Legends Of Mid-South Wrestling

Legends of Mid-South Wrestling is a WWE DVD highlighting the Mid-South Wrestling promotion that was run in the 1980s. Going into this DVD I had never watched any of Mid-South's programming as it all took place before I started watching wrestling so if you were a fan when this originally aired you may have completely different opinions on these matches and moments. The DVD is a compilation of matches that are separated by short interviews/stories about the promotion and the talent involved. These give insight into what we are about to watch and why.Ted DiBiase vs. Paul Orndorff - This was a decent but short match as it had a tv time limit. Orndorff tried to end things early with a pin attempt in the opening minutes. They carry on fighting back and forth until Ted DiBiase locks in a figure four leg lock on Orndorff in the middle of the ring to try and finish him. I was expecting this to be a pretty slow match considering how old it was but it was actually a pretty well paced match.Andre the Giant, Dusty Rhodes & Junkyard Dog vs. Ernie Ladd, Afa & Sika - This match started off fairly dominantly by Andre's team and it continued that way through most of the match. Ladd's team did briefly try to isolate Andre and used the numbers advantage in their corner to try and keep the giant down but he soon came back with help from his partners. This was a pretty one sided match but it was still fairly entertaining.Junkyard Dog & Mr. Olympia vs. Ted DiBiase & Matt Borne - This was a no disqualification match and JYD and Olympia hit the ring and started a brawl right away. The match then got started properly and JYD and Olympia were dominant for a good while and DiBiase and Borne struggled to get much offense in. Eventually DiBiase countered with a back suplex and was able to get the tag and Ted and Matt isolated Mr Olympia and worked him over for a while. This was a really good tag match, although it had a weird ending involving Jim Duggan dressed as a gorilla.Jim Duggan vs. Ted DiBiase - Apparently this is a "Coal-Miner's Glove Steel Cage Tuxedo Loser Leaves Town" match. I'm not sure what to expect from that. There's a pole in the corner of the cage with a coal miner's glove at the top, whoever gets that glove can use it as a weapon. I'm not sure why they're in tuxedos for the match but the loser of the match must leave Texas for 30 days. Duggan starts the match of strong but DiBiase took over by throwing Duggan into the cage, he then beats down Duggan and bloodies him for a while. Duggan manages to get back into the match when DiBiase goes for the glove. This was a brawl all the way through, it was alright but nothing too special outside of the strange gimmick.Before the next match they show a segment with Tony Atlas bench pressing 550lbs, it's impressive but isn't very entertaining to watch.Ted DiBiase & Matt Borne vs. Andre the Giant & Tony Atlas - Atlas and Andre started off this match strong and were in control for the majority of it. DiBiase and Borne isolated Atlas for a bit but he eventually got the tag from Andre. This match was ok but nothing more, it had a bad finish and non of the action leading up to it was that great.Magnum T.A. & Mr. Wrestling II vs. The Midnight Express - This was a tag title match and Mr. Wrestling and Magnum started out with the advantage and kept it for quite a while. Eventually the Midnight Express did manage to isolate Magnum and work over his arm and wear him down. The Express' manager, Jim Cornette was on the outside and played a part in his team keeping the advantage. This was a decent tag match that never got boring and the finish led to the feud we see in the next match.Magnum T.A. vs. Mr Wrestling II - This match feels like it's clipped but it might just be the low video quality. The two wrestled until Magnum got busted open, Mr Wrestling then targeted the wound to try and beat Magnum before Magnum got back control. This was quite short and felt disappointing for the end of a big feud.Junkyard Dog vs. Butch Reed - This was a street fight and unfortunately not a very good one. The match was a brawl but it was very slow and it didn't feel like much was really happening, it was just boring and the finish wasn't great either.The Rock N' Roll Express vs. The Midnight Express - This was a fast paced back and forth tag match. The Rock N' Roll Express would get the upper hand but the Midnight Express would work as a team to keep themselves in the match. I wasn't a big fan of the ending but the match until that point was pretty good.The Rock N' Roll Express vs. The Midnight Express - For this match, after his involvement in their previous matches, Jim Cornette would be in a straight jacket to keep him from getting involved. The Rock N' Roll Express are the first team to get an advantage before the Midnight Express manage to take down Ricky Morton and work him over in their half of the ring. Like the previous match this was a pretty good match leading to an unfortunately poor finish.Ted DiBiase