ROH Champ Brian Danielson ran through everyone for one full year. KENTA came from NOAH and beat everyone, even Dragon, with the GO-TO-SLEEP. This week’s Project Danielson review is my 2006 match of the year. Enjoy your main event.

Before we begin, here is my personal scale. Other members of this site may have different ways of looking at match ratings. This is onl;y the opinion of John Philapavage, and not the entire staff of Wrestling Chronicle.com:

To me ***3/4 is a great match but missing something to get it to the next level.

*** = Good
***1/2 = Very Good
***3/4 = Great
**** = Excellent
****1/2 = Amazing
****3/4 = Near Perfect
***** = Perfect

Styles make fights, much like in boxing or MMA. And workrate or match length does not necessarily dictate a better match. Just because a match goes 60 minutes, that does not make it at least 4 stars.

Also, just because ALOT of holds are demonstrated does not mean it was the best match. That indicates it has the potential to be a great technical match, but the holds could mean nothing five minutes later to the story, and therefore make the sequence irrelevant.

Moving along, sub-genres should have there own scale. A match that really is the setting for a large angle (like a double turn, regular turn, forwarding or starting a major story) does get boasted in my rating beyond workrate. Comedy matches are not penalized for being about humor, and lucha isn’t penalized for being dance-like. If it’s over with the audience, that must be taken into account. Sometimes NOAH matches run for 20 minutes before overkill of finishers, and sometimes it looks like that, but makes alot more sense.

We strive to be worldly here on the site, so we watch ALOT of different styles from ALOT of different eras. This year’s Dragon Gate 6-man might be looked upon as 1997s Michunoku Pro Six Man in ECW. That is to say, great at the time, but just solid or a good little match now. But that’s okay, as readjustment reviews years later are fun too, and everything must be taken in context. Sgt. Slaughter vs Pat Patterson from 1983 would probably seem pedestrian now. Then again, so would Lou Thesz or some of the great World Class six man matches. But they ARE great for there time, and I’ll take into account the surroundings of the Pro Wrestling landscape.

Overall, I like to stress perspective in my reviews, make clear my tastes and how they do or don’t matter in the long run, and give details as to why I think and score the way I do. Lets move on to the matches…

9.16.06 Danielson vs. KENTA: Big match feel. Electric crowd. No Danielson comment via R.A. Bobby Cruise tonight, coupled with Danielson’s focused all business stare down at the intros (KENTA likewise), adds to the serious title match feel. No comedy tonight, fellas.
Danielson comes in with his RIGHT shoulder taped up, and the commentary of Prazak and David puts over the drama that Danielson only has one arm coming in and barely escaped Cabana in his last match.
A feeling out process to start. KENTA misses a big kick on the first lock up, slaps Danielson off the second collar and elbow tie up, and gets slapped back by Dragon off the third. Fourth go-round is a knuckle lock up that ends in the ropes with a great looking armbar and knee to the head on KENTA by Danielson. I wrote out all this out to highlight that in the first two minutes they do very little physically, but it’s intense, and ends up meaning so much more. They aren’t playing to the crowd because at first they don’t have to.
Next we actually start the story of the match, in physical terms. KENTA kicks to the shoulder and Danielson bails out. Danielson purposely only uses the left hand and comes forward protecting the right side of his body. Danielson gains control, and because he doesn’t play to the crowd (He’s focused) and is applying everything “plus 10%”, it looks like a worked shoot – in a good WRESTLING sense.
Danielson tries some submissions 5 min. in, but KENTA is right back on that Right shoulder/arm of Danielson. They go to the outside and KENTA again KILLS Danielson’s shoulder with kicks and throws into the barricade. I think I like these two match-up so much because how and when to pace things. They go first gear to third gear to first gear to fifth and it works well because of their timing.
Back in the ring for several minutes of KENTA working on the right shoulder/arm, really wrenching it for visual effect. Crowd again signals what can best be called “time code changes” and the two artists oblige, but on the ground. KENTA is being a big prick (as usual), and a keylock has half the crowd buzzing over a tap. You can see a few fans even standing for it, and yet we’ve just hit the nine minute mark.
Commentary puts over that Danielson tapped out to a McGuinness keylock a few weeks back, and I should also mention it’s been acknowledged that KENTA has beaten everyone in ROH with the Go To Sleep, including Danielson TWICE. So Danielson’s a bizzaro-face for the moment in this match structure, which only works in ROH and NOAH. (I do realize that you could say “the heel has no way to win/ babyface will finally overcome” but that’s not really how KENTA is played here, and as you’ll see, I’m not complaining.
Danielson gets a “hope spot”, only using his left hand, and gets smacked down for it. Crowd reacts huge. Still too early to bite on a KENTA nearfall. More KENTA right side strikes and subs. Danielson finally gets the advantage at the 11 minute mark. KENTA really struggles before Dragon can get his arms for a surfboard, which I felt was a strength in the Lance Storm match. Danielson finally acknowledges the crowd at 13 minutes, reclaiming the heat for the botched surfboard with a knee slam, yelling “I fucked up? I don’t EVER fuck up!” Young heels take note as he goes hard at KENTA’s knees right away and never loses the crowd. He also reclaims heel status with a figure four and grabbing the ropes for leverage. Then he refuses to break the hold. Crowd is eating out of his hand. We even get a “Dragon” chant.
KENTA comeback at the 16 min. mark by stiffing Danielson’s injured right shoulder a few times. Even in Danielson matches ROH works to give the A.D.D. generation mini hope spots and strong moves, because while KENTA and Danielson each have separate offensive stretches, the “seller” always gets in a shot or two. This is always true of the Danielson matches this year, even the more deliberately paced ones. Also, I’ve noticed the fans are actually conditioned to buy submissions more then pins . Perhaps it’s the length of time a submission gets, but a KENTA two count doesn’t get a bite, while a cross arm breaker applied moments later to that shoulder does.
18 minutes in. Cool save as Danielson’s flip off the corner over KENTA is miss-timed, but the drop-down-roll-over into the half crab gets over, and a pull to the center with a knee over KENTA’s head sends the crowd into a frenzy. It looked good and had purpose. Dragon shakes loose from a Go To Sleep tease, then hits a suplex. Again, the little things: he sells that executing the move hurt his shoulder and he’s slow to pin KENTA because of it. Chicken-wing, but no one’s buying until he adds the body scissors. KENTA escapes at 20 minutes, and from a story and layout to execution, this match has been pretty flawless. The decision to work at a faster pace until Danielson gains control, and the fact they aren’t going 60 minutes, help a lot (and I’m a fan of the Danielson pacing and his longer “niche” matches).
Danielson, who is still selling his shoulder while on offense (including not lifting his right arm before a diving headbutt), gets a lifted boot to the face. That was one of the few spots I felt looked lame in the first 21 minutes, but it wasn’t a “screw up”. A springboard dropkick by KENTA is met with a hard dropkick from Danielson, and it looked great. Good sequence, but the double K.O. count gets little heat. To show my differing tastes/opinions, they do the NOAH delayed selling/last man standing sequence with kicks, chops, suplexes, forearms, and headbutts. They both eventually go down, and I’m like “o-kay…”, but the crowd eats it up.
They go to the outside, reversals, and an AWESOME belly-to-belly by Danielson sends KENTA to the concrete. The crowd is really into the last few minutes. Danielson does his springboard plancha (No summersault today) into the crowd and hits it, to a deafening “ROH” chant. He grabs the right shoulder as he climbs back over the barricade, a fact not lost on commentary. Soon after, a KENTA fujiwara armbar out of nowhere at 25 minutes signals the move into the final stretch (or act, as I say because it’s a play with violence).
Continued right arm/shoulder submissions on Danielson are heated. I’ll try to give the rundown, but at this point just beg, borrow, and steal to get this match. I know I’m a huge Danielson mark, but see for yourself.
Danielson catches KENTA’s arm and hits a RegalPlex for two and three-fourths. Danielson hits a belly-to-back from the top, and then tries cattle mutilation at 29 minutes. At first they chant for the tap, but at the break they cheer for it not being over. Front chancery suplex, and Danielson goes up top. Sequence of the year nominee. KENTA springs up for the falcon arrow, gets sent down to the ring, and Danielson dives after him. KENTA catches him and hits GO TO SLEEP (fireman’s carry into a knee kick) for an unbelievable false finish! Danielson barely gets his foot on the rope to stop the count. KENTA looks exhausted and shocked. We’re 30 minutes in.
Danielson is noted as the first to survive the finisher all year in ROH as they both sell the damage. Brilliant protection of a finisher. A vicious kick to the shoulder and KENTA goes for the Busedu (sp?) knee, but gets rolled up with a bridge for another awesome nearfall. GO TO SLEEP tease, into a Danielson crucifix pin. No dice, so we get hard UFC elbows from Danielson. This is how he beat McGuinness and Strong last month. KENTA looks knocked out, but POWERS UP! Danielson immediately grabs the arms, tries Cattle Mutilation, and gets rolled thru just as quickly. The KENTA nearfall off the roll-thru worked even better in that spot then in the Lance Storm match. Just like that match Danielson keeps the arms hooked and hits a suplex. Kick out, but the arms are still hooked! Back to Cattle Mutilation. Doesn’t work. More elbows and another attempt at Cattle Mutilation. KENTA taps out and Danielson wins. Perfect ending, because him getting out of Cattle Mutilation again would have been complete overkill of the drama, or bordering on it.
This is the mainstream fan’s Danielson match, with a quicker and more accepted style then Danielson-McGuinness “not for everyone” matches. It reminds me of his Marufuji match in Dec. ’05, but with ten times the back story, subtext, and crowd to suck you in.
Though Danielson’s legwork mattered little in factoring into the finish (I loved it, but it doesn’t factor in nearly as much as it should in many matches), KENTA’s right arm/shoulder work on Danielson was the story and forced Danielson to overcome.
Excellent selling, great moves, good pacing, and beautiful storytelling with their bodies. This match is everything that wrestling is supposed to be, it’s humorous that one of the participants can barely speak English. Neither of them had to say a word, and the story was told. Like the first two McGuinness matches in terms of my enjoyment, but on steroids (not the wrestlers, the match). I’m leery of going five stars anytime, even for my favorite matches, but I refuse to go lower then 4 ½ stars. So if you like snowflakes, I’m giving this one 4 ¾ stars. If you’re not into Dragons Gate six-man style matches, this is your Match of the Year, and that’s saying a lot. Joe-Kobashi, Joe-Punk 2, Dragons Gate Six-man, and this match. Somewhere in there, depending on your leanings, is a five star match. Let the debates begin… (****3/4)

