14 WWE WrestleMania 34 Impulse Reactions

5. YES! YES! YES!

Roman Reigns
WWE

Another masterfully-handled piece of business by WWE, Daniel Bryan's return spent long enough on every single note without the song meandering on longer than anybody in the crowd required.

Suffering early assault from the impossibly pr*kish Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, Bryan's return from stretchered oblivion mirrored his last evocative display in the very same building, and his match-winning onslaught brought with it a fresh vision of what should hopefully be a laundry list of new contributions to the cause.

Best of all was his last exchange with an unrepentant Zayn. A plucky babyface in NXT and for the bulk of his time on the main roster, the affable and adorable babyface Sami was earmarked for Bryan's spot as a plucky underdog for years before pressures and failings of his righteousness steered him into the arms of evil.

Livid with how events had unfolded yet again for his own career and that of Owens', Zayn desperately wailed in Daniels face before eventually falling victim to the knee/submission combo that won the 'YES! Man' his WWE Title in that very building. He didn't get to take Bryan's hero spot, and now he couldn't even be an effective villain. Zayn's pain was real, but not remotely sympathetic in the face of the greatest comeback story in years.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett