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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Nov 5, 2006 22:21:20 GMT -5
Time for a special review on a special day. V For Vendetta 2-Disc Special Edition DVD Remember remember the 5th of November, The Gunpowder, Treason and Plot, I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason should ever be forgot. Since it is November the 5th, I decided to review V For Vendetta. It is about V (Hugo Weaving), a one man revolution who is trying to bring freedom to a futuristic England. In the movie, he meets Evey (Natalie Portman), whom he saves from being raped by some Fingermen (secret police) and then later from being arrested by Inspector Finch (Stephen Rea), who is investigating V's attacks. The movie also stars John Hurt as Chancellor Sutler, the dictator of England, and Stephen Fry as Gordon Deitrich. The movie was based on the famous comic written by Alan Moore and drawn by David Lloyd. There are many differences between the book and the movie, but the movie is really good. There are also some special features, like the standard making of featurettes and trailers. There is also little documentary on Guy Fawkes, the man who inspired V's look, and featurette on the V for Vendetta comic book. And, on the second disc of the special edition, a short Easter egg clip of Natalie Portman on Saturday Night Live can be viewed by selecting the picture of wings on the second page of the menu. Basically, the special features aren't that elaborate and spetacular as other DVDs. In fact, you could buy the regular edition DVD and be happy. Highlight: The scene where Deitrich (Fry) satirizes Chancellor Sutler (Hurt) ala Benny Hill. Mildly Recommended.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Nov 8, 2006 3:02:54 GMT -5
Time for another DVD review: Nacho Libre Jack Black and Lucha Libre sounds like a good combination, but it's really not. Black plays Ignacio, a priest who wants to be a luchador. After growing up as an orphan in a Mexican monastery, he is now a grown man and the monastery’s cook. However, he doesn’t fit in and is often looked down upon. Ignacio cares deeply for the orphans he feeds, but his food is terrible – mostly, if you ask him, a result of his terrible ingredients. He realizes that he must hatch a plan to make money to buy better food for “the young orphans, who have nothing” He also wants to impress the lovely Sister Encarnación (Ana de la Reguera). When Ignacio is struck by the idea to earn money as a Lucha Libre wrestler, he finds that he has a natural, raw talent for wrestling. He teams with his rail-thin, unconventional partner Stephen, a.k.a. Esqueleto (the Skeleton) (Héctor Jiménez). Ignacio feels for the first time in his life that he has something to fight for and a place where he belongs. As Lucha is strictly forbidden by the church elders at the monastery, Ignacio is forced to lead a double life. Disguised by a sky blue mask, Ignacio becomes Nacho to conceal his true identity. So, he becomes a wrestler, and even though he has some raw talent for it, he sucks. Nacho and Steven get beaten by all kinds of wrestlers: regular one, midgets, women, old men, etc. Eventually, Nacho gets a chance to take on Rames (César González), Mexico's most popular wrestler, by winning a battle royal. He only manages to be the runner-up. However, the winner gets his toes broken; and Nacho gets the chance to face him. Overall, the film isn't that great. It's not the worst made about wrestling, but it ain't the best. It was directed by Jared Hess, the man who directed Napolean Dynamite. So, the humor between the movies is very similar. It is funny in certain parts, and even though it is 92 minutes, it feels like it goes on forever. Also, even though it takes place in Mexico, most of the dialogue is in English. And, the lead actor, Jack Black, is a white man playing a Mexican. Though, they explain in the movie that Ignacio's (Black) mom was a Scandinavian Lutheran missionary and his father was a Mexican missionary who fell in love and had a kid. And, some of the kids in the movie don't have much of a Mexican accent. There are also some mistakes with the wrestling. Firstly, when Nacho loses his first fight the three second count is not shown (it appears he loses with a flying kick). When Nacho beats Ramses the count takes place outside the ring. Normally when both fighters are outside the ring a 20 second count begins for both of them to return to the ring. Also, The battle royal is more for the movie than accurate within the rules, as Nacho is not pinned after the Tombstone Piledriver, or, if the rules were to throw your opponents out of the ring to win (like the other combatants), Nacho was not. There was no stipulation of having lost, or that he even came in 2nd place like later revealed in the film. It should also be noted that in Mexico, the Tombstone Piledriver is considered an illegal move. However, Jack Black does look good wrestling. In fact, he's better than some WWE wrestlers. Jack Black trained with a real luchador prior to filming, and he trained in New Japan Pro Wrestling's Los Angeles Dojo to hone his wrestling skills in preparation for the movie. Also, the movie is based on Fray Tormenta, aka Rev. Sergio Gutierrez Benitez, a real-life Mexican Catholic priest who had a 23-year career as a masked luchador. He competed in order to support the orphanage he directed. And, there two interesting cameos: Peter Stromare plays a man who takes Nacho to get some "magic" eagle that will make him a better wrestler. And, PWG's Human Tornado appears in the battle royal scene as "El Snowflake." There are also some wrestling inside jokes in the movie. For example, Nacho hits someone on the head with a guitar, ala Jeff Jarrett. The special features include the standard making of featurettes, deleted scenes, and photo gallery. There is also featurette with Jack Black singing. Overall, the movie and DVD were okay but not enough for me to recommend. Highlight: There is a deleted scene that features more Peter Stormare and has Jack Black in a wedding dress covered in birds. Not recommended.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Nov 14, 2006 21:53:19 GMT -5
Time for another DVD review: Jackie Brown 2-Disc DVD. Quentin Tarantino's third film, Jackie Brown is based on the novel Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard, although Tarantino made considerable changes to the storyline and characters. For example, in the novel Jackie is white and is called Jackie Burke. Also, in the book there is a scene where several of Ordell's "new-jack" henchmen are trapped in a warehouse full of weapons by ATF agents led by Ray Nicolette; they attempt to blast their way out with an anti-tank rocket launcher, but are too illiterate to read the instructions about how to operate it, and are captured. This would seem to be a scene tailor-made to Tarantino's sense of humor, but was not included in the film, perhaps for budgetary reasons or perhaps in an attempt to concentrate on the realistic and dramatic angles of the story. Anyway, Pam Grier plays Jackie Brown, a middle-aged airline flight attendant who gets coerced by ATF agent Ray Nicolette (Michael Keaton) to help them bring down arms smuggler Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson) and his accomplices (Robert De Niro and Bridget Fonda). In true Tarantino form, this film has a substantial amount of violence and profanity. It has been criticized, as was Tarantino's previous film Pulp Fiction, for the frequent use of the N word in the dialogue. Also noteworthy was the casting of Grier and Forster in lead roles. Both were veteran actors, but neither had performed a leading role in many years. Jackie Brown revitalised both actors' careers, Grier's to a greater degree. De Niro and Keaton were major stars, but were cast in supporting roles. The film is in some respects a homage to earlier blaxploitation films, many of which also featured Pam Grier, and the movie's soundtrack is reminiscent of those earlier films as well. It is a pretty good film. The dialogue and acting is top notch. There isn't a lot of violence, but the acting makes up for it. The DVD also has a lot of special features. There is a standard making of documentary. There is also an interview with Tarantino about the film that goes on for an hour. It also has deleted and alternate scenes, trailers, the Siskel and Ebert review of Jackie Brown, a featurette on some Jackie Brown contest MTV had when the film came out, and a Chicks With Guns video. All in all, it is a pretty good DVD. Not good enough to buy, I recommend renting it. Highlight: The Chicks With Guns Video. There is a scene where Ordell (Jackson) is telling Louis Gara (De Niro) about guns, and this is the video they are watching. It was filmed for the movie and features a bunch of girls in bikinis shooting guns. Also, the ending is hilarious. Recommended but only for renting it.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 23, 2006 23:04:03 GMT -5
