Is it ECW in 1996 time? I believe it is! Let’s look at ECW Massacre On Queens Blvd from April 13, 1996.
Low-Tier
The opener was actually a decent albeit short match. It wasn’t something that would have people tuning in or showing up.
This wasn’t competitive either. It was just a savage beating by the Dudleys—mainly D-Von Dudley. Yes, this is debut of the D-Von Dudley gimmick and it’s a truly amazing debut.
He just showed up on the premise of straightening out the Dudley Boys then proceeds to beat J.T Smith and Little Guido! Again, the match itself was nothing special but everything around it was great.
Usually, a match Hack Meyers or the still-pretty-unknown Billy Black might garner a pass off the bat. Neither really stand out on first glance but these two put a lot into a 6-minute match.
I wouldn’t say Billy Black was a big man but he was a ridiculously agile heavyweight. This guy was capable of stuff that made super heavyweight moonsaults and big guy dives look mild for the 90s.
There was a very noticeable botch on Black’s diving bulldog. That looked ugly. Even uglier was Meyers’ diving Coup-de-Grace to finish the match.
Both moves looked like a neck could easily end up broken. Speaking of broken necks, The Eliminators murdered two scrubs in a little over 2-minutes.
Their Total Elimination finisher looked vicious and the scrubs ate two of them! A chiropractor in attendance had to be rubbing their hands and thinking of dollar signs when they saw the finish of this match.
The brawl after this match with The Gangstas was awesome!
Taz vs. Chris Jericho wasn’t a bad match at all, it just didn’t have more time. It was great at showing that Taz would win his matches by any means he sees fit.
I’d say this was more of an angle-match, just like the opener to debut D-Von Dudley. It also served to continue the Bill Alfonso-Tod Gordon feud.
Mid-Tier
Raven defending the ECW World title against Damian 666 was an above-average match. Both guys looked really good and it wasn’t an awkward luchador vs. American brawler bout as Damian 666 is primarily a brawler.
Now, there wasn’t anything special about this match either. This was more of a required defense or something. It wasn’t tied into a storyline but it didn’t need to be to deliver a good competitive match.
Shane Douglas was supposed to take on the Blue Meanie but Axl Rotten ran him off with his barbed wire bat. Axl goads Douglas into a match before just attacking him! The ref lets it roll and we’re off!
I have to admit, 1996 Axl Rotten was always there for a fight. It was raw, sloppy, and fun when he mixed it up with The Sandman. This was a cleaner bout but they got quite a bit done in under 7-minutes.
Exotic-Tier
Honestly, the last three matches of ECW Massacre on Queens Blvd were just dope. The six-man tag bout saw cousins Brian Lee and The Bruise Brothers take on Tommy Dreamer and The Pitbulls.
It was an arena-wide brawl so of course, I enjoyed it. The match wasn’t too short or didn’t run for too long. If anything, it was fast and furious with fists flying.
Sabu has to be one of two “Dope Match Machines” in 1996 ECW. He really delivered on these monthly and bi-monthly shows so it’s no surprise that his match versus Mikey Whipwreck delivered.
It’s weird because Sabu had no handler or manager, doesn’t have a gimmick that leaves him open to talking on the mic but there he was. Just a wild, high-flying brawler showing up at a venue to wrestle a great match.
Earlier in the show, The Gangstas were arrested and removed from the arena. Well, The Headhunters took on The Sandman and 2 Cold Scorpio for number one contendership of the ECW World Tag Team Championship.
The Gangstas were supposed to be in the match, sat out the majority of it and showed up at the last moment to a massive pop. Hak and Scorpio had a really wild brawl with the Headhunters before New Jack and Mustafa returned.
This match was a great one to end the show on. It was exciting, fast, and violent!
ECW Massacre On Queens Blvd Verdict: Mid-Tier (7/10)
The last three matches of this card could’ve been put in any order and you’d still get an incredible stretch.
There was enough good wrestling and excitement that if a few of the early matches on the show were ditched, this would’ve been exotic-tier without a doubt.
When you look at the full show, it’s still a strong mid-tier show.
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