SOH IV

There are times when I question why I am watching so many wrestling shows from the same year. And then there are times when I watch a few shows in a row that are all excellent, and really I can’t complain at all. Missing any of these events would have been a severe disservice to myself!

Ring Of Honor’s Supercard Of Honor IV (4/3/09) marks the fifth show in a row that I’d argue as being brilliant. As the first half of the ROH WrestleMania Weekend tradition, SOH IV sets out with an epic card full of potential show-stealing bouts. Of course they can’t all steal the show, but that doesn’t stop them from adding up to a show that steals the year!

Let’s go match by match through the night:

-Have to admit, Rhett Titus wowed me a little in his meeting with Erick Stevens. Some of Titus’ weaknesses were still apparent, like his overuse of posing, but his work was generally more crisp and flawless then I can ever recall seeing from him before. Rhett has come into his own as a solid grappler. Stevens looks good too, making this an overall really strong opener.

-Wasn’t expecting much out of the six-man tag pitting Chris Hero, Eddie Edwards, and Incognito against Kevin Steen, Jay Briscoe, and Magno, but holy cow did it turn out to be amazing! I love unexpected moments in matches, and there’s a big one here that leads to lots of clever improvisation. An entertaining, exhilarating, and overall tremendous contest!

-Again, wow. Just WOW. Roderick Strong and Katsuhiko Nakajima follow up the six-man with an incredible, hard-hitting bout that is full of so much intensity and excitement that it basically leaps off of your TV and dropkicks you in the chin with awesomeness! I love the zeal these two have and how they completely go for it the whole match through. Fantastic!

-There really isn’t much to talk about with Bobby Dempsey vs. Kamala, but that’s not a complaint. The segment is entertaining and a nice break after the two previous matches.

-There must have been a box of Wheaties getting passed around the locker room before this show, because everybody is more than on their game tonight! Another superb contest with El Generico taking on Claudio Castagnoli, Blue Demon, Jr., and Brent Albright in a four-way! Everybody looks like a star in this thrilling bout!

-Bryan Danielson and Alex Koslov have an amusing, well paced match that really shows off Koslov’s strengths. Danielson’s too, but when doesn’t Danielson remind us of how great he is? Koslov is an ace at selling, has some really clever spots, and more than keeps up with Danielson in the ring. Really good stuff, and another strong part of this blow-away show.

-A nice change of pace and style to the night with Colt Cabana vs. D’Lo Brown. They work what we’ll call a “heavyweight” style, for lack of a better term, and together they work it very well. There is great chemistry between the two men. Good match.

-A lot has been said about Davey Richards vs. KENTA. It is possible that no other match on the indie scene in 2009 received more instant praise and adoration than their encounter here. It has been called Match of the Year, and labeled with five stars by those that trust in the star rating system. From where I sit, Davey vs. KENTA was great, really great, but excellent? Not quite.

It could be that there has just been too much hype surrounding the bout, or perhaps other viewers were pulled in more by these two athletes. Having watched this contest three times now, wondering what I was missing after the first two times, I have to simply assume that this is a case of me disagreeing with everybody else. And that’s okay.

I do respect KENTA and Davey for their remarkable showing. Their flow is fantastic, and the way they build the match to the point where every move could be the last is quite the sight. I just didn’t get as much story out of this as say Strong/Nakajima. Nor did I get the same level of intensity, or at least the selling of said intensity.

Davey vs. KENTA is without question immense and a big part of making this overall night outstanding, but it isn’t my favorite bout on the card, let alone of the year. Good stuff though, I do want to stress that.

-There are some really enjoyable moments with Austin Aries and Jimmy Jacobs vs. Tyler Black and Necro Butcher. I especially liked the constant teasing and build-up of big spots that paid off huge when they were finally achieved. The four keep it interesting if nothing else.

-We’ve hit the end. Nigel McGuinness vs. Jerry Lynn. ROH World Title on the line. The match is high-quality, particularly considering Nigel’s multitude of injuries. He shouldn’t be able to pull off half the things he does with a body as beaten down as his. In some ways, this match follows a similar story to that of KENTA vs. Nigel from the previous ROH show. It doesn’t quite match up – the KENTA contest had many unexpected spots and moments that really blew me away – but that isn’t to say that Lynn and McGuinness don’t go all out to really put a final exclamation point on the night.

Another really good bout, which I know I’ve said a lot of times throughout this review but hey, that just shows you how unbelievable this event is.