November 1st is here and with just two months left of 2009, we are extremely pleased to announce the launch of our second annual Diva Dirt Year-End Awards! Last year, Beth Phoenix took the award for ‘Diva of the Year’ while The Beautiful People [Angelina Love & Velvet Sky] were crowned ‘Knockouts of the Year’. … Read more
– Mickie James’ country music career
– Candice Michelle in TNA
– Eve and The Miz?
– Amy Hennig in WWE?
– Courtney Taylor removed from WWE.com
– Michael Hayes’ support of Beth Phoenix
If you’d like to add your comments & ask a question for the Mailbag, reply with the following:
Name:
Do you think Mickie will leave WWE for her music career?:
Ideas for Candice in TNA?:
Should Eve be used as a wrestler?:
Would Amy Hennig make a good Diva?:
Question for Melanie/Erin/Steven/Tiffany (delete as applicable):
Make sure your comment for each topic is no longer than one sentence. Any longer and it will be overlooked.
Announcement: Tomorrow, we’ll be debuting a brand new weekly audio — the Post-Raw Roundtable. This will go online every Monday night after Raw. If you’d like us to read out your Raw thoughts, please tweet them to us at @divadirt.
To take part in the reader survey for each of the topics follow the cut!
We’re again bringing you a special edition of Unwrapped, where we cover multi-Diva shoots in a miniaturized version of our regular “unwrappings”, focusing on the looks and ensembles our Divas have put together. Today, as it is Halloween, our “Eye Candy” will be the kind associated with jack-o-lanterns and bags of sweets. We are looking at the 3-part “Scream Queens” photoshoot, in which the Divas show off their Halloween costumes. Click the following links to see the full photoshoots: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
Alicia Fox Costume: Vampire Creativity (on a scale of 1-10): 7. A vampire is one of the most cliche Halloween costumes, sure, but I like that she put some effort into it, wearing a cape and fangs and not being too concerned with looking sexy. Her poses are cool too, and make what could be a rather bland costume pretty exciting. Bonus points for looking a like an old school vampire, too. Grade: Sweet. She looks cute and the extra thought put into it–not just plastic fangs and lingerie–makes it interesting.
Beth Phoenix Costume: Nurse Creativity (on a scale of 1-10): 1. Talk about cliche–what’s a more cheesy “sexy” costume than a nurse? Frankly, I expected better from Beth, but she seems content to pose in a skanky costume suggestively holding a stethoscope. Come on Beth, I didn’t think you were that uncreative. Grade: Sour. This looks so strange on Beth. It’s just not “like” her, if you get my drift, and this is not an instance where that would be a good thing.
Brie & Nikki Bella Costume: Belly dancers Creativity (on a scale of 1-10): 4. The sexy “belly dancer” costume is pretty cliche, especially in so scantily clad a fashion. But hey, it’s kind of cool, what with all the veils and such. There’s more to it than other “sexy” costumes. Grade: Bland. It’s not original by any means, but they certainly look cute. There’s just so much potential with twin costumes, and they sort of dropped the ball on this one.
Read on to see the rest of the Divas’ costumes and vote for your favorite.
We’re baaack! You may remember us offering costume advice last year to Divas participating in the now-defunct Cyber Sunday Halloween costume contest. Well, we’re extending that tradition this year, extending the love to TNA’s Knockouts as well. We’ll offer costume possibilities to nearly every Diva and Knockout over 3 installments, all leading up to Halloween night. Get your popcorn ready! (Check out part 1 here, and part 2 here.)
Awesome Kong Costume: Tinkerbell Why?: 364 days of the year, Kong is an intimidating, destructive force that barely ever cracks a smile. For her Halloween costume, why not go in the complete opposite direction? Tinkerbell, Peter Pan’s fairy companion, is pretty much everything Kong isn’t–dainty, sparkly, girly–but she still can be pretty spiteful when crossed. I guess they’re more alike than I thought! I think it’d be hilarious to see Kong poke fun at her serious image (and we know she doesn’t take herself too seriously–just look at her Twitter page) by putting on the green dress, wings, and slippers, sprinkling pixie dust with her magic wand wherever she goes. Get the look: Check out this website to see a variety of full Tinkerbell costumes.
