Every Thursday or Friday, PWTorch staffers James Caldwell and Greg Parks have a Lounge-style chat reviewing the week in TV wrestling and looking ahead to what's next for key storylines, matches, and future events. Sometimes, there's an occasional "Seinfeld" or "The Office" reference related to pro wrestling mixed in for good measure.

James Caldwell: This is PWTorch assistant editor James Caldwell joined by PWTorch columnist Greg Parks for our weekly chat on TV wrestling. Here we are Friday night after Smackdown talking wrestling after taking over the Livecast earlier in the day. I figure we should start with the show you just covered, Greg. Christian has another title shot against Randy Orton, but with an assist to Mark Henry. What did you make of the show overall and the latest with the World Title picture?

Greg Parks: Mark Henry certainly has a viable claim to the title too - he once again asserted his dominance by taking out Big Show earlier in the night, as well as getting the pinfall in the tag match by pinning the champion, Randy Orton. So we could be looking at a future triple-threat match, further clouding the title picture.

Caldwell: I'm not sure which is cloudier - Smackdown or TNA's title picture, but that's more based on the characters in TNA being poorly defined and the audience having no rooting interest. In any event, all of a sudden, Mark Henry's stock seems to be on the way up. I thought he had a great performance on Raw trash-talking everyone in sight, then WWE positioned him in the title picture this week and he seemed to deliver. I think WWE has re-started Henry 184 times by now, but is there something different this time around where Henry could be a strong #1 or 2 heel on the Smackdown roster?

Parks: Short-term: yes. Long-term: no. I just don't think his in-ring work, over the long-term, can sustain whatever attacks and trash talking he can do to put himself over for the short-term. I don't mind them using him for now, and hey, they may catch lighting in a bottle and get him to headline a PPV or two in a title match. I do think this is the right way to book him: as a trash talking monster who lives for taking people out; not the loveable giant who teams with Evan Bourne.

Caldwell: Well-stated. Henry's in-ring work will always be his greatest detriment, but I think he can be useful in a role where WWE can utilize his talking ability. On the flip side, there's Great Khali, who can't talk and can't wrestle, but WWE, of course, likes his size, so they have to find some role for him. What do you make of the Jinder-led Khali re-push?

Parks: If WWE is going to be pushing the Usos, Slater & Gabriel, and Otunga & McGillicutty as real tag teams, I could see Khali and Mahal working as a team. I've seen it reported that Ed Koskie has taken over for Michael Hayes as head writer on Smackdown, so perhaps he'll get behind the tag division a little more. We seem to be seeing that the last few weeks now.

Caldwell: Yeah, suddenly the Usos are a relevant tag team...albeit only on Smackdown, but that's better than being squashed by Henry on Superstars. You could add DiBiase & Rhodes and even Bryan & Sin Cara to the mix of solid tag teams to create a strong division if WWE were so inclined. It would help Smackdown establish a niche for the show to differentiate Friday nights from Monday nights on Raw. Definitely something to keep an eye on. Speaking of Bryan & Sin Cara vs. DiBiase & Rhodes, WWE booked two singles matches between the two teams this week. What do you make of where WWE is going with the four individuals? And, is the right use of Sin Cara right now?

Parks: (9:53:45 PM): I think it is; they're kind of buying time 'til Averno comes in it appears. Hey, I like all four of them to a certain degree, and they can bring it in the ring, so I have no problem with it. I'm not sure there's going to be any real storyline or angle advancement in this "feud," but, keep putting them on in matches, and I won't mind.

Caldwell: Good point on Averno. I'll be very curious to see how he debuts. Perhaps Chavo brings him in as a hired assassin-type to go after Sin Cara, which would allow Chavo to handle the talking. One other Smackdown subject - the IC Title picture. Barrett is maybe, possibly, almost done with Zeke following another title match loss. Where does Barrett go from here and who do you think will be Zeke's next challenger following Barrett?

