A – Excellent
B – Good
C – Mediocre
D – Avoid
Release Date: 22nd April 2012
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 Disc)
What It’s About:
The long awaited career retrospective of WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley. Without a doubt one of wrestling’s true legends who was unfortunately tagged and anchored with the moniker ‘The Hardcore Legend’ which would later hamper his career as people looked upon him as a mere stunt performer. This career retrospective complete with matches from his illustrious vocation has been what fans of Mick Foley have been waiting for.
Strengths:
The beginning of the two hour and fourteen minute documentary on Mick Foley’s career begins with a neat little segment in which the man of many faces narrates in a short story, the blurb of the release whilst looking through a scrap book of his finest moments in between the ropes. It’s a refreshing beginning and one which deviates from the usual format of WWE releases. From this point onwards you can begin to believe that this release is something special in comparison to the usual DVD / Blu-ray biography.
Foley’s background in sports and amateur wrestling are covered, though briefly. The segment, even though it could have been prolonged to add an even greater depth to Foley’s pre wrestling career, is instructive and seeing that to many WWE and wrestling fans this part of Foley’s life is rarely known it does go a long way to shedding new light on a man that has unfortunately been tagged with the ‘Hardcore Legend’ moniker. It is also pleasant to see a Mick Foley that doesn’t look like he’s been sponsored by Dunkin’ Doughnuts or dressed by Oxfam.
The segment in which Foley describes his early days before wrestling in which in his mind he underachieved in everything, can be looked upon as invigorating as too often in these releases wrestlers don’t touch upon their failings in their pre WWE lives. Foley’s misgivings in almost everything that he did would lead to him becoming a very talented writer. The segment is almost a triumph over adversity moment.
An admission by the man in question that he would go on to create his own wrestling style after hitchhiking to Madison Square Garden to witness Jimmy Snuka dive from the top of the steel cage in what has become an infamous moment in the man known as Mankind’s career, can come across as slightly touching when the reason becomes that Foley wanted to do something that people would remember forever. At only nineteen years old at the time, it becomes clear that Foley had his life in the ring mapped out before he even laced up a pair of boots. Mick never wrestled like anyone else I ever saw and will be remembered as one of wrestling’s elite performers. Even though his in ring style would raise the ire of other wrestlers around him including Ric Flair, his creation has be one of the most successful in ring styles there ever was.
Home videos of a young Foley as Dude Love, the character that he created which WWE would go on to own the copyright to – what a fair world wrestlers live in – illustrates that Mick was always had the gift of the gab even before he could wrestle. With this gift already in his arsenal, half of the job was already done for Foley. Some of Foley’s home video promos are better than those of WWE performers today.
Delving into the beginning of his professional wrestling career, Foley offers up the fact that his first lesson consisted of a twenty two hour lesson in taking apart and putting together the ring for twenty five dollars. Humbling enough is the fact that he had to travel halfway across the country to train on a weekly basis. After seeing this portion of the documentary, anyone who doubts Foley’s commitment to wrestling will have their beliefs altered.
The wealth of unseen footage from Foley’s training and early wrestling career is nothing but of high quality. Including highlights from his first WWE match, teaming with Les Thornton against the British Bulldogs – included in full in the match listing – on a WWE television taping and numerous clips from his days on the independent circuit, WWE have gone above and beyond to source all the necessary footage although there are some vital clips missing which you can read in the next segment.
WWE have resisted throwing anyone and everyone from their current roster onto the release, as is usual with these releases and instead concentrated the majority of the talking heads to those who have had an impact on Mick’s standing and input in the industry. These include his trainer Dominic DeNucci, Shane Douglas – who should be given a lot of credit for appearing here seeing his pure hatred for WWE and everything it stands for, Terry Funk, Arn Anderson, Vader, Jim Ross, William Regal, Paul Heyman, a significantly plumper Joey Styles, Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Happily, even though John Cena is included as a talking head, is input is fleeting and unlike his contributions to other releases he does add something to proceedings when talking about Mick Foley as a common man and his connection with the audience; “Hey man you did it. Thanks for doing it for all of us!” Cena and WWE should be applauded for keeping the input to a minimum and something that adds instead of detracts to the overall release.
