and Tyler. Nigel just snaps the arm all the way out and the extension looks excruciating. Tyler pulls up into a roll up for a very close two count. The"Off with His Head" lariat from the ropes gets two and Leonard calls out "he can't put him away Dave!"

Tyler spits at Nigel in a moment of defiance and the crowd revels in it. He slaps Nigel but is met with more slaps in kind and the wind up lariat (sick!) gets a 2 count. Nigel bends over a prone Tyler but Tyler kicks him in the head at an angle and Nigel rebounds off the turnbuckle for the Jawbreaker…for another two count! Leonard with another great call talks about how the air was let out of the room, but then the crowd exploded when Tyler kicked out. A Tyler Black chant starts, but Nigel levels him with one more lariat, locks on the London Dungeon and after resisting for a minute Black finally taps out.

This was a very exciting title match and just as good as the fans that were in attendance said it would be. Black was the hero for the day for the crowd, but I have my doubts as to whether or not he will be received as such from other cities and other times. Was this right place, right time, or can ROH follow up on the momentum from a spectacular performance (from both men, really) and do something with it?


Final Thoughts:

The Pay Per View was a tale of two halves for me. The first hour was merely okay, with a good opener but then a middling sequence of matches that I felt didn't hold my interest as well as previous shows. Some of the matches were seemingly made up at random (Strong vs. Steen) and others have been done before and felt like left overs especially in comparison to better matches of a similar nature.

The second hour of the show is more than worth your purchase. There is a very entertaining and brisk tag title match, a knock you off your floor wrestling match and then a very dramatic and compelling main event to cap off the night. There are two back to back four star plus matches to end the show. The quality of the wrestling from guys like Aries, Danielson and McGuinness can't be disputed.

Aries vs. Danielson never disappoints in the ring and they come through again here. It's my match of the show, but some will argue for the main event. Black vs. McGuinness is not my first thought of being a main event match, but they delivered in spades. I didn't like it as much as McGuinness vs. Aries from "Rising Above" but its right up there and shows once again that McGuinness as champion was a good call. He's intriguing whether as a face or as a heel.

There is still a lot that needs to be done to improve the Pay Per View product and these criticisms cannot be denied. with ROH approaching one year of Pay Per View.The too-bright (or too-dark) and white-out problems and taping quality of certain segments is inexcusable at this point. It's an issue that ROH just has to address or it can't go any further in looking like a professional wrestling product that can compare to WWE or TNA. It really makes me upset not just as a fan but as a consumer that ROH isn't spending the time to break through this problem in production. I also feel that more pre-taped packages to hype the matches on the card are needed to help sell the continuity of programs between the wrestlers. If ROH is producing them , then why aren't they being used in the program itself? Aries vs. Danielson, while a great match, was also a bit of a random match that could have been built up even more than the commentators selling the rivalry. ROH has to show, not tell, a lot more to the PPV audience. It also seemingly sets up Danielson as number one contender, but that doesn't look to happen on the seventh PPV (see below).

All in all, the strengths of ROH are its strengths and still remain present, but the weakness held back this PPV from being as good as some of the previous ROH presentations. That said, with two strong main events and a decent purchase price, you'll still find a lot to be happy about at the end of the show.

Overall Score: 7.5


ROH Call

ROH Champions—As of 05/31/2008

ROH World Champion—Nigel McGuinness (champion since 10/06/07, 15 successful defenses)
-defeated Takeshi Morishima in Edison, New Jersey to win the championship.

Next Defense::
a. vs. Go Shiozaki, Philadelphia, PA, 06/07/08
b. vs. Darren Burridge, Doncaster, UK, 06/20/08 (for 1PW in England)

