keith_h

That matwork to start this match was tremendous. A really good, hard fought, mat based match overall. I appreciate the technical aspect of it, but had a harder time connecting to the match emotionally. It was really good, just lacking that "spark" for me that would make it truly great. Finish was unsatisfying as well, but worked to setup the rematch. B or ***3/4

Things that are awesome about this match: Atlantis graceful flying Satanico being a huge dick (even after the match!) Blood Hate Mask ripping The ref having to rip Satanico off Atlantis by his hair! Little kids imploring Atlantis to get back in the ring so he's not counted out after his plancha in the third fall Yeah this match was GREAT. Best singles match I've ever seen from Atlantis (granted I've only really seen his big stuff from the 90's and early 00's). A or ****3/4

I believe this issue with Memphis is nobody knows who owns the rights to a lot of it...

The Rock, too, I'm guessing. If Hardcore Holly's book is to be trusted (and he flat out admits he was on roids so he's not hiding anything), when they first enacted the Wellness Policy, Undertaker and Ric Flair flat out refused to take any testing and nothing happened to them... so the "top guys are immune" policy might have some truth.

It must be the scariest fucking feeling when Palhares has your leg... the guy will end your career and not think twice about it.

Disc #1 Rankings 1. MS-1 vs. Sangre Chicana (9/23/83) A+ or ***** 2. Atlantis y El Hijo del Santo vs. Fuerza Guerrera y Lobo Rubio (11/25/83) A- or ****1/2 3. Sangre Chicana vs. Ringo Mendoza (10/28/83) B+ or **** 4. Satoru Sayama y Gran Hamada vs. Perro Aguayo y Baby Face (4/13/80) B or ***3/4 5. Espectro Jr., Satanico y MS-1 vs. Mocho Cota, Sangre Chicana y La Fiera (9/30/83) B- or ***1/2 6. Kevin von Erich, Mascara Ano 2000 y Halcon Ortiz v. Coloso Colosetti, Pirata Morgan y Herodes (9/23/83) B- or ***1/2 7. Tatsumi Fujinami vs. El Canek (6/12/83) C+ or *** 8. Centurion Negro vs. Gran Hamada (2/14/82) C or **1/2 9. Andre the Giant & Cien Caras vs. Alfonso Dantes, Herodes y Sangre Chicana (1981) C or **1/2 10. El Canek vs. Don Corleone (2/14/82) C- or ** Awesome start to the set. Everything was good to great once it got to the first trios match. Going to take a hidden classic to unseat MS-1/Chicana as my #1 overall I think, but I honestly hope there's a little seen match that gives it a run for it's money somewhere else on the set.

It was amazing seeing young and spry Santo and Atlantis here. Santo especially hit some awesome stuff that seems have fallen out of his repertoire by the 90's and it was incredible seeing Atlantis when he could still fly. Everyone in this match looks great and it totally works as a coming out showcase for Santo at Arena Mexico. I think this is the 2nd best match on the disc. Just an amazing example of silky smooth lucha flying. I can't even imagine how amazing this must have seemed in 1983... A- or ****1/2

This was awesome stuff. Dives and big bumps to the outside in the first fall! Chicana is just so amazing, his selling, bumping, and comebacks are just off the chart. This was my second favorite singles match of the set so far, it just clicked for me and I loved every minute of it. B+ or ****

This was super fun. Just a totally crazy all out violent sprint. A little on the short side, but with the crazy pace and non-stop action I can't say it really detracts from the match. B- or ***1/2

Other way around. Tuesday is PG. Thursday is NC-17.

There's not much that can be said about this match that hasn't already been said. From what I gather this probably would be the odds on favorite to be voted the consensus #1 Lucha match of all time (at least from what exists on tape) and most certainly of the 80's. And from what I've seen that would be 100% correct. Quite possibly the greatest bloody brawl of all time. Certainly one of the top 5-10 matches I've ever seen and without a doubt the #1 Lucha match I've ever seen. I suppose that could change by the end of the set, but I REALLY doubt it. A+ or *****

This was tons of fun, but I don't know that it will be super memorable. The highlights for me were Pirata and Herodes, Pirata with his crazy bumps and Herodes with his fat man bumps. Can't wait to see more of Pirata later in the set. KVE was definitely a little awkward here but he didn't drag the match down too much. B- or ***1/2

This was just getting going good when it ended in the crappy DQ finish. Other than that marring it, it was a really good match with some nice escalation between the falls. Canek was much better here than in the previous match. Wish it had gone longer and had a clean finish, but aside from the DQ this was quite enjoyable. C+ or ***

This probably doesn't get pimped because it's awful. It's a really terrible 1999 brawl through the crowd with no heat and Shane Douglas trying to be a bad-ass at the finish to set up his face run instead of tapping like he should have. The better Taz vs. Douglas match is the rematch from Jan 1999 at the ECW arena. Much better than their PPV match. I think it's on one of the WWE ECW DVDs.

Seriously. This is also a show that allowed three guys to kill off an entire Mexican drug cartel and still easily get out of Mexico... This is a show that had a guy get half his face blown off and walk out of the room and adjust his tie before he died... It wasn't exactly 100% grounded in reality. It was an amazing show (possibly the best ever) but you have to give a little dramatic license.

Cormier doesn't seem sane? I mean aside from thinking he should be number one contender at 205... I was going to say him too, but he had some extramarital problems that I don't care too much to speculate about since I don't know all the details. But that's more of a vice. Let's just say Cormier is a bold dude. Lol. Gotcha. I'll take you word for it. Now that I think about it though, one could probably question his sanity for attempting to cut so much weight that his kidneys shut down...

Cormier doesn't seem sane? I mean aside from thinking he should be number one contender at 205...

I much preferred the opening matwork in this to the last match. That said once it actually got going I was let down by Canek and impressed with Corleone. This had some good stuff sprinkled throughout but by and large was totally average and forgettable. C- or **

The opening fall was slow and hard to get into. I can appreciate matwork, but this just wasn't doing it for me. Things picked up in the 2nd and 3rd falls and there were a couple fun dives. It was a nice visual when both guys got covered in mud/dirt. Overall no huge complaints, just wasn't a fan of that opening matwork. C or **1/2

Came here to say this. They basically tried to condense a whole season into the finale and it was WAY too rushed.

This was really fun for the first 5 minutes, but then it just kept going and going... Everyone did their part well and it's always cool too see Andre working in different parts of the world when he could still move, but this could have been much shorter and it would have been far more enjoyable. The spots where they all would jump on Andre like Hobbits fighting a Troll were great, and Andre's ass offense is always funny. Like someone said above, Andre just wasn't made to do 2/3 falls matches. Cien Caras was pretty useless here, but I guess his whole role was really "Andre's little buddy". Call it a C or **1/2 (mostly for the entertainment of watching Andre when he could still move).

This was (like everyone has said) super fun. A ton of stuff that (I assume) was state of the art in 1980 (various arm drags, ranas, back flips, etc) and some nice nastiness from Perro. The revenge posting from Hamada was probably the highlight of the match for me. One of those moments where you wanted to cheer at the TV. Great start to the set. A solid B or ***3/4

Seriously. Sons of Anarchy gets all these stupid long episodes and Breaking Bad can't get a 2 hour finale? Really?

Fixed that for you.

Just finished Bob Holly's book and it is indeed awesome. I love that he goes into specific details about things, from how much he made for certain PPV matches, to what he was making per year, to his steroid cycles and which ones he took (!). Just a ton of interesting and honest info that you don't see a lot. And with the way it's written you just can't not read it in Hardcore Holly's voice, which makes it funny as hell. Highly recommended.