The Bloodline's Dominance Through Manipulation

The Bloodline is the most dominant faction in wrestling today and maybe even in all of wrestling history, but the table that Roman sits at is one built on lies and manipulation

---

When he returned after a five-month absence at SummerSlam in 2020, Roman Reigns was a completely different person. With a new attitude and an advocate by his side, he only had one goal: regaining the title that he never lost by any means necessary. Gone was the charming big dawg of the past wanting to do what was right, now Roman was taking the respect he knew he deserved by demanding that everyone acknowledge him.

This new version of Roman was not going to hold back. Fully aware of what he's capable of, the Tribal Chief made his intentions known that he planned on wrecking everyone that stood in his way. The biggest thing that sets him apart from his former self was that he was now willing to destroy his opponents on a psychological level. Roman even reached out to get Paul Heyman by his side as his "Wise Man". Heyman would help him by talking for him, taking care of problems that got in their way, and serving as his yes-man. Roman had become a manipulative monster and we would see this come into play when his cousin Jey Uso stepped up to try and take that title from him.

From their first interaction, it seemed that things between Roman and Jey were gonna be fine. Jey was congratulating Roman on his title win and even said that he'd always be there backing him up. It wasn't until Jey won himself a shot at Roman's Universal Title that he had a problem with his cousin. Things had changed during Roman's absence, especially within his family. Jimmy suffered a knee injury at that year’s WrestleMania which put Jey in the position to be a singles wrestler for the first time in his career. This title shot he earned was the only opportunity he's ever had at a singles championship and he wasn't going to back down that easy.

With the two cousins destined to come head to head, it was only a matter of time before we saw the worst come out of Roman. He immediately tried to avoid the match entirely by guilting Jey out of it, telling him that he doesn't want to fight his own blood. Jey was determined to get this title shot though, and this is where Roman's manipulation of Jey would get personal. He would tell Jey about the burden of being a champion and how he's not ready for that responsibility. Telling him how their family is proud of Jey for being part of one of the greatest tag teams ever, but they rely on Roman being the Tribal Chief and Jey isn't ever going to be ready for that responsibility. Roman's words cut deeper than any superman punch ever could as he was on a mission to break Jey down and get him by his side to fuel his selfish ambitions. For Jey, it was all about proving to himself and the world that he was more than a tag team wrestler. All people ever asked him when they saw him was “Which one are you?” and Jey wanted to change that. It was a very passionate promo from Jey that really showed exactly what he was fighting for, but Roman was unphased. He wouldn't let his cousin's dreams get in the way of his newfound purpose and made it his goal to extinguish any spark of resistance in Jey.

Through two brutal and heartbreaking matches, Roman would begin to dismantle Jey. In their first match at Clash of Champions, Roman was showing Jey exactly what he was capable of inside that ring. The violence and carnage he was willing to bring against his cousin would put everyone in that locker room on notice about what happens when you refuse to acknowledge your tribal chief. To Roman's disappointment though, Jey wasn't giving up as easily as he expected. Roman wasn't going for pins in this match though, he could end it at any time but cared more about making an example out of Jey. He would not rest until he acknowledged him and was trying to beat it out of him. The finish of the match saw a still-injured Jimmy Uso return to throw in the towel for his brother saving him from himself. Despite the brutal and heartless beating, there was still some fight in Jey for more.

It would all come to a head in an "I Quit" Hell in a Cell match between the two family members. If Jey lost, he would have to finally fall in line or be kicked out of the family for good. Roman was in total control of the situation and knew exactly what he was doing. Making Jey risk losing everything he cares about to get another chance at the title was a vile move and one that he was proud of. The match itself is one of the most emotional matches I've ever seen with Roman reaching his most manipulative point at the finish. Jimmy Uso once again made his way into the ring to try and get his family to stop fighting each other which saw Roman break down into tears at what he had become - or so we had thought. In reality, he was just putting on a performance to lul Jimmy into a false sense of security. Telling Jimmy he loved him, he then began to choke him out forcing Jey to quit and save his already injured brother. Wiping the feigned tears away from his face to expose a twisted smile, Roman was finally crowned the Head of the Table by his Uncle Afa and father Sika - but at what cost?

