Written by: Bob Colling
Extreme Championship Wrestling House Show
Date: 11/23/1996
From: Revere, MA
Taz and Bill Alfonso kick off the show and it looks like Taz is trying to call out Sabu to fight him once and for all. The microphone doesn’t seem to be sounding all that great. Taz says there isn’t a wrestler anywhere in the world that wants a piece of him. Taz turns his attention to the crowd and thinks that maybe one of the fans wants to fight him. He continues to put himself over. Taz promises to finish Sabu’s career and he warns Paul Heyman that it will happen. Alfonso screams about path of rage.
Opening Contest: Roadkill vs. GQ Gorgeous: GQ is Chris Chetti working under a mask. Roadkill doesn’t have his signature look as he was just simply a student at this point. JT Smith is at ringside combing his hair. Roadkill controls the match with hip tosses and a clothesline. Smith trips Roadkill to allow GQ to get control of the match. GQ drops Roadkill with a spinning heel kick. Roadkill nearly wins the match with an inside cradle. GQ drops Roadkill with a quick clothesline. GQ nails Roadkill with a dropkick. Roadkill fights back hitting a clothesline after a boot to the chest. Roadkill splashes GQ in the corner followed by another clothesline. Roadkill takes GQ over with a snap suplex and comes off the middle rope to deliver a clothesline for a near fall. Roadkill heads to the top rope but is shoved off by JT. GQ comes off the ropes to deliver a swinging neckbreaker. GQ slams Roadkill and comes off the top hitting a leg drop for the win. (*1/4. The match came across like two students performing in front of a crowd for the first time. They kept everything pretty basic and the fans grew rather restless with what was being presented to them. They did pop for the leg drop by GQ since he did get some good height on it.)
The next match is supposed to be Stevie Richards against Mikey Whipwreck, but Chris Candido came out and Richards superkicked Whipwreck. That apparently has taken Mikey out of the match and now it will be Richards against Candido instead.
Second Contest: Stevie Richards vs. Chris Candido: Richards gets out of a suplex attempt and eventually hip tosses Candido after an awkward moment. Richards tries for a superkick but Candido bails to the floor. Nova leaps off of Stevie’s back and takes Candido out with a somersault dive to the floor. Richards goes for a cover but Candido kicks out at two. Richards comes off the ropes with a shoulder block and hits a Fame-Asser but Candido kicks out on the cover. Richards works over Candido with a few elbow strikes in the corner. Candido takes Richards over with a northern lights suplex for a two count. Candido gets out of a sunset flip and clotheslines Richards. Nova gets crotched on the top rope and Candido takes him over with a hurricanrana. Richards plants Candido with an ace crusher but only gets a two count. Richards goes to the top rope but is crotched. Candido takes Richards over with a superplex for a two count. Candido slaps Richards and puts him on the top rope a second time. Blue Meanie gets in the ring and grabs Candido for a power slam. Richards leaps off the top but gets a boot to the face. Candido hits a slingshot suplex but Richards kicks out at two. Candido is sent chest first into the corner and Blue Meanie delivers a splash. Richards tries for a rollup but only gets a two count. Candido keeps Richards on the mat with an abdominal stretch. Candido low blows Richards and tells the referee he didn’t do that. Candido grabs a chair but tosses it to the floor. Candido plants Richards with a powerbomb. Nova comes off the top but misses a leg drop and hits Richards on accident. Meanie tries for a leg drop but hits Richards, too. Candido comes off the top missing a diving headbutt. Richards plants Candido with a powerbomb but Candido kicks out. Candido avoids a superkick and nails Richards with a superkick for the win. (**. It was okay and they kept a good pace. The interference of Meanie and Nova helped the match. I’ve always liked Richards and Candido, so I preferred seeing this instead of Whipwreck in there.)
Third Contest: Brian Lee vs. Louie Spicolli: Lee and Spicolli brawl on the floor with Lee sending Louie face first into the ring post. Lee smashes Spicolli in the face with a steel chair. Louie has been busted open as officials are checking on him on the apron. Lee tosses Spicolli to the floor and they brawl into the crowd. The crowd is making it pretty hard for the camera guy to follow the action, but Lee has just been destroying Spicolli. Lee hits Louie with a trash bin before heading back towards ringside. Lee puts Louie through a table on the floor with a suplex. Lee continues to work over Louie with a chair shot. Lee comes off the middle rope but Louie tosses a chair into Lee’s face. Spicolli gets a two count after an elbow strike. Louie continues with a scoop slam and leg drop. Louie gets poked in the eyes and drives the referee down with a Spicolli Driver. Lee makes the count and Louie thinks he has won. Instead, Lee drives him down with a chokeslam and wins the match. (*1/2. Another rather quick match and was your usual ECW brawl around ringside and the crowd before the finish. I like Louie, but he isn’t really get a chance to shine much on house shows it seems like.)
