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Raw Redux (May 31st, 2010): Who Put a Hit Out On the Divas Championship Feud?

Last week’s Raw gave me a sense that the Divas Championship feud was on the decline, quality-wise, but I was hopeful that it was a one-week thing and the WWE would again devote the same attention to the feud that they had for the past few weeks. Unfortunately, it looks like they’re headed in that same southward direction, as this week we were given the type of match that completely exposes the lack of creavity on the part of the WWE booking staff: the mixed tag team match. And not only that, it was a mixed tag team match in which the parings made little sense: Eve teamed with Santino to take on the dynamic duo of… Maryse and William Regal? Did I miss a week of buildup that would connect these four people together? No? Okay, I’ll just go with it:

Before the match can begin, Santino tries to butter up Vladamir Kozlov, even putting up Eve for barter. She’s not into the idea. Anyways, with the bargaining over, Maryse and Eve start out the match, Maryse getting the first blow when she knees Eve in the stomach. She whip Eve into the ropes, but Eve turns the tables, rolling over Maryse’s back and hitting a dropkick. This is enough for Maryse, apparently, and she tags in William Regal. This brings Eve out and Santino in.

The men wrestle for a bit until Regal locks Santino into a crossface maneuver. Eve come in and breaks the hold in a move that’s uncharacteristic, but interesting. Babyfaces are often so one-dimensional, so it’s nice to see her break the rules a bit. Maryse, playing the vengeful babyface in this scenario, comes in and attacks Eve, and the two tussle. The referee is distracted by this, allowing Kozlov to come in, swerve Regal, and chokeslam him. Maryse, for some reason, leaves with him, and Eve and Santino get the win.

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Raw Response: May 31st, 2010

Tonight’s Raw will be hosted by actor and uncrowned Twitter King Ashton Kutcher. To watch the show, tune in at 9pm EST on the USA Network. Discuss the show in the comments! Also, be sure to join us for The Post-Raw Show live at 11pm ET.

Khloé Kardashian Takes Monday Night Raw

UPDATE: Khloé Kardashian will not be hosting Raw, says her publicist Jill Fritzo. In a comment to Diva Dirt, Fritzo says: “This is not true, not sure where that rumor started.” Reality star, Khloé Kardashian Odom is being lined up to guest host Monday Night Raw on June 28th, reports PWInsider. The stint will presumably … Read more

Raw Redux (May 24th, 2010): Old Tricks and New Faces

After the underwhelming Divas Championship match at Over the Limit, I was hopeful that the following Raw would pick things back up and continue the Divas Championship feud down the more unique path we’ve been enjoying these past few weeks (exhibits , B, and C. Not so, folks, because it seems that we’re back in “piss break” territory. Of course, all could turn around next week, but a week’s stay in “piss break” territory still leaves you smelling of.. well, you know. Putting it in more eloquent terms, instead of continuing with the more unique ways of building this feud between Maryse and Eve Torres, the WWE decided to book them in a tag team match, effectively packing their feud together with the one between Alicia Fox and Gail Kim. That’s one 2-for-1 sale I’m not happy about. Watch the match below:

Gail and Alicia start things off. Gail goes for a tie-up but Alicia has a better idea, booting Gail in the stomach. She blasts her wit ha forearm before irish-whipping her into the corner. When she attacks, though, she gets a face full of elbow, setting Gail up to hit a top-rope hurricanrana (How long has it been since we’ve seen one of those??). Alicia flops around, sans equilibrium, finding a corner to lean against. Gail stays on the attack, hitting her hit-and-slip move. While on the apron, Maryse tries to sneak an attack, but Gail kicks her in the stomach. Gail stops another attack from Alicia, burying her shoulder into her midsection and vaulting over the ropes into a sunset flip pin attempt. However, she can’t even roll Alicia onto her shoulders, and Fox takes the momentum, holding onto the ropes. Maryse takes this opportunity to tag in, and as Gail rolls Alicia back into a pin, Maryse slips in and kicks Gail square in the back. This of course, breaks the non-pin.

Maryse lays another boot into Gail before going for a pin of her own. Gail kicks out at 2. She hoists her up into a backbreaker and toys around with her a bit before Gail kicks her away. Gail moves to tag in Eve, and Maryse tries to stop this, but Eve ducks out of the way of her haymaker, hitting a right hand of her own before finally getting tagged in. Eve goes on a string of offense (a clothesline here, and dropkick there, and a neckbreaker for good measure) before trying for the pin. Maryse kicks out at 2, but before she can pop up to her feet Eve kicks her back down, leaping over her and hitting a standing moonsault. She goes for the pin again, but Alicia break it up.

This brings in Gail, and with the referee distracted by her, Alicia boots Eve right in the face. This allows Maryse to set up the French Kiss, hit it, and get the pin.

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Sarona Snuka Debuts on Raw

Tonight on Raw Sarona Snuka, known as Tamina in FCW, made her WWE debut. She and her tag team, Jimmy and Jules Uso, attacked Natalya and the Hart Dynasty. We don’t know what moniker she’ll go by in the WWE, but a good bet is that they’ll stick with Tamina. What do you think? Are … Read more

Raw Response: May 24th, 2010

Tonight’s Raw will be hosted by comedian Jon Lovitz. Plus, who will be the new Raw General Manager? To watch the show, tune in at 9/8 CST on the USA Network. Discuss the show in the comments!

WWE Over the Limit Review: Driving in Neutral

You probably saw the commercials for Over the Limit, featuring fast-moving race cars juxtaposed with various wrestling footage. Of course, this was meant to send the message that this event will be chock-a-block with intense, non-stop action. But as we’ve learned many, many times before, commercials lie (What, you mean there isn’t a giant white rabbit looking to steal my Trix cereal?), and this Pay-Per-View as a whole proved that, and the Divas Championship match between Eve Torres and Maryse, as it turns out, wasn’t much different. Watch the match below and see if you agree:

The Divas start the match face-to-face, talking a little trash. Maryse tosses up her hand and Eve slaps it away. Maryse kicks her in the knee, and the action begins. Maryse tosses Eve into the corner, her shoulder hitting the exposed ringpost. She lays a few boots into Eve before going for an early pin, getting only a 1-count. She slams Eve face-first into the mat and continues to horse around with her, going for a Camel Clutch. Eve fights out at first, but Maryse eventually pummels her enough to lock it in.

Maryse gets into a standing position and Eve elbows her a bit before being let go, eating mat in the process. Maryse bends Eve’s back against the second rope, yanking her by the hair. The referee makes her let go, but Maryse then takes advantage of Eve’s prone position by knocking her through the ropes and out of the ring. Maryse stalks Eve to the corner and preps for a kick, but Eve moves at the last second, leaving Maryse’s foot to make contact with the steel pole. She screams and tries to get away, but Eve catches her and tosses her back into the ring. Maryse misses a clothesline and Eve goes on a tear of offense, stopped by a slap from Maryse.

Eve reverses and irish-whip and slams Maryse to the mat, setting her up for a well-executed standing moonsault. She goes for the pin, Maryse kicks out at 2. Eve goes for another pin following a sunset flip, but Maryse kicks out again, punctuating it with two boots directly to Eve’s face. Maryse goes for a pin of her own (And the crowd goes wild.. Gee, I wonder if it has to do with the position of it?) but Eve kicks out. This pisses Maryse off, and she yells at the referee to do his job (Meaning cheat at your job and count faster, I guess?). She becomes a bit unhinged and shows signs of a more interesting character than the “me sexy, you not” thing she’s been working with for so long. I’m not saying she needs to become a full-on basket case, but they could show her slowly losing a bit of her sanity in her desire to regain her title. Just a thought..

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PPV Predictions: WWE Over the Limit 2010

Tonight, the Divas Championship is on the line as Eve Torres defends against Maryse. Who will come out on top? The Diva Dirt team weigh in:

Cryssi: This feud is just getting good and to be honest, I would hate to see it end. I feel that if Eve wins, she moves on from Maryse and goes to a new challenger. I don’t know who Eve could feud with on Raw that would be as interesting as her feud with Maryse. I personally love the Gail Kim/Alicia Fox mini-feud so that leaves Eve with Jillian or the Bellas. Yeah… no. I reckon Maryse either gets disqualified and beats the crap out of Eve, or Maryse cheats to win the title back and Eve goes back to the chaser. I guess that makes me undecided about a winner so I’ll just say Maryse. Be sexy.

David: I am really looking forward to the Divas Title match Sunday night. The build between Eve and Maryse these past few weeks has been effective because it has brought out the best in Maryse’s character and also given Eve a solid first storyline as champion. I think a win Sunday night would be a major step for Eve, so I think Eve will retain the title. Right now Maryse should be used to chase Eve and ultimately put her over. I just really, really, really hope that the WWE doesn’t change the booking like they did at Elimination Chamber in February. Let the girls work and put on a solid title match!

Erin: I feel that the WWE is only getting started in building up Eve, so it would be strange of them to take the title off of her so soon. Also, this feud has a lot left in it–it’s only just started getting good, for God’s sake! I hope that they’ll continue this feud and build up to an even bigger blow-off match in the summer, and for that to happen, I believe Eve must retain her title. Of course, Maryse winning wouldn’t necessarily put a stop to things, but it would shift the momentum a bit and I think, for the first time in months, things have been going in a positive direction. I say stay the course and continue developing Maryse’s character (is she jealous, cowardly, or just plain old arrogant?) through her chasing the title. In short, Eve to win and keep the Divas Championship.

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SmackDown Redux (May 21st, 2010): Beautiful, Famous & Flawless Edition

After getting our first glimpse of the new set-up with the Women’s Championship on Raw this past Monday, we got a full explanation on this week’s SmackDown. Team Lay-Cool have decided to share the Women’s Title despite Layla being the one to pick up the victory during last week’s match-up. Ring announcer Tony Chimel was quick to point out that Layla and Michelle McCool are the ‘self professed’ co-Women’s Champions — which, for the record books, means that only Layla is ‘legally’ recognised as Women’s Champ. Watch below:

Confusing as it may be, it’s a pretty cool gimmick to have Lay-Cool acting as though they are co-Women’s Champions. It’s not been done before with either the Women’s or Divas belts, so it’s somewhat refreshing and creative. This sets up lots of possibilities i.e. handicap matches against the likes of Kelly Kelly or Tiffany if they were to receive title shots; or perhaps us never not knowing which Diva may defend the belt and also, perhaps even a Lay-Cool sized implosion. But for the here and now, I guess they’re establishing this new gimmick and we can’t expect any storyline progression just yet.

This week, Lay-Cool once again faced off against Kelly Kelly and Tiffany. Layla and Kelly kick things off with a lock-up which turns into a side headlock by Layla. Kelly whips Layla against the ropes but she manages to counter with a quick counter pin which looked very impressive. Layla begins wrenching Kelly’s arm but K2 fights back with a forearm and then hits a springboard armdrag using the ropes. Kelly kicks Layla and whips her into the corner, Layla manages to stop herself and uses the turnbuckle to jump over Kelly and wrap her legs around Kelly’s head. However, Kelly then tosses her over the top rope, hitting her with a few forearms and then kicks her off the apron. Kelly now on the outside of the ropes is met by McCool who she also kicks off the apron.

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Wanted: New Diva on SmackDown

The Glamazon sure has left some mighty big shoes to fill. According to the Wrestling Observer website, WWE is ‘desperately’ looking for a steady hand to come in and replace the injured former Women’s Champion, Beth Phoenix on the SmackDown brand. Looks like we may be seeing someone new on Friday nights in the coming … Read more

Raw Redux (May 17th, 2010): Nothing (and No One) Wasted

I think, if tonight’s Raw taught us one thing, it was this: less commercials means more Divas. Of course, that’s a bit of a leap in logic, but that fact is that tonight’s show, whilst being commercial free, featured more Diva face time than we’ve seen in a long time: 2 (count ’em, 2) matches, a backstage segment, and 2 faux-commercials. That adds up to a load of Divas being utilized, including 2 Divas that aren’t even technically apart of the brand. That’s a kind of efficiency I was beginning to think that the WWE didn’t know existed (that string of 1-minute-and-less matches didn’t help). Let us observe:

The beginning of our Diva-filled night was signaled by the appearance of a familiar face, home-country girl Trish Stratus. Unfortunately, that face was printed on a magazine cover rather than being flesh and bone, and we soon saw that Maryse was the face behind it. It was a slick move to get fans excited while risking disappointment, but it was smart to make Maryse be the one to “break the news”, so to speak. Let her be the one to put out the Trish Stratus bait and yank it back. It is a neat heat-generating maneuver that worked. Talking to the makeup woman, she details how Canadians suck and that fact that she’s French Canadian is a completely different thing. She starts trash talking Eve, and if summoned by the gods, Eve appears behind her, grabbing some baby powder and pouring it over Maryse’s head.

