CMLL VOD: 2016-09-03 (83rd Anniversary show)

Recapped: 09/05/2016

What happened: Dragon Lee unmasked La Mascara. La Mascara may have lost his mask but regained Rush back as a friend – it wasn’t totally clear, but they ended the night as friends.

Rey Bucanero took Super Crazy’s hair. Sky Team kept the trios titles.

What was good: I really liked the trios title match and the mask match. Some of the undercard stuff was good. Super Crazy/Rey Bucanero made me sad, and not in ways what made me grade it highly even though they tried very hard.

Where can I watch it: It’s on CMLL’s channel for $3USD.

They actually made a new Year 83 video intro that we’ll all get bored with seeing around November. Everyone seems to have new intro videos as well. Julio Cesar Rivera handles the preshow match introduction, and his voice is already going. Crowd looks half empty but reacts loudly to all the matches.

Announcers on the show are Julio Cesar Rivera, Miguel Linares, and Roberto Lopez Olivera.

Match 1: Amapola, Dalys ©, Zeuxis vs Lluvia, Marcela ©, Princesa Sugehit
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. tecnicas
   • Lluvia corner dropkick Zeuxis (6:16)
   • Princesa Sugehit La Mistica Amapola (6:22)
2. rudas
   • Amapola Devil’s Wings Princesa Sugehit (2:33)
   • Zeuxis running kneesmash Lluvia (3:16)
3. rudas
   • Dalys spinning powerbomb Marcela (3:40)

Winner: rudas (2/3)
Match Time: 13:18
Notes: Dalys sudden has giant hair and the weirdest outfit. I’m missing the reference. Zeuxis is wearing a Deadpool themed outfit. Pompin is referee. Zeuxis attempts to rip Sugehit’s mask in the second fall but struggles doing so, because it’s a really well made mask. Lluvia is hurt on a running plancha onto Amapola (and Amapola knows right away, as she’s up and getting the doctor quickly.) It’s not really clear what the injury is during the match, but later on she said it was a knee ligament strain.

Review: [good] a faster paced and more high impact match than usual, as expected for an Anniversary match. All the big moves were sometimes a hindrance – there seemed to be more standing around and waiting for spots early (especially Marcela/Dalys) and Amapola appeared to do 97% of the work on Lluvia’s first fall DDT – but they went for an exciting match and generally pulled it off. Zeuxis and Sugehit are trying to will their mask match into existence by killing each other; Sugehit tossing Zeuxis into the crowd was unexpectedly great and Zeuxis’s tope was on point. I think Lluvia might have knocked herself out on her own dive, which is where she’s at right now.

Match 2: Ephesto, Mephisto, Shocker (c)  vs Marco Corleone, Máximo (c), Stuka Jr.
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. rudos
   • Mephisto Devil’s Wings Stuka (5:16)
   • Ephesto shoulderbreaker Máximo (5:16)
2. técnicos
   • Marco Corleone Aero Italia Shocker (3:17)
3. técnicos
   • Stuka Jr. torpedo plancha Ephesto (6:22)
   • Máximo rope walk plancha Mephisto (7:20)

Winner: técnicos (2/3)
Match Time: 15:53
Notes: Marco is so over with the ladies the moment his music start to play. So is Máximo. As with the first match, they rushing the entrances. Máximo wears his heavyweight title belt, and his gear has a Stuka snake on it. Mephisto’s has a black outfit with a red belt, which is not Octagon as it seemed watching the show on low quality feeds; he seems to be going more for a bull. Referee is Bestia Negra. All the referees are wearing white dress shirts and black pants.

Review: [ok] I’m sure I would’ve thought higher if this aired on a different show, but it seemed a little bit disappointingly too ordinary for such a big show. Ephesto showing up like he was wrestling on a Tuesday show while everyone else was wearing special outfits reenforced that feeling. They went longer than usual and did some more as a result, but it couldn’t overcome being the filler match it appeared to be. To his credit, Ephesto did take one giant bump on Stuka’s armdrag on the ramp, and Máximo did some of his rope walking, and Marco did about four different big planchas – there were big moves, but the match didn’t feel big, if that makes any sense. (On the other hand, this is still got over well with the crowd; it just plays less interesting to regular viewers.) Mephisto’s outfit was the coolest thing here. Shocker being such a bit player was weird to see; he got the big spear at the end, but otherwise wasn’t more important than Ephesto.

Match 3: Súper Crazy vs Rey Bucanero for the hair
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. Rey Bucanero anklepick (1:18)
2. Super Crazy modified Skayde Special (0:55)
3. Rey Bucanero cross armbreaker (14:01)

Winner: Rey Bucanero (1/3)
Match Time: 16:14
Notes: Super Crazy tossed his sombrero out into the crowd. Bucanero has new music, and wears an updated version of his old mask to the ring. No seconds. Referee is Terror Chino. Rey Bucanero dedicates the win to all the fans. Crazy gets most of his head shaved in the ring, and the rest in the back.

