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Wrestling Society X: The Complete First (And Last) Season |  | Actor: n/a
Studio: Big Vision
Category: DVD
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $14.79
as of 9/5/2010 23:12 MST details
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New (6) Used (11) from $13.41
Seller: bookguy15
Rating:  17 reviews
Sales Rank: 73550
Format: Box set, Color, DVD, NTSC
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Region: 0
Discs: 4
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Running Time: 600 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.5 x 1.3
MPN: 881737777195
UPC: 881737777195
EAN: 0881737777195
ASIN: B000UVV28I
Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Release Date: November 13, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
In January of 2007 the pro wrestling industry was shaken to its core when MTV launched Wrestling Society X. Rumors ran rampant throughout the industry about the front offices of other wrestling promotions fearing what would happen if this hip new take on their business filled with younger more entertaining more spectacular wrestlers and matches caught on. Luckily for them like all great revolutions it was misunderstood by many including the very network that stood to benefit most from its success.But for 9 glorious episodes (and one absolutely unbelievably %$@#* crazy season finale that never aired) WSX change the way people thought wrestling had to be presented. Those who "got it" loved it! Those who didn t still could not believe the quality of the matches compared to what was being offered by the established wrestling companies.System Requirements:Running Time: 600 Mins. Genre: SPORTS/GAMES UPC: 881737777195 Manufacturer No: 77719-7
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 17
Quite frankly, I wish this show was still on TV. February 1, 2010
PSX Gamer 1011 (USA)
Though I was once big into pro wrestling back during my teen years, I gave up on it in 2001 after Paul Heyman's ECW went out of business and Vince McMahon bought out WCW and staged the infamous "Invasion" angle in his own World Wrestling Federation. As a result, I ended up missing out on a lot of wrestling that was actually pretty good, which included the glory days of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, the emergence of such promotions as Ring of Honor and Chikara Pro, and the advent of perhaps the most underrated and underappreciated wrestling program ever to hit the airwaves--namely, Wrestling Society X.
Often accused of being a "rip-off" of the original ECW for its insane, fast-paced style of extreme wrestling and a variety of hardcore, off-the-wall gimmick matches (e.g., the Exploding Cage Time Bomb Death match from the unaired, last-ever episode), WSX set itself apart from the major promotions of the time by presenting pro wrestling in a light that the other two companies weren't. This wasn't mainstream wrestling per se--or "corporate wrestling," as pro wrestling genius Jim Cornette currently calls it--but rather sports entertainment staged as an underground wrestling venue featuring some of the most gifted wrestlers from the independent scene who put on outrageous stunts and had exciting matches week in, week out for the thousands of action-hungry fans who would pack the aptly designed and appropriately named WSX Bunker. No, it wasn't as serious a product as certain pro wrestling fans would have liked, but in spite of whatever cheesiness it had, WSX still accomplished the one goal that it had set out to fulfill in the sole eight-episode season it aired on MTV: It was actually entertaining.
To illustrate where I'm going with this argument, allow me to point out what I myself liked and didn't like with WSX's product and with this subsequent DVD collection. First off, here's what impressed me:
1. The action itself: Plenty of intensity for a program that was only given a half-hour timeslot on MTV as opposed to the full hour to two-hour timeslot that most wrestling shows get. Sure, the matches were short and sometimes even a bit spotty, but the athletes made the most out of whatever time they were given and did a good job of showcasing their talent. Plus, the show itself was well-balanced in terms of wrestling and non-wrestling segments (interviews, backstage vignettes, promos, etc.), and each segment, regardless of whether it was in the ring or not, helped to tell a very solid, cohesive story that carried on smoothly from week to week and helped to hype up the next upcoming episode (or, in the instance of the final episode, the next season) as well as incorporate the incidents from previous episodes into the mix. In short, WSX had both excitement and organization going for it, which made the product that much more enjoyable for many wrestling fans.
