WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 22, 2018

These are dark days for wrestling fans who have enjoyed what was, until recently, a fairly steady output of WWE content onto the Blu-ray format. While WWE Home Video never did release as much content to the high definition format as it did (and still does) to DVD, fans enjoyed several Pay-Per-View releases every year and a number of supplemental discs, highlighting careers or assembling compilations of past and present in-ring greatness. Content like The Best of RAW and second-tier Pay-Per-Views like Extreme Rules gradually vanished years ago, but the still somewhat steady drip-drip-drip of releases suddenly came to a grinding halt midyear last year. After the excellent Fight Owens Fight, which released in July 2017, content disappeared entirely from the 1080p format. No more Pay-Per-Views, no more wrestler retrospectives, no more match compilations. Of course the cash cow WrestleMania would sneak back onto shelves, but clearly other content was not selling well enough for WWE to justify pressing discs for anything else. That's a shame, because the quality of the content -- in ring but also on-disc -- was almost always excellent. And don't blame the emergence of the WWE Network, because WWE is still pumping out DVDs with some regularity.

With WrestleMania, WWE really can't control itself. Every year the emphasis expands more towards spectacle and less towards the matches, which beyond a few really big ones often seem more like an afterthought. And every year reaction from around the Internet is just as enjoyable as the program, and every year the following night's RAW grows ever more rowdy. WrestleMania 34 was in many ways much of the same for the company's standard-bearer main event. Pomp and circumstance threatened to overwhelm the wrestling. Big entrances and extended pre-match theatrics bogged down the runtime further, though those are admittedly par for the course for WrestleMania, including the typically grandiose arrival of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. The show was too long, bogged down by the extracurriculars, no surprise, really, considering its NOLA setting. There were debuts, returns, surprises, and predictable results outside the ring and inside of it, too. Much of it played out without suspense, some of it was the equivalent of a nasty curveball, a few moments were even touching. The show had a bit of everything, almost literally, including a ten-year-old boy (who is the son of WWE official John Cone) hoisting an official WWE championship belt after "winning" a match alongside Braun Stwoman. John Cena spent part of the evening sitting ringside and a microsecond, it seemed considering the overall length of the show, playing jobber to a familiar face. Some matches proved high energy entertainment. Some were technical clinics. Some were dull. Some were overplayed. It was a good event, exciting when the emphasis was on wrestling and storylines, less so when the atmosphere and relentless length suffocated the main draw.

AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura's WWE Championship match was the evening's highlight event, and unsurprisingly so. This match was a perfect example of what is right with wrestling. A technical marvel, a match of skill and ring ability between two gifted performers who are more than a physique, it was a beauty of a championship bout where the focus remained on wrestling and story rather than theatrics and muscle. But theatrics and muscle are fun, too. The main even pitted the much-maligned Roman Reigns against Brock Lesnar, who has held the title for what feels like an eternity. On one hand nobody wanted Reigns to win -- again -- even as he continues to main event WrestleMania. On the other, it's been a bit of a downer for WWE to retain Brock as champion this long, considering his part-time status. The fans probably got what they wanted, a bloodied Reigns and a sweaty Brock who eventually put away the most hated man in sports entertainment with an F5 Reigns couldn't escape. And so continues the saga of Brock and the company's quest to find a suitable candidate to dethrone him. Good matches dotted the night, including the Bryan-McMahon vs. Owens-Zayn tag teamer (marking Bryan's return to action) and the multi-man match-ups for both the U.S. and Intercontinental titles.

The following matches (discounting the pre-show) comprise WrestleMania 34:

Disc One:

• Triple Threat Match for the Intercontinental Championship: The Miz vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Bálor
• SmackDown Women's Championship Match: Charlotte Flair vs. Asuka
• Fatal 4-Way Match for the United States Championship Match: Randy Orton vs. Bobby Roode vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Rusev
• Mixed Tag Team Match: Kurt Angle & Ronda Rousey vs. Triple H & Stephanie McMahon
• Triple Threat Match for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships: The Usos vs. The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers
• WrestleMania Match: John Cena vs. The Undertaker
• If Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn Win, They're Rehired to SmackDown Live: Daniel Bryan & Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn
• RAW Women's Championship Match: Alexa Bliss vs. Nia Jax
• WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Disc Two:

• RAW Tag Team Championship Match: Cesaro & Sheamus vs. Braun Strowman & A Mystery Partner
• Universal Championship Match: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