Parks: Eh, Chavo is kind of in the doghouse right now, so I don't think they'd push him back to a prominent spot like that so soon (even if it is a good idea). Not sure about Zeke's next challenge...looking at the Smackdown roster, I can't really predict. They should give Cody Rhodes the spot, since he's earned it. Or have him coach up Ted DiBiase to go after it. Barrett has fallen way off the radar and he did sort of promise "bigger and better things" after losing. Hard to believe after the break-up, we're not even getting a Barrett vs. Slater/Gabriel feud.

Caldwell: Please, no more Corre. It's so odd Barrett has fallen this far off the radar compared to where he was one year ago at the beginning stages of a hot Nexus program. I like Cody or Ted going after the IC Title. I would lean more toward Cody trying to take psychological advantage of ol' Zeke. Greg, any other thoughts on Smackdown before we tackle Raw subjects?

Parks: I guess we can move on to Raw.

Caldwell: All righty then. Three hours. Some good matches and wrestling. The usual ending with Cena standing tall. But, the biggest story was definitely C.M. Punk. What do you make of Punk's new program and WWE incorporating his reported contract situation into the title picture?

Parks: I'm surprised. But I think this could make for some interesting stories leading up to MITB, but I can't help but think, "damn, I wish they would've come up with this a few months ago, because a few months leading up to this would've been really cool."

Caldwell: It's typical WWE going week-to-week and missing an opportunity to build toward something to really make some money rather than simply being a possible one-month program. It could also be a sign that Punk has re-signed and WWE is starting a new program that will last through this summer. That remains to be seen. Do you think WWE will switch the title at the MITB PPV or does this seem like what it usually is with Cena - stack the deck, have Cena overcome, and then move on?

Parks: Yeah, I think they want Cena to hold the title longer. I did come read the idea of Punk winning as a swerve, then getting beat by one of the MITB winners, so he would end up leaving. I'm of the opinion that Punk is gone after July, and that makes me a sad columnist.

Caldwell: I was thinking about that earlier today - one of the MITB winners cashing in the day of the PPV. That's quite the possibility to have the Raw winner cash in on Punk right then and there. I still don't see Cena dropping the title - I'm holding to the belief he keeps the belt all the way to WrestleMania 28 - but that would be an interesting way to go from Cena to Punk to MITB winner and then back to Cena at, say, Summerslam. It's Week 1 of this new program, so we have a lot more information coming at us in the next three weeks leading to the MITB PPV to discuss. Without pulling up my Raw report, not much else is standing out from Monday's Raw. There was the voting mishap with Bourne and Ryan, of course, but what else stood out to you storyline-wise Monday?

Parks: Not really a whole lot. Like you said, most of the positive stuff was the in-ring work. Oh, what about Kelly Kelly winning her first title?

Caldwell: Yeah, it's part of a larger point I was aiming for that these three-hour shows are way too much and viewers might remember one or two things, but it doesn't position WWE to make money getting people to want to see more or feel so emotionally stirred up that they have to see Wrestler X beat Wrestler Y. It's just too much. I thought it was better than last week's three-hour Raw, which was all over the place, and the wrestling was presented in a meaningful way, so that was good. I'm not sure what Kelly's title win means just yet. The Divas Division was Kharma and Everyone Else for about a month, and now WWE has to figure out how to re-establish the individuals, if that's a priority. I really think the way to go is Kelly vs. a heel Beth.

Parks: So does the Divas champion not travel from brand to brand? Because that hardly seems fair. Now that Lay-Cool is off Smackdown, that show could use some title presence for the women, especially given how shallow the Divas roster is there. Kelly feuding with Tamina would be the Smackdown equivalent of Kelly vs. Beth, I think.

Caldwell: I think the champ should go from brand to brand since there's only one women's title in WWE now. It definitely seems like the belt has only been on Raw lately since Lay-Cool ended their run. Tamina would be a good heel opponent for Kelly, I agree. There are actually some possibilities for the women's division on both brands, especially on Smackdown with Natalya leading the NXT Rookies against the heel Divas trying to hold them down. Greg, turning our attention to next week's Raw, WWE has Raw Roulette, Bourne vs. Sin Cara, and an appearance by Shawn Michaels in an unspecified role. How do you think next week's Raw will shake out and what do you think HBK's involvement will be?