vs. Shawn Michaels - This was pretty much just a squash match for DiBiase who got in all of the offence. Shawn did get in a few pinfall attempts which took Ted by surprise but that was all. It was good for a squash match but nothing more.Ric Flair vs. Terry Taylor - This was a NWA World Heavyweight championship match and it started at a more methodical pace than ealier matches on this DVD with Taylor wearing down Flair with head and facelocks for a long while. This pace worked though as the match is the longest on the set by far. Flair got back into the match with a thumb to the eye and from their the match went back and forth. It built up and by the end it was a good pace with plenty of near falls and attempts to end the match.The Snowman vs. Jake Roberts - This was quite a slow match and it was quite boring to watch, the finish wasn't great either but was more about Muhammad Ali being at ringside.Ric Flair vs. Ted DiBiase - Dick Murdoch attacked DiBiase as he was getting ready for the match and split him open badly so he is taken away unable to take part in the match. DiBiase demanded that the match still take place so the match is started later in the night. They wrestle back and forth but before long DiBiase's bandage comes off and he starts to lose a lot of blood. He still manages to get offence in but is often unable to capitalise on it due to how much blood he was losing. This was a good match that showed DiBiase's willingness to fight which turned him babyface.Rob Ricksteiner vs. Nick Patrick - This was a dominant showing for Ricksteiner, his opponent barely got any offence in and it was basically just a squash match so wasn't very good.The Bladerunners vs.John O'Reilly & Ken Massey - This was a very short squash match for the Bladerunners, it wasn't very good but was just to show off Sting and Ultimate Warrior's time in Mid-South.Terry Gordy vs. Jim Duggan - This was for the UWF championship and the partners of both men were sent to the back before this match began to ensure a fair fight. Duggan started off the match strong and Gordy had to try and slow the pace down to get back into the match. The match then went back and forth and it could have gone either way. It was a decent match between two heavyweights but it wasn't anything too special and had a poor finish.Ted DiBiase & Steve Williams vs. The Fabulous Freebirds - This is a lumberjack match which prevented the Freebirds from rolling out of the ring early on. DiBiase and Williams start the match off strong until Hayes manages to throw DiBiase out of the ring, and when he's thrown back in the Freebirds get the advantage on him and wear him down. Towards the end the match breaks down with everyone in the ring at once and the lumberjacks fighting on the outside. The match ends suddenly and it's not really clear what the result is, the camera just stops. That was a disappointing end, the short match until that point is fine.Terry Gordy vs. Steve Williams - This match started off with Williams getting the upper hand and he kept it for the majority of the match. Gordy did come back for a short while sending Williams into the ring post but Dr. Death soon came back from that and dominated much of the rest of the match. This was ok but again it didn't feel like anything special.One Man Gang vs. Big Bubba Rogers - This match began with the two super-heavyweights trying to take each other down, they both tried shoulderblocks and both tried to slam the other but neither could manage. Rogers eventually got the upper hand and they fought back and forth as very evenly matched competitors. The match was slow paced because of the size of these two men but it wasn't too slow and it made for a pretty decent match.Steve Williams vs. Big Bubba Rogers - For some reason we only got the finish of this match, it showed about 3 minutes of the match which were fine but I can't say it was very good as we barely get to see anything.This DVD gives a good look at Mid-South Wrestling, the interviews between matches gave a really good overview of the promotion and what they were all about. The matches were alright, few were too boring but there was nothing all that amazing either. The problem was that a lot of the stars featured such as Junkyard Dog, Andre the Giant and Jim Duggan weren't really very good in the ring and were popular for their character and charisma which did hurt the matches for me. I'd recommend this set if you want to learn more about Mid-South Wrestling or you were a fan of the promotion at the time but if you're just looking for some really good wrestling you'd be better off looking elsewhere.

this was a present for the wrestling fan in my family he said it was a great present seeing the documentary the matches with the older members of the wrestling fraternity was awesome. seeing these legends of wrestling from their humble beginnings was great. if you have a wrestling fan in your family who is interested in seeing some of the top wrestlers before they made it big , then this is for them.

