AAA has one more live Twitch stream this week – Sunday from Monterrey, which will probably be a 8 pm CT US start – and then they’re off for 26 days. Nothing about AAA is normal. Hijo del Fantasma versus Parka Negra might be good, might not happen. Aerostar & Drago face new #1 contenders Rey Escorpion & Texano. The card will probably change.
I was rewatching Volador/Cavernario and my enthusasim for Cavernario losing efforts is definitely not high, but his match with Soberano on CMLL Martes should still be pretty good.
Ricky Marvin vs Dr. Cerbero in IWRG should be interesting.
CMLL (SAT) 03/17/2018Arena Pavilion del Norte, Saltillo, Coahuila [Estrellas del Ring, Zocalo]
1) Cronic & Jupiter b Devil Boy & Guerrero Negro II Cronic broke his arm on a 450 splash
2) Lince de Oro b Tormento Negro
3) Espartaco, Nitro, Zorro Plateado Jr. DQ Potro, Trauma I, Trauma II
4) Negro Casas, Último Guerrero, Valiente b Green Demon, Negro Navarro, Solar I Green Demon replaced Black Terry, who was there but did not wrestle. Valiente replaced Atlantis. Ultimo Guerrero got the win, then got a mask vs hair challenge of Espartaco
5) Tritón b Titán, Laredo Kid, Dragón Lee Triton replaced Flamita and got he upset win over Titan.
This was said to be a really good show by those who were there.
AAA TV (WED) 03/21/2018 Domo de San Luis, San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí [AAA, MT, thecubsfan]
1) Lanzelot, Mamba, Pimpinela Escarlata b Ashley, Dinastía, Estrella Divina 8:36. Dinastia & Lanzelot were added to the match. Ashley lost to Pimpinela Escarlata’s reinera then was yelled at for losing by Divina.
2) Dark Cuervo, Dark Scoria, La Parka b Joe Lider, Mr. Águila, Parka Negra 8:40. La Parka beat Parka Negra.
3) Rey Escorpión & Texano Jr. b Angelikal & Drago and Monsther Clown & Murder Clown [AAA TAG, #1 Contenders] 10:24. Changed from Drago/Aerostar/Fantasma vs Escorpion/Texano/Mesias, changed to a three way tag match. Rey Escorpion beat Monster Clown with a top rope legdrop. He and Texano will get a shot at Cuervo & Scoria at some point.
4) La Máscara, Máximo, Psycho Clown b Averno, Chessman, Súper Fly 9:56. Mascara beat Averno with a campana, a call back to their mask feud.
5) Blue Demon Jr., Dave The Clown, Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. b Dr. Wagner Jr., Pagano, Vampiro 15:00. Blue Demon’s first match in AAA since making a surprise appearance as a rudo in Aguascalientes on 02/09 (and his first Mexico rudo stint since 2007 in CMLL.) Hijo del Wagner pinned Vampiro after a F5, then made title match motions towards his father.
6) Parka Negra b Mr. Águila, Joe Lider, Averno, Texano, Rey Escorpión, La Máscara, La Parka [Copa Perros del Mal] 14:10. The match was preceded by a ceremony remembering Perro Aguayo Junior. All participants were surprise inclusions. Match was battle royal rules with the final two going to a pinfall finish. Elimination order: Texano, Rey Escorpion, Joe Lider, La Mascara, Mr. Aguila, and Averno , leaving the two Parkas as the final two. La Parka was going to win, but Dave the Clown ran in. Parka beat up Dave, and Parka Negra got in a foul via the distraction. Parka Negra celebrated with Mr. Aguila & Joe Lider.
Show wasn’t much more than the Cuernavaca show. The third match being changed took away the best looking match (though adding Dinastia & Lanzelot to the opener also helped it.)
I really didn’t want to see a show being billed as honoring Hijo del Perro Aguayo turn in to an extended way to get over the moribund La Parka/Dave the Clown feud over, or get over La Parka at all. Parka got as strong reaction as any one on the show, but it was absolutely the wrong night for him to beat the Perros del Mal and he didn’t need to be involved in the Copa Perros del Mal finish at all. This felt like yet another AAA taping where placating egos took priority over what would’ve been best for the show.
