TNA – Review – Impact Wrestling – 20.09.2011

What better way to start a show off than to have Ric Flair swaggering towards the ring, glistening in one of his most elaborate robes. Sting, or should I say the Joker from Batman, shortly followed suit wearing an equally ornate pink sequined robe.

            I seem to recall Ken Anderson wearing similar attire when parodying the early 90’s version of the Stinger some weeks back. This made me wonder whether TNA knew what direction they were going in, as these two conflicting approaches to style, make the personality of the show seem schizophrenic.

            Despite the fact that his gimmick is a blatant rip off, Sting seems to have found a character in which he feels comfortable portraying, because his microphone skills have improved no end. The over the top wackiness has been toned down considerably and replaced with unstable aggression, which works much more effectively.

            The two of them agreed to face off against each other for the main event of the show. I was hooked, they had me in the palm of their hands, I wanted to see that match.

            TNA are really making Jeff Hardy pay for his little incident at Victory Road, and rightly so. I just watched the match again to freshen up my minds recollection of the occurrence, and it was just as big a car crash as I remember.

Throughout the show, Jeff apologizes to number of wrestlers who were affected by his drug fuelled episode, but no one accepts his apology. Instead, they inform him of how much of an idiot he was, how he could have potentially ruined TNA and subsequently taken food from the families of its employees.

TNA want to let you know that they are not taking this issue lightly. Ideally, Jeff should be banned from wrestling for life, but the problem is, he is too good a draw to ignore, he makes too much money to be banned, and he is very entertaining to watch.

8 Man Mixed Tag Team Match

Mexican America

Vs.

Pope D’angelo Dinero, Dvon, Tara, Miss Tessmacher

Although this match was quite fast and exciting, it was also way too busy and incoherent. There was simply too much going on and no sense of order, especially when the women got involved. Tessmacher and Tera sealed the victory over Mexican America via double pin.

4/10

            Karen Angel then rounds up all of the knockouts, and informs them about the queens qualifying matches. Very annoying section of the show, made even more irritating from the stupid little rat dog Mickie James was holding.

            AJ Styles introduces Robert Roode; the winner of the Bound For Glory series, and new number one contender to the heavyweight championship. Bobby joins the rest of Fortune in the centre of the ring, who each congratulate him on his victory. The most sincere congratulations came from his tag team partner James Storm, who despite being slightly jealous, meant every word he said, knowing there was no one more deserving in TNA.

            Kurt Angel gatecrashes the party, and with his new wealth of power, declares that each week one member of Fortune’s stable will face Robert Roode. His intentions being, to expose the secret bitterness and jealousy he assumes lies within their group of friends.

Angelina Love

Vs.

Velvet Sky

            Angelina Love, who seems to have more botox than face these days, isn‘t the spring chicken she used to be. Velvet Sky on the other hand, has still got what it takes to make me think about masturbation. I didn’t really pay much attention to the match because their tits and arses distracted me, but from what I gathered, it was an ongoing battle between Angelina’a weird face, and Velvet’s perfect arse.

Velvet Sky won due to the interference of Winter.

2/10

Somoa Joe

Vs.

Matt Morgan

            This was a good example of two big power wrestlers, using the varied array of weapons in their arsenal to good effect. Sometimes these types of matches can become boring very quickly, consisting of not much more than headlocks, big right hands and head butts. But these two wrestlers are unlike the majority of large athletes, they obviously love what they do, and do not rely on their size as a means of telling the in ring story.

            Somoa Joe won via submission.

Kazarian

Vs.

Robert Roode

The first of Kurt Angel’s truth exposing matches commenced.

With the pace of a stampede of gazelles, and a story that made Charles Dickens look like a schmuck, this match easily stole the show. A variety of fast, ground based, submissions, reversals and pin attempts, were exhibited to warm up the crowd. Some wrestlers refer to these move groupings as spots, for instance let’s do spot 1, which would be a specific combination. This isn’t to be confused with the preplanned high spots which a match is based around, and builds towards.

The speed of the match was at times difficult to keep up with, a commentators nightmare perhaps, but not in a negative way, in an on the edge of your seat way. They achieved this coherency, through constantly keeping the back story obvious and relevant.

     

I remember watching this match thinking, this is why I like wrestling, this is why wrestling is good, this is the ammunition I can use when somebody asks me why I like that fake, cheesy shit on the television. It is also the reason why TNA has so much more potential than WWE, if only they could manage to find some direction and personality, then the world would be their oyster.

Both Robert Roode and Kazarian are tremendous talents, and put on a master class for the world to see. Roode won after applying a cross face submission hold.

Taz: There goes two competitive natured athletes, who have a mutual respect for each other.

8.5/10

Jerry Lynn and Bully Ray then cut a promo hyping their match against Rob Van Dam and Ken Anderson. Jerry Lynn’s mic skills are non existent; he is fucking rubbish on the stick. However, he more than makes up for his lack of acting skills in the ring, and fully deserves the air time and exposure required to get him over with fans unfamiliar with him. I’m shocked TNA didn’t snap him up sooner, for he will bring a lot of class to the ring, and will draw more attention to the franchise.

IMPACT Main Event

Ric Flair

Vs.

Sting

            Something I noticed during the introductions to this match, which I found both surprising and hilarious, was that Earl Hebner got booed. I couldn’t decide whether the sound guys in post production got a bit a mixed up when they overlaid the blatantly fake crowd reactions, or if the fans simply don’t like dirty thieves. Baffling.

And now for two household names in the history of this industry we love and cherish; Ric Flair and Sting.

            It’s always a pleasure to watch Ric Flair wrestle, he’s still got it, there’s no doubt about that. He may be a little bit slower nowadays, but he’s still got the timing and ring psychology needed to entertain an audience.

           

Flair chop locks the Stinger’s knee from behind hoping to weaken it, and then follows up with his trademark figure four leg lock, eager to get a quick win, and the rest of the night off. But Sting is resilient and hangs on for dear life. In agony, he protects his pride. Flair gets a bit pissed off with Sting’s unwillingness to give up, and so waits until the referee’s back is turned to grab hold of the ropes, and apply a little bit of extra leverage. But it’s no use; Sting’s knee joints must be made out of titanium to withstand such pressure. And then to rub salt in the wound, the Stinger proceeds to reverse Flair’s maneuver into a figure four of his own. Thankfully, Flair is able to get to the ropes before his legs snapped off, because that would have been horrible.

