Another Year Of Mickie James In TNA

It is a shame when you look at how TNA is using Mickie James. She has not won a singles match on Impact since January. Her few victories on the show since then have all been tag matches. TNA loves to cycle people in and out, and everyone becomes a victim of that. No one ever really gets anywhere. Even if they do get those KO tag titles back to some level of prestige and give them to Mickie and a partner, I don't have confidence in them handling this well. They are beyond that point of giving them the benefit of the doubt, which is something I usually like doing.

Mickie James is not going to make it. Not only is TNA not going to treat her in the manner that she has earned and to really get good value out of her to help themselves, but why would the WWE want her back? I can picture a one-night appearance down the road, but I think the majority of Mickie fans who want her to return to the WWE want her back for another run, not for one night. The WWE diva division has collapsed. The WWE continued pushing the same goal for their diva division that they were for years before Mickie James debuted. With Kelly Kelly not being reliable, since she is obviously not committed enough to be a true centerpiece, they were left with no one they were willing to build as centerpiece. That caused the collapse. Had they legitimately gone with Mickie James in 2008 or 2009, no collapse would have happened. They would have had a centerpiece who was dedicated to the company, not as prone to injury as other divas, solid in the ring, and most importantly of all, this was the woman who was the most over diva on the roster. Instead, they used her as filler when Candice Michelle was injured in 2008 and as a credible jobber for Maryse and Michelle McCool in 2009.

Even though the WWE diva division has collapsed, they are refusing to give it up. They are sending mixed signals. I am aware of that report about Triple H not liking diva wrestling and wanting to get rid of it. On the one hand, they did hire another female wrestler around the time of that report. On the other hand, they also released a female wrestler who was in developmental. Moreover, it isn't a female wrestler facing Layla for the title. Either Tamina or Natalya could have been developed for that feud. Fact is, the WWE could have 11 out of 12 of the women on their roster be true female wrestlers, but as long as that woman left over is an eye-candy diva being pushed as the centerpiece, the diva division still stands. The WWE is having success with AJ. When Sara Del Rey comes on board, they can easily push her to appease the angry fans of women's wrestling. Even though the division has collapsed, they can still wait it out and rebuild to what they want it to be very easily.

And it is nearly impossible to have a good conversation about Mickie's WWE career with most people. Well, it is for me. If you talk about the treatment Mickie got over her run, people will bring up what her ex said. She slept her way to the top in 2008, then screwed herself. I have spoken about her push in 2008 many times. On my old diva blog, I even wrote just about that reign once. It was a blatant filler push. The WWE lost their centerpiece to injury and had to fall back on Mickie James as interim centerpiece. Mickie was the most convenient and qualified option to push. Convenient? She was the woman pushed against Beth Phoenix when Candice got injured the first time. That push got cut the very night Candice returned. Qualified? The only other two face divas on Raw at the time were Maria and Ashley. Mickie James was more qualified to carry the division for 4 months than those two. Honestly, going any other way would have been more strange than giving Mickie James the push. And Kenny makes it seem like Mickie's career was just jobbing on Smackdown. She won a lot of matches, got an elaborate storyline, and did win the title. Problem is, it was all for the same reason as her debut storyline. She was being used to put over a centerpiece. If you actually read some of the things Kenny said, it looks like he is copying dirtsheet reports and what the Internet was saying. This isn't even a matter of whether the chicken came before the egg. He said what he did after dirtsheets already made it available to the world. His analysis of Mickie's career is not new or precise.

What will it take for Mickie James to be given another great opportunity? Being completely honest, I can't think of anything. TNA does not know how to develop stars and properly treat the ones they have to develop them more. The WWE is fine with allowing their diva division to fall to pieces, so they can get by with anything. Hopefully, Mickie James will one day get back some of what was taken away from her.

A Midcard Rise Over 3 Hours

Now that a few weeks have passed since Raw officially went to 3 hours, how have they been doing? I think they are getting into a good groove now. Without even mentioning the tag division or women's division, which are things I frequently talk about, just look at singles feuds and storylines in the midcard. Damien Sandow and Brodus Clay have a feud going. Cody Rhodes, who was lost in the shuffle for a while, is once again relevant, feuding with Sin Cara. Zack Ryder looks to finally be getting some kind of storyline where he is not being used to put over John Cena's character. An extra hour gives the WWE more time to feature other talent, and I think they are doing a good job with that.

