Why is WWE still bothering with the women?

[spman 0]

Ok, I got home from work late and just got around to starting to watching the video tape. Over the past few weeks with Trish out with an injury, it seemed as though they had finally gotten the idea and reduced the women back too supporting roles backstage and as valets. Now I see again an entire quarter hour devoted to the women! What is the deal? The crowd was dead for nearly the entire segment, only popping towards the end when Victoria finally ended it. I STILL can't recognize any of these Diva Search women, outside of the one who was in Playboy who I can recognize by name. It's painful to watch these bimbos stand in the background with dumb looks on their faces not having any clue at all what to do. Now they're even starting to push another angle with them, despite the fact that Victoria is the only one that can wrestle! Why why why why why why? These segments are ratings death, the crowds don't care, and is just another addition to the laundry list of problems with the WWE right now. Fuck, we still have another Diva Search to sit through too, although they haven't mentioned a word about it lately, so maybe there's still hope yet!

 

*Edit* Oh god! I just saw te ad for the next Diva Search! Kill me now!

Edited May 31, 2005 by spman

[art_vandelay 0]

The company is clinging onto its Attitude-era successes, which they believe sex and shock value to be a big part of. While that may be true, how shocking is a fucking swimsuit competition, nevermind that there's one each week. It's ridiculous how they're using up this airtime. Just stop and think about what we're being made to watch here: GIRLS WALK DOWN TO THE RING TO ROCK MUSIC, SMILING, READY TO UNDRESS. GIRLS UNDRESS AND SHOW OFF BODY PARTS TO AUDIENCE AND DANCE ABOUT GIDDILY TO ROCK MUSIC. GIRL IS PICKED WINNER. GIRLS DANCE GIDDILY TO ROCK MUSIC. I'm a 21 year old male without any mental defects. SHOULD I BE WATCHING THIS? This is exactly the kind of TV that makes people dumb. It's like those "girls on trampoline" segments on The Man Show, only on that show, they acknowledge that what you're watching is really stupid, which is what makes it funny.

 

The problem is that the WWE is aiming to cater to that "retarded" demographic. Just accept that this show is largely catered towards 12 year olds and really, really dumb people, and you may get a laugh out of it.

Edited May 31, 2005 by art_vandelay

[Eclipse 0]

All I know is that I was FUCKING happy after that stiff ass beatings that Victoria gave to the Divas. It was about something like that happened in the Women's Division..

[spman 0]

To delve even fortuehr, to make a comparison to the past, I think that the Austin era from 1997-2001 was the equivilent of the Hogan era from 1985 -1990 where the product is red hot and everything draws heat. 2002-2004 was the equivilent of about 1990-1992 where despite the fact that the product isn't nearly as popular anymore, WWE still attempts to push the exact same guys with the exact same gimmicks and ideas that worked in the past, but no longer draw (Again compare Austin to Hogan / Warrior) Now we are in that period from about 1993-1996 where instead of pushing new ideas and concepts, they're just trying uncesscessfully to reinvent the concepts that worked in the past (Luger / Hogan vs Cena / Austin, Gimmicky Wrestlers vs Sex Appeal, Triple H vs Batista, etc. Anyone else see the parallels here?

[Si82 0]

If the diva segment was booed and Victoria got a pop for beating the shit out of them why not make Victoria the face and the divas the heels. All it would take would be for JR on commentary to say that he's sick of the divas and he's glad they got beaten up because it should be about wrestling. Would it not be a sensible thing to do? Instead WWE seems to push these women like they are going to save Raw. I mean, how many 12 year olds are going to tune into yet another swimsuit contest? This company is fucking retarded.

