ECW Wrestlepalooza (June 1997)

Wrestlepalooza started in 1995, as a non-pay per view ECW supercard to be broadcast on their television programming, and sold on home video. Though the event would eventually transition to pay per view (1998) the 1997 show – the direct follow-up to ECW’s first pay per view effort in Barely Legal – was taped for ECW Hardcore TV, and the home video market.

From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Your Host is Joey Styles. Rick Rude comes out to offer his thoughts on the card, and joins Styles periodically throughout the broadcast – coming off like a cross between Jesse Ventura and Bobby Heenan.


Opening ECW Television Title Match: Shane Douglas v Chris Chetti: Chetti is a rookie, and Douglas suckers him into a false sense of security with a bunch of handshakes... before nailing him with a cheap shot. Chetti unloads dropkicks in response, and hits a corkscrew plancha to the outside for two. Inside, they do a pinfall reversal sequence ending with Douglas hooking a backslide for two, but Chetti gets him on the mat in an armbar. Superkick gets two, as Francine puts Douglas' foot on the ropes. Chetti stupidly goes after her on the floor, but gets creamed with a baseball slide, and Shane slams him on the concrete before walloping him with a chair. Douglas with a hanging vertical suplex back in, and he unloads a couple more chair shots for good measure. Side suplex, but Chetti escapes, and bulldogs him onto the chair for two. Dropkick gets two, and a missile version for two. Backdrop, but a flying moonsault misses, and Shane finishes him with a belly-to-belly suplex at 6:52. Basically a squash, but decent for what it was. *

The FBI v The Pitbulls: Little Guido and Pitbull #2 start, and Guido literally runs away. He sends up sandwiched between the Pitbulls, and they double-team. Pitbull #1 with a savate kick, and a neckbreaker draws Tracy Smothers in to offer a round of friendly dancing instead of beating his little Guido. The Pitbulls politely decline, but the distraction is enough to allow Guido to dump #1, and for FBI manager Tommy Rich to crotch him on the rail. Inside, the FBI cut the ring in half on #1, but Pitbull ducks and double-team, and levels them both with a clothesline. Tag to #2, and he's a doghouse of fire, and a superpowerbomb finishes Guido at 7:33. Basic tag formula stuff - energetic, and well paced. *

The Dudley Boyz v The Sandman and Balls Mahoney: Everyone comes in armed with chairs (except Sandman, who has his Singapore cane), but the referee forces them to drop them in exchange for punching each other. SandyBalls dominate a four-way brawl, but Buh Buh Dudley gets hold of the cane, and busts Balls. They all end up in a pile on the floor (after Sandman botches several suicide dives), and D-Von Dudley spills into the crowd to play with Balls. They brawl over to the snack bar (an actual concession stand - not the faux ones WCW was setting up), and considering both have bladed, I'm surprised the Philadelphia Department of Health didn't step in. 'What, that? Th..that's ketchup!' Back to the ring, Buh Buh with a uranage on Balls for two, and the Dudley Death Drop on a chair finishes at 8:30 - earning them a  shot at the ECW Tag Titles later in the show. All punch-kick, with the usual handful of blown spots by the always terrible Sandman. ½*

ECW World Title Match: Terry Funk v Chris Candido: Candido is a sub for the injured Stevie Richards - who hangs at ringside to properly sulk. Cute bit, as Candido wears Funk's signature striped tights for the occasion. They both trade off reversals on the mat, and Candido earns Funk's respect by hanging through with a series of counters - getting a handshake from the champ. Funk controls with a side-headlock, so Candido starts going ballistic with chops, knocking Funk to the floor. Chris demands he get back in, knowing he won't win the title by countout, so Funk obliges - and slaps him across the face for good measure. Damn right. Who is Skip to fucking demand anything besides anal on nights between when Shawn and Bret are too busy to fuck his girlfriend. To the floor again, they spill into the crowd for a slugfest, and Candido piledrives Funk onto the seat of an unfolded chair. Another piledriver through a table, but it gives out too early, and they go crashing through it. Inside, Candido with another piledriver, but it all only gets two. Three more only get two, so he tries a neckbreaker, but Funk won't stay down. He gives him another pair to take the spring out of his step, but still only gets two. Candido sets up a brutal neckbreaker across a pile of chairs, but that only gets two. Powerbomb for two, and now Candido is losing it with frustration - slapping Funk in the face. Funk takes advantage of his frustration and lures him into a neckbreaker of his own, but Candido hits a rana when Funk tries a piledriver. Rana off of the top gets two, and a side suplex - but Funk just won't quit. Candido is literally out of ideas, and gets cradled by Funk at 12:57 Match had its moments, but failed to properly execute the drama it was going for with all the repeated finishing spots. ¾*

Loser Leaves ECW Match: Tommy Dreamer v Raven: This was the final blowoff to the epic Raven/Dreamer feud. Big staredown to start, and Raven tries to run into the crowd to avoid him, but Dreamer follows, and gives him one last table crashing, chair smashing tour of the arena. Into the ring, Raven drop-toeholds him onto the seat of an unfolded chair, and slams him off of the top through the chair for two. Dreamer comes back with a road sign, and tries a DDT onto it, but Raven pal Lupus runs in to break it up. Dreamer shrugs him off, and allows super-hot valet/wife Beulah to DDT Lupus, but that shenanigans allows Raven to recover enough to takeover. He goes for Beulah, so Dreamer blows him low, triggering a catfight between Beulah and Chastity. Dreamer with a DDT onto the sign but the referee goes down, and Raven tries to return fire, but ends up getting caught with a Death Valley Driver, and another DDT ends it at 16:06 - sending Raven to WCW. Mostly dull for the long, intense angle it was paying off, with the 'brawl through the crowd' portion taking way too long, with way too little going on - killing the crowd by the time the overbooking kicked in. ¾*

Afterwards, the lights go out, and when they turn on Rob Van Dam (in a 'Monday Night RAW' t-shirt) is in the ring to clobber Dreamer with a chair. Tommy fights back, and the lights die again - this time with Sabu appearing to turn the tide. They beat Dreamer down (with Louie Spicolli forcing Beulah to watch), until the lights go again - this time putting Jerry Lawler in there. They destroy Dreamer (part of a bit of cross promotion with the WWF, that saw Lawler running down ECW as bush-league on WWF TV, and the ECW guys showing up on RAW to defend their honor), as Lawler cuts a promo on the fans. Half the roster tries to save, but Van Dam and Sabu fight them all off, until Taz hits the ring, and cleans house. He cuts a promo (including telling Lawler to 'suck (his) cock,' and demands Sabu (who he's scheduled to face later)  come out right here, right now. Sabu finally obliges, giving us...

Taz v Sabu: This is a rematch from Barely Legal. Sabu flies in, and hits a springboard spinkick for two. Taz manages a powerbomb out of the corner, and ties Sabu up on the mat, but gets dropkicked when he tries a backdrop. Sabu puts him on the floor, and follows out with a springboard moonsault. Somersault legdrop back in gets two, but Sabu crotches himself on another springboard moonsault attempt, and Taz suplexes him. Gorgeous Northern Lights Suplex for two, but a flying somersault senton misses, and Sabu hits a flying legdrop for two. DDT, and a flying splash through a table, but Taz hooks the Tazmission. Sabu leans back, however, and Taz pins his own shoulders at 8:12. The usual sloppy Sabu match, but more fun than their showdown at Barley Legal - which had an excellent build, but tried too hard to be epic, and came off as dull. *

Afterwards, Taz flips out, and starts taking out referees, until Shane Douglas (flanked by Francine, and still-hot Tammy Lynn Sytch) tells him to get out of the ring, because he's sick of having to watch him stink the joint up. Taz tells him he'll leave if Douglas can make him, and Douglas accepts a match for his TV Title right there and then, with the provision that if Taz loses, no one has to watch him wrestle for sixty days.

ECW Television Title v Sixty-Day Suspension Match: Shane Douglas v Taz: Taz goes right at him, but Douglas gouges the eyes, and wallops him with the title belt a couple of times. Swinging neckbreaker, and a DDT set up a pair of inverted Hennig-necksnaps, and Shane keeps pounding the neck - trying to outright break it - but Taz gets him in the Tazmission, and we have a new champion at 2:50 - ending Douglas' near year long run with the belt, and starting Taz's. Short, but fun. *

ECW World Tag Team Title Match: The Eliminators v The Dudley Boyz: Commissioner Tod Gordon comes out to say the Eliminators can't defend, because Perry Saturn suffered a serious leg injury. The champs come out - Saturn on crutches - but they refuse to relinquish the belts, preferring to lose them in the ring like real men. Gordon agrees, but it's essentially a handicapped match, since Saturn can barely stand. The Dudley's take advantage - double teaming John Kronus - but he starts unloading roundhouse kicks to turn the tide. That draws in Big Dick Dudley with a chokeslam, and the Dudley's go back to work - now three-on-one. Saturn finally gets sick of it, and wallops Dick and D-Von with his crutch, but that earns him a cutter from Buh Buh. They go back to dismantling Kronus, but he starts throwing spinkicks again, and cleans house. 450 Splash kills D-Von, but the referee is down, so there's no one to count. That allows Buh Buh to step in again, but Saturn hobbles to the top rope, and nails D-Von with a flying elbowdrop to retain at 7:31. Cute bit, but it kept Saturn (the best worker in the match at that point) from working - which left it more of an extended beat down, with some spots thrown in. ¼*

BUExperience: ECW was always a nice alternative to the polished WWF and WCW product. It was like punk rock to pop – CBGB’s to the WWF’s Beacon Theatre. The guys weren’t making much money, but they had a chance to build their reputations on smaller stage, when they would have never made it past enhancement talent in the ‘big two’ – ironically, often resulting in them getting picked up by the majors to continue the same acts they honed in the ECW Arena. No particularly good wrestling here (though a few historically significant moments, for sure), but it embodied that wild, exciting aura ECW had around it if you caught it channel surfing some Saturday morning. **