Guerrilla Reviewfare: PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2016 (Stage One)

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The 2015 Battle of Los Angeles is probably the best wrestling tournament I’ve ever seen start-to-finish. I said it then, and I say it now. PWG brought together the best combination of talent an independent promotion could ever hope for, and let them run wild in a three-night extravaganza. We had the sensational showings from Will Ospreay, Marty Scurll, Pentagon Jr, and Fenix… as well as one of the best matches of 2015 in Stage Two’s Guerrilla Warfare main event… but when you take into account all of the incredible hype this year’s BOLA has gotten, there’s a good chance that, when I finish this tournament, I might have a completely different opinion. The talent lineup for 2016’s BOLA does its damndest to blow 2015’s out of the water, both in terms of raw talent and name value. We get to see guys like Tommy End and Will Ospreay again after their incredible years, while on the other side of the spectrum we see an all-time great in Jushin Liger. We see our usual stalwarts, like Ricochet, Chris Hero and Marty Scurll while on the other side of that spectrum we have one of the most anticipated indie debuts in recent history as Cody Rhodes makes his presence felt. And with heavy, heavy hype top-to-bottom from fans in the crowd to Dave Meltzer, there’s a good chance this might be the best weekend of independent wrestling in a long, long time. So without further ado, let’s not waste anymore time. We’ve got a lot of wrestling to watch.

We are TAPED from the American Legion in Reseda, CA.

Your hosts are Excalibur and Chuck Taylor!

BOLA First Round: Marty Scurll vs. Pentagon Jr
Pentagon had a tremendous BOLA weekend last year, advancing to the Quarterfinals against Zack Sabre Jr in one of the most entertaining matches of the weekend. Most PWG fans – or indie wrestling fans really – are aware of Marty Scurll, who has had a banner year across the globe, be it as PROGRESS Champion or wrestling MOTYC’s against guys like Kyle O’Reilly. And in terms of openers, I don’t know how it could get better than this.

This Night One crowd might be one of the hottest I’ve heard in PWG, at least since SEVEN way back in 2010. Pentagon is very confident early, throwing the Cero Miedo in Scurll’s face early. They throw some early armdrags and tosses, both coming back up with CRANE KICK~! poses. Marty finds his way on top, stomping Pentagon’s arm into the mat to soften him. Marty TIES PENTAGON’S MASK TO THE ROPE and stomps him out! That is so many levels of amazing. Marty tells the crowd he likes to wrestle in silence, which earns him a kick to the face and a slingblade from Pentagon. A Pentagon superkick sends the Villain outside, where Pentagon attempts a Tope Suicida… that Marty stops by throwing a chair! Marty gives him a couple superkicks from the apron before hitting a Tope DDT! Marty tries heading back into the ring, but Pentagon intercepts him with a HUGE soccer kick and dives out on top of him with a BEAUTIFUL Tope Con Hilo! Pentagon tries to go to town with chops, but Marty dodges one against the ringpost, rolling him back into the ring for a Bicycle Knee and a wacky spinning Butterfly suplex. Marty runs into a superkick, but one-ups Pentagon with the Just Kidding superkick to the knee! Marty looks for a brainbuster, but Pentagon counters out and accidentally snaps the bottom rope on an up-and-over Backstabber that still goes off without a hitch. Pentagon looks for a Package Piledriver, but Marty counters into a Chickenwing that he has to turn into a Magistral for two. Marty follows with a beautiful muli-revolution Tornado DDT for 2! Marty runs into another superkick, but tries to Fighting Spirit through it and only eats a nasty suplex into the turnbuckles! Pentagon tries to break his arm, but Marty counters with a cradle for 2. Pentagon STARCHES Marty with a leg kick, but Marty perseveres and hits a Brainbuster for 2! Marty tries to throw some lariats at Pentagon, who shakes them off and says Marty has NO BALLS. Pentagon counters another lariat INTO A PUMPHANDLE DRIVER! MARTY KICKS OUT! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER! MARTY KICKS OUT AGAIN! “Kevin Steen is rolling over in his grave!” Pentagon beckons Marty and gives him the Cero Miedo, BUT MARTY SNAPS THE FINGERS! PENTAGON CRACKS HIS FINGERS BACK IN PLACE~! CERO MIEDO! PACKAGE PILEDRIVER… COUNTERED INTO THE CHICKENWING~! Marty Scurll advances at the 13 minute mark. ***3/4 This match was so much fun, and probably the best opener of PWG’s year so far. These two had an instant chemistry in a manner that you don’t see very often. A lot of guys have chemistry as wrestlers in that they can work out cool sequences and the like, but Pentagon Jr and Marty Scurll complemented each other beyond that, especially on a personality level. Pentagon was the wacky-but-badass babyface with an instant connection to the crowd, so Marty played the dickhead heel who did things like tie Pentagon’s mask strings to the ropes for no other reason but to be a complete prick. Some people might be a bit turned off by the “my turn, your turn” lucha style with which they approached this match, but I didn’t mind a bit as there was no downtime and it allowed for both guys to do some gnarly stuff en route to the mind-boggingly phenomenal ending sequence. I really can’t think of a more purely entertaining way to kick off such a huge tournament, so bravo to both men.

