2010 – PWG: As The Worm Turns

And we’re back in Reseda, CA for Pro Wrestling Guerrilla’s “As The Worm Turns” (2/27/10). Let’s get right into the action!

-Another great opener featuring some of the fresh faces of PWG! The company is smart to use these talents who are not being used in all of the other major indies as a drawing point for fans. They are unique to the product, and that makes seeing them on each show a really exciting experience. Johnny Goodtime, Jerome “LTP” Robinson, Malachi Jackson and Ryan Taylor are the four men given the spotlight here, and they do exceptional things with it. Everybody looks grand and already I am feeling high on this show. What a way to begin!

-Speaking of pushing new guys, the decision to put Brandon Gatson against Scott Lost is complete brilliance. Gatson walks away from this one looking like a huge star. His skill level is extraordinary, and generally he is a really exhilarating talent to watch. Lost is amazing too – but we knew that already – and it is Gatson’s awesomeness that is the story in this one. Another magnificent match!

-Whoa. You know, it is easy to forget how unbelievable a singles wrestler Chris Sabin is since he is part of one of the best teams in the world today with Alex Shelley. But there was a time when Sabin was an act worth investing your time in alone. Turns out, that hasn’t changed at all. In fact, Sabin has only gotten better in the ring. Sabin battles Roderick Strong in an excellent contest here; a match that I can’t say a single negative thing about. The pace is incredible, the action is furious, and overall this is a show-stealer without question. Wow.

-Really fun six-person tag with Brandon Bonham, Candice LeRae, and Joey Ryan taking on The Cutler Brothers and Christina Von Eerie. I’m a big fan of everybody here and had a good time watching this develop. Good stuff.

-Remember the time I talked about how immense Chris Sabin is as a singles wrestler and how easy that is to forget? The other half of the Motor City Machine Guns, Alex Shelley, is in a similar boat. To me he was never the best individual worker on any roster, but he was always solid. Looks like Sabin has rubbed off on his partner after all these years, as Shelley is simply on fire here against Chris Hero! Outstanding contest, right up there with Sabin vs. Strong as must-see! I have a whole new appreciation for Shelley in the ring. Hero too, honestly, as he isn’t one of my favorites all the time, but it is matches like this that make me believe the many people who argue he is one of the best on the scene today. Incredible!

-And yet another tremendous contest on this show, with The Young Bucks defending the PWG Tag Championship against 2 Skinny Black Guys of Low Moral Fiber, also known as El Generico and Chuck Taylor! I enjoy the Bucks as heels very much, and like that they have slowed down the pace of the early parts of their matches. It makes their big double team moves and spots mean a lot more later in the game. Generico is perfect as always, and Taylor now has my full support as the next major star of the independent pro wrestling scene. The back and forth between these four is exhilarating and this adds up to quite the exceptional match.

-As if this show hasn’t been amazing enough, our main event features Davey Richards taking on Kenny Omega for the PWG World Title. It should be no surprise that these two have a terrific contest, as they have been consistently two of the best on the roster for awhile now. Certainly I think back to their clash at “Ninety-Nine” in 2009, which was breathtaking by the end. This bout isn’t quite as strong as that, but it is still pretty great, and definitely worth checking out.

I don’t want to be one of those people who begs that if you can only buy one of something this year you should buy this, but if you can only buy one indie pro wrestling DVD this year, you should buy this! PWG has more than proven itself as essential viewing to every fan out there, and this particular show, with no less than three mind-blowing battles that I don’t want to stop talking about, is as vital as it gets!