IMG Credit: WrestleCon

WrestleCon Supershow
Date: April 4, 2019
Location: New York Hilton Midtown, New York City, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Kevin Kelly

This might be my favorite show of the year and I’ve been looking forward to seeing it again. The idea here is you don’t know most of the card coming in, with just Will Ospreay vs. Bandido in the main event being announced. A lot of wrestlers from Dragon Gate were announced but visa situations have kept them off the show. That leaves some openings on the card and I’m curious to see what we get. Let’s get to it.

We get a YOUR EVENT WILL BEGIN SHORTLY graphic for twelve minutes until the ring announcer says we’re waiting on something from the athletic commission and an ambulance to arrive.

Here’s your WrestleCon Ambassador for the evening: Road Warrior Animal (without facepaint), who goes straight for the LOD chant. He can’t do this job by himself so he introduces….RIC FLAIR, which is quite the surprise. Good thing he’s healed from that Batista beating. Excalibur: “If anyone knows how to fill time.” Flair talks about the places he’s been in New York, including an affair with Leona Helmsley. He says this is a fraternity and puts over the Road Warriors as great competitors. One night in Philadelphia they painted Dusty Rhodes’ face and it was a riot on the way to the ring.

WrestleCon is a great place and there was a time when nobody wanted 200 wrestlers in a hotel. Animal: “There weren’t enough tickets to ride Space Mountain.” Flair has another reason to be here and mentions Sunday night being more important than anything he ever accomplished. The tears are flowing and thankfully the fans don’t boo the WWE reference. This is every bit as big as Hogan slamming Andre and he couldn’t be prouder. Thank you for everything and make sure to come see him tomorrow.

Back to the YOUR EVENT WILL BEGIN SHORTLY graphic.

The widow of Mark Hitchcock, an illustrator who world for WrestleCon died on his honeymoon, thanks the crowd for remembering him.

We’re ready to go 27 minutes late.

Eddie Kingston vs. Masato Tanaka

Tanaka is a former ECW World Champion and might look better now than he did twenty years ago. They go technical to start until Eddie takes him into the corner for a hard chop. Tanaka’s famous elbow sends Eddie outside to hold his jaw, as he should be doing. Back in and Tanaka hammers down right hands before a crossbody gets two. A running STO drops Tanaka and it’s back to the chops.

Tanaka’s tornado DDT works on the second attempt but a spinning Rock Bottom drops him again. Eddie loads up a superplex but gets reversed into Diamond Dust (a flipping Stunner out of the corner, a personal favorite). A frog splash gets two on Kingston and it’s time for the required chop off. Tanaka’s elbows and forearms get the better of it and the Roaring Elbow sets up the Sliding D (sliding elbow) finishes Kingston at 7:18.

Rating: C. This was your “I hit you hard and you hit me hard) match of the night, as WrestleCon is often a show built around doing a little bit of everything. Tanaka still looks awesome and I’m not surprised to see that he can still do something like this. Kingston is hit or miss at best, but having him do something like this fits him well.

Post match Kingston says that this was his dream match after seventeen years and thanks Tanaka in Japanese.

The announcers would love to break down the next match but they don’t know what it is.

Here are the Lucha Bros for the match but before their opponents come out, Fenix thanks the fans and says they’re the best tag team in the universe. They’re here because they’re open to face any tag team and pretty soon, they’ll be facing the other brother tag team. He means the Young Bucks, who are scared of the Lucha Bros and won’t be here tonight. Pentagon swears in Spanish a big (Kelly: “NO TRANSLATION REQUIRED!”) and the fans chant it after him. Since they don’t have a team to face, they can just fight each other.

Pentagon Jr. vs. Rey Fenix

Pentagon goes straight for the rollup to start but gets sent outside for the suicide dive. Back in Pentagon hits the Alberto Del Rio double stomp and yells at the referee for only counting two. Fenix kicks him in the face but walks into the Pentagon Driver for two more. The fans chant for the team, as they should given that it’s a good match so far.

Pentagon gets tied in the ropes and it’s a rope walk kick to the face as only Fenix can do. A Canadian Destroyer gives Fenix two more but he takes too much time rolling forward and gets superkicked in the face. Pentagon one ups him with a middle rope Canadian Destroyer but Fenix is right back up to catch him on top and it’s a super Spanish Fly to finish Pentagon at 6:56.

Rating: B. Oh man that’s it? Maybe they’re running short on time or something but this should have been at least another ten minutes if you wanted to do it justice. These two are as hot as anyone could be at the moment and that’s been the case for well over a year now. I hope they get a big chance in AEW (they will) and maybe even WWE one day. This needed to be more but for what it was, it was really good.

Puma King/Samantha Heights/DJZ/Tajiri vs. Sammy Guevara/LAX/Diamante

This could be…..I have no idea actually. I’ve never heard of Samantha but that’s a common occurrence around here. Tajiri always looks weird without a mustache. Puma just laying on the middle rope for all of the entrances is a rather unique visual. DJZ is ready for Guevara’s cheap shot and let’s hit that horn noise. Puma King comes in and kicks Sammy out but it’s off to Santana for a good moonsault.

Since it’s lucha rules, the fans get to see Tajiri with Kelly talking about how easy of a time Tajiri should have with all of the language issues in the match. The kicks have Puma King in trouble and it’s off to Diamante, who gets a handshake and kneel from Tajiri before he starts chopping her. A Stunner gets Diamante out of trouble and it’s off to Heights, who hits a Sliced Bread.

Ortiz comes in and runs Samantha over before shouting SUCK THESE. I’m not going near that one so I’ll go to Ortiz blocking a monkey flip and turning it into a faceplant. DJZ comes back in and flips forward into a clothesline to send Ortiz outside. Santana comes in with a superkick as everything breaks down. It’s back to Sammy for a jumping knee to the DJZ’s face and LAX adds a double flapjack.

Sammy can’t get over for a tag (Kelly: “Joey Ryan will charge you $30 for that!”) and Diamante gets two off a splash. Sammy does his fireman’s carry squats into a running shooting star press gets two on DJZ with Samantha coming in for the save. DJZ comes back with the always stupid stop of throwing partners into each other and making one DDT another.

That’s enough for a hot tag to Puma King to clean house and a big dive to the floor hits Santana. That sets off the parade of dives with the women hitting stereo dives. Tajiri is left alone in the ring but Ortiz cuts off his dive to become the biggest heel in the match. Ortiz tries a hiptoss but gets misted while in the air (cool), setting up the Buzzsaw Kick to give Tajiri the pin at 12:02.

Rating: C+. For a random assortment of eight people into a match with no connection between the teams, I liked it. That’s the kind of thing you get at these shows and it’s one of the most fun parts. Sometimes you just need to go out there and have some wrestling with a bunch of people having a match and that’s what we got here. It’s a WrestleCon tradition and one of their better ones so well done given the people in there.

Arez vs. Flamita vs. Robbie Eagles

Eagles is Bullet Club (and yes it’s still a thing) and billed as the Sniper of the Sky. Arez gets sent outside early on and it’s a flip off between Flamita and Eagles. Flamita kicks Arez in the head but he rolls forward into a dive outside onto Eagles. Back in and Arez drops a top rope elbow on Flamita, meaning it’s time to yell at the referee for counting slowly. A standing Spanish Fly gives Flamita two on Eagles but a superplex is countered.

Instead Arez tries to climb onto Flamita’s back so Eagles dives with a high crossbody, which is countered into a Spanish Fly (or something, as it was far from a clean landing). Arez takes off his jacket so Flamita can chop him even harder because wrestling is weird. Sliced Bread drops Eagles who DDTs Flamita at the same time and they’re all down. Flamita is up first and missile dropkicks both of them down, setting up a moonsault out to the floor to drop Arez again. Back in and Flamita misses a 450, allowing Eagles to hit one of his own on Arez for the pin at 6:54.

Rating: C. Arez didn’t get to show off very much while Flamita looked like the awesome high flier that he is and Eagles came off as a well rounded star. I can see why he got the win here and he looked like someone who belonged on a stage like this. It was a bunch of spots and that’s all it was supposed to be here.

Revolt vs. Hurricane/X-Pac/Jushin Thunder Liger

See what I mean about these random teams that make the show fun? Revolt (Caleb Konley, Jake Manning, Zane Riley) are mainstays around this show and have been a big deal in PWX from Charlotte. X-Pac is in the standard gear, though with NWO logos on the legs. After the place comes unglued for Liger, X-Pac puts him over as a legend on his retirement tour. Liger and Konley start things off with a battle of poses to the crowd. After being backed into the corner, Konley gets pulled down into the surfboard and you know the fans are going to love that.

It’s off to Riley (300+lb) to face X-Pac, meaning it’s a HALL OF FAMER chant. Riley wants a test of strength but is told to suck it instead. The rapid fire legdrops have Riley in trouble but it’s too early for the Bronco Buster. Manning (he likes scouting) and Hurricane come in for a handshake and a 3 COUNT chant, meaning the fans are cultured. The danceoff begins but the good guys join hands and flip Manning off (well not Liger, who just can’t do it).

The Hurricane pose sends Manning down onto the mat and he needs a timeout to check the scouting manual. It’s enough for a cheap shot to Hurricane and Konley comes in, only to have the heroes get together for a triple suplex. Hurricane gets caught in the wrong corner though and the heat is on. Riley’s choke doesn’t get him very far so it’s already back to Manning, who gets caught with the Eye of the Hurricane.

Liger comes in for the palm strikes but a distraction lets Riley run him over. Konley and Liger hit a double clothesline and it’s off to X-Pac to clean house. The spin kicks abound and it’s back to Liger, who tries to suplex Riley for some reason. Everything breaks down and it’s the palm strike to Manning with a Bronco Buster to Riley. Hurricane chokeslams Konley and the brainbuster finishes Manning at 13:37.

Rating: C+. Am I supposed to criticize this somehow? I was never an X-Pac fan but this was a blast and exactly what it should have been, even with a little more time than it probably should have gotten. With Liger retiring, he deserves to get whatever matches he wants to have and it’s a special treat to get to see someone who has been wrestling longer than I’ve been alive and still looked great. Hurricane and X-Pac were rather good as well, making this quite the entertaining match.

Post match Hurricane and X-Pac pay tribute to Liger again, as they should.

Intermission.

So apparently power to the Fite.TV stream went down during the intermission and we missed Dragon Lee vs. Cavernario. Dragon Lee won and if it’s on the replay, I’ll watch it later and edit it in.

Shane Strickland vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Well if you insist. They go at each others’ legs to start and it’s Sabre taking him down for the first of what will likely be many leglocks. Strickland escapes and puts on another hold of his own before tying Strickland up in something like an STF. A cravate keeps Strickland in trouble but he comes back with a dragon screw legwhip but a gutbuster cuts Strickland down again.

Bored of the leg, Sabre switches up to the arm and gets in the required stomp to the raised arm. He even stands on Strickland’s head because Sabre is that big of a jerk. The overly cocky kicks to the head tick Strickland off (as they do to everyone) and it’s time for Sabre to tell him to chop. A big one to the leg takes Sabre down because Strickland was smart enough to know an armbar was coming.

