Match 1: Dark Angel, Estrellita ©, Silueta vs Amapola ©, Princesa Blanca, Princesa Sugheit
Arena Mexico, 12/14/2012
técnicas
Winner: técnicas (2-1)
Match Time: 12:57
Rating: eh
Notes: Referee is Pompin. Estrellita has her new title in the matchup graphics, but the match is joined directly at the whistle..
1: Silueta armdrags Sugheit around. Crowd whistles a lot for Dark Angel, which Princesa Blanca chooses to believe is for her. They have a good exchange, and Dark Angel sends Blanca out with a 'rana. Amapola blows Estrellita up with a dropkick as soon as she steps in. Estrellita leaders her on a chase, filled with stomps and planchas of questionable merit. Springboard armdrag and middle rope headscissors worked in, Amapola stops Estrellita long enough to miss a corner charge and spear the post. Estrellita follows out with a silla. Everyone else dropkick everyone else, rudas kick each other, and Silueta puts Sugheit in a farmer's roll while Dark Angel spins Blanca in a reinera in the center of the circle. Amusing combo of spots.
2: Dark Angel armdrags Blanca, but Blanca knocks her out of the ring with a shoulderblock, then avoids a Silueta dropkick. Silueta comes back with a springboard headscissors and dropkicks Sugheit out. Estrellita in, but Amapola immediately hits her again, this time with a spear. Corner whip, Estrellita walks up the ropes and armdrags Amapola. Couple of dropkick, one right to the face, but Amapola just gets up and cranks Estrellita's neck on the ropes. Running sit turns the match towards the rudas, who kick and elbow the técnicas for a while. Rudas hold Estrellita over the middle rope for Amaopla's dropkick, to the ramp. Blanca tosses Dark Angel into Sughei't's kick, and then submits the tecnica. Sugheit submits Silueta on her own.
3: Rudas throw around Estrellita a bit. Triple lift to drop Dark Angel on her back, but she moves out of the way of a double dropkick and sends Sugheit out. Angel follows her out for a quebradora. The other four fight in the ring, Estrellita giving Blanca horrible quebradora while Amapola gives Silueta faceslam thru the ropes. Captains left in, Amapola escaped the casadora, Estrellita cradle one two NO. Estrellita cruz nipona (I guess, not sure), rudas break that up. Blanca backflips over their double backdrop, and lures them into a Silueta missile dropkick. Dark Angel flips Silueta to the apron, and she goes to the middle rope for a moonsault from there. Dark Angel waits for the group to get back together and planchas both rudas. Amapola and Estrellita back in, Estrellita horrible fujiwara armbar, but Amapola has her feet on the ropes. Corner whip, Amapola climbs up, Estrellita climbs up with her, middle rope 'rana one two NO. Crowd restless. Estrellita charges Amapola, Amapola sleeper, backcracker, that's it. Princesa Blanca turns to leave the second the fall is over, then decides she has to come back.
Blurb: A, uh, interesting decision for New Young Beautiful Tecnica Champion Estrellita to team with the two much better candidates for that position in her first appearance as champion. (Dark Angel and Silueta appeared to be a really fun tag team anyway.) Estrellita's strong points are not her moves. She did a lot of of moves her. So. This was not bad but this is not something I really enjoyed watching. All of my feelings on this are clearly being influenced by this likely ending up with Estrellita beating Amapola to keep her title, a match I strongly desire not to see.
Gif: 515 – instead of the four or five Estrellita near finished I hated, this was a cute spot.
Announcers interview their edecanes, talking about holiday wishes
CMLL Cartela: Sunday – no mention of the title match.
Match 2: Máscara Dorada vs Averno in a lightning match
Arena Mexico, 12/14/2012
Winner: Averno
Match Time: 8:02 (6:27 shown)
Rating: good
Notes: Clock is already on 0:20 when they cut in. Referee is Edgar.
