WWE All Star Search #6: 17th March 1985 (ft. The War to Settle the Score) - Adam Ross

Welcome Turnbucklers! Its edition #6 and we are back in MSG for another house show on our road to the very first Wrestlemania. Not going to lie, finding shows between October 1984 and March 1985 was hard, very hard. So to make up for it, I'm adding two HUGE events into this edition. First I'm going to look at an IC Title match, followed by a key match in the Rock 'n' Wrestling era which is the WWE Title match from the War to Settle the Score. Then it's onto the last big show before Wrestlemania 1 and we have a massive list of new faces in this one so let's see how they make their first impressions on the All Star Search. Finally, the main event is a Lumberjack Match so let's hope that turns out to be fun. Would like to add a big thank you and hello to any new readers out there, last edition broke my viewing records by x5 which is overwhelming and very humbling! Shall we begin...?

The Card:

Tito Santana (IC Champ) vs Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine [IC Title Match]

Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Rowdy Roddy Piper [WWE Title Match]

Rocky Johnson vs Charlie Fulton

Barry O vs Rene Goulet

Jim Neidhart vs SD Jones

King Kong Bundy vs Jose Luis Rivera

David Sammartino vs Matt Borne

Andre The Giant/Jimmy Snuka/Junkyard Dog vs Ken Patera/Jesse Ventura/Big John Studd

Ricky Steamboat vs Terry Gibbs

Greg Valentine (IC Champ) vs Tito Santana [IC Title Match - Lumberjack Match]

The Show:

Let's begin with an IC Title match from September 1984 between the champ, Tito Santana and Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine. They've had a run of good matches each in this series so far with Hammer made to look strong in his contendership. They had a decent match a few months earlier but it was overshadowed by the whole Jimmy Snuka stretcher job going on at the time.

Tito Santana (IC Champ) vs Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine [IC Title Match]

Its September 1984 here and Tito is your defending IC champion. They've had previous interactions and this feud has been simmering nicely. Albano is with Hammer in this one and both are getting solid heat. Tito is nursing a poor leg in this one and Valentine uses it to his advantage in his normal methodical way. Crowd is solidly behind Santana in this one with many a chant. Valentine works over the injured leg but Santana escapes and manages to hit his Flying Burrito for a close two count. He continues on the offense and gets another close two. He thinks he's won though and while his back is turned, Hammer nails him with a knee to the back...and that gets the 3 and we have a new IC Champion! Crowd chant bullshit and everyone seemed slightly confused about the finish. Santana did a great sympathy job and Valentine looked crisp as always. Match Rating: **1/4

Hulk Hogan (WWE Champ) vs Rowdy Roddy Piper [WWE Title Match]

Talk about a money match! This was hyped up beyond another level at this point in time. Hogan being Hogan was riding high as champion but oh boy, Piper was generating unparalleled heat! This was shown live on MTV much like the Brawl to End it All and again, drew HUGE numbers. Piper comes out to major heat accompanyed by his bagpipe players and Cowboy Bob Orton (with a cast on his arm). Piper to generate some extra heat...destroys a nice looking guitar! In the words of a friend...SOME GUY! is our special ring announcer...but being from anywhere that isn't America...no clue who he is. Eye of the Tiger hits to a monstrous pop...as per! You can't even dream of comparing Cena to Hogan watching this. Cyndi Lauper, her fella and Captain Lou Albano are accompanying Hogan. By the way, Albano is a face now after realising the errors of his ways. Crowd is hot as they start off like a house of fire trading shots. We hear Mr T is in the crowd as Hogan takes control in the early going with slams. The crowd is unglued. Piper does take control eventually with boots and gets solid heat. Sleeper by Piper and Hulk...Hulks up...but doesn't get too far with it. Piper with more offense than I was expecting at this point. Orton tries to get involved and fails so Hogan regains control. Mr Wonderful Paul Orndorff comes out to support Piper from the outside and the ref gets bumped. Orndorff gets involved and he and Piper double team Hogan. Lauper gets on the apron to do some mouthing off and the heels get sucked in but hold on...crowd pops HUGE...and Mr T of all people gets involved to even the odds. Mr T however ends up getting double teamed until Hogan is up and bails him out. The match itself is thrown out as a no contest. Well, well, well, that was certainly a fun little match. If Piper got the belt here in time for Wrestlemania...the reaction would have been catatonic. The heat for everyone involved was smoldering. Of course, this puts us firmly on the road to Wrestlemania 1! Exciting! Match Rating: **1/2

Onto the MSG House Show now and our commentary team are Gorilla Monsoon and Mean Gene Okerlund once again. At this point its worth me mentioning that their commentary dynamic is a little off. Both play very similar roles and are obviously both face. More balance is definitely needed soon.

