Daniel Bryan: Greatest Hits

Daniel Bryan: Greatest Hits


I enjoyed the first Greatest Hits post with CM Punk, and now it's time for everyone's favourite underdog to stand in the spotlight. As with Punk, I'll be using the PPVs on the Network, and also some Raw episodes from 2013. Let's begin.



Team WWE vs The Nexus
From Summerslam 2010. This marks Bryan's first WWE PPV appearance, as he was stupidly fired for strangling Justin Roberts on TV. This was also Bret Hart's first Summerslam match since facing the Undertaker in 1997. Bryan received a nice pop from the crowd and looked great during the match as he was only eliminated by nefarious means, and got a couple of eliminations himself. The crowd was hot for this one thanks to the great build-up leading up to it. A tremendous tag team match, even if it ruined the Nexus in the long run due to SuperCena making an appearance. ****1/4



Daniel Bryan vs The Miz
From Night of Champions 2010 and the US Title is on the line. And to think, back then this match was considered the big time for Bryan. How far he's came is amazing. Bryan winning the US Title was an awesome moment and let us know that he was here to stay. This might have been the Miz's best match up to this point too. A great match that showed what Bryan could do in the ring. ***3/4



Daniel Bryan vs The Miz vs John Morrison : Submissions Count Anywhere
From Hell in a Cell 2010 and the US Title is on the line. This is the second and currently last Submissions Count Anywhere match. This was Bryan's first defense of his newly won Title. Miz and Morrison weren't known for their submission wrestling, but they still managed to help make this a great match. Morrison's dive off the stage was great, and the submission wrestling was done well too. Awesome stuff. ***3/4



Daniel Bryan vs Dolph Ziggler
From Bragging Rights 2010 and this is a Smackdown vs Raw match with both guys holding the mid-card Championships. This was easily both guys best WWE match at this point in time. This PPV sucked and is one of the worst I've seen, but this is the sole bright spot. The only thing that put me off the match was the unnecessary fat jokes towards Vickie Guerrero. Bryan and Ziggler started slowly and gradually built to an exciting finish with nearfalls and counter-moves. A MOTYC for 2010. ****1/4



Sheamus vs Daniel Bryan vs Wade Barrett vs Kane vs Cody Rhodes vs Heath Slater vs Justin Gabriel vs Sin Cara
From Money in the Bank 2011. Yes this match had the honour of opening up one of the greatest shows of all time, and boy did it do a great job of that. Looking back now, it seems strange to think that it was almost impossible that Daniel Bryan would win the thing. I was personally rooting for him to win, but in the back of my head I was almost positive that Sheamus or Wade Barrett would win it. Needless to say, I did mark out like a kid when Bryan won, and it still gives me goosebumps today. Anyway the entire match was awesome, the spots were well done, and it was never boring at all. Exciting all the way through and one of the better MITB matches. ****1/4



Mark Henry vs The Big Show : Chairs Match
From TLC 2011 and the World Title is on the line. By this point the Henry/Show feud had kind of overstayed it's welcome. Luckily this match only lasted about five minutes and consisted of a lot of chair shots. Show hits the right hand to win the World Title. 1/2*. Afterwards Daniel Bryan comes out and cashes in MITB and pins Show 1-2-3. This moment still makes me mark out, and Bryan's celebration is just awesome. ***** for the cash in.



Daniel Bryan vs The Big Show vs Mark Henry : Steel Cage
From Royal Rumble 2012. Here we have Bryan's first World Title defense and he looked like a massive underdog here as he took on two giants. This was a better match than expected, and the cage was used well by all three men. Bryan's agility won him the match as he was able to climb over the cage and Show couldn't catch up with him. Good stuff here. ***



Daniel Bryan vs The Big Show vs The Great Khali vs Wade Barrett vs Cody Rhodes vs Santino Marella : Elimination Chamber
From Elimination Chamber 2012 and the World Title is on the line. This isn't exactly a star filled match, and only Bryan looked like he had a chance of winning. That was until Santino came out of nowhere looking like an underdog. When he hit the cobra on Bryan, everyone in the arena stood on their feet, thinking they were about to see a miracle. But alas, Bryan kicked out and won the thing. This one started off boring and got better when Rhodes came in, but the momentum was lost once Khali lumbered in.The finish was exceptional though. Good Chamber match. ***1/2


A month after the chamber, Bryan would go on to Wrestlemania XXVIII and lose the World Title to Sheamus in 18 seconds. This may sound like a bad thing, but if this had never happened we may never have had the Yes Movement. The Movement started the night after Mania on Raw (which is on the Network and totally worth the watch) and Bryan has looked like a star ever since. Fans were still disappointed that Sheamus and Bryan never got a proper match, but that issue would be resolved at Extreme Rules.


