Happy Festivities!

CMLL 2000/3/17

Mascara vs. Mascara: Villano III vs. Atlantis

So much ink has been spent on writing about this masterpiece, it really feels futile for me now to try and come up with something even remotely fresh and cool to treat the match with. Simply put, it’s one of the greatest matches ever, not just in Mexico, it’s also one of the biggest matches that ever happened in lucha libre, the hype and anticipation were unbelievable and the match totally delivered. This show was also CMLL’s first ever pay-per-view, so this match was historic from many different angles, here we have two grand superstars wagering their iconic masks, both guys have their own respective armies of rabid and loyal fans, this is one of those bigger-than-life situations where rudo/tecnico institute seems unnecessary and counter effective because these two are cheered/booed no matter what. The drama is insanely high-end and as fabulous as anything you’ll see from your favorite pro-graps. Fucking epic shit. They use grueling and simple old school submission moves that have the crowd going bonkers, less is more indeed, they deserve especial props for an innovative bladejob that came from a vicious dive. It looked nasty, they bled a lot but still managed to continue the match in hellish rhythm. And HOLY SHIT at the finish and crowd reaction, it still gives me chills to this day. The post-match stuff is one of those emotional lucha rollercoasters of warm feelings, excellent stuff.

The timeless classic.

*****