Posted on: June 24, 2008 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Practically any wrestling fan of the last thirty years will have Ric Flair as one of their top ten favorite wrestlers, whether it be the Ric Flair that wrestled through the territories in the seventies, the Ric Flair of the “Four Horsemen”, the crazy Ric Flair of the “Magnificent Seven” angle in late WCW or the wizened veteran that played against Mr. McMahon, headed up Evolution, or brought one of the best matches in WWE history to Wrestlemania XXIV. The amount of footage that has been brought out of the vault is simply amazing, with matches going all the way back to 1982 (which pitted Flair against Jack Brisco in a classic from Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling). Of course, WWE has placed classic matches from each era of Flair’s career, whether it be the 1985 match that had three-fourths of the Four Horsemen against Dusty Rhodes, Magnum TA, and Manny Fernandez, the 1988 classic with Sting for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, or the Taboo Tuesday cage match that Flair and Triple H had for the WWE Intercontinental Championship.

The set itself is broken into a documentary DVD and two match DVDs, and it is this break-down that shows all facets of Flair equally well. Perhaps the most memorable of inclusions during this set has to be the numerous promos that are present, which included “Stylin & Profilin’”, “Take A Ride on Space Mountain”, and a number of other intense, catchy, and brilliant promos from Flair’s late eighties run with the NWA (what would ultimately become WCW). However, it is the additional footage from the Monday Night Raw that centered around Flair’s retirement that may be the most valuable on the set, considering the fact that previous to this, the footage was never aired.

Where the allure of superstars like The Rock and Jeff Hardy seem to be limited to a subset of time from the nineties on, Flair’s appeal has lasted for a period of time that is now reaching 40 years. I would have to recommend this DVD set for anyone that considers themselves to be a true fan of wrestling, young or old; the ring psychology and promo skills of Flair are timeless, and should be studied throughout the next forty years. Pick this DVD set up.

Rating: 7.7/10

Nature Boy Ric Flair The Definitive Collection / 2008 WWE / 8 Hours / http://www.wwe.com /

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