Very long and heartfelt article Kevin, glad I could here your opinion. Especially at 3 in the morning

Very sad for Gail KIm. How come the number one wrestling company in the world has the worst women's division? WWE is not worth Kim's talent.

So glad Gail Kim got out.

Whilst i understand the lure of money, i said from the start that by going back to WWE she would not only sacrifice the best years of her professional life, but also end up unhappy and no amount of money is worth that.

Good on her for finally standing up for herself and her fellow female workers rather than towing the company line and falling in behind despite WWE using her dreadfully since she returned.

Hopefully she returns to TNA, where, despite all it's issues, quality female wrestling talent is allowed to shine.

HHH is doing a lousy job as COO.

Hey, Kevin, any thoughts on WM27 drawing the second-highest number of PPV buys in WWE history, behind only WM23? The official figures (courtesy of WWE's corporate reports) are 1,118,000 for WM23; 1,059,000 for WM27; and 1,058,000 for WM24.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Two words -- The Rock.

It's nothing less than a disgrace that WWE couldn't create an environment where Melina and Gail Kim could compete. Congrats to WWE if their intention was to make their women's division an embarrassing money-losing joke.

All but Kozlov in TNA by Christmas.

I don't know any of the backstory, so why exactly did Melina fall out of favor with WWE brass?

Can I expect to see Gail Kim on TNA as soon as their taping schedule permits, or will she lay low for a while?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Melina reportedly had some embarrassing public moments, and some of her tweets didn't endear her to WWE management,

Wow. Kev, do you have any insight on this and why? There must be something going on if Gail Kim just quit at the same time.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Gail has been frustrated in WWE for quite a while. Not sure why she chose now to leave.

Few months back it seemed like they were finally gonna use Gail Kim in some capacity by hooking her up with Daniel Bryan, but that was quickly dropped. It's a shame they never allowed her to shine while the Bellas got more airtime.

While some of the "Barbie Doll* looking WWE women's sompetitors have improved their ring ablitly, none of them come close to being the performer that Gail Kim is.

I guess that the writing was on the wall for Melina, because when she was on t.v.lately she was doing the job and her ring enterance was a thing of the past.

Sounds like CM Punk was right about the horrible direction WWE is going what will happen to SmackDown not much of roster domino is starting fall WWE lost TNA's gain .

WWE keeps people around too long doing the same lame schticks.

All those released could still be fresh to people if WWE just put a little energy into developing all the characters, not just a couple at a time.

If they can't do that, then all 5 should have been released long ago.

OR at least keep the characters fresh as jobbers. Is this really so hard?

WWE creative is too old and inbred I fear. THere should be a law against them using the word "creative".

My hope is that the apparent ascension of younger blood with fresh ideas,in the creative ranks like Punk and JEricho, and maybe HHH, helps turn this around.

I'd rather see these guys take the riting and creative process to a higher level more so than even see them run as champions. The overall creative process is way more important and WWE's grade of late is F------.

as far as the released talent go, wwe had the right to get rid of them.

gail kim is an overtrated loser who quit tn a because tna is a money losing cesspool which will never compete with wwe in this lifetime.

gail is marrying a famous chef so she does not need wwe's money anymore and at age 34 she is too old and boring for wwe to invest time in.

melina has mjor attitude issues and wwe does not need her anymore when their are younger women who could fill her spot on the roster .

melina shopuld go ask mickie james how she likes being in tna where the pay is less, the exposure is less and the crowds are small.

I'm surprised JTG wasn't in that list quite frankly! I was surprised to see him in action on Smackdown to boot!

The only 'real' loss out of those 5 there i would have to say was Chris Masters, after his pretty succesful run on Superstars, he could have been a major asset to the Smackdown roster, where despite, Orton, Christian, Henry & Shemus, could have given the show a little bit more 'star' power.

well I hate for anyone to lose their jobs but it looks like WWE losses could be ours and TNA gains just think of a knockouts division with Gail,Melina,Mickie,Tara,Angeina at the top with the other people somewhere in the middle. As far as the other talent goes Kozlov has been jobbing to everyone for a very long time and D H Smith I havent seen in months since I don't watch Superstars but the last time I saw him he was tagging up with tatsu. As far as masters go it looks they were giving him a little bit of a push. I think at least maybe 3 of them will go to TNA with the odd man out be masters since they did not go after him when he was released years ago.

Thoughts on each released wrestlers:

Gail Kim: Absolutely pathetic that, given the absolute sorry state of the Divas, they couldn't find any use for her at all. Kim, along with Natalya, Beth Phoenix and Karma, is one of the most skilled divas in not just the company but in the whole industry. It's good she got out when she did, and hopefully wherever she goes her talent will be used. This was probably due to Vince's ego and getting made that she had the nerve to do a stint with TNA.

