I don't understand this new ECW. The original promotion set the bar high by presenting the best hardcore, scientific and luchador wrestling you could find in this country. The ECW ONS events were strong (esp. the first), showcasing wrestling that was true to the original promotion's vision. When I heard that ECW was being brought back by WWE, I was cautiously optimistic, thinking that what we would see would be watered down, but still have the extreme wrestling, angles and personalities of the promotion we loved. How wrong I was.
ECW (heretofore referred to as WWECW) has been on for six months, and has revealed itself to be nothing more than a third brand of the WWE - in my opinion, a spruced-up version of Heat and Velocity, with a lot of the Superstars that used to appear on those shows frequently (Test, Holly, Matt Striker, Rene Dupree, etc.). This brand is ECW in name only, as it uses horrible poorly-written dialogue, very safe and cheesy angles (CM Punk and Mike Knox - Who will get the girl? No, how about WHO CARES?), and none of the styles of wrestling that we loved ECW for. In fact, of all the WWE brands, it is the most obvious representation of the company's flaws with its generic big wrestlers who have the most safe and limited arsenal of wrestling maneuvers. So The Big Show, Bobby Lashley, Test, Mike Knox and Kevin Thorn are the new faces of ECW? Extreme, my ass - these guys wouldn't last a minute with New Jack, The Rottens, or even the middle-aged and crazy Terry Funk. And not only does WWECW showcase the highest percentage of pathetic slow-moving stooges - ironically, it seems to be the place where we see the most lame match outcomes. ECW was about expecting the unexpected and having matches where anything goes - and even though there were no rules, you could still see plenty of terrific technical and acrobatic maneuvers in the ring that you practically never see in WWE. In WWECW, about 70% of the matches end in DQ or Countout - if you don't believe me, watch the last four episodes and see for yourself.
What was the point of re-launching ECW, when the finished product shares practically nothing in common with the original promotion? WWECW is nothing more than third-rate sports entertainment, and pales in comparison to both Raw and SmackDown! You're not appealing to the ECW fans (who roundly jeered the pitiful match between Batista and Show at Hammerstein Ballroom, resulting in very few live broadcasts since the airing - coincidence?), and you're trying to take them out of the equation by taping with SD! Yet you expect the sports entertainment fans to get excited over sports entertainment that fails from both the sports AND the entertainment perspective - there is nothing interesting about matches that follow essentially the same sequence (Clothesline, Power Move, Rest Hold, Heel takes over, repeat, Face takes over, etc.) and almost always end in DQ. Add to the fact that the original ECW never had a DQ in a match, and it becomes even worse. It's a no-win situation, and it's safe to say that the ship is sinking fast.
At this point, WWE should do one of the following with ECW:
A): Give Paul Heyman complete creative control in an attempt to save the brand
B): Give it a new name since Vince McMahon really had no interest in bringing back ECW and only wanted a third WWE brand anyway - I propose "WWE Brand #3" since the action on the show is so bland that it deserves a very generic name
C): Scrap the promotion altogether. Keepers in WWECW include RVD, Sabu, CM Punk, Elijah Burke, Stevie Richards, and The FBI (all three members) - all put on excellent matches and are strong on the mic (with the exception of Sabu). I would suggest moving them all to other brands and if they were to keep Sabu, bringing in Bill Alfonso as his mouthpiece/manager. Everyone else should be repackaged or released.
