The title of an ROH DVD can range from the logical (Joe vs. Punk 2, Steelcage Warfare) to the ridiculous (Death Before Dishonor, This Means War). It is with much relief then that ROH continues it's Milestone series with 'Best in the World' a DVD that, thanks to the main event, more than lives up to it's name. The top match features ROH Champion Bryan Danielson, teaming with ROH legend Samoa Joe against Pro Wrestling NOAH's multiple tag team champions Naomichi Marufuji and current GHC Junior Heavyweight champion KENTA. With talent like this, how could they call this show anything other than 'Best in the World' and boy does it live up to that title.
The undercard for the show is solid, however with a main event as good as this then it pails into insignificance in comparison. It's shame then that no-one told Jack Evans, Roderick Strong and the Briscoe Brothers this, as they put on a match that damn near steals the show. A simply outstanding tag team match pitting the returning Briscoes (who don't seem to have missed a beat during their self-imposed sabbatical), against 2 members of Generation Next. Before Strong and Aries teamed up to become the top tag team in ROH, Evans and Strong were the GenNext tag team of choice and this familiarity means they are in perfect synch with each other through out. These two compliment each other fantastically as the hard-hitting Strong contrasts the high flying Evans and the two put together some truly innovative double team moves - including a Phoenix splash/Ode to the Bulldogs finisher which sees Evans springboard from the top rope, off Jay Briscoe who is on Strong's shoulders onto Mark on the canvas.
After that, the main event had a fair amount to live up to, but with talent like this there was never any doubt whether it would. Bryan Danielson is really finding his feet as the arrogant champ who is neither heel nor face, just the best technical wrestler in the world. Meanwhile Joe is well... Joe. The heart and soul of ROH who just gets more over with every show, these fans just love him! The exchanges between Joe and Kenta are up there with the very best matches in ROH such as Joe against Kobashi and Joe vs. Low-ki in terms of intensity and hard hitting action. After their ROH debuts at Final Battle 2005, Kenta and Marufuji were able to show much more personality this time around, with Marufuji showing off more of his high flying, while Kenta was able to heel it up, much more than he was against Low-ki back in December.
As a result of all these men playing their roles so perfectly in this match it makes for a great spectacle and builds fantastically to the crescendo of KENTA pinning world champ Danielson. Although the match is supposed to be the best of ROH against the best of NOAH, this match is all about Joe and Kenta, at least in the eyes of the fans. Their exchanges build in intensity and Dragon and Marufuji are left almost as secondary elements to this budding rivalry. Kenta is set to return to ROH action in the summer with a three way match against Joe and Danielson, however it is the prospect of a one on one match with Joe that is whetting the appetite of the majority of ROH fans.
Overall verdict: A-
"Even without the Briscoes/Strong & Evans match, this would be a must-see show. The main event is something really special with all four men putting together one heck of a match. The undercard is solid, enough with some entertaining matches, but it is the two tag matches that seperate this from the average and mean it's well worth a watch."
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Sunday, May 28, 2006
WWE Judgment Day 2006
In the year 2000 WWE was at the peak of the Attitude era and part of the reason they were going through such a purple patch was the consistency of their pay per views. Each and every show had great matches and dynamic angles that kept viewers coming back for more. Not every show featured classic matches, but perhaps more importantly, very few shows had any really awful matches either. In 2006, the opposite is the case and WWE is the very model of inconsistency. Instead of having to endure the odd poor match, fans are searching desperately every month for the few good matches that manage to sneak through the WWE [un]Creative process.
Therefore it is with some pleasant surprise that we find Judgment Day 2006 to be a show which not only features more good matches than bad, but overall comprises a pretty entretaining three hours of wrestling. Perhaps it is the fact that WWE executives have other things on their plate with the ECW relaunch or perhaps it is the fact that the brand is so decimated by injuries that they feel they can do nothing more than put on a simple wrestling show. Sure it wasn't perfect, but compared to some of the garbage that has been put on single brand pay per views in the 12 months, this was a real throwback to the days when Smackdown was under the helm of Paul Heyman and the matches were what drove the show.
The show starts off with 2 fantastic matches, with Paul London and Brian Kendrick deafeating MNM for the tag titles and Chris Benoit and Fit Finlay having the kind of old school brawl that makes you remember what is so great about professional wrestling. The only downsode to either match is the fact that the tag title match ends with the supposed split-up of MNM as Melina turns on Mercury for costing her team the win. With any luck this will be a shortlived blip, as MNM are too good as a unit to be split up and with them at the heart of the Smackdown tag division, there is always hope that tag team wrestling may not die off completely in the US. London and Kendrick should be more than adequate replacements though, however it ultimately depends on the quality of their opposition as to how well they get on. A feud with Funaki and Scotty 2 Hotty would ruin them, but matches with the Mexicools and Kid Kash and Jamie Noble should provide the kind of matches that people want to watch.
As for Finlay and Benoit, what more can be said. Two ring veterans pounding the hell out of each other for 20 minutes. Fantastic! The addition of Finlay to the Smackdown roster has added something that was sorely lacking in this day and age, an old-school brawler. It's just a shame that WWE can't realize that what makes Finlay so appealing is that he is a throwback to the good old days of wrestlers who were tough and could fight, not pantomime characters. That's not to say everyone on the Smackdown roster should be like FInlay. However with UFC becoming an increasingly important opponent in the ratings wars, WWE could do with having a few more 'credible' wrestlers on their roster to over come the preconcpetion that 'pro-wrestling is fake'.
After that, the women's match and cruiserweight title matches were fairly pedestrian. However most importantly they weren't bad, which is important to remember. The only downside was the lack of excitement in the cruiserweight match. These guys are really suffering as a result of the ban of high-flying moves like the 450 and Shooting Star Press and when compared with the high-flying exploits of X Division stars like Sonjay Dutt or Chris Sabin, Helms and Crazy look decidely average. At least they made it on to the show though!
Following that was Kurt Angle and Mark Henry. After years on the sidelines, Mark Henry has finally come good, just as his contract is set to expire. However is it possible to have a bad match with Kurt Angle? Kurt bumped like crazy and put Henry over like a million dollars, yet still managed to get his heat back at the end by putting Henry through a table with a vicious angle slam, followed by an even more vicious chair shot once the table didn't break. Angle deserves to be champ at this point and I can only hope they are saving the one-on-one match with Rey for Summerslam, because those 2 are absolute dynamite in the ring together.
