What’s All The Hubbub: ROH The Epic Encounter III

So, just a bit of recap before getting to this show. Tyler Black defeated Austin Aries at the Eighth Anniversary Show to become the ROH World Champion. Then, on the HDNet Taping, Eddie Edwards upset fellow American Wolf Davey Richards to become the first ever ROH Television Champion. Both champions are looking to prove themselves. Aries and Richards are looking to bounce back. And the drama involving Kevin Steen, Steve Corino, Colt Cabana and El Generico just continues to escalate.

The Epic Encounter III
March 20, 2010
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

Due to immigration issues, neither Mark Briscoe or Roderick Strong are here. Tyler Black comes out and is actually kind of relieved, since he’s not sure he could trust Roderick as his partner against Austin Aries and Kenny King. He came to fight, and he’s going to fight right now. Aries fakes out Black on a challenge and King takes out his knee. Jay Briscoe, Rhett Titus, Tyson Dux join the brawl, but Aries, King and Titus bail when Skullkrusher Rasche Brown comes out. Aries says he’ll make a call to a friend and they’ll have a fight.

The House of Truth w/Truth Martini vs. The Flatliners
Ah, the Flatliners return. Last time these guys wrestled it was in the same city, against the Young Bucks. Raymond and Burns lock up, CELEBRATION! And my day is better. And the Flatliners join in! *****. The House of Truth is INDIGNANT! *****+! Oh right. The match. Hip toss and military press by Burns. Able has better luck. CHOP TO RAYMOND! HE’S DEAD JIM! Asylum gets a powerslam and a suplex and Burns hits a knee drop. Shoulder in the corner sets up a neckbreaker for 2. Able avoids a second shoulder in the corner and Asylum goes shoulder-first into the iron, and Raymond dropkicks his head into the post! Leg choke! Sandwich dropkicks! Truth trips up Burns and Able powerbombs Raymond onto him. Burns actually hits a Flatliner on Able. Funny. Belly-to-belly on Raymond sets up the hot tag to Asylum. He hits a few clotheslines and a butterfly suplex, but the HOT make the comeback with a bearhug/lionsault combination. But the Flatliners comeback with a codebreaker into a German Suplex! Truth prevents the flying Snapshot and the HOT hit Team Angle’s leapfrog double team without the assisstance of the ropes to pull it out. Okay, so it’s average, but every House of Truth match should be watched. I love this team.
Match Result: Josh Raymond & Christian Able via pinfall
Match Rating: **1/2

Kevin Steen is awesome before the match, wearing a “Cabanaramma” headband and telling the camera man he should be scared because he’ll kill him.

Kevin Steen vs. Player Dos w/Player Uno
Steen blows snot in his hand and Dos sticks his hand down his crotch. They both end up shaking hands in a brilliantly awkward moment. Then Steen wipes his hand on referee Todd Sinclair’s shirt. And his first move is to go outside and elbow the injured Player Dos. RUDO! SOMORSAULT DIVE BY DOS! Then he RANAS HIM OFF THE APRON TO THE FLOOR! Steen catches Dos going for a crossbody and flips it into a backbreaker! Roderick would be proud. Dos tries a full-nelson but gets elbowed down. Steen’s derisive heel antics, both to Dos and the fans, defy description. Flip flop and EYE POKE! Then he wipes the head band on his sizable posterior and wipes it in the face of Dos! He tells the ref to ask Dos if he wants to quit, but Dos screams NO! So he hits a front flip legdrop and licks the camera for good measure. This leads to a great quip from Dombrowski about Buchwhacker Luke not turning on Butch. Crotch pin….awkward. Dos avoids an avalanche but Steen kicks him when he tries a sunset flip. He lays him in the corner across the second ropes and hits a huge double knee drop. Steen cannonballs nothing but turnbuckles and Dos takes him out with flying double knees! Clotheslines and an enzugiri can’t knock Steen down, but a quebrada into a tornado DDT can! 1…2…NO! SUPERKICK! DRAGON SUPLEX! ONLY 2! Steen hits the press powerbomb for 2, but Dos counters the Package Piledriver into a rana for 2! MATRIX but Steen hits his own superkick and the pumphandle neckbreaker over the knee. Really needs a name that one. Steen takes too long to go for a moonsault and Dos is up, FULL ROTATION DRAGON SUPERPLEX! INSANE! 1…2…NO! He goes for some crazy flippy move but misses, PACKAGE PILEDRIVER! Steen wi-KICK OUT! WHAT?!? Steen just pummels him and hits a second Package Piledriver that does put Dos away. WOW. Great match that just came out of nowhere. Steen alternates between disturbingly sexual and disturbingly violent. It works. Dos was on fire here, and really has great facial expressions. I’d like to see the Super Smash Brothers get a more regular schedule for Ring of Honor.
Match Result: Kevin Steen via pinfall
Match Rating: ****

Steen comes back out after the match to hit a third Package Piledriver. Awesome villain.

