Post by Teo Blaze on Oct 23, 2022 12:18:05 GMT -5
Hey folks, narrator here back once again with yet another thrilling chapter in the neverending swirl of magic that is the #2Gents story! Yes, our erstwhile adventurers are together again! So what will they do to celebrate their reunion of champions? Comparing wrestling memorabilia of course!
Teo is currently talking Jenson through his extensive collection of historical luchador posters and masks, which make up part of the display in the newly found Gentseum of Wrestling Oddities (G.O.W.O. [patent pending]).
Walking briskly along the tile, Teo points at a poster of El Santo.
“Now this guy, he was a big deal, one of the guys who pioneered lucha libre. One of the original Luchador heroes! The guy was legendary, and in true luchador fashion he took on the mantle of a hero and stood for the common man for pretty much 50 years.”
He looks at Jenson excitedly, who looks back at him, more in bemusement than excitement.
“OK.” Jenson says after minutes of consideration.
“OK? Is that all you can say! El Santo is a legend! A hero! An icon! He transcended the sport and was practically a superhero! Heck I think he was probably the first super hero in Mexico. Unlike our competition this Monday night, he deserves more than just an OK”
“I see.” Replies Jenson, causing Teo to briefly lower his eyebrows, “What you are saying then is being a luchador, being a hero and everything is akin to our quest to be the heroes the people deserve, as well as using all merchandising opportunities possible to enable us to spread that message of courage and optimism across the world?”
“Superhero is appropriate, I mean El Santo did fight werewolves.”
“And furthermore, the failure of the Lucha World Order, allowing Red White and Bruised to basically run the tag team shows in Mexico, disgracing the name of lucha libre across the world is fundamentally a symptom of their inability to take themselves seriously and realize they are in a professional environment amongst serious, real people who want to do their best to help the industry grow so it inspires as many people as possible?”
Teo looks back at Jenson, who surprised him with his well thought out comment full of clarity and purpose. He looks behind him to make sure that Jenson isn’t being controlled by a puppet or something, then just shrugs.
“Er, yeah.” He says in response.
“Cool bro, I still say you should never trust a man who wears a mask all the time, if you can’t eat then how the hell are you supposed to be trusted.”
Teo sighs in relief, his friend is still in there!
“Point well made, Jenson!”
The fact that Teo del Sol’s mask is displayed on many of the posters behind him notwithstanding, he moves on to the next exhibit.
“This one.” He points at a mask “is a genuine replica of a mask worn by Mil Mascaras!"
“Nothing more genuine than an officially branded replica by the 2gents my friend!”
“Exactly!”
“What was Mil Mascaras’s deal?”
“Well, he is 80 years old, he’s in multiple Hall of Fames, he’s basically the guy who took on El Santo’s role as the face of lucha and helped take Lucha global, making them a big thing outside of Mexico! He was pretty much the first lucha to show high flying moves in Japan and one of the classic luchas who never resorted to cheating, rule breaking or fighting without honor. Classic tenets of Lucha Libre!”
Jenson looks at Teo, his eyes vacant. Then looks back at the mask.
“So what you are saying bro is the whole point of being a luchador, as well as being a hero is being a good leader? Leading the community they’re a part of with honor and dignity. Rarely, if ever degrading themselves to the base instinct that lesser mortals have to cheat, take short cuts and rely on themselves and their talent to get ahead and win?
And that the LWO, who frequently utilize these tactics to try to win, but subsequently fail are basically insulting the art of lucha and the fact they call themselves a new Lucha order is fundamentally disgusting because they don’t represent anything that is lucha in any form whatsoever, so we need to put a stop to them as we are the defenders of the people, and these people include a large number of fans that are insulted by this fake lucha act?”
“You know, lad, I think you’re starting to get the hang of it. And of course we have here the man himself!”
Teo points to a large poster advertising a mask vs. mask showdown between villainous “Rudo” el Ojo del Serpiente and the man who was Teo’s mentor, the legendary Hector Habanero.
“You know, this was one of Hector’s final matches before he retired. At this point, he was near fifty, but you’d never know it from the poster. He unmasked his rival in front of the world, and ended their near ten long blood feud in the process!”
“So you’re saying we should unmask the LWO?”
“Oh no, I mean, certainly they are worthy of the shame, but to unmask a luchador is to take away his heart, his soul, his identity! It is not something you do lightly.”
“No?”