Review: [OK] The high points of this match were good, but I just find myself thinking about all the things wrong with it. This was a very slow paced stunt show, which didn’t hold together when the stunts weren’t coming off well. Their bodies weren’t doing what their minds wanted them to do; Rey Bucanero couldn’t find a way to take a bump on Super Crazy’s announcer desk moonsault, and both Bucanero’s Canadian Destroyers looked awful. (And having Crazy take a Canadian Destroyer on the floor and getting up to do the next move was pretty ludicrous.) Super Crazy wasn’t perfect himself, but the story of the match was Crazy outclassing Bucanero for most of the match, dominating at times similar to the Bucanero/Perro match from long ago. This time, it was less about selling to get over Perro’s new rudo personality and more about Crazy really being out of Bucanero’s league. The finish really came out of nowhere an didn’t have much drama prior to it. CMLL missing Rey Bucanero avoiding a Super Crazy moonsault because they were shooting the crowd was the most inevitable thing to happen. We also got a shot of the floor when Bucanero did an apron dive moments later, and never replays. This match did not work and is easily the least impressive apuesta match on one of these shows in a long time.

Match 4: Cavernario, Felino, Negro Casas vs Atlantis, Carístico, Máscara Dorada
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. rudos
   • Negro Casas corner dropkick Carístico (4:02)
   • Felino top rope elbow drop Atlantis (4:26)
2. técnicos
   • Mascara Dorada Dorada Driver Barbaro Cavernario (2:51)
   • Mistico F5 Felino (2:51)
3. técnicos
   • Atlantida on Negro Casas (4:08)

Winner: técnicos (2/3)
Match Time: 11:25

Review: [great] easily the best of the non-stip matches on the show, with everyone hitting on all gears for a fun match. You could level some of the criticisms of the second match on this one as well, since this is a lot of Peste Negra we’ve seen before, but it was all done very smoothly and they went farther than usual. It’s not often you get to see a parrot take a shooting star press. Atlantis run of backbreakers is kind of simple, but so fun and gets over great every time (even Dorada was thrilled.) Dorada & Cavernario worked together very well, and Cavernario did his plancha to the floor even though he definitely could’ve skipped it without anyone complaining. Casas wasn’t asked to do a lot in this one, but the little stuff he did was great – the crowd died at him fainting at the end of the second fall. Carístico deciding he needed a big move finish to match Mascara Dorada was amusing; Dorada totally outshined him in this match. This was a lot of fun.

Match 5: Mistico, Valiente, Volador Jr. vs Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Último Guerrero for the CMLL World Trios Championship
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. Guerreros
   • Guerreros triple submission (3:56)
2. Sky Team
   • Valiente Buster on Gran Guerrero (2:08)
   • La Mistica on Euforia (2:11)
3. Sky Team
   • Volador backcracker Ultimo Guerrero (9:40)

Winner: Sky Team
Match Time: 15:47
Notes: Referee is Edgar and Rambo is commissioner.

Review: [excellent] Superb title match, just nudging out the other matches in this feud as the best. Volador was out of this world in this match, speeding around the ring, nailing everything, and suddenly having a mini singles match with Ultimo Guerrero out of nowhere. The dives were great, the catches of the dives were even better. Gran Guerrero, somehow a good wrestler now, was the most over he’s been in his life when he caught Mistico and powerbombed him so hard. Everything was done at that sort of high level, with neither teaming holding people back. It did lack a little bit of drama at the end of falls, which has been consistent in this feud, but they had a bunch of near falls right before those last days. Mistico pulled out all his big moves, looked incredible, still got totally booed by the fans in just for a night. At least they’re cheering Volador. Euforia seemed energetic and was more at the center of things (including literally at the group submission) than usual. UG checked off his list as much as normal, but it seemed like he was more of an equal with his partners than otherwise. The trios format reduces some of my issues with Volador & Ultimo Guerrero and keeps the pace so fast – they did so much more than you’d expect in 15 minutes.

Match 6: Dragón Lee vs La Máscara for the mask
Arena México, 09/02/2016

1. Dragon Lee German suplex (1:04)
2. DQ Dragon Lee [La Mascara interference] (3:12)
3. Dragon Driver (15:03)

Winner: Dragon Lee
Match Time:19:09
Notes: Rush is Dragon Lee’s second. Shocker is La Mascara’s second. Referee is Tirantes.

The first fall, La Mascara quickly lands the double knees in the corner and cover, only for Rush to get on the apron and argue, distracting both Tirantes and La Mascara. Dragon Lee takes advantage to use Sombra’s Shadow Driver and a German suplex for the win.

