Cook’s ROH TV Review 1.21.22

Hey kids! We’re looking back at Final Battle this week, and will be viewing a couple of championship matches from ROH’s last show for now. We got a Supercard of Honor coming, and Jonathan Gresham & Bandido will apparently be deciding who the one true ROH World Champion will be. That’ll be a hoot, and this should be too.

In Memoriam: Big Mike Watters was the 411 Fan Forum Administrator for most of the time the board was operating during the 2000s. He was one of the people that had my back in those early days while I was message board posting and dipping my toes into what became…well, I wouldn’t call it a career, but years & years of writing about professional wrestling & other things on the Internet. He was equally supportive to all that crossed his path, and will be missed by countless random strangers on the Internet, not to mention his friends (which he had a ton of if his Facebook profile is any indication) & family that probably didn’t know much about his online endeavors.

Cook’s ROH TV Review 1.21.22

We open with clips from ROH’s Final Battle event. Ian Riccaboni informs us that we’ll be looking back at some of the matches today. Dalton Castle’s defense of the World Television Championship will be featured, as will the World Tag Team Championship match between The OGK & the Briscoes. The latter was voted ROH’s Match of the Year by the fans.

ROH World Television Championship Match: Joe Hendry vs. Silas Young vs. Rhett Titus vs. Dalton Castle (c) (w/Dak Draper & the baby chickens): Hendry has a new physique and some blonde hair dye for his big ROH return. Silas Young is the Undertaker of Final Battle, having gone 5-0 at the event. Titus has wrestled 396 ROH matches, more than anybody on this even besides Jay & Mark Briscoe. Castle is even more pumped up than usual, and the fans respect him with a post-entrance “Dalton Castle” chant.

Draper joins Ian & Caprice on commentary. Castle bails outside to pump up the crowd, climing onto the barricade to soak in their adulation. He walks the barricade while streamers fly in the air and action picks up in the ring. Hendry suplexes Young over. Castle back in, he and Hendry handshake for a second before Hendry ships Castle into Titus in the corner. Castle whips Titus into a knee from Hendry as the old tag team seems to be back on track for a second. Before they can face off, Young yanks Hendry out of the ring and throws him into the barricade. Silas wants him some, and Dalton gives him some. Crotchlift suplex by Castle, who goes back outside to celebrate. The baby chickens follow him on a lap around the ring as Titus gets a two count on Young. Young clotheslines Titus out of the ring, then hits a cannonball off the apron. Young flips over Castle back in the ring, hits a clothesline. Springboard clothesline to Hendry, FYB & FYF to Castle get a two count. Hendry clotheslines Titus inside out. Titus with the belly to belly to Hendry. Titus with an overhead bridging suplex to Young for two. Big boots in the corner by Titus. Castle goes for the Bangarang, but Titus reverses into a nearfall. Hendry gets booted out of the ring by Titus. Castle capture suplexes Titus. Shot to Young in the corner, but Castle misses the second one. Young gets sent outside, so it’s Titus & Hendry left in the ring. Titus up top, Hendry catches him, gorilla presses him to the mat as we go to commercial.

Young back in and Hendry lifts him up. He adds Titus to the stack and hits a double fallaway slam! Castle covers Titus for two! Hendry still seems content to team with Castle, but Titus bounces them off of each other. Hendry hits a big powerbomb on Titus for two. Castle breaks up the cover & yells at Hendry. Silas knocks Castle into Hendry, who tumbles into the referee & takes him outside with him. Castle sets Young up, hits the Bangarang, but Young rolls outside. Hendry grabs the TV title belt, heads back inside & sets Castle up! He whacks Castle with the strap. Draper leads the announce booth, hits the ring and boots Hendry down. Titus dropkicks Draper out of there, but Young rolls Titus up for two! Young avoids the dropkick, hits a knee. Titus lifts Young up, hits the Finlay roll, goes up top, misses a flip. Titus hits the dropkick and gets the three count! Rhett Titus will be the last ROH World Television Champion.

Winner: Rhett Titus (8:15 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ***

Fun little sprint there. I would never have Dalton Castle lose because I’m a fan, but it was nice of ROH to give Titus a singles title on the last night. He put in the work, it’s definitely well-deserved.

Jimmy Jacobs talks about his time with ROH and how it was so exciting with creative freedom & rabid fans. He’d share the “scrub room” with the Young Bucks, Tyler Black and others, and they’d talk about how they’d go on to change the business. Sure enough, they did, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Ring of Honor.