Possibly related: Mesias was supposed to be on this show. Mesias instead announced during the show that he had quit AAA. There will be a press conference later to explain what he will do next. Mesias returned from double knee surgery in time film the fourth season of Lucha Underground, and he’s quit AAA the moment taping finished on that season. Mesias’ only made one appearance for AAA since returning, the Rey de Reyes show where he was visibly unhappy about his match with La Parka and waved goodbye to the crowd after the finish. On +LuchaTV’s podcast, Dorian Roldan was asked about that wave and said he had no idea what that was about. Mesias clearly was waving good bye to this promotion, even if he decided not to tell people publicly.
Back in LU Season 2, AAA warned their wrestlers that they would not be allowed to continue on Lucha Underground should they quit AAA. That did not hold up: Penta and Fenix and Taya were among those working the fourth season, and that left people wondering who else might make the same move once this latest season is over. Mesias wasn’t the first guess, because of his long history and friendship with Vampiro. Still, you can see reason for him to be frustrated by AAA: he was getting steadily moved down the card over the last few years, while being the most over he’s ever been in the US. If he’s healthy, and able to book himself as Mil Muerte outside of AAA & Lucha Libre FMV’s control, he may be in demand by US indie promotions. He’d obviously be a fit for The Crash and other Mexican indie groups as well. Ricky Banderas would also seem to pick up Puerto Rico bookings, though I’m not sure how much work he can expect there given how they’re still recovering from last year’s hurricane.
Fantasma & Aerostar also missed the show. They appeared to still be in Los Angeles or left Los Angeles too late to make this show. Lucha Underground all taping was supposed to be completed on Saturday, but they appear to still have been filming over the last few days. I haven’t seen Ultima Lucha 4 results, so I’m not sure if something went awry and required some more work, or if Johnny Mundo’s made some comments along the lines of him finishing up on Wednesday, so perhaps everyone will be back on Sunday.
CMLL’s started to handle this with NJPW-style post match interviews the last couple months or so. (They appear to be doing two sets of them, one in a CMLL office just on their Facebook page, and another one in the tiny media room.) AAA used to it with vignettes or other backstage segments, but not consistently, and that requires the announcers to handle a lot more of the load explaining why Parka Negra is suddenly with the Perros del Mal or Blue Demon & Hijo del Wagner are allies. They’re kind of working around that problem for now via +LuchaTV’s channel. Jose Manuel Guillen is there calling the show, and doing those post show interviews for his own site. The interviews from last night’s show include Blue Demon declaring he will NOT be in the TripleNania Poker de Ases match, because he still sees Fantasma & Psycho as children not on his level and he’s focused on the Wagner situation. There’s also Texano & Rey Escorpion talking about being the best rudos, and Los Perros celebrating their win. I don’t want to steal +LuchaTV’s video views, but this stuff should also be on an AAA channel somewhere. (And CMLL’s Facebook stuff should also be on the YouTube channel in some form.)
Vampiro says he’ll have a big announcement about his career in the ring today. He’s teasing it being a sad announcement. Vampiro took a clean pin to Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. in their match, which was the right outcome on a show with some notable bad outcomes.
This show was said to be great. It looks like the filled up the arena, which LA Park will undoubtedly bring up on Twitter in response to Dorian Roldan saying he needed to go to AAA to fill up arenas.
In today’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reports Garza Jr. & Ultimo Ninja are having their WWE medical exams. (Garza has sort of confirmed by reposting the story about this on his Facebook.) Medical exams usually means WWE will offer them a developmental deal should they pass those tests. On the Crash show, Garza’s right shoulder was still in that sling/brace he’s been wearing since hurting it last fall. WWE may say it’s healing fine and have no problem, or they could tell him to get something done and then they’ll sign him, it’s not necessarily a deal breaker.
It would be a big deal for The Crash and Revolucha if they both left. Revolucha just pivoted to a Garza/Ninja feud, which might be an indication they knew something was coming down the pipe and wanted to do that match while they could. Bestia 666 could take over the lead of the Rebelion Amarilla, but they’d still miss the totally hateable personality rudo Garza has provided. WWE deals are slow to finalize, so it’ll still be months before either man would be gone should WWE complete the deal.
