Viva La Lucha Libre
Lucha Underground 3/18/15
Written by Mark Adam Haggerty
Welcome one and all to another exciting installment of "Viva La Lucha Libre!" My name is Mark Adam Haggerty and I'm back with you once again to discuss what went down on this week's episode of Lucha Underground. Before we start, I would like to send my most heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of El Hijo del Perro Aguayo. Hijo was an extraordinary talent who worked with Lucha Underground's sister promotion, Asistencia Asesoría y Administración, before losing his life in a tragic freak-accident on March 20, 2015. This article and my first episode of the "B+ Players Podcast" are dedicated to his everlasting memory. But as the old saying says—the show must go on.
The in-house performer Amandititita is back with the soulful sounds of Southern California combined with a Baja blend, perfectly befitting the personality of Lucha Underground. Vampiro welcomes the world-wide audience to the Temple and thanks Amandititita for her personal contribution to the melting pot that is Lucha Libre competition. Melissa Santos is on hand per usual, and introduces the opening contest—the third match in a best of five series between Aerostar and Drago. Aerostar enters the arena first, and makes his way down the stairs to much jubilation as he hopes to break the current 1-1 tie. Drago comes down the stairs in a very theatrical fashion just as always, flapping his tongue and staring down his brightly-colored opponent. The bout begins with a series of arm drags and counter attacks that allow each individual a chance to scout the match early on. Drago is the first to gain an upper hand by applying a beautiful crafted figure-four leg lock to the golden-clad Aerostar. This feud has been described as the battle of "Heaven versus Hell," with Aerostar soaring through the sky and Drago appearing quite Devilish. Aerostar gets back on the offense, and both luchadors take each other through their paces as neither man is looking to trail in the overall best-of-five. Drago attempts a pin fall but achieves only two, and the crowd starts chanting for the dragon-headed anti-hero. Aerostar escaped to the outside, and when Drago chased behind he was caught off guard by Aerostar's forward momentum. Back inside the squared-circle and the pace rocks back and forth until both men catch each other in dueling cross bodies, grounding them each to a count of four. Aerostar hits Drago with a huge springboard drop kick sending Drago out and onto the floor; Aerostar capitalizes with a high-angle plancha attack, leaving both bodies broken on the outside of the ring. The referee counts eight before Aerostar reenters, and nine until Drago meets the count. Drago is back in command once inside the ring and hits Aerostar with a DDT variation using the top rope for leverage. A series of hard shots from Aerostar and a running attack proves fruitless when Drago plants the smaller superstar with a deadly STO. Drago attempts to hit Aerostar from the top rope, but when he moves out onto the lip of the apron, he is met by his aerially-inclined opponent. Aerostar hits Drago with a double foot stomp from the top rope to the outside and victory seems well within his reach, until Drago is able to summon some sort of hidden strength to counteract the actions of Aerostar. Now it was time for Drago to fly; he sent �Star soaring to the outside and followed up with a devastating suicide dive which sent the Temple Faithful into a frenzy. Drago hit Aerostar with a running sit-down powerbomb in the corner of the ring and attempted to finish his opponent with an attack from the air. Aerostar countered the dreaded Drago and used his keen sense of balance to his advantage, walking the ropes and spring-boarding to victory. He launched himself from the center of the top rope for the 1-2-3 and a 2-1 advantage over Drago. Following the fall, both luchadors met in the center of the ring for a show of respect by shaking hands.
There have been some very cool Konnan vignettes in recent weeks, and this episode is no different as it includes a metaphorical piece wherein the "Mexican Hulk Hogan"—even though he's Cuban—relates wrestling to a game of chess. "Each move; each counter; each attack—they're all just different chapters in the play of combat," the video then switched from a two-toned chess board to highlights of Konnan's feud with Cage. "See, life's battles don't always go to the stronger—or faster—person. The key to victory in this fight, in this new chapter, is to put oneself in the perfect position to protect El Rey—the �King.' Cause sooner or later, the one who wins is the one who believes he can." The montage fades out to a park setting in downtown Los Angeles where Konnan sits by at a bench, explaining the "Art of War" to his protégé, Prince Puma.