[Exslade ZX 0]

If the diva segment was booed and Victoria got a pop for beating the shit out of them why not make Victoria the face and the divas the heels. All it would take would be for JR on commentary to say that he's sick of the divas and he's glad they got beaten up because it should be about wrestling. Would it not be a sensible thing to do? Instead WWE seems to push these women like they are going to save Raw. I mean, how many 12 year olds are going to tune into yet another swimsuit contest? This company is fucking retarded.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Because that's usually what makes things stale. If a heel is getting cheered...so what, keep them a heel. That'll only make them more popular. Otherwise, you get a case of the 'Orton', or another case of the 'Victoria' where she went completely stale with that crappy face turn. They should start doing with every heel what they've done with Trish. Instead of being a face, she's just become this cocky, arrogant heel, that pretty much tells the crowd to cheer her, as if she's commanding them, etc. There's nothing wrong with a heel getting cheered. Especcially in a case like this. (Now when HHH starts getting cheered over Batista or something, then that's a problem)

 

And as for why they still bother with the women...because no matter how crap a lot of things turn out, people still go to wWE.com and buy those crazy ass 'OMG CANDICE MICHELLE'S PANTIES!!', and the like. So while they may not be..moving merchandise like crazy, things such as those Diva DVDs, and Magazines, and auction items etc. still sell well.

[SuperJerk 0]

It's painful to watch these bimbos stand in the background with dumb looks on their faces not having any clue at all what to do. Now they're even starting to push another angle with them, despite the fact that Victoria is the only one that can wrestle! Why why why why why why?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Did you miss the ending or something?

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I just sorta realized that the WWE is sending a really bad message to both men and women in regards to their bodies.

 

If you are a woman, you are only of value in a bikini, and even then society will judge you and if you aren't what others want then you are a loser. It's objectification at its worst. Even Beauty Pagents go beyond the swimsuit.

 

If you are a man, like Randy Orton, if you want to be anything you have to bulk up to an unrealistic body-size, and the only way you can do that is through HGH.

 

And here's a problem - the WWE advertises to kids. There are lots of kids who watch, and they are influenced by this. I didn't much buy into the PTC saying "Think about the children!" when it came to the language aspect in the mid-90's, because I was a foul-mouthed kid and wrestling was clean back then. But I imagine that I'd have a significantly different perspective on body-types had I not watched wrestling and Hulk Hogan with his 24inch pythons. And even Hogan talked about the virtues of training and taking your vitamins, here "health" is never talked about. This is one of the more bad things the WWE is doing, and they do a lot of bad things.

 

Is the WWE ever held accountable for this? Hell no. It's wrestling, people already assume it's reaching for the lowest common denominator - but that doesn't apply to the kids who watch it and the kids they're selling to.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

And to add-on to that, it's absurd that the WWE is using "Be yourself" by Audioslave for the Diva Search.

[AndrewTS 0]

"If the diva segment was booed and Victoria got a pop for beating the shit out of them why not make Victoria the face and the divas the heels."

 

Canada doesn't matter, that's why. They'll assume (likely correctly), that the US fans would have booed Victoria for that.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

"If the diva segment was booed and Victoria got a pop for beating the shit out of them why not make Victoria the face and the divas the heels."

 

Canada doesn't matter, that's why.  They'll assume (likely correctly), that the US fans would have booed Victoria for that.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Point well taken, as generally Canadian and Yankee fans don't boo or cheer the same things.

 

But that could have been worded much better.

[cabbageboy 0]

One difference is that the 2002-2004 period flat out sucked anyway, whereas the 1990-92 period produced some really brilliant and timeless matches and angles that I still enjoy to this day.

 

Anyway I am sick of these worthless bimbos on Raw as well and was glad Victoria beat the shit out of them.

[Guest netslob]

Point well taken, as generally Canadian and Yankee fans don't boo or cheer the same things.

 

what the fuck do Yankee fans have to do with wrestling?

[Mearl267 0]

Really, I have no interest in anything a woman does in the WWE. Hemme really isn't nothing THAT great, Lita is the new Chyna, and Victoria reminds me of my gf. Except for the whole 'she's pretty hot' factor Victoria has going for her. The crazy psycho bitch part my gf has DOWN.

 

I like Lillian, only for the fact that she looks pure, and untainted. I was actually hoping to see her in a bikini last night, and now I want to see it even more since it was taken away. Maria has a nice body, and I love her idiot gimmick...but, um, Terri did it better. Trish will always be Trish, and she can actually kick some ass. She's extremely hot, and a great wrestler, but I would still rather see even a Maven match then her against any woman.

