ROH wouldn't really be in the discussion here right now in my opinion, for more than one reason. For one they've become so established as the number 3 brand in the US that at this point I'd almost put them slightly above the level of an indy, similar to ECW in the late 90s and early 2000s. Secondly, ROH has really declined in quality over the past year or so in my eyes with the losses of guys like Nigel and Danielson. We still see a ton of great wrestling out of ROH in a year, just not at the same consistent level we used to see though.
If you had asked me this question about seven or eight months ago my answer would have immediately been Dragon Gate USA, as their first few shows were all stellar with several "Match of the Year" candidates on them, but over time it seems with each Dragon Gate show they seem to decline a bit, it's strange, they started off SO hot last summer but their last few shows, while all solid, haven't featured a real "HOLY SHIT!" kind of moment or match since last fall. Still a great promotion that I love watching, but I'd mark them out in the quality department right now just for the moment.
I watch quite a few other indy promotions as well, including EVOLVE, CHIKARA, PWG, JAPW, AAW and even a few international indies like DDT, Dragon Gate and Osaka Pro. So far though in 2010 the one indy promotion I've probably enjoyed the most though would have to be Pro Wrestling Guerilla out of Southern California, who continue to put on consistently excellent cards from top to bottom almost every single month with great crowds, a fun atmosphere, and often-times brilliant in-ring wrestling, such as the five star match that Kenny Omega and Davey Richards had a few months ago, which is my current pick for the match of the year in my eyes. A great promotion with a great undercard, midcard, tag team and world title division. I so badly wish they'd tour outside of their native Southern California, but the odds o that happening are unlikely.
As for the previously mentioned IWA:EC, sorry Sign Guy, just not my thing. I'm not a huge fa of deathmatch wrestling, especially when it's performed by absolute hacks like Ian Rotten and his merry band of human excrement. Not a fan of really any of the IWA promotions.
CZW I can enjoy in very small doses, mainly because I'm a fan of Jon Moxley and CZW still features some pretty solid junior heavyweight and tag team wrestling, but the fact that fucking Zandig is still main eventing shows for that promotion in 2010 is absolutely tragic, and immediately turns me off on the promotion. Who knows, maybe they can become relevant again under their new ownership, not sure I see it happening though.
The world of professional wrestling is much larger than just the WWE and TNA, so I really hope other people support and get into the indies, because without these promotions those guys you love on the big stages would never be discovered in the first place. Support the fuckin' indies people! Go to sites like Smart Mark Video and buy a few shows, these guys destroy their bodies for your entertainment and get paid nothing to do it, the least you can do is shell out a few bucks for some DVDs.
Good thread Sign Guy. Probably won't get much attention though because most people on this forum like to stick with the big two and not mess around with much indy stuff. Glad to see you're supporting your local scene though, even if I'm not an IWA fan.
