The “Head Of The Table” era championship reign of Roman Reigns may go down as the greatest run in his career and has been a time of transformation for the former hound of justice. During this time, Reigns was finally able to test his meddle as a heel, he has called upon the help of Paul Heyman forming his own Bloodline faction, he popped off the swat vest that had been synonymous with him for the decade prior, and he even donned a solid gold glove on his superman punching hand. The “Golden Glove” of Reigns caught a lot of attention during this time period and led many to question if there was a hidden meaning, potentially involving Thanos, to the new gold accessory.
RELATED: 5 Possible Matches For Roman Reigns At WrestleMania 38 (& 5 Possible Opponents For Big E)
The Rise Of The Tribal Chief
Reigns’ debuted the golden glove during the early days of the Tribal Chief run in 2020, and would go on to wear it during most of the main events that followed. Beyond a rare red glove, the golden glove would be one of the key pieces to the new look of Roman for his massive heel championship run. With that glove, Roman would ascend to a place seemingly higher than previous title reigns for the Big Dog.
Many fans had thought that it might be a timely reference to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Infinity Gauntlet, not to be confused with wrestling's traditional gauntlet. A large golden gauntlet attained by villain Thanos with the intention of collecting the powerful stones that go with the gauntlet and essentially ascending to the rank of god. The Infinity Gauntlet made its MCU debut in Avenger Age of Ultron in 2015 but was most featured in 2018’s Infinity War. The infamous gauntlet first made its comic debut back in 1991.
RELATED: Roman Reigns Medically Cleared, Will Return On WWE SmackDown
With the Roman and Thanos comparisons being cast about it was only a matter of time before the question would be answered. During an interview with Ryan Satin on the Out Of Character Podcast in 2021, Reigns’ had this to say about the meaning behind his golden right hand after being asked directly if it was a tribute to Marvel’s Thanos:
“Nah. After I did it I saw that the obvious parallels, and comparisons kinda made sense. Nah, I just wanted to to change it up really, and then with the character... I said before that everything I touch turns to gold. That has kinda been my goal with this chapter of my career, to be able to lift everything up.”
-Roman Reigns
The Curse Of The Golden Touch
The classic tale of King Midas and The Curse Of The Golden Touch tells the story of a king who is given a gift of his choosing from Dionysus or Bacchus as the Romans would call him. A god of wine and pleasure that genuinely sought to reward Midas for his kind treatment of a lower god, but was surprised when the king wished for the ability for everything he touched to be turned to gold. Midas would later realize the error of his ways after turning all food, wine, and even loved ones he touched transformed into solid gold. It's a classic monkey’s paw of a Greek fable about being careful of what you wish for.
RELATED: Roman Reigns In 2021 & 9 Other Wrestlers Who Were World Champions For An Entire Calendar Year
In the case of Roman, however, it's as if he has fully embraced his golden touch, and is looking to truly make his opponents, storylines, and the entire company better for his involvement. Only time will tell if the pressure of being the WWE’s top guy truly turns into the curse of King Midas, or if such things are beneath that of the Tribal Chief as he uses his curse to turn his entire universe gold.
