DVD Review: The Best PPV Matches of 2012

Buy it here for £19.99

Review:

Everything about this DVD appeals to me from the beautiful cover art that is designed to look like olde time fight posters to the lovely presentation, but mostly for the match selection. 2012 was a fantastic year for in-ring action for WWE so they were spoilt for choice when selecting which of it’s numerous PPV matches should go on this generous DVD set.

The helpful thing about this is that it genuinely includes all the best matches of last year so for the princely sum of a twenty pound note, you can bypass buying full PPV DVDs and just have the pick of the litter in one release. Of course, if you collected all the WWE DVDs then you can save twenty quid by not buying this as you already own all the footage. It’s the best of both worlds.

I own the best of 2009/10 on DVD and watch it with regularity although I do find myself skipping a match or two. I own The Best of 2011 on Blu-Ray and it is one of my most viewed Blu-Ray discs. So I have no hesitation in owning this on Blu Ray even though I have the DVD Review discs because I know I will wath it time and again, and I feel that this is the way most people will treat it too. As always, if ou have the means to play BR then invest an extra £4 and have the few extra matches, interviews and superior video and audio. Although if you are still in the DVD age, there are no complaints there either. This set is stacked and it looks wonderful.

This is presented in chronological order which is good because the world of the WWE moves so quickly that it helps form a sense of narrative which wouldn’t be possible if it was in a random order. We begin with a storyline based match which is really quite excellent as WWE Champion CM Punk takes on Dolph Ziggler with Johnny Ace as guest referee. Then we get the absolutely scorching Smackdown Elimination Chamber followed by WWE’s Match of the Year from Wrestlemania 28 (Undertaker vs HHH with HBK as guest ref). We’re three matches deep in a 3 DVD set and you need a break, the action is incredible and it’s hard to understand where they can go from here. Thankfully they continue in high style and it never really lets up as we go onto disc two.

I do enjoy the little segues by Scott Stanford that (although short) help to jog your memory as to what led to a match and what was going on at the time. It also helps to give a breather between the matches as it’s too much as a thing when you go from one match on one show into another a month later with no respite. It’s paced very well.

The next match is the Rock/Cena encounter from WM28 which was another MOTY candidate on WWE.com. To give us both of the marquee matches from the biggest event of the year, back-to-back really puts into perspective just how voluminous this set is. We rather bizarrely get Layla vs Beth Phoenix which isn’t a best match of 2012, but it’s nice to see the divas represented and in terms of Divas matches, it is one of the better ones. It shows that the loss of Beth Phoenix has been a blow to the Women’s division.

Lucha Review’s blue-eyed boy Cody Rhodes is against Christian next in an excellent bout from No Way Out in June. I’m really pleased that every facet of WWE’s roster is represented on this release as the marquee matches are genuinely world class but are so easily remembered, it’s within these excellent mid-card scorchers that the point of the set is really brought to the forefront. It’s the workhorses that prop up the main event, who may in turn be headliners themselves in a few years that make WWE so thrilling. Watching them progress will mean that in a few years when you rewatch this set, you will see the start of what made them big (in Cody Rhodes) and the talent that mainstays like Christian had in making people look good on their ascent.

They use the next segue to explain the Summer of AJ Lee, where she was in the thick of everything, from love triangles to moderate mental illness and it needs explaining as it’s difficult to remember every single thing she did in those few months. It’s also a very clever tease (as I pointed out on my Money in the Bank review) because she referees the match between her two love interests, Daniel Bryan and CM Punk, which begged the question “Who will AJ side with?” and then she absolutely calls it down the middle to the surprise of everyone and to the benefit of the brilliant match.

Onto the final disc and it begins with an introduction to the animalistic Brock Lesnar which in turn leads to his encounter at Summerslam with Triple H. For my money, his match with John Cena was a lot better and should have been the one included to showcase the Minnesotan Monster. It’s also amusing to hear that WWE have sweetened the sound at the end, long gone are the “Na na na, Goodbye”‘s and the “You Tapped Out”‘s that actually met Triple H’s attempt at a Legend’s pop post-match and instead we hear cheers. The match was ok, but I found it rather boring, Lesnar won though, which was important after his loss in his comeback via John Cena.

I skipped the next match, not because I didn’t enjoy it, I did. But because I only reviewed Night of Champions two days ago, so it is fresh in  my mind. It is Dolph Ziggler vs Randy Orton. In a match without a title at the PPV famed for it’s Championship defences. Oh well, it’s a fine match that showcases each man beautifully. It wasn’t the best match of that pay per view, but it was good so I can’t quibble it’s inclusion.

Next up is the best match of that Pay Per View as Cena faces World Champ CM Punk in a match that is fantastic, innovative and has a very clever ending. I sat and watched this despite only seeing it 48 hours previously as it really is that good. The last match is Big Show taking on World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus at Hell in a Cell in October. A decent inclusion since the two men have fantastic chemistry but that’s when it all goes awry.

