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On December 26, 2008, Ring of Honor held All Star Extravaganza IV, the penultimate show of the year, in Philadelphia, PA. Let's get right into it.
Kenny Omega is thrilled to wrestle in the New "Alabama" Arena and he has some words for Rhett Titus. Titus comes up and has words for him. Who is cockier?
Chris Hero, that young knock out kid, is the next to be interviewed in the back. Hero's take on his match is that it will be tough on Erick Stevens because he is facing that young knock out kid.
Kenny Omega vs. Rhett Titus
Some reversals to start. Side headlock by Titus, followed by a shoulderblock. Omega chops Titus to the mat several times, then controls the arm. It's all very homoerotic. Titus with a cheap knee to the gut and he works on Omega in the corner. Omega stands up off a monkey flip, then tosses Titus around for a bit.
Titus runs around on the floor for a bit, then gets a two count after a dropkick in the ring. Titus charges in the corner and covers, but Omega is way too close to the ropes. Titus stretches Omega's back with a chinlock. Omega turns it into a brief pin before Titus reapplies a chinlock. Omega stands up and gets out, but he runs into a tilt a whirl backbreaker for two.
Titus with a scoop slam and elbow drop for two. Titus with a couple of forearms to the back. Omega with some shots to come back. Polish Hammers to Titus, and a combination of strikes. Omega drives Titus to the mat. He falls when he can't support Titus' weight on his shoulders. Stop sign Enziguri by Omega. Electric Chair German Suplex wins it for Omega.
Your winner, Kenny Omega!
Chris Hero vs. Erick Stevens
Stevens isn't scared of that young knock out kid as he goes right after him when he comes out. Stevens is distracted and Hero gets a chop in. Stevens fires back with a chop that knocks Hero down. Hero trips Stevens, then elbows him in the head several times. Stevens catches a kick, but Hero goes for the eyes. Stevens causes Hero to bail with a slam. Stevens follows and throws Hero into the guardrail a couple of times. He then connects with a charge against the guardrail.
del Rey distracts Stevens and Hero throws him into the ring post. Rolling elbow in the corner by Hero. Back senton gets two on Stevens. Stevens puts Hero in the corner and hits some chops. Hero trips him and gets another back senton. He dumps Stevens to the floor and pulls up the mat. Stevens blocks a scoop slam and pushes Hero into the ring post. He goes to suplex Hero, but he is again distracted. Hero pushes Stevens to the floor.
Back in the ring, Stevens no sells a couple of elbows. Stevens elbows back, then gives Hero a high back body drop. Choo choo charge followed by a diving shoulder tackle off the middle for two. Hero blocks a charge and hits some more elbows for two. Roll up by Stevens for two. He clotheslines Hero to the mat and goes for the Doctor Bomb, but del Rey interferes. Hero loads up his boot with his loaded elbow pad and hits a Yakuza Kick for the win.
Your winner, Chris Hero!
Kensuke Office (Sasaki & Katsuhiko Nakajima) vs. Brent Albright & Roderick Strong
Nakajima and Strong start out. They trade hammerlocks. SIde headlock to Strong. He takes Strong to the mat. Strong frees himself, then they trade wristlocks and whiff on dropkicks. Crossbody by Strong for one. Nakajima sweeps Strong, but is caught with a roll up for one. Leg Lariat by Strong. Roddy wants Sasaki. He chops Sasaki immediately, to no avail. Sasaki knocks him down with a shoulderblock. Strong tags Albright in.
Albright and Sasaki lock up, but neither budges. Knuckle Lock and they come out even again. Chops are exchange to no effect. Shoulderblocks also have no effect. Dropkick by Albright for one. Powerslam by Sasaki. Charge in the corner, followed by a suplex. Nakajima with a missile dropkick for one. Combo of kicks for two. Backbreaker by Albright for two. Strong tags in.
Strong and Albright double team Nakajima for two. Fallaway slam gets two for Strong. Albright back in and he hits a belly to belly. Nakajima avoids a charge and nails some kicks. Sasaki back in with a suplex for two. Back and front chops by Sasaki for two. Nakajima back in. He kicks Albright, then charges with a knee. Flurry of strikes in the corner, followed by a dropkick and stomps to Albright. Snapmare and Dragon Kick to Albright. Sasaki tags in and Office double teams Albright. Nakajima keeps Strong from entering the ring as Albright is worked over. Nakajima locks a Triangle Choke on Strong, but he is lifted up and tossed into Sasaki.
