Lucha Underground – Season One Episode 11 – 21st January 2015
Last Luchador Standing
All three of LU’s resident ‘comedy’ acts are scheduled to see action tonight – meaning Pimpinela Escarlata, Mascarita Sagrada and El Mariachi Loco all have matches. That might not sell you on it admittedly, but the main event and conclusion to the Drago/Cuerno feud got plenty of buzz and should be worth our while. They meet in the first ever ‘Last Luchador Standing Match’ to headline. Matt Striker and Vampiro provide commentary from Boyle Heights, CA.
Cortez Castro/Mr Cisco vs Pimpinela Escarlata/Mascarita Sagrada
We know The Crew are roving thugs, taking pay-offs, running with Big Ryck and generally beating up whomever crosses their path. Their sullen attitude is at odds with the light-hearted nature of their opposition this week.
Cisco and Castro attack Escarlata as he shimmies around the ring during his entrance, with Big Ryck trotting down the stairs to watch his stable-mates in action. Even Bael (B-Boy) from the outside lays in some strikes to take down Pimpinela as The Crew assert control. I love that despite the gimmick, Striker and Vampiro repeatedly point out how tough Escarlata is, and those words are backed up as he continues to swing punches and fight despite getting beaten down by three people at once. Sagrada at last gets a tag to rattle off his mini-luchador spots at Mr C’s expense. TOPE CON HILO ON BAEL! Pimpy plants a kiss on Cisco then climbs the ropes for a TOP ROPE SUICIDE DIVE! 3-D LUNGBLOWER ON MASCARITA! The Crew win at 04:48
Rating - ** - This was so much better than you might have expected. The presentation of this company is so unique and so nuanced that it never felt hard to believe that an exotico and a mini were credibly hanging with two (three if you include B-Boy) gangbangers with tough-guy reputations. They built the drama well, the crowd were staunchly behind Pimpinela, and the pay-off with those lovable high-spots from the two babyfaces followed by that epic 3-D lungblower variant on Mascarita was really rewarding. I think I’ve enjoyed Ricky Reyes’ work more in eleven episodes of Lucha Underground than I did in years with Ring Of Honor.
Big Rick, puffing on a cigar, enters the ring and announces his intention to go after the LU Championship…but is attacked from behind by the rest of The Crew. Castro, Cisco and Bael maul him, then Mr C BURNS OUT HIS EYE WITH THE CIGAR! Matt Striker and Vampiro completely kill the moment by acting like that incredible act of violence is no big deal though. The three assailants walk out directly into Dario Cueto’s office…and after commercials El Jefe hands out wads of cash to them, revealing that they are now his paid henchmen.
Vampiro conducts a sit down interview with ‘the man they call’ Cage. Vamp tells him he isn’t liked in the locker room and that his calls for a title shot after just one week in the company are far-fetched, but Cage shakes off his questioning and continues to call himself a Machine.
Pentagon Jr. vs Super Fly
The masked Pentagon remains an enigmatic presence in the Lucha Underground Temple. A feared fighter and a breaker of arms; his motivations and goals remain a mystery, and he may still be reeling after Chavo Guerrero turned on him to eliminate him from Aztec Warfare. He has a mixed record (at best) thus far however, so will certainly plan on elevating his status at Super Fly’s expense here.
Penta runs right at Super and lays him out with a superkick. A lungblower violently drags him to the mat as fans start to chant in support of Pentagon. To the floor he goes, giving Fly a rugged slam to the mats. The Asian lady has disguised herself as a crew member this week – and watches the action from ringside. Super Fly refuses to stay down and uses his speed to trick Penta into a fall through the ropes. HANDSPRING MOONSAULT TO THE FLOOR! But then he tries another moonsault and gets kicked right in the damn face by Pentagon! FEAR FACTOR! Pentagon wins at 05:09
Rating - * - There were some spectacular moments, but it felt like the point here was to give Penta a squash win…and if that was the purpose then this went way too long. Pentagon was an obvious star even this early in the series; possessing an intangible quality that makes him an easy and engaging watch. Hopefully this crushing win is the springboard for him to move on to something significant.
Pentagon rants that Chavo Guerrero is a fraud…and that he’s found another veteran who will align with him and help his rise to the top. He doesn’t reveal who though!
Sexy Star vs El Mariachi Loco
Just as the last match was an enhancement bout for one talent LU have high hopes for in Pentagon, you would suspect this would be similar for another project. Star has been chosen as the woman they’ll use to deliver the ‘intergender wrestling’ concept to a United States audience, and some of the reactions she’s gotten thus far suggest she could be a real asset to Lucha Underground. She’ll be looking for a win over the man who abandoned washing dishes in a Mexican restaurant down the street from The Temple to become a luchador.
Vampiro is putting Sexy over like she’s the top act in the entire promotion, though Loco treats her with less respect and uses her hair to plant her face-first into the canvas. Star to the top…FLYING CROSS BODY TO THE FLOOR! Terrific execution on that! She dives back in with a flying lucha armdrag, then finishes Mariachi with a small package at 03:50. She badly needs a better finisher…
Rating - * - It was probably a marginally better squash than Pentagon/Super Fly, but wasn’t as exciting as a match so I’ll call it even. I am still waiting for Lucha Underground to really pull the trigger on Sexy Star to give her a defining moment working mixed gender matches. If they seriously want to promote her in such a way they can’t keep having her scrape around using small packages to beat literally the lowest ranking guy on the roster. I feel like I’m still waiting for them to present her as a great worker in the ring with men, not borderline lucky when she beats them.
King Cuerno vs Drago – Last Luchador Standing Match
I believe the rules are the same as a Last Man Standing stipulation. These two go all the way back to Episode 4, when Cuerno was brought in by Dario Cueto only to suffer embarrassment and defeat to Drago in his debut match. Since then King has got a win back, they had a heated exchange within Aztec Warfare, then went to a non-finish last week when Drago jumped off the roof of Cueto’s office to put his rival through a table. With the record at 1-1-1, this is the match to settle the feud.
TOPE ATOMICO BY DRAGO! That’s a hell of a start and instantly has Cuerno down and being counted by the referee. When King stumbles back to the ring in a daze the dragon hangs him on the ropes and hits a spike DDT yielding another long count by the official. The Hunter needs a new strategy, so backs off and waits for Drago to come to the floor with him. Drago obliges with a dive off the apron only to be caught and countered with a LIGERBOMB ON THE FLOOR! The power of Cuerno has caused Drago problems throughout their rivalry, and it’s the case again now as he hits repeated rolling Germans then a huge brainbuster. Drago keeps him at bay with a blockbuster, and Striker points out that all of his offence appears to be focused on King’s head. RUNNING HEADSCISSORS OFF THE REFEREE! Then a rope swing headscissors from the apron to the outside. But despite all those impressive, complex and athletic high spots from the dragon, King is able to drop him with a single move – in this instance a mighty roundhouse kick to the back of the head. Arrow From The Depths Of Hell nailed! In a repeat of last week Cuerno sets up a table at ringside – and this time takes more care to incapacitate Drago by ramming his skull into the ringpost. Still it isn’t enough though, and the resilient Drago fights from the table leading to a high-stakes jostle for superiority on the apron. THRILL OF THE HUNT OFF THE APRON THROUGH THE TABLE! Drago crawls to his feet at 9…so Cuerno knees him in the head! He takes drastic action to keep Drago down – by tying his arms to the bottom rope! He orders the ref to count, and with no way to get up Drago can’t answer the 10-count. Cuerno is victorious at 11:23
Rating - **** - These guys have been great in brief, undercard sprints during their previous matches, therefore more than deserved the opportunity to showcase their feud on a bigger scale with a grander time allowance. The result was an extension of everything we’ve seen from them previously – a smooth and natural chemistry between them, a wonderful contrast between Cuerno’s power and Drago’s amazing athleticism – only this time we also got a number of huge set piece spots and a fun way to finish a Last Man Standing Match. Cuerno needed the win more to get himself over as a viable and threatening heel. Drago is so exciting to watch fans will cheer him anyway, and the finish gives him ample protection whilst giving King Cuerno something to hang his hat on moving forward.
The Believers jeer Cuerno’s controversial method of victory, and get even more vociferous in their anger as he drapes his ceremonial stag headdress over Drago to symbolise that this particular ‘hunt’ is over…
Tape Rating - *** - Lucha Underground is getting into a great rhythm of short and punchy undercards leading to one centrepiece match which really delivers. Cuerno/Drago was a hell of a conclusion to their feud, and another match from LU’s back catalogue that is well worth checking out if you can find the time (and are based somewhere that you can actually see Lucha Underground!). Beneath that I appreciated the effort to give two apparent stars of the future (Pentagon and Sexy Star) some momentum even if I didn’t overly like the squash matches they participated in – and the show had a hot start with the entertaining tag match followed by the really violent Big Ryck angle. After a patchy start it feels like LU are going from strength to strength.