“Fight for your dreams. Because if you fight for your dreams, your dreams will fight for you.”: Just in case you haven’t heard yet, Daniel Bryan is cleared to wrestle again. It was probably one of the best pieces of news in recent memory given on a Tuesday afternoon. Many of us wasn’t sure if he would ever step foot in an WWE ring again. Given the complexities and dangers of head injuries, maybe he shouldn’t have for his own safety. After all, Bryan does have a family now.
Remember the March 10th, 2014 edition of RAW where Bryan and the ‘Yes Movement’ occupied RAW? Daniel Bryan was the chosen from the fans perspective and given reactions, continues to be. He’s the underdog, the conquering champion despite the odds thrown at him. The most important element – it’s natural to root for him. He’s not your prototypical “WWE-type” wrestler. Other than C.M. Punk, the WWE has always crowned the muscular, towering He’s scrappy. He’s the technical marvel.
It’s no disrespect to Roman Reigns. In fact, Reigns should get more credit that he’s been getting on his run leading up to Wrestlemania. There’s talk that Bryan might want to work a reduced schedule, but if WWE is looking for a genuine go-to guy, they may have just found lady luck. Need further convincing? During Bryan’s heart felt speech, he glances at the Wrestlemania sign and the fans pointed to it for him. In the land of scripted promos, Bryan speaks from the heart that makes for a solid connection.
This brings us to the overall story line. There’s no need to “trick” the audience in order to cheer the baby face. Not only did the fans love to see Daniel Bryan in action, it was so effective that it enhanced the heel heat of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. Now there can be something more to this authority/disgruntled worker tag team match going into Wrestlemania.
Rehash/Remix: Some of the show centered around some match ups that we’ve previously seen. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev proved that once again, both men work well against each other. I hope Rusev gets a more predominant role after Wrestlemania within the title picture. AJ Styles is hampered with an injury, so you want to rest him as much as possible. They can sell the title match with minimal interactions.
The Baron Corbin/Tye Dillinger match was there to sell the Andre the Giant battle royal. You also had Becky Lynch and Naomi vs. Sarah Logan and Liv Morgan of the Riott Squad. I think the Smackdown Women’s division could use a shakeup with the impending draft. Lynch could be one of the top female stars on Raw. Asuka will most likely be a Smackdown wrestler after Wrestlemania, so Naomi could have some good battles with her.
Charlotte Lets Her Guard Down: The initial match wasn’t the problem. Charlotte and Natalya always have solid matches. It’s not even the Carmella attempted cash-in. That’s good to keep Carmella involved and Charlotte’s head on a swivel. It’s the fact that Charlotte lost to Natalya. Now, you can build this up on the pressure of facing a undefeated Asuka getting to her, but with booking logic – Natalya just beat the champ. By right, she could possibly either challenge Charlotte to a championship match next week or request a triple threat match at Wrestlemania. If you’re building Asuka and Charlotte to be the mega match like it should, you definitely want to book Charlotte as strong as possible.
Bludgeon Brothers Smash: It definitely feels like the Bludgeon Brothers are due for a title run soon. Between the great matches that The New Day and The Usos have had, it’s good to have a disruption. This is an obstacle that both teams might not be able to conquer, even with five people to their two. Jimmy Uso and Harper had a good singles match. Jimmy used his speed and Harper asserted himself as dominant.
U.S. Title Promo: This was a promo spot between Jinder Mahal, Bobby Roode, and Randy Orton. It didn’t hurt nor help the feud. It was just kinda of there. I will say that this match will be better at Wrestlemania than most people think.