We’re done. What? It’s October and we’re finished? What about Survivor Series? What about TLC? They either didn’t exist or weren’t worthy of inclusion, I guess. But since they did and they were I can assume but one thing… in a mad rush to get this released they started production before the end of the year. How can it be a best of 2012 when two important months are missing? It’s a complete disgrace. An absolute scorcher of a DVD set, on par to get a solid 9 out of 10 from me has dropped points because it is incomplete. Ridiculous.

7/10

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DVD Review: nWo: The Revolution DVD (3 Discs)

Buy it here for £17.99

Also available on Blu-Ray here for £22.99

Review:

World Championship Wrestling was my promotion. I loved WCW so much. The cruiserweight division still gives me chills, the midcarders had proper storylines, the belts were important and for the most part the characters were minimal, whereas in WWF at the same time there were cartoon gimmicks and storylines that belonged on the Ark. WCW was fantastic, and had the Monday Night Wars ended differently, I honestly believe that there’d be “Can you believe this happened?” type pictorials and DVDs about mid-90s WWF. As it turned out WCW is now the by-word for bad ideas and terrible booking. This is very unfair.

WCW dragged WWF kicking and screaming out of the cartoon era and forced them to adopt the much loved Attitude Era. Because behind WCW and ECW, WWF looked like an embarrassing parent. WCW was cool, WCW was the wrestling fans choice in promotion. It all went horribly wrong, but for most of the 1990s, WCW was the best wrestling promotion in North America and I adored it.

The best idea changed wrestling in America as we knew it and as we know it now. Yes the nWo was a rip off of a Japanese idea, which is why I specified the country. You can’t explain to someone who wasn’t there just how exciting the outsiders invasion was. Nobody can understand that Hulk Hogan turning heel was monumental. You cannot give examples of what it would be like. Even John Cena turning heel wouldn’t be the same because now we expect it will happen in some way, we NEVER thought Hogan could turn on his Hulkamaniacs. It was a different time, a different experience. You expect heel turns now because of the nWo, that’s their lasting legacy. You can never truly trust anybody.

This documentary is good, but it is a re-edited version of the ‘Back in Black’ release. However, it has been re-spliced with new talking head footage and it is perhaps within this new material that the most insightful views lie. Mr Perfect’s son Joe Hennig (WWE’s Michael McGillicutty) and Dusty Rhodes’ son Cody Rhodes offer behind the scenes viewpoints, but from their childhood recollections and it is fascinating. Hennig mentions the effect that the nWo had on his schoolmates as they renamed their School Team “Too Sweet” as an homage to the renegade group’s famous catchphrase and how he was popular because his daddy was a member. How they were kayfabed (kept thinking the storylines were real) by their Fathers and ‘Uncles’ so they’d spread the word to their friends at school to make the nWo invasion seem dangerous.

But, the star of the show here is Cody. As any regular reader of my site knows, I think Cody Rhodes is the most interesting man in the world. I want to hear his opinions on everything. He tells such funny and naive stories of being backstage or watching at home (he was between 10 and 13 during the nWo run) as well as such truthful insight and opinions on what WCW actually meant and felt like at that time. He says perhaps the most poignant thing of all when he mentions how people who weren’t there can’t possibly understand how it felt, which is a drum I have been banging for many years. He was a fan of the product as well as being the Son of a performer and he speaks about WCW with such misty-eyed fondness that you know it is to his eternal regret that he never had chance to join that roster. He’s a Southern boy, a proper NWA territories wrestling fan and I love to hear what he has to say and value his opinion massively.

There are other new opinions, from the unbelievably slimy Matt Striker with his sickening sincerity. He’s probably being honest but he’s got such a terrible way of expressing himself that he makes my skin crawl. He sort of sugar-coats and ponders over the tiniest minutiae that I can’t help but feel that he is auditioning for a job as an analyst for future releases. Such insincere sincerity. I find it difficult to watch him. Which is a shame since he seems to know his stuff.

Cody Rhodes opining. The best thing about recent WWE releases.

Other people offer their penneth but it is mostly rehashed from the 2002 release. Sting is put over massively and again it is within the footage and narration of the Sting vs nWo angle that Cody shines. He has a real problem with people saying that the Sting storyline was dragged out as he rightly states “When watching it on a week-by-week basis, it was so exciting and tension building, it was perfect”.

The documentary burns a hour like flash-paper and if you haven’t seen the original documentary in some time then it is definitely worth watching, because the original was interesting and the new additions really flesh it out and are important.

Now, there is no way that I can really tell you if the matches included are worth your hard-earned money as that would be a matter of taste since they mainly feature the same group of people. What I can tell you is that I think they have been cherry-picked beautifully for both quality and notoriety. Every important moment is on the set and there is such a wealth of content that it will keep you going for days.

The Blu-Ray version has even more footage and for a fiver more is certainly the one to opt for if you are capable of playing both media. This DVD has been given a lot of love and deliberation though and for £18 is more than enough in both quality and quantity.

You do have to remember that the footage (for the most part) is available elsewhere, but it seems to have been upscaled in video quality. I would recommend it on content, importance and entertainment, and for that, I’d score it highly.

