We publish a whole lot of content here at Cageside Seats. We’re also [looks around and whispers so the bosses can’t hear] not the only place producing wrestling content on the internet. So, as a service to you on the weekdays, we’ll be producing a wrestling newsletter, "Rude Awakening." Well, it will be a newsletter eventually: for now, it’ll just be part of your experience here at Cageside, collecting the news, recaps, and social moments from the greater wrestling universe daily so you won’t fall behind, with a newsletter format to come.
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You’ve probably booed Roman Reigns at some point. If not Reigns himself, then WWE’s booking of him. Or maybe you’re one of the people who thinks Reigns is pretty dope, and even if you agree that WWE has made him a little too bulletproof, you feel fine with where he is given how well his matches tend to work. That’s kind of the Roman Reigns experience, though, isn’t it? He’s not John Cena, but he does get those split reactions. Triple H — well, Paul Levesque, really — was recently asked about Reigns and those reactions in one of the many interviews he’ll be doing before WrestleMania 33:
“People can look at Roman Reigns and say, ‘The failed attempt that is Roman Reigns,’ but Roman Reigns sells tickets,” said Levesque. “Roman Reigns gets one of the loudest reactions every night, whether that reaction is a boo or whether that reaction is a cheer. The fans who say, ‘I don’t understand why they don’t turn Roman Reigns heel!’ Isn’t he already?
To many crowds, Reigns basically is a heel, at least in terms of reactions. However, what Levesque says here isn’t especially true. WWE pushes Reigns as a good guy who clashes with the evil Authority and other wrestlers we often consider to be actual heels, not just wrestlers who get boos. Reigns isn’t out here cheating. He’s not conspiring against his friends like Seth Rollins did, he’s not working alongside the Authority. He’s just a guy who gets booed because some fans don’t like how often he’s in the main event, or how quickly he got there, or because, like CM Punk chants, it’s something they saw on TV that they now think is what they’re supposed to do.
So no, Reigns isn’t already a heel. Levesque even says as much himself later on in the interview: “We’re just presenting him to you in a different way that makes you hate him.” If he does something sinister to defeat the Undertaker and then plays it off like everything is on the level, Kevin Owens-style, then sure, we can talk about how he’s actually doing heel things. If he beats people to within inches of their life a la Brock Lesnar just because it gives him joy, then yeah, he’s heeling it up. But pitting him against someone guaranteed to get cheers against him isn’t Reigns as a heel.
And Reigns doesn’t necessarily need to be a heel. Just don’t pretend he is because there are people booing him, as that’s just willfully misinterpreting a reaction.
- This week’s RAW wasn’t bad. It just kind of was. And that’s a shame given it was the last episode before WrestleMania 33. There were high points, though, which we’ll get to.
- Tuesday’s Rumor Roundup is very women’s wrestling-centric, but it’s also not necessarily full of good news.
- Paige issued a statement on how she’s handling being the victim of bullying.
- If you’ve ever wanted to see what the inside of Sheamus’ head looks like, last night’s RAW was for you!
- Whoa, hold up. The Undertaker can’t actually teleport? This might be video evidence but I’m not sure I believe it. It’s probably doctored footage.
- By the way, Roman Reigns’ promo before said teleportation was real good.
- Here’s an updated list of confirmed entrants for The ‘Dre.
- Triple H vs. Seth Rollins is official for WrestleMania 33, as the two signed a contract following a quality promo from Seth where he laid out the reasons for needing to fight his old mentor. We finally have a reason for him to be face other than that his old heel buddies turned on him, and it’s endearing and relatable.
- Here’s a fun exercise: try to build your own all-time WrestleMania card.
- The RAW Women’s Championship match now has an elimination stipulation, which is good, because elimination stipulations are good.
- WrestleMania week is packed, and WWE released the full schedule of events.
- Who wants to see some very good photos of Triple H and Finn Balor?
- Let’s go back in time to June 9, 1997, for the RAW where the Nation of Domination finally split up to be reformed in a far more sensible way.
- On that same night, there was a weird main event segment on Nitro where Hulk Hogan looks strong that Brandon Stroud covered in his retro Best and Worst. A weird Nitro main event where Hulk Hogan looks strong? I know, I was surprised, too.
- WWE named the 20 best WrestleMania entrances of all-time. They have quite a few from WrestleMania 32, and Rusev doesn’t get enough love, but it’s a solid list.
- New Day has ice cream pops, which will be better known (and clapped to) as New Day Pops.