ROH 07/08/17 TV Review
06/24/17
Lowell, MA

The show this week opened with Cody video package about  Christopher Daniels being barred from the building next week so that Cody can finish his championship speech. Ian Riccaboni and Colt Cabana welcomed us to the show.

First Match: Dalton Castle & The Boys vs.
Coast To Coast (Leon St. Giovanni & Shaheen Ali) & Flip Gordon
Castle started with Gordon as Cabana questioned whether or not the Boys were professionally trained wrestlers, continuing his disdain for the two. That aside, the two worked really well with their opponents and there were a number of fun spots here. Gordon hit a 450 off the top turnbuckle to the outside heading into commercial break that wiped everyone out. After the break, Cabana made a Rick James “Unity” reference, even hitting the notes. Back in the ring, there was a little twin magic from the Boys and LSG was rolled up for two before Castle was tagged in and he took out all three opponents. Things spilled to the outside again, seeing LSG tightrope walk before hitting a tornillo to the outside, but he ate a Bang-a-rang back in the ring to lose via pinfall to Castle and the Boys. The trio of C2c and Gordon worked well here and the Boys looked much stronger in this trio match than any of their others before.

Winners: Dalton Castle & The Boys

A recap of Silas Young’s attack of Jay Lethal after their match at Best in the World aired, highlighting the use of a keg to inure the former ROH World champion’s ribs. Young sent a camera crew to the hospital afterwards and he cut a promo outside of the hospital, making it clear that Lethal won’t be around for quite a while.

Second Match: Matt Taven w/ Vinny Marseglia & TK O’Ryan vs. Ultimo Guerrero
A recap of Ultimo Guerrero and El Terrible beating Marseglia and Taven at Best in the World aired as Taven made his way to the ring. Riccaboni pointed out that Guerrero has a great mask vs. mask match record, with Cabana expertly pointing out that the unmasked man obviously lost his last one. Back and forth action until O’ Ryan hit Guerrero with a crutch, which didn’t phase him at all. Despite the attack, Guerrero was able to somehow avoid Taven diving through the ropes. Guerrero tossed Taven over the railing and then dove over, taking him out in the process. Back in the ring, Taven had a supercanrana reversed two times, first into a super gourdbuster and then into a superbomb, but he managed to kick out. Guerrero finally went for his finisher, but Taven elbowed him off the the turnbuckle and followed with a frog splash, but didn’t get enough to pick up the three count. Taven hit a low blow as he grabbed referee Paul Turner’s shirt and hit his finisher the Climax for the pinfall victory. Guerrero and Taven worked well together, with Guerrero coming off as nigh invincible. Knowing their CMLL history make this more interesting, but to the uninitiated it may come off as filler.

Winner: Matt Taven

A promo from Hangman Page and the Young Bucks for their match with Bully Ray and the Briscoes aired next, as they spoke about being irritated that the match wouldn’t be for the titles, but that they would be victorious nonetheless.

Main Event:War Machine vs. The Motor City Machine Guns
A recap of the Rebellion’s last stand from BITW aired and Cabana said the Rebellion had to endure “disbandonment”, prompting Ian to ask if that was even a word. One of the better MCMG matches in quite a while here, there was a real sense of urgency from both teams. Towards the end of the match, the action really picked up. MCMG “crossed streams” with Sabin and Shelley attacking War Machine from the apron to the outside. Back inside, Rowe blocked Skull and Crossbones with an impressive double belly to belly suplex. War Machine connected with the pop up powerslam on Sabin, but Hanson missed a dive to the outside, allowing Shelley to break  up the pin. Sabin and Shelley were able to hit Rowe with Made in Detroit and picked up the win via pinfall. A surprising victory for MCMG over War Machine, who would go on to win the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team titles days later. The victory easily makes MCMG top contenders for the titles moving forward, something commentary and the in ring product really put over here.

Winners: The Motor City Machine Guns

Final Reaction: B
The last two weeks of ROH television have been focused a bit more on youth. This week’s episode may not have been completely youth centered, but the first match allowed C2c, Gordon and the Boys to showcase their talents. Taven is going to be an important heel for the company and winning here in the fashion he did makes sense. The most important occurrence may have been the MCMG win. Although their work is always solid, since their tag match at All Star Extravaganza, the team has not been portrayed as being a threat to the titles. The win over a formidable team like War Machine goes a long way to legitimizing their claim to a title shot. Commentary continues to be a strength and the post production promos add a great deal as well.

Thanks for stopping by again this week and look for more Ring of Honor coverage the same time next week. Until then, please go over to Running Wild Podcast and take a listen to a show that covers oodles of wrestling news and ridiculous conversations. You can find us on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud and Google Play store.

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