In pro wrestling, looks are crucial — sometimes even more than in-ring ability. After all, it’s the first impression a wrestler gets to make on a potential fan, whether they’re devoted fans in the live crowd or just watching a random clip on social media. Even outside of WWE’s entertainment-focused realm, it’s true of promotions like the more Southern-flavored World Championship Wrestling.
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During WCW’s thirteen-year history, there have been a number of wrestlers with amazing and unforgettable looks, and it often comes down to ring attire. Let’s take a look at 10 of the best outfits in WCW, including some from wrestling’s greatest icons.
10 The Demon
One of WCW’s most infamous gimmicks, The Demon was born out of a licensing deal with the legendary rock band KISS, and the only product of a plan to create wrestlers based on each band member. Portrayed by unknown Dale Torborg, The Demon wasn’t much to write home about as a wrestler and WCW buried him immediately, but it’s easy to forget that he also had an incredible presentation. Unlike most wrestlers, The Demon had a budget behind him, and looked awesome in the face paint and KISS-inspired ring gear.
9 Raven
In the early 1990s, Scott Levy kicked around WCW and WWE under various ill-fitting gimmicks until he struck gold with Raven, a grungy cult leader that proved to be one of ECW’s greatest heels. In 1997, Raven moved on to WCW, setting up a cult-like faction of heels there, as well. While Raven’s ring attire — jorts and T-shirts of either comic book characters or industrial bands — wasn’t too out of the ordinary in ECW, it made him stand out in WCW, a promotion where many of its main eventers were in their 40s at the time.
8 La Parka
In lucha libre, it can be tough for a masked wrestler to stand out, as many masks typically have the same shape and some of the associated gimmicks/names aren’t apparent in the outfits themselves. Neither of the two are true for La Parka, a luchador that WCW fans remember fondly even if he never held the Cruiserweight Championship.
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Besides his tendency to hit everyone in sight with chairs, it’s La Parka’s ring gear that distinguished him from the rest. With a mask that covers as much of his face as possible, La Parka is basically a skeleton wearing a hood, making him instantly recognizable.
7 Rey Mysterio Jr.
All the above being said, a simpler, traditional lucha mask can be iconic, of course — just look at El Santo or Blue Demon. While younger fans know Rey Mysterio Jr. for the decades he spent in WWE, he first made a wide impression on Anglophone fans in WCW, here he arguably had better ring gear. Mysterio’s mask during his WCW run had less complicated designs than his later ones, making the common elements that distinguish his mask from others much more recognizable. On top of that, some of Mysterio’s most iconic outfits occurred during this era, like the Phantom-inspired gear he wore for his classic match with Eddie Guerrero at Halloween Havoc ‘97.
6 Jushin Thunder Liger
An import from New Japan Pro-Wrestling who helped define junior heavyweight wrestling in the ‘90s, the masked Jushin Thunder Liger could easily be mistaken for a luchador, especially because he was such an innovative high-flier during his in-ring career. Inspired by the anime Jushin Liger, Liger’s not only got a full bodysuit but also one of the most iconic masks in wrestling, a demonic (but kind of adorable) visage with several horns going in multiple directions as well as long hair coming out of the top.
5 Big Van Vader
Born in Southern California, Big Van Vader made his first impressions in Japan before arriving in WCW, where he became a top monster heel in his classic feud with Sting. But Vader wasn’t just a big scary dude — he also had an awesome, iconic outfit to go with it. The red and black singlet was a simple look, but it was effective, especially because what made Vader so unique was his mask. While he initially wore a typical wrestling/lucha face mask in Japan, he eventually switched to his iconic red-strap look, a design that few wrestlers since have even tried to imitate.
4 The Road Warriors
One act that has often been imitated, however, is The Road Warriors. Inspired by the Mad Max films, Hawk and Animal were intense bruisers with face paint and entrance gear composed of football pads covered in spikes, a post-apocalyptic look that would likely still play today if fans had never seen it in wrestling before.
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The Road Warriors proved to be a successful and popular tag team during their first run in WCW, so much that they were the wrestlers chosen to grace the cover of the promotion’s first video game, WCW Wrestling. It’s an impressive achievement for a duo, considering tag team wrestling is too often relegated to the midcard.
3 Macho Man Randy Savage
One of American pro wrestling’s great pop culture icons, Macho Man Randy Savage achieved huge success in WWE in the 1980s and 1990s before jumping ship to WCW in 1994 and bringing a fondly remembered Slim Jim endorsement deal with him. Even setting aside his in-ring skills and raspy voice, Savage’s outfits were just as enthralling as everything else about him, with their crazy colors and patterns. Even when Savage joined the New World Order, eschewing most colors in favor of black and white, he retained most of what alrady defined his look, including the wild patterns.
2 Hollywood Hogan
When Hulk Hogan first arrived in WCW, he retained his famous red and yellow motif, though he usually opted for tights instead of the trunks he wore in his 1980s heyday. When he turned heel and formed the nWo, he dropped those colors, much like Savage did when he joined. However, his heel persona — dubbed Hollywood Hogan — had an equally memorable look with gloves, a weight belt, and black tights accented by white lightning. It wasn’t too different from his gear as a babyface, but the general palette swap created a completely different effect.
1 Sting (“Crow” Version)
While Ric Flair’s considered the promotion’s defining heel, the WCW babyface has got to be Flair’s rival, Sting. After nearly a decade as a surfer dude with colorful face paint, in 1996 Sting went dark in the face of the nWo invasion, changing his look and vibe to a dark vigilante of pro wrestling, opposing Hogan’s faction at every turn. While that was awesome, Sting’s new look proved captivating. Directly inspired by the 1994 The Crow, Sting ditched the colors in favor of black attire and black and white face paint, a look he still uses today.
