DVD Review: Kurt Angle - The Essential Collection

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 531 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 3
Studio: Fremantle Home Entertainment
Released: July 31 2017

(Thanks to Fetch Publicity for arranging this review.)

Kurt Angle is one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all-time. Mixing his previous outstanding amateur wrestling ability, style and credibility with his desire to learn allowing him to quickly pick up the pro style along with unseen charisma and a great sense of humour, all during one of the hottest periods in wrestling history, Angle quickly established his legacy as one of the very best in record time. His return to WWE in early 2017 was hugely anticipated, and fans immediately gravitated back to the legendary Olympic gold medallist.

Therefore, it was inevitable that a DVD celebrating Angle's big return would be released, and so we have this collection of matches from 1999-2006. You can't really go wrong with a Kurt Angle match compilation, and this is proven to be the case as this is one of the best WWE DVDs that you will see. We also get pre-match comments from Angle who discusses how pivotal specific bouts were to his career, though they do occasionally border on being slightly self-indulgent at times. But more often than not, they're insightful, and a welcome aspect of the feature (this incidentally does not have any bonus material).

Beginning with Angle's televised debut against Shawn Stasiak from Survivor Series 1999 (where fans are booing and chanting "Boring!" within a minute of the bell ringing; how dare two wrestlers actually try to wrestle during the Attitude Era!), we then jump to Angle's first tastes of gold against the surprisingly over Val Venis from SmackDown and Chris Jericho at No Way 2000 for the European and Intercontinental Championships respectively.

Arguably the highlight of the DVD's first hour is the footage of Angle's promos from this time; he was so hilariously dorky, egotistical and entertaining that it almost makes one disappointed when he becomes more serious as the DVD progresses. But he continued rapidly climbing the ladder, evidenced by the next match, the King Of The Ring 2000 tournament final scrap with Rikishi.

By now, Angle was almost at the main event level. A quick three-way against Y2J and Triple H from Raw is followed by Angle's big moment, his WWF Title match against The Rock from No Mercy, which is a vital match in Angle's career and a great one (no pun intended) to boot. Angle's first PPV title defence against The Undertaker from Survivor Series is next. This has a hugely surprising ending, but if you haven't seen this before, I strongly recommend that you skip the segment which precedes this match as it gives away what happens; this happens often during this DVD but in this particular case, it's a bit of a bummer.

We then get a forgotten bout between Angle and Triple H from Royal Rumble 2001. It's good, but the heel vs. heel dynamic hurts it, and it's arguable that the two never had a truly great match against one another (might that change at this year's SummerSlam?). It's a shame that Angle vs. Rock from No Way Out 2001 isn't here, but the first disc does end with a bang via the brutal and bloody Kurt vs. Shane McMahon Street Fight from KOTR 2001.

Disc two opens by looking back at Angle's infamous feud with Stone Cold Steve Austin, which would include cowboy hats and bloodbaths. It's debatable as to whether their WWF Championship clash from Unforgiven 2001 was their best, but the action and story-telling are of a very high standard, and given its outcome, and the location (Angle's hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), it had to be included.

The next few matches capture Angle in his red-hot 2002 form: a Backlash scrap with Edge is brilliant, and a vital step in Edge's ascension up the ranks. Their subsequent Steel Cage battle on SmackDown is another topnotch battle, which ends a crucial rivalry in Edge's career. Angle vs. Hulk Hogan from King Of The Ring is less spectacular but just as entertaining, and an important result for Angle to boot (plus Kurt's hilarious pre-match promo is included too).

We also see John Cena's televised debut days later against Angle, which admittedly feels more like a way to promote Cena than Angle. Next is a truly classic three-way between Angle, Rock and Undertaker from Vengeance 2002, which is my favourite Triple Threat match in WWF/WWE history. The action picks up a rapid pace again via an outstanding SummerSlam showdown with recent debutant Rey Mysterio, who Angle had previously lost to in a six-man tag match (hence the immortal phrase "I just got beat by a freakin' 12-year-old!"). Around this time, Angle entered into a rivalry with Chris Benoit which produced several incredible matches, but it should require no explanation as to why none of those are here.

However, some may be disappointed that there is only one match here involving Brock Lesnar, with their WrestleMania XIX bout only shown in the form of quick clips, and their famous Iron Man match not acknowledged at all. Still, WWE has a tendency to focus on the subject's win-loss record rather than history whenever possible on these DVDs, which is why only their SummerSlam 2003 match is included, and it's still one hell of an effort by both men regardless.

Disc three kicks off by revisiting Angle's history with John Cena. By the time of No Mercy 2003, Cena had shot up the card via his rapping persona, spitting rhymes and insults which would not even be suggested in today's WWE. So it's nice to remember a time when there were fewer rules on risqué material, plus the Angle-Cena match from said show is arguably Cena's best prior to him becoming a main eventer. Moving onto 2004, Angle subtly implies at occasional troubles with Eddie Guerrero (the two had a backstage fight that year), but mostly complements him for his ability and charisma. Their underrated SummerSlam battle is a good one, though a step down from others on this release, whilst a tag match pitting Angle and Luther Reigns against Eddie and Rey Mysterio from the 2004 Troops special is mostly here to emphasise Kurt's admiration for the American forces fighting in Iraq.

Next up is one of my favourite matches of all-time, Angle vs. Shawn Michaels from WrestleMania 21, which is the embodiment of the word "classic". Though it isn't as fondly remembered, their 30-minute Iron Man match from Raw Homecoming is also well worth watching, and a reminder as to how both Angle and Michaels were somewhat taken for granted back in 2005. Shawn pops up in the penultimate match, another great three-way with Angle and John Cena (who by this point was starting to hear the boos and "Cena Sucks!" chants on a worryingly regular basis for a top babyface) from Taboo Tuesday 2005. The final match is a hidden gem from ECW circa 2006 pitting Angle against Rob Van Dam; it's pretty good, but I think Angle's unbelievable bout with The Undertaker from No Way Out 2006 would have ended this collection with more of a bang. We do, however, get footage of Angle returning to WWE earlier this year to end things on a high note.

Though some key matches are missing, this is still a fabulous collection of matches which lives up to the hype. Mixed with Angle's insightful if occasionally questionable comments, this becomes a great reflection on Angle's WWF/WWE tenure, and one of the best all-round wrestling DVDs that you are likely to see. Even without a couple of notable bouts (which admittedly prevent this reaching the level of perfection), this is a must-own for new and old fans alike. Oh it's true, it's damn true!

Overall Rating: 9.5/10 - Classic

DVD Preview: Kurt Angle - The Essential Collection

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Fetch Publicity

The following story is courtesy of Fetch Publicity ...

It’s true! It’s true! Kurt Angle has had some of the most epic matches in WWE history. Now for the first time ever, you can watch them all with Kurt Angle: The Essential Collection! Relive all of his rivalries with Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, John Cena, Edge, Shawn Michaels, Triple H and more in this complete collection.

Synopsis:

Match Highlights:

WWF No Way Out 2000 – February 27 2000
Intercontinental Championship Match
Chris Jericho (Champion) vs. Kurt Angle

WWF King of the Ring 2001 – June 24 2001
Street Fight
Kurt Angle vs. Shane McMahon

WWF Unforgiven 2001 – September 23 2001
WWF Championship Match
Stone Cold Steve Austin (Champion) vs. Kurt Angle

WWE King Of The Ring 2002 – June 23 2002
Kurt Angle vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan

WWE Vengeance 2002 – July 21 2002
WWE Championship Triple Threat Match
The Undertaker (Champion) vs. Kurt Angle vs. The Rock

WWE SummerSlam 2003 – August 24 2003
WWE Championship Match
Kurt Angle (Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar

WWE No Mercy 2003 – October 19 2003
Kurt Angle vs. John Cena

WWE Raw Homecoming – October 3 2005
30-Minute Iron Man Match
Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels

We like it because:

It’s incredible to have Kurt Angle back as a part of the WWE Universe – and this epic collection is proof of just how incredible a Superstar he truly is!

The set features non-stop action, with matches against all the top Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression era stars. Most exciting for longtime WWE fans are the inclusion of “lesser-seen” matches – such as his SummerSlam battle with Brock Lesnar or Iron Man Match from Raw against Shawn Michaels – which are often overlooked next to more high-profile WrestleMania bouts but no less stunning entries into these classic Kurt rivalries!

It’s also fascinating to hear Kurt’s personal take on his career. Kurt sits down for tell-all interviews between each match, revealing all the backstage stories, who his favourite opponents were, and what happened on his journey from Olympic gold medalist to WWE Champion and beyond!

Don’t miss out on the only DVD collection that has the three I's: intelligence, Integrity and Intensity! Oh, it’s true!

Kurt Angle - The Essential Collection will officially be released on DVD and Blu-ray on Monday July 31 2017.

For more information, click here.

WWE Best Pay-Per-View Matches 2009/2010

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 356 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 3
Studio: Clear Vision Ltd/Silver Vision
Released: August 16 2010

Considering the importance of major supershows to the WWF/WWE, it's surprising that it took so long for them to begin a regular DVD series focusing on the top PPV battles of a given period. Nevertheless, the first such collection covered the 2009/2010 season, which means Backlash 2009 to WrestleMania XXVI in this case. Future editions of the series would take a more logical route of simply covering the year from January onwards. This meant that some events would be strangely ignored - but we'll cover that in a future review.

Anyway, on this DVD, we kick off with an outstanding Last Man Standing (that sounded weird) clash between John Cena and Edge from Backlash, which was their final major showdown against one another. After that, we go to that card's opening match, a fun Jack Swagger-Christian battle for the ECW Title. Then, we have a Judgment Day main event between Edge and Jeff Hardy which is far better than people give this credit for, and this being so different to the Cena LMS bout, yet with both still being of a high quality, illustrates just how damn good Edge really was. (By the way, many of the matches included here have their corresponding video promo packages shown beforehand, which is a nice touch.)

Extreme Rules is strangely omitted from this collection, but the next match is still a treat: Chris Jericho vs. Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship from The Bash is a genuine classic, and has plenty of innovative spots and a clever finish, considering the Mask vs. Title stipulation. Closing disc one is a Six-Pack Challenge from Night Of Champions, where Kofi Kingston and company put on a pretty good effort in the face of what amounted to neglect from the WWE creative team on the Raw side at that time.

Disc two only has four matches, but they're all worth watching. We stay with Night Of Champions for an entertaining Triple Threat clash between Randy Orton, John Cena and Triple H in a rematch from WrestleMania XXIV. That it was held when all combinations of this trio had been overdone to death impacted the good work that went into matches like these (and Orton vs. Cena was only just resuming, as we'll see shortly). SummerSlam gives us two fantastic matches: Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler is as good a PPV opener as you'll ever see, and the first sign of Ziggler's true potential, whilst Jeff Hardy vs. CM Punk under TLC rules is a great main event featuring another insane Swanton Bomb by Hardy. (Unfortunately, the post-match surprise return of The Undertaker isn't included, which is a shame.) Then, co-host Michael Cole talks absolute b-ll-cks when he suggests that the far too long-winded and largely uneventful Orton vs. Cena feud of 2009 was one of the greatest rivalries of all-time, although their I Quit match included here from Breaking Point is very compelling and was the highlight of their lengthy saga from this particular year.

