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'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elite

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‘The Young Bucks: Five Stars’ Disc two review: Better than Elite

Disc two shows the brutal, funny, and spot-fest sides of the Bucks.

Disc one of The Young Bucks: Five Stars showed the Bucks on the road to becoming one of the best teams in the world. It also set a high bar that the second disc may have not be able to live up to.'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than EliteGuerilla Warfare Match for the PWG Tag Team Titles vs Super Dragon and Kevin Steen (FEAR 12.10.2011): Lots of storylines here. Years earlier, Steen and Dragon had a violent feud. After the feud both men went their own separate ways and had distinguished PWG careers. The Bucks had been terrorizing Steen for years and at the previous PWG event had cost him the PWG belt. Afterwards, they challenged him to a Guerilla Warfare match. Dragon made his return after three years, said he would be Steen’s partner, and we have a match.

Despite going almost thirty minutes, there isn’t much to this match. At one point, Steen no sells a chair shot to the back which Excalibur explains is due to Steen’s “layer of polar bear fat since he is preparing to hibernate.” For the first time on either disc, we get the dueling, “Fuck the Young Bucks/Let’s Go Young Bucks” chants. Unnecessarily brutal finish as Steen sticks Matt’s head on a chair and Dragon comes off the top with a double stomp. Matt is done but Steen sets up for the package piledriver and Dragon comes off the top with another double stomp for a sick spike package piledriver. Match was garbage wrestling with way too many unprotected headshots.'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than EliteNo DQ Match for the vacant PWG Tag Team Titles vs. Super Smash Bros. (Death to All but Metal 5.25.2012): The titles are vacant since Dragon was injured. I’m not going to lie, I don’t know the difference between a Guerilla Warfare and No DQ match.

Match starts outside of the ring and seems like it’s going to be another garbage match. Then it gets inside the ring. Uno goes to slam Matt on Stupefied’s (Player Dos) knee but instead does it on a chair and VICTORY POSE! Stupe looks a little like Christian and acts like his doppelgänger as the SSBs hit a midsection Conchairto on Nick. Stupe goes to the outside and goes for a springboard something on Nick who is across the ring and just flings a chair that stops Stupe. Steen is on commentary and notes how the Bucks went from two nice boys who liked to imitate the Hardys to assholes who play air guitar with everything. On cue, the Bucks take off their shirts followed by Nick hitting Poetry in Motion on Uno. The Bucks go for a double chair shot on Uno who ducks, followed by a Matrix dodge by Stupe who Pele kicks the chairs into them both. Cool.

Table gets set up outside the ring. Before anyone can go through it, the Bucks regain control as Matt goes for a corkscrew stunner off the top on Uno. Uno blocks it but gets kicked by Nick for his troubles then caught with an assisted Sliced Bread #2 and a superkick by Nick again for two. Meanwhile, Matt jumps to the top and DDTs Stupe who is STANDING ON THE APRON. Incredible. The SSBs follow up this insanity with a spike tombstone piledriver on the apron. This is nuts.

More Bang for Your Buck blocked and the SSBs hit the GET OVER HERE! suplex on Matt over the top rope through the table outside. Steen says what everyone is thinking: HOLY. FUCKING. SHIT.

SSBs hit the Fatality on Nick and have the titles won before Matt pulls out referee Rick Knox and superkicks him. More Bang for Your Buck on Stupe but there is no ref. Junior referee Justin Borden comes out but Knox pulls him out at two. Matt takes out Fat Butthead and throws Knox in the ring. Nick holds Knox for a Matt superkick but Knox ducks and nails Matt with a clothesline. Fatality on Matt and it’s over.

The SSBs have innovative offense but need a new gimmick or are stuck in the indies. I questioned putting these two teams in a No DQ match, but they made it work. If you are going to do a spot fest, then DO a spot fest.

Three Way Ladder Match for the PWG Tag Team Titles vs. Future Shock and Super Smash Bros. (C) (Threemendous III 7.21.2012): Yes, it’s time for that match. Possibly the most famous moment in PWG history. Action begins outside the ring as the guy Steen calls Terminator fan does a wacky dance. Way too much craziness as the camera can’t keep track of everything. The Bucks eventually end up in the ring alone leaving Excalibur to exclaim, “What the fuck?!?”

Bucks head back to the outside and Cole looks to wheelbarrow suplex Matt on the side of the ring. Nick holds Matt to stop it so Stupe leaps over the top rope along with Cole and Matt and wipes out Nick. O’Reilly with the first attempt up the ladder but gets stopped. Unique spot as O’Reilly and Stupe fight over a suplex so Nick just wedges a ladder between them and nails them both.

And then it happens. A moving picture is worth a thousand words.