“You see, once a luchador puts his mask on, he becomes that persona. In public, in private, his identity is a closely guarded secret. To be a luchador is to dedicate yourself fully to your new persona, like putting on a new face! You have to become something greater than a man, with honor, willpower, and strength being everything that you embody!”
Teo’s enthusiasm is not lost on his partner, who seems to give his response a few moments to percolate in his head before responding.
“So what you’re saying is that Luchadors must dedicate themselves fully to the role, and make it into something that they can be proud of, and not say… a punchline in the Tag Team division that the Gents built who have only served to delegitimize lucha libre to the casual fan rather than acting as role models?”
“And that’s why the Lucha World Order does not have any spot in our G.O.W.O., Andre. Because they have done absolutely nothing to elevate the very sport they have named themselves after, they have co-opted its essence, its symbols, they have embodied the opposite of everything that Lucha Libre stands for! If they had spent five minutes in Habanero Hall, Hector would have thrown them through the front door and out into the streets!
We thought we were leaving the tag division in capable hands while we’ve been acting as caretakers of this Cruiserweight title!”
Teo slaps the gold around his shoulder for emphasis.
“But look at where the division finds itself! With these wannabe “Rudos” tainting the very name that was built on the blood, sweat, and tears of men like this, who disgrace the very name Lucha by claiming they represent a sport about which they have no true understanding, men who would easily rip the mask from El Santo’s face without hesitation because they have no belief in what a mask should mean!
That’s why this week, we’re going to give them a reminder of what Lucha Libre should be! Of what it can be! The Gents are going to show what hard work, passion, honor, and strength can accomplish! The real tenets of Lucha!”
Teo is breathing quite heavily, so his partner quickly places a hand on his shoulder, bringing Teo’s focus back quickly.
“I absolutely agree, and we’ll make them realize just what they have to sacrifice if they ever want to be real luchadors. But I have to ask, if you care this much about Lucha Libre, then people must be wondering why you never put the mask back on.”
Teo smiles, shaking his head at his partner, knowing Jenson knows the answer already, but likely just wants to hear it from Teo himself.
“Because Andre, even if I don’t wear the physical mask, I still believe in everything that mask stood for. I can still embody those beliefs as a Luchador or as a Gent.
And I can still demonstrate those beliefs to anyone who doubts it.”
Jenson nods, smiling at his partner jovially as the scene fades.
Teo is currently talking Jenson through his extensive collection of historical luchador posters and masks, which make up part of the display in the newly found Gentseum of Wrestling Oddities (G.O.W.O. [patent pending]).
Walking briskly along the tile, Teo points at a poster of El Santo.
“Now this guy, he was a big deal, one of the guys who pioneered lucha libre. One of the original Luchador heroes! The guy was legendary, and in true luchador fashion he took on the mantle of a hero and stood for the common man for pretty much 50 years.”
He looks at Jenson excitedly, who looks back at him, more in bemusement than excitement.
“OK.” Jenson says after minutes of consideration.
“OK? Is that all you can say! El Santo is a legend! A hero! An icon! He transcended the sport and was practically a superhero! Heck I think he was probably the first super hero in Mexico. Unlike our competition this Monday night, he deserves more than just an OK”
“I see.” Replies Jenson, causing Teo to briefly lower his eyebrows, “What you are saying then is being a luchador, being a hero and everything is akin to our quest to be the heroes the people deserve, as well as using all merchandising opportunities possible to enable us to spread that message of courage and optimism across the world?”
“Superhero is appropriate, I mean El Santo did fight werewolves.”
“And furthermore, the failure of the Lucha World Order, allowing Red White and Bruised to basically run the tag team shows in Mexico, disgracing the name of lucha libre across the world is fundamentally a symptom of their inability to take themselves seriously and realize they are in a professional environment amongst serious, real people who want to do their best to help the industry grow so it inspires as many people as possible?”
Teo looks back at Jenson, who surprised him with his well thought out comment full of clarity and purpose. He looks behind him to make sure that Jenson isn’t being controlled by a puppet or something, then just shrugs.
“Er, yeah.” He says in response.
“Cool bro, I still say you should never trust a man who wears a mask all the time, if you can’t eat then how the hell are you supposed to be trusted.”
Teo sighs in relief, his friend is still in there!
“Point well made, Jenson!”
The fact that Teo del Sol’s mask is displayed on many of the posters behind him notwithstanding, he moves on to the next exhibit.
