After a run of firsts and records for women's wrestling in WWE, it had been a while since the company's female stars had made history. That was until this past Sunday at Hell in a Cell when they chalked up another milestone. Of the seven matches on the card, including the kickoff show, four of them were women's matches. It's the first time in WWE history that a card involving both male and female Superstars featured more women's matches than men's.
One of those matches was Alexa Bliss versus Shayna Baszler. Going into HIAC, fans might have assumed this one would be more magic show than match. However, if you were hoping for wrestling, you will have been pleasantly surprised. Other than doing some Bray Wyatt-inspired crawling, and making Nia Jax slap herself in the face, Bliss focused on what she does best, wrestling. Turns out she's pretty good at it, just in case you'd forgotten.
From Wrestling Matches To Character Work
Fans can be forgiven for forgetting how good a wrestler Bliss is after how little she has competed over the course of the last year. While it was never officially confirmed, it was assumed Bliss was working through a few injuries. Injuries that prevented her from wrestling, but didn't result in her having to sit at home. Even though she was appearing on TV, Bliss matches were few and far between.
The issues with Bliss appeared to begin last July. Her partnership with Nikki Cross came to an end, presumably so Cross could go on a singles run without her. However, Bliss did wrestle a few matches against her former partner before taking a break for two months. Even when Bliss did sort of return, she barely wrestled at all. Two matches in September, one in November, and that was her done for the year.
WWE, not wanting Bliss to disappear from TV completely, found something for her. A complicated relationship with The Fiend. After doing their level best to ruin what could have been the best supernatural wrestling character since The Undertaker, adding the Bliss element into the mix gave The Fiend a new lease on life. Bliss even took the reigns when The Fiend was burned alive, punishing Randy Orton for presumably sending her monstrous master to hell and even competing in a match against The Viper.
This is one of the points where it becomes unclear if Bliss was still on the injury comeback trail, or WWE had become a little too invested in the smoke and mirrors side of her character. It was probably a little of both, especially since the latter could be used to stage an intergender match that didn't need to involve a man hitting a woman. It would also be the last match Bliss wrestled until earlier this month when she beat Jax to warm up for her match with Baszler.
Bliss Is Back
That match with Jax now feels like a transition point for Bliss. Almost one year later, she appears to have shaken off any lingering injuries she had and is able to wrestle a full match again, no magic needed. Well, at least not a lot of it. It would be rather jarring if she just dropped that character altogether. Her win over Baszler was proof that her focus is, or at least should be, back on wrestling, and making people slap each other at ringside can simply be a sideshow.
In case you have forgotten exactly what Bliss is capable of in the ring, here's a reminder. Bliss is a five-time Women's Champion, or a seven-time champion if you employ Charlotte Flair's rule of counting absolutely every championship you have ever held ever. As for bragging rights Bliss can hold over The Queen, The Empress was the first Superstar in history to be SmackDown and Raw Women's Champion, and even beat Flair to becoming a Triple Crown Champion. Bayley was the first to achieve that feat.
WWE now has a tightrope to walk with Bliss, but it's one that will lead to an exciting next chapter in her career if done right. Merging the character she has become with the wrestler she was before forming that persona. Granted, WWE is only two matches deep into this next stage, but so far so good. Fans have been reminded that Bliss is terrific in the ring, but the work she has done to become the female Fiend doesn't have to be left behind. She has already booked her spot at Money in the Bank, just imagine if she wins and gets to haunt one, two, or maybe even all three of WWE's Women's Champions.