So, admittedly I was too busy celebrating my birthday last night and forgot all about this. Regardless, I'm watching it now, so let's get to it.
Jay Briscoe vs. Rhett Titus
In a surprising change of events, we have Titus facing Briscoe as opposed to the originally scheduled Brody King. Following a beatdown on the outside, Briscoe seems to be firmly in control, with Titus doing his best to fight back (displaying his impressive athleticism in the process). After a brutal neckbreaker and a lariat, Briscoe spikes Titus with the Jay Driller to pick up the quick W.
This was a weird one, if only for the fact Briscoe was playing a face when he and his brother Mark are two of the top heels in ROH. Despite this, it was a pretty okay way to start the show off, elevated no doubt by one of my top boys (OSW Review definition) Rhett Titus.
Dalton Castle & The Boys vs. Shinobi Shadow Squad (Cheeseburger, Eli Isom & Ryan Nova)
Castle starts the match off in complete control, working Nova over until Isom is tagged in, who's surprisingly gained a considerable amount of momentum in ROH in recent time. One of the Boys is tagged in (they're interchangeable, so I'm just going to use 1 and 2 randomly throughout) only to be met with tandem offense from S3, who do an impressive job of executing quick tags and tandem offense.
With a quick distraction, Boy 2 is subbed in and the tides have turned to Castle's side in this match, showing much more aggression as they go to work on top boy Cheeseburger. Isom eventually gets the hot tag and displays quick, impressive offense. After some miscommunication between Castle and the Boys, Isom manages to plant him with a brainbuster, securing the victory for his team.
Castle's in a weird place at the moment. After being handed several L's in recent time, it seems like they're teasing a heel turn, and I don't know if it'll work. But that's just douchey speculation diverting you away from the actual match, which was better than it any reason to be. Having only recently formed, S3 work impressively well as a unit and I'm unironically excited to see what the future holds for them in ROH. The chemistry between both teams was surprisingly crisp, putting on a solid tag match. Nothing mind-blowing, but a pretty fun watch.
Zack Sabre, Jr. vs. Colt Cabana
It's a game of chess at the start as both men trade holds and trash talk, trying to get into each other's heads. The match is surprisingly evenly-matched as neither ZSJ nor Cabana holds the advantage for too long; both men always seem to have an instant answer for the other. After another long exchange, Cabana surprisingly gets the edge up on ZSJ as he works the body of his opponent (back, arms and legs in particular).
Growing frustrated at Cabana's technical work, ZSJ starts to pepper in more strikes as throws a series of uppercuts to Cabana, who takes it in stride as he puts ZSJ in his Billy Goat's Curse submission finisher. ZSJ fights out of it and throws more uppercuts at Cabana before nailing him with a penalty kick. Cabana's frustration mounts as he throws straight punches at ZSJ, who takes it as he regains his cool and reverts back to his technical ways. He works Cabana over for a bit before making him submit to a triangle/kimura combination for the win.
Best match of the card so far, without a doubt. I'm not too familiar with Cabana's work as a wrestler (I've always heard of it bu never really watched it outside a few matches), but given his performance in this match, I was absolutely impressed and am looking forward to seeing more of his work in the future. Like any ZSJ match, the technical aspect was absolutely on point as both men went hold for hold throughout, always finding counters and constantly trading momentum throughout. An impressive display from both men here.
Silas Young vs. Willie Mack vs. Kenny King vs. Marty Scurll, Four-Corner Survival
Mack and Scurll start the match out teaming up on King then Young, forming a brief alliance. Young and King pull them out of the ring and fight each other one-on-one for a bit, trading off a sequence of counters. It's back to being Scurll/Mack once again as Mack attempts for a frog splash. Everyone else tries to superplex him to no avail; Mack hits all of them with a diving crossbody then a tope con hilo, seemingly getting the upper hand at this respite.
Mack continues to dominate with an impressive display of offense, dishing out clubbing blows to each competitor then giving a corner cannonball to Scurll and King. Young manages to halt it however, and it becomes anyone's ballgame once again with near-fall after near-fall, each wrestler getting their signature spots and exchanging counters. Scurll hopes to end the match with a crossface chickenwing to Young, only for King to bring a chair into the ring, distracting the referee. Unbeknownst to the official, King low-blows Scurll and rolls him up for the 3-count.
