DVD REVIEW: RING OF HONOR ENTER THE DRAGON

RING OF HONOR: ENTER THE DRAGON

OCTOBER 14, 2005

CLEVELAND , OHIO

Dave Prazak Introduction : "Ladies and Gentlemen, on September 17 at “Glory By Honor IV”, a new Ring of Honor Champion was crowned.  Tonight, here in Cleveland he will make his first defense of the ROH World Title.  Please welcome your new ROH Champion, Bryan Danielson!  As Danielson is in the ring, the crowd begins a “Dragon!” chant.  Bryan , congratulations on your title win."  

Bryan Danielson Promo : Why do I get the feeling Danielson is trying to clear his throat in order to try to get a bigger pop? He puts over Cleveland by saying they rock.  There is an inaudible comment from the crowd to which Danielson retorts that he is the new world champion and he can say whatever he wants.  There are a lot of people in wrestling who think that the World Champion should really act the part and dress the part.  He obviously does not think that way.  That’s because he is wearing a “Top Gun” shirt.  He believes what really values a champion is how valuable the belt is that he is holding. He wants to thank all the prior Ring of Honor champions that have helped make this belt mean something.  This gets applause from the crowd.  He first wants to thank Low Ki for being a fantastic wrestler and for being the first Ring of Champion.  He wants to thank Xavier.  He wants to thank Samoa Joe.  Samoa Joe held this title for almost two years.  He was the best Champion that the United States has seen in a long, long time.  He would like to thank Austin Aries. 

Austin Aries Comes to the Ring and says he has to say Danielson is welcome.  Secondly, he wants to congratulate Danielson on his ROH World Title victory.  Anyone who knows ROH in the last couple of years knows the history of Aries and Danielson.  They have squared off in some of the most intense battles in ROH.  He wants to make one thing clear.  As much as he respects Danielson, Danielson has something on his shoulder that he wants.  He has something on his shoulder that used to belong to him so just like last time they faced off, he will walk out with the belt around his waist because he has already ended the longest title reign in ROH history and he says he will end the shortest title reign in ROH history.  So he comes out and wishes Danielson well and he wants the two of them to show the people how hard they fight for the belt.  Danielson and Aries shake hands before Aries leaves the ring. 

Bryan Danielson Continues: Austin Aries talks this being the shortest title reign in Ring of Honor history.  There is a reason why Danielson says he cannot let that happen.  Danielson says that Aries works for TNA   There is a smattering of boos from the crowd.  Danielson says he has nothing against TNA because they are a viable television alternative for WWE.  He then says that because Aries works for TNA, he has other obligations than just Ring of Honor.  What this belt means and what this belt means to him is something very special.  It means that TV doesn’t mean you are a good wrestler.  It means not having to be subservient to a billion dollar wrestling company.  It means wrestling freedom.  He says that he will show that belt meaning that as long as he possibly can.  He thanks the crowd. 

Dave Prazak then re-introduces Bryan Danielson as the new ROH Champion.

Why does Bryan Danielson feel the need to take a shot at WWE and TNA?  If he thinks TNA and WWE is “corporate America” as he likes to call it, then why couldn’t he come up with another reason why Aries would not end the shortest ever ROH Title reign?  I mean, at least Danielson could say that Aries could not win the belt because he has obligations within the ROH Wrestling Academy.  That would be better than going after WWE or Aries wrestling for TNA, I think.

Steve Corino is backstage and wonders why everyone is there so early.  He asks what is going on.  Colt Cabana asks Corino where’s he’s been.  Corino says he is here for the ten o’clock show.  Corino is then told he has a big match on the show.  He then sees Danielson and then he signed an open contract and it’s he and Danielson on the show.  Danielson then tells Corino they are not wrestling on this show but an upcoming show.  Then Corino thinks it’s an opponent he wrestled several months ago.  He is then wrestling Homicide on this show and Corino says “No! No!  No!”. 

One thing I noticed from the top of the telecast is that the acoustics in the arena are flat horrible.  You cannot hear very well on the microphone or backstage. 

