Charlotte vs. Nikki Bella: Lack of Story Progression Makes for Lackluster Bout

A match devoid of fan interest awaits Charlotte and Nikki Bella when they enter the historic Staples Center for Sunday's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view.

What should be another chapter in the ongoing Divas Revolution, labeled as such by the rocket scientists in WWE Creative who have not quite figured out that slapping a buzzword on something does not make it such, will instead be another example of just how much the writing team has failed women's wrestling.

Sure, the main roster Divas are receiving more ring time than at any point in WWE history, but that alone does not a revolution make.

History dictates that fans will only take women's wrestling seriously when they have intriguing characters and stories that they can invest themselves in.

Trish Stratus and Lita championed the golden era of women's wrestling, not because they were talented workers, but because fans had a reason to care about them beyond their in-ring exploits. They had definitive characters that were developed through strong stories.

Lita was the high-flying, extreme Diva who got over thanks to her feud with Stratus and the one-sided romance angle that ensued involving Dean Malenko. Her relationship with Matt Hardy and the slasher flick-esque story that saw her become the object of Kane's obsession only helped solidify her already strong connection with the WWE Universe.

Trish was a former fitness model who was smoking hot, but, at the same time, so were her peers. She developed a following thanks to her interactions with The Dudley Boyz that ultimately saw her powerbombed through a table, a torrid romance with Vince McMahon and feud with his daughter Stephanie and her hard-hitting and oftentimes violent rivalry with Victoria over the WWE Women's Championship.

Because of those stories, they were firmly entrenched in WWE lore and, eventually, became two of the most overperformers on the roster.

Charlotte and Nikki Bella have that potential. Both could very well be this generation's answer to Trish and Lita. They have both exhibited constantly improving ring awareness and the quality of their work speaks for itself. They are talented wrestlers, for sure, as evidenced by Charlotte's outstanding matches against Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch and Bella's recent encounters with Paige.

Yet, they enter Hell in a Cell for one of the night's premiere title bouts, and are welcomed by apathy by fans unimpressed with the build to their match.

There is no real story to speak of, no reason for fans to care that the two are competing for what should be the top prize in women's wrestling.

To this point, WWE Creative has done an admirable job of changing its philosophy on women's wrestling when it comes time to dictating match times. They deserve credit for no longer forcing the talent to get in as much as they possibly can in a three-minute window.

But they still have work to do.

For the Divas Revolution to truly take hold, Creative must devote time to construct interesting and compelling stories for the women under its rule. If they can, then female-driven sports entertainment will enter an all-new era of unprecedented success.

If not, more of the same shoulder shrugging will ensue from unimpressed fans who would rather hit the concession stand for some nachos than watch a match that they have little reason to care about.