2. The roster, which featured some recognizable names from the previous decade (i.e., Justin Credible, New Jack, and most importantly, Vampiro and "6-Pac" Sean Waltman) as well as some previously undiscovered talent form the independent circuit like Scorpio Sky, the Human Tornado, "The Dark Prophet" Ricky Banderas (a.k.a. Judas Messias from TNA's late 2007/early 2008 roster), Jack Evans, and Matt Sydal, better known these days as WWE's very own Evan Bourne. The two particular characters who stood out for me the most on this roster were Youth Suicide, prodigy of hardcore wrestling veteran Supreme, and Matt Classic, a beefy mat technician whose whole gimmick was that he was a grappler from the 1960s who fell into a coma only to reawaken in 2006-2007 and embark on a quest to show all the young punk high-flyers what "true" wrestling was all about. All in all, it was a nice, eclectic mix of stars, although it did disappoint me that certain wrestlers (i.e., Chris Hamrick, New Jack, Credible, and Puma) wouldn't stick around for long.
3. The matches themselves, which ranged from standard one-on-one and tag team competition to such crazy bouts as the WSX Battle Royal from the series premiere and the aforementioned Exploding Cage Time Bomb Deathmatch. There was also the Piranha Tank Death match between Los Pochos Guapos and the Cartel from the unaired season (and series) finale, which just goes to show just how unique the product actually was. Truly, this was a show that wasn't afraid to fringe on the absurd for the sake of entertaining its audience, and I respect all the athletes involved to this day for putting their bodies on the line in such matches for the sake of entertaining us wrestling fans.
4. Most of the extras featured on the third and fourth discs in this DVD set. These include pre-WSX wrestling matches featuring Lacey in Shimmer and Lizzy Valentine as Valentina of the New York Knockouts in XPW; deleted scenes that were to be included in WSX's second season, including Youth Suicide challenging Ricky Banderas for the WSX Championship and a backstage brawl between Nic Grimes (a.k.a. Sara Del Ray) and Mickie Knuckles over the Anarchist Arik Cannon; music videos for Vampiro, Luke Hawx & Alkatrazz, the Trailer Park Boyz, and That 70's Team; and WSX promo clips and Script Gallery. Also featured on the first three discs are all ten episodes of WSXtra, the Internet show from [...] where Fabian Kaelin and Lacey talked about the previous episode of WSX while also showcasing an additional match or two as well as wrestlers' commentary on their own matches and commentary from the show's writers on what they had planned for the next season.
5. The music--namely, the show's theme song, "Going Postal," and the wrestlers' entrance themes. It's just too bad there wasn't a soundtrack CD packaged with this DVD collection, unfortunately, although that would have made this deal even sweeter than what it is now.
6. The absence of the musical performances that aired during the original tapings of each episode. Sure, the show aired on MTV, thus making these mini-concerts by the likes of Black Label Society, Clipse, and Three 6 Mafia more or less mandatory, but even the best performances really added nothing to the show. Basically, they were the equivalent to the Nitro Girls' dance routines from WCW Nitro.
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed this DVD collection, I do have my criticisms about it, which are as follows:
1. The packaging itself. I had bought this collection brand new nearly two weeks ago, and after having a troublesome time of digging the first disc out of the rather deep pocket in the center of the case, the disc had already been scratched. Thankfully, the scratches were minor and didn't affect play, but even so, it makes me wonder why Big Vision Entertainment would chose to have their product packaged in something that would be more detrimental to the condition of their product than it had been designed to be.
2. The commentary. Granted, Kris Kloss's play-by-play commentary here was actually a step up from the work he did during his XPW days, but that isn't exactly saying much. Not to say that he and his partner Bret Ernst are the worst commentary team in pro wrestling history, but there were little nuances with their work that made me want to hit the mute button on my remote, especially the duo's frequent arguments over which of them is the better commentator and other frivolous stuff (e.g., anything involving Lizzy Valentine). However, the additional commentary from the show's musical guests almost always made the commentary even worse with only few exceptions (i.e., Quiet Drive, New Found Glory, and even Styles P). All things being equal, though, at least Kris and Bret actually got into the action they were calling out, although enthusiasm is only one of a number of important factors in being a skilled pro wrestling commentator.