V.1 defeated Jay Briscoe, wristlock submission (10/21/07 San Francisco, CA)
V.2 defeated Chris Hero, wristlock submission (11/02/07 Philadelphia, PA)
V.3 defeated Austin Aries, Jawbreaker Lariat (12/29/07 Manhattan, NY)
V.4 defeated Go Shiozaki, London Dungeon (wristlock submission) (01/20/08 Tokyo, Japan,)
V.5 Steel Cage Match: defeated Chris Hero (01/25/08, Dayton, OH)
V.6 defeated Roderick Strong, Jawbreaker Lariat (01/26/08, Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.7 defeated Bryan Danielson, London Dungeon (02/23/08, Manhattan, NY)
V.8 defeated Tyler Black, London Dungeon (03/16/08, Philadelphia, PA)
V.9 defeated Larry Sweeney, Jawbreaker Lariat (03/22/08 Crystal River, FL)
V.10 defeated Austin Aries, Jawbreaker Lariat (03/29/08 Orlando, FL)
V.11 defeated Erick Stevens, London Dungeon (04/11/08 Boston, MA)
V.12 defeated Kevin Steen, roll up holding the ropes (04/12/08 Edison, NJ)
V.13 defeated Kevin Steen, Jawbreaker Lariat (04/19/08 Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.14 defeated Claudio Castagnoli, London Dungeon, (05/10/08, Manhattan, NY)
V.15 defeated KENTA and BJ Whitmer, Jawbreaker Lariat to Whitmer (05/15/08, Tokyo, Japan)

**

ROH World Tag Team Champions—VACANT
-Jay Briscoe vacates the ROH World Tag Team Titles after defense against Age of the Fall, 5/10/08
-Tournament to be held on June 6th in Hartford, CT to determine new champions

Next Defense: N/A

**

Sweet & Sour Incorporated Presents The Intergender Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Of The World —Chris Hero & Sara Del Rey (champions since 01/12/08, 2 successful defenses)
Status Unknown since Del Rey has left Sweet & Sour Inc. as of 3/14/08
Del Rey has rejoined Sweet & Sour Inc. as of 5/09/08, status of title still unknown

V.1 defeated Ernie Osiris & Alexa Thatcher (01/12/08, Edison, NJ)
V.2 defeated Kyle Durden & Alex "Sugarfoot" Payne (01/26/08, Chicago Ridge, IL)

**

FIP Heavyweight Champion: Roderick Strong (since 02/16/2008)
-defeated Erick Stevens via count out to win the title (FIP title can change hands on count out)
SHIMMER Champion: MsChif (since 4/26/2008)
-defeated Sara Del Ray via pinfall with the Descrator DDT to win the title
Top of the Class Trophy (for ROH Students): Ernie Osiris (since 11/02/2007)

**

Top Feuds & Pairings:
-Nigel McGuinness defends the belt against top contenders
-Nigel McGuinness vs. Claudio Castagnoli
-Austin Aries / Jimmy Jacobs
-The Age of the Fall vs. The Briscoes
-Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. No Remorse Corps
-Erick Stevens vs. Roderick Strong
-Sweet & Sour Inc. "Corporate Takeover"
-ROH World Tag Team Title Tournament



ROH News
(via the ROHnewswire… and other sources when attributed)

Respect is Earned II PPV: McGuinness vs. Shiozaki for ROH World Title Signed

The World Title Match for June 7th has been officially signed. It is part of the big triple main event. Go Shiozaki has secured a contract from the NOAH offices for a shot at the belt. He needs to win to follow in Morishima's footsteps and for his stay in the United States to be successful. It will be Go Shiozaki vs. Nigel McGuinness for the ROH World Title on June 7th in Philadelphia.

I'll get to the match up itself in a bit, but first of all this news completely underscores the continuity problems and confusions of Ring of Honor on PPV. The announcement came on the May 28th newswire, TWO days before the "Take No Prisoners" PPV debut. Think about that for a second. Just by reading that one news bit, people who were interested in watching the sixth PPV to see who would get the title shot now know that it really doesn't matter who fights for the title on that show, because Nigel McGuinness retained at any rate.

Now yes, many of the fans that follow the product online and read the news on ROHwrestling.com have known for a while now that Nigel retained on that show and will order and watch to see how good the match turned out, but that goes towards another strike against ROH PPV that we've known about for sometime--its not picking up nearly the amount of new viewers that it should. Many of those who order the PPV were fans of the product already. ROH therefore, seems to be changing its advertising strategy by marketing towards its hardcore fans rather than trying to sell the PPV on newer customers sampling the product.

Now, that's not to say ROH shouldn't have announced its title match for "Respect is Earned II" before the show (although they have done so in the past...namely Respect is Earned number one)...but really, would it have hurt them to have waiting until AFTER the Take No Prisoners PPV ran to do so?

