Beth and Natalya....Doomed to fail?

[King Blitzkonic]

I was re-watching the segments of Beth beating up Kelly from last week, Natalya beating up AJ last Friday, and last night's "match" (so sloppy I can't call it a real match) between Beth and Eve. My ears may be deceiving me but I could have sworn that Beth and Natalya were getting FACE response for their clearly HEEL actions.

Right now the booking seems to be revolved around Beth and Natalya dominating the Divas division and restoring prestige by beating up the "perky little bimbos". While in most cases, this would lead to a heel turn, the sheer desire for "real" women's wrestling has garnered MORE cheers for The Glamazon and the Anvilette.

Given that, I'd have to say that this booking direction is doomed to fail considering how long Beth and Natalya have been underutilized. I hope that I'm wrong and we actually get to see more real Divas matches, but I'm legitimately concerned. Thoughts?

 

[Deadlysyns]

I agree i just don't see the build up to them being this way and some of those soo called blonde perky bimbos put on half decent matches

 

[Long Island Iced D]

To be honest with you, I could care less if it fails or works. I respect the divas and womens wrestling but im just not into it. Its good to look at but the wrestling is just terrible. WWE seems to care more about putting the title on the best looking diva instead of the best performing.

 

[martymcfly]

I see where you are coming from, but I guess it depends. I think if the WWE really wanted to, they could turn those two into definite heels but they might need to hold back from that because of their recent "anti bullying campaign." So they might not have total freedom to take a quick and easy route of turning those two into full fledged heels.

However, I think they also have a unique opportunity to capitalize on this. Do beth and natalya really need to be heels for this angle to work? I'm thinking probably not...you'd have plenty of folks who are tired of the "divas" who can't wrestle getting the spotlight and are happty to see actual wrestlers doing more than jobbing to models. And you'd have plenty of folks who do like kelly and the bellas who wouuld like to see a story of the underdog taking down a big mean diva.

So I guess to answer the topic of this thread, no, it is not doomed to fail. I think this (in the absence of kharma) is probably one of the more interesting things to happen to the women's division in some time, and I think it's good that there is not a clear cut "heel" so far.

 

[adchap1991]

tbh; i dont see it as 'face reactions' i see it as people are also sick of the fact the 'bimbos' are basically the fore front of the division, when Beth and Nattie spoke about whats annoying them about the likes Kelly and Eve, people cheered because they agree. I though RAW's match with Beth and Eve was ok and i thought the crowd was just dead, it is gonna take time for the crowd to care, but there is work being seen by the audience on the division so in time it will matter, theres been years of not caring so even putting a story in this means something as far as this division goes.

 

[The Dragon Saga]

Its another thing in this so-called "Reality Era."

The IWC have insulted the way both Diva's are used and perceived for years now and this is one of the first times that WWE have admitted to making them look a certain way, through having the two broading females on the roster in Beth Phoenix and Natalya aim to destroy said image. The fans know all of this too. Diva's matches since the retirement of Trish Stratus and Lita have usually been flung together in a couple weeks, no real stories behind them, just a couple matches. This is almost about doing the contrasting.

The fans are behind Beth and Natalya the same way they're behind CM Punk. The truth is revealed and people enjoy the truth and people especially like the rebellious persona of fighting against said truth, like how Beth and Natalya are doing. The fans want to see these two destroy the Diva's because they know, what those on this forum know and everybody who knows anything about the WWE. Divas division has been stale and this is freshening it up.

 

[waylonmercy]

The problem with these two as heels is that they may be intimidating to the barbie doll divas but they don't look the least bit competition to Kharma. I wonder if the original plan was to have a Beth Phoenix or Natalya challenge Kharma to a match at a Summer Slam or Wrestlemania as them as faces against a monster heel Kharma would be realistic. I guess one way to add intrigue is for the two of them to join forces and run rampant on the WWE divas including the heels like the Bellas etc to establish them as an elite force and have them attack Kharma when she returns and lay her out. It would build some interest in my opinion in a match maybe a 2 on 1 at a WM.