The 619 to the ribs sets up the rolling cutter but Sabre is right back with another crank on the arm to take over. Strickland has had it with the shots to the face and tries another rolling cutter, but this time it’s pulled into the cross armbreaker. A triangle choke has Strickland in trouble until he powerbombs his way to freedom. Strickland grabs him by the nose (come on man) and kicks Sabre in the chest again.

A YES Kick knocks Sabre silly but he’s fine enough for a half and half suplex onto Strickland’s head. The head isn’t that damaged though as he hits a rolling German suplex. The Swerve Stomp is countered into the Rings of Saturn with Sabre’s legs and Sabre grabs a half crab for a bonus and the submission at 16:39.

Rating: B. My goodness Sabre is fun to watch. The guy can do whatever he wants in the ring and makes it look easy because he’s just that talented. Daniel Bryan was drooling over him during the Cruiserweight Classic and Sabre has gotten so much better since thin. Strickland is as smooth of a performer as you’re going to get in wrestling these days and it’s no surprise that he’s going to WWE.

Post match Strickland gets the sendoff because he’s NXT bound.

Here’s So Cal Uncensored before their match. Scorpio Sky does his thing about how he hates the town, which I still don’t quite get. Daniels praises the fans and says they want to be the top trio (which he sings for some reason) so let’s see what happens when it’s California love with a New York state of mind.

So Cal Uncensored vs. Orange Cassidy/Best Friends

Cassidy takes both hands out of his pockets and then puts them back in so Daniels grabs a headlock to knock off the sunglasses. The waistlock is countered as Cassidy puts his hands in his pockets and dances out, allowing him to chill on the mat. Cassidy runs the ropes, dropkicks Daniels down, and nips up, all without taking his hands out of his pockets. Trent comes in (Cassidy still doesn’t move his hands as he gets out, but one does come out on the apron) and chops Kazarian, who is rather confused.

Kazarian continues to be frustrated as Trent just stands there….so let’s switch teams. Trent is now part of SCU and Kazarian puts on the vest. It’s off to Sky to face Kazarian and it’s the New Age Outlaws cover with Sky trying a quick cover off a poke to the chest (the Fingerpoke of Doom was a singles match so it’s a completely different thing you see). That’s broken up and the Best Friends hit stereo fall away slams.

Double Razor’s Edges are countered with double backdrops and it’s Trent caught in the corner for a slingshot dropkick. Chuck gets in a cheap shot from the apron so Daniels knocks him down but the distraction lets Trent get in a low blow. Now it’s Chuck coming in for forearms to the back and it’s Cassidy coming in for a walk across the ring into a near hug, which is called a clothesline.

Cassidy walks around so slowly that the Best Friends both get in a few shots before Cassidy even bothers to cover. It’s back to Trent for an abdominal stretch and Cassidy puts glasses on Chuck, who slowly extends his arm for the cheating. So it’s the slacker Too Cool and Rikishi. Daniels puts the glasses on as well and it’s a slow energy fight with Cassidy. A big chop is teased but Daniels goes with a low blow so it’s off to Kazarian to take over and slap on a Figure Four to Trent.

A Backstabber hits Chuck and it’s an assisted tornado DDT on Trent, leaving Cassidy on his own. Daniels KNOCKS CASSIDY’S GLASSES OFF and it’s on in a hurry with Cassidy slugging away and hitting a double hurricanrana on Kazarian and Sky. A good looking double chokeslam takes them down again and Cassidy puts the glasses back on. That means going up top for a fall (intentional) onto Kazarian for two. The Best Friends come in to clean house again and we hit that hug. SCU has had it with this nonsense (of which they have been a part) and it’s the Best Meltzer Ever for the pin on Cassidy at 18:21.

Rating: C+. This one is going to entirely depend on your taste but my issue was it ran too long. That and you really have Cassidy take the pin here? He’s the most popular non-Liger guy on the show and you have him lose instead of say, Trent? His gimmick is fine for this kind of a show, but he’s not going to be able to do much beyond this because it’s a goofy comedy bit. That being said, this is the perfect show for something like that and it was more than good enough here. Cut off some of the time and it’s better, but it was fine for what it was. It’s just not for everyone and that’s fine.

Everyone hugs but Cassidy won’t take his hands out of his pockets for the post.

Will Ospreay vs. Bandido

Bell, Spanish Fly, Space Flying Tiger Drop, shooting star press for two on Bandido, we hit the thirty second mark. Bandido is back up with Swiss Death of all things, followed by a standing backflip World’s Strongest Slam to send Ospreay to the floor. A huge flip dive takes Ospreay down again and Bandido sticks the landing. That’s only good for two back inside and a delayed vertical suplex, including a squat, is good for the same on Ospreay.

The chops take Bandido right back down but he’s right back with the surfboard as an homage to Liger. That’s broken up so Ospreay hits a handspring into a kick to the head to put Bandido down again. A 619 over the top rope hits Bandido in the mask and it’s a delayed basement dropkick in the corner. Pip Pip Cheerio keeps Bandido in trouble and Ospreay swears a lot.

Bandido must not be a fan of swearing (attaboy) so he comes back with a one handed sitout gorilla press slam (egads man) to cut Ospreay off. Ospreay wants him to bring it and they strike it out until Ospreay snaps off a low angle dragon suplex. Stormbreaker is countered with an armdrag and a pop up powerbomb drops Ospreay again. The Robinson Special puts Bandido down again but he gets caught with a reverse hurricanrana off the middle rope (that’s a new one) for another near fall.

Ospreay fights out of something on top and hits the Cheeky Nandos kick before knocking Bandido over the barricade. You know where this is going and it’s the huge crossbody to the floor to send Bandido into the third row. Back in and a missile dropkick to the back of the head sets up Stormbreaker but Bandido reverses into a hurricanrana for two. The Oscutter is countered into a knee to the face for another two and Bandido can’t believe it. Ospreay is right back up with a Rainmaker into the Oscutter and Stormbreaker finishes Bandido at 16:51.

Rating: B+. This was exactly what it was advertised as being: two of the best high fliers in the world doing insane spots to each other for a long time. Ospreay is on another level for someone his size and Bandido is certainly no slouch in everything he does. Great match here and worthy of a main event, even though you could tell the fans were spent.

Post match Ospreay counts the money the fans throw out (Ospreay: “Four dollars! Two Cokes!” Kelly: “Not in New York City.”) and praises Bandido. Anyone who knows him knows that his mental health problems have been worse than ever recently but wrestling is the best therapy you can have. All he has is raw natural ability and they just created an art form. Ospreay thanks everyone and bows to Bandido.

Overall Rating: B. As usual, this is the show where you put your feet up and have a good time watching wrestling because it’s all about seeing what you’re getting and just having a lot of fun. You get all kinds of people coming out of nowhere and having one great match after another. It’s a blast of a show with some excellent matches and a little bit of everything for everyone. Have a good time with it and enjoy what wrestling can be.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #39
Date: January 18, 2019
Location: Scottish Rite Temple, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

We’re two weeks away from Super Fight and you can see the big main event coming from here. That’s not a bad thing in this case as there’s a heck of a title match on the horizon. Other than that there are some other matches to look forward to, though the build hasn’t gotten as far with them. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Here’s Shane Strickland, who still won’t leave this place, to open things up. He hates Miami, but MLW paid him a fortune to be here because they need Swerve. Shane is tired of being treated so badly, but here’s Rush to interrupt. The microphone is hard to understand but Strickland jumps him and we’re off to a match.

Shane Strickland vs. Rush

Shane knocks him to the floor and the cockiness is strong to start. Rush goes back first into the post and they head back inside for some stomping in the corner. As Shane chokes, the announcers do a rather nice job of explaining his story of being the fallen star of MLW. That’s the right story and it’s an interesting one. Rush fights up but a running dropkick to the knee cuts him right back down.

The fans think Swerve sucks as he puts on a leg lock to keep Rush in trouble. Something like an STF doesn’t last long for Shane so he goes with kicks to the chest instead. Rush gets up again and takes it to the floor, this time with a whip to send Shane into the barricade. They fight into the crowd with a trashcan being pelted off of Shane’s head. Back in and another shot to the chest lets Rush pose tranquilo style.

Another chop makes Shane cringe but the fans want UNO MAS. The Rush Driver is countered and it’s off to the slugout. Shane gets in a head fake for a shot to the face in a clever move, which makes you realize what MLW saw in him as he really is that good. They trade no sold German suplexes with Shane grabbing a rolling DDT for two. Rush gets in his own big shot with a superplex for two more, followed by a bridging fisherman’s suplex for the same.

Rating: B-. This was more of a story based match than anything else, though the wrestling was certainly good enough to make the match watch. The idea here was more about Shane losing to the new star and establishing that he was completely done and there is no coming back. Of course I’ve said that before and he keeps coming back, so maybe there’s one more match for him.

Opening sequence, seventeen minutes into the show.

Mance Warner is still coming.

We look back at Tom Lawlor destroying Sami Callihan last week, possibly murdering him with a hammer.

Salina de la Renta promises to send LA Park after Sami Callihan for being such a screwup.

Ariel Dominguez vs. Ace Romero

Barrington Hughes is on commentary, which thankfully isn’t an overly common act around here. Huge vs. tiny here with Dominguez getting thrown down like he’s not even there. Aries gets tossed a few more times but manages to avoid a sitdown splash. Some running clotheslines have little effect so Romero slams him down and drops an elbow/splash (it was hard to tell) for the pin at 1:50.

Hughes and Romero stare each other down.

Brian Pillman Jr. is at a playground and talks about wanting to destroy Tommy Dreamer because now he knows how to use his environment.

Low Ki is the greatest World Champion of all time and Tom Lawlor gets to join the list of people who have lost to him.

Ricky Martinez vs. El Gringo Loco

Feeling out process to start with Martinez grabbing an early rollup for two and Loco cartwheeling into a standoff. Things get a little more intense with Martinez hitting a jumping neckbreaker to really take over. The figure four neck lock faceplants into the mat keep Loco in trouble, followed by something like a Pounce to take him down again. Loco is right back up and catches Martinez on top with a super Falcon Arrow. A middle rope cutter gets two as the fans are WAY into this one. Salina pulls Martinez out of the way of Spiral Tap though and Martinez rakes the eyes. A fireman’s carry gutbuster finishes Loco at 5:01.

Rating: C. This was entertaining while it lasted as Loco is the kind of guy who can connect with the crowd. MLW has a good audience where if they get behind a wrestler, that wrestler is over for good. Loco has done that and it should keep him around for a long time to come. Martinez is good as the enforcer and a win like this should help him.

Colonel Parker gives the Dirty Blonds (They’re still around?) a pep talk and threatens problems if they don’t win.

Tom Lawlor is at his training camp and talks about everything he’s done to get here. With everything he’s done, nothing is stopping him from becoming champion, including an undefeated Low Ki. The champ has paid people off to keep the title but there’s no way around him in Philadelphia. Lawlor still sounds like a high school student acting, but he has the intensity and good fire in his eyes.

Super Fight Control Center, which will include the second live special on February 2. That makes a lot of sense. Signed for the show (not clear if this will be on the live portion) is Puma King vs. Gringo Loco, Pillman and Dreamer in a mystery partner tag match (get Sandman ready), Ace Romero vs. Barrington Hughes, the debut of Mance Warner, Aerostar vs. Rey Horus, the World Title match and the Hart Foundation challenging the Lucha Bros for the Tag Team Titles. Good card actually.

