In this week’s edition of “A Feminist Sensibility,” we are talking about the world of professional wrestling. During the course of this article, I focus on WWE, largely because it is the brand I am most familiar with and also has the largest female roster in the world of professional wrestling.
First, a little bit of back story. My husband, brother-in-law, and many of their friends are huge WWE fans. When my husband, near the beginning of our relationship, revealed he was a WWE fan, I was astonished. I hadn’t realized that: 1) professional wrestling was still televised, and 2) grown men were fans.
Through the beginning of our relationship, I would watch the “longest running, weekly episodic show on television” in an effort to be the “cool” girlfriend. Soon after that, I was invited to a Royal Rumble pay-per-view viewing party. I was extremely overwhelmed and completely unable to contribute to conversations. I spent most of the night asking, “Who is the one in the purple underwear again?”
Fast-forward four years and I still do not consider myself a “WWE fan,” but I can at least hold a conversation about the participants and tell you who I like and dislike.
Last month, WWE once again held its annual Royal Rumble event. For my husband’s family, this is an occasion marked with pizza, celebration, games, and even prizes. I usually attend this event and lament that my favorite wrestler, Evan “Air” Bourne is nowhere to be found these days.
As I watched this year’s Royal Rumble, I was struck by the lack of female characters. Throughout the pay-per-view, the only women were an announcer and an occasional clip showcasing Stephanie McMahon, the daughter of Vince McMahon, the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of WWE. Even during weekly episodes of Raw, the Divas matches are usually short, uninspired, and contain stereotypical female plot lines.
As a feminist, I’m hugely enamored with the concept of female wrestling. It should be a place where women are able to buck the traditional concepts of gender, focus on building muscle mass alongside the guys, and just wrestle. Unfortunately, the practice of female wrestling, at least in the realm of WWE, turns into a beauty contest and not an athletic event. I’m not saying a woman can’t be both beautiful and strong, because I absolutely think she can. What I am saying is that WWE seems to be more worried about the hair, makeup, and breast implants of their Divas more than actually fostering any wrestling talent they may have.
Furthermore, young female wrestlers who show talent and aptitude in the ring are often forced to take it down a notch for mass appeal. When the wrestler A.J. Lee debuted, I was extremely excited because I liked her and her persona of a nerdy, quirky, non-traditional ass-kicker. She had the potential to join the ranks of other female trailblazers in the industry, including The Fabulous Moolah and the recently departed Mae Young.
True to form for WWE, though, A.J.’s story line quickly spiraled downhill until she was just an accessory to the guys’ action. She was messing with all the male Superstars’ heads, was nearly married off, and was deemed “crazy.” I was no longer excited to see her on the screen and, in my mind, she was downgraded as “just another pretty face.”
As an aside, since I know someone will bring it up if I don’t, let’s talk about the Divas’ skimpy outfits for just a moment. Let me be clear: I have zero problems with the outfits the Divas wear in the ring. This is one instance where I think the men and women are truly equal. The men wear outfits that are just as revealing, and at this point, it’s not about objectification of the body, but more about showing the athleticism of those in the ring. So an occasional boob pops out, but there’s no difference between the guys who ogle Summer Rae and me hoping that I get a glimpse of Christian’s tush.
It is easy to blame the lackluster Divas division on the man at the top of the company. Perhaps the lack of creativity isn’t entirely Vince McMahon’s fault, though. It may just be a reflection of wrestling fans at-large, and that is the conversation we need to be having to change the dynamics.
During the Royal Rumble main event last month, the “WWE Universe” was extremely upset that Daniel Bryan was not a participant in the 30-man battle royal. At the reveal of the final Rumble entrant, the mostly male crowd started chanting, “We want Divas!” The chant was an insult aimed at the organizers and writers. The implication: the inevitability of Batista winning the match was so bad that even watching Divas wrestle would have been a more appealing option.
As a woman watching the Royal Rumble, I was insulted by the “We want Divas” chant. You are damn right I wanted Divas, but not because I was unsatisfied by the Royal Rumble match, but because when I’m watching WWE, I’d like to see something I can relate to (and no, Total Divas is not the answer). I understand WWE has to be extremely careful about putting men and women in the ring together. I’m absolutely certain the last thing McMahon wants to see on-screen in the contemporary, PG-rated version of WWE is a male wrestler beating up a female wrestler, creating a visual representation of domestic violence. But that isn’t to say the current path of WWE is “female friendly.”
If there is one thing I can give McMahon credit for, it is his ability to see how things can change in the future. One of the reasons WWE has been so successful as a company is largely due to McMahon’s ability to see the potential of a nationwide cable television audience before anyone else. What’s more is he’s proving his business savvy once again with the creation of the WWE Network, which debuted yesterday.
I believe McMahon and company have a chance to change my mind and possibly even turn me into a “fan.” With the new network, WWE has a unique opportunity to expand and experiment with what would attract (and keep) a feminist audience. As a first step, I would suggest WWE actually try to employ a female writer (or two, but let’s not get too radical) for the network, since there aren’t any in the company as of now.
I also believe there are men out there who would enjoy a more robust Divas division. I believe this because I watch wrestling with some of these men, and these men send money to McMahon on a regular basis. This is why, even if McMahon doesn’t share my Feminist Sensibility, I hold out hope that he will see the error of his ways when it comes to the Divas and will work with some female creative writers to make the Divas division the best thing it possibly can be — and make some money while he’s at it.
So Mr. McMahon, if you are reading this, please give me a call. I’d love to be the first female creative writer for you, and I’ve got a lot of great ideas on how to make the Divas brand soar.