Project Rewatch - ROH: The Good Shit

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Weekend of Champions Night 2 - April 29, 2006

Lacey is getting more fed up with Jimmy Jacobs and his failure to win a match.

BJ Whitmer kicks off the show with a neck brace but his promo is thankfully cut short by ROH Commish Jim Cornette, who also brings out Adam Pearce. The Scrap Daddy is named Lt. Commish when Cornette isn't around, and he asks Whitmer to sit out the night due to all the punishment he's taken in the past week. He cuts a passionate albeit somewhat ridiculous "us vs. them" promo saying ROH and its fanbase is in a war against CZW and sports-entertainment. Those familiar with Cornette's schtick have seen this from him a million times, although he's right on the money here about WWE using religion, as this was during the awful McMahonism program. Pearce is left in the ring but gets ambushed by Nate Webb when leaving ringside, which then brings out Ace Steel to chase off the CZW star.

Chris Sabin vs. Delirious

Good stuff here overall, although Sabin was cringeworthy at the start of the match with his “be my friend” shtick due to Delirious being a mental. The counters were really good, and if Sabin had just sold more during the finishing stretch, specifically his back over being hit with the Shadows Over Hell instead of easily making several attempts at the Cradle Shock, this could’ve been rated much higher.

Rating: ***

Jacobs wins his match and strips down to his trunks. One of the weaker segments in this classic arc.

I FF to the end of Samoa Joe vs. Claudio Castagnoli, a dream match that didn’t live up to expectations. (A shame we can’t get 2004-05 Joe vs. current Cesaro.) It basically turns into a hardcore tag match pitting Pearce & Ace Steel against Webb & Necro Butcher. Really good brawl and it tips in CZW’s favor when Super Dragon appears. This brings out BJ Whitmer.

Hardcore Match

Super Dragon vs. BJ Whitmer

Brutal, hard-hitting shit as expected, and the crowd loved this. While perhaps not the absolute most convincing, Whitmer actually bothered to sell the bad neck from all the punishment he had taken, including the absurd Argentine piledriver just a week before this. Whitmer had the crowd fully behind him against SD, who is such an under-appreciated heel. I think SD’s ability as a heel speaks volumes in that he got the uncharismatic Whitmer to be a believable underdog.

They teased a number of Argentine piledrivers, all of them getting over. SD would set up two stacked tables on the outside, then attempted to top the Argentine piledriver from the week before in Philly. Whitmer blocked that and they pulled off an insane wrist-clutch exploder, from the top rope, through the stacked tables, onto the floor. Just absurd lengths these two men went, especially SD since he wasn’t being booked after this. Whitmer has slayed one demon, and SD is left in the street by Steel & Pearce like a piece of trash.

While certainly not as epic as Kenta Kobashi’s weekend of appearances, hats off to what Super Dragon did for just three nights in ROH. Supposedly he assaulted a fan in Philly so ROH just used him to put Whitmer over before telling him to fuck off. But his quick departure from the company took away a malicious character from the CZW camp for the angle, and as I’ve stated before, I believe Gabe Sapolsky would’ve eventually booked SD & Davey Richards vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji. I also believe that SD would’ve challenged for the ROH Title on the next Chicago event, allowing someone else enough time to organically develop as a contender.

Rating: ***1/4

Matt Sydal vs. Christopher Daniels

Sydal would get a sore left ankle very early but dominated this match. His domination to progress his ascension as a singles star was very impressive, working on the ribs of Daniels after hitting that body part with a shotgun dropkick that knocked the veteran off the apron. In particular his submission work was quite impressive, and those only familiar with him as Evan Bourne ought to see this.

Daniels would of course get his moments in to keep this from being a squash, doing a great job of also selling his ribs. This was on its way to greatness but ended abruptly when Daniels managed to hit a Last Rites and that was it to put Sydal away. Considering I’d seen that get kicked out of numerous times, I’d have preferred that to be a nearfall with Daniels having to really dig down deep into his veteran craftiness to keep Sydal from obtaining his next singles landmark victory in ROH. Still really good stuff.

Rating: ***1/2

ROH Title vs. Pure Title – Pure Wrestling Rules

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

Very overlooked match here but understandable. I’ve called this the greatest rivalry in company history, even sharing that assessment with McGuinness at the merchandise table in New Orleans. And if this match is anything to judge by, this rivalry may be even better than I had remembered.

Referee Todd Sinclair only mentions that the Pure Title can change via DQ and countout, leaving what appeared to be a glaring hole in regards to the ROH Title.

The match begins with beautiful matwork as so many viewers of this time can remember. Danielson works a Cravate but that gets broken when McGuinness lands a Divorce Court on the future HOFer’s left arm. This allowed the Pure Champ to dominate the first third of the match, just being all over Danielson’s left arm with various submissions and awkward positioning like he was white on rice. It got bad enough that Danielson had to use a rope break.

Of course, McGuinness trolled the temperamental Danielson into throwing closed punches in front of the ref twice, causing a rope break detriment. And also of course, Danielson would manage to get his hope spots in. The moment that stood out the most to me was McGuinness having his legs used using his legs to scissor Danielson’s torso while also applying the Kimura Lock. I wonder if Danielson will ever find himself locked in that submission again and if he’ll be able to survive it for more than five seconds that time around.

Danielson would position himself out of an arm submission, setting up McGuinness for a surfboard. But in something so simple yet to brilliant, he couldn’t apply enough pressure on his left arm due to all of the work put onto it. He’d have to settle for his usual plan B in that moment, charging the knees of McGuinness on the mat. This control would be short-lived as McGuinness would slam his left arm on the mat and slide him out of the ring.

After hitting a German Suplex upon reentering the ring, Danielson couldn’t follow up due to the pain in his left arm, although he escaped a hammerlock in the corner by using his feet and got some momentum with clotheslines and forearms using his right arm. A Crossface Chickenwing would convince McGuinness to use a rope break after serious contemplation, bringing this match to an even level.

As they’re about to get into the third act, the match has another highlight as the overzealous Danielson charges at the hand-standing McGuinness and gets two boots to the face followed by a Tower of London, forcing him to use his final rope break. McGuinness would also go on to use his final rope break due to Danielson’s technical excellence.

The last few minutes were just off the charts. They brawled on the outside and McGuinness got the advantage, then used a table to pin down Danielson. The crowd was so antsy about Danielson being counted out that when he got in at 19, it was treated like a genuine nearfall. After trading blows, Danielson would lock the Cattle Mutilation on McGuinness, who would escape by finding a way to absorb the pain and position himself to fall out of the ring and break the hold.

After a tope suicida, they brawled again on the outside. Danielson would make the mistake of flying at McGuinness in the crowd. The Pure Champ smacked him with a steel chair, causing the crowd to go apeshit. This time, the ROH Champ couldn’t overcome the blow, finding himself being counted out. The crowd is popping huge for the title change, only for Sinclair to state that it was never declared the ROH Title could change hands in such fashion, and thus Danielson keeps it on a technicality despite McGuinness winning within the rules of the contest.

Danielson gets a well-deserved standing ovation when he’s left in the ring.

That booking was absolutely necessary to ensure rematches in the future, and is in no way a downer. This match has actually gotten better as the years have gone by, and is one of the all-time classics in ROH history. It is overshadowed by too many things to mention, which is understandable. After having a couple nights to sleep on this, I’m comfortable with my rating as this is one of the greatest matches in company history, and the Danielson vs. McGuinness compilation is worth every penny for just this match alone.

Rating: ****3/4

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Jimmy Rave & Alex Shelley

A video package of their 2005 feud is shown, which is a nice highlight reel. Prince Nana is off for the weekend tending to matters in Ghana.

The match itself was good but never reached anything special, partially hurt by the referee forgetting who was legal and he should’ve quite easily kept track. Generation Next were funny in playing mind games with their former archenemies, but the Embassy would return the underhanded tactics to them. Once Shelley was taken out and Rave ate two backbreakers while Aries waited for the 450 splash, everyone knew that was it for the show. Let’s not beat around it: although the Tag Titles have generally been booked strongly in ROH, the only reason this was the main event is because nobody knew how the crowd would react to the Danielson vs. McGuinness finish.

Rating: ***1/4

Danielson and McGuinness have a face-to-face discussion, with Danielson calling him out for using weapons. Delirious shows up to babble shit-talk at Danielson, who then gets mugged from behind by McGuinness.

Good god get this show. Extremely fun, a historic match that is one of the best in company history AND a kickoff to the best rivalry in company history, and the abrupt end to the short-lived Super Dragon era.

Up next – How We Roll

Matches will include:

Roderick Strong vs. Mark Briscoe

Austin Aries vs. Jay Briscoe

Bryan Danielson & Christopher Daniels vs. Christian Cage & Colt Cabana

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How We Roll - May 12, 2006

ROH Video Recap - May 4, 2006

Important news/footage from the above video:

Delirious has been granted another shot for the ROH Title against Bryan Danielson, barely saying that he never quit or gave up, and showing a stitched wound on his right palm.

Jim Cornette has requested Homicide to help out his ROH colleagues against CZW.

I only have the good shit matches I'm reviewing, so I'll look at the dual review written by Jake Ziegler & Brad Garoon while I paraphrase what happened and offer my insight.

Lt. Commissioner Adam Pearce starts the DVD echoing Cornette's request towards Homicide.

Christian Cage and Bryan Danielson choose their partners for the main event of the evening, respectively picking Colt Cabana and Christopher Daniels. I'd have booked Danielson & Alex Shelley vs. Christian & Homicide instead, with Danielson this time taking the Embassy's money to grant Shelley a spot in a marquee match (with the potential of him making waves in TNA should he go over Christian) whereas Christian would remind Homicide that it was this very weekend a year ago that he lost his bitter feud against Danielson and would be a great way to get himself back in the title picture.

Speaking of Shelley and Homicide, their tag match alongside Jimmy Rave and Ricky Reyes respectively was very disappointing with it being the only showdown ever between the Embassy and Rottweilers, and thus the only time Prince Nana and Julius Smokes went at it. We can probably blame Low Ki for Reyes having to be in this match. In the post-match, Homicide goes on a tangent about being screwed in ROH and doesn't give a shit about helping out the company. Of an important note is that Shelley got injured in this match, cancelling a highly anticipated Pure Title shot he was getting the next day against Nigel McGuinness.

Roderick Strong vs. Mark Briscoe

Decent but nothing special. The wrestling all looked good with some neat moments here and there, but it never clicked emotionally with the audience; it's obvious how addicted the fanbase was to the Kool-Aid at this time with Strong getting a standing ovation afterwards, because this match was far from memorable.

Rating: less than ***

Austin Aries vs. Jay Briscoe

Match of the night here quite easily. Aries led the match and really allowed Jay to shine, doing an excellent job of selling the work done on his left arm/shoulder. Remember that Aries is a southpaw. Aries would mix in his moments of hope spots and get quickly cut off by Jay, with each next series of hope spots being a bit more extended. This match also had some good heat between the two after the events during The Milestone Series, my favorites being Jay slapping the head of Aries while holding him in a hammerlock, and a chop exchange outside.

The finishing stretch got really good with the crowd genuinely engaged. Aries dug down deep and stopped relying on his lesser right arm to throw pitiful strikes, taking the risk of causing further damage to his left arm and dropping Jay with a lariat. Once it got to the finish, Aries blocked a double underhook piledriver and turned into a backslide but lacked the strength in his dominant arm to hold on, and with all of the work done on him throughout the rest of the contest, couldn't block a second double underhook piledriver. Really good and deserves to be on a Briscoes, Aries, or Generation Next compilation.

Rating: ***1/2

Bryan Danielson & Christopher Daniels vs. Christian Cage & Colt Cabana

I should note that Daniels only agreed to this if Danielson granted him another ROH Title shot, with Danielson saying yes but only if they win this match. Also important is that Christian is the NWA-TNA Champion, making this only the second time that the top singles champions of ROH and TNA squared off in an ROH ring.

This match took forever to get the least bit interesting, with way too much comedy and Southern rasslin' sports-entertainment stalling in the first 10 minutes from all four men. It honestly seemed like Christian and Samoa Joe were really taking it easy to preserve themselves for Sacrifice 2006. Understandable and I'm sure Christian sold some tickets to bring additional exposure to fans who wouldn't have otherwise given ROH a look, but this is a company that mostly based its business on DVD sales at this time, and this match was not a DVD mover.

The only reason I'll give this match a positive rating is that tag legalities were remembered by all four men (not surprising with Christian's experience in WWE tag wrestling) and the crowd got into the finishing stretch. That portion was admittedly good but without the crowd getting into it, I wouldn't have said it was strong enough to overcome a pedestrian first and second act. Danielson allows Daniels to take the pinfall to Christian, having no desire to give Daniels another shot at the ROH Title.

Rating: ***

I've heard this considered one of the worst shows in company history. I wouldn't go that far since the last two matches were actually at least good, but this show was certainly nothing special and for what was overall a largely strong 2006, definitely deserves consideration for worst ROH event of the year. As stated earlier, ROH should do everyone a favor and get Aries vs. Jay on a compilation so that nobody feels compelled to watch this pedestrian event.

Up next - Ring of Homicide

Matches will include:

Kikutaro vs. Colt Cabana

Nigel McGuinness vs. Jay Lethal

Bryan Danielson vs. Delirious

Matt Sydal vs. Christopher Daniels

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

Samoa Joe vs. Necro Butcher

[supersonic]

Ring of Homicide - May 13, 2006

The DVD begins with BJ Whitmer making a request for Homicide to help out against CZW, citing the respect they had gained for one another from their battles in 2003.

Comedy Dream Match

Kikutaro vs. Colt Cabana

Fun match as expected. The comedy antics were outstanding, including Cabana saying Kikutaro would get his name chanted if he stopped constantly changing it. They had many moments of psyching each other out, including the "too slow" potshot. Other highlights include them dancing like they were in a ballroom, and most of all, Cabana getting crotched, then the REFEREE also getting crotched. Both were intentional and then poetically paid off when Kikutaro fell while walking the ropes, crotching himself. This match achieved it goals.

After Homicide & Ricky Reyes take care of Dunn & Marcos, Lt. Commissioner Adam Pearce comes out to plead to Homicide in person for help against CZW. Homicide drops the mic and leaves without saying a word, irritated at the requests to be inserted into an issue that he's never been involved with.

Pure Title Match

Nigel McGuinness vs. Jay Lethal

As stated in my How We Roll review, Alex Shelley was scheduled to challenge in this match but got injured, That left McGuinness to make an open challenge to anybody, with the New Jersey native Lethal making his ROH return after what appeared to be an abrupt departure just three months earlier in the same venue. Phenomenal hometown pop for Lethal as one would expect.

But before that challenge was issued by McGuinness, he took some time to cut a hilarious promo that folks in NYC would really appreciate, and those who enjoyed the opening segment of WrestleMania XXX should see this. "What's up, New York?" He was then corrected by referee Todd Sinclair, to which he then said "I thought New Jersey was just a smelly part of New York." He also mentioned that ROH has the very best champions, then noted he had defeated all three of the other titleholders already, so that makes him the best champion in the company.

McGuinness was his usual great self in this match, using a punch behind Sinclair's back and then leaving Lethal to attempt receipts in front of the ref, who stopped Lethal. The first time was really impressive, as Lethal went for chops and strikes but got all of them blocked by the Pure Champ. McGuinness was also fantastic in displaying a condescending attitude, telling Lethal that he was embarrassing himself in front of his friends and family.

The finishing stretch was great as well, with the crowd popping over a rebound lariat nearfall. McGuinness prevented a diving headbutt by holding onto the ref's pants and blocking Lethal, only for Lethal to kick out of a Tower of London, which again had the crowd even more behind its hometown guy. What made this stand out is that Lethal had blocked an earlier attempt of this finisher, so now it would've looked like this would end him. McGuinness followed up with another Tower of London to finish Lethal off, and it certainly should've been the finish with the way Lethal landed. He definitely went home or hopped the airplane to Orlando on this night sore in his face and neck.

Rating: ***1/2

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Delirious

Before the match begins, Danielson cuts a fantastic CM Punk heel promo straight out of the Summer of Punk, burying the fans of both ROH and CZW, the locker room, and his opponent on this evening. This was absolutely brilliant to make sure this crowd would be fully behind Delirious, who retorted with great babbling (and using gestures to refer to what had happened three weeks earlier) that finally became understandable at the very end with a "KICK YOUR ASS!!" Delirious then gave Danielson a receipt from how their match at The 100th Show kicked off, attacking the champ while he still had the championship belt on to kick this off.

Danielson of course took a powder and upon getting back in the ring was able to get an advantage with technical wrestling. Delirious got to the ropes on some early Cattle Mutilations, but had his arms and shoulders worked on by the champ to soften him up for more Cattle Mutilations later. Delirious got a comeback by countering a belly-to-back suplex into a head-scissors, then briefly choked Danielson with some of his mask tassles as another receipt for what happened in Philly. Danielson would appear to cut off this control segment, but Delirious would regain control trading blows and going for the Cobra Clutch.

They'd go outside via a Delirious cross-body, and Delirious would bite the head of Danielson. This gave the champ an opportunity to drop the challenger throat-first on the edge of a guardrail, then throw him back in for his heat segment. While going for a surfboard, the CZW fans in attendance for the main event chanted "same old shit," so Danielson went ahead and did the move just to troll them, then followed that up by tea-bagging Delirious while having his legs tied up in a submission.

Danielson returned the tassle-choking flavor, letting the referee know that he had until five to break it, and mocked the CZW fans again for their "same old shit" chants. He continued dominating with more submissions, including another surfboard as well as a cross armbreaker and abdominal stretch. Delirious hip-tossed Danielson and sent him outside, then charged at the champ with a tope suicida. Once they got back in though Danielson regained control (while continuing to mock the CZW fans), but a diving headbutt would be countered with an Ace Crusher to allow Delirious to get momentum. I wonder if DDP or Randy Orton ever did that to Chris Benoit.

Delirious countered a crucifix and locked in the Cobra Stretch, but the champ reached the ropes. He cut off Delirious with a boot to the face and diving European Uppercut, bringing the momentum of Delirious to a screeching halt. Danielson would continue dominating, with a kick from Delirious as a brief hope spot to let the crowd know he was still in the game. Moments later, he was in the middle of the ring as a victim of the crossface chickenwing, but managed to have his foot reach the ropes. Crowd popped big for that false finish.

Delirious countered an attempted super belly-to-back suplex with a cross-body to get control once again. He hit a shotgun dropkick, running knee in the corner, and Shadows Over Hell for a good nearfall. He locked on another Cobra Stretch after hitting a Cobra Backbreaker, but the champ reached the ropes, then countered another Shadows Over Hell attempt into a phenomenal Cattle Mutilation. Crowd was getting antsy at this point.

Delirious reached the ropes and then broke the fiery elbows of Danielson, kicking Danielson right in the head twice in what would be the biggest pop of the night on a normal night of wrestling. This all came to an absolute screeching halt when Delirious charged at Danielson, only to be abruptly finished off with a small package!

An instant classic that has stood the test of time here, and probably the best match Delirious will ever have. Phenomenal stuff with great crowd engagement, storytelling, psychology, heat segments, transitions, counters, and a beautifully abrupt finish. Like Lethal in the prior match, Delirious is left in the ring to get a well-deserved standing ovation.

Rating: ****1/4

Gary Michael Cappetta is interviewing Julius Smokes to get info on what Homicide will do about ROH vs. CZW, and Smokes is interrupted by Samoa Joe, who says in no uncertain terms that it's really shitty of Homicide to not help out, saying that he's being a mouse and pussy over perceived slights from the company. Smokes seems to have grown respect for Joe, mortal enemy of the Rottweilers, for confronting him face-to-face and being blunt about the situation.

Matt Sydal vs. Christopher Daniels

Another good match from these two with Sydal dominating like last time. He worked on the back of Daniels in this one, but of course the Fallen Angel would get his moments in, including throwing Sydal around on guardrails early and trying to return the back-work favor. Sydal would regain control after a Blue Thunder Powerbomb deep in the match by applying the Koji Clutch, an established submission finisher of Daniels.

Sydal would block an Iconoclasm and super hurricanrana while seated on the top ropes, then delivering a flying twisting hurricanrana to the standing Daniels for a nice nearfall. He also countered a powerslam toss from the top rope into a a victory roll for another nice nearfall. What cost Sydal again against Daniels was when he went for the Angel's Wings, to which Daniels was able to counter into a victorious pinfall. Sydal goes to Dragon Gate for a couple months without securing a major singles victory in ROH.

Rating: ***1/4

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

Damn good tag wrestling here with a finish that I love and appreciate so much as a detail-oriented, highly critical viewer.

After some nice back-and-forth stuff, the Briscoes finally got some control by cutting the ring in half on Aries, with obvious cheating thrown in due to their awesome tag psychology. They decimated Aries left and right, so when he got the hot tag on Strong, it really meant something to the crowd. I realize I'm skipping a lot, so just trust me when I say the first two acts were really good shit, but the third act truly stands out. Strong was an amazing house of fire on the Briscoes, and the referee let all four men loose on each other.

Bombs were being dropped left and right, including double-team moves and masterful breakups of pinfalls. This all sounds like this would be another typical indy tag match that starts off well and then logically falls apart in the end. But the very end was brilliant, because during most of this final act, the legal men were Strong and Mark. With Jay out of the ring, that left the champs to dominate Mark, but they were smart enough to have Aries get back in their corner and legally tag in.

Aries would be knocked to the outside, leaving Strong alone in the ring with the Briscoes. They gave him a spike double underhook piledriver, and Jay went for the cover. Right as that happened, Aries got back in and rolled up Mark from behind for the three-count. There was confusion over this, but honestly there shouldn't have been. The referee rightfully noted that Aries and Mark were the legal men, therefore the champs retained.

The Briscoes are pissed, and they really shouldn't be, but let's be honest: tag legalities before and after this are so often poorly enforced, that the wrestlers have largely become accustomed to the finishing stretches of tag matches being a free for all. With that in mind, I definitely say the Briscoes have a case for another shot at the champs, and now they will have no excuses and better be aware of the basic rules that tag team wrestling is found upon.

Rating; ***3/4

Samoa Joe vs. Necro Butcher

Necro comes out first and knocks out ring announcer Bobby Cruise. When Joe comes out and they're face-to-face, Necro then knocks out the ROH ref, then Joe reciprocates by taking out the CZW ref. They have some nice back and forth stuff that has the crowd red-hot, but I must note that Joe took ZERO bumps in this encounter. Not on the mat, apron, floor, or a guardrail. NONE. The only damage he took were possibly stiff strikes and a chair shot that may have hit him in the head (hard to tell if his hands got up in time) when the Kings of Wrestling interfered.

This interference brought out Pearce & BJ Whitmer to help out, but Joe had to be walked to the back after taking that chairshot to the head. Although Pearce & Whitmer were outnumbered, they had a fantastic brawl that I must mention got way, way, way too out of hand with the bumps taken. That said, I can compartmentalize and I couldn't believe Necro took a double-team powerbomb onto two chairs in the ring, landing in a fashion that I hope I never see again in the professional wrestling business.

Guys were taking bumps all over ringside onto chairs too, and I'm amazed that Claudio Castagnoli came out of this feud healthy enough to get to where he's at as Cesaro today. Hero teased a hardcore move to Whitmer in the ring, only to go to using a Cravate and elbows to knock down the former Prophecy member. I like that a lot actually.

With Pearce by himself outnumbered 3-to-1, he stood no chance, being the victim of a KOW Hero's Welcome and then laid across a table on the outside. Hero & Necro held him down as Castagnoli teased powerbombing Whitmer on Pearce, only for the lights to go out with the "Ironside" intro playing on the speakers, followed by Beanie Sigel's "The Truth."

To say this got a pop is like saying San Antonio was excited when the Spurs made easy work of the Heat in this past summer's NBA Finals.

The CZW crew assumes Homicide would be interested in helping him, leaving Whitmer there for the attack. But Homicide instead attacks KOW to a MASSIVE pop, and Pearce comes in to help take them out. Homicide and Necro are left in the ring in a staredown, with Todd Sinclair getting in the ring and ordering for the bell to be rung. Good God the pop this got was fucking unreal.

Impromptu Hardcore Main Event

Homicide vs. Necro Butcher

This was just fucking brutal and the crowd was molten white-hot for its entirety. Again, this got way too violent in retrospect and I don't need to see guys go to these lengths to get over anymore.

What this match had was genuine emotion from the crowd that very few segments in the history of the business can reach. It was a back-and-forth war for just 10 minutes, with both men tossing each other towards guardrails, dropping each other on the floor, and more drops onto chairs at ringside.

Just six weeks removed from the violent end to his feud with Colt Cabana, Homicide throws some chairs in the ring, then tosses a crimson Necro in there too. He then requests the crowd to throw chairs in there and they gleefully oblige. An absolutely ABSURD quantity of chairs are thrown in there, burying Necro in a steel grave and I hope he gave approval for this. Security is ignored when ordering the crowd to stop, so Homicide gets on the mic and says that it's enough, Necro's got the idea now and there are too many chairs in the ring.

Necro gets piledriven onto the steel chair surface... nearfall and white-hot reaction. He finds it in himself to give Homicide a seated powerbomb as a receipt... nearfall and white-hot reaction. Homicide gives Necro an overhead toss from the corner onto the chairs... another nearfall, another white-hot reaction, this time completed with "THIS IS AWESOME~!" chants. Homicide then takes a swinging neckbreaker on the chairs and rolls out to the apron that's right next to the chairs that were scooted out at ringside.

Necro attempts a piledriver, but instead takes a vertical suplex from the apron, onto the floor, with the floor caked with numerous steel chairs, Homicide's head barely misses the corner of the table, and Necro's left leg hits a guardrail. That is then followed up with Homicide hitting a body splash from the turnbuckle onto Necro through the table. "THIS IS AWESOME~!"

That is only good enough for another white-hot nearfall and Homicide is in disbelief. The crowd chants "KNOCK HIM OUT!!" Necro attempts a comeback with punches to the torso, only to get kicked squarely in the genitals and finished off for the three-count by a furious lariat from the Notorious 187.

"Ladies and gentlemen, here is your winner for Ring of Honor, 'The Notorious 187' Homicide!" Homicide shakes his head no, saying he did this for himself as the crowd is chanting for both him and the company.

Homicide grabs a mic. "Necro Butcher,,, anytime, homes. Welcome to Ring of Homicide, biatch!!!" FUCKING WHITE-HOT REACTION WITH THE CROWD IN UNISON, CHANTING FOR HOMICIDE as the event goes off the air.

I gotta say it again: too fucking violent and it's obvious why most of these guys didn't become top-notch stars in the business. But this sequence of events, the Joe portion, the ROH vs. CZW brawling, capped off with Homicide finally intervening to the demands of his colleagues and fans, was absolutely jaw-dropping, epic, truly engrossing, and a rare moment that hit such an emotionally strong level that it reminds me why I am still a wrestling fan.

This entire sequence was an absolute masterpiece and storytelling work of art, finally putting momentum back in ROH's favor after weeks of getting their asses kicked by CZW. It also was logically built to, as it made total sense for the Homicide character, now emotionally released from the violent feud against Cabana, to see what these CZW guys were doing and wanna test their toughness, while also feeling a sense of pride that they were trespassing on his territory.

The rating I give this will reflect on Homicide vs. Necro Butcher, but it is for the ENTIRE SEQUENCE OF MAGICAL EVENTS that closed out this show. (The portion shown on Homicide's The Notorious 187 compilation only starts with Homicide in the ring.) The rating should tell you how badly you must get this show to witness this.

Rating: *****

I'm going to be honest. I wasn't very high on this event outside of the two highly acclaimed portions. But this surpassed any memories I had of this event years later. An excellent, EXCELLENT show, complete with fantastic wrestling all over the place of different flavors. Comedy wrestling, technical wrestling, a classic title match, quality tag team wrestling, all of it capped off with one of the defining segments and moments in company history right in the middle of the most emotional feud this federation has ever booked.

GET. THIS. NOW.

Of note: This was Jimmy Yang's last event, as he was re-signed by WWE. He had some more time left in ROH, but I believe he got blacklisted from ROH by teasing a match that had not been agreed upon. That left Jimmy Rave needing a new creative direction.

And now I've arrived at the debut of perhaps the most polarizing star in ROH history, and I look forward to rewatching his ROH tenure to see if he would become as annoying as naysayers like me said he got years later.

Up next - Destiny

Matches will include:

Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

Bryan Danielson vs. Homicide

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

[supersonic]

Destiny - June 3, 2006

ROH Video Recap - May 19, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

An excellent piece highlighting ROH Champion Bryan Danielson, Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness, and Tag Champs Austin Aries & Roderick Strong that shows making titles mean something isn't that hard, and I love the emphasis of no title changes yet in 2006 to build anticipation for when the next one will come.

Announced for June 3 in Connecticut are Danielson defending against Homicide (who is being granted this match as a sign of gratitude for his actions at Ring of Homicide) and Aries & Strong defending against the Briscoes in a rematch.

ROH Video Recap - May 25, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

ROH reminds us that Homicide is being granted a title shot against Danielson in what I recall as a thank you for his actions at Ring of Homicide. Their past history is touched upon as well and the screen asks if Homicide can finally achieve his destiny on June 3.

BJ Whitmer also challenges Necro Butcher to a no rope barbed wire match for the July 28 event in Dayton.

ROH reminds us that the Briscoes are getting another title shot against Aries & Strong

With this event being the first ROH appearance in New England in seven months, the company is promising to "blow you away" because "we owe you one." Let's see about that.

Aries & Strong cut a brief backstage promo, with Aries wanting to discuss Generation Next with Strong.

A quick video is shown highlighting Homicide's previous shots at the ROH Title against Samoa Joe, Aries, James Gibson, and Brian Kendrick, making the viewer wonder if he would finally achieve his destiny on this night.

The ROH Debut of Davey Richards

Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

I'm glad Richards has gone on to ditch oversized robes as it only exposed his lack of height even more and made him look like a boy.

For those not aware: he was set to debut at The 100th Show as the one to answer Danielson's open challenge, upset the ROH Champ in a non-title match, and be recruited on-screen by Super Dragon to CZW. That'd have been quite interesting to see. Unfortunately Richards got hurt very shortly before that show, putting him out of action for about a month.

This was a good debut for Richards but of course not a perfect one. He owned Rave early with technical wrestling, so the Crown Jewel pie-faced the green Richards a couple times to compensate. Richards did a very good job working on Rave's left arm and shoulder with various submissions as well as strikes and kicks.

When Rave got the heat, he worked on the back of Richards very well with his own submissions and backbreakers. Richards was very good with his abrupt kicks as hope spots. Unfortunately, Richards didn't sell his back much if at all when he got the heat back, other than showing bad form when applying a Stretch Muffler, and I'll assume that's because he couldn't straighten his back to do so. They had a nice finishing stretch and good pace all-around, with Richards finishing Rave, a man who had headlined numerous ROH events in 2005 and 2006, with a double underhook brainbuster.

I must point out that my biggest concern with Richards is something that he's never gotten corrected. Many wrestlers play to the crowd, but something has always felt forced when he does it; it's downright pandering in the way that he does it, and I hope one day he can have a gimmick of being a psychopathic square, which I believe he'd excel at.

Rating: ***1/4

Bryan Danielson comes out after a women's division match to cut an ROH fellatio promo, but shits on Connecticut. Cookie-cutter promo to make sure the crowd isn't split in his match against Homicide later.

At intermission, the Embassy demands a Rave vs. Richards rematch. Rave puts himself over with a number of facts, which only makes Richards beating him even more impressive. One of Rave's best promos.

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Homicide

Samoa Joe came out before the introductions, which irritated both participants. However, he thanked Homicide for helping out against CZW and then said he'd be the guest ring announcer, using that to bury Danielson for being pale.

This was a classic match that has gotten better over time. It started as some nice wrestling for a few minutes, then got to the outside. In a major character moment, Homicide was convinced by referee Todd Sinclair to not use a ringbell on Danielson's left shoulder as it was wrapped around a ringpost. This gave Danielson the opportunity to turn this into a brief brawl on the outside. The standout moment was Danielson giving Homicide a snap suplex to crash him through a table, but the Notorious 187 instead landed on the table's edge and a folded chair in front of it. Then moments later, Homicide took an overhead belly-to-belly suplex from the champ onto a laid out table, which didn't break upon impact.

Danielson targeted the right shoulder (which had never fully healed) after Homicide landed that region on the ringpost when charging at the champ. After some more good wrestling, they went outside again and Danielson, in a great character moment, used a chair on Homicide's right shoulder while it was wrapped around a barricade bar. Nice to see the champ return the courtesy.

Homicide was phenomenal the rest of the match in selling the right shoulder, causing his moments of offense to be in bursts, unable to maintain extended heat with the champ taking advantage of the injury. Danielson of course was also fantastic in antagonizing the crowd, who so badly wanted to see the redeemed Homicide finally reach the mountaintop.

When it came down to it, Danielson couldn't be outwrestled, but Homicide wouldn't allow his right shoulder to take him out of the equation. He managed to go back to work on the champ's left shoulder deep into the match, but of course that was short-lived as I mentioned regarding his offense in the previous paragraph. In what had to be a tribute to the Chris Benoit vs. Eddie Guerrero rivalry, they traded a missed frogsplash and missed diving headbutt.

I must mention that Danielson had avoided a lariat from Homicide and turned it into a Cattle Mutilation nearfall that of course had the crowd rocking. This was excellent storytelling because Danielson made sure he wouldn't allow Homicide to hit him with that, as it had gotten Homicide the victory the first time they collided at Reborn Stage 2. Minutes later though, Homicide channeled the finish from that match, putting himself in position to give Danielson the same lowblow and lariat combo for a hot nearfall.

This match of course had other incedible nearfalls at the end, including a successful frogsplash, Dragon Suplex, and Crossface Chickenwing. There was also a blocked Kudo Driver and Shiranui attempt by Homicide. But when Danielson got Homicide in the seated position for his signature elbow strikes, Homicide wore down severely, refusing to give up, and leaving the ref no choice but to stop the match to a vociferous outrage from the crowd.

