By John Moore, Prowrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Lucha Underground on El Rey Network
Aired September 13, 2018 – Season 4 Episode 14
Taped March 2018 in Los Angeles, California at the Union Central Cold Storage Warehouse
This week’s Lucha Underground teaser focused on Joey Ryan possibly forming an alliance with XO Lishus, Pentagon Dark beating Brian Cage in a title defense, Catrina dumping Mil and getting “killed” by Mil after a brawl with Melissa Santos, Aerostar using the Kamehameha wave to travel in time and shoot the life back into Fenix, and Fenix looking like he may not be the same. This week’s episode was titled “Pet Cemetery”…
Matt Striker and Vampiro checked in on commentary at the Downtown LA temple. The house band for this week was El Conjunto Nueva Ola. Striker talked about how happy he was to hear that Fenix was back. Striker also talked about the return of “The Lucha Super Friends” who will get a Trios title shot on this episode…
1. El Dragon Azteca Jr. vs. Ivelisse for the Gift of the Gods Championship. Ivelisse landed armdrags on Azteca early on. Ivelisse then hit Azteca with a huracanrana. Azteca recovered and then easily overpowered Ivelisse. Ivelisse came back with gut punches but Azteca came back with a clubbing blow. Ivelisse favored the lower back after an Irish whip. Ivelisse blocked a Boston Crab initially but then Azteca turned the Crab into the crossface. Ivelisse got out of the way from an Azteca hesitation leg drop. Ivelisse hit a rally of axe handle shots.
Ivelisse caught Azteca with a front kick and slingshot DDT. Ivelisse got a two count out of Azteca. Ivelisse locked in an octopus hold on Azteca. Azteca fell on the ground to get a two count on Ivelisse. Counters ensued. Azteca landed an ugly armdrag on Ivelisse. Azteca then missed wildly for a sick bump on the metal hand rail near the steps. Ivelisse caught Azteca with a Code Red to fire up the crowd. Ivelisse caught Azteca with a series of slaps and then a running enzuigiri. Ivelisse went for a Camel Clutch but Azteca made it to a vertical base as he slammed Ivelisse on the ground.
Ivelisse crotched Azteca on the top rope. Ivelisse went for a superplex but Azteca fought out. Azteca shrugged and hit Ivelisse with a top rope leg drop for the win.
El Dragon Azteca Jr. defeated Ivelisse via pinfall in 7:12 to retain the Gift of the Gods Championship.
Ivelisse got a standing ovation after the match with Azteca holding her hand up. After Azteca left, XO Lishus and Joey Ryan were shown at the top of the steps. XO said he sees Ivelisse is mad, but Ivelisse put on a hell of an effort. XO said that Ivelisse is looking for gold. XO said Joey and XO want gold too. XO said that Ivelisse has been a part of odd trios before. XO then said that the winner of the Trios Championship match on this show might as well face this newly formed trio next. XO said that Ivelisse, Joey, and XO as champions sounds “XO Lishus”… [c]
John’s Thoughts: Not the cleanest looking of matches, but it wasn’t terrible. Azteca was in a bit of a tough position because it’s easy for him to get booed here because the temple will boo anyone who hurts their beloved Ivelisse (Ivelisse does deserve that love though). I’m still really liking Azteca as Lucha Underground’s Television Champion and he’s kinda proving that Rey Mysterio dragged this promotion down with is presence when looking at it in hindsight. I understand LU’s reluctance to put Ivelisse in a storyline since they’ve given her many pushes only to have her be injury prone. This isn’t a bad spot coming up because XO Lishus and Joey Ryan should be a fun team to watch. Plus, it will hopefully lead to a payoff to her delayed storyline with Sami Callihan.
King Cuerno was already in the ring for an upcoming match. Antonio Cueto appeared to address Cuerno showing up after Pentagon’s match last week. Antonio said that there has been a person who has been very dominant and also deserves a title shot, Mil Muertes. Antonio said this was a number one contenders match coming up… [c]
John’s Thoughts: Phewwww… I was afraid they were going to kill Fantasma for a sec…
2. King Cuerno vs. Mil Muertes for a title shot at the Lucha Underground Championship. Mil dominated Cuerno early on with a series of clubbing blows and lariats. Cuerno caught Mil with a jumping Sobat. Cuerno escaped the Trill of the Hunt and hit Cuerno with a power slam. Mil pummeled Cuerno with straight ground and pound. Cuerno recovered and hit Mil with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Cuerno hit Mil with a running knee and kick. Mil and Cuerno brawled to the top rope. Mil hit Cuerno with a Superplex. Mil caught Cuerno with a swinging chokeslam. Cuerno caught a flying Mil with a high knee.
