Cena had elbow surgery today but it doesn’t seem to make a difference as he’ll only be out 2-3 weeks and the PPV is in about 6 weeks. See what happens when you give yourselves some space between PPVs? Good things can happen.
This is legit. From what I can find he might have had a seizure and vomited. It happened right at about ten PM EST and he was carried away during the Prime Time Players vs. Kane/Bryan. I’ll let you know whenever I find out anything else.
Update #3: Meltzer says it was a heart attack. Jerry isn’t out of the woods yet but he’s more stable.
Update #2: Cole said that Lawler’s heart was beating on his own and that he was breathing on his own. His condition is stablizing apparently which is a good sign. More to come later I’m sure.
Update: Lawler has been taken to a hospital and is breathing on his own. He’s responding to lights in his eyes and is awake to an extent. I’ll update this with anything else I hear.
ECW on Sci-Fi
Date: October 3, 2006
Location: Landon Arena, Topeka, Kansas
Commentators: Joey Styles, Taz
We’re into a new month here as this show is starting to fly by. After last week we’re really right back where we were coming into last week with Show being completely dominant and no opponent for him at the moment. We also have Van Dam standing tall due to his victory over Holly. It’s hard to say what else we’re going to get from here on out. Let’s get to it.
We open with Holly and Heyman in the back, watching a clip from last week of Holly being sliced open like a cabbage. Heyman praises him for finishing the match after being out for a year due to a staph infection. Holly says that’s what he does and he wants Van Dam again tonight. Heyman almost panicking over the thought of a lawsuit is kind of funny stuff and he obviously says no. Holly grabs Heyman but Test pops in and hits Hardcore in the back with a chair. It’s Test vs. Van Dam tonight in an extreme rules match.
Opening sequence.
Sandman/Sabu vs. Big Show/Matt Striker
So I guess Sabu and Big Show are still feuding somehow. Sabu and Show start with the giant being clean shaven now. That’s kind of a good look for him. Show clotheslines Sabu down and tosses him around with ease. Off to Striker and Sabu gets on offense quickly, hitting a springboard leg lariat and some dropkicks to take over. Sabu is knocked to the floor as we take a break. Back with Show coming in to headbutt Sabu down followed by a suplex which gets two for the tagged in Striker.
Striker kicks Sabu low to knock him to the floor again. Striker hooks a cravate and Sabu is in trouble again. Matt goes up but jumps into a spin kick in a bad looking spot. Sandman finally gets the hot tag and the beating begins. Striker tries to go up but Sandman blasts him with a left hand and the Heinekenrana gets two. The White Russian leg sweep is broken up by Show, who splashes Sandman to give Striker the pin.
Rating: D+. The problem here is that this is just a tag match. Sabu can hang in a match for the most part but Sandman is dull when he can’t use his weapons. This was just your standard tag match which bordered on a squash. Show is being put over stronger than almost anyone I’ve ever seen which is good for him but bad for everyone else.
Kelly Kelly and Trinity plug Extreme Strip Poker. Kelly takes her top off and has cards covering her.
Kevin Thorn vs. Tommy Dreamer
Dreamer pounds away to start but gets slammed out of the corner by Thorn. Thorn beats on Tommy but a pumphandle slam is countered into a neckbreaker as Dreamer starts his comeback. The DDT is countered but the second attempt at it gets two due to Thorn being in the ropes. A shot from the cane to Dreamer’s head ends this quick.
Watch the Marine!
Maria will play poker next week and people have been giving her “good” advice on how to play.
CM Punk vs. Danny Doring
Doring tries an early suplex but gets kicked in the ribs. A butterfly backbreaker puts Doring down and Punk fires away with knees in the corner. The knee/bulldog combo sets up a striking sequence followed by the Rock Bottom and Anaconda Vice for the tap. This was barely over a minute.
Kelly pops up on stage and dances for Punk. Knox takes her away and Punk says he’s sick of this. He says Knox’s problem isn’t keeping him away from Kelly, but from keeping Kelly away from him. Knox comes to the ring but backs off. The fans were into this.
