FOCUS YOUR FEUD: Colohue evaluates the Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss feud, the highs and lows headed into Backlash

The one constant in all of WWE programming is that there will always be feuds. Sometimes over titles, sometimes over prestige and sometimes over coffee. Here, we celebrate the highs and lows of WWE feudage and, hopefully, will only ever focus on a feud once.

I’m Tom Colohue and this is Focus Your Feud.

Follow Tom Colohue at @Colohue for updates.

Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss

Alexa Bliss is truly unique in her range of talents. She may be the only woman on the roster who can literally feud with a half eaten coconut and, before the match even begins, you’ll be cheering for that damned coconut.

Her Moment of Bliss routine is perfect for both her character and her feud, softening a lot of ruffled feathers over the initial bullying routine and firmly uniting an audience behind a Nia Jax face run that, as of yet, really doesn’t have much momentum behind it.

It was clear before Wrestlemania that a Nia Jax championship reign was on the card. Given the size and power move selection available to Jax you would expect it to play out similarly to the upcoming Braun Strowman championship reign but there were several downsides going into the match.

Firstly, Nia Jax has never been made to look particularly dominant. Instead, it is Alexa Bliss who has beaten all and sundry. She has beaten Banks, Bayley and Mickie James clean in her near year long reign as champion. Meanwhile, Jax has tapped repeatedly to Banks and Asuka.

Secondly, only a couple of weeks before the match happened, Jax and Bliss were best friends, meaning that something drastic and unpopular was needed to make their feud a reality.

Thirdly, Nia Jax had her legs cut out from under her because of repeated losses to Asuka, including one in which she actually lost her right to compete for the title at Wrestlemania. This is one of yet another rather confusing things that happened on the way to WWE’s flagship broadcast.

So what is working for this feud? Well, even though Nia Jax hasn’t had many matches, she has been made to look dominant since effectively squashing Bliss at Wrestlemania. Bliss played her part as both rag doll and squashed bug to perfection.

Nia’s brief association with Ronda Rousey and Ember Moon have lended her legitimacy and her use as a hot tag, again a la Braun Strowman, made her look dominating in a brand new way.

I loved @AlexaBliss_WWE public service announcement. It had everything. Lies, fake tears, and a delusional challenger. #WWEBacklash won’t be a Disney ride, Minnie Mouse.

— Lina Fanene (@NiaJaxWWE) May 1, 2018

The biggest draw for this feud though continues to be Alexa Bliss. Since moving this bullying angle on to something more satirical and tongue in cheek, Bliss vs. Jax has been on fire, using very limited screen time to keep the Raw Women’s Championship in the limelight.

What next? Well, who knows? Logically Jax is going to need heel contenders and that rules out the vast majority of a division lacking in bad guys. James and Bliss both seem locked into a big money feud with Natalya and Rousey. That’ll be good for everyone until Natalya turns heel to add to the ranks of bad gals. Logically, the Riott Squad will probably be putting Jax over first. That explains the big win over Banks.

At some point we know there’s a Jax vs. Rousey feud coming. Hopefully not for a while though. Alexa Bliss has achieved wonders, helping Nia Jax get over in a big way. Jax can take this ball and carry it, becoming a draw in her own right.

And Alexa? Well hopefully she’ll just keep making videos about sitting in cups. The woman has talent.

NOW CHECK OUT THIS PREVIOUS COLOHUE COLUMN: MONDAY NIGHT REIGNS-O-METER #60: Tracking Roman Reigns’s ability to beat the odds and come out on top