Fourth Contest: Rob Van Dam vs. Pitbull #2: They shake hands before the match starts. They both attempt spinning heel kicks but neither one hits and they just have a standoff. Pitbull puts a full nelson on RVD for a few moments but RVD wiggles free. RVD drops Pitbull with an odd looking back suplex and delivers a quick leg drop. RVD kicks Pitbull against the rope but Pitbull connects with a stiff clothesline. Pitbull clotheslines himself and RVD over the top to the floor and they crash to the floor. Pitbull rams RVD face first into the ring post and they brawl on the outside for a few moments. RVD springboards off the railing to take Pitbull out with a moonsault. RVD dives over the top rope to take Pitbull out with a suicide dive. RVD continues to work over Pitbull with kicks and sends Pitbull shoulder post into a pillar holding up the building. Pitbull catches RVD on a springboard in the ring but falls down. Pitbull drives RVD down with a tombstone. Pitbull has RVD over his shoulder and drives RVD down to the mat gut first. RVD avoids a dropkick and leaps off the top to hit a leg drop. RVD comes off the ropes to hit a rolling thunder leg drop. RVD grabs a chair and whacks Pitbull over the head. RVD throws a chair into Pitbull’s face again. RVD hits a chair assisted dropkick in the corner. Pitbull goes for a press slam but switches to a tombstone for a near fall. Pitbull drops RVD with a double under hook powerbomb. Pitbull brings RVD to the floor and drives him chest first into the guard railing. Pitbull tosses RVD into the crowd and they continue to brawl in the crowd. They get back to ringside where RVD sends Pitbull into the railing before getting back in the ring.
Pitbull catches RVD coming off the top rope and crotches him. Pitbull hits a middle rope fallaway slam on RVD. Pitbull goes for the cover but RVD kicks out at two. Pitbull misses a spinning heel kick in the corner and flies over the top crashing through a table on the outside. ECW Television Champion Shane Douglas comes out and this Pitbull with the championship several times. RVD proceeds to take Douglas out with a somersault dive over the top! RVD pummels Douglas with right hands until Brian Lee comes out and attacks RVD. Douglas whacks Pitbull over the head with a steel chair. The locker room empties but RVD kicks a chair into Devon Storm’s face. There is just a big brawl taking place at this point. (**. The second time they went to the floor and brawled through the crowd felt like a moment where they didn’t know where to go or what to do in the ring. It had to have been a scapegoat to fill time. There was some decent action, but they could have knocked off several minutes from this.) After the match, Pitbull works over Shane Douglas in the ring and punches Brian Lee until several wrestlers get in the ring to break them apart. They are still able to brawl for a few moments before the segment comes to an end.
Fifth Contest: ECW Tag Team Champions New Jack & Mustafa vs. D-Von Dudley & Mass Transit: Mass Transit looks like he is 15-years old. I can’t believe ECW thought it was a good idea to use him on this show. Let alone putting him in there with a guy like New Jack. Jack and D-Von brawl on the floor while Mustafa works over Transit in the ring. Jack gets in the ring and whacks Transit over the back several times with a crutch. Jack has a toaster or something and nails Transit over the head. Jack is digging into Transit’s forehead with a blade and busts him open quickly. The kid is bleeding quite a bit and he let out a noticeable scream as if he was in complete shock this was happening.
There is someone vocally screaming “Get him the fuck out of there he is 17!” That would end up being his father. I can’t believe nobody is helping the kid. There is a camera guy who could certainly help, but is doing nothing. Mustafa delivers a sloppy scoop slam and New Jack just destroys the kid with a chair shot off the top. It was grossly sloppy. The poor kid is literally squirting blood out of his forehead. That ended the match. I can’t possibly rate this, for obvious reasons. How ECW didn’t get closed down for this is beyond me. That was just such a scary moment and the kid could have been killed. I don’t think I’ve overreacting with that assessment. A female doctor is in the ring trying to stop the bleeding and she appears to understand the situation as not being good at all. The poor kid hasn’t moved. New Jack decides to cut a promo on his fallen opponent and the crowd is eating it all up. I don’t think ECW could suffer a worse moment in their history.
