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Becky Lynch is the current RAW Women's Champion and one of the company's top stars. The Man was the first woman to win the main event of WrestleMania and has held championship gold for every active day she's been on the WWE roster since Mania 35.
Since Becky's return at SummerSlam 2021, the company has gone the direction of a heel character for her. She has targeted the WWE Universe, talked down to the popular babyfaces like Bianca Belair and cheated to retain her title. However, the crowds always seem to greet her with cheers despite her best efforts.
This isn't the first time that WWE has tried to make the fanbase hate Becky Lynch for less than favorable results. It makes the decision to choose this course again a little confusing, but it doesn't take away from all the reasons why The Man just works better as a crowd favorite.
In this article, let's take a look at the five reasons why Becky Lynch was better as a babyface:
5) WWE not learning from the past of 'The Man' character for Becky Lynch
As previously mentioned, this isn't the first time that WWE has attempted a heel turn for Becky Lynch. At SummerSlam 2018, The Man viciously attacked Charlotte Flair following the Queen's victory over her and Carmella to win the SmackDown Women's Championship. It was intended to get boos from fans, but the Brooklyn crowd roared in support of Becky.
The months following saw Lynch try her darnest to get the fans to hate her by being cowardly and blaming the fans for her lack of success. However, the WWE Universe never booed Becky Lynch and instead cheered her against Flair. It wasn't until Becky caught fire from her feud with Ronda Rousey that the company finally relented and accepted Lynch as the top babyface.
This immediately gave everyone deja vu at SummerSlam 2021 when Becky Lynch returned for the first time in 15 months to a huge pop from the Las Vegas crowd. She then proceeded to defeat beloved SmackDown Women's Champion Bianca Belair for the title in 26 seconds. It was a way to change Becky's character and allow her to feud with some of the up-and-coming babyfaces on the roster.
Despite Becky Lynch bringing her A-game on the mic and in the ring since her return, her character continues to gain some of the loudest cheers of anyone on the roster.
Many fans wanted to believe reports that it was Lynch's idea to go this route, but she later revealed in an interview that it was not, so it is disappointing WWE didn't learn from the past with one of their biggest female babyfaces ever.
4) Becky Lynch's promos are better at getting the fans to rally behind her than boo her
Becky Lynch has tried her best over the past few months to switch up her promos by directing her ire at fans and belittling babyfaces. She's done admirably with this, but it just doesn't come off as natural all of the time. In the beginning, it felt completely forced, and it has to be said that she's improved considerably with these promos. However, being the 'bad girl' isn't what she's best at.
Becky Lynch has always done well to get the WWE Universe to rally behind her, especially with what she has to say. The Man showed this yet again in the buildup to Survivor Series 2021. While she was opposed by the hated Charlotte Flair, it brought out some of the best promo work from Becky since her return. It is what she is most effective at on the microphone.
3) Becky Lynch has never played an effective heel character in WWE
The aforementioned failed heel turn at SummerSlam 2018 wasn't the first time that WWE had attempted to switch roles for Becky Lynch. Back in her NXT days, the current RAW Women's Champion had a slow start to her run. Her stereotypical Irish character didn't catch on and never seemed authentic. This led to her first heel turn, aligning with Sasha Banks.
This change helped bring more aggression to what Becky Lynch did in the ring and how her character came across. It brought elements of herself to her on-screen persona.
In the end, It really only created more of a connection between Lynch and the fans. The heel run didn't last long before Becky once again became a babyface against Banks at NXT TakeOver: Unstoppable.
2) WWE robbed fans of cheering Becky upon her return at SummerSlam
If this wasn't clear already, WWE got it wrong from the start with this Becky Lynch heel turn. Prior to the Man going on hiatus to give birth to her first child, Becky's character was reaching the point of getting stale as the all-conquering babyface hero and was slowly showing more cockiness as the months went on. However, absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Becky Lynch took her pregnancy break from the company after Money In The Bank 2020 amid a global pandemic. Fans went 15 months without seeing The Man on their television screens.
But one thing WWE always nails is getting the huge babyface pop for returns. They knew Lynch would get it at SummerSlam 2021, so the promotion pulled the rug from under them immediately.
Becky Lynch received a massive pop and roar from the Las Vegas crowd and challenged Bianca Belair for the SmackDown Women's Championship. The company dangled a tantalizing match-up in front of the audience following a shocking return. 26 seconds later, the excitement was taken away and a feeling of emptiness replaced it.
If WWE wanted to turn Becky Lynch heel, there were numerous other ways to accomplish this goal.
They could have had a competitive match with Becky cheating to beat the EST for the gold. That would have avoided undermining the incredible run that Bianca had from January on. It also would have allowed fans to boo Becky and not the booking. That is where we are still at.
1) WWE doesn't portray babyfaces well, but Becky Lynch was a hero despite this
WWE is a company with a rich history of successful top babyfaces. Bruno Sammartino became the first face of the promotion, holding the WWE Championship for almost 12 years total in the 1960's and 70's. Hulk Hogan changed the industry completely, while on top of the company. John Cena had one of the longest runs of any top star for WWE ever.
Since The Cena Era, WWE hasn't done the best job of booking, presenting or promoting babyfaces. From their promos to their win-loss records, it has been difficult for fan favorites to catch on properly. Some slip through and go on to huge success like CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. Some never reach the level of popularity to match their push like Roman Reigns.
Becky Lynch created an organic connection with the WWE Universe through her trials and tribulations, working her way through the ranks. The Man finally fighting against Charlotte Flair made them the fans rally behind her and the feud with Ronda Rousey took it to the next level. Becky became the biggest underdog babyface since Daniel Bryan.
WWE tried to make Becky Lynch hateable and only made her into the top star in the promotion. For a company that doesn't book babyfaces well, Lynch overcame it all to reach heights that no one imagined for her or any female on the roster. That's why WWE's denial of what they have and Becky's success as a fan favorite is the main reason why she is just better as a babyface.
Would you like to see Becky Lynch return to being a babyface in WWE? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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