Brother vs Brother: A case study of salvaging something that doesn't sell anymoreโฆ
I can write a full thesis about the feud between Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns.ย I am biased in the case of those two. However, this time โฆ I can simply say: Enough!
Previously, I had given you a short backstory. I wonโt repeat it. But WWE isโฆ and once again pushed them to the fans' throat.ย
Notice: This is a very critical piece.
After a King of the Ring tournament, whose winner was Oba Femi, a question arose. Will he fight for the WWE Championship or World Heavyweight title? - Nope...
Oba was surprised by a sneak attack of โฆ Brock Lesnar, his last opponent (Wrestlemania 42 and Clash in Italy). He is feuding at Summerslam in a Hell in a Cell match.ย
Ps. I am going to make another piece on this feud after Summerslam, with additional storylines based on WWE Unreal. It is next! Also I plan to analyze that scripted documentary as a part of kayfabe. So, tune in!
As a result, the WWE Championship now has headlines: CM Punk and Cody Rhodes. I am also keeping tabs on another potential story ofโฆ Finn Balor and Sami Zayn for No.1 Contender to this title.ย
Wellโฆย ย
Roman was left out of the equation. Tribal Chief is a star power and currently one of few names that brings sponsors and advertisement to a company. Summerslam is on the horizon, the second biggest stage in WWE. Tickets arenโt selling. John Cena (as a face of the company) is gone (retired). The card is stacked with mid-card matches and with PLE being 2-days in rowโฆ they need as much stardom as possible. So, we (fans) once again are introduced to the โSeth vs Romanโ drama.ย
Letโs analyze a storyline:
Seth wants to once again prove to the world that he can beat Roman. Roman wants payback for all of the betrayals and losses with Seth. They are bringing up their personal issues with each other. Andโฆ that is it!ย
At the Saturday Night Main Event in NY, there was a celebration of the NY Knicks, a homegrown party with wrestling. The time spots were given to the NBA and at the end of the showโฆ wrestlers were a ... background. The segment with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins dragged out in time. It wasn't a good one if we consider a factor of entertainment.ย
Now on TikTok (Roman Reigns & WWE) they are using trends to promote a feud. It doesn't make a traction during a screen time because the creatives lost a plot.ย
Promos and segments (on Raw) now involve Seth & others (La Knight, Usos and Solo). Meanwhile Roman is a support character, although he is supposed to be a main lead. A narrative is circling back to โalready solvedโ issues. This isnโt selling a booking nor a match. Although, it will bring up some ads and sponsored content at PLE, due to Roman Reigns career in Hollywood.
One thing is for certain, a match between both of them will be โฆ great. They will try to put one of the best shows.
Howeverโฆ
What makes WWE a powerhouse?ย
They're engaging and entertaining via storylines. It gives an audience a rollercoaster of emotions. Engage them and blurs the line between performance and real world. It gives a promise of a banger, based on promos, mic segments, in-fights. In this case (I am so sorry) - a feud is lacking all of those factors above.ย
Another take: What will happen after Summerslam?
Will Roman lose a title? My prediction: Nope.ย
Reason: A road to Wrestlemania is starting, which will be based in Saudi Arabia next year. The sales revenues (tickets prices, accommodations, travel expenditure) and recycled storylines between 4 big names: CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns; wonโt make up a rift between business expectation and creative delivery.
Will this be the end of this story: brother vs brother? Prediction: 50/50
If the company will focus on developing new talents and existing ones that arenโt pushed. Examples:ย
LA Knight (stuck in never ending drama of Bloodline and Vision);
Oba Femi (they might stumbled hard this one);
and Finn Balor (after a decade he seems to get a push).
Their creative strategy wonโt be solely dependable on those four superstars.ย
