As a reminder of the last time a promo got this category of buzz, here's a flashback to Joey Styles's "shoot promo" on Raw five years ago last month.

COVER STORY by Wade Keller
PWTorch Newsletter #912 - Cover-Dated May 6, 2006
Headline: Styles rips on WWE and fans, quits Raw
Subheadline: Memorable scripted angle sets the stage for formal revival of ECW brand

After months of being belittled and demeaned behind the scenes, WWE took it to the airwaves. But for a purpose. The real-life frustration built up in Styles translated into one of the most memorable, well-delivered "shoot-style" promos ever, and one of the best promos of the year anywhere.

With Spirit Squad given the role as guest general managers of Raw, they called Styles backstage during a match and threatened to put him in a female cheerleader outfit next week. Styles returned to ringside and was playfully poked and prodded by his broadcast partner Jerry Lawler. Styles eventually had enough, and shoved Lawler. Lawler pie-faced Styles, sending him to the ground. Styles stormed to the back. After a commercial break, Lawler asked Styles to return. He said he wanted to apologize for taking things a little too far. Styles then responded with the following words which were delivered effectively and believably by Styles because, well, they closely reflect his true feelings about his stint in WWE so far:

"You want to apologize like nothing happened, like you didn't knock me on my ass in front of millions of people worldwide and I'm going to come down there and work with you? I'm not coming back. And now, thanks to the magic of live television, I'm going to show the whole world that for seven years in ECW, I was the unscripted, loose cannon of commentary.

"Six months ago, WWE called me. I didn't call this company because I was looking for a job. I wasn't looking for a job. WWE called me because they had fired and humiliated again Jim Ross. So I get J.R.'s spot. From week one, week after week, I got a lecture on the differences between professional wrestling and sports entertainment. I'm not allowed to say pro wrestling or wrestler. I have to say sports entertainment and refer to the wrestlers as superstars.

"I'm told to deliberately ignore the moves and the holds during the matches so I can tell stories. Well, ignoring the moves and the holds is damn insulting to the wrestlers, not the entertainers, who leave their families three-hundred days a year to ply their craft in that ring. They're the best part. Because I'm not a sports entertainment storyteller, I get pulled from WrestleMania. The reason given is I don't sound like Jim Ross, who is the guy they fired in the first place. That makes sense, right?

"So I swallow the bitter pill. I'm a company guy. I get bumped from WrestleMania. Then I get bumped from Backlash. I'm not good enough to call Backlash? On ECW, I called live pay-per-views on my own, solo, no color commentators dragging me down. Wasn't done before me. Hasn't been done since. But I'm not good enough to call Backlash because I'm not a sports entertainment storyteller. Well, you know you what? I'm a sick of sports entertainment. I am sick of male cheerleaders. I am sick of boogers and bathroom humor and semen. I am sick of our chairman who likes to talk about his own semen. He mocks God. He mocks God and makes out with the divas all to feed his insatiable ego. I am sick of sports entertainment. And most of all, I am sick of all of you fans who buy into that crap - this sports entertainment circus. (Crowd boos.)

"I never needed this job and I don't want this job anymore. I quit!"

Styles then yanked off the WWE mic cover and walked away.

Lawler put his headset aon. "We brought Joey Styles up from the gutter and it looks like he just got homesick," he said. "Maybe Joey Styles would seem more at home in a bingo hall kissing Paul Heyman's ass."

Styles's speech will set up his hosting the ECW TV show, which will at least be broadcast on WWE.com and perhaps cable TV, if WWE can find a taker. To the general WWE fan, though, Styles's speech may sound so biting, so anti-WWE, so "I can't believe he just said that," that many fans may truly believe it was unscripted and unplanned. That's what WWE wants. For ECW to succeed, the belief is that it must have credibility as an anti-authority product. It has an uphill battle, since it will be clear that WWE owns the promotions and reaps whatever profits it generates.

Jim Ross is expected to be named the replacement for Styles as full-time lead announcer of Raw, which will translate into an admission that his removal last year was a mistake. The relaunch of the ECW brand, though, allows the Ross critics (and Joey Styles himself) to save face since Styles isn't officially being removed from Raw because he failed. Instead, Styles is simply being shifted to a more natural role as the voice of ECW.

