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DVD Review : The Territory presents … iDOLS DONT EXiST
Reviewed by Steven Wilson of MainEventRadio.com
iDOLS DONT EXiST is the first DVD release from The Territory, which is a weekly California based internet television series that focuses on independent federations in NoCal. In their press materials, The Territory calls itself a “smart show aimed at the smart fan†with the goal of “capturing the impact of being inside the ring by bringing it to the home viewer†via the utilization of the world class apron angle and placement of as many cameras in as many spots as possible. The materials go as far as to say it is comparable to that of Vince McMahon’s presentation minus the 64 man production crew, It then says the product is being presented documentary style, which started to confuse me. Ultimately once I sat down and watched the DVD it would turn out that like many press releases the fluff PR doesn’t always explain exactly what the actual product is.
The Territory does live up it’s claim of presenting their matches unlike other indy feds in that they offer many more camera angles. The majority of indy fed dvd’s I have seen offer the hard cam and one ringside handheld camera. Does this make The Territory a better presentation than those of the typical indy fed? Well in some ways yes and in some ways no. At times it will offer an excellent angle on something that most others would not of got, while other times it can make you nauseous with the constant movement. Lighting can at times leave something to be desired but to be expected with the Indy scene, however to even try and mention any Indy fed and its filming in the same breath as the WWE and its filming is silly, let’s not go there and instead look at the actual product.
A 2 Disc set running over 3 hours in length, iDOLS DONT EXiST offers up a slew of violent hardcore blow off matches to various feuds from across the territory. Whether it be a street fight, or something much more insane like a barefoot thumbtack match or Double Hell Cage match, the theme to this DVD is bloodshed and plenty of it. This is a best of release but if you were to watch the show on a regular basis you would get the chance to see the characters in question play heel one week and face another as they tour through various indy feds in the state.
Disc 1 begins with a interesting intro video giving you the feel that you are entering some sort of war zone, this is probably where the claim of the footage being presented documentary style comes from. The action begins with a 2008 Double Hell Cage Match featuring 7 wrestlers inside 2 rings, 1 surrounded by barbed wire and the other inside a steel cage. It’s safe to say you haven’t seen many matchups like this as it combines a death match with a cage match and ladder match, and in order to win one must get the title down which is hanging in side the caged ring, and then use a ladder in the other ring to hang it up.Vinnie Massaro, Lester The Legend, Timothy Thatcher, Virgil Flynn, Sir Samurai, Double B Double Badd, and Mr Frost compete and To say the least this match sets the tone for the action to come on the DVD. This match is apparently the 2008 match of the year for the territory and is very well done, especially for something that could of ended up as a big mess.
A Reno city street fight is up next, as bad guy Adam Thornstowe lays down an open challenge which is answered by Mr Prime Time. These two brawl all over the building, nothing overly violent but a decent street fight nonetheless.
It’s with the next match that violence level gets turned way up as The Honour Society take on Kassy Summers and Timothy Thatcher in a Barefoot Tumbtack match. A pile of thumbtacks begin in the middle of the ring, while plates of hot sauce and rubbing alcohol await on the outside. More thumbtacks are added throughout the match as is lego which leads to a great heel spot where a broom is used to sweep most of this crap out of the ring at one point, but the faces bring out more tacks and quite frankly I can’t imagine enduring the pain that these guys and girl put themselves through, and here I thought only Necro Butcher was that screwed up to do matches like this barefoot.
A Table match between Rik Luxury and Adam Thornstowe is next, which was part of a best of 7 series between the pair. Fairly straightforward table match in a venue that had some very poor lighting. One of the highlights of disc 1 is a tapei death match between Timothy Thatcher and the Big Ugly. Beyond the glass taped to their fists, lightubes come into play in this match and is a hard fought bloodfest. Disc 1 then wraps up with a 6 man tag match between The Reno Scum and the Cartel which is another match that ends up as a big street fight.
Disc 2 shows you more of Luxury/Thornstowe’s best of 7 series starting with a Falls count anywhere matchup, and followed up by a steel cage match. The second dvd is headlined by the 7th match between the pair in a 1 hour hardcore iron man match to determine who is the best man in California. It is joined a few minutes in progress but you don’t miss much and is an great send off to what seems to have been a very violent feud, It was voted 2007 match of the year and for the matchups from the series alone this DVD justifies the 14.95 price tag if your into hardcore.
Extras are limited to a couple of big spot featurettes including a crowd toss and a double foot stomp onto a ref from the top rope. Also included is a complete match between Rik Luxury and Mr Prime Time.
Looking beyond the initial PR and taking into consideration that your watching an indy wrestling DVD, the bottom line is this is a strong hardcore wrestling dvd release. If you’re a fan of the style then you’ll enjoy this DVD immensely as the action is intense and extremely satisfying for any death match mark out there including myself. If you consider hardcore “garbage wrestling†then steer clear cause you wont be able to handle the brutality of the territory’s most violent matchups.
iDOLS DON’T EXiST is now available on DVD from The Territory’s official website at www.territorytv.com To read my previous wrestling dvd reviews you can check outwww.wrestlingdvdreviews.vze.com and you can also stalk me on twitter via twitter.com/wrestlingreview
