Top Rope 10: Roman Reigns Back on Top, Kevin Owens' New Gimmick and More

Welcome back to Top Rope 10. We've got a lot to catch up on in the last two weeks since my debut column, so let's not waste any time. 

Roman Reigns Getting Applause He's Always Deserved

The heartwarming return of Roman Reigns last week after his treatment for leukemia was one of the best moments in the history of WWE programming, and perhaps in the history of wrestling.

Reigns is a genuinely good dude and locker room leader who has been on the wrong end of a raw deal from know-it-all fans in recent years, and it's a shame it took a cancer diagnosis for him to finally get love from the fans. But he was beloved for his return last week, and rightly so. 

But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little worried this week's Philadelphia crowd would boo Reigns anyway, because, well, it's Philadelphia. They're a smart crowd, but they're also not the nicest, and they're certainly not an audience that historically responds the way WWE wants them to. What I'm saying, I guess, is that I wouldn't put it past Philly to boo a man who just beat cancer and returned to the ring, because that's what they do. 

So I breathed a little sigh of relief when the Philly crowd showered Reigns with cheers on Monday night.

This isn't to say Reigns won't eventually find himself back where he was before he announced he had leukemia late last year; Daniel Bryan is largely speaking the truth when he says WWE fans are fickle, and he might find himself getting booed again at some point. But for now, it's hard to imagine Reigns getting anything but love from the fans, especially with his participation in the latest Shield reunion. 

One Last Time For The Shield?

It's safe to say Dean Ambrose's heel turn was a spectacular failure.

Ambrose's turn got a strong start because it occurred on the same night Reigns announced his leukemia had returned, and his character work in the following weeks was quite strong. It felt like his feud with Seth Rollins would be a highlight of WWE shows for a few months; instead, it was a badly-told story that ended in underwhelming fashion, and Ambrose was then relegated to losing duties when he told WWE he wasn't resigning when his contract expired in April. 

And now, like so many other things on WWE television, they just gave up on the Ambrose bad guy experiment altogether. In its place, we have what's being billed as the final reunion of The Shield; WWE is even acknowledging Ambrose leaving on television, which is something they never do.

It's a good move, in my book; fans love The Shield, and giving them one more night in the spotlight adds some extra prestige to an otherwise underwhelming pay per view in Fastlane.

Tommasso Ciampa's Neck Injury Derails the Perfect Story

The story of Tommasso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano has been masterfully told for over two years. It's one of the best stories ever presented on a WWE product, and it was seemingly going to come to a conclusion at Takeover the night before WrestleMania with one final Ciampa vs. Gargano match. 

That's out the window. Ciampa is scheduled to undergo neck surgery on Thursday, and he'll be on the shelf for a long time. He'd planned on working with the injury through Takeover, but the injury is severe enough that he has to go under the knife immediately. 

It's a gut-punch to anyone who was invested in the Ciampa vs. Gargano NXT story. Gargano was likely going to have his crowning moment and finally overcome his former best friend. And it leaves NXT in a jam; they have one TV taping remaining before Takeover, which leaves them little time to set up a match to determine who will take Ciampa's place as NXT champion. 

Takeover events are always special and always deliver, but this one is going to feel just a little bit sad. 

Triple H vs. Batista Could Be Special

Triple H cut one heck of a promo on Dave Batista on Raw this week. Although I could do without the usage of real names and talk of characters; all it does is highlight that the rest of the show is scripted, which makes it tough to suspend disbelief, and that's hard enough as it is with WWE's often-ridiculous writing. 

But Batista's intensity last week in the excellent show-closing segment produced by Bruce Prichard—and Hunter's matching promo intensity this week—gives this story a different feel than anything else on the docket for WrestleMania. If I were writing the story, I'd have Flair turn on Hunter and reveal that he and Batista were working together last week. It'd give the story an extra bit of emotional heft and give Triple H more to overcome at WrestleMania. 

Because, as you well know, the story of underdog Triple H overcoming the odds has been the narrative of his entire career. 

