ShittyLittleBoots

Aka the death of the American Dragon. Lots of feelings about this one, given it is my favorite wrestler of all-time in a retirement-type match. I loved it. It is crushing in the best ways possible. You just know he is gonna get decimated by Moxley by the end of it, but come on, Dragon doesn't go down without a fight. It is a beautiful, classic babyface performance by the greatest ever. Moxley is also absolutely superb in his current role - he comes off as such a menacing, vicious, dangerous man. Upped the violence brilliantly with his offense. There's a few moments by him that I think fall a bit flat (the bulldog choke is the biggest example), but overall he was brilliant. Him countering Bryan's dive attempt into a Death Rider on the floor was a legitimate "OH NO" holy-shit-spot. The ending is absolutely soul-destroying. Beautiful sadness. As of now, there's no guarantees on what this REALLY means for Danielson's pro-wrestling future -- meaning that there's no official word on if he will ever wrestle again, but given the billing, it is an absolutely beautiful way to end his career as a full-time pro wrestler. ****3/4

It is not the feud-ending classic it could've been, but I love this match. Punk's babyface performance is just terrific. Truly one of the great bleeders in wrestling. ****

A terrific match here. Danielson puts on an absolute clinic at wrecking Spanky with the arm-targeting in particular being vicious as fuck. Spanky as the crafty underdog rules - I love the way he bumps, sells & finds ways to get back into things. Once he fully gets back into the thing, the home stretch is just extremely good with its exciting, fully earned action - that Cattle Mutilation-reversal nearfall was soooo good. ****

Not a fan of the finish whatsoever, but this is a great tag team match otherwise. The first Punk vs. Joe interactions after their legendary rivalry are awesome & Lethal as the fip rules. The attack on the ribs by Spanky & (especially) Punk is so good. I really wish this would've ended with Punk delivering that Pepsi Plunge after the fantastic spot where he catches Lethal mid-air with that dropkick. The Stevie Richards finish definitely ended it with a sour note. ***3/4

Big time rematch for the title here. I must say that at first I wasn't feeling Aries acting like a comedic cowardly heel at the start of this match (even though it is fitting given how they built the match up), but it actually ended up working as the match built on that. Once Aries gets busted open & starts fighting as the bleeding underdog? Ooh it's so good. Joe's monster performance is just amazing here: nasty killer work over the cut & in general everything he unloads is vicious as hell. I do dislike the finish though, especially hate the low-blow by Aries, but it's still a terrific match. Definitely 100% worth the watch if you're into some prime murder-mode Samoa mothafuckin' Joe. ****1/4

This rules. I love Rave's heel work here with the constant cheating scumbaggery - the entire shoelace thing, which lead to the match being restarted, was so much fun. Punk is also terrific at being the ass-kicker at the 2 beginnings of the match, first at the very beginning & then when it gets restarted. He is also class at selling for Rave's work on top. It's a great match with both guys playing their roles wonderfully. ****

This is a very good midcard match. Cabana & Nigel compliment each other quite well with their signature in-ring styles. Charming competitive technical wrestling throughout with good little comedic moments in there all in the name of said competitive technical wrestling. ***1/2

Did not care for their previous match one bit. This one was thankfully MUCH better. Now it ain't no Jay Briscoe vs. Samoa Joe, but it's a badass cage match for the title in its own right. Cabana getting busted open & Aries working the cut made for an awesome dynamic, and both guys definitely upped the brutality with their bombs & strikes, which fit the nature of the match perfectly. Awesome big spots & counters. Some very good finish-teases throughout & the actual finish is very neat to boot. A major upgrade from their first title match! ****

The 2nd match in their best of 5 series. Kind of an anti-climatic finish, but I enjoyed this a lot. It's not quite as excellent as their submission match from the previous show, but it's really good. The crowd brawling is very fun in its chaotic nature, and it fits both guys really well. Lots of great punches thrown throughout the match - I say hell yeah to that, brotha. Awesome airplane spin counter by Homicide. I can see people wanting this to be more heated/wild, but I thought they brought the feeling of dislike into the thing quite well, even when things got more "traditional" once they hit the ring. ***3/4

This is a very intriguing 1-on-1 match-up on paper, and it was a great one! Love how Spanky finds his first real opening with that dropkick & then Punk's leg becomes the main story of the match. Spanky is perfect in his role here being ratty, fast & crafty at finding openings. Punk's selling is class all the way through. The way the targeted leg seals the deal in the finish is brilliant. Really loved this one. ****

This is a great showcase for Nigel. He gets to showcase a lot here against the top dog in Joe, and it's awesome. Joe obviously offers plenty of his always-great violent tendencies as well. I felt like it was just the right balance of Nigel getting some time to shine, while also showcasing where they stand on the ROH totem pole with Joe destroying him. It's a very good little match! ***1/2

The first match in their Best of 5 series. Low Ki & Homicide did a real number on Danielson's arm at Final Battle, so one would expect this match to have a lot of arm-targeting, especially with it being a submission match. And you do get plenty of that! It's Homicide's main target, and he does a very good job working over it throughout. He's not someone you would classify as a "limb-targeting guy" at a first glance, but he brings great focus & nice viciousness into his attack here. Dragon's selling is really good as well & he brings such terrific intensity into his work on the offense - whether it be him taking things to the mat, the knee targeting, going for the airplane spin or blasting 'cide with those glorious uppercuts, Danielson brought it. It is a pretty major upgrade from their previous meeting, which while extremely solid, was very forgettable. This is a great match. ****