Rocky Johnson vs Charlie Fulton

What a way to start us off! Boring, slow paced match with literally nothing to mention. Punches and stalling head scissors is the peak of this one in fact. The crowd were somewhat dead during this one. At one point, Rocky is referred to as 'Rock' which is a fun little precursor. Johnson gets the win with a sunset flip. Match Rating: DUD

Barry O vs Rene Goulet

Into the next match now and we have a first debut of this edition. Barry O is Cowboy Bob's brother and Randy Orton's uncle. Rene Goulet is my 1984 foreign heel of the year...a trophy is on his way to him. 'Who knows what that O could mean' - Gorilla Monsoon. The match itself is as dull as dull can be. The commentary team spend the majority of the match discussing Wrestlemania and its tag team main event. Nice powerslam by Barry for 2. It picks up slightly towards the end of the match and a small package gets the win for Barry O. Dull, simple as. Barry O looked as vanilla as a discount Vienetta. Match Rating: 1/4*

Jim Neidhart vs SD Jones

Its blog debut number 2 and it's Jim 'soon to be Anvil' Neidhart! His appearance instantly makes him stand out from most of the roster in a positive way. His opponent is SD Jones who is slowly becoming more and more of a jobber as months drift by. Neidhart is with Jimmy Hart who I think is also making his blog debut. Fun early goings with both men trading offense. Neidhart shows off the personality we'll become accustomed too over time with his overexaggerations. He does show off his size and power though which is a good thing. They do the scoop slam/reversed into an armbar spot which I've seen numerous times since starting these reviews but I haven't seen it before. SD Jones uses the hard-head gimmick but its all in vain as Neidhart eventually gets the easy win with a crisp Powerslam. Good debut from Neidhart, I found it hard not to be entertained by him. Match Rating: 3/4*

King Kong Bundy vs Jose Luis Rivera

Blog debut number 3 - King Kong Bundy! We're going to be seeing a lot of him over the next year. Jimmy Hart is back out with Bundy. Rivera, much like SD Jones is slipping further into jobber territory. In comparison to everyone but Andre and Big John Studd, Bundy is just ridiculously big. He puts his size to good use, easily overpowering Rivera on a number of occasions. The crowd are quiet but seemingly because their in awe of Bundy. Rivera gets 2 dropkicks in but Bundy is barely phased. Bundy gets the win not long after with a massive elbow drop. Utter squash match but Bundy looked impressive as a beast, if not just for his look. Match Rating: 1/2*

Into the back with Hulk Hogan and Mr T. Hogan says Mr T is the best partner he could've found for Wrestlemania. Mr T says he specialises in work, torture and pain...his words, not mine. Bottom line 'they dead meat!' says T and Hogan says he apologizes for whats the come.

Well, well, well, we're getting a live Piper's Pit! Out comes Piper with 'Cowboy' Bob Orton alongside him to major heat. The microphone is annoying dodgy. Piper says that he's out there talking because no one wanted to fight him. He rips on New York as a heel would...but slightly funnier. He trolls the crowd something fierce by hyping up his next guest making it sound like Mr T...but it's Mr Wonderful Paul Orndorff. Big boo's for that one. Orndorff tries talking but just makes sound...I think I heard him say 'outhouse'. Piper tells Mr T to stop snorting Cocaine and come join him in the ring. Which he promptly does to big cheers and he's brought Hogan and Jimmy Snuka with him. Snuka hasn't been mentioned since he was stretchered out months ago which is nice. Piper tells T to sit down and of course, rips into him while still trying to play it friendly and cool. It doesn't last long and tensions soon rise but the crowd eat it up. Piper runs down T's life acheivements and tells him he's giving T the chance to back out the fight to save face and there will be no shame! T fires back and says he ain't quitting. Piper brings out a painting of Mr T with his arm in a sling but T ain't scared! Things start getting physical but no brawl. Heels bail out the ring leaving the faces to soak up mild cheers. Mr T says Piper gonna pay! He promises! Good promo and I am actually hyped for Mania 1! Piper was gold here and Mr T was great in his role too.

