Royal Rumble 2014

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 176 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 1
Studio: Fremantle Home Entertainment
Released: April 14 2014

Although fans have fond memories of Royal Rumble, the 2014 event was not warmly-received, with one match completely panned by the Pittsburgh crowd and the finish to the main Rumble bout widely criticised, particularly by the live audience. If nothing else, though, it makes for an intriguing DVD to watch!

To be fair, the opening contest is very good, as Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt create an atmosphere to die for amidst some tremendous sequences. Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show is a short, brutal massacre of the giant by the Beast Incarnate. Strangely enough, fans didn't mind the brevity of this one, but they were determined to spoil Randy Orton vs. John Cena for the WWE Title. Admittedly, the match has been featured way too many times, but on this occasion, fans watching on TV or DVD aren't given a chance to enjoy it, unless you watch it on mute.

As for the Rumble match: it's decent enough until entrant 30 comes in, that being Rey Mysterio. Even though Mysterio had been advertised as an etrant, and Daniel Bryan had not, Bryan's non-appearance causes the fans to totally turn on the Rumble match and its remaining participants; Batista is initially cheered when he arrives, for the most part, but fans are incensed with him and his Rumble triumph come the end of the Rumble. Although it's not acknowledged here for obvious reasons, CM Punk walking out of WWE the next day only added to the doom and gloom surrounding the company as the Road To WrestleMania XXX began.

The DVD for Royal Rumble 2014, then (which also features the pre-show WWE Tag Team Title match between Cody Rhodes and Goldust and The New Age Outlaws): is it worth watching? Well, it's compelling for darkly comical reasons, or for reasons of fascination as to how the booking of the show and, in particular, the Rumble match almost created a riot-like environment in Pittsburgh that evening. Audience reactions aside, this certainly isn't one of the better Rumble events. Bryan vs. Wyatt is well worth watching but, funnily enough, the huge negative responses are arguably the selling point for fans to watch this DVD.

Overall Rating: 6/10 - Reasonable