2015 watch later catch up, part 7 of ∞

The matches reviewed in this post are

• Rich Swann vs Flamita, Deportivo Benito Juárez, Gustavo A. Madero, Distrito Federal, 06/21/2015 

• Caifan vs Virus, Coliseo Coacalco, Coacalco, Estado de México, 06/21/2015 

• Flamita vs Wasson, Arena San Juan Pantitlan, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, 07/11/2015 

• Felino vs Guerrero Mixtico, Arena San Juan Pantitlan, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, 07/11/2015 

• Ophidian & Silver Ant vs Saru & Teelo vs Emperador Azteca & Psico Kid in a tournament semifinal match, Coliseo Coacalco, Coacalco, Estado de México, 07/19/2015 

• Emperador Azteca, Metaleón, Mr. Leo vs Diablo Jr. I, Hip Hop Man, Imposible, Arena Naucalpan, 09/06/2015 

All matches but the last are from Black Terry Jr.’s handheld video. You can find his full list of matches here and find out information about purchasing those videos on his site.

Rich Swann vs Flamita
Deportivo Benito Juárez, Gustavo A. Madero, Distrito Federal, 06/21/2015
Video: tvluchadelpasado

Winner: Flamita (450 splash)
Match Time: 19:30
Notes: This is a big building looking 5% of it filled. It may be more than that, and there’s probably more people here than some shows these guys have worked on, but all the empty seats adds to an eerie quieteness.

Review: [great] Flamita’s brought very solid high flying from Japan, but also a lot of hard hitting exchanges. It doesn’t always translate well into GIF form, but you can see it watching the match. Flamita rest near the camera at one point and his chest is bright red, and there’s a hard forearm exchange between Swann & Flamita in the last quarter of the match which takes the match to a different level. Both men are capable of incredible things – Swann’s jumping huracanrana is one – but it’s not the spot fest you might be expecting. This one had a slower build to get to that point, maybe because they had twenty minutes to work with, and maybe because it was a small crowd. The quiet affects the feel of the match a lot, coming off like a battle in a training gym with few crowd reactions. The people who are there do get in to it by the end. Finish is totally blown by the referee – ref says Swann got a shoulder up at two on the Flama Fly, Swann did not move a muscle for about a 60 count – but is partially redeemed by Flamita’s death stare at the referee. Flamita’s valagueza into a frontcracker definitely needs to be listed on his trademark move lists; it’s his third biggest in-ring move behind the Flama Fly and the 450.

Caifan vs Virus
Coliseo Coacalco, Coacalco, Estado de México, 06/21/2015
Video: tvluchadelpasado, +LuchaTV

Winner: Virus
Match Time: 11:11 

Review: [great] The story in this match is both guys pull out their big technical spots early (Caifan battles in a headstand, Virus tries one of his nudos), Caifan starts being a jerk to Virus, and Virus spends the next few minutes trying to break Caifan’s legs. There doesn’t appear to be anything Caifan can do to stop it, Virus eventually shows mercy and tries to simply pin Caifan to win. Caifan makes a comeback, but gets dropped and beat. The lesson is: don’t be a jerk to Virus. Crowd got lost into their own self referential chants at one point, but this is exactly what you wanted out of an eleven minute match between these two.

Flamita vs Wasson
Arena San Juan Pantitlan, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, 07/11/2015
Video: +LuchaTV

1. Flamita kick to the back of the head (3:39)

2. Wasson Code Red (1:39)

3. Flama Fly (5:49)

Winner: Flamita
Match Time: 11:07

Review: [great] there are other matches that are nearly as good, bonus points for telling a discernible story: Flamita is way out of this guys’ league, but he lets Wasson show off early. Wasson goes over the line by trying the DDT, and Flamita immediately destroys him with a kick to the back of the head. Wasson steals the second fall with a move that even seemed to surprise him, and he pushes Flamita in the third fall, but Flamita keeps surviving and puts Wasson away well at the end. The weird part of this match was it being three falls after so many one fall matches, but maybe it was important to the story that Wasson gets that one pinfall. There’s also much more battling over a cristo in this match than you’d ever expect, though it ends in a painful way. Wasson’s head crashing move near the end also looks big time, and he puts on a good performance in this match. Doesn’t seem to have taken him anywhere yet, unfortunately.

