So clearly they had nothing for Paul on Raw so they shipped him over to ECW. I personally hope he takes on his Ripper gimmick from OVW and gets a ECW title reign to really boost his career cause he is a personal favorite of mine. Anyway though this most likely will stop the release pending rumors. I think the question here is what will Burchill's role be in ECW and will it in fact benefit his career
Extreme Burchills
- Thread starter 8five
- Start date
I love this move. Everytime I imagine what I would do if I was given the creative reigns in WWE, one of my first things is move Paul to ECW and place him in higher level feuds with Hardy and such. Unfortunately losing to Alex Wright... I mean DJ Gabriel is not a good start. I hope he becomes "dangerous" again too.
This is brilliant on the part of WWE, and exemplifies what ECW should be. They're not planning to book Burchill with anything besides jobbing on Raw, so they're putting him on ECW where he can get TV time, have matches and promos, get noticed, and maybe prove himself to be worth an IC, US, or ECW title reign. With last night's match and this move, I'm fairly certain Paul won't wind up a jobber, considering he dominated Gabriel the whole match and lost via roll up, which is hardly a total job. Given also that Burchill vs Gabriel is ready made - both are British, so I'm certain WWE can figure a good angle out of that, and both have valets, one of whom can wrestle and the other of whom I hope won't embarrass herself. So you set up mixed tags, Divas matches, etc., etc., all of which can fuel the feud.
This is definitely what could and should have been done with a bunch of the recently released talent (i.e., London, Snitsky), and is a smart move from the WWE. Burchill is a top rate talent who would make an excellent ECW or IC Champion, and was a major threat to Kofi before SummerSlam, and honestly, an extended Burchill vs Kofi instead of Santino's worthless reign would have been a better direction to go. Building Burchill up with a few good months on ECW and potentially a title reign in the future is smart, and perhaps by draft time he can be put back on Raw to challenge for the IC title, or find a strong partner and run at the tag titles.
As for Katie, this is a positive for her as well. I expect she'll continue to job on Raw, unfortunately, but getting on TV with Paul, and cutting promos will help her. Potentially, this could translate to her becoming a strong heel candidate again, and maybe the breakout Diva of '09 once Beth drops to Melina (I assume she will at Rumble).
So the move looks to be a positive for the Burchills. I consider the both of them top talent in their divisions, and hopefully, this results in air time, matches, and titles for the both of them.
This is definitely what could and should have been done with a bunch of the recently released talent (i.e., London, Snitsky), and is a smart move from the WWE. Burchill is a top rate talent who would make an excellent ECW or IC Champion, and was a major threat to Kofi before SummerSlam, and honestly, an extended Burchill vs Kofi instead of Santino's worthless reign would have been a better direction to go. Building Burchill up with a few good months on ECW and potentially a title reign in the future is smart, and perhaps by draft time he can be put back on Raw to challenge for the IC title, or find a strong partner and run at the tag titles.
As for Katie, this is a positive for her as well. I expect she'll continue to job on Raw, unfortunately, but getting on TV with Paul, and cutting promos will help her. Potentially, this could translate to her becoming a strong heel candidate again, and maybe the breakout Diva of '09 once Beth drops to Melina (I assume she will at Rumble).
So the move looks to be a positive for the Burchills. I consider the both of them top talent in their divisions, and hopefully, this results in air time, matches, and titles for the both of them.
Moving Burchill to ECW will give him more air time, but all the air time in the world won't help him. He doesn't draw very much heat as a heel and the crowd never gets into any of his matches. He doesn't really have a gimmick and I don't see him getting a push any time soon.
Crypt Keeper
Dark Match Winner
Im glad they sent Burchill to ECW. That means he could actually get the push that he deserves there. I can see him become ECW Champion one day. But i dont know why they moved Katie Lea there, what are they gonna do with her? Have her feud with Tiffany or something?
I predicted this move at the 2008 Supplementary Draft back in June but it never occurred. I was slightly pissed off that it didn't happen. But I'm glad they finally pulled the trigger. Paul Burchill was doing absolutely nothing on Raw. He wasn't even jobbing much. ECW needs more talent and Paul will fit in nicely here. He can easily feud with the new guys such as DJ Gabriel, Evan Bourne and Ricky Ortiz. After he's done wrestling the rookies, he can take on guys like Finlay and possibly even the ECW Champion, Matt Hardy.
