In the opening match Pentagon Jr. defeated Argenis. Argenis put up a good fight and it was a fun match to watch for sure but this just had me because of the violence. You know how we see a lot of people powerbomb their opponent into the turnbuckles? Well, Pentagon Jr. had Argenis over his head in a press and then slammed him down into the corner where he was feet over head. It looked painful. Matt Striker made mention of AC Green being in the crowd but when they put the camera on someone who looked like Jack Osbourne no one said anything. It did take a few times to show Josh Barnett before Striker pointed him out. Oh, and also, Matt Striker said that all the guys Pentagon Jr. has beaten have gone to the hospital and he names off Famous B and Ricky Mandel, who interestingly enough Dario Cueto wanted Alberto El Patron to face last week instead of Texano Jr. Pentagon Jr. hit that cradle piledriver into an arm bar for the win and we might not see Argenis for a while. I'm still interested in who Pentagon's master is. Dario Cueto? Someone from AAA? That guy in the cage we saw that no one is talking about anymore?? I am intrigued.
Points Awarded: 4
Catrina told Fenix in a locker room segment that Mil Muertes won't stop until he has taken all of Fenix's lives and Fenix is a man of a million lives. She basically says he won't stop until she buries him, which could be hints of either a casket or buried alive type of match and I am intrigued. With that, Lucha Underground has furthered an angle in thirty seconds a thousand times better than WWE does some of theirs in weeks. (Catrina did reveal in a later segment with Mil Muertes that there would be a casket match next week. I'm psyched)
Points Awarded: 2
As Ivelisse prepared to face Angelico in a match booked last week, both Matt Striker and Vampiro acted as if they didn't know who the special guest referee was going to be. When Dario Cueto said it in the office segment last week. And it was written in my review. I have to deduct points for that.
Points Awarded: -5
The match between Ivelisse and Angelico itself was all right, but I would have much rather seen Ivelisse get the win (even if by cheating) and then having her pushed towards the title picture because why not? She's one of the best workers in all of Lucha Underground and arguably the most talented female wrestler alive so Ivelisse vs. Prince Puma could be money. Instead, Angelico went to superkick Son of Havoc and instead knocked out Ivelisse. At times, Angelico looked like he felt badly about what he was doing but then he also only had his finisher prevented by Son of Havoc pulling Ivelisse off of his back. How is Angelico not the rudo in this match with Ivelisse being the sympathetic one? I don't know. But a win here for Angelico, in this fashion, doesn't do much for him but it does play into the drama in this triangle a bit so I like that. Not as many points as I'd like to have given but I'll give it some.
Points Awarded: 4
It is worth noting that Matt Striker pointed out that the main event is the first ever cage match in Lucha Underground and EVOLVE had their first ever cage match just three nights ago at EVOLVE 38. I liked this match and I know that Lucha Underground tapes a number of episodes at a time so this might not have been taken into consideration at the time, but this was constantly being compared to the Drew Galloway-Roderick Strong cage match in my mind as they were both within the same week. For one thing, the feud between King Cuerno and Johnny Mundo doesn't seem anywhere nearly as serious as what you think of Galloway and Strong having gone through to end up inside a cage to finally settle the score. Is it odd though that the best matches in Lucha Underground so far have involved Johnny Mundo? (The other being his ladder match with Prince Puma) Shouldn't there be more, I don't know, luchadores in the best matches from Lucha Underground? Prince Puma vs. Fenix was solid enough but we need some good mask on mask action in Lucha Underground. Johnny Mundo did end up winning this match because instead of leaving the cage he hit Starship Pain off of the top of it onto King Cuerno. That was really impressive and Vampiro saying "holy shit is right" unedited, this match sent me home happy on an otherwise lackluster show. Maybe I've started holding Lucha Underground in too high of a regard but I just didn't feel like this overall show was as good as some of their previous ones and that mystery ref deal with Striker and Vamp is going to hurt them most. Still, this was a solid match I'm willing to give them ten points for pulling it off so excellently.
Points Awarded: 10
Total Points for Lucha Underground This Week: 15
The first match on NXT saw Enzo Amore and Big Cass defeat the Lucha Dragons. This was a good way to start the show hot and I enjoy both teams but wanted Enzo & Cass to win, which they did, simply because it helps them work closer to the tag team titles and it just sets the Lucha Dragons closer to being on the main WWE roster full time and out of NXT since they're appearing on Main Event anyway. Carmella wasn't at ringside because she was preparing for her own match so I'm going to assume something between her, Blake and Murphy will happen later in the show.
Points Awarded: 4
Before our second match, which was the Carmella match, it was announced via WWE commercial that next week NXT would feature Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks and Alex Riley vs. Kevin Owens. Was that a slap to the face of the WWE Universe for watching NXT? Was that someone's way of saying that the rest of this show doesn't matter and I should just turn it off now? Either way, I'm taking away points for what I would consider to be WWE making their own spoiler even if it was just piss poor timing.
