[2004-12-04-ROH-All Star Extravaganza II] Samoa Joe vs CM Punk

[supersonic]

All Star Extravaganza II - December 4, 2004

 

 

 

ROH Title Match

Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk

I really am just a sucker for matches that bring prestige to championships. This is another classic match that stands the test of time, and a fitting final chapter to such an epic trilogy. From the callbacks to the previous two matches these men had against one another, to the bloody cut on CM Punk's head (a nice way to bring back memories of his feuds with Raven and the Prophecy), to the acts of desparation on Joe's part, this match was just perfect. In addition, this had legitimate drama and plenty of believable false finishes, with the crowd just being APESHIT in the last 10 minutes.

In the end, all the punishment dished out to Punk was just too much for him, as he passed out to the choke like so many other great challengers Joe faced. But this got him only more over, and really made the crowd wonder who if anybody could dethrone Joe.

But one could argue that this was evidence that Joe's days as champion would be coming to an end in the near future. The Punk trilogy, the Rottweilers feud, and the classic defense against Bryan Danielson all in the past several prior months were taking such a toll on him that he was resorting to blatant cheating, breaking his code that he had established as champion.

Rating: *****

[Microstatistics]

Rewatched this somewhat recently and thought it was a superb match. It reminded me of the Okada vs. Omega III actually in that I like the first two matches but the third match combines the best elements into a shorter time frame. Really good underdog performance by Punk and I liked his focused neck work. Prime Samoa Joe was something else: great selling, amazing offence and perfect character work. Pretty great crowd too (something I thought I'd never say considering it's ROH). ****5/8

[cactus]

Although Punk comes into this acting arrogantly, the fans are soon behind him after Joe cracks his skull open and he's still fighting his heart out. There's no time limit here, so Punk goes back to his headlock strategy once again. Joe knows this so he fires on all cylinders and busts out his biggest strikes, but Punk is able to hold his own against Joe. Punk gets some nail-bitingly close hope spots on Joe. Joe locks in the sleeper and Punk appears to be out, so the referee calls for the bell. Ricky Steamboat, who is at ringside, stops the timekeeper from ringing the bell as he noticed that Punk's arm is still moving. This was a very creative spot. Punk still has a bit of fight left in him. Joe is so desperate that he goes for an illegal pin, which turns the ROH fans against him. That might have been my favourite part of this entire trilogy. Punk tries to claw his way to victory, but Joe lands a Dragon Suplex and goes back to the sleeper to finally wrap this rivalry up. After 2 and a half hours of total match time between these two, we finally have a winner. Seeing all the callback spots get satisfying pay-offs brought this one to the next level. I might be in the minority here, but I think this is the best match of the series. ★★★★¾ 

[ohtani's jacket]

This was an exciting bout. I was glad they decided to forgo going broadway and deliver a shorter, more compact bout. I was surprised they didn't pull the trigger on Punk here. He had the crowd behind him and the timing seemed right, but instead he was Kawada to Joe's Misawa. That would have been fitting if they hadn't taken the belt off Joe weeks later. If the plan was to shift the belt off Joe, why not cap off an incredible feud by having Punk take the title?