If you ask anyone, they would be surprised that I am a WWE fan. “You  watch WWE”? A question that I have heard a number of times. I have watched WWE (off and on) for a number of years, but wasn’t a fan. I just remember a slew of interesting characters ready to beat each other up. Each character having an out of box personality trait that will leave you scratching your head. 

If you grew up in the 90’s, you remember the attitude era. Just flipping on the t.v., seeing Stone Cold and the Rock just lighting the mic on fire. Most likely going up against everyone’s favorite CEO Vince McMahon. No matter what, these three would clash everytime. Providing nothing but golden moments. Then the chills when you heard the infamous gong. Just seeing the Undertaker’s dramatic entrance, can give any horror movie a run for its money. “You want to go one on one with the Undertaker.” “RIP” all, resonating in your mind. Then you had Taker’s other personality, Biker Taker. Seeing him coming down the ramp on a bike with the classic bandana, classic! Taker, a man of few words but it doesn’t matter. His presence and facial expressions did all the talking. He is the king of charisma and presence. No matter what, you stop whatever you are doing when he is on the screen. An amazing character that everyone can be drawn to. I would like to argue that Undertaker’s presence can put him on top of all the legends. Undertaker, the face of Smackdown while Stone Cold and Rock ruled Raw. This was the 90’s culture.

If you ask any fan, they will say the main takeaway about Undertaker is his unbeatable streak. Breaking his streak would be the cardinal rule, no matter what. The fans are unison that his streak shouldn’t be touched no matter what. Especially, if it’s someone that fans don’t like. This all tells you about the genius behind Vince McMahon’s mind. How he has been building a story to the next face of the generation. Subtly telling a story behind all the fans back. Taker’s streak is deeper than you think. How it leads to the development of a grand story for the next generation. How Taker’s streak would lead to the beautiful story of WWE’s leading characters, Roman Reigns. 

Roman Reigns, ah….what a character! My favorite wrestler and can never stop being a fan! From day one, I never wavered from being a fan. His undeniable charisma and bad ass presence is something to behold! Plus being an amazing football leader “Georgia Tech bulldogs” translated to WWE. Ask any of the wrestlers, he is the locker room leader. One to ask for advice, one you can depend on. When he isn’t lighting up the t.v., he is representing WWE. Putting smiles on kids and adults who are in unfortunate situations. He also represents WWE in commercials, press, and on talk shows. Nothing gets Roman going more than 49ers! Can argue food might be a close second. Somoan barbecues, a year’s worth of food packed in one day. Got to love a man with a healthy appetite.  

Now, back to the 49er’s, this is his team and it is truly amazing to see him realize his dream. A young man from Pensacola. Getting to step foot in the 49er’s locker room and headline Wrestlemania at the same time. Little did we know, it seems that the 49ers coach was trying to recruit Roman, lol! As much as Vince loves Roman, that isn’t going to happen. 

Now before I jump into Roman and this amazing story, let’s finish with some highlights of the previous generations. 

Well, we are back in the 90’s. Where attitude was everything. Nothing beats the attitude more than the Hardy boyz. Brothers who know how to flip and who aren’t afraid of going through some tables. Talk about acrobatics, their talents belong in a circus!. Dare devils who aren’t afraid of doing death defying stunts. If you were a rebel, you gravitate to their persona. Then there is Lita, who also comes with the package. Stunt Queen, her natural abilities is something to take in. Her rivariles with Trish Stratus put the women on the map. That they can hang with the big boys. 

Then you have Kane, Undertaker’s brother. Nothing can put fear in your heart then seeing Kane’s presence and amazing chokeholds. Then you have the charismatic Dudley Boyz, entertaining as you get. These are the types of guys you would love to be friends with. Just a natural knack for the mic and characters you will never forget. 

Then you have Shawn Michaels. The heartthrob of WWE. Arguably, the best overall wrestler. A master on the mic and wrestling moves for days. Can tell a story like no other. Just charismatic as you come. A wrestler everyone loves, especially women! Every woman’s fantasy man and every man’s worst nightmare. The conflict of rooting for Shawn and wanting to yell at the screen for women fawning over him. Nothing beats one of WWE all time classic moments, the Montreal screw job. The classic rival between him and Brett Hart. Brett was supposed to go over in his hometown, only to get screwed. Leaving a disappointing Montreal. It’s amazing storytelling that intertwines real issues behind the scenes. It’s the birth of Vince becoming an amazing villain, painting an amazing story. This is what is best about WWE. What happens behind the scenes in real life. The stories on screen have nothing on the real life tales behind the scenes. 

Then you have Chyna, the great wonder of the world. A woman who struck fear in your heart and at the same time be as gentle as you come. In comes rushing Triple HHH. The love interest of Chyna before setting his eyes on Vince’s daughter Stephanie. Little did we know that Triple HHH would rise to become one of the head’s of WWE. Talk about ambition. He is responsible for the talents of WWE and their development program, NXT.  During this time, he would run with his partners in crime, Xpac, Shawn, and Chyna. Forming a group that comes with shenanigans and intimidation. They were great together and also as solo characters. They had so many classic rivalries, there isn’t enough time to get through them all. Just giving you a brief overview of the WWE. 

Then you have Sting. Charismatic and mysterious at the same time. Seeing him fly down from the rafters, bad ass you come. Mankind, the everyday man. How can you not love this character. A puppet in one hand and the willingness to destroy anything in sight. A man who love to pull stunts. The heart of WWE, a gentle soul. 

While all this is going on, can’t forget to circle back to the Rock and Stone Cold. The leaders of WWE, the faces of the brand. They ruled your t.v. and drew in a lot of eyeballs. They made the WWF (at that time) cool. Nothing beats their mic game and charisma. It’s always an argument on who is better, it is subjective. I would argue that Rock is better, Stone Cold’s charisma and presence can’t rival the Rock’s. It is hard to describe but I was drawn more to Rock more than Stone Cold. They both have natural personalities but with the Rock, his personality is unique. If you are use to seeing Rock on the big screen, I would challenge you to see his beginnings in wrestling. Where he crafted his amazing talents. How he wow and left all of us who watched, dazzled. Back to Stone Cold, you were drawn to him if you like the ultimate rebel. Crashing the set with trucks and beer cans. Nothing beats the Stone Cold stunner and crashing a hospital. Vince + Stone Cold + bedpan, equal tv magic. Nothing beats the infamous limo entrances. It’s even better with a fight and them blowing up. Connecticut limo businesses are mighty lucky!

This is just a snippet of WWE, there is so much I can tell! No worries as there will be follow up articles to come. Providing more in depth tales being a WWE fan. As a casual fan of WWE during the attitude era, it is interesting how I became a fan during this era. You would consider a hardcore fan. I truly tuned into the characters and stories,but most importantly, it’s all due to Roman Reigns. I truly connect with him on screen and his real life persona. He is the reason why I am a hardcore fan. Without Roman, I wouldn’t even have WWE on the mind. Now before I go on, you may look at him and say, well it’s probably his looks. The answer, no. Roman is more than his looks. An answer I have defended so many times as a female fan. 

I already went over a little bit about Roman in the beginning, it’s just a tip of why I became a fan. I admire his family history in the WWE. How Vince loves his families and stated, your family will always have a spot with the WWE. His father, Sika, from the famous Wild Samoans. A terror of the 90’s era. Vince has taken a liken with Roman’s father and uncle. Their hard work, leadership, reliability and dedication to WWE, is truly to behold. Plus, being highly entertaining. Roman grew up in locker rooms of WWF, tagging along with his father and uncle. He grew up personally knowing characters on the screen he would grow up to face. There is an adorable picture of Hulk Hogan holding him as a child. Talk about every kid’s fantasy. 

Roman real name Leati “Joseph” Anoi’a, has an amazing athletic background. He grew up in wrestling, often featuring him wrestling his cousins “Usos.” He also grew up playing sports, which he is highly gifted in. When it came time to decide what he wanted to do with his life, he became conflicted between wrestling and football. A very hard decision. He chose the latter, deciding to pursue football and to go on a full ride scholarship for Georgia Tech. An amazing linebacker, the inventor of defense tackling.  He majored in business and excelled. He became Georgia’s Tech top captain, achieving many remarkable milestones. He also met the love of his life at school, Galina. She ran track while he played football. This relationship made Roman slow down and become more of a family man. The bond between Roman and his children is beyond precious. His children absolutely adore him and your heart just instantly melts with every interaction. 