I had a lot of fun with this one. Lots of fast-paced, back-and-forth action, the kind I expect from these kinds of matches. Each wrestler was able to pull out their signature moves while also meshing well with each other chemistry-wise. Although everyone here looked strong, I'd say the overall MVP of the match was Willie Mack. I already love this guy from his work in Lucha Underground and Impact, and I'm beyond stoked to see more of him in ROH. A fun, quick match that doesn't disappoint.
Rocky Romero vs. Jeff Cobb, ROH World Television Championship Match
The match with a basic exchange of collar-and-elbow tie-ups and waist locks, Cobb seemingly nonplussed by the fact a man of Romero's size would even try to do this. Romero spends his time employing a stick-and-move strategy, dodging Cobb while throwing opportunistic elbow strikes. After a jumping knee strike off the apron, Romero gets Cobb back in the ring, who quickly recovers and starts working Romero over with his power advantage.
Cobb continues to dominate as Romero tries to fight back, first with a drop toe-hold into the turnbuckle then a second-rope tornado DDT. After a couple of his trademark corner clotheslines and a standing shiranui, it seems Romero may have turned the tables in this match. Romero tries to continue the momentum, only for Cobb to halt it once again. Desperation sinking in, Romero counters a powerbomb with a hurricanrana.
He begins laying to Cobb with various strikes and kicks, only for Cobb to find an answer every time. After ragdolling Romero with a couple of suplexes, Cobb hits him with the Tour Of The Islands and retains his title.
Best match of the night so far. While a bit hackneyed to call it this, an excellent "David and Goliath" style of fight. Romero is an incredibly underrated talent, and he proved it here with an incredible performance, pulling out all stops and utilizing his full arsenal. He seemed destined to lose, but he was damn sure going to up a fight. But let's not take anything away from Cobb either, who's amazing here as per usual. I like the direction they're going with him as a vulnerable beast; there are ways to weaken him, but they're just hard to find. A great bout, and I really hope these two work together again in the future.
Mayu Iwatani vs. Kelly Klein, Women Of Honor World Championship Match
The match starts off with Iwatani and Klein eschewing any rest hold tie ups and go straight into throwing hard strikes, Klein using her power to gain momentum over Iwatani. Klein starts working her over with numerous clubbing blows and hanging her up on the top rope. Iwatani tries to fight back with a series of dropkicks then a top-rope crossbody to the outside; Klein answers back with a german suplex on the outside.
Back in the ring, Iwatani becomes the aggressor, with various kicks and suplexes, turning the tables on Klein. Iwatani hits her with two consecutive moonsaults to pick up the victory and take the belt off Klein.
A solid match upped by the shocking conclusion. Given how they were pushing Klein since she won the title at Final Battle, it seemed like she'd be holding it for quite some time. And speaking frankly here, I honestly would've been satisfied with either outcome. By the quickness of the match, I venture to guess it isn't over between these two. I'd definitely be down to see more of them in the future, because this rivalry could potentially light a spark in WOH. Above all else, a solid match with a (welcome) surprise ending.
Lifeblood (Juice Robinson, Bandido, Tracy Williams and Mark Haskins) vs. Coast 2 Coast (LSG & Shaheem Ali) and The Bouncers (Beer City Bruiser & Brian Milonas)
The match starts off evenly matched as Haskins and Ali share a quick sequence before Williams and Bruiser are tagged in; Bruiser gets the upper hand on Williams to tag in LSG, who is quickly subdued while Williams tags in Bandido. The two wrestlers display some impressive agility before all eight men come to the ring and squabble before it's broken up. Milonas is tagged in who seemingly shifts the momentum to his team's favor, despite the best efforts of Bandido and Haskins.
Quick tags are made amongst C2C and The Bouncers as they work Haskins over. He avoids a double splash attempt from The Bouncers and tags Robinson in, who throws as much of his trademark offense at the opposing team as possible; tags are thrown throughout as each team tries to throw out as much offense as they can in order to gain an advantage. Further chaos ensues before Bandido hits LSG with an inverted Go 2 Sleep, then his patented 21-Plex to pick up the W for his team.
