Welcome back to InsidePulse for this week’s ROH on HDNet Recap! I am your usual host, Kyle Sparks, and this week features what promises to be a solid six-man main event, as well as the revelation of a new alliance in Ring of Honor!
Before I get started this week, I want to be sure to send out some plugs. If you aren’t reading already, check out the great Ricardo Rochetti and his “10 Thoughts” column for ROH on HDNet. Every week I read it, and every week, I nod my head in agreement. Ricardo really knows his stuff, and I’m glad to be making up the Pulse Wrestling ROH team with him. In addition, you definitely have to check out Pulse Glazer’s Tuesday Morning Backlash column. He’s always got great ideas and opinions, and if you’re lucky, I sometimes do guest spots in the column! How can you go wrong?
**We open with the video package we saw from last week leading to the reveal of the Necro Butcher as the new Crown Jewel of The Embassy. I still think it’s great that Necro had shoes on for his announcement that he wouldn’t wrestle, but no shoes for his reveal, despite wearing a suit. And from that we go right to the ring, where Prince Nana and Ernesto Osiris are making their way out. Osiris looks like he raided Kerwin White’s wardrobe. They take the mic from Bobby Cruise (black shirt/red tie) as we go to the intro! Here comes the rush!
Your Hosts are, as always, Dave Prazak and Mike Hogewood.
**That gap seemed unnecessary. Especially for a taped show. But whatever. Nana sees the toilet paper as the people “taking craps all over (your)selves,” and that’s why it smells so awful there. Sound logic. There appears to be an “enhancement talent” in the ring. This likely won’t end well. Nana is a forgiving man who forgives and forgets, especially when it comes to the dollar bill. Nana introduces Necro, who comes out in no shirt, jean shorts, no shoes, sunglasses and the Embassy robe. It’s a unique combination, I’ll give it that. Enhancement talent Bobby Beverly actually gets a nameplate, but I sincerely doubt it’ll do him much good. Necro having a rolex too as part of the ring entrance gear is fantastic.
**Necro Butcher vs. Bobby Beverly
Necro jumps Beverly from behind right away and just mauls him. This is the violent, nasty, heel Necro we saw with the Age of the Fall and I love it. Necro’s “Butcher’s Rules” deal with Jim Cornette still applies and looks even more brilliant now, because now he’s an uncontrollable monster. Beverly gets tossed, and when he tries to get back in, Osiris runs the distraction, and Necro boots him off into the guardrail, and as he poses, Osiris and Nana beat him up more. Osiris gives Necro a chair which he throws into the midsection of Beverly, and then hits the chair-assisted bodyslam. Necro has a hillbilly violence party in the corner and hits a bulldog onto the chair for a self-imposed 2. Necro gets another chair, and hits a chokeslam on it, and floats into an ugly tiger driver on it for the pin.
Necro Butcher def. Bobby Beverly via tiger driver in 3:05.
Just a squash to establish that (1) Butcher is back, and (2) He is as violent as ever. He may carry out that “pile up bodies to the sky” promise. (1/2*)
**Post match, the beatdown continues, as they show a replay of the finish, complete with Mike Hogewood offering the saddest “slap the porpoise” ever, and Necro hits his two-chair backbreaker.
**Now we cut to the video package for Jerry Lynn & Delirious against the All-Night Express from last week we saw to announce the six-man tag for tonight. And sure enough, it gives us a reminder that tonight we will have Jerry Lynn and Delirious teaming with ROH World Champion Tyler Black against Austin Aries and the All-Night Express.
**Now Eddie Edwards hits the ring for this week’s installment of the Eddie Edwards Ten Minute Hunt ™, complete with high-school skill level graphic. He cuts a mediocre promo, and brings out our next victim, Andy “Right Leg” Ridge, who actually gets entrance music! Eddie mispronounces his name as well, and with Andy being from Staten Island, NY, Eddie won’t like that. Boston, and all…
**Eddie Edwards “10 Minute Hunt” – Eddie Edwards vs. Andy “Right Leg” Ridge
Sure enough, Eddie decks him with the microphone to start, claiming Ridge will probably last longer with the last girl he had sex with than he will against Eddie. Gotta admit, that’s a decent line. Ridge takes control early on with his right leg based offense, but Eddie puts a stop to that by draping Ridge over the top rope and holding onto a modified achilles lock, and punting Ridge in the back to send him to the floor, where Hagadorn lays the verbal smack down on him. Edwards maintains control on the outside and taunts Ridge a little more until he eats an enzugiri, but Eddie promptly comes back with a lariat with MUSTARD. Edwards follows with a powerbomb into the achilles lock for the tap out.
Eddie Edwards def. Andy “Right Leg” Ridge via achilles lock in 3:04.
Second verse, same as the first. One or two more of these, and they’ll start amping up the challenges. At this point, it’s just a showcase for Edwards, and he’s doing fairly well with it. (*1/2)
**We send it back to Kyle Durden with Austin Aries and the All-Night Express. Aries is now the CEO of “A Double & Associates.” Love it. He’s not a cry-baby mama’s boy asshole with a tennis racket. Gee, wonder who that could be referring to. Rhett Titus appears to be getting more serious, which is fantastic, and the whole crew is just pure gold. Rhett promises that after tonight, Tyler Black will take him seriously.
