WWE - ECW on SyFy TV Report
February 9, 2010 - Year 4, Week 36 (Week 192 overall)
Taped in Baton Rouge, La.
By James Caldwell, Torch assistant editor

The WWE show started with a backstage shot of Zack Ryder and Rosa nuzzling in the corner. They showed the entire ECW roster sitting in a room waiting for a meeting to begin. ECW champ Christian was presented as just an ordinary guy here. In walked ECW GM Tiffany to grab their attention. Tiffany said ECW going off the air is not a bad thing, but a great thing. Okay. She said they all have a chance to sign with a new brand or be part of the new NXT show. Abraham Washington said he's about to get paid. Tiffany said it's been an honor to serve as their GM. She asked if they all know what they're supposed to do tonight. Tiffany told them to carpe diem and have fun. She then put on Mardi Gras beads and lifted a glass to the Saints winning the Super Bowl. (She's from New Orleans.) Tiffany then mocked Rosa standing next to Ryder to book-end the segment.

Tonight's main event: Shelton Benjamin vs. Vance Archer in a No Count-Out, No DQ match. ... In-ring: Yoshi Tatsu's music hit to bring out Yoshi and Goldust. They're apparently in a #1 contender match for next week to challenge for the Unified tag titles in the last-ever ECW episode next week. Caylen Croft and Trent Barreta then walked out to challenge the odd couple.

1 -- GOLDUST & YOSHI TATSU vs. TRENT BARRETA & CAYLEN CROFT -- #1 contender match for Unified tag titles

Goldust and Croft started things off, then Yoshi and Barreta entered to have a nice exchange. Goldust re-entered and B&C used a double-team trickeroo to take control going to break.

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, B&C continued to work over Goldust, who sold a knee injury. The announcers talked about DX losing the tag titles last week as Josh Mathews referenced Shawn Michaels saying his career was over last week. Byron Saxton said it was probably frustration and he just needs time to cool off.

[Q2] Yoshi eventually scored the hot tag at 10:00 and cleaned house on B&C. He nailed rapid-fire kicks on Croft before going up top. He then came off the top with a spin kick for a two count that Barreta broke up. Yoshi then dropped Croft with a standing kick to the ear for the pin and the win. Afterward, Yoshi and Goldust (who was appropriately wearing Saints colors) celebrated. They cut to a shot of Croft on the floor covered in blood after apparently being popped in the nose. Yoshi and Goldust celebrated some more with a spot of blood on his abdomen. Amazing. They waited until the next-to-last week to get blood on ECW.

WINNERS: Yoshi & Goldust in 12:00. Fine tag match. Yoshi and Goldust is an odd pairing, but Yoshi is over and should be an asset on Raw or Smackdown to come. Goldust vs. Show could be an interesting pairing, while my blog prediction earlier today of Yoshi going after Miz's U.S. Title could have the seeds planted next week on ECW when Miz & Big Show bring the belts to ECW.

Hall of Fame plug: They ran the Ted DiBiase video package from Raw announcing his Hall of Fame induction. ... NXT plug: Going into commercial, they rolled footage on the NXT with Vince McMahon's announcement last week. "The Season" begins in two weeks.

[Commercial Break]

In-ring: William Regal led Ezekiel Jackson to the ring for a quick snack. Already in the ring was Baton Rouge's Perry Wallace. Poor guy. Regal with the look of the year just shaking his head and non-verbally telling Perry he's in for a rough night. That was just so great.

2 -- EZEKIEL JACKSON vs. PERRY WALLACE

The announcers put over Zeke as WWE's hottest free agent after next week's ECW. Perry Wallace tried to show some fire, but Jackson quickly finished him off with the uranage. Jackson then chucked him over the top rope. The Rumble was last month.

WINNER: Zeke in 1:00. Good squash to continue building him up as a "hot free agent" going to Raw or Smackdown.

Post-match: Regal took the mic to a chorus of boos, which prompted him to check his nails. Regal said he hopes his GM hasn't succumbed to debauchery yet because what he has to say is important. He said for him to be ejected at the Royal Rumble further exposes the blatant bias against them. Regal said it's not just the GM, but the fans. Oh, Tiffany. Your legacy will be that of a person who made a travesty of ECW and set back female management in the workplace 25 years, he said. Regal said she can redeem herself by doing the right thing next week with Christian vs. Ezekiel Jackson on the final ECW episode. Jackson took the mic and said if Christian chooses to accept the challenge, next week, ECW and his reign as champ will come to an end. He said that as the final ECW champion, it will only mark the beginning of his rise of his dominance.

[Q3]

Still to come: Shelton vs. Archer try to settle the score tonight.

