"Extreme" Championship Wrestling? WWE Needs to Rethink Branding Scheme

Commentary on Last Night's ECW and Every Other WWE Program in Recent History

The Mick
Does anybody watch ECW anymore? I almost never do. And when I do watch, I see the same tired story lines. The faces might change, but the story remains the same. Don't tell me that's the way ALL wrestling programs are. I can remember a time when there was variety - when stories seemed fresh. That was before WWE decided to spread itself too thin by running 3 "distinct" brands (RAW, Smackdown, ECW) and a collection of clip shows on the web and "superstation" cable channels.

Listen, I'm a wrestling fan, but there are so few characters these days that can hold my interest. The really talented veterans are worked so often that they get injured. Nobody wants to watch most of the "young up and coming talent" and the new guys just can't seem to get "over" with the crowd. This results in microwaving old story lines with the veterans. Week after week can see the same match-ups.

Want an example?

How many times has Christian fought Tommy Dreamer for the ECW title? A million? I saw them live in Memphis way back in early July. Guess what I bet I see on the next pay-per-view? Dreamer vs. Christian for the belt? Bank on it. There is zero variety in WWE creative.

Do I have a better idea? Of course I do.

Why not sync the brands, have one WWE product and then only one or two "live" shows. Clip shows can show the up and coming talent and historic match-ups. That requires no writing. Then the writers can focus on using the entire roster to come up with good story lines that engage the crowds, sell tickets, and increase viewership. Learn from the past. Spreading yourself thin leads to destruction. It happened with the Roman Empire. It happened with the British Empire. It even happened with WCW.

How does that old saying go? Those who fail to learn from history are destined to repeat it. Get a clue folks.

Published by The Mick

If you're Irish and living in Ireland, that's one thing. If you're Irish and living abroad, that's another. Now which one am I?   View profile

5 Comments

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  • The Mick 10/28/2009

    Things are improving. But it is still obvious that ECW serves 2 roles for WWE. 1. A pasture for wrestlers past their money generating prime (too bad they stuck Christian there as a mentor). 2. A "AAA" farm system for young wrestlers who have made it out of FCW and need some work around cameras. The veterans do well to train the young guys, but I think this could be done in a unified product instead of 3 brands (see my article "How to Save WWE".

  • Sergio Santos 10/28/2009

    I don't know if I agree. I like seeing the young guys through here, even when they're bad. At least it deviates from the script. You know? Orton vs Cena vs Triple HHH?

  • eric 8/10/2009

    You turds need to learn how to spell more better in your comments.

  • Keith 8/6/2009

    No I have to agree. WWE has been going gradually downhill for the past several years, since the beginning of the brand separation. I've been saying that for a long time and I still believe it. I actually stopped watching altogether for years until a live show came to Baltimore last week and I saw Goldust :D

  • Jason 8/6/2009

    ECW is better than RAW almost every week. I don't see the problem in having Christian and Dreaming wrestling in July as well as now. That's only a month. Not a long time at all.

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