ECW on TNN 8/29/1999

Written By: Bob Colling

Extreme Championship Wrestling presents ECW on TNN
Date: 8/29/1999

ECW on TNN opens up with Balls Mahoney being driven through a flaming table and Joey Styles telling the viewers that this isn’t WWF or WCW, but this is ECW!

Opening Video

Joey Styles says that he is in Toledo, Ohio. Styles introduces a match for the ECW World Television Championship. Styles lists several people who have held the belt that includes Chris Jericho, Too Cold Scorpio and Bam-Bam Bigelow. The match Styles introduces is from Hardcore Heaven 1999.

Opening Contest: Rob Van Dam defeated Jerry Lynn to retain the ECW World Television Championship: RVD with a side headlock to open up the contest. They trade leapfrogs and proceed to miss a series of moves that get a standing ovation when they both get up for a stand still. RVD plays to the crowd and manages to back Lynn in the corner. RVD breaks cleanly and taunts Lynn as he does it. RVD kicks Lynn in the gut and follows up with a series of forearm shots. RVD goes for a springboard kick but Lynn side steps and backdrops RVD onto the apron. Lynn follows up with a springboard dropkick to knock RVD off the apron to the floor. Lynn leaps off the top and takes RVD out with a cross body! RVD staggers to the apron and is met with another dropkick. RVD sticks his head through the middle rope and Lynn comes off the middle rope with a leg drop for a near fall! Lynn chops RVD in the corner a few times before placing RVD on the top turnbuckle. Lynn connects with a bulldog off the middle rope and gets a two count! Lynn goes up top again but is crotched on the top by Bill Alfonso. Lynn is able to avoid the Van Daminator and hits RVD with the chair after sending Alfonso off the apron. RVD has been busted open because of the shot. Lynn comes towards RVD in the corner but RVD lifts Lynn up and drops him groin first onto the top rope. RVD connects with a springboard side kick to knock Lynn to the floor. Back from a commercial, RVD dives over the guard railing onto Lynn who was in the crowd. Lynn has also been busted open. Lynn dropkicks RVD over the guard railing back to the ringside area. Lynn attempts a tornado DDT in the ring but RVD reverses with a fisherman suplex for a near fall. RVD stomps away on Lynn and places Lynn on the top turnbuckle. RVD goes to the middle rope and Lynn battles back with a sunset flip power bomb off the top for a two count. Lynn drives RVD down with a short arm clothesline. Lynn goes underneath the ring to get a table and sets it up on the floor. RVD meets Lynn on the floor but is sent into the guard railing by Lynn. RVD backdrops Lynn over the railing into the front row. RVD gets a chair and eventually kicks a chair into the face of Lynn in the front row! Back from another commercial, RVD springboards off the middle rope and dropkicks a chair into the face of Lynn! On the apron, RVD rams Lynn into the top turnbuckle. Lynn goes for a tornado DDT but RVD blocks it and clotheslines Lynn back into the ring. RVD with a slingshot leg drop to the back of Lynn’s head for a near fall. RVD with several strikes in the corner. Lynn powers RVD over the corner onto the apron and is able to connect with a sunset flip power bomb from the ring apron through a table on the floor! Back in the ring, Lynn runs into a big boot but is able to hit Alfonso and RVD with a steel chair. Lynn connects with a German suplex on RVD for a two count! Lynn scoop slams RVD down and goes up top. RVD kicks Lynn right in the face and Lynn is crotched on the top rope. RVD grabs a chair and drops it in the middle of the ring. Lynn goes for a belly to belly suplex and they slip off, botching the move. RVD recovers by going for a cover but Lynn kicks out. Lynn dropkicks a chair into the face of RVD and almost gets a three count! RVD rolls through a sunset flip and they bridge out of it. Lynn goes for a cradle pile driver but RVD gets out of it but Lynn rolls him up for a near fall. RVD punches Lynn off the middle rope and connects with the split legged moonsault but only gets a near fall! Lynn goes for a reverse DDT but RVD snap mares Lynn down and follows up with a leg drop. RVD goes up top and hit’s the Five Star Frog Splash! RVD slowly goes for the cover but Lynn comes out of nowhere with a rollup for a near fall! RVD again tosses a chair at Lynn and kicks the chair into Lynn’s face. RVD heads up top and hit’s a second Five Star Frog Splash to win the match. ***¼

Commercials

Joey Styles hypes up the rest of the show and show following ECW, Roller Jam. Styles will be talking to ECW World Heavyweight Champion Taz. Styles mentions several people who never won the belt. Chris Benoit, Cactus Jack and Steve Austin are mentioned.

