Has Seth Rollins lost his fire among the fans?
At the beginning of the year, Seth Rollins was at the top of the world, top of the division. He won the Royal Rumble, clad in his tribute to his favorite football team, Chicago Bears. He made the valiant and daring choice to face the beast incarnate at WrestleMania. The lead up to that match was brutal, made Seth look very strong. And when it came time for the match, which started WrestleMania, setting the tone for the rest of the show, you couldn’t not root for him. Even people who weren’t fans of Seth’s cheered for him when he beat Brock Lesnar. Things were looking up for Seth, and then like any good roller coaster ride, the bottom drops out and Seth started losing steam among the fans.
There is no denying that Seth Rollins has amazing in ring abilities, and as a heel can cut some of the best promos. He truly ranks amongst great wrestlers. However, his hype seems to be slowing dying out, which was evident on the November 4th, 2019 edition of RAW ‘Burn it Down’ was not as loud as it had normally been. And during his in-ring segment, he was booed, while mentions of The Fiend, Bray Wyatt, got cheered. He looked like a member of an Emo band.
Downfall of Seth
Part of Seth’s “downfall” could be linked to his recent interactions on twitter. With him going after Indie wrestlers, like Will Ospreay to his negative comments about his “brother” Jon Moxley, definitely made waves amongst fans. His claims that he is the best wrestler in the world, and yes, a lot do that, and his comment about how Mox and AEW would take food off of his table, were definitely upsetting for some of his fans, and fuel for those who were never fans of his. He seemed more like a heel on twitter than the face he is supposed to be.
Is a Character change needed?
His character is becoming stale, and over hyped which could also be another reason for Seth’s following to diminish. He is a good face, but when he was a heel, man that was biblical. The backstabbing Judas of The SHIELD, becoming apart of The Authority, that evil maniacal laugh. His character build as a heel was so much more than he is right now as a face. When Seth was a heel, he made things interesting. He made the fans wonder, will he cheat to win, will he have outside interference. It made him one of the best heels at that time, maybe rivaled by The Miz.
But also, he is a better character when he isn’t holding the Universal/World Heavyweight title. He is more entertaining and focused when he is going for a title, no matter what that title is. One of his best matches at Wrestlemania was the triple threat against The Miz and Finn Balor for the Intercontinental Championship. That match opened Wrestlemania, and he walked out like the Night King from Game of Thrones. That match set the tone for Mania, and it proved that he was good fighting for a midcard title, while leaving the main title to other stars.
Putting over other talent
Seth has been on a down swing, that much is true. You can tell by the reactions he has been getting from live crowds. It seemed as if they were going to make a character change with his extra viciousness with The Fiend in Hell in a Cell, but they have yet pulled the trigger on that. Maybe they need to have him be a lot more like Roman right now, not in the title picture and helping to elevate other talent. Roman is still the top dog, but right now he is putting Baron Corbin over, and doing a really good job at making Corbin look good.
There are many excellent wrestlers on Raw that would benefit from programs and rivalries with Seth. The combinations are endless. One that could help Seth ignite his fire would be reigniting his feud with Randy Orton. They could also have Seth feud with AJ Styles, and maybe have him go for the US Title. Non title feuds, non title runs, and putting over other talent, can definitely help Seth in the long run.
The Waiting Game
It is now a waiting game to see if Seth starts making changes in his character or trying to get the crowd back on his side. Alas, the fire he once had that blazed brightly with the fans, has lessened. Seth is still an amazing talent, there is no denying that, but there is something that has to change. He already has “cracks” in his psyche with how the crowd reacts to him now, you can see it on his face. He needs that push, either to be a heel once again, which was probably one of his better runs, or to be the face that he was meant to be.
The story line that is meant to happen, will happen. The crowd can dictate whether it happens sooner rather than later. Heel or face, champion or not, Seth Rollins is an amazing talent. He merely needs a push to reignite the fire that makes the fans love him as the wrestler he is, or hate him for whatever reasons. Seth’s story is to be continued. And like any good story, we the fans, wait to see the plot twists, the character development and some hope for that heel turn that they believe is desperately needed.
