By Chris Vetter

Pro Wrestling Guerrilla held the “DD4 tag tournament” in May 2007, featuring eight of the best indy tag teams in the United States. This is a review of “night 1” of the tournament, from May 19, 2007. Thus, there are 4 first-round tag matches, along with several non-tournament singles matches.

The first thing that stuck out to me is this venue is a new one for PWG; it is a large gym with a really high ceiling, and a second-floor running track. As per usual, a commentary track is available, and viewers must choose to turn that on. Commentary is provided by two wrestlers, Excalibur & Disco Machine. They provide plenty of banter. I think they’ve improved a lot in the last couple of years, as they figure out the proper balance between telling stories and calling the action.

No backstage segments, so we head right to the ring!

(1) Don Fuji defeats Stalker Ichikawa Z at 7:27. A fun comedy match opener. Stalker is an Asian man in what appears to be a bat costume. Fuji is much thicker, in good shape, and wore simple black pants. Fuji hit a big shoulder tackle. Stalker did some comedy stuff; I think he threw some foam ninja stars. Fuji hit some chops and he tossed Stalker around, and he hit a sideslam for a nearfall, then some spine kicks at 2:30. Ichikawa fired back with a drop-toe-hold onto the ropes, and he hit a 619. Stalker crotched Ichikawa around the ringpost, and he asked a fan to grab Fuji’s other leg and help him. Funny spot.

Fuji whipped Stalker into the crowd and into the empty chairs. Fuji hit some chairshots to the back on the floor, and more in the ring. Ichikawa came back with a hurricanrana that sent Fuji onto a pile of chairs. Stalker hit a flying throat thrust at 6:00, then a top-rope diving blow to the rear. Ichikawa hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip and a Shining Wizard. Stalker grabbed a chair, swung and missed, and the chair hit the top rope, bounced back, and knocked Ichikawa out. You’ve seen it done many times before, but Stalker was pretty funny as he knocked himself out. Fuji made the cover. Good comedy.

(2) Round 1: Jay & Mark Briscoe defeat Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli (the Kings of Wrestling) at 17:52. Very good tag match. The KoW are faces here. Claudio and Mark started with an intense lockup and some mat reversals. Excalibur talked about how Quicksilver recently suffered a concussion, and he may retire, so the tag belts were vacated. Claudio applied a cross-armbreaker, and Mark got to the ropes. Mark hit some chops. Claudio hit 10 consecutive European Uppercuts in the corner. Claudio hit a second-rope elbowdrop for a nearfall, and Mark bailed at 3:00. Jay tagged in to face Hero, and Hero applied a chinlock/modified Camel Clutch. Hero did his series of kip-ups, then he hit a dropkick. Jay hit a nice hurricanrana at 5:30.

Hero hit a dropkick for a nearfall. Disco Machine on commentary pointed out that the KoW have never won the PWG tag titles. Mark hit a gutwrench suplex and a springboard senton on Claudio for a nearfall. The KoW hit double bodyslams and guillotine legdrops. The Briscoes missed double planchas to the floor. The KoW hit a team Mafia Kick for a nearfall in the ring on Jay. Hero hit his rolling thunder senton for a nearfall, and the KoW did a wishbone on Jay’s legs. Claudio nailed his Giant Swing for a nearfall at 9:00. The Briscoes began to hit some quick team moves, and they hit a team bulldog on Claudio. The Briscoes hit double chops, then they gave Claudio a double hiptoss, and they started to dominate. Jay hit a nice dropkick for a nearfall.

Mark hit a catapult doublestomp on Claudio, then a basement dropkick to his head, and the crowd started to rally for Castagnoli. Claudio hit a second-rope diving European Uppercut, and they were both down at 14:00. Hero got the hot tag, and he hit a chokeslam on Mark, then a leg-capture suplex on Jay, then he gave Mark a powerslam onto Jay. Claudio hit a European Uppercut as Hero hit a German Suplex, for a nearfall! Nice team spot. Mark fired back with a second-rope moonsault press on Hero. The Briscoes hit a double football shoulder tackle on Hero, then the team standing neckbreaker on Hero for a nearfall at 16:00.

Hero and Claudio hit Mafia Kicks on Mark, and they dropped his neck on the ropes. All four men were fighting. Claudio hit his top-rope snap headscissors takedown on Jay. Jay fired back with a hurricanrana on Claudio. Jay hit a stunner and a Gordbuster. The Briscoe then hit a springboard Doomsday Clothesline on Hero, and Jay made the cover, for the pin. Sharp tag match.

(3) TJ Perkins defeats Bino Gambino at 15:35. Solid match. My first time seeing Bino in perhaps a year, and he wore yellow pants. TJ Perkins now has red hair on the very top of his head, making me think of the Red Rooster. They opened with an instense lockup, and they hit slaps to the face. The announcers talked about Bino recently returning from Mexico. TJ hit a spine kick. The announcers were really hard to hear over the background sounds. They traded basic mat reversals. Gambino missed a Lionsault, and they had a standoff at 4:30. Gambino hit a shoulder tackle. Perkins had a cool fake dive to the floor. Gambino stalled on the floor and jawed at the camera.

Back in the ring, Perkins applied a hammerlock, and he twisted the left wrist, and the crowd was fairly quiet. Perkins hit a European Uppercut, but he missed a top-rope crossbody block at 7:30. Gambino hit a butterfly suplex-into-a-backbreaker over his knees, and he choked Perkins. Gambino hit a snap suplex and an elbow drop for a nearfall. He planted his knee in Perkins' lower back, and he jawed at the fans. Perkins nailed an enziguri at 11:30, and they were both down. They traded punches, and Perkins hit a flying elbow drop, and he was fired up!

Perkins hit a nice Tornado DDT for a nearfall. Gambino hit a Stunner over his knee for a nearfall. Perkins came back with a hard enziguri, a brainbuster, and a 450 Splash for a believable nearfall at 14:00. (I really thought that was it!) Perkins hit some right & left kicks. Gambino hit an enziguri and a Lionsault for a believable nearfall. Gambino grabbed a hockey stick from the corner, and he swung it at Perkins; TJ ducked, got a rollup, and scored the pin. Solid, but it never moved to the next level.

(4) Round 1: Rocky Romero & Ricky Reyes (the Havana Pitbulls) defeat Josh Abercrombie & Nate Webb (the Trailer Park Boys) at 14:54. Good match. Webb and Reyes started, with Ricky working a headlock and some armdrags, then a kneedrop on the left arm. The Pitbulls hit a double shoulder tackle on Abercrombie at 3:00. Romero hit a hard kick to the thigh. Abercrombie missed a Lionsault. Romero got an anklelock on Josh, then a hard kick to the chest. Webb nailed his spinning Arachnid Kick (the announcers didn't know the name for it) on Reyes for a nearfall. The Trailer Boy Parks were in charge, taking turns beating up Reyes. Josh hit a kneedrop to the chest and a Lionsault for a nearfall at 7:00, but Romero made the save.

Webb applied a half-crab, then he hit a rolling Tumbleweed in the corner, then a diving crossbody block. Abercrombie hit his Catapult Basement Dropkick in the corner for a nearfall. Reyes fought back with some hard chops, but he couldn't make the hot tag. Reyes hit a nice hangman's swinging neckbreaker, and they were both down at 9:30. Romero made the hot tag, and he hit a springboard dropkick on Webb, then a dropkick to the side of Webb's head, then a double dropkick on both opponents. Romero flipped Webb onto Josh, then Rocky applied an Octopus on BOTH men. Cool spot!

