This week on RAW: The Divas were packed to the rafters as we saw memorable segments including Lilian Garcia singing “Respect”, Mickie James possibly making a lurve connection with John Cena and Beth Phoenix beating the crap out of Melina!
Thoughts & Reactions
Now that is how you do it! See, WWE’s writing team are capable of creating great storylines for the Divas… so why don’t they do it more often?! Last night’s RAW was very much eclectic and very memorable for the Divas as more girls than ever before were utilised in the two hour broadcast making for a really fun show with Divas at every turn! Lilian Garcia and Mickie James kicked things off in the opening segment, which actually made me sit through the beginning because usually I record/download it and skip through to the parts I want to watch. I was forwarding through the opening segment till Mickie popped up! This was pretty cool to have a Diva involved in ongoing storylines (in this case, William Regal’s storyline) and not just the Superstars coming out and doing the opening promo bit. Lilian then belted out an amazing rendition of “Respect” by Aretha Franklin, which I loved every second of!
Could WWE be angling towards a romance between Mickie and John Cena? I don’t know how I feel about that, I’m 50-50 but I’m leaning more towards “bad idea.” The backstage segment between these two was pretty fun to watch too although I didn’t really sense much chemistry between them; the chemistry between Cena and Maria back in the day was electric however. The tag team match itself was nothing to write home about, but it wasn’t really a match per se, I look at it as more of a segment to advance storylines and it did a great job. Beth sold incredibly well, the intensity in her eyes as she glared at Melina. Great stuff!
And to cap off the evening, we have an intense backstage brawl between Beth and Melina which was the highlight of the entire show, for me. Sure, Beth is the strong, dominant Glamazon but they did a great job of building Melina up and not making her look weak, by having her strike the first blow. This showed Melina wasn’t afraid of Beth and sets up this feud nicely. I can’t wait for the triple threat match at Judgment Day! Though one thing I don’t understand is why Jillian ran away to get the referees, did she forget that she’s a wrestler too? Jillian and Melina could easily have teamed up to take out Beth.
A very mixed bag of action, kudos to WWE for utilising all of the Divas in a useful way that contributes something to the show rather than useless segments. And extra kudos for keeping Ashley off the show entirely. I really loved all the different Diva action last night, the variety of matches, backstage segments etc. I wrote last week in my SmackDown! thoughts, that RAW usually just throws the girls out there for a match and rarely varies it up by having in-ring segments, backstage segments etc. They really did a great job with that this week.
Individual Assessments
In this portion we will look at each of the Divas individually and the role they played, adding more thoughts yadda yadda:
Beth Phoenix: I really loved the intensity from Beth when she was glaring at Melina, a picture tells a thousand words and Beth’s face told the whole story. The backstage segment later in the night was done very well too, I admit that I found it kinda hard to watch her throw Melina into the locker – what power!
Jillian: Jillian will be an interesting factor in this feud. Is Melina turning face? If so, I think Jillian should have sided with Beth and they should have attacked Melina together. Jillian came off as Melina’s best friend, which she is, but if Melina turns face will Jillian turn face too? That will totally throw off the whole women’s division. She needs to turn her back on Melina too!
Lilian Garcia: A fantabulous rendition of “Respect”, YouTube it!
Maria: Maria actually getting some ring-time, though completely overshadowed by current storylines and rightfully so. Go back to interviewing.
Melina: I love the much needed injection of Melina into the Beth-Mickie feud, it’s like injecting glucose into a coma patient. Her energy, unique in-ring skills will add to the match at Judgment Day. Will she turn face? I hope we found out the answer at Judgment Day. To keep her as a heel would be daft if you ask me. Coming out of Judgment Day, you already have a story good to go with Mickie questioning if she can trust Melina.
Mickie James: We saw lots of Mickie on RAW, not exactly the world’s best actress but it sufficed during her segment with Cena. I honestly don’t think pairing these two is a good idea, so let’s hope that it’s just a one night only thing.
Fashion Focus
The Good: Honestly, no one really stood out.
The Bad: Mickie James, but that’s no shock. Jillian continues to insist on wearing Miss Piggy pink.
The In-Between: Maria, while I’m not too enamoured by her wardrobe looked better than the rest on RAW.