Melina: I always thought she was a skilled wrestler, but her backstage attitude and tweets did her no favors. While she has great skill, it's no surprise that she got released:

Vladimir Kozlov: He was stuck with Santino for months. It was only a matter of time.

Chris Masters: I always thought he was better than what a lot of people made him out to be. I guess he never could recover after being released the first time for wellness violations. It's too bad, they should have really given him a second chance.

David Hart Smith: Misused completely. While he obviously isn't as good as the better known British Bulldog, he still had a lot of skill and talent. He's only 25, so he had a lot of room to grow.

WWE is dropping the ball with DH Smith...

One word. Snooki. - And no im not kidding. It's not the wrestlers that sell the WM ppv. WM 23 had Trump and Mayweather. WM 27 had The Rock but also Snooki. I know you dont know watch her show Kev. But on the cover of Rolling Stone and one of the most popular shows on cable tv means a lot.

I find it odd how Melina was the 'Diva Focus' for the 5th of August, yet mere hours later she was released. Was it not planned beforehand...

It seems like Gail Kim and Melina left the WWE together. In the battle royal Melina bent down to tie her shoe before the bell and continued to tie her shoe after the bell, and was just pushed out by Beth Phoenix. Gail looked like she was watching Melina and then took herself out, so it seems like they planned to leave together.

It's obvious now that the only reason WWE signed Gail was to hurt TNA, and they had no real intention of pushing her. They had one of the best women's wrestlers in the world, if not THE best and they didn't even use her. Melina actually had some innovative "manuevers", besides her ring entrance, and seemed to be a good worker. But when she criticized Trish Stratus' involvement in Wrestlemania 27, then that put her in the doghouse for good.

kozlov was going places; now he is gone ... that makes no sense at all ...

Just when things in the Women's division are getting interesting, out goes Gail.

BTW can't help but wonder how much Beth's new bump is a result being Punk's gf.

Hey Kevin, what's the deal with Chris Masters being released? I don't know much about the guy, but was impressed with his in-ring performance against Swagger on Superstars. I also heard he can cut a decent promo. This roster keeps getting thinner and thinner...

And JTG made the cut?

The only letdown on the list is Gail. Melina severely regressed as a wrestler, put on a few pounds and would not stop complaining about everything. I can only hope John Morrison is so upset about this that he gets himself fired. I'm so sick of both of them.

Raw is still Melina.

WWE yet again proves to be its own worst enemy. I've long held the opinion that TNA continues to exist solely because of idiotic management decisions within WWE. Given better decisions and a better direction, I truly believe WWE could eliminate TNA within 6 months.

1) Go back to TV-14 and the more edgy, compelling storylines it allows for.
2) Book and promote younger stars while keeping the fan favorites to help put the new guys over
3) Poach underutilized stars from TNA like Samoa Joe

Taking into account the recently heel turns of Beth and Nattie, do you think this was bad timing on Kim's part? Things will obviously revert back to feel-good Divas at some point, but seems like Kim quit at a time that WWE might just be focusing on stronger women's talent.

if this doesn't follow up with an article w/your opinions on each of the releases. I don't even see why you bothered posting this on here. I can get the news on any wrestling website, I come here to enjoy your and others' opinions and arguments.

You could kind of see most of these coming. Masters seems to use the WWE like a revolving door so no surprise there. Bit of a shame about Hart-Smith as I thought he had potential but he never seemed to do much after the collapse of The Hart Dynasty. A shame about Melina as she was always in the women's title frame just a few years back. Kim is a great worker and a real talent and it wouldn't surprise me if she ends up back in TNA where she can really show her stuff again. Have to say I'm most surprised about Kozlov. He was booked as a monster heel just a few short years back and was on his way to a WWE title programme with Triple H on one of the biggest shows of the year. So it seems if you're given the plush treatment and fancy vignettes in WWE leading up to your debut, it doesn't mean you're going to be around for long.

One of the reasons I started watching TNA was the quality of the women's division. WWE women's wrestling has never been good. Kharma will probably flounder in that corporate wasteland.

Eck, sorry for saying you have bad taste. Obviously, Shawn Michaels rocks. CM Punk rocks. Most iwc guys would say I have bad taste. I just hope someday people realize that WWE really sucks and TNA is better in many ways that matter, including the way they treat their talent, at least from my perspective. Wwe has its moments, but every match looks the same to me. It hasn't been good for years, excluding the CM Punk straight edge angle, which was all Punk. Then they killed it by making him out to be a cult leader. The guys they bring up locally through FCW all have no originality. They all seem way green. Yoshi rocks, but you never see him. Zack seems pretty uninteresting from what I've seen. Hunter and Orton are both generic. Cena is ok, but overbooked.

