Before we begin, I have to address the elephant in the room. The tragic passing of Windham Rotunda, otherwise known as Bray Wyatt.
His struggles against his own booking and fan reactions are well documented, but the legacy he leaves behind is one of nearly unmatched creative vision, of incredibly intricate and detailed storytelling that pushed our silly medium forward in a truly innovative fashion.
When things were bad in his WWE run, it was largely not his fault, and when things were good, they were transcendent, from the Wyatt Family’s feud against the Shield to the surrealist horror short film disguised as a wrestling bout that was the Firefly Funhouse match versus John Cena.
Wyatt had a nearly unparalleled connection with the modern WWE audience, from casual fans who loved his horror gimmicks, which were largely a throwback to sillier eras of wrestling, such as the mid to late 90s, to those who got wrapped up in the complex lore that he wove over the course of his career. Wrestling is worse for his absence, and my heart goes out to his family and friends. Thank you Windham.
A Story Worth Telling
Bray Wyatt has many celebrated matches, from the fantastic six man tag match that marked the highpoint of the aforementioned feud against the Shield to the devilishly brilliant debut of The Fiend in which he squashed Finn Balor. What I want to do today is shed light on a match that I think hasn’t been celebrated enough as an example of absurd, cinematic wrestling done with care and passion: The Fiend vs Randy Orton in a Firefly Inferno match at Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2020. Before you say it, yes, that feud absolutely ended up in a dreadful place, with weird black goo and Sister Abigail shenanigans, but I maintain that this specific chapter of it is a lovely little piece of storytelling.
From the Flames
Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt didn’t get along. Years before this match, The Viper cruelly burned down the humble swamp man’s home after snaking on both him and the Wyatt family at large. Apparently burning down a man’s house is a babyface move in the WWE. But moral implications notwithstanding, fire quickly became an important symbol within the world of Bray Wyatt as he continuously reinvented himself. Something of a redemption for that earlier blaze and swamp fight, this outing would be neither a cinematic match nor a regular one, but a mixture of the two. It wouldn’t be an underdog tale, it would be a slasher flick.
First Spark
The match begins with two wonderful entrances from both men, Randy comes to the ring with his usual quiet intensity. But this time he looks almost anxious as he paces around the ring awaiting The Fiend. Bray’s entrance is breathtaking as always, still chilling even without a crowd.
The opening sequences are full of genuinely great wrestling. That might come as a bit of a surprise considering the tone of the feud, but there’s a great chain of reversals as both men try to hit their finishers in order to end this quickly. Sadly there’s no mercy in the squared circle, and the first man to successfully hit their finisher is Mr. Wyatt, who nails an incredibly explosive Sister Abigail on the nervous Orton.
Inferno
What follows is a heat segment that makes up a large portion of the match. Wyatt punishes the firebug viper for his hubris by beating him in and out of the ring, laying on stomps, headbutts, and slams galore. But the match truly becomes a horror movie when Bray hits his taunt in the center of the squared circle, and columns of fire emerge all around the ring. The Fiend begins whipping Orton on the outside with a leather strap before discarding it with a slick motion. It’s then that fire is properly introduced to the violence, with Bray grabbing a second strap and setting it ablaze, attempting to hit Randy with it but thankfully missing.
Almost all of Randy’s offense in this match comes off a series of dodges, which I very much appreciate. It really fits the horror movie tone of the match. Randy Orton is the archetypal “Final Girl” of this tale and he can’t simply overpower The Fiend. Instead he has to weather the storm and get in his licks when he can. When he tries to go for too big of a maneuver, he gets caught and dragged back to hell, the evil clown demon regaining control over the narrative.
Fighting Fire With Fire
The most chilling of The Fiend’s attempts to set Randy ablaze comes from the rocking chair spot. After trapping his opponent, he douses the chair with “gasoline” and Randy is only able to escape at the very last moment.
They trade pyromania attempts for the rest of the match, with Fiend using a discarded ax handle as a torch, and Randy simply trying to shove Bray into the flames.
The fiery conclusion comes when Randy finally lights up The Fiend on the outside. Following a sickening hanging DDT off the apron, The Fiend scrambles back into the ring before collapsing, Orton hesitantly approaches his body before his expression starts to shift. It seems that this force of nature was human after all, and The Viper would make sure that he never comes back. Regardless of silly technicalities like murder being illegal. In a slightly drawn-out sequence, Orton burns Wyatt down.
That would have been a perfect moment to end the feud, so let’s pretend that it did.
Conclusion
This match has a great structure and never gets boring, with all the big spots being incredibly satisfying. Inferno matches are usually lame, but this is pure art. Regardless of anything else, Windham’s legacy is eternal.
Thank you for being a bright firefly in a sky filled with darkness.