Eddie Edwards is out and goes for the cheap heat by claiming he’s an AMERICAN Wolf. And then his opponent Petey Williams fumbles over a promo before this becomes a TV Title Match.

ROH Television Championship Match
Eddie Edwards © w/Shane Hagadorn vs. Petey Williams
Petey comes out fighting and hits a headscissors, but Eddie avoids the Destroyer. Eddie sends Petey into the rails. Back inside Petey gets a rana for 2. Eddie counters a kick in the corner and hits a lungblower. Elbow gets 2. A dropkick sends Petey to the floor. Scoop slam and a knee drop gets 2. Petey hits a chinbreaker but goes shoulder-first into the post. Eddie puts on an armbar, but Petey counters a powerbomb into a DDT. He sends Eddie outside and hits the slingshot rana. Slingshot codebreaker sets up the Canadian Legsweep for 2. Bizarre sort of DDT gets 2 but Eddie connects with a flying knee. Petey flips up, drop toeholds Eddie into the second rope and hits a dropkick to the back. Petey slingshots into the Doi 555 but counters it into the Sharpshooter! Eddie gets the ropes, counters a tornado DDT and hits a running knee for 2. Eddie hits the flying codebreaker and the back suplex into a facebuster for 2. Petey tries to counter a superplex into the Canadian Destroyer, avoids the Backpack Stunner but Eddie reverse suplexes him into it! 1…2…NO! Double stomp to the back! Eddie turns the kick out into a half crab, Petey grabs the ropes and gets a small package for 2. Gamengiri by Petey! They dodge moves, CANADIAN DESTROYER! But Hagadorn pulls Petey out to the floor! Petey goes after Hagadorn, wants the Destroyer but Eddie charges, Petey turns it into a schoolboy for 2, Eddie counters to the half crab with a knee! Petey taps. Not a bad X-Division-y sort of match. Neither guy is much of a personality but they have great spots and worked well together.
Match Result: Eddie Edwards via submission
Match Rating: ***

Truth Martini and Christian Able say they are ROH and the Briscoes can’t handle the Truth. What does Josh Raymond have to say? YEAH! YE-YEAAAH! RAAAW! RAAAAAAAW! (5,000 points to anyone who can name the movie.)

Tyler Black, Rasche Brown, Tyson Dux & Jay Briscoe vs.
Austin Aries, Kenny King, Rhett Titus & Adam Pearce
Got to appreciate the booker going to the ring when the schedule gets jumbled. BRAWL! Black suplexes Aries on the floor. Rasche keeps Pearce from hip tossing him, Pearce flips over and eats a clothesline! Man, I miss his stooging. He tags to Aries, who has no success against Rasche and sneakily tags to Titus. Everyone takes a shot at him. Jay hits a clothesline, snapmare and dropkick for 2. Black hits a backdrop suplex, flips Aries off and kicks Titus in the spine. Mr. Han says, “Ah, attitude.” Rasche hits a spin suplex and Aries breaks up the cover, but Brown keeps going for them to make Aries break them. Nice. Black adds the stomp and a back body drop. Briscoe and King are in. Dropkick by Jay, inverted atomic drop by King. Pearce adds an eye poke. Aries and King hit a slingshot into a corkscrew elbow over King’s knees. Aries adds several face rakes and a fist drop for 2 on Jay. Then he sends him into all three of his partner’s boots! Jay tries to fight but Titus hits his awesome dropkick. He runs into the corner flatliner and Black tags in, babyface comeback, King springboards into an inverted atomic drop and a hangman’s neckbreaker. Rasche tags in for a Samoan Drop/Ace Crusher combo for 2. Dux makes a tag, hits a hot shot and a knee on the apron on King but Aries trips him up. BEATDOWN! Dux takes some heel offense but comes back with a backdrop suplex, only to take the Capoeira kick from King. Only 2. Hilo by Aries but he eats a foot on the IED. Titus tags in and hits everyone on the apron, but that just pisses off Rasche. Dux makes the tag and Rasche scares the heels and hits Titus with an avalanche. Discus lariat gets 2. Rasche puts Titus in the fireman’s carry and spins his legs into King and Aries. Pearce takes him down and they try a double Sexy Suplex on Brown but both get suplexed. Then Black adds a double springboard clothesline. Rolling Elbow by Aries, PELE BY BLACK! The heels get tossed to the floor and Jay and Tyler hit double hilos! BIG MAN DIVE BY RASCHE! Rasche goes up top but King hits him with an enzugiri, King and Titus try a double superplex, but Rasche shoves King, who flips and lands on his feet. YAKUZA BY JAY! Aries takes him out with a shinbreaker suplex! Tyson hits Aries with a gourdbuster into a DDT! Clothesline by Pearce! SUPERKICK by Black! Black powerbombs Titus into Pearce in the corner! Hilo by Brown! God’s Last Gift puts Pearce down for good. Dux and Pearce weren’t really necessary, although at least none of the regulars got pinned. Felt like a RAW Main Event. That’s actually a compliment.
Match Result: Tyler Black, Rasche Brown, Tyson Dux & Jay Briscoe via pinfall
Match Rating: ***1/2