Joe is also upset, and Lt. Commissioner Adam Pearce comes out to discuss the finish on his cell phone with Commissioner Jim Cornette. He says Cornette has ruled to uphold the finish for Homicide's safety, and Danielson's reaction is hilariously gleeful. Homicide attacks Sinclair as Joe tries to pry him off, and Danielson uses that opportunity to clip Joe's knee, then leaves boasting that he's the best in the world.

Homicide says he's fed up with ROH and leaves in a fit of rage, which is completely understandable.

Just an excellent match that played off of their previous series, told an excellent story, had phenomenal psychology, and amazing pacing, with an incredible finish to put these two over as the top bad-asses in the company in case anyone hadn't realized that yet.

Rating: ****1/4

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

They have a great brawl early on par with the previous match, but once it became a normal tag, it became visually good but very pedestrian when looking at the details. I believe the crowd was exhausted from what they had just seen while somewhat upset about how it finished. I certainly understand that Gabe Sapolsky was always hesitant to have "Dusty finishes" closing out an event, but Danielson vs. Homicide deserved the main event spot because it wore out the crowd emotionally as a match and with its finish.

The referee Paul Turner also couldn't follow up on Sinclair's five star officiating between these two teams at Ring of Homicide. For a rematch that was based on confusion over tag legalities, Turner didn't seem to give a shit about enforcing anything, counting any pinfall attempt he saw. The quieter crowd also exposed the exhaustion these guys had, and they sounded unusually tired, audibly sucking wind for a match that was paced like a standard ROH main event.

I must also mention that there was hardly any reaction to the finish. I considered this a disappointment back in the day, and with me much wiser now in 2014, this is even more flawed than I had remembered.

The post-match is what matters, as Aries says that Generation Next had achieved its goals of reaching the top spots and becoming stars in the industry, and thus the faction is no more. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the reason for this event being titled Destiny.

Rating: less than ***

Richards agrees to give Rave a rematch on the next show.

While not a good show overall let alone "blow away" as the company promised, I do recommend this for major historical implications. Homicide getting screwed again in another classic against Danielson. The debut of Richards. And the end of Generation Next. All very important stuff in the history of ROH.

I now reach the final chapters of the greatest feud in ROH's history, along with the return of a puro juggernaut to continue his journey of amazing dream matches.

Up next - In Your Face

Matches will include:

Briscoe Bros. vs. Jason Blade & Sterling James Keenan

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Nigel McGuinness & Colt Cabana

Jimmy Jacobs vs. BJ Whitmer

Chris Hero vs. Homicide

Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA vs. Samoa Joe

[supersonic]

In Your Face - June 17, 2006

ROH Video Recap - June 7, 2006

Important news/footage from the above video:

Colt Cabana is the #1 contender to the ROH Title after wining a match at Destiny that had no business having such a stipulation

KENTA faces Bryan Danielson and Samoa Joe on June 17 in NYC, Roderick Strong on June 23 in Detroit, Austin Aries on June 24 in Chicago, and returns in August too for Long Island and New Jersey. OH FUCK YES~!

Christopher Daniels challenges Christian Cage to a singles match in ROH (this promo apparently taped after How We Roll)

The Briscoes give Aries & Strong no credit, claiming they got lucky. Aries & Strong in their backstage promo refute this, saying they'll take care of Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness & Colt Cabana tonight before defending the belts internationally.

Briscoe Bros. vs. Jason Blade & Sterling James Keenan

Perfect opening match. The Briscoes dominated, the jobbers got a little bit of shine to try to impress and get more bookings, the stars cut the ring in half, and the finish was fun. In addition ZERO issues with tag legalities. Surprised this isn't on a Briscoes comp yet.

As predicted by Colt Cabana after their feud ended at Night of the Grudges II, he and McGuinness have put their issues completely behind them, cracking jokes and genuine pleasantries.

After Ricky Reyes squashes one of the Crist brothers (Irish Airborne,) Chris Hero shows up from the crowd and blindsides Julius Smokes with another company's championship belt, then scurries off gleefully. Homicide comes out and dares Hero to show up again to "Ring of Homicide."

Jimmy Jacobs has a prerecorded promo, having the chance to watch Dragon Gate Challenge and now vows revenge on BJ Whitmer tonight because nobody else would've been able to take care of Lacey had Jacobs been taken out. He will also earn a shot against Danielon for the ROH Title, dethrone him, and use the extra money to buy a new home for himself and his beloved Lacey, as well as for their "future children." Hauntingly excellent.

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Nigel McGuinness & Colt Cabana

The match of the night, which I'm sure is surprising. But this match got everything right for its spot on the card, so let's dig in and dissect it. I should note that McGuinness got this match because of his successful Pure Title defenses over Aries and Strong.

Early on McGuinness tried playing mind games with Strong and avoiding his chops, but that strategy was short-lived. Once Aries was tagged in, McGuinness worked on his left shoulder, the same brilliant strategy from Unscripted II since Aries is left-handed. Cabana also followed up on that when he came in. Strong and Cabana would have some back-and-forth before McGuinness got tagged back in.

In a moment of tag team wrestling brilliance, McGuinness went for his corner handstand mule kick bait, but Aries came over to hold him in place, allowing Strong to deliver multiple chops to the crowd's amazement. The Pure Champ found himself getting the ring cut in half for a brief period as a result of this. That would be cut off when he hit his signature spinal shoot kick and downward lariat on Aries, then got the tag to Cabana.

Aries then found himself being the victim of the ring being cut in half, including a slightly botched overhead front hammerlock suplex. The challengers double-teamed him with multiple limb submissions while Strong's attempts to stop it were cut off by the ref. After more exceptional work done on Aries, he got the hot tag to Strong, who was a house of fire on McGuinness going for backbreakers, Boston Crabs, and Tiger Drivers.

Aries prevented Cabana from cutting the ring in half again, only to be taken out minutes later after some nice back-and-forth double-team work. But he kept Cabana out again when McGuinness became legal, allowing Strong to force the Pure Champ to submit to a Liontamer. Really good tag match that like the opener had zero tag legality issues. Why isn't this on a compilation yet?

Rating: ***1/2

ROH Title Shot Match

Jimmy Jacobs vs. BJ Whitmer

(NOTE; the above video has shitty generic music playing over the entire video during the entrances and pre-match brawl due to Whitmer's Stone Temple Pilots theme, but also over "The Ballad of Lacey" for unknown reasons.)

The usual good stuff from these two, although dialed back a bit. They brawled outside the ring early, then had a good wrestling match. The important part came when Lacey tried to play distraction and Whitmer kissed her to the crowd's delight. Lacey was absolutely repulsed and used this as an excuse to aim her disgusted spit at some Green Lantern mark in the front row, drawing what was probably the biggest pop of the night.

This caused Jacobs to go berzerk and they brawled to to the crowd, causing fans to get out of harm's way. With Whitmer laying in the New Yorker chairs, Jacobs climbed to the nearby turnbuckle, planning to dive onto Whitmer out of his unconditional love for Lacey, but Whitmer got up and attacked Jacobs up there. They had a back-and-forth, with Jacobs teasing a Super Shiranui but that was blocked; Whitmer then powerbombed Jacobs into the nearby empty chairs to poetically play off of what happened at Dragon Gate Challenge and causing this match to get thrown out. A crazy fun match.

Rating: ***

Chris Hero interferes during the Adam Pearce vs. Claudio Castagnoli match, drawing huge heel heat as he talks shit on the microphone, Of course we know what this leads to...

Chris Hero vs. Homicide

Pearce chased Castagnoli away, allowing the spotlight on these two. This was more of a wrestling match than a brawl as expected, but it worked because the NYC crowd was completely behind their Brooklyn guy plus this was an ROH vs. CZW showdown. Hero was great in trolling the crowd but Homicide was vicious at every chance he got, of course winning this as he should have. He trolls Hero as the CZW superstar takes a powder, scurrying away after getting his ass kicked.

Homicide then sits down and says he's fed up with the bullshit, and he will be granted an ROH Title shot. If he isn't the ROH Champion by the end of 2006, he's fucking off from the company.

Rating: ***1/2

Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA vs. Samoa Joe

One of the more disappointing main events in ROH's history, but there have been many that were significantly, significantly worse. All three men accidentally knocked each other out at certain points, but because it's two of the best workers of the 21st Century along with Joe in his prime, they still managed to make this good. The hot NYC crowd also played a hand in keeping this match interesting. I'm not gonna dig too much into the details because the injuries kept this from reaching its potential, but I'll highlight what matters.

KENTA once again beat the ROH Champ Danielson with the G2S. Unfortunately, the champ was out of it to make the post-match mean more. KENTA declares his desire for a title shot, but Joe says not to worry about Danielson, because he will be in his second reign as ROH Champion when KENTA challenges for it. And it's a shame we never got KENTA vs. Joe in singles, but after this match, I can see why Gabe Sapolsky never pulled the trigger. He probably didn't wanna deliver on Danielson vs. KENTA either, but KENTA pinning the champ clean twice required that match to happen. But I'm getting ahead of myself and wanna see how it played out in hindsight.

Rating: ***1/2

The Briscoes tell Aries & Strong that they're still coming for the belts. The Briscoes lost twice, including the first one due to perfect officiating, but they've never been rational characters.

Bit of a disappointing show due to the main event, but still a good show. Not every NYC event has to be Manhattan Mayhem to be enjoyable. Really hope ROH puts Aries/Strong vs. McGuinness/Cabana on a compilation at some point, as it's one of the best matches of the Aries/Strong reign. And speaking of comps, I'm shocked the semi-main wasn't included on the Homicide comp, as the crowd was great and it was an important segment for his character direction.

Next show should be really fun assuming my memories are correct.

Up next - Throwdown

Matches will include:

Delirious vs. Samoa Joe vs. Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

Bryan Danielson vs. Jimmy Jacobs vs. BJ Whitmer

Roderick Strong vs. KENTA

[supersonic]

Throwdown - June 23, 2006

July 20, 2006 ROH Video Recap important news (this video unavailable online):

Jimmy Jacobs and BJ Whitmer get to challenge Bryan Danielson in an elimination match for the ROH Title @ Throwdown

When will the first title change of 2006 be?

Colt Cabana is excited for his ROH Title shot, although he's assuming it'll still be Danielson on June 24

The next Video Recap will focus on Homicide

Samoa Joe vs. Delirious vs. Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

This one didn't age well, although it wasn't bad at all. The character dynamics were all fun, but this went a bit too long, Richards was selling for too long in order to pay his dues, and tag legalities failed to be enforced in the third act. Crowd liked it, but this match was indyriffic, although not a complete loss.

The Briscoes at intermission say their night isn't over after making quick work of Ace Steel & Colt Cabana. And yes, Steel did the job to protect Cabana the night before his ROH Title shot in his hometown.

Necro Butcher vs. Adam Pearce made for good storyline advancement brawling, with the Homicide vs. Claudio Castagnoli match immediately following afterwards being fine. Castagnoli got enough offense in to make sure he was still a star, but of course Homicide got the win.

The commentary mentions this somewhat important news that I forgot to point out from Chris Hero's promo on the previous show: ROH VS. CZW. CAGE OF DEATH. DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR IV ON JULY 15 IN PHILLY. OH. FUCK. YES~!

ROH Title - Elimination Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Jimmy Jacobs vs. BJ Whitmer

Pretty interesting case study here as Whitmer showed some of his weaknesses, including a shoddy attempt at brief mat wrestling with Danielson and later not doing any selling of the Cattle Mutilation. (To be fair, Homicide didn't really sell his back at all after taking some bad table bumps @ Destiny, and had he done so, that particular match probably wouldn't been an all-time classic rather than just a hot, dramatic classic.)

There were still quite a few highlights, including Jacobs and Whitmer reigniting their feud just six days after the events of In Your Face, exchanging heated strikes. Danielson was great at playing the prick when inserting himself while also of course showing his technical superiority. In particular, I loved that he halted a spinning head-scissors from Jacobs, turning that into an airplane spin that would be broken up by Whitmer.

The next standout spot was Danielson having the surfboard on Whitmer, then Jacobs using that opportunity to chop his former tag partner. This led to a nice Danielson vs. Jacobs segment, with the commentators pointing out that it was intelligent for Whitmer to allow them to dish out pain on each other due to the elimination rules. After a few minutes though, Danielson is taken out with a shotgun missle dropkick from Jacobs, leading to another Jacobs vs. Whitmer segment.

This led to the next highlight, as Whitmer had Jacobs in position for an Exploder suplex but Jacobs was blocking it. Danielson waist-locked Whitmer and delivered a German suplex, which allowed Whitmer enough momentum to also land the Exploder on Jacobs. However, this led to another Danielson vs. Whitmer segment in which Whitmer failed to sell his neck, which is really disappointing considering what Super Dragon did to him just two months earlier. Jacobs then inexplicably hit a senton splash on Danielson while Whitmer was locked in a Cattle Mutilation. Perhaps though that can be explained by Jacobs being irrational, wanting to be the one to eliminate Whitmer AND win the title for Lacey.

Jacobs went for a Shiranui on Whitmer, but Danelson prevented that, looking to give a super backdrop suplex to Jacobs. However, Whitmer got the champ on his shoulders, allowing Jacobs to hit a Doomsday Hurricanrana on Danielson to a huge pop. Whitmer crotched Jacobs, teasing another powerbomb in the crowd as in their previous collisions, but Danielson got underneath Whitmer for a powerbomb. This allowed Jacobs to hit a Super Shiranui with additional momentum from Danielson, eliminating Whitmer.

The crowd got super hot for Jacobs, the Detroit native, who had yet another great underdog performance. Danielson played a great prick, flicking the crowd off after brawling with Jacobs on the outside. The champ worked on the face and throat of Jacobs, which was beginning to irritate the challenger's valet Lacey. Jacobs would eventually get a comeback, getting the crowd more drawn in. He also prevented a Regalplex and Crossface Chickenwing, as well as a super backdrop suplex. He also blocked a leaping sunset flip, pinning Danielson to a red-hot nearfall.

They had a great strike exchange with another nearfall for Jacobs, getting the crowd wondering if perhaps the upset was indeed possible. Jacobs made the mistake though of locking in the Cattle Mutilation; once Danielson got in a stand-up position, he used the momentum to drive Jacobs three times in the turnbuckle, followed by an armdrag, roaring elbow, signature rapid elbows, and Crossface Chickenwing, just further solidifying that Danielson was an in-ring deity and bad-ass motherfucker.

Post-match, Lacey is pissed at Jacobs because she only gives a shit about results and profits, but the Detroit crowd gives its hometown boy Jacobs a well-earned standing ovation. Excellent match despite some issues from Whitmer, and this could've been a MOTYC had those issues not come up.

Rating: ****

Roderick Strong vs. KENTA

Really good main event, but not the classic so many hoped for. The crowd didn't get hot until the heated strike exchanges with slapping sounds, but I do wonder if they just couldn't get as emotionally invested as they did in the Jacobs match.

The strikes were very crisp as expected, with both men busting their asses and certainly hurting afterwards as they hit the road to Chicago. There were many great reversals and blocks. Standout moments to me include Strong striking KENTA during an attempted Falcon Arrow and Strong going for the exchange that got him his huge victory several months earlier over James Gibson, that being a super gutbuster and Liontamer. However, this time Strong went for a pinfall before applying the Liontamer, perhaps costing him the match against the former GHC Jr. Champ.

I did appreciate both men selling exhaustion and pain after getting adrenaline rushes, doing what they could to get the drama building without shitting on their work they dished out on each other. I liked that Strong worked on the torso with different submissions, setting up KENTA for the gutbuster and various backbreakers. KENTA also favored the Camel Clutch in this one, which told me he planned on the Falcon Arrow being a major part of his strategy.

The finish was great stuff. Both men found their own ways out of the gutbuster and G2S, but after several reversals, KENTA hit the G2S on Strong's sternum, knocking out the ROH cornerstone for the pinfall. Very, very good match that just needed more crowd heat to give both men extra adrenaline for a better pace.

Post-match, the Briscoes come out to attack Strong in the ring. KENTA has none of it, kicking them and causing them to take a powder, not happy they'd go after a man who had just been in a grueling, physical main event. Crowd is marking out for KENTA hardcore.

Rating: ***3/4

Colt Cabana is excited to finally get his ROH TItle shot the next day in Chicago. This angle was a bit overpushed, and I'm convinced Cabana wasn't supposed to get his hometown title shot this early as I explained before.

Not a bad show, but the main events are on Strong, Jacobs, and Whitmer compilations already, so unless you must have every single piece of the ROH vs. CZW feud, you can skip this. The first half has an Adam Pearce era stench to it.

Up next - Chi-Town Struggle

Matches will include:

Roderick Strong vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Nigel McGuinness vs. Homicide

Austin Aries vs. KENTA

Bryan Danielson vs. Colt Cabana

[supersonic]

Chi-Town Struggle - June 24, 2006

Colt Cabana is excited to get another shot at the ROH Title in his hometown. Considering how much airtime has been spent on this for Cabana, I have high expectations.

We find out in an Embassy promo that Alex Shelley is out with an injured right shoulder, and his replacement as Jimmy Rave's partner is Conrad Kennedy III. Don't care about them facing the Briscoes, but this had an amusing line about rolling over badly on morning wood.

Roderick Strong vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Even better than I had remembered. Strong teased harassing Lacey early to get in the head of Jacobs, which obviously worked. However, Jacobs got the early advantage with his spinning head-scissors and some side headlocks, including using that to cut off a couple Strong comebacks. Once it spilled to ringside early though, Strong won that battle with his signature vicious chops, popping the Chicago crowd in the process of course.

Moments later, with Jacobs planted in the corner, Strong teased a chop, only to slap the creep to another pop from the crowd. However, Jacobs would cut him off shortly with a boot to the face to get the heat back, and then launch himself towards Strong with an elbow suicida. He followed that up with a running boot to Strong's head into the ringpost. Strong would regain the heat with a side backbreaker and spectacular fallaway slam, but that comeback was short-lived. This was because Strong was outside again, and Jacobs used his positioning inside the ring to plant Strong back-first on the gym floor with another spinning head-scissors.

A teased Shiranui by Jacobs would be countered into a backbreaker, cutting off Jacobs while Strong recovered from the pain he had endured. Strong came at Jacobs with vicious strikes and a gorgeous dropkick right to the face. Moments later, Jacobs would try to get a fluke small package pin on Strong, but that was just a nice nearfall. Strong blocked a Death Valley Driver attempt, only to eat a spear when running towards the ropes for a Yakuza kick attempt.

Strong got cocky after a Gorilla Press Slam on Jacobs, asking the crowd if he should do it again and launch Jacobs out to them. This time wasted allowed the battered Jacobs to get back in the match and turn a second attempted Gorilla Press Slam into a back rollup nearfall. They exchanged more nice nearfalls, with Strong hitting a Tiger Driver for a nearfall. Both men were doing a phenomenal job of selling the pain and exhaustion here.

Strong crotched Jacobs on the ropes, setting him up for a super gutbuster, but Jacobs cut that off. He put Strong in position for a Death Valley Driver, successfully planting the Tag Champ after a brief struggle. Jacobs is unable to follow up due to the pain and exhaustion, and attempts a Shiranui. That is blocked as Strong uses the momentum of Jacobs to catch him in a Davey Boy Smith style powerslam position. Strong drops Jacobs throat-first on the top rope, follows that up with some backbreakers, and then gets the submission victory with the Liontamer, then tosses Jacobs aside like a sack of garbage.

This was another excellent underdog performance from Jacobs, with the crowd loving every minute of it. This is a forgotten, under-appreciated classic in the same vein as Doug Williams vs. Homicide in the same building at Nowhere to Run. The counters, selling, and transitions were all fantastic, with the storytelling matching it. Add in that both men had grueling main events the night before and I come away even more impressed. This needs to be on a compilation.

Rating: ****

Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness calls out the Internet marks for saying he'll be the first to lose a championship in 2006 and can't believe anyone thinks Homicide will dethrone him tonight. This promo achieved its goals.

The ROH vs. CZW segment is good brawling and the crowd was into it, but not to the degree of the East Coast. A fine go-home for the CAGE OF DEATH coming up in three weeks in Philly with CZW again getting the upper hand since Homicide, the established CZW killer, was not involved as he had something more important to focus on this evening.

At intermission, the Briscoes say they ain't done with the Tag Champs and now KENTA has pissed them off.

Pure Title Match

Nigel McGuinness vs. Homicide

Homicide expresses mild disappointment to chairs being banned during the rules overview. McGuinness pie-faces Homicide with the belt, getting this match to a chippy start. Great way to start the match though with McGuinness attempting to troll the ticking time-bomb that Homicide is. Their in-ring scuffle spilled to the outside, with Homicide launching himself overhead to get the early advantage once they got back in the ring. Homicide was exceptional in once again showcasing his technical wrestling ability with various submissions and pinning attempts, including a Rings of Saturn that caused the Pure Champ to use a rope break.

McGuinness had gotten a brief hammerlock on Homicide's left arm earlier, looking like he'd prefer sticking to his usual left arm strategy rather than modify it for Homicide's damaged right shoulder. This is something the champ focused on when he got the heat back, applying numerous submissions, including an overhead front hammerlock suplex. When Homicide went for a chop with his left hand to keep McGuinness at bay, he sold the pain. That pain prevented Homicide from hitting a tornado DDT, allowing McGuinness to maintain control.

McGuinness got a fishhook locked in on Homicide's mouth during a submission, then yelled that he has 'till five to break it as a shot at Bryan Danielson. He continued working on Homicide's left arm, daring the Notorious 187 to go for the ropes during a submission. This was a great strategy that was just as impressive as when he pulled off the upset on Homicide at Midnight Express Reunion, but now there was more at stake and he had become a condescendingly unethical prick.

Homicide finally got a comeback when he ducked a clothesline and hit a running boot on McGuinness, but he continued selling that left arm. This caused his comeback to be brief, as McGuinness drilled Homicide in the turnbuckle making sure the left arm got the most impact. He put Homicide back in the corner, stretching the count while he nastily smeared Homicide's face with a forearm and a knee. Homicide attempted another comeback while McGuinness went for some strikes, this time being successful when he dodged a running McGuinness into the corner.

They spilled to the outside and brawled, with McGuinness giving Homicide a European uppercut. That was then followed by a vertical suplex onto the table. This resulted in a fantastic nearfall as Homicide got into the ring within a fraction of the ref reaching 20, stunning McGuinness in the process and getting a huge pop. Homicide would hit a frogsplash for two, causing him to almost lose it on the ref. McGuinness used the time to get Homicide in the corner and a hit a Tower of London for another hot nearfall. He'd seat Homicide on the top turnbuckle, but Homicide cut off his plans and hit a successful tornado DDT after having that maneuver sabotaged earlier in the match.

McGuinness would hit a rebound lariat for another nice nearfall, and the champ seemed to be on the ropes mentally. He went for his headstand baiting, but Homicide channeled Samoa Joe and hit a running boot on the champ. This caused the champ to go outside the ring and Homicide followed him. They brawled to the front entrance with Homicide having the upper hand, but McGuinness held onto Homicide even after being hit on the back with a chair. He ducked a clothesline from Homicide and ran to the ring, causing Homicide to barely lose this by countout. Fucking brilliant booking to push McGuinness as the Pure Wrestling Rules manipulator as well as Homicide's elevated frustration, which he shows by going berzerk and storming off, leaving the arena. This also needs to be on a compilation.

Rating: ***3/4

Austin Aries vs. KENTA

They exchange some slaps early within minutes of each other after having some back-and-forth wrestling, establishing this as an even matchup. They would have a heated slap exchange after that, popping this awesome crowd, with Aries ending up having KENTA in the head-scissors. KENTA got out of it, then regained the advantage and put Aries in the head-scissors. I was disappointed to see that Aries traditionally got out of that and hit a dropkick on the seated KENTA; I'd have assumed KENTA would've done his homework and known that was coming.

Aries worked on KENTA with some nice technical wrestling, including the Last Chancery to set him up for the brainbuster that was sure to come later. KENTA would block an early attempt at a brainbuster though, putting Aries on the apron. This gave KENTA the opportunity to cut off Aries and get the heat back. KENTA was of course vicious with his kicks and strikes, but went for the Camel Clutch to set up Aries for the Falcon Arrow. KENTA blocked a sunset flip pin, holding himself in an upward position, then leaned down and slapped Aries to another outstanding pop.

KENTA had an inverted head-scissors on Aries, but the Tag Champ got out of that one too. However, he was too dazed to follow up, so KENTA kicked him and tossed him outside, then flung Aries into the steel guardrail. KENTA continued controlling the match with Aries getting some hope spots in, but KENTA cut him off with a snapmare and then lethal kicks to the spine, followed up by a heel kick to the head of Aries. This infuriated Aries when he got back up, as he returned the snapmare and spinal kicks favor, then followed that up with a kneedrop. He then did his signature follo-wup "slow motion" kneedrop.

That pissed KENTA off, causing him to get enough adrenaline to get back up and kick the shit out of Aries, but Aries blocked a kick, gave KENTA a knee-breaker, and then planted the puro juggernaut with a German suplex. But KENTA got up, so Aries hit him with a running dropkick for a nice nearfall. Seconds later, KENTA cut off Aries to regain control and crotch the former ROH Champ on the middle turnbuckle. KENTA returned the favor from a minute earlier, hitting Aries with a running boot. He then teased another one, stopped himself, and slapped Aries; I assume he picked that up from the Strong vs. Jacobs match.

They had some cutting off back-and-forth stuff, with their signature stuff including a springboard missile dropkick and twisting bodypress. KENTA was put to the outside, so Aries launched at him with a tope suicida. With KENTA dazed, Aries tossed him back in and went up to the top rope, but KENTA got up and cut that off with a kick to the face. Aries would block an attempted Falcon Arrow, crotching the former GHC Jr. Champ and putting him in the Tree of Woe. But instead of going for the double foot stomp like Low Ki, Aries hit a dropkick on KENTA's face, followed up with a kick to the spine to another incredible crowd pop.

KENTA though kept himself back in this, hitting a butterfly suplex for a nearfall and declaring that he would go for the G2S. He slapped Aries but a Busaiku knee would be evaded, allowing Aries to hit a rolling forearm and clothesline. Aries hit a Finlay roll on KENTA, then got on a far corner for what I assumed would be a frogsplash, but Aries was exhausted and took too long. This gave KENTA the chance to get up, run towards Aries on the top rope and hit the Falcon Arrow for another excellent nearfall.

Aries would elbow KENTA during an attempted G2S, then beautifully turned that into a crucifix bomb for yet another tremendous nearfall, obviously scouting Danielson's counter from Best in the World 2006. KENTA would make another G2S attempt, but Aries got out of it, hit KENTA in the shin to position for a kick to the face, and a successful brainbuster for another nearfall. An exhausted Aries then went for the 450 Splash, but KENTA rolled out of the way, hit the Busaiku Knee, a kick to the face, another Busaiku knee, and then Aries bounced off the ropes right back into KENTA for the G2S, bringing this excellent match to its conclusion.

And because KENTA is a true pro, he rolls over at first, absolutely exhausted from this hard-hitting classic. Both men get up and embrace, but the Briscoes come out to mug them. Strong comes out for the save, and it's obvious we got some anticipated tag team matches coming up involving these men in the near future.

This match was just fucking excellent. Crisp strikes, beautiful teases that would then be delivered later, awesome reversals, and best of all a Chicago crowd that appreciated it. This may have been just as great in another market, but Chicago was the perfect choice for this match, as they were into absolutely everything. An absolute classic that is among the best match of both men's careers, just right behind KENTA vs. Low Ki in terms of spectacle. This right here is worth the price of the KENTA compilation alone.

Rating: ****1/2

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Colt Cabana

Danielson has Bobby Cruise remind the crowd that he beat this "Chicago chump" in five minutes. Brilliant way to get heat in case anyone would be in Danielson's favor after McGuinness mocked him earlier in the evening.

This wasn't as hard-hitting as Aries vs. KENTA (how could it be?) or even Strong vs. Jacobs, but this was another tremendous match for the evening. Cabana showed that he could hang with Danielson technically and even managed to get into the champ's head at times with great mind games. But this only got Danielson to become more vicious as the match went along, realizing that the match at The 100th Show between these two was a fluke.

I'll jump to the finish as it was outstanding. After busting out a moonsault for a nearfall on Danielson, Cabana went for a superplex, but Danielson cut that off and hit a super backdrop suplex that had been teased earlier for a hot nearfall. He went for the Cattle Mutation, but Cabana managed to get to the ropes. He got the champ in the Billy's Goat Curse and then went for a Cattle Mutation of his own, but the champ got to the ropes. Cabana powerbombed Danielson for another great nearfall in front of his hometown Chicago fans, but Danielson refused to turn over while down for whatever Cabana had in mind. That of course brought back memories of Danielson vs. Strong at This Means War.

Cabana poetically got some elbows on the back of Danielson's head, hit a clothesline, and dropped Danielson with the Colt .45 for what would guarantee the first title change of 2006. But Danielson not only kicked out, he had enough energy to give himself the necessary adrenaline rush, using the momentum and locking Cabana in a small package for the win. This was absolutely brilliant to remind everyone of Danielson's technical excellence and crush the Chicago crowd's spirits. The crowd started to throw garbage in the ring, so the camera cuts away.

What can I say? Another awesome match that is severely underrated, and I even read some reviews that said Cabana somehow DISAPPOINTED in this match, that he wasn't worthy of this position? Oh fuck off. This was just as good if not even better than Jacobs getting his shot in his hometown of Detroit the night before. Awesome match with incredible crowd heat, an under-appreciated classic, perhaps even more under-appreciated than the Christopher Daniels vs. Doug Williams work of art at Night of Champions.

Rating: ****

The Briscoes reiterate that they're coming for KENTA, Aries, and Strong. OH FUCK YES~!

The DVD ends with very brief footage of the company wishing Chicago native Adam Pearce a happy birthday.

Who the fuck convinced Bryan & Vinny to skip this show when they were reviewing ROH back in the day? This has got to be the most underrated ROH show ever, even more than Tag Wars 2006, as that show already has a reputation of being underrated. All four matches I reviewed are vastly underrated, with them all being very, very different.

A jock going up against an underdog creep. A smug cheater colliding with an irrationally frustrated OG. Two of the best juniors in the world putting on an intensely dramatic clinic. And then the world's best wrestler crushing Chicago's souls once again by sneaking a victory over one of their own, right as they thought their Second City Saint would pull off the upset and bring upon the first title change in the company for 2006.

This is HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended, and one of the best shows in ROH history, no exaggeration. GET THIS SHOW NOW, it can be found pretty easily for pretty cheap.

We now end the first half of 2006 without a single title change. Will there be one at all in 2006, and if so, who will it be? What is to come for the frustrated Homicide, and more importantly, where does he fit in for this?

THE END OF THE GREATEST FEUD IN ROH HISTORY. ROH. CZW. PHILADELPHIA. CAGE OF DEATH. DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR IV. Is this Gabe Sapolsky's masterpiece still all these years later? Is this still the magical epic that all of us remember on that hot summer night in 2006? It's been a pleasure rewatching this program, and damn I hate to have gotten to the end, but all good things must come to an end and with the conclusion here, I will be sure to do justice in reviewing this saga that not only lived up to aesthetic expectations, but got business booming for the company in its birth market.

Up next - Death Before Dishonor IV

Matches will include:

Nigel McGuinness vs. Roderick Strong

AJ Styles vs. Davey Richards

Team ROH vs. Team CZW in CAGE OF DEATH~!

[supersonic]

Death Before Dishonor IV - July 15, 2006

ROH Video Recap - July 11, 2006

Important news/footage from the above video:

In an empty venue recorded at In Your Face, Homicide vents about being screwed and reiterates that he WILL finally capture a championship in ROH before 2006 ends or he's fucking off from the company. A video chronicling his time in ROH is shown titled History of Homicide: The OG of ROH, including his greatest feuds, matches, and moments, as well as his failures to become a champion in the company.

BJ Whitmer cuts a promo from a farm somewhere to discuss Cage of Death and his no rope barbed wire match against Necro Butcher on July 28 in Dayton. This promo got the job done, but since Whitmer has never been strong in mic skills and charisma, I would've had him calmly discuss what he had in mind, in a very matter of fact manner like a calm before the storm psychopath.

The official participants for Cage of Death:

ROH - Samoa Joe, Ace Steel, BJ Whitmer, Adam Pearce, & ???

CZW - Kings of Wrestling, Nate Webb, Necro Butcher, & ???

The keeper of the key is the legendary JJ Dillon!

In a segment supposedly taped in Florida, Dave Prazak (dressed in Chicago Cubs gear) finds Homicide flirting with So Cal Val and asks about Homicide walking out at Chi-Town Struggle. Homicide reiterates that he's tired of being screwed. Prazak says ROH needs him for Cage of Death, to which Homicide says he must be granted three wishes. "Change that goddamn jersey!"

An important announcement made before this show on the Newswire at the time, but failed to be mentioned during the Chi-Town Struggle main event and on the July 11 Video Recap:

SAMOA JOE GETS HIS ROH TITLE SHOT ON AUGUST 5 IN NEW JERSEY. OH FUCK YES~!

Throughout the evening, the four announced ROH participants reflect on how this issue against CZW has impacted them and what they have in mind for Cage of Death. Also shown throughout the DVD are various flashbacks from most of the fantastic moments in the ROH vs. CZW feud. With promos already on the DVD release like this is a PPV, I'd have gone with an extended vignette of the feud before the main event rather than simple flashbacks.

Prince Nana reveals his newest member of the Embassy, which is Sal Rinauro. His job is to be a foot stool for Jimmy Rave. Their tag match against Jay Lethal & Colt Cabana is nothing special but the crowd had fun with it.

Pure Title Match

Nigel McGuinness vs. Roderick Strong

Strong earned this Pure Title shot by making McGuinness tap out to the Liontamer at In Your Face, which like the Samoa Joe news, isn't pointed out ahead of time for the DVD viewer.

Referee Todd Sinclair gets booed as usual while going over the rules, so McGuinness chastises the crowd. Strong isn't letting McGuinness play verbal mind games and chops the champ to start the match. McGuinness blocks some more chops, making me wonder if the match would take a story from Strong's matches against CM Punk and Bryan Danielson. But the avoidance of the chops would be short-lived, and the challenger got to do his signature work on the back of McGuinness, forcing him to run out of rope breaks about 12-15 minutes into this match.

I must mention that the CZW fans in attendance started a "THIS IS AWFUL~!" chant to troll the ROHbots.

McGuinness focused on Strong's left arm with various submissions, and Strong sold this phenomenally well. However, my favorite and perhaps most important part of the match for storytelling happened when they got to the outside. Strong laid in some vicious chops and was about to get back in the ring to break the 20 count, but McGuinness dared him to keep it going. McGuinness absorbed the chops, threw Strong into the guardrail, and went in the ring. However, Strong barely broke the 20 count to a well-deserved reception for this tremendous false finish.

Strong would go on to regain the advantage with McGuinness out of rope breaks and slapped on another Liointamer. Like his first match against Bryan Danielson at Weekend of Champions Night 2, McGuinness crawled out of the ring to force Strong to break it. Tremendously teased submission finish right there.

They had more great action in the ring, highlighted by Strong seating McGuinness on the ropes to set him up for a super gutbuster. However, McGuinness grabbed the ref and positioned himself to stand upright, stunned Strong, and then landed a Tower of London for another fantastic nearfall. The champ threw Strong to the outside and put him in a Front Chancery headlock and planted him with a DDT on the concrete floor. They got up at the same time, but McGuinness yanked Strong by the left foot and then got back in right before the 20 count.

A great match structured similarly to McGuinness vs. Homicide on the prior show, except this had a bit more compelling submission wrestling and storytelling. A countout was teased, then the match looked like it might end with in-ring action, only for the countout to be used later as the actual finish. This also got the entire crowd chanting "THIS IS AWESOME~!", a chant that was earned with great pacing and intelligence in front of an audience that had a significantly cynical portion in attendance.

Rating: ****

Commissioner Jim Cornette comes out to talk. You know those never-ending segments with talking and talking and TALKING to kick off Raw and Impact that could be wrapped up within several minutes but go at least double that to fill up time and accomplish nothing beyond announcing an insignificant TV main event? THIS AIN'T THAT KIND OF FUCKING SEGMENT.

This is a layered segment in which Cornette rightfully rips apart WWE's attempt at the ECW brand in order to point out that ROH is now Philly's true hometown promotion, hyping up the ROH audience and also throwing in extra awesome digs at the impatient CZW fans. In terms of CZW fan pot-shots, this is on par with Cornette's performance at Tag Wars 2006.

Announced is the return of KENTA not just for the next time ROH is in Philly on November 4, but HE WILL GET AN ROH TITLE SHOT ON SEPTEMBER 16 IN MANHATTAN. OH FUCK YES~!

He also says Homicide is too demanding to be part of Team ROH, and out comes Danielson to make his pitch. His presence creates more great opportunities to take shots at CZW. Danielson points out as the champ and head trainer at the ROH School that he should get the fifth spot; he has no extra demands, he simply wants to help out with the cause and bring technical wrestling to the Cage of Death. Cornette is happy to oblige.

AJ Styles vs. Davey Richards

Hollow match here. It could be any combination of reasons. Both could've been really sore, perhaps Richards was too green, perhaps they just didn't have the right singles chemistry together at this time. But this didn't work. It never emotionally developed and there was no real drama, just moves and holds. In particular, Richards was the exact opposite of Strong earlier in the night, not selling his back after having it worked on by Styles. Richards does the clean job to the potential future HOFer in order to prevent a potential backlash that would come with a perceived overpush.

Hindsight is 20/20, and here's what I wish we'd gotten instead. As great as McGuinness vs. Strong was, I'd have booked that for August 5 in New Jersey to give that show a truly epic triple main event (I'll detail that show when I get closer to it.) For this show, Strong faces Richards in singles in what I imagine would've been a very good undercard match. That leaves Styles to challenge McGuinness for the Pure Title in what was a dream match at the time (and when they finally faced off years later in TNA, it wasn't designed to be a show-stealer unfortunately.) Now of course, why would Styles challenge McGuinness? Because not only would he be sick of the Pure Champion's questionable bullshit, but he never got his rematch after being stripped as the first ever Pure Champ back in 2004. That would've made for two hard-hitting, jaw-dropping undercard spectacles for this divided Philly crowd.

Rating: less than ***

At intermission, Gary Michael Cappetta questions Nigel McGuinness for his methods, but he shrugs it off and proclaims he'd also be Tag Champion if he had a reliable partner. It turns out that Cabana is right in the lobby, and the camera catches him apparently flirting with Lacey, who darts away immediately. Cabana challenges McGuinness for the Pure Title. Don't care about that match; my focus is LACEY & COLT CABANA. I'd have teased that during Weekend of Champions since they interacted there with Cabana facing Jimmy Jacobs.

Cage of Death

Team ROH vs. Team CZW

I will discuss the match first, then the actual feud in the overall assessment of the show afterwards.

The structure is an octagon-style COD surrounding ringside rather than the layered version.

Bobby Cruise goes over the rules, which are the same as War Games. Two minute intervals with a coin toss to determine who has the advantage. The match ends when every participant has entered the match and it is then one fall to a finish. JJ Dillon, who is sporting an old Four Horsemen jacket, calls the toss for ROH and wins it to give them the advantage.

ROH #1: Samoa Joe

CZW #1: Claudio Castagnoli

"Joe's gonna kill you!" "Joe has bitch tits!"

Castagnoli tries to play mind games but they eventually scuffle and it gets to the outside, complete with Joe hitting an elbow suicida to an incredible pop. Joe soccer kicks a metal trash can in Castagnoli's face and follows that up with a perfectly timed Ole Ole Kick to another wonderful pop. Castagnoli gets some payback by reversing an Irish whip and throwing Joe into a ladder.

They get back inside the ring and provide an appetizer of the classic singles match that they unfortunately never had. This is highlighted with Joe giving him 20 boot scrapes then a running boot scrape to of course another great reaction from the ROH fans. They go back out and Joe drops a ladder on Castagnoli's back, but then another Ole Ole Kick attempt is avoided.

ROH #2: BJ Whitmer

Whitmer has a bag of tacks but leaves it I believe with Dillon. He's a house of fire on Castagnoli but gets cut off. But Castagnoli's control is short-lived as Whitmer reverses an Irish whip, throwing Castagnoli directly into a Uranage Slam by Joe.

CZW #2: Chris Hero

Hero tosses a chair in the ring but is double-teamed. He cuts that off with double eyepokes on the ROH guys. This allows the Kings of Wrestling to double-team Whitmer as Joe is recovering on the outside. A hope spot from Whitmer is cut off from Castagnoli and they remove his ROH shirt then throw it to the CZW crowd. "Throw it back!"

ROH #3: Bryan Danielson

Massive pop for the ROH Champ of course and he's a house of fire on the Kings to the approval of the ROH crowd. It becomes an appetizer of a tag match I'd love to have seen: Kings of Wrestling vs. Samoa Joe & Bryan Danielson.

Danielson and Joe get the advantage with Danielson clotheslining Castagnoli out of the ring. Hero teases a Cravate move on Joe from the turnbuckle, but Danielson stops that with a perfectly positioned dropkick right on Here's face; Danielson then tells Joe to hit the musclebuster on Hero. As Joe is about to drop Hero, Danielson chop-blocks his right knee!

Danielson continues attacking Joe to massive boos from the ROH crowd, and the Commish is at ringside confused about what's going on. Danielson attacks Joe's right knee with a chair.

CZW #3: Nate Webb

Webb goes after a fallen Whitmer, as Danielson gloats, not giving a shit about this war. Danielson tells Cornette his focus is defending the ROH Title against Joe on August 5, then flips him off before leaving. Joe has to be escorted from the match, leaving Whitmer all by himself to a 3-on-1 disadvantage.

Webb then amazes me with one hell of a highspot. The Kings put Whitmer in a corner and place a trash can in front of him. Webb climbs and stands on the top rope of a nearby corner and then hits a fucking moonsault Van Terminator, smashing the weapon in Whitmer's face. A breathtaking highlight in this classic that has so many great things going for it. This causes Whitmer's forehead to bleed.

ROH #4: Adam Pearce

The Lt. Commissioner digs down deep with anger and necessary desperation, running a house of fire on the three CZW guys and getting the ROH crowd back into this. He and Whitmer work together on Castagnoli but that's brief as Hero tosses a trash can at Whitmer's face and goes to Pearce's eyes. The momentum is back in CZW's favor, the 3-on-2 advantage becoming reality.

But Pearce won't go down without a fight, brawling with Castagnoli on the outside. He teases a piledriver on the future WWE superstar. Castagnoli blocks that and monkey-flips Pearce into the cage wiring. Perhaps if Pearce had just gone for the piledriver rather than signal for it he'd have gotten some real momentum going for ROH.

CZW #4: Necro Butcher

Wonderful pop from the CZW fans as Necro brings a chair to the environment. He goes after Whitmer as Hero cockily sits on a chair and the ROH fans chant "Backyard wrestling!" while begging for Homicide to get involved. The 4-on-2 advantage is too much at this point as Whitmer and Pearce are getting annihilated, especially with Necro scoop-slamming the former onto a steel chair in the ring.

Necro targets Pearce with a ladder. Meanwhile, Whitmer is held up for Hero to launch at him, but Hero trolls the ROH audience by locking Whitmer in a Cravate instead of doing a spectacular move. Tremendous.

ROH #5: Ace Steel

Steel brings a cowbell to the environment and runs a house of fire with it on Team CZW to yet another awesome pop from the ROH audience. It appears the momentum may have swung in ROH's favor, especially with Steel also punching a chair into Necro's face. But that's short-lived as the Kings cut Steel off and Necro tries to choke Pearce with the cowbell's strap. Numerous guys are showing color at this point.

Hero gets on the mic to get a CZW chant going and tease the final member of Team CZW. Steel interrupts him by blindsiding him with a trash can, but that only irritates Hero and doesn't get any momentum going in ROH's favor. Hero points out that the last CZW member is a personal enemy of his, and the crowd is chanting for Homicide, but Hero says he and his personal enemy have a greater enemy in ROH. It's a "King of Diamonds."

CZW #5: Eddie Kingston

Not a bad plan B after Super Dragon stopped getting booked I must say. The ROH fans are heckling Kingston, but the 5-on-3 is just too much and the CZW fans are loving it. The ROH fans only beg for Homicide even more passionately, hoping against hope that something can be done after Danielson screwed them and put them in this position. Steel is busted open when Necro bulldogs him on a barbed wire bat.

Whitmer ducks a chop from Kingston and Hero takes it instead, causing the mortal enemies to get face-to-face and pie-face each other. But before they self-destruct with personal agendas like Danielson and Joe did, the lights go out...

HOMICIDE~!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Notorious 187 is accompanied by Julius Smokes and the CZW guys are glued in on the established CZW killer. Homicide enters the structure to another electrifying pop and he's brandishing a wooden board. He smashes Kingston's head with it, splitting it into four even rectangles before getting it on with Necro. In my personal favorite spot of the match, Necro goes to grab a chair and charges at Homicide with it. But Homicide has grabbed Whitmer's bag of tacks, emptied it so that the barefooted Necro stepped on them, threw some right in his face, and then Necro got dumped by Whitmer with an exploder suplex!!! Fucking phenomenal nearfall.

Homicide has extra forks that he gives to Whitmer and Pearce and they use them liberally. It seems like everyone except Homicide and the Kings are now bleeding, with Homicide cutting Kingston open and licking the blood as the ROH crowd almost worships him for it. After teasing it and having it reversed earlier, Pearce gets a piledriver on Castagnoli on the concrete floor, and the future Cesaro is now bleeding too. Whitmer briefly has Necro wrapped in barbed wire, but OMG...

Pearce gorilla presses Webb out of the ring as the CZW superstar hits the cage and then falls through a fucking table. Absolutely breathtaking but not something I think we'll ever see again in ROH. Oh yeah, this got a massive pop for those wondering. The momentum is now clearly in ROH's favor, and the ROH fans are chanting "RING OF HOMICIDE~!" The match is just chaos with so many little battles going on in this absolute war.

In another amazing moment, Pearce drops Kingston with a sideslam; as he does that, Steel delivers a guillotine legdrop to Kingston, but also hits a super Stunner on Webb simultaneously. Amazing and very creative nearfall. The CZW fans chant "6 ON 5!" and the ROH fans respond with "You can't count!" Steel misses a tope suicida on Kingston, who walks out of the way so that Steel bounces off a table, but Kingston then gets hit by Homicide with a trash can.

Inside the ring, Pearce drops Webb with a spinning Angle Slam onto the tacks. Jesus Christ. Hero pushes the tacks out of the ring as more shit is set up. Homicide suplexes Kingston through a table as the fans chant for someone to sweep up the tacks. This is just a fucking warzone.

Hero and Homicide get back in the ring and go at it. Homicide tries to hit a super Ace Crusher on a chair, but he ends up hitting the chair himself with his ass. Pearce hits a flying elbow drop on Webb for a nearfall. The match continues to just be chaos, guys fucking each other up with so much shit, my favorite being when Castagnoli is hit in the abdomen by Homicide with the board, immediately followed by Whitmer hitting an exploder suplex on Kingston on the concrete floor.

Hero and Pearce have climbed the cage. As they exchange punches, Webb hits an incredible Fosbury Flop on Whitmer! Then Castagnoli jumps from the turnbuckle, lands on the cage next to Pearce, and drops the Lt. Commish with a Super Russian Leg Sweep through a fucking table! Then Homicide immediately hits a crazy tope con hilo on Webb to the outside! Fuck this shit is just unreal.

Hero ducks weapon shots and climbs up top, then hits a fucking moonsault onto Team ROH and Necro gets some of it too. Holy shit the crowd is eating this up! Nearfall on Homicide broken up by Whitmer is next. Whitmer sets up a chair in the middle of the ring and clubs Hero, and they exchange forearms. Hero eats a brainbuster on the chair for another nearfall, but Necro breaks that up by smacking Whitmer with a chair. Bodies are laying everywhere.

Whitmer and Homicide hit a double back drop driver on Necro, dropping him head/neck first on the chair to another amazing pop, but that's a nearfall of course, because that's not enough to bring this saga to a proper conclusion. But the CZW fans appreciate Necro's toughness and tenacity. There's more brawling outside the ring of course, but back inside Necro regains the advantage by clotheslining Whitmer and Homicide from behind.

Whitmer and Necro duke it out on the apron in front of a table, and the camera shows that a fucking barbed wire board has been placed inside the ring too! Whitmer and Necro continue their stalemate on the apron, but Whitmer "wins" it by hitting a Samoan Drop on Necro through the table, which also has barbed wire! Steel and Webb battle in the ring but Homicide comes to help out, so Steel targets Kingston outside the ring.

Webb plants Homicide down, then follows that with a missed steel chair moonsault. Homicide gets up and smacks it in Webb's face to an amazing pop, then signals for the Kudo Driver. Webb escapes that, teases a powerbomb, but Homicide escapes that, kicks him in the gut, and drops Webb with a Kudo Driver on the fucking barbed wire board!!! THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is the conclusion of this feud.

The ROH fans are going crazy, and the Commish comes out to say the following to the CZW audience:

"Hey hardcore fans. You wanted your garbage wrestling. Well you got your garbage wrestling and your garbage wrestlers got their garbage asses kicked!"

Cornette tells the ROH officials and ring crew to "take out the trash," vowing they'd never return (of course, that does NOT mean that Whitmer vs. Necro on the next show is off.) Hero flips off everyone, and Cornette tells him not to show off his IQ. He thanks the ROH team and asks Dillon, Pearce, and Homicide to stay put.

The crowd is going nuts for Homicide. Just nuts. Before I review the match, I'm gonna continue going over the post-match, one that was a great follow-up to the post-match of the previous Death Before Dishonor installment's main event.

Cornette thanks all three men, especially Homicide for stepping up to the plate to help out his ROH peers when they needed him most. The CZW fans chant "boring" but Cornette hits them with one last zinger while also putting over Homicide. And for Homicide's contributions, Cornette has agreed to grant the three wishes.

FANS ARE CHANTING FOR LOW KI.

1 - Homicide wants to face Steve Corino again in an ROH ring. Cornette obliges. I'm still gonna pretend that feud wrapped up in 2003.

2 - Homicide wants a guaranteed ROH Title shot. Cornette obliges. OH FUCK YES~!

FANS ARE CHANTING LOUDER FOR LOW KI.

3 - Homicide wants Low Ki to be reinstated. HUGE FUCKING POP~! Oh if only...

But Cornette refuses because Ki knocked his tooth out and says he will do anything that directly benefits Homicide. Cornette is then labeled a liar by Homicide. Cornette retorts by asking if he's Homicide or Homocide. Homicide decides to then spit in the Commish's face.

Pearce goes after Homicide and Dillon locks the cage since he has the key. They ambush Homicide with Cornette spraying his face with mace. Pearce and Dillon keep ROH students at bay by striking them with weapons as they tried to climb in, and Smokes gets maced as well. Cornette then does something that he'd hypocritically shit on Hollywood Hogan for doing, having Homicide handcuffed to a turnbuckle and then smacking him with a belt repeatedly.

They leave Homicide for dead, and Smokes and the students get in. They have to use pliers to free Homicide since nobody has handcuff keys. Crowd is going crazy for Homicide as the show goes off the air.

What can I really say about this match?

This was EVERYTHING that we ask for in feud-enders. Sure, it was way too violent as I've mentioned in my review of this feud, but that's no reason that the industry can't capture this kind of magic again. This match truly had it all - timing, progressing other arcs, staying true to the characters, an absurd fuckton of unforgettable spots, peaks and valleys, swings in momentum, a moltenly passionate, white-hot divided audience, and a moment that had been 11 months in the making.

This match perfectly wrapped up the greatest feud in company history with a genuine climatic moment. This match progressed not only ROH's own Danielson vs. Joe program, but Hero vs. Kingston as well, a program that had zero to do with ROH. This match had all the brutality that the audience expected. This match also put Homicide in the position that the fans had demanded at Night of the Grudges II - this was the final step in making him the #1 babyface in the promotion, far above Samoa Joe or even KENTA.

As for the post-match, it was so perfectly executed, a swerve on par with CM Punk's heel turn after he brought such a high of happiness for the audience when he captured the ROH Title at Death Before Dishonor III. The foreshadowing of it was always there. Low Ki being the one to knock out Cornette's tooth and getting a lifetime suspension. Pearce sucking up to Cornette in the name of ROH pride. And Dillon showing up, wearing a jacket that showed off his past as a key member of one of the most vicious, cutthroat factions the business has ever seen. It was all right in front of us the entire time.

I know that unlike the Summer of Punk, the Cornette vs. Homicide feud was largely an aesthetic failure, so I'll be skipping most of it. But to me, this post-match is one of the greatest moments in company history. I put this on the same wavelength as Money in the Bank 2011. For one night, we witnessed true magic, a rare moment of culmination, with the hopes that it cracked the door open for more of that same feeling to come frequently. And just because the aftermath couldn't measure up doesn't mean that this wasn't a special segment.

This match is a true chef d'oeuvre. This will go down as the greatest booking orchestration of Gabe Sapolsky's career. It is not only one of the best matches in ROH's history, but one of the absolute best in independent wrestling history. For my ROH 2006 revisit, I do have it on par with Blood Generation vs. Do Fixer at Supercard of Honor. But don't ask me to choose which one is better. That's the same as asking me to pick between Toy Story or The Avengers. Two absolute pieces of perfection that provide such differently satisfying flavors to the viewer.

Words cannot express how badly I wished I had gotten to experience this masterpiece live in person.

Rating: *****

So, as for this show itself, only two matches are worth seeing, but like Unforgettable nine months prior in the exact same venue, these two matches fucking delivered. (That show ALSO had an undercard storyline moment of some importance in the ring, PLUS a backstage undercard storyline moment of importance too.) McGuinness vs. Strong was easily the highlight of a disappointing in-ring undercard and is recommended viewing for all fans that prefer the sports-entertainment formatting of wrestling matches. It is an excellent source of not just great wrestling but character development as well.

Then there's the Cage of Death. I really can't say much more about that match, so it is now time for my assessment of Ring of Honor vs. Combat Zone Wrestling.

For me to confidently label this as the greatest feud in ROH history, I know that says a lot because there have been so many great feuds to have come in its dozen years of existence. So what exactly makes this stand head-and-shoulders above the top feuds that came before this, such as the Summer of Punk, Homicide vs. Cabana, Joe vs. Homicide, and the Embassy vs. Generation Next, as well as many other great feuds that would come later? To be known as the greatest feud in ROH history requires numerous aspects. It not only had to be aesthetically pleasing, but has to have both a tangible short-term and long-term effect on the company as well as the industry.

I'll start with the aesthetics. This program generated a buzz for a company that admittedly had plenty of it throughout 2005 thanks to the Summer of Punk, James Gibson, and Kenta Kobashi. That year had so much great shit going for it, but what this feud brought to the table was a quantity of new characters, emotional brawls that had the crowds rocking one night after another, and absolute hardcore classics that surpassed my sentimental memories I had of them.

This program got so many guys JOBS in the company and as a result throughout the rest of the industry. Sure, someone as talented as Chris Hero would've eventually gotten on the radar of the big leagues, but this finally gave him the chance to show off his skills as a character and technical wrestler in the juggernaut promotion of the indies. Other key characters brought to the ROH main shows for the first time also included Super Dragon, Necro Butcher, Nate Webb, and Eddie Kingston. This allowed the shows to feel fresh for the long-time customers of ROH.

By CZW doing business with ROH, this also got CZW fans to tune in to root for their favorite federation. I can't say enough how strongly opinionated the opposing fanbases were in praising their promotions while burying the other. This feud brought that genuine emotion and got a bunch of insider fans to actually buy into something that mattered to them. And by doing this, not only did ROH continue to do great business with its DVDs, but attendance was reignited in its home market of Philadelphia. It's a shame that the Summer of Punk, Gibson's farewell, and Kobashi's match didn't get business moving in Philly, but that turned out to be a blessing in disguise. These new fans that tuned in now got to be introduced to the ROH product during a time when ROH was hitting on almost all cylinders. Remember, The Milestone Series was right in the middle of this feud.

Many of the CZW guys would go on to become mainstays in ROH, and got some spotlight to showcase what they could bring to the business as well. This feud elevated guys. Speaking of elevation, think about how much the stock of Whitmer and Pearce increased because of this. Rather than constantly tread water and get exposed, Whitmer now had a cause to fight for and get the fans on his side while also feuding with Jimmy Jacobs. Pearce went from tedious undercard jobber to ROH enforcer, now becoming Cornette's right hand man.

It all came together for Homicide as well. It was absolutely ingenious after Night of the Grudges II to put him in an emotional feud with Cabana in which he would morally hit rock bottom, realize the error of his ways to find some decency within, and then taking the frustrations he had out on the CZW guys as they trespassed on his territory. Everything just came together perfectly.

This was a magical time that will never come back to independent wrestling. I'm still waiting for ROH to make this compilation, but don't keep waiting, people. Get these shows and watch this gripping saga unfold. You'll also accidentally see some of the greatest shows and matches of all-time as well.

It has been a pleasure re-watching this and I'm sad that everything else after this may not be up to par creatively, but I know there's still plenty of great shit to come, including what might very well be the greatest match in company history. We'll see when I get around to that.

Up next - War of the Wire II

Matches will include:

Matt Sydal vs. Christopher Daniels

Bryan Danielson vs. Austin Aries vs. Delirious vs. Homicide

Roderick Strong & Jack Evans vs. Briscoe Bros.

BJ Whitmer vs. Necro Butcher

[supersonic]

War of the Wire II - July 28, 2006

ROH Video Recap - July 19, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

Jim Cornette cuts a passionate promo, one that ALMOST makes me wanna rewatch his entire feud with Homicide. Truly must see.

Christian Cage vs. Christopher Daniels is confirmed for July 29 in Cleveland

Gary Michael Cappetta looks for Colt Cabana and it results in a humorous moment

I kept the good shit captured on my external hard drive, so I'll be copying and pasting portions of Brad Garoon & Jake Ziegler's dual review for anything important I missed.

Poorly produced videos of BJ Whitmer mentally preparing for tonight's main event are shown. Not exactly Russell Wilson walking the steps and field of MetLife Stadium the day of Super Bowl XLVIII.

Here we go, the big announcement that wasn't mentioned by Cornette at all during his promo at Death Before Dishonor IV or on any of the recent Video Recaps.

 

JZ says: Jimmy Bower narrates a clip of Bryan Danielson attacking Samoa Joe during the Cage of Death match at Death Before Dishonor IV two weeks ago. They will face each other in Edison, New Jersey on August 5, in a match dubbed “The Fight of the Century.” We will hear from Samoa Joe later on in this DVD.

Matt Sydal vs. Christopher Daniels

Sydal has returned from a couple months spent in Dragon Gate. Daniels largely controls the match, working on Sydal's neck and left arm. This helped set up Sydal for a variety of signature moves including the Reverse STO, Koji Clutch, Iconoclasm, Last Rites, and Angel's Wings. However, Daniels would only bust out some of those moves throughout the match as well as his signature Best Moonsault Ever, which Sydal kicked out of. The commentators remind the viewer that Sydal had fallen in each of his five matches (three singles, a couple threeways involving Azrieal and AJ Styles) to a different move each time to Daniels.

This was nowhere near Sydal's best performance, especially compared to their best singles match against each other to date at Weekend of Champions Night 2 or Sydal having to carry the injured Daniels at Dissension. But all of his counters were fluid and well-timed, with the audience behind him with every highspot he pulled out. Sydal found a way to leverage himself out of the Koji Clutch, and eventually positioned to drop Daniels on his neck (of course having never fully recovered from his injury in WCW) in a move visually similar to the Styles Clash, giving Sydal his major singles victory that had eluded him in ROH since his breakout match against Jimmy Rave at The Final Showdown in the same venue.

Post-match, Daniels congratulates Sydal and offers to tag with him should he wanna challenge Austin Aries & Roderick Strong for the Tag Titles again.

Rating: ***1/2

Bryan Danielson vs. Austin Aries vs. Delirious vs. Homicide

Before the match starts, there's info scrolling at the bottom with numerous noteworthy matches booked to get my blood flowing towards a certain body organ:

Danielson defending the ROH Title against Nigel McGuinness tomorrow night in Cleveland

Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles; Briscoes vs. KENTA & Davey Richards on August 4 in Long Island

Fight of the Century on August 5 in New Jersey with the Danielson vs. Joe main event plus KENTA vs. Richards

Danielson is the ROH Champ while Aries is half of the Tag Champs as just mentioned. If either champ wins the match, the loser cannot challenge them for their title. But if either champion is pinned, the winner gets a title shot against the defeated participant. Now of course, Homicide already had a guaranteed ROH Title show per the two wishes Cornette came through with on the previous show, so why is Homicide in this? Because it doesn't hurt to have TWO guaranteed shots in the bank, plus it gives him a chance to get his hands on Danielson after what happened at Destiny. Having a guaranteed shot at the Tag Titles wouldn't be too shabby either especially after the prestige that Aries & Strong have brought upon them.

I really liked this match because of all the stories Danielson had with his opponents, but was annoyed that the match wasn't just made a tornado match from the get-go, since tag legalities stopped being enforced in the third act as usual for the indy scene. That doesn't take away the heat this wonderful Dayton crowd gave the match, popping huge and breaking out in "HOLY SHIT~!" chants at the beginning when Delirious was simply running around and talking shit in gibberish to both Homicide and Danielson. Yes, I'm still bitter that ROH burned this crowd the next time they came to this market. and no, I will NOT be reviewing that piece of shit show.

Anyway, everything was well-timed in this one, with all kinds of great stories as mentioned. Homicide truly wanted Danielson as they of course had history even prior to Destiny (their best of five series ending in the cage match at The Final Showdown in this venue), while Danielson did his best to be a chickenshit and avoid the hottest babyface in the company. Of course, when Danielson and Aries went at it, it was beautiful technical wrestling with Danielson doing a great job of trolling the tremendous audience.

In the third act as I mentioned, it got a bit more chaotic with the tag legalities being ignored. Aries and Delirious had a hot sequence ending with Aries taking a Shadows Over Hell but that would just be a false finish. The match had a similarly hot finish, as Homicide was dazed on the outside while Danielson locked the Cattle Mutilation on Delirious. This allowed Aries to climb the top rope and pin Danielson with a 450 Splash, earning a shot at the ROH Champion and I can't complain about that booking at all.

Rating: ***1/2

Roderick Strong & Jack Evans vs. Briscoe Bros.

The now-disbanded Generation Next comes out first, and this is also the return of Evans after a few months spent in Dragon Gate. They attack the Briscoes at the entrance ramp due to the events of Throwdown and Chi-Town Struggle. They have a spotty opening sequence as would be predicted, with it looking like it'd turn into Evans vs. Mark as the legal men to start the match. However, just like the fourway right before this, the ref seemed to lack regard for that, allowing Jay to come in as the legal man when Mark got put on the outside like this was Lucha rules.

This was still a good match with those tag issues though since referee Todd Sinclair decided to enforce later legalities throughout the rest of the match. Once that glaring flaw was out of the way, this match turned into exactly what the overrated clusterfuck at Best in the World 2006 should've been. These guys got their shit in, the Briscoes cut the ring in half on Evans and trolled Strong, Evans got the hot tag, Strong ran a house of fire.

My favorite moment in the match was Strong assisting Evans with a standing corkscrew on Mark while he was on the second rope. This caused damage to Mark's back, softening it for Strong's offense. But Evans was down after that move, selling the beating the Briscoes had given him. This allowed the Briscoes to eventually capitalize and get the advantage on Strong, pinning him after a spike double underhook piledriver, and thus securing themselves another shot at the Tag Titles. Much better than the first match as I mentioned.

Rating: ***1/4

No Rope Barbed Wire Match

Necro Butcher vs. BJ Whitmer

I left out most of the prematch brawl between the ROH and CZW guys as that issue was done and over with. The Video Recap would've served just fine with reminding us that Claudio Castagnoli is still around as a contracted ROH superstar still. Homicide accompanies Whitmer at ringside to advise him during the match based on his classic against Steve Corino at the original War of the Wire.

This match couldn't live up to that one because neither man could sell the hate with their faces and body language. There were also some selling issues mainly from Whitmer (also a business-exposing moment when he held a chair in front of his face, but that may have been shitty camera angle production.) So while this wasn't Homicide vs. Corino or Randy Orton vs. Mick Foley due to its various issues, I must still admit that this was a highly enjoyable garbage style match thanks mostly to the awesome crowd. It was certainly better than the clusterfuck between Joey Ryan and B-Boy earlier in the month. The audience completely rallied behind Whitmer here during and after the match, breaking out in various chants after he slayed this demon. Funny how that happens when the right guy wins.

My biggest issue with this match isn't the selling or lack of hatred. I actually observed Necro doing a decent job of selling his pain. But this match had a lot of crazy shit going for it. Both guys of course bladed on their faces and bodies. Necro dropped Whitmer off the ring canvas onto a barbed wire table to the outside via a sitdown powerbomb. In a nice touch after what happened between these men inside the Cage of Death, Homicide surprised Whitmer with a bag of thumbtacks to use on Necro. Whitmer used them on Necro's face AND got him to step on them, just like what happened 13 days prior to this match. There was also a Tiger Driver on the tacks, as well as Whitmer channeling Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X, falling off of a ladder and splashing on Necro, who was being pierced underneath a barb-wire board.

So what's the problem exactly? After ALL of that insane shit that had this crowd going apeshit, Whitmer finished off Necro with a simple wrist-clutch exploder, not even doing it on the tacks (they mistakenly used that earlier in the match as a nearfall.) Very anticlimatic finish for this match and as a residual epilogue to the Cage of Death masterpiece. At least Whitmer won and slayed this demon though, so he can now completely focus on Lacey and Jimmy Jacobs, and based on the wars they've already had with each other, as well as what Jacobs put himself through against Alex Shelley, boy am I looking forward to continue rewatching that feud.

Rating: ***3/4

Nothing genuinely great to me on here, but very, very, very good show overall in front of the usually fantastic Dayton crowd. In fact, this was in many ways the end of an era, as the next Dayton event was god-awful as I mentioned earlier, with the market getting killed off for years due to constantly being saddled with B-shows. That's such a shame after so many great matches and memories such as the first match in the Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk trilogy and James Gibson bringing Punk's reign of terror to an end. I'll also include this show's main event on par with that due to how fondly many ROHbots view it. I also must mention Third Anniversary Celebration Pt. 2, The Final Showdown, and Tag Wars 2006, three of the finest and funnest events in company history and among my favorite pro wrestling events of all-time.

I highly recommend this for a variety of quality wrestling as well as this being the last hot Dayton event, and I believe many fans will be more forgiving of the main event's flaws than I am.

And now, I continue with the greatest rivalry in company history, plus it's the final chapter for the greatest faction in company history as well. I seriously cannot believe the latter wasn't even mentioned on this show or in the Video Recaps.

Up next - Generation Now

Matches will include:

Delirious vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Jay Briscoe vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Austin Aries, Roderick Strong, Jack Evans, & Matt Sydal vs. Irish Airborne, Davey Richards, & Jerrelle Clark

Christian Cage vs. Christopher Daniels

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

[supersonic]

Generation Now - July 29, 2006

The DVD begins with footage of Samoa Joe doing bench press in California, supposedly 225 pounds but it looks like 135 to me. Whatever. I love the idea of building up the match with Bryan Danielson but it does make tonight's main event really seem secondary when it really isn't at all.

Speaking of the main event, Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness reminds us all that Danielson took a cheap countout loss to hold onto the ROH Title at Weekend of Champions Night 2. Of course McGuinness won't mention that he screwed himself using a chair on Danielson, wrongly assuming that the ROH Title could change via Pure Title rules despite nobody stating so beforehand. But he'll be the first double champ tonight to prove he's the top champion and best wrestler in the world.

Delirious vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Every promoter's dream of an opening match. This was fun, tons of it. Coming off of Cage of Death, the crowd loved to heckle Castagnoli and were behind Delirious from start to finish as they should've been. The match had great character work, highlighted by Delirious escaping a headlock, Castagnoli being oblivious to it, and then trying his best to no-sell it once it dawned on him that Delirious outsmarted him.

