A – Excellent
B – Good
C – Mediocre
D – Avoid
Release Date: 18th February 2013
Available From: www.wwedvd.co.uk
Price:
DVD £19.99
Blu-ray £22.99
Format Reviewed: DVD (3 Discs)
(Also Available on Blu-ray (2 Discs)
What It’s About:
A look back at WWE’s most loved and successful period in the wrestling industry; the Attitude Era. From Austin 3:16, the countdown to Y2J, WWE’s most successful period of tag team action and of course the momentous Austin / McMahon feud. Watch as WWE laid the Smackdown on WCW and changed wrestling as we knew it.
Strengths:
The documentary begins with a fleeting history lesson which goes some way to educating the wrestling fans who have jumped on board the WWE machine since the Attitude Era ended. Impressively, it’s not the short history lesson that makes a mark, but the outright honesty of WWE as they mention Vince’s steroid trail and the steroid scandal that almost rocked WWE to its foundations in 1992. Although Hulk Hogan’s part in the trial is glossed over (he testified against McMahon, his then employer), it’s very bold and daring of WWE to include something which they have tried so hard to shy away from.
Although the documentary is mostly a huge let down, it does have its moments. One of these is Vince McMahon's speech from December 15th Raw, which goes someway to explaining the new direction WWE were taking at that time and the transition from the cartoon character orientated WWE to the stern, serious, finger raising company which beat WCW in the Monday Night Wars. Sadly though, WWE decided to rush through the transition period and the Vince McMahon speech is basically the only explanation we get as to why WWE decided to change their product.
Even though each segment is rushed especially the Austin vs McMahon feud, the ‘Bang 3:16’ and ‘McMahon 3:16 says I just pissed my pants’ segment has survived the wear of time and comes to us just as wonderful as it was originally. However I will add here that none of the swearing is bleeped out as it was in previous releases. Whilst it adds to the strengths of the main documentary it does point out WWE’s faults in their haphazard and inconsistent approach to censoring yesterdays’ product for today’s audience.
On the subject of the horrendously booked ‘Brawl For All’, WWE talent such as JBL, who were around and even fought in the tournament berate the idea of a mixed wrestling and boxing idea. JBL does so as if he’s talking to Vince Russo personally which knowing JBL and his gripes with Russo, he probably is. Nonetheless it’s refreshing to hear WWE talent berate awful story and booking decisions. It’s something which WWE should allow their talent to do more on releases like this.
Of all the segments and wrestlers which do get a mention in the ephemeral documentary, the Divas / Women’s division is one of those which gets covered the best. Even though there is little to no mention of some of the fantastic matches WWE’s female competitors had during the Attitude Era and the whole segment seems to be concentrated solely on breasts and naked bodies, and there’s no mention of female wrestlers such as Ivory or Tori. Needless to say an abundance of Jerry Lawler’s commentary is included here.
As one of the main talking heads on this release, Mick Foley is on fine form. The artist formerly known as Cactus Jack, Mankind and Dude Love is correct in every analysis he gives to camera. Especially his comments about the sexual side of the Attitude Era, that in Foley’s words ‘went too far’ and ‘brought WWE easy and unneeded criticism’. The material Foley talks about is mostly that involving Sable getting her hooters out live on Raw (remember that? With the black handprints over them) and most of the cringe worthy footage featuring Val Venis. Mick Foley’s contribution never dips on the main feature as he rightly states “I just think we were lucky to have a bunch of guys all hitting their stride at the same time!” Even though WWE neglect to mention the wrestlers Foley is talking about.
Yet another refreshing inclusion from WWE is the honest, if sometimes brutal criticism the company came in for from groups outside the ring. There’s no editing out the harshness of the complaints or the names of those they emanated from. Also mentioned is the numerous court cases WWE had filed against them. For this, WWE gets the thumbs up. A few more truths like this on a few more important WWE DVD releases and the company could start attracting larger numbers both to the current product and the DVD / Blu-ray releases.
Another main talking head on the documentary is the Big Show. Whose involvement is mostly superfluous but does touch upon how ruthless it was backstage during the Attitude Era, just to get a spot. At one point Big Show points out that some wrestlers would have slit your throat just to take your spot. Knowing how competitive WWE talent were then, I have no reason to do anything but believe Big Show.