Kristal Marshall and Ashley will be playing too.
Test vs. Rob Van Dam
Extreme Rules. Test kicks him in the ribs during the finger pointing which is something you would think a lot more people would do. Van Dam is sent to the floor and Test chokes him on the barricade. Van Dam gets in a kick (were you expecting something else?) but misses the spinning leg to the back of Test, crashing into the barricade instead. Test gets the steps but gets tripped, sending the steps crashing down on top of him. In a cool spot, Van Dam hits Rolling Thunder onto Test onto the steps.
It’s table time and the fans erupt as a result. As always, that takes too much time and Test takes his head off with a clothesline in the ring. Test throws four chairs into the ring and a big boot into one of them into the head of Van Dam gets two. A suplex onto the chair is countered by Van Dam and he pelts the chair at Test’s head ala Sabu. Test goes to the apron but Van Dam can’t knock him through the table. Test tries to suplex him through the table in a repeat of the spot from last week with Holly, but Van Dam countered into a sunset powerbomb through the table in a great spot.
We take a break and come back with the arrival of Heyman and security. Back inside and Test low blows Van Dam but Rob manages to clothesline him on the top rope. The recoil sends Van Dam to the floor and the security guards pound on Rob for a bit. That gets two for Test back inside and the Canadian is getting frustrated. Somewhere in there a chair was wedged between the top and middle rope and Rob is launched head first into said chair. Somehow that only gets two and Test is stunned.
Off to a bearhug as Van Dam is in even more trouble. Van Dam escapes but a BIG chair shot to the head gets two. Test removes the buckle from a corner but RVD blocks the shot into it and this a spinwheel kick to put both guys down. Rob goes to the floor for another chair because the four in the ring weren’t enough I guess. After threatening the guards with the chair, he skateboards it into Test’s face in the corner. He loads up Rolling Thunder onto the chair but Test moves, sending Rob’s back into chair only.
With the chair on Van Dam’s face, Test goes up and drops a Cactus Jack elbow (as in he had a chair of his own and slammed it into the other chair) off the top…..for two. Test loads up another table but his powerbomb through it is countered into a sunset flip for two. Snake Eyes onto the exposed buckle is countered and Van Dam hits the top rope kick. After dispatching the guards, Van Dam loads up the Five Star through the table but Big Show comes out and shoves him through the table. A TKO from Test finally gets the pin.
Rating: B. Van Dam is on a roll right now and I’m digging this war with Heyman and his team of lackeys as he’s building up to the big rematch with Show. Test looked good here and after the match last week with Holly, I think it’s fair to call Van Dam an official miracle worker. Another strong match here which would probably be the best match of the week in WWE.
Overall Rating: B. With Van Dam being on fire like he is now, ECW is on a total roll. There are finally clear stories going on up and down the card with Van Dam vs. Heyman being a highlight. The main issue I see with it though is next week. The show ended with Joey guaranteeing someone losing their clothes next week. That flat out is not going to happen, or at least we won’t be able to see it. Also it’s annoying when that’s the focus of the show instead of the good action we’ve been getting. Either way, good show here as ECW has finally gotten it.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews
ECW on Sci-Fi
Date: September 26, 2006
Location: Tulsa Convention Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Joey Styles, Taz
We’re in Oklahoma so I’ll bet JR gets messed with somehow tonight. Other than that we’ve got a world title match with the most decorated former world champion in ECW history, the Sandman, challenging Big Show. Other than that we get the blowoff match with RVD and Hardcore Holly which has a semi-famous spot in it. Let’s get to it.
After the theme song, Joey and Taz basically say what I said in the intro.
Here’s JR to open the show. This can’t end well. He thanks Joey and Taz for inviting him, starting a brief argument over who invited him between the announcers. JR mentions getting started in Mid-South in this area a long time ago. He starts talking about how much he likes ECW when Matt Striker interrupts him.
Striker says JR is a blue collar worker and has the shirt to prove it. He gets in JR’s face about liking alcohol, just like Sandman. Striker keeps going on until Sandman comes in with the cane. Sandman gets in a shot to the ribs and hands the cane off to JR. Ross gets in a pretty good shot to the back and Striker bails in shame. JR toasts Sandman, the new ECW Champion, and beer is consumed.
Video on Eric Bischoff’s book, set to look like an old NWO promo. Basically he says he’ll tell the real story. I’ll give him this: I want to read the book now.
Extreme Strip Poker is coming. Oh geez.
Hardcore Holly says he’ll do his talking in the ring. Riveting stuff here.
Rob Van Dam vs. Hardcore Holly
Extreme Rules. Van Dam takes over to start and sends Holly into the corner. A superkick puts Holly down but it’s time to pose before Van Dam follows up. Out to the floor they go but Van Dam’s posing gets him in trouble again. Holly gets draped over the barricade and there’s the spin kick to the back. Van Dam loads up a table to the crowd’s delight but Holly blasts him in the back and sends him into the steps to take over.
Van Dam fires off more kicks and they head back inside, only to charge into Holly’s boot in the corner. A back elbow to the face puts Van Dam down and Holly goes to the apron for a suplex onto the aforementioned table. The suplex hits and we go to a break, coming back to see a MASSIVE gash in Holly’s back. That is sick looking and he would have a scar for the rest of his WWE career.
Holly sets up a chair in the middle of the ring and drops Van Dam’s throat across the chair for two. With the chair over Van Dam’s face, Holly drops a middle rope leg for another two. There is blood all over Holly’s back. Van Dam comes back with a suplex onto the chair and blood SQUIRTS out of Holly’s back. That is freaking SICK. There’s the monkey flip and you can tell Holly is having to land awkwardly. The top rope kick puts Holly down and Van Dam gets the chair. There’s the skateboard dropkick into the corner and Holly is looking dead.
Rolling Thunder onto the chair onto Holly gets two. Van Dam tries another monkey flip but gets powerbombed down onto the chair for another close two. This is good stuff. Van Dam puts the chair on Hardcore’s chest and loads up the Five Star, but Holly throws the chair at his face on the way down. THAT gets two and the fans think this is awesome. Alabama Slam is countered so Holly gets the chair. However, YOU CAN’T HOLD A CHAIR IN FRONT OF VAN DAM! Van Daminator sets up the Five Star to finally beat Holly.
Rating: B+. That’s partially for the guts Holly had on display here. Take that either figuratively or literally as both are appropriate. This is easily Holly’s best match ever and one of the best matches that aired on this show. Really good stuff here and the cut on Holly’s back is insane.
Punk talks about being addicted to competition and wanting to compete with the biggest and the best. Kelly comes up and raves over Punk’s tattoos. She talks about extreme strip poker but is sad she can’t get into casinos yet. Kelly asks Punk to play extreme strip poker with him but he thinks that’s trouble. Knox comes up and gets in Punk’s face. Punk says worry about your woman because she keeps trying to get into his yard. Knox says he’s going to straighten Kelly out then he’s coming to look for Punk. Punk will be waiting.
Watch the Marine! No seriously, almost no one else did so could you please?
Ariel vs. Francine
This is an Extreme Catfight. Brawl to start, Ariel’s top comes off, Kevin Thorn comes in, Balls Mahoney makes the save, we’re done. This lasted like a minute.
Video on Sandman.
Heyman and Big Show are in the back talking about the main event. Show says he’s not worried about Sandman and wants Heyman and the security to stay in the back. The cane will be legal tonight and Heyman doesn’t seem happy.
Rene Dupree gets out of the shower in a towel. He says he’s extreme and opens the towel, looks down, and smiles. WWE before it was PG ladies and gentlemen.
