wrestling / Video Reviews

Rolling Germans Review: Ring Of Honor Debut Show

October 5, 2002 | Posted by Justin Baisden

RING OF HONOUR DEBUT SHOW

I tell ya, this was a show that took FOOOOOREVER to get a hold of. First off, RF Video pretty much went to every single tape dealer on the planet and told them they’d sue if they found out their material was being illegally bootlegged. Well it’s their intellectual property so I’ve got no problem with that. Of course that didn’t stop me from posting on message boards asking for a dub though. Sadly, I got emails from RF reps basically saying “don’t sell our stuff or we’ll have you killed.” I replied with something along the lines of “fuck off” and went about my business. Well I finally found someone that was willing to sell dubs off his commercial masters (after getting passed the copy protection) but it turned out he has a problem with sending to Canada (in that he says he sent but really doesn’t). Well he ignored my pleas for tapes until I threatened to shred him on 411 and all of a sudden he’s willing to talk. He says he sent, I know he didn’t but in the end I got my money back. Life goes on until I talk to a friend from Jersey who happened to get the first and third shows from someone else. I hooked him up with Fire Pro D (maybe Giant Gram 2000 as well) earlier in the year so after a little chat I ended up getting free copies of his shows. SCORE!

To be honest, I don’t think I’ve read/heard a bad thing about ROH since the get go. It’s pretty much understood that everyone hates Rob Feinstein (I don’t endorse him either considering my very first tapes were bought from RF and they were the worst VQ I’ve ever come across) but I don’t really give a fuck either way as long as he can put together a top notch show. Considering the line up he put together (that couldn’t have been cheap) for this show, it’d better be good otherwise he was going to get fucked.

This review is brought to you by Cheetos Cheese Puffs. My manager told the staff that he wrote off a bunch of chips and cheese related snacks over the weekend. I’m all “free snacks? YOINK!” Sadly these things gave me the runs three times in the two and a half hours this show was going on and then I looked at the bag and realized they were a week expired. I think I’m going to kick my boss really hard when I go into work later in the week.

Please note that I’m still trying to get a grasp of US Independents and I’ve never seen a lot of these guys before. In most cases I’ll try to explain who the wrestlers are and describe their trademark stuff because I’m sure a lot of you are in the same boat I am.

WE’RE NOT LIVE BECAUSE IT’S OCTOBER AND THIS WAS IN FEBRUARY!

The Christopher Street Connection make their way to the ring. Oh boy… another homo gimmick. Mace Mendoza is the skinny one and Buff-E is anything but that, as he’s quite the rolly polly. They come out with some piece of slutty trash but I don’t catch her name and I really could care less. They say a bunch of stuff and then MAKE OUT IN THE RING! OH FUCK NO! I’ve managed to live 22 years without ever seeing men kiss each other on the lips and now I see this shit? Did someone say… three minutes! YES! THE MOTHERFUCKING HIT SQUAD!

DA HIT SQUAD vs THE CHRISTOPHER STREET CONNECTION
OK this isn’t a match because I don’t see a ref but whatever. BASH THAT SHIT DOWN! DHS totally wipe the floor with these guys and Mafia nails Buff-E with THE MOTERHFUCKING BURNING HAMMER! DAMN FUCKING RIGHT! GET THAT MAKE OUT SHIT OUT OF HERE! Never again do I want to see men making out on my TV. Da Hit Squad are my heroes for the next few minutes. Da Hit Squad vs The Island Boyz would be a kick at least for one match.

JAY BRISCOE vs RED
Jay & Mark Briscoe have no relation to Gerald & Jack Briscoe as far as I know. I think they just took the name for shits and giggles. They’re both solid workers with Mark being the reckless high flyer and his brother taking the slightly more ground based attack. Red is the ever constant bump machine of the US Indies. If you’ve seen TNA in the last couple of months then you’ve seen Red. We get a lot of flip flop to start (what a surprise). Red’s out and Briscoe looks for a Pescado but no dice. Back in the ring and Red hits a Corkscrew Enzugiri for 2 and Ѕ. He looks for a Tornado DDT but Briscoe puts him back on the top and hits a SIT OUT MUSCLE BUSTER for 2 and ѕ. OUCH! Briscoe looks for a Cross Bodyblock but takes a shot to the gut and a Brainbuster for 2 and ѕ. Red charges but takes a Yakuza Kick. Briscoe looks for The K-Driller (Double Underhook Sit Out Piledriver) but Red reverses into a cradle only to have both guys bridge up and Red look for a Rana but that’s blocked and Briscoe resets and hits a FUCKING SICK K-DRILLER! 1… 2… 2.FOOT ON THE ROPE! Briscoe hits a Half Nelson Suplex and looks for The Cannonball Senton but that misses and Red capitalizes with The Infrared (Sky Twister Press) and The Red Star Press (running SSP) for the victory. This was solid stuff though a tad on the disjointed side. It felt like they left out the middle and went right for the nutty stuff at the end. *3/4

