Nitro. Blaze. Gemini. Gold. Lace. Laser. Titan. Zap. They were the AMERICAN GLADIATORS! From 1989-1996, we got to see the phenomenon that swept the nation and around the world. Ordinary men and women descended upon “Gladiator Arena” each week to put their strength, speed, and athletic ability on the line against a group of highly trained modern-day warriors for the single honor to become American Gladiators Champion!
For those of you who don’t remember the rules, here’s a brief breakdown. AG was a game that featured 20 competitors (10 men and 10 women) who were chosen from a nationwide search. Four contestants each week competed in six challeging events that tested their strength and endurance against themselves and the gladiators. For each event, they can earn points. The competitors try to earn as many points as they can before they tackle the main event called “The Eliminator”. It’s called that because it could make or break you in the end. The competitor with the most points will move one step closer in the tournament standing to become the season’s grand champion.
American Gladiators: The Original Series – The Battle Begins brings all the hits and misses that we enjoyed twenty years ago. This three-disc DVD set feature 10.5 hours of non-stop adrenaline rush. While I was a bit stunned that they included only one episode of the first half of the very first season, but it made up for it when it brought all the episodes from the second half of the inaugural season. When I looked at the episodes, it was like going back in time to when I was a young kid glued to the tube watching the American Gladiators. To see the original AG on DVD is a breath of fresh air since the second series of Gladiators was recently cancelled earlier this year. This DVD set brought back the events that made the show a success for seven jam-packed seasons. Gladiator events included “The Human Cannonball” where the contestant swing for life to knock a gladiator off the pedestal and the Assault where the player must navigate across a number of safety zones while trying to avoid being hit by tennis balls going at 100 mph.
Although, there was only one special feature on the third disc, it was great! The lone feature was an interview from one of the most famous competitors from the first season. Billy Wirth, an actor you may have seen in The Lost Boys, was one of the original ten men to competed in the first half of the first season. He gave his his insights on how he found out about the show, the tough-guy persona he displayed while on the show with the Gladiators, and he nearly won became the grand champion but lost to Brian Hutson.
Hopefully, if they bring more seasons down the road, we get to hear interviews from the Gladiators. This DVD set would not be complete without the stars of the show, the AMERICAN GLADIATORS! On four of the episodes, we get to hear commentary from three of the original Gladiators. We hear from “Nitro” (Dan Clark) who was described as “cocky, explosive, always aggressive” in Season 1. Nitro served as a Gladiator for four seasons before returning as a commentator in the final season. He became part of the revivial Gladiators on NBC as the coordinating producer. We also hear from “Zap” (Raye Hollitt) who was “strong, silent, the Terminator”. She was a Gladiator for five seasons and returned as a contestant against the gladiators in an alumni show the final season. Today, she continues to act in films. Finally, we have “Laser” (Jim Starr) who is the only gladiator to competed in all seven seasons. He was the All-American Gladiator that turned into a “Don’t Mess with Me” Gladiator. He currently runs Apex Sports. To hear their commentary throughout the episodes, made me truly appreciate the show even more. It was excellent to hear their stories within the episodes. I hope that Shout Factory will bring all the seasons to DVD for old and new fans to enjoy, myself included. If you want to see how this ultimate adrenaline ride began, I highly recommend this DVD – Believe me, you’re in for a treat!
Features: Audio Commentary by the original American Gladiators Dan “Nitro” Clark, Raye “Zap” Hollitt and Jim “Laser” Starr; and an interview with Season 1 Runner-Up/actor Billy Wirth.
Final Grade – A for the ultimate original adrenaline thrill ride on DVD!