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After the events on SmackDown last week with The Fiend ripping off Daniel Bryan’s hair, as well as the announcement last night that The Miz will be facing Bray Wyatt, not the Fiend, at TLC, it makes sense to keep Bryan off TV for the rest of the year.
The Fiend seemigly ripped Bryan’s hair straight from his scalp, which is not only painful physically but can be emotionally piercing as well. Miz even stated that Bryan hasn’t been seen or heard from since last Friday. Keeping Bryan off WWE TV until the new year not only sells that pain but also makes The Fiend look much stronger as a result. This will also build anticipation amongst the fans, as they will be waiting to see Bryan’s new look and where the story heads next.
The other great thing about keeping Bryan off WWE television is that it prolongs his feud with The Fiend while not rushing into their rematch. If they had the match at TLC, not only would it be rushed, but it could leave The Fiend without a huge opponent for the Royal Rumble next month. The Miz is a more than credible placeholder in the feud until Bryan returns and resumes the feud with The Fiend. It also adds another dynamic to the Miz-Bryan saga, as Miz showed legitimate concern about Bryan last night.
It is also worth noting that as of now, The Fiend is not scheduled to compete at the TLC event. Instead, WWE is specifically advertising that Bray Wyatt, not The Fiend, will face The Miz in a non-title match. This will be the first time we see Wyatt wrestle without the Fiend mask, which would be interesting since we have no idea how he may wrestle or act in the ring. Fans have been wanting WWE to do more with the Firefly Fun House version of Wyatt, and now they are. Daniel Bryan staying out of the way for at least the next few weeks will allow WWE to flesh that out.
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