The next match on tonight's stacked card is a no disqualification three-on-one elimination handicap match featuring the Crew against Big Ryck. Ryck seeks retribution after presumably losing his eye at the hands of his former team mates. The Crew is already in the ring and wielding kendo sticks as they wait for their former leader, who descends the stairs smoking a cigar and wearing his now trademark eyepatch. He circles the ring and enters via the steel steps, unafraid to stare his opponents down without support. He immediately mounts a considerable offense, but it's not long before Cisco, Castro and Bael are able to take the big man down. He tries to regain his vertical presence and pushes the trio of Latino cruiserweights away, almost in vain as their onslaught continues nonetheless. No matter how �Big' Ryck might be, he can't compete with three bloodthirsty jackals willing to do anything in this no holds barred bout. Bael picks up a chair from ringside and strategically places it between the top and middle rope in the corner of the ring, in hopes of combining its steel surface with Ryck's skull. Ryck is ready to rock and roll by this point however and gains an upper hand long enough to turn the tables on Bael, sending him face-first into the corner and capitalizing with a kendo stick. Big Ryck pins Bael and it's now 2-on-1 with Mr. Cisco and Cortez Castro reeling from Ryck's attack. Their team work proves absolutely fruitless when Castro is pinned in a matter of moments, leading Mr. Cisco to walk away and forfeit the remainder of the match. Sexy Star has other plans however, and appears at the top of the steps and kicks Cisco down and back toward the ring. Big Ryck sets a steel chair in the center of the ring and lifts Mr. Cisco—who's wearing the Crimson mask—for a debilitating chokeslam into the assembled steel chair. Big Ryck gets the victory after beating all three members of the Crew
Back from commercial and Matt Striker has an important announcement; according to the man Jim Ross likes to call "Pro Wrestling's Eddie Haskell," next week's edition of Lucha Underground will feature TWO championship matches. For the first time in Lucha Underground history, the AAA Mega Heavyweight title will be on the line as Alberto El Patron defends against El Texano Jr. in a Texas Bullrope Match. In addition, the Lucha Underground Championship will be on the line when Prince Puma defends against the number one contender Cage in a "Boyle Heights Street Fight."
With more than 20-minutes left in the program, Melissa Santos is all ready to introduce the main event of the evening—a casket match featuring the man from "beyond the grave," Mil Muertes against the luchador who captured Catrina's affection, Fenix. This bout isn't referred to as a coffin or casket match however, but as "Grave Consequences." An assortment of ghoul-faced pallbearers and mourners escort the funerary box down to ringside, in what is perhaps the most well produced pageantry I've ever seen associated with a casket match. Lucha Underground has been phenomenal with incorporating traditional Mexican practices with the already widely accepted Lucha Libre style of wrestling. Vampiro explains the basics of what happens south of the border during November's "Day of the Dead," before the theatrics come to an end and the introductions may commence. The first luchador down the steps is Mil Muertes, who gets a decent response from the crowd as he has become something of a tragic character in recent weeks. Away to the commercial and once we return, Melissa Santos begins to introduce Muertes' opponent Fenix, who appears inside the Temple with Catrina following close behind. Muertes wastes no time and springs to the outside of the ring with a superheavyweight suicide dive onto Fenix. Fenix tries to fend him off, but the pure anger resonating inside Mil Muertes is enough to keep him in control. Fenix is tossed inside the ring and Muertes follows behind at breakneck speed. The Mil Muertes we've seen in recent months—since his debut really—has been a slow, methodical Mexican-version of the Undertaker. But tonight, Ricky Banderas is shining through that black mask with really fine work that makes me wonder, how long it might be until Mil Muertes drags the Lucha Underground championship back down to the depths of hell. Fenix is able to return the action in a matter of moves, grounding Muertes and following with a high-angle plancha to the casket-side of the ring. Mil maintains the edge however, until Fenix hits Muertes with his own Flatlining finisher against the mahogany exterior of the casket. Fenix calls for his signature spot and runs across the ring and dives toward Muertes, who lifts the casket to meet Fenix face-first. Almost knocked out, Fenix was unable to defend himself, leaving Mil open to do something I've never seen before. He walked toward the turn post on the outside of the ring and proceeded to remove the bottom turnbuckle—not the PAD—the actual turnbuckle. This caused the entire bottom rope to drop, leaving the squared-circle with just a top and middle rope. Mil took the rock-solid turnbuckle and held it high, preparing to deliver the final blow necessary to tuck Fenix away inside the casket. Mil followed one unprecedented move with another by partially removing Fenix's mask, exposing his forehead, and drilling the turnbuckle spike directly into his skull. Once again blood stained the canvas of the Lucha Underground ring as profuse portions of cranberry-colored bodily fluids poured from Fenix's face. "He wants to kill this kid," exclaimed Vampiro! Certainly Muertes had a score to settle, as he let the lightweight luchador fall from the ring, only so that he could continue torturing him up on the "unforgiving concrete steps of the temple." Fenix ran up ahead of Mil, hoping to gain an advantage, but was upset by the vicious tenacity of the former AAA Mega Heavyweight Champion. He threw Fenix into the solid steel beam that holds the Temple together and then threw him over the safety barricade above the studio audience.
