Csonka Reviews This Week’s ROH Free Throwback Matches Featuring Jushin Liger, CM Punk, & More

Csonka Reviews This Week’s ROH Free Throwback Matches Featuring Jushin Liger, CM Punk, & More

OFFICIAL RESULTS
– From ROH 2004 Weekend of Thunder: Jushin Liger defeated Bryan Danielson @ 18:25 via pin[***¾]
– From ROH Do or Die 2003: Christopher Daniels defeated CM Punk, Jimmy Rave, and Frankie Kazarian @ 20:25 via pin [***¼]
– From ROH Best in The World 2016: Bullet Club defeated Moose and War Machine @ 12:53 via pin [***]

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ROH Throwback Match: Jushin Liger vs. Bryan Danielson: They start of slowly, working some basic back and forth before transitioning to the ground. Danielson attacks the knee, Liger makes the ropes and then starts to pick up the pace, outwrestling Danielson. Danielson cuts that off, and looked for the surfboard. Liger escapes, and he locks in the surfboard and transitions into the dragon sleeper. Liger continues to control, hitting the back breaker and sending Danielson to the floor. The plancha follows. Danielson is pissed as he returns to the ring, taking Liger down and choking him out. They trade chops, Danielson takes the action to the floor and works over Liger and attacks the mask. Danielson whips Liger to the barricades, and then finally back into the ring. Danielson grounds Liger, working his submission game and occasionally looking for pins. Even in 2004, Danielson’s work was silky smooth, as he transitions from move to move with ease. Danielson teases tearing off Liger’s mask, so Danielson shoots them the double middle fingers. He then hits an airplane spin on Liger, hits the Finlay roll and heads up top. The top rope head butt misses as Liger rolls out of the way. Liger up top and he misses the head butt as Danielson moves. They trade chops and uppercuts, shotei by Liger! Shotei again! Liger takes Danielson up top, hits the RANA, covering for 2. Danielson cuts off the shotei with a dropkick to the arm, and then focuses in on the arm again, looking to set up for cattle mutilation. The German suplex follows and he then transitions right into cattle mutilation. Danielson then turns it into a cradle for 2. Danielson hits the lariat and dragon suplex for the near fall. Danielson again goes to the cattle mutilation, but Liger makes the ropes. Danielson is pissed, looks for a brain buster, but Liger fights it off and he hits toe brain buster! Liger fires up, SHOTEI! Liger bomb countered, but Liger hits the cappo kick. The Liger bomb follows for a great near fall. Liger now takes him up top, Danielson fights but Liger slaps the shit out of him. SUPER BRAINBUSTER by Liger and Danielson is done. Jushin Liger defeated Bryan Danielson @ 18:25 via pin [***¾] The story of the match was that Liger came in as the legend, and the on junior in NJPW that Danielson hadn’t defeated. The match is very good, with Danielson constantly looking to put Liger away to prove himself. Danielson gave everything he had and survived Liger’s best, but just didn’t have enough to put the legend away.