 

Finally, the other handful of girls out there in the WWE (Stacy, Candice, whatever) are only there for eye candy, and should be used only for that. Which most of them are, however, they shouldn't be getting 20-30 minutes of air time every single Raw.

[Mecha Mummy 0]

And to add-on to that, it's absurd that the WWE is using "Be yourself" by Audioslave for the Diva Search.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Considering that they used "Walk Idiot Walk" by The Hives last year, I think the guy who chooses these themes has an odd sense of humor.

[Fro 0]

They think it pops a rating (and it may draw in a different demographic).

 

They also have all these women to push in magazines and sell DVDs of. I still think the eventual plan is to spin off a women's-only brand or at least run some PPVs with only them.

[SuperJerk 0]

Victoria reminds me of my gf. Except for the whole 'she's pretty hot' factor Victoria has going for her. The crazy psycho bitch part my gf has DOWN.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Thanks for clarfying that. If your gf resembled Victoria in a physical way, you have no business ever turning a TV on except to occasionally check the weather.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Point well taken, as generally Canadian and Yankee fans don't boo or cheer the same things.

 

what the fuck do Yankee fans have to do with wrestling?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I meant fans from the United States.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

It's funny how bad the WWE women's division is on RAW right now...even Stacy Kiebler acknowledged how basically they're on hold right now in a recent interview, since Trish Stratus is injured.

[Guest wildpegasus]

Why is WWE still bothering with the women?

 

 

 

 

I don't know. If I was in charge of a company and could bring in a million hot females to do whatever I'd be tempted to. Vince probably doesn't think it's cheating as long as it's on TV.

 

 

 

There's nothing more amazing in person than a beautiful woman but the thing is as it's been said a million times already is that it's done too much on TV. They dominate the show. A wrestling show at that. If we want to watch scantily clad women we can do so almost anywhere especially in this day and age. It's not like it was years ago when we didn't have all this access to everything we want. I'm not sure if the WWE realises that.

 

As far as women dominating the show I think the WWF did a better job around 96 or so when they first starting showcasing Sunny as far as actual airtime goes. She didn't hog the airtime but was there enough to leave an impression with everyone and give someone for all the guys to talk about. One part of the excitement puzzle as it was enough to keep our minds distracted from the "blandness" of wrestling. The blandness aspect of wrestling of course is why we got all the diva search stuff going on today. They've just gone way overboard.

 

The other big reason they're on besides Vince's cheating and the blandness factor is for channel flickers and the not yet potential fans of wrestling. The WWE expects everyone watching TV to drop whatever they're doing if they flick buy and see an attractive girl. Than hopefully the viewers will stay long enough to see what the rest of the product is about as there's no hope for them to initially stop if they just see wrestling.

 

I also believe the WWE likes to degrade their females in a sick attempt to capatilize on some viewers' frustrations with women.

 

But that becomes a problem because wrestling is already in a tough predicament in trying to gain respect. Even if one can defend himself for being a wresting fan they on top of that have got to defend why they like the WWE procuct with the intelligence insulting storylines. Try combing those storylines with all the women and it gets even worse. You as a fan can't sell the product to anyone even if you wanted to. I myself am extreamly emberassed at times to like wrestling. That ain't good.

 

That being said there seems to be a lot of resentment in this thread to the actual divas of the WWE calling them bimbos which is uncalled for. It's not the women who put themselves on TV but the WWE themselves. If they weren't there something else would be there. THe product wouldn't be magically better. Some of the frustration is being directed at the wrong spots. Put your frustration where it belongs. On the WWE.

[AndrewTS 0]

"That being said there seems to be a lot of resentment in this thread to the actual divas of the WWE calling them bimbos which is uncalled for."

 

So, what do you call girls who go out in public and shake their tits and asses in a misguided attempt to break into show business? That's all they are, and next to none of them have any interest in the business itself.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Point well taken, as generally Canadian and Yankee fans don't boo or cheer the same things.

