Big Andy Mac’s RoH DVD Review: Supercard of Honor 3

Reviews, Wrestling DVDs

It has become Ring of Honor tradition to do shows the weekend of Wrestlemania in the same city as WWE holds their annual wrestling extravaganza. These shows often rank among the best of the Ring of Honor year. Supercard of Honor 3 has received so much praise that many consider it to be the greatest show in Ring of Honor’s short but storied history. Is it? Read on and find out…

Delirious vs. Go Shiozaki

The show wastes no time and starts with the opening contest. This was still early in Go’s run when he very much had something to prove. Delirious brings the comedy playing off the fact that Shiozaki-san’s name is also a command in English. Similarly to Delirious’ match with KENTA, the man from the Edge of Sanity calls for the ban of Go’s chops like he requested of KENTA’s kicks. After Delirious’ comedy subsides the match settles into the standard Go chop fest mixed in with Go’s suplex variations. Go eventually wins with the Go Flasher (similar to Matt Morgan’s “Hellavator”). This match was not bad, nor was it particularly good or memorable.

Winner: Go Shiozaki via pinfall; **1/2

We once again join Larry Sweeney and Shane Hagadorn kicking back in their private locker room. They proceed to talk about the Sweet and Sour Inc’s hostile takeover. Sweeney is always entertaining.

The YRR of Chasyn “Not Cocky” Rance, FIP Tag Champion Kenny King, and FIP Florida Heritage Champion Sal Rinauro with various young ladies vs. Bushwacker Luke, Alex “Sugarfoot” Payne, and D-I-N-G-O, Dingo is his Name-O

I should point out that the tallest person on the YRR side is one of the ladies. This is basically a palette cleansing comedy match to prep the fans for barrage of awesomeness that is about to follow. When I say barrage, I do in fact mean barrage. I will say this of the YRR, they work very well as a unit and have their gimmicks down pat. Bushwacker Luke pleases the crowd using Dingo and Sugarfoot as battering rams. They follow up with the march around the ring. This allows the YRR to capitalize hit a series of strikes on Dingo and get the duke. The match was fun, short, and entertaining.

Winners: The YRR via pinfall; **

The camera cuts to the end of the No Remorse Corps’ victory over the Vulture Squad taped for Pay per View. Sweeney makes his way to the ring and insults the fans before offering a spot to in Sweet and Sour Inc. to the tag champs Rocky Romero and Davey Richards while Roderick Strong is not present. Roddy’s absence does not last for long, and he once again informs Sweeney of his lack of interest. Nothing gets settled though as Erick Stevens charges the ring to attack Roderick while the Vulture Squad dispatches the other members of the NRC. This is kind of…

Roderick Strong vs. Erick Stevens

I say “kind of” because they were scheduled to have an FIP title match, but the bell never rings and they just fight. They brawl outside and Stevens BUSTS RODERICK’S CHEST OPEN WITH A CHOP!!!! The fans chant to ring the bell, but the referee gets taken out before anything can happen and the fight continues loaded with brutal awesomeness. The violence and blood in this “match” is just about as crazy as you could hope for. This is one of my favorite chapters in this storied feud. It wasn’t a match. They did not go for falls. They just beat the bejeezus out of each other. It was a great and unique way to put heat on the feud. It showed that there was more to it than winning, and that they just hated each other. For this chapter and their other actual matches this has to be in the running for the feud of the year, its only major competition coming from the rivalry between Danielson and McGuinness and the blood feud that is Jimmy Jacobs vs. Austin Aries. I don’t want to recount the spots in this match, but with all of the chair shots and big moves, the craziest spot to me is the CHOP TO THE FACE by Roderick to Stevens. Throughout the match fans alternately chant “ROH” and “FIP” which was really awesome to see. Not surprisingly, the crowd was electric through this entire show. The wildly awesome brawl continues until the rest of the NRC comes out to take out Erick Stevens and they eventually shave his Mohawk!! I guess that makes Roderick the winner?

