It has been evidently concluded that there are plenty of people out there who just think Christy Hemme is a flash in the pan, or that she has no business being in the ring unless she's shooting t-shirts out of one of those novelty cannons. However, she continues to grace the presence of millions (and millions) of viewers of RAW every Monday night. What are the reasons for this" Is it because there is more to the fiery little red-head that has eluded us to this point in time" Is it because there is virtually no actual female talent left on RAW now that Molly Holly has been shown the door" Then again, the Diva Search winner did just grace the cover of Playboy magazine. This isn't new to the ladies of the WWE as it has previously been done by Sable, Joanie Laurer (Chyna) and Torrie Wilson.

Actually, Sable and Mrs. Billy Kidman have both graced the magazine twice. Of course, it could also be verified that the first three to pose, all chose to pose in what could be considered the "prime" of their WWE careers. Maybe it is just coincidence, but could posing for Playboy be a curse" It's time to take a look at the facts before us. Sable posed, and was then released due to a rather "controversial" lawsuit. Things settled, and she made an unexpected return, and was then gone once her boyfriend Brock Lesnar decided he would give football a try. Then there's Joanie Laurer, who saw her popularity skyrocket to places never seen as she crossed over from wrestling to the celebrity status, she was becoming well known outside of the squared circle. Then her contract expired and she has since been demoted to D-list celebrity. You can catch her on the latest season of the Surreal Life. Then there is Torrie, she's still kicking around on SmackDown! As important as those bikini contests are, it can be argued that she hasn't really done anything spectacular since coming over to the WWE. Her marital ties to Billy Kidman are likely what keeps her with the company. Plus she's also good for the WWE's charitable endeavours. So that brings us to Christy, and the focal point of this article. She chose to show her goodies much faster than anyone else. So far it has done a world of good changing her from JUST a $250,000 Diva Search winner, to the second most popular female personality on RAW. For those who aren't in the know, Christy did have some experience on television before as one of the ladies on Comedy Central's the Man Show. So going from being a piece of eye candy on a lower budget television show, to becoming a piece of eye candy on only the biggest show on primetime television, oh wait isn't that actually Desperate Housewives" Anyway, Christy is presently transforming from just another diva, to the next great female grappler. That puts her in the same company as Trish Stratus, Victoria and Lita. This is where things get interesting because as mentioned at the beginning, people have been quick to write Christy off as being a potential wrestler in the business. Then again, there were plenty of haters who didn't think Trish could mix it up in the ring with the exception of being in a lingerie pillow fight. Now she is the top female talent on RAW. So is it wrong to consider Christy in the same light as Trish" For the time being, the two are miles apart in wrestling ability, but much closer than some would think in what it takes to being a diva. So with that in mind, let's first separate Christy from the rest of her fellow diva search alumni who are presently a part of the company.

First up on the chopping block and I mean that figuratively and literally is Candice Michelle. She participated in the $250,000 Diva search contest. Naturally she did not win, but she was still given a position on RAW as the new makeup artist. Guess the last one must have quit and an opening became available. Now that's convenient isn't it" Next up is Maria Kanellis. Better known as the Terri Runnels of the next generation! She hails from Ottawa, Illinois and the former Playboy playmate brings her "skills" to RAW as the new Terri Runnels! You know, the one who does those pointless backstage interviews and usually gets assaulted by the end of it, one thing for certain if she gets cut by the WWE sometime down the road, she has a bright future in the world of adult entertainment. That girl can moan with the best of them. Now moving along to the SmackDown! side of the Divas, we have Joy Giovanni. I'll admit it, I like Joy a lot. I mean you got to give her props for being named the SmackDown! rookie diva for 2005. Anyone who wants to point out that 2005 isn't over yet can go ahead and do so. There is word that Joy could join Christy in the wrestling ranks, until that happens let me just reiterate that Joy is one hot mama, but a wrestler" Try envisioning that without falling over in hysterics. That leaves us with Michelle McCool; her calling card is as a personal trainer to the wrestlers on SmackDown! She supposedly has a background in gymnastics and kickboxing, so this personal trainer thing might actually be a good fit for her. Just keep her away from the ring and it will do everyone a world of good. So really, when you take a look at all the Diva Search winners who made it over without actually winning the competition, you can't really argue that Christy deserved to win. It also helps that the WWE is by no means making any of the other diva stalwarts look even remotely as good as Christy out there. Now it's time to take a closer look at Christy's work in the ring. As in the matches she's been involved in that could be filed under wrestling.

