IWRG (SUN) 08/02/2015Arena Naucalpan [The Gladiatores]
1) Adrenalina, Aeroman, Dragon Fly b Araña de Plata, Hip Hop Man, Royer Boy Adrenalina replaced Alas de Acero, Royer Boy replaced Toxin Boy. Dragon Fly’s first match on a non-FILL show since 2011.
2) Metaleón, Miss Gaviota, Vortize b Acero, Atomic Star, Imposible Vortize replaced Mr. Leo. Acero replaced Electro Boy. Metaleon wants a title match against Imposible.
3) Canis Lupus, Negro Navarro, Príncipe Orión b Golden Magic, Súper Nova, Veneno Straight falls. Golden Magic & Super Nova ended up fighting each other again. Golden Magic wants a title shot still.
4) Dragón Celestial & El Hijo del Diablo b Hijo del Solar & Solar I and Hijo del Pantera & Pantera and Hijo de Pirata Morgan & Pirata Morgan and Universo 2000 & Universo 2000 Jr. andCien Caras Jr. & Hijo de Máscara Año 2000 [Legado Final] Cien Caras Jr. replaced Mascara Ano 2000. This year, the fathers started and were replaced by the sons. All the fathers were eliminated before any of the sons. It appeared Hijo del Pantera would pin Dragon Celestial for the win, but Hijo del Diablo pulled out the referee and Dragon Celestial snuck in a foul on Pantera for the win. Dragon Celestial was wearing a Diablo styled mask and his father Hijo del Diablo announced he’s son would now be know as Diablo Jr. I.
That should set up a Panteras versus Diablos tag title match. All the titles matches being set up sounds like an all title match show must be on the way, but IWRG’s calendar lists that in October.
CMLL will have Volador Jr. versus La Sombra tonight on the Arena Puebla live stream (9pm CT.) Sombra leads all time, 11-9-2. (We never found out who won in LA, though assuming it’s Volador since he still has his gigantic belt.) Volador leads in Arena Puebla, 3 wins to 2. Tonight’s a non-title match and it doesn’t seem to be setting up anything. CMLL’s already telegraphing a Marcela/Amapola title match for next week and CMLL just doesn’t do two title matches cards any more. Either guy could win. It’s a busy card, with another Escorpion/Guerrero relevos incredibles (which also includes Rush and Negro Casas on opposite sides), recent rivals Angel de Oro/Polvora matched up in the fourth match trios, and King Jaguar & Lestat again meeting in the segunda trios.
Villano III talks about his ‘retirement’ match at TripleMania. Villano III says it’s not really a retirement, it’s promoters not asking him to wrestle he’s not been wreslting. only shown up to be honored. Dorian Roldan invited him to wrestle, Villano III told him he hadn’t done anything in four months, and Dorian assured him that it’ll be a good match whatever Villano III does. If another promoter calls him up after TripleMania, he’ll go wrestle some more to more shows, but doess’t plan on wrestling.
CMLL (SAT) 08/01/2015Arena Coliseo [CMLL]
1) Bengala DQ Camorra Camorra pulled off Bengala’s mask.
2) Molotov b Akuma Molotov replaced Robin a few hours after the lineup was posted.
3) Eléctrico b Pequeño Nitro
4) Raziel b Súper Halcón Jr.
5) Puma b Hombre Bala Jr.
6) Princesa Sugehit & Silueta b Dalys & Zeuxis Silueta beat Zeuxis, then challenged her to a title match.
7) Dragon Lee, Fuego, Mistico b Ephesto, Felino, Mephisto Mistico dislocated his left shoulder in the first set of exchange in the match and left the match. Under mananged tecnicos still managed to take the win.
Mistico’s had chronic problems with the shoulder going back to his time as Dragon Lee. His brother Rush had similar problems and eventually had surgery which seems to have corrected it. Not sure if that’ll be the same outcome here, but he was back in the ring on Sunday.
