Ring of Honor Review - February 22, 2017

​By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Silas Young def. Bull James

I believe this was James' in-ring debut on ROH TV, and although he had a decent match with Young here, he didn't have as impressive of an outing as he probably should have. He isn't a bad wrestler by any means, especially for someone of his size, but in all honesty, the only thing about him that stood out as special was his "Bullfit" gimmick. When that's stripped away from him, it's pretty bland, and this match was just kind of there for me. Eating a loss in his first ROH match doesn't do him many favors, either.

Colt Cabana def. The Boys in a 2-on-1 Handicap Match

As I've said before, I'm glad they're moving forward with this feud between Cabana and Dalton Castle after their Final Battle bout two months ago. Despite turning heel, Cabana is still the same comedy character he was as a babyface, but at least he's entertaining, and he'll definitely elicit heat in attacking The Boys. He needed this win to build some credibility for himself, so I enjoyed this all around.

Christopher Daniels def. JAy Briscoe in the Finals of the Decade of Excellence Tournament

I love the story they've been telling with Daniels since the start of the tournament how he's out to win the one title that has alluded him his entire career, and with Briscoe being an established main event star, these two were the perfect opponents. The match received the time it deserved, Kazarian and Mark Briscoe were effective on commentary, and the crowd was engaged in the action down the stretch. The Angel's Wings off the top rope was a fantastic finish and the "You deserve it!" chants Daniels was showered with afterward made for a cool moment. I'm looking forward to him challenging Adam Cole for the ROH World Championship at the 15th Anniversary Show.

Overall Show

Although the opener was fairly forgettable, at least it served a purpose in following up on the angle involving Young and The Beer City Bruiser from a while ago. The Handicap match was fun for what it was and the main event was excellent, and there was also a video package that aired with comments from Bobby Fish in regards to his upcoming world title match. All in all, this was a solid show and I'm glad they promoted the return of the Top Prospect Tournament for next week.