History Series / DarkSideOfTheRing

* YouKilledMyFather: Wrestling/OwenHart's widow and children openly resents the Wrestling/{{WWE}} for their negligence that lead to his death.

* ArchEnemy: Jim Cornette and Vince Russo have no love lost for each other. This is touched upon in the Montreal Screwjob episode, where Cornette says that it's his life goal to outlive Russo so he can piss on Russo's grave. Part of this animosity comes from the fact that Russo believes that Bret Hart was in on the Montreal Screwjob, swearing to this day that the whole thing is one big work. Cornette, who is an UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom over the incident, hates Russo for this (among many other reasons).

** Wrestling/OwenHart's family continue to live their lives nobly to honor his memory, even though they never really got justice over his fatal accident.

* YankTheDogsChain: The saga of the Wrestling/VonErichFamily is presented as a constant game of "one step forward, two steps back" with success and tragedy. Just when it seems like the Von Erichs are starting to find success and put their tragedies behind them, something else will happen to cause even more heartache. It got to a point where the patriarch of the Von Erich family started pulling a gun on his own kids because he'd [[SanitySlippage become mentally unable to deal with all the heartbreak anymore]].

** The Wrestling/MontrealScrewjob was Vince's idea, even if Wrestling/JimCornette off-handedly suggested it.
** In "Benoit: Part 2" is also implied that Vince ''had'' to do with Chris' final fate. If he could get a rest after Eddie's death and a proper mourning instead to be obligated to work as he did, he probably wouldn't get into his final decision of PaterFamilicide.

#Cocaine & Cowboy Boots: The [[Wrestling/HerbAbramsUWF Herb Abrams]] Story

* BittersweetEnding: Kevin von Erich loses all his brothers and his father within ten years, but learns to accept and make peace with it. He now lives in Hawaii as the patriarch of his own family, with his two wrestler sons carrying the legacy of the von Erich name with them.

** Chris Benoit is ExiledFromContinuity after the murder-suicide of his wife and child. He's mentioned in title reigns on the company's website, but that's all. Wrestling/JimRoss is of the opinion that Benoit will "never, ever, ever" go into the Wrestling/WWEHallOfFame, regardless of how good of a wrestler he was.[[invoked]]
** The name of The Fabulous Moolah is erased from Wrestling/{{WWE}}'s good graces after it's revealed how much she was manipulating things behind the scenes to remain on top and how terribly she was treating her wrestling students.
* DarkestHour: The first part of Chris Benoit's story focuses partly on Eddie Guerrero. Eddie had his darkest hour after he'd been fired from WWE for drug use, which Eddie's wife [[Wrestling/VickieGuerrero Vickie]] saw as a good thing because it might convince him to clean up his act, seeing as how she was getting more and more frustrated with Eddie's constant drug use and bad behavior.[[note]]At one point, Eddie had passed out from a drug overdose in their home, and Vickie ignored him to take their kids to school. In an interview, she recalls saying "God, if you're going to take him, take him now" because she was that fed up with him.[[/note]] Eddie got cleaned up, got his job back, and restored his family's faith in him.

** Chris Benoit kills his wife and son, then kills himself. It breaks his family apart, the WWE [[{{Unperson}} retroactively erases him]] from their programming, and David Benoit is left with very few people to turn to.
** Jimmy Snuka is deemed unfit to stand trial for the death of Nancy Argentino due to failing physical and mental health, and would be dead less than a year later. And any answers as to exactly what happened to Nancy died with Jimmy Snuka.
** Bruiser Brody is murdered in the locker room by fellow wrestler Jose Gonzales during a show in Mexico, who is eventually acquitted of the murder in no small part due to the corruption of the police involved (Tony Atlas, the one wrestler who was willing to come forward and accuse Jose, was never contacted to appear in the trial), and has continued to live his life, a bitter pill that Brody's widow and son have had to swallow for years.
* GreaterScopeVillain: Wrestling/VinceMcMahon is often portrayed as having a hand in a lot of the more shady practices of the WWE.
** The Montreal Screwjob was Vince's idea, even if Jim Cornette off-handedly suggested it.
** It's implied that the reason that Jimmy Snuka's rumors of killing Nancy Argentino went away was because of a meeting between Snuka, [=McMahon=] and the Allentown police investigating the crime. There's also no transcript or recording of that meeting.

* HookersAndBlow: What Herb Abrams spent his free time on. His last moments of life were spent naked (or only in his underwear) with two prostitutes and a mountain of cocaine. He even used this trope as a ''recruiting tool'' for a manager he ended up hiring.

** Eddie Guerrero is painted this way for Chris Benoit. After Guerrero's untimely death in 2005, Chris was never the same. It's generally agreed upon that Eddie's death is a big part of why Chris committed the murder-suicide of his family in 2007, with Benoit's own journals confirming it. Though how much Eddie's death factors in when coupled with the multitude of injuries, drug abuse, and deaths of other friends of his (which certainly couldn't have helped) is something we'll never really know.
** Vickie Guerrero describes Nancy Benoit this way. After Eddie's death, Vickie was understandably an emotional wreck, with Nancy stepping up to take care of things for Vickie. After about a week of this, Vickie describes Nancy almost literally throwing her into a shower, getting her kids ready, and taking her to lunch in an attempt to get Vickie out of her funk. Vickie clearly appreciated the effort, calling Nancy her "guardian angel".

* TooSoon: Discussed. Wrestling/JimRoss notes that the WWE ran a tribute show for Chris Benoit before they had all the facts, and only found out after the show was over that they'd run a tribute for a murderer. Ross defends the WWE by saying they didn't have at the facts at the time because the police hadn't released them yet.[[invoked]]

** Besides erasing Chris Benoit from their programming, WWE basically tried to pretend that David Benoit didn't exist after the murder-suicide. David admits in an interview that he's still mad at WWE for it.
** Subverted with Jimmy Snuka. He was removed from the WWE Hall of Fame after legal troubles began catching up to him, but after his death in 2017, he was quietly re-added to the Hall.

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Wrestling/JimCornette suggesting double-crossing Wrestling/BretHart was what led to the Montreal Screwjob. Cornette admits, years later, that he's responsible for the death of {{kayfabe}} (albeit entirely by accident), despite Cornette being one of its most passionate defenders. Once Cornette saw Wrestling/ShawnMichaels put Bret Hart in the sharpshooter submission hold, Cornette said "ScrewThisImOuttaHere" and jumped into a car before he saw anything else go down.

** It's implied that the reason that Jimmy Snuka's rumors of killing Nancy Argentino went away was because of a meeting between Snuka and [=McMahon=]. There's also no transcript or recording of that meeting.
** In "Benoit: Part 2" is also implied that Vince ''had'' to do with Chris' final fate. If he could get a rest after Ediie's death and a proper mourning instead to be obligated to work as he did, he probably wouldn't get into his final decision of PaterFamilicide.

* NoOshaCompliance: The biggest factor in the death of Wrestling/OwenHart. When the regular, safe stunt harness took too long to unhook for his Fall-On-His-Face entrance in rehearsal, he was given a backup harness, with ''no backup line''. Even worse, it was a clip designed for ''sail boats'' that only required five pounds of pressure to release. His widow Martha demonstrates this by locking it and releasing it with ''her thumb''.

** Subverted with Jimmy Snuka. He was removed from the WWE Hall of Fame after legal troubles began catching up to him, but after his death in 2007, he was quietly re-added to the Hall.

* HookersandBlow: What Herb Abrams spent his free time on. His last moments of life were spent naked (or only in his underwear) with two prostitutes and a mountain of cocaine. He even used this trope ''as a recruiting tool" for a manager he ended up hiring.

