The chair shot heard around the world. The echo of one man finally breaking free from the bonds of an emotional tie to a tribal chief too afraid of vulnerability to allow anything but fear and gaslighting to trauma bond those he believes to be close to him. The Royal Rumble main event may have seen Sami Zayn finally realize the manipulative nature of one Roman Reigns, but it was Jey Uso who received the ultimate wake-up call.
AN HONORARY UCE NO MORE!@SamiZayn has just betrayed @WWERomanReigns and the entire Bloodline at #RoyalRumble! pic.twitter.com/ZtzAF1xGGD
— WWE (@WWE) January 29, 2023
In the split seconds between Sami recreating Seth’s betrayal of the shield and turning to apologize to the one person he sought acceptance from, a range of emotions from confusion to pain, to turmoil, and finally, an angry realization could be seen on Jey’s face. Sami was faced with the same decision Jey himself had to make almost three years ago.
The complicated relationship Sami and Jey have with Roman
This very reason is why Jey took a while to trust Sami. I mean think about it, Jey never wanted to join Roman, he was forced to. Every Single thing he’s done as part of the Bloodline were not actions of a willing individual, but those of one whose family was threatened. By joining Roman, Jey ensured that his wife, sons, as well as his twin’s family, were not forced to leave the Anoa’i Dynasty, a decision that cost him dearly.
On the other hand, there was Sami. No one forced him to join the Bloodline, and yet there he was. Roman never threatened Sami’s family, and yet there he was. Now don’t get me wrong Roman gaslit Sami multiple times, but it was never to join the family. Jey was baffled by Zayn’s willingness to join a family held together by gaslighting, fear, and trauma bonding.
What Jey failed to realize, however, was that although Roman wasn’t manipulating Sami in the same way he did Jey. Reigns is a master of manipulation, an expert in gaslighting. He never uses the same methods of manipulation. What worked on Jey was never going to work on Sami and Reigns was smart to realize that.
Jey always knew that he was being manipulated by Roman. As my colleague Kevin Parvizi put it, “ Jey didn’t join the Bloodline peacefully”. He is well aware of Roman’s tactics, they grew up together. Every single thing Jey did as part of the Bloodline, he did under duress. That’s why it took the right-hand man such a long time to accept Sami Zayn. For the life of him, Jey couldn’t fathom how someone, anyone would willingly align themselves with Roman Reigns. Surely Zayn had an ulterior motive, after all, he is the master strategist.
How Sami Zayn proved himself
As the weeks went by Jey realized that perhaps Sami had no ulterior motive and that the only thing Zayn really wanted was a sense of belonging. To Sami, the Bloodline was the very definition of the mountain top. Sami felt that if he could get THE Bloodline to accept him, he would be protected. No one would be able to touch him. More importantly, Zayn would no longer be isolated and alienated from the rest of the locker room.
Over the span of nine months, Zayn did everything within his power to prove that not only was he loyal to the Bloodline, he actually belonged in it. Sami was quick to gain the trust of Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa. Heyman wasn’t far behind. However as more members of the Bloodline accepted Sami, the higher Jey’s walls grew.
For a while, I found it fascinating that Solo trusted Sami as quickly as he did. Granted, Zayn earned that trust. However, if we were to be perfectly honest with ourselves, it is almost difficult to believe that “The Enforcer” would let anyone see his true intentions for joining the Bloodline. This raises the question, whose side is he truly on? Roman and Jimmy’s? Jey’s? or perhaps the elders who sent him? Speaking of Jimmy…
Although Sami’s intentions and Jey’s distrust were (almost) crystal clear from the very beginning, the same can not be said for Jimmy Uso. Jimmy resisted Roman’s “influence” for a long time. Does anyone remember “nobody’s Bitch”? Well, I do. I also remember how quickly The older twin assimilated to the tribal chief’s ways once he finally joined the Bloodline. Jimmy’s earlier intentions might have been to protect Jey however one finds it difficult to ascertain how long those feelings lasted.
What will Jimmy Uso decide?
Jimmy was the first of the Bloodline to readily accept Sami into the Bloodline as well as the first to attack when Zayn recreated Seth’s betrayal of the shield. One can look at this in one of two ways. The first is that Jimmy actually liked and accepted Sami as part of the family but when he hit Roman with the chair, blood won out.
The second (and semi-sort of unfortunately for me) reason is that Jimmy is the best at pretending. Better than Roman. Better than Jey. Even better than the wise man himself. Could it be possible that Jimmy was jealous that Jey was able to adapt and become a singles competitor while he was injured? Is it possible that his younger twin’s place as the tribal chief’s right-hand man irked Jimmy and his actions at the Rumble just showed his true colors?
in order to believe the second theory we would have to ignore Jimmy’s reaction to Jey walking out on the Bloodline. His panic at not being able to reach his brother and his genuine (?) joy at seeing that his twin hadn’t abandoned him. These very actions can also prove the theory. Jey wears his heart on his sleeve. Manipulative though he is, Roman’s intentions are always clear. Many say that it is difficult to read Solo, and to those people, I say just look at his eyes. As the street champion and the Tribal Chief’s enforcer, Sikoa is required to cloak his emotions. Jimmy, however, is truly hard to read. Whether he is loyal to his cousin, or protective of his brothers. Whether he stays under the thumb of a gaslighting tyrant or chooses to stand up for himself and his brother is something we find out tonight.
Ball’s in your court, Jimmy Uso.
