Batista Returns (2019 Edition)

[EnviousDominous]

I give the WWE props for learning from their mistakes when they attempted to push Batista as being a viable name to win the WWE Universal and World Championships at WrestleMania 30.

Batista works a hell of a lot better as someone who PURPOSELY stomps in, does something abhorrent, and makes you love to hate him. In 2014, he became that by accident and it made him look like a fool. This year he's basically giving the world the middle finger, and he's daring anyone who has a problem with that to step-up to him.

THIS is the Batista we need. Triple H is running around as a wise old man who's proudly looking back at all of his wonderful accomplishments, and Batista is shattering his state of comfort. From a storytelling perspective, this is absolute genius, and I give mad props to the WWE for letting this happen.

The only negative criticism I can give to this is that the rest of the card is looking pretty bland on its own, and this will greatly overshadow every other match. The WWE seems to be more enthusiastic about hyping Fastlane than they are about hyping WrestleMania. I really hope that I'm wrong in making that assertion, I hope that the WWE manages to build on the excitement of Triple H potentially being retired by stacking the WrestleMania card with equally dramatic matches.

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I give the WWE props for learning from their mistakes when they attempted to push Batista as being a viable name to win the WWE Universal and World Championships at WrestleMania 30.

Batista works a hell of a lot better as someone who PURPOSELY stomps in, does something abhorrent, and makes you love to hate him. In 2014, he became that by accident and it made him look like a fool. This year he's basically giving the world the middle finger, and he's daring anyone who has a problem with that to step-up to him.

THIS is the Batista we need. Triple H is running around as a wise old man who's proudly looking back at all of his wonderful accomplishments, and Batista is shattering his state of comfort. From a storytelling perspective, this is absolute genius, and I give mad props to the WWE for letting this happen.

The only negative criticism I can give to this is that the rest of the card is looking pretty bland on its own, and this will greatly overshadow every other match. The WWE seems to be more enthusiastic about hyping Fastlane than they are about hyping WrestleMania. I really hope that I'm wrong in making that assertion, I hope that the WWE manages to build on the excitement of Triple H potentially being retired by stacking the WrestleMania card with equally dramatic matches.

The status quo for hyping Wrestlemania this year is to tell everyone to point at the damn Wrestlemania sign. That'll save creative from coming up with a story of their own, "Well, Curtis Axle pointed at the Wrestlemania sign, enough said, right guys? Don't leave me hangin here."