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BG Says: PWG The Reason for the Season

January 7, 2006 | Posted by Brad Garoon
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BG Says: PWG The Reason for the Season  

The Reason for the Season

July, 10, 2004 – Santa Ana, California

This was PWG’s first anniversary show, and I’d say it’s a fine place to begin my non-trial reviewing of the promotion.

Your hosts are Disco Machine & Excalibur. You know the drill by now.

QuicksilverScorpio SkyLos Rojo Locos VS.
Disco MachineTopgun TalwarCharles MercuryChris Bosh
Scorpio Sky, Quicksilver & Los Rojo Locos VS. Disco Machine, Topgun Talwar, Charles Mercury & Chris Bosh
Those masked Locos look familiar. Also, their name is improper grammar in Spanish. Quicksilver & Bosh start the match. Bosh grabs a wristlock but Quicksilver comes back with a headlock. Bosh blocks a sunset flip and gets his own headlock. Quicksilver comes back with a small powerbomb but Bosh immediately gets a submission. Quicksilver reverses to a stretch muffler. He hits a back elbow and tags to Sky. Sky gets a crucifix pin for 2. Bosh bits a backbreaker and a fallaway slam. Talwar tags in and hits a basement shoulder block. He gets 2 while doing push ups. Sky gets a toehold but Talwar makes it to the ropes. A Red Crazy tags in and hits a shoulder block. Talwar hits a Manhattan drop but misses a blind charge. Uno hits the mounted punches and a hiptoss. Dos tags in and Talwar eats chop sandwich. The Locos slingshot Talwar into the corner for 2. Sexual Aggression all bite Dos and Mercury makes the tag. Mercury puts on a headlock and hits a shoulder block. Dos gets a headlock and catches Mercury and Disco with a hurricanrana. Disco accidentally dropkicks Mercury. Dos dumps Disco onto Mercury on the floor. Bosh and Talwar go to aid them and Dos dives onto everyone. Quicksilver follows suit with a plancha. Sky tries to do the same but Disco cuts him off with a clothesline. He hits a powerslam for 2. Bosh tags in and hits a purple nurple. He hits a fisherman’s suplex for 2. He punches Sky in the sack but Sky comes back with a crossbody. Both men tag out and everyone runs in to brawl. Sexual Aggression get run into each other in the center of the ring and the babyfaces row a boat using their legs and get 2. Sexual Aggression takes over and hit stereo dropkicks. Bosh and Disco hit stereo dives onto Los Locos. Sky hits an F-5 on Talwar. Talwar comes back with the Dangah Zone for 2 when Quicksilver saves. He hits Talwar with a spinebuster for 2. Mercury runs in and hits a bodyslam. He climbs to the top and hits a legdrop for 2. Sky hits him with a backbreaker and a neckbreaker for 2. Bosh hits Quicksilver with a clothesline for 2. Uno makes the save and hits a pumphandle piledriver for 2 when Disco saves. Los Locos hit Disco with a double burning hammer for the win at 11:55. Never take Sexual Aggression out of the opener. Seriously, they are perfect there.
Rating:***

Puma VS. Brad Bradley
Puma VS. Brad Bradley
Puma attacks Bradley during his entrance. Bradley headbutts him down and rams him into the barricade. In the ring Puma misses a dropkick and gets hit with a bodyslam. Bradley misses an elbowdrop. Puma hits an elbowdrop, a legdrop and a senton. He blocks a clothesline and puts on a triangle choke in the ropes. Samoa Joe and Ricky Reyes watch from the entrance as Puma hits a crossbody for 2 and puts on a cross armbreaker. Bradley powers up and hits a powerbomb. He hits a scary German suplex and Puma bails. He follows him to the floor and rams him into the post. He goes for a clothesline and hits the post. Puma kicks at the arm but Bradley shoves him off. Back in the ring Puma kicks the chest. Bradley hits a big boot and a boot scrape in the corner. He puts on a chinlock but Puma comes back with a leg lariat. Bradley hits a turnbuckle powerbomb for 2. He gets distracted by Reyes and Joe at ringside and Reyes hangs Bradley’s arm up on the top rope. Puma puts on an armbar and Bradley taps out at 6:05. Skippable stuff here.
Rating: *3/4

