One of WWE s most popular Superstars, Batista is truly a study in contrasts. On one hand, Batista is the smoothest of operators, known for his stylish appearance and laid-back attitude. He has the air and presence of a cha... more »mpion. Exploding with fury in the ring, however, Batista embodies his nickname The Animal. That power has served him well where he has won five world championships. For the first time ever, fans of The Animal can relive his storied career with this 3-DVD set that includes a biography of Batista s life both inside the ring and out. In addition to this revealing look at The Animal, this 3-DVD set will feature dozens of the greatest matches and moments from Batista s career.« less
Batista profile documentary with the following chapters:
* Moving Around
* High School
* Bouncer
* Meets Angie
* Career Decision
* Wild Samoan Training Center
* Leviathan
* Deacon Batista
* Evolution
* Winning the Game
* Family Issues
* Welcome to SmackDown
* Tribute to Eddie
* Philippines Star
* Relinquishes the Championship
* The Royal Treatment
* Phenomenal Experience
* On the Edge of Greatness
* Show Stopping Moment
* Celebrity Unleashed
* Batista - The Animal
Bonus Features
* Hot Bread and Butter
* Batista's Rough Neighborhood
* The Biggest Lifeguard at the Pool
* Leviathan: Demon of the Ohio River
* The Animal's New Suit
* Dave Meets Alonzo Mourning
* Respect for Eddie
* A Gift for Chavo
* Eddie's Advice
* Batista's Lunchbox Collection
DVD TWO:
OVW Heavyweight Championship Match
Leviathan vs. "The Machine" Doug Basham
Ohio Valley Wrestling - November 28, 2001
Batista vs. Kane
Armageddon - December 15, 2002
Batista vs. Shawn Michaels
Armageddon - December 14, 2003
World Tag Team Championship Tables Match
Batista & Ric Flair vs. The Dudley Boyz
Royal Rumble - January 25, 2004
Batista vs. Chris Jericho
Vengeance - July 11, 2004
30-Man Royal Rumble Match
Royal Rumble - January 30, 2005
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Triple H
WrestleMania 21 - April 3, 2005
Hell in a Cell Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. Triple H
Vengeance - June 26, 2005
No Holds Barred Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. JBL
SummerSlam - August 21, 2005
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Eddie Guerrero
No Mercy - October 9, 2005
DVD THREE:
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. King Booker
Survivor Series - November 26, 2006
Triple Threat Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. King Booker vs. Finlay
Smackdown! - December 1, 2006
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. The Undertaker
WrestleMania 23 - April 1, 2007
Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. Edge
One Night Stand - June 3, 2007
World Heavyweight Championship w/ Special Referee "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
Batista vs. The Undertaker
Cyber Sunday - October 28, 2007
6-Man Tag Team Match
Batista, Triple H & Ric Flair vs. Randy Orton, Edge, & Umaga
Raw - December 10, 2007
Batista vs. John Cena
SummerSlam - August 17, 2008
Batista vs. Randy Orton
Armageddon - December 14, 2008"
Official Lineup for Batista DVD Set
Lloyd Van Buren | 07/27/2009
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Below is the official lineup from silvervision.com for the upcoming set dedicated to Batista. I've personally never been a Batista fan so I will likely be passing on this set although it does contain most of Batista's best matches.
