Product Description

Most 'best-of' wrestling books which immortalise showdowns between rival Superstars focus on single matches. But a match is simply one part of a much longer, much more interesting storyline. What makes a showdown memorable, even legendary, is more than the moves, the bodyslams, the count-outs. It's not just the action that drives the drama -- it's the backstory: the feud. From the immortal Hulk Hogan to the 'legend-killer' Randy Orton, Showdowns is the first book to detail in full the stories of the rivalries that fuelled epic encounters between the greatest names in World Wrestling Entertainment. Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mick Foley and Shawn Michaels are just some of those whose long-running battles with their personal arch-nemeses are examined here in vivid and entertaining fashion; ratcheting up the tension in match after match, stoking up partisan and explosive support on the part of their fans and culminating in their ultimate showdowns. Illustrated throughout with eye-popping action photographs, this is a book no wrestling fan will want to be without.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #82494 in Books
• Published on: 2009-01-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Customer Reviews

Not really definitive, but mostly excellent
Reasons why I love wrestling? The colourful characters? Yes. The skill and athleticism? Yup. The brilliant matches the wrestlers put on? Certainly. But a crucial component for the winning formula should be the storylines, or rather the feuds between various wrestlers.

There have been so many awesome rivalries between wrestlers, factions and indeed organizations that have made for the best television/entertainment for fans worldwide. Championships, honour, love, betrayal, ego, supremacy, real-life animosity; these a few of the reasons for sparking a feud between two grapplers. And if handled properly, like the majority of wrestling feuds have been, we can get some real winners. Some absolute classics that feature high-stakes drama, amazing matches and peak performances from both babyface and heel which help establish and cement a wrestler's legacy, and further bring greatness to this business.

WWE Showdowns attempts to capture all this in a nutshell, as well as paying tribute to the greatest rivalries involving WWE from the past two decades. There are twenty-feuds collected and examined here, ranging from the eighties to the end of 2008. The whole book is written/presented by one Jeremy Roberts, the co-author of the Eric Bischoff and Batista autobiographies.

Now, this kind of book is always going to be targeted by fans, critics and the Internet. That there are legendary rivalries that have been criminally overlooked and excluded, and that chronicling of the rivalries included haven't been given the justice that they deserved. That the impact all these great feuds had on wrestling have been severely understated etc. The whole backlash is inevitable and natural, so ergo, it's inevitable and natural that I found stuff about this book to criticise.

So...what exactly did I find WRONG with this particular book? Well, for starters, where's Hulk Hogan vs. Rowdy Roddy Piper? THAT was the feud that lead to and headlined the first-ever WrestleMania. That was the feud that helped put the WWF on the map and usher in Vince McMahon's multi-million dollar vision of sports-entertainment. It gave us countless great moments and many a wrestling spectacle. For that not to have been included is insulting, frankly.

And then there's things like Mr. Perfect vs. Ric Flair. Yes, they had a great run together, but you're left wondering why something like say Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage wasn't included instead, when they had much more of a memorable run together in both WWE and WCW, producing awesome storylines and matches.

Mankind vs. Shawn Michaels is something I don't think should've been documented, either. Don't get me wrong, their unforgettable Mind Games battle is a timeless classic, but there was no real rivalry between the two. Really, it was just that ONE battle. And for that to be included kind of contradicts the whole point of the book. And DX vs. The McMahons from 2006? It was a good feud that produced some good stuff, but there were many more rivalries that were far better. The absence of Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero's history prior to WWE (specifically the perfect Cruiserweight Title bout from WCW Halloween Havoc `97) takes points away and D-Generation X vs. the New World Order? That's something that should've been more appropriately labelled WWE vs. WCW, detailing the intense Monday Night War.

Of course, there are so many WWE-born rivalries that deserved to be included. Undertaker vs. Mankind, Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels, Triple H vs. Mick Foley, Trish Stratus vs. Lita, Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit, Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart etc...But the truth is, as Jeremy Roberts points out, there's no definitive list for this kind of thing. It's impossible to achieve as there's always going to be people out there with different opinions. It's impossible to please everyone.

But I like Roberts' intelligence and the fact that he doesn't insult the reader's intelligence speaks highly of him. He explains that the selection was made by a `team of experts' and that the circumstances meant he had little to work with. Roberts says it's also fun to have a try with something like this, so the flaws with Showdowns are not his fault, really. And he does a fab job in making this book worth your time.

The majority of the feuds chronicled in the book are absolutely spot-on. They truly are the elite from the Federation Years, the Attitude Era and WWE today. Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage, Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart, Undertaker vs. Kane, Steve Austin vs. Mr McMahon, Triple H vs. The Rock, The Rock vs. Steve Austin, Edge/Christian vs. The Hardys vs. The Dudleys, John Cena vs. JBL, Randy Orton vs. Undertaker, Batista vs. Triple H, Edge vs. John Cena and Undertaker vs. Batista...these are ALL rivalries that helped shape the sport into the wonderful phenomenon that it is today. They all featured awesome segments, allowed all involved to shine, changed everything, gave classic bouts and left a legacy for fans to remember forever.

And Roberts' writing does all these unforgettable rivalries true justice. He emphasises just how important they were, the whole aura and spectacle of the match-ups, contrast in styles/characters, how well-crafted the storylines were, the twists-and-turns, the awesome bouts produced and how caught-up fans were in the drama. The various references from wrestlers' memoirs is also a cracking touch. Although there are minor historical inaccuracies, these are few and forgivable. As is the fact that there are a few notable rivalry moments omitted. The good outweighs the bad significantly here. And Roberts' introduction to the book, including the importance of wrestling showdowns and the historical mention of George Hackenschmidt vs. Frank Gotch from 1908/1911, is absolutely superb and really enlightening.

At two-hundred pages long, WWE Showdowns isn't that big a book. The idea was to try and sum up the importance and impact of wrestling rivalries in a nutshell and to please fans universally. It doesn't quite succeed, but thanks to Jeremy Roberts' writing and 17/20 well-chosen feuds, it's a great read that's worth a tenner. Recommended.

Some of the greatest showdowns
I bought this book a couple of days ago and i am a big fan of wrestling and i believe that what makes wrestling great are their individual story lines and i have gave it a 3 star because it is a good book but i do find it a bit boring at times and also i am quite annoyed at how they didn't choose Austin and Triple H as one of the top 20 rivalries because that one got quite personal, if i remember correctly that one of them went round to one of their houses beat each other up also they had a no holds barred match at Survivor Series 2000 where it ended where Stone Cold smashed HHH's car with a fork lift with HHH in it. Also they had one of my favourite matches of all time at no way out 2001 the 3 stages of hell match.

I would get it if your a wrestling fan and to re - live some of the greatest rivalries i just think it can get a bit boring.

The worst wrestling book i ever read
The most interesting part of this book is the introduction. The rest of the book it's just telling how the showdowns were. The promos and in ring action. But nothing about the making of the matches, nothing about de backstage, no even a single "secret". Every one can see what happened in the Wrestling, there are video libraries, dvds, tv on demmand. I hope more of a wrestling book than this.