Friday, April 13, 2012

My First Look at ECW, 15 Years Later

by Mike Bradford


I first heard about ECW because of the internet. I remember being on Wrestlezone in my cousin's basement looking at wrestler's real names, prior characters, and entrance music. What drew my attention to ECW was the fact that they used real music. After some old school internet research I ended up on their website. From there I learned that ECW was available in my area on Saturday's at 1am.

Once I saw the product, I was hooked. I was in my teen years and I already knew that wrestling was scripted, but there was so much realism in ECW that it had me questioning what I thought I knew. It's because of ECW that my mind is so open to the independent wrestling scene, and I learned that you don't need a million dollars worth of production and pyro to put on a great show. ECW's impact on the sport of professional wrestling is both unmistakable and undeniable. They paved the way with their creativity and innovation, creating an underground legend and gaining fan support while giving us the opportunity to see wrestlers we may not have seen in Attitude Era WWE or on the undercard in WCW.

It is in my belief that if they would have had the luxury of iPPV, ECW would still be alive today.

Thank you, Paul, for the revolution.

@Bradford_FTLOW | #FTLOW