Roman Reigns Should Form ‘Samoan Dynasty’ Faction After WrestleMania 32

A way to turn Roman Reigns’ poorly-booked babyface character into a dominant heel leader.

Roman Reigns is being pushed by WWE to be their next top guy. With John Cena out of action due to a shoulder injury, the emphasis has been placed on the former Shield man more than ever. He has become the focus of most WWE shows since Hell in a Cell in Oct. 2015 and is headlining live events every weekend.

Reigns’ push as a face of the company hasn’t gone as planned, though. He was expected to be coronated as WWE World Heavyweight Champion at WrestleMania 31, but plans backfired as fans did not take to Reigns well. The company then took the rest of 2015 to repair his booking, which initially paid off with a vicious assault of Triple H at TLC on Dec. 13.

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Unfortunately, the luster that Reigns built off that moment has disappeared due to predictable and old school booking tacts that have been outdated. His character has resembled Hulk Hogan and John Cena’s superhero-like personas that are physically gifted and can overcome anything. Rarely anyone can overcome them.

The difference between Reigns and those two WWE legends is the connection with the audience. Roman hasn’t found a way to reach the fan base arguably due to his below-average microphone skills. The more he talks, the less appealing he becomes. He may have an ability to speak on the mic, but the former football player looks uncomfortable when he has to say something to the 10,000 or so fans in the audience.

Hearing that argument that Reigns should turn heel isn’t new. Former WWE stars, journalists, and even legendary commentator Jim Ross is calling for it. There have been no signs of this happening, though.

If you go back into WWE’s archives, most of their top names had to get over as heels first before they became headliners. Steve Austin came into the company as “The Ringmaster”, then transitioned into his “Stone Cold” character once the original plans weren’t working out.

Austin then worked a few feuds to get over as a heel, most notably cutting the “Austin 3:16” promo at King of the Ring 1996 after defeating Jake “The Snake” Roberts. He then worked a feud with Bret Hart that resulted in a serious of classic bouts and the famous double turn that took place at WrestleMania 13. This put the Rattlesnake over with the fans for good.

Before he was “The Rock”, Rocky Maivia was known as the blue-chip prospect of WWE. He was initially somewhat popular with the crowd, but his happy-go-lucky babyface gimmick drew boos from the evolving supporters.

An injury was Rock’s silver lining to transitioning, though. He returned to WWE TV as a heel, joining the Nation of Domination faction. His popularity began to rose and he overtook Faarooq as the group’s leader.

Once the stable broke down, the People’s Champ turned face and became a fan-favorite. He then joined Vince McMahon’s Corporation before turning face once again and having his popularity continue to skyrocket. These events turned him into a top player in WWE.

It’s never referenced on TV, but even Cena himself was a heel for a brief time. He had an enforcer named B-2 (formerly known as Bull Buchanen), rapped his promos and faced big names like Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker as the villain.

In late 2003, Cena would become a face again after he joined Team Angle at Survivor Series 2003.

For Reigns to try to reach the status of these men, he needs to get over as a bad guy. To do this, he could form a a ruthless, “family-oriented” stable.

Reigns is the favorite to come out of Fastlane as the No. 1 contender to Triple H’s WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 32. Many predict the title to change hands there as well.

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Fan reaction on both these nights will be fascinating to follow. If he defeats Lesnar and Dean Ambrose, both of whom are arguably more popular, a negative reaction from the capacitated Quicken Loans Arena seems possible. A WrestleMania booing section of 100,000 fans shouldn’t be thrown out the window either as 70,000-plus at Levi’s Stadium booed Reigns when he entered the venue for the WrestleMania 31 main event.

If AT&T Stadium doesn’t tend to the two-time WWE Champion well, then the company’s hand may be forced.

Then there is Reigns’ cousins, The Usos.

From 2013 to late 2014, Jimmy and Jey were the hottest tag team in WWE. They showed off their high-flying moves and received a push to the forefront of the tag division. It resulted in a WWE Tag Team Championship win over The New Age Outlaws and a WrestleMania 30 title defense, which they came out of victorious. The duo would hold the belts for 202 days.

Only three months after dropping the belts, The Usos became champions again. This second run didn’t feel the same, though, as their shtick was wearing out and matches became formulaic. The happy-go-lucky face gimmick they’ve been running may have been the cause, though.

When Jey suffered a shoulder injury, they weren’t seen together for six months. Usually, time away does good for WWE Superstars and Divas, as they feel like a breath of fresh air, especially for the tag team division.

Unfortunately, nothing about The Usos changed when they returned. This led to tepid reactions and heavy boos from the Amway Center crowd at the Royal Rumblepay-per-view, something that had never happened. It may have been the writing on the wall for a modification.

This week, reports started coming out about Samoa Joe being in line for a main roster call-up (h/t Cageside Seats). This came as somewhat of a surprise since it seemed he was destined to be an NXT mainstay for a while. The potential pay increase behind a move to Raw, SmackDown and PPV’s isn’t a bad incentive, though.

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Since Nov. 2015, the Samoan Submission Machine has been working as a top heel, feuding with Finn Balor and now Sami Zayn for the right to face the NXT Champion at NXT TakeOver: Dallas. He lost at TakeOver: London in his first chance at the title, but may receive another opportunity on Apr. 1. Depending on how his possible match at the show goes, it could be the last time we see Joe in NXT.

So let’s fast-forward to Apr. 4,

To close Raw, there will be a “Champion’s Coronation” to celebrate Reigns’ WrestleMania 32 win. Ambrose and The Usos will be in the ring to join the party.

The Lunatic Fringe, who was victorious in his match on Sunday night, would start to tease with Reigns that he wants a shot at the belt. Roman would expose a smirk and laugh it off, saying it’s not his time yet and would bring up the Fastlane loss that he took the pinfall in.

Ambrose’s expression would quickly turn, moving his face closer to his buddy’s. He would put the mic close to his face and say “I want a title match”.

“Not going to happen”, says Reigns.

He then turns his body with his back facing Ambrose, and out of nowhere, Joe clubs Dean from behind and starts beating him down. The Usos would briefly look befuddled, but quickly join in with stomps and a double superkick. Joe would add in the Coquina Clutch.

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The three would then hold up Ambrose, with Reigns patiently waiting in the corner of the ring, leaning back on the turnbuckle with a smug grin on his face. He would do the howl that usually precedes his spear, and would viciously drive his right shoulder into the gut of his now former friend, crashing him to the mat.

With Ambrose’s body lying on the ground, Reigns would hold up the WWE World Heavyweight Championship with his right hand while The Usos and Joe flank him to close Raw.

The “Samoan Dynasty” would be born.