WWE Thread

[Full Bug]

by Dave Meltzer

We're sorry to report the news that Jack Tunney, the former figurehead President of the WWE, passed away on Saturday at the age of 68. Tunney was involved for years in the promotion of pro wrestling in Toronto. There will be a funeral tomorrow at the Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Church on 354 St. Clair Avenue West at 10 a.m.
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Any Canadian fans who grew up in the 80's-early 90's will remember this guy, thats too bad....I saw him a few times going to wrestling at Maple Leaf Gardens......

[redblkwht]

Benoit has no Mic presence, I want the Taker to get the belt
again!!
anyone see the PPV? did the taker show up?
Is it true goldberg is done after WM? lol

[Full Bug]

Originally posted by redblkwht

anyone see the PPV? did the taker show up?

Nah, they just teased his music, that distracted Kane and he got eliminated....He is coming back as the dead man.....
You want Taker to win the belt? Instead he should be given a ticket to the old folks home......:D

[Mr Badguy]

I agree about Benoit.

The guy can wrestle but has no real charisma or mic skills.

Angle has all three but IMO works better as a heel.

`Taker is still one of the best, even if he is getting a bit old.

He`s still a lot younger than Hogan and Flair.

[Full Bug]

Anyone see Mick Foleys speech last night on Raw? It was fucking great, he is still one of the best interviews.....

[Mr Badguy]

Not yet.

What did he say?

Is he getting back in the squared circle?

[Full Bug]

Looks like Foley will fight Orton at Wrestlemania.......
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The last segment of the night saw Foley enter the ring and tell the people that he was going to answer the question 'why he did what he did on Dec. 15.


He talked about how he channeled his anger and needed it to perform. He said that Pete Rose had that hatred and anger, but now at 61 years old can't let it go. Foley said that he's been happy in his retirement.


Foley said that his mistake wasn't walking out of the match, but was accepting it in the first place - because he didn't know if he could get that anger in his heart back.


Foley then called out Randy - without Evolution because Randy owed Foley 'a little favour.' An Irate Orton yelled at Foley and asked him what kind of favour he owed Foley.


Foley then asked Orton to spit in his face. A stunned Orton stared at Foley. Before Orton could respond, Foley pushed the microphone out of his hand and demanded, no ordered Orton to spit in his face.

Foley then pushed Orton, who looked scared and did it. Foley then said that he wasn't going to hit Orton, but turn the other cheek. With Foley encouraging the fans to chant 'loogie, loogie,' Orton did it again.

After going on about the big lie, Foley said that people were starting to believe what Orton said. He then started to punch himself in the face opening a cut under his own eye - and told Orton that he was not going to let him spit on his legacy and his name anymore.

Foley then said that hatred was in his heart and he was going to show Orton that - now. Foley then attacked Orton, punching him into the corner and giving him the running knee to the face. Flair and Batista ran in to make the save, and after threw Foley out of the ring.

Foley then grabbed a chair and nailed Batista on the back with it. Evolution retreated while Foley held the chair high in the ring as the show went off the air.

[Mr Badguy]

Does that mean he`s coming back?

If so, for how long?

One last match at Wrestlemania?

[Full Bug]

Thought I would post this Ric Flair DVD review, does anyone have this yet?
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DVD Review: The Ultimate Flair

TSN.ca Staff

1/28/2004

Every once in a while, something comes along that is so incredible, so amazing, so absolutely perfect, that you wonder two things. 1: Why hasn't somebody done this before, and 2: I hope somebody makes more of these. The Ultimate Ric Flair Collection is one of those things.

The collection spans three DVD's, it's listed as having over 10 hours of material (but with the hidden content it's closer to 12), and is literally the best presented wrestling DVD collection I've ever seen. The package itself is absolutely gorgeous. Opening the box, you're first struck by two huge pictures of Flair and Jim Ross, and another of Flair and Sting (with an inset picture of a dressed to the nine's Flair with his "Ten pounds of gold" NWA championship. You open that up into four sections, which reveal the table of contents, and then the three DVD's (which have clear backgrounds and amazing pictures of Flair behind them).

The best part about the discs are the candid interviews with Ric Flair where he talks about the history surrounding the matches. He tells some great stories that I've never heard before, and ones that I've heard about, but only second hand. The legend of the Horsemen, the Plane Crash, his feud with Ricky The Dragon Steamboat, his dislike of Jim Herd (WCW President), and the emotion in his face when he talks about the special night in Greenville are all really cool things to hear from Flair.

Disc One focuses on the early years of Flair and the Horsemen, with a face Flair winning the NWA Championship from a heel Harley Race, and a heel Flair defending the belt against Dusty Rhodes and a young Barry Windham.

