WWE: ECW Unreleased Volume 1 Blu-ray offers solid video and audio in this overall recommended Blu-ray release
ECW started as a small, Philadelphia-based local wrestling company, but rapidly became a sensation that built a passionate fan base and influenced both WCW and WWE permanently. Extreme Championship Wrestling was known for its intense matches, fan interaction, and introducing a number of future superstars to the general public, including Tommy Dreamer, Raven, Sandman, Taz, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Jericho, the Dudley Boyz, Rob Van Dam, Shane Douglas, and more. Now for the first time in years, ECW returns to home entertainment with The Biggest Matches in ECW History. Hosted by the longtime unmistakable voice of ECW, Joey Styles, this home video release collects some of the most amazing and over-the-top matches in ECW history, some of which have never before been released on DVD.
It's nice to see the WWE bringing the past alive on Blu-ray. Certainly compilationreleases and wrestlerprofiles are not new to the WWE-on-Blu-ray landscape, but the sports
entertainment conglomerate has of late focused on time travel of sorts, bringing collections of wrestling history to the high definition
format, the first a high quality assortment of WCW matches from the acclaimed "Clash of the Champions" series, and now
the
best of the ECW, or "Extreme Championship Wrestling," which dazzled audiences in the 1990s with its hardcore wrestlers, unbelievable matches,
and
intimate setting, all differentiating it from the somewhat more commercialized mega-federations, the competing WCW and WWF. This is but the first
volume
of such ECW matches to be made available on Blu-ray, if the "official" title of this set is to be believed. And how could wrestling fans be anything but
thrilled with the prospect? This is some of the most entertaining, bare-knuckle, sweaty, bloody, intense, hardcore wrestling the professional
world has ever produced. It might lack the style and flash and polish of the WWE, but this is wrestling at its most raw; it never loses its
appeal, even if it does hail from the 1990s when standard definition video wasn't just en vogue, but the only game in town. Yet no
matter how it looks today, the action remains worth watching again and preserving forever, a task best suited for and by the Blu-ray
format.
Cactus Jacks up his opponent.
In its brief interludes between matches, ECW Unreleased Volume 1 tells the story of the ECW in a condensed form that hits the highlights,
from league formation and brief run of excellence to its closure less than a decade after launch. A short but sweet run it was. What is remembered
as Extreme Championship Wrestling began life as the Eastern Championship Wrestling league, founded in 1992 by Tod Gordon. Gordon's hiring of
Paul Heyman as the league's behind-the-scenes frontman would lead to the evolution of a more extreme, down-and-dirty sort of wrestling -- inspired
by LL Cool J's Mama Said Knock You Out music video -- that would see the ECW excel beyond the limits of its small-time, Philadelphia-based
roots and
expand into the nationwide pay-per-view game while attracting some of the top talent in the industry, from its rise to the top and on through to its
peak. Names
such as Mick Foley, Eddie Guerrero, and Rob Van Dam would pass through the league and make an impact not only on the ECW, but across the
professional wrestling landscape, leading to some of the more remarkable careers in sports entertainment history. But it was on an August night in
1994 when the ECW was truly born, the night Shane Douglas stood against 2 Cold Scorpio and the NWA establishment to solidify the ECW as a
powerhouse in the wrestling world. But the realities of competition against the big boys would leave the ECW's future in question and, as the big
boys got bigger and the ECW faced a shortage of funds -- lacking even enough to pay its wrestlers on time near the end -- its fate appeared
sealed. It was only a question of when
the league fold, not when, but in those years from inception to termination, no wrestling league was as rough, raw, hard-hitting, or entertaining
as the hardcore ECW.
ECW's ringside announcer Joey Styles hosts ECW Unreleased Volume 1, providing commentary for what he dubs this collection of
"groundbreaking and influential" moments in ECW history. He covers the star-studded roster and speaks passionately and knowledgeably about the
history of the league and the hard truths it faced. His insights support the matches superbly, weaving the tale of the larger ECW whole while
also painting the picture of the individual match-ups and why they were -- and remain -- important within the story of ECW. He recalls stars such as
Eddie Guerrero,
Dean Malenko, and Mick Foley, the latter of whom epitomized the hardcore wrestling and physical dedication to what the ECW stood for. He
highlights Rob Van Dam's athleticism, Sabu's unparalleled wrestling skills, and the rise of wrestlers like Bam Bam Bigelow and Taz. Styles covers the
league's first nationally-televised Pay-Per-View event, the ECW's relationship with Japanese wrestling, and even the ECW's influence on modern-day
Mixed Martial Arts.
Lastly, he speaks on the story of Mike Awesome, delinquent payments due to wrestlers, and a mass exodus of talent to the competing WCW and
the WWE leagues. The backstory is given relatively little play time but there's some depth to what is here. It's more complete than the insightful
but absolutely brief backstory on the
WCW as provided in that recent release. This is both an excellent source for history as well as classic wrestling. The matches are fantastic, the
history's
worth the price of admission, and the entire set impresses from top to bottom.
The following classic ECW Matches are included in this two-disc set.
Disc One:
NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match: Shane Douglas vs. 2 Cold Scorpio. Hardcore TV -- August 27, 1994.
ECW Singles Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. Raven. Hostile City Showdown -- April 19, 1995.
ECW Tag Team Match: Dean Malenko & 2 Cold Scorpion vs. Tazz & Eddie Guerrero. Heat Wave -- July 15, 1995.
ECW World Television Championship Match: Dean Malenko vs. Eddie Guerrero. Hardcore TV -- July 28, 1995.
ECW Singles Match: Shane Douglas vs. Cactus Jack. Cyberslam -- February 17, 1996.
ECW Singles Match: Chris Jericho vs. 2 Cold Scorpio. The Doctor is In -- August 3, 1996.
Tables & Ladder Match for the ECW World Tag Team Championship: Rob Van Dam & Sabu vs. The Eliminators. Cyberslam -- February
22, 1997.
ECW Singles Match: Sabu vs. Tazz. Barely Legal -- April 13, 1997.
ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Shane Douglas vs. Bam Bam Bigelow. November to Remember -- November 30,
1997.
ECW World Tag Team Championship Match: Sabu & Rob Van Dam vs. Hayabusa & Jinsei Shinzaki. Heat Wave -- August 2, 1998.
ECW World Television Championship Match: Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn. Hardcore TV -- August 15, 1998.
Disc Two:
ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Shane Douglas vs. Tazz. Guilty as Charged -- January 10, 1999.
ECW Tag Team Match: Impact Players vs. Rob Van Dam & Jerry Lynn. Heat Wave -- July 18, 1999.
ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Mike Awesome vs. Masato Tanaka. November to Remember -- November 7, 1999.
ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Tazz vs. Tommy Dreamer. Cyberslam -- April 22, 2000.
ECW World Heavyweight Championship Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. Justin Credible. Cyberslam -- April 22, 2000.
ECW World Television Championship Match: Rhino vs. Sandman. Heat Wave -- July 16, 2000.
ECW World Television Championship Match: Rhino vs. Spike Dudley. Massacre on 34th Street -- December 3, 2000.
ECW Singles Match: Jerry Lynn vs. Christian York. Hardcore TV -- December 30, 2000.
ECW Tag Team Match: Yoshihiro Tajiri & Mickey Whipwreck vs. Kid Kash & Super Crazy vs. The FBI. Guilty as Charged -- January 7,
2001.
