killeroflegends

All Smackdown divas saw time except for Maria, who has not been used for quite a few weeks now. That further makes things lonely for the only credible face diva on this show.

First, there was a match tonight between Beth Phoenix and a local jobber, Jenny Brooks. It has been a while since they had a diva jobber like that get squashed. The small woman got no offense at all and was just smacked around like she had no life in her. Why was Beth in this match and not the diva segment later on? First, they are still building her for a singles push. Having her get involved in what was going on later may complicate what they hoped to do. Second, they were only a small distance from Beth’s hometown. And she definitely had some supporters there. Why not have her look impressive since she could not compete on Raw, which was in Buffalo? Lastly, maybe this match was just a nice diva filler? Beth showed more emotion in this match, which is always good. But how will she continue to work in real matches away from her backyard? A Glam Slam is enough to give Beth her first singles match victory since coming to Smackdown. Beth Phoenix defeats Jenny Brooks.

Vickie Guerrero, dressed as a princess, accompanied her man, Eric Escobar, for his match against Matt Hardy. She once again got mic time. She seems to be doing her manager role pretty well. Sadly, her man took a loss. That does not mean his push is over, but if he does go downhill, what happens to Vickie? Is that when we see a climax to Teddy Long’s storyline about being on probation?

The main diva segment featured four women and Cryme Tyme in a Halloween costume contest. Natalya was a matador. Layla dressed up as the late Michael Jackson. Michelle McCool was a devil. And Mickie James was Elektra. I do not like segments like this as a whole, but they do allow the women to show character and can be used to further feuds, which did happen tonight. Natalya used a red cloth to play the matador bit with Shad as the bull. Layla did what she has been doing even before the WWE, dance. Michelle McCool walked around a bit and tried to dance. The devil dances? She just did not care. Mickie James did a nice little routine with those sai (name of those kind of knives). Natalya and McCool did not get that great of a reaction. Layla, considering who she was dressed as, did get a good reaction. Mickie James gets the reaction to win. Like always, the losers do not like it. Natalya and Layla start getting in Mickie’s face. Natalya inadvertently takes out Layla. Mickie takes out Natalya. McCool gets a kick in to Mickie’s back. She follows up with one to Mickie’s face to daze her. That ends the segment. The feud between Mickie and McCool finally gets physical. How long until they finally face each other in a title match? House shows do not count. Will Beth be tossed into the picture? I like how they are treating the feud so far.

Superstars once again featured a Raw diva match. Alicia Fox took on Kelly Kelly. You can ask yourself why the WWE did not have this match last week. If you wanted Kelly Kelly to look good before her pay-per-view match a few days ago, why not have her beat a Raw heel like Alicia Fox? I already explained why I felt having her go over Gail Kim made sense. Besides, Kelly Kelly was not on the winning end this week.

A pretty competitive heel vs. face match. Nowhere near as smooth as Gail Kim vs. Kelly Kelly was. There were a few shaky spots. I still like seeing Kelly Kelly pushing herself, but I also still stand by the idea that the WWE should not give her too great of a push too fast. Nevertheless, a few impressive counters were attempted. Alicia Fox put on her usual performance. In the end, Alicia’s kick finished of Kelly Kelly. Alicia Fox defeats Kelly Kelly.

Why this match? Just like last week, I would think there is more here than just having two women showcase what they can do in the ring. Why bother giving the heel the win then? It can be used as a way to give Alicia Fox momentum to once again feud for the Diva’s Championship. The commentators did mention she was a former contender, but that may not be worth much anyway. Why is this a good idea? How much further can Melina/Jillian go? Melina has already beaten her 3 times in 3 weeks on Raw. Jillian’s credibility is not doing too well. Jillian will still always have that brief title reign to her name, which may make it easier to push her again later, but things may be running slow for her feud with Melina right now. There are two options. Bring Maryse into the picture. They are banking on her. What if she is not ready yet? The second option is to have Melina just shift to feuding with Alicia Fox to add another title defense to her reign before Maryse does return. The WWE may not be thinking the same thing I am, but I believe it would be a good idea. It is sad how scarce the good options are.

