5 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (Jan 6)

by Jamie Kennedy

1. The Remorseful ‘Tribal Chief’

Roman Reigns Sami Zayn Paul Heyman Popcorn
WWE

Manipulation has been one of the strongest qualities to Roman's character since he started this unmatched 'Tribal Chief' run. The way he snapped at Sami Zayn publicly then apologised for losing his cool privately doesn't show weakness. It shows off that manipulative streak nicely.

By forcing the visibly uncomfortable Zayn to sit and watch SmackDown's main event with him when Sami would literally be anywhere else, Reigns exhibited the most dominant aspects of his gimmick. By the end, he'd lowered Zayn's guard (keep that in mind when the inevitable Bloodline beating comes) enough that ol' Sam Zayn was throwing popcorn around the room.

There's so much depth to this story.

No-one should be this entertaining just sitting backstage watching a match, but that speaks to the realism of Roman, Sami and Paul Heyman as human beings. They aren't just pro wrestling characters - they're relatable people just turned all the way up to 11.

What did you think of this week's WWE SmackDown? For more wrestling, check out 10 Things You Learn Binge Watching Every WWE Raw From 2003 and 10 Things Everybody Hates About AMAZING Wrestling Matches!

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.