RADICAN’S ROH TV REPORT
AIRED FEB. 25, 2012
BALTIMORE, MD

Highlights from Mark Briscoe vs. Charlie Haas from last week aired to start the show. For some reason the show isn’t airing in widescreen this week.

Kevin Kelly and Nigel McGuinness introduced the show from the ring. Kelly said we would hear from the Briscoes tonight. Kelly pitched to an interview package. The Young Bucks were up first. Nick Jackson said they were going to use Coleman & Alexander as stepping stones. Matt said they were going to outperform Coleman & Alexander. Alexander cut a promo backstage. He said tonight a win would give them what they need to get to the top. Coleman said the Young Bucks were cocky and sung about seeing gold in his future.

Kelly and McGuinness said The Young Bucks shouldn’t overlook Coleman & Alexander before their title shot against the Briscoes. Kelly said Coleman & Alexander were one win away from being in the title picture. The Young Bucks came out and strutted as they made their way into the ring. Kelly ran down the Tale of the Tape. He indicated the Young Bucks might look down at the older Coleman. The Young Bucks didn’t follow the Code of Honor.

1 - - CAPRICE COLEMAN & CEDRICK ALEXANDER vs. THE YOUNG BUCKS (Matt & Nick Jackson)

Matt hit a punch on Alexander and blew a kiss to the crowd, which allowed Alexander to get the upper hand. Coleman and Alexander tagged in and out to work over Matt. Nick tried to attack Coleman and Alexander from behind, but they took him out. The Young Bucks fired back with tandem kicks in the corner on Alexander. Nick then wiped out Coleman with a dive through the ropes. The Young Bucks hit another flashy tandem move on Alexander, which drew some cheers from the crowd. Kelly previewed the Richards-Lethal main event and said history would be made. McGuinness said that facing ROH World Champion Bryan Danielson when he was the Pure Champion changed his career.

The Young Bucks continued to work over Alexander as McGuinness said the talent was going to pull out all of the stops at “The 10th Anniversary Show.” Alexander made the hot tag and Coleman ran wild on the Young Bucks. Coleman hit an awesome leg lariat on Nick in the corner and he flew right over Nick and landed on Matt. That was sweet. The crowd really got behind Alexander and Coleman as they hit a string of high-flying maneuvers. Coleman got a nearfall on mat with a splash off the top. Alexander hit a superkick on Matt and Coleman speared him right into a DDT, but Nick broke up the pin. The Young Bucks went for the finish, but Coleman cut them off. The Young Bucks quickly took control and hit more bang for your buck on Coleman for the win.

Winners: Matt & Nick Jackson – Very impressive back and forth match. Coleman & Alexander are really beginning to impress me on ROH TV and DVDs. They’re showing more personality and also have the potential to climb the ladder in the tag division given their recent performances.

Veda Scott interviewed Embassy Limited. She asked them what their prediction for the Lethal-Richards match. Ciampa said his prediction was on March 4 Ciampa would take whatever gold Lethal had. Ciampa challenged Lethal to be better than he’s ever been and become the ROH World Champion. Ciampa said on March 4, he would be the first and only undefeated Champion in ROH history.

(Commercial break) – Kelly hyped the “10th Anniversary Show” with the Young Bucks.

Kevin Kelly introduced the Briscoes for an in-ring interview. Kelly asked the Briscoes about their upcoming title defense against the Young Bucks. Jay called the Young Bucks “lady boys.” He said they weren’t underestimating the Bucks and promised to make them their personal b-----s. Jay turned his attention to the House of Truth. Jay said the check they had stolen from the House of Truth bounced. Jay said they had planned to use the money for their chicken farm. Jay said papa Briscoe was going to be there the next time ROH came to Baltimore to help them collect the money. Kelly then asked Jay about facing Haas & Benjamin about “Showdown in the Sun.” Jay said it wasn’t going to be about the tag belts that night. He said somebody was going to leave in a body bag. Jay said when they faced the Briscoes, they better be ready to man up.

Radican’s thoughts: Jay and Mark could be utilized for separate runs as singles wrestlers and draw some money for ROH. Jay is ROH’s best performer on the mic right now and he delivers each and every week when it comes to saying something to get people excited about his matches. One thing about the promo is that it was focused on too many issues at once. With this being the go home show for “10th Anniversary Show,” they should have focused the hype on the Young Bucks match this weekend and not three separate issues.