Rating: 7/10

Contents:

Disc 1:

Hour Long Documentary

Scott Hall’s Nitro Debut
Nitro – 27th May, 1996

Kevin Nash’s Nitro Debut
Nitro – 10th June, 1996

“Rowdy” Roddy Piper confronts Eric Bischoff
18th November, 1996

Hollywood Hulk Hogan confronts “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
30th December, 1996

The nWo’s WWE Debut
No Way Out – 17th February, 2002

Disc 2:

The Outsiders vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage, Sting & Lex Luger
Bash at the Beach – 7th July, 1996

WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
The Giant vs. Hollywood Hogan
Hog Wild – 10th August, 1996

WCW World Tag Team Championship Match
The Outsiders vs. Harlem Heat
Halloween Havoc – 27th October, 1996

Syxx vs. The Bounty Hunter
nWo Saturday Night – 9th November, 1996

WCW World Tag Team Championship Match
The Outsiders vs. The Steiner Brothers
Souled Out – 25th January, 1997

WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
Hollywood Hogan vs. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper
SuperBrawl VII – 23rd February, 1997

Hollywood Hogan & Dennis Rodman vs. Lex Luger & The Giant
Bash at the Beach – 13th July, 1997

Disc 3:

Las Vegas Sudden Death Match
Diamond Dallas Page vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage
Halloween Havoc – 26th October, 1997

WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
Sting vs. Hollywood Hogan
Nitro – 29th December, 1997

No Disqualification Match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Hollywood Hogan vs. Randy “Macho Man” Savage
Nitro – 20th April, 1998

Match for Control of the WCW World Tag Team Championship
Sting vs. The Giant
Great American Bash – 14th June, 1998

Hollywood Hogan & Eric Bischoff vs. Jay Leno & Diamond Dallas Page
Road Wild – 8th August, 1998

War Games Match to Determine the #1 Contender for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Team WCW vs. Team Hollywood vs. Team Wolfpack
Fall Brawl – 13th September, 1998

No Disqualification Match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship
Goldberg vs. Kevin Nash
Starrcade – 27th December, 1998

WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
Goldberg vs. Bret “Hit Man” Hart
Nitro – 20th December, 1999

Hollywood Hogan, Kevin Nash & Scott Hall vs. The Rock & “Stone Cold” Steve Austin
RAW – 11th March, 2002

Blu-Ray Exclusive Content:

Blu-ray Exclusive Content

nWo Legends of Wrestling Roundtable Discussion featuring Kevin Nash, Jim Ross, JJ Dillon, & Michael Hayes

The Beginning

The nWo Concept

Hogan Turns his back on WCW

Putting Vince out of business

Ratings war

Pointing fingers

Goldberg

Cutting Edge & Controversial

Downfall

Invitation only
WCW Saturday Night – 27th July, 1996

Nothing Personal
WCW Saturday Night – 3rd August, 1996

Modern Day Gladiators
Monday Nitro – 19th August, 1996

Worldwide
WCW Saturday Night – 7th September, 1996

Room Service
Monday Nitro – 30th September, 1996

It’s Not Easy Being King
Monday Nitro – 20th January, 1997

The Real Hot Rod
Monday Nitro – 17th March, 1997

The Madness
Monday Nitro – 28th April, 1997

All Over But The Crying
WCW Pro Wrestling – 15th June, 1997

Video Game Review: WWE 13 (PS3 Xbox 360)

Review:

by Martyn Licchelli (www.dropkickradio.com)

WWE 13 is THQs latest venture into the world of WWE, and for what seems like forever now, this game has been being hyped as a revolution for the series, at least that’s how it seemed to be as the advertising prominently featured CM Punk promising just that. As time would tell, it wasn’t as much a new revolution, but rather a look back at a previous revolution that took place in the ‘Attitude’ era of WWE/WWF. It seems only fair, that with THQ putting so much emphasis on that mode, that it should be saved for last and the rest of the game will be handled as a separate entity.

Outside of the Attitude era content, WWE 13 feels weak. I hate saying that, but it does. It feels like a very expensive update for WWE 12. The roster of current talent has little added from last year, and some are removed. The character models look aged, and some are comical. Cody Rhodes in particular has a mouth like a Ninja Turtle animatronic. The entrances stopped being impressive long ago, and the ones that should be Iconic like Alberto Del Rios look so last gen that it’s not funny. He arrives, magically on stage, in a box of a car that is poorly modelled and textured, Ricardo announces him the same way he did last year. Lifeless, and without any passion at all, and then ‘Berto does a very very odd walk and dance to the ring that just fails to look the part.

Some characters are spot on. But for every character like Kane, who they do very well, and CM Punk who now sports shoulder tattoos that look like his real ones instead of just circles of blank skin, there’s 3 or 4 like Sin Cara who is simply a palette swap from last year. Seriously, load up WWE 12 and you’ll find the same model with the same textures, same entrance video and same entrance moves. This would not be too bad, if it wasn’t for the fact that Sin Caras mask is much more detailed now in real life, than it was when this model was created. His entrance video is now red, not blue, and he’s not used the trampoline in his intro for over half a year. They also fail to put him in an entrance jacket, which he always wears. It really does feel like a they couldn’t be bothered in some parts when it came to character models and it’s something that really needs to be addressed for next year.

Outside of the character models, the CAW mode is something else that remains largely unchanged. Almost everything that was there last year is still there, and if it wasn’t… well it likely still isn’t. A couple of attitude related items show up, and it’s nice that boots and kick pads are two separate items allowing more customisation. Create a finisher is like last year, a couple of new moves pop up, but they’re very similar to moves already in the game, and still despite having the Canadian Destroyer taunt in the game they’ve not bothered to animate the move in, and we get the really poor Texas Destroyer sunset flip instead. There’s really no reason why this couldn’t have been added at some point in the last 5 years. Create an entrance also remains largely the same as last year.

So it sounds bad, right? 3 paragraphs in to the main review and not a positive word to be said. Well the good news is, the game gets better now. Sticking with the creation features, this years create an Arena mode is fantastic. Instead of just making simple changes to the lights and the barricades, and the rope colours you can really change everything. You can choose what you want for a stage, such as the Deadly Games super sized skull entrance, choose how many trons there are, what sort of lights and what colour they are. You can choose if you want an attitude crowd, or a modern crowd, change the fan barricades, and change the size of the arena from something intimate to a huge Wrestlemania sized stadium. With the ability to add your own custom logos everywhere, you can really make any arena you want, and it’s all incredibly easy. It’s not a massive change from last year, it’s 3 or 4 small things. But the sum of the parts is a great improvement and something I wish would happen with the rest of the creation suite.

Universe mode makes a return this year, with Universe 3.0 which features no less than 200 story-lines written by Paul Heyman. You can edit when you want these to happen now. Maybe you only want stories on PPV, or maybe you don’t want stories that will cause teams to break up? You can change it accordingly and turn off injuries if you wish to avoid anything ruining any stories you may enjoy. If you don’t like Heymans stories, fear not, create a story is back and seems to be more in depth this year. Story-lines can last longer, feature more talent, and feels easier to use. But that may just be me. Despite it feeling simpler this year though, it’s still a very daunting task to set up a storyline, with branching options going off for various answers to questions and different attacks. For those willing to put hours in to this mode, you can really create almost anything you want.

Along with the improved stories, Universe mode also has a few other nice changes. There’s a records page, which allows you to see records for characters to break. Such as longest title runs. It keeps track of who wins at each PPV most often too, and new to this year, you can delete shows from the schedule. Don’t like Superstars? Bin it off, and create a new show any day of the week. Last year you could edit the shows a little, but this year allows slightly more. You can only have 2 big shows though, due to only having 2 rosters. Otherwise you’re limited to lots of small shows that share the roster of both big shows. This is until you unlocked all the attitude stuff, when the Attitude roster then counts as it’s own entity, allowing you do have 3 big shows a week with one kind of being it’s own nostalgic look back, again, for those willing to invest time in the mode and adding their own stories, this mode could keep you good for a long time.

I’ve had limited chance to play online, thanks to the servers being a bit empty as I wrote the review. Sadly, whilst it is definitely improved from last year, there is still lag and it can be a real game breaker. It seems that the server tries to level it out, instead of sporadic movements of the wrestlers, it moves in almost a slow motion kind of way throughout the whole match, it can be incredibly off putting when your defence relies on well timed presses of the R2 button. Even more frustrating, when you press R2 a millisecond before the icon shows up, yet you get told you were too slow. It leads to a game of predicting the future, for those who play often t must become easy to adjust as I fought multiple opponents who were able to counter every single punch and grapple I did. Literally every one. But when you first start out, it can be enough to make you want to tune out. However if you get a steady connection, online battles can be a lot of fun and an online Rumble that mixes humans and AI opponents is really engaging.

So that covers everything, except Attitude mode. Attitude mode makes this game worth the purchase for anyone who was worried after the first 3 paragraphs of this review. It’s great, and will eventually lead to you getting 32 extra characters, as well as extra title belts, arenas and much more. Although some of those 32 characters are old versions of current roster members, like Kane, Jericho, Undertaker and the Rock. Even Cena has an ‘Attitude’ version. They d bulk up the entire roster nicely, and feel different to their current generation counterparts.

With these 32 new models, you can kind of forgive them being lazy with the character models they borrowed from last year. I say kind of, because a good chunk of these extra stars have appeared in a WWE game in the last few years, and their models are merely slightly updated. But still, some are new, and regardless of that they bring the main roster up to over 70 characters. So that’s what we can unlock, but how do we do it? We do it with this years version of Road To Wrestlemania, simply entitled Attitude Era. Over the course of many matches, you will be put into various scenarios and matches that accurate recreate great moments from the Attitude Era as you relive the parts of RAW that helped WWE overtake WCW and eventually become the only Sports Entertainment company that matters.

