Praise for Daniel Bryan

[~Fallen Angel~]

Credit to Bleacher Report, by Justin LaBar

WWE: Daniel Bryan's Is Becoming "The Guy" in Sports Entertainment


By Justin LaBar
(Featured Columnist) on August 7, 2012

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Last summer was the summer of CM Punk, but 2012 is the year of Daniel Bryan.
In two years, Daniel Bryan went from fired to main eventing Raw against John Cena.
A year and a half ago Bryan was the guy some people knew as the independent sensation. Now he garners a reaction from arenas only second, and sometimes not second, to John Cena.
Keep it simple stupid.
Like or don't like Cena, he evokes reaction from everyone. Its easy to follow along. You either say “Let's go Cena” or “Cena sucks," and everyone picks a side. Nobody is going to the bathroom during his segments. They all want to take part in the vocal struggle.
Daniel Bryan's “Yes” chants took off. The audience loved to do it. So, when the audience wouldn't stop chanting it, to keep on the opposition from them the heel Bryan switches to “No.”
Fans point their fingers in the air when chanting “Yes.” Bryan responds with fingers pointing down for “No.” WWE made money off of “Yes” merchandise and now they can profit by adding “No” merchandise.
Even Bryan's look. He got ride of his generic, clean shave look. The beard gets a reaction. Its easy to identify him. Goat face is more marketable than baby face.
Bryan's rise to top star level goes beyond one word chants and facial hair.
I can't recall a WWE talent improving their verbal skills as much as he has in a two year period. Once he was labeled as a great wrestler who was otherwise bland. Now he arguably has more personality than anyone else featured weekly on WWE programming.
In the last year, CM Punk's had great success, and I'm not taking away from his accomplishments. CM Punk managed to get the entire WWE audience and management to recognize him as a top guy.
CM Punk got everybody to turn and look at him. He was no longer just another guy on the roster. He got recognized for his abilities in the ring and on the mic. I feel like CM Punk swung the curtain open and now his talents are there for all to see. In one promo and build to a pay-per-view―it was a mass rush of attention and recognition that this guy needed to be a top guy. Since then, he has been a top guy and WWE Champion.
Daniel Bryan on the other hand has been a slow burn, who keeps pulling a new trick out of his hat. Just when we think there is no more curtain to pull and we must have seen all of his tricks―we see something else.
He has the underground supporters of Bryan Danielson. He has the attention from all the WWE universe as Daniel Bryan. Soon, mainstream media is going to say his name when Charlie Sheen begins making appearances on WWE programming. He's become a WWE guy. He's become must see television.
The best bell to bell performer. He has everyone's attention when he speaks. He's a marketing golden goose. Respected backstage by his peers. He's the total package.
I've heard worry of Bryan always being subject to demote back down to mid-card matches. What those who say that don't realize, is that that's impossible.
Jack Swagger can win a world championship and fall back down into mid-card obscurity like he has.
Zack Ryder can get to great popularity heights and fall back into mid-card obscurity, if he even gets on television.
The Miz can win WrestleMania against John Cena, but when his routine is the same tired one, the rest button gets pushed and he eventually is holding the Intercontinental championship.
Daniel Bryan isn't going to be demoted back down the roster. From this point on, if a “mid-card talent” begins to work a program with Daniel Bryan, then they're no longer “mid-card talent.”

I agree with this. Daniel Bryan receives a crowd reaction every week. It's probably the most deafening crowd reaction of the night. The fans might not be chanting, "DANIEL BRYAN" but they are chanting, "YES" which is enough reason to believe in Daniel Bryan. They buy "YES" t-shirts and although, they now say that word to annoy him, they enjoy to see him and his chemistry with the crowd is excellent. He always puts on an excellent match, whether it's with Punk or Kane. He has improved tremendously on the microphone these past couple of years. He is the most entertaining wrestler on Raw at the moment.

Considering all of this, why in the world isn't this guy champion? He is on fire at the moment and this would be perfect time to have faith that he can be a credible champion. I am hoping that the WWE realizes that soon enough.

Also, people may call him goat face but keep in mind that goat refers to GREATEST OF ALL TIME! Haha

 

[The Cork]

I beg to differ.

 

[The New F'n Show]

Lol at Cork of course you do. I am inclined to agree. The guy has been on fire for months. The last month or so he has been the main reason to tune into Raw. The guy has been owning. Now as a fan of Bryan Danielson for at least 7 years, and as I guy who had a picture with the guy as his facebook photo for a couple years and a guy who still uses it for my twitter one, I may be biased, but the guy is gold.