ROH Throwback Match: CM Punk vs. Jimmy Rave vs. Christopher Daniels vs. Frankie Kazarian: Punk and Rave start off, working a solid back and forth. Kaz tags in now, it’s odd seeing him wit the ponytail, seems like forever ago. Rave and Kaz work back and forth until Rave hits an overhead belly to belly, allowing Daniels to tag himself in. Kaz quickly fires up, leading to Daniels tagging back out to Rave. Rave and Kaz work quick stretch, before tagging Punk and Daniels back in. They lock up and work into a series of counters and reversals. Daniels grounds the action, but Punk quickly escapes and attacks the arm. Punk follows with a hip toss and dropkick. Punk hits a jawbreaker and Rave tags himself in. Daniels to the floor and Rave hits a high cross, Kaz follows with a plancha and takes out everyone. Back in and Punk takes control, working over Rave and hitting a brainbuster. The snap slam follows, and Punk covers for 2. Kaz tags in, Rave hits a backdrop and Daniels tags himself in, working over Kaz until he tags out to Punk. Punk rakes the eyes, tagging out to Rave. Daniels tags out to Kaz, and Rave drops him with an enziguri. It breaks down, everyone hits everyone and Rave starts to pick up momentum and locks on the crossface on Punk. Kaz makes the save, but Rave hits a bridging Saito suplex or a near fall. Daniels returns, takes Rave up top and then dumps Rave to the floor. Punk up top and hits the superplex on Daniels. Welcome to Chicago follows, but Allison Danger trips up Punk. She and Daffney are in the ring now and Punk and Daniels separate them. They go back and forth, and Daniels cradles Punk for a near fall. Daniels looks foe angel’s wings, Punk counters out and Kaz is in and takes out Daniels. He superkicks Punk, covering for 2. Kaz follows with the slingshot leg drop, covering for 2 again. Punk cuts him off with the hammerlock DDT for a near fall. Punk pulls Kaz up top, but Rave cut him off. Kaz lays Rave out with the flatliner, but Daniels breaks that up. Kaz then hits a bridging cyclone suplex and lariat. A springboard leg drop follows and Kaz gets 2 again. Daniels fights back, hits the STO and follows with the last rites for the win. Christopher Daniels defeated CM Punk, Jimmy Rave, and Frankie Kazarian @ 20:25 via pin [***¼] This was an overall good match, but never really felt heated or that it got out of second gear. The work was clean, the timing was good but it simply peaked at good. I feel this match would have benefited from shaving a few minutes off and working at a bit higher of a pace. While there was a lot of talent in the ring, this is the run of the mill multi-man match you’d find on any early 2000s ROH show.

War Machine & Moose vs. The Young Bucks & Adam Cole: Bullet Club hit a trio of superkicks and then dives to take control of things at the beginning. They brawled on the floor, leading to Moose scoring with a dive that wiped everyone out. Taven ran down Cole on commentary as War Machine chased the Bucks up the ramp. The Bucks hit low blows as Moose and Cole battled at ringside. We finally got back to the ring at about the four-minute mark, where Bullet Club worked over Rowe with double and triple teams. Moose returned and started to put some offense together, with jabs to all three; they cut him off and told him to suck it and Cole did the “ADAM COLE BABY!” when he’d hit Moose. The triple superkick followed, Hanson was knocked back to the floor as Bullet Club isolated Moose. Rowe returned and picked up both Bucks on the floor, but as he looked to slam them, Cole hit the superkick to end that. Back in the ring, Moose hit a run up high cross onto all three and then Hanson returned and got to run wild. Moose and War Machine were finally back in at the same time, and started to just abuse Bullet Club with power moves. Hanson then missed the suicide dive, crashing to the floor. Superkicks by Cole and Matt followed, and then Nick hit an assisted moonsault to the floor. Hanson somehow went unnoticed back into the ring, and hit the senton off the top to the floor onto the pile. Moose and War Machine isolated Cole, but the Bucks made the save. Cole hit the destroyer on Rowe, but then Hanson hit the greetings from Asbury Park and planted Cole on his head. Hanson went for a moonsault but ate superkicks on the way down. Stokely Hathaway on the apron, he ate triple superkicks and did Moose. Meltzer driver on Moose and Cole covers for the win as the Bucks give him kisses on the cheek. That was before the Bucks would murder him on orders of Kenny Omega. Bullet Club defeated Moose and War Machine @ 12:53 via pin [***] The only part that lacked was commentary, as Taven (in a heel role) wasn’t the guy to send the message that the ROH locker room wanted revenge on Bullet Club. He was really there to remind us that he existed and that he is promising a “New Kingdom” sometime down the line. Which we could have done without, both his commentary and the New Kingdom.

– End scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”

7.3

The final score: review Good

The 411

This was an overall good collection this time around, clocking in at just over 50-minutes. There was nothing must see, but the Liger vs. Danielson match was easily the best of the bunch.