Ring of Honor "Supercard of Honor"
March 31, 2006
Chicago Ridge, Illinois

Four Corner Survival Match: Ricky Reyes vs. Delirious vs. Flash Flanagan vs. Shane Hagadorn (Four Corner Survival)

Ricky and Flanagan do a bit of chain wrestling to start out, then everyone triple-teams poor Delirious. Flash Flanagan hits a nice German Suplex to Reyes, but Delirious almost gets a pin on Flanagan, and then nearly gets a pin on Hagadorn. Ricky Reyes puts Delirious in the Dragon Sleeper to get the chokeout win. Post-match, Reyes beats on Delirious and cuts a promo saying that Delirious "doesn't belong" in Ring of Honor.

Analysis: Although it was short, it had good character development: Flanagan lost because he was trying too hard to look good on his debut in R.O.H., Reyes was the confident jackass, Hagadorn was the not-so-confident jackass, and Delirious was…Delirious, which is to say he was crazy, but had a sense of wanting to win the match pretty badly, so you got behind him either way. Everyone meshed really well, and it was good for its length. **¾

The Embassy (Jimmy Rave and Alex Shelley) (with Daizee Haze and Prince Nana) vs. "Double C" Claudio Castagnoli and Jimmy Yang

After some opening-match "testing each other out" moves, there's a pretty hilarious segment involving both members of the Embassy falling on top of one another. A combination European Uppercut/Wheelbarrow Facebuster to Shelley gets 2½. When the fight eventually leads outside, Yang gets flipped over the guardrail and right into a bunch of fans. The Embassy are soon heeling it up, and also isolating Yang. After a hot tag to Claudio, Claudio nearly wins it a few times and eventually has his body used as a springboard so Yang can catapult himself out of the ring and into Shelley. Rave and Castagnoli get into a pinning exchange, and Rave wins it with a loosely-held small package.

Analysis: Although I felt the match was mediocre for a while, all it needed was time, and I ended up liking it. Both teams had good chemistry against each other and with their teammates, which helped add to the match, as did a good flow that made the match feel natural. Not sporadic, but natural- every move transitioned from one to the next, and even though some things might not have had a smooth transition, you had a decent "what will they do next" vibe by the match's conclusion. Add to that some good offense and spots, and you've got a nice match. ***

First Blood Match: Ace Steel vs. Chad Collyer

After some brawling, Steel hits a suicide dive to the floor, then there's some more brawling Collyer nails Ace with a bulldog onto a folded-up table, then he brings a piece of the ring barrier into play. Both the ring barrier and a chair are put into play, the highlight of which sees Steel nail Collyer with a Tombstone Piledriver onto the piece of guardrail. Following that, a big chairshot busts Collyer open, giving Steel the match.

Analysis: A decent brawl that had some chemistry and story to it. Both men were pretty vicious with some of their latter shots, and were adept at pacing the match. To be honest, I just wasn't all that impressed, but that shouldn't take away from the match- it was still a step above average. **¾

A.J. Styles and Matt Sydal vs. Austin Aries and Jack Evans

After some regular opening-match spots- lots of quick counters, some mat wrestling, some signature move feints, etc. - Styles hits his big knee drop thing to Aeries, and then Aeries helps Evans hit a Standing Phoenix Splash to Sydal. Evans takes a nasty German Suplex, but to be honest, it looked a bit too assisted. There's some classic Styles offense thrown in there and even some double-teaming on Evans, but one "hot tag" later, we've reached an obligatory cluster-****. Evans tries to nail Styles with the Sasuke Special, but A.J. turns it into the Styles Clash onto the arena floor. Aeries dives into A.J. seconds after A.J. rolled Evans's limp body back into the ring, so Sydal hits a Shooting Star Press to Evans to get the win.

Analysis: The overarching theme of the match was that Aeries and Evans know all about Sydal, and it was worked in perfectly- both teams had trouble hitting some of their more-famous moves because they had been well scouted by then. Aside from the impressive story, both teams let loose some great action and had some really good chemistry with each other. The subtle, nuanced storytelling was a real treat considering the four involved, and it's good to see that everyone involved could really put some meaning and emotion behind all the flash and flare. ***¼

Do Fixer (Dragon Kid, Genki Horiguchi, and Ryo Saito) vs. Blood Generation (CIMA, Naruki Doi, and Masato Yoshino)

Well, here we go. Lots of frequent run-ins since it's all under Dragon Gate rules. Some blazing fastness and innovative counters from all involved. Saito and Horiguchi (HAGE!) hit some nice, fluid Double Team moves, chaining them all together. Both teams then level each other with effective and somewhat dazzling double-team and even triple-team moves. There are some crowd dives and a "hot tag" spot, then there's a flurry of false finishes. After that there's an "everyone takes out everyone else" spot, CIMA getting dropped on his head repeatedly, and a Schwein by CIMA getting only 2¾. After an Avalanche Ace Crusher from Dragon Kid to Naruki Doi, Kid follows it up with a Dragonrana, again to Doi, for the win.

