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-------------------- Just so that I can be fair, I'm going to encourage those interested in attending the "Extreme Reunion" being set up by Shane Douglas on April 28th, 2012 in Philadelphia, PA to check out the show's website, ExtremeReunion.net. If you need an ECW fix, especially after the WWE got your hopes up in 2006 with the ECW on Sci-Fi Channel (before it was named "SyFy" I believe), go enjoy it. The latter half of the 1990's was great because ECW was a viable THIRD brand for you, as a wrestling fan, to enjoy. Choice was great in the 1990's and the quality was high among all 3 promotions (WWF, WCW, and ECW) at one point. Great time to be a wrestling fan! But... Yet another ECW reunion? Really? The WWE's reunion shows, One Night Stand of 2005 and 2006 weren't enough? You didn't like the 2001 "Invasion" version of ECW, especially when it was co-owned by Stephanie McMahon? Hardcore Homecoming in the ECW Arena didn't impress you? The ECW brand of the WWE wasn't enough? What about the well produced ECW DVD's that the WWE production staff has given you? The TNA reunion of former ECW wrestlers called "Extreme, Version 2.0" didn't wet your appetite? Are you meaning to tell me that the multiple ECW knock-off promotions created since ECW's death in 2001 didn't make you want to chant "ECW! ECW! ECW!"? That's the problem. You CANNOT recreate GREATNESS. Let me repeat that. YOU CANNOT RECREATE GREATNESS. Go ask the WWE how disappointed they are with the Rock's first in-ring appearance since 2004 at Survivor Series 2012. Rock only helped Survivor Series add just 16,000 buys compared to the previous year. ECW during the 1990's was great and its success speaks for itself. The problem with the multiple reunion shows and relaunches is that each attempt is NOT ECW. Why watch a watered down version of something that was once great? Sure, it's nice to see a reunion show once and a while, but multiple spoonfuls of the watered down attempt at ECW gets old real quick. That, and the wrestlers are older with lots of mileage on those backs, knees, and other body parts. Shane Douglas himself is 47 years old and if you haven't figured out the "Dynamic Dudes" references by CM Punk, Shane used to tag up with John Laurinaitis (or "Johnny Ace") during the early 1990's in WCW. Other ECW stars aren't spring chickens, either. Tommy Dreamer, 41, the Sandman, 48, Sabu, 47, Rob Van Dam, 41, New Jack, 49, Jerry Lynn, 48, Raven, 47, and so on. And again, we're talking about mileage on the bodies, as each of those wrestlers and other former ECW stars took a BEATING during their heyday. Sure, these guys could do this and have fun with it one night, but reportedly, according to PWInsider.com, this will be the beginning of a "larger project". I'm sure there will be fans wanting this, but time has passed ECW by. The once unique group of talent is older and worn out and they would need some creative genius, like a Paul Heyman or a Todd Gordon to adequately position the wrestlers to succeed. I've heard that the intent of the Extreme Reunion would be to possibly try something for more than one show... My advice is "good luck". I'm tell you WHY Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) died... It's REAL simple... The REAL problem with ECW is that they did NOT create new stars beyond 1998. Let me repeat that... They DID NOT create new stars beyond 1998. They did NOT replenish the roster after the "Great WCW Raid of 1997" that saw WCW swoop in and steal Perry Saturn, Raven, and Stevie Richards. From there, they relied heavily on Sandman, Tommy Dreamer, Rob Van Dam, Tazz, Jerry Lynn, Shane Douglas, Dudleys, and Bam Bam Bigelow to keep the ship afloat. They succeeded and each of their stars increased by stepping up their games to fill voids, but by late 1999, much of the talent ventured to WCW or WWE. By 2000, ECW relied on Mike Awesome to carry the brand and well know what happened there. Failure to replenish the ECW roster with new stars for future years is ultimately what killed ECW. After 1997, they became too reliant on the older names to do all of the work. Each reunion show or attempt since 2001 has fallen prey to the SAME mistake. Too much of an attempt at nostalgia and not enough innovation. WWE had the best opportunity in 2006 to innovate with new stars to carry on the ECW banner and the only real success is produced was giving CM Punk an opportunity to shine. Instead, the WWE shoved its WWE veterans onto the brand while quickly turfing the ECW veterans it actually signed (RVD and Sabu getting pulled over in July 2006 didn't help). IF Shane Douglas wanted to make this "Extreme Reunion" a long-term success and not just a one night stand, he should do the opposite of what everyone since 2001 has tried. Have the ECW veterans to give everybody their nostalgia fix but then use it as a platform to introduce new "extreme" wrestlers if you're serious about a true "Extreme" promotion. However, with the many knock-off ECW promotions, including TNA and Ring of Honor, trying to imitate elements of ECW, the ship might have sailed. But GOOD LUCK to those involved with the "Extreme Reunion" if you are daring to do more than just one show... Just remember that it's tough to repeat greatness, as seen by the many attempts to reboot ECW since 2001 (though each were heavily flawed or lacked resources). I enjoyed ECW when it was on during the late 1990's on as Infomercials on some of my Pittsburgh WB/UPN stations. It was an incredible time to 3 wrestling promotions, WWF, WCW, and ECW, pumping out quality because of the heat of the competition. It's very sad to see how one-sided today's competition is between the WWE and TNA/Ring of Honor. So sure... You have every right to enjoy the "Extreme Reunion" on April 28th in Philadelphia and you can certainly cheer it on if it tours more dates beyond April 28th. I'm just warning you in advance that "it's all been done" before. But I do wish Shane Douglas the best in his project and I would be willing to consult, for FREE, if asked. He was good to my friends who used to webmaster his website and his heart has always been in the right place. Just chill till the next episode... CONTACT MR. TITO - Email: [email protected] - Twitter: @titowrestling - Join LoPForums.com: Feedback Thread BLOG is TITO Archive on LoPForums.com © Mr. Tito 1998 - 2012
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