The ECW video started things up followed by Joey Styles pumping up ECW in Madison Square Garden and you can tell he's beside himself to be in the arena. Paul Heyman, flanked by the Basham Security Brothers, then made his way out to cut a promo that he's probably waited years to cut. He hopped in the ring and talked about how he, the prodigal son, the messiah, and the savior of the wrestling industry (can't argue with that one too much), has arrived in the hallowed halls of Madison Square Garden. He then asked everyone out there if they realize they are part of history this evening as they have all come in the world's most famous arena to witness the ECW flag flying hall in the Garden after all the sacrifice and hard work. To say Heyman is happy about being in the Garden is the understatement of the year. Heyman then put over Madison Square Garden saying how there was no bigger place to a kid growing up in New York and with all humility aside, he'd like to thank...himself for achieving this milestone. Of course, tons of jeers were then directed at Heyman and I have to admit, I thought he'd break character for a bit and thank the fans. Heyman then flipped out and went off on the fans saying it's their fault ECW went out of business five years ago as he listened to them demand more Sabu, Rob Van Dam, Sandman, and Tommy Dreamer and it got them nowhere. I can actually sense some truth in the promo which is making it so much better. Heyman then said he listened to himself, because he knows better than they do, and he made compromises (another understatement) with Vince McMahon to take ECW to a global platform and they are now in the Garden. He then told everyone in the arena "you're welcome" for his hard work and ingenuity. He said this was all his idea, his concept, and his ECW and tonight, it will grow even more when Big Show comes down the aisle.
Of course, mentioning Big Show's name is going to bring out the guy who wants to kill him and thus, Sabu makes his grand entrance slamming down a chair to show he's on for tonight. Heyman freaked out from here and was astounded that Sabu would interrupt him in the Garden and he laid down the law: if Sabu touches him, he'll pin him in the middle of the ring like he did two weeks ago. Now, what kind of bad-ass babyface would let a line like that go? So Sabu charged at the Basham Security Brothers and took them out with a chair. He then hopped into the ring to take out Heyman with a weak spear before the Bashams caught up to him and took him down. Sabu got the upper hand though and nailed two big chair shots to each of them and then a top rope Arabian facebuster to one of them to stand tall in the ring. Sabu then stood on the chair staring down at Heyman victorious, but Heyman wasn't done and informed him that he really "stepped in it" and he's going to pay the price a giant way as it will be him and Big Show in an Extreme Rules Match for the ECW Title, which is the first time it's ever been defended in the Garden. The crowd popped huge for that; the crowd cares more about ECW than they did RAW. I don't really see the logic in that though as that's exactly what Sabu wants, but they don't give me much time to think as Sabu hit a triple jump splash to the Bashams and stood victorious. Pretty good opening segment and it actually got me amazingly pumped up for the rest of the show. After that, Styles, still beside himself, pumped up Rob Van Dam Vs. Hardcore Holly next and we went to a break.
Commercial break number one leaves me hoping Vince McMahon will one day learn to do a promo and a opening segment like Paul Heyman. I swear, it takes Vince fifteen minutes to do what Heyman can do in three.
Rob Van Dam Vs. Hardcore Holly
Hmm, not a bad match, but not that much else. RVD didn't wait one second and went after Holly as soon as the former Tough Enough trainer rolled into the ring with kicks and rights. Holly fired back with two kicks and a big RVD chant breaks out. Seriously, I feel like people here paid to see ECW, not RAW. They could literally have cared less about RAW. RVD rolled off a back body drop and hit a standing head scissors followed by a nice side step kick for the advantage early on. He then charged at Holly, but the veteran back body dropped him over the top rope and then hit a pescado to RVD on the outside. RVD recovered and used the barricade to do a moonsault, but he overshot it and the two cracked skulls. What could have been a potential nightmare was actually kind of saved as Holly took control of the match like it was supposed to happen and followed it up very nicely. Holly's not someone who would make a "Best Of..." list for anything in my opinion, but he was in rare form tonight while RVD just couldn't seem to get anything going. Holly rolled RVD into the ring and hit two leg drops for a two count and then used the ropes to hang up RVD and take shots at RVD's sternum, following up on what hit the outside floor hard. Holly then hung RVD up on the middle rope, but RVD made a comeback after a big chant broke out for him.
Holly then nailed a big dropkick and it's been all Holly since the botch leading me to believe that RVD might have been knocked off his game with the botch. Holly got a two count and then hit a scoop slam allowing him to go up top for an elbow drop, but RVD got his foot up and hit Holly's head. They botched this too as they mis-timed it and RVD's leg looked like it hyper-extended. It was not RVD's night tonight despite the fans being 100% behind him and more so than most on RAW. RVD then hit two weak clotheslines and then his step over windmill kick followed by Rolling Thunder to a big pop. RVD then finally started recovering from earlier as he hit a very nice & crisp monkey flip from the corner. From there, the two went back and forth and RVD went for the top rope side kick, but Holly hung him up to dry, crotch-first. Holly climbed up top and went for a superplex, but RVD punched his way out and set him up for the Frog Splash. Before he could nail it, Stevie Richards (did I miss something?) and Mike Knox ran out causing RVD to nail Stevie with a top rope kick and Knox with a windmill. Test then ran in, locked in the Full Nelson, and followed it up with the slam for good measure. This was all it took and the ref called for the bell giving RVD the victory via DQ. Not a bad match, but probably would have been better without RVD having an off night. It's understandable though and with the time they had, they did a decent job.
Winner: Rob Van Dam
Star Wrestler: Hardcore Holly
RVD definitely had an off night here, but Holly was right there to pick him up and guide him through the match as he got his confidence and swing back. I don't think I've ever seen Holly take control of a match so visibly before and show off his veteran skills so much. It impressed me very much, but I really doubt he'll follow up on it. Holly's the type of guy I feel could be a very good worker, but just doesn't capitalize on his good performances like he should.
After the match, they did a four-on-one beat down with Richards & Knox holding RVD and Test & Holly trading blows. Sandman's music then hit and Dreamer and the extreme Icon came out through the crowd to clean house with Sandman knocking everyone out with the cane. He then lined up Stevie for a big one and nailed him in the gut with Dreamer following it up with a DDT. To give the fans what they paid for and show he's okay, RVD then got on top and hit a big, great frog splash which looked like it had a lot of impact as he popped off hard after landing.
Styles then pumped up the good start to their first ever show in the Garden. Tazz piped in and the two then pumped up the main event as the faces cracked open some beers in the ring with Sandman doing his normal stick. They showed a recap of the Sabu-Show rematch from three weeks ago with Sabu not caring if he got DQed, taking out Show with the chair first & then the ring bell, and ultimately putting him through the table. They were basically building it up how it could be Sabu's night tonight as he's got the rules on his side and has the champ's number. I seriously doubt they'd do a title change tonight, but they are doing a good job of building it up.
Commercial break number two has RAW and SmackDown! wishing they could have people enjoying their shows as much as this.
Back from the break, the same Marine package from the night before aired which was basically just Robert Patrick and John Cena talking about the movie and putting each other over. Again, Robert Patrick definitely makes the movie sound more appealing, but I still don't want to see it nor do I know anyone who does. Poor Styles then had to pump up the movie and he then thanked everyone for watching as CM Punk made his way out to a pretty sweet reaction and Punk was visibly happy as ever to be in front of this crowd. The Reject then made his way out and they showed the poser/slap segment that led to this match.