Analysis: This thing was a complete and utter spotfest, but I can only begin to describe how it was both incredibly fun to watch and incredibly well-organized. The crowd seemed a bit lukewarm at first, but all six men played the crowd like fiddles, which resulted in all those "This Is Awesome" and "Please Don't Stop" chants. Everything felt completely sporadic, and the bulk of the match had this killer "just what the hell is happening" vibe- you never knew what crazy thing they'd do next, you just knew it'd be better than the last crazy thing they just got done doing. But here's the deal: the biggest reason this appealed to so many people is that it made you mark out like a ten-year-old boy who had just watched wrestling for the very first time. Everything felt new and exciting, and in a way, it combined the nostalgia of first-time viewing with the simple fun of a good spotfest. But don't think of it as anything more than a really good spotfest, because that's all it was. I've seen plenty of good spotfests, and I'll be all too happy to recognize this as one of my favorites. Not one of the best, but one of my favorites. So, despite all the unending hype and all the debate, I still liked this match a lot, but realize that it's best to view this match as nothing more than what it really was: a very good spotfest. ***½

SHIMMER 6 Woman Mayhem Match: MsChif vs. Cheerleader Melissa vs. Allison Danger vs. Daizee Haze vs. Lacey vs. Rain

Just about everyone tries a quick pin in the early moments of the match, then some semblance of order is restored, with Lacey and Daizee being the first to square off. Lacey nails a nice Cobra Clutch Backbreaker to Daizee Haze, and then she and Rain double-team Allison Danger with a Camel Clutch/Dropkick combination. There's even a multi-woman submission spot, and a few dives to the outside, with the highlight being Daizee nailing a Moonsault to the outside onto everyone else. Even an "everyone takes out everyone else" spot is worked in, as is an "everyone takes out everyone else with their finishers" spot. After Cheerleader Melissa gets green mist spewed into her face by MsChif, MsChif hits The Desecrator on Rain to pick up the pinfall.

Analysis: Some great women's action from the SHIMMER gals. There was lots of quality wrestling throughout this, but to be honest, some parts felt a little sloppy. Then again, some parts were as smooth as clockwork. It was a bit of a spotfest, but I dug it either way. And no matter what it was or what genre of wrestling it fell under, it was still a quality wrestling match. ***

Homicide Meets Cabana, and "The War" Continues

After the SHIMMER match, Homicide comes out for a match with Mitch Franklin, since Colt Cabana is healing a concussion. Homicide completely decimates poor Mitch, and the Cop Killa (DANGEROUS!!!!!~) sends Franklin down for the three-count. Post-match, Colt Cabana runs out, cuts a promo on Homicide, then runs down to the ring and begins brawling with him. Although Cabana has the element of surprise and even manages to put Homicide through a table, Homicide quickly busts open Cabana with a chairshot, and then brings in a ladder. Following a D.D.T. into the ladder, Homicide sandwiches Cabana inside the ladder and nails him with numerous, vicious chairshots, then leaves the ring.

Right after this, Chris Hero and Necro Butcher run in and cut an anti-R.O.H. promo, and Adam Pearce quickly runs out to brawl with Necro while Claudio Castagnoli chases away Hero. The fight leads outside and eventually back onto the apron, and Chris Hero comes back just in time to save Necro from getting suplexed off the apron through a table. After that, Chris helps Necro give Pearce a Russian Legsweep off the apron, through the awaiting table. Jim Cornette then runs in, takes out Necro Butcher with a bat, gets blindsided by Hero, and put in an armbar. Samoa Joe runs out to make the save, and then Chris Hero is brutalized before being tossed out.

Thoughts: If I were to judge Franklin/Homicide, Homicide/Cabana, and Pearce/Necro as straight-up wrestling matches, their scores would be pretty low- a squash, a short brawl, and another short brawl don't make entertaining matches. But the silver lining in all of this is when not viewed as wrestling matches, the encounters were all really, really good segments that added plenty to their respective feuds. Homicide's brutalization of both Franklin and Cabana got him some insane heat, and the crowd was eating up every second of the C.Z.W./R.O.H. confrontation. I'm not going to give any of those three matches a "rating", since I honestly believed that they weren't really "meant" to be viewed as matches at all- they were segments designed to hype and further along some very intense storylines. And in that regard, they accomplished their goals very well.

Jimmy Jacobs (with Lacey) vs. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe

It's mainly all Daniels vs. Joe in the opening minutes of the match, but Jacobs makes them pay attention to him, quite hilariously, by stomping both of their feet. Afterward, Joe hits the S.T.Joe to Daniels, then dives onto both Daniels and Jacobs, and then hits the Ole Kick (OLE!~) to Daniels. All three men then get several well-done near-falls on each other, but it's Joe that ends up winning after he counters Jacobs' Contra Code into the Coquina Clutch.