Not wanting to risk being excommunicated from the family, Jey was forced to follow Roman’s orders. He grew into his new role as Roman’s Right Hand Man and made sure not to upset him further. For the most part, the bond between the two seemed to be growing stronger day by day. Roman would reward Jey’s obedience with attention and love, but any time Jey even slightly stepped out of line he would make him pay. One instance of this took place at 2020’s Survivor Series. When Jey failed to win the traditional 5v5 elimination match for Team Smackdown, Roman lambasted him. It made him look bad to have his right-hand man losing such an important match, especially because his team didn’t respect him. And in Roman’s mind, if they don’t respect Jey, they don’t respect him. He told Jey to leave the arena, and this is when Jey ignored his Tribal Chief. He interfered in Reigns’ match with Drew McIntyre to help him win which Roman didn’t ask for. This disrespect in Roman’s eyes made him look weak and he wouldn’t stand for that. He took out his aggression on Jey with more mind games. He let Jey know how disappointed he was in him and how he hurt Roman by doing that. Roman even went a step forward the next week and brutalized Jey with chair shots letting him know that there are consequences to all of his actions. Jey was helpless and had to take this abuse knowing that if he even raised his voice at Roman, he could risk losing everyone he cared about. Roman was tormenting Jey doing everything he could to beat him into a loyal soldier to fight his battles. He would gaslight Jey into thinking that everything was his fault. Jey was losing more and more of himself as he was left with no choice but to do whatever he could to get the attention and affection he needed from his cousin.

For the next few months, Roman and Jey were mostly on the same page. Jey was finally becoming the man he was forced to be and Roman was on top of the wrestling world. Things would drastically change for the family in May of 2021 when Jimmy would make his long-awaited return from injury. He picked right up where he left off standing against Roman and now his twin brother who had become unrecognizable to him. After having to sit at home and watch Roman put his brother through hell there was no way that Jimmy was going to acknowledge him. Roman didn’t want to go through this entire situation again so he made things simple for Jimmy: he could either acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief of their family, or he could go home and explain to his kids why he’s no longer wrestling. Roman wasted no time manipulating Jimmy with a sickening ultimatum knowing that sooner or later he would have him at his side, but not quite yet. Jimmy didn’t hesitate to tell him that he was “Nobody’s Bitch” and was never going to do things his way.

Jey once again becomes the center of this story with Jimmy and Roman both vying for his allegiance. Jimmy reminds Jey of all the horrible things Roman has put him through and all of the great times they’ve had together as a tag team without him. Roman stresses just how much he and Jey have been through over these past few months and tells him that he’s “only ever wanted the best” for Jey. He fears that if Jey goes back to his old ways he’s going to be relegated to opening the show and being asked “Which one are you?” again after becoming “Main Event Jey” alongside Roman. He uses manipulative flattery to try and convince Jey that he’s never been the bad guy in all this, but we all know the truth. He lifts Jey up just to tear him down himself but makes sure to lift him up again to make himself seem like the good guy. Roman gaslights Jey into thinking he’s not good enough without him to the point where he doesn’t even want the support of his own brother.

In an unexpected turn of events, Roman lets Jey team with Jimmy again, but under one condition: The Usos bring the Smackdown Tag Team championship to the family. In a big title match next week it would be The Usos reuniting after over a year apart to challenge The Mysterios for their tag titles. The family affair would spell nothing but disaster for The Usos as they’d lose the match despite Jimmy’s shoulder not being down for the pin. Always the first one to criticize, an irate Roman berated the two of them for not getting the job done and failing to call their shot. In one of the most emotionally abusive moments of his entire career, Roman intentionally calls Jey Jimmy and tells him that with the way he’s acting, it doesn’t matter which one he is. Using Jey’s biggest insecurity against him, Roman demanded that his cousins make things right. They would be granted a rematch next week, but it would once again end in controversy as Roman attacked Rey causing a DQ. He didn’t trust The Usos to get the job done on their own and took things into his own hands. No doubt another layer of mental torture from Roman, but this only went to make things worse for the family.

