CMLL 9/4/09 & IWRG 8/13/09

CMLL 9/4/09:

Momentos had two clips of undercard stuff: Delta's big moonsault dive and Stuka's flying splash on Loco Max which looked all sorts of painful.

Dark Angel/Marcela/Lluvia vs Hiroka/Princesa Sujei/Princesa Blanca: Decent match with harder work than usual since the women were working higher up than they were used to. Lluvia just keeps dragging matches down any time she enters the ring though. Really wish she'd just get sent to LLF to hang out for a year and get some ring experience before being brought back. Also, she has a giant ass. So she either has to trim down so she can actually move or she'll keep barely being able to throw a dropkick. Blanca made Dark Angel submit clean.

Maximo/Mascara Dorada/Valiente vs Dragon Rojo Jr./Misterioso II/Sangre Azteca: Televisa ruined this match. Any time cool stuff was being done... the camera panned as far away as possible or they cut to the guy filming from the crowd who would walk ever so slowly to ringside. YOU CAN'T SEE SHIT FROM THAT ANGLE! WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!!? MEXICANS ARE ANNOYING! LIKE LITTLE FUCKING CHILDREN WHO ARE AMAZED BY A YO-YO! IT'S THE YEAR 2010 - FANCY CAMERA ANGLES AND SLO-MO REPLAYS HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR 30 FUCKING YEARS OR MORE! JOIN US ANY TIME NOW! FUCK! Well at least Dorada's mask was awesome and he debuted his version of the Aero Star invented dive that became perfected and known as the Dorada Especial II.

Shocker/La Sombra/Volador Jr. vs Efesto/Terrible/Texano Jr.: Passable match although again had moments ruined by the fucking camerawork and production. WE DON'T FUCKING NEED A SPLIT-SCREEN WHEN TWO GUYS ARE DOING DIVES THAT YOU CAN SEE IN ONE CAMERA SHOT! Tecnicos went over.

Mistico vs Negro Casas: Mistico was great here. Negro not so much. I did get a chuckle out of the first fall finish b/c I remember Cesar going crazy in his live report saying NEGRO CASAS JUMPED OFF THE TOP ROPE AND MISTICO CAUGHT HIM! HE CAUGHT HIM! AND THEN SLAMMED HIM DOWN! WHAT STRENGTH! When in reality Casas barely jumped off the top and Mistico was only two feet away so it wasn't much of a catch. Like a 3 year old jumping into his dad's arms to learn to swim. Felino and Niebla both interfered and Mistico took care of them with garbage can shots.

IWRG 8/13/09:

Almost missed this since it aired in October and I don't like to watch stuff out of order.

Blasfemia & Heavy Boy vs. Eragon & Star Boy: Not so great but not entirely awful. Not a fan of the rudo team which right away had me disinterested and Eragon wasn't busting out his cool matwork and offense. Third fall was okay but didn't save the match.

Avisman & Gringo Loco vs. Gemelo Fantastico I & Gemelo Fantastico II: Rudos were fantastic in this with their running from the tecnicos spots and great double teaming. Gemelos didn't get to do much but to their credit put the rudos over nicely and in two straight falls. Gringo Loco's spot where he does a frog splash off the back of a Gemelo being held up by Avisman is really neat.

Barba Roja, Hijo de Pirata Morgan, Pirata Morgan Jr. vs. Black Terry, Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro: Piratas attacked during the pre-match interview and TV cut right to the opening whistle where both teams were brawling. Enjoyed this much more than the match the following week. Piratas were just brutalizing their opponents with triple team moves and the comeback was very inspired with mask ripping and blood and Black Terry hitting the backcracker as good as he ever has. Match built very well and third fall was fantastic with a red hot crowd getting right into it. Piratas got the win.

Oficial 911, Oficial AK47, Oficial Fierro vs. Negro Navarro, Trauma II, Trauma II (IWRG IC Trios Titles): Excellent match! Long first fall exchange with Navarro and AK47 (I think) with them trading submissions. Navarro can get away with his style of releasing submissions b/c his entire deal is he is the veteran and just wants to show the young punks up. He can beat them at any time and just has to choose when. It's genius. This is something the young kids shouldn't be doing b/c they have no reason to be doing it other than to show off that they watch Negro Navarro matches. And at least Navarro sticks to that style all match long b/c THAT'S WHAT HE DOES. The kids just want to show off and then move onto their real moves. It's silly. Anyways... my description of this match wouldn't do it justice and instead of making wild analogies that really don't work some folks, I'll just say I highly reccomend everyone watch this. Loved the finish to death with the captain deal finally coming into play and the rudos... CHEATING! YES! CHEATING! THAT'S WHY THEY ARE THE BEST RUDO TEAM!

