5 stars WWE seems to have given up on

#1 WWE appears to have no plans for "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt

Uhhhhh....Did @AlexaBliss_WWE just cost #TheFiend his match against @RandyOrton? #WrestleMania @WWEBrayWyatt pic.twitter.com/2MzBEPiTpP

— WWE (@WWE) April 12, 2021

The creative struggles of the likes of Ricochet and Mustafa Ali in WWE are infuriating for their fans, but are at least understandable on some level. Ricochet and Ali - as talented as they are - hardly fit the mold of a typical WWE main event performer.

The same cannot be said, though, for The Fiend. A former world champion, Bray Wyatt's alter ego is one of the most unique characters in WWE history.

The Fiend could have been taken in any number of directions by the promotion's creative team. The route it ended up choosing at WrestleMania 37, however, was very underwhelming.

What has @RandyOrton done? #WWETLC #FireflyInferno pic.twitter.com/37Ur6ClyMV

— WWE (@WWE) December 21, 2020

The Fiend was written off of television in December 2020, when Randy Orton set him on fire at the end of the TLC pay-per-view. The shocking scene led to The Fiend disappearing from WWE until he reappeared just before WrestleMania 37 in April this year.

The story really should have told itself. The Fiend, having been burned alive, would return and take revenge against Orton on WWE's grandest stage. Somehow, though, this was not the way WWE decided to go with the match.

Instead of The Fiend finally triumphing over the dastardly Orton, WWE instead booked The Viper to defeat Wyatt at WrestleMania. The finish of the match saw Alexa Bliss distract The Fiend to cost him the match. Ending the on-screen partnership of Bliss and The Fiend made no sense at the time - and WWE has done little to explain it since.

Alexa has now branched out into her own creepy character, while Bray Wyatt has only made one appearance on RAW since WrestleMania - in a Firefly Funhouse segment.

Given that The Fiend spent nearly four months away from RAW to properly sell his injuries from TLC at the hands of Orton, there is no reason why the character needed to disappear from television again so soon. Unless WWE has no plans for him.

The gimmick still has great potential, but his absence at the moment suggests WWE is at a loss with how to properly book The Fiend.