ECW puts over WWE (again).I just finished reading my boy Dan-e-o’s piece on why he really dug last night’s show on USA / TSN. I laughed to myself at how divergent our thinking was, because I couldn’t have disagreed more.
Sure, the show had it’s highlights. Foley’s promo may have been the best I’ve ever heard. They likely managed to spike Sunday’s buyrate a little. My problem is that once again ECW was dominated by the WWE.
The first time ECW invaded RAW back in 1997, a brief feud ensued on ECW shows with Sabu and RVD representing the WWE, joining forces with Jerry Lawler. The WWE went over.
When ECW and WCW “invaded” the WWE in 2001, and then eventually joined forces to form “The Alliance”, the angle died. Principally, because Vince McMahon couldn’t swallow his pride and have an ECW or WCW main stay defeat a WWE superstar. The angle died horribly and stalled the careers of a lot of talented wrestlers. Rhyno, RVD, Booker T, Billy Kidman, Lance Storm, Mike Awesome – the list goes on and on.
A feud is only a feud if there is give and take – there is no feud. Kind of like the American League East. There’s no feud between the Jays and Sox, cuz the Jays own their punk asses. If only they’d put the Sox over now and then, they might sell a few more tickets when they came to town. But I digress…
Last year’s One Night Stand pay per view worked because it featured ECW stars taking on each other, and showing people what a typical ECW show could have been like in 2005. Now, the focus is on WWE versus ECW.
Mickie James beat Jazz. The toughest, and quite possibly most gifted female worker of all time, was pinned cleanly by Mickie. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Mickie mark – but did she need this win? All it does is make Jazz appear decent, but not good enough to hang with the Women’s champ. A non title win or Jazz on the verge of winning with a run in from other Divas… something.
Edge beat Tommy Dreamer. Mind you, Edge was almost killed in this match after a botched top rope spot saw him come down awkwardly on his surgically repaired neck.
The WWE won the team battle royal. Oh don’t give me this crap that ECW was announced the winner. All of the Bingo Hall alum were tossed out, over the top rope unceremoniously, leaving Kurt freakin’ Angle to represent ECW.
Kurt Angle?
The guy, who as a shoot HATED Extreme Championship Wrestling, and swore he’d never work there. The guy who has been Mr. WWE for the better part of a decade? Kurt Angle is now the man fighting for ECW. What does that do? It tells the uneducated fans, that ECW is “Extremely Crappy Wrestling” and none of their guys can compete at the same level as the “E” stars.
Then, as if that wasn’t bad enough, the freakin’ Big Show defects and becomes a member of ECW!? The Big Show?
Are you kidding?
This is good?
I’m fully aware that Paul Heyman has said this will be a new ECW with a new direction, but if that direction involves Kurt Angle carrying the companies title, and the Big Show as a central figure – then I’m tapping out now.
ECW fans loved ECW in part because it was nothing like the WWE. Any former WWE stars were cast-offs given a new chance to succeed in a land without a glass ceiling. Men like Raven, Justin Credible, Brian Lee, Louie Spicolli – etc etc. Adding perennial WWE main eventers makes everything else in ECW look weak by comparison.
ECW was dominated by the WWE on Wednesday night.
Sure RVD earned a win for ECW by pinning Rey Mysterio – but if SOMEONE was going to have to take the bullet for WWE, why Rey? This guy has been jobbed out more than anyone that had to face Dan-e-o in the Corrida De Toros video.
Then, you get Sabu nailing a few classic Sabu spots, but ultimately on the verge of tapping before being rescued by…. The Big Show. Yes, Sabu’s long time friend and associate. Ugh.
If you needed a run-in, how about RVD or someone that actually lived ECW and has history with Sabu? Dammit, even a Tazz run in followed by Jerry Lawler jumping in would have been hotter.
It just felt like this whole thing was designed to propel Angle, Show, Edge and other WWE stars.
I really thought this ECW resurgence would be a chance for the mainstream audience to be introduced to CM Punk, and other major talents the company has been developing on the farm.
Instead, we’re seeing more of the same and I’m already predicting this brand will have a shorter lifespan than the XFL.
Bubba Dudley said it best on TNA. Leave it dead and buried where it belongs.
I loved the old ECW. Really. But it is gone. Trying to ressurect it will be no more successful then trying to bring back a loved on that has already passed. Let it go wrestling fans. Don't support this bastardized version of a once great brand.
RIP ECW.
9 comments: on "(the new) ECW Sucks!"
Reposted from a MySpace email sent to me by Spider-Dan:
I thought it was another example of WWE showing no faith in a product that they own but did not create. There was no reason for the WWE superstars to dominate the show and NO Kurt Angle nor the Big Show go in ECW. Bubba Ray Dudley said it best on TNA when he said "If it has no heart...let it stay dead and burried."
I like last nights WWE VS. ECW Special. I hope ECW works out. I think it will if Vince McMahon leave Paul Heyman alone and let him run ECW as he see fits. So only time will tell.
Big Daddy had it exactly right...it was proof that WWE simply does not have faith in a product that it didn't create.
This is little different than the Invasion angle. We were all hyped up at the idea of WWF vs WCW in a storyline, and then even more hyped up at the concept of WWF vs WCW vs ECW. It didn't take long before the WCW anc ECW talent were background players in the new Alliance gimmick, and the feud turned into WWF vs WWF.
These days, many of us have been hyped to see the return of ECW. Instead, we're seeing the return of the ECW logo. The wrestling product that has been labeled with an ECW logo is nothing more than a third brand extension of the WWE. The WWE vs ECW feud, in one show, has turned into a WWE vs WWE feud, with The Big Show and Kurt Angle on one side and the WWE roster on the other side, with more roster jumps soon to follow, I'm sure, at the ppv.
