WWE will release the “Raw 20th Anniversary Collection” this Tuesday, December 3rd. The 12-disc DVD box set is currently priced at $59.96 here on Amazon.com.
As you’ve heard a number of times now, it’s being marketed as “uncut and uncensored”. While that is true in regards to WWE now being able to freely release the old shows with the “WWF” logo and those references, there are however some edits we’ve spotted.
So far we’ve noted a few changes of music in wrestler entrance themes and edits to sponsors also. Promotion of live events upcoming at the time of broadcast and their ticket information shown on screen is now covered up (as in the screenshot below).
As reported earlier, Chris Benoit features in one of the episodes chosen for the set. We can confirm that there are edits to this 2001 episode, which was to be expected. Benoit’s entrance was removed and possibly parts of the commentary pertaining to him are cut too.
It’s Black Friday! Below is a quick rundown of WWE DVD deals from the official sources.
United States: WWEShop.com has selected DVDs at particularly good prices with free shipping at $15+. With promo code “YES” you can get the Zack Ryder DVD for just $1.59 and True Story of WrestleMania for $3.99. Several titles are $10.40 with the code including nWo, CM Punk, Attitude Era and 4 Blu-ray discs. Various Blu-rays are $11.99 each including the recent Stone Cold and Brock Lesnar sets. WrestleMania 29 on Blu-ray is $13.59.
UK/Europe: Several WWE DVDs are on sale for £7.99 and £12.99 at WWEDVD.co.uk. That includes WrestleMania 29, Bret Hart Dungeon Collection and Mick Foley For All Mankind.
Australia: WWEDVD.com.au has a sitewide coupon code offer running so you can make your own deals. Enter code “BLACKFRIDAY” to get 30% off any order placed on the site.
The winners of our recent Survivor Series DVD giveaways were @PayasoMuerto666 and Darren Bongiovanni – congratulations!
If you were a winner of one of last giveaways you’ll be pleased to know your prize will dispatch in the coming days. Stay tuned for more WWE DVD giveways soon!
WWEDVD.co.uk will release “The History of WWE: 50 Years of Sports Entertainment” DVD/Blu-ray to the UK and Europe this coming Monday. Check out a video “unboxing” of both versions below, courtesy of the new WWE Home Video UK channel on YouTube.
Here’s a look at the US version TNA Slammiversary 2013 DVD, recently released via ShopTNA. Thanks to Cesar Albino for passing along the pics.
On the TNA front in the UK, the latest release is the One Night Only: 10 Reunion DVD which is available now at TNADVD.co.uk. Heads up, the promo code “WDVDNEWS” gets you 20% off any TNA DVD order from that site – today and tomorrow only!
The extras for the Bound for Glory 2013 DVD (2 disc set) have now been revealed:
Before the Bell
Bound For Glory Preshow
Bound For Glory Fan Interaction Recap
Bound For Glory Post Match Interviews
Bound For Glory Music Video
Hall of Fame
Check out this list of cool stuff being auctioned off today on eBay – including the black, limited edition WrestleMania Anthology DVD box set, signed by Vince McMahon!
— Signed Vince McMahon WrestleMania Anthology ($200.00)
— WWF Austin vs. McMahon ($40.00)
— WWF Best of Raw Vol. 1 & 2 ($11.50)
— WWF WrestleMania 16 ($61.00)
— WWF King of the Ring 2000 ($17.00)
— WWF SummerSlam 2000 ($6.50)
— WWF Backlash 2001 ($36.00)
— WWF Royal Rumble 2002 ($5.50)
— WWF WrestleMania 18 ($26.49)
A whole ten minute segment is cut from the raw-nitro simulcast episode between Kurt angle and Chris Benoit as well
When did you say the Bret Hart Dungeon Collection was going on sale in the UK? It’s still at full price on the site. Or have I missed it?
