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James Caldwell: This is Torch asst. editor James Caldwell joined by Torch specialist Greg Parks talking last night's Raw and Friday's edition of Smackdown. Greg, first off, thanks for covering Raw for me last night. What was your impression of the show and what stood out the most?

Greg Parks: Well, it felt like what it was: a show that didn't have a lot to push since it's still a few weeks away from a PPV. That allowed everything to flow at a less frantic pace and WWE wasn't trying desperately to plug everything at the last minute. What stood out to me though was the push of Sheamus - he came off looking great through really elementary, simple booking.

JC: Yeah, Sheamus has quickly been made into a monster in just two weeks. I'm interested to see where they go with him. I think they'll continue this build-up in 2009, then perhaps give him a stand-out moment in the Royal Rumble to begin a strong 2010 run. Triple H is obviously behind him based on the interview a few weeks ago, so Sheamus appears to be ready for a strong run to begin the year. WWE just needs to take their time and not rush things. ... Did you feel like Raw accomplished anything with the major players - e.g. Cena-HBK-Hunter or Orton-Kofi or Legacy's involvement? Or, did it come across to you as it did to me as more of a holding pattern type show?

GP: It was definitely a holding pattern show, but again, that's not necessarily a bad thing. This is when you can tease feuds for the future and kind of let characters develop. It's a lot better than having to hype/come off a PPV every week or two where there isn't a lot of room for character development because you're getting guys in and out of feuds and PPV matches.

JC: Good point on that. And this is why I was glad to see WWE drop a PPV in 2010 to allow for more weeks when they can focus on characters and developing personalities rather than having to rush into selling the next off-brand PPV with a series of "concept matches" that have no business being part of a feud's progression. For some reason, Chris Masters's name pops to mind, but do you think he benefited from being booked in that silly Raw's Got Talent segment to give him something to work with character-wise?

GP: Only if WWE capitalizes on it. I think that the fans even got behind him for it. It was certainly bizarre, but it gave a new dimension to his character should WWE choose to build on it. That's what I was talking about above, just fleshing out guys's characters on shows like this.

JC: Great perspective on that. Looking ahead to Survivor Series, what other matches do you see being added to the PPV? I'm on the fence on whether WWE should go with Kofi-Orton in a singles match, as I'd like to see some more time given to the feud before they go the route of a PPV singles match. What else do you see being added?

GP: Yeah, I would hold off on that too, but then where do you put Orton? I guess he could be in an elimination tag match with Legacy and another heel against Kofi, MVP, Henry, and a babyface. I guess it all depends on how many elimination tag matches WWE is going to do at the PPV. Miz vs. Swagger is another match I could see there, but again, they may be utilized in a tag match.

JC: I can see it now: Legacy-Orton tension part 25 at Survivor Series. It certainly seems they're going that direction with the tag matches. Perhaps you put Miz and Swagger with Legacy, then add Bourne and another face to Kofi, Henry, and MVP. It would continue to flesh out the feud between Miz and Swagger while also teasing more Legacy dissension.

GP: I could see that- I'm just afraid they're going to turn Miz or Swagger face. Bad idea, in my opinion.

JC: Agreed. Both are strong heels who just need some more exposure. Final note on Raw - how much dissension do you think WWE will tease between DX leading to the PPV? Does WWE tease HBK being fed up with Hunter or do they keep it where it is with DX being chummy leading to the match against Cena? How do you see it being played up?

GP: It's gonna be tough for WWE to transition from the hamming-it-up-comedy-duo that DX currently is to building real, PPV buy-worthy tension in only a matter of a few weeks. It'll be a tall task to do it, but if DX doesn't seem worried, what's the hook for buying the PPV then?

JC: That was my main concern coming out of this show is that I didn't feel like there were any new issues developed for the PPV title match. I agree with everything you said that WWE had a week to focus on characters and not necessarily the PPV, but they really needed to find balance and give viewers a new reason to be interested in the title match coming up. I didn't feel WWE delivered that this week.

GP: True, true, but I prefer this more laid-back style, working things up to the final hype for the PPV, rather than having one hyped on overdrive every week, or just coming off a PPV and having to deal with what just happened there.

JC: Yeah, and not have to deal with the "Oh, thanks for your $40 last night, but please consider another $40 in three weeks" problem WWE typically runs into. ... Let's shift gears to Smackdown before we wrap it up. You were there live for the taping of last week's show. Anything you noticed different live vs. covering it on TV on Friday night?

GP: Not a ton - Ziggler's "Bragging Point" comment edited to say "Bragging Rights" and the "What" chants during Rey's promo edited out, which actually made the entire segment come across better on TV than live. I was ashamed to be in the same crowd as those people.

JC: Nice. It's right up there with the "Twoooooo" for "annoying wrestling references making a comeback in 2009." I thought Rey and Batista each had one of their better promos ever. Neither one is a promo guy, but they somehow brought it out of each other. What were your thoughts on how the program started after Batista's heel turn at Bragging Rights?

GP: First of all, I did the "TWOOOO" on ever near-fall both nights, so I disagree on that; second, I thought it was wise to keep the two from getting physical the first show after the PPV. Hopefully, WWE doesn't throw them into matches against each other coming up as the intrigue of them going one-on-one could garner WWE some extra PPV buys.

JC:And that's what I thought was a mistake with Orton-Kofi on Monday throwing them out there in the ring for the first time. There has to be anticipation to sell PPVs, but now that anticipation is gone. You can't get that first Kofi-Orton match back. So, I agree very strongly with what you said about keeping Batista and Rey away from each other until the timing is right to make money. Batista vs. Matt Hardy on Smackdown this week will be a nice bridge to continue the Batista vs. Rey program. ... Cuing up the lame radio host ending, it looks like we're up against the clock, any final thoughts on Smackdown?

GP: Eh, not really. A Jericho vs. Kane main event didn't really get me excited, and C.M. Punk was relegated to fighting Scott Armstrong, so nothing much for him to do either. I guess that about does it.

JC: Looks like we'll pick up next week with a look at where WWE takes Punk's character after the Undertaker program and how the build-up for Taker-Jericho-Kane at Survivor Series advances. Two very interesting developments to follow. Greg, thanks for your time today!

GP: Always a pleasure, James.

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