Taryn Terrell Returns To GFW

Gail Kim had her title shot last week. She lost due to interference from the returning Taryn Terrell.

First, I am glad Taryn is back. She improved herself in the ring while in TNA/GFW. She is attractive. And she showed more charisma in her heel run than I thought she had in her. I also felt her feud with Gail Kim ended in a very boring way prior to Taryn leaving a few years ago. Taryn is now back and picking up with that great heel character and feud with Gail Kim.

Second, what does this mean for Gail Kim? Her career in GFW obviously did not end last week. She will still get a chance to go out on top with the title, which she deserves. I will say that I am not a big fan of the booking. I have seen this before. Gail Kim gets beaten, yet the attention still mainly stays on her and the woman that beats her does not really get elevated. Wins don't automatically make you a star. And a loss does not automatically stop you from being presented as a star. I don't think Sienna would be a great centerpiece for the division, but GFW does need to start booking better for that woman that will be the next top star.

I have seen one fan say that she wished it was Awesome Kong that had returned. I like the choice of Taryn Terrell over Awesome Kong. Ignoring why Kong has been fired twice by this company, the feud between her and Gail Kim has been done a lot. Last time they went at it, it was obvious Awesome Kong did not still have it. Taryn Terrell might still have some rust, but at least she is a fresher option and does also have a good history with Gail Kim.

Lastly, what does this return mean for the overall division? Depending on how long Taryn will be around, she can take Gail Kim's spot in the company. Or she could be a top heel to put over that next woman that will follow in Gail Kim's footsteps, like Allie. The possibility of rebuilding The Dollhouse with different members might also be good. GFW might bring back in Rebel or Brooke. Brooke was never in the group, but she was a part of the feud back then between The Dollhouse and Gail Kim. GFW can definitely do some good things with Taryn Terrell back.

The Longest-Reigning Diva's Champion & The Longest-Reigning Knockout's Champion

AJ Lee still holds the record for longest reign with the Diva's Championship. That stands at 295 days. Nikki Bella is knocking on the door, and it looks like she will just walk right through. She has held it for 281 days. Unless she loses it before Night of Champions, she is going to hold it at least until September 20th. And that will give her the record.

Should AJ's record be broken? You have probably heard all kinds of talk as to why Nikki has been holding the title for so long and will likely beat the record. It's Vince McMahon's ego. It's her boyfriend playing politics. It's Total Divas ruining the diva division. There is no denying Vince McMahon has an ego. A woman he pushed extremely well and allowed to get away with certain things essentially walked out on him. Yeah, I can imagine someone being bitter about that.

I would make the decision to have someone else break AJ's record. It has nothing to do with ego or backstage politics. It is about sending a message to your workers. AJ Lee was given a ton in just a few years. I do not think any diva has been pushed that hard in such a short time. She had backstage issues and they still treated her well. She took a shot at Stephanie McMahon on Twitter and they still let her get the win at Wrestlemania a few weeks later. Right after that, she retires. What kind of message does that send to your workers? That workers can get away with acting like that? I would sometimes read reports that Vince McMahon saw the "bigger picture" with AJ Lee. Really? Vince might need glasses. He couldn't see this woman was likely going to side with her husband and leave? A lot of people were expecting it since last year. I never would have even let AJ do all the things she did. If you are going to act like that, you better be someone I should be afraid to lose. I like it when wrestlers being mistreated stand up for themselves. When a wrestler being pushed very well and the company is very loyal to complains or causes issues, it sometimes comes off like they are being greedy or betraying that loyalty. I believe workers that are bringing great results and are loyal to the company should be allowed to make history and have the major accolades. Send that message to your workers. Don't let a worker that is not bringing the results that match her push and might not be loyal to you walk all over you.

Nikki Bella might not be the poster girl to deserve the record. But if the WWE wants to take a shot at AJ Lee by giving the record to someone else as quickly as possible, she is the obvious choice to have break it. She was holding it at the time AJ left. She had already held it a few months. Don't forget she is the likely new centerpiece of the diva division. I wouldn't be surprised if she gets the record.

