OPINION -- Changes to WWE's Women's Division: Return of the Women's Championship and Elimination of the term "Diva"

WrestleMania 32 saw the Hall of Fame Diva and inspirational women’s wrestler, Lita, present the new WWE Women’s Championship that is modeled after the WWE Championship. Lita also noted that WWE will remove the use of the term Divas as their women will be regarded as “Superstars” from this point on just like their male counterparts.

ZX: We haven’t done one of these dual author articles in a while due to our conflicting schedules lately, but with this current shake up to the WWE Divas, I felt that we had to discuss this matter. I feel better getting this off my chest without bouncing my opinion off of a female perspective so I don’t want to come off too machismo here. 

(Laughs) So Serena, what did you think of the new title and this change of that we’re not to call the women of WWE Divas anymore?

For the record, I honestly busted out laughing that the new title looks just like the high school graduation ring that the WWE Championship looks like but just in the same color scheme as the original TNA Knockouts title. Just another reminder that WWE are ten years behind the curve in terms of knowing what to do with women’s wrestling.

Serena: As ZX has already mentioned, thanks to a hectic as hell work schedule I’ve fell behind with keeping up with WWE and the world of wrestling. But while on break at work did somewhat follow Wrestlemania on my phone. And of course, I did hear prior about Lita having a very important announcement to make at the show. Well, as you all know the big reveal was a new design to the Diva’s Championship, renaming it the Women’s Championship and removing the term Diva from WWE vocabulary. How did I feel about it? Personally, to me it felt like the last straw to grab. Since forms of feminism and girl power are still on the rise, thanks to the likes of Anita Sarkeesian, Taylor Swift and Beyonce, WWE tried to jump on the bandwagon by creating the Divas Revolution… And failed. Then they tried to jump back up with Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart style feud between Bayley and Sasha, which eventually did have to end. So here to try and market to Swifties and girls using the hashtag “squadgoals”, WWE presented a belt that looks the same as the male wrestlers have and removed the “degrading” term of WWE Divas.

ZX: Don’t forget influences of women gaining popularity in other media outlets - Wonder Woman, portrayed by Gal Gadot pretty much upstages Batman and Superman in their own marque film, women in Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD on ABC consistently being more dominant and lethal than their male counterparts on that show, the popularity of female led dramas or shows with women in positions of power, such as Scream Queens, Agent Carter, Supergirl, Empire, How To Get Away With Murder, and so on. Last but not least, let’s not forget about the impact of the women from UFC. You knew if WWE weren’t trying to brown nose with Rousey for over a year ago, WWE wouldn’t possibly have taken this “Divas Revolution” seriously to begin with. It would have stayed as part as NXT’s “carnival act” and nothing more.

Much like a lot of things in WWE nowadays, WWE does things to “toss fans a bone” to make them shut up and stop complaining. About 2-3 years ago it was Paige debuting to shut up the fans who were clamoring that someone “worthy” needed to end AJ Lee’s title reign instead of the lowly Divas on the main roster. Last year, they brought in Becky Lynch, Charlotte, and Sasha Banks into the fix to manufacture a false revolution to satisfy the fans dying for a "serious" take on women's wrestling in the vein of what the women on NXT were doing (hashtag "GiveDivasAChance"), only to create an imaginary revolution in an already muddled and disorganized women’s division by segregating the women into “teams” as if this was an episode of Jem & the Holograms, but even those girls had better gimmicks and personalities than most of the average WWE Divas were given on TV up to that point.

Serena: Here we can see one huge major problem. And believe me, it is not the fact that the main roster of WWE lacks great female talent or that the Divas Title belt looked like something you would see in a 5 year old girl’s birthday party. And surely it is not the fact that female wrestlers in WWE were called Divas. The biggest problem here is booking (character development including).

ZX: You reminded me of something. At the NXT live show I went to this past Friday, there was a guy in line behind me with his kid daughter in concessions. She was holding the NXT Women’s title on her shoulder and wearing one of Bayley's "I'm a Hugger" T-shirts - sure, it was one of those cheap replica ones, but she was wearing TWO Divas titles as bracelets. It was the most adorable thing ever. That’s EXACTLY who they were marketing that title towards - little girls.

As a prize for a grown ass woman though? That was downright embarrassing.

Serena: Oh, without a doubt I agree. I really enjoyed how the old Women’s Championship design looked and when I saw the Divas title I could only facepalm. Sure, the marketing value is crystal clear, but when someone like Paige or Beth Phoenix would walk out with that thing? Pretty darn sad. And this new design? It’s okay. No, really. It is a perfectly fine belt design, I like the color scheme and it doesn’t even bother me that it does resemble the TNA Knockouts championship belt. Yet, in the end it is just another attempt at putting out a house engulfed by flames by pissing on it.

