Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: Charlotte Flair Will Climb New Heights on WWE SmackDown

1. The Queen's New Kingdom

Charlotte Flair won't just rule the women's division on WWE SmackDown; she will be a keystone for the blue brand overall.

The Superstar Shake-up sent a number of names to new homes. And The Queen joined that list on Tuesday night when SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon introduced Flair as a member of his show's roster.

Team Blue nabbed a game-changer when it acquired the four-time Raw women's champion.

Flair has been the brightest star of Raw's women division for well over a year now. Her presence has grown. Her ring work has steadily improved. More and more, she feels like WWE's next megastar.

Even though SmackDown clumsily handled her arrival, there was an electricity surrounding her as she stepped onto her new stage.

ESPN.com's Tim Fiorvanti is among those high on SmackDown adding her. He tweeted that she will be a key part of the brand:

That will be true, and not just within the women's division. Flair headlined Raw and the 2016 Hell in a Cell pay-per-view opposite Sasha Banks.

She now moves to a show with less competition at the top of the card. When WWE brings in big-name part-timers, from Goldberg to Undertaker, it generally does so on Raw. That will leave more room on the marquee for Flair and her foes.

Expect The Queen to earn a spot atop the SmackDown pecking order and remain there for a long while.

The blue brand is powered by better writing which will aid her, leading to better rivalries. And as indy wrestler Gran Akuma noted, she is set to face a whole new set of opponents:

This comes after WWE beat her feud with Banks into the ground and was well on its way to doing the same with her rivalry with Bayley.

Naomi vs. Flair has a natural appeal. A popular underdog taking on wrestling royalty would be a great story to explore. WWE could also briefly touch on a heel-against-heel collision between Flair and Carmella.

Becky Lynch, though, remains the most enticing option.

Those two had the best WWE rivalry going in late 2015 and early 2016. Flair's heel acumen paired perfectly with Lynch's gutsy character. They put on a number of high-quality matches. Revisiting that will be tremendous.

SmackDown is sure to recognize that and make it a priority to highlight Flair's climb to the women's title.

Flair's career trajectory has continued to shoot upward. In a new environment with new stories to tell, that will remain the case. 

After flourishing on WWE's marquee show, she's poised to break new ground in the land of opportunity.

2. More Drifting than Winning

Elias Samson is proof that one doesn't need to win big on NXT to make it to the main roster.

The Drifter appeared on the entrance ramp on Monday's Raw during the Superstar Shake-up, suggesting he will soon be a part of the red brand. Combine that with Kassius Ohno ousting him from WWE's developmental territory, and it's clear a call-up is in progress.

Samson's NXT track record is far from impressive from a win-loss perspective.

While Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe and Finn Balor all won the NXT title before making the jump to WWE proper, The Drifter barely experienced victory at all. His winning percentages throughout the years, per CageMatch.net, speak to that:

He'll have to hope Raw's writing team treats him differently than NXT's staff. Otherwise, he's headed for bottom-of-the-card status.

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Larry Sharpe

The list of wrestlers we lost in 2017 continues to grow unfortunately. "Pretty Boy" Larry Sharpe died on Monday at age 66, as Dave Meltzer reported for Figure Four Online.

His legacy is more tied to his career as a trainer and teacher. Sharpe ran The Monster Factory in New Jersey and trained the likes of Bam Bam Bigelow, Big Show and Sheamus.

Pretty Boy, though, should also be recognized for his work as a performer. For a glimpse of Sharpe at work, savor this emphatic promo he cut with Jerry Lawler in 1986. Sharpe can't teach the craft of wrestling any longer, unfortunately, but clips like this should certainly by learning tools.

4.  A Turn for TJ

Former cruiserweight champion TJ Perkins needed a change. He was dry and flat as a babyface. He has struggled to connect with the audience after tearing it up in the Cruiserweight Classic tournament last year.

Change came for Perkins in their form of a heel turn when he ambushed Austin Aries on Monday's Raw. 

Frustration has driven him mad it seems. A ruthless side of him has emerged. He has now apparently become Neville's underling. 

