DVD Review: WWE Raw - The Beginning : The Best of Seasons 1 & 2

WWE Raw - The Beginning : The Best of Seasons 1 & 2




By Phil Allely



Back in 1993 the WWE (then the WWF) decided to up the ante in terms of it’s wrestling TV output and created what would become its flagship show Monday Night Raw. The show all but revolutionised the concept of weekly Grappling shows and helped to kick start one of the hottest times in the industry the legendary Monday Night Wars between WWF and its nearest rival WCW. This four disc set takes a look at the first two years of Raw and offers forth a nice insight into just what was happening in this historic period of Vince McMahon’s company history.



The idea of Monday Night Raw was that instead of the constant stream of squash matches that WWE programming offered until then, the shows would sprinkle in many top class match-ups and even title challenges (including the odd title change). This all helped elevate the show to it’s current state as the number one wrestling show in the world.



Some of the confrontations on offer do pale in comparison to the events that we se these days on free TV, but back then such matches as Ric Flair versus Mr Perfect, Lex Luger versus Crush and Shawn Michaels versus Marty Jannetty were things that we all usually had to pay for on PPV or in the case of the UK shell out for a video tape of the event.



Over the course of this set there are some great moment to become nostalgic, there are events like the 123 Kid’s (Shawn ’XPac’ Waltman) upset win over Razor Ramon (Scott Hall), Yozozuna decimating the roster, Doink The Clown’s debut, Bret Hart’s rise from a tag team master to World Title Contender, Macho Man Randy Savage’s final run as a top class performer, Jeff Jarrett’s debut in the WWE, comic character Duke ‘The Dumpster’ Drosse’s appearance and Shawn Michaels career skyrocketing as he turned heel on his former partner Jannetty.



Raw in 1993-1994 was where we all looked to for our entertainment and for a retro look back at the era where muscle men vanished and characters and performers took over you really cannot fault this first instalment of the Raw story. Just how impressive other entries will be is another and one for another time.



This DVD set gets a lofty 8 our of 10 and deserves a spot on every WWE fans shelf.



WWE Raw The Beginning: The Best of Seasons 1 & 2 is available now, check out www.silvervision.co.uk for more information.