Agree or Disagree: Daniel Bryan in the most entertaining thing in WWE currently.

[Anybody Thrilla]

I guess this is an interest gauge of sorts. The title's pretty self-explanatory.

I loved Daniel Bryan on NXT. I was worried about him after his firing/re-hiring/lost in the shuffle period. Ever since he cashed in that briefcase though, he's been consistently entertaining.

I don't mark out terribly often anymore (don't get me wrong, I wish I did), but EVERY time I see Daniel Bryan, I get excited.

How do you feel about this? If not Daniel Bryan, who entertains you more?

[Brigstocke]

< Heath Slater

[whiteyford]

I genuinely enjoy his stuff, he's often the highlight of a show, and he's over. I think just giving him an actual angle and letting him connect, slowly rather than in a few weeks, has really paid off.

[Supreme Olajuwon]

He's one of the only guys in the company with an actual storyline right now that isn't just two guys being mad at each other so yeah I'd say he's the most entertaining by default.

[Anybody Thrilla]

He's one of the only guys in the company with an actual storyline right now that isn't just two guys being mad at each other so yeah I'd say he's the most entertaining by default.

That's pretty true, but I'm not so sure just anyone could pull it off like he does.

His matches are always top notch as well. He's a pleasure to have in class and seems to play well with others.

[Supreme Olajuwon]

Oh no doubt. He's absolutely marvelous in the ring. The Yes thing jumped the shark a while ago but now they're finally changing it up a bit. And the soap opera type segments that could easily be boring, stupid and cheesy have been done pretty darn well.

"Mad props to my boy D. Bryan."

[McLegend]

His laughing during the wedding kind of brought him down a few notches for me.

[Heyman]

Loving Daniel Bryan right now.

I would also agree that he is the most entertaining thing in the WWE right now.

Having said that, I still think that the WWE are under-utilizing The Miz, R-Truth, and CM Punk right now.

I'd be interested to see how Miz would be as a more serious and driven face. I hink there is a lot of untapped potential there.

[Anybody Thrilla]

I kinda feel like The Miz should just be a career heel. If his story of overcoming the odds to become WWE champ didn't make him a face, I just don't see it in the cards.

[Heyman]

Good point.

To me, Miz reminds me of where Sheamus was about 12-14 months ago (or whatever time period it was). After having an impressive main event run as a heel and winning the title, he started to flounder a bit and became directionless. Upon turning face however, he re-invented himself. I wonder if the same can be achieved with The Miz? I think it can.

Miz got a nice face pop upon returning. As long as he keeps his "attitude" and "edge" during a face run, I think he'd do quite well.

Fans would play sing along with his, "Cause I'm the Miz and I'm Awesome" shtick.

[Supreme Olajuwon]

I keep thinking The Miz will develop enough of a "cool heel" rep that the cheers will eventually outnumber the boos but it hasn't happened yet. At least not consistently.

[Anybody Thrilla]

His losing streak probably didn't help matters.

[Heyman]

I can't explain it.

I'm seeing something there with Miz as far as face potential goes.

I think he can pull a Sheamus and re-invent himself by toning down the obnoxiousness while increasing his drive to be the best.

[Corporate CockSnogger]

Disagree. There's a whole bunch of guys I prefer watching right now.

[MoFo]

Brock Lesnar.

[Rammsteinmad]

I would say yes.

Ever since winning the world title he really stepped up his character, and it's done wonders for him. The Bryan/Punk/AJ/Kane angle was beautifully handled, I kinda wish it hadn't finished, but now the AJ/Bryan stuff is going on, and his "yes" and now his "no" stuff is incredibly entertaining.

Of course, angles and momentum can vanish overnight in WWE, but at this moment in time (or, at the least, this week) Daniel Bryan is the most entertaining guy on TV.

[Kane Knight]

I think you're trying to turn turds into treasure.

[DAMN iNATOR]

Sorry but to answer your question:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JkpzR5vVA9k" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Not being facetious, either. It's more annoying/disturbing than it is entertaining, and WTF Vince, A.J. as RAW G.M. and (not to be racist here, seriously...) Booker as BlackDown! (pun intended, not trying to be racist) G.M.?!

Someone please tell Vince to take his Geritol and stay off tv.

[Emperor Smeat]

Overall I think Punk is just as entertaining as Bryan especially if you include match quality and in a way AJ played a big role in both guys being very entertaining recently.

Will say Bryan is a lot more entertaining in terms of gimmick although Punk just started his heel/tweener turn so its going to take a bit before his new character settles in.

As a wild card, Ryder has been the most entertaining when it comes to outside media for the WWE.

[Shisen Kopf]

Ryback is the most entertaining thing right now

[Destor]

I really dont think Danielson has any competition right now. He's just far and away the best thing going right now.

[Corporate CockSnogger]

Sorry but to answer your question:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JkpzR5vVA9k" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Not being facetious, either. It's more annoying/disturbing than it is entertaining, and WTF Vince, A.J. as RAW G.M. and (not to be racist here, seriously...) Booker as BlackDown! (pun intended, not trying to be racist) G.M.?!

Someone please tell Vince to take his Geritol and stay off tv.

I don't mean to be racist here guys but Booker T is black so he'll probably rename the show BlackDown and only have black guys wrestle and the new BlackDown theme will be

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/WFY2kJ96jNY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Nicky Fives]

YES! YES! YES!

[#1-norm-fan]

Maybe by default like Supreme said because the writers are actually doing something somewhat entertaining with him. That's his character though. He's put in the right spot.

Johnny Curtis would be the most entertaining thing on the roster if given the chance. Just sayin'.

[Corporate CockSnogger]

What makes Johnny Curtis so great? Seen a lot of people mention him lately. I've only seen a few promos he did ages ago on Smackdown where he was acting out a bunch of phrases like "crying over spilt milk" and stuff. Can someone sum it up for me in a nice easy-to-read sentence because I don't think I can be bothered watching a bunch of videos right now.

[#1-norm-fan]

What makes Johnny Curtis so great? Seen a lot of people mention him lately. I've only seen a few promos he did ages ago on Smackdown where he was acting out a bunch of phrases like "crying over spilt milk" and stuff. Can someone sum it up for me in a nice easy-to-read sentence because I don't think I can be bothered watching a bunch of videos right now.

Damn. I'm gonna try to keep it nice and neat and not go on a rant about my man crush. He is insanely charismatic. He plays a character like he's not even trying. He's genuinely hilarious. Like... not WWE's corny, cringe-worthy idea of funny but actually "he's probably in the wrong profession" funny. If you go back and watch his first NXT run, he made everyone else seem even that much more out of place by being so calm and cool throughout every competition.

[Indifferent Clox]

For me, of course, but I am a danielson mark from way back, got the guy to sign my boots. I cannot be biased, but they seem to be.

[Ultra Mantis]

Bryan is just getting better and better with his character and right now I would say "yes!", he is the most entertaining guy on WWE TV. I thought he would get the Swagger treatment once he dropped the belt but he's done the exact opposite.

[KaosDarksol]

Agree I randomly chant yes! All the time especially while I'm at work

[KIRA]

DB has always been the man from my POV great in the ring and damn entertaining on the mic I'm glad hes gotten the chance to shine like he has and my only regret so far is that he never got to properly beat the asses of the Miz or Michal cole

[Lock Jaw]

I like how he has now subverted the "Yes" chants. While it could have been seen before as supporting Bryan, now he has turned it into an antagonistic thing, while at the same time encouraging people to chant it even more.

[Mr. Nerfect]

When Daniel Bryan won Money in the Bank last year and announced that he was cashing in at WrestleMania this year, I got so excited. I thought it was the WWE building up a new babyface star -- a guy who could take a beating and was the underdog based on size, but would use his superior wrestling skills to beat even giants. Then he cashed in early. I was excited, but it was not what he had promised.

Rumours started flying out that either Bryan or Big Show would turn heel, and I suggested that it should be Big Show, upset that he was embarrassed by Bryan, and out to squash the "little man." It was Bryan who turned however, and I had no clue Bryan would be able to play such an entertaining character.

As a heel, Bryan has shown personality. The way he manipulates others to do his bidding -- one that stands out is Kane, thus dragging Kane into the Bryan/Punk feud, and creating issues that do not yet seem to be resolved between Bryan and Kane -- and just his style on the microphone. Bryan may not be as well regarded for his mic work as he is his ring work, but the dude can actually talk. Jeff Hardy could not. Bryan also knows how to connect with audiences -- you can hear it when he comes out. You can make whatever excuses for the "Yes!" shtick you want, but it's over. And on SmackDown this past week, when he wore his "No!" t-shirt, and has seemingly changed things up to play against crowds more, you could feel the energy as the audience chanted against him. You could see Christian having a mini-mark-out moment in the ring, for crying out loud.

