Top 50 Superstars DVD informative but flawed

Mark Satrang Pro Wrestling Examiner

 

One of the most controversial and talked about WWE DVD releases in recent memory is The Top 50 Superstars of All Timethree disc set that was released on December 14, 2010. 

Frankly all the discussion and controversy is well warranted.  The main feature of the set features a countdown of the top 50 wrestlers in history, as supposedly voted on by the current roster, and is hosted by Todd Grisham.  Each of the 50 inductees gets a brief 5 – 10 minute highlight package and discussion based on their career and why they are on the list.  While it is highly entertaining and informative to hear about 50 wrestlers talked about in glowing terms by their peers, the controversy comes in with the actual rankings and/or omissions of some the wrestlers. 

While they pretty much nailed the top 5 (The Rock, Bret Hart, Steve Austin, The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels) in regards to their contributions and relationship with the company currently, much of the rest of the list leaves a lot to be desired.  Clearly politics and current associations with the competition (TNA Wrestling) factored into the rankings a fair bit.  The most famous pro wrestler in history, Hulk Hogan, was ranked way down at #23, even something host Todd Grisham took umbrage with.  Then the National Wrestling Alliance’s two biggest exports, Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair, were tied at #17 when it reality they are both top ten stars in every sense.

The list also includes legitimate wrestling pioneers likeGorgeous George, Lou Thesz and “Nature Boy” Buddy Rogers.  While it is great to see them included in a list such as this it is hard to truly compare them to the stars of today, as the industry has changed so much since the heyday of Thesz and George. 

However that is also the beauty of a countdown such as this.  Five hundred wrestlers and fans could be tasked to make such a list as this and every one of them would come back different. 

The other two discs are completely full of hidden gems, forgotten matches and historical classics that truly supplement the documentary piece.  While it would have been easy to pad the other two discs with well-known and fondly remembered matches like Savage-Steamboat, Hogan-Andre, Undertaker-Michaels or Rock-Austin, instead long forgotten matches from free TV like Edge & Triple H versus Chris Jericho & Kurt Angle and an eight man tag match featuring Undertaker, Kane and The Hardy Boyz taking on Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, Edge &Christian. 

Plus there is plenty of old school footage for wrestling history buffs, including Lou Thesz versus Antonio “Argentina” Rocca, Jack Brisco versus Dory Funk and Gorilla Monsoon’s encounters with Andre the Giant and Muhammad Ali. 

While the documentary portion and list itself is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, overall this set is a good pick up for wrestling history buffs.  It introduces new fans to older stars they may not be familiar with and pays homage to some wrestlers who more than likely will not ever get their one standalone DVD compilation. 

Complete Top 50 listing:

#50 – Killer Kowalski
#49 – Batista
#48 – "Ravishing" Rick Rude
#47 – Bob Backlund
#46 – Dory Funk, Jr.
#45 – Jeff Hardy
#44 – Nick Bockwinkel
#43 – Kane
#42 – Sgt. Slaughter
#41 – Jack Brisco
#40 – The Big Show
#39 – Jake "The Snake" Roberts
#38 – "Superstar" Billy Graham
#37 – Junkyard Dog
#36 – Gorilla Monsoon
#35 – "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers
#34 – Kurt Angle
#33 – Mick Foley
#32 – "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka
#31 – The Iron Sheik
#30 – Pat Patterson
#29 – Randy Orton
#28 – "Classy" Freddie Blassie
#27 – The Fabulous Moolah
#26 – "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase
#25 – Chris Jericho
#24 – Bruno Sammartino
#23 – Hulk Hogan
#22 – Terry Funk
#21 – Lou Thesz
#20 – Jerry "The King" Lawler
#19 – Edge
#18 – Dusty Rhodes
#17 – Ric Flair
#16 – John Cena
#15 – "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig
#14 – "Macho Man" Randy Savage
#13 – Gorgeous George
#12 – Triple H
#11 – Eddie Guerrero
#10 – "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
#9 – Rey Mysterio
#8 – Andre The Giant
#7 – Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
#6 – Harley Race
#5 – The Rock
#4 – Bret "Hit Man" Hart
#3 – Stone Cold Steve Austin
#2 – The Undertaker
#1 – Shawn Michaels

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