The Raping is... EXTREME!

This Raping is... EXTREME!
by David Swan

Holy Shit... what a difference 24 hours can make! It was just yesterday that myself and a group of friends were watching WWE's "The Bash" pay per view and we were saying how ECW was possibly the best of the three WWE brands. Well apparently a small robot with a satellite dish was sitting in my house and beamed the signal directly to WWE Headquarters, because less than day later ECW has been dismantled... blown up... and destroyed beyond recognition.

Now this isn't the first time that this has happened, most wrestling fans will remember Tazz almost pulling a Benoit on national TV as the ECW brand was raped and pillaged during the 2008 WWE Draft. This time felt different though. We are less than three months removed from the 2009 WWE Draft and more specifically the Supplemental Draft, so it seems odd that the mid-card needed another reshuffling.

The point of ECW is simple, its to give new wrestlers a televised place to sink or swim and to get over with the WWE Universe. ECW creates a unique opportunity for the WWE to get fans familiarized with new Superstars before the debut on RAW or Smackdown!. The formula has worked very well so far: CM Punk was over enough to capture the World Heavyweight Title his first night off the brand. Kofi Kingston, The Miz, and John Morrison are all now major players after getting their first major breaks on ECW.

As I said early, as of late ECW had become the best it's ever been causing everybody to stand up and take notice, apparently including Vince McMahon. If the show was performing that well, it must have meant it was time to bring its stars up to the next level. This was accomplished in what only can be described as one of the most lopsided trades in the history of trades. If wrestling were real, ECW Interim General Manager, Tiffany would have not only been fired but dragged out into the streets and beaten for allowing this trade to go down.

ECW lost a mind boggling 7 of their top 10 wrestlers (Jack Swagger, Evan Bourne, Finley, Mark Henry, David Hart Smith, Tyson Kidd, & Natayla) and in return pick up 3 mid-carders (Shelton Benjamin, Goldust, & William Regal) and 2 Divas (The Belle Twins).

My gut reaction is that some of these moves may have been premature. Benjamin and Regal will benefit the most from the trade. With ECW losing ALL their top heels its almost certain that Benjamin and Regal will rise to the top very quickly, possibly resulting in one, or both, capturing their first Heavyweight Titles. only time will tell if Swagger, Bourne, and The Hart Dynasty will succeed on their new homes, but if they do it will eliminate all doubt in the star making ability of WWE's "Third Brand".