Everybody may already know him as one of the host of the Nerds of the Squared Circle podcast (HERE) but if you don’t welcome new writer to the SWN family Sam Jericho …
10…
The Alamo Dome was packed as I rose from my seat. The roar of the crowd was stinging. Amongst of 50,000 WWE wrestling fans, the excitement of the Night’s Main Event was reaching a fever pitch.
9…
Inside the ring, my childhood hero The Undertaker was cleaning house, standing tall above all others. No one seemed poised to be able to take down the Deadman.
8…
My brother to my left, my girlfriend to my right, we were just a few of thousands eagerly awaiting what was gonna come next. Only one more superstar was gonna enter the traditional Royal Rumble match. 30 men would enter, and 29 had already arrived. Who would be next? Who would be last?
7…
My mind raced with the possibilities. Weeks before the event, Superstars threw their names into the hat, claiming how they’d enter the Rumble and go on to the Main Event with their victory. Amongst the Undertaker were names like Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton and my personal favorite Chris Jericho.
6…
Though many men had announced their inclusion in this annual extravaganza, only 22 spots in the 30 man Royal Rumble match had ben revealed. That meant 8 entrants would be a complete surprise.
5…
As the Undertaker towered in the ring above his fallen prey, I looked back on the hour the match had been going at who I’d seen. Superstars Kalisto, Jack Gallagher, Mark Henry, James Ellsworth, Apollo Crews and Enzo Amore’ had entered unannounced. While all these men deserve respect, none were the heavy weighted superstar power presence the audience has come to expect as surprise entries in the Rumble. There had to be something more.
4…
At number ten, Tye Dillinger had entered. The “Perfect 10” was a perfect shock for entering at his name sake, popping the crowd into thunderous chants of “ten” until ultimately coming up short mere minutes later with his less than perfect elimination. There had to be at least one more surprise left.
3…
Tye Dillinger plus the other surprise entries makes seven; seven out of eight open spots. As the Phenom stood in the ring, the final spot, the final superstar, the final moment, number 30 to enter was someone We all had no idea the identity. We stood in eager anticipation. The moment had finally come.
2…
Who could it be? Could it be the 2017 Hall of Fame class headliner Kurt Angle, making his first appearance in a WWE ring in over 10 years? Maybe Samoa Joe, a wrestling Veteran who’d been serving time in WWE’s Developmental NXT promotion, poised to finally appear on the main roster. Perhaps Finn Balor, a Superstar atop the main event scene in WWE over the summer who tragically got injured just as he reached the pinnacle. It even could be the white hot Kenny Omega, who after stealing the talk of the wrestling world in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 11 for NJPW, a different promotion altogether, was poised to make a similar rumble debut as his former Bullet club patriot AJ Styles did the year before. The possibilities were seemingly endless.
1…
From the vantage point of where I was standing, I could see production staff discretely putting pyro charges on the ramp way. I assumed that meant the final entrant would have pyrotechnics, and that drastically altered my expectations. “it’s gonna be Kurt Angle,” I said to myself as I clasped my hands on my head, giddy with excitement. The final entrant to my first Royal Rumble live was about to enter, and it could be anyone, but I want it to be Kurt Angle. Though, I would be happy with anyone. ANYONE would be a surprise, and ANYONE would be awesome. There is no way it could be a disappointment. In fact, there possibly was only one person that I’d hate who it was; only one person who could ruin…
BUZZZ!!!!!!
Roman Reigns. The Big Dog. The Juggernaut. The destroyer of dreams. The anointed one by upper management and the man hardcore fans seem to hate more than anything. The GUY was here, and Roman Freakin’ Reigns (yes, same middle name as Seth Rollins) was the climactic final entry to the Royal Rumble.
In the moment, my heart sank. I slunk into my seat in disappointment. I wasn’t crushed, just disappointed.
Then I got over that feeling as Roman Reigns and The Undertaker stared each other down in the ring. Roman stood toe to toe with the Deadman, and no one was silent. You were either cheering or booing, but no one was indifferent. I can only imagine the same sentiment was evoked for those watching at home, but in the Alamo Dome, the feeling became strange: you either wanted Roman to win, or you wanted desperately for him to lose.
Every time Roman got the upper hand, I wrenched with disdain. Every time someone took him down, I cheered with glee. Roman Reigns evokes something out of everyone, good or bad. When Roman finally eliminated the Undertaker, Everyone was shocked. ‘Taker was a heavy favorite, and being eliminated by Roman Reigns was nothing but polarizing. Their stare down was palpable, and then I realized what they were doing. Years from now, when I re-watch this Rumble, I’d remember the feeling of this moment. It clearly is foreshadowing for the future. As Roman mutters to the defeated Undertaker “This is my yard now” I knew a Wrestlemania Clash was coming.
Eventually it came down to Randy Orton and Roman Reigns as the final two. If Roman had won, the scene in the building would have been similar to that of a riot. The hate on him is that strong. So when Orton eventually toppled Reigns over the top rope, the crowd erupted with elation. The technically heel Randy Orton had provoked a pop from the crowd by winning over the heavily booed Roman Reigns, who is supposed to be the top Good Guy in the company.
I saw in that moment how dead Kayfabe truly is because I can see how much WWE knows it and uses it against the “smart fans” Anyone that thinks they didn’t know he’d be booed by some fans aren’t getting it. The fans who are booing are the same ones who are cheering every villain. They cheer Kevin Owens, they cheer AJ styles. No one says they are ruining things by not getting the reaction they’re supposed to. Arguably the most over guy on RAW is Chris Jericho who, again, is a “bad guy”. At this point, the most important thing in general is to get heat in general, good or bad. Roman Reigns, like him or hate him, gets a reaction.
When Roman came out at number 30, it caused a visceral reaction. People cared. People outside the make believe world of WWE TV became invested like Roman Reigns was the undoer of goodness and then you cheered anyone who could vanquish him. The non-Kayfabe has become the new Kayfabe. A box within the box, and its brilliant.
Is putting the guy you want people to cheer in a position where he’d get booed a bad booking decision? Traditionally, of course but these aren’t traditional times. If they turned Roman Reigns “heel” he’d eventually get booed by the people now cheering him, and then cheered by the people now booing him. He isn’t ever going to be in a position where he’s one or the other. That’s the new top guy, and it’s something the smart fans somehow don’t seem to get. The important factor in a top person is that people care. People care about Roman Reigns. Him coming out at #30 is not what I expected, is not what I wanted, and thus was something I won’t forget, and creating a moment that visceral isn’t a bad move, it’s brilliant.