Dark Side of the Ring
Dark Side of the Ring is a Canadian[1] documentary television series produced by Vice Studios. The series focuses on controversial subjects and events within the realm of professional wrestling.[2]
Dark Side of the Ring | |
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Genre | Professional wrestling Documentary |
Created by |
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Directed by | Jason Eisener |
Narrated by |
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Composers |
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Country of origin | Canada |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 16 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producer | Various |
Running time | 60 min. |
Production company | Vice Studios Canada |
Release | |
Original network | Vice on TV Crave |
Original release | April 10, 2019 – present |
External links | |
Website |
The series premiered on Viceland on April 10, 2019.[3] On July 23, 2019, Dark Side of the Ring was renewed for a second season of 10 episodes, which premiered in 2020. For season 2, the series became a co-production with Canadian streaming service Crave (as part of owner Bell Media's distribution pact with Vice).[1] An aftershow hosted by Chris Gethard, Dark Side of the Ring: After Dark, was also added.[4] On October 19, 2020, Dark Side of the Ring was renewed for a third season of 14 episodes.[5] In December, Vice also ordered spin-offs, Dark Side of the Football and Dark Side of the 90's.[6]
It was announced that Vice would be bringing back the series in 2021 with its first episode being about “The Loose Cannon” Brian Pillman.
Series overview
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | ||||
1 | 6 | April 10, 2019 | May 15, 2019 | ||
2 | 10 | March 24, 2020 | May 19, 2020 |
Episodes
Season 1 (2019)
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Subject(s) | Original air date | Viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "The Match Made in Heaven" | Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth | April 10, 2019 | 0.154[7] |
2 | 2 | "The Montreal Screwjob" | Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, and The Montreal Screwjob | April 17, 2019 | 0.181[7] |
3 | 3 | "The Killing of Bruiser Brody" | Bruiser Brody | April 24, 2019 | 0.214[7] |
4 | 4 | "The Last of the Von Erichs" | Von Erich family | May 1, 2019 | 0.234[7] |
5 | 5 | "The Mysterious Death of Gorgeous Gino" | Gino Hernandez | May 8, 2019 | 0.225[7] |
6 | 6 | "The Fabulous Moolah" | The Fabulous Moolah | May 15, 2019 | 0.200[7] |
Season 2 (2020)
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Subject(s) | Original air date | Viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
7 | 1 | "Benoit Part One" | Chris Benoit, Nancy Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero | March 24, 2020 | 0.320[8] |
8 | 2 | "Benoit Part Two" | Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide | March 24, 2020 | 0.320[8] |
9 | 3 | "The Life and Crimes of New Jack" | New Jack | March 31, 2020 | 0.229[9] |
10 | 4 | "The Brawl For All" | WWF Brawl for All | April 7, 2020 | 0.226[10] |
11 | 5 | "Jimmy Snuka and The Death of Nancy Argentino" | Jimmy Snuka | April 14, 2020 | 0.209[11] |
12 | 6 | "The Assassination of Dino Bravo" | Dino Bravo | April 21, 2020 | 0.221[12] |
13 | 7 | "David Schultz & The Slap Heard Round the World" | David Schultz, John Stossel, and kayfabe | April 28, 2020 | 0.255[13] |
14 | 8 | "Cocaine & Cowboy Boots: The Herb Abrams Story" | Herb Abrams and UWF | May 5, 2020 | 0.246[14] |
15 | 9 | "The Last Ride of The Road Warriors" | The Road Warriors (Road Warrior Animal and Road Warrior Hawk) | May 12, 2020 | 0.264[15] |
16 | 10 | "The Final Days of Owen Hart" | Owen Hart accident | May 19, 2020 | 0.349[16] |
Reception
Dark Side of the Ring was Viceland's highest-rated series premiere among viewers in the key demographic.[1] The first season won the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Award for Best Pro Wrestling DVD/Streaming Documentary of 2019.[17] Season 2 brought larger viewership numbers, with the season finale profiling the death of Owen Hart becoming the highest-rated program in Vice network history, at 626,000 viewers.[18]
See also
References
- White, Peter (2019-07-23). "Viceland's Wrestling Docu-Series 'Dark Side of the Ring' Returns For A Second Run On The Mat – TCA". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-05-30.
- Parker, James (May 17, 2019). "Viceland's 'Dark Side of the Ring' Shows the Sleaze and Humanity of Wrestling". The Atlantic.
- Nordine, Michael (2019-03-30). "'Dark Side of the Ring' Trailer: Viceland Exposes Pro Wrestling's Secrets". IndieWire. Retrieved 2020-05-30.
- White, Peter (2020-05-28). "'Dark Side Of The Ring' Crowned Vice TV's Highest Rated Show In Cable Net's History". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-05-30.
- Currier, Joseph (October 19, 2020). "Vice TV renews Dark Side of the Ring for 14-episode third season". Figure Four Online. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- White, Peter (2020-12-08). "Vice TV Expands 'Dark Side' Franchise With Football & '90s Culture Spinoffs". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-12-08.
- Currier, Joseph (March 25, 2020). "Dark Side of the Ring sets new ratings high for season two premiere". f4wonline.com. Figure Four Online. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (March 25, 2020). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.24.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (April 1, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.31.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (April 8, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.7.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (April 15, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.14.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (April 22, 2020). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.21.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
- Salem, Mitch (April 29, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.28.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (May 6, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.5.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (May 13, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.12.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
- Metcalf, Mitch (May 20, 2020). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.19.2020". showbuzzdaily.com. Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (March 5, 2020). "March 13, 2020 Observer Newsletter: 40th Annual Awards Issue". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
- "Owen Hart's 'Dark Side of the Ring' Episode Is the Highest-Rated Telecast in Vice TV History". TheWrap. 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2020-05-30.