Search - The Rise and Fall of ECW on DVD

Patrick E. (Santa) from LA VERNE, CA
Reviewed on 1/15/2010...

Not bad, but it should have been done by ECW people, not WWF/E. It was the WWE that killed it and it should have died instead. ECW was for real athletes!

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ECW the eternal Underdog

Ironman | Carmel, IN USA | 11/13/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"ECW was a revolution in the wrestling world that still goes underrated to this very day in terms of the impact it had. It introduced the world to madcap capers of Hardcore wrestling, it brought wrestling to the 18-34 male demograph, it introduced to a certain extent real wrestling to the public.

This DVD covers the entire lifespan of ECW from it's indie days all the way to it tragic end. From nothing to PPV to TNN ECW had a long run.

In terms of who they interview they only talked to (from those who were in ECW) only the guys who are in WWE at current time. So in terms of some of the history you get to hear from Tommy Dreamer, Paul Heyman, Taz, the Dudly Boyz and so on. It would of been nice to hear from other big names, non-WWE guys such as Sabu, Raven, and Sandman but you can't get everthing.

Probably the only disapointment is the second Disk of the DVD. There are only a few matches (I believe only 6) and deleted moments. There is such a rich history of ECW you would of thought they put more effort into finding matchs that showed what ECW was about. But then again each big match had such buildup to it that they might be afraid would confuse the audience.

Overall however this is a very well done, and put together documentary. Some may criticize WWE for making half assed documentary DVD on certain aspects of Wrestling History, but this one does the legacy of ECW justice and after watching it makes me wish I was part of it (from a fan standpoint). I kind of wish I would have found a way to watch it and been part of it. However the past is the past and even today the effects of ECW still hold today. Be warned however there is really strong language in this and very graphic violence (lot's and lot's of blood). However if you were an ECW fan than you already knew that then didn't you."

The smallest, but most extreme of the 3 companies...

the one and only | I live south of Parts Unknown | 11/20/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Now I was only a kid when ECW was in its prime so I really didn't see most of it. But after I saw the WWE realease this DVD I immediately went out and bought it. This is an awsome documentary of the rise and fall of a great brand of wrestling.

Paul Heyman took a small not well known company and in a few years turned it into one of the most unbelievable shows ever seen. ECW had only a few hundred fans in the back of a bingo hall in one room, and they didn't have enough money for lights and pyro shows.

But Heyman didn't let that stop him, he stayed away from what they lacked and went on to what they did best at, guys putting other guys through tables set on fire.

This almost 3 hour documentary comes with jawdropping moments ever seen. From the Dudley boys starting riots from insulting people, to Shane Douglas throwing the NWA world title belt on the ground and saying he would rather be the ECW champion. And even to where the crowd threw hundreds of styrafoam heads into the ring with Al Snow.

The Documentary goes from all the major ECW superstars one by one. Raven, Tazz, Tommy Dreamer, The Sandman, Cactus Jack, Sabu, The Dudleys, Rob Van Dam, and others. It even goes to the moments where Kurt Angle was supposed to work for ECW but changed his mind after a really religious/horrifying moment.

It also goes onto an argument between Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff where Heyman accused Bischoff of raiding their superstars to join WCW. Bischoff declared that the Superstars left to get a better deal. Heyman declared, point blank, that Bischoff was full of sh*t.

The last moments of the documentary are great, as each superstar gives their personal feelings about working at ECW and how they were saddened by the loss of it. I gave this 4 stars just for the documentary alone.

The last star was for the matches on it. Though I have to admit I wished there were at least twice as many as there were on the disk. Anyway the three best matches on the disk are...

Sabu vs. Too Cold Scorpio: A 30 minute match where both men took crazy high flying moves. Sabu gives an insane table bump after leaping off a chair, onto the top rope, then doing a summersault in the air and crashed onto a table. Great match and the ending is surprising. 9/10

Rey Mysterio vs. Physcosis: A great high flying match with the crusierweights. All over the arena they fought, with moves over barriers and off of walls. A great match and the crowd was into it as always. 9/10

The Pit Bulls vs. Raven and Steven Richards: This was a two out of three dog collar match. It means that Raven would be linked to one of the pit bulls by the neck with a collar and chain as would steven richards be with the other pit bull.

four or five tables were broken in this one, and Raven's head clips the side of another table after the pit bull missed putting him through the table. Tommy Dreamer makes an appearance as do the dudley boys. 10/10

I would definately reccomend this just for the documentary alone, it is one of the best DVD's ever made by the WWE."

