With Adam Page not only overcoming his self doubt but besting Kenny Omega in a match of the year candidate, the Hangman is preparing to test his new found confidence against a challenger far greater than any of us could’ve imagined: The American Dragon; Bryan Danielson.
For the sake of brevity, I will withhold talking about the two year long build to Page’s victory over both external enemies and internal saboteurs. Adam Page was able to overcome these adversities through the aid of his friends, the Dark Order-- the ones who have always been there for him (whether or not he wanted them to be). In recent weeks we have seen a new level of violence from Danielson. What catalyzed this awakening in the Dragon? The very mountain that Adam Page successfully climbed at Full Gear.
Let’s jump back to AEW Grand Slam in Queens, NY. It is Danielson’s first match outside of the WWE in 12 years, and he is face to face against Kenny Omega in a brutal thirty minute draw. During this bout we saw Danielson get pushed to his limits and channel an aggression from deep within that we haven’t seen in over a decade. As previously stated, Danielson was unable to overcome Omega. This is the man who main evented WrestleMania, a grand slam champion, Money in the Bank winner, and on top of all that a ten time SLAMMY award winner. Danielson climbed every mountain in his twenty two year career--but he couldn’t defeat The Cleaner. Adam Page could. For Danielson to redeem himself, the American Dragon had to return.
Winning the World Title Eliminator Tournament was a big accomplishment for Danielson, and an opportunity to prove himself after his previous failure. Yet everyone's favorite Cowboy beat him to the punch. A frustrated Danielson confronts Hangman and The Dark Order on AEW Dynamite, claiming disappointment that Hangman is the champion and not Kenny. Page’s retort sent Danielson into a spiral of brutality we are only just beginning to see.
“If I’m not mistaken I managed to do it in less than 30 minutes.”
Salt in the wound for the man who calls himself the best wrestler in the world. Danielson immediately retorts, criticizing Hangman’s antics during Halloween and immediately bringing up his own accomplishments. That same night we saw Daniel take on Evil Uno, a member of the Dark Order. In this match Daniel brutalized Uno, choosing to win not with his signature running knee, but by stomping Uno’s head into the mat and submitting him-- flexing and mocking him with a sadistic smile on his face. Following the match, Danielson vowed to destroy each member of the Dark Order. One by one, they would fall before him. The next member of the Dark Order on Danielson’s hit list is Colt Cabana. I’m certain we will continue to see his streak of brutality. This is all calculated by the Dragon, psychological warfare designed to get inside the head of Hangman. Leading up to Page’s victory over Omega, he was motivated and supported by his friends. In taking them out, Bryan’s seeks to isolate Hangman, something Kenny and The Elite failed to realize was the key to his defeat.
When Hangman is by himself, Doubt looms heavy over him. Danielson has almost double the Hangman's experience, and he is using the knowledge he has gleaned to target and expose his opponents’ weaknesses. Danielson will chip away at Page’s armor until there is nothing left. After Danielson’s match against Cabana on November 24th, there will be five more members of the Dark Order to “kick their heads in”. And, of course, we have five more weeks of Dynamite before they move to TBS on January 5th.
The new year will be rung in with Danielson desperately trying to recover after being unable to defeat Kenny, and Adam Page’s new found mindset tested to the extreme. Will the Hangman’s confidence hold without the aid of the Dark Order? Or will it collapse against the pressure of the American Dragon?
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