CM Punk Vs. Shannon Moore
Another good Punk squash here. Moore got into Punk's face to start it off and then slapped him down and jumped on him with rights, elbows, and everything else. He then picked him up and went for a Tornado DDT, but CM threw him off and got Moore into the Anaconda Vise on the ropes. Punk then broke the hold and nailed his springboard clothesline followed by the scream of, "What's my name?" When the ECW crowd catches onto that, the reaction is going to be amazing. Won't happen for at least a few months though sadly. Punk then hit a back kick and then started laying into Moore's gut with tons and tons of knees as a humongous CM Punk chant broke out. That should awaken those who said Punk would never get over with a big crowd. Punk then hit his knee strike in the corner followed by the bulldog, the chop/kick combo, the side-slam (it's not a Ura-ange, damn it), and the Anaconda Vise for the win. Another good Punk squash here, in my opinion, as he looked a lot crisper and more focused since it was the Garden. However, Punk hasn't got much more of these squashes left in him. You can only do the same sequence of matches so long before they lose their novelty nowadays (key word being nowadays). It shouldn't be too hard for Punk to mix it up and find a new formula for a while before he starts having longer matches. It's CM freakin' Punk!
Winner: CM Punk
Star Wrestler: CM Punk
CM Punk is amazing. From IWA-MS to ROH to OVW to now, the guy is on fire and I don't care if you say he's overrated or whatever. The guy is amazing and I've seen him in amazing match after another. His feud with Brent Albright (Gunner Scott in WWE) is still my pick for feud of the year so far (though Albright's WWE run didn't do anything to back me up on his skill at all) and he's lighting up everything on fire. I can only anticipate when he branches out and does longer & better matches in ECW.
After the match, Punk made his way out to the crowd with a smile from ear-to-ear showing his elation about not only getting over in Garden, but shutting up the critics. After that, Rene Dupree was shown getting ready in front of the mirror as he said it's a big night tonight for it being in the Garden and having Big Show Vs. Sabu, but it's also a big night because the long awaited debut of the most extreme athlete in ECW history is next. And who is that athlete? Rene Dupree apparently. I think you'd get shot for saying that in the old ECW arena.
Commercial break number three still leaves one thought lingering: CM Punk rules. Don't agree? Too bad.
Coming back, the FBI apparently agrees with me as they were congratulating CM Punk on his win. Kelly Kelly then jumped on the bandwagon and came over to offer her congratulations and flirt with the Punkster a bit. She said she's a big fan of his, an exhibitionist (nah, really?), and would love to go to a wild & crazy New York nightclub, but she's only 19 so that means they can stay in. This all sounded very appealing to Punk by the looks of it and why wouldn't it? I just wonder what Maria has to say about all this. Mike Knox then plowed through pulling Kelly away and walking through Punk looking pissed. How is this girl still his girlfriend? Seriously.
The vampires Kevin Thron & Ariel then made their way out to get a front row seat so they could watch their current "rival" Balls Mahoney take on Rene Dupree. Hmm, I wonder if they will get involved?
Rene Dupree Vs. Balls Mahoney
This was more along the lines of Holly-RVD earlier. A decent short match. From the get go, Dupree took it to Balls with tons of rights. Why do seventy-five percent of WWE matches have to start this way? Dupree clubbed the back with some more rights and then tried to shove him into the corner, but Balls countered, threw him into the corner, and then did the ever-popular Balls punches. He then tossed him into the other corner and went for the wind-up Balls punch, but Dupree ducked out causing Balls to crash and burn. Dupree then hit an elbow off the first rope with Tazz delivering the best line of the night right afterwards: "That's extreme?" You could say that about the majority of your matches, bucko. Dupree then hit a big kick to the back of Balls for a two count followed right up with another kick, this time straight to the face. He then went to the top and hit a twisting back elbow, choked out Balls, and then did the French Tickler to the delight of...no one. He nailed a John Cena-like punch right to Balls' head and after a very brief Balls comeback, Dupree grabbed the hair of Balls and slammed him to the ring hard. As Joey Styles so subtlety stated, you don't touch a guy named Balls' hair. Dupree followed that disrespect up with two open hand slaps right to Balls' face and that was enough as Balls rose up and fired back with a ton of punches and a big spinebuster for a two count. He then laid into Dupree with the Balls punches and then clotheslined Dupree right out of the ring...using his leg while holding onto the ropes. Watch the match and you'll see what I'm talking about; it was a pretty fun spot. On the outside, Balls nailed Thorn with a right and then grabbed a chair as Ariel screamed. The ref grabbed the chair from Balls followed by Dupree grabbing it from the ref and thus distracting him. Thorn then hopped on the apron and laid a kick to Balls knocking him off and right into the steel steps, head first. The youngest World Tag Team Champion ever then went outside, grabbed Balls, rolled him into the ring, and got the cover for the win. Whoopee.
