Years and years ago, I watched a few clips of ECW on video tapes that a friend had. It was mysterious and exotic as I only had access to WWE programming at that time and what they were doing on the video seemed to be from another world entirely. This was in the days before you could easily access anything you liked through a little magical box in your hand. You had to find someone who had access to stuff like this.
Now, I have access to this on a little box that I have in my hand. Ever since I've had the WWE Network subscription, I've been telling myself that I should treat myself, sit down and watch through the old ECW pay per views, especially as there are under 30 of them. That treat starts today. And having a blog to record my thoughts will motivate me to keep it up. Here we go...
Barely Legal
13th April 1997
Tag Team Championship
The Dudleys (c) v The Eliminators
The event starts out with The Dudleys coming out to a chant of "FUCK YOU D-VON!" and this instantly has a more dangerous feel than WWE programming, even before any weapons have been seen on screen. It's not long before you see some though, with some ridiculous stunts and bumps being featured on the opening title sequence. D-Von is great at riling up the ground with some great abuse clearly setting them out as monster heels straight from the outset. They are announced as undefeated undisputed heavyweight tag team champions and you therefore instantly expect them to run straight over whoever their opposition are.
Their opposition turn out to be a very youthful Perry Saturn and John Kronos. The commentator is so excited with every move it really helps to heighten the mood, as does the small crowd, which I think actually adds to the atmosphere as it feels a lot more intimate and real, especially with the camera being position almost in the crowd so you feel like a part of the action.
The Dudleys are really dominant in the early going and look like they will win it in very short measure but after a few awesome moves and hitting their finishing move, Total Elimination, which is screamed amusingly by the commentator Joey Styles, the Eliminators get the victory. Perry Saturn is really over with the crowd who start chanting his name just before the pinfall. This is a good way to start the match.
Rating: 7/10
We then get a montage of the Sandman using every visual effect technique that they had in the 90s which made me remember my media studies lessons fondly. It goes well with the fact that they appear to have used Comic Sans for the word wrestling on the mat.
Lance Storm v Rob Van Dam
Chris Candido comes out and does a promo before this match, although I'm not really sure why. Lance Storm shakes his hand as he is leaving the arena, and it is seems from this and the fan reaction on his arrival, that the Whole Damn Show is the face in this contest, although apparently he is famous for "having no respect for anybody or anything." And part way through the match the fans are chanting "sell out" at him.
There is a lot more action on the outside and RVD uses a chair quite extensively for some cool moves and uses some of his trademark aerial moves, including a moonsault off the crowd barrier and the frogsplash which doesn't manage to put Storm away. Storm having been taught in the Hart dungeon is great technically, as you'd expect but is aso smart enough to integrate the steel chair into some of his moves which plays to the ECW fans but he gets heat for simply using it as a weapon. The crowd want smarter more innovate violence, clearly.
RVD manages to hit a Van Daminator shortly before getting the victory. Storm hangs around in the ring, offering his hand to RVD. Van Dam picks up a mic and gets the "You Sold Out" chants and his promo shows that he is at the start of a heel turn as large parts of the crowd were still chanting for him during the match.
Rating: 7/10
International 6 Man Tag from Michinoku Pro Wrestling
Great Sasuke, Gran Hamada and Gran Naniwa v Terry Boy Dick Togo and Taka Michinoku
There is the full Japanese feel to this with streamers being thrown into the ring before the match. Michinoku's team are the Japanese branch of the bWo (Blue World Order) which helps get the crowd on their side.
Some of the moves performed in this match are actually ridiculous, especially compared to what we've seen already in this PPV, with these guys being even more athletic than RVD, as well as some moves that just aren't seen in western wrestling. This combined with technical skills, including a number of submission holds make it an exciting match, although there are so many tags it almost becomes a bit too difficult to follow and is just a succession of action.
The pace of the match means that story of this match doesn't develop and unfortunately lets it down a bit, as the action is really awesome. There are about a thousand excellent double or triple team moves which would be great finishers although these guys just keep kicking out. They even have a couple of ECDub moments outside the ring.
Before the match, it is announced that there is a one hour time limit. I had assumed that this was just a formality, but these guys put on what seems like a really long show. In reality it was only 17 minutes, however the speed of it makes it seem like longer as there is just so much packed into it.
