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Okay, I'm doing a running commentary this as opposed to a recap.
The sexually explicit warning at the beginning is new. Is it a decoy or is it foreshadowing some actual nudity? Either way, it shouldn't be on a wrestling show. Balls was a good choice for dealer in my view. He comes off sorta sleazy but not in a perverted Jerry Lawler way, if that makes sense. Plus, he has a natural speaking tone that doesn't sound forced or rehearsed. I hope the following segments are shorter than the opening poker one.
CM Punk comes to the ring to a nice reception. Rene Dupree seems to get zero reaction. And his old La Resistance theme music doesn't fit his new Val Venis ripoff gimmick. Please get him some knee pads, too. It just weirds me out for some reason. Oh, I sincerely hope they don't do the split screen all hour. Nice HIGH backbody drop from Punk. Vicious looking leg lariat from Punk, too. Wow. That finish came out of nowhere. I like it though. It was nice to see the Anaconda slapped on from a different position. Are they trying to give it that "Crippler Crossface" or RKO "it can come out of nowhere" element of surprise? Okay, poker is dominating wrestling 2 to 1. I'd be very surprised if they did some nudity, so I have a feeling this will be a waste of time. Let's see if they come back from break with the "Explicit content" warning. That could tell us if this might go somewhere.
I really dislike Ashley.
This seems like a good time to note that I avoided the spoilers again, so you can see my anticipation factor is high for ECW every week. Since Balls is tied up with the ladies, I predict a clean victory for Thorn, which would suck. Did Dreamer really NEVER miss an event even with a broken neck and back? He IS hardcore. The stripping is painfully slow. What seems to be lost a little in the ECW revival amongst how the improvements in Show's work and Sabu's revival and CM Punk getting pushed huge is how completely over Tommy Dreamer is everywhere ECW goes. PLEASANTLY surprised that Dreamer got the win. He seemed to be the glorified jobber that validated new talent to the audience, but maybe he'll get a real push. Doesn't it look like Dreamer is in Heaven wrestling out there? That's great to see. Nobody deserves their spot more than he does.
Poker is getting way too much time. At least they don't have Norman Chad making bad jokes about his ex-wives and how bad he is at Hold 'Em.
Now that I have a minute, go see 'The Departed.' It's great. Not on par with 'Goodfellas' but it's up there. The explicit material warning is back.
I've had stitches before and I know that your mobility is severely limited, but it's a shame that Hardcore Holly can't go out there and wrestle to capitalize on that match w/ RVD. Maybe an angle where he defies a group of doctors and fights his way out there to the ring? At least they gave him a video package though. This inane diva banter is killing me.
I can't tell if those "crazy" and "he walked the line" blurbs from wrestlers for the Pillman DVD are compliments or insults. Maybe that's the point. You know, I resisted for awhile, but after that promo tonight, I think I wanna see the Marine.
To give the six-man a few extra minutes, couldn't each team come out to one entrance? They still got what? 15 minutes, but when they're losing so much time to poker, I'd like to get as much action as possible crammed into that hour.
Nice action from RVD and Sabu. When they're out there it's almost always must-see. Tazz and Styles talking about "this is a new Test" is partially true, but he's only turned in one really excellent performance, so let's give it a little time. Nice clothesline from Test to a springboarding Sabu as we break.
This is the second week in a row that Test's boots have become unlaced. Unless they're supposed to look like that. If they are, they look stupid. Loop it, swoop it, and pull, Test. The Sandman still isn't going to write any fitness books, but he's gotten himself in pretty good shape. Like Dreamer, his career seems re-energized. Did RVD and Sabu ever resolve their little feud from when RVD attacked Sabu when he came back from suspension? Whatever.
Air Sabu. Nice.
Sandman wants in. I smell turn...and I'm way off. He just wanted to hit the Rolling Rock.
If it's strip poker, why is Kelly covering her boobs? All this hullabaloo for blurred nudity? Balls' ECW chant to close a lame segment was lame as well. Okay, what can you say about a show where the primary focus was an uber-lame strip poker game with no pay off? Well, actually, overall I enjoyed the show. Without the poker, it wasn't the best show they had, but it was fun. But the poker did happen, so I have to factor it in. Final take: Satisfactory, average show. I enjoyed it more than I did the 3 hour RAW. Until we meet again.
Dan
Atlanta
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I have two things to say about this week's episode of ECW.
First, I expected the Strip Poker to feature heavily in between the matches but not DURING the matches!! Way to overkill what was already a lame gimmick in the first place.
Secondly, on his Byte This chat at the weekend, Vince McMahon took great offence when a fan question referred to the Divas as "strippers". Vince said this was "harsh" and that the WWE Divas were "classy".
This presumably would be the same Vince McMahon that had his "classy" Divas participate in a heavily advertised game of Strip Poker on TV, where the primary function of the Divas was to remove their clothes - i.e just like strippers....
Hypocrisy, thy name is McMahon!!
Cheers
LEE RELPH, UK
**********
Well there was some wrestling, and it was probably good. But I was distracted just like the announcers all night.
This show was a 60-minute Diva tease and for once there was a pay off. So, I guess it was a good show.
I won't complain, I've got Maria and Candice rolling around naked in my head right now. ...
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A disclaimer! Daddies, put the 13-year-old kids to bed.
So, Balls is the lucky man tonight, huh? Anyway, to start off, Maria and Kristal looked the hottest.
I didn’t get to pay much attention to Punk vs. Dupree, since they decided to show coverage of the poker DURING THE MATCH. That wasn’t wise. I’d rather see the poker and the wrestling separate.
At commercial break #1, we see Maria exposing hot legs and feet, DAMN. I’m rooting for her.
We return and Balls chooses the garb to go. I like Kristal’s ass, but Ashley slapping it was not called for. Play nice, ladies!
As for Thorn vs. Dreamer, I’m surprised that an “ECW original†got the win over Thorn. Maybe Dreamer can get his career resurrected with that win! Creative should find something good for him.
Right now, it’s good to be Balls Mahoney. It’s dangerous, too, as he gets Kristal’s shoes tossed at him. I don’t know why, but this has me thrilled more than Raw!
I never got to say this but I have new respect for Bob Holly after that match a couple weeks ago. In fact, I was still in shock and awe as I saw that recap. Can you believe that the ECW Moment of the Month for September involved HIM? And just think, a few months ago, he was staring Death in the face and laughing!
Now, during the poker, we get Marine plugs. Geez. Hey, Kelly, NO CHEATING! And where was Knox?
The six man tag was pretty enjoyable. I can tell that several of those wrestlers are working hard. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Sandman/Striker feud continue.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting what I saw at the end. When Candice stopped teasing, I thought I knew what was going to happen. I thought she was going to say this was all stupid. What I didn’t see coming was Maria getting her bra and panties ripped off! I can’t believe she actually allowed it! Of course, Candice had to get stripped too, and a naked catfight ensued. I actually popped for all that, and this is coming from someone who loves Maria, but usually can’t stand Candice.
I guess this edition of ECW wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but for me, it was the ultimate guilty pleasure! I was expecting the worst, but to tell you the truth, this was the first T&A segment in wrestling since Wrestlemania XX that I actually found entertaining! The wrestling was pretty good too.
Overall Grade: B+ Grade for Poker Effort: A
Ken Kibby
Benicia, CA
