MONDAY NIGHT REIGNS-O-METER #67: Tracking Roman Reigns’s ability to beat the odds and come out on top

Roman Reigns is one of the most dramatic, divisive and discussed WWE performers in history. The company makes desperate play after desperate play to make him your favourite graps guy – with limited success. How do they do it? What do they do?

I’m Tom Colohue and this is the Monday Night Reigns-o-Meter.

Monday Night Reigns-o-Meter

Now, before I begin, I just need to check something. Has everybody already forgotten about the Reigns & Lashley vs. Revival match that happened last week? Good. And the promo that Lashley mumbled through that was overseen by Kurt Angle? Great. And the fact that for once Reigns was the most accomplished promo in the ring? Yup, knew you’d have forgotten that one.

Now that we’re aware that none of those things actually, happened we can get on with the important stuff. Baron Corbin looks great, doesn’t he?

The show opened with the Raw GM in the middle of the ring. As that’s never happened before, I was stunned. I was even more stunned that as Angle spoke, Roman Reigns decided to interrupt.

Now we all know that Roman is the most polite young man in the world,so this was completely out of character. Roman slapped hands with the crowd – one guy wanted to, so he gave it up for that one guy – and soaks in the hatred with all of the smug, self-serving arrogance that we’ve come to expect. I mean, never seen before. Roman’s so polite and well mannered.

The three men in the ring would then be joined by Bobby Lashley, who specifically ignored the one guy who slapped hands with Roman Reigns out of spite. The ring now three quarters bald, Bobby Lashley cut the same promo he did last week.

To be clear, Lashley is now playing the role of Roman Reigns pre-Wrestlemania. Meanwhile, Roman is now playing the role of Brock Lesnar. Or a Brock Lesnar who can talk and make the crowd go ‘ooh’.

Quick pointer though. Bobby Lashley has never main evented Wrestlemania. He also has a pretty good MMA record, so careful with the #fakenews Roman, yeah?

Lashley and Reigns would then argue about who could beat Lesnar, completely ignoring the one guy in the ring who’s ever actually beaten Brock Lesnar. Completely ignoring the one guy in the ring that Brock Lesnar would even now happily lay down for. The one guy who has made Lesnar tap, other than in that Survivor Series match, you know.

To be clear, the plan here is pretty obvious. Lashley’s limp face run hasn’t caught on with the crowd but there’s one way to make anybody the hottest baby face in the company. That’s to line them up against Roman Reigns. Braun Strowman, accidental baby face extraordinaire, can attest to that.

While I’ve got you here, dear reader, do me a favour? Say yeah.

Arrivé Revival. The Revival cut the same promo Jinder Mahal, John Cena, AJ Styles, Finn Balor, Bray Wyatt, Seth Rollins, The Miz and Samoa Joe cut about Roman and just like that a match happens.

A first time ever match, for sure.

Opening with some out of sync double offence (given that Bobby Lashley is essentially the Roman Reigns prototype that might be a bad move) Reigns and Lashley proceed to spend a lot of time arguing. Of course, don’t all tough guys spend all their time bickering? That’s how you know they’re tough.

Bobby Lashley, whose early return was marked by his time spent getting beaten up to hot tag in Braun Strowman, plays the part of the hot tag this time. He comes in hot, hits probably one of the most beautiful spine busters I’ve ever seen, then does a little kneeling down in the corner while Roman recovers long enough to get in the ring.

Then Roman gets pinned and the crowd goes wild.

I’m talking genuinely biggest pop The Revival have ever got kind of crowd goes wild. If they don’t spend weeks cutting selfie promos on Twitter about this win then they don’t deserve to get over.

But that’s not all. After chosen one Roman Reigns is finished with former chosen one Bobby Lashley, he interferes later in the night to protect chosen one and undisputed future Seth Rollins against former chosen one Drew McIntyre and nobody’s chosen one, which I’m not happy about, Dolph Ziggler.

So for the first time in forever we get a Roman Reigns double feature. Truly, we are blessed.

Don’t you feel so blessed?

Odds Counter
– The Revival
– Dolph Ziggler
– Drew McIntyre

Did Roman Reigns beat the odds?
No

Took his loss with grace though, didn’t he?

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NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S ARTICLE: MONDAY NIGHT REIGNS-O-METER #66: Tracking Roman Reigns’s ability to beat the odds and come out on top