Webb couldn't hit the Soilent Green is People/swinging facebuster. Romero hit a double 818 (619) on his opponents, then some more right & left kicks on Webb. Webb hit a swinging facebuster on Romero for a nearfall. Reyes made the hot tag, and he nailed some forearms on Webb and a backbreaker over his knee. The Pitbulls hit a top-rope elevated kneedrop! OUCH! Reyes hit an enziguri and a back suplex on Abercrombie for a nearfall at 14:00. However, Reyes couldn't get the Dragon Sleeper locked on. Romero hit a dive to the floor on Webb. In the ring, Reyes hit a decapitating clothesline on Abercrombie, and this time he got the Dragon Sleeper locked on, and Josh tapped out.

(5) Bryan Danielson vs. CIMA ended in a 30-minute draw. They opened with an intense lockup and some clean breaks. They traded armlocks and had a standoff at 2:00. They traded offense in a knucklelock. Danielson landed a hard European Uppercut and he celebrated. Danielson tied up the head & shoulder on the mat at 5:00, and he tied up CIMA's legs and fell backward for pressure. CIMA hit a hard kick to the thigh, and Danielson collapsed and stalled. CIMA applied a half-crab, and Danielson reached the ropes; the crowd POPPED for CIMA's quick, fluid moves here. CIMA applied a modified Figure Four Leglock at 8:30.

Danielson hit some hard European Uppercuts. CIMA hit a running dropkick to the rear, and he sent Danielson into the ringpost. CIMA tied up Danielson in a knot, and he got a rollup for a nearfall. Danielson hit a running knee to the chest, then he applied a Surfboard at 11:30. Danielson cranked on the head, and he reminded the ref that he "has til 5" to let go. Danielson hit some more European Uppercuts, then he applied a cross-armbreaker and a keylock, and he focused on CIMA's shoulder. Danielson applied a headscissorslock, and he stomped on the shoulder, and CIMA screamed in pain. CIMA got a small package rollup for a nearfall at 15:30. Danielson ripped at the face, and he applied a Stretch Plum, and he turned it into a nice Dragon Sleeper, but CIMA reached the ropes.

Danielson hit some forearms and punches, and he was quite violent! CIMA fought back with a Lungblower, a bodyslam, a running dropkick, and a plancha, and they were both down on the floor at 18:30. Danielson hit a nice backbreaker over his knee, then the top-rope diving headbutt for a nearfall, but Danielson was hobbling. They traded rollups, and they were both down. CIMA hit a back suplex and a running double knees, then an Iconoclasm/top-rope flip slam. CIMA nailed a hooked-leg suplex for a nearfall, and he went for a frogsplash, but Danielson got his knees up to block it, and they were both down at 22:00.

Danielson hit a running dropkick to the floor, then he dove through the ropes to the floor! Back in the ring, CIMA hit a hard slap to the face. Danielson applied the Crossface Chickenwing! However, CIMA powered out. Danielson hit a sudden German Suplex with a bridge for a nearfall, and he was fired up! Danielson hit a spine kick, and he applied the Cattle Mutilation/double armbar, but CIMA reached the ropes at 25:00. Danielson hit a nice European Uppercut. CIMA got some quick rollups for some nearfalls, and he hit a superkick, then the Schwein/Air Raid Crash for a believable nearfall, and the crowd was HOT.

CIMA hit a coast-to-coast missile dropkick! However, he couldn't hit a second Schwein. Danielson hit some repeated elbow shots to the head, and he got a believable nearfall. They traded blows while on their knees. They fought on the top rope in the corner, where Danielson hit a top-rope back suplex! They were both down. Danielson again applied the Cattle Mutilation, but CIMA held on, until the time limit expired (at 30:00 even!). Fans chanted, "That was awesome!", then "Five more minutes!" The men shook hands, and fans chanted, "PWG!" Excellent, excellent match.

