TJR WWE Network Review: “WWE Chronicle: Roman Reigns” Including Roman’s Comments on Leukemia Treatment
Here’s my review of the WWE Chronicle series that featured Roman Reigns talking about his return from leukemia. It premiered on WWE Network on Monday night after Raw and is available on WWE Network on demand now.
Reigns said that he has thought about the emotions of it all, but he’s not going to cry.
Reigns said that there was a part of him saying to him that he had more of a purpose than just being a wrestler. Reigns talked about how he felt like he could connect with people and give them hope, so he told himself there is so much more to do.
It noted that the following Chronicle takes place from February 22nd to February 25th.
Thanks to ProWrestlingSheet for this transcript of Reigns’ comments explaining how he found out that leukemia was back.
“I was at a live event, I believe it was either a Saturday or a Sunday, and I just remember one of our doctors telling me that something was going on with my blood tests. And they wanted to do another one because they thought something was off. So I went in and did another one and then I remember going to TV on Monday. I remember one of the refs coming up to me and usually they’ll be like ‘you’re needed in TR [Talent Relations], Mark [Carrano] wants to see you.’ And I’m like ‘ah yeah, whatever. I’ll be there when I get there.’
But this time they’re like ‘Hey, Dr. Amann, the medical staff want to see you.’ And so I knew something was up. But I still in my head didn’t truly believe it. It was just like, ‘Ah, something weird. You’ll be fine, blah blah blah. But when I got there, I could tell. The whole crew was in there. And they broke the news that my white blood cell count was obviously elevated. We could point fingers in certain directions, but with my history they kinda already knew what was going on.
Kinda the quickest thing that hit me was the fact that I’d have to drop the title.”
Reigns spoke about how he chased the title for quite a bit and he chased what that title means for his whole career.
Reigns talked about how he was scared on October 22 when he told the world that he was living with leukemia for 11 years and unfortunately it is back. Reigns had to relinquish the Universal Title. Reigns left that night saying that he’ll beat this and he’ll be back, so we’ll see him very soon.
Reigns said that once he got that news off his chest, finally he can talk about it and he doesn’t have to bury it. He added that he doesn’t look like he was affected by an illness and he took care of himself. Reigns spoke about telling kids dealing with leukemia and how powerful it was for them to know he was coming back.
There was a clip of Reigns at the WWE Performance Center on February 22, 2019, which was the Friday before his Monday, February 25th return. Reigns told the doctor that he feels good, his body feels good and he took the physical tests with the doctors. Reigns was shown working out at the WWE PC.
Reigns spoke about how for a couple of months after the diagnosis, he couldn’t move much. He said his kids were running around him (he has a daughter and twin sons) while his wife took care of everything and once that subsided, he wanted to work out. Reigns talked about how it hasn’t been ideal, but when is it ever? Good point.
The WWE PC doctor cleared Reigns to compete, so Reigns was shown doing a workout in the ring where he ran the ropes, ran into the turnbuckles and he said the idea of getting back up after the bumps felt nice. Reigns said when he first talked to Vince about coming back, he started to get a bit nervous. He said he just wanted it to be good.
Reigns said he had CML Leukemia (Chronic Myeloid Leukemia), it’s the earlier stages and it was pretty much where you want to catch this disease. Reigns spoke about how there’s a pill that you take that’s oral chemotherapy. When he first had leukemia (11 years ago) there was just one pill and he said it’s not like Advil. It’s nothing like taking radiation and true chemotherapy. He said it has its side effects and nastiness about it, but when you only have to take a pill, you’re ahead of the game. Reigns commented on how when it comes to cancer treatments, they do have medications and cures, but we don’t celebrate the wins enough while noting that oral chemotherapy has helped him to stay out of pain. Reigns talked about how he is dealing with arthritis, but he’ll take a little bit of that over going through radiation any day.
Analysis: That was very interesting to hear him talk about the kind of leukemia he had because a lot of people had questions about that. He answered those questions by saying that they caught the leukemia early and being able to treat it with just one pill is a lot easier than people that have to go through radiation or chemotherapy. That’s for sure.