The match also had a really good story with Castagnoli working on the left knee of Delirious. Delirious would manage to get his hope spots/segments in, but Castagnoli kept going after it with various submission and slams (both on the mat and into the turnbuckles), my personal favorite being a single-crab giant swing. Fucking amazing. Another highlight was Delirious going for the Shadows Over Hell but instead eating a perfecly timed European Uppercut. However, Castagnoli was very cocky in this match, allowing Delirious to make various comebacks. That ultimately got him to be pinned by a rollup. Not a good start to his next ROH chapter after the CZW feud.

Rating: ***1/2

Danielson isn't ashamed of his actions inside the Cage of Death, stating he chose to be a "capitalist" instead of a "socialist." That's actually a very good heel explanation for what he did to Joe and the rest of Team ROH in such a historic moment for the company. He claims he'll earn a Pure Title shot tonight to later on unify the belts and he'll take care of Joe next weekend too.

Jay Briscoe vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Lacey comes out by herself to cut a promo but the viewer can't make out any of the dialogue due to the shitty acoustics. Jacobs interrupts from the balcony and walks down to the ring, providing a live performance of "The Ballad of Lacey" to the crowd's amusement. It's really amazing seeing Jacobs pull off this gimmick; while of course the crowd knows this is good shit, they're also laughing at how pathetic he is towards Lacey using his immature feelings for her and he's totally oblivious to that too.

The match itself is pretty good as I had remembered. Jacobs worked on Jay's neck to set him up for the Shiranui, which Jacobs attempted numerous times throughout the match. Unfortunately, when Jay got the dominant heat later, he didn't really sell the neck, taking the match down a bit from "very good" territory. Highlights in the match include Jay gorilla pressing Jacobs and dropping him with a Death Valley Driver as well as tossing him on the outside. Jacobs was taking unreal bumps on the guardrails, hitting his head/shoulders on the metal sheets, then flipping over and bumping on the same region on the concrete floor.

The finishing sequence was a nice one, with both men finding ways to evade and counter their finishers, the highlighting counter being a jackknife pin attempt by Jacobs. But because ROH booking was practically clicking on all cylinders here, Jacobs took another loss, falling to the double underhook piledriver and further establishing Jay as a bad ass as he and his brother Mark still aimed for the Tag Titles.

Speaking of the Tag Titles, the Briscoes remind everyone they're still coming for them and they don't give a shit about Generation Next's final chapter. What a crazy concept, a tag team hammering it home how important the tag belts are.

Rating: ***1/4

I don't care one iota about the mediocre Mark Briscoe vs. Homicide match, so I'll just mention the Briscoes attacked Homicide to close out the segment. I don't remember or care if it was after the match or not, but it's important to mention for later.

Dragon Gate Rules - Generation Next's Last Stand

Austin Aries, Roderick Strong, Jack Evans, & Matt Sydal vs. Irish Airborne, Davey Richards, & Jerrelle Clark

The commentators mention that the referee has Dragon Gate on his resume, so that should help here.

This was just total nonstop action to a fucking tee. Not quite as breathtaking as the MOTYC trios matches from WrestleMania 22 weekend or the show-stealing work of art from Generation Next as this was missing the charismatic layers and overall psychology of those matches, but this was a fitting finale for the greatest faction in company history. It really was just nonstop great shit, and the rules of the match truly benefited the rising stars team.

I can't go through all the moves in this match, but most of them were crisp and on-point. The highlights of the match to me were Evans temporarily getting the ring cut in half on him, plus of course all the dives to the outside at the end, leaving Evans to be the last one to finish that sequence. But he was alone with Richards, who cut off Evans and finished him off with the double underhook DDT to continue his quickly rising momentum just a couple months after debuting.

I know I mentioned the finish, but with great spotfests, I tend not to get too detailed with going through these types of matches segment by segment. This is an excellent, action-packed, must-see match, and even I lost count of who was legal, but because Gabe Sapolsky had the courtesy to make this Dragon Gate Rules, I don't have a problem with it. One can never truly know who the next breakout stars will be, but it's a shame only one of the rising stars went on to develop enough of a reputation to work in the puro big leagues and end up on American cable television.

Post-match, Aries reminds everyone that this isn't a breakup, Generation Next is unnecessary because all four men have won championships and gotten booked in Dragon Gate. They leave their GeNext T-shirts in the ring as a sentimental symbol, but then the Briscoes come soil them and shit on the moment, then take a powder once GeNext gets back in. The Briscoes eat a chair from Homicide, retaliating for what happened earlier in the evening.

Rating: ****

We see Joe doing leg lifts with 135 pounds on each side to show his knee is okay after Cage of Death.

Lacey is continuing to be frustrated with Jacobs, as he's overly focused on his infatuation for her and failing to channel that into victories. Jacobs mentions he's heard rumors about a car rocking with Colt Cabana, but Lacey cuts him off and dodges the issue.

Christian Cage vs. Christopher Daniels

Christian's pre-match get-up pants were just ludicrous back in the day, straight out of Teddy Hart's wardrobe. They have an amusing pre-match with Christian giving a delayed obliging to Daniels requesting a five second pose.

The match itself wasn't awful, in fact structured pretty well, but needed some polishing. Christian needed more time in ROH's smaller ring to adjust to it and there were a couple botches the crowd noticed. Daniels also didn't sell his ribs as best as he could, specifically when he would bridge up and hit signature moves later such as the Angel's Wings and Best Moonsault Ever. Daniels gets the win, making Christian's time in ROH meaning far less booking-wise than Matt Hardy a year earlier, as it was just a TNA guy putting over another TNA guy. As mentioned, Christian was even sloppier here than Hardy, and I have to believe his asking price was too high to get booked again and adjust to ROH. The company probably could've used his star power for depth later on in 2006 though.

Rating: less than ***

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

Just beautiful mat wrestling in the first 15 minutes here. Danielson worked on the left leg of McGuinness, while the Pure Champ worked on Danielson's left arm. There were just all kinds of awesome counters and evasions in this. Danielson was wonderful in his work on the left leg with so many attacks and submissions, but also going for his signature Cattle Mutilation or Crossface Chickenwing if the opportunity presented itself. Meanwhile, McGuinness was also wonderful working on the left arm, especially working on the Kimura Lock, only making me antsier at the thought of Danielson potentially being put in that hold at a certain event to come at Levi's Stadium.

The match was also perfectly paced, as after the mat wrestling to establish their advantages on one another, they started going for the strikes and big moves such as headbutts, palm strikes on the chest, clotheslines, lariats, elbow strikes, roaring elbows, and Tower of London. Everything was timed perfectly, my favorite counter segment being when McGuinness ducked a clothesline and smacked Danielson with a lariat that would make Bradshaw proud. However, when they mixed in the submissions again, both men targeted the wounded limbs they had worked on earlier to complete this great story they were telling.

It would all be moot though. After being crotched and eating another lariat that would also make Bradshaw proud and certainly had Danielson down for the count, he intelligently rolled out and went underneath the ring. Seconds later, he crawled out from underneath the other side, sucked up whatever pain he had from the crotched lariat, and suckered McGuinness with a small package for the win! Great match that would've been even better if Danielson had sold his left arm a little more (kinda feels like the theme of the night actually), but I can't complain especially if they didn't wanna blow their in-ring load yet.

Post-match, McGuinness hesitantly shakes Danielson's hand, having to eat the fact that he was out-deceived exactly three months later in the exact same venue, and Danielson has Bobby Cruise proclaim him to be "Mr. Small Package." Fucking brilliant and a fitting chapter for the greatest rivalry in ROH history.

Rating: ****

Aries & Strong are pissed about the Briscoes ruining the sentimental Generation Next farewell, but have to focus on next weekend as they're defending the Tag Titles on back-to-back nights in a couple Ultimate Endurance matches against three teams each night. Not my favorite gimmick match but I'll review the good ones.

Joe dismisses Danielson for using trickery to hold onto the title. Whatever, it was within the rules and I'd hate to see Joe's reaction if he lined up on the gridiron against a team coached by Bill Belichick. He says he's finally gonna regain the title next Saturday at Fight of the Century.

Yeah, get this fucking show. Four enjoyable matches, two of them outstanding, a historic one, and of different flavors. There's something for everyone on this show.

I now reach what would be another final chapter for many years, this one unadvertised and unknown at the time of the event; it's the end of a simply phenomenal era in ROH's history. Fuck, it's a shame we didn't get KENTA vs. AJ Styles on the one card they were appeared on, but hindsight is 20/20.

Up next - Time to Man Up

Matches will include:

Bryan Danielson vs. Jack Evans

Nigel McGuinness vs. Delirious

Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Davey Richards

Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

[supersonic]

Time to Man Up - August 4, 2006

ROH Video Recap - August 2, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

Homicide's promo about Jim Cornette gets censored and cut off.

Davey Richards is aiming to eventually win NOAH's GHC Jr. Title.

Lacey, obviously just being done engaging in hankey pankey, tells the fans to quit worrying about her personal life, and she's still focused on making Jimmy Jacobs successful.

Solid highlight package of the past Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe matches to hype up their highly anticipated match @ Fight of the Century

A sloppy promo from Tag Champs Austin Aries & Roderick Strong about knocking off the Briscoes for a third time coming up on August 12 in Liverpool, after first getting through six teams in a couple Ultimate Endurance matches. While not delivered very convincingly, especially from Strong, this promo at least made Aries/Strong vs. Briscoes III seem important, as well as further highlighted the tag straps. I'm hesitant to be excited for this because although the first match was right below the greatness border, the rematch was a mess.

This is another B-show in which I kept just the good shit on my external hard drive, so I'll once again be using the dual review from Jake Ziegler & Brad Garoon for any little important storyline details I didn't keep.

Bryan Danielson vs. Jack Evans

Solid opener and extended squash here. It was still a mismatch, although not quite as much as their spectacle at Survival of the Fittest 2004. While this won't be getting a sexy star rating from me, this is something that would be perfect to introduce anyone accustomed to the sports-entertainment flavor of pro wrestling as much like their 2004 match, both men's personas were highly emphasized to mix in with their differing wrestling styles.

Before the match even starts, Danielson does a standing moonsault to show-up Evans as an acrobat. Evans responded with his usual breakdancing routine which the crowd ate up. The crowd I must say was exceptional here, reacting appropriately to everything. In particular, they antagonized Danielson when he hit a scoop slam with "Same old shit" chants, so he did it again several more times to Evans as a middle finger to them while also causing additional pain on the back of Evans to marginalize his daredevil tactics. In addition, the audience at the beginning had requested Danielson to do a responsive dance to Evans, so he teased it and then refused to deliver it, for he would not be told how to perform inside the ring by anybody.

Evans of course put up a much better fight than in 2004; however, Danielson had improved as well, becoming much more aggressive when the mood struck depending on the night, crowd, and opponent. So while Evans wasn't completely dominated here like he was before, being able to get some heat segments here and there, this was still a mismatch as mentioned because Danielson was just clicking on all cylinders at this point.

One of my favorite moments in this match was Danielson locking on an STF early, but Evans was so flexible that he was able to position his way out of it quite easily. Another highlight was Evans giving Danielson a slapping receipt in the first act, which got a great pop from the crowd. There was also of course Danielson tea-bagging Evans, taking full advantage of the Dragon Gate star's flexibility. And the finish was perfect - Danielson went back to the STF, locking it in a much meaner fashion for the victory, sending a message to Joe.

This isn't a ***+ match, but here's the important question: Am I ever willing to watch this again? You bet your ass I am for all the details I just went over, and if I was a pro wrestler, that'd my top priority in connecting with the audience and viewer. A shame I can't say that about another match I'm reviewing on this show.

 

BG says: Nigel McGuinness says that he doesn’t need to resort to cheap tactics like going under the ring to win a match like Bryan Danielson. He’s adding Delirious to his list of defeated opponents tonight and then he’s unifying the belts.

...

 

JZ says: AJ Styles and his high price tag are here to mention his history with Samoa Joe. He says he’s leaving Ring of Honor for a few months, and he wants to go out on the high note of beating Samoa Joe. Good luck!

Here's another storyline tidbit during the Ultimate Endurance post-match:

 

After the match Aries gets on the microphone and points out that he and Strong don’t have their tag team belts. Apparently someone stole the belts and Aries suspects the Briscoes are to blame. He demands that they be returned by the time the Ultimate Endurance match starts tomorrow.

 

JZ says: ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson says that he calls the shots around here, not Samoa Joe. So he will not meet him face-to-face tonight. He will do his talking in the ring tomorrow night. He then accepts ROH Pure Champion Nigel McGuinness’ challenge to unify the World and Pure Championships.

OH FUCK YES~! Of course, let's hope McGuinness isn't looking past his challenger tonight and neither does Danielson against his challenger tomorrow night.

Pure Title Match

Nigel McGuinness vs. Delirious

Good wrestling with some genuine amusement thrown in here. Not completely comprehending the rules due to being zoned out before the match as part of his routine, Delirious cost himself his rope breaks on the most basic of submissions. McGuinness would later on lose a couple rope breaks as well, although that was for simply using the ropes just to get up off of his knees, something I always hated with the officiating in this type of match. McGuinness even pointed it out that he wasn't using the ropes to request Delirious to break a pin or submission attempt; however, it can be argued that this was karma on him for all his bullshit during this title reign.

My favorite spot in the match was when McGuinness got a very strong rebound lariat on Delirious, causing a great pop; what made it so great was so simple, as they had teased it earlier in the match. All wrestlers should be able to grasp that, but I digress. Another highlight was Delirious going for a Shadows Over Hell, only for McGuinness to land a perfectly timed European Uppercut on him.

If there was any flaw in this match, I'd say it was Delirious kicking out of the Tower of London twice (right after ROH on this very DVD started building to a unification match). Sure, Delirious had seen his stock rise tremendously throughout 2006 thanks to his matches against Danielson, but he still wasn't a big enough star in the company to kick out and not protect a finisher with such a major match being planned.

I appreciated that one of the Tower of London attempts was countered into a Cobra Stretch, as that elevates Delirious and creates anticipation of an upset title change without diminishing McGuinness. And like the opener, I loved the finish, as in the end this was a mismatch since McGuinness was too familiar with this environment and Delirious, despite a great effort, didn't have enough clicking upstairs to pull off the upset. McGuinness locked in the Cattle Mutilation as a message to Danielson, with Delirious passing out since he was out of rope breaks.

I could see why the time had come to phase out the Pure Title. Firstly, nobody was gonna be able to follow this epic reign, and secondly, I cannot think of anymore viable challengers at the time that would be in the position to put McGuinness over, or even stick around to defend the belt should he have been dethroned. Danielson, Joe, Aries, Strong, Delirious, Jay Lethal, Colt Cabana, Christopher Daniels, Claudio Castagnoli - he had gone through them all. It was time to bring this amazing chapter to an end. I'll detail it further when I catch up to the official retirement of the Pure Title.

Rating: ***1/4

Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Davey Richards

A disappointing clusterfuck if I've ever seen one here. Now let's dig in to find out why I reached such a strongly negative assessment.

Let's get the highlights out of the way real quick: Jay and KENTA having a heated slapping exchange early in the match, making me wish we had gotten to see a singles match between them. I also appreciate the Doomsday Busaiku knee near the end of the match as well.

Now we get to the negatives.

I'll start with the unprofessional pet-peeve that I catch watching tag matches in TNA and the indies: in the third act, which was admittedly starting to get a bit hot to potentially save this sham of a tag match, the referee just counted a pinfall attempt regardless of who was legal. But that's not even the biggest problem with this match.

Before the match even started, KENTA got right in the ring to get in the Briscoes' faces, while Richards was outside sucking up to the crowd before getting in the ring to be beside his partner. Now in storyline, that could be explained that Richards had yet to interact with the Briscoes, while KENTA had heat with them based on what happened at Throwdown and Chi-Town Struggle. But perhaps in reality this was a sign that these two men were not on the same page.

I had recalled Bryan & Vinny pointing out that KENTA & Richards weren't on the same page, so I kept my eye out for that. Needless to say, I would NOT have ever needed to hear them point it out to notice it here, as it was so fucking obvious. But I have been listening to the B&V reviews of these shows again before writing each review just to see if there was something I didn't notice, and they brought upon a viewpoint in why KENTA was largely to blame for this match sucking so badly.

So the Briscoes were getting the heat on Richards, who then started to make a comeback to get the crowd behind him and build to a hot tag, but right as he started it, KENTA fucking tagged him. KENTA then came in and realized he had to step aside to let Richards get his shit in on the Briscoes. Now I had thought at first Richards was probably at fault, being a green wrestler still at the time and just having to get his shit in. But Bryan & Vinny made me realize that KENTA was the one who fucked up by not realizing that Richards was making a comeback.

That's completely unacceptable for a tag match involving KENTA, and for him to be the one at fault to boot. KENTA has NEVER been an indy geek, having been brought up in the pro wrestling business through the big leagues. There was no excuse for him to allow many of the indyriffic flaws to take place in this match, especially after being established as such a great tag team wrestler himself between 2003 and 2005, and there was especially no excuse for him to not grasp what Richards was going for in the Ricky Morton role.

I must also mention there were quite a few botches in this one, most memorable being when Richards tried to crotch a Briscoe, and they didn't necessarily move forward from that botch all that smoothly. These men just didn't gel with each other at all on this night, and I'm not quite sure why the crowd gave these men a standing ovation when Mark got the pin on Richards. But you know what? I can understand some botches, because maybe these guys were hurting and perhaps KENTA was jet-lagged if he was just coming in from overseas.

I have to give credit where credit is due: unlike the Briscoes' match against Strong & Evans at Best in the World 2006, the booking was perfect here. The Briscoes pinned Richards to keep them strong for their upcoming Tag Titles shots, while protecting KENTA for his ROH Title shot on September 16 in NYC. This also helped avoid any perception that Richards was being overpushed, even though he was being put in strong positions.

As for the work of this match itself, just a clusterfuck. This match had very visible botches. This match had lack of tag legalities being enforced. This match had a comeback for a hot tag being fucked up by the big league star. This match built to absolutely nothing. This is easily the worst KENTA performance I've ever seen.

At the time of this show, I had a subscription to PWInsider and remember listening to Mike Johnson's review of this show from attending it live. He had said this was a weak show but this match was a hot show-stealer. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is further evidence to never trust the cunts on that website about anything they have to say about assessing the business.

Will I ever watch this again: fuck no. And when this review is posted, I will immediately delete this match from my external hard drive, then have AVG kindly shred it out of my Recycle Bin.

Let's hope KENTA vs. Richards holds up better than this.

Rating: less than ***

The Last ROH Match of AJ Styles

Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

A shame it wasn't confirmed this was the end of an era prior to this show occurring, but of course as we enter 2015 perhaps it's poetic that AJ Styles didn't get the full bells-and-whistles sentimental farewell and classic match on his way out.

This was a good match between these two, although one I could've gone without in hindsight which I'll get into. Styles went right after Joe early, hungry to get a victory over him; remember that their rivarly went beyond ROH, as they had headlined the first ever PWG event and had been engaged in one of the most heated programs in TNA history. So it made sense for Styles to be merciless at the start and wanna leave ROH with a victory over his nemesis Joe, the #1 contender to the ROH Title.

There's not a lot to go over in this match, as it was 10-12 minutes of really good action, feeling like a mid-card match on a much bigger show or a TV main event, but there are a few things that stand out to me. I loved Styles trying to avoid the Ole Ole Kick, hopping over the guardrail and waiting for Joe to approach him. So Joe did so, got the upper hand, dazed Styles, and then landed the Ole Ole Kick as quickly as he could, much quicker than his usual speed.

Everything in the match also landed properly unlike the match right before this. Another highlight was Styles evading an elbow suicida from Joe, who was able to sniff the evasion and stop himself; that's actually brilliant because Richards had used that move already on the card, and Joe had explained the importance of not repeating certain moves during his shoot interview masterpiece with CM Punk in 2005.

I also breathed a sigh of relief when Joe gave Styles a rear-naked choke suplex, but Styles landed flat on his front side instead of taking a head bump. The more often wrestlers can get the same aesthetic effect with less wear-and-tear on their bodies, the better.

The finish was a bit flat with no dramatic nearfall finishing stretch, but that makes Joe look like a bad-ass going into the match against Danielson, and Styles has always been a team player. While as a fan I of course would've preferred a classic for Styles to depart with, it protects him as a TNA asset not to have a match that intense, and Joe's body gets protected as well.

Post-match, ROH airs a highlight package of the Phenomenal One's time in ROH from 2002 to 2006. It is a great package and very classy move, thanking him for his time in the company. That's the least I can ask for.

Rating: ***1/4

So this is definitely a B-show, with something unexpectedly historic going down due to AJ Styles parting ways with the company. But for a number of reasons, that's not enough reason to recommend this show.

I know from TNA's refusal to let Punk beat Daniels clean the year before, as well as another major match involving their contracted talent years down the road, that it can be a pain in the ass to get their guys to job at times. So I'm sure that's why Styles put Joe over on the way out.

But I had of course mentioned before that it's a real fucking shame KENTA vs. AJ Styles never happened, especially on the one card in which they would both actually appear (Styles had also been booked for Final Battle 2005, but got hurt days earlier and it wasn't the right time for that dream match yet.) When seeing how sloppy KENTA's match was on this night, that only makes me pine even more to have had that match take place, and I firmly believe they would've had excellent chemistry, a fitting farewell for Styles at the time and further strengthening KENTA's road to September 16.

Or how about Styles going for the Pure Title, a belt he had never actually been defeated for, and putting over McGuinness in what was a dream match at the time for his farewell? So what I've mentioned here are two alternative fresh matches for Styles to leave out on, with both matches being against men with guaranteed shots at the ROH Title, rather than against Joe, who he had faced many times before and would have the chance to do so again since they were both in TNA at the time.

As pointed out in the review, I still liked the Joe vs. Styles match as well as McGuinness vs. Delirious and Danielson vs. Evans. But Joe vs. Styles and McGuinness vs. Delirious can be found on compilations, and as much fun as the opener is, it's not strong enough to make this show a must-have on its own. The other highlight, that being the AJ Styles video package, is something I expect to be included on the next Styles compilation that should be getting released sometime in 2015.

Avoid the tag match on here at all costs. Just a mess as I detailed earlier and severely brought this show down far worse than I had remembered it.

I will NOT be busting out my usual gimmick for the finale of a major ROH star. Of course, had I gotten around to rewatching this show just a little over a year ago, I'd have been happy to make a Top Ten list for AJ Styles; the man certainly has fucking earned it.

But we can thank the incompetence of Total Nonstop Action for losing his services, allowing him to return to ROH, where he had actually worked first (by a couple months); to also have a career resurgence, winning a world title in a company that actually fucking matters, perhaps cracking the door open to leave behind a recognized legacy of excellence; and maybe one day be put back on the ballot to become elected into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame.

And here we are, the long-awaited rematch of a timeless classic. I know this match had some polarizing opinions back in the day, but I'm open-minded and hope this match lived up to ROH's hype.

Up next - Fight of the Century

Matches will include:

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros. vs. Irish Airborne vs. Jack Evans & Matt Sydal

KENTA vs. Davey Richards

Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe

[supersonic]

Fight of the Century - August 5, 2006

Fans are shown in line outside the building with the title "They are lined up to the witness... the fight of the century." Not exactly something that makes tonight's main event feel as major league as it really is.

Samoa Joe says tonight he proves that Bryan Danielson's fantastic reign as ROH Champion comes to an end, making Joe THE greatest champion in company history. Danielson cuts a pretty green promo in terms of delivery and confidence, one that would make Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn wince and bury him permanently to the mid-card if he was ever this sloppy on Raw. The substance of the material was really good though, as it was based on being the champion, better competitor, and the best wrestler in the world. That makes this sloppy promo digestible.

Jay Lethal's Last ROH Match

Nigel McGuinness vs. Jay Lethal vs. Christopher Daniels vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Saw the lineup for this and decided it's worth another look. I made the correct decision and this is MUCH better than another flavor of fourway I'm reviewing on this same show.

Simply put, every matchup possible in this one looked interesting on paper, and despite how short this was, every single interaction delivered. As readers can see on the back of the DVD cover, McGuinness carried himself like a fucking STAR that could've been a potential game-changer in the big leagues had he protected his body better (I'll be chronicling that in greater detail starting with the next ROH event of course.) Daniels as always wasn't far behind in superstar presence as well.

Everyone shakes hands before the match starts, leaving Daniels and Castagnoli as the final handshake, which the latter offers in condescending fashion, knowing he made a mockery of Daniels with his choices at The 100th Show. Daniels of course rejects the gesture and goes to work on him, causing the future Cesaro to tag in McGuinness, who then teases he'll tag Castagnoli back in after some nice mat wrestling, only to just be a troll and stay tagged in.

There was nothing truly standout about the actual mat wrestling in this due to the short length of the match (the entrances were almost as long actually), but it was all professionally executed and I'd tell my students to study it if I was a trainer. The match really earns my rating in the closing minutes as it became a hot little spotfest, WITHOUT anybody neglecting to remember tag legalities.

As every match should be, the highlight was in the conclusion: Daniels went for the Angel's Wings on Castagnoli, but had to let go to duck a clothesline from McGuinness. That was all for naught, as McGuinness turned around and instead dropped Daniels with a lariat. McGuinness then ate a European Uppercut from Lethal, who then ate a more intense one from Castagnoli; McGuinness however used his momentum bouncing off the ropes to finish off Castagnoli with the Rebound Lariat! And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how to book the next confirmed challenger to the top prize in the company.

Just a few more notes about this match:

- The match needed at least a few more minutes as it would've allowed more time for the different matchups, specifically Lethal vs. Castagnoli, which to date has never been booked as a singles match. This also would've allowed McGuinness more time to shine for his unification match next week.

- Referee Todd Sinclair's count on Castagnoli at the end was a fast one, which the commentators fail to mention. Very subtle retaliation from Sinclair towards the CZW turncoat.

- Not predicting it'll happen, but if Cesaro at some point becomes Claudio Castagnoli again, someone please book that singles dream match against Lethal. We all know it'd be outstanding.

Rating: ***1/4

Tag Titles - Ultimate Endurance Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros. vs. Irish Airborne vs. Jack Evans & Matt Sydal

Aries & Strong are once again without their stolen tag belts. First fall is a Scramble, second fall is Tap Out, third fall is standard tag.

This was a lousy match. Tag legalities were only partially enforced, there was hardly enough time between the eliminations for each fall to truly click with the audience, and unlike the prior match, the booking in this was truly head-scratching. Although the double-team finish in doing so was nice, the decision to have IA eliminate the Briscoes AT ALL in this match was a really bad one and one that booker Gabe Sapolsky should've figured out beforehand. Rather than elevate IA, the crowd rejected the Briscoes being eliminated first; but even more important, whereas McGuinness got the win a week before his big match, the Briscoes were shoe-horned into this and did the clean early job when they also had a big standard style challenge for the tag belts coming up next week. Wretched booking.

I did like that one week after Generation Next had its last stand, it came down to the four men that had retired that stable name. But they should've just been booked against each other in a regular tag anyway; and while the spots looked pretty on the surface, nothing actually resonated and there was no huge build to a hot tag, no heat segment, nothing of substance. The last fall was just guys doing moves and putting more hell on their bodies. And in the post-match, Aries & Strong are made to look like dumbasses threatening whoever stole the tag straps, when it was clearly obvious to anyone with the simplest of instincts that it was the Kings of Wrestling.

This match really brought out a problem that Sapolsky was having, one that wasn't completely his fault. In August of 2006, ROH had SIX events booked without any kind of TV deal to promote them. Now let this sink in as well: from July 15 to August 26, ROH had NINE events booked, none of them more than 13 days apart. That included four double-shots; upon further breakdown three of those double-shots were back-to-back-to-back weekends, with a trip across the Atlantic among them. When considering this, it's where I can see why Sapolsky may have been showing some real signs of burnout and putting together a card like this that had a disappointing, hollow gimmick match in the mid-card, rather than three very obvious matches that could've been booked instead.

With a guaranteed title shot in a regular match just a week away, the Briscoes once again go over IA in VERY convincing fashion, basically a glorified squash that lasts no more than 10 minutes. We also have two quality singles matches, pitting Aries against Evans for the first time ever while Strong faces Sydal in a rematch of their PWG classic a few months earlier. These are THREE quality matches that accomplish different goals: keep the Briscoes' momentum strong and delivering a fantastic undercard.

Instead, what we got here was a match that had the very hot #1 contenders to the tag straps doing a job to a couple curtain-jerkers who hadn't clicked yet, rushed eliminations, and nothing of substance being built to, with tag legality inconsistencies as well. This match only tempers any anticipation I may have had about Aries & Strong vs. Briscoes III even more.

Rating: less than ***

At intermission, Colt Cabana's promo is interrupted by Lacey, who's upset about rumors in the locker room and says he better not be spreading them, but of course she doesn't elaborate on what they are and he has a huge smirk while he denies saying anything. As she walks away, Cabana has the camera look at her so the viewer can check her out.

KENTA vs. Davey Richards

Much, much, MUCH better than their bullshit tag match the night before.

This wasn't just a match that elevated the stock of Richards, but was his singles breakout as well. Sure, nowhere near Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Mitsuharu Misawa or the Aries vs. Danielson portion at Survival of the Fittest 2004, but he was put into a pressure situation just a couple years into the business and held up his end of the deal exceptionally well.

While Richards was still green of course, specifically in fluidity and selling, this match was also perfectly structured to his natural strengths, as he was able to use the power in his compact muscular frame to slow down KENTA's signature furious offense early. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker specifically took down the NOAH superstar, allowing Richards to work in submissions to bring pain upon various parts of his body. Of course, Richards got his kicking shit in, although when they were on the outside, that just pissed KENTA off, giving him an adrenaline rush and they had an exchange in which KENTA got the upper hand and kicked off his first heat segment.

KENTA was vicious as usual with his kicks inside and outside the ring, but Richards tried to give himself an adrenaline rush while on his knees, egging on more kicks - that didn't work out for him. A potential cutoff from Richards is immediately sabotaged as KENTA gives him kicks to the torso and a flying knee to the back of the head; KENTA follows that up with a body-scissors submission, which I love because it wears down the green Richards and only softens him up more for the additional physicality sure to come. However, Richards gets his chance to regain the heat when he counters an Irish Whip with a knee to KENTA's gut.

KENTA attempts to cut off the heat of Richards quickly, but his Yakuza kick attempt is countered with an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. KENTA goes to the outside, so Richards gets right back to work by charging via a Tope Suicida. At this point the crowd finds itself in dueling chants, confirming that Richards is gaining credibility. After some kicks and a German Suplex pin attempt from Richards, he goes for the Butterfly Driver, but KENTA blocks that and regains the heat when he counters a flying Richards with an Ace Crusher.

KENTA gives Richards a trademark receipt of various kicks and a springboard missile dropkick. Moments later, he blocks a boot from Richards in the corner, kicks his hamstring, and then puts him in position similar to Goldust setting up a Shattered Dreams. Instead, KENTA hits a charging boot then a slap for a near-fall, and the crowd is getting more into this. They exchange boots to the face, with that ending when Richards finds enough adrenaline to block one and dump KENTA with a Saito Suplex. KENTA counters a running powerbomb with a head-scissors, but Richards tries to maintain the heat.

KENTA does indeed get the heat back though when he blocks a charging Richards in the corner with a boot, snaps his throat on the top rope... and then Richards regains the heat by countering a springboard move with a powerbomb, followed up by a Stretch Muffler. KENTA of course uses the ropes to break the hold, but it was a brilliant submission in attempting to take out one of his legs, such a lethal weapon in his arsenal. They then exchange Kawada kicks and slaps, then have an awesome little sequence straight out of NOAH's juniors division that has the crowd applauding them. It ends with a Busaiku knee from KENTA, but he's too worn out temporarily to go for the cover.

They have another awesome little sequence, this time ending with a lariat from Richards for a hot nearfall. A Butterfly Driver attempt has Richards finding it countered and in position for the G2S, but he gets out of that, only for his clothesline attempt to be turned into a butterfly suplex for another nearfall. KENTA signals for the G2S, but his moment in running the ropes for additional momentum on a strike allows Richards to give him a fireman's carry gutbuster (although not as spectacularly as Strong's.) Richards then follows that up by delivering on the running powerbomb teased earlier for another great nearfall.

Richards goes for the Shooting Star Press, but KENTA has it sniffed out and tries to counter the attempt with a Super Falcon Arrow, only for Richards to knock him back to the mat. Richards does the highspot spectacularly but KENTA's knees are planted straight into his ribs upon impact. This allows KENTA to hit a Busaiku knee for a nearfall, which I'm not the biggest fan of.

A G2S attempt is blocked for a Butterfly Driver attempt; KENTA cuts off Richards with a kick moments later and goes for the G2S, but Richards counters that with a Crucifix Pin for another tremendous nearfall. When Richards runs the ropes, that's all KENTA needs. He cuts off Richards with an Ace Crusher, and then finishes off his protege finally with the G2S.

This was really good shit. Moves were teased and then delivered, the counters were highly professional, it gave KENTA more momentum going into his shot at the ROH Title on September 16, and this was the delivered breakout of Richards as expected. Just a bit more seasoning on Richards and treating the Busaiku knee as a finish rather than nearfall, and this would be in the excellent territory. Really curious to see these two go at it again with Richards having more experience.

Rating: ***3/4

ROH TItle Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe

Phenomenal atmosphere during the pre-match of course. After all, this match isn't just four months in the making, but last time they went at it in singles, it was a ***** masterpiece at Midnight Express Reunion. Now does this one measure up?

It doesn't, so let's start with the negatives and detail why this was is simply an excellent one hour Broadway, rather than a genuine masterpiece that's so hard to put together. Joe did some work on Danielson's back in the middle of the match, and I was disappointed that the champ didn't really sell it for more than a few seconds. Sure, Joe has never had the backbreaking gimmick of Strong, but he's still a very big, very aggressive man applying pressure on the back - that has to be sold in order for suspension of disbelief to not stall.

