Del Rio And Rosa Not Going Anywhere

A few weeks ago, it looked like Rosa Mendes and Alberto Del Rio would get some kind of storyline together. As I said back then, lack of interest would most likely kill it. I was talking about from the company, not the fans. The fans barely had anything to really connect to before the WWE did not even bother following through. I am not going to blame this one on the writers. This situation would not exactly have been difficult to come up with ideas to actually get it going. If the bosses really wanted to do more with the divas, they could have followed through with this easy angle. I want to list three possibilities that could have happened with Rosa and Del Rio.

First, the easiest of them all, just make Rosa Mendes Alberto Del Rio's valet. Simple. It doesn't even have to turn into a major romance angle. Having an eye-candy diva cheering Del Rio on and occasionally interfering in his matches would not make anyone look too bad. Del Rio gets another sidekick and Rosa gets featured more.

Second, take the previous idea and give it a little upgrade. Have Rosa have a little feud with Ricardo Rodriguez. Have Del Rio's valet/girlfriend have some issues with Del Rio's personal ring announcer. Have Rosa push Ricardo around like Del Rio does. Have Rosa and Ricardo argue during Del Rio's matches about whom he prefers better. And in the end, have Del Rio choose between the two. It could have been a very interesting storyline.

Third, combine Rosa's two angles. She would have both a romance angle with Del Rio and be the valet for Primo and Epico. Combining that, have Alberto Del Rio lead his own stable consisting of himself, Ricardo, Rosa, and The Colons. I know Primo and Epico are not Mexicans, but it could still work. Del Rio could have some real henchmen. Depending on whether or not they wanted to add more members, you could have an even better stable. They don't have to reach the level of Evolution, but it makes Del Rio look good and gives some lower-midcarders a temporary promotion.

Which would have been the best idea to go with? It would come down to what the WWE wants out of Del Rio right now, since he is the top star involved in this situation. If they only want to use him to put over other stars and stay a little bit credible by beating jobbers below him, which would be how they are treating him now, just make Rosa his valet. If they want to find a way to make him look like a strong heel, having him lead a stable would be good. If they want to keep his character interesting and create an actual storyline, just keep it between Del Rio, Rosa, and Ricardo. The difference between the last two ideas really comes down to whether they would want to develop his credibility or his kayfabe character. I would go with creating an interesting storyline over trying too hard to develop his credibility. The guy is already credible. He needs good storylines now to let him feature that character. Sadly, the WWE does not look like they will be doing any of this. Del Rio still ends up featured better than Rosa.

Alberto Del Rio And Rosa Mendes

Alberto Del Rio and Rosa Mendes looked like they started an angle on Raw last night. Del Rio got involved in Rosa's issues with Hornswoggle. After that, during Del Rio's match with The Great Khali, Rosa was shown watching.

I think it's good to give Rosa a storyline. I still have a bad taste in my mouth for ever being eager to see how she would do in the ring when she first debuted. She has never been the centerpiece of the diva division. She does not have the credibility to be a credible jobber and has never been pushed in that manner. She is an eye-candy periphery diva. That's how she should be used. Now that she is not in the ring as much, I have warmed up to her again. A romance angle with Alberto Del Rio would be the biggest angle she has ever had. Not only that, but it can make the diva division a little more interesting. AJ Lee is still being pushed hard. Meanwhile, the WWE still has to overcome their issues involving centerpiece and credible jobber matters. A few more angles in the periphery won't directly help Eve, but it will give people more to talk about for the divas.

What does this mean for Alberto Del Rio? This may seem like a step down for him. Since his debut, he has feuded with Rey Mysterio, chased after the World titles, and has just recently feuded with Randy Orton. In between all that were injuries. If you look at it, he has been at the top or near the top since his debut. He's definitely credible. Now would be a good time to do more things with his character. That would make him more interesting. I don't think a romance angle with Rosa Mendes will be too awful. They don't need to overpush her to the main-event scene, but neither do they need to kill Del Rio's character by bringing him down to the level of Primo and Epico.

