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If the WWE Universe had its own trending topics list, the search term ‘Jason Jordan’ would have been trending worldwide ever since July 2017.
The former American Alpha member was a forgotten SmackDown Live Superstar a few months ago but, thanks to his alignment with ‘biological father’ Kurt Angle, he has become one of the most talked-about people in WWE.
You only have to scroll through social media during Monday Night Raw every week to see how many fans are complaining, cringing and cursing when the former SmackDown Tag Team champion is on our screens.
Looking back, we haven’t seen a so-called ‘babyface’ receive this much backlash from fans since Roman Reigns’ push in early 2015 when he won the Royal Rumble and main-evented WrestleMania.
But, honestly, how much of this hate has been fair? Should we cut JJ some slack? In this article, we look at five reasons why his babyface push will turn out to be a positive for both him and WWE.
#1 He’s an outstanding in-ring performer
The main reason why Jason Jordan’s babyface push has been a good thing is obvious: he’s an extremely talented wrestler who wasn’t being given enough opportunities on SmackDown Live.
Of all the major call-ups from NXT in recent years, American Alpha’s first 12 months on the main roster was the most disappointing of the lot. Everyone could see how good Jordan and Chad Gable were from their time in NXT but they just weren’t showcased enough once they were promoted to SmackDown.
Granted, they won the SmackDown Tag Team titles from the Wyatt Family in December 2016, but they were barely used on television in the weeks that followed and the championships ended up feeling so irrelevant that they weren’t even defended at WrestleMania 33.
Whether Jordan lives up to Kurt Angle’s real-life assessment of his on-screen son – he claims JJ is “up there with AJ Styles” – we’ll just have to see, but there’s no better platform than Monday Night Raw to show exactly what he can do.
#2 Everyone has an opinion about him
In July 2017, very few fans cared about Jason Jordan. American Alpha lost the SmackDown Tag Team titles in March and a three-month spell following WrestleMania 33 saw JJ compete in just one match on WWE television.
Fast forward four months and, with the exception of Roman Reigns, he’s become the most polarising full-time member of the WWE roster; some people like him for his in-ring skills, some people loathe him for his awkward promos.
However you perceive the Illinois native, you’re bound to have a strong opinion on him. When his music hits, you’ll take notice or you’ll tut. When he loses, you’ll enjoy it or you’ll think he’s being buried. When he speaks, you’ll listen or you’ll sigh.
Jordan is one of the most talked-about Superstars in WWE right now. Positive or negative, it really doesn’t matter – people are paying attention to him and that’s something that wasn’t happening a few short months ago.
#3 You want to know what happens next
When Jason Jordan and Chad Gable were on and off our screens during their time on SmackDown, did you want to know what happened to them next? Perhaps you did, but you knew whatever was coming wasn’t exactly going to be spectacular.
However, now that he’s on Raw and involved in a storyline with his Hall of Famer ‘father’ Kurt Angle, do you want to know what happens to him next? Maybe the answer is no, but the chances are that you’re probably keen to see what WWE decides to do with the Jordan character.
Is he a future champion? Is he a future, or perhaps even current, main-eventer? Or will the company decide that this whole experiment has been a disaster and is he on the verge of being dropped from major storylines for good?
Whatever happens, Jordan is more relevant now than he’s ever been in his career, and that can only be a good thing.
#4 Long-term storyline with big pay-off
In the early days of WWE, the majority of storylines would play out over the course of 6-12 months and culminate in a blockbuster match at one of the company’s biggest events of the year.
Nowadays, however, it rarely works like that. The only recent example of a storyline lasting that long is this year’s feud between Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns, which was revisited on multiple occasions over a nine-month spell between January and October.
In the case of Jason Jordan, many believe the Kurt Angle storyline, which began in July, will result in a match between the two further down the line, with Jordan possibly playing the heel if and when he turns against his ‘father’.
Whether that happens or not, we’ll have to keep watching to find out, but it makes a refreshing change to see a storyline develop over a long period of time when we’ve become so accustomed to feuds ending before they’ve barely gotten started.
#5 He’s taken the heat off Roman Reigns
Okay, it might seem outlandish, but there’s a theory out there that Jason Jordan’s continued push as a babyface has only gone on for so long because WWE wants Roman Reigns to receive a more favourable response from Monday Night Raw audiences.
Jordan’s inability to please crowds week after week has made him the biggest babyface heat magnet there currently is on WWE’s flagship show, even more so than Reigns.
“The Big Dog” received more cheers than boos this past week on Raw, largely thanks to the recent Shield reunion and the fact that Elias’ guitar-playing went on for an eternity, but the fact that he is no longer the most-hated good guy on the show certainly helps too.
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