Marty refuses a handshake after the match, but Pentagon thanks the crowd anyway and soaks in the adulation.

BOLA First Round: Jeff Cobb vs. Ricochet
I’ve really always wanted to see these two wrestle without the constraints of Lucha Underground, as both men’s actual personas are HIGHLY superior to the ones they play on television, and there’s really not a better place to see it than PWG if we’re being honest.

“Mr. Athletic Jeff Cobb is the most generic name for the wildest wrestler I’ve ever seen.” Have I ever mentioned that I love Chuck Taylor? Ricochet finds it a good idea to throw some right hands, which earns him a huge shoulderblock for his troubles. Cobb cartwheels out of a headscissor and WAGS HIS FINGER at Ricochet, who shitcans Cobb and feints a dive. Ricochet looks for a People’s Moonsault, but COBB CATCHES HIM AND ROLLS THROUGH INTO A POWERSLAM! Cobb just heaves Ricochet up for a German, but Ricochet escapes… and finds his way into a bearhug and a nasty Belly-to-Belly. Ricochet hits a desperation handspring elbow that drops the big guy, and GIVES HIM A DEADLIFT EXPLODER INTO THE TURNBUCKLES! RICOCHET VAULTS OVER THE RINGPOST ON TOP OF COBB! He follows with a springboard 450 for a nearfall. Ricochet hits the floatover enzuigiri, but Cobb catches a kick and lifts him right into a RIDICULOUS spinning back suplex. Cobb catches a head kick and KILLS RICOCHET WITH A CAPTURE SUPLEX! DEADLIFT PUMPHANDLE SUPLEX! Holy shit, this guy is a specimen. Cobb nearly counters an Ace Crusher with a German, but RICOCHET HEADBUTTS HIM! COBB FOLDS RICOCHET WITH A HEADBUTT ON THE WAY DOWN! This match is unbelievable. Cobb starches Ricochet with an elbow, but Ricochet is able to fight back with a furious barrage of strikes. Cobb pops him up, but Ricochet lands on the top rope… only for Cobb to dropkick him! Ricochet rolls out of a superplex, and powerbombs Cobb out of the turnbuckles! Phoenix Splash scores, but Cobb powers out. Ricochet heaves him up and nails the Benadryller, but Cobb kicks out again! Ricochet looks for the 630, but Cobb moves! MISDIRECTION GERMAN SUPLEX~! RICOCHET KICKS OUT! POP-UP TOUR OF THE ISLANDS… COUNTERED INTO A SMALL PACKAGE! RICOCHET WINS! That’s it in 13 minutes. **** Jeff Cobb is one of the most entertaining guys in the wrestling world to watch, and this match is a perfect example why. He gets better ever single time he wrestles, whether it boils down to his match layouts or his increasing confidence. So as fun as the Chris Hero match was, this is Jeff Cobb’s best performance so far on several levels. One, because he and Ricochet worked a tremendous cat-and-mouse game from the word go. Ricochet was slightly cocky, and it turned out to be a horrible idea from the onset. With one move, Cobb could dictate the way things were going while Ricochet had to string together crazy combinations to even get the man to stagger. Ricochet even made the mistake at one point of trying Cobb at his own game with a feat of strength, and even if that gave him a slight bit of momentum, moments later he turned around into a wacky suplex. They went hard from the first bell and didn’t have any downtime, wisely deciding to forego a heat segment and just go right into telling their story which earns big time brownie points from me. Ricochet was game to get completely eviscerated by Jeff Cobb, and did it in spectacular fashion, turning this match into what is undoubtedly going to be one of the most memorable first round matches thus far. Outstanding effort here.