3. The excessive production. Granted, the additional visual effects were some of the things that helped make WSX stand out form other wrestling products, and in certain cases, they actually did so for the better (e.g., Matt Classic's entrances and video packages and the portrayal of Sakoda upon his abduction and "reprogramming" of Team Dragon Gate). However, the crowd sound effects didn't really strike me as necessary, considering how enthused the crowd was most of the time in booing the heels and cheering for the faces, and the camera work that took place during the matches was some of the most chaotic, headache-inducing stuff I have ever seen on a wrestling show. Not only did they have the annoying habit of cutting to the crowd or the commentators after practically every other spot (or to Lizzy Valentine, in the case of Matt Sydal's matches), but the deliberate shaking of the camera during the introductory pyrotechnics and pretty much every time Vic Grimes slammed himself or someone else down into the mat was a little overdone in my book.
4. Some of the extras on discs three and four seemed like little more than filler material, not the least of which being the modeling video shoots of Lizzy Valentine and Lacey and the ultra-disturbing, grossly "artistic" "Transformation of Fabian Kaelin" featurette. Seriously, the space used for those things could have been used for more useful material, such as additional "Virtual Trading Cards" for the stars who hadn't been otherwise featured (Ricky Banderas, Vic Grimes, The Cartel, etc.). Likewise, the VTC could have gone into more depth than they did. Instead of being just video packages of the wrestlers, they could have been similar to the Rough Cut videos TNA used to feature on iMPACT! and on their own YouTube page where the featured wrestler steps out of character and gives some information about himself or herself and his or her experiences in the wrestling industry. This would have been especially useful for those stars with whom mainstream audiences had yet to become acquainted to, such as the Human Tornado, the Trailer Park Boys, Teddy Hart, and Team Dragon Gate, describing in detail each wrestler's vital stats, signature moves, training, years in the business, titles held, and so forth.
All criticisms aside, though, I still enjoyed this DVD collection, and after watching it, I only wish that WSX had stuck around for at least one more season--perhaps even become more of a full-fledged show in the same light as TNA iMPACT! and WWE Raw and Smackdown. It was a fresh, fun show that wrestling fans like me could just sit back and enjoy with very few flaws to take issue with. Unfortunately, short though it was, the legacy of Wrestling Society X has long come to a close, but hey--at least we have this DVD set to remember it by.
 Amazing! I "get it!" You should too!!! August 27, 2009
S. Wegzyn (Seattle, WA USA)
I don't care what any so-called wrestling "purists" have to say, I "get it." I used to watch WWF as a child during the 80's with Hogan, Flair, Shawn Michaels, Macho Man. I watched in the 90's as guys like Austin, Rock, Helmsley, etc started to come up. So I'd like to think I know my wrestling like a wine taster knows his wine.
When I hit high school in the mid to late 90's I was blown away by the first revolution in pro wrestling: ECW. Why am I bringing this up?
If you can relate to me at all, if you were captivated by ECW, if you remember the way you felt the first time you saw it... That feeling that you were seeing something with pro wrestling you had never seen or felt before... The great technical wrestling, the high-flying action, the hardcore violence, seeing future stars in their prime honing their skills...
My friend, WSX is the new revolution in pro wrestling for the next generation. I bought this DVD set solely based on weighing the pros and cons of what I heard about it on the internet (and a few clips on YouTube).
I am blown away.
I haven't watched pro wrestling in 4 years and haven't missed it. WWE? No thanks. TNA? Meh. The last time I gave pro-wrestling a try was when McMahon resurrected ECW. It didn't take long to realize he was going to destroy that like everything else his senile *** has gotten his hands on.
