As unsexy as it is, the idea of Kevin Steen and Davey Richards resolving their feud was one of the more adult actions I’ve seen in professional wrestling the last year. Regardless of what one thinks of either man, it was nice to see two men behave like adults and resolve their issues like men. Steen and Richards are two of the biggest stars on the independent scene and the last two ROH world champions. The prospect of hearing Steen talk for two more hours might not sound like fun, but thankfully he’s really good at it and can also bring out the best in Richards.
There are a lot of people who are going to come into this shoot interview wanting to hear one of two things. First, they want to hear Richards and Steen tear into each other. Well, they don’t. They’re friends and have resolved many of their issues. The first half hour or so is a discussion of some of the events of last year. Davey Richards discusses the Iowa incident for what will hopefully be the last time (Remember when that was a thing?). It was nice to hear Steen say he wouldn’t be as over as he was without the help of the other wrestler and their letting him say whatever. I could see a lot of people getting angry with Steen, but they didn’t, and it led to some of ROH’s most compelling angles. Richards gets into the source of some of his angle, much of it having to do with travel and everything going on with Steen.
Despite obvious physical and geographical differences, the two men are quite similar. Not big partiers or drinkers. Quickly, Richards and Steen talk about the state of Ring of Honor as another change had been made since their shoot interviews. Delirious is in charge, and Jim Cornette is gone. Steen and Richards have made their thoughts on the man quite clear in the past, and we get more examples of Cornette’s unstable nature as well as the way he was doing serious damage to the Ring of Honor brand. Richards was unhappy with the angle and how the ROH offices handled the Iowa incident. Steen believed Richards was taking out his frustration with the company out on him; in addition, he’s also far more aware of the goings on within the promotion than Richards is. He discusses his good relationship with Joe Koff but also takes a nice shot at Cornette’s monopoly money (trademark: Ari Berenstein) angles. Yeah, those were cheesy and goofy.
Hilarious interlude takes place early on as both men read some tweets written by the person who runs @DaveyRichards83 on Twitter. Both Steen and Richards’s reactions are priceless. Honestly one of the best aspects of the shoot if you ask me.
Steen talks about some specific business differences between Ring of Honor before Sinclair and now under the management of a conglomerate. Nothing too shocking with wrestlers have less say and being treated more as talent instead of being fully invested in every aspect of the promotion. Steen specifically discusses the lack of a family feel, but I didn’t read this as necessarily bad. It seemed as though both men were more concerned about having jobs and seeing Cary Silken relieved from some of the pressure of owning a top flight independent wrestling company. Richards doesn’t say a lot for much of the interview as Steen relates some of the positives of Ring of Honor. What once was a huge albatross, iPPV, has now become a strength. House shows are being released on-demand faster, even faster than Smart Mark Video pumps out their companies’ content. Even if you’re not digging the content, Ring of Honor has made huge upgrades to its website. Obviously, releasing the shows for a low price can do nothing but help as well. Finally, wrestlers get the chance to earn increased royalties from merchandise sales and the compilation DVDs. Hard to argue with these positives. I want everyone to do well, and I love that iPPVs have become such a strength.
After hearing about many of the positives, it’s time to get into some nitty gritty about Jim Cornette. Nothing too shocking, but it’s worth mentioning no one within ROH has heard from Cornette since everything that went down at the November television tapings. It does sounds like Jim Cornette burned yet another bridge within the industry. Then it’s time to compare and contrast as conversations are had about Gabe Sapolsky and Adam Pearce. Steen again shows his perceptiveness in discussing them. Richards obviously isn’t a big fan of Gabe based on what happened with DG USA, and Steen’s story about Gabe after the ladder war is so… exemplary of all that is good and bad about him.
I don’t want to ruin everything since this shoot is well worth checking out from our friends at Highspots. However, there is additional conversation about Nigel McGuinness’s documentary and the role of blading. Each talks about some of the wrestlers they’d like to see get a chance in Ring of Honor. Oh, and I guess Disco Machine is a crier… literally. They end by taking some questions from Twitter and assessing what they’d like to see change about the other man. Steen’s answer might surprise you more than Richards. The surprising aspect if how honest Steen is moreso than the literal shock of the change. No real flaws that I can see. Maybe would have liked to have heard more of the humor involved in their relationship than so many serious topics. A great shoot interview supplanted by two quality matches from PWG and PWX.
Grade: A-
To purchase this DVD and so many others, check out Highspots.com. Clicking on that link will also support Pro Wrestling Ponderings, so support the indies and us at the same time. They allow for one to purchase DVDs, MP4 downloads, or even streams on Highspots.TV.
Contact Pro Wrestling Ponderings!
E-mail: prowrestlingponderings@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ProWrestlingPonderings
Twitter: www.twitter.com/pwponderings
Youtube: www.youtube.com/pwponderings
Contact ME!
E-mail: jcusson07@gmail.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeromepwpeditor