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WWE Monday Night Raw
January 7, 2008
Upcoming PPV: Royal Rumble (third-to-last episode before PPV)

RAW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the twenty-first 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)

This particular edition of Raw is going to be remembered for its conclusion. The show ended up being quite gimmick-crazy, but at least there was justification for it with Raw Roulette being a rare episode. The ending was excellent in grounding the show and driving the main event home. Jeff Hardy has never looked better, and a win over Umaga is not something that you'll find every week on Raw. What a terrific way to build Raw's newest top babyface.

WWE Champion RANDY ORTON vs. JEFF HARDY (4 weeks)

Jeff Hardy was set to cut a backstage promo on Randy Orton after the Legend Killer's attack on a vulnerable, injured Matt Hardy last week. Jeff claimed that he will go to the Royal Rumble and take Orton's WWE Championship for his brother. It was then announced that Jeff Hardy would compete in a Steel Cage Match against The Samoan Bulldozer, Umaga.

The main event eventually got underway, and it had great back-and-forth action between both Hardy and Umaga. Randy Orton stood at ringside cheering Umaga on. He threw a few steel chairs into the ring to help The Samoan Bulldozer. Hardy did a nice job taking the brunt of the beating before coming back at the end. The entire match built to an amazing crescendo, where Jeff Hardy found himself at the top of the cage with Umaga on one side and Randy Orton on the other. He then risked his body with an incredible high-spot where he jumped back into the ring, launching himself at Umaga with a Whisper in the Wind. The impact floored Umaga, and Hardy was able to cover him for the clean pinfall.

Orton watched on in astonishment. Shock doesn't quite describe it. Orton was finally given more than adequate reason to fear this upcoming bout with Jeff Hardy for the WWE Title. Hardy ascended the cage again and looked down at Randy Orton from above. The intensity of the stare-down complemented the similar intensity of the match itself. They replayed the Whisper in the Wind spot again, and the show ended on a great note.

Overall, this feud is on fire at the moment. WWE did exactly what needed to be done, which was to give Jeff Hardy a chance to get more fans to believe in him. The incredible delivery of the Whisper in the Wind from atop the steel cage in conjunction with the subsequent pinfall victory over Umaga certainly accomplished everything that needs to be done on the babyface side of the equation. Is Orton a strong enough heel to match Hardy's meteoric success? I don't know, but it's probably not worth dousing Hardy's momentum by giving Orton some more steam heading into the Rumble. Perhaps there's a way for Orton to be built a little better while maintaining Hardy's fire.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 9.5 [up 1.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Jeff Hardy: Umaga, Mr. Kennedy, Triple H
Randy Orton: Dusty Rhodes, Cody Rhodes, John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho

THE JEOPARDOUS ULTIMATUM FOR RIC FLAIR (7 weeks w/ 2 weeks hiatus)

The Nature Boy didn't show up this week on Raw. Maybe his upcoming feud with MVP is going to keep him over on Smackdown for awhile.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 7 [down 1 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Ric Flair: n/a

HORNSWOGGLE vs. MR. McMAHON (18 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Hornswoggle was shown backstage gleefully circling the spinning roulette wheel. Mr. McMahon soon stepped in to calm his hyper son. He began to tout his win at the Royal Rumble years ago and planted the idea in his son's head that Hornswoggle could be the next McMahon to win it. The Chairman then promised Hornswoggle a Royal Rumble Qualifying Match. The match would be a tag team contest.

Hornswoggle scoured the back for a teammate. Super Crazy said that he wasn't "that crazy" and left Hornswoggle to continue his search. Super Crazy hasn't had a relevant match on Raw in months. Does it really make sense for him to turn Hornswoggle down? Furthermore, let's see if he makes it into the Rumble in a few weeks. If he doesn't participate, we'll know it was utterly stupid for him to make that decision (from a character's perspective).

Next Hornswoggle tried to talk Santino into being his partner. It's still great to know that Hornswoggle sees everyone as a potential friend. His character doesn't really differentiate heels from faces. Santino rejected the offer, more-or-less saying what Super Crazy said—that he'd have to be crazy to team with Hornswoggle for a shot at the Rumble. He also mentioned that he didn't want to irritate Mr. McMahon. At least that's a good reason for a heel to use. Something seemed off with Santino this week, though. It wasn't that his lines were unfunny per se, but his timing or delivery may have been off.

It was soon match time, and Hornswoggle had apparently made his pick, an unknown wrestler named B.K. Jordan. Their opponents? The Highlanders. Uh, does anyone want to ask Super Crazy or Santino if they have changed their minds? Suddenly, Mick Foley's music hit, and he immediately replaced Hornswoggle's unknown friend. The match was kept short, and the babyfaces won when Hornswoggle landed his top rope splash for the victory.

Overall, this feud is coasting. Hornswoggle's entry into the Royal Rumble will be unique, but likely forgettable.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6.5 [down 0.5 from last week]

Previous Feuds
Mr. McMahon: Bobby Lashley, Triple H, Hornswoggle

CHRIS JERICHO vs. JBL (4 weeks)

A video package started things off by reminding us about the issues between these two. Because the reasoning seems so weak—with Jericho being thrown into JBL at Armageddon as the fuel for the feud's inception—WWE needs to keep bringing it up so that we don't forget. I guess it won't matter later, as his week's events can become a much more fulfilling type of justification for the rivalry's continuation.

Chris Jericho walked out to the ring, and video of Mr. McMahon aired. He spun the wheel, then they went to commercial. When the break ended, it was announced that Jericho would be in a Handicap Match. Isn't it weird that he didn't get a partner to face some single heel? I mean, the Handicap Match option on the Raw Roulette wheel doesn't necessarily specify who gets to team up. Of course, that argument is quickly rendered meaningless when you consider that Mr. McMahon is the one in charge of spinning the wheel and making the matches, but I still raise these questions nonetheless.

Jericho's opponents were Snitsky and JBL. Lawler said that Jericho didn't just bump into John Bradshaw Layfield, he "plowed" into him, embarrassing JBL. The match quickly broke down, and the action immediately spilled to ringside. JBL slammed the ring bell upside Jericho's head. He then hurled Y2J's head into the steel steps. Suddenly, JBL grabbed a long cable near Lilian's seat, and he harnessed it around Jericho's neck. What was somewhat questionable soon turned into something even more controversial as JBL dragged Jericho by the neck and began to feed the cable through a high piece of stage setting as if to hang his opponent (for bumping into him a few weeks ago). Officials arrived on the scene to stop JBL.

Overall, this feud just picked up some more steam. It will be imperative to keep things rolling into the Royal Rumble, and WWE is likely to maintain that momentum for this key feud. In terms of the story, it still suffers from a weak premise, but new twists and turns throughout its development could correct that issue. Soon, if they haven't already, casual viewers will forget why they are fighting in the first place. Then it's going to just be a matter of keeping the story moving.

And as for my observation last week about the potential effects of having too many top-level stars on a single show, it was met by similar opinions by readers.

Terrie Neilson writes:

I took a look at the rosters for WWE and TNA, and Raw is definitely suffering from "Too Many Cooks" syndrome. The way Michaels-Kennedy is being treated, your statment is true: "The second scenario is that because all of the main eventers cannot possibly fit
at the top of the show in the biggest one or two feuds, they are spread out and are soon perceived by viewers as not-as-important mid-card-esque acts." As the adage goes, "too many cooks spoil the soup", and if legends and sure-fire hall-of-famers are suddenly
playing mid-carders (Michaels, Flair despite the storyline potential), where does that leave those who were mid-carders before this? For the record, who were the mid-carders before this?