Disc three begins with DX vs. Legacy inside Hell In A Cell from the event of the same name. Although it's a dramatic affair and tells a logical story, one can't help but feel that all of the good work done by Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase is undone within moments by Triple H and his attempts to prove his superiority (certainly not the first time he has committed such an act). Next up, we have the 14-man clash from Bragging Rights which is okay but nothing more; admittedly, the audience looks stunned by Big Show's betrayal near the end which meant that the match did leave an impact (although it shouldn't have been that big of a surprise; it's the flip-flopping Big Show that we're talking about, after all).

The opening 10-man encounter from Survivor Series 2009 (Team Miz vs. Team Morrison) is an enjoyable showcase of younger talent at a time when such a thing was a rarity in WWE, but it's not exactly the best Survivor Series match ever; it's arguably most memorable for Sheamus accidentally kneeing referee Scott Armstrong in the back of the head, causing Armstrong to be concussed and sit out the remainder of the match (to their credit, the official switch was handled so effectively that few will have noticed, besides WWE replaying the moment of painful contact). Christian vs. Shelton Benjamin for the ECW Title in a Ladder match from TLC is an underrated gem, despite some occasional botches. Some observations on this match: the entire front row of the hard cam-side of the ring appeared to be empty (this was the opening match of that PPV, to be fair), and someone hilariously shouted to the then-bleach blond Benjamin "Your hair looks like you've been stung by a bee!"

The running time must have been a concern for the producers at this point, because as we enter 2010, the only contribution from Royal Rumble is a very short Michelle McCool-Mickie James match, and Elimination Chamber isn't covered at all. So we jump ahead to the final match on the DVD, but it's a belter: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels, the main event of WrestleMania XXVI, Streak vs. Career. Having attended this one live, I can tell you that this was awesome; as a matter of fact, it's one of the greatest matches in WWE history. To follow their outstanding WrestleMania 25 effort with something equally as awesome, and even more dramatic and important (Michaels would never wrestle again, as per the retirement stipulation), makes this a monumental encounter which hasn't been topped in WWE since, and a fitting way to end this collection. Also included are some comments, mostly in-character, about certain matches, and a few extra bouts are thrown in on the Blu-ray.

Some additional notes: the box art seems very generic, as do the menus; they feel as if they were knocked up by somebody on Paint. Surprisingly, John Cena isn't highlighted at all on the cover, unless you count his arm dragging Randy Orton (look at the picture and this will make sense). And whilst the links by hosts Michael Cole and Matt Striker are kept short, they're still a bit annoying, especially the awful dialogue by Cole to try and segue from a Striker practical joke to the comedy provided by DX. Finally, Batista doesn't appear on the main DVD at all (he is included on the Blu-ray), which is weird; sure, he left WWE shortly after this DVD was released, but Jeff Hardy had departed for TNA by this point and he is featured fairly prominently.

Those gripes aside, I felt that this was a really good compilation. If you own all of these events on DVD already, then this will be an unnecessary purchase, but even if you do, it's nice to have most of the season's top matches in one straightforward collection. There are some matches that you could argue deserve to be here, and likewise there are some questionable inclusions. But given the criteria to include a wide range of performers and match types, then this is as good a set as you could expect. And with plenty of memorable matches, not to mention that the DVD ends with a bang, this is a great advertisement for the WWE product from 2009/2010.

Overall Rating: 8.5/10 - Excellent

John Morrison: Rock Star

Image Source: Amazon

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 168 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 1
Studio: Clear Vision Ltd/Silver Vision
Released: May 10 2010

With three-disc sets being the norm nowadays, even for compilations undeserving of the extended treatment, it was good to see a change in the formula for this single-disc release on John Morrison, at a time when he was one of WWE's top rising stars. This DVD brings together eight Morrison matches, along with comments from Morrison about his career and about his passions outside of the ring, such as parkour (which would later be used as part of his character) and surfing. The DVD tries to show Morrison's sense of humour in segments on The Dirt Sheet and answering fan questions, although the clips from the Dirt Sheet (which he sued to host on WWE.com with The Miz) are mostly embarrassingly unfunny, and the humorous answers only provide mild chuckles.

