‘WWE Straight to the Top: Money in the Bank Anthology’ DVD Review

Hosted by The Miz, the compilation features every Money in the Bank Ladder Match in history. The match debuted at WrestleMania 21 in 2005, quickly becoming a WrestleMania tradition and in 2010 proved so popular that it was given its own annual PPV event. Several top Superstars have been Money in the Bank winners including John Cena, Kane, Edge, CM Punk (twice!), Rob Van Dam and many more. 11 of the first 12 winners have used the match as a springboard to winning a championship, and several times the match has helped a Superstar who has never win a World Championship break through to claim their first. Much like the Royal Rumble Match, the Money in the Bank match represents a golden opportunity for a Superstar to achieve immortality, and its entire lineage is presented here.

It is nice to see this match receive its own box-set release. The “Money in the Bank” concept is a cant-miss concept that helps create new headliners and give chances to superstars who might otherwise not receive them. This set includes each and every Money in the Bank ladder match from its inception in 2005 all the way up to this year’s matches at the Money in the Bank pay-per view in 2013. The matches are a mix in terms of quality, with some providing cringe-worthy bumps and spots that are memorable, and some providing a good story but a slower in-ring product, but overall this is a very entertaining set featuring matches that are all, in some way, worth your time.

The Matches:

• WrestleMania 21, April 3, 2005 – 1st Ever Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Edge vs. Christian vs. Kane

• WrestleMania 22, April 2, 2006 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Ric Flair vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. Bobby Lashley

• WrestleMania 23, April 1, 2007 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Jeff Hardy vs. King Booker vs. Finlay vs. CM Punk vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy vs. Randy Orton vs. Edge

• WrestleMania XXIV, March 30, 2008 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. CM Punk vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy

• WrestleMania 25, April 5, 2009 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  CM Punk vs. Kofi Kingston vs. MVP vs. Finlay vs. Christian vs. Kane vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Mark Henry

• WrestleMania 26, March 28, 2010 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Kane vs. Christian vs. Kofi Kingston vs. MVP vs. Matt Hardy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Evan Bourne vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dolph Ziggler

• Money in the Bank, July 18, 2010 – SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Big Show vs. Kane vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Christian vs. Matt Hardy vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Cody Rhodes

• Money in the Bank, July 18, 2010 – Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Randy Orton vs. John Morrison vs. Evan Bourne vs. Mark Henry vs. Edge vs. Chris Jericho vs. The Miz vs. Ted DiBiase

• Money in the Bank, July 17, 2011 – SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Kane vs. Sin Cara vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater

• Money in the Bank, July 17, 2011 – Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match
  Rey Mysterio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Alex Riley vs. Evan Bourne vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. The Miz vs. R-Truth vs. Jack Swagger

• Money in the Bank, July 15, 2012 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a World Heavyweight Championship Contract
  Christian vs. Sin Cara vs. Santino Marella vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Tensai vs. Damien Sandow

• Money in the Bank, July 15, 2012 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a WWE Championship Contract
  John Cena vs. Kane vs. Big Show vs. Chris Jericho vs. The Miz

• Money in the Bank, July 14, 2013 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a World Heavyweight Championship Contract
  Cody Rhodes vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Wade Barrett vs. Damien Sandow vs. Jack Swagger vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Fandango

• Money in the Bank, July 14, 2013 – Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a WWE      Championship Contract
  CM Punk vs. Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Christian vs. Rob Van Dam

There are plenty of big-names to keep people interested and the matches are often quite long but very fun. It might be overkill in one sitting for some people, but I found that once one match had finished I wanted to see how the next one would top it.

The first ever Money In The Bank match features Chris Benoit, and he does feature quite heavily in the match, they cut a couple of his spots, but most remain, though they have removed all commentary mentions of him, and his entrance from the match. In my view this draws as much attention to it than if they left it uncut. Still, it’s a difficult situation and one that is handled fairly well here.

The highlights are plentiful, with each match offering many great high spots that cause big crowd pops and create timeless replays for the individuals show-reels, but for the pure wrestling fan there is little here to smile about. When the big spots and weapon-related content is removed, there is little left over, and the technical wrestling that many fans seek is not really here. However, the Money In The Bank match wasn’t created for that reason, and most, if not all, fans will know what to expect and what not to expect when coming into this set. It’s fun, brash, sometimes messy and regularly entertaining and this set does a good job at showing this match concept off what exactly those things.

We’ve seen sets released now on War Games, Hell in a Cell, Elimination Chamber and now Money in the Bank. It begs the question of what match concept is next to go under the radar for box-set treatment.

Straight to the Top: The Money In The Bank Anthology is available now through Freemantle Media, and is on DVD (3DVD) and Blu-ray (2BD).