Slam Dunk
Slam Dunk
STATUS: Heel. Feuding with Roxy Powers.
WRESTLING: Not too super. Slam does a lot of legdrops and (as the announcers will tell you) "putting the boot in". But, since her physique is a lot closer to Reggie Miller's than to Anthony Mason's, it doesn't usually look like those moves would hurt all that much. Her main finisher, the chokeslam, is improving. She has another finisher, the airplane spin, that would look lame no matter who did it. WOW seems to want to push her as an Andre the Giant "monster" type, but given her physique, maybe she should work in more aerial moves. She might be pretty good at it, and since she's a basketball player, it only makes sense that she should jump around anyway.
CHARACTER: Slam is definitely trying really hard, and unlike many of the other wrestlers, she has some material to work with. Her references to "mealy-mouthed" and "fisheyed" fools show an originality of phrase that is lacking in a lot of the other WOW cliche-ridden dialogue. Mr. T would be proud! She's got catchphrase after catchphrase -- "I am, I slam", "the Superior Athlete", "the 6'3" power forward", "the Big Baller", "that's my name, that's my game, and that's my fame", "you've been fouled out", etc. etc. Some are lame, some are cool...there are certainly a lot of them. Like the Rock, she can do an entire interview just by stringing them all together. "I am, I slam" is the lamest in my opinion, just because it makes no sense. She'll go, like, "I need some competition, because you know why? I am, I slam." They should just drop that one in my opinion and go with the other 19 of them.
The announcers used to say at all of her matches that "she has a bad attitude, just like the NBA players of today". I guess eventually the writers realized that people can't hate basketball players that much, since basketball is still a lot more popular than women's wrestling, and dropped that whole thing. She still bumps the ref every match, though, giving the announcers the opportunity to piously describe how she would never make it in the WNBA. It's a little over-the-top. In keeping with the "monster" heel image, she screams a lot at random intervals. This doesn't work too well either.
LOOKS: Her face is actually not that bad, but...nah.
COMMENTS: Slam is often criticized for "just being big" and "having no real skills." Considering that these are the exact same criticisms that are often made of her L.A. Laker counterpart, Shaquille O'Neal, Slam must be doing something right in terms of getting her character across. I think, if they just fine-tuned her act a bit, she would be great. Drop the airplane spin, drop the random screaming, and change her wrestling style a bit. Then you'd really have an excellent heel, I think, when you throw in her mic ability.
UPDATES:
2/11/01 (show #19):
- The feud with Roxy Powers continued, as Slam won a disputed match. The feud
is clearly being "strung out" over a series of matches, and feels
a little forced, but it is probably the best thing they can do with these two
characters right now. I see Roxy as the ultimate victor, leaving the question
of what is to be done with Slam once she is no longer the undefeated monster
heel. I guess that's when she gets her title shot. Strange how that works.
2/18/01 (show #20):
- Slam had some great mic work this week, and bump-addict referee Josh Milton
gave her her best chokeslam yet. She fights Roxy in a strap match next week.
2/25/01 (show #21):
- Roxy beat Slam in a rather lackluster strap match. Sooooooo...now what?