There were also some moments of dead time as these men stretched this to go an hour, which was the biggest complaint of the match for those live. But that happened in Joe's first one hour Broadway against CM Punk at World Title Classic, and like that classic, this had more than enough greatness to not be taken down too much by this.

The most disappointing factor was in the beginning, not that Danielson kept taking powders to stall and stretch this out for the time limit, but that unlike his ***** masterpiece against Strong at Vendetta, he didn't troll Joe or the crowd whatsoever while on the outside early. The trolling is what made the Vendetta work of art seem significantly shorter than its 47 minute length, while also engaging the crowd more instead of having them sit there bitching about how the time limit draw is so easily predictable.

Of course, there are a couple things to consider regarding Danielson's lack of trolling during his early powders. For one, Joe had been to the top of the mountain and therefore in kayfabe would NOT succumb to Danielson's baiting tactics like Strong had done. In addition, perhaps for the sake of avoiding redundancy, Danielson opted not to be a troll right away, as that dynamic was already used up by Steve Corino & Adam Pearce earlier in the night in their plodding excuse of a tag match. Danielson still should've trolled the audience though and attempted to do so to Joe too, as it would've made the early segments far more entertaining while killing time.

With that out of the way, let's go over why this is a tremendous match that while not quite up to par with its Fight of the Century event title, is still worth going out of your way to see.

Danielson as mentioned takes early powders when Joe gets the advantage on the mat and various strikes, including knees and kicks. The crowd at one point chants "PUSSY" at Danielson, thus making me question the lack of trolling from him even more. After a few powders, Danielson finally gets an advantage going to work on Joe's left knee, which Danielson targeted in the Cage of Death at Death Before Dishonor IV. Joe's cutoff attempts would be short-lived due to Danielson's resiliency in going after the left knee, and I especially loved Danielson going to the eyes when Joe tried chopping his way out of a leg submission.

When Joe is about to make a comeback, Danielson immediately powders to escape a boot, controlling the pace of the match but once again not trolling the audience. When he gets back in the ring, Joe gets the advantage, causing Danielson to take yet another powder, but at least this time Danielson is showing frustration and throwing down a chair, but he still doesn't engage the crowd with his mouth to make this match more heated. When he gets in the ring, a headlock on Joe is eventually countered with an Electric Chair style backdrop, but the champ begs off and then headbutts Joe's gut to cut off any comeback.

Danielson works on Joe's face and right arm/shoulder, setting up the challenger for a potential Cattle Mutilation or Crossface Chickenwing. He also chokes Joe's throat on the middle rope, taking advantage of the five count and being arrogant about it. But running the ropes costs him, as Joe moves out of the way and goes to work on the crotched champ with kicks and forearms to regain the heat. Danielson prevents the running boot scrapes with a forearm of his own, regaining the heat and then arrogantly going for the running boot scrapes himself. But Joe of course gets up and clotheslines him down, causing another powder for the champ while Joe stays inside the ring, not playing into the mind games.

Danielson gets back in the ring and this time targets Joe's left arm with a Hammerlock that he then keeps locked in while he adds more pressure, smacking his own body on the mat for that effect. While keeping the Hammerlock on Joe, Danielson turns that into what is visually very similar to a cross armbreaker, but targeting Joe's left arm and shoulder rather than his right from earlier in the match. This is very intelligent of the champ because it can sabotage Joe from planting him with an Island Driver or musclebuster, or even just a trademark move like the powerbomb. Danielson then turns it over, keeping the Hammerlock on but working the arm.

Danielson goes to work with punches in the corner after a rope-break, but that pisses Joe off, who channels his work against Kenta Kobashi with furious vengeance and regains control. After a snapmare, Joe places a knee on Danielson's back while holding the left arm, and kicks the champ's spine. Danielson cuts off a sleeper, but Joe then immediately cuts him off with a powerslam. After the nearfall, Danielson spins and kicks Joe's face, following up on it with stomps and grinding. A flying headbutt gets a two-count, but the champ goes to work on Joe's back via an Anchor Hold; Joe tries to turn that around but Danielson uses the momentum to get right back into it, then puts Joe in a Straight Jacket Submission around the throat to cut off his oxygen and test his endurance.

Joe regains control with a leg sweep and working on Danielson's right leg, via kicks to the hamstring, a Dragon Screw Leg Whip, and Figure Four Leglock. Danielson turns that around, putting pressure back on Joe's left knee, but that's not enough to keep Joe down after the rope-break. The challenger keeps firing back with strikes and the champion stays in the game with his own strikes; a series of strikes stuns Joe and Danielson regains control. He goes back to work on Joe's left arm/shoulder, but Joe turns him over and kicks him in the back, then drops him with a backbreaker as I had mentioned earlier. He follows that up with his trademark variation of the Boston Crab, and Danielson doesn't sell the back much after the rope-break.

Joe does have control still though until that's cut off with a Roaring Forearm, but an attempt at the Mexican Surfboard is blocked by Joe, who's simply too heavy and determined. Danielson still keeps control, this time talking trash while slapping Joe in the corner, but Joe manages to land a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. Joe keeps control now, but his strikes and a Senton is only enough for another nearfall. Joe goes back to work on Danielson's left shoulder, but Danielson briefly gets control back, only to sniff out an attempted musclebuster.

Danielson gets the crowd going with a charging European Uppercut and then chop-blocking Joe's left knee, then channels Lethal's attack from Steel Cage Warfare. He smacks Joe's left leg on a ring post, then smacks the leg onto the ring post with a steel chair; like Lethal, Danielson didn't get disqualified as he should've since he still had the champion's advantage. FINALLY, Danielson taunts the crowd since he clearly has control, and some fans are chanting "BEST IN THE WORLD!" at him. Danielson gives Joe a knee crush on the left knee, following up on the left knee with more work. Joe is doing a great job of selling that knee.

Danielson applies another submission, getting nearfalls out of it while Joe is laid on the mat in agony at times. Joe does the hope spot of trying to punch his way out, but Danielson turns it over and does a Lex Luger pose to rub it in. Joe continues to sell the left knee after a rope-break, clutching it and that indicates to Danielson to keep going after it as he taunts the crowd. Joe is struggling to stand up due to the work on his left knee, and one has to consider his weight as well, especially when that knee is hit with a running dropkick while tied up in the ropes.

Danielson applies his own Figure Four Leglock of course, once again being a troll since he has clear control now about 40 minutes into this classic. Joe continues to sell the pain, not just with his body language selling the struggle of standing and getting up, but the pain in his face as well, especially when he briefly reverses the established finisher of the Nature Boy. Joe is able to free his leg in the corner and punch the champ, getting enough momentum to now hit the running boot scrapes. However, the challenger falls down immediately, the adrenaline having worn off and feeling the pain in his left knee.

Seeing the opportunity, Danielson goes right back to work on Joe's left knee since he didn't receive the full impact of the boot scrapes. Danielson returns the Dragon Screw Leg Whip favor and goes for another submission I don't know the name of, then adds more pressure with a beautiful arch. He then does an STF variation, almost like a Regal Stretch, but that gets a rope-break. The commentators do a fabulous job of pointing out how much pain Joe is feeling in his left knee, and Joe's hope spots are for naught in the corner.

With Joe down on the canvas, he counters Danielson with either a neckbreaker or Ace Crusher - it wasn't pretty, but it got the job done and that's fine with me. Joe is struggling to walk and run the ropes, but he sucks it up to hit the champ with an Elbow Suicida on the outside, getting a decent crowd pop. They brawl on the outside, and Joe once again sucks it up to deliver the Ole Ole Kicks, but of course uses his right foot to attack Danielson's face. His attempt at another Ole Ole Kick gets cut off by a forearm from Danielson, who isn't gonna be taken out for very long as he knows how to absorb pain. Danielson brings out more trolling, hitting Joe with an Ole Ole Dropkick to the crowd's approval.

They keep brawling on the outside, with Joe landing a running boot to Danielson's face on the guardrail, but that gets cut off when he follows the champ. Danielson climbs the top rope and does a front flip plancha to Joe in the audience, getting a good crowd pop, although not the epic I would've wanted putting my body on the line if I'm Danielson. Danielson throws Joe back in the ring and lands a Missile Shotgun Dropkick, then teases a running forearm that gets countered with a Uranage Slam. Joe follows that up with a nice Rolling Clutch pinfall atempt, and the crowd is starting to pick up.

A Rolling Cradle from Joe gets another nice nearfall, but he's really worn down and can't immediately followup. The crowd is at least behind him though, giving him energy to have a strike change with Danielson, but the champ plants him with a Dragon Suplex for a nearfall. Danielson goes back to the Regal Stretch variation, but Joe turns that into a rear-naked choke for a hot near-submission. Joe goes for that again, but Danielson channels Bret Hart's pinning finish at WrestleMania VIII and Survivor Series 1996 for a nearfall.

When Joe goes for another Uranage Slam counter, Danielson is smart enough to use Joe's right arm and position him for the Cattle Mutilation, paying off some of the work on Joe's arms and shoulders earlier, but that's too close to the ropes for a finish. Danielson rolls Joe in the middle of the ring to lock it again, and the crowd is happy for another rope-break. Danielson goes for it a third time, but knowing how difficult it is to make Joe tap, the champ uses that positioning to roll him up for a hot nearfall. Crowd is now firmly behind Joe but Danielson has his supporters too.

Joe had countered some of Danielson's charging offense earlier in the match with Manhattan Drops. But this late in the match, in order to avoid causing further pain to his knees, he changed his mind while having the champ in position for that move, instead dropping him knees-first on the mat. With Danielson's knees now hurting, Joe turned him over for a Half Crab for another hot pop from the crowd, desperate to see the first title change for ROH in 2006. But Danielson turns that into a pinfall attempt as well, and the crowd is feeling this.

They exchange strikes and Joe is continuing to excellently sell his agony, but takes down the champ with a lariat. Unfortunately, he's so worn down that instead of going for the pin, he falls down and rolls over, allowing the match to be even as both men get up simultaneously. Danielson goes to work on Joe in the corner, although he is showing some (not as many, but some) signs of fatigue too, unable to lift Joe by the legs and going for a running dropkick on the seated challenger. He gets cocky again as Joe is down in agony, but Joe cuts off an Irish Whip with his trademark powerbomb and STF combo, then turns that into a Crippler Crossface and the crowd is getting antsy. This is phenomenal shit.

Danielson manages to roll Joe back for another nearfall, then counters a powerbomb with a head-scissors, but Danielson's left knee is in pain from the Half Crab. Danielson is fatigued and rests in the corner, then eats a knee and is positioned for the musclebuster. He fights his way out, falling on the canvas, then turns another attempt into a crucifix pin nearfall, drawing another "THIS IS AWESOME~!" chant from those in attendance. Danielson kicks at Joe's left knee to stall him and seats him on the top rope, but Joe throws him off and hits a flying knee for a nearfall as the match has 5 minutes remaining, causing the crowd to get antsier.

A brainbuster from Joe is another nice nearfall, but not enough of course. Joe kicks at Danielson, but the champ grabs his left knee and tries to cradle him for a pin, only for Joe to use the momentum against him for another great nearfall. Joe uses his left knee for another knee strike attempt, and Danielson counters that with his own Half Crab for a near-submission. Danielson looks to have found another wind, but Joe takes him down with another lariat and goes for another musclebuster, which he delivers this time. But here's the brilliance of this match: due to the pain in Joe's left knee, he couldn't position very far from the corner, so Danielson was able to break the pin easily by touching the bottom rope. Crowd is really appreciating this now.

Joe wants to hit another musclebuster, but Danielson gets underneath and gives him a Super Backdrop Suplex for another nearfall. It looks like the entire crowd is standing. Danielson hits the elbows, but Joe absorbs them and tries to hulk up. Danielson locks in the Crossface Chickenwing, but Joe elbows out of it, then Danielson goes for an O'Connor Roll. Joe turns that into a rear-naked choke and Danielson struggles to reach the ropes as the match is less than 30 seconds from being a draw.

The crowd is going insane here, clapping, stomping, cheering, wanting the first title change of the year so badly. But as referee Todd Sinclair goes to drop Danielson's arm three times for the submission, the 60 minute time limit expires, making this a draw as so many in the audience could see coming. The crowd and Joe want five more minutes, but of course Danielson refuses, as he senses that Joe may have him figured out.

As Danielson is leaving, KENTA comes through the entrance and motions he's coming for the belt. I'm all for building anticipation for matches, but tell the audience to expect Danielson not to lose the title until September 16? The Briscoes ambush KENTA from behind to continue their issue, then Homicide comes after the Briscoes and those three hit the ring. Joe comes to help Homicide out despite the match he just had, and the unthinkable happens: Joe & Homicide agree to team up to face the Briscoes the same night that KENTA gets his ROH Title shot, as Joe says he is now Homicide's ally after what the Notorious 187 did to help out against CZW. I'm definitely looking forward to that September 16 card in NYC.

Rating: ****1/2

Strongly recommended show for a star power fourway hidden gem featuring Lethal's finale during the Sapolsky era, KENTA giving Richards his singles breakout, and an excellent main event.

The DVD closes with a look at ROH's setup in Liverpool. I will be reviewing the matches that are listed across the screen of course, and this is another one that I'm amazed I finally reached. I will analyze both main events, the positives, the negatives, and what they did for both the participants and ROH's title belts both short-term and long-term.

Up next - Unified

Matches will include:

Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness in a TITLE UNIFICATION~!

[supersonic]

Unified - August 12, 2006

ROH Video Recap - August 9, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

Liverpool on 8/12 is a night of Round 3's. Jimmy Rave gets a third crack at Davey Richards. Bryan Danielson and Nigel McGuinness collide in what promises to be a historic nailbiter as they are unifying the ROH and Pure Titles, with the unification being GUARANTEED and both titles this time being held under Pure Title Rules. Also, the Briscoes get their final shot for the Tag Titles against Austin Aries & Roderick Strong.

Nigel McGuinness, just like in the Video Recap, carries himself as a total star on the DVD's opening promo, vowing to make history tonight in his home country and prove he's the very best.

Davey Richards sees his promo on Jimmy Rave interrupted when Austin Aries & Roderick Strong go into a room to find their Tag Titles, with a note saying that the thieves will be winning them soon. So obviously it was the Kings of Wrestling.

Speaking of KOW, and to make it even more obvious, Chris Hero makes his return to the company to spoil the night and gets runnoft by Colt Cabana.

Jimmy Rave vs. Davey Richards

Much like many of PWG's overrated, supposed undercard classics, this went longer than it needed to, although was still quite good. The story of the match was that Rave was ultimately no match for Richards, often losing mat wrestling battles. Richards did have some flaws here for such a long match against someone like Rave, who was good but not elite, in that his hope spots when selling were very minimal and lacked fire to keep the crowd engaged. But the finishing sequence was splendid with the two men countering each other until Richards took Rave down with the Butterfly Driver and did so with complete finality. Take some time off or have Richards do better hope spots and this may have been the undercard classic that these guys wanted it to be.

Rating: ***1/4

The Briscoes claim they got cheated in their first match against Aries & Strong, while the second was luck. I'm sorry that the Briscoes just aren't accustomed to the quality officiating of the first match.

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Briscoe Bros.

This match stayed away from the traditional hot tag formula, and you know what? This match proves that the formula isn't always necessary, although I'd be curious to see how this crowd would've reacted to it. While the Briscoes did do some cutting of the ring in half on the champs, they never got an extended advantage to build to a hot tag. Instead, the first dozen minutes or so established that despite all the high-impact moves these four men inflicted, this was an extremely even matchup on this particular evening.

The match's second half became a spectacular spotfest, one of the best I've seen for an indy tag. It was one crisp move after another, almost everything connecting beautifully and the crowd eating it up. This was a true back-and-forth matchup, and if looking for a sports comparison, the first one to come to mind for me would be the New Orleans Saints @ San Francisco 49ers in the divisional round from January 2012. The Briscoes did finally manage to get a true advantage when Mark won a battle against Aries on the entrance ramp, blocking a brainbuster and dropping the former ROH Champ with a brainbuster.

That caused Strong to eat a Doomsday Device AND spike double-underhook piledriver, resulting in an incredible nearfall, and through fate, actually turning out to be great booking for what was to come the next day in Broxbourne. Aries would finally get to the ring to help out Strong and they'd eventually regain the advantage thanks to Mark eating a Yakuza kick from Strong. This allowed the champs to double-team Jay after he ate a botched reverse hurricanrana from Aries. They then would give him a half-nelson backbreaker, powerbomb, and then topped that off with a 450 Splash, complete with the champs making sure Aries would be the legal man.

With the exception of one very minor tag legality disconnect (something that came as a VERY pleasant surprise to me), I have no complaints about this match unlike Bryan & Vinny. I don't see any need for every tag match to have a comeback formula in order to be a nail-biting classic; I even cited a back-and-forth matchup from the gridiron to prove my point, as there's nothing wrong with using a different formula to build up drama, which the Liverpool crowd made quite clear they were in agreement with. Although I'd be really interested to see the traditional comeback and hot tag formula from these four men in front of this audience, I'm very pleased with the final product, and after all these years, the ROHbots consensus is spot-on: this is in the all-time upper echelon of ROH tags and did a phenomenal job in building up the prestige of the Tag Titles.

Rating: ****1/2

World Title and Pure Title Unification - Pure Title Rules

GUARANTEED UNIFICATION

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

The match has a really sweet video package chronicling both men's epic reigns, leaving behind a laundry list of top names on the indies and puro juniors division in their wake. What a crazy concept, have two bad-asses run an almost year-long gauntlet, then have them collide.

McGuinness of course gets the hometown hero's welcome in his native country. They exchange arm twists early with Danielson eventually getting the advantage on the left arm of McGuinness. He hits a Butterfly Suplex then turns that into a cross armbreaker to cause the first rope break for McGuinness, then taunts the crowd as they rally for the Pure Champ. McGuinness moments later cuts him off with a back elbow, followed by a kick to the spine and falling forearm to the chest. McGuinness keeps attacking with various strikes such as forearm scrapes and European Uppercuts. He follows up on Danielson's left arm (having dropped it a minute or so earlier) with a Cobra Clutch, but the future HOFer manages to get out without using a rope break, ducking a short-arm clothesline and dropping him with an enziguri.

Danielson teases a Mexican Surfboard but instead stomps both knees, trolling the audience while working on his taller opponent's base. He follows that up with a superplex and diving headbutt for a nearfall, then hits the Cattle Mutilation to force a second rope break for McGuinness. Another aerial attack is cut off by McGuinness, planting Danielson with a Tower of London, causing a rope break for Danielson. McGuinness locks on a Cattle Mutilation as the crowd is completely glued, but Danielson reaches the ropes with his right foot. At this point, each man has a rope break remaining.

Danielson is on the outside and McGuinness follows him to brawl, but that's cut off. Danielson slams McGuinness on a nearby table and stands on his throat and chest, uses the table's edge to choke McGuinness some more. Danielson gets back in the ring, but McGuinness manages to get back into the ring before the 20 count to the crowd's delight, but not quite the epic reaction as nobody expected a finish there. They then exchange forearms as the crowd is having dueling chants; Danielson gains the advantage and goes for a roaring forearm, but that's ducked and McGuinness lands a clothesline for a nice nearfall. McGuinness is visibly bleeding in the mouth at this point.

McGuinnesss does a corner handstand and gets dropkicked, then Danielson hits the roaring forearm. Danielson follows that up with the Crossface Chickenwing, then leverages down the Pure Champ to lock on the body-scissors. This causes the third and final rope break for McGuinness as Danielson continues taunting the Liverpool audience. He drops McGuinness with a German Suplex and wastes time taunting the audience when going for another diving headbutt. McGuinness plants a boot in his face for his troubles as the crowd continues to rally behind their native Brit.

McGuinness starts making a fiery comeback and they have a phenomenal slap exchange, a battle of true pride. Danielson gets the advantage to the crowd's disapproval, then does a leaping forearm. A Dragon Suplex is blocked and Danielson is crotched, then lariated as the crowd chants "ROH!" Danielson uses his third and final rope break. McGuinness goes to the top rope but is cut off by Danielson, but he fights off another superplex attempt. Danielson is headbutted off, but he comes back and hits a dropkick. He then gets behind McGuinness on the top to lock on the Crossface Chickenwing as the crowd is begging for the UK native not to tap out. McGuinness frees himself and drops Danielson with another Tower of London for a nearfall, and the crowd just keeps rooting for him.

Now we get to one of the dumbest moments I've ever seen in wrestling, and I'll cover the consequences once I'm done reviewing the aesthetics of this masterpiece. McGuinness grabs Danielson and forces his shoulder to hit a ring post, but Danielson then blocks another one. McGuinness then is rammed forehead-first into the fucking ring post FOUR TIMES, busting himself open hardway. Danielson follows that up with a top rope dive to McGuinness in the audience as the crowd is chanting "HOLY SHIT!" and "THIS IS AWESOME!" Objectively speaking and for aesthetic entertainment value, this certainly is.

They crawl to the ring and have a struggle, with Danielson kicking McGuinness back into the audience around the count of 12. With a crimson forehead and his fellow Brits rooting him on, McGuinness finds it in himself to get back in before the count of 20, then channels Steve Austin's iconic moment while in the Scorpion Deathlock at WrestleMania 13. McGuinness is not in a submission hold refusing to tap out though; instead, as soon as he rolls into the ring and the audience is celebrating, McGuinness finds the fighting spirit, feeding off the frenzied audience to give himself an adrenaline rush.

We get another decision of stupidity as they headbutt each other in what I believe are genuine strikes, but the drama cannot be denied. McGuinness hits a delayed rebound lariat after a headbutt to a wonderful reaction and he crawls over for a fantastic nearfall, but Danielson uses his rolling leverage to lock on the Cattle Mutilation once again. McGuinness cannot use the ropes to break, so the audience gives him an adrenaline rush to not tap out; he turns Danielson over, and when Danielson goes to lock it again, McGuinness rolls him over for a nearfall. Danielson then has enough and knocks McGuinness, who now has a visible hematoma from the earlier stupidity, the fuck out with numerous elbows to the head, finally unifying the titles and standing tall above his greatest rival, a true conqueror like Brock Lesnar is today. (I certainly wouldn't mind this version of Danielson feuding with Lesnar btw.)

Post-match, Danielson gives McGuinness tremendous credit for the effort and offers another title shot, to which McGuinness, who is geniunely battered, agrees. The crowd absolutely eats this up, and I cannot blame them one bit.

Let's stick to the positives first, that being the aesthetics. Bryan & Vinny are correct in that THIS is how to build up a world champion and elevate the prestige of the title. There was no doubt when this match concluded that Bryan Danielson was the very best, most bad ass motherfucker on the ROH roster, even more so than Homicide. But just as if not more important, McGuinness was successful, like Austin was on that magical night against Bret Hart in 1997, in becoming a genuine main-eventer thanks to his performance in this match. There was no doubt after this work of art that McGuinness would be ROH Champion at some point and become the face of the company.

Now the unfortunate negatives. It's quite timely that I get around to this match right when Danielson gets pulled from a European tour due to a concussion. I'm glad he understands now that much like the ROH vs. CZW feud, these two men went a bit too far to add drama to this match. That doesn't take away from this match's excellence, but it's a lesson to be learned from. As for McGuinness, it's a shame that his idea to get over like Austin was to do something that didn't come anywhere near as safe. While Austin was bladed open by Bret, McGuinness instead chose to get color here by ramming his forehead into a steel ring post, to the point of hardway bleeding and developing a hematoma. While the intent is very obvious and appreciated, in that he wanted to channel Austin as I mentioned, he went about it in a completely idiotic way, and he's now suffering the consequences for it rather than being a cornerstone of the WWE like he should be.

As a fan, I do look forward to the drama of watching the rest of the main event run of McGuinness. But I shudder at what atrocities he inflicted upon himself are to come as I continue revisiting the glory days of ROH.

The Pure Title didn't just go out with a bang, but easily its greatest match. More on that in the show's review.

This match is a true masterpiece and work of art - that it went a bit too far doesn't take away from its electric atmosphere and off-the-charts drama, just like it wouldn't for matches involving Chris Benoit and Mitsuharu Misawa. This is even better than I had remembered so many years ago, and is truly one of the greatest matches in ROH history. The end of year picks for me are looking to be pretty difficult as this project continues, and damn I'm looking forward to revisiting more of this epic rivalry.

Rating: *****

Gabe Sapolsky announces that Aries fucked up his ribs on the botched reverse hurricanrana, so he's off the Broxbourne card, thus cancelling Aries & Strong vs. Doug Williams & Jody Fleisch.

The DVD closes with McGuinness all fucked up including a portion of his lips being blue. I can't deny what he said here in that he gave everything out of love for the sport, but holy shit I hope nobody ever goes this far to get over again, especially if they're as skilled and charismatic as him.

Strongest recommendation possible for two main events that truly delivered as MOTYCs, the latter being a contender for best match in company and indy wrestling history, one that turned a participant into a future face of the company. Both matches are critical in seeing how exactly to make belts matter as well.

The Pure Title went through some serious ups and downs during its two and a half years of existence. From a terrible tournament final on its first night, to having to re-crown a champion in light of the Rob Feinstein scandal, to having to abruptly move it off of John Walters in early 2005, this belt certainly didn't have much prestige going for it during its first year of existence. Doug Williams and John Walters did their parts to make this belt mean something, but it wasn't truly enough yet, not even with the latter becoming a chickenshit heel brought into the Embassy.

It looked to be that this title would become much like NJPW's IC Title is today when Samoa Joe won it from his then-protege Jay Lethal in a classic during the company's Manhattan debut. In particular, Joe's first defense against James Gibson was truly excellent, dripping with amazing psychology and fantastic crowd drama. But Joe's reign still wouldn't truly elevate the title, even as he slayed top names to hold onto it.

When Nigel McGuinness dethroned Joe with underhanded tactics, nobody could've seen the epic reign over the next year coming. Through his heel tactics including cheating, smug taunting, and incredible promo work, McGuinness saw his star rise within the company, slaying one top name after another, but continuing to pile it on for much longer than Joe. Through his presence, antics, promos, and sheer in-ring talent, he made the Pure Title one that truly mattered and had fans genuinely invested in a rivalry with the ROH Champion.

There were many great matches McGuinness had as Pure Champ, but as time went on, it became obvious that nobody was gonna be able to follow his reign. So after finally hitting the ****+ level in sizzlers with Bryan Danielson and Roderick Strong, booker Gabe Sapolsky knew the time was right to unify the belts, and use such an opportunity to reward McGuinness for all of his hard work, giving him a match that made him a top star on the indies in his home country. It was time to bid farewell to a belt that had become so important in providing depth to the card and giving upper midcarders something worth fighting for.

It was only appropriate for the Pure Title to go out with its greatest match, with the defender being in his home country. There was not an event, market, champion, or challenger that would've been more suitable. I say thank you to Nigel McGuinness for being the cornerstone of ROH's midcard during the aesthetic peak of ROH, and without further adieu, I present...

The 10 Greatest Pure Title Matches in ROH History

Doug Williams vs. Alex Shelley - Reborn: Completion ****

Doug Williams vs. John Walters - Scramble Cage Melee ***3/4

John Walters vs. Jay Lethal - Third Anniversary Celebration Pt. 1 ***3/4

Jay Lethal vs. Samoa Joe - Manhattan Mayhem ****

Samoa Joe vs. James Gibson - New Frontiers ****1/4

Nigel McGuinness vs. Austin Aries - Unscripted II ***3/4

Nigel McGuinness vs. Bryan Danielson - Weekend of Champions Night 2 ****3/4

Nigel McGuinness vs. Homicide - Chi-Town Struggle ***3/4

Nigel McGuinness vs. Roderick Strong - Death Before Dishonor IV ****

Nigel McGuinness vs. Bryan Danelson - Unified *****

Up next - Anarchy in the UK

Matches will include:

Doug Williams vs. Jimmy Rave

Briscoe Bros. vs. Matt Sydal & Davey Richards

Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong

[supersonic]

Anarchy in the UK - August 13, 2006

Doug Williams vs. Jimmy Rave

This match is made because the Embassy wanna make the UK fans miserable due to the toilet paper treatment. This was good thanks to Williams as well as the excellent crowd, who serenaded Rave with chants about him being sodomized. Williams went to work on Rave's left arm early, but once Rave got the heat, while it was really good, he neglected to sell that limb. Therefore, when Williams got the heat back and returned to working on the left arm, it meant nothing. They exchanged plenty of nice moves, ending with Williams blocking the Pedigree and finishing Rave with the Chaos Theory to make his native UK fanbase happy.

Considering the crowd heat towards Rave during this UK weekend, I wonder if Gabe Sapolsky had that in mind for Rave's next feud.

Rating: ***

Briscoe Bros. vs. Matt Sydal & Davey Richards

Like the Tag Titles match the night before, this didn't follow the hot tag, FIP formula. And despite Bryan & Vinny once again bitching about it, as well as the spectacular closing several minutes, that's totally fine. I'm not going to give this the usual detailed recap, but there was all kinds of great shit in this match. Had the referee bothered to enforce tag legalities during the eye candy third act, this would've been a genuinely great match as it was destined to be.

Richards did seem to get tired quite easily, often tagging Sydal in, and perhaps Sydal should've played the FIP; I certainly don't think the formula, while not required, would've decreased the aesthetic value of this match. The Briscoes of course got their usual high elevation double Beal toss on Sydal, thus reminding me how badly I wish he had been fed to Brock Lesnar as a rag doll during his last couple years in WWE. In the finishing stretch, there were all kinds of amazing spots, including a back elbow suicida, spike double underhook piledrivers, a gorgeous moonsault to the outside, a Steiner Screwdriver, a Yakuza kick being blocked and turned into a modified overhead belly-to-belly suplex, just to name a few. The crowd absolutely loved this and ultimately that is what matters.

This incredibly fun match concludes after Richards is taken out and then Sydal is finished off with a double-team guillotine legdrop and cutthroat driver. All four men get a standing ovation for the spectacle they just presented. Had this match gotten the tag legalities enforced, this would be a borderline classic, but as is, it's not quite in the league of Sydal & AJ Styles vs. Austin Aries & Jack Evans at Supercard of Honor, a truly great and much crisper, more logical match that had tag legality enforcement problems.

Rating: ***3/4

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong

This is Danielson's second defense of the evening, having defeated SUWA in a disappointing match, but also getting a bad cut on his head due to a chair shot. That would of course be gushing by the end of the match.

This just couldn't be the classic that their prior ROH matches were for understandable reasons. But what these men did was go out there and bust their asses to provide a condensed version of their MOTYCs earlier during Danielson's reign. Strong didn't have to go through the adversity this time of landing chops, but in terms of storytelling, I was happy to see him not play into Danielson's mind games this time when the champ slapped him at the beginning and took a powder.

The crowd was truly behind Strong, wanting to see a title change, but I can't imagine they believed that was gonna happen yet. When the crowd momentarily got quiet, Danielson revived his trolling, pointing out to Strong that the crowd had given up on him; simple yet effective, as that woke the crowd up to rally behind the challenger. On such short notice and considering Danielson's scalp gash that hadn't yet gotten the medical attention it needed, it was quite amazing to see these men go out and keep the crowd engaged to provide a quality main event.

Every strike exchange was good, every blocking of a move was good, every submission was good. But in the end, Danielson unleashed the elbows that Strong was the first to experience, the same move that had led to Danielson winning his unification match the night before too. Strong tried to shrug it off like KENTA and even he himself had done at Supercard of Honor, but it wasn't enough. Danielson's elbows were on target, way too vicious when considering the forearms he laid on Strong's face earlier, causing Strong to be knocked out once Danielson locked in the Cattle Mutilation for a second time.

Considering that their earlier matches had finished with an abrupt submission hold, the elbows to the head, and a submission countered into a rollup, I really appreciate this match having not just a different finish, but being to Danielson's first established finisher. There was no doubt that Danielson was the king of ROH, that he was clearly superior to Strong, and Strong would no longer be getting title shots during this particular reign. I am surprised Danielson doesn't seem to care about getting another shot at the Tag Titles, since this is his second victory over Strong during that particular reign, but there's great news.

The commentary mentions that Danielson will defend the title against Nigel McGuinness in a 2/3 falls match on the next event, and then title or not, will face Colt Cabana the next night. I imagine that's when Cabana was initially going to get his one and only shot against Danielson as I've mentioned before. I'm definitely interested in these matchups.

Rating: ***3/4

Not my strongest recommendation, but the top three matches were fun in their own different ways and the double main event is worth seeking; at some point the tag match has to be placed on a compilation as many SBG era fans will be much more impressed than me. I only wish we had gotten Strong vs. Williams as Strong really excels against an elite technical wrestler that targets limbs, but I can blame PWG for not booking that also when they had a triple-shot weekend a year later to do so.

Up next - The Epic Encounter II

Matches will include:

Delirious vs. Matt Sydal

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe & BJ Whitmer

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

[supersonic]

The Epic Encounter II - August 25, 2006

ROH Video Recap - August 18, 2006

Important news/footage in the above video:

Highlights of Unified and Anarchy in the UK

An exclusive post-match segment is shown via raw footage between Bryan Danielson and Colt Cabana from Chi-Town Struggle. Not sure why this wasn't just included on that DVD release, but whatever. Cabana was pissed that Danielson won via small package and said that was a cheap victory. He makes a terrible case of him being due another title shot because he beat CM Punk the year before. This had to be masterful politicking on the part of Cabana, otherwise he can fuck off. A small package pin is a clean victory. He also got his first shot at the ROH Title via a rollup pin on Samoa Joe in 2004, and in fact that is also how he beat Punk in the match he pointed out. Danielson agrees to grant one last title shot for Cabana next time ROH comes to Chicago on August 26. I suspect Danielson vs. Cabana wasn't originally planned until the August 26 event, and that Super Dragon would be getting the shot at Chi-Town Struggle, so this was a cheap angle to get to a rematch.

There will be clarification about the Pure Title on the next Video Recap.

The matches I'm reviewing are on my external hard drive, so I'm once again doing a C&P of important angles courtesy Jake Ziegler & Brad Garoon.

