Becky Lynch Wrestlemania
The Complexities of Becky Lynch’s WrestleMania Legacy: A Critical Examination Background: The Rise of The Man Becky Lynch’s ascent to WrestleMania main-event status was neither straightforward nor guaranteed.
Once relegated to the periphery of WWE’s women’s division, Lynch transformed herself into a cultural phenomenon, culminating in her historic victory at WrestleMania 35 the first women’s match to headline WWE’s flagship event.
However, her journey was fraught with creative inconsistencies, corporate hesitations, and fan-driven momentum that forced WWE’s hand.
This essay critically examines the complexities of Lynch’s WrestleMania legacy, analyzing how her trajectory reflects broader tensions in wrestling storytelling, gender politics, and fan agency.
Thesis Statement While Becky Lynch’s WrestleMania moments symbolize progress for women’s wrestling, they also reveal WWE’s reactive storytelling, the precarious nature of fan-driven pushes, and the challenges of sustaining a top star in a rapidly evolving industry.
Evidence and Analysis 1.
The Organic Push vs.
Corporate Reluctance Lynch’s 2018 heel turn, intended to position Charlotte Flair as the sympathetic babyface, backfired spectacularly.
Fans rejected the scripted narrative, embracing Lynch’s rebellious persona as she smashed conventions of traditional femininity in wrestling.
Scholarly research on wrestling fandom (Ford & Kidd, 2018) suggests that modern audiences increasingly demand authenticity, rejecting forced narratives in favor of organic character development.
WWE’s initial resistance to Lynch’s surge evidenced by her absence from the original WrestleMania 35 main event plans (Meltzer, 2019) demonstrates a disconnect between creative control and audience demand.
2.
WrestleMania 35: A Landmark with Caveats While Lynch’s victory over Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair was historic, the match itself suffered from pacing issues and an anticlimactic finish.
Critics argue that WWE’s late decision to include Lynch led to rushed storytelling (Barnett, 2019).
Furthermore, Lynch’s subsequent booking including lengthy title reigns with diminishing returns exposed WWE’s struggle to maintain momentum for female stars post-WrestleMania.
Unlike male counterparts such as John Cena or Roman Reigns, Lynch’s post-WrestleMania arcs often lacked long-term creative investment.
3.
The Return and Reinvention at WrestleMania 38 After a hiatus due to pregnancy, Lynch returned at SummerSlam 2021 as a villain, a controversial choice given her prior underdog status.
By WrestleMania 38, she faced Bianca Belair in a match that many argue should have main-evented.
Instead, it was relegated to the first night, raising questions about WWE’s prioritization of women’s wrestling post-2019.
However, Lynch’s willingness to put over Belair cleanly signaled a shift toward elevating new talent a rarity in WWE’s often-protective booking of top stars.
4.
Competing Perspectives on Lynch’s Legacy Supporters argue Lynch’s WrestleMania moments broke barriers, paving the way for future women’s main events.
Detractors, however, contend that WWE capitalized on her popularity without committing to sustained investment in women’s wrestling as a whole.
Academic analysis by Mazer (2020) suggests that WWE’s women’s evolution was as much a marketing strategy as a genuine shift, with Lynch’s peak coinciding with external pressures for gender equity in sports entertainment.
Conclusion: A Symbol of Progress and Limitations Becky Lynch’s WrestleMania journey encapsulates both the potential and pitfalls of modern wrestling storytelling.
Her rise was a testament to fan power and authentic character work, yet her booking post-WrestleMania 35 revealed WWE’s inconsistency in maintaining women’s momentum.
While her legacy is undeniably transformative, it also serves as a cautionary tale about the challenges of sustaining progress in an industry still grappling with entrenched hierarchies.
Ultimately, Lynch’s WrestleMania arc is not just about one superstar it’s a microcosm of wrestling’s ongoing struggle between evolution and stagnation.
- Barnett, J.
(2019).
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- Ford, G., & Kidd, W.
(2018).
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- Mazer, S.
(2020).
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- Meltzer, D.
(2019).