Ghostboy259
Proud ROH Fanboy
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ECW- Final Thoughts, General Comments, and RIP
- Thread starter Ghostboy259
- Start date
ECW died long before this. The concept was dead the moment they went away from the original hardcore style, thats what made it a name in the first place. The only way it could have worked was if paul heyman still wrote for them, remember when paul wrote for smackdown (I believe it was) it was better so good riddance to a sham of a once proud ecw product.
I have to agree it died after they dropped the hardcore style which was after December to Dismember when Heyman left. Extreme Championship Wrestling, with no extreme or hardcore style matches? But obviously it was a smart move by the WWE to keep it around, and start it to begin with. The name drew crowds and ratings and even though its been like Heat or Velocity for the past 3 years people still watch it cause of guys like Christian. I'd honestly rather see them keep the ECW name as opposed to NXT or whatever their going to be calling it now, i mean that doesnt even sound like a wrestling show. Maybe NXW or NGW considering you could actually make an acronym for them. I kind of want to say ECW finally died when Dreamer left, but it died when Heyman and some of the original core ECW guys like RVD, Sabu, and Sandman left. So RIP ECW (V2) you wont be missed. Considering your going to be the same show and the same time slot, same network, with the same talent. But a name change and new storylines that are more fit for the Syfy channel are gonna make me watch more.
Maestro48239
purveyor of confusion
yea, i have to agree, i wont miss this abortion called ECW! it was nothing like the Original ECW. i still DVRed it everyweek like an episode of CSI or something, but calling it ECW is almost a crime.
tcdarkness
Dark Match Jobber
What they should do with the ECW title is make it exactly what it should have been in the first place: the Hardcore title. I know Vince wants PG-13 though, and they even paused that ladder match at Survivor Series (I think it was) so Christian could get cleaned up, but this is really what wrestling fans want: some variety, and at least a guaranteed hardcore match a month/PPV. And I don't mean the crappy hardcore matches where Dreamer would bring out a trash can lid and a hot dog cart and act like it is all hardcore.
they could put that Hardcore title on Smackdown and put the IC belt in WWE NXT. The IC title is really for who the company like the most anyway as the next world champ, so they can do that in NXT.
And since Smackdown would not have their superior mid-card belt, re-activate the Cruiserweight Belt and put it on Tatsu/Bourne/Chavo/Funaki/Kidd/whoever is on Smackdown after the draft. Though much like the Hardcore title, it's another division of wrestling Vince wouldn't care to ever see active again.
But a guy can dream, right?
they could put that Hardcore title on Smackdown and put the IC belt in WWE NXT. The IC title is really for who the company like the most anyway as the next world champ, so they can do that in NXT.
And since Smackdown would not have their superior mid-card belt, re-activate the Cruiserweight Belt and put it on Tatsu/Bourne/Chavo/Funaki/Kidd/whoever is on Smackdown after the draft. Though much like the Hardcore title, it's another division of wrestling Vince wouldn't care to ever see active again.
But a guy can dream, right?
Thank you Jesus for finally making this happen.....
I've been able to overlook the horrific use of the letters ECW and just be able to enjoy the show (although it took me a while). But I have to say that I was thrilled when Vince McMahon announced that the show would be renamed. It's about damn time. And I think it will be beneficial to rename and repackage the show so everything flows more smoothly.
I've been able to overlook the horrific use of the letters ECW and just be able to enjoy the show (although it took me a while). But I have to say that I was thrilled when Vince McMahon announced that the show would be renamed. It's about damn time. And I think it will be beneficial to rename and repackage the show so everything flows more smoothly.
I had mentioned this idea a bit in my Taz thread from eariler in the day and it seriously got me thinking...was the re-launch of ECW cursed from the beginning? Also, I hope to show through this thread that VKM DID give ECW a chance to thrive.
Ok, so lets travel back to 2006. ECW is relaunched. ONS 06 RVD wins the title from Cena (who, at this point is in his INSANE superman phase). RVD actually has BOTH the WWE championship AND the ECW championship. Pretty awesome. Of course, we all know what happens...RVD and Sabu are caught with drugs, damaging the brand in the eyes of Vinny Mac. You can, of course, argue that Vinny Mac just wanted an excuse to get the belf off of RVD and to get rid of Sabu, but if nothing else, this absolutely accelerated the process.