Reigns was shown arriving at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Monday, February 25 for his Raw return. He was driven in a car and he talked about how he spent the whole day the day before with his kids and how fun it was. Reigns said that they are creating something today that his family can be a part of and carry on when he’s older. Reigns said that he was going to go to Georgia Tech to work out because he went to university there. He spoke about how he met his wife there and it’s where he learned to become a young man.
Reigns was on the Georgia Tech football field talking about how he’s learned a lot on this field. Reigns spoke about how he hates it sometimes when people ask him how are you and how are you feeling. Reigns said that he knows people are just showing love, so he’s almost built a defense mechanism to protect himself, but somehow that got stripped down. Reigns said that as long as God wakes him up, he can handle the rest.
Reigns commented on how he didn’t think he would be able to come back this quick. He noted he’s 33 years old now, he has three children and being completely healthy living this life is hard enough. Reigns talked about how he feels good, he feels energized and he’s not tired. He spoke about how he was tired around the time when he gave up the title in October, but then he started feeling better after taking the pill.
Reigns was shown arriving at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on February 25 for Raw. He got a hug from The Rock’s mom, who called him Joe. Roman was shown being greeted by Ric Flair, Finn Balor, Curt Hawkins, Dash Wilder, Sasha Banks, Ronda Rousey, who said that she’s so happy he is back and Reigns got a big hug from one of WWE’s main doctors. Reigns spoke about how he loved the camaraderie.
Reigns spoke about how the first time, it was just him and his mom. He said he felt isolated because it was after football was done. Reigns was shown getting a big hug from his mom Patricia Anoa’i. They talked about Roman filming a TV show for Nickelodeon.
Reigns walked into the arena a few hours before the show, so he walked to a private area to think about what he wanted to say. Reigns mentioned how much he wanted to thank people for the support.
Reigns talked about his family saying that the first time he had leukemia 11 years ago, his daughter didn’t really know about it because she wasn’t old enough. He didn’t want his daughter to worry about him. Reigns told his daughter that he would be okay, so she could trust the fact that he was being truthful with her. Reigns was shown talking on the phone to kids at the Dallas hospital he visited last year and he let them know he was doing better.
There was a clip of Stephanie McMahon talking to Reigns backstage where she mentioned the sick kids he visited. Reigns let her know that he just talked to the kids and she gave him a big hug. Reigns spoke about how he looked at every day as a blessing, but it’s amazing how it can maximize when you didn’t think it could.
Reigns said that initially, you think that this is what had to happen to reach people, but he’s happy if it reaches some people, even it’s just one kid. He said if a kid is sitting in a bed by himself and he can use Reigns as something to drive him as a light at the end of the tunnel, then that’s good. Reigns said he’s not asking for sympathy. He said if you want to boo him, that’s fine. He said if he can help those kids that need it, then it’s worth it.
There were about four minutes left as they showed part of Roman’s speech from Raw on February 25th when he let the world know that he was in remission.
Reigns said that he told his mom they aren’t alone this time, so they didn’t need to worry as much as the first time. Reigns was shown getting a lot of hugs backstage from Vince McMahon, Triple H, Nia Jax, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Ric Flair and Paul Heyman among others.
Reigns was shown again in a private moment hugging his mom while his sister (he mentioned it was sister). Roman joked about how after 33 years, his sister was still jealous of him being so close with his mom. Reigns hugged his sister and mom together as his mom said no rivalry in this family.
The Chronicle ended with Reigns walking down a hallway with his mom and sister. The show ran 30:11 on WWE Network.
Analysis: Good show. The most interesting part was Reigns explaining what kind of leukemia he had and the treatment that led to him getting better. I think a lot of people wondered about that. It was also cool to see him getting hugs from all the familiar people we know in WWE. They truly are a team that works together to put out the best product they can and we all can be critical of it, but there’s no denying how close these people are.