Low-Ki Advent Calendar Night 1: Daga vs. Ki

90. Low-Ki vs. Daga MLW 10/4

PAS: Konan bringing in Daga to teach Low-Ki true strong style is the kind of truly goofus angle which I love about MLW. Daga looked a bit exposed here, he threw some hard chops, but outside of that and his big suplex backcracker, he was pretty much luggage. Still Ki is always going to bring some cool shit to every match. I loved the violence of his kick into the guard rail and I thought his selling of a charley horse was a neat touch. The finish was what turned this from something solid if forgettable to a moment to remember. Ricky Martinez comes out to jaw with Konan and Daga turns to yell at him, Ki comes from behind Daga and grabs and nearly rips off Daga's califlowered ear. Daga is rolling around on the ground with blood flowing out the side of his head and Ki goes to the top and caves in his back with a double stomp. Shockingly violent stuff, had the same feel as Invader 3 puking blood, or Terry Funk and Slater trying to murder Flair with a plastic bag, like all of a sudden this is something separate from wrestling. Hard to still shock someone who has watched as much as I have, but this did it.

ER: I also liked the idea of Konnan bringing in a lame version of Low-Ki to teach him a few things, like Universal showing Jaws: The Revenge to Spielberg to show him how to make a giant shark movie. Ki can work something interesting with anybody, and he does that here with interest building throughout as things come off a little more and more unprofessional. Both guys land heavy chops and Ki peppers in headbutts and kicks, and the shots are landing well but everything feels very perfunctory to this point. And then I'm snapped into it when Ki puts Daga in a ringside chair, and flies into him with a dropkick so hard that I expect Daga to be spitting out teeth. I mean THAT was a dropkick. We also get some weird shoot-y moments like when Daga whipped Ki into the ropes for a dropkick, Ki held the ropes so Daga would miss the kick, but Daga still did a thigh slap. So...is Ki just fucking with Daga this whole match? Oh, and then the finish happens and officially makes it so I have no clue what is happening, as Ki rips at Daga's ear and Daga starts thrashing around, bleeding a good deal from that ear. Schiavone and Striker are flipping out on commentary, Daga is dripping blood out of that ear (while wisely not giving us a very clear shot at seeing the ear) and while Daga is thrashing about thinking his ear is gone, Ki just stomps a hole off the top through his shoulderblades for the pin. Cameras are showing Daga's bloody hand covering his ear, Ki is yelling at the camera, helluva way to end a show. This match wasn't very interested when it was Daga backcrackers, but that dropkick and wild finish really bumped this up into something more memorable.


2018 MOTY MASTER LIST