Sam Fels Popular Books

Sam Fels Biography & Facts

Professional wrestler Roman Reigns (Joe Anoaʻi) debuted on the WWE main roster in November 2012 (having performed in its developmental system since 2010) as part of a faction called "The Shield" and was well-received by critics. Support began to dwindle upon Reigns's transition to a heroic main event singles act in 2014, largely due to his perceived forced push. This would manifest itself in Reigns main eventing four consecutive editions of WWE's premier annual pay-per-view event, WrestleMania, while being booed in all four appearances. Wrestling journalists have offered both praise and criticism for Reigns, noting both his talent and WWE's apparent attempts to conceal fan hostility towards him. David Shoemaker of Grantland wrote in 2016 that Reigns was the company's "most despised wrestler" in over 25 years. Fans have taken issue with Reigns over various reasons: his perceived special treatment, real-life demeanor, wrestling moveset, speaking skills and character presentation. After Reigns was suspended for drug use, Yahoo! Sports pondered whether he is "the biggest failure in professional wrestling history". In 2016, Reigns was voted the Most Overrated by Wrestling Observer Newsletter readers as well as the Most Hated Wrestler of the Year by Pro Wrestling Illustrated readers, a first for a heroic character since the award was devised in 1972. Into 2017, WWE continued trying to establish Reigns as a megastar despite audience rejection. Pro Wrestling Torch critics, including editor Wade Keller, have said that company chairman Vince McMahon is engaged in a "war on fans". Anoaʻi himself has suggested that there is jealousy from fans over his "major success", mocked those who question if he deserves his fictional role, discounted critiques from non-wrestlers, and declared that he will not change to appease his critics. Retired wrestler and Anoaʻi's childhood idol Bret Hart stated that he believes WWE themselves have "ruined" the Reigns character by utilizing bad storytelling and poor writing, and blames the company's leaders primarily for Anoaʻi failing to reach his potential. Anoa'i saw an improved reception from critics and fans from summer 2020 when he turned heel and took on the "Tribal Chief" persona, leading the Bloodline faction. By 2023, wrestling media sentiment turned positive toward Reigns again, with his work with The Bloodline and Sami Zayn receiving general acclaim, despite the length and finish of his matches being drawn out. Wrestling persona The Shield and initial reception (2012–2014) While in NXT (the new developmental system) during 2012, Roman Reigns' character was described as a "businessman" who was "always dressed to impress" and viewed himself as "the most valuable commodity in WWE". Reigns debuted to the main roster as part of The Shield on November 18, 2012, at Survivor Series. After transferring to WWE's main roster, his character was changed to the "powerhouse" and "heavy hitter" of The Shield, as well as an "exceptional athlete". Noted as the least talkative of The Shield members, Reigns' character was tweaked from "the quiet muscle" to being an "ultra-confident" source of leadership with "quiet strength" in mid-2013. CM Punk alleged in an interview that he was constantly reminded to make Reigns look "really, really strong" despite The Shield being booked to lose to Punk at the 2013 TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs event. In 2013, Reigns was voted the Most Improved by Wrestling Observer Newsletter readers. During the 2014 Royal Rumble match on January 26, the live crowd cheered for Reigns over eventual winner Batista despite Reigns being a villain. Anoaʻi later acknowledged the reaction as "a cool situation". In mid-2014, Stone Cold Steve Austin said he saw great potential in Reigns while David Shoemaker of Grantland wrote that Reigns had "mystery and intensity" as well as "superstar written all over him". Controversial rise to main event status (2014–2016) After The Shield disbanded for the first time, Reigns, unlike the other former Shield members, retained much of The Shield's aesthetic, including ring attire, a very slightly remixed version of the group's theme music, and ring entrance. From December 2014 to January 2015, Reigns' positive crowd reactions were diminishing. Reigns' win of WWE's 2014 Superstar of the Year Slammy Award garnered surprise to the point of accusations of vote-rigging, although both Dave Meltzer and Pro Wrestling Insider alleged the fan vote was legitimate. Writers from the Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter criticized Reigns in 2014 and 2015, for a "very limited" in-ring moveset, "forced promo delivery" and a "petulant and annoyed" attitude ill-befitting of a top fan favorite. Fellow professional wrestler Mikey Whipwreck said Reigns was "trying to be like John Cena", who was "very polarizing". At the 2015 Royal Rumble on January 25, Reigns was booed heavily after his victory despite portraying a heroic character. In February on WWE Raw, Paul Heyman praised Reigns as better than "any other guy in history", which garnered negative reactions as Heyman implied esteemed wrestling figures, including Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, André the Giant, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock and John Cena, were inferior to Reigns. By March, Anoaʻi altered his character's physical appearance by wearing contact lenses in order to have blue eyes. From late 2014 to early 2015, various critics raised concerns that Reigns, despite being "not fully ready", was "being pushed too hard, too soon" while WWE tried to make him their next "flagship star", "no matter how fans reacted". Anoaʻi reacted by saying that he only entertained criticism of his wrestling by people that were involved with wrestling, discounting negative opinion by critics that "weren't wrestlers" and who wouldn't understand how to "lock up". Going into WrestleMania in 2015, Dave Meltzer said that Reigns was the least over WrestleMania main eventer ever. At WrestleMania 31 on March 29, Pro Wrestling Torch described Reigns as needing security for his entrance while receiving "universal boos" and middle fingers. Reigns was unable to defeat Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship after Seth Rollins cashed in his Money in the Bank contract and pinned Reigns to win the world title. Rollins received positive reactions for his victory despite being a villain. Despite the fan backlash in early 2015, critics praised Reigns' performances at Fastlane, WrestleMania 31 and Extreme Rules as exceeding expectations while the negative reactions continued at Money in the Bank and SummerSlam. In late 2015, critics described WWE presenting Reigns' character as a "hard-luck underdog" chasing the world title, with WWE having "spent an overwhelming amount of time" on Reigns, "bending over backwards to create new obstacles for him to overcome ... at the expense of almost everyone else on the roster". In November 2015, Reigns received a "mixed, at best" reaction upon winni.... Discover the Sam Fels popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Sam Fels books.