TEW 08: ECW '97 - The Final Stand

[DeToxRox]

I loved my WCW game but looking back at it, it became way too easy and was too repetitive. The problem was WWF was off Cable in the USA for almost half a year and showed no signs of getting back on TV. We had all the money and talent and I was cutting guys just so WWF might sign them.

The first 97 game I did on 08 was with WWF but I wasn't familiar enough with TEW 08 at that point to make it work, so now I feel confident enough to make one last run on TEW, this time with ECW.

It'll probably get ugly, but we'll see what happens.

[DeToxRox]

Getting to know ECW

ECW Finances

Cash: 500,000

ECW Promotion Pacts

World Wrestling Federation - Working Agreement
Jersey All Pro Wrestling - Working Agreement
World Wrestling Council - Non Aggression

ECW Popularity

Great Lakes: 38%
Mid Atlantic: 28%
Mid South: 28%
Mid West: 24%
New England: 46%
North West: 22%
South East: 24%
South West: 22%
Tri State: 57%
Puerto Rico: 18%
Hawaii: 18%

Champions

ECW World Champion (B+ Prestige): Shane Douglas
ECW Television Champion (C+ Prestige) Taz
ECW Tag Team Champions (D+ Prestige) The FBI

[DeToxRox]

ECW Roster

Main Eventers

The Sandman
Rob Van Dam
Taz (Written)
Sabu
Tommy Dreamer
Bam Bam Bigelow
Shane Douglas (Written)

Upper Midcarders

John Kronus
D-Von Dudley
Lance Storm
Bubba Ray Dudley
New Jack
Doug Furnas
Chris Candido (Written)

Midcarders

Little Guido
Justin Credible
The Blue Meanie
Tommy Rogers
Phil LaFon
Balls Mahoney
Mikey Whipwreck
Axl Rotten
Tracy Smothers
Jerry Lynn

Lower Midcarders

Pitbull I
Pitbull II
Spike Dudley
Roadkill

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Raw airs with HBK retaining his World Title vs Owen Hart (B-) while Nitro had a great show (A) headlined by Sting beating Scott Hall (A).

- Paul Heyman sets down 4 goals for me:

1. We can never fall into debt. Obviously this one makes sense.

2. We must have RVD at B+ momentum in a year and a half. Should be easy.

3. We must have The Sandman at B+ momentum in a year and a half. Should be easy.

4. No hiring anyone with lower then a C - in safety. Not too hard.

- For our first ECW Hardcore TV we book Shane Douglas & Bam Bam Bigelow vs Tommy Dreamer & The Sandman as our Main Event. Also booked is RVD vs Balls Mahoney and New Jack vs John Kronus.

- Rob Van Dam and Joey Styles both snub several promotions trying to lure them away.

- Lance Storm is mentioned online as a rising star. He should see a significant boost in ECW off the get go.

- Jimmy Snuka has taken over the book in OVW. That should be ... interesting.

- We sign Ace Steel to a $300/apperance deal. He is a young, hungry kid who can develop into a nice piece down the road.

[lcjjdnh]

Enjoyed the WCW dynasty. Loved the ECW. Excited to read this.

[DeToxRox]

ECW Hardcore TV
Friday, Week 1, December 1997
Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Jerry Lynn defeated Ace Steel in 8:18 by pinfall with a Tornado DDT (D-)

Pre-show Dark Match
Chris Chetti defeated The Blue Meanie in 8:19 by pinfall with an Amityville Horror (E)

ECW Hardcore TV opens up with ECW World Champion Shane Douglas in the ring. He says ECW has always been full of the best of the rest; the guys who couldn't make it in WWF or WCW if they even were given the chance. Douglas said he had the chance both places but neither could handle his greatness, and ECW is his only hope of finding a challenge. He says at Holiday Hell at the end of the month is he offering to put his World Title on the line vs the first person who can prove man enough to earn the shot! (C-)

Rob Van Dam defeated Balls Mahoney in 7:43 by pinfall with a Frog Splash (D+)

Backstage Lance Storm is with Joel Gertner. Storm says he is a man of few words, preferring his actions do the talking. He promises ECW will see why the internet is abuzz about how good he is next week (E+)

New Jack defeated John Kronus in 12:18 by pinfall (D) After the match New Jack grabs a mic and says he is the most hardcore man in ECW and he'll prove it every week if he has too! (E+)

Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman defeated Shane Douglas and Bam Bam Bigelow in 14:51 when Tommy Dreamer defeated Shane Douglas by pinfall with a Piledriver (C-) After the match Tommy Dreamer grabs a mic and stands over bloodied Shane Douglas saying he accepts! (C-)

Show Rating: D+

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by lcjjdnh

Enjoyed the WCW dynasty. Loved the ECW. Excited to read this.

Thanks man. I liked it too and I may go back to it one day but it was far too easy.

[BYU 14]

ECDub, ECDub, ECDub, ECDub.....

Looking forward to this, easily my favorite promotion after the Georgia Territory in the 80's.

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Hardcore TV draws a .01 on the MSG network. Obviously this TV slot means nothing, but I'll keep it for now. What I plan on doing is booking a House Show of sorts the second Wednesday of every month. That'll give me 6 shows a month between TV Tapings, House Shows and PPV/Supercards.

- We sign Christopher Daniels to a $250/appearance deal.

- We sign Homicide to a $150/appearance deal.

