FECS Reviews: HHH/Orton Feud

Viola Moonlight

I'm Literally Just Here for WZCW
Welcome everybody, from members to guests... mods to prisoners, to the inaugural return of the infamous & seemingly lackluster thread series known as FalKon's FECS Reviews. For those who have no clue as to what I am preaching here today, do not fear. The 2nd coming of this thread series should in reality be considered the official debut as the first two reviews were completed to garner fan interest, much like the Miz & WWE testing the waters match with John Cena... it was to see if there is any profitability in the matter. And guess what, there was enough attention earned for the FECS device to be switched back on to operate full steam ahead.

Quite simply, FalKon's FECS reviews threads... where FECS stands for Feud Epic Cream Scale... basically decides at random or whatever I feel like a memorable feud of the past & recounts the situation. Once storytime is over, the moral of the story also known as myself comes along by reviewing & rating the feud, using a 5 star ratings system where it starts from 0 stars that equals no acknowledgment of the feud ever happening to 6 stars that equals perfection reaching new heights. When I tuck everyone who listens to the bedtime story gets to the end of the moral, those who bother to place an input simple posts what they think the feud rating alongside reasoning. After the thread disappears, I will share the results in the next thread. So far, the two "test" threads featured were Mickie James/Trish Stratus feud that recieved an unprecedented 6 stars & the Invasion storyline catching an average 3.5 stars.

Now, to kick off the official debut of the thread series for the revival, I shall be reviewing a very recent storyline between one of the greatest superstars of recent years to one of the greatest superstars of the future. One which everybody here knows of that has recieved a lot of attention of the previous few weeks. One which, in the wrestling world formed at the very beginning where these two wrestlers met for the first time on-screen in kayfabe character. Without further ado, the review today is:

HHH/Orton Feud

ONCE UPON A TIME...

...Randy Orton, a 3rd generation superstar, made his debut on WWE TV on the 25th of April, 2002 as an unknown face character. Within a matter of weeks, Orton was drafted to RAW & became sidelined for months with an injury that would continue to haunt him to the present day... the shoulder injury. During his inactivity of wrestling, Orton would show up on RAW giving a report on his rehabilitation status that was a ploy to progress him slowly towards a heel turn. Right on the verge, on the cusp of full recovery... Orton would find himself being asked an exclusive deal, one that only comes around every lifetime... by selling his soul to the devil['s son-in-law] for tuition, experience & exposure alongside two of the greatest wrestlers alive & active at the time. Today, the decision that Orton & another hot newcomer made would result in one of the most hailed stables ever to grace professional wrestling...

[youtube]5c9OBnGqkdU[/youtube]​

To the normal viewing eye, the formation of one of the great collection of superstars had been made official... Evolution. To the untrained eye, the teases that would lead to the foundation of the 5 year long HHH/Orton feud had been created. By watching the video, you will notice that Triple H's speech featured Randy Orton for the least amount of time with what I would say the least amount of praise from The Game. When this rant on how great Orton is begins, Triple H used a tone of voice saying RKO's name that usually cultimates in some showdown. If you notice at the very end of the clip, Randy Orton seems to be positioned the furtherest away from Hunter & Evolution.

During this time frame, Randy Orton was used as the lacky of Triple H to help him defend his World Heavyweight Championship time & time again as it was the only desire of The Game's to hold that "prestigious" title. However, Orton would show signs of life in his own right. He dubbed himself the moniker of being "The Legend Killer" where most of his existence thrived on demolishing those who have the Legend status. During his rise to fame, Orton was also included in the Elimination Chamber match at SummerSlam 2003 alongside Triple H to aid in keeping the belt around his waist. For those who are interested, here are the links to these matches:


He established himself as a huge threat in a traditional Survivor Series match between Team Bischoff & Team Austin by being the Sole Survivor for his team. Again, some links for those that are interested:


There was even a point in time where the faction seemed to have found their peak as a functioning unit whereby Evolution held all the gold. Batista & Ric Flair won the World Tag Team Championships in a Tag Team Turmoil match from the The Dudleys, Triple H regained his World Heavyweight Championship in a Triple Threat match featuring Goldberg & Kane with the help of all of Evolution & Randy Orton defeated Rob Van Dam in an inpromptu match for the Intercontinental Championship. All that happened at Armageddon of 2003. Since the whole focus is on Randy Orton establishing himself due to the fact Triple H was already a huge main eventer, here are the links to the IC match between him & RVD:


Ah yes, Randy Orton was on the path to greatness. The IC champ, a member of the most powerful stable, the man to take down the legends of the business & the man responsible for getting rid of Steve Austin. Might I add the best match Orton has had so far in his career at that point in time against a sharp & focused opponent Rob Van Dam. When all seemed right in the world of Evolution, something happened on the 26th of July, 2004 episode of RAW. Triple H lost his last chance at gaining the World Heavyweight Championship, yet somehow Randy Orton won the right to face the Champion Chris Benoit at SummerSlam 2004:


Benoit got his rematch the following RAW where despite Orton retaining the championship, he loses something that meant so much more to him... the brotherhood that he put his life & soul into. This segment is worthy to not be considered a link as it is the official start of the 5 year long feud known as the HHH/Orton feud:

[youtube]wefbwVVXzrI[/youtube]​

From here on in to the Royal Rumble of 2005, Randy Orton would feud with The Game over the World Heavyweight Championship . Unfortunately for Orton, his greatest claim to fame with his first title run was being the youngest world heavyweight champion to date. If it weren't for the Benoit scandal, he would also be known for defeating "The Rabid Wolverine" Chris Benoit two times in a consecutive two day period in the same match for the same championship, a feat unprecedented in the world of professional wrestling. The reason why? Orton lost his championship at the following PPV Unforgiven to Triple H. [I could not find a suitable video of the match & I apoligise. If somebody does, let me know straight away.]

Their feud went onto Survivor Series in a traditional tag team match featuring Team Triple H vs. Team Orton:


Due to a double pin between Edge & Benoit in a World Heavyweight Championship Triple Threat Match also featuring Triple H on RAW, an Elimination Chamber was added to the New Year's Evolution 2005 card to decide who the newly vacated World Heavyweight Championship would go to:


Randy Orton would then defeat Batista for the Number One Contender's spot to face Triple H at the Royal Rumble for the World Heavyweight Championship for one last shot. This match signifies the end of the first part of the full-fledged HHH/Orton feud. [Again, I could not find the match. Again, if you find one please tell me.]

Not much occured during the two main feuds between HHH & Orton:

- The two were briefly embroiled in a stable war between each other where HHH reformed DX with HBK & Orton joined forces with Edge. RatedRKO was out for revenge to take out DX who had screwed both Edge & Orton with their chances in the top tier championship matches in the past. The feud between the two was cut short due to the legitimate suffered by Triple H.
- A one night only match between Evolution members HHH, Batista & Flair against RaterRKO members Orton & Edge with Umaga took place in a 6 tag team match on RAW.
- Two matches, one singles contest & one last man standing match, at No Mercy in 2007 between HHH & Orton took place for the WWE Championship due to the fact John Cena became injured.

Then, to the lead up of WM24, Triple H & Orton reignited the feud between each other by facing each other alongside John Cena in a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship. Over the next few months until One Night Stand, HHH & Orton would face each other for the Championship until Orton once again injured himself in the same region as his debut, The Collar Bone. This would place Orton on the shelf for several months with his return being delayed due to a motorcycle accident that re-injured the Collar Bone.

On the point of his in-ring return, Orton continued his feud with Triple H & took on two young guns that would call themselves by the name of Priceless & formed their own stable of 2nd/3rd generation superstars:

[youtube]fwTKCK0w-c0[/youtube]​

I had to include this in here. The brotherhood understands... nWZo 4 Lyfe! :worship: nWZo.

Anywho, with the rise of the new stable that seemingly creamed the pants of the IWC as well as mine & showing their dominance by beating down the likes of Manu & Sim Snuka that led to their future endeavours as well as high-caliber main eventers Triple H... Randy Orton was on the rise to becoming on of the biggest heels of the WWE today, maybe even the biggest. The only thing that stopped him was a chance at the title:

[youtube]fGGP1UNxt0M[/youtube]​

This second time round would become so much more personal between the two as both families & friends from each side would be involved in the rivalry. Randy Orton simply wanted revenge for the hell Triple H put him through & finally end him for good. Evolution, the circle of friends known as family to Orton turned on him. Now, it was time for Orton to destroy HHH & his family one member at a time. For the story up until Wrestlemania, here are some links to clips that should help clear the situation:


And so, with the whole family & friends from HHH side out of the picture, it seems that Randy Orton's last step in his plan for evil is all but accomplished in the match at WrestleMania 25 & had the whole IWC shit their pants all over the joint because of the end result:

[youtube]HNDvOmcPYQQ[/youtube]​

After this what many deemed a "clusterfuck" if you will, the McMahon-Helmsley-Evolution family was against the Legacy for the next few months in which Orton regained the championship in a 6-man tag team match. From here, the feud started to dissapate before our eyes, with the last couple of HHH Orton matches folding out until Night Of Champions where we see the John Cena/Randy Orton feud reignite whilst Triple H is getting busy with the Legacy Ted DiBiase & Cody Rhodes. From this point on, the Triple H/Randy Orton feud is all but dead. The only that these two will ever bury the hatchet is inside the Hell in the Cell, which I am hoping to be the final chapter in this 5 year long saga that happens at the PPV with the same name as the match

THE RATING:

WoW... that was long. Really long & chunky. I apoligise for the length of my... oh wait, I take that back. :lmao:

Ohkay, onto business. I give this feud a 4.5 to a 5 star review. Since the inevitable end match has not occured, I can only guess from the feud thus far. Once the match occurs, I will lock in a definite rating. Why do I give such a high review? Well, let me explain:

THE REVIEW:

Pretty much since the start of Randy Orton's career, he has been actively involved with Triple H in some way whereby Triple H was jealous of the fact that Orton had so much success for a Blue Chipper & Orton was livid that his family turned their backs on them because a piece of gold. The entire time of Evolution with Randy being involved in some fashion was a great storyline masterpiece to set the foundation of Orton's career. Once he established himself as somebody who could work alone, he began to rise the rankings of the WWE & earn some much needed experience with the push he has recieved over his whole career.

The mini-feuds between Orton & HHH during what I like to call the "intermission" period were great short feuds. Nothing fancy, but it kept interest going.

Once Orton returned from his injury & formed the Legacy, taking out those who decided to side against Orton like Manu & Snuka or who side alongside Triple H like Evolution & the McMahon family... the feud was getting to heights of epic proportions. Up until the match at WM25, this feud would have achieved a 6 star rating due to its flawless execution thus far. However, with the lackluster main event at the 25th anniversary of the greatest professional wrestling PPV... the interest soon dropped & the feud would not have cultimated more than a 5 star rating. Whatever happened after WM25 has been deemed pointless really, nothing much was accomplished. The only thing that can save the end of the feud is one final match in a Hell in a Cell.

May I remind people that the reason for the outcome of the WM25 match is that in the world of pro wrestling it is the heel to stack the odds against the face where the face ends up winning for great crowd reaction. However, for the storyline purposes, Randy Orton should have won in order to accomplish something that had never done & that is take down his Arch Nemesis. At this point, Triple H should have been given time off to sell his injuries with Orton reigniting the feud against Batista & reigning supreme over him that would eventually lead to the Randy Orton/John Cena feud that could have lasted until the Royal Rumble of 2010. I would like to also add that this match should have been BEFORE the WHC match that should have been BEFORE the HBK vs. Undertaker match.

THE ULTIMATUM:

The HHH/Orton feud recieves a 4.5/5 star rating.



Now this is over, it is time to decide whether all you posters out there agree or disagree with the rating that I have given it with you placing your ideal rating with a review of your own. May I say that this is NOT the place for HATE RANTS about the feud as it will lead me into kicking your ass, posting-wise, as to why you are wrong & ignorant.

If anybody has any suggestions on to what I should review next, by all means place your feud ideas in your posts. It would be much appreciated to see what you want me to review.

Your thoughts on the HHH/Orton feud?
 
Looking back at when Orton and Trips first feuded, I would say that it was a bit rushed. One week Orton was in Evolution, the next he was earning a shot at Benoit and then defeating him at Summerslam for the World Title, then he was getting his ass handed to him the next night on RAW by HHH. Obviously, as Falkon has pointed out in depth Orton and Triple H would go on to face each other at Unforgiven where Orton's reign was cut short. I thought that match was okay, it wasn't great and it wasn't bad but it was the result which annoyed me the most.

At that time, I was a big fan of Orton and I went from being really excited at Summerslam to questioning why the hell they bothered putting the belt on him only to have it taken away a few weeks later. As we would soon find out, it was because WWE had totally rushed their booking of Orton and tried to force him down fans throats and obviously they rebelled by largely booing him. So there was a problem with the first strand of this never ending feud in that Orton wasn't getting over as a face and the fans were enjoying Hunter beat up Orton. Nonetheless, they would go on to face in the Elimination Chamber at New Year's Revolution which in my opinion was the greatest Chamber match to date...however, the WWE began to highlight the friction between Batista and Triple H and so you could sense that Orton/HHH was soon going to be kicked to the kerb in order to start the build for Hunter and Batista at Wrestlemania 21 (and judging by the fans reactions it seemed they were more excited by the prospect of this feud than being force fed Orton and HHH.)

Thus, the blow off to the first (largely uneventful and unsuccessful) strand of Orton and HHH occurred at the Royal Rumble. As regard to their initial feud, I would say that the idea and reasoning behind it was good but the booking seemed rushed from the start with Orton's title reign being a mess. Fans began to like Randy Orton as the cocky young heel in Evolution and before they got fully used to him in that capacity, the WWE ended it and turned him face...the fans didn't like that and that's why I feel the feud wasn't as effective as it could have been. Nonetheless, despite fans not wanting to accept Orton as a face, the feud did establish him as a main event singles star and allowed him to prove that he could hang with the best of them in Triple H.

A while later, Orton and Triple H would meet again....only this time as opposing teams. Trips was in DX and Orton had joined up with Edge to appease HBK and Hunter. I largely enjoyed this brief aspect of the feud because this time Orton was a hated heel (he is a natural playing the bad guy) and HHH was super over as a member of the reformed DX. There was some funny comedy, some serious stuff and a few decent tag matches at Cyber Sunday, Suvivor Series and of course New Years Revolution which ended the feud due to Hunter's injury. I liked that match because it had a lot of drama, emotion and a sense of legitimacy due to HHH's real injury (plus Orton did an amazing juice job). Overall, this strand of their feud was good, it wasn't overly long and because Michales and Edge were involved it added another dimension to Orton/HHH.

Later in the year (2007), Orton and HHH would reignite their bad blood and face twice in one night at No Mercy. The first match was short and the second match was a good solid last man standing match that saw Orton regain the WWE championship, after having lost it that night. Now, I liked the No Mercy PPV but the problem was that Triple H competed three times at the event that it felt a bit like overkill but I was happy to see Randy reign supreme come the end of the night.

Eventually, John Cena would become involved which was good because it meant it wasn't just Orton and Triple H (a match fans were already becoming sick of). Cena, Orton and Hunter faced off a Wrestlemania 24 in a good triple threat for the title which Orton retained (much to my suprise), before it all turned sour when Orton broke the collar bone at One Night Stand. I remember people becoming truly tired of seeing these two compete around this time and it was like the WWE had nothing else to offer...and so the feud would continue to be recycled.

Obviously, Orton would return and eventually win the Royal Rumble but this meant he would face his old nemisis HHH. Now, I know a lot of people were not thrilled by this idea as a match at Mania would mark the 6,987th time they would have faced but I have to say that I really enjoyed the feud leading up to Wrestlemania 25. It was personal, with Orton attacking Hunter's family from left, right and centre until it got so personal that Orton attacked and kissed Steph with Trips looking on from the ropes....this really got me pumped for their match because no matter how many times I'd seen them face off, this time it felt different, it was very personal and it had a big fight atmosphere since it would be competed at the biggest PPV event of the year, surely their match at Mania would be awesome?

Well, no, it wasn't awesome...the crowd weren't into it at all and it felt like all the great storyline build up had lead us to a mediocre main event...there were no run-ins from Hunters 'family', there was no Legacy, no brutality....Orton would later confess that the match needed to be a gimmick bout in order for fans to beleive Triple H really wanted to kick his ass (and to be fair to Orton, that's probably true as a standard wrestling match meant they had to hold back a bit, which wasn't what a feud of that intensity needed).

Anyhow, they would face AGAIN at Backlash only this time Triple H paired with Shane and Batista while Orton teamed with Cody Rhodes and Ted Dibiase. Now, I'm aware that people weren't that into this match but I actually quite enjoyed it...at least Orton and Hunter were not facing one on one and Hunter obviously picked up a kayfabe injury so that meant they wouldn't be facing again for a while at least. Now, Orton could begin his title reign without the black cloud of Triple H hanging over him...

Obviously, HHH and Orton would cross paths again with the latest helping at Night of Champions...You could say that even with Hunter now feuding with Rhodes and Dibiase that he is still indirectly connected with Orton and that's why I think Orton and Hunter will live to fight each other another day...their 'epic' feud needs a final nail in the coffin and as Falkon says it could wind up in a Cell.

Overall, there has been many strands to this Orton/HHH feud over the years...Personally, I have enjoyed the latest stuff the best...the build up to Wrestlemania 25 was superb, I enjoyed the Backlash match with Legacy involved and I'm now enjoying Trips feud with Orton's henchmen. Who knows where else Orton and HHH will go but I think it's time for WWE to pick a time for this to finally end, not because it's not a good feud but it has in all honesty been done to death..there is only so much anyone can take (Orton and HHH included) and I think both are great talents and I like them both. I would give the feud a rating of 4 stars overall.
 

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