The talking heads contribute their own thoughts on Foley, most of which are just and paint Foley in both a shining light and show how much they cared and feared for him because of his erratic ring style. Terry Funk comments that Foley was, “So unusual and so different to anyone else in the profession.” The latter point is exemplified by Michael Hayes, who adds several good comments to this release, the one in question though points out, “I didn’t think Mick Foley would be walking past the age of thirty.” Compiled with clips of Foley diving from apron to concrete floor and landing with a thud on numerous occasions from his WCCW, WCW and AWA days, Hayes’ point is impartially gotten across and somewhat painful to watch knowing the damage they would eventually do to Foley’s health and body.
Held in high regard by Jim Ross and WCW, it is flattering for Foley that he was chosen to oppose to uber over Sting upon his entry into World Championship Wrestling. Sting, who has to be looked upon as WCW’s greatest ever face and beloved by fans all over the world needed someone of Foley’s standing and irregular ring style to take him away from the clean cut style he had been trading with Lex Luger and Ric Flair. Jim Ross calls Sting the “It Guy” which is a fair summation of the man born Steve Borden. The pair’s matches yielded some of WCW’s and Sting’s greatest ever encounters and the nod to Ross by Foley for the helping hand in his career, is lovely.
After, for so many years, being fed the fact that Mick Foley loves the pain that he puts himself through to find out via this documentary that he actually doesn’t enjoy the pain makes his stuns, such as being thrown from the top of the Hell in a Cell at the 1998 King of the Ring and No Way 2000 plus everything else he ever did extra special because it comes across that he did them for our entertainment. This segment should give fans, even those who don’t particularly like Foley, a new appreciation for the man.
The footage and stories of Vader vs Cactus Jack from WCW bring back some wonderful and more than welcome memories. Some of the videos chosen to represent the thoroughly excellent feud is hard hitting, such as Vader falling backwards on the aisle with Foley on his back and would result in some truly special matches between the pair. Vader acknowledges correctly that Foley did more than anyone to get him over. Included here is the recording of Mick Foley losing half his ear in Munich, Germany. A little unsettling as you can clearly see Foley’s ear fly off and the pictures of the aftermath are bloody, WWE highlight it several times. This has to be one of WWE’s most courageous decisions all year, especially in the PG rated world they live in. Sadly, WCW failed to allow Vader and Foley to capitalise on the ear loss which could have been huge.
Willingly, when talking about why Cactus Jack was such a hit in WCW, Foley as good as berates WWE’s dumb characters and gimmicks from the early nineties. Not a lot of people would or have done this with as much glee as Foley takes in doing so. However, this should have been something which was done in the awful ‘Attitude Era’ documentary portion of the release. Despondently, this declaration is done a few releases too late.
Cactus Jack’s ECW promos are pure dynamite and made even more impressive when the fact comes to light it was Foley who penned them. Each exudes passion and anger. One is left with the impression that every promo should be this good instead of the sugar coated trash we get fed on a weekly basis. If WWE were clever, they would hire Foley to spend a few months down in WWE developmental teaching these kinds of promo skills to the up and coming WWE talent. Nevertheless, those who were there for Foley’s ECW reign and promos will know it was a very special time indeed.
WWE display some early drawings of their vision of the Mankind character, clad in a metal mask. The drawings aren’t a million miles away from the finished article but are barely recognizable from what Foley would end up portraying on television, on and off, for the next four years. This should be a regular segment in wrestler biographies. How WWE came up with and created new characters, including the pitches, drawings, list of possible names for finishing manoeuvres, pictures of rarely seen dress rehearsals and the original idea plus how much it deviated from the idea to the execution would be an uplifting change to the usual format of WWE releases. Getting into the origin of the character it’s surprising to learn that WWE had so little ideas for the character, highlighting the ineptitude of WWE creative, Foley ended up almost creating Mankind single handedly and like most things in WWE which didn’t come from the brain of Vince McMahon, the boss opposed Foley on every change he pitched and made. Such honesty from all is one of the focal points of this release.
Mick Foley rightly credits the Undertaker with helping to make Mankind a star in WWE. Had it not been for the willingness of Undertaker, to sell and put over Foley in such an effective way then it’s feasible that Mankind and Mick Foley would have fallen to the cutting room floor and been put down as one of WWE’s failed experiments. Foley really does owe a lot to Undertaker. The dishing out of credit doesn’t end there however as WWE quickly moves the timeline along to the exceptional Mankind vs Shawn Michaels match at ‘In Your House: Mind Games’. The whole match added a previously missing authenticity to the Mankind character, Mick Foley’s story and this release. It was one of the highlights of the In Your House pay per view events.
