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It seems like The Fiend and Randy Orton will clash very soon, with Bray Wyatt's alter-ego costing the Viper his match against AJ Styles on RAW. This comes a few years after the two Superstars had a long storyline, one which lasted over eight months in the early days of SmackDown Live.
It featured multiple twists and turns from the end of the summer of 2016, all the way till the pay-per-view after WrestleMania 33. Some of them were great, with the story between Wyatt and Orton having tremendous potential. However, there were some serious problems with this rivalry.
This article will take a look at the feud and the partnership between Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton. There is a lot for their current feud to dive into, that is for sure. Hopefully, WWE incorporates some of their history together into their current feud on RAW.
Here are the main positives and negatives from the extremely long story of Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton, featuring pay-per-view headliners, multiple title victories, and a burning house.
#5 (Positive) Randy Orton joining Bray Wyatt to form the New Wyatt Family
The first leg of this rivalry saw Bray Wyatt play mind games with Randy Orton, culminating with the return of Luke Harper in the main event of No Mercy in October 2016. Orton was constantly beaten down by the two of them to the point where even an alliance with Kane did not help at all.
The Viper turned heel and aligned with Wyatt and Harper, with the trio being dubbed as the 'New Wyatt Family'. They dominated everything possible, from the RAW vs. SmackDown Survivor Series elimination match to the Tag Team Title scene, to the Royal Rumble Match.
This alliance gave Randy Orton a new edge to his character that wasn't seen in years. He was scarily comfortable in the role and everything he did with Bray Wyatt, as a tandem, was near-perfect. The two of them won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship at TLC, showcasing their dominance on the Blue brand.
While Orton's motive was to destroy The Wyatt Family from the inside, he did make them stronger for a few months. Had WWE made this alliance a more permanent thing, hardly anybody would have complained. This was probably the greatest period in the faction's existence.
#4 (Negative) Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt did not have a great match together
While the storytelling between Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton was great for the most part, their matches against each other weren't the greatest. The Viper faced the 'Eater of Worlds' at No Mercy, with their match headlining the pay-per-view. While decent, it was a bit slow and probably should not have been the main event.
Orton and Wyatt's bout was nowhere near the level of AJ Styles vs. John Cena vs. Dean Ambrose for the WWE Championship, or The Miz and Dolph Ziggler's 'IC Title vs. Career' classic. Both of those matches were better choices to headline the SmackDown-exclusive event.
After the heel turn from Randy Orton, fans expected the eventual blow-off match to be special. However, the two of them failed to deliver during their WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 33. More on that in a little bit.
The 14-time World Champion himself stated that he and Wyatt do not have the best chemistry in the ring, which was unfortunately evident during their matches together. This might be a slight cause for concern during Randy Orton's current feud with The Fiend, but the story is strong enough for them to be fine regardless.
#3 (Positive and Negative) Luke Harper's involvement in Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton
This may be confusing, but Luke Harper's role in the feud between his former leader, Bray Wyatt, and Randy Orton varied over time. At first, he did great. The subtle nature of his suspicion of Orton was expertly portrayed, as the Viper successfully got Harper removed from the Wyatt Family.
Harper, now known as Mr. Brodie Lee in AEW, was getting excellent reactions as he transitioned into a babyface, stepping up to Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton time and time again. He had a bone to pick with both men. Orton, because he split Harper from Wyatt and Wyatt, because it was his delusion that caused the problem in the first place.
At one point, it even seemed like Luke Harper would go on to challenge for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania, but it never came to fruition. And once Orton turned on Wyatt, he was merely a secondary player in this feud that he was a big part of beforehand.
Despite a surge in momentum, Harper ended up in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at 'Mania and had zero involvement in the WWE Championship match. He did show up on the SmackDown after the event to team with Randy Orton against Bray Wyatt and Erick Rowan.
This was a terrible move that lacked any real continuity. There was no reason for Luke Harper to team up with the man who separated him from his "family". His initial involvement was excellent, but things turned sour really fast as WrestleMania approached.
#2 (Positive) Bray Wyatt winning the WWE Championship during his feud with Randy Orton
Perhaps the biggest positive to come out of this whole thing, Bray Wyatt may not have won the WWE Championship if it wasn't for his storyline with Randy Orton storyline. With the Viper winning the 2017 Royal Rumble Match, Wyatt won the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber to establish the two of them as the top stars on SmackDown.
The match in which the 'Eater of Worlds' won the title was fabulous, as he pinned John Cena and AJ Styles en route to a stunning victory. The story of Randy Orton "forfeiting" his WrestleMania title shot was compelling, giving birth to the idea that Luke Harper could find his way to a world title match at 'Mania.
Even the moment when Orton betrayed his supposed leader was fantastic, as he burned down the Wyatt Compound. The image of it was as beautiful as it was haunting. Essentially, everything about this story until WrestleMania was great, aside from the complete removal of Harper from the main story.
Bray Wyatt's WWE Championship run is unfairly deemed a failure and while it ended poorly at the hands of Randy Orton, the seven weeks he held it for were fun. His successful triple threat title defense against Cena and Styles was one of the greatest matches of that era of SmackDown.
#1 (Negative) Everything fell apart after Randy Orton betrayed Bray Wyatt
As mentioned earlier, the moment that Randy Orton turned on Bray Wyatt was masterfully done. WWE just failed to capitalize on it. For starters, Orton probably should have remained the heel as he literally burned a man's house down and ripped his "family" apart. Wyatt was also extremely popular as the WWE Champion.
The feud should also have been much darker and more personal. Luke Harper should have also been involved since he was proven right by Randy Orton's actions. Unfortunately, the WWE Championship match at WrestleMania was a complete flop.
Happening in front of an already tired crowd, Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton was marred by a slow pace, some insect projections on the ring, and an extremely unpopular title change. The Viper won the WWE Championship following a dull match. To call it a disappointment would be an understatement.
Following WrestleMania, Wyatt continued to chase Orton. He was drafted to RAW but did get one more match with his arch-rival. A 'House of Horrors' Match. Also, it was non-title, so it did not mean anything. The feud was dead, but WWE insisted on booking one more "match" between Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt at the RAW-exclusive pay-per-view, Payback.
The match was half-cinematic production and half-Street Fight, but it was even worse than their WrestleMania clash. Orton was set to defeat Wyatt yet again before his next WWE Title challenger, Jinder Mahal, interfered and cost him the match.
The 'Eater of Worlds' somehow looked worse in victory at Payback than he did in defeat at WrestleMania. The downfall of Bray Wyatt's character, as well as his feud with Randy Orton, was sad to see. While it was credited to John Cena, this chain of events seems to be the true basis for the creation of The Fiend.
Teddy Long snaps when Swerve Strickland's race is brought up HERE