Next, Kurt Angle is drafted to ECW. It is pretty much understood that it is going to be HIS show. It is only a matter of time before he is going to be champion and carry the show...until he ubruptly is released from his contract. ECW is left without a major superstar and once again loses a chance to really take off.
Fast forward to 2007. Chris Benoit is drafted to ECW. It is a lock that he is going to win the ECW championship and be the flagship superstar of ECW...until...well we all know what happened.
Keep going to the winter of 2007, John Morrison and CM Punk are in the phenomenal fued for the ECW championship. CM Punk is doing a great job chasing the belt, both are competing in 5 star matches...until...Morrison is named in the steroid scandal and CM Punk is rushed the belt...having no one to fued with (unless you believe that Chavo was going to be the future of ECW).
It is at this point that I believe the WWE began to lose faith in the ECW brand. I truly believe that they gave it several chances to succeed and a perfect storm of awful situations caused the brand to fail. So, say that Vince had it out for Paul E. and the rest of the ECW originals. But look to the facts. Vince wanted it to work but it just wasn't in the cards.
Ok, so lets travel back to 2006. ECW is relaunched. ONS 06 RVD wins the title from Cena (who, at this point is in his INSANE superman phase). RVD actually has BOTH the WWE championship AND the ECW championship. Pretty awesome. Of course, we all know what happens...RVD and Sabu are caught with drugs, damaging the brand in the eyes of Vinny Mac. You can, of course, argue that Vinny Mac just wanted an excuse to get the belf off of RVD and to get rid of Sabu, but if nothing else, this absolutely accelerated the process.
Next, Kurt Angle is drafted to ECW. It is pretty much understood that it is going to be HIS show. It is only a matter of time before he is going to be champion and carry the show...until he ubruptly is released from his contract. ECW is left without a major superstar and once again loses a chance to really take off.
Fast forward to 2007. Chris Benoit is drafted to ECW. It is a lock that he is going to win the ECW championship and be the flagship superstar of ECW...until...well we all know what happened.
Keep going to the winter of 2007, John Morrison and CM Punk are in the phenomenal fued for the ECW championship. CM Punk is doing a great job chasing the belt, both are competing in 5 star matches...until...Morrison is named in the steroid scandal and CM Punk is rushed the belt...having no one to fued with (unless you believe that Chavo was going to be the future of ECW).
It is at this point that I believe the WWE began to lose faith in the ECW brand. I truly believe that they gave it several chances to succeed and a perfect storm of awful situations caused the brand to fail. So, say that Vince had it out for Paul E. and the rest of the ECW originals. But look to the facts. Vince wanted it to work but it just wasn't in the cards.
Barbedwire Ropes
YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!
So, I do not get the point of this thread....what question are you really asking?
You basically asked if it was doomed from the beginning then sort-of contradicted yourself by stating everything that was offered to the WWE's version of ECW. either that, or Im just not reading this right.
But back to your question of "was the re-launch of ECW cursed from the beginning?" My answer to this is simple, yet complicated. Its a yes and a no.
The reason that it was cursed from the beginning: was due to the simple fact that besides RVD not a single "true" ECW Original had any star power. Im talking about guys like Dreamer, RVD, Sabu, Sandman, Mahoney, CW Anderson.....the guys they rehired right off the bat. Its not like they were going to take Benoit, Mysterio and whomever else the WWE made thier own and put them on such shaky ground right from the beginning. Were the oldschool ECW fans pleased with the debut roster? Oh hell yes, but that only lasted a few short weeks before Vince wasn't earning his desired ratings and money. Sure, they did give ECW plenty of opportunites once it was morphed into their own mini brand but if they would have just let Paul Heyman do his own thing it would be a much bigger success right now than what it is today. Im 100% sure that VKM is looking back on it right now, regreting the decisions he made regarding Heyman's control over the re-launced ECW.... ALBEIT in massive amounts of denial.