Christopher Daniels talks about how he main evented the first ROH show with Bryan Danielson & Low Ki. He recaps how ROH grew from a niche promotion for a place for young wrestlers to move up the ranks, and runs down a list of people he wrestled that moved on to bigger & better things. He thanks ROH for giving wrestlers & fans a forum to celebrate wrestling throughout the world, and it’s been his honor to be part of their history.

Matt Taven talks about attending the final event at Boston Garden with his father, and how tonight reminds him of that moment. The Briscoes have spent the last twenty years obsessed with the ROH World Tag Team Championship, and have to leave Final Battle as champions. Taven respects the Briscoes, but he put his life & soul into ROH. Mike Bennett gets goosebumps thinking about the upcoming match, and there isn’t a place he’d rather be. Jay says you’ll see a picture of the Briscoes as tag team champions on the first & last page of Ring of Honor.

ROH World Tag Team Championship Match: Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. The OGK (Matt Taven & Mike Bennett w/Maria Kanellis Bennett) (c): Maria returns to the OGK’s corner for their final ROH match. Cary Silkin joins Ian & Caprice on commentary.

Jay & Matt Taven start. Tieup into the corner. Jay & Matt miss strikes. Dropkick by Taven, followup moves are evaded and Bennett & Mark tag in to exchange strikes. Mark with the redneck kung fu, then he runs into a boot from Mike. Matt tags in, a dropkick off the second rope gets two. Mark with some shots, he tags in Jay. Jay with the big boot in the corner. A clothesline in the corner, then the Redneck Train. Taven with the dropkick on the outside, then the tope suicida on Mark. Bennett holds the Briscoes, and Taven hits the Flight of the Conquerer…onto Bennett. Whoops! Mark props a chair up so he can somersault over the ropes onto Bennett & Taven. Briscoe shoulder tackle on Taven as Todd Sinclair looks like he’s going to try and enforce rules. Good luck, Todd! Bennett tags in, hits the superkick. Taven with a purple thunder bomb, and Bennett covers for two as we go to commercial.

Bodyslam by Bennett for a two count on Jay. Mark tags in and kicks both OGK members. Forearms to Mark’s opponents, Bennett tries to grab ahold but Mark’s just schooling these boys right now. Redneck Boogie to Taven gets two. Iconoclasm by Mark gets two. Jay got busted open here at some point, he sets up the Jaydriller but Taven rolls him up for two. Bennett tags in and chops away on Jay. Vertical suplex by Bennett, and he sets Jay up. Rolling forearm. Bennett holds Jay, Taven splasnes him from the apron to the floor! Bennett covers Jay for two. Tag to Mark, Taven comes in and hits the Climax on Jay. All four men are down. Bennett & Mark face off with strikes. Bennett gets sent outside and Mark hits a dive. Back in the ring, Jay ranas Taven and Mark boots him outside. Jay with the dive onto Bennett, Mark with the spicy dropkick on Taven, then the blockbuster!

Back from commercial, Mark with the DVD on Taven, hits the Froggybow off the top! Maria breaks up the count! Mark confronts Maria on the apron, Bennett goes for the spear but ends up taking Maria out! Bennett piledrives Jay on the floor, then electric chairs Mark. Taven flies over the top rope for the Flight of the Conquerer Doomsday Device! Count is only two. Assisted Backpack Stunner only gets two. Mark ain’t staying down for nothing, guys. Spike piledriver might have done it but Jay breaks it up. Jay hits the Jaydriller on Bennett. Taven with a kick to Jay, hits Just the Tip on Mark. Taven up top, frog splash gets nothing but knees! Jay hits the Jaydriller! Mark covers and it’s only two! Doomsday Device..hit it on Taven and that’s only a two count! Taven’s just pissed off now, but he gets kicked in the face. Another Jaydriller, Mark’s up top, hits the Froggybow, and that’s the three count! Jay & Mark are now twelve-time ROH World Tag Team Champions.

Winners: Jay & Mark Briscoe (15:40 via pinfall)
Match Rating: ****1/2

This match was voted ROH Match of the Year by the fans, and you could definitely see why. All four guys went all out to send the company out on a good note. It’s not like you could realistically end an era without having the Briscoes as champions, right? Of course not. Code of Honor adhered to afterward.

CM Punk doesn’t know what the future of ROH holds, but he knows the past. He’s proud of ROH and the things they did so people could get paid and enjoy the business. ROH is different now than when he was there. People shouldn’t be upset if it ends, but just be damn happy that it happened. The business today would be drastically different if ROH hadn’t existed. He looks back on his time there with a great amount of pride.