The Bucks start to take over with their awesome team offense and even the fans who hated them are now cheering. Future Shock obliterate Nick before the SSBs slam Cole on a ladder and VICTORY POSE! Sick spot as Uno holds O’Reilly over two chairs that have been placed back to back and Stupe leaps from the top with a knee.

The Bucks now take charge as Nick is bleeding. Nick does the Terry Funk ladder spot, taking out everyone, including Knox! As he is spinning around celebrating, he accidentally takes out Matt before Uno takes him out with a Falcon Punch. Knox is split open and being escorted out.

Indytaker on Cole, but Uno takes out the Bucks. Fans help him set up a table outside the ring. He tries to throw out Cole, but Future Shock takes over and hits Chasing the Dragon on a chair. They go for double clothesline on Stupe who Matrix dodges then runs up a pair of ladders to hit two Peles.

Stupe sets up another table inside the ring but the YBs place him on it. The Bucks climb ladders but before they can do anything, Future Shock knocks Nick into the crowd and superplexes Matt off the ladder through the table!

Future Shock are now out and the SSBs sandwich Cole in a ladder and stand it up in a corner. GET OVER HERE! Suplex to O’Reilly into the ladder! Future Shock are dead and the SSBs go for the Fatality on Matt but Nick comes in for the save and ends up frog splashing O’Reilly through the table that was outside the ring. This match is crazy.

Cole is still trapped in the ladder and Bucks decide to have a Superkick party. They are just about to grab the belts when Knox runs in and pushes them off. The SSBs look for stereo dives but Knox stops them and does a no hands somersault tope con hilo! Cole is still trapped in the ladder and the SSBs take the belts in one of the greatest ladder matches ever.'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elitevs. Dojobros (Mystery Vortex 12.1.12): Steen on commentary talks about the problems he has had with the Bucks in the past but says they are pretty funny guys. Interesting.

Straightforward old school tag match. Bucks go for a double superkick on Roddy and a series of counters involving all four men ends with Eddie Edwards and Nick down. For the first time on the set, we see an example of the lack of selling Bucks detractors always complain about. Roddy has Matt in the Stronghold (basically, a Boston Crab), Nick sets up for a superkick which Roddy catches and turns into another Stronghold. However, Matt immediately gets up and kicks Roddy in the face. Five years and twelve matches in, the Bucks use some pretty egregious no selling. The Internet is right: The Young Bucks suck.

The Bucks pay for this heinous act shortly after when the DojoBros win after a double stomp off the top on Matt gets the pin.

'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elite

Three Way Ladder Match for the PWG Tag Team Titles vs. Dojobros and Inner City Machine Guns (Ten 8.9.2013): Steen doing color again. The challengers go straight for the Bucks and toss Nick into the first row. Matt is thrown in to a corner and is clotheslined by Ricochet, then Rich Swann, then Roddy, ending with a chop from Edwards. Matt is literally howling in pain.

Even though he is young, you can tell Ricochet has something special. The YBs pull out a gigantic ladder that is so high it almost touches the ceiling. Nick climbs up one side and Swann climbs up the other. Contrived but admittedly funny back rake spot which leads Steen to say, “All that for this?”

Action is impossible to follow. The gigantic ladder from early is broken but Ricochet still climbs it causing the fans to chant, “It’s not safe!” Matt tips the ladder and as O’Shea falls backwards he springboards off the top and does a moonsault to the floor. Insane.

Matt proceeds to climb the broken ladder and now the fans are chanting, “Still not safe!” For the second time, Swann yells, “Come on baby!” and Steen yells back, “Break the walls down!”

The Dojos and the Bucks have a nice sequence that ends with End of Heartache and a double stomp off the top from Edwards on Matt. Ricochet sets up the giant ladder in the corner climbs to the top and dives through with a DDT. He follows that by running through it and diving over the corner, the ladder that is right outside and Nick and Swann her are fighting on top of it. That looked scary.

Nick adds to the mayhem but hitting the Murder Death Kill bomb from the ladder through a table on Swann. Indytaker on Richochet with Nick coming off the top of the ladder and the fans who were so noisy are now silent. The Bucks and Dojo have another awesome exchange.

The crowd seems genuinely worried now. The tall ladder is set up again. Roddy gets Swann in a Canadian backbreaker and Edwards comes off of the tall ladder with a double stomp. Nick ends the madness and thankfully no one dies.

with Adam Cole vs. AR Fox, Rich Swann, & Candice LaRae (BOLA 2013 N2 8.30.13): In two years, Cole has become a heel and PWG champion.  He and the Bucks form the ultra-charismatic heel stable Mount Rushmore.

