Shining a Spotlight 8.14.08: The Ultimate DVD Library Part II

Bloodbath: Wrestling’s Most Incredible Steel Cage Matches, 2003: This was one of the first examples of WWE utilizing the expansive tape library they had to give a great collection of steel cage battles. While some are clipped, it’s still a good selection. You’ve got Larry Zysbko vs Bruno Samartino at Shea Stadium; the infamous Snuka-Backlund match with Snuka doing the high dive off the cage; Snuka vs Don Maruco; the famous Hogan-Orndorff cage match and more. While a lot are clipped, the second disc has several in full. Any DVD that features the entire brutal Magnum TA/Tully Blanchard “I Quit” match from Starrcade ’85 is a keeper. If you can get it cheap, it’s a good buy.

Shawn Michaels: From the Vault, 2003: His recent bio disc is good but this can be considered a “greatest hits” collection of HBK’s best work. There’s only seven matches but all are keepers: A wild Midnight Rockers vs Doug Somers & Buddy Rose match from 1986 where they all bleed buckets; the Wrestlemania X ladder match; the entire Iron Man match with Bret at Mania XII; the brutal brawl with Diesel from May of ’96; the crazy battle with Mankind from September of ’96; the first Hell in the Cell with Undertaker; and his comeback against HHH at SummerSlam ’02. Plus, we get some nice extras connected with matches like the Barber Shop bit in 1992 where Shawn attacks Marty and turns heel; a nice video package leading up to Mania X; and a dual interview with Bret and Shawn where you can see them gritting their teeth paying compliments to each other before Roddy Piper arrives to make it an Iron Man match. If you already have the Shawn documentary, this is the perfect complement with its must-have matches.

The Ultimate Ric Flair Collection, 2003: One of the biggest selling DVDs ever and it’s well deserved. As with Michaels, it’s a wonderful supplement to the Flair bio disc, highlighting some of his best matches ever. Each one comes with a nice mini-feature on the setup and how Flair’s career was going. There’s Starrcade 83 against Harley Race, Starrcade ’84 with Dusty Rhodes (the textbook example of the Dusty finish), against Barry Windham from 1987, both the Clash of Champions and Wrestlewar with Steamboat, the “I Quit” climax to the Terry Funk feud and more. Plus, each has a slew of great bonus features. For example, with Starrcade ’83, you get Race offering a bounty on Flair; Bob Orton Jr and Dick Slater collecting by attacking Flair and injuring his neck; Flair tearfully announcing his retirement from his home; Flair returning a few weeks later to attack them with a baseball bat and cut a wild promo vowing revenge on all three; the “press conference” announcing the Starrcade match; and pre and post-match interviews with all participants. Throw in a few extras on the Horsemen and the plane crash and it’s a perfect tribute to a well-regarded worker.

Mick Foley: Greatest Hits and Misses, 2003: I’m more partial to the original version although the updated disc with a few more matches isn’t bad either. It’s terrific selection of Foley’s work, starting with WCW as we get the uncensored version of his bloody TV match with Vader (although sadly, not the “Halloween Havoc” follow-up), against the Nasty Boys, a lot of nice ECW stuff and then we get to WWE. “Mind Games” and “Hell in the Cell” are musts as are the MSG RAW match with HHH in ’97 where he brings back Cactus Jack and the wild brawl with Austin in May of ’98. And of course, there’s his first WWF title win over the Rock from December of 1998. What makes it better is Foley’s great commentary between matches with his usual wry humor (“The answer is no. The question is can the shirt Vince McMahon is wearing in this next match be any tighter?”). It highlights the great passion Foley has and why he deserves respect for the brutality he’s taken over the years.

