There is another reason why I say Molly doesn't need to be working with Victoria in a feud angle just now...because I get the sense that Noras' character should have an issue not so much with Victoria (despite the OBVIOUS reasons for a feud between the two), but with the way in which she is perceived by all the FANS. (*Note: I am just talking about Molly Holly here, not Nora Greenwald.).Quite frankly, I think the WWE continues to miss out on what COULD BE one hell of a storyline. This to me, is more about the issues that Molly has with the way the fans see her...as a COMEDY ACT. Someone to be laughed at and ignored (I would also say that she could be looked at on-air as being less-'attractive' than the Divas proper...but this is a no-sell. I don't think the average fan looks at Molly as being unattractive at all). This should have been used as the base for her feuds with Trish and Lita over the mid-part of 2003 up until WMXX. Notice something familiar here? Yes, Bret Hart's last big run in the WWF featured him feuding with Austin and HBK and DX, but the REAL feud was Hart's disdain for AMERICAN WRESTLING FANS who cheered on the antics of Stone-Cold and DeGeneration-X. I think if the WWE really wants to 'change' how the modern-day woman of sports-entertainment is to be perceived, then this is a good place to start. Not the ONLY place, by any means, but a good place. Bret Hart was a heel in America, but a babyface in Canada, by singling out American marks as the target for his disdain. In theory, a Molly Holly angle along these lines COULD result in a division among the FANS themselves...a battle of the sexes, with the women cheering Molly on, and the men -because Molly would then be seen as a threat to their weekly T&A quotient by beating up on all of their favorite blondes and Lita-would boo her out of the building...again, in theory. I think that could be cool. It would also involve the whole Women's Division, and you could begin to flesh out all of their personas in reaction to Molly and the interactions with the fans. Molly could see women like Sable, Torrie,Trish and Stacy as an anathema to everything she stands for (titillation for titillations' sake), she could view Lita and Victoria as being 'disappointments'-with Victoria being so because of the way she 'betrayed' the woman (Molly) who gave her her 'big break' and got her started in the WWE, and Lita being so because of Lita's unique interaction with the fans that Molly would have come to 'despise' (from what I have heard about Nora Greenwald and how she treats the fans, this would be ONE HELL OF A STRETCH). Of course, what Molly would 'despise' about the fans is the T&A that they covet, and the fact that they show women who do not have the surgically enhanced bodies, hourglass figures or the exhibitionist attitudes of some of the Raw ladies no respect. In effect, it would come down to plain-janes everywhere vs. the supermodels and the men who love them. This last one, Lita and Molly, would be the most intriguing one-on-one feud for Molly under these circumstances, because it could be VERY fan-interactive and could draw a LOT of heat, if done right. It could also set up face/heel turns for either woman...or even an alliance. Also, Molly could simply disrespect women like Nidia and Alexis Laree (if she ever debuts) in storylines, and could view the Gail Kims and Jazzes of the world as 'necessary evils' as long as they know their place and do not cross her (yes, I still FONDLY remember the Molly 'domination' angle of Gail Kim when the two officially became a duo). This could set up an interesting turn for Gail Kim were she to ever tire of Mollys' bullying tactics...and it could set up one HELL of a showdown between Molly and Jazz. Jazz seems to be completely prepared to show off her multi-talents as a skilled proctologist in the event ANYBODY were to try to push HER around.
This to me should be Mollys' foundation. Clearly delineated and explained. She is the 'average-looking' woman who gets overshadowed by the 'supermodels' and gets held back by the men who love supermodels. So she calls out every fan in every arena she goes to-the men for being, well, men; and the women for NOT standing up like Molly 'has' and making their discontent known...for being 'cowards' and just accepting the situation. For every woman who has suffered the slings and the arrows of such experiences, this to me seems that it could be something that they could get into. Of course, it would create a legit 'grey area' as concerns who is the face and who is the heel, because fan response would-theoretically-be cut sharply down the middle, but if it creates better storylines, who cares if the faces have some heel in them and the heels do some babyface-type things? I don't. Besides, a good heel SHOULD be someone that you not only abhor...but also AGREE WITH. You should always be able to find the truth in what a good heel says and does. With Molly in this angle, think she could pull that all off. It would be IDEAL if Molly were still bald, but it would work with a fully-restored Molly as well. She should impose her will on the announce team to bill her the way she wants to be billed, and any slip of the tongue regarding remarks not related to WRESTLING (i.e., her hair & 'puppies' references) would be followed up with an immediate and painful corrective action-or actions- from Molly Holly...if you get what I mean by 'corrective actions'.
If you are like me, then you are ticked-off that the WWE continues to drop the ball from a creativity standpoint with Molly. They don't have to do a Molly-vs-the-Fans type-angle. They could do ANYTHING at this point, and if it KEPT her on T.V., gave her good opponents to work with, and we got to hear her speak every once in a while, I personally wouldn't care if they made Nora work a Bull-Dyke angle, a postal-worker angle, or even if they made her an evil optometrist. JUST DO SOMETHING. But no. Here's how the WWE drops the ball: 5/31/2004 Raw: Stacy Keibler photo shoot. Todd Grisham. Grisham asks Stacy some questions. Stacy shows how blonde she is. And Todd asks the MAGIC QUESTION: 'Just what does a Diva do?' Notice how Stacy really didn't have an answer? THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A PERFECT PLACE TO START THE MOLLY-Vs.-THE-FANS ANGLE I JUST OUTLINED ABOVE. ALL SHE WOULD HAVE HAD TO DO IS COME OUT, INSULT STACY OR ASSAULT STACY-WHATEVER, BUT SHE COULD HAVE COME OUT AND SAID 'WHAT DOES A DIVA DO? NOTHING. NOTHING AT ALL.' INSERT HEEL INSULT HERE, AND WE COULD HAVE BEEN OFF TO THE RACES. WHAT DOES THE WWE DO WITH THIS OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY SHOW HOW MUCH OF A 'GENIUS' VINCE McMAHON IS?
Nothing. Nothing at all.
I am happy that Nora Geenwald is in a line of work that she loves and gets paid well to do it, but this garbage makes me mad. It makes me mad how Nora and her potential is BEING WASTED. All that aaaaannnndddd... it makes me mad when this lame-ass 'Diva Search'-where you get to make a quarter of a million dollars for being cheap eye-candy and absolutely nothing else (remember, they aren't 'necessarily' looking for a female WRESTLER)-will get more of a push than Nora Greenwald will. And the winner will get more of a push than Nora. Count on it.
STEP TWO IN BUILDING THE PERFECT MOLLY: PROMOTION and ADVERTISING
('Service without reward is punishment' George Herbert, Jacula Prudentum)
Molly Holly needs to be seen more...and HEARD more. I'll say it again: She needs to cut a legitimate, strong, heel promo on Victoria for WMXX...OR, the WWE could do something along the lines of what I outlined earlier, and have Molly cut a promo on the fans themselves. She's been shaved bald and laughed at; it shouldn't be hard to get a good promo out of that. And I don't mean a promo that makes her look like a comedy act. I mean something STRONG; something like the promos HHH cuts. I would use Mick Foley as an inspiration, but I don't know if Nora is that good on the stick. The WWE can still make it work right now. All Molly would have to do is get in the ring, with an obvious purpose, discard the wig and chinstrap, let the fans have it for mocking her, and then let Victoria have it for shaving her head.Mollys' character has always walked a fine-line between strength and vulnerability, and she should never lose that. Remember when Victoria pulled Mollys' wig off, and Molly choked her out...after looking as though she had just watched her best friend die in her arms? Remember the match with Ivory late last year on Heat, just before Survivor Series, where Ivory kicked out of the Molly-Go-Round, and Molly went nuts? That is what I'm talking about. That is acting. She is no Cate Blanchett or Helen Mirren, but in this regard, she is as accomplished at that as ANYONE IN THE WWE, in my opinion. In her promos, over the course of her title run, she doesn't stutter or stammer or sound silly at all. She sounds like a natural on the mic. I have only heard her have one 'bad' day on the mic, I think it was the 10/06/2003 Raw where Shane McMahon crashed Kane into the tractor-trailer in the limo, and Molly came out to do some guest commentary with Lawler and J.R. during a Gail Kim/Lita match. She stumbled over her words a little bit, sometimes you coudn't hear what she was saying, she SOUNDED as if it were her first ever commentary spot-which I think was the case. So there you go. Overall, though, even though she says she has never had any formal training on how to cut a promo in front of a live crowd, she SOUNDS GOOD when she gets to cut a promo. I think there is a ton of untapped potential there for her in a speaking role...remember, Trish was AWFUL on the mic in her early WWF/WWE days, and she is now-along with Ivory-the Standard Of Excellence as far as WWE Diva promos are concerned,so a body can improve. There is a whole world of difference between Molly and these two, but no other women in the WWE (other than Lilian Garcia,who gets PAID to speak) is better on the microphone than Molly. Come on. Gail Kim? Nidia? Torrie? Stacy? Dawn Marie? Stephanie