[8.0] "I think this is a underrated show. It's really consisting and enjoyable. There's no one bad match, maybe the weaker is Nigel McGuinness vs Cody Hawk, but it's just a match to put over and showcase some talent of HWA. The show starts with a very good encounter between Matt Stryker and Alex Shelley. Its purpose was to show the new Pure Rules, for the upcoming Pure Title tournament at the Second Anniversary Show. It was a goos was to introduce them, as both wrestlers made a great impression and played well along the rules. Both exit this stronger and even if the result was a bit predictable, it was very good and I enjoyed it a lot. I want to see more of Shelley, I think he did a great job selling. Next was the HWA match I've talked about. It's crazy that Nigel did here the ring post spot that he'll do later with Bryan, on a mediocre match. Next Chris Sabin defeated Jimmy Jacobs on another good showcase for both talents. With this win, Sabin enters the Pure Title tournament. Sabin is a solid wrestler and Jacobs has a cool gimmick that knows how to play. Then we see Jimmy Rave winning a Four Corner Survival facing three debuting wrestlers. Rave winning advances the storyline of AJ mentoring him, as after the match he tells Rave he is ready for him. I liked Caprice Coleman here. Then AJ Styles defeated Homicide on a very good match. Loved some of the sequences, like the first one or AJ's work on Homicide's ribs. That tope con hilo with Homicide going shoulder first againt the guardrail was just insane. Very good encounter. Later Special K wins a good scramble match against the Carnage Crew and the Ring Crew Express. The RCE had some cool spots, but the highlight was Abyss making his debut as Special K's new member and destroying every other wrestler. Later the Briscoes successfully defend the ROH tag titles against the Dream Tean of Bryan Danielson and Samoa Joe. For me it was the match of the night as it had great psychology in the sense that Joe and Danielson dominated on singles, but the Briscoes on taf teams. It was very cool and had some good moments, I specially enjoyed the sense of struggle of every move and some of the Briscoes heel tactics. And for the main event we see the first match of the Second City Saints and Prophecy feud. The match itself went for too long for me, even if it had some good moments when the Saints were working over Dan Maff and the final stages of the match with lots of big moves. The match gets thrown out soon after that, but the two factions keept brawling all around the arena and even into the fans. It was quite cool and all that brawl ended with the Saints destroying Daniels with a Pepsi Plunge off the top rope through a table, which looked insane. It was a big spot to take out Daniels. Apparently the plan was that Daniels was going to Japan for a couple of shows, so they decided to get some heat over the Saints taking him out, but after the Feinstein scandal, Daniels didn't come back, So I don't know if the storyline will be going or not. But even if it's ended it was a big spot and a memorable way to end the first show of the year. It was a consistent show, with no bad match and really interesting."

[7.0] "'The Battle Lines Are Drawn' is a pretty good start for Ring of Honor in 2004. While I do think the show is a bit lacking in that one true standout match that I've come to expect from ROH, it's a very consistent show where everything is at the very least solid, with my MOTN vote going towards the tag title match between Joe/Danielson and The Briscoes. The conclusion to the main event is a bit disappointing, but the great post-match angle makes up for it. While I don't believe there is a 'must see' match here, I thought the entire card was enjoyable, and as such I would still consider this show to be well worth checking out for ROH fans."

"Really packed show here. Dig FACD getting that hero's welcome on his last night. Joe & Dragon work so well as a shooter heel team. Styles/Homicide delivered, as did Stryker/Shelley."