Great account of the rise and fall of a potential empire.

Bama Boy | Jasper, Alabama | 11/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have my copy on order but I have already watched it and I assure you that this is well worth your hard earned money if you are a wrestling fan. The first disc is a near three hour account of the fed that changed wrestling from 1993-2001. It took a long time to get ECW in syndication on the stations in my area but when I finally got to watch ECW in 1996, I seen what all the hype was about. The first disc has interviews with the likes of former ECW owner Paul Heyman, Tazz, Tommy Dreamer, The Dudley Boyz, Steven Richards, Lance Storm, Rob Van Dam, Rhyno, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, Nunzio,and Dawn Marie, all of whom where employed by ECW at one time or another. Also interviews Kurt Angle, who was within an eyelash of being signed by ECW before he signed with the WWE, which is an interesting story in itself, Jerry Lawler, who was lent to ECW by Vince in order to hype there second ppv, and interviews the head of the two companies ECW was competing against, Vince McMahon with WWE and Eric Bischoff, who is a former GM of WCW. You can see the respect Vince had for Paul but you can see the obvious disdain Eric and Paul had for each other. This first disc chronicles ALMOST every major superstar in ECW, and is worth the price alone.

The second disc contains seven bonus matches, all which are classics. It disappoints me because they could have easily made this a three disc set like the Ric Flair DVD but who knows, with the success of this dvd, maybe there will be a volume two worth of matches put out by WWE in the future. The Seven matches include:

Raven and Stevie Richards vs. The Pit Bulls in a two out of three dog collar match for the ECW tag team belts: This match is a perfect start to show the chaos of ECW. Great brawl. Look for an appearence by the seldom remembered Dudley Dudley and Dances with Dudley.

Rey Mysterio Jr. vs. Psychosis in a two out of three falls match: This is the match that set the pace of cruiserweight action in America. These two were lent to ECW by Konnan, who owned a Mexican wrestling company, and this match is one of the reasons Eric Bischoff and WCW started signing crusierweights away from Mexico, Japan, and ECW. The match itself will leave you speechless.

Mikey Whipwreck vs. The Sandman in a ladder match for the ECW Heavyweight title: Match is probably under ten minutes long but it is brutal and it is very entertaining. Best part is the ring introductions when "Superstar" Steve Austin cuts an in ring promo that was an instant classic and showed the world that WCW had misused this individual.

2 Cold Scorpio vs. Sabu for the ECW TV title: Great high flying match featuring one of the most underated wrestlers in Scorpio, and the man who brought attention to ECW, Sabu. If you are one of the younger fans or an older fan who has never watched Sabu, this is the match for you.

Tommy Dreamer vs. Raven: This is the final match in a feud that lasted from 1994 to this match that took place in May of 1997. A brutal, hardcore match that doesn't mean much if you don't know the history of this feud, which is why I urge you to watch disc one before you watch this match.

Tazz vs. Bam Bam Bigelow for the ECW TV title: Probably the weakest match on the DVD. I think for a Tazz match, they should have shown his match with Sabu at ECW's first ppv. Still an entertaing match for those of you that only know Tazz as Smackdown's color commentator.

Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn for the ECW TV title: Best match on the DVD in my opinion. For those of you like me that think RVD is being robbed by being pushed back in WWE and that his talent is misused, wait till you see what he does in this match. This is an example of why RVD is one of the better performers today and will make you wonder why he doesn't get to do some of the in ring spots in WWE, that he does in this match.

There is three interview extras on Disc 2 that features Stevie Richards, Tazz, and Chris Jericho.

Classic collection. Only drawbacks is no mention of The Eliminators, no match featuring the Dudleys, and there is no mention of the best heel faction in ECW, The Triple Threat which was helmed by Shane Douglas.

A must buy.

"