But look at it today. Its in shambles. Its literally, a complete peice of shit. Who do they have that is anything remotely close to being a star? And dont even bother mentioning Christian because thats a straight up lie. The WWE/Vince McMahon is responsible for ECW being a gaint collage of dried up feces. Not us, not the fans. Of course, they want to make us think that we made it fail but just look at the buyrates for the actual ECW One Night Stand PPVs. Everyone was loving it, because it was classic ECW. They doomed it, buy slowly killing off every single ECW original one by one and replacing them with lower mid-carders that werent working out on Raw or Smackdown.
Would Kurt Angle have helped? No, not at all because even when he spent that short amount of time on the show he was doing nothing but fueding with two security gaurds dressed up as Star Wars Stormtroopers! Is that really gripping classic ECW television? Maybe it was bound to be morphed into a WWE C-show at some point. But if they would have done it more gradually and used it as a program to feature underrated talent the proper way then it could have still been a great show. But after a few months, the originals were long gone. Gone were the extreme rules matches. Gone were the wreslters with any actual talent being allowed to truly showcase their skills. Even to this day they have guys like Christian, William Regal, Yoshi Tatsu and Shelton Benjamin who could put on great matches with thier skills but they are relegated to take a back seat to the Abe Washington show who gets almost a half hour every week to accomplish absolutely nothing! Charlie Haas does more for the WWE than Abe Washington does and he isnt even featured on TV anymore!
So in the end, its was doomed for failure once Vince got the idea that he knew what was best for ECW. In the beginning it showed great potential to be an amazing fusion ground for the WWE and classic ECW to come together as one. But in the end it was slowly forced to watch itself die, becoming something less entertaining than the Steve Wilkos show and thats a sad, sad reality.
You basically asked if it was doomed from the beginning then sort-of contradicted yourself by stating everything that was offered to the WWE's version of ECW. either that, or Im just not reading this right.
But back to your question of "was the re-launch of ECW cursed from the beginning?" My answer to this is simple, yet complicated. Its a yes and a no.
The reason that it was cursed from the beginning: was due to the simple fact that besides RVD not a single "true" ECW Original had any star power. Im talking about guys like Dreamer, RVD, Sabu, Sandman, Mahoney, CW Anderson.....the guys they rehired right off the bat. Its not like they were going to take Benoit, Mysterio and whomever else the WWE made thier own and put them on such shaky ground right from the beginning. Were the oldschool ECW fans pleased with the debut roster? Oh hell yes, but that only lasted a few short weeks before Vince wasn't earning his desired ratings and money. Sure, they did give ECW plenty of opportunites once it was morphed into their own mini brand but if they would have just let Paul Heyman do his own thing it would be a much bigger success right now than what it is today. Im 100% sure that VKM is looking back on it right now, regreting the decisions he made regarding Heyman's control over the re-launced ECW.... ALBEIT in massive amounts of denial.
But look at it today. Its in shambles. Its literally, a complete peice of shit. Who do they have that is anything remotely close to being a star? And dont even bother mentioning Christian because thats a straight up lie. The WWE/Vince McMahon is responsible for ECW being a gaint collage of dried up feces. Not us, not the fans. Of course, they want to make us think that we made it fail but just look at the buyrates for the actual ECW One Night Stand PPVs. Everyone was loving it, because it was classic ECW. They doomed it, buy slowly killing off every single ECW original one by one and replacing them with lower mid-carders that werent working out on Raw or Smackdown.
Would Kurt Angle have helped? No, not at all because even when he spent that short amount of time on the show he was doing nothing but fueding with two security gaurds dressed up as Star Wars Stormtroopers! Is that really gripping classic ECW television? Maybe it was bound to be morphed into a WWE C-show at some point. But if they would have done it more gradually and used it as a program to feature underrated talent the proper way then it could have still been a great show. But after a few months, the originals were long gone. Gone were the extreme rules matches. Gone were the wreslters with any actual talent being allowed to truly showcase their skills. Even to this day they have guys like Christian, William Regal, Yoshi Tatsu and Shelton Benjamin who could put on great matches with thier skills but they are relegated to take a back seat to the Abe Washington show who gets almost a half hour every week to accomplish absolutely nothing! Charlie Haas does more for the WWE than Abe Washington does and he isnt even featured on TV anymore!