The final strength of the documentary comes at the very twilight of the feature and once again from Mick Foley – a man we can expect to hear a lot from in the coming months seeing as WWE are releasing yet another Foley DVD to capitalise on Mick’s induction into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2013. As the documentary winds down old Mickels once again hits upon the bare truth as to why WWE lost viewers and seemed to pause after the Attitude Era ended and WWE purchased ECW and WCW. I’m pretty sure it took all of Vince’s power to allow the comment that WWE lost something because of it, to stay in the documentary and not cut it completely. WWE gains an element of authenticity because of it.
Pleasingly, after a very weak main feature, WWE have spoiled us with the extras and special features which cover the rest of Disc 1 and the whole of Discs 2 and 3. The aforementioned Special Features and Extras consist on matches spanning the whole of the Attitude Era and segments which set WWE apart from its competition. Happily each and everyone are included in their entirety;
We start with ‘J.R Interviews Goldust and Marlena’ from the November 3rd 1997 Raw. For those who remember it then the first time it aired you would have been forgiven for thinking it was just another filler for a card which didn’t have that much to offer. However on second viewing, it’s an open and very personal interview. It encompasses the duo’s real life marriage, mentions Goldust by his real name (Dustin Rhodes / Runnels) and also brings up the subject of their daughter. This was groundbreaking in WWE at the time as the company liked to keep the personal lives of their talent locked away in concrete bunkers so no one could get a sniff of what was going on. The deeply powerful interview ends with the storyline break up of the pair’s marriage which is intense.
‘Stone Cold Throws the Intercontinental Championship off of a Bridge’ is a wonderful moment and highlights Austin as one of WWE’s best talkers of the time, just behind the Rock. Austin at the time was WWE’s saviour and this segment marks his eventual transition from Intercontinental Championship talent to main event talent all by throwing a Championship off of a bridge. It was clear to anyone who watched this segment either back in the day or today that Austin was ten times better than ‘the Ringmaster’ gimmick he was saddled with on his WWE debut.
‘J.R Interviews Triple H’ is another deeply personal segment which comes across as a real ‘shoot’ interview. Triple H airs his grievances about the ‘Madison Square Garden’ incident in which he was punished by Vince McMahon and WWE for going to the ring to say goodbye to Scott Hall and Kevin Nash, when Shawn Michaels got off without even a warning. Even though Triple H was given prior consent to talk about what happened, thus breaking Kayfabe, the anger and hatred for what happened that night is in his eye, here.
‘A Night in the Friendly Tap’ features both the New age Outlaws and the loved APA in the run up to their Tag Team Match at the 2000 Royal Rumble. The whole thing predictable descends into a short bar room brawl that could and should have been longer. It’s still notable and enjoyable though for the super over APA.
‘The Jug Band’ highlights how good and loathed Edge and Christian were in 2000, after they’d turned their backs on the Hardy Boys. As good as the segment is, it’s just one of the special features on the release that badly highlights what today’s current tag team division is lacking.
‘The Rock’s Promo to his Hell in a Cell Opponents’ is sheer electric and once again shows what WWE are missing from their headline talent in 2013. That though should not take anything away from how good this segment or the Rock is here. Even though some boo him today, it’s easy to see why so many of us, including your Wrestling God, loved him in 2000 and still do today.
Promos and segments such as ‘Tyson Joins DX’ and ‘New Beginning for DX’ are repeated from the ‘100 Top Moments of Raw History’ DVD only here they are in their entirety and are even better than I remember. Undeniably both are vital moments in WWE history and in WWE surviving the Monday Night Wars and the latter features, as stated in other reviews, a killer promo by X Pac.
Even though he’s flanked by his D-Generation X colleagues, Triple H is by far the standout star of the ‘Nation of De-Generation’ angle and delivers a first rate impression of the Rock which the attending audience laps up.
The star studded Four Corners Match for the WWE Tag Team Championships featuring the Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin vs The Rock and D-Lo Brown (a stand in for Owen Hart) vs The New Age Outlaws vs Mankind and Kane is very good indeed. Especially when you consider the amount of egos on display in one ring and take into account that none of them wanted to put the other over.
