Lucha Underground is back and Inside Pulse will let the world know about it. Not only has Kate Hartford, one of the new members of our team, been killing it when it comes to LU coverage, but I’ve been told we can also expect the return of Grainbelt Jones’ excellent column very soon. As for me, since I was rather exited about the return of one of wrestling’s most groundbreaking shows, I decided to join in on the fun with my own thoughts on the season 2 premier. And here we go:
1 – Loved the first segment were Vampiro, who apparently has spent the last 6 months in an asylum, meekly answers the questions of his doctor, while we are being regaled with clips of violence and destruction. Oh yeah he’s cured. While Vampiro unleashes total destruction on the medical team in his mind, he gives us the “I’m good now, I love kittens and all” routine in “real life” to the obvious relief of the gullible psychiatrist. Great stuff.
2 – And it gets even better when Matt Striker picks up his compadre in a scene straight out of one of those crime movies, and tells him The Temple is a much darker place now. Vampiro’s sly grin says it all really. 5 minutes into the show, one great segment, minimum of talk and that’s all they need to set the tone for the rest of the episode (and essentially the season). That’s how you do it.
3 – Catrina is now the new jefe and she’s clearly out to make the Temple a better place for all Lucha-kind. She immediately spells things out to Fenix who naively thought he could waltz in with his Gift Of The Gods belt and demand a shot at Mil Murtes’ title. Come on Fenix, which show have you been watching last year? Little House On the Prairie? Instead of cashing in, Fenix finds himself defending the belt against King Cuerno.
4 – Hell of a match to start out the season. Poor Fenix loses the belt while Mil Muertes watches on from his throne which is an awesome touch. Later in the episode, some kind of collusion will be teased between Cuerno and Catrina, which I dig because both had reasons to go after Fenix.
5 – Dirt Bike Kid… I mean Angelico, Ivelisse and Son Of Havoc want their trios belt back but Catrina distracts them from their goal by offering them a shot a Mil Muertes’ title. All they have to do is fight each-other. Gotta love such storytelling, so simple and so effective.
On a side note, every time I hear the crowd chant “SON OF HAVOC”, I’m reminded of people from a certain promotion telling Matt Cappicioni he “didn’t have it”. Didn’t have what exactly? Sheamus’ Mohawk? Big Show’s slowness? Reigns’ inability to connect with a crowd? Gotta love it when people who claim to know what the fans want fall flat on their faces.
6 – I liked the three-way match, thought the chemistry between Ivelisse, Angelico and Son of Havoc was great. There was also this moment at the end, where Ivelisse’s joy at winning the match was soon replaced by concern as she realized she now had to face the monster Mil Muertess, which was amplified when Catrina ordered The Disciples Of Death to take out Son of Havoc and Angelico. That’s one of the things with LU, as we all know, wrestlers are not necessarily good actors, but here, everybody just plays his of her role so well.
7 – Another side-note to say I love the female characters in LU. No hysterical stabbings in the bag and unexplained changes of attitude because “bitches be crazy” (hello WWE how are you?) but great characterizations and strong, well-defined, persona’s because powerful female characters in wrestling are awesome. Well done LU.
8 – As a rule, I’m not a fan of mixed-gender matches for the simple reason that, most of the time, they’re all kinds of bad. This is another thing LU has done surprisingly well. But not only LU deserves credit here, kudos to Ivelisse for being so convincing in the role of fearless ass-kicker, even if she did bit off more than she could chew here. I’ve watched quite a few Sexy Star matches last year and I honestly think Ivelisse is much better in that role. Also, I might be wrong here, but if there is a better, more efficiently presented heel monster than Mil Muertes out there, I have yet to find him.
9 – BANG! Just as you thought you have it all figured out with Prince Puma’s return, deftly saving Ivelisse from a quite horrible fate in the process, here comes Pentagon Jr who turns The Temple on its head by “breaking” Mil Muertes arm. Vampiro looked as all those months of therapy just slapped him in the face. And this is only the first show!
10 – Earlier, Black Lotus bumped into some idiots in search of The Temple, told them to follow her and brought them to Dario Cueto. Dario The Great then granted them access. In one of the things that makes this show so entertaining, one of the idiots asks: “Who’s fighting?”. Dario answers: “You are”. The screams that followed indicated that Matanza is back. And he’s not in a good mood…
Conclusion: LU picks up exactly were it left off, with cool segments, good to great matches, intense storytelling, strong characters (both male and female) and that awesome Temple crowd. Lucha Underground is back indeed, and the wrestling world just got that much more exciting because of it.
I mentioned Kate Hartford above, be sure to check out her excellent live report, which you can find here:
