This Nature Boy's got more Chops than your butcher
Publisher: Shock
Mon, 21 May 2007
by: The Gimmick
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Long before factions like Degeneration-X, nWo, The Hart Foundation and even the great Los Boricuas were kicking ass and striving to be the best, there was a group of men who had been there already and done it all. A group of men who lived their gimmick (in a good way, not like Goldberg) and made you proud to be a wrestling fan, whether you liked them or not. I'm talking about the Four Horsemen and no matter which incarnation was around (some clearly better than others) the aura of the Horsemen was lucid. Now WWE with Shock have released a two disc DVD entitled "Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen" which, if only for the history lessons alone, should be in every wrestling fans library.
 | | Yo Ric how come our photo is in black and white? "Because boys The Nature Boy has it all, style and profile!" |
Here is a quick run down of what the Horsemen were all about. It began in 1985 in the NWA with Ric Flair, Tully Blanchard, Ole & Arn Anderson and JJ Dillon joining forces for the same goal; success!
Thinking as individuals but working collectively, that process is what separated the Horsemen from other factions, including the many that would later follow in their footsteps, or try to copy their success. The various Horsemen were in a league of their own.
The first disc has an awesome documentary on the history of the Horsemen and tracks the movements that went on (in front and behind the camera) and also covers the different members that came and went over the years. We hear about the wars the Horsemen had with Dusty Rhodes and how the group fell apart when Tully, Arn & Dillon left for the WWE in the late 80's. The replacements that didn't live up to expectations are noted and there is a little insight into the now infamous stabbing between Arn Anderson and Sid Vicious.
There is also an unexpected few words with former member Paul Roma and his apparent dislike for both Ric Flair and Arn Anderson. Watch for Triple H as he verbally comes to his idols rescue and attacks Paul Roma for what he had to say. He makes it look like Flair can't stand up for himself - Helmsley just had to stick his big nose into it. Anyway it concludes with the final line-up in WCW, their battles with the nWo and Flair's rocky relationship with Eric Bischoff. It's a great doco but there are also some extras on this collection with stories from the Horsemen and footage of the Horsemen's notorious attack on Dusty Rhodes in the parking lot.
 | | Get your genuine lifesize Ric flair smoke alarm today! Woooooooo! |
Ok, onto disc two and this is where the highlights are with three hours of non stop action. Here is a list of the great stand out matches included in this collection:
1. Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard & Ric Flair Vs Pez Whatley, The Italian Stallion & Rocky King from NWA TV 1985
2. Ric Flair Vs Ricky Morton in a steel cage from The Great American Bash 1986
3. Tully Blanchard Vs Dusty Rhodes in a first blood match from Starrcade 1986
4. The 4 Horsemen Vs Dusty Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, "Dr. Death" Steve Williams, Lex Luger & Paul Ellering from War Games 1988
5. Tully Blanchard & Arn Anderson Vs Nikita Kolloff & Sting from The Great American Bash 1988 (I think this was Tully & Arn's last match before jumping to WWE)
6. Tully Blanchard & Arn Anderson Vs Barry Windham & Lex Luger from Clash of the Champions 1988
7. Arn Anderson Vs Ric Flair from Fall Brawl 1995
Also on disc two are a bunch of classic interviews by the Horsemen from the early days, through to the latter days including Flair's emotional return to WCW, his verbal bashing of Eric Bischoff and the firing of Sting from the Horsemen back in 1990.
All in all it is a great wrestling DVD set. But for such an important group in wrestling history, two discs are nowhere near enough of a celebration. The seven matches included are great (especially Flair Vs Morton). But the Horsemen were around for so long, and had enough good matches that Uncle Vince / WWE could've added another one or two discs to it and made it really special. Instead it's only great.
Wrestling is real, everything else is fake!
by: The Gimmick
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A great wrestling DVD that could have been substantially better with a bit more content | |
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