WWE Needs to Resist Temptation to Book Similar Characters

WWE has a weird people problem.

With F4WOnline (h/t WrestlingInc.com) recently reporting that Bray Wyatt may face The Undertaker at WrestleMania 31, WWE is continuing a trend of booking similarly strange or supernatural characters against one another. It's a formula for disaster.

One of the most common mistakes WWE fans make is to assume that similar characters make for a dream feud against each other. This couldn't be any farther from the truth, especially when it comes to unique, dark characters like Wyatt and The Undertaker. Once pitted against each other to resolve a conflict, the premise becomes even stranger than the characters themselves, ultimately exposing both combatants as hokey or distant from common logic.

Throughout its storied history, The Undertaker vs. Kane has been a hit-or-miss feud—but one with far more misses than hits. A feud that hasn't felt fresh since its inception in the late '90s, these storylines have seen everything from Kane being set on fire to Undertaker getting zapped by an urn. So much talk of death, demons, hellfire and brimstone made this feud a better fit for the rapture than an episode or Raw.

The same theme has played out among other similar characters, most famously during the long-awaited feud between The Legion of Doom and Demolition.

To capitalize on the face-painted popularity of the Road Warriors during the late '80s, WWE created Demolition, equipped with similar face paint, shoulder pads and noisy promos. As the team continued to gain momentum, fans clamored for what was thought to be a dream match between the tag teams.

By the time the Road Warriors—rechristened as the Legion of Doom—arrived in WWE in 1990, the inevitable feud against Demolition was more like a bad dream.

Discussing the feud on Deadspin, David Shoemaker writes:

"

[Demolition vs. Legion of Doom] crumbled under the weight of its own hype. Both teams were competent, but neither was built around technical wrestling mastery. And while either faction could cut growling, fear-inducing promos with the best of them, there was something unimpressive and not at all fear-inducing about hearing them growl so monotonously at each other.

"

Such is WWE's weird people problem. In most cases, booking weirdos works only when their over-the-top characteristics are able to contrast against a foil driven by more human motivations. Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins clicked so well because it was a corporate sellout vs. an anti-establishment psychopath.  They were each able to bring out the best and worst qualities in one another simply by being themselves.

This hasn't been the case with Wyatt vs. Ambrose. That feud has just been...weird.

When WWE books similar characters against one another, it usually leads to a stipulation that bastardizes the nuances that make them special.

At SummerSlam 1992, narcissists Shawn Michaels and Rick Martel competed in an athletically pleasing, but creatively embarrassing, match where neither could hit one another in the face. The year before, The Big Boss Man and The Mountie competed in a Jailhouse match, where the loser had to spend a night in jail. Needless to say, nobody's holding their breath for a potential Straight Jacket match between Ambrose and Wyatt. 

So-called dream feuds pitting Undertaker against Wyatt—or even Sting—are destined to disappoint. From supernatural storytelling to in-ring chemistry, these feuds would play out like a poorly written episode of Game of Thrones.

WWE has a roster filled with talented WWE Superstars who can play the straight man. From Rollins to Dolph Ziggler to Randy Orton, these wrestlers can help make WWE's weirdos human.

Follow @ThisIsNasty.