The first thing you might want to consider is whether or not Mickie James deserved to be pushed as a periphery diva. Why give a great push to someone who does not deserve it? Mickie James definitely had the overness to deserve to be pushed as star, and not just be used to put over the stars and used as filler when they were not around. She was more over than the women they were developing to be centerpiece after Trish Stratus left. She was connecting better with fans than even eye-candy divas. She was not simply over with wrestling fans and Internet fans. Definitely had the overness. She also has great charisma, which helped her to get over. And that charisma can come in handy for periphery angles. Periphery divas are typically getting angles in the men's division and not constantly wrestling in serious women's matches. That is, unless you are in a dark age, like right now. During a dark age, all bets are pretty much off. Combine Mickie's overness and her potential to do more outside of just wrestling diva matches, I would say she would deserve to be pushed as a periphery diva.
What kind of periphery diva? When it comes to careers in the diva division, I typically like to say that eye-candy periphery divas are the B-range players, sometimes A-. Those periphery divas that are treated as more than just eye-candy and get the major storylines and rubs, those are the A players. I am not thinking Mickie James should have been an eye-candy periphery diva. She is beautiful, but she deserves more than just the basic romance angles and valet treatment that eye-candy periphery divas typically get. She deserves to be treated as a top-tier periphery diva.
There have been three female wrestlers to be pushed as A players since the diva division started. Each had unique characters and styles. Chyna dressed like a dominatrix and is more famous for mixing it up with the men than anything else. Lita also had a unique look and went from being extreme to being rated 'R'. AJ Lee does not look like the typical diva and she has been allowed to run with a crazy gimmick.
I am not going to have Mickie James just copy one of those three women. Of course, Mickie James did come before AJ Lee. And she did have a psycho gimmick before AJ Lee. How about having Mickie continue to run with that gimmick in the periphery? I don't think so. First of all, you would have to take that lesbian element away. May not be practical. It may also not work in a PG environment. I don't think you really need to go overboard with Mickie James at all. If she had the charisma to stay as over as she did with the fans while being pushed as a credible jobber, she could play a good periphery diva without needing to think of something crazy for her.
All that being said, what kind of character would I have for her? I always imagined her being the heel diva in a heel main-event stable or alongside a heel main-eventer. Lita was alongside Edge and AJ Lee was alongside Dolph Ziggler, but I am thinking more along the lines of the suit-wearing kind of heels. Imagine if Evolution had a heel diva. Imagine if Alberto Del Rio had a heel diva alongside him. Think Stephanie McMahon, but without the authority power. For those occasions where the heels did encounter some faces with a face diva present, Mickie James would be a heel periphery diva that actually has wrestling ability. You have a feud going on between Stephanie McMahon and Brie Bella now. Neither are great wrestlers. As far as look goes, Mickie James would not be dressing as an anti-diva, but she wouldn't always be coming out in wrestling gear, either. Again, think Stephanie McMahon's kind of attire, but possibly even hotter. Mickie's own charisma and acting ability would have to make this character work. It would be somewhat like her TNA heel character, but without the delusional insincerity she sometimes had. Let her play an arrogant heel diva that is actually aligned with arrogant top-tier heels in the men's division. You have never really had a female wrestler play that kind of A diva in the diva division.
Of course, being a periphery diva means being consistently pushed to be a star in the periphery. I think they can make it work. Move her in between top heels. Turn her face. Pair her with an authority figure. Some eye-candy divas have gotten this kind of treatment, but as I said before, you never really had a female wrestler pushed with this kind of simple, but strong heel character as an A player. Mickie James would have gotten great rubs from being pushed like this, it would have made the men's division more interesting, and when she did feud with divas, the feuds would mean more.
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