#186: El Santo vs. Black Shadow, EMLL Super Viernes (9/15/1961).
Hello readers!
This week, we are taking a voyage into the world of Lucha Libre, a genre of professional wrestling that, despite being one of the oldest forms of wrestling in the world, is one of the most unique in the entire business. It’s one that I am still familiarizing myself with, as Lucha is just so wildly different from everything else that wrestling has to offer. I used to think that way about Japanese wrestling when I first got into it, but the more of Lucha that I see, the more I realize that Puroresu is more normal than I thought!
The emphasis on masks, the mystery, the high flying, the multitude of 2 Out of 3 Falls Matches, and the copious amounts of tradition are just some of the many things that make Lucha Libre a genuine experience for any wrestling fan, regardless of how long they have been watching. So, this week, I’m going to spotlight Lucha Libre through many moments of its long and illustrious history.
Up first is a rarity of the internet – a match featuring the legendary El Santo. Considering to be the most popular wrestler of all time, El Santo’s legacy in Mexico is unmatched by every wrestler on the planet – past, present and future. His popularity has been said to be bigger than Hulk Hogan in America, Bret Hart in Canada and Rikidozan in Japan – COMBINED. That’s a lot. Between his wrestling career, and his career in film and television, El Santo is a true legend among legends in Mexican Wrestling.
Here, he is taking on Black Shadow, one of his all time greatest rivals. They had the first Mask vs. Mask Match in EMLL history in 1952, and many Lucha historians still consider it to be the best match in the history of Mexican wrestling. This match takes place nearly a decade later, and is one of the very few pieces of footage of Santo wrestling available on the internet. Clocking in at 6 minutes, I doubt this is the full match in its entirety, but hey, I’ll take something over nothing!
They shake hands and go to their opposing corners. The bell sounds, and Santo gets Shadow into the ropes quickly. They lock up, and Santo gets a nice toss in. Nice snap mare by Shadow, who gets tripped by Santo. Shadow with an arm drag, and Santo responds with a headbutt to the gut, Spike Dudley style. Santo catapults Shadow into the ropes, and we have a stalemate. Shadow takes the side headlock, but Santo reverses it into a Torture Rack.
Shadow is able to escape, but gets caught in a head scissors. Shadow hammerlocks the arm, but Santo throws him aside. Shadow applies a Full Nelson, and Santo is able to trip him to escape. Another head scissors takeover by Santo, and he tries to hold Shadow to the mat. Shadow pops out, and gets a nearfall off. They lock up, and Santo connects with a back body drop. And another! A Code Red by Shadow, and both men exchange nearfalls.
Shadow then gets caught in the Camel Clutch, and he taps out, giving Santo the first fall. Immediately, Shadow does the Spike headbutt to the midsection repeatedly, then crushes Santo with a back breaker. Santo goes back on the offensive, and throws Shadow chest first into the turnbuckle a few times. The crowd is loving this action. Powerslams by Santo, and then he connects with a top rope senton to win and take the second fall. He wins the match overall.
So, as I’m watching this, I’m thinking “this looks like it was shot for a movie.” After some research, turns out the footage of this match was included in the movie “Santo vs. Los Zombies.” So, I guess this also counts as my first match review in a movie? Who knows, maybe one day I’ll review the matches from the movie “The Wrestler.”
Anyway, yeah, this match, despite being from 1961, seems so way ahead of its time. The way both men moved, the speed, and the transitions does not seem like something you’d see in 1960s wrestling. The spot where Santo lifts Shadow up and slams him chest first into the turnbuckle seems like a move that a time traveler taught them. It was a fun but brief match that showcased the abilities of both men. Their transitions from move to move were smooth, even if they felt choreographed at times.
Choreography isn’t an issue for me if the moves look good, and here, they looked good. I enjoyed how Santo had an immediate answer for everything that Shadow did in the match. He was always one step ahead, it seemed. I liked this! I’d love to see some footage of Santo in his prime in the 40s and 50s, but I doubt that even exists. Then again, I’m sure many thought that footage of George Hackenschmidt didn’t exist either, and looked how that turned out!