Ultimate Warrior documentary on WWE Network a must see

The WWE Network has been showing the Ultimate Warrior documentary, entitled Warrior: The Ultimate Legend, for a number of days now and I've gotten the chance to watch it multiple times. If you read the Rumor Roundup for the weekend(click here if you haven't), the word going around is that those within WWE feel it's good enough to shop to a television network.

I have to agree.

This is, without question, the best feature WWE has ever produced. After viewing, I had a few thoughts, presented in my beloved bullet point format:

• It feels honest, even when Hulk Hogan, the most notorious fibber/liar in the business, is being interviewed. You get the impression early on that with everything that has gone on between the two sides, his coming back for the Hall of Fame induction in 2014 was about cleaning up the mess both sides spent all those years creating. They couldn't do that without everyone being open to telling the tale as it actually happened.
• That includes Hogan coming clean on his various dealings, including footage of a deposition from Warrior's lawsuit with WWE over the Self-Destruction of Ultimate Warrior DVD. Hogan maintains that Warrior wasn't ready for the WrestleMania 6 title victory and subsequent push but this time makes clear the value Warrior had to the industry.
• For those interested, they talk about Warrior going to WCW and the program he had with Hogan. Everyone admits it was awful and the match was terrible. Hogan takes the blame for the match bombing. He also brings up Warrior never having a chance to get off the ground in WCW due in large part to the nWo running wild at that time. This is accentuated by comments from Sting talking about the ruthless politics of wrestling and how they can ruin potentially great things.
• There are some really cool behind-the-scenes moments like Warrior meeting with Triple H in his office and before they talk about business looking around in wonder at everything Triple H has in his office, including a live video feed of the WWE Performance Center. It's a very cool glimpse into that side of things.
• The scenes with Vince McMahon are raw. This movie, as much as it's about Warrior's career in WWE, is about his relationship and hardships with Vince. The petty bickering, the grudges, the lawsuits, the reuniting, and the finally making good. Anyone who has lived a long time and experienced a long relationship knows there are highs and lows, ups and downs that sometimes make for a rocky road that feels like a burden that is too much to bear. But there are always moments that remind you it's absolutely worth it, and you get to see that here. When Vince breaks down, it's a very powerful moment:
  
• It's also endearing to see Triple H describe a moment when Warrior was with his two children and smiling so big while watching the video package introducing him at the Hall of Fame ceremony. Triple H said he walked up to him and said, "This whole process was worth it for that", and this is the moment Triple H, a father himself, is shown breaking down:
  
• An interesting note we're told is that Triple H asked Hulk Hogan not to talk to Warrior until after the Hall of Fame ceremony because he didn't want anything ruining the moment. We end up getting to see backstage at WrestleMania 30 that Hogan and Warrior finally got the chance to reconcile:
• There's a really surreal moment when Warrior is shown leaving the arena at Raw, stopping to look back so he could say, "It's awesome to be back home. It's just really cool. I'm looking forward to the future." Immediately after those words, it flashes on the screen that he died the very next day of a massive heart attack. Sting talks about how surreal and prophetic his final promo ended up being.
• The final thought on all this is that it's sad to think that most of this is as powerful as it is because of his sudden passing after so much of this was filmed. It is impossible to watch any of this without the shadow of his death looming over everything. Don't get me wrong, this would have been an outstanding documentary were he still alive but his death coming so soon after such an emotionally draining weekend of finally reconciling with his past made this powerful, every interview packing a punch of heartfelt remembrance for a man who, while difficult at times, is fondly remembered for his contributions to the pro wrestling industry.

Again, if you haven't gotten the chance to see this documentary, go get your eyes on it as soon as possible. You'll be sad to see him go but happy he got to say goodbye.