supersonic

Other than the flagship that is The Lapsed ROHbot, there's nothing available from any promotion in April 2002 that provides enough to warrant its own chapter on this journey. For the first time, it's all being thrown together, similarly to the initial Prologue of this lapsed timeline that looked at 2001 and early 2002. The first edition of the Lapsed Journeyman: Road to "A Night of Appreciation" (April 2002) https://docs.google.com/document/d/15nFtS8DJKudgZzSuxJRUqsl0iruW0VL3uDnzXpQkiZ0/edit?usp=sharing DISCLAIMER: Due to time constraints, Voices of Wrestling wasn't able to get this one posted, so it's temporarily available here as a viewing-only Google Doc for those who want to read this stuff chronologically. And the flagship that is the Lapsed ROHbot: A Night of Appreciation - April 27, 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/12/31/the-lapsed-rohbot-roh-a-night-of-appreciation-4-27-2002/ DISCLAIMER: Thinking of drinking/partying tonight? You might wanna give this one a read then.

Round Robin Challenge - March 30, 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/09/04/the-lapsed-rohbot-roh-round-robin-challenge-3-30-2002/

Best of IWC March 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/09/02/the-lapsed-indy-cartel-best-of-iwc-march-2002/

Best of IWA-MS March 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/08/28/the-lapsed-midwesterner-best-of-iwa-ms-march-2002-a-zero-one-gem/

Best of AJPW Excite Series 2002 Day 10 (PPV Debut) - February 24, 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/08/21/the-lapsed-kings-road-ajpw-excite-series-2002-day-10-ppv-debut/

GoFundMe for funeral expenses - https://www.gofundme.com/f/john-xavier-bedoyas-memorial-fund? The Lapsed ROHBot: Remembering Xavier (1977-2020) https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/08/17/the-lapsed-rohbot-remembering-xavier-1977-2020/

Best of NOAH Navigate For Evolution 2002 Day 10 [2/17/2002] https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/08/07/the-lapsed-navigation-noah-navigate-for-evolution-2002-day-10-2-17-2002/

Roderick Strong is the only one that can challenge him, and them teaming one day might be too much greatness.

At long last, your favorite promotion of the past decade finally gets spotlighted... but way before the current glory period. This is the dark ages to kick off The Lapsed Lion King of Sports. Best of NJPW Wrestling World 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/08/03/the-lapsed-lion-king-of-sports-njpw-wrestle-world-2002/

Best of Pro Wrestling NOAH 2001 (Pt. 2 of 2) (+ Zero-One & NJPW Gems) https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/07/29/the-lapsed-navigation-the-best-of-pro-wrestling-noah-2001-pt-2-of-2-zero-one-njpw-gems/

Best of Pro Wrestling NOAH 2001 (Pt. 1 of 2) (+ Zero-One Gems) https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/07/24/the-lapsed-navigation-the-best-of-pro-wrestling-noah-2001-pt-1-of-2-zero-one-gems/

The lapsed detour goes deeper to the past, traveling to the Far East for the first edition of The Lapsed Navigation. Misawa! Kobashi! Akiyama! Vader! Hashimoto! Best of Pro Wrestling NOAH 2000 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/20...ing-noah-2000/

The lapsed detour prior to ROH's birth continues, this time with a trip to the Hoosier State for the first edition of The Lapsed Midwesterner. Best of IWA-MS Late 2001 to Early 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/20...e-01-early-02/

The Lapsed ROHbot's journey has taken a detour back to 2001, officially expanding beyond ROH. Full explanation in the review of the first-ever Some Lapsed Ultraviolence. Best of CZW Summer 2001 (Plus 2 Other Low Ki Gems) https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/20...r-low-ki-gems/

Is this match available anywhere to stream?

Anyone care to upload this match?

From what little I've seen, that federation's entire shtick has always come across as incredibly disingenuous.

Benoit was the end of that absurd idolization for me.

As we reflect on a horrific tragedy that took place 4 years ago today, the journey now officially enters the era of honor. The Era of Honor Begins - February 23, 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/06/12/the-lapsed-rohbot-roh-the-era-of-honor-begins-2-23-2002/

After re-subbing to the Observer, I found a gem that's available online and got it inserted into the Prologue: Doug Williams defending the FWA British Heavyweight Championship against Christopher Daniels at FWA Crunch 2002. In addition, spelling/grammar errors have been corrected.

A quick introduction: Some of you know me more over the past 13-14 years as “Supersonic” throughout various message boards. During that time eight years ago, having grown frustrated with Jim Cornette’s direction with Ring of Honor under the ownership of Sinclair Broadcast Group, I went back to ROH’s birth and chronicled “The Good Shit” on message boards, spending 5.5 years reviewing roughly the same amount of years for ROH and other promotions, concluding with Man Up. With over 2.5 years of not reviewing anything since, I now feel recharged and will once again go back in time during this pandemic. But this time, it’s different; no longer am I cherry-picking just “The Good Shit,” and no longer am I wasting these away on message boards. Although I grew as a reviewer, the early ROH events didn’t get the best effort from me; now they will. In addition, as a dedicated member of the Lapsed Fan Wrestling Podcast’s “Solar System,” it’s become crystal-clear over the past several years that while the business has grown in many ways, it’s also largely evolved away from many of its emotional intangibles that once truly hooked viewers. Of the many different hashtags and catchphrases that have come from that podcast, one has stood out above the rest: It used to be better. And this is your chance to learn why that’s completely true for ROH. This won’t be some rose-colored glasses bullshit. Throughout the 2020s decade, I am reviewing every ROH event of the company’s first nine years and four months (sans the Do or Die jobber/tryout cards.) Every DVD event. Every PPV. Every TV episode that would come so many years later. It’s all going to be chronicled. This journey will capture a time period that will never be duplicated. It’s a time when a monopolized mainstream giant arrogantly spent a decade allowing the underground to become arguably the premier spot for the most dedicated, passionate pro wrestling fans. And during that decade spanning from the end of the Monday Night War all the way to a certain Chicago wrestling icon’s barrier-breaking “Pipebomb” style promo being brought onto mainstream cable television, no underground company benefited more than Ring of Honor. But before digging into ROH’s first chapter in February 2002, the stage was set throughout 2001 in the wake of WCW and ECW’s death, as well as one pioneer’s bad choices that briefly landed him back in the underground. As I’m about to dig into the 2001 chapters that would eventually spawn ROH, I want to thank Voices of Wrestling for being the introductory and currently exclusive home to this journey. I can’t think of a more fitting platform than the very site that was spawned from the summer of events which ended the decade-long period that this journey will cover. This is the Lapsed ROHbot. ARCHIVE: Prologue: APW's 2001 King of Indies (Plus More) https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/05/29/the-lapsed-rohbot-prologue-apw-king-of-indies-2001-plus-more/ 2002 The Era of Honor Begins - February 23, 2002 https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2020/06/12/the-lapsed-rohbot-roh-the-era-of-honor-begins-2-23-2002/

The most important thing I do is try building good rapport with all the corporate executives during such a tumultuous time. We don’t know how chaotic it’ll be yet, but it’s ALWAYS a no-brainer to make a quality first impression rather than be combative. Scott Hall is fired. Period. I want Flair back ASAP. He’s our version of what Undertaker became in the 2000s so stop pussyfooting around. I prefer he return the same night as Goldberg winning at the Georgia Dome (with all those executives present,) and wrapping up the Bischoff program at Fall Brawl in the Carolinas. I’m getting Bret completely away from the nWo saga. While the long-term plan is for him to be in the tippy-top picture, he’ll get strong wins in fresh programs against Jericho and Benoit, elevating those two in the process. It might be time for Mysterio to also graduate from the Cruiserweight division, so he’s a quality program to keep Bret busy too. The most important long-term plan will be to implement a drug policy including steroids. While it won’t be immediate, this needs to happen sooner rather than later after the deaths of Pillman and Spicolli. Hall’s termination serves as that preview. The other huge long-term plan is investing heavily in the Power Plant. While we are firing on all business metric cylinders currently, this is a wise path to find new stars without having to bid huge against WWF for already established stars. Especially with the corporate suits seemingly looking for excuses, having a long-term farm system could be a great means to lower the roster payroll, and be seen as a smart investment and maybe even as programming to eventually take over Saturday Night since the main roster already has 5 combined hours of Nitro and Thunder.