Will the WWE follow through? Alberto Del Rio had an angle with The Bellas last December. His injury killed that off. There was a legitimate excuse for that ending. Lack of interest may kill off the current romance angle. I am not talking about lack of interest from the fans. I mean from the company. Rosa is not pushed as hard as AJ. There is no reason to push her that hard. Eye-candy divas used to be the easiest to connect with the fans. These days, a little more storyline and character development for some of these women would be nice. The eye-candy diva being pushed as the centerpiece shouldn't be the only one getting it. If this current angle does get killed off, it is easy to see that Del Rio will still go on to be pushed well and Rosa will be the one demoted back down. 

Rosa Jumps Rope

I am going to say the little bit I have to say everytime I talk about Rosa Mendes. I liked this woman! She was hot during the Diva Search. I was looking forward to her getting used in the WWE. What followed was a disaster.

The new chapter in the story? She jumps rope. She is Smackdown's answer to Jillian Hall. Just like Jillian has a joke gimmick, Rosa has one now too. I don't think Rosa deserves anything to keep her interesting in front of the fans. Some will say that the fact that she is a jobber is her punishment. Not good enough for me. Not giving her wins in the ring only means that a push will not get her over. If you have not noticed, pushes and wins do not always make a wrestler automatically over. They do not make them interesting by themselves. Even if she is a jobber, and it is not like her wrestling ability will get her over either, she has a gimmick to get fans to notice her. She can get segment time. She does not deserve this at all.

Savannah Released

Savannah (Angela Fong) has been released by the WWE. You may know her as the announcer on what used to be ECW and now NXT. Only those who cared to look it up would know that she was training to become a wrestler. She was wrestling in FCW. She got released before her first official match in the WWE. I am not counting tag matches in house shows.

This woman was rated extremely well by many while she was still just in FCW. They said she had a lot of natural talent. The fact that she was nothing more than an announcer in the WWE is very disappointing. She did not even get to develop her character anywhere, not to mention wrestling in televised WWE matches. She did not get a proper break at all. Lilian Garcia got more of a chance to develop her character in angles than Angela Fong did. Hell, Lilian even performed in more "matches" on WWE TV than Angela Fong did, and Lilian does not even have Angela's level of skill in the ring.

I would have released Rosa Mendes. She had her shot to develop both character and her style in the ring. She not only failed to get over with that, she brought down the quality of matches on more than one occasion. A woman like this had enough chances, which other women are not getting. How do you solve the problem of Smackdown losing pretty much the only heel diva jobber they have? They could have started an angle to transition Savannah from announcer to Smackdown diva, and as a heel. She gets her shot, and if the WWE really needed to release someone, Rosa Mendes would be free to go.

I do not think there is a chance of the WWE wanting her back. If Angela Fong is still serious about wrestling, that hype she garnered while in FCW may interest TNA in developing her further. Whatever the case, I am not happy about this choice from the WWE. Should have given her a fair chance to be something first.

He's Single, Ladies!

Rosa Mendes is gone from Raw. That leaves Zack Ryder a free man on Raw. I feel so bad for him. Not so much due to the fact that he lost Rosa, but that this is another step in his destruction.

"Woo Woo Woo" really came into being on ECW. You know it? I will assume so. He actually challenged for the ECW Championship. To be honest, a lot of guys have. What really made me think for a second that they would do something with him is that he was involved in the last main event of ECW. He did that minor run in. In retrospect, why? William Regal was there to mess up the match enough for Christian. The more interference, the more epic the match may seem. That is true. But you also have the fact that Zack Ryder ended up on the same show as Christian. They really could have had some kind of final feud to settle things. That never happened.

Raw tonight was sad for Zack Ryder. He was out there trying to impress Alicia Fox and Gail Kim. Modified Jamie Noble on our hands here? Mark Henry killed him and left with the hookers....oh! I mean, the two female wrestlers. Yes, the WWE treats their women right. He has been treated as unimportant since coming to Raw, but he just seems to be going down further. His romance angle with Rosa is killed off without much hype. He is being treated as your typical small heel going against a big face, and loses. And is just being humiliated for the sake of comedy. Yes, at least he is still getting an angle, but this angle has been done before. I am not a huge fan of it. I cannot see it doing anything great for him. They have gone from setting him up to succeed to setting him up to fail.

Does Zack Ryder deserve better. He seemed impressive on ECW. On Raw, he seems so much more simple. I can spend time talking about where the WWE might go next for this. What diva, if any, may feel pity for him? Will this lead to a face turn? I am not going to go there. I want to see where the WWE goes with it next time. It would be funny if this would be the start of something good.