XAVIER vs SCOOT ANDREWS
I haven’t seen much from either of these guys. I’ve only seen Xavier in a couple of matches, including a great ladder match with Low Ki from a couple of years back, and a very good outing at The Super 8 2002. Andrews I’ve only seen from his work in ECWA and he’s pretty hit or miss in my opinion. A lot of people say he had a breakout year in 2001 but I’ll be damned if I could see it. Anyway, we get some counter wrestling to start until Xavier looks for a Headscissors only to have that reversed into a Split Legged Facejam for 2 and Ѕ. Butterfly Suplex gets 2 and Ѕ. Xavier looks for a Headscissors out of the corner but that’s reversed into a 270 Powerbomb (Alabama Slam) for 2 and ѕ. They go back and forth until Xavier looks for a Cross Corner Bulldog but no dice as Andrews STEAMROLLS HIM with a lariat for 2 and ѕ. Andrews hits a Slam and looks for a legdrop but that misses and Xavier hits a Running ELBOOOOOOW for 2 and ѕ. Capture Suplex gets 2 and ѕ. He looks for a Sunset Flip but Andrews blocks and pulls out a sweet move as he pulls him off the ground right into a Reverse DDT for 2 and ѕ. NICE! Andrews hits THE FORCE OF NATURE (Pumphandle Fire Thunder Driver)! 1… 2… 2.FOOT ON THE ROPE! Andrews bitches with the ref and gets rolled up for 2 and 9/10. Xavier is still messed up from The Force Of Nature so Andrews looks for a second one but we all know how that goes as Xavier slips out and hits a BRUTAL Hangman’s Neckbreaker for the victory. Well, that was certainly out of nowhere. Andrews dominated this match, only letting up for a few seconds at a time for Xavier’s hope spots. I was disappointed in the abrupt ending but the body of the match was still done well. **1/4

THE BOOGY KNIGHTS vs THE NATURAL BORN SINNERS
The knights consist of Mike Tobin (generic white guy) and Danny Drake (generic white guy with a beard). They’re your usual flashy team with high flying moves. On the other side you have Boogalou and Homocide. They “play” a couple of street toughs that swear a lot. Heh, it’s kind of like looking at New Jack except these guys can actually wrestle. The Sinners outright dominate to start and hit a SICK double team as they hit an assisted Powerbomb onto Homocide’s knee. UGH! Now that is how you break someone’s neck. Drake is out and they put him on a chair so Homocide can hit a SOMERSAULT TOPE ONTO THE CHAIR! INSANE! Back in the ring and the Sinners hit a Suplex – Double Stomp combo. The Knights are having their asses handed to them. Boogalou hits a Hotshot and looks for an Exploder but Drake gets out and hits a Reverse DDT followed up with a Rydeen Bomb. FINALLY we get a tag as Mike Tobin comes in with a Springboard Swanton for 2 and ѕ. Tobin looks for a DDT but spends too much time yapping and Boogalou reverses into a Fisherman’s Buster. Man, the Knights can’t get a break. Both teams tag and Homocide heats a BEAUTIFUL Yakuza Kick, worthy of the GOD that is Chono. Drake’s out and they FUCKING KILL TOBIN with a Lariat – Half Nelson Suplex. OH… MY… GOD! The Sinners bring in a couple of rubber chickens (they had a vignette before this match where Homocide went back to his old neighborhood that was torn down. All that was left was some garbage and a rubber chicken) and beat the shit out of both guys so the ref DQ’s them. This was an outright slaughter. The Sinners just became my new favourite tag team. The ref rightfully gets his ass kicked after the bell as he’s beaten within an inch of his life and Homocide hits THE FUCKING COP KILLER (Vertibreaker)! I LOVE IT! **