Of course, there are a few casualties. Where's Christian? Besides him, you might remember that Tensai and Tyson Kidd had a mini-feud going. Why didn't I say anything about that weeks ago? I didn't have much faith the WWE would go anywhere with that. Kidd is a lower-midcarder and Tensai has fallen. I would have been more surprised if the WWE followed through with a singles push for Kidd. Having the feud phase out, that isn't a shocker. Kidd can still be relevant in the tag division revival. You can also bring up other guys in the same rank as Kidd who are not being pushed well, like JTG and Riley, but things seem to okay in general. You can't push everyone. If the WWE rotates the lower-midcarders getting focus, and I mean more than just being squashed, things could still work well.

Beyond all that, the only thing I find annoying about the new Raw format is all the social media. Yeah, I'm not a big fan of that social media stuff. If I was, I would probably have a lot more readers by now. Nevertheless, I don't mind having the fans vote for match types or who gets to face who. I like that. I don't like having celebrities giving their opinions during the shows. I know that it sells the idea of how popular the WWE is, but I find it annoying. I also don't like Tout. These days, wrestlers give mini-promos via the Internet. It was useful when Sheamus stole Del Rio's car, since it would be crazy to have a cameraman riding with Sheamus. But besides that, it is really a waste. Most of the stuff these wrestlers say in those few seconds can be typed up on Twitter, which they still do, anyway.

How about the ratings? How have Raw's ratings been since the 1000th episode, which brought in what will most likely be the highest ratings of the year? Keep in mind that the first hour of 3-hour Raws typically drag the overall number down. That being said, Raw is actually still getting the same range of ratings as it did last year, back when Raw was still 2 hours long. How will they contend against football? Raw's yearly average last year was about a 3.2. This year, it is already a 3.16. There is no way they will be able to legitimately get the ratings up to avoid doing even worse than last year.

And Smackdown's ratings? The thing to look for there is how ratings have done since around May. Last year, shortly after Randy Orton won the World's Heavyweight Championship, Smackdown's numbers dropped. Was it because of him? Ratings killer? Or was it something that happens around this time of year? In other words, just a coincidence? Just glancing over the numbers, ratings this year for the last few months do seem better than they were a year ago. Slightly better. I still wouldn't jump to the conclusion that Orton killed the ratings on Smackdown last year. This year's summer ratings were still lower than earlier this year's ratings, which would lend credibility to the idea that ratings are cyclical. That is to say, it was probably baseball or whatever else is on TV during the summer that people love to watch.

As for TNA, they had a very high viewership last week. Ratings were not the highest of the year, but I like paying attention to viewership more than ratings, but there isn't exactly one chart for yearly viewership, like there is for ratings. The combination of their summer storyline and Hulk Hogan got the viewers to tune in. But how will they follow through? The yearly average is still far below what it was last year, when it was at its peak. Right now, it is at a 1.03. If you just stop and think about it, if they get some horrible numbers in the months left in this year, their yearly average might just drop below a 1.0. That would be very pathetic, but possible.

CM Punk's Slow Heel Turn

I like how they are having CM Punk's heel turn be drawn out. In terms of the storyline, he is pretty much denying that he is a bad guy (heel). Yes, technically, he is a tweener. How much more is it going to take to finally consider him a heel? Daniel Bryan also had a drawn out heel turn at the end of last year. Turns like that usually make for interesting storylines.

Is this current storyline actually good? I like that they are drawing it out, because there is creative focus in what is going on, but I don't really like this character CM Punk has. He wants respect. He is sick of being in Cena's shadow. He wants to be acknowledged as the best. The only real difference between this CM Punk and the CM Punk from last year's epic storyline is a lack of edge. Last year, CM Punk was edgy and said things fans loved hearing. That led to him turning face. This year, CM Punk is whiny. He is definitely going to get some fans to turn on him like this, especially when he is targeting Jerry Lawler. But the character itself is lame. It's not that intriguing.

And what about Cena? He is his usual self. He is the hero. Not much new character development for him. This whole CM Punk turn is providing Cena with more opportunities to sell that usual character. He refuses to say that someone else is better than him. He has to believe he is the best to be able to do his job. He puts his morals ahead of title opportunities. Of course, he is still getting a title shot. I can see him winning the title at Night of Champions and losing it back to Punk at Hell in a Cell. Have to see how they develop things further in the coming weeks. 

Alberto Del Rio Vs. Sheamus: Take...I Lost Count

Yes, even I am getting tired of it now. Once again, Alberto Del Rio is getting a title shot against Sheamus. This feud has lasted even longer than the feud between Randy Orton and Christian last year. If you think about it, the seeds of this feud were planted right after Sheamus won the World's Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania. It was then placed on the back burner, while Sheamus finished up with Daniel Bryan. And now, the WWE won't end it.