Fans are not liking Nikki Bella breaking the record. #ThingsBetterThanNikkisReign was trending a few days ago. That was soon followed by #NikkiDeservesTheTitle. Even then, a lot of the tweets were still negative. Will this cause the WWE to put an end to Nikki's run sooner? Unless that Twitter negativity turns into something from the crowds in the arenas, I doubt it will. But it would be interesting to see Nikki bragging about beating the record the Raw before Night of Champions, then having some diva come out, talk Nikki into defending the title right there, and Nikki ends up losing. That would tie AJ's record, not break it. In terms of just storytelling, that is the kind of thing you would want to see a heel experience. But this is a diva division. This is the WWE. I don't think the WWE will end the reign early.

How about that negative fan reaction? Honestly, if it wasn't for those recent diva matches not being respected by the live audience and that report that John Cena was the reason Nikki was still holding the title, I don't think a lot of fans would be complaining about Nikki Bella as hard as they are and saying the diva revolution is failing. They would still be mesmerized by the longer matches, new NXT divas, and everything else the WWE has been doing. The fact that things are not working has brought an end to the honeymoon.

Prior to 2015, Gail Kim held the record for longest reign with the Knockout's Championship at 210 days. Taryn Terrell entered the year with the title and went on to break Gail Kim's record. Her reign ended at 279 days. She lost to Brooke, with some help from Gail Kim.

Does it matter? Does it feel important? Does Taryn Terrell feel like she has gone to another level by getting this record? This isn't even a question of whether or not she deserves it. It is a question of how TNA has handled it. And I would say they dropped the ball. How can you have someone make what should be considered a major piece of history and not follow through better? Taryn has just looked like a coward since losing the title. She has looked very weak. They are not putting proper individual focus on her. And Brooke? The woman she lost the title to? Gail Kim has since gotten back the title.

The whole feud has been handled poorly. Why not have Gail Kim win the title from Taryn? Brooke wins it? I have seen some fans question why Awesome Kong did not win it. She was the one screwed out of the title the night Marti and Jade aligned with Taryn to form The Dollhouse. It would have made more sense for her to finally get what she was screwed out of. And they really didn't do anything much with Brooke during her run. Next thing you know, Gail Kim ends up with it again. And the way her feud with Taryn Terrell ended was just mediocre. A backstage segment? This was arguably the best feud the KO division had going this year. It was very heated. It should have ended a lot better than that.

Back to Taryn Terrell breaking Gail Kim's record and TNA not handling it properly. I do not care if Gail Kim is okay with it, suggested it, or whatever, the woman that breaks her record should be someone the company intends to push as the next top star of the division. This should be considered a major record and accomplishment. It should be followed up with a lot better. Instead, they break Taryn down and continue to just juggle around their women.

This is an example of why I say TNA does not really have a centerpiece and does not do a good job creating stars. If Gail Kim was the centerpiece of the KO division in the same way Trish Stratus was the centerpiece of the diva division, the woman that beat her record would be someone the company would follow up with at a high level. Moreover, Gail Kim would have been booked to win the title from Taryn. You develop credible jobbers to put over the centerpiece. I can't say that is what TNA has done in this situation. Gail Kim is obviously a legend in the KO division, but they are not booking her efficiently, and the same goes for everyone else in the division.

Let me give another example. Look at Brock Lesnar ending The Undertaker's undefeated streak at Wrestlemania. A lot of fans say the WWE botched by doing that. It could have been worse. Let's say that happened, then the WWE follows up by making Brock's next feud against Sheamus. Sheamus looks godly during the entire build up of the feud. When the match comes around, Sheamus wins cleanly and decisively. Basically, Brock gets buried. Fans would be wondering what Brock did wrong. He had to have done something wrong for the WWE to do that. This is just not something the WWE would do. They handed him one of the biggest accolades they could. How can you follow up by having him feud with someone like Sheamus? And have Sheamus dominate the feud? And beat Lesnar cleanly? Just to make it worse, let's say they do that with Sheamus, then go back to treating him as mediocre. It's just not what the WWE does. They followed up with Brock by having him destroy Cena for the title. He has gone on to continue his feud with The Undertaker, which had better hype to it around Summerslam than Wrestlemania last year. This is what the WWE does.They use these accolades to build stars and build up to bigger feuds. I am not saying they never seem to drop the ball. The first-ever Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner was Cesaro. Yeah, they dropped the ball with him. But The Streak is a lot bigger deal than that.

