It’s clear from recent WWE programming that the best thing the company is producing involves Bray Wyatt and his eerie children’s show.
Bray Wyatt has been a character often highly regarded by the fans thanks to his fantastic promo work and slick in-ring style. However, the same cannot be said for WWE management who have continually misused the man known as The Eater of Worlds for years now. It would be understandable however for people to say Wyatt has been successful; in his six year stint on the main roster as Bray Wyatt, the former Husky Harris has won the Elimination Chamber and the WWE Championship at the same time, been in main-event level feuds with Daniel Bryan and John Cena and shared the WrestleMania stage alongside The Rock and The Undertaker. So what’s the issue?
He never wins. THAT’S the issue. Whenever Bray Wyatt has entered a feud he never comes out on top. Whether it be against The Undertaker, John Cena, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Finn Balor and countless others – whilst he may win a match here or there, the man who follows Sister Abigail can’t buy a win in a major feud. So he left. For a period of around six months, we haven’t seen Bray Wyatt. Until three weeks ago- we got the debut of the Firefly Fun House. And it absolutely blew up.
Reaching as high as fourth overall on Youtube Trending, the first episode of the Fun-House show currently sits at 2.8 million views on WWE’s official Youtube channel. Since then we’ve seen paintings of burning cabins, a buzzard mauling a rabbit and children sat motionless and expressionless whilst Bray laughs behind them. The direction they have taken the character is a stroke of genius. It is surrealist, exciting and genuinely unnerving at points to watch which is perfect. With most types of horror/creepy media, children are drawn to it. It’s the joy of feeling fear that kids are desperate to feel. There is a part of a human’s brain that wants to feel fear. It reminds them of being alive and the fragility of life. Bray Wyatt’s Firefly Fun House can evoke those emotions which, in 2019 wrestling, is a fantastic achievement.
It is easily the best thing WWE is doing right now, in my humble opinion, but where does it go from here?
Well… there’s so much potential with this story-line that fans are currently expecting WWE to screw it up. However let’s have a look at what they COULD do with this. As it currently stands, Bray Wyatt only exists through vignettes. He hasn’t been seen in an arena or a ring under this character. So when he does, it has to be important. It has to feel like something huge and should not just be a throwaway segment. What I’m about to suggest sounds awful when you look at it but, with my explanation, I hope you agree it would work best. So… I would book Bray Wyatt to go on a losing streak.
Now I know that sounds horrific and the worst decision ever and I would normally agree – if it was a usual losing streak. But what I would do is have Bray lose all his matches via DQ as he absolutely brutalises his opponents. The bell rings and he doesn’t stop battering them. Using weapons to decimate opponents, manipulating limbs and mauling individuals… all with a smile on his face. He needs the Fun House to calm him down. The ring is where his evil comes out but his fireflies help him find inner calmness again. But slowly, over time, the Fun House becomes infected with his evil. The lights go dark. Abbie starts whispering louder. The children start to smile. Make this real, surrealist, creepy horror. Not the usual ‘Ooooh, Bray Wyatt’s SPOOOOKY’. No. Make it that it’s almost uncomfortable to watch. That is how you make Wyatt a star again.
It is clear to see that The Eater of Worlds is hugely invested in this character shift. Because if he wasn’t, it wouldn’t work in the slightest. You need to give your all to this direction and Bray is certainly doing that. If WWE book it right, this could easily be one of the hottest angles of the summer. All they have to do… is let him in.
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