GIW (SAT) 08/01/2015Arena Azteca Budokan, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México [+LuchaTV, Black Terry Jr. (Flickr), Estrellas del Ring, Kronosport, The Gladiatores]
1) Araña de Plata Jr. b Shadow Boy and Jinzo and Coyote and Centella Atomica & Halloween Jr. Arana beat Jinzo
2) Keira b Lady Maravilla
3) Wasson b Arez Wasson challenged Arez for a hair match after the win.
4) Aeroboy, Trauma I, Trauma II b Bestia 666, Damián 666, Halloween
5) Negro Navarro b Herodes Jr.
6) Belial & Impulso b Metaleón & Power Bull money thrown in
7) Black Terry & Solar I b Valiente & Virus Valiente and Black Terry feuded; they were fighting outside when Solar beat Virus for the win. Valiente & Terry wanted a singles match. Oriental appeared after the match ask for the same from Virus.
CMLL (SUN) 08/02/2015Arena México [CMLL]
1) Artillero & Súper Comando b Molotov & Sensei
2) Dark Angel, Estrellita, Silueta b La Comandante, La Seductora, Zeuxis
3) Acero, Aéreo, Eléctrico DQ Mercurio, Pequeño Violencia, Pierrothito Pequeno Violencia and Aereo agreed to a hair match next week.
4) Blue Panther, Titán, Tritón b Kamaitachi, Misterioso Jr., Niebla Roja
5) Ephesto, Luciferno, Mephisto b Atlantis, Delta, Guerrero Maya Jr. Reyes del Atlantida and Hijos del Infiernoagreed to a title match next week.
6) Dragon Lee, Mistico, Volador Jr. b Felino, Okumura, Rey Escorpión Mistico wrestled here after his injury the next day. Okumura replaced Shocker and took the loss to Dragon Lee’s double stomp
Mistico came back from injury to wrestle the next day. Luchadors are quick to leave matches with injury and quicker to return the next day anyway.
It does not look great for Reyes del Atlantida. It’s getting close to Universal tournament and there’s 17 champions including light heavyweight champion Mephisto. Hijos del Infierno winning the national trios belts reduces the count to a perfect 16. CMLL could always do a different title change in the next month or so or Mascara Dorada could just not end up returning, but this seems like this year’s easy solution to counting.
Bigger card than usual because whatever. Pequeno Violencia is likely to lose his hair, to make up for him missing months with his knee injury. Second match is really good, better if The Panther subbed for his brother. (The Panther hasn’t been working much of late.)
CMLL (SUN) 08/09/2015Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) El Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón vs Draego, Emperador Azteca (IWRG), Omar Brunetti
2) Mystique & Silueta vs Chik Tormenta & Zeuxis
3) Bestia 666, Pepe Aguayo, X-Fly vs Gallo, Golden Magic, Rayman
4) Euforia, Hechicero, Niebla Roja vs Heddi Karaoui, Oriental, Satánico
5) Hijo De Rey Misterio III, La Máscara, Zumbi vs Damián 666, Halloween, Mr. Águila
I’m not sure if this is actually a CMLL card, at least any more than the All Elite shows are, because it looks much more like an indy show that has CMLL wrestlers. A weird assortment of wrestlers too. The building is seemingly getting freedom to book whoever they want on Sunday’s – Super Calo! – and they’ve come up with some surprising choices.
I went back and watched episode 1! Seemed like a good idea. The first episode is Lucha Underground, but it’s a different Lucha Underground than will end the season on Ultima Lucha. Every show is going to change over the course of thirty nine episodes, especially shows which are just starting out. This show, with scripts being rewritten the day before the first show, was changing even as it was being filmed for the first time. It’s still the same same concept, but the differences stick out when you go jump back in time nine months. Some of them were even interesting!
The Temple.
It’s the same building in that first episode, only you’ll have trouble noticing it. The main lights are only on the ring. To keep with the grindhouse aesthetic, the fans have colored lights shined on them, but there’s a dark void surrounding the ring. (The Puma/Mundo brawl to the floor requires spotlights to be seen.) There’s a lot less fans too; just a couple sitting behind Vampiro & Striker, plenty of empty spaces on the bleachers, no one standing at the railing, and no seats at all on the floor. They’re careful not to show the section of seats on the hard camera side, so who knows what was happening there. It’s strange to see all that extra empty space; they’re a long way from turning people away. They’d start to add the floor seats and turn on the lights by episode 3, but it’d take until the end of the first run of shows before they hit capacity.