It's been a while since I've done a DVD review, but I was busy writing papers and studying for finals. Now that I'm off for Christmas, I decide to do another review. To make up for lost time, I'm doing a super-review. This is Part 1 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! The Rise And Fall Of ECW 2-Disc DVD In 2004, the WWE released a DVD about how ECW became one of the hottest wrestling promotions in the 1990s, then quickly fell under the weight of its own success. The disc DVD contains a 3-hour documentary about the history of ECW. The docementary is very good. Starting from ECW's early days, it gives a detail history of the organizations. It takes a look at its top stars: Public Enemy, Taz, Sabu, Shane Douglas, Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer, Sandman, Mikey Whipwreck, Cactus Jack, Raven, the bWo, Beulah McGillicutty, the Dudleys, Rob Van Dam, and others. It also features its most memorable moments and innovations: The Night The Line Was Crossed; Shane Douglas throwing down the NWA World Title; bringing in great technical wrestlers like Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, Chris Jericho, 2 Cold Scorpio, etc.; bringing in luchadores like Konnan, Rey Mysterio, Psicosis, Juventud Guerrera, Super Crazy, etc.; Sandman and Tommy Dreamer's feud; Raven and Tommy Dreamer's feud; Raven crucifying Sandman; the Beulah/Kimona lesbian storyline; bringing in Steve Austin; Barely Legal; ECW invading the WWF; Jerry Lawler invading ECW; the FTW Title; etc. They also talk about the fans of ECW, Philadelphia, the innovations ECW brought to wrestling, how WWE and WCW immitated ECW, the wrestlers who left ECW for WWE and WCW, the ECW mole, getting on PPV, the Mass Transit incident, getting on TNN, etc. They also talking about why ECW failed. They do blame the right things on ECW's demise: the horrible TV deal ECW had with TNN and how bad of a businessman Paul Heyman. Also, some of the blame is put on ECW not changing to appeal to a wider audience. However, the WWF pretty much catered to the same audience ECW did, males 18-45, in 1998 to 2000 and was very successful doing so. Yet, they say that catering to just males 18-45 was a problem and a big reason for their demise. That's not necessarily the case. The WWE appealed to that same audience and are now the top promotion in North America. However, this is a WWE produced documentary, so the whole wouldn't really come out. Nevertheless, the documentary is very good. And, watching it felt weird and sad. I mean, the people on the documentary were talking about ECW being gone and had a feeling it would never comeback. Yet, ECW is back...well, in name anyway. It was also sad to see that the true ECW is gone. What airs on Sci-Fi isn't the real ECW; it's the WWE's ECW. And, when the documentary was over, I had wished they had left ECW dead. The second disc contains three featurettes. One is Stevie Richards apologizing for leaving ECW in 1997. Another is Tazz talking about how he called Paul Heyman and got his blessing before he wrestled his first WWF match, against Kurt Angle at Royal Rumble 2000. And, the last one is a funny story Chris Jericho tells about how Paul Heyman got him a cheap ticket by saying his "brother-in-law" Chris Benoit had died. There are also 7 great matches. The first is the Pitbulls VS Raven and Stevie Richards in a 2 out of 3 falls Dog Collar Match for the ECW Tag Team Titles. It is a fun match that features run-ins from The Dudleys (Dudley Dudley and Dances with Dudley), Tommy Dreamer, Francine, Bill Alfonso (who was a referee at the time), and 911. The second match is a great 2 out of 3 falls match between Rey Mysterio and Psicosis. The third match is a short Ladder Match between Mikey Whipwreck and Sandman; in fact most of the match is Whipwreck and Sandman's entrances and a promo by Steve Austin. The fourth match is another great match: 2 Cold Scorpio VS Sabu for the ECW TV Title. The fifth match is the historic last match between Raven and Tommy Dreamer, which ended with Dreamer finally beating Raven and then getting beat up by Jerry Lawler, Sabu, and Rob Van Dam. This match contains alternate commentary from Jonathan Coachman and Tommy Dreamer. The sixth match is Bam Bam Bigelow VS Taz for the ECW TV Title at Living Dangerously 1998, the one where Bigelow and Taz went through the ring. It also features alternate commentary: Michael Cole and Tazz. The final match on the DVD is the best match on the DVD: Rob Van Dam VS Jerry Lynn for the ECW TV Title at Hardcore Heaven 1999; this is one of the best matches to ever take place. Hell, it's up there with Randy Savage VS Ricky Steamboat at WrestleMania III. This match also has alternate commentary, from Cole and RVD. The whole DVD is great and a must-have for all ECW fans and is a great trip memory lane. Highlight: Rob Van Dam VS Jerry Lynn. Highly Recommended. Tomorrow, Part 2 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! It will be a review of Blood Sport: ECW's Most Violent Matches.
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iwchater
Samurai Cop
Greatest Album ever
Posts: 2,103
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Post by iwchater on Dec 23, 2006 23:43:14 GMT -5
If u have it, could u review:Nirvana:Live! Tonight! Sold Out! ? ~Seen have of the motherhugging movie~ ~I seriously doubt anyone has ever heard of this movie~
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 23, 2006 23:45:05 GMT -5
If u have it, could u review:Nirvana:Live! Tonight! Sold Out! ? ~Seen have of the motherhugging movie~ ~I seriously doubt anyone has ever heard of this movie~ I don't have it, but if I get a copy, I will.
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iwchater
Samurai Cop
Greatest Album ever
Posts: 2,103
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Post by iwchater on Dec 23, 2006 23:46:26 GMT -5
thanks ~Where is the nearest place to get laid~ ~I'm sure dating is like prostitution only u don't only get what u payed 4, but i can't even get a fudging date~
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 25, 2006 0:06:50 GMT -5
Okay, here is Part 2 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! Blood Sport: ECW's Most Violent Matches. 2-Disc DVD. After the success of The Rise and Fall of ECW, WWE decided to have an ECW reunion show, One Night Stand, in 2005. They also released a new DVD, Blood Sport: ECW's Most Violent Matches. Much like Tombstone: The History of the Undertaker and The History of the WWE Championship, this DVD is a complilation of matches. It features 20 of ECW's most violent matches; though the DVD says 19. It is hosted by Paul Heyman, who also supposedly selected the matches for the DVD. So, since this is the first time I have reviewed a DVD like this, I will rate each match out of 10: Match 1: ECW Tag Team Championship Match: Cactus Jack & Mikey Whipwreck vs. Public Enemy - Hardcore TV 8/27/95. Cactus Jack's partner was suppose to be Terry Funk, but he couldn't make it. So, Jack found the first man he saw backstage, Whipwreck, made him his partner. At the time, Whipwreck knew about 3 defensive moves and was really only trained to take a beating. Yet, he managed to get some balls in this match. It was a good match, and Mikey really took a beating. 7/10. Match 2: Sandman & Terry Funk vs. Cactus Jack & Shane Douglas - Extreme Warfare Vol.1 3/18/95. This match was just a pure hardcore brawl. Everything from chairs to Singapore canes to guard rails to tool boxes were used in this match. A funny moment in the match happened when Terry Funk tried to hit Douglas with a tool box. However, Funk didn't know that the box was open, and when he lifted it, the tools fell on his head. The match ended with Funk burning Cactus Jack with a flaming branding iron. 8/10. Match 3: Taipei Death Match: Ian Rotten vs. Axl Rotten - Hardcore Heaven 7/1/95. Now, this was a violent match. For those of you who don't know what a Taipei Death Match is, before the match, the participants taped their fist, dip the taped fists into superglue, and dip the superglued taped fists into a bucket of broken glass. Then, they fight. The match nearly ended early when referee Bill Alfonso tried to end the match because Ian had a small cut above his eye, but a fight between the Gangstas and Public Enemy distracted him. This match was gruesome and bloody. It definitely isn't for the faint of heart. 