WWE: Bray Wyatt as Sister Abigail is a Wasted Opportunity

The WWE had a chance to introduce a new female talent onto the Raw roster and instead chose to put eyeliner on a man.

Just who (or what) is Sister Abigail? After years of teasing an eventual reveal as an actual person, the mysterious member of the Wyatt Family was introduced as none other than Bray Wyatt wearing a veil, using a voice changer, and painted in what appears to be heavy black eye make-up. It was the kind of thing you’d expect from a middle school play and went over about just as well with fans.

Naturally, the reaction from the IWC was swift and absolute. Jason Powell of ProWrestling.net wrote, “Sister Abigail speaking through Wyatt is absurd.” Denny Buckholder, a writer for CBS Sports tweeted out, “Sister Abigail is just auto-tune Bray Wyatt.” I would honestly love to know who pitched this idea and sold it to McMahon.

Therein lies the problem, not just with Wyatt’s character but with certain WWE storylines as a whole. Wyatt actually being Sister Abigail is the perfect example of a wasted opportunity and flat-out lazy storytelling. The anonymous female kin within the Wyatt Family dynamic had been one of the most enigmatic figures in recent years and was spoken of as if she had powers from beyond the grave. This could have been fun.

This mysterious set up had all the makings of a fantastic debut for a female star from NXT “whose touch could save the world”. As with many writers, I have my own opinion about who should have taken up this mantle, and that woman should have been Billy Kay. She has been with WWE since 2015 and was named “Breakout of the Year” for 2016. She has feuded with Carmella, Dana Brooke, and Becky Lynch, all of whom have been called up to the main roster with varying degrees of success.

More from Raw

To put it another way, Kay has “the look” that would have fit perfectly with what little we know about the Sister Abigail character.

Her jet black hair and dark, smoky eyes would have provided a believable foundation for a persona who is worshipped – and even feared – by a man who calls himself “The Eater of Worlds”. If you want to add the veil and voice box to her that’s fine with me, because anything would have been better than this.

To be fair, WWE had a steep hill to climb when they decided to go all in with Wyatt’s character having supernatural undertones.

The creative team has struggled to sell us on Wyatt being the heir apparent to the Undertaker and pulled out all the stops by utilizing traditional scary movie elements such as creepy children, images of worms being projected onto the mat, and even a “House of Horrors” match that took place in what looked like a seasonal haunted house.

The New Era lends itself less to cheap parlor tricks such as lights suddenly going out or simulated lightning strikes than generations before. That’s not to say it can’t work if done properly, but it must be approached with a reasonable amount of gravitas. What’s happening now with Wyatt isn’t that at all.

Other writers here at Daily DDT, such as Randy Wentworth, have postulated that WWE could still bring in someone like Paige to embody the Sister Abigail character, but the company’s track record of adjusting storylines based on internet backlash isn’t great. At every turn, WWE seems to be in over their head when it comes to handling Wyatt’s character. They want him to be scary, but not terrifying. They want him to be intimidating, but not invincible. They want him to seem disturbed, but not crazy.

Next: Could We See An All-Female Show In WWE?

It’s always possible that the overwhelmingly negative reaction will reach Vince’s ears and cause a seismic shift in Sister Abigail’s direction. Until then, we’re stuck with a man wearing women’s clothes, and I sincerely hope they don’t force Wyatt to wrestle in such garb. The laughter will be so loud it might literally wake the dead.

Home/Raw