The realisation of the Dude Love character, a personality Foley first created when he was nineteen never fails to bring a smile to the face. Wrestlers usually turn up and do as their told by bookers until they’ve either had enough or are in a position to pitch their own ideas which are then usually shot down. For Mick Foley to be able to realise a dream wrestling as Dude Love is nothing short of a triumphant moment in a wonderful career. This may be a more uplifting moment than when Foley lifted the WWE Championship for the first time.
In 1997 it was beginning to become clear to the WWE Universe that Mick Foley was being overshadowed by the Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. This is brought up by Mick Foley in a very honest piece of interviewing when Foley shares his pure anger feelings of dejection when fans began chanting Austin’s name after he and Terry Funk had been dismantled by D-Generation X on an edition of Raw. That the fans weren’t bothered that the angle hadn’t ended when they began the chant proves that Austin was more over than anyone in wrestling during WWE’s attitude era. Foley had a right to be angry though. For everything he’d done for the fans and for them not to care was a sign of disrespect. I believe this admission shows the weaker side of a professional wrestler and moves Foley closer to the audience.
Speaking on the subject of swapping between characters, Mankind, Dude Love and Cactus Jack so readily and often that it soured the public reaction to him, Mick Foley hits the button right on the nose so to speak. The constant switch between the trio that would come to be known as ‘The Three Faces of Foley’ became overly distracting and stopped the viewer from buying into Foley as a wrestler. You never knew which character Foley would come out as one week after the next which prohibited people from being able to buy into a feud.
That Mick Foley loves all three of his personas so dearly then surprises the audience when he enters into a character assassination of the then humourless Mankind. The segment may be short in time but is fascinating whilst it lasts. Taking a character that was so successful to pieces tells me, as a writer, that Mick Foley really did invest into Mankind and could see the flaws when they began to appear. This is the first step for any actor or any kind being able to put right what’s wrong. For those that cannot see where a character isn’t working out are doomed to repeat history. Ahem...John Cena.
The footage of Mick winning the WWE Championship may have been repeated numerous times over the years and most recently on the ‘Top 100 Raw Moments’ and ‘The Attitude Era’ releases but it never fails to inspire when you know the journey Foley had to take to get to the top of the mountain. As stated in the WrestleMania 29 preview which you will have read by now, the title change marked the turn in the Monday Night Wars.
The Rock ‘n Sock connection moments are more than happy memories. The Rock and Mick Foley were wonderfully comic during their time together as a tag team. The team provided some much needed comic relief in a time which was being bogged down by the Monday Night Wars and WWE’s infatuation with putting WCW out of business. Mick Foley played the part of the partner who wanted to please to perfection and the Rock deserves more credit than he ever got for the role of the grumpy and magnificently deadpan headliner who knew he was so much better than a comedy act. Commenting on his time with the Rock, Foley correctly states that the Rock ‘n Sock Connection’s moments, such as the ‘This is your life’ segment, were much more entertaining than their matches. This isn’t to say that their matches were bad, because they weren’t. But as a partnership, Foley and the Rock were solid gold in their comedy angles.
Taking a welcome break from wrestling, the documentary swerves away from the ring and to the creating of Foley’s first autobiography. Foley’s natural talent for writing came in use when he told the book company he wanted to write his own life story and not do so through a ghost writer. Their petty reaction that they didn’t think someone who had never written before could write is dumb and something your Wrestling God has encountered many times before. For the record, those who believe that people who haven’t had anything published or commissioned for film or television in the past can’t write are dead wrong and are small minded. The journey, the story of the books success and the video footage of people queuing outside book stores in America just to get a copy add to an amazing and touching story about a very rare accomplishment. At least for a wrestler.
Taking another welcome and unusual turn, the documentary touches upon Foley’s inability to retire and stay away from the squared circle. This had been common knowledge for years that no matter how many times Foley said he was leaving for good, he would always inevitably return to the ring seeking out one last moment of glory. The lure of the spotlight proved just too much and its coverage here should be applauded. It’s not that often that you hear a wrestler admit that he can’t stay away from the ring. That Foley tells of how he was continually persuaded to come back by Vince does cast a question over how much McMahon cares about his talent. Remember, the times that Vince persuaded Foley to return were the times when Foley’s body began to fail him and Vince knew this. Even more eye opening, and Foley should be applauded for admitting this where the world can see, is his confession that the comebacks were purely for the money.
