Review of WWE: ECW One Night Stand 2006 & Barely Legal

Introduction

It may be intensely ironic - or idiotic, should you choose - that 2006`s ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) "One Night Stand" show is the second of its type, but after last year`s excellent showing, wrestling fans were more than happy to ignore the linguistics.

This year`s event was back at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, on June 11th. The main event was a battle for the WWE title, as Rob Van Dam cashed in on his "Money in the Bank" title-shot promise to take on champion John Cena. Abhorred by hardcore wrestling fans, Cena - by far the most popular current wrestler with women and children - was in for a tough night.

Elsewhere on the card, Edge & Mick Foley tangled with Tommy Dreamer & 62 year old Terry Funk, and World Heavyweight champion Rey Mysterio took on the "homicidal, suicidal, and genocidal" Sabu.

Video

Video is presented in 4:3 fullscreen PAL and is excellent for a DVD of this genre. Whilst the production values were deliberately not as huge for this event (to follow on with the tradition of ECW as a rebel promotion), everything else about this production maintains the WWE standard. Therefore, the transfer is very clear, although a little less sharp than PAL viewers are used to.

Audio

Audio is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 and is very good for a DVD of this genre. Everything is clear, from theme music to commentary - provided by Joey Styles and Tazz - to in-ring action.

For international viewers, there are 2.0 tracks in French, Italian, and German, as well as Portuguese and Dutch subtitles.

Features

Silvervision have treated us to a 2-disc set for One Night Stand, with several "regular" extras on Disc One, and an entire pay-per-view event on Disc Two!

On Disc One, we have the WWE vs ECW battle royal from the week prior to One Night Stand. Whilst it is hardly a bout to rival 1992`s Royal Rumble match, it is interesting for the surprising finish to the contest.

There are post-event comments from fans who attended the event, many of which do not reflect the thoughts of ECW fans, and also the opening segment of the first edition of ECW TV on America`s Sci-Fi channel.

On Disc Two, we have the entire original ECW pay-per-view, Barely Legal. I say original, because this is from the original ECW group, which must be differentiated from the Vince McMahon-owned ECW. For a movie equivalent, McMahon`s version of ECW is like Disney remaking Reservoir Dogs.

Barely Legal was held on 13th April 1997, at the infamous ECW Arena in Philadelphia - a venue which doubled as a bingo hall. It was the culmination of a miraculous journey for ECW, having built itself from nothing, to establishing itself as an underground sensation, to finally making it to pay-per-view.

The main event of the evening was a Three Way Dance, a three-person elimination match where the winner would face ECW World Champion Raven immediately thereafter. Whilst the bout itself was good, it was the atmosphere inside the arena, and the tremendous conclusion, that made the match seem spectacular.

Elsewhere on the card, Tazz faced Sabu in a grudge match that had been brewing for over one year. The bout contained much more technical wrestling than had been expected and was considered somewhat of a letdown by the fans who had been baying for blood.

Other matches on the bill were Shane Douglas vs Pitbull II, Rob Van Dam vs Lance Storm, and The Eliminators vs The Dudley Boys. But the highlight of the event - and indeed, this entire 2-disc set - was the Japanese six-man tag team match, which saw The Great Sasuke, Masato Yakushiji, and Gran Hamada face Taka Michinoku, Terry Boy, and Dick Togo. This was an extremely fast-paced contest, one of the very best anywhere in 1997. In fact, the match prompted the WWF (as they were then known) to add a Light Heavyweight division to their ranks, and to have Sasuke and Michinoku front it.

Overall, Barely Legal was a tremendous event, and it is a treat to have it included here as an "extra". Frankly, its inclusion overshadows the One Night Stand event itself!

Conclusion

One Night Stand started off riotously with an in-ring promo by Paul Heyman, thanking the fans for "bringing back" ECW. Tazz then made his way to the ring for his battle with Jerry "The King" Lawler, although to call it that is somewhat of an overstatement considering how long the match went from bell to bell.

Randy Orton soaked up the hatred of the New York crowd like a sponge in the next bout, with newly-turned ECW star Kurt Angle. This was a very good match, which allowed Angle to show off his "shooter" style, designed to characterise the new ECW.

Things came down a notch as the Full Blooded Italians faced Super Crazy and Yoshihiro Tajiri, before Rey Mysterio defended his World Heavyweight Title against Sabu in a match which featured some impressive aerial moves, but had a finish that did not please the crowd.

Tommy Dreamer & Terry Funk and Mick Foley & Edge then gave the fans a taste of ECW hardcore wrestling (for which it was renowned). Ladders, chairs, barbed wire, and pieces of lumber were all used to maim, but even though this match involved almost no actual wrestling, it was dramatic enough to claim match of the night honours.

Balls Mahoney then went up against Masato Tanaka in a disappointing bout, which was likely used to calm down the crowd before Rob Van Dam`s shot at the WWE Champion John Cena. This was a very good match, made moreso by the interaction of the crowd, and the excellent playing off the crowd by Cena. Although the bout finished on a controversial note, the fans got exactly what they wanted to see.

Overall, One Night Stand was a good event, which failed to live up to the high standards of its 2005 predecessor. Still, this slight disappointment is more than diluted by the fact that Silvervision have produced an excellent DVD set, with the momentous Barely Legal card, in full, on Disc 2.

As such, this is a must for any ECW fan.