Harley Race and the NWA Championship from Starrcade '83, where Ric Flair won the NWA title for the second time, defeating Race in a steel cage match. The amazing thing about this match is how few high spots are done, and what a great story is told. Total number of "big moves" in the match? Five. There were two suplexes, a body slam, a flying head-butt, and the move that won the match, a cross body press off the second turnbuckle.
Other features:
Starrcade '83 Pre-Match interviews with Ric Flair, Harley Race, Race, Bob Orton Jr. and Dick Slater. Ric Flair and Wahoo McDaniel.
Starrcade '83 Post-Match interviews with Ric Flair, Harley Race, Ric Flair, Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood.

Dusty Rhodes: Talking the Talk from Starrcade '85, where Rhodes and Flair went at it for 60 minutes in an incredible match that totally showcased how well these two gelled together. There was such an amazing rivalry between these two men, with the Horsemen having broken Rhodes' ankle weeks before this match. Other features:
Flar and the Andersons break Dusty's ankle, Flair cuts a promo, Dusty's rebuttal, the controversy explained, Flair gets riled up, Dusty comments on the decision.

Barry Windham: Keeping up with the Champ NWA World Championship Match Jan 20, 87, where a young Barry Windham takes on Ric Flair. This was a really cool feud, and would eventually lead to Windham joining the Four Horsemen years later.
Other Features: Attacked by the Horsemen, You cried the blues (Flair cutting an awesome promo on Windham), Flair vs Windham Jan 13, 1987, Dusty's Analysis, Flair Post Match Promo.


Disc Two features the Nature boy in two of his greatest feuds. The long feud with Ricky The Dragon Steamboat, whom Flair says he wrestled 3000 times in his carreer, and never had a bad match with him. Terry Funk, the innovator of hardcore, and one of the most fascinating promo-men in the business. Plus there are three candid interviews with Flair regarding The Plane Crash, the Legend of the Horsemen, and a Day in the Life of the Horsemen.

Ricky Steamboat: The Rivalry Clash of the Champions VI, and the greatest match, WrestleWar '89. Flair talks before the match, looking back on the match and says that while many say that it is the best match in wrestling history, and it flatters him to hear that, he and Steamboat probably put on 12 other matches which were better. It's an incredible match, and one which people like Triple H and Chris Benoit have said was an incredible influence on their careers.
Other Features: Flair and Windham vs Steamboat and Gilbert. Steamboat's three man workout. Flair calls out Steamboat.
The Controversy recap, Flair's Lawyer, Jim Herd, Ricky Steamboat, Ric Flair, Wrestle-War pre-match interview.

Terry Funk: Hardcore Clash of the Champions IX '89, an amazing match which saw Funk and Flair go hardcore. Other Features: Press Conference, Bagged, I'll Shake his hand, Flair's Rebuttal, You're gonna say I quit, New York Knock Out promos. Pre-Match interviews.

Then there are three candid interviews with Flair where he talks about The Plane Crash, which almost ended his life and the lives of fellow wrestlers Robert Bruggers, Jimmy Valiant, and promoters David Crockett and George Woodin. The pilot of the plane, Joseph Farkas, never regained consciousness, and died a month later.
There's a history of the Horsemen, where Flair, Arn Anderson, and Tully Blanchard give candid interviews, and a day in the life of a Horseman, where Flari, Anderson, and Blanchard talk about their adventures.


Disc Three looks at Flair's WWE career, starting with the Flair's 1991 debut as the Real World's Champion (where Flair tells the story of how he kept the WCW title because Jim Herd wouldn't pay him his $25,000.00 downpayment which he gave the NWA years earlier for the belt), and going through his feuds with Sting, and the night in Greenville SC, where WWE stars gave him an incredible tribute.

The Nature Boy heads North; includes the 1992 Royal Rumble (where Flair entered at #3, and held on to win the match and the World Title. Interviews featuring Bobby the Brain Heenan, Flair's WWE TV Debut, Funeral Parlour, Flair attacking Piper, the "Real" World Heavyweight Champion, Rumble post-match interview


Sting: Defining an Era; includes Clash of the Champions XXVII, Sting getting kicked out of the Horsemen, Reeking of Sex appeal (Flair cutting an amazing promo on Sting), and a pre-match interview with Sting.

A Special Night in Greenville; Flair vs Triple H in Greenville South Carolina. After the match the entire locker room emptied out to congratulate and pay tribute to Flair. Even introducing the match, Flair shows a lot of obvious emotion, and it was awesome to see Flair's speech, and how genuinely happy he is with his spot in the business.
Other Features: Flair's WWWF debut in 1976, a workout with Piper, PWI Wrestler of the Decade 1989, The Final Nitro where Flair cut an amazing promo on McMahon and the WWE.