The Announcers
Matt Striker wears a vest, a dress shirt and a tie on the first few episodes. It turns out that Lucha Underground is not a tie wearing show, unless you’re Mil Muertes. This turned out to definitely not be a formal vest wearing show. Striker pushes the differences in the style of wrestling (asking Vampiro to explain a lot of history) and the style of show (“no kids in brightly colored t-shirts” – kids would actually be there by show #2) during commentary. Those theme setting commentators would mostly fade away when there were past matches and storylines to talk about okay. Vampiro is pretty much Vampiro. It’s impossible for him to be anyone else. That first episode had a lot of GoPro style shots of the announce desk, with Matt Striker’s pen taking up most of the screen. It was a technique to cover up edits, but done so much that it gave away the game. LU got a bigger and better responding crowd in later episodes, so they could use those shots as well, and they moved the camera to the center of the desk to show more of the announcements and less of their writing instruments. Even Melissa has changed a little bit; she seems to be hanging on to the last syllable of names longer.
the wrestling
The Blue Demon/Chavo Guerrero Jr. match was derailed by a Demon knee injury. It wasn’t well received when people were watching that first episode. It would feel totally out of place in one of the later episodes, where the style has become fast paced, high spot focuses, and often involving gimmicks or stunts. At least part of that change is due to building to Ultima Lucha and the show itself, but I imagine it would be the same way even as a second season started. Even on that first show, the Puma/Mundo match is a very different style of match. The stylistic change was inevitable once Lucha Underground got more of the people they wanted from the beginning.
Vignettes
It’s been mentioned that first vignette – the one with Dragon Azteca and what’s his name – impressed the people in charge of the promotion so much that all the other vignettes were reshot in that style. Not all of them: there’s a shot of Johnny Mundo doing pull ups backstage done in traditional wrestling single cam shot. The announcers can even see what’s happening backstage at this point, or at least it’s happening more concurrently with the action. This show also has the first of a few early Dario/Konnan sit downs. The two haven’t spent as much time together in the second half of the season, but they’re pretty instrumental in getting the character over. Dario had some in-ring segments on the show – opening it with a very un-Cueto speak emphasizing the importance of courage, honor and violence – and the turn at the end of the show, and both of those come of as more generic owner bits. Dario really shines in the quieter moments in his office.
Other random differences
spot the bull
Ivelisse is not with Son of Havoc, may not even be a person on this episode. Dario’s red bull is on his desk, but cropped out of the picture. Sexy Star’s well done introducion promo is done in English, which she never speaks English again. Big Ryck is wearing jeans, and not his ratty gym shorts gear. No one ever claims Prince Puma’s spirit animal is the jaguar, though I’m holding out hope for Ultima Lucha. There’s a segment where Dario forces Dorian Roldan to take money for the rights to five luchadors (Demon, Sexy, Fenix, Drago, Pentagon) to the disapproval of the TripleMania crowd which comes off as an artifact from a script a few drafts ago and doesn’t connect with anything. (When Fenix, Drago and Pentagon finally clear the border and make it to the show, Konnan claims he’s the one who found them.)
Strange moments of foreshadowing and unexplained phenomena
Dario brags about signing Johnny Mundo to humble him, saying Mundo disrespect this Temple and “is only hear for the money and the fame”, which seems to be closer to the truth than it seemed. Striker mentions Mundo & Puma can go “All Night Long”, which might only be meant as a theme song reference at the time but I’m giving him credit anyway. Dario is angry Chavo didn’t injury Demon into retiring, and that’s exactly what he has Chavo try to do when they next face off. The guy Dragon Azteca saves at the start is indeed a guy in a white hoodie; we see the top of his head and he’s got hair, but that’s all we know.
Prince Puma’s shown wearing the puma headdress he’d debut later
King Cuerno and Mil Muertes are also shown before they debut.
Hernandez wouldn’t debut for an even longer amount of time, but there’s a shot of him taking a dropkick from Ricky Mandell in a dark match.
