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Here I am back with my second OWW article. I wasn't really planning on doing another until I felt the inspiration to write the Royal Rumble 1995 recap I mentioned in my last one, but alas, I am here to defend the "new" ECW. And considering the responses I got in both my E-Mail box and on the site, hey, maybe you guys like hearing what I have to say. First of all, let me reference this by saying I am not at all a "new school" ECW fan. I was well aware of, and watching ECW before it came to TNN, before the Invasion angle, before the One Night Stand pay per views. I actually attended an ECW event that was held at a BAR! I'm not kidding. The bar has a volley ball court out back, and ECW just put a ring up over the sand. I was in the front row, and New Jack used my friend's toothbrush in his match. I couldn't make that up if I wanted to.

Now unfortunately, in the mid-90s, ECW was only on TV at 2:00 am on Saturday nights/Sunday mornings in my area. I stayed up as much as I could to watch it, but I was in about 5th or 6th grade. I didn't have access to alcohol to fuel me back then. What I did see, I loved. It was totally different from anything you'd see on WWF/E or WCW. And I loved the WRESTLING. That was what really roped me in. I continued watching until they died in January 2001, and I can list right now my top five favorite ECW wrestlers: Taz, Steve Corino, Rob Van Dam, Sabu, and Lance Storm. The common thread between them all" They can all WRESTLE their asses off. Most of you will raise an eyebrow about Sabu being a great wrestler, not just a high-spot guy, but I defy you to go on YouTube or VSocial and find his matches with RVD or Chris Jericho. Of course they had tables, ladders, and in one case stretches, but there was also a lot of awesome technical work done. Anyway, let's get to it.

Is ECW the same" No. But honestly, did you expect it to be" Half the guys from the "real" ECW are retired. Another good portion are signed to TNA. Plus, we're working under the Vince umbrella. So of course you're going to have to deal with Kelly Kelly. What a name...anyway. Of course you're going to have to deal with inter-brand matches.

The thing most of you forget, is that before WWE bought out WCW and ECW, no one out side of the area of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania even knew what ECW was. It was, in essence, the last regional wrestling promotion alive. Sure, some people in the mid-west or on the West Coast would pick up a DVD, or download a match on their computer, and they knew who Rob Van Dam and Sabu were, but that's about it.

I will say only, give it time. ECW is on a trial period right now. Think of it as a pilot episode of a sitcom. They've got twelve weeks to get SciFi ratings, which, by the way, for all the bitching and moaning, they are BLOWING AWAY any other show on Tuesday nights outside of Rescue Me on FX. And I know me and my friends watch ECW, and then just catch the re-run of Rescue Me that comes on immediately following. Vince has to make sure that this show either gets renewed, or picked up by a better station. That's why you have Ric Flair, The Undertaker, Batista, Kane, etc. appearing on the show. They want to attract the broader fan base that WWE attracts, into this new, "Third brand". They already KNOW that regardless of what crap they shove down our throats, the die-hards will still tune in to see Sabu, RVD, Balls Mahoney, The FBI, The Sandman, etc. etc.

Vince is trying to make sure that ECW can survive. And I believe that once he is sure it has staying power, he will put most of the booking power back into the hands of Paul Heyman. We WILL get more of the "old" ECW once it has been renewed.

And one more thing...I don't really mind the fact that they have made it where there will only be one "Extreme Rules" match a night. First off, it gives those "Exteme Rules" matches more of a special fee. Really, there's no guarantee you'll get a no DQ match on Raw or SmackDown! on any given week. But ECW, you know you'll get at least one. Secondly, we only get what" 4, maybe 5 matches tops in our one hour of ECW" If you got back and watch any ECW pay per view or TV show, 4 out 7 matches used little if any "hardcore" aspects. When you had guys like Benoit, Jericho, Dean Malenko, Austin, Stevie Richards, Little Guido, Tajiri, Steve Corino, there was no NEED to use the chairs. TRUE ECW fans appreciate GREAT WRESTLING. The chairs, and tables, and ladders, and fire, were reserved for the main events, and guys who made it part of who they were: Sabu, Raven, Tommy Dreamer, Balls, Sandman with the cane, The Dudleyz, RVD. Those guys used the weapons to define who they were, to be a part of the storytelling in their matches. But MOST of the ECW roster didn't need that.

So in closing, I'll just say this. Give ECW until September. That's when the contract with SciFi expires. If it hasn't found even PART of its' old self, or if it hasn't at least found a way to incorporate it's "NEW" self in a way that is pretty entertaining by October, then it's time for it to jump the shark.

And by the way, although I haven't loved ECW so far, I have really enjoyed every single Kurt Angle, RVD, Justin Credible, Sabu, Stevie Richards, and CM Punk match. Which is like, 75% of the matches we've seen.

I'm out, send your responses to me at [email protected] or to the OWW address below.

by John Crook ..