Column of Honor: 01.05.08: New Year, New Vitriol

Well… for a while there it seemed like this website would become 411Berenstein.com. I’m back this week…and what a strange and surreal week it has been for ROH fans and to a lesser extent, readers of this website. We’ve had uproar about the 411 Year End Awards, uproar about ROH being the little leagues compared to WWE, uproars about how apparently everyone on the roster down the line from Bryan Danielson to Pelle Primeau are a bunch of spot monkeys. Welcome to the comments section 411, it’s going to get worse from here!

ROH Results: Rising Above PPV Taping 12/29/07 in New York, NY

Matches
-DVD: Daizee Haze defeated SHIMMER champion Sara Del Rey and Lacey in a non title three way match. Haze pinned Del Rey after the Mind Trip.
-PPV: Delirious defeated Brent Albright via pinfall with a roll up.
-PPV: Kevin Steen & El Generico won a tag team Scramble match that also included The Age of the Fall of Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black, The Vulture Squad of Jack Evans & Ruckus and The Hangmen Three of Adam Pearce & BJ Whitmer. Generico pinned Black (with Steen dog piling) after the Package PileDriver / Brainbuster combination.
-PPV: Davey Richards defeated Erick Stevens via submission with the 14:59 Kimuralock after Stevens was distracted by Daniel Puder.
-PPV: Claudio Castagnoli defeated Chris Hero via pinfall with a Ricola Bomb. Claudio earned the right to fight Sweeny at the Final Battle ’07 show.
-PPV: ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness retained his title by defeating Austin Aries via pinfall with the Jawbreaker Lariat.
-DVD: Necro Butcher won a Four Way Fray elimination match that also included Matt Cross, Jigsaw and Mitch Franklin. Necro pinned Franklin after a KO punch. Jigsaw pinned Cross after a roll up. Necro pinned Jigsaw after the Tiger Driver.
PPV: Bryan Danielson defeated Takeshi Morishima via disqualification after Morishima pushed down the referee and would not listen to his instructions.
PPV: ROH World Tag Team Champions Jay & Mark Briscoe successfully retained their title by defeating The No Remorse Corps of Roderick Strong & Rocky Romero in a two out of three falls match. Strong pinned a Briscoe for fall one after a doomsday Knee Strike and the Gibson Driver. Fall two: Mark Briscoe rolled up Strong. Fall three: Jay pinned Romero after a spiked Jay Driller.
DVD: Naomichi Marufuji defeated Claudio Castagnoli after the Perfect Inside Cradle.

Issues & Angles
-Sunny Nights: Tammy “Sunny” Sytch made her way out after the women of honor were introduced, stating she wanted to see great women’s wrestling. She put over the action after the match, but Lacey apparently had a huge problem with the “original” WWF Diva trying to give credit to a women’s wrestling match. Lacey ran down Sunny as sleeping with the WWF locker room and using her looks to get to the top. Sunny didn’t deny this and actually accepted this insult, however a slap from Lacey was met with a counter slap and Daizee Haze made her way back to the ring to help Sunny clear out Lacey. Haze nailed a heart punch and threw her out. The two ladies celebrated in the ring to much applause.

-Bushwacked: After a special introduction by Bobby Cruise that Bushwacker Luke would be the special guest Time Keeper for the event, Adam Pearce and Brent Albright made their way out and wasted no time in attacking him. Pearce choked Luke out; Luke was brought to the back and we were ready to start the PPV taping.

-Redrum: Delirious debuted a new look, a red colored outfit and mask to replace the green mask that was torn off by the HM3. Albright wore the green mask as a trophy piece before the match.

-Puder personified: During the Stevens vs. Richards match Daniel Puder made his way with an escort of some sort. He was placed in the middle of the stage and the fans immediately got on his case. Erick Stevens was distracted by Puder’s presence and later called him out for being such a tough guy. Stevens challenged him to a fight but Larry Sweneey came onto the stage and said Puder shouldn’t do anything before negotiating for money. He invited Puder to come back to his private suite backstage and they would conduct business. Sweeney went to the ring to introduce Chris Hero, but Claudio Castagnoli came out from the crowd wanting to take him out. Hero caught him from behind and their match began.

-Bloodbath: both the ROH World title match and the Danielson vs. Morishima fight had its fair share of blood. McGuinness was cut viciously on the eye after a plancha blindsided him and sent him into the guardrail. Danielson was bloodied and beaten down only three minutes into his match with Morishima, which was a very short but intense standoff between the two men.

-Bryce takes one for the team: In the melee after the bell between Morishima and Danielson, Morishima reached out blindly to the pack of refs trying to stop him and even up hoisting popular ref Bryce Remsburg and launching him with the Back Drop Driver. This was a super smart booking call because Bryce is one of the very few popular refs who work around the country (the rest of the ref team gets booed upon introduction and no, I really don’t know why). ROH used his popularity with the fans to get Morishima more over. I think the fans would have cheered anyone else getting destroyed, but since they mostly like Bryce they launched into massive boos and heel heat for Morishima.

-Last Call: After Claudio’s match against Morishima the Swiss man was once again attacked by Sweet & Sour Inc. This time, Daniel Puder caught him from behind and wrapped his legs around in an ankle lock and wouldn’t let go. This brought out Erick Stevens to face off with Puder, which brought out the NRC to take out Stevens (in preparation for Strong’s title match the next night). Finally The Vulture Squad made the last save and cleared out the ring and launched into some amazing dives. J-Train and Jack Evens pumped up the crowd and got them to chant “ROH” to close the evening.

ROH Results: Final Battle 2007 12/30/07 in New York, NY

Matches
-The Vulture Squad of Ruckus & Jigsaw defeated Bobby Fish & Matt Cross via pinfall. Jigsaw used the Jig & Tonic on Fish for the pin.
-Larry Sweeney defeated Claudio Castagnoli via pinfall after interference from Daniel Puder, who hit Claudio with the workout flexor.
-Jack Evans defeated Necro Butcher via pinfall in a no DQ match after a roll up.
-Naomichi Marufuji defeated Davey Richards via pinfall with the Shiranui in a fantastic match.
-The Hangm3n of Adam Pearce, Brent Albright and BJ Whitmer defeated the team of Deliirous, Kevin Steen and El Generico in a Tables are Legal match. Pearce plastered Delirious with a piledriver from a table elevated on the turnbuckle straight through another table for the pin.
-Rocky Romero defeated Top of the Class Trophy holder Ernie Osirus via cross arm-breaker.
-Erick Stevens defeated Roderick Strong to become the NEW FIP Heavyweight Champion. Stevens pinned Strong after two variations of the lariat and a Doctor Bomb.
-Bryan Danielson won a Four Corner Elimination match to win a title shot. Also included in the match were Austin Aries, Chris Hero and Takeshi Morishima. First Elimination: Morishima eliminated by Aries, Hero and Danielson who all dog-piled on top of him after an Aries 450 Splash. Second Elimination: Hero eliminated by Aries after a roll up. Third Elimination: Aries eliminated by Danielson after a triangle choke with elbows.
-The Age of the Fall of Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black defeated The Briscoes to win the ROH World Tag Team Championship. Jacobs & Black hit a doomsday Contrac Code and Black hit a springboard phoenix splash for the fall and the title win.

