By Chris Newth, PWTorch contributor

This week, the Christian-Swagger feud on ECW officially transformed into the Christian-Swagger-Dreamer feud as Interim ECW General Manager Tiffany announced a Triple Threat matchup at Extreme Rules for the ECW Title. Also for the first time, Dreamer displayed complete independence, basically trashing any alliance he may have had with fellow babyface Christian when he tossed the reigning ECW Champion out of the ring unexpectedly.

As others on PWTorch.com have pointed out, Tommy Dreamer acted bizarrely while Tiffany was explaining her decision to include him in the Extreme Rules PPV. His character took an odd turn with various poses in mid-ring.

Part of the reason may be contributed to his celebrating a one-day contract extension to compete for a title that means so much to him personally. The other reason was illuminated later when he told Christian that he's tired of being ignored. Dreamer explained that despite his strange behavior, neither Christian nor Jack Swagger noticed; they were in the middle of what looked like a competitive staring contest.

The personal side conflict between Tommy Dreamer and Christian adds a nice new dimension to ECW's headlining rivalry. It's hard to say which person fans will ultimately side with more. Dreamer has always been a crowd favorite, and no matter how many times he loses, fans never leave his side. On the other hand, Christian has garnered a nice reaction, especially since winning the ECW Title from Jack Swagger. As the current champion, he's beginning to regain the fan base he once held years ago in WWE.

The short locker room dispute between Dreamer and Christian eventually ended up costing them the main event match. Finlay's health was collateral damage during the brawl in the back, which left the babyface side of the main event equation short one man. The Hart Dynasty, coupled with Jack Swagger, was subsequently able to soundly defeat Christian and Dreamer to close the show.

Two nights later on WWE Superstars, Swagger picked up another momentum-building victory against the veteran Fighting Irishman in a one-on-one matchup.

This storyline is playing out very nicely. The pacing is particularly good. After a few months of the Christian-Swagger battle, WWE threw in a wildcard by merging Tommy Dreamer into the mix. The newly motivated Dreamer, combined with the history that has been crafted over the past few months between Christian and Swagger, has added fresh flavor to an already sturdy storyline program.

And as for the stakes, WWE couldn't make them much higher. All three men desperately want to carry the ECW Championship, which is appropriately on the line at Extreme Rules. But in addition, the PPV will also be Tommy Dreamer's very last night to win the title or else he has to live by his promise to walk away from ECW.

Overall, WWE is on the right track with this one. The story is compelling, the characters are playing their roles very nicely, and the stakes have been set to add real consequence to the match's ultimate outcome.



Comments? Suggestions? Thoughts on the storyline? Feel free to email me at newthtorch@hotmail.com

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