Before we begin, here is my personal scale. Other members of this site may have different ways of looking at match ratings. This is onl;y the opinion of John Philapavage, and not the entire staff of Wrestling Chronicle.com:

To me ***3/4 is a great match but missing something to get it to the next level.

*** = Good
***1/2 = Very Good
***3/4 = Great
**** = Excellent
****1/2 = Amazing
****3/4 = Near Perfect
***** = Perfect

Styles make fights, much like in boxing or MMA. And workrate or match length does not necessarily dictate a better match. Just because a match goes 60 minutes, that does not make it at least 4 stars.

Also, just because ALOT of holds are demonstrated does not mean it was the best match. That indicates it has the potential to be a great technical match, but the holds could mean nothing five minutes later to the story, and therefore make the sequence irrelevant.

Moving along, sub-genres should have there own scale. A match that really is the setting for a large angle (like a double turn, regular turn, forwarding or starting a major story) does get boasted in my rating beyond workrate. Comedy matches are not penalized for being about humor, and lucha isn’t penalized for being dance-like. If it’s over with the audience, that must be taken into account. Sometimes NOAH matches run for 20 minutes before overkill of finishers, and sometimes it looks like that, but makes alot more sense.

We strive to be worldly here on the site, so we watch ALOT of different styles from ALOT of different eras. This year’s Dragon Gate 6-man might be looked upon as 1997s Michunoku Pro Six Man in ECW. That is to say, great at the time, but just solid or a good little match now. But that’s okay, as readjustment reviews years later are fun too, and everything must be taken in context. Sgt. Slaughter vs Pat Patterson from 1983 would probably seem pedestrian now. Then again, so would Lou Thesz or some of the great World Class six man matches. But they ARE great for there time, and I’ll take into account the surroundings of the Pro Wrestling landscape.

Overall, I like to stress perspective in my reviews, make clear my tastes and how they do or don’t matter in the long run, and give details as to why I think and score the way I do. Lets move on to the matches…

This week I’m doing one of two that I think never get enough credit during the title run, the other being the 2.11.07 Alex Shelly vs Dragon match. But that’s next week, because this week we get one of the most bland promos in wrestling, and one of the greatest thinks and talkers on Figure Four Daily ever, Lance Storm. Oh yeah, and that American Dragon dude.