So in the end, its was doomed for failure once Vince got the idea that he knew what was best for ECW. In the beginning it showed great potential to be an amazing fusion ground for the WWE and classic ECW to come together as one. But in the end it was slowly forced to watch itself die, becoming something less entertaining than the Steve Wilkos show and thats a sad, sad reality.
proofinlife
Pre-Show Stalwart
It's sort of moronic to imply that Vince was cursing ECW from the beginning and wanted it to fail. IF he didn't want it, he would've changed the name mere months after it's debut. It's been almost 4 years.
As the owner and creator of the modern WWE franchise, he would be shooting himself in the foot in the biggest way possible to undermine his own product. Also, as the owner and creator of the WWE Franchise, he's in it to maximize buyrates, draws, and overall PROFIT. Again, it would be shooting himself in the foot as a business-man trying to make money.
It's almost the same idea as the owner of a sales store to go and sell his product like they are crap in favor of better selling brands. Regardless of the product, they're going to sell it like it's gold, and that's also Vince's job as the owner and everyone beneath him to try and make a product work and be as profitable as possible.
Many things worked against ECW, and it was not Vince. Being situated on SyFy had a part to do with it. Also, the fact that there were obscure names mainstream fans had never known about attributed to it as well. The 1 hour show also limits ANY shows potential, so this obviously works against it.
And I'll also go out on a limb (and also accept neg reps because I think I'll get some), that not EVERYBODY enjoys "hardcore wrestling". In fact, it's a very small faction of the total wrestling populace that actually enjoy matches filled with ridiculous weapon spots and needless gore. These sorts of matches really only cater to one niche of wrestling fan, not a wide variety. ECW is remembered for it's hardcore wrestling by mainstream fans, but no one remembers the fantastic matches that put both WCW and WWF to shame at the time, but regardless, it's remembered for it's storylines, characters, and match rules that pushed the boundaries and then some. Not everyone are fans of this, and thus, again, catered to only a small niche grouping of fans.
ECW was doomed from the beginning not because of Vince, but because of what it WAS. It's only natural that they took it in this direction, not out of respect for the original ECW, but out of respect for Vince's wallet.
As the owner and creator of the modern WWE franchise, he would be shooting himself in the foot in the biggest way possible to undermine his own product. Also, as the owner and creator of the WWE Franchise, he's in it to maximize buyrates, draws, and overall PROFIT. Again, it would be shooting himself in the foot as a business-man trying to make money.
It's almost the same idea as the owner of a sales store to go and sell his product like they are crap in favor of better selling brands. Regardless of the product, they're going to sell it like it's gold, and that's also Vince's job as the owner and everyone beneath him to try and make a product work and be as profitable as possible.
Many things worked against ECW, and it was not Vince. Being situated on SyFy had a part to do with it. Also, the fact that there were obscure names mainstream fans had never known about attributed to it as well. The 1 hour show also limits ANY shows potential, so this obviously works against it.
And I'll also go out on a limb (and also accept neg reps because I think I'll get some), that not EVERYBODY enjoys "hardcore wrestling". In fact, it's a very small faction of the total wrestling populace that actually enjoy matches filled with ridiculous weapon spots and needless gore. These sorts of matches really only cater to one niche of wrestling fan, not a wide variety. ECW is remembered for it's hardcore wrestling by mainstream fans, but no one remembers the fantastic matches that put both WCW and WWF to shame at the time, but regardless, it's remembered for it's storylines, characters, and match rules that pushed the boundaries and then some. Not everyone are fans of this, and thus, again, catered to only a small niche grouping of fans.
ECW was doomed from the beginning not because of Vince, but because of what it WAS. It's only natural that they took it in this direction, not out of respect for the original ECW, but out of respect for Vince's wallet.
I wouldn't say it was cursed, but Vince did do something to say hurt ECW. First if you look at the first 4 guys you mention RVD, Sabu Angle and Benoit, all had their own drug problems of their own and WWE does enacts it's policy when your not one of THE guys. Could Vince had been nicer with Angle for having the neck problems? Probably. ECW doesn't need the originals once people actually were done being ignorant a really just remember it's a was a fucking name and move on.
