Is Hardcore Heaven 99' the best ECW pay-per-view? After watching the first hour, I felt like it was certainly in the running. The show kicks off with Chris Candido and his valet/manager/on-and-off-again-girlfriend Tammy "Sunny" Sytch coming down the aisle, announcing that he has hired the Dudley Boyz as his in-ring protection, and calling out the ECW World Heavyweight Champion, Taz. Taz comes down to a sizable pop and takes out Candido in less than 3 minutes (it may even be less than 2) but then gets attacked by the Dudleys. This was an exciting way to kickoff the show and set the tone for the mayhem that was an ECW pay-per-view. Its hard to "rate" this because its more of an angle than a match - and, personally, I'm a bit disappointed that we didn't get to see Taz and Candido actually compete because Candido was a solid in-ring competitor at this time - but it is what it is. I'm just gonna give the angle a point and call it a day. (+1)
The Dudleys then cut a promo, calling out anyone in the back who has the "balls" to challenge them...so out comes Ballz Mahoney, followed a minute or so later by Spike Dudley. I loved the spot where Ballz press slammed Spike onto Bubba and D'Von, who then proceeded to dump him backwards onto the floor. I'm not sure if they were aiming to have him clear the guardrail, but he didn't come close. The biggest spot of the match doesn't even involve a Dudley, though, as Joel Gertner gets involved and, after attempting to throw a fireball at Mahoney, ends up getting a fireball spit at him by Ballz (after Ballz gargles lighter fluid!). It doesn't look great, but the live crowd went nuts for it and, keep in mind, just like today, in 1999, fire being used in a wrestling match was a rarity. Though Mahoney got to spit fire at Gertner, the distraction also cost him the match as the Dudleys hit the 3-D for the win. What I noticed in this match more than in some of the Dudley's previous few PPV appearances was just how much closer the Dudleys were to their WWE presentation. Gertner is still around and still a huge part of the act, to be sure, but Bubba and D'Von were no longer sharing as much of the spotlight with Sign Guy or Big Dick or anyone else, including Gertner (who doesn't get to do any sort of pre-match promo). The match itself only goes for about 7-8 minutes, but it was a fun and engaging 7-8 minutes. (2.5/5)
Super Crazy vs. Taka Michinoku followed and the crowd did not have much love for Michinoku as he was most known by US fans as a "WWE guy" despite not really being around consistently for all that long (Michinoku was most known for his initial run as the company's first Light Heavyweight Champion and then, later on, as a member of the lower card stable Kaientai). As Super Crazy had proven himself in front of the ECW audience, he became the de facto babyface. The crowd was happy with his victory too. Watching Taka here, I was super impressed and a little bit sad that he didn't get to have matches like these in the WWE too much as he just didn't have the type of opponents that made that possible. By 99', matches like these weren't rarities anymore, but this particularly pairing was not something you'd see every week so it is still special to watch it back 20+ years later. A really good match, but not "must see." (3/5)
Tajiri vs. Little Guido in a match built around Little Guido wanting to prove that he was not just a "comedy" wrestler. I really enjoyed this match as it was very hard-hitting, Tajiri was just a marvel to watch, and Little Guido did prove that he was worthy of being taken more seriously as an in-ring performer. You still get some FBI shtick via Big Sal. Unlike the previous bout, which was built on high-flying and came off a bit more like an exhibition, this had more "meat" because Tajiri and Guido were more established as ECW characters and could bring the intensity with their strikes and facial expressions. Tajiri especially looks like a killer-in-the-making in this match as compared to his presentation just 4-5 months earlier and its no wonder he would become an even bigger part of ECW in the 4-5 months after this. There is a beautiful spot where Tajiri hits a basement dropkick on Guido when he's in the Tree of Woe that we've seen hundreds of times since, but I'm not sure I've ever seen delivered with more stiffness. I like that Tajiri controlled most of the match too, but this never really felt like a "squash" because Guido showed toughness by taking a ton of punishment. A very good match and maybe even a career one for the future "Nunzio." (3.5/5)
Next up...Lance Storm (with Dawn Marie) taking on Tommy Dreamer (with Francine). I'm not much of a Dreamer fan, but I'll give him credit because this match worked for me as a real clash of styles between the more technically-savvy Storm and the more passion-fueled brawler type in Dreamer. Despite this being a wild brawl filled with weapons - chairs, the railing, tables, a ladder - you still get some actual wrestling moves out of Storm and the crowd is fully into everything. Not every spot is perfectly executed, but Dreamer was never known for his consistency and Storm was never known for being the kind of daredevil that was truly needed to push this match into all-time classic territory (like, say, Sabu or Jeff Hardy might've). The most famous moment of the match happens when Dreamer ends up holding Dawn Marie up in a piledriver and exposing her underwear to the entire arena, which is the lowest form of crowd-pleasing imaginable, but also undeniably "of its time" and a part of ECW's hardcore, "anything goes" appeal (even if it is, to be extra clear, super cheap). The finish actually hurt this match a bit for me because of Cyrus' unnecessary interference and the "death blow" (a spinning heel kick from Storm onto a garbage can-covered Dreamer) felt convoluted after an otherwise fairly "organic" weapons-based match. (2.5/5)
Don't let the snobs of 2022 fool you - Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn, the next match on this show, is still as great as it ever was and it was great. Keep in mind, over in WCW, Ric Flair and Roddy Piper were still wrestling and, in the WWE, the main event scene was still heavy on brawling in the crowd and multi-stipulation matches involving the McMahons. This match was all about the athleticism, a battle of endurance and agility, and felt very much like RVD's long-awaited true star-making moment after years of building up a resume with matches that weren't quite as good as this. This match is where Van Dam and Lynn basically "put it all together" or at least got as close as possible for a match built entirely on high-flying, counters, and agility. Is it as good as an Eddie/Rey match or a Rey/Malenko match or a Dean/Eddie match? No, probably not...but this match has something that many of those classics didn't (at least in WCW) because this audience was fully into the match. To the ECW crowd, RVD was a star at a level that I'm not sure Eddie, Rey, or Dean attained in ECW or WCW. The same may not be true for Lynn, but he's still over enough as an underdog character that the dynamic works and the crowd is thoroughly engaged from bell-to-bell. There are some tremendous moments in this match - a sunset flip powerbomb through a table, Fonzie eating a chair to the face, Jerry Lynn legitimately getting his bell rung (probably concussed) on a bump to the floor - and while some would say this match goes too long, lacks real suspense or escalation, lacks selling and a discernible story, they're forgetting the context of this match entirely. RVD and Lynn had been feuding in a "Can you top this?" fashion (in the words of Todd Pettengill), literally doing whatever dive or crazy move they could think of to try to prove they were the better athlete. In other words, this was "wrestling match-as-dunk contest" and the crowd was absolutely there for it. And, at the time, these sorts of matches rarely felt as "big" as this one was. A match with its fair share of detractors (just check out the write-ups on CageMatch) and maybe one that can only truly be understood in that "You had to be there" way, but watching this back for the first time in 20 years, I was still very much impressed and enthralled by the insanity. An absolute must-see. (4/5)
Based on the little bit of research I've done, this was supposed to be Justin Credible was supposed to take on Shane Douglas, but Douglas left the company for WCW, which led to this segment. I guess some people could say Douglas should've stuck around to "put over" Credible, but its not like Credible hadn't had his fair share of big wins and moments in the previous year. The truth is, Credible didn't have enough "it factor," personality, or charisma to be the top guy in ECW but was pushed to that level because there was no one else left. Anyway... Credible comes out to the ring, talks some nonsense, and then gets interrupted by Sid. Sid in ECW is always a cool sight. Sid powerbombs Credible a couple times until Lance Storm shows up and they outnumber the big man. Sabu shows up to take out the heels - known collectively as the Impact Players - and then puts Sid through a table for good measure. This wasn't much a "match," but it was a fun segment and a good way to break up the show between the RVD/Lynn match and the main event. (+1)
Main event time - Taz vs. Bubba Ray Dudley for Taz's ECW World Heavyweight Championship. Throughout the show, the Dudleys had been beating down various midcarders in the locker room, working as hired guns. Before this match, the Dudleys beat down Chris Chetti, who was Taz's cousin. When Taz shows up, he makes this match "FTW rules," which essentially means there are no rules. This basically becomes Taz vs. the entire team of Dudleys, which is a fun concept, but I'm not sure enough planning went into this match to make it truly great. Instead, you just get lots of brawling and weapon shots and there's no real story the way, say, this same match might've been conceived and executed had it been in WWE. This match may not seem "worthy" of being the main event of a PPV on paper, but the Dudleys were very over and very dominant in ECW. I just wish this would've been fought a bit more like a real championship match with actual near falls to make it seem like Bubba actually might win the World Championship but there's barely any of that. A fun match and it doesn't overstay its welcome, but nothing I'd necessarily go out of my way to see. (3/5)
With a Kwang Score of 3.42-out-of-5, ECW's Hardcore Heaven 99' stands firmly as the highest-rated ECW pay-per-view that I've reviewed or likely ever will review by a wide margin (only Heatwave 98' comes close with its respectable score of 3.17). The reason is simple: this show is all killer-no filler, the perfect example of how to book a show by building around your best pieces and just letting them "cook." Sure, this might mean multiple appearances by the Dudleys and Taz, but then again, at the time, they were as over as anybody else on the roster. Using Sid in a "segment" rather than a match was a smart way to add variety to the show. The Jerry Lynn/Rob Van Dam match stands the test of time as not just entertaining and impressive, but one of the more influential contests of the 90s and must-see for any "student of the game." Elsewhere in the midcard, Tajiri/Guido and Taka/Super Crazy offer clashes of style that showcase international talent in a way that even WCW couldn't compete with anymore in 99' (or didn't bother trying to). From top to bottom, this show does not disappoint.
FINAL RATING - Watch It
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