Dark Pegasus Video Review: Ring of Honor - Night of the Butcher II

Posted by J.D. Dunn on 12.16.2008

Different Butcher. Same succulent result.

Ring of Honor — Night of the Butcher II
by J.D. Dunn

August 16, 2008

From Chicago Ridge, Ill.

Your hosts are Dave Prazak and Lenny Leonard.

Opening Match: Kevin Steen vs. Kenny King.
Steen lets King know that he has the worst theme music in wrestling. Kenny is cocky early, but Steen has a counter for everything he tries. King busts out the Macho Man throat snap on the top rope. Kenny takes over and hits Steen with a backbreaker. Funny moment as King drops a legdrop and rolls over to the corner to talk to the camera so Steen just squashes him with a cannonball. King makes up for it with an awesome back handspring off the top rope into the 40-inch vertical flying kick. That sets up a swinging backbreaker, but Steen reverses to a schoolboy rollup. Steen hits the pumphandle neckbreaker. King backdrops out of the Packaged Piledriver but winds up in the Sharpshooter at 7:26. King deserves more than job duty, and it's a waste to see him struggling for respect in ROH when he's a successful blue-chipper in FIP. Interesting that Steen had less trouble with King than Danielson did. **

Pelle Primeau comes out to say that his partner Delirious is MIA. Daizee Haze comes out to tell Rhett Titus she'll put an end to his lies one day. She also says she made a mistake in turning down Delirious and she wants to go out with him. Delirious doesn't answer, but Jimmy Jacobs does and says he's keeping Delirious under wraps. That distraction allows MsChif to run in and knock Daizee out with the Call from the Grave.

Jimmy brings Delirious out and sicks him on Pelle. Delirious does a surprisingly good crazy heel act. He leaves Pelle bloodied and chokes him unconscious. The fans step all over the emotional impact of the segment as one guy yells "You are a pussy!" at Pelle and another tells him he did a great "juice job." Well, he doesn't work at Orange Julius. If you really want to compliment him, tell him "Get well soon, Pelle." The best compliment is always buying the act, kids.

Scramble Tag: The Briscoes vs. The Vulture Squad vs. Mitch Franklin & Trik Davis vs. Tweek & Dash Phoenix.
The Phoenix Twins are what would happen if you washed the Briscoes on "hot." Or maybe some bizarre cult that worships Kane. They get over immediately with their doubleteams, but Ruckus knocks Phoenix Twin #2 to the floor. The Briscoes get in and destroy all six of the other guys. Jigsaw and Tweek hit somersault planchas onto the crowd. Back in, Dash falls victim to the Springboard Doomsday Device. Jigsaw sneaks in and superkicks Mark. The Vulture Squad finishes Tweek with the Doublestomp Jig and Tonic at 6:03. So I guess the Vulture Squad is not dead. Fun, if brainless, match. **1/2

Tyler Black (w/Allison Wonderland) vs. El Generico.
Generico is coming off his spirited performance in the title match the night before. He starts off hot with a springboard moonsault and the flying crossbody for two. Generico stays on top until Allison Wonderland distracts him long enough for Tyler to springboard in with a lariat. Tyler takes over and rips at Generico's mouth. Generico blocks a charge and hits a rana. That leads to a Michinoku Driver. ONE, TWO, THR-NO! Generico fights Tyler off the top rope and hits a big splash. ONE, TWO, THR-NO! Tyler reverses a neckbreaker to his own and gets two. A second springboard lariat misses, but Tyler hits the Pélé and the Paroxysm for two. Tyler hits a running forearm, but Generico follows him across the ring and NAILS him with the Yakuza Kick. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Generico goes up, but Tyler kicks him off the top. Back up, Tyler hits a springboard huracanrana and kicks Generico's head off. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! The Phoenix Splash misses, and Tyler catches another Yakuza Kick to the face. That sets up the Brainbuster by Generico at 14:19. Took a while to get going, but the finishing sequence was great. ***

FIP World Title: Erick Stevens vs. Chris Hero (w/Sara Del Rey).
Hero tries to take it to the mat, but Stevens bowls him over. Stevens gets knocked to the floor, and Sara Del Rey gets her licks in. Hero holds him up and hits a roaring elbow for two. Hero continues to paste Stevens with elbow-based offense, but Stevens catches him springboarding off the rope and hits a Samoan Drop. Stevens hits a pair of Choo-Choos and a pump-handle suplex for two. The Oklahoma TKO gets two more. Hero hits a rolling elbow, knocking Stevens to the floor. In FIP, you can win the title on a countout. Stevens beats the count in at 19.9999, drawing boos from the front row. Hero drags him up and berates him for sticking it out. A sloppy springboard elbow gets two. Hero thinks he has him knocked out again but only gets two. Stevens hits his own elbow to block Hero's. Stevens fires off several elbows in the corner and takes him up to the top rope. Hero fights him off at first, but Stevens drags him off with a super powerslam for the win at 21:07. The crowd reaction is mixed. You'd think that these two would have more chemistry than they do, but it seemed like Hero was just content to throw a bunch of elbows. Hero switched from a comedy act to be a more viable main eventer, but he's gone from an entertaining mid-carder to a boring mid-carder. **1/2

In the back, Stevens promises to do the title right.

