ROH 08/10/19 TV Review: LifeBlood & PJ Black vs Villain Enterprises
07/20/19
Hammerstein Ballroom
New York City, New York
First Segment: The show kicked off with footage of Flip Gordon being invited to join Life Blood at Best in the World and his subsequent heel turn, as it was revealed that he joined Villian Enterprises.
Second Segment: Dragon Lee vs. Jonathan Gresham
As was the case last week, we got highlights of the match taped during Manhattan Mayhem between the two. The story being told in the ring was that Gresham’s frustration has bubbled over-evidenced by his underhanded tactics, like a low blow to Dragon Lee when the referee, Steven Dunmeg was looking the other way. Despite Gresham trying to cut corners, he ultimately lost after a running knee strike to the temple from Lee led to a three count. Post-match Dragon Lee was interviewed by Quinn McKay and he said that this is just the beginning for him in ROH, as he plans on much more ahead and promised a surprise in the not-so-distant future. Gresham was up next and after being questioned about why his attitude has changed he explained that he wants to be a champion like Jay Lethal has been. He blamed the loss on Lethal’s voice inside of his head, disapproving of his new attitude and sarcastically thanked Lethal for the advice. This was a strong segment here, laying the groundwork for a slow Jonathan Gresham heel turn and an eventual program with Jay Lethal. Based on their previous encounters while Lethal was champion, this character-driven arc looks to be impressive and engaging.
A brief video of Shinobi Shadow Squad (Cheeseburger, Ryan Nova and Eli Isom) training played next, focusing on a picture of Villian Enterprises that had ninja stars through the faces of the current six-man champions. It was revealed that 3S will be getting a long-awaited title shot next week on ROH television.
Some footage of Karissa Rivera’s upset victory over Sumie Sakai aired next before Rivera cut a short promo about her upcoming match with WOH Champion Kelly Klein. Rivera stated that her goal is to be the best women’s wrestler in the world and that a first step will be taking to Klein next week.
Third Segment: Rhett Titus/Kenny King
A video package aired, recapping Rhett Titus’s career in ROH, showing some of the highs and lows of his career, voiced over by Titus himself. The culmination of the video was Kenny King’s tirade after Titus’s loss to Shane Taylor in a proving ground match. Despite King dressing him down in front of his wife who was in the audience, Titus did not retaliate and instead walked away. Titus concluded by saying that the biggest mistake he has made in ROH was not slapping King in the face that night in Philadelphia. This was a really well-put-together package, humanizing Titus and setting the table for a resolution of the issues between the two former tag team partners and friends.
Fourth Segment: Soldiers of Savagery (Khan & Moses) vs. Geddy Cahoon & Hyena Hexx
This was a squash match, as both Moses and Khan made short work of the Monster Factory duo. Cahoon was sent into the ring post and deposited on the outside, allowing Moses and Khan to hit a double chokeslam on Hexx to pick up the pinfall victory. Afterward, the footage was shown of SOS attacked the Beer City Bruiser at Manhattan Mayhem before we got highlights of the Bouncers title opportunity against the Briscoes at Mass Hysteria.
Fifth Segment: LifeBlood & PJ Black vs Villain Enterprises
This match was shown in its entirety and was a particularly strong offering with storyline implications. Tracy Williams has become the de facto leader of the group and this match was a very heated encounter between the two teams. Williams continually tried to get his opportunity for revenge on Flip Gordon for the betrayal. In the end, Haskins survived a sitdown powerbomb from King, kicking him from the apron afterward, setting King up for Bandido’s 21plex. Black followed with a springboard 450 to pick up the pinfall victory for his side.
Final Reaction: B
Another week of ROH’s new style of weekly programming and it once again showed the strength of this storytelling technique. The video packages, especially Rhett Titus’s, were excellent and provide backstory as a jumping-off point, sending fans to Honor Club to catch full matches, aside from the main event.