WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie Review

The loudest rumble came after the show.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman March 3, 2015

Well, that was interesting. A few dull and duller matches preceded an epic three-way showdown between John Cena, Seth Rollins, and Brock Lesnar -- with chants of "this is awesome!" echoing throughout the arena -- that was followed by a Royal Rumble match for the ages but going down on the wrong side of history. The "awesome!" chants gave way to a barrage of "yes! yes! yes!" calls when über-hero Daniel Bryan, fresh off neck surgery and back in action for the first time in nearly a year, scrambled down the ramp and into the fray partway through the Rumble match. Yet the fan favorite was struck down relatively fast, hurled over the top rope (elimination in the Royal Rumble match requires a wrestler to go over the top and see both feet hit the floor; anything else, even an exit through the ropes, is fair game) and forced back up to the backstage area in front of a shocked crowd. Shock turned to dismay, dismay to anger, and anger to rebellion as boos gave way to chants for CM Punk, a similarly more diminutive but highly skilled, immensely entertaining, and fan-favorite who left the company on less-than-perfect terms. As the match drew on, cat calls of "bull***!" and "we want a refund!" and even cheers for anti-American character Rusev, the Russian flag-waving, Putin-praising beast, filled the arena and left the remaining wrestlers and the ringside commentators scrambling for a way to artfully ignore it or play to it. It was one of the most poorly received wrestling matches ever, and the cries would follow well after the lights went down and the 17,164 fans furiously filed out of Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center.

...but we are not ready to accept it.

Following the event, the millions of fans who watched around the world let their voices be heard across the social media landscape. Almost immediately afterwards, #cancelWWENetwork -- referencing the WWE's digital hub where subscribers can access pretty much anything at will and watch live pay events for a single monthly fee -- trended worldwide. Fans called en masse to end their subscriptions, with some asked to call back another time due to an overwhelming demand on the system. It was a disappointment, yea anger, that wasn't born in the moment but that had been brewing for some time, since CM Punk's departure, certainly, but with a general frustration with the company, including Lesnar's ending of streak and WWE's previous failures to promote Bryan to top-tier status, trying to turn him heel, allowing him to lose to Bray Wyatt at the 2014 Royal Rumble and his non-appearance in that same event's big 30-man scramble that Batista -- yes, the guy who played Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy -- eventually won. Reaction was so fierce to Rumble 2014 that Bryan was inserted into the subsequent WrestleMania, anyway, and won (and was still overshadowed by Lesnar and The Undertaker). Essentially, fans want Bryan. After Bryan, they wanted Punk. And Dolph Ziggler. And even former Shield member Dean Ambrose. They wanted anyone but the last men standing, which included, spoiler alert, the aforementioned Ruslev, veterans Big Show and Kane, and relative newcomer Roman Reigns. Bryan can't win them all, of course, but the WWE crowd knows what it wants and isn't afraid to let the powers-that-be know, even if it seems like their anger falls on deaf ears (it doesn't, but it sometimes seems that way).

The rest of the event, beyond the triple threat match, falls flat, if not flatter than even the controversial Rumble, which at least gets the needle moving, even if it's sometimes in the wrong direction. Following a quick, no-frills match between The Ascension and The New (old) age Outlaws, the program transitions straight to two more tag events, the first pitting The Usos against The Miz and Damien Mizdow (Damien Sandow playing the part of stunt double for the self-absorbed, image-fixated The Miz) and the obligatory, throwaway Diva matchup that pitted The Bella Twins against Paige and Natalya. Fortunately, the event is saved -- in a big way -- by an instant classic three-way featuring Lesnar, Cena, and Rollins in a brutal, all-out, knock-down, drag-out, tables-always-turning extravaganza that involves multiple near pins, Rollins slamming into Lesnar off the ropes and through a table, and even a stretcher rolled out ringside to tend to a (supposedly) wounded warrior. It's far and away the evening's most entertaining event and a short-list contender for match of the year, even so early into 2015. Oh, and don't miss the blatant promotion of the latest WWE mobile game, Immortals that sticks out like the proverbial sore thumb.

The following matches comprise 2015's Royal Rumble event:

• Tag Team Match: New Age Outlaws vs. The Ascension.
• WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Usos vs. The Miz & Damien Mizdow.
• Divas Tag Team Match: Natalia & Paige vs. The Bella Twins.
• Triple Threat Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship: Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena vs. Seth Rollins.
• 30-Man Royal Rumble Match: Participants in order of appearance: The Miz, R-Truth, Bubba Ray Dudley, Luke Harper, Bray Wyatt, Curtis Axel, The Boogeyman, Sin Cara, Zack Ryder, Daniel Bryan, Fandango, Tyson Kidd, Stardust, Diamond Dallas Page, Rusev, Goldust, Kofi Kingston, Adam Rose, Roman Reigns, Big E, Damien Mizdow, Jack Swagger, Ryback, Kane, Dean Ambrose, Titus O'Neil, Bad News Barrett, Cesaro, Big Show, and Dolph Ziggler.

WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Royal Rumble 2015's 1080i, 1.78:1-framed transfer is typical of the modern WWE pay-per-view event presented on Blu-ray. The image generally looks quite nice at-a-glance, with commendably complex details the norm and softer, hazier shots the exception. Facial features, tattoos, clothing, makeup, handmade and digital signs, and even near-ring attendees are sharp and well defined. Far back elements (people and signs) maintain basic sharpness and ample attention to detail, at least to a practical distance. Color are rich and robust. There's plenty of red floating around digital signage. Bright orange Flyers jerseys dot the crowd. Various bits of colorful wrestling attire are sharp and rich. Flesh tones are true, from the darkest skinned performers to the ultra-pale Paige. Black levels are a little limp, appearing a bit too flat and gray in the early shadowy introductions. Black level depth and accuracy improve in the arena, but many dark backgrounds turn into a nesting ground for macroblocking. A fair bit of noise also plagues the image. On the whole, however, the image holds up nicely and should please most viewers.

WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Royal Rumble 2015 features the WWE Home Video-standard Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. It's never fully aggressive. Entrance music proves a little wishy-washy, sometimes robustly filling the stage and other times seemingly relegated to background status, though usually when playing underneath ringside commentary. Still, it's generally rich and lively with a healthy front end spacing but, sadly, not a lot of back channel support. Crowd cheers begin with a somewhat muddled, muted presence but grow a little more healthy and lively as the event progresses to the point that the various angry chants are distinct and easy to hear even over the thuds and grunts in the ring and breathless ringside commentary. In-ring, backstage, and ringside dialogue plays crisply and accurately from the center. All in all, this track is more than serviceable but far from perfect, particularly in its failure to truly envelop the listener into the sonic mayhem inside the arena, whether those cat calls or basic wrestler intro music.

WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Royal Rumble 2015 contains the following extras, some of which appear under the "Blu-ray Exclusives" tab. Also included in the Blu-ray case is a Topps WWE trading card (mine depicted Sting).

• Royal Rumble Kickoff Match (1080i, 13:38): The New Day vs. Cesaro & Tyson Kidd.
• Interview (1080i, 1:04): Nobody Disrespects Brock Lesnar. With Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman. Home Video Exclusive.
• Royal Rumble Fallout (1080i, 0:58): John Cena and Rusev Face Off.
• Royal Rumble Fallout (1080i, 3:04): Roman Reigns Celebrates with The Rock.

Blu-ray Exclusives:

• RAW Moment (1080i, 7:10): Daniel Bryan Makes a Major Announcement. Monday Night RAW -- December 29, 2014.
• RAW Moment (1080i, 12:42): WWE World Heavyweight Championship Contract Signing. Monday Night RAW -- January 12, 2015.
• Six-Man Tag Team Match (1080i, 20:01): Daniel Bryan, Roman Reigns, & Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins, Big Show, & Kane. SmackDown -- January 15, 2015.
• 3-on-1 Handicap Match (1080i, 15:33): John Cena vs. Seth Rollins, Big Show, & Kane. Monday Night RAW -- January 19, 2015.
• No Disqualification Match (1080i, 14:09): Daniel Bryan vs. Kane. SmackDown -- January 22, 2015.

WWE: Royal Rumble 2015 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Keep in mind that 2015's rumble took place in Philadelphia, the city that once famously booed Santa Claus, but the cat calls in the second half of the final extravaganza weren't just about keeping up appearances. Fans were legitimately angry at the outcome. The crowd called out the company. There was much virtual wailing and gnashing of teeth soon thereafter. The fans wanted their hero, and their hero earned only a courtesy entrance and didn't even hang around all that long in the grand scale of a Rumble match before being flipped out of the ring by Bray Wyatt. It's been a long time coming, it seems, with quite a bit of scripted plot angles that appear to be going against popular opinion about how the soap opera should play out. If nothing else, it should make for a fascinating WrestleMania XXXI, an event in which Bryan has (again) been denied a spot in the main event after a loss to Reigns at the Fastlane PPV, which itself felt like a capitulation to the fans that again didn't go their way. Here's betting that XXXI will probably appear bleak before WWE plays to the crowd in the final moments. As for 2015's Rumble, the event itself isn't spectacular. A few relatively empty first matches give way to a bonafide three-way classic for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship before falling apart at the Rumble. WWE Home Video's Blu-ray release of Royal Rumble 2015 features expectedly good 1080i video, fair 5.1 lossy audio, and a few extra matches and moments. Recommended for the triple threat match and to relive the mayhem that was in the Rumble.