Eve Torres Costume: Sally Jupiter from “Watchmen” Why?: Eve has a classic look about her, evidenced by some of the retro looks she sports from time to time. Considering all of that, a perfect costume for her would be that of 50’s-era Sally Jupiter–aka Silk Spectre, crime fighter from the “Watchmen” graphic novel and movie adaptation of the same name that was released earlier this year. Sally’s hot and she knows it, but that doesn’t keep her from stopping all kinds of evil-doers. She eventually gave birth to the second Silk Spectre, who eventually picks up where her mother left off, but not nearly with the same sense of style. Get the look: Try this this costume, even though the wig’s not red. You’ll need to find your own boots and hosiery, though.
Gail Kim Costume: Max from “Where the Wild Things Are” Why?: In the book and movie, Max is a little boy who escapes into his imagination, voyaging to an island that inhabits large, wild creatures. With how Gail has been disappointingly treated since her return the WWE, one could suggest that a little escapism is in order for Gail. I mean, after losing to Kelly Kelly, wouldn’t you want to escape? (I’m kidding of course.. Maybe.) Gail would look adorable in Max’s wolf suit, needless to say. Of course, she would need Max’s crown too–what is a king without a crown? Get the look: Splurge on an adult-sized costume. But at that price, you might end up wearing it year-round like Max.
(IMAGE CREDIT: Angel Williams) Original Beautiful People members, Angelina Love and Velvet Sky reunited last week at a Live Pro Wrestling event in Franklin Square, New York. Angelina — real name Angel Williams — accompanied Velvet to the ring in a match that she was originally booked for. The date would have been Williams’ first … Read more
Key: Hot; this was well done. Tepid; this was middle of the road. Cold; this was miserable.
Diva Dirt prides itself on original content, which is why we have totally jacked a fabulous idea from Alan Carr — the topical barometer! Every week, we’ll be looking at the highs and lows and finding out where they rank on our topical barometer. What’s hot? What’s tepid? What’s cold?
Raw vs SmackDown Divas Tag Team Match, Bragging Rights
SmackDown Divas, Beth Phoenix, Michelle McCool and Natalya scored a big win for their brand at Bragging Rights when they pinned the Raw team to help SmackDown become Bragging Rights champions. Beth Phoenix was particularly instrumental, pinning Divas Champion for the win. Verdict:Hot. Not many casual WWE fans [not Diva fans] are willing to give credit where it’s due when it comes to the women’s division but the six Divas involved in the Bragging Rights match last Sunday proved that there is talent in the division and their matches aren’t total botch-fests. This match was given a decent length and had the opportunity to tell a good story with each of the Divas getting time to shine and show the audience their skills. Another good pay per view outing.
Melina & Santino vs Jillian & Chavo Guerrero, Monday Night Raw
Divas Champion, Melina teamed up with Santino to take on recent rival, Jillian and her seemingly new BBF, Chavo Guerrero. The match ended within minutes, as Hornswoggle came out to the ring for more side-splitting hilarity… Verdict:Cold. It seems the Divas division on Raw has been brushed with the same stroke as Hornswoggle, Chavo & Santino — filler comedy skits. The booking here was just pitiful and the Divas involved didn’t help themselves one bit by botching every exchange in their portion of the match. For two veteran Divas, this is highly embarassing.
Alicia Fox vs Kelly Kelly, WWE Superstars
Divas action continued on WWE Superstars this week, with last week’s victor Kelly Kelly facing Alicia Fox this week. Though she defeated Gail Kim the week prior, she was no match for A-Fox who pinned her with the axe kick. Verdict:Tepid. Compared to their fellow Raw Divas’ appearance on Monday night, Alicia and Kelly should be awarded. Not nearly as bad as Melina & Jillian’s work together on Raw, but compared to the week prior [Gail vs Kelly], this match lacked a certain something. Still enjoyable but perhaps a little forgettable. Decent effort from both, however.