I am not saying being the longest-reigning TNA Knockout's Champion is the same as ending The Undertaker's undefeated streak at Wrestlemania, but it is one of the biggest accomplishments a woman in TNA can be given. How do you not properly follow through with the woman that breaks the record and use the situation to create a better feud with a better payoff between the woman that breaks the record and the woman that held the record before her? These are wasted opportunities that define TNA.

Let me just look at Gail and Taryn. I once talked about Gail Kim playing a ninja-like character. Gail Kim is not great when it comes to charisma. It is her only real weakness. She needs a gimmick to help her look more interesting. The gimmick she has had since returning to TNA has been something like I had in mind. She is playing a serious character, but her attire and the whole appearing and disappearing thing works. She is sexy and is playing a cooler character. I'll give them credit for this.

How has Taryn Terrell been doing as a heel and with this gimmick? Once again, I will give them credit. She has been doing a better job than I expected. She has the sex appeal and the charisma to pull it off. Always having her run away from Gail has not been good. Booking Seth Rollins as a weasel and having Kevin Owens walk out on matches aren't helping those two in the WWE. But at least Taryn Terrell is more entertaining with her cowardly act. And The Dollhouse is not done yet. Hopefully, TNA can come up with some fresh stuff for Taryn to do, for however longer she is with them.

Taryn Turns Heel

The Dollhouse is here. Taryn Terrell turned heel and TNA's new KOs, Jade and Marti, have aligned with her. They helped her retain the title against Awesome Kong last week.

This is another situation where a heel KO Champion is paired with at least one partner in crime. Since I started paying attention to the women's division of TNA more closely, it seems the majority of heels that win the title have some kind of sidekick, whether female or male. It is a good thing in some situations. But it does seem forced sometimes. Some exceptions in recent years were heel Mickie James and heel Havok. Havok just went out there like a monster. That's enough to treat her as a heel. Mickie James has the charisma to play a heel character well. Not every woman in TNA can be pushed as a dominant monster in a believable way and not all have a great charisma.

Taryn has never played a heel. In fact, all she has ever really been was a generic face. She was generic prior to turning heel. She was just a ref prior to that. She was a face in WWE. Even when she was on ECW back then in an authority role, she was generic. She has not been pushed with an interesting gimmick before. She obviously has that now, as well as some sidekicks. But does she have what it takes to play a great heel character? In terms of looks, she's hot. In terms of wrestling ability, she has improved well. But in terms of charisma, she has never really stood out. Luckily, the gimmick and the stable will help her right now. It would be nice if TNA pushed more heels that could stand on their own better.

I have said before that Taryn Terrell might be the perfect choice to push as the centerpiece of this KO division, if they wanted to make a diva-like division. But TNA has never committed to one woman as the centerpiece. A centerpiece is given that great push because she has that amazing overness or you want her to have that amazing overness. Taryn is over, but she really doesn't have that outstanding overness. Is turning her heel and giving her this current push a step in trying to help her get more over? Or are they just going through the motions and building her up for some faces to conquer? I am expecting the latter. If Taryn does have a breakout and really shines with this push, will TNA do the right thing and stick with her as the centerpiece? The other women, like Awesome Kong and Gail Kim, can still be featured well. TNA usually does well having multiple angles going. Maybe even bring back the tag titles? They just need to commit to one woman that really delivers for them in getting them to that next level and build around her.

Which TNA Knockout Would Make A Good Diva Division Centerpiece?

Last week when I was talking about Taryn Terrell, I mentioned that she would be a good centerpiece for the type of women's division the WWE likes to run. Aside from her, there is at least one other woman in TNA I think fits what the WWE is looking for in a diva division centerpiece. These two women also happened to be in the WWE diva division before. Let me talk about these two women and compare the two.

Taryn Terrell has finally won the KO title. What does she have going for her that qualifies her for centerpiece of the diva division? She has become a very solid performer in the ring. Her series of matches with Gail Kim last year helped to put her on the map with wrestling fans. Those fans now view her as more than just a pretty face. And her in-ring ability has not declined since her return this year. Aside from that, she has the classic look that the WWE likes in the diva centerpiece. Not every centerpiece has been blonde, but the majority have been.

Brooke Tessmacher has won a few titles since coming to TNA. She wasn't known for being a wrestler in the WWE at all. She just danced around with Kelly Kelly and Layla on ECW. She has developed her skills in TNA. She is also sexy. She isn't blonde, but that does not matter. Candice Michelle wasn't a blonde and the WWE attempted to push her as centerpiece. What does Brooke have going for her that separates her from Taryn? Some fans might say that a blonde in the diva division is just generic. Brooke does not have that generic look. Aside from that, I just think Brooke does a better job showing character and can play with the fans better.

Which of those two should be centerpiece in a diva division? I would go with Brooke. She just seems like the more charismatic of the two. Charisma is going to help connect you with the fans. I am not saying the WWE is likely to hire back either of these two and give them a big push, but for the sake of wanting to run that kind of women's division, these two would be good choices to build the division around. And I would personally go with Brooke over Taryn.

Should TNA start developing a diva-style division? They don't need to turn all the way towards glamor as their driving theme. They can still aim for running a respectable women's division. Right now, Taryn would be a good choice to build around. TNA never builds around anyone. They rotate. If they would stick with certain women that are getting the job done or have the potential to do it, their women's division would be even better. It would help them be more productive. And should a female wrestler come into the division and start connecting better with the fans than Taryn, that is when you start pushing that woman as centerpiece. Until then, however, TNA could try beating the WWE at their own game. Run a diva-style division and have someone like Taryn Terrell be the true top star.

Look at the current diva division. Look at the women likely to be developed as the new centerpiece. Let me list them in order of likelihood. You have Brie Bella, Nikki Bella, and Summer Rae. Face it, none of these women are knocking it out of the park. Again, I am not saying either Brooke or Taryn is likely to return to the WWE, but if either did, I think they would be more deserving of a good push. They probably would not get it. If TNA did start running a more efficient women's division that built around one woman as centerpiece, and started running with someone like Taryn as their top star, they would automatically be in a better place than the WWE is now with their women's division. And even if the WWE should continue with what they have a history of doing and run with a Bella or Summer Rae as their centerpiece, TNA would have a better choice as their top star. To put it simply, I would say TNA is closer to entering a diva golden age for their KO division than the WWE is exiting this dark age with their diva division.

One last thing to consider, would you say Taryn and Brooke are system gals? Are they just products of this respectable women's division TNA likes to maintain? If they came back to the WWE, would they start sucking? It might not necessarily be their fault. They will be working with women that might be less talented. They will be working in a division without high expectations. They might be misused. If The Bellas went to TNA, would they look like respectable women's wrestlers on a consistent basis? I think Taryn and Brooke have become solid performers. It isn't all just smoke & mirrors or them being carried to look good. Are either of them A+ in the ring? I wouldn't go that far, but I wouldn't say they are horrible. In this system TNA runs, they can look good while being pushed. In the system the WWE runs, and especially during this dark age, they might not look so good.

Your New Knockout's Champion...

Were you expecting someone else? Havok won the KO title on this week's Impact Wrestling airing, but because TNA tapes so many weeks in advance, you might as well start talking about the woman who is really holding the title right now. I think it is just ridiculous that they tape so many weeks ahead. Taping for 2 weeks' worth of shows in one week is one thing. We just entered October and TNA has already taped into November.

I shook my head a few days ago at the WWE shooting around titles so much. TNA just did the same thing. A lot of the title changes they do are questionable, but what they just did is just bad booking. It is not shocking that Havok would be a transitional champion. And it had been a long time since TNA had a brand new KO Champion, but they didn't really develop up to it well. And they did an even worse job by just shooting it to Taryn Terrell after what will end up being a little over a month. It has not aired yet, but I doubt TNA will develop things properly.

I am not against Taryn winning the title. I think she should have won it a long time ago. She was out for a while due to her pregnancy. She came back months ago and could have won it earlier. She proved last year that she has become a solid performer in the ring. She is beautiful. If this was the WWE diva division, I would say she should be centerpiece. She has what they would want to fill that position. Will TNA stick with her and develop her in that spot? I doubt it. They never do. But for now, I hope she has a good reign. I hope it is better than what Havok got.