Why Roman Reigns Should Join The Authority At WWE Fastlane

No more half-measures.

That line of course came from one of the best TV shows in recent years “Breaking Bad”. The line was delivered to illustrate that sometimes when you’re attempting to solve a difficult problem, the only way to get the result desired is to use your last option or take the biggest step or action available even if there’s a possibility of collateral damage instead of hoping that smaller steps or temporary solutions will work.

With that theory in mind, Roman Reigns should join the Authority at the WWE Fastlane Pay-Per-View.

Obviously the situation facing Walter White was a little more serious than the one facing Reigns and the WWE—although both situations are/were fictional of course—but at this point the course of action to make the best out of the current situation surrounding Reigns is abundantly clear.

The WWE has to turn him heel.

They’re currently trying out half-measures to salvage his baby face run by making him “earn it” against Daniel Bryan, but having Reigns beat Bryan won’t cause fans to throw away their “Yes!” t-shirts for one supporting Reigns instead.

Reigns is getting more cheers now at their TV shows than he did in Philadelphia at the Royal Rumble obviously, but a significant portion of the crowd has still been very vocally against him. Getting booed isn’t a bad thing if that is the reaction you’re trying to get—better than silent indifference—but if the idea is still to push Reigns as the next great baby face than they have major issues with a disconnect between how the fans perceive his character and how the WWE wants him to be viewed.

The opinion of fans can change and be swayed by a good story line or match, but I’m very skeptical of the creative staff and their ability to quickly resurrect his image and get fans to see Reigns in the light that they desire. When bringing the Rock out there as an endorsement doesn’t work then you know the story line being pushed isn’t getting over.

At the risk of sounding foolish due to a lack of knowledge of what Vince McMahon’s long-term plan is for Reigns going to and beyond Wrestlemania, the idea to put him against Daniel Bryan is flawed as neither outcome would be positive as long as he remains a baby face.

Either the WWE will look wishy-washy and like they have no confidence in the story line or Superstar by taking the match against Brock Lesnar away from Reigns, or they’ll run the risk of intensifying the heat from the WWE Universe by not only picking against Daniel Bryan, but now rubbing their face in that decision by picking Reigns for a second time.

By the way if Bryan does end up in a second straight Wrestlemania main event despite not winning the Royal Rumble either year, I never want to hear again from his fans that he’s being treated unfair or not getting the push that he deserves.

If the plan is to have Reigns beat Bryan clean at Fastlane and remain as a baby face going into Wrestlemania then Vince McMahon and the creative staff aren’t paying attention to the current climate.

If they wanted to keep him baby face they should have played into the line “one vs. all” that Reigns always uses during promos. Throw him into handicap matches, lumberjack matches and gauntlet matches against heels and really play up the idea that Reigns is standing tall, taking on all-comers and willing and able to overcome every obstacle on his path to capturing the title.

If you want us to view him as Superman, present him as Superman.

For a run as a baby face to work with Reigns over the near future he has to be seen as having earned his shot instead of it just being given to him because he has “the look”. Even if enough time remained before Wrestlemania to accomplish that re-working of his image, beating Daniel Bryan in one match will not accomplish that goal.

Instead fans will once again be smacked in the face with the idea that management doesn’t believe in Bryan and is either too stubborn to accept his popularity or just plain deaf to the pops he receives each time he comes to the ring. I’m not suggesting that the WWE bend to the fans every whim and desire, but the perception that they’re unwilling to acknowledge who their most popular superstar is and reward him accordingly is becoming all too real.

Historically the WWE Championship has been given to the most-popular and top-drawing baby face or to a hot heel that the baby face would chase after and eventually defeat. I’m not sure who sells the most t-shirts, but Bryan for reasons I don’t understand is without a doubt the WWE Superstar who most closely fits that criteria. I’m not a fan of Bryan, but the reaction he gets should be hard to deny.

So how should all of this impact the storyline surrounding Reigns? If they can’t convince the WWE Universe to accept him as their favorite baby face, then they should accept the negativity he’s currently receiving and make the best of it by turning him heel. Having Reigns beat Bryan is going to get him booed, so the creative staff might as well embrace that reaction and capitalize on it instead of fighting it going into Wrestlemania.

Many have suggested that if Reigns does turn heel it should come because Paul Heyman turned on and betrayed Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania. On many levels that idea makes sense with Lesnar possibly leaving the company after that match and Heyman’s ability to cover up Reigns’ biggest weakness by talking for him, but there’s a better way to accomplish the same goal. My skepticism towards that plan comes because I don’t think the personalities and perception of Reigns will mesh as well with Heyman as others have and also because there’s a better way for him to get and maintain heat.

Although his job is to annoy and poke at the WWE Universe, it seems like most fans still at least kind of like Heyman because of how entertaining he can be and how talented he is at delivering promos; a lost art in today’s scripted world.

