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WRESTLING COLUMNS

The End of the Women's Division
May 1, 2005 by Katelyn Flex


That's it. It's over. The women's division is officially dead. I suppose we slowly saw it disintegrating upon the firings of such talented divas as Nidia (she was really coming along nicely, her mini-feud with Trish just proved it), Gail Kim and Jazz. These three divas didn't really fit the typical diva role - a big chested, blonde bimbo (not to mention zero talent). So they were fired. The WWE blamed it on the money, but how can we be so sure"

We saw Terri fired. We saw Jacqueline fired. We even saw Rue DeBona fired. Finally, only a couple of days ago, we see Molly Holly released because she was unhappy with what the WWE were doing with her, also because she heard that there was another Diva Search. She also did not like the fact that she had to job to Christy.

After this came the hiring's of such divas as Christy Hemme, Candice Michelle (the "make-up artist"), Maria Kanellis, Michelle McCool, Joy Giovanni, Amy Weber.... basically all of the contenders in the $250,000 Diva Search. This was the beginning of the end of the women's division - from what we saw; basically all these divas could do was shake their asses and chests. But after a few months, Amy Weber quit (after JBL insulted her repeatedly and after Randy Orton poured a Bloody Mary over her) and we saw the arrival of Rochelle Loewen and Lauren Jones. Um... who"

Candice Michelle: I see no purpose in her. All we have seen of her is her being a referee (she did a bad job at that, all she did was shake her knockers and get involved), be on the Highlight Reel (looking not very attractive at all, plus she delivered a bad promo as well) and get slapped by Trish (where she did a horrible job, her screaming was extremely over the top and unnecessary). However, I understand that she is training to wrestle, but until I see any [good] proof of this, I will not accept her as a true diva and think she should be fired. Put her on SmackDown!.

Christy Hemme: The winner of the $250,000 Diva Search. At first, all I thought she was good for was shooting t-shirts and pillow fights. But it seems I'm wrong. Although she only received a push because she was in Playboy, she did a fairly good job of it. She has been training to wrestle, you can see that, and although she is not up to the standards of the real wrestlers, I feel she may be in years to come, if she keeps up the way she is going. Leave her on RAW, for now.

Dawn Marie: The most underrated diva in the WWE today. She's one of the best damn female wrestlers to date. She has held her own with such talents as Gail before. Her feud with Jackie could've been so much more, should the WWE had let them wrestle each other. She has the looks, the ability, the skills and the talent to become a future champion. Put her on RAW. (Note: Why does she always lose, especially to Torrie" It's stupid.)

Ivory: I honestly feel like saying, "Ivory who"" We never see her anymore, only on Experience. I think I speak for all of her fans when I say it would be nice to see her wrestling again and help revive the dead division.

Joy Giovanni: I honestly see no purpose in this woman. Sure, she's spunky. But she has horrifying mic. skills, she's a horrifying actress and she's quite horrifying in her appearance as well. There has been no rumours of her training to become a wrestler - which is what the true fans want to see, it is World WRESTLING Entertainment after all - therefore she serves no purpose to me. Even with her alliance to Big Show, she does not even valet him, just pops up in random appearances. Yawn.

Lauren Jones: Where the hell did Vince pick this one up" She looks like a drag queen (no offense, Lauren fans, just speaking the truth). She looks and sounds like a man. She should be fired, and immediately. She serves no purpose AT ALL.

Lilian Garcia: The WWE's biggest sweetheart. I think it's great that the WWE has been involving her in things as of late (Viva Las Divas, where she did an amazing job, she looks like she's been doing it for years, getting attacked by Trish, getting kissed by Christy, the Lingerie Pillow Fight, etcetera). Definitely keep this one around, preferably on RAW.

Lita: Ah, Lita. People say she's gotten sloppier ever since her neck injury, but she hasn't. It's awfully unfortunate that she injured her knee only a month after she won the title (in the match of the century), because her feud with Trish was blowing me out of the water. It was getting to the point where it was truly amazing. However, she still has quite a few years ahead of her, keep her around on RAW (definitely) where she can win the Women's gold a few more times and maybe go one-on-one with some men.

Maria Kanellis: Maria! Well, there's someone I believe has a bright future ahead of her. Honestly, I do. If they keep on teaching her the ways of being a backstage interviewer (which she is doing an alright job of so far), she will prove to be an extremely good one in the future. Plus she is training to wrestle (in OVW, where she and Christy have been said to have been taking the biggest strides, as well as in Jerry Lawler's wrestling promotion). I see nothing but good things for Maria.

Michelle McCool: This is another one I see amazing talent in. Although her moves/spots have been slightly on the sloppy side, she shows lots of potential. I say keep this one around for awhile longer, because Michelle will be a bright star in the future, you can count on that. Hopefully, the WWE will use her correctly.

Miss Jackie: Miss Jackie, Miss Jackie, Miss Jackie. You gotta love this woman, she stands out from the crowd. I love her flamboyance. She's a great valet (proving herself to be an awesome one, with Charlie and with Rico), but she didn't win Tough Enough 2 for no reason. She won TE2 because she had heart, she had determination and eventually, the skill to become a wrestler. We all know Jackie can wrestle, they just don't give her a chance. Which is really sad, I think, because with the right training, the right matches, the right feuds" Jackie could be the next Trish Stratus, which is really saying something. I see so much in her. I would like to see her hold the gold one day. Put this girl on RAW (and of course, take her fianc� Charlie Haas with her)!

Rochelle Loewen: Another Playboy playmate. All we have seen of her is be at No Way Out, in that pathetic Rookie Diva contest, where she sucked. Badly. All we have heard about her is that she was the one who had Randy Orton empty his "faeces" into her bag. Lovely. Again, she serves no purpose. Fire her.

Stacy Keibler: Stacy, Stacy, Stacy. I, personally, think that Stacy is HIGHLY overrated. All she can do is a choke in the corner, a few kicks and maybe a rollup, on a good day. Her talents" Being able to enter the ring, flaunt her "assets" in the tiniest skirt/dress possible. Plus, she is so thin and that scares (or worries, you decide) me. Send her back to Smackdown, where she can do the T&A stuff.

Trish Stratus: Another one who is highly overrated, but for a good reason. Trish is a talented in-ring worker, she handles the microphone well and she is fairly good at acting. My only problem is that she receives way too many pushes, way too soon. Six times, holding the gold" Um, no. However! Keep her on RAW, for storyline purposes and the sake of the women's division.

Torrie Wilson: Fairly talented in-ring worker, but not so good on the mic. However, all is forgiven, because she knows how to work the fans, and well. My only problem with Miss Wilson" Her win/loss record. You ever seen it" She's won basically every match in her career, whether it be a wrestling match or a gimmick match, she's won 'em all. Tone it down a little on Torrie, give the other girls a bit of a push. It will be for the best. Put her on RAW, where she can chase the Women's gold.

Victoria: Ah, Victoria. When was the last time we saw her" Oh, Molly's final match with the WWE. She's only there to put others over, how extremely sad. Her happy go lucky, dancy gimmick isn't really working for me, make her the vindictive, creepy, psychotic heel she was so good at playing at few years back. Put her in the chase for the gold, it'll do wonders for the division.

Finally, a couple of weeks ago, we saw Melina's true WWE debut (I really don't think her one on RAW counted that much) alongside MNM. We all saw what an amazing worker she is - gorgeous, excellent on the mic, a wrestler (can't believe they actually debuted one!) and a very hot ring entrance (puts Stacy's to shame). Keep this diva around for awhile! She can do great things for the company! Also, some other divas they should consider for the weakening division - Angel Williams, Alexis Laree, Jillian Hall and Krissy Vaine. There are so many talented girls out there, just waiting for their chance. Take the opportunity, WWE, and create a division worth watching.

by Katelyn Flex..


Joshua Barnhart wrote:
Could I agree more" No, I think not. I am a huge fan of women's WRESTLING. However, I do enjoy the occasional gimmick match (like Bra and Panty, Pillow Fight, etc...) I much prefer a technical match. And the only "real" wrestler that the WWE has right now is pretty much Victoria. Who has even become a jobber. It's become a shame. I don't really even want the WWE to call up Alexis Laree anymore. Who is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time, man or woman. If TNA was smart, they'd start a women's division and have a women's title. Thank you for this article.
Charlie Chan wrote:
Hey I'm a wrestling fan from Australia & I agree with Katelyn's comments about the womens division ever since I heard the shock release of Nidia,Jazz,Jacqueline & Gail Kim all because of money (well supposedly) I thought the divas will be no more.Right now is the time to really build up the womens division not destroy it,I really don't want to see it back when their was only like 3 wrestling divas fighting for the title which isn't very exciting.I think the more divas their are the more fueds & rivalries you could have having so many divas chasing after the gold,now is the time to get more serious women who want to wrestle & not just show off their hot bodies.Which I don't mind but it does get very boring cause you can't have too much of a good thing.

Honestly with all of the divas they have if none aren't interested in getting into the ring then don't bother with them,Nothing but a waste of money, but if they are serious about wrestling then train them & get them in the ring & let's see what they've got cause I would really love to see build the womens division bigger then ever.Cause I red back in the old days they had quite a lot of women wrestling now let's see if they can bring that back,I think more divas = more ratings make the WWE the most dominant Wrestling Company for both Men & Women
A.J. McCormack wrote:
I agree with everything that is said in the "The End of the Women's Division" article. If the WWE could not afford to keep on Gail Kim, Jazz and Nidia, then why hire this stream of bimbos! I was mortified to say the very least at what I saw at backlash a few hours ago

What ever happened to all of the WCW women like Asya, Madusa, Midnight and so on. The four of them could go toe-to-toe with most of the men in WWE!

Oh well, lets just hope the WWE realises that the fans don't want T&A - we want women who can wrestle.
Jack Malone wrote:
Very good column, Katelyn. I agree with a lot of what you said, especially your thoughts on Victoria. She played a great psycho heel and is wasted in her current character, especially now that she's coming in with all the bimbos each week.
Ryan S wrote:
Hmmmm. Tricky one this. They let some of their most talented female wrestlers go because of monetary reasons, yet they are holding a second successive $250,000 diva search""

I would love to see the womens division reach the heights that the Cruiserweight division is currently at on Smackdown and have about 10 really good proper wrestlers (not eye candy) who can have a lot of entertaining storylines and a proper focus on the belt. Obviously this would mean the WWE rehiring some of the best talent that they saw fit to release. Oh and it would also be nice if they put an end to the diva search (and for that matter tough enough) nonsense.

To end this response I would like to say that Miss Jackie is absolutely gorgeous and is by far the most beautiful female in the WWE. Now Melina is on SD I have a second favourite too. Oh and Trish isn't too bad either. :O)
Darron wrote:
Yeah Vince and Co. really dropped the ball with this because they could've had a really good division but they opted to go with these butt ugly hookers who flood the programming with their dismal mic skills, dismal wrestling skills and even more dismal looks instead so in the end that's his problem. Although it is good to know that when I wanna see a good women's match I can watch IWA-MS or ROH because both promotions have great women's divisions.
NYNitro86 wrote:
i have to agree greatly with this. For the women's division which at one time was the most competitive division on RAW and quite possibly more competitive than the cruiserweight division on SmackDown. When you had a handful of talented female wrestlers vying for the belt: Trish, Victoria, Gail Kim, Jazz, Molly Holly, Ivory, Jacqueline, Lita. the list went on and on. and now the womens division is down to maybe only one active individual (lita is recovering and is within a storyline with Edge & Kane, & Trish hasn't been seen since Backlash) Victoria. and we don't know the whereabouts on her either because there is no other female wrestler on RAW for her to fight. On the same token is TNA, which at one time had the Miss TNA title, which was eventually won by a man dressed in drag. and then they dropped the whole thing. and now Traci Brooks & Trinity are the only two in TNA, when back then they had Francine, April Hunter, Electra and others.But mainly this is targeting the WWE, yes occasionally i like the lingerie pillow fights, but if the WWE does not do something quick about the womens division, then Trish's women's title will be stripped from her, and to become the "lingerie Pillow Fighters title" which would kill women's wrestling entirely (mainly in the WWE) and most of these talented female wrestlers would do what Jazz did and sign with Women's Extreme Wrestling, and give that organization a good push, (but don't have it like WCW where the major notables get all the spotlight), or be stuck in the Indies.

At WM 21 if Christy would have beaten Trish, that would bridge the gap separating woman wrestlers and "lingerie pillow fighters" where the title would be defended both ways. Wrestling matches & lingerie pillow fights. WWE had an opportunity to try to break down the wall separating RAW divas and their styles, with the T&A "Lingerie pillow fighters" on one side and Women's title contenders on the other. WWE dropped the ball with pretty much could have killed the division. Unless they pull a miracle out of "TITANLAND" the women's division is DEAD.
LsMlch wrote:
After Christy Hemme got fired from the WWE just recently,I went to the internet for some answers and found your website and a good article "the end of the women`s division" from May 1,2005 by Katelyn. But I believe the major reason to get ride of these girls comes from the Networks and not the WWE.I believe the Networks like UPN are becoming more conserative due to the political influence from Washington.And pressure is being put on the WWE to clean things up for the viewers,especially on UPN(free TV).Girl matches are suppose to be behind the barn and not in public for example.The WWE would not even put the Jillian Hall-Stacy Keibler match on SmackDown! but it was suppose to be.Now I guess there will be a title match on SmackDown! in the near future,Trish & Melina,but thats it for the women.Also you will note there is a so called UPN Network exec. on SmackDown! right now.He was promoting the midgets-he calls them the juniors for SmackDown!I don`t really believe there are that many people out there who would like to see the juniors wrestle.And this is very new to the WWE and even before that.They were on the AWA for awhile-like "little bruiser,sky low low,lord something or other but they were for the most part on free TV only.Some were teamed up with non juniors like Dick the Bruiser,the Crusher,etc.and it worked out well,but that was few and far between.Getting back to the girls,I think there are only 2 girls left on SmackDown!who did some action and thats Melina & Jillian Hall who is new.I think Jillian Hall looked good in that match with Stacy.And I understand she won alot of belts(titles)before she came to the WWE.I think Stacy does not belong on SmackDown!because she has not done anything really and is not active.But again that maybe what the Network wants and not the WWE-only 2 girls.I am sure glad I saw alot of girls when the AWA was going strong.I saw Adrian Adonis rip off the cloths from Sheri Martel(I believe).You won`t see that kind of stuff in the WWE.By the way she took off for the WWF right after that.But the best girl acts for me was when Vern Gagne brought in 2 Indian girls(a girls tag team) from an Indian Reservation in Canada.They did Indian war dances before,sometimes during,and after their matches that they won(I never saw them lose).They specialized in chops and death locks,etc.They were not the Crush girls or the Jumping Bomb Angels.But they were very dangerous and reminded me alot like Wahoo McDaniel when he was going strong,and the chops that Chris Benoit uses.Besides free TV,I saw them live in Milwaukee at the Arena(almost a full house) before the Bradly Center was built. I had to get out of work to do it,but I had to see them live.I also saw them on The Today Show.I believe they held some sort of tag team Canadian belts when they came to the AWA.And they were on their way to Japan to wrestle.But they were only in wrestling for a very short period of time because I remember one of them said they wanted to get back to the Reservation to go on with their private lives after they got the money.These girls were the best I have ever seen and they would put to shame anything in the WWF,WWE,etc.But I did forget what name they went under or their names.I would have loved to go back to that time now and research them further.I thought they would be in some book or wrestling website but I have not seen anything realting to tag teams even in the AWA so far.Well if you have any questions,etc.,my other email is [email protected]
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