ECW Review: "Masterpiece Lashley Theatre."

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Time to do the usual ECW Review . I missed last weeks review due to work. Thanks for the fill in last week !


The Good

We get a video promo of the Lashley/Masters segment where Lashley broke the joke of a hold. But hey it got fans poppin like mad so it helps Lashley. Masters comes on and proclaims he's gonna teach Bobby Lashley a lesson tonight as he comes to ECW. If Bobby Lashley can't get face heat against this joker he should go ahead and chalk it up to a loss.

Rob Van Dam & Sabu kick off the action as the 2 face Monty Brown and Kevin Thorn. Its just my feeling but Thorn is such an outcast he looks weird to be in a group. Him and Ariel should be kept alone. But its a pretty damn good tag match and damn....does Sabu sell that PPPOOOUUUNNNCEE or what. It didn't take long for Vince to make that Monty's finisher again.

We learn that Sabu's uncle " The Shiek " is going into the WWE Hall of Fame. Its nice he would make it and its awesome they waited for Styles to make this annoucement since Sabu is logically the man to induct the man into the Hall. I like this , congrats Sabu . One day someone will likely be inducting you too.

CM Punk vs Bob Holly follows and I gotta say , Punk needs to beat Holly's ass. ROLL THE F-CK OVER HIM , in essance to get over this mistake. Of course this is WWE and to serve a storyline , out comes the New Breed .They help Punk beat Holly and backstage CM tells Burke he didn't really need or want the help anyhow.

Now its time for the Main Event as Chris Masters vs Bobby Lashley. The match starts and the fans start a boring chant right off the bat. Lashley and the bookers obviously know that Lashley's gonna have to go in quick speed and starts kicking Master's ass FAST. Using great power moves so the crowd won't turn against the match like last weeks match.

Now the WWE has a problem. Lashley is like Goldberg. And fans don't want a smiling , happy 15 minute wrestling Golberg. They want an ass whuppin , take no shit and kick ass in 10 minutes or less with lots of power moves. They want an Ultimate Warrior match with Lashley as we saw tonight. Just DESTROY , don't even get put in no weak submission moves as they say.

The Bad

Gene Snitsky comes out after another hard selling promo piece. And as usual gets no reaction. Its like people have decided to go take a piss break as Snitsky beats the usual jobber in 2 minutes. I just wonder on what planet these squash matches will stop since its not working with Snitsky.

After last weeks awesome Dreamer win where he outlasted and won the Battle Royal he loses a tag match in pretty normal fashion. The WWE could have something ala Foleyesque with Dreamer but drop the ball so many damn times . I want Burke to win , but this is Tommy Dreamer , at least powerbomb him thru 2 chairs for the win.

OVERALL : ** Outta 5. Good tag match and CM Punk storyline. The WWE uses Lashley right but are in a catch 22 with him as tonight shows. Lashley is in the mode where he's gotta destroy FAST ala Warrior and Goldberg to make him stay over.

[Young Avenger]

I have to say, Sabu really sold the pounce. I feel that the new breed vs ECW original fued is one-sided. ECW Originals get buried almost every week and I'm sick of it.

[marshal99]

I have to say, Sabu really sold the pounce. I feel that the new breed vs ECW original fued is one-sided. ECW Originals get buried almost every week and I'm sick of it.

In case you forget , Dreamer won the battle royale last week and the week before , RVD beat Thorn. It's not one sided at all although the point of this feud is obvously to get the new breed over.

[DaveEB]

I like WWECW A LOT more than Raw...

[clayholio]

That Pounce was awesome. Awesome! I'm also usually pretty happy whenever RVD and Sabu team up.

Honestly, I can't wait until Punk turns heel. I've been happy to see him on TV from week to week, but having seen a lot of his ROH stuff, I want the evil Punker immediately.

