Courtesy: www.MondayNightMayhem.com
Monday Night Mayhem DVD Review: “The Hardy Show: Season 9”
Produced By Michael Spatola & Matt Hardy
Written By: Shawn “The Angry Hero” Marek
Matt & Jeff Hardy, one of, if not the most successful brother tandem in the history of professional wrestling, have returned with another installment of their Internet wrestling show, The Hardy Show: Season 9. Self-produced in every aspect, Matt & Jeff, along with current TNA star Shannon Moore, plus a long-standing cast of reoccurring personalities (including Jeff’s wife Beth Britt, Kimo, Cham Pain, & The Monster to name a few) give us an in-depth slice of life of The Hardy Boyz. As a new viewer, I did feel a bit out of step with all of the references to events & characters from seasons past, but THS does its best to keep the viewer up to speed. Well, enough back-story: Let’s get into it!
– Matt & Jeff welcome us to the proceedings. Well, kind of, as they are having a debate as only they can over what episodes to air.
Episode I: Blood, Sweat, & Tears In The BCR Dome
– Matt has built a 60,000 square foot barn in his backyard known as the BCR Dome, complete with a wrestling ring & other amenities.
– We get clips of a match between Matt, in his old V1 gear vs. Kimo. Matt goes over with a Twist of Fate.
– Shannon Moore gets reactions from the combatants, as well as the audience. Highlights include Cham Pain dressed as Santa Claus, plus lots of ribbing on Kimo.
Episode 2: A Core Weekend
– Jeff, Shannon, & Beth Britt took The Hardy Show on the road, starting with an autograph signing at the Fox & Hound Pub in Lebanon, NJ.
– Gorgeous George of late-90’s WCW fame is there for some reason, talking in this really deep voice. Remember when Gorgeous George was in TNA for what seemed like a minute? Literally, a minute. She showed up at the end of one of the last weekly TNA Pay-Per-Views at The Asylum, and then we never heard from her again.
– The place is packed with Hardy fans, all geared up to meet Jeff & Shannon. Want to know why the WWE is PG? Look at the huge crowds of nothing but grade school kids dressed up like Jeff Hardy; That’s where the revenue stream is coming from (well, their parents more likely). It definitely isn’t coming from 30-year-old dudes sitting on their couch on a Saturday night writing a wrestling column.
– Oh, and these girls are there too (www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYmQ3hTmuQI). Sadly, they do not perform any songs.
– Moving on, Jeff & Shannon have super-successful autograph signings in Waterbury, CT & Middletown, NY.
– Their final destination is George’s Cards & Collectibles, which boast the most insanely huge collection of wrestling figures that I’ve ever seen.
– Jeff & Shannon take their time to interact with every fan and make their day. Really cool stuff to see as everyone has fun. Now, if TNA will only keep Jeff a babyface, they’ll be all…er…nevermind.
Episode III: Hardys On Ice
– A crazy snowstorm hits Cameron, dumping an unusual amount of snow in North Carolina.
– Never ones to sit idly by, the Hardys, Shannon, & Kimo take to the roads in the ATV’s and have some dangerous fun.
– When Jeff’s house burned down in 2008, it was believed that all of his old videos & promo packages from his pre-WWE days were lost, but thankfully, The Monster had copies laying around.
Episode IV: Jeff’s Lost Video Art
– The first video is that of Jeff in the Willow O’ Wisp character that he portrayed very early in his wrestling career. Lots of clips from matches with Matt & Joey Abs interspersed with narrative pieces of Jeff with & without his mask. Astute wrestling fans that were watching ECW in the mid-90’s will pick up on Jeff’s homage to Brian Pillman here.
– The second video is a much darker piece, as Jeff addresses his thoughts on suicide & depression. Really not much to say other than you have to see it for yourself.
– Matt puts over Jeff as an extremely deep individual, who has always been blessed with the ability to think outside the box. He implies that there is a third video, but we never get to see it.
Episode V: A Hardy Thanksgiving
– The title pretty much says it all, as the bulk of The Hardy Show core group gets together at Matt’s house for Thanksgiving dinner.
Episode VI: Itchweeed’s Dreams
– Itchweeed, one of Jeff’s many characters, has been having trouble sleeping, so he goes to see his therapist who is a bearded “Land of Confusion” puppet-faced man who speaks with a Chinese accent.
– The only solution to Itchweeed’s problems is to learn how to wrestle, so Kimo trains Itchweeed. Itchweeed eventually fights Freddy Krueger.
Episode VII: A Hardy Mixture
– We get clips of Matt’s New Years Eve party, as the core group rings in 2010. Everyone gives their New Year’s resolutions.
– Jeff, sporting a full painted-on beard, has a scooter race with Shannon around a pool
– Footage of Jeff & Shannon at an autograph signing in Staten Island. No Gorgeous George this time.
– Jeff & Matt blow off some fireworks, then go out to eat. Jeff cuts a promo on CM Punk, as Matt takes a moment to address the Punk/Lita relationship.
– Matt chronicles Shane Helms dusting off some ring rust at the BCR Dome in preparation for some upcoming independent dates.
Episode VIII: Heaven’s Demons
– Jeff & Shannon finally get to team up as “Heaven’s Demons” at an April NEW event.
– We get a special appearance by the legendary Mick Foley.
– We also get clips of their match against Brian Anthony & Rob Eckos (now Robbie E in TNA).
Episode IX: BASH 2009
– Sadly, as I had originally thought, this is not backstage at the WWE The Bash 2009, but Matt’s legendary Christmas bash, which is being held in the newly renovated BCR Dome
– Just as you would expect from The Hardy Show: lots of partying, Vanilla Ice karaoke, and even a few impromptu wrestling matches.
– There are also a number of toasts made to Umaga, who passed away shortly before the filming of this event.
– Jeff & Matt have finally stopped debating, and for good reason. Jeff leads us into another room, which he claims will be the nursery for the new child he & Beth Britt were expecting. This leads us into…
Episode X: Parents
– Matt & Jeff lost their mother to cancer in 1987, leaving their father Claude to raise them all on his own. The brothers remember growing up with only a father, as Claude never remarried. Both Jeff & Matt express extreme reverence for their father and the struggles he went through in teaching them life lessons and rounding themselves into mature individuals.
– Shannon contributes his story as well. His father was critically injured in a car accident when he was nine years old, leaving him in a vegetative state for ten years afterwards. Shannon recalls how extremely diligent his father was in providing for his family. The idea that his father was placed in this predicament was a hard cross to bear for Shannon. Nonetheless, his father was a fighter, and Shannon & his family made every effort to be close to him.
– Kimo also makes an appearance, discussing his take on parenthood & children, as he himself has a 14-year-old son.
– At the very end, Jeff brings Beth on screen to announce that they are having a child and how he views fatherhood as the next step of his evolution as a man. (Jeff & Beth did have their first child, a girl, in late October).
– A very poignant episode that urges us the viewers to cherish the time we have now with our parents, and if things are rocky, you should fix them, because life is too short to stay angry.
In addition to the main disc with all of the episodes from Season 9, there is a Bonus Disc featuring The Best of The Hardy Show to date, including:
– Shannon’s Place, Y? Light Zone (Margarete’s Miracle), Itchweeed’s Crib, Fantasy Lake, Mustard Man, Reflections, Golden Return, The Watermelon Duel, Sharp Shooters, Y? Light Zone (Always Get What You Deserve)
We also get the documentary, Home Is Where The Heart Is, which addresses the tragic loss of Jeff & Beth’s house in 2008 in a fire that also claimed the life of their dog Jack. The documentary was filmed only a week after the blaze and features comments from Matt, The Monster, Shannon, Matt, & Jeff’s father and even Jeff himself, as they cope with loss & the eventual healing process. There is some real heart wrenching stuff here, especially if you’ve ever lost a pet.
Final Thoughts & Overall Recommendation: Regardless of how you feel about Jeff & Matt Hardy and their place in professional wrestling, it is hard to ignore how efficiently the brothers have used the media to promote themselves and create a loyal fan base. While the majority of the show is nothing more than The Hardy Boyz & their crew having a good time, there are some insider wrestling bits that even the most jaded fan would get a kick out of. It is also professionally shot & edited, so there’s no need to feel like you’re getting screwed out of quality. If you’re intrigued to see how WWE & TNA stars are when they kick it with friends & family, I’d highly recommended The Hardy Show Season 9, which of course can be purchased over at www.TheHardyShow.com.
Thanks for reading! Check me out on Twitter right now (at www.Twitter.com/AngryHeroShawn), plus scope out my blog (at www.FutureEndeavored.tumblr.com). Catch you next time, and remember: Above all things — be a man!
