Gecko Watched Lucha Underground (completed)

[anglarite]

Dec 31, 2021 17:26:28 GMT -5 Gecko said:

Just advanced notice that the next episode will almost certainly be getting bumped to mid-week, then hopefully after that we'll be back to our normal schedule.

No worries. Your pace, your fun

Also, Happy New Year!

[Gecko]

Dec 31, 2021 18:16:20 GMT -5 anglarite said:

Dec 31, 2021 17:26:28 GMT -5 Gecko said:

Just advanced notice that the next episode will almost certainly be getting bumped to mid-week, then hopefully after that we'll be back to our normal schedule.

No worries. Your pace, your fun

Also, Happy New Year!

And a Happy New Year to you too... and everybody else, I guess.

[Gecko]

Wonder what this episode will be focused on?

S02E06 – Gift of the Gods Ladder Match

Recaps of:
- Marty the Moth’s (and sister) adventures with Sexy Star (and Mack)
- Puma and Penta’s issues and how Catrina helped them along.
- Cuerno and Fenix and more Catrina (she’s really getting the hang of running the Temple now)

Mil is at a shrine of some sort (is that that creepy portrait again?), and he really likes candles.



Maybe he’s scared of the dark, I joke, before thinking about it and realising that maybe he is scared of the dark due to his history.

Catrina approaches and sounds a little outraged that Mil summoned her. He complains that she lets ‘them’ fight each other, but don’t let them fight him; he should have sent them into the dark weeks ago, but he listened to her!
Catrina reminds him that she’s known him since he was a little boy… a scared little boy as she recalls. Ooh, Mil’s in trouble, Catrina’s using his proper name. She tells Pascual Mendoza he would never have got out of the tomb that the gods put him in without her.
Déjà vu as Mil grabs Catrina round the throat and lifts her off the ground with one hand. He tells her that if he could bury her right now, he would. He demands she give him Penta and Puma and he’ll bury them instead.
Catrina has her usual response to somebody demanding a match: “No.” and teleports away.

Interesting opening. Mil and Catrina’s relationship is not as simple as it first appears and, if it wasn’t obvious already, Catrina is the one who wears the tight, shiny, leather pants in this duo.

I think this is the first proper time hearing Mil. We’ve had the odd word here and there, but not an actual conversation type situation.
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Into the Temple…

As Striker tries to welcome us and tries to let us know about the two huge matches tonight, Vamp interrupts him to point out the Mil is not on his throne.

Sexy Star vs Kobra Moon

Star is looking pretty much the same as usual. I’m going to assume we’ve not just switched over to the ‘forget about stuff and pretend it didn’t happen’ method of continuity and something will be happening here.

Kobra seems a bit more comfortable than last time, oh wait, shenanigans incoming as The Mack shows up.
Mack is cheerleading for Star, and he also doesn’t appear traumatised by recent events. (What happened in that corridor?)

Star looks to be on the verge of winning as she hooks in a pendulum surfboard, but releases it as she is distracted by:



Kobra takes advantage and locks in the dragon sleeper, Star has no choice but to tap.

That was a better outing for Kobra Moon than her debut.

Marty flaps in the crowd as they chant "Cree-py Bas-tard."

And that’s the end of that for now.
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How did Famous B get a name like that? Because he’s famous!

The Lucha goons take their hits as B tells us that he’s dominated the world of underground fighting and wants to pass his knowledge onto me.

A nice transition as Rey turns the TV that it was showing on, off. Aztec Dragon complains that he was watching it.

Rey launches into an attack and, when there’s a pause in the sparring, tells him that there’s no time for TV and his training is the most important thing. They have to get Dragon ready for his destiny.
It was a short segment, but it had more of that martial arts training that would feel right at home in a Karate Kid/Kickboxer/Bloodsport type film.
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Cuerno’s hunting lodge



I wonder if there was somebody that insisted there had to be a bearskin rug?

Cuerno talks about how much he likes hunting. He’s not a cold blooded killer but the goal is to get your prey, and at the end of a successful hunt he feels no remorse, just a sense of satisfaction. Tonight when he wins the ladder match, he’ll be a god and then the LU Champion.
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Prince Puma vs Pentagon Jr

Melissa still introducing Puma as the former champ. It’s still mean.

30 seconds in and it looks like this is going to be as good as expected. Vamp says how much he’s enjoying it and thanks Matt for everything which did give off slight, ‘I’ll say thank you now because I won’t be able to in the future’ vibes.

“That right there is a photo for a poster”



Is it? Time for a very quick photoshop break…



Yeah, I could see it as a poster.

Now, back to the… “Now back to the wrestling” Hey, quit stealing my lines, Striker!

Penta’s gloves come off and it’s amazing how quick and complete the silence is.

Ooh, thought Puma almost stole a quick win there, but Penta kicked out. Puma complains to the ref and Penta takes a sigh of relief. Puma hits a running shooting star, but it looked like he was going for a senton with how late he left the flip. Puma getting frustrated with his inability to get the win.

Ruh-roh!



As Penta hits a Panama Sunrise (or a Mexican Destroyer), Mil slowly descends the steps (leaving his smoke machine at the top). Penta has noticed, but I don’t know if Puma has yet.
Mil rips the sling off! It looks like, even if he’s not 100%, he’s good enough to go. Penta picks Puma up for the package piledriver, but has to put him down again in order to defend himself from Mil who gets in the ring.

Good news, I guess Penta technically won this match. Bad news, it was by DQ due to Mil trying to shove him through the mat.
Puma throws a superkick at Mil, to literally no effect. He gets taken down with one punch before Mil turns and spears Penta. Puma doesn’t get left out and also receives a spear.

Oh, he’s not done yet. Mil grabs Penta and Puma by the throat(s)… into a double flatliner. The dominant champ stands above two top contenders holding his title high.


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Backstage with Mil and Catrina walking down a corridor.
Time to see how much trouble Mil is in... Not any trouble at all as Catrina was apparently motivating him earlier.
Mil says that next week he’ll defend his title against both of them. This is his temple and no one can stop Mil Muertes.

Over to commentary with breaking news about Mil and yadda yadda… hold the third Yadda! It’s not about what we just heard. In three weeks… Aztec Warfare!
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GotG Ladder Match: Fenix vs King Cuerno

Looks like this one is going about half the episode. Mil returns to his throne to get a good vantage point to watch this one from.