A heel CM Punk could give Bryan a run for his money, and I find Damien Sandow an absolutely glorious character. I also have a perverse admiration for Heath Slater that I cannot explain. There's also Tyson Kidd and Hunico's amazing ring work. But for my money, at the moment, Daniel Bryan is absolutely the most entertaining thing in the WWE. I actually get a cheesy grin on my face when I watch his segments. No current performer does that at this point in time.

When he was on the independent scene, I imagine Bryan's ring work was his bread and butter, and thus he didn't really focus too much on developing personality and that sort of thing. But in the WWE, and with mentors such as Shawn Michaels and William Regal having inspired him, we're seeing Bryan open his style up to become a more full performer. Bryan "gets it," which is why he managed to take an 18 second loss at WrestleMania and still find himself in a title match on every single PPV until this upcoming SummerSlam.

I've tried to avoid talking about Bryan's ring work, but you just can't ignore it. There are a lot of great workers in the WWE -- CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Tyson Kidd, Alberto Del Rio, Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Christian, Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Hunico, Justin Gabriel -- but Bryan deserves mention up there, even if you do consider Jericho, Orton or Punk to be the best overall. One thing he does amazingly is emote inside the ring -- far better than he does during promos. Bryan tells a whole story with facial expressions during a match, and he does so as well as anyone else I can remember. It's not just about his "holds," it's about the story he tells -- and just how exciting his WWE matches have been. The dude has had amazing matches with everyone whether it's Sin Cara, Heath Slater, Sheamus or Kane. They're never boring, they always tell a story and his opponent always comes out looking like a million bucks -- no matter who wins the actual match.

From a critical perspective, in my opinion, Daniel Bryan is the most entertaining professional wrestling in the WWE. The anti-smark hate for the guy should be a thing of the past if you're looking at the man objectively. He's simply one of the best in the WWE -- undeniable.

[Heisenberg]

I like how he has now subverted the "Yes" chants. While it could have been seen before as supporting Bryan, now he has turned it into an antagonistic thing, while at the same time encouraging people to chant it even more.

:y::y::y:

[KIRA]

The moment I said Bryan was truly a bastard heel was the week after he got Aj to sacrifice herself and take the hit from Big Show Bryan comes out and berates Show ad says something like "I mean Aj said shes in love with me... and I appreciate her as well" its such a small thing and I dunno how many people caught it but that was a tremendous dick move on his part .

[Joesgonnakillyou]

I hate that people just assume that Dragon has no Charisma/Character because he can wrestle well. You see some of his stuff in ROH when he was champ he showed a ton of Character, he's great on the mic. He's an all rounder, seriously.

I posted that in 2010, and I feel I've been proved right. He's being given the chance to shine at the moment and is running with it. Who else rigth now gets a segment with the rock? Not many, because few can pull it off but danielson can

[Heyman]

Re: Noid

Good post Noid. I'll touch upon one thing you said.

I'm also extremely high on Damien Sandow. Jinder Mahal is another guy.

As I was saying earlier, I think The Miz has potential to be as decent as a face as Sheamus. As Sheamus did over a year or so ago after becoming stale as a heel, I think Miz can make the same transition.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

I love DB as a wrestler, but I always had my concerns about how he'd get over in WWE.

With that said, he has seriously exceeded any expectations I had for him. This is not a shot at him either, but I figured his look and mic skills would only take him so far. But between the catchphrases, the subtle greatness (AJ said she loves me, and I... appreciate that.), and his amazing matches, he is fricking awesome.

The other thing, I think WWE has realized he can have amazing matches with anyone, and that by keeping him at the mid to main level, he can make the champs look great, and help certain guys make it to the next level.

With that said, I do think the next logical jump will be the union of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. It's only a matter of time until they unite to "fight the power."

DB needs a feud with Cena.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

Re: Noid

Good post Noid. I'll touch upon one thing you said.

I'm also extremely high on Damien Sandow. Jinder Mahal is another guy.

As I was saying earlier, I think The Miz has potential to be as decent as a face as Sheamus. As Sheamus did over a year or so ago after becoming stale as a heel, I think Miz can make the same transition.

The Miz would be amazing as a face, as long as they don't "turn him face."

