Wrestlerock 14: Get In The Ring - DVD Review

We’re heading down under for my latest review, as Jag Hartley Jackson renews his rivalry with Australia’s weapon of mass destruction, Chris Knight, and Krackerjak faces a British radio disc jockey (sadly it’s not Jimmy Saville) at Wrestlerock 14: Get In The Ring, held at the Hi-Fi Bar in Melbourne this past November.


After Julian James and Chris Fresh make their introductions, it’s on to the first match, with perennial underdog Cletus facing reluctant WTC member Carlo Cannon, accompanied by Sebastian Walker and his cronies. Cannon is literally pushed towards the ring handcuffed. (Read my review of Wrestlerock 13 to find out why.) It’s a fast paced match to open the show, which is to be expected with these two against each other, and it makes for great viewing. Cannon annoys his new boss throughout the match with shows of sportsmanship, something which definitely isn’t on the WTC agenda. Mid-way through the match, Cletus pulled off what could possibly be the best move I’ve ever seen. He took hold of Cannon’s right arm, ran up to the top turnbuckle, somersaulted backwards, and took Cannon down with a DDT on the way. He then followed that up by jumping off the top rope and connecting with a second DDT as Cannon stood in the middle of the ring. Tremendous stuff here, and, shock of all shocks, after Cannon missed his sexy-back move, Cletus took him out with his version of the Canadian Destroyer, finishing him off with a shooting star press to earn his first ever victory in Wrestlerock. Needless to say that this didn’t sit too well with Mr. Walker and his cohorts, and when the lovely Valentine came down to the ring to try and stop things, she ended up getting clobbered for her troubles.

Next up was the Dowie Cup, (yes, that’s the Dowie from the Temo tag-team), with Dowie’s partner Ryan facing Mad Dog. The emo-inspired Ryan wasn’t exactly too thrilled with the opponent Dowie had chosen for him. But that being said, Ryan put up a good fight against the Dog, although for a minute I thought I was watching a TNA show as they fought briefly in the crowd. Eventually, and after quite a few iffy moments, Mad Dog won the match after taking Ryan down with a powerful clothesline. Afterwards Dowie tried to present the Dog with the cup, which was so small you could fit it into your pocket, but the Dog ended up kicking the hell out Dowie just for the fun of it.

Then it was on to Daniel Swagger, taking on Wrestlerock regulator Slex. Swagger really disappointed me at the last Wrestlerock show, so I was hoping for an improved performance here. I got it. Swagger and Slex put on a great contest, the perfect showcase for their skills, with a back and forth encounter that mixed traditional wrestling with hard hitting action and high flying moves. It reminded me of the classic Slex v Lazer encounter a few shows back, and after what seemed like an age of great action, Swagger got the win by taking Slex out with his variation of the Ace Crusher, the Flux Capacitor, with his buddy Trikki D holding down Slex’s legs from outside the ring as he made the pin. Possibly one of the best Wrestlerock matches I’ve ever seen.

The mad bastard Krackerjak was up next, taking on radio DJ Ian “Dicko” Dickson. Dicko had been bad mouthing professional wrestling on his radio show, which was the reason for this match. Now I’m not exactly a fan of celebrities taking part in wrestling matches. I began to have flashbacks of Jay Leno in WCW while watching the events leading up to this match. But I have to admit that this Dicko bloke didn’t do too badly. With some able assistance from his corner man Brave Dave, he was able to put up a good enough fight. Thankfully Krackerjak came out on top in this one, avoiding the old powder to the eyes trick and taking the DJ out with the Britney Spear. Afterwards Dicko admitted that he’d been wrong about wrestling, which didn’t sit too well with Brave Dave, who ended up on the receiving end of another Britney Spear. Oh, and Dicko didn’t exactly get away with the comments he’d made before anyway. An okay match, but not exactly my favourite Krackerjak moment.

Main event time, with Australia’s weapon of mass destruction, Chris Knight, renewing his rivalry with Wrestlerock Champion Jag. This match had been almost a year in the making, and it was well worth the wait. As was expected of these two, this was a hard hitting encounter in which no quarter was given. Knight looked great in his Wrestlerock comeback, and Jag, well, was Jag, as tough and dependable as ever. But this match won’t be remembered for it’s action, it will be remembered for it’s controversy. Jag tried to introduce a pair of brass knuckles into the match, and the referee took a hit as he tried to stop the champion from using them. After Jag used the knuckles to bust open Knight, regulators Slex and Lazer came down to the ring, and allowed Jag to continue. The referee took a second hit, and Julian James came into the ring with a referee’s shirt on. As Knight went for a cover, James made the count, but stopped at two, giving Knight the finger. Seconds later he was fast counting Jag’s pin after the champion took Knight out with the Jagged Edge. James then revealed what was happening, the formation of The Establishment. As Knight lay on the floor in a pool of his own blood and the crowd, shocked, began to thrown rubbish into the ring, Wrestlerock’s newest stable celebrated with champagne and ring girls.

There’s the usual extras with this release, highlight videos, etc, as well as a set from Guns ‘N’ Roses tribute band Appetite For Destruction.

In conclusion - although I was only impressed with three of the five matches on this DVD, I’ll always remember Wrestlerock 14 for the dramatic ending. The formation of The Establishment stable could well go down as the best angle in Wrestlerock’s short history. It was played out to perfection. It more than made up for the Dicko/Krackerjak affair and the disappointing Dowie Cup match. Wrestlerock 14 may not be the best DVD in this promotion’s short history, but it’s certainly the most dramatic, and that alone is worth the price of admission.

With thanks to Rohan Herbstreit for supplying a copy of this release. For more information on Wrestlerock, visit www.wrestlerock.com.