- We sign Mike Quackenbush to a $150/appearance deal.

- We sign Reckless Youth to a $150/appearance deal.

- New Jack and Joey Styles have a heated argument backstage. I decided to read New Jack the Riot Act but he reacted with indifference.

- The Monday Night Wars rage on as Nitro has a B show headlined by Booker T d. Kevin Nash (B) while Raw had their own B show headlined by Austin d. Shamrock (B+)

- Lance Storm has signed a deal with AJPW. He'll be gone every Wednesday show, but will be able to work our TV tapings as well as Supercards.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Wednesday, Week 2, December 1998
Davis Arena (Great Lakes)
938 people (1000 Capacity)

Pre-show Dark Match
Christopher Daniels defeated Homicide in 7:32 by pinfall with a Last Rites (E)

Pre-show Dark Match
Reckless Youth defeated Ace Steel in 8:23 by pinfall with a Frog Splash (E)

Lance Storm defeated Mike Quackenbush in 5:48 by pinfall with a Flying Spinning Leg Lariat (D-)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated The Pitbulls in 6:46 when Doug Furnas defeated Pitbull II by pinfall with a Frankensteiner (E+)

Justin Credible comes out to the ring to let the ECW fans know he isn't just some pushover. In fact, he's not even just good, he's not even just great, he's simply, Justin Credible! (E+)

Sabu defeated Bubba Ray Dudley in 11:35 by pinfall with a Triple Jump Moonsault (C-)

A music video is shown on a monitor in the arena hyping Bam Bam Bigelow (D-)

Bam Bam Bigelow defeated Spike Dudley in 8:33 by pinfall with a Power Bomb (D-)

Taz comes out of the crowd with his ECW Television Title firmly around his waist. He says there is no man in the ECW locker room who can take this title from him, but he will give them all a crack at it! (D+)

The Sandman defeated D-Von Dudey in 9:31 by pinfall with a Flying Leg Drop (D-)

Taz defeated Little Guido in 12:14 by pinfall with a T-Bone Suplex. Taz makes defence number 1 of his ECW World Television title (D)

Show Rating: D-

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- On the Road was disappointing but I keep forgetting we really have no footing in the Great Lakes region. We did almost sell out which is nice however.

- Lance Storm was available last night as his deal hasn't started yet. I just assumed it had. A D- match vs a relative unknown when neither are popular in the Great Lakes was great to see.

- We sign "Dr. Death" Steve Williams to a $1,500/per appearance deal, with a $900 downside guarantee. He is considered a National Star, but most of his popularity is in Japan. However he still has D or better popularity in every region we will run for the time being so he is a known commodity. Still not sure it was the right move but we'll see.

[DeToxRox]

ECW Hardcore TV
Friday, Week 2, December 1997
Draddy Gym (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Phil LaFon defeated Christopher Daniels in 8:05 by pinfall with a Dragon Suplex (D)

Pre-show Dark Match
Doug Furnas defeated Ace Steel in 8:06 by pinfall with a Powerslam (E+)

Lance Storm defeated Jerry Lynn in 8:34 by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (D)

A music video airs highlighting Rob Van Dam, who despite being perhaps ECW's most arrogant wrestler, is gaining quite a huge following (D+)

New Jack defeated Homicide in 4:48 by pinfall (D-)

Steve Williams defeated John Kronus in 7:50 by pinfall with a Backdrop Driver (D+)

A pretaped interview airs with Shane Douglas who is at home in Pittsburgh. He says he comes from the Steel City where a man's worth is determined by how much he'll bleed for what he wants. Douglas says he will bleed a gusher if it means retaining his World Title, and not even Tommy Dreamer will be able to handle the Hardcore lesson he will be giving at Holiday Hell! (C)

Paul Heyman announces that next week on Hardcore TV it will be New Jack taking on Rob Van Dam! (D)

Taz defeated Chris Candido in 14:16 by pinfall with a T-Bone Suplex. Taz makes defence number 2 of his ECW World Television title (C-)

Show Rating: C -

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- A good show that once again increases our popularity in the Tri City. Taz will consistently have great matches, that's for sure, and Shane was stellar on the mic.

- Dr. Death's debut was memorable. We planned on firing Kronus because the crowds absolute detest him, but before we could even pull the plug Dr. Death broke Kronus's collarbone and he is out six months. Deadly!

- Saturday's are now a problem as Storm and Steve Williams are going to be on those AJPW shows. It was supposed to be Wednesdays but not anymore. We will have to book our bigger shows accordingly.

- Raw was a disappointing C+ show, headlined by Mankind going over Animal (C+), although Nitro was also disappointing also garnering a C+ rating. That show was headlined by The Giant defeating Roddy Piper (C+)

- We sign both Adam Copeland and Christian Cage to $250/appearance deals. The Suicide Blondes are always coveted by me and should pay great dividend in ECW.

