Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose: The Good, Bad and Ugly of Current WWE Feud

A tale of man versus monster, nutjob versus devourer, Brock Lesnar vs. Dean Ambrose is WWE's best feud ahead of WrestleMania 32.

With a blend of havoc and introspection, creativity and chemistry, Ambrose's quest to stand up to The Beast Incarnate has been a narrative triumph. Character-building vignettes have strengthened the bond between babyface and audience. Intensity pulses through the feud.

The No Holds Barred Street Fight feels like WrestleMania's true main event.

The rivalry's soft spots earn more nitpicking than true criticism. WWE would have been better off expanding Paul Heyman's role in this story. And the effect it's having on Roman Reigns speaks more to the disconnect between him and fans than anything going wrong with Ambrose's pursuit of Lesnar.

The Good

During the lead-up to February's Fastlane, the chemistry between Ambrose and Lesnar crackled onscreen. These were two puzzle pieces fitting together perfectly.

The dynamic of the fearless Ambrose willingly stepping into the lion's den, an act that amused the lion, worked extremely well from the very beginning.

WWE has since done well to sell the audience on Ambrose's chances against his bigger, more powerful foe. In vignettes where he visited his hometown of Cincinnati, the 6'4, 225-pound Ambrose came off as a rough-and-tumble fighter who earned his education on the streets.

We saw Ambrose eye the Cincy skyline and talk about how the city taught him to fight. We saw him head to a local bar and promise to bring pain to the 6'3'', 286-pound Lesnar.

Ambrose later trained in the desert, telling fans, "I am 100 percent at peace and ready to go to war at WrestleMania."

All of this has worked to elevate the bout. It feels hugely significant, and it is clearly Ambrose's biggest battle to date. Inserting so many video clips has not only deepened our understanding of who Ambrose is, but it has made it nearly impossible not to root for him.

There has been a welcome variety with this feud, as well.

One week, Ambrose drove the ambulance set to take him to the hospital back into the arena to try and fight Lesnar despite not being able to hold himself up. Later on, Ambrose visited with Mick Foley and then Terry Funk backstage, receiving praise, advice and a trademark weapon from each of them.

All of this has played up how momentous this match is and has infused the right amount of chaos and entertainment into the buildup.

The story has moved along each week, adding new wrinkles and new layers. It has been an emphatic success.

Cageside Seats summed it up well:

Some of WrestleMania's contests don't yet feel worthy of that stage. Ambrose vs. Lesnar certainly does. It is the easiest match to invest in, the story offering the most to savor.

It is telling that the biggest drawback comes as a result of wanting to see more of the feud.

The Bad

The magic of Heyman and Ambrose dueling verbally hasn't been on the TV screen nearly enough. The story has featured so many elements that it has barely touched on the potential of those two going at it.

On March 14, Heyman stood on the entrance ramp as Ambrose glared at him and his client from the ring, armed with a concealed crowbar.

For a moment, two of WWE's most compelling talkers clashed. The slimy advocate traded barbs with everyone's favorite screwball. But the war of words quickly gave way to a Lesnar-Ambrose standoff.

And just like that, the moment ended.

To this point, that's essentially all the Heyman vs. Ambrose verbal sparring the feud has featured. If WWE doesn't put those two on the same stage for longer and let their juxtaposing personalities clash, it will be a major missed opportunity.

Especially considering the fact that Lesnar isn't around every week, one would assume that Heyman would have played a bigger role and gotten into Ambrose's face. The good news is that the reason fans didn't get more of that is that WWE was busy succeeding in other ways with this story.  

The Ugly

His ongoing battle with The Beast Incarnate has offered exhibit after exhibit in the case for Ambrose to be in a higher position than Reigns. Throughout this rivalry, Ambrose has earned the impassioned reaction and generated the pathos that Reigns has been unable to so far.

The Lunatic Fringe has been a revelation as a scrappy, hard-nosed, madcap babyface. That's only served to highlight how incomplete of a package Reigns is.

As Brandon Stroud of UPROXX pointed, Ambrose has shown himself to be what WWE wants Reigns to be: 

The issue is that it's Reigns set to main event WrestleMania for the second time in a row. It's Reigns who is in line to be the next WWE champ, while Ambrose remains the guy who is defined by his near-victories.

The push to make Reigns the next big thing is in full effect.

Ambrose's success, meanwhile, has made it tougher on The Big Dog. Here is WWE trying to sell the audience on Reigns as a megastar despite vocal fan resistance, while Ambrose is outshining and outdoing his own brother-in-arms. 

That promises to be the case at WrestleMania, too. Ambrose vs. Lesnar is shaping up to be a match for the ages while Reigns vs. Triple H is in danger of being a narrative fans push back against.