Mil and Cuerno took each other out with stereo lariats with Mil recovering first. Both men brawled with straight punches while on their knees. Mil had the momentum but Cuerno got a clean block. Cuerno and Mil spilled to the outside where they traded punches. Cuerno hit Mil with CQC punches but Mil responded with haymakers. The boxing match continued as both men ate each other’s punches, strong style. Marty Elias got in between Mil and Cuerno to try to get them back in the ring. Mil and Cuerno shoved Marty into the crowd. REF BUMP!!! The boxing match continued. Marty Elias called for the bell (Impact Wrestling should take note of this. The match should be stopped after a deliberate ref bump).
King Cuerno vs. Mil Muertes ended in a no contest in 5:11.
The crowd booed the ref stoppage. Mil and Cuerno continued to brawl up the steps. A “bullshit” chant ensued. Antonio Cueto walked out and yelled that Mil and Cuerno stop fighting. Antonio Cueto said he doesn’t punish violence, so he was rewarding both Mil and Cuerno with title shots for the Lucha Underground Championship. Cueto booked Pentagon vs. Mil vs. Cuerno in a triple threat for the Lucha Underground Championship. Pentagon Jr. watch the match from the stage area as Cuerno and Mil brawled to the streets of LA… [c]
John’s Thoughts: Simple pro wrestling booking and that was fine. The match was pretty cool too. It was only about five minutes but it told a good story. It started out as very technical but then turned into a New Japan style boxing strong style match. It was very unique and something we don’t see with all these luchadores on LU. They kinda shoehorned Mil into this picture, but I’m fine with that because Mil is just so good in the ring. Next week’s match with three of LU’s best technical guys should be amazing.
El Conjunto Nueva Ola sung a song about “This is Awesome”. Melissa Santos handled the ring introductions for the Trios match. Melissa added a little more joy in the Fenix introduction. Fenix came out in his darker gear. Fenix was walking like a zombie while also drooling. Drooling Fenix made Melissa concerned. Jake Strong (f.k.a. Jack Swagger) made his entrance for a promo.
Jake said that if Drago and Aerostar win the titles tonight then they will defend the title against Jake. Jake said he doesn’t need partners because he can beat Drago, Aerostar, and their friend by himself because he’s big, he’s strong, and a wrestler. Jake said that a wrestler is always better than a luchador. Jake said he’s going to snap their ankles because it makes him strong (oh lord)…
John’s Thoughts: Okay, the logic was bad and Jake Strong sounds like a big oaf, but I kinda like that he’s a meathead and I thought it was good to have him speak because he’s been a bit of a drone in Lucha Underground. Swagger is not a bad talker and I’m surprised we haven’t seen him talk much. He did cut that one bad promo on Smackdown that one time, but we try to forget that.
Melissa introduced the Reptile tribe next… [c]
3. “The Reptile Tribe” Kobra Moon, Daga, and Jeremiah “Snake” vs. “The Lucha Super Friends” Fenix, Aerostar, and Drago for the Lucha Underground Trios Championships. The Reptiles started off the match isolating Drago in their corner. Daga hit Drago with a hesitation dropkick. Jeremiah tagged in and gave Drago a chop. Daga and Jeremiah traded quick tags for tandem offense. Drago managed to outsmart both opponents. He hit Daga with a roundhouse and cross kick. Drago used Daga’s body to hit Jeremiah with a tornado DDT. Drago also gave Daga a tornado DDT.
Fenix tagged in and hit fellow zombie Callihan with a rolling cutter. Fenix showed off his cool tightrope ability as he dispatched both Daga and Jeremiah with kicks. Fenix caught Daga with a slicing Sobat. The crowd chanted Animo. Kobra Moon used a matrix dodge to avoid a Fenix kick. Fenix started to lose steam and was slowly walking and drooling. Fenix then gave Aerostar an aggressive tag to the chest. Aerostar hit Jeremiah with a corkscrew crossbody. Aerostar used Jeremiah’s body to hit Daga with a Lethal Injection. Jeremiah hit Aerostar with a delayed vertical suplex. Fenix was twitching at ringside which distracted Vampiro.