The game mode is split into 6 sections, which you must do in order. Starting with Degeneration X, you will play as HHH and HBK in various important moments from 1996 and 1997, you will then get to go through important moments for Kane and The Undertaker, including their inferno match and the debut of Kane is also here. Following this, we have Stone Cold, Mankind, The Rock and last we have Wrestlemania 15 in 1999, which brings all the story lines that we’ve played and been part of to a nice climax. For completing this, we are also then rewarded with an ‘off the script’ section which features roughly 10 extra matches to compete in from various moments in history since the Attitude Era began, which allow you to unlock lots of extra stuff.

The way this mode works is fantastic. Using video footage, and sound bytes from old matches you get to relive lots of infamous moments. Ever wanted to be part of the Montreal Screwjob (WHY???) well now you can. Wanted to throw Mankind off the Cell through a table? Now you have to. There’s so much to do, and for anyone who grew up in the Attitude Era, a chance to relive these moments yourself is a great joy.

One of my complaints with last years Road to Wrestlemania was the scripted nature of it. If they wanted you to lose, no matter what was going on, you would lose. Sometimes it just felt really harsh and ruined the fun. This year, it’s not nearly as bad. Obviously recreating history requires events to be scripted to make it accurate. But you don’t HAVE to do it. In each match you will be given an objective, and some bonus objectives. The main objective may just be “win the match”, but your bonuses will want you to put the opponent through a barricade, and win by submission. You’re not punished for not doing the bonuses, but doing them unlocks rewards, like the characters and arenas I mentioned earlier, as well as extra matches to unlock even more.

Some matches you have your hand forced, you must complete all the bonuses to advance. But the way the bonus objectives are set up for you like goals, you feel like you have achieved something to complete them, and when the cut scene plays and your Stunnering Vinnie Mac, you don’ feel screwed that the match ending was taken away from you.

Road to Wrestlemania was a good mode, I enjoyed it. Last year it was broken, however, and needed fixing. Attitude Era was the exact fix it needed, and whilst it would be hard to do this mode again next year… that’s a problem for THQ next year. For this year? It’s made a game that would otherwise be the EA Sports equivalent of a new sports game update, and made it in to something that feels fresher and newer than it has in years, and made a wrestling fans who watched these moments happen, genuinely excited to be given the chance to relive them. Personally, I couldn’t ask for more than that.

WWE 13 may not be perfect, it has it’s fair share of small faults and the game engine is already feeling dated. But I’m comfortable in saying this is THQ’s best release this generation, and probably since they peaked with Here Comes The Pain on PS2.

8/10

DVD Review: WWE – CM Punk: Best in the World

Buy it here for £17.99

Or Blu-Ray for £22.99

Review:

I love Wrestling, I will take it in any form. I may die without it, but since I have never gone without it for more than a few hours, this is merely a theory. That is why I was excited by the arrival of two things into my young adult life, one was the internet and the second was a Visa debit card that allowed me to order things from America. It opened a new world of badly designed and printed DVDs from every two-bit Indy Federation in North America (as well as some wonderful ones). I decided upon and ordered an IWA:MS event, the quality of the DVD cover and DVD-R inside hid what it really was. You see, it transformed into solid gold as soon as I placed it in my Disc Drive (I had to watch it on my PC as my snooty DVD Player decided it wasn’t a real thing, possibly due to the overall cheapness).

This is where I first met CM Punk, I distinctly remember a skinny, bleached-haired, tattooed, shouty little boy risking his life by yelling at drunken rednecks and I never averted my gaze. Who was he? He only looked to be my age, he hadn’t even wrestled for me yet and I just adored him. There was nothing physically appealling about him, he didn’t even look like a wrestler, so why did I find him so interesting? I know now of course, first impressions count and my first impression of CM Punk is the same reason I love him to this day. I sensed his realness.

There’s nothing those people could say in response to him that could throw him off his game, or hurt him. He was a dangerous little cocktail of anger and venom and he was just legit, he believed in himself and the things he was saying and it really connected with me. In an industry of flamboyant and over-the-top characters, or vanilla personalities was this young kid who tattoed his ethics across his body and fearlessly confronted anyone who challenged him, don’t get me wrong he annoys me as much as he amuses me, and that has never changed, but I saw something in him that I rarely see. I saw a true individual and a future star.

Then he wrestled… and he was really good. THANK GOD!

The reason I’m telling you this story is simple (stick around, everything is connected) this DVD is completely CM Punk’s DVD. No annoying voiceovers or terrible music from bands who would have seemed trite in 2001, like most WWE releases have. It’s just Punk and his friends telling you about what made a neglected little outcast boy into the least-likely WWE Champion of all time. It’s not all sentimental and gushing relatives, which is nice for most Superstar bios, but that wouldn’t really be CM Punk. He has his (non-biological) family there to speak about him, but they tell stories and memories of times past that fit in with his narrative, not just to make him look good or show them feeling proud.

