ECW Heatwave 2000 Review

Hello and welcome to another edition of Seanomaniac Wrestling Reviews, the only wrestling review series on the internet that could save 205 Live! ECW’s Heatwave 2000 where Justin Credible defends his championship against Tommy Dreamer in the match that the fans wanted to see at the last pay per view. Rhino and The Sandman do battle once more, RVD looks for revenge against Scotty Anton for his double-cross at the last pay per view and it seems mid-card mania continues for the likes of Super Crazy, Guido, Tajiri and Jerry Lynn.

Opening Promo

Joel Gertner and Styles do their usual shtick before Cyrus interrupts, Gertner finally snaps and attacks Cyrus for his colossal douche-baggery.

Balls Mahoney vs Big Sal

Somehow we make it out of that brawl to Big Sal and Balls, Big Sal spits at Mahoney. Clothesline to the back of the head, massive shots to the back. Mahoney punches, Big Sal staggers. Low blow and a chair shot with Big Sal still standing, Big Sal shakes it off. Chokeslam by Big Sal, Big Sal is on the bottom rope. Elbow to the balls of Mahoney, belly to belly suplex and Big Sal beats Mahoney. Well, that was a shock why did they go with that finish? No idea, DUD!

Winner: Big Sal over Balls Mahoney via Belly to Belly Suplex!

Simon Diamond/Johnny Swinger/CW Anderson vs Danny Doring/Roadkill/Kid Kash

Doring & Roadkill are full-blown babyfaces now while Kid Kash continues to show incredible growth as a high-flying daredevil. Diamond has a new partner in Swinger, CW Anderson is proving to be quite the hand in the ring. Kash and Diamond begin, lock-up. Waistlock by Diamond, Kash counters for a hammerlock. Firemen’s carry by Diamond, hammerlock from Kash. Snapmare and armdrags by Diamond, armdrag by Kash. Hiptosses by Kash, stand-off. Anderson comes in, eats an elbow from Doring. Roadkill splashes Diamond & Swinger, the babyfaces pose in the ring.

Kash nails Anderson with a slingshot hurricanrana, Diamond sends Roadkill into the guard rail. Springboard clothesline by Kash on Anderson, Diamond saves the match. Hurricanrana on Diamond, Anderson catches Kash for the ferris wheel for two. Swinger is legal, back suplex and stomps to Kash. Anderson is legal, massive chop to Kash. Kash chops back, right hands. Irish whip, Anderson eats a boot. Moonsault by Kash, Anderson is down. Doring comes in, superkick for Swinger. G-Spot Suite for Anderson, Bare-back to Diamond. Swinger Russian legsweeps Doring for two. Diamond and Swinger nail a double complete shot on Doring for two, crowd chants for Roadkill.

Simon suplexes, two for Diamond. Tag to Anderson, chops by Anderson. Doring fights back before a huge left, two as Kash saves Doring. Rocker Dropper by Doring, Roadkill gets the hot-tag. Sidewalk slam to Swinger, Dirt Road Slam to Diamond. TKO to Anderson, Doring planchas onto the heels. Kash does the same onto everyone, Roadkill springboards onto everyone. Danaconda for two, Diamond saves Swinger.

Roadkill is crotched on the top rope, Swinger & Diamond double suplex Roadkill for two. Kash saves Roadkill, Anderson spinebusters Kash for two as Roadkill drops the leg on Anderson. The Problem Solver is stopped, Wham Bam Thank You Mam, Money Maker on Swinger and this match is over!

What a fun match, the heels were hated and the babyfaces were loved, pro-wrestling at its simplest and finest. Kash was money as Styles would scream, freakishly athletic with a finisher that makes you go aww each and every time. Doring and Roadkill were a great tag team in ECW by this point, Roadkill and Doring complimented one another greatly, I would love to see a tag team championship match though, I feel like it has been ages with the dissolution of The Impact Players.

Winners: Team Kash over Team Diamond via Money Maker!