Claudio Castagnoli versus ROH Pure champion Nigel McGuinness

This is a non-title match.  Nigel comes out and displays his usual aura of arrogance.  The fans begin chants for Claudio and Nigel.  The beginning of the match saw both men apply wristlocks and perform single-leg takedowns.  Nigel gains the advantage when he executes a front face lock.  Claudio does an impressive move when escapes a side head lock by doing a handstand.  At this point Claudio tries to upstage Nigel by faking a handshake.  Frustration begins to build on Nigel when he shoves Claudio in the ropes a couple of times then sends Claudio for an Irish whip.  Nigel then looked to be either going for a forearm shot or a clothesline as Claudio came off the ropes but Claudio does a cartwheel in order to escape it.  Frustration for Nigel is evident when Claudio goes for a second handshake and Nigel smacks him in the face. 

Claudio then sends Nigel for an Irish whip.  He then wanted to scoop slam Nigel coming off the ropes but Nigel does a nice reversal into an armdrag.  Claudio continues the mind games with Nigel as he fakes going for the dive with Nigel on the floor.  Nigel grabs the momentum by hitting a mule kick in corner followed by a series of forearms and uppercuts.  After Nigel has Claudio hooked in the center of the ring, he and Claudio begin to trade uppercuts.  This time Claudio does go for the dive with Nigel on the floor.  Nigel hits the “Tower on London” on Claudio after Claudio hits an uppercut in the corner but takes too long climbing the turnbuckle.  Claudio gets the win with the backslide after Nigel tries an uppercut on Claudio coming off the ropes.

I thought this was a solid match.  Both men showed a lot of offensive moves and they had a lot of counters to their opponents’ moves.  I just am not a real big fan of Nigel’s “Tower of London” out of the corner.  I am afraid someone can get hurt if that move goes wrong.  I also liked the fact there was no outside interference in this match.  It was a good, clean win for Claudio though you can definitely tell Nigel’s frustration after the match.

Dave Prazak is in the back and he wants an update on Colt Cabana and Steve Corino.  Prazak wants to know what the screaming is about.  Corino claims Cabana lied to him saying he was wrestling Danielson.  Cabana said he might have stretched the truth but he said Commissioner Jim Cornette said Corino would get his title shot but he needed to do a favor for Cabana first.  Corino says Cabana could have called him.  Cabana said he tried but Corino changes his number like every day.  Corino says he thought he got rid of Homicide at “War of the Wire”.  He says he wants to be 100% for his match against Danielson and that he has to win the belt.  He says he’s not guaranteed of that with as mad as Homicide and Ki are and then you have Reyes out looming.  Corino then says that if he does this, it’ll be by his rules.  It’ll employ psychological warfare.  Corino then asks Cabana if he’s dedicated and he says yes.  Cabana says they will win against Low Ki and that Corino will beat Danielson.  Corino then tells Ki and Homicide that as mad as they are, he is as mad as Cabana and then he’s coming for Danielson.  Cabana then apologizes to Corino.

Matt Stryker versus Ricky Reyes

Reyes gets in the advantage early by jumping on Stryker when Stryker turns his back on Reyes after Reyes refuses the code of honor.  Reyes hits some punches to the back, follows that with a snap mere and a kick to the back.  Stryker then hits a shoulder tackle. 

Stryker hits a flurry of offense on Reyes that includes chops, forearm shots, and uppercuts before hitting the Death Valley Driver.  After a chop block, Stryker begins to work on Reyes’ leg and applies a dragon screw after kicking at the hamstrings.  After escaping an attempted Stryker Lock by reaching the ropes, Reyes hits a flurry of offense with forearm shots and kicks to Stryker’s hamstrings.  Reyes hits a knee and then catches Stryker coming off the ropes and chokes out Stryker for the win.

I thought Stryker showed good effort in this match.  He really showed a lot of offense to Reyes.  He did a nice job of staying on the left leg after the chop block.  However, the choke coming off the rope was just too much for Stryker and he passed out giving Reyes the win.  I thought it was a solid match by both men.

Jade Chung Promo: Jade is celebrating her freedom from the dog collar.  She is celebrating her freedom the smelly and grungy bed sheets.  She is drinking in her freedom from Prince Nana.  She says his biggest problem was he was so focused on Jimmy Rave and helping him get to the top.  She said it felt so good snatching that shoelace and upsetting both Nana and Rave.  She said Nana should have been thinking about and focusing on her.  She warns Nana if she sees any disrespect like how he has disrespected her, she will be watching.  She’ll be watching and studying every single move and warns Nana that she will always be one step behind him.