But maybe Naitch should have given up while he still could, for Stings next order of business was to take him up to the top rope, and superplex the fuck out of him. Sting covers for the pin, and gets a four count, because slow as fuck Immortal were supposed to get to the ring a little bit sooner than they did, to break up the count. Once again, a badly organized TNA, jeopardizes the integrity of a match.

Immortal then puts a serious beating on Sting, which gives Flair the opportunity to get a cheap pin. If that referee counts to three, abiding by the match’s stipulation, Sting would be forced to retire. But in the true tradition of a heroic baby face, the Stinger somehow manages to muster up the courage to kick out at the last given millisecond. Sting starts to hulk up, and delivers a perfectly executed Stinger Splash, followed by his patented Scorpion Death Lock, followed by the 1, 2, 3.

            Now Sting finally has chance to get his hands on Hulk Hogan.

Good match.

8/10

Overall rating

7.5/10

WWE - Monday Night Raw – Review – 19.09.2011

Raw kicked off with an appearance from CM Punk, who judging by the pop he received, is especially over at the moment. He stepped into the ring, picked up a microphone, and proceeded to list the reasons why Cleveland Ohio has been so bad to him, which unsurprisingly appeared to annoy the audience. One thing he did mentioned that shocked me though, was how Bob Holly deliberately punched him in the eye with such impact, that he is still suffering from the repercussions - Bob Holly must be a cock. Anyway, he then transitioned into a rant about the all too familiar conspiracy against him, but thankfully his time was cut short by the reassuring sound of Triple H’s entrance music.

            I suddenly became aware of the comforting sound of Jim Ross’s announcing voice, and wondered why WWE opted in favour of Michael Cole for Night of Champions. That’s just something I’ve written down in my notes which isn’t relevant in the slightest. I should probably just delete it, but I’ve wrote this bit now, so I think I’ll leave it in.

            Triple H, gets a few matters of business out of the way by means of plugging the Hell in a Cell PPV, and announcing the triple threat hell in a cell match between John Cena, Alberto Del Rio, and surprise surprise, CM Punk. He then rather aggressively addresses Punk’s conspiracy theories, and threatens to go back to war with him, if the accusations continue. Punk explains that he no longer suspects Triple H, and instead points his judgmental finger at John Lauranitis (raspy bastard).

            Lauranitis must have had just about enough of Punk, because he strutted down to ring parading a microphone in his hand, demanding attention. He asserted his authority with a voice that sounded like it had been aggravated by long periods of cock sucking, and then fired CM Punk. Triple H immediately rectified the situation and calmly assured Punk that he wasn’t fired. Punk responded with a satirical wide smile and raised arms, gesturing a child like enthusiasm for being back on board. The crowd seem to respond well to this dry sense of humor, which is more than likely one of the key attributes to Punk’s success.

            The segment ends with Triple H showing his dominance over Laurinitus, and promising that someone was going to lose their job before the night was over.

8 Man Tag Team Match

Evan Bourne, Kofi Kingston, Sheamus, Justin Gabriel

Vs.

Christian, Wade Barrett, David Otunga, Michael McGillicutty

This match was really exciting; it had a fast pace, lots of quick tagging, and included a nice array of double team moves. Although Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston were the only two competitors to have wrestled the night before at Night of Champions, they both played dominant roles in this match. Things are starting to take off for Air Boom, and so their flow of their momentum and in ring presence, is probably higher on their list of priorities than rest.

Playing the part of the fiery baby face who comes to the aid of his heavily beaten partner, Sheamus got a surprisingly good pop and cleared the ring like a house on fire. He then built up to the finish using his standard series of moves, and decimates David Otunga with a harsh Celtic Cross (Crucifix Power Bomb), and gets the pin.

Good match, but way too short.

6/10

Alberto Del Rio

Vs.

John Morrison

            Del Rio must win this match. If he didn’t, it would weaken his reputation and subsequently be bad for business concerning the Hell in a Cell PPV. The match finishes inside 60 seconds, when Del Rio applies his cross arm bar submission move forcing Morrison to tap. This match was used to strengthen Rio, but in doing so weakened Morrison.

2/10

            In the centre of the ring, ranting irrelevantly and plugging his new film, was Raw’s special guest Hugh Jackman. I never thought I’d be happy to hear the shrieking “excuse me” of Vickie Guerrero, but I welcomed it with open arms over Jackman’s self indulgent speech.

Vickie and Ziggler entered the ring. I was tempted to fast forward through it, I couldn’t wait for it to end, but though I’d persevere and see what Fuckman had to offer. I’m so glad I did. I think Dolph Ziggler is my new favourite wrestler, not only is he one of the most talented workers the WWE has to offer, but his persona of an arrogant heel is hilarious. He reminds me of an even more sarcastic version of Mr. Perfect, which is a huge compliment considering Henning’s laundry list of accomplishments.

I’ve written down some of the particularly funny dialogue which transpired during this segment:

Jackman: Are you staring me down?

Ziggler: Are you hypnotized? Are you getting a little confused?

Jackman: You just insulted an entire city.

Ziggler: Not my problem.

Jackman: I love an underdog.

Ziggler: I bet you do.

The confident, half interested way in which Ziggler responds, suggests that he thinks Jackman’s conversation is below him. He is not giving Jackman his full attention because he doesn’t deserve it.

I hope Ziggler’s ridiculous responses communicate effectively on paper, but if they don’t, I’d highly recommend watching this segment on Youtube, or wherever you can find it.

I understand that the majority of this dialogue would have been scripted, but the way in which it was delivered was perfect, and I’m convinced that Ziggler improvised a few of those classic lines.

Jackman then arranges a match between Ziggler and Zack Ryder.

Sin Cara

Vs.

Sin Cara?

            This was a very strange match. Sin Cara’s opponent was slighter larger version of himself, who had the same array of moves and lucha style. The imposter gave the game away though, after executing certain moves in a slightly sloppier fashion, than that of the genuine perfectionist Sin Cara.

The match ended abruptly, leaving the audience confused, with question marks over what will happen next.

Jim Ross summed up the match perfectly:

There were two Sin Cara’s.

The question is why?

And which one is which?

            Jim Ross picked up a microphone, gave the new World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry his introductions, and awaited his arrival for the promised in ring interview. The majority of the crowd seemed indifferent as Henry walked towards the ring, but a select few still had that same look of disbelief on their faces.

Ross asked a few generic questions designed to boost the current storyline, to which Henry responded surprisingly well. He has clearly been working on his microphone skills, and played his role rather convincingly during this segment.

