ECW folded its doors in 2001, but even today, there are smatterings of cheers whenever Tommy Dreamer heads to the ring - “E-C-Dub, E-C-Dub.” Those cheers aren’t just for the Innovator Of Violence, they’re paying homage to a bygone era. In 2004, the WWE released and excellent Rise And Fall Of ECW DVD that easily became the company’s best-selling release. According to legend, Rob Van Dam had suggested to Vince McMahon an idea for a reunion show. He eventually gave the ok, and Tommy and Heyman for started on putting together 2005’s One Night Stand.

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One year later, they did it again but not in celebration of the old company, but to launch the new version of ECW under the WWE banner. It should have been what NXT is today. Instead it was reminiscent of WCW in a combination of it’s final years and pre-Bischoff years. Here are 10 Reasons Why WWE's Version Of ECW Failed.

10 It Wasn’t Extreme

One of the original reasons the rebel promotion got over with its fans, was the blood and ultra-violence. It gave ECW a Roman Coliseum feel. There were no rules during ECW matches. There was no chance in hell that Vince McMahon was going to put that type of product on his television.

He firmly believes in the referees and the rules of a professional match and also had to answer to sponsors who weren’t going to be too keen on blood pouring out of superstars’ heads every night.

9 Heyman Didn’t Have Control

Anyone who ever thought that WWECW was going to be run by Paul Heyman hasn’t been paying much attention these past few decades. Everything...EVERYTHING that comes through the WWE’s doors is signed off on by Vince.

Related: 5 ECW Wrestlers That Flopped In WWE (& 5 That Flopped In WCW)

So, even though Heyman ran the creative of the relaunch, the ECW mastermind still had to run every one of his ideas by Vince McMahon. The clash of two visionaries wasn’t going to work and Heyman quit and was fired after December To Dismember.

8 Only One Title

An entire roster of guys and there was only one title to compete for, the ECW Championship. It goes against everything that any wrestler, booker, or fan knew about the business.

Not to mention, thanks to RVD the most prolific title in ECW was usually the Television Title not the world title. It also eliminated the need to have fun tag team matches, some of which were classic old school ECW matches.

7 Vince Didn’t Understand

Vince McMahon has lived and breathed WWE his whole life. WWE has been number one for most of those years. But the WWE isn’t the only game in time. While he is certainly aware of the other companies, Vince doesn’t have time to pay attention to anything but his own product.

Even on the ECW DVD, Vince spoke about how Paul would need to change to appease the national audience, showing that he had no idea what ECW was really about.

6 Talent Exchange

If you’re gonna do “Talent Exchanges” between brands, at least send people to ECW who fit the old school ECW mold - the Hardys and MNM for example. But instead, we saw performers like Ric Flair go to ECW.

Related: The 10 Most Heated Real-Life Backstage Rivalries In ECW History

Naitch is a lot of things, but a hardcore icon isn’t one of them - especially in the latter stages of his career. If that wasn’t any indication and you haven’t watched it yet, go to the WWE Network and watch the debacle known as Batista vs. The Big Show at the Hammerstein Ballroom.

5 PG - Era

Perhaps if the relaunch had happened during the Attitude Era, Vince would have been able to see why a non-PG version of ECW was the only way to go with the brand. The guy was borrowing heavily from them during the Attitude Era. But in 2006, the company was firmly in a grow your audience mode.

In reality the best way to grow an audience is to make it accessible to as many people as possible, family friendly. Something that ECW thrived on not being. One of their old shirts even had “it’s not for everyone” emblazoned on its.

4 Not Enough ECW On The Roster

The ECW brand relaunched without Raven, the Dudleys, Shane Douglas, and whole host of other ECW stars were not signed to come aboard.

The brand was relaunched with basically just Tommy, RVD, Sabu, The Sandman, and Balls Mahoney. That wasn’t ECW, that was a stable - the ECW Originals, which was lame and very un-ECW.

3 ECW Stars Had To Change

Of the former ECW stars that WWECW launched with, this was five years later. So, unless you were constantly working, these guys were battered from years. Not to mention, several of them were severely hampered. Balls couldn’t exactly have fans chant “Balls” while he swung a chair around.

The Sandman’s three hour long entrance and 2 minute match was not possible without the rights to “Enter Sandman.” The ECW Originals had to change what got them to the dance.

2 Wasn’t Its Own Brand

Not only was the Brand watered down just by being under the WWE umbrella. But they didn’t travel as their own brand. To save costs, ECW traveled on the same route as the Smackdown brand.

Related: 5 Best & 5 Worst WWE ECW Champions, Ranked

That might not sound so bad. But it also gives the wrong impression of what ECW was. It wasn’t a real third brand, the way that NXT is. It was a mere afterthought that eventually imploded instead of being given a chance to flourish as its own brand.

1 It Wasn’t Counterculture

The Original ECW was the brainchild of Paul Heyman. He has always stated it was representative of the counterculture of the nineties. Bands like Nirvana and rappers like Tupac Shakur. He presented a situation to his roster that they were the rebels, raging against the machines of WCW and WWE.

But to paraphrase CM Punk, something he once stated to John Cena - ECW was now the New York Yankees. Now owned by a cooperation, any counterculture feel to the brand was gone.

Next: The 10 Most Heated Rivalries in ECW History