Well, just when the afterglow of WrestleMania has started to fade, now things start getting bad — yes, Total Divas is back on the air. Welcome back to SLAM! Wrestling’s hate-watch recaps. When the show ended last time, draft day was imminent and many of the Divas were worried. Some that their men would be drafted to the other brand, and others that there wouldn’t be a place for them at all. Find out the fallout by checking out the full recap below.
It’s the day before Draft Day, and backstage, everyone’s happy to see Daniel Bryan make his return to TV as the Smackdown General Manager. The show then flashes back a couple of weeks to show us how we got here…
Nikki and Brie are training. Nikki is trying to get back onto the active roster. While her doctor has cleared her, fortunately, WWE hasn’t, so we don’t have to see her, for the time being anyway. Brie’s convinced that Nikki will fight her way back, though.
Backstage, Eva Marie is hopeful that she’ll be drafted, while Paige is bummed because her injury means she’s definitely out. Meanwhile, Naomi and Renee are reading internet speculation that they will be split away from Jimmy Uso and Dean Ambrose, respectively, and WWE suit (actually, he’s wearing a tux in this episode) Mark Carrano confirms that either situation is a definite possibility. He basically tells them that if it’s “best for business”, it will be done. Carrano drops a bomb telling Naomi that he thinks she’ll be fine, but that Renee may be upset, before walking away.
Renee suggests that she’ll quit if she and Dean get split up, like she’s a high school girl whose parents forbid her from dating the local bad boy hooligan.. To me, she should count her blessings, given Ambrose’s probable drinking problem, his general downward career trajectory *cough* Mania pre-show *cough*, and the fact that he’s pretty much an unlikeable douche based on his appearances on this show.
The next day, Nikki goes to visit the WWE doctor for an evaluation. Nattie suggests she take her comeback slowly, given the seriousness of a neck injury, and wonders if Nikki is pushing herself too hard too soon. She’s so worried that she won’t even work with Nikki at full intensity for fear of hurting her during her evaluation.
Backstage, Paige gets informed that her MRI results are in, and she’s hoping she’ll get the clearance to come back to the ring. The doctor tells her that she doesn’t need surgery, which is good, but that there are still problems that require her to do some physical therapy.
Elsewhere, Naomi and Jimmy talk about what may happen if they get split up. Typically, he”s pretty jokey about the situation, but when she gets mad, he says he’s just hiding his stress about the possibility with humour. She walks away, still extremely scared about the idea.
Eva Marie, who’s still unsure if she’ll be drafted, goes out to lunch with her family. They’re fully supportive of her and give her a pep talk until she feels better.
At the Development Centre, Nikki’s training with an MMA fighter who wants to push Nikki hard in her training. Nattie walks in, and gets into an argument with the fighter, who suggests they start working on neckbreakers to really put Nikki’s recovery to the test. Nikki insists Nattie do it, but Nattie pulls her aside. She tells Nikki that she’s concerned about her pushing the limits, but Nikki tells her that she’s fine and that in order to live out her dream and return, it’s necessary to do it. Nikki tells Nattie that if she doesn’t help her, she’ll find someone else.
Which flashes us forward to Draft Day.
Backstage, there’s a real nervous energy in the locker room about what’s going to happen. Renee was told in advance she’s going to be on the blue brand, but doesn’t know where Dean will end up. Lana and Maryse seem pretty sure they’ll be drafted along with Rusev and Miz, presumably because neither of the women are active wrestlers. But for everyone else, it’s a crapshoot. Well, except Nikki, of course, because she’s still training at the Performance Centre.
Renee is thrilled that Ambrose will be joining her, as Shane and Bryan pick him as their number one draft pick. Lana is saddened that she’ll be split up from her BFF Nattie, as they end up on different shows. As all this is going on, Jimmy and Naomi are figuring out what their lives will be like if they’re separated, realizing they’ll only have one night a week when they’ll be at home together.
Bad news for Paige, who gets separated from her boyfriend Alberto Del Rio. The complete opposite of Naomi’s situation, who gets on the same show as Jimmy. Paige is obviously and visibly upset by the development. Eva Marie, though, is thrilled that she made the cut, but – just like in the ring – botches her celebration, whooping about being called to RAW when, actually, she wasn’t.
Back in the training centre, Nikki calls Brie and wonders if nobody will want to work with her out of fear of hurting her, like Nattie did. She says that in order to have her huge comeback, she needs support from her friends and colleagues. Brie suggests she talk with Nattie.
Instead, Brie heads over to Nattie’s house to have the discussion. Brie shares her experiences of feeling the itch to return to the ring, even though she’s retired, and tells Nattie that Nikki is feeling it even more, so it would be nice of Nattie to help her. Nattie is just worried about hurting someone coming back from such a major injury. Brie tells her that Nikki will need a support system to help her, and that they think Nattie is the right person for the job. Nattie hears her, and she says she’ll do whatever she can to get Nikki back on the show. Booooo! Boo Nattie!
Backstage at the first post-draft TV, Lana is upset, because her friends aren’t there. In order to make things better, she decides to focus on breaking out and becoming an in-ring star on her new show. But Carrano puts a pin on those dreams, telling her there are no plans to have her wrestle, but rather simply be Rusev’s valet. She says she’s going to do what it takes to prepare for an in-ring career, and he wishes her luck. Later, she runs into Nia Jax, and unloads her drama on her, but Nia walks away. Later, she’s reduced to trying to Face-Time Nattie or Naomi, and even talking to the backstage crew.
The next night, Nikki is doing a backstage photo shoot, as she’s still employed as an Ambassador for the company, while her in-ring plans are still worked out. Nattie finds her, and she apologizes for doubting her comeback. She explains that a lot of her fears were for personal reasons (it’s not said, but because her husband TJ is out after a neck injury of his own). She says she’ll do she can to help Nikki come back at full speed, and the two make up. Nikki then looks wistfully at the ring, vowing to come back soon.
Backstage, Paige is really sad, and tells Alicia that she’s having a breakdown over being split up from Alberto. She says that he was the only guy he ever loved, and not being with him is tearing them apart. Alicia tries to talk some sense into her, saying that they’d only been together for a little while anyway, but Paige says that they had built a life together. She sobs miserably for a bit, and says she has to now re-evaluate everything about her life. Being that I signed up to continue these recaps, perhaps I do too.
Bob Kapur drank a few draughts while writing this recap. E-mail him some hangover cures at bobkapur@hotmail.com.