The interview had obviously been scripted, but did touch on some topics outside of the kayfabe world. Henry accused Jim Ross of asking Vince McMahon to fire him, for the reasons of under achieving and injury proneness. Henry has been a problem to the WWE for sometime, as he signed to a massive contract which would have cost a fortune to buy out. If not for that contractual dilemma, Henry would have been long gone, and so these issues spoken of are not far from the truth.  

He then pointed at Ross and said:

“You, and all the rest of these people, I will never forgive. You never supported me, and you never believed me”

I never supported, or believed in Henry’s potential as a wrestler, but that was because of a combination of two things. He didn’t do himself justice when given the opportunity to do so in the ring, and some of the storylines connected with him, stained his reputation for considerably longer than expected. I had given up on Mark Henry, his style didn’t appeal to me, and his microphone skills were non existent, as he was never given the chance to speak. Well, Mark Henry has upped his game, and I’m jumping on the band wagon, he has made a believer out of me.

            Henry then asks JR to apologies for the years of back stabbing and lack of faith. Ross hesitantly complies expecting that to be the end of it, but Henry gets even more angry and states

“I hate arse kissers”

Henry then proceeds to physically abuse good old Jim Ross, choking him by the collar of his shirt. Lawler tries to reason with World Champion, but his futile attempts to calm the situation do not succeed. But being the ex-pro that he is, Lawler throws a couple of haymakers to Henry’s face, but they merely daze the big man. Henry he retaliates with a severe looking head butt, followed up by a Worlds Strongest Slam; it was just too much for the King to handle.

This was a well executed section of Raw, one which successfully got Henry over as a vicious character.

Kelly Kelly & Eve Torres

Vs.

Beth Phoenix & Natalya Neidhart

Fast paced match. Kelly Kelly has got a nice arse. Kelly and Eve won.

2.5/10

Dolph Ziggler

Vs.

Zack Ryder

Zack Ryder has been making waves on the internet, with his memorable catch phrases, and general persona. The self declared internet champion’s fan base, seems to be spreading to the live audience and television screen. Though despite this rising amount of attention he is receiving, he will never be taken seriously. He is like a new Santino Morella, he is a comedy gimmick orientated wrestler. I am fond of Zack Ryder. His character is one to feel sorry for, and make fun of, and so easily lends itself to all kinds of audience.

The first move he used was a roll up pin, obviously not realizing that you have to wear an opponent down before winning a match. He tries the same move again shortly after, still unsuccessfully though. Pretty funny guy.

It was a decent match, with a nice pace, and varied array of moves. It was way too short, but that is to be expected on Raw; a program used predominantly used to build and promote future PPV events. Ryder won the match using his Zack Attack finishing move, fortunately for Ziggler, the title wasn’t on the line.

6.5/10

Main Event

John Cena & CM Punk

Vs.

The Miz & R-Truth

            A short backstage segment was shown before this match, where John Cena and CM Punk settled their differences and all that load of bollocks. CM Punk’s recent rise in popularity means that he is more of a face than a heel, but that ambiguity makes these kind of promos necessary. Cena actually made me laugh during this brief segment though.

            “Partners eh? Like the new Rock n’ Roll express” he said.

            The Miz and R-Truth cockily bounced towards the ring, singing the new version of Truth’s song entitled, You Suck. The fact that they have rehashed that old tired piece of crap, makes this version even more embarrassing. Imagine recommending professional wrestling to someone who has never seen it before, but the second they turn on their television, The Miz is right there in your face, vigorously strutting down the aisle, attempting to sum up a generation of hip-hop in two poorly interpreted dance moves, not even able to sing in time. I’d turn it straight off.

Both John Cena and CM Punk get a big pop from the crowd, which encourages the doctor of thuganomics to break kayfabe and crack a smile.

The match starts off surprisingly quickly, with Cena of all people instigating the pace. The match necessarily slows down, while The Miz and R-Truth prevent Cena from making a tag. Inevitably, Cena does eventually make that tag to CM Punk, who then takes it upon himself to act in a similar way to how Animal would out of the Legion of Doom, in that situation. CM Punk’s cleaning house her ladies and gentleman, OHHHHH WHAT A RUSH. Punk then warms the crowd with his series of build up moves, before sending that fucker Miz to sleep. 1, 2, 3.

Triple H interrupts their celebration to do two things. Congratulate John Cena and CM Punk on their victory, and fire The Miz and R-Truth. Hurray! They then get thrown out of the back door by a group of unruly superstars.

Overall Rating:

7/10

           

WWE - PPV Review - Night of Champions 2011

This years Night of Champions pay-per-view boasted a somewhat appealing line up of matches - CM Punk and Triple H being the main sell. The WWE championship match between John Cena and Alberto Del Rio, was the only real negative I could find on the entire card. You’re always going to get a John Cena match stinking up the airwaves, so the fact that this was the only obvious shitter, promised an eventful viewing.

Air Boom – Evan Bourne & Kofi Kingston (Champions)

Vs.

The Awesome Truth – Miz & R-Truth

The idea of a former WWE Champion curtain jerking a pay-per-view as part of a tag team with R-Truth, is a little bit unrealistic. But the main event slot, and both Championship slots, had already been filled. So what do you do with The Miz and R-Truth? You stick em in a tag team match against Air Boom (great name). Although it may not have overwhelmed The Miz with confidence, this opening match was certainly an entertaining way to kick thing off.

My attention suddenly switched from The Miz and onto the team of Air Boom. Evan Bourne and Kofi Kingston have gelled effortlessly, their tag team psychology is outstanding, and their double team moves are both innovative and perfectly timed. Usually, in the case of two singles wrestlers being thrown together in a team, both individuals try to steal the spotlight, and don’t seem to understand the definition of the word, but this is not the case with Air Boom. All of their spots had been well planned, neither wrestler dominated, old school tag team angles were incorporated and their level of athleticism cannot be matched.

The match ended rather unexpectedly when The Miz lost his temper with the referee resulting in a disqualification, and Air Boom’s retention of the straps. Judging by what happened later on in the PPV, The Miz’s lack of ability to control his temper, is next on his list of storylines.

8/10

Ted Dibiase (Intercontinental Champion)  

Vs.

Cody Rhodes

Next on the bill, was an Intercontinental Championship match between holder Ted Dibiase, and challenger Cody Rhodes.

Rhodes walked down the ramp wearing his fucking stupid face mask, and was greeted to thousands of bewildered faces. His gimmick confuses me; I can’t figure out whether I love it or hate it, it just seems so out of context with today’s modern ethos and techniques concerning getting over with the fans. If he is approaching the gimmick half in jest then I love it, because he is then satirically poking fun at the way business was done in 1980’s, and that’s funny. But if he is indeed taking it seriously, which I fear is the correct analysis, then I’m not a fan of it, and I can almost guarantee Dust Rhodes had a lot to do with it.

Champion Ted Dibiase strutted down to ring, accompanied by the gayest music I have ever heard in my life. What is he thinking? Now I’m not homophobic, but that music is just too gay, and Ted’s not doing himself any favours by using it.

These two guys are terrific workers; they put on a great show and honored the reputation of the Intercontinental belt by doing so. Being second generation grapplers, they have both had a massive advantage over most others, and so their in ring capabilities come as no shock. However, they are no longer receiving the same amount of attention as they were when they were part of the stable, Legacy. Because of this, they are hungrier competitors who feel the need to impress in order to get ahead, which makes for some well thought out matches. There is more urgency in their recent performances as singles, and less complacency. Good match.

8/10

            Christian then picked up a mic and informed the crowd that he wanted yet another rematch. Shamus, who is now known as the Great White, felt he deserved a shot at the title before Christian got another. After some quibbling, Shamus agreed to help attain Captain Charisma’s rematch; under the one condition that he was guaranteed to be the first challenger, should Christian win. Then Shamus booted him in the face, and that was that. I think this segment was used to keep the audience interested in these two wrestlers who weren’t scheduled to perform.

Fatal Four Way – United States Championship Match

Dolph Ziggler (Champion)

Vs.

John Morrision

Vs.

Alex Riley

Vs.

Jack Swagger

            The match began with a varied sequence of one on one standoffs, where the remaining two wrestlers not included, were either incapacitated, or out of the ring. This was a good way to kick things off and showcased the singles style attributes of each individual.

Morrison and Ziggler were clearly the most talented of the four, and complimented each others style effectively. We are all well aware of Morrison’s capabilities with his high flying athletic style, but who would have thought that annoying little Nicky from the Spirit Squad, would turn out to be such a good worker. Yeah that’s right, Ziggler has a dark past.

          

            The match worked well, incorporating different dynamics of pace and style. My personal highlight was a series of moves which innovatively used the turnbuckle and ring ropes, but most impressively, included all four athletes. Morrison’s precision and timing was key to this spot, and being the professional he is, rounded off the succession of moves making everyone (including Alex Riley) look good.

            Swagger gut wrench power bombed Morrison hoping to seal a victory, but Ziggler pushed him out of the way and stole his pin for the 1, 2, and 3. Hilarious cheap win victory.

8/10

WWE World Championship Match

Randy Orton (Champion)

Vs.

Mark Henry

A back story montage tries desperately hard to build Mark Henry as a credible opponent. But we all know he is just another victim for the viper, and the desperation shown in this video clip, only further justifies our theories.

            The challenger walks to the ring, looking enthusiastic and grateful to be included in such a prestigious match. Michael Cole blurted out a few good factoids about the worlds strongest man, which made forced me to momentarily dwell on the amount of attention Henry was receiving.

Orton’s entrance music was graciously greeted by a deafening crowd’s applause and overjoyed screams; he is bar far the most over wrestler in the WWE. The team of commentators further built Mark Henry’s credibility and chances of winning the belt, to the point where I actually became a mark for the match, and started believing them. Snap out of it Steve, that’s never going to happen.

 

            As expected, the match’s pace was relatively slow in comparison to the night’s predecessors. But give credit where credit is due, a lot of effort was being put into the match by both wrestlers. Orton was selling the fuck out of Henry’s limited arsenal of offense, and using his weight disadvantage as an effective part of the match’s story. Henry was sweating profusely, wrestling in a much smoother style than I was accustomed to. It all took me a bit by surprise; I was actually enjoying the match, and I didn’t expect to be.

            Not being the most athletically gifted of opponents, Henry has to rely on different techniques to sell his matches and aid his story. Somewhere along the line, he has realized the power of in ring emotion and facial expression as a means of strengthening a match, because by golly, he has mastered it. I was there with him, feeling his pain and years worth of frustration. And just as effectively, Orton won me over through what he didn’t do, he took a beating, and in doing so efficiently got Mark Henry over and his story of anguish.

            Orton is dazed, and goes for an RKO out of sheer desperation, but Henry pushes him over treating him like a piece of trash. He then quickly follows up with a World’s Strongest Slam, and pins for the 1, 2, 3. WHAT THE FUCK? MARK HENRY IS THE NEW WORLD CHAMPION.

            The camera scrolls around the shocked audience, who look as if they are having a really bad time, going through all kinds of emotions. They are legitimately angry at Mark Henry, in disbelief and fearful of his presence, not knowing whether to run or cry. They don’t know anything anymore. If Mark Henry can be the World Heavyweight Champion today, then what’s in store for tomorrow?

            “This is my moment, and I’m not sharing it with any of you.”

            The stunned crowd does not respond. Mark Henry has ruined their day. They hate Mark Henry.

8.5/10

Diva World Championship Match

Kelly Kelly (Champion)

Vs.

Beth Phoenix

Beth Phoenix had the opportunity to regain the Divas World Championship in her home town of Buffalo, New York. But after a dominant performance, using a wide variety of offense including a superplex and an arse spank, she couldn’t manage to seal the deal. Unfortunately for Beth, as she went for her patented Glam Slam, Kelly Kelly reversed the maneuver and rolled her up for the victory. Another unexpected outcome. Whatever will happen next?

6/10

WWE World Championship Match

Alberto Del Rio (Champion)

Vs.

John Cena

I was a little bit insulted by Michael Cole’s arrogant statement declaring that the WWE World Championship belt was the Holy Grail, subsequently shitting on every wrestler to ever hold the World Heavyweight Championship, and the entirety of the N.W.A legacy. It also diluted the impact of the Mark Henry match, which was both unnecessary and bad for business. The promo video that followed promoted same incentives, biasly swooning an easily influenced younger generation of wrestling fans. Wankers.

Anyway, the match starts with Alberto Del Rio having to walk to the ring because he couldn’t find the keys to his Ferrari. We then hear the ferocious sound of an engine, followed by the sighting of John Cena driving the very expensive looking rental.

