ECW on Sci Fi
Date: March 20, 2007
Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

We are just about to Wrestlemania and even ECW is picking up a lot. This time we are going to be seeing more from ECW Champion Bobby Lashley, which means there might be some guest stars coming after him. That could help things out a lot, and the ECW Originals vs. the New Breed should be enough to keep things going. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Arnold Skaaland.

We open with a recap (as in near replay) of Bobby Lashley breaking Chris Masters’ Masterlock last night on Raw.

Masters is here and promises to break Lashley tonight.

Opening sequence.

Sabu/Rob Van Dam vs. Marcus Cor Von/Kevin Thorn

Ariel is here with Cor Von and Thorn. Van Dam kicks Thorn in the face to start as the crowd is oddly quiet. Sabu comes in for a double Arabian facebuster and a dropkick to the leg cuts Thorn down again. A missed kick ties Van Dam in the ropes though and Cor Von blasts him with a clothesline to the floor. The villains (as in the stronger guys, which does go against most old ECW stars) take turns crushing Van Dam in the corner and we hit the chinlock.

With that not working for Thorn, Cor Von comes in for a chinlock of his own. Van Dam finally fights up for a kick to the head and Sabu comes back in to pick up the pace. A springboard leg lariat sets up a springboard DDT for two on Cor Von as everything breaks down. Van Dam headscissors Thorn outside, leaving Cor Von to hit a heck of a Pounce for the pin on Sabu (he went FLYING for one of the best looking Pounces I’ve ever seen).

Rating: C-. The match was the usual stuff from this feud but that ending made my eyebrows go up. You don’t get a collision like that very often and it looked awesome. That’s how you use someone’s natural talents to their advantage, because no one else was going to be able to hit like that.

Video on Snitsky.

Snitsky vs. Mike Tolar

Big boot finishes Tolar in just over thirty seconds.

The Sheik is going into the Hall of Fame. The look at the fireball is worth it alone, though it’s weird to hear him referred to by his real name.

CM Punk vs. Hardcore Holly

They start fast with Punk getting kicked away but coming back with an armdrag into an armbar. Cue Elijah Burke to watch as Punk hammers away in the corner. A hot shot cuts Punk off though and Holly chops away against the rope. Holly hits a clothesline to set up the chinlock and the CM PUNK chants start up.

Punk fights up with the usual collection of shots to the face but a glare at Burke lets Holly break up the bulldog. It’s time to take Punk up top, where he kicks Holly away. Burke gets on the apron for a distraction so here is Kevin Thorn to snap Holly’s neck across the rope (which Punk sees). The yet to be named GTS finishes Holly.

Rating: C. This was much more about advancing the Punk/New Breed stuff and it worked fine in that regard. Other than that though, it isn’t like there is a ton of drama to Punk beating Holly outside of some interference. They still need to upgrade some of the roster around here, or at least rotate people like Holly into something other than this. We’ve kind of hit Holly’s limit on this show and someone else WWE isn’t using could be a nice change.

Post break Punk comes up to Burke and says he doesn’t want any help. Burke says imagine what they can do for him at Money in the Bank.

Extreme Expose.

Tommy Dreamer vs. Elijah Burke

Sandman and Matt Striker are the seconds. Dreamer knocks him down to start before heading to the apron, where Burke hits him into the post. The chinlock is already on with Dreamer fighting up in a hurry. A neckbreaker and fall away slam put Burke down but he counters the DDT. The Elijah Express finishes Dreamer in short order.

Same Masterlock Challenge video which opened the show. That shouldn’t be needed in an hour long show.

Celebrities pick Trump vs. McMahon.

Chris Masters vs. Bobby Lashley

Non-title. They go with the power shoves to start until a shoulder makes Masters think twice. Lashley unloads in the corner and there’s a clothesline to the floor. Masters gets in a ram into the barricade though and it’s a suplex to drop Lashley back inside. The Masterlock is countered into a full nelson slam to plant Masters and the running powerslam finishes Masters in a hurry.

Rating: D+. They didn’t waste time here as this was all about beating up Masters to show what Lashley can do in a squash. It wasn’t good and it wasn’t technical, but why would you want something like that here? Lashley looked dominant and it isn’t like Masters has anything to lose in the first place.

Overall Rating: C-. They didn’t do much here as this show was about moving the ECW Originals vs. the New Breed forward with Lashley there too. It isn’t like there is a lot of depth to the two main matches on this show, making this a little more than a skippable week. It isn’t like WWE was focusing on most of ECW at this point though, as there are more important things going on.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: March 6, 2007
Location: Tuscon Convention Center, Tuscon, Arizona
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

Now this is going to be different as we have a very special guest star in the form of Steve Austin. For once, it is someone who has an actual connection to the original ECW, which really doesn’t mean much but is kind of nice for a change. He’ll be talking about a Raw story, but that is the case with every show at the moment. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a quick recap of Vince McMahon vs. Donald Trump and Bobby Lashley drawing the boss’ ire.

Opening sequence.

Here is Vince McMahon to get things going in a surprise. Vince recaps Steve Austin being named guest referee for the Battle of the Billionaires and tells us to watch the contract signing on Raw. After getting a little rattled by the WHAT chants, Vince gets them back by saying “Tuscon sucks.” See how easy it is when the fans care about you? Vince promises a Billionaire B**** Slap to Donald Trump at Wrestlemania, but first we see a montage of Bobby Lashley receiving the same kind of slap.

Lashley tried to apologize to Vince earlier today but Vince isn’t accepting that unless it’s in public. Vince calls Lashley out for the apology so here is a rather happy looking Lashley. It’s true that Lashley wants to apologize, but to everyone here and at home as well as Vince (Vince: “Did you just call me Vince?”).

Lashley shakes, and squeezes, Vince’s hand and apologizes for not hitting him in the face for the slap last week. If Vince ever does that again, Lashley will break him in half. Vince goes down from the handshake and Lashley walks off. There wasn’t much said here, but Lashley felt intense and seemed like he belonged on this stage.

Ashley is in Playboy.

Hardcore Holly vs. Balls Mahoney

Holly wastes no time in jumping Mahoney and hammers him down in the corner. The stomping in the corner seems to wake Mahoney up though and he fires off the snap jabs. The guillotine legdrop misses though and Holly hits the Alabama Slam for the fast pin.

Post match, Snitsky comes in and kicks Holly in the face.

CM Punk talks about Money in the Bank but here is Elijah Burke to interrupt. Punk doesn’t seem happy but Burke offers him a spot in the New Breed. Rob Van Dam comes in to say Burke doesn’t know what ECW is all about (Burke probably can’t even spell ECW!) but he’ll learn tonight. Punk looks intrigued.

Rob Van Dam vs. Elijah Burke

The ECW Originals and New Breed are all here. Van Dam kicks him down to start and grabs a headscissors. Burke misses a right hand and gets armdragged down, allowing Rob to kick him in the face. A running crossbody sends Burke outside and they crash to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Rob fighting out of a chinlock but getting caught in some rolling suplexes for two. The double arm crank doesn’t last long on Rob but he misses a charge into the post. A double arm crank is broken up in a hurry so Burke takes him into the corner for some running knees to the back. They clothesline each other for a double breather until Rob makes the clothesline comeback. Some kicks to the face set up the split legged moonsault for two on Burke. The Five Star gives Rob the pin.