the product was in good condition, great stuff

When "Cowboy" Bill Watts got divorced and the vast tape-library was awarded to his now ex-wife in the court settlement there was a good chance that we might never see the footage again. Indeed she threatened to destroy the tapes just to spite Bill but thankfully wiser heads prevailed. Although the WWE couldn't reach a deal with her in the first instance, they finally did last year and old school wrestling fans have been waiting for a release like this ever since.Was it worth the wait?Absolutely.Some expressed disappointment when details of the set first leaked out that this, unlike the World Class Championship Wrestling and American Wrestling Association collections that we've previously seen from the WWE, wouldn't be based around a documentary on the promotion. Whilst I would still have liked to have seen this (basically because I will watch any seriously undertaken two hour documentary feature on wrestling) you certainly cannot argue with the way the WWE has set this out.In brief, hand-picked matches from 1981 to 1987 are showcased, with short biographical introductions for wrestlers or a feud preceding them. Perhaps thanks to Jim Ross, who was an integral part of the Mid-South machine and producer of this DVD, the video packages do an excellent job of priming you for what is coming next and usually leave you understanding just how good Mid-South was and why the matches/superstars being showcased were so important. The sheer range of talking heads is fantastic too and following on from other recent WWE releases is both wide ranging and spot on in terms of relevance. No unnecessary Steve Lombardi appearances here, folks.Disc one starts with Ted DiBiase and ends with Magnum T.A via the Junkyard Dog, Jim Duggan and Tony Atlas. That three of these went on to "bigger" things in terms of the WWE and NWA quickly highlights what a breeding ground Mid-South was. Ted's start with the company is looked at (and it's weird to see him in the archive footage without his now ubiquitous beard) and we also see footage of his Rat Pack faction which included Duggan and the late Matt Borne. I hadn't much knowledge of this particular slice of Mid-South prior to the DVD but as stated it does a very good job of highlighting not only the trio's time together but the subsequent break up too. A DiBiase &Borne tag match against JYD and Mr Olympia is followed by a Coal Miners Glove Steel Cage Tuxedo Loser Leaves Town Match (which they admit on the DVD was slight booking overkill!) between DiBiase and Duggan. In a pattern that becomes somewhat familiar on the disc the action itself isn't particularly great, but the storytelling is perfect and the reaction of the crowd proves that the formula worked. We also get some Tony Atlas action, as he not only joins forces with Andre The Giant to take on the Rat Pack in some tag team action but also benches 500 pounds in a special presentation.The popularity of JYD is often talked about and it is clear to see on this DVD that there was no exaggeration in the stories you've heard. The reactions to him are off the charts in the two tag team matches he features in on this disc. And although the one that sees him team with Andre The Giant and Dusty Rhodes to take on Afa, Sika and "The Big Cat" Ernie Ladd is again average at best in terms of action, it's held in front of a rabid audience that is into every move. Disc 1 ends with perhaps a perfect example of just how good Bill Watts was at creating compelling storylines as it recaps the Magnum T.A. feud with Mr. Wrestling II. Follow the storyline as Mr. Wrestling announces that he is to manage Magnum (complete with entertaining footage of their training), how he betrays him in a tag match before we witness Magnum get his revenge. It all sounds simple, and it is, but it's so well done that you would hope modern day wrestling bookers and writers will see this and realise just how to craft compelling angles.Disc 2 starts with more JYD, this time his feud with "Hacksaw" Butch Reed. If you thought painting your opponents was an nWo thing you will be surprised here and things progress to the climactic Ghetto Street Fight from May 1984. From there we take a look at Mid-South's portion of one of the classic tag team rivalries of all time, The Midnight Express versus The Rock N Roll Express. This features the best in-ring action of the set so far and the always entertaining sight of Jim Cornette having to adhere to a wacky stipulation; this time he's put in a straight-jacket and raised to the roof of the arena in a cherry picker. We even get video comments from Jim Cornette which is a nice surprise although it looks as if these are taken from previous interviews Cornette has done rather than new ones specifically for this release. Still, it's nice that his enmity with the WWE hasn't led to them cutting him out of the story altogether.The Shawn Michaels section seems here simply because he's Shawn Michaels, rather than it being particularly exciting and/or important. A squash match with Ted DiBiase is interesting to watch once, especially with HBK's introduction in mind, but it's not something you will keep going back to. The Terry Taylor/Ric F lair match from June 1985 that follows and concludes the disc is much better and may surprise those who only know Taylor as the Red Rooster. It's worth watching just for Taylor's introduction about a drunk Ric Flair turning up an hour late for the event. They could have been a