MikeCampbell

Name one person who left ECW because of this. The vast majority left over money. Either because Paul wasn't paying them or because they'd gotten an offer from WCW or WWF. It's hard to say he cast them aside for not being able to 'go' when Tommy Dreamer was still in a prominent role in the year 2000.

It depends on why I'm watching. If I'm watching specifically to review, I like to be alone. But if I'm just watching for kicks, then it's much more fun to have the guys or my sisters in law around.

And look where Kurt is now . . . .

The closest I can think of in WCW, other than the cage dives, was when he was feuding with Sullivan. I remember once when Sullivan broke a wooden chair over his head, and another angle when he hit him in the back of the neck with some sort of club or stick maybe and broke it (the weapon, not Benoit's neck).

Not that I can recall. Does anyone know when he left ECW? I think the Three Way Dance show in April '95 is the last ECW home video release he was on.

Yeah, he most likely would have. Benoit, Malenko, and Guerrero were brought into WCW through their deal with New Japan. Bischoff had wanted to start the Cruiserweight Division since at least '94 (there were mentions of it in PWI), and he needed smaller wrestlers who could work a faster more exciting style than guys like Flair, Sting, and Luger. They were the perfect fit. They also brought in Sabu around the same time they brought Benoit in, and he was long gone from ECW. Scott Norton was also hired by WCW due to their deal with New Japan, and he never worked ECW.

If by paving the way, you're saying that Benoit first got noticed in the U.S. working for ECW, then you're right. But Benoit had been working that style for years. Benoit, Pillman, and Lyger were taking bumps on exposed concrete during a nationally televised Clash of Champions Special in 1992. Have you read Pure Dynamite? At one point Billington talks about diving off the top of a cage and not even thinking about it until afterwards and then realizing how big a risk he'd taken. If that's the mentality that Benoit's idol in the business had, how can you credit/blame Heyman with him doing that? It's not just Benoit or DK either. Look at Foley in Have A Nice Day, during the IWA KOTDM touny. He was thinking that his wounds, and everyone else's would go away, but the video of the tournament wouldn't

In Beniot's case, I don't think that working that style has anything to do with Heyman. Benoit's idol was Dynamite Kid, who basically made (and ended) his career by taking every risk put in front of him.

I usually just watch the match and then write about it. Sometimes if I don't think I've got enough to say, I'll watch it a second time to see if I notice anything else.

I'm actually a bit relieved that you can't find it. My reviewing style and my analysis has changed a lot since I wrote that in, I think, May of 2002.

I haven't seen the match myself is years, so I can't speak for Gordi's analysis of it (although I'll be watching it soon for my Misawa comp). But I also have to ask the question of why not?

That's every bit as awesome as it sounds.

Umm based on what? The fact that aside from a couple of naughty words and snide remarks, that Bix, SLL, and OJ are all making valid points?

Agreed. But in that same respect, look at The JBL/Blue Meanie incident from the first One Night Stand. The fans' general opinion may have been "screw JBL" but most people in the business looked at it as Meanie being a whiner. Also, the Bob Holly/Matt Capotelli Tough Enough incident. The fellow TE trainess felt bad for him, but both the TE trainers and the workers said that he just needed to suck it up.

Bix, why are you so hung up on the punching thing? I'll agree that punching someone in the ear until they bleed is excessive, but I don't think that punching itself is such a bad thing. It's one of the most common strikes in the business. If you don't know how to take a punch, you're really in trouble. Not to mention that punches very in force depending on who's throwing them. If Matt Bently, who punches like he's knocking on a door trains you for his punches, and you've gotta work against Bradshaw, you're really screwed.

After RAW last night, it's a pretty safe bet. Ashley hasn't been on TV in weeks, and Vince made a comment about the divas and "some kind of escort service."

Johnny Nitro winning the ECW Title that night was one of the most "ECW" things that had taken place since the WWE's resurrection of the name. How many times did the ECW PPVs wind up being nothing close to resembling the card they'd announced. Someone that wasn't even supposed to wrestle that night won the ECW Title. I'm fully aware of the tragic circumstances surrounding it, but it's still a cute bit of irony.

Looks like I'm headed to BN over the weekend, I'll be all over this one.

I remember a lot of people panning Edge/Batista from this show, but it was my favorite match of the night. I thought it was eons better than their match from Judgment Day.

SLL's story about the Headhunters and Jingus talking about what he does on pbp reminds me of that great thread on DVDVR about intent vs. interpretation. I also seem to recall Chris Coey writing an excellent article defining psychology on TSM way back in the day.

RE, If you're talking about casual fans then yes, moves do make the man and the match. But most casual fans won't pick up on many, if any storytelling elements. Look at the early days of UFC. Most MMA or grappling enthusiasts loved Royce Gracie, but the popular fighters were guys like Tank Abbot and Don Frye, who just went there and fucked people up with their hands. It's the same reason they booed the hell out of the Shamrock/Gracie superfight, because it was 30 minutes of them having a chess match and circling each other with very little action. I think the IWGP Title match between Hiroshi Tanahashi and Hirooki Goto is a great display of storytelling. Goto had been mowing down everyone in his path, but then he gave this interview about how much the title meant to him, and they showed a bunch of photos with a young Goto with Shinya Hashimoto and Antonio Inoki, and the crowd was totally behind him. Tanahashi added to that by doing a bunch of arrogant heel stuff and working over Goto's leg a bunch and really getting the crowd riled up. It had zero to do with big moves or anything like that. They reacted because the arrogant champion was being an asshole. Goto started busting out big moves toward the end and the crowd reacted, but not because of his bombs, but because he was finally handing it back to Tanahashi.

I second the love on Piper's face turn. Great stuff. Would Sting at WCW UnCensored '97 count as a face turn? It wasn't so much that he'd turned heel, just that nobody was exactly sure where he stood.

Same here.

Is it true that Stevie Richard faked his neck injury in '97 to jump to WCW with Raven? Wikipedia states that he was fired from for not passing a physical, which makes me think it was at least partially legit.