Rate Final Battle 2015

[Rogue]

Recap:​

Number One Contender's Match:
ANX defeated The Young Bucks, and The Briscoes via pinfall.

Silas Young (w/ The Boys) defeated Dalton Castle via pinfall. The Boys attacked Silas after the match ends.

Michael Elgin defeated Moose (w/ Stokely Hathaway) via pinfall.

Adam Cole defeated Kyle O'Reilly via pinfall. Cole had his feet on the ropes.

Alex Shelley, ACH & Matt Sydal defeated The Addiction & Chris Sabin via pinfall.

ROH World Television Championship:
Roderick Strong retained against Bobby Fish via pinfall. Strong tapped out, but the referee didn't see it.

ROH World Tag Team Championship:
War Machine defeated The Kingdom via pinfall to win the Tag Team titles.

ROH World Championship:
Jay Lethal (w/ Truth Martini & Taeler Hendrix) retained against AJ Styles via pinfall.

In-depth Results: WrestlingInc

 

[Leo C]

Russo lives. Fun show still though.

 

[Roadster]

Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly should've had a clean ending. Goddamn. Just give Cole the win and have a ruse attack at the end. Can't end a good match with a good ending, nowadays.

 

[Stopspot]

Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly should've had a clean ending. Goddamn. Just give Cole the win and have a ruse attack at the end. Can't end a good match with a good ending, nowadays.

How was that a bad ending? Cole looked like a sneaky and smart heel and Kyle looked strong coming out of the match. Which was by far more important.

 

[Leo C]

I gotta say, even though there were more screwy finishes than I'd like at Final Battle, they were pretty creative, executed well and the crowd reacted accordingly (especially on Cole/Kyle).

 

[Pop Tatari]

Main event=**** really enjoyed this motn. Thought the worked a clever match. Was on the edge of my seat.

Cole/Kyle=*** 3/4 kind of short for my liking and was hyped for this. 2nd best for me. Some nice counters and various other exchanges. No problem with the ending, this feud might continue so maybe that was one of the reasons for the length. Kyle looked strong and Cole looked a boss heel.

Tv title=*** this was a huge letdown. Thought it could steal the show but it was rather short and average.

6 man tag=*** might be higher on a rewatch but I was not really into it that much. ACH was sloppy as fuck in this. Was some good tag moves and individual performances.

Three way tag:*** it was fun but the usual stuff from all three teams, solid if unremarkable

Silas vs castle=** 1/2 was a fun little match. They work well together, nice deadlift German from castle.

Moose vs Elgin= was not paying attention, doing other things.


Missed the tag titles match do not care for those concerned anyway

 

[Prince Bálor]

Prince Bálor's ROH Journey
Destination: Final Battle - Philadelphia, PA
Date: 12/18/15

​

- The ANX vs Dem Boys vs The Young Bucks was a fun show opener. ***
It was a fun spotfest with the usual trademark stuff from all teams, and the Philly crowd ate it up, for sure. The ANX winning is mildly surprising, although I think they'll serve as the cannon fodder for the brand new ROH Tag Team champions.

- Silas Young vs Dalton Castle was rock solid. **¾
These two have developed a good chemistry and this ended up being a really solid match, but just lacked something to take it to the next level. #FreeTheBoys was pretty much driving the Philly crowd, and it paid off in the end. Despite Silas hitting Misery and winning, The Last Real Man won a battle, but not the war, as The Boys reunited with Castle post-match. All is right with the world.

- Michael Elgin vs Moose was good. ***
This was a good back-and-forth battle 'tween two big hosses, playing to their strengths for the most part. Elgin won with a Burning Hammer, as he called out Jay Lethal. Moose looked strong despite losing and this put over Elgin before his ROH World title match at Wrestle Kingdom 10.

- Adam Cole vs Kyle O'Reilly was very good. ***¾
While I liked this match and all, I never really got the vibe that they were trying to end each other's careers. Despite this match lacking a certain level of excitement and "I'MMA KILL YOU DEAD, MOTHERFUCKER" vibe, it was still very good. Plus, I liked the finish a lot, 'cause it keeps the feud alive and gives an upper hand to our beloved heel in ADAM COLE BAYBAY!

- Matt Sydal, ACH & Alex Shelley vs The Addiction & Chris Sabin was decent, but nothing to write home about. **
The babyfaces won. Yay.

- Roderick Strong vs Bobby Fish was good for what it was, but also disappointing. ***
It was a good match up until the finish. I mean... Screwy finishes FTW! Sooo, Roddy's turning heel, eh? It's fine by me. But the way it was done, it was just way too WWE-esque. It reminded me of the Taker/Lesnar finish from SummerSlam, but at least it was done a tad bit better, as Roddy's tap out seemed 'strategic', so I don't know. This set up something, so let's wait and see.

