WomenWriteAboutComics.com recently spoke with former WWE Diva Champion AJ Lee, and below are some interview highlights:
As a new or casual fan, it’s hard to know how much influence a wrestler has over her ring attire. Can you fill us in any? How much leeway is there for personal aesthetic input re: normative hotness? We can imagine that it’s easy to choose a two-piece outfit for comfort or perspiration reasons, but nobody ever seems to go for a singlet! Or a full-body costume, ‘dust-style.
AJ: I purposely chose to wear a lot of things most people found visually offensive. At first, I picked lots of polka dots and plaid fabrics since it was intriguing to me to utilize something not traditionally feminine or attractive. My thought process was “let’s see if I can succeed while being as innocent as possible.”
I would eventually choose an outfit I felt was a second skin; Converse sneakers, jean shorts, and a cotton t-shirt. I wanted to pick something that reflected my practical style, was comfortable to move in, covered up the goods, and most importantly—was simple to cosplay. I wanted to encourage girls to dress up like me, and in order to do that, the costume had to be instantly recognizable and easily duplicated. Over the years I’ve had hundreds of young women and girls dress up like me for Halloween or at comic cons. It’s wonderfully weird.
Relating to that—what’s really important to consider, when ring attire is being designed? For comfort, for protection, for support (is underwiring worn to wrestle?) How is the dreaded nip slip avoided?
AJ: Ah, the dreaded nip slip. The ever-looming dark cloud of a compromising HDTV screen grab. Never happened to me, but I was also a wizard with double sided tape and often chose a safe bet of a neckline. The key was really to design an outfit with movement in mind.
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