Dirty Blonds vs. Hart Foundation

Pillman and Smith for the Harts here. It’s Smith and Leo Brien starting things off as the fans want Pillman. That’s exactly what they get too and a running dropkick in the corner has Leo in trouble. A missed dropkick allows the tag to Michael Patrick to hammer away in the corner and spit a little. The chinlock goes on for a few seconds before Patrick elbows Pillman in the face. Pillman gets up and hits a crossbody for two of his own, allowing the double tag. Smith cleans house on both Blonds and Pillman adds a springboard clothesline. A top rope superplex finishes Brien at 4:50.

Rating: D+. What the heck happened to the Blonds? I liked them as an old school team back in the day and now I’m surprised to see them show up and lose a five minute match. It wouldn’t shock me to see them leave the promotion as there’s no point to keeping them around at this point. The match was fine as a glorified squash, but that’s all it was.

Parker yells at the Blonds for the loss to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t much as a stand alone show but it did well as a way to advance the stories going into Super Fight. That’s the kind of show you need heading into the biggest shows of the year and these shows are necessary to bridge the gaps. I like how the Super Fight card is setting up and that’s a good sign with about two weeks to go before the show.

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #32
Date: November 23, 2018
Location: Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

It’s a big night in Chicago as we have Shane Strickland getting his rematch for the World Title against Low Ki. Strickland hasn’t been around much lately and seems to be far more distant than he used to be. That doesn’t bode well for his future, but stranger things have happened before. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We look at Sami Callihan jumping Tom Lawlor a few weeks back. Egads enough of that clip. Thankfully it leads into last week’s rather good street fight. This set up Simon Gotch turning on Lawlor in a pretty well done angle.

Salina de la Renta kicks a briefcase over to Gotch as a thank you for last week. Gotch is pleased with the money inside and offers his services for any future jobs. Salina doesn’t trust him, but offers to double the pay if Gotch takes out Lawlor in Miami. That sounds nice, but Gotch would rather she trust him. He’ll take Lawlor out for no money instead. Salina gives him a bit of an “ok whatever” look and leaves.

Opening sequence.

In Miami, Gotch vs. Lawlor with no ropes and no holds barred.

Trey Miguel vs. Kotto Brazil

Miguel gets kicked out to the floor but catches Kotto with a right hand. Friedman: “What a nerd!” Back in and Brazil gets crotched and it’s time to stomp away. Friedman actually sees something in Miguel but doesn’t think much of Brazil, who has as many brain cells as teeth. Bocchini comes to his defense and Friedman shoots him down in a hurry. As Miguel takes him down with a chinlock, Rich suggests that Friedman is afraid of Brazil and Friedman bursts out laughing.

Brazil’s comeback is cut off by a knee to the face as Friedman wants to hear some of Tony’s golden tongue. Miguel sends him into the rope but gets caught with a sloppy looking reverse hurricanrana (not a move you can risk botching that much) and Brazil starts striking away. Brazil sends him into the barricade with a pair of suicide dives and a big flip dive takes Miguel down again. Friedman: “Get out of the way Trey you idiot!”

Back in and Miguel hits a spinning right hand (Friedman: “Is it another flip? SHOCKING!”) to the jaw for two. Miguel ties him up in the ropes with Brazil’s head tucked underneath the buckle for a 619. Miguel’s bottom rope springboard cutter (which looked like he nearly fell down) has Friedman freaking out but a middle rope version is shrugged off. A standing Sliced Bread #2 finishes Miguel at 10:02.

Rating: C+. The match was your usual entertaining flip based match but Friedman absolutely stole the show here. I haven’t been big on his in-ring work but this was hilarious as he pointed out the inherent flaws in most of these matches while talking about how much better he was than Brazil, setting up a match between the two down the line. Good enough match, hilarious everything else.

Shane Strickland had no comment as he arrived earlier.

Rush is still coming.

Confirmed for the first Miami show: the Lucha Bros defend against the Hart Foundation, Lawlor vs. Gotch with wins only coming by knockout or submission, PCO vs. LA Park in a falls count anywhere match, Rush vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Andrew Everett making his MLW debut.

Confirmed for the second Miami show: Lawlor vs. LA Park and Low Ki vs. Konnan for the World Title (I’m still wondering what they’re going to do there) and Friedman vs. Jason Cade, Kotto Brazil and a mystery opponent for the Middleweight Title in a ladder match.

Brazil is ready to change the title picture but Friedman jumps him from behind.

The Hart Foundation say Tommy Dreamer is no Dusty Rhodes but he’s a little better than Kevin Sullivan. Dreamer is nowhere near Brian Pillman, or any of the other Hart Family members for that matter. Pillman says Dreamer is just trying to be Dusty and he’s been trying to make that dream last for way too long. The cane has already gone upside an old man’s head so Dreamer’s dreams are getting eaten. Pillman is actually a heck of a heel promo, which can serve him well.

Gringo Loco vs. Marko Stunt

Stunt really does look like he’s about 12 years old and it’s not working. Loco drops to his knees to make things a little more fair and Bocchini says Stunt reminds him of a Wrestling Buddy. With that not going anywhere, Stunt snaps off some headscissors and hurricanranas, which do look rather crisp. Stunt kicks him to the floor for a suicide dive and a top rope hurricanrana drops Loco again.

Back in and Stunt gets crotched on top, allowing Loco to hit a standing moonsault. We look at the crowd for a bit, making me think there might have been a botch in there. Something close to a Whisper in the Wind drops Loco and a very fast hurricanrana gives Stunt two. Loco tosses him into the air but Stunt spins around into a Codebreaker for the pin at 3:58.

Rating: C. I’ll give Stunt this: he’s WAY more exciting to watch than Cheeseburger and that puts him ahead. Stunt at least does some cool looking moves instead of running palm strikes, which at least gives you a reason to watch him. At least he finally won something too, as you can only have him lose so many times before it looks stupid.

MLW World Title: Shane Strickland vs. Low Ki

Low Ki is defending and has Salina and Ricky Martinez with him. Feeling out process to start with Ki taking him down to the mat and winning an early grapple off. Shane finally slips out for a standoff but gets caught in an armbar over the ropes to keep Ki pretty firmly ahead. Back in and Shane tries to pull him down into more grappling and is promptly caught in something like an STF. Shane escapes and scores with a discus lariat as things head outside.

The champ gets sent into the barricade and it’s time to head back inside for a quickly broken seated abdominal stretch. An atomic drop into a backbreaker gives Shane two but his suplex is countered into a drop onto the top rope, giving us the always cool shot of a cameraman being knocked down. Ki sends him into various things and drives an elbow into the head back inside. The reverse chinlock goes on for a bit until Shane comes up with some shots to the face.

That’s fine with Ki, who headstands in the corner and drops back into a kick to the chest for two more. Now it’s Shane caught in a seated abdominal stretch before Ki switches to a standing version. Shane fights out and we see Hathaway watching from the crowd. The champ gets sent hard into the corner and a belly to back suplex gets two. A reverse sitout gordbuster (cool) gives Shane the same and he loads Ki up on top. Ki shoves him away and clotheslines the referee by mistake.

Another shot to the face sends Ki into the barricade and Shane drops him face first onto the barricade. The Swerve Stomp connects back inside but there’s no ref. A new one slides in for the very delayed two so Martinez gets on the apron for a distraction. With no referee, Ki pulls Shane’s HAIR out of his head and rolls him up for the pin to retain at 16:22.

Rating: C+. It was good enough but this never felt like a must see match and Shane wasn’t exactly hitting the close near falls. You really can see Shane falling from stardom before your eyes and that’s not the best thing in the world. He could have been the franchise player around here but there’s only so much you can do when WWE comes calling. This was a lot of hard strikes and grappling so it was entertaining, but it didn’t feel urgent and that’s a problem.

Post match Ki and company head to the back, leaving Shane to rant about the hypocrisy around here. He puts his body on the f****** line around here every night and this is how the company treats him. With Hathaway looking on from the crowd, Shane tells everyone to shut up because they’re the big problem with everything. Shane talking to Court Bauer and Bauer alone: Court is the problem around here and Shane is terminating his contract. The mic is cut and security tries to get Shane out of the ring. He finally storms off through the crowd to end the show. Good angle to end Shane’s time here with some great emotion.

Overall Rating: C+. The angle at the end was a big deal as you can feel MLW moving away from its roots and growing up a bit. You can only go with the original stars for so long and Shane was the first big name they had. That had to be done at some point and it’s what they got done here. Other than that, you had a pretty average show, but the Miami cards have my interest and I’m curious to see where some of these things go. Not a great show, but they have me watching more each week so they’re doing something right.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

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IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Never Say Never
Date: December 12, 2017
Location: Gilt Nightclub, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 250
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

I’m still at it with these one off shows that MLW ran before they got a full time TV show. This is their second such show after a pretty good first edition. A few months have passed and there isn’t much to preview here as there wasn’t much set up to build towards a second show. If most of the cast is back though, this should be fun. Let’s get to it.

The opening video has a Christmas theme with places at a table set for various wrestlers. Jimmy Havoc is there with a glass of wine to say Happy Christmas. That was creepy in a way.

Opening sequence.

Tom Lawlor vs. Matt Riddle

Well this could be good. It’s almost weird seeing Lawlor with clean looking hair. Feeling out process to start as they trade some light punches with neither going anywhere. Some grappling goes the same way with Lawlor holding him up against the ropes. Riddle takes him down into a rear naked choke but Lawlor makes the rope in short order. Some heavy forearms in the corner keep Lawlor in trouble so his unnamed corner men take him to the floor for a much needed breather.

Lawlor is right back with a triangle choke but Riddle gets out again so it’s a release German suplex, with Riddle bouncing back to his feet first. That’s fine with Lawlor as he throws Riddle with another German suplex, this time for two. Riddle pops up again and hits a jumping knee to the face, setting up the Bro To Sleep (that’s so corny that it’s awesome) into a bridging German suplex for two more.

A backsplash gives Riddle another two but Lawlor t-bones him down. Lawlor’s piledriver is countered into a backdrop driver with Riddle holding him on his back and dropping down (cool) but Lawlor is right back with a Tombstone for one. Riddle starts striking away and picks him up for a Tombstone of his own, only to slam Lawlor down onto his back instead. Lawlor slaps on a Fujiwara armbar and rolls into a double arm crank. That goes nowhere so he tries a cross armbreaker, with Riddle rolling out and elbowing him in the face. The rear naked choke goes on and Lawlor flips the fans off before passing out at 14:56.

Rating: B. They played to their strengths here but it’s so strange to see Lawlor take a clean fall. He would go on to become one of the top stars in the promotion and having Riddle just beat him like this is very strange. Riddle wouldn’t be around long though as he was all but destined to be in WWE. Given his look and skill level so soon into his career, it really was just a matter of time.

Post match Lawlor’s corner men interrupt Riddle’s interview so he beats them up too. Riddle says if Lawlor wants to bring in his bros, Riddle can bring in his buddy Jeff Cobb for a tag match next month. Lawlor doesn’t say anything.

MVP is ready for his match tonight when Stokely Hathaway comes in to make an offer. That’s not cool with MVP, which doesn’t work for Hathaway. MVP basically tells him not to do anything stupid and to be wise.

Saieve Al Sabah vs. Mike Parrow

Fallout from last time when Parrow powerbombed him. Saieve jumps him before the bell but gets shoved away with ease. Some snap jabs work a bit better, though for all of three seconds as Parrow suplexes him down. One heck of a clothesline knocks Saieve out of his show (dang) and a big toss sends him outside for a great looking bump. Parrow powerbombs him into the post, followed by a fall away slam into the corner for two more. Saieve gets in a shot to the knee and pulls out some brass knuckles. The powerbomb is broken up with right hands to Parrow’s head to give Saieve the pin at 3:38.

Rating: D+. Saieve’s bumping looked great but the booking didn’t work very well. Parrow dominated him but then loses in the last few seconds after Saieve gets in two or three shots? I’ve never been a fan of that kind of booking and the knuckles finish didn’t felt way out of place. Parrow looks awesome though and that’s going to keep him around for a good while.

Dirty Blonds vs. Seth Petruzelli/Rhett Giddins

The Blonds are a southern team with some size to him while Petruzelli is the striking coach at the WWE Performance Center. Another pre-bell attack (with Tony pointing out how common they’ve been tonight) doesn’t work for the Blonds as stereo superkicks put them on the floor. Giddins starts with Leo Brien (partner of Michael Patrick) with both guys taking their time early on. Brien shoulders the heck out of him but Giddins pops back up for a slam.

That means a breather on the floor, where they take Petruzelli off the apron. Giddins gets choked down and Petruzelli gets knocked off the apron again. The Blonds take turns beating on Giddins as Tony is having a great time listing off the old southern wrestlers that have inspired them. A chinlock doesn’t last very long so Patrick knees Giddins back down. The diving tag attempt is broken up again with Petruzelli being pulled down for the third time.

We hit the nerve hold for a bit but Giddins fights up and kicks him in the face. A discus punch and rolling out of the way of an elbow are enough for the tag to Petruzelli, who receives almost no reaction whatsoever. Petruzelli barely gets to do anything before a low blow cuts him down. Giddins comes back in off a blind tag and a hard clothesline finishes Brien out of nowhere at 8:28.

Rating: D. I wasn’t feeling this one, even though I like the Blonds quite a bit. Giddins looked good but it felt like they were limiting Petruzelli’s in-ring time. That made for a weird match and the ending felt really sudden. This was easily the weakest thing that they’ve done so far but maybe it was just a one off.

Barrington Hughes, a 400lb+ monster, warms up with a huge meal of pizza, burgers and fries. He’d like his privacy though and tells the cameras to leave.

Barrington Hughes vs. Andrew Merlin

Trash talk, elbow to the head, seated senton to crush Merlin at 22 seconds. Bocchini: “Maybe nine seconds?” I didn’t know King Kong Bundy was now wrestling as Barrington Hughes.

Chelsea Green, who is scheduled to face Santana Garrett, has been attacked by a woman we can’t see.

Vandal Ortagun vs. Jimmy Yuta

Ortagun used to be in NXT on the Florida circuit. They trade chops to start as we hear about Yuta currently being a student. You don’t hear that every day. Ortagun gets dropped onto his face for a running kick as the announcers talk about Ortagun’s time in NXT. It’s so weird hearing Tony talk about modern wrestling. A chop block cuts Yuta down and it’s time for the Ric Flair knee work package.

The leg gets wrapped around the middle rope and there’s a dragon screw leg whip for two. Yuta fights up and hits a backdrop, followed by a rollup into a superkick. Thankfully Tony explains that the knee injury prevented it from being at full strength because he knows how to do his job. Ortagun takes him down by the knee again and the half crab goes on. Yuta grabs the rope and is right back with a Blue Thunder Bomb. The top rope elbow is enough to finish Ortagun at 6:21.

Rating: C. Yuta has grown on me a lot over the last few months and there’s potential in there to be a perfectly good high flier. He’s got a good look and can wrestle a pretty good match. That’s not bad for someone so young. Ortagun is a good choice for a spot like this as he’s got the experience to make anyone look good, which is what you want for someone young like Yuta. Nice match here.

Jimmy Havoc and Darby Allin are ready to hurt Shane Strickland and John Hennigan in the main event. A lot of blood is promised.

Santana Garrett vs. Leva Bates

Bates is better known as Blue Pants and she dances to the ring. She’s also not the person who attacked Chelsea as the hair color doesn’t match. Santana takes her to the mat to start and holds onto a headlock. Back up and Bates shoves her away, only to get rolled up for two. Bates has no choice but to shake her hand as Garrett is toying with her so far. Something like the Black Widow is broken up and Bates kicks her in the back.

That earns Bates a high five but she’s mean enough to grab a rollup for two of her own. Santana gets in something close to a Last Chancery for a few seconds but Bates slips out and puts on a Crossface. That’s broken up as well and Garrett is back with a front facelock. Tony starts talking about Larry Zbyszko teaching Garrett psychology, which isn’t the kind of thing you expect most commentators to bring up.

Bates trips Garrett down and poses before hitting a slingshot rolling spear for two. Garrett loses her headband so Bates stomps on it, which just ticks her off again. They start shoving and shouting at each other until Bates charges into a raised boot in the corner. A Russian legsweep gets two and Garrett goes after her in the corner, only to get caught in the Tree of Woe. Bates hits the top rope double stomp but goes back up and gets hurricanranaed back down. Garrett hits a handspring moonsault (cool) for the pin at 14:38.

Rating: C+. Garrett really is a solid worker and I’m a little bit surprised she hasn’t been signed up by a bigger name company. They told a nice little story here and while Bates was in over her head, she fought her way through it and they had a nice match as a result. Not too bad here, which is better than having a women’s match for the sake of a women’s match.

Post match Garrett poses and the same woman who attacked Green runs in for a kick to the knee.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman has a promo in the back but there’s no audio.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Joey Ryan

These two are joined at the hip. Friedman brags about being awesome and undefeated, both of which will still be the case after the match. The bell rings but Joey has to give away a lollipop and oil up. With that out of the way, Joey offers him a chance to touch it. He tries to force Friedman’s hand down there so Friedman escapes and demands that the fans stop encouraging it.

Friedman tries an atomic drop and that’s probably a sprained MCL at least. Joey tries to make him touch it again and now it’s time for the lollipop from the trunks. That’s finally enough for Friedman, who kicks him in the ribs and sends Joey shoulder first into the post. An armbar goes on for a bit until Joey sends him to the apron but Friedman comes back with a springboard Codebreaker to the arm. Ryan gets in a spinebuster for two but Friedman bails to the floor before the superkick.

Of course that means a suicide dive to take Friedman down again but he’s right back with a powerbomb inside. Friedman goes for the lollipop, only to have his arm chopped to put it into his own mouth. That means the superkick so Ryan can drop to his back as Friedman does the comical fall onto the crotch. The staggered Friedman takes a Canadian Destroyer but Ryan goes for the crotch again, allowing Friedman to poke him in the eye. Another armbar makes Ryan tap at 8:22.

Rating: C-. I don’t know if it’s listening to Ryan’s very good out of character interviews or just how dedicated he is to the gimmick, but the guy is growing on me. Friedman going over makes sense as he’s the kind of guy who is going to be around here more frequently. Ryan is a bigger name too and a win over him means a little more. Perfectly fine comedy match here.

Post match Joey offers a handshake but gets flipped off. I think you can guess where that hand goes, setting up the special suplex.

Plug for the MLW podcasts. Some of those aren’t half bad either.

MVP has nothing to say about his discussions with Stokely Hathaway.

MVP vs. Brody King

King is a very big guy with a ton of tattoos. They stare each other down to start but MVP stops to yell something at the crowd that I can’t make out. The battle over the lockup goes nowhere so King kicks him in the face to take over. A backsplash (with some height) gets one and a running splash in the corner hits MVP again. MVP misses a boot in the corner and gets kicked out to the floor for his failed efforts. King throws him over a pile of chairs onto the concrete for a crash.

You don’t put a wrestler near chairs as MVP uses one to crack him a few times but he can’t suplex him onto the open chair. A slugout goes to MVP but Hathaway pops up for a distraction, allowing King to shove MVP onto the chairs again. They finally get back in so King can hit a tilt-a-whirl slam for two. King misses a dropkick but, as usual, the Ballin Elbow takes FOREVER to set up, allowing King to clothesline him back down.

A gutwrench sitout powerbomb gets two more but another powerbomb is countered with a hurricanrana. MVP gets in a t-bone suplex and they’re both down with MVP holding his back. His back is so messed up that the Playmaker takes too long, allowing King to hit a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. King misses a spinning high crossbody though and a running kick to the head finishes him off at 11:53.

Rating: C. Nice power brawl here but MVP still doesn’t do much for me. He’s a guy who used to be someone but there’s very little about him that stands out in any of his modern matches. King is good in a Luke Harper type big man enforcer role and that’s a job you could have for a very long time going forward.

They shake hands post match.

The announcers talk about an upcoming World Title tournament. So this place has a bit more of a future.

Sammy Guevara vs. Jason Cade

Sammy has Salina de la Renta with him. We have to stall for a few seconds so Sammy can take off his shirt and that means a dueling chant of MILK FIRST vs. CEREAL FIRST. This is what the two of them have been talking about on Twitter as of late, because that’s what wrestling has become. Just picture Race and Brisco having that discussion. Sammy takes over to start by sending him to the floor but Cade slides back inside for a dropkick. Cade’s dive is blocked by a jumping knee to the floor and now Sammy gets in a dive.

Cade is right back in for a dive of his own but this time he spends too much time bragging and gets hit with a dive as well. Since that’s not enough, Cade slides back in for another dive. Fans: “CEREAL FIRST!” Back in and the announcers debate types of cereal as Cade scores with some chops. A Russian legsweep puts Guevara on the apron but they think better about going to the top at the same time. Salina offers a distraction so Sammy can hit a top rope double stomp (kind of) onto the apron.

Sammy stays on the ribs by running the ropes before stopping for a chinlock. He’s no Kevin Owens but Sami Zayn is no Salina. Cade fights up and hits a Russian legsweep into the corner, followed by a springboard crossbody for no cover. A handspring Codebreaker gets two with Salina screaming or a kickout. Sammy is fine enough for a Spanish Fly and a low superkick but a shooting star misses.

They trade strikes to the face, miss strikes to the face, and then hit strikes to the face at the same time for a double knockdown. It’s Cade up first with a running knee to the face and a Code Red for two. Sammy kicks him off the top for a crash and now the shooting star press connects for a near fall of his own.

Rating: C. This felt like the required indy match and while that’s fine, it was a little long for this late in the card. I like Cade, but he’s not someone who gets big wins most of the time. That’s not the worst place to be on the card as he’s going to put in watchable matches, but I’m not sure on Sammy. He has the pieces, but hasn’t put them together just yet. More time would help, which is the case for so many of these younger guys.

Hathaway swears vengeance on MVP.

Shane Strickland talks about being proud of beating Ricochet last time but Darby Allin and Jimmy Havoc attacked Shane to ruin his moment. They want to give Shane what he wants so Shane is ready to fight with John Hennigan at his side.

