REVIEW - GUSTAVO "THE GREAT" BADELL - PUERTO RICO'S MAN OF IRON DVD!

The DVD started out with a collage of different clips of Gustavo - pumping and posing in contest.

The first contest that Gustavo was shown posing at was the 1999 IFBB English Grand Prix. He hit the usual mandatory poses in his routine and it was performed to slow elevator music. Comparing the 1999 version of Gustavo with the present day one, it appeared that he had maintained the same size while gradually improving his conditioning. I.e., he curently doesn't take up much more physical space then he did before but is a whole lot more shredded. Gustavo also posed to the song "You Belong To The City lyrics" by Glenn Frey.

In the next sequence, Gustavo was outside the pool pumping up with bands and looking very near to contest condition. The sun was bright that day which made for excellent lighting to highlight Gustavo's physique. The radio was playing and I could also hear the guys from muscletime there as well instructing Gustavo on what to do in the pump session. Gustavo did a number of exercises with the bands to pump up - he did raises for his shoulders and curls for his biceps. He also did upright rows for his traps. He hit some poses after the pumping was complete displaying his size and condition. Gustavo has what I would call a classic physique. Based on the footage, I would say his only major flaw is his midsection which he either needs to work on reducing or work on keeping tight during his poses (the latter worked extremely well for Mr. Olympia champion Ronnie Coleman at the 2003 Mr. Olympia where he showed up at 287 pounds and with a stomach barely visible during the majority of his posing routines). Other than that, Gustavo has a very good blend of mass and symmetry.

Footage of Gustavo competing at the 2002 IFBB Ironman Pro Contest was up next. While Gustavo looked very good, it is surprising to learn that he only placed 13th at that contest. Gustavo posed to the song "In The End" by Linkin Park. It was an unusual choice of music because Gustavo's posing was slow and fluid - more suitable for a slower song, which I also feel matches Gustavo's physique better than faster music.

Up next, Gustavo was seen backstage at the 2002 Mr. Olympia Contest being interviewed by Shawn Ray. He explained that he had qualified for the contest by placing third at the 2002 Toronto Pro Invitational behind Art Atwood and Markus Ruhl. Gustavo explained that he was the only professional bodybuilder on stage from Puerto Rico. Gustavo then hit some poses for the camera. Gustavo went on to place 24th in the contest, second to last, in front of only the late great Don Youngblood (who had suffered a triceps injury bench pressing 600 pounds for a photo shoot prior to the contest). Some backstage footage was also shown of Gustavo at the 2004 Mr. Olympia Contest. At this show Gustavo was considerably sharper than he was at the 2002 Olympia.

Next up was the weigh in room at the 2004 IFBB Ironman Pro Contest, with Lonnie Teper on the microphone. he hit some poses and looked great. Gustavo explained that he worked with Milos Sarcev to get in such good condition for the show where he went on to place third after Dexter Jackson and Lee Priest. Footage of the top five performing the mandatory poses was then shown. Craig Titus and Ahmad Haidar rounded out the top five.

Gustavo's individual posing routine was shown next and I felt his choice of music was more suitable for his body type and posing style this time around. He posed to the song "Here I Am" by Bryan Adams". It was pretty obvious judging by Gustavo's showing that he was going to have a good 2004 year and that he could have taken the whole show that year.

Next, more footage by the pool was shown with Gustavo hitting the mandatory poses, including his own side chest variation (more of a front chest pose with Gustavo). He was shredded from head to toe with an incredibly detailed back and shredded glutes. Now that Gustavo has learned how to nail his conditioning, it's very likely that he will continue to place near the top at every contest he enters. Gustavo also hit some twisting back poses and other variations during this sequence and looked great. His biceps were looking particularly vascular with monster pythons running down both arms which were very notable in some poses.

Some footage of Gustavo at the 2004 Mr. Olympia Contest was shown, where he placed a phenomenal third, behind seven time winner Ronnie Coleman and three time runner up Jay Cutler. While some people debated whether or not Gustavo deserved to beat Dexter Jackson, I could see it go either way and even give the edge to Gustavo.

Gustavo was then interviewed the day after the Mr. Olympia contest by Kenny Kassel of GMV Productions. He talked about his improvements and his future competition plans.

Lonnie Teper was shown next introducing Gustavo at the 2005 Ironman Pro Contest. Gustavo did some poses next and was eventually accompanied by Troy Alves. Both bodybuilders looked sensational and made the top five, with Gustavo winning the show. Gustavo's individual routine was next shown and he looked to be just as good as he was at the 2004 Olympia if not better. Both his mandatory posing and individual routines were shown. He posed to the Batman theme music.

Next up was the comparison of the top five at the show consisting of (from left to right on stage) Melvin Anthony, Lee Priest, Gustavo Badell, Troy Alves, and King Kamali, all of whom looked very good. This was a deserving victory for Gustavo who should have more on the way in the years to come.

Close up footage of Gustavo's outside pumping was shown next. This gave a better glimpse of Gustavo's muscularity.

Overall this was another very well produced DVD from the people at GMV. If you are a fan of Gustavo and want to see his contest progress through the years, this is a DVD for you to pick up. Or if you are a fan of bodybuilding videos in general, this is a good one to add to your collection. It has a total running time of 75 minutes with plenty of good stuff for bodybuilding fans.