I had read good reviews of this match between Roderick Strong and this big black brawler known as “Moose” from Ring of Honor’s recent “Supercard of Honor X” event (Night 1 of 2).
I always find Roderick’s matches to be entertaining, and this Moose looks like he could break my poor Roddy over one knee, so of course I went ahead and streamed the show from Ring of Honor’s website, available for just $15 on the ROH IPPV webpage.
To my surprise, Roddy dominated the big jobber for much of the match.
Every wrestling event has a flavor or style that defines it. Some shows are cheesy and childish, some have a comical vibe, and some are showy and flamboyant.
The tenor of a Ring of Honor event — and Roderick’s matches in particular — are rough and masculine, pure violence, sweat, and testosterone. It’s kind of intoxicating.
Who would’ve thunk that Roddy would dominate the big Moose?!
Here is an example of that hardcore vibe — Roderick picks up the big man and slams his weighty body on the edge of the ring, which they always describe as the hardest, most deadly part of the ring. OUCH! Moose lies broken on the floor as the camera zooms in on his bulging trunks.
Roderick is clearly not fucking around with this Moose. This here is Big Boy wrestling, not just two pretty-boys playing grab-ass. ROH always delivers this brutal style — performed by grown men to be enjoyed by grown men — the violence pushing our buttons in certain primal parts of the male brain, resulting in a lusty excitement.
Damn that’s hot. Roddy applies this nice tight Headlock on the suffering Moose, the knuckles of his fist against the big man’s eye socket. We just don’t see enough Headlocks any more!
The camera zooms in on that fantastic expression of agony and I need to pause the video for a minute and savor it. This image alone was worth the $15.
Like a tranquilizer dart to a wildebeast’s brain on Wild Kingdom
Roderick is known as “Mr. ROH” because he has been a dominant force in Ring of Honor wrestling pretty much since the beginning — (which maybe explains why I like watching Ring of Honor.)
Roddy owns that ring, this is his turf, and even big Moose needs to learn to respect the King. Here Strong drops the big sumbitch with a Dropkick. Get him Roddy!
Moose busts Mr. ROH against the ROH logo.
To add some drama and uncertainty, the brute did dominate my poor Roddy outside the ring for a little while, and Roddy sold his pain and suffering for my enjoyment.
When the action spills out of the ring, we are led to understand that they are on Moose’s turf now. Roddy may be King of the Ring when it comes to wrestling, but when the fight turns into a violent brawl out on the arena floor, the Moose is loose.
This degrading move is usually inflicted on jobbers only!
Moose continues to dominate out on the floor, utterly owning my poor Roderick. (I do like Roderick, but I also get into seeing my heroes suffer, so this works for me!)
This brutal looking move is always a party, when the big guy swings his opponent side to side, bashing his skull repeatedly into the ringside fence like the clapper in a tolling bell. First he causes brain damage to the victim’s left hemisphere, then the right. Roddy plays along sweetly and submissively, allowing Moose to humiliate him.
Lower the kneepad for maximum impact.
Once they return to his kingdom inside the ropes, Roddy again takes control. He had driven multiple kneepads into this big monster’s face throughout the match, with limited effect. Now he exposes that bare kneecap to deliver the deathblow.
Maybe I have a dark side, but sometimes I’m in the mood for a rough, ugly brawl, where Men harm other Men, and the violence seems real and is therefore exciting. Ring of Honor and Roderick Strong always scratch that primal itch for me.