QUIET STORM/CHRIS DIVINE/BRIAN XL vs THE SPANISH ANNOUNCE TEAM (Special Referee Mikey Whipwreck – Ultimate Aerial Elimination)
Everyone here is a student of Mikey except Brian XL. This match has some odd rules to it. It was originally supposed to be a 3 on 2 elimination match, but then they added Red to even the odds. Now the interesting part is that even though there are teams, there can only be one winner, so teammates can eliminate their partners if need be. I can’t say as I’ve ever heard of stipulations like that before. Insanity to start and it actually “settles down” with the Trainwreck spot. Everyone is all about Tope Suicidas until Red hits a Springboard Somersault Plancha and XL takes it one step higher with BAD ASS TAKA SPRINGBOARD MOONSAULT! I LOVE IT! M PRO THAT SHIT DOWN! Back in the ring and we get the most contrived spot ever as Red puts XL on his shoulders and then the SAT put Red on their shoulders only to have Divine Storm hit running stereo neckbreakers to send it all crashing down. YEESH! XL and Joel go at it and XL hits The Northern Lights Salto (variation on a released Northern Lights Suplex) and follows up with a STANDING SHOOTING STAR PRESS OFF JOEL’S CHEST! WOW! Storm tags and hits Locomotion Northern Lights but the third is blocked and The Maximos pull out a Double Cannonball Senton and Powerbomb Red onto Storm. AWESOME! More triple teaming as we get a slingshot into Red’s boot, sending Storm back down into position for Jose’s Slingshot Legdrop, which is segued into a Red Boston Crab and followed up with a Maximo dropkick to the face. INSANE! This is like 1996 Michinoku Pro six man on steroids. Red and XL pair off with XL looking for another Northern Lights Salto but that’s reversed into a DDT for 2 and ѕ. Red looks for a Sunset Flip but that’s reversed into a Dragon Cradle for 2 and ѕ. The Maximos jump in and Jose hits XL with a Capture Suplex but backs away when Divine heads up. He backs right into Red and thinks it’s someone else as he backslides his own partner for the first elimination. RED IS FUCKING PISSED! Now out of nowhere, Storm hits XL with The Spinal Shock (Sit out Gory Special Drop) and he’s eliminated. WHAT THE HELL?! Miscommunication leads to Divine getting crotched and The SAT’s hit THE FUCKING SPANISH FLY but Jose backs right into a Storm German Suplex and we get a double elimination. So we’re down to Quiet Storm and Joel Maximo. Joel attacks with a German Suplex segued into a Wakigatame segued into a Jujigatame but Storm manages to slip out and slap on a Muta Sickle and switch that up into an STF. SWEET! Storm looks for the Storm Cradle Driver (there’s no way to describe it, sorry) but Joel reverses into THE LARIATOOOOOO for 2 and ѕ. BLUE THUNDER! 1… 2… 2 AND 9/10! Joel looks for a 270 Powerbomb but Storm slips out and hits THE STORM CRADLE DRIVER! IT’S OVER! This was a total blast to watch. It didn’t have the structure like the good old M Pro matches of the mid nineties but there were so many great moves that you didn’t even care. This was one of those matches that was pure fun as opposed to a match you critique when people say how great it is. In a word; spotastic. ***1/2

PRINCE NANA vs THE TOWEL BOY
If there was a vid cap that went into the online dicitionary beside “squash,” this would be it. Nana wins (DUH), life goes on. DUD