Cuerno rolls outside for a breather after the opening exchange and smacks a fan with a ladder that he moves out the way. 🤣 Hope everybody is up to date with their shots because those ladders look like they’ve spent some time sitting in a damp shed somewhere.

Fenix is the first to climb a (quite wobbly) ladder. Even though he does it at a normal pace and not a wrestler pace, Cuerno still intercepts him.



I have to point this out simply because it’s such an unusual occurrence.
Cuerno pushed the ladder over and Fenix fell out of frame (That’s fair enough due to all the complications going on there: Falling off a ladder, the camera rotating and not being under full control, the hanging belt blocking a portion of the screen). They missed the shot of him hitting the ropes and only switched cameras after the initial impact when he was rebounding. It just seemed so odd that they missed it.

They didn’t miss this:



A couple of ladders arranged outside by Cuerno. Side by side with the top ends on the ring apron, the other ends on the floor. Cuerno is trying to get Fenix up in a suplex position inside the ring, but Fenix is blocking.

Cuerno grabs the ladder and leans it against Catrina’s sanctum/office. That didn’t go too well for you last time, Cuerno. Now all we need is a… nope, no table yet. Fenix reverses a whip towards the ladder, but Cuerno just jumped onto the ladder and then leaped off with a clothesline. Maybe he is learning.

Striker mentioned something about going for the title. I had somehow forgotten it was a ladder match . No, seriously. Despite all the ladders, the way they structure gimmick matches means that I temporarily put the fact that the end goal is climbing up and grabbing the belt out of my mind.

Fenix is taking a literal kicking during this match.

Cuerno drags Fenix up a ladder for a suplex…



Hmmm, I wonder which way they’re going to fall? As it turns out, they each fall a different way; Cuerno to the floor, Fenix to a convenient raised platform.

Nice! Fenix dives over the ladder onto Cuerno. Fenix is getting back into this. But then he shows his cowardly side by trying to escape through the crowd.


Hello, Chekhov’s ladder.

It wasn’t hugely spectacular, it wasn’t from a great height, the ladder didn’t split in two, but that looked like it really hurt.



Vamp ruins the mood by exclaiming: “He broke his ass!”

Cuerno doesn’t want Fenix to be the only one with a damaged limb so he tries crushing Fenix’s head between the ringpost and a ladder, but Fenix moves which means Cuerno basically stuck his arm into a ladder and then ran it into a metal post.

Hello, Chekhov’s other ladder. Fenix starts climbing the one against the office. Cuerno looks like he’s aware of this and is letting it happen. Is he going to let Fenix get to the top and then just run in the ring and grab the belt? No.

We’re getting close to the end, the ladder is in the middle of the ring with a person climbing each side of it.
In fact, forget the ladder.



This can’t possibly end well.

I was right, they both fall. Well done to that ref for moving the ladder enough so that Cuerno didn’t smack the back of his head on it.

Vampiro apparently leaves commentary to join the Believers?

Vamp is back as Cuerno hits Thrill of the Hunt and sets up a ladder. And there’s the table.
Cuerno attempts to put Fenix away with a Thrill of The Hunt off the top through a table, but Fenix fights out and bounces around a bit before delivering a hurricanrana to the Hunter.

Fenix starts his climb by crawling over the ref to get to the ladder… he makes it to the top (of the ladder, not the ref) and reclaims the Gift of the Gods!

Mil is not pleased.

Great match.

The two champs hold their respective titles aloft as they eye each other from across the Temple. And we end there, no post credits this week.

Next time: Death Comes in Threes (sounds like a Police Squad episode)

Post Episode & General Thoughts/Questions

- Well, that’s a disappointingly bland episode title.
"Hey, Gecko, why don't you ever say negative stuff about LU?"
"Ok, um... the episode title was boring."
- Mil/Catrina is kind of similar to Dario/Matanza. You’ve got the big killer monster to do all the physical stuff, but they’re controlled by the one who can move all the pieces around to set the board how they want it.
- The Famous B into Rey/Dragon switch was unexpected but nicely done.
- Wonder if B will end up leading his own group of people that he 'trained'.
- Just as the Puma/Penta match is starting: Definitely feels like Mil is going to do something impactful sooner rather than later. The pressure is building, it’s just a case of when it gets too much to contain.
Mil shows up: Well I didn’t mean quite that soon.
- Again, I know I’ve raised this point before but: The gimmick matches are so good because they don’t let the gimmick become the dominant part of the match. We didn’t constantly have people climbing up (slowly) and getting jerked off… the ladder.
- Yay, Aztec Warfare. Just a general all round yay for it.


We should be back to a normal schedule now, so expect the next episode in the usual Sunday spot.

[Deleted]

More or less I consider this a cool down episode of sorts especially coming out of last weeks just loaded episode , but even then still dropping tons in the viewers lap.

And they give me just a few more of my favourite things NEW SETS! our first time seeing Mil's death shrine and Cuerno's cabin both absoloutley stellar amazing sets that further open up LU's world and enhance the characters.

Cuerno's cabin especially is amazing because there is a whole lot of interesting things to pick out on the wall of the cabin that one could theorize about.

Mil/Ricky Banderas has an interesting voice to say the least lol but it is awesome he hasn't gotten to speak often so this was special in that sense and Catrina continues to just be amazing exuding complete power without having to ham it up and it is a nice call back to season 1 where Mil did the samething to her.

And I love the detail of there being a old TV along side Mil's shrine for two reasons.

1. is the style of TV it is a very old tv and something that nicely lets you know kind of know how old Mil is or would be if he got to live life normally.

2. And also you never have to question HOW Mil would know things happening in the temple when he is at his shrine.

Again it is LU paying gawd damn attention to what would be trivial details in any other company.

Oh and speaking of another detail although it is not specified but we can probably assume that when Catrina grabbed Mil's arm as he was choking her that she ended up healing his broken arm in the process which would just again just be chefs kiss levels of subtley and making the viewer pay attention and then how it all ties in to the end to the end of this episode.

And then of course how do I not again fawn over the overall production in both vingettes just gorgeous stuff especially the natural lighting in Mil's shrine and of course the music which never gets enough love the music cues especially for characters like Mil are so f***ing great pieces of music.

And speaking of world building...have YOU become famous yet? if not then you still have not taken our advice and called 423-GET-FAME...now that number again is 423-GET-FAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEE....that last one may or may not also be a number to a sex hotline idk but tempting to find out isn't it.