ZX: After I was done laughing at the similarities, I was fine with the change too. My issue was more with fans and now the Divas themselves, such as the Bella Twins and Charlotte, insisting that the term “Diva” was such an insult to them all this time. Maybe it’s because I’m a guy but I never saw it as an insult, despite knowing the “slang” meaning and connotation for it, but just saw it for the personal branding for the women of WWE. It’s not like all of the women of WWE were dressed up and going around acting like Divatox from Power Rangers. (Does around the world snap in Z-formation)

"Viva Diva!"

Serena: Okay, I may not be the girliest of girls, but I personally never saw the term “Diva” being insulting. Of course, it can be used to call out someone’s attitude and overall arrogance, but in reality a diva is someone who knows her self-worth. Even the ever praised Beyonce has a song called “Diva”. One of the most popular examples always was Mariah Carey. She was always called out for acting like a diva. But why? Because she knew just how good of vocalist she was, how hard she worked for her career and her current status and now she had all the rights to be as prissy and arrogant as she wanted to. This Diva knew that there is no one like her.

ZX: That’s the way I always saw it. Throughout my years reading comics and watching TV and films, I’ve seen women of all corners of life hold their head up high and proud with that label of a “diva”. The most recent example I can give is Janet Van Dyne aka the Wasp, or more commonly known as Ant-Man’s  (Hank Pym) wife. She was best described as a “diva” but when push came to shove she was a fine example of heroism. Even her daughter, Hope Van Dyne, who was portrayed in the recent movie by Marvel Studios shares some of her mother’s qualities.

I love that you mentioned Mariah Carey as an example. Brownie points for that one. I’m pretty sure that Elizabeth possibly rolled over in her grave when they retired that terminology from the WWE record books. What about Trish Stratus, the quintessential WWE Diva? Hmph, that possibly explains why she wasn’t in attendance for the festivities for WrestleMania weekend if she didn’t agree with the name change.

Sorry if I’m rambling a bit too much here but I guess this is going to lead into what we should talk about next. Not all of the women in WWE are going to fit into this new archetype that all of the women should be understood as “equals” to their male counterparts. To be historically accurate, it’s NEVER been the case that all of the Divas in every past generation have fit that same mold.

Paige and AJ Lee definitely didn't fit that image in the last cut off point in terms of a generation of WWE Divas. Before them, Kharma and Beth Phoenix didn't fit the bill. During the Attitude Era, Luna Vachon, Nicole Bass (whether you loved or hated her), and ESPECIALLY Lita didn't fit the bill but didn't deem it as an insult. Instead of acting like the term "Diva" was an insult, they molded the template to define women of all corners of life.

Serena: Absolutely. Trish broke the mold. Then Lita broke the mold. We had Sasha and Bayley, Charlotte, Becky and Paige. Beth and Nattie, Maryse, Melina, Victoria and Mickie. Even Michelle McCool and Layla. WWE had plenty of females on the roster that broke the rules of how a female performer at WWE should act and look. If Sunny was a pretty All-American doll, here came in Sable with her dominatrix Catwoman look. But if she wasn’t that strong in the ring, we had Trish Stratus who both was stunning and physically able to be up to par with the best of them. Lita was the alternative punk chick, that made all of the outcasts at school feel like it’s okay not to fit in. In the world of pretty faces Sasha and Bayley showed that they are athletes and able to main event a PPV to amazing ratings. Paige and the Bellas showed that you can both be a reality star and also talented at your craft. And all of them in the end were still Divas. They were proud, strong, confident women, examples to others that you can look different, you can come from different backgrounds, but you are united by the fact that you are a hard working female who knows her own worth.

ZX: I believe Jennifer Lawrence said it in X-Men: First Class, “Mutant and Proud.” (Laughs) You can replace mutant for Woman…

I’m thinking back a bit here and I believe the first time WWE actually referred to their women as “Divas” was with Sunny, but for a generation before her arrival, girls looked up to Miss Elizabeth who did nothing in-ring wise. She merely stood at ringside as supported her man. She didn’t cheat or say anything. She was just a nice girl who was there for the man she loved. It’s sad really that nowadays, most fans think that if the women in WWE don’t contribute in-ring to the levels of the NXT Divas, then they are worthless.

Serena: Tell that to Maria Bennett.