His friends are from all walks of life and it’s awesome to hear stories of what made him into CM Punk from his ex-Girlfriend and friends he grew up with. These talking heads include peers like John Cena, Triple H and The Miz. Close friends like his ex-girlfriend Natalie, who is probably the nicest person in the world, his best friend Chez and her family (who are like Punk’s adopted family), Lars Fredriksen of the Punk band Rancid (who seems to be a kind of big Brother figure and is full of interesting viewpoints and advice) to his Indy peers and friends Ace Steel, Colt Cabana, Joey Mercury, Chris Hero, Lita and Daniel Bryan. Paul Heyman fills in the blanks of CM Punk’s developmental days, unwittingly revealing himself to be CM Punk’s Guardian Angel and the cast is nicely rounded off by everything that I despise about Wrestling in the grotesque frame of Michael Hayes.

Never has one man enveloped the lazy, pig-headed, bigoted side of professional wrestling so perfectly as the former “Freebird”. A man who almost cost us one of the most unique Superstars of all time by, and this is documented here, and he sees no problem with this… not really being bothered to watch footage of Punk wrestle, and instead thinking Paul Heyman was hyping a non-starter. CM Punk was almost released from his WWE contract before leaving OVW, because Michael Hayes thought he was Heyman hyperbole. So how many wrestlers has that actually happened to who will never get to tell their story? Truly a sobering thought.

World Wrestling Entertainment is on an absolutely stellar run of first class Biographies and Home Video Releases so CM Punk’s DVD has come at both the best and worst of times. The Best because WWE are on a creative high for DVD Sets so his first real DVD release had a good chance of being amazing. The Worst because it has a lot to live up to as the Bret vs Shawn, Randy Orton, Austin, Rock and Edge DVDs have been some of the strongest output in years. The good news was that as soon as this title was announced, CM Punk took to Twitter and assured his fans that this would not be some in-house, run-of-the-mill production. There would be no lost Aunts and Football Coaches relaying unimportant stories about a kid they barely remember. He was going to oversee and cherry pick only the most important people and events in his life, right down to the music and cover art. That was encouraging because I like to feel that I am watching someone’s best work and for it to have an overall feeling of them in it, for the DVD to capture the true essence of the Superstar it is documenting. There is of course a downside, if he was choosing the content then wouldn’t that make it all one-sided? Wouldn’t it just be an ego-boosting trot down memory lane, while everyone who loves him gushes about what a stand-up guy he is? Thankfully that fear is allayed.

Remember how I liked CM Punk because he was truthful and real? Well… he was like a closely-guarded enigma of a man in those days compared to this Documentary. I have seen his Ring of Honor shoot interviews (a lot) and he’s always been open and funny, and has always allowed the bridges he burned to light his path, but even those aren’t on the same level of brutal honesty that we have here. I mean, of course, there are some things that set off an alarm or two as to whether you are being ‘worked’ and yes, we probably are in some cases, but that’s ok. Like the Montreal Screwjob, I never really want to know everything that led from the ‘Pipebomb’ Promo to the win at Money in the Bank 2011. It would ruin the excitement, but if he isn’t telling the whole truth, then he does it convincingly and that’s all I can ask of him. For the most part however, he is completely open and honest and you wonder if sometimes he should even be saying the things that he is revealing. Then you remember that he doesn’t care one iota if he should be saying the things he says, and you relax and enjoy his fascinating story even more.

This is a man who has hit more roadblocks on his way to Superstardom than one can imagine. His visceral frustration when relaying bittersweet memories of winning titles only to be told “We don’t know what to do with you” once he is a champion, to the frankly insulting way in which he was told he was “John Cena’s television program” to keep him fresh for his feud with The Rock it is easy to see why his character and promos seem so real. They are. The things he complains about actually happened to him and it’s preposterous. WWE’s higher ups should watch this DVD and just feel as embarrassed as they do incompetent, for the way he’s been treated. Not that he wants you to feel sorry for him, the easy manner in which he speaks never hints at a cry for pity or sympathy, he says it in a ‘Oh yeah, can you believe this??’ sort of way and it’s sort of funny, in a really sad way.

It does lead to a very cathartic moment when he realises that he needs to just do things for himself. The section about his Straight-Edge Society run is wonderful. He ‘s a man on  the edge and just takes matters into his own hands, much to the general bemusement of his bosses. You just imagine this ball of angry energy writing out his own storylines and it’s hilarious. Everything about this DVD is eye-opening and fun, with a hint of sadness that he never ponders upon.

The footage of his days working the Independant circuit is well-placed and important. IWA:MS, ROH and even his own fed the LWF are covered in great detail. The much lauded ‘Summer of Punk’ is given the respect it deserved for it was one of the most beautifully performed periods in wrestling. It’s hard to put across in words just how rabid and angry the Ring of Honor faithful were when a suited and booted CM Punk used their prestigious World Title as a writing desk, while signing his WWE Contract upon it. It had to be seen, and it is, through some wizardry, WWE show everything. All his important moments. Even his career-defining (to that point) series of matches with Samoa Joe, for WWE to not only show but allow praise to be heaped upon a man who is a Champion in a rival televised company is truly groundbreaking. His territories-esque ‘Marquee Matches’ with Chris Hero (now NXT Talent Kassius Ohno) and Colt Cabana are given the feeling of importance they deserve as it was in these matches that the true workhorse wrestler that we have now was moulded. I distinctly remember one of his matches with Hero going some 75 minutes, that’s exhausting to watch, let alone compete in.

