One Shot? I Hope Not…
‘Shot through the heart, And you’re to blame…’
John Bon Jovi/Richie Sambora/Desmond Child
Well, perhaps not all that heart gubbins, but MLW’s One Shot was rather fine.
WTF
I didn’t really like Major League Wrestling multi-position man Saint Laurent, he was behind the commentary mic, then the promoter of very well-likee Microman and I thought he wasn’t completely brilliant.
That’s changed now. He isn’t completely brilliant or anything, you understand, but the Microman work seems to have been a first go at this rather fine angle.
The World Titan Federation, or WTF, see? Now, this is not the first time there’s been an incursionary group, there was that little NWO thing in WCW and before that in Japan too.
But this allows lounge-outfit wearing St Laurent to indulge his ‘Roll up, Roll up’ preferences. And I suppose people didn’t really take that much notice until Alex Hammerstone became a member, that is. Yes, Hammer, the former MLW champ who spent much of his tenure being made to look weak, in my view and who dropped the title to ‘Bomaye’ Alex Kane a while ago.
He needs something. He has a good kooky personality which showed through with Richard Holliday in the Dynasty. This is perfect for him, it’s serious and silly at the same time.
And the World Titan Federation allows that. It has fun at its core and that was apparent in One Shot, MLW’s newest premium live event.
The Overview
Good wrestling, packed card, big angle. And a febrile crowd. What more could we need?
Start With A Bang
Rocky Romero? Check. Mascara Dorado? Check. For the MLW Middleweight and NWA World Historic Welterweight belts? Check check.
This is not the first match on the card, there are 9, count ’em, 9 ahead of it, but the 5 we got (plus egregious angle) were just right.
As was this match. From the moment Rocky turned a surfboard into a pinning predicament by sliding down to the mat, it was clear this was going to be good.
A Romero tilt a whirl DDT. A Romero Superplex. A Dorada sit out Facebuster. A Romero Sunset Driver.
It was shaping up very well. Until Rocky took off Dorado’s mask and pinned him – good ending, that lack of respect really feeding into his nasty heel persona, pakled up Selina De La Renta and dripping in gold – belts, that is…
That was mighty fine, but even better was Delmie Exo versus Miyu Yamashita for Miyu’s Princess of Princess Championship. Miyu started with kicks. Many of ’em, all with serious intent. But Delmie came back with a kick of her own and followed it up with a Senton on the apron and Blockbuster, then went further with an Electric Chair position drop and a Miyu kick out.
It was Delmie’s turn to kick out after a Super Death Valley Driver – yes, right off the top.
Miyu landed a spinning kick to the head for the pin and I heartily concurred with Matt Striker’s comment; ‘folks, we are seeing a show stealer!’
Other Matches Ran It Close
Filthy Tom Lawlor? Versus Satoshi Kojima? Salivating starts…now! Lawlor has the MMA feel, Kojima has done it all on his 32 wrestling years.
And it was a great wrestling match. Why? The Filthy One understood Kojima likes to end with a clothesline, so he worked on the arm, even showing us a single arm Bulldog; classy. Of course they traded meaty forearms and stinging chops, Lawlor’s were of the machine gun variety, later on Kojima’s would be doubled.
That wasn’t all though, the nasty Kojima DDT and full blooded Lawlor Piledriver not quite producing the 1-2-3. Lawlor’s Straitjacket and knee to the back almost did though, but his opponent’s 2 lariats did.
Rather fine.
Quite Fine
Jimmy Lloyd faced Rickey Shane Page for the latter’s National Openweight belt and it didn’t deliver the hardcore thrills it could have.
It was mainly chairs in this match and it provided a great spot when Lloyd was Drop Toeholded onto the back strut of a chair throat first; Striker had to talk it up, it wasn’t very noticeable but it was nasty.
There were splashes onto Page who was laying on lots of chairs, a Page Swanton, he also took a slam through a chunk of wood for a long 2 count.
But Page eventually came through with a nasty-looking Raven Effect DDT.
It was good, I probably just expected fantastic.
The main event was a bit tepid too, Big Draw Mr Matt Cardona with Steph De Lander faced MLW champ Alex Kane with, you know, lots of people of the Bomaye Brouhaha.
It was basically Cardona avoiding sullexes, which he singularly failed to do early OK in the fight and had to bail. So Kane splashed him on the stage…
They even did the chair-bounce-back-from-the-top-rope-into-my-face spot, which should be banned it looks so hokey.
Steph had to pull the ref out after a Kane Spear and Splash on the apron, but Mr Thomas soon had to do the same for Kane.
There was silly lip locking action which prevented Steph’s nefarious activities and led to her hitting her man Cardona by accident, which didn’t stop him from lamping Kane with one.
No dice. Kane hit 2 Amigos, a Michinoku Driver and Kokina Clutch for the pin.
It was OK, bit really set up for the return of Richard Holliday and a WTF new signing. I like Holliday return and if we get some back and forth with him and Hammerstone, I’m all for it.
Not Fine At All
The WTF is designed to look like another promotion in the late ’80’s, which is why we had a posedown.
Yes, in 2023. Not even ironically done, Hammerstone won, of course and thank goodness for Jacob Fatu who broke it up and sent it up too – that’s what it needed!
Did MLW’s One Shot Hit The Target ?
For MLW? Yes. For wrestling fans? Of course. As I said in Steve Swift’s Rambling Reviews;
‘MLW One Shot Works!’
This WTF insurgency will hopefully run and run. After all, that catchphrase is sort of familiar – ‘Then, Now, Whatever…’
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