Thursday, April 14, 2016

Let Me Explain: Why You Hate Roman Reigns

Why do you hate Roman Reigns?
Photo Credit: WWE.com
The WWE Champion has been booed out of most television and pay-per-view arenas in the last 18 months, and the subject of far too many discussions online and off about why and how this is happening. What’s been missing is a frank explanation for it all.

Let me explain why you hate Roman Reigns.

You hate his look. How can you? He doesn’t look anything like you. Roman is 6’3", weighing 265 pounds of Samoan strength that has been a part of wrestling for more than a few decades. He’s cooler than cool with his long black hair and smooth voice that drives the women crazy at the shows. He’s not Kevin Owens, a burly family man who will break whatever walls the industry puts in front of him. He’s not Daniel Bryan, a man who was “held down” by Vince McMahon because he was too small and a vegan. You saw those guys. You know how talented they are. You didn’t see Reigns start up.

You hate his character development. For the longest time as a member of The Shield, Reigns didn’t say much. His cold stare made his statement and whatever words he did speak tended to be direct and powerful. When he broke out on his own, you hated that he didn’t learn much from a terrific promo in Dean Ambrose. He became a generic version of John Cena. And you know how corny his promos have been. Why was he using lines from cartoons when he should be serious? You can’t take him seriously.

You hate his wrestling ability. Look at his best matches. Either he was a part of The Shield or he was being carried by far superior talents like Daniel Bryan or Brock Lesnar. There are so many better wrestlers that should be in his spot besides the ones named. It’s unfair that you are once again being forced to cheer and root for a guy that you can’t relate to, that doesn’t connect to you, that can’t wrestle better than the guys you like and that you want to see succeed.

You hate being told what to do in wrestling. You get told what to do in everyday life, the last thing you want is to obey what some rich people think is right. That’s the reason you don’t like what that idiot owner did to your favorite sports team. It’s why you don’t understand why those stupid politicians just did what they did. Why should you follow what McMahon wants you to do? “My voice has changed the business!”, you’ll say. And it has. Ain’t no doubt about it. So isn’t that the real reason?

Perhaps you don’t hate his look. You like his character. Heck, you think he’s a great talent in the ring. But he’s another guy getting a rocket push instead of your guy. And you hate seeing anyone get pushed past your guy.

You might just be a fan of Roman Reigns.

And you hate that most of all.