The WWE has gone Extreme! Vince McMahon’s new wrestling pet is the defunct Extreme Championship Wrestling federation that was bought up by the WWE years ago. The plan was put together rather quickly, but the WWE has started gobbling up former ECW stars en route to re-launching the brand.Originally, the plan was to tape ECW before Smackdown each week and give it a slot on WWE.com. But as time has moved on, it seems that the USA Network will give ECW a late night television slot. Reportedly a 2 a.m. timeslot is being talked about, but nothing is set in stone as of yet.
Tommy Dreamer, Francine, Sandman, Justin Credible, Tony Mamaluke, Amish Roadkill and Sabu have all signed or are reportedly going to sign. Masato Tanaka, Mike Awesome and Lance Storm may be brought in for appearances according to sources backstage. There are reasons to be optimistic about this ECW move. First off, Paul Heyman and Tommy Dreamer will be booking the shows so the troubled WWE writers will not be a part of it. Second, change is good. Something fresh has been needed from the WWE and this might just be what the world of wrestling needs right now.
So how is the other wrestling federation doing right now? TNA has been doing a steady 1.0 rating in its Thursday 11 p.m. slot. Spike TV is supposedly very happy with how things are progressing. Sting and Scott Steiner have helped bring in some former WCW fans while guys like Christian and A.J. Styles keep wowing the crowds with good matches.
The next big chip for TNA in the big wrestling poker game is Bill Goldberg. Reportedly, Goldberg wants in, but TNA has told Spike TV it will not invest money in him unless it is given a prime time spot on the network. This shrewd decision may speed up the process of TNA getting a prime time slot. Spike TV is said to be hot and heavy when it comes to Goldberg joining TNA.
Congratulations are an order for the newlywed couple of Jackie Gayda and husband Charlie Haas. The couple is expecting their first child. Haas has signed back up with the WWE on a full-time basis while Jackie Gayda is with TNA. How that is going to work out is anyone’s guess.
Look for John Cena to turn heel in the next couple months. Word is that HHH will become the lead face of Raw with Cena becoming the top heel. The WWE has listened to the booing of John Cena long enough and has now reportedly decided to go along with those boos.
Kane’s new movie “See No Evil” will premiere May 19. Early reports are that it is actually a good horror movie and may be worth checking out. The Sixshooter thinks it would have worked better if Kane actually wore a mask in the movie. It’s hard for me to get scared from a movie that has Kane looking exactly as he does each week on WWE television.
Kevin Nash has made his return to TNA. Nash pitched an angle to TNA management that pits him against the x-division. From what the Sixshooter hears so far, this angle is going to be hilarious. Expect Nash to be on television weekly as the angle builds up.
Where do the Dudleys, Rhino and Raven lay when ECW is concerned? Well, TNA has locked each of them up to deals for at least the next six months so do not expect them to be a part of ECW right away. The Dudleys seem to have burned their bridges with the WWE so do not expect a return.
The Rock can be seen in a new movie called “Southland Tales.” The independent film has been given rave reviews so far by critics. Dwayne Johnson does not seem to be close to returning to wrestling, so WWE fans will have to get their Rock fill at the movie theater.
Well that is all for this month, Sixshooter-a-holics. Remember to check out my Web site at http:mattygslife.blogspot.com. The Sixshooter updates often, and when big wrestling news breaks you can see it there first. Make sure to leave comments; the Sixshooter loves hearing from you.