Issues & Angles
-Nigel Scrubbed: Due to injuries from the previous night’s match against Aries, Nigel was removed from the four corner title match and Aries was reinserted. The winner would get a title shot on the sixth anniversary show.

-Use the Force Luke: In a measure of revenge from the previous night’s attack, Bushwacker Luke came out during the Tables are Legal match and attacked the Hagnm3n. Luke teamed up with Delirious (and what an appropriate team that is) to perform the patented battering ram on all three of the HM3 and even Shane Hagadorn. Maybe if he had stuck around a bit longer the faces would have won that match.

-Did they not wash their hands after using the bathroom? For the second night in a row, Austin Aries did not shake hands with his opponent after losing the match. What direction this will take as far as Aries’ future in storyline remains to be seen.

-Exit Music for a Wrestling Show: After The Age of the Fall won the titles their theme music, which is simply a woman (maybe Lacey) screaming over and over and over again played and would not stop. It soon became apparent that this was intentional and supposed to symbolize The Age of the Fall’s rise to power over ROH as it was the last thing seen and heard in 2007. On the other hand, this was very annoying and I hope it does not become a pattern. I think the government makes suspected terrorists listen to this over and over again as a form of torture.

ROH Call

ROH Champions—As of 01/05/2008

ROH World Champion—Nigel McGuinness (champion since 10/06/07, 3 successful defenses)

Next Defense:: Steel Cage Match vs. Chris Hero, Dayton, OH 01/25/08

V.1 defeated Jay Briscoe, wristlock submission (10/21/07 San Francisco, CA)
V.2 defeated Chris Hero, wristlock submission (11/02/07 Philadelphia, PA)

ROH World Tag Team Champions—The Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black) (champions since 12/30/07, NEW CHAMPIONS)

Next Defense: Ultimate Endurance vs. The Briscoes vs. Jack Evans & Jigsaw vs. Brent Albright & BJ Whitmer Boston, MA, 01/11/08

FIP Heavyweight Champion: Erick Stevens (since 12/30/2007) *NEW CHAMPION
SHIMMER Champion: Sara Del Rey (since 6/2/2007)
Top of the Class Trophy (For ROH Students): Ernie Osiris (since 11/02/2007)

Top Feuds & Pairings:

-Nigel McGuinness vs. Chris Hero
-Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness
-The Age of the Fall vs. The Briscoes
-The Vulture Squad vs. The Age of the Fall
-Delirious / Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Albright, Whitmer and Adam Pearce (The Hangman’s Three)
-Claudio Castagnoli vs. Larry Sweeney
-Erick Stevens vs. Daniel Puder

Honor Roll: The Briscoes ROH World Tag Title Run
Jay and Mark Briscoe
Date Won: 03/30/07
Date Lost: 12/30/07
Total Defenses: 19
# of straight falls in two out of three falls matches: 8

V.1 Ultimate Endurance: defeated Pelle Primeau & Mitch Franklin, Mike Quackenbush & Jigsaw, Hallowicked & Gran Akuma (4/27/07 St. Paul, MN)
V.2 defeated Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) (4/28/07 Chicago, IL)
V.3 defeated BJ Whitmer and ROH World Champion Takeshi Morishima (5/11/07, Hartford, CT)
V.4 defeated Claudio Castagnoli and Matt Sydal (5/12/07, New York, NY)
V.5 defeated The Kings of Wrestling (Claudio Castagnoli and Chris Hero) (6/09/07, Philadelphia, PA): 2 out of 3 falls- 2 straight falls
V.6 defeated Claudio Castagnoli and Matt Sydal (6/22/07, Dayton, OH): 2 out of 3 falls- 2 straight falls
V.7 defeated El Generico & Kevin Steen (6/23/07, Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.8 defeated Jimmy Rave & Genki Horiguchi (7/17/07 Osaka, Japan)
V.9 defeated SHINGO & Susumu Yokozuka (7/17/07 Osaka, Japan)
V.10 defeated “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson & Nigel McGuinness (7/27/07 Long Island, New York)
V.11 Steel Cage Match: defeated. Kevin Steen & El Generico (8/24/07 Hartford, CT)
V.12 defeated Kevin Steen & El Generico (8/25/07 New York, NY): 2 Out of 3 Falls – 2 straight falls
V.13 defeated Austin Aries & Matt Cross (9/14/07 Detroit, MI)
V.14 Ladder Match: defeated Kevin Steen & El Generico (9/15/07 Chicago Ridge, IL)
V.15 defeated Roderick Strong & Rocky Romero (11/02/07 Philadelphia, PA)
V.16 fought The Age of the Fall to a double disqualification (11/3/07 New York, NY)
V.17 No DQ match: defeated The Age of the Fall (11/3/07 New York, NY)
V.18 defeated Davey Richards & Rocky Romero in a match taped for PPV (11/30/07, Dayton, OH)
V.19 defeated Roderick Strong & Rocky Romero in a match taped for PPV (12/29/07 New York, NY): 2 out of 3 falls , 2 falls to 1

ROH News
(via the ROHnewswire… and other sources when attributed

Sapolsky OK after Car Crash

Late Friday night news broke out that ROH booker Gabe Sapolsky had been involved in a car accident on I-95 in Philadelphia. The car was hit by a truck on the passenger side, totaling it. Saplosky only suffered some minor injuries including requiring eighteen stitches to the head. He later posted a small update on his condition at the ROH message board, pretty much saying that he would be okay. Obviously I’d like to extend to him a get well soon and a speedy recovery.

Concussions and Injuries After Final Battle Weekend

Speaking of wishing people speedy recoveries, injuries continued to impact some of the ROH talent, namely via concussions. Dave Meltzer reported last Sunday after the Rising Above PPV taping that Bryan Danielson, McGuinness and Rocky Romero had all suffered concussions during the previous night’s show. McGuiness also broke his nose and needed between 14 and 30 stitches to close the cut above his eye sustained during his title defense against Austin Aries. McGuinness was pulled out of action for Final Battle 2007, but Danielson and Romero still wrestled.