Bringing back the King of the Ring has certainly helped give Smackdown some focus over these past few weeks, and the final has a real feeling of 'Best of the Rest' rather than the 'Best of the Best'. However both men have used this oppurtunity to really cement thier places on the Smackdown roster. After an initially shakey start, Bobby Lashley has really begun to become a guy people want to see win. He is still pretty green, but working with established stars like Booker and Finlay will help him no end. As will not winning things straight away. By having Booker go over, not only have they helped revitalize the career of a guy who has never been given a fair chance to suceed in WWE. But they have also given Lashley the chance to work his way to the top and go through more experienced veterans and learn along the way. The involvement of Finlay in the outcome of the match means that their feud is not gone either, and so when Lashley does make it to the top of the card he will have established rivals lined up for him to face. He is also establishing himself in the eyes of the fans as someone who has earned their spot, not been handed it because of a catchphrase or a gimmick and so, unlike John Cena, Lashley is being put in a position where the fans will be behind him, not against him.
After that came the only real turkey of the evening. But even that was entertaining for how bad it was. The Great Khali is a freak of nature that's for sure, however this guys belongs nowhere near a wrestling ring. He is just horrid! The only plus-side to this match was watching just how good Undertaker is at making even the most horrible freak-of-the-moment look good. This was car-crash wrestling at it's very worst, but strangely entertaining nonetheless.
So that brings us to the main event. I could rant for hours about how badly WWE are treating Rey as champ, but at the end of the day, are we surprised? Rey should at least be facing opponents he could be having good matches with, not facing big brutes who beat him up for 10 minutes and then he gets a fluke pin on them. However this is the path WWE have decided to go and so that is what we are getting. As a match it was not horrible and JBL plays his role as abullying heel so well. It's just a shame that this did not feel like a main event and certainly wasn't a 5 star performance from either man. However at the end of a show with no truly awful matches on it, this did not break the pattern and so in the end you found yourself in the slightly novel situation of not hating a WWE show and feeling like you had wasted 3 hours of your life.
Overall verdict: B-
"Two really fun matches to open the show and nothing horrible. For a single brand pay per view this was surprisingly good, I just hope they take all the plusses from this show like good wrestling and clean finishes and use this as a blueprin for future shows. Unfortunately I won't be too surprised if we get more goofy angles and screwy finishes instead. This is WWE after all."
Therefore it is with some pleasant surprise that we find Judgment Day 2006 to be a show which not only features more good matches than bad, but overall comprises a pretty entretaining three hours of wrestling. Perhaps it is the fact that WWE executives have other things on their plate with the ECW relaunch or perhaps it is the fact that the brand is so decimated by injuries that they feel they can do nothing more than put on a simple wrestling show. Sure it wasn't perfect, but compared to some of the garbage that has been put on single brand pay per views in the 12 months, this was a real throwback to the days when Smackdown was under the helm of Paul Heyman and the matches were what drove the show.
The show starts off with 2 fantastic matches, with Paul London and Brian Kendrick deafeating MNM for the tag titles and Chris Benoit and Fit Finlay having the kind of old school brawl that makes you remember what is so great about professional wrestling. The only downsode to either match is the fact that the tag title match ends with the supposed split-up of MNM as Melina turns on Mercury for costing her team the win. With any luck this will be a shortlived blip, as MNM are too good as a unit to be split up and with them at the heart of the Smackdown tag division, there is always hope that tag team wrestling may not die off completely in the US. London and Kendrick should be more than adequate replacements though, however it ultimately depends on the quality of their opposition as to how well they get on. A feud with Funaki and Scotty 2 Hotty would ruin them, but matches with the Mexicools and Kid Kash and Jamie Noble should provide the kind of matches that people want to watch.
As for Finlay and Benoit, what more can be said. Two ring veterans pounding the hell out of each other for 20 minutes. Fantastic! The addition of Finlay to the Smackdown roster has added something that was sorely lacking in this day and age, an old-school brawler. It's just a shame that WWE can't realize that what makes Finlay so appealing is that he is a throwback to the good old days of wrestlers who were tough and could fight, not pantomime characters. That's not to say everyone on the Smackdown roster should be like FInlay. However with UFC becoming an increasingly important opponent in the ratings wars, WWE could do with having a few more 'credible' wrestlers on their roster to over come the preconcpetion that 'pro-wrestling is fake'.
After that, the women's match and cruiserweight title matches were fairly pedestrian. However most importantly they weren't bad, which is important to remember. The only downside was the lack of excitement in the cruiserweight match. These guys are really suffering as a result of the ban of high-flying moves like the 450 and Shooting Star Press and when compared with the high-flying exploits of X Division stars like Sonjay Dutt or Chris Sabin, Helms and Crazy look decidely average. At least they made it on to the show though!
Following that was Kurt Angle and Mark Henry. After years on the sidelines, Mark Henry has finally come good, just as his contract is set to expire. However is it possible to have a bad match with Kurt Angle? Kurt bumped like crazy and put Henry over like a million dollars, yet still managed to get his heat back at the end by putting Henry through a table with a vicious angle slam, followed by an even more vicious chair shot once the table didn't break. Angle deserves to be champ at this point and I can only hope they are saving the one-on-one match with Rey for Summerslam, because those 2 are absolute dynamite in the ring together.
Bringing back the King of the Ring has certainly helped give Smackdown some focus over these past few weeks, and the final has a real feeling of 'Best of the Rest' rather than the 'Best of the Best'. However both men have used this oppurtunity to really cement thier places on the Smackdown roster. After an initially shakey start, Bobby Lashley has really begun to become a guy people want to see win. He is still pretty green, but working with established stars like Booker and Finlay will help him no end. As will not winning things straight away. By having Booker go over, not only have they helped revitalize the career of a guy who has never been given a fair chance to suceed in WWE. But they have also given Lashley the chance to work his way to the top and go through more experienced veterans and learn along the way. The involvement of Finlay in the outcome of the match means that their feud is not gone either, and so when Lashley does make it to the top of the card he will have established rivals lined up for him to face. He is also establishing himself in the eyes of the fans as someone who has earned their spot, not been handed it because of a catchphrase or a gimmick and so, unlike John Cena, Lashley is being put in a position where the fans will be behind him, not against him.
After that came the only real turkey of the evening. But even that was entertaining for how bad it was. The Great Khali is a freak of nature that's for sure, however this guys belongs nowhere near a wrestling ring. He is just horrid! The only plus-side to this match was watching just how good Undertaker is at making even the most horrible freak-of-the-moment look good. This was car-crash wrestling at it's very worst, but strangely entertaining nonetheless.
So that brings us to the main event. I could rant for hours about how badly WWE are treating Rey as champ, but at the end of the day, are we surprised? Rey should at least be facing opponents he could be having good matches with, not facing big brutes who beat him up for 10 minutes and then he gets a fluke pin on them. However this is the path WWE have decided to go and so that is what we are getting. As a match it was not horrible and JBL plays his role as abullying heel so well. It's just a shame that this did not feel like a main event and certainly wasn't a 5 star performance from either man. However at the end of a show with no truly awful matches on it, this did not break the pattern and so in the end you found yourself in the slightly novel situation of not hating a WWE show and feeling like you had wasted 3 hours of your life.