THAT TRANSITION THOUGH!! speaking of world building that one single moment just keeps building on LU's world that these commercials are not just vingettes but actual commercials other characters in this world are watching and this is yet another way that LU is like nothing else in wrestling because this was such a smooth transition from one vingette right into another and I love that they did not erase Famous B's past just because he is in a new gimmick but aknowledging he is now a retired (famous) fighter this is a reinvention done to perfection.

And then we go back to a dojo and Rey out here training DA better than he trains his own son and so confirmed LU Rey is a better fighter than his WWE version but you already knew that (wink).

Sexy Star and Kobra Moon not really anything to say here other than it is amazing isn't it that when you watch this that the woman with the 10yrs experience is being lead by the rookie in this match and it ends up being one of sexy stars better matches thus far.

Pentagon Vs Puma awesome as one would expect but the most notable things out of this are that this is absoloutley the fastest Pentagon has ever moved in a match especially when you compare it to him nowadays.

And this is around the time where Puma BTS was start to become salty little bitch because this was when WWE started knocking around and wanting to sign people from LU but they were of course locked into deals and also rumblings he wasn't all too happy that the believers were siding with Pentagon over him and you really see how much it gets to him when he gets out of the ring and goes to Cero Miedo that audience member but also this is why I love the believers and that there is no barrier between them and the performers getting interactions like this.

The ladder match was of course a banger no reason for me to go into a whole shpeel about it BUT there is something about this match that I cannot mention just yet because it ties into something else so I will leave that piece of intriguige for ya and let the mind sizzle over that meal for now....now I am hungry.

And looking ahead to next week we get IMO the most overlooked and underrated main events on this show ever it is f***ing awesome and also...ohhhh we get that...ohh and that next episode has me smiling already.

And in 3 weeks.

[Deleted]

And this is purely because I wanna fawn over this shot again that is pure character work without ever needing a word.

He is a hunter and he is a damn skilled hunter judging by the ammount and the size of the kills...like seriously how big was the bull assuming it is a bull that those horns at the very top came from.

And lets not ignore the most impressive thing here....he apparently killed a goat and made a gawd damn lamp out of the horns lol.

I like Santos escobar but he aint got shit on how gawd damn cool Cuerno is.

And lets run down all the character sets so far.

Cuernos Cabin
Johnnys suite/dojo
Reys Dojo
Pentagons Dojo
Mil's shrine
Dario's office

I believe that is everyone.....so far?

[saneiac]

Jan 6, 2022 15:32:52 GMT -5 @sigmax said:

And lets run down all the character sets so far.

Cuernos Cabin
Johnnys suite/dojo
Reys Dojo
Pentagons Dojo
Mil's shrine
Dario's office

I believe that is everyone.....so far?

Cuerno's Cabin is the best. It's just cool.
We got a brief look at Marty's apartment at the end of season 1.
Does the police captain's office count as a set for Cortez and Joey?

[Deleted]

Jan 6, 2022 20:19:50 GMT -5 saneiac said:

Jan 6, 2022 15:32:52 GMT -5 @sigmax said:

And lets run down all the character sets so far.

Cuernos Cabin
Johnnys suite/dojo
Reys Dojo
Pentagons Dojo
Mil's shrine
Dario's office

I believe that is everyone.....so far?

Cuerno's Cabin is the best. It's just cool.
We got a brief look at Marty's apartment at the end of season 1.
Does the police captain's office count as a set for Cortez and Joey?

Oh yea Marty's house forgot about that one good lookin out we saw it again this season also before he allowed sexy to run back to the temple.

And yea Vasquez's office I think absoloutley counts as well.

[Gecko]

Um, I got nothing to add here, let's just get on with it.

S02E07 – Death Comes in Threes

Major points of the previous episode (It's a new feature!)

- Mil Muertes is healed up and clobbered Puma and Penta
- Marty is still being creepy towards Sexy Star (and Mack?)
- Rey and Dragon Azteca are still training
- Fenix beat Cuerno in a ladder match to regain GotG

Recaps of:

- Creepy Marty and the kidnap (and escape/release) of Sexy Star. Before we get any farther in, I did read something the other day that reminded me that there’s a person who has the perfect name to play Marty’s sister. I’ll wait and see if it ends up being them.
- The Mundo/Cage match and the debut of Taya
- Jack Evans and Drago (and PJ Black as well?) troubles.
- The lead up to Puma/Penta/Mil
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We start in the locker room (where everybody is apparently welcome) as Mack approaches Sexy Star. He tells her that he’s got a match with The Moth and wants her in his corner. She shakes her head. Mack replies that this isn’t like the Sexy Star he knows, the one that doesn’t run and hide, she’s strong, and an asskicker. This gets her to change her mind.
I mean, good pep talk by Mack, but he does know that usually happens the other way round, right?

Into the Temple…

As Striker tries to talk about how huge tonight is, Vamp interrupts him (is this going to become a running bit? because I want it to) to talk about how Penta is going to fulfil his destiny tonight by becoming LU Champ.

Marty “The Moth” Martinez vs The Mack w/Sexy Star

Was Melissa close to corpsing when introducing Marty? I wouldn’t blame her for not being able to keep a straight face.


Three very different facial expressions.

“No means No” chant. In so many situations in wrestling, Marty would end up being the face here somehow. Melissa sees Mack building up speed as he approaches the ring and makes a hasty exit.

Mack bounces Marty’s head off the turnbuckle for the traditional ten. Marty pushes him away and… does it to himself a few more times, followed by a Maniacal laugh.

The Moth has a surprisingly good dive on him. It hasn’t got a whole bunch of spins or anything, it just looks great.

Sexy Star gives a guy in the front row a bonus lapdance while trying to get away from Marty.

Mack hits some nice suplex variations and goes up top to finish it… the lights go out! Only spotlights remain to illuminate things.

Creepy nursery rhyme style music plays as we get our fist glimpse of the sister...



That looks like a shot that was inspired by Taker’s entrances.

Star is freaked out, she’s actually shaking. Just a little bit, it’s very subtle and not over the top.



Love it. She definitely skinned somebody to make those wings, but she’s still got the Aztec feel to the look.

Mack is understandably distracted and gets pulled off the top by Marty who then hits a stomp from the ropes for the win.

Marty gets a mic. He wants everybody to bow down to his sister (as he drops to his knees), The Mariposa.
(aka Butterfly. So says google translate)

“You’re more creepy!” chant as Mariposa demands Sexy Star, who is having a full on panic attack by now, get to her feet and when Star reluctantly obeys, boots her in the head. Good work from Star here.

