Tuesday, April 4, 2023

Mask collection retrospective: 2023

This is the final post in the mask collection retrospective series, covering 2023 to date. While we're only three months into the year, I've had the opportunity to acquire some amazing masks already, so there's enough for an entry.

I'll be highlighting two Komander masks and a Flamita / Oni el Bendito fusion mask.

All posts in this series can be found under the "mask retrospective" tag.

Komander (2023-01-07)

As you may recall, I ended the 2022 post with Komander's PWG debut mask. Not too long after, PWG announced BOLA 2023 for the first weekend of the year. When Komander was in turn announced for said event, I knew immediately that I badly wanted his Night 1 mask. There's never another first ring-worn BOLA mask for a luchador, and I had convinced myself that Komander's would mean a lot.

The only thing is, and I knew going in that this would be the case, Komander wanted that mask for himself. I won't go into full details, but suffice it to say that it was quite unlike any other mask negotiation that I've ever done: we were both keenly aware that the overarching issue was one of emotions, both our own and those of our counterparty. In the end, we came to an agreement, and for that I'm immensely grateful.

Komander's BOLA debut consisted of a great match against Látigo. I mentioned previously that it's a special feeling to see amazing lucha performed in a mask that you know that you've already bought. It's even more amazing when new moves are altogether invented in such a mask. I've had that privilege once already, with the BOLA 2019 Mexablood mask, and it's difficult to ask for that more than once in a lifetime. And yet, here, I had the honor of witnessing the debut not only of Komander in BOLA, but also of the double springboard phoenixrana. An absolutely mind-blowing and personally humbling moment, one of those that perpetually resonates in the mind.

As Komander's career continues to progress – and rapidly, at that – I can't help but get the feels every time I look at this mask. It's my second favorite in the collection.

Flamita / Oni el Bendito (2023-01-14)

This is a fusion mask between two members of the Black Generation faction, Flamita and Oni el Bendito. Flamita used it on the Big Lucha Black Paradise show on January 14, 2023. As I've said before, I love fusion masks, and this was an opportunity to get a cool one involving one of my favorites and a luchador from whom I hadn't bought a mask previously.

I picked it up in Chicago the following weekend and got both of them to sign it.

Komander (2023-01-22, 2022-12-16, 2022-12-28)

This is yet another Komander ring-worn mask, used, significantly, on:

  • GCW's Americaz Most Wanted, December 16, 2022
  • AAA Noche de Campeones, December 28, 2022
  • GALLI / Big Lucha, January 22, 2023

If I'm being honest, this feels like a 2022 mask rather than a 2023 one, but I did get it in 2023 at the GALLI / Big Lucha show, so by my own rules, I'm counting it here.

When I was negotiating with Komander for his BOLA Night 1 mask, this mask was one of my backup options in the event that we couldn't come to an agreement. In the GCW Americaz Most Wanted lucha trios match, he went bonkers even by his own ridiculous standards. He invented the ropewalk Phoenix Splash and a new dive: spaceman ropewalk capped off by a Venum-style tornillo. On top of that, that show marked his 10th anniversary as a professional luchador.

Komander actually had this mask at BOLA, but I felt as if I had already pushed my luck in getting the Night 1 mask, and he didn't seem particularly in a hurry to sell this mask, so I thought better of asking at the time. He did bring it again to Chicago, though, and this time, I overheard him discussing numbers with another fan (who declined to purchase), so I decided to buy.

This mask is interesting in that, across a span of a few matches, Komander has performed a large subset of his important moves in it: the ropewalk Phoenix Splash, that new tornillo spaceman dive, the spaceman tijeras to the floor (during AAA Noche de Campeones), and the double springboard phoenixrana. For that reason, this is definitely a top 5 mask in my collection, and it might even be top 3.

Well, that wraps up the series. I hope that you've enjoyed the stories; I know that I've enjoyed telling them.

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