User blog:CEDJunior/Melina: Face or Heel?

The latest installment of my "Face or Heel?" blogs will highlight one of my all time favorite Divas:  former three-time WWE Women's Champion and former two-time WWE Divas Champion Melina.

Face Melina:  Much like with Beth Phoenix, I actually dreaded the concept of Melina turning face because I loved her so much as a heel. But with her alliance with Beth falling apart in 2008, it was inevitable that Melina was headed for a heroic swerve. It became a foregone conclusion when Beth attacked Melina in a backstage segment. I still remember watching Melina's first weeks as a face and seeing her team up with Mickie James. It was so weird; considering that she was such a nasty heel on TV, and there were rumors that she and Mickie didn't like each other in real life, but a lot of us took those rumors with a grain of salt.

Melina's babyface run got off to a rocky start due to a legit injury that she suffered in June of 2008, but she was back with a vengeance on the day after Survivor Series. She continued her feud with Beth and won her third Women's Championship at the Royal Rumble event. Melina took her babyface role back to the SmackDown roster in that year's draft, but she would be back on Raw just months later. Melina would go on to capture the Divas Championship twice as a babyface, and overall, she shined in feuds with villainous Divas such as Beth Phoenix, Michelle McCool, and Alicia Fox.

Heel Melina: Melina only had one stint as a babyface, but she would have two runs as a heel in her WWE career. Melina's most familar role was as the villainous valet to MNM from 2005-2006, and she would manage Johnny Nitro after they were both moved to Raw. I remember impatiently waiting for Melina to become Women's Champion now that she was on Raw, and it would be a long wait:  eight months. She won her first Women's Championship on February 19, 2007, and she would target the Playboy Divas en route to WrestleMania 23. It was during this crusade that Melina started aligning with Beth Phoenix, and the alliance would last until the summer of 2008.

Melina's villainous side would return by the end of 2010, but it was a steady turn. It began on December 6 after she lost to Natalya; LayCool entered and attacked the then-Divas Champion, but Melina--who had problems with the duo in the past--didn't return to help her. Two weeks later, Melina turned into a villainess and slapped Natalya after she won a #1 Contender's match, and I was elated to see Heel Melina back in full form. Sadly, when 2011 began, little to no stock was put into Melina's evil character. In fact, after she was defeated by Natalya, the evil Melina was relegated to appearances on Superstars. If there was a bright spot involving Heel Melina 2.0, it was her attempt to build up a feud with Gail Kim, Melina brought some darkness to her character by competing in an all black leather outfit, while hurling accusations that Gail was a "horrible friend" to her. Unfortunately, Melina would be released on August 5, 2011.

Regarding Melina, I clearly love her heel side more than her face side, even though she's great at being both. Just like with Gail Kim, when Melina was good, she was really heroic. When Melina was bad, she could be the most evil Diva on the roster. Despite the lack of depth, I did like Melina's second run as a villainess a bit better than her first. As a heel during her first years in WWE, Melina was portrayed as a bit of a spoiled princess. By the time she regained her heel persona in 2010, Melina was more seasoned and a lot more vicious and twisted, at times. We never did get a true explanation as to why she turned heel, except for an unaired promo on January 3, 2011 where Melina gave an evil laugh and stated that she "sometimes gets emotional." Melina is another former Diva who I've wished to see in TNA, preferably as a heel Knockout, but I've given up on that pipe dream.

Face Melina or Heel Melina? Which do you prefer?