Some careful googling tells me this is Cheerleader Melissa. I know of her, but can’t say I’ve seen much of her work, but it’s a very good first impression. Oh, and if you were wondering who has the perfect name for the part: Session Moth Martina, but she was a year or two too late.
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Little bit of personal history from Fenix.

Growing up in Mexico City, he was very poor. He had nothing to call his own. The real world didn’t want him. So, he sought out a different path. One based in myth and fantasies. He became the Fenix…



… but still nobody believed in him.
They said he wouldn’t survive in Lucha Underground. He proved them wrong.
They said he could never defy death. He proved them wrong.
And that he would never be a champion. He proved them wrong… but they still don’t believe.
They think he will never fulfil his dream of becoming LU Champion. That it’s just another fantasy.
He’s here to prove to all of them that some fantasies are worth believing in. And some myths become legends.

Up to the usual standards with that one. Some backstory and motivation, great imagery, lucha goon beatdown.
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Jack Evans doesn’t get a chance to wash his hands after relieving himself (I’m going to guess he wouldn’t anyway), as he is attacked by Drago.

An angry Drago says that Jack claims that he’s the Dragon Slayer, Evans responds that it was the people that named him that 🤣. Drago jumps up and kicks out the lightbulb (impressing? Evans) and demands that Jack slays him now!

PJ Black appears and attacks Drago with his own nunchucks! This becomes a 2 on 1 situation… oh, and now everybody has a set of nunchucks. Was there a sale on or something? Drago shows what practise can do as he (temporarily) takes the other two out with one shot.
It turns into a proper beatdown by the pair. Black holds Drago as Evans asks him, “If you don’t want to be bludgeoned to death, you won’t show up to Aztec Warfare, will you?”
The lights go out (pay your electricity bull, Catrina!) as a voice says he would give them the same warning.

It’s the time-travelling spaceman with double glow in the dark nunchuck, Aerostar.
Evans and Black retreat as the two friends greet each other with a handshake, which is how they parted at the end of last season.
Hey, it only took Aerostar a month to travel 1,000 years.
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No DQ: Cage vs Johnny Mundo w/Taya

It’s not Mundo that appears for his entrance but Taya, complete with wind machine. She has a mic and addresses Cage who is already in the ring. She tells him that since Johnny already kicked his ass, it’s her turn tonight. She introduces herself as Taya, the perfect woman. Cage isn’t a man (He’s a machine!) but let’s see if he’s got the balls to face her.

The Lance Storm trained crazy blonde gets in the ring (See, I pay attention), the bell rings and we’re going ahead with this match (that Mundo won’t take any part in at all… )

Taya starts with some slaps and parading around the ring. Cage runs her over with a clothesline. Yeah, I’m gonna go ahead and say Taya is a little outmatched here. She does kick out when it looked to be done quickly though.

A low blow evens things up a bit for Taya. Not for long though. Cage isn’t being careful because she’s a woman and is throwing her about the place.



That looks familiar…

Cage sets up a couple of tables and prepares his suplex from the middle rope…



Wow! I didn’t think that they’d actually go through with it.

Mundo finally shows up once Cage literally picks Taya up and puts her in the ring and then follows her in.
He clonks Cage on the head with the pipe, drags Taya on top and adds his own weight for the pi… Cage kicks out?!

Mundo grabs a whole stash of stuff from under the ring, including beer bottles, and a cinder block that gives a solid thud when he chucks it in the ring.
Cage counters a powerbomb/piledriver attempt and sets up Mundo for the curbstomp on the cinder block.
Taya is back up and provides enough distraction for Mundo to grab a bottle and smash it over Cage’s dome. No effect. Mundo tries again, this time in the face. Still no effect.
Mundo pushes Taya into Cage and bravely runs away. Weapon X on Taya gets Cage the win.

Obviously, when Taya first came out, I was expecting a sneak attack while she was talking. Then when the match started, I expected it to last 30 seconds before Mundo jumped in. What I ended up getting was a very entertaining match.
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Hi, Famous B! What have you got for us this week?

He’s a world famous, and recently retired, underground fighter.
Yes, I do have questions and one of them is indeed why are you wearing a wizard’s hat?


Poor Brenda, she lost everything. If only there was a way to make it better.
He does some magic and makes Brenda famous.

Using that close up shot on the face at the end, the one where they don't cut for way too long so you end up with the person trying to hold the same expression while their eyes dart about the place, is genius. Very amateurish.
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Ivelisse exits Catrina’s office

The waiting Angelico and Havoc ask if she made it happen, Ive confirms that they’ve got their title match next week. Hmm, wonder how she managed to convince Catrina…?
Turns out that there’s a stipulation attached: They either win or they hit the open road… permanently.

LU Championship 3-way: Prince Puma vs Pentagon Jr vs Mil Muertes(c) w/Catrina

I really can’t tell you how much I like Penta’s theme, it’s become the main background music that plays in my head.



That’s pretty much a perfect image for your unstoppable, monster champion.

The first team up is between the challengers as Vamp argues about what they each bring to the match. Mil soon uses his power to put himself back in control. Mil continues his demolition from last week as he takes them on a bit of a tour of the temple with only minor interruptions when the other two get a few shots in.

Penta and Puma have a few goes each of diving onto Mil to see if that’ll keep him down for a while. It works, so they end up fighting all the way through the crowd to the top. Penta hits a fireman’s carry slam on Puma and makes it back to ringside just in time to jump on Mil one more time.

A whole bunch more stuff happens aka I got caught up watching and forgot to note anything down . So take that as a sign of how much I was enjoying it.

Mil ends up pinning both of his opponents.

That was a fantastic match, great fun. A good showing for all but it really put Mil over as a nigh-on unstoppable force that is only going to lose the title to somebody special. There's also balance though, as he doesn't stand tall every week and it's been shown that he can be caught out if you're smart about it.

As Catrina licks the losers, Fenix appears at the top of the steps. He tells Mil that he’s sorry to say the celebration won’t last long because next week he is turning in his GotG Title to redeem his one (1) free title match (T&Cs apply).

Next Time: Life after Death (Oh, I get it!)
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Post Episode & General Thoughts/Questions

- I don’t know what I was expecting for Mariposa, but it wasn’t that

- Credit for Sexy Star's performance here. She was fine, if a little subdued, until Mariposa arrived. Then she completely shut down.