The Rock vs Mankind in the final of the Deadly Games Tournament from Survivor Series 1998 illustrates how giving and unselfish Mick Foley was as a wrestler, willingly putting his body on the line in the name of entertainment. The match as a whole isn’t as good as other Rock vs Mankind encounters but seeing as it was both men’s fourth match of the night; it is of a high quality.
Stone Cold Steve Austin giving Vince, Shane and the Rock a beer bath may be the most replayed moment in WWE history next to the Montreal Screw-Job yet it is still one of the most pleasurable to watch. Vince McMahon is sumptuous as is Austin’s promo before he literally drenches the trio in beer. It is a moment where the stars aligned and everything was right with the world. What the beer bath moment also demonstrates in the way of Vince McMahon’s business nouse is that he was a true visionary in seeing Austin as the next huge star. McMahon was much more so than Eric Bischoff who fired Austin from WCW citing that Stone Cold would never be a star. Just look what they missed out on.
The debut of Chris Jericho is another rollover from the ‘100 Top Moments in Raw History’ release but in its entirety is one of the most memorable debuts in WWE. As you’d expect both the Rock and Jericho are in great form and for a few seconds Jericho gets a super heroes welcome.
A surprising inclusion is D-Lo Brown vs Jeff Jarrett from SummerSlam 1999. I hadn’t seen this match for 14 years and had forgotten all about it. I’m glad WWE decided to incorporate it into the set because it’s a noble effort by both and really shows D-Lo was one of WWE’s most underrated singles performers.
The Rock and Mankind vs Undertaker and Big Show in a buried alive match from 9th September 1999 Smackdown, exudes excitement and boasts a great ending involving Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin. The match itself is brutal for a T.V outing and one all four men can be extremely proud of.
Stephanie McMahon’s wedding is almost as vital today as it was in 1999. Not only because Stephanie was a genuinely loathsome heel and a fantastic performer on the mic but because this heralds in the next logical step in WWE after the Attitude Era began to fade away. The ‘McMahon Helmsley Era’ gets hardly any credit for carrying WWE in 2000, without it though maybe WWE would have began to see the decline in business a lot sooner than they did, especially with Stone Cold absent from WWE after Survivor Series 1999. The other thing this angle does as with all Stephanie McMahon Helmsley angles is remind us what a catch and how beautiful Stephanie was and is. I’m not the only one who had Stephanie McMahon posters on my wall (which sat next to my Lita and Trish Stratus posters) – come on lads, we all did. Hunter is a lucky man.
One of the true highlights on this release is delivered from Fully Loaded 2000 and comes in the form of Rikishi vs Val Venis for the WWE Intercontinental Championship inside a steel cage. Personally speaking I remember watching this live even though I had school hours later and it was good then. Luckily time has not wearied it and it’s as thrilling today as it was thirteen years ago. Capped off by a stunning dive from the top of the cage by Rikishi, the match was just one highlight from a very fine and highly recommended pay per view event. Worth mentioning though is Val Venis and how brave he was allowing a 400 pound man to land on top of him from the top of the cage. Venis deserved more credit than he actually received. This bout ranks in the top three of both men’s careers.
SummerSlam 2000’s somewhat trailblazing Tables, Ladders and Chairs scrap is jaw dropping in its execution. All three teams of the Dudley Boys, the Hardy Boys and Edge and Christian excelled at what was seemingly the impossible job of outdoing their Wrestlemania 16 ladder match. For those who haven’t seen it then I highly recommend you take the eighteen minutes out of your life to do so. You won’t be disappointed. Hard hitting, brutal and featuring some insane stunts and bumps, the trio of tag teams make it easy to see why WWE’s tag team output is so restrained today. Simply put, the tag team division peaked with the Dudley Boys, the Hardy Boys and Edge and Christian. WWE just couldn’t top it.