Both Mil Muertes and Fenix were now high in the air, positioned atop Dario Cueto's office; the spotlight followed the luchadors as it seemed Fenix had zero motivation, while Mil was bursting with energy. Muertes clutched his smaller-statured opponent, preparing for a vertical suplex variation from their 30-foot perch. He motioned for the standing-room-only fans inside the Temple to move out of the way so that he could have a clear landing, but was countered by the fledgling Fenix before any further damage could be done. Fenix struggled to pull Mil to the ground, and reversed their stance so that maybe he might be the one to suplex Muertes. Mil proved to be too dominant however, and hit Fenix with a cold and calculated right hand, knocking him onto his back. Fenix—perhaps fearing the inevitable—started his descent down and away from Muertes, but the monster from the underworld followed close behind. They went down to the broadcast area where Vampiro and Matt Striker jumped from their seats awaiting a powerbomb through the table. Muertes did hit a power bomb, but it wasn't enough to break the table—only enough to shatter the monitors. Now that he'd achieved a video game-like level of offense on his bloodied and battered rival, Mil Muertes set his sights on finishing the match once and for all. He retrieved the seemingly light-weight casket and brought it into the ring where he put it on an angle in the corner. Fenix came from behind and attacked Muertes with a big forearm smash and prepared for a running attack of his own, only to be thrown backwards into the casket by the menacing Muertes. Fenix fought to keep his mask in place after creating a human-sized dent in the aluminum casket, and kicked Muertes in the face with a definitive superkick. He climbed the ropes hoping to find the key to success, but found only a top rope codebreaker by Mil Muertes. While the crowd chanted "Lucha, Lucha, Lucha," Fenix lifted himself from the mat—a stream of blood connecting his face to his shredded mask and then to the soiled canvas, already covered in his DNA. Mil hit the outside of the ring along with the casket and once again, dragged Fenix into the audience. Fenix was still secreting pints of blood onto himself and Muertes as the entire crowd ran from their fight—afraid of both the blood and the groundbreaking chair shot that send Mil over the protective barrier. Fenix stood on the corner of the barricade with his mask haphazardly hanging from his head, and jumped over the audience and onto Mil Muertes. They both went careening into the funeral flowers that accompanied the casket, sending a burst of red roses into the air, mixing with the already brightly colored face of Fenix. Senior referee Marty Elias checks on both individuals as the first man to reach his feet will be in control. Mil meets Fenix head on and the two exchange blows until Fenix ducks a lariat and Mil accidentally clotheslines Catrina. With Mil momentarily distracted, Fenix attempted to gain the upper hand and brought the bout back inside the ring. Mil showed no mercy however, and proceeded to bite down on the open wound of Fenix, through the gaping hole in his desecrated mask. Mil was now on the lip of the apron trying to suplex Fenix onto the top of the casket, when Catrina returned to her feet and opened the wooden box. Fenix saw the open casket and blocked Mil's offensive attempt, returning with a series of hard slaps to Mil's head and ears. With the monster reeling, Fenix was able to climb the ropes and hit his wretched rival with a double-foot stomp to the back of Mil's head, dropping him deep down into the darkness of the casket. Catrina slammed the casket door, helping to earn a very hard fought victory for Fenix.
I was convinced that TNA Impact had the monopoly on gratuitous violence this week, but Lucha Underground's main event was a brutal bout that I wasn't expecting whatsoever. In addition to being my favorite Mil Muertes match since Lucha' debuted, this might be my favorite casket match—EVER. And that's saying something when this type of contest has been so synonymously linked to one man for over twenty years. I'm so excited about the direction professional wrestling is heading with the advent of so many "third-party promotions," and look forward to what Lucha Underground has in store for the rest of the season. Until next week this has been Mark Adam Haggerty, reminding you to keep checking out Cheap-Heat, follow me on Facebook by LIKING "The B+ Players" and look for my upcoming podcast by the same name.