Commercials

A video highlighting the moment that Shane Douglas threw down the NWA World Championship on August 27th, 1994. Douglas said that night that he wouldn’t accept a title from a company that died seven years ago. Douglas would set the wrestling world on fire with a new flame. This was the night that Douglas proclaimed himself the Franchise and the ECW World Champion.

Joey Styles proceeds to name several people who held the ECW World Championship.

Second Contest: Taz defeated Rhino to retain the ECW World Heavyweight Championship: Taz cut a promo on Rhino before the match telling Rhino that he would be choking him out and make him bleed. Rhino enters the ring and quickly power bombs Taz, but Taz quickly gets up and flips off Rhino. Taz clotheslines Rhino and Rhino bails for the floor. Taz sends Rhino into the guard railing head first. Steve Corino runs away from Taz on the floor. Back in the ring, Taz takes Rhino over with a head and arm suplex. Taz stomps away on Rhino in the corner. Taz places Rhino on the top rope and connects with a overhead belly to belly suplex! Rhino tries to fight back to right hands but to no avail. Taz goes for the floor to grab a table. Taz slides the table into the ring and the crowd goes nuts. Taz sets the table up in the corner and pokes Rhino in the eyes. Taz with a suplex through the table and locks in the Taz Mission! Rhino quickly taps out and Taz retains the title. *¼
After the match, Taz simply throws Rhino through the remaining part of the table in the corner.

Joey Styles talks about Taz eventually getting his hands on Steve Corino.

A video hyping up Sabu is shown. The video is narrated by Paul Heyman.

Commercials

Third Contest: Spike Dudley defeated Sal Graziano: Dudley avoids locking up with Sal and simply kicks Sal in the groin. Dudley with a quick Acid Drop and wins the match. DUD
After the match, Spike celebrates his win.

Backstage, Jason introduces himself as the sexiest man on the face of the earth. Justin Credible and Lance Storm introduce themselves as well. Dawn Marie also introduces herself as the biggest bitch in ECW. Cyrus slides in and puts himself over as the most underutilized talent in ECW. The camera man keeps going to Dawn Marie while Cyrus talks. Credible says they can make Cyrus become the co-host of the program. Footage of the Impact Players attacking several ECW wrestlers is shown as they talk. They included, Shane Douglas, Jerry Lynn, Sid Vicious and Tommy Dreamer.

A music video highlighting several ECW top talent is shown.

ECW World Heavyweight Champion Taz cuts a promo about how ECW will be taking TNN to the extreme. Taz talks about the hardcore aspect of ECW that consists of barbed wire and flaming tables. Taz says that when the dust settles, he is the man standing with the championship belt. Taz says that his hands are his weapons and he doesn’t need anything else. Taz brings up Chris Jericho and says that he made him tap out. Taz brings up Shane Douglas in WCW and says he choked him out as well. Taz also talks about Bam-Bam Bigelow and how he made him tap out. Too Cold Scorpio, Chris Candido, and Jerry Lawler all fell victim to his hands. Taz proclaims that people do not want their children to grow up to be like him. Taz tells the fans to stay tuned because he will be the guy making people tap out. “Beat me if you can, survive if I let you!”

End of show

My Take: Jerry Lynn/RVD is a good match to introduce fans to ECW. I could sit here and tell you everything I liked about it and what didn’t work, but I will wait to do that when I watch the full match on the actual ECW Hardcore Heaven pay per view. The match wasn’t complete, so I am rating what was shown which was pretty close to everything, anyway.

Taz/Rhino was just a extended squash for Taz, the ECW World Champion at the time. I had no problem with all the segments that Taz got here. ECW needed to make it clear that Taz is a dominating champion and the guy to beat in the company. Whoever was going to beat him needed to be a tough SOB.

Impact Players promo was a good one I thought. This introduces them as the two top heels for ECW going forward. Credible was really thriving in his role for ECW and I am looking forward to see his career progress from here on out in ECW. Lance Storm is a good partner for Credible, Credible can do the talking while Storm can wrestle. Cyrus did a good job of cutting a heel promo as well. A good segment.

Again, the last segment was fine. Taz putting himself over because he is the champion. It was simple and to the point. Not bad.

Overall, the show was a decent start to the series. Their seemed to have been a lot mentions of wrestlers who used to be in ECW and now wrestling for WCW or WWF. That just didn’t seem like it was needed to be apart of the show. At least not so much.

Thanks for reading.