Nigel McGuinness vs. Go Shiozaki for the ROH World Title match comes at a reasonable and believable time for the challenger. Go has hooked fans all around the ROH circuit with some fantastic performances inside the ring. He hasn't been under pushed and he hasn't been pushed down the fan's throats. He has some solid wins under his belt. He also was featured on the Take No Prisoners PPV and has an existing storyline connection to Nigel (being his occasional tag team partner) so it isn't like the challenge will come from out of nowhere. It should be a very hard hitting match and will likely extend the excellent run of Nigel matches on ROH PPV. I would expect a "lariat" vs. "chop" motif. I would also expect a title retention considering Nigel's upcoming defense in England for 1PW (although that could change). Also there is what in my mind would make the most sense for the Canada show--a title match against either Kevin Steen or El Generico.


The current card for the PPV show in Philadelphia is as follows:

Main Event #1 - ROH World Title Match
Nigel McGuinness defends vs. Go Shiozaki

Main Event #2 - Tag Team Grudge Match
Austin Aries & Bryan Danielson vs. Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black

Main Event #3 - Fight Without Honor
FIP World Champion Roderick Strong vs. Erick Stevens

Special Tag Team Challenge
Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Ruckus & Jigsaw with Julius Smokes
Already signed: Jay Briscoe; The Necro Butcher; Claudio Castagnoli; Davey Richards; Sweet & Sour Inc. of Chris Hero, Adam Pearce & Eddie Edwards with Larry Sweeney, Sara Del Rey, Shane Hagadorn & Bobby Dempsey; Delirious; Daizee Haze; Brent Albright; Rhett Titus; Pelle Primeau plus more will be added!!!

The top three matches there look to be absolutely worth the price of the ticket (or the PPV) and we haven't even got to the tapings yet. Team Work vs. Age of the Fall is my choice for the match to look out for. It could absolutely steal the show if Aries and Jacobs' blood feud is featured.


Steen & Generico Matches Announced for 6/7 and 6/28

Explosive tag team action is coming to Philadelphia on June 7th. Just signed is Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Ruckus & Jigsaw with Julius Smokes!!! The challenger for Nigel McGuinness and the ROH World Title will be announced soon right here in the ROHwrestling.com Newswire.

A potentially wild tag team match has been signed for 6/28 in Chicago. It will be Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Tyler Black & The Necro Butcher!!!

Its interesting that ROH would announced Steen & Generico's upcoming matches like this--usually neither man really gets that kind of treatment of having their matches announced in advance unless its a title challenge. Plus, Steen and Generico don't have a beef with either team announced here. It gets me thinking "Hmmmmm". If Steen & Generico win the tag straps in the tournament on June 6th, these are likely their first title defenses. Hmmm...sneaky, very sneaky.


ROH DVDs to be available at Best Buy

You have done it!!! Due to your calls, emails and requests to Best Buy, "Stars Of Honor" will be on the shelves of Best Buy soon. Thank you for making this happen!!!

Good news for ROH as having their DVD on the shelves of this wide reaching chain gives them one more avenue to reach wrestling fans. Never underestimate the power of a shopping spree and the impulse buy.

Castagnoli vs. The Inc. Continues

Claudio Castagnoli continues to try to get his hands on Larry Sweeney. His next attempt will be in Hartford on June 6th. It will be Castagnoli vs. Eddie Edwards with Sweeney.

More on this match in the show preview below.

ROH Home Theatre Station

ROH Take No Prisoners Trailer








1. Austin Aries & Bryan Danielson: I couldn't help but watch and rewatch the one minute trailer of their rivalry. The history of these two is so huge that you couldn't possibly hope to encapsulate it in such a short period of time. However, the video is very exciting and captures some of the fun and intensity of their fights. They also have some of the dramatic music in the background as both men duke it out. That always gets the juices flowing. The video helped to bide the time while I waited for their fight on PPV.
2. Tyler Black & Nigel McGuinness: See the above recap of their title match.
3. Vince McMahon: Let's face it--anyone who offers a million dollars (whether per week or in total) has got my attention. And anyone who is going to give me money (hopefully for nothing and the chicks for free as well) is going to be in my fave five for sure!
4. Shawn Michaels & Chris Jericho: Their match on Raw was nowhere near as good as their previous high standards, but you really can't have a "bad" match between these two.
5. Kofi Kingston & Shelton Benjamin: Both men are developing a real rivalry now on ECW. It feels like there are some real reasons for the dislike between the two (Shelton was embarrased by Kofi; Shelton cost Kofi his winning streak in WWE). Also I want to make mention of one awesome spot this week in the match between Kofi and Mike Konx where Kofi used his momentum to swing around off the ropes and kick Mike Knox on the rebound. Good stuff in my book.


