When Alesiter Black returned to a series of mysterious vignettes teasing his arrival, the prodigal son returned home and got a warm welcome from the WWE Universe.

For Black, 39, a return to World Wrestling Entertainment was necessary, as his time in All Elite Wrestling was four years of nothingness. Much like his onscreen character, Black was left in the dark when it came to his role with AEW. Upon his return to WWE, Black's 'coffin rise' entrance was almost ironic. His career has been dead for four years now, so he's ready to rise and become the star Triple H once envisioned him to be.

The timing was all wrong four years ago. Management was being mangled, and storylines were stale under the company's former CEO. Now, with one of his biggest fans as the Chief Content Officer, Black has a chance to resurrect his career at a time when WWE couldn't be hotter.

WWE's Landscape Is Finally Built for Aleister Black

The Programming Is Much Darker And Grittier Now

After an outstanding showing in NXT, Black was originally promoted to WWE's main roster back in 2019. After two years of stops and starts, his character never really got established. He floundered, as Vince McMahon didn't seem to 'get' his persona and what made him appeal to the fans. Because of that, he became an afterthought. After two years wrestling on both RAW and SmackDown, he hadn't captured any titles in WWE.

However, the new regime in WWE has changed the show's programming. Especially RAW on Netflix, it leans into characters and wrestlers like Black, someone who has a gothic facade but can wrestle with the best in the world. His Black Mass finisher is impressive, and the fans always react when he comes through the curtain. So, like many stars in the modernized version of WWE, he appeals as both a character and a competitor. That's exactly the type of star that Triple H wants on his TV product.

However, the company also has to be really careful about how they book him. Considering his AEW limbo, it's not like Black came in with the biggest momentum in the business, so he has to build that now in WWE, and quickly. Otherwise, this risks being another disappointing stint for Aleister Black.

After AEW, Aleister Black Has Something To Prove

In What Was Supposed To Be His Break, Black Was Underutilized

To say that Black essentially wasted four years wrestling for Tony Khan and AEW would be a massive understatement. After being underappreciated by WWE, his jump to All Elite Wrestling was supposed to be the big break that he had been waiting for his whole life. However, it didn't turn out that way.

Once again, he fought for airtime. And even when he got it, he was rarely put into main event-level matches. In the four years he was with AEW, Black only managed to win one championship. He held the somewhat meaningless Trios titles with House of Black stablemates Buddy Matthews and Brody King. That's it. In his entire tenure with Tony Khan's promotion, he wrestled a total of four singles matches. That's not likely to happen now. Triple H knows that he must push Black right now to take advantage of his incoming momentum.

Now reaching the time in every wrestler's career when they begin thinking about their legacy, Aleister Black has yet to even forge one. In eight years, he's held one afterthought of a championship, and he seemingly fell off the wrestling radar. So, he has to shine now. This might be his last chance to be on the grandest stage of them all. If WWE fumbles Alesiter Black's booking and does not push him consistently now, they risk having another wasted talent on their hands.