ECW World Title: Big Show vs. Sandman
I love how Roberts says world title. We join this in progress after a break with Sandy pounding on Show with the cane and totally dominating. They head to the floor for more cane shots and Show is busted open. Holly needed 24 stitches to close the cut on his back. Sweet goodness that was a bad cut. Show comes back with a loud chop and some headbutts.
Things slow down a lot but that’s understandable in this case. A big right hand takes Sandman down and here’s the chokeslam. Sandman counters and hits a DDT before grabbing the cane. A middle rope cane shot to the head gets two but here’s Striker to steal the cane. The cobra clutch backbreaker and standing legdrop keep the title on Big Show.
Rating: D+. This is ECW 101 at this point: build up a challenger of the week and then have Big Show maul him. There’s nothing wrong with that as they need to dispatch these challengers before we get to the guy that can finally beat Big Show. Not a good match here or anything but for a TV main event like this it was acceptable.
Overall Rating: B. Given the opening match and the good shots of Ariel almost falling out of her top and a decent main event, this is probably the best ECW show yet. That Holly vs. Van Dam match was good back then and it’s aged well with the two guys beating the tar out of each other for almost twenty minutes. Good show here and hopefully they keep this up in the future.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews
This should be interesting:
– The current “10 Count” with Matt Striker on WWE Classics on Demand ranks the top 10 Superstars to never win a world championship. The list is as follows:
Honorable Mentions: Killer Kowalski, Lance Storm
10. Arn Anderson
9. Chief Jay Strongbow
8. Paul Orndorff
7. Nikita Koloff
6. Junkyard Dog
5. Scott Hall
4. Jake “The Snake” Roberts
3. British Bulldog
2. “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase
1. “Rowdy” Roddy Roddy Piper
This was a segment on the show last night and if you haven’t checked it out, please do so. There are three parts to it and the final part with Kane giving his life story is some of the funniest stuff I’ve heard on Raw in at least the past year. But there’s something else I wanted to talk about regarding this.When he first came to WWE, Daniel Bryan was about as dull as you could get. He was a guy in trunks that could do a lot of submissions and that’s it. For roughly a year he did nothing significant before he won the world title out of nowhere. That was ok but it still didn’t quite work. Then he started saying YES. Then he started saying NO. Now he has anger management issues and he’s probably getting the biggest reactions on the roster.
Last night’s segment was another example of why this push is working: WWE is giving time, effort and thought to making this new character work. There’s a backstory to Bryan’s new persona and it has a logical progression to it. Instead of just throwing it out there like the Hawkins/Reks stripper thing that happened out of nowhere with a flimsy reason (they wanted to get noticed), we’ve watched Bryan go from nothing to a guy with confidence to a guy who was paranoid to a guy with anger issues and IT WORKED.
The segment last night was a great way to build on the character as they took him out of the arena setting and showed us something different. That’s a major problem with WWE today: everything is in the arena. It’s like a sitcom in that way and it gets really monotonous. Look back to the 80s: you would see people EVERYWHERE. Off the top of my head I can think of segments in a control room, on a farm, in a country house, in a store, in a weight room, in a kitchen, and in the woods. Those are the kinds of segments that build up characters and make them memorable. Think of it like this: what do you remember more: something you did once, or something you did a hundred times?
In short, do more stuff like the anger management session and mix up these segments a bit. It will work wonders for character development and it’ll freshen up a lot of stuff on the shows.
In the fall, WWE is going to be debuting a new weekly TV show called The Main Event. When that happens, there are going to be 8 and a half hours of free TV from WWE every week. On that scale, WWE would have more TV aired on free TV in approximately five weeks than there was on WWF PPV in all of the 1980s combined.
And people wonder why the shows are getting watered down.
Deadline reports that Warner Bros and WWE Studios are working together to create a new Scooby-Doo animated film that will involve a mystery at Wrestlemania.
WWE stars appearing in film, as well as providing voices, include Triple H, John Cena, Kane, The Miz, Brodus Clay, Santino Marella, Sin Cara, AJ, and WWE chairman/CEO Vince McMahon.