TNA has more failures, but also more creativity. They could use someone to make sense of all the angles that come and go, which seems to be happening recently.

Eric Young is funny, and I missed him this week.

But, I digress. No big loss for any of these performers. They're probably better off. WWE seems to stifle creativity.

No conspiracy theory. The reason Gail Kim never got a push is that Gail Kim could never sell tickets or promote merchandise sales. Kozlov was saddled with a gimmick that went out of style 15 years ago. David Hart Smith had zero personna and zero speaking ability. Chris Masters just never caught on. Melina was probably her own worst enemy.

I liked Vladaimir Kozlov.
A great tag team guy - he was great mussel for a " loudmouth HBK type".

Him and Tyson Kid would have had been interesting.

But a pure Tag Team wrestler in todays WWE is a dead man walking.

My favorite Vladimir Kozlov moment - Him and Nikoli Volkoff singing the Russian National Anthem.

Gail's a fine wrestler, and a terrific athlete, and she appears to have been something of a role model for the younger women wrestlers in the WWE.

Under the circumstances, you can't fault her for wanting to leave, and for giving her notice and departing.

But from a long term career perspective, I think it probably would have been wise for her to finish up what was left of her contract. She could have then possibly departed on good terms, rather than leaving in that way.

This reminds me a bit of Tom Zenk's abrupt departure from the WWF more than two decades ago. Zenk did make a comeback for a few years in WCW.

With the right packaging, I think Kozlov could have had the same potential as Sheamus. He was a bit of a throwback to the Russian wrestling characters of the 80s like Koloff, Volkoff, and Kruschev, a no nonsense powerhouse.

It´s such a shame that WWE has never given Gail Kim a chance. Why did they hire her at all if they had no plans for her? Just to hurt TNA? That is so pathetic.
Oh and to Shawn Patrick: Believe it or not, I would buy a ticket to see Gail Kim wrestle (and I don´t mean a typical 5 min. WWE divas match).

Snookie would not give me any desire to watch a PPV. To me, it does not matter if she was on the cover of Rolling Stone, Dog Fancy or Dynamite magazine (man I just dated myself). To me, she is an annoying celebutard.

Kozlov was good when he came in. The day he smiled was the kiss of death for him.

Masters is the only surprise on this list. I would love to see him go to TNA and fued with Hernandez.

If TNA played its cards right (and they *never* do), they could bring Gail Kim back and bring Kozlov in under the "wrestling matters" banner. The idea of a throwback to the Russian power men of the 80s is spot on with him, just updated for the 2011 TNA. Imagine, if you weel, Kozlov's debut...

"I came heer because, as you say, "wresling matters". Well, wrestling matters to Kozlov too. I was not given chance in last place because my English is not so good. There, talking matters. I don't want to talk. I want to fight. I want to win championship. I want to be best Russian wrestler ever. Better than Koloff, better than Khruschev, better than Volkoff. I fight good guy, bad guy, pretty guy, ugly guy, small guy, big guy, I don't care. I fight anyone in way of me winning championship. You fans... you want to boo, boo. You want to cheer, cheer. Makes no matter to me. I not fighting you. I want the championship, and no single person here can beat me fair. Let's see if wrestling really matters."

This was a gentle reminder of how the WWE feels about Tag Teams. Three guys who at one point were tag team champions are now looking for jobs with either ROH or TNA. Makes me wonder where Carlito is and hoping he goes to TNA. I dont understand what WWE has against tag teams. Look at TNA. Beer Money, MCMGs, Mexican America, British Invasion, ect. What about WWE? Just what is leftover from the Nexus. Whoppee!!! They have too many guys going for the heavyweight championship, making the Intercontinenal look lame and not that many tag teams. This is why I need both promotions at once.

WWE Divas are equivalent to those movies on Cinemax late at night. Not good at all. They need to do something fast.

"I love double-double E! I love double-double E!"

Gail will come into TNA or Impact and turn heel on Mickie James. Melina, no chance as long as her and Morrison are a couple.
Kozlov, they really missed the boat turning him face. Imagine what kind of heel he should have been, but we don't hate Russians anymore. DH Smith, Japan, or ROH same as Chris Masters. Surprised guys like Primo, JTG, and Curt Hawkins missed this round of cuts. Give Tyler Reks one more gimmick change, or "future endeavor" him.

Melina was right, Stratus didn't need to be in that match.

Its ashame about gail,melina, and dh smith. I am glad they let go masters and kozlov. Especially kozlov he sucked from day one. Im surprised it took them this long to him packing!

tna can beat wwe. wwe is smelly and ugly. no talent whatsoever.

The lost of WCW really caused a logjam of talent in professional wrestling.