Jason Hidalgo

jhidalgo@rgj.com

Talk to professional wrestler Roman Reigns for a few minutes and you'll quickly learn a few things.

The guy loves meeting his fans. The guy has his sights set on the very top of the wrestling world. Oh yeah, don't ever call him a "mini John Cena."

Ever.

That would be tip numero uno for anybody planning to meet the World Wrestling Entertainment star this Saturday during Reno Comic Con.

The final stop this year in Wizard World's events tour, Reno Comic Con is bringing several stars to town including B-movie legend Bruce Campbell, Michael Rooker of "Guardians of the Galaxy," and sci-fi favorite turned super negotiator William Shatner.

For Reigns, it's a chance to spend time with fans and take a break from the brutal grind that comes with wrestling.

"Not only am I not getting hurt — I'm not falling down, nobody's hitting me — but I'm still able to see people and have people be excited to see me," Reigns said.

The injury comment is one that hits close to home for Reigns. In the high-octane world of professional wrestling, momentum is everything, and the wrestler was in the midst of a huge push in the WWE. Then the injury bug struck him in September while at Nashville, Tenn.

"I was walking back to my hotel room from the restaurant and that's when it happened," Reigns said. "My hernia popped out."

ROAD TO RENO COMIC CON

Emergency surgery followed quickly thereafter, followed by a long rehab. Although the timing was especially bad for Reigns given his big push, the injury is also providing him a rare opportunity to step back and decompress. This includes spending time with his family and healing from a collection of nicks and bruises accumulated from a job the former football player says has "no offseason."

"It's not like we're movie stars — we don't just sit on the set for five months and have a trailer," Reigns said. "It seems like a lot of glamor but … we have to rent cars, we have to rent hotels, we have four- to five-hour drives every single night, so there's a lot of responsibility just getting to the next town and putting yourself up."

This makes an appearance at Reno Comic Con seem like a walk in the park — or a walk down the crowded arena stands in typical Reigns fashion. The wrestler is scheduled to do photo ops Saturday morning, followed by an autograph session and a Q&A panel. Reigns also expects to get some interesting fan presents along the way, like strange drawings and hastily arranged offerings.

"Watch, I'll get some kind of gift from the lobby … (or) a coffee mug from a gas station with the name of the town on it," Reigns said. "Fans will give some pretty weird stuff."

The attention is no surprise given the popularity of Reigns' previous wrestling ensemble known as "The Shield." Formed with wrestlers Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, the group ran roughshod through the WWE's roster starting in 2012 until Rollins turned heel and betrayed the group earlier this year as part of a new wrestling angle.

The continued popularity of all three members as singles competitors is a point of pride for Reigns, who says there are no limits to what the three can achieve. Reigns is also aware of the talk among some fans about the dynamics surrounding the former members of the group.

"This is what everybody needs to understand, we're all doing awesome," Reigns said. "I mean, we're all in that very top ring, we're all top competitors and we're all the future of the WWE. For any fan to complain that one of us is doing better than the other … is just complete B.S."

CAN'T SEE CENA COMPARISON

Reigns also quickly put down any comparisons to WWE top superstar John Cena like a spear to the mat. Cena is known for garnering mixed reaction from the crowd, with some old-school fans resenting his squeaky clean image and the push he received through the years over other wrestlers. This led to concerns that Reigns was being pushed like a "mini John Cena," which Reigns did not find amusing at all.

Just because a wrestler is kicking butt and beating opponents does not make that guy a John Cena clone, he said.

"Last time I checked, I'm 6'3" 265 pounds, which is bigger than John Cena," Reigns said. "Last time I checked, my hair is long and jet black, and last time I checked John Cena's isn't. I'm way better looking and I'm way more athletic than he is so for anybody to compare me to him is completely asinine."

The confidence reflects his strong wrestling heritage from being born in the Anoa'i family, which boasts a long line of distinguished wrestlers as well as a close connection with wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's own prestigious wrestling family. In fact, Reigns says his dream match would be wrestling Johnson as Wrestlemania.

Before that, however, he first needs to make his wrestling return. Although it would be great to generate a strong reaction or "pop" from the fans when that happens, Reigns is looking at the big picture.

"I'm not chasing one big pop — I'm chasing a collection of humongous, out-of-this world, never-been-heard-before pops," Reigns said. "I just don't want one of them, I want to hear them every single night and every single time I go in."

Roman Reigns' Reno Comic-Con Schedule

Saturday, Nov. 22

10:45 a.m.: Photo op; VIP's first then general admission

11:15 a.m.: Autograph signing; VIP's first then general admission

12:45 p.m.: Q&A Panel