I can appreciate the inspiration behind Becky Lynch’s current gimmick. I can also appreciate how she pokes fun at a certain political figure with her nonsensical speech, erratic and irrational behavior, and her stubbornness, which is so incorrigible that it illustrates Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity. However, when you are literally “The Man” Becky Lynch — when you have made your career out of broken faces, sheer scrappiness, and an impressive win record complete with very few, if any, instances of cheating — your character falters when you… don’t do anything. When you combine her habitual complaining with her overall lack of motions, she becomes cartoonish. While yes, cheating is a heel’s MO, it’s disappointing to see Lynch be so dominant, so powerful, for so much of her career, just to be reduced to a cartoon.
While I have my reservations about the result of Lynch’s match against then-WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion AJ Lee on WWE WrestleMania 42 Saturday, I can say this: it make Lynch look a lot more active than she had been previously. Lynch actually did something! The bar is low, yes, but a Loved is a Loved.
It definitely helps that this match, out of the two women’s bouts, was the better one of the night. It also helps that Lee and Lynch are great story-based workers who know how to up the stakes heading into a match, and it also helps that Lee and Lynch are two very experienced workers who can hold their own in a ring. This Women’s Intercontinental Championship defense was going to be good from the get-go. When Lynch started to get physical with the referee, however, my interest was piqued. When Lynch actually did something heel-worthy — when she sent Lee face-first into the exposed metal turnbuckle — I was listening. Lynch may have cheated, yes, but it felt more violent than in recent times. Lynch felt like she had more bite, more evil in her veins. That was an evil thing to do, a cruel way to win, and I rocked with it.
I don’t personally love how Lynch is a now a three-time Women’s Intercontinental Champion, but that applies to anyone. To hold a title three times in such a short span, no matter who you are, is greedy. I don’t personally love how short and uneventful Lee’s reign was. When you have Lee on a reportedly full-time contract, I expect her to show up and successfully defend her title more than once. However, all things considered, this finish was not bad. Lynch got some much-needed motion, and Lee is basically untouchable, so she’ll be fine with this loss. Put this in the upper half of Saturday’s matches, and call it a night.
Written by Angeline Phu
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