For me it isn't about Roman, Bryan, Lesnar or anyone. This is story about "beating the guy that beat Taker's streak and dominated the title". It's about me following a company for nearly 30 years, getting invested in a storyline with Taker that spans over 20 years, and seeing it all pissed away on nothing. I like Bryan, but I'm not sure I would want them to waste the streak on him, or anyone, and surely not a green Roman.
I don't hate Roman, I think he's a good guy, and probably even deserving of a push eventually, if not even now. Why not? They pushed fucking Luger. BUT... does Roman's push deserve to have Taker's streak, Lesnar as this new monster heel, and the hottest thing of 2014-Bryan, all as fuel for his story? No.
I feel like they wasted something I spent a lot of time and money investing in on someone I don't even want. So I'm not gonna keep rage watching, I will just do something else.
And stop listening to people that tell you to "stop being uphappy because you don't get the stories you want". We have every right to complain. If McDonalds sells me a shit sandwich on Monday and Tuesday, I have every right to walk out of there on Wednesday. I'd be stupid to do otherwise. Hell, I'm stupid for going back the second time.
For a while now, I feel like I've been sold a terrible product. Now, I'm expected to buy into a storyline that comes at the expense of the last 20 years. All that for a guy that no one is really behind. Maybe Roman will be great soon. Hell, maybe he's the next Rock. But he isn't right now, and he isn't worth Taker's streak.
Why do it this way? So it isn't "predictable"? It's predictable as hell right now.
Because they think it is more marketable? He isn't selling a thing.
Because of some fantasy we made up that Vince "promised Taker it would go down that way"? Please, I'd like to think that Taker and Vince know the difference between someone the fans like and someone they don't.
And don't get me started on the future for wrestlers. Bryan might end up like Duggan? Sure, he might. But take a good look at the guys they are pushing right now. Rusev is the next Khali or Umaga. After he loses to Cena he will be doing comedy matches and kiss cams with Adam Rose by the end of next year. I hope I'm fucking wrong, but tell me you don't see it happening.
We all excited about Cesaro and Kidd, but if history has taught us anything, they will put them in a few stale matches, claim they "couldn't get over", and slap them back in dark matches.
If Romans is lucky, he will salvage this. I can see him very possibly ending up as another Luger, Sid, Lesnar, Sheamus, Orton. Just a guy they put a lot of money into but that fails or leaves the company. This time they wasted money, Taker, Bryan, and Mania, while shitting on one of their best PPVs (Rumble) two years in a row. All because they don't like small guys.
It's fake, a work, I get it. But this is all there is. There will only be one guy to break the streak. There will only be one guy to take on Lesnar at Mania. It can only happen once. It doesn't matter if all the fan favorites like Bryan, Ziggler, Wade, Ambrose, and Rollins go on to headline a million PPVs after this. WWE is ruining a good thing now, again.
And that bullshit HHH spit out on the Austin podcast about it being a "never-ending story" is just that, bullshit. Making me sit through a two hour Wolverine movie to show him lose 10 times, only to say during the credits, "Come back next year, he might win" doesn't make me feel any better about giving you $9 for a ticket.
Look, I remember being a little kid and watching Hulk/Andre and asking my dad if Hogan could beat him or not, while loving Macho. I bought in, even when they had Diesel, turkeys, and trashmen, begging for Bret the whole time. I spent so much damn money on tickets, PPVs, and tshirts during the Austin/Rock era because I finally got what I wanted. As a grown man, I went nuts for Punk. It took a lot to make me want to quit. But this has been going on for years, it isn't a new thing. I feel like Perfect, Bret, Piper, Roberts, Savage, Christian, and Punk, never got what they fully deserved. And NOW Bryan, Ziggler, Cesaro, and Wade are getting a bad deal. And I just don't think I can stomach the shit gimmicks Vince will probably give to Owens and Zayn when they get called up. Honestly, seeing my two of my favorite guys with YEARS of experience being expected to job like Bryan because they are "too fat" or "too small" is too much.
If you like the product right now, great, everyone won't like the same thing. If you like Roman, awesome, you're in for a fun ride at Mania. But for me, and it took a long time to get here, I think I'm moving on.