9/10. Match 4: Mexican Death Match: Rey Misterio Jr. vs. Psicosis - November To Remember 11/18/95. The rules of this match were if a person was pinned or submitted, he had till the count of 10 to get back up; or he would lose. This was a very good match, as Mysterio and Psicosis pulled out all the stops, using their airiel moves and weapons to beat each other. It was just as good as their match featured on the Rise and Fall of ECW DVD. 9/10. Match 5: Four Corners Match for the ECW Television Title: Shane Douglas vs. Chris Jericho vs. 2 Cold Scorpio vs. Pitbull #2 - Heat Wave 6/13/96. This is the best match on the DVD. All four men put on a great and exiciting 40-minute match. Plus, the match was historic as this was where Francine turned on the Pitbulls and aligned herself with Douglas. However, the Pitbulls got revenge on her when Pitbull #2 superbombed her through a table. It is one of the best wrestling matches I have ever seen. 10/10. Match 6: Weapons Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. Brian Lee - Hardcore Heaven 6/22/96. Now, this was a fun little hardcore match as Dreamer and Lee, who was the Underfaker and went on to become Chainz of DOA, fought all over the ECW Arena and outside the arena. There were also run-ins from Beulah McGillicutty, Kimona Wanalaya, and the Harris Twins. All in all, it was an okay match; not the best one on the DVD, but it was fun to watch. 6/10. Match 7: Stretcher Match: Rob Van Dam vs. Sabu - The Doctor Is In 8/3/96. Now, this was a great match. RVD and Sabu put on an exciting and fast-paced match. I knew they would put on a great, but I didn't know how great. It is the second-best match on the DVD. 10/10. Match 8: 3-Way Dance #1 Contender's Match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship: Terry Funk vs. Sandman vs. Stevie Richards - Barely Legal 4/13/97. This match was from ECW's first PPV, Barley Legal. It was a very good hardcore match. Stevie Richards was impressive, holding his own against two hardcore legends. Sandman showed how tough he was by wrapping barb wire around himself. And, Funk was inspiring, by winning the match to get a shot at the ECW World Title when he was 54. 8/10. Match 9 (Bonus Match 1): ECW World Heavyweight Championship - Raven vs. Terry Funk - Barely Legal 4/13/97. This match began right after the 3-way dance. Raven pretty much beat the crap out of Funk, who had just wrestled a hard-fought match. And, he had his Nest come out to help him end Funk's career. However, Tommy Dreamer, Raven's long time rival, who was doing commentary for the main event, managed to stop that. He chokeslammed Big Dick Dudley through two tables from a balcony and then came down and DDT'ed Raven. Then, Funk rolled Raven up and won the match, becoming ECW World Champion at the age of 54. It was an okay match, not much in the wrestling department; but it was very exciting and dramatic. 6/10. Match 10 (Bonus Match 2): Gangstas vs. Public Enemy - House Party 1/5/96. This was Public Enemy's last ECW match, and they went out with a bang, beating the Gangstas in a very violent match. These two just beat the crap out of each other, and it was a very good hardcore match. 7/10. Match 11: Barbed Wire Match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship: Terry Funk vs. Sabu - Born to Be Wired 8/9/97. Now, this match is definitely not for the weak of heart. The match was so sickening that Joey Styles nearly threw-up while calling it and Paul Heyman never booked another one. Sabu cut himself in the arm so bad that he had to tape it up during the match. And, the match ended with Sabu and Funk tangled in a huge ball of barb wire. In fact, Funk's shoulders weren't down when the referee made the three count, but he had to end the match because some barb wire was around Funk's neck. And, it took ECW officials and medical personel about two minutes to cut them out of the barb wire ball. It was amazing that these two would put themselves through such a horrendous match. 10/10. Match 12: Intergender Match: Beulah McGillicutty vs. Bill Alfonso - As Good As It Gets 9/20/97. Paul Heyman called this match "the most gruelling five minutes in ECW history," and he is very right. Beulah and Alfonso put on a very good match, which is amazing since neither one is really a wrestler. Beulah really carried the match, and Alfonso lost practically a gallon of blood. These really impressed the crowd and put on an exciting match. 8/10. Match 13: ECW Death Match: Tazz vs. Bam Bam Bigelow - Heat Wave 8/2/98. This was a pretty good match as Bam Bama and Tazz fought all over the Hara Arena in Dayton, Ohio. The highlight of the match was when Bam Bam went to slam Tazz on the entrance walkway, but Tazz reversed it into a DDT and sent both men through the walkway. 8/10. Match 14: ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Tazz vs. Shane Douglas - House Party 1/16/99. This was the rematch to Tazz and Douglas's ECW Title match at Guilty As Charged of that year. It was very good, starting off as a technical encounter and then evolving into a good hardcore match as they fought all over the ECW Arena. The match ended with Tazz giving Douglas a Tazzmission Suplex into the table. 9/10. Match 15: Chicago Street Fight Falls Count Anywhere Match for the ECW Tag Team Championship: Dudley Boyz vs. Spike Dudley & Balls Mahoney - Hardcore TV 7/5/99. You can't have a DVD of ECW's most violent matches without the Dudley Boyz. This was a very good hardcore match as the Dudleys and Spike and Balls fought a very violent match. The match ended with Buh Buh Ray powerbombing Balls onto a flaming table covered in steel tacks. 8/10. Match 16: ECW World Championship Match: Mike Awesome vs. Spike Dudley - Guilty as Charged 1/9/00. This was another good match. It showed how tough Spike is as he got thrown into three tables within two minutes into the match. But, that wasn't the end of Spike getting smashed through tables. In fact, it happened three more times. The match also showcased Mike Awesome's talents, as he flew throught the air to take out Spike. Not many 6'6", 290 lbs. men can fly throught the air as Awesome can. All in all, it was a very good David VS Goliath match. 9/10. Match 17: Rhino vs. Sandman - ECW on TNN 2/25/00. This was an okay match, not that great, but entertaining to watch. It was just 6 minutes of Sandman and Rhino beating each other up. The match featured Sandman getting Gored through a table by Rhino and run-ins from Steve Corino, Jack Victory, Tajiri, and Super Crazy. 6/10. Match 18: 3-Way Dance: Super Crazy vs. Yoshihiro Tajiri vs. Little Guido - ECW on TNN 3/3/00. Now, this was a very exiciting match. Super Crazy, Tajiri, and Guido put on a great 9 minutes of fast paced action. It was so good that it will leave you wanting more. 10/10. Match 19: "I Quit" Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. C.W. Anderson - Alternate Commentary With Tommy Dreamer and Jonathan Coachman - Guilty as Charged 1/7/01. This is one of the best I Quit matches that has ever taken place. Dreamer and Anderson used steel chairs, a wrench, razor wire, cookie sheets, and a table in this match. The match also features a WrestleCrap inductee, Towel Boy!!!! He helps Dreamer out by hitting Anderson with a cookie sheet and get superplexed by Anderson after C.W. held him up for about a minute. The match ended with Dreamer giving Anderson a Spicoli Driver through the table from the top rope and wrapping the rubber from table around Anderson's eyes. 10/10. Match 20: Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka - ECW One Night Stand 6/12/05. Many call this the best match from ONS 2005, and they are right. It was very good, and it got the crowd and Joey Styles to change their opinion of Awesome, as he went from being booed at the beginning of the match to getting cheered at the end. Hell, even the WWE invaders at ONS were into the match. 10/10. There are also some featurettes on the DVD: Axl Rotten talking about the Taipei Death Match, a featurette about blood being used in ECW, a featurette on the flaming tables, C.W. Anderson talking about the I Quit Match on the DVD, Danny Doring and Amish Roadkill talking about how they got into wreslting, a featurette on the Pitbulls, Justin Credible talking about being ECW Champion, and a video history leading up to the Cactus Jack and Mikey Whipwreck VS Public Enemy. There's also an easter egg on the DVD; go into Extras Menu, Highlight "Extreme Measures: The Flaming Table" and press right twice to see an interview with Balls Mahoney. This DVD is great to watch, not just for the matches but also to see how ECW changed in a decade. The first match has only one camera; by the end, ECW is using several cameras. The video quality goes from subpar to very good. And, all the matches on the first disc take place from the ECW Arena; it isn't until Tazz VS Bam Bam that we get a match that takes place outside of Philadelphia. Overall, this is a great DVD with a lot of great matches. I was a little disappointed by the fact that there was little of Rob Van Dam, Raven, the Dudleys, Balls Mahoney, and Rhino on the DVD. But, the matches on the DVD made up for it. Hell, the worst matches on this DVD are a lot better than most of the matches RAW usually features. If you are a fan of ECW or want to see what ECW was like before WWE gave us their version of it, then you must buy this DVD. Highlight: The Four Corners Match for the TV Title. Highly Recommended. Tomorrow, Part 3 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! It will be a review of ECW One Night Stand 2005.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 25, 2006 21:00:30 GMT -5
