Spanky/Shelly rewatch

First third- Some good mat wrestling, none of it went anywhere, but its enjoyable, how they got to the apron DDT spot was kind meh although it landed well.


Second third- Shelly gets pushed off the top and injures his leg, Spanky works it over and eventually applies a poor looking figure four. Shelly’s comeback comes too easy in my view. Shelly sells the leg for a bit, but is eventually dropped.

Last Third- I take it back when it comes to the leg. He sells it too a degree. Interspersed in that was some move trading with finishers being kicked out. Most of it coming off as being too easy (especially the two sliced breads). I can understand finishers being kicked out of in a title match, but not in an opener.

Verdict- It is good, but it is not listable.  The match needed more struggle.

Low-Ki vs. KENTA Final Battle 2005 12/17/05

Not as great as some people may think, but it’s still pretty excellent.  Both are great strikers and they both kicked each others asses nice and well and it lived up to the hype.  KENTA sold the ass beating well, but I feel he dropped the selling of the mid section too soon.  At least it was more then what Marufuji did.  Total keeper and on to rewatching. 

Bryan Danielson vs. Naomichi Marufuji Final Battle 2005 12/17/05

I just couldn’t get into this mostly because of Marufuji.  He seemed disinterested, confused at what to do next, and his selling was lackadaisical.  I mean you are facing Bryan fucking Danielson.  He got a strong match out of Rocky Romero for god’s sake.  It was better then AJ/CIMA, but there are too many better matches.  Pass.     

Tony Mamaluke & Sal Rinauro vs Austin Aries& Roderick Strong ROH Tag Title Match Final Battle 2005 12/17/05

I thought it was good.  Tony was good at being irritating and Sal was decent as a chopping bag for Roderick.  The match lacked a sense of importance to it for a title match.  The champions got in on there licks well, but they weren’t in Gen Next’s league.  Slight No.

Jay Lethal vs BJ Whitmer vs Christopher Daniels vs Samoa Joe Final Battle 2005 12/17/05

That home stretch was a hell of a lot better then I thought it would be.  Had some meh stuff in the middle with the BJ/Lethal controlling and the cat fight.  This was all about Joe wanting to kill Lethal and when it happened, it was glorious.  There was some BAF in it, but this was unique enough to give a rewatch even though it won’t finish high.  

Generation Next vs. The Embassy War Games Cage Match Steel Cage Warfare 12/3/05

If you can get past the first 5 minutes this is pretty excellent.  Gets really fun when Shelly comes in and acts like the biggest sickest scumbag on the planet.  It gets better with Abyss when he’s tossing people around and Nana taking his shots when he sees his openings.  Each elimination made sense or looked spectacular.  This match actually seems to hold up well.    

Steve Corino vs. Homicide Steel Cage Warfare 12/3/05

This was definitely one of a kind.  It’s one of the few matches I know of where someone gets stabbed in the ear in a very graphic manor.  Homicide did seem to separate his shoulder which severely hampered this.  Mostly because each transition struck me as being forced or being too easy.  The deal breaker was the masked man (Colt Cabana?) and the ref bumps in the end and it all just kind of ending.  It was better then I thought, but 05 has just been too loaded.    

Jay Lethal vs. Samoa Joe Steel Cage Warfare 12/3/05

This is on the line when it comes to the rewatch pile.  There was some stuff that wasn’t executed well and Jay’s heel turn wasn’t really built up as well as could have been.  Still Joe’s selling was great as usual and it led to the finish.  I will keep it, but I don’t know if it will hold up. 

Bryan Danielson vs Rocky Romero ROH World Title Match Steel Cage Warfare 12/3/05

This felt like a shoot style match.  Was not expecting it to be as sweet as it was.  I would have liked the finish more if Rocky had sold the leg work, but you could make that criticism for shoot style in general.  Another one on the list.

ROH World Title: Bryan Danielson vs. Christopher Daniels A Night of Tribute 11/19/05

I liked this, but I think they could have dropped the leg work on Daniels.  Not even as much that Daniels didn’t sell it, but it wasn’t really a factor as Danielson just went after the cut after that.  It felt like time filler.  The last third was fun.  Keep.