 

Jimmy Jacobs kicks off the show by grilling Lacey about the rumors that are all over the locker room implicating her in the Colt Cabana’s sexual exploits. Lacey blows off the question by telling Jacobs that she’s booked him in a match against Homicide to impress her and Jim Cornette. She wants him to impress Cornette to get title shots and to take out BJ Whitmer tomorrow night in Chicago. He says he’ll do whatever she wants but whiningly keeps hounding her about Cabana.

 

Colt Cabana is backstage to talk about Bryan Danielson, whom he will face for the ROH World Title (if Danielson retains tonight) tomorrow night in his own hometown. Jimmy Jacobs comes in and wants to talk about the rumors that Cabana and Lacey were a-rockin’ in the car together. Cabana sings part of Jacobs’s song and tells Jacobs that his self-esteem is too low, in a way.

Delirious vs. Matt Sydal

Fun match that ultimately built to nothing, and having just listened to Steve Austin talk about selling devastating moves, I couldn't help but notice the lack of doing so in this one. The Twin Cities crowd woke up for this one, as it was definitely an entertaining spotfest and had some good mat wrestling, but there was no real purpose to it. It wasn't insulting, and I did appreciate Sydal being protected by putting Delirious down with a Flux Capacitor for his big match the following night.

Rating: ***1/4

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe & BJ Whitmer

This is an opportunity for the challengers as a reward for getting the CZW invaders to fuck off. Another match that woke up this puro-like crowd, although I don't sense this audience was quiet for the same reasons as those in Japan would be. Aries has his ribs taped up from the botched reverse hurricanrana at Unified. He and Joe had a brief but great segment of evading each other's strikes, putting over their documented history as this was their 10th (and would turn out to be final) time facing off in ROH. Aries in the first act did a great job selling the pain of taking bumps on his ribs, but that really didn't go anywhere later in the match.

The action in this match itself was fine, but this ultimately felt like a main event on present day SmackDown! and lacked the intensity I'd expect for Joe, who had made it known he wanted to be ROH's first ever Triple Crown winner, going for the one championship that had eluded him in the company. He and Strong had nice exchanges as expected, but again lacked a remarkable pace to be anything memorable. In the end, the ref forgets that Whitmer is the legal man, counting finishes involving Joe, including when Strong put him down in the end in a nice finish. Mentioned in commentary is that Sydal & Christopher Daniels are getting a Tag Titles shot tomorrow night. Looking forward to that.

At this point, it was becoming very clear that Joe's role in ROH was similar to John Cena's role in WWE in 2014. He was a big name to move tickets and have occasional big matches, plus would always be protected, but his focus was primarily towards TNA for understandable reasons. While it didn't mean much on the surface, I appreciate him putting over Strong for not just the long-term future of the company's main event scene, but also because it was perfect for Strong immediately coming off of being eliminated from ROH Title contention.

Rating: ***1/4

 

BG says: Christopher Daniels talks about his lack of direction in ROH. He clears things up by saying that he wants to be a champion in ROH again. He and Matt Sydal are going to accomplish that by beating Aries and Strong for the tag titles. Jimmy Jacobs approaches to ask Daniels if he’s seen Lacey. Daniels has but he doesn’t want to be the bearer of bad news so he just points Jacobs in the right direction. Jacobs walks into the shower and finds Lacey and Cabana making out. He breaks down as Lacey beams about Cabana being the new member of Lacey’s Angels. Cabana doesn’t seem to be on the same page as her. Jacobs’ reaction there was priceless.

ROH Title - 2/3 Falls Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness

Another excellent match here, although I'm not gonna go into as deep of a segment-by-segment breakdown as I tend to do for this rivalry. Not because of the match going for a full 60 minutes, but this match to me was about something else. Let's be quite honest: while nobody would snub at this headlining an ROH event, this was not just the fourth ROH Title shot for McGuinness, but his third in a month. Their first match had a screwy finish, the rematch had deception leading to a small package, and the last one was a fucking war in front of an electrifying partisan UK audience. How could these men seriously be expected not just to pull out something fresh, but to do so for 60 minutes by the booker? Oh and of course, just like Strong on the show prior to this one, this is the fourth and final opportunity McGuinness has during Danielon's reign.

Now add in that this wasn't the usually rowdy audience ROH had grown accustomed to during its aesthetic golden period. The crowd was extremely quiet at times, like they were literally inside of a library. But leave it to Bryan Danielson to emotionally engage this audience in the safest manner possible. After an early powder and trying to play mind games with McGuinness, the champ put him in one headlock after another, grinding on the challenger and obviously stalling for time. Now in this case, a fan got fed up and voiced his boredom.

Danielson: "That's right. All my offense is boring. So fuck off!"

Danielson continued to taunt the audience while working on the head and neck of McGuinness via headlocks, chinlocks, and various head-scissors, even threatening them with "No way... I'm not leaving this headlock for 60 minutes!" This not only got the audience to pop for the headlocks when McGuinness thought he had escaped, but got them to WANT it minutes later, only for Danielson to tell them to fuck off again and kick the challenger in the spine. This segment right here is not only evidence against those that claim Danielson lacks main-event personality, but that he needs to utilize crazy bumps to engage an audience.

McGuinness of course would get some hope spots in at times. When he finally gained the advantage, his focus was on Danielson's left shoulder, including drilling it into ringside barricades. He was of course masterful in going after that limb, and the champ would also make sure to get his hope spots in to keep this from being tediously lopsided. McGuinness really seemed to enjoy working submission Danielson's left shoulder, including an Anaconda Vise and going for numerous Ki Locks.

When Danielson regained the advantage, he added focus on the left leg of McGuinness, including a leg whip, figure four leglock, and just drilling the knees when teasing the La Tapatia surfboard. All of this work on the neck and left leg paid off tremendously, as it allowed Danielson to capture the first fall via a Small Package. Now that's brilliant storytelling. Minutes later, McGuinness would tie it up with a lariat followed by a modified Kimura Lock on the left arm, only further reminding me of the ultimate dream match that still eludes Danielson to this day.

The rest of the match was quality stuff that emotionally peaked in the last five minutes thanks to Bobby Cruise announcing the remaining time. The audience became unglued and I was stunned that they bought into McGuinness actually standing a chance to win the title, despite that this was the Twin Cities instead of his native UK, plus Danielson had a few more big challengers lined up including KENTA, Homicide, Samoa Joe, and Colt Cabana. That is a testament to the chemistry between Danielson and McGuinness.

It was insane to see McGuinness get an adrenaline rush this time while eating Danielson's elbows to the head, digging down deep as this was his final chance during Danielson's reign. The audience totally bit on it and McGuinness managed to gain the advantage, giving the champ a taste of his elbows-to-the-head medicine. Right when it looked like Danielson may finally lose the title via knockout, the time limit expired. An insane finish to a very unappreciated match that was dripping with storytelling and saw these two men overcome some booking and crowd obstacles so gracefully. This also showed that as Danielson neared the one year anniversary mark as champion, the reign was truly starting to take a toll on him, as he was seconds away from cleanly losing the title for the second time in the month. While he had eliminated his two greatest challengers in Strong and McGuinness on back-to-back events, doing so was coming with a price and this reign wasn't getting any easier.

In the post-match, Danielson is down for awhile, either selling the elbows at the end, or legit knocked out from a spot in which he charged at McGuinness in a corner like a ram. Once he can speak, which is still a struggle for him, he puts McGuinness over and says the Pure Title still belongs to him, bringing the saga to an official end on-screen. It was time to bring that title to an end, and as much as I love this rivalry, I am glad to be getting a break from it so that I'll be overjoyed when it returns on this project.

It also turns out that Twin Cities native and PWTorch founder Wade Keller was in attendance for this event. While I’m currently unable to find the issue with his live report on his website’s archive, he’s stated on numerous occasions he was backstage at the end of this match and that once Danielson knew all marks were out of sight, he stopped selling and grinned. Considering Danielson’s concussion history, that makes this match a bit easier to revisit and enjoy.

Rating: ****1/4

Strongly recommended for the main event, which was very different from the rest of the Danielson vs. McGuinness rivalry, and I believe most will get more mileage out of the other two matches I reviewed as well. Don't let the quiet crowd ruin the main event, although they definitely were a sign of what was about to come for the company. Then again, that's what happens when the owner gets greedy and spreads both his booker and roster thin.

Up next - Gut Check

Matches will include:

Briscoe Bros. vs. Homicide & Davey Richards

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Matt Sydal & Christopher Daniels

Bryan Danielson vs. Colt Cabana

[supersonic]

Gut Check - August 26, 2006

The matches I'm reviewing are on my external hard drive, so I'm once again doing a C&P of important angles courtesy Jake Ziegler & Brad Garoon.

 

Jimmy Jacobs watches on helplessly as Colt Cabana flirts with Lacey. Lacey is excited that Cabana will bring the World title to Lacey’s Angels but Cabana wants to keep business and pleasure separate. That pisses Lacey off so she turns her attentions to Jacobs. He’d better take out BJ Whitmer once and for all. Jacobs sulks but still wants Lacey to love him so he’ll go as far as killing Whitmer. She just wants him hurt.

 

After the match Jacobs hits Whitmer’s ankle with a chair and then knocks him down with a shot to the face. He takes Whitmer’s ankle apart with the chair and then sandwiches it between a few chairs. He climbs the ropes and hits a senton onto the chair pile. That was a great visual. Dave Prazak decries Jacobs’ actions unconvincingly. Lacey is only mildly impressed and the crowd hates her. The crowd smarty and correctly blames Lacey for Jacobs’s actions.

Briscoe Bros. vs. Homicide & Davey Richards

Solid midcard match and it was nice to see the thrown-together babyfaces troll the Briscoes early to cut the ring in half on Jay. That made sense since the Briscoes are irrational characters and Homicide is more than happy to use underhanded tactics as the antihero of the company. The Briscoes eventually gained the advantage to cut the ring in half on Richards, and the action got really good when he made the hot tag to Homicide. I also appreciated the referee enforcing tag legalities - I wonder why that's so hard in every tag match. Of course, Richards eats the pin as there was no way Homicide would be jobbing unless absolutely necessary at this time.

Mentioned in commentary is the Briscoes vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji on the next show, September 15 in Connecticut! Despite the clusterfuck at Time to Man Up, I have to say... OH FUCK YES~!

Rating: ***

 

BG says: Dave Prazak catches up with Jimmy Jacobs at intermission. He tells Jacobs that Whitmer is on his way to the hospital, which pleases Jacobs. Jacobs says the power of love was strong than Whitmer’s ankle and the connection between Lacey and Cabana. He leaves the building while screaming a song.

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Matt Sydal & Christopher Daniels

Match of the night here and I'm still waiting for this to be placed on a compilation, as this would be a huge favorite in modern-day ROH. Strong and Sydal did good back-and-forth stuff early, then it got really good when Aries and Daniels were tagged in. Sydal & Daniels went to work on the ribs and abdomen of Aries, cutting the ring in half on the champs. The arsenal was quite impressive, including various abdominal stretches and Sydal doing acrobatic maneuvers on that body part, complete with Aries getting his occasional hope spots in.

Once Aries got the hot tag to Strong, the action kicked up a notch as Strong was an amazing house of fire. The teams traded aerial attacks on the outside, as Aries continued putting his body on the line with a beautiful frogsplash on Sydal for a nearfall. Daniels prevented extensive double-team work on Sydal, only to get some for his troubles. As the match was ending, Sydal & Daniels did a combo of Uranage Slam, standing moonsault, and BME on Aries but Strong broke it up, then drew Sydal to the outside.

Aries and Daniels went at it in the ring with the latter getting an advantage, but Strong took out Sydal by throwing him Gorilla Press style on the outside towards a ring post. This allowed Strong to save Aries from eating the Angel's Wings, which would have been devastating on his ribs. Aries & Strong then went to business as usual, continuing their awesome reign by putting Daniels down with a half-nelson backbreaker and 450 splash. Had everyone's selling been on par with that of Aries, this would've been really great, and like the other tag match I reviewed on this show, I was happy to see no tag legality issues.

I must also mention that everyone in storyline continues to be dipshits, still wondering who had temporarily stolen the Tag Title belts earlier in the month.

Rating: ***3/4

ROH Title - 2/3 Falls Match

Bryan Danielson vs. Colt Cabana

The Chicago crowd is hot for this, going for dueling chants between the champ (because he's fucking excellent) and the their hometown boy getting one last shot. The first several minutes is good stuff with Danielson trying to play mind games when being out-wrestled, and he loses his cool, especially after poetically losing the first fall to a sudden Colt 45 as quickly as he put down Cabana at The 100th Show. This leads to him going in and out of the ring, and we find out just how much the business can really fucking suck. Danielson goes for a shoulder charge at Cabana, who evades it, only for Danielson to spill to the outside, crashing with his right shoulder on the floor. I'm certain that made him susceptible to him going out of action in WWE many years later.

Danielson gutted through and finished the match, giving this events its title, although he really should've had this wrapped up within a half hour if they wanted to minimize the damage while delivering a quality main event. I'll analyze that aspect after going through the actual match. While this injury obviously hindered the quality of the match, his performance here was just as exceptional as Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XIV, having no choice but to sell his very fresh, real pain.

Despite the injury, they managed to have a good match with all kinds of good mat work as expected, but not as consistently explosive as would be expected under normal circumstances. Danielson targeted Cabana's left leg, but that ultimately didn't help him retain the title, as 45 minutes in Cabana was still up 1-0. At this point they went to the outside and had a great brawl, calling back to the feuds they had with Homicide. It really went all over, and I couldn't believe Danielson with that fresh injury did a springboard dive towards Cabana in the crowd. Near the end of the brawl, Cabana made sure to get his highspot in too, hitting a modified Asai Moonsault towards Danielson in the crowd.

It started to sink in for Danielson that he NEEDED to get a fall with several minutes left, otherwise his epic reign would come to a screeching halt, and doing so being down 0-1 after going the full 60 minutes would be unacceptable for a man that was being compared to the likes of Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Chris Benoit, and Jack Brisco. But no matter what, perhaps due to his injury, he just couldn't manage to keep Cabana from reaching the ropes during submissions or put him down for the 3 count. So with about 30 seconds left, he requested the ref to check the time with Bobby Cruise, then used the opportunity to kick Cabana in the nuts and tie it 1-1 via a small package, then allowed the time limit to expire to hold on. Combined with Cabana's opportunity against Danielson in FIP, this would be his fourth shot during this reign, thus putting him with Strong and Nigel McGuinness in being eliminated from ROH Title contention until Danielson gets dethroned.

Two ways of looking at this booking - back-to-back 60 minute draws, coming just three weeks after one against Samoa Joe, not only helped Danielson draw comparisons to the great iron men of the sport, but had him showing vulnerability as the champion as his reign got closer to its one year anniversary. That is perhaps extremely critical for what was to come for him on the next double shot for the company. Ultimately, I'd have preferred Danielson to just finish Cabana off in 30-40 minutes as Cabana, despite whatever he may have done on the smaller indies, didn't seem to quite click doing a 60 minute Broadway. Plus, my pick up to this point for the greatest match in ROH's history is Danielson vs. Paul London at The Epic Encounter, a 2/3 falls match that went a tad over 40 minutes, thus proving going 60-75 minutes wasn't a necessity.

On the other hand, going the distance for Cabana, even though he was screwed, solidified his position on the roster. While it didn't appear he'd ever win the top prize in the company, this series against Danielson as well as getting the last laugh on Homicide put him in the position that he could believably be placed in the main event of any ROH show and he could pass on that rub to Jimmy Jacobs, who he'd obviously just started a program with. That too is critical in making sure the roster is stacked with a variety of different top talents that can be slotted up and down the card, rather than relying too much on a select few.

For the sake of his health, and now considering the evidence I laid down for why this match would've actually been better having half or third of it condensed, Danielson should've called the audible. Going the distance was ultimately not worth it, even if the effort and intention is admirable. He also didn't need to prove that he was an iron man, and Cabana likely would've come out of this just as if not hotter losing a more intense 30-40 minute scorcher. This is a good match, but definitely my pick for the coldest 60 Minute Broadway in the company up to this point.

Rating: ***1/2

As the disc closes, an unknown voice makes the announcement about Danielson's injury, and he is opting not to get surgery. Instead, he will continue to defend the title, and it's not getting any easier. His next challenger is someone that has pinned him twice, and now Danielson has a shitty injury to deal with to boot. This is also a historic event for the company, the biggest in its history up to this point. And if there is anything that can top the London vs. Danielson masterpiece I mentioned as the best match in company history, this might very well be it, assuming the champ can dig down deep and find a way to work around an injury against one of the most relentless bastards in the business.

September 16, 2006. The company making its Manhattan Center debut in downtown New York City. Glory By Honor V Night 2. Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA for the ROH Title.

OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~!

But that is for night 2. Before I get too excited, there is another event to revisit, and its main event is nothing to overlook. And it features someone that is having a very important match several days prior to this historic weekend.

Up next - Glory By Honor V Night 1

Matches will include:

Jack Evans vs. Ricky Reyes vs. Jimmy Jacobs vs. Colt Cabana

Nigel McGuinness vs. Christopher Daniels

Austin Aries vs. Davey Richards

Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe

Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji

[supersonic]

Glory By Honor V Night 1 - September 15, 2006

ROH Video Recap - September 1, 2006 important news (unavailable online):

Footage of the Pure Title retirement as well as an update on Bryan Danielson

Glory By Honor V Night 1: Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe; Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji; Bryan Danielson vs. Austin Aries for the ROH Title

Glory By Honor V Night 2: Briscoe Bros. vs. Samoa Joe & Homicide; Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Kings of Wrestling for the Tag Titles; Nigel McGuinness vs. Naomichi Marufuji; Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA for the ROH Title; an appearance by the iconic Bruno Sammartino and ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette

Delirious also wants bigger matches

OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~!

Posted by Jimmy Jacobs on September 12, 2006

ROH Video Recap - September 13, 2006 - Part 1

Important news/footage in the above video:

Part 1

Post-match footage from the Fight of the Century main event involving Bryan Danielson, KENTA, Homicide, Samoa Joe, and the Briscoes

Naomichi Marufuji has defeated Jun Akiyama for the GHC Heavyweight Title. Therefore, for the first time in that title's history, it will be defended on American soil. Marufuji vs. McGuinness for the top prize in all of puroresu at Glory By Honor V Night 2. OH FUCK YES~!

ROH Video Recap - September 13, 2006 - Part 2 important news (unavailable online):

As has been the story of his career it seems, Bryan Danielson is taking a pass on much-needed shoulder surgery, instead choosing to be a fighting champion and prove he's the very best in the world against KENTA in the historic Manhattan Center at Glory By Honor V Night 2. That KENTA has twice pinned him means nothing. That he has torn tendons in his chest and shoulder means nothing. He will have to be beaten to near-death to not leave New York City with the top prize in indy wrestling. No mention of the scheduled defense against Aries, so it looks like he's getting the night off to be as ready as possible for one of the biggest matches in company history. I hope Cary Silkin went ahead and paid Danielson for both nights anyway as a sign of appreciation for what Danielson is doing for the company.

With the ROH Title shot Aries earned with his pin over Danielson at War of the Wire II postponed, he is now slotted against Davey Richards for Glory By Honor V Night 1. Another huge opportunity for ROH's favorite prospect. Also that night is Nigel McGuinness vs. Christopher Daniels. Can't complain about either of these matchups. I do wonder if Richards was gonna be elevated by warming up McGuinness though had Danielson not gotten hurt. Oh well.

"There is no need for hype. These are the shows of the year!" Um, bigger than the UK double-shot? Bigger than the WrestleMania 22 weekend triple-shot?! We'll see about that.

Due to last-minute issues at Sports World, this show has been moved inside of a tent. Didn't hurt Generation Next whatsoever, so this should be fine.

In their final appearance, Dunn & Marcos make quick work of a couple students, then are quickly taken care of by the Kings of Wrestling, who are sporting tag belts from Chikara, which look totally amateur.

Christopher Daniels wonders if he's getting the Nigel McGuinness that loves to go for cheap tactics like in their first match at Weekend of Champions Night 1, or the valiant version that gave it his all last month against Bryan Danielson. McGuinness retorts that it doesn't matter as he's gonna carry momentum into his historic shot at the GHC Heavyweight Title tomorrow night against Marufuji. If McGuinness looks past Daniels again like he did in their prior match due to having a more marquee opportunity the next night...

Jack Evans vs. Ricky Reyes vs. Jimmy Jacobs vs. Colt Cabana

Nothing special but that wasn't the purpose of this match, which is why for once I didn't even bother paying attention to tag legalities. Reyes was literally just a faceless body to have, while Evans at least provided entertaining acrobatics, but his most noteworthy contribution was at the beginning of the match. Before the opening though, Cabana had Bobby Cruise make the following announcement:

"We would like to clear something up. He and Lacey did not reach third base in the bushes 40 minutes ago." Great crowd reaction and Jacobs was priceless as the pathetic creep sulking in his misery. Cabana also pats Lacey in the ass for good measure and mocks Lacey's scolding towards her client.

Evans after the opening bell: "Now I don't even like this man that much, but yo, Lacey's a catch. Let's give it up for him. Colt's a pimp!" The crowd then does a brief "Colt's a pimp!" chant. Awesome.

Lacey ordered Jacobs to work together with Cabana, not caring at all when Cabana worked on Jacobs earlier. Cabana then proceeded to humiliate Jacobs, pulling the body of Reyes when teasing they'd perform a double-team move. It was really obvious that getting the pussy was causing Cabana, a man who had almost dethroned Danielson and been through a war against Homicide (and I believe him winning that feud, along with his cocky and comedic demeanor, was highly attractive to Lacey), wasn't taking this creepy Jacobs seriously, just like he hadn't done when interviewing the Notorious 187 a year earlier.

I'll go out on a limb and say that based on how Jacobs had performed in battles against BJ Whitmer and Alex Shelley, that history will repeat itself on Cabana, especially with Jacobs having a creepy crush as his sole motivation now. It's also stunning to see Cabana fail to remember that the performances of Jacobs against Generation Next had impressed him and brought them together to come to Bobby Heenan's aid at All Star Extravaganza II. In the end, Jacobs got pinned by a nice springboard somersault leg drop by Evans, who was hindered by the low ceiling of the tent from going for the 630 splash in the corner.

Post-match, Lacey scolds Jacobs for losing once again while Cabana mocks him. Cabana leaves solo to the crowd chanting his name, telling a kid in front row "We'll talk about the birds and the bees when you're older, alright." Meanwhile, Jacobs once again allows himself to be pussy-whipped, which the crowd chants, without even being granted a slight glance at it by Lacey, and holds the ropes open for her, completely defeated. Home run storyline advancement here.

Nigel McGuinness vs. Christopher Daniels

They had nice mat wrestling early in front of the divided crowd. McGuinness eventually got the advantage going after the left shoulder of Daniels. He also targeted the left knee, but didn't put in enough work for that to have any substantial effect. Working on the left shoulder though via various takedowns and submissions, including a top-wrist takedown, seated hammerlock variation, and Cobra Clutch, was really intelligent work. He also added in an overhead suplex, using the damaged left shoulder for leverage to force Daniels to rotate. That not only would make Daniels more prone to being pinned for the three-count as well as tapping out to anything causing damage to that limb, but potentially marginalize the Angel's Wings and Iconoclasm. Keep in mind the BME would already be hindered by the tent ceiling too.

When Daniels gained control after slapping the face of McGuinness, whose headstand was hindered by the low ceiling of the tent, he targeted the neck. This was equally intelligent to the strategy of McGuinness, for while it wouldn't hinder much of the former Pure Champ's offense, it would make his neck prone to more damage when delivering the Angel's Wings, Iconoclasm, and especially reverse STO into Kofi Clutch combo. Daniels was great in selling the pain in his left arm, but favored working on McGuinness with the neck vice repeatedly, while also applying a swinging neckbreaker and Crippler Crossface.

McGuinness cut Daniels off with a hammerlock takedown of course on the left arm, then they teased a striking battle with McGuinness getting the upper hand. I loved Daniels ducking a left forearm in the corner, knowing it was coming after taking many of them, only for McGuinness to use his momentum to deliver a right elbow. With Daniels dazed in the corner, McGuinness landed a running European Uppercut. But Daniels used his momentum going forward from that blow to block McGuinness with a right elbow of his own, causing McGuinness to bounce back for a rebound lariat, but that would be a nearfall. For the sake of building McGuinness up for tomorrow, I'd have ended the match there.

But the match was still really good. Daniels blocked being crotched on the top rope, sniffing out the Tower of London. Instead, he got the trademark combo of a spinal kick and driven forearm to the chest, then ate the headstand heel kick teased minutes earlier for a nearfall. Daniels still evaded the Tower of London once being crotched, hitting a palm thrust and follow-up Iconoclasm for a nearfall and still selling his left arm. I really loved the sequence that followed.

McGuinness evaded the Angel's Wings and swept the left leg of Daniels. Daniels ducked a clothesline and kneed McGuinness, causing another rebound lariat attempt. But Daniels used that momentum to deliver his reverse STO and Koji Clutch combo for a very nice false finish as McGuinness rolled over for a nearfall. Daniels planted McGuinness with a Uranage, realized the BME would be hindered, and then got school-boy pinned for a nearfall. Daniels went for a scoop slam but McGuinness got a couple more nearfalls with a small package counter and clothesline. Crowd was feeling it here.

McGuinness crotched Daniels for a lariat, but the Fallen Angel ducked and hit a springboard back elbow then went for the Arabian Press. McGuinness got the knees up, hitting the abdomen, then lifted Daniels back overhead to land ribs-first on the top rope. He then finished off Daniels with the Tower of London, this time with Daniels just on the top rope selling his ribs rather than being planted in the corner. Quality professional wrestling here with the correct guy going over for obvious reasons. Why isn't this on a compilation yet?

Rating: ***1/2

Samoa Joe cuts a backstage promo, indicating he doesn't realize both of these shows are making up a Glory By Honor V double-shot. He vows to prove Roderick Strong's pinfall over him at The Epic Encounter II was a fluke. After the producer yells cut, Joe is introduced to Takeshi Morishima. "Welcome to Ring of Honor... hope you can hack it." Has Joe not done his homework and studied anything from NOAH?

Austin Aries vs. Davey Richards

The positive in this match is that the pace picked up more as it went along with the crowd enthusiasm increasing appropriately. But this match had no story going for it and built up to nothing. With Aries still having his ribs taped up, I was really hoping that Richards targeting it about halfway in would pay off, but nope. They just went back to a masturbatory routine. On top of that, either Richards or the referee fucked up, as the referee counted three with Richards done entirely after a brainbuster, but claimed it was a nearfall. Those who have seen Kurt Angle vs. The Rock at No Way Out 2001 would be familiar with this kind of fuck-up. They repeated the same sequence to bring this disappointing match to an end. After seeing his stock elevated against KENTA, Richards took a back step here.

Rating: less than ***

At intermission, Gary Michael Cappetta interviews Lacey, Jimmy Jacobs, and Colt Cabana. He asks if the two men are teaming up, and Lacey is referring to them as "Lacey's Angels," talking about getting wins, while Cabana has a funny face when hearing that and says "I'm about getting somethin'." Lacey berates Jacobs while Cabana checks her out, and Cabana is hilarious mocking the situation, throwing in a sarcastic "jerk" for good measure. Once the interview is done, Lacey and Cabana talk about going on a date right in front of Jacobs, who is told to "hit the gym or something" by his crush. Awesome.

Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe

Strong drives the bigger Joe in the corner when they lock up at the beginning, then they exchanged working on each other's left arms, with Strong winning that little battle too, getting a hammerlock pin attempt in. He wins another lockup battle but gets taken down somewhat by a Uranage-esque trip. Joe evades a chop and goes to deliver elbows when mounting Strong but that's just a tease as Strong quickly reaches the ropes. Strong wins another lockup battle, but Joe reverses him and goes for a chop, only for Strong to evade it and start delivering his own. Strong hits more forearms then drives Joe down via a side slam, getting started on his back work.

Strong follows that up with a butterfly suplex and then clubs Joe's back, but Joe evades a dropkick and then gains control by countering a leapfrog, pancaking Strong. He follows that up with kicks to the chest, which Strong does a great job of selling. Strong attempts a cutoff but Joe prevents that with a headbutt, then goes for his signature combo of seating Strong, chopping the back, kicking the chest, and hitting a knee drop to the crowd's approval. Joe continues working on Strong with chops, giving the Tag Champ a taste of his own medicine.

Strong breaks out of a submission via a Saito Suplex, dumping Joe on his head and regaining control. He shows off his incredible strength, hitting a crossbody, forearm, enziguri, and modified butterfly suplex, throwing Joe around like a fucking rag doll. But Joe cuts him off in the corner to regain control himself, planting Strong with a Uranage Slam when going for a running forearm in the corner. Joe hits a leaping forearm then a nice Pele kick, and then gives Strong some boot scrapes, which the crowd requests to see again. Joe happily obliges, dazing Strong as he's seated in the corner.

Joe continues working on Strong, going after the head and neck to set him up for the musclebuster and Island Driver. Strong attempts a comeback with elbows to the midsection and then a follow-up half-nelson backbreaker, but Joe shrugs him off and hits a back elbow, then follows that up with a neck vice. Strong looks to make another comeback in the same fashion, but Joe elbows him when attempting a Uranage backbreaker and then just delivers a slap to knock him down for a nearfall.

Joe goes back to working on the head and neck, planting a chinlock while also having Strong in a hammerlock, trying to sabotage an elbows-to-the-midsection comeback attempt, but that doesn't work. They they have a brutal strike exchange, just absolutely beautiful like they're performing in front of a sold-out arena in Tokyo or Osaka. Strong finally regains control when he counters a running boot with a backbreaker, although he really hurts his right knee in the process. Strong keeps delivering blows on Joe, knowing he can't afford to rest.

Strong's attempt for a Boston Crab or Liontamer is evaded as Joe uses his leg strength to shrug him off. Strong cartwheels out of that and then goes after Joe to the outside with a twisting dive to the crowd's approval. Strong delivers more chops and forearms and runs the ropes, but whatever he had in mind is countered when Joe just drops him pancake-style. Rejuvenated, Joe goes for another combo he loves, that being a powerbomb and STF. He then puts Strong in a Crippler Crossface, reminding me of a dream chop battle that Strong will sadly never get to have. I must note that Joe is using two of the same submission moves (neck vice and Crippler Crossface) that Daniels used earlier in the evening, not that there's anything wrong with that.

Strong looks to regain control with a boot to the face, but that's a hope spot as Joe counters whatever he had in mind running via a powerslam nearfall. But Joe runs the ropes and gets a half-nelson backbreaker for his trouble, and his scream of pain is just unreal. I've no idea if that was legit or selling, and I'll explain once I finish reviewing this match. Strong crotches Joe and hits a chop followed by a superplex which amazes the crowd, but of course that's just a nearfall as Joe is in severe pain.

Joe attempts a cutoff but Strong evades a running boot, then plants the former ROH Champ in a Liontamer. Joe is too thick for Strong to hold on, so the Tag Champ shows off his strength once again, putting Joe in a fireman's carry and hitting a gutbuster, but making sure that his knees don't take too much impact to stall his momentum. Strong runs the ropes and gets his legs swept, causing Strong to land on his left knee, which he is kind enough to sell. Joe plants Strong in the corner but Strong sabotages him and knocks him back with strikes and a boot to the face. Strong doesn't have enough in both of his knees to hit a Tiger Driver, although I'm sure Joe dead-weighted that knowing it put him down a few weeks earlier.

Strong instead hits a modified butterfly suplex and plants Joe in the corner to go for another superplex. Joe tries to shove him off but gets a forearm and strike for his trouble. While Strong tries to find balance, Joe punches him in the gut and puts Strong in the fireman's carry, then finishes Strong with an amazing climax, that being a Super Death Valley Driver, and Joe is down in pain, either selling the back or dealing with something legit. Crowd fucking loves that finish as they should.

This was an excellent match with great cutoffs and teases, along with the expected stiff blows and strikes. What makes this match even more impressive was Joe's performance at the end, as at some point he landed badly and got sciatica. It was so bad he had to be walked to his car according to PWInsider's Mike Johnson. That was a great match under normal circumstances only more amazing due to Joe's injury; a classic between two great workers that could've easily headlined any ROH event in any era; and also kept Joe strong since he was still in ROH Title contention. Match of the night here.

Rating: ****

Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji

I really appreciated tag legalities not being forgotten in this one, and I imagine that's thanks to the big-league tandem of KENTA & Marufuji. I should mention that the former GHC Jr. Tag Champs are accompanied by Morishima, Mohammed Yone, and Takashi Sugiura. Would've loved to have see Sugiura work ROH, and speaking of guys who we're still waiting to see work for ROH, Jared David mentions in commentary that this is a reunion for KENTA & Marufuji in this dream match, as Marufuji had moved onto singles obviously as the reigning GHC Heavyweight Champion, while KENTA was regularly teaming with Katsuyori Shibata. Come on NJPW, let's get it done already.

Before the match, Marufuji has no issue following the Code of Honor with the Briscoes, but KENTA refuses after the events at Fight of the Century, which is understandable. As for the match, I mentioned that tag legalities were followed, automatically making this a work of art compared to the bullshit tag match involving Richards instead of Marufuji at Time to Man Up. While this isn't a work of art though, and even when not comparing it to an awful match, this was really good stuff that lived up to expectations. This was back-and-forth in the same vein as the classic the Briscoes had against Aries & Strong at Unified, although not quite as spectacular and lacking the off-the-charts heat of the Liverpool crowd.

While I would've liked to have seen a build to a hot tag and a breakdown of matchups, particularity the vicious physicality of Jay vs. KENTA compared to the spottier Mark vs. Marufuji, I really don't have anything negative to say about this beyond that. That really isn't even a criticism either, as I had pointed out in the Unified Tag Title classic that not every tag match has to be structured a similar way. Every move hit was crisp and it was good to see the Briscoes work against a team that had not only achieved far more significant success than them, but would gladly play just as dirty too. Of course, the match truly peaked with the puro tag finishing sequence, which was a ton of fun and booked perfectly considering where these men were being slotted the next night.