4.1.06 Dragon-Lance Storm: This match was the night after Danielson and Strong went 56 minutes, and it’s also the second night in Chicago in front of a huge crowd. Storm seems like time has been kind to him, both in his athletic ability and fan’s appreciation of his talents. I still remember going to see ECW shows in the late 90s and Storm having trouble breaking through. History has been good to him, and he’s the kind of guy that deserves it.
Build up for this match started in 12.3.05 in NYC when Storm met Danielson in the ring and they shook hands. Promos on DVDs from Storm came over the course of months, leading to this match. Very good build up and ROH fans were actually really excited to see Storm again (which is why you know it’s a niche product, and I say that as one of its big supporters).
The crowd is so firmly behind Lance Storm to the point that, for the most part, Danielson gets to be not only the heel in theory and presentation, but in practice. Storm coming out to his old ECW theme didn’t hurt. He gets the red and white streamer treatment from the Chicago faithful.
Danielson line of intro. Via Bobby Cruise: “… And really too good to wrestle in front of all these pricks.”
Danielson, it should be mentioned, is also carrying some heel heat from an in-ring confrontation earlier in the night with beloved ROH legend Samoa Joe (A feud which was carried out, mostly at the same building in Chicago, thru the rest of the year). In the body of the promo Danielson steals Storm’s tagline and remarks that he was trained by HBK while Storm was “dying up in Calgary”.
“Fuck you Dragon” chant. We start with the typical mat/hold variations exchange, this one being on the high end of those. Storm shows he’s scouted Dragon by side-stepping the dropkick at the end. Nice touch. More mat work and Lance really looks crisp. Danielson slaps him on a rope break for heat, and after another exchange Storm slaps him back. Danielson eventually gets the drop kick to take control.
Subtle strength: three pin attempts end up as one counts in the first seven or so minutes. A refreshing logical twist which has become a lost art in the false finish crazed era. During this, Danielson not hooking the leg is brought up by announcer Dave Prazak, which is a good point and enhances my viewing. Danielson sells well for Storm’s offense, which looked good, and he eventually takes the heel “powder to the floor”. Not only am I a fan of that routine, but he makes ref Todd Sinclair look at his teeth, which he claims are dislodged. Funny stuff.
The welts on Danielson’s chest from his match the night before with Rodrick Strong are put over on commentary, as well as Storm having “ten months” to train “specifically” for this match. ROH does a very good job of getting over details and how they influence a match from within their worked universe. It reminds me a lot of something I’d appreciate on a show like LOST, or takes fans back to a weekly TV presentation like 80s Mid South Wrestling. Act one, all seven minutes of it, is exactly what it needed to be.
Next, we get two minutes of crisp Danielson offense, and then a few equally solid minutes of “mid-match offense” from Storm. Nothing spectacular, just solid and well executed, which is what it needed to be. Danielson’s “I have till five, ref” is really over, and Storm’s brief tease of the half crab at 10 minutes in gets a big pop.
At this point, I feel it fair to say that it’s a little unfair to view a match just on workrate alone without considering the context of storylines or the total show. This match was sandwiched after a “state-of-the-art” (if not slightly overrated) Gen. Next – Blood Generation tag match, which was big move/no-sell heavy, and a main event street fight/blood feud culmination between Homicide and Cabana. Therefore, this match was layed out predominantly to avoid those things. For the most part, it’s a technical match, which I feel is to their strengths.
Storm takes it to Danielson for the short time they go to the floor, put over as “not letting Danielson dictate the pace of the match.” Again, I liked that, because earlier Danielson had collected himself on the outside while Storm waited. While Dave Prazak is good on commentary most matches, it’s Lenny Leonard who really adds to the action for me. Nothing crazy on the outside, but nothing bad either.
I like the layout of this match from the opening act to the pick up the pace back-and forth stuff. Storm is taking it to Danielson to the crowds delight before a big forearm smashes Storm off the top rope and down to the outside.
The second act really hits its stride with Danielson’s typical deliberate offensive display. Storm sells well, the crowds into the match, and I am too. The hope spots are more frequent, but well thought out, and add to the idea that Storm is a driven and focused man. The reversals and execution during these brief flurries might go under appreciated, but it’s really great stuff.
