The Firefly Funhouse match proved to be one of the most mind-boggling WrestleMania contests we’ve seen since Goldust and Roddy Piper at WrestleMania 12. Bray Wyatt transported John Cena out of the empty Performance Centre and all the way to his whimsical Funhouse, where Cena would be greeted by Abigail, Rambling Rabbit and Mercy the Buzzard who warned Cena of the horrors that await him in Wyatt’s realm.
I don’t think any WWE fan expected the Firefly Funhouse match to play out like it did. For the first time in WWE history, they enacted a visceral character study of John Cena, taking the often level-headed character through his own history and picking apart his most crucial moments and breaking him down to the point of being too weak to overcome ‘The Fiend’.
Wyatt’s grudge dates back to WrestleMania 30, when John Cena defeated Bray Wyatt in what was supposed to be his big breakout moment. Despite evolving as a character, Wyatt remembered this crushing defeat and sought to right the wrong with this dominant display of power in the Firefly Funhouse.
It’s still quite a tricky match to analyse; some might consider it a little too high-concept to be something worth giving credit to, others might consider it an intriguing experiment that was ultimately a huge success, something that could kick-start a new era of cinematic wrestling in WWE. I’m not sure this match would have came across as solid as it did if it weren’t for the involvement of John Cena. The now Hollywood superstar’s star-power helped glue the puzzle the together through his hammy performance, putting over the more ludicrous aspects of the match while also making Bray Wyatt look strong in the process.
You could tell that both Wyatt and Cena were having great fun putting the scenes together. The re-creation of Cena’s iconic ‘Ruthless Aggression’ promo, the throwbacks to the vibrant Golden Era and the nWo-centric WCW made for some hilarious content. If it were any other superstar, this might have come across more like the diabolical House of Horrors match from 2017, but John Cena really put himself out there to create something unique at WrestleMania.
Should WWE follow through with their ideas to explore more off-set encounters between wrestlers, similar to that of the Funhouse and Boneyard matches, who exactly could step into Cena’s shoes to ensure that the sequel is as eccentric as the original?
For a start, it would need to be someone with a rich character history, someone that has seen through a lot of WWE’s history and adapted themselves to fit in with the changing times. ‘The Fiend’ seems to be targeting superstars that are slightly insecure in themselves, characters that have had to drop their previous values in favour of something new.
Daniel Bryan for example, a man of the people that left the ‘Yes Movement’ behind to become the Eco Warrior WWE Champion we saw at WrestleMania last year. Since battling with Wyatt’s monster, he has returned to his former roots of ‘The American Dragon’, bringing back the popular “Yes” chants and reclaiming some of his former glory. Previously, Finn Balor had also undergone a drastic change, transforming from the vicious Prince Devitt into the fun-loving Irishman we saw rise through the ranks of NXT and the main roster. After being dispatched by Wyatt at SummerSlam, Balor returned to NXT to re-establish himself as ‘The Prince’, a character reminiscent of his past self.
With all that in mind, the first ideal opponent to enter the Firefly Funhouse would be the COO himself, Triple H. ‘The King of Kings’ has become an institute of WWE, not only behind the scenes but also cementing his character as one of the defining names of WWE’s roster. Throughout his in-ring career, Triple H has turned more times than I can count, dropping friends and partners in favour of an extra run with the championship. With Triple H now fully ingrained in a backstage role, Wyatt could definitely target that as something he wishes to expose and manipulate.
Bray Wyatt has always been somewhat of an anarchist, often citing the establishment and authorities of modern society as something that needs to be dismantled. There’s no better force than ‘The Fiend’ to finally propel Wyatt into a position to challenge WWE’s big-wigs and bring down the machine from the inside. It doesn’t take much to persuade Triple H to jump back into the ring for a battle or two, so I’m sure Wyatt could convince ‘The Game’ to take a trip to the Firefly Funhouse, where Wyatt could leave Hunter, and WWE management, defenceless.
Speaking of authority, how about the mayor of Knoxville county himself? Mayor Glenn Jacobs, the man better known as Kane. ‘The Big Red Machine’ took the mantle of being Wyatt’s first major opponent after debuting on the main roster and has since been assaulted by ‘The Fiend’ during his brief return last year. Aside from his half-brother and the aforentioned COO, Kane has been more involved with WWE’s history than any other superstar currently signed to the roster, making for a really interesting opportunity for a deep character study of Kane’s previous gimmicks.
Kane has been developed in such a way to suggest that there’s more to his character than he lets on, with WWE occasionally dipping into his dark history during his feuds with The Undertaker. ‘The Fiend’ would naturally want the ‘Demon’ persona to re-emerge, taking Mayor Glenn to hell and back as part of a Funhouse match. The fun loving monster that we’ve seen compete alongside Daniel Bryan, Rob Van Dam and The Big Show would be something that Wyatt wants to completely eradicate, reducing him to the point where he must resort to his maniacal masked self once again.
Another superstar that has seen through some of WWE’s most tumultuous periods would be the recently returned ‘Rated R Superstar’. Edge has been another character that has evolved throughout the ages, going from the brooding teenager, to a vampire, to a kazoo-tooting loon and then to being the biggest heel in the company. Edge’s character, and abilities as an on-screen actor, would lend itself greatly to the kookiness of the Funhouse match. Taking inspiration from Cena’s hammy facial expressions and how much he was willing to get into the various roles he had to play, Edge could definitely make the Funhouse match must-see TV.
If we were to now look at superstars with slightly less of a storied history in WWE, then you’d have to consider Seth Rollins to be an ideal candidate to step inside the Firefly Funhouse. Rollins has already become such a huge part of WWE’s lore, having only competed on the main roster for just over half a decade. Seth is now sporting the ‘Messiah’ gimmick, making for an interesting juxtaposition between his holy self and Wyatt’s more demonic aesthetic.
Wyatt could easily pick apart Rollins’ past-selves and the many different values he’s held dear throughout his career. Once again playing on the whole anti-establishment sentiment, Wyatt could target Seth’s need to please the bosses when siding with Triple H as part of the Authority and then later becoming the typical babyface star that the company needed him to be. It would be an interesting dynamic to say the least, and would hopefully make up for their awful series of Universal Championship matches from last year.
Regardless of who steps into Bray Wyatt’s Funhouse next, they shouldn’t stray too far from the vignette style that was produced for WrestleMania 36. Whether you enjoyed the content or not, you can’t deny that it got your attention. The in-jokes, the nostalgia, the genuinely creepy vibes, all of produced one of the most memorable matches of recent memory and should certainly be called upon again to help wrap up a feud with ‘The Fiend’.
Who would you like to see step into the Firefly Funhouse next? Let us know in the comments below.
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