Aside from the actual lucha libre action going on between the ropes, the trademark of Lucha Underground might be that it’s like nothing on TV right now. As far as the live audience goes, it attracts PWG or Ring of Honor numbers. But at the same time, it’s got the big-budget production value of the El Rey Network working for it. Once you throw in the telenovela cutscenes and an Actual Literal Wrestling Dragon, you realize that this is a show in a class of its own. It’s somehow the arthouse indie film and the summer blockbuster at the same time, and every second of it works (except Son of Havoc dumping Ivelisse because dude, are you blind?!).
But if Lucha Underground is looking to put itself on par with WWE, it may have just taken a big step in that direction. According to the Wrestling Observer (via WrestleZone), LU is working on their own equivalent of WrestleMania. The project, called ULTIMA LUCHA, is still just in the planning phases as of right now. Pay-per-view is off the table at this point; it’s much more likely that this will be a two-hour (or maybe even three-hour) live event on El Rey in late summer.
Details are admittedly scarce on this because they’ve only just begun planning it, but I’m already excited! The Alberto-Texano feud suggests a solid working relationship with AAA, so I’d love to see more of their talent invading the Temple. The Lucha Underground audience, both live and televised, already strikes me as a savvy bunch, but imagine thousands of new American fans getting their first taste of some of Mexico’s best luchadores. Imagine Sexy Star teaming up with Mari and Faby Apache to take on The Crew. Imagine Pentagon, Jr. taking on La Parka (or “La Parka,” if we’re being technical). The point here is that Ultima Lucha could be coming as soon as August, and it’s a very good time to be a fan of all things lucha.
