Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21281 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-05-10
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 232 minutes

Synopsis
Features footage from the Wrestlemania 1 and 2 events. Featured matches include: 'Andre The Giant vs Big John Studd', 'Hulk Hogan vs King Kong Bundy' and 'Rowdy Roddy Piper vs Mr T'. Features twenty-one matches in total.

Customer Reviews

The Start Of A Great Tradition...
WWE's court appeal against The World Wildlife Fund failed in 2002, which meant that all "WWF" videos and DVD's would have to cease, effective from November 2002. Fortunately, WWE have since been able to re-release archive "WWF" events on DVD, provided that any verbal references to the "WWF" are edited out.

As the appeal only affected the UK, this new "Tagged Classics" series is a UK exclusive. In essence, fans are getting two super shows for the price of one back when the events were available on video.

This particular DVD set features Wrestlemania 1 & 2. Wrestlemania 1 took place in March 1985 and put the then-WWF on the map. Due to the influx of celebrities on the show (such as Boxing legend Muhammed Ali and singer Cyndi Lauper), there was far more emphasis on entertainment than actual wrestling. Then again, this was Vince McMahon's vision: Wrestling had to be more of a show, more like "sports entertainment".

By today's standards, the actual in-ring action of WM 1 looks wholly inferior (which is because it is). But there are still some good matches on the show. For example, Hulk Hogan and Mr T (from the A-Team) have an entertaining tag-team main event with Roddy Piper and Mr Wonderful, Barry Windham and Mike Rotundo (IRS) have a surprisingly decent match with Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Sheik, Ricky Steamboat has a very good battle with Matt Borne (the original Doink The Clown) and Tito Santana sets the stage for WM well in a good opener against The Executioner. To be honest, the only true stinkers on the show are King Kong Bundy VS S.D. Jones, Andre VS John Studd and Wendi Richter VS Lelani Kai (boy, the Women's division has come a long way!)

The appeal of WM 1 lies in it's overall entertainment effect. It served it's purpose of gaining wrestling a whole new fan base and taking the business in a new direction. For any fan, it remains an historic collector's item to this day.

Wrestlemania 2 took place in 1986 and was the first (and last) time that the WWF alternated between 3 venues (Los Angeles, Atlanta and New York). It wasn't really a good idea as it conned the fans and led to allot of unnecessary hassle.

Once again, Hulk Hogan's match (a bloody Cage Match against Bundy) is the best, although the tag-title match between The Bulldogs and The Dream Team comes in a close second. Other worthy bouts include The Funks VS JYD and Santana, the 20-Man Battle Royal (which was Andre's career highlight), and a wild bout between George Steele and Randy Savage.

As with WM 1, there are some diabolocal bouts to endure. These include Moolah VS Velvet McIntyre, Adrian Adonis VS Uncle Elmer, Kirschner VS Volkoff, and Roddy Piper VS Mr T in a Boxing Match (seriously!)

However, like WM 1, WM 2 should be perceived as historical evidence as to how much the actual in-ring product has improved today. Old-school fans like myself will probably appreciate it more.

Overall, WM 1 and 2 are both enjoyable in their own right and are a worthy purchase for any fan. It's unfortunate that there are no DVD extras on offer, but the fact that these 2 hour shows are being sold 2 for 1 and are on great quality DVD's, is a good consilation.

HA HA TO THE YANKS.
WHEN THESE TITLES WERE DELETED IN NOV 2002, THERE WAS AN OUTCRY. BUT THANKS TO THE ENGLISH COURTS, SILVERVISION HAVE TO RIGHT TO PUBLISH ALL WWF CONTENT ON DVD WITHOUT EDITING WWF LOGOS OR ADS WHICH IS GREAT. TO BE FAIR THESE WRESTLEMANIAS ARE 20 YRS OLD AND CANT BE COMPARED TO WRESTLEMANIA 19 OR 20 BUT IF YOU WERE AROUND TWENTY YEARS AGO, YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN P**SING YOUR PANTS WITH EXCITEMENT.THESE DVDS ARE DIRECT COPIES OF THE WWF COLISEUM VIDEO VERSIONS AND CONTAIN NO EXTRA FEATURES AT ALL WHICH IS THE ONLY BAD POINT BUT THE PICTURE AND SOUND IS WAY BETTER. WRESTLEMANIA 3 AND 4 ALONG WITH KING OF THE RING 93 AMD 94 ARE AVAILABLE ON DVD SOON. NO CONFIRMATION OF RE RELEASED VHS VERSIONS YET FOLKS. ...... THE BEST THING THOUGH IS THAT THESE DVD ARE NOT AVAILABLE IN BIG MOUTH YANKEE LAND. WHEY HEY

Wrestlemania 1 and 2
As stated in earlier review there are no extras on these discs but the quality of sound and picture is very good. Not quite sure about the reviews referring to region access as most dvd players in europe can view all regions. If you enjoy seeing the wrestlers of the 80's then this is for you, hopefully other discs to be released might include extras but we will see.