The muscle bulging arms of Cena took initial control of the match by means of working a headlock; no surprise there then. A call and response chant of “Let’s go Cena” “Cena sucks” echoed around the arena, which further cemented his controversial role as WWE poster boy. Not at all disheartened by the affair, Cena joined in with the festivities cheering and smiling at the appropriate points. I imagine this chant will feature more prominently in his future endeavors.

The match was quite slow concentrating on holds and power moves, and wasn’t living up to all the hype the build up vignette suggested. In a way, through this boring arse match, that video made a mockery of the current state of the WWE Champion. They used to be good, but as you can see, that is no longer the case.

Out of nowhere, Cena started building for his finish, with his shoulder barges and the five knuckle shuffle etc. etc., but Del Rio didn’t give up that easily. I think I’d be tempted to just get it over and done with and let him pin me, it would stop the audience from falling asleep for a start.

Surprisingly, the pace of the match started to quicken. Del Rio then hit a very impressive jumping enziguri, whilst Cena was stood on the second rope. That was really unexpected. He then applied a beautiful looking German suplex, and held on for a bridged pin attempt. Del Rio was starting to win me over.

But before he could do that, the distraction of his ring announcer allowed Cena to apply an STF, and force the submission.

John Cena - ten time WWE Champion. Sickening.

6/10

Main Event – No Disqualification Match

HHH

Vs.

CM Punk

The promotional vignette which preceded this match included a lot of Kevin Nash footage, which more or less informed the audience that he would be making an appearance at some point. I really bought into this story line, which was the reason why I was looking forward to the match so much. HHH was pissed off. You can’t talk to the CEO of the fuckin board like that, don’t involve his wife CM Punk, don’t involve his fuckin wife. I marked the fuck up for this one.

            The match started at a brutal pace and didn’t look likely to slow down. They didn’t seem to want to use the ring, they just got down to business from the get go. Straight away, HHH threatened Punk with a pedigree through the commentary desk, but the wile cat that Punk is, managed to reverse the situation and certain defeat. 

            “It didn’t take long for this to get out of hand” said Jerry Lawler.

            The ring psychology used in this match was outstanding; Triple H just wanted to get it over with, relentlessly attempting pedigree after pedigree. The storyline fuelled the match’s aggression and pace, convincingly reinforcing their bad opinion of each other. 

            CM Punk back body dropped Triple H, over a wall close to the entrance curtain. The camera then focused on a smug looking CM Punk before scrolling towards the wounded Helmsley. CM Punk then continued his assault and launched two, what looked like sand bags, in the face of his opponent. This was very unusual, because they were debatably used to break the fall of Helmsley. Was CM Punk deliberately protesting against this overprotective approach? Or was it planned out to make people like myself talk about it? I think the latter.

All the excitement from the Cena match must have got the better of Michael Cole, because he had completely lost his voice for this one. This left Booker T colour commentating, and Jerry Lawler calling the match, which is a very unusual pairing. I enjoyed not having to hear Cole wine all the time, and it gave Booker T a good opportunity to show what he is capable of without constantly being interrupted. I think his hilarious form of commentary was effective during this match, and he brought up some valid points such as the possibility of Triple H’s lack of cardio due to six month hiatus.

Then came the high spot of the match. Triple H is sprawled out across the Spanish announcers table, CM Punk climbs to the top turnbuckle, launches himself through the air by way of flying elbow and lands hard across Helmsley’s torso. CM Punk appeared to be in in legitimate pain, but it was worth it, that move was the highlight of the entire match and will be remembered for a long time.

The Miz and R-Truth show up out of the blue and it’s just unnecessary, I could have done without it, and so could the match. Then they start beating up the ref to further generate ideas of Miz’s bad attitude. But why during this match? I don’t want him there, or R-Truth.

Then fuckin Laurinaitis comes down to say hello, voicing his redundant opinions with his unreasonably raspy vocal chords. This all gets the better of CM Punk and confuses him. The Game sees that his prey is wounded, so he pounces on it like the cerebral assassin he is and pedigrees the fuck out of him. But no ref to make the count thanks to team Awesome Truth.

A substitute referee runs towards the ring, but instead of making the count like he is trained to do, he supervises his injured college under the strict instruction of Laurinaitis.

CM Punk recoups, and sneakily takes advantage of a distracted Triple H via his GTS finisher. The referee saw reason to count this time around, but CM Punk’s finisher failed to do its job properly and only attained a two count. Then Punk gets pedigreed again, surely it all over, but no, he kicks out on a late two.

As suspected, Big Daddy Cool makes an appearance, trawling through the crowd to get to where the action is. He suddenly goes off on an incoherent rampage, and takes out both competitors, subsequently confusing everyone. He then proceeds to remove the monitors from the one remaining commentary desk with malicious intent, but….. a Triple H sledgehammer to the face stops him in his stride.

The Game resumes his attention on the task at hand, and once more, pedigrees CM Punk, only this time, he picks up a three count.

This was a good match, but it could have done without so many interruptions.

8.5/10

Overall Rating:

8/10

WWE - DVD Review - WWE Tagged Classics - The Rock

The People’s Champ

Just Bring It!

It was wrestlers such as The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mankind, and Kurt Angle, who made sure of a certain future for the WWE. Without these charismatic forces, WCW would probably be compiling DVD’s titled “The Rise and Fall of the WWF”. These kind of wrestlers were simply too good to miss. Why watch an ageing Hollywood Hulk Hogan drop a 2ft leg drop, when you could watch The Rock run his mouth sharing his love for poontang pie? Every single action made, whether it be in the ring, or out of it, was perfectly executed in correspondence to that specific character. With in ring performances that never failed to captivated an audience and original promo’s that still haven’t been bettered, these wrestlers will never be forgotten and are solely responsible for the outcome of the Monday Night Wars.

The competition of two rival companies brought out the best in both of them, but without this urgency and desperation of generating more ticket sales and higher television ratings, WWE will continue to swim in stagnant waters. Let’s hope TNA becomes a legitimate rival in the near future.

Disc 1

This disc contains a feature length documentary called The People’s Champ, celebrating the sheer brilliance of The Rock. Originally released in the year 2000, this presentation concentrates mainly on the 1999 era of The Rock, which debatably covers his best work. The feature flicks between interviews, behind the scenes footage, promotional events, match promos/angles and match highlights.

The interviews are used transitionally to help aid the story and to justify The Rock’s greatness. Michael Cole is questioned quite regularly for these interviews with his fashionably gelled hair and slickster image; he looks hilarious.