Rating: 8/10
ECW Television Championship
"The Franchise" Shane Douglas (c) v Pitbull 2
Douglas shows he is a great heel with the promo prior to the match and the story goes that he had broken Pitbull 1's neck so when Pitbull 2 looks like doing something around Douglas's neck, the crowd get into "Break his neck" chants. At one point Pitbull 1 starts attacking Douglas and the is escorted away by the Riot Squad, who apparently had to be there for "insurance purposes." Pitbull 2 takes part of the crowd barrier and throws it in the ring which is then used by both competitors and there are table spots, brass knuckles, chairs, belt shots and broken bits of table busted over Pitbull's head before the match is out.
This is mainly full of power moves which are often impressive and then a lot of weapons spots towards the end, but the match doesn't come off well in comparison with the matches earlier in the night.
There is a cool moment after the match when Ravishing Rick Rude and the Bulldozer Brian Lee trick Douglas to give him a beating.
Rating: 6/10
Taz v Sabu
The human suplex machine v the human highlight reel promises a lot. Sabu has a bloody nose barely a couple of minutes into the matchup. before putting a chair in the ring to launch himself onto the top rope and then over the barrier into Taz and the crowd. A move that he des or attempts to do a few times during the match.
These guys know how to control the pace of the match well. There are a number of spots which are spread out well and as former tag team partners, they know each other well and have great ring chemistry. It's great to see these guys in their prime when they weren't as well utilised when ECW was bought out by WWE.
I always like it when wrestlers steal their opponents' moves and so when Sabu hits the Tazmission after mocking Taz, it made me smile. Taz hits it himself shortly after and chokes out Sabu as he has done everyone else he's got it locked in on previously.
Taz has a great show of respect and sportsmanship, with a good speech asking to shake Sabu's hand. Sabu returns the respect, raising Taz's hand in victory. This actually makes the match feel even better for me, although the crowd boo.
RVD, Sabu's tag team partner comes it to attack Taz and then the two of them continue the assault on him. This seems to be to further solidify RVD's heel status. Taz's manager then gets in the ring and starts stripping off, as if he's looking to get ready for a fight but then raises Sabu and RVD's hands.
Rating: 8/10
Three Way Dance
Stevie Richards "Big Stevie Cool" v Sandman v Terry Funk
The winner of this will get to face Raven for the ECW championship immediately after this fight. These guys all have their own clearly defined personalities and that makes any wrestling match work really well. Richards is part of the bWo, Sandman is the beer drinking, smoking maniac who beats himself up with a beer can before the match starts and obviously Terry Funk is just the hardcore legend.
The Sandman disappears for a while and throws a ladder into the ring at the other competitors from which the 53-year old Funk does a moonsault and later wears the ladder as he does a helicopter spin. The crowd clearly have a lot of respect for him.
The Sandman vanishes again later in the match for more weapons and teams up with Funk to take out Stevie and eliminate him from the match up before the barbed wire comes out, Sandman wraps it around himself and Funk hits a moonsault to take Sandman out.
Rating: 7/10
ECW Championship;
Raven (c) v Terry Funk
As soon as the bell rings for the end of the previous match up, Raven appears in the ring to start beating up Funk who is busted wide open in short order. Tommy Dreamer, Funk's protege is on commentary and the crowd chant for him to interfere but he had promised Funk he wouldn't so he just stays silent on commentary while Raven continues to pick apart his mentor.
Raven's entourage come out to attack Funk and still Dreamer stays out of the match, that is until Raven gets on the mic but then Dick Dudley comes up behind him and attacks him but Dreamer puts him through some tables just after Raven has taken out the referee. Dreamer hits a DDT on Raven for Funk to steal the cover.
Technically this match isn't great but for the excitement and story telling, it is as good as almost all the others on the card.
Rating: 7/10
Overall
As this was the first ECW pay per view, the obviously made sure that it was good quality from start to finish, putting all of their best guys in it and allowing them to do what they do best. The atmosphere as it goes off air after Funk has won the title is worth the two hours and forty minutes alone. A very 90s show. A very solid show.
Rating: 7/10
