By Ryan Ragsdale, Torch specialist

-- 5/9 ROH ON HDNET TV HITS & MISSES

HITS

Nigel McGuinness Promo. Ric Flair is now the official ambassador to Ring of Honor. He was the man for his whole career. But who has been the man for so long in ROH? Nigel McGuinness, that's who. I will be completely open about my bias towards the former world champion. There are few workers who equal McGuinness in the professional wrestling world for his ability, dedication to the sport, and charisma on the microphone. I was in Houston on April 3 when he lost the title to Jerry Lynn; I was the definition of a fan. Their match was constructed brilliantly and had the entire crowd holding our collective breath with anticipation. It was disappointing to see him lose, especially considering the circumstances. Yet he was graceful in defeat and Jerry Lynn put him over as a man devoted to the art of wrestling.

He delivered a promo to open the show which accomplished several things. He was able to establish his history with newer fans just getting acquainted with the show, demonstrated his arrogance, and showed an unwillingness to give up which is both endearing and refreshing, considering how impotent and cowardly most heels are portrayed to be. McGuinness said he will take his place in wrestling history, alluding to Ric Flair and being "the man." The crowd was chanting "still our champ," and I couldn't agree more. Also, his deadpan delivery of Flair's trademark "woo!" was brilliant.

Consistent Feuds. One of the biggest problems in the modern (e.g. mainstream) product is a complete lack of logic. Storylines are begun only to be dropped unceremoniously and with no explanation. Often feuds and angles are so devoid of logic they boggle the mind. While ROH isn't perfect by any means, they have consistently honored their history and refused to forget past match-ups.

It's taken a few weeks to get the ball rolling, but they are doing a good job of establishing feuds. Tyler Black is the young rising star, looking to make a name for himself by defeating the hardened veteran, Bryan Danielson. Each contest between the two has served to tell this story, and their promos are classic (if a little wooden and cliche) babyface interviews. Castagnoli and Albright have had several matches on television; we'll see another next week. They don't like each other, and we get to hear why. Their ring work complements the angle. This is how you make an audience care about seeing two guys fight each other. Of course, having one guy call the other a "very European douchebag" never hurts.

Bryan Danielson versus Tyler Black. You expect them to bring it, and they keep delivering time after time. Their previous bout on television went to a 20-minute time-limit draw, so going into the show I expected a conclusive finish. ROH instead utilized a double count-out to keep them even. Though I'm not the biggest Tyler Black fan, I would hope at the end of this feud they give him the nod over Danielson and establish him as a top dog in the company. There were some awesome chain-wrestling sequences in this match, Danielson doing what he does best. Black was able to showcase his aerial maneuvers. The go home sequence, with the American Dragon launching Black into the crowd from the turnbuckle, popped the crowd huge. One small complaint: their endless pin sequence was laughable, and nothing but.

Suits. Prazak and Hogewood are wearing suits this week. It may seem unimportant, but little touches like this lend an air of credibility and seriousness to the proceedings. It reminds me of better days, when wrestling was treated as a sport instead of "entertainment."

MISSES

American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) vs. Orange Cassidy & Leslie Butterscotch. Once again we are graced with a squash match. I will come right out and say it: I am a huge American Wolves mark. Their intensity and puroresu-influenced style are exactly what I look for. They've been hyped up in previous weeks, with Edwards making occasional appearances. The commentators put over that they are serious contenders for the tag titles. So then, in their first appearance on the show, they wrestle two guys who look like local indie rejects. Why does this victory mean anything? I realize they don't want to hurt one of their established teams by having the Wolves run over them. But they could've faced a team the caliber of King Titus, picked up the victory, and moved on. They would look better for defeating a team who we've seen impress on TV before, and losing to a team with as much momentum as the Wolves won't put a dent in King Titus. By the way, who in the hell is naming these jobbers? Leslie Butterscotch has got to be a joke, or a dare.

Prince Nana's Appearance. I like Nana. He's charismatic, different, and pretty damn funny to boot. But they introduced him quite strangely to their television show. A segment opened with Colt Cabana already talking on the mic. What was he talking about? Why was he in the ring? Well, you never find out because Nana come out to interrupt him before we can even make out what he's saying. This made no sense. Colt Cabana seemed like an afterthought in that segment. Nana was funny, as usual, but I didn't understand what purpose he had that night.

Ryan Ragsdale is the new Hits & Misses Specialist for ROH TV. You can email him at ryanragsdale@gmail.com.

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