Scan barcode
sasukle's review
4.0
Personally, I wish there had been a lot less imput from the out of touch, racist, sexist, homophobe that is Jim Cornette. Otherwise, this was quite an informative little read on the troubled times of the mid-nineties in McMahonville.
l0rdtim865's review
5.0
This is a good book for those that want an inside view of how bad wrestling got in the 90s however the facts are amazing.
elegantmechanic's review
informative
medium-paced
2.0
Somewhat entertaining but the approach to both writing style and research/citation is flawed and detracts a lot. Where the story is about well-documented incidents like the Syracuse nightclub fight, the book is credible and informative but these moments are occasional and often lost in a sea of inconsistent writing which varies in style as if several different people have taken turns at the keyboard.
At various points a detailed breakdown of a particular match will take place even though it doesn't really have any bearing on the overall story of the year, and the entire narration is peppered with reminders about spots being pre-arranged/choreographed/cooperative which is fine early on to set the tone of the book but the way it keeps being brought up as if it's a revelation is sometimes like reading a transcript of the voice over from Exposed! Pro Wrestling's Greatest Secrets.
This patronising tone is reinforced by the near-constant reference to wrestlers by their real names (Peter Polaco is referred to as such multiple times before finally being identified as the then-Aldo Montoya, which makes the references to him pointless if you don't happen to know his real name); this persists even when discussing the main event appeal of certain matches, leaving out the gimmick names as if the reader is supposed to be impressed with knowledge accessible to anyone with internet access; repeatedly calling Sid Vicious/Justice "Sid Eudy" doesn't add anything.
There is a lot of inconsistency in how major players' thoughts are sourced as well. Direct quotes from Jim Cornette and Kevin Nash for example (presumably taken from shoot interviews) are useful but then there are many strange 3rd person omniscient prose descriptions of what went through the heads of Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff and others at key moments including descriptions of how they breathed (a deep breath or through their teeth etc.) and even how they sat in their chairs, which can be nothing other than speculation. I understand dressing up the narrative a little to keep it interesting but claiming an inside line on McMahon and Bischoff's thought processes with nothing to back it up has the unfortunate effect of calling into question the validity of everything else that's written.
Overall a weird mish-mash of an attempt at a true history, smarky posturing, and poorly judged narrative choices leaves it at 2 stars and me not particularly keen to read the other two volumes of the "trilogy".
At various points a detailed breakdown of a particular match will take place even though it doesn't really have any bearing on the overall story of the year, and the entire narration is peppered with reminders about spots being pre-arranged/choreographed/cooperative which is fine early on to set the tone of the book but the way it keeps being brought up as if it's a revelation is sometimes like reading a transcript of the voice over from Exposed! Pro Wrestling's Greatest Secrets.
This patronising tone is reinforced by the near-constant reference to wrestlers by their real names (Peter Polaco is referred to as such multiple times before finally being identified as the then-Aldo Montoya, which makes the references to him pointless if you don't happen to know his real name); this persists even when discussing the main event appeal of certain matches, leaving out the gimmick names as if the reader is supposed to be impressed with knowledge accessible to anyone with internet access; repeatedly calling Sid Vicious/Justice "Sid Eudy" doesn't add anything.
There is a lot of inconsistency in how major players' thoughts are sourced as well. Direct quotes from Jim Cornette and Kevin Nash for example (presumably taken from shoot interviews) are useful but then there are many strange 3rd person omniscient prose descriptions of what went through the heads of Vince McMahon, Eric Bischoff and others at key moments including descriptions of how they breathed (a deep breath or through their teeth etc.) and even how they sat in their chairs, which can be nothing other than speculation. I understand dressing up the narrative a little to keep it interesting but claiming an inside line on McMahon and Bischoff's thought processes with nothing to back it up has the unfortunate effect of calling into question the validity of everything else that's written.
Overall a weird mish-mash of an attempt at a true history, smarky posturing, and poorly judged narrative choices leaves it at 2 stars and me not particularly keen to read the other two volumes of the "trilogy".
optimus's review
3.0
A quick read,Divulges some previously unknown information about the worst year of pro wrestling.nothing much else to it
jamesthegill's review
4.0
Thorough
A detailed look at probably the last full year I followed the (then) WWF, and the reasons behind it's decline!
A detailed look at probably the last full year I followed the (then) WWF, and the reasons behind it's decline!
More...