FIGHTS: REVIEW - War Games: WCWs Most Notorious Matches DVD

THE GREAT HIGH-STAKES MATCHES FROM EPIC EVENT FINALLY COMPILED IN ONE DVD
by
Bowie Ibarra

I don't think I'm in the minority here when I say I have been waiting for this dream DVD compilation for years since the McMahon family bought up the entire video library of the many defunct wrestling organizations he soundly crushed with his business plan.  Now, he finally put together the complete collection of every War Games: The Match Beyond events on three discs.  McMahon and HHH might be sonsabitches, but thank you for finally making this collection.

The discs are narrated by Dusty Rhodes, the man credited with conceiving the event.  He details every aspect of the shows, from creation, to construction, to his multiple participations.  He's a good 'decompress' from the intensity of each of the matches.

Disc one has the original two from the Great American Bash '87 events, featuring The Four Horsemen, JJ Dillon, The Road Warriors, Dusty Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Paul Ellering, and War Machine.

Disc One even has the 'Tower of Doom' event, featuring the Road Warriors, Dr. Death, Ron Garvin, Jimmy Garvin against Kevin Sullivan, Mike Rotunda, Al Perez, The Russian Assassin, and Ivan Koloff.  Hell, it was the 80s, you had to have commie bastard Russians participating.

The last two on the disc are both War Games matches featuring the same names, but one of the matches includes The Midnight Express, The Freebirds, and the Samoan Swat Team.

Disc Two features a War Games match with Flair, Sid Vicious, Barry Windham, and Larry Zybysko vs. Sting, Pillman, and the Steiners.  This is the infamous one where Vicious hurt someone.  If you don't know, you need to watch it.

A really good one was next, featuring Sting, Koloff, Dustin Rhodes, Steamboat, and Windham vs. Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Steve Austin (!), Larry Zybysko, and Rick Rude.

Next up is a War Games match featuring Sting, Davey Boy Smith, Dustin Rhodes, and Shockmaster, vs. Vicious, Vader, and Harlem Heat.

Then, father and son, Dusty and Dustin, join with The Nasty Boys to take on Terry Funk, Arn Anderson, Bunkhouse Buck, and Col. Robert Parker in what turns out to be a hilarious finish.

Disc Three's first War Games match features Hulk Hogan, Macho Man, Lex Luger, and Sting vs. Kamala, Zodiac, Shark, and Meng!  Yeah, I know, right?

Then we get some NWO era War Games matches.  The first features Hogan, Hall, Nash and 'Mystery Partner' vs. Flair, Anderson, Luger, and Sting.

That match is followed by the War Games match that produced the most emotion I've ever felt in a pro-wrestling event that haunts me to this day:  Nash, Bagwell, Syxx, and Konnan vs. Flair, Mongo McMicheal, Chris Benoit, and Curt Hennig.

The following year, 'Diamond' Dallas Paige joins 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper and The Warrior vs. Hogan, Stevie Ray, and Bret Hart vs. Nash, Sting, and Luger.  WTF?

Then the last one ever was garbage, sadly enough, featuring Sting, Booker T, Goldberg, and Kronik, vs. Nash, Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner, and the Harris Brothers.

All in all, it was completely worth the purchase.  I enjoyed every one of the matches on there, even the last one.  There's reasons to enjoy every match, that's for sure.

The WWE War Games DVD is ZombieBloodFights.com approved.

And if you like War Games, you'll love both 'Pit Fighters: Baptism by Fire' and 'Pit Fighters: Double Cross'.  Both are combat sports-themed books that feature a lucha libre star crossing over into MMA.  You've got to check them out, and they're available on Kindle or paperback today.

BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuster.  His latest story, 'Tejano Star and the Vengeance of Chaplain Skull' is a Tex-Mexploitation superhero story in the tradition of 'Machete' and 'Black Dynamite'.

Bowie earned a BFA in Acting and MA in Theatre History from Texas State University.  Network with Bowie for updates and news at his official website, ZombieBloodFights.com.