Universal Champion Roman Reigns has been at his absolute best since returning to WWE at SummerSlam last year and turning heel. For years, there had been complaints about WWE shoving Roman Reigns down the fans' throats as a babyface. Finally, WWE turned The Big Dog heel and it has been one of their best decisions in recent memory.
On a recent episode of ARN Podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Arn Anderson discussed why Roman Reigns' babyface run didn't go well with fans. He revealed that fans don't want to see him as a nice guy and that his running through the roster made the fans feel that he hadn't earned his position:
“That Roman Reigns was going to be the lead guy as a babyface for the company, instead of seeing way back when, years before that, that that’s not what they wanted Roman to be. Roman doesn’t have to say anything, all Roman has to do is come through the curtain and be an ass-kicking machine. They (fans) don’t want him to be a nice guy, they don’t want him to be clever, they don’t want him to be entertaining and they certainly don’t want to see him spear five or six heels in a given time.”
“The fact that Roman goes out there and spears five guys does not make Roman more of a baby face. It makes him a God, and he’s not earning his position or push. He’s just out there running through guys and the audience smells it and they don’t like it.” (h/t WrestlingInc)
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Roman Reigns stood tall at the end of WrestleMania 37
Roman Reigns main-evented Night 2 of WrestleMania 37. He defended his Universal Championship against Daniel Bryan and the winner of the 2021 men's Royal Rumble match, Edge. With this being a triple threat, there was speculation that WWE might take the title off Roman Reigns without him having to take the pinfall.
However, Roman Reigns managed to steal a victory and pinned both Edge and Daniel Bryan at the same time at WrestleMania 37 to retain his Universal Championship. It is to be seen who will finally dethrone the Tribal Chief.
What are your thoughts on Roman Reigns' current Universal Championship reign and the Head of the Table character?