Honorarium

-While ECW on Sci Fi has decreased in ratings so that its now comparable with TNA Impact numbers, for some reason I tune in to the show every week. I think its just easier for me to tune into it rather than Smackdown because its only an hour of my time AND its in the middle of the work week. So usually, I'm just chilling out and relaxing on Tuesday night and looking for some TV time to unwind. I'd usually find myself watching American Idol (until it finished up a few weeks back) and Hell's Kitchen just for some dumb TV and then ECW is right after, so why the heck not?

-Anyone who doesn't realize that UFC is borrowing a lot from wrestling and developing "angles" for its fights didn't watch UFC 84 last weekend. BJ Penn vs. Sean Sherk came in the most heated because of Penn's interviews ("promo") where he attacked Sherk for the steroids controversy. Then when Penn wins, he buries the feud by mentioning (on live TV mind you) that it was all b.s. and that he wanted to bring the greatest lightweight fight in UFC history. Sherk said before the fight that he had never fought someone he hated before but that this was it. After the fight... he said he didn't hate Penn.. Hmm...sounds like angle development and closure to me. Onto building the next fight from the ground up...

Not to mention the whole Dana White &. Tito Ortiz rivalry (and the whole conference post show where Ortiz claimed he was being forced out of the building by UFC handlers and White denied that was happening). Some may have expected a Montreal Incident situation. At least that's one way in which UFC is not like WWE...they didn't need to screw Tito our of the win...Lyoto Machida just had to bore him to death. Or really, to be fair, Tito didn't fight back enough at all the first two rounds and was behind the eight ball already when he came back with that wicked choke / armbar late in the third. Tito lost and the loss was his own fault for falling into the trap he knew would be sprung on him. He fell right into Machida's game and went out of his own rhythm...and that's his own fault.

-So um seriously...are Kevin Steen and El Generico ROH World Tag Team champions yet? I'm waiting.


ROH Preview: ROH World Tag Team Title Tournament: June 6th 2008 in Hartford, CT

8:00pm belltime
Connecticut Expo Center
265 Reverend Moody Overpass
Hartford, CT 06120

One Night Tournament For The Vacant World Tag Team Titles
Mark Briscoe's shoulder injury prevented him from being able to defend the ROH World Tag Team titles on a consistent basis. Jay Briscoe took up where his brother left off, taking on Austin Aries as a temporary partner and defending the tag titles. However, after one successful defense against Age of the Fall in New York City (although it came with some help from Mark), Jay vacated the titles. He didn't want to defend the belts without his brother. Thus, a tag team title tournament was announced to definitively decide who deserves to be the ROH World Tag Team champions.

First Round:

A) Jigsaw & Ruckus with Julius Smokes vs. Adam Pearce & Chris Hero with Larry Sweeney & Sara Del Rey

The Vulture Squad must now fly without their leader Jack Evans (who flew South for the Summer) and Mercedes Martinez in their corner. Bad news for them, as their opponents in this bracket carries plenty of back up of their own. Pearce and Hero not only have the newly diva-fied Sara Del Rey but of course the man with the power and all of the MON-AY in Larry Sweeney. Pearce and Hero haven't teamed up all that much in Ring of Honor, but they represent a challenge to their opponents nonetheless, combining years of experience with ruthlessness in their actions inside the ring. Jig and Ruck better have their flying shoes on because they are going to need to unbalance Hero and Pearce, who don't usually leave the ground all that much. Maybe J-Train can cancel out Larry Sweeney, but more likely he will be bamboozled and hoodwinked, allowing an opening for The Inc. to advance onto the next bracket.

B) ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness & Go Shiozaki vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico

I would have said that McGuinness and Shiozaki were quite the capable tag team duo and a potential spoiler team that could have gone all the way to the finals…until the PPV title match was announced that has both men fighting each other the next night. Although these two have teamed one time previously and did so well, that was without the added stress of knowing that a partner would be an opponent. How can they trust each other to do what is in the best interests of the team? Meanwhile Steen & El Generico have long since solidified their position as a cohesive and allied unit. Their pursuit of the tag team gold has taken up the better part of two years now, ever since they returned to Ring of Honor. Their tag team moves and an understated stamina in tag matches should allow them to go the distance against tough competition such as the ROH World Champion and the ever-impressing efforts of Go.

C) Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black vs. Delirious & Pelle Primeau

Age of the Fall may be down on their luck as of late due to all the recent chaos and drama of leader Jimmy Jacobs' break up with Lacey, but they certainly received the luck of the draw in this tag team tournament. Delirious and Primeau represent one of the least experienced duos as a team. Even though they perennial underdog Primeau did managed to win with Delirious in a match in NYC, these two still remain the principal long shots. Age of the Fall will bring rage, fury and destruction to the ring. I don't see either man (or in Delirious' case, half-man, half-lizard) making it past Tyler Black's flurry of high impact offense or Jimmy Jacobs' End Time, his nigh-impossible to escape submission move.

D) Austin Aries & Bryan Danielson vs. FIP World Heavyweight Champion Roderick Strong & Davey Richards

Now this is the absolute toughest bracket of the entire tournament. We have four of the toughest competitors in one match and you know that they are going to do their best to just beat the living bejesus out of each other to make it to the next round. Aries and Danielson have fine-tuned their tag team skills over the last several months by teaming up with each other and winning most of their matches. Aries already knows what its like to win and defend the tag straps on a consistent basis as he did it with Roderick Strong, one of the men he fights against in this bracket. The other half of the NRC team is Davey Richards and he was just a tag team champion about three months ago with Rocky Romero. He certainly has the chops to make it through to the upper brackets with Strong. The only major intangible for this match is the presence of The Age of the Fall—will they look to take out Aries as payback for the emotional scars he left on Jimmy Jacobs? If they have a "master plan" of sorts, then Aries and Danielson better look behind their backs at all time.

Semifinals
A winner vs. B winner
C winner vs. D winner

Finals:
A/B winner vs. C/D winner

Special Challenge Match
Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Edwards with Larry Sweeney

This match should serve as a bit of a "breather" for all the tag team action that will take place on this card. Edwards is a constant on the New England area shows, and his recent addition to Sweet & Sour Inc. gives him something more to do. Claudio meanwhile will look to continue to make life problematic for The Inc. it looks like they have an enemy for life in Castagnoli. He needs to rebound after a tough loss in the title match main event in NYC. He'll likely get it here in Connecticut.

Also scheduled to appear: Necro Butcher; Erick Stevens; Brent Albright; Daizee Haze plus more!!!


My Two Cents with Chris Miccio:

So, I'm just going to start off by apologizing for missing last weeks COH, but I'll try to make up for it this week with a little bit more that usual, so lets get right at it.

1. People squandering second chances --- at this point, I don't know who to start by talking about, but there have been so many WWE talents who have blown their chances, their place in the storyline, and the economic well being of the company that employs them by repeatedly breaking the rules and regulations of the Wellness Program. So, who do I start my rant against? Jeff Hardy or William Regal? Well, since I have the time to hit them both, let's go. How many chances has Jeff Hardy gotten at this point? Yes, I know that drug addiction is an affliction that many people have limited success in dealing with, but you would think at this point in his career, he just might consider the fact that he's going to run out of second chances really soon. When he first came back, both Ari and I were quite cynical about it, and wondered aloud just how long it would be before he screwed up again. Months went by and Jeff's in ring performances just got better and better, and I think most of our fears were somewhat alleviated, but I think that in the back of all of our minds, we all still feared the worst from Jeff, feeling that it was just a matter of time before he relapsed. And how did he repay all of us who supported him? He did what we all knew was coming and failed that drug test, screwing up what could have been an awesome set of potential storylines and matches. Sure, these things could still happen, but its hardly solace to the fans of Hardy and wrestling in general. The story is pretty much the same for William Regal, except for the fact that he had gone a while without incident, and was never looked upon in the same light as Hardy. When he returned to Raw a few months ago and started the storyline he was in, things really began to pick up steam. I even started to watch Raw live, not on the DVR as I had grown accustomed to doing. Regal gave the show something that it lacked, the classic "heel authority figure" that has been a staple of wrestling for decades. Things were looking up, and then, as fast as they got good, they were done, because another talented worker gave into the demons and failed a Wellness test. While it is true that we'll never know what Hardy or Regal tested positive for, we have to assume that they had both fallen back to their old vices. What the WWE needs to do is not just stop with the Wellness Program for testing for drugs, but to have an outpatient program for those that they believe have a high chance of relapse. It's not just a good thing to do for the workers, it's just good for business on the whole.

