The ECW Busts of 2008-2009

[Magic Mark]

Remember back when WWE first turned PG and they had 3 major shows? If you didn't watch PG ECW, You didn't miss out on much. But to me, the thing that really stuck out was all of the failed new talent that they brought in. They did this whole "Superstar Initiative" where they just showed a brief Interview with the guy before his debut, and that was pretty much it. So let's take a look at everyone that tried and failed during their run in ECW

Gavin Spears- Previously (and currently) known as Shawn Spears, Gavin came into the E with some decent momentum. The guy was good in the ring, but overall, he was just a stale heel that couldn't get any heat. The guy only lasted about 5 months, and all of his matches were ok at best. The thing that really sucked about him was that it took him 3 years in FCW to make his debut, and then when it was time for him to take the stage, Nobody really cared. What a shame.

Braden Walker- Knock knock... It's Braden Walker. And he's gonna knock your brains out! Anyways, Walker previously had a run in TNA as Chris Harris where he teamed up with James Storm under the name "America's Most Wanted". By the time he had come to the WWE, he was a little out of shape. So they put him in the most generic looking singlet I have ever seen. He is most notoriously known for his very short career (It lasted only a couple of weeks) and he still gets made fun of for it even to this day (I.E John Morrison) Overall, everything stopped as soon as it started.

Kizarny- Believe it or not, I liked Kizarny. Kind of. He had a circus freak gimmick and he actually looked the part. You could recognize him from a crowd of a thousand, something Gavin Spears couldn't do. Anywho, Kiz debuted against MVP in a decent match, wrestled a couple more times, and was eventually released. I'm not saying that he should of been World Champion, but a longer career would of worked.

DJ Gabriel- Before Fandango showed up, there was DJ Gabriel. He had a dancer/rave gimmick that kind of reminded me of Club Kid from Twisted Metal III. Gabriel was passable in the ring, had ok mic skills, and a strong look. How did he not succeed? He wasn't pushed, that's why. But I'm kind of happy they got rid of him, because I never really liked him anyway.

Ricky Ortiz- This guy was pushed probably the best out of the already mentioned. However, his in-ring ability was hilarious. He was easily the weakest link between him and Evan Bourne (who turned out to be a little bit of a bust his own). Bottom Line, he sucked ass.

Paul Burchill- when Paul first started, he had a career-killing pirate gimmick. I'm not sure if he wanted it or if management wanted it. Either way, Paul couldn't be taken seriously. So, they turn him heel and send him to ECW. It was the beginning of the end for Ripper. He had brief feuds with Yoshi Tatsu and the Hurricane, and that was pretty much it.

So, who do YOU think had the most potential? Who was treated poorly? Were you happy these guys didn't last very long? And/Or just simply tell me what you thought of these guys.

 

[supernatural1981]

Some decent shouts there mate Braden Walker is one of the WWE's biggest flops that i can remember, considering he was a decent tag team performer when he was in America's most wanted he ended up being terrible.

Paul Burchill just did'nt get the chance he should of got in WWE because the guy that i remember from the UK independent scene was a monster. He could do a standing moonsault the guy was just a freak. Yet when he went to WWE he got saddled with lame gimmick after lame gimmick. I fully believe he could of been where Wade Barrett is now if he was given the chance.

You also forgot Marcus Cor Von off your list mate. The guy was over as Monty Brown but never looked like he was going to do much in WWE.

 

[#heel420]

I saw a lot of potential in Paul Burchill as The Ripper. I was extremely disappointed when he was let go.

Ricky Ortiz had a great look, can't remember any of his ring work.

I remember just enough about DJ Gabriel to know I hated the gimmick.

Everybody loves a Braden Walker joke.

I only remember the promos for Kizarny.

I didn't even know Spears was in ECW.

 

[Magic Mark]

You also forgot Marcus Cor Von off your list mate. The guy was over as Monty Brown but never looked like he was going to do much in WWE.

I REALLY liked Cor Von (mostly because of his theme song) but when he came into the WWE, he was like, 38 or something, so I knew he wouldn't be around for long anyway.

 

[SaveUsCMPunk]

I had almost completely forgot about Ricky Ortiz until I saw this thread. Didn't he have a forgettable heel turn or was he trying to woo Tiffany? It was one of those.