Shane Strickland/John Hennigan vs. Darby Allin/Jimmy Havoc

No DQ and the thumbtacks are poured out before the good guys come out. Hennigan makes the mistake of charging in before Shane shows up. He fights out of a double suplex so Shane can even things out (coming through the crowd for some reason) and the fight is on with Allin dropkicking Hennigan almost into the tacks. Shane throws Allin into them instead and Hennigan powerbombs Havoc onto Allin onto the tacks for a good visual. Havoc’s chop hits post (though he pulled up) and it’s already time for a table.

With chops not working, Havoc pokes Shane in the eye to cut him off. Hennigan and Allin get back inside and fight on the corner but head to the floor instead. Havoc busts out a staple gun and you can hear the groan in Tony’s voice. That means a piece of paper gets stapled to Shane’s face (Tony: “WHAT AM I WATCHING???”) and another to his back. Shane is right back with a staple into Havoc’s head as the announcers are losing it. Tony: “Ok. We have lost our minds.”

They trade off with Allin armdragging (that feels out of place at the moment) Shane but being left alone in the ring. Havoc isn’t done with the staples and here’s Allin to flip dive onto the two of them. It’s time for a bunch of chairs in the ring (Tony: “After a staple gun, a chair is kind of a disappointment for me.”) with one of them being wedged in the corner. Havoc gets extra evil by cutting Hennigan’s fingers with the edge of the paper (a kind of brilliant way to go in a hardcore match) and Bocchini says that’s worse than the staples. I mean….maybe?

Havoc has a seat in a chair but Hennigan gets back up and backdrops him onto two unfolded chairs. That actually gets two as the announcers are surprised that you can get pins here. Fair enough given the level of carnage here. Shane comes back in with a 450 on Allin and it’s time for a cookie sheet. Allin flips out of a German suplex and hits Shane in the knee with Hennigan having to come back in for a save.

Allin’s Coffin Drop is countered into an armbar and Shane snaps the arm back for a snap that actually made my mouth come open and the rest of me cringe. Havoc comes back in for some forearms but gets catapulted into a cookie sheet to the head. Strickland kicks him in the head but Havoc knocks Hennigan down and takes Shane to the apron. One heck of an enziguri staggers Havoc and an AA off the apron sends him through a table. Back in and Starship Pain only gets two on Havoc but the crowd reaction isn’t that strong as they’re going too long here.

Havoc tries to beg and then gets caught going for the double low blow. As Hennigan and Strickland look to deal with him, Allin dives off the balcony with a chair to take them both out and they’ve got the crowd right back. Allin sets up another table but takes too long, allowing Hennigan and Strickland to put him on it instead. They both go up top but here’s the woman who attacked Garrett to shove Hennigan to the floor. A double superplex puts Shane through a table for two and the woman throws in a chain. Havoc wraps it around his arm and clotheslines the heck out of Shane for the pin at 18:49.

Rating: B. They knew what they were going for here and then executed it. Havoc and Allin are good hardcore guys and it’s impressive to have them beat some big names like Hennigan and Strickland. On top of that, it was a heck of a violent match with the announcers actually adding a lot in that “this is insane” style. There’s also something great about Tony watching this violent stuff and it made things that much better.

Hathaway has a press conference to talk about MVP where he talks about MVP being in prison earlier in the 2000s. Someone negotiated a deal with WWE and then another with New Japan. That someone is of course Hathaway, who is now in charge of Black Friday Management (the heel stable started by Gary Hart in the original MLW). Therefore, Hathaway controls MVP so he’ll be facing Low Ki next month.

Overall Rating: C+. I had a good time here and that’s what matters most on the second show in a promotion’s lifespan. They offered a nice balance of stuff from start to finish and the show never started to drag. I want to see where things go from here and that’s the most important thing they can do. It’s pretty impressive to see how well they’ve hit the ground running and if they can keep that up, they might have a hit on their hands.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

I think I like these people.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-praise-indy/

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #27
Date: October 19, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Matt Striker, Tony Schiavone

We’re onto a fresh taping cycle and back in New York with a major main event. This time around we have Shane Strickland facing Tom Lawlor in a match that belongs on a big stage. I’m not sure what to expect from the rest of the show but this promotion knows how to build up multiple things at the same time. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at Strickland vs. Lawlor, with Shane talking about how people think he’s lost his edge.

Opening sequence.

The announcers preview the main event.

El Hijo de LA Park vs. Sammy Guevara

Park has Salina, who fired Sammy a few months back, in his corner. Sammy gets sent outside for an early suicide dive but he’s right back up with one of his own. Back in and Park scores with a high crossbody for no cover, opting instead to kick Sammy into the corner. Guevara manages to backflip over the rather tall Park (that’s impressive) and then dropkick him down.

Park’s own high crossbody still gets no cover as the announcers talk about next week’s Halloween special. A running Canadian Destroyer gives Park two more to send Sammy outside with Park moonsaulting after him. Back in and Sammy misses his own moonsault but is right there with a standing shooting star for two. Park gets two of his own off a super Spanish Fly but Guevara hits a low superkick. Guevara misses a charge though and gets caught in an over the shoulder piledriver to give Park the pin at 5:38.

Rating: D+. This one didn’t do it for me for the most part as Guevara is good for a spot like this but Park feels like a knockoff of his father (the name doesn’t help). The problem here is the story not being the most thrilling, as it’s not something that Salina needs to be involved in. She’s the best manager in the promotion (and one of the best around today) but this story doesn’t feel up to her level. The match was fine for an opener, just not that interesting.

Tom Lawlor says you know what to expect from him. He ran through 39 people in the Battle Riot and is the ace around here. But who are you getting from Strickland? The World Champion or the guy who won’t even show up?

Rush is still coming.

Konnan isn’t impressed by Salina’s actions last week and promises to have the Lucha Bros take out LA Park and Hijo de LA Park.

Samoan Island Tribe vs. Smash N Dash Connection

That would be Samu/Lance Anoa’i vs. Kotto Brazil/Barrington Hughes. The Samoans jump them from behind and Samu slams Kotto to start. Thankfully it’s off to Lance in a hurry for a sunset flip Backstabber (cool) but he makes sure to cut off the ring before covering. It’s back to Samu as Striker explains Samoans having hard hands. A clothesline takes Kotto down and Lance comes in to spit at Hughes.

Kotto gets up a boot in the corner but Lance slams him down to break up a hot tag attempt. Lance suckers Hughes in but superkicks him twice before the huge one can even get in. A double Stroke gets no cover as Lance misses a top rope splash instead, allowing the tag to Hughes (already with one foot over the ropes before he comes in. Hughes tries a headbutt for no logical reason as everything breaks down. Lance gets thrown into a spear on Samu and it’s Sliced Bread off Hughes’ chest into a splash to give Hughes the pin at 6:15.

Rating: D. I’m sorry what now? You have Samu, the 55 year old wrestler whose top claim to fame since the 1980s is being part of a famous family, and his son takes the pin? Lance isn’t a star or anything, but what’s the point? Just having someone pin Samu can be spun as a rub. I really don’t get this one, as Lance might not be a star, but do you really need to have him take a fall here? Someone explain this one to me.

A quieter than usual Sami Callihan says he’s ready for Jimmy Havoc next week because Havoc falsely believes he’s the most violent wrestler in the world. They used to be friends but next week, only one man walks out.

Stokely Hathaway is coming.

Shane Strickland says this is his house and MLW would be hard pressed to find someone like him.

Fightland card rundown.

Salina laughs off Konnan’s words and sees a bright future for her men.

Jimmy Havoc likes the possibilities of next week. No matter what the wheel lands on, the match will be in his favor. New York will run red with Callihan’s blood.

Tom Lawlor vs. Shane Strickland

Low Ki is on commentary and when asked about the marks the two have made on MLW, he says he just sees two marks in the ring. Feeling out process to start with Lawlor headlocking him to the mat to no effect. Low Ki actually goes into some of the best analysis I’ve ever heard, talking about what every move is designed to do as well as what it’s looking to set up. If nothing else, it makes Striker sound that much more useless.

Lawlor goes to the apron but slips, allowing Shane to snap the arm over the top rope and kick him to the floor. Another kick to the arm lets Shane wrap the arm around the barricade. Lawlor clotheslines the post by mistake (you know, because you go for left armed clotheslines all the time), allowing Shane to start in on the arm back inside. Shane can’t get an armbar of various forms so he jumps on Tom’s back and pulls back on both arms leaving Tom to bite the ropes for the break. That’s not something you see every day.

Some Low Ki style kicks (Low Ki: “I wonder where he learned that.”) and a discus lariat sets up the rolling cutter for two. Shane takes too much time going up though and Lawlor hits a spinning kick to the head to slow things down. A top rope superplex into a front chancery has Shane in trouble. That’s reversed into a suplex for the double knockdown though as both guys get a breather.

Back up and Lawlor wins a slugout so Shane grabs the bad arm in a smart move. A Falcon Arrow gives Lawlor two but Shane pops up with a jumping knee to the face as Low Ki has gone silent. Lawlor is fine enough for a one armed German suplex and Low Ki gets up as Lawlor slaps on a rear naked choke. Salina comes out for a distraction and Low Ki kicks Lawlor in the head.

Shane doesn’t cover, opting to drape Lawlor over the barricade for a double stomp to the back instead. Back in and a regular double stomp gets two so Low Ki asks Shane why he can’t get a pin. Another snap of the arm sets up a knee to the face but Lawlor manages a one arm choke while biting on the arm tape because he has one arm….for the tap at 16:40.

Rating: B. I was actually surprised by the finish, which is even more impressive when I knew the ending beforehand. Lawlor is being treated as the undisputed star of the promotion and that puts him on a heck of a path to a fight with Low Ki. Shane is on his way to rock bottom, which could make for a heck of a comeback story down the line. Good main event here, with a lot of stories being told at the same time.

After a quick look at next week’s show, Lawlor says he’s cashing in his World Title shot at Super Fight on February 2. That’s quite a long time away and I’m not sure what they’re supposed to do until then.

Overall Rating: C+. I liked the main event a lot but they were lacking a lot in the first half of the show. I’m wanting to see the Fightland show and next week’s card is looking good as well. MLW knows how to build up their shows but more importantly they’re actually good once the shows take place. This show is nothing that’s going to blow you away, but for a weekly one hour TV show that keeps you wanting to come back, Fusion is good stuff.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #22
Date: September 14, 2018
Location: War Memorial Auditorium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Rich Bocchini

And then, WarGames. I’ll give MLW a lot of points for not wasting time in getting to something like this. They’ve built up some characters and a feud so they’re hitting the ground running with what they have. That’s better than wasting time on matches that people don’t want to see when you can do something big like this to make an impact. Or it’s wasting a huge match early on. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The ten people involved tonight all talk about being ready for war. Sami Callihan says his team is going to hurt Shane Strickland and his team because this isn’t about wrestling anymore.

Shane says his team is ready to be the angels to Sami’s demons. John Hennigan says they seem like douchebags instead of demons. The rest of the team is better too, with Tommy Dreamer citing Martin Luther King of all people. I really don’t think he’s like WarGames Tommy.

Opening sequence.