The Fully Loaded 2000 and SummerSlam 2000 offerings are two highlights of WWE’s ‘The Attitude Era’ DVD. The third and final is the Armageddon Hell in a Cell Match from Armageddon 2000. The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker, Rikishi, Kurt Angle and Triple H all played their parts to perfection as did the meddling Vince McMahon who tried to have the Cell pulled down half way through the match as his devilish Mr. McMahon character thought it would be an insurance write-off to have all 6 men inside ‘Satan’s Structure’. I could gush about this match for hours but there are no words for how good it really is. It’s just one of those matches every wrestling fan, young and old should see. Undertaker’s chokeslam on Rikishi from the top of the Cell is breathtaking and the atmosphere surrounding the bout is electric. The match capped off an almost flawless pay per view output for WWE in 2000 where every main event of every show never dropped below very good.
Weaknesses:
The documentary covering WWE’s most important time ever is horrendously short at only 60 minutes. It is far too short by any stretch of the imagination to include everything important that happened or get across how vital a time in WWE it really was for the company. WWE should have made this at least another hour and a half long even if it meant putting back the release date. Had the company done so then this could have been one of the very best releases WWE has ever put out. As it is, it’s short, underwhelming and for anyone new watching this who wants an insight into the Attitude Era, uninformative. Foresight is a wonderful thing, I think you will agree, however had WWE made this as good and detailed as ‘The Rise and Fall of ECW’ then we would have had a monster on our hands.
The main feature far too quickly gets into the Monday Night Wars and five minutes and twenty one seconds in, we’re already being told how WWE were losing in the Monday Night Wars. We are told that WWE were losing viewers to WCW who were putting on a more adult related product but we’re never given a reason as to why WWE lost so many viewers to Ted Turner. The reason was because WWE’s product was inhabited by cartoon characters who would never have existed in the outside world and therefore made it near impossible for the fans to relate to them. When WCW brought out the NWO, WWE was in serious trouble. In a perfect world, if WWE had taken this release seriously, they would have brought Vince McMahon to task for his failings and had him explain at length why he chose to create and book so many unbelievable characters. It would have truly been something to see the CEO and owner of WWE humbled for his mistakes. Yet no explanation is forthcoming.
Jumping with haste into the Monday Night Wars, WWE could have taken a breath and given us a video package accompanied with serious comments and interviews from some of the cartoon wrestlers who lost WWE so many viewers. Putting their thoughts forward on how bad their characters really were would have added to the weight of the problem WWE were facing as WCW took control of the ratings. Another omission that WWE somehow looked over are those who jumped ship. Randy Savage is no longer with us, but WWE could have gotten Lex Luger, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash and Sean Waltman to speak out about why they deserted WWE and left for WCW. If their reasoning had been because WWE was going nowhere then it would have highlighted WWE’s talent problems. Eric Bischoff should also have been paid a fee to appear here. Even though the cartoon creations weren’t a direct part of the Attitude Era, they were a major reason WWE had to change their product.
Too many of the talking heads once again appear too regularly or have little to say that sheds new light. Mostly everything the likes of Mark Henry and Pat Patterson say we’ve all heard before. Jim Ross correctly states that “WWE needed to change their approach” but is either forbade or doesn’t bother to go into an explanation of why. New fans watching this will be left none the wiser, because the answer is never given.
Chapters in the main body of the documentary include one on the entrance music created especially for the Attitude Era. This is horribly rushed. Jim Johnston, the genius behind WWE’s entrance music should have been given a look in and WWE should have allowed its fans access behind the scenes and into its recording studio. A look at how Johnston created the entrance music for certain headline players, his inspiration and the immense pressure he was under to get it all right would have been a huge plus. For those who have seen ‘Beyond the Mat’ you get a better look into the music created there. Maybe had WWE allowed us access to its fiercely guarded behind the scenes goings on and even allowed us to see how the entrance videos were put together, we might have had more respect for them.
As with everything else in this documentary the section on the faction / tag teams is disgustingly rushed. I know WWE don’t give a rat’s arse about its tag team division now, but during the Attitude Era it was a huge part of the product. Teams and stables like the New Age Outlaws, the Brood, the Nation of Domination, the Hart Foundation, the Brothers of Destruction, the Corporation and APA were the backbone of an excellent doubles division. Instead most of these names don’t even get a mention in favour of allocating the time to DX, which is longer than most chapters included. WWE could have again made this much meatier and informative by taking the format they used with the ‘Rise and Fall of ECW’ DVD and including a profile on each team and who had a major part to play accompanied by an interview with Vince about how valuable they were and an explanation on how said tag team / faction / stable came about.
