Product DescriptionVol. 2 - From 1993-97, the Royal Rumble became a key event for Superstars, as well as the first step on the road to WrestleMania. Vol. 2 champions include Yokozuna, Bret Hart/Lex Lugar, Shawn Michaels (also a back-to-back winner) and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. - Actors: Wwe
- Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
- Language (Original Language): English
- Release Date: 2007-11-27
- Running Time: 825 minutes
- Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Customer ReviewsReviewed on 2008-06-02 
A good trip down memory lane
The difference between Wrestlemania and the Royal Rumble is that you see more wrestlers at the Royal Rumble than you normally would at Wrestlemania. Sure, they may be the bottom half of the old rosters, but I still remember them like the rest of them. Good stuff! |  | Reviewed on 2008-05-25 
A Good Watch, but Worthy of Purchase?
I enjoyed ROYAL RUMBLE ANTHOLOGY: VOLUME 2 for the most part. There were some good matches, and it was a wonderful rush of nostalgia for a longtime fan like me. Here are my quick thoughts on each ROYAL RUMBLE PPV:
1993
---Easily my least favorite ROYAL RUMBLE on this volume. I give credit to the WWF Title Match (Hitman/Razor), as the two guys complemented each other very well. But the rest of the card was tough to sit through. I didn't even care for the Michaels/Jannetty grudge match. It wasn't because they weren't trying; the two guys just didn't entertain me on this particular night. The 30-Man Royal Rumble is one of the worst ever, but it's not awful. Yes, Yokozuna winning via pinfall kickout is incredibly stupid. But considering the WWF didn't have Hogan to work with, I think they did the best they could. And I admit I liked the Giant Gonzalez concept, when I was a kid. There's also an overly-long debut of "The Narcissist" Lex Luger, a dull opener, and a dreadful Bossman/Bigelow contest.
1994
---Consistently solid from start to finish. The opener between Tatanka and Bam Bam Bigelow is a real crowd-energizer. The Tag Titles Match kicks off the classic feud between Bret and Owen Hart. To this day, the contest is very good, and the feud remains a masterpiece. Razor Ramon's IC Title defense against IRS is surprisingly crisp. Lots of counters, fast-paced action, and a very good finish. Everyone knows about the Yokozuna/Taker Casket Match. I admit it's not a great "match", but I really got into the storyline where Fuji and Cornette paid off a dozen guys to help Yokozuna win. The cheesy supernatural aftermath still works for me. Last but not least, the 30-Man Royal Rumble is a good one. I love the "two-winner" finish, but also love how Diesel (a heel) won the crowd over by dominating for lengthy period of time. Big props to the Providence for showing respect for good in-ring work, regardless of character. 1994 was a good year for the WWF, and it all started here.
1995
---A mostly solid card, and easily 1995's best PPV. Boy, 1995 was a crappy year for the WWF! We all know that HBK entered #1, and won the Rumble. I like it, you've probably read it, and it's a pleasant 45 minutes to this day. Other than the boring Taker/IRS match, the rest of ROYAL RUMBLE 1995 is pretty good. Jeff Jarrett and Razor Ramon delivered an exceptional technical opener for the IC Title, complete with a "double-ending" like Ramon's 1994 IC Title Match. The vacant Tag Team Titles are up for grabs between the teams of Tatanka & Bam Bam Bigelow, and Bob Holly & 1-2-3 Kid. Four different styles make for one of the best Tag Team Matches in ROYAL RUMBLE history. Forget that post-match scuffle which birthed the worst WRESTLEMANIA main event ever; but don't forget to watch 15 minutes of excellent competition. As for the WWF Title Match Hitman/Diesel), I'm kinda stuck. It's a slower-paced technical match, complete with several run-ins, and several finishes. But somehow, I didn't love the 40 minutes as much as I wanted to. It's not bad, but not great (in my opinion). Regardless, the 1995 RUMBLE is a good one.
1996
---To me, this is much like 1995's ROYAL RUMBLE. Excellent IC Title Match, Shawn Michaels overcoming the odds in the 30-Man Rumble, and a WWF Title Match (Taker/Hitman) that doesn't quite get my attention despite all of what's going on in it. There's a lot happening in the 1996 PPV. Ahmed Johnson wiping the floor with Jeff Jarrett, only to have a guitar bashed over his head. The Rumble Match gets completely out of control, when the debuting Vader just snaps after being eliminated. Another note on the Rumble is that we finally get entrance music for the participants, and we finally see finishers during the unique Battle Royal. My favorite aspect of the PPV, though, is Razor/Goldust. This is a psychological piece of work that would make Jake Roberts proud. Seriously, Ramon and Goldust played the crowd perfectly with the bizarre "Gold One" persona. As the for the main event, I have watched Bret Hart and The Undertaker compete in multiple matches, and just can't get into them. I might be biased, but this 1996 main event wasn't a highlight to me. However, Diesel's role in the WWF Title Match was most interesting. In the end, I think the 1996 ROYAL RUMBLE PPV is worth watching.