On ECW, Paul will hopefully get more air time, including ring time and mic time. Which will lead to overall improvement. He seems to have a decent gimmick and definately has the look of a star. Paul Burchill could be a great mid-carder with improvement and with the right booking, and I hope this is a good sign for him. A very good move by the WWE here. But I wish I could say the same for Katie Lea. Now I know she's Paul's manager/sister, but I just can't see her doing much at all on ECW.
I'm a fan of Katie too, but Raw is the place for her to succeed. ECW has no other divas apart from two non wrestlers in Tiffany and Alicia Fox. So apart from coming to the ring with her brother and looking pretty, what else can she possibly do in ECW? I still expect her to appear on Raw often though because her talent shouldn't be wasted. Nonetheless, a good move here but hopefully it's not too late for both to succeed in their respective divisions.
On ECW, Paul will hopefully get more air time, including ring time and mic time. Which will lead to overall improvement. He seems to have a decent gimmick and definately has the look of a star. Paul Burchill could be a great mid-carder with improvement and with the right booking, and I hope this is a good sign for him. A very good move by the WWE here. But I wish I could say the same for Katie Lea. Now I know she's Paul's manager/sister, but I just can't see her doing much at all on ECW.
I'm a fan of Katie too, but Raw is the place for her to succeed. ECW has no other divas apart from two non wrestlers in Tiffany and Alicia Fox. So apart from coming to the ring with her brother and looking pretty, what else can she possibly do in ECW? I still expect her to appear on Raw often though because her talent shouldn't be wasted. Nonetheless, a good move here but hopefully it's not too late for both to succeed in their respective divisions.
klunderbunker
Welcome to My (And Not Sly's) House
I definitely like it. Burchill was someone that I actually thought was gone from the roster. Putting him on ECW is fine because mid to lower carders actually get on tv there. It allows him to build up some ring time in front of wwe cameras and in front of the fans. He simply won't show up on Raw right now as it's just way too crowded. This gives him fresh people to feud with. Not that he really had more than one mini feud, but this helps a lot for him in the long run I think. If Hardy beats Swagger, having him just pop up all of a sudden could work. He's familiar, but at the same time fresh.
Katie......not sure what they're wanting here. She's ok in the ring and her looks are great, but other than that she's an unknown. She's had what, 2 divas matches and there's no actual divas wrestling on ECW. Apparently she's the permanent valet, which there arent' enough of.
Katie......not sure what they're wanting here. She's ok in the ring and her looks are great, but other than that she's an unknown. She's had what, 2 divas matches and there's no actual divas wrestling on ECW. Apparently she's the permanent valet, which there arent' enough of.
Mustang Sally
Sells seashells by the seashore
Although it's probably politically incorrect to say so, I would have been interested in seeing what could have been done with the incest angle that was planned between the Burchill siblings. Now, there's a gimmick.
As it is, I hope he gets a chance to shine on ECW. He's a fine worker who sells well and has some nice moves of his own. Truth be told, I also liked that pirate gimmick of his from a couple of years ago.
He could stand to lose a few pounds around the gut. But then, so could Matt Hardy.
Not a bad move at all. Start him off in a feud with Tommy Dreamer so he can go over him, and then go from there. We all know Dreamer is a jobber, but he is a veteran and wins over him still mean something because he can put Burchill over as dangerous. Nothing major, but good enough for ECW. Then he can move on to Finlay and have some good matches there. I would say a feud with Evan Bourne also, but they have way bigger plans for Bourne, who won't be on ECW by the time the next draft comes IMO.
It is a great idea, Burchill can go down and build up his character. He isn't too over on Raw, but I think most fans see a potential behind him. One ECW, he can work with talent that is at his level. If hew takes on his Ripper Character, or not, it doesn't matter, because overall, he is a great talent with a decent character. ECW will be a great building ground for the Burchills. The person who benefits the most from this is Matt Hardy, finally he gets to wrestle a heel that isn't well over double Matt's weight. If anything, this puts good talent battling over the ECW Title for a few pay per views.
