The WWE announced today that they are partnering with the E! television channel to launch a new reality series this summer featuring the WWE Divas. The show will be called Total Divas and will apparently follow around Natalya Neidhart, The Bella Twins and Cameron & Naomi (The Funkadactyls), plus two Divas in the developmental system, from the night after Wrestlemania to whenever filming concludes. According to the press release, “the show will follow the lives of WWE’s women as they travel around the country, living, loving and competing along the way.” On the surface, I have made it well known in this blog that I am a huge fan of the Divas Division (and the Knockouts over on TNA, who week after week are often the only segments/matches worth watching on Impact Wrestling) and any exposure for the Divas of the WWE, both in the mainstream media and hopefully on WWE television itself, is a good thing. I have said many times that if given the right character and storylines, and the time on TV necessary to build feuds and create interest, the WWE Divas could actually become a draw for the company. Remember when Trish Stratus and Lita were in the main event of WWE Raw years ago, or when the Divas Championship was defended at Wrestlemania year after year and no one left their seats? Those moments can be recreated, and this reality show is a step in the right direction, but I’m afraid that the Divas being chosen are all wrong.
Natalya Neidhart – While Natalya is easily the most technically gifted Diva in the entire WWE, and perhaps within any major wrestling promotion in the US, having been the only female graduate of the infamous Hart Dungeon. Unfortunately, over the last year her two gimmicks of note have been flatulence (she would fart during matches and then win when her opponents were recovering from the smell) and acting as a valet to The Great Khali (a complete waste of space who can barely walk to the ring let alone wrestle) and Hornswoggle (a little person who is nothing more than a comedic act). If her talents had been properly utilized since her debut (where in the heck was the promised reformation of the Hart Foundation with her cousins?) then she would be the ideal Diva for this new show. But given her track record, there is just no interest there.
The Bella Twins – Nikki & Brie Bella are two of the hottest female wrestlers walking the face of the Earth today and it certainly doesn’t hurt that they are twins and therefore the object of every male’s fantasy. However, technically gifted they are not. They can certainly hold their own in the ring, and their outfits are worth the price of admission alone, but there are other Divas on the roster who are just better wrestlers than them. If other Divas were on the show in place of Natalya and The Funkadactyls (see my next paragraph), I would be happy to have the Bella Twins included as the third or fourth of three or four Divas.
Cameron & Naomi – The Funkadactyls, as their are more commonly known since other than a handful of matches their entire WWE careers have involved dancing in the ring with Brodus Clay, are the biggest question mark of this entire group? As I said, they have only had a handful of matches and, in my opinion, are the least attractive of all the Divas on the roster (I am not a shallow person but let’s be honest here and note that unless you have a gimmick like Kharma did, you have to be attractive to be a WWE Diva or TNA Knockout). Given that their entire careers have revolved around dancing with pom-poms, I have no idea why they are being included on this show in place of other, much more deserving Divas.
So who would I include on the show if not these three groups? The obvious choice is Kaitlyn, who let’s not forget is the Divas Champion. Let’s forget the fact that the jaded and bitter columnist Mark Madden inexplicably called her “thick” in his latest blog, a terrible comment when so many young girl deal with body image issues and completely untrue since I happen to find Kaitlyn to be extremely sexy with a very healthy and normal body. After all, she has roughly the same body type as Trish Stratus and Natalya and I don’t think anyone would call either of them “thick.” Frankly, I think Madden is an animal and if he hates the product as much as it seems he does from his weekly rants, he should just turn off the TV. If I hated something as much as he hates “fake wrestling,” as he continuously calls it, I would stop doing said thing. But, enough of that tangent, the bottom line is Kaitlyn is the Divas Champion and should be the first Diva featured on the show.
What about AJ Lee? She certainly has the most compelling character of any of the WWE Divas, going back to last year when she was dating John Cena, Daniel Bryan and Kane all at once, running Raw as the General Manager and overall acting completely crazy. Now that she is teamed with World Heavyweight Champion Dolph Ziggler, it makes even more sense for her to be included in this show, not to mention the fact that she is extremely cute and has a unique look not seen elsewhere in the Divas Division. Plus, the fact that she already has a feud with former best friend Kaitlyn would add drama to the show.
Now, the Divas roster is pretty thin these days and the only other current Diva I could think of including is Layla. She is a great performer in the ring and was an amazing heel years ago when she was teamed with Michelle McCool years ago, but for some reason she has not been on TV in a very long time. If she had been on TV in recent months and turned heel yet again, I would definitely include her.
As for the two potential Divas, I am reading that they are 
women found in the most recent round of Divas searches and that one of them is a fitness model while the other is a recording artist (read: no wrestling background). If I were going to feature potential Divas, why not feature potential Divas who are already on the roster down in NXT and have the potential to actually be called up to the main roster soon. The first two that come to mind are Paige and Summer Rae, two Divas who could completely revitalize the division when called up if given the chance.
So, in my ideal world, what is my roster for this new Total Divas reality show? It would be Divas Champion Kaitlyn, AJ Lee and The Bella Twins with Paige and Summer Rae from NXT as the potential Divas training for the big leagues. Unfortunately, we are stuck with Natalya, The Funkadactyls and The Bella Twins and I just hope the show doesn’t suffer as a result.
Throughout the day yesterday, and even last week as a result of an article on WWE.com, it was speculated that Paul Heyman was seeking a new client for his stable. Just before WWE Raw went on the air last night, Heyman took to the WWE app to announce that he was, if fact, in negotiations with a new client and that this Superstar would be revealed during the show. The Internet practically blew up with this news, because as one of the best managers in the history of professional wrestling, anyone who aligns himself with Paul Heyman is given instant credibility and an instant push to the top. The big question was whether it would be an established Superstar returning to the WWE (e.g., Rob Van Dam, Batista, Goldberg) or one of the NXT Superstars making their main roster debut. At 9:00pm it was revealed that the new client being aligned with Paul Heyman was a little from Column A (although not as big a name as those previously mentioned) and a little from Column B (although technically not a true rookie) – Joe Hennig.
