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WWE'S DESTRUCTION OF THE SHIELD DVD GIVES EXCELLENT LOOK INTO WHAT WAS AS WELL AS A SAD LOOK INTO WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN

SELF DESTRUCTION

When The Shield was first unleashed on WWE programming in late 2012 as a trio of young, brash villains, there's a reason they almost immediately rose to the top of WWE.

They worked their asses off, they were presented as legitimate bad-ass villains (as opposed to the type who run at the sound of a fight) and were allowed to get legitimate wins over known, legitimate commodities. They weren't presented as entertainers with a series of moves you saw in the same sequence of events, but as hungry, angry wolves, picking at the bones of their opponents, fighting off anyone who stood in their path.

Quite frankly, it was awesome. WWE's "Destruction of the Shield" DVD set (3 DVD set or 2 Blu-Ray set with the latter showcasing additional extra features) is both a great testament to the trio but at the same time, a sad reminder that sometimes, things in wrestling end all too quickly.

While the end of the Shield won't be looked back as a booking mistake in the same vein as say, WCW splitting up the Hollywood Blondes in the early 1990s, the main feature, an excellent documentary (expanded from a shorter version that aired on the WWE Network last year) really paints a tremendous picture of what Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins all individually brought to the table and while they are all still important pieces of the WWE machine, there's also a feeling of loss, never stated, that permeates the latter part of the documentary...because what could have been a dynasty in wrestling the likes we haven't seen since the Four Horsemen or the original NWO era, instead became just another passing phase.

The documentary, as noted, is beyond excellent with a look at each of their lives prior to WWE and even developmental as Daniel Bryan, Les Thatcher, William Regal, Gabe Sapolsky and several of Rollins' friends are all interviewed. There's the usual batch of WWE personalities involved and it's a good mix with really only CM Punk being the one name missing I would have liked to have seen included, but we all know that was never going to happen.

Footage from CZW, DGUSA and Ring of Honor is used to paint the picture of where they came from and how they came to be and it's a welcome visual to add to the stories being told.

WWE developmental, including a lot of pre-NXT Florida Championship Wrestling footage is also used, showcasing Ambrose's feuds with Rollins and Regal. We also get some insight into the WWE way of doing things as HHH discusses trying to get Rollins to conform and understand the WWE way of performing, noting that the two philosophies butted heads to the point that Rollins was given a final warning that if things didn't improve, he would be leaving.

The trio's run on the main roster is well documented with the Evolution feud really hitting the sadder points I noted as it's just when the trio turns back the challenge of Batista, Randy Orton and Triple H that the viewer gets the sense that The Shield was here to stay and was going to be as important a cog in the WWE machine as John Cena...and then Rollins turns the next night.

The latter part of the film focuses on Summerslam 2014 as Reigns takes on Randy Orton to begin cementing him as a top singles star while Ambrose and Rollins do battle with each other stemming from the split of the trio. It's amazing to see how much steam Ambrose has lost in just that seven months and how Reigns, seen as the guy in the wake of the split, has also had to work extremely hard to regain where he was in the eyes of the fans.

Rollins, undoubtedly, has benefited the most from the split, but he also didn't take time off for injuries or to make a movie. With Money in the Bank, his future seems almost set in stone...or does it?

As this documentary shows, the landscape of WWE is ever-changing and even an act as strong as The Shield couldn't withstand the company's changing winds.  But, as quickly as it was destroyed, WWE creative could easily reassemble the Shield.  I don't know if that will indeed ever happen, but this documentary makes a great case for it,..and perhaps we'll see a sequel to this set one day.

The documentary is highly recommended, especially if you haven't seen it previously on the WWE Network. This version runs about 15 minutes longer and the match selection that rounds out the set is pretty much spot on as there isn't much I could say deserved to be included.  If you enjoy the WWE compilation sets, this is about as good as it gets.

The Destruction of The Shield can be ordered in the PWInsider Online Store.

Here is a complete breakdown of upcoming scheduled DVD releases:

Highspots.com

NOW RELEASED: Old School 2 Pack - Les Thatcher with Danny Miller and Ricky Morton with Ole Anderson. More details at this link.

NOW RELEASED - Wake Up! Time To Die! Cliff Compton interviews Sonjay Dutt. Trailer and more at this link.

NOW RELEASED - Best Friends with Joey Ryan - Chuck Taylor & Trent Baretta interview Ryan. Trailer at this link.

NOW RELEASED Diva Diaries with Candice LaRae - Sojo Bolt interviews LaRae. Trailer and more at this link.

NOW RELEASED - The Joey Ryan & Candice LaRae Highspots Special. Trailer and more at this link.

NOW RELEASED - Old School with Paul Orndorff. Trailer and details at this link.

Release date TBA - Diva Diaries with Lana Star. Fore more details, click here.

Release date TBA - Diva Diaries with Kellie Skater. For more details, click here.

Release date TBA - Diva Diaries with Miss Natural Heather Patera. For more details, click here.

Release date TBA - Pro Wrestling Guerrilla Sells Out Volume 2 - Nine hour PWG compilation set. Trailer at this link.

Release date TBA - Best Friends with Teddy Hart. Trailer at this link.

All of these DVDs and many more can be ordered at www.highspots.com.

Kayfabe Commentaries:

JUST RELEASED - Youshoot with Matt Sydal.

JUST RELEASED - Back to the Territories with Jim Cornette: Mid-Atlantic Wrestling.

3/17 - Youshoot with Alberto el Patron.

All of these DVD titles can be ordered at KayfabeCommentaries.com.

WWE:

NOW RELEASED - The Best of Raw and Smackdown 2014

NOW RELEASED - WWE Slam City: Season 1

NOW RELEASED - The Destruction of The Shield

NOW RELEASED - WWE Royal Rumble.

3/10 - The Flintstones & WWE: Stone Age Smackdown

3/10 - The Road to Jericho: Epic Stories & Rare Matches from Y2J.

4/14 - Ultimate Warrior: Always Believe

4/21  - WWE Fast Lane PPV.

4/28 - ECW Unreleased Volume 3

5/4 - Wrestlemania 30.

TBA - Just Say Yes! Yes! Yes: Daniel Bryan

TBA - It's Good to Be King - The Jerry Lawler Story

WWE titles can be ordered in the PWInsider Online Store.

 

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