2.ROH gets its DVD onto the shelves of Best Buy --- now this came as a great news bit. Now that ROH will be able to sell its best of discs at a store like Best Buy, that has over 1,150 locations; maybe ROH can get a foothold into the mainstream of American Pro Wrestling. In my opinion, this could be even bigger for ROH than the initial Pay Per View deal or the renewal of the deal. Now that ROH will share shelf space with the WWE and TNA, they at least stand a chance to get some new fans and some new money. I just hope that the discs don't get put on the shelf next to the XPW dvd's, which no one even bothers to look at. If they can get themselves an end-cap, that would be awesome, even though the chances of that are slim. As long as they aren't on the floor level, it could be a great deal.

3. Kurt Angle --- for those of you who didn't see the injury video the other day, do yourself a favor and search it out here on 411. If that isn't proof that Kurt should take some time off, or even just give it all up, I don't know what its going to take, short of him being paralyzed in the ring during a match. He's been working with a bad neck for as long as I can remember at this point, and if you take a second to look at how he looks these days, you would have to be blind not to notice that he looks terrible, and even though he can still work a good match, its obvious that he's hurting a lot when he's in there. I think it's about time for TNA to sit Kurt down and tell him that enough is enough and that its time to call it a day. Would it be a shame to see a great wrestler like Kurt have to hang it up? Most definitely. However, wouldn't it be a lot worse to see the alternative?

4. The Hogans --- I'm not even sure what to make of this clan anymore. I used to feel somewhat sorry for them what with being in the spotlight all the time, but after listening to those phone conversations on the web this week, I can't feel anything but disgusted by them all. I'll leave it at that before I say something that I might regret.

5. The ROH Tag Team Tournament --- If Steen and Generico don't win the belts, I say we all riot! If there has ever been a team that really deserved the straps in ROH, it has to be Steenerico. Think about it like this: when was the last time that they had a bad match? I thought so. Just do the right thing, Gabe. Make it happen.

6. UFC 84 and the upcoming WEC Show --- If you didn't see last weekends UFC show, I implore you to catch a replay ASAP. It was an amazing card on paper and it turned out to be even better in reality. First Silva knocked Jardine into next week and then BJ Penn made Sherk look like a middle of the road talent, and that's saying a lot. I'm no Penn fan, but after seeing him dismantle Sherk in the way that he did, I'm a believer. I just don't know that he should be calling out Georges St. Pierre. GSP is maybe the best fighter in the world today (pound for pound), and I think that even with Penn's new focus, GSP would beat him again. As for this weekend's WEC event, I would HIGHLY suggest that you find the Versus Network on your cable or satellite systems immediately, so that you can see the biggest showcase event that they can run, which is the Faber-Pulver match up. I really can't wait to see these two amazing fighters hook it up and settle all debates in the cage. The WEC even ran a hype special this week for the event, and that was awesome too. If this fight lives up to its potential, it could very easily be a fight of the year candidate, and to make it even sweeter, it's going to be on FREE TV. Forget that Elite XC show the night before, spend the time on Sunday night to watch Faber-Pulver. It's worth your while.

Well, that's just my two cents for this week. I'll be back with more in 2 weeks, as life is forcing me to go bi-weekly. If you liked what I had to say or not, feel free to let me know what you think. Email me at [e-mail];. Have a great week, and I'll catch you next time.



Going Home

Name That Tune Week 35

Clue: Aries was one of these.
Lyric:"You are no lamb / Any man a creep"

No responses this time around…and its relatively easy…but I'm going to give everyone another shot to send in their answers. Here's another clue that should jigger some memories:

"For a few seconds…"

What's the name of the song and the artist?

Send in your answers here and if you're correct I'll list your name in next week's column!