In the second fall, La Mascara kicks Rush away from the corner as he climbs up. An enraged Rush club soup on the apron and trips Mascara up. Dragon Lee wastes no time adding his hanging double stomp, but Tirantes pull him off the pin and gives it to La Mascara. Rush hits the ring and shoves Tirantes, but Dragon Lee shoves Rush for costing him in the fall and tells Rush to get lost. Rush threatens to hit Rambo when Rambo tries to eject him. Rush angrily storms around ringside, looking for a fight, with Dragon Lee continuing to tell him to get lost. Rush leaves before the third fall starts.

Tirantes starts slow counting in the third. La Mascara teases the campana once, but ends up with a tapatia. Dragon Lee lands the double stomp once in the third fall, but La Mascara hangs onto the ropes. Dragon goes up to do it again, fights La Mascara, and lands it again, only for La Mascara to get the ropes at two. Dragon Lee locks on a casita, only for Tirantes to give up counting and turn around to see a shirtless Rush running towards the ring with a board of some kind. Rush slams it on the ramp, braking most of it off, and Dragon Lee lets go to yell at him to leave. Tirantes does the same, missing La Mascara foul kick Dragon Lee. La Mascara knocks Dragon Lee down with a clothesline and overs, but Tirantes takes forever to turn around. Dragon Lee kicks out at two. Rush leaves. Tirantes threatens to reject Shocker for some reason. After another near fall, Dragon Lee rolls out, only for Shocker to thrown him back in. That does get Shocker ejected, with Rambo coming over to get rid of him. Tirantes turns around to look at that, while La Mascara gets la campana on. It’s not clear if Dragon Lee quits – we’re blocked off from setting his head, and it’d pretty much have to be verbal in that hold – but La Mascara drops it to argue with Tirantes for not catching it. Dragon Lee catches La Mascara an inside cradle in the confusion, and only gets two. Crowd, heavily against Dragon Lee, might have rioted if that was three. A top rope sequence leads to a Dragon Lee pulling La Mascara off the ropes into the Dragon Driver for three.

Reaction is mostly positive, counter to the rest of the match. The doctor immediately checks on La Mascara, as does Rambo. After Mascara starts recovering, Ivan comes over to get La Mascara’s identity information. Dragon Lee gets more booed when he poses after his win. La Mascara is announced as Felipe de Jesus Alvarado Mendoza, 16 years a luchador, 34 years old. La Mascara unmasks himself. La Mascara insists he’s a better luchador than Dragon Lee, Dragon Lee got in a lucky shot, and wishes Dragon Lee more luck. Dragon Lee poses with the mask. Rush crashes the ring and demands to talk about his brother. He has put his shirt back on. Tirantes and the doctor check out. Rush congratulates his brother for fighting a great fight, being an Ingobernable at heart, being an Ingobernable forever. Dragon Lee thinks Rush is talking about him, but Rush shoves him away and hugs his brother La Mascara. La Mascara shrugs at Dragon Lee. Rush takes imaginary photos of his newly unmasked old friend and they pose with an (upside down) Ingobernables banner. Dragon lee is as confused as the rest of us. Mistico comes out to hug his brother. Mistico gets booed for existing.

Review: [excellent] A gigantic match carried by the stakes and emotion of the moment, and by the sharpness in many of the exchanges. The best thing Mascara does now is kicking and Dragon Lee is really good at making kicks look impressive. La Mascara was game for all of Dragon Lee’s high impact spots, and he did as many of them as allowed. La Mascara isn’t as good at taking those as others (though everything generally looked better on professional video than it did on a Facebook feed), but he was willing to try to get tossed off the apron. Their chops exchanges were great, Dragon Lee used the knee strike to great effect, La Mascara went deeper into his own reservoir, and no one tried to do a Spanish Fly. I liked the way they got into the final finish, even if it felt a little too soon.

That flips into the issues with this match, which are more than I usually have with a match I label as excellent. Rush kind of overpowered this match, even becoming the centerpiece of it, to the point where you wondered why they took him out of the match if he was still going to overshadow people in the booking. I think they believed they would actually turn the crowd on Dragon Lee’s side by having him reject his brother, but laying out the match so Mascara was cheated out of a win didn’t accomplish that. La Mascara essentially got two visual victories with the ref’s back turned (which does Dragon Lee no favors) in the third fall, and never really came that close to a winning move when Tirantes was paying attention. The foul was the closest, but Tirantes strung out turning around so long that it was clear it wasn’t going to be three and was just there so Mascara can complain about how he was screwed out of the win for the next couple decades. (That’s really not how you make Dragon Lee a star, if that was the point.) I guess there are just going to be shenanigans when it’s Los Ingobernbales, but they detracted from the match here.

I didn’t feel this approached Dragon Lee’s best stuff from 2015, and I believe I’ll have the trios title match ahead of this one. At the same time, it felt fitting for the Anniversary main event and among the best possible matches these two were going to have. It’s definitely must watch for everyone and well worth the money.

They kinda sure left you with the idea that the next big match is Mistico & Dragon Lee versus Rush & La Mascara, but it’s hard to believe that one is happening.