Dragon Lee was announced for the NJPW show in Los Angeles on Sunday for an early card 4v4 match. Rey Mysterio Jr. is off that show. We – I – thought that grade 1 bicep tear meant he’d be back quick, but he told TJ Sports at last weekend’s The Crash show that he expects to be out between 1.5 and 2 more months. Mysterio says he and WWE started talking about doing something together late last year (when his LU deal would’ve been up) and it got more serious after his Royal Rumble appearance. In the WON, Meltzer wrote Rey is going to Birmingham to get the bicep checked, which he believed to be a WWE related visit.
In the comments of the latest The Crash comments, Black Boy says he’s suspended by the Tijuana commission for two more months. He’ll still be good to wrestle in New Orleans. I have no idea what happened.
CMLL (TUE) 03/27/2018Arena México
1) Bengala & Retro vs Apocalipsis & Inquisidor
2) Acero, Aéreo, Fantasy vs Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Universo 2000, Pequeño Violencia
3) Astral, Eléctrico, Pegasso vs Cancerbero, Espanto Jr., Raziel
4) Guerrero Maya Jr., Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Disturbio, Misterioso Jr., Universo 2000 Jr.
5) Soberano Jr. vs Cavernario
6) Diamante Azul, Dragón Lee, Matt Taven vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Terrible
It’s a non-title match, so Cavernario might win! Or not.
Rare sighting of Acero & Aereo outside the opener. It still won’t be good.
CMLL (TUE) 03/27/2018Arena Coliseo Guadalajara
1) Black Sugar & Tigre Blanco vs Mr. Trueno & Thunder Boy
2) Magia Blanca, Príncipe Diamante, Vaquero Jr. vs Gran Kenut, Metálico, Príncipe Odín Jr.
3) Gallito & Microman vs Mije & Perico Zakarías
4) Audaz, Blue Panther Jr., Star Black vs Difunto, Puma, Tiger
5) Esfinge, Titán, Tritón vs Cuatrero, Forastero, Sansón
6) Carístico, Mistico, Volador Jr. vs Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Último Guerrero
Caristico teaming with Mistico & Volador makes the perfect amount of nonsense.
They might be setting up a title match in the semimain.
Microstars are back, though below the usual TV cut. If I can even get the TV to record.
The Crash (SAT) 04/14/2018Auditorio de Tijuana, Tijuana, Baja California
1) Kronoz & Toruk vs Búfalo Ayala & Último Maldito
2) Black Danger, Black Taurus, Lacey Lane, Lady Flammer vs Christi Jaynes, Keyra, Luke Hawx, Rayo Star
3) Extreme Tiger & Rey Horus vs El Bandido & Flamita and ACH & Willie Mack
4) Daga vs Mr. 450 vs Arkángel Divino vsJimmy Jacobs
5) Bestia 666 vs Penta Zero M vs Garza Jr.
6) LA Park vs The King
The wheel of random US indie luchadors to show up in The Crash landed on Jimmy Jacobs. ACH worked the Mexico City The crash show last year. I’m not sure why Penta is in a handicap match, but it seems like a way to start writing out Garza Jr. of the Rebelion Amarilla.
Dark Cuervo, Dark Scoria, La Parkabeat Joe Lider, Mr. Águila, Parka Negra
(8:40, La Parka urange Parka Negra, below average)
Rey Escorpión & Texano Jr. beat Angelikal & Drago vs Monsther Clown & Murder Clown
(10:24, Rey Escorpión legdrop Monster Clown, ok)
La Máscara, Máximo, Psycho Clownbeat Averno, Chessman, Súper Fly
(9:56, La Mascara campana Averno, ok)
Blue Demon Jr.,Dave The Clown, Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr.beat Dr. Wagner Jr., Pagano, Vampiro
(15:00, Hijo del Wagner F5 Vampiro, ok)
Parka Negrabeat Mr. Águila, Joe Lider, Averno, Texano, Rey Escorpión, La Máscara, La Parkain Copa Perros del Mal
(14:10, Parka Negra foul La Parka, below average)
Texano out (1:37)
Rey Escorpión out (2:16)
Joe Lider out (3:12)
La Mascara out (3:36)
Mr. Aguila out (9:47)
Averno out (12:19)
Parka Negra foul La Parka (14:10)
What happened:
I think Murder should’ve made a move to get closer when Angelikal tripped but maybe it happened it too quick
Dave the Clown ran out, got beat up by Parka, but distracted him enough for Parka Negra to get in a foul for the win in the main event.