Rating: C. Not too bad here as Van Dam can still have a good match when he has the right opponent, which Burke can certainly be. This is the kind of match that helps the feud along too, as the New Breed can beat up the rest of the Originals but Van Dam gives them a fighting chance. Losing to Van Dam doesn’t hurt Burke and it makes the Originals look better so this was as effective as you could get.

Post match, Tommy Dreamer challenges the New Breed to an eight man tag at Wrestlemania. Answer coming later.

Nick Bockwinkel is going into the Hall of Fame. That feels wrong on ECW.

Extreme Expose.

We recap the opening segment.

Here is Steve Austin for the big close. He’s glad to be back home in Tuscon, which is home because WWE is here tonight. The dry heat bugs him though and he needs some beer. Austin recaps the Battle of the Billionaires, albeit in the to the point way that you might expect. Either way, he is calling the match right down the line.

While he has been walking through the airport, people have been asking him who he thinks is winning at Wrestlemania. Austin doesn’t know, so he goes outside and polls some fans, who want McMahon to get his head shaved. He’ll be at Raw for the contract signing because things could get interesting. You’ll see a bald headed billionaire at Wrestlemania….and that’s it. Beer is consumed to end the show, following this rather inconsequential cameo.

Overall Rating: C-. Austin being there felt big just because of who he is, but it wasn’t like he did anything important. This show was more or less an excuse for an Austin cameo to go along with setting up the eight man tag at Wrestlemania. In other words, it was basically a supplement to Raw’s main story with little in the way of importance on its own. The whole thing felt more like a bunch of commercials than a show, which meant it flew by without being all that interesting. Totally skippable show this week.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: February 27, 2007
Location: HP Pavilion, San Jose, California
Attendance: 13,511
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

The big stories continue to be Bobby Lashley and the ECW Title, plus the New Breed vs. the ECW Originals. Both stories are likely to get a lot of time this week, though Vince McMahon showing up to deal with Lashley should tell you what the focus of this show should be. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Donald Trump picking Bobby Lashley as his representative in the Battle of the Billionaires. This set up a pretty awesome Lashley vs. Umaga brawl on Raw.

Tonight: Lashley has to defend the ECW World Title inside a cage against Hardcore Holly.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Sabu vs. Mr. Kennedy

Extreme Rules. They actually go to the mat to start until Kennedy hits a slam. The running elbow misses but Kennedy is fine enough to whip him into the corner. Sabu knocks him outside and hits the baseball slide, followed by the dive. A chair is thrown in and a table is set up, with Kennedy being knocked into place. Kennedy gets out of the way, so Sabu just dives onto him anyway.

Back in and the Triple Jump Moonsault is countered with a drop toehold into the open chair, allowing Kennedy to kick him in the face. Kennedy awkwardly puts the table inside but the delay lets Sabu hit a legdrop to the back of the head. Sabu goes up but dives through the table by mistake, allowing Kennedy to hit a DDT onto the table for the pin.

Rating: D+. What were you expecting from this kind of a clash of styles? There was no drama on the winner as Sabu isn’t getting anywhere near a match that big. Sabu needed all of his weapons though and that isn’t Kennedy’s thing, making this quite the mess and not very good in any sense.

Vince McMahon arrives and isn’t happy about being late.

Balls Mahoney vs. Matt Striker

Striker actually hits him in the face to start but hurts his hand. Mahoney shows him some better technique and goes up top for the legdrop. Cue Snitsky to jump Mahoney for the DQ in less than a minute.

Snitsky lays both of them out.

Vince McMahon welcomes us to the show and talks about tonight’s cage match for Bobby Lashley’s ECW World Title. Vince doesn’t like Lashley, so we’re changing things up a bit: if Lashley doesn’t win in five minutes, he loses the title. SURPRISE SURPRISE!

Marcus Cor Von/Kevin Thorn vs. Rob Van Dam/Tommy Dreamer

Ariel and Elijah Burke are with the villains while Sandman is with the ECWites. Van Dam drop toeholds Thorn down to start so Dreamer can drop an elbow for two. A hiptoss sends Thorn down as well and Dreamer hammers away in the corner. He even gets in a right hand to cut off Cor Von in a nice save. The distraction lets Cor Von come in and hammer away though, setting up the chinlock.

That’s broken up in a hurry and it’s off to Van Dam for the assortment of kicks. The split legged moonsault gets two and Rolling Thunder gets the same. Everything breaks down and Dreamer dives off the apron onto Cor Von. Ariel tries to throw in the walking stick but Sandman spanks her with the cane. The distraction lets Thorn crotch Van Dam on top and the Dark Kiss is enough for the pin.

Rating: C-. This needed more Cor Von as it wasn’t the most energized match. What mattered here was continuing the New Breed’s advantage over the Originals, which should be the case. The Originals aren’t exactly interesting and other than nostalgia, why should I cheer for any of them other than maybe Van Dam? The New Breed might not be great, but what they’re saying makes sense.

Hardcore Holly knows he’s winning tonight because no one can beat him in five minutes.

CM Punk vs. Stevie Richards

Richards shoves him out to the floor to start (that might not have been the plan) but Punk is right back in for an exchange of kicks to the legs. More kicks have Punk down and we hit the neck crank. Punk kicks his way out and gets two off a rollup but Richards kicks him right back into the chinlock. With that broken up, Richards takes him up top for the superplex but gets shoved down in a crash. A top rope clothesline sets up the running knee in the corner and the yet to be named GTS finishes Richards off.

Rating: D. This was really weird as Richards started off in control, put on a bunch of chinlocks and then waited for Punk to beat him. It felt more like a Richards match with Punk winning in the end, which isn’t likely what they were going for here. Punk should have come off looking more dominant here, as it’s just Stevie Richards.

We look at Donald Trump picking Bobby Lashley last night, setting up the brawl, again.

Extreme Expose.

Jerry Lawler is going into the Hall of Fame. This isn’t on Peacock for some reason.

ECW World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Hardcore Holly

Lashley is defending inside a cage and we have a five minute time limit. As you might expect, Lashley starts fast and hammers away with right hands on the mat. Holly is busted open but avoids a charge so Holly can go up. Lashley goes up too but here are Vince McMahon and Umaga. They fall off the top and Umaga throws in some chairs. Holly clocks Lashley in the head for two with two minutes left. Lashley fights up with a belly to belly suplex and a bunch of chair shots of his own. Another chair to the head drops Holly with a minute left and the running powerslam retains the title in time.

Rating: C. This was angle advancement rather than a regular match and given who was involved, that’s all you could ask for. Holly isn’t a serious threat to win the title and Lashley is on to far bigger and more important things. They got in and out here while doing their thing and that’s the right move for a match like this.

Post match Umaga and Lashley stare each other down. Lashley gets a running start and launches himself into the cage wall, knocking it over and crushing Umaga in the process. Both guys are down to end the show as Armando Alejandro Estrada panics. I’ve always loved this ending as not only is it different, but it makes Lashley look like the kind of monster who can go toe to toe with Umaga.

It’s different from the John Cena feud, as Cena was able to fight enough until he could find a way around Umaga. Lashley is someone who might be able to just beat him one on one through straight power. Awesome ending, if nothing else due to the cage wall knocking Umaga down so fast.

Overall Rating: C-. The ending helped a lot but this was one of their weaker shows so far. The matches weren’t working for the most part and it just kind of kept going. What helps here is that the Originals vs. New Breed and McMahon involvement makes the show feel important. That has been lacking since ECW debuted and while it isn’t going to last forever, it is nice to see for the moment.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: February 20, 2007
Location: ipayOne Center, San Diego, California
Attendance: 7,50
Commentators: Joey Styles, John Bradshaw Layfield

We’re done with No Way Out and ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley is still ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley despite getting disqualified against Mr. Kennedy. That means we are likely in for a rematch and that could be enough to keep Lashley busy until we get close to Wrestlemania. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.In Memory of Mike Awesome.

Mr. Kennedy is getting a rematch with Bobby Lashley tonight, with Hardcore Holly thrown in.

Opening sequence.

Here is the New Breed for a chat. They brag about their success last week, which is proof that any one of them can beat any one of the ECW Originals. Matt Striker picks Kevin Thorn for the team so here are the Originals with their pick.

Rob Van Dam vs. Kevin Thorn

Everyone else is at ringside. Thorn kicks him in the ribs to break up the early thumb pointing but gets kicked outside for his efforts. The thumb pointing is broken up again and Thorn pounds away in the corner until Rob knocks him outside. That means a big dive over the top, meaning the big brawl on the floor is on.

Everything is finally broken up and we take a fast break. Back with everyone else gone and Rob hitting a spinwheel kick for a breather. Rob kicks him down again and Rolling Thunder is good for a delayed two. There’s the top rope kick to the face for two and a low high crossbody gets two more. The stepover kick to the face into the Five Star finishes Thorn.

Rating: C-. This felt like little more than a way to get the Originals a win and it isn’t like Van Dam beating Thorn is some big upset. The big brawl at ringside is what mattered here and you know that things are going to keep going for a long time to come. What matters here though is making things feel more even and Van Dam winning clean does that well. Not a particularly good match, but it did what needed to be done.

Video on Snitsky.

Money In The Bank Qualifying Match: CM Punk vs. Johnny Nitro

Melina is here with Nitro. Punk headlock takeovers him to start and grabs a hammerlock. That doesn’t last long as Nitro is back up with a headlock of his own. That earns him a leg lariat but Nitro knocks him down again and hammers at Punk’s face. The breakdancing legdrop gets two and Nitro grabs the cravate. Punk fights up again and hits a kick to the head, setting up some knees to the face. Melina breaks up the springboard clothesline though, allowing Nitro to hit a spinning kick to the chest for two of his own. The corkscrew moonsault misses Punk though and the GTS sends Punk to Wrestlemania.

Rating: C. Simple but efficient match here with a bit of a surprise winner. Punk is a big deal in ECW but Nitro has been a pretty established name on both Raw and Smackdown. This was a good win for Punk and while he isn’t going to win Money in the Bank, it means something for him just to be put in the spot in the first place.

Mr. Kennedy doesn’t know why tonight’s title match is a triple threat. Hardcore Holly comes in to say life isn’t fair. ECW is Holly’s world and Kennedy isn’t winning the title.

La Resistance vs. Los Luchas

A spinebuster into Au Revoir gives La Resistance the win in about thirty seconds.

Post match here is Snitsky to lay out La Resistance to give this a point.

We get another video on Bobby Lashley, this time talking about growing up in a military family. Then his parents got divorced and it was time to move into sports to give him a focus. He won a National Championship but there was no one there to celebrate with him. That’s pretty rough.

Extreme Expose.

Mr. Perfect Hall of Fame video.

ECW World Title: Hardcore Holly vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Bobby Lashley

Lashley is defending. Holly gets knocked down to start so Kennedy takes Lashley into the corner. Lashley fights back on both of them without much trouble, including some shoulders to Kennedy in the corner. Kennedy sends Lashley into the corner and suplexes Holly for two. We settle down a bit and it’s Kennedy hitting a running knee to Lashley in the corner, only to get full nelson slammed by Holly. Lashley is back up to send Kennedy to the floor and backdrop Holly down again.

That earns Kennedy a hard whip into the steps but Holly is back up with a baseball slide to Lashley. Back in and Holly grabs a chinlock on Lashley, who powers up to get Holly on his back without much trouble. With Holly still holding on, Lashley punches Kennedy in the face a few times. Holly jumps Lashley again and grabs a chair, setting up the Alabama Slam… not onto the chair for some reason. Kennedy breaks up the cover and chairs Holly by mistake, allowing Lashley to hit the running powerslam to retain.

Rating: C. This was a good illustration of how Lashley needs new opponents. He was in a glorified handicap match here and still ran through both guys in less than seven minutes. There is no one on ECW to challenge Lashley at the moment and that means he is going to need someone big to come in sooner rather than later. For now though, this worked as another fine demonstration of the dominance.

Overall Rating: C-. It wasn’t a great show, but it was a show that felt a lot more structured. It felt like ECW is finally starting to get things going and find their way, which is long overdue. Now they need some fresh talent to go with that structure, though I’m not sure how much of a priority the show is going to be until a good while after ECW.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: February 6, 2007
Location: Qwest Center, Omaha, Nebraska
Attendance: 7,000
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

There is a new big bad around here and it happens to be Vince McMahon himself. That could be a rather scary proposition for ECW, which seems ready for a battle between the old and new. It is hardly a brand new idea in wrestling but at least it has some natural legs around here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Vince McMahon arriving next week and not liking anything around here, save for Elijah Burke. That resulted in Burke getting beaten down by the ECW Originals, which you had to know was coming.

The ECW Originals (Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Balls Mahoney, Sabu and Rob Van Dam) are in the ring and here is Vince McMahon to join them. Vince asks what a cornhusker is, thinking it sounds like something that belongs in adult films. As he looks around the ring, he sees a bunch of has beens. Actually make that a bunch of NEVER HAS beens, as most of these people have criminal records so they had to go to ECW.

As Vince said last week, anything bout the original ECW sucks so these men suck too. He’s standing in the middle of Jurassic Park with these dinosaurs, but worry not because tonight, they are going extinct. Sandman loads up the Singapore cane but Vince reminds him who signs their checks. These guys are going to be in action tonight….or at least most of them as Vince can’t stomach all of them in one show. They better not break any rules or touch any officials though, or they’re fired.

Snitsky is coming.