Disc One
In-depth Batista Profile featuring:
* Moving Around
* High School
* Bouncer
* Meets Angie
* Career Decision
* Wild Samoan Training Center
* Leviathan
* Deacon Batista
* Evolution
* Winning the Game
* Family Issues
* Welcome to SmackDown
* Tribute to Eddie
* Philippines Star
* Relinquishes the Championship
* The Royal Treatment
* Phenomenal Experience
* On the Edge of Greatness
* Show Stopping Moment
* Celebrity Unleashed
* Batista - The Animal
Bonus Features
* Hot Bread and Butter
* Batista's Rough Neighborhood
* The Biggest Lifeguard at the Pool
* Leviathan: Demon of the Ohio River
* The Animal's New Suit
* Dave Meets Alonzo Mourning
* Respect for Eddie
* A Gift for Chavo
* Eddie's Advice
* Batista's Lunchbox Collection
Disc Two
OVW Heavyweight Championship Match
Leviathan vs. "The Machine" Doug Basham
Ohio Valley Wrestling - November 28, 2001
Batista vs. Kane
Armageddon - December 15, 2002
Batista vs. Shawn Michaels
Armageddon - December 14, 2003
World Tag Team Championship Tables Match
Batista & Ric Flair vs. The Dudley Boyz
Royal Rumble - January 25, 2004
Batista vs. Chris Jericho
Vengeance - July 11, 2004
30-Man Royal Rumble Match
Royal Rumble - January 30, 2005
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Triple H
WrestleMania 21 - April 3, 2005
Hell in a Cell Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. Triple H
Vengeance - June 26, 2005
No Holds Barred Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. JBL
SummerSlam - August 21, 2005
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Eddie Guerrero
No Mercy - October 9, 2005
Disc Three
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. King Booker
Survivor Series - November 26, 2006
Triple Threat Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. King Booker vs. Finlay
Smackdown! - December 1, 2006
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. The Undertaker
WrestleMania 23 - April 1, 2007
Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship
Batista vs. Edge
One Night Stand - June 3, 2007
World Heavyweight Championship w/ Special Referee "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
Batista vs. The Undertaker
Cyber Sunday - October 28, 2007
6-Man Tag Team Match
Batista, Triple H & Ric Flair vs. Randy Orton, Edge, & Umaga
Raw - December 10, 2007
Batista vs. John Cena
SummerSlam - August 17, 2008
Batista vs. Randy Orton
Armageddon - December 14, 2008"
"The Animal" Unleashed
D.P. | California | 11/16/2009
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Now before I get started, I'll admit that I'm not a big Batista fan. I'll admit that I believe there are plenty of other subjects & wrestlers in WWE that are more indemand to be released onto DVD than Batista (just like a majority of the Chris Jericho supporters in the previous reviews & I personally would like more "legends" sets using the footage from their vault). However, I'm not blind either in that it's a fact that Batista has been one of the biggest & most popular stars in WWE for going on the past 5 years weather I like it or not & regardless if I do or don't agree with the reasons that is...and another thing I can't deny is that Batista has been in some of the best matches on certain PPV cards for the past couple of years. The guy is already in his 40's & he's not expected to be around for a very long time either so it's better business to strike while he's still at the peak of his popularity & career. Not everything WWE Home Video puts out appeals to all audiences and this is one of those cases where you just have made up your mind & don't care for Batista then this release isn't for you, this was the decision that was made weather we like it or not & there isn't anything we can do about it now.
The documentry stars off talking about Batista's childhood growing up in the rough area of Washington D.C. and how he came the "man of the house" at an early age before going into his experiences of moving to San Francisco & Virginia. How he started weightlifting in high school & his early "easy money" jobs were talked about before going in the story of his relationship with his future (now ex) wife Angie. How Batista got involved with wrestling originally through WCW & later with a WWE Hall Of Famer was talked about before getting into the story behind his WWE developmental character Leviathan. His career starting as Deacon Batista & eventually becoming a member of Evolution is discussed with various important moment being highlighed. How the fans "chose him" over Randy Orton leading to his WrestleMania match against Triple H is also talked about including various issues he had going into the match & the incident that happened backstage after the match as well. The documentry got real personal as the negative effect the business had on his relationship with Angie along with Dave's issues with his oldest daughter were heavily discussed. The move to SmackDown (and the "heat" he had backstage with the roster) & how close he got with Eddie Guerrero & Rey Mysterio is discussed before heavily going into the popularity he's had with the Philippino community. The story behind him forfitting the World Title due to injury, his surgery & comeback, and regaining the title from King Booker is discussed before talking about his feuds against Undertaker, Edge, and Shawn Michaels before closing out the documentry on his celebrity status leading into other TV shows & various magazine covers.
DVD extras include bonus stories of Batista talking about a brutal version of "Hide & Seek" he used to play as a kid, Batista & his mom telling stories of his rough neighborhood that resulted in 3 different shootings in his first yard, being a lifeguard at the community pool, funny story behind filming a Leviathan segment, what happened when Dave spent $500 on a new suit for his WWE debut, what happened when he went to a pool tournament with Triple H, the moment he gained the most respect for Eddie Guerrero & how Eddie helped Dave's relationship with his daughter, a gift he gave Chavo Guerrero, and the story behind his "geeky" lunchbox collection.
Also include are two disc of bonus matches including...
vs. Kane - This match was just wasn't good & boring for the most part. Batista was still very green at the time & Kane can only carry his opposition so far in a match but it just didn't work here.
