Being a female
wrestling fan myself, I am very passionate when it comes to women’s wrestling
(I absolutely hate the term “Diva” but that’s another story), I want them to
have TV time and to be provided with opportunities within which they can shine
and prove themselves. However, with the introduction of the reality show “Total
Divas”, it can be asked - is it taking credibility away from the in-ring
product? Is it now all about what happens outside of the ring? Is that what is
important and what we want to know about the world of wrestling? Are they
ultimately slowly destroying what women years before them such as Moolah, Mae
Young, Lita, Chyna, Trish spent years building, which everyone came to love and
respect?
It’s
not a surprise that women’s wrestling is not at the level it once was…well, its
nowhere near what it once used to be, it spiraled down hill after the Attitude
Era, even a few years post, it was still going strong with the addition of
Mickie James, Beth Phoenix and others. I grew up watching ladies such as Lita,
Trish, Chyna, Ivory, Jacqeuline, Molly Holly, Victoria etc. kill it in the
ring; they could legitimately GO. Lita and Trish in 2004 were even
provided the massive opportunity of main-eventing Monday Night Raw in a women’s
title match, NO males were involved, it was simply the two of them going at it
for the women’s title and they left it all out in the ring. That is big... they
were trusted to close the show with a match, not with a segment involving the
boss (which is what we were presented with a few weeks ago) and I as a female
am very proud of that. They proved why women DESERVE to have TV time and
deserve to be in a wrestling ring, that they can kill it, just as hard as the
men. Yet, in my opinion, I don’t ever see that happening again…not unless
things change. They along with a group of other great female talents, put
female wrestling on the map…but where did it all go so wrong?
Female
matches now, last a maximum of 5 minutes, involving very weak content,
characters we aren’t invested in and don’t care about. In 2013 with Total Divas
coming along, the Divas Division was put back on the map. They have matches
nearly every week (weak, pointless matches nevertheless) with at, least one of
the cast being featured on a WWE show all the time. Other female wrestlers have been
pushed to the side in order for show to thrive. This Bella storyline imo, is to
elevate Total Divas, they want it to gain more publicity and popularity and is
one of the biggest stories going in WWE today, putting the feud for the Divas
Title second in relation (which is absolutely ridiculous) – you will hear Total
Divas being mentioned more than the Divas Title on a WWE show, which may seem
like a minor aspect, but that says it all imo.
It has become more about outside drama,
petty arguments, sneakiness than about wrestling ability and simply being a
badass female who can wrestle. I have watched the show and once you watch it
you will realise it is 10% wrestling related – they could have shown a
different aspect of what goes on outside the ring and included training, all
the hard work that it takes to be at the best of your game but nope, they
decided to focus on all the drama. Wrestling comes right at the bottom of the
totem pole on the show (baring in mind this show branches off from a wrestling
company), but I
guess drama sells, right?
The quality of female wrestling is
pretty appalling in this day and age, and this show has just made that much
clearer – the ability is lacking and making the division seem as weak as it has
ever been. When I read comments about how a certain Total Diva is improving in
the ring because she performed a suplex or added one move to her arsenal, I
find it hilarious and ridiculous. You can call me a hater but being a female
myself, I want to see women go out and kill it like men can, and it has been
possible in the past so why cant it be done now? Yes, my expectations of female
wrestling are high, because I want it to be respected.
But is
that the fault of WWE? They
have focused completely on Total Divas and pushed these ladies to the forefront
in botch-fest matches. There are some talented women who don’t get to shine –
AJ and Paige (two great female wrestlers) have been provided with an
opportunity but imo, the storyline and character development is heavily
lacking, WWE could use this feud to show why the division should be respected
but it is simply not being utilised properly. Now that the show is back, get
ready for a lot of Total Divas plugs and well, Nikki Bella has already been
added to the Divas Title match at NoC, pulling attention away from the AJ/Paige
feud and pushing publicity towards Total Divas. To me, it is frustrating
because AJ Vs. Paige has such great potential. However, you could argue that
the show has provided women with more TV time and opportunities, which I do
agree with, but imo, it is the fault of WWE, they should be the ones putting
time into female wrestling and helping it to evolve and improve rather than a
reality show.
The way I see it is, yes Total Divas is destroying the credibility of the Divas Division but at the same time it is worthwhile to ask, does the Divas Division even have any credibility?Total Divas has just shown how weak the division actually is. There are a few great talents who, if given the right storylines and opportunities, they can shine. The women down in NXT have some fantastic talent and matches, Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Sasha Banks are all incredible but once they get called up to the main roster, it is worrying, knowing that they will most likely be brushed to the side in order to publicise a reality show.
I’ll leave you with this quote from one
of the most popular, talented female wrestlers of all time – Lita. She hit the nail on the head. Do
new viewers of that show actually translate in to wrestling fans? I think not.
"Sure, you get wrestling fans, but
they're already watching the programming anyways. Then you get the people who
watch the Kardashians. I feel like that is the type of person that would watch
'Total Divas' as opposed to a wrestling fan who is already watching anyways….I
have several friends now at this point that have zero concept of my life when I
was doing that. Their questions and perception are just completely different
than a fan or somebody in the know. I think it's a different market that people
are watching 'Total Divas,' but I don't know if it translates to more
viewership or interest in women's wrestling. It's more about being curious
about these people who do this thing that they maybe weren't interested in
before."
- Zara @WrestlingMenu
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