This is a good move by the WWE by shipping yet another forgotten talent over to ECW they can see his actual wrestling ability. Paul never has caught my eye when he was in RAW i only saw him as a stupid jobber, but when he made his debut in ECW even though he lost he looked impressive and i think he has a feud with DJ Gabriel coming up.
This guy has what it takes, i hope he uses his ripper gimmick from OCW and makes use of his beautifull valet. In time we'll see what he's capable of and i think he might be able to feud with Hardy, Bourne, DJ Gabriel or even Swagger.
This guy has what it takes, i hope he uses his ripper gimmick from OCW and makes use of his beautifull valet. In time we'll see what he's capable of and i think he might be able to feud with Hardy, Bourne, DJ Gabriel or even Swagger.
Azrael Cain
The alternative is unthinkable.
One more reason to watch more ECW.
I am in agreement with everyone else -- this is an excellent move by the WWE. Hopefully, in ECW, Paul can flourish and get more air time to develop himself and eventually capture the ECW Title. I just hope that the writers moved him to ECW with the intent to succeed and not to lose to Gabriel on a continued basis. As much as I adore Gabriel, I am a bigger Birchall mark.
Secretly I am hoping for the Pirate gimmick revival, but I may be alone in that boat.
I am in agreement with everyone else -- this is an excellent move by the WWE. Hopefully, in ECW, Paul can flourish and get more air time to develop himself and eventually capture the ECW Title. I just hope that the writers moved him to ECW with the intent to succeed and not to lose to Gabriel on a continued basis. As much as I adore Gabriel, I am a bigger Birchall mark.
Secretly I am hoping for the Pirate gimmick revival, but I may be alone in that boat.
My$terio_Fan
I can do whatever I want
I think this is a good move for Paul Birchall. It's obvious the creative team on RAW didn't know what to do with him and he had been doing nothing for months so it makes sence to put him on ECW where he instantly becomes a maineventer and champion contender.
As for Katie Lea, at first I thought this was terrible for her. I mean at least if she was moved to Smackdown she would still have the Divas title to contend for and would have other good divas to compete with(Maryse, McCool, Victoria, Natayla)but ECW has no real wrestling Divas(Fox is ok judging from her FCW work but nothing overly impressive)and also there is no belt to contend for. So it seemed to me Lea was pretty much screwed. Then it occured to me that since her title feud with Mickie she had done shit all on Raw since. She was just another Jillian jobbing and making sporadic, appearances that lead to nothing. I realized that the move to ECW could be good. Now Katie is the top diva and will hopefully be featured more. Even if she doesn't get to wrestle as much, just by having her work angles and be involved with storylines could help her get more over with the fans. So now she atleast might have the opportunity to shine and get featured more instead of turning into the next Jillian Hall(jobbing to everyone and being made a joke).
As for Katie Lea, at first I thought this was terrible for her. I mean at least if she was moved to Smackdown she would still have the Divas title to contend for and would have other good divas to compete with(Maryse, McCool, Victoria, Natayla)but ECW has no real wrestling Divas(Fox is ok judging from her FCW work but nothing overly impressive)and also there is no belt to contend for. So it seemed to me Lea was pretty much screwed. Then it occured to me that since her title feud with Mickie she had done shit all on Raw since. She was just another Jillian jobbing and making sporadic, appearances that lead to nothing. I realized that the move to ECW could be good. Now Katie is the top diva and will hopefully be featured more. Even if she doesn't get to wrestle as much, just by having her work angles and be involved with storylines could help her get more over with the fans. So now she atleast might have the opportunity to shine and get featured more instead of turning into the next Jillian Hall(jobbing to everyone and being made a joke).
I really don't know what everyone sees in Burchill right now. Since he got called back up to the main WWE roster I haven't been entertained by any of his matches and his character is very boring. I've been entertained more by the Brooklyn Brawler then this guy. At least when Burchill had the pirate gimmick he was entertaining. Now he's just a pissed off British guy who comes to the ring with his equally boring sister. He might have never been taken seriously enough to win a major title with the pirate gimmick, but now he is just atrocious.
Mighty NorCal
SHALL WE BEGIN?