Paul Burchill was the best out of all of them...by miles. Good worker, good look, Badass theme song....and got turned into a complete jobber. He should've gotten "The Chosen One" gimmick that Drew got. WWE shouldn't have let him go. I think I might've been slightly disappointed that they got rid of Gavin Spears and DJ Gabriel. The rest I didn't care much for.

I didn't know Kizarny wrestled in ECW. All I remember is the promos and MVP doing the job for him. (Poor MVP.) Braden Walker's tenure is good for a laugh.

 

[info62]

I didn't know Kizarny wrestled in ECW. All I remember is the promos and MVP doing the job for him. (Poor MVP.)

That's because he didn't wrestle in ECW. The video packages were for Smackdown, poor MVP had to job to him on Smackdown, and then I think he showed up the next week on Smackdown too and then he was gone. Unless I'm having severe memory loss, he was never on WWECW.

Paul Burchill- when Paul first started, he had a career-killing pirate gimmick. I'm not sure if he wanted it or if management wanted it. Either way, Paul couldn't be taken seriously. So, they turn him heel and send him to ECW. It was the beginning of the end for Ripper. He had brief feuds with Yoshi Tatsu and the Hurricane, and that was pretty much it.

I thought Paul Burchill started out on Smackdown, I don't even remember him being on WWECW for very long but I know he ended up on RAW afterwards so I would not lump him in with the rest of the wwecw guys. At any rate I liked Burchill and I wish they had done more with him. I really think it was all the talk about the rumored upcoming incest storyline that did him in

The pirate gimmick is generally considered the time when he was the most over he had ever been his entire time in WWE so I would not call that a career killer. The incest was the career killer imo

Ricky Ortiz- This guy was pushed probably the best out of the already mentioned. However, his in-ring ability was hilarious. He was easily the weakest link between him and Evan Bourne (who turned out to be a little bit of a bust his own). Bottom Line, he sucked ass.

oh my god I remember hating this idiot so much. Waving his stupid hankie thing around in the air like a dumbass. He had nothing going for him whatsoever

I'm surprised my personal favorite to mock was not listed, Colin Delaney. The show was pretty much centered around him and his collection of casts for months. He was highly entertaining for me and he's the one who had the pointless heel turn that SaveUsCMPunk mentioned in the last post. But he had absolutely no potential outside of wwecw so his release was inevitable

 

[Rulk25]

Burchill did as the Pirate he then came to ECW as the Incest Jack The Ripper nutcase and yeah Pirate was over the only reason I can think they dropped it is either Disney threatened them with a lawsuit...or Paul did something to massively piss someone off backstage
I know ECW was "edgy" but what did they bring back Russo for one night only to pitch INCEST as an angle?? I mean short of Necrophilia or pedophillia I think that pretty much high as you can go on the creepy meter for people

I thought Paul Burchill started out on Smackdown, I don't even remember him being on WWECW for very long but I know he ended up on RAW afterwards so I would not lump him in with the rest of the wwecw guys. At any rate I liked Burchill and I wish they had done more with him. I really think it was all the talk about the rumored upcoming incest storyline that did him in

The pirate gimmick is generally considered the time when he was the most over he had ever been his entire time in WWE so I would not call that a career killer. The incest was the career killer imo



oh my god I remember hating this idiot so much. Waving his stupid hankie thing around in the air like a dumbass. He had nothing going for him whatsoever

I'm surprised my personal favorite to mock was not listed, Colin Delaney. The show was pretty much centered around him and his collection of casts for months. He was highly entertaining for me and he's the one who had the pointless heel turn that SaveUsCMPunk mentioned in the last post. But he had absolutely no potential outside of wwecw so his release was inevitable

 

[Robotman]

Referring to a post mentioning Marcus Cor Von, I think it's unfair and inaccurate to call him a bust. For one, he was pushed heavily during his first few weeks until he was placed in the New Breed which benefitted everyone involved except Kevin Thorn and Matt Striker (two who I believe should be addressed in this thread). I bring this up because one of the major angles was the New Breed feuding with CM Punk who had an undefeated streak in singles competition on television. It should be noted that no one, not even the New Breed's leader, Elijah Burke, was able to defeat CM Punk cleanly except Marcus Cor Von on the 5/8/07 taping. Cor Von himself was undefeated in singles competition for five months until Punk returned the favor in the semi-finals of the ECW World Heavyweight Title Tournament. I'd say that isn't too shabby for someone who had been on the roster for less than a year.