little kinder to Taylor though by cutting out his comments about a "48 minute match", especially as the timekeeper at the conclusion states the time at 39 minutes. It's perhaps a little too long for those used to modern day WWE but it builds nicely and is an effective showcase for just how perfectly Ric Flair fitted the NWA World Champion mould of the touring champion who had to go to the territories but put over their top stars whilst still retaining the belt.Disc 3 kicks off with Muhammad Ali's 1985 appearance in "The Snowman's" corner against Jake Roberts. There's some nice footage of the build up (including Jim Ross accompanying Ali to a mosque) and it's fun to see the often told story about Roberts no-selling, or at least under-selling, Ali's punches on the screen. The match is by no means great though. From there it is perhaps the most famous hour of Mid-South television as in the space of one show the hated heel Ted DiBiase becomes the number one good guy in the company and nearly sneaks away with Ric Flair's NWA World Title in a shower of blood. Although the story is well known, given that numerous personalities of the time have referenced it in interviews over the years, I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't already seen it/got knowledge of it. Suffice to say it is a brilliant slice of wrestling storytelling that many have tried to copy over the years without ever quite matching it.There is a little bit about Mid-South's attempts to go national and the change to becoming the Universal Wrestling Federation. As we all know, that failed, largely due to the fact that an oil crisis hit the Mid-South area, with huge unemployment hitting Watt's territory just when he needed the security of success on home turf to be able take on the world. Television ratings held firm, but his core audience simply didn't have the disposable income to attend events anymore. Watts admits he was losing $50,000 a week at this time, and a sell out to Crockett Promotions was inevitable. The nuances of the deal are glossed over here, namely that Watts overplayed the WWE's interest in his promotion to secure the NWA deal and that the NWA would later greatly regret the purchase when they could have just picked up the stars they wanted later on when the UWF had gone under, and there's little acknowledgement that Vince took a number of the territories stars to New York, but there's enough detail to fill in the uninitiated.We get a couple of squash matches to showcase Bill Watt's record in finding new stars. Rob Ricksteiner's match (who, of course, dropped the first name and split the last one) has curiosity value purely because his opponent is future WCW and WWE referee Nick Patrick and whilst The Bladerunners were pretty awful, the fact that they later became the guys you now know as The Ultimate Warrior and Sting means that it's an interesting exercise to seem them from 1986.The UWF years mainly showcase The Fabulous Freebirds, Terry Gordy and Steve "Dr. Death" Williams. Gordy's UWF Heavyweight Title defence against Jim Duggan is one of the best Duggan matches you'll ever see, whilst the Lumberjack match pitting DiBiase and Williams against Michael Hayes and Buddy Rogers is fun. The September 1986 title match pitting Gordy against Williams will be a disappointment to any who have fond memories of their team together in the 1990s and suffers from a non-finish that is never fully explained. The One Man Gang versus Big Bubba Rogers (who fans will better know as The Big Bossman) is seemingly only here so we can finish the disc with Steve Williams finally winning the title against Rogers, in a match that is only shown in highlight form. It's a slightly anti-climatic end to the presentation, even as Williams discusses the NWA buy-out and claims that the proposed feud between the UWF and the NWA petered out when Ric Flair didn't like William's style in their title unification match and said he wouldn't face him again.Just looking at the names involved over these three discs should give you an idea of how influential the Mid-South region was. Ted DiBiase, Junkyard Dog, Andre The Giant, Dusty Rhodes, Jim Duggan, Magnum TA, Midnight Express, Rock N Roll Express, Shawn Michaels, Ric Flair, Jake Roberts, Sting, Ultimate Warrior, The Fabulous Freebirds, Terry Gordy, Steve Williams...the list is pretty impressive indeed and that is by no means exhaustive even in terms of this set. For anyone who has fond memories of the 1980's and 90's stars that made their names in Mid-South, or who passed through the territory amongst other runs, this DVD release is a no brainer. It does a great job of emphasising the relevance and importance of Mid-South in wrestling history and the video packages are so well thought through and put together that even a fan with no prior knowledge of the in's and out's of the promotion will fully understand the feuds and legends that it showcases.The only thing that stops it being a full five-star release for me is that some of the matches simply haven't aged well and whilst it is understandable that matches from thirty years ago won't always match the pace of the best of today's action there's just a few too many matches for my liking that you might not wish to see a second time. That said, this is still a "must see" DVD for any wrestling fans interested in the history of the territory system and who want to see that the stories about the great, episodic storytelling excellence in Mid-South were every bit the truth.