WWE: The Bella Twins Heel Run Will Be Downright Entertaining

There was rampant speculation that Nikki Bella would turn heel against Ronda Rousey at WWE Super Show-Down to set up a match at the Evolution Pay Per View, but The Bella Twins’ turn took place a few days afterwards on Monday Night Raw.

The Bella Twins are polarizing figures in WWE, which means they remain incredibly valuable to the company due to the raucous reactions they generate. When Nikki Bella and Brie Bella turned on Ronda Rousey on this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw in a six-woman tag match against the Riott Squad, they soaked up an orchestra of boos from the Allstate Arena.

Although few fans are excited about the upcoming match between Nikki Bella and Ronda Rousey for the Raw Women’s Championship at Evolution, everything else about this program should be thoroughly enjoyable.

Whatever the case, the decision to turn The Bellas heel should be seen as more than just an end goal of booking a match between Nikki and Ronda at Evolution. This is a chance for The Bella Twins to play the most interesting versions of their characters in ages. Brie and Nikki have been rather milquetoast babyfaces whenever they’ve shown up on WWE programming over the past couple of years, though Brie’s character work has shined in spots, including this year when working with Daniel Bryan against The Miz and Maryse or Andrade “Cien” Almas and Zelina Vega.

But as a whole, The Bellas are more effective and honestly seem even more comfortable as the villains. I’m sure that years of experiencing unfair hatred and exaggerated, negative comments online (in other words, “cyberbullying”, as Daniel Bryan termed it) have enabled them to internalize this angst from the fans into acting that can effectively reflect these negative emotions right back at the WWE Universe.

In the aftermath of their uncomfortable beatdown of Rousey outside the ring, Nikki and Brie walked up the ramp to thunderous “You Suck!” chants. Nikki even executed a seamless flip of a fan sign as she walked, throwing her hands up in the air.

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Alexa Bliss was a great foil for Rousey, but there’s something “realer” about The Bella Twins as antagonists in Rousey’s story as Raw Women’s Champion. Perhaps it’s the fact that they have accrued so much knowledge about entertainment and the industry as a whole from their successful television and fashion ventures, but it seems like they know how to generate mainstream attention and reactions better than almost anybody else.

That bodes well for the entertainment value of this feud, which will need to be strong. Nikki Bella is better in the ring than she’s given credit for, so since she does have a match against Rousey at Evolution, it will exceed expectations, which are, admittedly, set at a low bar due to the eternal pessimism surrounding The Bella Twins from WWE’s hardcore fanbase.

So if the fans are going into this program with their noses turned up in indignation over a perceived “push” for The Bellas, then Nikki and Brie will use every bit of that animosity to their advantage. They will put others in their place in backstage segments, relentlessly badger Rousey at every turn, and do their best to make life miserable for her friends like Ember Moon and Natalya.

Nikki Bella is a natural as a heel whenever she’s allowed to play this role, and it stands to reason that she’ll be even better in this role now than before due to the experience gained. The Bellas are almost unanimously seen as better heels than faces, and it’s wise for WWE to take advantage of all the existing feelings of spite for all things Bellas. And who knows, if they shine strongly in this feud, they might just gain some more respect from the audience as performers?

WWE fans are willing to change their minds when they recognize strong work, and The Bellas are capable of delivering as Rousey’s nemesis. The Bellas are in a great spot as heels on Raw, and even though there might be more, shall we say, popular opponents for Rousey at Evolution, fans with a vested interest in the pure madness of WWE will likely come away satisfied with how this story unfolds.

After all, WWE is pitting the Bellas against the wrestler they envision as their biggest babyface star in terms of name value. They’ll move heaven and earth to make this work, so I’d just sit back and watch these women do what they do best – entertain.