Points Awarded: -2
Alexa Bliss won her match against Carmella, which makes sense since she's facing the NXT Women's Champion next week. I'm still not impressed by Alexa Bliss as she can just so easily fade into the background with other divas. I'm having enough trouble keeping track of Emma and Summer Rae, why would WWE throw another blonde at me? Carmella deserves better than being fodder for returning women. Bring back Blue Pants and make with the serious feud already.
Points Awarded: 2
Alex Riley defeated CJ Parker in the third match of the night and you had to assume it was coming because a) CJ Parker is the resident jobber in NXT and b) WWE told us that Alex Riley would be getting his match next week against Kevin Owens already. Now, I watched NXT after Lucha Underground this week and I have to tell you that I know this is my fourth week in The Wednesday Night War and I know that NXT has yet to win a week. I've already written and added up the points for Lucha Underground for the week and I thought this might be the week that NXT actually wins one but how can I give them points here and sleep at night? Not only did WWE basically say this match was pointless before it even aired, they actually had Rich whoever put over the importance of Alex Riley winning if he wants to get his hands on Kevin Owens. What? The whole Lucha Underground/special guest referee deal was one thing. But this just took stupid to an entirely new level. And Alex Riley still just reminds me too much of a bland jobber, sort of like The Miz, who WWE often struggles to find anything to do with on the main roster. Riley should have either stayed on commentary or been fired. I wanted to give this total lack of logic minus a million points but a) Alex Riley will hopefully lose to Kevin Owens next week and go away (so it wrapping up quickly is at least good) and b) Kevin Owens wins line of the year by telling Alex Riley he's obviously stupid because of that awful tattoo on his back. Yes, Kevin Owens just helped NXT fall down a hole they'd probably never be able to get back out from.
Points Awarded: -25
Hideo Itami and Tyler Breeze were in the main event together because, you know, wrestling, but this show has been such shit between the first match and now that it doesn't even matter, does it? I know the live crowd can't see the promos that WWE so foolishly chose to air at the worst possible time but if my couch was a seat I paid for I would have left the arena after the first match. That is to say, after the first match and then the WWE self-commercial that aired the wind had been taken out of my sails and I had mentally checked out of this match. That is until Tyler Breeze won... Clean... Over Hideo Itami. In what universe does it make sense for Hideo Itami to lose clean right now when there isn't something on the line such as a title or title shot? I'm a fan of Breeze though so I'll let this slide and go into the "Arnold Classic" next week knowing that it can't possibly be worse than this. At least, I really hope it can't. I haven't seen booking this awful since TNA last year and that's really saying a lot.
Points Awarded: 5
Total Points for NXT This Week: -16
So there you have it. In a week where I didn't think that Lucha Underground was likely to beat NXT, I actually watched NXT and was proven to be rather wrong. I watch NXT on Hulu+ so I'm not sure if that ad aired during the Network showing of NXT but does it even matter at this point? I'm watching it less than 24 hours later, and I avoided spoilers as I usually do, so it's not my fault. When Kevin Owens fought Sami Zayn for the NXT Title I avoided spoilers the next day before I watched the match and as such WWE didn't decide to air ads during the middle of the Hulu+ replay and spoil it for me by saying "Next week new NXT Champion Kevin Owens does some stuff in the ring when he talks..." or anything like that, so this just seemed like a huge mistake on the part of WWE that really soured my experience on this show. Hopefully next week The Wednesday Night War doesn't involve these two companies trying to decide who can pull off the bigger faux pas.
It is worth noting that Matt Striker pointed out that the main event is the first ever cage match in Lucha Underground and EVOLVE had their first ever cage match just three nights ago at EVOLVE 38. I liked this match and I know that Lucha Underground tapes a number of episodes at a time so this might not have been taken into consideration at the time, but this was constantly being compared to the Drew Galloway-Roderick Strong cage match in my mind as they were both within the same week. For one thing, the feud between King Cuerno and Johnny Mundo doesn't seem anywhere nearly as serious as what you think of Galloway and Strong having gone through to end up inside a cage to finally settle the score. Is it odd though that the best matches in Lucha Underground so far have involved Johnny Mundo? (The other being his ladder match with Prince Puma) Shouldn't there be more, I don't know, luchadores in the best matches from Lucha Underground? Prince Puma vs. Fenix was solid enough but we need some good mask on mask action in Lucha Underground. Johnny Mundo did end up winning this match because instead of leaving the cage he hit Starship Pain off of the top of it onto King Cuerno. That was really impressive and Vampiro saying "holy shit is right" unedited, this match sent me home happy on an otherwise lackluster show. Maybe I've started holding Lucha Underground in too high of a regard but I just didn't feel like this overall show was as good as some of their previous ones and that mystery ref deal with Striker and Vamp is going to hurt them most. Still, this was a solid match I'm willing to give them ten points for pulling it off so excellently.
