5 WWE Legends and the one match that they should come out of retirement for
WWE, or even pro-wrestling in general, keeps playing on nostalgia to inject the fans with a timely reminder of why they should tune into the product.
And it’s quite an effective ploy too, considering that fans like nothing more than to be transported back to their days of marking out to just characters and how badass they were – without it being tainted by the knowledge that the whole shtick is scripted or an understanding of what actually goes on behind the scenes.
As such, Vince McMahon is a master of whipping retired legends back into programming from time to time, no matter how briefly, just to create a ‘Holy Sh*t” moment for the fans. He did it with Hulk Hogan and the Rock, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels, Rock and Cena and most recently, with Goldberg and Lesnar.
Whatever “era” of programming we find ourselves immersed in, it’s quite apparent that the nostalgia act always sells – if booked correctly.
Legends have returned to much pomp and fanfare before, only to end up scurrying away with the ignominy of their tails tucked between their legs, their legacies forever sullied by an ill-advised stint that shouldn’t have come to pass in the first place. Hogan against Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash against CM Punk, Batista against Daniel Bryan...I can keep going.
But even so, fans never stop clamouring for that one last match, that one final hurrah, that one ultimate stand against Father Time; for their favourite Superstars of yesteryear to wind back the clock and revel in the spotlight once again.
It is based on that fantastical premise that I pen this article.
Here then, are 5 WWE legends and the one match that they should absolutely jump off their rocking chairs and come bounding back for.
#1 The Rock vs. Roman Reigns
Cousins, Samoans and both rejected by the audience initially for not being believable enough as clean-cut babyfaces. Unfortunately, there end the similarities between The Rock and Roman Reigns.
One is a master entertainer on the microphone, while the other stumbles and stutters through any promo that's long enough to be considered one. One organically won over the fans with his charisma while the other just can’t seem to catch a break with them despite checking all of Vinne Mac’s proverbial boxes. One turned heel just at the right juncture in his career to fuel his meteoric rise, while the other’s rocket-propelled ascent has earned him the ire of the fans, despite being a babyface.
With a tantalising dynamic between the two – rich in its contrasts and yet given to a multitude of possibilities – ripe for the taking, all that remains is for the WWE to pull the trigger on a Roman Reigns heel turn to kickstart the storyline.
The Rock can do double time on the microphone to support Reigns and let’s face it, a blood feud between family members is insanely marketable. And if Roman Reigns character needs anything desperately today, it’s a dose of marketability.