Armageddon '02
vs. World Champion Triple H - The match itself was just HHH beating down on Batista until he pissed him off & "unleashed the Animal" & beat up HHH in a way we haven't seen in a long time, at that point, all the way to winning the World Heavyweight Championship. If you watch the documentry, you'll find out an interesting fact in that Batista didn't have feeling in one of his legs during this match.
WrestleMania 21
Hell In A Cell Match vs. Triple H - An awesome match that tops their WrestleMania match by so many points . You could see the hardcore influence in this match as so many hardcore weapons (barbed wire chairs for example) were used. Triple H bleeds buckets once again and is one of this best matches of not just the night but his career period.
Vengeance '05
("Triple H: King Of Kings" & "Hell In A Cell")
No Holds Barred Match vs. JBL - This match was pretty short & sweet but if you saw their Great American Bash match, you'll know why. Batista was also in his hometown so he put on one of this best performances given the conditions.
SummerSlam '05
vs. Eddie Guerrero - This was more about "putting over a storyline" than having a great match because Eddie was putting over the storyline of "not lying, cheating, and stealing." The match was good but again, nothing really memorable besides the fact that this was the last we'll see of Eddie Guerrero on WWE PPV.
No Mercy '05
("Viva La Raza: The Legacy Of Eddie Guerrero")
vs. World Champion King Booker - This match was about one thing, Batista winning the belt back in the arena he lost it in. This was better than their SummerSlam match but that's not saying much. This was another performance that Batista "walked through" to the point to where the people started to leave & you could hear small "boring" chants. Again, it wasn't a horrible match but it was just dry & boring.
Survivor Series '06
vs. Undertaker - Taker's Undefeated Streak vs. Batista's Title and I'll be point blank honest, this was the match that should have ended the show. This was Batista's best showing since he returned from his injury as he stepped up his game & didn't show any lack of effort like most of his previous performances. This was a classic "big money" WrestleMania match & the match of the night for me as you saw the crowd off the chain thoughout the bout & even moments where it looked like Batista was going to end the streak & one spot to look out for would be Undertaker's big dive onto Batista. It's ironic that this was the 20 year anniversary of WrestleMania 3 but Undertaker walks out of his WM the same way he did 10 years earlier...as a champion.
WrestleMania 23
Steel Cage Match vs. World Champion Edge - Well, this heavily makes up for their Judgment Day match as Batista did carry his own weight here in this cage match. It's wasn't a bloody massacre (eventhough Edge got a bad gash near his lip) but a watchable matchup where again, it was so close between both men.
One Night Stand '07
w/Special Referee "Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs. Undertaker - Undertaker brought out the type of performance from Batista that he needed after that godawful series of matches with Khali. Just like their previous trilogy of matches, this was a awesome match from start to finish.
Cyber Sunday '07
vs. John Cena - Both Cena & Batista have a reputation for being too "off & on/hot & cold" during their matches but that wasn't the case here as both men brought forth a strong effort & were on the ball in this match. Batista used a different type of offense than we normally see from him as he showed signs of Ric Flair's offense of attack the leg & even used the figure four submission along with a rear naked choke later on while Cena also worked on the leg to set up the STFU. From reversing each others moves like the powerslam into the FU & the leg drop off the top into a powerbomb before Batista unleashed "the animal" and proved he was as as Michael Cole put it, "three seconds better than Cena.".
SummerSlam '08
vs. Randy Orton - After teasing a match between these two since the days of Evolution, they lock up for the first time ever...since the episode of RAW after WrestleMania 21. This was one of those matches that I honestly felt didn't go past "first gear" as they kept the same pace throughout the match with it only picking up at various spots with their impact moves & counters instead of just building up over time but I'll give credit here for telling a story with each move of Orton's being very calculated. It was a good match but I felt like it didn't live up to the "4 years" hype they used to build up this match.
Armageddon '08
Also included are a match as his OVW character Leviathan vs. Doug Basham, Shawn Michaels at Armageddon '03, a tables match with Ric Flair vs. Dudley Boyz from Royal Rumble '04, Chris Jericho at Vengeance '04, his performance in the '05 Royal Rumble, triple threat vs. King Booker & Finaly from "SmackDown" in Dec. '06, and the Evolution reunion with Triple H & Ric Flair vs. Edge & Umaga & another former Evolution member in Randy Orton from the 15th Anniversary Edition of RAW.