Excellent show.

CMLL 9/1/09 & IWRG 8/27/09

That last post was my 100th! Yay or something!

CMLL 9/1/09:

Big crowd (heavy into the rudos) for the fan appreciation show.

Guerrero Maya Jr., Metálico, Tigre Blanco vs. Hooligan, Pólvora, Tiger Kid: Enjoyed this one. The Blanco/Polvora feud was focused on here so maybe we should have paid more attention to that fact when it came time to pick who would lose the mask match a month or so later. Guerrero Maya Jr. got to showcase his stuff here with the excellent catchers on the opposite side but ironically enough he got over the most after doing a tope over the top and almost piledriving himself on the floor! It looked really scary but he managed to continue the match including doing another tope suicida in the second fall which the crowd cheered for. Two fall match ending with a Polvora low blow.

Euforia, Nosferatu, Skándalo vs. Fabián el Gitano, Pegasso, Rey Cometa: Another good match with everyone working harder in front of the bigger crowd. Liked the first fall finish with Cometa missing his 450 and Pegasso getting his but Skandalo just waiting to dropkick him in the face. Second fall had dual dives by Pegasso/Cometa. Third fall was the tecnico showcase. Finish was neat as Cometa went for an asai moonsault but Euforia/Skandalo caught him (mostly just Euforia) and then dropped him on the apron. I would have marked out more except I saw this same spot on an FSE DVD I watched (but forgot to blog about) with Angel Azteca Jr. and it looked 100x cooler since Euforia caught him almost in the crowd and then threw him into the ringpost like a bullet. Rudos won.

Héctor Garza, Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara vs. Averno, Ephesto, Mephisto: Another round with these teams. Not as good as the week before but it had it's moments. Garza/Mephisto was heavily pushed with Garza getting the pinfall in the end and challenging for a singles match.

La Sombra, Místico, Volador Jr. vs. Felino, Mr. Niebla, Último Guerrero: Really couldn't tell who the tecnicos were here since the Super Sky Team worked like tecnicos but the crowd was 100% behind the rudos who still acted like rudos. This is the type of match that should have been done like the great 6/2/09 match with the same tecnicos vs La Peste Negra where the teams switched roles. Third fall had an awesome triple dive spot with the tecnicos as Sombra did a moonsault over the ringpost at the same time as Volador Jr. did a running somersault plancha and Mistico did a tope suicida.

Overall an enjoyable show but nothing worth going out of your way to see.

IWRG 8/27/09:

Star Boy/Miss Gaviota vs Carta Brava Jr./Vampiro Metalico: This was okay. I like Vampiro Metalico and really wish IWRG would have gave him a gimmick to run with. He carried Gaviota big time and I guess it's no coincidence that Gaviota looked the best she ever has. Fun match with a couple of neat submission finishes.

Bushi/Chico Che/Freelance vs Avisman/Fantasma De La Quebrada/Gringo Loco: Typical crazy IWRG midcard match. Freelance fucked up a rana in the first fall and his head BOUNCED off the mat. Doctors immediatly checked on him and he looked done for the night but... HE'S FREELANCE! So naturally he got up fine and even did a rana off the top to the floor which is insanity (the move itself + the fact he almost concussed himself doing it IN the ring). Rudos showed some nice teamwork which foreshadowed the Avisman/Gringo future pairing. Third fall had some psycho dives and eventually Freelance beat Avisman clean. Well worth checking out.

Terribles Cerebros vs Pirata Morgan Kids (EdM Trios Titles/DF Trios Titles): Really good match. Some excellent matwork early on and the match built fine from there. I thought the third fall in particular was outstanding. Terry got the win with his lungblower (aka everyone's finisher in IWRG).

The main event isn't worth my time. I fast forwarded through and saw a fork, lots of bleeding and Villano III laughing to really put over the HATRED he supposedly had for Chicana. There's a pro! Can't wait till I get to the IWRG shows where they put the youngsters over these guys. Oh wait... they don't? But... these are two professionals!

Lineups!

As always - via www.thecubsfan.com/cmll

CMLL (MON) 04/26 Arena Puebla
1) Tigre Rojo & Tigre Rojo Jr. vs Siki Ozama Jr. & Toro Bill Jr.

- I'm always in favor of seeing new blood so this should be fun and hopefully makes TV. Two excellent rudos to carry the rookie.