- War Machine vs The Kingdom was too short for me to give it any sort of snowflake, so NR for this one.
I'm happy War Machine are the new ROH Tag Team champs, though!

- Jay Lethal vs AJ Styles was a great ME and MOTN! ****
Huge props to AJ Styles for working like there's nothing wrong with him, despite dealing with a back injury. The dude's insane!
I have to admit, though... Heading into this match, I expected shenanigans, but seeing Lethal go over clean was a pleasant surprise.
Great match with a great story. Lethal is the fucking man!

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Final Battle was a very good and fun show, highlighted by Cole/O'Reilly and Lethal/Styles. 8/10
The rest of the card was decent to good and even though I would've preferred some finality to certain matches, nothing's really left a sour taste in my mouth. ROH capped off 2015 in a good way! Also, Taeler Hendrix is a Goddess.

 

[Snowman1]

took a minute to find the show after a vacation, but hot damn I finally did. There haven't been too many but this was definitely the best ROH show I've watched!

Something that stood out was the "hater" line of "it's just good wrestling but nothing more" is totally not true. Before each match I saw and heard about many, MANY different angles going on in the company, some not even making the card! It was great! It didn't tell you "everything" so it was nice and inspiring to check out ROH TV. Also, Nigel is a BEAST on commentary, Kevin Kelly is great, and Corino doesn't detract from the show as long as the Young Bucks aren't in the ring. The crowd was a bit weak especially for Philly, but it fit the atmosphere, oddly enough. It's not like they didn't care.

But I guess that was my big takeaway: Somehow in 2016, ROH has become one of the top storytelling brands in pro wrestling. Amazing.

The opener was the blast you'd expect from these three teams. The Briscoes vs ANX vs the Young Bucks was a chaotic mess with dudes flying everywhere and at least 20 superkicks and big spots for everyone and AHHH YAY! ANX winning was a big surprise, and it was the perfect opener...

Man oh man, did TNA and ROH trade places and leave the dumb shit behind? Silas Young was one of my faves in ROH from the little I've seen, but a long haired feminine dude from Planet Peacock? That's... not exactly what I expected to see tonight haha. Awesome. So Dalton lost a match with control of the Boys on the line, they honored the stipulation (until now), the master plan and the swerve was fun. The match never got dull because Silas, but it was more about the postmatch stuff and made me want to see more from both guys. Great!

Mooooooooooooose vs Michael Elgin was what it was, nothing really to say here

Adam Cole vs Kyle O'Reilly was GREAT!!! Two dudes just beating the piss out of each other and stiffing and knocking each other silly. Ohhs and ahhs everywhere. This is how storytelling is actually done, in the match it truly felt like these two wanted to punish each other for what they did. Damn. And Adam Cole is a STAR. Hell, even the finish was great, and I'm so on board for a rematch of Kyle wanting to rip Cole's face off. Lets do it, this was awesome!

Around this time I stopped watching this and in the meantime finally finished up WK9, and but when I came back, I saw a master class on how to make the TNA fanboy happy: these six guys (ACH is usually awesome) in a big tag... and there was no louder groan than two minutes into the match having the heels double-team Sydal in the corner. Do NOT turn this into a WWE style tag match... well the triple-team offense is nice... then there were 3 hot tags and the match was officially salvaged! Still, it's depressing to type that this should have been so much more and felt like they were building up to a bigger match, and it's a shame that the MCMG fighting each other isn't a bigger deal and won't be better after all of Sabin's injuries.

The one "ROH match" for Snow was Roderick Strong vs Bobby Fish, one of those prog metal matches where a bunch of crazy shit happens and fast and furious offense but... Until the submission war of attrition and big moves in the end, I couldn't get into this match at all. After watching Okada and Tanahashi get the most they could out of everything, these two got so little out of so much. And wtf was with that finish?

The tag title match was still fun for what it was. War Machine are great, and it was previously impossible to have panties smaller than a belt. Get well soon Taven.

So one common gripe for me is how these "big match feel" matches have grown stale, saw several of these big main-event matches (Angle vs Lashley spring to mind) that people rave about that I was just kinda bored sitting through, and... Going into Styles vs Lethal I was prepared for a letdown and did not get one. AT ALL. This was great. Styles was definitely hurting out there but delivered an A+ performance, but that table bump was crazy before a Lethal Injection makes Lethal not just go over, but look like THE MAN in the process. Haven't seen this? Go find this. MOTN on a show that had Cole vs O'Reilly. Well done guys.

So yeah, good stuff. 8/10 all things considered!

 

[Pop Tatari]

took a minute to find the show after a vacation, but hot damn I finally did. There haven't been too many but this was definitely the best ROH show I've watched!