Kevin Thorn vs. Tommy Dreamer

Hold on a second though as we need Matt Striker as guest referee. Thorn has Ariel in his corner and jumps Dreamer to start. Dreamer gets sent into the buckle and choked on the ropes, followed by an elbow to the face. The chinlock goes on until Dreamer hits a Stunner for the escape. A Sky High plants Thorn but Striker claims a knee injury to prevent a count. Thorn is back up with a clothesline to knock Dreamer over Striker, who can count the pin.

Hardcore Holly is ready to prove himself to Bobby Lashley.

Video on Bobby Lashley growing up and succeeding in amateur wrestling. Now he goes to schools where kids hold his title, including one who seems a bit too comfortable with it.

Bobby Lashley vs. Hardcore Holly

Non-title. Lashley powers him into the corner to start and the delayed vertical suplex connects early. A quick hot shot gets Holly out of trouble though and the shoulder gets posted. Said shoulder is sent into the steps and it’s time to head back inside for the reverse chinlock. Make that a waistlock as the memories of hurting Lashley’s shoulder are already fading away.

Holly ties up the legs for I guess you would say the Sharpshooter’s fourth half cousin twice removed by marriage. That is switched into an STF and then back to the waistlock as Holly shows his versatility. Lashley powers up with an overhead belly to belly, followed by a backdrop. The gorilla press powerslam finishes Holly out of nowhere.

Rating: D+. Lashley’s matches continue to not go so well and this time a lot of that was due to Holly. Why would you do two big moves to the arm and then ignore it for a bunch of ribs stuff? That was the majority of the match and that is hardly a way to keep the attention going. Another Lashley match that leaves you shaking your head, which is getting tiresome.

Post match here is Snitsky to jump Lashley with a big boot, setting up Holly’s Alabama Slam to leave Lashley laying.

Balls Mahoney vs. Marquis Cor Von

Mahoney has a neck brace thanks to Umaga on Raw and Matt Striker is timekeeper. Cor Von is smart enough to go straight to the neck, including forearms and a clothesline. There goes the neck brace but Mahoney avoids a charge in the corner and jabs away. That just earns him the Pounce into a cobra clutch and Mahoney is out in a hurry.

Extreme Expose, this time with a schoolgirl theme. Matt Striker interrupts though because he is guest ring announcer for the main event.

Elijah Burke vs. Rob Van Dam

Marquis Cor Von is guest commentator (Tazz and Styles didn’t notice) and Kevin Thorn is guest ring announcer. Also, anyone who interferes in any way is fired. Joined in progress with Van Dam hitting a suplex for two but Burke sends him out to the apron. A jawbreaker sends Van Dam into the barricade and Vince McMahon is very pleased in the back.

Burke grabs a double arm crank back inside, setting up the double knees to the chest. Van Dam kicks him in the head and grabs the monkey flip out of the corner. There’s the Five Star…but the bell rings while Van Dam is still in the air. It turns out to be a mistake (made by Thorn) and Burke is right there with a low blow to pin Van Dam.

Rating: C-. This didn’t have much time to do anything and it was much more about the angle than anything else. There is nothing wrong with that on an angle heavy show like this one and thankfully they kept it short. Burke seems to be getting a push and that is not a bad thing, as the lack of Sylvester Terkay may have been the trick for him.

Post match the beatdown is loaded up but the Originals run in for the save to clear the ring.

Overall Rating: C-. The wrestling was not the point here, as we now have a major story going on throughout the show. That is what ECW has been needing, as too much of the show’s history has been a bunch of short term stuff. Paul Heyman leaving was a big hit to where things are going, but now they seem to have found a new direction. Make things better from the ground up and we could be on to something around here. This wasn’t a great show, but it was an important step.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: January 30, 2007
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 15,156
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

We’re done with the Royal Rumble and the big story around here is Bobby Lashley beating Test (again), this time via countout. That isn’t much to go on, but there is something more important around here as Vince McMahon is bringing his Fan Appreciation Night here as well. Let’s get to it.

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

Vince McMahon arrives and runs into Marquis Cor Von. McMahon seems to be a fan, calling him a breath of fresh air. Cor Von approves and McMahon goes on to find Sandman, who is reading the paper (no). That’s ok, but DRINKING ON THE JOB isn’t. McMahon remembers that he’s the Sandman and asks asks how he got that name. This sends McMahon into a chorus of Mr. Sandman as we flash back to Back To The Future.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Matt Striker

Striker forearms away to start but gets leg lariated in the face. There’s a clothesline to the floor and Punk follows him outside for the kicks to the chest. Back in and Striker kicks the rope into Punk’s chest, setting up a hanging swinging neckbreaker for two. The chinlock goes on (with Punk looking like he’s tapping) until Punk makes the comeback you are probably picturing. The powerslam into the running knee in the corner into the bulldog has Striker in more trouble. A backbreaker gives Punk two and he tries a sunset flip, only to have Striker drop down and grab the rope for the pin.

Rating: C-. Punk taking pins, even via cheating, still doesn’t feel right and hopefully it isn’t something that happens very often. He is one of the biggest hopes for the future and while this is far from some career killer, it wasn’t exactly something that seems to be the best idea, especially for Striker of all people.

We look at Undertaker winning the Royal Rumble and showing up on Raw to tease challenging John Cena at Wrestlemania.

Vince McMahon runs into Tommy Dreamer and asks what kind of a name is Dreamer. What could anyone be dreaming about? Dreamer: “Are you serious?” McMahon: “No, I’m Vince.”

Rob Van Dam vs. Hardcore Holly

They trade hammerlocks to start until Rob kicks him down. A hurricanrana drops Holly again and there’s a kick to the face for two more. The Alabama Slam is broken up and Van Dam hits a superkick, only to get caught with a running clothesline. A backdrop puts Holly on the floor and the big running dive takes him down again.

We take a break and come back with Van Dam kicking him down and dropping the spinning leg for two. It’s time to go up, meaning Holly can shove him down onto the barricade for a big crash. Back in and the reverse chinlock goes on but Van Dam jawbreaks his way to freedom. Holly kicks him down again and chokes on the rope, setting up the kick to the very lower abdomen for two. The chinlock goes on but this time Van Dam breaks away to hit the running spinwheel kick.

There’s the monkey flip out of the corner into the running kick to the face in the corner. The top rope kick to the head sets up Rolling Thunder but Holly powerbombs him out of the corner for two. Holly goes up top for a change and gets crotched down, only to shove Van Dam down. Van Dam hits a spinning kick to the face but misses the Five Star. Holly’s back gives out on the Alabama Slam attempt but he sends Van Dam into the corner, setting up the Alabama Slam for the pin.

Rating: C. There is something strange about seeing Holly winning a match over Van Dam, as it isn’t like this show has the strongest top of the card in WWE. Hopefully they come up with someone else soon, because I don’t think Holly is the right choice. The match got some time and was good enough, but Van Dam losing to Holly is weird.

Vince McMahon runs into Sabu, making him think he’s in Afghanistan. Vince: “It’s a member of the Taliban!” Sabu needs to stay away from him.

Post break, Vince McMahon runs into Balls Mahoney. He likes the last name, but not so much the first name.

