Want more wrestling news, rumors, and results? Be sure to visit PWInsider.com and PWInsiderXtra.com.
One of the true highlights of my week is sitting down with Mike Epsenhart on Saturdays and doing the FMB. I love all of the audio I do here at the site but Saturdays are special be we get to dissect the latest twists and turns of The Bloodline vs. The OGs storyline. It’s a tale that has been masterfully been told for years now and it keeps getting better and better. After doing today’s show, I had so many thoughts in my head that I wanted to do a column about them as we head for the showdown at War Games and we find out who will round out the OG team.
What has made this story so much fun to watch unfold?
Well, obviously it’s extremely well written and performed. That goes without saying. But to me, the best part is the amazing attention to detail that has been adhered to from the start of the story and also the fact that nothing has been rushed, all while the creative team makes the viewer pay attention to every single thing that is going on with the reward being the excellent story that is being told. This saga has been going on for years now and it has aged like a fine wine. I have said before that it’s worth of Emmy consideration and it undoubtedly still is today. There is so much to decompress as we head to War Games two weeks from today.
Consider:
*The New Bloodline under Solo Sikoa is a united front. Before I get into this, I have to take a minute to talk about the remarkable growth that Solo has shown since his debut. He started out as the fourth man, The Enforcer. His lines were limited and most of the talking he did was with his facial expressions and his movements. Now? He is an excellent promo guy and a completely believable leader of the faction, his elevation complete. He started his group with Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa and it went to the next level when the amazing Jacob Fatu joined the group. After last night, Bronson Reed is in for at least the next two weeks, and I hope for the extended future. WWE has done a fantastic job of booking him as a killer and his addition makes this already strong unit even more formidable. There is no drama in this group and there shouldn’t be, because…..
*The Original Bloodline is nowhere close to being a cohesive unit. And that makes perfect sense because if this were a real life situation, this is exactly how it would play out. There would be no weak situation where they were all suddenly on the same page without that the real emotions and concerns that former members have being dealt with. Let’s look at the players.
Roman Reigns.
His character always talked about love and family, but everything was transactional with him. Everything that he did was to keep his Title around his waist. He used emotional warfare on the family when needed. He put the members in bad psychological positions at times, demanded loyalty that he often didn’t reciprocate and in essence did whatever he had to do to keep his Title. If it hurt them? That was the cost of doing business. Reigns had five men who were loyal to him at all costs, before losing Solo, and that is what he expected from them. It was all about him and that was made clear at WrestleMania when he lost to Cody Rhodes and disappeared. He left his group to fend for himself because he lost the only thing he cared about in the Title. Everyone else? They were tools that he used when they benefitted him. Since his return, the fans have treated him like a top babyface, but he really isn’t yet. He is the same person who left his guys high and dry because there has been no change in the character’s motivations. He isn’t doing things for the right reasons. Yet. The beauty here is that while Creative could have taken the gimme from the crowd and just portrayed him as a babyface, they didn’t. They have showed and told us things and we are on a journey to him changing.
Jimmy Uso.
He was the first one back and he was a gimme for Roman. Solo and company took him out too and there was never a major rift with Roman so it made perfect sense for him to come back and align with his cousin. Now the other three? That is a much different story.
Jey Uso.
First and foremost I have to mention how Jey has become a top star. Being derisively called “Main Event Jey” by his manipulative cousin was actually the vehicle to get the fans behind Jey and elevate him to the top, which it did. Jey became the guy who always tried to keep the family together, despite being aware of how manipulative Roman could be at times. He was the guy who appreciated Sami Zayn telling him that he was the real Tribal Chief but then said keep it to yourself because he didn’t want Roman to hear him. Jey put the family ahead of himself. What makes someone a babyface more than that? He was the hardest one to get back in the fold because of the way he left, and the issues that he also had with Jimmy. But as the ultimate babyface, he forgave his brother and said he would return under one condition, that they were all equals. That is exactly what someone in his position would do in real life, especially after showing that he could win the IC Title on his own. He also had reasons for reuniting to get revenge on Solo but again, he is a babyface now so the good that he has done since leaving the group has made him a different person upon his return and Creative held true that. Of course, Roman being Roman, he agreed to Jey’s condition and went back on his word almost immediately. But, Jey has changed and instead of falling in line, he made it clear to Roman he would give him one pass. Now that he used it, if it happened again Jey is out. See, Roman is not a real babyface. Yet.
Sami Zayn.