Vince would also take guys off ECW too early, in my humble opinion, such as Jack Swagger, Bourne and Sheamus. I think leaving those three on there would have made the show alot better.
Also you even look at it now, he's made Christian the face of ECW, which has worked out GREAT despite what people might think. Christian is probably the best champion booking wise WWE has had in the past year and a half. The only problem is people look at who is on the show and not how talented they really are, so they aren't inclined to watch. Other than Christian you have guys like Ryder, Regal, Benjamin, Tatsu and Abe. All are talented in there own ways and bring alot to the table of ECW, but because they aren't like the Old ECW people are quickly to pass judgement about the show. And I bet some of the are the same to complain about how bad WWE or wrestling is all together, and I ask are they tuning into ECW week in and week out, because I think most of the time you would be impressed for a bunch of "no name" guys and for the "C" Show that Vince doesn't care about.
It is obvious to me that ECW has been the most consistent thing in WWE for awhile now recently, when compared to the variety show that is RAW, or even to Smackdown with a champ that can barely walk down the ramp let alone make it to a house show and represent the Brand. This was the same guy that had Punk, who has the HOTTEST thing in WWE and Wrestling all together, job to him, while he practically buried him. Since than even what is generally a good show SD hasn't been the same.
And with all the problems and complaints I ask once again have people actually gave ECW a chance, even though it's not the old ECW???
Personally I believe ECW is more like the old ECW than people will admit. The old ECW was ALOT MORE than just garbage hardcore wrestling. A lot of the time you had sound technical wrestling day in and out and that is what this ECW is about and gives. Also the old ECW never had BIG name guys, so don't fucking tell me ECW/NXT need a fucking named guy to have a successful show because the old ECW and ECW now have constantly done that for awhile.
Vince would also take guys off ECW too early, in my humble opinion, such as Jack Swagger, Bourne and Sheamus. I think leaving those three on there would have made the show alot better.
Also you even look at it now, he's made Christian the face of ECW, which has worked out GREAT despite what people might think. Christian is probably the best champion booking wise WWE has had in the past year and a half. The only problem is people look at who is on the show and not how talented they really are, so they aren't inclined to watch. Other than Christian you have guys like Ryder, Regal, Benjamin, Tatsu and Abe. All are talented in there own ways and bring alot to the table of ECW, but because they aren't like the Old ECW people are quickly to pass judgement about the show. And I bet some of the are the same to complain about how bad WWE or wrestling is all together, and I ask are they tuning into ECW week in and week out, because I think most of the time you would be impressed for a bunch of "no name" guys and for the "C" Show that Vince doesn't care about.
It is obvious to me that ECW has been the most consistent thing in WWE for awhile now recently, when compared to the variety show that is RAW, or even to Smackdown with a champ that can barely walk down the ramp let alone make it to a house show and represent the Brand. This was the same guy that had Punk, who has the HOTTEST thing in WWE and Wrestling all together, job to him, while he practically buried him. Since than even what is generally a good show SD hasn't been the same.
And with all the problems and complaints I ask once again have people actually gave ECW a chance, even though it's not the old ECW???
Personally I believe ECW is more like the old ECW than people will admit. The old ECW was ALOT MORE than just garbage hardcore wrestling. A lot of the time you had sound technical wrestling day in and out and that is what this ECW is about and gives. Also the old ECW never had BIG name guys, so don't fucking tell me ECW/NXT need a fucking named guy to have a successful show because the old ECW and ECW now have constantly done that for awhile.
ECW was unbelievably unlucky. If you look at the champions: RVD, Big Show, Lashley, Vince McMahon, Morrison, Punk, Chavo, Kane, Henry, Hardy, Swagger, Christian, Tommy Dreamer, most of them were down on their luck after holding the belt. In many instances, that was a wrestling decision, but perhaps the most conspicuous was the reigns of RVD and Morrison. RVD won the title, and Angle was drafted there with him, but neither of them lasted a year concurrently with the brand. Big Show and then Benoit were drafted to the show in order to give it some star power, but Show got health problems and Benoit killed himself.
