Wrestling Gold Collection 3 - We Like

Rating:
Summary: Vintage Wrestling on DVD
Review: Wrestling Gold Collection 3: We Like To Hurt People, part III of a V part series, collects vintage wrestling matches from the 1970s and 1980s. This particular volume contains 15 matches.

The biggest sell of this DVD series is the optional "Insider Commentary" (from Select Audio screen) from series hosts Jim Cornette (noted wrestling manager/promoter) and Dave Meltzer (noted wrestling journalist) which can be turned on in lieu of the original match audio. The insider commentary offers great insights into wrestling history, the superstars and the world of wrestling in general.

Though this collection is referred to as "Wrestling Gold" perhaps a better name for this particularly volume would have been "The Best of Memphis Wrestling" which is where most of these matches were pulled from. Here's a rundown of the featured matches on this volume:

1. Tommy Rich and Eddie Gilbert vs. Phil Hickerson and The Spoiler: Early 80s from Memphis. Tennessee Street Fight. Rich was a former NWA World Champion. He and Gilbert were top stars from the South. All were mainstays in Memphis wrestling. Decent tag match. 3 stars.

2. Rock N' Roll Expresss vs. Randy Savage and Lanny Poffo. From Memphis 1984. This is a rematch from the match featured on volume II. Another top-notch contest between these legendary competitors. 4 stars.

3. Dory Funk Jr. vs. Dick Slater: From SCW. Great scientific mat wrestling from these two old-school grapplers. Funk was a legendary heavyweight champion. Slater was a noted brawler who emulated Dory's brother Terry. 4 stars.

4. Tiger Jeet Singh vs. The Sheik: From Toronto. Cage Match. Both were legendary brawlers from the 60s through the 70s. Great brawl. 4 stars.

5. The Fabulous Blonds (Eric Embry and Ken Tims). Vs. Manny Fernandez and Al Perez: From SCW 1984 from the tag titles. All four competitors were mainstays in Texas wrestling with Fernandez and Embry achieving legendary status. Perez went on to mild success in the NWA. Decent scientific bout between these two teams. Post-match run-in by the Sheepherders (AKA, the Bushwhackers). 4 stars

6. Terry Funk vs. Harley Race: 2/6/76 from Toronto. Historic match for the NWA world title. Outstanding old-school scientific match between these two legendary grapplers. 5 stars.

7. Pepper Gomez vs. The Bounty Hunter: Decent match. 3 ¾ stars.

8. Austin Idol vs. Jim Neidhart: Memphis 1984. Idol was a Memphis legend. Okay match. Also featuring Jimmy Hart and the Spoiler. 3 stars.

9. Junkyard Dog vs. "Hacksaw" Butch Reed: Memphis 1984. Awesome "power" match up. JYD was an icon throughout the South. Both went on to success in the 1980s WWF. Reed also went on to greater success as part of Doom in WCW. 4 stars.

10. Rick Rude, Jim Neidhart, Ox Baker and the Japanese Assassin (w/ Angel) vs. Robert Reed, Tiger Mask, Keith Eric and Mad Dog: Memphis, 1984. Squash match. Rick Rude wrestles in a dress. DUD.

11. King Kong Bundy vs. Jerry "The King" Lawler: From Memphis, 1984. Lawler makes $1000 for every minute the match goes on. Bundy went on to success in the WWF. Lawler was a legend in Memphis, known by today's fans as the former WWF Raw announcer. Great match psychology. Rick Rude run-in. 4 stars.

12. Terry Funk vs. Mark Lewin: Detroit, 1977. Great brawl between these two noted brawling legends. Post-match run-in with Walter Johnson. 4 stars.

13. Tommy Rich vs. Massao Ito (w/ Jimmy Hart): Memphis, 1984. Great match between these two including some nice martial arts spots from Ito. 4 stars.

14. Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. Kamala The Ugandan Giant: Memphis, 1984 for the Southern Heavyweight Title. Kamala was a major star throughout Memphis and Texas who went on to greater success in the WWF in the 1980s through early 90s. Lawler at his best. 4 stars.