[lboinyamouf4sho]

In case you forget , Dreamer won the battle royale last week and the week before , RVD beat Thorn. It's not one sided at all although the point of this feud is obvously to get the new breed over.


didn't RVD also beat elijah burke(the leader of the new breed) a week or so back??

i'm enjoying new breed vs originals, matt striker need some more time to shine though for me to be happy.

was real cool to see RVD and sabu tagging up again, if ECW does kick off a tag division they'd be a great addition. sabu and monty made that pounce look great, i wonder if sabus bags got lost at the airport or something because he was wearing davari's pants.

i think punk was having a bad night or something because he looked like shit in a couple of spots.

i like what they're doing with snitsky character wise, but his squashes are some of the worst i've ever seen. look at an umaga squash and you see some jober looking like he might be dead by the end, then look at a snitski squash and it seems so mild. even cm punk works a better squash.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

The CM Punk storyline with Burke is something everyone wanted to see and I'm glad it's taking form leading to WM.

Layla>>Brooke and Kelly's no ass backflips

Snitsky STILL SUCKS

Surprisingly, Lashley vs Masters came off better than Lashley vs Orton. Still, Masters is garbage and should be sent back to OVW immediately.

[lboinyamouf4sho]

Layla>>Brooke and Kelly's no ass backflips




kelly 4sho, brooke no. i will say this though, layla is looking mighty nice since getting her hair fixed.

[Scott Evil]

I know that the Lashley/Masters match 'worked', part 2,420,329 of "Project: Take Lashley Seriously", but I finally realized why I can't do it: His damn smiling.

How am I supposed to take a "Hardcore" champ seriously that keeps smiling? Its not even a grin or a smirk, cause when I think of an appropriate wrestler's grin/smirk, I think of either Mr. Perfect or Rick Rude (RIP...). I don't want Lashley doing the over-done 90's "GRRR!!! I'm AAAANGRY!" or the 80's "I'm INTENSE! LASHLEY RUNNIN' WAYILD ON YOOUUUU!", but he's got to come up w/ a better 'look'.

Say what you will about Batista, but his confident stride, the way he does his entrance almost w/ a smile; it fits Batista. I hate Cena's booking, but the way he just runs out from behind the curtains works for his entrance and how he's supposed to be having fun in his gimmick, it works. The way Umaga never breaks character is something to give credit for. As far I know, Rosey was born in the US, knows English perfectly, and has normal-to-hip-hop mannerisms (see 3-Min. Warning) but for that 10-15 minutes he's out there: he's a MONSTER. PERIOD. Yelling gibberish and just breathing hard, its harder then one thinks. I speak a second language (Tagalog/Filipino) and if someone asked me to "Just yell in tagalog for the whole time", I'd feel stupid, but Umaga's doing it.

I can't think of what I'd prefer, but I definitely know what I don't like.

[Scott Evil]

kelly 4sho, brooke no. i will say this though, layla is looking mighty nice since getting her hair fixed.

Agreed! Layla is the only Diva I look forward to on the E's 'Daily Diva' thing. She's got more dance skills in her right leg then those two put together.

Also loved how Sabu sold the POOOOOUUUUNCE last night. I think it does confirm that Sabu is a meta/mutant/HERO cause during the replay I swear Sabu was floating. Its like he jumped, stayed in the air, then shot himself to the other side of the ring, w/ nothing but his own willpower.

Personally; I love where the New Breed is going. Hard recruiting Punk? Dangling the 'help' for the MITB? That's pretty dang creative if you ask me. Just a good slow build, it could be like Saturn v. Raven's Flock back in the WCW. That one made me a fan of Saturn, cause it gave him a chance to work w/ diff. workers; Kanyon/Kidman/Reese/Raven. Hopefully if Punk fueds w/ the NB, he'd get some fights against all of 'em which would entertaining (and leads to more Ariel! In pigtails!)

