Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: Sasha Banks, Charlotte Leading History-Making WWE Era

1. The Boss, The Queen, The Trailblazers

Sasha Banks and Charlotte made sure it was clear that they belonged in the main event of Monday's WWE Raw.

The Boss dethroned Charlotte in a thrilling, emotional bout, reclaiming the Raw Women's Championship. The two wrestlers again created a stirring moment as they added another chapter to their long rivalry. 

This was no novelty move by WWE.

Banks and Charlotte's chemistry and story befitted such a prominent spot. Interest in women's wrestling continues to shoot upward. These two Superstars lead a division more loaded with talent than it ever has been.

Women in the main event will grow more common, but as Miami Herald columnist Scott Fishman noted, the fact that Banks and Charlotte went on last on Monday is significant:

It's a sign of how much the female wrestlers' place on the WWE hierarchy has changed and will continue to change. 

Three years ago on the first Raw of October, the women's division's contribution to the show was a six-woman tag team match that was an invitation to go to the fridge for a snack.

JoJo and Eva Marie debuted with Natalya as their partner against Aksana, Rosa Mendes and Alicia Fox. Mendes and Aksana were substandard performers. JoJo and Marie had barely been trained. The bout lasted a touch over three minutes. 

It was one of the worst displays of wrestling one will ever see.

Women's wrestling is no longer thought of as filler as it was that night. It is a showcase of stories and skill, a work of violent theater, just like the men's division.

Credit for that change has to go to a variety of places, from SmackDown's women's champ Becky Lynch to fans who demanded more from the division. But Banks and Charlotte have long been at the forefront of this evolution.

At NXT, their rivalry generated increased interest in the division. When there is animosity between two wrestlers like the kind Banks and Charlotte share, one is compelled to pay attention.

They thrilled at NXT TakeOver: R Evolution. They transferred their bad blood to WWE Main Event. They headlined an NXT house show in Philadelphia last year.

Lynch, Banks and Charlotte collided in the biggest and best women's match in WrestleMania history, a Triple Threat clash for the newly unveiled Women's Championship.

In what has become a pattern for them, The Boss and The Queen didn't just earn that opportunity, they nailed it. The women's title bout was arguably the event's top contest that night.

Strong matches, passionate promos and growing star power has allowed them to build on that in the past several weeks. As former WWE writer Kevin Eck wrote on his blog, "Both Charlotte and Banks have elevated the title big-time."

Like Trish Stratus and Lita before them, Banks and Charlotte's rivalry is forcing WWE to rethink how it books its women. They are reshaping expectations, spearheading a shift in where women exist on the food chain.

Banks vs. Charlotte is a powerful enough feud to earn them a spot on a PPV main event. It begs to lead to the women fighting inside the Hell in a Cell, which would be a first for the division. There is more history to be made, more excellence to display. 

Banks may hold the women's title, but both she and Charlotte are flag-bearers for an ongoing revolution. 

2. No Longer WWE's Superman?

Once the safest bet in wrestling, a John Cena victory is no longer as much of a sure thing as it was in years past.

AJ Styles knocked off the powerhouse at both Money in the Bank and SummerSlam. Dean Ambrose beat him cleanly on SmackDown weeks ago, something that fans just aren't used to seeing.

When he faces both Styles and Ambrose at the No Mercy pay-per-view on Sunday, the numbers say victory is no certainty for him.

According to CageMatch.net, Cena is 7-7 in his PPV battles in 2015 and 2016. His winning percentage this year is currently .455, which would be the lowest of his career were it to remain that low.

To top it off, Cena is 0-4 in his last four Triple Threat matches.

Cena will be chasing his 16th world title reign, a number that would tie Ric Flair for the most ever. It's far from a lock that he'll pull that off on Sunday.

3. Throwback of the Week: Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle

Sheamus and Cesaro are far from the first reluctant tag team partners.

In 2002, rivals Benoit and Angle put aside their bad blood just long enough to blast their way through a tag team tournament. At No Mercy, they triumphed in the finals to grab gold.

Like Sheamus and the Swiss strongman, Benoit and Angle had similar in-ring styles. They had great matches together and came together to form a superteam. Unfortunately, Sheamus and Cesaro won't have the benefit of working against Los Guerreros or Rey Mysterio and Edge.

4. A Dose of Tag-Team Adrenaline 

NXT is poised to go from sluggish to thrilling starting on Wednesday night.

WWE's third brand has suffered after a mass exodus of talent this summer. The second annual Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament is the antidote for the show's malaise. 

High stakes will power each episode. NXT will have more focus and urgency in the coming weeks.