Everything Evens Out In The End

Now that all the names have been traded around, and ignoring any bodies that may not make it to their new homes or make it just to be released soon after, I seem to notice two directions things may be going.

First, I know a lot of people will claim Smackdown is dead now. Others will say that Smackdown is now free to make new stars. I am in the latter camp. In case you missed it, Smackdown lost both Edge and Jericho. That was the Smackdown main event at Wrestlemania. Undertaker does not work a full schedule anymore. Who are your top faces and top heels? The answer is that they will have to rotate men who they have been using in the upper-midcard recently, like CM Punk and Rey Mysterio. Jack Swagger will continue to be pushed. Too soon for him? That is another issue. You can now potentially see the rise of Kofi Kingston or Christian, who were drafted themselves. Big Show, hopefully, will not be treated as some guy's tag partner. Whether he ever wins a World title soon or not, he belongs closer in the title hunt. This should be fresh.

Over on Raw, John Cena now has fresh, or slightly fresh, heels to overcome. Jericho is back. Edge looks to be starting a feud with Orton. Edge is heel again so fast? Both of these guys know what it is like to lose to Cena in title matches. Sheamus has never been pinned or made to submit to Cena in a televised match. Batista is focused on losing to Cena three pay-per-views in a row. The other guys sent to Raw, like Morrison and R-Truth, will fit in nicely in the midcard for now. Their characters may fit well with guest host crap or other segments and storylines. I cannot picture either of these two faces winning the WWE title so soon on a show that still has John Cena, Randy Orton, and Triple H on the roster. It may not be really fresh once you think about it, but at least Raw is stacked with big guys.

Now for the second direction. It may not be mutually exclusive to what I just said. One may feed off the other in some way. Thing is, I feel the two shows may now be balancing out. Raw just gained some guys who can wrestle a good match and are allowed to do so regularly. Hart Dynasty? I cannot picture them being wasted. The WWE cannot be that stupid. I am sure they must allow those two guys to raise the bar a bit. However, Santino is still around too. Over on Smackdown, comedy gold may be heading there. Hornswoggle? Reunion with Finlay? New push for Finlay? It could happen. Smackdown lost Khali to Raw. That somewhat negates the idea that Raw will feature good wrestling. Smackdown will definitely help good wrestlers who have been broken a bit on Raw, like MVP. But will Raw do the same for the good talent it just gained? I feel, or want to feel, that it must. Santino will still be doing his act on Raw. I look forward to seeing how far Hornswoggle will go on Smackdown. Did I forget to mention that his favorite personal jobber, Chavo is heading there too? Yeah, that doesn't make me too hopeful for Smackdown.

Maybe what I am trying to say is more clear if you consider the Smackdown diva division. Natalya is going to Raw. From Raw, Smackdown gains Rosa Mendes, plus Kelly Kelly, who moved on Monday. Two women without real wrestling experience take the place of one woman with wrestling experience? Natalya is definitely a step up for the Raw division, depending on how they treat her. But Smackdown? Raw was the show for crappy diva matches and segments. Smackdown focused on serious action and better developed angles. Can you see how Natalya does not seem to fit into the past Raw landscape? Two eye-candy divas going over to Smackdown do not fit that landscape. Why? I think it is stupid. Outside of the two women already involved in the title feud on Smackdown, I cannot easily suggest who can step in after one of them steps out, based on wrestling credibility and current angles going on. How much longer will Serena be tied into SES? I can say that Rosa will be released soon, but how much will that really fix? Is Raw good now that Natalya is there? Is Smackdown bad now that Rosa is there? In some way, have things just been evened out a bit?

Overall, the landscape has been changed. You have to admit that. Fresh stars can be pushed on Smackdown to become main-eventers (again). Built main-eventers can now face each other in matches that should not be too hard to hype over on Raw. The bar may have been raised in some ways. This past Raw featured many good matches. That can be a new norm? I won't hold my breath. The diva division seems like crap. This is where the landscape was not really changed. None of the women moved have ever held a title in the WWE. None of them are consistently featured in title feuds. None of them have proper spotlight on them regularly at all. Nothing was shaken up. Am I wrong? Then again, why bother taking diva matters seriously? They are not the main draw.