Hulu Documentary Series Exposes The Tragic Stories Behind Childhood Heroes

For generations of wrestling fans, we had to get stories second-hand from the “dirt sheets,” with the big ones being The Wrestling Observer and PWTorch, and then, in the mid-90s, the “shoot interview” started to become popular among wrestlers. Dark Side of the Ring has the real performers involved tell their stories, interspersed with reenactments and archival footage, that blows away the shoestring production budget of shoot interviews where a performer talks into a static camera for hours.

Each episode of Dark Side of the Ring shines a spotlight on a different performer or incident, ranging from the death of Bruiser Brody or New Jack to the existence of XPW and the backstage argument between Vince Russo and Hulk Hogan that resulted in a very real lawsuit. Those directly involved weigh in on the topic, with frequent appearances from Jim Cornette, Jim Ross, David Meltzer, and Jim Crockett, to name a few. As the name implies, these aren’t feel-good stories of triumph, and it can be hard to binge-watch multiple episodes in a row.

My personal favorites are “Match Made in Heaven,” about Macho Man Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth, “The Brawl for All” which covers the cursed WWE event of the late 90s, and one I didn’t think much of until I hit play, “Bam Bam Bigelow – The Beast from the East.” That last one exemplifies everything great about Dark Side of the Ring, as Bam Bam’s family gets put in the spotlight, and they can share their stories of the man behind the superstar. Bigelow was in WWE when I started watching, and he was incredibly impressive, but never broke out into the superstar that he should have been.

Brought to light in his episode is the crippling painkiller addiction he developed as a result of performing in the ring for decades, which brought an end to his career and his life. It was a heart-wrenching episode, especially when his daughter recounted her last memory of him, but it gave me a new appreciation for someone who is, wrongly, most widely remembered for main-eventing a Wrestlemania against an NFL player.

Dark Side of the Ring truly excels when it goes off the beaten path from the stories that wrestling fans have heard for years and instead spotlights someone like Bam Bam or Chris Adams, or for a more recent performer, indie deathmatch superstar Nick Gage.

You can hop around, pick and choose the episodes that appeal to you, and watch only the ones that sound interesting, but I suggest trying a few of those with stars you’ve likely never heard of. Well, that, and there are two episodes that get so dark and so depressing you might want to pass.

“In the Shadow of Grizzly Smith” tells the story of Jake “The Snake” Roberts and his siblings, Rockin’ Robin and Sam Houston, and the abuse they received from their father, Grizzly Smith (who sickeningly worked backstage as an agent during Jake’s time in the WWE). The other, “The Fabulous Moolah,” pulls back the curtain on how the former WWE legend was a horrible human being who single-handedly held back women’s wrestling for decades. The Dark Side of the Ring lives up to its title.

REVIEW SCORE

Seasons 1-4 of The Dark Side of the Ring are currently streaming on Hulu, with only the recently concluded Season 5 missing from the service. If you like the show, you can also check out The Dark Side of Comedy, also on Hulu, which provides the same treatment to the legends of comedy. Even if you’re not a fan of professional wrestling, the episodes are so expertly crafted, and the real-life stories are so engaging that this would still be a great series for you.