It’s the topic every wrestling fan has been talking about but no wrestling fan really wants to talk about anymore: WWE’s struggles to book Roman Reigns effectively.
The creative team has tried everything from a respect feud with Daniel Bryan to a straight rub from his cousin, The Rock, and nothing has really gotten the company’s alleged next top babyface completely over for long. After a brief run as champion that actually seemed to have fans on his side for a while, Reigns is headed for a World Heavyweight Championship match against champion Triple H at WrestleMania 32 that has been widely panned by fans and critics alike.
The way we got to this match is questionable at best. What should’ve happened is a match between champion Reigns and challenger Triple H at Royal Rumble, won by Reigns after Bray Wyatt won the Rumble match itself. That would’ve allowed for two months to convince us why Bray is is a force to be feared before, hopefully, Wyatt takes the belt off Reigns at WrestleMania in a career-defining match for both men.
That’s not what happened, though. Instead, Reigns was given the full “Daniel Bryan treatment” surrounding Royal Rumble, which completely turned the fans against him again. Then Triple H won the belt at the Rumble, and here we are. Triple H is saying everything a heel is supposed to say, although he doesn’t really seem to mind too much that he’s being received as the hero. Meanwhile, Roman Reigns is supposed to be the babyface, but he’s getting booed out of buildings.
But the match at WrestleMania can still be saved, and there are two good ways to do it.
Embrace the heel turn
The real news flash here isn’t that a heel turn should be in Reigns’ future, but that it has already happened in reality.
Reigns no longer comes down through the crowd, instead entering the arena from the stage area like everyone else. He hasn’t really talked much at all since his return from surgery on his nose, and he certainly hasn’t been playing up to the crowd.
On top of that, he’s coming in and beating Triple H up for no reason, basically unprovoked. All the while, the fans are booing him while they cheer his opponent. The goal might still be to get Reigns over as a face, but that’s not happening. Instead, he’s the heel, and it’s time for both Reigns and the WWE to embrace that.
At WrestleMania, if he gets the expected boos, he needs to visibly acknowledge that they’re happening, but not as a whiny, petulent heel would. Instead, he should smirk or become visibly angry. Then, he needs to make sure he beats Triple H and cheat to do so in some sneaky, underhanded way. He could put his legs on the ropes for the decisive pin, nail Triple H with a foreign object or he could even reject assistance from his cousin by knocking The Rock clean out.
After he wins, and the boos rain down, he would just smile, collect his belt and exit the arena, soaking in the noise he’s been hearing for months. While that doesn’t really help the actual reception of the match result, it would allow that reception to become fuel for the story instead of an awkward soundtrack that tells us everything is all wrong.
Make ‘The Game’ tap out
As simple as accepting the heel role would be, the more compelling and perhaps complex route would be to have Roman win the match absolutely clean. Beyond that, he should do it with a submission hold. Further still, the win should come via a Figure Four Leglock.
The symbolism there is bold: Roman Reigns collecting possibly his first ever submission victory to win the world title and take down a 14-time world champion using a move made famous by that man’s mentor, a 16-time world champion. The set-up could be equally important, as Reigns beats Triple H down, but the champ refuses to stand up away from the ropes to avoid taking one of Reigns’ finishers, the Superman Punch or the Spear. Instead, Reigns catches the “Cerebral Assassin” with a Figure Four by surprise.
Triple H tapping in the center of the ring would have one of two effects. The more likely is that, somehow, the fans would still view this as a ploy to “shove Roman down their throats” and boo anyway. That would be truly sad, because the storytelling here would be epic, but it could happen, and if it does, revert to Plan A. After Triple H taps, Roman should beat him mercilessly and target the leg he just bent to get the win. If a friend or family member comes out to stop him, Roman should beat them too. Go full heel anyway.
The other option is that, finally, the fans would give him the full champion’s reception in appreciation of a finish that was truly unexpected and well-executed. If that happens, do the natural thing in it and bask in it.
Because who knows how long it will last.
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