From my second Youtube compilation:

Daniel Bryan vs Sheamus : 2/3 Falls
From Extreme Rules 2012 and the World Title is on the line. It has been two years since I reviewed this one, so I felt like it needed an update. Knowing that this could have been what we got at Wrestlemania 28, it's hard not to feel a sting. An awesome match that made Bryan look great, and showed that Sheamus is quite an underappreciated performer, and showed some great arm psychology. One of the best matches of 2012. ****1/2



Daniel Bryan vs CM Punk
From Over the Limit 2012 and the WWE Title is on the line. The two of these guys headlining (Cena vs Laurinaitis doesn't count) a PPV with the biggest Title on the line must have been a dream come true for a ton of fans, including myself. Bryan looked great going against the most popular guy in WWE at the time, and looked like a top star. This was an absolutely stunning match, and possibly the best of 2012. It's definitely one of the best of all time. The 'this is awesome' chants were well deserved and very appropriate. Fantastic stuff here. *****



Daniel Bryan vs CM Punk vs Kane
From No Way Out 2012 and the WWE Title is on the line. I can't remember why Kane was added to the mix, but I don't think he hindered things as much as people thought he would. Plus there was no way that Punk and Bryan would replicate their classic. This should have been the main event on this night. An awesome triple threat match here, featuring nearfalls and Yes chants. A great performance from all three guys. ****



Team Hell No vs Kofi Kingston & R-Truth
From Night of Champions 2012 and the Tag Titles are on the line. I think this was Bryan and Kane's first match as Team Hell No, and it would begin their very long reign with the Championship.The hug it out segment was pretty great. Pretty fun match with Bryan and Kane arguing while the match was going on. They only won by accident with Bryan pushing Kane onto Kofi. Good stuff. ***



Team Hell No vs Dolph Ziggler & Big E Langston
From Wrestlemania 29 and the Tag Titles are on the line. Finally Bryan gets a match at Mania that's over 18 seconds long. I did enjoy the throwback to Bryan's previous Mania match as Ziggler was almost caught out at the beginning thanks to AJ and was nearly pinned straight away. Everyone here looked motivated, even the big guys. A good match that was kept way too short. ***



Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins
From Raw June 9th 2013. Orton had just faced off against Roman Reigns, and now the two high-flyers are gonna go one on one. This is leading to the Tag Title match at Payback featuring these four guys. If you needed any proof that Rollins wasn't the weak link of the Shield, then this match proves it, as these guys put on a kick-ass TV match. A great back and forth encounter here, featuring nearfalls and big moves. It even earned a 'this is awesome' chant from the crowd. ***3/4



Daniel Bryan vs The Gauntlet
From Raw July 21 2013. Brad Maddox put Bryan in this match to test his skills. First up is Jack Swagger. Their match doesn't last very long with Swagger getting some offense in, and Bryan suddenly locking in the Yes lock to make Swagger tap out. Next was Antonio Cesaro and after witnessing this, I would love to see these two lock up again. An amazing back and forth match-up that could stand as a MOTYC on it's own. The small package finish was great too and that took out Cesaro. Next up was Ryback. This was a surprisingly good section and the crowd was hugely behind Bryan. Bryan won as Ryback got himself DQ'd. I'll give the whole thing ****1/2, but the Cesaro/Bryan match on its own is must see and probably about ****1/4 by itself.



Daniel Bryan vs John Cena
From Summerslam 2013. I feel so bad for not calling this the Match of the Year, but it definitely deserves like a runner up prize or a very honourable mention. What can I say about this match that hasn't already been said? This was Bryan's moment in the sun and he went over Cena completely cleanly and made himself a huge star in the process. It definitely helps that this was an amazing back and forth battle that felt like a war was being waged. Fantastic match and a fantastic moment as Bryan wins his first WWE Title, even if it was ruined by Orton. *****



Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton 
From Night of Champions 2013. It's sad that Bryan's longest WWE Title reign lasted from this night to Raw the night after. But still this was a great match. It wasn't their best match together, but these two can do no wrong with each other as they have amazing chemistry. Some nice back and forth action and a red hot Bryan made this one awesome. A fast count gives Bryan the win and leads to the infamous abeyance of the Title. ***3/4



Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton
From Raw December 16th 2013. By this point these guys had had a ton of matches together, but I think that this is their best one which is saying a hell of a lot. This had the ingredients of their usual great contests, like nearfalls and awesome back and forth action. Both guys looked great in the end, especially Bryan as Orton had to cheat just to get out the match so that he didn't suffer a loss. Amazing stuff here, even with the DQ finish. ****1/2