For the ROH Tag Team Titles: Jimmy Jacobs and BJ Whitmer with Lacey versus Tony Marmaluke and Sal Rinauro

First off, what is the deal with Jimmy Jacobs wanting BJ Whitmer to put him on the apron like he did Lacey?  Why is it that Sal Rinauro is graceful in giving the “code of honor” but Tony Marmaluke tends to be more intimidating about it?  That being said, this was a great match.  It went about fifteen minutes but there were a lot of cool spots in it.  Rinauro and Marmaluke do a great job of frequent tagging applying a wristlock on Jacobs.  Rinauro does a cool spot when he comes off the apron, uses Whitmer’s back as a springboard to dive onto Jacobs on the floor.  This is followed by Whitmer driving Marmaluke back first into the guardrail.  Whitmer is one of these guys that when he delivers a chop on a opponent, it is so hard it knocks them down.  Jacobs had one cool spot when he hit a senton halfway across the ring.  Marmaluke and Rinauro win the match when they hit Whitmer with a Russian leg sweep and powerbomb combination.  I thought this was the best match of the first three thus far.

 Jim Cornette Promo: He first wants to thank everyone involved in putting on this debut event in Cleveland.  Cleveland is a city near and dear to his heart.  He has been appearing there off and on for 20 years.  As new Commissioner, he is trying to clear his schedule where he can attend more live events but once again wants to thank those responsible for making the first Cleveland show a success for Ring of Honor.  What he wants to focus on is the tag team division.  He says had Ring of Honor been around in the 1980s teams like the Midnight Express and the Fantastics would have been the top teams in Ring of Honor since they wrestled that kind of style.  He says that if he has anything to say about it, the tag team division will have re-focused on.  He says he plans to not only talk to promoters about bringing in new tag teams into Ring of Honor but also put the focus on tag teams currently in Ring of Honor and potential ones not in existence yet.  He also plans on sharing his wealth of knowledge so that it can re-gain its prominence from the past.  He hopes everyone in Cleveland enjoys the show and he hopes to see everyone soon.

Roderick Strong versus Jimmy Yang

What a great match this was!  I have said this in my reviews many times but I never seen anybody chop as hard in Ring of Honor as Roderick Strong though I will give BJ Whitmer a close second.  There was a great mix of mat and air wrestling in this match.  A first for me was seeing Roderick Strong apply the full nelson using the legs as opposed to the arms.  Yang tried to go for a couple spin kicks off the turnbuckle but missed.  Roderick gets the win with two back breakers and a pump handle slam.  What I liked most about this match was that the action was nonstop.  There is no lull whatsoever.

Colt Cabana and Steve Corino versus Low Ki and Homicide

This was a bonafide fight.  That’s all there was to it.  At the beginning of the match, you saw Corino, Cabana, and Homicide talking trash at one another.  What was the deal with Steve Corino’s ring announcer doing a 5-bell salute for the careers WWE has ruined?  Not only that but this guy even breaks the wrestler’s code by using CM Punk’s real name in the promo.  I felt bad for Senior Referee Todd Sinclair in this match.  He had no control over it whatsoever.  Corino and Homicide were literally trying to bite each other’s ear off.  Low Ki was doing double stomps and on the turnbuckles.  Corino, Homicide and Cabana were hitting lariats right and left.  Homicide had a STF applied on Corino.  They used chairs on each other outside the ring.  This was not a wrestling match.  This was four men who truly do not like each other and they have no respect for each other.  Corino and Cabana get the win but this war is far from over.

Intermission: Dave Prazak Interviews Nigel McGuinness

He says that Claudio beating him was a fluke.  He said if that match had been under Pure Title rules that he would have beaten him from pillar to post.  He says he now has his sights set on Samoa Joe and that match is under Pure Title rules.  He says the fans always say that Joe is going to kill him but Joe did not kill him last time and will not because he is the best there was, the best there is…Dave Prazak sends us to the second half

Davey Andrews and Shane Hagadorn versus Derek Dempsey and Pelle Primeau

Unfortunately this was no match at all because as Davey Andrews was working over Derek Dempsey, Prince Nana comes to the ring.  He asks who wants to see guys training when he has three words…The Embassy forever.   He then brings out Abyss and this turns into a 1 on 4 squash.  Abyss annihilates all four men in the ring and delivers the black hole slam to Pelle Primeau.  Davey Andrews was able to hit a spear on Nana before Abyss hit the black hole slam on him, clearing the ring.  Gee and you wonder why this is not listed on the match list on the DVD box?