Albright gets up but he runs into a leg lariat. Sasaki back in with some shots in the corner. Office team up to drive Albright's knees to the mat. Boston Crab by Sasaki. Albright makes the ropes. Albright and Sasaki clothesline each other. Strong and Nakajima tag in. Strong with some clotheslines, and a charging forearm in the corner. Dropkick to Nakajima, followed by a backbreaker for two. Running boot by Nakajima and Sasaki tags in and drives Strong into the corner. Lots of chops by Sasaki. He throws Strong into the corner a couple times, then clotheslines him to the mat. Knee and judo throw by Sasaki. He slams Strong to the mat for two. Sasaki ties up Strong's arm, but Albright breaks it up. Nakajima dumps Albright to the floor. Sasaki is whipped into the corner. Gutbuster to Nakajima.
Strong tags Albright in. Double team to Sasaki, followed by an Air Raid Crash by Albright for two when Nakajima breaks the pin up. Sasaki with a lariat to Strong. Nakajima with superkicks to Strong. Office chop and kick Strong to the mat. Sasaki tosses Nakajima into Albright for two. Strong breaks the pin up, but is dumped from the ring and caught with a dive. Lariat to Albright for two. Northern Lights Bomb gets the job done.
Your winners, Kensuke Office!
Sweeney promo in the back.
Takeshi Morishima vs. Go Shiozaki
These two hosses go at it very early. Go takes Morishima down, then dives outside. Morishima goes into the ring post a couple of times. Go puts him back in the ring and steps on him. Knee drops by Go. He chops and kicks Morishima in the corner. Mori blocks a scoop slam and pounds Go in the back, but he is caught with a dropkick for two.
Go puts Morishima on the top turnbuckle, then puts him in the Tree of Woe, hitting a couple of boots before charging with a boot to the face. Morishima fires back and knocks Go down. Go can't get Morishima with a powerbomb, then runs right into a side slam. Go rolls to the floor, but Morishima charges in the corner on the floor. Go makes it back into the ring before 20, then rolls back to the floor.
Go finally gets back in, but Morishima stands on him. Mori sits on Go in the ropes. Snapmare, then Morishima tosses himself on Go. Chinlock to Go. Morishima covers, but Go kicks out. Go with a flying forearm for two. Charging chop in the corner, enziguri, and knee strike by Go. Mori blocks one suplex, but Go gets the next attempt for two.
Go fails on a powerbomb, and Morishima sits on him. Missile dropkick from the top by Morishima. He charges Go, then gets two with a Uranage. Go meets Morishima at the top and hits a superplex. Morishima no sells, but Go with a clothesline for two. He catches Morishima on the flying hip attack with a German Suplex. After a couple of shots, he covers for two. Go to the top, but Morishima powerbombs him to the mat for two. Go and Mori trade elbows. Morishima with a big lariat, followed by the Back Drop Driver for the win.
Your winner, Takeshi Morishima!
Three Way Elimination Match: American Wolves (Eddie Edwards & Davey Richards) vs. The Briscoes vs. Nigel McGuinness & Claudio Castagnoli
Nigel and Jay start out. Nigel controls the wrist. Nigel applies a cravate and holds it through a suplex. Kick by Jay. Nigel tags Davey Richards in. Richards powers Jay to the mat in a knuckle lock for two. Jay powers Davey down. Davey trips Jay, then applies a modified surfboard. Edwards tags in, but is taken to the mat by Jay. Mark tags in and punches Edwards. Headscissors to Edwards. Nigel tags Jay out.
Front facelock by Nigel. Richards tags in, but Nigel goes to the floor and admires his thinking. Jay tags Nigel out and trades shots with Davey. Jay goes for an armbreaker, but Davey makes the ropes. Mark tags in and peppers Davey's sauce. Suplex out of the corner only gets one. Chinlock by Mark. Davey pushes Mark to his corner and tags Edwards in. Headbutts by Edwards. Back elbow by Mark and Jay tags in. Snap suplex to Edwards for two.