Overall verdict: B-
"Two really fun matches to open the show and nothing horrible. For a single brand pay per view this was surprisingly good, I just hope they take all the plusses from this show like good wrestling and clean finishes and use this as a blueprin for future shows. Unfortunately I won't be too surprised if we get more goofy angles and screwy finishes instead. This is WWE after all."
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Thoughts on the new ECW
So Vince Macmahon has finally announced the worst kept secret in wrestling. We are going to have a 3rd WWE brand as the powers that be in Stamford Connecticut have decided to bring back ECW. Now this is a subject that will inevitably bring out strong opinions among the always vocal online wrestling community as ECW was a promotion that many people held dear to their hearts. After all, this was the promotion that helped mould the WWF and WCW boom periods in the late 90s by putting on the kind of innovative TV and matches that the big 2 would see and re-package for a mainstream audience. Whether it was the antics of a pre-Stone Cold Austin, the crazy brawls featuring the Public Enemy and the Dudleyz or the high flying matches from cruiserweights like Rey Mysterio or Eddie Guerrero. ECW was an alternative to the campy antics of WWF stars like the Ultimate Warrior or Papa Shango and provided an product that more mature fans who liked the maverick attitude and intelligent, non-patronising storylines and angles.
So here it is, about to be brought back, only this time under the corporate umbrella of WWE. In the press release announcing it's return Vince MacMahon has claimed WWE have been the guardians on the ECW legacy over the past 4 years, keeping the 'cult-like following of ECW' simmering away thanks to the release of DVDs and the One Night Stand pay per view. Well, what did you expect from the man who every Monday massages his ego on international TV by molesting divas or out-figthing men half his age. You didn't think he would credit the fans would he? But it's them, not Vince who have kept ECW alive - just as they were the ones who helped ECW succeed in the first place.
Vince has always been a contradictory character for ECW. He exists both as it's biggest threat, but also one of it's biggest helpers. In the 90s, it was the constant threat of WWF dollars stealing away top talent that caused the concern. Whereas in 2006, it is the potential impact he could have on the creative direction of the company that worries fans more than anything. After all, this is a man who has a tendancy to publicly humiliate anyone who disagrees with him as well as booking himself in a wrestling match where he was supposed to be facing God. However with Vince taking a personal interet in this pet project and seeing money, we can only hope that he will see fit to allow those people that understand ECW (Paul Heyman and Tommy Dreamer in other words) rather that attempt to implement his own idealogy on the brand and that is where Vince can help the feldgling brand. Just as he did in 1997 when he guarnteed ECW's first pay per view and brought ECW talent on to Raw to promote it.
Vinces greatest help to ECW is his money, but as is so often when you have a moneyman with ideas, it's whether or not those ideas interfere with the direction the company should go in. It's difficult to say no to the man with the cheque book (and if that man is Vince Macmahon, the most powerful man in wrestling, it will be doubly so). With Vince in charge we will never see controversial angles like the Sandman/Raven feud where Raven crucified Sandman and stole his family, but is that such a bad thing? Controversy in WWE skates a fine line between shocking shockly awful. At least he seems to have appreciate that ECW cannot be filmed at the same time as Smackdown and Raw and cannot have the same production values. The mention of bringing in new names to create a new generation of ECW also bodes well, however I have a feeling we will never truly know what will happen with the new ECW until we see it on TV and see just what parts of the old ECW has been kept and what have been updated for a new generation of fans.
So here it is, about to be brought back, only this time under the corporate umbrella of WWE. In the press release announcing it's return Vince MacMahon has claimed WWE have been the guardians on the ECW legacy over the past 4 years, keeping the 'cult-like following of ECW' simmering away thanks to the release of DVDs and the One Night Stand pay per view. Well, what did you expect from the man who every Monday massages his ego on international TV by molesting divas or out-figthing men half his age. You didn't think he would credit the fans would he? But it's them, not Vince who have kept ECW alive - just as they were the ones who helped ECW succeed in the first place.
Vince has always been a contradictory character for ECW. He exists both as it's biggest threat, but also one of it's biggest helpers. In the 90s, it was the constant threat of WWF dollars stealing away top talent that caused the concern. Whereas in 2006, it is the potential impact he could have on the creative direction of the company that worries fans more than anything. After all, this is a man who has a tendancy to publicly humiliate anyone who disagrees with him as well as booking himself in a wrestling match where he was supposed to be facing God. However with Vince taking a personal interet in this pet project and seeing money, we can only hope that he will see fit to allow those people that understand ECW (Paul Heyman and Tommy Dreamer in other words) rather that attempt to implement his own idealogy on the brand and that is where Vince can help the feldgling brand. Just as he did in 1997 when he guarnteed ECW's first pay per view and brought ECW talent on to Raw to promote it.
Vinces greatest help to ECW is his money, but as is so often when you have a moneyman with ideas, it's whether or not those ideas interfere with the direction the company should go in. It's difficult to say no to the man with the cheque book (and if that man is Vince Macmahon, the most powerful man in wrestling, it will be doubly so). With Vince in charge we will never see controversial angles like the Sandman/Raven feud where Raven crucified Sandman and stole his family, but is that such a bad thing? Controversy in WWE skates a fine line between shocking shockly awful. At least he seems to have appreciate that ECW cannot be filmed at the same time as Smackdown and Raw and cannot have the same production values. The mention of bringing in new names to create a new generation of ECW also bodes well, however I have a feeling we will never truly know what will happen with the new ECW until we see it on TV and see just what parts of the old ECW has been kept and what have been updated for a new generation of fans.
TNA Dream matches
With TNA becoming increasingly stale as the approach their 2nd anniversary on pay per view, it's time they took advantage of some of the dream matches they have available to them. Let's take a look at the top dream matches/angles TNA could put on pay per view and help get them out of the creative rut they are currently in.
1. Sting vs. Samoa Joe
TNA's biggest homegrown star of the pay per view era vs. the man who helped earn TNA their slot on Spike TV. The build has begun for this after the tag match at Sacrifice 2006 and this has the potential to be TNA's biggest drwaing match of all time. The question is how soon do they go this feud. Is Joe ready to hold down his end of a main event angle and should the NWA title be involved to give this match even more prestige?
2. Chris Daniels/AJ Styles vs. AMW (6 Sides of Steel)
The best match at Sacrifice which could have been a truly great match if it had a clean finish. Chris Daniels and Elix Skipper had one of the best matches of TNA's short history when they faced AMW at Turning Point '04 and AJ Styles is a much better worker than Skipper has ever been.
3. End Samoa Joe's unbeaten run and create a new X Division superstar.
Joe vs. Senshi will be a dream match if their previous battles in ROH are any evidence. However my personal favourite for choice to end Joe's reign would be Chris Sabin. Sabin is a man who has been given a generous push over the past 6 - 12 months, however he needs that big win to help cement his position as a big-time X-Division star. (Alas I have a feeling that a pyrrhic victory over Kevin Nash may not quite achieve this based on Nash's previous record of putting over smaller men.)