The real purpose of this is to demonstrate Morrison's wrestling ability. We aren't really enlightened into his career prior to becoming John Morrison (he co-won Tough Enough in 2003, trained in OVW after that for around a year, had a short-lived run as Eric Bischoff's assistant Johnny Nitro on Raw before returning to OVW, came back to the main roster alongside Joey Mercury and then-girlfriend Melina as part of the dynamic MNM act in 2005, had a decent solo run from 2006-7 and after becoming ECW Champion at Vengeance 2007, as a replacement for Chris Benoit on that fateful weekend, he shortly renamed himself John Morrison in a segment on ECW which is included as a DVD extra), so the first bout comes from Morrison's ECW Title reign; or, more accurately, the end of this run. His title-losing effort to CM Punk is a tremendous match, though, and probably the best ever match on WWE's ECW show. Given that he originally became champion due to Benoit's absence, which led to a raid of Benoit's doctor Phil Astin's surgery and the enquiry into what would become the Signature Pharmacy scandal, it is slightly ironic that Morrison was amongst those caught up in the scandal, meaning that this title loss was necessitated by his resultant suspension (and Punk, the noted straight-edge wrestler, was the man who beat him).

On a lighter note, Morrison rebounded by overachieving with his team alongside Miz, which went so well that it prepared Miz for an unimaginably successful solo run. The match from their double tag title-winning run comes in a non-title clash with D-Generation X leaders Shawn Michaels and Triple H from the Raw episode that celebrated 800 episodes (note that this wasn't the 800th episode; it's too long to explain). Right after the 2009 Draft split up Morrison and Miz, Johnny boy had his final ECW bout with Evan "Air" Bourne, which is the next clash featured here, and is an underrated gem of a match, and a sign that Bourne should be amongst the names that WWE could have looked to rehire ahead of this year's Brand Extension (come to think of it, WWE should rehire Morrison too, if they are legally able to do so given his Lucha Underground status).

After that, the focus for the remainder of the DVD switches to Morrison's SmackDown tenure. From May 2009 onwards for a good few months, SmackDown was a fantastic wrestling show; each week, it had one or two great wrestling matches, generally consisting of two or more from Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy, Edge, Chris Jericho, CM Punk and Morrison himself. The final five matches of this eight-bout DVD see the former Johnny Nitro take on each of the aforementioned names, with mixed results when it comes to wins and losses, but with each one of them being a strong wrestling encounter.

Morrison vs. Chris Jericho from Superstars is very good, and note how Y2J makes sure to remain the heel and cheats to win, which is picked up by announcers Jim Ross and Todd Grisham (the latter is an area where WWE does not succeed today). The episode of SmackDown which aired the next night featured the following match on the DVD, Morrison vs. Edge, which is superb; if not for another encounter later in the DVD, it would have been the best WWE television match of 2009. Edge makes Morrison look great, and even though the veteran comes out on top, the match greatly enhanced the younger Morrison.

Next up, Morrison scores an unlikely win over then-World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk (who was in the middle of a slow-burn heel turn) in a match which is exciting, but is inferior to Morrison vs. Edge. Morrison vs. Jeff Hardy five weeks later for the title is excellent; it's hard to envision a better situation when you have a rising star losing his big World Title opportunity, because it didn't harm Morrison one bit. (Although it has no relevance to Morrison, it's a minor disappointment that the post-match capers, where Punk completed his heel turn on Jeff, aren't included here.) The DVD ends with a bang; a genuine classic between Morrison and Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Title. Morrison's biggest triumph in WWE is a flawless battle, the best of many great SmackDown bouts in 2009, and had this not been the year when The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels ascended to new heights at WrestleMania 25, this would have been the undisputed Match Of The Year. (As an aside, this result was instigated by Mysterio violating the Wellness Policy, making it the third title change scenario involving Morrison that was caused by a suspension or an absence of some kind.)

