Paige has no ass

[Ruien]

Can't see it. You have way more faith in the drawing power of women wrestling than me. They will always just be second tier and Paige wasn't in the WWE anywhere near long enough for the casual person to remember her as anything special.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Originally Posted by Ruien Can't see it. You have way more faith in the drawing power of women wrestling than me. They will always just be second tier and Paige wasn't in the WWE anywhere near long enough for the casual person to remember her as anything special.

Women's wrestling has drawn before. It's a total myth that it hasn't. In the past it has been used as a special attraction, but more so than ever before, it is the special attractions in wrestling that are drawing anyway.

Wendi Richter's contribution to the WWF's Rock 'n' Wrestling success is marginalized by the history. Sable, whatever you think of her, was probably the second most over star the WWF had next to Stone Cold Steve Austin at one point. Gail Kim was getting higher ratings than Kurt Angle in TNA at one point.

You're allowed to not like women's wrestling or think that liking it right now is a bit of a bandwagon thing, and that's cool. I spent a lot of the SmackDown Live thread criticizing Alexa Bliss' performance, because I just don't think she is anywhere NEAR ready. In fact, given how scant each division currently is, I still think there are some talent involved that just aren't going to work with the new aesthetic of women's wrestling. Spoiler warning: Bliss is one of them, but Naomi is another. I know she's athletic and supposedly "good," but she still reeks of "look at me doing things" Diva.

Anyway, I digress -- you're allowed to think it's shit, but it is an effective component to any wrestling product. Paige -- given her ring skills, her appearance, her experience in the business, her reputation for having edge and being important to women's wrestling undergoing that shift of perception -- has got the potential to effect whatever division she is in.

She's as recognizable as any woman the WWE currently has under contract. MAYBE Nikki Bella has gotten more media attention with her appearances at Kids Choice Awards and stuff. I don't think you can effectively argue that Sasha Banks, for instance, is more known worldwide now than Paige is. She's more over at the moment, sure, but that's a temporary argument. If Paige beat Sasha for the Women's Title on WWE TV and Sasha disappeared then Paige would be more over.

And the thing is, you don't NEED to be familiar with Paige to understand her story. I'm thinking of TNA now, okay, just for clarification. If WWE gets her to sit at home for three more years until she gets out of her contract. When she shows up in TNA, casual fans aren't watching it anyway. But let's say Corgan turns things around and they're a sustainable option for wrestlers and maybe there are a few fresh eyeballs on the product -- that is why you have announcers and vignettes. That why you explain her story -- signed by the WWE at a young age to be a centerpiece of their women's movement, but forced to appear in reality shows and then kept under contract and forced to sit at home.

If you stick your finger in the wind, you can feel that pro-female agency is a big thing in culture at the moment. It obviously spreads over to politics more importantly, but it's certainly going to be present in sports and entertainment. Forcing a young girl to sit out her prime years at home because she got a contract pressed into her face before she was old enough to drink is an instant babyface story for Paige to overcome when she shows up somewhere else.

You want people to ask "Who is that? Where has she been?" and if the answers are "She used to work for WWE and they've had her under lock and key for four years" it instantly builds her prestige.