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Daniel Bryan came into the WWE with much fanfare from the Internet Wrestling Community, citing his supreme in-ring gifts that had made him the talk of the independent scene for many years (especially during his time in ROH). To be honest, none of that stuff really impressed me. I am, by and large, a one product at a time kind of wrestling fan. I grew up watching the NWA, switched to the WWE and have rarely looked elsewhere. So, the main thing that had me impressed with Bryan is his trainers. Anyone trained by Shawn Michaels and William Regal should’ve received the kind of in-ring guidance capable of churning out a polished performer. Yet, I was cautious in my optimism. In addition to his reputation as God’s gift to wrestling, Bryan was always noted as a wrestler somewhat lacking in the promo department. This immediately drew a red flag for me. Not many superstars are given the chance to just go out there and have great matches if they can’t talk the match up beforehand. It often takes years for a guy to be given an opportunity to have a 10-minute PPV or TV match so that we can see his in-ring gifts; that’s even if said guy can cut a promo. Thus, prior to his debut on NXT, I was not about to get myself amped up for another Paul London, Brian Kendrick, or Frankie Kazarian that could bring some flash into the ring, but would ultimately burn out for lack of an “it” factor (among other things). I was quietly reserved about his potential, which he immediately showed by putting on a good, relatively short match with Chris Jericho. Examination From the moment he debuted on NXT, I was going over this guy with a fine tooth comb. The in-ring stuff looked to be just what everyone said it would be, but I was curious to see how he’d do outside the high spots he’d shown in his first match with Jericho. It certainly did not take long to notice the criticism of his mic skills. It was not that his promos were bad, but his first couple of NXT promos were bland and his voice sounded of a guy without much of a character. Another concern that arose was his lack of size. It is difficult to, at first, take a guy seriously who looks about 3 inches shorter than the already short Jericho. I immediately thought that my concerns about him would be valid when he was kicked off NXT despite having already earned the respect of the NXT Pro’s who voted him #1 in their poll regardless of what seemed to be every WWE attempt possible to make sure that he couldn’t win. His eventual firing due to the aftermath of the first Nexus attack on Raw made me shake my head and glad that I did not invest much energy in him to that point. By and large, Bryan’s first few months in the WWE gave me the impression that he was a guy overhyped by the IWC. You know what, though? I thought that very same thing about CM Punk about 18 months ago. After seeing Punk do nothing more than have a decent match or two and have nothing but praise heaped upon him by the IWC (mostly because of his past work in the indies), I rebelled and called him overrated. Yet, here I sit over a year later and I’m taken aback at how the WWE have not pushed him to the moon. Punk won me over with his work IN THE WWE during the summer of 2009. His brilliant heel turn, his phenomenal promos, and the in-ring stories he told with Jeff Hardy made me a fan. I wanted to see that from Bryan. I do not care what he did in ROH. I wanted to see what he could do in the WWE. Analysis Much like what happened with CM Punk, Daniel Bryan is beginning to win me over, too. When he returned from what could best be described as a hiatus and was the final member of Team WWE at Summerslam, I was quite surprised. At no point did the WWE show that they were taking him seriously prior to said return. Perhaps it was, for once, the WWE Superstars – Bryan’s peers – who stepped up on his behalf and made management see what they were missing. Whatever the cause for the change of heart, the WWE gave Bryan a chance to show what he could do in the ring. In spite of his shoddy microphone work, he was given the chance to shine and get himself over doing what everyone said he does better than anyone: wrestle. Subsequently, over the last few months on PPV, Daniel Bryan has impressed the hell out of me. He may not ever be a great interview, but the guy has a raw energy in the ring that is seen often in the indie matches that I’ve watched, but rarely in the WWE. Helping him overcome his vertical and weight challenge, this raw energy permeates through him, into the crowd, and through the airwaves onto the TV screen. It makes you believe in Bryan; makes you want to cheer for him. It also allows some of his more impressive in-ring maneuvers to have more impact. Thus, he’s gotten over not just with me, but with most WWE audiences. When you combine that energy with the wrestling skill that he now very clearly possesses, you get a guy who can have some very good, engaging matches. In his first PPV singles match against the Miz, I was overwhelmed by his veteran presence in helping to get a very strong performance from a guy who really needed one to ramp up his main-event prospects. I quite honestly would not have been anywhere near as happy that Miz is the champion had he not been able to have a standout PPV match against Bryan. Then, Bryan took a potentially confusing gimmick (Submissions Count Anywhere triple threat) and made it quite good, as well. The submission wrestling that he brings really has been missing since Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle departed. I, frankly, have missed it terribly. It’s nice to see a smooth performer pulling off submission holds and winning via tap out. I think it’s been his last two PPV bouts that have been most impressive. At Bragging Rights against Dolph Ziggler, the WWE gave Bryan a chance to go out and wrestle for almost 17-minutes. The result? In a lot of people’s minds the mid-card match of the year, at worst, and the overall match of the year, at best. While I preferred the story told in Miz-Bryan, I cannot deny the athleticism shown in the Bryan-Ziggler match. It was the kind of performance that made me start thinking about how the WWE will one day need to replace the likes of Rey Mysterio – their resident small guy, underdog who frequently goes head-to-head with the big boys. Maybe he can even be more than that… The Bryan vs. Ted Dibiase match at Survivor Series has been the icing on the cake to what’s been a phenomenal four month run for the former American Dragon. I had always thought it was a great move when Bryan apparently asked to be sent to the developmental territory to better learn the WWE style. I had read up on the Dragon, learning that most of his matches in ROH were pretty lengthy. Could he work a great match in less time? Could he do it in less than 10-minutes, as he’ll often be asked to do as long as he’s in the mid-card (where I imagine he’ll have a lengthy stay before he ascends higher – if he ever does)? He proved that he can do whatever is necessary. Have a 3-star match in less than 10-minutes against a guy who has shown the need to be carried and has rarely been asked to do much in a singles match? Mission accomplished for the streaking Daniel Bryan… Doctor’s Orders This is not so much an order as it is a desire to see the WWE continue to push Bryan in the manner that they have in the last few months. He has proven that he can get over without being all that entertaining of a character. They have sorely lacked a guy who can just make us react to something merely by what he can do in the wrestling ring. He whose name is still synonymous with being one of the greatest in-ring competitors of all-time (Benoit) left quite a void and Bryan is finally filling it. I also like that it gives the ever fickle IWC something to be consistently happy about. Perhaps he can make it so there’s just a little bit less whining going on. Will Bryan ever ascend to main-event level? Well, he’s sure got his work cut out for him. Yet, he doesn’t need to get to that point to obtain and sustain a great career doing exactly what he’s doing now…tearing it up inside the squared circle like few others seemingly can. If he continues to do what he’s been doing, he can have a long and successful career. I’ll be sitting in my chair rating his matches at 3-4-5 stars accordingly… THIS WEDNESDAY: Dr. CMV1’s Running Diary of the 2010 Year in Review - Starts at 8AM....
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