Category: Book Reviews

BOOK REVIEW – Doom Guy: Life in First Person (2023)

So I recently came across John Romero’s autobiographical book called Doom Guy: Life In First Person. The book delves into the obvious talking points; Romero’s early career, the formation of id Software and the subsequent creation of the many landmark games produced, his later career, and other things. There’s also the personal side of things that make the autobiographical stuff worthwhile; his upbringing, his view on things today, stuff like that. That stuff… well, your mileage is going to vary on that stuff, but the insights into the gaming stuff is what sold me on this book.

This is a better book than I was expecting. Part of it has to due with Romero possessing such keen insight and recollection of past events that very few people have. Oftentimes, whenever someone is pressed on past events, they’ll either provide a fuzzy recollection or they claim that they simply don’t recall. Romero doesn’t have that problem. Everything is written and retold with such detail that it’s almost as though he’s been writing this book his entire life. The only other book I could think that comes across as similar is the Bret Hart bio from ages ago.

Is there a possibility of some things being embellished or perhaps told from a certain point of view? Always, but that’s always the case with these things. I’ve read bios that were completely full of shit from page 1. I didn’t get that case here. I got Romero’s side of the story, it felt genuine, it felt like it came from the heart. And for what it’s worth, I’m on my fourth reading of the book. I don’t say that often for something I’ve read fairly recently.

All in all, Doom Guy gets a thumbs up from me. Tremendous read. Well worth checking out.

BOOK REVIEW – 100 Things WWE Fans Should Know And Do Before They Die (2019)

Bryan Alvarez – he of Figure Four Weekly, F4WOnline, Bryan & Vinny, and MINUS FIVE STARS fame – wrote another book. This time, he wrote one on his own, as opposed to sharing the spotlight with R.D. Reynolds and taking all the credit, as was the case with the previous literary endeavor, The Death Of WCW.

Just kidding, Bryan.

100 Things WWE Fans Should Know And Do Before They Die is essentially one of those list-type things, where you have 100 different topics of relative importance and each topic has a number of paragraphs dedicated to it. Some entries in the book have more space dedicated to it than others, while others have little more than short blurbs dedicated to it. In the case of the short blurbs, you sometimes wish there was more that could be expanded upon, but then again, some of these topics could very well be subjects for their own books in and of themselves.

The book opens with a forward from Lance Storm, who is something of a literary connoisseur in addition to be a former wrestler and trainer of future wrestlers. Once you somehow get past that without falling asleep, you get the rest of the book, which hits you with all the basic historical bits to bring a newcomer to the WWE bubble up to speed. And that’s pretty much the whole aim of the book; it’s essentially something that you can give to a newcomer to get them up to speed on what this whole thing is about. The topics aren’t delved into deeply – though some topics have more pages dedicated to them than others, which merely get a paragraph’s mention at most – but this is less a deep dive and more into a refresher of things.

There’s nothing in this book that longtime fans of the genre doesn’t already know before, but serves as a nice reference and Bryan’s wit is more or less on full display here. There’s even a couple entries written by other people who know more about certain bits than he does, which shows some level of humbleness that is normally lacking. The overall format of the book is convenient for those wanting a quick read; each entry typically has a page or two dedicated to them, so you can read an entry or two before calling it a day.

100 Things… does what it does well enough. It’s not the deepest look into the WWE inner workings nor does it try to be. It’s just a primer for newcomers to get themselves acquainted with the WWE universe and a little beyond that. If you’re looking for something more in-depth, you’re not going to get that here. But if you just want something that’s good for a quick read before dozing off, this gets the job done.

BOOK REVIEW – Hollywood Hulk Hogan (2002)

In 2002, Hollywood Hulk Hogan has returned to WWF for the first time in 1993. He got a big match with the Rock at Wrestlamnia X-8 that saw the Toronto crowd turn on the People’s Champ to cheer Hogan on like the returning hero – Hogan was a heel at the time. Long story short, the next night, Hogan was officially made into a babyface, slowly returned to his red and yellow colors (but still kept the Hollywood moniker, five-o-clock shadow, feather boas, and Voodoo Child entrance theme – which I’d argue is a better theme for Hogan than Real American), and eventually beat Triple for the Undisputed WWF Title where business tanked… but we don’t talk about that part.

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BOOK REVIEW – Ghost Hunting 2.0 by Chris Bores (2015)

We’ve had our fun and games this past month with the newest literary tome from the Irate Gamer; a couple jokey video vlog things and a couple blips in a commentary… but Halloween has come and gone. The games are over and done with. It’s time to give my thoughts on Ghost Hunting 2.0 by Chris Bores.

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BOOK REVIEW – SMB3: Brick By Brick (2013) (a.k.a. How Bob Chipman Ruined Super Mario Bros. 3 For Me)

Once upon a time, there was an online personality called Moviebob. He did a show on Screwattack called the Game Overthinker, where he talks about certain topics and brings up good points. Then he decided to add shitty storylines and skits to his videos and they started sucking. Basically, the same trap that befell other online personalities with the caustic reviewing angle.

One thing was readily apparently with Moviebob a.k.a. Bob Chipman; he believes that Super Mario Bros. 3 is the most important video game in the history of the universe. So much so that it became the focus of his life… and the subject of his first book.

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BOOK REVIEW – Journey Into Darkness: The Unauthorized History Of Kane (2005)

“I think you’d have to be on cocaine to enjoy it.”
Blade Braxton, Wrestlecrap Radio

So, 2005 saw WWE release a fictional book detailing the story of Kane, the Undertaker’s half-brother who debuted in 1997 and caused a big scene… and then bit by bit, that aura dwindled with stupid stories like Katie Vick, unmaskings, and corporate Kane. Fortunately, Journey Into Darkness was published long before that last bit took place and in fairness, I want to give the author credit in trying to reconcile all these different plotholes in WWE narrative into one cohesive story.

I mean, the poor bastard tried.

The book is poorly written… sometimes it reads fine, sometimes it reads bad, and then there are moments when it is unbearable (but those times are few and between). Here’s the thing, though; I enjoyed the book because I like the wrestling product. There’s a certain level regarding suspension of disbelief that you’d have to attain in order to follow wrestling. If you’re NOT a wrestling fan, though, then this book will do NOTHING for you. You’ll be reading this thing wondering, “What the hell is going on here?” And while the story is certainly readable for the most part and isn’t remotely terrible, it doesn’t make any attempt to make sense to the people who are picking this up without prior knowledge of the wrestling product.

If you’re a fan of the Big Red Monster and are remotely interested in his backstory, then Journey Into Darkness is probably worth a look. The story does its best to explain the various inconsistencies with the Kane backstory, but is marred down by generally poor writing and the fact that this is trying to make sense out of a narrative concocted by a company who didn’t give a rat’s ass about cohesive narratives unless it was convenient to them. There’s a “clever” attempt to try and make this grounded in reality by using real names here and there while maintaining their hokey fake story and for what it’s worth, you can’t help but admire the attempt.

I don’t know. If you’re into trainwrecks in literary form or want to know how WWE makes sense of its nonsense (and fail), then this is worth checking out. Otherwise, there are plenty of more worthwhile books to check out – either within the wrestling or fictional realms.

BOOK REVIEW – The Death Of WCW (10th Anniversary Edition) (2014)

So in 2004, The Death Of WCW was released. A tome written by Wrestlecrap connoisseur R.D. Reynolds and Figure Four Minus Five Stars guy Bryan Alvarez, it was a fascinating and insightful look at the history of World Championship Wrestling, from its early days to its most profitable period to eventually its downfall. Ten years later, they release an expanded edition of the book to commemorate the book’s tenth anniversary… because the thing still gets published and apparently still sells, which justifies said expanded edition.

For all intents and purposes, this is the same book you’ve read in 2004… at least, for the most part. A lot of the text included in the old book has been retained for the most part, but at the same time, the new Death Of WCW book almost feels like a completely different book. Surface-level, it uses different fonts and pictures as the previous book. Dig a bit deeper and a lot of the items that have been mentioned in the previous book has been expanded upon with actual quotes from those who were on the “front lines” as it were. There are also new items added in for good measure. In a sense, this book feels like a more refined product of what came out ten years prior; almost as though this was the book that was supposed to come out, but didn’t because of space constraints.

But what makes this book even more insightful is that not only does it expand upon the unfortunate tale of World Championship Wrestling, but it also points out some of the mistakes that are being repeated TODAY by the major promotions. Remember that mirror gimmick where Hogan (and the audience) could see Warrior in the mirror, but nobody else in the room could? Did you know WWE tried that stunt not just ONCE, but TWICE? Many of these lessons not learned are highlighted and pointed out… although there are a couple lessons that have been “learned.” Remember when WCW unmasked Rey Mysterio Jr? You don’t? Well, good. Nobody else does, either.

In the original book, the epilogue covered the mismanaged Invasion that dominated WWF television for the latter half of 2001. Sadly, that entire chapter has been excised from this new edition, but in its place is a laundry list of all the stupid things that TNA Impact Wrestling has done over the course of its dozen year existence… and it is just as lengthy as the original epilogue. It is, perhaps, the closest thing you’re going to get to a Death Of TNA book… assuming such an event happens sooner than later.

All in all, this expanded edition is worthy of being added to your library, even if you already have the original book. It’s the same book with some expanded bits, but feels different enough that it’s worth taking up another slot on the shelf. Those who didn’t care for the book the first time… well, I doubt anything here will change your mind, but this version feels more complete.

A hearty recommendation.

BOOK REVIEW – WWE’s Big Apple Takedown (2006)

The cover of this book depicts former WWE Diva Torrie Wilson wielding a gun while wearing a suggestive outfit with an awkward smile on her face, much like a lot of these promo pics where superstars and divas are told to smile in the most unnatural, unrealistic way possible. You look at this cover and you’re wondering why anyone would want to read this in public?

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BOOK REVIEW – The Rise And Fall Of ECW (2006)

Did you watch the Rise And Fall Of ECW DVD set that was released back in 2004? Then you pretty much know what to expect from WWE’s next attempt to cash in on the sudden ECW explosion with what is essentially the book version of that particular set. The book pretty much covers the territory that was already covered on the DVD, but also includes material talking about the One Night Stand PPV that took place in 2005; the show that everyone raved about and whose success resulted in a revival of ECW the following people that most people would wish hadn’t happened.

I got this on the cheap because it was on discount one time and for what it’s worth, it covers the same ground as the DVD in book form, which means you’ll get a nice look at the origins of ECW, what made it hip and popular, a look at some of the personalities that made ECW a thing (as well as interview blurbs with said personalities – or at least the ones contracted to WWE at the time), and the events that lead to the eventual fall of ECW. There’s also some extra bits not featured on the DVD and the book does touch on the first One Night Stand PPV in 2005.

There’s not much to say about this one. If you’ve seen the DVD, there’s very little “new” material that you’ll come across. It’s a fun little read, regardless. Blew through this one in a couple nights and better written than most of the WWE tripe I’ve come across. If you want a good book on ECW, this might be worth a shot, but you’re better off tracking down the DVD instead.