Ricky Steamboat: The Life Story of the Dragon Review
January 2, 2012
By Ricky Dozan
Disc 1
The first disc of this set features a 70 minute documentary profiling Ricky's entire career. There's nothing too extreme on this documentary as Ricky never had any drug-induced one night stands or anything along those lines. Which is very good to hear, seeing how many other superstars from Ricky's time turned to drugs and booze. It's your standard WWE documentary to be honest. Which isn't exactly a bad thing, but nothing really makes it stand out. I enjoyed it though, and I'm sure die-hard Ricky fans will too.
The extras are quite interesting. Some of them are outtakes of the main feature. For example, Ricky talks about his first car, William Regal talks about watching Flair/Steamboat for the first time. That sort of thing. Not needed for the documentary but cool clips to see. The rest of the disc is promos that Steamboat has done throughout his career. Oh, and we get his entire 2009 Hall of Fame induction. Nice. Pretty solid set so far.
Disc 2
Ricky Steamboat & Jay Youngblood vs Jack & Jerry Brisco - Starrcade 1983 - World Tag Team Championship
A good old-fashioned southern formulaic tag match. Youngblood & Steamboat had fantastic chemistry. A very underrated tag team.
3/5
Ricky Steamboat vs “Nature Boy” Ric Flair - JCP Boogie Jam 1984 - World Heavyweight Championship
They fight for over 50 minutes, so expect a lot of headlocks in this. It's very slow but it's filled to the brim with that Flair/Steamboat chemistry that we have all love. It may not hold a candle to their '89 series, but it's a good early preview. This match is also extremely rare to find, so that's always a plus.
4/5
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs Cowboy Bob Orton - WWF 7/20/1985
That is how you debut a superstar. WWF gave Steamboat 15 minutes to rip it up with an established name. Steamboat uses his flashy marital arts and sympathetic babyface skills to get over with the crowd. Even in his first match, the crowd goes nuts for him. Back-and forth WWF debut match for the Dragon.
3.5/5
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs The Magnificent Don Muraco - Lumberjack Match - WWF 9/22/1985
Quite an average match with a red hot crowd who freak out for Steamboat. Nothing else to say about this, really.
2.5/5
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs Jake “The Snake” Roberts - WWF 8/9/1986
A good example that shows that both Steamboat and Roberts have some of the best psychology skills in wrestling. Sadly, the physical content of the match doesn't live up to the psychology. It needed more action and a much better finish.
3/5
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs Randy “Macho Man” Savage - WWF Wrestlemania III - Intercontinental Championship
I've always thought this match was overrated, but on this viewing, I loved it. So many nearfalls and so much action for a 15 minute match. Add on top of that a mental crowd and plenty of drama and you got yourself an all-time classic.
5/5
Disc 3
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs “Nature Boy” Ric Flair - WCW Clash of the Champions VI - World Heavyweight Championship - 2/3 Falls
Everything to say about this match has already been said said. It's an all-time classic and I'd go as far as saying it's the greatest match to ever take place on American soil, and I'm not alone on that claim. Every move in this match had a purpose and the way they built up drama for the final fall is amazing. This is pro wrestling as an art, people.
5/5
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs "The Total Package" Lex Luger - WCW Great American Bash 1989 - United States Championship
This match took place in two rings, yes you heard me. Two rings. Reason being for that is because their was a huge battle royal on the same night that required two ring. The match here is very fast paced, but ends with a very lame finish that completely goes against Steamboat's character.
3/5
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat & Dustin Rhodes vs Arn Anderson & Larry Zbyzsko - Clash of the Champions XVII - WCW World Tag Team Championships
This is Ricky's return match to WCW and the crowd would have no idea Ricky was returning. Dustin Rhodes brought out his mystery partner in a dragon mask, and boy, when the mask came off the crowd went INSANE. The reaction last the whole match, which worked brilliantly with Ricky's hot tag to his partner.
4/5
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs Rick Rude - WCW Beach Blast 1992 - Iron Man Challenge
You can't get a better Iron Man match than this one right here. The heel Rude scores a good amount of falls and now Ricky has get back in the game and score some points of his own. The match may seem somewhat cliche now but this still stands up as a classic and a bar-setter for future Iron Man matches.
4.5/5
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs "Stunning" Steve Austin - WCW World Television Championship - WCW Clash of the Champions XX - No Disqualification Match
One of the matches that help "Stunning" Steve become "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. Not a classic by any means but a good showing from both men.
3/5
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat vs Chris Jericho - WWE Backlash 2009
Ricky's first one-on-one singles match in 15 years. Ricky shows hardly any ring rust. Jericho was a perfect opponent to cover up any flaws Steamboat may of had. Steamboat's hasn't lost a step in his psychology game and he has the entire crowd in the palm of his hand.
3/5
Overall:
If you're a fan of Steamboat, or of old school wrestling in general, get this set now. The documentary is passable, but the classic matches on discs 2 & 3 really make your purchase worth while.