After all kinds of great signature shit that was broken up, trademark double-team moves, and evasions of trademarks, Marufuji threw Jay out. Mark evaded a G2S but would eat a Busaiku knee and then fall to KENTA's finisher anyway, keeping him as strong as possible going into one of the most important matches in company history. Marufuji didn't need to be put over, so this was perfect booking. It also showed that although the Briscoes were clearly about to be the faces of the tag division in ROH (although it could be argued they already were by this point), they had a ways to go against cream-of-the-crop tandems such as Aries & Strong and KENTA & Marufuji. (And dammit, why didn't we ever get that dream tag either?)

This wasn't blowaway, but it was crisp, had great crowd heat, well-paced, a ton of fun, and booked logically. I have no complaints about this match whatsoever and it's too bad we never got to see a rematch in front of an A-grade market like NYC or Chicago.

Rating: ***3/4

Not a show of the year contender as booker Gabe Sapolsky advertised beforehand, but strongest recommendation possible for three quality but very different matches, plus awesome storyline advancement for Lacey, Jacobs, and Cabana. The booking on this was really top-notch, both for the short-term of being a go-home show for arguably the most important event in ROH history, and also for the long term for not just the Lacey/Jacobs saga, but even the Briscoes as well. I can only imagine if Danielson vs. Aries had been able to occur as advertised too. Do NOT skip this show just because it's outshined by the following night.

And here we are, folks. Once again, I can't believe I've made it this far.

ROH debuts at the Manhattan Center, home to so many historic events prior to this point thanks to ECW and Raw. The venue that saw Ric Flair and Mr. Perfect tear the house down as the Nature Boy bowed out of the WWF to go back home. Where ECW briefly invaded the WWF in an attempted counter to the nWo's profitable invasion of WCW. Where Raw made its historic debut. Where ECW had its final PPV. Where WWE had resurrected ECW for a truly magical night. Right next door to the New Yorker Hotel, and in the shadows of the iconic Madison Square Garden.

For special appearances, there are already a number of NOAH talents, most notably the touted future face of puroresu Takeshi Morishima. But there is also the man synonymous with pro wrestling in Manhattan, that being the iconic Bruno Sammartino.

We also have the follow-up 24 hours later of Jimmy Jacobs failing to impress Lacey as she focused on making Colt Cabana shine brightest. Will Jacobs finally be able to give Lacey the one thing she's demanded of him, that being a victory?

In addition, there are FOUR matches on here that could easily headline any "normal" ROH event. And two of them are from the ashes of the climatic feud against CZW.

First, as a result of the war against CZW, Homicide & Samoa Joe form the dream team that nobody could've thought possible two years earlier, going up against the Briscoes, who are coming off of a humbling defeat. ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette is sure to have something to say as well.

Next, the Kings of Wrestling finally get their shot at the Tag Titles against Austin Aries & Roderick Strong after signing an open contract and playing mind games via temporary theft of the belts. After so many quality defenses against the Briscoes, Samoa Joe, Jay Lethal, Nigel McGuinness, CIMA, Naruki Doi, Matt Sydal, Bryan Danielson, and Christopher Daniels, can Aries & Strong continue their legacy as the greatest Tag Champs in ROH history, or will the KOW find a way to end their prestigious reign, proving themselves as the dominant tag team on the indies, and securing Chris Hero a spot on the ROH roster after being banished?

For the first time in its history, the GHC Heavyweight Title, which has been contested for in absolute wars involving Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa, Jun Akiyama, Yuji Nagata, Yoshihiro Takayama, and many others, will be defended on American soil. Can Nigel McGuinness pull off the upset and make up for his bittersweet, career-defining defeat to Bryan Danielson the month before on the other side of the Atlantic, or will Naomichi Marufuji prove that his victory over Akiyama a week earlier wasn't a fluke, and that junior heavyweights can hack it in the main events?

And last but certainly not least, Bryan Danielson must defend the ROH Title against KENTA, a man who has beaten him twice and yet to be defeated in ROH since debuting at Final Battle 2005. In addition, Danielson is going into this just three weeks after fucking up his right shoulder. Does he have what it takes to dig down deep and finally slay the juggernaut, thus securing himself alongside Joe as the only men up to this point to go a full year as ROH Champion? Or will KENTA fulfill his destiny in a company that was tailor-made for a man of his skills and in-ring style?

Is Danielson vs. KENTA, after all these years and what these men have gone on to achieve since, still the defining performance of Danielson's career? Is this the greatest ROH Title match of all-time as many tout it as being? How will this compare to Danielson's series against Strong and McGuinness? To the Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk trilogy? To Joe vs. Kobashi? To the Cage of Death? To Do Fixer vs. Blood Generation? To AJ Styles vs. Paul London?

Will Danielson vs. KENTA end up STILL being my pick for the greatest match in ROH history, eclipsing Danielson's work of perfection against London at The Epic Encounter?

And in a year that included what I already touted as the greatest overall show in ROH history, will Glory By Honor V Night 2 end up eclipsing Better Than Our Best?

I have my doubts about that last question, but there is only one way to truly answer it.

Up next - Glory By Honor V Night 2

A show this historic deserves better than to be partially revisited. For only the second time, and like before could be the last time on this project, I'm watching and reviewing the entire fucking show.Glory By Honor V Night 1 - September 15, 2006

ROH Video Recap - September 1, 2006 important news (unavailable online):

Footage of the Pure Title retirement as well as an update on Bryan Danielson

Glory By Honor V Night 1: Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe; Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji; Bryan Danielson vs. Austin Aries for the ROH Title

Glory By Honor V Night 2: Briscoe Bros. vs. Samoa Joe & Homicide; Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Kings of Wrestling for the Tag Titles; Nigel McGuinness vs. Naomichi Marufuji; Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA for the ROH Title; an appearance by the iconic Bruno Sammartino and ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette

Delirious also wants bigger matches

OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~! OH FUCK YES~!

Posted by Jimmy Jacobs on September 12, 2006

ROH Video Recap - September 13, 2006 - Part 1

Important news/footage in the above video:

Part 1

Post-match footage from the Fight of the Century main event involving Bryan Danielson, KENTA, Homicide, Samoa Joe, and the Briscoes

Naomichi Marufuji has defeated Jun Akiyama for the GHC Heavyweight Title. Therefore, for the first time in that title's history, it will be defended on American soil. Marufuji vs. McGuinness for the top prize in all of puroresu at Glory By Honor V Night 2. OH FUCK YES~!

ROH Video Recap - September 13, 2006 - Part 2 important news (unavailable online):

As has been the story of his career it seems, Bryan Danielson is taking a pass on much-needed shoulder surgery, instead choosing to be a fighting champion and prove he's the very best in the world against KENTA in the historic Manhattan Center at Glory By Honor V Night 2. That KENTA has twice pinned him means nothing. That he has torn tendons in his chest and shoulder means nothing. He will have to be beaten to near-death to not leave New York City with the top prize in indy wrestling. No mention of the scheduled defense against Aries, so it looks like he's getting the night off to be as ready as possible for one of the biggest matches in company history. I hope Cary Silkin went ahead and paid Danielson for both nights anyway as a sign of appreciation for what Danielson is doing for the company.

With the ROH Title shot Aries earned with his pin over Danielson at War of the Wire II postponed, he is now slotted against Davey Richards for Glory By Honor V Night 1. Another huge opportunity for ROH's favorite prospect. Also that night is Nigel McGuinness vs. Christopher Daniels. Can't complain about either of these matchups. I do wonder if Richards was gonna be elevated by warming up McGuinness though had Danielson not gotten hurt. Oh well.

"There is no need for hype. These are the shows of the year!" Um, bigger than the UK double-shot? Bigger than the WrestleMania 22 weekend triple-shot?! We'll see about that.

Due to last-minute issues at Sports World, this show has been moved inside of a tent. Didn't hurt Generation Next whatsoever, so this should be fine.

In their final appearance, Dunn & Marcos make quick work of a couple students, then are quickly taken care of by the Kings of Wrestling, who are sporting tag belts from Chikara, which look totally amateur.

Christopher Daniels wonders if he's getting the Nigel McGuinness that loves to go for cheap tactics like in their first match at Weekend of Champions Night 1, or the valiant version that gave it his all last month against Bryan Danielson. McGuinness retorts that it doesn't matter as he's gonna carry momentum into his historic shot at the GHC Heavyweight Title tomorrow night against Marufuji. If McGuinness looks past Daniels again like he did in their prior match due to having a more marquee opportunity the next night...

Jack Evans vs. Ricky Reyes vs. Jimmy Jacobs vs. Colt Cabana

Nothing special but that wasn't the purpose of this match, which is why for once I didn't even bother paying attention to tag legalities. Reyes was literally just a faceless body to have, while Evans at least provided entertaining acrobatics, but his most noteworthy contribution was at the beginning of the match. Before the opening though, Cabana had Bobby Cruise make the following announcement:

"We would like to clear something up. He and Lacey did not reach third base in the bushes 40 minutes ago." Great crowd reaction and Jacobs was priceless as the pathetic creep sulking in his misery. Cabana also pats Lacey in the ass for good measure and mocks Lacey's scolding towards her client.

Evans after the opening bell: "Now I don't even like this man that much, but yo, Lacey's a catch. Let's give it up for him. Colt's a pimp!" The crowd then does a brief "Colt's a pimp!" chant. Awesome.

Lacey ordered Jacobs to work together with Cabana, not caring at all when Cabana worked on Jacobs earlier. Cabana then proceeded to humiliate Jacobs, pulling the body of Reyes when teasing they'd perform a double-team move. It was really obvious that getting the pussy was causing Cabana, a man who had almost dethroned Danielson and been through a war against Homicide (and I believe him winning that feud, along with his cocky and comedic demeanor, was highly attractive to Lacey), wasn't taking this creepy Jacobs seriously, just like he hadn't done when interviewing the Notorious 187 a year earlier.

I'll go out on a limb and say that based on how Jacobs had performed in battles against BJ Whitmer and Alex Shelley, that history will repeat itself on Cabana, especially with Jacobs having a creepy crush as his sole motivation now. It's also stunning to see Cabana fail to remember that the performances of Jacobs against Generation Next had impressed him and brought them together to come to Bobby Heenan's aid at All Star Extravaganza II. In the end, Jacobs got pinned by a nice springboard somersault leg drop by Evans, who was hindered by the low ceiling of the tent from going for the 630 splash in the corner.

Post-match, Lacey scolds Jacobs for losing once again while Cabana mocks him. Cabana leaves solo to the crowd chanting his name, telling a kid in front row "We'll talk about the birds and the bees when you're older, alright." Meanwhile, Jacobs once again allows himself to be pussy-whipped, which the crowd chants, without even being granted a slight glance at it by Lacey, and holds the ropes open for her, completely defeated. Home run storyline advancement here.

Nigel McGuinness vs. Christopher Daniels

They had nice mat wrestling early in front of the divided crowd. McGuinness eventually got the advantage going after the left shoulder of Daniels. He also targeted the left knee, but didn't put in enough work for that to have any substantial effect. Working on the left shoulder though via various takedowns and submissions, including a top-wrist takedown, seated hammerlock variation, and Cobra Clutch, was really intelligent work. He also added in an overhead suplex, using the damaged left shoulder for leverage to force Daniels to rotate. That not only would make Daniels more prone to being pinned for the three-count as well as tapping out to anything causing damage to that limb, but potentially marginalize the Angel's Wings and Iconoclasm. Keep in mind the BME would already be hindered by the tent ceiling too.

When Daniels gained control after slapping the face of McGuinness, whose headstand was hindered by the low ceiling of the tent, he targeted the neck. This was equally intelligent to the strategy of McGuinness, for while it wouldn't hinder much of the former Pure Champ's offense, it would make his neck prone to more damage when delivering the Angel's Wings, Iconoclasm, and especially reverse STO into Kofi Clutch combo. Daniels was great in selling the pain in his left arm, but favored working on McGuinness with the neck vice repeatedly, while also applying a swinging neckbreaker and Crippler Crossface.

McGuinness cut Daniels off with a hammerlock takedown of course on the left arm, then they teased a striking battle with McGuinness getting the upper hand. I loved Daniels ducking a left forearm in the corner, knowing it was coming after taking many of them, only for McGuinness to use his momentum to deliver a right elbow. With Daniels dazed in the corner, McGuinness landed a running European Uppercut. But Daniels used his momentum going forward from that blow to block McGuinness with a right elbow of his own, causing McGuinness to bounce back for a rebound lariat, but that would be a nearfall. For the sake of building McGuinness up for tomorrow, I'd have ended the match there.

But the match was still really good. Daniels blocked being crotched on the top rope, sniffing out the Tower of London. Instead, he got the trademark combo of a spinal kick and driven forearm to the chest, then ate the headstand heel kick teased minutes earlier for a nearfall. Daniels still evaded the Tower of London once being crotched, hitting a palm thrust and follow-up Iconoclasm for a nearfall and still selling his left arm. I really loved the sequence that followed.

McGuinness evaded the Angel's Wings and swept the left leg of Daniels. Daniels ducked a clothesline and kneed McGuinness, causing another rebound lariat attempt. But Daniels used that momentum to deliver his reverse STO and Koji Clutch combo for a very nice false finish as McGuinness rolled over for a nearfall. Daniels planted McGuinness with a Uranage, realized the BME would be hindered, and then got school-boy pinned for a nearfall. Daniels went for a scoop slam but McGuinness got a couple more nearfalls with a small package counter and clothesline. Crowd was feeling it here.

McGuinness crotched Daniels for a lariat, but the Fallen Angel ducked and hit a springboard back elbow then went for the Arabian Press. McGuinness got the knees up, hitting the abdomen, then lifted Daniels back overhead to land ribs-first on the top rope. He then finished off Daniels with the Tower of London, this time with Daniels just on the top rope selling his ribs rather than being planted in the corner. Quality professional wrestling here with the correct guy going over for obvious reasons. Why isn't this on a compilation yet?

Rating: ***1/2

Samoa Joe cuts a backstage promo, indicating he doesn't realize both of these shows are making up a Glory By Honor V double-shot. He vows to prove Roderick Strong's pinfall over him at The Epic Encounter II was a fluke. After the producer yells cut, Joe is introduced to Takeshi Morishima. "Welcome to Ring of Honor... hope you can hack it." Has Joe not done his homework and studied anything from NOAH?

Austin Aries vs. Davey Richards

The positive in this match is that the pace picked up more as it went along with the crowd enthusiasm increasing appropriately. But this match had no story going for it and built up to nothing. With Aries still having his ribs taped up, I was really hoping that Richards targeting it about halfway in would pay off, but nope. They just went back to a masturbatory routine. On top of that, either Richards or the referee fucked up, as the referee counted three with Richards done entirely after a brainbuster, but claimed it was a nearfall. Those who have seen Kurt Angle vs. The Rock at No Way Out 2001 would be familiar with this kind of fuck-up. They repeated the same sequence to bring this disappointing match to an end. After seeing his stock elevated against KENTA, Richards took a back step here.

Rating: less than ***

At intermission, Gary Michael Cappetta interviews Lacey, Jimmy Jacobs, and Colt Cabana. He asks if the two men are teaming up, and Lacey is referring to them as "Lacey's Angels," talking about getting wins, while Cabana has a funny face when hearing that and says "I'm about getting somethin'." Lacey berates Jacobs while Cabana checks her out, and Cabana is hilarious mocking the situation, throwing in a sarcastic "jerk" for good measure. Once the interview is done, Lacey and Cabana talk about going on a date right in front of Jacobs, who is told to "hit the gym or something" by his crush. Awesome.

Roderick Strong vs. Samoa Joe

Strong drives the bigger Joe in the corner when they lock up at the beginning, then they exchanged working on each other's left arms, with Strong winning that little battle too, getting a hammerlock pin attempt in. He wins another lockup battle but gets taken down somewhat by a Uranage-esque trip. Joe evades a chop and goes to deliver elbows when mounting Strong but that's just a tease as Strong quickly reaches the ropes. Strong wins another lockup battle, but Joe reverses him and goes for a chop, only for Strong to evade it and start delivering his own. Strong hits more forearms then drives Joe down via a side slam, getting started on his back work.

Strong follows that up with a butterfly suplex and then clubs Joe's back, but Joe evades a dropkick and then gains control by countering a leapfrog, pancaking Strong. He follows that up with kicks to the chest, which Strong does a great job of selling. Strong attempts a cutoff but Joe prevents that with a headbutt, then goes for his signature combo of seating Strong, chopping the back, kicking the chest, and hitting a knee drop to the crowd's approval. Joe continues working on Strong with chops, giving the Tag Champ a taste of his own medicine.

Strong breaks out of a submission via a Saito Suplex, dumping Joe on his head and regaining control. He shows off his incredible strength, hitting a crossbody, forearm, enziguri, and modified butterfly suplex, throwing Joe around like a fucking rag doll. But Joe cuts him off in the corner to regain control himself, planting Strong with a Uranage Slam when going for a running forearm in the corner. Joe hits a leaping forearm then a nice Pele kick, and then gives Strong some boot scrapes, which the crowd requests to see again. Joe happily obliges, dazing Strong as he's seated in the corner.

Joe continues working on Strong, going after the head and neck to set him up for the musclebuster and Island Driver. Strong attempts a comeback with elbows to the midsection and then a follow-up half-nelson backbreaker, but Joe shrugs him off and hits a back elbow, then follows that up with a neck vice. Strong looks to make another comeback in the same fashion, but Joe elbows him when attempting a Uranage backbreaker and then just delivers a slap to knock him down for a nearfall.

Joe goes back to working on the head and neck, planting a chinlock while also having Strong in a hammerlock, trying to sabotage an elbows-to-the-midsection comeback attempt, but that doesn't work. They they have a brutal strike exchange, just absolutely beautiful like they're performing in front of a sold-out arena in Tokyo or Osaka. Strong finally regains control when he counters a running boot with a backbreaker, although he really hurts his right knee in the process. Strong keeps delivering blows on Joe, knowing he can't afford to rest.

Strong's attempt for a Boston Crab or Liontamer is evaded as Joe uses his leg strength to shrug him off. Strong cartwheels out of that and then goes after Joe to the outside with a twisting dive to the crowd's approval. Strong delivers more chops and forearms and runs the ropes, but whatever he had in mind is countered when Joe just drops him pancake-style. Rejuvenated, Joe goes for another combo he loves, that being a powerbomb and STF. He then puts Strong in a Crippler Crossface, reminding me of a dream chop battle that Strong will sadly never get to have. I must note that Joe is using two of the same submission moves (neck vice and Crippler Crossface) that Daniels used earlier in the evening, not that there's anything wrong with that.

Strong looks to regain control with a boot to the face, but that's a hope spot as Joe counters whatever he had in mind running via a powerslam nearfall. But Joe runs the ropes and gets a half-nelson backbreaker for his trouble, and his scream of pain is just unreal. I've no idea if that was legit or selling, and I'll explain once I finish reviewing this match. Strong crotches Joe and hits a chop followed by a superplex which amazes the crowd, but of course that's just a nearfall as Joe is in severe pain.

Joe attempts a cutoff but Strong evades a running boot, then plants the former ROH Champ in a Liontamer. Joe is too thick for Strong to hold on, so the Tag Champ shows off his strength once again, putting Joe in a fireman's carry and hitting a gutbuster, but making sure that his knees don't take too much impact to stall his momentum. Strong runs the ropes and gets his legs swept, causing Strong to land on his left knee, which he is kind enough to sell. Joe plants Strong in the corner but Strong sabotages him and knocks him back with strikes and a boot to the face. Strong doesn't have enough in both of his knees to hit a Tiger Driver, although I'm sure Joe dead-weighted that knowing it put him down a few weeks earlier.

Strong instead hits a modified butterfly suplex and plants Joe in the corner to go for another superplex. Joe tries to shove him off but gets a forearm and strike for his trouble. While Strong tries to find balance, Joe punches him in the gut and puts Strong in the fireman's carry, then finishes Strong with an amazing climax, that being a Super Death Valley Driver, and Joe is down in pain, either selling the back or dealing with something legit. Crowd fucking loves that finish as they should.

This was an excellent match with great cutoffs and teases, along with the expected stiff blows and strikes. What makes this match even more impressive was Joe's performance at the end, as at some point he landed badly and got sciatica. It was so bad he had to be walked to his car according to PWInsider's Mike Johnson. That was a great match under normal circumstances only more amazing due to Joe's injury; a classic between two great workers that could've easily headlined any ROH event in any era; and also kept Joe strong since he was still in ROH Title contention. Match of the night here.

Rating: ****

Briscoe Bros. vs. KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji

I really appreciated tag legalities not being forgotten in this one, and I imagine that's thanks to the big-league tandem of KENTA & Marufuji. I should mention that the former GHC Jr. Tag Champs are accompanied by Morishima, Mohammed Yone, and Takashi Sugiura. Would've loved to have see Sugiura work ROH, and speaking of guys who we're still waiting to see work for ROH, Jared David mentions in commentary that this is a reunion for KENTA & Marufuji in this dream match, as Marufuji had moved onto singles obviously as the reigning GHC Heavyweight Champion, while KENTA was regularly teaming with Katsuyori Shibata. Come on NJPW, let's get it done already.

Before the match, Marufuji has no issue following the Code of Honor with the Briscoes, but KENTA refuses after the events at Fight of the Century, which is understandable. As for the match, I mentioned that tag legalities were followed, automatically making this a work of art compared to the bullshit tag match involving Richards instead of Marufuji at Time to Man Up. While this isn't a work of art though, and even when not comparing it to an awful match, this was really good stuff that lived up to expectations. This was back-and-forth in the same vein as the classic the Briscoes had against Aries & Strong at Unified, although not quite as spectacular and lacking the off-the-charts heat of the Liverpool crowd.

While I would've liked to have seen a build to a hot tag and a breakdown of matchups, particularity the vicious physicality of Jay vs. KENTA compared to the spottier Mark vs. Marufuji, I really don't have anything negative to say about this beyond that. That really isn't even a criticism either, as I had pointed out in the Unified Tag Title classic that not every tag match has to be structured a similar way. Every move hit was crisp and it was good to see the Briscoes work against a team that had not only achieved far more significant success than them, but would gladly play just as dirty too. Of course, the match truly peaked with the puro tag finishing sequence, which was a ton of fun and booked perfectly considering where these men were being slotted the next night.

After all kinds of great signature shit that was broken up, trademark double-team moves, and evasions of trademarks, Marufuji threw Jay out. Mark evaded a G2S but would eat a Busaiku knee and then fall to KENTA's finisher anyway, keeping him as strong as possible going into one of the most important matches in company history. Marufuji didn't need to be put over, so this was perfect booking. It also showed that although the Briscoes were clearly about to be the faces of the tag division in ROH (although it could be argued they already were by this point), they had a ways to go against cream-of-the-crop tandems such as Aries & Strong and KENTA & Marufuji. (And dammit, why didn't we ever get that dream tag either?)

This wasn't blowaway, but it was crisp, had great crowd heat, well-paced, a ton of fun, and booked logically. I have no complaints about this match whatsoever and it's too bad we never got to see a rematch in front of an A-grade market like NYC or Chicago.

Rating: ***3/4

Not a show of the year contender as booker Gabe Sapolsky advertised beforehand, but strongest recommendation possible for three quality but very different matches, plus awesome storyline advancement for Lacey, Jacobs, and Cabana. The booking on this was really top-notch, both for the short-term of being a go-home show for arguably the most important event in ROH history, and also for the long term for not just the Lacey/Jacobs saga, but even the Briscoes as well. I can only imagine if Danielson vs. Aries had been able to occur as advertised too. Do NOT skip this show just because it's outshined by the following night.

And here we are, folks. Once again, I can't believe I've made it this far.

ROH debuts at the Manhattan Center, home to so many historic events prior to this point thanks to ECW and Raw. The venue that saw Ric Flair and Mr. Perfect tear the house down as the Nature Boy bowed out of the WWF to go back home. Where ECW briefly invaded the WWF in an attempted counter to the nWo's profitable invasion of WCW. Where Raw made its historic debut. Where ECW had its final PPV. Where WWE had resurrected ECW for a truly magical night. Right next door to the New Yorker Hotel, and in the shadows of the iconic Madison Square Garden.

For special appearances, there are already a number of NOAH talents, most notably the touted future face of puroresu Takeshi Morishima. But there is also the man synonymous with pro wrestling in Manhattan, that being the iconic Bruno Sammartino.

We also have the follow-up 24 hours later of Jimmy Jacobs failing to impress Lacey as she focused on making Colt Cabana shine brightest. Will Jacobs finally be able to give Lacey the one thing she's demanded of him, that being a victory?

In addition, there are FOUR matches on here that could easily headline any "normal" ROH event. And two of them are from the ashes of the climatic feud against CZW.

First, as a result of the war against CZW, Homicide & Samoa Joe form the dream team that nobody could've thought possible two years earlier, going up against the Briscoes, who are coming off of a humbling defeat. ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette is sure to have something to say as well.

Next, the Kings of Wrestling finally get their shot at the Tag Titles against Austin Aries & Roderick Strong after signing an open contract and playing mind games via temporary theft of the belts. After so many quality defenses against the Briscoes, Samoa Joe, Jay Lethal, Nigel McGuinness, CIMA, Naruki Doi, Matt Sydal, Bryan Danielson, and Christopher Daniels, can Aries & Strong continue their legacy as the greatest Tag Champs in ROH history, or will the KOW find a way to end their prestigious reign, proving themselves as the dominant tag team on the indies, and securing Chris Hero a spot on the ROH roster after being banished?

For the first time in its history, the GHC Heavyweight Title, which has been contested for in absolute wars involving Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa, Jun Akiyama, Yuji Nagata, Yoshihiro Takayama, and many others, will be defended on American soil. Can Nigel McGuinness pull off the upset and make up for his bittersweet, career-defining defeat to Bryan Danielson the month before on the other side of the Atlantic, or will Naomichi Marufuji prove that his victory over Akiyama a week earlier wasn't a fluke, and that junior heavyweights can hack it in the main events?

And last but certainly not least, Bryan Danielson must defend the ROH Title against KENTA, a man who has beaten him twice and yet to be defeated in ROH since debuting at Final Battle 2005. In addition, Danielson is going into this just three weeks after fucking up his right shoulder. Does he have what it takes to dig down deep and finally slay the juggernaut, thus securing himself alongside Joe as the only men up to this point to go a full year as ROH Champion? Or will KENTA fulfill his destiny in a company that was tailor-made for a man of his skills and in-ring style?

Is Danielson vs. KENTA, after all these years and what these men have gone on to achieve since, still the defining performance of Danielson's career? Is this the greatest ROH Title match of all-time as many tout it as being? How will this compare to Danielson's series against Strong and McGuinness? To the Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk trilogy? To Joe vs. Kobashi? To the Cage of Death? To Do Fixer vs. Blood Generation? To AJ Styles vs. Paul London?

Will Danielson vs. KENTA end up STILL being my pick for the greatest match in ROH history, eclipsing Danielson's work of perfection against London at The Epic Encounter?

And in a year that included what I already touted as the greatest overall show in ROH history, will Glory By Honor V Night 2 end up eclipsing Better Than Our Best?

I have my doubts about that last question, but there is only one way to truly answer it.

Up next - Glory By Honor V Night 2

A show this historic deserves better than to be partially revisited. For only the second time, and like before could be the last time on this project, I'm watching and reviewing the entire fucking show.

[supersonic]

Glory By Honor V Night 2 - September 16, 2006

ROH Champion Bryan Danielson is on the corner of W 34th St and 8th Ave, across the street from Madison Square Garden. With the iconic venue in the background, the champ mentions it is where Bruno Sammartino, who is in attendance tonight, made his legacy. "This place is where legends are made." He walks northwest on W 34th St and finally stops after about 40 seconds, right across the street from the Manhattan Center. He says KENTA will need to kill him to dethrone him, and that "this is the building where I make MY legacy."

That promo is immediately followed by a sweet video package highlighting the devastation that both participants in tonight's main event have laid upon the roster, ending with both of KENTA's successful Go to Sleeps that have put Danielson away followed by a zoom-in of the ROH Title belt. Simple and oh so effective. It is not difficult to book both a credible challenger and champion, folks.

Jack Evans vs. Davey Richards

This match is a result of Richards defeating Evans in Generation Next's last match together at Generation Now. Super fun opener here. There were times when Evans seemed to catch Richards by surprise and frustrate him, which made sense due to Evans having more experience plus a unique acrobatic ability. But when Evans took time to hype himself and the crowd up after a somersault elbow, Richards gained control by kicking him off the apron.

Richards followed that up by tossing Evans into a guard rail. Evans teases a hope spot when he knees Richards in the face during a vertical suplex attempt, but Richards cuts that off with a gut-buster and then following that up by planting the abdomen of Evans on the top rope. He hits a backbreaker on Evans for a nearfall, trying to take away the acrobats and keep him grounded. But Evans still manages to make quite the easy comeback during a sleeper, elbowing the more muscular Richards and hitting a Quebrada 360 degree elbow.

With control regained by Evans, Richards goes to the outside to get his shit together, but Evans makes him pay for that and has the crowd going apeshit due to an awesome corkscrew Sasuke Special. Back in the ring, Evans goes for the 630 splash but takes too long, so Richards goes up to cut him off. However, Evans wins a striking battle up there and goes for the 630 splash, only to eat the knees of Richards. With Richards in control now, he hits a running forearm and running powerslam for a nearfall, then locks in the Stretch Muffler, but Evans unsurprisingly reaches the ropes, having proven himself to have an inhuman pain threshold.

Richards goes for a running power bomb which is countered with a hurricanrana by Evans, who is unable to to hook the legs for a pin due to being exhausted. This allows Richards to kick out and then hit Kawada kicks, but Evans ducks a roundhouse and hits his own kicks, only to eat a kick to the gut, powerbomb, and another Stretch Muffler, having no choice to tap out clean in the middle of the ring. Give this the same focus with double the time and I believe this could've been one of the finest openers in company history.

Rating: ***

Nigel McGuinness has a backstage promo, indicating how quick life can be, and that it is truly defined by rare moments that can some so quickly. Tonight's match for the GHC Heavyweight Title against Naomichi Marufuji embodies that.

ROH Shows Appreciation For Bruno Sammartino

Many of ROH's stars are at ringside, as are NOAH stars Takashi Sugiura, Mohammed Yone, and Takeshi Morishima. Sammartino is given an absolutely wonderful ovation, complete with a "Welcome home!" chant from the Manhattan audience. He takes the time to put over the ROH product for its traditional approach to pro wrestling, although he's a bit ignorant that the company gets just as violent as WWE. He doesn't do anything to shit on those who enjoy the WWE product, just that he appreciates ROH and its roster.

Sammartino leaves with the wrestlers following him through the entrance aisle, and Morishima and Samoa Joe almost bump into each other. They motion for one another to go and bump into each other, then they get in the ring and have a pull-apart brawl that has this crowd going fucking apeshit. They're being held back by the wrestlers as the crowd chants for Joe and begs for the fight to happen. This is just as fantastic as the pull-apart brawl between John Cena and Brock Lesnar in 2012. I'm looking forward to Joe vs. Morishima after this.

Delirious vs. Adam Pearce

Easily the worst match of the night and not due to the performance of either man. It is all due to the booking that fucking reeked of the horrid era to come in 2011 and 2012, and this keeps this event as a whole from the gold standard set by Better Than Our Best despite having higher peaks than that show.

The match itself was fine and nothing special, just standard stuff. But Shane Hagadorn interfered and hit Delirious with brass knuckles, allowing Pearce to get a cheap finish that nobody could have possibly cared about. Pearce then announced Hagadorn as his man-servant, a direction with as much game-changing impact and entertainment value as Horace Hogan colliding with Ed Leslie on a 1998 episode of Nitro.

Of course, I know the reason for this booking. Booker Gabe Sapolsky had plans for Delirious coming very soon to recover from this, while Pearce was getting groomed for the eventual job to Homicide before the end of the year. That's fine for a B-show, but not this event, in this venue, in front of this Manhattan audience, especially since it was incredibly obvious the next Manhattan event wouldn't have Homicide vs. Pearce on the card anyway. This show deserved better, these wrestlers deserved better, and most importantly, the fans who paid their hard-earned money in attendance deserved better.

Jimmy Jacobs vs. Colt Cabana vs. Christopher Daniels

Like the match night before involving Jacobs and Cabana, this won't get a special rating because this match's purpose was to be just awesome storyline advancement. Daniels was literally just a body in this one, making him a waste on this particular card, but I'll go into further detail on that in a moment. In this one, Cabana once again fooled Jacobs into believing they'd work together at Lacey's request. He also had two great back-to-back comedy spots, "accidentally" putting his hands on her chest and then taking a phantom bump to look up her skirt.

Jacobs was out for a bit, but then kicked Cabana in the nuts from behind, following that up with a Shiranui on Cabana for his first victory in quite some time. But that would be for naught, as Lacey cares more about Cabana being unavailable for plans later in the evening than Jacobs winning, which confuses him. She absolutely refuses to congratulate and celebrate with Jacobs, berating him about it.

So now this is the end of the undercard. Before going into the quadruple main event, here's what the undercard lineup should've been to truly make this the greatest event of all-time for ROH:

Davey Richards vs. Christopher Daniels

Jack Evans vs. Delirious

Jimmy Jacobs vs. Colt Cabana vs. Adam Pearce

Richards vs. Daniels would have the potential to be the greatest opener in company history, with Daniels being the ring general and thus helping Richards learn while guiding him to the best singles match of his career up to that point. Richards could potentially go over for a huge moment to kick off the show, and Daniels may even play a subtle heel, questioning if the younger, greener Richards was truly the future of the company, and thus being cocky would cost him.

Evans vs. Delirious would just be all-out fun, with all kinds of great back-and-forth banter to pop the crowd as proven during their Comedy Match of the Decade also involving Samoa Joe and Ebetaroh at The Final Showdown. This match brings something different to follow the workrate-heavy opener and Delirious could use the win to build him up for what was around the corner for him. Of course, these two would be able to pack in enough action and focus to hold its own as a wrestling match too.

