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In case you've been living under a rock and are completely unaware of goings-on in the WWE Universe, the most dominant faction in recent history has strapped on its vests, laced up its boots and made a grand comeback to television.
The Shield reunite after three years of going their separate ways to take on the team of Miz, Sheamus, Cesaro, Braun Strowman and Kane in a zany 3 on 5 TLC match this Sunday.
Understandably, there has been much hoopla in the WWE fanbase ever since Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins stood shoulder to shoulder to shoulder a week back...but casting aside all the nostalgia, has the grand return of the Shield been booked to justice?
Has the WWE made it seem like enough of a big deal to actually matter, barring a few loud pops and feel-good moments along the way?
Even as a huge fan of the faction and what they stood for, I'm not entirely convinced.
Yes, it does feel good that they're back and kicking a**, but all of it seems rather hastily cobbled together and strung on for one particular purpose: to get Roman Reigns over.
Believe it or not, Reigns is responsible for the band getting back together and it's WWE's agenda that's fueling it all.
And for those reasons, we decided to run through the pros and cons of the Shield's return match at the TLC pay-per-view.
Read on.
Bad: Shoddily booked
As mentioned above, the Shield's reunion - something that can be acted upon whenever the WWE chooses to do so - was booked now because the company is pulling out all the stops to ensure that Roman Reigns has massive momentum heading into WrestleMania 34.
He's defeated the Undertaker, John Cena and will likely look like a million bucks coming out of TLC when he undoubtedly proves to be the equalizer when three men take on five.
Naturally, since the whole angle seems to be constructed with a singular purpose in mind, the WWE hasn't done a great job with storytelling.
There hasn't been a monster faction running roughshod over the entire roster, absolutely necessitating the re-formation of the Shield to challenge it.
Instead, 5 men have been piled up against 3, in the hope that the Reigns will look as strong as possible if (when) the Shield emerges victorious.
Which brings me to my next point...
Good: Gets Roman Reigns over
Love him or hate him, John Cena is a special performer.
And one more in-your-face instance of that was how Reigns' stock seems to have risen considerably ever since his feud with the Leader of the Cenation.
His promos actually seem bearable and he's even beginning to receive a few cheers from the audience, not to mention looking like a legitimate stand-out star, even amongst his Shield brethren.
Strike when the iron is hot, goes the saying.
So one can understand why the WWE pulled the trigger on the Shield reunion now when the WWE Universe is showing signs of warming to him.
Will it continue till WrestleMania 34? We'll have to wait and see. But if it doesn't, it certainly wouldn't be for the want of trying on the part of WWE creative.
Bad: Strowman gets buried
Apparently, it's push-Reigns-at-all-costs season in the WWE... so much so that Braun Strowman - a Superstar who could have easily been The Rock to Reigns' Stone Cold - has become expendable.
As though it wasn't bad enough that he lost meekly to Brock Lesnar after absolutely ragdolling him in the lead up to their match, he's now been added to Miz's motley crew in an attempt to stack the odds against the Shield.
And while a Shield victory is a virtual certainty at TLC, one can only hope that Braun Strowman's standing doesn't take too much of a beating in the process.
Good: Nostalgia act
Setting aside the climate in which the Shield's reunion has been sanctioned, the strings attached to it and the rushed nature of it all, having Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose back on the same page is quite exciting for the fans.
I don't know about you, but I definitely marked out when Shield's music hit last week on Raw and the trio made their entry through the crowd, clad in their traditional black vests.
We can speculate as much as we want about the real reason why things happen the way they do in the WWE and analyze booking decisions to no end, but at the end of the day, pro wrestling is meant to entertain.
And the Shield's return does exactly that.
Bad: Intercontinental Title is devalued
Sandwiched somewhere in between project Roman Reigns, the bit part players in Ambrose and Rollins, the monstrosity that is Braun Strowman and the Devil's Favourite Demon, the Intercontinental Championship has lost its relevance entirely at TLC.
Yes, the Miz is absolutely a deserving champion who elevates the Title...but only if he's even given an opportunity to defend it in the first place.
In this scenario, however, both the Miz and the Intercontinental Title hardly figure into the scheme of things, reducing the prestigious strap to a useless prop.
Somewhere in heaven, I'm sure, Randy Macho Man Savage is a very dissatisfied man.
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