ZX: Oh my god. Absolutely! She may take a big bump here and there in a major feud for her husband to get a reaction from the crowds, but she contributes just as much if not more than her husband and his opponents to the entertainment value of their matches. I have a feeling that WWE brought back Maryse to do something similar for Miz.

Don’t forget Veda Scott too on Ring of Honor too. She’s doing some great things that’s getting unnoticed.

Serena: Of course, there are some examples where poor booking and a lack of polish and even talent is valid reasons to boo the house down. We talked about Eva Marie to no end, yet she is still the best example out there. Possibly one of the most gorgeous girls out there, with the charisma of a dead horse and the fluid motions of C3PO, she embodies the saying “It is easier to make talent pretty than to find talent for pretty people.”  

ZX: (Laughs) I’m going to sound like a total guy here when I say this, but can I make a confession?

Serena: Should I feel terrified?

ZX: No, but it’ll put me in the same boat as CM Punk…

Call me old school or a pig or whatever, but I have it nailed into my head that wrestlers, especially women, are supposed to look a certain way. Perfect example, Luna Vachon and Trish Stratus. Who’s the face and heel? Naturally, Luna is the heel because she looks mean as fuck and not that really “attractive” unless that’s your thing. Trish Stratus is the babyface because she’s “pretty”. I watch this newer stuff with the girls from NXT, especially on Tough Enough and that Breaking Ground show and I’m going to myself, “Holy cow, WWE are hiring a lot of ugly and butterface girls. Who’s going to be the heels and faces?” Before people give me a shit-storm of heat on social media, I’m not knocking on anyone’s favorite girls or wrestling crushes. We all have our own individual opinions of perception of beauty. To be fair, some of them have made it work. Sasha’s gone babyface and Charlotte has too to iffy results, so I’m not knocking them at all as they bring it in the ring. I remember seeing Awesome Kong the first time in TNA and going, “There’s no way in hell they are going to sell her to anyone as a babyface.” It took them a few years but they managed to make it work when she came back to face Jessicka Havok a few years back. 

My thing is that I’m curious how other girls feel about that?

Serena: I do think that there are women who can be both great faces and great heels. But at the same time some of the girls are just more fitting for one role. Someone like Bayley is the perfect babyface. She is insanely adorable, has this great energy and warm personality. She simply shines her brightest when she is going against a major heel who tries to push her down and make her the ultimate underdog. Someone like Kelly Kelly has such an empty look in her eyes, where you can see that the light is on but nobody is home, that she can only be a child like babyface. Whereas someone like Paige can only work as a heel, because of her personality. She is cocky, she is someone that feels above everyone else and has the right moveset to play a villain. Not everybody is versatile and not everybody should be. If Trish Stratus was great both as a heel and as a face as was Mickie James, Lita and Victoria always worked a lot better as heels.

ZX: The latter three can work as faces but they tend to get boring really fast. Speaking of Kelly Kelly have you seen how “ratchet” or rather “diva” she acts on that WAGS show? If she acted like that on WWE programming she would’ve been a MUCH more interesting character. Such a damn shame she wasn’t herself instead of just smiling all the time. Then again, we were in that post-Diva Search period where the Divas were criminally underrated in a post-Lita and Trish Women’s division, so they needed that squeaky clean babyface Diva.

That takes us to our last topic in this conversation. We have seen a lot of changes to the Women’s divisions of WWE over the last few decades and it probably won’t be the last change either, but one thing is certain. All of these changes are for nothing if WWE Creative and Booking of this division going forward doesn’t get behind this “revolution” and get on the same page instead of hindering each other. You can’t clamour for change but still book your women in lackluster feuds and sexist storylines while the few who do positively enforce the division’s core values don’t get the time of day to shine.

Serena: I think that the current booking situation of females in WWE might just be even worse than it was. Sure, it had a few ups in NXT, but even now the matches at the Takeover specials are nothing to rave about, since Bayley has no on going feud and I doubt if it will change with Asuka now as champ.

ZX: Like I said in my review of Takeover: Dallas, booking Bayley vs Asuka right now was a lose-lose situation. It should’ve happened later down the road. Don't get me wrong. I loved the match though, but I wish they didn't give us that right now. Bayley loses to her first “real” challenge and Asuka still has her veil of invincibility but no one established to challenge her. NXT honestly shot themselves in the foot. On the main roster, it’s not much better. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe that Sasha has been undefeated in singles matches since her debut on the main roster. As of this writing, Sasha has no ongoing feud/rivalry. Charlotte is somehow feuding with Natalya even though she already beat her at that throwaway Roadblock show. Becky Lynch is feuding with Emma of all people? Where the fuck did that come from?