Aerostar hit Daga with a codebreaker. Daga came back with a front dropkick. Jeremiah and Drago tagged in. Drago took down both opponents with kicks. Jeremiah came back with his signature kicks. Drago sent Crane outside with a huracanrana and sent Daga outside with an armdrag. Aerostar hit his opponents with an outside crossbody. Drago tagged Fenix but Fenix was drooling and ignored the tag. Fenix slowly walked in and then finally assisted Drago in a launchpad splash. Fenix then fired himself up for a flying move with Aerostar being a cheerleader in the ring. Fenix instead blocked Aerostar’s flying move with a kick. A “culero” (asshole) chant ensued. Fenix then hit Aerostar with the Kinniku Buster Driver. Callihan took advantage and hit the Get out of Here on Aerostar for the win.
The Reptile Tribe defeated the Lucha Super Friends via pinfall in 9:17 to retain the Lucha Underground Trios Championships.
Melissa Santos had her hand on her mouth in shock. Kobra Moon handled the formal ring announcement on the title defense. Matt Striker wondered if Fenix was controlled by Kobra Moon. Melissa was trying to talk to Fenix but Fenix aggressively shook his head in her direction. Melissa talked in Spanish (without subtitles). From my high school level of Spanish, I heard her ask Fenix what was wrong and what was up with him. Fenix then aggressively grabbed Melissa by the shoulders and shoved her to the ground. A terminator chant ensued (why?). El Dragon Azteca then ran out to check on Melissa. Matt Striker noted that Fenix was the biggest babyface (technico) in Lucha Underground and it was odd to see him in such a dark state. The credits rolled, and Striker closed the show…
But wait? There’s more. This week’s post credits stinger was located in Antonio Cueto’s office. He comically struggled to open his Modelo beer with the nail remover end of a hammer. Marty the Moth Martinez (Martin Casaus) entered the office and then bribed Antonio with the same amount of money as Mariposa did to get a Gift of the Gods title match. Antonio accepted the money and granted a match for next week against Dragon Azteca Jr. Before Marty left, he added more stacks of money for “something else I want”. This left the show on a cliffhanger…
John’s Thoughts: A solid main event but the story wasn’t on the match but rather on Fenix as a luchador zombie dude. It is a bit comical seeing Fenix and Sami Callihan both give their takes on undead creatures. Sami Callihan goes in and out of his OVE persona and Fenix walks around the ring drooling. A bit comical with Fenix’s spit, but the rest of the zombie act is working out. Hopefully this leads to another cool cinematic because last week’s time travel cinematic was awesome. They did try to do a lot here, including a random Jack Swagger appearance so it was a bit much, but it wasn’t unnecessary, they just tried to do a bit too much in this episode.
The Marty cliffhanger has me intrigued and I’m curious as to what that extra stack of cash bought him. Are they going with Marty making his own “literal” Money in the Bank? That’s a theory? I know where Marty’s storyline arc ends since I did attend the last couple of episodes of tapings, but that’s like reading the last chapter in a book and not what happens before. So I have no clue where this leads, if he beats Azteca, and trust me I won’t spoil things for you. There’s one thing in particular I’m excited about with Marty and I hope he reveals it soon so I can discuss it. Anyway, this was an okay episode of Lucha Underground. No flaws, but nothing outright amazing. It’s a tough act to follow after last week’s cool ass energy beam cinematic. I’ll be by either late today or tomorrow with my Lucha Underground audio review.
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I like Azteca, but the match with Ivelisse was rough.
My guess is Catrina corrupted Fenix’s, uh, resurrecty energy? Whatever part of him came back wrong, you would think that Aerostar should be aware of it.
Only other bit I caught from the dialogue between Melissa and Fenix was she was asking about his black outfit. I watch the show with subtitles, but if it’s not subtitled on the show like the Spanish promos/cinematics, the subtitles just say they’re speaking (or singing) in Spanish. Once in a while the really loud Spanish chants make subtitles, like Culero or the Ole Lucha one.
To go down more “magic power” speculation. Maybe Aerostar sucked too much soul from Catrina’s dead body (?) and a piece of Catrina is now corrupting Fenix?
Kinda like how Batman got corrupted in the Arkham series when a piece of his enemy got inside of him
… only in Lucha Underground