Written by Steve Pantaleo & Illustrated by Daz Tibbles
SUMMARY:
Published by DK/BradyGAMES and WWE Books in 2015, this 208-page hardcover pairs cartoony color portraits and brief character bios/stats for approximately two hundred male and female pro wrestlers spanning multiple generations. Each portrait is accompanied by a thumbnail upper-body photo of the actual wrestler. As applicable, also tagged for each biography are individual honors such as: WWE Intercontinental Champion; WWE World Champion; King of the Ring winner; Money in the Bank winner; Royal Rumble winner; U.S. Heavyweight Champion; Women’s/Divas Champion; (NWA or WCW) World Heavyweight Champion; WWE World Tag Team Champion; and, of course, WWE Hall of Famer.
REVIEW:
Though somewhat outdated, this fun ‘superstar guide’ embellishes this WWE roster to full-fledged cartoon status, at least judging by the impressive comic book-style portraits. Some high-profile names (i.e. Owen Hart) aren’t included for various contractual and/or legal reasons. The larger-than-life, single-page portraits seem reminiscent of the WWE All-Stars arcade-style video game.
Controversial elements of various storylines are wisely omitted from the biographies, though one unsavory tidbit re: Big Boss Man is inexplicably included as a side note on his page. Still, this book’s wonky sense of alphabetical order means that most of the wrestlers are alphabetized by their first names and or even by a nickname, such as “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan being oddly listed in the ‘H’s.’
Meant for avid 10-and-under pro wrestling fans, the WWE Ultimate Superstar Guide is generally well-played.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
There is a two-page introduction that includes an explanation re: the icons designating various individual honors.
ROSCOE & BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 8 Stars
