Thursday, April 23, 2015

Lucha Underground - Fire in the Cosmos & Trios Champions Review

I've been off and on with Lucha Underground in 2015 mainly because I'm not typically home on Wednesday nights to catch the episodes. I try to catch it when I can though and as a result I've seen some of the best matches from this year such as the epic war between Mil Muertes & Fenix. With me being a few weeks behind and having a free Wednesday night, I decided to play catch up as best I could by tuning in for the replay of last week's show which is followed by this week's episode. In this post, you will find my thoughts on both episodes. The first episode is from last week and is titled "Fire in the Cosmos"!

Fire in the Cosmos - Lucha Underground - 4/15/15

1) Prince Puma, Johnny Mundo, & Hernandez vs. King Cuerno, Cage, & Texano Jr - Semi Final Match in the Trios Title Tournament
This was insanity! I had heard a lot about this particular encounter and it certainly lived up to expectations. This is the type of 6 man tag that you just don't typically get on free television. It's normally from promotions like Dragon Gate or PWG or sometimes ROH. UNTIL NOW! Lucha Underground brought the goods here in this mindblowing trios match that sold me on the idea of a trios title in a matter of minutes. If the rest of the matches from this trios tournament are as good as this one, I've definitely been missing something good. As I said in my one other LU review, I'm still familiarizing myself with some of the characters in the promotion so I can't do a lot of play by play in my reviews yet so I'll just say that this was absolutely crazy and a fantastic trios match. And while I am unfamiliar with a lot of LU stars, there were several guys here that I know well so I'd like to make a few comments on them. First off, seeing Hernandez back in a ring with the opportunity showcase his awesome abilities is really refreshing. He's another guy that I'm baffled that TNA just let walk away. His team mates are two guys that I also know very well and I think I can just sum up my thoughts on them by saying that they've taken full advantage of this opportunity in Lucha Underground and they continued that trend here by going all out. Must see match.

Match rating - ****1/4

2) Cage vs. The Mack vs. Son of Havoc
This was set up as a showcase/preview for next week's trio title tournament final as a member of each team is featured. You've got two extremely agile powerhouses and daredevil in Son of Havoc, this was a recipe for success and therefore, it was one! The insanity of the trios match carried over into this three-way and there's not much else I can say. Action packed three way that lives up to the billing.

Match rating - ***3/4

3) Drago vs. Aerostar - Finals in the Best of 5 Series
To my knowledge, I haven't seen any of the matches earlier in this series so I'm going into this one completely blind, but also completely fresh. Both guys are very crisp, agile, and precise with what they do and delivered in a way that made this feel like it had big time implications. I was really shocked when a table was brought into play. I'm not sure if this series had a No DQ stip or if that's just standard Lucha Underground rules, either way, it added to the bout and for that reason, I can't complain. Amazing dive from the ring through the table on the outside. Great match to cap off an absolutely awesome show.

Match rating - ***3/4

Overall thoughts: It's simple. This episode of Lucha Underground is must-see. One match broke four stars and the other two came damn close. Just unbelievably awesome wrestling. If you want something different, I can truthfully say that I think LU is it, especially after this episode. Really stoked for the new episode that follows this after everything that went down.

Trios Champions - Lucha Underground - 4/22/15

1) Sexy Star vs. Pentagon Jr
The evening begins with an intergender match. I really dug this. It told a nice story as Pentagon Jr worked over Sexy Star which in turn made the crowd love her even more. This also made her comeback feel very momentous. Speaking of that comeback, it was a successful comeback as she ended up picking up a huge win over Pentagon Jr that got a massive pop from the crowd. Good start to the show.

Match rating - ***1/2

2) Son of Havoc, Angelico, & Ivelisse vs. King Cuerno, Cage, & Texano Jr vs. Big Ryck, The Mack, & Killshot vs. The Crew - Trios Championship Match
It took me awhile to figure out how I was going to review & rate this match, but after some thinking, I decided to grade it all as one. For those who didn't watch and am wondering what I mean, after the original three-way elimination final was over, the boss came out and threw one final team into the mix, the returning stable, The Crew. Now let's not get ahead of ourselves, we'll get to that part of this match when it comes. First things first, the entire story of this match and seemingly the tournament as well as how Son of Havoc, Angelico & Ivelisse would work as a trio. One of the few things I remember clearly about the few episodes I've seen prior to this is the issues between those three. I thought the program was well booked and now after this match, I realize it was absolute genius booking. This entire match was done very well with the favorites to win, Cage, Cuerno, & Texano Jr were eliminated first which left the two most unlikely trios to face off which added a huge unpredictability factor. The entire match was based around Son of Havoc, Angelico, & Ivelisse overcoming their problems whether it be miscommunication or injuries. It was done so flawlessly that I have to applaud them. Beyond the storytelling, the action here was just off the charts. So, Son of Havoc, Ivelisse, & Angelico pick up the win, but not so fast. They can't live the dream just yet. It's time for them to battle one more team in a No DQ battle - The Crew! Now, THIS is where this match became a MOTY candidate. For the first time in Lucha Underground history, I got goosebumps as Angelico made a sensational run/dive from the top of a platform to make one last inch effort to break up the pin with both of his team mates down. Unbelievable visual and my oh my, the storytelling here! Angelico went to huge lengths to save the guy he had been pretty much battling with over Ivelisse early in the year. Ivelisse's facial expression told the whole story. All that combined with the crowd erupting was enough to put this one over the top as a MOTY candidate. PHENOMENAL match that is worth going out of your way to see.

Match rating - ****1/2

Overall thoughts: I'm gonna keep it short and sweet. Watch this week's episode of LU. It's mindblowing. If you've been keeping up with the show regularly, I'm sure you are already planning to tune in, but if you're a new fan, I'd recommend watching the shows leading up to this if possible so you can fully understand the story. The main event is simply amazing.

Thanks for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter @EthanPWT and @ThePWTruth!

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