1997
---The PPV is mostly forgettable, but the 30-Man Royal Rumble is one of the most famous. But first, I'll address the card. For all of the long-term rivalries involved, these PPV showdowns are surprisingly underwhelming. Triple H and Goldust just go on and on and on and on, with all sorts of cheating involved. The commentators can't even understand why the referee is letting the two superstars continue. It's a most bizarre opener. Ahmed Johnson's war against The Nation of Domination finally culminated in a match against leader Faarooq. Too bad the two guys just don't mix well. There's a neat aftermath where Johnson snaps on the NOD, but overall it's a waste. The Taker/Vader grudge match is not too shabby; it probably made both guys look better in the end, even though I don't think the contest is much to brag about. And how did a 6-Man luchador Tag Match fail to excite a 'San Antonio, Texas' crowd?! Sorry if that's a stereotype, but I assumed Texans had an appreciation for Mexican lucha libre. Guess they were too antsy to see HBK win the WWF Title back from Sycho Sid. Speaking of those two guys, I'm sorry to say that their main event is nothing compared to their Madison Square Garden predecessor. It's way too one-sided for too much time. In fact, Michaels pulls off a surprise win similar to John Cena or Hulk Hogan; it's quite ridiculous. As for the 30-Man Royal Rumble, it's quite good. Several feuds come into play, it's nicely-paced, and the Rumble is filled with many WWF legends early in their career. I don't think the 1997 ROYAL RUMBLE is a must-see, but I admit it's probably one the 90s more famous ones.
OVERALL
---Should you see WWE ROYAL RUMBLE ANTHOLOGY: VOLUME 2? Sure, give it a peek. Should you spend the 35-dollar asking price? Not so fast, people. As much as I like most of this set, this isn't 15 hours of wrestling I'd revisit again. PPV compilations like these tend to blend together, and not feel different from each other. It's nice a trip down memory lane, but not worth the money. Try to rent if possible; buy only if you're a hardcore WWE fan. | | Reviewed on 2008-04-27
awesome
this is a pretty awesome set
1993 - I must be the only one who likes the Royal Rumble match, except for the lame ending. This is my favorite rumble card of all time as the undercard and rumble are simply amazing. A great match with Bret vs. Razor Ramon for the WWE Title, Shawn Michaels vs. Marty Janetty for the Intercontinental Title, and the amazing Royal Rumble match, a good effort to Bob Backlund. As said earlier, the ending sucks as Yokozuna throws Randy Savage over the ropes.
1994 - This rumble saw co-winners in Bret Hart and Lex Luger. I personally thought only Bret should have won, but you can't redo history. I thought it was a decent rumble match, but not great. A casket match was the main part of the undercard, where a group of wrestlers team up on Undertaker, and Taker is reborn after the match, then returns at Summerslam. There is also a very good match between IRS and Razor Ramon
1995 - This rumble to me just sucks because of the 1 minute intervals. Shawn wins at #1 in the rumble, last eliminating Davey Boy Smith. The great matches on the undercard include an excellent match between Bret Hart and Diesel for the WWE Title, and Jeff Jarrett vs. Razor Ramon for the IC Title.
1996 - Shawn repeats his performance last year by winning the rumble. The great undercard match is between Bret Hart and The Undertaker for the WWE Title. Here begins the Diesel vs. Taker fued. A pretty decent rumble card and the rumble is outstanding, minus the squat team members.
1997 - This royal rumble is a little short, but really good. It keeps the Austin vs. Hart fued going, even provides a part that feed's the "Bret got screwed" storyline in 1997. Shawn vs. Sid was an ok match for the WWE Title. The only thing worth mentioning on this edition, in my opinion, is the Royal Rumble. It was a very great rumble that was Austin's first on three rumble wins | | Reviewed on 2008-03-10
Check it out!
This set goes forward from the infancy of the WWE. It has all of the next generation of characters and shows how far the organization has progressed since the first volume. Well worth the money for the nostalgia and the true fan base. A "must have" for the WWE historians. I highly recommend all 4 volumes | | Reviewed on 2008-01-16
3.75 Stars: A Decent Set of Rumbles..but lacking Superstars...
After re-watching these 5 Rumbles ('93-97) in this collection, I feel this Volume is a step down from the previous Volume One of the Royal Rumble Anthology. But I still think this set of Royal Rumbles is definitely worth having and much better than some the latter Royal Rumbles of this series. This collection shows the new era of wrestling in the WWF at the time, with new talent like Razor Ramon, Diesel, Jeff Jarrett, Hunter Hearst-Helmsley, Goldust, and Stone Cold Steve Austin arriving on the scene.