I've told people this for weeks. If McMahon won't allow Heyman to book One Night Stand, and puts a stop to Beniot vs Malenko in favor of an Angle vs Orton match that has nothing to do with ECW, what makes you think he's going to allow Heyman to have booking power over an entire television show?
ECW has become a spinoff of WWE with a familiar and marketable logo. They're doing to ECW what they did with the nWo...squeese every last dollar out of it that they can before discarding it. Other than Sabu, the non-WWE ECW alumni are going to be background players...the ECW equivilant of Velocity workers, while former WWE and upcoming OVW talent are given full focus, in WWE-approved storylines, wrestling WWE-approved matches and a WWE-approved soap opera script.
The show on Wednesday was good as a wrestling show, but it wasn't ECW. It was a simulation of ECW. It's like the Wily Wonka remake. I'm sure if you've never seen the original, you'd love it, but if you have seen the original, it's a big letdown.
Hey Don, I didn't even mention the Big Show or Kurt Angle in my piece...cuz I actually agree with you on that. But last night's show was an improvement over the product WWE has been giving us lately. The concept of 'sensible' storytelling was the crux of my article. And I think the new brand will do a better job of it. Either way, "Corrida De Toros" was a shoot. And you're scared of me!
I don't know I like last night WWE VS ECW Special. I think the real test is going to be when they get there own show on Sci-Fi Channel. If just going to be another RAW and Smackdown then yes ECW will Suck. :-(
I enjoyed the WWE vs. ECW show last night. It could have been better but it wasn't that bad of a show. I really enjoyed the matches between RVD and Mysterio and Sabu and Cena. I think Sabu gave Cena some stiff shots, welcoem to ECW Cena.
I think Foley's promo was one of his best in years, loved how they lowered the lights and had him just sit in the ring.
I think the show was a good idea to introduce new fans to ECW and help get some more buy rates for the ppv. It really made me want more of the ECW product, ECW is probably my favorite wrestling promotion. Hopefully Vince want drop the ball on this like he did the Alliance angle.
Harry"Signguy"Pawlik
I'm looking foward to the relaunch of ECW, but so far the WWE vs ECW storylines haven't been much better than the WCW/ECW Invasion. The PPV looks like it's not going to be as good as last year because all of the big matches revolve around WWE stars.
i agree with spider-dan about the whole heart thing, but i'm gonna wait till after sunday to form an entire take on the whole ECW back from the dead thing...but last night just left a bad impression.
I'll agree that the battle royal was botched. Someone besides Kurt Angle should have been the last mand standing to defend ECW before Big Show turned. A better way to do it would be to have Sandman or Sabu, hell even BALLS standing face to face against Big Show and Orton. Orton goes to Show and they make a plot to doubleteam the ECW guy. Randy runs in only to get the piss knocked out of him by Show. Show tosses Orton out and we have a new ECW along with old ECW stading victorious in the ring.
As for Show, It's not a bad thing that he's in ECW. Paul Heyman knows how to book big guys. When Heyman was booking Smackdown, Show was doign great, he was getting over. Heyman has a way of hiding the weaknesses and exentuating the positives. So before you put the kabbash on new ECW, give it a fair chance.
Everyones already bagging on it because "It's not ECW" No it isn't. Guess what, this isn't 1996 anymore. It's time to move on. This is essentially a new WWE brand that has just been given the ECW lable. That doesn't make it ECW. It's sad that it has the ECW name though because people are going to compare it to the ECW of old, when it's not a rebirth of that ECW, this is a brand new ECW.
"Head to Head" was possibly the best show WWE has put on in a long time from EVERY aspect. Except for the Angle/Orton segment that kinda dragged on, all the booking made sense, the mathes were fun to watch, and the WWE guys even looked like they were having fun working with the ECW guys.
And adding Angle and Show in the mix is NOT A BAD THING! ECW doesn't have the fan base of a WWE or even a WCW (At least at it's high point.) Not alot of people are going to stop on Sci-Fi on Tuesdays cause they saw a glimpse of The Sandman or Justin Credible. But Kurt Angle, someone they remember from WWE. Big Show, someone they remember from WWE. And even though he was in the original ECW, Rob Van Dam, who they remember from WWE. They just need to use a couple of these established WWE characters to get people intersted, who otherwise probably wouldn't be. Then when they get your attention with someone familliar, they hit you with someone new. Maybe you can see Sabu that a lot of people still havn't been exposed to. Or Super Crazy or Rob Van Dam without the WWE limits (And after Head to Head you can't possibly think they're going to enforce the moves regulations on them, RVD was doing stuff we've not seen him do in YEARS.)
Just use the mainstream established stars to get peoples attention, and then hold their attention with all the other great talent they have.
Those are my thoughts on it, I think that you're not giving this new ECW a fair shot. You're looking to cut it's legs off before it even gets a chance to stand. Give it a chance! But also remember this isn't 1996 ECW. It never ahs been it never will be. Remember 1996 ECW as something that was once here and is now gone. Don't compare 2006 ECW to 1996 ECW and I'm sure you'll find that 2006 ECW isn't really all that bad.
P.S. The InVasion angle failed not because of Vince's ego, but because they didn't get any real big names. Straight out of the box they got Booker T and DDP, everyone else, while talented, wasn't really a recognisable face. Hell unless you actually watched WCW, Booker and DDP weren't recognisable either. Not like a Sting, Goldberg, Hogan, Nash, Steiner, who would have helped get the angle over big.
Post a Comment