I honestly believe that the title and the show would have been saved if they knew Benoit had killed himself on the day. As it was, they would have expected him back to win the title on Tuesday, and he wasn't and ECW went from consistent 1.5+ ratings to 1.2s and 1.3s almost overnight, because the show didn't seem a big deal. If they knew he was dead, his replacement would have been Kane or someone like that.
ECW had two huge dropoffs - when Kurt Angle finally left after never really showing up on the brand and when Morrison became champion after Benoit killed himself. It's been in steady decline since then, but in all honesty, had Angle or RVD behaved well, it could have been a different story.
I honestly believe that the title and the show would have been saved if they knew Benoit had killed himself on the day. As it was, they would have expected him back to win the title on Tuesday, and he wasn't and ECW went from consistent 1.5+ ratings to 1.2s and 1.3s almost overnight, because the show didn't seem a big deal. If they knew he was dead, his replacement would have been Kane or someone like that.
ECW had two huge dropoffs - when Kurt Angle finally left after never really showing up on the brand and when Morrison became champion after Benoit killed himself. It's been in steady decline since then, but in all honesty, had Angle or RVD behaved well, it could have been a different story.
I agree a hundred percent with the thread starter, as soon as chavo got the belt it was going downhill from there. I Dont think you can blame vinny mac for their downfall as how could he predict what was going to happen.
I am actually interested in ECW or NXT or whatever (i think NXT is a horrible name) atm with guys like zach ryder, berretta and croft and the veteran christian im just wondering will christian be the 'NXT Champion'
I am actually interested in ECW or NXT or whatever (i think NXT is a horrible name) atm with guys like zach ryder, berretta and croft and the veteran christian im just wondering will christian be the 'NXT Champion'
I don't really see this as a funeral, more as an unhappy daughter getting married. What I mean is, ECW has always been decent enough, it just didn't really suit the name, partly because it was a stupid name for a brand and partly because of the name's history. Now, it's met a new name, and it's getting married to it, and it'll just fit in a little better. I can't see much on the show changing to be honest with you.
The Gribbler
Gribble me this, Gribble me that...
Although overall it is difficult to discout Paul Heymans incredible creativity; I dislike the overall assumption that if Paul Heyman had control that he would have been able to recreate that magic.
Is it not simply possible that ECW was something that was so out there and magic that it could simply not be recreated, even by the beloved visionary that is Paul Heyman.
Sure he understood the product and it may have been better but I am kind of getting sick of people simply assuming that ECW would have been some sort of hit the second time around.
It was something that fit into a certain era and that era has passed. Maybe it simply can't happen again...
Just My Opinion
Crippler CrossFace
Occasional Pre-Show
I don't remember when exactly the WWE decided to go PG but whenever that was, was the final shovel full of dirt on the grave of ECW. I was at the Smackdown when Tommy Dreamer was "retired" by Zach Ryder and when he put that shirt down on the mat it was sad.
I don't believe that the WWE is treating this with quite the severity that it deserves. Granted the ECW brand has been dead for awhile but this truly cutting all ties to ECW and Tazz said something to the effect of the WWE not giving Paul Heyman or the original ECW guys their due and changing their name is just another example of this. I would love to see some kind of tribute to ECW as a sendoff or something to that effect
I don't believe that the WWE is treating this with quite the severity that it deserves. Granted the ECW brand has been dead for awhile but this truly cutting all ties to ECW and Tazz said something to the effect of the WWE not giving Paul Heyman or the original ECW guys their due and changing their name is just another example of this. I would love to see some kind of tribute to ECW as a sendoff or something to that effect
It was a good show honestly. I had my doubts about a third brand being created from the beginning, and having the third brand never truly did feel right. However, when the show was shifted towards being a developmental show, I began to enjoy it a lot more. The New Talent Initiative was a great idea because we got to see newcomers before they made their official Raw or Smackdown debut. I won't miss ECW as a third brand, but I am glad the developmental version of it will likely live on in the form of the NXT show. I'm looking forward to it. I'll miss ECW a little because it had its share of good moments. It needed to be canceled as a brand though since it has failed at becoming a true brand, instead turning into a show for jobbers and rookies (except Christian who's awesome).
