1) ACH vs. Alberto El Patron
I remember being really pumped when this match was announced so I was delighted that they decided to air it as the opening contest of this week's episode. ACH is mainly known as a highflyer, but he has a history of outstanding performances against technicians similar to Alberto, specifically his bouts with Kyle O'Reilly. This match definitely lived up to the expectations I had as we saw the styles of both men mesh together very well which created some cool exchanges & counters such as ACH countering out of a cross arm breaker attempt and catching El Patron with a bridging german suplex for a near fall. Good match that made me want to see these two face off again.
Match rating - ***1/2
2) Michael Elgin vs. Mark Briscoe
I wasn't very interested in this one although I will say that it was a great way to continue hyping the main event for the 13th Anniversary show as Elgin ended the bout by hitting Mark with his brother Jay's finisher, the Jay Driller. The match prior to that was just a slugfest pretty much with both guys showcasing spurts of agility as well.
Match rating - **3/4
3) Jay Lethal vs. Roderick Strong - ROH TV Title Match
Ironically, earlier this month I was considering getting Rising Above 2012 to see a 2/3 Falls Match that these two had. This match, if anything else, made me want to see their previous encounters even more. I've become a Jay Lethal mark during his TV Title run and this match solidified that as well. He's just so good in every aspect. I really enjoyed this bout and if there hadn't been interference, a match restart, etc - this one was on it's way to nearing a four star rating. However, the shenanigans were logical as BJ Whitmer nailed Roddy with two exploder suplexes, one in the ring and one on the outside, which got me interested in their match at the upcoming PPV which is something I couldn't say prior to this. After the match got restarted, they delivered an awesome final few minutes. If you combine the first half and final half of this and take out the interference/restart, you have a solid ***3/4 or maybe even a four star match. None the less, this was still very good for what it was.
Match rating - ***1/2
Overall thoughts: This was a great hour of wrestling. You had some highly entertaining matches along with some remarkable storyline development. After the main event, things broke down as Whitmer & Roddy brawled backstage while Alberto El Patron came out to get into it with Jay Lethal thus ending the show in chaos. Although there is a preview show next week before the 13th Anniversary PPV, this was essentially the go-home show before it and they did a really good job of hyping things as all the major matches were touched on in some fashion. I'd definitely recommend giving this week's episode of ROH TV a look.
Thanks for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter @EthanPWT and this blog @ThePWTruth!
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