15. Ray Stevens, Blackjack Mulligan and Baron Von Raschke (w/ Blackjack Lanza and Bobby Heenan) vs. The Crusher, Dick the Bruiser and Sailor Art Thomas: Indianapolis, early 70s. Star-studded six-man tag with 8 legends of the 1970s. All 8 men were top stars/top draws throughout the 60s and 70s, particularly Stevens, Crusher and the Bruiser. 4 stars.

Wrestling wise, this is a GREAT DVD. Here's my rundown:

Price of Admission Alone: The NWA title match between Race and Funk. This is a true piece of wrestling history.

Awesome: The "Insider Match Commentary." It's a fascinating listen/insight into the stars and the business. You'll learn a GREAT deal about the history of the business and the stars that made it. Also, many of the anecdotes that Cornette shares are PRICELESS.

Good: Seeing all the old-school superstars (Savage, JYD, RN'R, Rude, Gilbert, Heenan, etc).

Whoa: Where'd the biographies go????

Could Improve: The match intros by Cornette and Meltzer. They do a good job of introducing the matches and placing them in context of the feuds and time, BUT they neglect to mention important details (for most) such as the DATES of these contests. It's something they should mention, plus also put on the box. To get this basic info you'll have to listen with "Insider Commentary" turned on.

Overall, this is a great DVD if you are into old-school style matches and stars. The matches in this volume are great!!! You'll get a good mix of scientific (Funk/Race), (Funk Jr./Slater), hardcore (Sheik/Singh), (Funk/Lewin), power (JYD/Reed), aerial (RnR/Savage, Poffo), etc. There's something for everyone. Plus, you'll see legends like Ray Stevens, the Crusher and Dick the Bruiser and even contemporary favorites who are no longer with us (Rude, Eddie Gilbert, JYD). If you are a wrestling nostalgist THIS IS FOR YOU. Definitely give this a watch. You'll see many of the older stars of today back in their prime or as rookies. Also, you'll get to see some of the legends that older fans always reminisce about. Plus, if you want a great lesson in wrestling history, listen to it in "Insider Commentary" mode. It's a fascinating listen.

Highly Recommended (for nostalgia)

Rating:
Summary: Vintage Wrestling on DVD
Review: Wrestling Gold Collection 3: We Like To Hurt People, part III of a V part series, collects vintage wrestling matches from the 1970s and 1980s. This particular volume contains 15 matches.

The biggest sell of this DVD series is the optional "Insider Commentary" (from Select Audio screen) from series hosts Jim Cornette (noted wrestling manager/promoter) and Dave Meltzer (noted wrestling journalist) which can be turned on in lieu of the original match audio. The insider commentary offers great insights into wrestling history, the superstars and the world of wrestling in general.

Though this collection is referred to as "Wrestling Gold" perhaps a better name for this particularly volume would have been "The Best of Memphis Wrestling" which is where most of these matches were pulled from. Here's a rundown of the featured matches on this volume:

1.Tommy Rich and Eddie Gilbert vs. Phil Hickerson and The Spoiler: Early 80s from Memphis. Tennessee Street Fight. Rich was a former NWA World Champion. He and Gilbert were top stars from the South. All were mainstays in Memphis wrestling. Decent tag match. 3 stars.

2.Rock N' Roll Expresss vs. Randy Savage and Lanny Poffo. From Memphis 1984. This is a rematch from the match featured on volume II. Another top-notch contest between these legendary competitors. 4 stars.

3.Dory Funk Jr. vs. Dick Slater: From SCW. Great scientific mat wrestling from these two old-school grapplers. Funk was a legendary heavyweight champion. Slater was a noted brawler who emulated Dory's brother Terry. 4 stars.

4.Tiger Jeet Singh vs. The Sheik: From Toronto. Cage Match. Both were legendary brawlers from the 60s through the 70s. Great brawl. 4 stars.

5.The Fabulous Blonds (Eric Embry and Ken Tims). Vs. Manny Fernandez and Al Perez: From SCW 1984 from the tag titles. All four competitors were mainstays in Texas wrestling with Fernandez and Embry achieving legendary status. Perez went on to mild success in the NWA. Decent scientific bout between these two teams. Post-match run-in by the Sheepherders (AKA, the Bushwhackers). 4 stars

6.Terry Funk vs. Harley Race: 2/6/76 from Toronto. Historic match for the NWA world title. Outstanding old-school scientific match between these two legendary grapplers. 5 stars.

