After being on the shelf, two of the top names in WWE have returned in 2025. As confirmed by Vice, Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss made their long-awaited return to the ring, both participating in the Royal Rumble match. These superstars returned to differing fan opinions, and that’s being nice. Management is grasping at straws with their next decision, as they try to shine the stars that once were.
During the Royal Rumble match, Bliss received the loudest pop of the night, but that didn’t stop “The Genetically Superior Athlete”, in gimmick and truth, from winning, eliminating “Little Miss Bliss” along the way. She went on to WrestleMania, where she put Tiffany Stratton over as champion. Fans seem generally uninterested, often trying to boo louder than her promo. After losing the title shot in April, Cagematch reports she had just three matches heading into the most recent episode of SmackDown. They had no plan after giving Stratton the Flair rub. The once-revered “Queen” now gets the Hulk Hogan treatment.
She is one of the best in-ring talents ever in WWE, but hasn’t improved her moveset or mic skills since being Ric Flair’s daughter became the gimmick. Doing so proved her previous desire to be unrelated to her father to be hypocritical. That happened in NXT, no less than a decade ago.
Since her surprise return at the Royal Rumble in February, writers have had even less for Bliss than Flair. Despite her lack of athleticism and promo skills, the fans love her. Even with all of the noise online for more of the star, she had only eight matches heading into the same episode since being the 21st entrant of the rumble.
Her homage to Bray Wyatt as a gimmick limits the depth of character. She appears slower and weaker than before, but the hit of nostalgia is enough to keep the WWE Universe awake. Lacking the work of a singles champion, the company looked for ways to capitalize.
Two veterans, both once on top of the game, now seek direction. WWE is attempting to bolster its shallow women’s tag division. They are drawing on their history, such as the Royal Rumble interaction, and Bliss winning a Queen of the Ring 2025 qualifying match that Flair was in. They were paired together on the latest SmackDown for a number one contender’s match.
The pairing is awkward and without chemistry. There’s no way Flair is going to work outside of a title picture. Perhaps they were going for a heel and babyface tag team, similar to Team Hell-No, or maybe they are failing for the second time in months to turn “The Nature Girl” into a protagonist. It’s as if they threw Bliss into the picture when they found gold to chase.
The team heads to WWE Evolution on July 13 with a tag title opportunity. With the recent injury to Liv Morgan, Roxanne Perez has joined Raquel Rodriguez as champion. They need deeper stories and women who want to be champions if WWE wants this division taken seriously. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been one monumental team since the introduction of the belts.
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