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WARNING: The below text is not recommended to be read by the easily offended or squeamish.

Originally Written: May 2, 2001

"ECW Hardcore History (Uncensored)" Video Review

Released in 2001, this video was made by Pioneer Entertainment, who produces and distributes the national line of ECW Home Videos. It's a compilation tape, not a PPV or supercard event. It highlights some of ECW's earlier matches, all ranging from 1995-1996. So, without further ado, let's get on to the video review...

- FBI Copyright Warning.

- ECW video vignette (the one with the red tint)

- Video vignette featuring hardcore moments in ECW. Included is are clips of Cactus Jack/Sandman's Barbed-Wire Death Match, Taz T-Boning Chris Jericho, Dreamer pummeling Raven (eventually DDT'ing him), New Jack diving off a balcony, Brian Pillman riling up the crowd, and Sandman and his son. Joey Styles does voiceovers during the clip: "Hardcore History- History has always been made through epic battles pitting good against evil, through heroic figures becoming immortal, and through stories being passed down from one generation to the next." Fade out.

- Joey Styles introduces the video: "Hello, everyone. I'm Joey Styles. Please, sit down, hold on tight, because we're about to show you hardcore history as we explore the annals of Extreme Championship Wrestling..." Fade out.

- ECW video vignette.

- "TITLE MATCHES" graphic.

- Joey speaks: "When people ask me to judge the place of ECW in professional wrestling history, I point out all the great names that have been through ECW. Here now - a fine example of just that. We take you back to tag team competition. It was February of 1995 - Dean Malenko and Chris Benoit vs. Sabu and Taz..." Fade out.

- This is from Return of the Funker, a supercard centering around the return of Terry Funk to ECW. Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko are walking out down the aisleway toward the ring. They confront The Public Enemy (Johnny Grunge & Rocco Rock), who are at ringside. Malenko tries to walk past one of them, but he won't let him past. Joey Styles holds a microphone up for Grunge to speak into: "Let me tell you somethin', Malenko - You ended up in the wrong place at the wrong place at the wrong time. It's your man, Benoit. P.E. is comin' for your ass, boy!" Malenko spits at him, prompting them to start brawling. Benoit gets a chair out of the crowd and swacks Grunge over the back. Malenko then goes for Rocco, who's in a wheelchair. He punches him, and then runs forward and wheels the chair back toward the main entranceway. Dean lets go of the wheelchair, just as Benoit hits it down from behind, prompting Rocco to fall on the concrete and start selling the injury.

Benoit puts him back in the wheelchair, runs forward, wheels him back to ringside, and shoots it right at the guardrail, prompting Rocco to ram into the metal. He falls out of it and starts selling his injury. In the ring, Grunge is hammering on Dean in the corner. Benoit enters the ring and swacks him over the back with a chair. Dean corner whips him into a Benoit chairshot, sending Grunge crashing down onto the mat. Dean stomps on him, just as the tag team champs, Sabu and Taz, run down and slide into the ring, immediately targeting their opponents. Sabu goes for Benoit and uses a double-leg takedown, while Taz runs at Dean and they start brawling, Taz eventually pushing Dean down onto the mat. Oh, and if you're wondering, this match is occuring after Benoit "broke" Sabu's neck. The bell rings, and we're set to go.

1. 2/25/95 (Return of the Funker): ECW World Tag Team Title Match: "The Crippler," CHRIS BENOIT & "The Shooter," DEAN MALENKO vs. SABU & TAZ (C) (w/ 911 & Paul E. Dangerously [Heyman])

