411’s WWE Rivals Report: Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero

-Not sure how many episodes we have left of this series, but I hope there is a second season as it has been fun to recap. Tonight, it’s Rey vs. Eddie! Let’s get to it!

-Show opening!

– As a reminder Freddie Prinze Jr hosts a roundtable during this show and we cut back to them between the talking heads and videos from time to time. This week at the table with Freddie: Bayley, JBL, Kevin Nash, and Natalya.

-Freddie says this one is near and dear to his heart and by far his favorite rivalry. He talks about Lucha Libre and his grandmother from Puerto Rico. She was the first person to show her a wrestling match and it was Lucha. JBL says Eddie and Rey are two of the greatest Latino stars and actually, just two of the greatest stars.

-Rey says he was a fan the first time he saw Eddie. He was wrestling next to his uncle, Rey Mysterio Sr. He never thought that one day he would be his great partner and great nemesis. Prichard says Eddie had everything: the name, talent, legacy. Eddie says he always wanted to be like his dad and tells the story of his dad having the nickname that translates to “Thunderbird.” They show an early Eddie promo where he says he came out of the womb a wrestler and dropkicked the doctor. AWESOME! SHUT EVERYTHING DOWN AS NOTHING IS TOPPING THAT! Rey talks about Tecnicos (good guys) vs. Rudos (heels) and Eddie was great enough to excel at both.

-Now to Rey as he talks about his start and how he was made to earn the moniker of Rey Mysterio. Eighteen months into his career his uncle passed the mask and name down to him.

-Back to the table as Nash says he learned what they were all about when there was an explosion of wrestlers that came into WCW in 96. We see Rey’s debut at GAB 96 (where Nash powerbombed Bischoff) and Nash say she never saw anything like it. Damian Priest loved Rey and Eddie and how they would speak in their language. To him they changed the dream for everyone watching at home. WCW’s CW Division was just so awesome and it’s been wonderful to go back and watch as I’ve gone through the PPVs from 1997.

-Sept 1997: Eddie and Rey finally lock up on an episode of Nitro. Nash talks about the non-stop offense and how there was so much intensity, and everything looked crisp.

-Rey talks about the mask being personal, spiritual, and sacred. It’s part of tradition and Lucha Libre. Heyman says the mask means everything and that’s why Eddie was trying to take it off. Roberts says that while Eddie was trying to take the mask off Rey on screen, backstage people in charge wanted Rey out of the mask. Bischoff says he felt Rey could so more character and emotion if his face was seen and that he didn’t fully understand the importance and history of the mask. Rey losing the mask is one of the worst decisions ever made. They could have sold those things until the end of time!

-Halloween Havoc 1997: HERE WE GO! Rey says they word going around was that he was going to lose the match and his mask. I’ll be reviewing this show in Oct as part of my Retro Review series but I did review this match as part of Rey’s DVD release from years ago. Eddie says he knew Rey had a lot to prove that night.

-Commercials! Season Finale of Biography next week as it’s all about WrestleMania. I assume that means Rivals ends next week as well.

-The roundtable talk the dynamic of dick Eddie vs. babyface Rey. Eddie says there was a lot of politics backstage and Rey didn’t want to lose the mask. They tear the house down with one of the greatest matches in WCW history. Just so amazing!

-Eddie talks about hating the environment in WCW and he was trying to find a way out. He started drinking and taking pills. Undertaker says Eddie had his demons that he overcame and mentions he was a phenomenal worker.

-Eddie makes it to WWE with The Radicalz and Eddie says Vince McMahon gives opportunities.

-Rey made the jump a little over a year after WCW closed their doors. Heyman says bringing in Rey was one of the first moves he made as the lead writer on SmackDown and it was one of the best decisions he ever made. JBL says typically luchadores don’t make it in the US because of the mask, but Rey was able to make a connection even with his face hidden.

-Dominik remembers Eddie being at the house and having breakfast with the family. Heyman says Eddie and Rey were a perfect tag team as they traveled together and loved each other. They win the Tag Titles at No Way Out 2005 and that transitions to them wanting to face each other at WrestleMania. Eddie throws out the challenge as a joke, but tells Rey he is dead serious.

-WrestleMania 21: Prichard says they were the opener so they could tell everyone to follow that. Good match, but it didn’t match what they did at Halloween Havoc. Funny thing when you have a perfect match and want to try to capture that again. Rey notes that Eddie wanted to be a bad guy and turns on Rey not long after Mania. Great heel turn as he destroyed Rey leaving him bloody with a torn mask.

-Commercials!

-Sasha Banks talks about Eddie’s promo after the heel turn and how you could see his passion and anger. “It was an Eddie we’ve never seen before and he is dangerous.” Prichard sets the story which was that Eddie could never beat Rey Mysterio so he decided to play mind games.