Jimmy had never been more upset with Roman and was making one last plea to Jey to stand up against him. Torn between his brother’s compassion and Roman’s destructive manipulation, Jey couldn’t take it anymore and walked out. He was tired of the mental anguish his family was putting him through and left, not to be seen for weeks. Roman immediately began manipulating Jimmy telling him that it was his fault Jey left. Jimmy should be looking out for his brother, and Roman only wanted what was best for him and his family. He chastised Jimmy for how he had been mistreating his brother and started twisting this new narrative. It wasn’t long until Roman got inside Jimmy’s head, and Jimmy would acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief to put this behind them. He wanted to do what was best for their family and Jey by getting on the same page and moving forward as a unit. Roman told Jimmy that he doesn’t want him out there, he wanted him to find his brother because they’re strongest when they’re all together. It wouldn't be for 3 more weeks until Roman was the one to bring Jey back into the fold. Not wanting any more drama, the brothers finally accepted Roman’s vision of a united family. As the three men embraced in a hug to officially form The Bloodline, Roman had that same twisted smile on his face knowing that he had finally won.

The table had finally been set as The Bloodline began to run roughshod through the Smackdown locker room. Anyone who dare challenge Roman had to deal with a now-unified family standing against them. The Usos would become 7-time tag team champions securing the titles from The Mysterios at Money in the Bank to fulfill Roman’s prophecy of their family draped in gold. The Bloodline was unstoppable together taking down the likes of John Cena, Finn Balor, The Street Profits, and The New Day. It wasn’t enough for Roman though as he wanted it all. This led him down a path of doing the unthinkable: unifying the WWE and Universal Championships at WrestleMania, giving him a status of greatness on a different level. The Bloodline was feared and respected for all that they had accomplished with an unprecedented level of dominance in the industry. Everyone was on notice of what would happen if you crossed them, but one person wanted to see if he could be part of the team.

After losing to Johnny Knoxville at WrestleMania, Sami Zayn was the laughingstock of the locker room. Looking to regain some respect and credibility, the Master Strategist hatched a plan to do just that. He attempted to strike a deal with Roman and get The Bloodline’s help dealing with a common enemy: Drew McIntyre. Zayn had been dodging Drew for weeks and happened to overhear him getting friendly with The Usos’ opponents in the upcoming tag title unification match RK-Bro. When Sami let Roman know that they were disrespecting him behind their back it struck a nerve with him. He tasked The Usos to deal with it, and a complicated partnership was born.

It wasn’t a very mutual relationship though, as it was mostly Sami trying to prove his worth to The Bloodline at the start. Whether that was taking care of problems Roman didn’t want to deal with or helping The Usos win their matches, Sami was desperate for their approval. He started appearing more and more alongside The Bloodline, but Sami was the only one putting in any effort in this partnership. While Roman wasn’t dealing with Sami very much directly anymore, Heyman and The Usos would do their best to trick Sami into thinking that he was important to them. They saw the value he could bring doing their dirty work and the best part was that this was something he actively wanted to do. The group began to exploit that fact and manipulate Sami into helping them without having to give him anything in return. Eventually, Sami would confront Jimmy and Jey about the lack of respect he was getting and ask them for the truth. He was hoping to become an honorary member of the team, but he didn’t want to waste their time if they didn’t appreciate his efforts. Jimmy was quick to accept Sami as a member christening him the “Honorary Uce” to Sami’s delight as Jey quietly turned away and left. With Sami now feeling more included than ever it seemed like this would be a new era for the group, but Jey wouldn’t be as quick to welcome him.

And you know what, who could blame Jey? Roman abused him for months and forced him to stand by his side. He was caught in a war between his brother and cousin that made him walk out of the company for a month. He had been through every known form of manipulation in service of this family. And now they were just going to let an outsider in? Someone who isn’t even blood? INTO THE BLOODLINE??? He couldn’t get past the thought that it was so easy for someone else after everything he’d been through and was lashing out at Sami. No matter how often Sami would help them win, take care of their pyro, graphics, and travel, or even take a claymore from Drew McIntyre for Jey he wasn’t having it. Jey would get more aggressive with Sami each and every week, constantly telling him how he doesn’t like him and that he isn’t on their level. To his surprise, Jey was the odd man out in this. Even Roman saw the value of having Sami helping them out and looked down on the way Jey had been acting.

