A Bunch Of Charismatic Psychos

Earlier this week, I talked about Cesaro and charisma. I said that charisma can come in different forms. Cesaro does not need to act a specific way to be charismatic. I want to follow up with that by talking about some women that have played psycho roles.

And I am not just talking about female wrestlers playing psycho roles. Earlier this year, I watched Sleepaway Camp 2. I really enjoyed it. I saw the third part after. I found the original on Youtube and watched that. That was also enjoyable. The series is about this girl, Angela Baker, that goes crazy and kills people while camping. But the character is portrayed in different ways. The original has a mysterious feel to it, where you don't know who the killer is until the end, while the two sequels I watched were more comedic. There was also two different actresses that played the role of Angela between the three movies I watched. There are more movies in the franchise, but I have not seen them. Anyway, these two actresses and their psycho characters reminded me of two women in wrestling with psycho gimmicks.

The original Angela Baker was played by Felissa Rose. She played a young girl that did not talk much and just seemed completely innocent. I liked her, but I never really considered her portrayal charismatic until I read someone say that he preferred her over the other actress because she was charismatic in her own way. I stopped to think about it, and he had a point. Charisma is a quality that draws people to you. Felissa did have a certain vibe to her. The camera would often show her just staring up at someone bullying her. No real emotion. It's like being drawn to a dog with them sad eyes. And she had a mysterious element to her, which some people are drawn to. The face she makes after she is found out in the end is also epic. It was creepy. As a horror fan, I am not a hater of creepy.

Which female wrestler does she remind me of? AJ Lee. AJ obviously has the face down. Go back to when AJ first debuted and into her angle with Daniel Bryan mistreating her. There were times when she looked like a victim and you can be drawn to her for that. As time went on, she turned creepy. Even after it appeared the gimmick was done, she still retained certain elements of that creepy psycho character. The gimmick is one thing. Her portrayal of it was fine. I just think the biggest issue was pushing her in the title scene. She has a character where she often seems aloof to what is going on, ruining the feel of some of her feuds. Not that the WWE needs any help ruining feuds. AJ Lee was made for the periphery. She would be a perfect character there. She can be creepy. Her unstable character brings an element of mystery to her. And if the WWE ever did go back to having her play a victim, she had already shown she could do that.

Pamela Springsteen played Angela Baker for the next two Sleepaway Camp movies. Springsteen? Yeah, that's his sister. This Angela Baker had the kind of personality I think more people look for when talking about a charismatic individual. Pamela Springsteen's Angela Baker definitely had more confidence than Felissa Rose's Angela Baker, although it was obviously two different roles. She was peppy and witty. But she wasn't a complete clown. She could get serious. Even while killing someone, she still had a pleasant attitude. She didn't come off as completely evil. She was likable. Great character.

This Angela Baker reminded me of Mickie James. Mickie James played an energetic psycho. But she could turn it off when she had to and play whatever emotion she had to for the sake of that storyline. And the same is true for after they took the gimmick away. Her psycho run did not last as long as AJ Lee's psycho run. Mickie James was left as a generic face diva. One that would be inconsistently pushed. Not a recipe for success. One of the reasons she was able to remain as over as she was is her charisma. It wasn't tied to that psycho gimmick, although it made it more fun. She just had a pleasant, likable vibe, but wasn't a complete comedy character.

Two actresses playing the same character can portray it in different ways. Two wrestlers playing a psycho gimmick can portray it in different ways. Part of it is obviously different storylines, but part of the difference is in charisma. It is in those qualities of the character. Felissa Rose played a quiet girl with a hidden, creepy psycho side. AJ Lee started out with that innocent character, then later went crazy. Pamela Springsteen played Angela Baker with a fun spirit. Even though she was killing people, many of whom were jerks, she still was a likable character. Mickie James played an energetic psycho character. Despite a storyline that had her annoying Trish Stratus and eventually be the one to turn on her and attack her, many fans liked her better than the face.

And that takes me back to my point about Cesaro. He does not need to act one specific way to be charismatic. You can be charismatic without being flamboyant. You do not need to be too showy. Some people have a subtle charisma, like the original Angela Baker played by Felissa Rose. Some people have an energetic charisma, like Mickie James. All you can ask is that Cesaro finds his groove naturally. Forcing him to play something that is not natural might ruin him.