The film will be released on Blu-ray, DVD, VOD and digital download through Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. WWE will use its resources to promote the film, according to WWE Studios President Michael Luisi.
Read more at http://www.411mania.com/movies/news/250864/%5BMovies%5D-WWE-Stars-To-Appear-In-New-Scooby-Doo-Movie.htm#bohOWImiBG9me1h2.99
As a big fan of old cartoons, this is a joyous occasion for me.
Anyone else that would watch this?
ECW on Sci-Fi
Date: September 19, 2006
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz
We’re past Unforgiven now and Big Show has some recovering to do. Therefore tonight we need a replacement top heel, so we have King Booker vs. RVD in the main event. We’re getting closer to No Mercy which which didn’t have an ECW Title match on it at all. Therefore the next month is pretty worthless as we’re approaching the only ECW PPV of the WWE incarnation. Let’s get to it.
Booker and Queen Sharmell arrive and Heyman has a red carpet waiting for them.
Opening sequence.
Sandman/Tommy Dreamer/Sabu vs. Test/Mike Knox/Matt Striker
Knox and Dreamer start things off but it’s quickly off to Striker. Sandy comes in so Striker bails, bringing Knox back in to face Dreamer. A Cactus Clothesline takes both guys to the floor where Test is waiting to spinebust Dreamer into the steps. Sandman is knocked into the barricade and has to be taken out as we go to a break. Back with Test elbowing Dreamer in the face in the corner.
Striker, the pretty boy teacher in the hot pink trunks, comes in and gets some cheap shots on Dreamer before distracting the referee so Knox can bend Dreamer’s back around the post. A neckbreaker gets two for Striker and it’s back to Test for some kicks to the back. Knox throws on a bearhug as Joey tells us of the bad back that Tommy still has from the original ECW.
A Knox powerslam gets two for Knox as Kelly screams, distracting Taz in a somewhat funny bit. Knox charges into a boot in the corner followed by a reverse DDT from Dreamer. The hot tag brings in Sabu and house is cleaned. Everything breaks down and Striker is put in the camel clutch but Test makes the save. Sabu goes up but Test shoves the referee into the ropes to crotch Sabu….drawing a DQ in ECW.
Rating: D+. This was fine but the ending hurt it a bit. The idea of the heels representing the new ECW is fine but it would take far too many months before we got to the payoff for it. Then again a lot of the faction of the New Breed wasn’t here yet so I guess it’s understandable. Not much to see here but the idea was there.
The heels beat Dreamer and Sabu down until Sandman staggers out for the save.
Heyman introduces Booker and Sharmell to CW Anderson, Stevie Richards and Balls Mahoney. Guess which one incites comedy.
Balls Mahoney vs. Kevin Thorn
Francine is with Balls here. They brawl to the floor quickly with Mahoney taking over. Back inside and Balls punches in the corner, only to be dropped face first onto the top turnbuckle. Mahoney comes back with more punches and the girls get into a catfight. Balls stops to watch and gets caught in a Razor’s Edge for the pin. This wasn’t even two minutes long.
Booker and Sharmell meet the FBI, Trinity and Punk. Guess which one wants to face Booker.
CM Punk vs. Shannon Moore
I guess we needed a rematch after the squash last week. Punk starts by firing off forearms to the head. Kelly is watching Punk from the crowd. CM puts on a seated surfboard to keep his advantage but Moore comes back with some shots to the ribs. Knox takes Kelly to the back as Moore hits a gutbuster. Punk comes back with some knees but a spinwheel kick puts him down. Moore misses a dropkick and it’s high kick, Rock Bottom and Anaconda Vice for the quick tap. Better than last week.
Heyman says Booker should join ECW. RVD comes up and offers a challenge to an extreme rules match.
Rob Van Dam vs. King Booker
Extreme rules a go-go. There was no transition between the challenge and the match either, yet Booker is in his gear already. That’s impressive. Booker is world champion but this is non-title. Booker takes over to start with some shots to the ribs but Van Dam comes back with kicks of his own. He goes up but Booker shoves him off the top into the barricade in that bump that Rob likes to do.
Van Dam gets dropped on the barricade and the King is in control. Back in and it’s chair time but Booker drops it in the ring instead of swinging it. Well no one ever accused him of being brilliant. Rob charges into the Bookend and there’s a Spinarooni. Rob is like screw this and hits Booker in the head with the chair to take him down. After skateboarding the chair into Booker’s face, there’s the Rolling Thunder onto the chair onto Booker for no cover.
The fans want tables. Well what good would a chair be if you didn’t have something to sit at? Split legged moonsault gets two and both guys are getting up. They slug it out and Van Dam is catapulted into the chair wedged between the top and middle rope. Booker’s piledriver onto a chair is countered so he has to settle for a spinebuster onto it instead. Booker goes up but the Hangover misses and both guys are down again. The Five Star hits and here’s Hardcore Holly. He hits the Alabama Slam on Rob and a scissors kick from Booker gets the pin.
Rating: C. This was storyline advancement for Van Dam vs. Holly rather than a competitive match but it wasn’t that bad. Booker was in a zone at this point as champion, as he went from the street guy as Booker T to the polar opposite as the King, which says to me that he was an incredibly talented guy. This was fine for a TV main event.
Overall Rating: C. This was better than last week as the bringing in guest stars to main event the show is the right idea. You can’t really go with an all ECW main event and have it work for the masses, so bringing in someone like Booker is a good idea. Holly vs. Van Dam would be blown off soon, but unfortunately Holly would stay in the main event scene of ECW for a few more months.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews
ECW on Sci-Fi
Date: September 12, 2006
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz
We’re coming up on Unforgiven and in a bit of a lull for ECW. We aren’t ready to talk about December to Dismember yet but we don’t really have anything planned for in between then. My guess would be we have random matches that don’t add up to much until then which is par for the course. Oh and we’re in the World’s Most Famous Arena tonight. Let’s get to it.
We open with Heyman and his masked bodyguards in the ring. He talks about the deal he made to bring ECW to the big time and again says that the fans owe him a thank you. The way he’s speaking is kind of strange as you can tell he thinks what he’s saying is bull, but he’s a native New Yorker and he has ECW in Madison Square Garden. It’s an interesting combination.
Sabu almost immediately runs out and goes after the guards with a chair, knocking them to the floor. Heyman makes Big Show vs. Sabu later on in an extreme rules match. In theory that wouldn’t be for the title but you never know with his mindset after awhile. Sabu dives onto the guards because he’s a bit out there.
Rob Van Dam vs. Hardcore Holly
Van Dam jumps him to start and snaps off a fast rana before being backdropped to the floor. Holly busts out a pescado which is a rare thing to see from him. This is as a result of Holly jumping Van Dam recently at the request/suggestion of Heyman, who hates Van Dam for some reason. Back in and a legdrop gets two for Holly who is in full control. A middle rope elbow kind of misses as I think Van Dam got his foot up but it looked odd.
Either way Van Dam is making his comeback here and hits the step over kick followed by Rolling Thunder for a delayed two. A monkey flip sends Holly out of the corner and Van Dam heads up. Holly crotches him but the superplex is broken up. The Five Star is loaded up again but here are Stevie Richards and Mike Knox for the DQ for no apparent reason.
Rating: C-. Not bad here but it was too short to go anywhere. Holly was a guy that they wanted to be a big deal in ECW, but at the end of the day he’s the same guy that has been a joke on the main two shows for years leading up to this. It’s hard to take him seriously when he was the guy running around with Crash for all those years.
Van Dam beats those two up but Test comes out as well, hitting the full nelson slam to take him out. Sandman and Dreamer finally run in for the save. Everyone hits Richards with something and the Five Star finishes his murder.