[DeToxRox]

ECW Hardcore TV
Friday, Week 3, December 1997
Rose Hill Gym (Tri City)
2000 people -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Christopher Daniels defeated Mike Quackenbush in 8:02 by pinfall with a Last Rites (E+)

Pre-show Dark Match
Mikey Whipwreck defeated Jerry Lynn in 8:13 by pinfall with a Whippersnapper (D-)

Lance Storm comes out to the ring to formally announce an open challenge for next week on Hardcore TV (E+)

Bam Bam Bigelow defeated Reckless Youth in 7:35 by pinfall with a Power Bomb (E)

Dudley Boys defeated Adam Copeland and Christian Cage in 5:31 when Bubba Ray Dudley defeated Christian Cage by pinfall with a Power Bomb (D-)

New Jack comes out to the ring where he says RVD and Sabu are "sum' punk ass bustahs, and they ain't no match for the Ghetto Prince a' Hardcore!" (D-)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated FBI in 10:55 when Doug Furnas defeated Tracy Smothers by pinfall with a Frankensteiner. Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon win the ECW World Tag Team titles (D)

Backstage RVD is seen getting ready for his match with New Jack when Taz runs into him. The two men exchange words but nothing comes out of it (C-)

Rob Van Dam defeated New Jack in 12:27 by pinfall with a Frog Splash following interference from Sabu (C)

Show Rating: D+

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Hardcore TV was a show that really started off poorly, but thanks to a great Main Event between RVD and New Jack, ended well enough to increase our popularity. We have a lot of work to do with the undercard though, that's for sure.

- In an ECW.com exclusive, Chris Candido has accepted Lance Storm's challenge for next week on Hardcore TV and the two men will go toe to toe in the Main Event!

- Holiday Hell is just 8 days away, and we have 6 matches booked. One of which will be a TV Title match with Taz facing the winner of New Jack and Sabu on Hardcore TV.

- Little Guido has signed a PPA deal with AJPW. It'll be good for him to go over and get some seasoning.

- One of the bigger FA's on the market, Sid Vicious, has signed a deal to head back to the WWF.

- The final Monday Night War of December took place last night, with WCW winning the ratings easily, but WWF had the better show. On Raw, Mankind beat Jarret (B+) while on Nitro Hogan retained his title vs Brian Knobbs (B-).

- Bam Bam Bigelow signed a PPA deal with WWF. Because of our working agreement he will still appear in ECW but WWF now has the advantage with his bookings. As of now he should be good to go for most shows though.

[DeToxRox]

ECW Hardcore TV
Friday, Week 4, December 1997
Mid-Hudson Civic Center (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland defeated Reckless Youth in 8:26 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (E)

Pre-show Dark Match
Christian Cage defeated Chris Chetti in 7:43 by pinfall (E)

A video airs showcasing the past carnage that both New Jack and Sabu have caused in their ECW careers (D-)

The Sandman defeated Axl Rotten in 6:53 by pinfall with a Flying Leg Drop (E)

Phil LaFon defeated Jerry Lynn in 7:01 by pinfall with a Fisherman's Hook Suplex (D)

Shane Douglas is with Joey Styles in the back. Douglas says right now the only thing in his life he loves is his ECW World Title and there isn't a damn thing Tommy Dreamer or anyone else can do that'll make him lose this belt! (C-)

Chris Candido defeated Lance Storm in 11:24 by pinfall with a Blonde Bombshell (D)

Taz comes to the ring to watch the Main Event which determines who he will face at Holiday Hell (C-)

Sabu defeated New Jack in 10:39 when New Jack after an Arabian Facebuster through a table (C-)

Show Rating: D+

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Hardcore TV was underwhelming. Chris Candido had an off night and it showed as I expected at least a C- between he and Lance Storm.

- We now gear up for Holiday Hell which will not be a PPV but just a Medium Sized show. It'll be for the best at this point since I am not sure yet if the PPV costs are worth it. We'll dig into that after this show.

- After Hardcore TV we flesh out the show to feature six matches:

ECW World Title Match
Shane Douglas (c) vs Tommy Dreamer

ECW Television Title Match
Taz (c) vs Sabu

ECW Tag Team Title Match
Furnas & LaFon (c) vs The Dudley Boys

Bam Bam Bigelow vs New Jack

Rob Van Dam & Lance Storm vs The Sandman & Jerry Lynn

Steve Williams vs Little Guido

[DeToxRox]

ECW Holiday Hell 97
Sunday, Week 4, December 1997
Alumni Arena (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Steve Williams defeated Little Guido in 11:58 by pinfall with a Backdrop Driver (D)

A music video airs as a tribute to Tommy Dreamer and the long road he has been on leading to tonight's ECW World Title match (C+)

Bam Bam Bigelow defeated New Jack in 13:28 by pinfall with a Power Bomb (D-)

Rob Van Dam and Lance Storm defeated Jerry Lynn and The Sandman in 14:54 when Rob Van Dam defeated Jerry Lynn by pinfall with a Frog Splash (D)

The Dudley Boys are backstage promising to end not just the title reign of Furnas and LaFon, but their careers as well tonight! (D)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated Dudley Boys in 14:50 when Phil LaFon defeated D-Von Dudey by pinfall with a Fisherman's Hook Suplex. Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon make defence number 1 of their ECW World Tag Team titles (D+)

Another video airs, this time highlighting the very personal, very violent history between Taz & Sabu (C-)

Taz defeated Sabu in 16:38 by pinfall with a T-Bone Suplex. Taz makes defence number 3 of his ECW World Television title (C+)

Shane Douglas comes out to the ring before his match with a simple decree: Tonight there will be no happy endings! (C+)

Tommy Dreamer defeated Shane Douglas in 12:31 by count out after Douglas was knocked out cold following a DDT outside the ring. Because of Douglas injury the title would not change hands (C+)

Show Rating: C

[DeToxRox]

ECW: December Review

We lost nearly $40,000 from pure stupidity on my part. Our TV production costs for a show that does nothing for ratings tanked us so that show is officially canceled. Had we not had the TV show we would've made about $6,000 but you live and learn.

