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By Chris Newth, PWTorch contributor

Extreme Championship Wrestling
August 12, 2008
Upcoming PPV: SummerSlam (last episode before PPV)

ECW STORYLINES AND FEUDS

Welcome to the forty-eighth 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 MARK HENRY (w/ Tony Atlas) vs. MATT HARDY (4 weeks)

Summary:

In the back, Lena Yada interviewed John Morrison and The Miz about the success of The Dirt Sheet segment last week. They touted their comic genius, comparing themselves to Seth Rogan and Pineapple Express. Overall, it seemed like they were ultra-confident heading into their matchup against Mark Henry and Matt Hardy in the main event. Later in the show, Matt Hardy met with Mark Henry in the locker room to discuss their situations. While Hardy said he wished to team with lots of other people instead of Henry, the ECW Champion said that he wanted Hardy to try to get in his way. Clear tension here.

The main event match ended when Matt Hardy hit the Side Effect on Morrison from the second rope to pick up the victory. After the matchup, Henry cleared the ring of Miz and Morrison before holding Hardy's hand up in the air in celebration. However, things quickly imploded between these two one-night tag team partners when Henry used the opportunity to deliver the World's Strongest Slam to Hardy right onto the ECW Championship. Hardy writhed and twitched in pain as Henry walked up the ramp.

Analysis:

The Hardy-Henry storyline feels officially ready for a title match at SummerSlam. The last episode of the show before their clash at Sunday's PPV did a perfectly fine job establishing the issues between them and identifying the major focus on the right people. Miz and Morrison are a strong team, but by the end of the show, they rightfully weren't the focus. Henry's turning on Hardy by surprising him with a slam onto the ECW Title wasn't nearly as surprising to viewers at home, but it did make Hardy appear battered and defeated heading into SummerSlam.

The obstacle for Hardy has been well-painted by WWE, and the proverbial deck is certainly stacked against him. Generally, the last episode of a show before a PPV shouldn't be overly filled with character-building segments, so this week's formula match and post-match attack were fine, albeit unoriginal.

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

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

CHAVO GUERRERO & BAM NEELY vs. EVAN BOURNE (5 weeks)

Summary:

This week, Evan Bourne met Bam Neely in singles competition as Chavo Guerrero stood at ringside. The match ended when Bourne landed his Shooting Star Press for the big win. "He's fearless, he's gutsy, he's courageous," Todd Grisham said describing Evan Bourne after he managed to beat the much larger Bam Neely.

Analysis:

A promising continuation to Bourne's push so far on ECW. The character of Evan Bourne is beginning to become firmly established in viewers' minds as they guy who can pull off some amazing in-ring feats. Matt Striker also did a very nice job making the argument about how Bourne defeating Chavo Guerrero in the past means a great deal considering Chavo's status on the roster and his own past wrestling accomplishments.

After SummerSlam passes, I would suggest WWE begin the process of establishing his out-of-ring character using interviews, solo promos, backstage scenes, interaction with other wrestlers on the mic, and perhaps vignettes or video packages on his personal life, goals, aspirations, interests, dislikes, feelings, etc. His style is clearly impressing fans alone, but backing it up with character highlights can deeply strengthen the status quo.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): 8 [up 0.5 since last week]

Previous Feuds
Chavo Guerrero: Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, Kane
Bam Neely: n/a
Evan Bourne: n/a

TOMMY DREAMER vs. COLIN DELANEY (4 weeks w/ 1 week hiatus)

Summary:

In ECW's opening contest, Tommy Dreamer fought Colin Delaney in an Extreme Rules Match. The fight ended when Dreamer spiked Colin with his signature DDT finisher on a stop sign for the pinfall victory.

Analysis:

WWE's recent release of Colin Delaney puts an immediate end to this particular feud.

Intrigue Level (out of 10): n/a

Previous Feuds
Tommy Dreamer: New Breed, Elijah Burke, John Morrison & The Miz, Mike Knox, Mark Henry
Colin Delaney: John Morrison & The Miz, Armando Estrada

FINLAY & HORNSWOGGLE vs. MIKE KNOX (3 weeks)

Summary:

As Finlay faced Armando Estrada one-on-one, Mike Knox stood on the stage observing his current rival. The match ended when Finlay nailed his Celtic Cross for the seemingly easy win. After the bout, Finlay motioned for Knox to enter the ring and face him, but Knox simply stared back eagerly. Knox ultimately left with a big smile on his face, clearly happy with what he saw Finlay do. However, we didn't get to see Knox's reaction when Finlay and Hornswoggle danced around the ring joyously with a very young child from the crowd.

Analysis:

I like where WWE is going with this storyline. Mike Knox now has something to do, and viewers know what he believes—namely, that Finlay has gone soft since defending Hornswoggle from evil forces in WWE. Knox comes across like a tough, unpolished fighter who really just wants to hurt people. To him, winning isn't the most important outcome; physically harming his opponent is. And that style used to be the exact one practiced by Finlay when he debuted on Smackdown years ago.

Finlay's "I love to fight" attitude (and catchphrase) coupled with his use of offbeat, sometimes brutal methods of attacking other wrestlers is something that people can easily believe Knox wants to emulate. And it isn't unbelievable to think that Knox is saddened by Finlay's change of tactics in recent months. Plus, Knox can make a great point when he asks about what significant things Finlay's done lately.

But Finlay seems perfectly content with his current status as Hornswoggle's protective father. He still reverts back to using old tricks like cheating with his shillelagh, but he's a different character overall. Scenes that depict Finlay's kind, loving nature—like the one where he danced around with the young kid this week—do a nice job painting this new picture of Finlay. When things like that happen, you can almost image Mike Knox hitting himself in the head in the back as he watches on the monitor. This storyline has been set up well in the past few weeks.

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

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) John Morrison & The Miz vs. Finlay & Hornswoggle


POTENTIAL FEUDS

(1) John Morrison vs. The Miz vs. ?
(2) Finlay vs. Armando Estrada
(3) Ricky Ortiz 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 "Nunzio" so that I know it's not junk mail.

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