**The Independent Buy In**


2008
**CHIKARA "Cibernetico & Robin" (Torneo Cibernetico: Kings of Wrestling vs. Dorado's Luchadores, The Olsen Twins / Cheech & Cloudy, Quackenbush / Donst, The Colony / BLK OUT ) High Recommendation
**CHIKARA "Brusied" (Kingston / Donst, Campeones de Parejas: F.I.S.T. vs. Incoherence / Castagnoli / Taylor, The Colony / Brodie Lee & Olsen Twins, Cheech & Cloudy / Osirian Portal ) High Recommendation
**Pro Wrestling NOAH "Special Budokan Double Shot"7/15 & 9/9/07 (Determination League Semi Finals & Finals, NTV Cup Finals)High Recommendation
**PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 1 (Castagnoli / Williams, Evans / Pac, Black / Shelley, Aries / Strong, PWG Tag Titles: Generico & Steen / Dragon Kid & Susumu Yokosuka)Medium Recommendation
**PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 2 (CIMA / Tornado, Steen / Butcher, McGuinness / Richards, Kid / Yokosuka) Low Recommendation
**PWG Battle of Los Angeles Night 3 (the entire show) High Recommendation
**Shimmer Volume 11 (Sarah Stock / MsChif, Sarah Stock / Cheerleader Melissa, Sara Del Rey / Cindy Rogers, Nikki Roxx / Lacey, Daizee Haze / Malia Hosaka, Allison Danger / Hosaka)High Recommendation
**SHIMMER Volume 12 (Del Rey / Lacey, Del Rey / Sarah Stock, Haze / Lacey, Portuguese Princess Ariel / Josie / Nikki Roxx / Portia Perez, Melissa & MsChif / Lexie Fyfe & Hosaka)High Recommendation
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 13 (Melissa / Portuguese Princess Ariel, "Dark Angel" Sarah Stock / Daizee Haze, Portia Perez / MsChif, Del Rey & Roxx vs. Rain & Lacey, O'Neal vs. Melissa) Medium Recommendation
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 14 (SHIMMER Title: Del Rey / Lacey, Nikki Roxx / Amazing Kong, Two out of Three falls: Allison Danger / Cindy Rogers, Portuguese Princess Ariel / Amber O'Neal) Medium Recommendation
**CHIKARA The Battle of Who Could Care Less (Incoherence & Tim Donst / BLK OUT, Claudio Castagnoli & Equinox / Hero & Hawke, Lince Dorado & Pantera / Olsen Twins, Quackenbush & The Colony / F.I.S.T. / Osirian Portal) High Recommendation
**CHIKARA The Sordid Perils of Everyday Existence (Campeones de Parejas: Incoherence / Cheech & Cloudy, Lucha de Apresta: Chris Hero / Equinox, F.I.S.T., Ellis, Ryder / Quack / Donst / Super Smash Bros.) Medium Recommendation
**CHIKARA Chapter 11 (Hallowicked / Kingston, Colony / Super Smash Brothers & Shane Storm, Tex-Arkana Title Match: Alvarez / Sweeney, Quack, Trik Davis & Helios / Shayne Hawke & The Osirian Portal, MIYAWAKI, Hasegawa & Pantera / Cheech & Cloudy & Delirious) High Recommendation
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 15 (SHIMMER Title: Sara Del Rey / Amazing Kong, Daizee Haze / Sara Stock, Cheerleader Melissa / Alexa Thatcher, Minnesota Home Wrecking Crew / Ariel & Josie, Sereena Deeb / Jetta) High Recommendation
**SHIMMER Women's Athletes Volume 16 (SHIMMER Title Two Out of Three Falls: Sara Del Rey / Sara Stock, Amazing Kong / Cheerleader Melissa, Daizee Haze MsChif & Eden Black / Lacey, Rain & Jetta, Portia Perez & Nicole Matthews / Ariel & Josie, Sereena Deeb / Jetta) High Recommendation

This section needs your help! If you want to recommend some good independent wrestling to your fellow internet readers out there, drop me a line for the column.


ROH @ 411

Jerome Cusson has another review of Take No Prisoners. Meanwhile, Larry C. provided the play-by-play of the PPV. Stay tuned for a possible audio podcast review with Larry and myself about the PPV.

411 Buy or Sell comments on Nigel McGuinness and more.

Bayani Domingo looks at Ring of Honor alumni and the current roster and just how important or not the use of mic work and promo time is to their career.

J.D. Dunn reviews an FIP new release in the form of Cage of Pain II and an oldie ROH DVD in the form of Beating the Odds.


Next week, for sure this time, I'll have some additions to the Independent Buy In. Also we'll look at results from the tag tournament in Connecticut and a preview of the ROH PPV taping in Philadelphia. Time for some partying!

BROOKLYN!
-Ari-