By Chris Vetter, Torch Contributor

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla headed overseas for a pair of shows this year. This is a review of the DVD for “European Vacation, Night two” in Orpington, England, from Feb. 19, 2006.

This venue reminds me of a hotel ballroom, with white walls and a high ceiling. It’s well lit, the crowd is perhaps 400 fans, and the ring canvas is red; it appears to be a different ring than was used for night 1 in Germany. PWG uses multiple cameras, and this is well edited. Commentary is done by a variety of people, including Dino Winwood, Excalibur and Disco Machine. (PWG DVDs have the option to turn off commentary.)

* Dino Winwood opened the show in the ring, thanking the fans for coming. The crowd is good, but far more subdued than the rabid German fans a day earlier.

(1) Disco Machine & Excalibur & Ronin defeat Spud & Top Gun Talwar & Aviv Mayaan at 9:28. Good opener. Spud is really short but really popular in the U.K.; I saw him on a recent 1PW DVD I watched. He wore a green & black outfit. My first time seeing Mayaan; he wore black & red, and he has long black hair. The heel team (Disco’s squad) attacked before the bell, and all six brawled. Disco choked Spud in the ropes. Spud came back with a headscissors takedown on Disco Machine, and it’s obvious this crowd loves Spud! Mayaan hit a dropkick to the knee, then an enziguri on Disco.

Talwar entered the ring with a blowup doll, and in a comedy spot, Disco sold a headscissors takedown from the blowup doll. Disco hit a missile dropkick on Spud at 3:00. Ronin entered, and he hit a running forearm and a butterfly suplex. Spud hit a Tornado DDT on Excalibur. Talwar made the hot tag at 6:00, and he hit a dropkick and a series of clotheslines on Disco Machine. Talwar & Aviv hit simultaneous planchas to the floor on the heels. Spud then nailed a forward roll dive to the floor on everyone. In the ring, Spud hit a Code Red/sudden swinging sunset flip on Excalibur for a nearfall.

Disco hit a chokeslam over his knee on Spud for a nearfall. Aviv hit a Tornado DDT on Disco. Ronin hit a hard Death Valley Driver on Aviv. Talwar hit his swinging inverted DDT on Ronin for a nearfall, as everyone is hitting their finishers. Spud hit a Shining Wizard. Excalibur hit a Tiger Driver/butterfly piledriver on Spud for the pin.

(2) Martin Stone defeats Ricky Reyes at 8:22. Solid match. Stone is thick, with short black hair, and he wore all black. Stone immediately went to work on Reyes’ left arm, and he hit a shoulder tackle. Reyes countered with a dropkick, and Stone stalled on the floor. Reyes hit some spin kicks to the thigh. Stone hit a Snap Suplex at 3:30, then he applied a Camel Clutch, and he was in charge. The crowd was fairly quiet in this match. Reyes came back with a sunset flip for a nearfall and some blows to the back.

Stone hit a delayed vertical suplex for a nearfall at 6:00. Reyes hit some kicks to the thigh and chest, then he hit a back suplex for a nearfall. Reyes hit a Northern Lights Suplex for a nearfall. Stone nailed a belly-to-belly overhead release suplex for a nearfall. Stone then nailed a hard running clothesline to score the pin.

* Quicksilver and Scorpio Sky, who are usually tagteam partners, stood in the ring. Scorpio wore yellow and black, and he cut a promo, boasting about how great his abs look! He then declared that they are the best tagteam in wrestling history, and no one wants to face them! So instead, they are going to take on each other, in a one-on-one match! Quicksilver wears a mask, and he wore blue & black here.

(3) Quicksilver defeats Scorpio Sky at 15:35. Very good match. They opened with standing switches and nice reversals, then they traded rollup attempts. Quicksilver caught his leg on the top rope at 4:30. Sky hit a dropkick to Quicksilver’s back, and Quicksilver rolled to the floor in pain. Scorpio rolled him back in the ring, and he worked over Quicksilver’s neck, and he choked Quicksilver! Scorpio hit a guillotine legdrop on the ring apron. Quicksilver came back with a series of stiff forearms at 7:00, and the announcers speculated on when a “friendly exhibition” becomes a “heated contest.”

