Well, They Officially Zigglered Nakamura

Shinsuke Nakamura lost to Seth Rollins in a last man standing match at WWE Fastlane on Saturday. It was another bid for the world heavyweight championship, and once again, the title eluded the “King of Strong Style.”

Honestly, Nakamura was never leaving Indiana’s Gainbridge Fieldhouse as champion. He’s never going to win a world title in WWE, but that’s not the issue.

Over two years ago, it was reported that Nakamura’s new role in WWE was to help get younger talent over. At 43 years old, Nakamura has done precisely that, from teaming with the recently released Rick Boogs to his repackaged villainous persona targeting Seth “Freaking” Rollins.

WWE didn’t do anything wrong by having Nakamura lose to Rollins not only last month at Payback but on Saturday. More than anything, it’s unfortunate for Namakaura fans, but it also degrades his stock as a character.

Between losing world title challenges to Jinder Mahal, AJ Styles, and now Seth Rollins, Shinsuke Nakamura has become the Dolph Ziggler of WWE.

WWE recently released Dolph Ziggler after 15 years as an upper-mid card player on the main roster. Diehard fans championed Ziggler to receive a main event push for over a decade.

It never came.

Sure, Ziggler had a lot of great matches, made a lot of money, and even won the world title on two occasions. However, he lost them quickly after winning them in transitional scenarios designed for shock and awe instead of making Ziggler a star.

Fans held out hope for a while. Eventually, too many losses in world title matches made the message loud and clear. Dolph Ziggler would never be world champion, not in the way that matters.

Many more world title programs came Ziggler’s way, but people were over it. Where there was once, excitement became moans, groans, and fans changing the channel. It’s one thing to watch a wrestler’s journey when anything can happen. It’s different when you know how the story will end every single time.

Jinder Mahal was the first time Shinsuke Nakamura lost a world title match everyone thought he should have won. Many felt the same way about his loss to AJ Styles at WrestleMania, Crown Jewel, and Money in the Bank.

The Money in the Bank loss hurts more than most. Nakamura was booked to win the title. Vince McMahon called an audible at the last minute. Styles was announced as the cover athlete for the WWE 2K19 video game, and McMahon felt he shouldn’t lose the title.

It was a good business decision, but to illustrate how last minute the title win was changed, Nakamura’s lower third graphic announcing him as the new world champion was shown as Styles’s hand was raised.

If that’s not bad enough, Micheal Cole, on commentary, accidentally stuck to the production script after reviewing the reply of Style’s victory, congratulating Nakamura on becoming the new WWE Champion.

Nakamura and Rollins put on a great match at Fastlane!

However, this wasn’t the old Nakamura. This was the repackage Nakamura. Renewed push on television, new entrance gear, added character depth, and dramatic subtitled promos reminiscent of his days in New Japan Pro Wrestling.

“This is the Nakamura we should have got years ago,” many said as his altered persona took shape. Ziggler was the same character for his entire WWE run, while Nakamura was presented with a fresh coat of paint and better than before.

In the words of Jay Z, “Allow me to reintroduce myself,” was the message WWE sent regarding Nakamura. It looked like he might win the big one this time. After all, why invest so much time and energy in heating him up just to lose to Rollins?

Again, there is nothing wrong with what WWE did. However, instead of doing it in a way that keeps Nakamura a compelling character, win, lose, or draw, the decision was made to erode any cache he had left with the audience.

Shinsuke Nakamura is dead as an essential character in WWE. He’s now in the same boat Dolph Ziggler found himself in years ago. He’s officially lost the big one too many times for anyone to believe it will ever happen.

It’s a shame, too. Nakamura was a can’t miss prospect coming out of Japan and NXT. Where did it all go wrong?

Perhaps WWE knows something we don’t know about Nakamura in a sustained feature role. WWE is akin to a Hollywood casting agent.

The internet nearly collapsed when Ben Affleck was cast as Batman. Everyone believed it was the way wrong call. Once the movie ended, Affleck’s portrayal of Batman was celebrated, with many saying he was the best actor to don the cape and cowl.

Casting agents saw something no one else saw because they are closer to the filmmaking process than most. The same goes for the key decision-makers in WWE, and they’ve decided Nakamura is not the guy, not even for a little bit.

Some feel Rollins’ run as world champion is boring. I don’t necessarily agree, but I wouldn’t argue that it’s starting to go in that direction. Rollins dropping the title to Nakamura for a couple of months and winning it back in time for WrestleMania season would refresh Rollins while narratively elevating Nakamura as someone who is always in the mix.

One more time. WWE did nothing wrong. There is no conspiracy or great injustice. It was never about Nakamura. Still, it feels like he got robbed. He got a rare second chance to make a first impression and was better than ever, only for the story to end the same way.

It is sad to see something with such promise never come to fruition. As the old adage says, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me, but fool me three times…?