2007 Battle of Los Angeles Night 3 – September 2, 2007 Taped from Los Angeles, CA Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal Match Joey Ryan vs. Roderick Strong Understandably worked just like a one-segment TV match, considering whoever reaches the final has to pull triple-duty tonight. That’s not a criticism at all, as this was perfectly executed with Strong generally dominating unless Jade Chung bailed Joey Ryan out. As has seemingly been the case for her, there’s been no acknowledgement whatsoever of her history with Strong in ROH, which is disappointing. Something as simple as “I saved your skank ass from slavery and you hook up with these Arrogance pieces of shit, you fucking bitch?” would make for nice continuity. Her attempt to help Ryan out eventually backfired, as Ryan wasted time trying to win an argument against the ref with her, allowing Strong to hit the Tiger Driver and Liontamer for the victory. Rating: less than *** Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal Match Matt Sydal vs. Alex Shelley Quality matchup as expected, and yet again no reference at all to their ROH history, instead showing respect at the beginning. Sydal surprisingly was able to go toe-to-toe with Shelley, showing off his improvement from the past year or so in Dragon Gate. But Shelley had him scouted on multiple occasions, first by evading an Enziguri midway through. But the killer came at the end, and if the indies were treated with more respect by WWE, this match could’ve been pointed to as one scouted by Randy Orton; years before he would do so to Evan Bourne, Shelley here countered Sydal’s Shooting Star Press with an Ace Crusher, bringing the crowd to its feet. A follow-up Tiger Suplex and Cross-Legged Brainbuster was just the cherry on top for Shelley to advance. Rating: ***1/2 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal Match PAC vs. Claudio Castagnoli First time matchup here with Castagnoli dominating most of the way due to his size and strength advantage. In this one, PAC channeled his work against previous larger opponents to look for bombs when the opportunities struck, with the biggest being when he had Castagnoli outside. That allowed PAC to leap outside via a Somersault Plancha and in mid-air turn it into a head scissors to gain control. Castagnoli still regained control, but PAC was determined on this night, perhaps due to Dragon Gate officials being present. He managed to pull off the upset by cutting off a corner uppercut, turning a Moonsault Press into a Tornado DDT, and finishing it off with the Sky Twister. Huge upset here even with PAC beating former PWG Champion Kevin Steen earlier in the year. Rating: ***3/4 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal Match CIMA vs. Shingo Easily my favorite match of the night so far, as this had some heat in it due to tensions between Typhoon and New Hazard. However, what elevated this so far was that it had noticeable selling, as CIMA targeted Shingo’s bandaged right elbow. After working on it for a few minutes, Shingo did a fine job of paying it off, grimacing when using that limb to deliver a chop rather than switch to his left arm. But it would be CIMA’s experience in the pin variations that became the difference-maker. While Shingo was elevated in kicking out of the Air Raid Crash, it was enough to put him down for good the second time CIMA locked a variation pin on him, after having failed to put him down with a modified La Majistral cradle minutes earlier. PAC’s got his work cut out for him against CIMA in the next round. Rating: ***3/4 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal – Hardcore Match Necro Butcher vs. Nigel McGuinness Short and sweet with the best crowd atmosphere to far thanks to Necro being a viscerally connecting star. He tried getting the advantage early by attacking McGuinness during his entrance and turning it into a hardcore match, but the former Pure Champion just targeted the hardcore legend’s bandaged right knee. This came into play later as Necro did a great job of selling. He managed to knock McGuinness down a few times with clotheslines but couldn’t get the momentum to turn them into lariats. Necro was doomed when he couldn’t deliver a backbreaker on a chair, his knee buckling. This allowed McGuinness to suplex him onto it, with the damaged right knee landing perfectly on the edge of the chair. Splendidly worked and one has to wonder if Nick Gage could ever come into BOLA and steal the show as well as Necro did here. Rating: ***3/4 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Quarterfinal Match El Generico vs. Dragon Kid Excellent close to the quarterfinal round as this had some spunk to it. Dragon Kid decided to surprise Generico at the beginning with an immediate leg lariat, causing Generico to eventually get so frustrated he decided to play a bit dirty and knock him down from behind. Dragon Kid seemed to think he could Generico’s Yakuza kicks due to his shorter stature, but that didn’t go quite as planned, although generally he had a solid answer for almost everything Generico threw at him. The scariest part seemed not to