ProElite and Image Entertainment know they have a good thing going. Back on May 13, they released "EliteXC: Renegade" and "EliteXC: Destiny," mixed martial arts sets timed to promote the "EiteXC: Primetime" event televised on CBS on May 31. So, obviously, it goes without saying another set hit the shelves in time for the second CBS outing, "EliteXC: Unfinished Business," which aired July 26. In every respect except actual content, "EliteXC: Street Certified" is a carbon copy of the earlier releases. Nearly identical menu systems, bonus features, tech specs…and main event Kimbo Slice.
(This EliteXC event aired on Showtime, not CBS, to be clear.)
Anyone who perused those earlier discs will recognize a lot of the fighters here. Slice, Brett Rogers, Yves Edwards, Antonio Silva, Jon Kirk, Kyle Noke and James Berto all put in appearances, some to greater effect than others. But the eventual outcome doesn´t really matter, does it? Especially considering the final decisions have been known for at least six months now? No, the fact Kimbo Slice puts Tank Abbott out of his misery in a mere 43 seconds isn´t key. What is, though, is how each fighter accomplishes his mission.
The next big thing in MMA, apparently, is Kimbo Slice, whom we were introduced to in the "Renegade" set. He may be a marquee name, rising from nothing (a street fighter in Miami) to the guy ProElite promotes as much as it can. One problem: there is so much hype and not nearly enough fighting from Kimbo to let us get used to his style. Whereas every other fight lasts for some prolonged period of time, Kimbo is an efficient artist, going after Tank Abbott with a tenacity no one can possibly match.
Yes, the idea is to win the fight by any (legal) means necessary, no doubt, yet with the announcers breathlessly hyping the Main Event every chance they get, you´d think the event would, well, last a bit longer. Let Kimbo play with Tank for a couple minutes, maybe even a full round. Okay, maybe "let" is the wrong word. The referees and doctors have nothing to do with the resolution to this bout. Abbott folds, gives up and utterly crumbles under his opponent. Despite talking a good game in the pre match interviews, he has nothing to back it up, much like Bo Cantrell, a fight lasting a whopping 19 seconds.
Despite being the match up everyone is waiting for, the final televised fight is the least of the bunch. Actually, none of the televised fights are up to the par of Kyle Noke blasting a hole in Doctor Seth Kleinbeck´s forehead. Frankly, there is little blood here. To be honest, isn´t the red stuff the reason people tune in to MMA and other extreme sports? No one wants to see one punch and a heavyweight flopping to the ground. It´s the blood, of course, which draws the crowd.
In order to get there, then, we have to move to disc two and the undercard. Dave "Pee Wee Herman" and Mario Rinaldi is a brutal, bloody and nearly unfortunate affair. Rinaldi has every conceivable body part smashed into his face, creating a mashed up mess very early in the match while Herman remains relatively unscathed. It´s actually quite amazing the two get out of the first round, let alone to the third. Some part of me, in spite of the bloodlust running through my veins, felt bad for Rinaldi. No grown man deserves the beating he takes. Except when he instigates it.
Another noteworthy match is Yosmany Cabezas vs. Jon Kirk. The first thing which stuck in my head about these two men was the sheer agility they bring to the ring. Bouncing around the cage, very little stops either of them from throwing all the energy they have into fighting the other. It´s in stark contrast to the Kimbo/Tank fight or most of the other duos. And then there´s poor Mike Bernhard, a fighter who nearly has his fight against Lorenzo Borgameo in the bag until he commits one little error and the Italian gets the upper hand.
As I alluded to earlier, this set is a carbon copy of those that came before. Really, it stems from the script Showtime and ProElite slavishly adhere to. We watch the fighters come down a dark and smoky walkway to the cage. They get prepped and checked before the fight. The ref and judges are announced by an over-caffeinated cage announcer (there are two here). Rules, touch gloves. Fight. Hyperbolic and embarrassingly over enthusiastic commentary and analysis. Bill Goldberg trying to corral the winner into a post-fight interview. Rinse. Repeat. The formula works, guys, but lets try to change it up for next time, alright?
I should mention each fight is available separately or in a play all option. The latter includes an open for the event; the main card open runs just under six minutes while the under card´s is just 45 seconds.
VIDEO:
A standard 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer is provided and, to be honest, I have very few quibbles with the end result. The red and white words on the floor of the cage tend to distort a bit in nearly every shot, if we're being technical about such things. However, the rest of the action is well done and on par with other EliteXC releases. Blacks are rendered well, considering the amount of smoke, colored lighting and venue itself. Action flows smoothly without ghosting; nor are there artifacts in the presentation. Blood doesn't pop out on the screen due to a slight washed out look permeating the event. All in all, though, the video doesn't detract from the action.
AUDIO:
The English 2.0 track is good enough for the subject material. Occasionally, the announcing team is muffled by the crowd noise, leading to a muddied track. The lack of subtitles doesn't help in this regard. The sounds run together in the same areas with little delineation. It is, though, the only negative to the mix's credit. Punches and kicks snap better than you'd expect despite a lack of a wide sound field.
EXTRAS:
The recurring theme of "the same" is alive and well in the Special Features, all housed on Disc 2. First up are five bonus fights running just over an hour and a half. They contain a play all feature (including a 44 second open). All are of good quality, on par with the contents of Disc 1.
A series of ten fighter biographies comes next, housed on their own text-based pages along with a photo of the fighter. The Behind the Scenes portion has four different video sections: Kimbo vs. Tank promos (3), Showtime promos (7), Fighter Interviews (5), Post Fight Press Conference (5) and a piece on Minotauro. Don't ask who that is.
Still galleries are featured next, again split into various categories. Promo shots (20 images), Training (10), Weigh In (20), EliteXC Girls (20) and Sold Out (15). The rules for EliteXC matches and a glossary of terms round out the features.
PARTING THOUGHTS:
"EliteXC: Street Certified" is akin to meeting up with an old friend. It´s comfortable and familiar, if not altogether welcome. Why? Sports are perhaps the hardest programs to review; mixed martial arts events like this without a plethora of compelling story lines seem to drag here and there, most notably in the pre- and post-fight analysis. All in all, this release is for fans only. I can´t honestly see anyone else being interested.