Indie Luchador Files: Blue Flame

Posted on March 23, 2025 by bloodlinematt

The Indies are a great way for unsigned young wrestling talent to build a name for themselves and show the world and the majors what they are bringing and why they should be signed andapart of their roster. It’s also a great place for journeymen to entertain the crowds as well as work with the next generation. Tthe indies is also a great place for the legends to wind down their careers and be able to show that they still have it and work with the youngsters as well as bond with their fans. For this update we are going to look at another amazing indie Luchador who was a journeyman who became a legend and who gave so much back to the world of Lucha Libre as he became a trainer to so many of the next generation Luchador stars of the ring. And the amazing talent I am talking about for this Indie Luchador Files update is Flama Azul aka Blue Flame! So let’s enter the Rotten Ink Arena and chat about this iconic Lucha Libre star.

Again, I want to think all the blogs and websites that had information on Flama Azul as not only did they make this update possible but also are keeping the legacy of Flama Azul alive. I also have chosen him to be the second Luchador featured in an Indie Luchador Files update because I feel he really did make a mark in the world of Wrestling, and with that, let’s take a brief look at the one and only Flama Azul.

Flama Azul
Started: 1967 Companies: Indies & CMLL Active: No Seen Live: No

In 1967 Antonio Sanchez Vargas started his wrestling career as Flamer 1 before settling on the name Flama Azul (Blue Flame), and due to his skill and popularity with fans he quickly captured many titles on the indie scene with such titles as National Lightweight Championship, Border Middleweight Championship, Tamaulipas Middleweight Championship and Cd Juarez Couples Championship! During his time on the indies, he really was popular and headlined many events and was capturing not only the fans’ attention but also the respect of his fellow Luchadors for his hard work in the ring and his crowd drawing ability. After working hard on the indies, he would get the call to sign with CMLL and would be part of the group Superlibres at the Pavillob Azteca and would even have some matches against the likes of Blue Panther, Jaguar and Black and would even win the masks and hair of many of his fellow Luchadors! But his luck would run out in 1982 as he found himself on the losing end of a bet match and he himself lost his mask along with Nurse II when they were pinned by the Brazos and worse once unmasked he found himself in a downward spiral in bet matches as he would lose his hair a total of four times. But he would be on track to at least win a few more title belts in the Indies when he captured the AWWA World Title! Flama Azul would even have matches against the likes of El Hijo del Santo and El Solar both of whom would even be ones that took the hair of Flama Azul in bet matches! Flama Azul would wrestle well into the 1990s and would even start training future Luchadors in the art of Lucha Libre! Sadly on March 28, 2018 Antonio Sanchez Vargas aka Flama Azul passed away and the world lost a great Luchador and teacher. Working his career, it looks like Flama Azul would be both a Rudo and a Tecnico and would be masked and unmasked and he would entertain the fans with his Lucha Libre style.

Flama Azul is one of those Luchadors that I feel would have made a great fit for WCW in 1996 when they had the massive boom of cruiserweights coming in to help build their Cruiserweight division. I mean sure he would have been older and at that point unmasked, but I feel he could have been a veteran in the division who could have put over many of the younger talent all the while also teaching them. I am also happy that in what history we know of Flama Azul, he did get a break in Mexico’s biggest company at the time, CMLL ,as it’s great to see hard workers and journeymen like him get a bigger spotlight. Some of his later matches can be found online with his hair losing match against El Solar being on YouTube. Wwith next month being WWF Wrestlemania month, let’s stay in the world of wrestling and in the Rotten Ink Arena for our next update and take a look at Phantasio for a “R.I.W Wrestling Legends” update. So until next time, read a comic or three, watch a movie or two and as always support your local Indie Wrestlers.

R.I.W Wrestling Legend: La Parka

Posted on April 2, 2024 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink. As you can see, we find ourselves at the Rotten Ink Arena as it’s WWE WrestleMania month so that means we celebrate the legends of Pro Wrestling and Lucha Libre, and as you can see, today’s update event main event star is one that has packed the house as he has been a big draw in both Mexico and America as this “R.I.W Wrestling Legend” update is about the Chairman of WCW the one and only La Parka, a masked Luchador that has always been a favorite of mine and has been long over due as I need to cover more of my favorite masked wrestlers from South Of The Border. Starting off with La Parka for our celebration of the 2024 WrestleMania month was just the right choice. So let’s grab some nachos and a burger from the snack bar and find our seats as this is going to be one fun wrestling legend event.

