Joey Styles is the voice of ECWโs weekly syndicated television program and live pay-per-view events. Styles also manages www.ECWwrestling.com and the ECW Hardcore Hotline at (900) 737- 4ECW
DETRACTORS TAKE NOTE: ECW ON TNN IS FRESH, NEW FUN
By the time you read this, Extreme Championship Wrestlingโs new weekly television program will have aired for a month on The Nashville Network. Finally, ECW will be on North American cable television, with 70 million homes in the United States and another 20 million in Canada. This is, without question, the biggest step in the history of ECW. What was once an overachieving wrestling company with assets of only hard work and staunch support of the most loyal fans anywhere is now poised to share the national spotlight with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling.
I am being deluged at ECWwrestling.com with e-mails from both ECW fans of six years and new fans alike celebrating this once seemingly-unattainable breakthrough. However, as has always been the case, there are still those ECW bashers who have smugly raised valid points. I will address in this column:
ECW has lost too much talent like The Sandman (Hak), Shane Douglas, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, Eddy Guerrero, Raven and Bam Bam Bigelow.
We have also developed new talent like Lance Storm, Justin Credible, Sabu, Rob Van Dam, Jerry Lynn, Tommy Dreamer, Taz and many more. In addition, American wrestling fans and promoters had no idea who The Sandman, Benoit, Malenko and Guerrero were before they appeared on ECW TV. Furthermore, as ECW grows as a result of being on TNN and generates more revenue, we can pay salaries more competitive with ECW and the WWF. Do not be surprised if some of the above names, frustrated with how they are being marketed, rush back as their contracts expire.
ECW has no big name stars like The Rock, HHH, Hollywood Hogan and Randy Savage.
The Rock and HHH are only 27 years old and are stars because they were given weekly national cable television as a stage to showcase their tremendous talents both in the ring and on the microphone. Now that ECWโs roster has access to that same stage, it stands to reason that Chris Chetti, Danny Doring, Nova and Roadkill may become household names after 150 consecutive weeks on primetime cable television. As for Hogan and Savage, far be it from me to say anything negative about two of the biggest names in the history of the business, but they really are not what we are looking for.
ECW used all of its most creative storylines in 1994 and 1995 and Paul Heyman is out of ideas.
This one really drives me nuts. I am not one to kiss up to the boss, and only he and I know about the wars we have had in private, but people who sell Paulโs creativity short are begging to have their opinions shoved right back down their throats. If I were him, I would just repeat all of the classic storylines of the past with our current roster knowing that 90 percent of our viewers have never seen them before. ECW managing Director Steve Karel (who tied Taz as the most miserable man on the planet and who cheered the hunter who shot Bambiโs mother), ECW Financial Director Gene Ciarkowski and ECWโs high-powered entertainment attorney Stepehen Stern have been negotiating a national cable deal for more than six months. Do you really think that Paul has not been hoarding some magic in that ominous black bag of his waiting for this opportunity, including the use of this team to finally cut the right deal? I shudder at the thought of what Paul will have me doing โฆ and I am only the play-by-play guy!
I have very realistic expectations of what TNN and ECW can do for one another. My next column will not be about ECW filing for an IPO and Limp Bizkit appearing at the 1999 November To Remember. But even if those things did happen. I would still have ECW bashers asking, โWhat, no fireworks?โ
RIP Marjane Satrapi, author of the amazing graphic novels Persepolis about living during the fundamentalist revolution in Iran in the 70โs and 80โs. She also created the animated movie based on the graphic novels, which is where these gifs come from.
Reblogging in honor of Marjane Satrapi, one of THE great graphic novelists. Her comic Persepolis was a crucial text for shaping my belief that comics can deeply explore identity, culture, politics, and history.
also crazy to me how liu kang and kung lao donโt speak chinese anymore when theyโre speaking to each other. ik there was a whole thing about how the subtitles for their dialogue was mistranslated in the last movie but i really miss that :(
