[2005-01-30-CMLL] Mistico vs Averno

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Vinnie B]

Trying to do my own (admittedly very shallow) dive into 2005. This was the latest match I watched, and noticed there wasn't a review. I'm not a fan of doing reviews, bit thought I'd give it a shot:

Like the handful of Mistico matches I watched about a decade ago, his work would seem a lot more accessible to US and Puro fans than a lot of the Lucha I've seen. This is a straight Lucha title match, which, from my experiences viewing the yearbooks, is generally speaking my favourite kind of Lucha. It does not require a great deal of attention from the viewer or knowledge of context, whereas you may need a stronger love of Lucha and its nuances to appreciate the hatred of a mask or hair match. It's a straight up rudo vs. technico wrestling and hitting moves match, and it's absolutely thrilling. The small number of botches or awkward spots were far outweighed by the sheer amount of awesome offence that was hit perfectly. They have a very lengthy back and forth finishing sequence with a raft of nearfalls. Not that I think that's a bad thing, the drama was exceptional and they were throwing everything at one another, one beautiful move into the next, and perfectly conveyed the exhaustion. Those slow counts are a superb way of building tension and drama. My only complaint would be Mistico's completing a stunning dive to the outside, rolling into the ring, only for Averno to follow him straight away and applying a hold, which seems a bit senseless.

 

But lets not end this on a low note, this shot itself to the upper echelons of my favourite ever Lucha matches, and made me interested to check out more 2005 Mistico (feel free to throw recommendations my way!). I'd be interested to see if, or maybe how many other, matches throughout the year, can beat it. Will this even remain my Lucha MOTY?

Rating: **** 1/2

[ohtani's jacket]

It's been almost 20 years since this match happened, so I'm trying to keep an open mind. I don't think the divide between lucha fans is as strong as it was at the time (hopefully not), so there's nothing for me to gain from trashing this. The biggest positive was it was two younger stars trying hard to have a dramatic and suspenseful title match. They don't quite get the rhythm right but effort's appreciated. Like a lot of lucha at the time, the match is entirely built around the third caida and they go all out to have a spectacular fall. The enthusiasm outweighs the execution for the most part, but I can understand the excitement over this bout.