2) Metálico, Tigre Blanco, Tony Rivera vs Artillero, Mortiz, Súper Comando

- I guess this is where we find out what Mortiz is like when he can't use his Spanish Fly to the floor. Surely none of those tecnicos are taking it, let alone @ Arena Puebla in a match that may not make TV. This isn't Tijuana.

3) Ángel de Oro, Ángel de Plata, Guerrero Maya Jr. vs Arkangel de la Muerte, Hooligan, Nitro

- Standard match. Trivia note: Nitro is the actual leader of the Rebeldes Tuereg, not Arkangel or Hooligan. Said so himself in an interview for TVC.

4) Blue Panther, Strong Man, Toscano vs Atlantis, Terrible, Último Guerrero

- Really hope this gets edited off TV but I fear it's setting up a future match so...

5) Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara, La Sombra vs Gran Alebrije, Histeria II, Psicosis II

- This will be... AWESOME! I cannot wait to hopefully see this on TV. The ex-AAA guys will prove they can hang with the CMLL dudes. I guarantee it.

CMLL (TUE) 04/27 Arena Mexico
1) Horus & Metatrón vs Camorra & Disturbio

- And Horus is back where he belongs. I approve!

2) Diamante, Pegasso, Rey Cometa vs Arkangel de la Muerte, Loco Max, Skándalo

- FINALLY! NEW FUERZA AEREA! They teased this team a few months back but Rey Cometa got hurt and had to be replaced. But now... FINALLY! This will be fantastic. I refuse to even think otherwise.

3) Rush, Stuka Jr., Valiente vs Misterioso II, Sangre Azteca, Virus

- One of these does not belong! But to be fair he'll only get better working with these rudos so might as well book matches like this where his partners will carry the bulk of the match and he can just come in for his trademark moves.

4) Blue Panther, La Sombra, Strong Man vs Atlantis, Rey Bucanero, Último Guerrero

- Probably gonna be by the numbers. Maybe the ex-AAA guys run-in here? They haven't attacked on Tuesday yet. Atlantis/Buca/Guerrero vs Monster/Maniaco/Psicosis next week? BOOK IT!

5) La Máscara vs Mephisto [NWA WELTER]

- Should be a decent match. With the Universal Title tournament coming up I'd expect to see a few title changes in the next little while as CMLL sorts out who they want involved and try to make it look different than it was last year.

IWRG (THU) 04/29 Arena Naucalpan
1) Dinamic Black vs Keshin Black

- Dynamic Black looked great in BTJr's latest upload so this should be fun.

2) Guizmo & Miss Gaviota vs Alan Extreme & Eterno

- OH NO. SHE'S BACK! BACK TO RUIN MY UNDERCARDS O'FUN!

3) Black Terry & Cerebro Negro vs Trauma I & Trauma II

- And the IWRG forum passes out in excitement. BTJr hinted at an upcoming IWRG school vs Navarro school feud so maybe this is where the seeds get planted.

4) Oficial 911, Oficial AK47, Oficial Fierro vs Bombero Infernal, Maldito Jr., Samot

- Oh yes - this will be quite fun!

5) Hijo de Máscara Año 2000, Máscara Año 2000, Máscara Año 2000 Jr. vs Avisman, El Hijo del Diablo, Gringo Loco [EdM Trios, final]

- I just want Gringo Loco or Avisman to get the winning pin on MA2K. That would be tremendous. Team MA2K is clearly winning the belts though.

CMLL (FRI) 04/30 Arena Mexico
1) Leono & Starman vs Bronco & Inquisidor

- I swear Starman and Bronco started the whole mess of mask match challenges on Sunday and now it looks like they won't even be included!

2) Fuego & Metro vs Euforia & Raziel

- Clearly this is ending in a DQ with all four agreeing to be in the cage mask match o'doom. All four should be safe in the actual match though.

3) Dark Angel, Lady Apache, Luna Magica vs Hiroka, Mima Shimoda, Princesa Blanca

- Oh joy, Luna Magica is back to ruin matches. Sad thing is she will be a step up for this division compared to the awful rookies they have ruining matches currently. Shimoda is also back and that's no surprise since Mexico vs Japan starts up again next week.

4) Bracito de Oro vs Pequeño Warrior [mask]

- I don't see what all the controversy is. The result here seems pretty obvious if you look at the facts:

1. Bracito De Oro is old.
2. This is the biggest match Bracito De Oro will ever get.
3. Bracito De Oro has won all the matches leading up to this Friday.
4. CMLL is not going to unmask a guy who just lost his mask 5 years ago.