David Sammartino vs Matt Borne

Blog debuts number 4 and 5! David Sammartino is the vanilla looking son of Bruno and Matt Borne is the son of 'Tough' Tony Borne...but you'll know him better as Doink the Clown. Borne looks like Charlie Fulton and here's me thinking I'd never get Charlie Fulton in a reference. Slaps and shoves to start before we get into some back and forth. Sammartino shows of some decent greco roman skills and Borne nails a lovely belly to belly suplex. Borne showing good aggression that we'll see later down the road. Of course it breaks down into restholds and strikes before Borne eats a big back body drop. More restholds before Sammartino gets a suplex and takes control. Sammartino goes up top but Borne slams him down for a slow 2 count. He goes for a powerslam but Sammartino rolls through for the 3 count! Sammartino looked...vanilla and Borne looked decent but too many restholds. Match Rating: 1/2*

Andre The Giant/Jimmy Snuka/Junkyard Dog vs Ken Patera/Jesse Ventura/Big John Studd

We have blog debut number 6 in this one and you better grab dem cakes as it's the Junkyard Dog! Lots of big names in this one. Andre and Studd are developing a feud that will lead towards Wrestlemania. Jimmy Snuka makes his first blog appearance since turning one of my previous editions into an episode of Casualty. Jesse Ventura is back from his bloodclot late last year and Patera is enjoying a decent push since his return. Bobby Heenan is with the heels in this one and Cpt Lou Albano is with the faces. Andre wastes no time getting to Studd but Studd bails to the floor. Faces control the early stages with JYD hitting his unique strikes and headbutts and Andre nailing a double noggin knocker on the heels. Everyone brawls with both sides getting a brief advantage. Eventually Snuka comes in and finds himself as face in peril as each of the heels take turns working him over. Eventually Snuka gets the tag to Andre who comes in and nails Studd with strikes. Ventura gets tagged in but realises he's out of his depth. A big boot and a superfly splash get the win for Snuka and his team! I really enjoyed that one, good flow, good balance and everyone played their role well. JYD is already proving popular in the WWE and his brief in ring appearances in this were harmless. Andre and Studd continued their feud towards Wrestlemania and showed good heat between the two. Snuka played a good face in peril, which makes sense as he has the least reason to be protected. Jesse found himself with little to do but that's a good thing considering his recent health issues. Match Rating: **3/4

Ricky Steamboat vs Terry Gibbs

Another debut here as we have Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat making his first blog appearance. He's another performer who was on the 1983 Starrcade card and I think, also the 1984 card too. Terry Gibbs...is also here. Lots of back and forth with Gibbs getting a decent amount of offense in. Steamboat looked as crisp as ever hitting his usual arsenal of moves. He makes Gibbs look great when Gibbs is on the offense. Steamboat shows off his array of chops and strikes. With a couple of poses thrown in for good measure. Steamboat gets the win with a flying cross body! Nothing special, just a way to get Steamboat some ring time. Match Rating: *

Greg Valentine (IC Champ) vs Tito Santana [IC Title Match - Lumberjack Match]

It's the main event! As mentioned earlier, Valentine is now the IC Champ and is now with Jimmy Hart at his side and Tito wants his belt back! This is Lumberjack rules so we have an array of superstars around the ring. Big pop for Tito which is always a good sign. Hammer pearl harbours him to start put to no avail as Hammer quickly ends up outside. The heels seem to protect him but ultimate babyface Ricky Steamboat, calm as you like, walks over and throws him back in. Santana keeps control for a few minutes while Hammer sells like gold but the tide shifts with an atomic drop for Hammer. Santana regains control, Hammer tries to escape but the faces throw him back into the ring. Hammer selling so much like Flair its silly....that includes flops and all. Someone randomly rings the ringbell but its ignored so I have no idea what that was about. Hammer in control now and works over the legs of Tito...good psycology working his way to the figure four and what's even better, Tito sells it! Tito thrown outside and then thrown back in like he's just a corpse. He's thrown back outside to the faces who...protect him...no! That's not your job lads. Hammer goes for the figure four but its countered into a cradle for 2. Tito fights back and Hammer Flair flops again. Suplex by Santana and he goes for his own Figure Four. Hart distracts the ref while the heels help out Hammer. Tito distracts himself with the outside heels but gets pearl harboured by Hammer. They hit a shoulderblock on each other, Hammer falls on top of Santana and that gets the 3! Hammer is completely KO'd too though. Really enjoyed that one and the Lumberjack was a nice tweak to the usual formula between these two. Santana is by far the best at gaining sympathy from the crowd and Valentine is WWE's very own Flair (just not as good). Match Rating: ***

Wrestler Scores:

(I'm taking into consideration the two extra matches reviewed and the live Piper's Pit. Mr T gets a rating therefore as he played a crucial role in a main segment in the show.)

• Tito Santana +12 (29)
• Greg Valentine +13 (26)
• Hulk Hogan +7 (25)
• Roddy Piper +14 (21)
• Rocky Johnson +2 (6)
• Charlie Fulton +1 (4)
• Barry O +2 (2)
• Rene Goulet +2 (7)
• Jim Neidhart +4 (4)
• SD Jones +2 (4)
• King Kong Bundy +4 (4)
• Jose Luis Rivera +1 (4)
• Mr T +4 (4)
• David Sammartino +3 (3)
• Matt Borne +3 (3)
• Jesse Ventura +5 (7)
• Ken Patera +5 (10)
• Big John Studd +5 (8)
• Andre The Giant +5 (10)
• Jimmy Snuka +4 (14)
• Junkyard Dog +4 (4)
• Ricky Steamboat +3 (3)
• Terry Gibbs +3 (3) 

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @TheWreslinDork and I shall see you next time...for Wrestlemania 1!!

WWE Royal Rumble 2014 DVD Review

WWE Royal Rumble 2014 is out on DVD and Blu-Ray now, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk, priced £12.99 on DVD and £13.99 on Blu-Ray. Broadcast live on Pay-per-View from the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvannia, USA on 26th January 2014, the show is main evented by 2014 Royal Rumble Match, alongside Bray Wyatt taking on Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton defending the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against John Cena, as well as one other match and nine different segments. The special features include one more bout, as well as three extra segments. The commentary is provided by John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler.

After struggling to find form throughout the end of 2013, the first PPV of 2014 seemed to see an up turn in fortunes for WWE. Whilst many bemoaned the finish and result of the Royal Rumble main event, on a second viewing three months removed from the match, it is an enjoyable near hour of action with plenty to keep the viewers attention. To date this match is the final appearance of CM Punk on WWE television, and in line with much of his later work in 2013, it's an average one, with the highlight being a Neckbreaker/DDT combination delivered to Seth Rollins and Damien Sandow early on. Kofi Kingston continues his run of inventive ways to prevent elimination, with two impressive feats here, even if the first is slightly contrived. Roman Reigns and Antonio Cesaro are the stand outs in this bout, with Reigns continuing to be booked as a beast and Cesaro swinging everyone in sight around the ring. A showdown between The Shield and The Wyatt Family is cut short as the camera cuts to Ryback's entrance, which is a shame. We also see the seeds planted for the break-ups of both The Shield and Cody Rhodes & Goldust, as well as the beginning of a feud between CM Punk and Kane all of which have yet to come to fruition. The negative crowd reaction to Rey Mysterio's entry would seem to have been toned down in post-production, although a messy hurracanrana from Mysterio to Punk is still included. The crowd picks a favourite for the final two and unfortunately the other man wins, leading to more negative response for the crowd. Luckily, WWE managed to turn things around in the months heading into WrestleMania, as the booking here was certainly ill-advised, however the bout itself still offers a lot to enjoy.

Elsewhere, Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt put on an excellent bout that picked up ATPW's Match of the Month for January. There's plenty of hard-hitting action on display, with Bryan working Wyatt's leg after sending Wyatt clashing into the steps and Wyatt working Bryan's head following a concussion a few weeks prior. Whilst Wyatt's leg injury is forgotten latter on in the bout, a handful of lovely false finishes and Bryan's excellent selling lead to this one ending up a very very good opening contest and most certainly match of the night. 

 

The WWE World Heavyweight Championship contest see's Randy Orton defend against John Cena in a decent bout, with the crowd once again seemingly having their volume turned down as they attempt to show their displeasure. Whilst I agree with the crowd to some degree, they do miss out on a solid title match with plenty of false finishes. There isn't much we haven't seen before, bar a full nelson into a neckbreaker from Cena, but it's still an entertaining battle. 

The other match on the main feature, see's Brock Lesnar take on Big Show. The crowd really couldn't care for Big Show as a babyface at this point, so Lesnar's brutal attack of him doesn't quite pay off as well as it should. However this is probably the best this bout could have been booked in 2014. 

Throughout the show we also get a number of segments to build towards the matches, kicking off with Renee Young conducting an interview with Paul Heyman. Heyman's talk of Lesnar challenging the winner of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship is another story thread that was left hanging on the Road to WrestleMania, but as expected Heyman pulls off a top quality promo. Young also interviews Randy Orton, who has less success with his promo, really not helping to build any excitement to his match with John Cena. To round of the trifeca of interviews Young speaks to Billy Gunn and Road Dogg about winning the Tag Team titles on the Kick-Off show, in a mildy amusing segment, even if the New Age Outlaws continued to act like babyfaces. 

