I know I talked a few weeks ago about Cena's year away from the title. Look at that span again. Cena goes over a year without the title. Although he has been injured for a very small portion of that time, he has not been held away from the title because of that. Yet, has it hurt him? In the time he has not been Champion, how many PPV main events has he still been in? A lot more than CM Punk, who has held the WWE Championship for the bulk of the time. Cena has still been involved in major storylines. That is why you can't be too quick to assume this guy is done as the face, or centerpiece, of the company and CM Punk is the new guy.
What has Mickie James been doing since her last run? Although she also had a very small amount of time taken away due to injury, that does not account for the bulk of the year. She has been jobbing. She has been used to put over Gail Kim, then to put over other women who put over Gail Kim, and so on. And what about storylines to keep her looking good. That is where the real disappointment is. Nothing. They almost turned her heel, but didn't follow through. Even if they do turn her heel now, there is no reason to have faith in TNA to handle this properly. They will probably turn her heel, give her the title, use her to put over Velvet Sky, then cycle her back out to nothing. That is what they have done with Gail Kim and Brooke Tessmacher. And they will eventually do it with Velvet Sky.
This system of running their women's division, as well as their overall product, is very stupid. I hear it all the time still that KO division is so great and such a major draw for TNA. What is it really amounting to these days? A 1.2 for the KO segment rating, if they are even that lucky? And when you look at the overall average of the show, it's still as mediocre as it has always been. No growth. Yes, they let their women wrestle, but who are the stars? Everybody! Okay, but who are the jobbers to those stars? Everybody! And which of these women really end up being the major draws? Nobody! Velvet Sky's leaving did not lead to any noticeable dip in the numbers and her return will not lead to any major increase. The company can get rid of every KO currently on the roster and haul in new ones, including some who got attention from the WWE and were never in TNA before, and their KO division would do just as fine with the new women as the old ones. I honestly believe that. It's this idea that the KO division features better women's wrestling and allows the women to work that really amounts to the success, as well as some beautiful women. The specific women are not making the difference. How could they? TNA is not consistent enough with them to build any of them into draws and rely on them as draws. And when they continue to run the same philosophy for their entire show, it is no surprise that they haven't really gone anywhere in the ratings for all these years.
I tried to have an open mind when TNA got Mickie James. I gave them a chance when they put her against Gail Kim. Gave them another chance when it looked like they might turn her heel to keep her fresh. Now that I am seeing how they like to handle their KO division, there is no reason to have hope that they will handle her properly. They don't handle anyone properly. How long will her title drought last? A legacy in pro wrestling goes beyond title reigns. TNA is not doing enough with Mickie James in that respect.
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