Extreme Expose. This goes on for a bit until Vince McMahon, with security, breaks it up. The women are happy to see him but Vince throws them out of his ring. Security is tossed as well and Vince promises to not be embarrassed like he was last night. This is his first time in an ECW ring and he thinks all of the ECW originals suck. Actually anything about the original ECW sucks, including the people who liked it.

What we need around here are athletes with charisma rather than a bunch of drunken suicidal misfits. We need someone like this man, so here is Elijah Burke, who is rather pleased to be here. After a photo opportunity, Burke talks about how all of his fans are saying amen. The fans call this boring but Burke promises that everyone is going to feel his wrath. Cue the ECW Originals to beat Burke down as Vince is annoyed. The beatdown takes a good while, including Sabu putting Burke through a table.

ECW World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Test

Lashley is defending and this is their third match in eight days. Test gets kicked out to the floor to start but manages to post Lashley. More posting ensues and we take an early break. Back with Test working on the arm he injured during the commercial, including a flying armbar. Lashley manages to post him before the arm can be sent into the post again to get an opening. Some running clotheslines and a running shoulder in the corner set up the delayed vertical suplex. Test misses the big boot and gets caught with an exploder suplex. The running powerslam retains the title.

Rating: D+. Somehow that might be the most competitive of their matches. I know Test was on his way out, but I didn’t need to see this match happen three times in eight days. Lashley dominated him throughout the series and that doesn’t make for the most interesting string of matches. At least they kept it short.

Post match Lashley celebrates but the gong sounds. Cue the Undertaker to stare Lashley down, take out Test for daring to try to interfere, and then look at the ECW Title. Joey is SURE this means Undertaker vs. Lashley at Wrestlemania.

Overall Rating: C-. You can tell that it’s Wrestlemania season as WWE is actually trying to do something for a change. Having Vince around to set up something big with the Originals vs. the new ECW is the kind of thing that could go on for a long way around here. Undertaker isn’t likely to be back around here, but at least they gave us a little tease.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: January 23, 2007
Location: Mobile Civic Center, Mobile, Alabama
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

It’s the go home show for the Royal Rumble and Bobby Lashley still needs a challenger for his ECW World Title. That would seem to be Test, but the match needs to be set already. Other than that, I’m not sure how much almost anything else matters around here, and ECW has not done much to fix that situation. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Battle Royal

Sandman, Kevin Thorn, Rob Van Dam, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer

This is an Over The Top Rope Challenge, because Battle Royals aren’t a thing around here. It’s a brawl to start as you would expect, with Van Dam being knocked down into the corner. Dreamer sends Sabu into the corner so Sabu tries a hurricanrana over the top, taking both of them out in the process. That’s rather Sabu of him. Thorn gets rid of Sandman and we’re down to two in a hurry.

Van Dam’s monkey flip is blocked and he is sat on top, where his tornado DDT is broken up. Instead it’s a big spinwheel kick to the face to drop Thorn, setting up Rolling Thunder. Thorn backdrops him to the apron but the forearms aren’t enough for an elimination. Rob gets to the top instead and manages a spinning kick in the corner, leaving Thorn to rather loudly call a spot. That spot seems to be awkwardly kick Van Dam in the face but not be able to toss him out. A superkick sends Thorn to the apron and Van Dam hits his top rope kick to the face for the win.

Rating: D+. I like the idea of Van Dam getting a bit of momentum going into the Royal Rumble, even if he has no change of winning. They didn’t bother with any drama with the other ECW originals and got to the point here, which was a good idea. The quality wasn’t the point here, and while it was weird to see a battle royal in ECW, it did make sense.

For unclear reasons, Hardcore Holly is out of the main event and Test will be replacing him.

Marquis Cor Von vs. Wes Adams

Before the match, Cor Von tells Adams to get out of the way or get run over. The beating is on in a hurry and a big boot cuts Adams down in a hurry. The release butterfly suplex sends Adams flying and it’s the Pounce into the Fujiwara armbar to end Adams in a hurry.

Cor Von gets in a few more shots after the match but makes sure to get his hand raised.

Hardcore Holly storms into Test’s locker room and wants to know how Test got the match changed. Test doesn’t know, but Holly says he’s coming for the ECW World Title no matter what.

Here are Kelly Kelly, Brooke Adams and Layla El for the return of Kelly’s Expose/debut of Extreme Expose, meaning three women dancing in rather limited clothing. This goes on for a good while and they don’t quite have it down to a science yet. Then the music stops and they all look confused.

Video on Test.

Matt Striker comes out for commentary, meaning we look at Kelly Kelly flashing him last week.

CM Punk vs. Elijah Burke

Punk strikes away in the corner and you can hear the beads in Burke’s hair rattling against each other. Burke gets in a shot of his own but Punk cuts him off with a spinwheel kick. The armbar goes on to keep Burke in trouble as the fans are not incredibly interested. Striker talks about being conservative and being scared about the idea of Punk winning the Royal Rumble.

Punk fires off the knees to the chest as Striker tries to figure out why the fans like Punk more than him. Styles: “It’s only an hour show.” Burke comes back with a shot to the back of the neck and the chinlock goes on. There’s a swinging neckbreaker (with Punk falling a bit early) and we’re off to another chinlock. Punk fights up again and gets pulled down into yet another chinlock as this is dying hard.

Back up and Burke misses a charge in the corner but holds the ropes to avoid a Russian legsweep. Now it’s a reverse chinlock as the fans are trying to get behind Punk. A knee drop gives Burke two and THE CHINLOCK GOES ON AGAIN. Punk finally fights up and hits a neckbreaker to start the comeback but the fans are way gone. The running knee in the corner sets up the bulldog for two so Burke grabs a rollup with trunks for two. That’s reversed into a cradle to give Punk the pin, much to Striker’s annoyance.

Rating: D-. The fans were dead, Striker was his usual buzzkill self on commentary (as he was supposed to be) and the match was just bad. It wasn’t interesting and you had a completely unacceptable five chinlocks in an eight minute match. Grab an armbar or something man, as it stopped working after the second attempt. This was one of the weakest and most boring matches I can remember in a very long time.

Royal Rumble rundown.

Test vs. Bobby Lashley

Non-title. Test bails to the floor to start so Lashley is right on him to start up the beating. Back in and Test gets in a quick stomp, only to be knocked outside again. Back in again and Test bails a second time as we take a break. We come back again with Test grabbing a chinlock (that last match must have been quite the influence) but Lashley is up in a hurry. A hard whip into the corner looks to set up the top rope elbow but Lashley gets the boot up.

Lashley misses an elbow so Test hammers away and unhooks a turnbuckle pad. The referee checks on that so Test unhooks another buckle (what a crafty villain), setting up the chest first whip. The pumphandle slam gets two on Lashley so it’s time to grab a chair. Lashley spears him down and hammers away, including a running shoulder to the ribs in the corner. A suplex sends Test outside and Lashley tosses him into the barricade. Back in and Lashley hits the running powerslam for the clean pin.