Once again, however, the WWE has done something great for Del Rio. They allowed him to beat Randy Orton clean, and by submission. Yes, Randy Orton tapped out. It wasn't a complete burial. Orton still got a hit on Dolph Ziggler, who was going to cash in on Sheamus. As for Del Rio, they keep on building him well, but they just need to pull the trigger already. The guy already has two WWE Championship reigns to his name. He's credible. I know a lot of fans will say that he is not over with the crowd yet. Do more with the storylines. There is no reason to just keep making him look so credible over all this time, without even giving him the title. They were not afraid to let Orton look weak for this guy's benefit, so Sheamus can take a hit. Sheamus did take a hit last week. With a shoe.

Randy Orton is now on the radar of the title feud. I think they really just need to get the title on Del Rio, then eventually transition to a feud with Orton. Once Orton does eventually regain the title, that can lead to a feud with Wade Barrett or Ziggler using the briefcase on Orton. Ziggler hasn't even held the briefcase for a full 2 months yet. There is still plenty of time to have him wait and develop him further. But will Randy Orton retake his spot as top man on Smackdown?

Brief Thoughts On Gail Kim And Aces & Eights

Gail Kim turned on the WWE last year and returned to TNA. She soon won both the KO title and tag titles. They built her up to look strong. And now? She is rotated out for the benefit of Brooke Tessmacher. I like both of these women. My problem is that TNA continues to run this foolish system of rotating out their centerpieces. And people are surprised that they never get anywhere? This is not how you build stars or use stars effectively to draw. One more thing I want to say about Gail. Has this run worked out as well as her first run? No. Gail Kim got people talking when she first joined TNA. She came in at a time before the KO division was officially made. She benefited from being developed in the periphery. When the division was formed, she was the first Champion. Not too long after all that, the WWE wanted her back. Had she stayed, would TNA have cycled her out back then? Can't be completely sure now, but if they were going to, she ended up never having to go through that. Now, she does.

I go from criticizing TNA to giving them credit for something. The Aces & Eights storyline is still going on. I compared it to the Nexus storyline the WWE had. TNA is doing two things differently that I like. First, they have kept the identities a secret. They will all turn out to be people who are not too important (not to be rude), but keeping it a surprise does make it more interesting. Everyone knew who the guys on Nexus were. They were rookies from NXT. Having rookies rise up like that was great, but there is still something to be said for keeping it a mystery to the general audience, like TNA is doing. Second thing I like, they are actually treating this as some kind of witch hunt. Who is behind these guys? When the WWE ran the Nexus stable, people were wondering who was having them do this. It turned out that they were on their own. That's fine. It could turn out that Aces & Eights are not led by an active performer on the roster. They are just making trouble by beating down people and playing mind games. So far, this is a better summer angle than Brock Lesnar and Triple H feuding.

Ryback and Mahal

How can anyone pass by an opportunity to talk about Jinder Mahal? Honestly, I want to talk about this feud between Ryback and Jinder Mahal just to note that it is a feud where one person is obviously being developed to put over another. Not only is this not a feud between equals, but one guy is definitely getting shot back down when it is over. I haven't had a good example of that to talk about in a while. Jericho was being used to help put over Ziggler, but Jericho is a star and Ziggler is a rising star. Triple H put over Lesnar, but I have already pointed out that both these guys are big.

What about Ryback and Jinder Mahal? Ryback has been on a huge role since he came in a few months ago. He was squashing multiple individuals at a time. This feud with Mahal is his first real feud. It's not the kind of feud that leads to a big PPV showdown, but it is good for the midcard on the regular shows. Jinder Mahal, on the other hand, hasn't really been too relevant in a while. When the WWE first showed focus in prolonging the issues between these two, you could tell who was most likely being developed to put over who. The feud will most likely end on Smackdown this week. After that, Ryback continues to work up the ladder. Mahal gets shot back down the ladder.

I still don't care about Ryback that much. However, he is connecting well with the fans, so who really cares what I think? And if the WWE is willing to make the midcard more interesting through developing feuds with him, even better. Both midcard titles are currently on two heels. That means that this is the perfect environment to put them on midcard faces to develop those faces more. Main-event faces, like Rey Mysterio and Christian, don't need to win the U.S. or Intercontinental titles right now. I don't know how many more heels they want to feed to Ryback to get him built further, but a title reign would be nice.