-Rey says the idea of Eddie claiming Dom was his son was the idea of Prichard and Eddie. Prichard says the idea came from Eddie’s book where he admitted that when he was drinking and on pills, he had a child with another woman when he was separated from Vicki. They threw out the idea “what if that child was Dominik.” Dom says that he thought he was in trouble when Rey pulled him aside to talk about the story. Dom asked if he had to do it, and Rey said he didn’t have to, but they were going to pay him. Dom: “oh, okay!” Nice!

-Dom remembers the time Eddie took him to the park for the cameras to film and each time they cut, Eddie asked if he was okay and would hand him a twizzler. This is crazy watch back with Dom talking about it. He says Eddie wanted things done the best way possible. Roberts says this storyline was outside the realm of anything WWE did pretty much anytime in their history.

-Great American Bash: Eddie hides behind Dom and holds him by the head. Dom laughs that it was tight and he knows Eddie didn’t mean it. The bombshell gets dropped as Eddie tells Dom, “I’m your Papi.” FANTASTIC! Dom says his teachers were concerned because he wasn’t in school and all they saw of him what was on TV. I can’t help but smile through all of this! Bayley says she was caught up in at as a fan and she just wanted to comfort Dom and tell him it would all be okay.

-Prichard says there are still fans today that wonder if Eddie is really Dom’s father. Heyman says Eddie and Rey brought the best soap opera around to SmackDown. Kofi notes it worked well because everyone knew how great Eddie and Rey worked together. Rey challenges Eddie to a match at SummerSlam for the custody of Dom.

-Commercials!

-SummerSlam 2005: Ladder Match for custody of Dom! Roberts notes they were all watching to see the good guy win. Sasha remembers watching with her mom and she hated Eddie. “You wanted to see Eddie get destroyed by Rey.” Dom remembers watching live in the crowd and he didn’t want to see either man get hurt as they bounced all over the ring. Rey notes the crazy bump he took off the ladder and how in the moment it didn’t hurt because of the adrenaline. Dom laughs about his run-in as he tried to shake the ladder, but for shoot couldn’t move the thing.

-Back at the table JBL puts over the greatness of Eddie and how he could electrify a building. Rey gets the win by briefcase retrieval as they gloss over Vicki’s involvement in the match. I just remember Vicki missing her time to hit the ring and Eddie yelling about it as he stalled for time.

-Now it gets heavy as Rey talks about telling Eddie goodbye at a SmackDown taping. They hugged and then it’s Minneapolis November of 2005. Oh man! When Rey arrived at the arena they broke the news to him. Rey: “Damn it’s hard.”

-Commercials!

-Eddie Guerrero had passed and Rey says he was in denial. Prichard says Eddie’s heart gave out in the hotel while brushing his teeth. He notes it left a hole in the heart of the industry. The coroner let Rey in the room to say goodbye and pay his respects. He remembers falling to his knees and bawling as they lost a kind soul. “We all have our life from beginning to end written out and we don’t know when the end will be.”

-Freddie says he wanted to believe the news was fake and he hated learning the truth. JBL wishes Eddie was here now and there is only one Eddie Guerrero. Sasha says she found out at The Target Center in The Arena when she saw the signs in the crowd. A person with one of the signs told her and she remembers breaking down. She saw the signs again and couldn’t believe it was real.

-Oh man, we get footage from the RAW Tribute show and seeing these men and women break down again is just heartbreaking. Rey: “My brother, I love you.” It still sucks and it still hurts! They show Rey taking his mask off after his words about Eddie (you can’t see his face) as Dom mentions he has only seen his dad cry a few times and one was when they lost Eddie.

-Royal Rumble 2006: Rey wins The Rumble at the second entrant. Roberts says the fight Rey was fighting was the real fight Eddie and Rey had been battling years: what an American Wrestling Champion should look like. Rey says it was a picture perfect moment and he had to let Eddie know. He knew Eddie was there with him!

-Commercials! Brie Bella vs. Stephanie McMahon is our next rivalry.

-WrestleMania 22: Heyman calls it Shakespeare as Rey Mysterio carries the soul of Eddie to one more WrestleMania Main Event. Rey wins The World Title in a Triple Threat with Angle and Orton. Rey calls it the peak of his career and Eddie would have loved to see him as Champion. Dom says he could see Rey staring at the title when he got him like it wasn’t real, but for the family it was real. JBL says that Rey carried Eddie’ legacy magnificently and Eddie is looking down proud.

-Rey takes us to the cemetery and Eddie’s grave. Okay, just give me more reason to tear up as Rey kneels down and speaks to Eddie at this grave. He knows he would be so proud of Dominik and they talk about him all the time. “You inspired so many of us and I love you for that. I love you.” Rey says he feels at peace as Eddie is constantly in his heart and mind. He thinks about him every day and misses him.

-Freddie says he loves both men and Bayley gets choked up talking about them. Freddie doesn’t think any another Latin Men could have pulled off what they did. Rey: “We both loved to deliver and what better way to do it with your best friend. Your brother.”

-This was great and probably should have been the season finale as I don’t think anything is topping it. This made me laugh, made me smile and made me tear up and cry. Thanks for reading!