[Commercial Break]

Raw Rebound: They focused on John Cena's promo exchange with Vince McMahon and Bret Hart wanting "another moment" with Vince McMahon in the ring at WrestleMania. They included classic clips of Hart in the ring wrestling. The key is that was 15 years ago. After rolling footage of McMahon accepting a match against Hart at WM26, they showed Hart's surprise appearance and McMahon calling off the match after their physical exchange. More of the "Bret screwed Bret" storyline in a variety of different forms over the years. They cut back and forth between Hart "tearing up the set" at Survivor Series 1997 and last night's Raw to show the similarities. Uncanny how similar Hart threw down the monitor in 1997 vs. 2010. The TV monitor even bounced off the ground the same.

Announcers: Mathews and Saxton broke down the Elimination Chamber PPV line-up. They then talked about next week's show being the final ECW TV episode. Saxton said Tiffany has granted the ECW Title match pending Christian's acceptance.

Backstage: Christian cut a promo that Regal is like a rash that won't go away. Christian said he accepts Jackson's challenge. He then said they should go off the air in style by going Extreme Rules for the ECW Title next week.

In-ring: Shelton Benjamin came out to the ring for the TV main event against Archer. Shelton took the mic first and said he has some business to get to before the match. The crowd surprisingly popped huge. Shelton acted shocked that there was a crowd response to his promo. He said apparently they want "who dat?" so he obliged. Shelton said when he came to ECW, he was supposed to be better than the roster, but he showed up on the first week and got kicked in the head by Yoshi. He said the roster has earned more of his respect over the weeks. Shelton said he's made a lot of friends, did some cool things, and... "who dat?" Cheap pop. Shelton said he will miss each of the young stars except for one guy, Vance Archer. Boos. Shelton said Archer's the kind of guy who smiles to your face and shakes your hand before stabbing you in the back when you turn your back. Shelton addressed Archer that he can't wait to wipe that "stupid smile off your face" as his last ECW moment. Shelton smiled and his music hit going to break.

Raw plug: Jerry Springer guest hosts Raw next week and all six Elimination Chamber opponents in singles matches with a "must-see, can't-miss" Hunter vs. Cena TV main event.

[Commercial Break]

[Q4]

In-ring: Vance Archer came to the ring focused on the task at hand with Shelton. Archer seems to have put on some weight overnight here.

3 -- SHELTON BENJAMIN vs. VANCE ARCHER -- No DQ, No Count-out match

Shelton quickly frustrated Archer, so Archer rolled to the outside to regroup. He then entered the ring and blasted Shelton with successive right hands in the corner. Shelton came back with right hands of his own before taking Archer to the mat with a single-leg Boston Crab. Archer reached the ropes for a break, but it's No DQ. Archer then pulled himself to the ring apron to get a break before going up top. Oops. Shelton took advantage of the decision by hitting a step-up enziguiri that knocked Archer to the floor. Cut to break.

[Commercial Break]

Back from break, Archer retrieved a Kendo stick from under the ring while Shelton was struggling to his feet on the floor. Archer then tried a stick shot, but Shelton blocked with a chair. Shelton then jabbed Archer in the gut before missing with a wild swinging chair shot. Archer followed by dumping Shelton gut-first across the guardrail. Nice physical exchange (with no chair shots to the head) to start the second segment. The match then moved into the ring where Shelton was bleeding from the forehead. Ref Armstrong called for a medic, who entered the ring to check on Shelton. They replayed a spot from during the break of Shelton being sent head-first into the announce table, which they sold as the point of blood.

[Q5 -- over-run]

Once Shelton was cleared to continue, Archer went after Shelton, but Shelton answered with right hand blows. Shelton tried a top rope move, but Archer countered in mid-air with a big powerslam for a two count only. Archer then punched Shelton's forehead looking to open up the cut again. Archer, frustrated, tore off the top turnbuckle pad and actually rammed Shelton into the exposed steel rather than having it reversed. Archer proceeded to pound on Shelton with aggressive blows before applying a mat hold to stretch Shelton's shoulder. Shelton then made a comeback and Archer tried to cut him off, but Shelton hit a top rope flying neckbreaker into the Pay Dirt for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Shelton in 13:00. Nice, physical match to conclude their feud. They have solid ring chemistry and their matches tell a good story. WWE will have to address the "mid-match stopping for blood" rule, as in a storyline sense, it creates an unfair advantage for the person who bleeds because he has extra recovery time. Not sure how to address that when there isn't a "point system" in a worked pro wrestling match. (*3/4)

Post-match: As Shelton was shown celebrating in the ring, they plugged the final ECW TV episode next week featuring two title matches.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for an "ECW TV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. To contribute your thoughts on ECW TV, email to pwtorch@gmail.com using our Feedback form.

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