Nigel McGuinness & Claudio Castagnoli vs. Bryan Danielson & Austin Aries.
TEAMWORK~! storms the ring, and it's time to PLAY THE FEUD! Aries gets tripped up, and the Europeans doubleteam him. Aries blocks a Russian Leg Sweep, but Claudio cuts off the tag and pulls him back to the heel corner. McGuinness mocks Danielson's "I have 'til five, referee," drawing the ire of the Dragon. Aries ducks a swing and rolls into a tag. Danielson cleans house but goes after Claudio who drops down to avoid Dragon's wrath. Nigel attacks Danielson from behind, but Danielson still manages a suicida on Claudio. The heels swarm him, though, and send him back in. Claudio mocks Dragon with the missile dropkick and kip up. The heels set up for running European uppercuts in the corner, but Aries breaks that up. Aries dropkicks Nigel in the face to block the handstand. That sets up the Last Chancery, but Claudio breaks it up. TEAMWORK~! stays on top with sandwich kicks for two. They put Nigel on top for a double superplex. Danielson goes after Claudio, but Nigel nails him from behind and puts him in the London Dungeon. Aries breaks it up but gets nailed with the pop-up European. Danielson knocks Claudio silly with the flying kick and threatens to kick his fucking head in, but Nigel jumps Danielson from behind. That's a recurring theme in this match. There is one woman in the audience cheering for Nigel. Danielson actually busts out Chaos Theory and punts Nigel for two. Claudio breaks up the Trapped Elbows but gets clotheslined out and rocked with the suicida from Aries. Aries and Claudio are out of it, so Nigel and Dragon go face to face. They trade uppercuts and then trade small packages. Dragon counters a lariat with a crucifix for two and then turns it over into Cattle Mutilation! Nigel has to submit at 13:23. I thought it would be more of a brawl, but they went with a traditional tag match. The timing of all four guys is tremendous. ***3/4

After the match, Claudio hits Danielson with the Ricolabomb and leaves him laying.

Claudio offers no explanation or apology for his actions.

Gauntlet Match: Roderick Strong vs. Bobby Dempsey (w/Larry Sweeney).
Strong wants to tear through Sweet 'n' Sour for breaking up the No Remorse Corps. If he runs the gauntlet, he gets Larry Sweeney. Wow, Sweeney's not screwing around, sicking his #1 gun on Roderick right out of the gate. Roddy will be lucky to make it through this match, let alone run the gauntlet. Roderick tells him to lay down, but Sweeney is screaming for Bobby to jump him. Roderick throws his shirt at Sweeney to fluster him, and Bobby just lays down and takes the loss at 0:29. Sweeney is none the wiser. [N/R]

Gauntlet Match: Roderick Strong vs. Shane Hagadorn (w/Larry Sweeney).
Hagadorn fares slightly better, poking Strong in the eyes. That's about the extent of his offense, though, as Strong unleashes the CHOPS to Haggie's chest. The fans chant for him to break Hagadorn's back. Well, Hagadorn does block a charge and gets two off the STO. Strong roars back with a uranage backbreaker and gutbuster. That sets up the flying Yakuza Kick at 3:34. *

Gauntlet Match: Roderick Strong vs. Adam Pearce (w/Larry Sweeney).
Pearce stops to glare at some fans and gets pescadoed. Pearce hits an avalanche and his own backbreaker. Roderick blocks a charge and hits a springboard crossbody. Pearce knees him to maintain the advantage, though, and gives us tickets to the gun show. Pearce tries to humble him with a camel clutch. Roderick counters to a rollup and hits a missile dropkick to come back. Both guys are up, and Roderick hits a nice dropkick for two. Pearce blocks the gutbuster and hits a chokeslam. ONE, TWO, TH-NO! Pearce goes up… slowly, and gets crotched. SUPERPLEX! ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Strong hits a gutbuster and Yakuza Kick for two more. Pearce boots him in the gut and goes for a piledriver, but Roderick reverses to a Jackknife for the win at 9:05. I know the ROH fans aren't big on Pearce, and he doesn't really fit the ROH-style of match, but he's a more well-rounded wrestler than a lot of the roster. It showed here. **1/2

Gauntlet Match: Roderick Strong vs. Chris Hero (w/Larry Sweeney).
Hero jumps Strong with elbows, but Strong comes back with the backbreaker. Hero gets desperate, shoves down the ref, and goes low for the DQ at :50. Hero knocks Strong out with the loaded elbowpad. That sets up… 1/4*

