Line #69 Wrestling/Sable


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wwe-sable-picture_1086.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Sable as WWE Women's Champion.]]
3
4	-> ''"This is for all the women who want to be me, and the men who come to see me!"''
5
6	Rena Marlette Lesnar (née Greek, born August 8, 1967), better known as Sable, is an American model, Wrestling/{{WWE}} valet-turned-Diva, and one of the faces of the company's so-called Wrestling/AttitudeEra along with Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin.
7
8	She debuted in 1996 as a valet to Wrestling/TripleH and her (largely forgotten) then-husband, [[Wrestling/MarcMero "Marvelous" Marc Mero]], and had an [[MsFanservice immediate effect]] on the fans. Whereas Mero's career stalled as the result of injury, Sable's star continued to rise in his absence. Within a year she had become hugely prominent, with WWE reviving their women's division and [[SpotlightStealingSquad building it around her]], even though she was not a wrestler herself.
9
10	This described arguably started the trend of [[ScrewTheRulesImBeautiful placing looks over wrestling ability]] in WWE. Regardless, she is recognized as a mighty ratings weapon in the Attitude Era and the prototypical WWE Diva -- although technically [[Wrestling/TammyLynnSytch Tammy Lynn "Sunny" Sytch]] and [[Wrestling/TerriRunnels Terri "Marlena" Runnels]] were playing the Diva archetype before Sable arrived in WWE, and Terri was the one to first use the word on television, though never really credited for it. Sable was a 1x [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wwe/wwf-wm.html WWE Women's Champion]].
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12	She and Wrestling/BrockLesnar married in 2006; the couple have two sons. She is not to be confused with the IWRGWrestling/{{CMLL}}Wrestling/{{AAA}} Luchador of the same name.
13	----
14	!! "Sablelicious Tropes":
15	* AbortedArc:
16	** Her storyline with Tori was abruptly ended after Nicole Bass debuted as her bodyguard. She left WWE not too long afterwards, but Tori never got a real payback on her.
17	** She made exactly one appearance on '' Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro'' as an audience member. She was supposed to be the driver of the infamous "white hummer",[[note]]See Wrestling/SidEudy's YMMV page for that one.[[/note]] but this was dropped when she couldn't get out of her no-compete clause.
18	* AllAmazonsWantHercules: She is married to '''BROCK LESNAR!!!''' Before that to Marc Mero, who was a Golden Gloves champion. She clearly has a thing for men who can fight.
19	* AmazonianBeauty: As much as the fans loved her looks, they loved it even more when she actually did moves in the ring. Also, the best-remembered parts of her ''Sable Unleashed'' video was the workout scenes. Sable had an alleged 150 lb (68 kg) bench press; while this may have been an exaggeration she demonstrated many times that she was stronger than she looked.
20	* ArchEnemy: Wrestling/{{Jacqueline}}, Wrestling/LunaVachon and Wrestling/TorrieWilson. In her second run, Wrestling/StephanieMcMahon. She tends not to make too many friends.
21	* AscendedExtra: Like other valets at the time (see: Wrestling/{{Goldust}}'s Marlena, who wordlessly puffed on a cigar), all that was required of Rena Mero was to [[http://41.media.tumblr.com/ea4c67d909d6c13c7aa9225e86842be2/tumblr_nr8weuBHd01r7dh6wo1_500.png smile]] and look enigmatic -- e.g. be "classy", according to the commentators. Her first spoken line of dialogue wasn't in a match, but rather an adbreak for Milton Bradley's ''Karate Fighters'' board game: ''"When it comes to Karate Fighters, Tiger Ninja's ''my'' Wildman!"''
22	-->'''''Website/{{WrestleCrap}}'':''' Now I know how [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Lisa Simpson]] felt when she got her talking Malibu Stacy doll.
23	* BarelyThereSwimwear
24	** Her infamous bikini contest against Jacqueline where she had hands painted on her breasts. Her idea actually.
25	** The sort-of suit she sort-of wore for the "Miss Slammy" contest at the 1997 Slammy Awards would also qualify.
26	* TheBeautifulElite: Both the Too Good To Be True and Evil varieties; breathtakingly beautiful, always dressed to the nines, perfect body, gracious to all her fans, powerful and independent...also manipulative, scheming, selfish and ready to pull out the claws.
27	* BerserkButton: Does not like it when people go after her face. Both Tori and Torrie found this out the hard way.
28	* BitchInSheepsClothing: For one of the most beautiful women in all of wrestling history, her character could be quite ugly on the inside. And if you believe Wrestling/JimCornette and various others who worked with her, it wasn't just her gimmick.
29	* BraidsOfAction: Always wore her hair in a braid or ponytail whenever she was in a match. It's safe to say that if her hair was down, she wouldn't be wrestling. Though averted in her second run with the company as she would wrestle with her hair down.
