The Shield dominated the entirety of 2013, as much because they fought for one another behind-the-scenes as much as they did with the cameras rolling.
The reality added a meta quality to most of their early programmes. Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns were fiercely united against unsuspecting trifectas that couldn't get their sh*t together long enough to topple them. Sheamus, Randy Orton and The Big Show were more lambs to the 'Hounds Of Justice' slaughter, though walked with the arrogance of three singles stars confident enough to topple this emerging new threat.
In this match and others like it in the build, the trio got a rub few others were getting. This particular pay-per-view was headlined by two of the biggest stars in the world, but Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns were readying themselves to make that gigantic leap.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for nearly 10 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years.
As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 65,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast.
He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live.
