WWE.com Photo Gallery: The Smackdown Blues

WWE created one of their lately quite rare photoshoot opportunities for the Lady Superstars concurrent with the 1000th episode of Smackdown. The theme? Smackdown tees. Novel? Not so much. Slayable? Abso. The pull toward blandness is understandable, though:  add a pair of pants and ta-da: you’re done. It’s so simple…maybe a little too simple for anyone who considers these activities not as art or expression but as a not especially interesting aspect of the game. Consequently, I can’t help but give a few more XO's to the ladies who put in extra effort to switch things up.
Billie Kay and Peyton each tossed a t-shirt over their ring gear, with Billie going for blue and Peyton for black. Their saving grace is their pose, one of their interesting and unique two-for stances. Billie also scores and extra point for her bright red lip that gives her look a bit of pop. I’m not sure how Charlotte managed to turn her tee into a cutout mockneck piece, but whatever forces she used, I’m down for them. She threw an on-trend sporty spin into her look by adding striped track pants. Her pose drips attitude and I’m here for that. Though not groundbreaking, the snap is 100% solid. Becky and Zelina chose the same leather leggings and were saved from the dread fashion sin of wearing the same look by Zelina opting to make her top a cropped silhouette. Her look works well and her pose is competent . I would have loved to see her chose a punchier lip shade to add a real exclamation point to the outfit. Beckys’s super simple tee needed the impact of the leather leggings to save it from yawnsville. Irl, the success of this look would come down to shoe choice. We don’t get the chance to see Becky’s choice, so I’m just going to imagine she went with some fab pair of boots or sneakers. I won’t dare go so far as wishing for blue suede pointy pumps ;). I’m wild over her hair and make-up here – these nude and peach shades are flawless for her and the soft volume in her hair is crave-worthy!

Carmella’s pose rescues her look from the cliff edge. Black leggings, simple tee. That’s it? From Ms. Fabulous? Womp. That sassy stance keeps me around, though. There are zero doubts that this girl can work it! – which is one of the many reasons I love her …and why I’m giving her a pass on this. Serious points for putting the effort in go to Mandy – I love this all-blue combo of a cropped Smackdown Live tank and a medium wash denim pencil skirt. And girlfriend didn’t stop there! She went as far as completing the outfit with OTK boots, as if this was a full-on photoshoot. Bless, girl! Her pose is fantastic, her hair and make-up are gorge. This is how you make a humdrum ‘shoot spark! Sonya followed the Carmella philosophy, but used a slightly different pair of leggings. She didn’t get the best out of this bff pose, so her snap lacks the redeeming quality of ‘Mella’s. Oh well. I get the feeling this really isn’t her thing and that’s a-okay by me. I just always root for my ladies to kill it cuz truly, killage is always out there in the realm of possibility. Asuka tossed a Smackdown tee over her gear and gave us a pose that’s about as traditional as it gets. This is on par with what she’s done in ‘shoots in the past and I 100% support her choice of a blue tee over black – the extra color is just right with her hue-laden gear. Renee caught my attention with her red and black checked pants – now that’s how to stand out! I even like the super-unique contrast of the red with the turquoise accent shade of her tee. I wish two things for this snap: a brighter lip and a slightly different facial. This snap is so incredibly close to slayage!