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Dark Side of the Ring Season 5: Episode Guide & Matches To Watch Before It Airs

Dark Side of the Ring photo featuring The Sandman.

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

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 

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

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.

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

 

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.

Laurence Gibbons

Laurence Gibbons

My personality is 20% the contents of Raven's shopping trolly, 10% Shayna Baszler's card tricks, and 70% Kane's hair after he's been in a Royal Rumble match for an hour. I preview WWE Raw for LWOS as well as contributing articles on news, analysis and wrestling history.

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