Lucha Underground Season 3 Episode 21: Sudden Death

It may be a tad late, but in any case, welcome my friends, to the latest installment of Lucha Underground. We got ourselves a stacked card tonight so we best dive right in.

We open backstage with Prince Puma in the bathroom, still hearing voices in his head, the unfortunate result of being brought back from the other side. As Puma struggles to quell the screams inside his head, he’s snapped out his delusions Rey Mysterio. Rey warns Puma not to trust Vampiro. See, Rey’s known vamp a long time, long enough to know that he’s only using Puma for his own agenda. Puma turns this around on Rey, saying that that’s exactly what he and Konnan have done to him in the past. Rey just further warns Puma that Vampiro isn’t his friend. Puma just gets in Rey’s face and fires back with “Neither are you” before leaving in a huff. As Rey stands alone in the bathroom, he sees Vampiro behind him in the mirror. Vamp warns Rey to stay away from Puma, or else he’ll be sent straight to hell. Rey turns around to confront Vamp, only to find that he’s still alone in the bathroom.

Following that, we join Matt Striker and a significantly less creepy Vampiro on the commentary table as we introduce the first match of the evening.

Match #1: Johnny Mundo vs. The Mack: Falls Count Anywhere for the Lucha Underground Title

After last weeks inconclusive match, Johnny Mundo and The Mack are going at it once again. As per the orders of Dario Cueto, this match was made falls count anywhere, a match The Mack specializes in.

From the beginning of the Match, Mack looked to be dominating Johnny Mundo, tossing him into a pile of chairs and chasing him through the crowds. It looked like Johnny’s title reign was in serious Jeopardy. Remember, Mack was a second away from winning the title last week, so Johnny’s got to be nervous. However, Johnny is also a devious son of a bitch and always has an insurance policy. In this case, said insurance policy is Johnny’s Number 2 Fan, Ricky Mandel, who distracts the Mack just long enough for Johnny to swing the momentum back in his favor. Ricky goes for a Trash Can but Sexy Star didn’t lie to Mack all those times she said that “I love you” because she rushes the ring and comes to the aid of her BFF, taking out Ricky in the process. Mack, having regained the momentum, tries to pull a table out from under the ring, only to find PJ Black laying in wait with a kendo stick. Once again though, Mack regains the advantage by delivering a beautiful stunner to PJ off the apron and through a table. As Johnny and Mack battled it out for the prestigious prize that is the Lucha Underground World Championship, Taya, Johnny’s girlfriend, comes out and attacks Mack, allowing just enough time for Johnny to deliver a devastating Power Bomb on a pile of chairs to win the title. Winner and Still Lucha Underground Champion: Johnny Mundo

Following the Match, Dario Cueto comes out to the ring saying alleged to have an “earth-shattering announcement.” And indeed, Dario comes out to the ring, and with him, a trophy that he has dubbed, “The Cueto Cup.” Starting next week, thirty two of the best Luchadores in the temple will compete in a tournament in which the winner will be awarded not only the Cueto Cup itself, but also a shot at the Lucha Underground Title. However, who will be the one to face the winner of the tournament? Well, Dario has some thoughts on that. Originally, he was going to give it to his brother, but after getting attacked by Rey Mysterio before the Hiatus, Matanza has apparently embarrassed the Cueto family, so instead, on the night of the Cueto Cup finals, Johnny Mundo will put his Lucha Underground Title on the line against… Rey Mysterio! But that’s the Lucha Underground Title, right now, our focus turns to the Trios Titles as a long time rivalry is now about to come to a head.

Match Number 2: Aerostar, Fenix & Drago(?) vs. The Snake Tribe

Curiously enough, despite all six competitors making their way to the ring, Melissa Santos does not announce them. Just put that at the back of your mind for later.