WrestleMania 34's 1080i presentation is representative of what fans have come to expect of the brand's (now nearly nonexistent) Blu-ray releases. Macroblocking and other compression artifacts, including some aliasing, are a constant struggle for the image but don't often fall into the "debilitating" category. Essential detailing is very good. Skin textures reveal intimate definition of pores, hair, and tattoos. Sweat and blood are nicely resolved. Crowds are sharp through the first rows, as are the steel steps, mat texturing, and various support elements ringside, such as the announcing tables. Colors are the highlight. The brightly colored attire shines with impressive pop and saturation, and there's a very broad, exciting array on display in every match. The image is fine and more stable, likely, than how most saw it on the Network stream.

WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

WrestleMania 34's Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack does little to really enhance the event's in-arena sounds. Entrance music isn't particularly vibrant or energetic. It lacks the sort of big, powering, stage-enveloping goodness heard in numerous older WWE releases. There's decent enough clarity (remember it's recorded as it blares through stadium speakers, not overlaid atop the image) and front-side space, but the lack of immersion and vitality result in a disappointing presentation of the track's big draw. Crowd ambience lacks any kind of serious surround engagement, too, remaining almost the exclusive property of the front speakers. In-ring sounds are conveyed well enough but again lack any sort of heft that would otherwise compliment the action. Ringside commentary and in-ring microphone dialogue is unremarkable, but clear and firmly positioned in the front-center speaker.

WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

WrestleMania 34 contains several extras on disc two, broken into three categories: "Special Features," "Monday Night RAW -- April 9, 2018," and "Blu-ray Exclusives." While the entire RAW to follow WrestleMania is included, only two highlights from the subsequent SmackDown are on the disc. Disc two additionally houses the event's final two matches, so it's impossible to watch this WrestleMania without interruption. WWE and Warner Brothers have ditched the Hall of Fame ceremony which has been a staple of previous WrestleMania releases. A Movies Anywhere digital copy code is included with purchase, as is a Brock Lesnar Topps trading card.

• Special Features: WrestleMania Kickoff Match (1080i, 16:55): Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal -- Featuring most everyone on the roster who didn't otherwise have a match.
• Special Features: WrestleMania Kickoff Match (1080i, 14:15): WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match -- Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali.
• Special Features: WrestleMania Kickoff Match (1080i, 15:11): The First-Ever WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal featuring female Superstars who didn't otherwise have a match on the card.
• Monday Night RAW -- April 9, 2018 (1080i, 2:07:46): The entire RAW episode from the Monday following WrestleMania 34. Viewers can select various moments, and while there is no "play all" option, selecting the first in the list plays the entire show. Chapter options include Stephanie McMahon Wants to Make Amends, Nia Tax & Ember Moon vs. Alexa Bliss & Mickie James, Braun Strowman & Nicholas Relinquish The Tag Team Championships, No Way Jose vs. John Skyler, It's Time for the Tag Team Eliminator, Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows vs. The Revival, "Grand Slam" Rollins Is Confronted by Familiar Foes, Sasha Banks vs. Mandy Rose, Bobby Lashley Crashes Elias' Performance, Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn Plead for a Job on RAW, Heath Slater & Rhyno vs. Authors of Pain, Roman Reigns & Samoa Joe on a Collision Course Towards Backlash, Matt Hardy & Bray Wyatt vs. Apollo & Titus O'Neil, Winner Earns a Contract: Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn, Brother Nero Reunites with The Broken Universe, and Seth Rollins, Finn Bálor, & Jeff Hardy vs. The Miz & The Miztourage.
• Blu-ray Exclusives: SmackDown Live -- April 10, 2018 (1080i, 9:12): Shane McMahon Introduces the New SmackDown General Manager.
• Blu-ray Exclusives: SmackDown Live -- April 10, 2018 (1080i, 13:21): Carmella Cashes In!

WWE: WrestleMania 34 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

WrestleMania 34's Blu-ray is decent, though not remarkable. The event was very enjoyable, if not borderline grossly overlong, and the Blu-ray's technical presentation is fair, though the tech specs aren't the best. The absence of the Hall of Fame ceremony is disappointing, the digital copy is a welcome addition, but the big story with this disc has to be the vanishing act WWE has performed on Blu-ray. This is the first release in nearly a year and chances are it'll be the only release until next year, if that even materializes. If fans want WWE back on Blu-ray, they'd be wise to vote with their wallets.