Steve Corino vs. Colt Cabana
HATEFUL GRAPPLING! BOO! This leads to a shoulder tackle exchange and Cabana just slaps Corino. Cabana puts on a weird submission hold and shoves the back of Corino’s head. Corino avoids the Flying Asshole and the Asai Moonsault but a sunset flip gets 2. Atomic drop sends Corino outside. And then he gets tossed into the crowd. Corino finally gets some offense by kicking the rope into Colt’s groin. Whole lot of nothing before Corino hits an STO for 2. Hammerlock Flatliner gets 2. Punches go back and forth and Colt gets the bionic elbow. Cabana hits a flying lariat but Corino isn’t close enough for his quebrada to hit cleanly. Still gets 2. Corino gets a chain but Cabana decks him, thinks about using the chain but gets rolled up for 2. Cabana tosses the chain up and punches Corino back down again, goes for the Billy Goat’s Curse but Corino kicks him off. He gets it back on but Steen is out for the DQ finish, but El Generico makes the save before anything serious can happen. Boring match that only served to set up a bit of angle advancement. Won’t be watching this again.
Match Result: Colt Cabana via disqualification
Match Rating: *1/2

Pick Six Contender’s Match
El Generico vs. Chris Hero w/Shane Hagadorn
Hero gets an STF in the early going. Indy standoff. Hero tries unsuccessfully to turn the “Ole!” chants into a “KO!” chant. Generico blocks a rolling elbow but gets hit with a flash kick. Hero stomps on his hands but Generico hits an armdrag and returns the favor. Spinning armdrag sets up corner punches. Leg lariat gets 2. Generico gets a standing moonsault for 2, but Hero hits the Diamond Suplex. That was cool. Flash kick and a senton gets 2. Generico gets some fight but a big boot knocks him down. Hero sends Generico to the floor and hits another boot. Generico avoids the elbow off the rail and tries the Arabian Press, but Hero catches him and drives him into the rail. Hero takes a water break. Hero hits a sick elbow inside and Generico has a cut on his back. Generico hits a few clotheslines, boots Hero to the floor and hits a hilo off the top. Generico hits a hurricane rana inside for 2, Hero hits elbow and knees at the same time but takes a Blue Thunder Bomb for 2. Hero counters the Brainbuster into a back elbow and then into the Crash Landing Suplex for 2. Hero hits the Dislocater, which is a gutwrench turned into a sit-out F-5 of sorts. It only gets 2. Hero counters a kick in the corner to the Rolling Elbow, but Generico counters the Death Blow with the exploder into the buckles! YAKUZA BY HERO! RUNNING ROLLING ELBOW! Hero follows up with two sick big boots, trying to knock out Generico. Elbows and the Rolling Elbow, but Generico slaps him in the face. Elbow flurry but Yakuza Kicks by Generico. ROLLING ELBOW! ONLY 2! RIPCORD ELBOW! 2! DEATH BLOW! JUST 2! STRETCH PLUM! Generico is gone and Paul Turner stops the match. I don’t know if there’s a more sympathetic babyface in ROH than Generico, and Hero is one of the most condescending heels. Generico kicking out of all the elbows only to pass out was a good finish for where he was storyline wise. This worked well. Not quite a MOTY contender, but a very welcome addition to the show.
Match Result: Chris Hero by referee stoppage
Match Rating: ***3/4

Kevin Steen comes out to ruin the moment and calls out Colt Cabana to tell him something he thinks will be very useful for him to listen to. He talks about getting the business six years ago, despising Generico but traveling with him for the sake of his career. But then, two years ago, things changed, and they become like brothers. But it took losing the tag title due to Generico’s injury, it took being at an ROH show after Ladder War II by himself and realizing he missed Generico. But what really did it, was him coming THIS close to retiring, speaking his heart out, about to say something to Generico, only to have Generico hug him before he could say anything. He realized that something inside him died, so he kicked him in the balls, hit him in the head with a chair, and it was the greatest feeling of his life! He was reborn. He calls Generico a parasite and a disease and tells him to leave. Generico refuses to, so Steen says he must think he has it somewhere in him to hit Steen. He dares him to do it. Steen says Generico is just like a woman who gets beat by her boyfriend because “he loves her”. Cabana gives Generico a chair and Steen gets on his knees to accept it, but Generico can’t do it.