Now, ostensibly, anyone with a concussion sustained should be sat down and “not played”, but Danielson ended up playing a huge part in the Final battle show, so while I don’t agree with it, I can understand why he was not canceled off the show. However, Rocky Romero, what the hell was he doing? A two minute squash match against Ernie Osirus? It’s not that important for him to get face time is it? Fans would not have forgotten about him if he sat one out.

Nigel McGuinness Responds to Criticism

Speaking of the Observer and concussion injuries, a letter was published on that website basically taking Nigel and ROH to task, for both not having Nigel wrestle and for its high impact style that has made wrestlers more injury prone over the last few months. Nigel McGuinness took the time to respond and point out several inaccuracies in the letter. He made to sure to correct the writer that he was not concussed with the headbutts to the post in his match against Bryan Danielson at Unified, as had been stated in the letter. He stated he suffered that concussion during a later match against Danielson, the one hour draw, as he fell normally on a Tower of London hit. [Good lord, that makes two injuries sustained during those two draw matches in the summer of ’06.] McGuinness also stated that his head slamming into the guardrail during the missile plancha dive from Aries to his back was unplanned. The brainbuster move onto the guardrail later on in that match did not hit head, but really shoulder.

In addition, this from the Newswire: You can now watch Nigel McGuinness’ emotional promo from last Sunday at the Manhattan Center at www.ROHvideos.com for FREE. This is something that every fan needs to see.

McGuinness made some good points and clued people in about the spots in the Rising Above PPV match as well as his overall thoughts and fears about concussions. From having listened to his interview with Keith Lipinski, I know what he says about reading Christopher Nowinski’s book and bringing it into the locker room to be true. I think its time for everyone, including fans and wrestlers, to examine the expectations of a wrestler and the impact of head injuries.

In an interesting post script, its being reported that McGuinness has gone ahead with his tour of NOAH, despite the injuries sustained last week.

KENTA see him anymore

PWInsider.com and Mike Johnson reported that KENTA’s work visa was not renewed for the upcoming year and thus we would not see him wrestling for ROH in the foreseeable future.

I think that pretty much sucks, because KENTA was a hugely valuable part of the “exchange student” program ROH had with NOAH. He was a very established name at this point and is always a very compelling character even without speaking all that much.

More Morishima vs. Danielson

NOAH’s United States website reports that we will indeed see more of the Danielson vs. Morishima saga in 2008.

This one makes sense, considering Morishima is still set to appear for ROH in 2008 and the series was hardly resolved in their fourth match. I think the fans who were disappointed in the lack of a clean finish for their match should feel a little better about this. Mostly fans need to start to realize that the days of a trilogy or even a quartet of matches may be over, because with ROH running so many shows, feuds and storylines need to be extended. How do you do that? More matches. I’d think Danielson vs. Morishima V takes place in Philadelphia on PPV or maybe in NYC the show after the sixth anniversary.

NYC Fallout
We want to thank the great fans of NYC for last weekend and two crowds of over 1000 people. ROH is set to return to the Manhattan Center on 2/23 for a huge celebration. It will be the Sixth Anniversary Show in NYC!!! Bryan Danielson is already set to challenge for the World Title that night. Also ready signed are: ROH World Champion Nigel McGuinness; ROH World Tag Team Champions The Age Of The Fall of Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black with The Necro Butcher & Lacey; FIP World Heavyweight Champion Erick Stevens; No Remorse Corps of Roderick Strong, Davey Richards & Rocky Romero; The Vulture Squad of Jack Evans, Ruckus & Jigsaw with Julius Smokes; Delirious; The Hangmen Three of Adam Pearce, Brent Albright & BJ Whitmer with Shane Hagadorn; the ROH return and ROH East Coast debut of The Human Tornado plus many more big names to be announced in the upcoming weeks.

Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black are your new ROH World Tag Team Champions. They defeated Jay & Mark Briscoe last Sunday. The power is now with The Age Of The Fall. There will be more on this in the next ROH Video Wire and in an article on the main page of ROHwrestling.com. The sudden title change is causing ROH officials to rework some things on upcoming shows.

A quick note that February 23rd is the true anniversary date of ROH’s first show, so everything fell in line perfectly this year. Danielson vs. McGuinness is one of the bigger matches ROH can book at this time, so it will be a very appropriate marquee match. All the regular roster seems to be in place, plus the addition of Tornado to the East Coast should be something very cool to see. Tornado can really get himself into a fast current of momentum with solid performances here and 2/22 in Deer Park. The major matches that were dropped as a result of the title change were the best of three singles series between the NRC and Vulture Squad in Boston. That is disappointing to me because I liked the concept of the singles series between the factions and this next one had a ton of potential. The Ultimate Endurance title match, involving many different factions, has been added to the Boston card instead.

Stevens vs. Danielson gets Upgraded
Erick Stevens ended Roderick Strong’s 13 month FIP World Heavyweight Title reign last Sunday. This puts a new face on FIP as it becomes “Redefined” on February 16th in Crystal River, FL. Stevens might not even make it back to Florida with the title. In a surprise, Bryan Danielson stated that he never received his rematch for the FIP World Title after losing it to Roderick Strong. Danielson has demanded his rematch. The already scheduled Stevens vs. Danielson bout on 1/12 in Edison, NJ will now be for the FIP World Heavyweight Title!!!

Stevens has two major bumps on the road if he is to get back to Florida still FIP champion…and they are Austin Aries in Boston and Bryan Danielson in Edison. As they say, out of the frying pan and into the fire. I can see Stevens getting a win over Aries (and this playing into whatever storyline direction Aries is heading in with the ‘no handshake” deal) but can Stevens get a believable win over Danielson? I have no clue at this point.

Pay Per Philadelphia
Are you ready Philadelphia? We have a huge announcement for you. ROH was born and bred in Philly. It was the Philly fans that helped make the Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness bout at the “Driven” PPV so special. Now it is time to tape a full PPV in Philadelphia!!! ROH will tape PPV #6 on 3/15 in Philly.

FINALLY! It’s about time the Philly fans got in on the PPV action for a full taping. They were wild and crazy for the awesome McGuinness vs. Danielson match taped for Driven and I think they can bring that atmosphere once again for ROH on PPV. I’ve been calling for Philly to get PPV tapings for a while now and I’m glad ROH had decided to do so. Also important to note is that these tapings are set to be the last in their current contract with the cable networks, so there may be news of what is to come in the future on this show.

