2. Rey Mysterio
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8SPSPJgq9U The smallest of the cruiserweights, as soon as Mysterio appeared on U.S. TV sets he won everyone over with his unmatched aerial ability at the time. Stellar performances against Dean Malenko helped catapult Mysterio into one of the top stars in the cruiserweight division and WCW in general. Having been born in the States and speaking fluent English gave Mysterio an edge over other luchadores who couldn't make the same connection with the fans that Mysterio made. His underdog disposition, even among the cruiserweights, was a key factor in his matches as he seemingly overcame the odds to pull off the impossible. Despite being extremely over with the fans, especially the younger ones, his penchant for colorful costumes and masks, Mysterio wasn't the merchandising cash cow he could've been thanks to Eric Bischoff's reasoning that Mysterio would do better without a mask. Mexican tradition be damned. Apparently, Bischoff felt baby-faced Rey Mysterio would be better off as some kind of pint-sized heartthrob. He wasn't. He simply became a
"ghetto" little devil. Yet, before becoming a Filthy Animal, Mysterio's feuds with Malenko, Eddie Guerrero, and Chris Jericho were what made most Monday Nitros worth watching, considering the majority of the main events were going to end in run-ins and DQ's. One of Mysterio's crowning moments was his overwhelming (in a very good way), off-the-charts opening bout at
Halloween Havoc against Eddie Guerrero. A Match-of-theYear winner that not only had the Cruiserweight Title on the line, but Mysterio's mask as well, which was a big deal since this was before Bischoff decided to do away with all of the top luchadores' mask. Upon entering the WWE Mysterio was a little bulkier, but still exciting crowds with his aerial moveset. While his matches weren't as daring as his previous ones in WCW, Mysterio was able to make the transition into the WWE almost seamlessly. The WWE machine was smart enough to milk the hell out of Mysterio's mask and attire via merchandising and get all the little kiddies to jump on the bandwagon. Mysterio was active in the cruiserweight division while there as well, but it was also in WWE that Mysterio was able to break out into an even bigger star and eventually capture 2 World Titles and 1 WWE Title, despite having horribly-booked and short title reigns. Still, Mysterio has remained a top player and go-to worker over the years. He might've slowed down some over the years, but doing crazy moves off the top rope will do that to you. Perhaps it's time Mysterio passes down the torch to... Hunico? Anybody but Sin Cara at this point.