Our friends at SHIMMER have announced another money-off sale at rohwrestling.com, which means fans can get up to 40% off SHIMMER DVDs! If you haven’t already checked out SHIMMER, now is a perfect time to do so! BLACK FRIDAY COMES EARLY- SAVE 35%-40% OFF YOUR NEXT ORDER!!! Start your holiday shopping now!!! You can now … Read more
Women’s Champion, Michelle McCool should be a shoe-in to raise some major cash next week, when she appears on ‘Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?’. The former school teacher will be appearing on the show, which airs in syndication, next week for ‘WWE Week’ along with The Miz, John Morrison, MVP and The Big … Read more
The fans in attendance at SmackDown voted Mickie James as the winner of the SmackDown Divas Halloween Costume Contest. But what do you think? Did Mickie deserve the win or would you have picked someone else? Based on the looks above & the little ‘performances’ each Diva gave, who would you have picked to win? … Read more
Note: As a result of the ‘Diva Dirt Trade’, the SmackDown Redux is now written by Melanie! Like Mickie James, I have left behind Raw after two years of the Raw Redux but left it in the very capable hands of Erin. You can read Erin’s Raw Redux every Tuesday here at Diva Dirt.
In the words of Comic Book Guy: “Worst. Costume. Contest. Ever.” Much second hand embarassment was felt for the four Divas involved; from the unflattering costume choices [that’s you Mickie!] to the ‘white people dancing’ [thanks Michelle!], this one didn’t look too hot.
However earlier in the night, we kicked things off on a much brighter note when the Glamazon, Beth Phoenix made her in-ring debut as a SmackDown Diva in a squash match. This to me was the perfect set-up. Since her debut in 2007 [let’s ignore the original debut], Beth has been pushed as the monster heel of the women’s division; the powerful and dominant Glamazon. In the past year, it’s safe to say she’s waned a little as a character as a result of poor booking but all that seems to be changing thanks to the move to SmackDown. Usually with these monster heel types, they’ll have squash matches for weeks on end against the ‘jobber of the week’, we’ve seen it with the likes of The Great Khali, Umaga, Mike Knox and most recently, Sheamus on ECW. I think it’s really intriguing for a Diva to be given similar treatment and really have that time to be put over as a ‘big bad monster’. This almost re-introduces Beth, putting out of mind what she’s been doing on Raw lately, and sort of starting from scratch. So it would Beth Phoenix versus local jobber known as Jenny Brooks, who it’s explained has some history with Beth:
Fresh from defeating Melina to take a win for Team SmackDown at Bragging Rights, Beth gets her first match on SmackDown. We kick off with Beth throwing Jenny to the mat and laying in some kicks & punches and then literally, kicking Brooks out of the ring. That definitely looked impressive.
Beth then drags Brooks back into the ring by her hair and then picks her up for a standing suplex, hoisting Jenny into the air for a good 30 seconds or so. This is something we’ve seen before in Beth’s arsenal and really is a sight to see, so it’s nice to see that it’s dusted off here. Beth then picks up Brooks by the neck and slams her over her knee, before just throwing her into the corner like a rag doll. Jenny then tries to fight back but is thrown against the ropes by Beth and then gets hit with an axehandle across the head. The end is here for the visiting Brooks as Beth sets up an epic looking Glam Slam, once again just holding that position as with the suplex, and as you’ll see she does a 360 on the spot so all the fans in attendance can see her sheer dominance which is a very nice touch, and then slams her down. Beth then takes a moment to adjust herself, looking composed and not in a rush, before pinning Brooks with ease.
I really enjoyed this. Like I said, it almost re-introduces Beth and her dominance with the use of the elongated standing suplex and Glam Slam, using Beth as a spectacle almost. She really came across great here as a non-chalant bad ass heel. The little touches like taking her time before pinning her opponent, while just a small touch, added that much more to atmosphere and I really like that. I hope they can keep this up and continue to have Beth booked strongly & break the mould of what it means to be a Diva today; as mentioned earlier, Diva squash matches are unthinkable but for that to be used as a storyline device for Beth shows some progression. Good segment.
After the cut, the Divas Halloween Costume Contest:
The identity of Beth Phoenix‘s opponent, Jenny Brooks, on SmackDown this week is Canadian wrestler Athanasia Alexopoulus aka She Nay Nay. She Nay Nay has previously worked in OVW, the former WWE developmental territory and is said to be an aspiring WWE Diva. Earlier this week, it had been speculated by PWInsider that the local … Read more
This week on Superstars, Kelly Kelly makes her second appearance in as many weeks, taking on Alicia Fox. Will this week’s match be as entertaining as last week’s bout? Let us see:
They start with a tie-up, Alicia roughing Kelly up to gain control and wrench her arm into an arm bar. Keeping the hold locked, she slams Kelly by her hair to the mat, crouching to get the best angle on the hold. Kelly hops up, but Alicia won’t let go, wrapping it even tighter. Kelly seeks refuge in the corner, climbing the turnbuckle, hopping down butt-first onto the top rope, flipping backwards and tossing Alicia across the ring with an arm drag. Not gonna lie, that was pretty impressive..
Alicia is stunned, but manages to beat Kelly to the punch, whipping her into the opposite corner. Kelly stops herself on the turnbuckle, though, pushing herself backwards and over Alicia. She does a back tuck to keep momentum, then meeting Alicia with a dropkick when she charges towards her. Kelly goes for the pin, but is unsuccessful.
Both get to their feet at the same time, trading blows until Kelly runs the ropes, going for an attack that Alicia telegraphs, hoisting Kelly up and into a backbreaker. Alicia goes for a pin, but gets a 2-count. Not satisfied (and obviously feeling that Kelly will change her mind and stay down), she goes for another pin, but gets the same result. She circles her prey before grabbing her by the hair and planting a knee into her back, wrenching her by the neck.
With Kelly’s struggle, the move does a 180, Alicia shifting to her feet but keeping the knee firmly in place. Kelly slowly gets to her feet, but before she can counter, Alicia scoops her up. Kelly scoots over Alicia’s shoulder though, rolling her up into a pin attempt that Alicia kicks out of. Damn, the way Alicia reacted to that counter made me think it was a botch. Just good selling, though. Alicia is obviously pissed off by this, delivering a blow to Kelly’s face and taking her time, pacing the ring and taunting the crowd. This elicits a decent reaction, but I’m not sure if that’s more due to Alicia’s heel spark or Kelly’s success as a babyface.
Tonight on WWE Superstars, Alicia Fox takes on Kelly Kelly in a Raw Divas match! Then at 9pm on Impact, Alissa Flash vs Tara on Impact. Discuss both shows in this post.
We’re baaack! You may remember us offering costume advice last year to Divas participating in the now-defunct Cyber Sunday Halloween costume contest. Well, we’re extending that tradition this year, extending the love to TNA’s Knockouts as well. We’ll offer costume possibilities to nearly every Diva and Knockout over 3 installments, all leading up to Halloween night. Get your popcorn ready! (Check out part 1 here.)
Alicia Fox Costume: Beyonce from the “Single Ladies” video. Why?: This music video became a sort of phenomenon earlier this year, with even SNL spoofing its famous dance sequence. The single-sleeved black leotard, cyborg-esque glove, and heels are simple but instantly evoke the style of the video. I have no doubt that Alicia would be able to pull off Beyonce’s glamorous style flawlessly. Get the look: Get a black unitard (and cut off the right sleeve), find a cheap substitute for her robotic hand, don some strappy heels, put your hair up into a bouffant half ponytail, and be sure to learn the dance moves!
Beth Phoenix Costume: The “Bear Jew” from “Inglourious Basterds” Why?: The infamous bat-wielding “basterd” from Quentin Tarantino’s Nazi-blasting hit movie is destined to be a popular costume this year, and why not? It’s easy to replicate, and which Diva would better convey the intimidating air of Sgt. Donny Donowitz than the Glamazon herself? She’s certainly the most intimidating Diva at first glance, and she has an attitude that says that she’d beat you senseless if so much as looked at her wrong. Sure, it’s a gender-bending look, but if you’ve got Beth swinging a baseball bat at your head, I doubt you’re going to be too concerned with her X chromosomes. Get the look: Why not get tips from the Bear Jew (Eli Roth) himself?
Daffney Costume: “Zombie Hot” Why?: For those of you who are confused, “zombie hot” is what Daffney has been dubbed by TNA announcer Tazz. Clearly, he’s referencing her gothic style, pale skin, and ferocious attitude, but why not take it literally for Halloween? The costume wouldn’t be too different from a regular old zombie, but Daffney could wear some of her sexy outfits over her pasty, decaying flesh. She’d easily be the hottest zombie you’ve ever seen. Get the look: Smear on some homemade fake blood, follow these gory makeup tips to achieve the decayed look, toss on some sexy gothic clothing, and perfect your dazed zombie walk (unless, of course, you’re of the running variety, à la Zach Snyder’s “Dawn of the Dead”).
The Glamazon, Beth Phoenix has a big supporter on her new home in the form of lead SmackDown writer, Michael Hayes. Hayes, we’re told, is said to be a big fan of Phoenix and was ‘thrilled’ when she was moved to the blue brand in the big Diva Trade three weeks ago. As a result, … Read more
(IMAGE CREDIT: Awesome Kong Twitter page) Former TNA Knockouts Champion, Awesome Kong met her soon-to-be colleague, the legendary Hulk Hogan earlier this week in Long Island, NY at the Hulkster’s book signing for his new autobiography. Hogan did the unthinkable — exclaiming he was a ‘big fan’ of the Awesome one! NewsBlaze.com reports: When Hogan … Read more
ECW Diva for all of three weeks, Courtney Taylor‘s WWE.com profile page has been removed. Taylor took time off from WWE just as she was called up to the main roster and thus, lost her backstage interviewer spot to Savannah aka Angela Fong. Fans of Courtney — real name Beverly Mullins — shouldn’t be in … Read more
Following in the footsteps of Lacey Von Erich (didn’t work) and Natalya (worked out), WWE is reportedly scouting another third-generation female — Amy Hennig, daughter of the late ‘Mr Perfect’ Curt Hennig. Amy has been wrestling since March 2008 under pro wrestling legend Harley Race, and according to Wrestling Observer, could wind up in FCW … Read more
Upcoming women’s promotion Wrestlicious has released a new three-minute promotional video. The new promo features more wrestling footage and introduces more characters that fans will see in the upcoming series. Watch below: On a related note, PWInsider’s Mike Johnson speculates whether Eric Bischoff’s involvement in TNA could lead to Wrestlicious airing on Spike TV. Bischoff’s … Read more
We’re baaack! You may remember us offering costume advice last year to Divas participating in the now-defunct Cyber Sunday Halloween costume contest. Well, we’re extending that tradition this year, extending the love to TNA’s Knockouts as well. We’ll offer costume possibilities to nearly every Diva and Knockout over 3 installments, all leading up to Halloween night. Get your popcorn ready!
Alissa Flash Costume: Horror movie victim Why?: It seems like every Melissa Anderson character is getting “killed off” of TNA, or at least decimated. What better way for her to poke fun at this massacre than to smear yourself with fake blood and scream your head off? Bonus points for fake wounds. Let’s see Awesome Kong do this kind of damage. Get the look: Make some fake blood, tear up some old clothes, and apply some strategically-placed dark makeup for that crucial gaunt look.
Brie & Nikki Bella Costume: The twins from “The Shining” Why?: Have there ever been two creepier twins in horror movie history? I think not. Dress the Bellas up in those famous blue dresses and place them in an empty hallway. Get them to say “Come play with us!” in unison and you’ve got something even scarier than Jack Nicholson armed with an axe. Get the look: Find your twin (or someone who bears a striking resemblance) and dress yourselves in matching prim and proper power blue dresses. Don’t forget the blank stares!
Jillian Costume: Lady Gaga Why?: Jillian’s adoration may have shifted from Britney to Lady Gaga, if her performance of “Paparazzi” following her Divas Championship win was any indication. From one outrageous Diva to another, Jillian could make the transition easily with her blonde hair. She just needs to pick any crazy outfit Gaga’s worn (such as her infamous bubble ensemble), apply some heavy eyeliner, and she’s golden! Get the look: Toss on this Lady Gaga-inspired wig, apply some bold makeup, and pick your favorite Gaga fashion statement. FYI–chances are you won’t be wearing pants.
