Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen (2 Official DVDs)

Date Released: 4/10/07

Before the nWo, DX, and Evolution...there was the Four Horsemen. This was the elite stable/faction in wrestling that dominated the late 1980's in the NWA to the point where they're influence on wrestling is still being felt to this day & will be felt on throughout professional wrestling. In this DVD, you get comments from almost all the horsemen except Brian Pillman (R.I.P.), Sting, Sid, Ole Anderson, Lex Luger, Jeff Jarrett, and Steve McMichael. With that said, you hear from all other members of the Horsemen and how they rated each member of the group.

Documentary:
The documentary starts on Ric Flair helping Arn Anderson break into the NWA with his resemblance to Ole Anderson forming the Minnesota Wrecking Crew. The real story behind the Anderson's "family ties" with Flair is discovered along with quick profiles on Flair & Tully Blanchard before the story of how all 4 men united against Magnum T.A. & Dusty Rhodes is told. How J.J. Dillion was factored into the equation, the story behind the "4 Horsemen" name and the impact they had as a group is also chronicled. Their feud with Dusty Rhodes is discussed including hearing the story behind the Horsemen attacking Dusty Rhodes in a parking lot & how that resulted in fans demanding that they would be brought up on police charges. The "high roller" lifestyle that the Horsemen lived & talked about on promos is highlighted before moving on the story of behind Lex Luger replacing Ole Anderson in the Horsemen. The funniest part of the documentary is next when Ric & Dillion talk about the Precious angle where Ric Flair won a date with her & how they were building it up until Ronnie Garvin (dressed like a woman) ruined the whole thing. The concept behind the War Games match & how important a role Dusty & Arn had in it is heavily discussed with additional comments from Road Warriors manager Precious Paul Ellering. The tag team of Arn & Tully is glossed upon before getting to the story behind Lex Luger leaving the Horsemen & Barry Windham eventually taking his place. The story behind the Horsemen having a monopoly on the championships and how that lead to problems in the locker room is discussed before Arn & Tully talk about leaving the NWA because they felt like they were being underpaid to the point where Tully mentioned that J.J. got paid 3x's more than he did for a PPV match. The aftermath of Arn & Tully leaving, the NWA being bought by Ted Turner, and the placement of Jim Herd in WCW's management is discussed along with the story behind Kendall Windham's association with the Horsemen with comments from Kendall himself. Hiro Matsuda replacing J.J. Dillion and how that made things even worse for the current state of the Horsemen is discussed along with the story behind Arn Anderson returning WITHOUT Tully Blanchard & Barry Windham himself leaving. The true story behind Sting becoming a Horsemen and his rivalry with Ric Flair is heavily discussed including the infamous "Black Scorpion" angle that Flair himself even admit was embarrassing. The story behind Sid Vicious being put into the group to the heavy disapproval of Ric Flair is brought up before Flair discusses how he left WCW (which was heavily censored), why his WWE run didn't live up to expectations, and his return back to WCW. This is one of the most interesting parts of this DVD as they talk about Paul Roma joining the Horsemen with Roma himself talking about what he brought more to the table that "Pillsbury dough boy" Anderson & "98 year old" Flair couldn't. The hotel incident involving Sid Vicious stabbing Arn Anderson with scissors and how that led to the Roma version of the Horsemen ending. The brief Anderson/Flair rivalry in late '95 that eventually lead to the '96 version of the Horsemen with Pillman, Benoit, and eventually Steve McMichael is gone into detail including how much of a role the ladies (Elizabeth, Woman, Debra McMichael) played on & off the camera. The storyline behind Jeff Jarrett becoming a member of the Horsemen is briefly discussed...in a negative light...before the importance of Arn Anderson's retirement is heavily discussed. The problems between them, Eric Bischoff & the nWo is heavily discussed as the story behind Ric Flair disappearing in '98 is told from both sides along with comments regarding the nWo's mockery of Anderson's retirement speech. The last version of the Horsemen is discussed along with why it didn't work out with everyone going their separate ways before ending the DVD on the legacy the 4 Horsemen left on the sport.

