Written By: Bob Colling
Extreme Championship Wrestling presents ECW on TNN
Date: 9/17/1999
From: Philadelphia, PA
The show quickly opens with Raven and Tommy Dreamer pinning Rhino and Jack Victory to retain the ECW World Tag Team Championships. Apparently, Raven appeared out of nowhere to help Dreamer retain the titles. Raven goes into the crowd and goes his taunt. Raven returns to the ring and stands in front of Dreamer.
Backstage, Cyrus is with Bill Alfonso. Cyrus mentions that the ban on Sabu has been lifted. Sabu will be wrestling Justin Credible at ECW Anarchy Rulz. Alfonso says that Credible’s life is the only thing in danger. Sabu appears next to Alfonso as Alfonso repeats payback a few times. Alfonso predicts a ass kicking from hell.
ECW on TNN opening video
Joey Styles and Joel Gertner talk about Sabu and what is scheduled on the show.
PN News comes down to the ring and says that if you are from Philadelphia you must be gay and that the city sucks. “Yo baby yo baby yo” is apparently his catchphrase. Spike Dudley comes out to take on PN.
Opening Contest: Spike Dudley defeated PN News: News slams Dudley down and leaps off the middle rope missing a twisting splash. Dudley with a low blow and hit’s the Acid Drop to win the match in under a minute. DUD
After the match, Spike celebrates his win.
Outside the building, there is a ambulance apparently a ECW wrestler has been injured in a locker room incident. Styles acts like the Impact Players have done something!
Commercials
Second Contest: Super Crazy defeated Tajiri: Tajiri dropkicks Crazy’s knee and Crazy goes to the floor. Tajiri with a baseball slide sending Crazy into the crowd. Tajiri takes Crazy out with a springboard moonsault in the crowd! Tajiri heads to the top rope and misses a missile dropkick as Crazy side steps the move. Crazy works on Tajiri in the corner with several right hands. Tajiri comes back with a handspring back elbow and locks in a body lock and a German suplex for a two count. Tajiri follows up with a dropkick to the face of Crazy who was still laid out on the canvas. Crazy avoids a brain buster and is able to power bomb Tajiri to win the match. *½
Joel Gertner hypes up future shows and the rest of the television show.
Commercials
Raven is standing at a swing set. Raven talks about his feud with Tommy Dreamer that lasted two years. Raven says they had a feud based of love and a friendship based on hatred. Raven mentions that Dreamer took his girl and he clearly isn’t happy about that, still. A video from House Party 1996 is shown where Beulah announced that she was pregnant with Tommy Dreamer’s kid. Raven continues by saying the one thing Dreamer could never do was beat him. A debut promo from January 1995 from Raven is shown. Clips of several times Raven has pinned Dreamer is also shown. Raven makes it seem as if he gave Dreamer his victory at ECW Wrestlepalooza 1997. Raven talks about being away from ECW for 2 ½ years and while he was gone Dreamer lost his career path, his focus and his girlfriend. Raven is going to be Tommy Dreamer’s personal demon. Quote the Raven, Nevermore!
Commercials
Lance Storm and Dawn Marie come down even though they aren’t scheduled to out there, according to Joey Styles. Storm tells the ring announcer that he is facing RVD for the ECW Television Championship. Styles says that he has confirmation that Jerry Lynn has been jumped and was in the ambulance!
Third Contest: ECW Television Champion Rob Van Dam fought Lance Storm to a No Contest: Storm leaps over the top to take RVD out with a cross body. Storm sends RVD into the guard railing and follows up with a springboard missile dropkick back in the ring! Storm crotches RVD on the top rope and smashes a chair over the head of RVD. RVD recovers and leaps off the top with a sidekick into the chair! Justin Credible runs down with a kendo stick and cans RVD. *1/2
After the match, Jerry Lynn runs down and helps RVD for a few moments. Johnny Smith comes down as well and helps the Impact Players. Credible and Storm do their catchphrases and stand over RVD.
Commercials
Rob Van Dam has a microphone and says he feels fucked just like the fans. RVD challenges Lynn to a match right now! Lynn says he can barely stand up but he cant stand not having that belt. Lynn accepts the challenge.
