The American Wolves are each in singles action this week as Eddie Edwards makes a surprise defense of the ROH World Television Championship against Kenny King, and Davey Richards is Kevin Steen’s hand picked opponent for El Generico for Pick Your Poison. Meanwhile, tension between the Wolves and Hagadorn mounts and former ROH World Champion Tyler Black makes his penultimate appearance. All this and much more this week on ROH On Hdnet!

What’s up everybody? I’m going to shake up the format of my recaps starting this week. I’ve decided that recapping the matches move-for-move is just wasted text. It lengthens the recaps and I’m sure most fans see such a huge block of text and switch off. More and more people get HDNet these days, and if I can find the shows on various video hosting websites then I’m sure other people can too, so if you want to see it you can.
Instead, I’m going to give more analysis of the episode, matches and storylines. If anyone is still seeking my former style, then you’re welcome to head over to my blog where said style is hosted. I’ll be happy to revert to that style if people complain, but let’s give this a go shall we?

Opening Segment

A recap of Davey Richards and Shane Hagadorn arguing several weeks ago with Davey flooring Shane with a left hand and dismissing him as the Wolves’ manager.

Segment 1

Eddie Edwards & Jim Cornette Promo

Recap: Edwards came out for another 10-Minute Hunt but at the behest of Jim Cornette the match was changed to a TV Title match. Shane Hagadorn objected and claimed Edwards did whatever he said, causing ‘Easy E’ to eject him from ringside.

Review: This was a really smart way to cement Edwards’ face turn. Many people, Jerome Cusson included, felt the 10-Minute Hunts were hurting, not helping both Edwards and the TV Title. I defended them throughout because I felt they were a good way to get Edwards over as a heel champion, they showcased his skills, and they were always kept short so they were inoffensive. However, with Edwards gradually turning face, and a distinct lack of title defenses, I accept that things needed to change, and this promo confirmed that they in fact would. Though this promo seemed short and basic, it was great for several reasons. Firstly, it puts Cornette over as an experienced voice of reason and expert negotiator. Secondly, it puts all of the heat that has come from these Hunts onto Shane Hagadorn with the assertion that he was over-inflating his client’s ego, shifting the blame away from Edwards, making him look like the victim of Hagadorn’s underhanded manipulations. Shane’s promo made him look devious and arrogant, and Edwards taking a stand and kicking him out affirmed him as a face and furthers the story of the Wolves’ separation from the Wolves.

Segment 2

ROH World Television Title Match

Eddie Edwards vs. Kenny King

Recap: Eddie Edwards retains the TV Title against Kenny King in a lengthy back and forth match. Towards the end King attempted a super Royal Flush but Edwards countered into a hurricanrana in mid-air and rolled all the way through to sink in the Achilles Lock for the submission victory.
Review: This was an awesome match and a great effort from both men. King and Edwards are young and have both signed new contracts with ROH and they’re improving all the time, meaning this could very easily be a main event in the coming years. They’re in reasonably similar spots on the card on opposite sides of the heel/face line having both been young prospects mentored by a more tenured wrestler, as well as being part of tag teams with clear potential as singles stars. If this does in fact turn out to be a main event then I don’t think people will be disappointed with what they come up with as they have surprisingly fluid chemistry. The high-spots were awesome, the reversals were nice, and the finish was fantastic. Edwards now shifts into the spot of mid-card face champion without the help of Hagadorn and if reports are true, soon without the help of Davey Richards, so whether he sinks or swims depends on the matches he has in coming weeks, and this was a good start. Most importantly the streak of great opening matches continues.

Segment 3

Tyler Black vs. Mike Sydal

Recap: Tyler pins Sydal with God’s Last Gift in a bout that was long by squash match standards.
Review: This was essentially a run-through of Tyler’s playbook as he hit signature move after signature move with barely any resistance. My personal highlight was Tyler finally connecting on a dropsault after three years of backflips followed by standard dropkicks. This seems fitting given this is one of his last appearances. The match did its job; it made Tyler look like a superior wrestler, one that belongs in the big leagues as Sydal failed to present anything resembling a challenge, only knocking Tyler off his feet once after three consecutive kicks. Sydal is definitely not his brother, and though he may be athletic, he’s not so smooth in the ring. Tyler however demonstrated his three-year evolution from a talented upstart to a main event player bound for the WWE.