Our popularity has basically stayed even. I'll do a breakdown after January because the TV show hurt popularity also based on the lack of a rating.

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Holiday Hell was a good show featuring a hot Main Event. Dreamer once again can't catch a break when it comes to winning a title in ECW but he keeps trying.

- WCW held Starrcade, garnering a big 21.44 buy. It was a B show headlined by Hogan retaining his title vs DDP (B+)

- WWF held In Your House, which did a 14.60 buy. It was headlined by HBK retaining his title vs Hawk of LOD (B+)

- Sabu signs a PPA deal with AJPW.

- Raw aired with the Match of the Year potentially, as HBK d. Steve Austin (A*) while Nitro had it's own huge match with Hogan retaining his title vs Sting (B+) Nitro won the night 6.44 to 4.12.

- We officially cancel both TV shows.

- We have now added a 90 minute house show every Thursday.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Thursday, Week 1, January 1998
Draddy Gym (Tri City)
1904 People (2000 Capacity)

New Jack is in the ring to open the show but before he can even start talking the lights go out. When they come back on Sabu is behind him long enough to destroy a wooden chair over his head. Sabu drills New Jack with the Arabian Facebuster as the crowd chants "EC-DUB, EC-DUB" (D-)

Chris Candido defeated Lance Storm in 16:29 by pinfall with a Blonde Bombshell (D)

Adam Copeland defeated Jerry Lynn in 8:01 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (E+)

RVD comes out and bad mouths everyone associated with ECW, but keeps most of his comments directed to Taz (C)

The Sandman defeated Rob Van Dam in 14:46 by pinfall with a Flying Leg Drop following interference from Taz (C)

Doug Furnas defeated Christian Cage in 10:09 by pinfall with a Frankensteiner (E+)

Tommy Dreamer defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in 14:51 by pinfall with a Piledriver (C-) After the match Dreamer celebrates in the crowd (B-) As he celebrates though he is interrupted by a video playing on a monitor in the arena that shows Shane Douglas inside a hospital room. He says Dreamer is a savage who must be stopped and he will risk life and limb to stop him at House Party 98! (C+)

Show Rating: D

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Terrible show. Main Event was serviceable but not what I wanted. Obviously certain guys can go and others can't but the balancing process has to work itself out or I am sunk.

- Stevie Richards is making enemies with Brutus Beefcake. The WCW locker room is going to become a mad house.

- Nitro had a B show which saw Sting d. Savage (B) in the Main Event. Also on the show The Giant d. Bret Hart (A). Raw also drew a B with the same type of shiw. Kane d. Shamrock in the Main Event (B) while Owen Hart d. Austin (A) right before the Main.

- We set up Steve Williams vs Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman vs Sabu for On the Road.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Thursday, Week 2, January 1998
Bally's Atlantic Casino (Tri City)
1952 People (2000 capacity)

Pre-show Dark Match
Lance Storm defeated Christopher Daniels in 7:44 by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (E+)

Pre-show Dark Match
Bubba Ray Dudley defeated Adam Copeland in 7:36 by pinfall with a Power Bomb (D-)

Rob Van Dam defeated Jerry Lynn in 10:47 by pinfall with a Frog Splash (D+)
After the match RVD gets on the mic and tells the ECW faithful he wants a TV Title match with Taz next week at House Party! (C-)

Justin Credible defeated Little Guido in 9:48 by pinfall (E+)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated Mikey Whipwreck and Spike Dudley in 7:36 when Doug Furnas defeated Mikey Whipwreck by pinfall with a Frankensteiner. Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon make defence number 2 of their ECW World Tag Team titles (D)

The Sandman defeated Sabu in 14:57 by pinfall with a Flying Leg Drop following interference from New Jack (D)

Tommy Dreamer comes out to the ring and says tonight is the most dangerous match he's had in ECW because he is facing the most Dangerous wrestler in ECW, Steve Williams. He says he is going to do whatever it it takes to not only survive, but win, and then he will go to House Party to finally lay claim to the ECW World Title! (C+)

Tommy Dreamer defeated Steve Williams in 14:58 by pinfall with a Piledriver following botched interference by Shane Douglas (C)

Show Rating: C

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- We increase our popularity with a decent show. The Main Event delivered and it also set up a future match with Dr. Death and the Franchise.

- I decided to check the product settings and they were jankey. There was little to no focus on actual wrestling and to me that doesn't jive with ECW so I make a few corrections to help performance be utilized more.

- AJPW is apparently knocking on death's door which I find absurd. I think something is amiss with that but we'll see. Also Sabu and Gary Albright won the AJPW All Asian Tag Team Titles.