A referee is now in the ring. Sabu and Taz each crawl onto their fallen opponents and repeatedly hammer them. Each pair rolls around a few times, each man gaining control at one point or another. Joey finally arrives at the commentary area and starts calling the bout: "The match has begun! The match has begun! This match is for the world tag team titles." P.E. are shown helping eachother out of the main arena area. Benoit and Dean eventually gain control after the pummeling exchange. In the corner, Dean and Taz exchange blows, and Sabu eventually fights back against Benoit's wrath and hammers him in the corner. "Sa-Bu!" chant. Meanwhile, Taz snapmares Dean out of the corner and hits a headbutt to the back of Dean's head. Taz tosses Malenko out of the ring and follows him out, while Benoit gains control on Sabu in the corner with a headram, gutkick, and some punches. Benoit with a chop, and then a headbutt. Taz hammers Dean a few times before rolling back into the ring and following. Benoit whips Sabu into the ropes and grounds him with his signature hooking clothesline. Dean stomps on Taz. In the corner, Dean gets in three gutkicks and a punch before he and Benoit trade targets. Dean stomps Sabu. Benoit chops and punches at Taz, who takes a Benoit gutkick and two headbutts before hammering him a few times. Sabu steals control from Dean with a scoop slam out of nowhere, and then a double-jump springboard leg lariat to a sitting Dean. "Taz!" chant. His cover gets 2, just as Taz belly-to-belly suplexes Benoit and covers, getting 2 himself. Sabu punches Dean three times, and then runs off the ropes and charges him, only to get backdropped out of the ring. Benoit gut-elbows Taz, who turns around and is gutkicked by Dean. Taz, now on his hands and knees, is headbutted twice and stomped on by Dean. A "Taz!" chant begins.

Benoit kicks Taz's head, and then rams his head into the buckle, while Dean brings Sabu back into the ring and catapults him neck-first onto the top-rope. Sabu rolls back out just as Benoit whips Taz out of the corner and Dean clotheslines him down. Paul E. Heyman, Sabu and Taz's manager, has been at ringside since the bell ringed, and is alongside 911. Paul E. is banging on the apron to try to get his men to mount a comeback. Dean pulls Sabu into the ring and drops him with a delayed brainbuster. Benoit gutkicks and punches Taz, who's now in the corner, just as Dean hits Sabu with another (non-delayed) brainbuster. Benoit chops Taz, while Dean covers Sabu and gets 2. Taz is now on his hands and knees again, and Dean kicks him in the ribs, and then heads up top. Benoit turns away from Dean and then lifts Sabu up in a powerbomb postion. Sabu is facing Dean, who leaps of the top and almost seems to float in midair, eventually reverse bulldogging Sabu down into Benoit's powerbomb. Dean lands on his left hip. Talk about original...If you're wondering what a reverse bulldog is, it's basically a regular bulldog, but instead of having an opponent face the same was as the performer, they face the opposite way (in their opponent's direction). So, that means that the back of their head (instead of the front) hits the mat. Taz immediately t-bone suplexes Dean, and then gives Benoit his second belly-to-belly (this time an overhead version) suplex of the match. Dean, though, kicks (or possibly knees, as it's hard to tell) Taz in the gut. He locks on a full nelson as Benoit climbs out onto the apron. Benoit climbs onto the apron just as Taz escapes Dean's hold and hits a creative reverse suplex (inverted facelock suplex takeover).

Sabu, on the outside, tries to attack Benoit's feet, but gets fought off. Benoit slingshots up onto the top buckle, his back to the ring, but Taz sneaks up, picks him up on his shoulders, and Electric Chair Drops (shoulder-mounted reverse powerbomb drop) him neck-first onto the top ring-rope. Benoit bounces off into Taz's waislock, which leads to a brutal Release German Suplex that sees Benoit land right on the back of his head! Taz kicks Dean in the lower chest area, sending him tumbling out through the ropes. It takes four tries to pick up a deadweight Benoit, who sells his brutal bump well. Taz picks Benoit up on his shoulders (like he did with Dean before), and looks to be heading toward the ropes to dump he too (like Dean) on the ropes, but Dean re-enters the ring, bounces off the ropes, and single-leg trips Taz by the right leg, causing the future ECW Champion onto his back, which also takes a lot out of Benoit. Sabu climbs into the ring, but is immediately tossed back out by Dean.

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