A makeup table fight ensues, with Eve smashing Maryse’s face against it a few times before the girls are separated. The fire in this feud continues to burn, and in this segment they showed real intensity. I mentioned this in the Post-Raw show, but I feel like whenever the WWE needs to inject some intensity in to a diva feud, they have the girls fight at the makeup station. But hell, it works! It allows the Divas to have a real, scrappy fight and makes the heat feel that much more real. It’s worked for countless Divas feuds before, and this one was no exception.

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Raw Response: May 17th, 2010

Tonight’s Raw will be hosted by legendary American astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to step foot on the moon (following that Neil Armstrong fellow). To watch the show, tune in at 9/8 CST on the USA Network. Discuss the show in the comments!

Recap of Celebrity Apprentice Episode 10 with Maria Kanellis

Recap of last night’s episode below, courtesy of our friends at Maria Kanellis Online. Please head over there for more including pictures and videos from the show!
This week’s week’s episode started with the 5 remaining contestants in the suite, celebrating. Sadly the celebration didn’t last long because Mr. Trump asked everyone to come back to the boardroom almost immediately. Once everyone was good and seated, Mr. Trump congratulated everyone for making it this far, then followed up by saying that someone was going to be fired right now. The 4 remaining players will then be interviewed by last year’s winner, Joan Rivers and the first ever Apprentice winner Bill Lansing before 2 more people are also fired.

Mr. Trump then began asking each of them why they shouldn’t be fired, Maria butted in during Curtis’ speech where he mentioned going out on his own at 21. Saying that they all started working for their dreams at a young age, then mentioning how she began modeling at 15. When Trump asked her if she should be fired, she quickly told him no because she’s not afraid of working hard and wants to keep fighting til the end. Almost everyone was then asked who they thought the weakest player was, Holly quickly answered that she thought Maria was the weakest. She said that she believed that Maria doesn’t come from the purest of places, that she never hesitates to basically throw everyone under the bus to save herself in the boardroom. Maria seemed to let her comments roll off her back, saying that she never says anything that isn’t supportive and then going on to say that she knows Holly has had a hard life and that she respects her. Sharon also thought Maria was the weaker player.

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Indy Wrestler to Receive Tryout at Raw Tonight

Canadian wrestler, Cherry Bomb is to get a tryout before WWE’s Monday Night Raw taping tonight. Cherry Bomb, real name Laura Dennis, is 23 years old and has previously wrestled at SHIMMER events on the pre-show, SPARKLE. Tonight’s Raw emanates from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, home of Gail Kim and the legendary Trish … Read more

SmackDown Redux (May 14th, 2010): Layla, You’ve Got Us on Our Knees

Having followed Layla from the beginning of her WWE career all those years ago during the WWE Diva Search, I always saw a certain something in her — I just felt that this girl was something special. Here at Diva Dirt, we’ve championed her for pretty much all of our existence; from her fashion sense, to her ever-improving in-ring skills and the personality that she easily oozes into her matches and skits. Never however, did I think I’d see the day that she’d hold the same belt that has been held by greats such as Trish, Lita and Victoria — especially not this soon.

It’s been a topsy-turvy week for the SmackDown brand; the Women’s Champion Beth Phoenix injured during last week’s taping and this week, the whole landscape of the brand was turned on its head. Watch below:

The segment opens with Rosa Mendes in the ring for a match with the homecoming queen, the Women’s Champion Beth Phoenix appearing before her hometown crowd in Buffalo, New York. The Glamazon gets an amazing response from the crowd… just wow. I don’t think I’ve heard a response like that for a Diva in years! There is some emphasis put on the fact that Beth was hurt during her match with Rosa last week on WWE Superstars, including a close-up on her Tara-like knee brace. Beth is ready to face Rosa but out comes Vickie Guerrero who reveals two things: A) that she is still the Official Consultant of SmackDown despite being the new Raw General Manager and B) that Beth will have to defend her Women’s Championship right now against Michelle McCool who has invoked her rematch clause — but it will also be a handicap match with Layla also in the match. Err, what was the point in having Rosa on the show in the first place? Surely, Vickie could’ve come out first, made her speech and then Beth could have come out? I guess it’s a case of any excuse to get a pretty face on the show…

Out come Team Lay-Cool who mock Beth’s knee injury as the make their way down the ramp. The match begins and we are told that this will be a tornado rules match with both Layla and Michelle in the ring at the same time. Michelle is the first to go after Beth, going right at Beth’s injured knee with a kick and then clubbing her across the back. Michelle applies a side headlock which Beth soon breaks free of and whips Michelle into the ropes and barges her down to the canvas. Meanwhile from behind, Layla is ready for some action but Beth turns around just in time and Layla walks into a clothesline.