“This one.” He points at a mask “is a genuine replica of a mask worn by Mil Mascaras!"
“Nothing more genuine than an officially branded replica by the 2gents my friend!”
“Exactly!”
“What was Mil Mascaras’s deal?”
“Well, he is 80 years old, he’s in multiple Hall of Fames, he’s basically the guy who took on El Santo’s role as the face of lucha and helped take Lucha global, making them a big thing outside of Mexico! He was pretty much the first lucha to show high flying moves in Japan and one of the classic luchas who never resorted to cheating, rule breaking or fighting without honor. Classic tenets of Lucha Libre!”
Jenson looks at Teo, his eyes vacant. Then looks back at the mask.
“So what you are saying bro is the whole point of being a luchador, as well as being a hero is being a good leader? Leading the community they’re a part of with honor and dignity. Rarely, if ever degrading themselves to the base instinct that lesser mortals have to cheat, take short cuts and rely on themselves and their talent to get ahead and win?
And that the LWO, who frequently utilize these tactics to try to win, but subsequently fail are basically insulting the art of lucha and the fact they call themselves a new Lucha order is fundamentally disgusting because they don’t represent anything that is lucha in any form whatsoever, so we need to put a stop to them as we are the defenders of the people, and these people include a large number of fans that are insulted by this fake lucha act?”
“You know, lad, I think you’re starting to get the hang of it. And of course we have here the man himself!”
Teo points to a large poster advertising a mask vs. mask showdown between villainous “Rudo” el Ojo del Serpiente and the man who was Teo’s mentor, the legendary Hector Habanero.
“You know, this was one of Hector’s final matches before he retired. At this point, he was near fifty, but you’d never know it from the poster. He unmasked his rival in front of the world, and ended their near ten long blood feud in the process!”
“So you’re saying we should unmask the LWO?”
“Oh no, I mean, certainly they are worthy of the shame, but to unmask a luchador is to take away his heart, his soul, his identity! It is not something you do lightly.”
“No?”
“You see, once a luchador puts his mask on, he becomes that persona. In public, in private, his identity is a closely guarded secret. To be a luchador is to dedicate yourself fully to your new persona, like putting on a new face! You have to become something greater than a man, with honor, willpower, and strength being everything that you embody!”
Teo’s enthusiasm is not lost on his partner, who seems to give his response a few moments to percolate in his head before responding.
“So what you’re saying is that Luchadors must dedicate themselves fully to the role, and make it into something that they can be proud of, and not say… a punchline in the Tag Team division that the Gents built who have only served to delegitimize lucha libre to the casual fan rather than acting as role models?”
“And that’s why the Lucha World Order does not have any spot in our G.O.W.O., Andre. Because they have done absolutely nothing to elevate the very sport they have named themselves after, they have co-opted its essence, its symbols, they have embodied the opposite of everything that Lucha Libre stands for! If they had spent five minutes in Habanero Hall, Hector would have thrown them through the front door and out into the streets!
We thought we were leaving the tag division in capable hands while we’ve been acting as caretakers of this Cruiserweight title!”
Teo slaps the gold around his shoulder for emphasis.
“But look at where the division finds itself! With these wannabe “Rudos” tainting the very name that was built on the blood, sweat, and tears of men like this, who disgrace the very name Lucha by claiming they represent a sport about which they have no true understanding, men who would easily rip the mask from El Santo’s face without hesitation because they have no belief in what a mask should mean!
That’s why this week, we’re going to give them a reminder of what Lucha Libre should be! Of what it can be! The Gents are going to show what hard work, passion, honor, and strength can accomplish! The real tenets of Lucha!”
Teo is breathing quite heavily, so his partner quickly places a hand on his shoulder, bringing Teo’s focus back quickly.
“I absolutely agree, and we’ll make them realize just what they have to sacrifice if they ever want to be real luchadors. But I have to ask, if you care this much about Lucha Libre, then people must be wondering why you never put the mask back on.”
Teo smiles, shaking his head at his partner, knowing Jenson knows the answer already, but likely just wants to hear it from Teo himself.
“Because Andre, even if I don’t wear the physical mask, I still believe in everything that mask stood for. I can still embody those beliefs as a Luchador or as a Gent.
And I can still demonstrate those beliefs to anyone who doubts it.”
Jenson nods, smiling at his partner jovially as the scene fades.