It's like Orton's first face turn. Instead of turning him face by just having him turn on HHH and stay the same, they changed what was awesome about him. If you keep the Miz the same, but just turn him against the heels (and don't make him play up the crowd like a dumbass), he'd be amazing.

[Tom Guycott]

Jinder Mahal is another guy.



Kinda how I feel about Jinder. But I think you meant that in a different way than I do. Hot start for that guy in his initial introduction... then they went straight for the over-the-top race angle.

But that has nothing to do with Danielson.

I want to agree that he is the most entertaining thing (with that "No!" shirt looking to possibly be the new "Lets Go Cena/Cena Sucks" shirts if they run with it), but the problem with WWE is that we have to wait and see if this will be a sustained thing or if they will just take him off tv inexplicably for a few weeks or put him in some dumb angle or force him to turn face and ruin what he has going.

As it stands, this transferred mental instability from AJ to Bryan has worked to his advantage. Also, his "feud" with Sheen makes him seem a bit more unstable even if they don't do anything more with an actual feud (much like Santino's INSANELY OVER Cobra being "taught" to him by one-off RAW Guest Host Jon Lovitz... bet you forgot that fact, didn't you?). Also, adding in the Napoleon Complex by having everyone basically PUBLICLY referring to him as a vanilla midget. Instead of it being just some random IWC insult about him being unremarkable, they've had Vince McMahon, The Rock, Punk, and even Charlie Sheen use it on-air, and it is working in a way that I suspect WWE anticipated "Lance Storm = BORING" was supposed to work. Add into the fact that his stance on himself is the polar opposite... that not only is he remarkable, he's going to be "the new face of WWE and the greatest champion of all time!"

All of this works, and the fact that what I said takes multiple sentences shows DEPTH, which is the main thing he has as a character right now. This is a good thing, and yes, a very entertaining thing. But "the most" entertaining... I will have to say that I agree. With an asterisk. And that asterisk is that if they keep this up with him.

[Skippord]

I find Damien Sandow more entertaining at the very least, but Bryan is doing good work. :)

[The Heenan Family]

When Daniel Bryan won Money in the Bank last year and announced that he was cashing in at WrestleMania this year, I got so excited. I thought it was the WWE building up a new babyface star -- a guy who could take a beating and was the underdog based on size, but would use his superior wrestling skills to beat even giants. Then he cashed in early. I was excited, but it was not what he had promised.

Rumours started flying out that either Bryan or Big Show would turn heel, and I suggested that it should be Big Show, upset that he was embarrassed by Bryan, and out to squash the "little man." It was Bryan who turned however, and I had no clue Bryan would be able to play such an entertaining character.

As a heel, Bryan has shown personality. The way he manipulates others to do his bidding -- one that stands out is Kane, thus dragging Kane into the Bryan/Punk feud, and creating issues that do not yet seem to be resolved between Bryan and Kane -- and just his style on the microphone. Bryan may not be as well regarded for his mic work as he is his ring work, but the dude can actually talk. Jeff Hardy could not. Bryan also knows how to connect with audiences -- you can hear it when he comes out. You can make whatever excuses for the "Yes!" shtick you want, but it's over. And on SmackDown this past week, when he wore his "No!" t-shirt, and has seemingly changed things up to play against crowds more, you could feel the energy as the audience chanted against him. You could see Christian having a mini-mark-out moment in the ring, for crying out loud.

A heel CM Punk could give Bryan a run for his money, and I find Damien Sandow an absolutely glorious character. I also have a perverse admiration for Heath Slater that I cannot explain. There's also Tyson Kidd and Hunico's amazing ring work. But for my money, at the moment, Daniel Bryan is absolutely the most entertaining thing in the WWE. I actually get a cheesy grin on my face when I watch his segments. No current performer does that at this point in time.

When he was on the independent scene, I imagine Bryan's ring work was his bread and butter, and thus he didn't really focus too much on developing personality and that sort of thing. But in the WWE, and with mentors such as Shawn Michaels and William Regal having inspired him, we're seeing Bryan open his style up to become a more full performer. Bryan "gets it," which is why he managed to take an 18 second loss at WrestleMania and still find himself in a title match on every single PPV until this upcoming SummerSlam.

I've tried to avoid talking about Bryan's ring work, but you just can't ignore it. There are a lot of great workers in the WWE -- CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Tyson Kidd, Alberto Del Rio, Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Christian, Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Hunico, Justin Gabriel -- but Bryan deserves mention up there, even if you do consider Jericho, Orton or Punk to be the best overall. One thing he does amazingly is emote inside the ring -- far better than he does during promos. Bryan tells a whole story with facial expressions during a match, and he does so as well as anyone else I can remember. It's not just about his "holds," it's about the story he tells -- and just how exciting his WWE matches have been. The dude has had amazing matches with everyone whether it's Sin Cara, Heath Slater, Sheamus or Kane. They're never boring, they always tell a story and his opponent always comes out looking like a million bucks -- no matter who wins the actual match.

From a critical perspective, in my opinion, Daniel Bryan is the most entertaining professional wrestling in the WWE. The anti-smark hate for the guy should be a thing of the past if you're looking at the man objectively. He's simply one of the best in the WWE -- undeniable.

The troll agrees with every word. Back to my hole.

[Ultra Mantis]

You gotta pay the troll toll to get in.

[Anybody Thrilla]

Only because I've seen him mentioned a couple times, I'll say that Damien Sandow's mic work is pretty incredible, but until he's put into a proper program, there's no way he shines on D. Bryan.

[Hanso Amore]

Big surprise. Heyman likes the Indian guy....

:)

[Damndirty]

So should Daniel Bryan have a nickname, like Stone Cold for Steve Austin, or The Rock for Rocky Maivia, or Triple H for Hunter Hearst Helmsley?

[#1-norm-fan]

Nicknames that overtake real names are great for characters. They tend to come along naturally though.

[Damndirty]

Daniel YESman Bryan

[Indifferent Clox]

American Dragon

[Tom Guycott]

He might be headed in the direction of incorporating the whole "GOAT" motif at some point in the future. They've already hinted at that possibility with him actually connecting it with "Greatest Of All Time" during his psych eval skit. Thought they were going to do that sooner, like in his back-and-forth with The Rock, but still...

Could make an awesome shirt in the future, too. Kinda like The Rock's eyebrow bull thing. But they shouldn't step on the "YES! YES! YES!/NO! NO! NO!" thing already. That's a trigger they can pull after he wins another world championship and launches into "I told you so" gloating... or rather G.O.A.T.ing mode.

[James Steele]

...goading, if you will?

[parkmania]

Still kinda wish he would have told the psych eval doctor that his name was Bryan Danielson. Could have done that and "snapped" on the guy also.

[Asmo]

Needs more Cattle Mutilation.

Besides that, i agree with everything Noid said.

[Indifferent Clox]

Now i wish he would have said danielson too.

[Damndirty]

http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/001/964/944/danielbryanwhc_crop_650x440.jpg?1330295752http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/commercials/2012/3/directv_charlie_sheen_platoon.jpg
Really looking forward to this!

[dronepool]

Daniel Bryan and CM Punk are the future of the WWE unless they want another cookie cutter 'tough dude' character to hold the torch.

[Hanso Amore]

Honestly NO.

I think he is doing well for himself, but think online here much of the love is less about the performance and more about who it is.

If Justin Gabriel had the same angle and was pulling it off as well, it wouldnt be so over on the Internets. But your blind fanboy love of Bryan causes this.

[Hanso Amore]

Daniel Bryan and CM Punk are the future of the WWE unless they want another cookie cutter 'tough dude' character to hold the torch.

Punk aint holding the torch long....Hes 33 and already talking about breaking down. I honestly dont see him lasting more than 3-4 more years. So yes, Future I suppose, but Punk will retire before Cena, so its more like whomever they pass the torch to will be the "future".

Im being nitpicky, but whatever.

[Anybody Thrilla]

Honestly NO.

I think he is doing well for himself, but think online here much of the love is less about the performance and more about who it is.

If Justin Gabriel had the same angle and was pulling it off as well, it wouldnt be so over on the Internets. But your blind fanboy love of Bryan causes this.

Shut up, bitch. I had never even seen a Daniel Bryan match prior to WWE. He's fucking good.

[Anybody Thrilla]

Well, let me expand upon calling you a bitch. That was probably uncalled for, but what I'm saying is that your condescending 'fanboy' accusations are very far off the mark. I was never one clamoring for Bryan to be the next big thing when he was signed. I was honestly expecting him to fall flat on his face for the very reason that he DIDN'T seem like the cut of WWE's jib. I had heard about him FROM the internet, but it didn't make me a FAN of him.

