Sunday, February 15, 2009

ECW needs a hero...and Christian is going to give it to them!

Initially, this was going to be about Matt Hardy and his Royal Rumble actions, but his departure from the ECW brand made that impossible. So, I thought of blogging about how ECW would need a new hero now that ECW is without a key heroic figure like Matt, or C.M. Punk, or RVD to help fend off the evils in ECW. You see, wrestling has always been pre-imminently about a good guy versus a bad guy. It always has been and it always will be. Now, in ECW, at least this version, there has been a top star that represents the "heroic good guy" that will sort of be the leading representative of ECW, since a bad guy being a representative is virtually counter-productive to business as well as viewership. When Matt Hardy defected, there were only 6 candidates for the job. There was Tommy Dreamer, ECW's heart and soul from the original days, Finlay, the fighting Irishman, the Boogeyman, the worm-eating freak, Evan Bourne, the high-flying dynamo, Ricky Ortiz, the laid-back, rather ambitious pseudo-slacker, and D.J. Gabriel, the well-built, British dancing machine. After sifting through these possibilities, I thought that Evan Bourne would do a fine job in this role, until this past Tuesday. Jack Swagger wanted to get his hands on Hornswoggle, Finlay's "son". He wanted to hurt that creepy, little, b**tard, but instead got a familiar one that we have all been waiting for. Jack Swagger got Captain Charisma, the host of the "Peep Show", Christian. The hero has arrived.

It was at that instant that I knew who would be the hero that ECW needed to cover for Matt Hardy's departure, RVD's release, and C.M. Punk's promotion to Raw. Christian was going to be the guy to save ECW from the arrogance of Jack Swagger, the domineering power of Mark Henry, the cockiness of the Miz and Morrison, and the brutality of Paul Burchill and his catty sister, Katie Lea. Okay, maybe he can't stop all of them just like that, but just as Matt Hardy was a thorn in some of, if not all of their sides, Christian can and will be the same. Hardy outsmarted the likes of Henry, took it to Miz and Morrison in tag action almost always, and could have beaten, if he hadn't already, Paul Burchill. Can Christian replicate that? Yes, he can. Just like Matt Hardy, he's built himself a cult following that has earned him main-event status before he left abruptly due to contract issues. He main-evented against Batista on Smackdown. That's huge, in my book. But, does he really have the credentials to be that top hero? Well, compared to his fellow heroes, I'd say yes.

Compared to Dreamer, Christian has a leg up only due to his ability. Both Dreamer and Christian are veritable veterans on ECW, and both have attained titles. However, Christian has won more matches than he's lost, unlike Dreamer. In fact, Christian can think like some of these heels. This is something Dreamer couldn't do if he tried, which is why he gets outsmarted and beaten every time. Also, don't sleep on Christian's abilities. He's a very accomplished wrestler. Add that to the seasoning he received in TNA and he's got a great pedigree to him. Seasoning is something Dreamer could definitely use, that's for sure.

As for Finlay, well, Finlay has more veteran instincts than Christian, no doubt. He's even more of an accomplished wrestler. However, this current iteration of Finlay...just doesn't cut it. As a main eventer, who can take him seriously with all the antics from Hornswoggle, let alone his incessant need to use the shillelagh? Once you neutralize either or both of them, or at least show that they have no affect on you, you got him beat. Look at Swagger's first outing against him. He got rid of Hornswoggle, then worked Finlay's arm, and eventually won the match. In fact, when neither came into play against Matt Hardy in a regular match, Hardy still won, head held high, as the then-ECW champion. That's not so consistent as a hero, due to his blatant weaknesses.

The Boogeyman? Well, he's creepy enough, and unorthodox enough, but if you put him against a wrestler that's not phased by his craziness, like say, Mark Henry or Big Daddy V, then the Boogeyman is as scary as a paper airplane drenched in water...not very scary at all. In fact, it's not even a matter of fear if you can weather his offense, force a mistake, and outsmart him. Yea, that's helpful.

As for Evan Bourne, Ricky Ortiz, or D.J. Gabriel, well, the general thing is that they are all new guys. Yes, so is Swagger, but he's already exerted and exhumed his qualities which have proven to be much more effective than these three. Gabriel does not look serious enough dominate or win a match. Ortiz, with all his energies, has shown that his skill is sloppy and somewhat ineffective. As for Evan Bourne, well, for his high-flying and rather amazing style, he's a cut above the rest. But, it's high-risk wrestling. He's one mistake or two away from losing a match. Also, be aware that he's still injured from a high-flying maneuver that he didn't manage well. You can just about count on Christian to do the job right against his opponents.

Yes, I know this little blog sounds like a "We love Christian" rant, but, how can you not go with him over these guys? He's got experience, skill, charisma (obviously), and the battle scars to show that the main event is just a big match away. However, I think one very important aspect of Christian's abilities was the crowd response he received when he showed up on ECW. The crowd cheered him right out of the building. Just like Matt Hardy and even Jeff, he's received that cult status response that is worthy of banking off of. The difference between Matt and Jeff, when dealing with Christian is this: just like Matt, he's a big hit with the 18-34 demographic. This is key for the WWE, as well as ECW, since that is the key demographic that can and will sway the ratings in the right direction. So, inherently, Christian is saving ECW's ratings by attempting to win back these viewers. This shouldn't be very difficult as a number of these fans supported previous heroes like RVD, Matt Hardy, and C.M. Punk. As soon as word gets out that Christian is back in action and on ECW, the WWE can only hope that the ratings will increase.

Oh, no! Jack Swagger is destroying the competition, Mark Henry is destroying everything, the Miz and Morrison are tearing up the egos of their opponents and Paul Burchill is looking to do some damage. This looks like a job for........Christian! His tasks are set before him. He has to be the top ECW star that previous ECW stars were. He has to be the standout wrestler that his fellow ECW faces can only hope to be. He has to save the show's 18-34 year old male viewers from changing the channel . This is quite a task for Christian, even with who and what he has to work with. So, this will prove to be quite a challenge. But if anyone can do it, leave it to Captain Charisma to save the day!

Tune in next week for part 2 of the Christian analysis as we cover how the captain of charisma on the S.S. ECW has quite the lackluster crew to work with, which can be a blessing and/or a curse. Don't miss it!

3 comments:

Mr. Metz said...

Great blog and very true! Christian is gong to turn ECW upside down along with the newer talent and possibly save the show. That salvation might even turn into a 2 hour show if they don't keep jumping guys off ECW as soon as they get popular.

The Prodigy said...

Thanks, David. That's the only concern: the amount of talent on the show that may or may not disappear, Christian included. Keep an eye on that WWE Draft.

marvo421 said...

I disagree with Metz...I don't think the talent base will make it a 2 hour show. Christian's impact has made the show watchable but if they devote this show strictly to cruiserweights such as TJ Wilson, Bourne, etc. Then the main event picture of ECW could be with Christan or whoever they decide to bring over via the draft....