AJ Styles VS. Rocky Romero
AJ Styles VS. Rocky Romero
They knuckle up and AJ stakes Romero to the mat. Romero gets a wristlock but AJ reverses to one of his own. He hits a bodyslam but Romero goes back to the wristlock. He puts on a head scissor hold and takes Styles to the mat. Styles kips up and both men back off. Styles puts on a wristlock and cuts off Romero’s kip up attempt with a headlock. Romero trips AJ and kicks his thigh. They trade kicks and Romero gains the upper hand. AJ ducks a roundhouse kick and sweeps Romero’s leg, forcing him to bail. Back in the ring styles forearms Romero down. He press slams him to the floor and follows him out with a plancha. Back in the ring he gets 2. He hits a bodyslam and a kneedrop for 2. Romero hits a back elbow but Styles blocks a kick and puts Romero on the mat. Romero misses an enziguiri but gets hit with a high knee. Romero hits another and hits a stiff kick to the back for 2. He puts on an octopus stretch and AJ falls to the mat and gets to the ropes. Romero hits a high knee in the corner and chops away. He hits a fisherman’s suplex for 2. Styles comes back with a piledriver for 2. He puts on a Mutalock and turns it over but Romero gets to the ropes. Styles hits a backbreaker for 2. Romero fights back and hits another high knee. Styles hits the Pele kick and both men are down. They get up and trade strikes and Romero goes down first. Styles hits a clothesline in the corner but gets kicked in the face. Romero hits a springboard dropkick for 2. He hits a hurricanrana for 2. Styles blocks a blind charge and hits a back elbow. He hits the moonsault DDT for 2. He hits a German suplex into a face plant for 2 99/100. He calls for the Styles Clash but Romero blocks. He puts on an armbar and turns it into the Rings of Saturn. Styles lunges out and makes it to the ropes. He hits a huge clothesline for the win at 17:38. The finish was anticlimactic, but the rest of the match was solid, hard hitting action.
Rating: ***1/2

Colt Cabana VS. Excalibur VS. Babi Slymm
Colt Cabana VS. Excalibur VS. Babi Slymm [Number One Contender’s Elimination Match]
Slymm starts the match on the apron and Cabana hits Excalibur with an armdrag. Excalibur gets a wristlock and headbutts the hand. He yanks on the arm and gets an armdrag. Cabana tags Slymm in, and I have to say I don’t like tag rules in a triple threat match. Excalibur hits Slymm with a hurricanrana but Slymm throws him to the mat for 2. He hits a bodyslam and an elbowdrop for 2. He hits a back suplex for 2. He chops Cabana to tag him in and Cabana hits a butt butt for 2. He hits a snap mare into a chinlock. Excalibur fights out but Cabana hits a side Russian legsweep. He puts on a surfboard stretch of sorts and chops Slymm into the match. Excalibur fights back with chops but Slymm chops him down. Cabana tags in for Slymm and hits a Steamboat-esque chop. Excalibur blocks a blind charge and hits a series of knee strikes. Cabana hits a gutbuster and slaps Slymm into the match. Slymm comes in and shoves Cabana, and Excalibur comes off the top with a missile dropkick to both of them. He hits a high knee in the corner to Cabana and gets a roll up on Slymm for 2. He gets a crucifix pin on Cabana for 2. Cabana clotheslines Slymm into an Excalibur sunset flip for 2. Slymm hits the Birdman Slam on Excalibur and eliminates him from the match after Vanderpyle pulls Cabana to the floor. Slymm goes to the floor and rolls Cabana back into the ring. Cabana rushes out with a dropkick and slugs Vanderpyle down. Back in the ring Slymm blocks an ax handle and hits a chokeslam. He goes for a moonsault but Excalibur comes back and cuts him off. Cabana catches him with a powerbomb and puts his feet on the ropes to pick up the win at 11:29. Nice finish to a below average match.
Rating: **

Scott Lost VS. Joey Ryan
Scott Lost VS. Joey Ryan
The tag team champions EXPLODE! Ryan is dressed like super hero sidekick Robin, making fun of Scott Lost’s admiration of Superman. They lock up and Ryan powers Lost to the corner. Lost grabs a wristlock but Ryan reverses to one of his own. Ryan gets a headlock takedown but Lost reverses to his own headlock. They trade armdrags and then go for monkey flips but they know each other so well that nothing gets hit. Ryan slugs away and Lost bails. Ryan follows him out and rolls him back into the ring. He blocks the spear and puts on an armbar. Lost tries to land on his foot on a monkey flip attempt but his knee gives out. Ryan gives him time to recover and Lost goes for a sneak attack. Ryan is ready for him and goes for a dropkick but Lost is ready for that and knees him in the groin. Sort of. Lost hits a gutbuster and kicks at Ryan’s ribs. He puts on a leg vice and then goes to a chinlock. Ryan fights out but runs into a knee to the gut. Ryan runs him chest first into the turnbuckle but misses a double jump moonsault. Lost hits a vertical suplex for 2. He hits a side Russian legsweep for 2. He jaws with a fan at ringside and Ryan catches him with a roll up for 2. Lost comes back with a clothesline. Ryan dodges the spear and Lost dodges a dropkick. He gets a roll up for 2. Ryan hits a spinebuster after dodging an elbow. He hits a dropkick after Lost blocks a tornado DDT attempt. Lost bails and Ryan follows him out with a tope. Back in the ring he gets 2. He sets Lost up on the top rope and goes for the Duff Drop (a top rope swinging neckbreaker). Lost blocks and tries for it himself but Joey blocks it and comes off the top with a flying elbow for 2. He goes for a moonsault but Lost crotches him and hangs him in the Tree of Woe. He finally hits the spear and Ryan goes to the floor. Lost follows him out and bodyslams him. He goes to the apron and hits a somersault senton. Back in the ring he gets 2. Ryan dodges the roundhouse kick but Lost dodges a German suplex. He hits his own German suplex for 2. Ryan reverses an Ace Crusher to a backbreaker. He hits two German suplexes and goes for a northern lights suplex but Lost blocks. Lost goes for a northern lights suplex but Joey reverses to a guillotine choke. Lost makes it to the ropes. He blocks a superkick and goes for Vertibreaker 2 but Ryan blocks. Ryan gets a sunset flip for 2. He gets a roll up for 2. Lost hits a spear and puts on the Sharpshooter and Ryan taps at 19:20. You know, I like both guys, but I had no idea this match would be this good. They knew each other so well that it all came down to who would actually be able to string together and actually hit a few moves in succession, and Lost was the man to do it.
Rating: ****

Super Dragon VS. CM Punk
Super Dragon VS. CM Punk
Punk cheap shots Dragon in the corner and bails to the floor. Back in the ring Dragon takes Punk to the corner and gives him a clean break. Punk slaps Dragon in the corner so Dragon kicks him around and puts on the Mark Nulty Special. Punk slips out and puts on an STF. Dragon makes it to the ropes. They trade chops and Punk hits a stiff kick to the back for 2. He puts on a front facelock and then wraps Dragon’s arm around the top rope. He hits a seated dropkick and then puts on a wristlock. Dragon reverses to a headlock. Punk dodges a double stomp and goes back to the arm. Dragon dodges the boot scrape and Punk regroups on the floor. Back in the ring Punk puts on a headlock and uses the mask to keep it on. He puts on a cross armbreaker but Dragon makes it to the ropes. He hits an armbreaker for 2 and goes back to the armbar. Dragon gets a headlock and hits a double stomp to the back. He hits one on the chest for 2. He puts on the full nelson leglock but Punk makes it to the ropes. Dragon washes Punk’s face for 2. He puts on a leglock but Punk escapes. He goes for a springboard move but his knee gives out. Dragon puts on the figure 4 leglock but Punk gets to the ropes. Punk hits the Curb Stomp on Dragon and the crowd reacts as you’d expect. He hits a neckbreaker for 2. He hits another Curb Stomp and the crowd asks for third. Punk goes for it but opts for a roll up. He puts on a chinlock and then hits a back bodydrop when Dragon escapes. He hits another Curb Stomp for 2. Dragon comes back with a roaring forearm. He hits an enziguiri and Punk bails. Dragon follows him out with a suicide dive. Back in the ring he gets 2. He hits two Curb Stomps and then hits one against the bottom turnbuckle. It gets 2. Dragon climbs the ropes but Punk cuts him off. Dragon fights him off and hits a senton for 2 when Punk gets his foot on the bottom rope. Punk reverses the Psycho Driver to a clothesline to the back. He hits a mule kick and an enziguiri for 2. Dragon reverses the spike DDT to a northern lights suplex for 2. Punk hits the Pepsi Twist for 2. He sets Dragon on the top rope and Dragon rolls through a hurricanrana for 2. Punk blocks the Psycho Driver and hits a bodyslam. Punk goes to the top rope and hits a legdrop for 2. He goes for the Pepsi Plunge but Dragon blocks and hits a butterfly superplex. Dragon gets 2 after both men were down for a count of 6. Punk hits a Shining Wizard for 2. He goes for another but Dragon reverses to the Psycho Driver for the win at 28:16. It certainly didn’t feel like a near 30 minute match as the action was nonstop and the fun never ceased. It was missing that special something to hold it together and put it over the top as a must-see match, however. This show is really on a roll.
Rating: ***3/4

