MLW Slaughterhouse Review - October 14, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Second Gear Crew (Mance Warner and Matthew Justice) def. The Calling (Talon and Cannonball) in a Chamber of Horrors Match

I know these teams/groups have been feuding for months now and that this was a Halloween-themed show, but this was total trash. The Chamber of Horrors crap was terrible and the hardcore elements didn't pack a punch because we see it so often in MLW, especially lately with The Calling. It didn't help that Talon and Cannonball are the least important members of The Calling, so Warner and Justice beating them meant nothing. It sounded like the crowd enjoyed this more than I did.

NWA World Historic Welterweight Champion Rocky Romero def. MLW World Tag Team Champion AKIRA to Win the MLW World Middleweight Championship

This should come as no surprise, but Romero sure is keeping busy these days with all of the promotions he's appearing in. It's cool that MLW now appears to have a working relationship with CMLL that made this Title For Title match possible. He and AKIRA had a really good match here and received plenty of time. I don't think AKIRA was champ for very long, but I have no issue with Romero being the one to take the title from him if it means we'll be seeing more of Romero going forward.

Janai Kai def. Delmi Exo to Win the MLW World Women's Featherweight Championship

Exo was advertised to defend against a "phantom challenger" after B3CCA had to pull out of the event. Kai was an interesting name to accept the challenge and I definitely did not expect her to go over. Exo's reign was fine albeit underwhelming. I wouldn't have had her lose the title so soon or to Kai, who has hardly been established with the MLW audience. Maybe making her champ off the bat will end up being a positive, but I'm currently not sold on the move, though Kai certainly stands out with her look and in-ring style. They had a decent match.

Minoru Suzuki def. Jacob Fatu

There was no storyline reason for this match other than Fatu wanting to prove himself against a notable name, and it gave this show its biggest attraction. They delivered a hell of a hard-hitting affair and had terrific chemistry. Suzuki almost always loses in situations like this (not to mention how protected Fatu is in MLW), so him winning was a pleasant surprise. I assume it means he'll be sticking around for a while, or at least I hope so.

MLW National Openweight Champion and MLW World Tag Rickey Shane Page def. 1 Called Manders in a Falls Count Anywhere Match

This was one of those Falls Count Anywhere matches that started earlier in the night and was stretched out over several segments during the show. I appreciate when Falls Count Anywhere matches live up to the stipulation in that way. This match didn't do much for me, personally, but it was a fine brawl for what it was. Page and AKIRA teased tension afterward, even though they're still the tag team champs together.

MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Kane def. "Filthy" Tom Lawlor

Kane's original opponent Davey Boy Smith Jr. had emergency surgery a day or two ago for appendicitis and appendix removal and was replaced by Lawlor, which was fitting given Lawlor's history in MLW. Their styles meshed well and they had a very well-worked main event. There was no drama surrounding the outcome, mind you, but I enjoyed it, nonetheless. Matt Cardona emerged afterward, so it looks like he'll be challenging for the title next (depending on when Smith can return to the ring, of course).

Overall Show

This was around two hours long and was an easy watch on the whole, though it paled in comparison to the other two events MLW has done in recent months. Most of Slaughterhouse centered around The Calling, and seeing as how I couldn't care less about the group, that hurt my level of interest in their matches. Kane vs. Lawlor and Fatu vs. Suzuki carried the event and the two title changes were newsworthy.

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