Steve Corino W/ Jack Victory vs Jerry Lynn

The idea was Jerry Lynn was joining The Network, this proved wrong as Lynn was out for one person and that was himself. Lynn sprints down to the ring an chops Corino, corner clothesline followed by diving bulldog. Clothesline to the floor, Lynn dives onto Corino and Victory. Backbreaker by Lynn, stomps by The New F’N Show. Lynn leg drops Corino guillotine style, Corino meets the guard rail. Corino ducks a clothesline and crotches Lynn, Corino has a chair. Lynn kicks the chair into Corino’s face. Tornado DDT using the guard rail for leverage, both men are down.

Corino is bleeding, no surprise there. Right hands by Lynn, ten punches by Lynn but Corino powerbombs Lynn onto a chair. Chops by Corino, Victory cheap shots Lynn. Left hands and bionic elbow by Corino, two for Corino. Lynn eats a powerslam for two, stomps by Corino. Victory attacks Lynn again, Lynn is flattened using the guard rail. Lynn is thrown into the guard rail, right hands by Corino. Lynn fires up, exploder suplex by Corino. Two for Corino, Lynn is back with right hands. Low blow by Corino, Lynn dropkicks a chair into Corino’s face. Slugfest with Lynn winning the war, Corino is crotched on the top rope.

Lynn has a chair, Lynn DDTs Corino onto the chair, Tower of London style for two. Corino manages to kick out of the DDT, Lynn talks trash before using Corino’s blood to write the word DIE on his chest. Lynn is one crazy motherfucker right here, Corino is not finished though. Superkick by Corino for two, Corino eats a reverse DDT from the middle rope for two. Scoop slam is countered for The Old School Expulsion, Corino gets two. Low blow by Lynn, powder goes into the referee’s eyes, thanks to Victory. Corino nails Lynn with his boot, Lynn is nailed with the cowbell by Victory. Two for Corino, the two reverse pins because that just has to happen. Cradle Piledriver and Lynn wins the match.

Corino and Lynn put up a good match for every fan in the arena, Lynn never fails to put a smile on my face while watching this company, the DIE moment and Lynn’s Piledriver were things of beauty. Corino is a master of blading but more importantly, Corino puts himself in another match where the fans would be talking about him the next day, Corino continues to be the man inside of that ring.

Winner: Jerry Lynn over Steve Corino via Cradle Piledriver!

Da Baldies vs Nova & Chris Chetti

New Jack comes out on crutches, Da Baldies are not fond of New Jack and beat the piss out of The Gangsta before Chetti and Nova make the save. What was the point of brining Jack out for that? Dives from Nova and Chetti, Devito nails some rights on Nova. Double flapjack on Nova, Devito gets two. Right hands by Devito and a big dropkick, belly to belly suplex from Nova. Tag to Chetti, right hands and a big thrustkick. Sidekick to Devito, Angel saves his team. Blue Thunder Bomb by Chetti, Devito attacks Chetti. Nova misses the senton bomb, Devito nails his Bronx Bomb. Devito misses a moonsault, Nova nails a piledriver followed by a second and a sit-out powerbomb. Angle clotheslines Nova, Chetti pummels Angel.

Angel ducks a clothesline, Angel misses a leg lariat. Amityville Horror connects, Nova and Chetti climb to the top rope, Angle has nowhere to go but down as Chetti and Nova nails The Tidal Wave for the win. That was fairly short, a squash in every sense of the word so not much to report here.

Winners: Nova & Chetti over Da Baldies via Tidal Wave!

Little Guido vs Psicosis vs Tajiri vs Mikey Whipwreck

Well would you look at that, Guido and Tajiri have not progressed at all since 1999, Whipwreck enters this match as he is insane, Whipwreck is in pyromaniac mode. Tony Mamaluke gets planted for interfering, Big Sal catches Whipwreck and sends Whipwreck into the ringpost. Psicosis nails his Guillotine Leg Drop with Guido stealing the pin for the elimination.

Tajiri kicks Guido, Psicosis chops Tajiri. Armdrag by Tajiri, shoulder block by Psicosis. Hurricanrana by Tajiri, headscissors too. Hotshot by Psicosis, Guido and Psicosis brawl before an Asai Moonsault from Tajiri. Buzzsaw kick to Guido, superplex from Tajiri. Corkscrew Moonsault by Psicosis for two, Psicosis goes after Tajiri. Chops by Psicosis, Guido nails The Kiss of Death. Buzzsaw Kick from Tajiri to Guido, German Suplex on Psicosis and we are down to two.

 Tajiri slams Guido to the mat, victory roll from Guido for two. Buzzsaw Kick by Tajiri, Tarantula from Tajiri. Handspring Elbow by Tajiri, Tajiri wants a chair from ringside. Guido is placed in the tree of woe, chair to the ribs. Dropkick to the face, Guido kicks a chair into Tajiri’s face. Sicilian Slice by Guido, chops by Guido. Tajiri is faceplanted onto a chair, Tajiri stops the kiss of death. Green Mist and a Brainbuster on the chair for the win.

What can I say that I have not already? Tajiri and Guido have touched a thousand times, they bring out the best in one another, both men are two wrestlers you want opening shows because they are staples of the company, both men connect with the crowd so easily and they never have a bad match with one another.

Winner: Tajiri over Little Guido via Brainbuster!

(ECW Television Championship Match) Rhino © vs The Sandman

The Sandman looks for revenge against the monster Rhino, Rhino vs The Sandman was twice stopped from taking place on pay per view. Rhino had destroyed Sandman’s wife, Sandman had cost Rhino the TV Championship but Rhino is the champion at the end of the day and this feud continues despite the terrible matches, Sandman cracks Rhino with his cane four times and Rhino is on his feet. Clothesline by Rhino, Sandman dodges a corner clothesline. Right hands by Sandman, left hands by Sandman on the floor. There is a guard rail in the ring, Rhino has a chair. Chair to the back, left hands by Sandman in the ring.

Rhino meets the guard rail, Sandman nails a Heinekenrana onto the guard rail for two. Bulldog on the guard rail for two, Rhino suplexes Sandman on the guard rail. Rhino is slammed, Sandman places the guard rail on Rhino. Rolling Rock by Sandman for two, Rhino meets the guard rail again. Victory and Corino are here, Spike Dudley in a leg brace is here. 3D on Corino, Rhino is up. Roll-up by Sandman, Rhino Gores Spike. Rhino Driver on Spike through a table at ringside, more cane shots to Rhino. White Russian Legsweep is countered, Sandman bounces off the guard rail. Rhino Driver on the guard rail, Rhino retains.

Best they could hope for, all the violence of a match between the two, interference to clear up any sticky spots, Rhino continues to be an absolute monster, surviving everything that is thrown his way while Sandman will always be over, a legend in ECW by this point with nothing be able to diminish his starpower in the fans’ eyes.

Winner: Rhino over The Sandman via Rhino Driver!

Rob Van Dam W/ Bill Alfonso vs Scotty Anton

Scotty Anton was a dear friend to RVD, RVD was going to beat Jerry Lynn again before Anton turned his back on RVD costing him the match. Not sure what they thought they would get out of Anton but let’s see how it goes, RVD nails spinning heel kicks and a splash for two, Anton whips RVD into the guard rail. Boot by RVD, moonsault off the guard rail. Corkscrew guillotine leg drop with a chair by RVD, Anton begs for mercy. Low dropkick by RVD, military press by RVD. Moonsault, rolling firemen’s carry with a middle rope moonsault for two. Forearms by RVD, RVD crotches Anton on the rope. Anton wrestles the chair from Alfonso and RVD is smacked with the chair to the floor.

Anton does the clap, knee to the head of RVD. Bulldog onto the guard rail, clothesline against the guard rail. Anton slams RVD into the turnbuckle, Oklahoma Stampede style. RVD is in the tree of woe, choke from Anton. Both men are on the top rope, back superplex by Anton for two. Anton mocks RVD, stretch from Anton. Anton makes RVD do the clap, DDT by Anton. Two for Anton, Anton dropkicks RVD in the head. Anton clotheslines RVD off the guard rail, RVD is in the tree of woe. RVD kicks a chair into Anton’s face, diving thrustkick is blocked for a Boston crab. Alfonso breaks up the crab, RVD leg trips Anton onto the chair. Two for RVD, step-through spinning heel kick.