One day, the bell went off in Roman’s head to change directions with his career. To pursue his other passion, let’s try out for WWE. A meeting with Vince and crew led to him securing a spot in developmental. A developmental class that will create this generation’s leaders. You can’t beat the amount of talent in Roman’s class. From Bray Wyatt, Tyler Breeze, New Day, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose. I can go on but this class would foster one of WWE’s leading groups. The Shield. This all ties to Roman and the story of Undertaker’s unbreakable streak. Playing real hard to passing the torch to the next face of the company. Roman. All along, Vince has been telling this story subtly without anyone noticing. One of the best things about Vince McMahon, he knows how to drive a story like no other. Back to the Shield. The Shield was formed, featuring Roman, Seth and Dean. The Shield debuted as bodyguards for CM Punk, one of WWE’s most interesting characters. He ruled during the mid 2000’s. Cult of Personality anyone? If you’re a Roman fan, CM Punk is a thorn in your side. If you know the behind the scenes tales, you know why. Not to spill drama, but it does play a part in the WWE culture today.

The fans are more connected to behind stories due to technology. Also, they are more connected to wrestlers through social media. Many of the wrestlers are very engaging with the fans, even hanging out with some of them. This all ties to CM Punk and his infamous pipe bomb speech before leaving WWE. He was fed up with the WWE system, and let out during his speech. He also lets it out in the media and on social. If you grew up in the “system” beware. Punk had something against Roman, which I believe was unfair to Roman. Nepotism among this generation of fans is an interesting debate. I will talk more about this in a future article. Everyone is equal and deserves a chance, whether you have a wrestling background or not. It’s your passion for the sport and to entertain the fans. That is what counts! 

We will fast forward and turn back to the Shield. The Shield would rise as the top group of WWE. With Roman as the powerhouse, Seth as the flyer and Dean as the charismatic daredevil, you can do no wrong. The original plans was for them to debut with swords and a shield. We are glad they stuck with the alternative. This wouldn’t mesh with this generation.  

As the plan was for them to eventually go their solo routes, Vince came up with a genius but at the same time, a very controversial plan. To have this close brotherhood to abruptly come apart. If you’re a fan, you know about the infamous chair. Where Seth turns on the Shield with one swipe of the chair against his “brother.” Seth turns heel, leaving Shield. It’s one of WWE’s top historical moments. 

If you were a Shield fan, you know how conflicting this could be. Especially if you liked each of the members equally. For me, I was down with Roman since day one. So, it wasn’t much of a conflict. As much as I enjoyed the Shield, I believe that each of them are better on their own. You can’t stay in a group together and it plays part of a masterful story, that is key. Seth, Dean and Roman will always be the Shield. Their bond can never  be broken. They travel and live together, they are true brothers behind the scenes. Taking care of each other, watching each others back. These three truly have an undeniable chemistry and all deserve to be stars in their own rights. All three are extremely talented and will be a pinnacle part of WWE forever. 

The Shield is part of Roman, as you can see in his merchandise. It all ties to the plans of Roman breaking Undertaker’s streak. The broken nail on Roman’s merch, all points to Undertaker. The chosen one to break his streak, leaving him to finally retire. The next one to lead the next generation. All masterfully played a part of Vince’s storytelling. 

Here, you have Roman fast tracked out of developmental to eventually be Vince’s picked to lead the next generation. Vince made the right decision. He knows Roman, he sees star all over him. He knows his hard work, efforts, reliability, dedication, passion, knowledge and natural ability to tell a story. One thing Roman is a master at, telling a story. Through his facial expressions, perfectly time moves, and fluidity in the ring, he is just amazing. It’s truly amazing to see him leap over the ring. For a man his size, it is out of the ordinary.  He knows how to guide a match. He isn’t afraid to put anyone over. He cares about all of the talent and everyone succeeding. He is such a master. What is really undeniable about Roman, how he doesn’t fold under pressure. 

If you are or not a fan, you know Roman comes with controversy. You have the hardcores and the casual fans. The hardcore fans are rebellious. They don’t like the feeling of being forced to “cheer” someone. They want it to happen organically. They like to do the choosing. With Roman, fans saw how he was being fast tracked to the face of the company. You would hear, “he isn’t ready”, he needs more seasoning before being the face of the company. Let him run as a heel and turn face naturally. You would also here, he has the natural ability and look of a heel. That should be his stick. I beg to differ. Roman can play both, as well as tweener. For some, he can come off as arrogant. I think this perception is based on his looks. You can ask the everyday man and they would say, I can’t compete. I can’t relate at all. This is the man all women swoon over. The dream guy with movie star looks. With Roman, you often hear praises over his looks. Which many hardcore male fans are guilty of. Roman is a threat, can’t relate.