Now, here is Part 3 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! ECW One Night Stand 2005 After the success of The Rise and Fall of ECW DVD and at the suggestion of Rob Van Dam, Vince McMahon decided to hold an ECW Reunion show. And, ECW One Night Stand 2005 took place on June 12, 2005 from the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, New York. The event was booked by Paul Heyman and was a great tribute to the old ECW. The event began with Joey Styles in the ring, showing his emotions about being there. Then, it went onto the first match: Lance Storm (w/Dawn Marie) VS Chris Jericho (7:22). It was a nice match to began the show, and Storm and Jericho really showed off their skills. The match ended with Storm pinning Jericho after Justin Credible and Jason came to ringside and Credible hit Jericho with a Singapore cane. It was a good match, though I would have liked for it to go longer. I was also surprised to see how it ended. You wouldn't think a man would cheat to win his last match, but this was ECW, where things went against the grain. 7/10. After the match, a tribute video introduced by Gary "Pitbull #1" Wolfe aired honoring ECW alumni who had died since the promotion folded in 2001: Rocco Rock, Terry Gordy, Mike "Crash Holly" Lockwood, The Original Sheik, Mike Lazansky, Anthony "Pitbull #2" Durante, Big Dick Dudley, and Chris Candido. Then began the 2nd match: Three-way Dance: Super Crazy VS Yoshihiro Tajiri (w/The Sinister Minister and Mikey Whipwreck) VS Little Guido (w/Tracy Smothers, Tony Mamaluke, Big Guido and J.T. Smith) (6:12). The highlight of the match was when Super Crazy did a moonsault off a balcony onto the FBI. Little Guido was the first eliminated by Tajiri, thanks to a Whippersnapper from Mikey Whipwreck. Then, Super Crazy won the match. It was a pretty good, though these three have had better. 8/10. Next came a little video highlighting ECW's early days (1994-1995). Then came the 3rd match: Rey Misterio, Jr. VS Psicosis (6:22). Before the match, Psicosis took off his mask, which pissed the crowd off as they canted "Put Your Mask On!" It ended when Mysterio pinned Psychosis with a 619, which got booed, and West Coast Pop. This was a decent match, but Psicosis and Mysterio have put on better matches. 6/10. Then, the SmackDown! invaders came in and got booed heavily. After they took their seats, another vignette of ECW's past was aired; this one featuring the years 1996-1998. Then, Joel Gertner tried to interview the SmackDown! invaders but was kicked. Then, Kurt Angle and JBL cut promos on how much ECW sucked. This led to Rob Van Dam coming out and giving a shoot promo about how he made the suggestion for the ECW reunion show to Vince and how much he hated having to not wrestle on One Night Stand. After his promo, Rhyno came in and Gored him. Then, the lights went out and Sabu showed up, leading to a impromptu match: Sabu (w/Bill Alfonso) VS Rhyno (6:30). Sabu and Rhyno put on a nice little hardcore match. Sabu pinned Rhyno after an Arabian Skull Crusher through a table after Rob Van Dam hit Rhyno with a Van Daminator. This was an okay match, and the crowd really enjoyed it. 8/10. After the match, Al Snow cut a promo, blaming head for inviting the WWE invaders and saying that ECW One Night Stand was the ECW Alumni and "not a bunch of SmackDown! assholes!" Then, the final look at ECW's past was aired, this one showing ECW circa 1999-2001. Then, the RAW invaders showed up. Eric Bischoff got a "F*** YOU!" chant, and Edge got a "You Screwed Matt!" chant. Then came the 5th match: Chris Benoit VS Eddie Guerrero(10:37). Both men put on a very good technical encounter that ended when Benoit forced Guerrero to submit with the Crippler Crossface. It was a pretty good technical wrestling match, thought these two have had better matches. 8/10. Then a commercial for The Rise and Fall of ECW aired. Then, Joel Gertner went back to the WWE Invaders' balcony and asked Eric Bischoff for a job. Bischoff said no and cut a promo on how much ECW sucks and called everyone involved in ECW and its fans "scabs" for some strange reason. Then came the Match of the PPV: Mike Awesome VS Masato Tanaka(9:52). Many call this the best match from ONS 2005, and they are right. It was very good, and it got the crowd and Joey Styles to change their opinion of Awesome, as he went from being booed at the beginning of the match to getting cheered at the end. Hell, even the WWE invaders at ONS were into the match. Awesome pinned Tanaka after a Suicide Dive to the outside. After the match Awesome Powerbombed referee Jim Mollinneux. 10/10. After this match, Paul Heyman came out; thanked the ECW fans, Todd Gordon, and Rod Bufone; and cut shoot promos on the invaders. He said to Eric Bischoff that he was at an ECW PPV and not a WCW PPV. He said to Edge that the male fans should hide their wives and had three words for him: "MATT FREAKIN' HARDY!!!!" And, he said to JBL that the only reason he was WWE Champion was that Triple H didn't want to work Tuesdays. Then, Heyman left, flipping off the WWE invaders. Next came a commercial for WWE 24/7, which was very out of place. Then came the main event: The Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray and D-Von) defeated Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman (10:52) First, we got the usual long Sandman introduction, which ended with him and Dreamer licking beer off of Elektra's chest, who was sitting at ringside and looked like she has had some work done on her face. Spike Dudley, The bWo (Hollywood Nova, Da Blue Guy, and Big Stevie Cool), Kid Kash, The Hardcore Chair Swingin' Freaks (Axl Rotten and Balls Mahoney), Lance Storm, Justin Credible, Francine, and Beulah McGillicutty all interfered during the match. The match finally ended when Buh Buh and D-Von pinned Dreamer after a Powerbomb through a flaming table. It was good match and great main event. The crowd really liked it and was really into it. 9/10. Following the main event, Sandman asked for someone to get him a beer. Then, Stone Cold Steve Austin came out and called for all the ECW Alumni at the event to come to the ring. Once they did, Austin called for the WWE invaders to come down to the ring, with Bischoff joining Joey Styles and Mick Foley on commentary. Bischoff was quickly told by Styles that he was the worst commentator in wrestling history. They did and quickly got their asses kick. You can also see a lot of the ECW wrestlers ganging up on JBL because of the real punch he gave to the Blue Meanie. After the invaders got their asses kicked, Austin asked Mick Foley to grab Eric Bischoff and bring him into the ring. He did as the WWE invaders left. Bischoff was then thrown into the ring and given a 3-D by the Dudleys, a flying headbutt by Chris Benoit, and a 619 by Rey Mysterio, which was booed again. Then, Austin asked Bischoff what he thought of the show, to which Bischoff replied, "F*** ECW!!!" Austin gave him a Stunner. Finally, the show ended with Steve Austin threw a "beer bash" for the whole locker room. There are some extras on the DVD: two promos for the show; vingettes on Sandman, RVD, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, and the Dudleys; highlights of Bischoff's ECW funeral; ECW fans' reaction of the show; and JBL's alternate commentary to show from when he came in. All in all, ECW One Night Stand was a good show. The matches were pretty good, and it was fun to see ECW comeback for one, when we thought ECW wouldn't be revived by the WWE. It is a good PPV for those wanting to remember ECW as it was and for those who missed seeing ECW when it was around. It was also fun to hear all the shoot comments throughout the show. I would definitely recommend it for any ECW fan and those who want to see what ECW was about. Highlight: The Dudleys powerbombing Tommy Dreamer through a flaming table. Recommended. Tomorrow, Part 4 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! It will be a review of ECW One Night Stand 2006, with Barely Legal.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 26, 2006 23:04:42 GMT -5
And, here is the conclusion: Part 4 of Hulk Samson's EXTREME CHRISTMAS DVD REVIEW!!!! ECW One Night Stand 2006, with Barely Legal 2-Disc DVD In June of this year, 2006, WWE decided to revive ECW, and they did it at ECW One Night Stand, on June 11 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. They later released a DVD of the event, with four extras: the fans' response to the show, the opening segment of the first episode of ECW on Sci-Fi, the WWE VS ECW Battle Royal at WWE VS ECW Head to Head on June 7 (my birthday!!!!), and a disc featuring ECW's first PPV, Barely Legal. I'll start the review there: The show began with Joey Styles running down the matches for the event, but he was cut off by the Dudley Boyz, Sign-Guy Dudley, and Joel Gertner. Then, D-Von gave a promo, and the show began. Then, Joel gave the Dudleys his verbial bj of an introduction. Then, the Eliminators came out and the first match began: ECW Tag Team Championship Match: Eliminators (John Kronus and Perry Saturn) VS The Dudley Boyz (Buh Buh Ray and D-Von) (6:11). It was a pretty good opener. Saturn and Kronus gave Sign Guy a Total Elimination to begin the match. The Dudleys had some control in the first of the match, but the Eliminators quickly took over and dominated the match. They used a lot of great double team moves that got the crowd applauding many times. The matched ended with a Total Elimination to Buh Buh Ray and Saturn pinning Buh Buh to win the belts. All in all, it was a good squash match. 7/10. After the match, Gertner came in and said that, on the Sudmuffin Scale, the Dudleys won 86-83 and were still ECW Tag Team Champions. So, the Eliminators gave him a Total Elimination. Next came a vignette showing the Sandman. Then, Chris Candido gave a promo talking about why he couldn't compete in his match with Lance Storm, he had a fracture in his arm, and talked about the competitors in the 3-way Dance Main Event. Then began the second match: Rob Van Dam VS Lance Storm (10:10). Van Dam was chosen to be Candido's subsitute. He and Storm put on a good match. I would have liked for it to go on a little longer, but it was still very good. Van Dam pinned Storm to win, and then gave a good promo saying he wasn't a second rate wrestler and was good enough to wrestler on Mondays (a reference to RAW and Nito). 8/10. The Great Sasuke, Gran Hamada, and Masato Yakushiji VS bWo Japan (Taka Michinoku, Terry Boy, and Dick Togo) (16:55). Gran Naniwa was suppose to be in the match, but he was injured. Yakushiji took his place. As for the match, it was incredible. All six men displayed great wrestling skills, and the crowd was very into it. In fact, this is the best match on the PPV. The match ended when Sasuke pinned Michinoku. 10/10. Afterwards, Terry Boy and Hamada got into a small fight. Next, Stevie Richards gave a great promo about how he felt being Raven's lackey and how that night was his chance to redeem himself and become a somebody. Then, the third match began: ECW World Television Championship Match: Shane Douglas (W/Francine) VS Pitbull #2 (20:43). Before the match, Douglas cut a promo explaining how he came back from "his sojourn into cartoon land (WWF)," won the ECW TV Title, broke Pitbull #1's neck, threw him down when he was in a neck halo, and how he reinjured Pitbull #1's neck again, all while Pitbull #1 sit at ringside. There also a special stipulation to the match: if Pitbull #2 lost, then the masked man who tormenting Douglas, obviously Rick Rude, would have to unmask. Then, the match began. It wasn't the best on the show and could have been better, but it was okay. Also, during the match, Pitbull #1 attacked Douglas and was taken out by Philadelphia PD Riot Squad members, who were there to protect Douglas from the crowd. And, triple threat member Chris Candido also came out and tried to help Douglas but was thwarted. Douglas pinned Pitbull #2 after a belly-to-belly suplex to win the match. 6/10. After the match, the masked man came out wearing a Rick Rude and kissed Francine, who seemed to enjoy it. Then, a riot squad member entered the ring and attacked Douglas. The riot squad member turned out to be Rick Rude, and the masked man was Brian Lee, who was in the Triple Threat at the time. Next, Raven cut an awesome promo about how most people didn't like him, but he didn't care because he knew there were some who wanted him to remain ECW Champion. Then began one of the most anticipated matches in ECW history: Taz VS Sabu (17:49). For months, Taz and Sabu feuded but never touched each other. After months of waiting, they finally got it on in a classic match. These two put on a great match that the crowd ate up. Taz forced Sabu to submit with the Tazmission to win the match. It wasn't the best match of the show, but it was very good and lived up to the hype. 9/10. After the match, Taz and Sabu shook hands; and Taz said he now respected Sabu. Then, RVD came out; and he and Sabu attacked Taz. Then, Taz's manager, Bill Alfonso, betrayed Taz and joined forces with RVD and Sabu. And, RVD said he was available to work Mondays (another reference to RAW and Nito). Then, Joey Styles introduced his special guest commentator for the main event, Tommy Dreamer; and the main event began: 3-Way Dance #1 Contender's Match for the ECW World Heavyweight Championship: Terry Funk vs. Sandman vs. Stevie Richards (19:10). It was a very good hardcore match. Stevie Richards was impressive, holding his own against two hardcore legends. Sandman showed how tough he was by wrapping barb wire around himself. And, Funk was inspiring, by winning the match to get a shot at the ECW World Title when he was 54. 8/10. ECW World Heavyweight Championship - Raven vs. Terry Funk - Barely Legal 4/13/97. This match began right after the 3-way dance. Raven pretty much beat the crap out of Funk, who had just wrestled a hard-fought match. And, he had his Nest come out to help him end Funk's career. However, Tommy Dreamer, Raven's long time rival, who was doing commentary for the main event, managed to stop that. He chokeslammed Big Dick Dudley through two tables from a balcony and then came down and DDT'ed Raven. Then, Funk rolled Raven up and won the match, becoming ECW World Champion at the age of 54. It was an okay match, not much in the wrestling department; but it was very exciting and dramatic. 6/10. All in all, Barely Legal was a good show and was a very impressive way for ECW to began it's run on PPV. Now, for a review of ECW One Night Stand: First, the bonus match: WWE VS ECW Battle Royal - WWE VS ECW: Head To Head, June 7, 2006. The battle royal featured: for WWE -- Randy Orton, Edge, Finlay, Bobby Lashley (who later join ECW), Tatanka, Carlito, Matt Hardy, Shelton Benjamin, Mark Henry, and The Big Show; for ECW -- Kurt Angle, Tommy Dreamer, Terry Funk, Sandman, Balls Mahoney, Justin Credible, Stevie Richards, Tony Mamaluke, Little Guido, and Al Snow. It was an okay battle royal, and the ending was a little messed up, with Big Show joining ECW. Nevertheless, it was an okay match. 4/10. Now, for ECW One Night Stand 2006. It began with Paul Heyman addressing the crowd and thanking ECW's fans for getting ECW back on TV. Then, the show began with the first match: Tazz VS Jerry Lawler (0:35). It wasn't much of a match. When Lawler came out, he attacked Joey Styles. Then, when he went to the ring, Styles jump. Lawler brushed him off and tried to pildrive Styles, but Tazz locked on the Tazzmission, and Lawler passed out. It was very short, but I wasn't surprised. In fact, it was good the match didn't go on for very long. Lawler is passed his prime, and Tazz claims his neck can't to be in a wrestling match. So, it was good this match went short. 3/10. Then, Tazz joined Joey Styles on commentary, and the second match began: Kurt Angle VS Randy Orton (15:07). Orton came out to thunderous boos; they didn't like him at all. Angle on the other hand was cheered like a god. The match was pretty, with some great mat wrestling from Angle. And, Orton held his own. In the end, Angle forced Orton to submit with the Ankle Lock. All in all, it was a pretty good match and was well recieved by the crowd, despite the fact it was two WWE wrestlers wrestling at an ECW show. 7/10. The F.B.I. (Little Guido and Tony Mamaluke) (w/Big Guido) VS Tajiri and Super Crazy (12:24). This was a great match. The F.B.I. showed great teamwork in the match; it's a shame they aren't being properly used in ECW. It was also nice to see Tajiri again, and he had some great chemistry with Super Crazy. And, the crowd really enjoyed it. Guido pinned Tajiri after he and Mamaluke a Double Fisherman's Brainbuster. 9/10. After the match, The Big Show came to the ring and attacked every wrestler in the ring. Then, JBL came out and cut a great promo, beratting the ECW fans and announcing he was SmackDown!'s new color commentator. And, he left with the classic quote, "Now, kiss my ass! This show sucks!" Tazz quickly replied, "Then, why'd ya come, ya idiot!" Then, the first of two World Title matches at ONS began: World Heavyweight Championship Match: Rey Mysterio VS Sabu (9:10). This was a very good match, and the crowd was really into it. However, Dr. Ferdinand Rios came out and called off the match after Sabu hit Mysterio with a Triple Jump DDT through a table on to the floor, rendering both men unconscious. As a result, Mysterio retained the title. I didn't like the ending; I would have been okay with Rey winning the match fair and squared. However, it was still a good match. 