The Death Valley Driver Video Review is an online fanzine dedicated to reviewing and analyzing professional wrestling.

History

The Death Valley Driver Video Review was started by Dean Rasmussen, a fan of pro wrestling based in Virginia. Rasmussen started the DVDVR in the Spring/Summer of 1995 when he posted his wrestling review/newsletter to the Usenet group rec.sport.pro-wrestling. He covered a wide spectrum of styles, from basic United States Pro-style (and its many off-shoots) to the worked shoot-style elements of certain Japanese 'puroresu' organizations to lucha libre.

Rasmussen's style has evolved over time - initially it was just thoughts on the week's episode of WCW Monday Nitro and other recent matches Rasmussen had acquired from around the world, but soon it became match-by-match reviews of entire cards, including the points Rasmussen thought were good and points he thought were bad.

Eventually, Rasmussen asked his friend Phil Schneider to offer his own thoughts on material Rasmussen himself did not have time to watch. Schneider debuted in issue 61 by reviewing women's wrestling from Japan (referred to among fans as 'Joshi Puro' or simply 'Joshi'). Since then, Rasmussen and Schneider allowed contributions from a select group of friends (see below). These regular writers became known as The Death Valley Playboys or The DVDVR PLAYAZ.

Rasmussen used to give each issue crazy summaries in the header for each issue. Such issue headers as KAORU! Queen of Shoot-style! YAMADA! Empress of Lucha Libre! WILL o' THE WISP! rules it against SURGE! and MEIKO SATOMURA! is the future of Professional Wrestling! get across Rasmussen and his colleagues enthusiasm for watching Pro-wrestling.

The Website & Message Board

In 1997 the DVDVR expanded to a full website[280]. Rasmussen began archiving all the DVDVRs and also added a message board.

Message Board

Over the years, DVDVR's message board has changed the website's focus from being strictly about wrestling and mixed martial arts to other areas, such as politics, music, movies, comic books, and sports. Also, with those changes, various in-jokes and other things developed. Among them are "Team Beefy vs. Glitterati", "DVDVR Law", "DVDVR Movie Club", and most notably the 100-page "Sleaze Thread" (where noted disgusting actions of various past and present wrestlers are accounted, although most, if not all stories mentioned were apocryphal or second hand.) and "Head On Stakes Thread" (posters that are almost universally derided are voted on to be cast off). Recently, several former members of the message board who were banned for what they consider to be unclear and/or arbitrary reasons, have led storms of criticism about the DVDR forums's subjective policies on other pro wrestling message boards.

Other Folders on Message Board

Wrestling: Playaz-posted messages are on the front page, with 'non-stick wrestling' (regular discussion on all areas of wrestling), 'Lucha', '80s Forum as well as a forum dedicated to posting video of non-WWE matches. Workrate Reports break down current weekly wrestling programming. Recently, Rasmussen has done a comic-format report for WWE SmackDown! programming.

Them's Fighting Words: Discussions about MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) and a subfolder for boxing.

Sports: Discussions about the world of sports with various subfolders for individual sports. Amongst popular activities on the sports board are weekly NFL picks, prize pools, and fantasy sports leagues.

Movies & TV: Discussions about movies and television shows. Several board members have (almost irrational) love of MTV shows such as Laguna Beach and The Real World and also The Apprentice and various other reality TV shows.

Music: Discussions about all genres of music. Regular musical contributors often post "X song of the Day" with X representing either a category/genre of music or a particular poster's song of the day

Computers & Gaming: Discussions of console systems and computer-related issues. However, since it is primarily a wrestling board, usually wrestling games are discussed, most notably Spike's Fire Pro Wrestling.

Reading Material: Novels, comic books, and writers are discussed. DC Comics' Identity/Infinite Crisis and speculations/spoilers about the direction of the mini-series is the current popular thread.

Current Events: Discussions about the news and political issues.

Land Of Confusion: A catch-all for things that don't fit in the other folders. Food and food-related items are discussed in a sub-folder. The Land Of Confusion has recently been the main wormhole to the Gamma Quadrant that is a group project called "Throw The World Away", an internet Comix Book anthology with Comix creations from any DVDVR member who wants to contribute their art. It stemmed from Rassmussen drawing WWE SmackDown! Reports. DEAN then started an ongoing Comix called "Southern Alcohol Comix", telling a humorous, fictionalized version of his youth. Currently, the members of DVDVR who contribute to the online Comix Book range from published professionals to anyone who has a pencil and an idea.

Board Feedback: X-Rated material is discussed in a special subboard, as is a folder based on a e-fed using the Extreme Warfare Revenge ((EWR)) game, and a folder for board announcements and other such things.

Shills: Gives posters an opportunity to promote items they are selling over the Internet.

Writing Style & Content

Rasmussen's style is combination of enthusiasm, parody, sarcasm and sheer hyperbole. Sometimes a PLAYA will be brutally honest on how they feel about a specific match while other times they will hide their disgust with humor. Rasmussen analyzes everything from the actual in-ring product to things like a wrestler's fashion sense and haircuts.

In some cases Rasmussen has made satirical stories of the matches he watches. In issue #122 Rasmussen used the match between Survival Tobita and Bauxite Medium to tell a short story in style of Ernest Hemingway. Regardless, Rasmussen and company get their points and feelings across in their reviews.

