ECW On Sci Fi – May 29, 2007: The Returning Guest Star

ECW On Sci Fi
Date: May 29, 2007
Location: John Labatt Centre, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

It’s the go home show for One Night Stand and this time around, the pay per view features a big ECW match as Bobby Lashley is challenging ECW World Champion Vince McMahon in a street fight. Other than that, Randy Orton has damaged Rob Van Dam so it might be time for some extreme gloating. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Randy Orton to say he knows he isn’t making a lot of friends around here. We see a clip of Orton taking out Rob Van Dam and giving him a concussion (with a heck of a sell job from Van Dam). Back in the arena, Orton says he doesn’t feel a bit wrong about any of that because it was in a sanctioned match.

Just like Shawn Michaels, Van Dam is coming back too soon and it’s going to be a stretcher match. Orton finds that as very appropriate but here is Tommy Dreamer to interrupt. Dreamer isn’t going to let Orton come out here and gloat because this is Dreamer’s house and Orton isn’t welcome. The challenge is on for tonight with Orton saying it’s on and promising to kill the legend of ECW tonight.

CM Punk vs. Elijah Burke

No DQ. Punk grabs a headlock to start and they go to the mat with Burke’s arm in trouble. The fans want tables but have to settle for Burke striking away in the corner. Back up and Punk kicks him in the face, followed by more kicks for two. A clothesline puts Burke on the floor and we take a break. Back with Burke working on a waistlock and then choking underneath the ropes.

Burke hits a slingshot elbow to the ribs in the corner, setting up a flapjack to stay on the bad ribs. A table is set up in the corner but Punk uses the delay to score with an enziguri for two. Punk hits the running knee in the corner but the bulldog is broken up. Back up and Punk kicks him in the head and the GTS is loaded up, only to have Marcus Cor Von come in for the save. The Pounce puts Punk through the table and Burke gets the pin.

Rating: C+. I know it’s a basic move, but my goodness there is something cool about watching Cor Von hit that Pounce. This was a lot of logical rib work until the ending, which played into the (or what is left of the) New Breed’s numbers game. Punk is protected and the New Breed looks like more of a threat for the pay per view tables match.

Vince McMahon joins us to mock Joey Styles’ and Tazz’s names, thinking they sound like a 12 year old boy and a gargoyle respectively. That’s not as bad as the name Loser though, which is enough for Vince to bring in Bobby Lashley. Vince thinks Lashley is awfully calm before Sunday, but Lashley says it’s because he has an easy match coming up. Lashley stays calm no matter how insulting Vince gets and eventually says Vince has never had to work for anything in his life.

THAT sets Vince off so he threatens Lashley some more, with Lashley not really worrying about anything. Granted Vince getting the show’s name wrong (“Last Night Stand”) probably doesn’t help. Lashley finally starts promising to win and calls Vince old as this is REALLY not Lashley’s strong suit. It’s an all time kind of not being intimidating and this kind of killed the interest I had in the match.

We look at Randy Orton injuring Rob Van Dam again.

Extreme Expose.

Kevin Thorn vs. Balls Mahoney

Thorn hammers away to start and fishhooks Mahoney to make it worst. A whip sends Mahoney shoulder first into the post, setting up Original Sin for the easy pin.

Matt Striker comes up to the Major Brothers in the back and, after suggesting that Rob Van Dam is….a tuskless elephant, brings up the Draft. It can change careers, but the Brothers talk about beating Striker in their first match. That’s enough for Striker, who issues the challenge for next week.

Randy Orton vs. Tommy Dreamer

Believe it or not, Dreamer is fighting for someone he cares about. Feeling out process to start, with Orton taking him down into a headlock. A dropkick puts Dreamer on the floor so Orton goes up top, only to get superplexed back down. Dreamer slugs away and gets two off a jackknife cover. There’s a sitout spinebuster for two on Orton, who is tied in the Tree of Woe for the running basement dropkick. Not that it matters as the RKO (Joey: “Out of nowhere! Out of nowhere!”) finishes Dreamer in a hurry.

Rating: C-. This was more angle advancement than a match, as Dreamer was there to get beaten up as they continue his path of destruction. That is not a bad thing as Dreamer can take some great beatings, but there is only so much you are going to get out of something like this. Granted they did it the right way by having the match stay short, so it could have been a lot worse.

Post match Orton hits another RKO, followed by the Punt. Cue Rob Van Dam in street clothes but Orton knocks him down again, giving us more concussed Van Dam to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It’s kind of weird to see ECW playing such a prominent role in a pay per view, even if it is the ECW pay per view (or at least it used to be). This built up three matches on the way to the pay per view and did a nice enough job, though the stories are kind of played out at this point. Passable show though and that’s what it needed to be for Sunday.

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