411’s Buy or Sell 05.27.11 Part 1: PWG All Star Weekend, Fallout From ROH’s Supercard of Honor VI, CHIKARA’s Anniversario, EVOLVE 8, More

Michael Ornelas: SELL – Austin Aries, Brodie Lee, and Rich Swann were all better candidates in my opinion. I’ve only seen one AR Fox match that I can actually remember, and that’s because I watched it today. I like the guy, and I’m sure this will help get him over, but it was a giant “who?” when I read the results. This would definitely not be the best move if it crowned an EVOLVE champion, but according to Gabe Sapolsky, he’s in no rush to do that. That’s fine, and I understand putting this kid over because of that, but I don’t think he was the best choice. I’m really looking forward to seeing the show though when it comes out. Matches sounded great.

Steve Cook: SELL – OK, it’s not really fair for me to run down Mr. Fox because I haven’t seen a whole lot of his work. OK, I haven’t seen any of his work. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the majority of people reading this column haven’t because he hasn’t worked for ROH or anything else resembling a major indy. It’s good that they’re trying to create new stars, but are people going to buy DVDs to see AR Fox? Probably not. Had Austin Aries won, or just made it to the finals, people would have thought “Hey, there’s three Aries matches, that should be fun!” Instead they jobbed him out in the first round. Rich Swann has been getting a lot of hype on the Internet lately for his matches and promos. So did he make it out of the first round? Of course not. Hopefully AR Fox becomes a huge breakout star due to winning this tournament, otherwise EVOLVE really dropped the ball on this one.

1 for 1.

Steve Cook: SELL – Really, it depends on how long they plan on having Eddie Edwards hold the title. Not every ROH Champion has to be a long-term guy, and should Eddie end up losing it on June 26, he’ll still have been champion for three months. They pretty much have to have this match as soon as possible because Eddie’s been begging for it, and the champion should have a say in who he faces. Maybe Eddie screws Davey over, or they go to a time-limit draw & Davey either never gets another shot or has to go back on his word. It’s an interesting story and I don’t think it’s too soon to tell it.

Michael Ornelas: SELL – Had this question been rephrased that it’s too soon in Eddie Edwards’ run for Davey’s final shot, I would have bought it, but it’s been 6 months since Davey’s last title shot. That’s plenty of time. I’m really interested to see how this feud plays out, because I don’t know if I see Davey winning here. I think he should, but I also think Eddie should retain. You see where the problem with that is. With the back story and lead-up, it’s definitely a match that has definite potential to reach *****, but I’m concerned about the booking. We’ll see though. I trust Ring of Honor to take us down a good path with this.

2 for 2.

Michael Ornelas: BUY – I’ve never been too high on Roderick Strong. He’s been around Ring of Honor so long that he just feels stale. In all honesty, I don’t even want to see him tag with HoT members. I think a hiatus and touring other Indies would be the best move for him right now. And he should take an acting class, because his promos are like nails on chalkboard. He’s a very talented wrestler in between the ropes, and he has a fun move set, but I’ve run out of interest for him in Ring of Honor. I respect him, but a run in Dragon Gate USA could do him a lot of good. And again, that acting class.

Steve Cook: BUY – The thing working against Roddy in this question is twofold: he’s in a group, and he isn’t the best of talkers so he’s really better suited for “dream match” situations and not for long-running blood feuds. He had a good one with Erick Stevens a few years back, but I don’t see anybody on the roster that I really want to see battle the guy. Richards vs. Strong has been done. Generico is feuding with the entire House of Truth, not just Strong. Keep him part of the group feud for now, then reassess where things are after the HOT runs its course.

3 for 3.

Steve Cook: SELL – Jacobs might not rate among the top ten in-ring performers in ROH history, but he definitely makes the top five ROH personalities list. He went from being a kid thinking he was Bruiser Brody to being a sad emo kid in love with Lacey to being one of the most dangerous minds in independent wrestling and the face of a revolution. His feuds with BJ Whitmer & Austin Aries were tremendous, and his storyline with Lacey had the most meaningful use of a woman in any ROH storyline. Jacobs fell on some hard times after leaving ROH that have been well documented in other promotions, but if he’s past that and ready to do his thing he’ll be a very interesting player going forward. People better hope that Jacobs & his new ally Steve Corino stay on the straight & narrow path, or there’s going to be a lot of trouble ahead for whoever’s in their way.

Michael Ornelas: SELL – I started watching Indy wrestling in 2009, and I’ll be the first to admit that I hated his emo character. It took me awhile to see past it, but once I did, I recognized the talent he possesses. Couple that with notably positive performances in DGUSA and EVOLVE, and there is more than enough reason to see him return to Ring of Honor. The angle in which he’s inserted seems perfect for him too. I hope it also leads to Steen’s return, as his absence is definitely felt by at least me when I watch Ring of Honor’s shows. A Jacobs/Corino vs. Steen and maybe Bennett feud could do a lot for everyone involved, especially Bennett, although I don’t see how he’d fit other than his current feud with Corino. But yeah, I’m pumped for it.

4 for 4.

Michael Ornelas: SELL – It was okay, but regardless of the fact that he’s the booker, he’s one of the best talents in the promotion. Just because you’re in charge doesn’t mean your character has to lose value. I agree with a comment I saw about him winning the Campeonatos de Parejas being enough, but I want him to end up in the final 3 or 4 in the tournament. That’s definitely still possible, but I would have put him over Hallowicked if I was booking.

Steve Cook: BUY – Of course it was, I said that he should lose last week in this very column! Do you honestly expect me to go back on my word?

Child please.

In all seriousness, Quack taking the loss establishes Hallowicked as a contender, and gives Quack a hole to work his way out of if he’s going to be the first singles champion of the company he personifies. It’s good business.

4 for 5.

Steve Cook: SELL – As much as I love the Most Money Making Man (wow, there’s an old-school reference), it’s tough to predict anybody defeating the likes of Hero & Ki on consecutive nights. I think Claudio will survive the test administered by his mentor, but Low Ki is a man on a mission to regain the championship that he never truly lost. I think he accomplishes that mission on Night 2.

Michael Ornelas: BUY – Claudio is the most present wrestler on the Indy scene right now, and after several really short PWG Championship reigns in a row, there needs to be a champion that makes it to at least five or six defenses. I think Claudio’s a draw, so there’s no reason to unseat him as champion just yet.

4 for 6.

Michael Ornelas: SELL – Are You Serious, Bro? RockNES Monsters are great an all, but this is Aries/Strong. They are contenders anywhere they go. And I think they’ll have the better match with the Bucks as well.

Steve Cook: SELL – I don’t think either team is a really good choice to take the straps off of the Bucks, but if I had to choose one it’d be Austin Aries & Roderick Strong. I hate to keep harping on the business aspect of the indy circuit, but which of these teams is going to draw more DVD buys and more people to PWG shows? Aries & Strong were one of the best ROH teams ever and have been working as partners or opponents for most of their careers. They have an illustrious history together, and form the perfect team to feature on a pair of shows entitled All-Star Weekend.

5 for 7.

Steve Cook: SELL – Damn it Greg, I thought these questions went away with Bauer! Nothing I hate more than trying to pick the best match on a show before it even happens. Well, there are a couple of things I hate more, like current hip-hop music, rain (precipitation, not the wrestler that Greg & I both love) & TNA booking. I know Tozawa is the flavor of the month and Edwards has stepped his game up tremendously, but I don’t want to sell the following matches short:

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Chris Hero
Low Ki vs. Alex Shelley
Claudio Castagnoli vs. Low Ki
The Young Bucks vs. Austin Aries & Roderick Strong
Eddie Edwards vs. El Generico

Any of these matches could easily be the best of the weekend, the best of the year or the best of the millennium. I exaggerate a wee bit.

Michael Ornelas: SELL – Just because I’m selling this doesn’t mean it can’t be, but Edwards/Generico, Hero/Castagnoli, Low Ki/Claudio, Ki/Shelley, and even Generico/Ricochet could all surprise us. This is going to be the DVD series to buy in a couple months. This isn’t a complete sell, but the cards are so stacked that I don’t feel right buying.

6 for 8.

It’s catchphrase week here at Buy or Sell as Cook drops a “Child Please!” and Ornelas drops an “Are you serious, bro?” What I was serious about was these two making out in the corner as they started off 4 for 4 in the first half. Thankfully they realize that this is neither the time nor the place for that, and disagreed (a little) in the second half.

Be sure to check out Part 2 of this week’s Buy or Sell, 8 questions exclusively dedicated to the sale of Ring of Honor!