Special DVDVR Features

The DVDVR 500

Starting in the fall of 1999 the PLAYAZ took it upon themselves to make a list of the 500 best wrestlers they had watched over the previous 6-8 months. Partially seen as a rebuttal of the Pro-Wrestling Illustrated list of the same name and number, the DVDVR listed ranked each wrestler according to workrate and the actual quality of matches wrestled. The first DVDVR 500 was released in November 1999 and saw Chris Benoit listed at #1.

Despite their tendency to watch more U.S. independent wrestling organizations and foreign wrestling federations than more common place professional wrestling (i.e. WWE and WCW, the PLAYAZ did name Benoit (from WCW) as the #1 wrestler for three consecutive lists (November 1999 - November 2000 or exactly 12 month period).

While just about all of the 500 were purely based on the ranking group's viewpoint of their ability/workrate in the prior six months, they generally used the final spot, #500 on the roster to be a harmles chide at a wrestler. For example, Shane McMahon once got the #500 spot after wrestling less then 5 matches during the time period, due to the amount of abuse and dangerous stunts he underwent in his matches.

Every year 2 lists were released (once every 6 months), lasting from November 1999 to May 2003. The DVDVR Top 500 has since been put on indefinite hiatus due to the insane amount of viewing time required to compile the list.

The DVDVR V. Lance Storm

On May 15th 2001, Lance Storm (then employed by World Wrestling Entertainment) was critical of the DVDVR 500. Storm took issue with Rasmussen and his writers making a list to determine 'who is a better worker?'.

Lance Storm - I don't feel you can accurately rate workers and I think lists like this prove my point. With wrestling being such a subjective art it becomes largely a matter of taste. Even considering a list, such as this, to be accurate not to mention feeling yourself qualified to make such a list, without actually working with the people on it, is ludicrous and to be honest I find it quite offensive.

The DVDVR Joshi 100

In response to the DVDVR 500, people inquired why there were no Joshi wrestlers on the list. In response It ws decided in the summer of 2001 the DVDVR Joshi 100 would be released. The reduction from 500 to 100 was due to the fact that naming 500 active female wrestlers was seemingly impossible. The same criteria for the DVDVR 500 was applied for the Joshi 100. 3 lists were released between July 2001 and August 2002.

The demand of producing both the DVDVR 500 and the Joshi 100 was time consuming. The Joshi 100 is currently on indefinite hiatus.

DVDVR Foghat vs. DVDVR Hollendaise

In February 1999 on rec.sport.pro-wrestling, Phil Schneider revealing his frustrations with the direction of the DVDVR and Rasmussen's skills as a writer and editor.

Phil Schneider (Posted to rec.sport.pro-wrestling 3/8/99) - The simple fact is that with the exeption of me, Phil Rippa and Mike Naimark, the Death Valley Driver has devolved lately into the same repatative crap over and over, rife with factual and grammatical errors. Dean has been coming in doing his spots, and coming out, while me and The Ripper carry the weight. The once prestigious mantle of DVDR Playboy hangs around my neck like an albatross, and I don't know how much more I can take of my reports being barried in the middle, sandwiched by two slices of poop bread.

Rasmussen responded:

Dean Rasmussen (Posted to rec.sport.pro-wrestling 3/9/1999) - I'm tired of carrying your dormroom-level analysis, Rippa's puthetic worship of all things Von Erich and Naimark's bizarre fetish of things Bob Ryder. You're cut loose.

This led to Schneider taking Phil Rippa and Mike Naimark to form the splinter group DVDVR FOGHAT. Rasmussen responded by forming DVDR Hollendaise with Ray Duffy and Pete Stein. Sniping continued on both rec.sport.pro-wrestling and on the DVDR Board. Finally it was agreed that both factions would share time on the DVDVR by writing alternating issues, starting with FOGHAT's DVDVR #90.

Issue 90 was released and featured a new column entitled, "Dean Rasmussen: Braying Jackass", which saw Schneider take Rasmussen to task for his praise of Tommy Dreamer. All parties resolved the conflict just in time for DVDVR #100 which led some to speculate that the whole 'feud' was a parody of the 1998 WCW angle where the NWO split into two factions. It is also surmised that all parties made peace due to Rasmussen and his wife expecting their second child. There was much hype for the DVDVR #100 and part of that build-up was 4 special mini issues titled ALPHA, BRAVO, CHARLIE and DELTA. Since then there has been peace amongst the writers in a relative sense.

Road Reports

Another feature of the DVDVR Website are the DVDVR Road Reports. The Playboys attend various independent wrestling shows on the east Coast Mid-Atlantic area. The first of these Road Reports was filed in 1996 by Rasmussen. The highlight of these road trips tends to be ECWA (East Coast Wrestling Association) Super 8 Tournament in Delaware. The Playboys tend to meet there and commune with other wrestling fans. The written report of the event features commentary the Players who attend and also recaps the pre-show dinner, usually held at a steak house.

Writers & Contributors

Dean Rasmussen (Founder)

Phil Schneider (First appeared in DVDVR #61)

'Pogo' Pete Stein (First appeared in DVDVR #75)

'Reverend' Ray Duffy (First appeared in DVDVR #66)

Tom Karro-Gassner (First appeared in DVDVR #129)

Marcel Hillie (First appeared in DVDVR #129)

Phil Rippa (First Appeared in DVDVR #76, Last Appeared in DVDVR #146)

Raven Mack (First appeared in DVDVR #144)

Ryan (Mul)Doomstone (First Appearance in DVDVR #148)

Rob Naylor (First appeared in DVDVR #155)

External links

DeathValleyDriver.com

DVDVR message board