10 Times WWE Fans Were Elated At WrestleMania

10. The Yes! Movement Arrives

In which Daniel Bryan emerged from a dumbass onslaught of attrition to reign as WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

The events of SummerSlam 2013 framed him as the wronged man, but there was no past tense about it. He was a transitional champion half-pushed to heat up Randy Orton, a bizarre and telling - definitive - indication of the gulf between promoter and public. This became clear in the autumn, throughout which WWE flipped through its rolodex of f*ck-finishes to gradually remove Bryan from the main event picture. WWE attempted to reinforce the message we innocently received as an underdog narrative: he was, in fact, a B+ player. The fans projected that narrative back onto WWE through defiance. Batista wasn't the top man. John Cena Vs. Randy Orton wasn't the top match. It was Bryan or nothing, and the ultimate schadenfreude What If? is now asked of the planned Orton Vs. Batista main event. It was so untenable as to be fascinating.

This struggle was condensed on the night. The second of his two classics had to override the eerie atmosphere that hung in the air following the death of the Undertaker's Streak.

Bryan's exceptional main event performance, an intoxicating blend of gutsy melodrama and in-ring strategy, shifted the funeral into a wake into a celebration, as the fans celebrated what was as much their victory as Bryan's.