Winner: Roderick Strong via head shaving; ****1/4

We get a short highlight video chronicling the Age of the Fall vs. Briscoes feud. RoH picks good clips, synchs them well with the license free music, but production is still one of their biggest weaknesses.

Relaxed Rules Match: The Age of the Fall of Jimmy Jacobs and Tyler Black with Lacey and Rain vs. Jay and Mark Briscoe

Jacobs gets on the mic and runs his typical pseudo-revolutionary tirade, which while clichéd is an absolute heat magnet. They use this time to introduce a “homeless man” (Milo Beasely from FIP/Naphtali from other Florida indies). He does his typical “crippled guy in wheelchair schtick” throughout the match to add some entertaining interference. Jacobs claims that this would be the end of the feud, but it would actually rage on for another 6 months.

They really should have just called this one what it was, a No Holds Barred match. Tiny Lister and Kurt Fuller should have made their presence felt. The crazy spots come fast and furious in this match. Selling on some level is ignored, but it gets a slight pass under the auspices of being charged by hatred. Really this is probably my favorite brawl through the crowd match in RoH history. The use of production equipment, chairs, tables, bleachers, trampolines, and Milo Beasely are truly inspiring. The editing in this match is what truly makes it. The camera switches really keep you up to date on the action, and you feel like you are in many places at once. The lack of commentary for the majority match also adds to its mystique. The crowd is 1000% behind the Briscoes, and we get to see some of their redneck supermen schtick as Jay pretty much holds off the former tag champs until Mark can recover from splashing Milo Beasely off the bleachers through a table. It eventually leads to the most amazing finish if you haven’t seen Marufuji and Sugiura vs. the Briscoes which is also on the Take No Prisoners DVD. Still, I think it is better executed here. That crazy finish gains the win for the Age of the Fall in one of the best brawls in a long time. The match gets hurt by the Briscoes continuous kickouts, but it is still just awesome.

Winners: The Age of the Fall via submission; ****1/2

We go to intermission and a bloody Erick Stevens saying that he will continue to go after Roderick Strong and take his FIP title.

Becky Bayless is with the Age of the Fall who talk about defeating the Briscoes and Lacey says she has a plan for Austin Aries. Yeah, we’ll see how that goes, Lacey.

RoH vs. Dragon Gate: BxB Hulk and Shingo vs. Kevin Steen and El Generico

The entrance for this match is one of the rare occasions where RoH’s lack of video production skills ends up with them “pulling a Homer.” BxB Hulk’s white entrance attire has an ethereal glow to it as he does his entrance dance. They really should have shelled out for some local dancers to complete his entrance. Steen does his best to mock BxB as he does his own dance. If the Briscoes vs. Age of the Fall isn’t a sure fire contender for tag team match of the year, this match is.

Even moreso than, Steenerico vs. Speed Muscle from the previous night, this match is all about two teams with identical dynamics. The crowd pleasing speed and flash paired with the big move flash. The early stages are all about Steen and Shingo trying to prove who has the most muscle, while Generico and BxB blow the audience’s collective mind with crazy dive and flippies. Steen and Generico also use a whole lot more double teams than normal to counter the speed/power combination of their Japanese counterparts. This is one of the closest instances of a mirror match has been presented in RoH. Sure BxB may have a few more flips, and Steen may have a few more waistline inches, but this match is two identical teams going at each other full throttle. My only gripe with this match is that the second half is pretty much all both teams going for home runs with the pinfalls being broken up. Its advantage over the previous night’s Steenerico match is that there are far more pinfall break ups and far fewer unbelievable kick outs. The match is still littered with overkill. The moves are outstanding, though. Shingo is eventually able to get Generico alone hit a series of crazy moves and score the Last Falconry (sit out arm capture Death Valley Driver pin) for the victory. The match is awesome, simply put.