You know, I was excited when I first read this, until I found out he jobbed to Djay Gaybriel, who could be one of the most laborious things ive seen in the E in quite some time. Of course this COULD have been something good, especially if they had paired him with Bourne when he got back from injury, but, alas it does not look to be. Probably just more of him jobbing, which is rough, being that he is such a talented guy. Ah well, maybe a little more TV time for him at least, one could only hope.
Monkey_Mania
I Am The One Who Knocks
I still miss Pirate Paul. I didnt give a fuck if he was a ridiculous gimmick. It was fucking entertaining as hell. Now he is the Ripper or some shit. Could be a cool gimmick if they let him run rampant beating the shit out of people. A shot in ECW would have been a perfect place for the Pirate Paul. But it's even more of a fit for The Ripper Paul. So only time will tell if they utlilize him like they should.
I agree I think the WWE was expecting a bit much from Paul throwing him on RAW. As already stated by many on here, he just wasn't given the time or direction on RAW. His wrestling abilities are controlled by the WWE, and his original moveset is actually quite impressive for a man his size. Considering this is a wrestling forum most of you have already seen his work on youtube, or even in person who knows.
With that being said for anyone who hasn't seen his ring work, maybe you should give that a look. I'll say that his ring work alone is solid enough to win me over. Let us also not forget his ability to run the mic. I guess this is a matter of opinion, but his OVW mic work was legit, and entertaining. He knows how to say what he wants how he wants. Paul came off as very convincing over the mic. The fact that he was called up should make all of this very simple to understand, he is a solid talent that they should keep for many years to come. Not saying that every piece of talent called up is worth keeping, but at this point I find it hard to believe that they would let him go, as they have kept him around for some time now.
The current feud is fresh, and I think they can take it a little further. These men need something to "role" with. The only thing I can think of would be Paul disrespecting Gabriel enough to get under his skin, and change his character in to something more serious. I realize the "catch" behind the gimmick for Gabriel, and I think it is enough for people to remember him similar to Helms when he was the "Hurricane".
If this feud can be feuled even more by something "extreme" on Paul's part I would enjoy it more. At some point every day can't be a day to be happy enough to dance. Paul has to get under Gabriel's skin enough that we see a change in Gabriel. Maybe weeks of personal attacks. Followed by some serious insults etc.. Maybe Paul gets Gabriels woman and does his flipping suplex finisher off the top rope through a table, and keeps her off television for weeks with a broken neck, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down for a year or so. Meaning Gabriel has no one to dance with, and now he is pissed, and the feud takes off.
If anyone of this should happen I would then think that we can start saying that ECW is heading the right direction, along with these two young bright talents in Burchill, and Katie. It seems right now that the WWE wants to push the unproven Jack Swagger. Don't get me wrong I like the guy, but his push came "extremely" fast, no pun intended. Burchill needs to start coming out, and interupting Miz, and Morrison while they are doing their show. It would add to his persona, and help his heel gimmick over.
With that being said for anyone who hasn't seen his ring work, maybe you should give that a look. I'll say that his ring work alone is solid enough to win me over. Let us also not forget his ability to run the mic. I guess this is a matter of opinion, but his OVW mic work was legit, and entertaining. He knows how to say what he wants how he wants. Paul came off as very convincing over the mic. The fact that he was called up should make all of this very simple to understand, he is a solid talent that they should keep for many years to come. Not saying that every piece of talent called up is worth keeping, but at this point I find it hard to believe that they would let him go, as they have kept him around for some time now.
The current feud is fresh, and I think they can take it a little further. These men need something to "role" with. The only thing I can think of would be Paul disrespecting Gabriel enough to get under his skin, and change his character in to something more serious. I realize the "catch" behind the gimmick for Gabriel, and I think it is enough for people to remember him similar to Helms when he was the "Hurricane".
If this feud can be feuled even more by something "extreme" on Paul's part I would enjoy it more. At some point every day can't be a day to be happy enough to dance. Paul has to get under Gabriel's skin enough that we see a change in Gabriel. Maybe weeks of personal attacks. Followed by some serious insults etc.. Maybe Paul gets Gabriels woman and does his flipping suplex finisher off the top rope through a table, and keeps her off television for weeks with a broken neck, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down for a year or so. Meaning Gabriel has no one to dance with, and now he is pissed, and the feud takes off.