Before even starting, let's take a moment to remember how Trish looked the first few times she wrestled in the squared circle. Some of those matches, although visually appealing, didn't exactly convince people that Trish could actually get things done in the ring. Now she has multiple WWE women's championship titles to her credit and all it took was hard work, and a hell of a lot of shoving Trish in our faces week after week until she became what she is today. An adequate wrestler who can only get better, and one of the best personalities on the mic, she's up there with Kurt Angle and Chris Jericho as one of the best jabbers. So what about Christy" Well since she's being trained by Lita, it is natural to see Christy emulate most of her moves. The twist of fate although sluggish looking is a decent enough finisher until she can come up with something more creative, and until she gets a real wrestling repertoire, those kicks will have to do and they look like they would certainly leave a mark. As for mic skills, well you'd think these would be natural talent but seeing how Trish evolved on the mic, there is hope that Christy will follow suit. Christy right now would make the ideal face to Trish's heel, but don't be surprised if Christy plays the bad girl role even better given the chance. So there isn't much to go on in regards to Christy's experience in the ring but a prime example, and really the only example worth analyzing would be her historic bout against Trish at WrestleMania 21. Anyone who thought Christy was going to win the championship would likely need to get their heads examined, but for those who actually chose to watch the match compared to using it as an excuse to go to the bathroom; they would see clearly one individual carrying the other along to make the match seem half decent. It is probably a good thing that the match didn't drag on because Christy looked very green out there. There is always going to be matches where one superstar outclasses the other. Have to give Christy her props for just going out there and doing something she wasn't originally hired to do. For her first major pay-per-view match however, she got through it without putting the crowd to sleep. It only took her one match to look better than Chris Masters. Heck it wasn't even the worse match on the card.

Can anyone say Big Show/Akebono without using the word stinker" Anyway, with a little bit of seasoning, and some actual training, we could be looking at a very different Christy Hemme a few months down the road. That is if the WWE chooses to run with the idea of her being a wrestler. There are worse storylines on RAW, and there are certainly worse wrestlers being broadcasted on our televisions as well. So why not give Christy a chance" Unless the WWE plans to bring in a surge of top female wrestling talent, like it or not, she's really #4 on the depth chart behind Trish Stratus, Victoria and Lita. Plus with Lita currently on the injured-reserve list, it means that there's bound to be more Christy than we can shake a stick at. It's the same thing that happened when the WWE was pushing Trish as a wrestler. It was painful at first, but looking back on it; these experiments in the ring were much more pleasing than seeing those awful Trish/Steph feuds, or Trish's involvement with Mr. McMahon. It is refreshing to see the WWE not resort to putting Christy through the same treatment they did for Trish. One can even look past her lip locks with Lilian Garcia, and Eugene as a shabby way to get airtime.

So what does make Christy Hemme the anti Trish Stratus" Is there anyway you can actually compare these two on the same scale" Only if you can look back into Trish's early days with the company and identify that Christy is going through the same trials and tribulations. There were plenty of people who wanted to see Trish fall flat on her face, and she has now silenced the majority of those critics and continues to improve all her facets in the company. Christy is still new to the business, and it will take a fair amount of time for her to obtain a level that could be anywhere near that of Trish. It could be debated that no current diva comes close to Trish, and that's where Christy comes in. The newest face of RAW (and Playboy) is well on her way to becoming more than just a novelty. She has the character, the looks, and the attitude to go as far as her petite body can take her. She's come a long way since the Man Show, and is currently part of the future of the WWE. So it's time to give the anti-Trish her due, Christy Hemme is here to stay.

by Avi Krebs..