* TheUnsolvedMystery: Who exactly killed Gorgeous Gino Hernandez is left up in the air. It's implied that Gino was ProperlyParanoid and killed during a deal over money gone wrong, but there are a few unanswered questions.

* PromotedFanboy: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAGnn-NLNm8 A supplemental video]] on wrestling manager Wrestling/JimCornette paints him this way, showing his attic which is chock full of wrestling memorabilia. Cornette says that "if it's happened since the pioneer days in professional wrestling, I have documentation of it here in this room". Cornette shows off a book of promoter Sam Muchnick's programs, calling it his prized possession and admitting he'd grab it first and his wife second if their house was on fire.

* PromotedFanBoy: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAGnn-NLNm8 A supplemental video on wrestling manager Jim Cornette]] paints him this way, showing his attic which is chock full of wrestling memorabilia. Cornette says that "if it's happened since the pioneer days in professional wrestling, I have documentation of it here in this room". Cornette shows off a book of promoter Sam Muchnick's programs, calling it his prized possession and admitting he'd grab it first and his wife second if their house was on fire.

* {{Unperson}}:

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Wrestling/JimCornette suggesting double-crossing Wrestling/BretHart was what led to the Montreal Screwjob. Cornette admits, years later, that he's responsible for the death of {{kayfabe}}, albeit entirely be accident. Once he saw Wrestling/ShawnMichaels put Bret in the sharpshooter submission hold, Cornette said "ScrewThisImOuttaHere" and jumped into a car before he saw anything go down.

* TheUnsolvedMystery: Who exactly killed Gorgeous Gino is left up in the air. It's implied that Gino was ProperlyParanoid and killed during a deal over money gone wrong, but there are a few unanswered questions.

* YankTheDogsChain: The saga of the Von Erich family is presented as a constant game of "one step forward, two steps back" with success and tragedy. Just when it seems like the Von Erichs are starting to find success and put their tragedies behind them, something else will happen to cause even more heartache. It got to a point where the patriarch of the Von Erich family started pulling a gun on his own kids because he'd [[SanitySlippage become mentally unable to deal with all the heartbreak anymore]].

* DisproportionateRetribution: David Shultz and his supporters believe his depushing and eventual release after slapping John Stossel was this compared to Hulk Hogan getting away scot-free with CHOKING OUT Richard Belzer months later.

* LivingEmotionalCrutch: Eddie Guerrero is painted this way for Chris Benoit. After Guerrero's untimely death in 2005, Chris was never the same. It's generally agreed upon that Eddie's death is a big part of why Chris committed the murder-suicide of his family in 2007, with Benoit's own journals confirming it. Though how much Eddie's death factors in when coupled with the multitude of injuries, drug abuse, and deaths of other friends of his (which certainly couldn't have helped) is something we'll never really know.

#The Match Made in Heaven (Wrestling/RandySavage and Miss Elizabeth)

** Chris Benoit is ExiledFromContinuity after the murder-suicide of his wife and child. He's mentioned in title reigns on the company's website, but that's all. Wrestling/JimRoss is of the opinion that Benoit will "never, ever, ever" go into the WWE Hall of Fame, regardless of how good of a wrestler he was.[[invoked]]
** The name of The Fabulous Moolah is erased from WWE's good graces after it's revealed how much she was manipulating things behind the scenes to remain on top and how terribly she was treating her wrestling students.
* DarkestHour: The first part of Chris Benoit's story focuses partly on Eddie Guerrero. Eddie had his darkest hour after he'd been fired from WWE for drug use, which Eddie's wife Vickie saw as a good thing because it might convince him to clean up his act, seeing as how she was getting more and more frustrated with Eddie's constant drug use and bad behavior.[[note]]At one point, Eddie had passed out from a drug overdose in their home, and Vickie ignored him to take their kids to school. In an interview, she recalls saying "God, if you're going to take him, take him now" because she was that fed up with him.[[/note]] Eddie got cleaned up, got his job back, and restored his family's faith in him.
* DiedInYourArmsTonight: Chavo Guerrero reveals in "Benoit: Part One" that this happened to his uncle Eddie. According to Chavo, he found Eddie on his bathroom floor, alive but barely clinging to life. Though Chavo tried to get help, Eddie ultimately passed away in Chavo's arms. Chavo tears up upon recalling it, saying "I haven't been to this place in a long time."