 

[AlexanderNicol]

I actually have to disagree. I think they will succeed, but only in what they are trying to accomplish which I think is a strong one on one diva match. VKM is a great leader, and great leaders always start with the end in mind. Here's what I see happening:

-Beth takes title at Summerslam.
-Continues run as champion up and through Night of Champions and Vengeance facing people like Eve, Kely Kelly, Maryse, the Bellas, Katelyn, Alicia, AJ etc.
- After Night of Champions, have Natalya turn against Beth and assuming Beth is still being cheered, then this will make Natalya a heel.
- Face them off a Survivor Series with Natalya taking the title, then have them face of up and through Elimination Chamber with Pheonix taking the title and facing Kharma at Wrestlemania 28 if she returns.
This could lead us up and through a triple threat between the three at over the limit and capitol punishment etc and maybe at some point include people like Tamina and AJ, two other women who can fight etc.

- In the instance that Kharma isnt back with WM28, we can just draw out the relationship between the two until around Royal Rumble and then split them, building up to WM28.

 

[mr. jomo risin]

I agree with Mercy that Natalya or Beth are destined to battle Kharma at WM or atleast some point in the future, but where do you go from there? Who could rival Kharma after those two?!! Especially if it was a handicap match capacity. If Kharma's a face against them as heels its doomed. Kharma needs to get a major heel push if she's gonna go long term. Phoenix or Natalya as a face vs. Kharma the heel would work much better and is almost believable but when Kharma beats them both as heels, what's next? It would be a Fabulous Moolah sized run till we realistically see someone worthy as a contender.

 

[Marijuanaleaf]

What you don't get is the ulterior motive behind Beth and Natalya's actions. Don't fear to be different, different can get you a long way. Beth and Natalya may be the biggest face Divas of this year.

 

[The Future Rises]

I honestly think the WWE are pushing Beth to make Punk happy. Sad if you ask me. She has tons of talent. Natalya on the other hand I'm not a big fan of. I don't know why exactly but I'm just not into her at all. I'm not gonna judge the "bimbos" on their wrestling ability because they only have 3 - 5 minutes to show them off nowadays while Beth proved to be worthy when she was having good matches back when the WWE gave the Divas some time to wrestle. And I noticed when Beth came out there was NO REACTION at all. I don't know what you were watching but apparently Beth lost all of her kiddy babyface fans. She's not gonna fail and I hope not. Let's just hope we see a good match between Kelly and Beth this sunday. Natalya I personally just couldn't care less about. Slow wrestler that even botches the Sharpshooter sometimes by making it look awkward. I hate the fact that she's burying AJ who's a great young female talent in my opinion. I'd rather see her job to AJ rather than bury her like that.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

i dont think beth and natayla are doomed to fail i mean yes there getting face reactions but that doesnt mean there gonna fail! i think if vince wants them to get a heel reaction he should let them destory every diva and "take out" a few of them towards the end and in the end finally have 1 diva stand up to them...Khrama! thats right let beth hold the title with natayla helping her (as much as i hate to say it maybe even as co champions?) until Khrama comes back it would be pretty damn good to see those 2 against khrama but if she beats them whos left for her to beat?

 

[EastCoastFan]

I think Beth and Nattie are getting cheered for two reasons: 1) they actually know what they're doing in the ring (unlike too many so-called "divas") and 2) WWE pushed Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres and the Bella Twins on people so much that they're sick of them. Add to this their perceived lack of wrestling skill (WWE keeps hyping about Eve's judo background and her training with the Gracies, but you'd never know it by watching her in the ring).

However, I don't see Beth vs. Kharma at WrestleMania as I don't think Kharma will be back by then. I see Beth taking on all comers until the Royal Rumble, when Nattie gets sick of being Beth's "second banana" and turns on her, leading to Beth vs. Nattie at WrestleMania 28. It would be a hell of a lot better than having Snooki.

 

[TheCrusher]

I will probably enjoy this little Beth/Natalya run more than most, and be sadder than most if it doesn't go anywhere. My personal reasons:

Number one: I'm huge into athletics for females. I honestly sometimes think that sports do more for girls than they do for boys. I can go into reasons why in detail, but that might be self-indulgent, so I'll just stop there for now. Wrestling is not "pure" sport, but it sure as hell should be an athletic endeavor, and I'd love to see women's wrestling go that way.