- The Monday Night Wars wage on with Nitro winning 6.23 to 4.04. Raw was the better show, earning a B- behind a Triple H vs Steve Blackman (B) Main Event. On Nitro it was a C+ show behind Nash beating Rick Steiner (B-)

- We book Steve Williams vs Bam Bam Bigelow and Shane Douglas & Chris Candido vs The Sandman and Tommy Dreamer for On the Road.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Thursday, Week 3, January 1998
The Skid Row Club (New England)
1000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland defeated Spike Dudley in 7:51 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (E)

Pre-show Dark Match
Christian Cage defeated Mikey Whipwreck in 8:26 by pinfall (E)

Lance Storm defeated Jerry Lynn in 11:31 by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (D)

New Jack comes out to the ring with a ladder. He says Sabu is a "punk ass bitch who needs to be sent back to India in a body bag!" New Jack promises to bring the pain at House Party in a Stairway to Hell match! (D-)

Justin Credible defeated Reckless Youth in 7:09 by pinfall (E)

Taz defeated Christopher Daniels in 8:40 by pinfall with a Northern Lights Suplex. Taz makes defence number 4 of his ECW World Television title (D) After the match a celebrating Taz is blindsided by RVD who bashes him with the TV Title (D+)

Steve Williams comes out to the ring irate over last week. He says Shane Douglas has Death in his future, but first he is going to take out his lackey Bam Bam Bigelow (D+)

Steve Williams drew with Bam Bam Bigelow in 16:54 when the referee lost control and stopped the match (C-)

Chris Candido and Shane Douglas defeated Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman in 15:11 when Chris Candido defeated The Sandman by pinfall with a Blonde Bombshell (D+)

Show Rating: D

[DeToxRox]

ECW House Party 98
Friday, Week 3, January 1998
Rose Hill Gym (Tri City)
2000 People - Sellout

New Jack defeated Sabu in 12:53 when New Jack retrieved the barbed wire chair drove it into Sabu's face with a Balcony Dive (C-)

Lance Storm defeated Little Guido in 12:44 by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (D)

Tommy Dreamer is backstage with Joey Styles. He attempts to talk but is too overcome with emotion to say much. Joey Styles says this night means the world to Dreamer and he knows Dreamer is going to give it his all tonight (C)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated Jerry Lynn and Chris Candido in 11:53 when Doug Furnas defeated Chris Candido by pinfall with a Frankensteiner. Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon make defence number 3 of their ECW World Tag Team titles (D+)

Bam Bam Bigelow comes out to the ring before his match with Dr. Death and says he is going to send Dr. Death back to Japan in a full body cast! (D)

Steve Williams defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in 14:43 after a Dr. Bomb (C)

Taz is backstage with a towel over his head. He says RVD is going to get choked out tonight, it's that simple! (C-)

Rob Van Dam defeated Taz in 10:37 by pinfall with a Frog Splash following interference from Sabu. Rob Van Dam wins the ECW World Television title (B-)

Tommy Dreamer and Shane Douglas was ruled a no contest at 13:34 when Rob Van Dam, Sabu and Bam Bam Bigelow came out and began teaming up on Dreamer, leading to Taz and New Jack coming out for the save. The show ends with a wild brawl all over the arena (B)

Show Rating: C+

[DaddyTorgo]

man...i miss old-school ECW. pre agreement with the wwf and all. was fuckin classic.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

man...i miss old-school ECW. pre agreement with the wwf and all. was fuckin classic.

And pre-TNN

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- House Party was a very good show, highlighted by a great double main event. Shane Douglas once again manages to escape with his title, but every time they fight Dreamer gets closer and closer. Now with Living Dangerously, our first PPV of the dynasty, coming up in March, we have a final push to the blow off of Douglas/Dreamer.

- RVD won the TV Title thanks to Sabu, and Taz won't be happy about it. Unfortunately for Taz, he has something else to worry about after the next On the Road.

- The Monday Night Wars continued with Nitro winning 6.49 to 4.04. Nitro was a B+ show, with Sting beating Scott Hall (A) while Raw saw Kane, Shamrock and Hawk vs the Outlaws and Val Venis (B-)

- We sign Sherri Martel to a $500/appearance deal. She is going to come in and manage Lance Storm & Justin Credible.

- Konann was busted with steroids, but WCW managed to not take a PR hit.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Thursday, Week 4, January 1998
The Golden Dome (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland and Christian Cage defeated Mikey Whipwreck and Spike Dudley in 7:32 when Adam Copeland defeated Mikey Whipwreck by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (D-)

Pre-show Dark Match
Ace Steel defeated Homicide in 7:52 by pinfall with a Steel Spike (E)

Shane Douglas comes out to the ring and says at House Party Tommy Dreamer was once again lucky enough to escape the ring without being pinned. He says the attack he received from New Jack and Taz was uncalled for and he tonight he is going to make New Jack pay for it! (C-)

Lance Storm and Justin Credible defeated Jerry Lynn and Little Guido in 13:41 when Lance Storm defeated Little Guido by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (D)

Backstage RVD is showing off his TV Title when he gets blindsided by Taz. Before Taz can choke RVD out, RVD manages to push him off and flee for safer ground (C-)

Taz comes out to the ring after his near assault on RVD demanding a rematch for Better Than Ever! He says RVD has until the end of the night to accept his challenge or he is going to regret it (C)

The Sandman defeated Bubba Ray Dudley in 14:15 by pinfall with a Flying Leg Drop (D)

We see RVD backstage talking to someone in the shadows. It's a one sided convo and with RVD speaking in a whisper, so what he is saying can't be heard, but we see him hand a roll of money to whoever he is speaking to before leaving (C)

Shane Douglas defeated New Jack in 13:18 by pinfall with a Belly to Belly Suplex. Shane Douglas makes defence number 1 of his ECW World Heavyweight title (C-)

Tommy Dreamer defeated Rob Van Dam in 14:49 by pinfall with a Piledriver following interference from Taz (B-) After the match Taz comes into the ring and locks RVD into the Tazmission. He screams at RVD to accept his challenge but then from the back comes Dr. Death Steve Williams, who absolutely kills Taz with a knee to the head. With Taz downed, Williams picks up his limp body and Dr. Bombs him to the mat (C-)

Show Rating: C+

[DeToxRox]

ECW Notes

- We're on a little bit of a roll now with our second good show in a row. This was mainly the RVD & Taz show but it was done to set up the match at Living Dangerously between Taz and Steve Williams which should be a war.

