Lucha Underground Season 3 Episode 16: Battle of the Bulls
Welcome back to Lucha Underground my fellow believers. Tonight, we determine the next number one contender to the Lucha Underground Title as the battle of the Bulls Tournament draws to a close, as well as determine who the winner will be facing as Johnny Mundo defends his title against Sexy Star inside a steel cage. Let’s not waste any more time and get right down to it.
Match #1: The Mack vs. Cage vs. Jeremiah Crane vs. PJ Black: Battle of the Bulls Tournament Finals
We’re getting right to the action tonight as the four warriors who have won their matches over the past two weeks square off with one another. First up, The Mack, a man who’s always been on the cusp of greatness since season one who’s looking to either challenge his friend Sexy Star or punish the man who stole her title. Next, PJ Black, one of Johnny Mundo’s lackey’s who stole the pin from his own teammate, Jack Evans last week. After that, Jeremiah Crane, a true wild card with a past shrouded in mystery and a psyche that’s clearly unstable. And finally, the machine known as Cage, a man who has brought several former Lucha Underground Champions to their limits in the past. One of these men will win the tournament and be the next man to challenge for the prestigious prize that is the Lucha Underground Championship.
Unlike the previous matches in the Battle of the Bulls Tournament this match was conducted under elimination rules, but, like all of the matches, it was a total blast blast. All four guys really got to show what they were made of. Despite being the smallest man in the match, PJ Black got a lot of nice looking offense. The Mack wasted no time taking his opponents to “Stunner Town” as he calls it. Jeremiah Crane continued to impress me as he has every time he’s stepped into a Lucha Undergroud ring. But all that said, in the early goings of the match, the fight belonged to the machine. Much like the Terminator that he’s become associated with, Cage looked to be unstoppable, demonstrating painful offense and having a counter prepared for everything the others could throw at him. However, one thing that the Machine did not count on was the appearance of his rival Texano who attacked Cage out of nowhere with his bull rope allowing PJ to take advantage and eliminate the machine. With big man gone, it was suddenly anyone’s game, and Jeremiah started getting increasingly more aggressive, pulling out his painfully looking signature move, the Crainal Contusion on PJ, but it was Mack who had the last laugh by finishing off the twisted Jeremiah with a stunner from the top rope. And no sooner are Striker and Vampiro able to finish a thought than Mack turns around and finishes off PJ with another stunner.
Winner: The Mack
After the match, we see Fenix and Aerostar searching the temple for Drago. Naturally, the first place they look is the men’s bathroom, because if there’s something dramatic happening with our favorite Dragon, it’s a safe bet that it’s happening in the bathroom. Fenix and Aerostar do manage to find someone, but it’s not Drago. Instead, they come face to face with the Sinister, Sexy, Seductive, Sassy, Sulty, Slithering, Sapphire, Serpentine Senorita, Kobra Moon. Fenix demands to know what she did with Drago, to which Kobra replies he’s returned home to her tribe. Our heroes aren’t buying it as they know that Drago would never willingly return to Kobra’s clan of reptiles. Kobra says that whatever vow Drago once made to never return to the Snake Tribe has been broken, and that now, Vibora and Pindar will break them. As if magically summoned by their queen, Pindar and Vibora emerge from the shadows and a brawl breaks out. Aerostar and Fenix fight back as best they can, but with the overwhelming strength of the two serpent generals along with Kobra Moon, it’s clear that the two are outnumbered and outclassed. After the two giant snakes leave Fenix and Aerostar broken on the bathroom floor, Kobra vows that the next time they see Drago, he will be hers once more.
Next up, we go to the locker room where Sexy is congratulating the Mack on his big win. Sexy says that she’s so proud of her friend and that when she defeats Johnny tonight, it will be an honor to defend against him. The two do their special handshake and leave together. However, as they leave, we see a Spider crawling on the floor near Sexy’s locker.
After that, we go to Dario Cueto’s office where he’s joined by Jeremiah Crane. Crane apparently wants a match against Mil Muertes next week, but that’s not his only reason for being there. When Jeremiah was a kid, he apparently left what appears to be a Ouija board above one of the ceiling tiles, meaning that the building was around before it became the temple and that Jeremiah had access to it. Jeremiah leaves, only to run into Catrina. It would seem that back when he and Catrina were an item, they used to play with that Ouija board. Catrina mocks Jeremiah for still being obsessed with games, but Jeremiah says that next week, the time for games will be over. Next week, Jeremiah promises to destroy Mil Muertes, meaning he’ll have Catrina all to himself. What happens next I cannot be sure, but I could swear it looked as though Jeremiah phased through Catrina like she was a ghost. What does this mean? Is Jeremiah somehow immune to Catrina’s powers, or does he perhaps possess powers of his own. Questions to be answered at a later date, but right now, we have a main event to focus on.
Main Event: Sexy Star vs. Johnny Mundo: Steel Cage Lucha Underground Title Match
From the get go, this match was all Johnny Mundo who used his size and strength to his advantage any time Sexy tried to escape the cage. Johnny’s heel-work was on point in this match as well, showing Sexy all sorts of disrespect. However, as the match went on, Johnny’s cockiness soon proved a greater detriment than an asset as Sexy began to take advantage. Using her quickness and balance, Sexy fought Johnny on the top rope and from there, the match was a lot more even. It soon became clear that Johnny had to do what he did best in order to win, fight dirty. So, in an act of ultimate disrespect, Johnny tore off Sexy’s mask, forcing the proud luchadora to cover her face, allowing Johnny to escape.
Winner: Johnny Mundo After the match, Johnny posed on the top of the temple steps with his title as The Mack came in and hit the cocky champion with a devastating stunner. As the credits rolled, Mack posed with the Lucha Underground title as he locked eyes with Sexy as if to say, “I’ll get him back for what he did to you.”
Our show ends in Kobra Moon’s lair where Drago is chained up. Drago refuses to serve Kobra, but she says that sooner or later, he will kneel before his queen. Helpless and angry, the mighty Dragon spits fire from his mouth as the show goes off the air.
Match of the Night: It was a close call, but I think I’m going to have to give this one to Sexy vs. Johnny in a steel cage. The match just had a lot more tension than the battle of the bulls finals and ultimately told a much better story. While the athleticism on display was wonderful, but I really need to praise Johnny’s heel-work. This is a man who knows how to play a complete scumbag in the best possible way and every disrespectful moment of the match was a joy to watch.
Spot of the Night: Mack’s top rope stunner came close, but I’m going to give it to Cage countering a Doomsday Device spot into a power slam. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before. It shows that Cage is a very unique talent and much more than just a muscle man.
Segment of the Night: Let me make this perfectly clear: this storyline with Drago and the Snake Tribe is thirty one different flavors of awesome and is easily the most engaging storyline this entire season, which is saying a lot. Furthermore, the brawl in the bathroom between Fenix and Aerostar and the Snake Tribe was nothing short of awesome, but with all that said, I’m giving this one to Mack and Sexy. I practically had to flip a coin here, but I just love the relationship between Mack and Sexy. There’s no romantic feelings between the two or anything clichéd like that. Instead, they’re just two colleagues who respect one another and watch each other’s backs. In many ways, they almost feel like brother and sister. Their chemistry with each other is perfect and their banter is really sweet.
Final Thoughts: Tonight’s show gave us two great matches, but more than that, set the stage for a lot of things to come. Be it the furthering of Drago’s storyline with Kobra Moon, the mystery of Jeremiah’s connection to Catrina growing ever more intriguing and of course, The Mack cementing his place as Johnny’s next challenger. What will happen next, tune into Lucha Underground next week and find out.