Shane McKinley writes:

Smackdown will always be gutted for talent for Raw. From Tag Teams (London & Kendrick) to potential up and comers (Kennedy, MVP in the future) it happens. I would love for anyone of those guys to move over to Smackdown or ECW, as Punk vs. Anyone and Batistia/Undertaker/Mysterio vs. Edge and his cronies will not last forever. Remember what happened last draft though: Flair complained that he got moved to Smackdown, Booker complained that he got moved to Raw.

***

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 7.5 [up 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Chris Jericho: Randy Orton
JBL: n/a

TRIPLE H vs. Raw GM WILLIAM REGAL (2 weeks)

The show opened with Regal doing his best to remedy issues with his boss, Mr. McMahon, after he showed some heart last week. McMahon hyped Raw Roulette as he stood in front of the big wheel of misfortune (I don't know, I couldn't think of anything else). After apologizing, Regal reminded McMahon that he took Triple H out of the Royal Rumble. The Chairman enjoyed that, but he set up a match pitting Regal against Triple H later in the show. He then spun the wheel, and the arrow stopped on a First Blood Match. Regal soon exited to find an awaiting Triple H in the hallway. Fighting ensued before officials in the back broke things up.

The First Blood Match then got underway as Regal and Triple H went head-to-head. Various attempts were made by both men to open up their opponent. In the end, The Game managed to break the skin of Regal with consecutive punches to the forehead. The busted-open Regal then took a Pedigree for the exclamation point.

Overall, it's nice to see the sheer aggression by Triple H after being cheated last week. The point was really driven home: the Royal Rumble is an incredibly important opportunity for these wrestlers, and Triple H wasn't taking his loss lightly. Regal played his part well, although things turned out different this week. On the last episode, Regal looked to be turning a new proverbial leaf when he refused to hit Hornswoggle. This week, Raw's General Manager seemed to be apologetic for showing heart, and he wanted to correct his actions. That particular story—complete with Regal's inner struggle—could turn into one of the better storylines on Raw. If Regal continues to referee this battle between his heart (which tells him to do good) and his brain (which tells him to do what Mr. McMahon wants), the results could be really captivating.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 7

Previous Feuds
Triple H: King Booker, Umaga, Jeff Hardy
William Regal: n/a

WWE Women's Champion BETH PHOENIX vs. MICKIE JAMES (7 weeks w/ 2 weeks hiatus)

It is now somewhat uncertain whether Beth Phoenix and Mickie James are still rivals. Why does it feel as though Phoenix only shows up every other week? Anyway, Maria was shown backstage with Mr. McMahon and the gigantic wheel. She spun the wheel, and it landed on Submission Match. McMahon told her to close her eyes. He drew her some visual imagery, complete with a romantic evening and Santino. As he spoke, he dragged the wheel until the arrow pointed to a Lingerie Pillow Fight. Maria then saw the change, quickly forgot about the Submission Match, and became mindlessly joyful.

The match later commenced, with each of the competitors—Maria, Jillian, Mickie James, Melina, and Ashley—dressed in, well, lingerie. The ring housed a big bed and tons of fluffy pillows. Eventually it turned to a shoving contest with pillows and bodies rolling everywhere. The end of the match came when Ashley hit her Star Struck elbow drop from the ropes onto Jillian. She quickly made the cover (on the bed) for the three count.

Overall, it's an interesting introduction to Raw by Ashley Massaro. Whether it really means anything will remain an unanswered question for the next week or so…or perhaps longer. This segment did nothing for Beth Phoenix, who WWE continues to shield from gimmick matches such as this one (remember the Halloween Costume Battle Royal? No? Oh, well, she wasn't involved there either).