**We then shoot it to the ring, where Jim Cornette announces that Roderick Strong has demanded interview time. The preview that ROH posted said that Roderick will reveal the one person who’ll tell him the truth. So I guess this is it. There’s a little back and forth banter between Roderick and Cornette, and Roddy actually doesn’t come off that bad. The man who is finally telling the truth to Roderick Strong is…TRUTH MARTINI, with the House of Truth (Josh Ryamond and Christian Able) in tow! Love this. Truth Martini, founder and creator of the House of Truth. A Life Intervention Expert. He is here to give Roderick Strong his services in his time of need. Truth proceeds to cut a great promo in the vein of the motivational speaker. Roderick’s problems are Tyler Black’s fault, Austin Aries’s fault, Jim Cornette’s fault and the fans’ fault. A very brief “boring” chant pops up but is drowned out. Truth tries to put over “It’s not my fault,” but that won’t end well, so I hope they get away from that. They also make mention of the “Book of Truth” which Martini holds, and will likely be used repeatedly as an international object. Truth promises that Roderick will be the next ROH World Champion. “And that is no lie, that is the Truth.” As I’ve said in the past, anything that gets more Truth Martini and H.o.T. on my TV is A-OK in my book.
**Back from HDNet’s MMA “commercial,” we recap the segment we’ve just seen. Truth comes off as such a sleazeball, and I love it.
**Now we run a video package of the whole El Generico, Kevin Steen, Colt Cabana, Steve Corino situation, with a special focus on Cabana and Corino, it would appear. Some recycled footage, some I don’t recall, but still, given their usual M.O., this is likely to pimp a match next week. Sure enough, next week, an “Anything Goes Street Fight,” pitting Cabana and Generico against Steen and Corino. I’m on board. Bring the bloodshed!
**Now back to the ring, where Aries and the All-Night Express are making their way out, and Aries appears to have crushed velvet looking trunks. I’m not sure what to make of that. The faces come out together to Tyler’s music, and Black is actually wearing a pretty cool looking Delirious shirt.
**Tyler Black, Jerry Lynn & Delirious vs. Austin Aries & The All-Night Express (Rhett Titus & Kenny King)
The faces jump the ring before the bell rings, and technically we still haven’t heard one. But that’s a SNAFU that ROH sometimes makes, so I just start the clock, as there’s action everywhere. Black hits his guardrail moonsault onto Titus as there’s the bell, 45 seconds in. Lynn and King are inside the ring, as Aries runs from Delirious, and finally Paul Turner is able to get everyone to their respective corners and start an actual match.
Black tags in with a double axe to King. Black hits a backdrop off a corner whip and tags in Delirious who decks Titus and continues controlling King, choking with the tassels before menacing Aries and Titus again. Delirious hits a neckbreaker for 2, broken up by Aries, allowing King to rake the eyes and tag in Titus. Titus controls briefly before Delirious takes back over with two chops and a back elbow and tags in Lynn. Lynn hits the mounted punches in the corner and gets thumbed in the eye allowing Titus to tag Aries, who eats an inverted atomic drop. Lynn and Aries show off their lack of chemistry for a little bit, until King mows down Lynn with a clothesline bringing Titus in to maintain control. The heels get Turner out of position and triple team Lynn and botch one of their trademark double team moves with Aries. He quickly tags in King, who controls and tags in Titus. Lynn is able to hit the neckbreaker/DDT combo, and hot tags both ways lead to Aries and Delirious in the ring finally.
Delirious gets knocked outside the ring, where the All-Night Express just beat him silly, as per Aries’ instructions. Aries chokes Delirious back in the ring, only to get his finger bit, and he promptly tags in Titus. Delirious keeps focusing on Aries, who tries to keep him at bay with pink streamers. All three men take their turns with quick tags laying the beat down on Delirious. Titus goes for a full nelson and for some reason Aries and King both get up on the ropes. Sure enough, Delirious escapes, sends Titus into the corner and tags in Jerry Lynn, who hits a rolling eyepoke (seriously) and a back rake before getting serious. Lynn escapes a double team and Tyler hits a springboard double clothesline. Lynn and Black hit dueling TKO/F5s, and even a double TKO on Titus–you really have to see it.
King knocks Lynn off the top rope with a kick and they go to hit their finish, but Black breaks it up with a superkick to King, and a dropkick to intercept a diving Titus. Delirious hits Titus with Shadows Over Hell, but Aries saves. Lynn hits a baseball slide dropkick to Aries and King on the floor, and, and Lynn and Delirious hit stereo crossbodies to the floor on their respective rivals. Delirious and Aries continue brawling, Lynn and King continue brawling, and Paul Turner just calls for the bell.
Tyler Black/Jerry Lynn/Delirious vs. Austin Aries/Rhett Titus/Kenny King ends in a Double Countout in 14:09 (13:36 in on-screen bell-to-bell).
This was passable for what it was. You know how sometimes they say a tag match following the formula results in a great match? This wasn’t it. It was acceptable, but nothing spectacular. I suppose I can’t really say what I would have done with it, because I don’t know where they’re planning to go from here. My inclination would be to have Delirious pin Aries and end this whole thing once and for all, because it keeps the All-Night Express strong, ends Aries/Delirious, and we appear to be moving on with Tyler Black, but who knows. (**3/4)
**Post-match, Black goes for a dive, but Paul Turner gets in the way top stop him. Black sends Turner over the top rope, and goes to dive, but is intercepted by KEVIN STEEN with a Package Piledriver! Steen gloats over Black and rolls out of the ring to a very noticeable “Mr. Wrestling” chant. Tyler Black is out and the faces come to check on him as we fade out on replays of Steen’s attack.
Let’s add up the numbers. On a 50+ minute show, there was 20:17 of wrestling. 2 squashes, and a slightly underwhelming 6 man main event. The reveal of Truth Martini was great, and he’s set up as an untrustworthy sleaze right off the bat, and the Kevin Steen run-in at the end, was nicely done, and I am loving Kevin Steen right now. The street fight next week should be great, and I’m definitely excited to see that.
As always, thanks for reading, never hesitate to hit me up with any comments questions or anything else and I hope to see everyone next week!
