Dean Ambrose is a man searching for his place in the world. He never had to question it before. In fact, he’s always known who he is thanks to his brothers in The Shield. Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns have been his anchors in WWE and now even that fact is not enough to keep The Lunatic Fringe from losing his mind.

Dean feels targeted. He feels isolated and more importantly, he feels under appreciated. Ambrose hears the comments from Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler. Though Dean knows that both men have an agenda, it’s clear that perhaps there is a bigger truth to all of this. Has Dean Ambrose outgrown The Shield?

To say that he’s the most undervalued member of the group is perhaps more than just an understatement. While Roman Reigns has conquered the industry as WWE’s top guy, Dean has been thought of as a quirky mid-carder. As Seth Rollins turned babyface and was hailed as perhaps the best hand in the business, Ambrose continued to make the fans smile with his wacky unpredictability.

Simply put, Dean Ambrose has been the comic relief for The Hounds of Justice. While this was never really an issue before, it’s certainly become one now. Dean is great at playing that role and he’s obviously very good at it. However the longer that character exists, the more likely it is that fans will never take him seriously.

So what is happening right now? Could it be that Dean’s role is changing out of necessity? Maybe a split from The Shield is indeed the best move for him because there’s just not enough riveting storytelling left for him in the context of that group. When the ideas run out, a change must come. Is that what fans are seeing now?

Perhaps the real point here is that there’s just so much more that WWE could be doing with Dean Ambrose instead of portraying him as the kid brother to Captain America and Iron Man. Ambrose is not exactly Thor and he’s being booked like Hawkeye.

The problem is, what happens if Dean does leave The Shield? If he turns heel, as many expect he will, then the first option would be to pit him against his former teammates. While that would certainly be a completely logical way to go, it would also be a bit mundane. 

Fans have seen Dean and Seth go to war on multiple occasions. They’ve also seen Dean battle Roman. If fans are hoping for a major feud between Dean and Roman, then they would be wise to remember that Reigns is likely not losing the Universal Championship any time soon. So what would be the point of that rivalry?

Turning Dean for the sake of turning him is probably not the answer. But then again, if he were to leave The Shield and remain a babyface in the process, would that arrangement work for Monday Night Raw? Could the red brand handle that many top babyfaces and would there be enough top heels to go around?

Why not move Dean back to SmackDown Live? He proved himself there before and he could do it again. The separation would allow Ambrose to stand on his own once again and do business on his own terms. It seems like a sensible move and one that could be good for him in the long run.

But the issue with this is that if Dean did indeed go back to the blue brand, then he would once again hit a ceiling. AJ Styles is the WWE champion and Dean has already had a run with him. Daniel Bryan is stepping up to AJ now, which means that there would be little room for Ambrose at the moment. But would Dean need to compete for the top title in order to be successful?

The idea that a Superstar’s value is based upon his main event status remains a very strong notion for many fans. If a guy is not duking it out for the gold, then he’s not fulfilling his potential. It’s true that the world title should be the ultimate destination for anyone getting in the business. Anything less seems like a waste of time.

But Dean would not necessarily be a failure if he found himself outside of title contention. He does have a great amount of spotlight right now and he’s still one of the more popular Superstars on the roster. Whether or not he needs a championship to validate his existence in the company is debatable. Of course for his fans, Dean is overdue for another title run.

Therein lays the irony of this situation. For anyone that truly believes Ambrose has been the odd man out when compared to Reigns and Rollins, they must remember that Dean was WWE champion. He had his run and he did okay with it. He may not have been the most capable WWE champion of all time but he was entertaining. Dean was fun to watch. But then again, he’s almost always fun to watch.

However this is a new day and its a new Dean Ambrose. He’s tweaking his character and his move-set, both of which are redefining who he is. Dean is no longer the lovable lunatic vying for approval by getting the most laughs. This Dean Ambrose is more intense and more focused than ever before.

He is changing and maturing. Dean is a man that is now thinking about much more than wreaking havoc as a member of The Shield. Ambrose is a married man now and he’s facing his own mortality in the company because he’s questioning his legacy. 

Is he nothing more than The Lunatic Fringe, the wildcard of The Shield? Or is he something more? He’s faced life in WWE without Rollins and Reigns before and it was not the easiest rod for him to travel. But he’s traveled it and he’s come out of it stronger than he was before. Now Dean Ambrose wants more. He needs a purpose and that purpose is likely not with The Hounds of Justice. What WWE chooses to do with this fact and ultimately with Dean Ambrose’s future, is anyone’s guess.