We also get two segments featuring the Kick Off Show panel of Josh Matthews, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair and "Mr. WrestleMania" Shawn Michaels, both of which are rather strange. The first discusses Bryan vs. Wyatt and Show vs. Lesnar with Michaels putting over Bryan strong despite having cost him the WWE Championship only three months prior. The second see's Duggan, Flair and Michaels pick their winners for the Royal Rumble, with Flair going completely crazy, when the crowd doesn't share his support for Batista. 

The Shield cut a fantastic build up promo for the Rumble, teasing tension between Ambrose and Reigns. A tribute to the recently passed Mae Young is beautifully moving, with a lovely voice over from Stephanie McMahon. There's also a package with a number of promos from entrants in the Royal Rumble, with Fandango putting in the best performance, whilst Batista's makes you wonder why WWE decided to push him as a babyface upon his return.

The Special Features presents the Kick-Off Match seeing Goldust and Cody Rhodes against Billy Gunn and Road Dogg in a bout which has it's moments, but could have done with an extra five minutes to really get going. A segment seeing Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox hand wrestlers their Royal Rumble numbers is a dull piece of backstage action with the only bit that made me laugh being the video cutting short before The Great Khali could draw his number. Randy Orton being interviewed by Renee Young after his match is too short for anything of note to occur, whilst Young catching up with Batista only serves to illustrates how blown up Batista is after being in the Royal Rumble for just twelve minutes. 

Overall, I enjoyed this PPV a lot more than I did at the time. Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt steal the show with their effort, whilst both the Royal Rumble match and John Cena vs. Randy Orton benefit from being watched three months removed from the actual event. The DVD extras aren't great, and whilst the tag team bout is entertaining, all three segments don't offer much new.

Content Listing

Segment 1: Intro Package

Match 1: Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt with Luke Harper & Erick Rowan

Segment 2: Renee Young interviews Paul Heyman

Segment 3: Kick-Off Panel talks Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt and Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Match 2: Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar with Paul Heyman

Segment 4: The Shield discuss The Royal Rumble Match

Segment 5: Renee Young interviews Randy Orton

Match 3: John Cena vs. Randy Orton (C) for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

Segment 6: Mae Young Tribute

Segment 7: Renee Young interviews Billy Gunn & Road Dogg

Segment 8: Royal Rumble Promos

Segment 9: Kick-Off Panel Select their Royal Rumble favourites

Match 4: CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins vs. Damien Sandow vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Kane vs. Alexander Rusev vs. Jack Swagger with Zeb Colter vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jimmy Uso vs. Goldust vs. United States Champion Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth vs. Kevin Nash vs. Roman Reigns vs. The Great Khali vs. Sheamus vs. The Miz vs. Fandango vs. El Torito with Los Matadores vs. Antonio Cesaro with Zeb Colter vs. Luke Harper vs. Jey Uso vs. JBL vs. Erick Rowan vs. Ryback vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Batista vs. Intercontinental Champion Big E Langston vs. Rey Mysterio in the 2014 Royal Rumble Match

DVD Extras

Match 5: Road Dogg & Billy Gunn vs. Goldust & Cody Rhodes © for the WWE Tag Team Championships.

Segment 10: WWE Superstars Draw Their Numbers for the Rumble

Segment 11: Randy Orton Coomments on The Wyatt Family controversy

Segment 12: An Exclusive Interview with Batista

WWE Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection DVD Review

I was hoping to get this done before WrestleMania unfortunately that wasn't possible and then with the passing of Warrior I was finding it difficult to sit and watch in large portions so it's taken a little bit longer than I had hoped but here is the review of WWE's Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection.

WWE's Ultimate Warrior: The Ultimate Collection is out now on DVD and Blu Ray, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk, currently priced at £19.99 for DVD and £22.99 for Blu Ray. The three disc set, chronicles the career of the Ultimate Warrior and features matches and segments from UWF, WCCW, WWF and WCW, alongside a special interview with Warrior introducing the segments as they appear. As you'd expect the set features The Ultimate Warrior taking on some of wrestling's greatest from between 1986 and 1996, including The Undertaker, Mr. Perfect, Bobby Heenan, Ted DiBiase and Randy Savage.

 

Content Listing

Disc 1 

Interview Part 1: Warrior's Back

Interview Part 2: Finding Wrestling

Match 1: Perry Jackson & Shawn O'Reilly vs. The Blade Runners – UWF, 11th April 1986

Interview Part 3: Move to WCW 

Match 2: The Dingo Warrior vs. World Heavyweight Champion “Gentleman” Chris Adams - WCCW. 8th August 1986

Interview Part 4: Arrival in WWE 

Match 3: Barry Horowitz vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF Wrestling Challenge. 7th November 1987

Match 4: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Steve Lombardi. WWF Superstars. 14^th November 1987

Interview Part 5: Getting Noticed 

Match 5: King Harley Race vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Boston, Ma. 5^th March 1988

Interview Part 6: Upgrading Warrior 

Match 6: Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Los Angeles, Ca. 15^th July 1988

Interview Part 7: Intercontinental Champion

Match 7: The Honky Tonk Man (C) with “Colonel” Jimmy Hart vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam, 29^th August 1988

Match 8: The Ultimate Warrior vs. The Honky Tonk Man with “Colonel” Jimmy Hart. WWF in Philadelphia, Pa. 17^th December, 1988

Interview Part 8: The Macho Man

Match 9: Randy “Macho Man” Savage © vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Undisputed Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF in Boston, Ma. 11^th February, 1989

Interview Part 9: Simply Ravishing

Match 10: “Ravising” Rick Rude © with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam. 28^th August 1989

Interview Part 10: Building Momentum

Match 11: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Bob Bradley. WWF Prime Time Wrestling. 18^th September, 1989

Match 12: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Brian Costello WWF Prime Time Wrestling 25^th December 1989

Segment 1: Ultimate Warrior confronts Andre on Brother Love Show, WWF Superstars. July 29, 1989.

Interview Part 11: Memories of Andre

Match 13: Andre the “Ultimate” Giant with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF at MSG. 28^th October 1989

Match 14: Andre the Giant with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the Intercontinental Championship. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 25^th November 1989

Disc 2

Interview Part 12: Leading to Toronto

Segment 2: Ultimate Warrior Promo "Crash the Plane". WWF Superstars, 10^th March 1990

Match 15: The Ultimate Warrior vs. Mr Perfect. WWF at MSG. 19^th March 1990

Interview Part 13: Running to the Ring

Match 16: Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF Wrestlemania VI. 1^st April 1990

Interview Part 14: Responsibilities as Champion.

Match 17: “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Tokyo, Japan. 13^th April 1990

Match 18: “Ravishing” Rick Rude with Bobby Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the WWF Championship. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 28^th July 1990

Match 19: “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase with Virgil vs. The Ultimate Warrior © for the WWF Championship. WWF The Main Event. 23^rd November, 1990.

Match 20: Sgt. Slaughter with General Adnan vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF in Huntsville, Alabama. 7^th January 2014.

Disc 3

Interview Part 15: New Direction

Match 21: “Macho King” Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior in a Steel Cage Match, WWF at MSG, 21^st January 1991

Segment 3: Ultimate Warrior ends Brother Love's career. WWF Superstars. 2^nd March 1991

Interview Part 16: No Limitations.

Match 22: Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania VIII

Interview Part 17: Into the Darkness

Segment 4: Ultimate Warrior on Paul Bearer's Funeral Parlour. WWF Superstars, 13^th April 1991

Match 23: The Undertaker with Paul Bearer vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF at Maple Leaf Garden. 2^nd June 1991

Interview Part 18: Returning

Segment 5: Gene Okerlund Interviews Ultimate Warrior and Randy Savage. WWF Superstars 25^th July 1992

Interview Part 19: Ultimate Maniacs

Segment 6: “Riding on the Edge of a Lighting Bolt". WWF Superstars, 14^th November, 1992.

Match 24: Money Inc. with Jimmy Hart vs. Ultimate Maniacs for the WWF Tag Team Champions. WWF Saturday Night's Main Event. 14^th November, 1992

Interview Part 20: Reestablish

Segment 7: “Faster Than A Cheetah”. WWF Raw. 11^th March 1996

Match 25: Hunter Hearst Helmsley with Sable vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania XII 31^st March 1996

Interview Part 21: Warrior Confronts Goldust

Segment 8: Ultimate Warrior returns. WWF Raw. 8^th April 1996

Segment 9: Vince McMahon interviews Jerry “The King” Lawler and Ultimate Warrior. WWF Raw. 10^th June 1996

Match 26: Jerry “The King” Lawler vs. Ultimate Warrior. WWF King of the Ring. 23^rd June 1996.

Interview Part 22: Going to WCW

Segment 10: Ultimate Warrior interrupts Hogan. WCW Nitro. 17^th August 1998

Interview Part 23: Repulsive

Segment 11: Ultimate Warrior promo. WCW Nitro. 26^th Otober 1998

Interview 24: The Right Story

Review 

I want to try and keep this review to how it would have been if I had posted it when I had originally intended, obviously in parts that is going to be difficult, as recent Warrior's untimely death no doubt changing the viewing experience of this three disc set. 

