Let’s go back… Right back, to the time Dean Ambrose was part of that three-way team that destroyed everyone — that’s it: The Shield!
With gelled up hair, a menacing look that was comparable to The Joker and a tone of voice that meant business. It is time to revisit those days. This was the time WWE took full advantage of The Lunatic Fringe, playing a threatening heel, that would do anything to win.
Some would call him the ‘weak link’ of the group, but I would call him the most compelling character away from it. Roman Reigns was known as the ‘muscle’ and Seth Rollins the ‘architect’. Both simply names, that were effective, but not half as effective as the way Ambrose’s character was perceived. An almost dirty looking character, with an aggressive offense that matched. Daniel Bryan had the best description: “grittiness, that you won’t find anywhere else in a wrestler.”
Dean Ambrose’s “Street Fight” – note the use of exclamation marks – was quite possibly the biggest let down at WrestleMania 32. With a card that looked average, this should have been the match that stole the show. Given Ambrose’s background at CZW – the pro wrestling company known for being ‘ultra violent’ – you’d have thought he’d be able to let loose, even if just a little bit? Of course it wasn’t going to be an all out ‘bloodfest’, but at least give us our monies worth!
From a personal standpoint, I was looking forward to this match the most. So imagine how disappointed I was when they gave them less than 13 minutes to let Brock Lesnar dominate, delivering suplex, after suplex. Then tease the baseball bat covered in barbed wire – handed down by The Hardcore Legend Mick Foley – only to let Brock hit one F5 for the win.
To put it simply, the match was a complete disaster.
The only positive thing I can say is that Brock looked like a beast – but in my opinion, the time for ‘Suplex City’ is well over. Anyway, this is one example of why Ambrose needs to be freshened up. He needs to come back with a vengeance in a hope that he can start to build up more credibility. At the moment, putting smiles on kids faces just isn’t cutting it!
Since The Shield broke up, Ambrose has unquestionably taken the biggest fall. At WrestleMania 31, Seth Rollins went on to win Money In The Bank; being the first ever man to win at WrestleMania using the briefcase. Roman Reigns was headlining that show with the undefeated Brock Lesnar. Both men were booked as strong characters: one fighting for The Authority, the other fighting against. While this was happening, Ambrose was featured in a Ladder Match for the Intercontinental Championship.
Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the kick off to WrestleMania 31 with Bryan winning the title. But what I didn’t enjoy was the fact Ambrose was in this match to begin with.
But even after Mania, Rollins and Reigns continued to push further: Rollins became the first Superstar to win the WWE Championship and United States Championship at the same time. He defeated Sting while facing John Cena on the same night and became Superstar of the Year in 2015.
Roman Reigns won a Royal Rumble, has won the WWE Championship 3 times, and was Superstar of the Year in 2014. Meanwhile, Ambrose has lost feud after feud. Sure, he did defeat Kevin Owens for the Intercontinental Title at TLC last year, but the reign was laughable, only lasting 64 days! He has even lost to his former Shield ‘brothers’ for the WWE Championship on multiple occasions.
Some people’s argument would be that wins and losses don’t matter? And to a large extent, I agree. After all, Zack Ryder has been jobbing for nearly half a decade and he ended up winning the Intercontinental Title in a match with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Since Ambrose split from The Shield, his PPV record is 5-16. He won a Street Fight that ended up in separate segments against Luke Harper at Extreme Rules last year. A ‘DQ’ victory over Seth Rollins at Elimination Chamber. A tag team victory with Roman Reigns at SummerSlam. And three consecutive victories against Kevin Owens at Survivor Series, TLC and Royal Rumble. That record isn’t particularly impressive.
Ambrose has accomplished nothing compared to the other members of The Shield. Saying that, I can’t discredit Ambrose’s incredible reaction when feuding with Rollins. But it seems he can only really get a great reaction when paired against Rollins, as a face at least. Of course he ended up losing the feud in Hell In A Cell with interference from Bray Wyatt, whom he would also lose to. But anyway, enough of the past. Lets discuss why Ambrose should turn heel!
Ambrose is currently booked as a knock off cartoon villain from a kids show. From his weird facial expressions to the way he comes back from heel promos, using his aggressive yet passionate speech on how he’s going to ‘dig deep’, and find it in him to win.
He gives off a vibe that he wants to cause havoc. This means he will do anything to win, traits which once featured in his previous gimmick. The only difference being that Ambrose used to win matches and prove his point. Now he losses, and looks weaker. Okay, it makes him more sympathetic. But uNeil he makes a difference, he’s stuck at a crossroads.
If Ambrose was a heel, attacking his enemies backstage – looking into the microphone and verbally destroying opponents, he’d be much more effective. Instead, he’s out there with his tank-top and jeans hitting stupid looking clotheslines from the middle rope.
What Ambrose needs to do is come out one night on RAW, and attack a sympathetic face. He then needs to say something along the lines of “Since I split from The Shield, I’ve done nothing but fight The Authority and be a nice guy, and what has that gotten me? Nothing. So I no longer care about you people, or anyone else. The only person I’m looking out for is me.”
Now, Ambrose isn’t a monster heel, but the difference was the change in attitude. This could really do wonders for Ambrose, and the main point is you are developing the character. It’s simply a ‘good guy, gone bad’ situation. Him as a ‘tweener’ may work, but Ambrose as a full heel would work much better. He needs to replace his semi-grin with a menacing scowl. He needs to develop more mature moves in the ring and take nonsense from no one. He needs to get rid of ‘The Lunatic Fringe’ and just become a straight up ass-kicker!
I believe a heel Ambrose and a face Rollins would make for a much better feud, if the roles were reversed. Rollins, being described as the next Jeff Hardy – incredibly athletic, and has an outstanding repertoire. Ambrose being compared to the next Stone Cold – incredible on the mic, and taking a no nonsense approach. This could be magic, once again.
WrestleMania proved that having Ambrose as a face just simply doesn’t work. Heel Ambrose must occur this year. Unleash the heel wanting to get out of Ambrose, and let him prove to us his worth as an ass-kicking machine. Let him prove he’s the “IronMan of WWE”, placing him in matches fitting of a great face opponent. It’s time we see the new and improved Ambrose. One that makes us both excited and scared, at the same time.