(6) Round 1: Yoshino & Naruki Doi (Muscle Outlaws) defeat Chris Bosh & Scott Lost (Arrogance) (w/Jade Chung) at 18:20. Good tag match. Lost got on the mic and said that because the Japanese guys couldn't understand him, he wanted to say that he had sex with both of their mothers. Doi wore trunks; Yoshino wore black pants. Doi and Bosh started with an intense lockup, and they traded chops, kicks, and shoulder tackles. Doi got some quick covers, and they had a standoff. Lost and Yoshino entered at 1:30, and they traded quick reversals. Lost hit a spin heel kick. Yoshino hit a nice dropkick to the chest. The Dragon Gate guys hit a double dropkick on Lost, and they worked over Lost. Yoshino applied a modified Figure Four Leglock, and Lost reached the ropes at 4:30.

The Dragon Gate team did a wishbone on Lost's legs. Yoshino hit a second-rope guillotine legdrop, then a basement dropkick to the groin. Yoshino and Lost traded HARD chops, and Lost hit a Londonsault dropkick. Lost hit a stunner on Yoshino across Bosh's knee! Bosh slowed Yoshino down with a headlock, then he hit a nice Northern Lights suplex for a nearfall at 8:00. Bosh hit a drop-toe-hold on Yoshino onto Lost's knee. Lost hit a nice snap suplex for a nearfall, and he applied a bodyscissorslock around the chest. Bosh got several rollups. Lost missed a spear in the corner. Yoshino slammed Lost hard to the mat, and he made the hot tag to Doi at 11:00.

Doi beat up both Arrogance members, and he hit a tumbleweed on Bosh. Doi and Bosh traded stiff forearms, and Doi hit a nice DDT for a nearfall. Bosh hit a clotheline over his knee on Doi. Lost hit a spear. Yoshino got in and his a missile dropkick, NAILING Lost in the chest. Lost hit a hard mule kick to Yoshino's face for a nearfall at 14:00! OUCH! Yoshino applied a nice mid-ring Octopus, then he hit a Sunset Flip Powerbomb. Doi hit a top-rope elbowdrop for a believable nearfall on Lost, but Bosh made the save. Bosh got in and hit a stunner.

Lost hit a Northern Lights suplex into a backbreaker on Bosh's knee for a nearfall, then Lost hit a top-rope elbow drop for a nearfall. Bosh hit a low-blow punch on Doi at 16:30! Doi hit a second-rope back suplex on Bosh, then a top-rope flip senton. However, Jade Chung tripped Doi. Lost accidentally hit Jade! Doi hit a plancha on Lost. Yoshino hit a swinging back suplex on Bosh. Yoshino tied up both of Bosh's arms in a submission hold, and Bosh tapped out. Very good tag match.

(7) Joey Ryan defeats Ronin at 11:18. In this match, Joey Ryan's long hair is on the line, against Ronin's spot in the "BOLA" tournament. Ronin is heavy, wears a red outfit and mask, and just doesn't do much for me. Ryan stalled at first. Ronin hit some forearms. They went to the floor, and Ronin hit some chops. Back in the ring, Ryan hit a Mafia Kick at 2:30, then some stomps and kicks to the gut. Ryan hit a kneedrop to the face, and he started to untie Ronin's mask (that would matter later!) Ronin hit some overhead chops, then he climbed over Ryan and hit some punches to the face at 6:00.

Ronin hit a hard clothesline for a nearfall, an exploder, and a swinging neckbreaker for a nearfall. Ryan dove through the ropes onto Ronin, and they were both down on the floor. Ryan hit a Tornado DDT on the floor at 8:30. Ryan hit a powerbomb in the ring for a nearfall. Ronin came back with a second-rope swinging neckbreaker for a nearfall, then a running forearm. Ryan hit two Superkicks, but he only got a one-count! Ronin hit a Death Valley Driver for a nearfall. The crowd was fairly quiet. Ryan hit a low-blow mule kick, then he ripped off Ronin's mask! Ryan got a rollup for the pin, and Ronin was so busy hiding his face, he didn't kick out! The crowd booed this finish. Nothing special here at all.

* Joey Ryan got on the mic, and he held up Ronin's mask like it was a prize. Scorpio Sky hopped in the ring, and the crowd popped! Ryan was upset, and he asked Scorpio where he was, when Ryan lost his PWG World Heavyweight title. "You are a worthless piece of sh!t," Ryan said. Scorpio attacked Ryan at this point, and he tossed him to the floor. Entertaining angle.