- Makes perfect sense for Aerostar to be the one to help out Drago. The parting at the end of last season wasn’t just a throwaway fun shot, there's an actual friendship there.
- A couple of appearances for Taya and she’s already more memorable to me here than her entire NXT run.
- Something I noticed during the 3-way. Did they always have the mats around the ring?
- Mil has come such a long way since he first showed up with stripey pants.
- Fenix and Mil again? Yay.
- Double title matches next week. And then Aztec Warfare coming up. Feels like we're just about ready to jump to the next level for this season.

[Woo]

Amazing episode this one. Incredible triple threat watch made Mil look incredible without making the other two look weak at all.

I remember the Cage vs Taya match getting some hate from people who dislike the intergender wrestling concept. I loved it personally. Taya is a made woman in the temple now. I always laugh when people hit Cage with glass bottles. We saw in Cage's debut package video that glass has zero impact on a machine. Love the consistentsy.

Mariposa is indeed played by Cheerleader Melissa, one of the greatest female wrestlers of the 21st century for my money. I think she was losing a bit of it by this point, but still manages to be fantastic in the temple. Lovely lady too. I have a photo with me, her WWE's Victoria all together which I cherish. I'll credit Sexy Star too, she's not a good wrestler, but not a bad actress at all.

And yes that bathroom scene. Unbelievably amazing. Has to be one of the all-time great segments. Evans is hilarious and to think people described him for so long as a vanilla midget when he has buckets of personality. They made PJ Black more interesting here too. I also always get a huge laugh are Drago's lair being in the bathroom, it's just such a hilariously weird thing that we always see him there. Finally Aerostar's return was epic. Even if he's not great at the nunchucks, the glow-in-the-dark pair he has more than makes up for it and I love how he just arrives from the past and appears there.

Brilliant episode, brilliant recap Gecko.

[Deleted]

One of my absoloute favourite episodes not just for the season but the show as whole because it is just so much fun.

And I can FINALLY touch on somethings I have been waiting touch on.

First off BRENDA IS HERE!! IMO bar none the funniest woman in wrestling and she is an experience lol she is such an absoloute joy and if you are a cat person you will doubley if not triple love her even more because she is THE catwoman and here is a little BTS on her in her whole time in LU she made it a mission to gather up and save all the stray cats in an around the temple because she runs the LACATCLUB and she named all the cats she rescued after the wrestlers on the show.

And more BTS scenes about her...she is also a Big Brother alumni one of many in LU...which includes both LU writers Chris Dejoseph and Chris Roach.

And here is the one I hinted at way back but waited untill she showed up , she was initially suppose to be in season 1 with Marty who was intially going to have the gimmick of MARTIN THE MAGNIFICENT! a magician and Brenda was going to be his assistant but Marty ended up suffering a gnarly concussion if I remember that completely knocked him out when it happened and so the gimmick was scrapped and both Marty and Brenda were shelved ...Marty would eventually debut later in the season but Brenda had to wait a bit longer.

Can ya tell I love me some Brenda? because I very much do lol.

Mariposa is indeed Cheerleader Melissa and here is something else I waited to speak on because being forever courteous as I am waited untill she debuted...so I am gonna anwser a question you asked not too very long ago....what happened in that hall way that we never saw? well...THAT was suppose to end with us actually getting the reveal of Mariposa but it did not happen on an account of....Mariposa having a bit of a wardrobe issue...one of the toe of camel variety and so we ended up with that instead and Mariposa would not be the only one that had this issue with her costume...Kobra Moon did as well but Kobra Moon unfortunately had to wrestle before the any proper corrections could be made because remember the initial outfit was made for Taya.

And speaking of (look at me with a Gecko level transition) to echo Woo (everyone getting shout outs todaylol) TAYA IMMEDIATELY BECOMES A MADE WOMAN HERE!

What a gawd damn first impression just unreal and it still ranks as of my favourite just matches in genereal not even in just LU because while it is basically a squash match it also isn't because you know Taya is gawd damn out of her league but you get to see just a hint of her resiliance as Cage just completely massacares her...it is a match that does alot in a very small window of time and they pull it off perfectly...they gotta keep Cage's aura up as just someone not to be f***ed with but gotta intro Taya and establish her to the audience as baddest woman in temple. So it is IMO quite the balancing act and it is worked wonderfully...Cage looks like an absoloute beast but Taya gets to get kick out and get in just enough offence in so let the audience know she aint just here to get her ass beat she is tough as nails.

And I love the BTS on this one...it was Initially suppose to be of course Mundo but he hurt his foot and they initially thought he broke it so Taya took his place pretty much on the fly and then after he did his run in an everything he basically revealed he did not break his foot and just sprained it and in Taya's own words to him after the whole ordeal....."GLAD WE ARE ESTABLISHING THIS FOUNDATION OF TRUST" lol

And yes Taya much like pretty much everyone else that has come through LU this is the best version of her for alot of reasons but one big one is that I have never been against intergender wrestling I absoloutley love it but it was this match that really elevated my adoration for it because for some reason that to this day I can't really even explain this is the match that made me really appreciate it and this is a game changer for LU because while there was man vs woman before this match in LU , it is this match that propels it to being a calling card for LU from here on out.

The bathroom fight scene is amazing...camera work , choreography and yes we have established Drago for some reason loves to just hang out in the dirty as bathroom lol.

I love how this makes complete sense in so many ways...Jack and Drago hate each other because Jack is a complete top of the mountain loud mouth jackass that nicknamed himself (I mean the people lol) the slayer of Dragons , PJ hates Drago for costing him his match and spraying ecto cooler into his face and so there is why PJ and Jack unite against Drago and then SPACE NUNCHUCKS!....listen here people SPACE NUNCHUCKS!!! take that in when I reiterate it again there is nothing else in wrestling like it. The space man who timetravled 1000yrs from the past brought with him SPACE NUNCHUCKS! I am sorry you aint got a joyful bone in your body if that does not make you gawd damn smile ear to ear and then we get the reuniting of the greatest friendship in wrestling ever...every single thing about this is chefs kiss perfecto.


YEA THAT IS f***ING BASED AS HELL!

And then we come to IMO one of the most underrated and overlooked matches in the whole series but also IMO the most underrated triple threat in wrestling in the last decade.

This match absoloutley slaps ..everyone gets their shit in , no one looks any less threatening then the other and the champion after sitting (literally) for a few weeks immediately restablishes himself as the dominant force he is by taking out 2 of if not the 2 best next to the champion in the show , this is both keeping your champion strong and elevating the challengers even in defeat.