The behind the scenes footage includes book signings, life in Miami, a Pittsburg Pirates appearance and a visit to the Orange Bowl - the ground of the Miami Hurricanes football team.

The DVD is packed full of promo segments showcasing The Rocks ability to dominate the microphone which had me smiling from ear to ear like a big kid. The Rock and Sock Connection is covered and includes the This is Your Life segment which is uproarious.

The soundtrack to the feature is very unusual combining cheesy electronica with eighties style rock, which made me ponder how drastically musical acceptance within the media has changed in such a short space of time. Oh no wait a minute, this was 11 years ago!

The documentary has been quite predictably pieced together but with a superstar such as The Rock who has so many memorable moments to choose from, it isn’t that difficult to keep an audience entertained.  

At one point during the highlighted promo clips, I caught a glimpse of Rodney from the Mean Street Posse; I just started pissing myself at the sight of him, and hoped that one day, Vince will release a Best of the Posse DVD compilation.

With so much energy and passion accompanying his every move, I could quite happily watch The Rock go an entire match using nothing more than lefts and rights. He’s one of the few wrestlers that never fails to enthrall and never leaves a fan disappointed, no matter what he does.

            Running at just over an hour, The People’s Champ is a short but captivating presentation:

8/10

Disc 2

            Two years later, another video appeared on the shop shelves called Just Bring It!, using a similar biographical layout as the first. By this point The Rock had achieved super stardom status, reaching heights unimaginable in the wrestling world, whilst becoming an established Hollywood actor known worldwide. Unfortunately, his acting career plays quite a prominent role in this feature, with behind the scenes segments of both The Mummy Returns and The Scorpion King; bit boring really.

There are a few other differences between this documentary and the first. Interviews aren’t included in this one, the camera follows The Rock, allowing him to tell his own story and talk you through the behind the scenes tour. As mentioned previously, too much emphasis has been placed on his acting career; if I buy a wrestling DVD, I want to see wrestling. The match highlights go on for a bit too long; it is as if they have been used to lengthen the presentation - there is a definite rushed feel about this one. Also, I noticed that The Rock’s attitude is slightly less humble than it was two years ago in the previous DVD; he appears to be more serious and not quite as funny.

This is a great DVD and highly recommended, but it isn’t as good as The People’s Champ. I have concentrated on the negatives simply because the first DVD had very few, but don’t let it deter you from watching it, as there is still plenty of classic Rock one liners that will have you in stitches.

6/10

Overall Rating: 7/10

WWE - DVD Review - Royal Rumble 2011

This is a single disc presentation featuring the full PPV and two short special features which have been added for the sole reason of stating that special features have been included. The 40 man Royal Rumble match was really good with some well thought out spots, but the matches before it left a lot to be desired.

I’ve never been a fan of typical heavyweight title matches, they feel too predictable, slowly and blandly building up to the planned high spots, which are only interesting because the rest of the match has been so dull. Wrestlers that really stand out for their originality, like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold, Ric Flair, The Rock and Cactus Jack to name but a few, managed to bring something interesting to a title match, something unexpected. It seems like some wrestlers get lazy once they are over with the fans, using what works and giving nothing more. The reason for this rant is because of the two heavyweight title matches that preceded the forty man main event; I actually almost fell asleep during the Randy Orton vs. The Miz match.

Edge was a fantastic wrestler and has been part of some of my all time favorite matches, but this one was nothing special. Maybe it’s because I’m not emotionally attached to the master of the Zig Zag Dirk Ziggler, maybe it’s because Edge knew he was injured and was taking it easy, or maybe it was just a mediocre match which failed to tell an interesting story.

Vickie and the referee managed to get momentarily knocked unconscious, which allowed Edge to use his banned spear. After the referee had regained consciousness, Edge continued his assault on Ziggler using Christian’s finishing move the Killswitch, before pinning Dirk for the 1, 2, 3.

5/10

The Miz and Orton match was terrible; the only interesting aspect worth noting was CM Punks involvement which led to a Miz victory.

3/10

           

Just before the Diva fatal four way, Jerry Lawler summed the match up by saying “You know I haven’t really been looking forward to this”. Although, there was actually more action in this Diva championship match than in both of the heavyweight title bouts. It just shows what a state the WWE is in at the minute. Eve regains the WWE Diva championship belt.

5/10

However, the Royal Rumble match was really good; there were a few too many gimmicky sections though, especially when Hornswoggle teamed with Cena and beat the crap out Tyson Kidd and Heath Slater - good luck building any credible story lines around those two again.

I’m focusing on the negatives a bit too much, there was a lot of creativity and effort put into some of the spots during this main event. John Morrison for instance; that guy must have balls the size of grapefruits to put his reputation on the line with such a daring stunt. Morrison was left standing on the apron of the ring, on the wrong side of the ropes, he then got drop kicked onto the outside; he’s been eliminated I’m thinking, but no, not this crafty character. I don’t know too much about parkour and so I’m guessing it was a cat leap, but whatever it was, he managed to grip the padded rail and prevented himself from touching the ground. He then climbed up onto the top of the rail and jumped onto the metal ring entrance steps, then casually climbed back in the ring, and carried on wrestling. Fantastic, definitely the high point of the Royal Rumble for me.

Other points worth noting are, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan going at it being entrants one and two, Chavo Guerreo making good use of his Uncles patented three amigo’s series of suplexes, JTG being shit, William Regal bringing some good old fashioned Brit fury, Santino Marella pulling a Doink, a slow and sluggish business minded Diesel making a brief appearance, and Alberto Del Rio winning - which was a nice surprise although he made it quite obvious with regards to his elaborate ring entrance.

A really good Royal Rumble – 8.5/10

Overall Rating 7/10 – it should probably be lower because of the shit matches before the main event, but the Royal Rumble was really impressive and is the match people want to see at this PPV.

WWE - DVD Review - The True Story of Wrestlemania - 3 Disc Set

This three DVD collection consists of a feature length documentary on disc one, with discs two and three compiling 11 classic matches. The bouts included on the second and third discs are quite predictable, but when grouping a “best of” Wrestlemania collection, certain choices are unavoidable.

Disc 1 

The documentary is actually very good, and while I didn’t really learn anything new, the film has been pieced together quite nicely making it an entertaining watch. It does unfortunately contain some reused footage from previous releases but this was at no determent to the finished product.