4. Christian Cage/ Jeff Hardy vs. Team 3D
Four of the unsung stars from WWF's most succesful period in 2000/2001. The TLC matches are modern classics, so why not make the most of that reputation and put these four men in the ring one more time. Pairing Christian the work horse with Hardy the spot-mahcine means that the teams will not be unbalanced by the lack of Hardy and Cage's regular partners. Perhaps it's time to make Matt Hardy once again regret his decision to re-join WWE by putting on the great match that should have been his in TNA.
5. Senshi takes over the X Division
Despite the fantastic matches they put on, the Joe/AJ/Daniels feud created a gulf between the the established X Division guys and those challenging for the title. Who better to undo that gulf than Senshi/Low-ki. Established X Division talent like Chris Sabin, SONjay Dutt, Petey Williams and Jay Lethal were not around for Ki's first run in TNA, so pairing them up with the newly debuted Senshi would create fresh match ups thaty could relight the fire under the X Division. Senshi also has the one thing that a lot of a X Division guys don't have, a well-rounded personality. Perhaps his honourable martial arts based persona can help make more out of some of the 'blander' X Division characters.
6. Rhino vs. Scott Steiner
The last ECW champion vs. one of the last WCW champions. Rhino is a strong enough worker that he could cover the gaps in Steiner's ring ability and these two power houses could have a very strong, brawling feud that would be a dran sight more entertaining than forcing The War Machine to try and get good matches out of Bobby Roode!
7. Sting vs. Abyss
The two masked men of TNA. If Sting is genuine about wanting to help TNBA create new stars then Abyss is one man who could do with a touch of the Stinger magic. A mic battle between Sting and James Mitchell would also lead to some fantastic interviews.
8. Team 3D turned heel
Put simply, the former Dudley Boyz just aren't as entertaining without the fan baiting insults. They would need a strong babyface team to work against, however a bit of vindictiveness and edge is just what these guys need to get them out of their current rut.
9. Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles vs. Chris Daniels
TNA's most critically acclaimed match from the past 12 months. After the anti-climax of their Ultimate X match this match was given a break, however this is a feud which TNA could quickly return to down the line to guaruntee a strong outing. Especially seeing as each man has one win over the other. A cage or ladder match could provide the fitting climax to this epic feud.
10. More indie talent brought in.
Guys like Alex Shelley, and Jay Lethal have had some success. However guys such as Roderick Strong, Austin Aries, Colt Cabana, Matt Sydal, Jack Evans, Jay and Mark Briscoe, Jimmy Rave and Prince Nana offer even more to the TNA product and should be given the chance to convert strong independent reputations into more mainstream exposure.
1. Sting vs. Samoa Joe
TNA's biggest homegrown star of the pay per view era vs. the man who helped earn TNA their slot on Spike TV. The build has begun for this after the tag match at Sacrifice 2006 and this has the potential to be TNA's biggest drwaing match of all time. The question is how soon do they go this feud. Is Joe ready to hold down his end of a main event angle and should the NWA title be involved to give this match even more prestige?
2. Chris Daniels/AJ Styles vs. AMW (6 Sides of Steel)
The best match at Sacrifice which could have been a truly great match if it had a clean finish. Chris Daniels and Elix Skipper had one of the best matches of TNA's short history when they faced AMW at Turning Point '04 and AJ Styles is a much better worker than Skipper has ever been.
3. End Samoa Joe's unbeaten run and create a new X Division superstar.
Joe vs. Senshi will be a dream match if their previous battles in ROH are any evidence. However my personal favourite for choice to end Joe's reign would be Chris Sabin. Sabin is a man who has been given a generous push over the past 6 - 12 months, however he needs that big win to help cement his position as a big-time X-Division star. (Alas I have a feeling that a pyrrhic victory over Kevin Nash may not quite achieve this based on Nash's previous record of putting over smaller men.)
4. Christian Cage/ Jeff Hardy vs. Team 3D
Four of the unsung stars from WWF's most succesful period in 2000/2001. The TLC matches are modern classics, so why not make the most of that reputation and put these four men in the ring one more time. Pairing Christian the work horse with Hardy the spot-mahcine means that the teams will not be unbalanced by the lack of Hardy and Cage's regular partners. Perhaps it's time to make Matt Hardy once again regret his decision to re-join WWE by putting on the great match that should have been his in TNA.
5. Senshi takes over the X Division
Despite the fantastic matches they put on, the Joe/AJ/Daniels feud created a gulf between the the established X Division guys and those challenging for the title. Who better to undo that gulf than Senshi/Low-ki. Established X Division talent like Chris Sabin, SONjay Dutt, Petey Williams and Jay Lethal were not around for Ki's first run in TNA, so pairing them up with the newly debuted Senshi would create fresh match ups thaty could relight the fire under the X Division. Senshi also has the one thing that a lot of a X Division guys don't have, a well-rounded personality. Perhaps his honourable martial arts based persona can help make more out of some of the 'blander' X Division characters.
6. Rhino vs. Scott Steiner
The last ECW champion vs. one of the last WCW champions. Rhino is a strong enough worker that he could cover the gaps in Steiner's ring ability and these two power houses could have a very strong, brawling feud that would be a dran sight more entertaining than forcing The War Machine to try and get good matches out of Bobby Roode!
7. Sting vs. Abyss
The two masked men of TNA. If Sting is genuine about wanting to help TNBA create new stars then Abyss is one man who could do with a touch of the Stinger magic. A mic battle between Sting and James Mitchell would also lead to some fantastic interviews.
8. Team 3D turned heel
Put simply, the former Dudley Boyz just aren't as entertaining without the fan baiting insults. They would need a strong babyface team to work against, however a bit of vindictiveness and edge is just what these guys need to get them out of their current rut.
9. Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles vs. Chris Daniels
TNA's most critically acclaimed match from the past 12 months. After the anti-climax of their Ultimate X match this match was given a break, however this is a feud which TNA could quickly return to down the line to guaruntee a strong outing. Especially seeing as each man has one win over the other. A cage or ladder match could provide the fitting climax to this epic feud.
10. More indie talent brought in.
Guys like Alex Shelley, and Jay Lethal have had some success. However guys such as Roderick Strong, Austin Aries, Colt Cabana, Matt Sydal, Jack Evans, Jay and Mark Briscoe, Jimmy Rave and Prince Nana offer even more to the TNA product and should be given the chance to convert strong independent reputations into more mainstream exposure.
TNA Sacrifice 2006
A year ago, TNA was the most exciting product in wrestling. They were about to debut on Spike TV, Christian Cage and the Dudley Boys had jumped ship from WWE, Sting was coming in and Samoa Joe, AJ Styles and Chris Daniels were having 5 star matches. It's a shame then that 12 months on, TNA has a lost of lot of it's lustre. That's not to say they are producing shows that are as poor as WWE's current output. However many of things that made TNA so exciting last year have faded away and so TNA is left with an increasingly stale product that has not capitalized on the potential that it had this time last year.
