Dark Side of the Ring returns with its fifth season, next week (March 5, 2024). The Vice TV series will offer up tales of murder, violence, sex, drugs and pro wrestling.
Here, we give you an episode guide ahead of Dark Side of the Ring Season 5. Plus, we give you our one essential match to watch before you hear the true life stories of each of the wrestlers.
Dark Side of the Ring Season 5
Episode 1: The Ballad of ‘Earthquake’ John Tenta
What To Expect: An 11-pound baby who went on to become a sumo wrestler, a star in All Japan Pro Wrestling, and one of the WWF’s largest 80s icons.
Earthquake facing Kōji Kitao in a battle between two former sumos that did not go to plan on a WWF/SWS joint promotion will feature. But it’s ultimately his death at the age of 42 that will be the saddest moment.
Watch Before The Episode: Hulk Hogan vs. Earthquake at WWF SummerSlam 1990
Season 5 will kick-off with John “Earthquake” Tenta’s story.
A larger-than-life heel in the ring and a die hard family man at home, Tenta’s passing at just 42 years old was an especially cruel ending for a man so universally beloved.
Tuesday, March 5 at 10pm ET on @vicetv. pic.twitter.com/WqBAqYtORZ
— Dark Side of the Ring (@DarkSideOfRing) February 23, 2024
Episode 2: Buff and the Bagwells
What To Expect: This will be a unique episode as Buff Bagwell appears on the show. So expect to hear about car crashes, lawsuits, the end of WCW, and Bagwell’s extremely short WWF career from the horse’s mouth. Hopefully, someone will clear up whether Bagwell’s mother did call WWF to ask for her son to have time off.
Watch Before The Episode: Booker T vs. Buff Bagwell in a WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match on WWF Raw (July 2, 2001)
The Sandman
What To Expect: Beers, crucifixtions, canes, blood, tales from the glory days of ECW, brushes with the law and probably a crazy night out at a restaurant. James “The Sandman” Fullington will appear on the episode to help tell his candid story.
Watch Before The Episode: The Sandman vs. Raven in a Barbewire ECW World Heavyweight Championship match at ECW Holiday Hell 1996
ECW Heavyweight Champion The Sandman and challenger Raven pull out all the stops in this brutal Barbed Wire match at Holiday Hell '96 at ECW Arena back on December 7,1996.Raven would defeat Sandman to regain the ECW Title here pic.twitter.com/wQvmsYiS8U
— Rasslin' History 101 (@WrestlingIsKing) March 13, 2021
Chris Colt
What To Expect: This will be a dark tale. Expect drugs, hallucinations of giant spiders during matches, Hell’s Angels, neo-Nazis, addiction, homelessness and everything that comes from being an openly gay wrestler in the 70s and 80s.
Watch Before The Episode: Chris Colt vs. Chris Adams
Chris Adams
What To Expect: The Chris Adams story will be another uneasy watch. It’ll start with a promising British Judo star who strikes up a relationship with the Von Erich family. Then expect Stone Cold Steve Austin, the origin of the superkick, a lot of crime, and ultimately a murder.
Watch Before The Episode: If you can find the NWA American Tag Team Title Steel Cage Match between “The Dynamic Duo” Chris Adams & Gino Hernandez and Kerry von Erich & Kevin von Erich, watch that! But you’ll probably have to settle for Kevin Von Erich vs. Chris Adams from WCCW, July 20, 1985
Sensational Sherri
📷 WWF studio shot of the day – Sensational Sherri. 📸 Photo from 1991. #WWF #WWE #Wrestling #SensationalSherri pic.twitter.com/2j03rcGb7F
— WWF Wrestling (@WWFWrestling1) February 23, 2024
Sensational Sherri Martel
What to expect: Hopefully Jim Cornette will discus his infamous loser gets spanked match against Sherri. Anyone who’s seen the Fabulous Moolah episode will have an idea of what to expect as Sherri was trained by her. A career across AWA, WWE, WCW and TNA will be discussed but it’s ultimately her passing that results in her story being covered by Dark Side of the Ring.
What Match To Watch: Team Sensational Sherri vs. Team Fabulous Moolah in the inaugural Women’s Survivor Series match (1987)
Harley Race
What To Expect: A car crash that wiped out his family, stabbings, guns, bikers and high tensions during the end of the territories. And much much more. There’s so much from Harley Race’s 76 years on Earth to pack into this episode.
What Match To Watch: Ric Flair vs. Harley Race – NWA World Championship Steel Cage Match: Starrcade 1983
Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake
What to expect: A horrific accident leading to full facial reconstruction and an anthrax scare caused by the wrestler leaving a big bag of drugs at a train station. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Like Sandman and Bagwell, the man behind the Beefcake character Edward Leslie was interviewed for the episode.
#OnThisDay in 1990: #Summerslam PPV: The Texas Tornado defeated Mr. Perfect to win the WWF Intercontinental Title.
Brutus Beefcake was originally scheduled to compete for the title, but was pulled out after a parasailing incident. pic.twitter.com/4GuCckYlZo
— Allan (@allan_cheapshot) August 27, 2022
What Match to Watch: Brutus Beefcake vs. Mr. Perfect at WrestleMania VI
Terry Gordy
What to expect: Heavy partying, drinking and addiction issues will all feature in the story of one of the Fabulous Freebirds.
What Match to Watch: The Fabulous Freebirds vs. The Road Warriors at AWA (09/28/1985)
Black Saturday
What to expect: With the context of Vince McMahon’s current legal issues, the Black Saturday story doesn’t seem as gripping as it once was. But Dark Side of the Ring will tell the story of McMahon stealing the iconic timeslot and station that Georgia Championship Wrestling had aired World Championship Wrestling on for years. It can be seen as one of McMahon’s most ruthless decisions that helped take his company to the top of the industry.
Watch Before: Watch the WWF’s first show in the timeslot
Here we go… @VICE's 5th season of @DarkSideOfRing returns March 5th 2024 with the following roster:
•Buff Bagwell
•The Sandman
•Earthquake
•Harley Race
•Brutus Beefcake
•Chris Adams
•Sensational Sherri
•Terry Gordy
•Black Saturday
•Chris Colt pic.twitter.com/QDv7lL2J1t— Diamond Dallas Page (@RealDDP) January 25, 2024
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – Vice. Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Catch Dark Side of the Ring on VICE, with new episodes airing each Thursday at 9 PM EST.
