PWTorch.com - CALDWELL: WWE faces divided fanbase headed to WM31 - how can WWE make Roman Reigns work for everyone?

CALDWELL'S TAKE
CALDWELL: WWE faces divided fanbase headed to WM31 - how can WWE make Roman Reigns work for everyone?

Jan 26, 2015 - 2:56:22 PM

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By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

WWE has a divided fanbase heading into WrestleMania 31, where the expected main event is Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE World Title. How WWE addresses this will be one of the biggest stories of the next two months leading to WM31.

On one hand are many passionate, vocal fans who are having deja vu to last year's Royal Rumble when Batista was hand-picked to win the Rumble. It was a combination of the audience passionately supporting Daniel Bryan (and C.M. Punk) while also seeing Batista as a returning star who was not in shape, out-of-place in the infamous movie star "skinny jeans," and booked poorly upon his return, especially embracing the evil heels directly opposed to D-Bryan on TV, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, on his first night back on TV.

Then, there are casual fans who were not heard Sunday night at the Rumble, but make up a large percentage of the audience who will be cheering Reigns at live shows and TV tapings in most markets on the Road to WrestleMania.

Last Sunday, I covered the basic Sunday night house show in front of mainly a casual/family-oriented audience. It was 85 percent cheers for Reigns, with the trailing voices of vocal males booing Reigns's ring introduction for a match against Rusev.

Last night, flip that around to 85-90 percent lustful boos directed at Reigns, who is now playing the role of Batista embodying fan frustration and resentment toward WWE that has been building for years.

And, it's not to say that casual or younger fans are unintelligent, they just don't think about wrestling at the level of passionate fans. They see a tall, athletic wrestler who is obviously a big deal in WWEland with some charm, a neat ring entrance through the crowd, lots of victories, and cool "signature moves." They're not looking at the limited in-ring work, awkward to rudimentary promos, and WWE overly-endorsing Reigns before he's ready for this spot, forcing "their guy" on the audience.

So, how does WWE begin repairing a fractured fanbase? They could put Daniel Bryan back into the title picture - after all he never lost the WWE Title - to be a uniter since he appeals to both casual and passionate fans. But, it would take Vince McMahon admitting for the second year in a row that he made a mistake. A compromise would likely be Bryan hanging out with Reigns on TV leading to Mania, with Bryan playing the role of The Rock in the final moments of the Rumble.

Other options include positioning Reigns against the strongest heels who are not going to get cheered while trying to avoid the cliched John Cena booking, having Reigns show some vulnerability, and put Reigns on a journey that endears him to the fanbase. This isn't even considering how Brock Lesnar fits into Reigns's story as the former monster heel who suddenly became a heroic babyface.

As Greg Parks and I talked about on the post-game Livecast, WWE might have to dip into the Ryback Storytelling Book for Reigns to "share his story" in a real-life voice with his own thoughts and words to come across authentic and genuine.

Even then, will the WM31 audience consisting of passionate and international fans be okay with Reigns in a spot they feel belongs to Bryan or anyone else who does not embody WWE telling the audience who to cheer for? Or, is there anything Reigns can do performance-wise to endear himself to the audience besides suddenly becoming great in the ring, on the mic, or with his facial expressions?

WWE has eight weeks to make the Reigns Season work for everyone, while also understanding where passionate fans are coming from after the last two Royal Rumbles. Simply ignoring the vocal, passionate fan response is not an option.

But, WWE has to be careful to protect Reigns in the eyes of casual viewers who are comfortably on the bandwagon. It comes down to an authentic Roman Reigns who strengthens his bond with casual fans and gives passionate fans something, anything to get behind.