On January 20, 2014 at the EJ Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio, former WWE Superstar “The Animal” Batista makes his long-awaited WWE return on RAW …and I couldn’t care less.
I hate to always be the “negative Nelly” here at eWrestlingNews.com, but I try to be realistic about things. Keeping that in mind, let’s take a realistic look at what is contained in a return by Batista.
First and foremost, he’s a main event level Superstar. What does this mean? Well, in short, it means that’s one less main event spot for current talent on the active WWE roster.
Pro wrestling is broken down into two main categories: matches and promos. Is Batista particularly good at either? No. Under the right set of circumstances, with the right opponent, he is capable of having a good match. Off the top of my head, I can recall a couple of great matches Batista has had in the past with The Undertaker. But matches like that, at least in the case of Batista, are few and far between.
As far as promos are concerned, I can’t think of one good Batista promo. I’m sure he’s had a few here and there, but in general, I remember Batista as being pretty boring on the stick.
Plain and simple, Batista is a body. He’s got a cool look. He looks like a killer. Big deal! There’s plenty of guys in wrestling that have impressive physiques, but that doesn’t entertain me. That doesn’t make me want to buy a ticket. It doesn’t make me want to buy a pay-per-view. It doesn’t even make me want to turn on my television set.
I’m aware that I am looking at this situation from the negative perspective. In trying to be positive, I can’t come up with too many scenarios that excites me about Batista’s return. He’ll get the big initial pop, everyone will be excited to see him again, and then he’ll open his mouth. Again, I know this sounds negative, but at that point, it’s all down hill from there. After the big promo, it’ll be time for Batista to get in the ring and work. Once again, nothing too thrilling there.
I guess that I should take the “wait and see” approach. Maybe WWE will surprise me and have some cool creative storylines to book around “The Animal.” Maybe Batista will work extra hard and have some good matches. Maybe his time in Hollywood playing the acting game has made him a more natural performer, and he’ll have an enhanced ability to cut promos. Who knows. I guess we’ll find out.
If you ask me, Batista is back in WWE, and I could care less.
So there you have it. I spewed my negativity, now it’s time for you guys to blast me with yours. Leave your feedback in the “Comments” section below, or hit me up on Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBooneWZR.
