WWE "ECW on Sci-Fi"
Live from Fresno, Calif.

[Q1] The show opened with the worst general manager in the history of pro wrestling or mainstream sports, Tiffany. She proudly welcomed viewers to a new era of ECW. Yeah, a really bad one. She actually boasted that the look of the ECW show had changed drastically. "While we lost some superstars, we gained some as well." She said the new star initiative is in full effect.

Josh Matthews and Matt "Beer Can" Striker checked in from ringside for the first time. They also spoke about the "blockbuster trade" and ran through Shelton Benjamin's title history...

Powell's POV: No opening montage this week since there's really no one left. Okay, they probably just didn't have time to put something together...

1. Yoshi Tatsu pinned Shelton Benjamin in 1:40. Tatus came out to some horrible music. Shelton looked at him like he was from outer space. He took the mic and said he doesn't even know how to pronounce Yoshi's last name. Shelton mocked Yoshi by speaking with a stereotypical Japanese accent. Shelton bowed at Yoshi and then the fans, who booed him.

Shelton struck the crane kick pose for a laugh. He also did the sumo stomp. Yoshi wasn't happy. Shelton bowed to Yoshi, who creamed him with a kick to the side of the head and pinned him.

Powell's POV: All comedy. The kick was the only move of the entire match. ECW might not be so bad if they call up new wrestlers rather than focus on the talent they acquired. Tiffany looks like a bigger goof for acting like the trade was solid, and the announcers lose credibility for not pointing out that the ECW brand got the short end of the stick.

The announcers hyped the main event... A shot aired of another newcomer Abraham Washington walking backstage... [C]

Ring announcer Tony Chimmel introduced Abraham Washington, who walked to the ring wearing a suit. The video wall and music were talk show themed, and the ring was set up with a couch and a chair for his talk show. Once in the ring, Washington welcomed viewers to "The Abraham Washington Show." The fans booed.

Abe said The Bash was "off the hook." He said the Three Stages of Hell match was "pretty tight." He said he hasn't seen that much pain and brutality since he saw Paris Hilton in a spelling bee. This was greeted with "What" taunts from the crowd.

He brought up Vince buying Raw for twice what he paid for it. He said it was a dumb move and a financial disaster. "Speaking of financial disasters, 12 Rounds came out on DVD today," he said. Washington pointed out that John Cena beat The Miz twice this week.

[Q2] Washington introduced The Bella Twins as his first guests. They came to the ring and hugged him before all three took their seats. He asked how long they've looked alike, which drew a couple chuckles. He asked how much they spend on their weaves every year. They said they're all natural. He said the lie detector was going off.

Abe said he was just joking. He pointed out that Sports Illustrated named them the sexiest twins in all of sports. He asked what makes them different. The Bellas bickered as he asked about which one was younger, who had the higher SAT score, who was kissed first, and who was "the first do a little more than kissing."

Nikki was a bitch when she bragged about all the things she was good at. Brie said she's better at keeping a boyfriend that her sister. They continued to squabble. Washington said they were on the verge of a good old fashioned cat fight. He closed out the show and tried to sit between the bickering Bellas, but they stood up as he sat down... The announcers hyped the main event... [C]

Powell's POV: Washington was good in his role, but his material was weak. I'm all for a Piper's Pit-like segment, but not on the wrestling-heavy Tuesday night show. Hardcore wrestling fans will absolutely hate Washington's talk show. It was way too long and the monologue was brutal (thanks Brian Gewirtz?). Sadly, this would fit right in on WWE's Monday night variety show.

2. Sheamus defeated Oliver John. More horrible entrance music for Sheamus, who cut a promo saying he was going to claim ECW "as me own." Striker said it was customary for new wrestlers to shake hands with his peers, but Sheamus hadn't done that. Sheamus won the match with an impressive backbreaker move.

Powell's POV: Strong debut for Sheamus. The live crowd wanted to hate on him, but he seemed to win them over by performing a couple of impressive moves. He's definitely a heel based on his promo and what Striker said about him.

[Q3] Backstage, William Regal approached Vladimir Kozlov and said he hopes he understands the strategy they discussed earlier despite his limited English. Kozlov got it and then added a wink at the end... [C]

Powell's POV: It looks like Kozlov is going to be the babyface Terminator that debuted in Terminator 2.

Backstage, Zack Ryder was checking himself out when Tyler Reks walked into the room and praised him. Reks informed Ryder that they were going to wrestle one another on Thursday's WWE Superstars. Ryder heeled on him...

Powell's POV: Reks was in ultra-babyface mode. Say what you will about the talk show format (and those hideous jokes), but Abraham Washington delivered the most memorable debut of the bunch so far. I don't care for the talk show format, but the guy was laid back and comfortable in his role and I could see him developing heat quickly if he gets some real material to work with. By the way, it's easy to see why most of the creative team members are working for WWE rather than in those Hollywood jobs they covet.

Highlights aired from Monday's WWE Raw... Backstage, Christian bumped into Tommy Dreamer, who asked if he was ready. Dreamer asked Christian what was wrong. Christian said he was in the same building he returned to the WWE Universe. They bickered like old women. Dreamer walked off and Christian said something, but Josh Matthews spoke over him and blew the line... [C]

[Q4] Ring introductions for the main event took place...

3. Vladimir Kozlov and William Regal defeated Tommy Dreamer and Christian in 14:45. Kozlov debuted red shorts and boots. Striker praised Regal by saying he's had a hand in the development of Brian Kendrick and C.M. Punk. Interesting reveal given Regal's heel persona.

Striker also said Regal wrestled as "Steven Regal" until he discovered that he's a descendent of William The Conquerer. Nice story. After nearly four minutes of action, the show cut to commercial. [C]

Powell's POV: Dot Net contributer Marvin Hermanstyne has dubbed the show "FCW on Sci-Fi." Nice call.

The action picked up after the break with Christian and Regal in the ring together. Christian hit a nice missile dropkick on Regal. Later, Dreamer tried to hit a pair of running clotheslines on Kozlov, but he didn't go down. Dreamer finally knocked him down with a clothesline off the second rope.

[Overrun] While Dreamer and Kozlov were fighting in the ring, Regal ran Christian into the ring post at ringside. Regal tagged himself into the match and fought with Dreamer, who missed a running shoulder lock. Regal suplexed Dreamer and then backed into the corner, only to have Kozlov tag himself into the match. Kozlov slammed Dreamer and scored the pin.

After the match, Regal smiled and clapped. He raised Kozlov's hand and smiled again. Regal looked really pissed whenever Kozlov wasn't looking at him, but smiled whenever they made eye contact... Another ad aired for Triple H vs. John Cena on Monday's Raw...

Powell's POV: A much more newsworthy edition of ECW than expected. I'm sure everyone will be crapping on the Abraham Washington talk show and I can't blame them, but I must point out again that I was impressed with the poise he showed on the mic for his first time on WWE television. It was hard to get a feel for the other newcomers because they didn't get much time. Sheamus was solid in his squash. Please tell me they'll lead the fans to mock him with "ginger" taunts. We'll see what Rich Twilling had to say about the show via the ECW Hitlist on Wednesday morning. Thanks for watching along with me tonight.

RECOMMEND THIS ARTICLE: