Over the past year or so, all elite wrestling has been on the mission of “restoring the senses.” That feeling cannot be fully explained by many people. If you ask AEW fans what’s closest to what their emotions are, they’re likely referring to the 2021 pay-per-view. Announced as one of the best shows in AEW history, some of the best 2021 remembers best with the iconic ending where both Adam Cole and Bryan Danielson arrived.
For context, in 2021, Danielson evented the second WrestleMania in the main. Both he and Edge challenged the Rome reign at the WWE Universal Championship, losing to reign in the title-to-career match of “WWE Smackdown” on April 30, 2021. Some people suspected that a man formerly known as Daniel Bryan would be a little away from WWE as he was one of the few shining stars during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Danielson’s AEW debut reportedly had been in work for some time, and the former WWE champion chose not to sign a new contract despite being offered many perks from Vince McMahon to stay in WWE, including the opportunity to work for New Japan Pro Wrestling. This means that many people gathered at the Hoffman Estate. Illinois saw everything in 2021 to see “American Dragon” fly again, but the fact that on September 5, 2021 he wasn’t entirely at the center of attention has rubbed some fans the wrong way.
Adam Cole caught everyone off guard
For context, Adam Cole wasn’t on anyone’s radar by the time everything in 2021 came. In fact, he was involved in the final “WWE NXT” acquisition event, NXT Takeover 36 on August 22nd, two weeks before every week, wrestling Kyle O’Reilly, who felt like a natural conclusion to his time with “NXT.” This led many to believe he would soon move to the main roster, but his contract quietly expired, leading to him reaching before “American Dragon.”
At the time, some fans believed that Cole would appear before Danielson actually masked the arrival of the former WWE champion. The fact that too many moving parts, the extremely long show that exhausted fans by the end of the night, and the fact that Minor Suzuki and Ruby Soho made their first AEW appearance in the night made two debuts that fell completely to Wayside considering the end of the show.
Although some fans were not completely satisfied with the entire segment, the men involved were very pleased with how things turned out. Cole said in a recent interview that his AEW debut was one of the coolest moments of his entire career. Meanwhile, Danielson claimed that the last time he felt nervous like in 2021 was when he announced in 2018 that he had retired before WrestleMania 34.
Surprisingly, outside of the eight-man tag team match in the October 2021 edition of “AEW Dynamite,” Cole and Danielson never faced off in AEW singles match. However, if his serious neck problems heal in the next few years, Danielson could return to the ring.
