It seems incredible that even three years ago, you probably wouldn’t have found many takers willing to bet money on Kevin Owens, Steen as was, ever even getting to the WWE Developmental level. Perhaps only Owens and his family themselves would have gone further and dreamed with any conviction that he might one day sit atop the WWE as the Universal Champion.
That in July 2017 WWE Home Video have released a feature length DVD/BluRay dedicated to the now Kevin Owens shows you just what a meteoric rise to “overnight sensation” it has been. What the invigorating hour long documentary that opens this set shows the uninitiated is that it was a long fifteen year effort to become that overnight sensation.
The documentary broadly focuses as much of its running time on Kevin Owens’ journey to the WWE as it does to what happens when he got here. That means his entire Indy career gets the same half hour that his three year WWE career is afforded. That’s not to say though, that the opening half feels rushed. With candid comments from Owens, his father and friends you really feel the emotion and passion behind his rise to the top. Names such as Sami Zayn, Seth Rollins and Neville talk about their friendship and experiences with Owens, as does Chris “Jimmy Jacobs” Scobille (now part of the WWE creative team) and former ECW World Champion Steve Corino.
His early days in Quebec, training under Jacques Rougeau, are soon followed by opportunities further afield. Owens credits a chance meeting with Stone Cold Steve Austin, and picking up the advice to always keep talking, as focusing him towards what he was good at. His run with Ring Of Honor gets the full treatment and it’s fascinating to see the improvement that “Kevin Steen” makes as his career progresses. It’s also fascinating that Owens suggests that his famous “Loser Leaves RoH” loss to El Generico was Jim Cornette’s way of getting rid of someone from RoH that he didn’t really rate. Owens, of course, had the last laugh in that respect.
His subsequent arrival in NXT is discussed in detail; the most surprising point is the revelation that Kevin was as good as told not to get his hopes up for EVER receiving a call up to the main roster. That puts the six month or so time scale between his NXT debut and main roster call up into even more shocking perspective.
The tale of how WWE took his idea of answering the John Cena US Title Open Challenge and gave it to Sami Zayn shows us how the WWE can operate, whilst the tale of a first meeting with Vince McMahon will raise a hearty chuckle. The camcorder footage of his son reacting to seeing his dad answer Cena’s challenge on Live TV at home not only offers a reminder of Owen’s priorities but gives a perhaps much needed reminder to some that the performers we boo and cheer every week are human beings, with the same everyday lives in the background that we all have.
His success (and some disappointment) in the WWE is chronicled although it’s clear that Owens still feels the best is yet to come. As many of the talking heads say throughout the documentary, Owens is a focused character who quickly finds the next challenge to take on.
I would think it would be almost impossible to watch this and not have a new-found appreciation for Kevin Owens. The dedication and passion he has for Wrestling shines through and the only thing that surpasses that is the dedication and passion he has for his family. Naturally this is a must-see for any Kevin Owens fan, but I’d go as far as to say that it’s a must see for any wrestling fan or anyone who has aspirations to making it in this business.
The extras include an hour or so of “outtakes” from the main documentary, along with episode of Superstar Ink and Unfiltered starring the man of the moment. Most add to the proceedings and round out some of the details skipped over in the main feature. Particularly interesting are his comments about Jacques Rougeau’s attempts to tie him to a ten year contract to be his agent and some more discussion about what he did and didn’t think he needed to change when he finally made it to WWE.
The DVD contains eleven matches, ranging from Owens’ NXT debut in December ’14 against CJ Parker to his WrestleMania 33 match with Chris Jericho. The observant amongst you will therefore note that there are no “indy” matches at all. This will disappoint some, especially as the main documentary features a multitude of clips from the likes of Ring of Honor and PWG. You can understand why fans would like to see some, you can understand why they’re not here.
Highlights include two singles matches with Sami Zayn (NXT Rival and Battleground), his 2015 Elimination Chamber match with John Cena and, naturally, his Universal Title win. The lesser known moments provide a couple of gems too. A match from the April 2016 European Tour where Owens teams with HHH to take on Sami Zayn and Dean Ambrose is a lot of fun, as is a live event Confrontation between Owens and Zayn.
The BluRay adds four more exclusive matches. All are worth the effort, especially an NXT match with Neville and another bout with Sami Zayn (this time from Payback 2016).
WWE Home Video have put out some cracking documentary/profile releases in 2017, but this might be the best yet. A compelling, must-see documentary is rounded off by the best of the best of Kevin Owen’s WWE matches. And the best thing may well be that Owens is far from done yet!
Photos courtesy: Fetch, Fremantle Media, WWE
Format reviewed: BluRay
Thank you to our partners, WWEDVD.co.uk and Fetch for providing our review copy of Fight Owens Fight: The Kevin Owens Story which is available on DVD in the UK from Monday 3 July. You can buy your copy from WWEDVD.co.uk now by clicking here