Ring of Honor Review - May 3, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Kingdom def. Coast 2 Coast

It hasn't been too long since TK O'Ryan got hurt at the 15th Anniversary Show, so I was surprised to see him back at ringside so soon. Props to him. We've seen Coast 2 Coast in action on ROH TV before and they've impressed me in the past, but this was essentially a standard squash match for The Kingdom. Matt Taven hitting the Angel's Wings to win the match was a nice touch to send a message to his upcoming opponent, ROH World Champion Christopher Daniels.

Kenny Doane and Mikey Mondo Challenged ROH World Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks

I'm still not sure whether The Young Bucks/The Bullet Club are supposed to be babyfaces in Ring of Honor or not (they do play to the crowd more often than not), but at least they're popular. The Spirit Squad answering the open challenge from them was interesting, though they weren't done any favors by being immediately laid out by the champions. From what I've heard, this is only a one-shot deal for them, but I guess they could end up sticking around.

Matt Sydal def. Flip Gordon

I was first introduced to Gordon's work at a Chaotic Wrestling show in April 2016 and actually had the honor of interviewing him after the event. I know how awesome he in the ring and thus he and Sydal were the perfect opponents for each other. They produced a very fun match and I'd love to see more from them in the future. I've read rumblings about Gordon potentially signing with ROH and I hope he does. Additionally, I liked the furthering of the feud between Sydal and Marty Scurll afterward as their championship clash approaches.

Adam Cole Addressed His Status with The Bullet Club

There have been many questions as of late in regards to what the future holds for Cole in ROH, so I was intrigued by what he had to say here. Unfortunately, he didn't say much at all, simply continuing to tease tension with The Young Bucks and that was it. Apparently, his contract with the company has expired, but he is still scheduled to compete at War of the Worlds, so we'll see if he ends up sticking around a little longer past that point.

Jay Lethal def. Silas Young, Hangman Page and Jay White in a ROH World Championship No. 1 Contender's Four Corner Survival Tornado Match

Four-way matches in ROH aren't typically contested under tornado rules, so I was glad that stipulation was added because it definitely made this match more entertaining in my opinion. There was never a dull moment from start to finish and all four guys worked wonderfully together. Lethal winning was pretty predicable, but that didn't take away from my immense enjoyment of the matchup whatsoever. Lethal, Cody and Daniels exchanging looks to close out the show was an effective way to get viewers hyped for the Triple Threat title match at War of the Worlds.

Overall Show

I didn't dawn on me until watching this edition of ROH TV that War of the Worlds was next weekend. Holy shit. Well, the card looks absolutely stacked on paper and I'm extremely excited for it. Fingers crossed they can put together a solid, up-to-date go-home show next week. As for this episode, it was a fun hour of wrestling and the main event is well worth going out of your way to see. On a side note, I love Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana as the new commentary team and they play off each other nicely.