5 mistakes the WWE has made with the Women's Division in 2018

Although the Women of the WWE are starting to be treated somewhat equally to the men, there still have been many confusing mistakes made in 2018. Every time an announcer or superstar refers to the 'Women's Revolution', it's hard not to remember how off-kilter some of the booking decisions have been thus far in 2018.

With Evolution just a matter of weeks away, and promotion for the event in full swing, so let's take a look at five things the WWE hasn't done right in the women's division in 2018.

#1 Nia Jax - Is she a heel or a face?

Paired with the diminutive Alexa Bliss, you knew that it was only a matter of time before Nia and Alexa would feud with each other. With one being the champion, it wouldn't take long for the other to seek the title. But how would the feud happen?

Before their inevitable match at Wrestlemania, the seeds were planted for a Jax face-turn when Bliss and Mickie James bad-mouthed the Rock's cousin in a backstage skit. The two tiny ladies were unaware that their hurtful words had been broadcast around the world until Charlie Caruso told them as such.

The way things were presented was that the giant was the one being bullied. Jax won the title at 'Mania but the shiny new toy, Ronda Rousey, was too profitable to not be thrust into a title program.

They tried to stave off the former UFC star for as long as they could, but Rousey was always a looming threat. The two were finally set to square off at this year's Money in the Bank.

So what did they do to sell the feud? They had Jax fill a tweener role. She would toy with and bully 'local talent' until facing Rousey. The bullied became the bully again. She was friends with Natalya, then she wasn't. Technically, Jax went from the champion face to the monster heel champion in a matter of weeks. From show to show, it was hard to tell if she was the one to root for or boo for.

And then she lost the title to Alexa Bliss at Money in the Bank. After that, she was missing in action. Was she hurt? Was she disgruntled? Was there nothing for her from creative? Whatever the case was, her absence was noticeable. She recently returned as a face to team with Natalya and Ember Moon against Alexa Bliss and her minions. I wonder how long it will be until they turn her heel again. Maybe she can ask the Big Show.

#2 Carmella and the SmackDown Women's Title

Carmella was certainly a polarizing figure this year

Think about this for a minute. Of Braun Strowman, John Cena and Carmella, only Carmella has successfully cashed in her Money in the Bank briefcase. Granted the women's divisions have fewer members, but the fact remains that the future Hall of Famer and the monster both failed where 'Mella succeeded.

She successfully cashed in on Charlotte Flair on the Smackdown after WrestleMania thanks to an attack from the debuting IIconics. While some thought her title win might be a one-and-done situation, others backstage were on-board with the idea of a longer title reign for The Princess of Staten Island.m

But when she defeated both Charlotte and Asuka, things started to become a little hard to stomach. How could this 110-pound former dancer have cleanly defeated both Flair and Asuka? Well because of the help of the chinless dreg, James Ellsworth.

Any eventual outcome of a Carmella title defence was hard to take seriously if Ellsworth was ringside. Of course, James was going to interfere. Any credibility the shot-callers thought she would get with wins over the two top stars on Smackdown was shot.

Creative also killed any credibility that Asuka had over her built up since her run of over 500 undefeated days in NXT and her powerful run on Raw. She was turning into a joke.

But what the decision makers failed to consider was that with every win accumulated due to Ellsworth interference, her title reign became a joke. Carmella isn't the most technically sound female wrestler. She had perhaps one of the weakest finishers in the division (think about it- just roll over or stand up to get out of it). She could barely throw a passable kick.

Luckily, her reign ended at Summerslam thanks to focuses shifting to the blossoming feud between Becky Lynch and Charlotte. She seems to have more promise now as a face duo with R Truth.

#3 Asuka's booking

Asuka's 2018 has certainly been a confusing one

Never underestimate WWE's ability to ruin a shiny new toy you love.

If you love someone down in NXT or on the indies, they will likely be mistreated in the big leagues.

It couldn't happen to the "Empress of Tomorrow" could it? She was coming to the main roster as an undefeated powerhouse after ruling over NXT for over 500 days. It was only a matter of time before she was champ, right?

Things were heading in the right direction after she won the first ever Women's Royal Rumble. She thankfully eliminated Nikki Bella to win a title shot at Wrestlemania. She was even the inaugural winner (with the Miz) of Mixed Match Challenge.

Things got a little confusing after she lost to Charlotte Flair in her Smackdown Title match at WrestleMania. Her loss wasn't as hard to take as several wrestlers debuting at 'Mania often lost (AJ Styles to Chris Jericho, Sting to Triple H, Shinsuke Nakamura to Styles).

