I’ve had the privilege for over the past four and a half years to write for, in my opinion, the best wrestling website going in World Wrestling Insanity. And during a majority of that time I’ve created one of the most reliable resources of Ring of Honor wrestling news in “The ROHbot Report”. Here is an opinion piece I wrote for the fourth “Report” (circa June 2008) about the buildup to Jimmy Jacobs facing Austin Aries at an upcoming event.
From January 2006 until May 2007, Jimmy Jacobs was the poster boy for anyone who’s fought for a woman that eventually rejected you. For every guy who’s had his heart broken by a girl he liked because he wasn’t good enough or he wasn’t her type, Jimmy was like looking in a mirror. Jacobs was one of us. In May 2007, Jacobs got the chance that a lot of us never get: he got the girl of his dreams. And instead of cherishing this moment, instead of being happy, instead of thanking the heavens that Lacey’s heart had finally been won, Jimmy proclaimed Lacey’s love as nothing. Her love wasn’t the saving grace that he was looking for – the redeemable quality that made it worth his blood, sweat, chipped teeth, and torn ACL. Jimmy saw that the people related to him and he wanted to lead them to a new era. Jacobs, with the girl still by his side, changed to become the man he thought the people wanted him to be. The leader they wanted Jimmy to be. After collecting his band of brothers and sisters, Jimmy focused on one man that had been facing the same frustrations and anger Jacobs suffered during his wars with Colt Cabana and BJ Whitmer.
Austin Aries – who made his ROH return from TNA-land – dropped the Jesse Ventura-lite gimmick in hopes of becoming the first ever two-time ROH World champion. But unsuccessful in several attempts, Aries was becoming disgruntled. Jacobs sent his troops (all except Necro, for obvious reasons) to persuade Aries in joining Jacobs’ group, the Age of the Fall. Aries refused, but Jacobs didn’t want Austin slip away from his movement. Then the girl stepped up. Jacobs’ girl – Jacobs’ former reason for living – stepped up for her leader to bring Aries into the fold. At the Supercard of Honor 3 event, we saw Austin walk out with Lacey in Lacey’s attempt to persuade Aries into AOTF. And in that moment of Lacey walking off with Aries, you saw Jacobs revert.
You see, Jacobs, no matter what he believes, no matter what he says, is still that little lovesick puppy that gave his body in hopes of winning Lacey’s heart. Jacobs got sick of following Lacey to be her man. And instead of walking side by side with her when he finally got the girl, Jacobs put Lacey in the background. Subconsciously, Jimmy wanted to make Lacey feel the same inferiority that he experienced in his personal life before she decided he was the one for her in his social movement known as the Age of the Fall. In the end, all Jimmy did was push his woman – the same girl he nearly broke his neck for several times in some dangerous matches with BJ and Cabana – into the arms of another man.
Jimmy has gotten his crew to assault and embarrass Aries after he personally kidnapped her. Jacobs has done, and will do, everything in his power to make Aries’ life hell. But the only person to blame is Jacobs himself. Even with the fancy speeches and the clueless followers, Jacobs is still a little lovesick boy not able to understand that he’s the man in the wrong. Jacobs is still unable to put the pieces together to blame himself for Lacey leaving him. Until Jacobs can understand that he’s at fault for Lacey’s departure, nothing he does to Aries can ease the pain.
And that brings us to 6/28, where Aries and Jacobs finally meet in a one on one match. Like many of us watching Jacobs fight for Lacey for over a year as a mirror into our own lives, come Chicago, Jacobs will be looking across the ring at a mirror of himself from over a year ago. The fire that Jacobs had when he was fighting to defend Lacey’s honor is now raging in Austin Aries. We saw what Jacobs put himself and his opponents through to let that fire grow. There’s a good chance by the evening’s end we will see Jacobs become engulfed in his own passion.
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