The romantic side of professional wrestling storylines can play a huge role in both positive and negative results. WWE is the company most known for both sides of the story since they’ve been around for the longest and believe in the entertainment side the most. WCW, however, tried their luck to move forward with a few couples on the show.
We will look at the best and worst who left their impact on the viewer during the days of Nitro. The best couples had chemistry that allowed fans to buy into the romance and view them both as bigger stars due to it. There are also the negative instances of things just not working out for various reasons. Find out all the details for both sides with the five best and the five worst couples in WCW history.
10 Best: Randy Savage & Miss Elizabeth
The WWE relationship of Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth would likely be the top one in company history. Savage and Elizabeth worked together again in WCW as part of the New World Order despite getting divorced in real life.
The fans still enjoyed seeing the couple together since they were such a successful act in WWE. Savage and Elizabeth were a solid act in WCW, but they didn’t have the same exact magic. Elizabeth never seemed comfortable playing a heel which took away from the act.
9 Worst: Shane Douglas & Torrie Wilson
Shane Douglas found strong success in ECW with The Franchise gimmick. Francine working as his manager and love interest made him an even bigger star. Douglas struggled when making the move to WCW as his momentum faded within a few weeks.
Vince Russo tried to save Douglas by booking Torrie Wilson to join him as a new version of Francine. The duo didn’t have any chemistry which is usually enough to doom an on-screen wrestling couple. Wilson has admitted that she always struggled with the heel role and this shows why.
8 Best: Scott Steiner & Midajah
The end of WCW saw Scott Steiner becoming a top tier superstar and one of the final stars made before the company ended. Steiner developed a successful heel act as “Big Poppa Pump” to get over on a stronger level than ever before.
The “freaks” of Steiner used to accompany him to the ring before it was decided that Midajah would be his only manager and love interest. Steiner and Midajah worked well together. WCW knew it was too good of a fit to have others accompany him to the ring.
7 Worst: Debra & Steve McMichael
Steve “Mongo” McMichael making the jump from the NFL to WCW saw him bringing his wife Debra to the company with him. They always had a strange dynamic that prevented them from being viewed as one act rather than two personas.
Debra strangely was a better fit with Jeff Jarrett when managing him. The run of Mongo and Debra came when both were in WCW together to make it quite awkward. Debra eventually left with Jarrett to join him in WWE with another run as his manager.
6 Best: David Flair & Daffney
David Flair was involved in quite a few romantic storylines in WCW, but only one of them found success. Daffney got her big break in WCW as David’s girlfriend when he started to lose his mind. The mental health statuses of David, Daffney, and Crowbar saw them linked together in a faction.
Daffney appearing at his side was the only time that David ever shined in WCW. It allowed him to play a character outside of the box that finally stopped fans from solely viewing him as Ric’s son. David may have had better success in general if the couple didn’t break up on screen so quickly.
5 Worst: Randy Savage & Gorgeous George
The return of Randy Savage to WCW in 1999 after an extended break saw him sporting a new look and persona. Many viewed it as a middle age crisis with Savage changing his look and having three women escort him to the ring, including his real-life girlfriend Gorgeous George aka Stephanie Bellars.
It was a strange fit, especially since George had no real experience in the wrestling business. The end of their actual relationship would see George fired from WCW. She tried to continue her career in ECW, but it just never took off.
4 Best: Billy Kidman & Torrie Wilson
Billy Kidman and Torrie Wilson was one of the few legitimately likable wrestling couples in the early 2000s. WCW fans saw their peak run together after Wilson turned face by dumping David Flair to enter a new romance with Kidman.
The two had tremendous chemistry that extended to a real-life relationship starting between them. Kidman and Torrie’s dynamic played a role in the fun face version of the Filthy Animals getting over. WWE even tried to put them together on-screen as well, but they quit on the act before it got a real chance to shine there.
3 Worst: David Flair & Stacy Keibler
David Flair was a WCW pet project of someone they wanted to become a top star eventually since he was the son of Ric Flair. One last-ditch effort to save David saw him enter a relationship with Stacy Keibler. WCW witnessed Keibler becoming among the most popular stars and tried to use that to help David.
The romantic storyline of them getting married and Stacy being pregnant just created horrible television for WCW. They eventually gave up on the angle by having Keibler turn on David to unite with Shawn Stasiak. The timing of WWE buying WCW was perfect for Stacy as her booking started to get worse at the end.
2 Best: Diamond Dallas Page & Kimberly Page
The most popular couple in WCW at their peak was the real-life married duo of Kimberly and Diamond Dallas Page. Kimberly joined the company as a valet that turned against him and united with Johnny B. Badd. They eventually reunited when DDP became a top face for the company combating the New World Order.
Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth targeted Kimberly to utilize the marriage as a way to get at DDP. The story of the two couples feuding created the best WCW moments for everyone involved. Kimberly and DDP received cheers consistently since they were each genuinely liked by the audience.
1 Worst: Lex Luger & Miss Elizabeth
WCW tried to utilize the real relationship between Lex Luger and Miss Elizabeth to put them together on television. It was Elizabeth’s first big couple storyline since she was with Randy Savage. Luger and Elizabeth unfortunately both delivered arguably the worst work of their careers here.
The 2000-2001 run of Luger saw him essentially going through the motions to continue making huge money with less passion and fire. Elizabeth also did poorly since she didn’t have the promo or physical timing to do well as a heel personality. Their segments together summarized why WCW was at the point of no return.