A lot of what they do throughout can be seen as (and I’m making up a term) delayed back and forth wrestling, which isn’t inaccurate, but it’s important to point out it’s clear who has the advantage and why during most points. I see it as the evolution of the heel Flair NWA title matches of the 80s, and there’s probably a precedent before then. I’m personally a fan of the style and it works well for Danielson title matches. It also keeps the fans emotionally involved.
During this period Danielson tries several pins and wear-down submissions mostly focused on the back. Right here they start to pick up steam, and I can’t tell if it was preplanned or whether they felt out the audience.
Storm comeback at the nineteen minute mark and I can’t believe I’m actually getting into Storm as a “house of fire” babyface! In the past I’ve found him to be overly choreographed, but he’s hitting his spots with purpose here. Danielson hits a powerbomb into a float over nearfall to cap a GREAT sequence.
Danielson again works on the back, which becomes a focused match storyline here, but Storm does get appropriate comebacks. I like that Storm makes Danielson fight to execute moves like the Regal-plex or chicken wing. When Danielson misses the diving headbutt, Storm hits a cradle piledriver in a nice nod to Jerry Lynn and the ECW days. This also marks the point at which the false finishes and submission attempts start getting heated reactions.
The third and final act is in full swing, as you sense a finish is coming and the pace is picked up. Storm gets the half crab at the 25 minute mark, and Danielson sells it facially to where you might buy a tap out, including getting pulled back to the center of the ring. Danielson twists and counters into a roll up. Prasak points out that’s how Danielson beat Strong the night before (Stronghold into a twisting rollup). Kick out and a Regal-plex for a nearfall. Awesome false finish follows as Storm rolls over on Cattle Mutilation for a nearfall. This final sequence is great as Danielson won’t let go of the arms (going for Cattle Mutilation), Storm continues to struggle, and Danielson executes several moves off trying to get Cattle Mutilation locked in. He finally does and Storm taps out at 26 minutes. I liked they changed it up and didn’t have a bunch of rope breaks in the final 3 minutes.
Even as a Danielson booster, this is a forgotten and less-pimped gem. Not the best match you’ll ever see, but better then a lot of the matches that people will tell you are M.O.T.Y.C. To me, this is on the level of the first two McGuinness matches in 2006. 25-30 minutes seems to be Danielson’s sweet spot for storytelling, because I’ve liked his shorter matches, and I’m a fan of his 60 minute matches, but the three matches mentioned are just right.
This also presents the problem of match ratings. I love to do them and discuss them, but context, story, and taste factor in so much at times it leads to useless arguments. The first two McGuinness matches and this one, to me, are all anywhere from 3 ½ stars to 4 stars. I’d say they were all 3 ¾ stars. The Joe and McGuinness hour draws I had both at 4 stars, but I actually enjoyed the 3 ¾ star matches better in many cases. I’d say I could just swap the ratings, but that’s not necessarily true. The truth is sometimes star ratings just contradict themselves, and you like matches for entirely different reasons. The stars are a fun way to gauge the over worth, and it’s a ballpark figure, but they really serve as an indicator for taste and encourage you to discuss them. I love wrestling!

Final thoughts: Storm said later this was one of his longest matches ever, as the longest was right around a half hour with Candido (I believe), and it also ranks up there as one of his favorites, but he stated this only two months after the match. Time will tell how it’s viewed. I think Storm wrestles smarter then a lot of Danielson’s regular opponents (not a knock on them), and while perhaps still shaking off the WWE-style of work, I also think the guy is an under-rated veteran and the pace added to the match. He was a very good opponent style and pacing-wise for Dragon, and his experience made him a much more knowledgeable participant. They didn’t try anything to crazy, and they didn’t need to. They didn’t go to long, because they told the whole story in 26 minutes. Storm knowing not to do to much was a nice contrast to the “NOAH-West” knock sometimes put on ROH (big move overkill with delayed/accumulative damage selling). This is especially true when you realize the Dragons Gate guys were on this card, and the big six-man match was the night before. Not only that, Danielson’s 4 ½ star match with Strong was also the night before, and this match got lost on many fan’s radars.
I liked that the match story was presented as Storm as the respected veteran babyface who was well researched when it came to the cocky heel champion. Even in taking his beating, especially to the back, he refused to make it easy for Danielson, which is something I’d like to see more of. The finish was well worked out and performed, and the match as a whole came across well on DVD. (3 ¾ stars)