killeroflegends

I did not want to really talk about the Mickie rumors concerning last week again, but since a reader left a comment mapping them out, I might as well go back to it so that hard work does not go to waste. Anyone who reads my blogs regularly know that I take most wrestling site reports with a grain of salt. I am going to try to treat some of these rumors seriously, but also point out where I see holes in their arguments or just plain things that may be lies.

Before I get into that, the reader made several of his own points as well. Comment can be found here. I pretty much replied to most of his own comments with my own thoughts, but it would not hurt to repeat myself for those who do not want to click links and read people who like to rant. He called Mickie’s jobbing to Jillian an execution. I may see it as embarrassing, but I would not go as far as an execution. The WWE did try to cushion this blow for Mickie. Letting her dominate in the Diva Bowl was a sign of something. As I brought up before, they gave her an impressive victory last year near the time of Wrestlemania before a depush that news sites said was due to her being in the doghouse. I already explained what the real reason was. As for jobbing to Jillian, it can be seen as a necessary evil as well. She needs the credibility to distinguish her from Alicia and set her right under Maryse. Mickie James provided that credibility through losing to Jillian. And do not forget that this is actually the second time Jillian has pinned Mickie on Raw. She pinned Mickie in a singles match in 2007, even more cleanly than she did last week. Mickie was not in the doghouse then, but Jillian was in the process of a minor push that ended up not happening. But she still needed credibility before the WWE killed the push. Mickie James provided it then. Why must there be so much controversy if she provides it again now? Mickie is not Trish Stratus.

The reader also mentioned Stephanie McMahon ripping into Mickie for unprofessional conduct after the tragedy in her match with Gail. It is interesting how these things work. I remember reading right after that match that regular fans were reading Mickie’s behaviour as unprofessional. Give it time, rumor sites start saying that Mickie was yelled at for unprofessional conduct. Now a name goes to the face of the old yeller? Stephanie McMahon? Trust me, that is really how some rumors are born. I was at the message board that created this rumor that Kane’s mask was inside this bag he was carrying around in an angle last year. A wrestling news site actually bought it and used it as real news. I am not saying the same thing happened here, but a guy who writes for a news site can see the same things that all the other average fans see, or just take what they are saying, and use the proper rhetoric to make it seem like fact. Going back to treating the rumor as credible, read the comment I left for the reader. I do not feel like repeating myself for this one.

The reader also brought up the fact that Mickie is aging. I am sure Plato, Freud, and Einstein are kicking themselves for never discovering that people age. No offense, just bad comedy! Of course Mickie is aging. But is that supposed to be used as some sympathetic argument as to why she cannot perform like she did 2 years ago? It is definitely part of the picture, but not enough to appreciate the artist’s full work. As I always say, what she does out there will be dependent on her opponents’ capabilities. This is a performance the players work together to put on, never forget that. And it is not easy for face divas, most of whom are required to bring on the fancy offense and counters. What she does out there will also be dependent on the WWE’s expectations on her. If they want her to make inexperienced, injured, or sloppy divas look good or even the same level as her, Mickie will even further have to tone the offense down and pick up the selling. Work the opponent’s pace, not her own. She is still capable of matches and spots that take quickness. Do not forget that spot last week, countering Jillian’s monkey flip. What caused it to come off badly? Jillian’s momentum sent her into Mickie’s way. Mickie had her hands set where she wanted them, but even in that split second, seeing Jillian’s head right in her way, she had enough control to counter her counter in mid-counter. She could have injured herself, but she wanted to make sure she did not smash into Jillian’s face and possibly poke an eye out or something. She has not lost her heart to push herself yet. Age does not need to be that much of a factor yet. And do not forget that Mickie James has bad knees. Her risky and energetic style has come with a price. As years go by, that will make things even harder for her, and not just in the ring. But I still believe she is capable. I am not saying she can float like a butterfly, but she can still impress.

- The reason for Mickie James‘ move to SmackDown was put down to her work ethic of late as well as her weight.

The decision was made to move Mickie to SmackDown, sending her a message to shape up, both “figuratively and literally’.

This piece from DivaDirt is nothing new. They basically took the mainstream rumors about Mickie’s sloppiness as of late and her weight and reworded. The various news sites do that a lot. I love when the same news site takes the same one piece of information and rewords it a couple different ways to post it over and over again. I have already replied how the weight and sloppiness arguments do not hold. I already just mentioned that work ethic is not always plainly based on going out there and outperforming your opponent.  You must work WITH them. I said these same things about rumors very similar about Gail Kim months ago. She cannot outperform an injured Maryse, who the WWE wants to look good. The same goes for Mickie James. These women cannot do magic and make crap look like gold.

Mickie James Not Happy About BeingTraded
WreslingNewsWorld
Oct 15, 2009 - 4:01:00 PM

Mickie James was upset with how her Divas Championship loss went down at Monday’s Raw and was seen crying after learning that she was traded to SmackDown. Mickie was in the WWE doghouse several weeks ago over an in-ring incident on Raw during a match with Gail Kim where she showed her frustration with Gail.

I’ve also heard Mickie has been unimpressive in recent WWE house show matches and officials continue to stay on her regarding her weight.

The weight issue is not new. The house show bit goes right in line about what I said about what is expected of Mickie and the limitations of who she must work with. If I remember correctly, a lot of her house show matches after winning the title were tag matches. You have an extra two or four women who must shine as well. Before that, working with Maryse, Mickie had to make an inexperienced and injured diva look like the Champion she should be. And Mickie was crying? Really? Somehow, I seriously doubt this. Just because Melina cried, Mickie is going to cry too? And Trish Stratus reportedly did not compete at Wrestlemania because she did not want to lose to Santino? That rumor fell flat when Trish denied it. And Mickie has been doing this for a decade, she knows the ups and downs, and this is not the first down for her in the WWE. Besides that, I have already discussed how Smackdown was a likely option for Mickie since last year, and she had to have known it would happen. Beyond that, if Mickie was going to find out she was going to Smackdown and cry about it, she would likely find out before the match, when she saw Melina hanging around. But she still came out to that match with her regular energy and no noticeable real non-kayfabe frustration. It sounds like this rumor only decided to add more meat to the meaningless report that simply said Mickie was frustrated about how she lost the title and being sent to Smackdown. And Mickie was in the doghouse after the Gail Kim match? Really? I remember a lot of reports claiming that would be the case. What came of it? She dominated Alicia Fox in a match, but ended up losing in the same fashion she got pinned by Maryse months before (when she was not in the doghouse), which then served to build a feud between the two that I guessed would happen sooner or later? Wow, Mickie James actually loses a match now and then cleanly? That happens when she is in and out of this supposed doghouse. I see no credible punishment done to Mickie in terms of how they treat her on television. And Mickie showed her frustration with Gail? Again, that is how I read some posters on forums reading it. However, I see more going on than that. Mickie did not show any real anger towards Gail Kim after that match. It was more disappointment. Frustration and disappointment are connected, but not the same. Besides that, the emotion, in my eyes, was not directed towards Gail Kim, but what happened overall. Put yourself in Mickie’s place. After the DDT failed, it became clear that Gail was not a 100%. A credible finish was still needed. Mickie pointed to her mouth, telling Gail where to take the hit. Mickie did not want to risk hurting Gail further, planned a light kick, and was hoping Gail would fall how she felt safest. She did not fall at all. Not only was that further humiliating, it left Mickie with less options. She just knocked Gail down. That is not what she wanted to do. She did not want to really hurt Gail out there. But after the count of 3, she had that on her mind, as well as the humiliation and disappointment of letting the fans down. She looked at them to size up their reaction. She does not portray the anger that I will associate with true frustration, as the rumor sites want to read it, and she does not show any true disrespect to Gail Kim. As I said before, as she was laughing it up while Gail was holding her head, people would criticize her for that too. These news sites just do not tend to be great analysts at all. I may still be wrong, but I honestly see overall disappointment in how things turned out, not specific frustration towards Gail Kim.

More On Mickie James’ Unhappiness, Last Night’s ECW On Syfy Rating, More

source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter, PWInsider.com

– Mickie James was said to be unhappy with the manner in which she dropped the Divas title to Jillian Hall on Monday’s Raw, as well as the news she was being moved to SmackDown. It’s interesting to note that before her match with Hall, she kissed the belt goodbye before handing it to the referee.

This gives the generic “Mickie unhappy losing title/move to Smackdown” bit I have been shooting at all the time, but the rest is worth talking about. They are trying to imply Mickie kissed her title goodbye because she was unhappy about what was going to happen? I could bring up the wink and smirk Mickie gave Jillian before they locked up to say Mickie had some other emotions also in her. Look at her title defense against Beth Phoenix. Here, I could bring up again that Mickie is acting serious in both matches to create a tone for the match. But I want to focus on the kiss. In the match with Beth, before Mickie hands her title to the ref, she does basically the same thing. She looks down at it and blows it a subtle kiss. If Mickie ended up losing her title there, people would be reading that pre-match moment as her kissing the title goodbye. And would anyone ask why she was so serious and “frustrated” for a match she knew she was going to win? As I have said before, to create an atmosphere. And I hardly believe kissing a title goodbye automatically shows automatic frustration towards having to lose it and get traded. You could be trying to connect just too many dots.

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