10 Reasons Why Nobody Has Missed Randy Orton
3. He's Inconsistent
You can never really be sure which version of Orton you're going to get - and that makes many apprehensive about his return.
There doesn't to be much in the way of a pattern, either. Unlike Lesnar, who as we've mentioned tends to excel against a certain type of opponent, Orton sometimes doesn't click with even the most versatile of performer.
Expectations were high going into the Rollins series, the results of which were decidedly mixed, because Orton's programme with Christian remains to this day one of the decade's best in all of wrestling. You'd think that Orton would be able to reach similar heights with a performer of similar style and ability. Then again, Rollins is probably closer to Punk than he is Christian, and the 2011 Orton Vs. Punk series never exceeded the four-star level despite the undeniable talents of both involved.
Orton can also be uneven within the same rivalry. His early-2013 RAW matches with Daniel Bryan went some way towards convincing WWE officials that the Yes! man was ready for the main event, but their post-SummerSlam pay per view reprise didn't have the same magic. That they rekindled it at WrestleMania XXX just lends credence to the argument.
This selective chemistry naturally leads fans to mitigate their expectations.