The match starts with AR Fox and Matt, before quick tags to Swann and Cole. Cole refuses to lock up and points at Candice and says, “Give me the whore.” Something tells me we won’t see that in NXT.

Candice is tagged in and charges at Cole. Ground and pound followed by a reverse DDT! Cole backs off and tags in Nick. He offers a handshake and when Candice turns to the crowd he slaps her across the face. Rushmore celebrates before Candice comes back with a nice rana. The heels proceed to take over on Swann. This combo is much better than the Elite.

The faces make a short comeback before Cole clotheslines Candice for our second heat segment. Cool spot as each member of Rushmore tag in and twist Candice’s hair which ends with Nick coming off the top with a double stomp. After months of Cole saying awful things, Candice tells him something that sounds like “Soccer Kick” and makes the hot tag.

Match breaks down at this point. There are lots of spots and Swann and Fox seem to have problems keeping up. Things pick up when it gets down to Cole and Candice. Rushmore take out Fox and Swann and Candice rolls into the ring. The crowd goes deathly silent. Triple superkick on Candice, followed by a sick triple team that leads to the pin. Decent match.

Lots of people complain about intergender matches, but Candice more than held her own. On the other hand, Fox is awkward and uncoordinated.'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elitewith Kevin Steen vs. AR Fox, Rich Swann, & Ricochet (All Star Weekend X N1 12.20.2013): Steen is dressed just like the Bucks and does some air guitar with them before the match.

Match breaks down and this version of Rushmore (again, better than the Elite) each powerbomb a member of the opposing team on the apron. They roll back in the ring and the Bucks play air guitar while Steen is on drums.

Heels cut the ring in half and work over Ricochet. Match is going along fine until Fox comes in. Not only is he awkward, he makes goofy faces. Swann gets tagged in and he is incredibly fast. Fans only seem to care about Ricochet on the face team. Ricochet is unbelievably smooth.

Match ends after a Package Piledriver into a More Bang for Your Fuck. Parts with Ricochet were great.'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than EliteGuerilla Warfare Match for the PWG Tag Team Titles vs World’s Cutest Tag Team (Eleven 7.26.2014): You may have heard of this match. Bucks in Bullet Club gear for the first time.

Candice puts on a Super Dragon mask and invites Nick to a Violence Party. Funny start to the match. Matt is outside the ring and every time he gets up, someone either dives on him or is thrown at him from the ring.

The Bucks eventually isolate Candice and do a great job of keeping Joey Ryan down. Crowd is actually behind the YBs. Nick brings a bag into the ring, but before he can open it, Ryan switches it out, revealing gummy bears.

The comedy doesn’t last long, as Nick launches a chair straight into Candice’s face. The match goes back and forth before Nick kills Candice with a superkick. In a crazy spot, the Bucks nail Candice with an Indytaker on the floor. That should have been the end of her career.

And now, things get really sick. Nick finds the bag which is filled with thumbtacks. They give Ryan a mouthful of tacks and nail him with a superkick! But it gets worse. The Bucks get a shoe whose sole is covered in thumbtacks. A bloody Candace has somehow rolled into the ring and she gets destroyed with a superkick!

'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elite

Disc 2 Thoughts: This disc showed a different side to the Bucks. There are brawls, spot fests, comedy, and the more sadistic side of the team is shown. The match quality takes a hit, but are also more action packed. The ladder matches are insane and some of PWG’s most famous moments are here.

Overall Thoughts: This is a great collection. For whatever reason, the Bucks have never been able to shake the perception that they are little more than spot monkeys that do not know psychology. This set refutes that as the brothers wrestle different types of matches and tailor their psychology accordingly. Of course, those same people would never watch this set either, which is a shame. There are some really fun matches here.

And for those who think WWE is the end all and be all of pro wrestling, this set included the Bucks, Akira Tozawa, Cesaro, Candice LaRae, Ricochet, Kassius Ohno, Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Karl Anderson, and 75% of The Undisputed Era. Just sayin’.

If you’d like more wrestling news, opinions and hot takes, check out our weekly podcast, Poor Taste Wrestling. New episodes are available every Friday, where we break down Raw, SmackDown Live, NXT and more every week. You can also follow us on Twitter @AiPTwrestling for up-to-the-minute news and opinions.

'The Young Bucks: Five Stars' Disc two review: Better than Elite
The Young Bucks: Five Stars (Disc Two)
Is it good?
Showcasing another side to the Bucks that proves they can work all styles and are not just the greatest tag team today, but one of the best ever.
The disc shows the Bucks can compete in all types of matches
Some of the most famous moments in PWG history are on the disc
Mount Rushmore are an awesome stable
Aside from the great match against the DojoBros, the disc was filled with gimmick matches. They were great in their own way but do not show the Bucks at their best
9
Great

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