           

The film starts off by explaining how Vince eventually bought out territorial wrestling forcing most wrestlers to work with him at New York, subsequently leaving the remaining companies in financial peril. The film then flows quite fluently through Wrestlemania 1 – 26, concentrating mostly on the first 3. It seems like quite a lot of effort has been put into this documentary, unlike some other biographical superstar releases that seemed to have been rushed.

Here are some interesting facts I noted down that I thought might be interesting to read.

Wrestlemania 1, which was hosted in Madison Square Garden, was a make or break event. Due to the sheer amount of money spent preparing this wrestling extravaganza, Vince could have quite easily lost his company if Mania 1 proved unsuccessful. An idea known as closed circuit television, which is basically a primitive version of the PPV hosted in theatres, sold over a million tickets and helped recoup the financial gamble. Celebrity involvement played a huge promotional role in the event and forced wrestling purists to frown upon its lack of integrity.

“NWA was sports, WWF was entertainment”.

I thought Wrestlemania 1 was a bit shitty; I don’t want to see Mr.T trying to wrestle.

            Three different cities shared Wrestlemania 2 (the whore that she is), each one hosting an hours worth of live stadium wrestling and two hours worth of live televised wrestling. So you basically had to pay the full ticket price but you only actually saw one third of it happening in front of you. Clever Vince; he must have made a fortune on that one. New York had the first hour, Chicago had the second and Los Angeles hosted the third. Closed circuit television was still in effect at this point.

Still a bit of a shitty Mania in my opinion.

            Wrestlemania 3 used a combination of closed circuit television and PPV. This is where things started to change with the obvious factor being Macho Man Randy Savage and Ricky the Dragon Steamboat proving that you don’t have to be huge to steal the show. This match really changed the face of wrestling and encouraged a lot of the wrestlers we watch today to follow their dreams.

That match was immense, but there was a lot of shit too.

They sold 93173 tickets

            Wrestlemania 4 joined forces with Donald Trump and was hosted at the Trump Plaza in Las Vegas (trying to get the kids into gambling). This was the first Wrestlemania to be exclusively PPV. I bought this one when I was a kid on double VHS, it cost something like £24.99, bit of a waste of money really.

            Wrestlemania 5 revisited the Trump Plaza and is subsequently the first and only Mania to be hosted consecutively at the same ground. Curt Henning vs. the Blue Blazer, Macho Man vs. Hulk Hogan.

            Wrestlemania 6 was hosted at the Sky Dome in Toronto which meant Mania had gone international for the first time. I’m a stickler for the main event on this card because I remember it well. The Hulkster vs. Ultimate Warrior was a meat head sted fest really, but it brought a tear to my eye when the Real American lost the strap. 

            The documentary pays most attention to the first three Mania’s, but does cram as much information in as possible about the rest. I’d recommend this nostalgic DVD collection, I had a good time watching it and found myself yearning for some more of the spectacular, over the top, cocaine driven 1980’s wrestling that I used to watch as a child.

8/10

Disc 2

 Hulk Hogan & Mr. T vs. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper & Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff
WrestleMania, 31st March, 1985

WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Randy 'Macho Man' Savage vs. Ricky 'the Dragon' Steamboat
WrestleMania III, 29th March, 1987

WWE Championship Match
Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant
WrestleMania III, 29th March, 1987

Retirement Match
The Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy 'Macho Man' Savage
WrestleMania VII, 24th March, 1991

Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels
WrestleMania X, 20th March, 1994

Disc 3

WWE Championship Match
Shawn Michaels vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin
WrestleMania XIV, 29th March, 1998

WWE Tag Team Championship – Triangle Ladder Match
The Hardy Boyz vs. The Dudley Boyz vs. Edge / Christian
WrestleMania 2000, 2nd April, 2000

Street Fight
Shane McMahon vs. Vince McMahon
WrestleMania X-Seven, 1st April, 2001

The Rock vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan
WrestleMania X-8, 17th March, 2002

WWE Championship Match
Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar
WrestleMania XIX, 30th March, 2003

WWE Championship Match
John Cena vs. Triple H
WrestleMania 22, 2nd April, 2006

Matches: 7/10

They missed out a few too many classics for my liking

WWE - DVD Review - Ricky Steamboat: The Life Story of the Dragon - 3 DVD Set

This collection consists of 3 action packed Ricky the Dragon Steamboat DVD’s. DVD 1 contains the standard feature length documentary plus various “Steamer” vignettes, while discs two and three chronologically take you through the career of the Dragon.

Wrestlers such as the Dragon were the workers that made some of those mid eighties shows watchable and unpredictable. Getting through the Ken Patera and Iron Sheik matches were made much easier knowing that there was a great spectacle just around the corner from the likes of the Steamer. I admire WWE’s decision to release this compilation of Steamboat’s matches as he isn’t an obvious choice, and they could have quite easily repackaged some more Hogan matches or someone else who was a bigger eighties idol. So now, thanks to the powers that be, everyone who is unfamiliar with the work of this legend and Hall of Fame veteran, can see just how good he was and how a story should be told in the ring.

DVD one has been compiled using the typical WWE formulae that is used for every documentary, and like many others I own, it seems slightly rushed. Lazy audio transitions forced me to look out for any other mistakes that might reinforce my immediate opinion concerning the production of this feature. But happily I didn’t find any, probably due to the fact that I was so enthralled in all the action and stories being thrown at me about one of my childhood heroes.

I am a big Ricky the Dragon Steamboat fan and so I know a considerable amount of his history but there were facts I didn’t know included in this feature and stories I hadn’t heard. The documentary takes you through most of the territories Steamboat has worked for throughout his career, although doesn’t discuss or show any footage from his days in Japan due to the fact that WWE doesn’t own the rights.

I really enjoyed the documentary and to tell you any more would be giving away the story, so please do yourself a favour and buy this DVD collection and relive some of this legends finest moments.

Warning: Steamboat is very old school and so kayfabe plays a role in this documentary.

DVD 2

NWA World Tag Team Championship Match
Jack & Gerry Brisco vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Jay Youngblood
Starrcade November 24, 1983

Here we see some of Ricky’s work with Jay Youngblood. I wasn’t alive when this match aired and never paid too much attention to Jay Youngblood after I was born because of his stupid massive hat but after listening to the documentary sing this teams praises I became interested.

You know what, the Brisco brothers were fantastic as a team and gelled perfectly working with the combo of Steamboat and Big Hat Youngblood in this solid match.