Jeffingb3oh3
Dark Match Winner
I think that they really brought shame to ECW. IMO, it never should have been called that. It should of been a show with hardcore on it. They can't do that because of the PG rating that WWE now has. But i mean c'mon, weapons would of made for a great time.
WWE did give ECW several chances, but the show just happened to get hit by a large amount of bad luck. RVD getting in trouble, December to Dismember as an ECW exclusive show getting the lowest buyrate of any WWE PPV, Benoit's incident, to name a few out of several instances that were just bad luck. By the time Chavo and Punk were feuding, WWE had nothing else they could do but turn it into a developmental show because it had already failed as a third brand. Perhaps ECW's failures can be explained as karma coming back to hurt WWE for watering down their version of ECW compared to the original. I won't say that this version of ECW was cursed from day one because that's not entirely the case. However it did get plagued by bad luck and in more instances than one, it was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Getting replaced by NXT should have happened a long time ago, like when the New Talent Initiative began.
It was a perfect storm of bad luck. RVD and Sabu's drug bust, Angles release, the Benoit incident, and Morrison's bust, all played a part and I don't blame Vince for giving up the faith on ECW. Christian has done a great job, but the brand was dead for the most part even before he arrived.
I don't think it was a failure at all. They were the highest rated show on SyFy multiple times. Numerous wrestlers who got their start on ECW, went on to hold titles on Smackdown/RAW. Unless by failure you mean not being like the original ECW, then I guess it was. But as a 1 hour wrestling show, it was a success. Good enough for SyFy to renew them after their first season. There were times when WWECW had more actual wrestling in one hour than TNA did in two hours. Smarks never gave WWECW a chance because they were expecting the original ECW to somehow rise from the grave and pick up where they left off. Those smarks need to move on and stop living in the past.
Well in less than 24 hours the so-called ECW will be no more. And it'd be replaced with WWE NXT. As we saw for the past four years that the WWE waters down the ECW brand even more each year. Let's go down memory lane right now.
2006-The debut of ECW on Syfy, the debut of CM Punk, the EXTREME Elimination Chamber, and the dominant reigh that was the Big Show's ECW title run.
2007-The short-lived debut of Monty Brown, the ECW Originals Vs. The New Breed feud, Bobby Lashley's ECW title run, Mr. McMahon wins the ECW championship, the Chris Benoit death incident, the birth of John Morrison, and the new ECW "Superstar Inisative".
2008-Where the ECW title begins to loses credibility, Matt Hardy win the ECW championship, the debut of Even Bourne, and the team of "MizMo".
2009-The youth is in, the old guys are OUT! The return of Christian (to the WWE), Tommy Dreamer FINALLY wins the (WW)ECW championship! The debut of Sheamus, and the beginning of the end for the ECW brand.
The idea of the ECW brand for Vince Mcmahon was to please the die-hard ECW fans. Because I think deep down in Vince's gut that he knew that the original ECW was a serious threat to the WWF/E besides WCW. So Vince through the ECW loyal fans a bone that ran out of flavor for about four years.
This is not a grieving. But more about saying goodbye and moving on. So with that being said...May you Rest In Peace Extreme Championship Wrestling! May you rest well in Hardcore Heaven. No pun intended.
2006-The debut of ECW on Syfy, the debut of CM Punk, the EXTREME Elimination Chamber, and the dominant reigh that was the Big Show's ECW title run.
2007-The short-lived debut of Monty Brown, the ECW Originals Vs. The New Breed feud, Bobby Lashley's ECW title run, Mr. McMahon wins the ECW championship, the Chris Benoit death incident, the birth of John Morrison, and the new ECW "Superstar Inisative".
2008-Where the ECW title begins to loses credibility, Matt Hardy win the ECW championship, the debut of Even Bourne, and the team of "MizMo".
2009-The youth is in, the old guys are OUT! The return of Christian (to the WWE), Tommy Dreamer FINALLY wins the (WW)ECW championship! The debut of Sheamus, and the beginning of the end for the ECW brand.
The idea of the ECW brand for Vince Mcmahon was to please the die-hard ECW fans. Because I think deep down in Vince's gut that he knew that the original ECW was a serious threat to the WWF/E besides WCW. So Vince through the ECW loyal fans a bone that ran out of flavor for about four years.
