Ring of Honor Review - March 20, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Silas Young and ROH World Tag Team Champions The Briscoes def. Shibonbi Shadow Squad

It should be noted that this was taped before The Briscoes lost the ROH World Tag Team Championship to Villain Enterprises at the 17th Anniversary Show on Friday, so this bout is a bit outdated. It was still fun from an in-ring standpoint with everyone getting a chance to shine at one point or another. Young and The Briscoes going over was obviously the right call, but I don't know how much the victory did for them considering they're already established.

Beer City Brusiers def. Brian Johnson and Joe Keys

Beer City Bruisers are quietly building momentum at the moment and I'm all for it. They've gradually been growing on me since they transitioned into a babyface role late last year and seem to be winning the audience over as well. This was a nice little showcase for them that didn't overstay its welcome. I hope to see them featured in the tag title picture before long.

Madison Rayne def. Thunder Rosa

Damn, this must have been taped a while ago, because Rayne has been gone from Ring of Honor for weeks. I believe she lost her last televised match (though I could be mistaken), so it's weird to think she went out on top here. That said, it's not like she beat a top talent, and it made sense for her to avenge her loss to The Twisted Sisterz eventually. This was a well-wrestled affair despite not having much crowd heat.

Zack Sabre Jr. def. Rocky Romero

It felt fairly random for two notable competitors from New Japan Pro Wrestling to face off in the main event of an episode of ROH TV. Sabre has made a few appearances for ROH in recent months, but I don't believe he's full-time with them by any means. Nevertheless, this was a quality contest, but it really depends on your taste for wrestling. If you like the slower-paced stuff with more methodical wrestling, then you'll enjoy this outing. If you don't, this may bore you. Either way, they made good use of the time they had and finished off the night on a high note.

Overall Show

It's apparent this was taped with the intention that it would air after the 17th Anniversary Show, because by and large, none of these matches served a purpose. It was outdated as well with Rayne no longer being with the company and The Briscoes having dropped the tag titles at the pay-per-view. It was a solid show, but it felt like filler. Now I'm left wondering if there will be any build-up for G1 Supercard, because the event is coming up in less than three weeks and I have no clue when the next fresh batch of tapings will air (and if they'll still be relevant by the time they do).