Ring of Honor Review - January 13, 2016

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

All Night Express def. Roppongi Vice

It was on the Saturday that this originally aired on Sinclair Broadcasting that I met Trent Barreta at a local autograph signing, and that same day I read the reports Rocky Romero was potentially WWE bound (though he has since come out and said he's sticking with New Japan Pro Wrestling). What a weird consequence. Anyway, it was a fun opening tag team match that wasn't too crazy, which oddly enough, I liked. They can go all out in future matches if there are any and there certainly can be based off the dirty finish. Thankfully, All Night Express have embraced the boos and are now working as a heel act instead of being forcefully pushed as babyfaces.


The Kingdom vs. reDRAGON vs. The Young Bucks Was Made Official for Next Week

Of course, as of this writing, Michael Bennett has already left Ring of Honor and has signed with TNA, so it's obvious where the tension within The Kingdom is headed (that in addition to Matt Taven being legitimately injured). All three teams have previously established issues with each other, so a three-way between them is logical and exciting. It's a great hook for next week's show and making it a Philadelphia Street Fight is just a nice added bonus.

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ROH World Tag Team Champions War Machine def. The House of Truth (Non-title); Donovan Dijak Attacked Joey Daddiego

This wasn't much more than a glorified squash match for War Machine, which was fine considering they need dominant and decisive victories considering they are still fresh off of their title victory. I didn't have a problem with The House of Truth scoring little offense given what happened afterward with Dijak splitting from the group. That moment could have been better built toward, but the fans reacted favorably to the turn. They planted the seeds for the storyline with Prince Nana weeks ago, but I'd honestly rather see Dijak on his own than with another manager at this point.


Dalton Castle def. Moose, Matt Sydal and Jay Briscoe in a Four Corner Survival Match

Based off the match stipulation, it sounded like it was elimination style, but it turned out to be a basic Fatal 4-Way. Aside from that being slightly disappointing, it was a very well-wrestled main event. The four wrestlers involved were fairly random, but from an in-ring standpoint, this was an enjoyable matchup where there never seemed to be a dull moment. I fully expected Briscoe or Moose to win, so I was pleasantly surprised Castle came out on top. My only gripe with it was that it didn't set up anything for any of the four wrestlers.


Overall Show

Although storylines aren't always furthered on ROH TV (and that was partially the case with this edition), this was an enjoyable hour of wrestling. The tag team division is the best part about the promotion at the moment and various tag teams were nicely showcased on this show. The main event wasn't must-see because there was nothing at stake and didn't affect anything storyline-wise, but it was a treat, nevertheless. Plus, we have a huge match on tap for next week, so that's certainly worth looking forward to.