Segment 4

Steen & Corino Backstage Interview

Recap: Corino declares Pick Your Poison the best stipulation in history and Steen – wearing Generico’s mask and doing a high-pitched voice to mock him – states he picked Davey Richards because he’s the man who’s delivered the most pain to Generico besides himself.
Review: Not an awful lot to review here, and I wasn’t sure if I should include it, but Steen’s selection was intelligent as it calls back to the feud he and Generico went through together in 2009, one that dealt both of them knee injuries. Wearing Generico’s mask reminds us what went down at GBH9 (as did the highlight package that preceded this) and solidifies Steen as a bully.

Segment 5

Pick Your Poison Match

El Generico vs. Davey Richards

Recap: Davey Richards defeated El Generico in a long main event. Richards worked the legs for the entire match with a range of submissions, while Generico stayed resilient, firing back with occasions high impact offense, including a half and half superplex that Richards needed the ropes to avoid losing to. Richards slips out of the Brainbustaaahhh!!! and attempts a powerbomb but Generico escapes with a sunset flip. Richards rolls through and gets the Ankle Lock. Generico keeps trying to fight out of it but Richards catches his other foot and transitions into a Cloverleaf and Generico taps.
Review: Awesome main event. It didn’t get to a fever pitch, but those tend to happen more at live events. Both guys worked their tails off and ROH once again proves you can have a main event with high spots without the world coming to an end. Richards really showed off the versatility of his submission game as he didn’t once go for an arm hold, and why would he when he knows about Generico’s long list of knee troubles, many of which were caused by Richards himself. It was a smart call in an often dumb business and I respect it. Generico fired back despite looking an absolute wreck throughout the match. His shoulder was taped and he looked sluggish, but given how good he is at selling, it’s hard to tell if he needs a little time off or not. The tap-out loss hurts his momentum, but he’s coming off being unmasked by Steen anyway and Davey is being positioned for a run at the title, so it’s not the end of the world. Great match. Unfortunately a segment of the crowd were out to behave badly tonight, with one guy booing both men and things being thrown into the ring after the match. It was mild, but I certainly noticed.

Closing Segment

Davey waits for Generico to stand up and they shake hands. Richards poses at the top of the ramp.

Overall

– This was another fantastic show. We got a pair of good, long matches that were well worked by all four men, as well as a squash match that made sense and was not dull. There were good promos, and once again ROH capitalised on every minute afforded to them in their one hour broadcast. The Wolves shone in their separate outings as fully-fledged faces, and I think it’s safe to say the TV Title isn’t going to be irrelevant anymore. I’ve forgotten who Generico picked as Steen’s opponent, so next week will be as much of a surprise to me as it is to you, and I’m certainly intrigued.
– I actually have less to say about the show than normal, but in a good way. I simply can’t think of any faults, and I’d just be going around in circles if I continued to list the positives. I love where ROH is going right now and can’t wait for each episode, so I’ll see you all next week for more ROH On HDNet!

Next Week

– Generico will name Steen’s opponent to complete Pick Your Poison.

– Shane Hagadorn will call out Davey Richards.

Plugs

– Don’t forget my DVD review of BREAKING THE CODE: BEHIND THE WALLS OF CHRIS JERICHO. This is my debut for WWE DVD reviews and I’m not sure how my style has gone down, so please give me some feedback and let me know your thoughts.

– Several weeks ago Jerome pointed out that several of our readers weren’t actually all that sure what ROH was all about and discussed the possibility of some kind of series of articles summing the company up. Well, I’ve taken it upon myself to quietly begin transforming my blog into a dedicated ROH resource. Head to the roster section and check out profiles of everybody on the active roster. It’s still a work in progress, but I’m working on adding alumni and notable guests, and at some point I may add some company and title history as well, but hey, it’s a start.

– As always remember to check out the recaps, DVD reviews and columns from all of our PWP staff!

3 thoughts on “ROH On HDNet Recap – 10/4/10 with Full Episode”
  1. The last two weeks of HDNet have been very enjoyable and easy to watch. Prazak has toned down the heel schtick a little bit. We’re getting clean finishes up and down the show, and the company is clearly building to big shows. I can’t judge Delirious’ booking on the house show DVDs, but the positive impact is already being felt on the television show.

  2. I have to agree. The TV show has been nice and easy to watch, not that it wasn’t before, but it now does feel like the matches build up to the larger shows and house shows which should intrigue people to go to them.

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