One year ago, I let some of my web colleagues in on the fact that I took it upon myself to review the current iteration of ECW to myself for all the things they did right and wrong. I felt that it was something that should have been talked about on the whole because a major occurrence was happening. For the first time ever, a defunct major wrestling organization was being unearthed to be a brand under another major organization. ECW went from rebel organization to a shell of itself, controlled by the WWE. There were many things that happened on this version of ECW, some good and some bad. I felt that the ills had to be discussed, as well as the potentially good. They respectfully stated that I should take my act to the Internet and blog about it. I was skeptical at first because I wasn't sure anyone would want to read what I had to say. It's been one year and I managed to get 3 followers, and some key comments about what I had to say, not even including all the things I thought of prior to this. So, to say I'm satisfied with the support and the feedback is an understatement. So, to all my fans and readers, I want to say "Thank you" for all of your wonderful support. I'm doing it all for you as well as me. I welcome all types of feedback. That said, to all my detractors, if any, thanks for your lack of support. Criticism is a great thing. It helps me to improve my style. On that note, I'm going to take you back down memory lane on what I thought were my favorite pieces of work since my inception. After I let you all know what I liked: feel free to comment away on what you liked, be it here or anywhere else I can see it. Ok, here goes:
-The revolving door of releases: This was my very first one. I just found it odd how the WWE fired a great amount of superstars that might or might not have been in ECW for the long run. The sad part was that their firings while appearing on ECW failed to help ECW on the whole, and it hurts the WWE on the whole creatively. It was a solid start, to say the least.
-The Miz and Morrison, part 1: This was the blog I wrote about the Miz and John Morrison as a tag team and their future. It was the first of many blogs about these two because they, for the most part, were the best ECW had to offer. For two guys with little wrestling experience to step up and be major stars is unreal. However, the future has to be considered when you have two wrestlers doing this well (I didn't write the whole title b/c it was too darn long. Lazy, I know).
-One was Tommy....who lived by himself: I really put my heart into this one because it was the most evident truth about Tommy Dreamer and ECW to this date. Without Tommy, there is no ECW. But, without ECW, Tommy has nothing. It's a give-take situation where both the WWE and Tommy need each other virtually equally.
-The Tales of the Tape: When I came up with these ideas, my central thesis was that ECW was the WWE's weapon to destroy the competition at the grass roots. So, I decided to compare this version of ECW to WSX, TNA, and ROH on the only manageable areas possible. I still, to this day, stand by what I say, but with every day coming and going, things can and are changing.
-ECW: The killer of grass roots: This was my final summary of the "tales of the tape". I felt that this had to be said only because it was ringing true, with every move that was made. ROH stars making their careers on ECW, TNA stars making the exodus to this brand, and WSX was done within a span of a month to two months. The WWE used ECW to bury TNA stars, promote ROH stars, and outperform WSX, if at all. ECW had the leg up on all of them. It's a pretty dirty business.
-Matt Hardy, ECW champion: the best he'll ever do: Yea, folks. I had to mention Matt Hardy, because as a Matt Hardy fan, it was a sad piece of news to talk about. He has more wrestling ability and even more passion than his brother, Jeff, but never got over. I even mentioned people that, like Matt Hardy, were built on passion and not crazy gimmicks, but great wrestling. If you're a Matt Hardy fan, you have to understand where I'm coming from.
-ECW has some....swagger: What can I say? I love the big doofus! Swagger was a perfect combination of wrestling and power. He was a big guy that could wrestle. I love to see him wrestle and perform. I did so much that I suggested what to do to keep him in the WWE. He really can be the future of the WWE, if not ECW.
-Reader Appreciation Day: Marv Hermanstyne is one sharp dude when it comes to wrestling. He knows his stuff, and like me, was just too frustrated with what ECW brought to the table, if not happy with what it did right. So, I gave him the chance, as well as anyone else who wanted to step up to analyze anything on this version of ECW and he did a great job. If anyone is interested, step up this year. Maybe Mr. Vardy will have something to say....
-ECW's Team Extreme: Then and now: This struck me as kind of interesting only because I remembered the shirt, and I thought about this version of ECW and asked myself who could stand out as the representatives of ECW. Sadly, who was available did raise some questions..
-ECW: The new breed unleashed...reborn: This blog was a challenge of sorts to the new ECW to be better than is and better than it has been. It can make those high ratings if they followed the right path. Did it work? Has the changes been made? Hmm....
-Miz and Morrison: blog 2: I loved this one because there were a lot of people who thought the Miz and Morrison were an awesome tag team. I was one of them. But, there were those who honestly thought they were the best in 2008, like the WWE said they were. Quite honestly, I had to question this because, well, the WWE hasn't done decent tag wrestling in years. As to who I chose to help with this questioning is worth reading about.
-Rallying for Ricky Ortiz: Why did I post this here, knowing how much I hated the character of Ricky Ortiz? I did because I felt that Ricky could be better than this poorly booked version of himself. I hoped that the WWE could do better things with his character. Sadly, I was wrong, but I still think I made some good points.
-The incomplete era of Jack Swagger: I honestly feel and felt that Swagger needs a manager. In fact, I think a handful of decent singles wrestlers who are heels can use managers. Take the pressure off for mic skills, enhance your heel status, and wrestle with someone watching your back. The art of managing doesn't have to be as lost as tag team wrestling...
-Miz and Morrison, blog 3: Yes. 3 blogs about these guys because they were that good. At the time, they appeared on every show. At the time, they were the best stars each show could go to other than their main eventers. I found it very amazing that they made up the backbone of the midcard, and still do, even though they are broken up. They are chock full of potential. However, the fact that they are the backbone also show that the WWE hasn't creatively worked on stars to not have to rely on them so much.
-Jack Swagger's fall from grace: I went on full rant mode here. I could not believe how stupid and short-sighted the WWE could be to bury its potential star for the future. It's common sense: if you want a star to rise, DON'T PUT THEM IN A POSITION TO BE COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT! Was I right? Well, since this match, Swagger lost all his attempts at the U.S. Title, all of his attempts at regaining the ECW champion, and has been on the losing end of his feud with MVP, who is also being wasted on the brand that they now share, Monday Night Raw. Yea, I'm pretty much right...
-Tommy Dreamer's Zero Hour and Extreme Rules 2008: The greatest night of Tommy's life:
This was the coup-De-grace to my initial blog on Tommy. This was poetic justice for Tommy and quite honestly, I was happy for him. Yea, great things wouldn't have lasted for Tommy, but the fact that he got Vince's attention enough to give him the title again was impressive. Too bad he doesn't have his attention anymore
-Christian, blogs 1 and 2: These were my last favorites due to the amount of work I put into them. Christian was now the new face of ECW. He was a big fish in a small pond that deserved a big fish or two. He was back in the WWE, commanding ECW. So, he didn't have much to work with, but he could make it work if need be. Currently, he's seen as a top star who can work with anyone that comes along, like William Regal. So, ECW has a great star in Christian to rely on, as they did with Matt Hardy, CM Punk, and RVD. Still, he does deserve to be on much more prestigious brand.
Those are my favorites. I hope to hear from you readers as to what you liked specifically. So, feel free to comment away about your faves, your thoughts, etc. I'd love to hear from you.
Tune in for the next few weeks when I cover the United Nations of Pain (William Regal's faction of himself, Vladimir Kozlov, and Ezekiel Jackson), and the pros and cons of the possible ECW debuts of Bryan Danielson and Nigel McGuinness. Until then, happy anniversary!
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