Over Now and Then: Rey Mysterio and Rey Mysterio

I guess if I added the "Jr." to the first it would be easier to tell him apart from himself, but let's not get picky.

Rey Mysterio entered the WCW as part of a brilliant move on the part of Eric Bischoff. To populate mid-cards he went out and signed a whole lot of Lucha Libre wrestlers out of Mexico and independent American circuits. The acrobatics stood out against the larger, brute force wrestlers and kept people excited between the opening and main events. They carried heat with their signature moves, but also with themes based on cultural stereotypes surrounding wrestling tradition, customs, and the respect they carry.

You know what got Rey Mysterio over? Dude is tiny. Tiny, fan friendly, appreciative, and fearless. He had one gimmick that seemed to stick out: he held the tradition of anonymity behind the mask to be sacred. Others wore masks without question, some wrestled without, but Mysterio actively made the secret identity behind the mask a focus. WCW eventually used this storyline to unmask him after several bouts with Eddie Guerrero (who I would argue made the best transition into WCW mainstays).

The Rey Mysterio of the WWE is a different character: more fleshed out, but also devoid of the Cruiserweight limitations held within the WCW (though to be fair, Bischoff at least created a belt for them). This has caused Rey to have to adjust his in-ring technique to handle battling wrestlers outside of his size and style, but he's done it well. Whereas before, two luchadores could go full bore at each other in a multi-move bout of choreography, you can see Rey adjust his speed (often mid-move) to accommodate his opponents, go for more subtle maneuvers, and even depend on the "6-1-9" (tripping an opponent onto the second rope, then performing a spinning kick to their face) as a finisher instead of the Frankensteiner or the elaborate DDT seen above.

(Comically, when Rey does seem to find himself with little where else to go, you'll notice he'll kick his opponent in the face. It works in the context of the fight, but next time you see him wrestle, especially a larger opponent, count how many times he kicks the guy in the face while they're sitting up.)

Something else to consider in his re-branding. In the WCW, Rey was proud of his Mexican heritage, devoid of thuggish behavior or gimmicks, and incredibly respectful of all opponents. Meanwhile, a counterpart like Konnan maintained an urban culture persona and spoke Spanish to the crowd in call and response. It went over incredibly well. I shouted "la viva la raza" with no clue as to what it meant for most of the 90s.

Now, Mysterio identifies with the American are code "619," which not only carries a level of nationalism but also carries a connotation within hip-hop culture, representing one's native area. (I rep the 217 like nobody's business.) If you look at a character like John Cena, from his entrance music and popularity and ridiculous 5-Knuckle-Shuffle, it's clear that what was once considered incredibly edgy then is sorta a non-issue now.

I don't mean to harp on WCW errors, but it does make it hard to consider how popular Mysterio would have been if they ever opened up the weight classes legitimately like they do now. The relative sizes of their heat can't be compared on a one-to-one ratio, but his ability to connect to fans has kept him in the spotlight wherever he's been. He's undeniably one of the biggest wrestlers going.

Figuratively.

... dude's tiny.