MICHAEL SHANE/OZ vs SPANKY/IKAIKA LOA
OK, I’ll level with you; I only know one guy in this match and that’s Spanky. From what I understand, all of these guys are graduates of Shawn Michaels wrestling school (does he still run that or was it bought by someone else?). Oz and Spanky start out with the flip flop. Both teams tag and Shane brings the kicks so Loa runs for high ground. Shane beats the shit out of Spanky until he goes up top and Loa pushes him off. Loa tags in and hits a lariat for 2 and Ѕ. Spanky’s in and returns the beating of shit until we get a double KO and Shane tags. Oz brings the lariat and a Fisherman’s Suplex for 2 and ѕ. Mafia Kick gets 2 and ѕ. Shane comes out of nowhere with a Flying Elbowdrop leading to an Oz pin and Loa save at 2 and 9/10. German Suplex gets 2 and 9/10. Oz whips Spanky into SWEET SHANE MUSIC! 1… 2… 2.LOA SAVES! Oz looks for another German Suplex but Spanky manages to slip out and hits THE SLICED BREAD #2 (Seafire) for the victory. I can’t believe that’s the name of his finisher. Anyway, this was rock solid stuff from beginning to end. One assumes that these guys know each other very well and it showed in the ring. I was very impressed with Michael Shane and I hope to see more of him as I get more material. **1/2

SUPER CRAZY vs EDDIE GUERRERO (IWA Puerto Rico Intercontinental Title Tournament Finals)
This was during Eddie’s lay off from the WWF. In case you’ve forgotten, Eddie was let go after he couldn’t get his substance abuse habits under control and had a bit of a freak out backstage. The WWF left the door open to return if he could clean himself up. Well their loss was the gain of every independent fed in the US and even feds in the UK and Japan as Eddie came back with a vengeance, absolutely tearing it up everywhere he went on the road back to the WWF. Crazy offers a handshake but Eddie is 100% PURE RUDO and slaps the taste out of his mouth. DAMN RIGHT! We get a lot of groundwork to start until Eddie BRINGS DA NOISE with some stiff European Uppercuts and a Belly to Back Suplex for 2 and Ѕ. We go to the chinlock but Crazy goes nuts with Lucha Armdrags. Eddie’s out and Crazy looks for a Quebrada but Eddie takes his feet out from under him and hits A FUCKING BRAINBUSTER ON THE CEMENT FLOOR! HO… LY… SHIT! We’re back in the ring with Eddie’s trademark Slingshot Senton for 2 and Ѕ. Blockbuster Suplex gets 2 and Ѕ. Eddie looks for a Sunset Flip but that’s flipped through and Crazy fakes out a Jacknife Cradle only to dropkick Eddie in the back of the head. AWESOME! Double Jump Moonsault gets 2 and Ѕ. Missile Dropkick for 2 and ѕ. Crazy heads up but Eddie stops that shit with a Top Rope Frankensteiner for 2 and ѕ. SICK POWERBOMB gets 2 and 9/10. That’s definitely a move I wish Eddie would use in the WWE. He has one of the best Powerbombs in the business. I love the way he folds the opponent over; it’s something you don’t see very often anymore. Guerrero hits Locomotion Brainbusters and looks for The Frog Splash but rolls through with the senton and tries for another Brainbuster only to have Crazy roll him up for the victory. NICE! See this is basically what Eddie did for the months he was away from the WWE. He put on a clinic everywhere he went and then put over his opponent clean. You can’t ask for much more of a professional than that. As for the match, this was a bit shorter than I would have liked. Both of these guys looked solid but Eddie was heads and shoulders above Crazy here, practically carrying him through the whole thing. I’m not pleased with the poor psychology of the match as three Brainbusters (one on cement for Pete’s sake) is total overkill and yet it still wasn’t enough to put Crazy away. Despite my griping, this was still an above solid match and gets ***1/2

