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Bray Wyatt abruptly disappeared from WWE television on the road to WrestleMania 39. The three-time world champion seemed destined to face Bobby Lashley at the Show Of Shows when he vanished without a trace, leaving his opponent stranded. The All Mighty went on to win the Andre The Giant Battle Royal, but has been fairly directionless since.
Rumor circulated earlier this week that Wyatt might not only be resurfacing soon, but returning as The Fiend due to WWE not being happy with his current persona. Whether this holds any water remains to be seen, but it did get the fans talking about whether this would be the right decision. The gimmick saw some incredible highs and unbelievable lows during its first run, so it's worth debating whether it should come back.
Here are two reasons why Bray Wyatt should bring The Fiend back to WWE and two why he shouldn't
#2: SHOULD: The Fiend has a lot of unfulfilled potential in WWE
When The Fiend debuted at Summerslam 2019, the character left the WWE Universe's jaws on the floor. Everything about the character was surreal, from the entrance to the ring gear to the in-ring style. Fans really felt like a true successor to The Undertaker's supernatural throne had finally arrived after trying for many years.
The character quickly rose to the top of the card, taking out legends like Kane and Mick Foley and defeating top stars like Daniel Bryan and Seth Rollins. The Pandemic era came and the character took full advantage, having great cinematic matches with John Cena, Randy Orton and others. It hit a rough patch towards Bray Wyatt's 2021 release, but fans were still extremely excited to watch it unfold.
The gimmick has so much unrealized potential, and could be a huge hit if brought back
#2: SHOULD NOT: Bray Wyatt's current persona is more dynamic than The Fiend
The Fiend may have been a great gimmick, but Bray Wyatt's current persona is no slouch either. While the former was a clear-cut monster destroying everyone in his path, the latter is more complex, conflicted and intriguing. His current gimmick seems to have alot more legs and potential directions, especially with Uncle Howdy in the mix.
If the company has fresh ideas and directions for the three-time world champion going forward, they will be easier to execute with the new persona. The new persona only has seven months of history versus The Fiend's two years.
#1: SHOULD: The Fiend is still Bray Wyatt's most popular gimmick ever
The Fiend, as a gimmick, had many failures and weaknesses. For instance, WWE creative didn't seem to know how to handle the character's losses, and sometimes overexposed it and failed to find a balance between the supernatural and the ridiculous. For all these weaknesses, however, it is still one of the most popular WWE gimmicks of the past decade, and Wyatt's most popular ever.
Not bringing back The Fiend would feel like leaving money on the table, given that he was a buzz and merchandise machine. Even if the gimmick doesn't return full-time, it can be incorporated into the current persona like the Firefly Funhouse has been. It would be a shame for one of the company's most popular gimmicks in recent years to not get a second chance at becoming legendary.
#1: SHOULD NOT: WWE may have killed The Fiend's aura in the character's first run
As spectacular as the rise of The Fiend was, the fall of the gimmick was so devastating that it got Bray Wyatt released. The high points were memorable but the low points stuck just as much in fans' minds, if not more. For every Firefly Funhouse match, there's Hell In A Cell 2019; for every epic Mandible Claw on Kane, there's a squash by Goldberg.
The Fiend's aura may be too damaged to recover and return to its former levels of popularity after all the mistakes originally made with it. Thus, bringing the gimmick back might prove to be a mistake and end up wiping away any fondness for it left in fans' hearts.