And something I love about this match that helps restablish Mil is Puma and Penta have to double up on him for alot of the match so it is not simply the end result but in how Puma and Pentagon choose to go at him together despite Pentagon being a complete shit head to Puma and Puma punking him the previous episodes.

And then next episode we follow it up with Mil Vs Fenix only to then follow that with Aztec Warfare 2...like holy shit we in the thick of an amazing time in the show.

[saneiac]

@sigmax Something I've always wondered about Beautiful Brenda: is everything she says given to her by the writers? Or is she a secret comedic genius? Because some of the shit that comes out of her mouth is gut-bustingly funny.

My first time watching LU it actually took me a while to warm up to Brenda as an onscreen character. I had to realize that Brenda is a professional actress hired to play a brain dead blonde, and not an actual brain dead blonde hired because the owner hopes to sleep with her.

[rnrk supports BLM]

Taya vs Cage made me an instant Taya fan. Looking back, it's a match that can really be used as a measuring stick for how you'll take intergender wrestling, because I've seen plenty of people cite it specifically as one that made them uncomfortable and I can absolutely see why (huge man tossing smaller woman through tables and absolutely wrecking her like he would if he was wrestling a man, and he's played as the good guy), but at the same time, my own reaction coming out of it was "Taya is so f***ing badass".

[Deleted]

Jan 9, 2022 22:21:24 GMT -5 saneiac said:

@sigmax Something I've always wondered about Beautiful Brenda: is everything she says given to her by the writers? Or is she a secret comedic genius? Because some of the shit that comes out of her mouth is gut-bustingly funny.

My first time watching LU it actually took me a while to warm up to Brenda as an onscreen character. I had to realize that Brenda is a professional actress hired to play a brain dead blonde, and not an actual brain dead blonde hired because the owner hopes to sleep with her.

Directly from the show runner and creative...Brenda was simply miced up she is not given a script when she is out there everything she says is purely Brenda.

There is an interview with her an Taya on AfterBuzz when they were around and reviewing the show you can find it on youtube that is pretty damn funny and is so purely Brenda lol.

[Rave]

Brenda's a treasure. She and B were prob'ly the biggest individual source for funny stuff in LU once they really got going.

Jan 9, 2022 22:26:24 GMT -5 rnrk supports BLM said:

Taya vs Cage made me an instant Taya fan. Looking back, it's a match that can really be used as a measuring stick for how you'll take intergender wrestling, because I've seen plenty of people cite it specifically as one that made them uncomfortable and I can absolutely see why (huge man tossing smaller woman through tables and absolutely wrecking her like he would if he was wrestling a man, and he's played as the good guy), but at the same time, my own reaction coming out of it was "Taya is so f***ing badass".

I remember that being my first Taya match, and I had the same reaction. She's a total badass.

[Gecko]

Cheap plug time before we get started. Still spots left in the FAN Royal Rumble pool if you haven't joined yet.

And now back to your regularly scheduled Lucha Underground.

S02E08 – Life after Death

It turns out that while this season may be much darker, it’s not as dark as I thought. My screen settings got changed at some point a fair while back, but I’ve switched them back and now don’t struggle to see some things.

Major points from the previous episode
- Marty’s freaky sister, Mariposa, showed up
- Jack Evans and PJ Black teamed up to take out Drago, who was saved by a returning Aerostar
- Taya took Mundo’s place in a no-DQ match with Cage. She lost despite major Mundo interference.
- Mil had a dominating victory against Penta and Puma
- Fenix announced he’s claiming his title match this week.

Recaps of:
- Nowt, Nothing, Zip.

In the locker room, accompanied by some eerie music, Fenix is visited by Catrina. She says that she’s tried everything to destroy him, but he just keeps rising from the ashes. It’s no secret that it’s his powers that she desires, they could give her life again.
Are we going to have to go back to the discussion about what type of supernatural being Catrina is?
Fenix extends a hand to her and she takes it as she claims that she sometimes wonders if she made the wrong choice in not staying loyal to him and accepting her fate. (Continuity!) They could be ruling the temple together.
Smoochy time as the music builds and the rest of the room fades to black leaving only those two and nothing else in the world for that moment in time.Top notch work there.
Catrina wipes away a tear as she says that that was their final kiss. Tonight, Mil Muertes will destroy the Fenix once and for all. And Fenix will bring her back from the dead.
She teleports away leaving a confused and conflicted Fenix behind.

Hell of an opening. Catrina showed genuine emotion and regret for what has to happen… or is it just mind games?
She’s also dead, apparently. Make up your own joke about changing your stance on necrophilia.
------------------------------------------------------------
Trios Championship: Ivelisse, Angelico, Son of Havoc vs Disciples of Death (c) w/Catrina

Into the Temple to kick off with a title match. Melissa reminds us that if the challengers don’t win the titles, they leave the temple forever.

The challengers are working well together at the start, they’ve got the champs in separate corners and are circling the corners (shut up, it makes perfect sense ), taking turns attacking each of them.

The champs regain control and isolate Ivey.

“…all that stands between her and her partners is a disciple of death” Don’t worry Matt, I still don’t know which is which either.

Pelé kick by Angelico. Vamp calls it a Pele kick and not a Paylay kick. For that alone, he gets bumped up a few places in the commentator rankings.



They hit the timing well for that spot. There’s also not a whole lot of room to do all that in.

It looks like they’re setting up for something, Angelico is holding a Skellie in the ring, but as Havoc goes to springboard in, Catrina grabs his foot. She may just have saved their her titles there.
While Angelico is distracted by stuff outside, the SMG plays the ol switcheroo trick behind him. Not only does it not work, the replacement ends up getting pinned several seconds later after a running crucifix cornerbomb followed by a SSP.
New Champs!

While not as emotional as their first title win, it still felt like it meant something and was earned.
------------------------------------------------------------
Puma Punishingly pummeling a punching bag.
“’Sup, amigo?” asks the visiting Johnny Mundo. Mundo talks about Aztec Warfare and how there’s not going to be a repeat of last year, where he took it too easy on Puma. This time, he’s taking him straight to slamtown!
Puma’s going to have to take his little giraffe tights (I didn’t want to say anything but, yeah, they totally are) and get to the back of the line.
This Temple, it’s not Puma’s world…



It’s his!
As Mundo leaves, Puma takes out his frustrations by putting his fist through the bag. Catrina’s absolutely going to take that out of his pay.
------------------------------------------------------------
Rey sitting at a tiny table so that he can feel like a giant for once



Looks like we’re arriving at the talky bit of the training. In fact, it turns out that we are done with the training and the tequila is a reward for Dragon completing it. Before they drink however, there’s something that Rey has to give him.



