3/21 ROH on HDNet debut show Reax

Tiff, Torch main site reader: Speaking as someone who had never seen an ROH show and didn't know who any of the wrestlers were (except Jerry Lynn), I quite enjoyed the show and the change of pace from promo-heavy WWE and gimmicky-heavy TNA. I really liked Jimmy Jacobs. He stood out to me. I liked the focus of wrestling. That being said, I came very close to changing the channel when the first promo I saw was Delirious. I don't know what his deal is, but I'm a big wrestling fan, I can only imagine how many so-so fans turned the channel after that and missed some solid wrestling. Also, in the beginning they said that before every match the wrestlers have to shake hands...is there a penalty for not doing so? Or is it actually optional? Because Jacobs and Black didn't shake hands and the announcers acted like they had a choice...if it's an option why did everyone else do it? I'm glad I watched the show before I read the review, otherwise I would have focused too much on irrelevant things like whether I could hear the fans or the guy announcing. I will tune in next week and look forward to seeing the top stars.

nomark, Torch main site reader: ROH has no control over the production end of the show. HDNet's paying for it, and they call the shots. They're the ones who decided to replace Lenny Leonard with Mike Hogewood too. Leonard didn't even get an audition. As for the crowd being mic'ed, I was there for the taping of the first six shows in the old ECW arena and it wasn't a bad crowd, but there wasn't typical ROH crowd behavior, especially for the first three shows. The wrestlers's music was new to them, so they had no idea who was coming in and didn't react to entrances. A good one-third of the guys wrestling were people only a few of them knew (e.g. Sami Callahan), not regulars. And they were puzzled by having to wait for the second and third show tapings to see the ROH champion McGuinness and Bryan Danielson debut on the show. (Still doesn't make any sense to me why the upper tier wrestlers and title holders of ROH weren't on the debut show.) And, most of all, the crowd was unaccustomed to watching formulaic, paced matches. It didn't feel like an ROH show. As the hours went on and they got more used to it, they livened up a bit, but it was never a typical ROH crowd.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for an "ROH TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on ROH, click here.

We suggest these recent related articles...

WWE PPV REAX #1: "I wanted the biggest event of the summer to end with an exclamation point; it ended with a semicolon and a question"

WWE PPV REAX #1: Battleground finish generates mixed reactions...

WWE PPV REAX #2: In-Person Battleground Report on overall show, reactions, more