Pequeno Warrior is clearly winning the match and Bracito's mask.

5) Delta & Volador Jr. vs Héctor Garza & Pólvora [Gran Alternativa, final]

- I really think Delta is coming out the winner here but stranger things have happened. Polvora will always have the benefit of winning the bodybuilding contest which is Paco's pet project so his minions would want to please him by booking Polvora to win. Garza doesn't need the win though while Volador Jr. could clearly use this to show he is a top tecnico like Mistico. I'm gonna stick with my pick of Volador Jr./Delta and hope this ends up airing somewhat full on TV.

6) Strongman, Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara, Místico vs Dragón Rojo Jr., Ultimo Guerrero, Shigeo Okumura, Taichi

- Fantastic! CMLL finally busts out the atomicos gimmick for their regular sized guys and stick a bunch of crap in the match! I think the last second change in match + position on the card indicates the tecnicos will win and the rudos will break-up after losing in two straight falls. This should set up something along the lines of Dragon Rojo, Guerrero and Bucanero vs Tanihashi, Taichi and Okumura next week as Mexico vs Japan takes over Friday nights in May.

AAA TV (FRI) 04/30 Gimnasio Jose Maria Arteaga, Queretaro, Queretaro
1) Atomic Boy, Fabi Apache, Octagoncito vs Mini Abismo Negro, Rain, Tigre Cota

- Yes please! Atomic Boy looked fantastic on TV the other week and I can only imagine how great he'll look here working with those two rudos. This is a nice mix-and-match.

2) Aerostar & Relampago vs Billy Boy & Decnnis

- Well since the taping is being split to air over two weeks this will surely make TV and hopefully be given some time. The rudo team is amazing and I'm still not sold on Relampago but he has improved steadily in all his appearences so I'm not down on him. He needs a different look though. Looking forward to see what these guys do together.

3) Extreme Tiger, Jack Evans, Rocky Romero vs Alex Koslov, Christopher Daniels, Joe Lider

- I'm pretty sure much like Solar/Navarro, Romero and Koslov would be more than happy to spend the rest of their careers working opposite each other. Everyone has a natural opponent here so this will probably be good and end up more like three singles matches rather than a trios match. Still not totally in favor of randomly using Daniels instead of sticking with the regular talent.

4) Monster Clown, Murder Clown, Psycho Clown vs Chessman, Hernandez, Kenzo Suzuki

- God at this point I just want the Clowns to lose to SOMEONE! They've actually gone past the point to where a loss would mean anything so if they're waiting for the big match to get the big pop for the big win... it ain't gonna happen. Might as well have Hernandez just kill them all here. Although it would please me if Konnan ended their winning streak since that's what I originally predicted would happen.

5) Dr. Wagner Jr., Octagón, Pimpinela Escarlata vs Electroshock, Silver King, Último Gladiador

- How's this for an interesting debate: Who's the best worker on the tecnico side? I'd take Octagon with Wagner third.

6) Cibernético, Heavy Metal, La Parka Jr. vs ?, LA Park, Zorro

- Vampiro? Meh. I could care less about anything here although a Metal vs Zorro singles match down the line would be... interesting.

CMLL (SUN) 05/02 Arena Mexico
1) Bengala, Metálico, Trueno vs Camorra, Cholo, Zayco

- Cesar will be very happy since he hates the rudo team.:)

2) Ángel Azteca Jr., Diamante, Fabián el Gitano vs Dr. X, Puma King, Tiger Kid

- Oooohhhhh I like this! Fabian and Dr. X will continue their feud and leave the other four to go wild and do all their fun spots! Looking forward to his! (hopefully it's as good as this past weekend's segunda that aired on 52MX)

3) Blue Panther, Metro, Sagrado vs Euforia, Vangelis, Virus

- Blue Panther working lower on an Arena Mexico card than Histeria, Psicosis and Alebrije. WOW. Makes sense though so I'm not complaining.

4) Brazo de Plata, La Sombra, Toscano vs El Alebrije, Histeria, Psicosis

- Probably won't be nearly as good as the Puebla match b/c of... well... obvious reasons. It'll be interesting to see who goes over. Guessing the indy guys cheat to beat Sombra.

5) Mistico vs Volador Jr.

- WOO-HOO! Might actually get to see a somewhat full match with these guys since it won't be Televisa slaughtering the editing.

IWRG (SUN) 05/02 Arena Naucalpan
1) Héros vs Imperial

- Want this on youtube! I'll see it one way or the other anyways.

