WWE DVD Live in the UK - April 2013

WWE DVD Review: Live in the UK – April 2013

The WWE only travel to our shores twice a year here in the UK/Ireland and as such these events are highly charged ones for the most part. Recent years have seen the company bring as many of their big name stars and they can and even go so far as to record episodes of their weekly Raw and Smackdown shows here too.

This two disc set features all of the events that took place at the O2 Arena in London during the WrestleMania Revenge tour (April 2013). This means you get to see complete episodes of Monday Night Raw, Smackdown and never aired in the UK instalments of Main Event, Superstars and Saturday Morning Slam.

Talent wise the WWE brought a fair number of their big hitters here. Which was not surprising considering the shows were going to be broadcast. What was special was the inclusion of Undertaker on the shows. It had been a number of years since Taker stepped into a UK ring and yet here was participating in two matches (one for Raw, one for Smackdown). That name alone will insure this set sells well with fans.

Of course any of us who attended any of the April 2013 live shows will want to possess this snapshot of the tour, to remind them of what they witnessed. After all the matches may have changed slightly, but many of the grapplers featured here were at the other houses shows too.

Highlights from Raw include Dolph Ziggler facing Chris Jericho, Undertaker & Team Hell No versus The Shield and UK hero William Regal (on his farewell tour) battling Fandango. There are of course numerous other features here and even a few other matches.

Smackdown offers up a fine No DQ scrap between Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger, Layla versus Aksana, Undertaker tackling Shield member Dean Ambrose and Wade Barrett taking on fellow Uk star William Regal. As with Raw there are other features here too.

Of course we also have the episodes of Superstars and Saturday Morning Slam too. Both of which have a few nice matches as well.

On the extras front we get a fine outing from the UK-based PPV Rebellion held in November 2001. Which featured an on form Chris Jericho versus an equally slick Kurt Angle.

WWE Live in the UK : April 2013 is available now from www.wwedvd.co.uk and all good retailers.

RRP £17.99

By Phil Allely

WWE DVD Review: WrestleMania 29

WWE DVD Review: WrestleMania 29

It is the biggest show in the WWE calendar and it also one of the most sought after wrestling show tickets too. It is of course WrestleMania. This is the show that even the most die hard anti-WWE fan will take notice of and maybe even watch as well.

WM is the event that kick started the WWE's rise to global domination and means so much to so many fans across the globe as well.

Now nearly 30 years on the event still send goosebumps down the spine of many as they eagerly await the action to start. The WWE have now rather cunningly made this a weekend long event too, with fan events, signing and memorabilia on show too. Alongside countless veteran and current roster members, there is also the annual Hall Of Fame Ceremony.

Now back to the DVD at hand. First up like many Mania's of recent years there are a few poor matches here, but when things kick off they really kick off in style.

This event was a card of three parts. First up we had John Cena taking on The Rock for the WWE Championship. Which was of course a marked improvement on their previous encounters. However it did come at a cost to Rock who absorbed some nasty injuries along the way.

Next on the fans hit list was the ultra intense 'No Holds Barred' scrap between Brock Lesnar and Triple H. They certainly had their work boots on here. You could feel every bump like it was your own body.

But of course the match most people were yearning to see was the return of Undertaker to defend his winning streak against young upstart CM Punk. Punk had after all belittled the memory of the late Paul Bearer and was certainly a hated man before the get go. Considering he rarely makes more than one appearance a year these days Taker showed no signs of slowing down. Although by the end you could see his pain and delight in what he had just participated in.

Elsewhere on this well put together CD set you get the pre-show encounter between Wade Barrett and The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship. The Shield making their WM debut against the trio of Randy Orton, Sheamus and The Big Show. The Tag Team titles on the line as Team No Hell defend against Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston. Chris Jericho facing the over the top Fandango and Jack Swagger tackle the World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio.

The under card and World Title match are all worthy additions here, the main issue is that some play out to indifference. Fandango, The Shield and Ziggler come out of proceedings very well indeed I must add.