Abyss versus Jack Evans

This was your basic squash.  This was after Nana grabbed the mike and said that no one could beat Abyss and if someone had the guts to come out.  Jack Evans comes out and says he had a surprise for Nana and Abyss and brings out Jade Chung.  Jack early looked like he was going to get some offense in by using his quickness and hitting a bulldog on Abyss.  He tried to hit Abyss again but Abyss picks him up and delivers the black hole slam for the win.  After the match, Nana wants Abyss to finish Jack off.  Jade rushes over and protects Jack but putting herself in Abyss’s wrath.  Abyss then picks up Jade by the hair when Roderick Strong runs in with a chair and hits Abyss and Nana.  He then grabs Nana and gives him a backbreaker and Nana rolls out of the ring.

Samoa Joe and Jay Lethal versus Jimmy Rave and Alex Shelley

This was a match that really went in three parts.  When Joe was in the match, both Shelley and Rave wanted no part of him.  They tried chopping him in the chest.  Yeah, good luck with that.  Joe dominated both Rave and Shelley.  Then Joe tags in Lethal and the Embassy began to gain an advantage and was doing a lot of double teaming.  When Lethal hit a spinebuster, he was able to tag in Joe and the Embassy was able to get some offense in on him but again they had to double team in order to do it.  Joe got the pin with the muscle buster.  This was an okay match.  The stalling at the beginning by the Embassy was a bit much but overall an okay match.

ROH Title match: Austin Aries versus Bryan Danielson

This was a great match!  These two guys threw everything at each other.  Danielson went to work on the left arm of Aries.  Both men attempted numerous submission moves.  Aries hit the brainbuster and the 450.  Danielson applied a Mexican surfboard.  They hit chops on each other, lariats, forearms and anything else.  You can tell though Aries’ arm was injured because at the end of the match because it was limp.  If you get this DVD, get it for this match.  This kind of back and forth no back down on either side shows why it was the main event.  Great match.

Steve Corino promo: He says he considers himself a smart guy.  He is 32 and has been in wrestling ten years.  He’s been around the world and has captured titles in every major organization.  When he arrived in Cleveland, he says he was supposed to wrestle Bryan Danielson for the ROH Title.  He says there is a little flim-flam going on because when he arrives, Colt Cabana tells him that he and Corino are wrestling Homicide and Low Ki, two of the angriest men in professional wrestling.  He says his feud with Homicide should have ended at “War of the Wire”.  Why Homicide holds a grudge he has no idea.  He says his feud with Homicide and the Rottwielers is over.  As much as he likes Colt Cabana, he could care less what he does.  He is after the World Heavyweight Championship.  He says that while he was in the back, he realizes who set him up.  He says ROH set him up because they want him to be a babyface.  He says he does better causing problems.  He says Roddy Piper may have coined the phrase that “when you think you have the answers that I change the questions” but he perfected it.  He says Danielson has the ROH belt but he needs it.  He says he needs it because ROH doesn’t want it because they know with the belt, he will control ROH.  He says promises that with the belt around his waist, things in ROH are going to change.

Thoughts on the card: First off, the sound quality of the promos in the ring was horrible.  You could not hear Aries, Danielson, or Nana.  The best match was Aries and Danielson.  Second goes to Strong and Yang.  I thought the middle of the card just dragged.  Abyss and Evans was a squash.  Cabana/Corino versus the Rottwielers was a fight.  Castagnoli/McGuinness was decent as was Reyes and Stryker.  Whitmer/Jacobs vs. Rinauro/Marmaluke round out my top three.  Andrews/Hagadorn vs. Dempsey and Primeau wasn’t a match since Abyss and Nana interfered.  Samoa Joe/Lethal vs. Rave/Shelley was an okay match.   My advice though is if you get this DVD, get it for Strong/Yang, Whitmer/Jacobs versus Rinauro/Marmaluke and Aries/Danielson. 

Next time, I will review the January 14, 2006 show, “Hell Freezes Over”. 

Please feel free to send review  requests or comments to ke4ole@bellsouth.net

 

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