Daniel Bryan: The WWE's NXT Casualty?

Bryan Danielson can easily be considered a cult icon.  After touring the country, the man known as The American Dragon developed a unique, physical style of offense that includes exciting high-flying maneuvers and never-before-seen submissions. 

Silent yet deadly, Bryan Danielson has gone toe-to-toe with some of the best workers to ever lace up a pair of boots.  As a man who wrestles bigger than his sub-200 pound frame, Bryan Danielson has earned the respect of hundreds of wrestlers, and thousands of fans across the globe (if not more).

By learning from the likes of William Regal and Shawn Michaels during his 10-year journey in pro wrestling, Bryan Danielson has became nothing short of a sensation. 

In a technologically advanced world, where Internet videos have become home to some of the best-kept secrets in life, Bryan Danielson is professional wrestling's go-to guy for a jaw-dropping YouTube highlight reel.

While many mainstream fans are unfamiliar with his work (and there's nothing wrong with that), one can easily be caught up to speed upon learning one of Bryan Danielson's other nicknames.  A nickname in which he truly earned:  The Best in the World.   

Now pardon the WWE while they hit the reset button. 

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Daniel Bryan is a loser.  With the personality of a shrimp's testicle, watching this undersized pissant attempt to cut a promo has become one of the many cruel joys of a machine that has built its empire on keeping outsiders in check (Hoss Funk).

Daniel Bryan's strengths are irrelevant, and if you blink, you will fail to see them quickly highlighted before he is the casualty of yet another squash match. 

Bryan's losses have compounded to the point where he is now 0-7 on a WWE NXT show designed to introduce the next generation of potential WWE Superstars.  

Despite what, on paper, seems to be jobber treatment, Daniel Bryan has actually earned the (kayfabe) respect of the pros enough to become the No. 1 ranked rookie on WWE NXT.  Confused yet? 

Allow me to attempt to explain the WWE's booking of Daniel Bryan from the mindset of a pickup artist.

A few years back, for entertainment purposes, I read a book that claimed to have finally cracked every intricate code to picking up women. 

Through the pages of Neil Strauss' The Game I learned of an entire community of T&A smarks who had come up with their own system (complete with theory and terminology) of picking up women.

Of the many slang terms in this entertaining tour de force of women, the most prominent was the term neg.  A neg, of course, is when a man teases a woman by charmingly making mention of a characteristic, accessory, etc. of hers that plays on her insecurities.

These negs were designed to slowly chip away at the ego of the typical attractive woman, who feels that every guy is trying to hit on her, thus bringing her down to our level. 

If used correctly, negs eventually created the illusion that the hard-to-please, teasing male is the prize to be sought after.  Not the once indomitable, defensive broad. 

Before you go out and try this new tool at your local Hooters, let's put it into perspective.  The WWE is negging Daniel Bryan. 

Once (and still) thought of by many as the best in the world, the WWE's up and down booking of Daniel Bryan is their way of saying:  "We like you, but you had better recognize who's in charge here." 

The key to a neg is to use it correctly.  Subtlety is key. Obnoxiousness is a killer.  Teasing a girl about her laugh is one thing, but if you start going after her weight, she just might offer you a free drink in the form of a cranberry vodka.  In your face.

The WWE is now starting to walk that very fine line with Daniel Bryan.  No longer is Bryan enjoying the subtleties of being booked as the charming underdog who is fighting conquerable forces.  It's getting to the point where he just looks like a loser. 

It's starting to get obnoxious. 

This past week on WWE NXT, the WWE once again placed a glaring spotlight on one of Daniel Bryan's perceived weaknesses.  Matt Striker asked 'Mr. Personality' to cut a promo on a surprise topic in front of a live crowd. 

This entire segment would have been an abject trainwreck had it not been for rising star Wade Barrett, who cut two scintillating promos in front of his home country, making Daniel Bryan look even more minor league. 

Bryan then went on to suffer yet another uninspiring loss to, WWE Superstars mainstay and former trainer, William Regal. 

Of course, Bryan's loss was not before being told by The Miz that he is not a star and couldn't hold David Otunga's jock.

The WWE is beginning to fumble the ball with Daniel Bryan.

It's one thing to infer that Jack Swagger is an undeserving champion.  This is not the burial that many are making it out to be.  The guy is a heel who won the belt in a match where his opposition was still wearing slacks.  Would you respect the intern who took your job if you got fired during your lunch break? 

Did I mention that Jack Swagger is a World Champion?  It also helps that this young, heel World Champion will have a chance to prove himself against a top star at a pay-per-view in about two weeks.

That just sounds like a good story. 

Like a work of art, the object of great storytelling is to paint a mental picture and leave it up to the listener/viewer to interpret the rest for themselves.

With the work of art that is Bryan Danielson, the WWE has scribbled on a mustache, penciled in devil horns, and renamed it Daniel Bryan.

Believe it or not, I almost always give the WWE the benefit of the doubt when it comes to their long-term booking.  I'd have a hard time explaining how I've been a fan for so long if I didn't.

However I must say, as a longtime fan of Bryan Danielson, this whole Daniel Bryan NXT experiment scares the shit out of me.