fuck either competitor up, as Generico’s Top Rope Brainbuster was countered with a Stunner that saw Dragon Kid bounce off the top rope and take a bump too. But Dragon Kid simply didn’t have enough when Generico kicked out of the Springbaord Hurricanrana, getting cut off with a Yakuza kick on the top rope and being put down with the Turnbuckle Brainbuster. Would love to see a rematch. Rating: **** Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Semifinal Match Alex Shelley vs. Roderick Strong Definitely not as interesting as their ROH matches, once again not recognizing their history there on this evening. However, this was still very good as par the course so far on this card. Although it’ll get a high rating, this lacked something extra special to really dig in and analyze. Perhaps the best story told was that Shelley couldn’t put Strong down with anything, not even the Shiranui, which get a great reaction when Strong kicked out of it. Instead of aiming for a submission to put down Shelley, Strong just used consecutive Tiger Drivers to get the job done, not allowing Shelley any time to recover from the first. Perhaps that’s the story of desperation for a night in which the finalists have to pull triple-duty – get the job done quickly and by any means necessary, even if trademarks spots have to be arguably spammed. Rating: ***3/4 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Semifinal Match CIMA vs. PAC Good showing from PAC here to earn him a Dragon Gate invitation afterwards. He did his best to avoid CIMA’s Schwein, spiking the legend on his head a couple times. The first was with a DDT, the second was CIMA’s fault as he didn’t rotate enough on a head-scissors, getting dropped on his head. Once again though, there’s not much to dig into this match, and the fact that looks like it was intended to be a sequel of sorts to CIMA vs. Generico a year earlier, comes up a bit disappointing, To state the obvious, PAC simply was not on Generico’s level yet for crowd connection and building drama. The finish really told that when he botched a top rope move that got saved when CIMA finished it with a Super Schwein, probably taking the match home early to rest his neck before the final. Rating: ***1/2 Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Semifinal Match El Generico vs. Nigel McGuinness Easily my favorite match of the night, as this focused on two great characters colliding, adding drama to this on the level of an ROH main event at the time. McGuinness even got some minor heel heat, which fit in well as he targeted Generico’s left shoulder with various strikes and submissions. The real story was centered around their signature moves though, such as McGuinness evading a Yakuza kick, instead taking advantage of Generico’s failure to scout the corner headstand kick. However, Generico would prove to have that scouted later, hitting an instant Yakuza kick to cut it off, while also avoiding lariats throughout the match. McGuinness stayed focused on Generico’s left arm to cut him off, but his overreliance on the rebound lariat attempt came back to bite him, as Generico finished him with a desperate schoolboy pin. These two definitely need another round, but in an ROH ring. Rating: **** Battle of Los Angeles Tournament Final – Elimination Match El Generico vs. CIMA vs. Roderick Strong An excellent finale that stood out over most of the prior tournament matches, as this never stopped and saw some quality scouting throughout. It started with a bunch of strike exchanges to have all three down early, but managed to turn into CIMA gaining the advantage when he tossed Generico off the top rope and then hit a Frog Splash on Strong. I couldn’t believe Generico tooks his signature spots to the apron, hitting a Yakuza kick and Brainbuster on Strong on that section. But CIMA would intervene as Strong recovered, hitting an uppercut and then an Apron Air Raid Crash for a tremendous pop. Back in the ring, Generico tried to find the fighting spirit, popping up immediately after a Brainbuster, but succumbed to the Schwein. Strong wasted no time reinserting himself when Generico got eliminated, having a hot finale with CIMA. CIMA couldn’t be denied on this night though, fueled after losing in the prior year’s BOLA finale; not even Strong kicking out of the Air Raid Crash was enough. CIMA just stayed determined, hitting a Package Cross Armed Powerbomb to finish off Strong. Post-match, PWG Champion Bryan Danielson presented CIMA with the BOLA Trophy, teasing a rematch between the two for the title. CIMA closed the night with a classy speech and his Typhoon stablemates present, vowing to return to PWG as soon as possible. Rating: **** Although the card can get a bit monotonous due to its format, this gets the highest recommendation, especially since the best matches weren’t raved enough to get placed on compilations. A stellar card that had the best come at the very end, which is what every show should strive for in its pacing. Up next – Schadenfreude Matches will include: Scott Lost vs. Davey Richards El Generico vs. Jack Evans Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong