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By Chris Newth, PWTorch.com Specialist Contributor

WWE Monday Night Raw
October 8, 2007
Upcoming PPV: Cyber Sunday (3 episodes left before PPV)

RAW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the ninth edition of Raw 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)

WWE Champion RANDY ORTON vs. SHAWN MICHAELS or JEFF HARDY or MR. KENNEDY (1 week)

Raw writers had to take a major detour this week with the absence of fan-favorite John Cena. Finding a suitable main event program wasn't the easiest challenge. With so many top wrestlers unavailable - John Cena, King Booker, Bobby Lashley, etc. - WWE did a solid job finding replacements. First, they sidetracked Triple H's apparent program with Orton by throwing Umaga at him once again. Then they had Shawn Michaels show up from out of nowhere.

Let's break this down in terms of people from Triple H to Shawn Michaels to Randy Orton.

Triple H needs to be credited for basically filling Cena's absence at No Mercy. His participation in three title matches at the PPV helped to justify WWE's claim that "history was made." It certainly wasn't the usual formula. What is curious about his role on Raw was that he was basically taken out of the title picture.

First, Mr. McMahon books a Handicap Match pitting him against Randy Orton and Umaga. After a dramatic beat down, Triple H didn't even show up at the end, further selling his injuries. And to top it all off, the Cyber Sunday main event didn't even list The Game as a possible voting choice; instead, Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy took his place.

Maybe No Mercy was nothing more than a convenient opportunity for Triple H to obtain one more quick championship win under his belt. Since a Hunter-Orton program clearly isn't in the works for now, Raw served as a transitioning venue. When Monday's show began, all eyes were on Triple H seeking revenge against Randy Orton, but when the show came to a close, The Game had been taken out, and Orton had been given a new challenge.

This brings us to Shawn Michaels. The Heartbreak Kid has been out for months, and the time couldn't be better for his return. The roster is currently undergoing some major setbacks, and this addition is sure to add more stability. Particularly good was the element of surprise used at the conclusion of Raw. When Michaels's music hit, it was undoubtedly unexpected. Everyone was forced to think that something was going to happen regarding Triple H. It was a good setup.

And finally, let's evaluate Randy Orton in his current role. While feuding with John Cena, Orton emerged as the best villain on WWE TV due to his vile actions and his disturbing misinterpretations of said actions. For example, he would assault Cena's father and then claim that Cena "let it happen." That's a brilliant tactic for WWE to take. Many people have had anger-inducing arguments with siblings when they would say (and believe) things that didn't make logical sense. It's the kind of thing that can resonate with people.

His victory over Triple H in the Last Man Standing match at No Mercy solidified his position as championship caliber. Generally, viewers should get a new feel when watching the show with a different champion. In this case, there definitely was, but the events that took place had an equal number of benefits and downfalls.

It was nice to see Orton take part in destroying Triple H earlier in the show. Also good was the conclusion of the show, where they set the stage for the new WWE Champion. But that is also the segment that contained a few weak spots as well.

It started with Mr. McMahon introducing the Raw locker room to their new champion, Randy Orton. Orton came out and stood on a raised platform in the ring. That part was a nice touch. I mean, who does that? Viewers were able to get a sense of how self-absorbed this guy is. But the planned event lacked any real threat. Orton said that Raw superstars had to "…walk to this ring, shake my hand, and say, 'good luck, Randy.' No, say, 'good luck, Champ.'"

That's the threat? That's what we are supposed to hope someone can stop? I'm pretty sure that the last WWE Champion, John Cena, had the nickname The Champ. People called him that all the time. Shaking Orton's hand and referring to him as "champ" isn't going to lead to embarrassment or humiliation, which is what I assume WWE intended to hint. At the most, it would just be boring to watch. In terms of raising the stakes, they didn't really succeed.

So the setup was strong with Orton on his literal pedestal, but the idea of handshaking was weak. Luckily, Shawn Michaels's appearance made up for it, and the segment as a whole was well-designed. It may have been more effective, however, if they had given the heels a week of glory with the question of "who can stop Orton and McMahon now?" looming until next week.

It will be interesting to see how WWE juggles the possibilities with Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy lined up as choices for Orton's opponent at Cyber Sunday. The predictable idea - although a strong one nonetheless - would be to book a tag team match in the main event featuring Kennedy & Orton against Hardy & Michaels or even a six person tag team match, throwing Triple H and Umaga into the mix.

Overall, the Michaels-Orton feud could be a great program to headline Raw in the coming weeks.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 7

Previous Feuds
Shawn Michaels: Randy Orton
Randy Orton: Dusty Rhodes & Cody Rhodes

HORNSWOGGLE vs. WILLIAM REGAL & JONATHAN COACHMAN (5 weeks)

I'm not going to spend too much time on this one. Hornswoggle is causing trouble for GM William Regal and his assistant, Jonathan Coachman. The only interesting part of the shenanigans is watching Regal, Coach, and McMahon interact with one another as you can clearly see how rank and position determines their actions.

There aren't many redeeming qualities about these segments. They can be entertaining in small doses, but the feud just gets more irrelevant with each passing week.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 4.5 [down 0.5 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Hornswoggle: Jamie Noble
William Regal: n/a
Jonathan Coachman: n/a

TRIPLE H vs. MR. McMAHON & UMAGA (7 weeks)

One of the most effective moments on Raw involved the destruction of Triple H this week. After attempting to invoke his rematch clause for a WWE Championship match against Randy Orton, Triple H was placed into a Handicap Match against Umaga and Orton instead. Of course, this was just a way for McMahon to one-up The Game again.