2) Dinamic Black & Tonatiuh vs Alan Extreme & Comando Negro

- Tonatiwho??? I want to see this just to see what kind of wacky outfit he'll have and to see if we can figure out which rookie he was in the IWRG vs Queretaro Torneo from a few months back.

3) Oficial 911, Oficial AK47, Oficial Fierro vs Avisman, El Hijo del Diablo, Gringo Loco

- Ugh, they had to put this in the dead spot for TV! Curse you IWRG!

4) Black Terry, Chico Che, Jack vs Cerebro Negro, Maldito Jr., Samot

- Confusing booking. I guess we're all turning on Cerebro Negro again? Maybe Black Terry helps him out to set up a tag vs Maldito and Samot next week?

5) el Ángel, Rayo de Jalisco Jr., Scorpio Jr. vs Hijo de Pirata Morgan, Universo 2000, Veneno

- YUCK!

CMLL 8/25/09 & CMLL Puebla 8/31/09

CMLL 8/25/09:

Dark Angel, Lady Apache, Marcela vs. Amapola, Hiroka, Zeuxis: Dark Angel must have rejected someone's advances b/c she spent the entire match working with Zeuxis. She did a good job though so Zeuxis didn't continue the trend of new women debuting and looking horrible. However the trend of injures almost did continue as Dark Angel came up short on a tope suicida and Zeuxis was late to react. Thankfully my fellow Canadian was unharmed. Nothing else happened in this match. Seriously. The finish to every fall were at least neat.

Máscara Dorada, Metro, Valiente vs. Euforia, Vangelis, Virus: Pretty disappointing for a great lineup on paper. I mean... it was alright... I just wanted way more. Dorada did a nice assisted headscissors off the ramp but then blew a spot and that was the end of his night. Tecnicos got the win.

Negro Casas, Terrible, Texano Jr. vs. Sagrado, Shocker, Toscano: Graphic had Lizmark Jr. listed but Negro was wrestling. So we win but we also lose since it must have been a last second sub and thus the match was a complete waste.

Héctor Garza, Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara vs. Averno, Ephesto, Mephisto: Fun match as you'd expect with these teams and lord knows the show needed it at this point. Finish was a run-in though which left a sour taste in my mouth.

This show ALMOST killed my soul.

CMLL Puebla 8/31/09:

Interesting 15 minute long segment before the matches began where the TVC crew took a bus trip (AU!) to Mexico City to meet the CMLL programming department. They got to ride with some edecanes so good for them.

Aguila Guerrera & Mr. Rafaga vs. Black Tiger & King Jaguar: Meh. Match was average which is understandable since these are four average workers at best. I would have left this off TV and aired the trios match that followed but they probably wanted some local talent on this special 1 Year Anniversary show. King Jaguar almost ruined the special occasion by slipping while he tried a springboard plancha but thankfully Aguila Guerrera ran forward to save his life. Tecnicos won.

Máscara Dorada, Máximo, Metro vs. Arkangel de la Muerte, Dr. X, Loco Max: Lots of comedy with Maximo and Arkangel to start. I think the actual storyline of the match was the tecnico took Loco Max's mask before the match and put it in their corner for Maximo to do dirty things to. After the rudos won the second fall they stole it back. Other than that not much of note here outside of a nice exchange with Mascara Dorada and the rudos.

Naito, Ray Mendoza Jr., Yujiro vs. Blue Panther, La Sombra, Shocker: 95% rudos, 5% tecnicos. So you can imagine how fantastic this must have been! Sombra almost had his shoulder dislocated in the first fall when he got thrown up by Naito into a Yujiro powerslam but he landed awkwardly. He stayed down the entire match except to do two dives in the third fall. Meanwhile Panther annoyed me b/c he took a clothesline in the corner from Yujiro and faked like he was having convulsions and was about to die. Incase you don't get it - he actually did suffer a minor concussion on that same spot back in May or June. His overreaction here was just pathetic though and nobody was buying it. It was more embarassing to him than anything else. Finish had Yujiro power bombing Shocker and holding the ropes to set up their future singles match.

Héctor Garza, Hijo del Fantasma, La Máscara vs. Felino, Mr. Niebla, Negro Casas (CMLL Trios Titles): Worked more like a regular trios match than an actual title match. Didn't have any emotion at all and the rudos will clowning around as if the titles weren't even at stake. Tecnicos had no interest in working hard so this was a complete borefest. Negro yanked Fantasma's mask in the third fall and pinned him but then Garza/Mascara eliminated Negro and eventually Mascara rolled up Niebla for the win.

I was not a fan of this show at all.