Corino comes out and the follow-up brawl is pretty weak, but man, what an awesome promo by Steen. Cabana and Generico were great in their roles too.

Kenny Omega cuts a rather arrogant promo for a babyface. He beat Richards at Clash of the Contenders and Davey was really pissed about it. I actually want Davey Richards to destroy him.

Davey Richards w/Shane Hagadorn vs. Kenny Omega
And he does with a kick before the bell. Then he (mostly) hits a wheel kick to knock Omega out of mid-air. HILO SUICIDA! Alarm Clock out of the corner gets 2. Omega doesn’t even have his shirt off yet. Omega avoids the Cloverleaf so Richards just kicks him. Omega counters a kick to a dragon screw, gets a scoop slam and a dropkick but barely even gets 1. Out to the floor and Davey whips Omega to the rail and hits a yakuza kick. Snap suplex gets 2. Richards counters a rana to a powerbomb and applies the Cloverleaf, but he gets the ropes. Richards hits a knockout kick and wants a countout. Richards stays on top and puts him the Tequila Cloverleaf. Davey shrugs off punches and slaps, hits a spin kick but Omega counters the handspring enzugiri with a wheel kick to the back of the head! Polish Hammers! Davey avoids the bullfrog but takes a rana and the uranage for 2! Richards counters a dragon suplex and almost steals it with a tight roll-up. Omega hits a missile dropkick to the back of the head, DRAGON SUPLEX! Only 2. Punches, and Omega tries to make Davey STOP! But he gets his hand kicked for it. Omega catches a kick but that allows Davey to apply a CROSS ARMBREAKER! Omega is in the ropes but taps afterward in a nice moment. Omega grabs the ropes to avoid a German Suplex so Davey kicks the rope into his arm. Triangle Kick sets up the missile dropkick to a kneel Kenny, just 2, back to the Armbreaker! Omega gets the ropes! They trade suplex counters until Davey gets sent to the floor, baseball slide sends him to the crowd, running MOONSAULT INTO THE CROWD! Wow. You really have to see the way he does that one. Crazy. They trade kicks on the apron and that sets up the Bullfrog on a table! Davey is back in at nineteen and SPITS IN OMEGA’S FACE! SLAPS BY OMEGA! KAWADA KICKS BY DAVEY! SLAPS! KICKS! SPIN KICK BY DAVEY! SPIN KICK BY OMEGA! ALARM CLOCK CAUGHT, ENZUGIRI BY DAVEY! HEEL KICK BY OMEGA! INVERTED RANA! FIGHTING SPIRIT LARIAT! Whew….that was insane. They are exhausted but continue to trade strikes. ALARM CLOCK HITS! Spin kick to the gut, spinning superkick, and then he lifts him in a suplex and just drops him into the Alarm Clock! 1…2….NO! Davey sets up for the Shooting Star Press and they start fighting up top. I was about to complain how obvious it was that they were setting for the German Superplex but Omega LANDS ON HIS FEET, so it was clear he set that up. ROUNDHOUSE BY DAVEY! HADOUKEN! SIT-OUT BLUE DESTINY! 1…2…NO! Wow, that was close. Davey avoids both Croyt’s Wrath and a Super Croyt’s Wrath but doesn’t really hit a sit-out powerbomb. Yakuza in the corner leads to a German Suplex for 2. BUZZSAW KICK! DR DRIVER! 1…2..NO, KIMURA! Counter to a small package! ONLY 2! CROSS ARMBREAKER! Omega lifts Richards on his shoulders, CROYT’S WRATH INTO THE BUCKLES! INVERTED RANA! CROYT’S WRATH! 1…2…NO! DAVEY COUNTERS TO THE KIMURA! OMEGA TAPS! Wow. The more I see this the more I like it. They strained credulity at times, but I think you have to go back to Davey’s reaction at Clash of the Champions to understand. He just was NOT going to lose this time. Epic Encounter indeed.
Match Result: Davey Richards via submission
Match Rating: ****1/2

Crowd chants “That was awesome!” and “Thank you both!” Davey doesn’t want to shake hands, but says he always will respect Omega, and offers him rematch when he kicks Tyler Black’s ass and becomes World Champion. After seeing both their Clash match and this one, I’d love to see that.

The 411: Looking at this card, I did not expect much. Then Player Dos and Kevin Steen set the tone for the night with an awesome match, and everyone just brought their A-Game. Steen's promo on El Generico was also a thing of beauty. And you have to see Richards vs. Omega II. It gave the show it's name and definitely lived up to the billing. Outstanding show and a must buy for Ring of Honor fans.
Final Score:  9.5   [  Amazing ]