On the extras front we are as always spoilt for Mania moments and choice. The Hall Of Fame footage is superb and very interesting. Younger fans may skip through a few inductions of course, but those old enough to remember Bob Backlund, Bruno Samartino and even celeb Donald Trump will enjoy their montages and speeches. Backlund is hilarious and Samartino seems very moved to be there.

More modern entrants Mick Foley, Trish Stratus and Booker T are also very well received and each makes us feel their pride as they give their speech. It was especially nice to see Booker's brother Stevie Ray on TV again. Foley was as expected totally over the top with his section of the show, but we come to expect that from him these days.

There is also the post-show event from the MetLife Stadium too.

Blu-Ray owners get even more bang for their buck here with some episodes of Monday Night Raw, the Triple H/Lesnar contract signing, CM Punk challenge to end the streak and a Q&A with John Cena and The Rock.

WrestleMania 29 is a roller coaster of a ride from start to finish. There are some dips along the way, but when it climbs it does indeed climb. The final flourish of matches here will certainly leave you on an adrenaline high.

WrestleMania 29 is available now via Freemantle Media.

Www.wwedvd.co.uk and all good retailers.

RRP £24.99 (DVD), £34.99 (Blu-Ray)

By Phil Allely

WWE DVD Review: Elimination Chamber 2013

WWE DVD Review: Elimination Chamber 2013

The Elimination Chamber is one formidable and very unforgiving structure. This mass of metal was once the special feature in Pay-Per-Views, but it is now the star of its own. The concept is a good one and used sparingly it works very well indeed. What happens is six men enter caged environment. Two of them start off the match, whilst four others stand by in each corner, locked in a cubicle. Every few minutes a new competitor enters and things heat up. This is a pin fall/submission style scrap and it can get very violent indeed.

This year we saw Randy Orton, Daniel Bryan, Kane, Jack Swagger, Mark Henry and Chris Jericho all participate and their reward was a World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 29. The action here was superbly paced, exciting and innovative.

The other big match on the EC 2013 card was the re-match between WWE Champion The Rock and former champ CM Punk. This match was the last chance for Punk to retain his belt and progress to WrestleMania. Punk and Rock have a very good rapport in the ring and Rock especially deserves praise for stepping back in to a semi-fulltime wrestling role so easily.

On surprise bout here was the one that pitted The Shield against the all-star trio of John Cena, Ryback and Sheamus. The surprise was not the talent involved or the effort put in to the encounter. It was the fact that the WWE really did decide to put so much behind the newest group on the scene The Shield.

Elsewhere we see World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio battle his nemesis Big Show. Their feud just went from strength to strength, Del Rio has certainly stepped up to the plate. Kaitlyn defended her Diva's title against the tough daughter of wrestling legend Jimmy 'Superfly' Snuka Tamina. This was a fair Divas match, that did enough to warrant your attention throughout.

Elimination Chamber 2013 is a very good DVD release from the WWE. It certainly paved the way for WrestleMania 29 and offered an above average number of matches. The main event and chamber scraps are certainly well worth re-viewing as well.

Elimination Chamber 2013 is available now from www.wwedvd.co.uk and all good retailers.

RRP £17.99 (DVD), £19.99 (Blu-ray)

By Phil Allely

WWE DVD Review - TLC 2012

WWE DVD Review: TLC (Tables, Ladders, Chairs) 2012

WWE's TLC pay-per-view event is one that has a tendency to deliver greatly with its match quality and results. Even the lack of blood can't affect the violence that many of the wrestlers bring to the ring when foreign objects such as tables, ladders and steel chairs become legal weapons. This year we were also treated to a few new faces, which helped create new feuds and elevate some often neglected mid-card talent. With CM Punk injured there was some re-jigging behind the scenes match wise, but perhaps it was for the best. WWE need his fresh and ready for his upcoming scrap with The Rock.

It was also nice to see the legendary Jerry 'The King' Lawler return to his commentary duties. Lawler seems to have recovered well after his near fatal heart attack (which occurred during a live raw show).

TLC kicked off with a very reasonable tables match for the number one contender spot for the WWE tag team belts. The duo of Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara battled Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes in a fun battle. Cara is looking so much better in the ring now he is teamed up with fellow high flyer Mysterio. Rhodes Scholars on the other hand are a wonderfully fresh addition to the diminishing tag ranks. Rhodes and Sandow picked up the win after Cody caused Cara to plough through a table.

