After I left my job, only one wrestling DVD came out that I wanted to buy. I fought temptation until I had a part-time job for income, so this weekend, I finally made the purchase. It was "The Very Best of WCW Monday Nitro," and it featured numerous matches of both Kevin Nash (whose matches I swear get better with age) and the now deceased Randy "Macho Man" Savage. Both men are favorites of mine, but most of the marquee matches I have somewhere else in my collection. At least, that's true of Kevin Nash (less true of Randy Savage).
WWE has released a couple other WCW-based discs, but neither appealed to me. Rather, the way they were packaged did not appeal to me. One was titled "The Rise & Fall of WCW," which I would have found very interesting except the second and third discs had no matches of interest (luckily, I found the program itself in another set, so I purchased that set). The other was the Essential Starrcade Collection, but it was done in a countdown style, which I cannot fathom for a DVD. I don't mind five-hour blocks of programming for countdowns on VH1 but I would not watch it repeatedly.
Luckily, this DVD set hit the nail on the head! At least for me. There are a couple common criticisms about this set. The first is that its chronological format prevented WWE from focusing on the promised "very best of WCW Nitro." The second most common complaint is that the match selection was a bit of a head-scratcher to have DDP versus Buff Bagwell alongside Goldberg versus Hulk Hogan, but I personally would not have liked this set as much any other way.
The first disc was dedicated to 1995 and 1996. The second disc was dedicated to the ever-popular 1997 and 1998. The third and final disc was dedicated to the petering years of 1999, 2000, and 2001. Honestly, the so-called "head scratcher" matches of minimal significance or other greatness were the ones I enjoyed the most. Case in point, I found myself particularly entertained by Kevin Nash & Sting versus Scott Hall & The Giant. These matches often captured the essence of WCW Monday Nitro. Nitro wasn't all highlights, but it was not just filler either. It was an excellent blend of a variety of international wrestling styles, and while the WWF specialized in its own style of "sports entertainment," WCW let its wrestlers wrestle in a wrestling ring (at least until the Russo era).
While most fans unanimously point to the second disc as being the best, and it's a valid argument, I have to point out that one of the follies of the second disc is WWE's refusal to sell matches featuring Chris Benoit. The best match in Nitro history was arguably Bret Hit Man Hart versus Chris Benoit, which would have been on the third disc if it weren't an obligatory omission. Regardless, I was pleasantly surprised to see how often Chris Benoit appeared in the set. Whie he was never a top draw, he was my second favorite WCW wrestler behind Kevin Nash for most of WCW Nitro's run (truthfully, I lost interest in Randy Savage when he defected to WCW in 1994, but my interest was resparked when I grew out my beard in 2008), and Benoit was one of the most important players in WCW throughout 1999 before he defected to the WWF in January 2000.
Watching the set, viewers can recapture some of their own personal emotions of the 5.5 years Nitro aired on TNT. In that regard, it is on par with "The Best of Saturday Night's Main Event" (perhaps my favorite WWE release). Bottom line, WCW Nitro was FUN! The championship belts were still of value, and even though this time frame (1995-2001) saw the sharpest decline in the value of championships, its announce team of Tony Schiavone, Mike Tenay, and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan never abandoned the kayfabe mentality that professional wrestling is direct competitive sports, so every championship match is important (albeit, preserving the value of the WCW Tag Team Championship became impossible).