Scorpio hit a backbreaker over his knee. They traded stiff forearms, and Quicksilver hit some chops. Sky set up for a TKO, but he dropped Quicksilver over his knee, then Scorpio hit a flying knee to the head for a nearfall at 10:00. Sky hit some European Uppercuts, and he told the fans to look at his abs. (He is definitely acting heelish here.) Quicksilver hit a springboard forearm, and both men were down, and the crowd was hot. Quicksilver hit a nice enziguri and a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall, then a Snapmare Driver for a believable nearfall.

Scorpio Sky came back with an Eye of the Hurricane/swinging DDT, dropping Quicksilver across his knee for a nearfall at 12:30. Quicksilver flipped Scorpio to the floor. Quicksilver then dove over the top rope onto Scorpio on the floor. In the ring, Quicksilver hit a small package driver for a believable nearfall. Scorpio came back with an Evenflow DDT for a nearfall. Quicksilver hit a sitdown piledriver for a clean pinfall. Good back-and-forth action.

* Scorpio got on the mic again and thanked the fans, and the crowd chanted “Please come back!” Scorpio invited the women in the crowd to stare at his abs some more. Funny.

(4) Frankie Kazarian defeats Andy Simmonz at 15:52. Good action. Simmonz reminds me of Chad Collyer; he’s thick with a good physique, and he wore ugly red & blue pants, and it’s obvious the crowd hates him. (I hated the commentary on this match. The announcers kept saying Simmonz’ name in a gruff voice repeatedly. They obviously thought they were funny; I thought it was annoying.) The crowd chanted for Kazarian to “f--- him up.” Simmonz yelled at the crowd, and he’s getting great crowd heat. Kazarian hit his catapult basement dropkick in the corner at 3:30, and Simmonz stalled on the floor.

Simmonz grabbed the mic, but the crowd shouted him down. Kazarian applied an armbar, and he tugged on Simmonz’ nipples, to the crowd’s delight. Simmonz stomped on Kazarian, then he hit a clothesline and he celebrated. Simmonz was in control, and he hit a neckbreaker for a nearfall at 9:30. They traded rollups, and Simmonz hit a delayed vertical suplex for a nearfall. Kazarian came back with an enziguri, and both men were down at 12:00. They traded stiff forearms, and Kazarian hit a springboard DDT for a nearfall.

Simmonz hit a missile dropkick for a nearfall… and the crowd stood and began singing??? Not sure why. Simmonz hit a standing powerbomb for a nearfall, then a running Bulldog powerslam for a nearfall at 15:00. Kazarian hit a jump-up kick to the face as Simmonz sat on a turnbuckle. Kazarian then nailed a top-rope belly-to-belly suplex for the pin. Good crowd heat throughout this match.

* Kazarian got on the mic after the match and made fun of Simmonz.

(5) Joey Ryan defeated Jonny Storm at 15:19 to retain the PWG World Heavyweight Title. Ryan grabbed the mic and he made fun of the crowd, saying “they don’t speak American.” He poked fun at soccer, saying that, in the United States, soccer is “for women and fags.” The match began, but Ryan stalled. They locked up and rolled to the floor. Storm slapped Ryan in the face several times. Storm planted his knee in Ryan’s left arm. Storm hit a Japanese Armdrag off the second rope at 5:00.

Ryan dove through the ropes onto Storm on the floor! Back in the ring, Ryan hit a nice dropkick, then he choked Storm, yelled at the ref, and he was in control of the action. Storm came back with a wheelbarrow-into-a-DDT for a nearfall at 9:30. Storm hit a hurricanrana, and Ryan bailed. Storm flew through the ropes, caught Ryan, and he hit a DDT on the floor! Nice. In the ring, Storm hit a top-rope Reverse Rana at 11:30, and the crowd popped for the spot. Ryan came back with a Mafia Kick to the side of the head, then a Superkick for a believable nearfall.

They fought in the corner, where Ryan hit his second-rope swinging neckbreaker for a believable nearfall, and the crowd rallied behind Storm. Storm hit a modified Pedigree for a nearfall. There was a ref bump! Storm got a rollup for a visual pinfall, but there was no ref. Ryan hit a low blow, then he got some powder and he tossed it at Storm. Storm hit a Superkick, and Ryan bailed to the floor, where he got his title belt. Storm wrestled the belt away from Ryan; the ref saw Storm holding the belt, and he called for the bell. Disappointing finish to a pretty good match, but it keeps Ryan’s streak of cheating-to-retain-the-title matches going.