Hopefully next week provides some answers. In the midst of building the Women's Championship around a powerhouse female competitor, WWE seems to be lacking a defined feud to get the crowd behind the action. Luckily for them, many of the women in the division have the ability to garner nice crowd reactions by just being in the arena. A Mickie-Phoenix match after a month of no hype or continuation would produce more audience interaction than a Carlito-Hardcore Holly bout under the same circumstances. Still, WWE should be pushing the division, especially if they want to bank on this new, powerful champion.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 4 [down 1 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Beth Phoenix: Candice Michelle
Mickie James: Melina

SHAWN MICHAELS vs. MR. KENNEDY (7 weeks)

In the first match of the night, Shawn Michaels appeared to be taking on his latest rival, Mr. Kennedy, in a rematch from the week before; however, Mr. McMahon spun the roulette wheel, which soon changed everything. The match became a Strange Bedfellows Match, which meant that instead of facing each other, these bitter rivals had to team up to face another eclectic tandem. Who entered the arena next? Well, it was none other than Charlie Hass and his partner for the match, Trevor Murdoch.

The match was booked interestingly. For one thing, Charlie Hass (for whatever reason) found a mask under the ring and put it on. Later in the match, Michaels gave Hass some Sweet Chin Music, but Mr. Kennedy strategically used a blind tag. He then entered the ring, delivered the Mic Check on HBK, then pinned Hass for the victory. Good in-ring storytelling while it lasted. Generally, it's not uncommon to see rivals who team end up trying to steal pinfalls, but this one was a little different because Kennedy attacked Michaels while the match was still ongoing before covering Hass for the win.

Overall, this feud is fighting a plateau. Mr. Kennedy's victory last week and the tension inherent in this week's episode helped pull it further, but it's going to take some intelligent booking to keep this feud fresh and important. Because there are so many other top acts on the card, Michaels and Kennedy are left competing for relevance on the show.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 8 [up 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Shawn Michaels: Randy Orton
Mr. Kennedy: Jeff Hardy

SANTINO MARELLA (w/ Maria) & CARLITO vs. World Tag Team Champions HARDCORE HOLLY & CODY RHODES (1 week)

The match was determined again by the Raw Roulette wheel: a Trading Places Match. The gimmick is simple. Carlito had to dress like Hardcore Holly during the match, while Hardcore Holly had to don Carlito's outfit and mannerisms. Other than that, it was what you'd probably expect from a Carlito-Hardcore Holly matchup. The match resulted in a win for Hardcore Holly when he hit the Alabama Slam on Carlito after spitting some apple. The segment was interesting only in that we saw Hardcore Holly attempt to show a lighter side. It's actually kind of hilarious that he looked so uncomfortable pretending to be Carlito in that ridiculous getup.

Overall, this feud has some potential. I'm not sure if WWE is putting the Santino/Carlito team in the title picture a little too early (before actually giving some more exposition on how they act together), but perhaps there's a reason they broke the Santino/Carlito-London/Kendrick program that appeared to be forming. At this point, there are two logical directions this one can go. The first is a long, dragged out feud between these two teams that can be very entertaining considering the participants. But eventually, Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes move on to something else (with their titles in tact). The second option is to give Santino and Carlito the tag titles so that their team can become a comedy team with some credibility.

Personally, I think it's probably a good idea to give this new Santino/Carlito team the titles. If WWE is against the idea of having Santino progress as a singles competitor—something that has been explicitly implied for months with Santino jobbing left and right—then it would be valuable to allow Santino to grow in the context of a tag team effort. If they do well together, win a lot of matches, and eventually take the World Tag Team Championship, either man can probably emerge as a more believable singles wrestler later.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5.5

Previous Feuds
Santino Marella: Umaga, Ron Simmons, Val Venis, Steve Austin
Carlito: Triple H
London & Kendrick: Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch

CONCLUDED FEUDS

(1) Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes vs. Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch?
(2) Beth Phoenix vs. Mickie James?


POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) Santino Marella & Carlito vs. Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes?
(2) Mr. McMahon vs. William Regal?
(3) Snitsky vs. ??


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 Haas" so that I know it's not junk mail.

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