The 1993 Rumble has some decent matches, with the biggest highlight being the excellent Bret Hart vs. Razor Ramon WWF Championship match. Though the stupidest thing was the "unveiling of the Lex Luger" by Bobby Heenan, which is a bit disturbing when you think about some of the stuff Bobby is saying! The Rumble itself is real good as well, especially with great performances by Ric Flair and surprisingly, Bob Backlund! There's also an appearance by Giant Gonzalez that would be the lead up to the match between him and the Undertaker at Wrestlemania 9. The ending of the Rumble is kinda stupid with Randy Savage trying to pin Yokozuna instead of trying to throw him over..wtf?!
I'm gonna be honest, there were few high spots in the 1994 Royal Rumble. The match between Hart Brothers and the Quebecers wasn't that great, but do you get to see Owen Hart betray his brother Bret, and "injure" his leg so badly that its put into doubt whether Bret Hart would be able to be in the Rumble later on that evening. The Intercontinental Match between IRS and Razor Ramon was so-so, but the worst match was undoubtably the casket match between The Undertaker and Yokozuna. First off, you get to see the worst looking chock slam I've probably ever seen done by the Undertaker, but really, what kind you expect. Yokozuna, because of his size, made it hard to do many wrestling maneuvers on him that looked effective. Plus, it didn't help that Yokozuna pretty much sucked as a wrestler anyway, and why in the name of God he was around for as long as he was, is a mystery to me. And the ending of this match is just stupid, in fact, the match is over before it really gets started. Also, this Rumble is horribly lacking star power, I understand this was somewhat of a transitional period for the WWF at the time, but man, this one hurts! This one is full of no names or lesser known stars. Really, the only big stars here are Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart (of course he's in it, he's not gonna let that leg injury stop him! lol), Lex Luger (who the WWF were trying desperately to push over), Macho Man, and maybe Diesel, if you wanna include him. With the lack of star power here, its pretty easy to see that the list of potential winners is rather small. And speaking of winners, this would mark the one and only time that there were 2 winners of the Royal Rumble. The actual ending of the match was alright, but the long period of time that the refs took trying to decide who won, was kinda lame.
The 1995 Royal Rumble might have been slightly worse than 1994, but not by much. The opening match between Razor Ramon and Jeff Jarrett for the IC belt was pretty good, and the WWF Championship Match between Bret Hart and Diesel was good. Isn't it funny how all the good matches seem to involve Bret Hart? That's simply because he was one heck of a wrestler, and his matches were always entertaining to watch, at least that's my opinion! This also has a World Tag Team match, which involved 2 teams I could really care less about, and a so-so match between IRS and the Undertaker. Much like the previous year, this Rumble is also low on star power, in fact its probably worse! Again, you only had 3 true superstars in this one: Michaels, British Bulldog, and Luger. And I don't know about you guys, but I could see the ending of the Rumble coming a mile away, even if I hadn't already known who ultimately won!
The '96 Rumble, though I may be wrong about this, marks the first time that the Rumble itself wasn't the main event. And though, its listed on the case, the opening match (which I believe was shown free, and not part of the pay-per-view) between Triple H and Duke "The Dumpster" Droz is not on the disc. No clue why they would list it on here and not include it, but I don't think I'm missing much anyway! Most of the other matches aren't that great either, except for the IC match between Razor Ramon and Goldust, which I didn't think was that great of an actual wrestling match, but it was funny and entertaining. Of course, the Championship match between Bret Hart and The Undertaker is pretty good as well. As for the Rumble itself, its a step up from the previous two Rumbles, with a bit better list of participants..Triple H, Yokozuna, Vader, Shawn Michaels, Diesel, The Ringmaster (later he would become Stone Cold), British Bulldog, and heck, even an appearance by Jake the Snake Roberts! Again, the ending of the Rumble isn't that hard to see coming, but still, its pretty entertaining.
The final Rumble in the set is about the same as the most of the Rumbles in this volume, its nothing amazing, but still pretty good. The opening match between Triple H and Golddust for the IC belt was decent, and well as the Undertaker vs Vader match. There is however, a stupid 6 man Tag Team Match involving a bunch of unknown Mexican wrestlers which you will undoubtly have to fast forward through! Again, there's a WWF Championship match after the Rumble, between Sycho Sid and Shawn Michaels which is pretty good, but nothing amazing. The Rumble itself, again, isn't the best ever, and it does have some pretty crappy participants, including fake Diesel and Razor. For some reason, fake Razor gets the crap booed out of him by the audience, yet the crowd is more kind to fake Diesel for some reason. Anyway, some of the big names in this one are, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Jake the Snake Roberts, Triple H, The Rock, Mankind, Bret Hart, Vader, and the Undertaker. There's also a bit of a controversial ending to this rumble as well which I liked.
All in all, this set is definitely worth re-living and watching again, not to mention owning. You get to see greats like Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and The Undertaker in their prime. However, this one just doesn't match up to Volume One. There aren't as many classic matches and classic Superstars during this era of the WWF. But nonetheless, this is still a decent period in the history of the WWF, and still way above what it is now! This is highly recommended for any wrestling fan, especially one who appreciates the older stuff! | |
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