In unrelated news, Courtney Taylor, the woman who debuted on ECW as a backstage interviewer weeks ago, has gotten her profile taken off the WWE website. I am not too surprised. They pushed Savannah into the same role shortly after Courtney Taylor appeared anyway. I am sure few people will be shedding tears for Courtney. Did anyone really get to know her based solely on her ECW appearances? It is a good thing the WWE really did not invest too much in her. That is probably what made replacing her so much easier. This is like a weaker version about what I said about Rosa recently. I was talking about pushing a talent too hard too soon. Courtney did not really get a push in the traditional sense, but she was there one minute, gone the next. I can say it was a waste of time, but no harm was really done. The fans never really got a chance to attach to her to cause displeasure in her not being used. The WWE did not invest much in an angle with her. She never stepped in the ring and almost kill Katie Lea. And just like Alicia Fox’s character has been reinvented a few times, Courtney Taylor can always debut on Smackdown next year as a dancing wedding planner who randomly accompanies Michelle McCool to the ring.

The recent controversy with Hulk Hogan and TNA has got me thinking about what former WWE diva would have to make that leap to cause such a stir. Obviously, TNA’s Knockouts already have a bit more respect than the women’s division the WWE offers. You can argue about this, but I would not say Gail Kim or Victoria jumping to TNA is the female equivalent of Hulk Hogan doing this. He is a huge legend. He is a member of the WWE’s Hall of Fame. His name moves beyond wrestling itself. What diva alive can come close to doing that? I say Trish Stratus.

Trish Stratus has definitely been built up by the WWE to have that huge status. What could her presence in TNA really do for their women’s division? In terms of actual wrestling, I would say not much. TNA has a ton of talent already. In terms of raising a few eyebrows, however, she can be a great draw. The controversy will make TNA greatly talked about. As the WWE has proven again and again, controversy is not a bad thing. Trish Stratus could take the division over at TNA to a glamorous new level.

In the end, this is just speculation. I doubt Trish will ever do what Hulk Hogan did and join TNA. She seems to be doing fine in her new life. And I doubt having her in TNA will do enough good in the long run. How far will they push her? At the expense of which of their current women? Will it turn too much into WWE’s current division? Or even worse? I already am not ecstatic about everything that has been happening as of late in TNA. Hulk Hogan signing, along with his good old buddy, just does not put my doubts to rest. I still have to admit, that was a stunner. Is doing the same thing with a famous former WWE diva a bad idea?

Since going to ECW, Rosa Mendes has done basically nothing at all. She got another useless segment on ECW this week. Her role is only good for some cheap comedy. She has also gotten a few lines to try to hype herself up as if she is actually better than many realize she is not. I am not buying it. I am not even going to spend time right now trying to figure out how Rosa Mendes can be useful on ECW. ECW already has so many women who are not wrestling anyway. I just want to say again that sending her to ECW was an obvious reaction to her lack of solid wrestling on Raw. While she still trains on FCW, she still gets an on-screen spot on ECW. But is it even worth it? She is doing nothing. It reminds me of Mickie James and Candice Michelle getting absolutely nothing on Raw earlier this year for weeks in a row. But I am not going to complain about Rosa not seeing time in the ring on ECW. I doubt her overness will really grow with cheap backstage segments that only make her look like a joke. Will we have another Jillian on our hands?

I also want to just mention how Rosa Mendes illustrates the problem of pushing a debuting diva too far too fast. Of course, there are other examples. But Rosa had one of the most elaborate debuts in recent memory for a diva. She actually had a storyline. She was not just a backstage interviewer or random manager for a debuting male wrestler. I hate debuts that are so generic, but I also hate when the WWE does not size up the talent they have better before giving them a huge push before the fans really get to even know how to spell their last name. I will probably expand on this when Rosa gets released (only a matter of time), but it really is sad how the WWE invested so much in her just to have her end up babbling backstage until the creative team figures out what to do with her.

Raw continues to shine. The Bellas are once again just the meat next to the guest hosts. Eve saw some good use. Melina and Jillian continued their feud in an interesting mixed-tag match. That was it for the diva use on Raw itself. Superstars will feature something more.

Eve was involved in a backstage segment with the guest hosts. When I saw that, I figured that would be it for her tonight. Jack Swagger and The Miz also got involved in the segment, hoping to get a shot at the WWE title. They also had their eyes on Eve. Miz later had a match with Evan Bourne. Eve was the ring announcer. Unlike the time the Bellas were useless ring announcers on ECW, I did not mind Eve out there. She actually had a little bit of a use. She continued the game started in th backstage segment. Swagger would later come out and cause more trouble, eventually leading to Miz losing his match by countout. A triple-threat match may be in the works for the three men in this picture, but it would be more interesting if Eve stayed in the picture between Miz and Swagger, or at least continued a program with Miz. I am obviously thinking ahead to a possible diva feud between Eve and the returning Maryse over Miz. Eve was acting disgusted towards Miz, but it can still make for an interesting storyline.

The match tonight featured Diva’s Champion Melina and Santino taking on Jillian and Chavo. Wow. Let me talk about the aftermath first. This match was once again disrespected by having Hornswoggle take the spotlight during the finish and after. I honestly do not know why he even came out to cause the minor distraction he did. He did not humiliate Chavo. He did not really help Melina. Was something else planned before the ruined finish? With that let me get to the match. The men started the match. Jillian got a piece of Santino here and there. Santino did his comedy act. The interesting thing happened when the two women got in there. It is so short, I can call it myself. Melina and Jillian exchange shots. Melina does the Matrix counter Trish wowed the world with in her WWE run. And then they try to do a counter spot where Jillian grabs Melina but Melina counters by flipping through. Either that or Melina was looking for a headscissors. Came off sloppy. I cannot tell whether it was due to Jillian just not maneuvering Melina properly or Melina getting her legs caught on Jillian’s head. One probably caused the other. No huge botch. Sadly, the story does not end there. Jillian hits a clothesline after that spot. Hornswoggle comes out now. Ignoring him, Melina goes for her Last Call. She stumbles over Jillian to set the move up. She then seems to roll the move a little weakly. Jillian gets sent right near the ropes and the pinfall does not even count. Melina hits her splits and gets the win. It seems Melina had to rush the botched move because she was already slipping off Jillian from trying to set it up. Whether you want to blame Melina or Jillian for that, your call. I am done. Melina and Santino defeat Jillian and Chavo.

This is where I should probably tie this match in to all the criticism Mickie James has had, right? I am not going to do that. Good night.

Not really much to say. The Smackdown heels defeated the Raw faces in the divas match. It seemed likely that would happen after Miz won his match. Jericho then led Smackdown to victory in the final match.

The match quality was pretty standard. Kelly Kelly got some time in there to be worked over. There were no great signs of friction among the members of each team. That was a bit of a letdown. Pride in what brand you are on really outshines more interesting personal issues? Well, maybe not for Big Show. In the end, Beth hits her finisher on Melina and pins the Diva’s Champion. Beth Phoenix, Michelle McCool, and Natalya of Smackdown defeat Raw’s Melina, Gail Kim, and Kelly Kelly.

Make note of Beth getting the pin, and not to mention against Melina. That is not an arbitrary decision. The WWE definitely gave Beth that momentum for a reason. How long until she does get that title shot against McCool? Hopefully the WWE can make that feud a lot more interesting than the diva match tonight was built to be and ended up, for me at least.

Before I get into actually talking about the divas, I want to say a few things since today marks one year since I first started this blog. If you do not care about the unnecessarily long speech that is about to follow, skip to the next paragraph for my thoughts on Bragging Rights. In the course of the year, it has been great to see that I actually picked up some regular readers. The fact that I also lost some does not bother me too much. Many readers may have figured out that I do not really do anything special. I do not have contacts in the WWE. I do not make up fancy rumors to cause controversy and bring more readers to my site. I simply provide analysis and speculation. I put a lot of thought into what I do, but it really is just my thoughts and my reasoning in most of the things I write. I also have tried to explain certain aspects of wrestling that many fans may not put much thought into, such as selling. But my main goal has always been to provide support for the female wrestlers in the WWE. The WWE is often times the enemy, but so are wrestling rumor sites and certain female wrestlers who do not do enough to help themselves. I do not bash these news sites in hopes that I break their credibility and gain more readers that way. That is just stupid. I honestly feel that many of these sites make things harder for the women, and also men, of wrestling through their use of possibly false rumors and biased reporting of certain things. I have a bias myself in many things I do here, but I am not trying to be a trusted wrestling news site, I try to work beyond that bias, and I will openly admit my bias and hidden motives, if I have any, more often than not. I honestly do not want to mislead anyone. I will make mistakes at times with what I say, but I like to think that I tried not to. In addition to thanking all my regular readers, I like to thank anyone who leaves respectful comments. I like replying to fans who put serious thought into it. I once got a comment from someone who basically criticized wrestling fans for taking this stuff so seriously as to write and read blogs about it. Pro wrestling is not real. Yeah, the storylines are as fake as what you may see in a play. The moves are not actually meant to injure anyone, so you can compare it to the ballet, circus, or any other physical performance done to entertain. That is what pro wrestling is. That is real. The injuries suffered outside of storylines, those are real. The effort and talent of these individuals, that is real. The mistreatment some may face, that is real. And just like people dissect movies, books, TV shows, and a lot of other things meant for entertainment, I see no reason to be ashamed of writing this blog. It sounds like I take this too seriously, but regular readers know that I try not to make my writing too bland and serious. I like being sarcastic, I like mocking myself, and I try to write in a style that seems more like a casual dialogue, not a textbook. I put effort into what I do here and hope readers will pick something up, which is also one of the reasons I repeat myself. Taking something seriously, yet also trying to make it somewhat interesting for an audience? Definitely not two different concepts. It is something I see in one of my favorite divas. I think it is a great quality. To wrap it up, and I promise not to give this same speech if this blog lasts for another year, I have been a wrestling fan for 11 years now and I have enjoyed writing long before even that. For someone like me, who can dream of one day being a published writer, it has been a great experience to write this blog. I look forward to continuing it until the day the WWE finally kills my enthusiasm in female wrestling.

Bragging Rights will feature a 6-diva tag match between three Raw faces and three Smackdown heels. Diva’s Champion Melina, Kelly Kelly, and Gail Kim take on Women’s Champion Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix, and Natalya. It is great that a diva match is getting on the card. It is also great that many of the divas who do not see much pay-per-view time are getting a shot. Even the choice of participants does not bother me so much. Almost all are credible wrestlers. Kelly Kelly, the least experienced, got a chance to open some eyes in her match with Gail Kim a few days ago. In that respect, this match seems set.

My main problem is the build for this match. What build? The huge Survivor Series diva match last year got more of a build than this. There has been no storyline tension between the Raw and Smackdown divas really. The Diva Bowl was mainly tension between faces and heels, and that really did not focus on the six women in the Bragging Rights match at all. They had Gail Kim take on Kelly Kelly, but they are on the same team. The only real tension circling this match has been between Mickie James and Michelle McCool over whether Mickie would get on Team Smackdown. There has also been tension between McCool an Beth Phoenix, but that is more over McCool’s title, not what is going on at Bragging Rights. Melina has been busy with Jillian. Natalya has not really been in the picture for this match at all. She is more involved in the tag match featuring the men. The build for the match between Miz and Morrison has definitely been better than for the diva match.

Which team do I think will win? Obviously, it also depends on who wins between Miz/Morrison. The same show will not win both of these matches. That kills some of the anticipation for the big tag match. However, that will mean that either both matches will be won by heels or both by faces. But that is not as out of the question as one show sweeping both matches. This is actually a tricky one to figure out. Both Miz and Morrison are looking good going into their mach, so it is not easy to figure out the winner there and just assume the other show wins the diva match. Raw may seem to have some momentum going in, since Melina defeated Jillian on Raw. Then again, the heels on Smackdown have not really done anything at all since after the diva trade. Just segments that did not really do much for this match. Team Smackdown did not really do much for last year’s Survivor Series match either. They lost. However, I just have a feeling Smackdown may win this match. I am not going to be betting on that.

The last thing I want to mention concerns the fact that it is Raw faces taking on Smackdown heels. I recently wrote about Raw having too many faces and Smackdown having too many heels. Could the WWE plan a turn or two with this match? At least show signs of it? Gail Kim and Kelly Kelly had that match recently. How about furthering some tension between them? Everyone has noticed the title issues between McCool and Beth. Will Beth cost McCool the match, furthering her chances of turning face? I doubt either Natalya or Melina are changing. It would be nice if the WWE did not let this arrangement go to waste.

All Smackdown divas saw time, except for Maria. Even Mae Young was involved in a backstage segment.

First of all, the teams for the huge Raw vs. Smackdown match between the guys has changed a bit. The Smackdown team, except for Kane and Jericho, are all replaced. Why does that matter for the divas? Escobar, managed by Vickie Guerrero is out. The Harts, with Natalya, are in. Natalya said a line or two between the segments she was a part of. Vickie, of course, got some mic time. She seems to be enjoying her heel role a bit. Would it not have been wiser to have Natalya involved in a segment about the diva match? She is in the match, right?

Another backstage segment involved Mickie James, Mae Young, Michelle McCool, and Beth Phoenix. While Mickie and Mae were talking, McCool came in to basically mock Mickie James for not making it into the pay-per-view match. Mickie played it off as McCool being afraid Mickie would outshine her. She also expressed her own desire of holding gold again. After she left, Beth walked in, thanked McCool for having her be on the team for Bragging Rights, but once again voiced her desire to be Women’s Champion. Could a triple threat be forming? I heard some people saying Beth was acting like a face here. I disagree. All that was clear in the segment was that she had title goals for herself. McCool and Maryse also had similar tension when both were heels and a title was in the picture. If the WWE actually thinks having Beth act simply as she is now will help turn her face, they need to raise the heat a bit. I do not see why the fans would have any real reason to get behind Beth Phoenix right now. In the end of the segment, McCool gets a nice slap from Mae Young.

The match tonight featured Mickie James taking on Layla. Although it was a short match, but still longer than what Raw provided this week, it was a solid and good match. Mickie showed some great agility, like she has many times in her WWE run. Layla was solid and worked well with Mickie. What was the purpose of this match? Would it not have made more sense to have Mickie lose to one of the heels in the match at Bragging Rights to give them momentum? How about Mickie/Maria jobbing? The WWE gave Mickie James this match for a reason. They do not hate her as much as some people may think. They gave Mickie the chance to look good tonight. They served Layla to her. This match was not about making Layla look credible for a future push or putting on the kind of quality of a match you would expect in a title match, which Jillian/Melina did not provide this week. This was about trying to give Mickie a chance to still shine. And I can tell that Mickie did not want to waste this match. As I said before, she did some good spots. I can also tell that she did not want to rush this match to cause any major slips. And I think she should be proud of the results. In the end, Mickie wins it with her kick finisher. Make note of that. She knows Layla cannot take the DDT, unless Layla has managed to learn how without my knowing. I often made the same point when Layla took on Melina. What finisher did Melina often use? Layla, as solid as she has become, is still not at the level of the truly experienced divas. She cannot do certain things. That not only holds her back, it holds her opponent back. It is one of the reasons I would never recommend Layla, or divas like her, for serious title feuds or reigns. They still deserve respect for their improvement and good use, but they may frequently be holding major talent back in more ways than one. Mickie James defeats Layla in her first televised match since joining Smackdown.

Just like I did previously with the Gail Kim/Kelly Kelly match, I want to look at how certain news sites give the report for this match. They say Mickie got the “message” from her move to Smackdown? Really? What message would that be? Not to accidentally take a bump that makes you incapable of finishing the match properly (Gail Kim)? Not to sell the Tornado DDT in an awkward way that causes the person executing it to get criticism (Alicia Fox)? Not to bounce into the way of your opponent when she is trying a counter in the same area (Jillian)? Not to be horrible (Rosa)? I have already gone over each of these cases before. Accidents happen. Working with inexperienced women can make you look bad no matter how hard you try. I am not saying Mickie James never makes mistakes. She is human. But you cannot be quick to say some of these spots going wrong are automatically her fault. Going back to my point, that little editorial statement just implies that Mickie James has such a poor work ethic that she has to get punished before she will work well. That logic fails. Remember the Diva Bowl? Not only did Mickie dominate and win, she looked impressive in terms of what offense she did do. It looked like she got the “message” then. I can say the same thing for the match where the divas wore boxing gear. I can give a lot of examples over the past few months where Mickie has worked fine coming off criticism for something. She continues to try. And the thing is, as solid as her match with Layla was, I know Mickie James can do better than that. I know she was limited by time. I know she was limited by who her opponent was. I know she was trying to look impressive and not rush any potentially bad spots. As I said before, no bad spots did happen. But is that how the people who wrote that “message” thing intend for Mickie to work? In fear? Not pushing herself? Always taking an extra step out of her game to make sure her opponent is ready? That would mean having less faith in who she works with. Sooner or later, it would become clear that she is holding herself back. Then again, having faith in the abilities of women like Rosa has only gotten her criticism. And people actually think Mickie James has an easy career in the WWE?

I also want to comment on something a fan who was at the event had to say about Mickie’s match. She talked about it being a good match and Mickie and Layla having good chemistry. I have already given my thoughts on the match and why it was good. But the fan also commented that Mickie did her handstand counter and she did not see her botch it for the first time in a long time. After reading that, and before seeing the match myself, I assumed the spot in question was Mickie’s one-handed handstand counter she does to escape an armbar. Mickie has never done that exact counter on Raw since August. And then, it was a bit sloppy. In her match with Gail Kim, Gail did not hold Mickie’s arm securely out of Mickie’s way. Mickie stumbled over it. As I have said before, Youtube is your friend. Watch the spot yourself. I am not making things up. And that is Mickie’s fault? Could you imagine how horrible the move would look if the person holding Mickie’s hand stumbled and got her head caught in between Mickie’s legs as she flipped? And that botch would be Mickie’s fault too? And in between now and that match, Mickie also executed that same counter at Hell in a Cell against Alicia Fox. Came off fine there. As it turned out, the counter in question was not even that. It was a two-handed flip after Layla dropped down in front of Mickie. That is not even the same exact spot as when Mickie countered the monkey flip from Jillian recently. Mickie was taking more momentum tossing her to the side, and also had Jillian’s head bouncing in her way. This spot with Layla did not have Mickie getting tossed in the middle of a move. Layla was not rolling in the way of Mickie’s hand. Mickie has not done a counter like that exact spot in a long time. Someone with a better memory than mine had to point out the last time she even did that spot. Long time ago. So where does the credibility in that fan’s statement stand? Mickie has not done that exact spot in a long time. The statement does not show knowledge of how the move is executed. It does not look at the finer points involved in individual cases. But that is how criticism grows. Fans do not look at the full picture. When these fans work for news sites or post on credible sites, their opinion is treated with some value and people start agreeing and watching to criticize any and every move a wrestler makes. And people think Mickie James will actually have an easy time ever shaking this off?

I apologize for turning this into a Mickie James rant, but it will be my last one for a while. I just had to bring my point up again about wrestling sites sometimes making things only worse for talent that do try their best. I had to make a point about fans who do not look at the full picture, but yet they are still able to spread negativity faster than anything positive sometimes. Mickie James and Layla did put on a fine match, but if Mickie is not able to shake off this stigma that some fans, many of whom still want to find something in this match to criticize, the fans will soon have something else to criticize.

Superstars had a great match between two Raw faces, both of whom will take part in the Bragging Rights divas match. Since I already mentioned that I liked the match, let me talk about the quality first. Gail Kim and Kelly Kelly put on a typical face vs. face match. There were a lot of good counters. They took time out to show each other respect here and there. A lot of moves of agility. It was given good time, as many Superstar matches usually get. There were no other divas to take up the time, as if it was a tag match. If only the WWE could push this more often on Raw. Kelly Kelly actually got the win against Gail Kim with her finisher. I read the spoilers beforehand, but was expecting Kelly to end up winning with one of the many roll ups during the match. Losing to a finisher is always more decisive than losing to a roll up. Kelly Kelly defeats Gail Kim.

Glad to see Kelly Kelly has picked up on her improvement again. And she had a lot of fan support in that match. Improvement + Fan Support = Great Push Coming Up? They did give her a big win tonight. It had been a while since she pinned anyone at all, not to mention a former Women’s Champion. I would not mind her getting time in the ring, but I am hesitant to say she deserves a huge push just because she had a good match and won it. Just like they did with Eve, give Kelly a good feud with a minor heel. Make sure she really is prepared before she push her heavilly again. Should her improvement slow down due to injury, or whatever reason, at least she would not be in the middle of something big.

Will someone be turning heel out of this? Whenever many fans see a face take on a face, they wonder if someone will turn heel. In most cases, I would say that things do not always need to work like that, but considering how short the WWE is on heels on Raw, I am asking myself the same question too. Based on the fan reactions during the match, Kelly Kelly seems like a popular choice to stay face. Gail Kim might as well be heel? Problem is, if she turns heel, Melina is left as the only really experienced face on Raw. None of the other faces have held a wrestling title in the WWE. In the end, I still doubt either women may turn heel. The WWE may still do it, but it is a tough choice to make. if Gail turns,  they will have to have faith in the abilities of the rising faces on Raw.

Now I get to the one problem I have with this match. Why this match? Just to showcase the talents of these two women? Just to put on a good divas match? Just to get Kelly Kelly more momentum? That is all fine and well, but there is a pay-per-view in a few short days. Both of these women are in a match there, and on the same team? Why are they fighting each other? Did the WWE want to give Kelly Kelly the momentum to make her seem like more of a match for Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix, and Natalya? All three of those heels are credible. Kelly Kelly is easily the weak link of her team. I can understand wanting to make her seem like she belongs in this match by having her beat a credible opponent. Sadly, I also agree in using Gail Kim to some degree. Kelly Kelly is supposed to get that momentum by pinning Alicia Fox or Jillian, who had a match on Raw herself? People may still not take her seriously. The win definitely gives Kelly credibility for the big match. Where is my problem? How does it actually build the feud? In terms of that, not wrestling credibility of the participants alone, what story does Gail Kim losing to Kelly Kelly tell? If Gail turns on her team, then it would make more sense. If that does not happen, then this match did not further the feud in terms of storyline at all. Why not have Natalya come over to Raw that night, which is when the match was taped, and face Kelly Kelly instead? Then you would at least have a taste of things to come. Or why not have Kelly Kelly work Tuesday, either a match on Smackdown or taped for Superstars, to face Natalya? Raw and Smackdown men are moving around to further their matches, why not some of the divas? Especially now, it is important in building this feud better. Obviously, I can understand that Gail/Kelly would not be the same match as Natalya/Kelly. Natalya would end up dominating much of the match, and the WWE wanted to make Kelly Kelly look like she could hold her own. Could the WWE still not have thought of some way to build the feud better? I am not going to sit here all night and toss out possibilities, but I am sure there has to be something.

Should I really complain? Not really. It was a pretty good match. I see what the WWE wanted to do. I cannot blame them for it. I wish more was really being invested in this feud, but this match served its own purposes well enough. The last point I want to make is just about wrestling reports. When I read the words “Typical Diva’s match” in the spoilers for the show, I was not expecting that much. How can that match be classified as typical? It was not rushed. It was good action going both ways. I enjoyed watching it. This goes back to a point I have made before and will make again in the future, news sites sometimes do their own part in burying WWE divas. If they do not start doing their part in calling it like it is, the fans may buy what they read and believe it. These sites have an amount of credibility in what they say in that they are mainstream, unlike most bloggers. People will give their words a bit of respect, even if it is either lies or calling things poorly. They shape the mentality of many fans. When fans then watch these matches on TV or in arenas, some may start looking at it through the eyes of how the mighty writers on a greatly-viewed wrestling news site want to see it. That makes the work of these women even harder. It makes it quite possibly impossible to work through the stigma WWE divas already have. That is one of the reasons I criticize these sites heavily.

Before the surprise trade last week, I was looking forward to Eve getting a title push on Smackdown. After they had her lose to McCool without much build for a feud, they pretty much killed the chances of that. It also set her up to get drafted to Raw. What else did Smackdown hold for her? She feuded with Layla, exchanged a few wins with Natalya, and got beat by McCool. Raw will hold fresher options for her, right?

First problem, it seems even more unlikely that she will get a title push anytime soon on Raw. On Smackdown, the only other option besides her and Melina was Maria. Eve was easily the safest bet to get a title push when the time was right for Melina to step down. Melina did step down on Smackdown, but also stepped up on Raw. And Eve came along too. How much longer until the WWE decides to push another face? Not until Maryse and Melina have a program. Should Maryse regain the title, and she probably will, the feud will have to continue a bit more so Melina can get at least one rematch. Then Eve steps right into the picture, right? What about Gail Kim? In terms of wrestling credibility and experience, she deserves a feud too. What about Kelly Kelly? She seems to be getting used again too. Will Eve still get a push to shine on Raw?

Second problem, her improvement may not be fostered very well with the heels on Raw. On Smackdown, she had credible opponents who could hold their own and help carry her when necessary. A title feud with Michelle McCool, a solid worker, could have helped Eve get some good exposure in the ring. That would help the fans grow to like her a bit more and possibly motivate her to improve further. What can a title match against Maryse really do for Eve? And if Maryse is still held back by her injuries, and being required to work through it as she did in the past few months, the matches will make Maryse and Eve both look even worse. Matches cannot be too fast-paced. Eve may have to sell to look weak offense look good. She will not have much incentive to push herself far, risking either sloppy spots or injury to either herself or Maryse. She will be killed before she even had a true chance to get started.

Last problem, based on the new environment of Raw, Eve may just be used as a hot model to stand alongside a celebrity guest host. Raw has been stacked with models and glamour gals. I am not saying she will get no time in the ring. She will have moments to impress, but what will her chief purpose on Raw be? As a wrestler or model? Will she end up like Kelly Kelly? This is just a waste. An individual with growing possible wrestling skill like Eve may just slide back out of her improvement.

Am I sounding too negative? The only options I see for Eve are either never getting a title push she seemed likely to get sooner or later on Smackdown, getting matches that turn out sloppy or not too interesting, or simply being left as a model. Why do I even care about this eye-candy diva, the natural enemy of serious female wrestlers in the WWE? First of all, I give credit when I see it. True solid improvement is not something that can be denied. A woman who does that deserves a push, but not an overpush or one too much at the expense of credible wrestlers. Second, if you are going to invest in these women, invest in them properly. Lastly, and most importantly, I am tired of the same options in the title picture. If it is not the same women, it is inexperienced women getting pushed and putting on bland matches. I am not saying Eve will be a female version of Jack Swagger, but she at least seems to have some potential. She is showing some moves, but how is she going to get the experience of timing, selling complicated moves, and overall ring intelligence without more exposure with the experienced women? FCW does not seem to be doing its job well enough. And if she is always wrestling baby matches, not pushing herself or requiring her opponent to push her, her potential will never grow, her opponent, whether a credible wrestler or inexperienced one, is being held back as well, and the whole WWE women’s division, or at least the one on Raw, continues to be dumbed down. I simply do not believe Raw is the environment to foster growth in her as a good wrestler.