I think I’m gonna pass on it
Serious question can WWE actually get in trouble for marketing this as “unedited” with edits? Or is there some loop hole about this?
I feel like there could be some refunds/complaints going in about this set. Maybe they should have left the “uncut/unedited” part off.
Considering wrestling is all about showcasing “fights” where the participants aren’t really fighting, I’m doubting they’ll get in trouble for that. 😉
They could get into trouble, but seriously, who’s going to take them to court over it?
If you’re buying this set to see Benoit’s entrance, you have bigger problems to address, my good man. Enjoy the set – the minor edits effect nothing.
Remember when “uncut & unedited” meant uncut & unedited?
all tho this set looks really good I’m going to have to pass on this release. $60 is a lot of money. I have every episode of raw from 1996-2003 downloaded. I also have the very RARE raw homecoming dvd. If it got down to $30 I would think about buying it. MAYBE
Just a quick question, is the Raw 20th Anniversary set coming out in the UK? I have been assuming it was, but now I’ve suddenly realised a UK version is not on AMazon for pre-order or even mentioned in the schedule on WWEDVD.co.uk. Please say we’re getting it?
There have been zero details about a UK release (DVD or Blu-ray) and Fremantle still say they are awaiting confirmation. It might be WWE’s call, it might be theirs, can’t know for sure.
So in other words, all of the edits you would expect are there, but otherwise, they’re in perfectly acceptable shape. Awesome!
All Edits i found with this set:
First of WWF logos and WWF References are NOT muted or Blurred and left Intact,
All sponser’s are edited and covered up by the Raw Logo,
The Opening Segment with Kurt Angle claiming he does not have a Wrestlemania Match and Benoit Coming out and offering a match with Angle Accepting and Edge and Christian attacking is edited out in the 26th March 2001 Episode instead it joins in progress with Vince and Trish Stratus, they way they did it makes it look like the opening segment did not happen at all, in one of the match he is featured in, It shows Angle and Edge Christian entrances and they straight away it cuts straight to the Hardy Boyz entrance with Benoit outside the ring, in total the episode runs for 1hr 19mins, the original episode ran for 1hr 30mins.
Undertaker Entrance music Rollin is edited out, i noticed a few other music edits but i did not what the original’s were but you can notice where it sound more higher.
Chris Benoit entrance is also edited out in the Raw Homecoming Episode, and all references to praising him are edited where the commentary is silent for a brief period of time which you notice when benoit is in the ring,
They dont show any footage when the action continued during commercial breaks, instead the screen goes blank for a few seconds
All the other episode’s not featuring Benoit are not edited unless it showing advertisements.
Thanks for the details. To be honest, if they had commercial break footage and didn’t use it, I’m more disappointed in that than anything Benoit related.
Thanks. Is there any edits for language you’ve seen yet?
Thanks for the info. The sponsors being blurred doesn’t really effect me, I expected that. As well as theme music edits and some Benoit cuts. I understand cutting out any positive remarks about the guy in commentary. But the entrance and segment with Angle is disappointing.Commercial footage doesn’t surprise me either. It’s just like any other television season set. Where commercials are supposed to be. It shows a black screen for a few seconds.
The Benoit stuff isn’t killing the set for me though. I’m still looking forward to it. Even with the Benoit edits. I’ll be glad to have a copy of the Homecoming episode without breaking my wallet for it.
Why does it always have to be about Chris Benoit? Getting really tired of this… People have to move on
You should write Nancy’s family a letter telling them to move on just so you can see him walk down to the ring on a DVD
What I meant is this guy did horrible things and people still think WWE should put him on their releases which of course they won’t do. I’m tired of people that wants him to be included. He won’t and that is perfectly understandable.
Oh ok. Thank you for being the only one with brains on this thread thus far
What about on the 10/3/05 RAW Homecoming. He’s in a 6 man tag on that show as well. I think the 3/26/01 RAW also had Benoit attacking Eddie, Dean, & Perry in backstage segments. If you do another fantasy concept when this collection comes out, someone should do a fantasy concept on the 20 greatest Prime Time Wrestling episodes. A synopsis for the set could be from 1985-1993 before Monday Night RAW WWE fans enjoyed the matches and comedy from Monsoon & Heenan as well as other hosts, here are the 20 greatest PTW epsiodes ever.
If not having Benoit’s entrance is going to sway you away from buying this set, you all need lives. And probably girlfriends
It’s not the entrance, it’s the idea that the set was advertised as uncut and unedited. This release is not intended for your little brother or some other casual fan who drops in and out with the flavor of the month. This set is designed for the hardcore fan. If this were a 3-disc set or a single-disc, more power to them, but this is not. it is 12-discs, nearly $60, and one of the most anticipated wwe dvd releases since the wrestlemania anthology collection. Those buying this set are should get the bad with the good, benoit and all, to enjoy for themselves. Why should it be wwe who makes the adult decision of what you or i watch? I don’t trust any of them to put on a good wrestling show much less decide for a grown man or woman what they can and cannot view. You don’t like it, skip it; don’t wanna watch it, DON’T. But don’t let your, wwe or anybody’s, prejudices of good taste or morality or one individual person be the end-all be-all for everyone else. I can make my own decisions for myself and my family. I wonder what vince would think if we started edited things he loved, like Shane (the movie), because of something we found utterly offensive. I doubt he’d like it much at all. And neither should we. He may own wrestling, but he doesn’t own free speech of his consumers. This is “history”, that we bankrolled in the first place, I might add, that should be ours to accept or reject on our own. Remember, freedom of speech, to hear it and say it, is meant to protect WHAT WE DON’T LIKE rather than safe, accepted speech. And so what if they put benoit on a disc? His family or Nancey’s family couldn’t use the money? Are people who see him going to suddenly do what he did? Adam Lanza didn’t watch benoit or wrestling and he still did what he did. The local loser on your news tonight who committed a heinous crime didn’t watch benoit first. They’re a publicly traded company who values CYA or you and me, the paying customer. Enough is enough. If it doesn’t stop with benoit, where will it end?
Well then you and everyone else who has a problem with this can go watch all the Benoit you want on YouTube and stop moaning and groaning about something you have no control over
Actually, it is Vinccall right to call what we watch or don’t watch as far as HIS product is concerned. Not the nicest thing to hear, but true. Again, I don’t have a problem with the edits (though I don’t prefer them), but something is better than nothing. Honestly, my 2 issues with the set are: (A) the acknowledgement of Benoit-if he is gonna be included, include him. Stop with the whole half-ass editing. Earth to WWE-whether he is on this release for 2 seconds or 12 hours, we know he is the killer. Sorry, Mr. Mcmahon, we are not that naive. And (B) say what you mean & mean what you say: words to live by. WWE, if you are gonna use the words “unedited & uncut” assume the buys are gonna take you for your word. False advertising sucks. That being said, I will pick this release up, it’s still a good time. It still represents the good times I had years ago, when sports entertainment was entertainment (better known as “the Daniel Bryan-less Era).
Is there any news on a UK release yet?
At least there is reasoning for most of the Benoit-related edits, praising him, etc. but I have to disagree when it comes to the entrance. It’s an entrance for God’s sake, leave it in! Edit the commentary if you must, but seriously, cutting out the entrance in total just confuses things and makes everything disjointed, and if anything, draws attention to him even more, the fact that they have edited it! They didn’t cut his entrance out of the Horsemen segment of Best of WCW Nitro. A bit of consistency, please!
If it was OK to leave Benoit in the SunnerSlam Anthology box sets why not this Raw one?
Aside from his entrance, is the opening segment of that raw with Benoit and angle included?
I talked about this below (about three posts up) but no, it doesn’t appear that way.
(Glad to know I’m not the only one who remembers that segment!)
