WWE's ECW A Success or Failure?

[Ross421]

When WWE had their ECW brand, they used that brand to debut new talents and showcase ones that they really didn't have time to put on Raw or Smackdown. The question is was the ECW brand a success or failure? An argument for the brand can be that some of the New ECW alumni have become very successful in the WWE. Let's take a look.

CM Punk Current WWE Champion. 5 time World Champion(2-WWE Champion, 3-World Heavyweight Champion) 2 time Mr. Money In The Bank. The best full-time superstar on the mic, produces classic matches left and right, and is the #2 Star in the company.

Sheamus Current World Heavyweight Champion. 3 time World Champion (2-WWE Champion, 1-World Heavyweight Champion) King of the Ring winner, Royal Rumble winner, one of the best workers in the WWE.

The Miz 1 time WWE Champion, a former Mr. Money In The Bank, 2 time U.S. Champion and 5 time Tag Team Champion. The guy can absolutely kill it on the mic and can put on a good match.

The point is, all three(plus many more) of these great current WWE superstars got their start on the ECW brand, and succeeded as a developmental brand of sorts. But the argument against the brand, was that it was nothing like the old ECW of the 90's, which severely disappointed many people, and that the ratings were awful.

So what do you think? Was WWE's ECW a success or failure, and why?

 

[2Sweet_4Life]

CM Punk-The guy who can't main event as WWE champion.
Sheamus-Gets booed by half the audience and is only WHC because he's HHH's boy.
The Miz-Relegated to jobbing to Brodus Clay.

Nothing was good about WWE's ECW. A PG ECW? That's like making the disney channel TV-14.

 

[The Perfect Max]

I think back in 2006, it had the making to be great. I think as the years progressed and the "PG Era" phased in, it lost its "extreme" side and became what Jerry "The King" Lawler has been calling it for years, "Extremely Crappy Wrestling".

I agree, however, about the creation of future stars. CM Punk started off on ECW and is now WWE Champion. OK, so he has only main evented two pay-per-views as WWE Champion, SummerSlam 2011 and TLC 2011, but WWE must have a lot of faith in him to be champion for 250 days. He puts on great matches and has been involved in two really good stories, the one last summer and this AJ one. The Miz and Sheamus are two others that have risen. I think The Miz will be champion again and Sheamus is only going to go up.

However, it was becoming painful to watch. Yoshi Tatsu main eventing ECW. Says it all. Where is he now? I think if the Hurricane becomes one of the center pieces of a show, you know it's gone tits up. WWE lost it with ECW and it became a zone for those who had nothing to do, albiet, Christian, Goldust, Shelton Benjamin and William Regal did shine because of this, but they deserved better.

If WWE had got rid of the Extreme Rules PPV, and added something to the weekly ECW show, such as the main event each week will have an "extreme" stipulation, and if they had bigger stars, maybe even if it was just Rey Mysterio and another higher mid carder, and got rid of the shit they had stored over there, it could have worked.

To answer the question. It was more of a failure than a success, but not on the scale of the XFL. WWE just got lazy and it was their own fault, but now we have NXT, that since it has changed format and left our TV screens, has actually become the home of great entertainment and good in-ring action. Go figure. Not hating, just my honest opinion.

 

[Nate DaMac]

Well it was not as big a failure as the original ECW seeing as it never actually failed, they just decided to pull the plug. It wasn't as big of a show as the others but I thoroughly enjoyed watching some of the future stars of today hone their craft.

I enjoyed it far more than the shit the original company produced.

 

[EastCoastFan]

It's hard to say. WWE had enough people on the roster to support a third brand, but it was doomed the moment they decided to call it "ECW". If Vince had called it anything else, it might have worked better. By trying to relaunch ECW, he created expectations in the minds of fans that he was never going to meet. Fans were expecting it to be just like it was in the 1990's, and it was never going to be that. ECW was anti-establishment, and you can't have that when it's owned by the establishment (WWE).