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs Vince McMahon section is an injustice to how good and important both men and the feud was. I seriously doubt without Austin and McMahon there would even be a WWE in 2013. Vince should have been sent up big time for his role and the fact that he wasn’t sat in an office relying on others to dig him out of the hole WWE were in. Nothing mentioned conveys even one third of the story behind and about the battle they waged. The Steve Austin interview is brief and is taken from old footage when WWE should have had the respect for its fans to record a brand new interview with ‘The Texas Rattlesnake’. What makes this even more bizarre is that its common knowledge that Austin hated WCW for what Bischoff did to him and to have Austin convey how much animosity he held towards the company and the men in charge, plus how much he wanted to put them out of business would have given the whole era a new slant and new intimateness. The final thing missing from the Austin vs McMahon feud is an explanation for new fans of how the Mr. McMahon character came about. The ‘Montreal Screw-job’ is never mentioned even though it was the beginning of Vince McMahon as on screen heel and without that moment in time the character may not have existed which means the resultant feud wouldn’t have either.
How important the ‘McMahon Helmsley era’ was in the grand scheme of things is all but glossed over. Stephanie’s kidnap at the hands of ‘the Ministry of Darkness’ is given less than 20 seconds and her heel turn on her father at Armageddon 1999 when she joined Triple H is nonexistent here. The documentary features footage of Stephanie and Triple H as an on-screen duo but once again isn’t given the time to expand on a story very few people know about. There should have been yet another in-depth interview with Vince, Triple H and Stephanie about how the duo’s pairing came about on screen and about how Triple H and ‘the Billion Dollar Princess’ fell for each other in reality. It’s a well known fact Vince was stoic about Stephanie dating someone outside the business as he didn’t want her to get involved with a wrestler and strongly opposed her relationship with Triple H until it was obvious the two were in love. Their real life marriage and children isn’t given the time of day even though it all came from an unlikely pairing in the Attitude Era. Like it or not, Triple H and Stephanie are one of wrestling’s success stories and had this been exploited by WWE the whole documentary would have been given a happier and intimate glow. People can’t get enough of a love story.
Out of all the angles and video footage WWE could have shown it was inevitable that some of the most offensive would come to light once again. This comes in the form of the Bossman crashing Big Show’s fathers’ funeral and dragging his coffin through the graveyard, with Big Show on top, tied to the back his car. I understand that this was an example of WWE aiming their product at a more adult audience and a sign of change but it was one of the most tasteless angles during the time. Fortunately it was a storyline and Big Show’s father wasn’t dead but still it should have been cut. There were many other examples WWE could have used to get the point across. Needless to say, the whole storyline didn’t paint either Big Show or Big Bossman in a great light.
The amount of information WWE has left out of this release is startling to see. The wrestlers who made the Attitude Era what it was, such as Austin, the Rock, Undertaker, Kane, Mankind are all either left off of the DVD or rushed through. The Rock is given seconds and Undertaker and Kane may as well not have been around for all the coverage the pair receive. Like the tag teams and factions WWE should have done an in depth character profile on the big stars with an interview with Vinnie Mac. The information on the headline players aren’t the only things missing here though, the great feuds such as the Rock vs Stone Cold, The Rock vs Mankind (Rock’s Survivor Series 1998 victory is only covered in the extras by the actual match. WWE should have included a feature on it in the main body seeing as it was the beginning of the Rock as a headline star), Stone Cold vs Dude Love, Stone Cold vs the Undertaker, Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart are all missing as are interviews with important figures like Hart, Michaels, Undertaker, Kane with the Rock and Austin’s contributions once again coming from old footage. After being so up front about the trouble they got into, the court cases they had filed against them, the criticisms they had thrown at them, WWE have mystifyingly decided to neglect to mention the dire financial situation they found they themselves in which threatened to close the company during the Monday Night Wars. All of this had a right to be included.