Chris Jericho Leaves, Again

The WWE wrote off Chris Jericho with a "Contract vs. Contract" match against Dolph Ziggler on Raw. Going back a step, Jericho did beat Ziggler at Summerslam. Does that count as winning the "big one"? On one hand, that was Jericho's first and only PPV win since his return. You can say that makes it a big win. On the other hand, nothing was on the line. Chris Jericho failed to win the Royal Rumble, failed to win the WWE title on multiple occasions,  failed to win the World's Heavyweight Championship, and failed to win Money in the Bank. Those would have been more meaningful victories. In his match where something was on the line on Raw, he loses again. And he lost clean.

In two days, the WWE loses two top faces. Yes, Triple H was not a regular anymore and everyone knew Jericho was leaving, but it is still worth talking about it. First, going back to my point about some people complaining about Triple H having the spotlight after his match with Lesnar at Summerslam, would those same people complain about Jericho taking the spotlight after his loss to Ziggler. He even attacked Ziggler after the loss. And yet, I don't have too much of a problem with that. There is a small problem I do have, however. They wrote Triple H off with an injury and possibly retiring after that loss. He was mentally and physically broken. I don't think he needed all that. The injury would have been enough to send him away and let Lesnar look strong. I would have let Jericho be the one who leaves mentally broken. He loses another match where the stakes are high, and this one costs him his career. Instead of that, he takes a shot at Ziggler and leaves with his head high. Okay. I can understand not wanting to sell the same kind of story as Triple H just had. But I would have developed both differently. Lastly, is the WWE in a tough spot with these two out? No. Orton and Mysterio came back. Cena and Sheamus are around. As I type it, I realize the WWE really needs to do more to develop more faces. They are developing more new heels better than new faces, when it comes to main-eventers and upper-midcarders. Still, having Triple H and Jericho taking attention wouldn't solve that problem.

When Jericho does return again, what should happen? He can still come back refocused to win the title. And it would still be great if Ziggler is holding it when that happens. However, some of the kick may have been lost. Had he gone away a broken man, that return would have meant so much more. That kind of story is probably what they will sell with Triple H. As for Jericho, he definitely has not been buried with his recent run. They could have handled it better to draw in the fans. I still believe that. However, he can easily pick up with anything when he does return.

Brock Lesnar Defeats Triple H At Summerslam

Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H was indeed the main event of Summerslam. Even though the build could have been better, it looks like it ended up being the best choice. And Brock Lesnar finally won his first WWE match since his return. Moreover, he made Triple H tap. Triple H really put Lesnar over with that, giving him back a lot of credibility.

One thing I notice a lot of people complaining about is that Triple H took the attention after the match. I do not have a problem with that. Go back to when I talked about this match last week. Aside from trying to predict who might win, I also talked about how Triple H might still look strong, if he would lose. Considering that Triple H actually tapped out, which is one of the strongest ways to put someone over, I have no hate towards Triple H getting the attention after the match. If it was not for the fact that Lesnar really needed a win to give him some momentum for the rest of his run, this storyline should have had Triple H going over Lesnar. Triple H had reason for revenge. I don't see a reason to completely bury Triple H last night. Brock looked good, won the match in decisive fashion, and Triple H got a moment after the match. I'm okay with that.

Random Thoughts For Smackdown 8/17/12

First, there was this match on Smackdown to determine who Booker T's new assistant would be between Kaitlyn and Eve. Did you need a more blatant example that the WWE is currently more concerned with the periphery of the diva division than the actual heart of the diva division itself? You would think things would revolve around the title. When was the last time there was a match on Raw or Smackdown to determine the #1 contender for the Diva's Championship? I don't even know. I'm not even going to cheat and look it up to seem like I know. Instead, two women fight for a position on the periphery. If you think about it, this current diva division really is the reverse of the division you had after Trish and Lita left. At that time, the WWE's chief concern was recreating the centerpiece. No divas were being properly developed in the periphery. After the WWE struck out multiple times, the agenda has changed to develop periphery divas, but you have no centerpiece. And you can see how that makes the division look. Anyway, Eve won the position. Because I have other things to talk about, I will not go into that too much now. I will get back to it one day.

