The Disturbing Truth Behind Bray Wyatt
The Fiend has indeed "changed" Randy Orton and Alexa Bliss. This...isn't a good thing.
"In this essay, the Lore of the Fiend will be explored using..."
This editorial is actually going to begin with some nice words about Bray Wyatt, the performer, because it's probably going to get harsh. Some fun might even be had at the expense of the character because that is the problem with it. This isn't a character assassination.
Bray Wyatt is a funny and creative man. The early Firefly Fun House vignettes contrasted a wholesome vibe with a sinister undertone so well that the very subtle glimmers of dread, that something was non-specifically off, were far more powerful than the patchwork quilt of horror movie cliché that had become of the old 'cult leader' incarnation of the persona. The 'Muscle Man Dance' in particular was marvellously irreverent. Bray Wyatt - and this isn't at all a dig, since it's as difficult to pull off as horror - could (and should) effectively play a comedy character.
He can convey fear quite well, when it isn't as on the nose as Randy Orton's first-degree burn (the one that simultaneously burnt him to a crisp). The sudden about-face to gruff dead-eyed menace down the lens is hokey, as is the "He's behind you!" slasher bullsh*t he does with the Fiend mask on - but he can create a sense of unease.
Even the vignettes after the character was burned to a crisp - this happened before the immolation angle at TLC - were entertaining. Friendship Frog was funny. A frog you just met received a tribute package in memoriam, in which it was revealed that he was a collegiate athlete. It was absurd. In the good way, as opposed to all of the other ways Wyatt is absurd.
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