Ring of Honor Review - August 17, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Gravity def. Gringo Loco

This essentially served as a rebound win for Gravity, who fell short to Shane Taylor in the finals of the ROH World Television Championship Eliminator Tournament last week. His shtick is stupid, but the guy can go in the ring and that was evident here. It's been a bit since we last saw Loco on ROH TV if I'm remembering correctly. I thought they had a fun opener and were given an ample amount of time.

Josh Woods def. Silas Young in a Pure Rules Match

Woods and Young were partners in Ring of Honor a few years ago, so it was cool seeing them mix it up again here. I actually cared more about Woods at that point, and that was when he was a comedy character. Being a part of The Varsity Athletes, a glorified enhancement group, has done him no favors. This was solid, but I could have done without the Pure Rules. Didn't he already unsuccessfully challenge Katsuyori Shibata for the ROH Pure Championship?

ROH Women's World Champion Athena def. Brittany J in an ROH Women's World Championship Proving Ground Match

Every Athena match on ROH TV blends together at this point and this was no exception. I seriously do not understand the point of putting her in matches every week that are all the same other than to pad her record. She's doing the best work of her career, but she would feel more special if she didn't wrestle weekly. The Renegades attempted to attack Athena afterward before Billie Starkz made the save.

ROH World Television Champion Samoa Joe and Stokley Hathaway def. The Boys

I don't ever remember Hathaway wrestling in ROH, WWE or AEW until now, so this may have marked this in-ring debut. He was in there more than I thought he would be and played his role well. I'd rather see Joe continue his on his own as a dominant badass, but I do enjoy the chemistry he has with Hathaway as they're hilarious together. This was what it needed to be and the finish was funny.

ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions The Gates of Agony def. Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal

Gates of Agony just lost to Darby Allin and Nick Wayne rather quickly and decisively on Wednesday's Dynamite, so this got them back on the right track. They got to beat an actual team for a change, too, so that was a plus. I also appreciated that this wasn't a straight-up squash and that the babyfaces were able to give Gates of Agony a fight before losing. It'd be great to see Gates of Agony in the mix for the ROH World Tag Team Championship if they weren't "busy" in the six-man tag team division.

Madison Rayne def. Dani Mo

It's been months since we last saw Rayne compete. I thought it was toward the beginning of ROH TV, but it also may have been on one of AEW's Dark shows. Either way, she brings experience to ROH's women's division and I'm glad she's back. This was a short and sweet showcase for her and therefore exactly what it needed to be. She already challenged Athena for her title in January and lost, so I don't expect her to be built back up for another shot.

The Dark Order (Evil Uno, John Silver and Alex Reynolds) def. Isiah Broner, Lord Crewe and Corey Calhoun

I guess Dark Order aren't heels after all despite seemingly turning on AEW programming a few months ago as they're back to being babyfaces in ROH. This was your standard six-man tag team match from them, but at least they showed some intensity. Stu Grayson was shown watching from the stage for some reason. Didn't Dark Order already finish their feud with him at Death Before Dishonor? I see no reason for that rivalry to continue.

Cole Karter def. Griff Garrison

With Brian Pillman Jr. gone from AEW, Garrison is pretty much dead in the water at this point. I'm actually shocked he's still under contract, but he'll clearly be used as an enhancement talent going forward. What's funny is that I see Karter and Garrison as being on the same level and yet Karter is the one getting pushed. I still don't find anything interesting about Karter, yet that hasn't stopped him from being booked in/winning bland matches as of late. This was a match that existed.

Billie Starkz def. Charlette Renegade

Starkz beat Robyn Renegade last week and this followed up on that. I still don't care about The Renegades in tag team matches or in singles matches, but I can't fault Tony Khan for trying with them. At least they've improved. The match was what it was. It gave Starks a victory before she inevitably challenges Athena for the title. Speaking of Athena, she returned the favor from earlier by saving Starkz from The Renegades post-match.

Action Andretti, Darius Johnson and Lee Johnson def. The Workhorsemen and Lee Moriarty

Johnson and Andretti's new gimmick is finding random partners and failing to win six-man tag titles, regardless of whether it's in ROH or AEW. They worked well with Johnson here, but I don't know why this had to happen other than to kill time. More than anything, I didn't expect Moriarty to team with The Workhorsemen just to lose. He's better than this, but it looks like Big Bill is going to get the singles push instead. This was a nice little sprint but nothing worth writing home about.

Lady Frost def. Trish Adora

I thought Frost had wrestled for ROH recently, but I must have been thinking of AEW because apparently she hasn't been on an episode of ROH TV since May, at least until now. She's talented and would be a welcome addition to the division if she gets signed. The fact she won was an encouraging sign, even if I don't like Adora losing. This was brief, but they did what they could in the time allotted. Kiera Hogan called out Frost in a backstage segment, so that match must be coming next week.

​"Legit" Leyla Hirsch def. Rachael Ellering

Hirsch revealed in a backstage segment earlier in the episode that Maria Kanellis-Bennett paid off Hirsch for taking out Adora last month, so we'll see if they still have something of a working relationship going forward. Maria told Hirsch that she was giving her a step up in competition, which is why Hirsch faced Ellering. I didn't think Ellering would win, obviously, but it was at least somewhat competitive. At the rate she's racking up wins, Hirsch should be competing for the ROH Women's World Championship sooner rather than later.

Dalton Castle def. "Pretty" Peter Avalon

Thank the Lord that The Wingmen have been featured a lot less since Dark and Elevation went away. I don't know if they've had one match on ROH TV since then and I'm not complaining. Avalon is much more tolerable on his own in the enhancement role, so booking this as a a straightforward squash for Castle was the way to go. Castle yelled at the camera some more about wanting another shot at Joe's ROH World Television Championship.

Metalik def. Tony Nese

This was treated like an impromptu match with Jerry Lynn announcing Metalik as Nese's opponent when Nese was already in the ring, but a graphic advertised it beforehand. Whoops. I legitimately do not know why this had to headline the episode. It was a nice little outing while it lasted and Metalik is a treat to watch, but considering I could have seen this on any ordinary episode of WWE 205 Live three years ago, I don't know what was so special about this.

Overall Show

This edition clocked in at around two hours and 15 minutes, which was way longer than it should have been. I'd say 60-90 minutes is the sweet spot for this show. I don't understand Khan's obsession with incorporating as many matches as possible into these episodes. The wrestling is largely serviceable, but a majority of the matches are squashes and whatever storyline development we get is rarely interesting. This was your average edition of ROH TV and that's to say it's not worth seeking out at all.

SEE MORE: ROH Reviews