Disc One looks at Warrior's career between 1986 and 1989, chronicilling Warrior's time in UWF, WCCW and his early days in WWF. There's a total of 14 matches on the first disc, alongside 1 segment and the first 11 parts of the brand new interview conducted with Warrior. The interview sections lead nicely into the matches, giving a nice insight into both Warrior's personal and professional life, with talk of his early career being the most interesting as it's the least talked about, hearing Warrior talked about his training with Red Bastien and his teaming with Sting as The Bladerunners.  

 

The matches begin with The Bladerunners taking on Perry Jackson and Shawn O'Reilly, in a very quick squash, followed up by Dingo Warrior taking on Chris Adams in an awful match, it's clear that Warrior is very very green at this point. As Warrior becomes Ultimate in the WWF the squashes come thick and fast, with appearances on Wrestling Challenge and Superstars against Barry Horowitz and Steve Lombardi respectively, with both featuring invision promos, because why not? King Harley Race fairs a little better, bumping like a boss for Warrior in Boston, Massachusets, a Race not going for the cover off a Piledriver and bizarre finish let this bout down. A "Weasel Suit" match with Bobby Heenan is an entertaining contest, made even more so considering the age of the ATPW Hall of Famer, there is however a large amount of stalling throughout. It's then onto a pair of matches with The Honky Tonk Man with the Intercontinental Championship on the line, first the classic squash at SummerSlam 1988, before the pair engage in a longer contest in front of a half empty arena in Philadelphia, with Honky Tonk pulling out all the heel tactics in the book and the camera showing the fans any time there is a choke. A double title match with Randy Savage is the proto-type for a house show title match, the crowd absolutely loves it and that helps the match, which presents plenty of false finishes.

 The SummerSlam 1989 bout with Rick Rude is the highlight of the first disc, as the pair put on a classic over the Intercontinental Championship, with Warrior's comeback being superb. Seeing the crowd lose their shit over a diving double axe handle is also great. It's back to squash matches then with Warrior taking on Bob Bradley and Brian Costello in a pair of bouts from Prime Time Wrestling. A melo-dramatic confrontation with Andre the Giant on The Brother Love Show, is followed up by a pair of contest with Andre the "Ultimate" Giant. The first a very short bout from MSG, before a messy bout with a bizarre finish from Saturday Night's Main Event rounds off the disc.


Disc 2 houses just three interview parts, alongside six matches and one segment, with the interview focusing heavily on WrestleMania VI, leading the viewer through the build up and finishing with Warrior's review of the match. An interesting story about Warrior refusing to enter the arena on a cart, continues to build a picture of a man who truly loved his character and worked hard to create a mystique and excitement around it. It's intriguing that Warrior's interview is kept fairly positive throughout, with no discussion of Hulk Hogan's actions post to the match, or Hogan's comments regarding Warrior not being ready to have the torch passed to him. 

Kicking off the action, we get a crazy promo from Warrior off an episode of Superstars, aimed at Hulk Hogan. Just in case we weren't sure who he was talking about here, he finishes each sentence with "Hul Kogan". His intestity is comendable, but I have no idea what he was attempting to say. This is followed up by a disapointing clash with Mr. Perfect, a poorly booked affair judging Warrior's lack of selling ability, this bout also see's the longest camel clutch that I have ever seen. 

Making up for this match, the WrestleMania VI bout with Hulk Hogan is next, with all the build up, including a superb promo from Hogan, included. The characters work excellently together, with the pair managing to get pops off even the littlest things, the amount of rest holds does bring proceedings down slightly, but the finish is excellent. The crowd couldn't have loved this match more. A bout with Ted DiBiase in Japan is fascinating for the crowd reactions and isn't a bad match at all. A rematch with Rick Rude on Saturday Night's Main Event is another decent outing for the pair, but doesn't really live up to the SummerSlam bout. A second match against Ted DiBiase, this time from Main Event, trumps the first with Warrior pulling out a string of uncharecteristic moves such as a backslide and even a sunset flip. Warrior's come back is electric in this one. Unfortunately the disc can't keep up this strong run of matches, as a terrible bout with Sgt. Slaughter rounds of the set, although if you're into matches with lots of clotheslines and submission holds in the ropes for three minutes before anyone notices, this ones for you. 