Winner: Rene Dupree
Star Wrestler: Balls Mahoney
For it being Rene Dupree, this was a hell of a lot better than you'd think, but it still doesn't mean I have to like Dupree or give him credit. Balls was the better of the two in this match, in my opinion, but in all honesty, there wasn't much separating the two and with Dupree on the offensive most of the match, it wouldn't be unfathomable to switch the two. You might get a ton of weird looks though.
The vampires looked on in pleasure as Dupree left victorious. Styles & Tazz then pumped up the main event some more and it was time for another break of course.
Commercial break number four still has one thought in my mind: CM Punk rules.
Back from break, Matt Striker was shown and he said he's our teacher of course and he's been supposedly teaching Sandman some very valuable lessons the past few weeks. Obviously it wasn't how to work, but then again, no one taught that to Striker. Tonight though, Mr. Striker's very concerned with the fans drinking beer and watching Sandman beat people up with the cane. He said if he looked through Sandman's permanent record, he'd find all sorts of screw-ups. Of course, I'm dumbing down this whole recap so you can avoid the alliteration and big words. Striker then said Sandman brought about some extreme violence with some friends earlier this evening, and, of course, a man is judged by the company he keeps. Striker apparently keeps some interesting & intelligent company, or so he told us here, and he gave us the choice of drinking a beer with the Sandman or coming to class to learn from Matt Striker, our teacher. Decent segment. Striker's got good talking ability, but he definitely needs to work on the gimmick as I doubt it will take him anywhere.
Styles then got pissed off and went off on Striker saying he's only teaching the ECW locker room because he was banned from the NYC schools. He and Tazz then pump up the main event as well as Big Show's match at Unforgiven, which leads us to a recap of last night's RAW main event. I love how Styles said Triple H defied or went against doctor's orders to go into the match. How the hell did Triple H have time to see a doctor in the four minutes in between the beat down and his entrance, especially with Shane McMahon leading him to the ring? After that recap, we got another recap, this time of Sabu's antics at the top of the show. Big Show and Sabu then piled into the ring and Sabu, not looking to waste time, went right out and grabbed two tables to the disdain of the champ and Heyman as we went into the final break.
Commercial break number five leaves me still wondering how you could find time to not only find a doctor, but have him look you over, give you a diagnosis, and tell him he's wrong all while you can barely walk. Think, Joey, think!
ECW World Heavyweight Championship
Extreme Rules
Big Show (c) Vs. Sabu
This was easily the worst of their matches. Big Show just looked horribly blown up and slow, I guess because of having to do this match so often. The match started right from the break with Sabu pelting a chair at Show, who just swatted it away. Sabu then locked up with Show, but Show pushed him away like he was nothing. Sabu then tried a waistlock, but Show did a butt bump out of it and by this point, Heyman's playing the "I told you so" game from the outside. It got incredibly slow from here as Show hit a big chop, a headbutt, tossed him out of the ring so the goons could take it to him, and then he hit two more headbutts. Either Show was hurting or he's just horribly blown up. Neither is a good sign. Show then set up a chair and stomped it to hell to show his power and Sabu came back with some rights and tried to bounce off the ropes only for Show to catch him with a big clothesline that demolished the former ECW World Champ and got a big groan from the crowd. A one handed cover yielded an anti-Show chant and Show followed it up by standing on Sabu, but Sabu got out of it and hit a low blow. Show then hung himself up on the middle rope for a breather while Sabu got a chair and pelted it at Show a couple of times. He then took out the left leg with a dropkick and tried to get the Camel Clutch on, but Big Show maneuvered him into a big Sidewalk Slam. Show then went for a big boot onto Sabu who was by the ropes, but Sabu ducked bringing down the ropes and hanging up Show in a horribly telegraphed spot that showed just how blown up Show was. This is seriously not a good thing even if you hate Big Show.
