Okay, folks. I think you may need to help me figure out what the hell the World Wrestling Entertainment (lovingly known as the WWE) is doing here. According to a press release at their website the Sci-Fi Channel will be premiering a version of Extreme Championship Wrestling (passionately known as ECW) starting on June 13th. The series will feature an alternative brand of wrestling that is suited to the Sci-Fi audience. Huh?
Okay, let's read further. According to Bonnie Hammer, president of Sci-Fi Channel and its sister, USA Networks, ECW will bring action with a twist that science fiction fans will enjoy. Vince MacMahon, Chairman of WWE, adds that ECW will push the boundaries of sports entertainment in new and unexpected ways.
So, after reading this, I expect the following to appear on the Sci-Fi Channel's ECW broadcast:
- Venues that include lunar cities and underwater towns;
- A wrestling ring that floats above the ground;
- Lasers. I don't care if the wrestlers use them or they're strategically placed around the ring, but I want lasers;
- WWE Champion John Cena versus Og'nk'cha of the planet Alpha Centauri;
- The ability for wrestlers to transport away from danger;
- Scantily clad Amazon, warrior women.
If none of these appear on this new ECW series I'll be very disappointed and, most likely, cancel my cable.















Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
6-09-2006 @ 10:45AM
corbett said...
Sci-Fi has been making some very odd choices lately... Like several episodes of Law & Order: SVU last month. Say what?
I don't know what their plan is, but their programming execs must be living on another world if somehow this kind of stuff somehow qualifies as Sci-Fi. They have some really great shows in re-runs - like The X-Files - that make me scratch my head even more over the broadcasting of L&O... as if we don't get enough of that on NBC, TNT, TBS, and wherever else they show it all day, every day.
Now wrestling? Give me a break. The only reason I really tune in to Sci-Fi is for the Files and Battlestar Galactica... and if they continue with, honestly, unrelated programming, I have a feeling my hours at Sci-Fi won't be increasing.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:54AM
Gordy said...
Maybe they'll introduce Grecian...the martian wrestler, who will take over the world unless Hulk Hogan (another Sci-Fi oddity) comes out retirement and fights him and a few others in a Battle Royale on the moon.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:58AM
Samuel McConnell said...
I want male and female Orions.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:59AM
Gordy said...
I mean, why not? Professional Wrestling--erm, Sports Entertainment--is science fiction anyway, so why not push the ball further?
Methinks the Sci-Fi Channel is where it should have been the whole time.
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6-09-2006 @ 11:48AM
Thomas said...
Didn't Big Show appear as an Orion in enterprise and weren't there some wrestlers in an episode of Voyager? Or maybe all the wrestlers will get fins or something.
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6-09-2006 @ 11:59AM
Joe said...
It may sound weird, but one of the wrestlers that will be appearing on ECW wrestling is named Gangrel. The gimmick that he's been doing for years is that of a Vampire. One of his other wrestling names was also called the Vampire Warrior.
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6-09-2006 @ 12:31PM
Vito said...
It's all coming from USA, I'm sure. I seriously doubt the people who actually want to run Sci-Fi Channel were the ones who pushed for this to happen. Blame USA, blame NBC (who owns USA).
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6-09-2006 @ 12:33PM
Tony said...
This is OLD news. And your expectations are a poor attempt at humor. It must be nice up there on your high horse looking your nose down at professional wrestling.
ECW is on SciFi because USA didn't have a good timeslot open to give them and USA and SciFi are part of the same company. And as far as programming choices, maybe SciFi is trying to go more mainstream like USA and TNT?
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6-09-2006 @ 12:47PM
doc said...
It's fun to poke fun at pro wrestling, and this is certainly an odd choice for the Sci-Fi channel, but I would encourage everyone to not just dismiss the ECW outright. Before the takeover by WWE, ECW was quite the show. They defined hardcore wrestling. I don't know whether the spirit of the bingo hall will be back with this new version or not, but it is worth a look certainly. I see that they have RVD, The Sandman, Balls Mahoney, Sabu, Justin Credible, and Tommy Dreamer all coming back. That's a pretty good start right there. I have also heard the rumor that The Queen of Extreme, Francine, will be back. And Francine is hot enough to warrant tuning in all by herself.
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6-09-2006 @ 1:03PM
Chuck said...
Couldn't they have just picked up Kaiju Big Battel?
hell half if not all the sci-fi work is already done
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6-09-2006 @ 1:37PM
Thomas said...
Nothing against wrestling but if you're gonna have a channel named after a particular genre of programming then I'm of the opinion that's what it should show. If they want to broaden their range then change the name.
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6-09-2006 @ 1:54PM
Rich Keller said...
Tony said 'This is OLD news. And your expectations are a poor attempt at humor. It must be nice up there on your high horse looking your nose down at professional wrestling.'
Can you NOT look above professional wrestling? It's acting, it's scripted, it's scantily-clad women beating up on each other in a ring while screaming men and boys look on; why wouldn't I look down at a profession that has lied to us with it's fake rivalries and feuds over the years. I'm supposed to be serious about all of this? Come on, WWE doesn't take itself seriously.