WSX is everything that the others are not. It is loud, in-your-face, alternative. Just like Heyman's vision was for the original ECW.
I watched some XPW, even own some of their DVDs. It is what it was: An attempt at continuing what ECW started. Sure it had its detractors and, let's be honest, it had its flaws. But there was some talent there.
WSX is so much more. Imagine taking the best of XPW, the remnants of ECW that Vince didn't buy or TNA didn't scoop up. Imagine the idea of old-school ECW mixed with the production values of WWF. Sound strange? It is. But it is awesome. And it is so much more.
I saw a reviewer say "It was cool until the coffin "exploded" and the screen shook and blah, blah, blah. It looked fake." Um, faker than Vince "dying" in an exploding limosine? Give me a break. Yes, the explosion was produced and obviously rigged. Who cares? This is pro wrestling. The whole ****ing thing is scripted!
But unlike WWF, WSX scripts and books in a way that is fresh and exciting. Yeah some if it is gimmicky but again, give me a break. Gimmicks go hand in hand with the business.
I don't even know if anyone will find this review helpful, but frankly, I can't stop raving about this DVD. I watched it with my wife who appreciates pro wrestling as an art form (she's a modern dancer who used to do ballet) but let's just say it's not her preference of entertainment.
She couldn't take her eyes off it. I stood up and clapped. Do you know the last time I stood up and clapped for a wrestling show? It was ECW Cyberslam '99!
You want fast paced action? Check. You want high-flying? Check? You want over-the-top looking spots? Check. You don't want to be bored by the same old crap? Check, check, and check.
I'm sorry but if you truly love the art of pro wrestling, you need to forget about Cena vs. The Miz on Monday or Sting and Booker on TNA or whatever people who want to watch pro wrestling on TV watch.
You need to open your mind to the New Revolution. ECW did it once, WSX did it again. I don't know why this great product flew under the radar (including mine) when it premeired but please, please, please do *not* miss a chance to experience it.
If you don't like it, fine, some people just won't. Even ECW had it's detractors during the First Revolution. But you are seriously robbing yourself if you don't even give it a try, even a rental.
My hat is off to Big Vision and everyone involved with this project. Even Kris Kloss, and that guy used to iritate the **** out of me in XPW. You gotta hear how much he has matured professionally as a wrestling play-by-play guy. He doesn't even sound like the same guy. He was a pleasant surprise, like the rest of this package.
Do yourself a favor and check this out already.
Wow April 2, 2009
Popalopicus Kakalapudi (Wellsville, KS)
10 hours of great over the top wrestling! You gotta get this set!
 Are you kidding me? November 19, 2008
desperadosfan87
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Okay, so I heard that MTV was going to put on a new wrestling show to compete with the new ECW. I thought, that's great since the new ECW is getting worse (still good, though), but then I watched this trash that they called "wrestling". I was embarrased for the wrestlers, the bands that performed, and even the fans.
One of the first things that kind of bothered me was the ring announcer, what was he running for? A ring announcer is supposed to excite the fans, but that was a little much and it would have been fine until the "explosion" and the camera shaking. Skip the theatrics and start wrestling.
Next was the idea of bringing in popular bands to perform, uh why? This show is only a half hour (which is absolutely ridiculous, ECW started out crappy and it was given a full hour) so MTV needed to quit trying to promote music (what am I saying, they don't do that anyway) and get on with the show.
Finally, the matches themselves. Once again, if the theatrics could have been toned down, the matches would have been so much better (I did enjoy the title match between Vampiro and X-Pac).
So many say that this was great and that MTV did not give the show a chance. Are you kidding me? MTV gave the show all the chances in the world, even airing sneak previews to promote the show. WSX was a bad idea from the beginning, trying to recapture the spirt of the orginal ECW was just stupid. No matter how cheap this DVD set is or how great its executive producer thinks it is. True wrestling fans can see that this show is a waste of time and energy and I hope the wrestlers that were involved were happy to move on to much, much better things.