Sixth Contest: Perry Saturn & John Kronus vs. Bubba Ray Dudley & Spike Dudley: Saturn and Bubba start the match with Saturn taking Bubba down to the mat quickly. Bubba takes Saturn down with a back suplex but Saturn fight back with a kick to the chest. Saturn catches Spike a top rope cross body attempt but Bubba dropkicks Spike onto Saturn for a two count. Saturn drops Spike with a quick leg sweep, which Spike bumped nicely for. Kronus comes off the ropes to drop Spike with a heel kick. Bubba and Kronus are the legal men with Kronus scoop slamming Bubba followed by a standing moonsault for a two count. Bubba comes off the ropes to drive Kronus face first into the canvas. Bubba sends Kronus over the top to the floor. All four men are in the ring as I think the cameraman had to get a new battery. Saturn nearly pins Spike following a moonsault. Well, whomever is working the camera completely cuts off the rest of the match. I can’t say I’m overly upset by this. Moving on…
Seventh Contest: ECW Television Champion Shane Douglas vs. Tommy Dreamer: Looks like we join this match in progress as Dreamer rolls Douglas into the ring but Douglas comes out of the corner with a swinging neckbreaker. Douglas spikes Dreamer onto a chair with a piledriver but can’t get a three count on the cover. Douglas comes off the ropes to dropkick Dreamer on the left knee. Douglas focuses his attack on the left knee wrenching on the leg. Francine chokes Dreamer over the bottom rope. Douglas tries to get a submission with a spinning toe hold. Douglas drops Dreamer to the mat with a kick to the knee again. Douglas drives Dreamer down to the mat with a knee breaker. Beulah is distracting the referee allowing Francine to enter and splash down onto Dreamer’s leg. Dreamer grabs Francine by her vagina but Douglas beats Dreamer down to the mat. Douglas continues to work over Dreamer with right hands until Dreamer pummels Douglas with right hands. Francine stops Dreamer with a chop block from behind. Douglas continues to work over the left knee of Dreamer. Douglas baseball slides Dreamer off the apron to the floor. Douglas drops Dreamer’s left knee onto a chair at ringside. Douglas rolls Dreamer back into the ring and tries to get a submission with figure four in the middle of the ring. Beulah gets in the ring to eye rake Douglas and Dreamer nearly wins with a rollup. Douglas goes to the top rope but Dreamer hits him in midair with a chair. Dreamer power slams Douglas for a two count. Dreamer bulldogs Douglas onto a steel chair. Dreamer has the cover but Douglas kicks out again at two. Dreamer continues with a back suplex and plants Douglas with a DDT for a two count as Francine put Shane’s boot on the ropes. Beulah comes over and has a short fight with Francine. Dreamer spikes Francine with a piledriver and plays to the crowd. Douglas gets up and pins Douglas following an arm breaker. (NR. I can’t rate it since I’m not sure how much was missing from the start, but it got over with the crowd and I enjoyed what they were able to film.) After the match, Pitbull press slams Douglas to get some revenge from earlier in the night.
Main Event: ECW World Champion The Sandman vs. Raven in a dog collar match: Raven attacks Sandman on the floor during his entrance and puts the dog collar around his fist before hitting Sandman several times. Sandman is already busted open as Raven comes off the apron to hit Sandman with the dog collar again. Raven chokes Sandman with the dog collar before dropping the champ to the floor. Raven sends Sandman into the guard railing back first. Raven sends Sandman flipping upside down into the guard railing. Raven rolls Sandman back into the ring and Sandman is bleeding pretty badly. Sandman comes off the ropes and drops Raven with a DDT, but pulls the challenger up to avoid a three count. Sandman hangs Raven over the top rope with the dog collar. Raven yanks Sandman off the apron and drops the champ chest first over the railing. Raven backdrops Sandman outside of the ring onto a table, which doesn’t break. Raven puts Sandman through the table with a piledriver! Raven hits Sandman several times with a chair over the head. Raven grabs the dog collar and whips Sandman shoulder and back first into the guard railing. Raven wraps the collar around his forehead before delivering a headbutt to the groin of Sandman. Raven takes his boot off and whacks Sandman over the head for a two count. Raven gets a chair but sends Sandman into the corner back first. Raven sends Sandman into the corner but Sandman collapses. Raven accidentally hits the referee with a chair. Raven knocks Sandman down with a few chair shots and then hits the referee on purpose. The BWO sets up a table in the ring to help out Raven. Meanie goes to the top rope as Richards superkicks Sandman onto the table. Meanie hits a moonsault through the table but Raven only manages a two count. Raven hits Sandman several times with the dog collar but Sandman pulls Raven towards him to connect with a DDT and wins the match. (**1/2. The match was decent enough and they were able to keep my interest. The finish seemed kind of abrupt after Raven was in control for nearly the entire match. I would have liked a more competitive match, but regardless it was still a fine way to end the show.)
Final Thoughts:
There is some decent wrestling on the show, but nothing overly memorable. There wasn’t much filler on the show, so it was a rather easy watch. However, the only think remembered from this show was the sickening Mass Transit match. It was truly uncomfortable and disgusting. I can’t recommend the show just on principle of the Mass Transit situation. Not that I would anyway because it wasn’t good enough to sit through for two hours.
Thanks for reading.