Daniel Bryan Joins the Wyatt Family: Did WWE Bury Its Hottest Superstar?By Contel Bradford| January 7, 2014 WWE Blogs If you were one of those fans who thought Daniel Bryan might somehow come to his senses over the past week, by now you probably know that was merely wishful thinking. The final Monday Night Raw of 2013 ended with what looked to be Daniel Bryan caving in and finally joining the Wyatt Family. On the first episode of 2014, our suspicions were confirmed when Bryan appeared as the official newest member of Bray’s creepy cult. This week’s Raw saw the Wyatt Family – Daniel Bryan, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan – teaming up in a losing effort against Rey Mysterio and the Uso Brothers. Although he seemed hesitant, Bryan physically took it to both Rey and one of the Usos during the match, proving that for now, at least, he’s willing to do the evil bidding of Bray and the maniacal Wyatts. Those who held out a ray of hope weren’t necessarily wrong for their optimism. After all, just recently, Daniel Bryan was abducted by the Wyatts one week, only to return the next and resume to seamlessly kicking their asses without missing a beat. Bray continued to apply the pressure, but after a while, it seemed like he had given up and grew content with showing Bryan the error of ways through torment and punishment. Somewhere along the line, he was convinced that joining this clan of grizzly, backwood psychos was far more productive than resisting. Reactions, Overreactions, and Conspiracies The reaction to Daniel Bryan joining the Wyatts has been more mixed than any angle I’ve seen in quite some time. For me, that’s a mouthful considering how the IWC overacts to virtually every angle, match, and promo every week. Some, Yours Truly included, feel it’s a wise move with tons of potential behind it. Not only does he fit right in with the weird beard and naturally unsettling facial features, Bryan was sort of lost in the shuffle after failing to recapture the WWE Championship on multiple occasions. Others, however, absolutely loath the idea. These people believe that being lumped into the Wyatts is akin to a demotion, dropped further into the depths of midcard hell. You see, the Authority storyline has crudely rubbed members of the IWC in the wrong direction, particularly fans who thought he got the short end of the stick coming out of it. What started out so promising with a championship victory at Summer Slam resulted in a brief title run and being dropped from the angle all together in favor of John Cena, WWE’s so-called Golden Boy, who stepped up to feud with Randy Orton. Then you’ve got your conspiracy theorists. Yeah. These are wrestling fans who believe the real-life Authority – Triple H and/or Vince McMahon, executed this strategy to purposely halt Daniel Bryan’s white hot momentum. Why? To slowly but surely drown out the maniacal “YES!” chants. To silence the spirited call of “DANIEL BRYAN” that started to ring out during matches between other superstars. Some have gone as far to say that Vince is a control freak who doesn’t want another guy on the roster to achieve Rock or Hogan status and grow bigger than the brand itself. Somewhere wedged between the two are fans who plain have no faith in the WWE. They’re leaning towards creative botching the angle to the point of Bryan losing credibility and his moment of near revolutionary “overness” being a distant memory. Instead of being catapulted back into the title picture, he takes a backseat to the likes of the returning Batista, John Cena, and Sheamus whenever he boots back up. These fans will cite the Miz, Ryback, Dolph Ziggler and how their promising pushes came to an abrupt halt. Follow the Bearded Buzzard Like it or not, Daniel Bryan is in the Wyatt clan. He’s even got a navy blue mechanics getup straight from a young Erick Rowan’s closet to prove it. Will it last through the Royal Rumble and up to Wrestlemania? That remains to be seen. Instead of moaning and trying to figure out the motives, I say we sit back and watch it all unfold. Could play out in epic fashion. What do you say?