 

what the fuck do Yankee fans have to do with wrestling?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I meant fans from the United States.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Yes. Canadians have a tendency to call all Americans Yankees, whether they are from the North or not. I've noticed people in Florida really don't appreciate being called a Yank.

[Danville_Wrestling 0]

Well, thank god for the renewal of the Monday Night Wars for the 9-10 hour with TNA on WGN. I think I'll be voting with my remote control when the divas hit the screen.

[Gary Floyd 0]

I used to think that the company is trying to alienate their core audience, and trying to create a new one that will accept anything that they do, no matter how stupid it is. While I no longer think that, I am still amazed at how clueless the company is. I'm also starting to wonder how long it's going to remain this clueless.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Maria has a nice body, and I love her idiot gimmick...

 

Gimmick?

[Guest Brian]

"That being said there seems to be a lot of resentment in this thread to the actual divas of the WWE calling them bimbos which is uncalled for."

 

So, what do you call girls who go out in public and shake their tits and asses in a misguided attempt to break into show business? 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Music video dancers? Strippers?

[CanadianChick 0]

If you are a woman, you are only of value in a bikini, and even then society will judge you and if you aren't what others want then you are a loser.  It's objectification at its worst.  Even Beauty Pagents go beyond the swimsuit.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

To be fair, all media sends bad messages in regard to the female body. If you are over 120 pounds, you're a fat ass. Want to talk about bad body image? How about girls watching America's Next Top Model and seeing these anorexic girls being called too big to be a model? That's harsh.

 

Okay, I just realized that what I just typed was NOT your point at all. Go me! But yeah, the objection thing is brutal, especially when JR, the supposedly sensible one, is screaming that a girl is jealous of another for posing naked, or winning a bikini contest. It's unbearable and, quite frankly, laughable.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I'd wonder if any of the writers have daughters, but then I remember that Vince McMahon has a daughter and I see how she turned out, so I pretty-much get my explanation there.

 

ATM doesn't appeal to kids in the same way wrestling and the WWE does. I know that media typically objectifies women anyways (and they do it to men as well, to be fair) and should be held accountable as well, but since this is the WWE folder and the WWE is the worst offender that I can see on television and appeals to kids, it becomes a top target of criticism. The WWE has an opportunity to present strong, empowered women and fails on every level. Then again, their idea of empowerment is taking off your clothes, so maybe my wires are crossed and I'm just not getting it.

 

RRR: Thinking Torrie Wilson looked her hottest with all her clothes on and little make up or photoshopping. Also thinking Torrie Wilson looked her worst in Playboy.

 

It's odd how the director of creative is a woman, yet she has no idea how to present female sexuality/sensuality and strong women on television. It's also odd that Stephanie McMahon was the only on-air female who had a somewhat empowered role...next to Linda, of course.

Edited June 1, 2005 by RavishingRickRudo

[CanadianChick 0]

Yeah, funny how Stephanie was never made to take her clothes off. Huh.

 

I agree with the female empowerment. It is such a untapped market they haven't delved into. They did it for a bit with Lita when she was with the Hardys. She was a chick that could beat up boys and take no crap from them, including a stalker (Dean Malenko). She wasn't afraid to stand up to guys like Taker and kick them in the balls, even if she did get the crap beaten out of her later. And here's the kicker: SHE WAS OVER! SHE MADE WWF MONEY!

 

What do they do with her? Make her some simpering, whimpering, wussy little girl who sleeps with Kane because he tells her to. Does she attempt to beat him up? Does she stand up for herself? No, she cries like a little girl. Yep, that's female empowerment. And what's this? She's not as over anymore? Damn, who would have predicted that? Surely not I.

[Jericholic82 0]

I agree with your gripes. I have one question though: is Victoria now officially the IWC's favortie wrestler for beating up the "bimbo brigade"?

 

and shouldn't JR have been more upset about the fact that Viscera basically kidnapped Lillian and was implying that he was going to rape her?