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The Specialists
1/6 WWE ECW Hits & Misses: Finlay vs. Swagger, Boogeyman, Hardy vs. Henry Jan 7, 2009 - 1:12:41 PM
Finlay vs. Swagger: This was not a great match, but a good one. From a storyline point of view, this was definitely Jack Swagger's biggest test and he passed. It was good to see him get a clean win over someone the stature of Finlay. The match was well booked to get Hornswoggle's involvement out of the way early. Swagger came off as a big time heal for shoving the little guy into the guard rail so violently, which was a nice touch. The match was very slow at times with all of the mat work, but it wasn't boring. It had good ring psychology as Swagger worked on Finlay's left shoulder and arm. Finlay did a very nice job in selling that injury even when on offense. In the end, it was a good 15 minute match.
Long and Swagger: This was a nice short scene between ECW General Manager Teddy Long and the #1 Contender for the ECW Title, Jack Swagger. It was kept short, made its point quickly, and did so in an amusing way. Swagger was great in continuing to cut Long off, and Long was great in trying to make his declaration. In the end, it resulted in Swagger getting his ECW Title shot next week against Matt Hardy, which has the potential to be a very good match.
Hardy vs. Henry: I'm not sure we needed to see one more batch between Matt Hardy and Mark Henry, but I guess it makes sense after the non-finish to their match last week. In the end, it was ok that they wrestled each other again, as they put on another good match, one of the better ones between them. Henry just looks more mobile in the ring lately. That doesn't mean that he looks very mobile, but more than he used to which is an improvement. It was nice to see Hardy get in a good amount of offense, as opposed to what I expected which was Henry dominating until Hardy hit the Twist of Fate out of nowhere. Hardy was able to throw Henry to the outside, hit multiple high risk moves, and do some mat work on Henry's knee. Henry showed his great strength as always. And it came down to a nice ending sequence as they kept escaping each other's moves until Hardy finally connected on the Twist of Fate.
ECW MISSES
Boogeyman: With such a limited roster on ECW, I just don't see why time is being given to The Boogeyman. I am so tired of his gimmick. I would actually be fine with it if he were good in the ring, but he isn't. He has shown no signs of improvement. So whatever happens with him, whatever feud he gets involved with, whatever storyline he takes part in, they will all end in a bad match. Watching him squash jobbers has absolutely no value.
Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and TNA Impact each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.
For another view from the original Hitlist author, compare Jason Powell's views to mine by visiting prowrestling.NET's "Hitlist" section here.
I think the WWE brain trust believes Boogeyman has a gross-out appeal for
kids and that's why he keeps coming back. I agree his in-ring moves are
weak. I'd be curious to know if this is another push for his character is
he supposed to be a face? Sort of the way Jake the Snake was a face. The
real payoff is after the match is complete with the worms in the opponents
mouth- and are those really worms or just realistic-looking gummies
covered in flavored gelatin?
Jack Swagger has the potential to be a HUGE heel superstar. He has the
appearance of Brock Lesnar and the charisma of Kurt Angle in his prime.
Im real big on Swagger, so why do I have the feeling WWE will F it all up?
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