When i heard this set was gonna feature 20 episodes uncut and uncensored i knew it wouldn’t be 100% uncut. After all this is a WWE release.
Can you really blame the wwe come on now
Commentary remarks being cut I understand, but I’m not getting why his entrance was removed. IIRC, it was left intact on the Summerslam anthology, the Elimination Chamber one, and the War Games one. I haven’t seen Money in the Bank’s anthology yet, but I’m guessing it’s there too, so why cut it now?
It’s not going to affect my decision to purchase the set, it just seems strange.
His entrance was cut from MITB and the Horsemen also didn’t have an entrance on War Games. However I’m not sure about Chamber (that was a while ago).
Benoit did have an entrance on the EC Anthology DVD since he was number 2 in the match and Jericho was 1.
The entrance deal seems to be a recent thing. Heck, he got his entrance in the first Nitro set they did in the “Flair returns” segment from September of ’98 in Greenville.
His entrance was still in if I remember correctly.
So can I sue WWE for marketing these as “unedited” joking aside I understand about music and tickets but removing parts just for Benoit? Well it just leaves “colorful language” to be censored and then all 3 things I said would be edited on this “unedited” set come true.
Might give this a miss because it isn’t cheap.
Either way I am really excited for this set. I grew up watching Raw every week. I cannot wait to relive the best moments and be able to relive the best of WWE.
Meh, not to surprised about the Benoit edits. Kind of still debating if I should really pick this up since I don’t really buy DVDs as much lately. For me its either Blu-ray or no buy.
Just glad i at least have the 2001 RAW Blu-ray set with every episode unedited and in great quality.
Could you tell us the site? I asked you the other day to no response.
I wish i could but looks like the site was closed. He really only deals with select customers now – mostly repeated buyers.
I think I found it. “rarewrestlingvideos.com” by any chance? Shame they stopped selling 🙁
Yeah, looks like he might sell again, but has to setup a payment method
Thanks. I think I’ll contact today to see if he’ll sell still instead of getting this set.
Here is CRZ’s original recap of the RAW/Nitro simulcast (March 26, 2001):
http://slashwrestling.com/raw/010326.html
And here’s WDN’s article of the content:
http://www.wrestlingdvdnews.com/full-content-wwe-raw-20th-anniversary-dvd-box-set/51990/
Right away, you can see that particular RAW didn’t actually began with the Tazz-Venis lumberjack match. It began with a Kurt Angle promo about how he doesn’t have a Mania opponent, followed by Benoit challenging him, Angle accepting, then Edge & Christian running in for a beatdown, which set up the six-man tag later in the show (the Hardys being the others). Perhaps I could be wrong, but since this isn’t listed in the chapters, it doesn’t appear to be part of that show/the set. It’s another apparent edit that should be noted.
(Please note: I’m not advocating a non-purchase, or a purchase of this set, but as an old fan who remembers that time period like clockwork, I feel others who frequent this place should at least have the info.)
Cutting out Benoit’s entrance and muting commentary during his matches is one thing, but cutting out entire segments on a show is just wrong. They would’ve been better off just choosing an episode he wasn’t in.
Kinda hard to ignore that episode. It’s one of the most important episodes in Raw and Nitro history, if not the history of North American professional wrestling.
i’m sick of this crap. This set isn’t cheap. Marketing means something to me. This is clear bait-and-switch. I pre-ordered this set expecting “uncut and uncensored”, not “well… Only if we feel like it.” You know what? I could care less about the music and sponsors, but the benoit thibg just rubs my backside RAW. If u don’t wanna watch him or see him, SKIP IT. There are 31 hours of content left to enjoy. Get over it. Even of i didn’t wanna see it, should’t i have that freedom of choice. I’m a big boy. I can make itelligent decisions on my own. Only die-hard fans are gonna buy this anyways. BS!!
Pun intended? “Rubs your backside RAW” 😉