We are also given access to his beautiful Tour Bus and he explains why he felt it a necessary purchase. Which, despite being luxurious, is just functional and it makes sense. We also see him jogging around the streets of Chicago with his headphones on and his explanation that he enjoys the solitude of running. He just seems like a sociable person who is completely comfortable in his own skin, in his own company. Just as the Edge DVD showed a man completely at peace with his retirement, this shows CM Punk finding his own peace in a very hectic life. You can imagine that when he retires, he’ll be happy, like Edge, showing up when he feels like it, but otherwise totally content in his own pursuits, which is a nice thought.

I like CM Punk, he’s a cool guy. He’s a talented, funny, generous, intelligent, independent, pig-headed, cut-his-nose-off-to-spite-his-face, contradictory, arrogant, aloof, warm, determined man. CM Punk is a real person with flaws and amazing character traits. He shows us every side of his personality because he’s proud of who he is. Not many people comfortably do that. Then again, not many people make an impact like Punk has. Not many people are real.

Overview and Rating:

This is without a doubt the absolute best DVD that WWE has ever produced. I don’t think you’d have to be a fan of CM Punk to love this, I think you could just show it to non-wrestling fans as a stand alone documentary about a guy who clawed his way to the top, in an industry he loved and his struggles on the way and they would be enthralled. The quality is, as usual, perfection. The amount of content is mind-blowing. The subject is fascinating and the footage they have managed to procure is brilliant. I cannot say anything more about this than it was clearly a labour of love that has paid off in spades. Get your hands on this DVD, unless you have a Blu-Ray player. In which case buy the Blu-Ray because the extras are fabulous.

10/10 -ESSENTIAL.

Content:

Disc One – Two-Hour Documentary

Disc Two –

Finals Match in the OVW World Heavyweight Championship Tournament
Brent Albright vs. CM Punk
Ohio Valley Wrestling 1st March, 2006

CM Punk vs. Justin Credible
ECW 1st August, 2006

ECW Championship Last Chance Match
CM Punk vs. John Morrison
ECW 4th September, 2007

Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. CM Punk vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy
WrestleMania XXIV 30th March, 2008

World Tag Team Championship Match
CM Punk & Kofi Kingston vs. Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase
RAW 27th October, 2008

No Disqualification Match for the Intercontinental Championship
CM Punk vs. William Regal
RAW 19th January, 2009

Disc Three –

Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Jeff Hardy vs. CM Punk
SummerSlam 23rd August, 2009

Rey Mysterio Joins the SES vs. CM Punk’s Hair
Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk
Over the Limit 23rd May, 2010

WWE Championship Match
John Cena vs. CM Punk
Money in the Bank 17th July, 2011

WWE Championship Match
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho
WrestleMania XXVIII 1st April, 2012

WWE Championship Match
CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan
Over the Limit 20th May, 2012

Blu Ray Extras –

No Plan B

Saxophone

Easter Greeting

Chicken Wings and Apple Pie

Most Recognizable Tattoo

Fish Tattoo

Traveling with Ace

No Microphone

ECW Arena Match

Hanging with Eddie Guerrero

Trainer

Driving Away With the Title

Wrestling Camp

“They’re Gonna Hate Me”

Six People, One Room

I’m a Paul Heyman Guy

The Marathon

@CMPunk

The Bus Tour

Kofi’s Challenge

WrestleMania Day

A Day at the Ball Field

True Respect

Finals Match in the Intercontinental Championship Tournament
Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk
Armageddon 14th December, 2008

Best of Mark Jindrak/Marco Corleone V1 (2D) [RudoReels Exclusive]

Best of Mark Jindrak/Marco Corleone V1

2 discs, 3:30 runtime

Quality: VG-/VG+

Buy it on DVD for $5.99

Buy it on Digital Download for $2.99

Review:

I was a huge WCW fan, right until it’s dying breaths and although I was subject to a LOT of terrible angles and television, I was also treated to some wonderful new talent. It was always with the Cruiserweight division that my heart lay, but when you are surrounded by Wrestling Dinosaurs like Hogan, Nash, Luger etc you automatically seek out the fresh and new within the other divisions too. This is where I first discovered the man who is the focus of this DVD Pack, Mark Jindrak.

Now, The Natural Born Thrillas were green, that much was evident, but they had so much potential. With their mouthpiece, the very vocally confident “Above Average” Mike Sanders and agile monsters like Jindrak and O’Haire, it really felt like the new dawn of WCW talent was finally here. Then WCW died, so we never saw them blossom to their full potential. WWE hired them, but their reluctance to really capitalise on WCW-bred talent meant that they were wasted.

Of the group it was perhaps the deceptively agile and large Sean O’Haire who seemed to be the most likely to succeed, but Mark Jindrak was special too, and where America failed him, Mexico embraced him. Marco Corleone was born.