(6) Kevin Steen defeats El Generico at 18:45. Very good match. Steen jumped Generico at the bell, hitting some punches and a short-arm clothesline. Generico hit some nice armdrags. Steen hit some chops and he blew on his hand after one loud blow. Generico hit a Kidman Dropkick, and Steen bailed to the floor. Steen hit a Stunner as Generico tried a catapult move into the ring at 3:30. Steen took over, as he jawed with the fans, applied a modified Crippler Crossface, hit a senton and a doublestomp on the back for a nearfall at 7:30. The crowd rallied behind Generico.

Steen hit his flip guillotine legdrop for a nearfall. He tied Generico in the Tree of Woe, and he nailed a tumbleweed splash in the corner on Generico. Steen got his legs tied in the ropes, and Generico hit a Lionsault at 11:30, and both men were down. Generico hit some clotheslines and a leg lariat, then a backflip plancha dive to the floor, and the crowd chanted, “Holy sh--!” Generico then immediately nailed a top-rope summersault dive onto Steen. Generico began clutching his lower back in pain.

In the ring, Generico hit a frogsplash for a nearfall at 14:30. Steen blocked a Tornado DDT, and he hit a backbreaker for a nearfall. Generico hit an Exploder Suplex, flipping Steen into the corner turnbuckles. Steen went for a Swanton Bomb, but Generico got his knees up to block it! Generico then hit his Mafia Kick and a half-nelson suplex for a believable nearfall at 17:30. The crowd chanted, “This is awesome!” Steen hit a Death Valley Driver and a 450 Splash for a believable nearfall, and the crowd went nuts as Generico kicked out. Steen then nailed the Package Piledriver for the pin.

* The crowd gave these two a standing ovation. They shook hands, but Steen turned and clotheslined Generico.

(7) A.J. Styles defeats Jody Fleisch at 19:21. Excellent match, and my pick for match of the night. The crowd was hot and split, alternating chants between the wrestlers. They did some quick mat holds and had a standoff. The announcers are really treating this match seriously, calling the action! Joey applied a single-leg crab, but A.J. reached the ropes, and he rolled to the floor at 3:30. Jody tried a springboard moonsault in the ring, but Styles sidestepped it, and Styles hit some stiff forearms and a Kip Up Rana. Styles went for a Styles Clash already, but Jody avoided it.

Styles hit his hard dropkick to Fleisch’s chin, then Styles hit a plancha to the floor. In the ring, Styles was in control, hitting a backbreaker over his knee, then applying a sleeper, then a delayed vertical suplex for a nearfall at 7:00. The crowd began to rally behind Jody, who hit a flurry of kicks to the head and a headscissors takedown, slamming Styles’ head into the second turnbuckle. Fleisch went for a flying headscissors off the top rope, but he slammed awkwardly into Styles, and they both collapsed on the mat. Fleisch hit a Michinoku Driver for a nearfall and a leaping lariat then a guillotine legdrop as Styles was between the ropes.

Fleisch went for a springboard Shooting Star Press in the ring, but he landed on his feet. Fleisch then nailed a Shooting Star press to the floor at 10:30, and the crowd chanted, “Holy sh--!” Jody nailed a missile dropkick in the ring. Styles came back with a Pele Kick, and they were both down. They traded stiff forearms, and Styles hit a pumphandle gutbuster for a nearfall at 13:30, then he put Fleisch in a Torture Rack, and he spun Jody to the mat. Fleisch hit an enziguri, then a flipping back suplex, dropping Styles stomach-first to the mat for a nearfall.

Styles hit some headbutts, then the Phenomenon/flip-into-an-inverted DDT. Fleisch hit a springboard DDT and a running Shooting Star Press for a believable nearfall at 16:30, and the crowd chanted, “This is awesome!” They fought on the ropes, and Fleisch hit a jump-up hurricanrana for a believable nearfall. Styles fired back with a roaring clothesline, and they were both down. They traded rollups, and A.J. hit the Styles Clash for the clean pin. Excellent match.

* Styles got on the mic after the match and put Fleisch over. Styles hugged Fleisch.

(8) Super Dragon & Davey Richards defeat Scott Lost & Chris Bosh at 31:42 to retain the tag titles. Excellent back-and-forth match. Super Dragon and Bosh started, and they traded basic armdrags and mat holds. Super Dragon applied a crossarmbreaker. Richards tagged in, and he & Super Dragon took turns chopping Bosh. Richards applied a Konnan Tequila Sunrise, then he hit his hard right & left kicks. The announcers acknowledged that Richards made his PWG debut last April, and he’s closing in on one year with the company. Lost tagged in for the first time at 4:30, and the crowd was hot.