An envelope with the seal of the dreaded octopus skull flower tribe. It’s an invitation to compete in Aztec Warfare. Rey also has an invitation, so they are both heading for the Temple.
------------------------------------------------------------
Bull Rope Match: Texano vs Chavo Guerrero Jr w/Cisco and Cortez

Chavo stole Texano’s bull rope last time they met. I’ll have to take Striker’s word for that since I don’t remember it and can’t be bothered looking it up.

Chavo instantly tries to call the Crew into the ring to assist him. They have finally had enough of this treatment from Chavo and instead leave.

Striker stole my line about more cowbell when Texano started to make use of it. Quick mention by Vamp that he’s still on his meds when Striker comments on him having a violent imagination.

Texano eventually wins with the sitout powerbomb. It wasn’t a bad match, but I can’t say I had much interest in it, especially with the other matches tonight.
Texano reclaims his rope and gives Chavo a few shots with it.
------------------------------------------------------------
Back in the locker room, starting with a shot of a poster for a lucha event



Before getting to an angry Mil Muertes. He has two of the DoD, Siniestro and Barrio, by the throat. He throws them into and over the lockers, complete with lightning effects (which we haven’t seen for quite a while)

The third member, Trece, does the worst thing possible: He punches Mil in the face. Mil grabs him by the throat and lifts him up as his eyes appear to be glowing slightly.
Catrina appears and tells Mil to spare him, Mil slams him to the ground instead. Catrina and Mil exit leaving an unmoving skeleton crew behind.

With the lighting effects and Catrina's "...or not." follow up to the spare him request, that feels like an ending for the DOD, almost as if Mil was draining whatever was powering them.
------------------------------------------------------------
We’re off to “The Temple” for the first time in a few weeks

We’ve not seen Dario and co. since he told the story of how Matanza saved his life. Dario and Lotus are still standing outside, ignoring the screams and growls coming from inside.

Dario is satisfied that Matanza is now up to speed and suggests they get out of there and take back his temple. He unlocks the door and we get our first truly proper look at a blood-soaked Matanza.



Well, he certainly looks the part. I can believe that that is what a near mindless monster, who killed his mother at a young age, is possibly possessed by an Aztec god, and spent who knows how long being forced into underground fights, looks like.

I’m guessing it’ll take them about a week to get back to the Temple.
------------------------------------------------------------
Striker hypes up Aztec Warfare and runs down the rules for it. Vamp interrupts to complain about how long-winded Matt is about it.

Lucha Underground Championship: Fenix vs Mil Muertes (c) w/Catrina

Fenix makes his way to the ring, wearing the GotG for the last time as he will be required to hand it in.
A lucky guy in the crowd gets an indirect Catrina lick (she licks her finger and rubs it on his face) as she and Mil pass by on their way to the ring.

Going by their previous matches, there’s no reason this won’t be a classic.

After Mil’s spear through the ropes, Vamp says. “So that’s what it looks like when a jumbo jet hits a… mountain.” Good save there, Vamp.

Mil is in total control.
It does feel like we’re too far along for how long the match has been going, so I suspect we’ve had some of it cut out.

Mil rips a big hole in the mask of Fenix, but the challenger is still fighting.



Make that “was” still fighting.
Definitely some noticeable editing going on.

Mil bites the exposed, bleeding forehead of Fenix.
Vamp: Cannibalism, I love it. Bringing back memories.

They head into the crowd, where Fenix starts his comeback. He runs along the top of the metal barrier before Mil catches him and throws him into a mix of chairs and slow-moving believers.



Thanks to the magic of editing, Fenix quickly gets back up and is successful at his second attempt at walking the guard rail.

Mil gets a kiss from Catrina. Matt wonders what effect that will have on Mil. I bet he starts to walk funny, almost as if he’s trying to hide something.

Fenix rips the mask of Mil Muertes! Was not expecting that. Great way to show the defiance of Fenix and that he’s not afraid of Mil.

It may have been mistake though since it seems to have just pissed Mil off.

...Or maybe it was smart. If Fenix can survive the initial bludgeoning (which he does), he has the advantage as Mil’s offence becomes more animalistic and basic. It makes it easier to predict as shown by Fenix blocking a Mil punch with a chair.

Now Mil is bleeding as well. 450 by Fenix… Mil is not done yet! Fenix then kicks out of a spinning uranage.

The leg of Fenix is bothering him and slows him as he climbs to the top. This gives Mil a chance to climb up and pull him down with a something or other. Commentary claims it was a neckbreaker, but I have my doubts.

Mil holds Fenix in place for the flatliner and makes him think about what is coming. But as he goes for it, Fenix counters and rolls up Muertes… and gets the three! New Champ!

Not quite a classic due to the cuts and editing.

As Fenix celebrates with the believers, Catrina joins Mil in the ring. She tells Fenix to celebrate while he can. Next week is Aztec Warfare… and it’s for the Lucha Underground Championship! To follow tradition (can you make it a tradition after one time?), Fenix will be number one and Mil Muertes will be number 20.



Has to be accidental this time, but I love this shot due to the lighting and the contrast it creates between the two sides of his face.
------------------------------------------------------------

Next time: Aztec Warfare II

Post Episode & General Thoughts/Questions
- Before being distracted by that opening, I was going to mention how Catrina’s power base was under serious threat, she could lose all the gold tonight and then who knows who might turn up for AW2?
- Catrina is not properly alive and has a creepy portrait. Is it some Dorian Grey type thing?
- I like that the other week it was mentioned that invitations for AW2 had been sent out and now we get to see that there are indeed actual invitations.
- I’m guessing the Chavo/Texano bull rope match may have been planned for Ultima Lucha before Chavo’s injury forced a change?
- I wasn’t really expecting a new champ here, but again the story has had plenty of build to it.
- You definitely get the feeling that they've moved on from Puma as a main focus.
- Nice little twist with AW. If I've got my years right, this is not too long after the Rumble did it too, yes?

[Deleted]

It is a very good thing they filmed Fenix from the waist up because WHAT A GAWD DAMN KISS IMO the best kiss in wrestling. Everything about this was so well done from the music to the acting to the kiss itself again...Animo indeed lol.