Nigel interferes and tags Claudio in. Claudio shows off and stomps Jay. Nigel and Claudio work on Jay in the corner. Claudio off the second with a double axe handle. Nigel and Claudio sandwich Jay with Europeans. Claudio with a gutwrench suplex for two. Nigel with some chops in the corner. Claudio gets his own shots in. Jay avoids the double team. Jay charges in the corner, then hits a big boot for two. Scoop slam by Jay. Mark to the top rope and he hits an elbow drop for two. Nigel interferes, but Mark takes him to the floor. In the ring, Jay hits some rights. Davey stops the Briscoes from hitting the Doomsday Device. Jay ducks a bicycle kick, but Claudio hits a pop up European. Eddie Edwards had made the blind tag to Jay, and he pins Claudio.
Castagnoli & McGuinness are eliminated.
After his elimination, Claudio flips out again. Davey gets two after an Alarm Clock on Mark, then targets the injured knee. Edwards attacks Mark on the floor. Richards applies a Figure Four in the ring. Edwards tags in and he keeps Mark in the corner with some forearms and a boot to the knee. Davey back in and he chokes Mark with his boot. Davey bridges back to really apply pressure to Mark's knee. Edwards with an enziguri and boot to the head. Single Leg Crab by Edwards to Mark, who makes the ropes. Davey back in. He is caught with an enziguri. Jay makes the tag and cleans house. He puts Edwards on top and hangs him in the Tree of Woe, then drives Davey into Edwards' groin. Falcon Arrow to Richards for two.
Jay with a chokeslam to Davey for two when Edwards breaks the pin up. Mark dumps Edwards to the floor. The Briscoes with a double team shoulder tackle to Davey. DVD by Mark for two. Davey blocks a Jay Driller and double teams Jay with Edwards for two. Edwards tags in. Jay blocks a charge, but Edwards hits an enziguri, followed by a Backpack Chinbreaker for two. Mark back in and the Briscoes pound Edwards. The Briscoes and Wolves slug it out. Edwards takes Mark out, and the Wolves double team Jay for two.
The Wolves go for a Doomsday Device, but Mark suplexes Richards off the top. Roll up to Edwards for two. The Jay Driller gets the job done.
Your winners, the Briscoes!
Austin Aries vs. Naomichi Marufuji
Aries pushes Marufuji to the corner with a collar and elbow. They lock up again and have another clean break. Waistlock takedown by Aries. Marufuji reverses and Aries makes the ropes. More reversals. Fireman's Carry by Aries, who then applies a side headlock on the mat. Marufuji powers Aries to the mat, but Aries is close to the ropes.
The two take their time before locking up again. Side headlock by Aries. Aries avoids a superkick. Marufuji takes Aries down with a shoulderblock. Arm drags by Aries. Headscissors on the mat by Marufuji. Aries pops out, but misses a dropkick. He gets Marufuji down and hits a couple of knees, but he is too close to the ropes for Last Chancery. Marufuji regroups on the floor.
Superkick by Marufuji and Aries falls to the floor. They jockey for position. Marufuji trips Aries, but misses the low dropkick. Marufuji stands on Aries in the corner. Elbows to the back of Aries' head. Marufuji applies pressure to Aries neck. They trade chops in the corner. Marufuji with a slap to Aries' nose. He steps on Aries' head again.
Aries with kicks and an elbow. Headlock by Marufuji. Aries tosses him off. Aries fires away in the corner. Marufuji drives Aries into the corner with a knee to the back of the head. Aries is put in the Tree of Woe. Springboard Coast to Coast misses the mark. Aries with a neckbreaker through the ropes. He hits Marufuji on the apron. Aries covers for two.
Knee to Marufuji's back for another two count. Aries ties up Marufuji, then covers for two. Back elbow by Aries for two. He applies pressure to Marufuji's neck. Aries brainbuster attempt is blocked, so he hits a gutwrench suplex for two. Chinlock by Aries. Sunset flip by Marufuji for two. He goes for another pin, but Aries gets out and dropkicks him for two.
Aries twisting elbow drop misses. Marufuji with some chops. He blocks a charge, then drives Aries face first into the turnbuckle. Leaping elbow in the corner, but Aries blocks a suplex. Aries avoids a stomp, but eats a superkick for two. Marufuji whiffs on a shiranui and Aries hits a twisting elbow drop for two.