Rating: C-. The match itself was a watchable power match, but Test was already announced as the #1 contender for the Royal Rumble. Not only does it not make sense for him to wrestle here at all, but it really doesn’t make sense to have that ending. It’s quite the bizarre choice, though I would be scared to know how much thought was actually put into anything ECW did at the moment.

Overall Rating: D-. Total and complete misfire here as this show was awful. It took a good while to get through the thing because it wasn’t interesting at all and pretty much nothing worked. ECW isn’t a good show most of the time but this was one of the worst shows I’ve seen from WWE in a very long time. I would hope that things get better, because this show was horrible.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: January 9, 2007
Location: Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois
Attendance: 2,600
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz, Brad Armstrong

The road to the Royal Rumble continues but Test has thrown a bit of a monkey wrench into the ECW World Title plans. Last week saw Bobby Lashley defending his title against Rob Van Dam until Test interfered. Odds are that sets up a rematch here and then Test’s title shot at the Rumble, which is not the worst schedule. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Test interfering in last week’s title match. The rematch is on for tonight.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Hardcore Holly

Punk starts fast with an armdrag but it’s too early for the Anaconda Vice. A powerslam can’t get the hold on either so Punk kicks him in the back. There’s a running clothesline to put Holly on the floor but Holly steps aside from the big dive. Back in and Holly bends him around the ropes, setting up the middle rope legdrop for two. Punk fights up with a dropkick and some running clotheslines but Holly shows him how a dropkick works. Holly sends him into the corner and the Alabama Slam puts Punk away.

Rating: C. As jarring as it is to see Punk take a loss in a singles match to Hardcore Holly of all people, the match itself worked out well enough. Holly did cheat a bit by sending him into the post, though it wasn’t like Punk was in control after the first thirty seconds or so. Not a bad match, but I’m a bit puzzled as to why Punk needed to take a loss. He’s pretty clearly a big part of the future around here, and he loses to Holly?

Test is told his match is next, but he just isn’t feeling it tonight because he should be getting the title shot against Bobby Lashley. Seems a little testy tonight.

Here’s Elijah Burke to say he is here alone because it is time to knock someone out on his own. Cue Sandman, who spends a pretty long time drinking on the way to the ring. With his head already busted open, Sandman gets in and blocks the first punch with the stick. Burke hits a few shots but Sandman canes him out to the floor in a segment that was slightly more interesting than I expected.

Video on Great Khali, who is now on Raw. ECW did not need to lose him so quickly, as they do not have any roster depth at the moment.

Great Khali vs. Tommy Dreamer

Extreme Rules and Daivari is here with Khali. Dreamer tries to bring in the metal sign but gets stomped down in a hurry. A clothesline drops Dreamer and Khali pounds away in the corner. Dreamer goes to the eyes and hammers away with the sign, which Khali punches away. The double chokeslam gives Khali the fast pin.

Rob Van Dam has been accused of not caring about anything but he cares about the ECW World Title. Now he wants his title back and if he has to go through a great champion like Lashley to get it, that’s cool.

During the break, Tommy Dreamer pulled himself up to his feet. The guy never has been that bright.

Kevin Thorn vs. Shannon Moore

Ariel is here with Thorn. Moore charges at him to start and gets hammered down in a hurry. A big toss pulls Moore out of the corner and the Dark Kiss finishes for Thorn.

Kelly Kelly is back next week. She was gone long enough to warrant a return?

ECW World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Rob Van Dam

Lashley is defending. Feeling out process to start, with Rob firing off the strikes and Lashley throwing him around. We take an early break and come back with Lashley’s spear hitting the corner, allowing Van Dam to hit a slingshot legdrop to the apron. The split legged moonsault gets two on Lashley and there’s the top rope kick to the face. A Figure Four headscissors keeps Lashley in trouble and his comeback is cut off with a kick to the head. Lashley hits a running clothesline in the corner though and we hit the torture rack.

Van Dam is right back up with a spinwheel kick so Lashley sends him flying with a belly to belly. Lashley’s spear misses though and he goes flying to the floor but he’s fine enough to send Van Dam into the barricade. Back in and Lashley hits another running corner clothesline and some rolling suplexes put Van Dam down for two. Now the spear can connect but here’s Test to chair Lashley down.

Rating: C+. They were having a good match here and the ending was the right call. That’s the only way this match could have gone as Test is ready for the next title shot. I’m not sure what is next for Van Dam though, as there isn’t exactly anyone else for him to face around here at the moment.

Test chairs Van Dam as well and leaves for some sneering to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The huge gap between the talent levels around here is astounding and there is only so much that you can do with this roster. The main event stuff is working for now, but I have no idea how much of a shelf life they have. Other than that, this show is kind of a wreck with almost nothing interesting going on. Some of the stars they have could become something later, but right now, it isn’t much to see.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: January 2, 2007
Location: Lakeland Center, Lakeland, Florida
Attendance: 4,800
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

It’s time for the new year and I’m curious to see how this one goes compared to the first. To say that ECW is in a weird place at the moment is an understatement, as the only people who really matter are facing each other tonight, as Rob Van Dam challenges Bobby Lashley for the ECW Title. Let’s get to it.

Here is two weeks ago if you need a recap.

The opening video sets up the title match by talking about how Van Dam wants the title back but has to go through the dominant force. Works well enough.

Opening sequence.

Test is in the ring to open things up and wastes no time in complaining about how he won the main event two weeks ago (which we see) but still didn’t win the vote for the title match. That doesn’t surprise him but he wants to know where the logic is in voting for a man who can’t even win a match. Title matches are made by winners and he wins a lot, like he is going to do right now.

Test vs. Sabu

Sabu hammers away to start and takes Test down for a running dropkick to the side of the head. That earns him a trio of backbreakers for two and the bearhug goes on. Sabu gets out and hits the springboard elbow to the face but Test slams him down again. The top rope jump of uncertain purpose hits raised boots and Sabu hits a springboard tornado DDT for two. Test has finally had it and kicks Sabu in the face, setting up the TKO for the pin.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t a squash but it did its job well enough. They aren’t really hiding the fact that Test is going to be the next challenger for whoever comes out of tonight’s title match, likely at the Royal Rumble. Test is going to be fine for a quick challenger and building him up by mostly mowing down Sabu is a good way to start.

Video on the Sandman.

Here are Elijah Burke and Sylvester Terkay for a chat. It isn’t about if they will win but rather if it is by knockout or tap out.

Full Blooded Italians vs. Sylvester Terkay/Elijah Burke

Burke hammers Guido down to start but he comes back up with some right hands. A crucifix gives Guido two so Burke punches him down again and hands it off to Terkay so the real destruction can begin. Burke comes back in for a running knee in the corner but misses an elbow. It’s off to Mamaluke for the first time so Burke clotheslines him down. Terkay adds an armbar for the easy win.

Rating: D+. Total squash here and that worked out well enough, though Burke and Terkay are not exactly the most thrilling guys to watch. Burke has the charisma but Terkay is someone who feels like a pretty standard monster. That might be part of why this was his last televised match with the company before being released later in the month.

Matt Striker gives us a math lesson to show why CM Punk can’t beat Hardcore Holly next week. Holly comes in to say Punk won’t beat him next week.