More From Edison
We have more new matches for 1/12 in Edison, NJ back at the historic Inman Sports Center. Mike Quackenbush will make his return to ROH and he will team with Delirious & El Generico vs. The YRR of Sal Rinauro & FIP Tag Team Champions Jason Blade & Kenny King. Can The YRR assert themselves as a faction in ROH?

Faction warfare will take place with singles action in Edison. It will be Jimmy Jacobs vs. Jack Evans. Who will score the win for their group?

Well…that was quick for Quack (thank goodness!)…I wonder what caused the change of mind, as it seemed it would be a while before we saw Quack in action for ROH again. In a six man match Quack will be able to dip his toes in the water, so to speak. Jacobs vs. Evans represents a leader vs. leader match, so it should be interesting to see who and how they build up out of this. I’d likely go with Jacobs in this one.

Updated Line Up for 1/12/08 in Edison
Anything Goes Brawl-Jay & Mark Briscoe with Daizee Haze vs. The Necro Butcher & Tyler Black with Lacey
FIP World Heavyweight Title Match-Erick Stevens (if still champion) defends vs. Bryan Danielson
Special Challenge Match #1-Austin Aries vs. Claudio Castagnoli
Special Challenge Match #2-Jimmy Jacobs with Lacey vs. Jack Evans with Mercedes Martinez
Battle Of The Bulls-Brent Albright vs. Kevin Steen
Vulture Squad vs. No Remorse Corps-Jigsaw with Julius Smokes vs. Roderick Strong
Six Man Tag Action-Mike Quackenbush, Delirious, & El Generico vs. The YRR of Sal Rinauro & FIP Tag Team Champions Jason Blade & Kenny King
Tag Team Attraction-BJ Whitmer & Shane Hagadorn vs. Eddie Edwards & Bobby Fish

Plus more with: Sweet & Sour Inc. of Larry Sweeney, Chris Hero, Daniel Puder, SHIMMER Champion Sara Del Rey & Bobby Dempsey

I’m definitely excited to see Albright vs. Steen as these two can really throw down against each other. This is a relatively solid card without a major main event but with a ton of fresh matches that haven’t been seen in ROH just yet.

Puder to Wrestle in ROH
Larry Sweeney has just announced that Daniel Puder has been signed for the 1/11 Boston and 1/12 Edison events. Puder will make his in ring ROH debut in Boston.

I guess we’ll see if the you can’t wrestle chants apply sooner than we thought. More on that later.

Dayton Days Ahead
A unique match has been signed for 1/25 in Dayton. In fact, there will be two really unique matches in faction warfare. The already scheduled Briscoes vs. Ruckus & Jack Evans bout will still take place in a first time ever meeting between these two teams. Now just signed is No Remorse Corps vs. The Age Of The Fall when Roderick Strong & Rocky Romero collide with Jimmy Jacobs & The Necro Butcher. There are no house shows in Dayton. ROH will always deliver a huge, unique event with fresh matches and intense feuds.

There is a war developing in Dayton. We all know by now that the Steel Cage is coming to town when Nigel McGuinness takes on Chris Hero. Now a first time ever match has been added to the card. It will be Bryan Danielson vs. Tyler Black. Does Black have what it takes to defeat “The Best In The World?

As a result of what happened last time in Dayton, you will see Erick Stevens vs. Davey Richards.

Again you can see that ROH is starting to throw different combinations of wrestlers into the mix. Briscoes vs. Vulture Squad, NRC vs. Age of the Fall and Danielson vs. Black are different matches. There’s a lot up for debate as to how these matches will turn out, but there is a lot of new opportunity for the wrestlers on the roster to impress and make their mark. I hope that Stevens vs. Richards is better received in Dayton than it was in NYC.

War in Chicago
The Age Of The Fall vs. Briscoes feud will continue on 1/26 in Chicago. We have seen Jay Briscoe battle The Necro Butcher in singles competition. Now Mark will get his chance. It will be Mark Briscoe vs. The Necro Butcher in a No DQ bout on 1/26 in Chicago.

The Briscoes and The Necro Butcher are actually not strangers to each other, as they have fought down in FIP. A No DQ stipulation will bring the frenzy of those matches to ROH.

Hero’s Sandwich

Happy New Years, my Hero-ites! It is I, Chris Hero back again for your first dose of reality for the year 2008 in this weeks Hero’s Sandwich. I hope that all of you enjoyed your holidays as much as I did, especially in the fact that I have gained a new ally in my struggles in ROH, Daniel Puder, who just happened to be the second hottest free agent in the history of professional wrestling (I was the first, by the way). Larry made a great deal with Dan, and I can’t wait to see him in the ring, whether as a singles performer or as a tag team partner for yours truly. If you were in attendance in New York City last weekend, you saw what he can do first hand, when he completely incapacitated Castagnoli, and rendered him totally worthless in his matches. It was great. However, that’s not what I’m here to discuss this week. What I am going to do today is give you losers a look at my New Years Resolutions for 2008, which as you all know is bound to become the “Year Of Hero”, so without further ado, lets get started.

Chris Hero’s Resolutions for 2008
1. I resolve to capture the ROH World Heavyweight Championship in Dayton, Ohio on January 25th. Once I do that, my quest to save pro wrestling from itself can begin in earnest.

2. I resolve to be nicer to Claudio Castagnoli. I’ve spent the better part of the past twelve months demeaning and defeating Castagnoli in various promotions, and I think that now is the time to let bygones be bygones, and bury the hatchet with the Swiss Idiot. I’m actually starting to feel bad for him, you know? And on top of that, he’s Puder’s problem now.

3. I pledge to use the cravate far more often in my ROH matches. From time to time I hear the call from the crowd for the cravate, so this year, I’ll give the fans what they want, and that is, as I heard last weekend “MORE CRAVATES!!”

4. I promise that by the mid point of the year I will develop and debut at least 3 new signature moves. Because I am at the leading edge of pro wrestling technology, this should be expected, but because I am who I am, I will make a solemn promise to deliver these new moves. Just wait and see what I have cooking up in the “move lab”. Your minds will be totally blown.

5. I pledge to reach my personal pinnacle of physical and mental fitness. I know that you are all wondering as to how I can reach an even higher level than I’m currently at, but because I am the greatest wrestler alive today, I must continue to strive to reach even higher levels. The second that I start believing my press clippings will be the day that I finally taste defeat in a wrestling ring, and we all know that that’s totally unacceptable, so, I’ll just have to keep pushing in order to become an even better person and performer than I already am.

