Lucha Underground Season 3 Episode 9: Loser Leaves Lucha

Ladies and gentlemen, I welcome you once again to another exciting discussion of Lucha Underground. This week, two legends in the world of Lucha Libre go at it and for one of them, it’ll be their final time in the ring.

As we go to the temple, our play-by-play commentator, Matt Striker welcomes us all and begins to go into what’s in store for tonight before getting cut off by El Jefe who’s about to bring us another installment of everyone’s favorite game show: DARIO’S, DIAL, OF, DOOM! Dario spins the wheel and this time around it lands on Dario’s choice. Dario announces that despite having suffered a broken arm at the hands of Pentagon Dark a few weeks back, he’s giving the title opportunity to Cortez Castro. Remember, thanks to Joey Ryan, Dario is now fully aware that Castro is an undercover cop, and is likely seeking any way he can to make him pay for crossing him. Match #1: Cortez Castro vs. Matanza: Lucha Underground Title Match

As soon as Castro makes his way to the ring, we can already tell he’s in no shape to fight, what with his arm still in a cast. Surprisingly enough though, Cortez managed to get a fair amount of offense early on, despite only being able to use one arm. Even after Matanza ripped off the cast later on in the match, Castro managed to use it as a weapon and actually managed to stagger the monster, albeit briefly. However, there’s only so much an injured man can do against a force of nature like Matanza and like so many before him, Cortez fell to wrath of the gods.

Winner: Matanza

After the match, Dario gets in the ring to taunt Cortez, going so far as to call him a rat, alluding to the fact that he knows his secret.

Later, we go to Dario Cueto’s office where Dario Castro’s corrupt partner, Joey Ryan, are having a good laugh about Cortez’s misfortunes. They’re interrupted by Son of Havoc and Mascarita Sagrada, which prompts Joey to leave. Havoc says that the little guy wants a match against Famous B. Dario says that he’ll get his match, and he’ll even put a little icing on the cake. If Havoc wins his match against Dr. Wagner tonight, Mascarita will get to pick the stipulation, and if Wagner wins, Famous B gets to pick the stipulation. Havoc agrees and heads out for his match while Dario makes jokes about Mascarita’s height and laughs like an idiot.

Next up, we see Prince Puma in the ring calling out Mil Muertes. Puma challenges his nemesis to a match that could end they’re feud once and for all, Mil’s signature match, Grave Consequences. As if by magic, Catrina appears on the stage and accepts on behalf of Mil Muertes for next week right before Mil attacks Puma from behind. The two stare each other down as a very satisfied Vampiro watches on.

Match #2: Son of Havoc vs. Dr. Wagner Jr.

As per usual, Famous B cuts off Melissa Santos and personally announces his client as well as his valet, the beautiful Nurse Brenda (Helloooooo Nurse), and continues to show how great he is on the mic. Havoc comes out to the ring next and the match begins. This match was a ton of fun. The pace was really fast and Havoc got to hit a lot of impressive moves. The Highlight for me was Havoc’s moonsault off the steel barricade. Dr. Wagner may have him beat in terms of experience, but Havoc is still incredibly talented and excels at both a brawler style and high-flying agility. The match came to an end when Havoc hit another moonsault off the top rope for the pin.

Winner: Son of Havoc After the Match, Mascarita whispers the stipulation for his match with Famous B in Havoc’s ear and a very excited Havoc announces that next week, it’ll be Mascarita Sagrada vs. Famous B in a Believers Backlash match. What that means is that the fans will legally be allowed to attack the participants with weapons if they should exit the ring. More importantly, what that means is Famous B is screwed.

Next up, we have yet another vignette for The Rabbit Tribe. Paul London speaks cryptically about how he followed the White Rabbit and the Rabbit told him it was his destiny to compete in the temple before the other members of the Rabbit Tribe are revealed, a guy in a Mask with a mohawk and sunglasses and another in a full checker-board pattern body suit. Tick Tock. They’ll be here soon.

Main Event: Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero: Loser Leaves Lucha Match

We made it official last week, two long time friends and long time rivals in Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero, two men who were born into the world of Lucha Libre, will face off against one another and only one will be able to stay in the temple. In the crowd is Chavo’s father, Chavo Guerrero Sr., watching the match intently. The bell rings and what follows is nothing short of incredible. If you are a fan of Rey Mysterio, Chavo Guerrero or any of their illustrious family members, then this is the match for you. Regardless of how you feel about either luchadore, you cannot deny that both men are seasoned veterans in the wrestling industry and with this much at stake, they can’t afford to hold anything back. There was high-flying, there was mat-wrestling and there was a great deal of homage to the great legacy of the Guerreros. Later on in the match, Chavo Sr. came into the ring with a steel chair seemingly to hit Rey but instead hit Chavo, meaning that Rey would automatically get disqualified. Yes my friends, if there is one thing in this universe that is at constant as the setting sun, it is that there are no depths that a Guerrero will not stoop to. As Rey believes that his career is over, Dario comes to the rescue. El Jefe is not about to have a match of this magnitude end on a disqualification and restarts the match, now with no disqualifications. Once the match started over, Rey got his second wind and valiantly fought off both Chavos, but not before Chavo Jr. put Rey in a painful looking submission hold. Fortunately, Rey was able to break out and finish off Chavo with his signature move, the 619.

Winner: Rey Mysterio

After the match, Chavo stands alone in the ring, heartbroken as Lucha Underground goes off the air.

Awards:

Remember, since next week is an episode that ends in 5 or 0, we will be unveiling the frontrunner for the Wes’s Blogs and Review Lucha Underground MVP. Will Puma stay on top going into Aztec Warfare the following week? With a sure to be excellent match next week, that seems a likely result, but anything is possible in the world of Lucha Underground.

Match of the Night: Believe it or not, I came dangerously close to giving the match of the night to Son of Havoc vs. Dr. Wagner, but ultimately, I had to give it to Rey vs. Chavo. If you’re a fan of the Guerrero legacy, then this match delivered. Rey was impressive to be sure, but I would go so far as to say this is Chavo’s best match in years. Chavo paid homage to his family in multiple ways during this match, be it by hitting the Three Amigos made famous by his legendary uncle, the late great Eddie Guerrero, or the Gory bomb, made famous by his grandfather, or simply just living up to the Guerrero family motto: lie, cheat and steal. For now, Chavo is gone from Lucha Underground. Whether he’s gone for good or will return later on, for now, Chavo, Rey, I salute you both for a most excellent match. In addition, I want to give major props to Chavo Sr. for still being able to take a bump like a champ at his age.

Spot of the Night: I have to give it to Chavo hitting a flying dropkick to Rey in midair. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, anyone who thinks Randy Orton’s RKO’s “outta nowhere” are impressive haven’t seen anything until they’ve seen Lucha Undreground.

Segment of the Night:

I thought about this long and hard, and I have to give it to the Rabbit Tribe segment. Lucha Underground has opted for a less is more approach when it comes to building up these guys and so far it’s been working. It’s been working so well in fact that the mere reveal of the full stable is enough to get the audience pumped. Paul London has been great in these segments too. I can’t help but be reminded of The Wyatt Family from WWE with his cryptic and soft spoken tones Final Thoughts: While the Rey/Chavo match dominated most of the show, the other matches were still solid. We got some great build towards two huge matches for next week and some furthering of the storyline between Cortez, Joey Ryan and Dario Cueto. However, the real jewel of the night was the brilliant match between Rey and Chavo, which showed that even after decades in the ring between the two of them and multiple injuries, they can still put on a true classic. Next week, we have two huge matches to look forward to, but for now, we say goodbye. Until next time.