Tommy Dreamer joins us for an interview via satellite, but first we see his various destructions at the hands of Great Khali. Dreamer says he is going to keep going after Khali because that is the kind of man that he is.

Rob Van Dam thanks the fans for the title shot and is ready to get the title back.

Kevin Thorn vs. Balls Mahoney

Ariel is here with Thorn and Brad Armstrong is on commentary again. Thorn hammers Mahoney down as Armstrong talks about how many titles he was winning when these two were kids. Mahoney gets hit in the face in the middle of the ring and in the ropes as Armstrong mentions that the referee is his brother. Some shots to the face get Mahoney out of trouble for a good two seconds, but Thorn elbows him in the face for the pin. Ariel is VERY pleased by the blood that the elbow drew.

Bobby Lashley is ready for anything Rob Van Dam throws at him and promises to retain the title.

Video on Tribute to the Troops.

Vladimir Kozlov is here and says he loves ECW. He could beat both Rob Van Dam and Bobby Lashley too. Koslov: “I love Double Double E!”

ECW World Title: Rob Van Dam vs. Bobby Lashley

Van Dam is challenging and his headlock is tossed off with something like a powerbomb without much effort. Lashley wins a slugout out of the corner and tosses Van Dam around again. The bearhug keeps Van Dam in trouble and a spinebuster makes it even worse. Van Dam gets tossed hard to the floor but comes back in with some kicks to the face. The springboard kick to the face gets two on Lashley and the split legged moonsault is good for the same.

Lashley is right back with an overhead belly to belly suplex for two of his own, followed by a torture rack dropped into a backbreaker for the same. The one armed delayed vertical suplex (because of course) connects but Van Dam kicks a spear away. A top rope kick to the face puts Lashley down but Rolling Thunder misses. They head outside with Lashley being dropped onto the announcers’ table but he stands up. Van Dam dives off the middle rope with a clothesline….and that’s enough to throw up the X as Van Dam seems to have injured his leg.

Rating: C. This was enough of a back and forth match with Lashley dominating but Rob getting in enough to keep things interesting. The ending felt storylineish enough to set up a rematch but what matters here is they have something for Lashley to do. Van Dam is pretty much the only real challenger that he has so putting them together right out of the blocks makes a bit of sense. You don’t want Lashley feeling flat, so go with the one thing you have and try to set something else up later.

Both guys get checked on with no one talking to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Not much of a show here, but you can see where they are going with the title picture for the next few weeks. The rest of the show was designed to showcase some more people on the roster, but they aren’t exactly interesting in the first place. ECW is definitely in a state of flux at the moment, and that could make for some very weak times in the coming weeks.

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ECW on Sci Fi
Date: December 26, 2006
Hosts: Joey Styles, Tazz

It’s time to wrap up the year and since this is the day after Christmas, that means a Best Of show, which is about all you could do in this situation. ECW came back in June and things have been hit or miss since then, but there have been enough positives to make for a nice hour of stuff. Let’s get to it.

Note that I’ll be posting the full versions of matches instead of clips for the sake of sanity.

Joey and Tazz welcome us to the show and we see Tazz beating Jerry Lawler in short order at One Night Stand, thanks to Joey’s help.

From One Night Stand.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam

Cena is defending under Extreme Rules and OH MY GOODNESS THE HATRED IS STRONG. The fans boo Cena so far out of the building, with the famous IF CENA WINS WE RIOT banner making it all the more perfect (mainly because these people would in fact riot). Cena tries to throw the shirt to the crowd but they throw it back four times, making him seem a little shaken, which you don’t see too often (then again, you don’t see a crowd like this very often either).

This is a level of hatred you don’t see very often but thankfully Van Dam does the finger pointing to get the focus off of Cena a bit. The fans throw toilet paper at Cena as the bell rings and there’s the YOU CAN’T WRESTLE chant. Cena gets a quick two off a fisherman’s suplex but the chants continue. Van Dam is back with a spinning kick to the face and the fans give him a WHOLE F***ING SHOW chant.

Back in the BOO/YAY punches are on with Cena knocking Van Dam outside. Fans: “SAME OLD S***!” Cena follows with a top rope ax handle to the floor and the fans still aren’t impressed. Since he knows how to be a bit of a heel when he wants to be, Cena holds up the title but Van Dam kicks him away. A moonsault off the apron brings up the RVD chants again but another one off the barricade is shoved into the crowd.

Cena does the bravest thing in his career by following him out but Van Dam is right back with the spinning kick to the back over the barricade. Van Dam hits the slingshot legdrop on the apron and there’s the skateboard dropkick to drive a chair into Cena’s face. Rolling Thunder onto a chair onto Cena gets two but Cena gets the chair up to block the split legged moonsault. The YOU CAN’T WRESTLE chants start up again as Cena wedges a chair in the corner.

Van Dam goes head first into said chair for two and Cena rubs the salt in with the Shuffle. The FU takes too long though and Rob scores with a spinwheel kick. Rob drops him onto the apron and hits a dropkick to the floor for another knockdown. It’s table time but Cena pulls him down into the STFU. The rope is grabbed, sending Cena into a shoving match because rope breaks shouldn’t matter here.

Cena decks the referee and throws in some steps to get more violent. A shot to the head gets two from a Smackdown referee but here’s a guy in a motorcycle helmet to spear Cena through a table in the corner. Of course it’s Edge and Rob is back up with the Five Star, with Paul Heyman running in to count the pin to give Van Dam the title.

Rating: B+. This is a great example of a match that is carried even higher by the crowd reaction. The fans hated Cena and everything he represented, which made things that much better. They had a really good match on their own but the crowd reaction took it to another level. On top of that, it was a heck of a match because the two of them are able to bring it on the big stage under the bright lights. They had a lot of things going on here, and that’s how it should be in an ECW moment. Good stuff, and the only ending they could have had.

Rob is announced as the new ECW Champion and the huge celebration is on. The locker room comes out to celebrate with the champ as Heyman looks very pleased to end the show.

Video on Sabu.

We see Rob Van Dam losing both of his titles in back to back nights, with the rather dumb decisions that led to the losses being left out.

From July 4.

ECW World Title: Big Show vs. Rob Van Dam

Van Dam is defending and it’s Extreme Rules, meaning we do get a weapons check before the bell (granted that might have been to fill time during the break). Rob slugs away to little avail as Show runs him over with a shoulder. A headbutt puts Van Dam on the floor and the fans let Show know he can’t wrestle. Show clotheslines him over the barricade and they walk in front of the fans in the front row. There is no random swearing or violence so you can tell that this isn’t a real ECW crowd. Rob manages to jump onto the barricade for a kick to the head and we take a break.

Back with Rob hitting a springboard kick to the face but Show catches him on top with a superplex. Show kicks him in the head to keep him down and then stands on Van Dam’s chest in the corner. The fans chant for marijuana as Show drops some elbows for two. A bearhug doesn’t last long so Show switches to a backbreaker and bends Van Dam’s back over his knee. Van Dam knees his way to freedom and kicks the knee out, followed by a basement crossbody.

Rolling Thunder gets two and there’s a running spinwheel kick in the corner. Show catches him in the air though and tosses Van Dam outside. The steps are picked up but Van Dam gets in a drop toehold to send Show face first into them. Van Dam goes up top but Show pulls the dive out of the air in an impressive catch. Rob’s chair is swatted away and there’s a chokeslam for two.

Show knocks the referee away and grabs a powerbomb, only to have Van Dam chair him in the head. There’s the Van Daminator into the Five Star but there’s no referee. Cue Heyman to count two….and stop before three because we’ve got a screwjob. Show hits a nasty chair to the head and a chokeslam onto the chair gives Show the pin and the title with Heyman counting the pin.

Rating: C-. Ignoring all of the shenanigans and the necessity of the title change, the match was only ok at best, with Show doing his power stuff and Van Dam bouncing off of him over and over. Then you got to the ending, which was telegraphed but again, they didn’t have much of a choice. Van Dam had to drop the title to someone and other than Kurt Angle, who he beat last week, who else was there but Big Show? Sure it was about as close to the Survivor Series 2002 story with Van Dam in Brock Lesnar’s place, but they didn’t have much of an option otherwise.

Video on Test, who might squeak in as a Best Of in the last few weeks.

Tazz doesn’t like the Christmas tree on the set.

Van Dam came back and got some matches with Big Show, including a ladder match, but none of them were for the title. Paul Heyman brought in Hardcore Holly to fight Van Dam, setting up a rather memorable match….which we don’t see here. Ok then.

Video on Sandman.

We look back at Extreme Strip Poker.

Video on CM Punk.

Video on Bobby Lashley.

Like we could go with anything else.

From December To Dismember.

ECW Title: Big Show vs. Hardcore Holly vs. CM Punk vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Test

Show is defending in the Extreme Elimination Chamber, meaning there is a weapon in each pod. Hardcore Holly is in at #1 and Rob Van Dam is in at #2 and there are five minute intervals. Holly takes him into the corner and starts kicking away but Rob pops up and gets sent into the cage….but holds onto the side because he can. The spinning high crossbody only hits the rope though and Van Dam crashes down again. Van Dam gets sent into the cage again but manages to get a boot up to cut off a diving Holly.

Rolling Thunder over the top rope hits Holly but he suplexes Van Dam back inside. There’s the dropkick and it’s CM Punk with his chair in at #3. A monkey flip sends Holly onto the chair and Punk kicks Van Dam down. The chair is wedged in the corner and Van Dam, who has been busted open somewhere in there, is sent hard into it. Punk kicks him again but Holly is back up with a side slam. Holly drops Punk onto the top rope and there’s a top rope superplex to take him down again.

Test, with his crowbar, is in at #4 and hits Punk in the ribs before clawing at Van Dam’s cut. Punk grabs a Stunner on Test of the top rope and the bloody Van Dam kicks Holly in the face. Van Dam skateboards the chair into Punk in the corner and hits the Five Star for the pin and the elimination for Punk’s first pinfall in WWE. Test kicks Holly in the face for an elimination, even if the count didn’t seem to go down properly. Van Dam goes up top but Test chairs him in the knee and pulls him right back down in a crash.

An elbow off the top of the pod onto the chair onto Van Dam is good for the elimination, meaning that the countdown to Lashley is official. It also means that the ring is clear, save for Test, for about a minute and a half because this match can’t time things either. Bobby Lashley with his table is….not allowed to get in because test and the security guards block the door. That’s fine with Lashley, who uses the table to break the roof open and climbs through the top. Eh points for a cool entrance.

Lashley unloads for a bit until Test gets him into the corner for some choking. Lashley suplexes him down, hits him with the crowbar, and nails a spear for the pin. Therefore, let’s wait a minute and a half before Big Show with his barbed wire baseball bat can come in at #6 to give us the showdown. Lashley has to use the chair to shield himself with the bat but manages to knock Show outside anyway. Show is sent through the pod to bust him open but he knocks Lashley down again. Back in and the chokeslam is countered into a DDT, followed by a spear for the pin and the title.

Rating: D. And that’s probably high. This was a really dull Chamber with the two badly times falls that left them sitting around with nothing to do for a few minutes. The match is less than twenty five minutes and you knew that Lashley had the title won with about ten minutes to go.

Look at the participants here. Van Dam, Show and Lashley are fine, but that leaves you with three pretty weak choices. Punk would go on to become a huge star, but at this point he had been around for a few months with his career consisting of feuds with Shannon Moore and Mike Knox. That is kind of lacking in any kind of meaningful wins in WWE and it showed badly. The other two are Test and Hardcore Holly as a replacement. That leaves you with three options, but Test dominated a good portion of the middle. That’s the best they could put together and that should tell you a whole low.

The show was long past the point of saving by the time we got to the match, but then they had this boring mess to make it even worse. There was no drama, the popular guys were done in less than fifteen minutes and the weapons managed to make it less violent than the previous Elimination Chambers. Not the worst match of all time, but pretty horrible and probably the worst Chamber match to date, if nothing else for the star power included and the lack of drama near the end.

After Lashley beat Big Show in a rematch to get rid of him, it was time for a new #1 contender.

From December 19.

Test vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Sabu

Joined in progress with everyone down on the floor until Van Dam takes Test back inside for a superkick. The standing moonsault gets two but Van Dam gets shoved off the top and into the barricade for his traditional crash. Sabu is back up as well and gets crotched on top to put him in trouble again.

Van Dam comes back in for the Tower of Doom and a pair of near falls. A flip over Sabu sets up a clothesline to Test and some double teaming gets two each. There is Rolling Thunder for two more on Test and he is sent outside. That leaves Sabu to hit the springboard leg lariat for two but Van Dam crotches him on top. The Five Star hits Sabu but Test comes in and decks Van Dam to steal the pin.

Rating: C-. This might not have been the most interesting match and the ending is about as played out of a triple threat finish as you are going to get, but it was a smart decision. Test isn’t going to win the fan vote, but now he has a reason to get a title shot later on if that’s where you want to go. Given how few options ECW has for a major Lashley match, Test is as good as anyone else they could throw out there at the moment. Smart booking to a pretty weak match.

Post match we get the results of the fan voting:

Van Dam – 45%
Test – 18%
Sabu – 37%

Van Dam is pleased but gets big booted by Test. With Test gone, Van Dam gets up and bows to Sabu, as the big boot might have kept him down for five seconds.

Tazz and Joey wrap it up, with Tazz handing Joey his Christmas present. Joey: “It says Michael Cole and it’s ticking.” Tazz beats up the Christmas tree with a barbed wire baseball bat to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. They managed to come pretty close to screwing up a Best Of show here, which really shouldn’t be possible. This was more a quick history of the main stories over the last seven months, with stuff that was actually good left out. ECW didn’t have a banner year in 2006 but they had enough good stuff to get through forty five minutes. That doesn’t bode well for their future, but it isn’t like they have far to fall anyway.

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