Adolfo Tapia started in Pro Wrestling career in 1982 at the age of 16 and was trained by Alberto Mora and Raul Reyes. He would work for the indies in Mexico and would work under many names and masks including El Gringo, El Asesino De Tepito, Principe Island and Invasor Del Norte I and would even lose a bet match against El Hijo Del Santo, and he worked hard for years in the indies before being signed to AAA in 1992 and would become La Parka, the skeleton reaper, who was a rudo that got cheered almost instantly by fans who liked his style of brawling and high flying. And just like that, La Parka was a main event star and would have his first major feud against Lizmark and the pair would even fight for titles that they would exchange back and fourth. In 1994 La Parka would be in a six man tag match for the When World’s Collide PPV that had WCW and AAA coming together, in the match he would team with Blue Panther and Jerry Estrada in a loosing effort against Chris Benoit, 2 Cold Scorpio and Tito Santana. And from there La Parka would continue to be a huge draw for AAA and would even win and hold many of the company’s titles and his popularity with fans continued to rise. In 1995 he would even make an appearance at ECW and would team with Psychosis to take on Rey Mysterio Jr. and Konnan. But a big step in La Parka’s career was coming in 1996! During his first run in AAA, he would have big matches against many Lucha Libre Legends like Solar, Octagon, Super Astro, Lizmark Jr., Eddie Guerrero and Villano IV to name a few.

In 1996 WCW was expanding their Cruiser Weight Division and hired many Luchadors at this time including La Parka who quickly became a breakout star among the pack that was hired as his creepy mask and more silly and playful gimmick got him over with the American fans. La Parka was used as a mid-card draw and would find himself in matches against fellow cruiser weights as well as matches against bigger stars in order to put them over like Goldberg. La Parka would have a manager for a short time in Sonny Onoo and would also team with Psychosis at the time. This would be a short lived partnership but would find La Parka working on WCW PPV’s as well as their top three shows Nitro, Thunder and Saturday Night. La Parka would also gain more fans when he would be called “WCW Chairman Of The Board” as he would carry out a steel chair that he would play air guitar with as well as would dance on it. In 1998, he would become a member of the Latino World Order (LWO) a group of Hispanic wrestlers who came together under the leadership of Eddie Guerrero and would have members Juventud Guerrera, Psychosis, Silver King, El Dandy, Damien 666, Hector Garza and Villano IV & V, sadly this group would disband in 1999. Later in 1999 he would have a gimmick that would have him speaking in Spanish and would have a silly English dub would play over his interviews. This was toward the end of his WCW run as at this point, he was being booked more as a joke and sadly he seemed to be the butt of the jokes. He would leave WCW in 2000, but this run would be what helped put him into the mainstream for wrestling promotions worldwide. In WCW La Parka just never got the push he should have and always found himself on the lower card.

La Parka in 2000 would return to Mexico and work the indies as well as a few dates for CMLL before signing with them in 2003 to a full time contract…but with this came a lawsuit from AAA who claimed they owned the name La Parka, and while the original was in WCW, they had a LA Parka Jr. working events. When the original signed with AAA’s biggest rival, they took action and now he had to go by L.A. Park with Jr. now becoming La Parka. L.A. Park would work as a main event star in CMLL but for a short time he had to be kept off TV due to the legal issues with AAA, and oddly enough CMLL would only work L.A. Park in bursts and this allowed him to as well still work for the indies in Mexico. His biggest feud in CMLL at this time was against Dr. Wagner Jr. During this time L.A. Park would also work for Xtreme Latin American Wrestling starting in 2004 and would come back to them for a run from 2009-2010. And by 2008 L.A. Park would leave CMLL and after working the indies would find himself back in AAA for a three year run that would have him feud with La Parka over the name as he would say the other was an imposter. This run was well done and would have him take on such Luchadors as Heavy Metal, Cibernetico, Extreme Tiger, Jack Evans, El Zorro and Electroshock. L.A. Park would leave AAA in 2013 and would return for a very short run for CMLL in 2014-2015 all the while still working in the indies.

In 2018 L.A. Park would return to AAA and find himself once more at being one of the company’s top draws and is still working to this day for them as he has won some big matches and even was the one who took the mask of El Hijo Del Fantasma who is now known as Santos Escobar in WWE/NXT. And while he is getting older, his brawling style is still very much over with fans and is what helps make him remain as one of Mexico’s biggest wrestling stars around the world. In 2018 he also worked in MLW, an indie American company that he quickly became a main event star for them and would have feuds with such names as Sami Callihan, Mace Warner, Pentagon Jr., Rey Fenix and Ross & Marshall Von Erich. L.A. Park would be fired from MLW in 2022 when he and his son El Hijo De L.A. Park attacked some fellow wrestlers with chairs in a off the rails attack that left two fellow workers injured. While L.A. Park is starting to slow down in the ring he still remains an icon of Pro Wrestling and Lucha Libre and during his run has won many titles from all types of companies from AAA to CMLL and even WWA showing that he was a big draw for companies and they know it. Sadly as of this update L.A. Park is not in the WWE Hall Of Fame, but once he retires he should be!

La Parka is a Luchador that I have been a fan of since I first saw in him in WCW and from that moment on, I followed his career as well as even started to look into his past and that meant his work for AAA. In WCW the thing that separated La Parka from the other Luchadors is his spooky skeleton look as well as the fact he would dance around and play air guitar and would wrestle a more brawling lucha style and was a little bigger than the others and this did allow him to work matches against none cruiser weight stars and kind of look like a contender. And while he know goes by L.A. Park to me he will always be La Parka and that is no disrespect to La Parka II who sadly passed away in 2020 after complications to an injury that happened in the ring, as he was a fantastic worker as well, it’s just that I grew up with the WCW La Parka and I am so used to calling him that. Back in the days of WCW I use to play as La Parka in many of the video games like WCW/NOW Revenge for the N64 and WCW Thunder for the PSX and it’s a shame that he has not been in any of the modern WWE games as a legend as it would be great to play as him again in a game. I have also been lucky enough to see LA Parka wrestle live in WCW and it was awesome to see the live crowd cheer him as he made his entrance, and I was one of the fans cheering my head off! I also find that La Parka’s mask is one of the most iconic masks in Lucha Libre and his legacy in wrestling will live on after he retires thanks to his son who doing the Jr. gimmick and this is great as I hope generations to come will get to see just how great La Parka is who as of this posting is still going strong in Mexico. I also want to say that La Parka took the # 6 spot for my Top 60 Luchador Countdown that you can read HERE.

We are now at the point of this review were we will be taking a look at the DVD set and review some of the matches on the discs like always between 4 to 8. But because this is a set about a Luchador we will take a look at 10 matches. I want to thank Coliseum Of Wrestling & Boxing for having this set in stock and also want to thank La Parka for his hard work in the world of wrestling. I also want to remind you that I will only be breaking down randomly select matches from this set and will be breaking down the match and will be rating the matches on a 5 Star rating system. I also only choose from Single matches as I want to break down his matches that showcase his style. Here is what the stars mean ½ Means a really terrible match, * Means a bad match, ** Means a below average match, **1/2 Means a good average entertaining match, *** Means a good match, **** Means a great match, ***** Means an epic match. So if you are ready lets step into the ring with La Parka.

Best Of LA Parka

Match 1: La Parka vs. Chris Jericho

As the bell rings La Parka charges and misses a body bump that causes him to crash to the mat and Jericho goes for a side headlock that La Parka breaks out of and lands some big punches and chops, that is till Jericho throws him into the ropes and is dropped when La Parka hits a shoulder tackle and then does some karate movies to the air as the fans boo. Jericho is able to recover fast and hits a dropkick that knocks La Parka down to the mat, and when La Parka tries to make a comeback he is kicked in the face by Jericho who is now in charge of the matches pace for a second as La Parka uses the ropes and is able to keep Jericho on the defense as Parka hits big of the rope kicks and even gets a two count on Jericho. Parka hits a good power bomb and then starts working on the arm and neck of Jericho and once more gets a two count. Jericho gets a one count when he sneaks and rolls up Parka who is able to get to the ropes to stop the pin attempt. Parka unloads some more moves including a belly-to-belly suplex, but cannot keep Jericho down. After a little more of a beating Jericho has had enough and makes a comeback unloading hits and moves on Parka and beats him with a roll up that gets him the three count. This is a very competitive match between two of WCW’s top cruiserweights at the time and the two work really well together and make each other look very good in the ring, as both sell well for each other and allow each to showoff their speed and moves. It was great to see La Parka move fast in the match and his rope work is great stuff, and as always Chris Jericho looks great in his fast paced moves. And the rollup win is fitting for the pace of the match and still made La Parka look like a contender. The fans in attendance also seemed to be into the match and that was nice to see as it was clear both La Parka and Chris Jericho were semi new to the company and trying to make names for themselves. Over all a pretty fun and solid match that entertained me and I have to admit that I popped when La Parka did his martial arts spot.

Grade: ***

Match 2: La Parka vs. Ice Train

As soon as the bell rings La Parka attacks Ice Train from behind and starts working on the back of his knee trying to keep the big man down on the mat, but La Parka’s hits and kicks are having very little effect on Ice Train who is raging up and drops Parka with one big chop. Ice Train starts using his power moves to toss La Parka around and hits a big power slam that knocks Parka silly. Train then hits a leaping shoulder tackle and Parka is clearly in trouble that is until he is able to hit a head kick and a spinning kick off the top rope that knocks Train down and is able to only get a one count. And once more Train takes back over and lands another power slam on Parka and then flings him into the corner and delivers a splash. Parka makes a small comeback with a jawbreaker and some kicks and even knocks Train out of the ring and lands a dive onto him. Once back in the ring Train hits a massive clothesline another power slam and then his finisher The Train Wreck (a big splash) and gets the win via pin over La Parka. This match was clearly a match that was set to showcase Ice Train who WCW was building up as a massive Baby Face and they pretty much have him dominate the match and shrug off much of the moves of La Parka, and that’s a shame as La Parka was clearly the more skilled worker of the two as Ice Train could only hit power moves as he hits a power slam three times during this short match…as he was very limited in the ring and it was clear he was being pushed due to his massive muscles. La Parka does a great job of selling for Ice Train and makes the limited wrestler look a little better. Not much to say besides La Parka’s outside dive looked amazing and if trained a little longer Ice Train could have probably been a bigger name in the sport. Over all an average match that WCW used La Parka as enhancement talent for a wrestler who had a very short shelf life. And the only reason this match is getting two is cause the hard work La Parka put in to get a match out of Ice Train.

Grade: **

Match 3: La Parka vs. Juventud Guerrera

As the bell rings La Parka and Juventud start shoving each other and Parka tries to get Juventud into the corner but keeps missing his hits as the faster Luchador is able to dodge his hits and escape. And Juventud then slides around his opponent and then lands a jumping kick that knocks Parka to the mat. Juventud then tries to land a top rope body press but is caught by Parka who dances while holding him before setting him on the other corner to slap him across the face, this fires Juventud up who leaps from the rope and flying head scissors Parka who goes to the outside only for Juventud to dive over the ropes onto him. The fans are into this match as they have popped for both guys and are enjoying this fast paced cruiserweight match. Once back in the ring Juventud lands a missile drop kick and gets a two count on a pin attempt. Parka turns the tide of the match with a boot to Juventud’s face and then a big clothesline and then dives off the top rope onto Juventud and gets a two count. Parka keeps up the pressure hitting moves on Juventud as the fans just keep on cheering for the match, this time Juventud is outside the ring and Parka dives over the top rope and onto him. Once back into the ring Juventud takes back control of the match that is until Parka hits a top rope power bomb followed by a spinning body splash from the top rope and he is able to get the win via pin. This was such a great WCW Cruiserweight match that had both guys getting equal time to shine with the live fans being very much into the fast paced match. Both La Parka and Juventud did a great job of making each other look good, both sell well for each other and both are able to show off their highflying moves. Both of there outside dives also look fantastic and impactful adding to the story that’s being told in this match. La Parka looks strong and is able to get the win and even though he is the heel of the match fans cheer for his hard work. This is a very cool match and is why I loved the Cruiserweight Division in WCW!

Grade: ***

Match 4: La Parka vs. Ultimo Dragon

As soon as the bell rings Parka and Dragon run the ropes and each showcase their speed and land some flips and moves. Dragon gets Parka into the corner and lands some chops and keeps using his speed to takedown and trip up Parka. And when Parka tries to make a comeback Dragon unleashes a fury of fast kicks and lands a dropkick that knocks him out of the ring and then Dragon climbs the top rope and dives onto him. But outside the ring Sonny Ono the manager of La Parka attacks Dragon and this allows Parka to land some hits and moves and even get a two count after a power bomb on the Dragon. Parka stays in control of the match until he misses a corner splash and this allows Dragon to land a off the top rope Frankensteiner and then get La Parka in the Dragon Sleeper, but Sonny Ono distracts the referee and this allows La Parka to kick Dragon in the back of the head and then Ono botches as he by accident kicks La Parka and once more Dragon locks in the Dragon Sleeper and gets Parka to tap out and wins via submission. This is a very fun fast paced match that did a great job of showcasing why Ultimo Dragon is considered one of the best cruiserweights in the world and also shows La Parka as a threat for the mid-card titles. The speed and kicks of Dragon are very awesome to see and La Parka does a great job of selling and acting amazed by the feats of Dragon throughout the match, I also like that they make it appear as if La Parka just might win the match with the help of his manager. Over all a really fun and entertaining match as both guys have great chemistry in the ring and told a quick story.

Grade: ***

Match 5: La Parka vs. Glacier

La Parka starts the match waving a Mexican Flag on the top turnbuckle as the fans cheer, Parka then gets off the turnbuckle and makes fun of Glacier’s martial arts and the fans continue to cheer. Glacier has seen enough and the two exchange karate chops and Glacier’s strike hard and knock Parka to the mat, but Parka gets back up and lands some punches and then uses a shoulder tackle to go for a pin attempt and gets a one count and repeats these actions again. Glacier then hits a series of kicks that knocks Parka out of the ring and Glacier jumps over the ropes with a cross body. Once back in the ring Parka takes control of the match hitting some big moves and lands a big piledriver and then dances around before landing some more moves on Glacier including knocking him out of the ring and corkscrew diving onto him. Outside the ring Parka slams Glacier’s head into a chair and the two battle more outside the ring and even Parka crashes into the chair. Once back in the ring Glacier hits his Cryonic Kick finisher and gets the three count for the win. This is a pretty fun match as La Parka is on and is playing up to the live fans who clearly want him to get the win! La Parka goes a great job in the match and uses his speed and Lucha Libre moves to try and make the match exciting as Glacier mostly does his same “martial arts” style moves, but does pull off a very cool over the top rope dive. The match is very short and sadly in my opinion the wrong wrestler won, as clearly everyone in the arena wanted La Parka to get the victory and La Parka is way more skilled in the ring than his opponent. The two lacked chemistry in the ring but Parka did his best to get a fun match out of Glacier.

Grade: **1/2

Match 6: La Parka vs. Disco Inferno

As soon as the match starts La Parka throws a chair at Disco who in turn doges the charge Parka who crashes into the corner. The two exchange hits and Parka hits a power slam before getting up and mocking Inferno’s disco moves. Disco returns the favor and hits a power slam of his own, and Disco takes control of the match his hits and holds and La Parka fights back and even knocks Disco out of the ring and hits a corkscrew splash and the two brawl outside for a bit and Disco even drops Parka on the guardrail trying to hurt his opponent to secure the win. But once back in the ring Parka goes on the attack with some kicks and a chinlock and once Disco gets out of the hold Parka continues his attack thanks to his speed and hits some impactful moves, but is unable to get the pinfall over Disco. La Parka once more goes for a chinlock to slowdown the pace and to ware down Disco who gets out of the hold and starts unloading on Parka trying to take the match momentum, but the two end up just trading the momentum back and fourth with holds and hits but Disco with the help of a chair is able to hit his Chart Buster finisher and get the win via pin over La Parka. This is a pretty good match and for the most part is entertaining, with both guys getting times to shine in the match the only downside is that I feel that their styles did not mesh that well and caused for some moments that seem off. La Parka shows off his speed and some of his Lucha style, but does seem to slow down his moves and does less flips than he normally worked into his matches. Disco Inferno is also a very solid worker who I think often get overlooked for his work, but his style just did not click well with La Paraka’s and what we have here is a match that is good and entertaining but is just lacking something to take it to the next level. Both guys do well for selling for each other and that helps both guys look like a contender, the fans in the arena seem to be into the match as they do cheer for La Parka as clearly they are on his side and want to see him win. Also I should say that this was an odd choice as this was part of the WCW SuperBrawl VIII and is given around 12 minutes.

Grade: **1/2

Match 7: La Parka vs. Psychosis

As the bell rings Parka and Psychosis start to lock up and Parka takes a cheapshot and then lands a series of big chops and after some rope running Psychosis returns the favor of chops and then takes Parka down with some flying head scissors and Psychosis keeps his attack on La Parka even knocking him out of the ring and hitting him with a big dive. But La Parka is able to turn the tide when he is able to get back into the ring first and delivers a big kick to Psychosis who was entering the ring and now he deals out some hits and holds including a massive clothesline and a split legged moonsault. Every time Psychosis tries to make a comeback he is cut off my Parka who just deals out more of a beating. But La Parka makes a mistake by dancing on the top rope as this gives Psychosis time to recover and knock Parka down and racking him on the ropes and then deliver a Frankenstein to get a two count. Psychosis keeps up his attack with highflying moves in and outside the ring, and finally after La Parka makes a small comeback it’s Psychosis that gets the win via pin after hitting Parka with a guillotine leg drop. This was a pretty fun match against two of WCW’s best cruiserweights at the time and each man had their time to shine as well as show off their Lucha Libre moves. Psychosis was the faster of the two and is able to do more fancy rope work, but La Parka does hold his own and is able to play off the fans to draw them into the match. Neither guy is made to look like a jobber and while La Parka showboats and this helps lead to his lose it’s these moments that bring that extra entertainment to the match. La Parka’s split legged moonsault looked fantastic as did most of Psychosis’s dives. Over all this is just a great cruiserweight match that showcased why WCW had the best division in America at this time. Also I should say that Psychosis and La Parka have great in ring chemistry and that is why this matched worked so well for the WCW PPV Spring Stampede.

Grade: ***

Match 8: La Parka vs. Booker T

La Parka is a member of the L.W.O at this time and as soon as the bell rings he and Booker T size each other up and Parka makes a big mistake as he starts dancing to taunt Booker T who ends up making the masked wrestler eat a big clothesline and then tosses him out of the ring. But La Parka tricks Booker T when he makes his opponent come outside the ring to get him, and then jumps him before he can get back in with some punches and chops and keeps up the attack that is until Booker T once more drops him with a clothesline and then gets off a few punches before the two start trading hits and holds trying to get the upper hand over the other. And Booker T hits the Scissors Kick and is able to get a two count, but Parka is able to fight back and the two go to the outside and start slugging it out as the fans cheer. Once back in the ring La Parka brings in a steel chair and tries to use it but Booker T stops him who in turn tries to use the chair and is stopped by Parka. The match ends with Booker T winning the match via pin when he kicks the chair into the face of La Parka. The match is clearly one to showcase and build Booker T as a top star for WCW as he has more of the hard hitting moves and is in charge for most of this short match. The fans are clearly behind Booker T who hits some amazing kicks and does a pretty solid job of letting La Parka not look like an enhancement talent in the match by selling for his moves. La Parka does not get to showcase much of his high -lying moves in this match and pretty much just does a brawling style with kicks, chops and punches. This match is very short and while nothing super fantastic happens both wrestlers look good in the match and it’s clear that their styles clashed slightly but they were able to pull it together as both workers are outstanding talents. And I should also note that its shocking that no other member of the L.W.O didn’t come out and try and help La Parka win the match.

Grade: **1/2

Match 9: La Parka vs. Tank Abbott

As soon as the bell rings Tank punches Parka in the face and drops him, he then backs Parka into the corner and unloads a series of big punches as Parka tries to punch back it’s clear that he is being out striked by the former MMA fighter. Tank then throws some elbows and then picks Parka up and slams him hard to the mat. La Parka gets out of the ring and grabs a chair and as Tank comes out after him he smacks him on the head with the chair and Tank shrugs it off and rams Parka into the steel railing and then starts stomping on him. The referee has seen enough and throws out the match, but Tank takes a few more stomps on Parka and even attacks security before heading back to the locker room. This is a total squash match that has Tank Abbott who was just off working for the MMA company UFC totally destroying La Parka in a very quick match that has Tank dominating him. And Tanks punches and stomps look brutal as does his slam, and this was a great way to build Tank as the fans were behind him once they seen just how rough and brawling he was. I mean he shrugged off a chair shot to his head. Poor La Parka throws a few punches and gets off one chair shot and none of these even faze Tank, and while this match makes La Parka look weak it does a great job of building Tank and the brawl almost comes off real and that makes for one entertaining match! I also think the finish of the match being thrown out by the referee was the right way to end the match.

Grade: **1/2

Match 10: La Parka vs. Brad Armstrong

As the bell rings La Parka does his dance to taunt Armstrong who responds with a massive clotheslin then pulls off a series of arm drags and keeps the momentum going on his side as even if Parka tries to comeback Armstrong keeps having an answer for his moves. Parka is finally able to make his comeback with a power slam and then unleashes some hits and kicks on Armstrong before even landing a big missile drop kick that gets him a two count on a pin attempt. Parka then hits a corkscrew dive on a downed Armstrong and gets another two count. Armstrong is able to turn the tide of the match and gets off a series of big punches and La Parka during this bumps into the referee taking him out, but then Alex Wright and his bodyguard The Wall come into the match and as Alex attacks Brad Armstrong, The Wall attacks La Parka outside the ring and tosses him back in and Armstrong falls on top of Parka and the referee wakes up and makes the count giving Armstrong the victor over Parka via pin. This is a match that should have been fantastic but sadly is a quick match that is more of a way to build the feud between Alex Wright and Brad Armstrong and poor La Parka was just being used as enhancement to keep the feud growing. The one good thing about this short match is that La Parka does get to use some of his highflying attacks with his Missile Dropkick and Corkscrew Splash being well pulled off. Brad Armstrong does not get to showoff much of his highflying moves but does get to show off his more technical ones. It’s clear that these two would have had great chemistry in the match if they were given the chance to really work it before the interface. And the finish is a little odd as Alex Wright and The Wall end up helping their target win the match and almost seem happy to have done so. Over all it’s an ok short match that sadly ends very oddly and I wish that Parka and Armstrong had been able to have a full competitive match.

Grade: **1/2

La Parka has always been one of my favorite Luchadors, and along with the others that came to WCW in the 90’s is what made them the better federation for the longest time in my opinion, and to me seeing L.A. Park as he goes by now working in AAA has been awesome because at his age he is still working at the top of the card after all these years. Well as you can see, the “R.I.W Wrestling Legend” update has came to an end as the arena staff have just turned up the house lights and the clean up crew is coming out to clean up for the next event as this is just the first of three wrestling updates in honor of WWE WrestleMania. Our next one will be about the legend Chief White Owl! And as we make our way to the exit doors, I want to say that if you have never seen a La Parka match, make sure to look some up on YouTube or find one on the Grey Market as you will truly enjoy them if you like Lucha Libre. Well until next time, make sure to read a comic of three, watch a wrestling match or two and as always support your local indie wrestlers. See you next update as we will watch the master of the Tomahawk Chop in action.

R.I.W Wrestling Legend: The Texas Hangmen

Posted on March 13, 2024 by bloodlinematt

Welcome back to Rotten Ink. As you can see, we find ourselves once more at the Rotten Ink Arena as we have another “R.I.W Wrestling Legend” update event planned and this one will feature a tag team that mostly made a name for themselves in Puerto Rico but did have a good run in the AWA and while they did not last that long as a team, they did capture some gold and built up a reputation of being a brawling, rough and tough masked menacing team…and this team is The Texas Hangmen and as you can see, they are the main event for this update. So let’s head to the snack bar and grab a drink and some chili to snack on and then find our seats as this will be a quick and hard hitting update event.

The Texas Hangmen was a masked outlaw cowboy team that started working together around 1988 in Windy City Wrestling under the names Hangman # 1 and Hangman # 2 and could not find their groove mostly losing to more established teams before leaving the company and finding their new home in the AWA that they started working for in 1989 and found some more traction and started going under the names Psycho and Killer. They worked matches against the likes of The Guerrero Brothers, The Tokyo Bullets and John Nord and Scott Norton. They were hated heels and fans loved to boo these brawling masked men who would challenge for the AWA Tag Titles but never could win them. The Hangmen would stay in AWA until around 1990 when they went out of business. The Texas Hangmen then traveled to Puerto Rico to work for WWC and would become a big team that feuded with many of the company’s top teams and stars from The Medics, The Invaders and even Carlos Colon. The Texas Hangmen would also capture the WWC Tag Titles twice during this run and would stick around until 1991 before returning to the states to work for USWA. Once in the USWA, they found themselves a top team for the company and would quickly capture the Tag Titles as they beat Jeff Jarrett and Eddie Gilbert (who was filling in for Jerry Lawler). But even being the Tag Team champions, Texas Hangman were being booked very oddly as they ended up losing to many of the companies top stars at the time like Bill Dundee and Steve Keirn. They would stick around USWA for a short time and would break up for a time and would get back together for one last run in WWC in 1997 that would have them win the company’s Tag Title and by the end of the year The Texas Hangmen were no more. While The Texas Hangmen never made it to the big companies like WCW and WWF, they did make their mark in AWA and WWC and would find their marks later when they disbanded. I should say a version of The Texas Hangmen had a small run in WCW as a jobber team.

Frank Vizi was the wrestler behind the mask of Psycho and he was trained by Tom Stone and started his Pro Wrestling career in 1984, and is known as Bull Pain, a wrestler who worked for ECW, WCW and JCW. He would end up retiring in 2012 and was a mid-card heel that fans loved to hate. Mike Morgan was Killer, and he started his Pro career in 1982 and was trained by Jake Milliman and Rocky Stone and would best be known as Mean Mike, a member of the WCW tag team Disorderly Conduct, and part of a similar team called Texas Hangmen that were a jobber team. He would as well retire in 2012. While The Texas Hangmen or even Disorderly Conduct are not household names, and Bull Pain is only with diehard ECW fans, these guys made their mark in the world of Wrestling and over their careers had captured titles as well as did a great job of entertaining fans all over the world. At this point The Texas Hangman are not in the WWE Hall Of Fame, and I doubt if they ever do make it.

In the late 80’s and early 90’s Tag Team wrestling was very big and teams like the Road Warriors, Demolition and The Powers Of Pain were the ones that brought fans into arena as they had a look of face paint, flashy gear and a badass wrestling style that made them feel like true tough guys and like they could snap their opponents’ necks. I feel like The Texas Hangmen are a team that traded the face paint for masks, as well traded in the apocalyptic fashion for western gear and used names like Killer and Psycho to show that they meant business. They also would bring out nooses to show that they truly were Hangmen as I can remember them getting a little heat from people when they used the nooses to hang and choke Invader # 1 and this single act is what made them big names in Puerto Rico and made them feared by fans as they came off as true madmen. Growing up I remember The Texas Hangman from the AWA and seeing them on ESPN and wondering why they were not working for WCW as their look and style would have fit right in and they could have had some great matches with the likes of Steiner Brothers, Road Warriors and even Doom. The crazy thing to think about is that as a team they only stayed together for a few years and when disbanding the team the each tried to make their own paths in the business, and while they both did find small amounts of success I would have liked to seen them stick together and try to make runs in WWF, ECW, CMLL, New Japan and WCW. They are also a team that I am pretty sure got their gimmick stolen as Texas Hangmen or teams with similar looks and names would pop up in small indie federations. Another very interesting thing about The Texas Hangmen is that their background as a team is very all over the place with many saying the started in AWA and others saying it was for the smaller indies before landing in AWA, but one thing is for sure they were a entertaining team that I would love to see have a match at Rock Star Pro Wrestling in Dayton, Ohio against a team like The Hooligans or even The Bad Dudes.

We are now at the point of this review were we will be taking a look at the DVD set and review some of the matches on the discs like always between 4 to 8. Sadly on a side note I could only review 3 full matches. I want to thank HyperDevil for having this set in stock and also want to thank The Texas Hangmen for their hard work in the world of wrestling. I also want to remind you that I will be breaking down the match and will be rating the matches on a 5 Star rating system. Here is what the stars mean ½ Means a really terrible match, * Means a bad match, ** Means a below average match, **1/2 Means a good average entertaining match, *** Means a good match, **** Means a great match, ***** Means an epic match. So if you are ready, let’s step into the ring with The Texas Hangmen.

Best Of The Texas Hangmen

Match 1: Texas Hangmen vs. Carlos Colon & T.N.T

The Texas Hangmen and Carlos and T.N.T start brawling before any of them even get in the ring and the fans are going crazy as they keep throwing punches all around as it’s clear that these teams have a hatred for each other. Carlos even rips one of the Hangman’s mask as he is trying to make the masked man bleed with big punches. T.N.T gets one of the Hangmen into the ring as Carlos rams the others head into a plate as the ring is set up in the middle of a baseball field, once they all get back to the ring the match becomes more of a normal tag match and Carlos and T.N.T take control of the match landing hits, holds and even using what looks like a fork on the heads of The Texas Hangmen. For a short time the Hangmen make a comeback but it quickly turns into both teams brawling and they take it outside the ring again and the match it thrown out as the two teams keep on fighting and even the locker room empties to try and break them up. This match is pretty much mostly a brawl with both team just exchanging punches and kicks in and outside the ring and the fans were really into this match as it was clear that they love Carlos Colon and T.N.T as for most of the match they are in charge. The match also has blood and The Texas Hangmen prove that they are brawlers and can take a beating and dish out a beating and still seem like contenders. The match ending in a brawl and being thrown out was very fitting as it was clear that fans would come back for a rematch between these two teams. Over all, while it’s nothing super special when it comes to moves, the story they tell in the ring as well as the chemistry between the two teams is good and that is what makes this match a great watch.

Grade: ***

Match 2: Texas Hangmen vs. Invader # 1 & T.N.T

As soon as the two teams get into the ring they start brawling, and Invader even takes one of the Hangmen out of the ring and uses a chair on him and is delivering big punches while in the ring T.N.T is beating up on the other Hangmen and these beating continues for a while even at one point T.N.T chokes one with a belt and Invader smashes the other over the head. The teams end up taking the brawl into the ring again and it turns into a normal tag match with each team exchanging holds and mostly punches back and fourth. The referee ends up getting knocked out, and The Texas Hangmen try and use their bull rope to hit Invader # 1 with but T.N.T saves him for a moment, but one of the Hangmen uses the rope to choke Invader who is in deep trouble. The match is thrown out as The Texas Hangmen leave the ring and head to the locker room as T.N.T and Invader # 1 pose for the rabid cheering fans. This is another brawling match that pretty much follows the same formula as the last match that is pretty much the baby face team brawling with the heel team all around the arena as the fans cheer and once they get it back into the ring the match goes back and fourth and in the end a brawl erupts and the match ends with a no contest. No big moves are thrown, the brawling looks great and the hanging spot looks good as his the reversal of the hanging. Over all just another brawl that is entertaining and both teams look good throughout the match. The fans in attendance are really into this match as well, and I am not sure but at one point I think a fan throws a smoke bomb around the ring…a wild match.

Grade: ***

Match 3: Texas Hangmen vs. Invader # 1 & Bronco # 1

The Texas Hangmen are the tag champions, and as they head to the ring, they taunt the fans who really hate these guys. Bronco # 1 has seen and heard enough and goes out after him and gets them both in the ring and Invader # 1 starts dealing out some punches. When the Hangmen roll out of the ring, they return only to taunt the fans some more. And every time the match is about to start and Invader # 1 gets any momentum the Hangmen roll out of the ring. Once the match really starts Invader and Bronco take the momentum and use fast tags to keep the match in their favor, Bronco even works over one of the Hangmen’s arm as the fans cheer, but shortly after The Hangmen take control of the match and use their brawling style to cause pain. The two teams then take turns going back and fourth with momentum and several times Invader # 1 tries to go for the pin but it’s always broken up by the other Hangman. But after a big punch Invader # 1 is finally able to get the win via pin and the fans go wild as they have just won the Tag Titles. This match starts off way to slow and I get that The Texas Hangmen were getting heart from their taunting and slowing down the action, but when watching at home it sadly comes off bland and uninteresting. But while it starts off not great, I think the match speeds up slightly and the tag team chemistry between Invader # 1 and Bronco # 1 was good as they did fast tags and used double team moves to keep their two monster heel opponents down. The Texas Hangmen are doing their normal brawling style, but also use lots of rest holds throughout the match. The finish is a little odd as well as such a simple move ends a title match. At times I also have to point out that when Bronco # 1 would do off the rope moves he seemed very awkward and stiff. But much to say besides it was an ok match between four skilled workers that the fans seemed to be into for the most part, I was entertained but was also slightly bored at times.

Grade: **1/2

The Texas Hangmen was a pretty cool tag team that worked all around the world and clearly was big draws as heels in Puerto Rico as the fans really did seem to hate them. And it really is a shame that they never got a full chance to show their talents in one of the two major companies WWF and WCW as I really do think they could have been a solid mid-card heel team that could have helped put over the companies top baby face teams as well as get win over some of the mid and lower card ones. Teams like The Texas Hangmen are a product of the past as you just don’t see teams like them on TV anymore. But as you can see, the matches are over and the house lights have came up and the cleaning crew are out so that’s our clue to leave and as we make out way to the exit doors I would like to tell you that our next update will take us away from the squared circle and back into the world of Western themed media as we will be talking about the iconic cowboy Red Ryder and his comic books as well as his B.B. Guns! So with that until next time read a comic or three, watch a wrestling match or two and as always support your local wrestlers. Oh and remember the phrase “You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out Kid” as Red Ryder and it go hand and hand.