A prime example of this is the World X Cup, which opened up the show with a match between Jushin Liger and Petey Williams. When TNA were still doing their weekly pay per views, the World X Cup was a great way of filling their schedules and making shows seem important. However this years event seemed to be a complete after thought and the structure of the tournament very confusing for anyone who hadn't been following closely. As such, this match seemed thrown on and lacked any real build and the X Cup Gauntlet that came later in the show had very little meaning as well. Many of the wrestlers involved were completely new to anyone who hadn't bee following Impact, and although the match itself was a lot of fun it lacked any real meaning (not to mention a conclusive finish) and so lost any importance it could have built up.
After that the show was a real mix of matches until they reached the 2 main events, but more of that later. AJ Styles and Chris Daniels had a really great match with America's Most Wanted, which was almost ruined by a goofy finish involving Gail Kim and then there was a succession of average matches that had little or no real interest or purpose on the show apart from being filler. The tag match at least set up the possibility of a rematch down the line, but matches such as Bobby Roode vs. Rhino and Raven vs. A1 were the kind of matches that belonged on Impact, not a pay per view. As such, it made the middle part of this show very difficult watching.
Much like the AMW vs. AJ/Daniel match, the tag team match pitting the former Dudley Boys against the former New Age Outlaws was a frustrating mix of what might have been. Both teams can have good matches when they need too, however a lack of drama to the match really hurt it and it just felt like yet another match on this show. It also lacks a real face/heel dynamic which hurts it more than helps it. Although TNA have recieved a lot of flack from the wrestling media for re-treading old WWE storylines for this feud, that doesn't bother me as much. However they desperately need to give this feud a spark and create some real animosity between these two pairings if it is going to be anything more memorable than Team 3D's tedious feud with Team Canada.
Prior to the main event came the only truly awful moment of the show. Following the World X Cup gauntlet which I discussed earlier, Kevin Nash came out to attack the runner-up in the gauntlet match, Puma. Nash had been bad mouthing the X Division on Impact in the build up to the show and this has the potential to be one of the most damaging storylines TNA ever run. It seems obvious that the thinking is to have a big name like Nash run down the X Division only for someone like Chris Sabin to come to the rescue and beat Nash up and prove him wrong. The problem, is that this is Kevin Nash. The man who was supposed to put over Rey Mysterio but made him look a joke. Rey as an individual could survive this, but can a whole division? Having Nash vocalise the idea that big men are better than small is merely re-enforcing the WWE stereotype that TNA have fought so long to overcome. By having Nash attack Puma who had been wrestling for 20+ minutes they are trying to make him look like a coward, however will the average fan get that and just see the same thing they see on WWE TV every week. This feud is very dangerous in my view and has the potential to do more damage than good. However I'm prepared to wait and see. Hopefully Samoa Joe will come out and destroy him next week - we can but hope!
Finally, we got to the first of 2 main events with Sting and his hand-picked tag partner, Samoa Joe, facing off with Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner. The story of this match was whether Joe could hang with the big guys and he definitely did that. He was never going to be the monster that he was in the X Division in this match, but Jarrett did a great job of putting him over by bumping like crazy, while Joe and Steiner went toe to toe and set up the possibility of an intriguing one on one match in the near future. If TNA is to succeed they need guys like Jarrett, Sting and Steiner to put guys like Joe over and this went a long way to helping elevate Joe into a true star for TNA. The ending where Joe wouldn't help Sting set up the potential for a Joe vs. Sting match down the line which should be a huge deal for TNA and could well be the make or break match for this company.
Last, but by no means least, came the Full Metal Mayhem match between Christian Cage and Abyss. After having a fantastic match at Lockdown, this was always going to struggle to live up to expectations, however that didn't stop both men from going all out to try and do just that. Both men are in their element in this plunder-filled, gimmick environment and they had a really good brawl with plenty of crazy spots. Even Abyss' manager Jim Mitchell got involved, taking a crazy bump into a load of thumbtacks. Mitchell deserves to be rewarded for going so far for this company as he is the MVP of TNA so far this year, helping to get Abyss over as a genuine main event monster. The only problem with this match, as well as Cage's previous title defences, is that he is yet to cement himself as a true top guy. He lacks some of the spark he had in WWE and a lot of what made him so succesful was as a star-maker to the likes of Edge and Chris Jericho. As the top man, he has yet to establish himself in this main event role, however at least TNA are giving him the time and oppurtunity to do this. At the end of the day he has main evented this pay per view and is one of their top stars. Perhaps only time and the inevitable matches with Joe and Sting will ever tell us if he is a true top guy, however getting him away from these gimmicky matches and letting him have some strong singles matches with guys like Sting or even AJ Styles or Rhino may get him that final distance to the top.
Overall verdict: C+
"A show of missed oppurtunities. Nothing outstanding, but also nothing atrocious (apart from the Kevin Nash angle). Even the bad matches weren't that bad, they still had good wrestling, they just had nothing to sperate them from the rest. The best match of the night was the tag match but that was too short and lacked a decent finish. With a bit more thoughful booking, this could have been so much better. The biggest disappointment was the World X Cup which should have stolen the show, but was so poorly booked it became an after thought."
A prime example of this is the World X Cup, which opened up the show with a match between Jushin Liger and Petey Williams. When TNA were still doing their weekly pay per views, the World X Cup was a great way of filling their schedules and making shows seem important. However this years event seemed to be a complete after thought and the structure of the tournament very confusing for anyone who hadn't been following closely. As such, this match seemed thrown on and lacked any real build and the X Cup Gauntlet that came later in the show had very little meaning as well. Many of the wrestlers involved were completely new to anyone who hadn't bee following Impact, and although the match itself was a lot of fun it lacked any real meaning (not to mention a conclusive finish) and so lost any importance it could have built up.
After that the show was a real mix of matches until they reached the 2 main events, but more of that later. AJ Styles and Chris Daniels had a really great match with America's Most Wanted, which was almost ruined by a goofy finish involving Gail Kim and then there was a succession of average matches that had little or no real interest or purpose on the show apart from being filler. The tag match at least set up the possibility of a rematch down the line, but matches such as Bobby Roode vs. Rhino and Raven vs. A1 were the kind of matches that belonged on Impact, not a pay per view. As such, it made the middle part of this show very difficult watching.
Much like the AMW vs. AJ/Daniel match, the tag team match pitting the former Dudley Boys against the former New Age Outlaws was a frustrating mix of what might have been. Both teams can have good matches when they need too, however a lack of drama to the match really hurt it and it just felt like yet another match on this show. It also lacks a real face/heel dynamic which hurts it more than helps it. Although TNA have recieved a lot of flack from the wrestling media for re-treading old WWE storylines for this feud, that doesn't bother me as much. However they desperately need to give this feud a spark and create some real animosity between these two pairings if it is going to be anything more memorable than Team 3D's tedious feud with Team Canada.
Prior to the main event came the only truly awful moment of the show. Following the World X Cup gauntlet which I discussed earlier, Kevin Nash came out to attack the runner-up in the gauntlet match, Puma. Nash had been bad mouthing the X Division on Impact in the build up to the show and this has the potential to be one of the most damaging storylines TNA ever run. It seems obvious that the thinking is to have a big name like Nash run down the X Division only for someone like Chris Sabin to come to the rescue and beat Nash up and prove him wrong. The problem, is that this is Kevin Nash. The man who was supposed to put over Rey Mysterio but made him look a joke. Rey as an individual could survive this, but can a whole division? Having Nash vocalise the idea that big men are better than small is merely re-enforcing the WWE stereotype that TNA have fought so long to overcome. By having Nash attack Puma who had been wrestling for 20+ minutes they are trying to make him look like a coward, however will the average fan get that and just see the same thing they see on WWE TV every week. This feud is very dangerous in my view and has the potential to do more damage than good. However I'm prepared to wait and see. Hopefully Samoa Joe will come out and destroy him next week - we can but hope!
Finally, we got to the first of 2 main events with Sting and his hand-picked tag partner, Samoa Joe, facing off with Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner. The story of this match was whether Joe could hang with the big guys and he definitely did that. He was never going to be the monster that he was in the X Division in this match, but Jarrett did a great job of putting him over by bumping like crazy, while Joe and Steiner went toe to toe and set up the possibility of an intriguing one on one match in the near future. If TNA is to succeed they need guys like Jarrett, Sting and Steiner to put guys like Joe over and this went a long way to helping elevate Joe into a true star for TNA. The ending where Joe wouldn't help Sting set up the potential for a Joe vs. Sting match down the line which should be a huge deal for TNA and could well be the make or break match for this company.
Last, but by no means least, came the Full Metal Mayhem match between Christian Cage and Abyss. After having a fantastic match at Lockdown, this was always going to struggle to live up to expectations, however that didn't stop both men from going all out to try and do just that. Both men are in their element in this plunder-filled, gimmick environment and they had a really good brawl with plenty of crazy spots. Even Abyss' manager Jim Mitchell got involved, taking a crazy bump into a load of thumbtacks. Mitchell deserves to be rewarded for going so far for this company as he is the MVP of TNA so far this year, helping to get Abyss over as a genuine main event monster. The only problem with this match, as well as Cage's previous title defences, is that he is yet to cement himself as a true top guy. He lacks some of the spark he had in WWE and a lot of what made him so succesful was as a star-maker to the likes of Edge and Chris Jericho. As the top man, he has yet to establish himself in this main event role, however at least TNA are giving him the time and oppurtunity to do this. At the end of the day he has main evented this pay per view and is one of their top stars. Perhaps only time and the inevitable matches with Joe and Sting will ever tell us if he is a true top guy, however getting him away from these gimmicky matches and letting him have some strong singles matches with guys like Sting or even AJ Styles or Rhino may get him that final distance to the top.
Overall verdict: C+
"A show of missed oppurtunities. Nothing outstanding, but also nothing atrocious (apart from the Kevin Nash angle). Even the bad matches weren't that bad, they still had good wrestling, they just had nothing to sperate them from the rest. The best match of the night was the tag match but that was too short and lacked a decent finish. With a bit more thoughful booking, this could have been so much better. The biggest disappointment was the World X Cup which should have stolen the show, but was so poorly booked it became an after thought."
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
ROH 4th Anniversary show
Ring of Honor begins it's Milestone Series of DVD releases with this show celebrating their 4th Anniversary. The Milestone Series covers 6 of it's shows from the 4th Anniversary through to their 100th show and is regarded as some of the best shows in company history. The first 4 years for ROH were not without controversy and many never expected them to ever reach this anniversary. From humble beginnings in the Murphy Rec Centre in Philadelphia, ROH has built a loyal following of fans by putting on strong wrestling based shows which focus on great matches and rivalries, many of which are shown in highlight form on this DVD release.
The show opens with former ROH tag team champions, Sal Rinauro and Tony Malmaluke facing off against New England newcomers, Jason Blade and Kid Mikaze. Only to be interrupted by the reunring duo of Jay and Mark Brisco who make their return to ROH after an extended absence due to Mark's motorcycle crash in summer 2004. This leads to a glorifed squash of both teams as the Briscoes return to ROH competition with the same dynamic tag team wrestling that saw them rise to the top of ROH cards before they left. The return of the Briscoes is a huge bonus to ROH as the threat of TNA talent being pulled looms constantly in the background. Despite being on of the very best tage teams in wrestling today, the Briscoes have yet to earn the attentions of TNA or WWE and so with ROH putting an increased importance of tag team wrestling in 2006, this is a fantastic addition to their increasingly strong tag team division.
Next up is one of ROH's taples, a 4 Corner Survival featuring Adam Pearce, Claudio Casatgnoli, Jay Fury and Azrael. Essentially this is the Pearce and Double C show as the old school heel antics of the Scrap Daddy clash with the European style of Claudio. Both guys are becoming huge players for ROH in 2006 and this is the kind of match that realy shows these guys will be big stars in the future. Jay Fury and Azrael are essentially there to make up the numbers, however Fury shows some nice flourishes that show why is a regular in ROH's sister promotion, Full Impact Pro.
Follwing a brief promo where female manager/number one business woman in ROH, Lacey, attempts to offer inside information on her former charge, BJ Whitmer to his oppennt for the night, Christopher Daniels, we have ROH legend Samoe Joe face off with former protege Jay Lethal. After Lethal turned on his former teacher a month or so ago, Joe has been loking for revenge. However the match was overshadowed in the weeks building up to this show by Lethal being 'fired' by booker Gabe Sapolsky. As such, this match lacked much of the heat that their previous matches had (especially their Pure Title match at Manhatten Mayhem) and Joe earned the win cleanly after a decidedly flat match.
Next was a grudge match strecthing back to 2003, with former prophecy partners BJ Whitmer and Chris Daniels attempting to settle their differences once and for all. This match soon broke down and the pair brawled into the crowd, at which point CZW's Chris Hero and Necro Butcher rusehd the ring and began taunting the crowd. The feud between Hero/CZW and ROH began back in November with Hero challenging ROH champion Bryan Danielson and this has since becoe one of the hottest angles ROH has booked. Playing into to real-life animosity between CZw and ROH fasn, as well as Chris Hero's status as the best indie wrestler never to work for ROH and this angle blurs the line between shoot and work perfectly and has crated a buzz around both companies like never before. Looking to ruin ROH's 4th birthday celebrations, Hero claims no-one in ROH can stop him, which brings out ROH legend Samoa Joe and in turn helps elevate this feud from the mid card to one that concerns the true big guns of ROH. As ROH's locker room fights off the CZW invaders, the Briscoes come out and atack tag team champions Roderick Strong and Austin Aries who are out defneding ROH's honour. As former members of the CZW locker-room, many fans at the show believed this was the Briscoe's defecting, however it was actually them making their future intentions clear. A Briscoes vs. GenNext match has the potential to be a true classic and will really help the duo of Aries and Strong cement their position as one of the very best tag team combinations in ROH history.