(8) Round 1: Roderick Strong & PAC defeat Davey Richards & Super Dragon at 30:46. Excellent tag match. The backstory here is that Richards and Super Dragon used to be tag champs, they feuded for a while, but they are now back on the same page. Richards and Strong started, with Richards jawing at the crowd and stalling, and he spit at Strong. They traded some intense reversals, but Richards stalled again at 4:30, and the crowd taunted him. Strong hit an armdrag. PAC finally got in to face Super Dragon. Super Dragon distracted PAC, then he immediately hit some forearms! Super Dragon put PAC in the Rowboat at 8:00.

PAC hit a hurricanrana, a Londonsault dropkick, and he faked a dive onto Super Dragon. PAC hit some armdrags on Richards. Strong entered and hit some LOUD chops on Richards at 10:30. PAC hit a nice backbody drop on Richards for a nearfall. Strong hit a nice dropkick for a nearfall on Richards. PAC hit a jumping sidekick. Strong hit a chokeslam, then he flipped PAC onto Richards. However, Richards dropped PAC gut-first across the top rope at 13:30, and the heels began to take over on PAC. Super Dragon hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker over his knee for a nearfall, then a back suplex for a nearfall then a doublestomp to the chest at 16:00.

Richards hit a snap suplex and a kneedrop to PAC's face. Super Dragon nailed the Curbstomp! OUCH! Richards hit a backbreaker over his knee. Super Dragon put PAC in the Tree of Woe, and he stomped on PAC's groin at 19:30. Super Dragon tied PAC in a pendulum and rammed PAC's head into the bottom turnbuckle. Richards hit a gutwrench suplex for a earfall, then some spin kicks to the chest. PAC hit a sunset flip powerbomb on Richards, and they were both down. Strong finally made the hot tag at 22:30, and he hit a leg lariat. Richards went for his handspring-back-enziguri, but Strong caught him with a dropkick. PAC flipped over the top rope onto his opponents on the floor.

In the ring, Strong flipped Pac onto Super Dragon. Roderick applied the Stronghold/vertical Boston Crab on Super Dragon. Richards hit a top-rope release German Suplex on PAC! Super Dragon hit a top-rope doublestomp on Strong's gut for a nearfall at 26:00. Strong hit an enziguri and a slingshot suplex. PAC hit a 450 Splash for a nearfall on Richards, but Super Dragon made the save. Strong hit a back suplex on Super Dragon. Super Dragon hit a decapitating clothesline on PAC, and all four men were down, and the crowd was HOT!

PAC hit a Reverse Rana on Super Dragon. Richards hit a Flair Toss on PAC at 29:00. PAC hit a top-rope Rana on Richards for a nearfall. Strong hit the Gorilla Press Gutbuster over his knees on Richards. PAC hit a Shooting Star Press on a standing Richards for a nearfall, but Super Dragon made the save. Strong hit a plancha on Super Dragon. PAC missed a Phoenix Splash/corkscrew press, but he landed on his feet. Richards nailed the Alarm Clock/flip-up kick to the chest on PAC. Suddenly, PAC got a rollup on Richards for the pin! Good match, although the extended 2-on-1 beatdown on PAC for about nine minutes went too long.

* Super Dragon beat up the referee. Davey Richards and Super Dragon glared at each other, and I expected Super Dragon to attack his partner. Instead, Richards shoved Super Dragon, and Davey rolled out of the ring and left by himself.

(9) El Generico defeats Kevin Steen at 17:08 to retain the PWG World Heavyweight title. Another excellent match, and these two know each other quite well. Steen attacked Generico and hit a powerbomb on the ring apron, and he immediately got a nearfall in the ring. Steen hit a neckbreaker over his knee. Generico fired back with a Mafia Kick and a flip dive over the top rope. In the ring, Generico hit a leg lariat, and he went for a Tornado DDT, but Steen blocked it, and Kevin turned it into a backbreaker! Steen hit a senton for a nearfall. Excalibur on commentary said these two have met twice in singles matches in PWG, with each having won once.