Luke Perry's Death Stuns Pro Wrestling Community

Luke Perry, who died Tuesday at 52, was best known for his role on Beverly Hills, 90210. 

But his death has impacted the wrestling community; Perry's son Jack wrestles as Jungle Boy on the independent scene and has signed with All Elite Wrestling. Perry himself was a big fan of pro wrestling, attending not just his son's matches for Pro Wrestling Guerilla, but also going to events back in the 1990s at the Cow Palace.

This photo by acclaimed photographer Esther Lin shows Perry cheering on his son at a recent PWG event in Los Angeles. He'll be missed. 

With Rousey Turn, WWE Continues Listening to Fans

Ronda Rousey was never going to stay babyface for long. 

That it took as long as it did for the fans to start booing her is something of a miracle. Rousey is the major obstacle Becky Lynch would need to overcome to finish her story at WrestleMania. Once it became clear that's the direction the story was heading, it was inevitable the fans would turn on Rousey. They did. Boy, they did. 

Thankfully, WWE didn't try to continue forcing a babyface Rousey down our throats. Rousey turned on the fans on Monday, and it's a great thing. Rousey was a perfect heel in mixed martial arts; a smug and arrogant athlete who knew how good she was and who didn't mind telling you about it. It'll be easy for Rousey to transition that character to pro wrestling because it seems far closer to who she actually is than the smiling, earnest babyface she's portrayed thus far. 

Kevin Owens' New Gimmick May Just Work

While Rousey turned heel, it was Kevin Owens who cemented his new role as a babyface on Smackdown this week.

He's being portrayed as the Everyman opposite Daniel Bryan who eats bad food and can't stand people who think they're better than others, and he's even been given a new finishing move to complement the new character: the Stone Cold Stunner, Steve Austin's famous move that hasn't been used regularly since Austin retired. 

It's a fresh new character for Owens and will finally give the fans a reason to cheer a guy they've desperately wanted to get behind for a long time.

He's a great heel, but if you're familiar with the work he did as babyface Kevin Steen before arriving in WWE, you know Owens is a remarkable babyface as well. I'm intrigued to see where he goes from here, and I think it'll be a big success as long as Vince McMahon doesn't focus on the "fat" part of being an Everyman. That never works. 

Kingston Heading to WrestleMania

As I reported two weeks ago, Owens was scheduled to face Bryan at WrestleMania. But Vince McMahon listened to the fans and switched him with Kofi Kingston, who was originally supposed to face Bryan at Fastlane. 

It appears that Kingston will now face Bryan at WrestleMania, while Owens will likely lose to Bryan on Sunday at Fastlane. While it's unfortunate that they used the exact same storyline to explain the switch as the one used for Lynch—McMahon replaced Kingston with Owens out of nowhere last week—it's good that Kingston will get his big moment while fan support is at an all-time high. 

MLW Keeps Putting on Great Shows

We'll have a more in-depth report on MLW: Intimidation Games next week here in the 10, but I just wanted to quickly point out just how good and unique the MLW product is right now. They're different from any other wrestling on television, and if you're not watching their weekly TV and special events on BeIn, you're missing out. Former UFC middleweight Tom Lawlor has quickly become one of the most believable and intense pro wrestlers in the world and having him anchor MLW events reveals a smart promotional team behind the scenes.

Lynch's Convoluted Story Remains 'Mania Focus

Becky Lynch's road to WrestleMania has been full of detours and wrong turns. It got another twist this week.

Instead of a simple and effective story where Lynch wins the Royal Rumble and goes to WrestleMania to become the first person to beat Ronda Rousey, WWE has told a confusing and meandering story. This week, the final segment on Raw was Lynch being forced to sign a “hold harmless” agreement by Stephanie McMahon before she'd be allowed to face Charlotte Flair at Fastlane; if Lynch wins the match, she'll be inserted into a triple threat match at Mania with Flair and Rousey. 

Because when I think of riveting pro wrestling television, I think of legal agreement signings. Nothing gets me more hyped for a match than legal agreements. 

Let's hope Sunday's match is the final curveball in this story.