Greatest Superstars of the ‘80’s, 2005: This overlooked gem is a nice collection of mini-bios of fifteen stars of the decade. Sure, we get big ones like Hogan, Flair, Piper, Dusty and Jerry Lawler. But we also get guys who wouldn’t merit their own DVD sets like Sgt Slaughter, Greg Valentine, Ricky Steamboat, Iron Sheik and others. The bios are nicely done, most with interviews with the subjects and great classic clips. Some are unique like how Sheik’s has him telling the old fable of Verne Gagne offering him $100,000 to break Hogan’s leg but they do mention how he had to leave WWF after a drug arrest in 1987. Sure, some of them skim on details but they’re still good looks at guys who helped make that decade shine. The matches are a mixed bunch with a few duds in there (like Heenan vs Greg Gagne in a ‘weasel suit’ match) but it’s worth the price of the set just to have Flair-Steamboat from Chi-Town Rumble. For anyone who grew up on the business in the ‘80’s, it’s a great throwback to that great time.

Tombstone: The History of the Undertaker, 2005: It’s always been interesting that the Undertaker is one case of WWE still sticking to kayfabe. They don’t mention his real name or his WCW run or any of that. He’s simply his character and this DVD continues that focus. It is a pretty comprehensive review of his career with his first title win over Hogan at Survivor Series ’91, the infamous Royal Rumble ’94 match with Yokozuna, Diesel at Mania XII, Mankind, Bret at SummerSlam ’97 and One Night Only, against Michaels at Ground Zero and HITC, Kane at Mania 14 and later XX, Austin, Rock, HHH at Mania X-7, the HITC match with Brock Lesner and more. Plus some extras of interviews and videos, all of which showcase UT’s long and great career and still amazes you how the guy keeps on going and winning and staying on top.

Phenomenal: The Best of AJ Styles vol 1 & 2, 2004 & 2007: I got into TNA because of AJ Styles, it’s that simple. These two DVDs are the perfect showcase for Styles and his amazing skills. The first volume has him narrating early TNA stuff like his becoming the first-ever X Division champion, defending it, winning the NWA title twice, engaging in wild battles with Raven, Jeff Jarrett, Abyss and more. It’s a fun look back at the early TNA with the weekly PPVs and larger arena. Volume 2 is even better with more recent stuff like his cage match with Abyss at the first Lockdown, winning the NWA title from Jarrett and anything with the classic three-way involving Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe at Unbreakable ’05 is worth having. Throw in both of Styles and Daniels’ NWA tag title wins and AJ’s final X Division title win and you’ve got the perfect set for a man with a style all his own.

The Best of the X-Division vol 1, 2005: I put the first volume on as it really highlights the X Division in its late ’04-early ’05 prime. The matches are good with a 20-man gauntlet from Victory Road ’04, Styles vs Daniels in an Iron Man match, Joe vs Chris Sabin, Styles vs Sean Waltman and, best of all, the greatest Ultimate X match ever with Styles, Sabin and Petey Williams going at it at Final Resolution ’05 with some of the wildest spots you’ll ever see. A great intro the company even today.

Wrestling’s Greatest Managers, 2006: It’s a damn shame you don’t see many managers left these days as this DVD is a fine showing of how big they once were. It works with looks at various great ones: Freddie Blassie, the Grand Wizard, Jimmy Hart, Jim Cornette, Bobby Heenan and many more. True, there are a lot of names left off (quite surprised Mr. Fuji wasn’t focused on) and some jumps on the bios (like ignoring Paul Heyman’s time with the Dangerous Alliance). But the program is quite fair to those involved. For example, Sunny is put over as the one who blazed the trail for Divas today with only a passing mention of her drug problems and Miss Elizabeth is spoken of in glowing terms as well. We also get focuses on managers forced to wrestle, the manager as a mouthpiece and Teddy Long and Bobby Heenan giving a lecture on the art of cheating with clips to back it up. There are some extras of interviews, matches and more and what other disc gives you such classic cheese as…FUJI VICE!

