History NightmareFuel / RockyIV

* Poor Mary Anne Creed. She is near ringside for her husband's fight, and though she's had years to accept the fact that at any time, Apollo could (and sometimes did) get seriously hurt, you just know she's never become comfortable with that reality. And now she sees him step into the ring with a 7ft mountain of muscle who seems more monster than man, and displaying not the slightest hint of empathy. Then the fight ''begins''. [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown If you can call it a fight]]. Mary Anne has to watch her beloved, stalwart husband, widely held as damn near invincible in the ring outside of his sole defeat at the hands of Rocky, get utterly pummeled and virtually annihilated by this Soviet wrecking machine. And then when in the second round, Apollo absorbs scores of unanswered, unprotected haymakers to the face and head, you just ''know'' catastrophe will soon strike, so you desperately scream for someone to stop the fight. But perplexingly, it ''doesn't stop''. Then '''the killing blow.''' Your husband falls, and you know he is dead. Worse still, your most fervent desire is to be with him in his most desperate -- and as is the case, final -- hour, but a swelling crowd of vulture-like media won't let you through. ''She watched her husband be'' '''''killed''' ''in front of her.''

* Poor Mary Anne Creed. She is near ringside for her husband's fight, and though she's had years to accept the fact that at any time, Apollo could (and sometimes did) get seriously hurt, you just know she's never become comfortable with that reality. And now she sees him step into the ring with a 7ft mountain of muscle who seems more monster than man, and displaying not the slightest hint of empathy. Then the fight ''begins''. [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown If you can call it a fight]]. Mary Anne has to watch her beloved, stalwart husband, widely held as damn near invincible in the ring outside of his sole defeat at the hands of Rocky, get utterly pummeled and virtually annihilated by this Soviet wrecking machine. And then when in the second round, Apollo absorbs scores of unanswered, unprotected haymakers to the face and head, you just ''know'' catastrophe will soon strike, so you desperately scream for someone to stop the fight. But perplexingly, it ''doesn't stop''. Then '''the killing blow.''' Your husband falls, and you know he will never rise again. Worse still, your most fervent desire is to be with him in his most desperate -- and as is the case, final -- hour, but a swelling crowd of vulture-like media won't let you through. ''She watched her husband be'' '''''killed''' ''in front of her.''

* Poor Mary Anne Creed. She is near ringside for her husband's fight, and though she's had years to accept the fact that at any time, Apollo could (and sometimes did) get seriously hurt, you just know she's never become comfortable with that reality. And now she sees him step into the ring with a 7ft mountain of muscle who seems more monster than man, and displaying not the slightest hint of empathy. Then the fight ''begins''. [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown If you can call it a fight]]. Mary Anne has to watch her beloved, stalwart husband, widely held as damn near invincible in the ring outside of his sole defeat at the hands of Rocky, get utterly pummeled and virtually annihilated by this Soviet wrecking machine. And then when in the second round, Apollo absorbs scores of unanswered, unprotected haymakers to the face and head, you just ''know'' catastrophe will soon strike, so you desperately scream for someone to stop the fight. But perplexingly, it ''doesn't stop''. Then '''the killing blow.''' Your husband falls, and you know he will never rise again. Worse still, your most fervent desire is to be with him in his most desperate -- and as is the case, final -- hour, but a swelling crowd of vulture-like media won't let you through. ''She watched her husband be'' '''''killed'''' ''in front of her.''

* Poor Mary Anne Creed. She is near ringside for her husband's fight, and though she's had years to accept the fact that at any time, Apollo could (and sometimes did) get seriously hurt, you just know she's never become comfortable with that reality. And now she sees him step into the ring with a 7ft mountain of muscle who seems more monster than man, and displaying not the slightest hint of empathy. Then the fight ''begins''. [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown If you can call it a fight]]. Mary Anne has to watch her beloved, stalwart husband, widely held as damn near invincible in the ring outside of his sole defeat at the hands of Rocky, get utterly pummeled and virtually annihilated by this Soviet wrecking machine. And then when in the second round, Apollo absorbs scores of unanswered, unprotected haymakers to the face and head, you just ''know'' catastrophe will soon strike, so you desperately scream for someone to stop the fight. But perplexingly, it ''doesn't stop''. Then '''the killing blow.''' Your husband falls, and you know he will never rise again. Worse still, your most fervent desire is to be with him in his most desperate -- and as is the case, final -- hour, but a swelling crowd of vulture-like media won't let you through.

* Drago's entrance in the rematch. The sinister music gives Drago the air of something monstrous. Then comes the USSR's national anthem, and we're reminded just how different the two countries really are. The exhibition match in Vegas was very much a show, and was more or less treated like a party. When the Soviets stage their match, they treat it with all the fanaticism one would expect them to. For one thing, the people are dead silent, and the military element is front and center. This might be 1985, and the Soviet Union might only be five years from collapse, but they're still a ruthless totalitarian dictatorship.

-->'''Drago:''' [[LackOfEmpathy If he dies... he]] ''[[LackOfEmpathy dies.]]''

-->'''Drago:''' (''to a shocked Apollo'') [[PreAssKickingOneLiner You will lose]].

** Drago's theme, one of many tracks Vince [=DiCola=] composed for the film, is a stark, oppressive synth score with stings of falling hammers and steel clashing that drives home how he's been molded into a killing machine. It's been compared to Vince's previous work on Unicron's theme, making Ivan feel more menacing than a ''planet-devouring mechanical demon''.

* Drago's entrance in the rematch. The sinister music gives Drago the air of something monstrous. Then comes the USSR's national anthem, and we're reminded just how different the two countries really are. The exhibition match in Vegas was treated very much like a show, and was more or less treated like a party. When the Soviets stage their match, they treat it with all the fanaticism one would expect them to. For one thing, the people are dead silent, and the military element is front and center. This might be 1985, and the Soviet Union might only be five years from collapse, but they're still a ruthless totalitarian dictatorship.

* Poor Mary Anne Creed. She is near ringside for her husband's fight, and though she's had years to accept the fact that at any time, Apollo could (and sometimes did) get seriously hurt, you just know she's never become comfortable with that reality. And now she sees him step into the ring with a 7ft mountain of muscle who seems more monster than man, and displaying not the slightest hint of empathy. Then the fight ''begins''. [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown If you can call it a fight]]. Mary Anne has to watch her beloved, stalwart husband, widely held as damn near invincible in the ring outside of his sole defeat at the hands of Rocky, get utterly pummeled and virtually annihilated by this Soviet wrecking machine. And then when in the second round, Apollo absorbs scores of unanswered, unprotected haymakers to the face and head, you just ''know'' catastrophe will soon strike, so you desperately scream for someone to stop the fight. But perplexingly, it ''doesn't stop''. Then '''the killing blow.''' Your husband falls, and you know he will never rise again. Worse still, your most fervent desire is to be with him in his most desperate -- and as is the case, final -- hour, but a swelling crowd of vulture-like media won't let you through.