Your reviewer is not a hug fan of US Title holder Anonio Cesaro, but he can put together a pretty decent match with the right (talented) performer. The match however didn't really sizzle as much as we had hoped it would. Cesaro was able to overcome a few nice looking pin attempts by Truth and nailed a 'Neutralizer' to retain his gold.
Uk wrestler Wade Barrett has been making real strides in recent months to get one more big push for his WWE career. His match with Kofi Kingston here highlighted the fact that Barrett does have potential. Putting Kofi's Intercontinental Title on the line helped as well of course. Wade is a very good big man and has an aura about him, perhaps he will be William Regal's successor to the role of sterotypical British bad guy. Kofi did manage to fend off his European influenced assault and retained the belt.
Whether they are associated with Champion CM Punk The Shield were (and are) a welcome addition to the WWE roster. Their sneak attacks and N.W.O. Inspired storyline is something that may just inject some much needed adrenaline into the WWE product.

The match here was a TLC one and The Shield (Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose) faced off against the formidable trio of WWE Tag Team Champs Kane/Daniel Bryan and the fastest rising star of the year Ryback. This match was a brutal, tough and well-paced affair. Working with such talented opponents The Shield team were on perfect form. What was nice was that amidst the weapons based fun and games, we saw some new faces get their hands raised (over some more established acts). This angle by WWE may just work out very well for all concerned. The Shield pulled off a rather good win, to continue their progression.
The Divas were up next, with Eve defending her title against (pre-show match winner) Naomi. Naomi did show some impressive in-ring ability here. It was of course always going to be Eve's night and here she did not disappoint. Eve retained her glamorous belt as predicted.
As explained before a TLC PPV should really feature some blood. But you know what sometimes the spilling of claret is not necessary. The World Heavyweight Title match between champion Big Show and challenger Sheamus was a real barn-stormer. Sheamus seems to bring something out in show that we have not seen in a while and perhaps Show himself has grabbed this opportunity to highlight how valuable he is to the company. The match was violent, hard-hitting and worked to both men's advantage. Shows win maintains his grasp of the belt and Sheamus' loss does little more than make him a man we will root for next time.
Next up we saw an interesting battle. This was Heath Slater, Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre taking on Alberto Del Rio, The Miz and Brooklyn Brawler. This was a nostalgic match for veteran fans, as longtime jobber the Brawler (Steve Lombardi) returned to the ring. Lombardi is a familiar face to anyone whoo who watches WWE biographical or special edition DVDs. He often pops us as a talking head on such releases. Lombardi never won a major title, but he did elevate many superstars to the next level and his simple style made him a minor league star. Brawler got his chance to shine on PPV in Brooklyn (of course) and even picked up a rare win.

Love him or hate him John Cena is one of the few real stars the WWE have available to perform at present. His act may need polished and a break from his main event appearances would help things. But 

with no one else ready to fill his spot or shift as much merchandise this is a picture we will have to expect for a while, the one of Cena in the main event.

The storyline featuring Cena/AJ/Vickie Guerro has been fun (even if it does echo a recent ill-fated TNA one). This match between Dolph Ziggler and Cena was a curious entry too. Ziggler could have as easily cashed in his 'Money in the Bank' title shot, but instead he offered it up in a match with Cena. This was a ladder match to remember. Cena took some stiff shots, Ziggler was a bump-machine (in the style of Shawn Michaels) and the outside interference proved to be beneficial to the pair. Cena in a rare moment for his character stared at the lights for the ever-exciting Ziggler. AJ did prove to be the thorn in Cena's side, but this was really all about raising Dolph to the next level. After all if he can beat Cena, this man may just be able to win the big one.

On the Extras front the DVD has an interview with Dolph Ziggler only, Blu-ray owners will be able to witness an episode of Monday Night Raw, Slammy award presentations and some very nice matches.

RRP £17.99 (DVD), £19.99 (Blu-ray).

TLC 2012 is available now from all good retailers.

Wwe.com

By Phil Allely