10 Greatest Long Term WWE Storylines Ever

2. Batista Evolves

Batista Triple H
WWE

Hardly anybody pegged Batista as a headliner elect during his days as a one-dimensional muscled henchmen in the Evolution faction.

Most expected the more talented and natural Randy Orton to pick up that mantle - but his premature post-SummerSlam 2004 heel turn was the latest booking disaster of an ailing creative regime. That regime, however, managed to craft one of the most absorbing storylines in WWE history.

Triple H was attracting nuclear heat in 2004 - but it was of the X-Pac variety, albeit on a depressingly epic scale. Disenfranchised fans had grown deeply frustrated with Triple H's infamous ego trip - so much so that they crowned the preening and aloof Batista as their surrogate. Batista had entered the main event echelon - but it was almost addition by subtraction. Fans arguably invested into the character so heavily because Triple H had so handily defeated the likes of Rob Van Dam and Booker T a year earlier.

Regardless, Batista's babyface turn arc was handled masterfully - the slow reveal, the barely-suppressed hints at his disgust towards Triple H, were teased out to wonderful effect. When Triple H orchestrated a hit and run attempt, and Batista caught wind of the plot, fans had been incited into fever pitch. His subsequent face turn - and the 3-0 trilogy in favour of Batista, the match quality of which improved as it went on - created a headliner very few saw coming.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!