In the end, this was exactly what I stated in the beginning as this is strickly a DVD for Batista fans as far as the documentry goes because the fact is that Batista hasn't had a long career so there weren't many stories to tell but at least they tried to make up for it by getting deep in his personal life & were honest with various subjects (unlike how they heavily overexaggeraed & lied on Cena's) like his backstage heat & his attitude when he came to SmackDown. As for the match selection, it's nice that they didn't get alot of matches already released on other DVD's (unless you buy every single PPV DVD they put out) they got most of Batista's best performances on here (you notice there was no mention of Great Khali anywhere on this set) but there are some matches on here just to document a moment (like the S. Series match with Booker) or a stage in his career (his OVW match) along with some other flops (like the match with Kane) that could have easily been replaced with another match or important moment from his career like his Backlash rematch against Triple H, winning the tag team titles with Mysterio, or his title victory against Jericho at Cyber Sunday '08. In the end, if your already a big fan of Batista then odds are your going to get this anyways but if you aren't then I would suggest to get this set based off the match selection more than anything else because the documentry was lacking due to Batista not having a long career.
"
Batista Walks Alone
C. clark | 11/01/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I will preface this review by saying that I have been a Batista fan since early in 2002. I discovered him through Ohio Valley Wrestling, and was instantly hooked with his captivating character. This is an unbiased review however, and not a case of a fangirl screaming over a loved wrestler.
What I liked the most about the DVD was Disc One, the interviews with people who know Batista the best. He has always struck me as a very humble man, and he certainly comes across that way in the interviews. When you listen to him speak, he gives credit where credit is due. It isn't only his interviews that I enjoyed, it was great seeing the people who are so important in his life. As I said, I've been a fan of Batista since the very early days, and seeing Jonathan Meisner, a person I used to interact with on Batista's official message board was interesting. Hearing many of the stories from his book "Batista Unleashed" told in person was enjoyable. Also, there are pictures shown on this DVD that I do not remember from the book.
Disc Two and Three feature matches, and even though I had seen all of the matches before, it was nice seeing them again all in one place. I almost wish they had included more OVW matches, in particular the match where he saved Ric Flair's son David from John Cena and Sean O'Haire. Two other older matches that were included were awesome, Batista vs Shawn Michaels from Armageddon 2003, and Batista vs Jericho from Vengeance 2004. Of course, my favorite match is Batista vs HHH Wrestlemania 2005, especially since I can see me holding my sign during the build up to the match.
Overall, I found the product very entertaining, and the production is very slick."
Watchable but Incomplete
R.A. McKenzie | New York | 12/03/2009
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This 3-disc set got a bunch of negative responses before it even came out. I wouldn't be surprised if this turns out to be one of WWE's least successful DVDs. After watching the documentary program and the bonus matches & footage, I felt kinda indifferent after it was all over.
But here's the thing: "I Walk Alone" isn't average because of Dave Bautista. Sure, he's had a shorter career in the business, and is a soft-spoken kind of guy. But the real problem is that the documentary is incomplete.
Disc 1 includes the typical WWE-style documentary that you've seen from their other DVD releases. It begins in a rather strange fashion, as Batista drives around Washington DC, showing how more rundown it appears, instead of the tourist & government complexes you see in the movies or photographs. You meet his mother, and get to know how the man grew up. Even though I was kinda lukewarm to this part of the story, it does reveal a lot of who "The Animal" really is. His mother participates, as do a couple of his friends.
I give a tremendous amount of credit to Angie, Batista's ex-wife, for participating in this program. It's obvious that whatever transpired in their marriage, the two compliment each other enough, while being open about how life on the road made it hard for everybody. In fact, my favorite footage from "I Walk Alone" comes from listening to these two talk about each other.
I don't want to spend too much time on Batista's wrestling career, because there isn't a whole lot I can add to it. You will learn how Batista tried out at the WCW Power Plant, how Afa of the Wild Samoans trained him, and how his "Leviathan" character was born in OVW (the WWE's Louisville training grounds). Of course, Batista's WWE career is covered, from debuting as Reverend D-Von Dudley's "Deacon", to the Evolution days, to eventually becoming the popular singles competitor he is today.