Sabu got on the top rope and did the RVD top rope side kick to Show sending him to the outside and the match is dragging at this point. The Bashams helped him up and pushed him into the ring as a tables chant broke out. Show gave Sabu a headbutt and then got a table brought in. He set it up and went for the Chokeslam, but Sabu got out of it and countered it into a DDT through the table again in what was a telegraphed spot again. Sabu made the cover but only got two so he grabbed a chair and laid into Show with shots and throws before running at him with it sending Show through the ropes into a table on the outside, reminiscent of the bell shot pushing Show into the table except a lot slower. Sabu then got on the outside and had to fight the goons to get to the Show, but then set up another table. Show got up and went to send Sabu into the post, but Sabu countered it and Show basically walked into the steel post. Yes, he was that blown up by this point. Sabu then set up a table and nailed Show with a chair to make Show lean over the table. He went into the ring and set up for the Triple Jump, but as he got onto the ropes, Show stood up and the two stared at each other before Sabu jumped onto Show who caught him and chokeslammed him through the table. Another horribly telegraphed spot, but what would you do when the guy about to put you through the table is so blown up? The Bashams then tossed Sabu into the ring to Show who hit the cobra clutch backbreaker followed by his leg drop variation for the win. Just a bad, slow match.
Winner: Big Show
Star Wrestler: Sabu
Big Show being blown up aside, Sabu surprisingly didn't botch anything tonight and was pretty good. I think they would have had a completely better match than their other two if Show wasn't so tired in this one. If Sabu had worked this way like he did at Summerslam, that match would have been a lot better. Of course, Sabu did have to tip-toe through this match due to Show so you can't forget that point.
They show a recap of the match's highlights including the triple jump from the top of the show for some reason as Styles and Tazz put over Big Show over big to hype up HIAC this Sunday. The show then went off the air as Sabu was left in pieces and Show stood tall on the ramp with his belt held high.
Overall, I really enjoyed this show even with the pretty bad main event. I'm going to go as far as calling this the best ECW show yet, which really isn't that hard. It narrowly beats out the Hammerstein Ballroom show which had a lot of parallels to this in that it was an amazingly solid show with a horrible main event. This main event was easily better than Batista-Big Show and I definitely enjoyed the rest of the show a lot more. So yeah, this was a pretty good show even with the main event factored in and easily better than RAW the night before. It's nice to see ECW with structure now as far as where things are heading and the E making new stars and building up old ones. ECW is definitely at its strongest right now and it's easily the best show every week now, but sometimes, that's by default as it's only an hour long so there's less bullshit and bad matches/segments to sit through than RAW & SmackDown! and then it just finds itself tied with iMPACT! But again, I really enjoyed this week's show and I can't wait till next week. Actually, I can't wait to hear Vince's reactions to ECW getting a completely better reaction than RAW.
ECW down and a lot more shows to do before I'm caught up completely. As long as I get through EPW and TNA today (Tuesday), I think I'll be all right. After those two, I got SmackDown!, Heat, Xplosion, Unforgiven, DSW TV, RAW, and maybe some other internet TV shows if I can find them. There was no NWA-VA this week which made me sad, but I'm sure there's something else out there. There always is. Again, I need to plug this as I'd love it if all of you reading this would take the time to check it out. My site has it's annual Hall Of Fame voting up right now and it's literally one of the very few, if the only, Hall Of Fames out there that is completely decided by fan votes! There's a ballot of three women workers, six tag teams, six personalities & promoters, and fifteen male workers up right now and to vote, all you do is pick two, four, four, and ten of those respective groups! For all the information on how to vote as well as to just vote period, just click here now. Thanks! Well, I think I'm going to get started on EPW and then head on to bed so until next time, this is "Squared Circle Reviews" signing off and hoping you enjoy what you watch. Oh, one more time: CM Punk rules (not as much as American Dragon though)!
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