What made ECW so special? (2006)

Honestly, I could write a book on this subject, so this will probably seem sloppy as all Hell.

What made ECW great? WRESTLING. The athletes, not "sports entertainers", busted their smurfing asses every time. The fans, wrestlers, and staff actually cared about the product and offered an alternative to the crap that was on WWF and WCW. If you didn't watch it back then, you'll never truly understand. To feel the full impact, you had to live it. To see that only alternative...to watch WWF and WCW before they began ripping off ECW. You had to see the dumb, cartoon bullcrap on Monday night, then watch ECW. It was the real deal for anyone that wanted WRESTLING, not entertainment bullcrap. In ECW, wrestling wasn't the theme of some smurfed up soap opera, it was the meat and potatoes of the whole thing. Don't get me wrong, there were some great, powerful storylines. But WRESTLING is what it came down to. The storylines enhanced the wrestling; it wasn't the whole show.

They brought in talent from Japan (though they weren't Japanese) like Benoit, Guerrero, Scorpio, Malenko, etc. and gave them a chance in the U.S. when no one else would. There was also a great deal of diversity. You had your comedy with the likes of Stevie Richards and the FBI, then the drama surrounding the Raven/Dreamer feud, then the great athleticism such as the Sabu/RVD series (also with the classic Malenko/Guerrero bouts), then the raw brutality of men like Cactus Jack, Axl Rotten, Raven, etc. Tag team wrestling was of great importance, unlike WWF and WCW, who phased it out long ago. You had teams like Furnas and Kroffat, The Eliminators, T.P.E., The Pit Bulls, Sabu and RVD, Sabu and Taz, Candido and Storm, The Steiners, Benoit and Malenko, etc. ECW was the first to showcase the Lucha Libre stars such as Konnan, Misterio, Psicosis, Damien 666, etc. Also, Gladiator Mike Awesome and the Head Hunters...I liked that they cooperated with FMW and were open and talked about the other promotions in an age where WWF tried to pretend that it existed alone in the world...And simply, lots of stuff that I don't have time to get into. But certain people made it very special, Raven being my top pick. And of course, I talk about the classic ECW era, 1994-1996. But my first memory, what initially drew me to ECW was a show review in a PWI magazine. I believe it was the first ECW show. Tony Stetson got an upset win over Ivan Koloff, after which the "Russian Bear" took a steel chain and annihilated the poor bastard and the ref. This was what first interested me. Then of course, Cactus, Raven, Taz, Sabu, and the Eliminators totally hooked me.

Enough cannot be said for the diversity. Some idiots would have you believe that ECW was simply a garbage promotion. Not true. There existed more diversity in that little promotion than in any of the others. Strong style, mat wrestling, brawling, barbed wire, high flyers, et cetera. The product was tailored to the wrestlers, not the other way around. No one was neutered, like in WWE.

There was an aura...something magical and special that CANNOT be duplicated. Vince already tried to replicate it with the "Attitude" bullcrap and failed miserably. See, he missed the point then, and he certainly didn't grow to understand it when they resurrected the name.

Even if they could have gotten all of the right guys (including those who are dead, crippled, retired, etc.) it wouldn't be the same. Even if WWE had nothing to do with it, it wouldn't be the same. It was a special moment in time. It's not coming back...Another thing to consider is the dedication of the wrestlers. Back in the day, the wrestlers would give their all and break their bodies because they believed in ECW and what it stood for. How many were willing to sacrifice their bodies for McMahon? ECW was the perfect stage for these men to come in and prove themselves and showcase their talent...