- At the Better Then Ever show it'll be a Tag Team Main Event, with Shane Douglas & RVD vs Tommy Dreamer & Taz. I suspect I'll add a gimmick to this but it'll be a nice transition into our PPV.

- Sherri Martel made a nice impact on Lance Storm & Credible but the match wasn't very good. We'll see how it comes together with them in singles action.

- New Jack continually is a problem backstage. I'll put up with it for a while longer but his days are quickly becoming numbered.

- AJPW might be losing their TV deal which is gonna hurt them.

- Mikey Whipreck is leaving us to head to AAA in Mexico. Good luck Mikey.

- The January PPV's have come and gone. Royal Rumble did a 16.37 buy, and was headlined by HBK retaining his title vs Owen Hart (B+) Meanwhile WCW Souled Out did a 19.74 that saw Hogan retain over Booker T (B-)

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

And pre-TNN

that goes without saying. i miss when it was a 30 minute show carried on bumfuck-cable at 1:30am

[DaddyTorgo]

*shivers* as much as i dislike Shane Douglas...this was a hell of a moment. HAHA...apparently he's teaching 8th grade social studies in NJ these days.

[DeToxRox]

ECW: January Review

- We lost 14K this month. We need to get a good TV deal and hope for the best. We're still not in financial peril, as we still have about 450K in cash reserves but still, I'll feel better if we can get on TV and have monthly PPV.

- A look at our popularity:

Great Lakes: 37.9 (-.1 from Dec)
Mid Atlantic: 28.6 (+.6 from Dec)
Mid South: 28.6 (+ .6 from Dc)
Mid West: 24.8 (+ .8 from Dec)
New England: 47.1 (+ .1 from Dec)
North West: 23.2 (+ 1.2 from Dec)
South East: 25.4 (+ 1.4 from Dec)
South West: 23.2 (+ 1.2 from Dec)
Tri State: 60.1 (+ 4.1 from Dec)
Puerto Rico: 19.6 (+1.6 from Dec)
Hawaii: 19.6 (+1.6 from Dec)

[DeToxRox]

ECW News

- Network scheduling time. We go into talks with every Medium Network we can in the US.

- We move On the Road to Sunday this week as we have Justin Credible on a PPA deal in AAA and he couldn't make the Tuesday show.

- Nitro wins another Monday Night, 6.63 to 4.06. Raw was a good show (B) headlined by Jarrett over Mankind (B+) while Nitro was also solid (B) with Sting over Nash (B+)

[DeToxRox]

Breaking News: ECW signs deal with E! Network

Underground wrestling promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) will bring it's hardcore wrestling to the E! network in March with their show ECW on E!.

The show will be an hour and a half long, taping on Tuesday's and airing Late Night Friday's.

Financial details were not released but all reports indicate that ECW stands to potentially make money on the deal.

The timing couldn't be better for ECW as they will have their first PPV of the year in March, Living Dangerously.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

*shivers* as much as i dislike Shane Douglas...this was a hell of a moment. HAHA...apparently he's teaching 8th grade social studies in NJ these days.

Shane Douglas had so much talent and let it go to waste because he just could never shut his damn mouth. A shame, really. But yeah that was such a great moment.

I remember being 12 and staying up until 3 AM to watch ECW on WADL on Friday's. Then my first ECW show when I was 13 and the Dudleys started a riot at the State Fairgrounds. My dad loved it, it was the first wrestling show he went to he liked. Then not long after the Attitude Era took off and he became a fan for a while.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

that goes without saying. i miss when it was a 30 minute show carried on bumfuck-cable at 1:30am

It wasn't even on bumfuck cable down here, it was on one of the lower powered UHF stations (ch. 69 IIRC, but I wouldn't swear about that).

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

It wasn't even on bumfuck cable down here, it was on one of the lower powered UHF stations (ch. 69 IIRC, but I wouldn't swear about that).

yeah...i think that's what it was up here too...some random ridiculous channel. i shoulda said "bumfuck tv" not 'bumfuck cable"

[lcjjdnh]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

*shivers* as much as i dislike Shane Douglas...this was a hell of a moment. HAHA...apparently he's teaching 8th grade social studies in NJ these days.