8/10

 
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. “Nature Boy” Ric Flair
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match

Boogie Jam March 17, 1984
(Commentary by: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Matt Striker)

This hour long match is brilliant but please don’t be put off when I tell you that it works a headlock angle for the majority of it. Haha, I always complain when a match doesn’t set a relatively exciting tempo from the get go, but Steamboat and Flair show me that my opinion is flawed during this battle between two cardio machines.

The headlock frustrated me to the point where I really wanted it to broken and before I knew it I was a mark for the match ….and then I understood the purpose of the angle.

These two guys had an hour to tell a story, a lot can wrong in an hour if the story starts to become incoherent, an audience can get bored in an hour if the story doesn’t change pace, but after this match finished I wanted to watch it again straight away.

The commentary is hilarious because Steamboat is kayfabe while Striker is trying to shoot.

9/10   

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Cowboy Bob Orton
Capital Centre July 20, 1985

This is a solid match and another fine example of Steamboat’s work. Orton is an interesting character to face as his style is slightly more old school than that of Steamboat’s and so the pair make for an exciting encounter.

7/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. The Magnificent Don Muraco
Lumberjack Match
Maple Leaf Gardens September 22, 1985

I thought this was an unusual choice to include on a “best of” collection, especially because I don’t like Don Muraco. When someone mentions the name Don Muraco and includes the word match in the same sentence, I immediately think about sticking pins in my eyes. I thought it might have been a joke and WWE was just having a bit of a laugh at the expense of the magnificent one, but Steamboat surprised me by talking about how much he enjoyed his matches with Don. Haha.

Apart from the fact that it’s a lumberjack match, it is actually quite good. Don Muraco impressed me with his work rate and ability to hang with the Steamer.

7/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Boston Garden August 9, 1986

Very cool match. This must have been before all the crack cocaine because Jake was in great shape and really impressive. Very nice snappy pace to the match with a nice array moves on display.

Jake really did have something special, the way in which he so easily manipulated an audience with the most subtle of movements; incredible.

9/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage

Intercontinental Championship Match
WrestleMania III March 29, 1987
(Alternate Commentary by: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Matt Striker)

I don’t need to tell you anything about this match. Perfect.

10/10

DVD 3

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. “Nature Boy” Ric Flair

 NWA World Tag Team Championship Match
Jack & Gerry Brisco vs. Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Jay Youngblood
Starrcade November 24, 1983

NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs “Nature Boy” Ric Flair
Boogie Jam March 17, 1984
(Commentary by: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Matt Striker)

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Cowboy Bob Orton
Capital Centre July 20, 1985

Lumberjack Match
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. The Magnificent Don Muraco
Maple Leaf Gardens September 22, 1985

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
Boston Garden August 9, 1986

Intercontinental Championship Match
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage
WrestleMania III March 29, 1987
(Alternate Commentary by: Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Matt Striker)

2 out of 3 Falls Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Clash of the Champions VI April 2, 1989

The duration of this match is almost as long as the first and so a good story has to be told, but unlike the match on DVD 1 this match has a stipulation which sets a comfortable foundation for the story tellers. This match is obviously split into three and so I see it as three different stories with three different angles. It is much quicker with moves being delivered in quick succession and cardio limits being tested throughout.

I’m very happy that these two contrasting Flair matches have been included as we get to see how versatile both athletes were in this era.

9/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Lex Luger

United States Championship Match
The Great American Bash July 23, 1989

This match surprised me. Much like Don Muraco I view Lex Luger very negatively, but in 1989 for WCW he looked like an excited child ready to take on the world. Lex was obviously still quite green at this stage but he seemed to listen to Steamboat’s instructions effectively and put on a good show. Ricky Steamboat is a very talented man who could make anyone look good in the ring but Lex seemed very capable, I wonder what happened.

The funniest bit of this match was during Lex’s entrance when he tried kick starting the machine that was turning him around after it broke. He was trying so desperately to keep his composure hoping that the machine would start working again.

7/10

 
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat & Dustin Rhodes vs. Arn Anderson & Larry Zbyzsko
WCW World Tag Team Championship Match
Clash of the Champions XVII November 19, 1991

Dustin Rhodes’ partner Barry Windham declares he is injured and not physically capable of wrestling. Rhodes informs the audience that he has found a temporary replacement for the tag team championship match and looks at the curtain. The crowd wait patiently biting their nails eager to see who might accompany Rhodes to challenge AA and Larry Zbyzsko. This mystery partner’s music begins to play………….and out steps……..a crocodile haha. The mask Ricky is wearing is actually supposed to represent a Dalang Dragon (a very big lizard) but it fails to be anything else other than ridiculous. Dustin Rhodes reveals who is indeed underneath this catastrophe of a mask, which is followed by the crowd going wild upon realisation. The match is very good.

8/10   

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Rick Rude

Iron Man Challenge Match
Beach Blast June 20, 1992

This is one of the best matches on the DVD set, and I have to say, because I have seen the Mania 3 match so many times, this encounter against Rick Rude is my current favourite Steamboat match. This Iron Man challenge last for 30 minutes but should have lasted for longer; neither performer missed a beat. Both men have an obvious passion for their line of work and it would appear they want everyone to know about it. These two perfectionists must have walked away from the ring feeling very pleased with themselves knowing that they are exceptional at what they do.

9.5/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Steve Austin

No Disqualification Match for the WCW World Television Championship
Clash of the Champions XX September 2, 1992
(Alternate Commentary by: Ricky Steamboat & Matt Striker)

The veteran against the hungry student……actually Austin is probably very close to his working prime at this stage….. I should have said the veteran against the younger guy in his mid twenties, but that doesn’t have the same ring to it.

Like the majority of Steamboat matches, this one is faultless and has a nice fast pace combined with a delightfully wide array of work on display. What has surprised me the most whilst watching this collection is that Ricky doesn’t seem like he’s ever ready to slow down. I expected to see a gradual decline in his fitness and in ring ability but this match is just as good as the rest.

8/10

Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. Chris Jericho
Backlash April 26, 2009

Jericho viewed this match quite negatively during the documentary but I couldn’t find all that much wrong with it. Considering the heavy potential of ring rust and the fact that this was his first singles match since 1994, I thought that Ricky Steamboat put on a great show against YTJ. There are moments of uncertainty but these instances are few and far between and barely noticeable.

After watching this match, I am fairly confident that Ricky Steamboat could quite easily have another run in the WWE.

7/10

Overall rating: 8.5/10