Gauntlet Match: Roderick Strong vs. Larry Sweeney)
Sweeney prances around a bit before covering the unconscious Strong and picks up the win at 0:18. Roderick will have to wait for another time to get his hands on Larry Sweeney. 1/4*

NWA Heavyweight Title: Brent Albright vs. Go Shiozaki (w/Larry Sweeney).
You know, as much as the prestige of the belt has fallen, it's nice to see everyone drop the nonsense once the NWA Title is on the line. Albright tries to work the arm early on in anticipation of the Crowbar. Go takes him to the outside, though, and tosses him into the barricade. Back in, Go hits a flying shoulderblock and a DDT. Go misses a charge and gets rolled up for two. Go locks in a crossface, but Albright makes the ropes. Go climbs up top, but Albright sneaks in and gives him the Super Electric Chair drop. Albright goes crazy with the suplexes and knees Go in the back of the head for two. Albright sets up for a superplex, but Go knocks him off and crotches him. Go grabs the sleeper and turns it into a Dragon Sleeper. Albright blindly gets his foot on the ropes. Flying knee strike by Go! ONE, TWO, THR-NO! Go ducks his head and gets small packaged for two. He stays on top with a wild lariat, though. Go nails him with a superkick and chops Brent back in the corner. He falls in love with the chops, though, and gets rode down into the Crowbar. Go gets his foot on the ropes this time. Air Raid Crash! ONE, TWO, THR-NO! Go kicks Brent in the face and hits a weak German suplex. Brent reverses the waistlock and shows him how it's done. Now Go reverses, and they trade German suplexes. They start clubbing each other with clotheslines and knock each other senseless. Go blocks a 61Knee and turns it into a Fisherman's Suplex for two. That sets up the Dragon Sleeper, but Brent is able to fight out of it. The Falcon Arrow gets two for Go, and he goes up for the moonsault. IT MISSES! "Epic Fail," according to Leonard. Brent recovers and hits the Half-Nelson Suplex! ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Albright finally gets in position, traps the arms, and knees Go in the face until he can't defend himself anymore. The ref stops the match at 25:02. There was nothing wrong with the wrestling, per se, but these two lack the charisma between them to get people emotionally involved. They nearly turned into a great match by force of willpower, though. ***1/2

No DQ: Necro Butcher vs. Jimmy Jacobs.
So, if you've been following the story, you know that Jacobs had been asserting his leadership of the Age of the Fall, usually at the expense of reigning in Necro. Austin Aries outsmarted Jimmy, though, and drew him into a match where Aries could name the stips. Jacobs assumed it would be a match between he and Aries, but Aries decided to divide and conquer by booking this match. Before the match, Jacobs tries to weasel out of it by sending Necro to Alaska. He says Necro won't get paid much, but it's about the cause, after all. Necro doesn't cotton to that, so he pastes Jimmy in the jaw and drags him out into the crowd. Jacobs, clearly undersized, flies off a chair into a dive on Necro, but Necro shrugs it off like the homeless zombie that he is. Back to ringside, Necro crotches Jimmy on the post and then chair-slams him. Jimmy produces an aerosol can and sprays Necro in the face. To the ring, Necro fends Jacobs off long enough to pummel him in the corner. Necro takes Jimmy up top, but Tyler Black pulls him down and gives him God's Last Gift on a chair. They put Necro on a table, and Jacobs goes up. Austin Aries runs in and attacks Black to free up Necro. Aries crotches Jimmy on the top, but Black returns and powerbombs Aries on top of Necro, sending both men through the table. That allows Jimmy to get the pin at 22:41. Typical Necro Butcher insanity here, although the labyrinthine feud made it a little more interesting. ***

Steen & Generico run in to get some of the Age of the Fall. That brings out Delirious to defend his buddies, but the Briscoes run in to attack them. Suddenly, Steen & Generico are face to face with the Briscoes and now *they* brawl. Steen and Generico dive off the top onto the Briscoes. Necro throws a fit but receives a good ovation from the crowd as we go out.

The 411: I never really bought into the Age of the Fall as serious heels, even after they won the tag titles, so Necro breaking away from the group does nothing for me. I also think a lot of guys who feud with Jimmy Jacobs tend to make the mistake of treating him like just another heel, when, in fact, there's a lot of depth there that they could be playing off in promos. Jimmy isn't just another heel, he's an insecure (and kind of pathetic) narcissist. That's something they tapped into with the Whitmer/Jacobs feud, and they kind of hit on with Black looking like he might be a more stable leader earlier this year. Pretty good show from a wrestling standpoint, but Gabe's stretching out of feuds over long periods of time was starting to get tedious. It worked when there were fewer shows because he could pack everything into one show. Expansion forced filler, though, and while the wrestling is good, I find myself slowly losing interest in waiting for a lot of these payoffs.

Mild thumbs up for the wrestling.

Final Score:  6.5   [ Average ]