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Wrestling/JimCornette suggesting double-crossing Bret Hart was what led to the Montreal Screwjob. Cornette admits, years later, that he's responsible for the death of {{kayfabe}}, albeit entirely be accident. Once he saw Shawn Michaels put Bret in the sharpshooter submission hold, Cornette said "ScrewThisImOuttaHere" and jumped into a car before he saw anything go down.

''Dark Side of the Ring'' is a television documentary series produced by Vice on TV. It premiered in April 2019.

The series is about controversial subjects within the world of {{professional wrestling}}, with each episode focusing on a specific event. It's covered individual wrestlers, wrestling events, and the backstage nature of the professional wrestling industry. Namely, about how {{kayfabe}} is nothing compared to the backstage politics, drama, and tragedy among the world of professional wrestling.

#Wrestling/Jimmy Snuka and The Death of Nancy Argentino

* {{Unperson}}: Besides erasing Chris Benoit from their programming, WWE basically tried to pretend that David Benoit didn't exist after the murder-suicide. David admits in an interview that he's still mad at WWE for it.

* DarkestHour: The first part of Chris Benoit's story focuses partly on Eddie Guerrero. Eddie had his darkest hour after he'd been fired from WWE for drug use, which Eddie's wife Vickie saw as a good thing because it might convince him to clean up his act, seeing as how she was getting more and more frustrated with Eddie's constant druge use and bad behavior. (At one point, Eddie had passed out from a drug overdose, and Vickie ignored him to take their kids to school, saying "God, if you're going to take him, take him now" because she was that fed up with him.) Eddie got cleaned up, got his job back, and restored his family's faith in him.

* LivingEmotionalCrutch: Eddie Guerrero is painted this way for Chris Benoit. After Guerrero's untimely death in 2005, Chris was never the same. It's generally agreed upon that Eddie's death is a big part of why that weekend in Atlanta happened (with Benoit's own journals confirming it). Though how much in comparison to the multitude of injuries, drug abuse, and deaths of other friends of his that also played a part is something we'll never really know.

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Wrestling/JimCornette suggesting double-crossing Bret Hart was what led to the Montreal Screwjob. Cornette admits, years later, that he's responsible for the death of {{kayfabe}}, albeit entirely be accident. Once he saw Shawn Michaels put Bret in the sharpshooter submission hold, Cornette said "ScrewThisImOuttaHere" and jumped into a car before he saw anything go down.

The series is about controversial subjects within professional wrestling, with each episode focusing on a specific event. It's covered individual wrestlers, wrestling events, and the backstage nature of the professional wrestling industry. Namely, about how {{kayfabe}} is nothing compared to the backstage politics, drama, and tragedy among the world of professional wrestling.

!!Episodes ''Dark Side of the Ring:

* {{Unperson}}: Besides erasing Chris Benoit from their programming, WWE basically tried to pretend that David Benoit didn't exist after the murder-suicide. David admits in an interview that he's still mad at WWE for it.

#The murder-suicide of Wrestling/ChrisBenoit

* TooSoon: Discussed. Wrestling/JimRoss notes that the WWE ran a tribute show for Chris Benoit before they had all the facts, and only found out after the show was over that they'd run a tribute for a murderer. Ross defends the WWE by saying they didn't have at the facts at the time because the police hadn't released them yet.

#The Match Made in Heaven" (Wrestling/MachoManRandySavage and Miss Elizabeth)

** It's implied that the reason that Jimmy Snuka's rumors of killing Nancy Argentino went away was because of a meeting between Snuka and [=McMahon=]. There's also no transcript or recording of that meeting.