Do you like Blood? Chair shots? High Flying? Table Breaking? BARBED WIRE ?? THUMBTACKS??!!! Then let me tell you about one of my all time favorite DVDs released by Total Nonstop Action. I'm talking about The Best of the Bloodiest Brawls Vol. 1
This DVD really shows the true glory days of TNA and how far the wrestlers of this phenomenal roster were willing to go whether it was trying to win the championship or simply pick up a win in a feud. Lets get started on what I thought of each match
Monsters Ball 1, Monty Brown vs. Abyss vs. Raven
This match was OK not as good as you would expect especially after reading who is in this match. I expected a lot more but the match is not terrible, there's some blood and Monty Brown Pounces Raven through a table which does not look like it felt good. The best part is when Raven power-bombs Abyss off the top of the turnbuckle on top of scattered thumb tacks.
best just watch for yourself and see what you think
Raven vs. Abyss vs. Monty Brown in the 1st ever Monsters Ball
Six Sides of Steel, America's Most Wanted vs. Triple X (losing team must disband)
This was voted match of the year in 2004 and for a very good reason. This is a match that you must watch in order to believe how amazing it truly is.Christopher Daniels, Elix Skipper, Chris Harris, and James Storm truly know each other in the ring. The match starts off at fast paced with quick tag team moves and Daniels almost immediately starts to shed blood from his forehead. Speaking of Daniels, this guy is one of the greatest heels I have ever seen. I love when Daniels and Skipper handcuff Chris Harris to the cage and start beating the shit out of James Storm. Lots of awesome double team moves being performed by Triple X on James Storm. Of course the most defining moment is when Skipper walks across the thin top of the cage and performs the most amazing hurricanrana on Chris Harris from the top. That moment right there defines TNA and its X Division roster.
AMW vs. Triple X in six sides of steel
Full Metal Mayhem, Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss
This match is awesome, Jeff Hardy and Abyss obviously have very different styles in the ring and it they mix well int he ring. The match eventually goes backstage and there's a cool moment where Jeff Hardy does a Swanton Bomb on top of Abyss through a table after literally jumping off the wall. This is one of the better matches of Jeff Hardy's career
Abyss vs. Jeff Hardy in a Full Metal Mayhem match
Six Sides of Steel, AJ Styles vs. Abyss
By the time I got to this match my thoughts were "This just keeps getting better and better!!" AJ Styles is like a pro wrestling Spider-man and Abyss is just vicious inside the ring, but now we got AJ Styles and the monster inside a steel cage. before they even make it to the cage, the two competitors start brawling out the ring and around the crowd. awesome leap moves done by AJ. Dude is literally just jumping all over the place, jumping over the crowd, and spring boarding off the steel guard rail like its a rope itself!! Eventually the tides turn when Abyss viciously swings the cage door open and smacks AJ in the face which leads to blood pouring down his face and also leads to the match finally starting in the ring. Abyss brings in a huge chain and literally starts torturing AJ Styles by smacking him and choking him with the thing and more blood continues to run down the face. This match just went from super hero movie to a horror exploitation film. There's an amazing camera shot with AJ laying on his back and blood running down his face and he has a look like he's just been through some sort of terror house of torture and Abyss is the sick murderer who's getting ready to just finish him. It's moments like those that make professional wrestling the amazing spectacle that it is. Lots of good back and forth throughout the rest of the match. Eventually Abyss brings out the thumbtacks and AJ does a Styles Clash right on top of it which leads to tacks sticking on the front torso of Abyss. The match ends after AJ performs a sunset power bomb from the top of the cage.
This is a match you really do need to see for yourself and here it is
Abyss vs. AJ Styles in Six Sides of Steel
House of Fun, Raven vs. Sean Waltman
The best word to describe this match is right there in the title "FUN!" What makes this match interesting is that there is a net with various weapons hanging from it including trash cans, chairs, kendo sticks, and even a staple gun and on the other side of the ring is a single cage wall. This match is nonstop from the beginning. Raven already starts to shed blood in less than 5 minutes. Lots of trash can and kendo stick shots to the head and back. At one point Sean does a Seton flip on top of raven through a table which looks cool. The match comes to an end when Sean Waltman brutally staples the shit out of Raven's forehead and then Raven somehow is able to throw Waltman right through the cage wall and wins with a pin. Awesome match!! lots of blood and lots of violence!
here's a link to watch for yourself
Raven vs. Sean Waltman in a House of Fun match
Dog Collar Match, Raven vs. Abyss
What a match!!! One cool thing you should realize about this particular match are the 2 hardcore individuals in this. Raven has a brutal history in ECW, WCW, TNA and WWE while Abyss has been terrorizing TNA and is becoming the new face of hardcore at the time. These two going at it one on one is nothing but pure gold and to make things even better they're chained to each other!! How hardcore can you get!!! this is a match you truly just need to sit there and watch for yourself! breaking tables!! Staple gun!!! thumb tacks!! the match is just hardcore as hell!!!