Jacobs vs. Cabana vs. Pearce is a perfect matchup for what was planned. Pearce is the perfect generic body to allow for angle advancement, and could've possibly added to the dynamic involving Lacey, Jacobs, and Cabana. Imagine him telling Lacey to fuck off and thus pissing off Jacobs. Imagine him completely shitting on Jacobs, being an emotional bully but also showing ass to him. Don't forget about the history outside of ROH between Cabana and Pearce as well that would play into this. Hagadorn could still get involved too and take a post-match bump to give Cabana back some heat after jobbing to Jacobs.

This would've saved us that tedious booking at the end of Delirious vs. Pearce, given Delirious and Daniels something substantial to do, been a great opportunity for Richards to go under the learning tree and get put over very strongly, allowed Evans to show off both his personality and acrobatics, and provided three different undercard matches, all of them highly entertaining, yet being very unique from another.

And now, the quadruple main event, starting with the pre-intermission main event.

ROH Commissioner Jim Cornette comes to the ring with the Briscoes and cuts a perfect promo for this Manhattan audience, although a sign of something tedious to come for ROH is unfortunately mentioned here. After paying lip service that he really has no issue with anyone in ROH or attendance except for Homicide, he then does a 180 and says anyone not supporting him against Homicide is now an enemy of his. He also cuts a fantastic heel promo on NYC, listing all kinds of reasons he hates that city, and then chastises the audience for loving those characteristics of their city. Hearing him bitch about trash piling on the streets though, I was wondering if he was confusing NYC with Detroit. (Full disclosure: I say that based on the Motor City's reputation, as I've yet to visit that market.)

He then makes a reference to LAX, specifically Konnan, and the discrimination card that they've been playing, and cuts a borderline racist promo telling immigrants to fuck off from America, then puts over his hillbilly region in the Smoky Mountains that he loves so much. Many don't care to see this type of card played in pro wrestling but this is ultimately, as Danielson mentioned at the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, a work of fiction. What makes this dynamic work here is that Cornette, although many of his points were irrational, was 100% correct in shitting on LAX for playing the discrimination card. Cornette is also a MUCH better fit for delivering this type of promo based on his home region, his accent, and his history in running a wrestling federation than Triple H was during that God-awful shoehorned direction during his feud against Booker T. in 2003.

But this talking segment ultimately serves a purpose beyond generating great heat. Homicide is being granted his ROH Title shot when the company returns to the Manhattan Center on December 23 for Final Battle 2006... OH FUCK YES~! BUT, Homicide & Samoa Joe must be victorious in their match against the Briscoes tonight, otherwise Homicide's shot is being held off until 2007, thus fucking him out of his goal to be champion before the end of 2006, and having to hold his word that he would thus leave the company.

Briscoe Bros. vs. Samoa Joe & Homicide

They brawl in-ring to kick off the match to a great pop, but the Briscoes get taken to the outside. So the dream team then do stereo dives of their own, Homicide with a tope con hilo and Joe with an elbow suicida, to an absolutely outstanding pop. Even with a flawed undercard, this is already giving me my money's worth.

The match of course calms down to a standard tag and I was happy to see tag legalities being remembered at all times, no matter how crazy this match got. Unfortunately, Joe couldn't give a consistent "big match" performance that would be expected due to the sciatica triggered the night before, as he had to take careful bumps and got fatigued more quickly than usual. This pretty much killed any chance of building up to a white-hot tag that this match on this show in front of this audience really should've had, but of course there's no guarantee an ROH tag would be structured that way anyway.

All the action was really good in this one, with it of course getting crazy in the third act due to all the awesome cut-offs and blows. But one of the scariest bumps I've ever seen takes place, even more so all these years later in light of Mitsuharu Misawa's death. With Mark temporarily taken out due to an awesome lariat from Joe, Jay takes a hideous bump due to a combined clothesline and back-drop suplex that saw him land on nothing but his scalp. Thankfully Jay didn't kick out, instead Mark breaking the count.

Jay got a brief adrenaline rush and picked up Homicide for a springboard Doomsday Device, only for Joe to cut Mark off and take him out via Ole Ole Kicks on the outside. In the ring, Jay dropped Homicide with a release German Suplex, but can't follow up right away due to the head-drop moments earlier. This allows Homicide to block an attempted double underhook piledriver and evade the military press Death Valley Driver, finishing Jay off with an enziguri and Kudo Driver, which was perfect after that scary bump Jay had just taken.

That finish actually paid off the neck damage on Jay from the scary bump. He couldn't follow up right away after the German Suplex and didn't have enough strength in his central nervous system to overcome Homicide dead-weighting his finisher, then had gas poured on the figurative fire with that Kudo Driver. Loved the crazy structure of this match and it's a shame Joe went into this so freshly injured.

Post-match, Cornette vows to make Homicide's time up to Final Battle 2006 a living hell. Whatever, this segment was one of the highlights of such a disappointing feud.

Rating: ***1/2

At intermission, Gary Michael Cappetta interviews Lacey & Cabana, the latter still nursing his genitals. Jacobs interrupts to brag about his victory, but Lacey doesn't give a shit whatsoever. She demands Jacobs apologize to Cabana, and the request is begrudgingly obliged. Cabana asks Lacey to give him a glorified handjob. Awesome.

KENTA is shown preparing for tonight's main event. Sammartino puts over Danielson and Naomichi Marufuji as champs, although he's ignorant about the GHC Heavyweight Title as well as Marufuji himself. I guess it's the thought that counts.

Tag Titles Match

Austin Aries & Roderick Strong vs. Kings of Wrestling

This was a good match for the historic reign of Aries & Strong to go out on. With his ribs still taped, Aries found himself playing the Ricky Morton role so that a hot tag will be built for Strong to be a house of hire. That's how this match would best be structured under normal circumstances, but the injury only made it even more logical. KOW also got great heat in this one and the reaction was outstanding when the title change took place. That's what happens when titles fucking matter and are elevated by such great performers.

This match had its flaws though. It's very obvious why Dave Meltzer was unimpressed with KOW in this match, as they got way too cute doing double-team choreographic moves. I'd have had them channel the Shield or Generation Next, just throwing beautiful bombs and matching, if not exceeding, the pace of Aries & Strong, not only to make this match hotter and crisper, but give them some real credibility to follow such an outstanding reign.

KOW aren't the only ones to blame for this match to not meet its potential of being an all-time tag classic in company history. Aries did a fantastic job of selling while playing the FIP, but failed to deliver enough hope spots to keep the crowd fully charged emotionally. The hot tag to Strong still achieved its crowd-popping goal especially because Strong is a natural at the house of fire act, but the work before that didn't maximize what it could've been.

Like I said, have KOW beat Aries & Strong at their own game. They can still cheat, use the briefcase Castagnoli brought to ringside (and hopefully he gets a certain briefcase in the big leagues at some point) and troll the audience, but give them some real credibility to make this match the white-hot classic it should've been. Booking their historic title win this way also sends a message loud and clear to the ROHbot zealots that thumbed their noses at anybody with ties to CZW, that not only would they truly deserve to be a part of ROH, but are worthy of the tops spots in the company. It's no wonder the way KOW worked their matches that they managed to have such a disappointing reign following Aries & Strong, when it had the potential to be somewhat of a diet version of CM Punk's ROH Title reign. Still a good match, but definitely a flawed one.

Rating: ***1/2

A pre-taped BJ Whitmer promo airs, still resting his damaged ankle, and vows once healed he's coming for Jimmy Jacobs. OH FUCK YES~!

GHC Heavyweight Title Match

Naomichi Marufuji vs. Nigel McGuinness

The champ is accompanied by Yone, Sugiura, and Morishima. Bobby Cruise reads the pre-match GHC declaration, and this also got the standard GHC sound bite before both participant's entrances as well. THIS is how to present a thrown-together dream match as a major contest.

They have some quality mat wrestling to start, and McGuinness makes it obvious that he'll be targeting Marufuji's left arm and shoulder. With the early advantage, he cuts off Marufuji during an attempted control change with a headlock then goes back to work on Marufuji's left arm and shoulder. After Marufuji reaches the ropes, they exchange forearms and Marufuji gets control with a spin kick. McGuinness flips him over during a running attack, so he lands on the apron and gains the major advantage when delivering a dragon screw leg whip to the former Pure Champ's left leg on the middle rope.

Marufuji did a great job following up on that, using the middle rope in the corner to bring more pain to the left knee of McGuinness and even kicked the rope when letting go of a submission. McGuinness looks to take an ugly bump on his head when he's lifted from the corner and to the middle of the ring. Marufuji continues stomping the left leg, then drives it on the nearby ring post. Back in the ring, Marufuji plants a figure four leg lock on McGuinness and baits him into a slap exchange, as Marufuji drives back to give more impact on the submission. McGuinness reaches the ropes and goes to the outside, doing a great job of selling. Marufuji gives him a baseball slide when he steps up on the apron, then drives his body weight on the left knee some more when draping that limb on the bottom rope.

McGuinness finally gets a break when he evades a charging Marufuji in the corner, causing the champ's left shoulder to collide with the ring post. Marufuji does a great job selling that shoulder and McGuinness continues selling his own left knee when going to work on Marufuji on the outside, driving the champ's left shoulder into a guard rail. Back in the ring, McGuinness keeps the focus on Marufuji's left shoulder, including an overhead knuckle lock suplex. He then gives Marufuji a top wrist lock takedown and forces some near falls to exhaust the champ.

McGuinness maintains the focus, giving Marufuji a hammerlock takedown and then following up with a hammerlock submission that stretched both shoulders. Marufuji rolls out and looks to get a leg submission on McGuinness, only to get kicked in the face. McGuinness is selling the left leg, as his submission work required him to put leverage on it. With control maintained, he puts a Cobra Clutch on Marufuji and delivers a short-armed lariat, then goes back to the Cobra Clutch, staying zeroed in on Marufuji's left shoulder.

Marufuji ducks another short-armed lariat though, which McGuinness should've known would happen. Marufji regains control when he ducks another lariat and dropkicks the left knee of McGuinness, then follows that up with a running forearm for a nearfall, but still sells his left arm and shoulder. He hits a running back elbow in the corner, but McGuinness elbows out of a waist-lock, only to get cut off by a clothesline by the champ. McGuinness goes for a comeback with double-thrusts and another lariat for a nearfall.

Marufuji fails to scout the headstand mule kick, but still manages to kick out. McGuinness crotches him on the top rope but the champ ducks the follow-up lariat. However, right as he's about make a comeback, McGuinness snaps the top rope in his eyes and goes onto the apron too, only to get super-kicked. Marufuji digs down deep and tells his left shoulder pain to fuck off, giving McGuinness a Shiranui to the floor. This wouldn't be a GHC Heavyweight Title match without at least one stupid bump to pop the audience.

That results in a great false finish as McGuinness poetically beats the 20 count but has to extend a bit more energy kicking out afterward. Marufuji sits McGuinness on the top rope but is fought off and gets crotched again on the top rope, this time eating the trademark lariat from the challenger. This results in an awesome nearfall that had the crowd buying a potential title change, and the crowd is now having dueling chants. McGuinness follows up with a Tower of London, but Marufuji finds another adrenaline rush in himself to land a Shiranui using his right shoulder. Both men are immediately down of course, selling each other's finishers.

They both get an adrenaline rush when back up and exchange strikes. McGuinness wins that battle, getting the champ in the corner and hits a back elbow followed by a running uppercut. Marufuji elbows him to try cutting off his momentum, only to eat a perfectly-timed rebound lariat for another outstanding nearfall, resulting in a well-deserved "This is awesome!" chant. McGuinness then gives Marufuji a Tower of London on the apron for another great pop, but of course both men are down extensively on the outside, thus preventing him from going for a pinfall in the ring until they finally both get back in around the count of 15.

They exchange slaps and then superkicks, but Marufuji wins that battle with a roundhouse and superkick to McGuinness. Crowd is going crazy at this point. That's a nearfall though of course and they're getting a standing ovation. McGuinness goes for the headstand mule kick this time, but Marufuji knows it and thus hits another superkick on him as soon as he gets in headstand position. This allows Marufuji to hit a Van Terminator for yet another great pop. Marufuji then finishes McGuinness off with a Super Shiranui, and of course gets a standing ovation.

That was an absolutely awesome match that was more than worthy of the GHC Heavyweight Title, in fact adding prestige to it. This had great submission work, tremendous cut offs, fantastic nearfalls, an outstanding audience, and built beautifully to its climatic finish, resulting in both men coming out as total studs. I would've just liked to have seen the submission work pay off a bit more in the crazy finishing stretch, but this is definitely a classic that stands the test of time.

Rating: ****1/4

ROH Title Match

Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA

For the first time on this project, I revisited this match twice. I'll detail why when I get to what took me out of this match at first.

Danielson of course has his right shoulder taped due to the injury sustained at Gut Check. The demeanor of everyone including the audience is giving off the vibe that this could headline a major PPV event. Of course, there are dueling chants before they even lay hands on each other.

KENTA wins a lockup early, putting Danielson against the ropes, but the champ ducks a lethal kick. They have another lockup with KENTA winning once again, and he decides to slap Danielson. Moments later, Danielson returns the favor but uses his left hand to protect his injury. They then have a knuckle lock that ends with Danielson countering a waist-lock into an arm submission, and the champ knees the challenger in the face when reaching the ropes. That is obviously being done not just to set KENTA up for Danielson's various submissions, but as a means to marginalize any possible Super Falcon Arrows or the very move that had put Danielson away twice in NYC, that being the G2S.

KENTA gains an advantage and kicks Danielson's right shoulder, causing the champ to take a powder as he sells the pain. KENTA patiently waits, not giving the champ any chance of cheap-shotting him on the outside. Back in the ring, KENTA kicks Danielson's right shoulder again, but the champ striikes him with slaps, a headbutt, knee to the face, snapmare, and kick to the spine. That just pisses KENTA off, who gives Danielson a receipt with his own snapmare and spinal kick. Danielson continues selling his right shoulder which KENTA goes after again, but the champ cuts off the challenger with a headlock and takes him down. KENTA counters that with a head-scissors, but the champ of course manages to get out of that and lock on a Regal Stretch style Camel Clutch, pulling the challenger back down and working the neck, but the challenger of course reaches the ropes.

Danielson goes back to the left arm but that's moot as KENTA cuts him off with a couple kicks including one to the right shoulder, then KENTA goes to the right arm with an arm twist. Danielson tosses him off and takes him to the outside via a dropkick, then slingshots himself and misses the challenger. Danielson pays for that dearly as KENTA uses that opportunity to kick Danielson's right shoulder a few more times, then throws him shoulder-first into the guardrail, much like McGuinness in the prior match. KENTA stays focused, stomping that right shoulder before throwing the champ back in the ring.

KENTA wraps Danielson's right arm around the top rope a couple times, then just continues kicking it and Danielson's yelps of pain are second-to-none. KENTA works more submissions on it and Danielson's attempts to get out of that work are quite futile, including trying to roll KENTA over for a flash pin. KENTA drops his knees on Danelson's right arm and even grinds them on that shoulder joint too, just absolutely relentless as he should be, for this is for the top prize in all of independent wrestling. KENTA then gets a bit too cocky though, sling-shotting himself and disrespectfully planting the sole of his boot on Danielson's scalp, then posing.

That only pisses Danielson off of course, who gets up and takes advantage of KENTA wasting time posing and takes the challenger down. But that doesn't work out for Danielson, as he finds himself in a body-scissors Kimura Lock on the right arm, hopefully something we see a certain Beast do to him in the future. Danielson gets some adrenaline and slaps KENTA and also delivers a head-butt, then goes for a Sunset Flip in the middle of the ring, but his comeback fails as he couldn't get KENTA out of standing position due to his shoulder injury, and the challenger bitch-slaps him to a great pop. KENTA goes back to work on Danielson's right arm and shoulder. Danielson tries to counter with a mounted choke but KENTA rolls him back down in position, then follows up with more kicks to that right shoulder.

Danielson ducks a Yakuza kick and knees KENTA in the gut, then hits a Cravate suplex to finally gain some real control as the crowd engages in dueling chants. Danielson delivers kicks of his own, including a spin kick, showing off his arsenal despite his shoulder injury. He looks to pin KENTA but referee Todd Sincalir realizes it's a choke attempt and refuses to count the pin, so Danielson just rubs KENTA's eyes across the rope. Danielson goes for the Mexican Surfboard, but his right shoulder prevents him from lifting KENTA all the way up. The crowd says he fucked up, so he says he never fucks up and drives KENTA's knees on the mat. Awesome.

Danielson then goes to work on KENTA's left knee, hoping to take away the Super Falcon Arrow and especially the G2S. Keep in mind also that KENTA had been using his left leg to attack Danielson's injured shoulder, showing the brilliance of the champ's strategy here. With the referee's back to him, he uses the ropes for leverage which KENTA attempts to point out. KENTA eventually rolls Danielson over and gets a rope break, and Danelson conveniently says he can't get his legs unwrapped from the submission, smirking ever so smugly. Danielson slingshots KENTA's throat on the bottom rope, then takes in the crowd's adulation to give him some adrenaline.

After some nice counters, KENTA blocks a boot and kicks Danielon's right hamstring to regain control, but can't follow up immediately for a pinfall or submission work due to the damage he had faced. But Danielson's work on the left knee would be all for naught, as KENTA went back to work delivering left kicks to Danielson's injured shoulder, then hits a spring missile dropkick for a nearfall. Now at first, that could be interpreted as just blatant no-selling. But after discussing this with former ROH reviewer Aaron Glazer, a man that had a huge influence on me, it was pointed out that KENTA would been booked like a Terminator or Undertaker, in fact a juggernaut as I've often described his run in ROH. This showed that Danielson, in the face of injury adversity and knowing he'd lost twice to KENTA, was gonna have to rely on something besides his state-of-the-art submission wrestling if he wanted to be the one to slay the juggernaut and hold on to the top prize in the company. That all that submission work on KENTA's left leg had only managed to fatigue KENTA for about a minute had to be of major concern to the champ as he had been trying to protect his right shoulder and take away the challenger's finishers.

Danelson blocks a fisherman's suplex and arm submission, so he eats a butterfly suplex and cross arm-breaker on the right shoulder, but reaches the ropes. His selling is truly exceptional here as KENTA stomped on that limb. Danielson manages to regain control and gets a half-crab on KENTA's left leg, hoping that strategy will pay off. KENTA reaches the ropes and the champ delays letting go, so KENTA hits him with an enziguri. KENTA makes his first attempt at the G2S but the champ escapes and hits a couple strikes, then places the challenger on the top rope. He slaps KENTA to keep him dazed, then plants the challenger with a Superplex, causing further pain to his own injured shoulder and preventing himself from going for the pinfall right away.

KENTA gets placed in the Crossface Chickenwing but reaches the ropes. Both men are exhausted and unable to go right to work on each other, but Danielson gets a scoop slam on him. The future HOFer goes for a diving headbutt only to eat KENTA's boots. KENTA goes for a springboard move but gets a receipt, this one being a dropkick to the gut, and both men are down in pain and exhaustion again. When they get back up, they exchange strikes, and Danielson has to use his left hand. Danielson hits a few head-butts, while KENTA goes for kicks to the face. Danielson's head-butts win, allowing him to drop KENTA with a release German Suplex. KENTA gets an adrenaline rush and hits a release fisherman's suplex that had been teased a few minutes earlier. Danielson gets up quickly to hit a desperate roaring forearm, but KENTA gets one more adrenaline rush to drop the champ with a discus lariat, and both men are down and getting a well-deserved standing ovation.

When they get up, KENTA clotheslines Danielson out of the ring and also falls out himself. Danielson reverses an Irish Whip but KENTA stops himself from hitting the guardrail. He charges at Danielson, and the champ uses the challenger's momentum to hit a release overhead belly-to-bully suplex on the floor. Danielson follows up with a baseball slide, sending KENTA into the front row. I am stunned to see, no matter how important this match is for the company, that Danielson once again went for a top rope dive towards KENTA when considering his injury. That couldn't have been fun at all, but the audience did go crazy for it.

KENTA gets back in and eats a shotgun missile dropkick, and the champ still kips up despite his injury. Danielson takes a major risk, confident he has control, and goes for a roaring forearm with his right arm. That investment doesn't pay off, as KENTA counters it with a Fujiwara Arm Bar on that right shoulder, resulting in an excellent false finish. In the corner, Danielson cuts off KENTA with a boot and goes for a top rope elbow strike, but KENTA counters that with an Ace Crusher and they have another excellent Fujiwara Arm Bar false finish on that right shoulder.

KENTA goes for a Tiger Suplex, but Danielson uses his stronger left shoulder to block it. KENTA gives him strikes and goes for a spinning back fist, but Danielson catches his arm and plants him with a gorgeous Regalplex for another very nice false finish. With both men exhausted, the crowd is getting antsy with dueling chants and the champ rips the tape off his right shoulder. He plants KENTA on the top rope and his a super backdrop suplex, willing to punish his right shoulder more. He goes for a pin, and he seems like he knew KENTA would roll over to kick out, as Danielson brilliantly uses KENTA's position to put him in a Cattle Mutilation for yet another excellent false finish. I'm really impressed that while earlier in the match they would roll out and counter each's submissions, at this point they're going for rope breaks, truly selling the exhaustion and putting over how devastating their finish attempts are.

Danielson follows that up with a front chancery suplex and goes for the diving headbutt. KENTA sees him up there and finds the energy to take advantage, cutting Danielson off and going for the Super Falcon Arrow. Danielson blocks it and pancakes KENTA then goes for an aerial move, only to be caught in the fireman's carry position. Crowd is fucking APESHIT at this point as they know what's coming. KENTA hits the G2S to a phenomenal pop. One, two...

AND DANIELSON GETS HIS LEG ON THE BOTTOM ROPE!!! That results in one of the greatest reactions in company history, with the crowd chanting for the company and these men have got them in the palms of their hands now.

KENTA kicks at Danielson's right shoulder again and hits a Busaiku knee on the back. He knee strikes a draped Danielson on the bottom rope and goes for another Busaiku knee, only for Danielson to counter that with an O'Connor Roll for yet another phenomenal false finish. The atmosphere for this is just totally unreal.

Danielson runs the ropes and KENTA capitalizes with a big boot, then motions he's going for another G2S. But Danielson counters with a crucifix pin for a nearfall, then gets ferocious on KENTA's head with elbow strikes. KENTA reacts in a manner that I see Brock Lesnar doing should he ever eat Danielson's elbows too, feeding off the crowd and trying to ignore the painful strikes for an adrenaline rush, but the champ goes for a Cattle Mutilation. KENTA still has enough awareness to roll Danielson over for another phenomenal false finish.

Danielson keeps the arms hooked and hits a Tiger Suplex for a false finish, then rolls KENTA over for a Cattle Mutilation again. KENTA's feet almost reach the ropes, and Danielson has the ring presence to let go and strike KENTA's head with more elbows. He plants the exhausted KENTA with the Cattle Mutilation yet again, and KENTA is unable to move his body. Reality finally sets in for KENTA, and the juggernaut submits, finally slayed and allowing the champ to go a year as champion!

The crowd is just in love with Danielson afterwards and of course thanks KENTA for what I imagine is the greatest match many in attendance will ever get to witness live. Both men, just like Marufuji and McGuinness, are respectful afterwards, following the Code of Honor, even though KENTA is so visibly disappointed, having gone through an up-and-down roller-coaster and surely believing he'd pin the champion, coming into this with a major injury, for a third time for the top prize in the company.

I revisited this twice due to the no-selling of KENTA's left leg that I mentioned earlier. It was because of that aspect I was left seeing this as a phenomenal work of art, but not the true cream-of-the-crop to measure up to the works of perfection taken place earlier in the year, let alone in company history. My friend Glazer though pointed out the story of KENTA being the juggernaut, and when considering that he had specifically put Danielson twice away with the G2S, plus the dynamic of Danielson's injured right shoulder, I decided to give this another try.

This is a truly perfect work of art that more than lived up to expectations and just piled onto the ROH Title's layered prestige. It capped off the other golden piece of booking for Gabe Sapolsky in 2006, when Danielson got his foot on the ropes after KENTA planted him with a G2S, the move that had put him away twice in front of the NYC audience. That was one of the finest pieces of crowd manipulation in the history of the business, right on par with Samoa Joe putting his feet on the ropes when trying to finish off CM Punk at All Star Extravaganza II. Such simple but holy shit oh so effective booking.

This also told the story of Bryan Danielson cementing his legacy as one of the absolute finest performers in the history of the business. How many people with his injury would be able to take the pain in such a physical war like this one and manage to pull off this kind of magic? He also cemented his legacy as ROH Champion, putting forth his most impressive performance when considering that injury.

Is this the defining performance of Danielson's career? Is this his greatest match? I'm not sure about the former, but for the latter I'm leaning towards no. That is not a criticism of this match, but stick a gun to my head, I'm leaning towards his blistering roller-coaster against Roderick Strong at Vendetta as his greatest title defense, and I say that without any live bias. I also would still pick Danielson vs. Paul London at The Epic Encounter as the greatest match in company history, but that's because I prefer London's selling in that one, still the gold standard in ROH a dozen years later, to the storytelling of KENTA being booked as a juggernaut. One can't go wrong with picking either match.

Is this KENTA's greatest match ever? It's certainly his greatest in ROH, which speaks volumes considering his body of work in the company. I do know he has another huge match to come in 2006 which I'll be comparing to this one, so I'll hold off on stating if this his greatest match or not. But it's certainly in the conversation.

Is this the ROH MOTY for 2006? I'm now leaning towards yes, but there are other candidates to choose from, none that one would be wrong picking. Do you prefer the fluid, nonstop action of CIMA & Speed Muscle vs. Dragon Kid, Ryo Saito, & Genki Horiguchi at Supercard of Honor? The flawless sports-entertainment segment that closed out Ring of Homicide? How about the climatic, emotional, back-and-forth piece of chaotic art as ROH and CZW closed out their feud inside the Cage of Death at Death Before Dishonor IV? How about Nigel McGuinness solidifying his future to one day become the face of the company in his native UK, doing so in a historic match that also solidified Danielson's position as the true champion of the company at Unified? Or does one prefer the simpler story, of a champion digging down deep to cement his legacy with a very real injury against the juggernaut that had put him down twice, and had also slayed Low Ki, Mark Briscoe, Davey Richards, Austin Aries, and Roderick Strong, and doing so at such a historic event like Glory By Honor V Night 2?

In a year that had ROH presenting so many matches that defined the 2000s decade, I'm gonna say this one stood out above the rest by the slightest of preferred hairs. And I really regret not booking a flight and hotel for the Tri-State area for Glory By Honor V weekend. Experiencing this one match alone inside the intimate, historic venue that is the Manhattan Center would've been worth every penny spent.

Rating: *****

As mentioned in my undercard rundown, that portion keeps this from topping Better Than Our Best as the greatest event in company history. This also didn't have the start-to-finish consistency of that event but did have higher peaks.

This show still gets my absolute STRONGEST recommendation. It is quite historic. The opener is fun. A slam-dunk, first-ballot HOFer arrives to show appreciation for the company, with a pull-apart brawl afterwards between two heavyweights that had the Manhattan crowd BEGGING for their collision. There's more awesome angle advancement involving Lacey, Jacobs, and Cabana. Cornette cuts a blistering promo on the NYC crowd. The quadruple main event manages to all deliver quality matches, with the dual main event eclipsing Danielson vs. Lance Storm and Homicide vs. Cabana, although just a shade below Aries & Strong vs. Briscoes III and Danielson vs. McGuinness III. But this show also has the advantage of a historic title change, historic title match, and one of the defining matches of the 2000s decade to cap it off. Oh yeah, huge kudos for the commentary provided by Dave Prazak & Jared David during the double main event too, putting over the importance of each title and the stories being told in the ring.

There were certainly some signs indicating that ROH was about to fall off from here, quite disappointing compared to Better Than Our Best leaving the company with every single direction being interesting. That's the largest reason why I'll be taking about a year-long break from revisiting ROH, PWG, TNA, and FIP. Cornette talking shit about Konnan of course indicates Konnan will be a part of Homicide's journey to the top spot in the company. There was also the tedious direction of Pearce & Hagadorn. KOW put on a performance that while good, indicated their reign would lack the crisp consistency and thus be a downgrade following Aries & Strong's reign. In addition, there's no way Danielson will be able to deliver such scorchers as frequently and will have to preserve himself for the lone major event remaining in the year. Add to that there is no secondary title to be given the chance to headline events while Danielson is protected working the undercard.

In addition to ROH hitting a lull after this show, there are other reasons to take a hiatus from the project. PWG had just peaked its 2006 two weeks prior to this with its annual Battle of Los Angeles tournament and TNA would gain a proven WrestleMania headliner (who still had plenty of gas in the tank despite all of the concerns about his well-being) the weekend after this. With life getting busier too, it's time to step away for now, but it's also time to revisit Kurt Angle's work before TNA acquired him and even more importantly, finally jump on the NJPW bandwagon.

I must also mention that I considered making an awards section for what is considered to be the greatest 365 day period in company history. That period spans from Glory By Honor IV on September 17, 2005 all the way to Glory By Honor V Night 2 on September 16, 2006. But there are simply just too many fantastic matches to compile such a list, with an astounding SEVEN of them hitting the full monty during that period. That's a ***** match every 52 days on average. Perhaps even more impressive than the drama and workrate of the matches during this period are the feuds and storytelling. This period had it all. Special attractions. Farewells. Historic title reigns that elevated the belts. Crossover talents. A historic series of landmark events including an off-the-charts triple-shot on the biggest weekend of the year for the business. So many hot feuds, none shining brighter than the interpromotional war that gets my pick for best feud in the history of independent wrestling.

Every fan of pro wrestling owes it to himself to experience this period. It is a period that will NEVER be duplicated in combining so many wonderful elements, no matter how much more consistent the workrate has been in NJPW the past 2-3 years or how many stars from the indies and Japan that WWE acquires.

This is not the end of this project, no way in Hell. When I return to this in 2016, I still have much to look forward to even though it ultimately will not measure up to the 365 day period I just described. Jimmy Jacobs continuing to lose his mind over his infatuation with Lacey~! Homicide's career-defining moment~! Shingo~! A monster from Japan running roughshod over the roster. Another semi-rebirth due to going on PPV that results in the exodus of four key TNA talents, plus a very special match involving two Motor City natives from that company. A couple Quebecers getting one more chance to make an impression. The continued rise of McGuinness. And a special talent one year down the line finally coming in, one that would go on to make history at WrestleMania.

For those who have followed this project on the Observer forum, ROHWorld forum, FAN forum, Craphole forum, and Wrestling Forum community, thank you. I sincerely appreciate you for taking the time and reminding me that there are indeed fans that not only enjoy a rewarding professional wrestling product, but love to both listen to and discuss what exactly assembles and distinguishes the Good Shit from the forgettable and utter shit.

Up next - Survival of the Fittest 2006

Matches will include:

Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe

The 2006 Survival of the Fittest Elimination Match

[Loss]

I really love, love, love this thread, and I appreciate you sharing all of this here.

[Woof]

My Gabe-era ROH loving heart wants to give you a big sloppy kiss for this. What a ride. Just wish more of the matches had the longer write-ups because I really enjoyed those. Thanks.

[anarchistxx]

Remember thinking that ROH v CZW 10 Man was a disappointing clusterfuck at he time, and nowhere near as good as the six man from earlier in the year. Storyline was a bit too messy - I prefer these feud blowoffs to be cleaner and more emphatic in execution. Finish was very good though. Half the problem was that Adam Pearce & BJ Whitmer weren't good enough workers or characters to really get behind as the glorious faces saving the company. The CZW workers were more likable.

 

Strange to look back on it though. It seemed relatively normal at the time...but what indie company could get the kind of buzz and excitement that whole feud generated? 2001-2007 was a special time in indie wrestling in retrospect. Still think Necro Butcher and Briscoe Brothers are the lost stars of that period - although they had great careers, they could have been huge, huge names. Briscoes could have dominated the WWE tag division for years, and Necro could have been the never say die Mick Foley they want Dean Ambrose to be.

 

Best ROH match for me is still Joe/Lethal v Ki/Homicide, one of the greatest tag matches of all time. Ki and Homicide as the Rottweilers were incredible, just sick, ruthless bastards. Ki should have been a bigger star too, he had a fantastic aura in spite of his size.

[WingedEagle]

Remember thinking that ROH v CZW 10 Man was a disappointing clusterfuck at he time, and nowhere near as good as the six man from earlier in the year. Storyline was a bit too messy - I prefer these feud blowoffs to be cleaner and more emphatic in execution. Finish was very good though. Half the problem was that Adam Pearce & BJ Whitmer weren't good enough workers or characters to really get behind as the glorious faces saving the company. The CZW workers were more likable.

 

This is what's always held down the big blow-off for me as well. To be fair, I've only seen a couple matches from the entire arc along with the cage match, but never quite understood how some of those names were part of this epic affair. Actually planning on rewatching all of it this summer (have it all on the computer and usually spend summer weekends away from the big screen) and very curious to see how it plays out in full.

[anarchistxx]

Especially with the talent ROH had available at the time, it seems astonishing how prominent Adam Pearce was for about two years. BJ Whitmer also, but at least he was booked in some entertaining feuds despite being one of my least favorite wrestlers to watch ever. Them being in that ten man tag was like the WWE v WCW blowoff in 2001 at Survivor Series containing Test and Justin Credible.

 

Delirious also got very overexposed to me at the time I stopped watching. He was only good as a fun lower card character.

 

It's weird, for a company I enjoyed so much between 2002 and 2006 I have little interest in checking out anything they put out after 2007. Are there any gems I'm missing out? I don't really mean four star workrate matches that happened in isolation, more looking for fantastic feuds and heat filled storylines. Where does one even go to for this sort of stuff anymore? Tape traders seem to have died out.

[Laz]

I think the only feud that matches up on any level with that incredible run from Joe's title reign to the ROH/CZW blowoff is Steen/Generico from 2010. They just laid into each other and proved their value to the company and to the business, making Corny's run alongside Delirious and his decision to do away with Generico all the more insane.

[Cap]

This is a really fun trip down memory lane. Early ROH is what got me back into wresting while I was in college.

 

I also love the bit about the first Round Robin Challenge. For years ki vs Dragon from that show was my favorite match. I was always perplexed about how I hated special ref matches in general and I was never a huge shamrock fan, but he had such an amazing track record as a special ref.