And this looks like Dragon Azteca doing a tornillo (note the D on the boots)
CMLL (FRI) 07/31/2015Arena México [CMLL]
1) Astral, Fantasy, Shockercito b Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pierrothito
2) Ephesto, Luciferno, Mephisto b Ángel de Oro, Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. Rudos took 2/3
3) Esfinge b Disturbio [En Busca de un Idolo] Esfinge won with nudo egipico in a quick four minute match. Esterllita was guest judge. Esfinge scored a 10 (Estrellita), 8 (Gladiador), 9 (Shocker), 8 (Tirantes) for a 35. Disturbio scored a 9, 8, 9, 7 for 33.
4) Boby Zavala b Guerrero Maya Jr. [En Busca de un Idolo] Zavala won with a full nelson face slam and a bridging cover. Zavala scored a 9 (Estrellita), 8 (Gladiador), 8 (Shocker) and 8 (Tirantes.) Maya got the same exact scores.
5) Marco Corleone, Máximo, Volador Jr. b Rey Bucanero, Shocker, Terrible
6) Kráneo, Rey Escorpión, Ripper b Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Último Guerrero Rey Escorpion replaced Thunder, but Thunder still turned up and distracted Ultimo Guerrero to set up the win.
Terra video quality last night was awful, looking like an indy promotion from 1995 who couldn’t figure out the brightness and white balance settings. I’m guessing they brought the wrong equipment; they couldn’t even get their logo bug on the screen. Not sure if that’s why the En Busca de un Idolo matches were not posted this morning.
AAA SANCHEZ (FRI) 07/31/2015Arena Neza [Estrellas del Ring, Kronosport] 1) Angel Del Infierno, Furia Nocturna, Principe Mixteco b Angel Divino, Kid Especial, Rayo De Plata Jr. 2) Imperio Negro, Moto Cross, Taquero Maldito b Angel Astral, Bryan El Stripper, Delisador De Oro 3) Flamita, Jinzo, Neza Kid b Demente Extreme, Mike Segura, Vampiro Metálico 4) Aero Boy & Pagano b Bizarro & Joe Lider Bizarro replaced Crazy Boy. 5) Averno & Dr. Wagner Jr. b Extreme Tiger & Myzteziz Extreme Tiger was the surprise luchador. Rudos took 1/3, Averno fouling Myzteziz and pinning him. Averno challenged Myzteziz to a title match.
None of the recaps mention the title Averno wants. This is probably because Myzteziz doesn’t seem to have a championship. Averno maybe just can’t break old habits, or maybe he had the IWRG IC Super Welterweight Championship in mind.
CMLL (FRI) 08/07/2015Arena México
1) Eléctrico & Shockercito vs Demus 3:16 & Pequeño Olímpico
2) La Vaquerita, Princesa Sugehit, Silueta vs Dalys, La Comandante, Zeuxis
3) Esfinge vs Boby Zavala [En Busca de un Idolo]
4) Guerrero Maya Jr. vs Disturbio [En Busca de un Idolo]
5) La Máscara, Máximo, Super Porky vs Rey Bucanero, Shocker, Terrible
6) Atlantis, Marco Corleone, Volador Jr. vs Cavernario, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas
Well, it’s a show. No sign of Ultimo Guerrero and Thunder, no sign of Rush & Sombra, no sign of anything which would be an Anniversary main event a month and a half out.
En Busca de un Idolo is winner versus winner and loser versus loser. Titan is the only luchador to make the final with a losing record. He got there with overwhelming fan support, winning the fan poll every week of the second round. Maya & Disturbio are 2nd and 3rd, which would make it tough to pull off the same trick. The loser of that match is not completely eliminated, but they’d never every single other thing to go their way.
Zavala is running away with the poll (which absurdly wasn’t just reset when the voting restarted last night), so a win for him would mean he’s a safe bet to make the final.
Esfinge is the least certain. He could go to 2-0 with a in over Zavala, but probably also needs to root for Esfinge. Guerrero Maya could pass Esfinge if Maya wins out. It feels like it’s going to come down to the Maya/Esfinge match on 08/14.
CMLL has started listing him as only “Cavernario” again. I have no idea.