The plans for the ECW relaunch have not dramatically changed over the past week. The goal is to get it up and running as a full-time territory, running profitable shows every weekend, multiple pay-per-views per year (which could be a dagger to TNA), and a weekly TV show eventually generating ad revenue from worldwide distribution.

Allowing Styles to reveal some of WWE's "trade secrets" (for lack of better term) and rip on WWE fans shows that Vince McMahon is committed to taking some chances in allowing ECW to have some edge and feel genuine, even at the risk of exposing or demeaning WWE.

=================

Wade Keller's "End Notes" Editorial
PWTorch Newsletter #912 - Cover-Dated May 6, 2006

ECW Thoughts: Joey Styles's speech was fantastic and fascinating. What stands out the most is that he was allowed to rip on the WWE product. For years, announcers have been discouraged from referring to in–ring athletes as "wrestlers" and instead refer to them as "superstars" dating back to the 1980s. That policy was inspired in part in a desire to distance themselves from pro wrestling's tawdry image, but it was also an attempt at a self–fulfilling prophesy. Referring to the athletes as superstars elevated their image through their label as being more than "just fake wrestlers." For Styles to be allowed to point it out, though, means WWE fans will be more tuned in to WWE's usage of language in the future. Styles insulting WWE fans also stood out as daring.

In the end, though, Styles's comments weren't as daring or rebellious as it first seemed. Ripping on Vince McMahon, male cheerleaders, mentions of semen, Vince's ego, and the usage of religion in tasteless angles isn't exactly going against the grain of WWE's storylines. Vince is a heel, Spirit Squad are heels, the usage of religion and references to bodily fluids are meant to garner heel heat.

A truly unhinged Styles might have said this: "WWE Raw pushes John Cena as a hero to fans, but fans boo him because he's a white rapper from the suburbs without any street cred who can't throw a decent worked punch. They force Triple H down the throats of fans and never acknowledge that he's married to the boss's daughter. They've got Stephanie McMahon bossing people around who have a hundred times the knowledge and respect for this industry than she does. They think fans want to pay to see crap wrestlers like Chris Masters and the new giant on Smackdown, neither of whom can get through a match without missing a dozen moves or boring fans with poorly applied headlocks. Now they want to relaunch the ECW brand, as if fans are going to support a corporate version of ECW. ECW was about rebelling against authority, not adding profits to the pocket books of the McMahons, who by the way continue to take millions of dollars in stock dividends while telling wrestlers they can't afford to keep them on payroll, or if they are on payroll, they have to get their own medical insurance. And heaven forbid a WWE wrestler ask for time off because they're sure to get punished, eventually, covertly, with plausible deniability by management, which sends a message to everyone else that even if your wife is scheduled to give birth, a house show in front of 2,100 bored fans is more important because making dates is more important than family."

Any longtime WWE fan could come up with their own "shoot speech" based on their frustrations over the years with the company that would have been more biting about the current product than Styles's speech. However, that's not to take away from what was one of the on–air highlights of the year in pro wrestling. It's just to point out it was hardly a harsh shoot speech. It was carefully orchestrated to seem harsh and unhinged, yet the sacred cows were protected.

It does show that McMahon believes WWE is impervious to such criticism. He also wisely has been persuaded to believe ECW must at least attempt to seem anti–authority. While fans will know ECW is owned by WWE, as long as WWE creates a decent storyline explanation for it, it shouldn't be much of an issue as long as the ECW product is strong. As much as fans might pay lip service to not wanting to watch a corporate version of ECW, as long as Paul Heyman, Tommy Dreamer, Sandman, and Sabu are central figures, it will feel authentic enough to be worth watching. If the angles are strong, the in–ring product shines, and it differentiates itself from the WWE "sports entertainment" product, it has a chance to succeed—even if fans deep down know their ticket money is going to the McMahons.

Taping the ECW TV show before Smackdown—which is the current plan—could work if they can figure out a way for the show to look different. The look of the ring, the lightning, and the entrance set must be remarkably different than how Smackdown looks. A completely different set of camera angles facing the other side of the arena might help. It's not idea, but it's not feasible for a third–tier brand to have a separate set of tapings at this point and still be profitable. Although ECW in an ideal world would be taped in a gritty, smaller venue, until it starts drawing enough revenue to justify the expense, they'll have to make the best of filming in a rougher version of the slick Smackdown setting.

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