Cult of ROH: The New Administration (A Special Edition)

Columns, News

I don’t normally write list-articles or bullet-point features here, but with ROH releasing its first Newswire not written by Gabe Sapolsky, it seems pertinent to look at how they’re presenting themselves. Are they radically changing? Is it for the better? Below is the full text of the Newswire, complete with analysis by yours truly.

October 27th: If you haven’t heard already, ROH legend Samoa Joe returns for one night only on Saturday, November 22nd in Chicago Ridge, IL. Joe will be part of the non-PPV portion of the event. Already announced for this event are Nigel McGuinness (if still champion) defending the ROH World Title against Bryan Danielson and Jimmy Jacobs vs. Austin Aries in a Dog Collar Match. Tickets are now on sale.

-Samoa Joe returning for one night is a nice move on two levels: it gives the fans of Chicago something huge, and it brings back a beloved face in a time when people are anxious over the departure of another. Even if he became a semi-regular Joe wouldn’t neutralize a change in direction, but it is emotionally comforting. The rest of this little paragraph promises McGuinness/Danielson for the title in what could be a Match of the Year candidate, and more of the strong in-ring program between Jacobs and Aries. Hard to hate the “new” ROH when it opens with something like this. The one slip is that Aries and Jacobs were originally supposed to have an “I Quit” match on Saturday, with the Dog Collar Match happening on Friday. This could either be a slip of the new writer, or a change in the plan.

October 27th: Recent reliable sources claim that bitter foes Roderick Strong and Erick Stevens have been seen together recently in intense discussion. When approached, Erick Stevens only smiled and said, “Desperate times…”.

-We saw this coming months in advance, but they’re moving towards a Stevens/Strong reconciliation over their individual feuds with Sweet & Sour Inc. The two could make a great regular tag team if ROH wants them, and it makes sense that they would try to work together, even grudgingly, when facing such numbers. This also suggests that the December Cage Warfare match is still on, however mildly, which also suggests something about ROH’s in-ring style not changing as drastically as has been speculated this week. But most importantly is that if these two are reconciling over their previous feud then ROH is recognizing its history, and if they are doing it in reaction to threats from Sweet & Sour Inc., then ROH isn’t dropping storylines. More than anything, this paragraph says we’re not looking at a reboot.

October 27th: The Briscoe Brothers have had an open contract for ROH’s Montreal debut for some time. In surprising news, newcomer Kenny Omega has signed the “dotted line” but as of now does not currently have a partner. We’ll have more on this as it develops.

-Frankly, it makes great sense that a rookie who wants a roster spot should grab a dangling contract. Kenny Omega has received some of the most positive live and critical reactions to his try-outs, so booking him to be the rookie to grab it is a solid choice. Given the right partner Omega could make a nice splash that night, in a good match or in an upset victory (the latter being much less likely). And once again, rumors of a serious style change in ROH are hard to swallow if Omega is the first rookie the new administration is tapping.

October 27th: Kevin Steen is excited for the prospect of becoming a double champion in ROH. If he can somehow outlast his other 2 challengers and supplant Nigel McGuinness in Montreal he’ll accomplish just that. “I’m so proud to be champion for ROH,” Steen said, “but being THE champion would mean that much more. What better a place than in my own stomping grounds to make history.”

-Steen is probably not going to be a double champion, but devoting a paragraph to his desire makes sense. Of course he wants it, and it’s one of the major accolades (along with two-time ROH Champ) ROH has yet to bestow on anyone. At this point all the new administration’s Newswire has done is reinforce storylines and remind us of upcoming matches, maybe a little more efficiently than the overworked Mr. Sapolsky used to.

October 27th: Nigel McGuinness, meanwhile, won’t find anything any easier should be remain champion after Montreal. He’s signed on to face the Necro Butcher in Toronto title match or not. The Butcher has been a one-man wrecking crew since going on his own without the Age of the Fall, and now has McGuinness, and potentially the World Title in his sights. But before he gets that opportunity, he’ll have to get past the challenge of the newest AOTF member, the mammoth Brodie Lee, in Montreal.

-Again, existing matches will be honored. Outside of a possible slip-up in claiming the Dog Collar Match is on PPV instead of the I Quit, most top-flight ROH matches that have been announced are still happening. Lee Vs. Butcher should titillate other fans as well.

October 27th: Bryan Danielson has requested a meeting with ROH officials to discuss his involvement in Toronto’s event.

-Great that Danielson will be in Canada. Like Joe returning, just seeing Danielson on events will help soothe some fans. If he’s in the proper match and given the proper time, he’ll deliver something that will make Toronto fans return whenever ROH does.

October 27th: The Big Ten Sale is back at www.rohwrestling.com. Included in the sale is over 100 Ring of Honor DVD’s priced at $10 each. You can also get general admission tickets to events in Montreal, Toronto, Dayton, Chicago Ridge, St. Louis, and Nashville for $10 each. On top of that, you can save 10% off your next order.

-It wouldn’t be a Newswire without a sale! And especially given the recent grim relevations about ROH’s financial situation, I recommend anybody who cares for this company at least open their wallets for the $10 deal. If you don’t have Dragon Gate Challenge, Better Than Our Best, Unified, Anarchy in the U.K. or Manhattan Mayhem 2, now’s the time to grab some at ten bucks a pop. And really, why don’t you have those shows?

-Even more reassuring is that Dayton, St. Louis and Nashville are all still on. If attendence is poor you may never see ROH in those places again, but at least for now it doesn’t look like the new administration is slashing promised dates.

October 27th: There are three new videos posted at www.rohvideos.com. You can check out a video on the Briscoes vs. Steen/Generico feud, a preview of the Four Way ROH World Title Match upcoming in Montreal, along with Grizzley Redwood vs. Chasyn Rance from 9/19 in Boston, MA.

-Redwood Vs. Rance isn’t much of a match, but totally worth your coffee break today. Redwood is Mitch Franklin under a Lumberjack gimmick, complete with a hunk of wood he holds like a trophy and axehandle-based offense.

October 27th: Look for more frequent news updates to the Ring of Honor website from this point forward. We also plan to give the fans a lot more video features to view as well.

-This could have been part of the previous paragraph, and it’s only a good sign. More video features are fun, but more news updates creates transparency with their fanbase. In a time when they need to reassure the audience they look to be doing that. This is a good sign. Now it’s up to the execution.

All in all, this little window into a post-Sapolsky ROH isn’t drastically different. The Newswire itself is more coherent than usual, with a lost of focus on the characters who could make great matches. We’ll have to see the new shows ourselves to know what’s happening and how much of the current speculation is true. Are they bringing in Kenny Omega for 70’s style low-risk wrestling? We’ll find out in a couple of weeks.