Wrestling is often split into sides, heel and babyface, rudo and technico, whatever it is called, there are good guys and bad guys in wrestling, but sometimes fans will cheer regardless of whether a wrestler is doing good deeds or bad deeds if said wrestler is popular enough. Such is the case of Seth "Freakin'" Rollins. "I believe that people are programmed to pop for Seth Rollins," Bully Ray said on "Busted Open Radio"recently, comparing Rollins' proclivity for getting easy cheers to that of WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley. "Fans have been programmed to [cheer] 'Welcome to Monday Night Rollins, right here in St. Louis.' The music pops them, the opening line pops them, so right off the bat, [the audience] is in a good mood."
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Bully thinks WWE has taken a somewhat hands-off approach to Rollins, to see how fans want to react to the former World Heavyweight Champion. Bully doesn't feel there is a definitive direction for Rollins at the moment, especially with some of his actions. "He comes back last week and he curb stomps Bronson Reed's face into the ringsteps," Bully said, which he feels is more of a heel move than a babyface move, compounded by Dave LaGreca's observations that Rollins was talking rather heel-like to CM Punk, threatening to end his career and such, though Rollins continues to stoke the crowd with praising the hometown and doing a silly dance. "[Pro wrestling] programs you."
Bully compares wrestling to faith healing, where the entire show is built towards creating enough adrenaline to make people feel like they don't hurt anymore. "If you hear that 'Burn It Down' and hear 'Welcome to Monday Night Rollins,' are you gonna boo?" Bully asked. "Maybe a handful of people, but not a majority ...The past couple of times we've seen him, everything about him screams 'Like me!'"
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If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