30	* BreakoutCharacter: [[Wrestling/TammyLynnSytch Sunny]] was the prototype, but Sable helped win the Wrestling/MondayNightWars, thanks to her segments being consistently some of the highest rated during the Attitude Era. When Sunny was off doing her thing, ''[[Wrestling/WWERaw Raw]]'' was still getting trounced in the ratings by ''[[Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro Nitro]]''. (And in fact, WCW tried wooing Sable over to their camp in 1999.) She also posed for ''Playboy'' and received numerous TV offers, as well as her own comic book series.
31	* TheBusCameBack: Sable disappeared from WWF in 1999 with no explanation (in reality, she filed a lawsuit against the WWF alleging sexual harassment and unsafe working conditions. The case was settled out of court). She abruptly returned in 2003 to the surprise of many.
32	* {{Catfight}}: It's what she was best at doing.
33	* CatchPhrase: "This is for all the women who want to be me. And the men that come to see me"
34	* ChekhovsGunman: Showing how well WWE creative team can plan storylines in advance, [[Wrestling/TerriPoch Tori]] was shown in the crowd watching Sable's matches as early as October 1998. She wasn't properly identified as a plant until January 1999 when she snuck into the ring to give Sable a yellow rose.
35	* CoolShades: Her usual all-black ensembles in TheNineties consisted of these and a nightgown with something sultry underneath.
36	* DefeatByModesty: It's how she lost the first ever Evening Gown match. Inverted with how she lost the Women's Championship. She defeated Debra in an evening gown match but Commissioner Wrestling/ShawnMichaels stepped in and stated that in his opinion the woman who had lost her dress was the real winner and awarded the title to Debra. This would be her last TV appearance until 2003.
37	* DefeatMeansFriendship: After Wrestling/TorrieWilson 'defeated' her in a bikini contest, Torrie planted a kiss on Sable to show there were no hard feelings. Indeed, they didn't show any ill-will towards each other for a while.
38	* DomesticAbuse: After Sable's grow in popularity, WWE turned Marc Mero into a hateful, HenpeckedHusband, a move which culminated with the absolute atomization of any career that it could be said Mero had. During his heel run in late 1997, he berated her constantly and looked to be on the verge of hitting her. She once took off her sunglasses and there was a bruise under one of her eyes, which was explained away as her having been [[CutHimselfShaving kicked by her horse]].
39	* EffortlessAmazonianLift: She was strong enough to casually [[FinishingMove Sablebomb]] Marc Mero.
40	* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Was cheered for having blonde hair and a great body.
41	* FaceHeelTurn: After her issue of ''Playboy''[='s=] sales skyrocketed, she "went Hollywood" and became a primadonna.
42	* FauxActionGirl: Sable tended to bring this out in her opponents, especially Luna and Jacqueline during her first run. Since she was limited in the type and amount of bumps she could take, this often left them looking unusually ineffectual.
43	* FinishingMove: In her first run with the company she used the TKO or the Sable Bomb.
44	* GiantWoman: In her spot for the [[Creator/{{Syfy}} Sci-Fi Channel]]'s "I am sci-fi" campaign, a parody of ''Film/AttackOfThe50FootWoman''.
45	* GroinAttack: To Marc Mero in the match that won her the Women's Championship.
46	* HonoraryTrueCompanion: Sable was associated with Wrestling/TheOddities a few times in 1998, though she was never an official member of the stable.
47	* IHaveBoobsYouMustObey: She turned many boys in the IWC into men. Breasts are [[http://31.media.tumblr.com/2be930d4a1b32d1f6df2d975568e7aaf/tumblr_mx3my0VwJS1rqtfr5o1_250.gif wonderful things.]]
48	* InformedAbility: See FauxActionGirl above. She had no wrestling training but the commentators would talk her abilities up. This was subverted in her second run with the company where she was with the {{Fanservice}} girls on [=SmackDown=] - almost to the point of being inverted. She was presented entirely as a manipulative seductress, commentators rarely mentioning that she was a former Women's Champion.
49	* ItsAllAboutMe: Her ''Playboy'' cover went to her head in storyline and she didn't care that her fan Tori was being attacked by Luna. She just continued to wave and blow kisses to her fans and then turned on Tori for not being able to "get the job done".
50	* KickChick: She used a lot of kicks in her first run with the company. The crowd went wild when she gave Goldust a kick in the ring at ''[=WrestleMania=]''.
51	* KickTheDog: Joined Vince [=McMahon=] in bullying Zach Gowen (a wrestler with only one leg) in the summer of 2003 - and unlike Vince, never received a comeuppance for it unless you count Stephanie attacking her in a parking garage and ripping her shirt off and exposing both her breasts on national TV. (They were blocked by a CensorBox.)
52	* LeotardOfPower: This was her preferred choice of garment to wrestle in.