 

[braveh]

It's difficult for WWE to establish that third tv-show. We watched Superstars get booted this year. The ECW trademark and Paul Heyman was smart move that kept the third show on life-support for a couple of years.

A december to dismember wasn't good and there was a fair share of horrible wrestling on the ECW show.

WWE were smart to pull the plug on the project when the thing went downhill

 

[obamartins]

WWE ECW was a complete FAIL. Go look at the very first 2 ECW ONS buyrates & the first ECW on Sci Fi rating....then look at ratings & December to Dismember PPV buyrate 6 months after WWE had watered it down. Need i say more?

 

[The Great King]

The few years of the new ECW was a success. It started the careers of CM Punk while giving superstars who had nothing to do a chance to shine like Morrison, Miz, Henry, Matt Hardy. Towards the end though WWE didn't care anymore. When they would have good wrestlers on the brand (Bourne, Swagger, Hart Dynasty) they traded them and gave them nothing to do.

 

[kenlow73]

It became just another brand when Vince fired Heyman and took over. There's nothing like old ECW and you can't have ECW without Heyman. The only reason The Old ECW failed was because Heyman couldn't balance a checkbook.

 

[SinCityBlitz]

WWE ECW was a complete FAIL. Go look at the very first 2 ECW ONS buyrates & the first ECW on Sci Fi rating....then look at ratings & December to Dismember PPV buyrate 6 months after WWE had watered it down. Need i say more?

Well if this is true it means that the old ECW was a failure too because those numbers the watered down version that the WWE put out were better than anything the old ECW did. Since it did better numbers than the old by default it has to be considered a success.

IMO it wasn't as good as the old ECW was but there was no way they were going back to that anyway. A lot of guys got their break on ECWWE. I fail to see how anyone can consider it a failure without considering the old ECW a failure as well.

 

[HBKistheHOF]

To steal Ryder's catchphrase...

You Put The Miz and NOT Zack Ryder or Jo-Mo on your list of WWECW "success stories"?!?!?!?!

ARE YOU SERIOUS BRO?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!?!!

The Miz is garbage and was even worse when he was on WWECW, his ONLY skills are on the mic, annoying people and he can't even do it in a solid heel form, on to the next subject.

-I think legistically, the answer is simple. Yes.

It was the only notable existence of ECW since the original died. And even if it wasn't much we ALL know it made Vince & WWE some (fabulous) moolah!!!!

-In terms of future stars, again, YES!

1.) The two most notable accounts of guys who actually started with WWE on the ECW brand are CM Punk & Sheamus, and well golly gee, who are the current world champions? Punk & Sheamus!!!!!
2.) Jo-Mo got WORLDS better in WWEECW along with getting some crap on his shoe along the way called The Miz and bringing it along for the ride.
3.) Evan Bourne got his big break and is now a former tag champion and could always go "higher" hehe.
4.) Christian became a main event talent for the first time in WWE.
5.) Zack Ryder for the first time got to show off some singles skills in ECW.
6.) And even guys like Finlay, Sabu, & Tommy Dreamer started to become top talents within WWE.

-Now in terms of bringing ECW back to life and the WWE form of ECW garnishing any kind of positive legacy....NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Alot of guys will say how Vince never really respected ECW or gave his version any serious thought or concern. The writing was AWFUL, hardly any story development, several older talents always looked strung out and off their game, & alot of the new talent SUCKED! Vince obviously brought in some 2nd string "coaches" for ECW. It resembled hardly anything like the old ECW besides a different set and it didn't do ECW any justice!

 

[Firewall_Philip_Hanan]

FAILURE WWE forced ECW to be a T.V. with less than extreme matches.

 

[Strife3]

There was nothing EXTREME about WWE's ECW. IT was just another brand. WWE would have been better off using WCW for the show. WWE's ECW was anything BUT hardcore. Failure!

 

[obamartins]

Well if this is true it means that the old ECW was a failure too because those numbers the watered down version that the WWE put out were better than anything the old ECW did. Since it did better numbers than the old by default it has to be considered a success.

IMO it wasn't as good as the old ECW was but there was no way they were going back to that anyway. A lot of guys got their break on ECWWE. I fail to see how anyone can consider it a failure without considering the old ECW a failure as well.

Obviously you don't have a clue. First off the orginal ECW on TNN basically used to do the same ratings as WWE's watered down ECW as in a 0.9 to 1.3.

Orginal ECW was competing for market share with WWF & WCW on a limited budget so for you to compare & say WWE's ECW with the resources & infrastructure & basically no competition for marketshare other then TNA they had was better then orginal ECW because they got better ratings (even though they didn't as i stated in aforementioned) shows your lack of knowledge.

Like i orginally stated fans bought the first two ECW ONS PPV's because they expected & recieved an autehtic ecw experience hence why when ECW on Sci Fi debuted it scored a 2.72 rating as people expected more of the same. After WWE had bastardised ECW by then end of the year they were down to a 1.4 rating & December to Dismember was the worst PPV buyrate of decade.

In your opinion WWE's ECW wasn't better then original?...NO SHIT SHERLOCK & that shouldn't even be an opinion it's a fact. Wrestling is about drawing money & as the WWE ECW ONS PPV's proved the authentic ECW drew more then WWE's watered down version.

A lot of guys got there break? who gives flying f**k? CM Punk didn't need WWE's crappy version of ECW to get over. So because some guys like Kingston & Sheamus who still can't draw money debuted on Sci Fi which only a minority of fans watched you deem WWE's ECW is a success? give me a break they could have debuted on anyshow & done same thing.

Original ECW failed but it was actually a compelling product that revolutionized the business. WWE's ECW was just a garbage product (you know the usual camp contrived comedy segments, green cookie cutter jabroni matches etc.) that failed.

 

[Slowdude]

People who say WWECW failed don't understand what was going on. It was clear on the first night of the weekly broadcast that it wasn't going to be "extreme", hell ONS 2006 was a good sign of that. The first year and a half was a failure as they tried to be "extreme" but clearly couldn't be like the original.

So they finally got through their head at the end of 2007 to turn it into a development brand. They brought in FCW talent to see what would work and took older stars onto it to give them a repackage or something to do.

The WWE clearly learned from the late 2007 - its end in 2010 that they could use the third brand as a way to bring in FCW talent. Thus we got NXT. After the competition got old they gave up and finally repackaged ECW/NXT as place where FCW talent truly can appear on a national scale (remember it still airs on TV in allot of countries and anyone can watch it online).

If you look at ECWWE as "extreme" thus a failure you're doing it wrong. Of course it failed to live up to its original name. Instead a new concept eventually has come in as a place where FCW talent can get known at a inter-national level much easier. In that way i'd say the second concept of WWE's ECW as a talent enhancement was a success.

 

[Shades1231]

It was doomed when on what I believe was there first show Sabu gets DQ'D for puttin someone through a table!

 

[HBsam31]

HBKistheHOF nailed it right on. It just depends on how you look at it if it was a success or failure. ECW was honestly not a bad show. I actually think it was better later on after they abandoned the idea of trying to be like the old ECW. The first two ONS ppvs were great, but the tv show was never going to be able to live up to that or the old ECW. No matter what they did it was not going to please fans of the old ECW. I was a huge fan of the original ECW, and I cringed in my chair when the Zombie opened the first WWECW show. As something that was supposed to carry on the old ECW legacy it failed hard. If you look at it from the side of the stars it created then it was a success just for CM Punk and Sheamus alone. It became just another brand, and the third brand at that, but it still gave us good wrestling and created some stars in the end.

 

[Shades1231]

HBKistheHOF nailed it right on. It just depends on how you look at it if it was a success or failure. ECW was honestly not a bad show. I actually think it was better later on after they abandoned the idea of trying to be like the old ECW. The first two ONS ppvs were great, but the tv show was never going to be able to live up to that or the old ECW. No matter what they did it was not going to please fans of the old ECW. I was a huge fan of the original ECW, and I cringed in my chair when the Zombie opened the first WWECW show. As something that was supposed to carry on the old ECW legacy it failed hard. If you look at it from the side of the stars it created then it was a success just for CM Punk and Sheamus alone. It became just another brand, and the third brand at that, but it still gave us good wrestling and created some stars in the end.