A disqualification led to a no contest, but it was the post-match beat down that really stuck out here. Orton and Umaga teamed enough to render Triple H helpless, then the WWE Champion left The Samoan Bulldozer to pick up the scraps. Umaga hit practically every signature move in his repertoire before finishing Triple H off with the Samoan Spike.

After the beating, WWE dedicated plenty of airtime to The Game's struggle to pull himself together. This was a major sell-job, and it took multiple attempts and a few referees to get Triple H to the back.

These latest developments suggest that Triple H may be too preoccupied in the coming weeks to go after Randy Orton and the WWE Championship. It looks like Umaga is the target for Cyber Sunday. And that is the smartest move. They could have brought back Michaels to interfere in this segment so that Triple H could face Orton, leaving The Heartbreak Kid to contend with Umaga, but that wouldn't have been as dramatic.

Overall, everyone involved in this segment - from Triple H doing a lot of selling to Mr. McMahon being his usual, heartless self - did a nice job accomplishing the task at hand. Good setup for the next few weeks.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 8 [up 1.5 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Mr. McMahon: Bobby Lashley
Triple H: King Booker
Umaga: Jeff Hardy

CODY RHODES vs. HARDCORE HOLLY (3 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Nothing new occurred between these two on Monday. It was interesting to see this specific feud hyped via commercial teaser for next week's Raw, though.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5 [down 0.5 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Cody Rhodes: Randy Orton
Hardcore Holly: n/a

PAUL LONDON & BRIAN KENDRICK vs. World Tag Team Champions LANCE CADE & TREVOR MURDOCH? (6 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch made late appearances in the Orton ceremony at the end, but they didn't participate in any segment that furthered their feud with London and Kendrick. Instead, it was The High Fliers in tag team action against The Highlanders.

Although Rory and Robbie McAlister have declared that they don't want to have a match unless it's for the World Tag Team Titles, they evidently agreed to go along with this one. Jerry Lawler and J.R. pointed this out, stating that in order to deserve title matches, you have to fight.

It's still uncertain, however, whether The Highlanders are going to stick with their heel turn from a few weeks ago. WWE seems to have put the breaks on that decision. It almost appears as if they are backtracking now.

And as far as the London/Kendrick-Cade/Murdoch feud is concerned, I don't think it has any direction right now. The past few weeks have been exciting with the high-flying style of London and Kendrick, but no storyline has really developed. At this point we still don't know who the number one contenders are, we don't know if The Highlanders are face or heel, and we don't know if there are any World Tag Team Title matches coming up in the near future. Things are just a mess at the moment.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 3.5 [down 1 from last week]

Previous Feuds
London and Kendrick: no notable feuds since being drafted from Smackdown
Cade & Murdoch: The Hardys

CANDICE MICHELLE vs. Women's Champion BETH PHOENIX? (7 weeks)

The six-diva tag team contest on Raw broadened the scope of potential contenders for Phoenix's Women's Championship, but no one specific stood out as being the person next in line. Candice Michelle picked up the win over Jillian with a Victory Roll pin, but that wasn't too telling.

Will Candice go on to face the Glamazon in a rematch for the title at Cyber Sunday, or is it Mickie James's turn? I have no clue because nothing has been revealed this week. My guess would be that they continue to incorporate all the Raw divas in the weeks preceding the PPV so that they can do their obligatory "choose the what the divas will wear" battle royal-type match at WWE's most interactive pay-per-view.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5 [same as last week]

Previous Feuds
Candice Michelle: Melina
Beth Phoenix: n/a



The match between Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy this week on Raw really stole the show. It was an exciting battle between two stars that seem stuck just beneath Raw's top tier. Their styles clash well, and if given time, this rivalry could grow nicely.

Of course, nothing has yet happened beyond their match. It would be interesting to watch them fight over Cyber Sunday voting, seeing as how they are both candidates for the upcoming WWE Title match.

Again, this one had a nice start, and it's definitely intriguing.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6

Previous Feuds
Jeff Hardy: Umaga, Shelton Benjamin
Mr. Kennedy: no notable feuds since returning from injury and suspension

SANTINO MARELLA (w/ Maria) vs. VAL VENIS (2 weeks)

This week, Venis was still selling his knee injury from Santino's attack last Monday. Marella, who seemed ready to wrestle, informed Val that he had other plans and had to go. His substitute? Snitsky.

Okay, so I guess we need to label Santino "cowardly" here and recognize how good Snitsky is after his squash match. I just don't see any reason for Santino to have to bail out of a match against an injured Raw jobber. The rationale may be that Marella wasn't actually avoiding Venis, but rather making his life harder. It also opened up a segment for a returning Snitsky to get a quick win.

The problem is that we still haven't seen Marella win many credibility-enhancing matchups in the last few months. Character-wise, they are doing a very nice job by allowing him more than adequate mic time, but he needs to be able to back it up with good in-ring competition. It almost seems like WWE isn't even allowing him wins over the lowest of their roster. That's not a good sign for his future success.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 4.5 [down 0.5 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Santino Marella: Umaga
Val Venis: n/a

FEUD CONCLUSIONS

(1) Beth Phoenix vs. Candice?
(2) Triple H vs. Carlito
(3) Santino Marella vs. Ron Simmons
(4) Jeff Hardy vs. Mr. Kennedy?

POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) Santino Marella vs. Steve Austin?
(2) Snitsky vs. ??
(3) William Regal vs. Jonathan Coachman?
(4) Paul London & Brian Kendrick vs. The Highlanders?

Thanks for reading, everyone. If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to email me at newthtorch@hotmail.com. I appreciate all the feedback I receive. Please insert a word in the subject line that deals with a wrestling topic or write something such as "WWE," "feud," or "Charlie Hass" so that I know it's not junk mail.

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