Timeline of the WWF - 1987 - Honky Tonk Man

The Good
The Honky Tonk Man is always a cut-up and this different venue does not detract from his ability to make you laugh. Whether he's ripping on road agents, the druggies backstage or the wacky things that he saw, he is always good for a laugh. Here, he talks about the build-up to Wrestlemania III, the fallout and the goings-on around that epic event. This was about 75% his own angles, matches and such, but you have to expect that. This was certainly funnier than the Don Muraco Timeline, but I'm not sure that it was better. If you prefer stories about Roddy Piper being insane, Jake Roberts' guitar-shot-induced drug problems or Adrian Adonis' fabulously expensive set to the intricacies of angles, changes in talent and development of the company, than you'll really prefer this.

The Bad
I like the Timeline concept and think it has great potential, but these are just going to be hit-or-miss it seems. Honky was not an office guy, so he lacks some significant perspective. Although he can share his thoughts on Tom Magee and why he flopped based on his experiences with him in Stampede, he cannot really explain why the WWF chose the Pontiac Silverdome as the site for Wrestlemania III. I almost think this series needs to have multiple people talking about multiple years, but I can realize the logistic problems there. This is the second one I've seen and it seemed to be enjoyable, but lacked the insight I was hoping for and that I felt Don Muraco provided more of in his contribution.

The Rating: ***3/4

KayFabe Commentaries' Guest Booker with Gabe Sapolsky

The Good

Gabe Sapolsky is not the most charismatic interview, but he gets his points across and when paired with Sean Oliver, it all clicks together pretty well.  Here, Gabe rebooks the early stages of the ECW rebirth under the WWE banner.  I have to say, while many Guest Bookers get pretty wild and crazy, Gabe's approach is very doable and convinced me that he could actually contribute significantly to the WWE product…if he was ever given the chance.  He is pragmatic about which talent he can use, what he can get away with, what he can do to make the brand stand out and seems to book a nice few months of TV and builds up a pay-per-view nicely.  Sure, it is not a dream card, but it is something notably better than the WWE's attempts at the time even with Paul Heyman at the helm…kind of.  Gabe explains his logic, explains his approaches and reveals his abilities as a booker.  The goal of the series is to do those things, so I would consider this a success.

The Bad

Gabe is certainly an acquired taste.  He has a good mind, but is so do Kevin Sullivan and Gary Hart and their shoots are decidedly more enjoyable.  Instead of getting caught up in anecdotes, even from his own ECW days, Gabe focuses on the task at hand.  I think that sort of detracts from this in a way.  While the goal is achieved, this is not particularly exciting and you don't have those moments where you feel like you getting a glimpse at a genius.  JJ Dillion is certainly not the most entertaining and I found his Guest Booker to be much more fascinating.  I guess the difference between Gabe and all those other aforementioned talents is that he has never been an on-air talent himself.  Perhaps if people like Dave Lagana, Court Bauer and other former WWF writers get their own Guest Booker shoots, we'll see if this is a trend or not.  


The Rating: ****

Timeline of the WWE - 2000 - Rikishi



The Good
The Timeline series has so much potential and if the right people are chosen they can really provide some good insight or at the very least a unique perspective on the year in question. Rikishi seems like a pretty honest guy and much of this focuses on his particular experiences in the year 2000. Sean Oliver is a fantastic interviewer and he pulls a solid interview out of someone who might not be the best interview. He poses some pretty standard questions, covers some key figures and throws in a few hardballs. This was a fun interview and, in my opinion, one of the better jobs by Sean Oliver.

The Bad
The fault of the Timeline series, which I've stated before, is that they often leave out a lot because of the narrow focus of a single. Rikishi had probably the biggest year of his career, but a lot of this focuses on his career before and after 2000. He also is not particularly insightful about the goings-on in the WWF at this time. I've never heard an extensive interview with Rikishi, but this did not convince me to seek one out. He was affable and all, he is probably a fun dude to have a beer with, but shoot interviews are not his thing. This was a good idea, but I'm three in and this series has yet to improve. C'mon Superstar Graham!


The Rating: ***1/2

WWE Timeline - 1983 - Don Muraco



The Good
The "Timeline of the WWE" is a tremendous concept that if executed properly could give historians and fans some different perspective. This series could go over 25 parts, assuming they go into the current product, but it seems as though they'll probably hold off on the last decade (although I could be way off on that). Don Muraco is a solid interview with all the honesty, experience and knowledge that you'd want in a concept shoot such as this. He talks bluntly about the Jimmy Snuka "murder" incident, gives good insight to many of the stars of that time period and touches on psychology a bit. This was a great interview and you can really see the great potential in this series, although like the Guest Booker series, it still has a few problems to work out.

The Bad
Although the "Timeline" concept is excellent, this highlighted some of the potential problems. One, Don Muraco had worked for years prior to and after 1984 and so information was often skewed. Two, Muraco is a pretty honest on shoot interviews, but he was simply not an office person, so he was ignorant to much of office goings-on. Three, trying piece together a logical narrative meant heavy editing and the chopped up product felt anything but flowing.

The Rating: ***3/4