Whether it is “Macho Man” Randy Savage battling Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania V or Paul Heyman turning against Rob Van Dam, many of wrestling’s most notable feuds have stemmed from friendships.
While alliances can lead to great rivalries and matches such as between Bret and Owen Hart at Wrestlemania X and the 1994 Summerslam, more recently in wrestling’s mainstream this formula has led to mediocrity. The two feuds in question are between Rey Mysterio Jr. and Chavo Guerrero as well as Gregory Helms and Matt Hardy.
The rivalry between Mysterio and Guerrero started out promising enough or at least brought both individuals into better positions than they had been in.
In Mysterio’s case though he was the World Heavyweight Champion of Smackdown! before facing off against Chavo, his run with the title was anything, but spectacular. As a result of frequent losses suffered at the hands of the Great Khali, Mark Henry and Kurt Angle among others, Mysterio failed to live up to the hype surrounding him earlier in the year. Not only did Mysterio diminish his credibility as champion, but also the short-term credibility of the championship as a whole.
Only a year ago Chavo was performing under the gimmick of Kerwin White. Though initially showing some promise, this persona quickly became regularly displayed on Heat and irregularly displayed on Raw. Following the death of Eddie Guerrero, the Kerwin White gimmick was abandoned and Chavo had a brief face run. However Chavo’s rejuvenated popularity could only last so long without additional storylines being given to his character to work with.
This is exactly what the WWE did for Chavo. Instead of keeping Chavo a face however, a slow heel turn developed as Chavo came to be somewhat of a cheerleader for Mysterio during his title run. At the 2006 Great American Bash, Mysterio’s reign was mercifully ended with interference from Chavo.
If the rivalry were to be just based around jealousy, perhaps it would be universally appealing to the WWE audience. However by basing their bad blood over the legacy of Eddie Guerrero, which many fans of the WWE feel very passionate about, a schism has been formed amongst its audience.
Many may not be concerned with the constant uses of Eddie’s name and character in this storyline. Alternatively though the focus on his passing has been called tasteless and exploitative by the WWE’s kindest critics and countless expletives have been used in less kinder criticisms.
The basis of this competition is only one of its various detractors. In a feud between Mysterio and Chavo, one would hardly expect their matches to be sub-par and yet that’s exactly what they have been. This was perhaps most noticeable on the October 20, 2006 edition of Smackdown! in the “I Quit” match between the two. At the conclusion of the bout a major spot was blown in which it was obvious that Chavo was hitting a steel beam that covered Mysterio’s leg rather than hitting his actually leg. Not helping this matter is that instead of downplaying this spot, the footage of the incident has been continuously re-shown in an attempt to advance this storyline.
The promo skills of the two have been mixed at best. Some promise was shown, surprisingly when Mysterio’s son Dominic made his return to television on September 15. During this edition of Smackdown! Chavo showed other ways that he and his manager Vickie Guerrero could hurt Mysterio by the simplicity in their action of getting close to Dominic.
Less than two months later the quality of the promos between the two has dramatically declined. On this week’s Smackdown! the opening confrontation between Mysterio and Chavo looked like it would be more at home in their work for WCW earlier in the decade than on WWE programming in 2006.
In a feeble attempt to draw sympathy from the crowd Mysterio announced, “I did not quit on each and every one of you. No. Because you guys have never quitted on me.”
Mysterio was not alone in his poor use of grammar as Chavo would soon come to the ring to make his contribution. While mocking Mysterio, Chavo spelled out on the same chair that supposedly sidelined Mysterio, “I OUIT” subsequently leading to a short scuffle between the two.
Making this matter worse is that Smackdown! unlike such programs as Monday Night Raw and previously Monday Nitro is a taped show. If those behind the scenes wanted to make any attempt to better the feud between Mysterio and Chavo, they very well could have, days before it was shown to most WWE fans.
Luckily Chris Benoit came out to stop the meeting between Mysterio and Chavo. While many negative aspects of Chavo’s previous feud will be cutout of his program with Benoit, those tiring of the use of Eddie’s name should not hold their breath in expecting it to stop.
Later on in the night, for once fans were not treated to a match between Gregory Helms and Matt Hardy. That is not to say the two did not have a physical exchange as following Helms’ bout with Jimmy Wang Yang, Hardy came down to assault Helms.
Though the rivalry between Mysterio and Chavo has been less than desirable at least the two have some onscreen history together both in WCW and the WWE, which cannot be said for Helms and Hardy.
The basis for the program between Helms and Hardy lies completely in the fact that they are both from North Carolina and allegedly had a rivalry as they were growing up. The reason that this does not work is that there is no proof to support this claim for the casual wrestling fan. As the old adage goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words” and that has never been truer than in analyzing this feud.
For a rivalry with almost the exact same basis that works, one needs to look no further than TNA and the matches pitting Christian Cage against Rhino. Admittedly TNA had more to work off of with this pair. Cage and Rhino have had some history together in the limelight as they were shown to have a friendly relationship in the WWE. Still TNA did not solely depend on this and instead showed the two to have some chemistry while working for TNA as well as using video footage of the two together as youngsters.
If a program was to occur between Helms and Hardy pitting the two against each other following a friendship, at least some attempt should have been made to show their pleasant relationship. Instead the two have plunged headfirst into numerous matches against one another with very little support given for their contests.
The WWE Cruiserweight Title could act as a reason for the bitterness between Helms and Hardy, but Hardy has become less and less accepted as a lightweight wrestler since splitting with his brother Jeff. This has occurred mostly because Jeff was much more inclined to do high risk spots than Matt, while they were teaming. Once Jeff was gone, the fact that Matt had a style less akin to a traditional cruiserweight wrestler than many wrestlers considered as heavyweights became strikingly obvious.
If the Helms and Hardy rivalry is to be more successful than Mysterio and Chavo’s competitions several factors must be modified.
First, some mention must be made of the background information surrounding the feud that has more weight to it than what has previously been said. Video footage of the two in times long past could be helpful, but is not necessary. Such simple methods as Jeff Hardy having a guest appearance on Smackdown! where he reminisces with Helms and/or Hardy could be a good first step.
Second, the promo skills of Helms need to be used to their full potential as opposed to only making occasional appearances in the feud. Hardy has long been known for having questionable skills when it comes to addressing his opponents. For this reason Hardy would work best as a silent killer for the time being.
Lastly, the WWE Cruiserweight Title needs to be involved in the rivalry somehow. Hardy could either shed a couple of pounds and/or adapt his in-ring skills to be accepted by the masses as a cruiserweight. Alternatively Hardy could cost Helms his championship, which would add to the bitterness between the two and allow the title to be defended more regularly amongst other WWE cruiserweights.
The feud between Mysterio and Chavo thankfully looks to be reaching a close. Helms and Hardy could have a successful rivalry, but only if the issues that plague their current feud are changed.
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