Footage of Foley’s 2004 visit to WWE which lasted longer it should have done, is shown here via his WrestleMania 20 handicap match in which he and the Rock lost to Ric Flair, Randy Orton and Batista – a match which Foley readily admits disappointed him due to his own lacklustre performance and followed by the stunning match with Randy Orton at Backlash 2004 one month later. Interjected with comments by Randy Orton who gives Foley a whole heap of praise for making him relevant – at last someone does, this is a very good moment on a very good release. Interestingly enough, Foley says that this match with Orton tops his Mind Games match with Shawn Michaels. He may be right.
Also covered in the main feature is his little known charitable work. By the looks of it, Foley does more work for charity than John Cena and that’s saying something. The segment may not be a huge revelation but it does add yet another side to Mick that we never knew existed.
Speaking on Mick Foley’s influence on the business, C.M Punk credits the artist formerly known as Mankind with helping to bring him into the WWE. Usually, WWE take credit for finding and inducting a star into the WWE ranks but on this occasion they graciously step aside to allow the truth to come out. Another rare occurrence on a WWE release is the name checking of another companies star. TNA’s Samoa Joe is the man that gets a mention this time around.
There is no blurring of the WWF logo or bleeping out of the WWF name in promos. The consequence of this is that the old angles and matches aren’t ruined as they have been in the past. WWE have even kept the old WWF logo on matches from In Your House.
Just another observation about Foley’s comment that his comebacks began to be all about the money. Cutting to Triple H, who has been around more people who never retired when they said they were going to, the future boss of WWE simply says. “You’re damned if you do, you’re damned if you don’t!” Triple H knows the pitfalls of stepping away from the spotlight and the lure that a big payday can bring. If anyone had to comment on this Triple H was the right person and he does so it so effortlessly.
It’s a treat to see Mick Foley’s daughter, Noelle, as a talking head towards the end of the release. The last time the wrestling world saw her was at the 1999 Royal Rumble, though you had to look hard in the front row or if you watched the thoroughly exceptional documentary ‘Beyond the Mat’, when she was just a child. Now though, she’s all grown up and she’s hot. Offering up the information that her father is her hero is a nice touch by WWE and adds the cherry on top of the cake.
The sentiments from all the talking heads are heartfelt and never insincere. By the time you reach the conclusion of the documentary, you realise that Mick Foley was and is loved by everyone in wrestling. It’s not something you can say about everyone who has ever laced up a pair of boots but the comments from his peers make Foley’s career more worthwhile than anything he’s ever done in the ring could.
The main feature comes to an end on a high note as Mick Foley reflects on his career and notes that’s he alright now and he’s happy. After all he’s given us he deserves to be. And that’s the most endearing this about this recollection of one wrestling’s most dangerous and celebrated stars. After all of his ills, the stunts, the injuries, the sacrifices, to know that after all of that, Mick Foley is alright and happy. What a success story it has been.
As for the matches chosen for the release, unfortunately some of them could have been excluded to make way for others. The best ones though consists of:
Cactus Jack and Gary Young vs Scott Steiner and Billy Travis (AWA All Star Wrestling, October 1988) is nothing exceptional and will fail to set your world on fire, but it is pure wrestling and boasts a buff and young Scott Steiner before he ruined his body beyond repair. Foley, as Cactus Jack, gives a great account of himself. The trouble with the earlier matches in anyone’s career is that they usually took place in the early or late 80’s, or before, which means they had to conform to a certain format. A format which usually tired after half way through a card and often sees many matches from that era presented as identical or just plain dull.
Cactus Jack vs Keith Hart (Power Hour, March 1990) is a tremendous match and paced so well that it never relents until the final bell. The elbow executed by Cactus, from the apron which clears the guard rail and lands squarely on the chest of Keith Hart who is positioned in the crowd has to be seen and looks sublime. Reckless but sublime.
Cactus Jack vs Sting (Power Hour, November 1991) in a Submit or Surrender Match may be a glorified Last Man Standing effort but is of great quality. As the valiant hero who will fight for his fans, Sting is flawless and Cactus Jack’s dastardly heel character who wanted to destroy Sting in front of his fans which consisted mostly of children was the perfect folly for Sting. This match features an amazing back bump from the apron to the concrete from Foley which you just feel must have hurt. Watching this back you realise that before the Rock came on the scene, Sting was the original peoples champion and deservedly so. If I’m not mistaken then Sting was even more popular than John Cena is today.