6. I promise to change the landscape of professional wrestling irrevocably. I will achieve at least one accomplishment that no other wrestler has ever done before. What it is, I’m not 100% sure of, but I know that I will do something completely unprecedented in pro wrestling history, so be on the look out.

7. I resolve to be a nicer person to my young apprentice, Blobby, I mean Bobby Dempsey. I know that I have from time to time taken out any of my professional frustrations on him, and this year, I promise that I will start to treat Bobby with all the respect that he deserves, which is VERY LITTLE. Maybe I’ll stop slapping him around so much. Maybe I don’t always have to chop him after he messes things up, like he always does. Maybe I’ll just push him firmly from now on instead. I’ll make no guarantees about that, but I do promise to try and be at least a little bit nicer to him than I have been in the past. In addition, I also promise to ease back on Bobby about his terrible state of physical fitness. We all know that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and I can’t possibly expect Bobby to reach my, or Tank’s level of physical fitness any time soon. Instead of focusing on his shortcomings I’ll begin to consider the fact that he’s made some strides in his “battle of the bulge” and maybe isn’t as much of an overweight, bloated, helium balloon as he was one year ago. At least it’s something.

8. I resolve to clean up the language of the fans at the live ROH shows. Who do you think suggested that Bobby Cruise make the announcement that fans refrain from using foul language at the PPV tapings? All my idea, thank you very much. There is no need for obscenity, folks, as it just makes you look even more low class than you already do. Step up your game and get a more varied vocabulary. Maybe even read a book.

9. I resolve to beat Sara Del Rey at a squat off. Believe me, I’ve tried but that girl has some spring in her step. Maybe I can beat her in the “squat and thrust” competition, if you get what I mean.

10. I resolve to continue to be the best Chris Hero I can be. This is actually a pretty easy one, since I’m always the best I can be. I’m pretty great if I do say so myself. And I do!

11. I resolve to stop harassing Ari so much. There’s just one problem. It’s just too easy to do that, and I fear that this is going to be the first resolution I break. Sort of like how all of you losers resolve to lose 15 pounds after the Holidays but still visit McDonalds, Burger King, White Castle or Wendy’s on January 2nd. Just like Ari. Damn, see? I already broke it. I told you that it would be hard to keep this one.

So, there they are, Hero’s Resolutions. I hope that all of you make some of your own and are able to keep them, just like me. Now, I need to get myself back to my top secret training facility to start working on resolutions one, three, four, five, six and ten. On that note, I will take my leave for yet another week. I’ll be back in seven days with a detailed analysis of how I was cheated by ROH and Todd Sinclair yet once again during the events of Final Battle Weekend, so sit tight and wait for my return. So, until we meet again, this has been your weekly dose of enlightenment; this has been your Hero’s Sandwich. Sayonara, suckers!

Honorarium

-Matt Cross and Bobby Fish were both sporting massive amounts of facial hair at the FB’ 07 weekend. Maybe we should start to call them The Beard Brothers.

-I was finally able to meet Michael Bauer for the first time—he is a very enthusiastic gentleman and a lot of fun to talk to. As pictured in his posting avatar, he also has one of the most tricked out autograph hats of all time. I mean I had one of my ROH hats signed by Christopher Daniels and I thought that was pretty cool, but this bro has almost the entire roster! I think at this point he should start to get the autos of the concession stand ladies and merch stand dudes.

-So it turns out that yes indeed there IS a limit to the amount of ROH wrestling, or wrestling in general that I can take. It came about midway through the semi main event of Final Battle 2007, the four man elimination match. After seven hours plus of wrestling over two days, I had hit a wall. Actually it felt like my head hit a wall as I had a severe headache from all the high volume and the constant “thump thump” of the bumps being taken in the ring. I may have also turned a slight shade of yellow. Luckily I made it through that match and the main event alive and well and slept off the sickness through the night.

-The SHIMMER Women’s match from the Man Up bonus DVD was as good as advertised and may have snuck into the top 110 of the year had I seen it before it was published. One of the best women’s matches since the four way match from Best in the World.

-As far as Delirious vs. Matt Sydal, this was also a really good match, mixing comedy and the rivalry of both men. Unfortunately you can tell when Sydal was hurt right at the very end of the match and how it affected Sydal’s actions afterwards—he was loopy and you could tell Delirious wanted to end it but Sydal wanted to continue. I will say that Sydal’s exit from ROH was classy and that bowing and not cutting a promo will turn out to be a more memorable way to leave the company than he could have done by giving a farewell speech to the crowd.

ROH Preview: 01/11/08 in Boston, MA

8:00pm belltime
Boston University (Case Gym)
285 Babcock Street
Boston, MA 02215

This show replaces the scheduled event in Roxbury, MA. All tickets in Roxbury will be honored at Boston University.

The ULTIMATE Ultimate Endurance
Elimination match with the first fall being a Tag Team Scramble, the second fall with the remaining three teams is No DQ, the final fall between the last two teams is for the ROH World Tag Team Titles:

ROH World Tag Team Champions Jimmy Jacobs & Tyler Black with Lacey vs. Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. Jack Evans & Jigsaw with Julius Smokes & Mercedes Martinez vs. Brent Albright & BJ Whitmer with Shane Hagadorn

The Briscoes get their first chance to win back the belts just two weeks after losing them, but the odds are stacked against them because they are fighting three teams and not going straight up against the new champs. The Briscoes were able to win the last Ultimate Endurance match in which they fought, but can they do it again? I’d also bet that Jacobs and Black have a few tricks up their sleeve for all of their opponents. There are a ton of seconds in this match, so look for involvement at some point from Lacey and Mercedes Martinez. J-Train and Shane Hagadorn also look to square off on the outside and it may be a race for all four of those to see who and how they can help their men in the ring. The first fall being a tag scramble certainly favors the high flying Vulture Squad, while if they can get to the No DQ stip The Hangmen Three should look to dominate in that fall.

“The Best In The World” vs. “The Greatest Athlete In Wrestling”
Bryan Danielson vs. Chris Hero with Larry Sweeney, SHIMMER Champion Sara Del Rey & Bobby Dempsey

Can you believe its been two years since Danielson and Hero first squared off in the ring in ROH? January 2005’s first show of the year was called Hell Freezes Over because no one expected Hero to wrestle for ROH at the time. Now it’s the first show and January of 2007 and Danielson and Hero fight all over again. This time Hero has ingrained himself as a huge part of ROH and I’d dare say he’s ROH’s top heel right now. With a title shot against McGuinness coming up in Dayton and this being Danielson’s last appearance in Boston for quite a while, I can see Hero using every trick in the book to pull out the win against Danielson.

