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A couple of weeks ago on RAW, we saw one of the most anticipated returns in recent memory when Bray Wyatt finally made his in-ring return as The Fiend to take out the former Intercontinental Champion, Finn Balor.
The return took place after Balor won his match against Samoa Joe. During his post-match celebration, his music stopped weirdly and what followed was some amazing production work from the crew.
The lights went off one by one from different parts of the arena and then focused on a scary-looking Wyatt standing inside the ring, in position to deliver a Sister Abigail to Balor. This was a short yet very effective way for Wyatt to return to the ring, and we all must admit that the mask is really scary.
On last week's SmackDown, Wyatt appeared with his latest episode of Firefly Funhouse and accepted Balor's challenge for a match at SummerSlam, on behalf of the Fiend. With this being the returning match for Wyatt, and also the in-ring debut of The Fiend, all eyes are on this match.
While WWE has the freedom to run wild with this feud, but there are certain things that WWE should avoid in this feud. In this article, let's take a look at three of them.
#3 Sacrificing the Demon King at SummerSlam
SummerSlam has been the Playground of the Demon King, as Finn Balor has appeared at the Biggest Party of the Summer as his alter ego every time. As much as fans love to see the demon in action, WWE should avoid to bring him out this year.
The reason is very simple - there's no way The Fiend is losing his debut match, and one can even expect a completely dominating performance from him. While a squash match against Finn Balor would not do much harm, sacrificing the Demon King for this purpose would not be a good idea.
Finn Balor is yet to lose a match on the main roster as the Demon King, and there needs to be a much better storyline and feud than this that leads to him facing his first loss. As of now, there has been no announcement of Finn Balor appearing as the Demon King, and let's hope it stays this way.
#2 Not involving the Firefly Funhouse puppets
One of the biggest reason for the massive success of the new gimmick of Bray Wyatt has been his partners-in-crime and supporting leads - Abby the Witch, Mercy the Buzzard, Rambling Rabbit, and Husky the Pig Boy.
Fans have continuously been guessing what role these puppets would be playing once Wyatt returns to the ring regularly. It was them who let us feel Wyatt's presence for a couple of weeks before his debut by appearing in background segments on Raw and SmackDown.
The worst thing that WWE can do is to not involve these puppets in the storylines, as they have become huge fan-favorite characters. I still believe at some point we'll have wrestlers debut as these characters, but whether or not that is the plan, we as fans would love to see Abby, Mercy, and Rambling Rabbit on our screen more often.
What do you think would be their roles going forward? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.
#1 Giving too much of Bray Wyatt
The reason why legendary gimmicks like The Undertaker and Kane worked so well in the past was because of the great amount of mystery around these characters. The stories were built so convincingly that fans completely forgot that they are watching two actual human beings portray a character.
While kayfabe is hardly a thing in pro-wrestling anymore, WWE can at least try to keep fans guessing about what the sociopath Wyatt has in his mind next. The moment this gimmick becomes predictable, fans would start losing interest in it.
So far, we've seen The Fiend live on two occasions, first attacking Balor and then doing the same with Mick Foley at Raw Reunion. How will he fare during a proper wrestling match is still to be seen though. Many fans have shown concerns about whether Wyatt can wrestle properly with that mask on or not.
The Fiend will surely be one of the most protected characters for a long time, and I'm excited to see what holds next for him after Balor.
How excited are you to witness The Fiend in action at SummerSlam?
