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WRESTLER OF THE DAY: SHANE DOUGLAS


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I think he's one of the things that aged the worst from ECW. A lot of people put stock (or used to) in his amazing promo ability but I thought he was horrendous. And a belly to belly as a finisher? Not even with a cool snap or anything, just a regular belly to belly? C'mooooon

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When I first started hearing about ECW Shane Douglas was the person I wanted to see the most.  He was hyped up to a point that I thought I was missing the greatest wrestler in the history of the world by not having access to ECW tv.  So, I went to 7-11 got a money order(do they still have those?) and sent it out for a tape of ECW from some site I'm sure doesn't exist any more.  I got home from school one day and popped the tape in and I've never in my life been more disappointed.  He just talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked about absolutely nothing.  I couldn't believe it.  The internet was abuzz with praise for Shane Douglas, and I just knew that he would be my new favorite.  I could't have been less impressed.  His promos sucked, his wrestling was worse, and he was clearly the worse part of every show he was on.  He is in my bottom five workers of all time.  I can't remember enjoying anything he has ever done.

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Shane has some good and some bad. Shane's of his era -- his stuff might seem lame and trite now, but in 1994 and 1995, a guy throwing down a title and talking about how Ric Flair sucks and the like was so incredibly shocking.

Don't have time to really look right now but Shane's promo when he's in the wheelchair in front of the hospital gloating about breaking a Pitbull's neck was incredible.

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Shane was an engaging guy when i sat next to him at the mid-south fan fest. We talked about his feud w the blondes and teaming with steamboat.

I still loathe his ECW stuff.

And one of my favorite lines from the Observer involves Douglas.

Shane said he would franchise Ric Flair's ass. To which Dave wrote "he's going to open a chain of restaurants called Ric Flair's Ass."

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I really don't have an opinion on Shane Douglas.  I think the worst thing he's ever been a part of was managing not to drop the ECW title to a red hot and unbelievably over Al Snow, but I was always under the impression that was Snow and Heyman's call in keeping with the traditions of Southern booking and treating smarks like rubes.

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Shane in 94 is so interesting. You look into his eyes, and there's weird sense of not belonging, like a kid wearing his dad's suit, but that suit was the the title belt he was wearing and the lead heel spot. I do like some of his promos but it's almost because the Emperor Has No Clothes, so it makes him more vulnerable, but I don't think that's what he was going for all the time.

 

The conventional wisdom is that as a character, he was a better heel, but as a wrestler, he was a better face.

 

My favorite role for him? Commentary in 98. 

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http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x24546s_chris-jericho-vs-shane-douglas-vs-2-cold-scorpio-vs-pitbull-2-ecw-heatwave-1996-6-13-96-full-match_sport

 

Douglas vs Jericho vs Scorpio vs Pitbull #2

 

I used to love this match as a teenager. Haven't seen it in many years so I'll have to give it another look today. Like others have already said, a lot of his stuff doesn't hold up too well today but I was a fan back then.

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I still like early to mid 90's Shane. The promos are grating at times but him with Sherri was great. 

 

Also, his tag team with Steamboat was really good and I loved their series with blondes and the match from Saturday Night. 

 

I can't hate on him as well for having my favorite ECW match with Scorpio from Matter of Respect.

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Imagine if you were to just start listening to 70s punk rock without the context of the bloated 70s rock scene and disco and the like? So much of that stuff seems like it's so dumb -- three chords, immature lyrics, no musicianship or production value, etc.

That's what's weird about talking about ECW 20 years later. It's really hard to respond to the context. I think a lot of what happened with punk is that so many people picked up the early template set by bands like The Ramones or what have you and put their own spin on it and really elevated the genre and brought it into different directions. Whereas that's really impossible with wrestling for a lot of different reasons.

This is just a way of me saying I have to go to work and I don't have time to write a 75,000 word essay comparing CZW to Dischord Records.

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I really don't have an opinion on Shane Douglas.  I think the worst thing he's ever been a part of was managing not to drop the ECW title to a red hot and unbelievably over Al Snow, but I was always under the impression that was Snow and Heyman's call in keeping with the traditions of Southern booking and treating smarks like rubes.

Problem was, Snow was in position that he pretty much had to win the title at Wrestlepalooza 98, but he showed up on Raw the next day.

 

I was there for that - second row, left of center, hard camera side. Looks like I have on a white T-shirt (I guess), glasses and bowl cut. Next to my buddy with longish hair and a beard. In an upset, we're both larger gentlemen.

 

You should've heard the air deflate from those smarks when Snow lost - EVERYBODY knew we were getting a title change 'cause Douglas had to have elbow surgery, but none of us knew Snow would be showing up on Raw the next day.

 

That PPV was way more bad than good, but I'm still glad I went.

 

At least Douglas in ECW was one of those love-him-or-hate-him figures. His Flair hate seemed irrational and desperate, like he was begging Flair to do something with him. He did get railroaded in the WWF, though. He semed to fade into the midcard background in WCW.

 

I loved the feud with the Pitbulls when he shook Pitbull 1's halo after the neck surgery - fantastic heel shit there.

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Imagine if you were to just start listening to 70s punk rock without the context of the bloated 70s rock scene and disco and the like? So much of that stuff seems like it's so dumb -- three chords, immature lyrics, no musicianship or production value, etc.

That's what's weird about talking about ECW 20 years later. It's really hard to respond to the context. I think a lot of what happened with punk is that so many people picked up the early template set by bands like The Ramones or what have you and put their own spin on it and really elevated the genre and brought it into different directions. Whereas that's really impossible with wrestling for a lot of different reasons.

This is just a way of me saying I have to go to work and I don't have time to write a 75,000 word essay comparing CZW to Dischord Records.

 

I am an old fucker.  I recall being unimpressed with Douglas in Watts' UWF.

 

I lost track of him until the Dynamic Dudes.  Yeah, no.

 

I got out of wrestling for a bit and randomly caught him teaming with Steamboat in WCW.  Did nothing for me.

 

I catch ECW for the first time in 96.  And there is a gassed up Douglas doing shooty promos that I didn't understand and doing his best comic book villain.  Did nothing for me - and I actually LIKED ECW at the time.

 

I realize I am never going to get the love Douglas has in some quarters.  But I don't think you can chalk up people not liking him because of seeing things after the fact.  

 

And yeah, my two favorite memories of Douglas is Cornette turning on the Dudes and the Philly crowd shitting all over the Dudes at Halloween Havoc 89.

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Jesus, I have to delve through all this just to reminisce about taping Sunshine Network TV in Florida on vacation to have Shane yelling "MYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY BEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLT!!!!!!!!!!" at the end of it. 

 

So yeah, you can just have the part of the tape right before it to make you feel better. 

 

 

EDIT: fuck that shit was awful

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