Email This Article- Contact Us - VIP Sign-Up - Back to Home Page

|

Brian Jaffe of Iowa City, Iowa (8.5): Best Match: Matt Hardy vs. John Morrison. Worst match: Chavo Guerrero vs. Tommy Dreamer. The theme of tonight's ECW was "Workrate," and boy did it show. Hardy vs. Morrison has to be considered a top TV match this year. It was amazingly back and forth, and had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. If Hardy wasn't legit KO'd at some point during the match, he certainly sold like he had been. Miz vs. Bourne was also damn good. Bourne's bump on the top rope was awesome, and Miz has come into his own as a really good wrestler. I missed Chavo vs. Dreamer, so I listed it as worst match by default. The problem is, I'm not that into Chavo anyway, and Dreamer has absolutely no effect on anything anymore. Good main event, I'm digging Mike Knox a lot. The choice of Finlay in the Scramble makes sense, as it adds the experience factor. Overall, a damn good ECW with a lot of great wrestling.

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (9.0): Best; Hardy vs. Morrison Worst: Chavo vs. Dreamer I'm still no fan at all of this Championship Scramble debacle (with the most ridiculous rules and room for the worst overbooking imaginable for three matches). But the way ECW presented it at least it was palatable to watch. In their case, it is their single representative match, so the idea of "going to Unforgiven or going home" was driven hard as an important aspect of the qualifying matches. Going into tonight, I figured the foursome with Henry would be Hardy, Miz, Morrison, and maybe Bourne. I was surprised that Morrison is not in the big match (figured it was such when he was announced as Hardy's opponent). Did he piss someone off, or does he figure into the potential overbooking? As it was their match was very good and the crowd was well into it, mirroring Striker's "favorite wrestler" comment about Hardy. Miz-Bourne turned in a very good effort as well with the unsual exchanges and counters. Methinks Bourne's loss will be figuring into Ortiz's undefeated streak story. Chavo-Dreamer wasn't terrible but was the only lull of the night, so a technical worst. The Finlay-Knox feud will most certainly figure into the ECW Scramble match for the way it ended. The match was fine, though I would have switched opening and closing matches for the crowd heat would have been there. Striker and Grisham were utilizing more moves in their play-by-play which tells me that they are now a permanent fixture. Raw was the only one of the three brands that didn't use the qualifying rounds for their Scramble match, and the subsequent flaky booking shows. Tonight it was one theme for ECW, and it was executed very well.

Steve Feinberg of Cleveland,Ohio - PWTorch Subscriber (8.0): Best: Bourne vs. Miz. Worst: (O)riginal (G)oofball Teddy Long's jargon. Just like that, it appears that Tuesday nights on the Sci Fi Channel is the place to go to watch wrestling MATCHES. In a continuing trend, WWE's Brand C continues to present weekly showcases for the in ring skills of their workers. And I loved it! As a fan all you can ask for is worked contests where you don't know who's going to win and there was (Cleveland's own!) THE Miz getting the 1-2-3 over Evan Bourne. This after Bourne's standing shooting star press-somewhere Joey Styles is yelling "Oh My God!" Speaking of god, was Tony Atlas's churchlike "Yes, yep, that's right" call and response with the world's strongest champion a hoot or what?!

Shane Bennett of Frankfort, Ky. - Legislative Assistant (8.0): Best Match: Hardy vs. Morrison. Worst Match: Chavo vs. Dreamer. Once again, I am in the envious spot of wagging a finger to all the naysayers of ECW. This was the best booked WRESTLING show on TV and will likely remain that way through Friday. The bookers really get how to best use the limited talent of the roster, with a few notable exceptions. One little tidbit before I truly begin my reaction is that the Raw Rebound lasted a full minute and a half longer than nearly every match on RAW. Not good guys…but here goes. Teddy Long did the best job thus far with the stupid Breakfast Scramble idea. He put prestige on the ECW title by saying “Anything they can do, we can do BETTER!” He's right. A little brand excitement and respect from Long and other ECW guys can go a long way! The other wrestlers only seem to care about a brand during the draft, not after. The opening match was great TV. Matt Hardy vs. John Morrison could be a PPV main event with the right type of story behind them. The match was booked well and the fans were so hot for it! (ECW fans are by far the most vocal and lively of the three brands) The only downside is that one of the two had to lose and they invested too much in Hardy to let Morrison get the win. Morrison does deserve to be in the title picture. Speaking of Morrison, he is flawless in the ring! He could be a franchise player. Needs the push. Evan Bourne took a clean loss, but didn't lose any momentum. They have a great chance to have him bounce back next week and show tenacity after facing his first loss in ECW. Miz looked good in the ring and wrestled a smart match with Evan. Evan also got to show off some unique mat holds as well, which only furthers his repertoire. Where was Ricky Ortiz??? Chavo vs. Dreamer was the worst match of the night in my opinion. Not because it was bad, but just because it was booked so safely. Dreamer got in the most minimal amount of offense he could get before letting Chavo go over. These two could have had an extended brawl and put some definite emphasis on how important a shot at the ECW title is. They could have exhausted themselves before letting Chavo gut it out. Same result, more emotion. Dreamer should have a role like Ric Flair in ECW. Fans respect him enough that he could really put talent over, but he has to get his edge back first. I think he and Super Crazy would be a great tag team to help Miz and Morrison reach the next level. The saving grace of this match is Striker's commentary about Dreamer's heart and passion. I am having a love affair with Striker. He and Todd are the best duo on TV today! Mike Knox vs. Finlay wasn't bad. I think Mike Knox's beard is growing a beard…But Knox fought the way I thought JBL should have on Monday. He was intense, brutal, and used blunt force. Finlay did his job of showing that edge but I think the Hornswoggle angle has run its course. I think Finlay will be champion after Unforgiven and then needs a heel turn. He should drop Hornswoggle once he is champion because of the seriousness of the title. Hornswoggle is a liability at ringside, like he cost him the match against Shelton Benjamin. If he loses then, he would lose the belt. Anyway, just my few cents. ECW is, as I stated yesterday, still the best wrestling show on TV and they do it all in an hour!!!! ECW!! ECW!! ECW!!! ECW!!!!

We welcome your 1-10 score and comments on this show for a "Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Raw, click here.

For more BREAKING NEWS on WWE, TNA, ROH
visit our affiliate: JASON POWELL'S PROWRESTLING.NET

For UFC AND MMA NEWS & BLOGS
visit our affiliate: MMATORCH.COM - now featuring Jamie Penick's MMATorch Daily Audio Updates!

REACT TO THIS STORY IN OUR FREE PWTORCH FORUM

PWTORCH VIP SIGN-UP INFO - NO ADS, EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

|