Points Awarded: 10
Total Points for Lucha Underground This Week: 15
The first match on NXT saw Enzo Amore and Big Cass defeat the Lucha Dragons. This was a good way to start the show hot and I enjoy both teams but wanted Enzo & Cass to win, which they did, simply because it helps them work closer to the tag team titles and it just sets the Lucha Dragons closer to being on the main WWE roster full time and out of NXT since they're appearing on Main Event anyway. Carmella wasn't at ringside because she was preparing for her own match so I'm going to assume something between her, Blake and Murphy will happen later in the show.
Points Awarded: 4
Before our second match, which was the Carmella match, it was announced via WWE commercial that next week NXT would feature Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks and Alex Riley vs. Kevin Owens. Was that a slap to the face of the WWE Universe for watching NXT? Was that someone's way of saying that the rest of this show doesn't matter and I should just turn it off now? Either way, I'm taking away points for what I would consider to be WWE making their own spoiler even if it was just piss poor timing.
Points Awarded: -2
Alexa Bliss won her match against Carmella, which makes sense since she's facing the NXT Women's Champion next week. I'm still not impressed by Alexa Bliss as she can just so easily fade into the background with other divas. I'm having enough trouble keeping track of Emma and Summer Rae, why would WWE throw another blonde at me? Carmella deserves better than being fodder for returning women. Bring back Blue Pants and make with the serious feud already.
Points Awarded: 2
Alex Riley defeated CJ Parker in the third match of the night and you had to assume it was coming because a) CJ Parker is the resident jobber in NXT and b) WWE told us that Alex Riley would be getting his match next week against Kevin Owens already. Now, I watched NXT after Lucha Underground this week and I have to tell you that I know this is my fourth week in The Wednesday Night War and I know that NXT has yet to win a week. I've already written and added up the points for Lucha Underground for the week and I thought this might be the week that NXT actually wins one but how can I give them points here and sleep at night? Not only did WWE basically say this match was pointless before it even aired, they actually had Rich whoever put over the importance of Alex Riley winning if he wants to get his hands on Kevin Owens. What? The whole Lucha Underground/special guest referee deal was one thing. But this just took stupid to an entirely new level. And Alex Riley still just reminds me too much of a bland jobber, sort of like The Miz, who WWE often struggles to find anything to do with on the main roster. Riley should have either stayed on commentary or been fired. I wanted to give this total lack of logic minus a million points but a) Alex Riley will hopefully lose to Kevin Owens next week and go away (so it wrapping up quickly is at least good) and b) Kevin Owens wins line of the year by telling Alex Riley he's obviously stupid because of that awful tattoo on his back. Yes, Kevin Owens just helped NXT fall down a hole they'd probably never be able to get back out from.
Points Awarded: -25
Hideo Itami and Tyler Breeze were in the main event together because, you know, wrestling, but this show has been such shit between the first match and now that it doesn't even matter, does it? I know the live crowd can't see the promos that WWE so foolishly chose to air at the worst possible time but if my couch was a seat I paid for I would have left the arena after the first match. That is to say, after the first match and then the WWE self-commercial that aired the wind had been taken out of my sails and I had mentally checked out of this match. That is until Tyler Breeze won... Clean... Over Hideo Itami. In what universe does it make sense for Hideo Itami to lose clean right now when there isn't something on the line such as a title or title shot? I'm a fan of Breeze though so I'll let this slide and go into the "Arnold Classic" next week knowing that it can't possibly be worse than this. At least, I really hope it can't. I haven't seen booking this awful since TNA last year and that's really saying a lot.
Points Awarded: 5
Total Points for NXT This Week: -16
So there you have it. In a week where I didn't think that Lucha Underground was likely to beat NXT, I actually watched NXT and was proven to be rather wrong. I watch NXT on Hulu+ so I'm not sure if that ad aired during the Network showing of NXT but does it even matter at this point? I'm watching it less than 24 hours later, and I avoided spoilers as I usually do, so it's not my fault. When Kevin Owens fought Sami Zayn for the NXT Title I avoided spoilers the next day before I watched the match and as such WWE didn't decide to air ads during the middle of the Hulu+ replay and spoil it for me by saying "Next week new NXT Champion Kevin Owens does some stuff in the ring when he talks..." or anything like that, so this just seemed like a huge mistake on the part of WWE that really soured my experience on this show. Hopefully next week The Wednesday Night War doesn't involve these two companies trying to decide who can pull off the bigger faux pas.
***Lucha Underground Wins Week 4 15-(-16)***
(Lucha Underground Leads 101-44 Overall)
(Lucha Underground Leads 101-44 Overall)
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