As the brawl between the two tag teams escalated, Homicide and Colt Cabana brawl out into the ring. This feud has seen Cabana show a new violent sign to his persona as this good old fashioned rivalry based on respect has featured some crazy moments, including Homicide attempting to strangle Colt, cut his tongue out with scissors and even trying to poison him with drain cleaner. This ghetto fight was supposed to resolve the matter by introducing an 'I quit' clause to the match, however after crazy brawl which was ended by the referree on three seperate occassion when he deemed Cabana unable to continue despite his claims on the mic that Homicide would have to kill him to end the match. Ultimately, it was a piledriver through a ringside table that saw Cabana unable to continue, however this feud has really helped develop Caban into a more well-rounded character and not just the goofy comedy characters.While Homicide once again proves that he is the true star-maker of ROH as he goes above and beyond in the ring to get his opponents over.
The Ring of Honor world title match was next with, American Dragon Bryan Danielson facing off against Jimmy Rave. Rave, who has developed from hated babyface mid carder to top heel in the company thanks to his association with eveil Ghanian dictator Price Nana, earned his world title match by winning ROH's annual Trios Tournament where each member of the winning team gets to book thri own match. Over the past 2 yaesr, Rave has become truly excellent in his role as the cowardly heel and going in against a champion the calibre of Bryan Danielson this match was set to be a truly great encounter. Since winning the belt at Glory by Honor 4 in September 2005, Danielson has risen to his new found role as top-dog in ROH and become a truly fascinating wrestling character. Arrogant beyond belief, the cocky world champ can be either unbearably obnoxious or supremely gifted, depending on whether his opponent is a babyface or heel. By having a tweener, or rather neutral, champ, it makes for a fascinating dynamic in world title matches as Danielson is not limited to working against certain opponents. When facing a guy like Rave who relies on cheating heel tactics, Danielson relies on his mat based wrestling which is second to none. Whereas when working against more 'clean cut' wrestlers such as Roderick Strong, Danielson will cut corners and heel it up to the fans by refusing to conform to their expectations.
However, none of this takes away from the fact that Danielson is respected by the ROH fans and makes for a truly great ROH champion. As such, this meeting of the arrogant, cheating challenger with the equally arrogant champion, made for a fantastic mntch. Rave and manager Nana used all their traditional cheating tactics, which frustrated Danielson to the point that he knocks Rave out with Mixed Martial Arts styles elbows to the face. However this was not until after a fantastic wrestling match that saw Rave put on the kind of showing that proves he really does belong in the main event of ROH.
In keeping with the emphasis of tag team wrestling in ROH, this meant the tag title match was the main event, with current champs Austin Aries and Roderick Strong taking on the phenomenal AJ Styles and his protege Matt Sydal. Sydal is a fantastic up and coming high flyer, who many are comparing with a young AJ Styles, however the story for this match was based around Sydal teaming with Styles against his fellow Generation Next team mates, Aries and Strong. Before we got to that match though, we had a quick interlude with Jack Evans of Gewneration Next taking on the Rottwielers' Ricky Reyes. Moved up the card due to Evans' late arrival on a flight from Japan, this match was part of an ongoing feud between the Rottweilers and Generation Next. The combination of the power house Ricky Reyes and Jack Evans, the dynamic high flyer who can take a ridiculous amount of punishment made this a pretty decent match. However the stanbd out moment (whethr it is good or bad) was a sick bump maded by Evans who was attempted a 450 springboard off the top rtope onto Reyes on the floor, where Reyes missed catching Evans who ended up landed almost full force on his back on concrete. Once again Evans, defies the laws of gravity and the common snese of a normal match and carries on, ultimately tapping out to Reyes' dragon sleeper.
That leaves us with our main event. On paper this had classic written all over it, with many making comparison to the fantastic series of matches AJ Styles and then partner Amazing Red had with the Briscoes in early 2003. Unfortunately this match failed to live up to the expectations and was a lot more methodical in approach than many expected., That is not to say that it is a bad match, rather that it lacked the flair and excitement that having these four in the ring should ellicit. It ended up being a really fun match with both sets of guys going all out and putting on a really great main event. This really is the kind of match that can help get tag team wrestling back into the mainstream in North America and with Aries and Strong ROH have possibly the besat tag team champions they have ver had. A perfect combination of power an athelticism that complimenting each other so well. Strong had a great run as a tag team performer in 2004 with Jack Evans at his side, however Evans was never believable as a championship partner due to his flippy style and tendancy to take all the bumps and high spots. However with Austin Aries, Strong has a high-flying partner who can also execute the hard impact side of wrestling as well as him. With the calibre of opposition these guys are being lined up to face then the future is looking bright for tag team wrestling in ROH and this was a great way to finish off another fantastic year for ROH.
Overall verdict: B+
"Some great matches although no genuine classics. Rave vs. Dragon was close, as was the main event, however neither sparkled enough to be deemed a true great. On the pluside, there was also no bad matches on this show and by mixing the matches up with clips reviewing the past 12 month of ROH action this makes for a great DVD. A fantastic start to the Milestone series and a great jumping on point for new ROH fans."
The show opens with former ROH tag team champions, Sal Rinauro and Tony Malmaluke facing off against New England newcomers, Jason Blade and Kid Mikaze. Only to be interrupted by the reunring duo of Jay and Mark Brisco who make their return to ROH after an extended absence due to Mark's motorcycle crash in summer 2004. This leads to a glorifed squash of both teams as the Briscoes return to ROH competition with the same dynamic tag team wrestling that saw them rise to the top of ROH cards before they left. The return of the Briscoes is a huge bonus to ROH as the threat of TNA talent being pulled looms constantly in the background. Despite being on of the very best tage teams in wrestling today, the Briscoes have yet to earn the attentions of TNA or WWE and so with ROH putting an increased importance of tag team wrestling in 2006, this is a fantastic addition to their increasingly strong tag team division.
Next up is one of ROH's taples, a 4 Corner Survival featuring Adam Pearce, Claudio Casatgnoli, Jay Fury and Azrael. Essentially this is the Pearce and Double C show as the old school heel antics of the Scrap Daddy clash with the European style of Claudio. Both guys are becoming huge players for ROH in 2006 and this is the kind of match that realy shows these guys will be big stars in the future. Jay Fury and Azrael are essentially there to make up the numbers, however Fury shows some nice flourishes that show why is a regular in ROH's sister promotion, Full Impact Pro.