Inverted atomic drop by RVD, running chair dropkick into the face. Two for RVD, split-legged moonsault. Two for RVD, Rolling Thunder from RVD. Anton attacks the weakened leg of RVD, Clapper from Anton. RVD grabs a chair, big stomp from Anton. Anton grabs Alfonso, two-handed throat toss. The Clapper on Alfonso, slowest Van Damanator ever! Five Star Frog Splash, Van Terminator for the first time ever.

God, that was a long match. Anton and RVD do their best pose off for half of the match, the heat segment went on and on and on and on and on, I thought it would never come to an end. Anton was nowhere near as over or as good as he needed to be to be in there with RVD, it made for a real boring match. The Van Terminator was worth investing in though, the fans loved it and RVD is an athletic freak. Boring match with a cool finish.

Winner: Rob Van Dam over Scotty Anton via Van Terminator!

(ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match) Tommy Dreamer W/ Jazz vs Justin Credible © W/ Francine

Gorgeous George is here too, what in the name of God is going on for this match? Anyways, Credible vs Dreamer has been going on for beyond a year I’d say at this point, another dynamic was added with The Impact Players vs Raven and Dreamer, that went nowhere due to Storm and Raven leaving for WCW and WWF respectively. Another layer would be added with Mike Awesome leaving for WCW, Tazz beating Awesome for the championship and then, Dreamer beating Tazz. Dreamer was champion for about thirty seconds before Credible stole the championship, playing up to Dreamer’s pride and goading Dreamer into a championship match. Lovely start to quite the storyline with XPW morons attacking Francine, Dreamer and the locker room spill out for war.

That’s a shame considering this was a great build to a feud, we eventually start. Dreamer seems off his game, superkick by Credible. Powerslam by Dreamer, clothesline to the floor. Beer to the face of Credible, crowd brawling. Credible meets the guard rail, more crowd brawling. Dreamer is tipped off the ladder falling somewhere between tables, we are back at ringside. Credible is sent into a ladder, we are in the ring. Ladder is placed on the top turnbuckle, Dreamer is sent into the ladder. Dreamer smacks Credible into a ladder, Dreamer climbs towards the barbed wire. Low blow by Francine, Dreamer lands on Francine. George and Jazz come in, Jazz wants Francine.

George turns on Jazz, swerve Vince Russo style. Francine looks for a bronco buster, Jazz counters with a boot. Jazz attacks George, Francine is stripped of her bra. That’s Incredible on Jazz, Dreamer nails The TommyHawk. Two for Dreamer, Dreamer pulls down the barbed wire. Credible is crotched onto the barbed wire, Credible counters diamond dust for That’s Incredible on the barbed wire, two for Credible. Francine canes Credible by mistake, DDT for two. Tommyhawk is countered for That’s Incredible on the barbed wire and it is over.

The problem here is the fans just did not want to see Credible as the top guy, the fans do not buy Credible as their main event heel with the likes of Dreamer, Lynn, Corino and Rob Van Dam around. The two put on an entertaining match, not sure why George was needed for that moment. Hope she was well paid for it, Dreamer in his own words said that he never wanted to be the champion in ECW but I just think that ECW may have missed the boat by not putting the championship on Dreamer on this night.

Winner: Justin Credible over Tommy Dreamer via That’s Incredible!

That was ECW’s Heatwave 2000, a one match show when you break it all down. I have grown accustomed to the fast paced matches of ECW, very rarely will you find yourself bored with an ECW pay per view, the over-booking of years gone past has been stamped out a lot, I am not finding myself wanting to throw fits when a pay per view is over. There are a lot of rising wrestlers on the roster, the likes of Corino and Lynn plus Rhino and Tajiri come to mind. The problem for me lies with booking, you cannot book long-term when everyone is jumping to the other companies because you cannot pay them. So, we have a lack of main event presence for ECW, the company is still going and the pay per views are mostly easy on the eyes but they could not keep it up much longer. Thanks for reading and remember: There’s always another night!