WWE Total Divas: 10 Shocking revelations we come to know from the show
For the last three years, Total Divas has been a part of mainstream WWE. The company seems to be in favour of it, making sure its cast reaps the benefits from being on the show. This rings true for The Bella Twins mostly, who just now scored their own spin-off show Total Bellas.
They will still star in Total Divas, and with the new season, we will see first-time cast members Renee Young, Maryse and Lana.
Total Divas has been a driving force in and out of WWE. The Divas became household names once the show premiered, and for some, it boosted their careers. But like anything else, it has its dark side and its fair share of haters.
Not everyone wants to be a part of the show, and not everyone likes the show.
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For me, I liked the first season. Storylines in the first season reminded me of my Indy wrestling days travelling with my brother. Having a loved one in pro-wrestling is not easy. It tests relationships and friendships.
Most relationships don’t make it, and I liked how they showed that with JoJo in the first season (her boyfriend couldn’t handle the time spent apart). The travelling bit is also a huge part of pro wrestling, and when you travel with others, there are bound to be arguments and mishaps on the road.
Those highlights were great for me, and I think after the first season the show lost touch with that.
However, after the first season, I noticed little things about the show and eventually I was turned off from it. While overall Total Divas is a good thing for WWE, for me, I was over the blurring of lines between scripted and ridiculousness.
It reminded me of why I hate reality shows in the first place. It’s just a scripted show that’s something to watch. It can be entertaining, but sometimes you have to ask yourself, could it be that crazy backstage?
When I went to New Orleans two years ago for WrestleMania, I had attended several Axxess sessions. One of those sessions, I decided to go into Naomi and Cameron’s line. My nephew liked them at the time, and I was getting autographs for him for his birthday.
The line went incredibly slow, and I figured out why in a matter of minutes. It was because the E! crew was filming scenes for the show. I was pretty shocked that they would even try that, especially when Superstars are allowed two hours to sign autographs and take pictures.
The cameras are everywhere, and the company is pretty serious about covering the scenes no matter where they are.
While I haven’t kept up with the show since maybe the third season, I was asked to do this piece. I had to conjure up things that I had heard over time and come up with various facts and opinions to round out this topic.
Some of these aren’t surprising while others just might be.
1. Total Divas is mostly scripted
While this comes as little to no surprise, of course, the show is scripted. Just as storylines are scripted backstage, the show is scripted to follow along with Raw and Smackdown.
Even though the show is ahead of production, the company tries to parallel the stories together to make it seem it’s all played out at the same time.
For the viewers that don’t keep up with Raw or Smackdown, they’re not going to catch onto the differences. But for those that do, it drives them up the wall. If there is anything WWE fans are good at, it is the attention to detail. This isn’t needed for Total Divas apparently.
Another big example of the show being scripted was that the show alluded to the fact that Jimmy Uso and dad Rikishi were not on speaking terms, because of his impending marriage to Naomi. Rikishi duped this claim on Twitter shortly after the episode aired.
#2 John Cena’s dark side
One of the biggest advantages of Total Divas is that Nikki Bella’s boyfriend is John Cena. Having WWE’s top guy on the show is a huge deal and of course, he is featured quite often. We see an entirely different side to Cena and it’s not what everyone thought it was.
Cena turns out to be a control freak and Nikki learns the hard way what it is like to live with Cena. Because of his status, he has to protect his assets and he makes her sign a form to live with him.
Normal people would not even have done that, but on the flip side it gives viewers a different perspective with that story on the show. He was also against marriage and kids, something that Nikki wants. The way he goes about it was pretty shocking for fans.
#3 Real moments
While Total Divas is scripted, it does capture real moments. For example, Natalya had an accident in the ring, when Naomi kicked her a little too hard in the stomach during the match. Those mishaps do happen in the ring, and it was an opportunity for the show to play on that.
Another moment that was highlighted was Natalya’s father’s addiction. That was incredibly sad to see.
Other real moments include the time where Brie threw up on Nikki after a night of partying. When the Divas go out, one can assume, the cameras are set to record and whatever happens, happens.