Honestly an incredible fucking match & the perfect way to end Joe's epic title reign. The way the match slowly establishes that Aries is FOR REAL in this as it progresses is just superb. Everytime he survives Joe's bulldozing some more & puts together his explosive combinations, the crowd reacts more & more. It's some real special stuff with a special atmosphere. That final sequence after he escapes Joe's Muscle Buster attempt is amazing. Take a bow, both men. One of the greatest title reigns of all-time comes to an end in a classic. ****3/4

It's a tremendous ending to a legendary trilogy. I do prefer their 2nd match by a bit as watching Punk's gameplan play out there was just so, so, SO compelling, but this one is complete greatness as well. Punk's cut brings such a brilliant twist to their dynamic, and it's just red hot action with them perfectly playing off of their previous matches. ****3/4

A first ever match-up here between a very intriguing pairing on paper. It's a 20-minute time limit draw, which makes sense since Aries ain't gonna lose just before he is about to beat Joe for the World Title, and Low Ki is Low Ki. It's a very good match. Ki is just great here with his work on top & combining that with his arrogant heel attitude. Aries from underneath is natural given the pairing, and he rocks the role well. It is not the epic I could see these two having, but it's a very good, competitive match between two terrific wrestlers. ***1/2

Not as good as their match earlier on in the year, but it's still a good one. Suffers from the length, as it deeeefinitely could've been trimmed some, but I did indeed still have a good time with it. Danielson looking for revenge is fun as he controls most of the match, and Homicide plays the counterpart to that really well. Really good finishing stretch. The referee bit when Homicide was removing his boot felt quite silly & weird though. ***

I would put this about on par with the Liger vs. Danielson singles bout from the previous night. Extremely fun from start to finish. Ki being there was a lot of fun with him just being the arrogant, hard-hitting prick that he is. ****

Liger coming to ROH is a great moment. It is a great match too. Danielson is excellently entertaining with his work on top being an arrogant prick going after Liger's mask while beating him up with his brilliant, vicious arsenal. The match has just the right amount of him doing his thing & then Liger playing the hits. Super fun! ****

This rules. I love Aries' work over the knee here. He's focused, greatly vicious & creative with it. Punk's selling is on point with it being a big part of his (also awesome) comebacks. Great stuff. The early section of the match with Punk kicking Aries' ass all over the place was a lot of fun as well. There's some unfortunate technical issues with the lights going out in the middle of the match, but I thought it took nothing away from the thing. It's a great match. ****

It's been about 8 years since I last watched this match, and I honestly forgot just how amazing it is. It builds off of their first 60-minute time limit draw so beautifully with Punk continuing right where he left off, but being even more focused with his work. Punk's performance overall is just outstanding - watching him execute his gameplan is SUCH compelling pro-wrestling & makes the match fly by. It absolutely does not feel like an hour-long match. Joe is also absolutely terrific between his great selling, amazing character work & brutal offense. It is a legendary match well worth its legendary reputation. Going through ROH chronologically, it's the best match the company has held up to this point. Kinda crazy that Joe also had the brilliant Danielson match just a few weeks before this one. *****

Real famous & revered match in ROH lore here, with the two most important wrestlers in ROH history going at it. It's a classic. Just like in the CM Punk trilogy, it is so much fun watching Danielson try and crack the unbeatable champ that is Joe. He wrestles a brilliant match: I love the leg-targeting, his cat & mouse games and one of the best moments of the match is him delivering that thumb to Joe's eye. Every time Joe gets to really unleash on him, it feels like such a suffocating beatdown - Joe is just an absolutely terrific asskicker here. Great selling by both men as well throughout, really makes the dynamic between them work beautifully. They fill the (almost) 40 minutes fantastically. Doesn't feel its length whatsoever. It's a classic. ****3/4

The perfect ROH farewell for both men. I love this match. All the nods to their previous battles are so much fun, Danielson rocks the crimson mask brilliantly & the match kicks up to an excellent 2nd gear once he starts bleeding. Nigel gunning for the kill while literally yelling "DIE" at multiple points, that's that shit. It is not their best match, but it is a terrific way to cap off their legendary ROH rivalry. ****1/4

"ROH's greatest rivalry has come to Japan!" - a fun tagline by Prazak there. It is a very fun match! Nowhere near their best, but it didn't need to be. Lots of fun work on the mat by Danielson early on, as he busts out some awesome, vicious looking creative holds. The match very naturally builds with its intensity too, as by the end they're trading some terrific big strikes & bombs. I fuck with this match quite a lot. More so than I remembered. It lowkey feels like a touring version of their big match, which combined with the unique atmosphere of it being in Japan makes it a very charming deal all around. ****

t can be intimidating/scary going back & re-watching matches that you thought were your favorites. What if it doesn't hold up or make you feel the same way it did at some point? Well, this match has never had that problem with me. I get sucked into it every time. Bryan is the perfect babyface ace in the companys big anniversary show, honoring the special rule about not attacking Nigel's head. The way the match builds with Bryan completely owning Nigel, to Nigel taking over & then getting owned again, leading to THAT moment of him unleashing the headbutts on Bryan in what may be my favorite single match moment of all-time. The whole thing just feels like pro-wrestling euphoria to me. Pure bliss. Whenever I hear the question "what is your favorite match of all-time?" my mind always instantly goes to this one, and it's been like that for years now. It is perfect to me. *****

A first round match-up in the ROH Survival of the Fittest 2007 Tournament. It is a 20-minute time limit draw. Bryan's gameplan of wrecking Nigel's leg is extremely fun to watch, Nigel's selling is very good + his counter armwork is great & all the matwork in the match is just excellent. I could say that the match is a bit of gem, given that no one really ever talks about it. The time limit draw finish is definitely quite anti-climatic, but it is still a great match even with that. ****