Dark Side of the Ring

Damn solid docu series that says a lot of new things even for me as someone who's really into backstage wrestling politics. The presentation is snappy but allows emotion when appropriate, conveying a sense of earnest rarely found in wrestling documentaries. Some of the weird visual choices I wasn't too big on and recent episodes have fallen into the trap of falling into narrative cliches that are all too common when describing wrestling to non-fans, but this is otherwise a solid docu series.

Solid documentary on really fascinating topics. Sadly, it has come out that a lot of the testimonies were manipulated in order to produce better TV, which led to the show's cancellation and retroactively weakens the quality of past content. They should have resisted that urge, the content was good enough as is.

A unique take on a documentary series that pulls no punches when it comes to the wild west world of professional wrestling. The tragedy and trauma explored throughout each episode is enough to turn you into a fan.

Dark Side of the Ring is a phenomenal yet simple concept: take the most insane platform in entertainment, and shine a light on some of its most notorious stories and figures, warts and all. The first two seasons have featured substance abuse, marital manipulations, screwjobs, murders, sexploitation, felonious assault, criminal negligence... and that's just the first sixteen weeks worth of episodes! Lapsed fans and hardcores alike have no reason not to love DSotR! (Score based on seasons 1 & 2)