WWE 'nWo: The Revolution' DVD review: Same stuff, new video

As most fans already know, WWE usually has a great track record of DVD and Blu-Ray releases. There is a certain expectation when purchasing one, that WWE has put a lot of time, effort, and care into the product. As I wrote yesterday, in the review of Attitude Era, the effort has slipped a little bit.

With nWo: The Revolution, it seems there was no effort at all.

The New World Order (nWo) has been analyzed, criticized, and eulogized to death over the years. It is tough to keep going back to the well to pull out fresh material. In that sense, it is understandable why this documentary felt something of a rehash.

That being said, the only logical reason as to why this was made is that it's a blatant cash grab from nWo marks. The documentary is slow, repetitive, and unoriginal.

Perhaps worst of all, it is just plain boring.

There is nothing new here that hasn't been seen before in plenty of other places. Monday Night Wars, The Rise and Fall of WCW, and the Legends of Wrestling Roundtable -- the latter is actually included in the Blue-Ray extras -- do a far better job at dissecting what the nWo was all about. If you really want to find out about the stable, those are the places you need to look.

The actual footage from nWo's heyday provides some exciting moments. Too often, though, they are just there to be there. The documentary is not long enough to spend any amount of time on any specific moment. You might as well read through nWo's Wikipedia page with YouTube open, and you would get the same effect.

The cast of talking heads are less like a group of intelligent and astute individuals, and more like the blowhards that often appear on the E! Network. Matt Striker's commentary is particularly obnoxious. It seemed as if he simply wanted to spout off soundbytes instead of any legitimate critique. He added nothing to the proceedings, and often I found myself perusing my text messages when he appeared on my screen.

Vince Russo only gets to speak in two places, but it was enough to reinvigorate hatred for him. He says in the beginning of the documentary that, "WCW "fell into" the success the nWo brought". Then, near the end, he states, "the reformation of the nWo would have been golden, if only Bret Hart didn't get hurt". Both comments are mind numbingly stupid, serving only to remind the viewer why to hate Russo.

Eric Bischoff, perhaps the man who could shed the most light into what was going on backstage, does appear throughout the course of the documentary. The only problem is that all his soundbytes are from 2003, and you have probably seen them before.

The documentary's only saving graces are Kevin Nash and Cody Rhodes. Love him or hate him, Nash continues to prove to be one of the smartest people in the business. He understands why nWo was great, why it eventually failed, and everything in between.

That being said, he covers little new ground not already included in the Legends of Wrestling Roundtable discussion.

Cody acts as the voice of the fan, and he is absolutely adorable in the role. The stories he tells of his father Dusty Rhodes keeping kayfabe are too perfect. It is funny to picture a 10 year old Cody getting pissed at the evil antics of nWo or regaling kids at school of being the son of a pro wrestler during this time frame.

It is a shame the rest of the cast couldn't share the same passion he brought to the table.

The matches included with the DVD and Blu-Ray are a nice trip down memory lane, but it's up to the individual as to whether that is enough to outweigh the garbage documentary. If you haven't gone out and purchased the Blu-Ray -- the Legends of Wrestling Roundtable is probably the best part of the entire thing, and it isn't on the DVD edition -- I would recommend waiting until it shows up on Netflix. Unless you absolutely love the nWo and want this to simply fill out your collection, there is really no reason to buy it.

DISC 1

• Stars Align
• Free Agents
• The Outsiders
• Bash at the Beach
• Here's the nWo
• Element of Reality
• Fan Interest
• nWo vs. WCW
• Rivalry versus Sting
• The nWo. Goes Mainstream
• Internal Strife
• Restoration Attempt
• nWo 4 Life
• Scott Hall's Nitro Debut
  Nitro - 27th May, 1996
• Kevin Nash's Nitro Debut
  Nitro - 10th June, 1996
• "Rowdy" Roddy Piper confronts Eric Bischoff
  18th November, 1996
• Hollywood Hulk Hogan confronts "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
  30th December, 1996
• The nWo's WWE Debut
  No Way Out - 17th February, 2002

DISC 2

• The Outsiders vs. Randy "Macho Man" Savage, Sting & Lex Luger
  Bash at the Beach - 7th July, 1996
• WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
  The Giant vs. Hollywood Hogan
  Hog Wild - 10th August, 1996
• WCW World Tag Team Championship Match
  The Outsiders vs. Harlem Heat
  Halloween Havoc - 27th October, 1996
• Syxx vs. The Bounty Hunter
  nWo Saturday Night - 9th November, 1996
• WCW World Tag Team Championship Match
  The Outsiders vs. The Steiner Brothers
  Souled Out - 25th January, 1997
• WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
  Hollywood Hogan vs. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
  SuperBrawl VII - 23rd February, 1997
• Hollywood Hogan & Dennis Rodman vs. Lex Luger & The Giant
  Bash at the Beach - 13th July, 1997

DISC 3

• Las Vegas Sudden Death Match
  Diamond Dallas Page vs. Randy "Macho Man" Savage
  Halloween Havoc - 26th October, 1997
• WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
  Sting vs. Hollywood Hogan
  Nitro - 29th December, 1997
• No Disqualification Match for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
  Hollywood Hogan vs. Randy "Macho Man" Savage
  Nitro - 20th April, 1998
• Match for Control of the WCW World Tag Team Championship
  Sting vs. The Giant
  Great American Bash - 14th June, 1998
• Hollywood Hogan & Eric Bischoff vs. Jay Leno & Diamond Dallas Page
  Road Wild - 8th August, 1998
• War Games Match to Determine the #1 Contender for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship
  Team WCW vs. Team Hollywood vs. Team Wolfpack
  Fall Brawl - 13th September, 1998
• No Disqualification Match for WCW World Heavyweight Championship
  Goldberg vs. Kevin Nash
  Starrcade - 27th December, 1998
• WCW World Heavyweight Championship Match
  Goldberg vs. Bret "Hit Man" Hart
  Nitro - 20th December, 1999
• Hollywood Hogan, Kevin Nash & Scott Hall vs. The Rock & "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
  RAW - 11th March, 2002

BLU-RAY EXTRAS

• nWo Legends of Wrestling Roundtable Discussion featuring Kevin Nash, Jim Ross, JJ Dillon, & Michael Hayes
• The Beginning
• The nWo Concept
• Hogan turns his back on WCW
• Putting Vince out of business
• Ratings War
• Pointing Fingers
• Goldberg
• Cutting Edge & Controversial
• Downfall
• Invitation only
  WCW Saturday Night - 27th July, 1996
• Nothing Personal
  WCW Saturday Night - 3rd August, 1996
• Modern Day Gladiators
  Monday Nitro - 19th August, 1996
• Worldwide
  WCW Saturday Night - 7th September, 1996
• Room Service
  Monday Nitro - 30th September, 1996
• It's Not Easy Being King
  Monday Nitro - 20th January, 1997
• The Real Hot Rod
  Monday Nitro - 17th March, 1997
• The Madness
  Monday Nitro - 28th April, 1997
• All Over But The Crying
  WCW Pro Wrestling - 15th June, 1997