The History of the WWE Championship, 2006: Again, some of the match selections may seem off but it’s a great look at how the title, and the business, has evolved over the decades. It’s great to see classic title changes like Morales over Kolloff, Superstar Billy Graham over Bruno, Backlund over Graham and against Valentine. Of course, Hogan gets a lot with winning the belt from Sheik and defending against Bundy and Orndorff , then beating Andre at Mania III before losing to him in ‘88. We also get Hogan vs Savage and later Warrior and then some repeated stuff of Bret-Shawn and Shawn-Mankind. But we get some fresher ones like HHH vs Cactus Jack at the 2000 Royal Rumble, Brock vs Rock and Cena vs Jericho vs Christian. What really sells it is the incredible timeline which actually shows footage of every televised title change, an amazing collection that makes this worth the buy.

Hulk Hogan: The Ultimate Anthology, 2006: Love him or hate him (Lord knows, there’s enough people to fill out both sides of that equation), you can’t deny Hogan’s impact and this collection shows that. There’s some great early stuff like against Andre at Shea Stadium in 1980 and in AWA. A lot of it is familiar stuff: Sheik, Andre, Bundy, Orndorff, Warrior. But some are fresher like the “War to Settle the Score,” the formation of the NWO and the Starrcade ’97 match with Sting that shows how WCW blew the perfect angle. They manage to dredge up a match with Curt Henning from the short-lived XWF and his comeback with battling the Rock, winning the belt one last time against HHH, winning the tag titles with Edge, his brutal fight with McMahon at Mania XIX and against Michaels at Summerslam ’05. It’s really worth tracking down a copy from Wal-Mart which has a fourth disc of some bonus bouts like Tito Santana in 1980, a fight with Harley Race that’s pretty wild for 1988 (Race going through a table at one point) and Hogan’s part in the 1990 Royal Rumble with the first showdown with Warrior. Either way, it’s a good set for a man who, despite all his detractors, still exerts a hold on the business few can touch.

TNA Wrestling: The 50 Greatest Moments, 2006: I run down TNA a lot but this is a terrific showcase of some of the best stuff the company did in its first four years. You can argue the ranking of a lot of stuff being too high or low but it is a good collection of clips from their first PPV on. True, as usual, TNA makes a lot of stuff sound much bigger than it really was (“Cookiegate” being a prime example) but there’s good stuff like the AMW/XXX 2003 cage match, Rhino goreing Abyss through a wall, the first PPVs, Elix Skipper’s cage walk and more. For those TNA fans who back the company so much, this is a good showcase of what made it work and hopefully something they can get back to.

Wrestling’s Most Powerful Families, 2007: Another greatly underrated gem, this DVD showcases mini-bios of various great wrestling clans. Some are big names: McMahon, Von Erich, Hart, Gagne. But there are also looks at folks like the Windhams, Briscoes, Rogueaus and more. It’s very informative as most young fans who only know Terry Funk as a hardcore legend would be surprised to know he and brother Dory were both clean-cut NWA World champions. Another highlight is Carlito talking in his accent hosting but dropping it when discussing his father Carlos Colon. There are also focuses on stuff like how some sons are unable to escape the shadow of their fathers (with Dustin Rhodes only able to do it by becoming Goldust) and on supposed “relatives” who weren’t related (fun to hear Joey Styles and Tommy Dreamer both talking of how shocked they were to learn Ole and Arn Anderson weren’t really related). There’s also some old interviews of fathers and sons and some matches like Rocky Mavia vs the Sultan at Mania 13 with Rocky Johnson getting involved, Shawn Michaels and his knights vs the Harts at Survivor Series ’93 and, best of all, the Briscoes vs Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood for the NWA tag titles at Starrcade ’83, which makes the whole set a great buy.