Cactus Jack vs Van Hammer (WCW Clash of the Champions XVIII, January 21st 1992) in a Falls Count Anywhere Match, is a classic example of how well Mick Foley could carry an inferior opponent. Van Hammer was never that great a wrestler, yet here, on this night, Mick Foley made him look like a star. Fans jeer when the match spills backstage and into a rodeo arena where it ends with a Cactus Jack victory and a post match brawl between Cactus Jack and Abdullah the Butcher. Even though Van Hammer was a very limited worker to say the least, the match does bring back some great memories and it has been at least eighteen, maybe more years since I have seen Van Hammer wrestle.
Cactus Jack vs Sandman (ECW: Fort Lauderdale, Florida, May 1995) contested under Barbed Wire Match rules is brilliantly brutal even though the match should have and had the potential to be better. Foley’s left arm gets torn horribly by the barbed wire and Sandman’s athleticism, which would disappear late in his career as the alcohol and nicotine abuse took it toll, which sees him leap and clear the top rope to strike Cactus with a Singapore cane shot is mightily impressive. It’s nice to see Nancy Benoit as ‘Woman’ at ringside.
Mankind vs Hunter Hearst Helmsley (In Your House: Canadian Stampede, July 6th 1997) is respectable even if the two had better matches together in their career. The match ends in a lousy double count out. WWE could have excluded this either for their SummerSlam 1997 Steel Cage match or their Raw 1997 street fight which were both superior.
The alternate commentary by Mick Foley and Joey Styles on the selected matches is well worth the listen to. It adds a different perspective on the matches WWE have included it on to hear another point of view on the matches in question from the man competing in them.
Dude Love vs Rocky Mavia (Raw, November 17th 1997) comes off better than their match at In Your House: Cold Day in Hell, which is included on the release. Thanks to both men’s improved standing in the company at the time, Foley as Dude Love and the Rock try their very best but are still hampered by their mid card rivalry and the match is ruined by yet another screwy disqualification finish as Austin yet against outshines Foley in his run in.
Mankind vs The Undertaker (King of the Ring 1998: June 28th, 1998) is their now infamous Hell in a Cell match. Still a spectacle to witness to this very day, both men worked wonders and Foley’s flight off of the top of the Cell and landing through the announcers table combined with his chokeslam through the top of the steel structure stand as two of the very best stunts in a wrestling match, ever. They truly are the stuff of legend. To get up after such falls, Mick displays grit and determination that could bring a tear to the eye. Even Undertaker looks perplexed at Mick Foley’s resilience. Still, this match has been included on numerous releases and the question of whether we need to see it again is one I will let you answer in your own time. I know this is meant to be Foley’s best matches but WWE could have replaced this with another they left off and there are many.
Kane and Mankind vs The New Age Outlaws (Raw: July 13th 1998) for the WWE Tag Team Championships is decent. The restricted Billy Gunn is kept to a minimum and Undertaker is present for no apparent reason other than to let the fans see him. The match itself is held together well and is just one of the more favourable Attitude Era tag team matches included over the last few releases which include the time.
Mankind vs The Rock (In Your House: Rock Bottom, December 13th 1998) is better than both of their other matches included on this release but still not as good as matches the pair would have in 1999. Fighting for the WWE Championship, Rock and Mankind trade some great near falls towards the end of the match but for the Rock’s first WWE Championship defence WWE should have booked him to go over strong instead of losing the match by referee stoppage and then have Vince McMahon make a bad excuse as to why Rock was still WWE Champion. It weakened the Rock at the time but Rock would thankfully undo all of that in his terrific matches with Foley at the beginning of 1999. Vince’s reaction to having Socko applied is priceless.
The Rock ‘n Sock Connection vs Triple H and Shane McMahon (Smackdown: September 2nd 1999) fought over the WWE Tag Team Championships is solid stuff. Once again ending after interference, this match is yet another in which Mick Foley doesn’t get the deciding pinfall. Instead it’s the Rock was held in higher esteem than Foley at the time, who covers Triple H for the victory.
