10 Best Moments In AEW History
3. The Grand Slam Bell Pop
Kenny Omega Vs. Bryan Danielson, on the September 22, 2021 Dynamite, was a phenomenal match. They might even have something better in them - Omega while game was thrashed physically - but the vibe was of equal importance.
The night of the first Grand Slam was the spirit and the possibility of AEW, embodied.
A true stadium-sized alternative to WWE, opening a free television show with a dream match between the two best wrestlers of the era whose paths were never “meant” to cross?
It was a hopelessly naive fantasy booking scenario - the ultimate fantasy booking scenario, actually - made real.
That isn’t to downplay the match. The match was in fact incredible. Omega’s powerbomb counter to Danielson’s Busaiku knee could not have been telegraphed less; Bryan was a nanosecond away from blasting Kenny’s face off.
That bell pop though, Jesus Christ. That Danielson smile, that Omega trash talk, that Jim Ross “Let’s get after this thing!” call: it was almost worth two decades of monopoly rule.