WWE is about to become cool again. Carlito Cool that is.

While we all saw him pop up in a commercial during Raw last week, the company confirmed the news today on Instagram: Carlito will be returning.

The post read: “Now that’s cool! Carlito returns on #WWERaw Legends Night on Jan. 4.

Simple and to the point. Again, he was shown in a promo Monday night; this just confirms it. Personally, I was watching WWE back in 2004. I am well aware of the hype surrounding him. I was watching the night he debuted and won the United States Championship. I was watching as he slowly began to improve his already great promo skills and officially ‘settle in’ on his Caribbean character. His rise on Smackdown…and his fall on Raw.

All the potential in the world and all the chances to prove he was worth all the build, and nothing ever came out of it. Mid-card titles are one thing, but Carlito should have been much more. It is always easy to blame WWE for failing a talent, but history shows us it may have been on the superstar himself. He even once admitted to basically wanting to get himself fired on purpose. Not quite the main event level talent the company wants to showcase. Even worse is that his defining moment may actually be his biggest embarrassment, not any of his interactions with legends or title victories. 

Nope, it was the night Ric Flair flat out ripped him a new one live on WWE Raw in early 2007.

Before this, Carlito was still right on the cusp of achieving big things. After this, it was over. He was forever hanging around the middle of the card and never getting any higher. Flair told it like it was, scripted or not. It stung and has left a mark nearly 14 years later…and now Carlito is back. He has popped up on occasion before. However, something tells me this will be more than a one off for RAW Legends Night on January 4th, 2021. I think WWE is looking for veteran, experienced talent right now to help out. My gut tells me Carlito may stick around, just as we saw with MVP recently. A one night return turned into a long-term contract for him, and it’s made for an amazing comeback story.

Time will tell if I’m right or not. Until then, Carlito is back.

Now that’s cool…

By Justin Watry (Twitter: @JustinWatry)

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