The scheduled Aerostar/Drago/Fantasma vs Texano/Rey Escorpión/Mesias match was changed to Drago/Angelikal vs Texano/Escorpion vs Murder/Monster. It appears Aerostar missed the show because Lucha Underground was still filming this week after all. Mesias was also in Los Angeles, but missed missed the show because he quit AAA.
As usual when they lose, Murder and Monster attacked the winners and fought them to a standstill.
Again, Estrella Divina attacked Ashley for losing. Mamba & Pimpinela tried to convince Ashley not to go with Divina after the match, but she didn’t listen.
Thoughts:
pool’s empty
Two Twitch streams this week. Not much happening on any of them, and not much good action. If you didn’t stay up until 11pm, you might want to check out the opener and the OGT match, or you could just safely skip this one too.
Copa Perros del Mal was done as a slow, boring battle royal. The final four were in the ring for an extended amount of time, full of undramatic eliminations teases. La Parka and Parka Negra was never going to be good as a singles match, and AAA could’ve made this better by just doing the Dave the Clown interference spot earlier. They really didn’t care about anything other than making La Parka the big deal, and it was tedious thing to watch.
The semimain went a long time but didn’t feel like as much happened as previous matches. It was just slow and had a lot of standing and punching to minimal effectiveness. Blue Demon isn’t any more interesting as a rudo. The finish made sense for where they’re going, which made it shocking by AAA standards. The crowd seemed very into these guys coming out for the match but not much into the match. I’m not sure if that’s what it sounded like live; it felt like the crowd sound wasn’t coming thru here any better than it did in Rey de Reyes.
I got tired of seeing this when it was happening every two weeks and now I’m really happy to see it again
Alvarados/OGT felt like a Tuesday CMLL main event, without the falls breaks. There wasn’t the opening mat section either, but the rudos got control of the match quickly, the técnicos made a comeback, and there was a clean finish. The action kept moving even if it never got all that interesting, and it turned out to be a solid match. Like those Tuesday matches, this was nothing I’ll look back at but worked for the crowd, and was easily the best match for the Alvarados as a trio here so far and the best match of the night.
I could go a long time without seeing Monster & Murder Clown in a match again. Maybe they’re awesome people. They’re on these shows too much and always in matches that aren’t any good. This was a lot of nothing brawling and between the two rudo teams and beating up the técnico teams for about five minutes before they made their comeback. This match was predictable a lot better when the Traidor Clowns were not involved, even though it never lasted for long. Argenis slipped on his Brillo dive, but Murder Clown also should’ve adjust and moved forward to catch him. He decided not to move and to make sure he still got in his powerbomb spot. Escorpión & Texano as tag team contenders seems like underutilized them but still could be pretty good.
The situation in the second match called for the Perros del Mal to get a nice win. They lost cleanly to La Parka instead. The match actually started out OK but turned into a usual La Parka match of rudo bumbling around to hit each in place of Parka doing offense. Everyone else was fine, the new Parka Negra is a good addition to the act because he can move better than Lider can at this point. It just was a deflating match.
The opener moved along pretty well for the time it went. Mamba taking the Apache slap everyone spot is a nice homage. The slap spot to set up the finish looked really bad live, but a lot better in the replay. It would be nice if a comeback started in a Pimpinela match some other way than someone running into her backside. It seems to have happened in a hundred matches in a row, and got no reaction in this one. Otherwise, Pimpinela seemed better than usual. Dinastia was on the rudo side and didn’t really worked rudo. He did get to have a couple of nice sequences with Lanzelot, which also picked up the match when they happened. Both made this a better match than it was in Cuernavaca, and it was not far off from a good match.