The Ladder Match, 2007: Besides a good collection, this is also a fascinating look at how the ladder match evolved from a great battle with psychology to a spotfest. It goes way back for an old Stampede match between Jake Roberts and Sylvester Ritter (aka Junkyard Dog) then moving on to the first ever WWF ladder match, an IC battle with Bret and Shawn. Interestingly, you only get clips of the Mania X match before the superior SummerSlam ’95 rematch. It’s interesting when it moves to the battles with the Hardyz, Edge and Christian and the Dudleyz, all great battles but you get the repition of too much action, not enough storytelling. There’s the overrated Jeff Hardy-Taker match from 2002 but it does improve with the first MITB, the wild Edge-John Cena TLC match from Unforgiven ’06 and, last but not least, the great four way Armageddon 2006 match. True, a few duds (TLC IV) and it’s nice to have interviews with Flair talking of how he was never a fan of hardcore battles but was glad he did the TLC match with Edge and Joey Mercury discussing his brutal injury. Of course, it is a bit chilling to hear Benoit talking of the long-term effects of a ladder match’s toll but still a great set for those who love wild spots.

Best of RAW 15th Anniversary, 2006: You can argue with a lot of the clips included (Leslie Nielsen, William Shatner, musical chairs) but so much of this disc is pure awesomeness and classic moments. The early stuff is great with Michaels losing the belt to Janetty, the Kid beating Razor Ramon and Bret vs Kid. It really kicks in with 1998 and so much stuff: Austin stunning McMahon for the first time, “Bret Screwed Bret,” DX invading Nitro and impersonating the Nation, Mr. Socko, Mankind winning the belt and more. True, some stuff afterward pales in comparison but we still get great moments like Batista power-bombing HHH through a table, Cena drafted and much more. Not the perfect set but still damn good to highlight how the show helped change wrestling and continues to draw us in today.

The Greatest Superstars of Wrestlemania, 2008: True, some of these are already available like Hogan-Slaughter from Mania VII and Hogan/Rock but more are hitting a non-Mania DVD for the first time and are good selections. We get Cena and Batista’s title wins from Wrestlemania 21, Jericho vs Michaels from Mania XIX and Foley/Edge. Add in the nice bios of each star, highlighting their Mania histories and it’s a good buy for a more casual fan but also those who love the big show.

The Legacy of Stone Cold Steve Austin, 2008: I do have the minor quibble that the disc leaves off with Wrestlemania X-7, ignoring stuff like Austin and Bischoff at No Way Out ’03 and such. But it’s still a great set with Austin narrating his rise in the business with classic matches from WCW and the Hollywood Blondes then against Ricky Steamboat for the US title in Steamboat’s last match. A great bit is that we not only get his classic first ECW promo but footage from afterward of all the ECW guys in awe of it. We finally get Survivor Series ’96 with Bret before moving to familiar stuff in ’97 and ’98 but it’s all expected with battles against Foley, Kane and Rock. We also get some overlooked ones like a match with Eddie Guerrero in 2000 and the amazing “Three Stages of Hell” with HHH. It’s good hearing Austin explaining how things were in his career and while you detect some sadness from him that it’s over, it’s still incredible to watch one of the biggest stars ever grow before your eyes.

The Rock: The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment, 2008: Yes, it would have been much better if the Rock himself had done commentary on it. But it’s still a wonderful look at how he went from the pain-in-the-ass face Rocky Maivia, winning the IC belt early before injury and fan hate turned him around. The match selection is great with battles against Owen Hart and HHH, his first title win at Survivor Series ’98, the St. Valentine’s Massacre battle with Mankind, winning the tag belts with Mankind and the terrific Backlash 2000 win against HHH. Some picks are familiar (Hogan at Mania X-8, winning the belt from Undertaker and Kurt Angle) but we get a nice RAW match with Guerrero and his Mania XIX match with Austin. Plus, a nice selection of promos that once more showcase how amazing the Rock was behind the mic and why his presence is so greatly missed.

I know, some will argue ones I missed but these are ones I think are must-haves for a wrestling library. Feel free to point out any you think I missed.

Normally, I say what else is going on around 411mania but I’m getting this out a few days early as I’ve got a move going on this week. So just check out everyone else and hope to be back on time next week. For now, the spotlight is off.