Views from the Hawke’s Nest: Kevin Steen – Ascension to the Top – Disc 1

Do or Die
Elizabeth, New Jersey
February 19, 2005

Kevin Steen vs. B-Boy

B-Boy ever being “a thing” in indie wrestling is something I have really understood. He does not do anything particularly well, and he only seems to occasionally have good matches. I say all this as a way of explaining that this was a tough situation for Steen to try to get over in. There is only so much that can be done with B-Boy, and they did not even seem to do that. The finish was decently at least. Steen finally hit the package piledriver, but B-Boy rolled out of the ring. B-Boy then won after a piledriver and a Shining Wizard. You would never guess that Steen would go on to be so important to Ring of Honor’s history after this match. He did not look like he belonged at all. (*)

 

The Homecoming
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
July 23, 2005

Kevin Steen vs. El Generico

While this had its rough moments for sure, you can see just how much more comfortable Steen was working Generico compared to B-Boy. Both men just did their thing, and it got over to a certain degree. The match itself was just okay of course, and it’s not a mystery why it didn’t get them full-time jobs. It was neat to watch though, and I am grateful ROH put it on a DVD. Generico won with a backslide. (**1/2)

 

Fifth Year Festival
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
February 17, 2007.

Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe)

I do not remember if The Briscoes were heels at the time, but them working on top proved to be a mistake regardless. The crowd just did not particularly get invested in the heat segment on Generico, nor were they hot for Steen’s hot tag. The match finally picks up steam down the stretch where they got some shit in. Then the match seemed to be going way too long before they recovered again. Really running the gamut of emotions on this one. Anyway, the Briscoes finally won after the SSP/guillotine legdrop on Steen. This could have been better as the match. It was unquestionably a strong way for the Steenerico team to properly debut though. That is oddly reminiscent of my feelings about Steen’s WWE main roster debut against Cena. (**3/4)

 

Fighting Spirit
Edison, New Jersey
April 14, 2007

Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Jay Briscoe & Erick Stevens

So, this was a weird one. Mark was out with an injury. Stevens was the replacement partner. The No Remorse Corps showed up and took Stevens out. Steenerico would go on to beat Jay down for what seemed like an eternity. Mark Briscoe ended up showing up just in time and took the hot tag. They proceeded to turn this into another eternity-long sequence somehow. Steenerico finally finished off Mark after a package piledriver/brainbuster combo. The story with Mark was that he had a head injury, and Steenerico kept dropping him on his head. Great story to do a few months before the Benoit murder/suicide. Anyway, this was an angle disguised as a match that went on for what felt like an hour. No bueno. (*3/4)

 

Respect is Earned
New York City, New York
May 12, 2007

We saw footage of the Steenerico/Briscoes brawl after the Briscoes’ successful defense against Claudio and Sydal. This was some hot fire and a great angle to run on the company’s first PPV.

 

Fight at the Roxbury
Boston, Massachusetts
June 8, 2007

Kevin Steen vs. Mark Briscoe

Much like the brawl and unlike the first two matches shown from this feud, this was a hot brawl that made the most of its time instead of long overstaying its welcome. This sold you on the intensity of the feud while entertaining you and making your more interested in future matches. In other words, this was a success. After sending Mark through a table and chairs, Steen finished Mark with the package piledriver. (***1/2)

 

Domination
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
June 9, 2007

Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Jigsaw & Mike Quackenbush

Watching older (2005-2008ish) ROH tag matches these days makes me feel old as almost every match inevitably causes me to feel, “Stop doing stuff! Just go home already!” They have this really hot crowd, and they’re giving them everything they want. I just could not help but feel like it was going too long and the heat segment on Jigsaw was rendered meaningless by how long the match went on afterwards. I don’t know. I watched this multiple times and still couldn’t get into the back-and-forth final stretch. The crowd really loved it though. Steen won after a package piledriver on Jigsaw. (**3/4)

 

Death Before Dishonor
Boston, Massachusetts
August 10, 2007

Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe)

This was one of the wildest brawls that I have ever seen. Were there a ton of spots? Absolutely. However, the violence and destruction was sold and justified perfectly by the hatred on the teams’ faces. They weren’t doing to each other just to do it. They *had* to do this to each other. Steen eventually finished Jay with a package piledriver onto a ladder. This is one of the greatest matches in Ring of Honor history. (****3/4)

Steen challenged them to a cage match after winning. I would have just challenged them to another street fight since I knew could have won that kind of match.

 

Caged Rage
Hartford, Connecticut
August 24, 2007

The Briscoes(c) (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico [Cage match for the ROH World Tag Team Championship]

This suffers mightily when watched right after the Boston Street Fight. If the latter felt like a battle between four men that *had* to fight each other. This cage match felt like watching four men who were *told* to fight each other. The passion, intensity, and sense of urgency was just not here at all. The Briscoes managed to isolate Generico in the ring and put Steen through a table on the floor. They then easily finished Generico off after Steen was completely taken out. This match was good enough, but these four were restricted by being confined in a cage. (***)

 

Man Up
Chicago Ridge, Illinois
September 15, 2007

The Briscoes(c) (Jay & Mark Briscoe) vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico [Ladder War for the ROH World Tag Team Championship]

This is more like it. Much like the Boston Street Fight, this was a wild brawl where the wrestlers justified the violence and destruction by selling their hatred for each other and to prove they were definitively the best tag team in ROH. Also like that match, they managed to seamlessly combine high spots and violence so that it didn’t feel like a stunt show for the sake of a stunt show. The big spots had purpose. That is the advantage of booking a ladder match within a feud instead of just randomly inserting it when it’s not warranted. It gives everything meaning. I have this match ever-so slightly below the Boston Street Fight, and that is just because they were a tad slow to get going for a few minutes towards the beginning. That is just a nitpick though. This was yet another great match. Jay got the belts for his team (though it took a few moments for him to get the belts off the hook). (****1/2)

 

Honor Nation
Boston, Massachusetts
October 5, 2007

Takeshi Morishima(c) vs. Kevin Steen [ROH World Championship]

This match was oddly worked in the sense they sacrificed a lot of what made random Morishima defenses hot for some “logic” and to keep Steen fully heel. Steen goes right after Morishima’s left leg to start the match and goes back to it a few times sporadically in the match. Morishima was not particularly interested in selling it though which made it feel rather pointless. This match would have likely been a lot more fun if it was a bit higher-energy and if Steen embraced being an all-out babyface for a night. Morishima mostly was able to shake off Steen’s offense and finish him with a Backdrop Driver. This was fine, but it was not all that exciting and paled in comparison to other Morishima defenses. (**3/4)

 

Watch some Steen for free!

Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. Super Dragon & Excalibur

Kevin Steen vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Kevin Steen vs. Sami Callihan II

Kevin Steen vs. Eddie Edwards [ROH World Championship Match]

Kevin Steen vs. Jerry Lawler

Kevin Steen vs. Dave Mastiff

Kevin Steen vs. Mike Bailey

Kevin Steen, Steve Corino, & Jimmy Jacobs vs. Jay Lethal & ANX

Kevin Steen & Jimmy Jacobs vs. Davey Richards & Kyle O’Reilly

Kevin Steen vs. B-Boy

8.0

The final score: review Very Good

The 411

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