Bianca Belair Is Showing That WWE Can Book A Babyface Correctly
WWE comes under a lot of criticism for how it presents its faces, often going down the route of being corny, unlikeable, or even unintelligent, however Bianca Belair has been a consistently well-received face who continues to retain her popularity despite the several highs and lows of her booking.
Bianca Belair Gained Fans From Her Impressive In-Ring Work
Despite being a heel for most of her NXT run, and thriving in that role, Belair was brought to WWE’s main roster as a babyface. At the beginning, she was barely featured or used, but after a draft to Smackdown, she began gaining momentum. Being the athletic freak that she is, it could be easy for fans to be against someone who has been so successful in the past in her sporting career, but due to her talents in the ring, consistently putting on great matches and showing her capabilities, people naturally got behind her.
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When looking at superstars such as Cesaro and Daniel Bryan, it’s their storytelling inside the ring that made them so popular. Cesaro’s ungodly strength and agility always has the fans on their feet, and Belair has the same success. It's easy to forget with the terms of 'Sports Entertainment', as well as the fireworks, augmented reality and all the splendor, but at its core, WWE's best stories are told inside the ring. When she pulls out a 450 splash, or military presses Sasha Banks while walking up the steel steps, fans applaud because they respect those impressive feats. Her Royal Rumble victory was key to her rise, and it was a star-making moment, winning the match from the number 3 spot. Despite the lack of fans in the building, her determination and spirit translated through the screen.
Bianca Belair's Character Consistency Has Been Key
WWE walked a fine line with Belair’s booking on the Road to Wrestlemania, overbooking the championship scene with including her and Sasha Banks in the Tag Team Championship scene and incorporating comedic character Reginald in the story, but Belair kept her focus. Her promos were simple and to the point, and she always felt like herself. Belair went on to the main event of Wrestlemania and won the Smackdown Women’s Championship in a great match, getting the live fans behind her in a timeless moment.
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The climb and the chase are always the easier moments to book for a face, but as seen with the likes of Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins, it can all go downhill afterward a championship win, with fans steadily turning on those two as time went on, due to poorly scripted promos and uninspiring programs. However, WWE has allowed Belair to keep the same personality, and she hasn’t become needlessly jokey or uncool on the mic, so the WWE fans kept behind her for the same reasons that they were already behind her – her fire, heart, likeability, and quality in the ring.
Even After Summerslam, Belair Is Just As Over
After the debacle at Summerslam where Becky Lynch returned and defeated Belair in less than thirty seconds, it was all looking sour for Belair’s future. The booking made Belair look naïve, weak, and could’ve derailed her hugely. However, the dislike for the angle at Summerslam has only increased her support, both in and outside of kayfabe.
In the aftermath, Belair has been perfect on the mic in order to recover from this loss. Instead of making excuses or accusing Lynch of cheap-shotting her, she owned up to the mistakes she made, admitting she was well and truly beaten, and instead of demanding a rematch or talking herself into one after being wronged, she wanted to earn her shot. And that’s exactly what she did. Belair won a number one contender’s match to make herself the worthy challenger.
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Belair’s Honesty Makes Her Feel Human
Often, it’s the heels who speak the harsh truths, but with Belair, she openly admitted to not being on her game, and that she wasn’t good enough on the night. Honesty like that will always resonate with the audience, as it makes her feel more grounded and human, as everyone will make mistakes at some point. Through it all she has remained true to herself, and her character has grown ever since the loss. This development is important to keeping the fans behind her, as often characters don't develop or learn from their mistakes in WWE, which makes it harder to get behind the superstars.
Her booking is a clear case of showing that simple is often better. Oversaturating dialogue and adding childish humor to promos has derailed so many faces, so allowing Belair to avoid any of that has worked wonders, despite some questionable booking decisions along the way. If she can bounce back from an embarrassing loss at Summerslam and keep the fans firmly behind her and believing in what she says, WWE may well have a top hero and face for many years to come.