Somewhat fitting...wasn't his gimmick in the WWF "Dean Douglas"

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Sunday, Week 1, February 1998
Draddy Gym (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland defeated Chris Chetti in 7:53 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (E+)

Pre-show Dark Match
Christian Cage defeated The Blue Meanie in 7:51 by pinfall (E+)

New Jack defeated D-Von Dudey in 8:38 by pinfall (D)

Chris Candido defeated Mike Quackenbush in 9:07 by pinfall with a Blonde Bombshell (D-)

Backstage Taz and Tommy Dreamer stand together. Taz says he and Dreamer are like everyone else in ECW, guys who don't like one another, but their hate for Shane Douglas and RVD has bound them together. Dreamer says he and Taz are going destroy The Franchise and RVD, and do it inside a cage! Dreamer then says once the match ends and they're victorious, they'll celebrate ECW style .. By beating the shit out of each other! Taz then says he is not done with Dr. Death, and he will pay for his sins very soon! (C-)

Rob Van Dam defeated Jerry Lynn in 13:12 by pinfall with a Frog Splash (C)

Steve Williams comes out and says he personally has no problems with Taz, he just wanted to make money. He says if Taz has a problem with it then he can do something about. Williams says he thinks there would be no better place then at the first ECW on E taping! (C)

Doug Furnas defeated Little Guido in 12:31 by pinfall with a Frankensteiner (D)

Joey Styles says at Better Then Ever there will be a triple threat match between Sabu, New Jack and Bam Bam Bigelow to determine the #1 contender for the TV Title! (C-)

Taz defeated Lance Storm in 14:37 by pinfall with a T-Bone Suplex (C) After the match Steve Williams comes to the ring for an intense stare down with Taz. The crowd is rabid, chanting "EC-DUB, EC-DUB" but there is no physical contact between the two as Williams grins and rolls out of the ring (B-)

Show Rating: C-

[DeToxRox]

News

- A good show. Still need more balance between good, solid wrestling and the hardcore stuff, but it will come. Taz vs Dr. Death will headline our debut on E and I am hoping it helps start us off on the right foot.

- Nitro wins another Monday Night battle, 6.46 to 3.98. Both shows drew B- ratings. Nitro saw Hogan retain his title vs Davey Boy Smith (B) while Raw saw Ken Shamrock beat the Undertaker (B)

- We sign Brian Adams to $1250/appearance with a $800 downside. He provides a lot of popularity all over the USA and will help usher in a new audience on E!.

- AJPW has lost their TV show. Things are not looking good in Japan.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Sunday, Week 2, February 1998
Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse (Tri City)
2000 People -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland defeated Axl Rotten in 7:37 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (D)

Pre-show Dark Match
Homicide defeated Balls Mahoney in 7:53 by pinfall with a Cop Killa (D-)

Rob Van Dam defeated Doug Furnas in 11:35 by pinfall with a Frog Splash. Rob Van Dam makes defence number 1 of his ECW World Television title (C)

New Jack defeated Bubba Ray Dudley in 11:50 when Bubba Ray Dudley was put through a table (D)

Backstage Tommy Dreamer is screaming in agony as Shane Douglas stands over him with a pipe. Douglas says he is NEVER losing his title and Dreamer should stop pursuing it now before the consequences are far more dire! (C-)

Phil LaFon defeated Little Guido in 9:31 by pinfall with a Fisherman's Hook Suplex (C)

Taz is backstage with Joey Styles. He says that at Better Then Ever he has a Cage match with Dreamer vs RVD & Douglas and then at Living Dangerously he will be fighting Steve Williams. He says Williams might be Dr. Death, but Taz is Mr. FTW - Fuck The World, and that is going to be a common theme coming soon! (C)

Taz defeated Chris Candido in 12:49 by pinfall with a T-Bone Suplex (C-)

The crowd launches into a chorus of boos as out from the crowd comes "The Extreme Savior" Brian Adams. He says Paul Heyman begged and pleaded he comes to ECW so their show can have a real wrestler on it when it debuts, so Adams said sure. He said he is going to carve a lethal path of destruction through ECW and kill what he plans to save! (C+) This leads to the Sandman coming out to defend ECW's honor (C-)

Brian Adams defeated The Sandman in 15:15 by pinfall with a Choke Slam (B-)

Show Rating: C+

[DeToxRox]

News

- Another good show that saw Brian Adams do a lot more then I thought he was capable of. He had a fantastic hardcore match with Sandman, and then cut a good promo. I think I can go ahead now with an idea I had for Shane Douglas, but use it for Adams because it makes more sense.

- The Monday Night Wars continued with Nitro winning again. Both shows ratings went up, as Nitro had a 6.60, while Raw had a 4.17. Nitro was a B+ show headlined by The Steiners & Sting beating Scott Hall, Randy Savage and Curt Hennig (A) Raw answered with their own B+ show, that saw Kane beat Jarrett in the Main Event (B+)

- Mike Quackenbush won the prestigious Super 8 tournament. I like his talent a lot and I hope he can eventually become the new Dean Malenko in ECW.

- Ace Steel turned down a job offer from AAA to stay in ECW. He might just be held to Hardcore matches for now but I hope he can turn into a good all around worker.