NXT tag team champs The Revival are sure to add to their collection of great matches over the course of the event. Bobby Roode and Tye Dillinger's partnership is an intriguing blend of veteran and emerging star.

And on-the-rise teams like The Authors of Pain and TM-61 are sure to make their marks in the tournament.

The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic won't fill out the midcard or deepen the women's division, but it will add needed electricity to NXT until its climax.

5. Hype Plus Heart

The key to Mojo Rawley's growth emerged on Good Morning San Diego, of all places.

While appearing on the local TV show with his tag team partner Zack Ryder, Rawley cut the best promo of his career. He turned down his high-octane act and got real. Rawley talked of how hard he worked to make it to the NFL, and about what allowed him to separate himself on the gridiron.

He was compelling, authentic, more interesting than he has ever been on screen. That's the Rawley we need to see mixed in with his frenetic, over-caffeinated persona.

6. Bull Rising

After being relegated to a comedy act at NXT, Bull James (formerly Bull Dempsey) has moved on to a more fitting stage. James is now a part of Ring of Honor, where he wasted no time in stepping up to world champ Adam Cole.

That rivalry and his overall ROH presence will allow the audience to see what the big bruiser looks like when let off the leash.

NXT held him back, asking him to do more slapstick than get in slugfests. Now that his Bull-Fit gimmick is a memory and he's set to take on talented performers like Cole, James is going to make some serious noise.

7. No Mercy Marks a New Beginning 

Curt Hawkins announced on Tuesday night that he will compete at No Mercy, making his long-awaited re-debut.

That match will be a first for the returning Superstar. Per CageMatch.net, Hawkins has never been in a one-on-one PPV contest for WWE. And it's been over four years since his last PPV collision, where he teamed with Tyler Reks in a loss to Ryback.

But this is a revamped Hawkins, a SmackDown solo act likely to go on a winning streak that establishes him as a formidable part of the blue brand. Count on him to go 1-0 in the New Era.

8. A Dolph Ziggler Retrospective

His Intercontinental Championship match against The Miz at No Mercy could be Ziggler's final WWE outing. He put his career on the line in order to secure that title shot.

The Miz aired a mock documentary about Ziggler's career on Tuesday's SmackDown. To get a better idea of what The Showoff accomplished during his WWE tenure, check out these bouts:

• Dolph Ziggler vs. Rey Mysterio: SummerSlam 2009
• Dolph Ziggler vs. Daniel Bryan: Bragging Rights 2010 (Submission)
• Dolph Ziggler vs. John Cena: TLC Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2012
• Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio: Payback 2013
• Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper: TLC Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2014 (Ladder)

It's hard not to think about all the opportunities WWE missed with Ziggler when looking back at these.

There was no real followup to his feud with Cena. He dropped off the map after battling Del Rio. And Bryan vs. Ziggler should have been a high-profile rivalry that culminated at WrestleMania. 

9. The Art of the Repackage

WWE's intentions are in the right place. Its execution, though, has been shoddy when trying to rebuild struggling Superstars of late.

A number of wrestlers have undergone transformations, donning new gimmicks that look bound to fail.

Jinder Mahal has morphed into a yogi and spiritualist. Hawkins is WWE's version of the Chuck Norris facts meme. Los Matadores traded in their bullfighting gear for travel brochures as The Shining Stars.

Titus O'Neil, meanwhile, spoke on Monday's Raw about launching his own entertainment brand.

That act has at least a shot at success, unlike whatever WWE is doing with Hawkins. O'Neil as a cocky entrepreneur could work with some added character depth. 

Repackaging a wrestler not getting any traction is a smart move, but one can't make changes for change's sake. Mahal and The Shining Stars are now stuck with one-dimensional, low-ceiling shticks. 

Let's just hope that Emma's shift into Emmalina doesn't lead her down the same path.

10. Chris Jericho on AJ Styles

At TNA, New Japan Pro Wrestling and now WWE, Styles has battled his way to the marquee, claiming gold and churning out classics.

The Phenomenal One is set to defend the WWE World Championship at No Mercy less than a year after debuting at the Royal Rumble. Jericho is among those who believed Styles was capable of that climb.

Credit: WWE.com

Jericho appeared on You're Welcome with Chael Sonnen (h/t William Winsdor of Wrestling Inc) and spoke of the parallels between Daniel Bryan and Styles.

He said of both men, "There's nothing they can do to stop him. He [has] gotten over everywhere he [has] ever been. He [has] got great main event matches everywhere he [has] ever been. Eventually, it's going to happen here."

And it did.

Styles has become one of the cornerstones of SmackDown, and it's easy to make the case that he's been WWE's MVP in 2016. Not bad for a guy some thought would never even sign with the company.