ECW review: merged brands debut with curious booking
In case you haven’t heard yet….. WWE made the decision to merge the ECW and SmackDown pro wrestling brands together. They are hoping for a boost in ratings and better feuds. How did the night of the merge go? Well read on to find out…. I am The Eagle and this is your ECW review: We start off the night with John Morrison pleading his case to face C.M. Punk (pictured, left) at Cyber Sunday for the ECW title. Of course this brought out The Miz and Big Daddy V who also pleaded their cases. Ok, I see why Big Daddy is in the contention but where is Tommy Dreamer? And who did Miz beat to deserve a shot at the title? At one time I really enjoyed the ECW title picture but right now it is a mess. I like having Punk as the champ but if rumors are true Morrison will get the votes and once again reign as champ of the Land of Extreme.
The ECW champ interrupted the argument over who should get the votes and announced that he got to pick his partner to face off against all three of his potential opponents at Cyber Sunday. He said his partner didn’t have to be from the ECW roster but just had to be a WWE superstar. That’s when the arena exploded in flames and out came the Big Red Machine Kane. Here is the first sign of the merger. Most of this match consisted of Punk having his injured ribs worked over. This is probably how they are going to justify Morrison defeating Punk for the title. This is simply a guess; I have no knowledge of who will win at Cyber Sunday. Kane pinned the chick magnet Miz to get the victory. (The Eagle is still baffled over Miz being in the title contention) Kane and Big Daddy V exchanged blows with either man getting the upper hand in the end. Looks like this is the first feud to come out of the “business” deal between SmackDown and ECW. I don’t blame the creative team for this move because they needed someone to compete with Big Daddy V. I’ll give my thoughts of the merger later on here.
Jesse and Festus made their ECW debut facing off against Elijah Burke and Nunzio. Once again some confusing booking. First isn’t Nunzio a face? And how did Burke go from being in the main event for the ECW title to jobbing to a tag team? Anyway . . . Balls Mahoney became one of the luckiest guys in the world. While being interviewed about his feelings of the Kelly Kelly situation….she appeared and asked him out. No, your eyes are not deceiving you. Kelly Kelly, one of the most beautiful women on TV likes Balls. (Just couldn’t resist, folks) . . . In what everyone calls the “Battle of the Egos” The Miz faced John Morrison in the main event. Not a bad showing between these two. There is no doubt they both possess speed which always make an interesting match. It didn’t last long as Big Daddy V came down and gave a beat down to both competitors.
ECW results for Oct 16/2007
ECW Champion C.M. Punk & Kane def. Miz, Morrison & Big Daddy V.
Jesse and Festus def. Elijah Burke & Nunzio.
John Morrison vs. The Miz ends in a No Contest
The Eagles Grade C+
An average show by The Eagle’s standards. The addition of Kane really helped things out. The booking didn’t make any sense and The Miz in the title picture cause ECW to lose some creditability. The merger could work out if they are able to define feuds well enough. Lets face it…WWE’s ECW will never live up to the standards of the original ECW. Its impossible. Did WWE put all the had into it? No they didn’t but this bird never expected them to. This could be the beginning of the end for ECW and that’s the fact. They still have a contract with Sci Fi that they have to honor but that wont stop them from completely combining both brands.
- The Eagle
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