ECW Unreleased Volume 1 follows in the 1080i footsteps of another recent WWE Blu-ray release, The Best of WCW Clash of the
Champions, that package also sourced from, largely, broadcast footage originally captured in the 1990s. ECW Unleashed appears in a
standard 1990s 4x3 (1.33:1) frame with WWE's decorative strips framing either side of the image on the 1.78:1 display, these themed towards a
slightly
hardcore feeling visual rather than traditional "black bars." Considering that this release is probably 99% up-converted SD material -- the other 1%
coming
in
the form of newly-minted HD interludes between some of the matches -- viewers must set their expectations accordingly going into the release. This
is
a classic "best of" archive, not an eye candy home video transfer. It's not a bad image at all, it's just not in high definition because, obviously,
these matches weren't captured in HD. Those high definition interludes offer simple but effective HD video
quality; audiences who have seen these sort of WWE releases know exactly what to expect. The HD footage is suitably sharp, the image clear and
well-defined, presenting a stable, nicely detailed and colored image that's at baseline for these sorts of segments, not noticeably poor and not
noticeably
looking above-average.
The 1.33:1 ECW wrestling matches hold their own. While the image never impresses in the way more recent HD-captured wrestling can, this antiquated material looks as good here
as it
ever will for home viewing. That's not to say it's problem-free. Viewers will note sloppy blacks, inefficient colors, poor detail, and all sorts of
compression-related issues, not to mention the general fuzziness of SD material, particularly when it's blown up on even modest HD TV sizes. What
looked passably
good in 1995 on a 27" television set looks bad on modern-day 50" or 65" sets, never mind the even larger displays and projection screens. There's
just no
improving on an original source of this type. The primary advantage here is that Blu-ray offers the ability to place hours upon hours of material on
one
or two discs. Releases like this benefit from Blu-ray simply for posterity's sake, and what little HD material there is isn't really anything special. In
other
words, buy this release for love of the material, not the video transfer, adequate though it may be under the circumstances.
ECW Unreleased Volume 1 makes its Blu-ray debut with a Dolby Digital 5.1 track, just as fans could have likely guessed. But as is the case with
the recent WCW compilation release, this track is really only 5.1 in name (and maybe in spirit) only. The presentation rarely extends beyond a tiny little
corner of the center
speaker, keeping things rather similar to how they were in the 1990s. The usual little montage that leads off all the WWE Blu-ray discs offers strong
clarity, fine spacing, and an evident attention to detail that, along with the overlaying music which plays over the film's intro, represent the only parts of
the whole thing, really, to make any use of the surround channels or even the front-sides. Joey Styles' in-studio comments play cleanly and clearly,
contrasted to the in-match ringside commentary which is audible and intelligible, but somewhat scratchy and not at all seamlessly clear or up to today's
standards. Additionally, most in-match sounds come up severely lacking. Wrestlers fall onto the mat with a generic thud but nothing more. Crowd
chants are muddled and applause never enjoys much clarity, let alone immersion. This one's very simple, recreating the 1990s television presentation
and nothing more.
There is no sonic revelation, but fans should enjoy the blast from the past, and should also be comforted knowing that the soundtrack delivers the
original
elements to satisfaction.
ECW Unreleased Volume 1 contains two bonus matches, both located on disc two of this set.
ECW Singles Match: Tommy Dreamer vs. Jimmy Snuka. The Night the Line Was Crossed -- February 5, 1994.
Triangle 60 Minute Time Limit Match for the ECW Heavyweight Championship: Terry Funk vs. Sabu vs. Shane Douglas. The Night the Line
Was Crossed -- February 5, 1994.
Content-wise, ECW Unreleased Volume 1 makes for an excellent release. More bonus matches or supplemental materials would have been nice,
but there's hours upon
hours of classic ECW wrestling to enjoy. Joey Styles' insights make for a fascinating history lesson, and the set could have done with a little more of
him. Yet for as thin as it appears to be, this is a quality assemblage and the set produces as-advertised. Hopefully there will be a more in-depth release
focusing on the ins-and-outs of ECW history -- Styles offers a nice little taste of the story and the intrigue surrounding it -- but as a mere collection of
wrestling, this package excels. WWE's Blu-ray release of ECW Unreleased Volume 1 offers video and audio that reflects the source. As noted,
more supplements would have been nice. Still, this release comes recommended.
