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Ring of Honor - December 10, 2011

by SamoaRowe

-Video recap of Kevin Steen confronting a half dozen people in the ring last week. In case you missed it, it was awesome.

-From Louisville, KY. Our hosts are Kevin Kelly and Nigel McGuinness. They are buzzing over tonight’s main event between the All Night Express and Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team.

-Caprice Coleman and Cedric Alexander talk some smack about the Briscoes. They’re in it for the long haul.

The Bravados vs. Caprice Coleman and Cedric Alexander

Alexander kicks things off against Harlem Bravado. The kids in the front row chant “Justin Bieber” at Harlem, due to his unfortunate haircut. Lancelot gets a quick tag and the Bravados score with double elbows. Coleman tags and delivers a springboard clothesline. Alexander tags for a double suplex. Harlem makes a failed save attempt, leaving Lancelot to eat some Coleman chops. Harlem snaps Alexander’s neck on the ropes, giving the edge to Lancelot. The Bravados heel it up as they isolate Alexander. Coleman gets the lukewarm tag and cleans house on the obnoxious Bravados. Coleman whips himself around the ring post for a kick and Alexander wipes the Bravados out with a dive. Frog splash by Alexander but Coleman is the legal man. Alexander saves Coleman from getting pinned after a double team predicament. Alexander and Coleman deliver a power slam/DDT combo for the win at 6:07. Fine exhibition match here. The right team went over too.
Winners: Cedric Alexander and Caprice Coleman

-Harlem Bravado refuses a handshake, which seems to even upset his brother.

-The Blossom Twins think you should own more ROH merchandise.

-The Psychedelic Superstar, Chris Silvio, is the baddest man on the roster. TJ Perkins might as well call him “Zeus” because he can catch lightning in his bare hands.

-TJ Perkins scoffs at how Chris Silvio makes a big deal about the Northern California/Southern California deal. He retorts that Silvio couldn’t catch lightning if his name was Benjamin Franklin. Them’s fighting words!

Chris Silvio vs. TJ Perkins

Silvio gets a nice face reaction from the local fans, despite being positioned as an obnoxious heel. Perkins overwhelms Silvio in the early going with his quick offense. Silvio counters with a head scissors. TJP scores with a drop-kick to the face. Silvio rolls to ringside to regroup and eats a drop-kick. Silvio trips Perkins and begins targeting the shoulder. Silvio slips a bit on a flying clothesline. Perkins nails a springboard drop-kick and lights Silvio up with some kicks. Head scissors takedown by Perkins and a suicide dive! Perkins misses a top rope move but manages to apply an Achilles lock. Sit-out power bomb by Silvio gets a near fall! Perkins blocks a superplex and delivers flying double knees to the chest. Detonation by Perkins finishes it at 6:14! Good win for Perkins. I’d be interested to see more Silvio.
Winner: TJ Perkins

-Welcome to Inside Ring of Honor! Kevin Kelly looks at video footage setting the stage for the Jay Lethal/Mike Bennett/El Generico Television Championship match for Final Battle. The package does a nice job recapping the storyline for new viewers.

-Mike Bennett tries to wrap his handsome head around the fact that he has to face two losers at Final Battle. He’s going to win the TV title and then celebrate on the town with his Playboy model girlfriend (former WWE diva Maria). TV Champion Jay Lethal promises to make a statement at Final Battle. He’s tired of all the time limit draws and will defeat his two top challengers once and for all in one night.

-Eddie Edwards and Dan Severn are interviewed at Severn’s gym. Edwards says that Severn’s influence will help make up for the experience edge that Davey Richards has over him. Severn has the big match experience to properly prepare Edwards.

-Next week, Michael Elgin faces ROH Word Champion Davey Richards in a Proving Ground match. Richards says that he knows what Truth Martini is up to, making him wrestle a tough match right before Final Battle. He compares Martini to a kid on the playground who pulls his pants down for attention. Richards says Elgin might be unbreakable, but he is unstoppable.

Proving Ground match:
The All Night Express vs. ROH Tag Team Champions Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin

Kenny King starts against Shelton Benjamin. King goes toe to toe with Benjamin in an even contest. The match restarts with a slugfest. Rhett Titus gets a blind tag and tries to put Benjamin away. Haas makes a blind tag and assists in some double team work. Haas goes to work on the arm. King tags and delivers a hard clothesline. Titus is back and Haas eats a leg drop/splash combo. Haas sends Titus crashing into the ring post. Haas smells blood and begins targeting the hurt shoulder as we head to commercial. After the break, Haas cuts off a Titus comeback. WGTT have Titus isolated and are continuing to punish the shoulder. Titus has to dive over Haas to finally make the hot tag. King cleans house on WGTT. Titus helps out with a top rope face buster on Charlie Haas. Things break down with all four men trading moves. King goes high risk but Benjamin leaps up for a big time arm drag. WGTT set King up for the Leap of Faith but Titus blocks it. The Briscoes show up and crack a chair over Benjamin’s back! The referee didn’t see it. Meanwhile, the ANX double team Haas for the win at 10:50 (shown). Fine main event here that added heat to the WGTT/Briscoes feud and positions the ANX for a tag title opportunity.
Winners: The All Night Express

-King and Titus become aware that something is wrong with Shelton Benjamin, who is rolling in pain at ringside. The medical team checks on Benjamin, who appears to need x-rays. Haas is livid and screams that he wants the Briscoes’ ass now. He basically promises to murder the Briscoes, as the show ends on a somber note.

Final Thoughts: Not much to say this week. The show is in full-blown hype mode for Final Battle. It’s refreshing to see after years of other promotions not properly building up pay-per-views. The wrestling was generally good, as always, though nothing that was must see. As part of a bigger picture, I appreciate this show, but as a stand alone episode, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell what all the fuss is about. Thumbs in the middle.

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