Seems like another clip right away too. Averno forces Dorada down with a double wristlock, Dorada gets them back up and flips off him. Dorada knocked down, headscissors Averno from there. Springboard headscissors sends Averno out, and Dorada hops out to the ramp. Dorada backs up, runs, and diving headscissors off the ramp to the floor! Best part is Dorada not even being surprised about doing these things. Replay, and then Averno back in already. Dorada shoulderblocks him, springboard sunset flip, Averno rolls thru, Dorada kips up, off the ropes, headscissors into an armdrag. Dorada is on. Double bounces into a casadora cradle one two NO. Dorada checks the count. Dorada off the ropes, ranita, one two NO. Dorada goes for one more headscissors, but Averno drops him face first. Averno flips Dorada over and puts on an STF. Strong move, tough to get cradled by accident on one of those. Dorada pulls them both to the ropes, and grabs on with his right hand. Averno punch blocked, Dorada slaps him away. Springboard headscissors, and Averno out the other side. Averno takes a knee to catch his breath, and Dorada joins him – running top rope springboard tope con giro! Replay. Averno back in again when they return. Dorada knocks him away, springboard flip torito one two Averno has the ropes. It's all Averno can do to stay alive here, he's getting nothing but beat. Corner whip, reversed, Dorada puts a charging Averno on the top rope and slaps him. Averno signals for a flip, backs all the way up, runs up the turnbuckle, Averno jabs him, middle rope Devil's Wings one two thr-NO! That's quite a spot to kick out of in this random lighting match, but it goes with Dorada being on fire here. Averno up top, tope con giro misses, Dorada covers one two NO. Dorada drags Averno into the corner, top rope moonsault, Averno moves, Dorada lands on his feet, Averno dropkick to the knee, cuts his throat, casita, Dorada blocks it and puts on his own one two NO. This has been a good match. Both slow up and looking tired. Dorada off the ropes, springboard headscissors sends Averno tumbling thru the ropes and to the outside. Dorada runs, Averno dodges, Dorada dives and rolls to the ramp. Averno moves again, Dorada flipping run on the ramp, Averno clothesline misses and Dorada hiptosses him back in. 7:41 on the clock (we've seen 6:06), Dorada sets himself, runs, floating headscissors blocked – in a powerbomb, and lifted up and powerbombs again. Averno isn't done, Devil's Wings. One two three.
They stick with this for about two seconds before cutting away to the edecan wishing us merry Christmas
Blurb: one of the best lightning matches they've done. Instead of doing a normal singles match with a big chuck on the middle cut out, they more inventively cut out most of Averno's offense. We got a Dorada highlight reel the most way, Dorada doing everything well and looking in complete control, and Averno dropping him with big bombs on a few occasions. The moves still looked big, and Dorada looked good for surviving them until he didn't. It came together very well.
Gif: 1748
CMLL Cartela: Tuesday @ Arena Mexico – Negro Casas vs Guerrero Maya
Match 3: La Sombra vs Tama Tonga in a CMLL La Copa Junior final match
Arena Mexico, 12/14/2012
Tama Tonga springboard tornillo (3:40)
Winner: Sombra
Match Time: 13:39
Rating: good
Notes: Rush and Terrible are the seconds. Sombra and Tama have a long discussion. They shot off fireworks for both guys, but we onlys ee them as tiny 1 second videos because time management. Referee is Babe Richard.
1: Tonga backs Sombra into the ropes on the first lockup. Sombra is doing a weird thing with his left elbow on the setup to his elbow, turning his arm the other way. Tama waistlock takedown the second time, Sombra escapes out to an armbar, Tonga uses an inside cradle to roll free to a standoff. Circle. Sombra takedown, armscissors, Tonga quickly rolls on top to escape and puts on a front facelock, Sombra escape and pins for zero. Sombra goes chest to chest with Tonga and slaps him in the face. Tonga reacts and slaps back. Sombra talking a lot now, and shoving Tonga. Tonga shoves back. Slap to the face battle. 2012 is the year of the face slap in CMLL. Lots of cuts between them by the cameras, annoyingly so. Tonga kicks Sombra and headbutts him. Forearm. Headlock, shot off, back with a shoulderblock. Tonga off the ropes, under, back with a Tonga shoulderblocks. Tonga punches Sombra as he gets up. Corner whip, no, Sombra blocks. Tama knees him in the midsection tries again. Tonga charges, but Sombra's kipped up and out. Under a clothesline and back with a headscissors. Tonga's feet get caught in the ropes on the way down. Sombra waits for him to slowly get up, then runs right into a back elbow. Tonga runs forward into a kick, Tonga staggers, then runs to the corner of a springboard tornillo one two three. Is that maybe what he was going for all the way back in the Leyenda de Azul, but missed and fell badly? Quite a call back.