I wish the list ended there, I really do. Unfortunately it doesn’t. The aforementioned ‘Brawl For All’ which got deservedly ripped apart by JBL in the main feature is the only ‘dumb’ storyline which gets a mention when there were so many more. The Bossman / Big Show angle, Undertaker hanging Bossman from the Hell in a Cell at Wrestlemania 15 and Ken Shamrock’s sister being brought into a storyline could have all been included here. Worse still, the architect of these, Vince Russo, much like Vince McMahon is never made to explain why he thought they would make great television. Maybe we’d have been able to see a different side to each angle if WWE had made Russo explain why he wrote them or apologise for all the dumb shit he pulled over the years. And believe me, there was tons of it.
Another important part of the Attitude Era which WWE should have included was the evolution of the In Your House pay per view events. I understand why WWE decided to leave them out of this release because later in the year WWE will release a box set on In Your House. However the evolution of the events, giving them separate pay per view names gave them a big fight feel and ultimately led to the excitement and success of the WWE’s pay per view schedule between 1997 and 2000. Before the Attitude Era was done, the In Your House pay per view events became must see and not just a monthly filler for WWE to make money, which is how they started out.
Happily the Hardcore Championship which merited many top class matches is given a nod. Regrettably, it’s focused solely on Mick Foley. Crash Holly, one of the greatest Hardcore Champions of all time is only shown in video footage and not mentioned. Mike Lockwood, who portrayed Crash Holly passed away on November 6th 2003 aged only 32. Not to credit him with holding the division together as WWE passed into 2000 is both and insult to his memory and to out itellect. A bigger insult still, is that Foley’s contribution to the Hardcore Championship and division wasn’t half as big as Lockwood’s. Taking the subject away from the Hardcore Championship itself, Foley gives no insight into all those great matches and performances that substantially shortened his career and made his knees as bad as they today. WWE should have given Foley carte-blanch to discuss the impact those matches and bumps took on his body and health. Running through his extensive list of injuries, we could have obtained a better scope of how much Foley sacrificed for WWE.
Uncannily, the Godfather gets a bigger mention than most of the others who deserve it. His part in this seems to be bigger than the Rock’s which is just absurd. The Godfather segment sets the ball rolling for WWE’s infatuation with the sexual element of their show. Focusing far more on the divas, Godfather and Val Venis instead of what brought WWE back to notoriety such as the storylines and feuds. These segments take up precious time which would have been fine had WWE made this a two and a half hour feature. The fact that it’s an hour in length means the whole of this should have been sacrificed.
It is stated that the comedy elements came from Mark Henry and Mae Young, when it’s obviously not true. Anyone who remembers the majority of the Mark Henry / Mae Young scenes wishes they’d either switched the channel or been somewhere else. Its outrageous comments like these that discredit WWE and the subject they’re trying to sell us on. Mark Henry and Mae Young were a constant source of annoyance in 1999, as Henry is today.
WWE’s bothersome Voice Over Guy strikes again on the release and acts as a get out clause for the company. Instead of extending the feature, WWE try their best to cram every little detail into the body of the documentary via Voice Over Guy. The approach comes across as slapdash and lackadaisical. Trying to cram in great chunks of history instead of allowing those of consequence to explain it discredits great chunks of what really happened. It turns out that WWE do give us an answer as to why Voice Over Guy is on the release later on down the running order. The celebrity factor strikes once again and having eradicated him from the feature in favour of a credible talking head would of course have left less time for the list of celebrities WWE reel off. We all know how much more WWE value celebrities than their own talent.
WCW played a huge part in the Attitude Era, forcing Vince to change the way he did business and ultimately forcing his hand into turning WWE away from family orientated entertainment and catering more to the 18 – 40 audience. WCW for a time looked like they may even put Vince out of business. A perfect subject for a release of this nature then wouldn’t you agree? Building up WCW as the threat they were would cast an even more victorious light on WWE’s eventual success. Yet the threat that was posed by Ted Turner’s company isn’t given half of the heat it deserved. For the most part WWE seem to want us to think Vince was in control and that everything would have been fine regardless. It wouldn’t have been.