BOLA First Round: John Hennigan vs. Matt Sydal
Hennigan was an interesting addition to the field this year, as he’s never really been one to work indies like PWG and the like. According to Dave Meltzer, Hennigan actually ASKED to be in BOLA this year and got his wish, against a guy in Matt Sydal who I’m fairly ambivalent on in a singles capacity admittedly. Reports from this show found this match to be pretty disappointing, but you never know until ya try, right?

The crowd hilariously throws out an “E-C-Dub!” chant to the two former ECW alums. They pepper each other with leg kicks and catch stereo kicks, and negotiate themselves back down. They shake hands, but Hennigan isn’t very nice about it. Sydal responds with a running step-up Frankensteiner, but runs into Hennigan’s beautiful leg lariat. Hennigan follows with a nifty combo that ends in a Russian Legsweep. Sydal gets a sweet cheap pop before blasting a cornered Hennigan with a running knee. Sydal puts in a wacky submission, so Hennigan uses Justin Borden to find the ropes. Sydal then goes after Hennigan’s left knee with an inverted Muta Lock. Hennigan counters a spinning kick from Sydal with one of his own, followed by Moonlight Drive for 2. Hennigan goes for Starship Pain, but Sydal catches him and hits the Slice in a cool counter. Sydal catches a Hennigan kick and turns it into a standing moonsault for 2. A pair of Sydal leg kicks piss Hennigan off, so he hits a pop-up low blow. Sydal fights back with a dropkick and tells Hennigan not to kick him in the dick, which I think is fair. They fight over a superplex up top, but Hennigan sandbags a sunset powerbomb, moonsaults out, and hits the Flying Chuck! Standing Shooter from Hennigan scores for 2. Hennigan misses one of the wackier dives you’ll see, and Sydal hits Meteora after Hennigan misses a Pele! Shooting Sydal Press misses, and he RUNS INTO A C4! STARSHIP PAIN! Hennigan advances in 14 minutes. *** I don’t know if I would call this a disappointment as such, but it definitely didn’t match the previous two matches in terms of excitement. That being said, I did enjoy what they pulled out more than I was expecting to. I thought Hennigan came with his working boots on, and did a lot more crowd interaction and character work than I figured he would. He knew his role, played it well, and was a fun foil to Sydal’s uber-babyface character. Hennigan’s calling has always been the douchebag pretty boy heel, and that’s what he did here to pretty positive results. Nothing I’ll probably remember in a month – and I thought it lacked a satisfying finishing stretch – but I still thought both guys gave me something to work with here.

BOLA First Round Match: Fenix vs. Will Ospreay
A battle of two of the bigger breakout star’s of last year’s BOLA then, as Fenix had a barnburner with Matt Sydal while Will Ospreay… just was Will Ospreay really. Given Fenix has quit AAA and has moved to California, we’ll probably see a good bit more of him in PWG from here on, but that doesn’t take away from how ridiculously excited I am for this match.

Fenix double stomps a back-rolling Ospreay early on, but Ospreay battles back with his insane corkscrew headscissor. Both men cut off dives with dropkicks before Ospreay hits a SASUKE SPECIAL! Fenix murders young Will Ospreay with a dropkick and DIVES OUT WITH A MANIACAL SPRINGBOARD TORNILLO~! Fenix tries a double springboard crossbody, but Ospreay dropkicks him out of mid-air. Ospreay hits a Tope Atomico for 2, and resumes control from there. A trio of kicks from Fenix breaks Ospreay’s clutch, and Fenix hits a combo of a rolling Frog Splash and a standing moonsault for two. Both men head up top, and Fenix hits a beautiful double-jump super Frankensteiner! They throw strikes in the middle of the ring, and drop like flies… only to kip up simultaneously! Ospreay pops Fenix up, but FENIX HITS A FRONT-FLIP RANA… ONLY FOR OSPREAY TO KIP UP! SUPERKICK! CORKSCREW MOONSAULT! FENIX KICKS OUT! Ospreay goes up top once more, but Fenix pops up himself and eats a Cheeky Nandos kick! Ospreay goes up top again, but Fenix KILLS HIM WITH A STEP UP FOREARM! SPANISH FLY… BUT THEY LAND ON THEIR FUCKING FEET!~! RUNNING C4 FROM OSPREAY! FENIX KICKS OUT! LETHAL INJECTION FROM FENIX… RIGHT INTO A DRAGON SLEEPER! RIGHT INTO A FUCKING ISLAND DRIVER! OSPREAY KICKS OUT! FENIX KIPS UP! This match is inhuman. DOUBLE SPRING 450 MISSES! TWISTING KICK! OSCUTTER! Ospreay advances in an unbelievable 10 minutes. **** With two guys as acrobatically gifted as Ospreay and Fenix, someone familiar with them should be able to at least predict what their match would consist of. And to an extent you’d be right… but I don’t think even the most creative of souls could have laid out this match. These two did some absolutely incredible things, at an incredible speed, and all at the exact right times to do them. Will Ospreay is one of the most gloriously athletic wrestlers I have truly ever seen in a professional wrestling ring, and every time I watch it he shows me something new. On the surface, yeah, this isn’t exactly the most cerebral or “smart” of wrestling matches. But at some point, you have to sit back and turn your brain off and admire how phenomenally talented Fenix and Will Ospreay are at what they do. Fenix was with Ospreay every step of the way here and even upstaged him at some points, especially with that ridiculous pop-up Frankensteiner he does. But at the end of the day, both men pulled out one of the finest matches I’ve ever seen when it comes to raw athleticism, and I have to imagine that the Spanish Fly they do is going to be a much replayed spot in years to come. My rating tops out at four stars because it’s just ever-so-slightly too short and exhibition-like to let me go over the top, but nitpicks aside… this was utterly breathtaking.