Currently Lesnar gets about a 50/50 reaction from the audience, so using the same formula for Reigns likely won’t get the desired result if he remains a baby face. Plus since Reigns will without a doubt be working a much busier schedule than what Lesnar does currently they would run the risk of using Heyman too often and watering-down his impact through overexposure.

My alternative suggestion is to have Roman Reigns join the Authority.

With Reigns and Bryan set to meet at Fastlane what storylines are the hottest and most talked about with each Superstar? For Reigns it’s that he’s being pushed to the top before he’s ready or before he earned that shot and with Bryan it’s that he’s being held back by people in power who don’t believe in him; so embrace and use those angles!

Having Reigns defeat Bryan with the help and backing of the Authority would be perfect for the “Reality Era” as it would stay true to and capitalize on both the behind the scenes drama and the in-ring story line being presented.

Fans are already upset over Bryan being held back by the real-life authority, so using the superstar seen as undeservedly getting the spot Bryan should own to keep him down once again would get Reigns amazing heat as a heel. Vince McMahon and Triple H say they listen to the WWE Universe, well they very vocally told you that they hated the idea of Reigns getting pushed over Bryan, so feeding into that would maximize the strength of both characters and make best use of the reaction they’re currently receiving.

Imagine if Seth Rollins, J&J Security, Kane, Triple H and company came out to ringside during the Reigns vs. Bryan match and helped Reigns win? The heat would be extremely intense; we could have the Philadelphia Royal Rumble reaction to Reigns every night.

For those wondering how they would explain Reigns joining up I will tell you that the answer to that is very simple and easy. Similar to how they turned the Rock heel when he joined the Nation of Domination, have Reigns talk about the fans abandoning and turning on him at the Royal Rumble and that now he was only going to look out for his self by joining up with the people in power. Maybe a mention of what it’s done for Seth Rollins’ career with his status as Mr. Money in the Bank.

Perhaps he could even break kayfabe a little bit and say that the Authority was the only group of people to believe in him enough to give him a push.

The match itself would be simple to book and plan out as you could have Bryan on the verge of defeating Reigns several times only to see the Authority use distraction to help sway the result. Picture if Bryan hit Reigns with the running-knee, but before the ref could start his count someone from the Authority jumped up on the ring apron and distracted the ref. Bryan gets up to attack whoever is standing there to get them out of the way so that the ref can make a three-count, but while all of that is going on Reigns has managed to get up to his feet and as Bryan turns around he gets hit with the spear.

One, two, three; the heat from that finish would be awesome!

Not only would that scenario better capitalize and maximize the fans reaction and feelings towards both Reigns and Bryan than teaming Reigns with Paul Heyman, but by having Reigns join the Authority he would have Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and Seth Rollins there to ease some of the promo work off his shoulders. Those three are very skilled at getting under the skin of an audience, so even while none of them are as gifted as Heyman they could accomplish the same goal in regards to taking pressure off of Reigns to deliver consistent promos and get him heat as one of the company’s top heels.

In the short term that would allow Lesnar to be presented as an edgy, no-nonsense, bad ass baby face like Stone Cold and the Undertaker before him who both worked and talked like heels but were embraced as fan favorites. I might be alone on this, but Lesnar has a great run in him as a baby face if he decides to re-sign with the WWE. His impressive presence and performances are hard to hate and he’s already getting a mixed positive reaction even while being booked as the heel. If Lesnar were positioned correctly against a white-hot heel like Reigns would be if he joined the Authority in the scenario I laid out, he would get tremendous pops and support from the fans.

Regardless if Reigns wins the title or not—which I assume will hinge on Lesnar re-signing—the Authority could use a younger guy to join Rollins as the faces of the faction. Nothing personal against Kane or Big Show, but they’re past their athletic primes, their in-ring performance has declined and it’s just time for someone new after seeing those guys for over a decade now.

Reigns has a bright future as a top baby face in the WWE; that time just isn’t right now.

Looking past Wrestlemania and booking the territory with a more long-term strategy in mind, if Reigns defeats Lesnar for the title I would have him hold on to the belt for a couple months until the Money in the Bank PPV in June.

This year’s Money in the Bank PPV is taking place earlier in the month of June than it did last year, so Rollins’ one year window to cash-in would not have expired yet at the time of that event. I would have Rollins turn on Reigns during that PPV, cash-in his contract and win the belt off of Reigns. That would give Rollins a much-deserved title run and obviously turn Reigns back into a baby face where the WWE seems to want to position him over the long-run.

I would then have Rollins successfully defend the belt over the next two months against Daniel Bryan and Reigns at the Battleground and Summer Slam PPV’s all leading up to a triple-threat match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Night of Champions in September between the trio I just mentioned.

They could go in many different directions at that point, but I would have Reigns win the belt back at Night of Champions, start a feud with Bray Wyatt involving a title match inside “Hell in a Cell” the following month, while also spinning out the two men who were defeated—Rollins and Bryan—into their own separate feud.

A simple and effective plan in theory, but the willingness and ability to execute said plan are far from a guarantee.

What do you think? Comment below with your thoughts, opinions, feedback and anything else that was raised.

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