Photos & Video: WWE
Bray Wyatt has arguably been one of the more intriguing superstars within the WWE since his debut to the main roster back in July 2013. Arriving with Luke Harper and Erick Rowan, they formed the stable “The Wyatt Family” causing chaos and destruction, all the while partaking in mind games and thought-provoking promos.
While the stable made a name for themselves in NXT, their main roster debut had them focused on taking out The Deadman’s brother, the devil’s favorite demon, Kane. After the feud came to an end at SummerSlam with Bray winning the Inferno Match against Kane, the Wyatts went on to feud with the likes of Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, The Shield and John Cena. Those feuds began to push Bray and the family ahead with momentum, especially with coming off of wins over Daniel Bryan and The Shield at the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber. However, after feuding with John Cena, the momentum was seemingly lost and Bray Wyatt, along with the family fell into slight obscurity. This is not to say that John Cena “buried” him so don’t say that under your breath. It’s just since that feud, Bray hasn’t been anywhere near the level that he once was, with his star. Harper and Rowan had chances at tag-team gold with feuding with The Usos, although they came out on the losing end.
Fast forward through feuds, “setting free” both Erick Rowan and Luke Harper, having Harper eventually realigning himself with Bray and while that’s great (I think it’s great they’re back together) I can’t help but want and wonder why The Wyatt Family isn’t a bigger stable. Bray’s ability to captivate an audience through his words and his voice, there hasn’t been any sort of “mind manipulation” from Bray on anyone and have them brainwashed into becoming a member of the Family. No, the Bryan angle doesn’t count on account that it lasted 2-3 weeks. So, with this piece, I’m focusing on how I’d personally book The Wyatt Family going forward from SummerSlam.
*Opinions here belong to myself and myself only*
For starters, there NEEDS to be more members. The Wyatt Family needs to be a faction that consumes the WWE much like how The Ministry of Darkness did back in “the good old days” as some would suggest. I’m not saying they have to have the same number of members as M.O.D or act like the N.W.O in that EVERYONE and their mother joins, but a Family that consist of 5-6 members in total. I’d lean more towards 6 for reasons I’ll cover in this article. You have Bray Wyatt, the leader and founder. Luke Harper, Bray’s right hand man, the most loyal family member. Then we’re left with 4 openings. Here are my 4 go-to selections for new members to find themselves and join the family.
1. Bo Dallas – Easiest first selection for myself. Given that him and Bray are brothers in real life, would it not make sense to have them become family members on-screen also? Bo Dallas has the characteristics to be a PERFECT member for the family. WWE could have Bo be the happy-go-lucky, positive member yet at the flick of a switch; have him become a psychotic, violent, ruthless dog in the ring that shows zero remorse. Potentially tapping into a multi-personality disorder for Bo so that over time, he becomes more and more insane for his character.
2. The Ascension – If there was ever a team that I had high hopes for when Harper/Rowan split was these guys. A complete let down from what was seen in NXT and having them find “guidance” while “lost among the sheep” or something along the lines that Bray Wyatt would say. They are a powerhouse team that would be good “guard dogs” for Bray Wyatt. They’re a team that is in need of revitalizing and with the guidance and acceptance of The Family; they can fall back into relevancy and potential title picture.
3. Baron Corbin – (Big shout out to Daniel Johnson “@baby_dan_avfc” on twitter for the idea on this!)
The Wyatt Family could also be used as a launching pad for certain NXT talent to find their niche and one talent that could benefit from it would be Baron Corbin. While he’s been struggling as of late to find a spot for him in NXT and even dubbing himself “The Lone Wolf” Bray Wyatt could visit NXT, and talk to Corbin and mention how while Wolves can be effective on their own, traveling in a pack is ensures more food for everyone. This could tempt Baron to join the Family and find clarity that he’s needed to find. Corbin has the look and presence that can work perfectly for The Wyatt Family.
Now, with these selections, creative could easily make them as dominating as Evolution. Each individual is capable of holding all the titles in WWE.
Bray would be the obvious choice to carry the WWE World Heavyweight. He could either win Money in the Bank or then go on an 8-month terror of always toying the cash in then ultimately cashing in at WrestleMania or the Monday after, or something much less predictable. I’d suggest then because of the hot crowd, or wait until Raw is in an arena that will have a hot crowd.
Luke Harper looked great with the Intercontinental Title. Easily could take it off Ryback or take it off whoever wins the title next. Regardless who has it, Luke Harper is taking it.
The Ascension would obviously grab the tag-team titles. String a few wins together to build momentum and then have Viktor or Konnor pin either Titus or Darren (if they are champions) then take it at the nearest ppv at the time.
And…
Baron Corbin would grab the U.S title. Ultimately I’m not sure if I’d have him take it off of Cena or the one who grabs it from Cena. I’d like for him to grab it off of the guy that takes it from Cena. It would make more sense because if you have Baron beat Cena, that would put him almost on the same pedestal as Bray. However, the flip side is that you could have Baron be the breakout star that breaks free from the Family over time and have the inevitable Baron/Bray showdown.
The reason I chose Baron over Bo is because I see Bo with his happy-go-lucky, psychotic mentality, his only focus could be just keeping his family happy and making everyone else absolutely miserable and battered and wanting everyone to hurt.
Now, if we wanted to cater to both genders and have a female within the family, my ultimate choice easily falls on Becky Lynch. She has the look and considering she hasn’t been on our TV for that long (disregard her NXT stint) she’s just known as the Lass Kicker at the moment. Her fire colored hair would match her persona throughout her stint with the Family. A slight change-up with her attire and increase a dark, disregarding for others health, aggressive emotion of always being a “shadow” to the other divas (by the way, I’ll always prefer the term “Women” over “Divas”) and have her finally ‘snap’ on everyone. Feeling alone and frustrated, she’d be in need of finding a family that accepts her for who she is and doesn’t ask her to change or conform to what society wants. Thus, we see Bray waltz by and mention if she wants to be accepted for everything she is and not told to change, there’s a family that welcomes her with open arms. She joins without hesitation and within a matter of weeks; she’s holding the Divas (Women’s) championship.
SO! To sum up who’s in and who’s holding what, we have:
Bray Wyatt – WWE World Heavyweight Champion
Luke Harper – Intercontinental Champion
The Ascension – Tag Team Champions
Baron Corbin – U.S champion
Becky Lynch – Divas Champion
Bo Dallas – Supporting everyone in the Family.
Agree? Disagree? Think I’m ridiculous with my thoughts? I’d love to hear from you either way in the comments or on Twitter!
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