[2012-04-29-WWE-Extreme Rules] Daniel Bryan vs Sheamus (2/3 falls)

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Superstar Sleeze]

World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus vs Daniel Bryan - Extreme Rules 2012 Two Out Of Three Falls

I really liked the dueling chants of "Daniel Bryan" vs "18 Seconds". Very creative by the babyface fans. This match comes on the heels of the infamous 18 second loss by Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania that launched the Yes Movement into the stratusphere. 

First Fall: Power vs Science in this match was the obvious story to tell. Sheamus has one of the deepest offensive arsenals in US history. He reminds me a lot of Greg Valentine in how stiff and snug he works, but he has a lot of Bret Hart in him with his diverse offensive onslaught and his great credible selling. Sheamus is definitely one of the best WWE wrestlers of this generation. I like Daniel Bryan in WWE more than ROH for the most part. I think he is more committed to the character and storylines and less focused on throwing as many bombs as possible though in WWE he does tend to blow off selling for his explosive comeback. As a KENTA homage act, he is pretty good in WWE. Since he is not a babyface in this match, we do not to worry about his KENTA tribute act.

Sheamus established the power game early with shoulder tackles and side headlock takedown. BROGUE KICK~! Tease! I love it. Perfect play off the Mania match. Sheamus scores the first big move with a rolling Fireman's Carry and then applies the Cloverleaf, but Bryan makes the ropes. Bryan uses his speed to briefly get the advantage so Sheamus wisely powders to break his rhythm. This works as Sheamus catches Bryan and drives him hard into barricade. I didnt like that Bryan went back on offense so shortly after this. That felt like an emphatic spot that should have giving Sheamus definitive control. Sheamus heads to the top rope maybe for a Battering Ram, but we will never now as Bryan knocks him off the top rope. This leads Bryan's heat segment. Bryan is great as a heel here nothing fancy, lots of stomps and torturing the arm like he is Capn Redneck Dick Murdoch (though not as focused as Murdoch). Sheamus is great about peppering in hope spots. I loved his running knee. Sheamus overcommits a lot in this match and charged into the post. Bryan hit a wicked kick into the buckle into Sheamus' face. Bryan gets a nearfall off this. Sheamus blocks the top rope Frankensteiner. Battering Ram! Sheamus now with a nearfall! They tussle over finishers, Celtic Cross vs LeBell Lock. Again, Sheamus' passion gets the best of him as he rams into the ringpost. Now Bryan really goes to town on Sheamus' shoulder ramming it into the post and wrenching around the post multiple times. Bryan relentless rifles Sheamus' bad wing with stiff kicks even in the ropes and the ref is forced to call for the bell because Bryan has lost his mind. I thought Bryan really sold how crazed he was trying to break Sheamus' arm with these kicks so it made the DQ more palatable, but it is still not my favorite finish. 

Second Fall: Not surprisingly, this is a short fall. Bryan explodes out of his corner like a bat outta Hell with a dropkick the face. Wrestles him down to the ground with the LeBell Lock really tight after some struggle. Sheamus passes out. This is the same Ironman psychology of getting yourself DQ only to win the next fall. Tied 1-1. So far I thought this match was great but has not met my lofty expectations of a Match of the Year Contender. 

Third Fall: Excellent fall, a real rousing finish! Quicker than I expected, but this was high level stuff. Since Sheamus passed out at the end of the 2nd fall it was unclear if he was even going to be able to continue. They milked this really well and huge kudos to Bryan for really putting over how cocky he was and that he had it in the bag. Bryan comes flying in just like the 2nd fall only this time he eats a BROGUE KICK~! to the mush! AWESOME! 1-2-NO! Sheamus needed that home run shot! It was pure desperation but it is what he needed. Rocking Bryan's head is the only way to mount his comeback. Sheamus had some wicked body shots. Bryan had a wicked, wicked kick to the head for his last nearfall! I loved how Bryan missed both the diving headbutt and a dropkick in the corner before Sheamus could consolidate his advantage with Celtic Hammers. I am a big believer that missed moves should be how transition in control can be accomplished. I liked how it was two big missed moves and then a barrage of Celtic Hammers that won Sheamus the day. Makes it feel earned. Irish Curs Backbreaker and Brogue Kick ends the match in favor of the Celtic Warrior!

Once the shoulder hit the post, this match clicked into a high gear. Bryan was the great crazed, cocky challenger that took his lucky break and milked it for all its worth, but he got caught with a big Brogue Kick at the beginning of the third fall which was a great way to start Sheamus on the comeback trail. I loved all the missed moves and the economy of Sheamu's fiery comeback. I thought the beginning of the match was great, but was not quite at the same level as the back half and so I didnt think this was MOTYC level, but still this is a feather in the cap of both men. ****1/4

[ShittyLittleBoots]

The early stuff with Sheamus pretty much owning Bryan in almost every department is some very good stuff, but it's once his left shoulder hits the post that the match kicks into a REAL high gear. Bryan of course notices that the shoulder ate some shit there, so he immediately goes to wreck it against the post multiple times. Then he does his repeated kicks to it, DQing himself in the process. It's all a part of a plan though, you can see it on his arrogant smile after that. That's the 1st fall for Sheamus, and we even things out when Bryan's plan completes itself as Bryan makes quick work of the weakened Sheamus by making him pass out to the LeBell Lock - all the pressure on the bad arm of course. I love the rest-period after that w/ Bryan hosting a little concert of YES & NO chants. It's some amazing stuff, and he came off as such a cocky prick doing that, being so proud of his work. The final fall is excellent as well; love the beginning with Sheamus delivering that Brogue Kick, and his selling throughout the whole fall is absolutely tremendous. I also love how the missed moves are indeed the key to the finish here -- Bryan misses two of his signature bigger moves in the Diving Headbutt & the Corner Dropkick, which gives Sheamus enough for that one last big flurry to finish him off. Excellent, excellent match. I adore Bryan seeing a real plan in destroying Sheamus' shoulder after it hit the post, and him making that plan come to life creates for some extremely compelling stuff. Sheamus' babyface performance is terrific as well -- he sold that arm like it was absolutely dead, and his overall selling of fatigue in the final fall is great as well. Great redemption from getting 18 seconds at Mania for these two. ****1/2

[cactus]

It's been a month since Sheamus beat Bryan in 18 seconds and they play off that brilliantly here. Sheamus attempts a Brogue Kick early, but Bryan avoids it and they work a smash-mouth technical clinic with plenty of stiff strikes. Sheamus can actually hang with Bryan on the mat and he can obviously bring the beef whenever he would trade strikes with him. I dug how the falls were structured, with the first one ending after Bryan zones in on Sheamus' arm after he missed a charge into the corner and eats the ring post. Bryan refuses to back off from Sheamus and gets disqualified. This doesn't bother Bryan as he has more than enough damage to score an easy submission win for the second fall. I love how they open the final fall, with Bryan once again getting hit with a flash Brogue Kick for another nearfall. Bryan's pitbull-like tendencies and smug facial expressions whenever he had the match in his control were fantastic, but I also thought that Sheamus put in a hell of an effort here too. ★★★¾

[squidlad]

One positive aspect of WWE and their decades of misguided decisions is that it gives you plenty of things to write about. One is not often short of an interesting angle to review a match from and in the case of Daniel Bryan vs Sheamus we have a match taking place during a historic instance of fan backlash. Long story short, WWE's audience during the early 2010s had been reduced to a hardcore few. Hardcore audiences tend to favour workhorses over 'manufactured' stars and so at Wrestlemania 28 the audience spectacularly rejected Bryan's 18 second loss to Sheamus. This booking disaster precipitated a babyface turn for Bryan, and Sheamus, while never reaching anywhere near Roman Reigns' level of crowd spurning, did recieve boos and was eventually turned heel after what is generally considered to be a failed babyface run.

So this is the enviroment these two wrestlers are walking into. In one corner we have a guy who should obviously be the babyface and yet he is the heel. He is far more popular than his opponent and is more naturally sympathetic. In the other corner we have a guy who should obviously be the heel and yet he is the babyface. He is far more physically intimidating than his opponent and is not well liked by the crowd. How can they navigate such a backwards dynamic? Well, one of the wrestlers happens to be one of the greatest performers of a generation, so they navigate it pretty well.

Bryan makes sure to do nothing cool. He is a nasty shit-heel throughout this whole match. The crowd wants to pop for Bryan's offence but he doesn't give it to them. Instead, Sheamus is left to do all the cool moves and the crowd, wanting to react to something, are maneuvered into reacting for them. On paper this sounds like another misfire but it works because Bryan has enough time on this occasion to build a story that makes sense. He can't get Sheamus in the Lebell Lock so he repeatedly kicks Sheamus in the arm until the referee calls for the DQ. Sheamus is then left in a time tested, sympathy-getting scenario: Trying to fight with an injured limb against an opponent determined to exploit it. He sells it quite well all the way to the finish.

It's an expert performance from Bryan and wisely, he nevers slips into out-and-out cheating. It would be tempting to throw the kitchen sink at a project like Sheamus but an unpopular babyface overcoming 'too much' adversity is a recipe for disaster, plus it gives this match some much needed legitimacy. There's some real ferocity here, which stood out during one of WWE's lightest in ring periods ever. Sheamus struggles and scraps like he never had before, including a moment where he tries to rake Bryan's face in order to escape from a nasty arm bar. Bryan succeeds though in 'hyper extending' Sheamus' arm. I appreciate it when wrestlers have to fight in order to execute moves.

In the long term, this match was not successful as it did not change the trajectory of Daniel Bryan or Sheamus' careers. The crowd was determined to love Bryan and Sheamus, while later establishing himself as an underrated workhorse, would certainly never become the secondary top babyface that WWE wanted. But on this night, with one of the toughest assignments in wrestling, both men put on a match that no one could reject. ****1/2