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By Chris Newth, PWTorch contributor

WWE Monday Night Raw
June 23, 2008
Upcoming PPV: Night of Champions (last episode before PPV)

RAW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the forty-fourth 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)


Many of the feuding opponents were purposely kept separated on this special 3-hour edition of Monday Night Raw thanks to the interpromotional formula of the draft, and the results of the show disintegrated a lot of rivalries. With that said, I'm going to try my best to cover the most important and obvious storyline continuations even in cases where the draft might infringe their long-term existence, which is exactly the category in which this first feud falls:

WWE Champion TRIPLE H vs. JOHN CENA (4 weeks)

As per the formula for the WWE Draft this year, Triple H faced Mark Henry in an interpromotional matchup with a draft pick on the line. The match saw The Game hit a Pedigree after dodging a splash from Henry for the victory. And with that win, Raw won the first draft pick, done lottery-style again this year. The graphic sped through a list of Superstars before landing on Rey Mysterio. That's some pick. Mysterio walked to the ring, and a very happy Triple H extended his hand to welcome The 619 to Monday nights.

After a commercial break, John Cena stepped into the locker room, interrupting Triple H talking with Rey Mysterio. After Rey Mysterio left, Triple H said that he wanted Cena to just stay out of his business. "I don't want your help; I don't need your help, ever!" Triple H exclaimed. The Game went on to say that they've tiptoed around their issues long enough, and it's personal now. He said that he's never gotten over the time when Cena beat him two years ago, and it's because he knows that Cena's not as good as he is. Cena said that it may have been a fluke, but he won anyway. He then told Triple H that to be the man, he has to beat the man. Triple H then paraphrased Cena's own line from last week, saying that until Cena beats him, he's nothing.

Later in the show, John Cena went one-on-one with a man whom he had an extensive rivalry with in the past: World Heavyweight Champion Edge. The match ended when Edge and Cena battled to the outside. Cena jumped into the ring, but the referee then hit his ten count, which resulted in a loss for Edge. After the match, Batista attacked Edge on the ramp. But the WWE Draft graphic then announced that the newest member of the Raw roster is…Batista. Cena stared at Batista in the ring, not believing what he had just heard.

In the main event of the show, each brand was represented by five Superstars: Triple H, John Cena, Batista, CM Punk, and Kane (for Raw); Edge, Big Show, The Great Khali, MVP, and Jeff Hardy (for Smackdown); and Matt Hardy, John Morrison, The Miz, Chavo Guerrero, and Shelton Benjamin (for ECW). The match ended when Edge tossed both Cena and Triple H out of the ring, resulting in two draft picks for the Smackdown brand. The first was Mr. Kennedy, who came out and immediately caught Edge's attention. The last draft pick of the night was a monumental one: Triple H is heading to Friday Night Smackdown.

Whew! That was a long summary for just the Hunter-Cena storyline. And although this episode was packed with segments that involved either Cena, Triple H, or both, there feud (as was the case for many others), was overshadowed by the avalanche of change brought by the draft. Cena and Triple H played their parts really well this week with a very nice verbal exchange in the back toward the beginning of the show.

And with the WWE and World Heavyweight Champion on the same brand, it's kind of a tossup as to who is going to walk out of Night of Champions with gold around their waist in order to balance the brands once again. The fact that this rivalry is guaranteed to end at Sunday's PPV actually gives it an edge because the stakes are now raised: One person will leave with the title, and the other won't get another shot at it since they will be separated from the winner's brand for at least a year. The same goes for the Edge-Batista matchup.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 9 [up 1 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Triple H: King Booker, Umaga, Jeff Hardy, Orton & JBL
John Cena: Edge, Umaga, Bobby Lashley, Orton & Triple H, JBL

CHRIS JERICHO vs. SHAWN MICHAELS (13 weeks w/ 2 weeks hiatus)

Chris Jericho walked to the ring to address the public. "You people around the world have been brainwashed into thinking that Shawn Michaels is a decent human being," said Jericho. He warned the crowd that Michaels would soon turn on them too. Y2J then ran a video package highlighting events since 1992 depicting Michaels turning on various people throughout his career. "Lies, deception, betrayal, ego. That's what Michaels is all about," Jericho concluded. He then said that he refused to allow the audience to chant for him. Jericho introduced Lance Cade as the only other honest man around. Cade agreed wholeheartedly with Jericho with a backstage promo where he talked about how it was important to get Michaels before HBK was able to turn on him too.

Jericho ended by saying that he can't defend the IC Title against Michaels because HBK was still injured after being tossed into a television monitor two weeks ago. Suddenly, Michaels's music hit, and he charged the ring, taking Jericho down immediately. The fighting spilled to ringside, where Jericho pulled Michaels right into the edge of the announce table, face-first. HBK clutched his right eye as he writhed in pain at ringside while medics tried to check on him.

Alright, I have only one criticism for this feud, but let me start by noting how strong it is. This rivalry has been through many transformations since it began approximately three months ago. It has involved multiple people, notably Batista, in its quarter-year course. Jericho's recent heel turn was exactly the right move, and this feud made it both possible and effective. Shawn Michaels using an injured-eye angle is a nice current storyline element. And overall, this is the second biggest feud on the Raw brand.

The criticism I have concerns something that Jericho said this week. The exact quote reads, "I took a page out of Shawn Michaels's playbook of deception." Uhh, isn't that a pretty big contradiction to what Jericho stands for? If Y2J is going to act like the heel that is just fed up with fans because he was never cheered for doing the right thing while Michaels was heavily cheered despite his lying about an injury, he can't go around now and admit that he's deceiving people. His whole argument for turning heel is that he did the right thing, but nobody seemed to care. And that attitude—particularly blaming the fans for booing him while he was "good"—works really well. Heels don't have to lie to be heel. His heel character seemed really fresh because he was making a good argument. So that statement wasn't the best wording; it undermines his character's message. Overall, though, well done.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 8.5 [up 1 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Chris Jericho: Randy Orton, JBL, Jeff Hardy, Money in the Bank, Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels: Randy Orton, Mr. Kennedy, Ric Flair, Batista & Jericho

MR. McMAHON TARGETED (1 week)

Throughout the show, Mr. McMahon continued the weekly million dollar giveaway, but the last segment of the show marked the start of a new WWE angle. McMahon had just finished giving away $500,000 to a single winner to close the show, but suddenly some heavy metal fixture fell from the ceiling and landed on the stage next to McMahon. Within seconds, the floor fell out from under the Chairman, causing him to crash to ground level. As he struggled to lift himself up, the McMahon's Million Dollar Mania sign came toppling down on top of him. Medics and wrestlers stormed the area to check on their boss, and he seemed to be unconscious and unresponsive. As they stretchered him out, he seemed to be questioning the situation, still apparently in a state of shock after the incident. The show closed with a curious cliffhanger ending.

A lot of people may not be interested in this type of storyline, but it's actually a really good idea. If WWE wanted to discontinue their money giveaway, they only had a few options; they chose the best one. Although the timing of the incident right after the heavy draft may have been a little too much, it made Raw seem extremely important. Think about it. WWE could have just had McMahon announce that it was the last night for the giveaway, but that would have been extremely anticlimactic. Plus, that might immediately turn off viewers who were tuning in solely for the money prize.

Instead, they tried to capture those viewers' interest with the cliffhanger ending, enticing them to return next week with a storyline. So, how do you forcibly stop the giveaway if you don't just announce it? Well, something bad needs to happen to the guy doling out the dinero. And it might be fun if McMahon continues to deal with these near-death experiences as some mysterious person keeps attempting to hurt the Chairman. Next week's Raw will be critical with the follow-up; it will let us know whether McMahon is really hurt and on the road to finding the culprit or whether he suffered minor injuries and can possibly expect more trouble.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6

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

MR. KENNEDY vs. PAUL BURCHILL (w/ Katie Lea) (5 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

After the main event—after Smackdown won the final two draft picks of the night—it was announced that Mr. Kennedy would be making his way to Friday nights. That pick signifies the end of this Kennedy-Burchill feud.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): n/a

Previous Feuds
Mr. Kennedy: Jeff Hardy, Shawn Michaels, William Regal
Paul Burchill: n/a

BETH PHOENIX vs. MELINA (8 weeks w/ 2 weeks hiatus)

This week, the newly formed babyface Melina teamed with WWE Women's Champion Mickie James to fight in interpromotional action against Smackdown's heel diva duo, Victoria and Natalya. The match ended when Melina fell to ringside, apparently hurting her ankle in the fall. The heels tried to take advantage by beating on both her and Mickie, prompting the referee to call for the disqualification. It was soon determined that because it was a double disqualification, both Raw and Smackdown would receive a draft pick. Smackdown gained Jim Ross, and Raw picked up Michael Cole as the two play-by-play guys switched brands.

There was no sign of The Glamazon this week, and with Melina hurt, it looks like this could be the official end for their somewhat heated two-month rivalry.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): n/a

Previous Feuds
Beth Phoenix: Candice Michelle, Mickie James, Maria, Mickie James
Melina: Mickie James, Candice Michelle

World Tag Team Champions HARDCORE HOLLY & CODY RHODES vs. TED DIBIASE (5 weeks)

This week, the World Tag Team Champions met ECW's Chavo Guerrero and Bam Neely in another WWE Draft pick bout. Ted DiBiase, Jr. joined Jerry Lawler and Mike Adamle on commentary. The match ended when Hardcore Holly caught Chavo Guerrero with an Alabama Slam to pick up the win. After the match, the WWE Draft graphic ran through the other rosters, and it awarded Raw with the Straight Edge Superstar, CM Punk.

This is another case of WWE simply coasting to Night of Champions. We are all basically waiting for Ted DiBiase to choose a partner and win the titles in his first match, fulfilling his brave prediction. There wasn't much progress on this one in the last few weeks as the segments involving this feud existed solely to remind viewers that it's still going. Next week, however, could really be the start of an interesting feud between two teams.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 6 [down 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Hardcore Holly & Cody Rhodes: Santino Marella & Carlito
Ted DiBiase: n/a


CONCLUDED FEUDS

(1) Triple H vs. John Cena
(2) Mr. Kennedy vs. Paul Burchill
(3) Beth Phoenix vs. Melina


POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) Matt Hardy vs. John Morrison & The Miz
(2) Kane vs. JBL
(3) Mr. Kennedy vs. Edge
(4) Triple H vs. Edge
(5) Mr. McMahon 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 "Charlie Haas" so that I know it's not junk mail.

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