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6-09-2006 @ 3:39PM
bd said...
How dare something on TV be fictional!
Jackass.
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6-09-2006 @ 6:45PM
Vito said...
Even if you don't care for professional wrestling, at least show some respect. Name one other entertainment industry that requires you to be on the road every single week of the year. There are no reruns in pro wrestling, nor are there any breaks. Not to mention the fact that if something goes wrong, you could snap your neck or someone might snap it for you. Just because it's staged doesn't mean it's harmless. Not to mention the severe lack of respect in both the entertainment world and the sports world. It's not an easy life.
That said, I don't watch wrestling these days, and I don't think it belongs on the Sci-Fi channel.
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6-09-2006 @ 8:50PM
Rich Keller said...
Vito, the members of WWE/ECW are hard workers, and they deserve credit for what they do, but I can't respect them. To be more precise, I can't respect a good portion of them. I respect Hulk Hogan, The Rock, Jesse Ventura and those who have use their wrestling stardom to do some good for others. However, for those who bully other people, who take illegal drugs, and who use their stardom to prey on others, I have nothing but disdain.
In addition, we should be able to make fun of the wrestling world, just like we make fun of politicians, religion, and Star Jones.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:18PM
Vito said...
True, but even the most successful, decent, hard-working, honest and charitable professional wrestler will never be given as much credibility or respect as someone like Michael Irvin. And The Rock will never be taken as seriously as Vin Diesel.
I'm not denying that many wrestlers don't have problems, all entertainment/sports fields have the same issues. But there's always a level of ridicule that they face that people in almost any other sports or entertainment profession don't have to deal with.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:33PM
Hilarious.. said...
What amazes me is this guy (Keller) writes that pro wrestling has "lied" to everyone because it presents fake rivalries and feuds, blah blah blah. Yet I am positive he enjoys a good fictional novel and or a good feature film every so often. But what he neglects to realize is that by distinguishing and singling out pro wrestling for manipulating its fan base with lies... he is in essence also damning the entire genre of "entertainment" for doing the same things.
HOW DARE any Hollywood director write a feature film that contains fictitious characters that are involved and embroiled in competitions and fake rivalries. HOW DARE the directors & producers of such feature films MISLEAD the consumer's in to thinking these feuds & revalries are actually legit! Damned be all of the Hollywood people that write sitcoms that do the exact same things on a weekly basis. Damned be any genre that is not, by his standards, a shoot (by the way, Mr. Keller that means "real".. I'm sure you are not that bright and figured I would define what the word meant so it would not go over your limited head).
I love it how his type like to dismiss an entire genre they actually no nothing about and say things that are quite frankly, absurd to damn it. Pro wrestling is pre determined. The outcome has been determined. The rivalries are not "fake" for the most part. It is not a competition where participant A wants to kill participant B for real but A certainly does want to go further in his career and perform better then B and thus it is actually an athletic competition between two parties. The outcome of the match has always been secondary to the talent itself and the performance is what they base their competitions on. But again this may be something that is too difficult for the inane to understand or 'get'.
He would readily cheer for some fictitious cheesy film that depicts to people competing in a fake sport (i.e. basketball) and champion the film as something special then respect a genre that sends out men to beat the crap out of each other on a nightly basis. In the end it is a shame that he did not ask this question directly to the face of someone like Dr. D or Van Vader, so he could change his name from Richard Keller to David Stossel.
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6-09-2006 @ 10:35PM
Buddy said...
The funny thing about the SciFi Channel, as of late, they don't air much classic sci-fi shows anymore. They have a different marathon show (limited choice) each day for about 6 to 8 hours. I wish they would show some of the old classic series again on a regular basis, such as Lost in Space, Babylon 5, Six Million Dollar Man, Bionic Woman, Earth 2, Seaquest, Starman, etc. It's all their original movies on most of the lineup, especially on weekends. If you look at Canada's Space Channel, they have more of an offering. What we need is the Canada SciFi channel!
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6-14-2006 @ 10:49AM
nettyb said...
I'm ready to give up. I like Scifi/Fantasy. I don't like Horror but hey, I can at least accept it is in the same category as Scifi since most of it is monsters etc.
I have no objection to people watching ECW or any other program. My objection is ECW is most assuredly FICTION but WHAT is SCIENCE about it. It's also Fantasy but I'd hardly put it in the same category as Earthsea, Merlin or other such shows. It has absolutely NOTHING to do with what is supposed to be on this channel. Just because USA Networks owns it and has a contract with ECW does not mean they should put something that has nothing to do with SciFi on this channel. Where will it appear next, HGTV or the Food Network?
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6-14-2006 @ 11:18PM
Nancy Rush said...
I must be getting really old .I thought Science fiction was about robots, androids, cyborgs, space and the final frontier and space exploration shows and the adventures the people experienced. Not the fake wrestling stuff of the ECW. I don't like wrestling ,never have and I suppose I never will. Isn't that why that have all the other man channels, like SPIKE TV, USA, ESPN, just to name a few. I just may have to give up watching televion all together, because I don't reality shows either.
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