 

[Chris]

Easily the most entertaining guy on Raw the past few weeks.

 

[TKK]

Credit to Bleacher Report, by Justin LaBar
Considering all of this, why in the world isn't this guy champion? He is on fire at the moment and this would be perfect time to have faith that he can be a credible champion. I am hoping that the WWE realizes that soon enough.

I agree with the article (bar them saying that Bryan was bland until now), it was a good read and really highlights the changes that he has made to become a 'superstar'.

As for your question, why isn't he champion? Well, at the moment, he doesn't need it. He doesn't need anything or anyone to be popular, he can shine no matter the circumstances. Punk needs the belt right now, his character is going through a transition that not everyone is interested in. Without the title and the focus of being champion, he would fall behind the pack because he's not doing anything original or anything that is extremely entertaining. That will change in time, but for now, he needs the belt.
Another note that I would like to add is that Bryan right now reminds me a lot of Kurt Angle during his rookie year. Everyone knows that he's talented, they find him entertaining, but seeing him as the top guy in the company would be a bit far fetched. Bryan is seen as comedy by too many people to be considered a legitimate threat to a Cena, Lesnar etc. I feel that a world champion should be able to defeat anyone on the roster and make it believable. His time will come to elevate to that next level, just not yet.

 

[Keith]

I agree with the article (bar them saying that Bryan was bland until now), it was a good read and really highlights the changes that he has made to become a 'superstar'.

As for your question, why isn't he champion? Well, at the moment, he doesn't need it. He doesn't need anything or anyone to be popular, he can shine no matter the circumstances. Punk needs the belt right now, his character is going through a transition that not everyone is interested in. Without the title and the focus of being champion, he would fall behind the pack because he's not doing anything original or anything that is extremely entertaining. That will change in time, but for now, he needs the belt.
Another note that I would like to add is that Bryan right now reminds me a lot of Kurt Angle during his rookie year. Everyone knows that he's talented, they find him entertaining, but seeing him as the top guy in the company would be a bit far fetched. Bryan is seen as comedy by too many people to be considered a legitimate threat to a Cena, Lesnar etc. I feel that a world champion should be able to defeat anyone on the roster and make it believable. His time will come to elevate to that next level, just not yet.

Pretty spot on post and the Angle compasion is a good one.

Bryan has been the most entertaining and refreshing character on WWE TV over the summer and as a result has got over big time.

My concern now is that he will become too much of a comedy/fall guy type who is used as some light relief and to put over the top guys. Will wait and see what happens lets hope WWE sees sense and listerns to their fans.

 

[El Jefe]

I gotta agree with the article. I was not a fan of Daniel Bryan at first, but I've really started to like him, especially these past few months

 

[IA-SteveB]

He definitely knows how to connect with the crowd. I am loving the in your face YES/NO battles he gets into with nearby fans before he enters the ring.

 

[~Fallen Angel~]

I beg to differ.

Why?

Lol at Cork of course you do. I am inclined to agree. The guy has been on fire for months. The last month or so he has been the main reason to tune into Raw. The guy has been owning. Now as a fan of Bryan Danielson for at least 7 years, and as I guy who had a picture with the guy as his facebook photo for a couple years and a guy who still uses it for my twitter one, I may be biased, but the guy is gold.

I agree with you. I don't see anything wrong with Daniel Bryan. People were entertained by him when he was on NXT as well. Again, he was the reason why people enjoyed NXT. When he and the NXT rookies developed their own group and Daniel Bryan was released for choking someone, a lot of fans openly complained and requested that he come back. Daniel Bryan has always had a solid fan base and it has been increasing a lot more this year because his character has developed so much. The fact that people are buying "Yes" shirts and react to him when ever he walks down the entrance ramp is definitely a good sign.

Easily the most entertaining guy on Raw the past few weeks.

Agreed!

I agree with the article (bar them saying that Bryan was bland until now), it was a good read and really highlights the changes that he has made to become a 'superstar'.

As for your question, why isn't he champion? Well, at the moment, he doesn't need it. He doesn't need anything or anyone to be popular, he can shine no matter the circumstances. Punk needs the belt right now, his character is going through a transition that not everyone is interested in. Without the title and the focus of being champion, he would fall behind the pack because he's not doing anything original or anything that is extremely entertaining. That will change in time, but for now, he needs the belt.
Another note that I would like to add is that Bryan right now reminds me a lot of Kurt Angle during his rookie year. Everyone knows that he's talented, they find him entertaining, but seeing him as the top guy in the company would be a bit far fetched. Bryan is seen as comedy by too many people to be considered a legitimate threat to a Cena, Lesnar etc. I feel that a world champion should be able to defeat anyone on the roster and make it believable. His time will come to elevate to that next level, just not yet.