[DeToxRox]

ECW On the Road
Sunday, Week 3, February 1998
Charles L. Sewall Center (Tri City)
2000 people -- Sellout

Pre-show Dark Match
Little Guido defeated Ace Steel in 8:03 by submission with a Sicillian Crab (D)

Pre-show Dark Match
Mike Quackenbush defeated Tracy Smothers in 7:32 by pinfall with a Quackendriver (D-)

Tommy Dreamer limps out to the ring, still livid from being jumped by Douglas last week. He demands Douglas face him tonight! (C-)

Justin Credible defeated Jerry Lynn in 13:44 by pinfall (D)

Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon defeated Hardcore Chair Swingin' Freaks in 8:50 when Doug Furnas defeated Axl Rotten by pinfall with a Frankensteiner. Doug Furnas & Phil La Fon make defence number 4 of their ECW World Tag Team titles (D+)

Shane Douglas comes out and says there is no chance in hell Dreamer gets a match tonight. He says in fact, Dreamer is lucky to even get a shot at him at Better Then Ever. He reiterates that Dreamer is going to pay for chasing his title! (C)

Sabu defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in 12:39 by pinfall with a Triple Jump Moonsault (C-)

Brian Adams comes back out and says last week he destroyed "Mr. ECW" The Sandman. Now he wants to take out another boy in the back, doesn't matter who it is. He says he'll come out a little later and anyone who wants to be destroyed is open to hit the ring! (C)

Chris Candido defeated Lance Storm in 10:04 by disqualification (C-)

Backstage New Jack is jumped by Bam Bam Bigelow. Bigelow grabs New Jack by the scruff of the neck and leads him to the ring. Then Brian Adams music hits and he comes out smiling. As their paths cross, Adams and Bigelow share a smile (C-)

Brian Adams defeated New Jack in 13:54 by pinfall with a Choke Slam (C+)

Show Rating: C -

[BYU 14]

Adams work is a bit of a surprise, gives you some options down the line. With your new diary and Molson's still going strong I am getting the itch to do an AWA DOTT diary, but I need to fight the urge!

[DeToxRox]

News

- Decent show. Some seeds are planted with Brian Adams and Bam Bam Bigelow amongst others. Adams is earning rave reviews from me though because he can just flat out go for us and I'll continue to utilize him as long as I have him.

- We scrap our On the Road and instead will focus on Better Than Ever on Friday of this week. After that, we'll be going to our first ECW on E! taping.

- The Monday Night Wars continue on, and Nitro dominates with a whopping 8.12 rating, nearly doubling Raw which did a 4.17. Raw was headlined by the LOD beating Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart (B), while Nitro, which was only a C show, was headlined by an awful Main Event that saw Vicious and Delicious and the Harlem Heat fight to a No Contest.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

Adams work is a bit of a surprise, gives you some options down the line. With your new diary and Molson's still going strong I am getting the itch to do an AWA DOTT diary, but I need to fight the urge!

Just give in!

And yeah, I remembered in my WCW game Adams was brought in to ECW and put up some good ratings, so I figured I'd see how it worked. The biggest thing is he has quite a lot of popularity, especially compared to my other guys, so it's huge when our TV show airs to have him their for name value alone.

[DeToxRox]

ECW Better Than Ever
Friday, Week 4, February 1998
Alumni Hall (Tri City)
4342 People (5000 Capacity)

Pre-show Dark Match
Little Guido defeated Mike Quackenbush in 7:54 by submission with a Sicillian Crab (D+)

Pre-show Dark Match
Adam Copeland defeated Chris Chetti in 7:55 by pinfall with a Leaping DDT (E+)

Shane Douglas and RVD are in the back, both proudly wearing their ECW titles. Douglas says it is rare you see the World and Television Champs stand side to side and fight, and when you do get to see it you take note. Douglas says Dreamer and Taz will take note of it tonight, inside of the cage, where Douglas and RVD will leave as the victors. RVD adds that tonight he shows why he is the Whole Fucking Show! (C)

Lance Storm defeated Doug Furnas in 11:51 by submission with a Canadian Maple Leaf (C-)

Chris Candido defeated Phil LaFon in 12:20 by pinfall with a Blonde Bombshell (C-)

Brian Adams makes his way to the ring before his match with Balls Mahoney. He says that next week on the debut of ECW on E! that as the Extreme Savior he needs to make sure the night is special, so he is officially demanding a match with Tommy Dreamer! (C+)

Brian Adams defeated Balls Mahoney in 10:47 by pinfall with a Choke Slam (C-)

Sabu defeated New Jack and Bam Bam Bigelow in 14:41 when Sabu defeated New Jack by pinfall with a Triple Jump Moonsault (C+) After the match RVD comes out to the ring with Bill Alfonso. RVD looks at him as if hes wondering if he'll really want to fight his partner for the TV Title. Sabu points at the title and then the two men have a shoving match that Bill Alfonso finally breaks up (C-)

Steve Williams warns Taz that he better watch what he does to the Sandman tonight because in a few days at the debut of ECW on E! he will face a similar fate! (C-)

Steve Williams defeated The Sandman in 14:35 by pinfall with a Backdrop Driver (C)

Taz and Tommy Dreamer defeated Shane Douglas and Rob Van Dam in 18:53 when Tommy Dreamer defeated Rob Van Dam by pinfall with a Piledriver (C+)

Show Rating: C

[DeToxRox]

News

- Not a bad show. We set up our two big bouts for the debut of our new show which was a priority, and we continue all the other storylines and feuds. Expect a lot more intrigue once our show begins.

- WCW holds SuperBrawl, doing a 20.42 buy and achieving and insane A rating. The show was headlined by Hogan retaining his title over Bret Hart (A) as well as Nash over Flair (A). Meanwhile WWF No Way Out did a 16.53 buy, with a B+ rating, headlined by HBK beating Hawk (A)

- Raw and Nitro are both meh shows. Raw does a C+ with LOD beating the Godwinns in a C+ Main Event, while Nitro was a C- show, with Vicious and Delicious beating Harlem Heat in the Main Event (C)