Parks: I don't really know what they'd do with HBK, since the only ones that make sense for him to interact with would be Triple H and Taker, and they're both inactive at this point. I could see him doing something with Punk...that would be fun.

Caldwell: Perhaps he'll just spin the Raw Roulette wheel backstage all night. Yeah, I'd like to see something with HBK and Punk. I think that would be interesting and a way to stretch out the Cena-Punk build-up without having to give away either man in a match together...or at all. One thing I found interesting on Superstars this week - yes, something interesting on Superstars - was Korpela's storyline suggestion that "management" could get involved in Punk-Cena to ensure the WWE Title stays in WWE? Do you foresee the Raw GM or a new authority figure or a McMahon becoming involved in this or WWE letting it play out with Cena-Punk just happening at the PPV and let the chips fall where they may?

Parks: That would be an acceptable way, to me, to reveal the Raw GM, if he has to personally appear on the show to address the WWE Title situation were Punk to win it. But I think they'll probably keep playing out the anonymous GM thing. I also think it depends on whether Punk truly stays or goes after MITB.

Caldwell: Yep, a lot of variables in-play that at least gives Raw something interesting going on for the next month. Of course, I'm having flashbacks to McMahon's dream sequence where Prinze, Jr. tells McMahon about all of the crazy stuff that's happened since he was "in a coma"... now, McMahon gets told the mystery GM let Punk take the WWE Title out of the company and that leads to McMahon returning to fire and take over. I'm not saying that's going to happen, but I'm having flashbacks to the coma deal right now. Greg, anything else Raw-related worth touching on?

Parks: Let's end it on the coma memory.

Caldwell: Indeed! Our good friends at NXT offered quite the show Tuesday - an awful tag match, a bunch of videos, and an interesting main event involving Zack Ryder, Titus O'Neil, and some potential tension between Titus and Hornswoggle. WWE seems to have already wrapped up storylines on NXT, so the show doesn't seem to have anything going for it right now other than Getting To The End. What did you make of Tuesday's show and whether there's anything to Titus and Swoggle tension?

Parks: Eh, could be, as Titus would make another monster heel WWE could add to their collection. And at least Zack Ryder has been promoted from nothing to NXT. Scratch that...not sure if that's a promotion at all. And I love how you put "Getting To The End" in capital letters.

Caldwell: Yeah, it can't come soon enough! I'm not sure, either, if Ryder received a promotion being on NXT this week. We'll just call it a lateral move. Let's get a bold prediction on the record - who will be next week's elimination?

Parks: I would say O'Brian, but then again, I would've had him gone about two eliminations ago.

Caldwell: Yeah, me too. Somehow, he's stuck around. I'm tired of picking O'Brian, so I'll select Darren Young as the next elimination, setting up the unthinkable finale of Titus and O'Brian. That covers WWE topics. Greg, you and I talked extensively about TNA on the PWTorch Livecast earlier today. Any additional thoughts on TNA as they head toward Destination X?

Parks: Eh...I don't know what else there is to say. They limited Anderson and his mic work at least, so that was a relief. Instead, we got it replaced with Joker Sting, which is a push.

Caldwell: Yes, further confusing and muddying the issue since there isn't a likable or credible figure out of the whole bunch. After all, shouldn't Gunner be World Champ right now? In any event, this upcoming set of TV tapings should be interesting for TNA and give us some more material to discuss in future Chats and Livecasts. Before we wrap, though, I want to get your quick thoughts on the All Wheels Wrestling promotion, which has its first taping after the Impact tapings this coming week. I don't know what to make of this yet, as it seems quite vague and a niche of a niche of a niche. What's your impression so far?

Parks: It's different, so that's good. But WSX was different too, and it's going to take more than that to get people to notice. All I can say is: I'll be watching.

Caldwell: And waiting...for details on what this is all about. We shall see. Greg, that's about all I have tonight. Anything else on your mind before we wrap?

Parks: My mind has been sapped of wrestling over the last few hours, so I'm spent.

Caldwell: It's been a Friday Marathon! Well done, sir. We'll of course look forward to this weekend's edition of Gonzo and The Greg, then see what next week has in store for us. Good talking to you as always!

Parks: And you as well, James.

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