Lucha Underground

Lucha Underground (originally Lucha: Uprising) was a professional wrestling based television series produced by One Three Media. The weekly television series aired on the El Rey Network, featuring professional wrestlers from Mexican wrestling promotion Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) as well as the American independent circuit.
The series premiered with its first season on October 29, 2014, that ran for 39 episodes. The second season of Lucha Underground started on January 27, 2016. Prior to the taping of the last Lucha Underground episode for season 2, it was announced that the show had been renewed for a third season which premiered on September 7, 2016. It was also revealed that episodes from the show would be available on iTunes for purchase. On February 1, 2017, it was announced that Lucha Underground had signed a deal with Netflix in the United States and Canada; the first two seasons of the series became available for streaming on the service on March 15, 2017. In November 2017, it was announced that Lucha Underground would return for a fourth season. Season 4 began taping February 23, 2018 and lasted until the end of March 2018 for all 20 episodes.
==History and broadcasting==
In January 2014, it was announced that producer Mark Burnett of One Three Media would be partnering with filmmaker Robert Rodriguez's El Rey Network to launch a weekly hour-long television show in the United States in the second half of the year; the show would be affiliated with Mexico's Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). In July 2014, the show was tentatively called Lucha: Uprising. In August 2014, the show was renamed as Lucha Underground, and it was announced that five AAA wrestlers would join the show, namely Blue Demon Jr., Sexy Star, Fénix, Drago, and Pentagón Jr. The show would be taped in front of a live audience in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, with the first taping being on September 6, 2014.
The series premiered on October 29, 2014, on the El Rey Network and airs on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. and in Spanish on November 1, 2014, on UniMás where it aired on Saturdays at 4:00 p.m. El Rey is available through cable and satellite television companies Comcast, Time Warner, Cox Communications, DirecTV, Bright House Networks, Dish Network, and Suddenlink Communications. Unlike other promotions, matches are typically shown in their entirety without commercials, with the exception of the Aztec Warfare matches, which last the entire length of the program. Video packages highlighting wrestlers or storylines, air throughout each broadcast as well as several interactions between either the wrestlers themselves or with storyline promoter Dario Cueto, who is portrayed as a heel.
Johnny Mundo won the main event of the series's debut episode on October 29, 2014. On January 7, 2015, Prince Puma was crowned the first Lucha Underground Champion when he won the Aztec Warfare match. On April 22, 2015, Angélico, Ivelisse, and Son of Havoc were crowned the first Lucha Underground Trios Champions when they won the Trios Tournament. On March 25, 2015, it was announced that Lucha Underground would be holding their first major event in early August 2015 entitled Ultima Lucha. Lucha Underground was represented in the 2015 Lucha Libre World Cup by wrestlers Johnny Mundo, Angélico, Alberto El Patrón, El Mesías (Mil Muertes), Brian Cage, and senior official Marty Elias as part of "Team TNA/Lucha Underground", "Team ROH/Lucha Underground", and "Team Rest of the World" as well as in the 2016 Lucha Libre World Cup by Johnny Mundo, Brian Cage, and Chavo Guerrero Jr. as "Team Lucha Underground".
On September 21, 2015, it was announced that Lucha Underground would be returning for a second season. The first tapings for season 2 took place on November 14/15, 2015, and began airing on January 27, 2016.
Prior to the taping of the last show for season 2, the producer announced to the cast that the show had been renewed for a third season after just airing one episode of the second season. El Rey made the official announcement on February 1, 2016.
In 2016, Lucha Underground held their first live event outside of the Temple called Austin Warfare at the Austin Music Hall in Austin, Texas, part of the 2016 South by Southwest Festival.
On November 10, 2017, it was announced that Lucha Underground was renewed for a fourth season set to premiere in 2018. Lucha Underground announced a co-promoted event with Impact Wrestling streaming on Twitch at WrestleCon during WrestleMania weekend in April 2018. During the co-promoted event with Impact, a commercial aired announcing that the fourth season would begin airing on June 13, 2018. 
==Championships==
*Lucha Underground Championship
*Gift Of The Gods Championship
*Lucha Underground Trios Championship
==Commentators==
Commentators 	Dates
Matt Striker & Vampiro	October 29, 2014 - November 7, 2018
==Reception==
Lucha Underground was well received by critics and fans. On IMDB, the first season received 9 out of 10. John Moore, from ProWrestling.net, praised the show for "[knowing] their identity and [weaving] together an amazing universe". Lucha Underground has also gained praise from media sites like Uproxx, which said Lucha Underground had two of the top ten matches of 2015. In 2015, the show was featured on ESPN's SportsCenter and won SoCal Uncensored's 2015 Southern California promotion of the year award, ending Pro Wrestling Guerrilla's 12 year streak of winning the award.
In comparison to WWE, Sports Illustrated described the promotion as "vastly different", with the show creating a "cinematic approach with supernatural elements and science fiction that also embeds wrestling psychology and storylines".
==International broadcasters==
In addition to being broadcast on El Rey Network in the United States, the show was broadcast internationally in the following countries.
Country 	Network
Canada 	TeleLatino
France 	La Chaine Action
Germany 	TNT Serie
Germany 	Tele 5
India 	DSport India
Japan 	Fighting TV Samurai
Southeast Asia	KIX
==See also==
*Alumni
==External links==
* Profile
* Facebook Page
Category:Asistencia Asesoría y Administración television programs
Category:Television programs