May 11th, 2018
The show kicks off with a promo from Jimmy Havoc, hyping his match with Joey Janela.
Rich Bocchini and Tony Schiavone kick off the show, talking about Callihan’s mystery man who helped him win last week, Lawlor vs. ACH, Shane Strickland being in the house, and then leading us to the opening match.
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor vs. ACH
This was a fine match to open the show, but one that would have benefited more from a interested crowd. Lawlor wasn’t really getting any heel heat, and the crowd wasn’t behind ACH when he needed them the most. Otherwise, this was a match that had a long first half, but picked up later on. Lawlor dominated early, controlling ACH and looking good. Finally, ACH got out of everything, things picked up, and we got some good back and forth exchanges. The ending made sense, as Team Filthy costed ACH the win, along with the fact that Lawlor exposed his forearm, hurting ACH in the process. Don’t be shocked if this feud continues.
Winner: Tom Lawlor
Match Rating: **1/2
Pentagon Jr. and Shane Strickland have a backstage interaction, with Pentagon laying out the MLW Champion with red mist.
After a commercial break, MLW officials tend to Strickland, using water to try and clear the mist from his eyes.
MJF vs. Fred Yehi
The story of this match was simple, MJF is looking to prove that he’s better than Fred Yehi, and he’s going to target the already injured arm, and do anything he can to pick up the victory. In a way, this match was very similar to our opener. MJF dominated early, targeting the left arm of Yehi. As we moved on, Yehi showed that he was the better wrestler, and kept getting the better of MJF. When times were tough, the true colors of MJF came out, when he shoved the ref in front of Yehi, poked Yehi in the eyes, and rolled him up, using the tights to pick up the win.
Winner: MJF
Match Rating: **1/2
After the match, MJF cuts a promo, talking about Yehi not getting his winners purse, and now he can’t afford to eat at the Golden Corral. He then says that his name is MJF, and he’s better than you.
Highlights from last weeks main event, Sami Callihan vs. MVP are shown.
Sami Callihan is interviewed backstage, saying he only talks when and why he wants. He is creating an army of like minded individuals here in MLW, and they are going to take over EVERYTHING.
Court Bauer and some MLW stars promote MLW’s return event to New York, happening on July 19th.
The main event is announced for next week, Pentagon Jr. vs. Rey Fenix, winner is the #1 Contender for Shane Strickland’s MLW Championship. This will be a rematch from the main event of Fusion Episode #1.
Main Event – Bogus Adventure: Joey Janela w/Aria Blake vs. Jimmy Havoc
Knowing the two involved, along with the stipulation, this should have been an absolutely insane main event, with both pulling out all the stops. However, things felt kind of rushed, and it never got too brutal, or violent to live up to the hype. We saw brawling at ringside, on the floor, a bunch of chairs, a table, and a door, but nothing over the top, like you’d expect from a “Bogus Adventure”. That aside, this wasn’t a bad match by any means, and still was the best on the show. The crowd was alive, cheering on both men, but ultimately favoring Jimmy Havoc before he hit just about every move imaginable onto Joey Janela to pick up the win.
Winner: Jimmy Havoc
Match Rating: **3/4
Jimmy Havoc makes his way to the back, but gets attacked by Team Filthy. Lawlor and the boys stand tall to close the show.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, MLW: Fusion is a good weekly series, showcasing some great talent, and good storylines. While none of the matches have been that great since Week 1, getting to see guys like ACH, Tom Lawlor, Shane Strickland, Pentagon Jr., and Jimmy Havoc on a weekly basis is just fine with me. Things moved along with Strickland/Pentagon, setting up the big number one contender’s match for next week’s main event. Also, it’ll be very interesting to see where things go with this new Lawlor/Havoc feud, because those matches seem killer. Overall, not a bad show by any means, but with the talent involved, the in-ring action seems like it should be better.
Show Rating: 6.2/10