Greetings reader and welcome again to another exciting edition of the Ringside View. This week your scribe has decided to look at the current goings on in the darling of the American independent scene; Ring of Honor.

After losing its long time booker of Gabe Saplosky, many of the fans of this group have been worried about what the future held for their ‘real’ wrestling promotion. Former NWA champion Adam Pearce was chosen due to his love and understanding of the old school techniques and characters. President Cary Silken felt that Pearce would be able to guide ROH into a new age that would improve ROH and its chances of landing a television deal. With the help of others in the locker room (including Bryan Danielson) Pearce has set out to create more traditional faces and heels. The idea is that if ROH can continue to showcase its amazing talent and create a new generation of personalities, the company would be able to generate a new audience, which will create the opportunity for ROH to enter the mainstream. So how has the product presented to the fans changed?

On the surface, not a lot has changed. ROH is still using the action in the ring to highlight its differences between this organisation and the ‘Sports Entertainment’ companies WWE and TNA. These are usually the great technical matches with some very wild brawls and unbelievable high flying action. Meanwhile backstage segments are not usually vital to the story but add something when viewed. However, the interviews and segments seem much more prominent on DVD releases and ROHs Video Wire (viewed at ringofhonor.com). While the wrestling action hasn’t changed too much, certain wrestlers have. Over the pass year, there have been several turns and swerves. A key example would be the Age of The Fall. Jimmy Jacobs, Lacey, Tyler Black and Necro Butcher started the year as the AOTF but now only Jacobs remains associated with the group. Necro Butcher went from a muted barbarian like figure to a hard man father, thanks in part to his role in the film ‘The Wrestler’. Lacey left the group for Austin Aries. Tyler Black was kicked out after several break out matches in the year. The AOTF now consists of Jacobs, newcomer Brodie Lee and Delirious, who turned heel after Daizee Haze turned him down. Plus, the man who Jacobs has been having a red hot war with turned heel on Tyler Black by attacking him alongside Jimmy Jacobs. Sometimes, it is difficult to keep up with who is on who’s side. But it is not as baffling as TNA booking.

Another change has been these old school gimmicks being resurrected. But it is worth mentioning that they usually fit the performer like a glove, or are being played for comic value. For instance, one of ROHs students Mitch Franklin had developed some good basic skills and gathered a small fan following. But then he decided to impersonate Big Josh. Reformed as Grizzly Redwood, Franklin has been decked out in jeans and flannel shirts while talking about cutting down trees. It is a big joke because Franklin is small in stature and therefore looks nothing like a real lumberjack. Meanwhile, quite possibly the most entertaining ROH student is ‘Addicted to Love’ Rhett Titus. Titus exploded onto the scene as the competition for Daizee Haze’s affection, opposing Delirious. His constant bragging and thrusting has turned him into one of the funniest acts in ages. Titus has a bright future ahead of him and it starts in January when he starts facing the big names like Bryan Danielson.

The overall production values have remained the same, which is more likely to be a bad thing than a good thing. With minimal lighting, the same graphics and borderline amateur camera work. ROH may not be in any position to throw money around on things such as production values but the constant dingy atmosphere does not endear itself to the mainstream. When ECW was launched on TNN in America Paul Heyman insisted in not changing production values, and that can be credited to the product feeling stale and aimed at the minority audience. Ring of Honor, who has claimed to learn from the mistakes of wrestling promoters in the past need to learn from this one.

But the in ring product, which ROH has always prided itself in, has remained to the highest quality. With the regular stalwarts Nigel McGuiness, Bryan Danielson, Austin Aries and the Briscoe brothers being joined by new talent like Kevin Steen, Tyler Black, Kenny King and the American Wolves as well as veteran Jerry Lynn. This roster has been very impressive this pass year and looks good to continue it into 2009. Opposed to the larger companies, ROH rarely does backstage segments as a way to progress a storyline. Backstage segments are usually a DVD extra or a quick recap of events by a wrestler from the last show. Recently, ROH has been dabbling with the inclusion of these videos as a way to develop angles. For example, Jimmy Jacobs spiked ex-girlfriend Lacey and recorded it for all to see, kind of. However, these still are more reserved and logical than the average angle shot on WWE television.

Overall, ROH has been true to its original vision. The idea of a group that was ran and represented all the values of the old school territories but with the dynamic and exciting styles of modern day wrestling. While some things still need to be amended, Pearce has done a fair to good job of running the promotion. With new characters and a focus on preparing new stars for when the current line up of head liners decide to make the move to guaranteed contracts and prime time television. Ring of Honor, barring any major financial downfall, will continue to expand and be enjoyed by its loyal fans. It might be able to add to those numbers, but it will take some time and maybe a big name to jump to them.