(Commercial break)

Kevin Kelly introduced the Inside ROH segment. He brought up Kevin Steen causing chaos in ROH. Kelly also previewed comments from Strong and “Showdown in the Sun” hype. Kelly pitched to highlights from Steen’s match against Andy Ridge last week and his post-match confrontation with Jimmy Jacobs. Jacobs was shown talking backstage. He said he and Corino tried to help him, but he didn’t want help. Jacobs talked about Steen taking him out at “Final Battle” with the package piledriver. Jacobs said he learned that evil wins. Jacobs said evil sits inside of him. Jacobs questioned whether there would be a winner in their match.

Steen was shown talking backstage. He said Jacobs had hoped Corino would send him away from ROH forever. Steen said he hoped Jacobs made him bleed. Steen said he hoped Jacobs would realize that if he let the darkness shine through him that his potential was unlimited.

Kelly previewed the big matches on the “10th Anniversary Show.” Kelly announced Rhett Titus would make his in-ring return and team with Kenny King against Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin. King said they took this match to prove to themselves they were better than ever before getting revenge on the Young Bucks.

Kelly turned his attention to the “Showdown in the Sun” WrestleMania weekend events. Kelly said Eddie Edwards would wrestle Roderick Strong with the winner getting a title shot on March 30. The House of Truth cut a promo backstage. Martini spoke a bunch of gibberish. Strong said tonight he was pulling for Jay Lethal to beat Davey Richards because he would be an easier opponent in an ROH World Title shot. Strong said Edwards was on a losing streak right now and he could flatten him in a second. Strong said by April 1, he would be the ROH World Champion. Kelly said next week they would have a final word on the “10th Anniversary Show.”

Radican’s thoughts: This Inside ROH segment hit on all cylinders. Steen and Jacobs set the stage for a war this weekend by talking about their issues and what led them to this point. Steen and Jacobs were both really good talking up the match. ANX got some time to talk and put some context into why their facing Haas & Benjamin at the PPV this weekend. Strong is playing his character well and he set the stage for his purpose going forward in the ROH World Title picture.

(Commercial break)

Veda Scott interviewed Cole and Edwards backstage. Edwards said he didn’t want to say anything about who would win the Lethal vs. Richards match. Edwards said Richards should be concentrating on Lethal. Cole said O’Reilly had been a big distraction, but on March 4, he would be better than O’Reilly. Cole said next week he would have Edwards’s back against House of Truth.

Kelly and McGuinness discussed why the wrestlers were favoring Lethal over Edwards. They seemed to think they wanted Lethal to win because he would be an easier win as ROH World Champion.

Jay Lethal made his entrance for the main event. Richards then came out and the announcers said if Richards’s personal drama would be a distraction tonight. Bobby Cruise did the formal ring introductions. Lethal got a good ovation when he was introduced. Richards also got a good pop when he was introduced.

(Commercial break) – Kevin Kelly hyped “Showdown in the Sun” with Kevin Steen.

Kelly ran down the Tale of the Tape. Kelly noted Lethal’s slight height and weight advantage. He then said Richards had more international experience.

2 - - ROH World Champion DAVEY RICHARDS vs. ROH TV Champion JAY LETHAL – ROH World Title match

McGuinness said Lethal was going to have to find Richards’s weakness in order to be successful. The announcers hinted that Richards’s relationship with his former partner might be his weakness. The crowd chanted for both men after they came to a stalemate. Lethal countered Richards on the mat and tied him up in a submission. Richards escaped and both men circled each other before engaging in battle again. Lethal escaped a backslide, but Richards managed to back off a kick attempt from Lethal. The crowd chanted for both men as they circled each other again. Lethal hit an arm drag followed by a dropkick out of a cartwheel for a 2 count.

Richards fired back with a dropkick of his own as Kelly discussed the upcoming glut of iPPVs. Richards grabbed a leg submission. Lethal struggled, but managed to get the ropes. Richards continued to target Lethal’s legs. Lethal fired back with a backbreaker and a Russian leg sweep. Lethal then locked in a modified arm bar. Richards slipped out and locked in a stretch muffler. Lethal struggled, but managed to get the ropes. Lethal fired back and nailed Richards with a boot out of the corner. Lethal then hit a leg lariat off the second rope, but was slow to cover and only got a 2 count. Tomasso Ciampa came down to ringside with a chair to take in the action. Lethal hit a suplex and covered Richards for a 2 count.

(Commercial break)

Lethal was still in control when they show resumed from commercial break. Richards held the ropes down and Lethal flew to the outside. Richards then nailed Lethal with a running kick from the apron to Lethal on the floor. The crowd applauded as Richards got a running start and nailed Lethal with a dive through the ropes. Richards pointed at Ciampa at ringside and he got out of his seat. O’Reilly came out from the back and held Richards back. Lethal fired up with a chance to recover and took down Richards. Lethal hit the back handspring elbow for a 2 count. They showed Lethal missing the lethal injection during the commercial break.

