The Downfall of ROH in the last number of years

[samsam1704]

Me and my friend were chatting about the current state of ROH, and comparing it to the past. Comparing Davey to Nigel etc. We all got pretty heated on the debate and i wondered what you guys personally feel about the state of ROH today and comparing to to previous years. I made a video on this which is more of what i have already posted and how i feel about the topic, feel free to watch. If not talk about how you think the product has evolved and more importantly if you see it getting any better.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBapEcUnpTM

 

[DirtSheet]

I occasionally watch ROH but not as much as I used to. I mean before we had CM Punk, AJ Styles, Amazing Red, Bryan Danielson, Nigel McGuiness, Samoa Joe, Tyler Black. Thankfully though the product still stays strong though

I think that it's a bit like ECW when they lost their best stars too WWF/WCW and ROH lose theirs to WWE/TNA. I just hope though that ROH continues to produce impressive quality matches and somehow get a TV channel/slot

 

[Chicago1989]

I mean, I became an ROH fan at the beginning of last year. I never really watched ROH back in its glory days but many hardcore ROH fans tell me that ROH used to be better back in the mid 2000's, around when CM Punk and Samoa Joe were champions. I can't argue with that. I'm sure I can agree with them since I've seen some of the old stuff...

I've also been told many times that ever since Gabe Sapolsky left ROH, ROH started going downhill. Again, I can't argue that. Back then, fans were very passionate and were always into the show; Whereas, today's ROH fans are not really what they used to be. That's just my opinion.

Like alot of things in life: The original is almost always better than the sequel; But you get what you pay for. But at least we're still getting a solid product from ROH, compared to WWE and TNA.

 

[Twiztid Rodimus]

I give you guys SO much credit for being so damn honest and taking the ROH marks by the balls and putting them in their place.

I love ROH for various reasons, but when you speak on the way that ROH is portrayed now, is 100% TRUE. The fans DO imitate japanese wrestling and japanese fans, The clapping during good moves/spots, the streamers. Its SAD, and always was.

I like ROH for the in ring, but your right the psychology is NOT there anymore, and hasnt in a long time.

The best of ROH have come and gone, and the idea of the over used ''5 star'' rating system is redundant in ROH and ROH fans make it mean NOTHING, since all you need is long matches with a million false finishes to get that kind of rating from those jaded fans

 

[Oracular Spectacular]

I will agree that ROH has changed over the years, but that is the reason It will continue to survive. Follow me here.

ECW never survived WWF and WCW raping it of its talent. ROH on the other hand has had its talent leave and go on to bigger and better things but they move on. Not only that they have grown larger as a company as well.

ROH isnt going downhill its changing, building a new crop of Independent wrestlers that will move on to bigger and better promotions(preferably WWE) While I do see some of the talent sticking around and the company to grow, I have no problem with the way things are going for the company.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

ROH has obviously gone downhill in the last few years, mainly due to the growth of TNA and the exclusie contracts that now exist on much of TNA's talent, where previously wrestlers like AJ Styles and Samoa Joe could also appear in TNA.

When TNA was smaller and comparable in size to ROH the level of talent in both was more equal but now this is no longer the case, with ROH losing its top stars to TNA and WWE. The golden generation of talent such as CM Punk, Samoa Joe, Bryan Danielson and Nigel McGuinness have moved on to bigger things, and the up-and-coming talent has not yet developed to that level. I think they will in time, so ROH fans just need to wait for the new guys to improve and I think the company will be fine

 

[Chicago1989]

I give you guys SO much credit for being so damn honest and taking the ROH marks by the balls and putting them in their place.

I love ROH for various reasons, but when you speak on the way that ROH is portrayed now, is 100% TRUE. The fans DO imitate japanese wrestling and japanese fans, The clapping during good moves/spots, the streamers. Its SAD, and always was.

I like ROH for the in ring, but your right the psychology is NOT there anymore, and hasnt in a long time.

The best of ROH have come and gone, and the idea of the over used ''5 star'' rating system is redundant in ROH and ROH fans make it mean NOTHING, since all you need is long matches with a million false finishes to get that kind of rating from those jaded fans

I don't know about the lesser, unpopular crowds in the U.S., but I'll speak for the popular crowds such as the Philly and NYC fans. I've heard that the streamer idea was taken from Japanese wrestling fans. Personally, I like the streamers. It kind of makes it seem like it's pyro for the wrestlers, but it's just a show of appreciation. Whether it was taken from Japanese fans or not, I like the streamers. At least, you don't get thrown out from a show like you would in WWE or TNA.

I think these fans are not exactly like Japanese fans. The claping is something I do in any event, whether the Japanese came up with it first or not. I'm just loving the effort and wrestling that I see. But ONE THING I will say about these fans is that they are, at times, immature. I don't know if it's the ECW coming out of them, but chanting Santa Claus and Reptar during a World Title match is ridiculous. I'm not into that. I think they're just doing it to get attention. There are some things that I don't like about these fans tbh.

 

[The People's Peep]

In terms of talent, yeah they have gone down a little. Its going to be tough to match the success and talent of the guys that we see making it big in TNA and WWE. But they have still some very good talent right now like Davey Richards, Roderick Strong, and KOW. Who knows if in a year or two, these guys are doing the same things AJ, Danielson, and Joe were doing.

Outside of talent, I think they have really grown. A TV deal that gets their product out to more fans (although a better TV deal would do wonders), and the iPPVs are selling more and more with each event. So I dont know if I would call recent years a downfall because they have made some advances.