If anyone of this should happen I would then think that we can start saying that ECW is heading the right direction, along with these two young bright talents in Burchill, and Katie. It seems right now that the WWE wants to push the unproven Jack Swagger. Don't get me wrong I like the guy, but his push came "extremely" fast, no pun intended. Burchill needs to start coming out, and interupting Miz, and Morrison while they are doing their show. It would add to his persona, and help his heel gimmick over.
I liked Burchill on RAW, and I was hoping he would get the Intercontinental Championship, but once they took him off TV I knew he was done. They can put him on ECW but I don't know anymore. It seems as if they've given up on him before they even tried. Considering he lost his first match on the brand, I doubt they have too many plans for him. He might get his ECW fued, but does it really matter? He won't make it big and will just rot on ECW till they finally let him go.
http://www.wwe.com/content/media/video/vms/afterthebell/2009/february8-14/9351648
So I think WWE has found the perfect gimmick for him. It's easily something that could start of as just a comedy angle, but it's easily something that could become something serious.
The only problem is that ECW has a new star debut each week, so it's not like anybody other than Swagger and a couple of others are able to gain much momentum.
So I think WWE has found the perfect gimmick for him. It's easily something that could start of as just a comedy angle, but it's easily something that could become something serious.
The only problem is that ECW has a new star debut each week, so it's not like anybody other than Swagger and a couple of others are able to gain much momentum.
I think Burchill could do big things on ECW. He has a lot of talent and a good look. If WWE creative puts the right gimmick on him I really think he could be a big star in ECW. If they gave him a darker more brutal type of character I think he could get over with the crowd as a badass heel. Eventually he could be a big player in the ECW title picture.
I always thought that WWE creative would have given him the name Paul "The Predator" Burchill. Something that would have given him some kind of edge, or role. One who meticulously picks his prey. He is solid on the mic, and works wonders in the ring. I'm surprised his high risk wrestling skills haven't been introduced to the ECW show yet.
Awful or not, hardly anybody pins The Boogeyman. But Burchill did last week. I'd like to think it's the beginning of a serious push for him. Although I seriously doubt it. But seeing as Christian vs. Swagger will likely be finished in a couple of weeks, I don't see why don't have a short Christian/Burchill feud. Other than Paul not being the slightest bit over that is.
Nothing against Swagger, but for those who have watched Paul before he was signed by the WWE he was something special then. The man can run the mic tons better than Jack. Swagger isn't an ECW man, and I think he is more suited for the US title on SD. He is after all the All American American.
Paul is a natural heel, and he reminds me of a mix between HHH/Regal. He is athletic as hell, and can really showcase a match if you ask him. His moveset is something special. Although you wouldn't know that since he is in the WWE. Chrisian vs Paul would actually be entertaining, and I think both men would compliment eachother in the ring.
Paul is ready to be a household name for ECW, and he has paid his dues. His character has matured much since the infamous "Pirate" stint. His valet is sweet, and they could always add something special to make things spicy. He has a devastating finisher that has been overlooked for years. His "Flipping Rock Bttom" is amazing, and fits ECW well. With stars like Chrisitian, Bourne, Morrison, Chavo, TJ Kidd, and others his moveset may change to something more devastating. Those smaller stars should be easy to throw around, and thus making Paul seem more more dominant.
Paul is a natural heel, and he reminds me of a mix between HHH/Regal. He is athletic as hell, and can really showcase a match if you ask him. His moveset is something special. Although you wouldn't know that since he is in the WWE. Chrisian vs Paul would actually be entertaining, and I think both men would compliment eachother in the ring.
Paul is ready to be a household name for ECW, and he has paid his dues. His character has matured much since the infamous "Pirate" stint. His valet is sweet, and they could always add something special to make things spicy. He has a devastating finisher that has been overlooked for years. His "Flipping Rock Bttom" is amazing, and fits ECW well. With stars like Chrisitian, Bourne, Morrison, Chavo, TJ Kidd, and others his moveset may change to something more devastating. Those smaller stars should be easy to throw around, and thus making Paul seem more more dominant.