By Chris Newth, PWTorch contributor

Extreme Championship Wrestling
September 16, 2008
Upcoming PPV: No Mercy (third-to-last episode before PPV)

ECW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the fifty-third 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)


ECW Champion MATT HARDY vs. MARK HENRY (w/ Tony Atlas) (9 weeks)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Matt Hardy beat Mike Knox in a singles match when he hit the Twist of Fate.

-Mark Henry complained to Tony Atlas in the locker room about Hardy's recent victories at Unforgiven and on ECW last week.

-In ECW's main event, Mark Henry defeated Finlay when he delivered the World's Strongest Slam for the victory.

Analysis:

Not much to note here. The roles of in this feud have completely reversed since the title switch at Unforgiven in the ECW Scramble Match. Now Henry appears like the one who's angry and uncertain, while Matt Hardy's comfortably riding the championship wave. This feud has extended beyond two months, but it's lost a lot of steam in recent weeks. Mark Henry, whose character had exhibited intriguing charisma when he first won the ECW Title, isn't benefiting from his latest role on ECW. The story of the embittered former champion who can't seem to get much done and has nothing to do but chase the title which he feels he didn't legitimately lose is not helping Henry. Also worthy of note, WWE broke up the Finlay-Knox feud yet again, this time booking Knox to fight Matt Hardy and Finlay to fight Mark Henry.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6.5 [down 1 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Mark Henry: Undertaker, Kane, Tommy Dreamer
Matt Hardy: Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch, MVP, Chavo Guerrero

JOHN MORRISON & THE MIZ vs. EVAN BOURNE & RICKY ORTIZ (2 weeks)

Summary Quick Shot:

-Evan Bourne fought The Miz one-on-one. During the entrances, Ricky Ortiz accompanied Bourne to even the odds a little bit. The match ended when Bourne used his unique roll-up pin for the victory.

Analysis:

Evan Bourne's victories continue into this week. Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't he only lost one or two times since arriving on ECW? Most weeks, he's really successful. And if he keeps winning with that really cool roll-up move against the bigger stars, it will become much more effective than the normal school boy or inside cradle or small package wins.

It's also important to keep in mind, as I stated in the Raw Storylines and Feuds article yesterday, that Evan Bourne is currently juggling two major challenges: On Raw he's helping Rey Mysterio with his big (red machine) problem and on ECW he's fighting the very strong heel tandem of Miz and Morrison. And both of these issues are completely unrelated. This feud is pretty good at its current state simply because of all the talent involved, but WWE can strengthen it with more talk from Bourne, who's been completely silent since his debut, with the exception of his short chat with Kane on Monday night.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6.5 [up 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
John Morrison & The Miz: Yang & Moore, Dreamer & Delaney, CM Punk, Finlay & Hornswoggle
Evan Bourne: Chavo Guerrero & Bam Neely

FINLAY & HORNSWOGGLE vs. MIKE KNOX (8 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Summary Quick Shot:

-Mike Knox lost to Matt Hardy after falling to the Twist of Fate.

-Finlay lost to Mark Henry after Henry hit the World's Strongest Slam for the win.

Analysis:

As mentioned above, this feud is likely over (again). Last week it appeared like WWE was trying to reignite it after its original hiatus, but this week practically confirms that it's finished. Nothing was done to even hint that Finlay and Knox will continue their rivalry as both men participated in different segments of the show.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): n/a

Previous Feuds
Finlay: Kane, Rey Mysterio, The Great Khali, Mr. McMahon, JBL, Miz & Morrison
Hornswoggle: Mr. McMahon, Miz & Morrison
Mike Knox: Kelly Kelly, Tommy Dreamer, Evan Bourne


CONCLUDED FEUDS

(1) Finlay (w/ Hornswoggle) vs. Mike Knox


POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) Super Crazy vs. ?
(2) Gavin Spears vs. ?
(3) Ryan Braddock vs. ?
(4) Jack Swagger vs. ?


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

We suggest these recent related articles...

10/5 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Natalya vs. Paige, Owens vs. Cara, Stephanie McMahon, Sasha Banks, Xavier Woods

COLLECTIBLES COLUMN: The History of Foam Hands in Pro Wrestling

9/28 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Kane's Split Personality, Divas Revolution, Heyman & Big Show, Reigns vs. Wyatt