Austin Aries, AJ Styles, Jack Evans & Matt Sydal vs. Jimmy Rave, Alex Shelley, Abyss & Prince Nana 8-Man Tag Team War Vendetta 11/5/05

If you are looking for something similar to the 6-man war in October, you will be disappointed.  This feels just like a regular 8-man tag, but with less hate and one table spot.  I kind of get why they did it, but I think a ref bump would have accomplished the same thing.  This match has its ups and downs.  Stuff I have to examine a little further.  This did seem to have a better middle with Evans getting stretched.  I’m not sure I would keep it on the rewatch, but we’ll see.

Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong Vendetta 11/5/05

For a match that is as highly touted as this, this match had a lot of selling issues and some YTMT stuff in it.  I will say it had better heat then the “This Means War” match.  This still had a good degree of chipiness, so this deserves a rewatch.  Honestly, I don’t know if this is even better then there last match.  I’ll go into more detail later.

Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels Vendetta 11/5/05

This felt like a much better version of there Night of the Grudges 2 match.  Joe leg selling was excellent and it had better crowd heat.  Some time could have been shaved from this, but it is good enough for a rewatch.

Bryan Danielson vs Chris Sabin Showdown in Motown 11/4/05

Man, remember the good old days when Sabin looked like he was in his 30’s with that long hair, he looks so much younger these days.  Danielson owned this match.  This felt like a title match to build another title match where Danielson was using the backbreaker on Sabin as message to Strong.  Sabin was mentioning the back work, but wasn’t really affecting him.  Danielson sold his neck like he was the best in the world.  Danielson’s dickheaded performance elevates to the rewatch pile.  

Jimmy Rave/Abyss vs AJ Styles/Matt Sydal Showdown in Motown 11/4/05

This was in the good range, but again with these Embassy matches, the middle stinks.  Abyss was good again, but I think he went to the ground too much early.  Rave again bores me.  I have seen Embassy matches that have had better beginnings and endings.  I going to say no to this. 

Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong- This Means War 10/29/05

Stuff I could tell you about this match on first viewing:

-Heel Danielson is awesome (especially treating Roderick like he’s a piece of garbage)
-Some time could have been cut from this
-The crowd heat, again, could have been better
-The ending was weird for a couple reasons:
     -Danielson looked like he got legit knocked out
     -I liked the ending, but it felt like we kind of went past the arm work from the beginning and the finish would have worked in a different match (Battlarts/Futen)

This definitely needs a second viewing to sort out the selling.

Alex Shelley vs. Claudio Castagnoli- This Means War 10/29/05

If you can get over Shelly and Claudio working a bit too even, this is nice little match.  It is not like it doesn’t have issues (One of Shelly’s comebacks coming a bit too easy, and some submission trading down the stretch), but this match is pretty fun.

Austin Aries, Roderick Strong and Jack Evans vs. Jimmy Rave, Alex Shelley and Abyss Six Man War Buffalo Stampede 10/15/05

I really liked this.  Wasn’t expecting anything and turned out to be a fun little brawl.  Both table spots were awesome and the finish was really clever.  One botched spot with a ladder in the beginning, but other then that, this was better then I thought it would be.

Bryan Danielson VS Austin Aries Enter the Dragon 10/14/05

I liked this for the most part, but the crowd prevented it from elevating to loftier heights.  Aries sold the armwork well, but there was some stuff in the match that didn’t come off right.  Still this struck me as being better then there May match but I won’t know until rewatch. 

Jimmy Rave & Alex Shelley vs Samoa Joe & Jay Lethal Enter the Dragon 10/14/05

This kind of reminded me of the Gen Next vs Danielson/Joe match back in February.  Sweet beginning and ending, but kind of a meandering middle.  Still this was a fun match and I’ll take a second look.

Kenta Kobashi & Homicide vs. Samoa Joe & Low-Ki Unforgettable 10/2/05

This was awesome when Homicide wasn’t involved.  Instead of trying to sell the beatdown during the FIP, Homicide tries to get his shit in without finding a proper transition.  Other then that, Kobashi is the best.  He even sold the arm work which wasn’t really the focus in a big time manner.  So yeah, Kobashi was definitely not in it for a paycheck (although a good incentive).  Keeper.

Roderick Strong vs. James Gibson Unforgettable 10/2/05

If you can get past a bit of back and forth in the beginning, this is a really nice match.   Maybe I would have liked Gibson to be a little more expressive in his selling, but I liked how Strong went to the forearm when his chopping hand was damaged.  Everything looked good from a physical standpoint.  Rewatch.

Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi Joe vs. Kobashi 10/1/05

Yeah, this was heated, stiff, and fucking great.  Every move seemed like the most painful move ever and the story with Joe pissing off Kobashi by doing moves from wrestlers from Kobashi’s past.  Joe looked like he was on the verge of death by the end. Maybe the only thing I could complain about is some Kobashi restholds (front chauncery and abdominal stretch) which didn’t seem to belong, but those moves still looked painful with Kobashi applying them.  Best match in ROH 05.

Jimmy Yang vs James Gibson Joe vs Kobashi 10/1/05

Good enough match.  Nothing directly wrong with it, but I’m also can’t really remember anything from it.  I think I want to take another look at it, but it did certainly look fine enough.

Survival of the Fittest 2005 Finals Survival of the Fittest 2005 9/24/05

People: Christopher Daniels vs Roderick Strong vs Austin Aries vs Jay Lethal vs Colt Cabana vs Samoa Joe

This fucking sucked. Way too long for what they were trying to accomplish, and nothing of interest during the 50 minutes. But yeah, the less said about this the better.

Bryan Danielson vs. James Gibson Glory By Honor IV 9/17/05

“Best in the World” Danielson is here.  This match, it is up there, but the environment didn’t strike me as being this all time classic.  One reason, crowd heat.  It wasn’t terrible, but I don’t think anybody thought a title change was happening, especially not being booked in the main event.  Also, Gibson’s arm selling down the stretch could have been a little bit better, but I need to check that out on rewatch.  I’m pretty sure this is ROH top 10 for 05 in a year full of a lot of very good matches.

Low Ki vs. Jay Lethal Glory By Honor IV 9/17/05 (2nd match)

The shenanigans on the outside detracted from the match.  That and both wrestlers didn’t have as much energy from the 1st match and it didn’t feel sprinty enough for an 8 minute match.   

Low Ki vs. Jay Lethal Fight without Honor Glory By Honor IV 9/17/05 (1st match)

I liked this.  The match built well and ended when it needed to happen.  I wasn’t crazy about the middle where they had a pretty bleh table spot, but there is nothing wrong with this aside from that.  Reviewing the 2nd match now.

James Gibson vs Colt Cabana ROH World Title Match Dragon Gate Invasion 8/27/05

It was good, but the middle went too long.  It didn't help that Colt didn't really sell any of the neck work.  It is kind of a shame because I liked the begining and the end, but it just got too methodical in the middle. 

AJ Styles VS CIMA ROH Dragon Gate Invasion 8/27/05

Wow, that stunk.  CIMA looked lethargic and lost out there   Would have been better if it went twice as fast in half the time.  Next. 

Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels ROH Pure Title Match Night of the Grudges II 8/20/05

I’ll give this match two things.  That Joe sold the midsection well and the top rope choke looked brutal.  Other then that, heatless, methodical, and just plain boring.  Skip it.

Colt Cabana vs. Nigel McGuiness ROH Soccer Riot Match Night of the Grudges II 8/20/05

Very good match, Colt was a hell of a lot of fun carrying this.  Nigel was alright, but he tended to take too long setting up spots.  The lariat finish was a bit weird, especially when Colt took an epic table bump from an iron shot.  All things considering, I liked it.

CM Punk vs. Colt Cabana ROH 2/3 Falls Punk: The Final Chapter 8/13/05

I liked the first fall, but the match just seemed to be too somber from the second fall on.  That and there seemed to be rushing back on offense a bit too fast.  Works as Punk’s last match, but not rewatchable.

Matt Hardy VS Roderick Strong ROH Punk: The Final Chapter 8/13/05

Very good match.  Better then the more hyped tag match.  The crowd was really hyped, and it had some pretty damn good selling from both.  Hardy sold his back as the match went on, but it helped that Rod didn’t look like the moment was too big for him like say the Punk matches.  I really liked it.

Samoa Joe & Jay Lethal vs. Low-Ki & Homicide ROH Punk: The Final Chapter 8/13/05

I don’t know.  It was fine, but I wasn’t high on the selling and comeback spots.  The heels were assholes throughout, and the brawl was fun (although intense, nothing was being sold).  I think I just want to rewatch it to see if it is better.  If not, I’ll just drop it from the list. 

Jimmy Rave vs Austin Aries ROH Punk: The Final Chapter 8/13/05

Austin carried this.  Austin’s rib selling was great, it accomplished what it needed to do, and finish was right.  Keep.

CM Punk vs. James Gibson vs. Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels ROH Redemption 8/12/05

Wow, great moment, but a very disappointing match.  For a match that was supposed to be a 4 way, this didn’t really have a good pace to it.  I know he is facing three wrestlers who hate his guts, but I feel he could have found a way around it.  Because of this, a chunk of the first 30 minutes were just uninteresting.  It then started to pick up speed then Punk concussed Gibson and then the momentum stopped.  Eventually Joe beat Daniels (chicanery by Punk), then Daniels accidently kicked Joe which got him pinned by Punk. Gibson comes back and saves the day.  He then celebrates to show that he is in not as bad shape as I thought.  Highlights: Punk pinned Joe, Joe/Daniels feud begins, and Gibson wins the belt.  In my opinion, there have been better 4 ways in ROH. 

Jimmy Rave/Alex Shelley/Abyss vs Austin Aries/Roderick Strong/Matt Sydal ROH Redemption 8/12/05

Of all the people to be the best wrestler in this match, it’s fuckin Abyss.  This dude looked like a beast in there throwing around Gen Next.  This is close, I mean I felt Aries control section went a bit too long, and Rave wasn’t really that great.  Shelly’s taunting was fun however.  I say it is just good enough for a rewatch.

ROH World Title: CM Punk vs. Christopher Daniels ROH The Homecoming 7/23/05

Very surprising match, in a positive way.  The mat wrestling was nifty, the strikes were snug, and Punk acting like a dickhead.  What else was surprising, Punk’s neck selling actually being pretty decent, and Daniels rib selling was very disappointing.  Daniels is usually the better seller of the bunch.  I was made to believe that the ref bump ruined the match, but actually got a really neat nearfall out of it. I know some issues here that I’m forgetting, but I need another rewatch in order to confirm it.  

Homicide/Low Ki/Ricky Reyes vs Samoa Joe/Jay Lethal/James Gibson ROH The Homecoming 7/23/05

This wasn’t too bad, but it didn’t do it for me.  The comebacks were kind of lackluster and there was a bit too much Ricky Reyes for my liking.  The ending felt too easy and Homicide is still too fast on his comebacks.  No dice. 

CM Punk vs. James Gibson ROH Fate of An Angel 7/16/05

I think with Gibson losing blood that they could have cut some time from this.  Punk’s arm selling could have been a little better, but Punk did work over Gibson’s cut nice and well.  This has enough good for a rewatch.

Matt Hardy vs. Christopher Daniels ROH Fate of an Angel 7/16/05

Felt like a good Smackdown match.  Wasn’t feeling the ending because Daniels had been hit with the chain at that point and it took two Twist of Fates and Hardy’s new submission to put him away.  I would rather have taken a “less is more” approach.  Nothing really jumped out at me to think it was great or anything.

AJ Styles vs. Roderick Strong ROH Fate of An Angel 7/16/05

This did have some YTMT stuff in it, but this did a better job of highlighting Strong then the Punk match.  Although I have to question AJ’s selling in hindsight which sucked.  I’ll keep it.

CM Punk vs. Roderick Strong ROH Escape From New York 7/9/05

I want to give this more love, but Strong was just awful in this.  The beginning was sweet with Punk trying to avoid Strong’s chops and giving a nice Flair-esque performance.  Strong’s comebacks didn’t come off well, it felt like he was gassed at points and still doesn’t know how to keep a match interesting.  The crowd was hot, but that had more to do with Punk.  The ending came out of nowhere which didn’t help.  I going to say no.