NY Islanders 25th Anniversary: Dinner and a Dynasty Review

**Quick warning: I had all sorts of issues getting the DVD to play. It wouldn't work on 2 Panasonic DVD players or the PS2. It did work on a Polaroid personal DVD player that seems to play everything. Make sure your player can handle DVD+R before you buy it.**

Here's a nugget in the interest of full disclosure: I am a big New York Islanders fan. If you're reading this, I bet that you are too. So, here's a review of what I believe is the first Islanders TV DVD release, "Dinner and a Dynasty".
The set up is great: get a bunch of the guys from The Core of the Four and have them sit around, eat steak, have a few adult beverages, and let them tell stories. Better yet, get it on tape. Genius.

At the risk of ruining the movie itself, let me say that most of the stories are fresh. Some I had heard and some I had not. That alone surprised me because it has been a looooong time since there has been some success for the franchise and recalling victories past is pretty much all we have as fans. That's what makes the DVD so special. Some of the stories are new to us even though the cast of characters has been around for a long, long time.

What I really got a kick out of was hearing from some of the other guys--the role players, if you will. While the production definitely needs guys like Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier for credibility sake, it was a lot of fun to hear players like Stefan Persson and Anders Kallur chime in. Bob Bourne also adds a lot of color and for a stretch, he almost seems like Jiggs MacDonald's co-host! Persson tells a funny Al Arbour story that was news to me and only adds to the Radar legend. I won't ruin it for you here.

Overall, the tone of the "Dinner and a Dynasty" is familial and the appreciation and regard the players all have for each other is evident. There's more than a few times where the players will turn to the camera and mention that there are stories here and there that they can't say on the DVD, which is a bummer. Also, I would have loved to see Billy Smith and Denis Potvin tell their stories as well. Potvin was a polarizing captain (and player) early in his career so it would have been nice to see what his take on the dynasty would have been.

Like I said, if you're a fan, you need to pick this up. In addition to the interviews and storytelling, Islanders' radio voice Steve Mears talks over the top ten highlights in the history of the franchise. "Dinner and a Dynasty" is great for the long and boring summer while you wait for the next season.