Cactus Jack vs Triple H (No Way Out 2000: February 27th 2000) like its predecessor is the classic Hell in a Cell offering which was billed as Mick Foley’s retirement match. It wouldn’t be. On the whole, the WWE Championship Match is a fine brawl which helped establish Triple H as the headline star we know now. The ending which sees Foley backdropped through the roof of the Cell is perfectly executed as is his refusal to quit even after he’s gone through the canvas of the ring. That it takes another pedigree to finish Foley off only adds to the image that Triple H was a badass Champion who would fight to the bitter end to retain his Championship. ‘The Game’ leaves this match looking a million dollars.
Weaknesses:
In the main documentary, Mick Foley’s background before wrestling, in sport and writing may be mentioned to the credit of WWE but is horribly fleeting and rushed to get the story to a point where Mick Foley was ready for in ring combat. WWE needed to extend this part of the main feature to add further depth to the Foley character. That it didn’t imply that Vince McMahon doesn’t believe we deserve or need to know a wrestlers life before he stepped into the doors of Titan Towers. Misguided and wrong.
Yet again, the moment in which Mick Foley hitchhiked to Madison Square Garden to see Jimmy Snuka leap from the top of the cage, is covered. WWE have played on this moment so much that it didn’t need to go into the detail it does with it. A fleeting mention of this and more of Foley’s pre-wrestling life would have served the documentary much better. I believe WWE have fed us this story so often that we no longer need to hear about it or see the moment in which Snuka performs said splash.
Mick Foley’s career in wrestling promotions that WWE doesn’t own the copyright or video library to is either ephemeral or ignored all together. With their expansive fortune, would it really have killed WWE to acquire the rights for a modest fee from said promotions? Oddly enough then, there is the odd match from said companies but no explanation about Foley’s time with them. You can’t help but get the feel that WWE either didn’t want to spend out any more money on the release than they had done or don’t want us to think there are and were other promotions out there except WWE.
A lot of the footage from Foley’s time in WCW and ECW is just of hardcore matches. This wouldn’t be so bad had Foley not been labelled with the ‘Hardcore Legend’ name. For those people who believe he’s just a glorified stuntman, this footage will add fuel to the argument of their fire. WWE should have sourced out more video of Foley competing in normal matches with Sting and others in WCW and done their best with the ECW footage of Foley. It does exist if they look hard enough and WWE own the video library which it lies in. There’s no logical reason as to why WWE couldn’t have done this.
The Cactus Jack vs Terry Funk grisly feud from IWA Japan is only told in words and a handful of still pictures. Like his career in other companies which WWE don’t own the rights to, there is no video footage of the sheer brutal death matches the pair competed in. Once again, WWE could have paid the company a one off fee to include one of these matches in its entirety on the release. The excuse that the matches were too violent for a WWE release are counteracted by the footage of the loss of Foley’s ear and the bloody pictures from said matches in UWA Japan. This is laziness and stinginess by WWE. The stories of Mick Foley being able to see bone through the wounds in his fingers and doing the same move that cost him his ear but in barbed wire are all very good but would have been complimented in video form.
The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Edge are all conspicuous in their absence as talking heads. There isn’t one interview with the trio who helped define Foley’s career. This is a let down. Undertaker should have broken character for once and spoken out on Mick Foley and his feud with him. WWE could have easily procured fresh interviews from Stone Cold and Edge, the only explanation I can possibly think as to why neither of the three appear on the release is that Mick Foley didn’t want to them be seen. This however is a dumb theory as Foley has good relationships with all three men. On the same note, the transitory interview with the Rock is taken from another WWE release. The company couldn’t be bothered to pay Rock to appear in a fresh interview even though they had him in the run up to the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber, plus on Royal Rumble and Chamber night. Anyone who tells me they couldn’t have found thirty minutes to sit him down and question him is talking rubbish.
Detracting authenticity from the release, Jim Ross and Michael Hayes claim they had no idea what was going to happen at King of the Ring 1998 – Hayes strikes again with these claims when talking about the No Way Out 2000 Hell in a Cell Match. By now, anyone who knows even the smallest workings of wrestling will be able to pick this apart in seconds. The truth is that every writer, announcer and backstage member of staff knows what is going to happen before the match takes places in order for them to sell it as real as they can. Their claims are made even more unrealistic moments later when Terry Funk, discussing the Hell in a Cell stunt tells us that he and Foley discussed the planned stunts. So what are WWE trying to say? That its wrestlers know more than its backstage staff? What is this WCW?
Shown for the millionth time is the Vince McMahon in hospital scene. We never need to see this ever again, seeing that it has been on ever major release covering, Steve Austin, Vince McMahon, Mick Foley and the Attitude Era for years. Even though this was the genesis of Mr. Socko it’s unappealing to sit through again.
