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[2022-01-05-AEW-Dynamite] Adam Page vs Bryan Danielson


ShittyLittleBoots

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Adam Page defends his AEW World Championship.

Yeah, make that two in a row for Hangman vs. Danielson, then. A yet another TV-wrestling classic with no hyperbole. Much like in the first meeting of theirs, Danielson was just a complete tour de force here; he was an absolute marvel bringing the big time punishment to the champ, and you couldn't ask for a better man to put you over than him here between his always-great selling & the way his whole AEW run thus far has built up to THIS. Hangman got to escape from every submission he has established as a match-ender as well as kickout of every move he has used as a finisher in the company leading up to this bout. And you know that Bryan doesn't let his big moves go to waste, so it's damn sure that every single one of those big kickouts & escapes by Hangman felt earned. None of it was cheap. It was all earned through this intense war that they put each other through. Danielson's strategies right from the start get me hooked, and his brilliant, brilliant, BRILLIANT onslaught on the offense keep me there, and then you have the blood; this match is the perfect example of blood upping the levels when it comes to a pro-wrestling match. Bryan's attack on Page's cut is wonderful, and then when he gets busted open himself, the intensity & overall urgency of the bout kicks up to another gear in lovely fashion. Not to mention the cool visuals it creates. A very early 2022 MOTYC, and I suspect it will stay pretty high up for me till the end of the year. It's a perfect sequel to their first match. ****1/2

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  • paul sosnowski changed the title to [2022-01-05-AEW-Dynamite] Adam Page vs Bryan Danielson
  • 2 weeks later...

This one began at a way brisker physical rate than their first encounter. Danielson was excellent in his heelwork. From the taunting jumping jacks, his aggressive offense, working on the cut when Hangman got busted open, allowing everything to breathe getting the desired reaction he wanted from the crowd, things like that make him one of the best. Easily his best heel performance next to his work with Kofi at WM. Hangman was no slouch pulling here. His being the valiant babyface while keeping up with Bryan from move to move and counter to counter showing that he belongs in this standing. Once Bryan was opened up and the drama started escalating. This turned into an all-out war with a headbutt battle while perfectly blending in false finishes that kept me glued to my television. The conclusion was oh so satisfying with the teasing of the Buckshot Lariat and finally hitting it for the win. What an excellent tv match and for sure a MOTYC to start of the year. *****

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  • 3 months later...

 

Page comes out swinging right away, frustrated that he couldn’t put away Bryan in their previous encounter. Bryan plays mind games early on, doing jumping jacks and evading all of Page’s offense. Page throws himself into a topé suicida, but Danielson evades him again and sends him crashing arm-first into the barricade.

Page gets color after being sent into the steps, and Bryan works away at the cut by grinding it into the side of the stairs, hitting brutal uppercuts, and using those trusty elbow strikes. Danielson’s work on top is phenomenal, as he even makes a point of mocking the judges as Hangman’s being attended to by the doctors.

Bryan gets busted open himself following some gnarly headbutts, and the violence ramps up as Page pulls him into the post multiple times a la Danielson’s legendary battles with Nigel McGuinness. Page gets some sweet, sweet revenge, throwing in a few jumping jacks of his own as the medical staff attends to Bryan.

My biggest issue with this match is with the arm work. I would’ve liked Page’s injury to inhibit his feats of strength a bit more, making them shakier to give a sense of struggle and weight. Instead, he hits a top-rope fallaway slam, catches a dive from Bryan, and hits a Deadeye on the outside with ease, like he hadn’t had his arm worked over for a significant portion of the match.

Hangman goes for the Buckshot, but Bryan collapses and suckers him for a near-fall and a Cross Face attempt. It ends with both battered, neither willing to give an inch, trading headbutts. Page eventually keeps him down long enough to hit the Buckshot and that’s all she wrote.

A lesser version of one of the best matches of 2021, but still great in its own right and very much worthwhile.

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