History YMMV / BraunStrowman

** After weeks of destroying Brock Lesnar, when they finally face-off at No Mercy 2017 he loses after 6 suplexes and 1 F-5. This is despite the fact that he walked away from an ambulance crash on his own power before that point.

* IKnewIt: When Braun's big solo push started after the brand split in 2016, he began getting very positive reactions from critics and fans alike for being a really well-booked, good old-fashioned WrestlingMonster who looked completely unstoppable. However, this positive assessment almost always came tagged with the caveat "However, if he's just being built up to be fed to Wrestling/RomanReigns, I'm going to be very annoyed." Perhaps unsurprisingly, when the two had their first singles PPV match at ''[[Wrestling/WWEFastlane Fastlane 2017]]'', Braun suffered his first ''ever'' pinfall loss at Roman's hands (admittedly only when he ''went to the top rope for a splash'' and missed), resulting in a lot of eye-rolling, deep resigned sighs, and (of course) [[XPacHeat massive boos for Reigns]]. However, after ''[=WrestleMania=]'' it was thoroughly subverted, as ''Fastlane'' ended up being the exactly one win Reigns got on Braun. Braun has beaten Reigns pillar to post no less than ''three times'' since, and hasn't been pinned by Roman since ''Fastlane''. Many are now citing their feud as the best of 2017 so far.

** In real life, during the coronavirus pandemic Braun criticized indie wrestlers for setting up [=GoFundMe=]s during this time because "[[DramaticallyMissingThePoint they can't get a real job]]." However, millions of people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic including indie wrestlers (even some having second jobs). Braun was heavily criticized on Twitter because of his comments. Braun didn't see the error of his ways until three weeks later when his real life best friends Ethan Carter III and Drake Maverick lost their jobs in the WWE due to the pandemic, the latter posting an [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEXkty7gk3g emotional video]] of his firing.
** Brock Lesnar momentarily shooting on him during ''Royal Rumble 2018'' still makes the rounds on social media whenever his name is mentioned. It doesn't help that many fans blame the incident for helping to kill Strowman's aura as a tough guy. [[note]] For the uninitiated, Lesnar apparently became legitimately angry when Strowman delivered a stiff knee and legitimately punched Strowman a couple of times in retaliation, which left Strowman ''very'' dazed.[[/note]]
** His involvement in the absolutely silly "Control Your Narrative" promotion during his release from WWE. Noone seemed to take the thing seriously except him and EC3.

** By the start of 2019, it's basically become undeniable that WWE have ''[[EpicFail somehow]]'' managed to bungle Strowman's run, despite him being considered almost impossible to screw up. His momentum has stalled due to being used largely as a fall guy to Reigns and Lesnar, he's been booked to look like an idiot (most notably when Wrestling/BaronCorbin tricked him into trashing Wrestling/VinceMcMahon's limousine, causing Vince to pull him out of his match against Brock at the Rumble[[note]]ironically, this was supposedly because Vince [[InsaneTrollLogic didn't want to damage Braun by having him lose to Brock again]], oblivious to how badly he was damaging Braun anyway[[/note]]), he still hasn't won any titles aside from his tag team victory at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 34,'' which most people consider more of a bad joke due to his choice of partner than anything else, and he has even been jobbed out to [[TheScrappy Corbin]].

* CatharsisFactor: One of the reasons he's gotten over is his weekly destruction of the polarizing Roman Reigns.

* NeverLiveItDown: In real life, during the coronavirus pandemic Braun criticized indie wrestlers for setting up [=GoFundMe=]s during this time because "[[DramaticallyMissingThePoint they can't get a real job]]." However, millions of people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic including indie wrestlers (even some having second jobs). Braun was heavily criticized on Twitter because of his comments. Braun didn't see the error of his ways until three weeks later when his real life best friends Ethan Carter III and Drake Maverick lost their jobs in the WWE due to the pandemic, the latter posting an [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEXkty7gk3g emotional video]] of his firing.

** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall, causing a big explosion. Wrestling/CoreyGraves' reaction was [[PrecisionFStrike this very trope]], but it was left UNCENSORED. ''ON LIVE TV''. '''ON A PG SHOW'''. Let that sink in for a moment.

** His programme with Bobby Lashley, which culminated in him winning a Last Man Standing match at ''Extreme Rules'' 2019, seemed to have finally given Strowman his mojo back. However it was still a slow climb back to legitimacy, until he beat Wrestling/ShinsukeNakamura for the Intercontinental Chapionship, finally breaking the curse of Braun failing to win singles title matches when it counted.
** This was subverted for a while when Braun's IC Championship reign ended in an embarrassingly short time in a very underwhelming fashion (he [[SuicidalOverconfidence challenged Sami Zayn, Cesaro and Shisuke Nakamura at the same time and lost the belt to Zayn]]), a sudden reversal of fortune saw him finally ''win the Universal Championship'' at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 36,'' defeating no less an opponent than ''Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}'' for it!

* HolyShitQuotient:
** Let us reiterate. The man TIPPED OVER A FREAKING AMBULANCE. Then he topped this by tipping over a '''truck tractor.'''
** There was also his match with the Big Show, which included a chain-wrestling sequence and Braun ''pulling a kip-up.'' By the end, the crowd was engaged in a MASSIVE "this is awesome" chant.
** And then there was the time he literally walked away from a damn car wreck. [[note]]Reigns backed an ambulance with him in the back full-speed into a trailer with him inside. (And this was ''after'' an Ambulance match.) Once the fire department showed up to pry the door open with the Jaws of Life, he walked off under his own power.[[/note]]
** At ''Wrestling/SummerSlam'' 2017, he power slammed ''Brock Lesnar'' through two announcer's tables and then ''dumped a third on top of him''.
** September 11, 2017 episode of ''Raw'': [[NoSell No. Selling.]] [[Wrestling/BrockLesnar Suplex. City.]]. The fans are chanting this very trope afterward.
--->'''Strowman:''' ''[to Lesnar]'' I told you I'm not gonna go to Suplex City!
** October 30, 2017 ''Raw''. Eight days after being put in the back of a garbage truck and then being compacted, Braun shows signs of his impending return to the Miz and the Miztourage. Miz is scared shitless and tries to get the hell out of town before Braun comes back but as he's leaving, a garbage truck blocks the exit. Braun comes out of the back, Terminator-style, and proceeds to chase and destroy the three before decimating Curtis Axel.
*** Apparently [[http://uproxx.com/prowrestling/braun-strowman-interview-video-games-garbage-truck/2/ from this interview]], Braun was so committed to playing up the garbage truck spot, he decided to stay inside a garbage truck for ''an entire week'', and he had to enter '''nine''' different garbage trucks to make it across the country to show up at that edition of Raw. While it's very likely that he made it up for the interview to protect {{Kayfabe}}, the fact he said that in an online interview deserves a spot here.
** On the January 8th, 2018 ''Raw''. Braun pulled the arena scaffolding ontop of Kane and Brock Lesnar after ambushing both men and putting them both through tables.
** Wrestling/EliminationChamber 2018: Braun practically tanks ''every single thing'' thrown at him: An AA, 2 Coup de Gras, a Blackout, several Spears, a Quadruple Shield Power Bomb with ''four guys piling on top of him'', and was responsible for ''every single elimination'' except for his own when Roman Reigns pinned him, all of which was in a 7 man Elimination Chamber (normally it's 6).
** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall, causing a big explosion. Wrestling/CoreyGraves' reaction was [[PrecisionFStrike this very trope]], but it was left UNCENSORED. ''ON LIVE TV''. '''ON A PG SHOW'''. Let that sink in for a moment.

* NarmCharm: [[http://heavy.com/sports/2017/04/wwe-how-braun-strowman-ambulance-lift-stretcher-throw-roman-reigns-accomplished-real-fake-effect/ Obviously]], it's not humanly possible to flip an ambulance with your bare hands, even if you're TheGiant. {{Kayfabe}}[=-=]wise, though, it's still every bit a [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment of Awesome]] and HolyShitQuotient.

* SignatureScene: Braun [[HolyShitQuotient flipping the ambulance]] is most often pointed to as the moment where he catapulted himself from being an everyday WrestlingMonster to a super-popular MemeticBadass.

* LaserGuidedKarma: In real life, during the coronavirus pandemic Braun criticized indie wrestlers for setting up Go Fund Me's during this time because "[[DramaticallyMissingThePoint they can't get a real job]]." However, millions of people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic including indie wrestlers (even some having second jobs). Braun was heavily criticized on Twitter because of his comments. Braun didn't see the error of his ways until three weeks later when his real life best friends Ethan Carter III and Drake Maverick lost their jobs in the WWE due to the pandemic the latter posting an [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEXkty7gk3g emotional video]] of his firing.