Mick Foley gives Triple H credit for helping get Cactus Jack over in WWE, not that he needed it. As a character, Cactus Jack’s reputation proceeded him. The ovation he got in his first appearance with Hunter Hearst Helmsley in their cracking street fight on Raw 1997 adds weight that this. Yet at no point on the release does Triple H ever give Mick Foley credit for making him a headline star. This is selfish, bigoted and opinionated. Without Foley, Triple H would never have been the star he was. The Rock and Steve Austin were so unwilling to put Triple H over in their main event feuds towards the end of 1999 that it looked like Triple H would never make it. No one else would have considered doing the job Foley did for Triple H and not to credit him with that says that Triple H believes that he would have made it regardless. Maybe he would have but not at the level he did. This is a great disservice and a huge sign of disrespect.
Strangely, Mick Foley says that he made the most difference in the role as commissioner of the WWE and should have stayed on. I disagree. In the role, Foley was successful there’s no disputing that but the role was a mere comedy one to keep him out of the ring. If it had been portrayed for any longer than it had been there was danger it would have worn thin and Foley would have been blamed for it. As for him making the most difference in the role, that’s hugely wrong. Foley made the most difference to the industry in the ring, where he gave some inspirational performances.
When talking about wanting to leave the wrestling industry to concentrate on his writing, Foley paints Vince McMahon as jealous and petty in his story. The way Foley tells it, Vince didn’t want Foley to leave to concentrate and be successful in another industry and by telling Mick that if he leaves now there’s a chance the pair could do business later on, implying that if he was to stay in WWE and write separate from the company Vince would have cut him off all together. Whilst I have no reason to dispute this story knowing how small minded McMahon can be. WWE should have cut this for the sake of Vince’s image. It does not paint him in a good light.
Recent footage of Mick Foley shows just how much weight he had put on. This should have either been cut or kept to a minimum. It’s sad to see how much he let himself go and the mass he added to his frame. At some points during this footage Mick Foley is hardly recognizable.
As for the matches: Jack Foley and Les Thornton vs The British Bulldogs (WWE Superstars: September 1986) is standard and hasn’t aged well in the ring. Foley and Thornton are used as cannon fodder for the then WWE Tag Team Champions. Like so many squash matches of the time, there’s nothing to excite anyone here unless you’re a fan of jobbers getting demolished.
Cactus Jack Manson vs Brickhouse Brown (Wild West Wrestling: April 1989) is mindlessly slow, thoroughly sloppy and filled with banal rest holds, which were popular in the 80’s, zapping all and every ounce of enthusiasm from the encounter. To make it worse the commentators seem to find everything and anything else to talk about except the match in the ring. They spend an age hyping the Jerry Lawler vs Kerry Von Erich Match which would headline the show. The match ends in a dreadful time limit draw and is one of the worst outings on the entire release.
Cactus Jack vs Shane Douglas (ECW CyberSlam, February 1996) may be respectable and kept watchable via several different stunts but turns out to be a very subdued version of what ECW were capable of and what they should have accomplished in a match such as this. Douglas diving from the top rope and landing in the audience looks wonderful but the rest of the match takes dedication to sit through and borders on disappointing. The words ‘Forgive Me Uncle Eric’ on Foley’s shirt is a nice in joke for those who are in on it but ultimately the match could have done without being here and replaced with another Foley ECW scrap of which there were many to choose from. Never seeming to end it boasts the spot that Rock and Mankind made famous at 1999 Royal Rumble, where Foley is handcuffed and Rock smashes him repeatedly with the chair and the whole thing ends with a dangerous chair shot which looks like it breaks Foley’s neck. A lot of people will like this but for me it was filled with moves which didn’t link or make sense.
Mankind vs Rocky Mavia (In Your House: Cold Day in Hell, May 11th 1997) meanders through a selection of phoned in moves and is one of the rare Rock and Mick Foley efforts where nothing of note happens at all. An early version of the Rock Bottom on the aisle looks good but unfortunately that’s about all to note from this match. If you’re a fan of old In Your House matches and like the nostalgic feel they give you, like I do, then you may find this match watchable even if it won’t blow you away. Listen out for Jerry Lawler’s less than favourable commentary. Everyone else will more than likely want to use the skip button on their DVD or Blu-ray remote.