8/10. Next aired a vingette of the next match: Hardcore Intergender Match: Edge, Mick Foley, and Lita VS Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer and Beulah McGillicutty (18:45). At the beginning, Foley cut a great promo, saying how he sold out..."MADISON SQUARE GARDEN!" Then, he said his classic "LONG LIVE THE ALLIANCE!" promo. Then, Edge and Lita came out and cut a so-so promo. Then, Dreamer, Funk, and Beulah came; and Beulah challenged Lita to make the match an 6-Person Tag Match. And, that's what happened. Beulah and Lita pretty much stayed out of the match until the end, which was smart for them. This match was violent and bloody. It got gruesome when Edge and Foley brought out a plywood covered in barb wire. And, all four men got a taste of barb wire during the match. Funk had to be taken out of the match due to a cut above his eye. But he came back with a 2-by-4 wrapped in barb wire, set it on fired, and used it to knock Foley throught the barb wire plywood. In the end, Edge pinned McGillicutty after a Spear won the match for his team. But, the fans still appreicated Funk, Dreamer, and Beulah's effort. The fans really enjoyed the match, and it was a very good hardcore match. 9/10. Balls Mahoney VS Masato Tanaka (5:03). This was a pretty good match, an okay filler match in between the 6-Person Tag Match and the WWE Title Match. Mahoney pinned Tanaka after hitting him with a steel chair and won the match. 6/10. Then, a vignette of the build toward the main event was showed. Then, Eugene came out to read the crowd a poem. They booed his ass heavily. So, Sandman showed up and caned his ass out of the building. Then, the main event began: WWE Championship Match: Rob Van Dam VS John Cena (20:41). When the match began, Cena threw his shirt and hat into the crowd; but they threw it back. The crowd Cena heavily and didn't give him a break. When he did his usually moves, they chanted "You Can't Wrestle!" or "Same Old S***!" When he did moves he doesn't normally do, they chanted "You Still Suck!" The match was very good, with some back and forth action; but Cena pretty much controlled the pace. And, he held his own in the match and with the crowd, mainly by playing the heel to them. Then, Cena got frustrated with the ECW referee and knocked him out. This led to a SmackDown! referee coming out. As Cena was about to win Edge showed up, wearing a motorcyle helmet and Speared Cena through a table. Then, RVD his the 5-Star Frog Splash, and Paul Heyman made the 3 count after the referee was knocked out. All in all, it was a good match, despite the screwy finish and the fact that RVD blew his World Title run in a few weeks. 9/10. And, the show ended with ECW wrestlers coming to the ring to congradulate RVD on becoming WWE and ECW Champion. As for the show, it was very good. It had all the makings to be a bad PPV: it didn't have as many old ECW wrestlers as there were at One Night Stand 2005; it had WWE wrestlers on the card; Kurt Angle, who a year ago tried to end ECW, was there as an "ECW wrestler," and Mick Foley, who a year ago was happy to see ECW back, was trying to bring down ECW. But, they put on a very good show. But, one bad thing about the show was that it got my hopes up. When I first heard ECW was coming back, I was upset because I was afraid WWE would ruin ECW and not make it as it was in the 1990's. Then, they put on this good show with very little ECW wrestlers, and I thought, "Maybe they can pull it." Sadly, that wasn't the case. Nevertheless, it was still a good show, and I recommend it, especially for the Barely Legal disc. Highlight: Of Barely Legal--The 6-Man Tag Match; Of ECW One Night Stand 2006--"LONG LIVE THE ALLIANCE!!!!" Recommended, especially for the Barely Legal disc.
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Post by dorf on Dec 26, 2006 23:15:41 GMT -5
Good reviews of all the ECW stuff.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 26, 2006 23:22:43 GMT -5
Good reviews of all the ECW stuff. Thanks. I enjoyed. It was great, going back and looking at ECW as it was and not as WWE had made it.
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Post by Eugene Gurkin on Dec 26, 2006 23:48:28 GMT -5
I do reviews for my high school newspaper in a small town in Arkansas. I've recived awards for my reviews and wondering, hey Hulk Samson, you mind me reviewing a wrestling DVD in this thread? just asking.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 26, 2006 23:49:58 GMT -5
I do reviews for my high school newspaper in a small town in Arkansas. I've recived awards for my reviews and wondering, hey Hulk Samson, you mind me reviewing a wrestling DVD in this thread? just asking. I think you should start your own thread, since this is HULK'S DVD Review thread.
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Post by Eugene Gurkin on Dec 26, 2006 23:54:15 GMT -5
I do reviews for my high school newspaper in a small town in Arkansas. I've recived awards for my reviews and wondering, hey Hulk Samson, you mind me reviewing a wrestling DVD in this thread? just asking. I think you should start your own thread, since this is HULK'S DVD Review thread. Good idea.
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Post by Eugene Gurkin on Dec 26, 2006 23:55:04 GMT -5
Tomorrow I'll review X-Men: The Last Stand.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Dec 31, 2006 22:43:37 GMT -5
Okay, I'm back with a DVD review: McMahon 2-Disc DVD I'm not the biggest fan Vince McMahon, but I have been interested in seeing this DVD since I heard they were releasing it. However, I wasn't so interested that I would actually put down money to buy it and watch it. So, I put it on my Christmas list; and sure enough, my parents bought it for me. However, my grandmother also got me one as well. I GOT TWO COPIES OF THE MCMAHON DVD FOR CHRISTMAS!!!! VINCE MCMAHON WAS TRYING TO RUIN MY CHRISTMAS!!!! Oh well, I took one copy back to Wal-Mart and exchanged it for the AWA DVD (I'll be reviewing it tomorrow.). As for the DVD documentary, it was pretty good; but it was also factually incorrect. God, I hope Dave Meltzer watched this DVD with a doctor present in case he got an aneurysism from it. For example, they talk about WWE's purchase of Georgia Championship Wrestling and taking over its TBS shows. According to the WWE, told by Shane McMahon, Ted Turner was so impressed with the WWF's success on TBS was so good that Turner started his own wrestling company and kicked the WWF off of TBS. In actuallity, fans of GCW were so upset that they complained; and McMahon was suppose to provide TBS with great wrestling action from Atlanta and not the one-sided squashes that had already aired on USA that he gave them. So, Turner gave Ole Anderson's Championship Wrestling from Georgia and Bill Watts's Mid-South Wrestling timeslots on TBS. Vince was outraged and eventually took his show off of TBS, and Turner put his World Championship Wrestling on TBS. And, that's how the WWF/WCW war actually began. They also talk about the XFL, saying it was the media and the network's fault that the league didn't succeed. They talked about the media jumping all over and calling it stupid and claimed that the networks gave up on the XFL, despite the fact the league was really a good idea. Also, Vince said that the XFL could still work today. (HA HA HA HA!!!!) In actuallity, the games weren't that good, and the fans grew bored easily and left in droves. Hell, the XFL went from having some of the highest network ratings in TV history to having some of the lowest by the end of the season. They also said having Eric Bischoff on RAW to hug Vince McMahon was a good idea. And, they barely mention the Steroids and Sexual Harassment scandals on the early 1990s and don't even mention the World Bodybuilding Federation at all. It is also fun to watch the documentary and determine who's trying to suck up and kiss McMahon's ass the most. The three big ones would have to be Gerald Brisco (as usual), JBL, and the Big Show. And, some people actually said Vince hates suck ups (I highly doubt that). The doc also mentions some positive things about Vince, like his Mr. McMahon character, one of the best wrestling characters of all time. And, they go in depth with the Austin VS McMahon storyline and mention how Vince is willing to put his body on the line to entertain the fans. That's one of the things I admire about Vince; he doesn't have to get in the ring and get his ass kicked, but he does. I'm also amazed at some of the bumps he has taken over the years, like when he fell from the cage at St. Valentine's Day Massacre. I still can't believe he did that. They also mention the charitable acts of Vince and the WWE and the Christmas shows from Iraq they've held for the last few years. It also mentions his feuds with his family. And, Linda, Shane, and Stephanie are featured prominently on the DVD. And, it is nice to hear his family and WWE wrestlers mention some of the storylines they didn't like, like Katie Vick; how Vince would make out with the Divas, sometimes in front of Linda; his feud with Stephanie; how he wanted to put Triple H and Stephanie's wedding on PPV (who would pay to see that?); and the incest angle he wanted to do with Stephanie. Hearing this had me torn: part of me was glad this horrible storyline was never aired, and the other part of me wanted to see how this storyline played out. Also, Greg Gagne maid an appearance on the documentary, claiming that it was Vince McMahon who was responsible for the demise of the AWA. And, of course, the Kiss My Ass club was mentioned. God, why does Vince love his ass so much? The documentary was pretty good. I didn't like the mistakes and the fact that certain wrestlers, like Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Mick Foley, Ric Flair, and The Rock weren't featured more. I was also upset that most of the focus of the documentary was in the late 1990s and early 2000s. I wanted to hear Vince's take on the Steroids and Sex Scandals and the World Bodybuilding Federation. And, they barely mentioned the time Vince won the WWE Title. I figured that would have been talked about a lot, and that the match would be on the DVD. Strangely, it isn't. But, it was an okay documentary. And, I really liked Shawn Michaels quote about Vince: "That's why I say he's the greatest guy in the world to work for - because he's an idiot." The extras include deleted scenes from the documentary. They talk about his motorcycle accident in 1999, which led to him being in the wheelchair the second time; Triple H talking about Vince winning the WWE Title; the 9/11 Smackdown taping; how stubborn Vince is; and that famous McMahon walk. There are also some stories about Vince; one from Vince about how he used to like to fight in his teen days; two from Triple H, one about how competitive he is and one about how he doesn't really take vacations, one from William Regal about how he passed out in Vince's office the day Vince hired him, two from the Big Show, one about how he was sleeping on air matress on the way to Iraq for one of the Christmas show and that Vince put a hole in it, which has an easter egg here by pushing left twice and features more on this incident, and one about how Vince told off a soldier while he and Big Show were waiting for the plane to take them out of Iraq; and one from Steph about how great her dad is. There are two other great extras: the Stand Back performance from the 1987 Slammys, with Hulk Hogan on bass, the Killer Bees and Junk Yard Dog on saxaphone, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, and Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake on tumpet, and George "The Animal" Steele on tamborine. Watching it made be wonder if these guys were actually playing there instruments. There is also the vignette of Shane training Vince for the 1999 Royal Rumble, which features another easter egg. By highlight this and pushing left twice, you will see two outtakes from the vignette in which Vince is about to chase a chicken but can't because the chicken won't run in the snow. The matches on the DVD aren't the best in the world, but they are entertaining. The first one, Vince VS Stone Cold on RAW on April 4, 1998, where Austin challenged Vince to match, and he accepted, if Austin tied one of his arms behind his back. Well, Austin did, but the match didn't happen because Dude Love came out and attacked Austin. Three of the matches are just squashes: the other two matches featuring Austin, the Steel Cage Match from St. Valentine's Day Massacre and the Handicap Ladder Match, that had Vince team with Shane, from King of the Ring 1999; and the Buried Alive Match with Undertaker at Survivor Series 2003. There are four good matches on here: the No Hold Barred Match with Triple H at Armageddon 1999, the Street Fight with Shane at WrestleMania X-Seven, the Street Fight with Ric Flair at Royal Rumble 2002, and the Street Fight with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania XIX. The best match on the DVD is the one with the Nature Boy. God bless Ric Flair; the man can get a good match out of anyone. The worst match on the DVD is the I Quit Match with Stephanie. First off, these two aren't exactly wrestlers and great athletes. It is so stupid, especially consider it is an I Quit Match; yet Stephanie pins Vince three times, and the referee counted them!!!! Plus, Michael Cole said, I swear to God!!!!, that Vince outweighed Stephanie by 200 lbs. BULLcrap!!!! This was 2003, when Stephanie, while not fat, had some meat on her bones and looked to be well over 100 lbs. Also, sure Vince is buff, there is no way he weighs 300 lbs. Overall, it was a pretty good DVD. Sure, there is a lot of garabage, but there are some things. And, Vince gets his ass kicked a lot. So, I recommend it, but only if you can find it for cheap. Highlight: STAND BACK!!!! Recommended, only if you can find it for a really low price or some gives it to you.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Jan 1, 2007 22:07:20 GMT -5
Now for another DVD review: The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA 2 Disc DVD From 1957 to 1991, the American Wrestling Association ran in the Mid-West of the United States and provided people with great wrestling. However, the promotion did not last and eventually went out of business. Now, the WWE gives us a DVD about the story of the promotion. Now, the first thing you may notice is the cover of the DVD, which features some of the AWA's top stars who also happened to have worked for the WWE and lacks Verne Gagne, Nick Bockwinkel, and other AWA stars who were influencial in the AWA's legacy. Yet, some of those stars on the cover aren't featured that much in the DVD. In fact, Ric Flair, who is on the cover, is only mentioned twice as one of the wrestlers Verne trained, only appears in clips of SuperClash 1985, wasn't interviewed for the documentary, and doesn't even have one of his AWA matches on the disc. Sgt. Slaughter is also shown very little on the DVD and doesn't have one of his matches of the DVD, though he does appear in the documentary. Others who did interviews for the documentary are Verne Gagne, Greg Gagne, Vince McMahon, Nick Bockwinkel, Jim Ross, Baron von Raschke, Bobby Heenan, Gene Okerlund, Hulk Hogan, Ricky Steamboat, Jim Brunzell, Blackjack Mulligan, Blackjack Lanza, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Larry Hennig, Eric Bischoff, Michael Hayes, Sherri Martel, and former AWA director Al Derusha. The documentary begins with a look at Verne Gagne's background, showcasing his amatuer wrestling background, how he broke into wrestling, and become one of the biggest wrestlers of the 1950s. Then, it goes on to tell how the AWA was formed in 1957 because of how Gagne never became NWA Champion. They also talk about how Gagne was made AWA Champion very quickly, leading to some accusations of egotism and nepotism. This wouldn't be the only time they were mentioned in the DVD as it was also brought up how Gagne pushed his son Greg and made his son-in-law Larry Zbysko AWA Champion. Though, it is explained why Verne did those things: because he knew his son and son-in-law wouldn't desert him. The documentary also mentions some of Gange's opponents in the AWA's early days, like Billy Robinson, Mad Dog Vaschon, Nick Bockwinkel, the Crusher, Ray Stevens, and Baron von Raschke. However, Dick Beyer, Pat O'Connor, and Dr. Bill Miller were left out. There is very little mentioned about the AWA in the 1960s and 1970s, thought it is mentioned how Gagne was able to the TV deals for his promotion and how well of a businessman he was. And, The Wrestler, that 1970s movie Verne and other AWA wrestlers starred in and got inducted into WrestleCrap, is breifly talked about!!!! Once the documentary gets to Hulk Hogan, then more details are given. They talk about how Hogan became a star in the promotion and how popular he was with the fans. And, the disagreements between Verne and Hogan is mentioned. Basically, Hogan was working for the AWA and some Japanese promotions. Verne didn't think Hogan would make a credible AWA Champion and only agreed to make Hogan champion if Hogan gave him some of his Japan money. Hogan refused, and Gagne booked him to win some AWA World Title matches against Nick Bockwinkel but not win the world title. Eventually, Hogan grew tired of this and took an