It's far from a safe bet that this will work, but you have to try. Neville rewrote the story of his career with a heel turn last year. The Usos reinvigorated themselves by shaking things up.

It's now Perkins turn to see if embracing the audience's boos will be a Band-Aid or a game-changer.

5. The Other Big Dog

UFC light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier knows Roman Reigns' pains. Despite his talent and all the hard work he puts into his craft, fans have often jeered him.

After his win at UFC 210 Saturday, Cormier spoke to the press (h/t Fight Network), comparing his situation to Reigns': 

"They decide what they want to do. They decide to boo me," Cormier said. Reigns couldn't have said it better himself. 

6. The Strowman Workout

As insane as it sounds, Braun Strowman overturned an ambulance on Monday's Raw.

Beyond advancing his rivalry with Reigns, the feat of strength appears to have inspired Scottish indy wrestler Joe Coffey to add to his workout. Coffey tweeted a shot of him echoing Strowman's display of power: 

If Strowman is smart, he'll trademark a vehicle-lifting exercise routine.

7. The Artiste on His Own

Aiden English has gone solo for the first time in a long while.

WWE released his tag team partner last week. That opened the door for one half of The Vaudevillians to go it alone, which he did in a match against Tye Dillinger on Tuesday's SmackDown.

Per CageMatch.net, that was English's first one-on-one match since last September and the first one on SmackDown since a battle with Kofi Kingston on May 5 last year.

Since coming to the main roster last April, he has a grand total of four one-on-one matches on his resume. He is 1-3 in those contests.

That number is bound to grow in the coming weeks, but his position on the WWE ladder may not. Tuesday's loss is potentially one of many for a talent the company hasn't valued much at all.

8. Bizarre Bouts

No one knows what to expect when Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt battle in their House of Horrors at the Payback PPV on April 30.

Judging by their feud so far, anything from hologram snakes to a mass of men dressed like sheep could be involved. Whatever happens, it won't be the first time wrestling has embraced bold ventures into the weird.

Check out some of the oddest gimmick matches in the industry's history:

• Don Kent vs. Chief Jay Strongbow: Big Time Wrestling, 1976 (Shark Cage)
• Masa Saito vs. Antonio Inoki: New Japan Pro Wrestling, 1987 (Ganryujima Island Death Match)
• Chamber of Horrors Match: Halloween Havoc 1991
• Hayabusa vs. H: Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling Making of a Legend IV (Anus Exploding Death Match)
• Tag Team Apocalypto: Impact Wrestling, Dec. 15, 2016

The Tag Team Apocalypto is an example of balancing campiness and drama, of being out there but not making yourself a laughing stock. That's the balance WWE must reach with Wyatt vs. Orton. 

9. When All Else Fails, Give 'Em a Dance Gimmick

Lana is undergoing a change when she moves to SmackDown. A vignette aired on Tuesday showing her in a red dress, seductively dancing before blowing the camera a kiss.

This is not the tyrannical Russian puppet master that once roamed ringside. For some reason, WWE has long abandoned that character.

The company has progressively robbed Lana of what made her compelling, and that process will apparently continue to the point of making her the second coming of Fandango.

With her original persona, Lana could have been a premier manager. Her presence and character work would have allowed her to thrive.

Rather than rule over a flock of heels a la Bobby Heenan, though, she will be the latest wrestler to bring fancy footwork into the ring. Hopefully, her career arc will be more like Too Cool's and less like Alex Wright's.

10. Animal on Paige

Hall of Famer Animal couldn't have been more right about the controversy surrounding Paige's leaked nude photos and videos.

The former Divas champ has been ridiculed and shamed online for the content of those materials. Road Warrior Animal, though, aimed the blame elsewhere.

Animal addressed the issue (link contains NSFW language) in an interview with The Hannibal TV: "I think the person that stole those videos should be thrown in jail and locked up because you invaded Paige's privacy. That's her own personal stuff. Anybody that's alive should be able to film what they want, their own personal stuff. I don't care who she's doing it with or what she's doing."

There's not an ounce of victim-blaming in that response. There is no animosity toward Paige, no holier-than-thou attitude.

The internet is full of keyboard warriors who could learn from Animal.