7.Pepper Gomez vs. The Bounty Hunter: Decent match. 3 ¾ stars.

8.Austin Idol vs. Jim Neidhart: Memphis 1984. Idol was a Memphis legend. Okay match. Also featuring Jimmy Hart and the Spoiler. 3 stars.

9.Junkyard Dog vs. "Hacksaw" Butch Reed: Memphis 1984. Awesome "power" match up. JYD was an icon throughout the South. Both went on to success in the 1980s WWF. Reed also went on to greater success as part of Doom in WCW. 4 stars.

10.Rick Rude, Jim Neidhart, Ox Baker and the Japanese Assassin (w/ Angel) vs. Robert Reed, Tiger Mask, Keith Eric and Mad Dog: Memphis, 1984. Squash match. Rick Rude wrestles in a dress. DUD.

11.King Kong Bundy vs. Jerry "The King" Lawler: From Memphis, 1984. Lawler makes $1000 for every minute the match goes on. Bundy went on to success in the WWF. Lawler was a legend in Memphis, known by today's fans as the former WWF Raw announcer. Great match psychology. Rick Rude run-in. 4 stars.

12.Terry Funk vs. Mark Lewin: Detroit, 1977. Great brawl between these two noted brawling legends. Post-match run-in with Walter Johnson. 4 stars.

13.Tommy Rich vs. Massao Ito (w/ Jimmy Hart): Memphis, 1984. Great match between these two including some nice martial arts spots from Ito. 4 stars.

14.Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. Kamala The Ugandan Giant: Memphis, 1984 for the Southern Heavyweight Title. Kamala was a major star throughout Memphis and Texas who went on to greater success in the WWF in the 1980s through early 90s. Lawler at his best. 4 stars.

15.Ray Stevens, Blackjack Mulligan and Baron Von Raschke (w/ Blackjack Lanza and Bobby Heenan) vs. The Crusher, Dick the Bruiser and Sailor Art Thomas: Indianapolis, early 70s. Star-studded six-man tag with 8 legends of the 1970s. All 8 men were top stars/top draws throughout the 60s and 70s, particularly Stevens, Crusher and the Bruiser. 4 stars.

Wrestling wise, this is a GREAT DVD. Here's my rundown:

Price of Admission Alone: The NWA title match between Race and Funk. This is a true piece of wrestling history.

Awesome: The "Insider Match Commentary." It's a fascinating listen/insight into the stars and the business. You'll learn a GREAT deal about the history of the business and the stars that made it. Also, many of the anecdotes that Cornette shares are PRICELESS.

Good: Seeing all the old-school superstars (Savage, JYD, RN'R, Rude, Gilbert, Heenan, etc).

Whoa: Where'd the biographies go????

Could Improve: The match intros by Cornette and Meltzer. They do a good job of introducing the matches and placing them in context of the feuds and time, BUT they neglect to mention important details (for most) such as the DATES of these contests. It's something they should mention, plus also put on the box. To get this basic info you'll have to listen with "Insider Commentary" turned on.

Overall, this is a great DVD if you are into old-school style matches and stars. The matches in this volume are great!!! You'll get a good mix of scientific (Funk/Race), (Funk Jr./Slater), hardcore (Sheik/Singh), (Funk/Lewin), power (JYD/Reed), aerial (RnR/Savage, Poffo), etc. There's something for everyone. Plus, you'll see legends like Ray Stevens, the Crusher and Dick the Bruiser and even contemporary favorites who are no longer with us (Rude, Eddie Gilbert, JYD). If you are a wrestling nostalgist THIS IS FOR YOU. Definitely give this a watch. You'll see many of the older stars of today back in their prime or as rookies. Also, you'll get to see some of the legends that older fans always reminisce about. Plus, if you want a great lesson in wrestling history, listen to it in "Insider Commentary" mode. It's a fascinating listen.

Highly Recommended (for nostalgia)