Darkside of the Ring season 4 discussion.

[air_raid]

7 hours ago, Browser Brady said:

The Sandman storyline was fine and all but it didnt draw any money and it never really went anywhere.

The thing was, and you can find negative and positive here, was that even when they were trading the belt, the story was never sole focus, interwoven as it was (playing second fiddle to?) Raven vs Dreamer which in turn crossed over with Dreamer vs Douglas and probably two or three other stories, eventually leading to the two-part “season finale” that was Raven losing the belt to Terry Funk at Barely Legal (which Sandy played a part in) then Dreamer vs Raven to finish it at Wrestlepalooza which along with Taz winning the TV title from “The Franchise” served as an excellent end of chapter… and segued nicely into ECW vs Sabu/RVD/Lawler which was the next big direction.

I thought it was pretty good personally, although I could have done without Stevie losing the title as Raven’s proxy at Ultimate Jeopardy.

[Kfogg1991]

I enjoyed this episode it was a story I've not really heard much about in depth before and was absolutely shocked at the end when they talked about the recent exploits of Vince that right there is a extended documentary waiting to happen just needs someone and people attached that will not pull punches and speak truly about his evil exploits 

[air_raid]

13 hours ago, Kfogg1991 said:

I enjoyed this episode it was a story I've not really heard much about in depth before and was absolutely shocked at the end when they talked about the recent exploits of Vince that right there is a extended documentary waiting to happen just needs someone and people attached that will not pull punches and speak truly about his evil exploits 

Probably be waiting a very long time. Legal proceedings, people who wouldn't speak for fear of implicating themselves (especially in regards of others chiming in with "Bullshit, you knew" later on), people who won't speak for upsetting one applecart or another in terms of future earnings - and make no mistake, speaking ill of the culture of the company allowing it all to happen definitely could impinge on your chances of ever again working for WWE in its current or future forms, even if the highest profile wrong 'uns aren't there anymore. And regardless of who actually works anywhere, certain types of human being in people management roles are wary of whistle blowers/people that will drag the company in public once they've left, so you could probably torpedo your chances of working again for other wrestling companies.

I don't think this will get made until everyone who would add value has moved on to the point they no longer need to worry about making a living in the wrestling industry, or are self-reliant. Sadly.

Edited May 9, 2024 by air_raid
I had to blow the cobwebs off her fanny.

[The Reverend]

It's back!! Season 6 lands on March 25th. The episodes will be: 

• Hell in a Cell
• Vader
• Tony Atlas
• Ludvig Borga
• Billy Jack Haynes
• Eddie Gilbert
• “Superstar” Billy Graham
• Daphne
• The Original Sheik Ed Farhat
• Muhammad Hasan

Not all of these fit the criteria exactly, but I suppose previous episodes have started to veer away from the 'Dark' element. Billy Jack Haynes probably deserves his own series! The Vader one I'm not looking forward too, in case they show 'that' photo. I suppose the Dark part of that one will be his lack of hygiene.

Anyway - discuss...................... 

[Chris B]

Ah man, that Daffney one's going to be a sad one.

[DavidB6937]

Tony Atlas? Is he just going to laugh and talk about feet for an hour?

[The Reverend]

Actually for the Vader one I just hope they feature these stories, never fails to absolutely leave me crying with laughter: 

 

[Merzbow]

As our man Ian pointed out elsewhere, I don't want to see Daffney's last days when she was live streaming. It's going to be a sad watch as it is, I don't think that stuff needs to be used and would feel horribly exploitative.

[BomberPat]

I had mutual friends with Daffney, and the idea of seeing her story told in that kind of true crime format, with stings and cliffhangers before ad breaks and everything just feels incredibly uncomfortable to me. I can't imagine watching that at all.

Tony Atlas is an interesting choice just because he's been a reliable talking head for them in the past, so I can't imagine they'll go too "dark", and it will be more of a biography piece. 

[Chili]

Tony Atlas gets overlooked because he has a foot fetish and a great laugh. Guy had massive drug issues, dealt with being a black wrestler and his fair share of shit with that attached and ended up homeless for a while sleeping rough. He'll be a good episode if they try because there probably is a lot more to him but I think people see him as too meme like to think beyond it.

Poor Daffney. It won't be a great watch but I hope if anything the episode has an ending where everyone involved just says how lovely she was because she absolutely was. Still one of my absolute favourites from that dank WCW period. If you can get something entertaining out of David Flair when his dad and Arn Anderson couldn't, you had at least something going for you. 

Something I find personally tiring about this series is the discussion of some episodes and people going 'hardly dark was it blah blah' because while all episodes carry an element of it, it's not a true crime series, it's a variety mix of really bad shit or more scandalous episodes in wrestling history. UWF wasn't DARK SIDE, but it was a scummy story full of interesting folk, and John Tenta was the story of a great lovely guy who basically deserved more but time wouldn't allow it. I think I need the less heavy episodes to cope to be honest.

Edited January 31, 2025 by Chili

[DavidB6937]

4 minutes ago, Chili said:

Tony Atlas gets overlooked because he has a foot fetish and a great laugh. Guy had massive drug issues, dealt with being a black wrestler and his fair share of shit with that attached and ended up homeless for a while sleeping rough. He'll be a good episode if they try because there probably is a lot more to him but I think people see him as too meme like to think beyond it.

I genuinely don't know anything about the guy so all jokes aside, episodes like his are actually the ones I'll end up enjoying the most.

[BomberPat]

13 minutes ago, Chili said:

Something I find personally tiring about this series is the discussion of some episodes and people going 'hardly dark was it blah blah' because while all episodes carry an element of it, it's not a true crime series, it's a variety mix of really bad shit or more scandalous episodes in wrestling history. UWF wasn't DARK SIDE, but it was a scummy story full of interesting folk, and John Tenta was the story of a great lovely guy who basically deserved more but time wouldn't allow it. I think I need the less heavy episodes to cope to be honest.

I wonder if they sometimes feel the title holds them back from just doing more straight biography stuff that they'd like to do.

They're still really good at finding stories a little away from the mainstream, and I wish they'd do more of that than "remember when The Undertaker through Mankind off the Hell In A Cell?", though I guess the latter is what they hope hooks the audience. But something like the Billy Jack Haynes story is likely to be far more entertaining than hearing the same old stories again, same as how last year I found the strongest episodes to be Chris Colt, because he's so far off most people's radars, and Chris Adams, because they had a really strong story and all the right interviews to tell it.

The Sheik story could go either way, depending on what angle they take on it. Something I've found interesting with friends who have watched it without much background in wrestling is that there'll be a couple of episodes about murder and organised crime and really horrific stuff, and then the Montreal Screwjob, which doesn't seem all that important when placed in that context, and they just get confused as to why people made such a fuss about it. The more the series leans toward true crime that's adjacent to wrestling, the better it tends to be, the more it tries to explore questions of kayfabe or booking decisions, the more muddled it is, and the less it has to say.

[Chili]

It's part the title and part wrestling fans being over expectant pricks to be honest. And I generally read it little here but elsewhere.

[Dai]

First episode of the new season was the Foley/Taker Hell In A Cell match. Thought you knew everything there is to do with this match? Well, you do, as evidenced by 45 minutes of the same stuff thats been said for 25 years (tooth in nose, didnt realise the cell would break, etc etc). Combine a story thats been told a million times, with footage thats been seen a million times, with some god awful talking heads (his kids, Al Snow amoungst others), and I think its a safe recommendation to say not to watch this unless youre watching with a really new fan.

[Merzbow]

At least Noelle didn't have that clown twat with her during her parts but yeah, a very nothing episode in regards to anything new coming from it. The official Dark Side podcast was better, they've done an episode on parts recorded by Bret Hart that weren't shown over the seasons including an ace story about the infamous "Sammy Hagar" impersonator.