Chris Jericho's final week before his next hiatus is winding down. On Smackdown, he was inserted into the matters involving Alberto Del Rio, Sheamus, and Booker T. He lost his match, which furthers the storyline he currently has, and still has Ziggler to look forward to at Summerslam. While on a message board recently, I saw someone come up with an interesting idea. Have Sheamus/Del Rio happen early on the card. No matter who wins, Ziggler can cash in and win. His match with Jericho would then turn into a title match later on in the night. Since Jericho is taking time off for his band, he obviously is not going to leave with the title. Although the idea is interesting, I wouldn't do it. Just have Ziggler beat Jericho and not cash in at all. In kayfabe, sell that loss as the reason Jericho finally breaks down and leaves. Ziggler can then get a ton of momentum from doing that. That will build him up for his eventual cashing in of the briefcase. Even if he does not win it through the briefcase, I think the WWE wants him to win back the title one day. And he will need the build for it. And it would be great if he is holding the title when Jericho is ready to come back. Perfect progression of this storyline. Jericho failed before, but he's re-motivated and back. Then, he wins the big one.

And what about Sheamus and Alberto Del Rio? Yes, it's back on. Sheamus wanted it, so Booker T eventually obliged. Weak. I was hoping for something good, but that was weak. It is not as bad as the hype for Jericho's return this year leading to no big actions, even though that seems to have been part of the storyline, but it is still a waste. The match is back on. I already spoke about why Ziggler does not need to cash in when talking about Jericho. There's another way to look at it. Why have Ziggler win the title and kill Del Rio's momentum? Del Rio has been going for the title for months now. To just write him off so easily to push Ziggler now would be a waste. The WWE should follow through with Del Rio now and continue to develop Ziggler for the moment.

Brock Vs. Triple H: True Summerslam Main Event?

It was obvious for a while that the match between Triple H and Brock Lesnar at Summerslam had the potential to be the true main event of the PPV. Both of these guys were top guys of their respective brands at one time. Brock then left the company. Triple H continued to be pushed as face of the company, until the rise of Cena. Brock went on to eventually find success in UFC. That has brought "legitimacy" to his return hype. He has hurt a lot of top guys in kayfabe since his return. Shawn Michaels was recently added to that list.

This was the first week where Raw really ended with the issues between Triple H and Brock Lesnar. And this is the week leading into Summerslam. Another clear sign that this may be the real main event? This will be the final match on the card? Does it deserve to be? What are the other options? Ignore Smackdown's World title match. A Smackdown World title match has not been the final match on a PPV card in a while. Instead, you have recently seen a string of Cena matches be the final match, even above WWE Championship matches. This time around, Cena happens to actually be in the WWE Championship match at Summerslam. Cena vs. CM Punk vs. Big Show. A while ago, Cena vs. Big Show was big enough to headline a PPV. Granted, John Laurinaitis had his job on the line there, making the match worth more. Toss in CM Punk and the WWE title into things. This is the feud that has been getting the major attention on Raw for weeks now, with the exception of this week. It should deserve to be the main event at Summerslam.

It comes down to hype. Looking around, I see no big summer angle. Was Triple H/Lesnar really supposed to be it? It is a big angle, but I don't feel they have done enough to develop it properly. They spent a long time teasing whether it would happen. They brought in Stephanie McMahon. Paul Heyman returned after years. Shawn Michaels was inserted into the story. If you think about it, that really was not necessary. It was an attempt to heighten the feud. It really wasn't too necessary for the actual storyline. Triple H would already want Lesnar for injuring him, throwing his weight around, and the lawsuits. And now, Triple H wants revenge for his best friend too? It may lead to an eventual storyline involving HBK down the road. If it does not, it would have been an attempt to hype this feud up further that didn't really work. The final 30 minutes or so of Raw seemed so awkward. Just analyzing things outside of kayfabe, the contract signing ended with still some time left to Raw. What would have happened if Lesnar did not attack Shawn Michaels? What else would they have done? And everyone expected the attack, anyway. It just didn't seem to be as fluid as it could have been planned to be. Too much wasted time and attempts to bring in more hype that were not really shocking or fresh. This feud has not been developed well.

Who wins? Can Lesnar finally win a match? Triple H does not need this win. Nothing is even really on the line in this match. Just let Lensar have it to keep some momentum going. This match can go down just like Triple H's loss to Sheamus a few weeks ago. Sheamus attacked Triple H early on before a match they had on PPV. When the match did occur, Triple H was not 100%, still tried to beat Sheamus, gave a great fight, and still lost in the end. Sheamus looked good for winning, but Triple H looked good for not going down easily. The story to this current feud was kind of going in that similar direction. A lot of people were saying Shawn Michaels would throw in the towel for Triple H at Summerslam, after seeing Triple H get destroyed and refuse to quit. Would have been good. Of course, Shawn's injured now, in kayfabe. What will they do now? I'm still thinking Lesnar will win somehow.