Winner: Shingo and BxB Hulk via pinfall; ****1/4

We go back stage to silent footage of Stevens cleaning up his free hair cut. What an ingrate.

RoH World Championship Match: Austin Aries vs. Nigel McGuinness©

This is the follow up to the absolutely amazing contest they had the Rising Above Pay per View. This match is a testament to how great the Florida crowd was. They cheered who they were “supposed” to cheer for and booed in kind which really added an excellent atmosphere for the show. Nigel still had his share of supporters, but the heat going both ways for him was off the charts. This match does an excellent job of playing off their Rising Above match teasing the Heat Seeking Missile that led to a Nigel concussion. Still, it is a much more strike and submission based affair than their previous match having a lot of shoot style interactions. I hate to say that anything is standard about this fantastic contest, but it follows the standard set by many classic RoH world title matches, especially those of Nigel’s reign. Aries brings his absolute best, and I do mean best, to this match, but like everyone else Nigel has faced with the belt on the line, it is not enough. Nigel even escapes the Kick to the Head, Brainbuster, 450 combination that ended Samoa Joe’s title reign by getting his foot on the ropes. Nigel eventually scores the big win with a jawbreaker lariat. This is the epitome of what a world title match can be. It is just perfectly paced and booked throughout the match. I would really love to see Austin Aries get a third shot at the title once his feud with Jacobs is over.

Winner: Nigel McGuinness via pinfall; ****1/2

After the match the Age of the Fall make their presence known to once again taunt Aries and recruit him into the fold. Lacey goes as far as being willing to go home with Austin Aries and convince using her “unique” tools of persuasion. Tammy Sytch tries to once again dissuade Aries from joining the Age of the Fall, but Aries does not respond to her, and leaves with the nubile Lacey. Tammy gets a slap from Rain for her troubles. The Briscoe brothers then storm the ring to save the former Sunny.

Nigel McGuinness then cuts a super intense promo talking about how he is unbeatable as champion. So far he is still correct.

Dragon Gate Six Man 3: Typhoon of Dragon Kid, Ryo Saito, and CIMA vs. the Muscle Outlawz of Genki Horiguchi, Naruki Doi, and Masato Yoshino

These are the same six stars from the first electrifying Dragon Gate six man match with Horiguchi and CIMA switching sides. This match is a welcomed tradition of the ‘Mania weekend shows. They are similar in structure speed and intensity. This one is fast, wild, and intense. Like the first go ‘round this match is between two opposing factions as opposed to the almost random pairing in last year’s outing. These matches are unbelievably hard to recap, but the basics of it are the same every year. If you like incredibly fast paced action with crisp changes, and innovative team up moves, then you will love this match. If that is not your particular brand of vodka, then still watch the match because it is just awesome. Naruki Doi ends up getting the win for his team with the Muscular Bomb (a half nelson cradle waistlock joker driver/pile driver) on Dragon Kid for the win. After the match Genki Horiguchi refuses to shake hands.

Winners: The Muscle Outlawz via pinfall; ****1/4

After the match we get one more interview with Larry Sweeney talking about his hostile to the takeover.

Big Andy Mac’s Big Andy Final Thoughts: The big question is: “Is this show the best RoH show ever?” It is really hard to argue against it. Five out of seven matches clock in at over four stars. That is unreal! At the same time though I have a hard time counting this among the best for the same reason a greatest hits album should not be considered the best release by an artist. It is almost unparalleled in terms of matches appearing on one show in one night. Screw it. This is the best RoH show up until this point. Buy this show now. If you already own a copy, buy it and give it to a friend who doesn’t have it. Hell, buy two. While the abundance of Dragon Gate stars does not make it the best primer for RoH. Death before Dishonor 6 probably has that distinction. It is just awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome wrestling. So, yeah I liked the show.

If you want an alternate opinion check out John Wiswell’s take.

I’ll see you next time.