Disc Three offers up the final ten parts of the interview, six matches and nine different segments. The interview covers a wide range of topics here including Warrior's feuds with Randy Savage and The Undertaker, as well as leaving and returning multiple times and his short tint in WCW. There is again a lot of postivity from Warrior throughout this disc, especially towards Randy Savage who it seems Warrior loved to pieces. The only time we see any real negativity from Warrior is based around his time in WCW, as he talks about WCW creative not capatilising on his debut, and says he hated just taking the money they gave him. In the closing part of the interview Warrior makes it seem as if we could have been getting a lot of Warrior related stuff in the near future, which was emotional to watch, an autobiography could have been fantastic. It would have been nice to hear more from Warrior on his relationship with Vince McMahon, unfortunately that isn't really touched upon here, as well as Warrior brushing over his use of steroids and no mention of the steroid scandal of the early 90's.

The matches start with decent cage match outing against Randy Savage from MSG, that is let down by a bizarre finish. Warrior attacking Sensational Sherri after the match is uncomfortable to watch. This disc is choc full of segments, kicking off with The Ultimate Warrior ending Brother Love's career by destroying his set on an episode of Superstars, as part of the build up to WrestleMania VII.

 That match follows as Warrior and Savage put on an absolute classic Mania bout, playing to both men's strengths, and with Savage putting over Warrior huge throughout. The finish might be disapointing, but the moment between Miss Elizabeth and Savage after the match is touching. Moving onto Warrior's fued with The Undertaker, an edition of the Funeral Parlour see's Paul Bearer on form on the stick, followed up by a clunky promo from Warrior. This is difficult to watch at the moment, whilst the commentary pulled me through it being unintentionally hilarious. Taker and Warrior then battle in Maple Leaf Gardens with the match getting cut short before it get's interesting. Quickly skimming over Warrior's first hiatus and return at WrestleMania VIII, it's onto Warrior's second feud with Savage, as the two cut electric promos on Superstars, building nicely to their SummerSlam 1992 bout, before being interuptted by Ric Flair and Mr. Perfect in a truly fantastic segment. Then we see the power of Warrior and Savage as The Ultimate Maniacs, as again the two cut excellent promos on another edition of Superstars, before taking Money Inc. in a passable tag team bout on Saturday Night's Main Event. Whilst the finish is dusty, it allows them to build to Warrior and Savage's bout with Ric Flair and Razor Ramon at Survivor Series 1992, that never actually happened, as Warrior once again decided to leave the company. We get the superb "Faster than a Cheetah" return vignette from Raw in 1996, followed up by the bizarre squash of Hunter Hearst Helmsley at WrestleMania XII, which is the true definition of a complete and utter burial.

 Vince McMahon interviewing Warrior and Goldust is noteworthy for Warrior flinging thinly veiled barbs at Vince and Goldust's awesome innuendos, a segment with Jerry Lawler is less entertaining. The final match of the set, see's Warrior squash Lawler at King of the Ring 1996, after Lawler spends his entrance directly insulting fans, in a promo laced with homophobia. 

To round off the disc we have two segments from Warrior's time in WCW, which really aren't great. Warrior's debut appearance on Nitro confronting Hulk Hogan has it's moments, but seems to go on foreeeevvvveeerrrrr, before him destroying Hogan, The Giant, Horace Hogan and Eric Bischoff after losing to Hogan on PPV makes little booking sense considering Warrior was leaving the company. But that's WCW for you. 

Overall, I found this set rather enjoyable, there are a number of very good matches with the likes of Rick Rude, Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage, that make sitting through dire bouts with Sgt. Slaughter and Andre the Giant bearable, whilst the squash matches highlight how the booking of the Ultimate Warrior worked so well. It is a shame however that the SummerSlam 1992 bout with Savage isn't included in it's entirety. The crowd throughout almost all of the matches is completely into everything Warrior does which really helps a lot of the bouts keep your attention. The majority of the promos and segments are awesome, especially the ones with Randy Savage, with the two characters insensity really bouncing nicely off each other. The interview is fairly basic, and whilst it does have it's moments, there isn't a lot of new information revealed, but it's very endearing to watch Warrior talk about his character because it's clear it meant an awful lot to him and he put an awful lot into creating it. I'd reccomend, you go and get this set, even if you have the WWE Network, as it's really well put together and the non-PPV's matches and segments might take a while to make it. Really a must-have set in my opinion. 

Top Three Matches From Ultimate Warrior: Ultimate Collection

1. Randy Savage with Sensational Sherri vs. The Ultimate Warrior. WWF WrestleMania VIII

2. Hulk Hogan vs. Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Championship and Intercontinental Championship. WWF Wrestlemania VI. 1^st April 1990

3.  “Ravising” Rick Rude © with Bobby “The Brain” Heenan vs. The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF Intercontinental Championship. WWF SummerSlam. 28^th August 1989