Marufuji floats over on a Brainbuster, but Aries dumps him out. Marufuji stops the suicide dive with a dropkick. Slingshot elbow drop gets two. Aries blocks the Shiranui again. Crucifix Bomb, and Aries hits the suicide dive this time. Aries rolls him back in and covers for two. Knees to the head by Aries and he applies Last Chancery. Aries misses a brainbuster, but avoids a superkick and hits a shinbuster/back suplex combo. Running dropkick in the corner, and another for two.
Aries puts Marufuji on the top rope. Aries is pushed off and Marufuji drives his face into the mat with a stomp. Dropkick to Aries' head for two. Aries blocks another shiranui, but he is caught with two superkicks. Marufuji hits a Shiranui Kai for the win.
Your winner, Naomichi Marufuji!
Kevin Steen, El Generico & Necro Butcher vs. Age of the Fall (Jimmy Jacobs, Tyler Black, & Delirious)
Jimmy threatens to leave if Necro doesn't get rid of the chair. Necro and Co. chase AOTF to the back and bring them back to the ring. Necro with headbutts to all. Necro crotches Black against the ringpost. Steen works on Jacobs. Necro comes over and chokes Jimmy. In the ring, El Generico goes after Black and hits a Leg Lariat. Delirious runs back in and attacks Generico from behind. Steen comes in to help his partner and they double team Delirious.
Steen and Generico hold Jimmy for Necro, but Black trips Necro and pulls him out of the ring. Delirious and Jacobs work on Steen in the corner. Jacobs officially tags in and Snapmares Steen out of the corner. Dropkick to Steen's back for one. Delirious tags in. Steen fights off a double team. He throws Delirious into Necro and Generico's boots. Generico tags in and gets two with a backbreaker, then two after a standing moonsault.
Necro tags in and punches Delirious in the corner. Necro slams Delirious to the mat, then pulls back on his mouth. Generico tags in and punches Delirious. Delirious counters and tags Black in. Black with a suplex for two. He mounts Generico and punches him for two when Necro comes in and kicks Black in the head.
Black with a wristlock to Generico. Generico counters with a back suplex. Steen tags in and drops Black to the mat hard with a back suplex of his own. Generico back in and he punches Black. Black drives Generico into the corner and tags Delirious in. Delirious with charges in the corner. Delirious with a thrust to Generico's throat.
Black tags in. Generico briefly tries to fight his opponents off. He clotheslines them, but stands around and allows Jacobs to hit a spear. Necro breaks up another pin. Generico is tossed into the corner headfirst. Black puts Generico into the Tree of Woe where AOTF double team him. Jacobs drives Generico into the corner and brings Delirious in. Delirious with a small package out of nowhere for two.
AOTF keep the assault on Generico and prevent him from making the tag. Generico finally makes the tag to Steen. Steen in with clotheslines to Delirious, followed by a cannonball splash. Powerbomb to Black. Jacobs jumps on Steen's back, so Steen hits a backpack senton onto Black. Steen goes to the top, but Delirious crotches him. Necro comes in and punches Delirious in the corner, then he whales on Jimmy. Generico gets Necro like punches and stomps in on Jacobs. Jacobs dives over the top rope onto AOTF. Necro goes to the top, but Delirious prevents him from jumping off. Necro goes into the Tree of Woe and Delirious gets a spike. Daizee Haze runs in and tries to talk some sense into him. Delirious drops it, but turns around into a chokeslam by Necro, who then dives off the top turnbuckle onto AOTF.
Steen with a Package Piledriver to Delirious, but the American Wolves interfere. Davey attacks Steen with a pipe and Jacobs applies the End Time. Steen gets up briefly, but the attack took too much out of him and he has to tap.
Your winners, Age of the Fall!
Bryan Danielson vs. Jerry Lynn
Lynn and Dragon feel each other out. Lynn with an early takedown, but noting comes of it. Reversals and a show down. Dragon powers Lynn to the mat with a knuckle lock. Lynn to his feet, but Danielson takes him down again. Monkey flip by Lynn. Shoulderblock by Lynn. Dragon and Lynn fall to the floor, then quickly get back in the ring. Another standoff.
Lynn applies headscissors on the mat. Danielson goes for a Bow and Arrow, but Lynn manages to keep out of it and they stand off once more. Dragon with a take down and he controls the leg. Lynn turns over to try and ease the pressure, then makes the ropes. European by Danielson. Neither man can get an advantage on hip toss attempts.