Follwing a brief promo where female manager/number one business woman in ROH, Lacey, attempts to offer inside information on her former charge, BJ Whitmer to his oppennt for the night, Christopher Daniels, we have ROH legend Samoe Joe face off with former protege Jay Lethal. After Lethal turned on his former teacher a month or so ago, Joe has been loking for revenge. However the match was overshadowed in the weeks building up to this show by Lethal being 'fired' by booker Gabe Sapolsky. As such, this match lacked much of the heat that their previous matches had (especially their Pure Title match at Manhatten Mayhem) and Joe earned the win cleanly after a decidedly flat match.
Next was a grudge match strecthing back to 2003, with former prophecy partners BJ Whitmer and Chris Daniels attempting to settle their differences once and for all. This match soon broke down and the pair brawled into the crowd, at which point CZW's Chris Hero and Necro Butcher rusehd the ring and began taunting the crowd. The feud between Hero/CZW and ROH began back in November with Hero challenging ROH champion Bryan Danielson and this has since becoe one of the hottest angles ROH has booked. Playing into to real-life animosity between CZw and ROH fasn, as well as Chris Hero's status as the best indie wrestler never to work for ROH and this angle blurs the line between shoot and work perfectly and has crated a buzz around both companies like never before. Looking to ruin ROH's 4th birthday celebrations, Hero claims no-one in ROH can stop him, which brings out ROH legend Samoa Joe and in turn helps elevate this feud from the mid card to one that concerns the true big guns of ROH. As ROH's locker room fights off the CZW invaders, the Briscoes come out and atack tag team champions Roderick Strong and Austin Aries who are out defneding ROH's honour. As former members of the CZW locker-room, many fans at the show believed this was the Briscoe's defecting, however it was actually them making their future intentions clear. A Briscoes vs. GenNext match has the potential to be a true classic and will really help the duo of Aries and Strong cement their position as one of the very best tag team combinations in ROH history.
As the brawl between the two tag teams escalated, Homicide and Colt Cabana brawl out into the ring. This feud has seen Cabana show a new violent sign to his persona as this good old fashioned rivalry based on respect has featured some crazy moments, including Homicide attempting to strangle Colt, cut his tongue out with scissors and even trying to poison him with drain cleaner. This ghetto fight was supposed to resolve the matter by introducing an 'I quit' clause to the match, however after crazy brawl which was ended by the referree on three seperate occassion when he deemed Cabana unable to continue despite his claims on the mic that Homicide would have to kill him to end the match. Ultimately, it was a piledriver through a ringside table that saw Cabana unable to continue, however this feud has really helped develop Caban into a more well-rounded character and not just the goofy comedy characters.While Homicide once again proves that he is the true star-maker of ROH as he goes above and beyond in the ring to get his opponents over.
The Ring of Honor world title match was next with, American Dragon Bryan Danielson facing off against Jimmy Rave. Rave, who has developed from hated babyface mid carder to top heel in the company thanks to his association with eveil Ghanian dictator Price Nana, earned his world title match by winning ROH's annual Trios Tournament where each member of the winning team gets to book thri own match. Over the past 2 yaesr, Rave has become truly excellent in his role as the cowardly heel and going in against a champion the calibre of Bryan Danielson this match was set to be a truly great encounter. Since winning the belt at Glory by Honor 4 in September 2005, Danielson has risen to his new found role as top-dog in ROH and become a truly fascinating wrestling character. Arrogant beyond belief, the cocky world champ can be either unbearably obnoxious or supremely gifted, depending on whether his opponent is a babyface or heel. By having a tweener, or rather neutral, champ, it makes for a fascinating dynamic in world title matches as Danielson is not limited to working against certain opponents. When facing a guy like Rave who relies on cheating heel tactics, Danielson relies on his mat based wrestling which is second to none. Whereas when working against more 'clean cut' wrestlers such as Roderick Strong, Danielson will cut corners and heel it up to the fans by refusing to conform to their expectations.
However, none of this takes away from the fact that Danielson is respected by the ROH fans and makes for a truly great ROH champion. As such, this meeting of the arrogant, cheating challenger with the equally arrogant champion, made for a fantastic mntch. Rave and manager Nana used all their traditional cheating tactics, which frustrated Danielson to the point that he knocks Rave out with Mixed Martial Arts styles elbows to the face. However this was not until after a fantastic wrestling match that saw Rave put on the kind of showing that proves he really does belong in the main event of ROH.
In keeping with the emphasis of tag team wrestling in ROH, this meant the tag title match was the main event, with current champs Austin Aries and Roderick Strong taking on the phenomenal AJ Styles and his protege Matt Sydal. Sydal is a fantastic up and coming high flyer, who many are comparing with a young AJ Styles, however the story for this match was based around Sydal teaming with Styles against his fellow Generation Next team mates, Aries and Strong. Before we got to that match though, we had a quick interlude with Jack Evans of Gewneration Next taking on the Rottwielers' Ricky Reyes. Moved up the card due to Evans' late arrival on a flight from Japan, this match was part of an ongoing feud between the Rottweilers and Generation Next. The combination of the power house Ricky Reyes and Jack Evans, the dynamic high flyer who can take a ridiculous amount of punishment made this a pretty decent match. However the stanbd out moment (whethr it is good or bad) was a sick bump maded by Evans who was attempted a 450 springboard off the top rtope onto Reyes on the floor, where Reyes missed catching Evans who ended up landed almost full force on his back on concrete. Once again Evans, defies the laws of gravity and the common snese of a normal match and carries on, ultimately tapping out to Reyes' dragon sleeper.
That leaves us with our main event. On paper this had classic written all over it, with many making comparison to the fantastic series of matches AJ Styles and then partner Amazing Red had with the Briscoes in early 2003. Unfortunately this match failed to live up to the expectations and was a lot more methodical in approach than many expected., That is not to say that it is a bad match, rather that it lacked the flair and excitement that having these four in the ring should ellicit. It ended up being a really fun match with both sets of guys going all out and putting on a really great main event. This really is the kind of match that can help get tag team wrestling back into the mainstream in North America and with Aries and Strong ROH have possibly the besat tag team champions they have ver had. A perfect combination of power an athelticism that complimenting each other so well. Strong had a great run as a tag team performer in 2004 with Jack Evans at his side, however Evans was never believable as a championship partner due to his flippy style and tendancy to take all the bumps and high spots. However with Austin Aries, Strong has a high-flying partner who can also execute the hard impact side of wrestling as well as him. With the calibre of opposition these guys are being lined up to face then the future is looking bright for tag team wrestling in ROH and this was a great way to finish off another fantastic year for ROH.
Overall verdict: B+
"Some great matches although no genuine classics. Rave vs. Dragon was close, as was the main event, however neither sparkled enough to be deemed a true great. On the pluside, there was also no bad matches on this show and by mixing the matches up with clips reviewing the past 12 month of ROH action this makes for a great DVD. A fantastic start to the Milestone series and a great jumping on point for new ROH fans."
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