Moments Ago
Stream of Consciousness Rules
Well another fortnight has passed and it is time for the return of Moments Ago. I had a few different ideas for this column, one of them being the event on Long Island, the weather and other circumstances kept me from attending, so I can’t comment directly on the quality of the event, I may still talk about this later. I also thought about writing about the burgeoning feud between RoH and CZW. The last topic of concern to me relates to the Ring of Honor show on 2/11, that being the choice of several RoH wrestlers on whether or not to leave early for the TNA pay-per-view the next night. So I guess rather than focus on one I will address all three.
Ring of Honor hyped the bejeezus out of the show on February 11 saying that it would be one of the most talked about events, and an absolute cannot miss event. Hype, as we have seen, is a double edged sword. Without hype, no one will attend an event; too much hype will unfairly raise fans expectations and result in disappointment. For those who do not follow Ring of Honor, the big match hyped for this show was Roderick Strong (easily the most improved wrestler over the last six months or so) and Low Ki. This match promised to be hard hitting and hotly contested. It was also supposed to be part of the Generation Next/Rottweilers feud which has been brewing as far back as last year’s trios tournament. The match did not happen, and I addressed that topic in last week’s column.
The surprise however, was a big one, was a huge one, was something pretty gosh darn spectacular. A wrestler under a developmental deal with the WWE made an appearance and wrestled a match. That man of course was CM Punk, a true icon of independent wrestling and specifically of Ring of Honor. That was one hell of a surprise… But, Ring of Honor hyped it like it was going to change the face of wrestling. It is a rare situation and a rare individual that can change the face of wrestling, and usually when it happens, no hype could have preceded it and no one could have predicted it.
If you look at some of the events that have changed the face of wrestling, with the exception of maybe the first Wrestlemania, few of them were billed as such. Hogan’s alignment with the nWo, Stone Cold uttering, “Austin 3:16 means I just whipped your ass” for the first time, and others were not marketed as events that would change wrestling forever, but they did. Saying something will have a huge impact is a difficult thing to say. If it is a huge impact, then mission accomplished. If it isn’t, it is bad news.
Ring of Honor has lived up to its own hype many times, but as commentators on countless wrestling matches have said, “He went to the well one too many times.” I think that is the case here. I am sure the show was entertaining, Ring of Honor always is. But the event was just another really good show, and not the talk of the wrestling world, or at least not in a good way.
The show was met with a lot of criticisms and some, namely the Declaration of Independents, theorized that Ring of Honor shut down their boards due to the negativity that was prevailing throughout. But the boards falling were just another shot in the growing war between Combat Zone Wrestling and Ring of Honor. Chris Hero supposedly shut down the Ring of Honor Message Boards.
This feud is brilliant. I have said it before and I will say it again…BRILLIANT! Chris Hero and Necro Butcher, two men who have generated interest for very different reasons around the independent scene, are now part of the top independent company. They are invading it, and trying to destroy it, but they are part of it nonetheless. Chris Hero has continued the war by appearing on Ring of Honor’s spots on the WB morning show in New York City, and has left more cryptic messages in his live journal about possibly appearing at the fourth anniversary show this weekend. This is a feud that is almost impossible to predict its direction. It is a wrestling feud that is truly unique to today’s wrestling fans.
The Fourth Anniversary Show has the potential to be a turning point for Ring of Honor. It is a show that Ring of Honor will be making its name with its own stars on its own terms on the Fourth Anniversary of its debut. In addition, there is the underlying of the feud against CZW, and many other possibilities. It should be a great show, and I will be glad to be in attendance.
The last issue that has been facing members of the Ring of Honor roster is the growing popularity of TNA and its effect on Ring of Honor. The northeast was struck by a vicious storm and TNA, in an effort to protect their assets asked Alex Shelley, Austin Aries, Roderick Strong, Homicide, and Jay Lethal to take an early flight to ensure that they made the show on time. Homicide, Lethal and Shelley agreed, but Strong and Aries, both of whom were in the midst of a decent push in TNA opted to stick out the RoH show and try to fly down the next day. As those of you that watched Against All Odds saw, Aries and Strong did make the show in time. Aries revealed on his website, that although they made the show they were late for their scheduled arrival and were, as a result punished.
Was this punishment fair? I say no, but then again, I am a huge fan of Aries and Strong, and think it stinks that they won’t be on TV for two months. But at the same time, they went against the boss, and the person who signs the pay checks has ultimate power. I appreciate them working the RoH show, especially for the fans in attendance that I am sure appreciate them even more. Still they were punished, and I just hope their push picks up where it left off.
In closing this issue of Moments Ago, I am going to explain precisely why the Fourth Anniversary Show is truly can’t miss for fans of great wrestling.
The first main event features AJ Styles and Matt Sydal against the RoH tag team champions of Austin Aries and Roderick Strong (Generation Next)
This match needs very little hype. AJ Styles is just AJ Styles, and his partner, Matt Sydal, is one of the hottest young wrestlers on the independent scene. Also Matt Sydal is a member of Generation Next his opponents for this affair. This should be a very action packed match with a perfect mixture of strikes/technical wrestling, and high flying.
The second main event is for the Ring of Honor World Title as Bryan Danielson defends against Jimmy Rave. This is intriguing for a few reasons. Jimmy Rave is truly a heat magnet and has been an amazing heel over the past year plus. Bryan Danielson has also been working as a very cocky heelish wrestler since he won the title, but he will be the babyface against Rave here. Any match with Danielson is always entertaining, and this should be no different.
The next big match is the Ghetto Fight between Homicide and Colt Cabana. Homicide’s shoulder is healthy, and that means that he will be able to end his feud with Colt Cabana. This feud has been amazing from start to finish bringing out a violent side of Colt to match up against the villainous Homicide. The rules for this one appear to be a No Holds Barred match that must be won by submission. The feud has been going on for the better part of six months. Colt has played mind games and Homicide has fed Colt draino, yes draino, so this will be a violent match to say the least.
Two grudge matches also appear on the card. The first features Samoa Joe taking on Jay Lethal, while this may be a squash on impact this is the continuation of a mentor vs. protégé feud that has seen Jay Lethal show a mean streak turning on Joe leading up to this match. The other is a battle of former Prophecy members (arguably the top heel stable in Ring of Honor history) as Christopher Daniels takes on BJ Whitmer. Whitmer after being in successful tag teams with Dan Maff as part of the Prophecy and Jimmy Jacobs, prior to joining Lacey’s Angels, is out to prove himself better than his former leader. Chris Daniels is one of my favorite wrestlers, and always delivers. This match should be great
The aforementioned Generation Next vs. The Rottweilers feud starts off with Jack Evans taking on Ricky Reyes. Evans is the most spectacular high flyer going and Reyes has been destroying almost all of his opponents in mere seconds.
The show has two other matches that showcase some of the newer blood in Ring of Honor. The first is a four corner survival featuring Claudio Castagnoli, Adam Pearce, Jay Fury, and Azrieal. Claudio could be a big player in the CZW feud as he is one half of a tag team with none other than Chris Hero in CZW. Adam Pearce is an old school heel that has sided with Ring of Honor in previous encounters with CZW. Jay Fury has been making waves in RoH’s sister promotion Full Impact Pro wrestling out of Florida, and Azrieal has been in RoH for a long time, and has put on entertaining matches before, this should be no different. The other match features former RoH tag champs Tony Mamaluke and Sal Rinauro taking on Northeast indie team Kid Mikaze and Jason Blade.
The last reason to see this show, besides the potential for a flare up in the CZW war is the return to RoH of the Jay and Mark the Briscoe brothers. The Briscoes have put on some of the best matches, tag team or otherwise in Ring of Honor history, and after injuries and personal commitments have put them on the shelf for over a year they will finally make their return.
Wow, for me thinking I had nothing to write about I have put out my longest column yet. I guess that will do it for me, you can e-mail all questions and comments to
bigandymac@yahoo.com
I’ll see you next time