American DragonChristopher Daniels VS. Samoa JoeRicky Reyes
American Dragon & Christopher Daniels VS. Samoa Joe & Ricky Reyes
Reyes and Joe had been giving Dragon trouble leading up to this show so Dragon asked Christopher Daniels, the man with whom he won the IWGP Jr. tag team titles with, to help him in his plight. Reyes and Dragon start. Dragon takes Reyes to the mat but begs off when Reyes starts to come back. Dragon puts on a strangle hold but Reyes reverses to a cross armbreaker. Dragon makes it to the ropes. Daniels tags in and hits a kneedrop for 1. He puts on a front facelock but Reyes reverses to a hammerlock. Daniels gets a headlock takedown but Reyes reverses to a leg vice. Daniels reverses to a crossface and hits a hiptoss. Reyes goes to the eyes but gets hit with a clothesline. It gets 2. Joe tags in and hits an elbowdrop. He puts on a chinlock but Daniels reverses to a leglock. Joe puts on a front facelock but Daniels powers him to his own corner where Dragon makes the tag. Joe and Dragon trade strikes and Joe slaps him down. Dragon hits a running European uppercut but walks into the STJoe. Joe hits the Big Joe Combo for 2. Reyes tags in and hits a butterfly suplex for 2. Daniels runs in and brawls with Reyes and Joe gets his shots in on Dragon. Joe tags in and headbutts Dragon down. He keeps him on the mat with chops and sweeps his legs. Dragon bails and Joe flows him out with a suicide dive. He hits the Ole kick as Reyes beats on Daniels. After a loooong stretch of nothing happening on the floor Reyes makes the phantom tag and rolls Dragon back in the ring for 2. He hits a kneedrop for 2. Joe tags in and gets hit with a dragon screw. Daniels tags in and hits a Samoan drop. Reyes runs in and eats a leg lariat. Daniels hits a uranage and the triple jump moonsault on Joe. Reyes kicks Daniels in the back and Joe hits him with a powerbomb for 2. He goes right into the STF but Daniels makes it to the ropes. Joe hits a DVD for 2 when Dragon saves. Daniels hits a jawbreaker and a flatliner. He puts on the Koji Clutch but Reyes saves with a legdrop. Reyes tags in and hits a leg lariat to Daniels. He hits a northern lights suplex for 2. Daniels comes back with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and tags to Dragon. Dragon gets 17 revolutions off of the airplane spine and hits a fireman’s carry slam. He carefully climbs to the top and hits a diving headbutt for 2. Reyes comes back with a back suplex for 2. He puts on a sharpshooter but Daniels saves. Dragon rams Reyes into the turnbuckle and sets him up on the top rope. He hits a back superplex but Joe runs in and hits him with a clothesline. Daniels hits Joe with an enziguiri but Ryes kicks him in the face. He hits a fisherman’s buster on Dragon for 2. He hits a German suplex and tries to roll through but Dragon blocks. Daniels runs in and kicks him in the face forcing him to fall back into a roll up from Dragon for the win at 21:40. This match was incredible, and I would rate it even higher had there not been that period on the outside when nothing happened.
Raring: ****

After the match Puma runs in and beats on Dragon with Joe and Reyes. Rocky Romero runs in and asks his tag team partner Reyes to stop this foolishness. Dragon seems to be safe until Romero kicks him in the chest. Brad Bradley runs out and makes the save.