[Jared]

How am I supposed to take a "Hardcore" champ seriously that keeps smiling? Its not even a grin or a smirk, cause when I think of an appropriate wrestler's grin/smirk, I think of either Mr. Perfect or Rick Rude (RIP...). I don't want Lashley doing the over-done 90's "GRRR!!! I'm AAAANGRY!" or the 80's "I'm INTENSE! LASHLEY RUNNIN' WAYILD ON YOOUUUU!", but he's got to come up w/ a better 'look'. .[/I]

Lashley was in the Army, surely he's gotta remember how to do his "war face." Maybe the E needs to call up his old drill instructor.

[The Zapper]

I agree that the Punk recruitment has been done well. I'm kind of hoping he ends up joining the new breed and goes heel. The only thing is I'm not sure who he would feud with. I guess the originals for awhile. I feel bad for Sabu because he can do awesome stuff IF he could use the things he always has. It's not fair to put him in straight matches. Or maybe that's just me missing the old ECW. It's odd to me that ECW is slowly climbing back up in quality while the rest of the WWE seems to be sliding down. If they ever get that second hour, I'd love to see Sabu, RVD, and maybe even Balls get a chance to do something over there. I know Sabu was there before, but if he came in with some of the other old ECW guys, it could be pretty cool. Or maybe it would end up another dumb invasion.

[Jamal]

There's a nice little spread of Layla in "King" magazine:D.

[Arune Singh]

I know that the Lashley/Masters match 'worked', part 2,420,329 of "Project: Take Lashley Seriously", but I finally realized why I can't do it: His damn smiling.


But like his titantron says...he IS hard hitting...and soft spoken. ;)

[Scott Evil]

But like his titantron says...he IS hard hitting...and soft spoken. ;)

Which does not help his case :D

If I wanted someone Hard-Hitting and Soft-Spoken, I'd watch some Chuck Jones Looney Tunes.
Bugs Bunny as Teddy Roosevelt: "I may speak softly.. but I's carry a BIIIIIIIG STICK!! *whack!*" Classic :D

[DaveEB]

See the smiling doesn't really bother me...It fits him...now him grimacing or scouling and being all "pissed" all the time...feels forced. I know ideally he'd be an angry and brutal bastard ala Bigshow, but it just doesn't fit him...he seems like a guy that just likes to smile...seems like it would be hard for him to fight it. If they wouldn't play him up as such a Babyface I'd think his smiling all the time would make for an excellent Heel gimmick...

[Arune Singh]

Which does not help his case :D

If I wanted someone Hard-Hitting and Soft-Spoken, I'd watch some Chuck Jones Looney Tunes.
Bugs Bunny as Teddy Roosevelt: "I may speak softly.. but I's carry a BIIIIIIIG STICK!! *whack!*" Classic :D

I think "soft spoken" is code for "dude, we ain't lettin him on the mic"

[clayholio]

I think Lashley's new gimmick is that he keeps getting slapped. Last week it was Vince McMahon. This week it was Chris Masters. I think we're seeing the birth of the Lashley-Slap Challenge, to replace the now dead Masterlock Challenge.

[Erik Lehnsherr]

I know that the Lashley/Masters match 'worked', part 2,420,329 of "Project: Take Lashley Seriously", but I finally realized why I can't do it: His damn smiling.

How am I supposed to take a "Hardcore" champ seriously that keeps smiling? Its not even a grin or a smirk, cause when I think of an appropriate wrestler's grin/smirk, I think of either Mr. Perfect or Rick Rude (RIP...). I don't want Lashley doing the over-done 90's "GRRR!!! I'm AAAANGRY!" or the 80's "I'm INTENSE! LASHLEY RUNNIN' WAYILD ON YOOUUUU!", but he's got to come up w/ a better 'look'.

Say what you will about Batista, but his confident stride, the way he does his entrance almost w/ a smile; it fits Batista. I hate Cena's booking, but the way he just runs out from behind the curtains works for his entrance and how he's supposed to be having fun in his gimmick, it works. The way Umaga never breaks character is something to give credit for. As far I know, Rosey was born in the US, knows English perfectly, and has normal-to-hip-hop mannerisms (see 3-Min. Warning) but for that 10-15 minutes he's out there: he's a MONSTER. PERIOD. Yelling gibberish and just breathing hard, its harder then one thinks. I speak a second language (Tagalog/Filipino) and if someone asked me to "Just yell in tagalog for the whole time", I'd feel stupid, but Umaga's doing it.

