Scott Levy, the man behind Raven, can be described many ways, including controversial, outspoken, brilliant and probably several other adjectives. Perhaps, the word that best describes the former ECW Heavyweight champion is complex. Despite using rather cartoonish gimmicks during the early years of his career with Scotty Flamingo in WCW and Johny Polo in the WWE, Levy transformed himself when he debuted as Raven in ECW. The grudge character that appeared on the ECW TV show at the beginning of 1995 was a sharp contrast to Levy's previous characters and it's said that much of the darkness of Raven was fueled by his real life struggles with depression during his career. He credits much of the original Flock gimmick to the work that Kevin Sullivan did in Florida over a decade prior, but it certainly wasn't a rip off. The presentation of the character was one of the main reasons it was over as one of ECW's top acts, as Levy was unconventional during almost his entire run with the company. While his opponent walked to the ring, Raven sat almost motionless in the corner and while some yelled about the mayhem they planned in a promo, Levy often quoted poetry to further an angle. It's somewhat surprising that the Raven character accomplished as much as it did, both from promos and storyline wise, considering the initial run was only two and a half years.