BOLA First Round Match: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tommy End
As if this show couldn’t get better! This is the last PWG weekend of shows we’ll see Mr. End on for the near future, as he is headed to WWE to probably be NXT’s next big star if they handle him correctly. He’s unfortunately had to cancel a few PWG appearances this year, but by God is this match going to make up for it in spades. It’s hard to really introduce Mr. Sabre at this juncture, so let’s just let this one coast on name value…

You can probably ascertain how this one starts off. Zack tries a quick cross armbreaker, but Tommy rolls out and teases Zack with a scary kick that he stops right before it connects. Zack backs the fuck up and heeds his advice. Zack tries a keylock and teases going after Tommy’s legs, but breaks before he does. Tommy throws a nasty pair of kicks to the chest, but Zack fights back with a lifter… so Tommy FLOORS him with a pump kick for a nearfall. Zack eats a few more kicks, but drops Tommy mid-leapfrog and SOCCER KICKS HIS ARM TO BITS. Jeeeesus. Zack goes after the arm, which frustrates Tommy enough to make him throw a kick… so Zack fights right back and just destroys the Dutchman’s arm some more. Zack takes a bit too much time, so Tommy MURKS him with a crazy strike sequence. Tommy goes up top, but Zack headbutts his arm and causes him to fall to the floor. Zack stomps Tommy’s arm on the apron and gives him a push kick into the fans! Tommy End HITS AN ORIHARA MOONSAULT OUT OF NOWHERE! Tommy follows with a step-up knee off of the apron before hitting the Blood Moon Stomp for 2! Tommy follows up with more kicks, but Zack counters out by giving him an enzuigiri to the arm. PK… countered into a Half Crab! Sabre fights out and hits Bloody Sunday for a 2 count. Sabre looks for the running lifters in the corner, but Tommy fights out WITH A PUMP KICK! BLOOD MOON STOMP! GERMAN! ZACK HAS THE ARM! KIMURA… COUNTERED INTO A BRAINBUSTER! Tommy springs to his knees and gives Sabre a death stare, and they go after it with kicks and elbows before dropping each other with stereo kicks! PK! PIN COUNTERED INTO A CRUCIFIX FOR 2! SPINNING KNEE FROM TOMMY~! SNAP GERMAN FROM SABRE! Sabre goes HAM on Tommy’s wrist, but Tommy pushes him off… but Zack locks on a flying triangle… that TOMMY COUNTERS WITH A SOCCER KICK! They trade seated strikes and rise, where Sabre pastes Tommy with STOMPS TO THE ARM AND HEAD! HE RUNS INTO A SPINNING BACK KICK! BLOOD MOON STOMP MISSES! LIFTER! Hurrah! Another Year, Surely This One Will Be Better Than The Last: The Inexorable March of Progress Will Lead Us All to Happiness! Tommy taps at the 17 minute mark. **** This match had MOTYC written all over it, and it got damn close to being there. Both guys work their styles with absolute perfection and when you put them together, everything ends up great. I loved the dynamic between both men, as Tommy is an intimidating European fucker who isn’t afraid to throw down with someone if he has to, while Zack likes to stay on the outside until he can tie you up in several different knots. Tommy played the aggressor like a champ, keeping the champion on his toes with his speed and tenacity, causing Sabre to grab the arm for desperation rather than as a strategy. As much as it pains to me to say it, this really could have used some selling on Tommy’s part as he really didn’t seem all that affected by what I thought was one of Sabre’s best jobs of working a body-part so far. We’d be talking Match of the Night if he had helped the story along, but it did factor into the finish so all was not lost. I truly do think Tommy End has the potential to be NXT’s biggest star in a year or so with his badass look, unique style, and general all around aura and this match was a big example why. The looks he shot towards Zack would make a weaker man melt in fear, his strikes are perfect, and he knows how to make himself out to be a complete beast. Zack working from the bottom for a lot of this was incredibly fun as well, as I liked how he had to adjust his limbwork to make it seem like he was going after the arm to survive rather than to advance. Instead of a technical chess-match, this turned quickly into a real fight and that’s the sort of diversity I don’t think people are aware Sabre can exhibit. This is a Match of the Year candidate with some Tommy End selling, but even so this was a beautifully executed wrestling chess-match and it didn’t disappoint my lofty expectations in the least.

BOLA First Round Match: Chris Hero vs. Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger
This ought to be a crazy dynamic, as Jushin Liger makes his PWG return to face one of its most reliable stars in Chris Hero. Liger wrestled El Generico in a great match at Kurt RussellReunion 2, but has yet to make his way into Reseda until now… and what a way to make your Reseda debut.

Jushin Liger being 51 is never not going to be insane to me. Hero shakes Liger’s hand, but pats him on the head! Somewhere, Dana Brooke laughs at this jobber using her gimmick. Liger has the upperhand early, but Hero shakes off a shoulderblock in utterly hilarious fashion. Liger shitcans Hero and misses a dive, but he’s still Jushin fucking Liger and taunts! Hero muscles Liger into the corner and smacks him with a bicycle kick, but Liger fights back with a nasty Shotei. He looks for a Frog Splash, but Hero moves and folds him with a nasty rolling Mafia Kick. Hero heeling out on Jushin Liger is never, ever going to get old. Liger tries a Capo Kick, but Hero moves and crushes him with a senton. Hero heads up top for something, but Liger catches him and SUPERPLEXES HIM! Another Shotei has Hero seeing stars, and a diving splash gets Liger a nearfall. Hero fires off an elbow, but Liger counters a ripcord elbow into a backslide for two. Hero hits a SNAP PILEDRIVER! Liger kicks out. Chris Hero tells Liger to “get the fuck up”, and basically toys with him. Liger starts fighting back with palm strikes, but Hero follows him with a Bicycle Kick! LIGER CHASES HIM DOWN WITH A CAPO KICK! Liger attempts the Ligerbomb, but Hero counters out and gives him a barrage of elbows as he yells “don’t fuck with me!” Hero tries for the falling suplex, BUT LIGER HITS THE BRAINBUSTER! Liger measures up for the Shotei, but Hero hits a Bicycle Knee and goes up top… only for Liger to powerbomb him down! Chris Hero elbows Liger in the arm mid-Shotei, and the DEATH BLOW scores… but Liger kicks out! Hero sets up for a Ligerbomb of his own BUT LIGER KICKS OUT AT ONE~! HOLY SHIT! ROLLING ELBOW FROM HERO! RIPCORD ELBOW! ELBOW TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD! Chris Hero advances in a sensational 14 minutes. **** This is one of those matches where it’s hard to really do it justice by writing about it. It’s just two of the best wrestlers you’ll ever see having the Match of The Night in the biggest tournament in pro wrestling. They told such a simple, easy-to-follow story but did it in such a way that you know there aren’t another two wrestlers in the world right now that could have done it so expertly, and with so much nuance. Chris Hero is the big dog of PWG at the moment, constantly having the best matches on the shows and generally outclassing most of the people he’s on a show with. Jushin Liger is the aging legend that everyone loves, one of the most revolutionary pro wrestlers to ever step in the ring. So there’s obviously a built-in story of Chris Hero toying with Liger, thinking that he’s past his prime and not really taking him too seriously… only for that to prove nearly fatal at some points in some of the most dramatic, exciting exchanges of the night. This wasn’t the athletic virtuoso performance of a Will Ospreay or the technical wizardry of a Zack Sabre Jr… but it was exactly what we all love about professional wrestling. Two of the best going out there, telling an engrossing story and ending at the perfect time. Some might say I’m being generous with the snowflakes here, but you show me a PWG match with better psychology this year. This was unbelievably great.