I've watched his WWE evolution. I even touched upon my concern about it earlier in this very thread. However, I don't have my head planted so far up my ass to miss an opportunity to be entertained. Bryan has won me over, because he's fucking good. It's not because I heard of him online. It's because he holds it the fuck down.

[Hanso Amore]

The angry over reaction of a true fanboy

[Supreme Olajuwon]

If Justin Gabriel had just finished wrestling the best match at each of the last 4 PPVs, then I'd probably be pretty interested in his character development.

[#1-norm-fan]

Honestly NO.

I think he is doing well for himself, but think online here much of the love is less about the performance and more about who it is.

If Justin Gabriel had the same angle and was pulling it off as well, it wouldnt be so over on the Internets. But your blind fanboy love of Bryan causes this.

I'm far from a Daniel Bryan "fanboy". I just can't really think of a better (full time) option though. Pretty much all the characters are bland right now because of these hack writers and Bryan's, while I think it's being overrated right now, is the most entertaining one.

Hypothetically, if everyone including Bryan were being used to their full potential, I don't think Bryan would find himself even in the discussion. He's shown more ability outside the ring than I thought he had before... but he's far from the most charismatic guy or best on the mic in the company.

[Rock Bottom]

Personally, I used to think Daniel Bryan was a boring bag of shit. He's growing on me a little, he's growing on others a lot. He's pretty good.

[dronepool]

Honestly NO.

I think he is doing well for himself, but think online here much of the love is less about the performance and more about who it is.

If Justin Gabriel had the same angle and was pulling it off as well, it wouldnt be so over on the Internets. But your blind fanboy love of Bryan causes this.

I don't think I take my enjoyment of the WWE that seriously to be tagged a fanboy. I just like Bryan and find his stuff entertaining. I dig the angle they gave him and enjoy his matches and skits more than say guys like Orton or Sheamus.

[dingdongyo]

Personally, I used to think Daniel Bryan was a boring bag of shit. He's growing on me a little, he's growing on others a lot. He's pretty good.

[Anybody Thrilla]

The angry over reaction of a true fanboy

What are you, too cool for wrestling?

[Anybody Thrilla]

Can you at least tell us who you think IS the most entertaining if you're just going to say "no"?

[DaveBrawl]

I'm personally awaiting the return of Ric Flair to give my answer.

[Hanso Amore]

Can you at least tell us who you think IS the most entertaining if you're just going to say "no"?

Not at all. Jut calling it like I see it. Straight shooting. Pew pew.

I think Damien Sandow and CM punk currently are more entertaining.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Only because I've seen him mentioned a couple times, I'll say that Damien Sandow's mic work is pretty incredible, but until he's put into a proper program, there's no way he shines on D. Bryan.

This is essentially what I think about Sandow. I love the dude as a mic worker, and I dig his intensity and the way he pins opponents -- oh, and doing a victory cartwheel is instantly good -- but I want to see Sandow in a program. I really wish they would go forward with Sandow vs. Ryder -- a clash of culture.

The moment I said Bryan was truly a bastard heel was the week after he got Aj to sacrifice herself and take the hit from Big Show Bryan comes out and berates Show ad says something like "I mean Aj said shes in love with me... and I appreciate her as well" its such a small thing and I dunno how many people caught it but that was a tremendous dick move on his part .

That stuff was fantastic. Gertner liked to troll and say that they needed Bryan to be mean to a girl to get the heat, but what was great was the sly delivery of it all. Whether it was Bryan or the writing staff, hard yards were put into presenting Bryan as a slimy bad guy. I loved his backstage segments trying to pit Big Show and Mark Henry against each other, too. For a while it was like he had not really "turned," and yet he was getting tremendous heat.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I think Damien Sandow and CM punk currently are more entertaining.

Sandow needs more time with me. I love his character thus far, but it's cooling with me. He needs a proper feud or some sort of development. He seems all "gimmick" at the moment.

CM Punk is great -- good in the ring and brilliant on the mic, but I haven't been enjoying him as much as Bryan. Maybe it's because he always seems to be in Triple Threat Matches.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Also, I do like that your big objection to people discussing how good Daniel Bryan is, Hanso, is that you think he's only the third most entertaining performer in the company.

[Gertner]

He's pretty blah. He hasn't drawn a dime, but Indie fans circle jerk all over themselves. He's basically Tyson Kidd with a beard.

