Straight Outta Dudleyville is the new Dudley Boyz DVD hitting the shelves on Monday 11 April.
After a ten year absence Bubba and D-Von Dudley returned to the WWE as The Dudley Boyz last year. What better excuse then for WWE Home Video to release a 2 BluRay / 3 DVD box set focussing on the career of arguably the most decorated Tag Team in the history of the business. But is the new Dudley Boyz DVD worth your pennies?
There’s only one way to find out…
The main feature is an hour + documentary that takes the usual WWE form. Much like a lot of last year’s Sting documentary, it makes great play of featuring their return to the WWE (Sting’s focussed on his debut) and takes us backstage on the night they made their triumphant return. These bits are dotted around the story of the Dudley’s.
Both talk separately about their childhood days and how they got into wrestling. Bubba talks about always liking tag team wrestling and being front row the night that Jimmy Snuka jumped off the top of the cage in MSG. D-Von mentions being hooked in by a Bob Backlund versus John Studd match on TV and how eventually he went to be trained by Johnny Rodz (who is interviewed for the documentary) and says that it was a real no-nonsense school. Bubba refuses to even name the person who first “trained” him, saying he was a fraud who taught him nothing. Both men admit that their mothers were less than enamoured with their career choices.
After some lean years on the indie circuit (there’s some hilarious photos and footage of the two in their early years) both famously got their big break in ECW, despite Bubba admitting that the first time he saw it on TV he thought it was crap. The idea’s behind the Dudley gimmick are discussed (including comments from Raven, whose idea it was in the beginning) and if you’ve never seen an ECW Dudley promo you might be a little surprised at how much needs to be bleeped out. Their ECW career is talked about in general terms really, so whilst you don’t get too much of a feel for their matches and feuds, you do learn what went into the gimmick and how it became such a hated act in that company.
Contrary to previous statements on other WWE releases, Bubba admits the two were eager to move to the WWE and there are some cool stories about their initial meetings with the company. They admit that the flop stint by The Public Enemy placed a lot of pressure on them but that they passed the APA “test” and had no problems with anyone in the locker room after that. Their famous series of matches with Edge & Christian and the Hardy Boys are looked at in detail and as well as those highs they discuss the lows of being broken up in the Draft Split. Surprisingly enough though D-Von admits he loved playing the Reverend D-Von character.
The initials “TNA” are mentioned after they leave the WWE, and it’s quite a respectful part of the documentary. Although brief, their achievements there are mentioned, alongside praise for Bubba’s singles run. Trips to Japan and their wrestling school are also mentioned before we get to their recent return to the company. The most amusing part was Joey Styles wondering out loud whether the Dudley’s would ever get invited back because the “WWE is so focussed on youth”. Ok, Joey…whatever you say.
Although the documentary skims the surface of their careers in many ways it is a fun look back at the many highs and the occasional lows of the duo. Both are engaging interviewees and the list of talking heads (which includes the likes of Spike Dudley, Lance Storm, Ron Simmons and each man’s family) is well thought out and all add to the telling of the story.
The DVD add over 20 matches and segments as well as some story “out-takes” from the main documentary, some of which are new, some of which are expanded from the main feature. There are five original ECW matches, including a singles match between the pair and all give an effective look at what made the Dudley’s such an ECW institution. As you might expect there are a number of WWE matches that feature the teams of the Hardy Boys and Edge & Christian, including the SummerSlam 2000 and WrestleMania X-7 TLC matches. There’s also matches against the likes of The Acolytes, the New Age Outlaws, both D-Von and Bubba in singles action against Triple H and even a Tables Match against The Rock & The Undertaker.
The BluRay adds four more matches and also their return to the WWE from 2015.
Although the documentary really only scratches the surface of the Dudley’s career, it’s a fun look at it nevertheless and will be enjoyable for any fans of the duo. The match selection is wide and varied, encompassing some of their most famous moments but also taking a look back at some of the more random moments you might have forgotten.
All in all, a must for any fans of Bubba and D-Von.
Photos courtesy: Fetch, Fremantle Media
Format reviewed: Blu-Ray
Thank you to our partners, WWEDVD.co.uk and Fetch for providing our review copy of Straight Outta Dudleyville, which is available on DVD & Blu-Ray in the UK on Monday 11th April 2016. You can buy your copy from WWEDVD.co.uk now by clicking here
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