 Not Revolutionary - I've Seen Stuff This Bad Before November 12, 2008
Mike Schorn (APO, AE United States)
I consider myself a mark who's fairly easy to please: I got into the WWF's "Invasion" storyline, cheered the Big Show as the champion years ago, and even enjoyed the disastrous "Ready to Rumble" film when I was younger. This tolerance for the universally-panned aspects of pro wrestling helped me in sitting through the four discs that encompassed the short run of Wrestling Society X, but the sad fact is that unless you're ready to put up with some really bad stuff to get to the good parts, WSX really isn't for you. Watch the premier match of Jack Evans vs. Matt Sydal (aka Evan Bourne) online if you want to know how good it can get...but just look under your shoe after you've stepped in dog doo to see how bad it can get.
Presented as a secret society of pro wrestling and featuring a who's who of underrated stars on its roster, WSX existed on the premise of bringing highflying action to audiences the likes of which the omnipotent WWE wasn't about to allow. They followed through on it, too: if you're hankering for insane off-the-rope /ladder/cage/balcony moves, you've got it. You've also got the superstars to do it: in addition to Evans and Sydal, there are established stars like Vampiro and Sean "6-Pac" Waltman headlining the card above awesome indy talent like Human Tornado, Teddy Hart and Matt Cross, Ruckus, and Team Dragon Gate. Just about everybody on the WSX roster is a highflyer of unsung talent, and have more or less been given cart blanche on how they excite the audience. Very cool.
However, the fun stops there. The be systematic about the faults of the now-extinct federation, here's what dragged WSX down:
1. No variety. With few exceptions, every single match is built on aerial combat. This means no mat-based wrestling. Also, no psychology: when your agenda is to try to top how many moonsaults you can pull off, there's little character to a bout, making them all seem repetitive after a while...especially when it comes to messing up moves. Oh, and there's a 10-minute time limit to matches.
2. Lame characters. Vampiro, Waltman, and few of the other established stars don't do anything new, but in the face of a "Superfly"-styled pimp (Tornado), a stereotypical Hispanic mafia unit (The Cartel), an emo duo (D.I.F.H.), hillbilly cousins (Trailer Park Boys), and a tag team that blurs the line between disco and gay erotica (That `70s Team), I was left hoping for Doink the clown and the RTC.
3. Flawed broadcast team. The commentating duo of Bret Ernst and Kris Kloss is styled too much after Ross/Lawler; Ernst is good in his straight-arrow approach, but Kloss lacks both enthusiasm and creativity ("Look at him - he looks like Michael Jackson" is the wittiest thing he ever says). Ring announcer Fabian Kaelin needs to be gagged. And the guest commentators are pathetic in trying to appear as authorities on the sport.
4. Too much post-production editing. Do you think the audience in attendance literally shook like the camera did when Vic Grimes came off the top rope? Or got the same blurred effect when Ricky Banderas shot fire at Vamprio? Or saw how unnaturally sparkly Keepin' It Gangsta's props were?
5. Uneven coverage. This is definitely attributable to the show's short lifespan, but you hardly see some of the wrestlers while others are shoved down your throat. For example, throughout the series' ten episodes, we see the likes of Youth Suicide and Arik Cannon maybe three times, while That '70s Team and D.I.F.H. are on nearly every episode.
6. Lack of atmosphere. It really doesn't feel like a wrestling show at all. The audience is composed of MTV devotees who couldn't get onto another show, and half of which probably hadn't watched a wrestling match before in their lives. They have no idea what to cheer at, weren't allowed to bring signs, and appear discouraged from chanting.
Essentially, the wrestlers were competing with the format of the show rather than with eachother. Make no mistake, it's the wrestlers themselves who were what was great about WSX...but it was the show itself that flushed itself down the drain. As much as I'd like to, I can't recommend this to anybody other than viewers addicted to the highflying style...but even they will start fast-forwarding through the interviews and announcements like I did before long.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 17
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