Steen hit some chops, and he choked Generico, and he was in charge. Steen slammed Generico's head on the ring apron at 4:30. In the ring, Steen hit a catapult doublestomp onto the chest, and he celebrated. Steen dropped Generico gut-first on the top rope, then he hit a powerslam for a nearfall. Steen hit some chops on the floor, and he jawed alot. Steen slammed Generico's head into the ring post at 8:00. Generico fired up, and he hit some chops as they continued to brawl on the floor. In the ring, Steen wrapped Generico around his back and hit a modified DVD for a nearfall, then some more chops & foreams and a clothesline in the corner.

Generico hit a Mafia Kick in the corner at 10:30, then some clotheslines and a Tornado DDT for a nearfall, but he couldn't hit the half-nelson suplex. Generico hit a Blue Thunder bomb for a nearfall. Steen couldn't hit the Package Piledriver, but he nailed a standing powerbomb for a nearfall at 13:00. Steen hit a frogsplash for a nearfall, but he missed a top-rope moonsault. Generico hit an Exploder Suplex into the corner for a nearfall. They fought on the top rope, and Steen hit the Turnbuckle Brainbuster (Generico's move!) for a nearfall at 16:00! "El Generico kicks out of his own finishing maneuver!" Excalibur exclaimed.

Steen against went for the Package Piledriver, but Generico avoided it. Generico finally hit the half-nelson suplex, then he nailed the Package Piledriver (Steen's move!) on Kevin for the clean pin. Cool, fun finishing sequence, and the crowd was hot!

Final thoughts: DVD runs 3 hours, 6 minutes.

This was another excellent wrestling show from PWG. With three hours of action, there is some good wrestling here for everyone.

I'll go with CIMA-Danielson for my match of the show. It might be the best non-ROH match I saw from 2007. Collectively, they were outside the ring for maybe 45 seconds; the rest of the time, they exchanged good reversals in the ring. CIMA is so fluid and fun to watch, and Danielson steps up, night after night.

I'll go with the main event as second-best. Generico and Steen really benefit from having worked (with and) against each other over the years. Sharp match, and I liked the finish of each man hitting the other's finishers.

PAC/Strong vs. Richards/Super Dragon was a sharp tag match. As I noted above, I think the beatdown on PAC went a bit long, but this was still an excellent match. I don't know if PAC & Strong had tagged before, but I doubt it. Strong seems to excel with a smaller teammate though, like his prior tag partner Jack Evans.

I'll give the Briscoes vs. the Kings of Wrestling fourth-best match. Again, this was another impressive tag match, and these four click in the ring.

What didn't work for me: Ryan vs. Ronin didn't deserve to be so late on this show. Ronin hits hard, but it seems like he moves at three-quarters speed. I'm just not a fan. I liked the team of Abercrombie & Webb, but they were in a tough spot, serving as last-minute replacements for Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley. The crowd just never seemed to believe that the Trailer Park Boys were a threat to win their match. The opener isn't anything I'll watch again anytime soon, but it did a good job of getting the crowd going.

My biggest frustration with PWG has nothing to do with the wrestling. No doubt, the quality of the wrestling is superb. However, on this release, Disco Machine & Excalibur seemed to be mumbling A LOT on commentary. Their voices often barely stood out above the in-ring noise.

I am a big fan of PWG, and I think the quality of their DVDs have substantially improved in the last couple of years. Aside from ROH, no other promotion in the United States provides this high level of action, match for match, across an entire show. To move to the next level, they need to improve some smaller things, like recording backstage promos and focus more on storylines.All that said, this is a very good wrestling show, and it gets an enthusiastic thumbs up from me. Purchase this DVD at www.prowrestlingguerrilla.com.

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