Richards fired back, but Lethal cut him off with the lethal combination for a nearfall. The crowd applauded the nearfall. Strong, Elgin, and Martini made their way to ringside. Lethal and Richards battled on the top turnbuckle. Richards hit a superplex and rolled throw into a falcon arrow into an arm bar as the crowd applauded. Lethal struggled to escape the hold, but eventually got the ropes. The announcers pointed out that House of Truth were on the outside encouraging Lethal to get the ropes. Cole and Edwards came down to ringside. The crowd roared as Richards set up Lethal for some big kicks. Lethal made his way to his feet as Richards continued to kick him. Lethal fired back with an onslaught of blows on Richards. Richards went for the alarm clock. Lethal countered it, but Richards slipped through and locked in an arm bar. Lethal leveraged Richards over and locked in a submission. He then turned it into a pinning combination for a nearfall. Both men exchanged kicks in the center of the ring. Richards then hit a huge clothesline and both men were down. (Radican note: My gosh was that a great sequence)

The crowd went nuts as Richards went up top. Richards yelled at Edwards. Martini got on the apron and O’Reilly dragged him to the floor. The House of Truth jumped O’Reilly. The distraction allowed Lethal to take down Richards. Lethal went up top and hit an elbow drop, but Richards kicked out with the entire building on their feet. Everyone brawled on the outside with Lethal and Richards inside the ring. Lethal set up for the lethal injection, but Elgin shoved Cole into the ropes as Lethal went into his handspring. Richards then hit a roundhouse kick to Lethal’s head for the win.

Radican’s thoughts: (***3/4) – Excellent match with a lot of drama down the stretch. The action on the outside and some missed camera shots made it hard to keep track of everything going on outside the ring. Kelly put over that Lethal was about to win the match if not for Elgin shoving Cole into the ropes. Kelly pointed out that Ciampa had never gotten out of his chair during the brawl on the outside. This was fantastic and I’d love to see a match with less interference between these two.

Richards and Lethal shook hands after the match ended. Ciampa jawed with Lethal from the outside. Kelly said Edwards vs. Strong would take place next week to determine the #1 Contender to the ROH World Title.

Overall thoughts: (7.0) – The show has definitely gotten much better the last two weeks, but creative is trying to cram in way too much for viewers to process in the span of an hour. The central issue should be getting over the dynamic between Richards & O’Reilly and Edwards & Cole. They’ve touched on Richards’s personal issues distracting him during the course of the show, but the show never really drove the point home that Richards was experiencing inner turmoil. There’s another show this weekend before the iPPV on Sunday, but I don’t think enough has been done to really make the main event of the “10th Anniversary Show” feel explosive enough to warrant the main event on what is traditionally one of ROH’s biggest shows.

The show has made major improvements across the board. Kevin Steen and Jimmy Jacobs were both given promo time and they delivered. Alexander & Coleman are also making a case to get more television time as their promos have improved drastically. It’s like night and day watching them cut promos now as opposed to when they started in the company.
In other areas, the promotion is finding new struggles. The Young Bucks act comes across as something you would expect from a mid-card heel tag team and not a team challenging for the ROH World Tag Team Titles, which is important to note because they do matter in this promotion.

I feel like the tag and world title pictures are too clouded with the company trying to set up multiple angles and storylines for Richards and the Briscoes. There’s just too much going on for any of it to process. The focus should be on the main event tag at “The 10th Anniversary Show” and the ROH World Tag Team Title match between the Briscoes and the Young Bucks. I thought Jay Briscoe was fantastic on the mic once again this week, but as I said earlier Matt & Nick Jackson aren’t coming across as credible threats when it comes to how they’ve built up this match with their promos.

The main event was fantastic. If it wasn’t for all of the shenanigans on the outside, the Lethal-Richards match could have reached the four-star level easily. I’d love to see Richards show more emotion and play into the storyline more when it comes to his relationship falling apart with Edwards. The spark just isn’t there yet and Edwards coming out with Cole to the main event didn’t add much spark to their match this weekend.

It’s nice to see the company starting to build around wrestlers that can talk. It’s great to see guys that should be talking like Jacobs getting more mic time and building up a match people are going to want to see when he takes on Kevin Steen. With more focus in direction in the World and Tag title divisions, the company could really be building on something great in the near future. The problem is that there’s too much going on for the build for the “10th Anniversary Show” to sink in outside of the Steen-Jacobs feud.

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