In the mid 1990s the wrestling world was changing. Fans who grew up with Hulkamania in the WWF and thrilling to the “greed is good” exploits of Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen in the NWA were growing up and were starting to desire something radically different from what they’d become perhaps a bit too familiar with over the course of the last decade. Vince McMahon didn’t fully recognize this changing mindset and whoever was in charge in WCW for the mid-’90s wasn’t aware of it either. But one man did, and Paul Heyman revolutionized wrestling with his promotion “Extreme Championship Wrestling.”
Less interested in the typical good guy vs. bad guy story and more invested in creating relatable characters who would stop at nothing to win titles, destroy their rivals, and, in some cases, both at the same time, Heyman tapped into fans’ need for a wrestling promotion that stopped treating them like children and gave teenagers and young adults the kind of wrestling show they never imagined could be a possibility with just as great an emphasis on sex and violence as the quest for championships.
Mattel has managed to get a few ECW stalwarts made already with the Basic Tommy Dreamer, Legends Bam Bam Bigelow, and upcoming Rob Van Dam, but clearly that’s just a good start. With five more figures, we could have a very solid ECW roster. So let’s get to my choices.
Of all the lists I’ve done so far, I figure this will be the absolute least divisive as ECW fans may debate the order of the chosen five, but most would agree that at least four of these five selections are without a doubt the most obvious needs for any ECW display.
Honorable Mention
ECW boasted some of the more entertaining tag teams during the ’90s from The Eliminators, The Dudley Boyz, The Pitbulls, and my two favorites The Gangstas and The Public Enemy, but in the interest of fairness and saving slots, I kept this one strictly to wrestlers who mainly were single stars in ECW. Maybe I’ll do a tag team list in an upcoming article if there’s enough interest?
And while I typically skip guys who are still stuck in TNA, my HM choice this week has to be the one no-brainer on the list if he were a free agent — Tazz. The last truly dominant ECW champ. Tazz wasn’t the tallest or most physically intimidating member of the ECW roster, but with his nasty attitude and devastating array of suplexes, he was easily considered one of the most dangerous. If you were compiling a Top 10 list of ECW moments, Tazz would be in about half of them. Best of all, Mattel would actually care about scaling Tazz correctly so he’d be short and compact and not the same size as The Undertaker. Let’s hope he heads out of TNA soon so we can get him made sooner than later.
5. 2 Cold Scorpio
Before he got completely neutered in WWF as Flash Funk, Scorpio was the highest flyer on the ECW roster. For those of you who didn’t get a chance to see him in his prime, think Kofi Kingston if he won more and actually was allowed to show a personality. Scorpio toiled in WCW for a few years, but found his niche in ECW as a cocky aerial specialist that busted out some new crazy top rope maneuver seemingly in each match. For most of his stint in ECW, Scorpio battled Sabu and Shane Douglas when he wasn’t teaming with his tag-champion partner The Sandman. To challenge the Mattel sculptors, it’d be cool to see them figure out some way to make Scorpio’s ripped pants. And they’d double for a future Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake figure so there are reuse possibilities — always a plus for Mattel.
4. The Sandman
Perhaps no other ECW wrestler embodied the promotion more than the Singapore-cane swinging, cigarette-smoking, beer-drinking Sandman. During ECW’s peak from 1995-1997, Sandman was often involved in the top feuds whether battling a pre-“Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Cactus Jack, Raven, or Tommy Dreamer. This figure should capture Sandman during his prime when he teamed with 2 Gold Scorpio and simultaneously held the heavyweight and tag team titles. The cane is a must and since Mattel has been willing to pack figures with more than one shirt, Sandman should come up his white shirt with his own image. The other? A DC Comics/Vertigo Sandman naturally. Since Mattel has been willing to do crossover style attire (think the Flash-inspired Rey Mysterio figure) we may be able to get this version as well.
3. Raven
ECW had two very dominant heels during its run and while one was a more traditional Flair-influenced franchise player, Raven was a different brand of top heel — aligning himself with numerous lackeys and hot valets and utilizing psychological warfare against his opponents as quickly as he would try to physically debilitate them in the ring. We’ve had some decent Raven figures in the past, but none have truly captured his look perfectly. The sorta wet hair, sneer, t-shirt, removable plaid shirt to wrap around his waist, and removable leather jacket. And for good measure, let’s get the ECW title with him as well.
2. Shane Douglas
ECW’s franchise dominated the promotion after emerging victorious from a heated feud with Sabu and Terry Funk in the promotion’s infancy. After being lured to WWF for a disastrous stint as Dean Douglas, “The Franchise” returned and immediately shot back to the forefront of the promotion en route to once again capturing the heavyweight title. Backed by his own version of the Four Horsemen — The Triple Threat — Douglas battled ECW’s best and stood above the competition as the best the promotion had to offer until injuries and a big payday with WCW convinced him to leave ECW for good. Douglas had two distinct looks in ECW. The first was the pretty boy heel from his first stint and the second was his ponytail and beard look while reigning as champ after returning. Since the latter was arguably his career peak, that’s what we’ll need for his figure including a sleeveless robe.
1. Sabu
Wasn’t too much doubt with this one, was there? The suicidal, homicidal, genocidal Sabu is ECW. If anyone was anyone in the promotion, he fought them. Thankfully, Mattel has already made his partner/rival Rob Van Dam so we could instantly unite one of ECW’s top teams and main feuds. And while he’s not going to get the 1,000 variant treatment of a John Cena or a Rey Mysterio, Sabu offers tons of possibilities since he mixed up his colors frequently. If Mattel could find a way to make it work, it’d be cool to see Sabu come with two pants for those who’d like to change up his look.