This is not a grieving. But more about saying goodbye and moving on. So with that being said...May you Rest In Peace Extreme Championship Wrestling! May you rest well in Hardcore Heaven. No pun intended.
ECW, like my nan, actually died in 2001, but we didn't notice until we'd wheeled out for a couple of social events several years later. It was only when we left her out in the sun that it truly dawned on us that she'd been gone for several years.
On a whole ECW was an enjoyable show. Free from the scrutiny Raw must come under it developed into a perfectly entertaining wrestling show. At least WWE have taken the step of ending the show when the ratings weren't great, TNA saw it as a good idea to move into direct competition with WWE.
The irony of the whole thing is that Vince McMahon was a better ECW Champion than Tommy Dreamer, an ECW Original.
On a whole ECW was an enjoyable show. Free from the scrutiny Raw must come under it developed into a perfectly entertaining wrestling show. At least WWE have taken the step of ending the show when the ratings weren't great, TNA saw it as a good idea to move into direct competition with WWE.
The irony of the whole thing is that Vince McMahon was a better ECW Champion than Tommy Dreamer, an ECW Original.
Platypus Palsy
Guest
WWECW was the only consistently good show WWE had. The ratings may not have shown that, but it was. The talent were always being talented, Archer being INTENSE, and the Abaham Wasssintin show were some highlights. Good matches were always seen, usually involving Christian in the main event. Several rising stars are/were on ECW at first or still are. I'm sad to see it go.
Ty Burna
Getting Noticed By Management
Finally those three letters can rest. It wasn't so much the name that was important, but it was the spirit that made ECW so important to many of us. For many of us, it was the alternative to the mainstream, the underground competitor who tried to be different. Many of us old ECW fans have since moved on to become ROH, Dragongate, PWG, etc. marks nowadays and just like when the original ECW was around, we are still mocked for not liking "good" wrestling. But it doesn't matter. ECW was the one that broke down the door and gave the opportunities that ROH and other independent promotions now enjoy. However, I must say it is a happy moment that we can finally say ECW is put to rest. While the WWECW version was not what the original was, it still gave many wrestlers a chance in the spotlight, and it produced a good number of stars that currently enjoy success on Raw and Smackdown, similar to the original ECW giving wrestlers a chance to shine and later succeed in WWF/E and WCW.
The common complaint was the WWECW version was not what the original was and I think we all knew it would not be the original. That's not a bad thing as the WWE's version should have never tried to imitate the original. The original gave us some god damn excellent matches, but it wasn't structured and didn't succeed on a national TV broadcast. When it first started sure it had the hardcore matches and an attempt at the original's insanity in it's storylines, but eventually Vince wouldn't allow ECW to be different then his other brands. However, what it did succeed in doing was giving the likes of CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, John Morrison on his own, Sheamus, and other newcomers a relatively safe avenue to debut and craft their trade while getting their name out to the fans. It also gave veterans that were going nowhere on Smackdown and Raw a chance to revive their careers and something to do creatively of course. Some succeeded, others flopped, but it eventually became a show I enjoyed thoroughly. It had a basic formula that focused more on the wrestling than the storylines.
So goodbye ECW, the original was a blast to watch, the WWE's version was a diamond in the rough.
The common complaint was the WWECW version was not what the original was and I think we all knew it would not be the original. That's not a bad thing as the WWE's version should have never tried to imitate the original. The original gave us some god damn excellent matches, but it wasn't structured and didn't succeed on a national TV broadcast. When it first started sure it had the hardcore matches and an attempt at the original's insanity in it's storylines, but eventually Vince wouldn't allow ECW to be different then his other brands. However, what it did succeed in doing was giving the likes of CM Punk, Kofi Kingston, John Morrison on his own, Sheamus, and other newcomers a relatively safe avenue to debut and craft their trade while getting their name out to the fans. It also gave veterans that were going nowhere on Smackdown and Raw a chance to revive their careers and something to do creatively of course. Some succeeded, others flopped, but it eventually became a show I enjoyed thoroughly. It had a basic formula that focused more on the wrestling than the storylines.
So goodbye ECW, the original was a blast to watch, the WWE's version was a diamond in the rough.
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