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ROH Final Battle 2016; What worked and what didn't

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By Andrew Snyder
I am writing this shortly after the finish of Ring of Honor's biggest show of the year, Final Battle. Ring of Honor has had a rough few years in the eyes of the hardcore wrestling fan. Outside of their New Japan co-promoted shows they have had a tough time getting together good wrestling cards that create buzz. Months ago, I talked about the my positive thoughts on the ending of Global Wars 2016, which provided an angle that could provide a talking point. Ultimately, that show did not generate a ton of buzz, but ROH kept on trucking. Ring of Honor has gotten a lot of crap about lack of talent and new stars. I believe that 2016 will prove to be a very important year to the history of Ring of Honor. ROH took a step to fixing their top end talent pool by signing two of the biggest stars from the UK in Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay. They also are working with Cody Rhodes and used him very well on tonight's show.

Final Battle is always booked as Ring of Honor's big finale to the year. They did not get much buzz going into this show, but I believe that they produced a great program tonight and will actually generate positive momentum with what they brought to the table. Because I have a lot more positive to say than negative, I will start with what didn't work on this show...

Things that didn't work:

  • The Kingdom- The match was not great and most of that was due to the boring feeling that The Kingdom brings to the table.  TK O'Ryan and Vinny Marseglia didn't do a lot for me and Matt Taven is alright. Their heel act also feels stale and they are a newer act as the "New" Kingdom, so that isn't good.  Hopefully these young guys will improve throughout the next year and have better tag matches now that they are the first ever ROH 6-Man Tag Team Champions.
  • Audio problems on the show- There were two moments on this show where the beginnings of speeches weren't heard by the TV audience.  This is a production error that cannot become the norm.

Things that worked:
  • Hammerstein Ballroom- This show was elevated by this crowd. They were hot throughout the evening, and their energy came across well on camera and gave a boost to the performers. I am beyond happy that they ran this show in this historic wrestling venue.
  • TV Title Match- This match was fun as hell and was exactly what it needed to be. Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay are stars and they were huge signings for ROH. Dragon Lee is also a hell of a talent and these guys provided the perfect spot-fest for this card. I loved every second of this match and can't wait for more Scurll as TV Champion. Unfortunately, Bobby Fish had to pull out of this match due to his mother passing away.  My condolences to Bobby and his family.
  • ROH Tag Team Title Match (Bucks vs Briscoes)- Holy cow, this was a fun match as well. They had the unenviable task of following the triple threat match, but they delivered a hell of a match. The Young Bucks are a heck of a team and deserve a run with these belts. The reveal of Matt Hardy challenging the Young Bucks after the show caused a big reaction from the live crowd and is another big get for ROH.
  • Cody Rhodes vs. Jay Lethal: This match was pretty good. By no means was it match of the night, but it was fun to watch and the ending angle made it memorable and looking for more. Cody turning heel was unexpected and they seem to be setting up a team of Lethal, The Addiction, and Corino. My guess is that Cody will end up with Kevin Sullivan. Overall, this was a memorable debut for Cody, and provides something to look forward to.
  • Dalton Castle: In general, I just dig this guy. He is a very solid mid-card wrestler and act. I mean that in the best of ways too. He has great energy and provides something different to the card he is on.
  • Kyle O'Reilly winning the ROH Title: Finally! This was long overdue, but beating Cole at the biggest show of the year is a pretty sweet outcome for KOR.  This match was really compelling and completely different from everything else on the card.  This was announced as a Fight Without Honor (aka No Disqualification).  This was very fitting to their feud and also teased in a sense that they could have a screwy finish, which they thankfully didn't do.  This was a violent match top to bottom. There were title belt shots, chair shots, table spots, and even thumb tacks!!! Kudos to both men for going through hell to entertain the world.
This show delivered big time and I hope this leads to a big 2017 for Ring of Honor. I look forward to seeing more from this promotion.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I hope you enjoyed the read.

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