[Anybody Thrilla]

Gertner, why would you as a person hoping to be entertained care who has drawn what? Do you see any of the money?

I bought Daniel Bryan's t-shirt a couple weeks ago, btw. He at least moves a bit of merch.

I like Tyson Kidd, too. You can't pretend Bryan's not a better mic worker than him, though.

[Swiss Ultimate]

ABT knew...even then..

[Swiss Ultimate]

Punk aint holding the torch long....Hes 33 and already talking about breaking down. I honestly dont see him lasting more than 3-4 more years. So yes, Future I suppose, but Punk will retire before Cena, so its more like whomever they pass the torch to will be the "future".

Im being nitpicky, but whatever.

[Swiss Ultimate]

When Daniel Bryan won Money in the Bank last year and announced that he was cashing in at WrestleMania this year, I got so excited. I thought it was the WWE building up a new babyface star -- a guy who could take a beating and was the underdog based on size, but would use his superior wrestling skills to beat even giants. Then he cashed in early. I was excited, but it was not what he had promised.

Rumours started flying out that either Bryan or Big Show would turn heel, and I suggested that it should be Big Show, upset that he was embarrassed by Bryan, and out to squash the "little man." It was Bryan who turned however, and I had no clue Bryan would be able to play such an entertaining character.

As a heel, Bryan has shown personality. The way he manipulates others to do his bidding -- one that stands out is Kane, thus dragging Kane into the Bryan/Punk feud, and creating issues that do not yet seem to be resolved between Bryan and Kane -- and just his style on the microphone. Bryan may not be as well regarded for his mic work as he is his ring work, but the dude can actually talk. Jeff Hardy could not. Bryan also knows how to connect with audiences -- you can hear it when he comes out. You can make whatever excuses for the "Yes!" shtick you want, but it's over. And on SmackDown this past week, when he wore his "No!" t-shirt, and has seemingly changed things up to play against crowds more, you could feel the energy as the audience chanted against him. You could see Christian having a mini-mark-out moment in the ring, for crying out loud.

A heel CM Punk could give Bryan a run for his money, and I find Damien Sandow an absolutely glorious character. I also have a perverse admiration for Heath Slater that I cannot explain. There's also Tyson Kidd and Hunico's amazing ring work. But for my money, at the moment, Daniel Bryan is absolutely the most entertaining thing in the WWE. I actually get a cheesy grin on my face when I watch his segments. No current performer does that at this point in time.

When he was on the independent scene, I imagine Bryan's ring work was his bread and butter, and thus he didn't really focus too much on developing personality and that sort of thing. But in the WWE, and with mentors such as Shawn Michaels and William Regal having inspired him, we're seeing Bryan open his style up to become a more full performer. Bryan "gets it," which is why he managed to take an 18 second loss at WrestleMania and still find himself in a title match on every single PPV until this upcoming SummerSlam.

I've tried to avoid talking about Bryan's ring work, but you just can't ignore it. There are a lot of great workers in the WWE -- CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Tyson Kidd, Alberto Del Rio, Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, Christian, Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, Hunico, Justin Gabriel -- but Bryan deserves mention up there, even if you do consider Jericho, Orton or Punk to be the best overall. One thing he does amazingly is emote inside the ring -- far better than he does during promos. Bryan tells a whole story with facial expressions during a match, and he does so as well as anyone else I can remember. It's not just about his "holds," it's about the story he tells -- and just how exciting his WWE matches have been. The dude has had amazing matches with everyone whether it's Sin Cara, Heath Slater, Sheamus or Kane. They're never boring, they always tell a story and his opponent always comes out looking like a million bucks -- no matter who wins the actual match.

From a critical perspective, in my opinion, Daniel Bryan is the most entertaining professional wrestling in the WWE. The anti-smark hate for the guy should be a thing of the past if you're looking at the man objectively. He's simply one of the best in the WWE -- undeniable.

:yes:

[#1-norm-fan]

He's one of the only guys in the company with an actual storyline right now that isn't just two guys being mad at each other so yeah I'd say he's the most entertaining by default.

Maybe by default like Supreme said because the writers are actually doing something somewhat entertaining with him. That's his character though. He's put in the right spot.

Johnny Curtis would be the most entertaining thing on the roster if given the chance. Just sayin'.

These two things still stand.

Also, Bray Wyatt.