When I was growing up as a wrestling fan there were four times a year that I couldn't wait for. The Royak Rumble in January, WrestleMania in March, SummerSlam at some point in the summer and then Survivor Series around Thanksgiving. Over the years a couple of those have fallen off my radar, and some new things have replaced them, such as Pro Wrestling Guerrilla's Best of LA event, CHIKARA's King of Trios tournament, and when ROH would bring in the Dragon Gate guys for WrestleMania weekend.
Now when I set up my wrestling calender, one of the events I look forward to the most is when Kayfabe Commentaries does their now annual Ring Roast event. Last year started off with a bang when the Iron Sheik roast DVD rocked my world. As a huge fan of the Howard Stern roasts and the Comedy Central roasts, I was actually surprised no one in wrestling had yet to do something that was clearly gaining popularity in the real world. Hell, I just bought Jeffrey Ross's I Only Roast The Ones I Love
book because of how much Ross kills at these events. I usually end up having to rewind my DVR because I missed a joke from laughing so hard. The Howard Stern roast of Andy Dick is also worth going out of your way to listen to.Ring Roasts 2, with guest of honor Terry Funk, establishes the Ring Roasts event as one of the premier wrestling events of the year. The dais was filled with solid comedians and wrestlers who have shared plenty of time with the Funker. As with Scott Hall's infamous appearance during the Shieky Baby roast, this year's show had New Jack losing his mind and trying to steal the spotlight by acting like an obnoxious jerk. New Jack aside, and ignoring King Kong Bundy's atrocious set, wrestling fans will find a lot to love about this two disc DVD set.
A common theme in the Ring Roasts events seem to be the wrestlers on the dais not fully understanding what a "Roast" is and instead use their time to tell stories about the guest of honor. To be completely fair, this is actually a good thing because my experience with wrestlers has driven into my skull that almost all of them are nowhere near as funny as they think they are. Instead they stay within their wheelhouse and I think it ends up helping the event as you get some humorous, and at times heart warming tales. Dennis Stamp almost steals the show when he takes the podium. Mike Graham, Kevin Von Erich, and JJ Dillon also bring home want a great person Terry Funk was to be around over the years.
Now every good roast saves their best for the end and this particular show had a murderer's row lineup as Matt Bridgestone, Missy Hyatt, and Mick Foley ended up flooring me and the live audience. Bridgestone has some killer material that some may find it "mean," but I found myself dying and hoping he was signed for next year's show. Bridgestone was also heckled by New Jack, but unlike Ryan Maher earlier in the night, he didn't let Jack throw him off his game and instead gave it right back. As for Missy Hyatt...wow. Missy's set fits right in with any you would see on a Stern or Comedy Central roast. The surprise of the night. Mick Foley ended the show and was his usual entertaining self. A couple years ago I went to a WrestleReunion show and they taped a "One Hour with Mick Foley" show that never ended up seeing the light of day. His material here was just like that fantastic night so many years ago. Foley knows how to tell a story, and when he does it in his humorous, self depreciating way, it reminds me of why I have stayed a fan of his throughout the years.
If you're a wrestling fan, you're going to love this DVD.
www.KayfabeCommentaries.com
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