The double cage is being constructed. That never gets old.

Salina de la Renta and Low Ki yell at reporters in Spanish and don’t seem impressed when they run into Dreamer.

We look at the Hart Foundation attacking Kevin Sullivan two weeks back.

The Hart Foundation knows they won’t be suspended because that’s MLW is a bunch of cowards. You can’t stop them and the fans are already talking. The family has taken a lot over the years and they’re not going to take it anymore. They’ve been fined lately, but they’re ready to make more money to pay it off. Brian Pillman Jr. talks about the media lying to you because the Hart Foundation is now the cash cow. Pillman’s smile is perfect.

Fury Road rundown.

The construction continues and there are weapons included inside. You really don’t need those in WarGames. There is also no roof, which isn’t the worst thing in the world.

Team Callihan vs. Team Strickland

Shane Strickland, Tommy Dreamer, John Hennigan, Barrington Hughes, Kotto Brazil

Sami Callihan, Sawyer Fulton, Leon Scott, Abyss, Jimmy Havoc

WarGames, featuring the classic rules. One wrestler from each team will fight for five minutes. After that there is a coin toss with the winning team getting to send in its second man for two minutes. When those two minutes are up, the team that lost even things up. Two more minutes go by and the team that won the toss goes up 3-2. You alternate every two minutes until all ten are in and then it’s first submission wins.

Brazil and Fulton start as apparently Team Strickland won the coin toss. Um, what? The heels are always supposed to win that thing. They better have a good idea of how to get out of this. Brazil is tired of waiting and dropkicks Fulton through the door and through a table to get things going but Fulton catches him coming off the top once they get inside. Some running elbows in the corner have Fulton in some trouble until he throws Kotto into the cage.

Kotto gets LAUNCHED from one ring to the other and there’s a missile dropkick to rock him again. With the pain increasing, Brazil spits in his face and gets tossed into the cage wall for his efforts. Kotto gets his face rubbed against the cage with Fulton talking trash about how no one is going to save him. They manage to get the timing right (almost no one can pull that off) and it’s Hennigan in to make it 2-1.

A standoff lets Hennigan forearm Fulton in the face and Brazil gets up to really start the double teaming. Brazil gets thrown into the corner but Hennigan dives onto Fulton to take over again. Jimmy Havoc (with Hawk face paint0 is in fourth to tie things up and he goes straight to the paper cut on both of Hennigan’s hands. Brazil’s face gets cut and this is actually far main painful than it might sound. Havoc holds up a sign so Fulton can throw him face first into it and there’s a stop sign to Hennigan’s back.

Strickland is in next but Callihan attacks him from behind and tosses him onto (not through) a table. Callihan slams the cage door on Hennigan’s head and gets in the cage to make it 3-2, giving us the way around the coin toss. Kind of an unnecessary detail but not the worst idea. Hennigan gets sent through a table and Fulton drops Callihan onto him for bad measure. A running Razor’s Edge into the cage makes things even worse for Brazil and it’s Dreamer in next, of course complete with a trashcan full of weapons.

Dreamer cleans house and the TOMMY DREAMER chants start up, which make sense in a town ECW ran back in the day. Hennigan is back up to slug away at Fulton and Havoc is busted open (well duh). Now it’s Scott coming in to “even” things up and the weapons have Team Strickland in even more trouble. Hennigan gets caught in a trashcan and pummeled with sticks but Brazil suplexes Havoc as Hughes is in for Team Strickland. He can barely make it through the ropes before getting into a fight with Scott.

Havoc hits Hughes in the head with a wet floor sign and gets glared at for his efforts. Callihan’s stop sign to the head works a lot better as we’re told that Strickland is done for the night. The other good guys get up and take over with Brazil even having time to enjoy some water. Abyss finishes Team Callihan and the Match Beyond begins, meaning submissions are now legal. The monster cleans house until Dreamer hammers away with the Flip Flop and Fly, earning himself a Black Hole Slam.

Hughes and Abyss have the big staredown until everyone gets up for the big brawl. Brazil gets up top for the BIG corkscrew dive, though the camera cuts to a wide shot for some reason. They show a regular version on the replay so I’m not sure I get that one. Havoc takes a Canadian Destroyer and Brazil cranks on a reverse Rings of Saturn, leading to a double Human Centipede of submissions.

That’s broken up as well and it’s Hughes splashing Abyss in the corner. Abyss is right back with a clothesline to knock Hughes down for the first time ever. Scott sends himself through a table (CRUNCH) but Hennigan gets dropped by a Rainmaker. Callihan tells Abyss to get the tacks but Brazil bites his hand to escape a chokeslam.

An Asai DDT (a running Salida Del Sol) sends Abyss into the tacks instead, leaving Callihan to accidentally take a Rainmaker. Dreamer adds a cutter and it’s barbed wire time. Brazil and Dreamer wrap barbed wire around Hughes and I don’t see this ending well. The splash “hits” Fulton’s back and a regular splash makes things worse. Hughes and Brazil wrap the wire around Fulton’s face for the tap at 30:45.

Rating: B. This was about all you could ask for in a WarGames match and I’m assuming Strickland was actually injured or it’s a good angle to keep things going for a future match. They came up with a good way to use Hughes here as there’s not much someone his size can do. The rest of the guys did fine and the right person took the fall, so there isn’t much to complain about here. They had a good level of violence and nothing really dragged, though having the captain out did lower the stakes a good deal.

The winners leave and Callihan and company blame Havoc for the loss. A big beatdown ends the show.

Overall Rating: B+. The angle at the end and the recaps from earlier in the night helped this a bit and the show was a lot of fun overall. There’s something about WarGames that makes it feel that much more special and that’s exactly what we got here. Good show with the one match being all that mattered, which is pretty hard to pull off actually.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #16
Date: August 3, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Matt Striker

We’re past Battle Riot and that means things are back to normal around here. Tom Lawlor won the big event and has what is pretty much a Money in the Bank contract. Other than that we have some stories coming out of the Battle Riot which could make for some interesting TV. You never know what to expect around here so let’s get to it.

Here are the Battle Riot results if you need a recap.

Note that this is listed as episode 16, meaning Battle Riot was 15. Normally I’d go in order but that would drive me nuts as time went on so I’ll go with what they say.

We look at the footage of Shane Strickland being attacked. Sami Callihan has admitted to being behind it due to bringing Shane out of the horrible places in wrestling and making him a star. Now he’s doing it for the money because Shane believes that he’s a bigger star than he really is. That means it’s time for a match. Makes enough sense.

Opening sequence.

The announcers run down the show.

Brody King vs. Jimmy Havoc

This could be interesting. King shoves the much smaller Havoc so Havoc does it right back. A missed charge puts King on the floor and Havoc goes after him with a suicide dive DDT. Havoc stops for a beer and apparently it charges him up enough that he avoids a chop, sending King’s hand HARD into the post. King’s hand is fine enough to send Havoc head first into the post and a clothesline gets two.

A standing backsplash gets the same and the rocked Havoc rolls to the floor. Back in and Havoc slaps away at the legs, eventually wrapping the leg around a rope for a chop. King comes back by smacking him upside the head for two. Havoc fakes a poke to the eye and grabs a DDT to put King down. A rolling Death Valley Driver (impressive given the size difference) and a kick to the head gives Havoc two but King sticks him with a piledriver.

One heck of a gutwrench powerbomb gives King two more and frustration has set in. A Fire Thunder Driver (the Go Home Driver, a great name) plants Havoc again and King can’t believe the kickout. With nothing else working, King grabs a chokeslam, which is countered into a rolling cradle to give Havoc the pin out of nowhere at 10:06.

Rating: C+. This was all about beating the heck out of Havoc and making King look like a power monster in the vein of Luke Harper. Havoc on the other hand gets the big win as you can imagine him facing Tom Lawlor again now that Lawlor is the Battle Riot winner. It’s a fun match with some big spots and that’s the kind of way to make both guys look good.

Brian Pillman Jr. is in the back when Kevin Sullivan comes in to talk about how great Pillman Sr. is. Sullivan offers him support and advice but Brian says he has a lot of work to do. We can’t just give Sr.’s accolades to Jr., even though Sr. respected you “Bookerman”. Sullivan seems fine with this and shakes Pillman’s hand.

Earlier today Salina de la Renta was with Sami Callihan when Low Ki came in. Low Ki pays him off and they agree to keep working together, as long as the money keeps coming.

Video on Lawler winning the Battle Riot.

Lawlor celebrated at Fenway Park.

Jake Hager vs. Simon Gotch

Hager jumps him before the bell and the referee is fine with starting the match, with Striker not being pleased. Gotch gets sent shoulder first into the post and Hager slowly stomps away until the referee tells him to let up. The delay lets Gotch score with some forearms and clotheslines but a gutwrench powerbomb plants him for two. Gotch spits in Hager’s face, earning himself a boot to the head for the pin at 3:05.

Rating: D. Kind of a weird match with a heel vs. heel setup and the announcers not getting very into the ending. Hager vs. Lawlor could be good, though we just saw it in the end of the Battle Riot. Lawlor, despite being banged up and worn down, managed to beat Hager so I’m not sure how much interest there would be in a big time match between them.

Joey Janela’s girlfriend Aria Blake is excited about his Middleweight Title shot next week but here’s Maxwell J. Friedman to be annoying. He and a buddy of his have a bet about whether or not Aria is interested in a better life than living in Joey’s grandmother’s basement. Aria says no and walks away, but I think you know where this is going.

Here’s the newest Top Ten:

10. ACH

9. Rey Fenix

8. Teddy Hart

7. John Hennigan

6. Jake Hager

5. Sami Callihan

4. Pentagon Jr.

3. Jimmy Havoc

2. Shane Strickland

1. Tom Lawlor

Konnan tries to sign Fenix to a contract but a ticked off Salina comes in to tell Konnan to mind his own business. Pentagon Jr. doesn’t look happy.

LA Park is coming.

Jimmy Yuta and Jason Cade get in another fight, this time with Cade punching him.

Preview for next week’s show with Friedman defending against Janela and John Hennigan vs. Teddy Hart.

Teddy Hart thinks Rich Swann and ACH are laughing at him but they deny everything and leave.

Shane Strickland vs. Sami Callihan

Sami has the Death Machines with him. After a long entrance, Sami does the thumbs up/thumbs down thing, only to charge straight into a kick to the head. They go outside with Sami kicking him in the head as well but Shane pops him again. Back in and Sami hides behind the referee, allowing a low blow to cut Shane down. The double underhook shoulder breaker gets two and it’s time for Sami to go after Shane’s bad knee.

A kick to the leg has Shane in trouble and Sami mocks the WHO’S HOUSE chant. We hit a modified Indian Deathlock and then a pretty bad Figure Four to keep Shane in trouble. He turns it over to force the break and Sami tells offers him an open jaw. Instead Shane hits a combination clothesline and palm strike and kicks Sami into the corner but the running boot bangs up the leg again. Shane is fine enough for the rolling cutter but Sami’s slingshot swinging neckbreaker gets two.

Sami switches over into an STF, with Tony thinking it’s fortunate to not be on the bad leg. Some fishhooking is enough to make the referee break Sami’s hold so Shane is right back with a short armscissors. The Death Machines get on the apron for a distraction though but Sami’s Cactus Driver is countered into a pinfall reversal sequence. A kick to the bad knee is enough to set up the Cactus Driver for the pin at 15:50.