CM Punk vs. Shannon Moore
Two matches without a commercial or segment? I’m stunned. This is Moore’s ECW debut. He slaps Punk in the face to start and pounds him down which is probably about the extent of his offense here. Punk jumps over Moore in the corner and hooks the Tarantula Vice in the ropes. A series of strikes to the ribs stops Moore dead as the fans are chanting for Punk. The corner knee/bulldog hits and the high kick sets up the Rock Bottom into the Anaconda Vice for the tap. Basically just a squash.
Rene Dupree is looking in a mirror.
Punk talks about all the guys he wants to fight when Kelly Kelly comes up to hit on him. She asks him out but Mike Knox makes the save. I think I smell a feud.
The villain in The Marine says the movie is cool.
Ariel and Kevin Thorn come out for the next match.
Rene Dupree vs. Balls Mahoney
Dupree jumps him to start but Balls comes back with the signature punches in the corner. A charge hits the post for Mahoney though and a bottom rope splash gets two for Rene. Taz: “That’s extreme?” A middle rope elbow gets the same and I can’t believe I’m watching this on ECW.
I get the idea that they’re going with to have Dupree as a heel in ECW, but it doesn’t change the fact that we’ve had guys like Shannon Moore, Mike Knox and Rene Dupree on this show. Mahoney snaps off the Nutcracker Sweet (sitout spinebuster) for two and they head to the floor. Balls gets a chair but Thorn kicks him into the steps, giving Dupree the pin.
Rating: D. Like I said, at the end of the day you can only get so into a match about Rene Dupree. Mahoney is one of the holdovers from the original ECW who at least looks like he belongs on a show about Extreme wrestling. This wasn’t good by almost any standard but it set up Thorn vs. Mahoney which is less dull than this was.
Matt Striker doesn’t like Sandman or the people drinking his “giggle water”. I give up.
ECW World Title: Big Show vs. Sabu
This is non-title. Ok apparently it is for the belt. Why would Heyman agree to that? He and the bodyguards are at ringside and Heyman is panicking as Sabu sets up tables before the bell. We take a break and come back with Sabu holding a chair in the ring and the bell rings. Show swats that away with ease and knocks him out to the floor. Back in and Show throws the chair to the floor and clotheslines Sabu down for two. This is going very slowly so far.
Sabu finally wakes up and takes out Show’s leg followed by a chair shot. Then Sabu shows that he’s an idiot by trying a freaking camel clutch on BIG SHOW. Show gets caught on the top rope and kicked to the floor but it doesn’t really do anything to him. The fans want tables so Show sets one up in the ring, making him a face for about 5 seconds. Sabu picks up a chair but looks scared to swing it.
The chokeslam is countered by Sabu into a DDT through the table for two. For a crowd that wanted tables, they didn’t seem to be that interested in it once Show was put through it. Sabu pelts the chair at Show and knocks him through the table on the floor. The crowd again doesn’t seem too interested. Show goes into the post and Sabu gets in a chair shot to the back. Air Sabu to the floor is caught in a chokeslam through another table and Sabu is in big trouble. The Cobra Clutch backbreaker sets up the standing legdrop (called the Showstopper here) for the pin.
Rating: D+. The crowd told the story here: no one bought Sabu as a real threat to Show at all and why should they have? Show has been completely dominant unless he’s against more than one person, and Sabu’s offense isn’t made to face someone like Show, who is way too big and strong for a small guy like Sabu. Some of the bumps were decent but there was no way they could make this be exceptionally good.
Overall Rating: D+. I know I talked about the problems they were having with the ECW guys being the focus, but now we’ve reached a new section of problems for ECW. No matter what you call it or repackage these guys as, no one was going to care about Rene Dupree, Hardcore Holly, Test and Mike Knox. Those guys aren’t people that are going to create interest at all. They’ve been jobbers for so long on Raw and Smackdown that no one was going to buy them as threats anywhere. That’s what wound up happening and it wasn’t for a good many months that the problem got solved.
Here’s Unforgiven if you’re interested:
http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/08/12/unforgiven-2006-the-year-of-cena-begins/
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews