Fans know better than anyone what they want to see. And while it seems WWE and even TNA thinks it can dictate to the fans what they think we want to see, most of the time they’re wrong. Take for example, we fans at Diva Dirt, we may be just that – fans – but we’ve seen so many women pass through the doors of WWE, TNA and even the developmental territories over the years. We can tell which ones have the ‘it factor’ and which ones don’t.
In this day and age, where there seems to be an assembly line of blonde hair and big breasts or generic, blah personalities — why don’t the newer girls read websites or message boards like this and get the fan’s opinion? Sure they’re busy with training but it seems most, if not all, are web-savvy enough to open up Twitter accounts [and update endlessely throughout the day] or maintain MySpace accounts. How hard could it really be? It’s true that the wrestling industry, particularly industry leader WWE, shuns the Internet and probably advises against their stars reading ‘dirtsheets’. But in the midst of all that ‘dirt’, there are genuine gems of observation to be had. Gems that could help these young rookie Divas get over with the fans that will be watching them in years to come.
Too often, especially in the last few years, we have seen newer stars crash and burn in their first few weeks on the main roster and be unceremoniously dropped without getting any real opportunity. I can’t speak for the guys, but I think we’re qualified enough to speak for the girls. We have seen so many girls come through those doors, seemingly become jaded by the promise of fame and forget that wrestling is a craft and it should be perfected.
Every fan, especially our readers at Diva Dirt, has an opinion and I think most of it is valuable and could be extremely valuable to young upstart Divas such as those down in FCW or those just trying to break it on the indies. At the end of the day, we share a common goal — we want to see talented girls make it to the big time & these girls want to make it. But it’s so important not to mould yourself on someone that has been there and done that before you [Kelly Kelly] or come across as a bland, predictable face [countless girls]. Making yourself stand out is everything from the attitude you carry to the look you have — as for the wrestling skills, we aren’t exactly qualified to judge but it would help if you weren’t epic fail. But even if you are, some of the worst wrestlers can get over on their looks and charisma alone.
Some advice:
1. Don’t be just another blonde. They are a dime a dozen in this industry and if you can help it, don’t become another one — especially if you’re looking to get into WWE. Dye your hair to a colour that other girls in the company aren’t rocking right now. Trust me, I realise how precious hair is to a girl but speaking from a fan standpoint, most if not all of us roll our eyes when we see yet another blonde. Dying your hair gives you some sort of edge. It’s immediately eye-catching. I know there’s one blonde in developmental right now who I was hoping would be sporting her previous red hair.
If you’re really conscious, why not put in some streaks a la Natalya or MsChif? I think those are two great examples of an industry standard with a twist.
2. Charisma can’t be taught. It is inside each of us but it needs to be exerted. You have to concentrate all of your energy and exert it into coming across well to the audience and to those watching at home. Whether you’re wrestling or just making an appearance, there is always a way to show your personality and high energy. A great example of this is Christy Hemme. I may not like her, but there’s no denying as soon as you see her she ‘pops’ as having a great charismatic personality in comparison to some of her fellow Diva Search contestants i.e. Maria, Eve Torres and Tiffany. It helps off-set her so-so wrestling.
3. Try not to be a generic babyface or generic heel, please! This one is hard because in WWE the scripting just isn’t there for the Divas, so most of the girls do come across as bland babyfaces or bland heels because they aren’t scripted in a manner that shows personality. But to argue that point suggests you’re just resting on your laurels. Use your charisma [as listed above] and go against the typecast. Most of the girls in WWE have to fend for themselves, for the most part they are overlooked by the writers and have to enhance their own storylines or find a way to incorporate their personality. Flashing your pearly whites is all well and good to show you’re a face or narrowing your eyes to show you’re a heel; but that’s what all the other girls are doing. Maryse has the exact same crappy writing as other heel Divas like McCool or Beth Phoenix — so why is it that she comes across as an uber-heel while the other two don’t? It’s certainly nothing to do with the writers. The same can be said for girls like Trish Stratus, sure she may have gotten better writing than they have now but she also exuded personality and a warmth that made the fans love her. You can, if you put your mind to it, do more than just what WWE scripts you to do. It seems like some of the Divas are too afraid to go against the grain.
There are so many bland girls today that do the little smile and finger point as they come down to the ring and trust me, even little things like that are scrutinized.
The moral of the story is to put yourself out there and not be afraid to take risks. For most, they want to be a WWE Diva and you have to realise that WWE is not exactly the most respective company of woman’s wrestling. Even the best wrestler can be bland in the character department [for example Gail Kim in her current run] and it’s quick and easy to blame WWE for their booking. But if they really wanted [like some of them do], the girls could take it upon themselves to add to their own persona like the Diva/Knockout we spoke to who inspired this post.