FIP World Heavyweight Title Match
Erick Stevens defends vs. Austin Aries

Initially this was just a match built on earning respect, but it has been upgraded now that Stevens has become the new FIP champion. Stevens wants to show Aries he made a mistake in disbanding The Resilience…and defeating him with a title on the line would do exactly that. Aries may have bit off more than he can chew and he may not even realize it. Stevens is a mass of a man and can throw around the smaller Aries with ease. The former ROH champion is going to have to respond with all of his speed and athleticism and build his way towards weakening a body part, preferably the neck.

Special Challenge Match
Kevin Steen vs. The Necro Butcher

Steen and The Butcher had a fine and fun encounter during PWG’s Battle of Los Angeles, so I expect them to bring a similar match to ROH. It will be about the fight and the close range attack in this one. Steen is as over as he’s ever been and I expect him to bring some heart into this one as well to get the win over The Butcher.

Special Attraction Match #1
Roderick Strong vs. El Generico

Strong had lined this up as an FIP title defense but without the belt it just become a one on one wrestling encounter—and that’s fine with me. Both men had some great sequences in tag matches over in PWG and I think they’ll be able to find a good groove in a single encounter. Generico loves to have fun in the ring, but must not neglect Strong’s dangerous attacks here. I sense Generico getting the heck chopped out of him in this one.

Special Attraction Match #2
Ruckus with Julius Smokes vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Now this is an oddity as there is no rhyme or reason for this one in terms of storylines…but hey let’s bring it on! Claudio has come around so much in terms of his overall game plan that I think he can take Ruckus out in any number of ways. He can use his Europeans, he can attack Ruckus through the air or he can dominate him with power and impact moves. Ruckus meanwhile will have to stick and move with quick hits. His aerial abilities could be put to the test, but he’s going to need to put the ring smart Castagnoli in the proper angles and positions in order to execute them. Ruckus is a babyface, so I don’t see him breaking out any illegal weapons in this one as he might if this were in CZW. As such and this match is purely about the sport of the wrestling match, I see Claudio picking up the win.

Bonus Match
Delirious vs. Sal Rinauro of The YRR

Sal Rinauro returns to ROH, not as anyone’s lackey but as his own man, a young rich and ready for action kind of guy. Has he brought the improved ring skills to go with his more savvy and aggressive character? I’m not sure it matters much at any rate, as “Red” Delirious has upped his own aggression and will look to make an important point to anyone who gets in his way.

SHIMMER Match
Daizee Haze vs. Alexa Thatcher

Another return in this one as Alexa Thatcher makes her way back to ROH. Good on ROH for bringing in more women like Mercedes and now Thatcher. She is a very fine looking woman, but with only about two years of wrestling experience she is going to need more than good looks to compete with the surging Daizee Haze. The peace loving pixie has the momentum of a huge win just last week at Rising Above and a win here could put her in contention for a SHIMMER title shot against Sara Del Rey.

Plus more with: Jason Blade & Kenny King of The YRR; Pelle Primeau; Top Of The Class Trophy Holder Ernie Osiris and more!!!

My Two Cents with Chris Miccio

So, after a few weeks of harassing Ari, he has decided to let me do my best Dennis Miller impersonation and vent a little bit each week on one or two wrestling related topics that are bugging me, even though I’m sitting all the way up in the cheap seats, so without further ado, lets get it.

1. ROH Fans who insist that they are part of the show— This comes directly from the experiences that Ari and I have had at many ROH shows, but mostly from last weekend’s “Final Battle Double Shot” shows. Maybe its just a NYC thing, but there seems to be a growing number of fans in attendance at ROH shows who are really starting to get under my skin, and maybe under the skin of other ROH fans. They are the types who believe that they are a part of the show and need to get on the DVD’s, whether by mugging for the cameras or by heckling the in ring talents. First, let me address the fans that mug for the camera. Guys, just know that the only ones that get excited to see you on a DVD is yourselves, and that the rest of us just think that you’re just kind of annoying. Let me say this, and I know I’ll probably catch a lot of heat for this, but that’s okay. Just because you are sitting in the view of the hard camera, you don’t have to find ways to draw attention to yourselves at all times. You’re not part of the event, you’re just the people sitting in the front row. Think about it. How many times have you watched a baseball game and noted that the people behind the backstop were acting like fools or attempting to interact with the catcher, batter or umpire? I know it’s not exactly the opera or anything, but why can’t these people just enjoy the show and stop trying to be a part of it. What’s that you say? A wrestling show is a far more interactive environment? Agreed, but let’s try and keep it within reason, okay? Just know that no one is buying the DVD’s to see you. Now, let’s talk about the hecklers. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy shouting a witty comment from time to time or supporting my favored wrestlers, but the verbal assaults on wrestlers, especially those leveled at Nigel McGuinness by a posse that Ari has dubbed “The Haters” was uncalled for and totally unnecessary. Sure, I support the First Amendment and all, but when the commentary crosses the line, (and just so you know, my line is VERY WIDE, and not a lot bothers me) maybe its time for the powers that be deal with that sort of fan. I’ve seen hecklers removed from various sports events for far less, so, it’s just a thought. Moral of the Story: If you’ve paid for your ticket, you are NOT part of the show; you’re a fan, just like everyone else, so stop trying to get yourself over. Show some respect and leave that to the PROFESSIONALS.

2. The U.S. Postal Service— Yeah, I know you’re saying that this isn’t wrestling related, but if you hold on for a sec, I’ll explain. So, I ordered Glory By Honor Nights 1 and 2 from ROHWrestling.com on December 15th, and I figured I’d have those discs by the 22nd, at the latest. So, when Ari got his on the 22nd, and I didn’t, I started to get slightly antsy. When they didn’t come on the 24th, I figured that they got held up in the Christmas rush. When I didn’t have them by the 29th, I was both perturbed and curious as to where they were. I reached out to ROH to get a tracking number, and they quickly obliged, and when I went to the local post office, they told me they didn’t have it, and they didn’t know where it was. I proceeded to contact the main customer service number of the USPS, and after being shuffled through about 5 different offices, I was told that because ROH doesn’t insure their packages, they can’t find the package and can’t guarantee that I’ll ever even get it. So, I asked the person at the Express Mail Regional Office if that meant that I would have to eat the cost of the DVD’s and re-purchase them, and I was more or less told that was the case (but not in those specific terms). I e-mailed ROH and let them know what had happened, half hoping that they’d help me out, considering the amount of money I’ve spent on their product and the number of orders that I’ve made with them, but then I remembered that they are a business, so, no dice on that front. I sort of expected more, but then I realized that they did the right thing, and that it’s not their responsibility to do anything more than put the order into the hands of a delivery agent. Now, here’s the wrestling related information. The next time that you order from ROH I implore you to use the UPS option for your shipment, and I know that from this point on, that’s the way I’m going to go or just wait for the next ROH show that I’ll be attending to buy my DVD’s. Moral of the Story: The USPS sucks ass, and owes me my freaking DVD’s. In addition, just be careful the next time you count on the post office for your merchandise.

