ROH: Weekend Of Champions Night 1 DVD Review
I got this for only $5 during Highspots' big DVD sale. This show took place during the epic ROH/CZW war which I've heard alot about and been dying to see. As soon as I saw that this show happened during the midst of that feud, I was sold.
The DVD opens with Jimmy Jacobs and Lacey talking backstage. Then it cuts to a promo from Christopher Daniels about his match with Nigel McGuinness later in the night. During the first match, a message flashed at the bottom of the screen to check out the "Video Recap" on the main menu screen before watching the show, so I did just that. It was a nice feature that gave a bit of a recap on what had recently happened with Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro in WWE) turning on ROH and joining Chris Hero, Super Dragon, Necro Butcher and the rest of the CZW crew. You get a great promo from Jim Cornette on the situation where he vows that ROH is going to start striking back. Also in this feature are promos from Jimmy Jacobs and Colt Cabana. Now onto the show itself.
1) Colt Cabana vs. Jimmy Jacobs
The story going into this one which I learned by watching the video recap feature, was that Cabana wanted to make his way back to the top of ROH by starting at the bottom since he lost to Bryan Danielson in less than five minutes. Cabana attributed this loss to his brutal feud with Homicide, saying he forgot how to wrestle because he had been fighting so long. Thus the opening match was set. As for Jacobs, he and Lacey had been having problems for a while and she told him that if he kept losing, she would leave him. So with all the things above taken into consideration, this was a big match for both guys. It was pretty back and forth the
ROH Rising Above 2008 DVD Review
1) Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. The Briscoes
The last time these four guys competed in Chicago Ridge for ROH, they put on the legendary Ladder War match for the Tag Team Titles. This wasn't the caliber of that match, but it wasn't positioned to be. It accomplished exactly what it set out to. Fast paced, fun tag team opener to get the crowd pumped up. The two teams started brawling afterwards which makes it seem like their feud will continue after this show. Great way to start the show.
Match rating - 6/10
2) MsCHIF vs. Sara Del Rey - SHIMMER Title Match
I've long known that women's wrestling is light years better in the Indies than it is in the two mainstream companies. That was once again confirmed here as these ladies put on a solid match with alot of oustanding wrestling. The one move that really stood out was
PWG DDT4 2012 DVD Review
1) Fightin' Taylor Boys (Brian Cage & Ryan Taylor) vs. RockNES Monsters (Johnny Yuma & Johnny Goodtime) - First Round Match
The first round matches of DDT4 are normally rather short and very spotty which is exactly what this was. That's not a bad thing though as it was very entertaining. I'm tempted to say Brian Cage stole the show with his unique blend of super human strength and agility. Some of the moves this guy pulls off are insane. From high flying stuff to suplexing Goodtime with Yuma on his shoulders, Cage is a machine. Overall this was a fun opening match.
Match rating - ***1/4
2) The Dynasty (Joey Ryan & Scorpio Sky) vs. Future Shock (Adam Cole & Kyle O'Reilly)
Much like the previous match this was your typical DDT4 first round match. About 10 minutes or so long and packed full of action. Future Shock were so
PWG: Mystery Vortex 2 Review
1) Cedric Alexander vs. Andrew Everett vs. Trevor Lee
Here we have some fresh faces appearing in PWG. This was both Andrew Everett and Trevor Lee's debut in PWG and it was Cedric Alexander's first appearance in PWG since 2010. Since Alexander is the only one of these men to ever compete in PWG, the crowd was heavily behind from the start as "ALEXANDER!" chants flooded the legion hall. Andrew Everett got a decent response when he was introduced as well, but Trevor Lee being the least known competitor got a mixed reaction, including "Who are you?" chants. Regardless of what the fans thought of Lee before the match, it was all changed when these three guys tore the house down! Mid-way through the match the "Who are you?" chants turned into "TREVOR LEE!" and "THIS IS AWESOME!" Everett and Lee won over the PWG crowd while Alexander proved he's still just as great - if not better - than when he last competed in Pro Wrestling Guerilla. This was just an amazing opening match with alot of jaw dropping moments. Everett hit what was literally one of the highest dives I've ever seen, he was so close to hitting the roof, it was insane. This was just an all around awesome match with tons of action. I'm glad to
PWG: DDT4 2014 DVD Review
1) Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent?) vs. RockNES Monsters (Johnny Goodtime & Johnny Yuma) - First Round Match
The crowd was SUPER hot for this one. Especially for the Best Friends. This was an action packed opener that never slowed down. I often forgot how good the Rocknes Monsters are, but they reminded me of it here. Goodtime took a page out of Ricochet's book and dove over the top turnbuckle to the outside, UNBELIEVABLE! No matter how times I see that happen, I'll still mark out each time. Great opener here that saw the Best Friends debut several new antics including Trent sporting a kneepad with Chuck Taylor's face on it aptly called "The Chuckie Knee." They also brought their new secret weapon into the match, a trenchcoat! I normally am not a big fan of comedy in wrestling, but it's impossible to not like Taylor & Trent, this was fantastic. Fun, crazy spot fest.
Match rating - ***1/4
2) PPRaay (Peter Avalon & Ray Rosas) vs. Unbreakble F'N Machines (Michael Elgin & Brian Cage)
I never thought that a match that was this much of a mismatch could be so entertaining, but if anyone can make it entertaining, it's PWG. For those who don't know Elgin & Cage are literally twice the size of Avalon & Rosas so the Machines had an advantage to begin with. PPRay did manage to get in some offense here and show what they could do despite the size difference. There were some jawdropping moments such as Elgin doing some sort of corkscrew backflip off the top rope and Elgin powerbombing Rosas onto
PWG: All Star Weekend 10 Night 1 DVD Review
The show opens with Mount Rushmore (Adam Cole, Kevin Steen, & The Young Bucks) in the ring interrupting Excalibur. The Bucks do the DX crotch chop on the mat right under Excalibur which is hilarious. Cole then flips him off and Mount Rushmore poses in the center of the ring when CHRIS HERO RUNS INTO THE RING! ROARING ELBOW TO KEVIN STEEN! Hero takes out The Bucks and goes for Cole, but he escapes. Hero vows to end Cole's reign as champion tonight and to stop Mount Rushmore for good. Great start to the show.
1) Brian Cage vs. Anthony Nese
These two faced off a few months prior at TEN in a very good bout. For that reason, I was looking forward to seeing them go at it again. In their previous match, Cage got gassed in the long run, but it looks like his conditioning was better this time around. They put on a match that was every bit as good as their first encounter, if not better. Great match! Rick Knox on commentary said it best by stating that this was the opening match, but it could have been a main event in any other promotion in the country. Very true. Also brings to light how stacked this show is.
Match rating - ***1/2
2) Joey Ryan & Candice LeRae vs. RockNES Monsters
This was your basic action packed tag
Dragon Gate USA Freedom Fight 2012 DVD Review
My first venture into the world of Dragon Gate USA. Let's see how it goes!
1) Jon Davis vs. EITA
Not too familar with either of these guys so they had the chance to impress me. Unfortunately, this was a quick opener basically just to make Davis look strong. EITA did some nice highflying though. Not much going on here, short opener.
Match rating - *3/4
2) Caleb Konley & Scott Reed vs. Tony Nese & Papadon
The only two guys here that I knew much about were Nese and Konley. They put in a great
