Roman Reigns burst onto the WWE scene on November 18, 2012, when he debuted with Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins at Survivor Series. A month later, he took to Twitter to engage with his new fanbase for the first time.
On December 7, 2012, Reigns tweeted that The Shield would “leave no man behind” and “take no prisoners.” He also sent a warning to the rest of the roster, claiming he would “let the paramedics sort em [sic] out.”
A week later, the then-rookie continued to use the hashtag #ShieldWayOfLife when he sent out his next Hounds of Justice battle cry:
The Shield defeated Daniel Bryan, Kane, and Ryback in a Six-Man Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match at TLC 2012. Later that night, Roman Reigns referenced the group’s undeniable ability when he posted his third tweet:
In his fourth and final tweet of 2012, Reigns asked fans to guess who The Shield’s next target could be:
The #ShieldWayOfLife hashtag did not last very long. From his fourth tweet onward, Reigns used the faction’s popular phrase #BelieveInTheShield in most of his online posts.
How the WWE Universe responded to Roman Reigns’ early tweets
Although he was still relatively unknown in late 2012, Roman Reigns quickly built up a loyal following thanks to his impact as part of The Shield.
Many fans reacted positively to the TLC 2012 match. However, some had a big problem with the three-man faction’s multiple sneak attacks and reluctance to fight their opponents one-on-one:
Reigns received 50 responses to his question about The Shield’s possible future victims. One person suggested The Rock, while another wanted 3MB (Drew McIntyre, Heath Slater, and Jinder Mahal) to finally get their comeuppance:
The Shield ultimately proved their doubters wrong. All three men won the WWE Championship within four years of their main roster debut. Now, a decade after their WWE breakthrough moment, they remain three of the biggest stars in the wrestling industry.
Which Shield member is your favorite? Let us know in the comments section below.
Did an upcoming star just challenge Seth Rollins here?
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