As to why it's unfair to call him a bust, we really just don't know the direction of where they were going to take Marcus Cor Von based on the fact he left under circumstances that were beyond his control. It's not like he wanted to leave prematurely in his WWE career, but family comes first. I'd say that differs way more when compared to the likes of Braden Walker, DJ Gabriel, and Gavin Spears who really had nothing going for them when they debuted nor did it seem like they were going to last long anyway. With him having a bit of a streak going for himself, and the fact he was given a chance at the belt, that at least gives a bit of clue that perhaps they had something in store for him, but then again we'll never know.

 

[AAPTSLTS]

Burchill did as the Pirate he then came to ECW as the Incest Jack The Ripper nutcase and yeah Pirate was over the only reason I can think they dropped it is either Disney threatened them with a lawsuit...or Paul did something to massively piss someone off backstage
I know ECW was "edgy" but what did they bring back Russo for one night only to pitch INCEST as an angle?? I mean short of Necrophilia or pedophillia I think that pretty much high as you can go on the creepy meter for people

Actually, rumor has long held that Vince nixed it because he didn't think a face pirate could ever be successful. He was seemingly unaware of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Considering that Vince didn't know Razor Ramon was based on Scarface, I'm inclined to believe this. I personally think Burchill had the most potential. His finishing move looked great on camera. The pirate gimmick was easily when he was most over, and it could have been successful without the meddling.

 

[Aquaman6686]

Kizarny- Believe it or not, I liked Kizarny. Kind of. He had a circus freak gimmick and he actually looked the part. You could recognize him from a crowd of a thousand, something Gavin Spears couldn't do. Anywho, Kiz debuted against MVP in a decent match, wrestled a couple more times, and was eventually released. I'm not saying that he should of been World Champion, but a longer career would of worked.

Kizarny was on SmackDown, not ECW. And he only had one match on TV.

I say the biggest bust of ECW in 2008-2009 was definitely Ricky Ortiz. He was pushed to the moon and had ZERO charisma, ZERO in-ring ability, and ZERO appeal. The fact that his "career" was as long as it was is sad. How Ricky Ortiz even made it out of developmental is one of wrestling's biggest mysteries to me.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I'll throw my thoughts in on some of the guys who have been mentioned in here....


Kizarny
He was on Smackdown, not ECW. Since he got brought up I'll still do an analysis for him. Kizarny had potential. He could have been a good midcard heel as a creepy carnival worker who spoke funny. The promos did well to hype his debut. He defeats MVP during that stupid losing streak angle, and is never heard from again.... Oh well. I wonder what ever happened to him?


Gavin Spears
Who the hell is this? Seriousy. I watched ECW during the New Talent Initiative, yet I legitimately have no freaking clue who Gavin Spears was. That should say everything about how much of a failure he was.


Ricky Ortiz
AWFUL IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD!!!! Ortiz was so bad that he was the type of wrestler that made you ashamed to admit you were a fan of wrestling. Horrible in the ring, boring on the mic, and an entire gimmick based around a "rally towel" the fans were supposed to wave? What were they THINKING? Oh, and let's not forget how they kept mentioning that this guy had been in the XFL. Newsflash, WWE, that's NOT something you brag about! That's something you hide and never reveal! It's almost as if he got his little push on ECW and promotion to the Smackdown brand out of them feeling sorry for him having to suffer through having been in the XFL. His release was one of the best announcements I have ever read.


Braden Walker



DJ Gabriel
Sucked. He had a really strange dancing gimmick that ended up being more beneficial for Alicia Fox than him.


Paul Burchill
I really liked his pirate character and was very disappointed that he did not return in this character for his ECW run. His second persona just seemed so boring in comparison to the pirate. Then there was the incest angle he was supposed to have with Katie, I'm glad that never happened.


Colin Delaney
What a waste of everyone's time. A good portion of ECW in Summer 2008 dealt with his angle of getting sympathy from the fans, only for him to turn heel on Tommy Dreamer and almost immediately get future endeavoured. Why spend that much time on someone just to get rid of them? He had potential with the sympathy angle. At the very least he could have won a Tag Team Championship reign with Dreamer. Give the fans SOMETHING, otherwise it's a complete waste of time. I legitimately wanted to see him achieve some type of success.