1) Tomasso Ciampa vs. Rocky Romero
Ciampa was at a bit of a disadvantage to start with because he had a bad case of sunburn and he didn't help himself out by missing a dive to the outside early and landing in the front row of chairs. Romero tried to take advantage of this early mistake, but Ciampa fought back in what was a very competitive contest. These two traded alot of strikes throughout the match and produced a solid opening contest. Ciampa picks up a big win over a PWG veteran, Romero.
Match rating - ***
2) ACH vs. Cedric Alexander
This was a highly anticipated match simply because of the buzz both guys have been creating as of late. The first half of this match was held at a pretty methodical pace although it had it's shining moments such as ACH crowdsurfing and Cedric hitting a dive through the turnbuckle onto ACH and nearly nailing a fan in the process. While this bout started off slow, it picked up with time and developed into the fantastic
match that I expected from these two as it garnered the first "This is awesome" chant of the evening. Great match.
Match rating - ***1/2
3) Chuck Taylor & Trent? vs. Michael Elgin & Johnny Gargano
Interesting match up here as Gargano is replacing Brian Cage as Michael Elgin's partner since Cage was injured and unable to compete. That put Elgin & Gargano at a disadvantge since they had never teamed together before, but they ended up working well together. Chuck & Trent were their usual awesome selves and the crowd was super hot for them. This was a balls to the wall tag team match with multiple jaw dropping moments such as Elgin hitting a falcon arrow on Trent off the top turnbuckle and Trent hitting a cringeworthy move off the top rope that planted Gargano's head into the mat. Highly entertaining match.
Match rating - ***3/4
4) Kevin Steen vs. Trevor Lee
With this being Steen's final match, the crowd flooded the ring with streamers which Steen ended up rolling around in. Damn, I'm gonna miss that guy. The match gets going and Steen dominates right off the bat. The story here was whether or not Lee could hang with Steen and he ended up doing a pretty good job of it as he blew everyone away with nearly every move he hit, simply because of how awesome they were. From the dive over the ring post to kicking out of the package piledriver, Trevor Lee proved himself in this match. The ending felt a bit rushed and out of place, but I think that's simply because no one expected Lee to win so when he did the crowd began booing. Steen would address that reaction after the match by saying "Trevor Lee beating me isn't bullshit, it's the future." Great post-match speech from Steen as he bids farewell to the organization he's been a major part of for nearly 10 years. Fun match.
Match rating - ***1/4
5) Frankie Kazarian vs. Brian Kendrick
Here we have two guys making their respective returns to PWG. This was Kendrick's first appearance since last year's anniversary event, TEN, and this was Kazarian's first appearance in around 7 years. Neither guy has lost a step since being away though as they put on a pretty entertaining match that saw Kazarian pick up the win with a Flux Capacitor. Solid match and a nice throwback to the early days of PWG.
Match rating - ***
6) Adam Cole vs. Roderick Strong - Number One Contender's Match
These guys started off in high gear and never slowed down. The action was fast, furious, and hardhitting from beginning to end with both guys throwing everything they had at each other. It felt a little short, but it was still a very enjoyable match.
Match rating - ***1/2
7) Kyle O'Reilly (c) vs. Chris Hero - PWG World Title Match
I've seen many people give this match negative reviews and I really don't understand why. O'Reilly and Hero are two of the best technicians/strikers in the game today and this match showcased them doing what they do best with one of the most prestigous belts in Indy Wrestling on the line. What's not to like? I've seen people say that the match went too long, but I was entertained thoroughly throughout. It wasn't one of those 40 min matches in which the two guys stalled to kill time or anything. There was alot of catch as catch can wrestling to start out then both guys turned to submissions, working over limbs, and vicious strikes to attempt to pick up the victory. This match reminded me alot of the classic Bryan/Hero bout from a few years ago. It was just as good if not better than that match which is why I'm so confused as to why I've seen people rate this match as low as one-two stars. None the less, I really enjoyed this one and it was an impressive first title defense for O'Reilly. Great match.
Match rating - ***3/4
8) The Young Bucks vs. Joey Ryan & Candice LeRae - Guerrilla Warfare Match for the PWG World Tag Team Titles
As soon as The Bucks started off the match by nailing Joey & Candice with a steel chair during their attempt to dive onto them, I knew this match would be chaos and that's exactly what it was. This bout has been building for nearly a year as this whole thing started at BOLA last year when The Bucks assaulted Candice and Joey Ryan came out to save her. Now here we are 10 months later seeing these two teams go to war and settle their differences. Chairs, thumbtacks, and tables played a factor here, but the most jaw dropping moment was seeing Candice's face covered in blood after being nailed with a piledriver on the floor. This was an amazing match that will go down as one of the best in PWG history. Insane!
Match rating - ****1/2
Overall thoughts: This show was the definition of a mixed bag. You had high flying, great tag team wrestling, a near 40 minute technical/striking showcase, and a brutal hardcore match to close out the night. I've seen PWG have better shows, but this is still a show I'd recommend solely for the main event between The Bucks and World's Cutest Tag Team. Beyond that, this show sees Kevin Steen have his final match in the company and the first ever PWG World Champion Frankie Kazarian make his return to the company. For historical purposes, this is a must have. All PWG shows are enjoyable so as usual this is an easy recommendation.
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