25 Best Wrestling Moments Of 2024

23. The Death Of Bryan Danielson

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AEW

A truly surreal and bleak and emotionally devastating scene, AEW WrestleDream concluded with the sort of heat angle that has no right to devastate the fandom in 2024. 

What was so perfect about the coda was that AEW struck a deep vein of emotion prior to it. Danielson, ostensibly dead, on a stretcher, as the commentators reserved their best low, solemn voices: it was very easy for this all to scan as fake or, even worse, cringeworthy. It was a big swing of an angle, but the finish of the main event fuelled suspension of disbelief. After an attritional and difficult match - more effective than great, if that makes any sense - Jon Moxley choked out Bryan Danielson, who would have to retire as a full-timer in the event of his losing. Danielson faded from consciousness almost as soon as he applied the hold. The pacing here was majestic; foreshadowing the post-match, there was no sense of hope whatsoever. He just gave up immediately. 

A sad gut-punch that didn’t feel real, the broken feeling that cloaked the arena allowed people to believe that Bryan himself had actually been destroyed by the new Blackpool Combat Club and the turncoat Wheeler YUTA. 

It was a perfect work - one strong enough, hopefully, to inform the next year of the main event picture. 

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!