So, there they are, my two cents. If you agree, cool. If not, that’s cool too. If you have any of your own opinions or comments on mine, feel free to shoot them my way at [email protected]. Catch you later!

Going Home

Name That Tune Week 17

Every week I’ll include an excerpt of music lyric and I’ll ask you guys to guess the song. The catch is that it will be a wrestler’s theme! All promotions are up for grabs, but I’ll focus mostly on the independent scene.

Here was last week’s clue:

Clue: Independent wrestler, international
Lyric: “We still the same with a little fame / A little change in the household name but ain’t too much changed.”
What’s the name of the song and the artist?

The answer: “What’s Golden” (Jurrasic 5—PAC’s theme song)

This week’s winners (by order of receipt):
Premiumblandrew—first in this week!
Soulpower
Somerfeldt1
you_think_you_know_me
zombiecal (a.k.a. anonymous NYC fan)
Graeme

Everyone on this list is golden because you all got it right! I’m sorry I couldn’t do any personal responses this week, but thank you as always for participating and I hope you have fun playing the game.

Let’s kick off the new year with Name that Tune! for this week, January 5th, 2007!

Clue: bleeding
Lyric: “With beauty gone, Move right to wrong, From warmth to chill”
What’s the name of the song and the artist?

Be sure you get all the details right before you send this one in!

Send in your answers here and if you’re correct I’ll list your name in next week’s column!

Ringtones: Final Column 2007 Comments Edition

Here are some of the comments you guys left for me amongst the six part year-end series:

I forgot to say how much I enjoyed your column as I’ve just begun to get into RoH, (mainly PPV’s) and although I can’t admit to being a regular reader of yours, that may definitely change. I especially loved this particular one as it seemed to do a great job of recapping and looking back on what appeared to be a phenomenal year for RoH and doing it in an organized, entertaining manner. I’ll be back for parts 2 and 3 tomorrow!
Posted By: Dylan (Guest)

I appreciate and am humbled by anyone reading anything of mine on this website…so thanks for choosing to check out the feature. While I didn’t know at the time that this whole thing would turn out to be six parts, I knew I wanted to put as much effort and detail into it as possible.

During Colt Cabana’s promo as the 5th year anniversary, I can assure you that was snow, not rain. We drove and stood in it so I know.
Posted By: jeromecusson (Guest)

Thanks for clarifying that Jerome, the type of precipitation coming through that window wasn’t easy to see.

Thanks go out to Jimmy for posting the Adam Pearce promo from the Respect is Earned PPV.

Thank you for listing the Battle of St. Paul as one of the best shows of the year. I was there live, and although it didn’t come off superb on dvd, it was a great show. I’ve seen it get crapped on by so many people on the ROH boards, but its nice to see a prominate member hype this show
Posted By: Zeke (Guest)

I really enjoyed Battle of St. Paul and wanted to make sure it didn’t get lost in the shuffle. It wasn’t a “major” show but the match quality and presentation of the booking (like Aries vs. Morishima) made it seem as such.

Caged Rage and MCM2007 on a must buy list?? Those shows sucked huge.
Posted By: recall (Guest)

CR was consistent the whole way through and from The Resilience six man tag onwards the show found its place. I thought the second half with the ROH World title three man and the two tag matches were very worthy main events. A show doesn’t have to have a marquee main event like Danielson vs, Morishima to be worth watching or worth buying. In fact Caged Rage is a great example of a good show that you can watch all the way through and find solid entertainment the entire way through. Motor City Madness was a weaker all around card but there were plenty of good “moments” in this one, such as Danielson’s comeback and Jacob’s post match promo which was an immediate foreshadowing of the start of The Age of the Fall. I will say this, maybe I should start to qualify the shows on the list with a low / medium / high recommendation level.

Caged Rage is a must buy, and MCM07 is must buy if u like Dragon, Briscoes, or Stevens. As for Uncripted III, myself and 3 friends drove 6 hrs in those shitty conditions for that show. We had front row and we were not going to let those seat go to waste. It was a great show and it is also a must buy. Maybe I say that bc Lacey can’t swallow, or bc Jimmy Jacobs is awesome, or bc Death Ray gave Bobby a snickers? I don’t know but it was awesome
Posted By: Zeke (Guest)

Zeke points out another thing about why I like ROH shows (and other indies so much)—the small moments like Del Rey giving the dieting Dempsey a Snickers bar.

The thing I LOVE about these 5 columns is that they make me look over at my collection of ROH Discs from this year, which includes all the nominated best cards/matches etc and I can barely contain my excitement to start getting through them! And this is also in the same year that due to WWE and especially the formerly watched TNA I very nearly lost my entire interest in wrestling. Long live ROH and I can’t wait to see what 2008 brings.
Posted By: Col (Guest)

I can’t tell you how many people including myself have had their faith restored in professional wrestling thanks to ROH and thanks to the current independent wrestling scene. During times when the WWE and TNA are less than what they should have been (2003, 2006), ROH really came through for me and kept my interest in this hobby going.

Thanks for a year of great columns Ari, discovered RoH late last year and you’ve been instrumental in keeping me up to date. Cheers
Posted By: Scott (Guest)

Cheers mate! Thanks for the compliments!

thanks for all your hard work that goes into these columns- you make ROH feel big time for all us ROHbots out here, and you give us the best column on the entire internet. having said that- there is SO MUCH on this list of matches that i disagree with! firstly- i see where you’re coming from with briscoes vs mcmgs, but i don’t agree with you at all. it is in the top 5 matches this year for mine. i also think kenta vs danielson should be higher. Matt Sydal, Dragon Kid, & Ryo Saito vs Delirious, Masato Yoshino, & Naruki Doi is not top 10 material, or even top 20- but this one jumps out as being severely underrated at 72. i can’t help but think that had this match had been held in front of a rabid US audience, everyone would rate it higher. there are many more- but it would be boring if i listed all of the ones i disagree with… at the end of the day, i’m pretty much in agreeance with you at the business end of the list. though they’d be in a different order, i would have ur top 8 in my top 10, as well as danielson vs kenta and briscoes vs mcmgs.
Posted By: Andy (Guest

I was definitely expecting disagreement with my list, but especially The Briscoes vs. MCMG match. Although as you say it turns out we actually agree for the most part with which matches belong in the top ten, just differ on their placement. I think I had the Dragon Gate match rated higher initially, but the inclusion of the GBH 6 shows shook up the list at the last minute and pushed some matches downwards.