Once Jey was back in the fold, Sami had to be next. The band had to get back together and the ultimate babyface in the group, Jey, had to make it happen. Of course, Roman still not being a babyface yet acted the way he always would when being annoyed by something and Sami bailed after being treated badly. But like Jey, Sami is an ultimate babyface too. He knows who Roman is and what he has put him through in the past, often for his own pleasure and yet, he has a respect and even love for Roman because of the man that the former champion sometimes is. He remembers the great times from his days with the group so at the end of last week’s Smackdown, after Jimmy and Jey went to make the save, when Sami came in the ring he did what a true babyface would do and he blasted Solo. Jey held up the one. Jimmy held up the one. Sami looked at Roman and said something. He held up the one. And finally, Roman held up the one as well. This week, Roman saved Sami but delivering a well timed Superman punch.
They are getting closer to getting the bond back, but they are not quite there yet. Plus, they need a fifth member and Sami, Jey and Jimmy have all tried to find people to team with them and the choices have been curious. Sami went to Seth Rollins, despite the fact that Roman could have had major issues if he said yes. Jimmy went to Bron Breakker, who basically stole the belt Jey worked so hard to earn. That could have been an issue too. The obvious choice for Jey would be to go to Cody Rhodes, but Jey is the ultimate good guy and knows Cody is dealing with the guilt of what Kevin Owens did to Randy Orton so he is not putting anything else on his plate. This is a group that while they are getting closer to cohesion, they still have a way to go. Plus, they are missing one vital piece and that is…
Paul Heyman.
Last we saw Heyman, he was getting destroyed by Solo’s group (taking a bump that this old man would never take). Paul, of course, is The Wiseman. Roman has said so many times and even recently made it clear that he is a reactor, not a planner. Heyman, even when he was a heel, was always completely loyal to Reigns. He even chose Roman over Brock Lesnar. The one thing no one could question about Paul was his loyalty but the same could not be said for Roman. He lost at WrestleMania. They made it clear in the storylines (again, pay attention), that he had not spoken to Heyman. Solo said that he was in communication with Reigns, but The Wiseman was cut off. That established right there that hadn’t talked. Roman was being about Roman, as the character usually was. Then later we had the aforementioned bump and we haven’t seen Heyman on TV since. Last night, after a few weeks of Roman proving to us that he wasn’t a planner and the OGs getting laid out, he finally listened to Jey’s plea and he “made the call”. What did he find out? He found out that Heyman’s number was not in service. What does that mean? Well first, let’s go into Roman’s emotions. Once he decided to make the call, you could see a feeling of joy on his face. Then when he got the message, it was more one of being distraught. What did it mean? Well I gleaned that it meant that our not true babyface Roman hadn’t checked on his Wiseman after the bump because, well, he always put himself first. The reaction after getting the recorded message? I took it to be a turning point in Roman’s character. I took it to mean that it dawned him that he had not reciprocated the loyalty to Heyman that had unwaveringly been given to him. It may also make him think about how he did the same thing to the others in the group. How he reacts here could be the major step in Roman going from the guy that the fans cheer to being the top babyface that fans cheer. I expect it to continue to play out over the next two weeks with Roman doing what he has to do to make it right with Heyman.
*So that leaves us with the burning question, “Who will be the fifth fan man on the OG team?”
To me, there are four candidates that make sense.
Obviously, there is Cody Rhodes. He has teamed with Roman already but as I mentioned above, he is in major league guilt mode over what happened to Orton. I don’t see him coming in.
Then there is The Rock. To me, it would be rushed and forced. Plus, last time we saw him he was not happy to see that Roman had teamed with Cody.
Another possibility is Seth Rollins. He already turned down Sami when he was asked, but with Bronson Reed joining Solo’s team it would be easy to write a story where he changes his mind. It could also be that Bronson Reed brings his new friends to Raw and does something to take Rollins out of the picture. To me, a babyface has to live up to what he says, and he already said no. A flip would be a bit weak to me.
So, with that said, there is one person who makes the most sense and that’s CM Punk. The groundwork has been laid for it. They have made it clear that due to what The OGs have done over the years, they are lacking anyone who wants to help. That makes perfect sense. Why would, say, LA Knight want to help them? He wouldn’t. Why has Kevin Owens turned psychic? Cody helped Roman and Randy didn’t hate him for it. The Bloodline in its earlier form made a lot of enemies running roughshod. Who hasn’t been around most of that time and had little interaction with the OGs? Punk. And the interaction he has had? It was with Paul Heyman using his relationship to keep Roman away from him or asking Punk to leave because he didn’t want Solo to attack him. And unlike Roman, Punk is the ultimate babyface to he would do whatever his friend asked him to do. After all, he is the original Paul Heyman guy.
How will it all play out? I have no idea and I don’t want to be told. I can’t wait want to watch it play out and talk about it after it happens.
If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!
Bang On Casino