Number Two: I love a pretty face as much as the next guy, but a girl doesn't have to be built like Kelly or Stacy Kiebler to "do it for me." Thick girls like Natalya or Molly Holly look just fine. Hell, to me they look great. Statuesque girls like Beth are great, too. I had/have a huge crush on volleyball player Kerri Walsh. Her husband calls her "Six Feet of Sunshine," and I get it. To me, the women I mentioned are athletic and powerful and still "100% girl."

Number Three: I like wrestling. I can find eye candy on any show on TV. So, to have pretty girls out there not wrestling particularly well is less appealing than watching them act or sing and do a good job of it. But when you find me a good-looking woman like Beth who is credible in the ring, you have my complete attention.

So, this angle speaks to me. But, I realize that I am a potentially small niche in the market. Not all guys find the athletically built women as appealing as I do. So, while I'd love to see VKM raiding women's college volleyball and basketball for attractive Diva prospects, he'll probably just sit on a pile of cash that's bigger than my whole house and shake his head at anyone who thinks like I do.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

tbh; i dont see it as 'face reactions' i see it as people are also sick of the fact the 'bimbos' are basically the fore front of the division, when Beth and Nattie spoke about whats annoying them about the likes Kelly and Eve, people cheered because they agree. I though RAW's match with Beth and Eve was ok and i thought the crowd was just dead, it is gonna take time for the crowd to care, but there is work being seen by the audience on the division so in time it will matter, theres been years of not caring so even putting a story in this means something as far as this division goes.

I think you are on the money here. People couldnt care less about the Divas division now, and I am sure most people would be happy for the division to be based on actual wrestling, with all the swimsuit-model type non-wrestlers reduced to managerial roles. They would still get seen by the fans but wouldnt need to stink up the ring.

The fans cheered for Beth and Natayla simple because they are right. The two of them are far more credible wrestlers than any of the the other divas and the fans know this. I am interested to see where this goes as its rare that ANY focus is put on the womens division in the WWE. IMO Gail Kim could have been a part of this two, making it a trio.

 

[berlinbrawler]

The divas division is doing the best it can not to drown until the sorely needed Kharma re-enters the scene. Making Beth and Natalya dominant is actually a very good move. Yes, it may fail in that a healthy portion of the audience (the portion that actually cares for WRESTLING) won't care that they are supposed to be heels and will cheer them. So what? With today's jaded audiences pure heel- or babyface-reactions are an absolute rarity anyway. Few can fully pull off one or the other, so least of all I would expect it from a diva.
So the sheep among the fans will boo the evil Beth and Natalya and the smarks will cheer them. I think that suits the WWE just fine, as long as those matches aren't treated like another commercial break and a chance to go to the toilet or flip to another TV channel.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Beth and Natalya are not doomed to fail. Having models who can't wrestle be pushed as champions was CERTAINLY doomed to fail though. Beth and Natalya destroying all the barbie princesses is exactly what most fans want. A Divas Champion or two who can actually work good matches and cut promos. This angle is the best thing to happen to the divas in a long time. Anything Kharma was supposed to do has been inherited by the two best girls on tye roster and I for one can't wait to see what they get to do.

 

[kingdoug16]

I believe they are trying to build up the division and are hoping Beth and Natalya get over as heels for Karma can return as the savoir of the division. It was reported Vince sees money in her and what better way would it be then heels beat up everyone, reemerging face comes out, beats the heel and gets instant credibility. Hogan did that to Yokozuna at Wrestlemania and so on...

Trying to create a woman who can draw money, hasn't been done in years but I think Karma can become one...

 

[TheCrusher]

I don't think any female star can draw money, but a good female division might. You can probably remove fe from that sentence twice and have it be just as true. There are a few big stars who can elevate a single angle for a while, but without a good corps of guys, it wears out soon.
The Divas right now only have a few that look tough enough and have the power to be credible. Off the top of my head, I just see Beth and Natalya. And at least one of them has to become a face. The addition of Karma to the Beth and Natlaya picture would create a good start, but they would still need a couple more credible badass chicks to get the division beyond a short run.
The current crop beating Beth or Karma is just hard to believe. A few of the current roster Barbie girls could probably create a heel team that you could buy cheating their way past the top women in the division and maybe throw one in with an old school heel manager to get them past one of the bigger girls. Then the audience gets to delight in the moment when the cheaters finally get forced into a fair fight and get their comeuppance.
Other than that, the Barbies are hard to buy as anything beyond jobbers to the powerhouses.