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Layla Wins the Women’s Championship

Congratulations to Layla who was crowned the new WWE Women’s Champion on tonight’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown. Layla — full name Layla El — makes history by becoming the first British-born Diva to win championship gold in the WWE. She is also the first Diva Search winner to win the prestigious Women’s Championship. El … Read more

Raw Redux Does WWE Superstars (May 13th, 2010): Maryse Lacks Team Spirit

This past Monday’s Raw was lacking in actual Divas action, but this week’s episode of WWE Superstars is looking to make up for that. It doesn’t hurt that these matches are consistently longer than their Monday night counterparts, so I’m all for the Thursday night matches. This week, we see Maryse and Jillian taking on Brie and Nikki Bella, I guess in some small way following up Maryse’s defeat of Brie over a week ago. Let’s see if the Bellas manage to get some measure of revenge:

Nikki and Maryse start things off, with Nikki getting in Maryse’s face, Maryse-style, and hitting a leaping snapmare. Nikki immediately goes and tags in Brie, and the two hit a leg split maneuver than sends Maryse flipping backwards. Brie goes for the pin and gets a 2-count. Right out of the pin, Maryse takes control, nailing Brie in the stomach and bringing her to her team’s corner and tagging in Jillian.

Jillian gets some licks in before backing Brie into the ropes, grabbing fistfuls her of hair and talking some trash. She Irish-whips Brie into the ropes, and Nikki makes a sly tag when Brie hits her side of the ring. Brie hits a cross-body off those ropes, allowing Nikki to come in and grab a bridged pin attempt. Jillian kicks out at 2. Nikki maintains control and whips Jillian into the corner, hitting a monkey flip after yelling “Bellas baby!” on the top rope. Not sure if that’s t-shirt worthy, but I appreciate her gusto.

Nikki climbs the turnbuckle but is distracted by Maryse. Jillian takes advantage of this distraction, getting a quick shot on Nikki, hoisting her across her shoulders, and hitting a Samoan drop. Jillian goes for the pin, but only gets 2. She keeps Nikki on the mat, planting a knee into her back and pulling her backwards by her hair. She relents when the referee gets close to the requisite 5-count, and brings Nikki over to her corner, bodyslamming her and tagging in Maryse.

They both hoist up Nikki–Jillian with the hands, Maryse with the feet–and slam her back onto the mat. Maryse tries for the pin, but Nikki kicks out at 2. Maryse goes for a suplex (dangerously close to the ropes.. watch your position, girl!), but Nikki blocks it, pounding Maryse on the back and shoving her into the ropes, sending Nikki to the mat and Maryse all the way to the floor. Wait.. what just happened here? Did both girls get knocked loopy? Anywho, Maryse gets back in the ring, but not quick enough to stop Nikki from tagging in Brie.

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More Spoilers from This Week’s SmackDown

For more spoilers from this week’s episode of SmackDown, click the ‘show’ link:

Spoiler
Report 1
* Beth Phoenix vs. Rosa Mendes is up next. Vickie Guerrero comes out and tells Mendes to leave. She announces a two-on-one handicap match for the WWE Women’s Championship. The new match is Beth Phoenix vs. Michelle McCool and Layla. Beth is unable to fight them off as Layla ends up getting the pin. The stipulation is so that Michelle McCool wins back the title. So new WWE Women’s Champion, Michelle McCool. (Source: Wrestling News World)

Report 2
Beth Phoenix, who is from here, got a huge pop. She was supposed to face Rosa Mendes, but Vickie Guerrero came out and changed it to Beth vs. McCool & Layla, with the title on the line. McCool and Beth got knocked out, and Layla got the pin, but they gave the belt to McCool. (Source: PWInsider)

Report 3
There is some confusion as to whether Layla or Michelle McCool captured the WWE Women’s Title at the Smackdown taping on Tuesday. The duo defeated Beth Phoenix in a handicap title match. Layla scored the pin and celebrated with the title, and our correspondents are split as to which woman is the new WWE Women’s Champion.

Dot Net reader Jeff Lindberg wrote: “Layla actually is the new Women’s Champion. She got the pin held the title and walked to the back with it… I didn’t hear Tony Chimmel’s announcement, but she was holding the title the entire time, so I assume she is the champ now. She was definitely selling that she was the champion.” (Source: ProWrestling.net)

Melanie’s thoughts after the cut:

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