Believe it or not, that is the question that The WWE Universe now has to ask themselves after the company has pulled out literally all the stops in the world to get fans behind Roman Reigns. Of course, fans should have probably seen this coming after what the company did to Brock Lesnar and Bruan Strowman, but it seems like now nothing and no one is safe.
If nothing else, this weeks edition of Monday Night Raw proved just how far WWE is willing to go when it wants the company to love or hate someone. In fact, The WWE has been doing such a good job at putting support being Reigns lately, that fans might not even mind the fact that the company wants him to have a lengthy title reigns.
With that being said, how did WWE pull it off this week and what will be the long-term implications of what they did moving forward? Furthermore, how will what happened Monday night on Raw affect The Universal title picture? Well, attempt to answer all those questions and more as we break down exactly how tricked fans this week into getting behind Reigns.
#7 Doing their original entrance
Sometimes the simplest things can be the most powerful and WWE had been shying away from doing The Shield’s original interest at first, they made sure to do it this week on Monday Night Raw. Not only did doing that create a fight like feel to the opening segment of the night, it also gave the night a nostalgic feel of sorts.
Again, having them walk through the crowd might seem like something very simple, but it contributing to the aesthetic of the night that few other things would have. Furthermore, it gave fans quite the surprise from the get-go, which had to leave many of them gasping in amazement as they saw The Hounds of justice ascend to the ring.
#6 The opening brawl
If the entrance wasn’t enough for fans to slowly get behind Roman Reigns and The Shield, the brawl that unfolded during the opening segment of Raw had to be. It was that rare blend of attitude era type booking, which the WWE had lacked for a long time and the electrifying of the moment really helped The Shield look good after what happened last week.
In fact, it was impossible not to root for The Shield after what had been done to them by Strowman, Ziggler and McIntyre, and it was a really cool way to settle the score. Unfortunately for The WWE Universe, the brawl was short-lived and resulted in The Shield getting arrested for inciting a riot.
#5 The Shield getting arrested
Another important thing WWE did with The Shield on Raw has had them arrested for inciting a riot and damage to property. While the moment did come across as a very attitude era type of thing to do, it also left fans feeling cheated and kept them wanting more in regards to The Hounds of justice.
With that being said, WWE has been leaving fans wanting more in regards to Roman Reigns and the rest of The Shield lately, which is definitely paying dividends for the company at this point. In fact, it has seemingly resulted in a groundswell of support that could follow Roman Reigns even after The Shield breaks up.
Of course, that could just be wishful thinking, especially with how long The WWE Universe has despised Roman Reigns, but the company is really on the right track with booking him right now. In fact, WWE has done so well with Reigns over the past couple of months that it almost seems impossible for them to screw this up.
#4 Keeping the focus off of Roman Reigns
Less is more in a lot of ways and WWE played that to perfection by barely mentioning Roman Reigns and instead deciding to focus on The Shield as a whole. While it was a bit of surprise seeing the Universal title taking a backseat to The Shield reunion, the move seems justified when you consider that takes attention off of Roman Reigns.
If nothing else, at least that allows for Reigns not to be shoved down fans throats as much and instead allows The Shield to be highlighted more as a group then anything else. Interestingly enough, it seems to be working and along with WWE leaving fans wanting more, it could result in Reigns not even needing The Shield anymore after a while.
In the end, it will take some time for that to happen, but in the meantime, choosing to focus on The Shield as a whole takes some of the pressure of off Reigns and allows WWE to turn him back into the strong silent type that he was before becoming a singles star.
#3 Keeping Roman Reigns silent
WWE finally did it!
Instead of bringing Roman Reigns out to cut a promo on his opponent for Hell in a Cell, WWE actually did the unthinkable and had Reigns stay silent throughout the entire opening segment. Interestingly enough, this is the first time WWE has done this in quite a while and could be a sign that they are transitioning him back to his role as the silent type.
Not only does that allow Reigns to go back to being the silent muscle of The Shield that kept him popular for so long, it also shifts the focus away from Reigns and onto the group as a whole, which will help Reigns in the long run. In fact, it might even give WWE a second chance at booking Reigns how they should have the first time.
#2 Having The Shield return in the main event
The Shield returning in the closing moments of Monday Night Raw was supposed to be a chance at revenge against Strowman and his cohorts but turned into the Shield just getting laid out like they did a week before. Of course, it wasn’t the finish anyone was hoping for at the end of the night, but it was an important step in getting fans behind Reigns.
Not only was that evident by WWE bringing The Shield back for the main event to finish what was started at the beginning of the night, but also by how they left fans wanting more in the process. In the end, The Shield getting beaten again is a huge message that Strowman has a powerful team, which is only going to make The Shield’s eventual victory at the more sweet!
#1 Turning the Raw roster on The Shield
It’s not exactly known yet how Bruan Strowman, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre convinced The Raw locker room to ambush The Shield, but the move really did its job of creating an everyone against The Sheild mentality. It also left The Shield lying prone for the second week in a row, which is slowly starting to ignite a groundswell of support around the group.
Of course, WWE is going to have the allow the locker room to explain themselves for their actions, but this move seems to solve a lot of problems for WWE. Not only does it make The Shield look like the defacto underdogs of the entire feud, it also turns Strowman into a powerful heel in the process, which should protect him when he takes a loss at HIAC.
In the end, WWE was extremely smart to have everyone turn on The Shield in the closing moments of Raw and it will be interesting to see what the company does next with the storyline. Furthermore, it will also be interesting to see how this affects Strowman versus Reigns at Hell in a Cell and what it will do to the ending of the match.
0 votes
