Pads & Panels

Title: WWE Extreme Rules 2011

Format: DVD

Studio: WWE Home Video

Review by: Bill Jones

Extreme Rules was introduced to WWE as the ECW pay-per-view of the year, but since going PG, it has become more about gimmick matches – cages, ladders, last man standing – than anything truly “extreme.” And while 2011’s iteration still finds itself stuck in that rut, it has a few gems. While it never tops the bill, Christian and Alberto del Rio put on a solid (not classic) ladder match, with the great story of Christian’s first championship win behind it. CM Punk and Randy Orton also have a knock-down drag-out last man standing bout. The triple threat main event cage match between The Miz, John Cena and John Morrison also has its moments, but feels awkward all around, and the end of The Miz’s reign is a disappointment. (more…)

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Title: The Very Best of WCW Monday Nitro

Format: Three-Disc DVD

Studio: WWE Home Video

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

The Monday Night Wars arguably played a large role in the success of World Wrestling Entertainment and Monday Night Raw, as the competition surely bred creativity. Wrestling fans were left wondering who would have the best matches, most outrageous moments and surprise defections each and every week, and even fans who swore allegiance to one brand or the other had a hard time not flipping channels between commercials in an attempt to see what they were missing.

WWE already documented this rivalry in Monday Night Wars, and already told the story of the Rise and Fall of WCW. Now, keeping in line with its latest three-disc sets, WWE is simply offering up The Very Best of WCW Monday Nitro, its one-time competitor. WWE now owns the brand, and it’s nice to see the company mining the archives and paying tribute to the show’s best moments. After all, most WWE fans missed them while they were busy watching the superior brand. (more…)

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Title: Over the Limit 2011

Format: DVD

Studio: WWE Home Video

Review by: Bill Jones

Over the Limit has been a strange pay per view for the last few years in World Wrestling Entertainment. Its speedometer and car theme seems entirely random, in comparison to its wrestling theme, which mostly seems to be that John Cena has an annual “I Quit” match that mostly consists of him being whooped for an unbearably long time, only to refuse to quit and eventually prevail. It’s like the writer of The Passion of the Christ is called in to handle this PPV once a year. This time, Cena’s getting whooped by The Miz and his protégé, Alex Riley. It’s unbearably long and boring, and like a superhero, Cena takes a ridiculous amount of punishment and never gives up, only to slap a quick finisher on The Miz, who taps immediately. WWE should not be allowed to have these matches anymore, if that’s how they book them, because this is an awful excuse for sports entertainment. (more…)

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Title: WWE Capitol Punishment

Format: DVD

Studio: WWE Home Videos

Review by: Bill Jones

WWE Capitol Punishment. If nothing else, it was one of the more entertainingly named pay per views in awhile, and the Barack Obama skits had potential, if ultimately put together seemingly lazily. R Truth’s turn toward craziness was also an entertaining build to the show, and his match with John Cena wasn’t half bad. Alex Riley and The Miz also put on a good show, as do Rey Mysterio and CM Punk. Randy Orton and Christian have another solid World Heavyweight Championship bout. None of it is particularly groundbreaking, and it still has the feel of a second-tier PPV for WWE, but it’s a solid show from start to finish. (more…)

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Title: Greatest Superstars of the 21st Century

Format: Three-Disc DVD

Studio: WWE Home Video

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

World Wrestling Entertainment has been using its back catalog of content and superstars (along with its current ones) in recent years to pump out a seemingly never-ending stream of home video releases, many of them in three-disc sets. And surprisingly, to the benefit of wrestling fans, a great many of them have been very good. But one of the latest from the McMahon camp is questionable, and that is Greatest Superstars of the 21st Century.

My immediate thought was, “Didn’t they just do something like this?” But I was, of course, mixing it up with the Top 50 Superstars of All Time set released earlier this year. That feature focused on all eras of wrestling, while this one is strictly from the year 2000 and on. So there is a distinction, but many of the wrestlers on Greatest Superstars have already been featured on Top 50, and arguably in much better fashion. (more…)

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No matter what happens at MITB, Punk rant was brilliant

How WWE is playing a hometown, the internet and more

By Bill Jones

No matter what happens at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view in Chicago this Sunday, there’s no denying that the already infamous June 27 Monday Night Raw rant was an absolutely brilliant move. And its impact is already readily apparent. More people are buzzing about the world of professional wrestling than they have in years; WWE is likely to get great buyrates for a PPV that otherwise might have been considered second-rate and gone largely under the radar; people were chanting CM Punk’s name on Raw tonight; and there is the setup for some great shock value in Punk’s hometown.

For those coming to this story unfamiliar with the situation, CM Punk came out at the end of Monday Night Raw June 27, cost John Cena a tables match against R Truth, and proceeded to sit at the top of the ramp and cut a promo that had many wondering whether it was scripted or whether CM Punk had really just gone off the hinges. (more…)

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Title: WWE: Bobby The Brain Heenan

Format: DVD

Studio: Vivendi Entertainment

Rating:

Review by: Matt Peters

Arguably the best manager to grace the WWE, Bobby “The Brain” Heenan defined everything a heel should be. He had a witty repartee with anyone he shared the screen with, managed to sway the opinion of the then-WWF fan base just by liking or disliking someone, and built careers for bad guys by just opening his mouth. Without his participation, some of the top moments in WWE history would not have nearly the impact they do now. If any one manager deserves a retrospective, it’s this man. Does the WWE deliver? Well… (more…)

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Title: The True Story of WrestleMania

Format: Three-Disc DVD Set

Studio: WWE Home Video

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

The True Story of WrestleMania hit shelves just before WrestleMania 27, offering fans a deeper look into more than quarter century of history the of the sports entertainment extravaganza. From the major gamble Vince McMahon took putting on the first event, to the week-long spectacle it has become in recent years, WrestleMania has become a major force in bringing the realm of the athletes and celebrities together, and this DVD set seeks to document its history. (more…)

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Title: WWE Royal Rumble 2011

Format: DVD

Studio: WWE Home Video

Review by: Bill Jones

Royal Rumble marks the official start of the Road to WrestleMania in the WWE, and this year it was bigger than ever, upping the traditional 30-man over-the-top rope affair to a 40-man match for the first time. Though it is bigger, the massive cadres of jobbers that are Nexus and The Corre essentially take up the additional 10 spots. Still, WWE found the space for some fun surprise returns, which spiced up an otherwise middle-of-the-road rumble. The two championship matches – The Miz vs. Randy Orton and Edge vs. Dolph Ziggler – also provided enough entertainment value. Which is good, because the four-way Divas Championship bout was little more than filler and a chance for the live crowd to do a beer run. The special features, as per usual, are also disappointing. (more…)

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Pads & Panels’ Bill Jones and Matt Peters caught up with World Wrestling Entertainment’s Monday Night RAW announcer Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler on the verge of his first match at WrestleMania. As The King prepares to take on fellow announcer Michael Cole, he talks about going into his first WrestleMania, getting a couple title shots, his favorite announcer to work with, and his passion for comic book art. The interview took place Saturday, March 19, at Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) at McCormick Place in Chicago. A special thanks to The King for taking time to do the interview after a long day of signing and illustrating.

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