53	* MeaningfulName
54	** The sable is a lithe carnivore with lustrous dark brown fur, [[PrettyInMink often worn by]] [[FurAndLoathing the wealthy and/or famous]]. [[BitchInSheepsClothing Then again, it's a close relative of the weasel...]]
55	** Also a bit of ThemeNaming - she debuted when Marc Mero was using the "Wildman" gimmick.
56	** And going off the FurAndLoathing point, she debuted as Triple H's valet - back when he was still playing his blue blood character.
57	* MsFanservice: Sable's sex-symbol status was promoted heavily by the WWE. And the first time she appeared in ''Playboy'' it became one of the best-selling issues in the magazine's history.
58	* NotInTheFace: As a heel, Sable would go mad if she were attacked in the face.
59	* PowerStable: Replaced [[Wrestling/DonCallis the Jackyl]] as the leader of Wrestling/TheOddities following their face turn.
60	* ProductPlacement: InUniverse. While Marc Mero was recovering from his knee injury in mid-1997, Sable would occasionally be used to model the latest T-shirts on ''Raw.'' There was actually a CallBack during Mero's initial heel turn, with him accusing her of using the WWF as her "personal catwalk."
61	* SexySecretary: Sort of in 2003. Vince appointed her Stephanie's secretary against Stephanie's will. It was only a couple of weeks before it led to a full on feud between them.
62	* ShaggyDogStory: Her feud with Tori. It comprised of Sable abusing and belittling her for weeks, leading to a ''[=WrestleMania=]'' match. Rather than ending with Tori defeating Sable for the title, Nicole Bass debuted and helped Sable win - and the feud was dropped straight away.
63	* ShamelessFanserviceGirl: A black thong and [[BodyPaint hands painted]] on her breasts. Enough said.
64	* SmallNameBigEgo: This was the basis for her heel turn. After her ''Playboy'' cover sold millions, fame went to Sable's head and she became an arrogant primadonna.
65	* TheSmurfettePrinciple: When Sable debuted there were only two other women in the company, [[Wrestling/TammyLynnSytch Sunny]] and Marlena. Wrestling/{{Chyna}} followed in February 1997 and Luna Vachon returned in November, with Jacqueline, Tori, Debra, Ivory and Miss Kitty following.
66	* SpyCatsuit: One of her trademarks, although she never wrestled in them.
67	* StatuesqueStunner: At 5' 8", she's just tall enough to qualify. Of course she usually wore heels, which put her close to 6 feet.
68	* {{Stripperiffic}}: Occasionally but almost never in the ring though apart from ''[=WrestleMania=] XV''. The Slammys come to mind as well.
69	* TakeThat:
70	** Her Les Yay angle with Wrestling/TorrieWilson was actually one directed at Sable - see What Could Have Been on the Trivia page for details.
71	** Also came close to receiving one after she left. On the August 23, 1999 ''Raw'', Wrestling/StevieRichards and The Blue Meanie presented the first "The Blonde Bytch Project" vignette. It was scrapped out of concern for her lawsuit and because, allegedly, Vince [=McMahon=] was unaware of ''Film/TheBlairWitchProject'' and didn't know how many people would get the joke.[[note]]A similar fate would befall Paul Burchill's {{Pirate}} gimmick in 2006, due to Vince not knowing about the ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' movies.[[/note]]
72	* TeethClenchedTeamwork: She and Marc Mero grudgingly put their differences aside for the sake of a mixed tag match against Luna and Goldust at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 14''.
73	* TookALevelInBadass: Wrestling-wise, when she returned in 2003. She took more hits and bumps than she had in her previous run with the company - though she didn't get into the ring as often.
74	* ToplessnessFromTheBack: In one of her backstage segments, Sable flashes Torrie Wilson with her back to the camera.
75	* TraumaticHaircut: She was the victim of one when Jacqueline attacked her from behind and cut a chunk of her hair out. Jacqueline would then wear the hair in her own braid to mock Sable further.
76	* UrExample: Of what a WWE Diva is thought to be. She, [[Wrestling/TammyLynnSytch Sunny]] and later Wrestling/TrishStratus were the TropeCodifier.
77	* TheVamp: And how! On the June 12, 2003, ''[=SmackDown!=]'', Vince [=McMahon=] defeated [[Wrestling/HulkHogan Mr. America (Hulk Hogan in a mask)]] in an arm-wrestling match when Sable flashed Zach, although, of course, nothing was actually shown on screen. As mentioned in the InformedAbility entry, Sable mostly played the part of a manipulative seductress who used her sex appeal to get what she wanted.
78	* WardrobeMalfunction: During her feud with Stephanie [=McMahon=], the two divas got in a fight in an underground parking garage. During the fight, Stephanie ripped off Sable's top, causing the latter's breasts to briefly be exposed on live television.

Context Wrestling / Sable