Video Quality: 8/10 Wow. Some of this video is 28 years old, but it looks as good as the stuff that was shot in 2003. The fact that most of this stuff even exists is incredible (in the 70's and 80's, wrestling tapes were often used multiple times, with old matches being taped over by new ones by cost conscious TV station managers).

Audio Quality: 7/10 WWE has come a long way since the Hogan disc that I reviewed in 2002. This disc has solid levels, and while the mix isn't entirely 5.1, it's pretty solid considering that most of the matches on the collection were mono mixes.

Extras: 10/10 The entire disc could be considered an "extra", but this is just such a top notch package that it gets full marks. The extras are literally too many to mention, so I'll just do the highlights. The package is absolutely amazing.

The Good: It's 10 hours of Ric Flair! It's got one of the best wrestling matches of all times (Flair vs Steamboat), it has the post-RAW celebration that we've all heard about. It's got a young Jim Ross! It's got commentary by Gordon Solie! This is everything that a true wrestling fan could ever want.

The Bad: There is absolutely nothing bad about this collection. The only thing I would have changed slightly is the menu system. The menu's they used are do what they need to do, but a nice addition would have been a disc index (ala the Lord of the Rings extended editions) so that you could go through to one specific segment.

The Ugly: Harley Race's "sweatsuit robe", it has to be the ugliest thing I've ever seen.


Easter Eggs: This disc has a TON of easter eggs (Easter eggs are little hidden things that DVD authors put in discs for people to find).
Disc 1:
Go to Chapters. Right click on the chapter titled: "Barry Windham: Keeping up with the Champ." You will see a promo from Flair from the Summer of 1985 where he talks about Magnum T.A., Nikita Koloff, Buddy Landell and James J. Dillon

Go to Chapters. Go to the Dusty Rhodes chapter section. Left click on the sub-chapter titled: "Flair Cuts a Promo." You will see the never-before-seen "Lost Promo" from Flair!


Disc 2:
Go to Chapters. Right click on "Home." You will see a promo with David Crockett and Ric Flair following the newly formed Horsemen injuring Dusty Rhodes.

Go to Chapters. Left click on the chapter titled: "Day in Life of the Horsemen." You will see a promo with Flair from June 1987 talking about Jim Garvin, The Freebirds and Larry Bird.


Disc 3:
On the main menu page go to Play. Left click and once the WWE logo is highlighted, hit enter. You will see a Flair promo from 1987 talking about the Road Warriors, Freebirds, Jim Garvin and Precious

Go to Chapters. Go to the Special Night in Greenville chapter section. Go to the bottom and select Menu. Left click to highlight the beer in the picture. Hit enter. You will see Flair's WWE Entrace Titantron Video.

The Ultimate Ric Flair Collection is distributed by Koch Video Canada, and can be found online at Amazon.ca ($ 31.49), and on the WWE ShopZone ($34.95). It's also been spotted in various Future Shop's, Best Buy's, Walmart's, HMV's and other video stores for around $35.00.

I really hope that WWE does more discs like this. As good as the Hogan and Shawn Michaels "From the Vault" DVD's are, this one is 100 times better. The packaging is better, the sit-down interviews with Flair are better, the emotion he shows is amazing, and the stories he tells are just legendary.

This disc makes you want more. I want a Stone Cold Steve Austin DVD set, spanning WCW, ECW, and WWE. An Undertaker set with WCW and WWE stuff, and a Benoit ECW, WCW, WWE set would be amazing. Of course the set Canadian fans would froth over would be a 4 disc Bret Hart Stampede Wrestling, WWE, WCW set with Hart narrating and commenting on the matches.


For TSN.ca/Wrestling, I'm Brian "Darkside" Garside.
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I cant wait to pick this up, should be great, WHOOOO!!

:D

[Mr Badguy]

That sounds great.

I hope you can get that here in Britain.

Say what you want about what Flair is like now, but he must be one, if not THE, greatest of all time.

[Full Bug]

Who is the best all time tag team?

http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamWrestling/tagteampoll.html

Tough choice, vote now!

[Mr Badguy]

Money Inc.

[Mr Badguy]

Just kidding!

How do you pick one?

Steiners
Gordy/Williams
Road Warriors
Midnight Express
The Andersons
The Hart Foundation

All great teams.

How do you pick one?

[Mr Badguy]

And the Powers of Pain weren`t even in the poll!

[Elitest]

I want a stone cold steve austin dvd set too.....yummy!!