Adam Pearce VS. Frankie Kazarian
Adam Pearce VS. Frankie Kazarian [PWG Championship Loser Leaves Town Cage Match]
It all comes down to this. After robbing Kazarian of his title and thwarting all the attempts that he and Babi Slymm had at regaining it, Pearce will now be trapped inside a steel cage with the Future in a one-on-one match. Pearce avoids Kazarian on the floor before the bell and hides behind a security guard. Frankie punches the security guard out to get to Pearce and then pummels him. They fight into the crowd where Kazarian tosses Pearce into a row of chairs. They fight outside where it’s too dark to see anything. They finally fight into the cage and we see that somewhere in all the brawling Pearce got busted open on the back of his head. Kazarian hits a slingshot legdrop for 2. He hits a vertical suplex for 2 when Pearce breaks the pin with a chair. Pearce hits a butterfly suplex for 2. He goes to climb out of the cage but Frankie catches him and hits a superplex. Kazarian goes to climb out of the cage but Colt Cabana runs out and punches him back into the ring. Pearce wraps his fist in a chain and slugs Kazarian down with it as Babi Slymm runs out and brawls with Cabana to the locker room. Pearce beats on Kazarian with the chain and chokes him with it. Kazarian bleeds as Pearce rakes his face across the cage. Pearce rams his head into the flimsy cage and then puts on a figure 4 leglock. He uses the ropes for leverage but Kazarian slaps out. Pearce hits a bodyslam and comes off the second rope with a fistdrop for 2. He hits a huge powerbomb and starts to climb out. Kazarian narrowly stops him and hits the Wave of the Future from the top rope. Pearce comes back with a sleeper hold. Kazarian’s arm drops twice but he fights back and puts on his own sleeper hold. Pearce’s arm drops twice but he fights back. Kazarian slingshots him into the cage. He rams him into each side of the cage and then hits a chair shot to the back. He puts on a choke but Pearce’s arm only drops twice. He’s bleeding badly as he hits a DDT. He goes low and then hits a mule kick to the balls. He hits the piledriver but it only gets 2. Kazarian comes back with the Wave of the Future for 2. He hits two chair shots to the back and then hits the Wave of the Future onto the chair for 2. Pearce comes back with a German suplex and starts to climb out. Kazarian follows him up but Pearce shoves him down and comes off the top rope with a flying elbow for 2. He gets a roll up for 2 and uppercuts the sack. Kazarian goes for a backslide and goes low. He hits a lousy slingshot elbow so Pearce smacks him in the face with the chair. Kazarian comes back with a piledriver for 2 when Pearce gets his foot on the bottom rope. Kazarian hits another piledriver in the middle of the ring for 2. He hits a third piledriver for the win and the title at 24:00. Adam Pearce is out of PWG forever. The match got a little sloppy at the end and the brawling in the beginning was hard to follow, but everything in between was violent goodness.
Rating: ***1/2

The fans show their thanks for Pearce’s run in PWG after the match. Kazarian tells the outgoing Pearce that he has his respect, but then destroys him with the chair. He berates the fans for cheering for Pearce after all that he’d done to Kazarian. The crowd turns on him as he beats on Pearce until Vanderpyle tries to pull him off. Kazarian knocks out Vanderpyle so Slymm confronts him. Kazarian shrugs Slymm off and goes to the back. Slymm, Vanderpyle and the referee check on Pearce. Pearce piledrives the referee and tells the other two to get out of the ring. The crowd still chants for him, so he tells them to fuck off. Now that’s a heel.

The Reference
Based on the title for the PWG Championship tournament shows, I’m thinking this is in reference to Err from Aqua Teen Hunger Force’s claim that bruising the Aqua Teen’s asses was in fact the reason for the season. Master Shake also claimed that the reason for the season is pleasin’, talking about the things he was thinking of doing to his soon-to-be mail order bride.

To pick up this show contact Pro Wrestling Guerrilla’s website and Highspots.com.

Please join me when I return with my review of The Secret of the Ooze.

The 411: BG Says

You can't go wrong here. Easily the best PWG show I've seen. There are only two matches under ***, and they are either short or not offensively bad. Pick this one up ASAP.

411 Elite Award
Final Score:  9.0   [  Amazing ]  legend

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