10 Times Wrestling Legends Returned (And NOBODY Cared)
8. Tommy Dreamer (2015)
Extreme Championship Wrestling - the actual ECW, not WWE's dilapidated 2006 reboot - will never die.
Formally ceasing operations in 2001 upon being bought out by a tyrannical Vince McMahon, Paul Heyman's 'Land of the Extreme' has endured reunion after reunion, its own entity now becoming something of a running joke over two decades later as chants of 'E-C-dub' continue to ring out. The best reunions are orchestrated outside of WWE, however, the McMahon-fronted sports entertainment brand, too, has been prone to rolling out a mangled, blood-soaked grappler.
Such was the case in November 2015 when Tommy Dreamer, a bin of weapons draped across his shoulder because it's all any ECW wrestler knows, was sent out to aid The Dudley Boyz in their disjointed fight against The Wyatt Family.
What made Dreamer's reemergence so whimsical was that in the seconds before, there was a terse moment where it's evident the audience is expecting an ECW icon the ilk of, say, Rob Van Dam. Tommy Dreamer is an icon of the defunct organisation, but he wasn't what the Pittsburgians had wanted and they let him know that. They were deathly silent for Dreamer's plodding walk through the crowd.
As they were for the subsequent six-man tag team match.
As they were for Rhyno's comeback the following Monday.
As they were for this entire storyline.