By Chris Newth, PWTorch contributor

WWE Friday Night Smackdown
November 7, 2008
Upcoming PPV: Survivor Series (third-to-last episode before PPV)

SMACKDOWN STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the fifty-eighth edition of Smackdown 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 TRIPLE H vs. JEFF HARDY vs. VLADIMIR KOZLOV (12 weeks)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Jeff Hardy met with Vickie in her office to discuss the possibility of another WWE Title match. Vickie ridiculed him as nothing more than promise, saying that he's not even extreme anymore. Hardy was incensed, and he vowed to impress her later in the show.

-The tag team matchup featuring Triple H and Jeff Hardy against Miz and Morrison resulted in a disqualification when Hardy seemed to lose control of his emotions. He attacked Miz and Morrison with a chair, hitting them multiple times and throwing it at them.

-Triple H and even Hardy himself wasn't sure how to react to Hardy's behavior.

-Vladimir Kozlov told Eve that he would destroy Undertaker before defeating Triple H to eventually win the WWE Title.

-Jeff confronted Vickie again in her office. She admitted that it was impressive, but she couldn't grant him the title match he wanted because she already promised it to Kozlov.

-The main event featuring Kozlov vs. Undertaker ended when Jeff Hardy stormed the ring toting a steel chair. He cracked both Kozlov and Taker in the head, felling both men. Hardy then bolted up the ramp as Taker followed.

-The ring announcer proclaimed Kozlov the winner by DQ, which didn't sit well with Taker. Undertaker then reentered the ring and chokeslammed Kozlov.

-Hardy then met for the third time with Vickie in her office, requesting an Extreme Rules Match against Taker next week. Vickie obliged, granting him the match after being impressed again.

Analysis:

WWE managed to weave a few interesting storyline plots together this week with Triple H perhaps wrapping up the residual pieces of his likely short-term feud with Miz and Morrison while also pitching Jeff Hardy in a new role as a guy who's looking for something that will alter his current situation. And as all of that was happening, they also threw in Vladimir Kozlov's continued success on Smackdown with a technical win over The Undertaker. Emphasizing the victory by showing Taker's reaction as the announcer declared Kozlov the winner made it feel less like a worthless win by Kozlov by DQ. With Triple H slated to face Kozlov at Survivor Series in a WWE Title match, it's curious to see WWE keeping them separated at this point. It may be a sign that their rivalry will extend beyond this PPV and into the next one.

Miz and Morrison remain strong heels with a decent presence on the show simply because of how frequently they are used in WWE. Their issues with Triple H leaked from Raw into Smackdown, but with everything that's currently transpiring here, it's unlikely that their feud with The Game will survive another week. Maybe Jeff Hardy can now begin a rivalry with them after the chair incident even though he may have incited some irrevocable anger from Undertaker. Speaking of Hardy, his storyline is growing increasingly intriguing as he exits the main event while desperately attempting to hang onto it. This week, Vickie's disparaging words caused him to emotionally implode. The result of all of this is entertaining TV, but narrative uncertainty still clouds the show.

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

Previous Feuds
Triple H: King Booker, Umaga, Jeff Hardy, Orton & JBL, Randy Orton, John Cena
Jeff Hardy: Umaga, Mr. Kennedy, Triple H, Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, MVP
Vladimir Kozlov: n/a

THE UNDERTAKER vs. Smackdown GM VICKIE GUERRERO & THE BIG SHOW (19 weeks)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Vickie Guerrero told Big Show about how she loves The Great Khali and said, "Maybe I got the wrong giant to take care of my business." Show stood up angrily as Vickie defused the situation by saying that it was a joke. She rolled her eyes as he turned to leave.

-Big Show cut a promo to tell everyone that he's figured out Undertaker's secret power. He said that Taker gets his power from fear but that it wouldn't work against him because he knows that Taker is human like everyone else. Show then challenged him to a Casket Match at Survivor Series.