AMERICAN DRAGON vs CHRISTOPHER DANIELS vs LOW KI (Triple Threat Match)
This is under Triple Threat rules, which if you don’t know (and how could you not?) that means one fall wins the match instead of the ECW “3 Way Dance,” which is elimination style. Strap yourselves in, this is a wild one. Each guy hits the other, who hits the other, etc… We get the first of many nutty spots as Daniels suplexes Dragon right into The Tree Of Woe and Ki demolishes his face with a Baseball Slide. We get HOLY SHIT #1 as Daniels slaps on a Boston Crab on Dragon while ALSO holding a Camel Clutch on Ki. FUCKING AWESOME! Dragon makes the comeback with an Indian Deathlock – Double Armbar combo (these guys must be on LSD to think this shit up) and we get HOLY SHIT #2 as Ki keeps hitting Yakuza Kicks (GO CHONO!) on Dragon and he falls backwards and thus kills Daniels who’s still stuck in The Indian Deathlock. I LOVE ALL THIS SHIT! Dragon eventually blocks the kick and it’s HOLY SHIT #3 as Dragon hits a Northern Lights Suplex on Ki for 2 and Ѕ WHILE STILL LOCKING DANIELS! SOOOOO GOOD! Ki and Dragon pair off and take turns KICKING EACH OTHER! Daniels gets in the way so they put him down and take turns STIFF KICKING HIM IN THE BACK! His spine must have felt like jelly the next day. Daniels begs off and they miss sandwich roundhouses and hit each other. Ki and Dragon look for a Double Suplex but Daniels reverses into a Neckbreaker – DDT on both guys for 2 and Ѕ. Where in the world do they come up with this stuff? It’s HOLY SHIT #4 as Daniels looks for a Flying Headscissors but Ki throws him off right onto Dragon and Daniels uses the momentum to hit a SWEET TORNADO DDT! PURE CRAZY MAX 1999! Daniels tries for an Irish whip but Ki comes back with The Matrix for 2 and ѕ. Ki puts Dragon on top and Daniels slaps on a Top Rope Abdominal Stretch but Ki saves and slaps on a TARANTULA DRAGON CLUTCH for 2 and ѕ. INSANITY! Ki tries for a Reverse Suplex but Dragon cuts that off and looks for a Dragon Suplex but Ki reverses into a Ganmengiri sending Dragon right into BLUE THUNDER! 1… 2… 2.999999! Ki nails Daniels and tries for The Tidal Crush but Daniels moves and tries for a Cross Arm Iconoclasm but Ki blocks that so Daniels tries for a Superplex only to get thrown off and we get HOLY SHIT #5 as we get a SUPER STACKERPLEX. OH… MY… GOD! Dragon recovers and nails Daniels with a Judo DDT followed up with THE DRAGON SUPLEX! 1… 2… 2.LOW KI SAVES! Ki looks for Ki Krusher 99 but that’s blocked so he slaps on THE DRAGON CLUTCH! TA…. TA…. TA… DANIELS SAVES! Now Daniels hits an STO and follows up with THE TRIPLE JUMP MOONSAULT! IT’S GOTTA BE OVER! 1… 2… 2.DRAGON SAVES! Ki hits a big roundhouse and FUCKING DRILLS Daniels with The Tidal Crush only to walk right into a Dragon RUNNING ELBOOOOOW! Ki’s on the apron and Dragon hits THE ROARING ELBOOOOOW on Daniels and it’s THE CATTLE MUTLATION! TA… TA… TA… KI COMES OFF THE TOP WITH A STARDUST PRESS! HOLY MOTHERFUCKING SHIT! DRAGON’S FUCKED! KI KRUSHER ’99 ON DANIELS! 1… 2… 3! BEAUTIFUL! THIS FUCKING ROCKED! This is how a 3 way match should be done. There was barely any point throughout the match where one guy was “hurt” or “resting” or anything along those lines. This was loaded with tons of innovative stuff that truly makes you appreciate what the third man can mean in a wrestling match. This also exposes how totally shitty the WWE Triple Threat Style is as this match was heads and shoulders above any Triple Threat I’ve seen out of the WWE. Great stuff from start to finish and speaking of finishes, this was one of the best I’ve ever seen. I nearly fell off my seat when that Stardust Press came down. This absolutely blew away everything else on the card. A definite must see for fans of stiff action and innovative offense. ****1/4

Final Analysis: I had heard so many great things about Ring Of Honour and for the mostpart I’m inclined to agree with the hype. The vast majority of the matches ranged from solid to very good, with only a few glaring omissions (the opener and the Nana squash). Everyone busted their ass and pulled out a lot of “ooohhh” and “aaaahhh” stuff. Sadly I felt a lot of matches weren’t constructed very well but I guess you can sort of expect that from an independent wrestling show, even one with talent of this caliber. If you buy this card, you’re basically getting some good stuff and then an incredible main event. I absolutely recommend going out of your way to find this 3 way match whether it be through the purchase of this tape from RF Video or other distributors (if you can find them, they’re few and far between) or even online (I’ll leave you to figure out where to look for full matches online). Highly recommended for solid work and a Spotfest Of The Year Candidate in The Triple Threat.

Justin Baisden
Rolling Germans Wrestling

NULL

article topics

Justin Baisden

Comments are closed.