Tuesday, November 3, 2009

ECW: love it or leave it...

Sheamus, formerly of ECW fame, has made his debut on Monday Night Raw, 2 weeks ago by destroying Jamie Noble in a match. He did it again this week while during the match and even after the match, proving his dominance once again. Between those two matches, he got even with Shelton Benjamin and defeated him on his last ECW match before completely going to Raw. However, on the ECW side of things, what really mattered was the internal feelings about the move. When asked by Abraham Washington on his show, ECW G.M. Tiffany made it clear that if a person did not want to be in ECW, they could leave. No questions. No fuss. Just leave. Now, where have I seen this type of bravado before, when dealing with ECW? Oh yes, from Paul Heyman. Funny how things remain the same, the more things change.

Paul Heyman controlled ECW from 1993 until its last show in 2001, putting together at most 7 years of incredible, ground-breaking wrestling. There were compelling storylines, well-wrestled scientific matches, incredible promos, innovative characters, and some of the most violent wrestling you would see in the United States since the days of the Shiek and "Classy" Freddie Blassie. Paul had no problem taking in stars who needed exposure, experience, and just a place to work, but when the topic of leaving ECW ever came up in a convo, Paul made it clear that he wasn't going to try to compete with WCW or WWE's money or offers. If you wanted out, then go. Apparently, it holds true for this iteration of ECW as well. I just never thought it would be said, mentioned, or even considered. Also, instead of jumping to different companies, it's about jumping to different brands. So, I guess Sheamus figured that there wasn't enough on ECW to conquer that was worth conquering. The ECW title wasn't enough. The remaining competition wasn't enough. It had to be the greener pastures of Raw that would be enough to satiate the needs of the Celtic warrior. Either that, or Triple H's influence, but that's another story...

So, if ECW isn't enough for certain stars, why is it that certain stars we would love to see succeed on other shows like they would deserve to, don't consider the same thing? Why is it that some of the most skilled stars and veterans on ECW don't take it upon themselves to do so? The easy answer of course, is backstage politics. But, if that wasn't even a factor, why not have some stars just up and leave? Is it because they stretched out their chances on the other brands? Is it because they are biding their time until they are ready to burst onto the scene elsewhere? Whatever the reason may be, I have a few stars in mind that should just up and leave ECW with the talent they have and try to make a run on Raw or SmackDown. In fact, I only know three stars.

First, there's the Hurricane. The Hurricane has the wrestling credibility to be a big time high-flyer on SmackDown, let alone a great singles wrestler who utilizes ground-based moves. If this hasn't been proven, just look back to his singles matches with Matt Hardy when he used his alter ego, Gregory Helms (or so it's believed to be his alter ego...wink wink). They had some of the best midcard matches on SmackDown at that time. Helms proved he could hang with bigger stars, and had some crucial maneuvers that could secure him victory against bigger stars, be it bigger in star value, or bigger in size. I remember Helms defeating Rosey, a 300+ lb Samoan superhero sidekick, with a well-place "Shining Wizard" to the side of his head. It's the wrestling knowledge that Helms acquired through his tours of Japan and such that has polished his wrestling style extensively. As it turns out, the Hurricane has the exact same skill set and expertise. If we are seeing stars like Morrison, the Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Evan Bourne, and even Kofi Kingston who have comparably the same size as the Hurricane along with the charisma (if not somewhat lacking for some of them), utilize their skills against stars their size and caliber as well as stars beyond those limits, why not the Hurricane? Is it because he's a tired act? Is it because he's not as sharp as they are? Or is it because he never had that opportunity nor deserved it?

Second, there's Shelton Benjamin. Say what you will about his expertise, his style, his attitude, or whatever, but you can't take away the fact that he is the best pure athlete in the WWE today. He has the speed, the agility, and the athleticism to go very far in the WWE. He is cut in the same mold as that of the aforementioned stars, but has the ring experience they do not in the WWE (with the exception of the Hurricane). He would and should be a star looking to leave for greener pastures and ply his trade on another brand. However, with his track record looking less than stellar on those shows, due to his rather stagnant title runs, his go-nowhere storylines, and even his lack of....well, whatever he was told he was lacking, it wouldn't be prudent to take another risk like that. Regardless, if anyone should be taking that risk on ECW, it's definitely Shelton.

Last and definitely not least is Christian. About 11 years ago, he debuted in the WWE. He went from promising cruiserweight, to Gothic sensation, to incredible tag team wrestler, to charismatic new sensation, to midcard star, to proven commodity, to big fish in another organization to returning veteran looking for a big run to ECW champion. The biggest question on everybody's mind was this: why didn't he return to a more prominent brand? Yes, we might know the answers. However, if you take out that part, you get to thinking about the true answer. Christian stated he wanted to become ECW champion. Ok, well you've done that. Isn't it time to step up your game, or is being a big deal in a small place enough for you? Christian should and would be that upcoming star in whatever title pictures you consider on Raw or Smackdown. Would it have been he battling the Undertaker instead of C.M. Punk? Would it have been he doing battle against Punk or Jeff Hardy? Would it be he that is next in line for a shot at the WWE title? We may never know at this point. Or at least, we won't know as long as he is content to be on ECW.

Tiffany made it short and sweet: if you don't want to be on ECW, then leave. Guess what? There are at least three stars that we would love to see leave ECW and continue their runs or success elsewhere. Christian, Shelton, and the Hurricane are all capable enough to gain some ground on whatever show they go to. In fact, they probably have. However, numerous setbacks prevented them from ascending. It ranged from general malaise towards the job, forcing them to look elsewhere, or even a general lack of interest in doing more with one's career. How did they find solace? By heading to ECW and re-focusing their careers. I say, the time for re-focusing is done. They've gained their focus. They have the tools necessary to be more than they were before. They can make the jump and it wouldn't be a problem. However, the WWE doesn't see it that way. Sadly, they don't either, so leaving ECW isn't in the cards now or maybe forever.

It's the new version of ECW. Like the original ECW, you either love it or leave it. Christian, Shelton, and the Hurricane might not love it, would probably love to leave it, but can't due to the same problems they had before coming there. Since this is the case, they have no choice to stop "loving to leave" ECW and start loving ECW as it is. However, since the quality of ECW has been better than Raw's or Smackdown's, despite terrible ratings, I wouldn't consider leaving ECW either. Sometimes, it's good to be with that growing expansion team for a while, then that high-priced team that doesn't go anywhere for the most part.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

You make some good points here. My big problem with Sheamus is he really DIDN'T fight anyone during his time on ECW. Goldust, Shelton, and some jobbers. Then he goes to Raw and fights... Jamie Noble? What's up with that? I would of liked to see him fight Christian at least once before he left.

The Prodigy said...

That's the general problem with ECW. The talent roster is still spread way too thin. Beating stars would be hard to come by. If he had beat Christian, it would have made an impact. But, what would that have done for Christian? I don't know. It seems for every smart thing you can do with stars in the WWE, there's a slew of not-so-smart things. Just expect Sheamus to go somewhere because he caught the eye of HHH>