Flyin ‘Brian defeated Jushin Thunder Liger
Sting (c) defeated Ric Flair by DQ to retain the WCW US Title
Hulk Hogan (c) (w/ Jimmy Hart) defeated Big Bubba Rogers to retain the WCW World Title
There’s two ways of looking at the aesthetic of the first WCW Nitro. On one hand they’ve stuck a ring in the middle of a mall while half of those in attendance are just trying to do their shopping, making the product seem completely low rent. On the other hand though, the setting is so unique. It’s colourful and has a much more vertical feel with the three stories of balconies and escalators. I fall on the side of liking it, although it only works as a one-off. Its not like you could do this on a weekly basis.
The debut of Lex Luger and the worlds largest shirt was definitely the surprise on the show. Both Bischoff and Heenan on commentary did a good job of trying to portray Luger as an outsider, although Bischoff did nearly blow it by calling it Luger’s “debut”. Having a prominent WWE guy jump ship on week one does a great job of making Nitro feel like a must-watch show, but we’ll speak more about Mike Rotunda later 🤪 The show definitely had an anything can happen type of aura.
This wasn’t the only tease/debut on the show though. You also had Scott Norton, a guy I always liked as a solid midcarder coming to ringside with a contract in his hand demanding some action. Then you had a video package of Sabu. Unfortunately, Paul E clearly didn’t let them use any ECW footage and so the entire video consisted of his only two previous WCW dark matches. Lastly, as mentioned earlier, you had a pre-recorded interview with Mike Rotunda, formally known as I.R.S and now going by Michael Wallstreet. He cuts his usual anti-charisma promo, this time taking potshots at the New Generation that WWF was pushing.
In terms of the wrestling on the show, we got a decent high-flying bout with Pillman and Liger. It was a showcase for some of the exciting fast-paced matches you rarely saw on RAW during this time. Sting and Ric Flair was a huge match to give away on TV and that wasn’t even the main event! The choice of going with Hogan v Big Bubba was a calculated one as it had drawn big on TV six years earlier for Vince at Saturday Night’s Main Event. This wasn’t much of a match, but having Hogan defend the World Title on TV in this day and age was big business and the right call.
This was a good first episode and did a solid job of capitalising on the fact that RAW wasn’t running head-to-head. They showcased big stars and a better in-ring product than Vince was offering on the other channel. You could argue they tried to introduce too much during the 45 minute run time, but this was their opportunity to turn heads and I think they succeeded. They also did a great job of making you want to tune in next week, with Hogan vowing to put the title on the line AGAIN – this time against Luger. They also confirmed Norton v Savage and the debut of both Wallstreet and Sabu.
On this night Nitro ran unopposed and did a 2.5 rating.
-Craig 🧐