In the corner, Jerry punches Dragon instead of going for a clean break. He misses a crossbody and Dragon hits a running knee strike for two. Danielson sets up for a Surfboard and locks it in, but Lynn gets a break. Dragon works the arm some more and starts to get cocky. Dragon pulls back on the wrist as Lynn is put on the mat. Lynn up, but Danielson puts him back on the mat with a Thesz Press. He goes back to the arm. Lynn blocks an armbreaker. Lynn and Dragon trade two counts, then roll all over the mat. Both men are down.
Dragon and Lynn miss punches, then cross body into each other. Tilt a Whirl Backbreaker from Lynn. He blocks a charge, then hits a ran off the second rope. Swinging DDT from Lynn for two. Dragon sits on the top rope and takes Lynn to the floor. Danielson hits a suicide dive. Dragon spills back out to the floor. Lynn dives over the top rope onto Dragon and both men are down on the floor. Lynn rolls Dragon in the ring and gets two with a crossbody. Dropkick by Lynn for two.
Lynn goes for a crossface chicken wing. Danielson makes the ropes. Springboard knee strike from Dragon. German suplex for two. Cattle Mutilation is applied. Danielson turns it into repeated elbows. Lynn backs Dragon into the corner. Lynn dumps Dragon to the mat off his back for two.
Danielson is almost limp, but it was a ruse to get Lynn into the Triangle Choke. Cradle by Dragon for two. Lynn gets two with a Powerbomb. Lynn counters the Cradle Piledriver with another Triangle Choke. More elbows from Dragon. Lynn makes it to the ropes. Headbutt by Dragon. Lynn elbows Dragon off the top, but Danielson gets back up. Sunset Bomb by Lynn for two.
Elbow from Danielson. Back drop from Dragon. Lynn catches a kick and gets a Dragon Screw. They trade two counts, then both men's shoulders are down and the ref counts to three. The referee rules that Dragon got his shoulder up.
Your winner, Bryan Danielson!
Danielson and Lynn cut promos after the match.
Match thoughts: The opener wasn't as good as it could have been had it been later on in the show, where they would have been able to do a little more. Titus is improving in the ring, but Omega is at his best when he isn't grounded....I didn't like the Hero-Stevens match too much for a couple of reasons. One, I think Stevens is wasted when he is being beaten down. He is more entertaining on offense. Two, the Knock Out Kid gimmick could be more effective if they were legit knock outs. He could get as much heel heat with lucky shots. This is nothing you haven't seen already....The first tag match really made the crowd come alive, for good reason. It packed a lot of action into a relatively short amount of time. There weren't any extended sequences of one team really dominating like we get in most ROH tag matches, save for maybe one Albright sequence, but that felt short....Morishima-Go was a fun, hard hitting match. Another one that felt short, but had so much action packed into it. There were no long sequences of rest holds, just two big men knocking each other around.....The Three Way Tag continued the good streak of matches. I disliked the team of Nigel and Claudio going out early, because I think they are very entertaining together. In fact, when Nigel comes back, he should dominate the tag division with Claudio like he did the singles division before his unfortunate injuries caught up to him. It'd be a nice change of pace for both. Wolves probably should have won due to Mark's injuries.....Marufuji and Aries are just two of the best right now who were at the top of their respective games. All I can really say is this was a must see match.....The six man tag was good, could have been great. Generico is great at selling and making the hot tag, but it's too predictable. When they got that out of the way, it had a good stretch run. The interference would have been better had the Wolves won the three team tag earlier in the night.....The main event was interesting, more from the storyline point of view than the actual match. They both could do this match in their sleep, and it was a bit of a step down from previous matches on the card. The finish was a bit different, with Lynn just missing a victory.....Overall, this is a show that is definitely a show that you'll want to pick up. I haven't watched Final Battle yet, but it looks like this will be a case where it's a weekend you'll want to pick up on DVD. More on that in a couple days. Focusing on this show, after the first two matches, the quality really picked up, and from the third match to the last, everything is worth sitting down and watching. I understand what they were doing with those first two matches, so I won't criticize them, because it's smart to not have a three hour card packed full of bell to bell action. That's when things become repetitive. Aries-Marufuji was MOTN. That is the one match you really have to see from this show.
Comments and questions can be sent to edsh007@hotmail.com.