The identity of the local woman who wrestled last night at the SmackDown taping is reportedly a woman named Alexxis Nevaeh. PWInsider is reporting that the same woman appeared as a jobber for Awesome Kong in TNA last year at the time of the $25,000 challenge. Alexxis is also known as Lexxus and mainly known … Read more
NOTE: Ladies and gentlemen, do not adjust your computer screens–this is Erin doing the Raw Redux. Melanie and I have decided to switch shows in order to better fit our schedules. From now on, I’ll be writing for the red team and she’ll be working Fridays.
After last week’s lackluster Diva Championship rematch between Melina and Jillian, it’s safe to assume that the fans were hoping some real Diva action (a little less Chavo/Hornswoggle, a little more actual wrestling) this week to let Melina grow into her position as new Divas Champion. Well, if you got your hopes up you might want to grab a ladder and go get ’em, because they’re gonna be hanging there for a while–it looks like we’ve got more unnecessary Superstar involvement this week as well, as Santino’s teaming with Melina to take on Jillian and Chavo:
I must not have been paying close enough attention to Raw, because Santino being a babyface kind of blindsided me. I guess his act is so cheesy it might as well be used to appease the fans. I wonder how long it’ll be before he’s shooting out t-shirts in between matches.
Anywho, enough with that. Santino and Melina make their way to the ring (to Melina’s music), followed by Chavo and Jillian (to Chavo’s music.. I guess it’d be too odd for Chavo to come out to the music stylings of Jillian, though it would’ve been cool for both Divas to get their full entrances, girl power~~ and all of that.) The match starts with the men, while Melina and Jillian play cheerleaders on the outside.
After Chavo takes one suckerpunch too many, Jillian eventually tags herself in. According to the ~rules Melina must now come in, but according to heel schtick (which, strangely, is followed more often), Jillian must first try to fight Santino. She slaps him in the face, and being the gentleman he is, goes and tags in Melina. The Divas get right into it, trading blows until Jillian goes for a haymaker that Melina bends back and avoids (the Melinatrix move?).
Jillian goes to pick up Melina, who seems to go for some type of hurricanrana, but can’t get a good hold on Jillian (translation: botch). She lands on her feet and turns it into an armbar, but Jillian clotheslines her before she can lock it in. God, these girls just don’t have any luck together, do they?
But before they can redeem themselves, out comes Hornswoggle to… do the DX chop? Really, what’s his reason for being out here, other than to further terrorize Chavo? I don’t get it. Does he think the fans are just dying to see him inject DX into the 95% of the show they don’t already take up? Whatever the senseless reason, he seems to have distracted Melina and Jillian a bit, as when Melina attempts the Last Call she nearly take off her own head. Was that even a Last Call? I guess you could call it a delayed roll-up.
Move over Maryse, The Miz has found a new Diva to harass charm: Eve Torres. In what I can only assume will likely be a complete rehash of the SmackDown storyline between Maria & Dolph Ziggler, the Wrestling Observer website is reporting that the plan as of last night was to create a ‘long-term angle’ … Read more
Former WWE Diva, Candice Michelle has reportedly told fans that she may join TNA. Appearing at the Big Apple Comic Con in New York earlier this month, Candice responded to questions of joining TNA with a ‘maybe’. She continued that she had only talked to TNA once or twice but hoped to wrestle again soon, … Read more
Former WWE Women’s & Divas Champion, Mickie James is due to announce a foray into country music. James has signed a management deal with Nashville-based agent Sherry Massaro of Skyline Management Group, Inc. Mickie is expected to make an announcement of her plans in the coming weeks. The Diva has previously expressed an interest in … Read more
Raw vs SmackDown Divas Tag Team Match, Bragging Rights
Melina & Santino vs Jillian & Chavo Guerrero, Monday Night Raw
Alicia Fox vs Kelly Kelly, WWE Superstars