Now, there are two overall surprises I got from "I Walk Alone", one good & one bad. I appreciated was how open Batista is about his family struggles & personal hardships. Aside from neglecting to mention the alleged affair with Melina even once, --- which is totally understandable as it's really none of our business --- nothing seems off limits. He even mentions the backstage brawl between King Booker and himself, revealing how new Batista really was at the business. These kinds of stories are welcome additions to the program.
But here's the unpleasant surprise: the coverage on Batista's WWE career is surprisingly incomplete. The Evolution faction (with Randy Orton, Triple H, & Ric Flair) is covered pretty well. Eventually, Batista won his 1st title at the "WrestleMania 21" main event from Triple H, and at least part of the lukewarm reception to that match is explained. Besides, the better story is what happened backstage afterwards.
But you see, the rivalry with Triple H isn't further explored. How about their two PPV rematches, especially the Hell-In-A-Cell Match? It would've been nice for Batista to comment on what many believe to be the best match of his career. The move to "SmackDown" in mid-2005 is only briefly shown in clips, with only a few comments on how Batista originally didn't want to move.
After hearing how Eddie Guerrero's untimely death led to a tag team program with Rey Mysterio, his injuries that led to a 7-month absence are discussed. I liked finding out what happened. I liked hearing how determined Batista was to get back in the ring. But then...you don't get much of what happened when he finally returned to the ring. I can understand not talking about how his PPV comeback was botched (Mark Henry got injured before they could have their grudge match), but then the feud with King Booker is poorly glossed over.
Even the 2007 rivalry with Undertaker is weakly covered. Aside from their "WrestleMania 23" showdown (a favorite for many Batista, Undertaker, & "WM" fans), there is practically no mention of their later encounters. Not even when Batista defended the title against Taker in Washington DC is on the documentary, nor is their final battle with the Hell-In-A-Cell. Thankfully, the former is on the extra discs.
There is also mention of the 2007 rivalry with Edge. Again, there are a few interesting bits, like when Edge admits he underestimated Batista's abilites. But, they don't even mention the "Vengeance 2007" final encounter, which was their best work together, in my opinion. You 'HEAR' how Edge's character kept escaping from "The Animal", but you don't exactly 'SEE' it.
And if the documentary is going to show some 2008 footage with the Shawn Michaels feud, how in the world did they forget to show the "SummerSlam" match against John Cena? Even with little build-up, that match was one of the biggest curiosities of the year, and it's a shame that you get in the bonus discs, but no mention on the documentary.
Now...the other day I read a comment where an angry reviewer said, "Why do some people keep trashing WWE DVDs? Don't people understand that not everyone collects every WWE disc?"
That's a fair comment. But how's this: "Doesn't WWE understand that not everyone has followed Batista's career from start to finish?" I know it's only been an 8-year run, but I think some people are gonna be confused as to what the heck is going on. I'm not criticizing Batista's abilities as an in-ring performer or WWE talent. I'm criticizing WWE for not going deep enough into his career, and for skipping over some of his highlights.
_______________________________________________
The deleted scenes for the documentary are worth a peek. The one on Batista's lunchbox collection gave me a good smile. The match selection is about as good as you could ask for from "The Animal's" career. You get to see a couple good matches with the likes of Triple H & Undertaker, while one Edge, John Cena, & Randy Orton get 1 match a piece. My only criticism would be I would've suggested either the 2007 or 2008 "Night of Champions" encounters against Edge, rather than their Steel Cage Match.
Batista's 2005 Royal Rumble victory is on here, starting from when he entered. #28. However, Chris Benoit's elimination from the contest has been edited out. You still see him in a few clips, but there is no commentary or key footage of the man. Honestly, I don't even remember what happened to him in this Rumble match, so I'm not too mad about it. I don't personally like censorship of his footage, but since he was a small part of the Rumble at this point in the match, I didn't mind.
_______________________________________________
OVERALL
When it comes to Batista's personal life, "I Walk Alone" is very detailed, honest, & compelling. When it comes to his WWE career, I'm not sure who will be satisfied with this documentary. The basic highlights are there, and there are a few neat insights that may surprise some. But it's an incomplete program. I'm guessing casual fans who don't know every result of every WWE PPV will get into this one the most.
I can't quite recommend the 3-disc set, NOT because of Batista's abilities or career, but because the WWE didn't put enough in their to make it a must-see product for the masses."