Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns Feud in Need of Major Work Ahead of Royal Rumble

The Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns rivalry is a bicycle with two flat tires. It is slogging toward the WWE Royal Rumble pay-per-view with little energy to speak of.

As 2016 draws to a close, WWE Raw is getting a number of stories right. Sami Zayn vs. Braun Strowman, Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair and Neville vs. Rich Swann are all compelling, electric and intriguing. The show's headline feud, however, is in need of resuscitation. 

Repetition, a paper-thin narrative and the audience's continuing resistance to Reigns are among the issues plaguing Owens and Reigns' fight over the WWE Universal Championship.

Owens is set to defend that title against The Big Dog at the Royal Rumble on Jan. 29. And unlike their meeting at the Roadblock: End of the Line, Owens' best friend, Chris Jericho, won't be able to save KO's hide this time.

By orders of Raw general manager Mick Foley, Jericho will be suspended in a shark cage above the ring during the bout.

It's hard to get psyched for that showdown. Owens vs. Reigns has yet to reach a high temperature, and overexposure is largely to blame.

Separation Equals Suspense

Owens wrestled Reigns on Monday's Raw for The Big Dog's United States Championship. The sight of Owens clamping The Juggernaut in a headlock and Reigns responding with his usual array of high-impact offense is far from fresh at this point.

According to CageMatch.net, KO and Reigns have clashed in singles action seven times since the brand split. They have also battled on three consecutive editions of Raw.

Not every match can be of the never-seen-before variety, but the current pace Owens and Reigns are on is hurting the rivalry. And with another four weeks' worth of Raw ahead before the Rumble, chances are those two will meet several more times.

PWMania writer Jason Solomon wondered aloud why WWE chooses to repeat itself so often:

Owens should be looking dangerous as he beats up on lesser foes. Reigns should be using upper midcarders as tuneups for his next big bout.

The more WWE keeps these two apart until the next PPV, the better.

Their animosity should fester until then. The anticipation for their meeting should build. To do that, WWE has to be more creative in how it books Raw in the coming weeks.

An endless cycle of Owens-Reigns tag team and singles bouts isn't going to work.

An Increase in Bad Blood

A more serious tone would benefit Owens vs. Reigns in a big way.

Much of their story so far has seen them fire one-liners at each other. In November, Reigns made fun of KO for relying on his buddy, Jericho. After challenging Owens to a fight, Reigns said, "I know you have to discuss it with the missus; I'll wait."

Owens has repeatedly mocked Reigns for his excessive use of hair conditioner.

Those elements are fine, but there haven't been enough personal issues to go with them. When the two faced off in September, the announcers sold Reigns' loss in the August Fatal 4-Way match where Owens became champ as his motivation.

Beyond that, WWE has added little to the narrative.

The rivals haven't brawled in a parking lot the way Jericho and Seth Rollins did. Owens and Reigns haven't injured or attacked each other backstage. There have been few lasting images overall.

Plus, Reigns already has a championship in hand, so his desire to win Owens' title is difficult to invest in. 

During the build to the Royal Rumble, WWE has to script moments that increase the animosity between these two. Reigns needs more reasons to hate Owens. KO needs more chances to showcase what makes him the villain in this story.

A Clearer Dynamic

A portion of fans roars for Reigns. Another section of the crowd has long decided it doesn't want to see him in the main event spotlight right now.

That combined with Owens' popularity has made for an unintentional reversal of roles. Jim Ross wrote of it on his blog after Roadblock: End of the Line: "Tough situation to be in for both Roman Reigns, who is cast as the fan fav but he's actually not, and for KO who is cast/booked as the villain but he's cheered versus Reigns."

WWE isn't helping the situation by having The Big Dog act like the bully.

Reigns attacked Owens after the bell at Roadblock. He and Rollins teamed up to trap Owens and Jericho in a shark cage after Raw last week.

Unless the company is going for a double turn here, the focus moving forward needs to be on Owens being a dastardly foil for Reigns. We need to see KO look to injure Reigns before their Royal Rumble match. We need to see the universal champ do despicable things, whether it's attacking announcers or putting a bounty on Reigns.

Without more reasons to boo Owens, this story will continue to struggle to capture the audience's attention.

Luckily, for the first time in months, WWE has some decent time in between PPVs. The Rumble is still more than a month away.

That will provide room to work on this rivalry and add kindling to a weak fire.