Serena: Don’t shoot me, but I do think that WWE was going in a better direction before the Divas Revolution and maybe a few matches into it. Nikki Bella was champion, with an ongoing feud with Paige. Naomi makes quite a cool heel turn, taking Paige out on a special Raw in London and immediately becoming #1 Contender. Even though the feud between Nikki and Naomi was a feud between a tweener and a heel, it still seemed on the right track. Then the revolution started, presenting us with one of the better aspects of this circus - Team Bella. Clear cut “Mean Girls” heels, who cheated into getting Nikki to become the longest reigning Diva’s Champion. Their use of “Twin Magic” and Alicia Fox actually getting a chance to show her in-ring ability made this 3 on 3 team feud a lot more watchable. Yet, the minute Charlotte became champion and Nikki went off to heal her injuries everything went down the drain. As much as the marks will hate it… Nikki, Brie and Alicia were the only ones actually contributing to the Divas Revolution and making it somewhat bearable to watch.

ZX: The marks or rather the “stans” as how they have been labeled on social media, won’t admit that. It’s the same as the fans who won’t admit that just about every Diva that AJ Lee beat during her title reign made her look like a million bucks while she did nothing but sell like a ragdoll in 95% of her matches or the fans we grew up with who either hated anyone who stood against Trish Stratus holding the Women's title forever. Foxy and Brie were the work horses to help the newbies get used to working on the main roster, while Nikki played her part as the heel, yet vulnerable champion. She didn’t hold anyone back. She did the same thing what Charlotte’s doing right now - doing what the front office tells her to do.

It rubbed me the wrong way back when Sable did it, same for Ivory, Trish Stratus, Michelle McCool, Eve Torres, AJ Lee, and numerous others did it and I doubt it’s going to change in the future, but there’s always going to be something that WWE does that rubs me the wrong way with how they book their female champions.

Serena: You actually reminded me. Do you remember the Night of Champions match between Nikki and Charlotte? When social media was almost breaking down with how good Charlotte was and that finally now WWE will have a proper champion, I was actually feeling quite conflicted. Why? Because Nikki looked her absolute best in that match, showed such top notch character work with molding her moveset to cater her almost Kevin Owens heel like persona and put Charlotte over to no end, while the latter didn’t even manage to sell the beating she got on her leg.

ZX: Charlotte STILL barely sells anything and has little ring psychology but after hearing her recent podcast on Talk Is Jericho, even she admits she’s still pretty green on a lot of things. If she’s willing to admit that while being champion without having an ego, I can cut her a bit of slack. That's saying a lot because you know better than anyone how much I criticize her work.

Serena: Agreed. In the end, all I can say is… Changing the title design and getting rid of the term Divas is like putting a fresh coat of paint of on moldy walls. It might look at tad better at first, but it is still moldy underneath. Character development is still pretty non-existent, booking is inconsistent and the females are not used to their full potential.

But hey, at least we have equality, because the guys at WWE suffer from exactly the same as the women do.

ZX: You’ve hit the nail on the head there for sure. The only thing they’ve done is just lump all of their inconsistent booking under one roof now without the “Diva” label. I have to wonder though, do fans today realize that there’s actually a place for ALL of the women in WWE right now. They wouldn’t have to fire anyone but still keep the division strong, yet capable with strong hands to maintain the high standards that they have set for themselves. With the high demand of content on the Network, the less skilled ones in-ring could be valets, interviewers, or hosts for Network exclusive programming, such as Lana, Rosa Mendes, Cameron, or even Eva Marie if they deem that they are wasting their time with training her. They still have Nattie, Tamina, Alicia Fox, and even the returning Maryse as able hands to act as ring generals to keep things fresh with the newer girls (Paige, Summer, Emma, Charlotte, Becky, and Sasha). I just wish we could get to a point in fandom for women’s wrestling that we’re all supporting ALL of the women in this sport and not playing favorites.

Even I’m guilty of slut-shaming at times in the past towards particular Divas, but at the end of the day, I really do want to see ALL of these women succeed. What’s the point if just my favorites win all the time? You would think most fans would be sick of that when they got almost half a YEAR full of Paige and AJ matches after begging for it to the point, even the most hardcore of Paige and AJ fans were sick of them trading the title back and forth. You can’t make everyone happy with this booking but I think it should be unanimous that we all want something from these women to be proud of when we tune in, not something we would be ashamed of watching or not wanting to watch if at all.