Image provided courtesy of Ring Of Honor.

By Nicholas Jason Lopez

“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.

(Aired 12/14/16)

Women Of Honor 2016 

– The Deonna Purrazzo-Candice LeRae match began with a pre-taped sit-down Purrazzo promo from that put her over for her great reputation and pro wrestling obsession. LeRae’s pre-taped sit-down promo put herself over as cheerful yet strong. She was finally in Ring Of Honor after 15 years. After the “feel out” process, LeRae hit a nice suicide dive and then a double stomp on Purrazzo’s neck to gain momentum. LeRae continued with a few pumphandle German suplexes. Purrazzo countered with a Fujiwara armbar, before LeRae broke the hold at the ropes. LeRae had her own submission with an Octopus variation, but Purrazzo kicked out and locked in the armbar again to win. A fine match where both ladies worked hard. It would be cool if ROH got with the program and actually utilized a Women’s Division or at least made WOH a tournament.

– The Veda Scott/Kennadi Brink-Sumie Sakai/Faye Jackson match was colorful to say the least. Scott retained her bragadocious character from when she was Cedric Alexander’s manager. This time, she called Brink “her best friend.” The babyfaces had a nice reaction, along with their partner, Solo Darling, who held a “magic drink” at ringside. Jackson was charismatic, but her gimmick consisted of her big booty. It was fine for what it was, but the ring action was clunky. Jackson/Sakai had a near-fall with a “Throw-Me-Over” senton onto Scott. Eventually, Brink locked in an Anaconda Vice on Jackson to force a submission, while Scott laid Sakai outside.

– The Jessicka Havok-Mandy Leon match began with a pre-taped sit-down Leon promo that gave us history of her rivalry with Taeler Hendrix – someone portrayed as a “Woman Of Dishonor.” The match’s story was that Hendrix sent Havok to take out Leon, but Leon was ready. Leon hosted the Pay-Per-View pre-shows and “This Week In ROH” segments, so we already knew she could talk. Her promo was actually superb. The match wasn’t anything special. Havok plays the same blue-haired Awesome Kong-esque monster every time, so it gave Leon a mountain to climb. Havok didn’t move at Leon’s three shoulder tackles and eventually had her way with the smaller woman. She landed the Beautiful Disaster and deliberately stopped the count at two to further her assault. The finish was fine, as Purrazzo stopped Havok from using a chair, which set up Leon to roll her up for the win. The post-match attack by Havok on Purrazzo/Leon was logical, given the circumstances. Hopefully, they use these ladies more frequently so that this feud doesn’t lose any luster.

– The “Gatekeeper” Kelly Klein hype video aired as a device for the main event, which showcased some of her career highlights and displayed her as a vicious, smart female.

– The Klein-ODB main event was in the right slot, given how over ODB is. Klein had a good appearance, but came off like a straight-faced Stephanie McMahon. ODB wore her usual attire that purposely rode up more than we remember. She also rocked her flask. Commentary pushed Klein’s year-long undefeated streak, so that helped mold the match. They fought outside for some time before Klein regained the upper hand with a DDT into the commercial break. ODB threw most of her signature maneuvers, but it didn’t finish Klein. We got into the finish as Klein applied a Guillotine chokehold, as Referee Todd Sinclair stopped it and awarded Klein the win. This was mostly a slow match with little crowd reaction, so it was a downer. Nope, this show didn’t produce anything must-see, but this was the first time we heard Ian Riccaboni on commentary and he came off fairly well. With Kevin Kelly, Steve Corino and Nigel McGuinness on their way out, he’ll settle in fine.

Quick Results

• Deonna Purrazzo def. Candice LeRae via submission
• Veda Scott/Kennadi Brink def. Sumie Sakai/Faye Jackson (w/Solo Darling) via submission 
• Mandy Leon def. Jessicka Havok via pinfall 
• Kelly Klein def. ODB via referee stoppage