Analysis:

Seeds of a rift have already been planted between business partners Vickie Guerrero and Big Show. Vickie's rolling eyes only solidified the notion of their administrative differences. Vickie, of course, is unsatisfied with Show's inability to solve her problem with The Undertaker. The line about her loving Khali and how she should have chosen him over Big Show to get things done didn't fly too well since she enlisted Khali's help just a few weeks ago, yet Undertaker is still around. At first it seemed like Big Show was making a stupid mistake by announcing his discovery about Undertaker—namely, where he gets his power. Generally speaking, if anyone figures out a crucial plan or trick by someone else, they should keep that hidden and use it to their advantage. But since the secret involves Big Show revealing that he's not afraid of Undertaker, it made logical sense for him to divulge that information.

This feud is a little odd because Vickie no longer seems to be involved beyond complaining about Undertaker and scheduling matches for him, but the talent participating in it makes up for a lot. Like the main event feud above, this one includes plenty of uncertainty with Undertaker, Big Show, Vickie Guerrero, Vladimir Kozlov, and now even Jeff Hardy in the mix.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 9 [down 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Vickie Guerrero: Undertaker, Batista
Undertaker: Mark Henry, Batista, Big Daddy V, Edge
Big Show: Floyd Mayweather, The Great Khali

MVP vs. THE GREAT KHALI (w/ Ranjin Singh) (1 week)

Summary Quick Shots:

-MVP kicked off Smackdown with the Lounge. He informed us that his inflated contract stipulated that he must win a certain number of matches within a specific time frame or it would be downgraded to a lesser value.

-The Great Khali crashed the segment to do an impromptu kiss cam. MVP was livid, but he stood by to watch and wince from ringside.

-After Khali kissed a couple of women, MVP blindsided the Punjabi Playboy with forearm blows to the back. As Khali turned around, Porter dashed out of the ring and to the back to avoid a fight.

-MVP barged into Vickie's office to complain about Khali's interrupting his VIP Lounge segment. Vickie reminded him that he must win a match by Survivor Series; she then booked MVP in a match against Khali.

-Khali beat MVP pretty quickly after delivering his double-arm chokeslam to pick up the win.

Analysis:

Despite my listing this as a feud, nothing has been done to suggest its continuation from here. In fact, it looks as though MVP will soon be dealing with a returning star: Hurricane Helms. The numerous references made that pretty clear. The storyline involving Porter's losing streak and his need for just one more win prior to Survivor Series is intriguing, although it's kind of predictable in the sense that we know he's going to continue losing all the way up to the PPV so that the tension slowly crescendos up to that point.

Over the next few weeks, it would be nice to see WWE play up the idea of MVP's stress level increasing. As the official date nears, he should be experiencing more and more pressure to get something done. Perhaps he could even start resorting to unseemly tactics in order to obtain a win—tactics that ultimately fail him. If a normal person were in his position, they'd probably also try to get Vickie Guerrero to grant them more than one match on each show or even chances to fight on other shows.

As for Khali, WWE is really pushing his new status as a babyface. It's clever how they get Ranjin to goad the crowd into chanting Khali's name so that they get to see him lay a kiss on someone from the audience. I don't expect Khali to do much more with MVP; there really is no need after Khali soundly defeated him this week, but you never know what could happen. It's almost as if he's becoming Smackdown's version of Charlie Haas as he reliably shows up each week but has nothing official going on.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5

Previous Feuds
MVP: Rey Mysterio, Ric Flair, Batista, Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy
The Great Khali: Batista, Finlay, Hornswoggle, Big Show

WWE Divas' Champion MICHELLE McCOOL vs. MARIA (4 weeks)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Eve spoke to Michelle McCool backstage about how she wants to start wrestling. Michelle was kind to Eve, but she said that Maria was "missing a little bit upstairs." When Eve said that she thought McCool was Maria's friend, McCool assured her that she is.

-Maria walked into the scene, hugged Eve, and said goodbye as Eve left. Maria and McCool then joked about their title match next week.

Analysis:

Interesting dynamic here. It's as if McCool was confiding in Eve about how she thinks Maria is not too intelligent. At the same time, McCool doesn't think that her perception of Maria hinders her friendship with her. In other words, McCool may think Maria's dumb, but she's still willing to be friends. However, Maria probably doesn't realize that McCool is saying this about her; if she did know, she would likely reject McCool for being condescending and arrogant.

The big question here is whether we are on the verge of a McCool heel turn or whether this is simply leading to a possible lesson that the Divas' Champion has to learn: that she can't underestimate anyone who has won the opportunity to fight in a title match. Eve was also put in an awkward position after hearing McCool's thoughts about a person she considers her friend. She's now acting like a normal viewer who is currently questioning how we feel about Michelle McCool at the moment.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 7 [up 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Michelle McCool: Victoria, Chuck Palumbo
Maria: Beth Phoenix & Melina & Santino Marella

United States Champion SHELTON BENJAMIN vs. R-TRUTH (8 weeks)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Shelton Benjamin defeated R-Truth in an Intercontinental Championship match after hitting the Pay Dirt for the 1-2-3.

Analysis:

This is one of those examples where you'd like to see WWE put a little more emphasis on the title match simply because the feud has been percolating for two months. Maybe a promo by one or both participants would have given more depth to the feud here. Shelton Benjamin needed a big win over his current rival, and this week he got one. Now he has a new argument: he wins when it counts. I suspect this feud will continue from here; despite the title match and the subsequent results, it doesn't appear like these two guys solved any major issues this week. The storyline is nevertheless solid, and the most interesting element next week will be R-Truth's reaction and/or statement about his recent loss.

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

Previous Feuds
Shelton Benjamin: Kane, CM Punk, Money in the Bank, Kofi Kingston
R-Truth: n/a

THE BRIAN KENDRICK (w/ Ezekiel) vs. JIMMY WANG YANG (1 week)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Kendrick and Ezekiel caught up to Yang backstage as he was warming up for his match. Kendrick cited lines from Pulp Fiction, warning Yang that he will strike down people who attempt to destroy his brothers.

-Ezekiel Jackson made quick work of Jimmy Wang Yang, pinning him after hitting his finisher for the victory.

Analysis:

It's great to hear Kendrick talk to other guys in the back with his quirky style and obscure references. Not sure if the quote Kendrick used from Pulp Fiction adequately applies to Jimmy Wang Yang, who seems like a harmless babyface with no intention of attacking Kendrick or his friends outside a sanctioned WWE matchup. As for the storyline, it looks like WWE has some kind of plan for Kendrick and Ezekiel that includes a babyface jobber. Real circumstances forced WWE to replace Super Crazy with Jimmy Wang Yang in the role, but the story seems to be unchanged. It's not clear, however, where they could be heading with this one. They continue to alternate Kendrick and Ezekiel in matchups, which is a nice idea. Their working relationship can grow into something more powerful than a tag team in WWE over time. It really seems like an alliance that's symbiotic in many ways, and it's working thus far. Their attributes complement each other nicely.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 5

Previous Feuds
The Brian Kendrick: Triple H & Hardy & Benjamin & MVP
Jimmy Wang Yang: n/a

VICTORIA & NATALYA vs. BRIE BELLA (11 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Summary Quick Shots:

-Brie Bella caught Victoria in an inside cradle to beat her one-on-one.

-After the matchup, Brie dodged under the ring to escape Victoria and Natalya, but the heels grabbed Brie's legs and also her sister's head from under the ring. Eventually, Brie and her sister were dragged out from under the ring, revealing the secret officially.

-The Bella twins then attacked Victoria and Natalya, flooring them with stereo faceplants.

-In the back, Carlito and his brother Primo were observing from a TV monitor. They enjoyed the idea that Brie had a twin sister.

Analysis:

It was time to reveal the secret and move along with this storyline; they have been milking it for almost three months now. But, as is always the case, many questions remain: Will the Bella twins be doing a lot of tag team work together? Will one manage the other in singles matches? Will they alternate? It's probably worth assuming that WWE will not keep one in the back while the other wrestles. If they want to play off of the twin dynamic more, they'll need them near the ring simultaneously. There is still more to be done if WWE wanted to continue capitalizing on their unique situation. For instance, you can probably expect them to confuse the referee and their opponents in singles matches when one jumps to ringside in the middle of the bout.

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

Previous Feuds
Victoria: Michelle McCool, Kelly Kelly, Michelle McCool & Cherry
Brie Bella: n/a


CONCLUDED FEUDS

(1) Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy


POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) The Great Khali vs. ?
(2) Jeff Hardy vs. Miz & Morrison
(3) Jeff Hardy vs. Vickie Guerrero
(4) MVP vs. Hurricane Helms


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

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