Monday Night Raw created a very special moment for fans when the rockets fell from the rafters and the Titantron welcomed us all back to Dudleyville. In that moment, I was still speaking to a friend of mine about how fast the New Day had won our hearts. So when I turned back to the TV, saw the pyro erupt, and recognized what was going on I had to take a second to make sure I hadn’t accidentally switched the TV input over to the WWE Network – which I was using to watch a Dudley match just earlier that afternoon.
Michael Cole’s reaction to the Dudley Boys’ return echoed my own: disbelief and total excitement. The feeling was as electric as any surprise return I’ve enjoyed as a wrestling fan. Chris Jericho entering the Rumble at #2 kind of excited; The Rock hosting Wrestlemania kind of excited; CM Punk walking out with the real WWE title kind of excited. That’s what Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley brought to the (soon to be broken) table when they marched down the ramp, decimated the New Day and proclaimed their return.
D-Von said it best months prior to their return when he pointed out that the Dudley Boys’ presence in today’s WWE Tag-Team scene offers the division instant credibility. No other tag-team from eras passed could have bee-lined down the ramp and done quite the same. The New Age Outlaws gave the division a shot in the arm not too long ago, but that was at a time when the tag division was much healthier. If the Hardys came back we would be thrilled…to see Jeff. That’s not to be a direct knock on Matt Hardy as much as it is intended to drive home the point that no team of superstars is more prolific than Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley. They’re better together, they belong together, they’re legacy is together. No tag- team in today’s WWE even comes close to symbolizing that kind of unity.
Furthermore, it sounds like the Dudleys are going to be around for the foreseeable future. If that’s the case, then booking the baddest brothers in Tag-Team history must not be as simple as lining up tandems for them to destroy.
Now, I understand that The Dudley Boys are scheduled to square off against The Ascension on tonight’s Smackdown. Due to The Ascension’s unfortunate place in the Tag-Team basement, I’m sure that contest is going to look a little squashy in favor of the returning Dudleys. That’s all well and good, but that’s where the beat-downs need to stop.