If it wasn't gonna carry on the old ECW legacy they should have called it something else ad not hired a bunch of ECW originals.

 

[ProWrestlingFan]

Paul Heyman said it best on Twitter :

Dumbshits who think they can recapture the magic. Some people never learn! Letters don't mean anything. WWE's #ECW wasn't ECW. Any1 can buy letters. Big deal. ECW was based on ORIGINAL IDEAS! It's called "having an imagination." Obviously, trying to be a duplicate ripoff of the past is not "new" or "original" nor "game changing." #ECW was a product of its time.

ECW stood for "Extreme Championship Wrestling". WWE's ECW was nothing "Extreme" after 2006. They should have just called it something else instead of calling it ECW.

 

[HBsam31]

If it wasn't gonna carry on the old ECW legacy they should have called it something else ad not hired a bunch of ECW originals.

I agree with you, and that is what I was saying. It failed in that aspect. Like I said we had a show called ECW with a zombie opening the show. I found it quite ridiculous as a fan of the original ECW. However later on they did succeed as a place to create new stars. By that time though I agree they should have called it something different.

 

[CuddleBuns84]

Well, was any ECW operation really a success? I know I will get some crap for this, but has anyone ever read any of Mark Madden's articles discussing ECW? He points out how ECW was a great product, but didn't bring in that much cash, and the profit was no where.

Fun fact when comparing Heyman's ECW vs. WWE's ECW. When both operations were haulted, the major talent got work with the WWE. I thought that was something funny to point out.

Alright, was WWE's ECW a success or failure? Well, do you see it around anymore? The product was great, but it's not around. Look at the USFL. It was a great alternative to the NFL. In fact, people loved it more then the NFL. The Talent was there... However, it's not around anymore.

So, overall, ECW no matter what. Was a great product, but a failure.

 

[Equimanthorn]

We had a thread on another forum which started partly as a joke on a discussion about that top 25 list of ECW matches from WWE.com that sprouted into a full thread about our favourite WWECW moments and it really changed a lot of people's views on the promotion as people listed close to a HUNDRED outstanding matches from the third brand, with people not realising just how good the brand was.

It was a success in the fact that it produced a consistently entertaining show every week, with some amazing matches, and made a large crop of the current WWE roster into what they are (Punk, Sheamus, Kofi etc.). Yes, D2D was probably the worst PPV of the decade, but ECW the show was a fantastic success, hampered by unrealistic expectation from the fire and blood brigade.

 

[braveh]

I loved Bryan Alvares comment during the end of the ECWWE era. "Not only is it not anything like the old ECW, right now it is not even anything like the new WWE ECW".

As far as direction and branding and reputation it was a disaster. But it had good wrestling and definitely made more sense than Superstars as the third show.

 

[MrAmazing79]

ECW was an intriguing and exciting project at first, but as the WWE began transitioning into the PG era, it turned into a kindergarten.

The first year of ECW was amazing, truly my favorite moments of ECW as we see old ECW stars going hardcore week after week. The original commentators, Joey Styles and Tazz were perfect for any ECW team. I really didn't like the New Breed storyline, but it was at least the main storyline for the young guys.

The second year was okay, but the beginning of the PG transition. The Nitro-Punk feud was excellent and fresh, but once Chavo became champion, it really became boring as all other brand superstars were on the show. It still kept the "extreme" feeling in some aspects.

The last years were just truly a disappointment for every hardcore fan. The high points were probably Christian's championship win and Ezekiel's championship win. Nothing special as it was an awful time for ECW to be on air. I was glad at first that there would be NXT as a replacement, but it was short-lived and truly a part of another thread.

Overall, ECW was a great hype for the WWE, but truly will be known as a faliure.

Fav 5: Punk, Bryan, Rhodes, RVD, Barrett