The REAL Reason Daniel Bryan Just Won The WWE Title
The bizarre symmetry between this year and last has been the result of several happy - and extremely unhappy - accidents. WWE's Banter Era continued to take shape through WrestleMania, when a "dream match" between AJ and Shinsuke Nakamura became the stuff of nightmares thanks to an ungodly number of underwhelming rematches. Meanwhile, the steadfast and show-sabbotaging protection of Brock Lesnar didn't even yield the intended outcome. 'The Big Dog' survived six F5s - six more than than Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe and AJ himself the prior year - but got bloodied then beaten with a seventh. What the f*ck had the last year been about for that finish?
Banter. It was just...banter.
Soaked in blood, Roman was a loser on the 'Show Of Shows' and phased down after a tepid Greatest Royal Rumble cage match to try and prime him for one final run at SummerSlam. A final run in which he finally defeated Lesnar in a match that began the total deconstruction of Braun Strowman and triggered the abrupt end of the pay-per-view so not to give fans the opportunity to heckle him off the air.
Order wasn't restored, but WWE's version of it was. All until real life again proved itself as the biggest heel of all. Reigns' heartwrenching reveal of his leukemia diagnosis reset the board after the aforementioned absurdity of Crown Jewel. Brock condemned Braun to Strowman's land yet again and set up a rematch fans were genuinely thrilled to see. But not as thrilled as they were with the women's equivalents aver Evolution...
CONT'D...