I understand what you're saying about CM Punk but then again by keeping him as champion, it doesn't make anyone anymore or less interested. It becomes a little bit repetitive, enforced and boring. Punk had a great run last year and they put the belt and spotlight on him at the right time. I enjoyed his rebellious nature, that he left with the belt and came back to confront Triple H. He was by far the most interesting wrestler in the WWE. The WWE writers, unfortunately, did not do a very good job keeping the storyline alive and interesting. It seemed that Punk came back and his character changed after a couple of months. He became your typical "babyface" which unfortunately did not keep some of us interested. I don't disagree with him winning the title at Survivor Series but I do not understand why he still has the belt if we're losing interest. I also don't understand why they turned him heel. As I said, this "respect" angle has been done before and it simply is not interesting anymore. Especially considering that Punk usually has the, "I don't care what people think" attitude and all of a sudden, he forces people to say that he is the best of the world which makes him come off as an insecure champion. The only reason I think that they decided to turn him heel is because he most likely will be wrestling The Rock at the Royal Rumble and of course, The Rock must be the babyface. The thing is I completely agree that Punk should be highlighting more pay per views since he is the champion so I agree with that. I would enjoy seeing him protest and like he has been doing, interfering in the main event when he isn't included. I just don't like the way he has been coming off but maybe that's just my preference. Does he really have to beel a heel to do that though? A lot of people do agree with him.

Back to my initial point though, they put the belt on Punk when he was BIG. It was his time just like I think that it's Daniel Bryan's time now. I do think that he is similar to Kurt Angle in some ways and it's definitely working for him at the moment. However, I am sure that he will be a more serious heel down the line and he will be a bigger star. I don't think he has reached his peak yet but he will.

Pretty spot on post and the Angle compasion is a good one.

Bryan has been the most entertaining and refreshing character on WWE TV over the summer and as a result has got over big time.

My concern now is that he will become too much of a comedy/fall guy type who is used as some light relief and to put over the top guys. Will wait and see what happens lets hope WWE sees sense and listerns to their fans.

I hope that doesn't happen. He is very comedic at the moment but he offers so much more than that. He is such a TERRIFIC wrestler. He and CM Punk put on some of the best matches I have seen in years. The WWE has a terrific charismatic and entertaining wrestler in their hands right now, they must not screw this up!

I gotta agree with the article. I was not a fan of Daniel Bryan at first, but I've really started to like him, especially these past few months

Indeed! He is awesome!

He definitely knows how to connect with the crowd. I am loving the in your face YES/NO battles he gets into with nearby fans before he enters the ring.

Yes and that he has anger management issues. I'm looking forward to next week!

 

[TKK]

I understand what you're saying about CM Punk but then again by keeping him as champion, it doesn't make anyone anymore or less interested. It becomes a little bit repetitive, enforced and boring. Punk had a great run last year and they put the belt and spotlight on him at the right time. I enjoyed his rebellious nature, that he left with the belt and came back to confront Triple H. He was by far the most interesting wrestler in the WWE. The WWE writers, unfortunately, did not do a very good job keeping the storyline alive and interesting. It seemed that Punk came back and his character changed after a couple of months. He became your typical "babyface" which unfortunately did not keep some of us interested. I don't disagree with him winning the title at Survivor Series but I do not understand why he still has the belt if we're losing interest. I also don't understand why they turned him heel. As I said, this "respect" angle has been done before and it simply is not interesting anymore. Especially considering that Punk usually has the, "I don't care what people think" attitude and all of a sudden, he forces people to say that he is the best of the world which makes him come off as an insecure champion. The only reason I think that they decided to turn him heel is because he most likely will be wrestling The Rock at the Royal Rumble and of course, The Rock must be the babyface. The thing is I completely agree that Punk should be highlighting more pay per views since he is the champion so I agree with that. I would enjoy seeing him protest and like he has been doing, interfering in the main event when he isn't included. I just don't like the way he has been coming off but maybe that's just my preference. Does he really have to beel a heel to do that though? A lot of people do agree with him.

Back to my initial point though, they put the belt on Punk when he was BIG. It was his time just like I think that it's Daniel Bryan's time now. I do think that he is similar to Kurt Angle in some ways and it's definitely working for him at the moment. However, I am sure that he will be a more serious heel down the line and he will be a bigger star. I don't think he has reached his peak yet but he will.

I totally agree that at the moment Punk is coming off as insecure and unoriginal at the moment, but they've spent too much time working on him to let him fall into a state of obscurity which is exactly what would happen to him if he wasn't champion and wasn't with Cena. People seem to constantly complain that Punk isn't main eventing shows and Pay Per Views and the last few weeks have made the reason obvious - Punk still isn't doesn't have a big enough fanbase to headline any show by himself. Cena has headlined Pay Per Views with R-Truth, The Miz etc. I'm not saying that they were good headline acts, but Cena could sell them to his fans. Do you think that anyone would be willing to pay for a WrestleMania with CM Punk vs. The Miz as the main event? Hell no. As big as Punk is, he's not at a level where he can be trusted to successfully lead the company. If CM Punk was pulling this bullshit respect gimmick with anybody else on the roster bar Lesnar or Triple H nobody would even care. If Cena was facing anybody going through Punk's transition, people would care because Cena has a frickin' huge fanbase. I'm not saying that this is Punk's fault, he can't help the fact that not as many fans buy into him as Cena because after all it is Cena's house and everybody else is just a guest.
I've kind of gone off track there, just something that I feel that I should put out there because too many people are whining about Punk not being 'that guy' in the WWE.

I don't really think that you can compare Punk's push last year to Bryan's push now. Punk's push was perfectly executed, he got a lot of attention because of what he said and how he went about getting the title. Going into Money In The Bank, nobody could call what way that match was going to go and be confident about it. They made him into a legitimate main eventer, then it all started to wear away when he came back. If he still had that momentum now, he would be, or at least should be, main eventing Pay Per Views. At the moment, Bryan's just over. He hasn't been pushed in any way that makes his character stronger, his push is for entertainment purposes. Just because someone is over doesn't mean that it's the right time to make him into something bigger than they already are. His time will come though, I'm almost certain of that.

 

[PHX]

Actually to be fair Truth and Miz main evented cause of Rock more than anything else and Punk actually main evented a PPV against Del Rio and Miz with no Cena on the show.

As for Bryan I like what he's been doing lately and how over he's gotten though I think this article is going a little too far calling him "the guy" in sports entertainment.

 

[Chris]

Actually to be fair Truth and Miz main evented cause of Rock more than anything else and Punk actually main evented a PPV against Del Rio and Miz with no Cena on the show.

As for Bryan I like what he's been doing lately and how over he's gotten though I think this article is going a little too far calling him "the guy" in sports entertainment.

I really don't think it's going to far at all, especially the last few weeks or so. He has been "the guy" on Raw each week for me.

 

[PHX]

Wasn't so much saying he's been the most entertaining guy just the way he went about saying it is what I' am more so talking about.

 

[Chriss]

Daniel Bryan will never be "the guy" in sports entertaiment. Although, for me he is "the guy" in professional wrestling. He is so over with everything that it makes me smile.

It's true that in past few weeks he was really entertaining. Wether it's in ring (Pfff, of course), on the mic or just in some creative segments.

 

[TKK]

Actually to be fair Truth and Miz main evented cause of Rock more than anything else and Punk actually main evented a PPV against Del Rio and Miz with no Cena on the show.

As for Bryan I like what he's been doing lately and how over he's gotten though I think this article is going a little too far calling him "the guy" in sports entertainment.

I was talking about WrestleMania XXVII (you could still argue that The Rock had a big hand in selling this) and Capitol Punishment 2011, not Survivor Series. Sorry if I was unclear about that. I also forgot to mention John Morrison at Extreme Rules 2011. Neither of those three had main evented Pay Per Views before those events and wouldn't have main evented if they weren't facing Cena.
Punk did main event against Del Rio and The Miz (who had both main evented Pay Per Views that year) at TLC, but it was in a TLC match. It being a TLC match made it much more interesting and main event worthy. Not to mention that the WHC match was Mark Henry vs. Big Show and there was no way in hell that they would let those two main event a Pay Per View together. The only other option would have been Nash vs. Triple H and people would have flipped out it was the main event.
Basically, what I'm saying is that Cena can main event a Pay Per View with pretty much anybody, Punk can't do that (yet). This is because a lot of people who bought the Pay Per View or have tickets care more about Cena than Punk, WWE title or not.