killeroflegends

I am not the only one wondering why Mickie James has only had one match in two months on TV. I have seen some fans say that she is still healing from her injury in November, was hurt in the car accident many weeks ago, and some even think she was actually arrested (based on the Cryme Tyme scheme segment where Mickie and “Hacksaw” met an arena cop), among other reasons as well. In the end, I still stand by the reason I have been hinting at a few times before, and there is only one person to blame. That is Mickie James.

Am I turning on Mickie James? Read what I say and decide for yourself. For months I have been saying that Mickie has not been getting time because the WWE wants to push Melina and Kelly instead. I am going to dig into that more. Why can they still not give Mickie time in some other way? She is the most popular diva they have. That is not an honor the WWE has given Mickie, or even want her to have, nor an honor wrestling news sites may hand Mickie, though a few of them have admitted her popularity, nor an honor I am tossing on her, even though she is my favorite of all time. That is an honor Mickie earned from the majority of the fans out there. Her pop is amazing during her entrance, and her wrestling skills can keep the audience captivated during matches. Maria may get a good pop at times during her entrance, but she is not a great wrestler, and  she does not have the popularity of Mickie James, not since that Playboy push ended anyway.

Back to Raw, the WWE believes that they must give other divas time to get over. Nothing wrong with that, but let me just make one point first. The WWE can try to create popularity for these women, but in the end, a lot of it depends on the talent of the individual. Practically every diva has had at least a debut angle. Some get over during this period, some do not. Mickie James did. What got her over? Was it just the “rub” from Trish Stratus (working with her and having her put Mickie over)? No. Many other women have had that rub, but none got so popular that the fans actually booed a face Trish and cheered the heel. The WWE did not work very hard to get Mickie James over. It was Mickie’s own charisma and ring psychology that got her over during her heel run, and it was her own energetic wrestling style, among other things, that keep her over during her present generic face run. The WWE has given Mickie very little in terms of intricate, successful storylines or feuds since 2006. Everything has been vintage WWE “You Have Title, Me Want Title” feuds. Few storylines and feuds that could have been great were cut off without a finish. Point is, no one can say that Mickie got her popularity through the WWE’s building of her, that she did no hard work of her own to earn that popularity, or that she is a botchfest in the ring.

So is the WWE right in wanting other women to get over? Of course. Are they right in burying Mickie to do it? You decide. It is still obvious that it is still Mickie’s fault. What were you thinking Mickie? Working hard? Sharpening your talents? Putting on solid matches? Showing a charisma to actually make the fans interested in the show? Wanting to perform? Caring about the business and the fans? This is all so disgraceful! I would not be surprised if Mickie James was arrested for doing these things. No. There are reasons why this burial is still not necessary.

WWE, make use of Mickie’s popularity. The fans love her for a reason. She has a unique combination of an energetic charisma and awesome wrestling skill. I honestly believe that Mickie James has raised the bar for all other divas in this way. That is why some divas are having trouble getting over. The fans appreciate what Mickie James is doing. Instead of the WWE using Mickie James as a symbol for the other women to work for, pushing them all to work harder, they get rid of Mickie James, bringing the bar back down. Was not the point of having guys like Finlay and Matt Hardy on ECW for them to work with the younger guys and represent something for them to work for? The WWE does not want to do that for the women? Or do they just not want Mickie James, who already is that over, to be the woman to do it? Think about it more. The WWE is not just burying Mickie James, but telling the fans that love her to alter their standards, pretty much lowering it for many, to start loving women who are not honestly at Mickie’s level of getting over by themselves. The WWE female wrestlers will not be improving in this way.

There is another way that the WWE can make use of Mickie James, not just by having her be a symbolic measuring stick for other divas to thrive for, but by having her actually go out there and work with these women. And Mickie has. Watch many tag matches last year. Mickie regularly does tag-team moves with women like Maria, Kelly Kelly, Candice, and Melina. Watch one of the 45,754 recent matches featuring Melina and Kelly Kelly teaming together. That team continuity is not really there. It seems very likely that Mickie James is the one suggesting these spots in her matches. You honestly think Maria did? And look at even singles matches. Many of the spots Mickie executes forces her opponents to show some strength and agility of their own. She actually forces them to work, or someone will get hurt, not to mention botch a move. Beth Phoenix has botched many of Mickie’s spots, proving that mediocre performances are safest for Beth Phoenix. But is Mickie trying to make the women she works with actually work something bad? She is pushing them to look good, not just make herself look good. And she does make others look good. I have written much on how good Mickie is at selling. She makes her opponents look like credible threats. Look at what she did in the ring with Layla. Layla is not a great wrestler in any way, but Mickie made her look strong. Mickie can do that for any woman, she has the talent.

Just like the WWE used Trish to give other women the rub, why can they not use Mickie, the most popular diva now, to still do it? I have already talked about how well Mickie can sell to make others look good. She also has the ring psychology to make her opponents look good. I remember her title rematch she got against Beth Phoenix in September 2008. Candice, the number 1 contender for the winner of the match, was at ringside. Mickie was giving Beth a threatening stare, making herself look focused and making Beth look like a threat herself. Beth, the genius she is in the ring, was busy smiling at Candice at ringside, ignoring Mickie. Mickie ended up just shrugging it off. How can Mickie make her opponent look good if she is getting buried? If the WWE and her opponent do not respect her, Mickie cannot be properly utilized to put anyone over. Look at her feud against Beth in January 2008. She actually started crying and acting frustrated after continuously losing. That bit of ring psychology was meant to make Beth look unbeatable. Even that could not help Beth get over. As I said before, the WWE can try to make these women popular, but much of it depends on the talent each wrestler has. Connect the dots, figure out why it was so hard for Beth to get over by herself before Santino. Even after, it is Santino and his talents that are getting her over. Nevertheless, just as Trish was used to get other women over, Mickie can do the same thing.

In the end, burying Mickie James because she is popular is not fair to her, her fans, the quality of matches, and will not help to improve the women of the WWE.

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