What happened after. though, was a disaster. Asuka lost a tag-team match with Becky Lynch, although Lynch was the one who was pinned. She suffered back-to-back losses to Carmella in title matches. Both were due to the interference of James Ellsworth. The one that was hard to believe was when Ellsworth showed up ringside dressed as Asuka.

Asuka stared at the mysterious figure in disbelief for what felt like forever. When she finally woke up from her trance, she was defeated by a kick from Carmella.

'The Empress of Tomorrow' drifted into obscurity after that. She would be on Smackdown sporadically and is currently in a tag team with Naomi. Nothing says 'missed opportunity' more than being shoved into tag matches with no chance at winning championship titles.

#4 The Bellas' being referred to as "ground-breaking legends"

For some strange reason, the commentators have recently been referring to (ad nauseam) the Bellas as "ground-breaking legends" and "pioneers" of the women's division. Maybe it's to sate their egos. Maybe it's to sell a rivalry with Ronda Rousey. The problem is, however, the vapid twins are probably drinking the kool-aid.

They might be the favored divas backstage, but it's a slap in the face to all the female wrestlers to call either Bella a legend or pioneer.

Lest we forget that the initial 'Women's Revolution' was started because of women like the Bellas, Kelly Kelly and Maryse. Paige and AJ Lee were asking for the focus of the women's division to be on the wrestling ability of the women and not on the looks. These models trying to wrestle without much ability was making a mockery out of true women's wrestling.

Well, we can thank John Laurinaitis for that. He literally pointed to pictures of models in catalogs and said "Get me that model. She's hot."

Nikki did improve as a wrestler, but in this day and age, she should have already been a passable wrestler. She's only as good as Nia Jax or Tamina. They shouldn't treat her like the second coming of Trish Stratus or Io Shirai. Her return from neck surgery was a feel-good story.

Another big reason why the Bellas are looked upon so favorably is because of their reality shows and YouTube channel. The 'reality shows' are scripted and the YouTube success is only BECAUSE of professional wrestling. The Bellas care about promoting themselves first, which they should as businesswomen, but wrestling is a clear distant second. I'm talking about the circumference of the earth distant second.

Brie Bella is especially a problem. She was never that good in the ring to begin with. She appropriated husband Bryan's move set as wrestling couples often do. Recently, she has become a walking botch-waiting-to-happen. She knocked poor Liv Morgan unconscious, forearmed Ruby Riott in the face and almost broke her own neck twice after failing to complete passable suicide dives to the outside.

Currently, the Bellas are holdovers from a forgettable, bygone stain on women's wrestling. The only reason Nikki is the longest-reigning Divas'/Women's Champion is because of spite for AJ Lee. Nothing else. Not talent, likability or merit.

Let's stop treating these two like the backbone of a division truly built by Beth Phoenix, Natalya, Paige, AJ Lee, Mickie James, Lita, Trish Stratus, Sasha Banks, Emma, Bayley, Asuka, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.

#5 The Evolution Battle Royal

The first-ever all women's PPV is long overdue

While it's great to finally have a PPV filled with exclusively women's matches, can all of the women on the roster make an impact?

So far, the following matches have been announced:

Raw Women's Championship: Ronda Rousey (C) vs. Nikki Bella
Smackdown Women's Championship: Becky Lynch (C) vs. Charlotte Flair
NXT Women's Championship: Kairi Sane (C) vs. Shayna Baszler
Trish Stratus and Lita vs. Alexa Bliss and Mickie James

On this week's Raw, it was announced that there will be a women's battle royal. While the winner of the battle royal will receive a future title shot, this feels like nothing more than a lazy way of getting as many women on the card as possible.

Some of the ladies (Naomi, Lana, IIconics) have already expressed confusion as to the battle royal. There's almost three hours off PPV and probably a pre-show to feature a match or two.

There are plenty of matches to be made. They could have Nia Jax vs. Tamina or Nia Jax vs. Ember Moon. They could do Sasha Banks vs. Bayley or have the duo vs. the Riott Squad.

Then there's Asuka. She could square off with someone like Sonya Deville. Or tag with Naomi against the IIconics again. Carmella can have a match too. They certainly haven't shied away from retreading the same match from a PPV to the following RAW or Smackdown.

What about the ladies of NXT? They could have a separate battle royal to determine a #1 contender to the NXT Women's Championship.

The main point is that the battle royal should be reserved for the nostalgia acts (Beth Phoenix, Torrie Wilson, Molly Holly, Michelle McCool, Ivory) and the rest of the women's division. Wrestlers like Dana Brooke, Mandy Rose, Lana and Tamina are perfect for the battle royal. They don't need feature matches but do deserve to be showcased.