WCW: Let's Leave Its Rich History Alone
World Championship Wrestling, born from the wrestling territory days of both WCCW and the NWA, is ripe with professional wrestling tradition. In its essence, WCW is wrestling history, whose days can be traced back long before the sport was televised and the performers traveled the roads honing their craft and entertaining audiences across the country. It is for this very reason that WCW should not return: the organization is rich with an unparalleled history. And at its pinnacle, the WCW organization was ripe with backstage political controversy: with Eric Bischoff at its helm and Hulk Hogan by his side in the organization's final years, the two men took WCW by the horns and crafted fantastic weekly televised wrestling drama television, as well as never before achieved television ratings heights; but it came with the price of chaotic, behind the scenes turmoil. The weekly norm became Hulk Hogan's friends getting pushed to television and at times the top of the card, as a result more talented performers were forced to sit out, and even some wrestlers, who would go on to be iconic in the industry, were completely and unprofessionally let go altogether (see Steve Austin; also Ric Flair). It was only fitting that these final tumultuous years of a great and legendary organization would come to an end at the hands of their great nemesis, Vincent Kennedy McMahon, Jr. and his WWF organization. Vince swooped in and purchased WCW, which he turned into a fantastic final storyline on TV, and he also gave them a fitting sendoff: Ric Flair versus Sting to close the proverbial WCW show. Let's leave the great heritage and history of WCW alone, with all it represents to the sport and its fans. Keep it off current television and in the history books - but let us relive it's legacy by way of DVD and video for years to come.
ECW: One More Shot, Please
Extreme Championship Wrestling was revolutionary. Paul Heyman's brainchild was cutting edge, in-your-face, and proud of it. It was everything the WWE was not: brutal, against the grain, and even transcendent (at times). Heyman invested everything he and his family had into the organization, both financially and emotionally. For several years it was successful on its own, but not nearly as successful as it's rivals WCW or the WWE. When the ECW company had run it's course, Vince McMahon also picked it up; and for a time he made it a somewhat successful brand under the WWE umbrella, mixing and matching the ECW talent and brand with the WWE. But times would change, and ECW would eventually no longer mix with what WWE had in mind moving forward; the Monday Night Wars were over, and all prominent wrestling brands were now part of WWE; the vibrant, unpredictable Attitude Era was on its way out. ECW ultimately fell by the wayside and was dissolved, despite its hardcore style and obvious different take on professional wrestling: it was, in the end, a victim of too much WWE control. Some could argue ECW never received a fair shake once Vince took over and brought it into the WWE Universe, and that would be a fair argument. Paul Heyman was obviously limited to whatever Vince ultimately had in mind, and ECW could not flourish in it's new environment. ECW needs another chance, and now is the time to strike.
WWE and ECW: How to Make It Work
ECW should live again, and with the financial backing of WWE and the McMahon family, it could even be successful. They key would be to separate ECW from WWE: no cross-promoting on RAW or Smackdown (other than by advertisements for the ECW show itself), no inclusion in monthly WWE pay-per-views. ECW should be it's own entity once again; brutal, violent, and shocking. Currently, the WWE has no shocking programming, save for Brodus Clay or Tensai (cue the snare hit!); even the once grandiose WWE Divas Division is a torrid mess. WWE could back the ECW program financially, then obviously profit from it financially; and give creative control to Paul Heyman once again to shape it's overall direction! Re-launch the show on another cable network under the NBC corporate umbrella, and due to content, air it on the weekends or later in the evening schedule. And have it on TV only once a week, creating a real desire for the extreme programming and limiting the brand's oversaturation (*cough, cough* Main Event, Friday Night SmackDown). These are but a few steps WWE could take in an attempt to revitalize this once ground-breaking brand. While we all realize the McMahon family would have the final say in all ECW content, they would surely give plenty of wiggle room to Paul Heyman, his creative genius, and his passion for the industry and the brand that was his baby. Older ECW stars could be brought under contract to relaunch the brand, and they could help mentor a new breed of wrestler in the ways of the extreme. What was old could be fresh again, and ECW could be a given a real chance to flourish in the industry. There's nothing currently on television that compares to the extreme! (and take note: WWE recently reaqcuired the ECW trademark!) Fellow reader, agree or disagree? WCW, ECW, or only WWE?! Let's talk rasslin'! On Twitter: @davyshrader