WWE Hell in a Cell 2018 Ends with a Thud After Shocking Brock Lesnar Return

WWE wrote itself into a corner. 

That corner resulted in a Hell in a Cell match ending in a draw, nobody looking good and WWE's top title not receiving any favors, either—ending a rather superb overall show on a sour note. 

Not only that, this one had Mick Foley as the special guest referee to celebrate his leap off the cage 20 years previously—a leap that didn't result in the match ending in a no-contest. 

Yet the bout between Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman for the former's Universal Championship saw the pay-per-view cut off 20 minutes early with both men incapacitated.

And as if Foley being there wasn't confusing enough, Dolph Ziggler and Seth Rollins went through a table while Drew McIntyre and Dean Ambrose were flying around too. 

Then Lesnar's music hit and he came out with Paul Heyman, simply adding to the chaos. 

To WWE's credit, it probably sounded great on paper: "We're gonna have Brock Lesnar shockingly return and trash both guys. He's even wearing a blank shirt, no Jimmy John's logo, because it was a surprise appearance!"

On paper, this chaos creates a few interesting ways WWE could go from here: 

1. Strowman wants revenge and feuds with Lesnar
2. Triple threat
3. Reigns and Lesnar start feuding again

However, we've seen No. 1 before and good luck convincing us Strowman will just take his eyes off the universal title. No. 2 is convoluted because you know Ambrose and everybody else will get involved and No. 3 is, well, let's just not go there again, OK? 

At least with Lesnar finally dropping the strap to Reigns—which we loved the execution of—it opened up new doors. Sure, Reigns could feud with Strowman, but plenty of other guys could get title shots and he could run off and do his Shield thing. Lesnar could come back every now and then and fight other guys. 

Instead, we're back to square one. It's a continuation in a sense, but dragging something out like this isn't always the best idea...and the basis for its continuation was WWE pulling a fast one over on fans at SummerSlam in the first place, using Strowman to keep the crowd happy about a possible cash-in before it never happening. 

This is what happens when WWE writes itself into a corner. They gave Reigns the biggest threat to his new title run right out of the gates because, frankly, they have built him up so much no other opponent would have been credible.

However, they want him to have a long journey with the title after finally getting it. They also want that sweet UFC connection with Lesnar. And they also have to keep Strowman looking like a threat. 

It's a shame, too—the rest of the show was amazing. This doesn't mean it was a botch-free affair (the Jeff Hardy stuff was weird), but it was enjoyable. 

Then the main event happened.

Are Ambrose and McIntyre still on top of the cage? Why did Rollins and Ziggler take a leap of faith together (can we stop the crawling halfway down the cage together and leaping into a table thing yet)? Why did Heyman mace Foley? Why did Strowman and Reigns get zero screen time for what felt like 10 minutes before getting the tar kicked out of them by bearded Lesnar, only to stay down?

Is that nine, 10 people involved in one match? We were one-third of the way to a royal rumble, folks. 

When fans think of a Hell in a Cell, they see that image of Foley leaping off. It's a no-disqualification match. These guys can put their bodies through hell and still finish. Shane McMahon is making a yearly habit of it. Having Sunday night end in a no-contest was meant to make Lesnar look incredible, but it really just drags everybody down. 

Don't get it confused—The Beast Incarnate showing up, kicking a door down and proceeding to lay the smack down is cool. It (attempted, at least) protected both guys from a damaging match result either way, but the protective coddling of Reigns and Strowman makes you wonder if they should have done the match in the first place.  

Don't call that hyperbole, either. Just when you think this has all finally concluded, fans are going back in the spin cycle. Remember the yawn-worthy WrestleMania 34 ending? How about the cage breaking at the Greatest Royal Rumble? Get ready for more of those gems for the sake of protecting everyone while elevating one. 

At some point, WWE is going to have to treat its top title seriously. It's understandable if fans are happy to still see Lesnar around but groan at the idea of more of the same. The biggest point of frustration here was the hope new things would happen. 

Unfortunately for WWE, all the efforts to weave in Foley and the epic Hell in a Cell matches of old worked against the story they were trying to tell. This one will instead be remembered far on the opposite end of the spectrum unless the company has something absolutely historic ready to roll out and change this one's initial reaction in hindsight. 

Fans probably should have seen this one coming in the first place, though, so waiting for some jaw-dropping development to erase the confusion and indifference of this main event is like, well, hoping the main-event scene itself blossoms into something else.