Matches Included:
Ric Flair, Arn & Ole Anderson vs. Pez Whatley, Italian Stallion, Rocky King - Despite what the chapter menu & insert booklet advertised, Tully Blanchard wasn't in this match, it was Ole Anderson. This was your typical TV match in which it was an exibition for the future Horsemen showcasing both their offensive & defensive skills.
"NWA World Championship Wrestling" June '85

Steel Cage Match: NWA Champion Ric Flair vs. Ricky Morton - Ricky Morton was out for revenge here against Flair for the Horsemen breaking his nose & as a side note, Ric Flair sure knew how to make one hell of an entrance for this event. Ricky took the fight right to Flair in the beginning & even "made an ass" out of him at one point. Flair heavily targeted his broken nose using the steel cage to assist him while Morton returned the favor with the cage later on. This was a match that went back & forth with Morton coming so close various times to getting the victory.
NWA Great American Bash '86

First Blood Match: Tully Blanchard vs. NWA Television Champion Dusty Rhodes - This match had a very comedic beginning with the antics of both Tully & James J. Dillion resulting in Dillion bleeding worse than anyone else involved in the match. With the way this match was structured, this was a different encounter than usual as both men were wrestling more of a defensive style & heavily protecting shots to the head while also giving out more impactful blows to the other's head. This was a good match with great storytelling by both men.
NWA Starrcade '86

War Games Match: Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Tully Blanchard, Barry Windham, James J. Dillion vs. Dusty Rhodes, Lex Luger, Steve Williams, Nikita Koloff, Paul Ellering - For those who never seen a War Games match, it's a two ringed cage match with a caged top on it & the first two wrestlers go in for 5 minute period. A coin toss is held (which the heels always seem to win) to determine who goes in next and the teams alternate wrestlers entering the match. When the final wrestler enters the cage, the only way to win is by submission or surrender. This was just a battle as it got real bloody & violent with all men just beating the crap out of each other with their bare fist before "The Match Beyond" actually began. This is really just a unique match to sit back & watch to see how so many different styles came together for this match.
NWA July '88

NWA World Tag Team Champions Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard vs. Sting & Nikita Koloff - They went to the 20 min. draw here but it was a solid match here from beginning to end. You saw the traits of what made Arn & Tully one of the greatest tag teams as they cut the ring in half & always kept their opponetts in control while Sting & Nikita held their own here as well.
NWA Great American Bash '88

NWA Tag Team Champions Arn Anderson & Tully Blanchard vs. Lex Luger & Barry Windham - The team also known as the "Twin Towers" dominated the first half of this match to the point where Luger he got the Torture Rack on Tully in the first minute & Barry had a sleeperhold so tight on Tully that he was able to keep it on when they both rolled out of the ring. The Horsemen later caught up & did what they did best in tag team wrestling by cutting the ring in half & making their quick tags having this match go back & forth between both teams with the crowd hot the entire time. James J. Dillion got involved in the end as this match didn't go long but it was non-stop action from start to finish.
"NWA Clash Of The Champions" Mar. '88

Ric Flair vs. Arn Anderson - As they talked about on the documentry, this was a match that nobody would ever thought they see but deep down...was curious about & did want to see to the point where you saw various WCW talent sitting in the audience just to see what happens. Since both men knew each other so much, this had various moments where both men ended up showing each other up at one point & hitting their trademark moves while at times countering the other person's moves. This lived up to the hype it had down to the commentary putting over just how close & personal this match was but with who got involved in the end & how things ended up happening within the next month, this match would be the starting point to the reunion of the next generation of the Horsemen.
WCW Fall Brawl '95

Extras:
Other DVD extras include interview outtakes such as the story behind the Horsemen interviews & "The Four Horsemen Vitamins", J.J. Dillion talking about this pre-War Games match & getting surgery, Tully Blanchard remembering a college kid buying a Rolex because the Horsemen did, Jim Ross' relationship with the Horsemen, Barry Windham remembering being busted open by Lex Luger, Ric Flair on his wildest night in the business, and Dean Malenko talking about how he met Arn Anderson & a funny story about a hardcore Chris Benoit fan who had no thumbs. 10 Horsemen promos are included such as Ric Flair's WCW return in '98, Sting being kicked out the group, and J.J. Dillion receiving a ring as a gift from the Horsemen. Easter eggs include two hidden Horsemen promos, Dusty Rhodes talking about Arn & Tully leaving, Ric Flair discussing Bischoff's reaction to Sting beating him, and the true story behind J.J. Dillion's ring.