As I expected, this match was chaotic as all hell and at times I wasn't really sure what the hell was going on. But damn if it wasn't an entertaining watch; both teams showed solid chemistry, playing to each other's strengths and always managing to find fun and unique combinations throughout. If I had to pick overall MVPs of the match, I'd choose Haskins and LSG. Both put on great performances in their own way; Haskins with the overall workhorse endurance and LSG for throwing out impressive offense against such talents as Robinson and Bandido. Chaotic? Yes. Confusing? Somewhat. Fun? Absolutely.
PCO vs. Mark Briscoe
As predicted, this is less match and more of a straight-up fight from the get-go, as the two throw a barrage of brutal chops and kicks. PCO no-sells a couple of Briscoe clothesline, then hits a chokeslam and a second-rope tope con hilo. Following a couple of top-rope spots (including an impressive corkscrew senton from Briscoe), the two continue to brawl out on the outside. Briscoes plants PCO on the stage with a brutal powerbomb then sends him tumbling down the entrance with a big boot.
Briscoe manages to sneak in a couple of chair shots following a referee distraction, then hits PCO with the Froggy Bow. PCO kicks out, and after planting Briscoe with some sort of slam/driver combination, hits him with the moonsault to pick up the W.
When it comes to PCO matches, you really need to take them for what they are: brutal, chaotic and a little bit silly. This match fit that criteria, and was a damn fun ride in the process. Effective spots, realistic strikes and a completely wild feel from the start. All I can say is, this is the kind of match you'd usually expect from PCO, so if you're not on board from the start, you're probably not going to enjoy it. In my case, I love PCO, and this shit was definitely right up my alley.
The Kingdom (Matt Taven, TK O'Ryan and Vinny Marseglia) vs. Jay Lethal, Jonathan Gresham and Rush
It's main even time as the World Six-Man Tag Champs take on the World Champ Lethal, along with one of the fastest rising stars in ROH (Gresham) and one of ROH's newest acquirees and top international star Rush. Gresham and Marseglia start the match out with their usual fare (Gresham trying to employ his technical prowess and Marseglia attempting some mind games). Rush and O'Ryan are tagged and the action speeds up as both wrestler hit a rebound german suplex on the other, with Rush getting the upper hand after a dropkick.
After Lethal and Taven confront each other, it turns into a brawl on the outside between the two teams, leaving Rush to land a tope con hilo, taking out each competitor in the process. Despite this, the brawl on the outside continues, with neither team really getting the advantage. Eventually, it settles down as both of the legal men (O'Ryan and Rush) get back in the ring; The Kingdom single out Rush and start picking him apart.
Rush tags out, then Gresham, and in comes Lethal, who takes out The Kingdom with his trademark trio of suicide dives. Lethal, Gresham and Rush attempt to gain more momentum, but to no avail. After O'Ryan and Marseglia take out Gresham and Rush with their backdrop/rolling slam combo (called 10,000 Horses), Taven blocks a Lethal Injection attempt and plants Lethal with his Climax finisher to secure the victory for his team.
Post-match, a brawl breaks out between the entirety of the ROH roster. Absolute chaos ensues, then PCO hits a moonsault onto the roster, Villain Enterprises standing tall to end the show.
The match itself was a pretty decent one and a nice way to end the show. Nice back-and-forth action throughout, and it also did a fairly good job at furthering established feuds (Lethal and Taven, Rush's growing problems with The Kingdom). Furthermore, it accomplished its primary goal of displaying The Kingdom's strength as a unit. While Lifeblood and Villain Enterprises may pick up further momentum down the road, The Kingdom still rule the roost as far as stables go in ROH. Well-executed spots, flawless chemistry and a surprisingly clean finish.
And as far as the post-match brawl goes, it was pretty apparent that it was done to set up the feuds/matches for the 17th Anniversary PPV. It looks like so far we'll have Scurll/King (which I don't mind), Villain Enterprises/Briscoes (which kind of worries given Brody King was M.I.A from the event, but we'll see how it plays out) and Taven/Lethal in a belt unification of sorts (which I definitely dig, because Taven most definitely deserves the spotlight). Plus, the whole encounter gave us one more PCO moonsault, which is never a bad thing.
While nothing special, this was still a pretty fun show overall. It was a light appetizer to the meal I'm expecting 17th Anniversary to be. For, the overall MOTN would probably be Cobb/Romero, though I'm inclined to also throw Briscoe/PCO and the Four Corner match into the conversation as well. A solid PPV, a decent way to kill some free time.
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