Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns Possible Alliance Would Reinvigorate Stale Characters

Sparks flew into the air when Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins stared at each other from opposite corners of the ring on Monday's WWE Raw.

As the allies-turned-enemies shared a moment of respect, it became clear how much they could help each other by uniting once more. Sometimes, returning to what worked in the past is the best move.

That is true in this case, as Rollins' babyface turn has plodded along, and Reigns continues to be a flat, miscast second coming of John Cena.

Reigns and Rollins have been at odds since the summer of 2014, when The Architect broke up The Shield with a series of chair shots, smashing WWE's hottest faction to bits with each strike. On Monday night, though, they teased a shift away from animosity.

After Raw's main event match of Reigns vs. Chris Jericho, The Big Dog found himself looking up at two sets of boots stomping his face. Jericho and the universal champion, Kevin Owens, throttled him on the mat.

Rollins played the one-man cavalry as he chased off the heels.

And as he and Reigns then eyed each other warily, the possibility of reconciliation emerged. The fans roared at the visual before them, thoughts of The Shield getting back together swirling in their heads.

Either a two-man alliance or full-fledged reunion of the faction would be a big boost for both men. 

WWE has stumbled with its presentation of Rollins recently. After Triple H betrayed him in August, he has been slow to transition into a pure babyface. Layers of his old whiny, megalomaniac character with the cartoon laugh are gone, but a less-than-compelling figure has replaced it.

Rollins hasn't been the rebel tearing down tyranny who many expected him to become, thanks in large part to Triple H not being around to be his foil. Instead, WWE has focused too much on one-liners and comic mischief in Rollins' feud with Owens.  

Reigns' story remains the same.

WWE has tried to sell him as a superhero of the squared circle, a man difficult to topple inside of the ring and a jokester outside of it. But he lacks Cena's charisma, so that act has never clicked.

He hasn't been vulnerable enough. He hasn't been complex or interesting.

His peak remains as his run as The Shield's mostly silent enforcer.

When he and Rollins were brothers-in-arms, they were tag team champions, world-beaters, destroyers. There is a major appeal to returning to that, even temporarily.

The Shield was one of the things WWE got right at every step. It remains a group that fans look back fondly on, pining for its glory days.

After Rollins and Reigns' moment on Monday night, Kyle Fowle of the A.V. Club tweeted about the emotional hold The Shield has on him:

He's not alone. That group was magic. Its chemistry was off the charts. 

And for Reigns, it was the perfect role for him.

The Big Dog flourished when WWE reunited two-thirds of The Shield in 2015. Dean Ambrose and Reigns looked to be having fun as they made their marks on the tag team division. Reigns was able to leech some of Ambrose's popularity.

Their characters worked well off each other. Their relationship was a buddy-cop movie unfolding in the squared circle.

The dynamic wouldn't be the same for Rollins and Reigns, but it would invigorate each wrestler.  

Reigns could again siphon some of Rollins' goodwill from the crowd, softening some of the boos aimed his way. He wouldn't have to speak as much, an area of the game that has never been his strong point.

For The Architect, he can show off his leadership skills and craftiness as he directs the team's movements. 

Beyond that, a reunion would open up a number of narrative possibilities. Wrestling Inc laid out what this could all lead to: 

But a Reigns-Rollins alliance is far from a certainty. Their rivalry could just cool down enough to allow them to be on the same team at Survivor Series.

On Raw Talk after Sunday's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, though, Reigns offered hints of a changing relationship with Rollins.

The Big Dog referred to Rollins as his "little brother," and even when talking about getting revenge on him one day, he said, "I hope the best for him."

WWE would be smart to continue to travel down this road. Its current plans are not setting the world on fire. 

Reverting back to Rollins and Reigns' days as unstoppable partners is well worth a try. The reaction from them just looking at each other on Monday is a testament to that.