[2000-07-21-ECW-Decatur, IL] Steve Corino vs Rob Van Dam

[soup23]

I like house show RVD. He has less time to mug for the camera. UNfortunatly, it is kind of sad to see how much of an after thought Corino is here as he works over RVD well for a bit with RVD selling his back but then RVD starts his comeback and just steamrolls through all of his chair offense that I am not a big fan of and wins with a 5 star frog splash. I get the notion of sending the fans home happy and this was a generic house show but I would have liked to see Corino as more of a threat given how strong an asset he has been for the company overall. *** (5.9)

[Migs]

RVD's entrance at this point is Sandman-length without the fun sing-a-long and beers.

 

Truth telling: "He's going to set him up for some type of kick. He loves to kick." - Fonzie

 

The opening part is fine, although mostly Corino working the standard Van Dam match. The match picks up a bit with Corino on offense, although it's nothing particularly exciting. Work-wise, Corino is better as a face, where he can work from underneath. A lot of his better offense here is the comedy (like the chair -> chinlock spot). As a result, he never really feels like a threat here, although that was a problem for a lot of guys against RVD at this point. The spots with Fonzie and Jacko towards the end are cute, and a nice use of the two managers. RVD gets ALL the spots in for the finishing stretch. Good enough for a 2000 RVD match, I guess.

[GSR]

Corino does his best to try and quieten the “R-V-D” chants but that only makes them louder.  Move, pose, move, pose, you know how it is with Van Dam.  Jack Victory’s interference provides the distraction that Corino requires, as while he’s going at it with him on the outside, Corino nails him with a baseball slide dropkick before the two team up to clothesline him over the guard rail and into the front row.    He picks his shots while the fans do their best to rally Van Dam.  Nice superkick for a two.  Victory lobs him a chair which he teases cracking RVD over the back with, but instead sits down on it and applies a rear chinlock.  The Corino powerslam is probably my favourite move of his at the moment and we get it again here as he picks up his second two count of the match.  RVD catches a leg, steps through and levels Corino with a kick.  Thrust kick off the top, however they’re too close to the ropes.  Forward roll slam into a middle rope moonsault and this time Victory is in to break up the pin attempt.  Corino saves his man from a ‘Van Daminator’ and hits the ‘Old School Expulsion’ neckbreaker.  After reversing the whip into the turnbuckles, an inverted atomic drop sees Corino collapse into the corner where Van Dam dropkicks the chair into his face.  A super contrived ‘Rolling Thunder’ with Fonzie providing the assistance followed by a pescado out onto Victory.  More Fonzie chair holding assistance, this time for a top rope ‘Van Daminator’ and one five star frog splash later this one is over.

While this clearly worked for the fans in attendance who got to see all of RVD’s trademark stuff, this just wasn’t for me.  The more I re-watch, Jerry Lynn stuff aside, the more I find myself groaning at the whole Van Dam routine.  The Corino rear chinlock spot was funny but, as Migs said, you never really feel as though he’s a threat.  Hated the finishing stretch with the blatant Fonzie interference and assistance.