by Greg Parks, Torch Columnist

The start of the new Monday Night Wars is on. Each week, beginning with this past week's first official Monday Night battle, I'll provide my top ten list of the most important happenings on those shows, with a little explanation for each as well.

1. Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair return to the ring on national TV. There wasn't much to their tag match, but as far as "big news" goes, Hogan and Flair in their first match back in the United States felt a bit under-hyped. Granted, perhaps TNA didn't want to set expectations too high for the match, but this was a big deal. The hot crowd helped as well.

2. Rob Van Dam debuts for TNA. RVD is another big name TNA can add to their roster. Many were down on how his debut turned out, and that's understandable. The main event scene is quite busy right now, so I'm not sure where Van Dam will fit in. If nothing else, the guy has a hardcore following (no pun intended), so maybe TNA will be able to bring in some new fans via RVD.

3. Sting turns heel. The last time this happened, it didn't really take. We'll see if Sting's a bit more dedicated to playing a heel now, and it would appear solely based on his backstage encounter with Dixie Carter, that he is. It seems that he's set up to play an antagonist against Hogan, but Flair is already doing that, unless they're phasing him out and trying to concentrate more on just Styles vs. Abyss.

4. Shawn Michaels and Undertaker have another in-ring showdown, reveal their match is no count-out, no-DQ. Yes, Raw's major news falls to fourth on the night, but then again, their purpose was not the same as TNA's on Monday. TNA wanted to come out firing with surprises and big news, while WWE continued to patiently build to Wrestlemania. Michaels and Taker had another good exchange here, something we've come to expect from both pros. The match stipulation will allow them to do a different match than last year's classic.

5. Jeff Hardy returns in the Impact main event. This would've been higher on the list had he already not made an appearance on the January 4th show. Heads were being scratched when TNA had him get involved after the X Division match two months ago, but on Monday, it seemed TNA rightly positioned him in the main event. How he is used leading up to his court dates will be interesting to see.

6. Mr. McMahon makes his in-ring return. Yes, McMahon brought the guns out for a special Monday Night Raw match against John Cena, one that turned into a handicap gauntlet match. This would've been higher on the list had he been more involved in the match. Rules were a bit confusing for this one, but it was all about building toward Batista vs. John Cena at 'Mania.

7. Kurt Angle uses military troops to continue feud with Ken Anderson. There were certainly some nice visuals in this segment on Monday, but you wonder if having to involve actual troops was necessary (especially with their horrible-looking punches on Anderson on the outside of the ring). A lot of heels went over on Impact Monday, so this was a feel-good moment on the show.

8. Beer Money turns heel. They just recently made their return to meaningful TV time, and already Beer Money has a change of heart. To be fair, they did have a good reason, wanting only to look out for themselves. They were heel and face during their recent feud with Team 3D as well, so a little long-term consistency would be nice in the future.

9. Sheamus and Triple H set up their Wrestlemania match. Pretty late in 'Mania season for a match involving Triple H to be officially made, and the feud did kind-of come out of nowhere. The promo he cut on Sheamus was full of holes, but at least it got something out there to not make this feud and match feel like it was put together at the last minute.

10. Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase get a win over Randy Orton. Where this takes things for Wrestlemania should be interesting to see play out over the next two weeks. There are still a few directions they could go with this one, from a Triple Threat match to a tag match, with Orton having to find a partner. This was important because DiBiase and Rhodes need some credibility, and even though it was two-on-one here, they picked up the win at least.


Greg Parks has been covering Smackdown for PWTorch.com since January of 2007 and has been a columnist since 2009. Comments, questions and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to g_man9784@yahoo.com.

We suggest these recent related articles...

PARKS BLOG: With ratings down, WWE Summerslam setting up to be a high-stakes event

SHOW RESULTS - 7/18 WWE NXT in Venice, Fla.: PARKS'S in-person report on Finn Balor vs. Tyler Breeze, Eva Marie, Uhaa Nation, more

PARKS'S TAKE: Looking at storyline possibilities for each MITB Ladder Match participant