Rating: B. The time helped here and made this feel like a bigger deal. Shane isn’t the champion anymore but is still one of the biggest stars the show has. He has that presence to him and that’s one of those things you either have or you don’t. Having him lose and then rise back up the ranks would be a good story and something they could do long term, especially with Shane still having a rematch whenever.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was packed with a bunch of stuff going on, a good chunk of which has me wanting to come back. I’m interested in seeing where the stories go, which is the case a good sign for a wrestling company. They’re now feeling like an established place, a hard accomplishment to have after just a few months. Fun show here, and I’m digging the vibe around here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

MLW One Shot
Date: October 5, 2017
Location: Gilt Nightclub, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 200
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

So every week, I’ve been covering the MLW TV show called Fusion. The thing is, the TV show wasn’t the first iteration of the (reincarnated version of the) promotion as they also had a bunch of stand alone events. I might as well knock off that handful of shows as well, starting here with their return event. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence, which is just a bunch of clips.

Tama Tonga vs. Martin Stone

Stone is NXT’s Danny Burch. Tonga (of Bullet Club) jumps him during the referee’s weapons check (points for having one of those) and pounds away, only to have Stone come back with a quick suplex. Tony mentions Stone mocking the Bullet Club with some hand gestures, which just makes me confused about Tony knowing what the Bullet Club is. An armdrag gets Tonga out of trouble and he pulls Stone off the apron to make things even worse. Some forearms to the face put Stone on the floor where Tonga grabs a fan’s beer for some refreshment.

Back in and Stone gets driven hard into the corner but comes right back out with a middle rope dropkick. Stone starts striking away as well but makes the mistake of headbutting a Tongan. Something like a reverse Cross Rhodes gives Tonga two and they botch what looked to be a lawn dart into the corner. An Alabama Slam gets two more (shades of Cody for a nice touch) and the Gun Stun (RKO) finishes Stone at 6:48.

Rating: C-. Not much to see here as it’s really just a match between two international guys that you might have heard of. Stone is an NXT guy but it makes sense to have the New Japan guy win here. The Bullet Club is the biggest deal outside of WWE in wrestling at the moment and giving them a win, even if it’s just in a one off appearance, it makes sense.

Stone gets a nice ovation.

Mike Parrow/Saieve Al Sabah vs. Seth Petruzelli/Rhett Giddins

Parrow is a monster, Petruzelli is the NXT striking coach and a former MMA fighter and the others are unknowns. Giddins, a big old guy in his own right, stares Parrow down to start and punches him in the jaw for good measure. Parrow tells him to bring it and we’ve got an old fashioned hoss fight. A Rough Ryder puts Parrow down so he German suplexes Giddins near the ropes in a crash that could have looked better. Al Sabah comes in and gets hit in the face as well, meaning it’s off to Seth (Like I’m typing that last name over and over.) for a running knee to the face.

Parrow isn’t cool with this standing still and powerbombs Seth into the corner to take over. The heels keep working Seth over as the announcers are trying to find something to talk about here as there’s no story and we don’t really know anything about anyone in the match. Seth kicks Al Sabah away and hits something like a Sliced Bread on Parrow, allowing the hot(ish) tag to Giddins. A cutter gets two on Al Sabah and everything breaks down. Al Sabah misses a moonsault and gets pulled into a cross armbreaker to give Seth the submission at 5:35.

Rating: D+. All four looked fine but there was no chemistry and not much of a story going on. In other words, it felt like a tag match that was thrown onto the card as a way to get everyone on the card and there’s nothing wrong with that. The four of them could be fine with some better direction but there’s only so much you can get when no one has a character or any sort of a character.

Post match Parrow powerbombs Al Sabah for a great looking bounce.

The announcers plug the MLW Radio network.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Jimmy Yuta

Friedman is a less toned and tanned EC3. Before the match, he has a speech for us in case we’re deaf, dumb blind or poor. I’m not sure what the point of this is if they’re deaf but wrestling heels have a tendency to be stupid. Yuta, a pretty standard looking cruiserweight, grabs a rollup for an early two and they wrestle to the mat for a standoff. That’s enough to make Friedman want a handshake but Yuta is smart enough to be ready for the kick to the ribs. Friedman: “PUT THE FOOT DOWN!”

Yuta obliges and goes with a springboard armdrag instead. The nitwited referee gets in Yuta’s way though and Friedman forearms him in the face to take over. Friedman starts in on the arm with an armdrag of his own but stops to yell at the fans a bit. Yuta fights up for a nice high crossbody and a double springboard hurricanrana sends Friedman face first into the middle buckle in a good looking crash.

They head to the corner but Yuta’s arm gives out again, allowing Friedman to come off with a hard stomp to bang it up even further. A pumphandle driver (ala Pentagon) gets two and Friedman freaks at the kickout. Yuta takes him down for some terrible right hands so Friedman claims a broken jaw. The goldbricking allows a low blow and the small package gives Friedman the pin at 6:41.

Rating: D. Friedman is a good heel character but everything else about him is kind of a stretch. He doesn’t have a great look and while his talking is fine, it’s not exactly a complete package. Then again, anything would be better than more of Yuta’s right hands, which really did look terrible. I mean, not Shane McMahon but still not exactly acceptable.

UFC fighter Tom Lawlor is ready to face Olympic wrestler Jeff Cobb. As usual, Lawlor is a rather solid talker.

Barrington Hughes vs. Markos Espada

Hughes is well over 400lbs and barely fits in his singlet. A corner splash before the bell is good for the pin on Espada at 7 seconds.

We see the replay of the full match multiple times.

Ricochet knows Shane Strickland is good, but he’s not Ricochet good. Strickland doesn’t like the lack of respect from Ricochet, who he’s known for a long time. Ricochet said “who” when asked about Strickland on Twitter and Strickland wants to kick him in the mouth. Not bad for an angle for a one off show actually.

Darby Allin vs. Jason Cade

Allin has half of his face painted white for a demonic look. He sits in the corner ala Raven before the bell but pulls himself up ala Diamond Dallas Page to start things off. A springboard out of a lockup (that’s a new one) takes Cade down so he hits Allin in the face instead. Allin takes him down by the arm and flips over into a Fujiwara armbar. Back up and a high angle springboard armdrag keeps Cade in trouble as Allin is doing some nice high flying to start.

Cade’s comeback puts Allin on the floor and there’s the required big flip dive. Back in and we hear about Norman Smiley’s amazing training abilities, unfortunately with the hardcore stuff included. Allin shows off again with a springboard off the bottom rope into a crossbody to a seated Cade. A Codebreaker gets Cade out of trouble but Allin just dives at him to knock Cade off the apron in a big crash.

Tony brings up the apron being the hardest part of the ring, but this is different: theirs is EVEN HARDER than most aprons! Well what in the world are they supposed to do now? How could they possibly survive??? Back in and Cade gets two off a fisherman’s buster and a Death Valley Driver into the corner gets the same. Those are some big moves to only get two each. Cade’s Five Star hits knees and Allin grabs something like a twisted Figure Four but spins around and lays back on Cade (the Last Supper) for the pin at 8:33.

Rating: C+. Allin felt like someone who is trying to be revolutionary and does have a bunch of unique looking stuff but it wasn’t anything that blew me away. The face paint made me think more “another one of these guys” than anything else, which isn’t the best thing in the world. Cade was a fine high flier but I’ve seen him do far better than this.

Video of Ricochet….shopping? He’s a big shoe fan and apparently this show is a fan of vignettes instead of more wrestling. Strickland on the other hand is training more and more.

Larry Zbyszko is in the crowd.

Mia Yim vs. Santana Garrett

Santana is in the Wonder Woman style gear, which is starting to lose some of its charm. A headlock takeover is countered into a headscissors to give Mia some control for a good two seconds. Some rollups get one each as it’s a fast paced technical start. Double nipups give us a standoff and Mia is looking impressed for the first time. A Russian legsweep gives Garrett two but Mia cranks it up a bit with a kick to the head.

Mia goes full heel here, despite the fans seemingly being behind her, by raking the eyes and then kicking Garrett in the back. Garrett gets in some forearms but another kick to the back puts her down all over again. Yim slaps on a surfboard for some painful looking stretching and Garrett can barely sit up after the hold is broken. The cockiness sets in though and it’s Garrett getting back up, with stereo kicks to the face giving us a double knockdown.

Back up and Garrett wins a slugout, followed by a tornado DDT for a pretty close two. A handspring elbow into a horrible bulldog gets two more with commentary acknowledging that it wasn’t going to be enough. Yim is right back up with a German suplex but Garrett pulls her off the top. A handspring moonsault is enough to give Garrett the pin at 12:28.

Rating: C. Both of them are very talented and that made for a good match here. Yim going heel here was the better way to go as she can play the role naturally, even if the fans were read to cheer for her. Garrett is someone who could be a big star in one of the major promotions but for some reason it has never quite clicked. It’s not like she doesn’t have a lot of time to go somewhere though.

We look at Hughes’ win again, this time with a clock. That’s a gimmick that has worked before and it can work again here.

MLW will be back with Never Say Never.

Tom Lawlor vs. Jeff Cobb

Lawlor is a former UFC fighter and has a pair of goons with him. Cobb (better known as Lucha Underground’s Matanza) on the other hand was an Olympic wrestler who has put on about 70lbs of muscle since his amateur days. They go to the mat to start with Lawlor being outwrestled, which seems to come as quite the surprise.

Cobb takes him to the mat again but this time Lawlor reverses into a front facelock. They get up and Lawlor starts boxing, which is way beyond Cobb’s abilities and a rather smart idea. Cobb goes back to what works with a heck of a suplex and then puts Lawlor on top for an impressive dropkick. A very delayed superplex gets an also delayed two on Lawlor so Cobb hits a moonsault but his standing shooting star is pulled down into a guillotine.

Lawlor switches into a cross armbreaker but Cobb is too close to the ropes. A suplex puts Lawlor down as Cobb is bleeding from the nose. They both get up and it’s Lawlor winning a slugout before trying the cross armbreaker again. Cobb powers out again, but Lawlor reverses into a rollup for the pin at 9:27.

Rating: C+. The more I watch this promotion, the more I’m getting behind the concept of their TV show. The show is called Fusion, with the name talking about all the different styles coming together. That’s what we saw here, with a wrestler against an MMA fighter, which made for a fun match. Lawlor has been the highlight of the promotion since it came back and this was a great starting point. Cobb is a talented guy who hasn’t gotten the big break yet, at least outside of Lucha Underground.

A replay shows Lawlor either raking the eyes or rubbing something on Cobb’s face like a good cheater should. Post match, Team Filthy gets in the ring to hold up a poster of Lawlor’s sponsors, including a condom company. Lawlor says that he won the match so the fans can keep their mouths shut. He’ll be looking for the top challengers and wants to face the top UFC name around here in Matt Riddle.

Sami Callihan has no comment. The interviewer acts like it’s a surprise to see Callihan, even though the announcers said we were going to him. Eh chalk it up to a first show mistake.

Sami Callihan vs. MVP

Sami is in jeans and throws some chairs into the ring to start. During MVP’s entrance, Callihan sits in a chair at ringside and throws a beer at him. Sami tries a cheap shot during the entrances so MVP kicks him to the floor and hits a dive. So he doesn’t respond well to being jumped from behind.

Back in and MVP crossfaces him a few times but Sami gets in a clothesline to take it back outside. The required suicide dive takes MVP down again and Sami buries him underneath a pile of chairs. They both have a seat in some of the chairs and slug it out for a little twist on the trope. A suplex puts MVP onto the chairs and Sami shouts a lot, followed by a pull of the ear.

MVP is back up fast enough to send him head first into a chair and boots him in the face for good measure. Another boot with Sami in a chair has him down as I wonder how high the referee’s count should be at so far. Sami pulls the referee in front of another kick and gets in a chair shot….before telling the referee to start counting. There’s something funny about counting after they’ve been brawling for five minutes.

MVP rolls back in so Callihan tries a Ballin splash but hits knees. Another slugout goes to MVP and now the Ballin elbow connects. Callihan’s knee to the head looks to set up the Stretch Muffler but MVP is next to the ropes. MVP slaps away and grabs a fisherman’s suplex for the pin at 11:59.

Rating: C. The ending was a little flat with such a simple wrestling move ending the brawl but the intensity on the way to the finish makes up for the problems. It makes sense to have Callihan stick with the brawling instead of trying to have a match and this was very well suited to his style. Not a great match, but a good fight.

Post match MVP is in the back being happy with his win when a woman comes up and offers him a business card.

One more video on Ricochet vs. Shane Strickland, including some praise for Ricochet from Dave Meltzer. They both want to push each other but they might not be friends after this match.

Ricochet vs. Shane Strickland

I know Ricochet is the bigger star but Strickland carries himself like a star in his own right and that makes for a special feeling. We get the Big Match Intros and the announcer actually gives a description of their appearance. Good idea if the people don’t know these guys. Ricochet takes him into the corner for a friendly slap to the chest, suggesting that they have a lot of time to work with here.

Strickland tries to do the same thing but Ricochet slips out to the apron in a pretty smart move. Back in and Shane takes it to the mat by tying up Shane’s legs. That’s reversed into an armbar as Tony talks about JR teaching him to strive to be the best, which is true of wrestlers as well. Ricochet pulls him by the long hair (not the best feature for a wrestler to have) and they get up, with Shane untying his hair.

The tie is flicked at Ricochet and you KNOW it’s on now. They hit the “you can’t touch me” sequence with a series of flips and misses, including the Benadryller (fireman’s carry into a kick to the head) being dodged off a nip up. Ricochet is stunned so Shane sits down and tells him to bring it. Back up and Shane punches him in the face as the match shifts gears in a hurry.

Ricochet accidentally rolls into an armbar and Shane goes even harder by pulling Ricochet’s arm back with his leg. A stomp to the arm gives us a cringe inducing sound and we hit a modified Rings of Saturn. Ricochet gets up and grabs the rope so Shane kicks him in the bad arm to cut him off again. One heck of a running dropkick knocks Shane into the ropes, earning Ricochet a nice round of applause. A springboard flip splash crushes Shane and Ricochet bends him around his back for another painful looking hold.

Ricochet scores with a spinebuster and the People’s Moonsault (exactly what it sounds like) as Tony gives a good explanation of why Ricochet isn’t annoyed at the kickout (mind games instead of going for an actual pin). A short DDT sends Shane flopping around on the mat for two more but he’s right back up with the rolling cutter. Shane suplexes him into the corner for two but misses a 619 to the ribs.

Ricochet shows him how it’s done (to the face) and a springboard uppercut puts Shane down again. The fans are behind Ricochet now, despite him being the heel for twenty minutes plus so far. Shane double stomps him for two of his own but gets his head clotheslined off for a double knockdown. They trade some hard forearms to the jaw until Ricochet sends him flying with a release (maybe not intentionally) German suplex. Shane catches him on top and superkicks him into a spike DDT, followed by the top rope double stomp for a very close two.

They take some time to get up and Ricochet is right there with a reverse hurricanrana. The springboard 450 gets two and a reverse inverted DDT driver (it’s cooler than it sounds) does the same but Ricochet can’t follow up. With Shane on his knees, Ricochet spits in his face. That’s fine with Shane, who knees hi hard in the face to even things out. Something like a keylock goes back to the arm but Ricochet powerbombs his way to freedom. Shane pulls him right back into it though and Ricochet taps at 33:58.

Rating: A-. This was the best of both worlds: the great wrestling and high flying spots to go with the story of Shane trying to prove that he’s the better man. Ricochet is a top level guy (in NXT pretty soon thereafter) and having Shane go over him completely clean is the right idea. They were one upping each other over and over here until Shane capitalized on the one thing that held Ricochet back. Great match, and the kind of match that this show needed.

Ricochet nods at Shane as he leaves.

After the copyright, we get a video saying Jimmy Havoc is coming to Never Say Never Again.

Overall Rating: B. I had a really good time with this show and that’s the kind of response that this show needed. Nothing was bad (some wasn’t great but there’s a big gap between bad and not very good) and the show moved by quickly. There was a great main event to go with it and you can see the star power in Strickland. I’m already a fan of the promotion but this would have been enough to make me keep watching. The idea of the mixture of styles was on full display here, giving you the something for everyone vibe that you don’t get often enough. Well done, and they’ve already kept it going.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

IMG Credit: Major League Wrestling

Fusion #14
Date: July 20, 2018
Location: Gilt Nightclub, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Rich Bocchini, Tony Schiavone

It’s the go home show for Battle Riot and if you listen to most of the wrestlers, you might not know that. I could go for a much harder sell this week and maybe that’s the case, but the vignettes and promos that they’ve had already have me interested in the card. That’s harder to do than it sounds so well done there. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with a look at Shane Strickland’s rise to the top of the promotion. However, this last also caused him to be the target Salina de la Renta and her $60,000 bounty. Tonight Low Ki is trying to claim the money and the title. If nothing else, at least get get some more of Low Ki’s incredibly awesome voice.

Opening sequence.

Kiki Roberts vs. Kahuna Khan

This is a prospects match, meaning they’re trying to prove themselves. Kiki is rather flamboyant and Kahuna’s shirt says “I’m fat. Let’s party.” The bell rings and here are Su Yung and Zeda Zhang to lay them both out for the no contest at we’ll say 1:05.

The beatdown continues post match with Tony naming the team the Kodokushi (Lonely Death) Death Squad.

The Stud Stable comes up to Fred Yehi but Team Filthy comes in for the save. Lawlor hands him a shirt and Yehi accepts.

We recap Tom Lawlor vs. Jimmy Havoc, which started a few weeks ago (more than a few now actually) when Lawlor and company attacked Havoc. You don’t do that to a crazy man like Havoc, who has sworn revenge on Lawlor. That’s cool with Lawlor, who says bring it on.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Tom Lawlor

This is a grudge match, meaning No DQ. Havoc sends him straight to the floor for a suicide dive and grabs an early chair. Instead of taking it back inside though, Havoc sits him in the chair for a running eye poke in a funny spot. Havoc throws what looks like a piece of plywood at him and Lawlor is bleeding from the back. That sounds like a call for a cheese grater but Lawlor takes it away and carves up Havoc’s head instead.

Havoc throws him into the chairs to cut Lawlor off again as Lawlor is having trouble hanging in Havoc’s world. He can however find a staple gun to stab Havoc in the head, drawing even more blood. Lawlor even staples an envelope to Havoc’s head with Tony saying he’s digging this. Back in and Havoc grates Lawlor’s crotch so Tony starts giving recipes. I really shouldn’t be laughing at that but it got a nice chuckle. To be fair though, what other response are you supposed to have when someone runs a cheese grater over his opponent’s crotch?

Lawlor tosses him onto the chair with a release German suplex and Havoc has a good crimson mask going. A Death Valley Driver through a piece of plywood in the corner is broken up and Havoc pulls out a piece of paper to give Lawlor a paper cut. That’s….I think brilliant? Havoc does it again and then pulls out a lemon to make the cut burn.

Lawlor takes the pizza cutter away and carves up Havoc’s arm. Bocchini: “MAMA MIA!” Ok I chuckled. A backbreaker onto the side of a chair is a lot more serious and Havoc is down again. Havoc pops back up and hits the Rainmaker for the pin (with Lawlor looking up at the referee at two and putting his head back down) at 9:39.

Rating: B-. This is a hard one to grade as I’m not wild on the crazy violent matches but it suits Havoc quite well and they had more than enough unique spots to make it work. I can go for this a lot more when they surprised me with the ending. Lawlor was in over his head with someone this violent and while he’s been hot as of late, it didn’t make a lot of sense to have him beat someone ticked off and in their element. The blood was actually a bit refreshing too. If you’re going this violent, there are a few things you need and that’s at the top of the list.

Sami Callihan says he attacked Strickland last week. He’s not happy with what Shane has become because Shane has let the fans get in his head. Sami is coming for him.

Kotto Brazil and Barrington Hughes aren’t happy with Shane being attacked so often but Shane comes in to say he’s got this.

Quick Battle Riot preview.

Salina de la Renta has the money waiting for Low Ki. Low Ki is ready because he’s a professional.

MLW World Title: Low Ki vs. Shane Strickland

Shane is defending and coming in banged up. The champ’s entrance feels big and he’s coming off like a total star, which is exactly what they were going for with him. They have a lot of time here too, even after the Big Match Intros. A long staredown leads to Shane hammering away and taking Low Ki down with a judo throw. Low Ki goes with the kicks in the corner to take over and a headbutt has Shane in more trouble.

The pace slows a lot until Shane gets in a hard slap to the face to stagger Low Ki back a few steps. With the commentators comparing Strickland to John McClane (banged up but keeps fighting for more), Low Ki comes back with a vengeance by choking over the ropes. Shane chops away but a double stomp cuts him off again. Low Ki is doing more than the standard strikes here and that makes it so much easier than usual. The precision of the offense fits the Professional deal too.

Shane kicks him to the floor and hits a hurricanrana as he keeps fighting to hang in there, even while Low Ki is staying steady. The gear isn’t staying as steady though as Shane rips open Low Ki’s shirt and chops at the bare chest. A half and half suplex gets two on Low Ki but he counters a catapult into a middle rope double stomp. That was a sick landing. Shane kicks away and the rolling cutter gets two. The top rope stomp misses though and Shane’s bad knee is banged up even worse. A hard kick to the back of the head gives Low Ki the pin and the title at 13:17.

Rating: B. There was a great story here with Shane not being able to hang in there forever because Low Ki was too good and knew how to take Shane out when he was too banged up to properly defend the title. Low Ki picked him apart like a professional would and that made for a very good match with an even better story. I liked this a lot and Shane continues to look great.

Low Ki and Salina celebrate with Salina handing him the money to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. That’s pretty easily the best show they’ve had yet with two very good matches and a big moment to end the show. I still want to see where they go with Battle Riot, which really does seem to be getting a ton of focus. It was mentioned more here, but I don’t remember more than one or two wrestlers talking about the show. They had a very good TV show to build some momentum though and that’s a great sign. Solid show tonight and things are looking up.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6