By Chris Newth, PWTorch.com Specialist Contributor

Extreme Championship Wrestling
September 25, 2007
Upcoming PPV: No Mercy (2 episodes left until PPV)

ECW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the sixth edition of ECW Storylines and Feuds.

For those wondering about the Intrigue Level system that I employ, you can refer to the numbers as follows:

10 (excellent), 9 (great), 8-6 (very good, good, pretty good), 5 (decent; has its good and bad qualities), 4-3 (needs work, poor), 2 (bad), 1 (terrible)

This week's episode of ECW mainly focused on two key feuds: Miz vs. Balls and The Elimination Chase to No Mercy. Because the rest of the show was filled with a Mike Knox squash and a C.M. Punk-Matt Striker match, there was little to note in terms of official ECW feuds. Expect a short analysis today.

ECW Champion C.M. PUNK vs. ELIJAH BURKE (3 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

It may be a waste of time to continue listing this as an actual feud when the premise of The Chase—which I discuss below—is meant to determine the Number One Contender for the ECW World Title. However, it seems quite obvious, as it has from the concept's inception, that Elijah Burke is set to win The Chase and meet the ECW Champion in a title match at No Mercy in two weeks.

Absolutely nothing happened between these two wrestlers this week. Punk was caught up in a match against Matt Striker, and The Silver-Tongued Pugilist expectedly survived The Chase yet another week. WWE decided against providing another backstage meeting between Punk and Burke. The absence of any vignette or promo certainly lent more credence to the importance of The Chase. After all, those segments might help in structuring a more fulfilling foundation for the upcoming Punk-Burke match at the PPV, but they undermine the concept of The Chase, which is a pivotal element for ECW TV leading to No Mercy.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5 [down 1 from last week]

Previous Feuds
C.M. Punk: The New Breed, John Morrison
Elijah Burke: Tommy Dreamer

THE MIZ (w/ Extreme Expose) vs. BALLS MAHONEY (9 weeks)

Kelly's ambiguous stance in this storyline is getting a little ridiculous. How is it that every week she seems disgusted by The Miz's actions, yet she still follows him out? If there is a reason for her compliance—such as an obligation to stay with Extreme Expose because of fear of a break-up in the group—it should be made public by now.

Her disgruntled nature each time is getting too repetitive. If she's conflicted in some way because she has to choose between Balls and Miz, that would be a useful and interesting point in the story; however, the audience still hasn't been told what's keeping her with The Chick Magnet. In fact, we don't even know the kind of relationship that The Miz has with Extreme Expose.

So Miz wins in a squash, and then Mahoney comes out for a direct answer to the question he posed last week. An annoyed Miz promptly levels Balls with a microphone before Kelly responds. And like every week, she takes time to check up on the fallen Balls before being escorted out by Layla, Brooke, and Miz.

Last week, when Mahoney originally faced the daunting task of asking Kelly Kelly out, it felt as though the storyline was finally building some steam. This week, that steam was lost yet again. What is WWE waiting for? They need to get to the next logical step in this feud. Again, the only problem with their current strategy is that we as viewers cannot see how Kelly is in a bind. We haven't been given any clue as to why she's in such a tough spot. They need to give us more information. Even Tazz asks about Kelly's status with Miz on a weekly basis.

WWE needs to push this one to the next level before it fizzles away with indifference (if it hasn't already). The storyline is now in its ninth week, and we are still seeing the same basic premise play out: Kelly shows sympathy to Balls, but is stuck with Miz. Okay, next!

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 4.5 [down 2 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Miz: no notable feuds since coming from Smackdown
Balls Mahoney: no notable feuds in recent memory

ELIMINATION CHASE: STEVIE RICHARDS vs. KEVIN THORN vs. ELIJAH BURKE vs. TOMMY DREAMER (2 weeks)

The Elimination Chase to No Mercy is a unique concept that hasn't been utilized by WWE in recent memory. Instead of taking a single match to name a Number One Contender or a tournament-style setup to let people advance in brackets to determine who will get the next title shot, The Chase starts out with four individuals and eliminates one each week. The man who lasts to the very end earns a spot across the ring from C.M. Punk in the ECW Championship bout at WWE's No Mercy PPV.

Last week, Stevie Richards was eliminated when Elijah Burke's cover was reinforced by Kevin Thorn's additional weight. This week's match was a triple threat that had Thorn, Burke, and Tommy Dreamer vying for advancement into next week's singles match. WWE gave the matchup plenty of time, and Burke and Thorn did a lot less teamwork than I had anticipated.

As mentioned last week, there really isn't a particular storyline here, but this type of an event doesn't require one. The concept here is completely wrestling-based. It's an in-ring competition that is used for two distinct reasons.

First, it relays the sheer desire that the participants have for winning. The backstage vignette this week between Dreamer and Burke was effective in portraying the importance of the ECW Championship to them. Burke bragged that he was faster and stronger than Dreamer, who responded by claiming that he had something that Elijah will never have—heart. Joey Styles set up their upcoming match in the final stages of The Chase by asking, "Can experience and heart trump youth and athleticism?"

The second important element is in the audience's desire to watch a competition. As the weeks progress, the competition becomes the story. It's not about what the wrestlers talk about or what they experience outside of the ring; it's about winning this thing and making it to No Mercy. Of course, the fact that the result of The Chase was obvious from its start undermines a lot of the curiosity in watching the competition play out; however, this type of challenge is a lot more innovative than other concepts that have been overused in the past.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6.5 [same as last week]

Previous Feuds
Stevie Richards: Kevin Thorn
Kevin Thorn: Stevie Richards
Elijah Burke: Tommy Dreamer
Tommy Dreamer: Elijah Burke

And that's about it in terms of ECW's feuds. It was a dull week overall with nothing newsworthy or exciting happening. C.M. Punk makes a believable ECW Champion, but the paper thin roster gives him nothing to work with while waiting for Burke to finish The Chase. His introduction this week showed him shaking hands and being affable with employees backstage. These little touches are smart in subtly building character. When the audience sees Punk's easy-going nature, they associate it with him in a positive light. A clean win over Matt Striker is a good way to keep his championship reign strong, but did we have to see the inevitable beat down by Big Daddy V at the end?

WWE should consider having a strong babyface—Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio, or C.M. Punk—make the first move on the big monster heel that's trying to attack them in order to start the rivalry looking strong. If C.M. Punk was able to one-up Big Daddy V after his win against Striker, causing the Man Formerly Known As Viscera to be left growling at ringside, the audience would have popped nicely for their ECW Champion. Instead, we get the same formula almost every time: the big monster heel starts off strong by laying out the babyface so that they look like they are a real threat. Sometimes plans backfire. The same thing shouldn't happen each time; it's not believable.

FEUD CONCLUSIONS

(1) Boogeyman vs. Big Daddy V

POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) Mike Knox vs. ??
(2) C.M. Punk vs. Big Daddy V & Matt Striker?

Thanks for reading, everyone. If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to email me at newthtorch@hotmail.com. I appreciate all of the feedback.

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