We get possibly Catrina showing her humanity but also is sort of a call back to what she did in season 1 in a similar manner but this one is far more memorable because of Karlee's fantastic acting her and how she then flips the emotion instantly and changes it up and this time there is no hidden scheme to lure Fenix in she straight up tells him what she wants and I love how the title of the episode plays not just into the obvious main event but this scene as well.

And we talked about how when Dario told his tale of his brothers backstory and why it worked so well is because Dario made you believe and IMO that is the same here you believe in the chemistry between Catrina and Fenix here you believe that there is that side to Catrina that does regret choosing Mil over Fenix , absoloutley stellar vingette in every way.

Oh and it aint necrophilia if it is Catrina.

But yes full confirmation and huge piece to Catrina's lore that she is infact dead...but wait how does a dead woman exsist in the real world and can physically interact with everything and everyone and giving boners out all at the same time hmmmmm what a thing to ponder.

Hey kids are you excited for the debut of Dragon Azteca? because he has been invited to aztec warfare? ...wait what do you mean no? REY FREAKING MYSTERIO IS GOING TO BE IN IT AS WELL! lol this was kind of shitting on DA in the moment when it is suppose to be this exciting reveal that we will finally get to see him aztec warfare 2 only to have it mildly snuffed out by learning that the most famous luchador in the last 30yrs is also going to be in it lol.

I to love that we get actual physical invites sent out for people to join aztec warfare just another small piece to an ever expanding world and really does validate when people say this is the Mortal Kombat of the wrestling world.

And speaking off it being like Mortal Kombat.



Literal HOLY SHIT moment...it aint flashy but this was a flawless reveal...39+ weeks of waiting and anticipation and we get a very straight forward reveal that tells you every single thing you need to know and every other character needs to worrie about without ever having to drag it down with any long winded exposition....they gawd damn get it..SHOW DON'T TELL!

Covered head to toe in blood , has a piece of metal sticking out of his body with no care in the world that HE HAS SHRAPNEL STICKING OUT OF HIS BODY!.

The body language from how he holds his arms to the heavy breathing tells you if Dario was not standing right there what would happen IMO literal perfect character work.

I remember the first time watching this with a friend and just mouth a gape at this reveal and just being like...welp call the funeral home because gonna be alot of dead talent incoming.

Oh and let me fawn over the music in this scene when Matanza walks out and this hellish like summoning deep chant kicks in like the mouth of hell just let out literal hell on earth.

Not alot to say about the matches on the show they were there with the main event being stellar as expected because this episode was all about setting the stage for aztec warfare 2.

And yes this episode was two fold in that it completely collapses Catrina's entire power structure by losing both titles on the eve of aztec warfare so atleast right now the people that have been the biggest throns in her side , all of it has been perfectly set up and played to get to this moment from the end of last season proper long term story telling that weaved multiple stories in and out and always kept your attention but never sacrificing one story just to prop another and not the easiest thing to do when juggling multiple stories and characters like this...but like I have been saying this show knows what the f*** it is doing.

And something else I love is that atleast with the world title we set a bit of heierarchy....Mil can best both Puma and Penta...Penta can't best Puma but Fenix can best both Cuerno and Mil and it has been this great chess match with Catrina controlling the board and now she goes into aztec warfare playing what is suppose to be her strongest play by setting up a complete gimme for Mil.

But through 8 episodes the board has been set and new and old players come together.





LET'S f***ING GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Gecko]

Jan 16, 2022 14:29:18 GMT -5 @sigmax said:

Literal HOLY SHIT moment...it aint flashy but this was flawless reveal...39+ weeks of waiting and anticipation and we get a very straight forward that tells you every single thing you need to know and every other character needs to worrie about.

Covered head to toe in blood , has a piece of piece sticking out of his body with no care in the world that HE HAS SCRAP METAL STICKING OUT OF HIS BODY!.

The body language from how he holds his arms to the heavy breathing tells you if Dario was not standing right there what would happen IMO literal perfect character work.

I remember the first time watching this with a friend and just mouth a gape at this reveal and just being like...welp call the funeral home because gonna be alot of dead talent incoming.

Oh and let me fawn over the music in this scene when Matanza walks out and this hellish like summoning deep chant kicks in like the mouth of hell just let out literal hell on earth.

Oh, wow, I didn't even notice he's got a bit of metal sticking in him! In my defence, the rest of him is pretty distracting.

Another detail I just noticed is the twitchy fingers. He absolutely looks like he's struggling to contain his urges and if you happen to get just a little too close, he'll literally rip your head off.

[Deleted]

Jan 16, 2022 14:43:36 GMT -5 Gecko said:

Jan 16, 2022 14:29:18 GMT -5 @sigmax said:

Literal HOLY SHIT moment...it aint flashy but this was flawless reveal...39+ weeks of waiting and anticipation and we get a very straight forward that tells you every single thing you need to know and every other character needs to worrie about.

Covered head to toe in blood , has a piece of piece sticking out of his body with no care in the world that HE HAS SCRAP METAL STICKING OUT OF HIS BODY!.

The body language from how he holds his arms to the heavy breathing tells you if Dario was not standing right there what would happen IMO literal perfect character work.

I remember the first time watching this with a friend and just mouth a gape at this reveal and just being like...welp call the funeral home because gonna be alot of dead talent incoming.

Oh and let me fawn over the music in this scene when Matanza walks out and this hellish like summoning deep chant kicks in like the mouth of hell just let out literal hell on earth.

Oh, wow, I didn't even notice he's got a bit of metal sticking in him! In my defence, the rest of him is pretty distracting.

Another detail I just noticed is the twitchy fingers. He absolutely looks like he's struggling to contain his urges and if you happen to get just a little too close, he'll literally rip your head off.

Poor Bael found that out
And the gringos to kick off the season lookin for an underground fight club

And idk if you are familar with the old game splatterhouse but if you are then Matanzas look may look familiar.

[Deleted]

And as far as the whole Rumble doing the title defending title before LU.

While it may have aired first , LU taped this weeks before hand and so to me LU did it first as far as the two companies go.

[rnrk supports BLM]

Jan 16, 2022 11:26:09 GMT -5 Gecko said:

- Nice little twist with AW. If I've got my years right, this is not too long after the Rumble did it too, yes?

Same year actually! Lucha Underground taped this Aztec Warfare first, then WWE did the "Roman Reigns must defend his title from #1" one, before this aired. I remember us regulars dancing around talking about it on the WWE board here without posting spoilers at the time. I threw in a couple of references to rooting for "cannibal Shane McMahon" at the Rumble myself.