The Young Bucks & Adam Cole vs. Dalton Castle & The Boys
Dalton Castle has been in somewhat of a feud with Adam Cole as of late, defending Sami Callihan from his interference at PRINCE and generally being a thorn in the side of the Bullet Club. Thus, this match was made… but with mysterious circumstances surrounding who The Boys would be. Considering this is the promotion that once stuck Davey Richards in a team called Team Statutory, anything is possible.

The Boys look very… familiar. Matt Jackson thinks so too, and says he thought The Boys were twins. He even thought The Boys were black! “He’s just a boy, leave him alone!” Excalibur’s constant destruction of Adam Cole’s physique is either a micro-aggression or ridiculously entertaining depending on which part of a college campus you’re at. Chuck Taylor’s shining moment in life happens in that context, but I can’t spoil everything for my readers, ya know? Dalton and Cole start, and they trade taunting clean breaks. Dalton sits on top of the turnbuckle, so Cole demands that he come down…so Dalton calls The Boys over for assistance. Bullet Club looks for simultaneous superkicks, but BACK BENDS~! stop that silliness. Cole eats a body slam, but fights right back, allowing Nick to try a triple Shooting Star Press. But the AIR CURSE~! crotches Nick on the top rope, and blows Matt right out of the ring. This commentary from Chuck Taylor is killing me right now. One of The Boys (Boy B) comes in to work over Adam Cole, while “Boy K” comes in for some… well, let’s call them weak shots. Boy K BACKHANDS Cole after being floored by a few forearms, and one clothesline later and we’ve got a SLEAZY BOY! Dalton BLOWS A RASPBERRY to Cole’s abhorrent stomach. Boy B’s mask falls off, and it looks a LOT like Bobby Fish, but most people have been obviously mistaken. Boy B looks for a sunset flip, so Boy K tries to fan Adam Cole down, but Matt Jackson superkicks Boy K to the ground to stop that before doing SUCK IT’S with the fans! Nick Jackson pulls out a BRONCO BUSTER, to which Chuck Taylor says “Fuck Off” in utter despair for where wrestling is. The commentary on this match is some of the funniest in PWG history. Boy B’s mask falls off, and Adam Cole puts it on and mocks The Boys in incredible fashion. The Boy is BOBBY FISH, much to my surprise. He dodges a Young Buck dropkick and nearly gets the hot tag, but Matt Jackson and Cole superkick his partners before that can happen. It eventually does, and here comes Dalton Castle! He has one spicy hot tag, all things considered. Castle looks for a deadlift German Suplex, but The Bucks superkick out of it and take control. Dalton catches a Nick Jackson knee and drops him with a back suplex! He tags in both Boys… and THEY’RE REDRAGON~! THE MOUTHPIECES ARE IN! Double team wheelbarrow suplex from reDRagon… RIGHT INTO A DEADLIFT GERMAN FROM DALTON! Nick Jackson escapes Bangarang and hits a superkick, and it’s BONZO GONZO! BANGARANG ON NICK! Matt and Cole break it up. Both Fish and O’Reilly eat low blows from The Bucks, but Dalton Castle is livid… only to run into Panama Sunrise. DOUBLE MELTZER DRIVER with a blown kiss to the man himself, and that’s it in 18 minutes. ***1/4 I’m going to be one hundred percent honest when I say this; the best part of this match was the commentary, and specifically Chuck Taylor’s realization that he viewed this match the way his detractors view his comedy matches. Add that on with the complete and utter BURIAL of Adam Cole, 38 feet below the crust of the Earth, and you have the funniest PWG commentary track since Good Ol’ DR made his last appearance back in 2011. The match was very entertaining as I nearly had tears in my eyes watching Kyle O’Reilly be a Boy, and even more-so watching Adam Cole MOCK him. The wrestling was pretty copy-and-paste from any ROH house show main event, but that’s not what this match was about and it doesn’t take rocket appliances to see that. There are going to be a good amount of people who find this too absurd, which is okay, but considering it’s what I expect out of PWG in times like this, I loved it. And besides, we have the trios match tomorrow night, and there’s a good chance we won’t live past it if it’s worth the hype.

9.0

The final score: review Amazing

The 411

In years past, PWG has had a bad habit of putting out subpar Night 1 shows during BOLA... but for the second year in a row, they broke that habit and actually ended up giving us one of the better shows in PWG's history to boot! It's hard to not be blown away by a wrestling show with four matches in the 4-star range, and one more just barely missing that mark. Sure, the main event is a bit corny and Sydal vs. Hennigan was a bit low-key, but even those are fun watches... and everything around them was just phenomenal, so it's a no-brainer that I recommend this to you.