Great column Ari. I discovered Ring of Honor about two years ago and have been following it rabidly since then. Unfortunately, have yet to been able to attend a show, but your columns allowed me to follow it closely. Thanks again and looking forward to a great 2008 with both ROH and the Column of Honor.
Posted By: David (Guest)

Once again thanks for the complements and here’s hoping at some point you do get to see ROH live and in person.

**The Independent Buy In** ’08 Debut Edition!

2008

**CHIKARA “Cibernetico & Robin” (Torneo Cibernetico: Kings of Wrestling vs. Dorado’s Luchadores, The Olsen Twins / Cheech & Cloudy, Quackenbush / Donst, The Colony / BLK OUT ) (NEW ADDITION) High Recommendation

Why you Should Buy In: CHIKARA’s fourth annual Torneo Cibernetico match is a one of a kind happening on the independent wrestling landscape. It’s a more evolved Survivor Series style of match with more participants and usually a far longer match length. The match is ostensibly on two sides, but if one side is completely eliminated then the winning team must fight each other to see who is the sole survivor. This year’s version puts Lince Dorado’s luchadores up against Mitch Ryder and his Kings of Wrestling. Ryder’s feud against the “hoochadores” as he puts them continues in this one, but Claudio Castagnoli is in the wings to await making a big move against Chris Hero.
Match of the Show: The Torneo Cibernetico is the main event and the best match. Second place surprisingly enough would be Cheech & Cloudy vs. Olsen Twins, who just absolutely tear it up in a very competitive tag match that is a ton of fun to watch. Mike Quackenbush and his student Tim Donst also have a very good match that focuses on Donst trying every wrestling counter he can think of in order to get the one up on his trainer. It’s a believable performance that helps get Donst over with the crowd.
Positives & Negatives: I love the small touch in the main event storyline of CHIKARA Director of Fun Leonard F. Chikarason misfiling the contract papers and thus most of the wrestlers on the Kings of Wrestling side get a little extra incentive to resign and participate in the match…everyone that is…except for Chris Hero, whose exasperation in this interview segment is hysterical to say the least. It’s also a great out for Castagnoli’s servitude to the KoW and foreshadows what he does in the main event. Brodie Lee continues to reshape his character in CHIKARA as more of a wild and unpredictable bruser. He also looks a lot like Jason Lee with the beard and goatee look. Slight tangentially relation, Lee played Brodie in Mallrats.Coincidence? …on the negative side, Super Xtremo and Kris Chambers fail to impress in their match here and Daizee Haze and Candice LeRae have a bad match. We also have to see more of Steve Winer as he redundantly explains the rules of the Cibernetico…who’s nephew is this guy anyway? GET HIM OFF THE SHOW! A heel turn is teased for Jigsaw, which I don’t like since I prefer him as a babyface. On the other hand, the Osirian Portal shocks the world with a wonderful, in character performance. I will say this much about CHIKARA’s wrestlers, when they are given a gimmick they are 100 percent dedicated to making it work. The Colony and the Neo Solar Temple is also an example of that mentality.

**CHIKARA “Brusied” (Kingston / Donst, Campeones de Parejas: F.I.S.T. vs. Incoherence / Castagnoli / Taylor, The Colony / Brodie Lee & Olsen Twins, Cheech & Cloudy / Osirian Portal ) (NEW ADDITION) High Recommendation

Why you Should Buy In: I don’t usually like the events in Reading, PA so much because of the very, very low rent production qualities that come with that venue (I mean, there’s a bar with a full length mirror where you can see reflections of wrestlers and the crowd—now THAT is ghetto), but this show is definitely worth picking up, because again, the QUALITY of the wrestling is what counts most and you will get that here. In addition to a very good tag title main event that sees a long awaited title change you also get a very good Castagnoli vs. Taylor match (and as always, Chuck Taylor is amazing in throwing about ten hissy fits during this one).
Match of the Show: Eddie Kingston vs. Tim Donst, who continues to play the massive underdog, obviously young to the business but fighting back against the physically much tougher Kingston every step of the way. I’m not in love with Donst “amateur wrestler” character, but I don’t question the guy’s heart or his potential. Kingston is a tour de force in this one and really is sinking into some heady material here in his heel run with CHIKARA.
Positives & Negatives: The Quackenbush vs. Lince Dorado match is cut off before it can get too far thanks to Mitch Ryder interference…and that’s not cool with me considering I was looking forward to that one and that match was the one that sealed the deal for me buying the DVD (hadn’t looked at the results beforehand). Hopefully these two get to square off in a full out match with a decisive finish sometime in ’08…The Olsen Twins playing up their friendship with Brodie Lee just for him to total no sell it is fantastic. The Colony are also on the money in this one, with good crowd interaction and innovative tag moves….there is a bonus DVD feature of CHIKARA’s Maximum Overdraft event, but the fans come off as pretty sill as well as not really understanding about the light hearted nature of the product…Dragon Yuki…eh…pretty generic guy from Japan…not my cup of tea….on the other hand the opener may be the GREATEST COMEDY SPECTACULAR of all time. Order of the Neo Solar Temple vs. U.S. Ape, Dragon Dragon and MosCow—freaking hell yes.

ROH @ 411

Robbie Brooksbank gets his own thoughts in on Caged Rage.

Michael Weyer looks at what ROH, TNA and WWE will do in the upcoming year in this week’s Shining A Spotlight.

ROH picked up a good amount of awards this year from 411. Haters, don’t blame me because I wasn’t the only one voting…so if an entire group of writers from a website can come together and award ROH for what its done in 2007, that should tell you how good a year it was for them. I could write so much more, but I’m running out of column space.

I’ll be back in a little while with a commentary about ROH fans and Nigel McGuinness. It won’t be positive. Next week Jerome Cusson fills in for me and will have the results from the Boston show.