Mankind vs Al Snow (Smackdown: December 16th 1999) doesn’t need to be here. It’s inconsequential to everything else and takes the places of better matches which could have been included. To make it worse, at the time, WWE booked this match off of the fact that Foley didn’t talk about Snow in glowing terms during the length of his book.
There are no matches with Vader across the expanse of this release and WWE have shoddily left out several other matches which should have been included instead of most. If this was meant to be a selection of Mick Foley’s greatest matches then WWE should have incorporated; Mankind vs Shawn Michaels (In Your House: Mind Games) even though it is included on the forthcoming ‘Best of In Your House’ release, Mick Foley vs Randy Orton (Backlash 2004), The Rock vs Mankind (Royal Rumble 1999), The Rock vs Mankind (Halftime Heat: Empty Arena Brawl 1999), The Rock vs Mankind (Raw 1999: Foley’s first ever WWE Championship victory), Mankind vs the Undertaker (SummerSlam 1996), Cactus Jack vs Triple H (Royal Rumble 2000), Cactus Jack vs Hunter Hearst Helmsley (Raw Street Fight 1997), Mick Foley vs Edge (WrestleMania 22), Mick Foley and Edge vs Terry Funk and Tommy Dreamer (ECW One Night Stand 2006), Mankind vs Hunter Hearst Helmsley (SummerSlam 1997) plus more matches from WCW and ECW.
Blu-ray Exclusive Extras:
Promos
WCW World Championship Wrestling – 5th October 1991
Sting’s Birthday Cake
WCW Saturday Night – 10th September 1994
No Ear Surgery
Raw – 5th April 2004
Barbie
Smackdown – 1st August 2008
Cutting Edge
Raw – 24th September 2012
Relevancy with C.M Punk
Stories
Frank Foley
Snowed In
DeNucci Training School
Arrested in Italy?
Cactus Jack – The Name
Africa
Birth of ‘Bang-Bang’
Losing Teeth
On the Spot
Wanted T-shirt
Smoking Flight?
Anti-Hardcore ECW
Farewell in ECW
Vicious Suplex
Kevin Sullivan – Mentor
Rock ‘n Sock Jacket
Disneyland
Loogie Heard ‘Round the World
Commentator
Mr. Socko vs The Cobra
Comedy Show
Favourite Mick Foley Persona
Sheamus Meets Mick
Christmas Cheer
Wardrobe
Thrifty Mick
Great Dad
Conclusion:
After much hype and crossed fingers, ‘For All Mankind: the life and career of Mick Foley’ is finally a wrestling biography that we can be proud of. More than it, along with C.M Punk’s release WWE put out in 2012, this is the wrestling biography that we have been waiting for. Following in the footsteps of ‘Mick Foley’s Greatest Hits and Misses’ which was very good in itself but was essentially a collection of matches from Foley’s career, we’re at last given an inspirational story that we can all relate to. There is something here for anyone and the main feature which spans two hours and fourteen minutes is next to the best that WWE have ever produced. In effect, this is the documentary that WWE should have provided with the ‘Attitude Era’ release a few months back.
What we’re essentially watching is a boyhood dream that came true. There is a wealth of top class footage and fantastic stories from across the board and despite the flaws of the release and the matches included rarely being amongst Foley’s best ever, this release that fills you with unbridled joy and is worth the price tag that comes with it. There is an argument that states you can’t compile an accurate career description in such a short amount of time, if that is true then WWE have come so close with this release, touching the fringes of that statement. Showing Foley as more than a Hardcore Legend had to be one of the main priorities of this release and WWE have just about accomplished that with the footage of family life, his sacrifices to get into the business and his charity work.
Unusually for a WWE release, everything from the archive video footage of Foley’s early days, to home video footage to the talking heads are pitch perfect. There are even some really good quotes that will give people food for thought as they devour this career retrospective. Michael Hayes gives it straight and should inspire future WWE stars who are currently in developmental when he rightly states, “Go for broke once you got here!” After all, it is the only way to guarantee success in WWE these days.
Which ever way you look at it, Mick Foley comes across as an inspiration and an all around nice guy who deserves the success and life he has now. I tried to sum up this review with some clever quote but I decided that I could do no better than Foley’s own daughter, Noelle. When talking about her father and neatly summing up this release and Mick’s entire career she simply states; “He had a dream and he lived it! I think that’s inspirational!” Amen to that.
Rating: A
Onwards and upwards...
