Randy Orton Excelling in Anti-Hero Role Since Return to WWE TV

He's perhaps the one WWE star who has endured more character switches than anyone else in the last 20 years, and Randy Orton's persona seems to be undergoing a bit of a shift once again.

The last 18 months had seen Orton working as the handpicked star for The Authority, but ever since Seth Rollins appeared to be elevated into that role, Orton's character underwent another gradual change.

Fortunately for Orton, this current transformation is turning him into a character that suits him to perfection. While he's an admirable babyface and an even better heel wrestler, Orton is at his peak in the role he's working in at the moment.

The anti-hero, no-nonsense Orton is one who seems to tick all the boxes at the moment—both when it comes to Orton himself and the state of the WWE roster.

With The Authority likely to return to prominence in WWE storylines following Triple H's match against Sting at WWE WrestleMania 31, it would be fascinating to see Orton lock horns with perhaps his greatest rival of all once again.

Orton vs. Triple H will simply have to be regarded as one of the WWE's greatest ever rivalries when the history books are written, and another installment of the feud in the coming months would be sensational viewing.

Even though Orton would arguably be the babyface in the feud this time, we should still see shades of the Orton we saw during his rivalry with Triple H and the McMahon family in 2009.

Back then, Orton took no nonsense when it came to his opponent and tried every underhanded, dirty tactic in the book to get the upper hand on his foe.

We saw shades of that character trait this past Monday on Raw, when Orton finally took down Rollins after a good few weeks of playing it cool. His anti-hero character came to the fore when he proved that he can still be as ruthless as ever, regardless of whether he's supposed to be a babyface or heel.

Simply put, Orton is on a real roll at the moment. It really felt as if the WWE missed him during his four-month absence because he's got everything required to be a top star.

He's got the talent, mic skills and edginess that few—if any—WWE stars have at this moment in time. That's what makes him such a hot commodity in the eyes of WWE fans, and the beginnings of this feud with Rollins should really see sparks fly.

Hopefully, it leads into a clash against The Authority too, because it's there where the anti-hero Orton will really get better and better. The unhinged Orton who hears voices in his head is the Orton who produces the most eye-catching and entertaining television.

As we approach the biggest pay-per-view of the year in WrestleMania, Orton's return to form—and return to television—has come just at the right time for WWE.