Ring of Honor Review - February 3, 2016

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

ROH World Television Champion Roderick Strong def. Masada

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Strong a heel the last time we saw him on ROH TV? I could have sworn he was. He was in full face mode here with Bobby Fish, who came out afterward, actually coming off like the heel, which was strange. Anyway, the match was decent for what it was, but not the same quality of contests we have seen from Strong as of late. There were a few sloppy spots that hindered the match on the whole as a result.


Punisher Martinez def. Colby Corino in a Top Prospect Round 1 Match

For whatever reason, Corino taking punishment never seems to get old for me (am I bad person for saying that?). I figured this wouldn't be anything more than a total squash, but Corino scored more offense over Martinez than I thought he would. Of course, it was limited before he ultimately took the loss. The post-match angle with BJ Whitmer and Colby's father Steve Corino was excellently executed. They have been building this for such a long time that when Corino finally snaps on Whitmer, it will make for a major moment. Hopefully that isn't too far off in the future.

---

reDRAGON def. ROH World Champion Jay Lethal and Adam Cole

Obviously, this match was all about establishing tension between Lethal and Cole going into the Triple Threat main event for the ROH title, and it was certainly successful at that. Not only that, but it was extremely entertaining from an in-ring standpoint, which shouldn't have come as a surprise given the tremendous talent involved. Lethal accidentally hitting his finisher on Cole was a great, logical finish and I expect there to be fallout on an upcoming episode.


​Overall Show

Featuring a mere three matches, this edition of ROH TV seemed to go by quicker than most. It wasn't a must-see show by any means, but it was your usual enjoyable hour of wrestling. As good as the wrestling was, though, the biggest takeaway from this show for me was the storyline progression with Strong and Fish, Corino and Whitmer, and the main event scene. All feuds were well furthered, which is rare for ROH. Not that they don't know how to book feuds, but that the show itself doesn't come off as episodic at times. Thankfully, this was a nice change of pace.