Main Event: ECW Television Champion Rob Van Dam defeated Jerry Lynn to retain the title: RVD with right hands and they both go for scoop slams but neither can connect with one. They duck clotheslines and a spin kick but both go down following a double clothesline. RVD with a twisting leg drop for a near fall. Lynn with a cross body sending both men to the floor. RVD sends Lynn ribs first into the guard railing and Lynn is dumped into the crowd. RVD has a chair but Lynn catches it and tosses the chair at RVD’s face and crotches RVD on the railing. Lynn grabs RVD and drives him face first into a chair in the crowd. RVD is able to connect with a standing spin kick sending a chair into Lynn’s face. RVD sends Lynn face first into the ring post. RVD covers Lynn but isn’t able to get the win. RVD goes for the rolling thunder but Lynn sits up so he kicks Lynn back down. RVD misses a somersault leg drop but leg trips Lynn and connects with a split legged moonsault! RVD goes for the cover but Lynn kicks out again . RVD is sent into the corner and Lynn follows up with a clothesline. RVD gets another chair after sending Lynn into the corner. Lynn runs into a boot in the corner and RVD leaps off the top with a sidekick for a near fall. Lynn avoids a splash in the corner and connects with a sunset flip power bomb driving RVD onto a chair for a near fall! Lynn with a German suplex reversing a suplex attempt and gets a two count. Lynn dropkicks RVD into a corner and is back dropped to the apron. RVD blocks being sent into the turnbuckle and clotheslines Lynn, sending him crashing through a table on the floor! Lynn is holding his ribs on the floor and is being attended to by several referees. Lynn is helped towards the back as everyone claps for him. However, Lynn limps back towards the ring and is met with a kick from RVD on the apron. RVD with a vertical suplex back into the ring and gets a near fall. Lynn is able to dropkick a chair into RVD’s face and nearly wins the match! Lynn goes for the cradle pile driver but is back dropped by RVD. Lynn is able to counter a northern lights suplex with a DDT and again almost wins the match! Lynn sends RVD into the corner but charges right into a knee lift. Lynn crotches RVD on the top rope and takes RVD down to the canvas with a superplex! Lynn goes for the cover but isn’t able to get the win! They trade inside cradles both getting near falls. RVD kicks out of a rollup and Lynn goes head first into a chair held by Alfonso. RVD misses the Five Star Frog Splash and Lynn rolls RVD up but isn’t able to get the three! RVD with the Van Daminator and gets the win. ***½
After the match, RVD celebrates his win. RVD and Lynn shake hands in the middle of the ring as the fans give them a standing ovation.
Commercials
Joey Styles and Joel Gertner hype up ECW Anarchy Rulz live on pay per view. Styles runs down the card scheduled for the event.
End of show
My Take: Cyrus did a pretty good job at putting Sabu over as a insane wrestler. Alfonso has never really been all that great on the microphone so he just repeated himself over and over again. Spike/PN was nothing really of a match. Spike just continues his little man beating big men gimmick. Fans seem to be really behind him so it is working out for him.
Crazy/Tajiri were not given any time as that was a quick match. Disappointed they didn’t any time to put on a good show but they have wrestled each other a million times so I’m sure I will get to see a lot more of those two.
Raven cut a very good promo on Tommy Dreamer I thought. Raven has always been fantastic on the microphone. I’m not really big on Raven feuding with Dreamer again since that had gone on during his first run in ECW. There is plenty of talent in ECW that wasn’t there during his first run. Raven should be getting involved more with Storm and Credible to be more exact.
I was looking forward to the Storm/RVD match but that was cut short. For the two minutes it was going on Storm looked good, I just wished it was given more time to showcase a guy involved in the top heel stable.
The main event was fantastic. The fans were going nuts as they thought on more than one occasion that Lynn had won the championship. Nothing different happened during the contest, really, from what their previous match offered. But, the crowd seemed to be more energetic for the contest. A good way to close out the show and getting a winner and not a lame DQ finish or something is always good with me.
Overall, the matches were cut down to give Lynn/RVD all the time they needed to put on a damn good show and they did just that. Raven’s promo was another bright spot on the show.
Thanks for reading.