He first entered CMLL in early 2006 as the partner of Johnny ‘The Bull’ Stamboli, hence his Italian name and persona, although he was originally a Rudo, he was turned Tecnico due to the crowd’s love of him. This affinity with the Mexican people has made him somewhat of a media star in Mexico as he has appeared in many Soap Operas and Game Shows. It’s a success I believe he deserves, a very personable and talented man who stands at an impressive 6′ 6″ and 270lbs, he seems made for WWE, but it’s become more than evident that it is south of the border where he was born to shine. Now you know him, let’s see what he can do in the ring…

The first impression when you start the DVD is that it is indeed a RudoReels release. The picture is crisp, the sound is clear and the matches are all complete and of the utmost quality. The time and love that goes in to compiling these sets is staggering and they are always a true bargain at the price displayed. You will notice in my reviews that I will always point out the picture/audio quality in great detail, unless it is a Silvervision or RudoReels release, because it goes without saying that both will be above par. This DVD set does not stray from the pack in that regard.

The interesting thing here is that only one CMLL match is included, the rest are from his one year run in AAA. I personally don’t mind this as I am a big fan of CMLL but don’t watch a great deal of AAA so these are new or at least less familiar to me. It is a big jump from 2006 to 2009 though and I would have liked to see the evolution into a Mexican star evidenced here. RudoReels do have another DVD set which has Mark Jindrak talking about his entire career (here). However, a few more matches from his CMLL run would have been welcome on this disc.

The choice of matches is excellent as the diversity of AAA shows through. He even has a match against El Exoticos, which is always a welcome surprise to me. He either pairs up with or faces some of the best international talent in wrestling and his agility and strength showcase him beautifully. He really is very good and his charisma matches his undeniable talent. Holding his own in speed against men a foot shorter and a hundred pounds lighter is a sight to behold. We get appearances from people such as the explosive Alex Kozlov, Psicosis in his ‘Nicho el Millionario’ persona, the equally strong and agile Hernandez as well as the gravity and logic defying Jack Evans.

This really is a choice compilation and the opponents bring out the best in this dominant wrestler. The only downside is more of his initial CMLL run, but the AA matches are of such a quality that it is only for evolution’s sake that they are a noticeable exclusion. However, the two bonus matches include a look at him in WCW and a 4way tag match from Wrestlemania 20, which is insightful.

Spread over two discs and at a run time approaching four hours, you get a hell of a lot of bang for your buck. Discover or re-discover this awesome big man for an exceptionally low price. You are not going to regret it.

7/10

Contents:

CMLL 2006-09-29 Blue Panther, Dos Caras Jr., Rey Bucanero vs Kenzo Suzuki, Marco Corelone, Olimpico

AAA 2009-06-13 TripleMania 17 Joe Lider & Nicho el Millionario vs. Latin Lover & Marco Corleone [AAA TAG]

AAA 2009-12-11 Guerra de Titanes Jack Evans & Marco Corleone vs Joe Lider & Nicho el Millionario [AAA TAG]

AAA 2010-03-06 Dr. Wagner Jr. & Electroshock vs El Mesías & Marco Corleone

AAA 2010-03-13 Dr. Wagner Jr., Electroshock, Silver King vs La Parka Jr., Marco Corleone, Pimpinela Escarlata

AAA 2010-03-20 Extreme Tiger, Latin Lover, Marco Corleone vs Alex Koslov, Joe Lider, Nicho el Millionario

AAA 2010-03-27 El Mesías, Marco Corleone, Octagón vs Dr. Wagner Jr., Electroshock, Último Gladiador

AAA 2010-04-03 Jack Evans vs Ozz vs Marco Corleone vs Decnnis [Rey de Reyes, semifinal]

AAA 2010-04-03 Marco Corleone vs Chessman vs Hernandez [Rey de Reyes, final]

Plus: two bonus matches

Competition!

In a joint venture between http://www.dropkickradio.com and http://www.luchareviews.wordpress.com, we would like to launch a great competition to win WWE DVDs. All you have to do is send your answer to the following question to DropkickRadio@hotmail.com.

First Prize:

WWE Wrestlemania 28 (3 Disc Set)

WWE Live in the UK 2012

WWE Elimination Chamber 2012

Second Prize:

WWE Wrestlemania 28

WWE Elimination Chamber 2012

Third Prize:

Wrestlemania 28

Question:

Which Mexican Legend was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame at Wrestlemania 28?

a) El Santo

b) Mil Mascaras

c) Blue Demon

The winners will be drawn and contacted by 12pm (Gmt) on Monday 13th August)

GOOD LUCK!

I’m Back!

Hi everyone,

I’m back from a long holiday and am genuinely touched by how many hits and steady stream of visitors my blog has had during my hiatus. Thank you all for your wonderful support and I will reward you with an exclusive competition in conjunction with http://www.dropkickradio.com. Up for grabs are prizes of ‘WWE Live in the UK 2012’, ‘Elimination Chamber 2012’ and ‘Wrestlemania 28 – 3 Disc Set’ as reviewed here last month.

I will be uploading the question and the competition entry details in the next few minutes, so look out for your chance to win!

– Angelina