Raven vs. Abyss in a Dog Collar match
Tag Team Match, Raven & Sabu vs. Rhino & Jeff Jarrett
Pretty decent match nothing special really, the best part is when Raven cuts Jerrett's forehead open with a pizza cutter. Abyss interfere and throws Sabu through a table. Match ends with Rhino spearing Raven through a table.
Raven & Sabu vs. Rhino & Jeff Jarrett
Monster's Ball 2, Rhino vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss vs. Sabu
One of my all time favorite matches in TNA history. If someone were to ever ask me, "why would a wrestling promotion call themselves Total Nonstop Action?" the first thing I would do is show them this very match because that's what this is. Non-stop action from beginning to end. It really is the perfect formula, You have Jeff Hardy who is one of the most insane high flyer's of all time, you the Sabu who is one of the biggest hardcore legends of our time, the MONSTER Abyss who is destructive against anyone he faces and Rhino who has probably the best Spear finisher I have ever seen in pro-wrestling. Lots of chair shots, kendo stick shots and plenty of table breaking. The biggest highlight is when Jeff Hardy does a Swanton Bomb off the entrance ramp on top of Abyss through a table. The match ends with Rhino giving one of the most brutal pile drivers off the apron on Jeff Hardy for the win. In my personal opinion this is the TNA match that should be shown to anybody who has never seen TNA.
Jeff Hardy vs. Abyss vs. Rhino vs. Sabu in Monsters Ball 2
Jeff Jarrett & America's Most Wanted vs. Rhino & Team 3D
Just like the previous tag team match I talked about, this match is OK. There's a lot of in crowd fighting which is always fun. Other than that the match is very meh. I don't even know why it's on this DVD to be honest
Jeff Jarrett & America's Most Wanted vs. Rhino & Team 3D
Barbed wire Massacre, Sabu vs. Abyss
Now this is a way to end a compilation DVD! This was the first ever barbed wire rope match on broadcast live on pay per view and it was also the first barbed wire match since Sabu vs. Terry Funk in ECW back in 1997. This match is not for the fate of heart, it is bloody and grueling to watch. One of the most nerve cringing moments for me was when Abyss throws Sabu onto the barbed wire rope and he gets his neck stuck in the wire. Sabu really gets the worst of it in this match. At one point the man gets his legs stuck in the wire and you that just cant feel good. The worst part for him is when Abyss throws him front first on top of the barbed wire board. Can you imagine your entire front being stabbed by barbed wire and then someone pulling you off?? The match has an awesome ending when Sabu traps Abyss in between 2 of the barbed wire boards and makes an Abyss Barbed wire sandwich. That has to be the worst feeling in the world. This is a match that you should probably not show kids to be honest.
Sabu vs. Abyss in a Barbed Wire Massacre match
If you are a hardcore wrestling fan then this is the DVD that you must own and have stored in your collection. It deserves to be up there with your ECW compilations and you know it. overall I give this DVD a 9/10 and the only reason its not a full 10 are because of the few matches that I feel should not have been on here.
If there's a wrestler in this DVD that I think really shines it is obviously "The Monster" Abyss! This DVD is his legacy. He is the only one who isn't a past WWE or ECW wrestler so he obviously had to prove himself when going against hardcore legends like Raven and Sabu. I think Mike Tenay said a similar quote but when you think of a list that contains "Hardcore Legends" you list people like Abudllah the Butcher, The Original Sheik, Terry Funk, Sabu, Mick Foley well now you have no choice but to add Abyss to this list.
Its unfortunate that TNA currently has him wrestling as Joseph Park. It's been a year and nobody likes the gimmick. We all want Abyss. I don't know about you but I never got bored of the Abyss gimmick. Its good, he knows how to sell it, his matches are off the hook, and he has stayed with the company since the beginning. You have to admire this.
Thanks for reading. I'll be sure to have more DVD reviews in the near future as well as thoughts on whats going on in the WWE and TNA world.
