DVD Review: n.W.o The
Revolution
In 1996 the world of
professional wrestling took a turn for the better. As the industry
waned slightly and the main two companies (WCW and WWE) struggled to
sell out arenas somebody needed to do something to break the status
quo.
The moment that changed
it all was when former WWE main eventer's Scott Hall and Kevin Nash
decided to leave the organisation for some big money deals with their
rivals WCW.
WCW was then under the
leadership of Eric Bischoff (currently one of the key men behind
TNA). Bischoff had gained power recently and whilst the product had
grown steadily and even procured the talents of former WWE figurehead
Hulk Hogan, he still felt something was needed to go to the next
level.
Cue Hall (and
subsequently Nash) appearing on WCW live TV. Both cutting some killer
promos that seemed to allude to the fact that the pair were invading
the company on behalf of the WWE (which they were not). The storyline
gained momentum quick and saw Nash and Hall become two of the hottest
commodities in wrestling ever.
The next big turning
point was when during a six man tag match at Bash at the Beach Hall
and Nash took on the trio of Lex Luger, Sting and Randy Savage (three
men they had been intimidating for weeks). The punchline here was the
lack of the much-hyped third partner for the Outsiders (as Hall and
Nash were now known). This was the key moment in n.W.o history, as
perennial good guy Hulk Hogan came to ringside, we all thought he was
there to help Sting and Co. but he did the unthinkable and aligned
himself with the Outsiders to pummel the WCW boys.
Hogan's heel turn was a
landmark event. No one saw it coming and this DVD uses that as its
main factor in the success of the n.W.o.
There have been other
DVDs focusing on the New World Order, but this is the definitive
version. Here we are presented with a nice history of the concept and
wonderful array of talking heads, who were there at the time. The
only major face missing is The Hulkster (whose TNA contract restricts
his inclusion), but he does feature in events heavily. It is nice to
see some people like Mike Rotunda, Lex Luger, Arn Anderson, Dusty
Rhodes, Billy Kidman and many others all give their two cents in
relation to what made the story line work and inevitably implode.
The documentary here
covers everything from the n.W.o's introduction to their demise. When
it was at its peak the faction saw a weekly introduction of new
members (mostly on huge cash deals) and the group ran amok in the
company. The problem was the group got too big for its boots and
expanded too far. As WCW ran into financial problems and closed its
doors the WWE decided to rejuvenate the n.W.o for one more run and
re-introduced Hulk, Hall and Nash to the WWE audience. It was however
a short-lived thing and never really caught off the way it had
before.
n.W.o. The Revolution
is a three disc (two on Blu-ray) set that not only features the stoy
of the faction, but some of the best matches (both WCW and WWE) that
it had to offer. There are also some nice extras which include such
things as the Hall and Nash intros and much more.
On the match front we
have bouts featuring Rowdy Roddy Piper, Dennis Rodman, The Steiner
Brothers, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Jay Leno and Sting, all of them
battling some member of one of the New World Orders roster.
Fans of the late 1990s
wrestling industry will lap this up. Newer fans will enjoy seeing
just what leaps and bounds were made during this era in the sport and
how guys like Hall, Nash and Hogan have became so powerful in the
business.
n.W.o. The Revolution
is available now on DVD and Blu-ray.
Check out
ww.silvervision.co.uk for this and more WWE releases.
RRP £29.99 (DVD),
£34.99 (Blu-ray)
By Phil Allely
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