Finally, after months of trying to manipulate Drago and targeting his two friends, the Lucha Underground Trios Champions finally get a chance for revenge on the two deadly generals of the Snake Tribe, the mighty Pindar and the gargantuan Vibora, and their evil queen, The Sinister, Seductive, Sassy, Psychotic, Sultry, Slithering, Superior, Sexy, Sensual, Sapphire, Serpentine Senorita, Kobra Moon. The match starts out with Aerostar and Pindar, and I have to give credit where it’s due, Aerostar was really impressive in this match. His speed and skill are damn near unrivaled in the Temple making him one of the most Underrated warriors in all of Lucha Underground. However, one can only do so much against the monsters of the Snake Tribe and Pindar and Vibora take turns picking the man from the cosmos apart. Aerostar fought valiantly, even pulling off a very impressive top rope Frankensteiner on Pindar, but after the punishment both he and Fenix endured at the hands of Kobra Moon’s generals, including a nasty looking Tombstone to Fenix by Vibora, Aerostar goes to tag in Drago. However, in a moment that shocked the entire Temple and all the believers watching at home, instead of accepting the tag, Drago spit the poison mist right into Aerostars face before walking over to the side of the Snake Tribe. And that was why the participants were never announced, because Drago was on the side of the Snakes the entire time, and now, with Drago tagged in on the side that opposes his friends, and as Pindar and Vibora hold up Aerostar as if to make a sacrifice, with a dive from the top rope, Drago pins his former ally and brings trios gold to the Snake Tribe.

Winners and New Lucha Underground Trios Champions: Pindar, Vibora… and Drago.

After that, we get a little treat for the ladies… and the guys if your bread is buttered on that side, we’re all inclusive here at Wes’s Blogs & Reviews. Anywho, feast your eyes on Johnny Mundo, emerging from the shower wearing nothing but a towel, his washboard abs, and his trademark smug smile. Drink it in people, drink it in. Johnny wonders why Ricky hasn’t retrieved the victory champagne he requested, but Taya says that the Champagne is going to have to wait as she has some bad news. Apparently, Johnny was in the shower for an inordinately long time as he completely missed the announcement that his next opponent will be Rey Mysterio. Upon hearing this, Johnny’s mood abruptly changes to deadpan seriousness as he tells ricky to warm up the car, but this was really just so Ricky won’t see him nervous. See, Johnny may be arrogant, but he’s not stupid. He’s been in the ring with Rey-Rey before, and he knows that he’s no joke. If he’s going to take down one of the most decorated veterans in the history of Lucha Libre, he’s going to need to train in his dojo harder than he ever has in his life. Taya recommends that he put on some pants first, but Johnny simply responds with “No Time for Pants.” That line may not be the title of the episode, but I really wish it was.

Main Event: Prince Puma vs. Mil Muertes: Boyle Heights Street Fight

A rivalry that has grown so intense that not even death can stop the battle. That is the best way to describe the endless feud between Prince Puma and Mil Muertes. And now, in a match with no rules, this feud may finally see its end. First out, the man of a thousand deaths, accompanied by Catrina. Next up, Puma emerges from the shadows and attacks his nemesis from behind. From there on, Puma and Mil pulled out all the stops. Literally, at one point Puma pulled out a stop sign and whacks Mil over the head with it. They fought all over the temple, in the ring, amongst the crowd, out on the floor, all the while doing everything in their power to destroy one another. All the while, Vampiro watches on in near silence with a sinister grin across his face. In an especially nice moment, the war between Puma and Mil makes its way into Dario Cueto’s office where Dario is busy polishing the Cueto Cup. And no, that’s not a euphemism for masturbation, but I can see how one may think that. Dario may love violence, but he’s not exactly keen on it around all of his cool stuff and yells at them to get out. Mil has a brief stare down with Dario, but as soon as Dario holds up the Red Bull Statue, which we the audience know has been used as a murder weapon at least twice, Mil immediately backs down. Finally, the fight makes its way back into the ring where it looks like anyone’s match until Vampiro leaves his post at the commentary table and hands Puma a brick which he crushes over Mil’s head putting him down for the 1, 2, 3.

Winner: Prince Puma Match of the Night: Without a doubt, this one goes to Puma vs. Mil in the Boyle Heights Street Fight. To quote our friend Ashton from TwitWoW, “This is the Lucha Underground I was hoping to see when we got back from break.” This match was a blast and it’s just the sort of violence that I love as a wrestling fan. Well done.

Spot of the Night: In a tribute to one of my all time favorites, Rob Van Dam, I’m awarding spot of the night to Puma’s beautifully executed Van Terminator to Mil Muertes. The added flips to the spot make this especially nice.

Segment of the Night: And it’s a clean sweep for Puma this week, as the scene in the Bathroom with Puma and Rey was awesome. I really love how this storyline is progressing and the bit with Vampiro in the mirror was a nice touch.

And that’ll about do it for this week, join me next week for more Lucha Underground.