Richards applied an STF, but Lost made it to the ropes. Super Dragon tied up Lost’s legs, and Super Dragon kicked at Lost’s head! Richards applied a Boston Crab at 8:30. The champs tied Lost in the Tree of Woe; Super Dragon did the ‘Oh Canada’ groin stomp, while Richards hit a running basement dropkick to the face! Nice spot. In another cool spot, Richards put Lost in a Japanese Stranglehold at 11:30, and he bent Lost backward across Richards knees! Meanwhile, Super Dragon jumped off the top rope and hit a doublestomp on Lost! Nice.

Lost dove through the ropes onto Richards on the floor, and all four men were fighting. Lost & Bosh began to work over Richards, as Bosh hit a Fisherman’s Suplex at 15:00 for a nearfall. Lost hit a gutbuster over his knee. Bosh hit his low blow punch. Richards came back with a top-rope superplex on Lost at 20:00, and they were both down. Super Dragon made the hot tag, and he unloaded some stiff forearms, chops, and spine kicks, then a combination move where he hit a missile dropkick on Lost, while landing a senton on Bosh! Super Dragon hit a Curbstomp on Bosh at 22:30.

Lost hit a Northern Lights Suplex on Richards, then a Superkick on Dragon. Bosh hit a clothesline-into-a-backbreaker on Richards. Lost hit a gorilla press gutbuster on Richards. Super Dragon picked up Lost and powerbombed him into the turnbuckles! Super Dragon put Lost in a Crippler Crossface at 25:00. Richards hit an enziguri on Lost, and he went for a Shooting Star Press, but Lost blocked it. Lost then applied a Sharpshooter, but Richards reached the ropes. Lost hit an inverted Stunner on Richards. Super Dragon entered, and he hit some Kawada Kicks on Bosh, then a hard clothesline.

Richards & Super Dragon hit a team Lungblower for a believable nearfall at 30:00. Bosh hit a sunset flip powerbomb on Dragon, and Lost followed it up with a top-rope elbow drop for a nearfall. Lost and Richards did a suplex to the floor, leaving just Super Dragon vs. Bosh in the ring. Super Dragon hit a German Suplex, a Dragon Suplex, then a Psycho Driver, for the pin on Bosh.

* Several quick promos aired as DVD bonus material. Jonny Storm promised he’d win the title, Reyes assaulted a camera man, Kazarian thanked Disco Machine & Quicksilver for lending him some gear (this was good comedy), Spud was confused about whether his team won, Scorpio Sky mimicked Norman Smiley, and Kevin Steen vowed he’s win the title back in California.

Final thoughts: DVD runs 2 hours 42 minutes (including the six minutes of promos.) This was a very good show, and PWG should be proud of its two shows in Europe.

The first Ring of Honor show I saw in the fall of 2002 was the “Road to the Title.” It was my first time seeing Jody Fleisch. Ever since I saw that tape more than three years ago, I’ve looked forward to seeing Styles vs. Fleisch, and this match met my high expectations. The action was crisp and exciting, and Fleisch was on his game here.

The main event was hard-hitting and fun, and is a close second for best match. That said, with all the vicious bumps in this match, there was very little selling going on. Major spots that would have knocked out a wrestler in other matches were quickly recovered from here, and that’s a bit of a concern.

Steen-Generico was third-best, as those two always have good matches against each other. I wish I could have seen a fresh matchup, though. I really enjoyed Scorpio Sky-Quicksilver, and I liked how that match built, and I enjoyed the clean finish too; that match is fourth-best.

The rest of the show was good, as there were no matches I would consider ‘below average,’ but nothing in the undercard really stood out as something special, either.

The announcing was (surprisingly!) good, for the most part. As a whole, I think the PWG commentary team has tried to be a bit more serious, while still mixing in their rambling jokes. That said… watch the Simmonz-Kazarian match without commentary, or you’ll hear the annoying “Andy SIMMMMMONNNZ!!” repeatedly. Overkill.

This DVD introduced me to a lot of top wrestlers in England, and I enjoyed the show, and it earned a thumbs up from me. Purchase this DVD at www.prowrestlingguerrilla.com for $15.

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