If only they can look past his looks and realize, he isn’t arrogant at all. As a fan, I will admit I question some things Roman has said. It didn’t deter me as a fan. It is called being a human. I know his good qualities far succeed his flaws. There isn’t one character that doesn’t come with flaws. We are human, we all have flaws. I know he has a giant heart and means well. Atleast he owns up to his flaws and learns from them. It’s called maturity. 

One thing about Roman is his resiliency. To hold his temper under the sea of boos.Boos he didn’t deserve. Yeah, yeah, the fans would say they are aiming it at Vince. Unfortunately, Vince isn’t receiving the boos in the ring. It is Roman. It isn’t a great feeling at all. Roman works his behind everytime he is on the screen. He is performing for the fans. The physical abuse from hitting the mat each week should be commended. He is putting his body, mind and soul on the line for our entertainment. Roman knows the WWE. He was raised in this company. It is in his blood. He comes from a rich line of wrestlers who have worked tirelessly for the fans’ entertainment. All with gentle hearts. Vince has high respect for this family and it’s for a reason. A reason I explained in the beginning of this article.    

It is quite the opposite with casual fans. Casuals love Roman and it’s confirmed with his merch sales. He has consistently hit the record as the #1 merch seller. Despite all the issues on t.v., he is adored by casuals. People are invested. Sometimes you will see signs, “ I came to boo Roman.” Quite interesting when they could invest the energy in putting love on the sign for their favorites. Don’t they realize that Vince is watching and noticing everything. You’re invested in Roman. You get a thrill no matter what. As a hardcore, you may not like him but you are reacting. There is conflict. If you didn’t care, you wouldn’t react. Vince notices and it doesn’t deter him at all. There is a bigger story being told, a story casuals are catching on to. 

Now, here comes the clincher. Hardcore fans are more interested in moves and “if you can talk” more than story. They forgot, WWE is about stories. A soap opera that features fighting artistically. This is what casuals are tuning into. It isn’t about moveset. It’s about character development, drama, story, basically, entertainment. Yes, wrestling plays a part but the story is the bigger part of the picture. You can do all the fancy moves but if I am not invested in you or the story, it gets old fast. It’s all about relating and being invested.

 I hope you got a better glimpse of WWE if you never watched before. It is quite entertaining if you can invest in the stories and the wrestlers. Their behind the scenes tales make a difference. You are more invested to watch and see them in person at a live shows.There is an a serene feeling once you get ready to attend a live show. It is an amazing experience. All of the wrestlers are engaging with everyone, especially the kids. Start young so they can become lifelong fans. Once adults can take their kids to shows and become fans themselves. A generational appeal.

I have been fortunate to attend live shows as well as the big ones! Royal Rumble, Summer Slam, Survivor Series, NXT Takeover and yes, Wrestlemania.

If your’e a fan, a show that you must see live in person is the Royal Rumble. Going to Philly as a Roman fan was quite interesting. In a sea of smarks, I didn’t care. It’s all about the experience. I went to support Roman. It’s quite an experience, hearing the countdown and the buzzer. Seeing the surprise debuts.It was cool to see the women as the main event. They deserve it. As a fan, I see differences with genders. You are all equal. I do understand there were some unfair issues but atleast, WWE has learned from it. It was an amazing show and a learning experience to take in. It’s a show that sets the table for Wrestlemania. Plus a stop Geno’s for a Philly Cheesesteak, hold the onions.

It was amazing to see Roman win the title at SummerSlam. I couldn’t be more proud. My lungs are still recovering. The way he holds the belt with pride. More than deserving. I still remember the day. The first person I called was my grandmother. She knew how much I loved Roman. She was more excited than I was, lol. Nothing beats the excitement of seeing Raw the next day. It’s time for new feuds to begin. It is also a time for nerves to set in. The threat of seeing your favorite lose the title, talk about pins and needles. 

In a future article, I will go more in depth about WWE, Roman and the appeal. There is so much to talk about. I will go more in depth about my personal experiences at shows. I will also talk about the other generations and how they all come full circle. Can’t leave out how other promotions (New Japan, TNA) also play a part in WWE. Got to love competition. If you have never watched a show, please do. Analyze the stories and characters, see what sticks with you. If you feel it isn’t for you, that is ok. Atleast you watched, analyze what didn’t work. I would recommend trying to watch another show. With WWE, they have something for everyone. I am pretty sure you’re familiar with the Rock. Look up his shows, see his humble beginnings. You’re in for a treat. 

How do you feel about WWE? What are your top memories? Attend any shows, what are your experiences? Who are your favorites? Let me know in the comments.