2: Sombra off the ropes, over, under, under, into a Tonga back elbow. Tonga with a big pose/war dance. Tonga headbutts the back of Sombra's head as he sits on the mat. Tonga slam. Tonga off the ropes, jumping elbow drop. Corner whip, Tonga leaping splash. Tonga covers, while posing, and only gets two. Tonga forearms Sombra in the back, then sets him up - suplex, no, Sombra suplexes him himself. Sombra clothesline, shoulderblocks, dropkick to send Tonga tumbling thru the ropes. Sombra runs, tope con giro knocks Tonga down, Tonga falling over while catching it. Sombra celebrates, Rush checks on him. Replays. Tonga is slower up. Sombra circles around and gets in the other side. Tonga slide on his side. Sombra charges, Tonga waves him by, Sombra rolls over the ropes to apron, Tonga punch blocked, Sombra's not, springboard plancha connects. Babe Richard takes the long route around to check the shoulders, one two NO. Tonga punches Sombra. Whip, quick reverse, Sombra breaks free, Tonga kick connects, Tonga kicks Sombra, Tonga lifts Sombra up, Sombra sunset flips into the Brillante Bomb! Bridge holds, one two three.
3: Sombra climbs to the top rope – probably missed something here – but Tama dropkicks him from behind to send him out. Tama up top, Snuka hand signs, plancha to the floor. Replay of that. Back live, and Tama is reacting to a Sombra kickout. Tama shoves Sombra into the corner. Tama punches and headbutts Sombra in the corner, then back all the way up. No hurry. Tama charges, corner splash connects – but only with the corner. Sombra slips out, then clotheslines Maya off the ropes hard. Ropes very shaking, Sombra steadies them before jumping – springboard imploding tope con giro! Replay of that. This time, nothing appears to be cut. Sombra chops Tama into the barricade, runs for a boot, Tama moves, Sombra kicks over the barricade (security guy there already) , Tama kicks him in Sombra in the head to knock him over. Tama immediately pulls Sombra enough out for a drapping move, and pulls of a stellar spinning DDT. Terrible and Rush react a bit. Tama throws Sombra back in and covers one two NO. Terrible disagrees, both with the count and for rising Sombra chant. Tama pulls Sombra up, and sets him up for the Headshrinker, no, suplex – Sombra slips behind, full nelson, Tama blocks, jabs with both elbows to backwards to get free, Sombra waistlocks him instead, and German suplexes him instead, one two NO. The shot here, with Sombra's head completely in shadow and featureless except for the bright silver shining of his eye covering, is just so great. Sombra can't believe it was only two. Replay of it. Sombra chops Tama, corner whip, reversed, Sombra quick stops and turns in the corner, Sombra clothesline misses, Tama runs to the corner and leaps to the top rope, Sombra shoves him and crotches Tonga on the corner. Sombra steps to the apron and pulls Tonga up just enough, then springboards, heads out to the rope enough to get his balance, and jumps off for a double stomp to Tama's chest. Tama knocked off the ropes, one two th-NO. Terrible seemed surprised but very thrilled this match is going on. Crowd LOUD for Sombra. Sombra goes up one more time, rope flip moonsault hits knees, and Sombra tumbles towards the center of the ring. Tama covers, one two NO. Tama is losing his mind, he was sure that was it. Replay of that is cut short, Sombra trying a Brillante Bomb, Tama escapes, Headshrinker, Sombra blocked it and turns it into sidewalk slam! Sombra going up. Sombra top rope moonsault, but Tama hasn't rolled far enough, so Sombra lands right in front of him, then actually flips over Tama, then jumps back forward in a senton. Sombra appears to say something to Tonga as he leans back to cover, one two, three? Tama kicked out at 2.9. Sombra reacts like he can't believe Tama kicked out for a split second, then realizes what happened and asks if it was a three count. He asks Rush the same thing, Rush must think so because he's coming in.
Rush hugs Sombra, who again checks that it was three, which is all you can do here. Tama never got up or really has moved after the pin. Replay of the pin. Rush carries Sombra on his shoulder and they shoot fireworks off the lights. Confetti too. Sombra's given flowers and a trophy. Terrible and Tama disappear into the background.