WrestleMania 28 Predictions: Randy Orton Will Prove Kane's Return Was Pointless

A big deal was made when Kane returned with a mask, harkening back to his character's glory days. But with each passing week, it becomes more obvious that the entire storyline has been a waste.

He lost to John Cena at Elimination Chamber, and I don't expect him to beat Randy Orton at WrestleMania either. If the WWE wanted to bring back masked Kane, it should have resulted in a dominant run. Instead, he's jobbing to superstars who don't need the help.

In a time period where great feuds and memorable storylines are hard to come by, an unbeatable Kane would have provided fans with a reason to tune in every week. That's especially true for the weeks immediately following WrestleMania, which tends to be a down time.

The problem with burying him so quickly is that it will be hard to take his character seriously moving forward if he's already been defeated by Cena and Orton. Even though they are two of the company's top stars, it gives off the feeling that he's weak.

It would take months of rebuilding to make him a viable force again. Anybody who has watched the WWE over the past handful of years knows the creative team rarely dedicates months of build to any gimmick.

His feud with Orton didn't make any sense from the beginning. Neither guy had an obvious route to WrestleMania, so it seemed like they were pitted against each other just to buy some time. They attempted to connect it to earlier feuds, but that's always a tough sell for an ever-changing audience.

If the WWE wanted to do it right, they would have matched up Kane with several mid-card superstars at first to establish himself as a threat again for WrestleMania and beyond.

They could have easily done a winning streak angle. It would be a lot better if he exited the year's biggest event on something like a 15-match winning streak rather than losses to Cena and Orton with no general direction.

All told, it's looking like another failed opportunity. The creative team squandered a perfectly good character for no apparent reason even though they knew the WrestleMania card was already shaping up to be packed.

A truly head-scratching decision. It's not the first and it won't be the last, but that doesn't make them any less disappointing.