Felino vs Guerrero Mixtico
Arena San Juan Pantitlan, Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, 07/11/2015
Video: +LuchaTV

1. Felino dropkick to the head (2:50)

2. Guerrero Mixtico Skayde Special (2:35)

3. DCOR (5:03)

Winner: draw
Match Time: 10:28 

Review: [ok] Felino can try when he wants to and Guerrero Mixtico has talent, but this was a few good moments and not a memorable match for me. The random countout finish doesn’t really help, it comes out of nowhere and the match doesn’t feel like it’s building to any sort off finish when it just ends. There’s no fundamental flaws but it just felt like a Tuesday lightning match (oddly stretched to three falls for no reason.)

Ophidian & Silver Ant vs Saru & Teelo vs Emperador Azteca & Psico Kid in a tournament semifinal match
Coliseo Coacalco, Coacalco, Estado de México, 07/19/2015
Video: tvluchadelpasado

1. Ophidian casadora faceslam Emperador Azteca (7:10)

2. Ophidian double knee smash Teelo (12:44)

Winner: Ophidian & Silver Ant
Match Time: 12:44
Notes: This is one semifinal of a tag team tournament.

Review: [OK] I was specifically told not to watch this because it was disappointing, but I watched it instead because I make questionable life choices. How often am I going to get to watch a snake fight a monkey? With all the short lived indy promotions and the themed show, how hasn’t someone run an all animal show yet? Super Muneco needs to get on that. I got exactly what I deserved, a minute and a half of Saru & Ophidian making motionos at each other in a match the crowd didn’t want to see from the get go for whatever reason. They enjoyed making monkey noises and not a lot else, and weren’t paying enough attention to for the comedy to get over. Crowd turned on Silver Ant hard after his weak tope and he checked out at the point, if he ever checked in. Ophidian got a pinfall on a slow casadora faceslam who’s speed would been more at home on the Leyendas Inmortales show. Psico Kid’s headstand DDT sell was great, Teelo’s counter dropkick to Ophidian standing on his head was really good, and the dives were fun, but this didn’t come together as a match at all. I wrote a dozen matches ago that Teelo was barely around in 2015 and now he’s in every tag match I recap. I don’t understand how that happened.

Emperador Azteca, Metaleón, Mr. Leo vs Diablo Jr. I, Hip Hop Man, Imposible
Arena Naucalpan, 09/06/2015
Video: thecubsfan

1. rudos

   • Diablo Jr. I cradle powerbomb Emperador Azteca (4:33)

   • Hip Hop Man powerbomb Mr. Leo (4:36)

2. tecnicos

   • Emperador Azteca bridging reverse bodyscissors Hip Hop Man (4:26)

3. tecnicos

   • Metaleon running Michinoku Driver Imposible (5:48)

Winner: tecnicos (2-1)
Match Time: 14:50
Notes: Metaleon challenges Impossible to a title match – at least in theory, they go to break instead f showing it.

Review: [great] I found a rewatchable 2015 IWRG trios match! It just took putting a lot of the young talented guys in one match and letting them go. There hasn’t been many of those, but this is a good group of guys, and not even AYM’s production issues can hold this one down. (The announcers reacting loudly to a big move we never saw is classic.) They built this around an Impossible/Metaleon feud and angry Impossible is a fun wrestler to see – charging around the ring to attack him in between falls brought this past a simple high spot match. Mr. Leo has a memorable stumble in this match but he and Metaleon are exciting and the rudos go with them well. You get more out of Diablo Jr. I in this than tag team title match. Hip Hop Man dives into a crowd of people, it’s all good.