Something that stood out was the "hater" line of "it's just good wrestling but nothing more" is totally not true. Before each match I saw and heard about many, MANY different angles going on in the company, some not even making the card! It was great! It didn't tell you "everything" so it was nice and inspiring to check out ROH TV. Also, Nigel is a BEAST on commentary, Kevin Kelly is great, and Corino doesn't detract from the show as long as the Young Bucks aren't in the ring. The crowd was a bit weak especially for Philly, but it fit the atmosphere, oddly enough. It's not like they didn't care.

But I guess that was my big takeaway: Somehow in 2016, ROH has become one of the top storytelling brands in pro wrestling. Amazing.

The opener was the blast you'd expect from these three teams. The Briscoes vs ANX vs the Young Bucks was a chaotic mess with dudes flying everywhere and at least 20 superkicks and big spots for everyone and AHHH YAY! ANX winning was a big surprise, and it was the perfect opener...

Man oh man, did TNA and ROH trade places and leave the dumb shit behind? Silas Young was one of my faves in ROH from the little I've seen, but a long haired feminine dude from Planet Peacock? That's... not exactly what I expected to see tonight haha. Awesome. So Dalton lost a match with control of the Boys on the line, they honored the stipulation (until now), the master plan and the swerve was fun. The match never got dull because Silas, but it was more about the postmatch stuff and made me want to see more from both guys. Great!

Mooooooooooooose vs Michael Elgin was what it was, nothing really to say here

Adam Cole vs Kyle O'Reilly was GREAT!!! Two dudes just beating the piss out of each other and stiffing and knocking each other silly. Ohhs and ahhs everywhere. This is how storytelling is actually done, in the match it truly felt like these two wanted to punish each other for what they did. Damn. And Adam Cole is a STAR. Hell, even the finish was great, and I'm so on board for a rematch of Kyle wanting to rip Cole's face off. Lets do it, this was awesome!

Around this time I stopped watching this and in the meantime finally finished up WK9, and but when I came back, I saw a master class on how to make the TNA fanboy happy: these six guys (ACH is usually awesome) in a big tag... and there was no louder groan than two minutes into the match having the heels double-team Sydal in the corner. Do NOT turn this into a WWE style tag match... well the triple-team offense is nice... then there were 3 hot tags and the match was officially salvaged! Still, it's depressing to type that this should have been so much more and felt like they were building up to a bigger match, and it's a shame that the MCMG fighting each other isn't a bigger deal and won't be better after all of Sabin's injuries.

The one "ROH match" for Snow was Roderick Strong vs Bobby Fish, one of those prog metal matches where a bunch of crazy shit happens and fast and furious offense but... Until the submission war of attrition and big moves in the end, I couldn't get into this match at all. After watching Okada and Tanahashi get the most they could out of everything, these two got so little out of so much. And wtf was with that finish?

The tag title match was still fun for what it was. War Machine are great, and it was previously impossible to have panties smaller than a belt. Get well soon Taven.

So one common gripe for me is how these "big match feel" matches have grown stale, saw several of these big main-event matches (Angle vs Lashley spring to mind) that people rave about that I was just kinda bored sitting through, and... Going into Styles vs Lethal I was prepared for a letdown and did not get one. AT ALL. This was great. Styles was definitely hurting out there but delivered an A+ performance, but that table bump was crazy before a Lethal Injection makes Lethal not just go over, but look like THE MAN in the process. Haven't seen this? Go find this. MOTN on a show that had Cole vs O'Reilly. Well done guys.

So yeah, good stuff. 8/10 all things considered!

What roh events you previously seen?

 

[Snowman1]

What roh events you previously seen?

It sounds crazy but I don't remember. Know there were Best in the World 2013/2014 as well as Final Battle 2013 in there, and at least 2 more for sure.
Largely respected the effort but just couldn't get into them as much as this one, but maybe watching the weekly shows instead of scattered PPVs will help

 

[Prince Bálor]

The one "ROH match" for Snow was Roderick Strong vs Bobby Fish, one of those prog metal matches where a bunch of crazy shit happens and fast and furious offense but... Until the submission war of attrition and big moves in the end, I couldn't get into this match at all. After watching Okada and Tanahashi get the most they could out of everything, these two got so little out of so much. And wtf was with that finish?

Love your review.

Now, as I've already said in my own review, while the finish looked like a version of Bork/Taker at SS, Roddy's tap out seemed 'strategic'.
It definitely set up a heel turn down the road.

 

[Snowman1]

Thanks, man, but really feel like I forced stuff.

On replay it did, they really highlighted how Roddy looked over at the ref and tapped a little to get Fish to break the hold and took advantage. Clever stuff.
Live it looked like he won because the ref was stupid, but commentary explained that well.

 

[Pop Tatari]

Finish was fine but surely your the winner when the bell sounds and ref raises your arm, Fish overdone it with the celebration made him look like a newbie, match should of continued for a couple more minutes then just end straight away to a already below par match from both men. Match was just about getting into some sort of a flow and they ruined it. some of the other match length times were questionable. No need to cram the card.