The Diva's Revolution looked to be an incredible stepping stone to greatness for the Divas Division in the WWE. Not one, nor two, but three incredible NXT female wrestlers made the move up the roster all at once, as Stephanie McMahon paraded them out into the ring and three factions formed - Team B.A.D., Team Bella and Team PCB.
For a couple of weeks, the action was intense and interesting. Charlotte got the opportunity to go head-to-head with Nikki Bella for the Diva's Championship, even threatening to bring her reign to an end just before she became the longest holder of the title in the history of the business. By the time the title did change hands and Charlotte had picked up the belt, things had become a little stale, and interest from the fans had taken a huge nosedive.
Now the Divas Division sits in limbo. Over on NXT, some of the best matches ever are taking place, such as Sasha Banks' last shot at the NXT Women's Title against Bayley in a 30-minute Ironman match. It's not the first time the females have been given the chance to shine on the NXT product, and it certainly won't be the last. Creative over there are far more daring and invested in their artists than their WWE Raw and Smackdown counterparts.
There are a few ways that WWE can reignite the passion for the Divas Division, and it all starts with dropping the name 'Divas'. That time is done. The word, no matter how hard the show tries to reinvent it, comes with negative connotation and instantly tars all of the ladies with the same brush. The men are called Superstars, instantly painting a picture of a God-like creature adored by millions. Why can't the same be said of the women? 'Our Female Superstars' sounds so much better than, 'Our Female Divas'.
Nurturing a storyline rather than hanging it out to dry after two weeks because the reaction has been lacklustre would also help. These things need time to breathe. Lita and Trish Stratus didn't become icons of the industry overnight. Their feud lasted SEVEN YEARS and managed to survive, going on to become one of the most-talked about rivalries of all time. The start of Paige and Charlotte's rivalry was a little unconvincing because we never saw their time as 'best friends' before Paige turned, and now with Charlotte also flipping to heel mode the waters are getting even murkier. Despite that, now it's happening it needs to be given at least a few months before its culmination.
With Paige taking Charlotte on top of the announce table to deliver the P.T.O. in the past couple of weeks, they need to meet in a Tables match at this weekend's Tables, Ladders and Chairs pay-per-view, and it needs to be brutal! The women haven't for years now been put in a match of this kind, at least that I can remember, so the two really have the chance to do something special with this upcoming match-up. It could even be made a Triple Threat, involving Becky Lynch who managed to beat Paige at this week's Smackdown via submission. Team PCB coming to a head for the Championship at a major pay-per-view? It's the perfect end to their teaming up. Storylines as a whole don't have to have a beginning and end, but instead can change and evolve throughout a longer period of time.
The division also needs another belt to chase after, and there's never been a better time to introduce Women's Tag Titles. New Day are doing incredible work with the male belts - who's to say Team B.A.D. couldn't do the exact same thing? When Nikki Bella returns from her injury and time off, she and Brie could form a formidable team. Alicia Fox could stay by their side, or join up with one of the many underused women. Natalya needs a shot at the main Championship belt right now (watch her NXT Title match with Charlotte again if you need convincing), but she could also become one half of a great tag duo. The possibilities are endless.
When we spoke to Natalya earlier this year, she mentioned she'd love to go after Charlotte's title in a feud which would see them put their family honour on the line. Flair versus Hart. It's an awesome pitch.
She said: "All the Divas want to be the Divas Champion. I really didn't come in with a team, I gave Charlotte and Becky a little help and they helped me out too, but, ultimately I'd like to one day face Charlotte again for the championship. Charlotte and I are good friends. We obviously built that bond through our match at NXT when we had that match that everybody remembers from Takeover. So it'd be a very interesting feud, to see our history, our family's history, and just how we both have had to blaze our own trails in our families.
"Nothing for me, I don't know about Charlotte, I can't speak for her because I'm not her, but I'll tell you one thing, nothing I've ever had has ever been handed to me. It's been a tough road to get to WWE. I think that she feels she's earned her spot as well and I'll give that to her, she's worked really, really hard. As I said I think the outcome would be very different if she and I were to face off in a big showdown, and maybe my time to be the Divas Champion would result from feuding with her. That would be my ultimate dream. It'd be incredible."
Are you listening, creative?
Away from this and looking further down the line, I have my own ideas, this being my favourite.
The Four Horsewomen - Sasha Banks, Charlotte, Becky Lynch and current Women's NXT Champion Bayley - are a much-loved faction due to their incredible work on NXT. What if Bayley gets moved up to the main roster and added into a championship match at WrestleMania, before winning the whole thing? Her first match as part of the main roster, and she'd walk out the WWE Women's Champion at one of the biggest sporting events of the year. Her faction members would rush down to the ring to celebrate with her... only the celebration would be for nothing. The three would turn on her, ruthlessly stomping on her and raining all over her parade. If WWE wants Bayley to become the female John Cena, I'd say this is the best way to go about it.
WWE creative, you can have that idea free of charge. Run with it, and don't mess it up! No kisses and making up after two weeks. No tweener middle-of-the-road nonsense. Just three awesome heels running riot against the face of the women's division and the multitudes of opportunity for amazing matches. How about a Gauntlet match for the belt on the following night's Raw? You're welcome.
OK, here's just one more. A friend mentioned to me he'd like to see a ladder match at Money in the Bank between the women, and I think it's a great idea. How I'd go from that though would be to have the ladder match be between five or six of the female NXT wrestlers, with the prize being a contract and instant move up to the main roster. Personally, I'd like to see Emma move up again, but only after she's dominated as champion in NXT for some time.
It'll be interesting this Sunday to see exactly how things go at TLC. I fully expect Charlotte to retain and Ric Flair to have some interaction with Paige, perhaps costing her her third championship. I do wish that Ric would take a bit of a back seat, but it's understandable that he has star power and the business want to use it. Charlotte though is more than capable of standing on her own two feet.
The business has a tough time ahead in order to save itself from the critique of fans, but it's not impossible. Let's just hope it gets it right.
Tagged in WWE