Recommendation: Watch ROH this week
Aug 5, 2023 19:00:49 GMT -5
DSR, Ultimo Gallos, and 2 more like this
Post by HMARK Center on Aug 5, 2023 19:00:49 GMT -5
(assuming, of course, you're cool with paying for Honor Club, which I get not wanting to do while it doesn't include PPVs/discounts on them)
So the vibe around the "new ROH" has been that it's been a bit too aimless of late, mainly due to Khan's booking focus likely shifting to the launch of Collision, the injuries they had going into Death Before Dishonor, the fact they couldn't get it included in the WB TV deal, etc. Some have equated it with Dark/Elevation.
Well, don't know if this is a sign of a positive long term change, but ROH this week did a solid job of feeling more like ROH TV right before/during the pandemic, when it had a pretty damn good thing going; they had good matches but also set up a lot of angles:
-Athena and Diamante have a really good Women's title match, but what's extra interesting is that it ends in Athena winning, NOT attacking Diamente, then the two having a backstage promo where Athena tells Diamante she has the ability to do more but needs to find what it'll take to bring her to the next level. Interesting wrinkles for both women.
-Josh Woods and Shibata have a good Pure Title match, and afterwards Woods bemoans that in the last year he's lost his shot at the three men's singles titles in ROH and needs to "make a change". Josh Woods is pretty awesome, so seems this is going somewhere. Maybe he's breaking off from Varsity Athletes?
-Really good TV Title eliminator tournament matches, especially Shane Taylor vs. Chris Daniels. I really want Taylor vs. Joe.
-Dalton Castle calling out Stokely for helping Joe beat him at Death Before Dishonor, Joe being offended that Dalton dare insult Stokely (whom Joe is clearly controlling through abject terror), and basically building a potential TV title rematch.
-Maria Kanellis walking out to watch both Leyla Hirsch's and Cole Karter's matches; given The Kingdom's (temporary?) shift to the AEW roster for the Cole/MJF/Roddy storyline, curious what this'll mean.
-Aussie Open and the Iron Savages had a fun tag match; Aussie Open is basically always worth watching, and Iron Savages is just dumb enough a gimmick that I might end up loving it.
There were a few other things, a couple squashes and quicker matches, etc., but since Death Before Dishonor it feels like they might be settling into a nice groove with a more solidified roster, emerging stories, angles, and character development, and basically just feeling more like a complete show rather than a batch of matches just being held before/after AEW tapings.
I'm a pretty big fan of ROH's roster from late 2019 into the pandemic era; I've said before, I genuinely think they might've had the most watchable regular wrestling show during the pandemic, because things like the crew and announcers' emphasis on the smaller, more focused details of wrestling matches was something that really stood out, plus a strong overall roster that had a lot of really good established and emerging talent on it.
Well, this week's show feels like it's getting back into that style, and I hope it keeps going. Now, if they could just start holding more ROH tapings in distinct venues, smaller ones that can allow for more intimate and intense crowds in venues that can hold 1,000 to 3,000 or so people and can really catch that more of that classic ROH vibe.
So the vibe around the "new ROH" has been that it's been a bit too aimless of late, mainly due to Khan's booking focus likely shifting to the launch of Collision, the injuries they had going into Death Before Dishonor, the fact they couldn't get it included in the WB TV deal, etc. Some have equated it with Dark/Elevation.
Well, don't know if this is a sign of a positive long term change, but ROH this week did a solid job of feeling more like ROH TV right before/during the pandemic, when it had a pretty damn good thing going; they had good matches but also set up a lot of angles:
-Athena and Diamante have a really good Women's title match, but what's extra interesting is that it ends in Athena winning, NOT attacking Diamente, then the two having a backstage promo where Athena tells Diamante she has the ability to do more but needs to find what it'll take to bring her to the next level. Interesting wrinkles for both women.
-Josh Woods and Shibata have a good Pure Title match, and afterwards Woods bemoans that in the last year he's lost his shot at the three men's singles titles in ROH and needs to "make a change". Josh Woods is pretty awesome, so seems this is going somewhere. Maybe he's breaking off from Varsity Athletes?
-Really good TV Title eliminator tournament matches, especially Shane Taylor vs. Chris Daniels. I really want Taylor vs. Joe.
-Dalton Castle calling out Stokely for helping Joe beat him at Death Before Dishonor, Joe being offended that Dalton dare insult Stokely (whom Joe is clearly controlling through abject terror), and basically building a potential TV title rematch.
-Maria Kanellis walking out to watch both Leyla Hirsch's and Cole Karter's matches; given The Kingdom's (temporary?) shift to the AEW roster for the Cole/MJF/Roddy storyline, curious what this'll mean.
-Aussie Open and the Iron Savages had a fun tag match; Aussie Open is basically always worth watching, and Iron Savages is just dumb enough a gimmick that I might end up loving it.
There were a few other things, a couple squashes and quicker matches, etc., but since Death Before Dishonor it feels like they might be settling into a nice groove with a more solidified roster, emerging stories, angles, and character development, and basically just feeling more like a complete show rather than a batch of matches just being held before/after AEW tapings.
I'm a pretty big fan of ROH's roster from late 2019 into the pandemic era; I've said before, I genuinely think they might've had the most watchable regular wrestling show during the pandemic, because things like the crew and announcers' emphasis on the smaller, more focused details of wrestling matches was something that really stood out, plus a strong overall roster that had a lot of really good established and emerging talent on it.
Well, this week's show feels like it's getting back into that style, and I hope it keeps going. Now, if they could just start holding more ROH tapings in distinct venues, smaller ones that can allow for more intimate and intense crowds in venues that can hold 1,000 to 3,000 or so people and can really catch that more of that classic ROH vibe.
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