Analysis: Some good quality wrestling from all involved, which is what I expected and was pleased to see. Everyone used good, simple psychology (Joe and Daniels were methodic in taking down each other, Jacobs was too brash and focused too much of his time trying to impress Lacey), and all had good chemistry with one another, but I felt the match was shorter than I would have expected it to be. Still, I liked this one. ***

Ring of Honor World Championship Match: "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson © vs. Roderick Strong

There's an insane amount of build going on in the beginning of the match, with Danielson trying his best to avoid Strong's chops and also get inside his head. Both men are able to score some good moves on each other, but neither gets a clear-cut lead until Strong comes dangerously close to tapping from a submission by Danielson, though Strong is able to reverse the hold. Roderick soon begins the Chops of Death, but can only nail three before Danielson gets him in a Cross-Legged S.T.F. and then combo's it with a Bow and Arrow Lock. From then on, Danielson remains in firm control until Roderick starts breaking out the backbreakers, with several of them getting a close count. Danielson once again gets firm control of the match, but loses it after showboating too long and missing a diving headbutt. Both men then get some nearfalls on each other before Strong locks in the Cattle Mutilation in a big "**** you" to Danielson. The fight leads outside, where Strong tries one of his Chops of Death only to meet steel ringpost in a gruesome spot. Both men are very evenly matched from this point, until Bryan Danielson dives onto Strong and collapses the ring barrier. Both men then go all-out on each other, stiffing and scoring near-falls on each other frantically and superbly. Roderick Strong synchs in the Stronghold, but Bryan Danielson rolls into a cradle to get the win after fifty-six minutes. Post-match, both men shake hands and receive a standing ovation.

Analysis: Simply fantastic, and the best possible way to end the show. This is a real testament to both men's skills- Roderick Strong is ridiculously good as a singles wrestler, and Bryan Danielson is, bar none, one of the single greatest Ring of Honor champions ever, and is still one of the greatest in-ring performers wrestling today. There was an insane amount of emotion (most of it hatred, but towards the end it was mutual respect) throughout the match, the psychology between these two was astounding, and they had an undeniable chemistry that worked magic. An incredibly effective, blissfully entertaining match. ***¾

Aside from the complete show, there are two extras: the "Ballad of Lacey" video, and a match from F.I.P. Since this was my first time seeing "The Ballad of Lacey", I can only say that it was one of the ****ing funniest things I've ever seen Jimmy Jacobs do. Definitely see it if you get the chance and haven't seen it yet. With that said, I've also taken the time to review the "Bonus" match.

D.V.D. Bonus Match: Jerelle Clark vs. Erick Stevens
From Full Impact Pro- April 8, 2006
Crystal River, Florida

Clark retains control of the match for the most part, until Stevens nails a huge suplex. Stevens comes into control of the match with some submissions, and when Clark tries a Springboard Hurricanrana to the outside, he's caught and rammed into the turnbuckles. After some nearfalls, Clark hits a swank Springboard Avalanche Hurricanrana and follows it up with the 630 Splash to get the win.

Analysis: My one major problem with this match strangely had nothing to do with the match itself. Rather, the commentary on this thing was balls. I'd say that all they did was plug F.I.P. DVD's for half the match, but that's not true. They spent at least three-fourths of the match plugging DVD's. It really grew tiresome, and towards the end, all I could think of was "please, let the wrestling speak for itself. If I want to buy F.I.P. DVD's, sell me on this match first and leave the other DVD's for later." No joke- at one point, one of the announcers basically said "woops, we've been shilling so much that we forgot all about the match!" That aside, though, this was a nice little match that displayed some good skill. It was kinda laid back, with that "southern" feel, but I liked how it had its own unique charm. It was a decent addition to the DVD, and even though the hardcore pimping of F.I.P. shows nearly ruined it for me, it was still a good match. ***

Final Thoughts: From top to bottom, this card is stacked with all kinds of goodness. You've got your spotfests, your brawls, you tag-team matches, and one hell of a championship contest. As a first show, this effectively broke the entire stigma I had about Ring of Honor and really drew me in to the promotion. The video quality is really top-notch, and gives you a really good feel of the action. I personally don't like their lighting system, as I feel it's too dark, but that's simply a pet peeve of mine and never really detracted from any of the fantastic action. And rest assured, there were some fantastic show-stealing matches from this event.

That said, I can't help but feel a small bit let down about Ring of Honor. All the hardcore fandom really got me interested, but in truth, I felt this was an archetypal show: they had a good "something for everybody" feel, and they put on some world-class matches, but the simple fact is that I've seen this type of gradual build before, and it doesn't live up to all the hype surrounding it. Rest assured, the show went from good to greater, but I still felt that old "opening matches are going to be a bit subpar" feeling I've had from countless independent and puroresu shows, along with that "gradually getting better" feel that makes a good show worth watching.

The good part about this, though, is that if you ever need a show to really get you into Ring of Honor, consider this one. Not only will you be impressed, it will effectively remove any stigma's you have about the promotion. While you'll come to realize that you should never believe all the hype surrounding a promotion, especially this one, you'll also walk away extremely satisfied that you spent the time and effort to get into what has been called the greatest North American wrestling promotion operating today. The greatest thing about Supercard of Honor is that even if you believe Ring of Honor isn't as good as your personal favorite independent federation, you'll still become an instant fan. As a first-time Ring of Honor viewer, I finally found out what all the fuss is about. And trust me- it's worth finding out.

Overall Rating of Ring of Honor "Supercard of Honor": ***½