Watching this, I tried to work out why SmackDown in 2009 felt better than Raw does today, even though both boasted or currently boast great matches every week (and Raw had the full roster prior to the latest Draft). Besides the superior creative for SmackDown seven years ago, and two top bouts in two hours being better than one or two great matches over the course of three hours, the main thing I noticed here was the selling. Matches start fast-paced but slow down as the competitors have taken a visual beating, and the wear and tear is evident in the final few minutes of each match. Wrestlers looked strong, even in defeat, and results had an impact on future developments. Selling is the key, whereas today Dean Ambrose or Seth Rollins will have a great 20-25 minute match but won't look any worse for the wear at the end, meaning that the matches have less of an impact. If wrestlers today did a better job of selling, the product would seem a lot better. And matches today have that 50/50 feel to them, rather than being a case of who is the best on the night wins, and goes on to achieve bigger things.

Returning to the DVD subject: this is a fantastic look at part of Morrison's career, especially the 2009 bouts. There isn't one weak match on the DVD, and besides the good-but-not-great tag bout, they are all either very good, excellent or, in the case of Morrison-Mysterio, classic. It's hard to believe from watching this that Morrison ultimately did not end up capturing either the WWE or World Heavyweight Titles. Certainly, a 2010 push for the gold seemed assured, and Morrison becoming champion of the SmackDown brand would have been greatly welcomed by fans. Somehow, it didn't happen, and so Morrison's fans are left hoping for a day when he might return to WWE, having left in late 2011, and become World Champion then. Otherwise, fans of the current Johnny Mundo can still enjoy his work on Lucha Underground.

Nevertheless, considering that the single-disc nature of this DVD makes this seem less important than most DVDs released around the same time, and despite the disappointing absence of any pre-Morrison content, this is an excellent wrestling DVD that provides a nice look back at a great time for wrestling action on SmackDown, and a look at someone who seemed destined to achieve great things. Who knows whether he will in future?

Overall Rating: 8.5/10 - Excellent

SmackDown's Most Memorable Matches

Image Source: Hyper-Pars

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Running Time: 86 Minutes
Certificate: 15
Number Of Discs: 1
Studio: Clear Vision Ltd/Silver Vision
Released: April 3 2007

Initially designed to be the first of a lengthy series of budget-priced DVDs relating to WWE's two top brands (it was scrapped after four, which is fairly lengthy I suppose), SmackDown's Most Memorable Matches provides six bouts which stand out as being noteworthy. In some cases, it's debatable as to whether this is applicable, but all six provide entertainment in their own way.

Kicking things off is Hulk Hogan and Edge facing Billy & Chuck for the WWE Tag Team Titles in a July 2002 bout that WWE has often released under the proviso of it being massively memorable, but it actually isn't (the huge crowd reaction to Hogan is noticeable, though). Better is Rey Mysterio's WWE debut three weeks later against Chavo Guerrero in the first of many great WWE matches for Rey Rey.

One week later, a tag team match that isn't really memorable but is still engaging to watch pits The Rock and Edge against new SD signings Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, which sees a finish that fans of today's WWE would consider greatly damaging to a top babyface (that it did no harm to Rock in 2002 is worth pointing out). We then jump ahead to June 2003 and to a genuinely memorable bout between Brock Lesnar and Big Show (hint: the ring plays a role in the finish).

We then leap to January 2005 and a really good Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero bout which not only combines great wrestling with some clever comedy, but acts as the beginning of the long-running Rey vs. Eddie feud of that year. The DVD ends in October 2005 with Chris Benoit defending the United States Title against Booker T, in a hard-hitting match that sees Benoit take an extremely painful-looking bump into the side of an announcer's table off a missed tope.

This isn't a true representation of the most memorable or even the best SmackDown matches of its first few years (the absence of TLC III being a classic example), but with some thrilling matches and a few surprising moments, this budget DVD is more than adequate. If you enjoyed WWE's product in the mid-2000s, this is a good DVD for you to own.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10 - Good