5 WWE Hot Takes Of The Week: Carmella Really Is Money
By Dalton Quix
Credit: WWE.com
5. Randy Orton Should Not Have Turned Heel
Okay, okay, okay, hear me out on this one. Yes, I understand that Randy Orton can be a bit bland and may seem “bored” as a babyface, and there is no questioning that he is far more in his element as a heel.
This last episode of SmackDown Live was a great example of the veteran delivering some fresh and exciting work as a heel. He ruined Jeff Hardy’s chance at recapturing the United States Championship, and then he laid an absolute beatdown on the man.
He was giving him vicious strikes and stomps, and he was slamming him into the steel steps and announcer’s table, but the nastiest thing Orton did was at the end. Orton yanked at Jeff Hardy’s open earlobe and looked as though he was ripping the skin apart right then and there. It was a graphic sight that made Orton seem like an insane heel and gave a lot of sympathy to Jeff Hardy.
Credit: WWE.com
So, I am well aware of how exciting Orton is as a heel and how much it can add to a feud and show, but there is only one problem. SmackDown Live is overloaded with top heels like The Miz, Samoa Joe, Rusev (who is still booked as a heel), Shinsuke Nakamura, Andrade Almas, and now Randy Orton is added to that mix.
Meanwhile, the only top faces on the blue brand are AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan, and Jeff Hardy. So, while Orton’s return as a heel is exciting, he is needed much more as a face at the time being.
I can only assume that SmackDown will turn one of their top heels like Rusev face to fill the void Orton left, or The New Day can get pushed as singles competitors, or Cesaro can get a babyface push by splitting The Bar up.
While Orton turning heel is definitely the right move, I just don’t think it was the right time for that move simply because SmackDown is lacking in top faces at the moment.