Lucha Underground Season 2 Episode 13: Monster Meets Monster

ER: Man, I thought Dario was setting up an Aerostar/Fenix/Drago trios team and that is far more exciting to me than a team with PJ Black.

1. Aerostar vs. Drago

ER: Striker says Drago is going through a sophomore slump this season, but he's only faced Jack Evans ad competed in Aztec Warfare. And he wasn't treated like a joke in those. Is it his fault the promotion is dead set on focusing on Sexy Star and Killshot every damn week? Flyer vs. Flyer matches are usually major disappointments, and this was no different. These guys need a base in there to pace out the match and transition them to their next flying spot. Without that, you have two guys not really sure how to smoothly move into their next moves, so they end up hitting a big spot, lying there, and then just getting up so the other guy can hit a big spot. For two guys with some graceful abilities, they sure do manage to look really clunky while setting each other up. To get into position at one point, Aerostar misses a clothesline and somersaults through it...except Drago was just ducking down on a knee that whole time, not moving. So you have Drago taking a knee, motionless, and Aerostar walking past him, throwing a perfunctory clothesline two feet over Drago's head, and then just somersaulting right next to him. Man that kind of shit looks ugly. Aerostar worked a knee injury throughout the match, rubbing his knee and then blowing a springboard spot, and going back to his knee later on. It didn't go anywhere, as Drago never touched it and Aerostar kept doing flying moves. Eventually, one of those moves got a three count. This match would probably look really awesome as a minute long youtube video. But the real deal was a major disappointment.

PAS:  I did like how they worked around Aeorstars blown dive, it makes perfect sense for a guy who tries so many crazy spots to crash and burn on some of them. Sabu blowing dives actually helped his mystique for me, he came off as a completely unhinged maniac willing to do anything to win. I would have much rather seen either guy against a rudo, they really need to bring in Steve Pain to base for these dudes.

ER: "Making me work for it. Classic Cueto." Nice read, Mundo.

2. Jack Evans, PJ Black & Fenix vs. Disciples of Death

ER: Dario says DoD have to be considered the favorites, because they're former champs and are used to teaming together. I mean, they were awarded the titles and have never actually won a match, or even controlled the majority of a match. But sure, let's act like these guys aren't basically the Spirit Squad but without an awesome trampoline entrance. Oh god, now they have names? Have they always had names? And this was the best the DoD have ever looked, but to what point? They still looked like jobbers, and the vignette of Catrina promising Muertes that "they won't disappoint you again". Well, they've literally done NOTHING but be colossal disappointments. Which is what you get when you make Well Dunn out of lightning. Here they had to stand around numerous times waiting for the storyline "uncooperative partner" drama to play out, but they never even got to capitalize on it! Evans would refuse to tag in, DoD would wait around for them to sort it out, and then they'd still not have the advantage! So all that shit was stupid, and it overshadowed what was a really great Fenix performance. Through all the bullshit and all the jobbers being treated like actual threats, Fenix blasted those masked shitheads with kicks, hit some slick dives, and generally looked like a star in a match that didn't really allow for that. PJ hits his nice springboard 450, sometimes the DoD look good but nobody gives a fuck which one looks good and which one doesn't, but this was a nice Fenix show.

PAS: I liked Jack Evans in this too, and it was a fine goofy spot fest, still I am with the DoD hate, what a bunch of total goobers, glad we are finally done with them, although I am hesitant to embrace singles Sinestro Del Muerte.

ER: Welllll...TWO of the Disciples of Death are dead, after getting Temple of Doom'd by the bacne'd member of DoD. If he has the ability to rip the hearts out of electric men, what was he doing stooging for Jack Evans comedy spots 10 minutes ago? How were they losing matches when they have heart ripping ability?!

PAS: Yeah that was really stupid, this guy can appear out of nowhere, and rip hearts out, you figure he might be able to get a fall on PJ Black.

3. Mil Muertes vs. Matanza

ER: Yeah buddy, there aren't too many match types that I love more than two monsters colliding. And these two collide and it is glorious. Matanza is good at showing vulnerability, and Muertes looked like a flat out beast. Muertes hits the best powerslam you've ever seen here, and Matanza does those crazy rolling gutwrenches. I loved Matanza's huge bump over the top, leading to Dario getting involved more than he's ever been before. He takes his first bump off a Muertes choke (really Dario taking a spill should have been played up huge), and it's smartly placed to allow Matanza more time to recover from what looked like a legit nasty spill. I liked all the chairshots and gas can/water can shots. Once they got on the office I sensed a gimmick finish, but even with the gimmick finish Dario totally made it, with the camera doing a couple great shots past the monsters, directly into Dario's horrified facial expressions. I'm really excited to see these two collide again, probably a couple times.

PAS: This was really great, I think Matanza running through people so far makes it a bigger deal when Muertes is able to take him down and hurt him. Super props to Dario for taking that big bump, that is not a normal part of a character actors job. The brawl up the steps was nasty with both guys walloping each other with gas cans and the final bump was crazy and memorable. It was a an obvious first chapter and I can't wait for the second.

ER: The cop show stuff at least gets a little more intriguing without the direct involvement of Castro and Ryan, as TV's Renegade, Lorenzo Lamas comes in to talk about the mayor. If they got Lamas for just a Councilman, who could possibly be the mayor!? Edward James Olmos?? Phil was really kind of adorable flipping out about Lorenzo Lamas over text. "He was in Falcon Crest!!"

PAS: I watched this show before Eric and I teased him with a text that LU debuted its biggest name yet. Eric was "Bigger than Rey? Is it Santo?", and undeniably Lorenzo Lamas is a bigger name, he was the Renegade!!


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