offer from Vince McMahon to join the WWF. Then, it goes on to talk about the other stars who left the AWA for the WWF, like Gene Okerlund, Bobby Heenan, Tito Santana, Adrian Adonis, and Jessie Ventura. Then, the DVD talks little about their TV show on ESPN. And, it mentions other stars who started out in the AWA, like the Rockers, Sherri Martel, Rick Martel, Scott Hall, Eric Bischoff, Curt Hennig, and the Road Warriors. But, once again, they fail to mention how people like Vader, Yokozuna, Scott Norton, and Diamond Dallas Page got their star in the AWA. In fact, only one of these men, Yokozuna, appears on the DVD, and it is just once durring the footage in the menu (which features a lovely tune). Then, the DVD begins to talk about the things that hurt the AWA, like when Stan Hansen left the AWA as AWA Champion, the disasterous SuperClash III, the fallout with Jerry Lawler that left the AWA without a World Champion again, more superstars leaving, the Team Challenge Series (sadly they didn't show the Turker On A Pole Match), and the trouble they had with the Minnesota government. I should also point out the Lawler and Jim Ross claim that the King wasn't paid for SuperClash III and that Lawler still holds the AWA Belt he had when he was AWA Champion. Eventually, the AWA went out of business. And, Eric Bischoff claims that he did not come up with the Team Challenge Series. But, the documentary ends with Verne Gagne being inducted in the WWE Hall Of Fame. Though it does seem unusual for a man who never worked for the WWE to be inducted into its Hall of Fame, McMahon does point out why he was: he was a great wrestler who ran a gream promotion and had a legacy and impact that is felt on WWE's past and present. And, it ends leaving people wondering what was responsible for the AWA's demise: the WWF stealing its talent or the ineptitude of the organization itself. I think it was both: the WWF taking their stars did hurt them a lot, but the AWA made a lot of bad decisions that hurt the company. Overall, the documentary was good and fair, thought it did leave a lot of top of AWA stars out of it. The extras included several stories from AWA stars. Jim Brunzel tells about some of the jokes the wrestlers would play on each other. Michael Hayes talks about how the Freebirds came to the AWA and why they left. Nick Bockwinkel tells several stories: one about the Crusher; one about Ric Flair; one about Bobby Heenan; one about Lou Thesz; one about how he had to wrestler Terry Funk for an hour because Funk's schedueled opponent, Harley Race, showed up late and after Bockwinkel had wrestled Jose Lathario for 30 minutes; and one about his favorite match with Curt Hennig. Eric Bischoff shares two stories, one about how he met Verne Gagne due to having to unload this Ninja Star game Sonny Ono and he came up with and one about how he became an AWA announcer. Greg shares a story about a match his dad had in Buffalo, NY. Serveral AWA wrestlers talk about the Flying Coffin, a crappy private plane Verne had bought for the wrestlers. Bockwinkel and Verne talked about a match they had in Chicago in which some fan shot a gun at the ring and hit some other fans. Raschke tells a story about Johnny Valentine. And, there are three promos on the first disc from Mad Dog Vachon, Bobby Heenan, and the East-West Connection (Ventura and Adonis). On the second disc are the matches. I was a little disapointed by the match selections since most of them aren't the full matches. In fact, only 5 matches are shown in full: the High Flyers VS Nick Bockwinkel and Ray Stevens, Pat Patterson and Ray Stevens VS Billy Robinson and Frankie Hill, the Midnight Rockers VS Buddy Rose and Doug Somers, Curt Hennig VS Nick Bockwinkel for the AWA World Title, and Jerry Lawler VS Kerry Von Erich for the AWA and WCCW World Titles. The other matches are just clips and/or the endings of the matches with promos at the beginning and end from some of the competitiors. I was hoping for some matches from Rick Martel, Sgt. Slaughter, Ric Flair, Iron Sheik, and Stan Hansen. I also wanted to see the AWA World Title Match between Jerry Lawler and Curt Hennig. Hopefully, this DVD will sell very well, and the WWE will release another DVD of AWA matches. However, there are some good matches and promos are pretty good as well. Overall, it was a great DVD and must have for all old-school wrestling fans. Highlight: the Midnight Rockers VS Buddy Rose and Doug Somers, for several reasons: 1. it was a cage match. 2. the match was good and very bloody. 3. they show the crowd a few times and two guys are wearing presidents masks: one of Richard Nixon and one of Ronald Regan. 4. the commentator calls a DDT Rose gave to Marty Jannetty a "Face Front Piledriver." 5. Sherri Martel calls Shawn Michaels a [This Poster Loves Mustard]. 6. some fan throws some water or beer onto Sherri. And 7. some woman in the crowd flips Sherri the bird. Recommended, especially for old-school fans and AWA marks.
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Post by Eugene Gurkin on Jan 1, 2007 22:13:56 GMT -5
DAMN! I now gotta see it.
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Post by Hulkshi Tanahashi on Jan 7, 2007 18:18:08 GMT -5
Okay, time for another DVD review: Transformers The Movie: 20th Anniversary Special Edition 2 Disc DVD One of my favorite cartoons growing up was Transformers. So, I was very excited that a movie of the show was released. Though, it has been so long since I've seen the movie that I forgot. Luckily, a 20th anniversary DVD was released. So, I bought and watched it again. It was great watching the movie and reliving my youth. The movie takes place in the year 2005 (that shows how dated this movie is), and the Decepticons have taken over Cybertron. But, the Autobots plan to retake the planet back. However, the Decepticons attack the Autobots Earth base and beat them badly. In fact, practically all of the original Autobot characters die, even Optimus. That was one of the things I didn't like about the movie. I mean, I had seen these characters and grew attached to them. And, now they were gone and I was left with some new characters I had never seen. WHAT THE HELL!!!!? However, I got passed that and enjoyed the movie. Anyway, Megatron is badly beaten in the Autobot battle and is left for dead in space by Starscream. Megatron ends up meeting Unicron, a giant machine that goes around eating planets. The only thing that can stop him is the Matrix, which was inside of Optimus and is now in the possession of Ultra Magnus. Now, Unicron wants Megatron to kill Magnus. He agrees and is transformed into Galvitron. Now, Galvitron sets out to destroy Magnus and the new Transformers. Also, the movie featured many top stars of the day: Judd Nelson (Hot Rod), Robert Stack (Ultra Magnus), Leonard Nimoy (Galvitron), Orson Welles (Unicron), Eric Idle (Wreck-Gar), Scatman Crothers (Jazz), Casey Kasem (Cliffjumper), John Moschita (Blurr), etc. Plus, it had Frank Welker and Peter Cullen doing their usual voices. All in all, it was a pretty good animated movie; though the fact that almost all the original Transformer characters were killed. However, it was very groundbreaking in animated movies. First, it had a cuss word: Spike, a human character in the movie, yells out "Sh*t" when Unicron attack Moonbase 2. Plus, it showed a gritty and realistic look at war, which is was something new to show kids at the time. The DVD also has a lot of special features. On the first disc is a widescreen version of the movie; a feature called Autobot Matrix of Knowledge that features fun facts and trivia as the movie is playing (sort like AMC's DVD TV); commentary from director Nelson Shin, story consultant Flint Dille and the voice of Arcee Sue Blu; fan commentary; original theatrical preview; TV spots; Cinex and credit test; phot gallery; the Scramble City episode, which was release only in Japan and has some fan commentary; a remastering side-by-side comparison of a scene in the movie; and some sneak peaks at the Transformers 2007 movie. On Disc 2 is a full screen version of the movie; an Activate Autobot City Trivia Game and DVD-ROM features, which only works on a computer; three featurettes: one on the death of Optimus Prime, one on the cast and characters, and one were the filmmakers tell answer questions about the movie; test, deleted, and alternate footage with commentary; promotional trailers; animated storyboards; and commercials of Transformer toys from America and Japan, which features the kids in the commercials with their faces blurred. Overall, this was a very good DVD. Fans of Transformers and the movie will really enjoy. Plus, it would be a nice thing to show kids. Highlight: Spike yelling out "Oh, sh*t! What are we gonna do now?" Recommended, especially for Transformers fans.
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