WWE TLC 2015: Biggest Missed Opportunities With Show's Booking

WWE Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2015 provided plenty of excitement—a surprise considering the lack of a coherent build heading into the December 13 event. 

From Kalisto's heart-stopping Salina del Sol in the night's opening match to Roman Reigns' destruction of WWE COO Triple H at the conclusion of the pay-per-view, WWE TLC 2015 delivered more than was expected. 

Even with all the chair shots and broken tables, WWE didn't pitch a perfect game. There were a number of missed opportunities throughout the night. Don't blame the Superstars in the ring, though: They went above and beyond. WWE Creative deserves the blame for the missteps at WWE TLC 2015. 

Let's take a look at where WWE went wrong during the final pay-per-view of 2015. 

Ineffectiveness of The League of Nations

For the past month, WWE has made a concerted effort into getting fans to believe that The League of Nations is a formidable group of heels. WWE programming has featured the group in numerous tag matches and coming to the aid of its de facto leader, WWE champion Sheamus.

That effort has been lackluster at best, with numerous losses to Roman Reigns and friends, and little crossover in their individual storylines. The failure of WWE Creative to make them seem unified was on full display at WWE TLC 2015. 

At a pay-per-view where disqualifications are virtually nonexistent and weapons surround the ring, WWE continued to keep this group locked in its own meaningless feuds with little crossover. While the three members of The League of Nations who competed at WWE TLC 2015 won their matches, there was no camaraderie or celebration. 

The only instance of this group's unity was to help Sheamus defeat Roman Reigns in the night's main event. Even then, Reigns laid out Alberto Del Rio and Rusev with a single Superman Punch to each man, then annihilated Sheamus post-match before setting his sights on Triple H. 

King Barrett, the forgotten member of this stable, not only didn't have a match, but he didn't come to Sheamus' aid during the main event. 

WWE TLC 2015 could have been a coming-out party for this group, playing within the fast and loose rules that the pay-per-view offers to flex their collective muscles. Instead, The League of Nations remains a group of singles wrestlers with a one-dimensional commonality—foreigners!—and little substance.

The Weakening of Kevin Owens

There's isn't anything to complain about regarding the match Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose put on at WWE TLC 2015. People complaining about the decision to put the Intercontinental Championship on Ambrose are just showing their devotion to the Kevin Owens Fan Club. 

The problem lies in the match's aftermath. 

As he has shown throughout his WWE run, Owens is a vindictive heel hell-bent on destruction. He's a prize fighter who respects no one. Prominent losses followed by acts of disrespect and aggression are the norm. Sami Zayn, Finn Balor and John Cena have all felt the wrath of Owens. 

At WWE TLC 2015, however, there was nothing. Owens quietly rolled out of the ring and headed backstage without so much of a peep or defiant glance, much less a powerbomb to the ring apron. If he is to continue feuding with Ambrose, why not make an immediate statement and attack the new IC title holder?

Owens did get his payback on Raw, interrupting a match between Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler, and delivering beatings to both men. But why the delay?  

Whatever the end game, Owens' aura got a little dimmer following his loss at WWE TLC 2015. Not because he ate a clean pin to Ambrose, but because of how un-Owens-like he took that defeat.

Disorder in the Divas Division 

Since its inception, the Divas Revolution has been one missed opportunity after another. The faint promise held by fans in July, when Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Charlotte made their main roster debuts, has officially soured.

The loose threads holding together this division—Paige's pursuit of Nikki Bella, assembling teams of Divas to even the odds, the introduction of new blood that set the wrestling world on fire in NXT—are completely gone. WWE Creative does not create women wrestlers; instead, it creates caricatures, hiding the main event potential displayed by the division's best and brightest.

That booking was on full display at WWE TLC 2015. With Ric Flair in her corner, Charlotte wooed her way through the match, more worried about emulating her father than showcasing the abilities that provided her the moniker "Genetically Superior." Paige continues to flip between a heel and face, depending on the mood in the writer's room.

In the pre-show, the same uneven storytelling took place, albeit in a more subtle way. Lynch is a sidekick, the Dean Ambrose to Charlotte's Roman Reigns, just without the lunatic tendencies. WWE Creative seems to want to shape Team B.A.D. into the Divas division's version of The New Day, all while Banks—possibly the most underutilized Superstar (man or woman) in the company today—remains in the second tier of this division. 

WWE could have made things simpler at WWE TLC 2015: Lynch vs. Banks could have been an official No. 1 contender's match, thus paving the way for either woman to be next in line for a title shot. Charlotte could have beaten Paige underhandedly just like daddy dearest, only without the blatant assist from the 16-time world champion. 

Instead, Paige will be given every opportunity to get revenge, while the rest of the Divas roster tries to find airtime anywhere on WWE programming that it can. The Divas division is in the same place after WWE TLC 2015 as it was before the event, which is the biggest missed opportunity of all.