McMahon and Sable? Shaniqua? Miss Jackie? Jacqueline? This isn't even a discussion.The promo is a tried and true method for getting wrestlers and feuds over. Also, I think she should be billed by the announcers as a SERIOUS, NO-NONSENSE TECHNICAL WRESTLER with NO EQUAL in the Women's Division. I really do. It would establish a level of credibility for her if the announcers are talking about something OTHER than her hair or her backside. It would ALSO establish a level of credibility for anyone that Molly puts over-in theory. Raw has put HHH over as being unbeatable. The WWE has put The Undertaker over as unbeatable. The WWE has also put Mick Foley over as being unbeatable in any kind of hardcore match. I don't see why putting Molly over as being (almost) impossible to beat in a straight-up wrestling match could not work either. The Women's Division needs a standard bearer of excellence. Molly should be it...simply because she is a female version of Dean Malenko in her technical expertise, psychology, overall athleticism and ability to put anyone over. How is she 'better' than Dean? She can cut a promo, which was one of many of Deans' many (perceived) drawbacks.Some people have compared Molly to a female HHH. I prefer to look at her as a female Brock Lesnar...with some HHH thrown in for fun. Brock was young and dominant, and liked to HURT people. Mollys' character is young, dominant and likes to HURT people. As a matter of fact, Mollys' youth should be put over as well. She is younger than all of the other women except for Nidia, Stacy and Jackie Gayda. She is actually younger than her 'understudy' Gail Kim. They could actually talk that up, as vs. harping on her hair. In fact, I think everyone should just shut up about her hair and just let her grow it back. I am admittedly in the minority...I liked her better bald. But nothing came of it, nothing will come of it, and it has all turned my smile upside-down. Nobody would even be talking about her hair if Molly were winning matches.Molly should get to set the tone for the announcers to bill her as not just a serious wrestler, but THE premier WRESTLER in the Women's Division, the youngest competitor THAT MATTERS, and is the only female in the WWE fighting for the female fans. She could do that by chastising them both with an in-ring promo, by getting on their cases in the guest commentary booth...or even by assaulting one of the two backstage.
STEP THREE IN BUILDING THE PERFECT MOLLY: ADD-ONS and ACCOUTREMENTS
('Women are never stronger than when they arm themselves with their weaknesses' Madame du Deffand, Letter to Voltaire)
The first step here is Mollys' presentation. If you read this column (this LONG column), then you know how I feel about how Nora Greenwald looks. So there are no changes necessary there...except for one cosmetic thing that I would ADORE. For me, there is nothing like a woman in glasses. I have seen some scans of a bespectacled Molly and ...wow. She wouldn't have to wear them while working, of course, but backstage? During a promo? I'm for anything that is not demeaning to Nora at this point to further the line of demarcation between herself and the Divas, and glasses could enhance her 'repressed, prudish' image.It's certainly not necessary...I think it could just be a nice touch. As for her in-ring attire, I like the corset thing she has going on, but who knows how comfortable that stuff is. Personally, I like the black, white and red outfit and the black outfit with the blue trim and the little tie around her back the best...but that was the OLD Molly. This is the new, and if she continues to wear the corsets, she should also think about maybe getting her name put somewhere on her, in really cool stylized letters. Molly could also use a new Titantron, and perhaps a simple entrance routine that would constantly encourage maximum fan participation. Right now, she just kind of ignores the fans as she walks to the ring. It might be cool if she only acknowledged the women on her way to the ring. Molly could also use some new intro music. Her current music is cool, I like it, but as long as I'm building a 'better' Molly, why not change everything? To that end, I would spontaneously combust if Molly Holly were to EVER come out to 'Superpredators (Metal Postcard)' from Massive Attack. If you have ever seen the movie 'The Jackal' then you know what I am talking about. It's the first song during the opening credits. In my mind right now, with Molly pushed in this direction that I have laid out, there is no other music other than this for her to have.
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