* LaserGuidedKarma: In real life, during the coronavirus pandemic Braun criticized indie wrestlers for setting up Go Fund Me's during this time because "they can't get a real job." However, millions of people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic including indie wrestlers (even some having second jobs). Braun was heavily criticized on Twitter because of his comments. Braun didn't see the error of his ways until his real life best friends Ethan Carter III and Drake Maverick lost their jobs in the WWE due to the pandemic the latter posting an emotional video of his firing.

** This was subverted for a while when Braun's IC Championship reign ended in an embarrassingly short time in a very underwhelming fashion (he [[SuicidalOverconfidence challenged Sami Zayn, Cesaro and Shisuke Nakamura at the same time and lost the best to Zayn]]), a sudden reversal of fortune saw him finally ''win the Universal Championship'' at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 36,'' defeating no less an opponent than ''Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}'' for it!

** His programme with Bobby Lashley, which culminated in him winning a Last Man Standing match at ''Extreme Rules'' 2019, seems to have finally given Strowman his mojo back. But it remains to be seen if this will last.
*** It didn't. At the end of 2019, Braun is apparently being turned into the new Wrestling/{{Rikishi}} as he gets made to goofily dance with Wrestling/TheNewDay. He still loses every match that actually matters. And just for comparison, Lashley (the opponent who just put Braun over to give him "credibility") is now in a story about [[YourCheatingHeart stealing Lana from Rusev]].

** By the start of 2019, it's basically become undeniable that WWE have ''[[EpicFail somehow]]'' managed to bungle Strowman's run, despite him being considered almost impossible to screw up. His momentum has stalled due to being used largely as a fall guy to Reigns and Lesnar, he's been booked to look like an idiot (most notably when Wrestling/BaronCorbin tricked him into trashing Wrestling/VinceMcMahon's limousine, causing Vince to pull him out of his match against Brock at the Rumble), he still hasn't won any titles aside from his tag team victory at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 34,'' which most people consider more of a bad joke due to his choice of partner than anything else, and he has even been jobbed out to [[TheScrappy Corbin]].

** By the start of 2019, it's basically become undeniable that WWE have ''[[EpicFail somehow]]'' managed to bungle Strowman's run, despite him being considered almost impossible to screw up. His momentum has stalled due to being used largely as a fall guy to Reigns and Lesnar, he's been booked to look like an idiot (most notably when Wrestling/BaronCorbin tricked him into trashing Wrestling/VinceMcMahon's limousine, causing Vince to pull him out of his match against Brock at the Rumble), he still hasn't won any titles aside from his tag team victory at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 34,'' which most people consider more of a bad joke due to his choice of partner than anything else, and he has even been jobbed out to [[TheScrappy Corbin]]. It's notable that there hasn't been a new addition to his [[Awesome/BraunStrowman Awesome]] page since he won the Money in the Bank briefcase (WWE completely ballsed up his long-delayed cash-in of that too).

** By the start of 2019, it's basically become undeniable that WWE have ''[[EpicFail somehow]]'' managed to bungle Strowman's run, despite him being considered almost impossible to screw up. His momentum has stalled, he's been booked to look like an idiot (most notably when Wrestling/BaronCorbin tricked him into trashing Wrestling/VinceMcMahon's limousine, causing Vince to pull him out of his match against Brock at the Rumble), and he still hasn't won any titles aside from his tag team victory at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 34,'' which most people consider more of a bad joke due to his choice of partner than anything else. It's notable that there hasn't been a new addition to his [[Awesome/BraunStrowman Awesome]] page since he won the Money in the Bank briefcase (WWE completely ballsed up his long-delayed cash-in of that too).

* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: When he first debuted by being added to Wrestling/TheWyattFamily in place of the then-injured Wrestling/ErickRowan, not many people were impressed with Strowman, considering him just another slow, uninspired big body who was simply there for his size and thus not a true fit amongst Wrestling/BrayWyatt, Wrestling/LukeHarper, and even Rowan. It was to the point where when rumors came that Strowman was tapped to face Wrestling/TheUndertaker at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania 32'', massive fan backlash to the idea shot it down instantly—even amidst rumors that he had far more ability than was letting on. Then came the brand split, where he was separated from the family and drafted to ''Raw'' on his own. He shaved the sides of his head, got a new entrance theme, and started squashing fools left and right—during which he began to display some of that hidden ability people were hearing about. He soon became one of the more entertaining parts of ''Raw'', to the point of winning a feud with Wrestling/SamiZayn and being built up as an unstoppable monster even in front of [[Wrestling/KevinSteen Kevin Owens]], Wrestling/ChrisJericho, and Wrestling/RomanReigns. He was not only big and strong, he was also quick, agile, menacing, and perhaps scariest of all, ''smart''. Compare the reaction between him flattening Ambrose and Reigns in his debut vs. him attacking Reigns at the Royal Rumble and costing him the Universal Championship title. The first time was meet with bored silence and, at the end, the typical heel boos when Wyatt gloated. The second, Braun was being cheered like the biggest babyface in the building and "Thank you Strowman!" chants made it all the way to the next night on ''Raw''. People who at first wanted him off their [=TVs=] were now declaring him their favorite wrestler—while this was half-facetious due to his target's CreatorsPet status, what with [[XPacHeat Reigns being booked so abysmally that pretty much anyone short of a child molester would probably get cheered against him]], it really does show how far Braun Strowman has come as a welcome presence on the show, especially since Strowman still is [[DracoInLeatherPants every inch a heel]], without so much as anything even ''approaching'' a redeeming feature at any point in his entire career. It's gotten to the point were many fans actually wanted him to be the one to face the Undertaker at ''[=WrestleMania=] 33'' (especially when, while both of them were looking for Reigns, Taker and Strowman ended up having a brief face-off) compared to the previous year when the rumors of him facing Taker at ''[=WrestleMania=] 32'' were met with "Seriously?!".

** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall, causing a big explosion. Wrestling/CoreyGraves' reaction was this very trope, but it was left UNCENSORED. ''ON LIVE TV''. '''ON A PG SHOW'''. Let that sink in for a moment.

** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall. Wrestling/CoreyGraves' reaction was this very trope, but it was left UNCENSORED. ''ON LIVE TV''. '''ON A PG SHOW'''. Let that sink in for a moment.

** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall. Wrestling/CoreyGraves' reaction was this very trope, but it was left UNCENSORED ON LIVE TV. ''ON A PG SHOW''. Let that sink in for a moment.

** July 1, 2019 ''Raw''. Braun drove Wrestling/BobbyLashley and himself through the LED wall. Corey's reaction was this very trope, but it was left UNCENSORED ON LIVE TV. ''ON A PG SHOW''. Let that sink in for a moment.

** On the ''Raw'' fallout show to ''Wrestling/HellInACell 2018'', Strowman and Roman Reigns were discussing about Reigns's Universal Championship until Wrestling/BaronCorbin announced that a triple-threat match between Strowman, Reigns and Wrestling/BrockLesnar would take place at a newly announced event known as ''Crown Jewel''. Strowman, then a heel, dismissed the show, the city, the title and his opponents, saying all of them suck. Considering the outcome of ''Crown Jewel'' itself, which won [[MedalOfDishonor the 2018 Gooker Award]] from ''Wrestling/WrestleCrap'' by quite the landslide, and not without reason, Strowman's words take a new, accidentally prophetic, meaning.

* HarsherInHindsight: During an in-ring promo with Wrestling/KurtAngle on the April 17, 2017 episode of ''Raw'', Strowman -- to follow up on his actions a week earlier, where he tipped over with his bare hands an ambulance attempting to drive rival Wrestling/RomanReigns to the hospital after severely injuring him following a series of sneak-attacks -- gloated over his actions and predicted that after they meet again in the ring, "It will be Roman Reigns's funeral" (i.e., that Strowman would brutally beat Reigns beyond the point of submission and that Reigns was no match for him). Just hours later, Reigns was indeed planning a funeral ... in real life, for his brother Matthew Anoaʻi (aka Rosey, the "Super Hero In Training"), who died that same day.[[note]]Reigns was not at ''WWE Raw'' that evening (although initially at least it was intended to be to help sell his "injury"), and the in-ring promo and angle advancement was planned prior to the Anoaʻi family making Matt's death known.[[/note]]