I can't think of what I'd prefer, but I definitely know what I don't like.


Trust me, when Lashley goes heel, he's gonna bring back the "Blastar" Lashley face from OVW and then there will be NOBODY who stands a chance of stopping him. The way it looks..there's only person that can stop John Cena's role on top and that's Bobby Lashley.

[Scott Evil]

Trust me, when Lashley goes heel, he's gonna bring back the "Blastar" Lashley face from OVW and then there will be NOBODY who stands a chance of stopping him. The way it looks..there's only person that can stop John Cena's role on top and that's Bobby Lashley.

Lashley as Blastaar? Hmmm... interesting. Kinda like "Ron Simmons as Farooq as a Spartan" interesting. :D

I like how you and Dave have said a heel turn is the saving grace for Lashley. Why not do it already? The first time I was interested in the three brands was when they had TWO heel champs (King BOOKAH! and Big Show) to one FACE champ (Cena gah). Its definitely the dynamic that made RAW: Family Reunion one of my favorite episodes in a long while.

So, do you have a pic of Lashley as Blastaar or is it as a hunt like Brock's (landed) SSP or the Big Foot? :o

[lboinyamouf4sho]

Agreed! Layla is the only Diva I look forward to on the E's 'Daily Diva' thing. She's got more dance skills in her right leg then those two put together.

Also loved how Sabu sold the POOOOOUUUUNCE last night. I think it does confirm that Sabu is a meta/mutant/HERO cause during the replay I swear Sabu was floating. Its like he jumped, stayed in the air, then shot himself to the other side of the ring, w/ nothing but his own willpower.



i don't care about the dancing in a traditional dance routine sense, brooke can shake her ass with the best of them, that's all that really matters to me.

monty had a little bit to do with that, he has a little xperience shoulderblocking people. to sell his pounce it seems the best thing to do is just slightly leave your feet and let monty do the rest.

See the smiling doesn't really bother me...It fits him...now him grimacing or scouling and being all "pissed" all the time...feels forced. I know ideally he'd be an angry and brutal bastard ala Bigshow, but it just doesn't fit him...he seems like a guy that just likes to smile...seems like it would be hard for him to fight it. If they wouldn't play him up as such a Babyface I'd think his smiling all the time would make for an excellent Heel gimmick...

that didn't work out too well for shelton benjamin. i'd love to see benjamin, haas, and lashley in some kind of new varsity club, but they'd need a mouthpiece. angle would've been ideal, maybe they could steal bob backlund to be their coach.

[Arune Singh]

that didn't work out too well for shelton benjamin. i'd love to see benjamin, haas, and lashley in some kind of new varsity club, but they'd need a mouthpiece. angle would've been ideal, maybe they could steal bob backlund to be their coach.

"Benjie!" "Charley" "Bobby" "We're the Spirit Squad!"

;)

[lboinyamouf4sho]

i wonder if sabus bags got lost at the airport or something because he was wearing davari's pants.



god damn, was i on the money with that 1 or what??

[Erik Lehnsherr]

Lashley as Blastaar? Hmmm... interesting. Kinda like "Ron Simmons as Farooq as a Spartan" interesting. :D

I like how you and Dave have said a heel turn is the saving grace for Lashley. Why not do it already? The first time I was interested in the three brands was when they had TWO heel champs (King BOOKAH! and Big Show) to one FACE champ (Cena gah). Its definitely the dynamic that made RAW: Family Reunion one of my favorite episodes in a long while.

So, do you have a pic of Lashley as Blastaar or is it as a hunt like Brock's (landed) SSP or the Big Foot? :o

There was a vid of Blastaar Lashley against Mickie James in OVW in 2005 but I can't find it.