‘WWE The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J’ Blu-ray Review
Chris Jericho may be with WWE part-time, but some of us remember when he first made his debut in the company, and then realise just how long ago that was. Some of us even remember him in WCW, even as far back as the original ECW and this is why WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J is fun to watch. The fact I only go back to ECW though shows that this is how far back the release goes and its restriction to the WWE video library.
Instead of going for the normal documentary structure with added matches, WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J features Jericho talking about his memories of a match or an event in his career then leading into the match itself. Presenting himself out of character he talks about how he had to adapt to the WWE style and even lets us into some secrets that we may have not known before. It should be no surprise that he puts on a good show, which is why many fans will be looking forward to watching this.
When it comes to the chosen matches I would like to have seen more from ECW as I have seen some matches that I would think are rarer, like the “shoot fight” he had against Taz. Instead the one match included is against Pitbull #2, which is arguably a classic but I’m not sure just how rare? The same goes as the two that are selected from WCW featuring Ultimo Dragon and Dean Malenko. The Dean Malenko one that was included though is a very welcome inclusion as it shows both fighters at their best, any Malenko match is worthy of an inclusion in a box set like this.
As would be expected with a WWE release most of the matches are selected from his years with the company and there is a nice selection from all the major stars that have crossed his path. From Rey Mysterio to Bray Wyatt and Stonecold Steve Austin to The Rock and even people who have left the company like Kurt Angle and CM Punk the wrestlers that feature are a very good cross-section of the wrestling eras that he was a part of. It’s interesting that you also see the evolution of the Y2J character and just why he is one of the most popular wrestlers in the company to this day.
Watching WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J I couldn’t help but think that the WWE needs to do more releases like this featuring wrestlers that have been important to the growth of the company. Maybe some selections that aren’t seen as the most popular could be looked at like Goldust, RVD or even his brother and his rise to Stardust? Admittedly Cody Rhodes still has a legacy to create, but he still has plenty of matches that could be examined to tell his story. I guess that is showing how much of a fan I am for Stardust at the moment though, so we can add that idea to my personal wish list.
Back to the subject of WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J though I found this to be an enjoyable watch and very entertaining, especially listening to Chris Jericho’s stories and secrets that he had to share. We may not see Jericho on television as much as we would like but he’s a busy guy especially touring with Fozzy. A must for Chris Jericho fans WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J is a release that shows Jericho’s quality as a wrestler…which is something that WWE may really need right now.
****½ 4.5/5
WWE: The Road is Jericho: Epic Stories and Rare Matches from Y2J is available on DVD and Blu-ray now.