The same treatment is given to the end of the documentary when the Attitude Era is brought to a close by WWE’s purchase of WCW and ECW. By rights it should have been a momentous point for the disc to reach. There should have been reflections from Vince, Triple H, Undertaker, Austin, the Rock about how hard they’d fought to keep WWE afloat. About how arduous and taxing the time really was. This part, more than most should have been poignant and victorious at the same time. It might as well not have happened for all the few seconds coverage it gets. What a disservice it is.
It comes as a great relief then that the extras are mostly superb. Of those that aren’t ‘Mae Young and the APA Protection Agency’ is mostly dull. Only Bradshaw keeps it notable. For that reason it should have been omitted from the disc.
Bart Gunn vs ‘Dr. Death’ Steve Williams in the tedious Brawl for All is dreary, deathly dull and futile. The only thing this mach does is totally obliterate Steve William’s hard man image. Otherwise it’s not worth wasting your life watching.
The Rock and Undertaker vs Stone Cold Steve Austin and Mankind from 7th December 1998 Raw, is a let down considering the amount of talent all four men had. The match plods to its conclusion and is only relevant for the ending in which Undertaker and his supposed minions string Stone Cold up onto the Undertaker’s symbol and hoist him above the entrance ramp.
Bossman and Big Show’s funeral segment should have conveniently gone missing as should the nothing bout between the Godfather and D-Lo Brown vs Too Cool, which ends in a dance off. How this is meant to represent the Attitude Era I will never know.
‘Mae Young Gives Birth to a Hand’ is still pointless and unfunny. Seeing as Young is meant to be giving birth, even at her age, WWE should have done better with their camera angles. In several shots as Young gives birth to the hand you can clearly see she still has her trousers on. You know I never thought I’d be complaining at the fact Mae Young should have had her trousers off. It’s funny what this business does to you.
Blu-ray Extras:
70 minutes of Exclusive Extras.
Conclusion:
I was so looking forward to this when it was announced WWE would finally release a DVD / Blu-ray on the Attitude Era. The wealth of material the company had to work with should have demanded this be one of the must have releases of the century. However I was left sorely disappointed.
It is a release of two halves in effect. The documentary which you’re meant to buying these releases for is bordering on abysmal. It’s too short to effectively and convey the importance of the era to new fans whom have no prior knowledge and will infuriate long time supporters who look forward to reliving the years with this release. What’s even more worrying is that those fans who have no prior knowledge of the Attitude Era may now think that the once glorious time was as it is represented in the documentary. WWE may have been better reverting to the format of showing a match and then having a talking head comment or tell the story behind the match / storyline and then relating that to what was happening. It couldn’t have been any worse than this.
In truth, WWE 13 is a much better representation of WWE’s Attitude Era and tells a lot more of the story in tons more depth than WWE manage here. This was a perfect opportunity for WWE to shine again and they royally screwed it up. This release should have been more like the ‘Fall and Rise of WWE’, instead, we got a cleaned up version of what went before and one that doesn’t do justice to WWE’s hard work in the three years before the turn of the century.
Thankfully though, the extras and special features are fantastic. WWE have outdone themselves with the selection of matches and angles included. The only minor gripe one would have is that WWE should have included The Rock vs Mankind from Royal Rumble 1999 which was a tremendous and brutal brawl and the Rock and Mankind’s ‘Halftime Heat – Empty Arena Brawl’ which was stunning. If a release is worth buying for extras alone then these make up for the shoddiness of the main feature.
I couldn’t give this release just one rating. If I had given it a ‘C’ it would have been a grave disservice to the great matches featured. Had I given it an ‘A’ then it would have implied that the main documentary was a major part of the rating. So I have spilt this release into two ratings.
One thing I will mention, that I have left until last is a poignant quote by Ron Simmons. It’s something, much like Paul Heyman’s quote at the end of ‘The Rise and Fall of ECW’ WWE should take notice of now because it could do them a lot of good in the long run. Simmons quite rightly states; “The world changes! Peoples attitude changes! You gotta keep going with the times. If you don’t change, you get left behind!”
Main Feature Rating: C
Special Features Rating: A
Onwards and upwards...