Jey and Sami’s arguing would only escalate further, with it starting to impact their matches. Sami would inadvertently distract Jey with comments that lead to arguments and even sometimes a loss for The Bloodline. The drama would become too much for them as things were too erratic for the once-united faction. It got so bad that at Clash at the Castle, the elders of the family sent in The Usos’ younger brother Solo Sikoa to make sure Roman left as champion. Solo plays perhaps the most mysterious role in The Bloodline’s dynamic. He acts as their enforcer and doesn’t say much. He was accepted by everyone in the group and even grew to choose Sami over his two brothers, a choice that only made Jey angrier.

While he may have been sent by the elders, Roman made sure that Solo acknowledged and listened to him from here on out. That same night, he also finally welcomed Sami into the family as the Honorary Uce in one of the best segments ever. It seemed for a moment that Roman was kicking Sami out of the group even going as far as letting Jey rip the shirt off his body. In reality, Roman was just giving Sami his own Honorary Uce shirt as a token of appreciation for all he had done. This did nothing to squash the beef between Sami and Jey as things would only get worse in the coming weeks. More arguments, distractions, and losses throwing everyone (but Roman) off their game. This aggression from Jey was brought out of him by Roman years ago, and now it was all coming back into play. He had developed the same tendencies as his manipulator, only he was much more upfront about his true feelings. It was becoming far too much for Roman, so he decided that Jey and Sami had to make peace. He made it easy for Jey in another incredible segment giving him one more ultimatum: either find his inner Ucey and accept Sami, or he’s going to take away Sami’s honorary title and start calling him Sami Uso.

It seemed impossible that Jey would ever approve of Sami’s partnership with The Bloodline and it didn’t help that they had a Kevin Owens problem. For weeks it seemed like Sami still cared about his former best friend and Jey especially didn’t trust Sami because of this. Kevin was concerned for Sami and he truly wanted the best for him. He saw through their lies and wanted to open Sami’s eyes to the truth that they were using him. They had to deal with Kevin before he managed to free Sami from that manipulation, but it wouldn’t be that easy for him to do. With their tumultuous history together, Sami didn’t trust Kevin. The Bloodline on the other hand had been making Sami feel something he never had before which is power. No matter how many times they would put Sami down, he would always come back because people started to think twice about messing with him. They reminded Sami just like Roman had with Jey years ago about how much better life was like this. Sami knew too that if he crossed them he would be put through hell. Even with all that, he still couldn’t bring himself to attack his former friend. He would go out of his way to avoid it until Survivor Series when he cemented his loyalty to his new family and low-blowed the best man at his wedding. This act of defiance against Kevin finally got Sami Jey’s approval as the two made up and even embraced in a hug. This new version of The Bloodline finally stood together in unity embracing one another as a family.

The Bloodline’s story is one of the most unique and compelling stories in wrestling history. We’ve never seen this level of manipulation in the WWE before and makes everything they do must watch because you don’t know where it’s going to go next. From Roman turning friends against each other to his own family, his manipulation knows no bounds. One thing is for sure and it’s that Roman’s table isn’t built to last. It’s only a matter of time before Sami realizes he’s nothing but a pawn in their grand plan and has fallen victim to Roman’s cycle of manipulation. Jimmy and Jey have had their problems with Roman and there’s no doubt that he’s going to lose them one day because of it. Even Solo being sent by the elders makes you wonder if he’s really there for Roman or has his own agenda. Roman has done irreparable damage to those people closest to him with how he acts, but I don’t think he’s ever going to feel remorse for his actions. He truly thinks that it’s justified because of his position at the Head of the Table. He’s willing to torture his own blood in service of this higher purpose and rationalize it all with the success they’ve had together. He cares more about being the Tribal Chief of his family than his family itself and it’s exactly why The Bloodline’s days are numbered. Roman’s new empire is starting to crack and one day it will inevitably all crumble around him.