I have not watched most of these matches in years, but the entire Danielson vs. McGuinness saga is up there as one of my favorite rivalries ever, if not the favorite. Figured it would be a very good time to revisit these in preparation for their AEW meeting!
Weekend of Champions - Night 2
This is for both Bryan's World Championship & Nigel's Pure Championship. Which means it's contested under the Pure rules. The first chapter in a legendary rivalry, and it is an excellent match. The way they wrestle with the Pure rules & the way it builds to the exciting, fantastic finishing gear - it's just brilliant. All the hold exchanges are awesome. Bryan's cravate-control is terrific & I love how it tied into the Pure rules with it forcing Nigel to use a rope break. Same goes with Nigel baiting Bryan into punching him with closed fists, just brilliant stuff. Perfect usage of the Pure rules. I also usually always find Nigel's armwork very compelling & there's plenty of that here - he is great with it, and Dragon's selling is also great until the very end. Watching this it is clear that there is some special chemistry in there right from their first singles match on. ****1/2
Generation Now
Coming off of their first match at Weekend of Champions, this rematch is for Bryan's World Championship since Nigel did beat him via count-out in that said previous match. I do think that their first match is a tad bit better, but man this thing rules so much as well. The competitive energy is just off the charts with the match feeling like a constant cock-fight with Bryan & Nigel trying to prove to one another that they truly are the best in the world. The match is compelling wrestling from bell-to-bell with the action beautifully building towards the end. Awesome, creative finish as well to boot. Terrific 2nd match in their rivalry. ****1/4
Unified
For both of their titles, hence the name of the event. It's the famous one. It's a classic. They once again make beautiful use of the Pure ruleset & it builds the match up so nicely to the incredible climax that it reaches in the end. I will say that having watched both of the matches on the same day, the battle over the ropebreaks isn't quite as compelling here as it is in their Weekend of Champions match, but it's still really good, and as mentioned, the peak of this match is simply incredible. The famous ringpost-spot is sickening, but it absolutely makes the match as it leads to fantastic drama in the finishing stages. Nigel rising up like a zombie, coming back & hitting that brutal rebound lariat is a thing of beauty in all of its glory prowres violence. The finish with Dragon completely brutalizing Nigel with his signature elbows is visually stunning as well. After this viewing, I am not quite feeling the full five on this one, but it's still an undeniable classic in my eyes without a doubt. ****3/4
Epic Encounter II
The finale of their 2006 saga, 2-out-of-3 falls for Bryan's World Championship. It's a one hour draw, so a real long boy. The first fall is alright. My favorite parts were in the very beginning with Bryan insisting on using the headlock. Good crowd engagement there, and as a someone who loves his PWG match vs. Claudio from this same year, I really enjoyed that. Other than that, it's indeed #veryalright. Solid wrestling, but without much of a catch & it doesn't have the same intensity Danielson vs. McGuinness usually does. It is understandable given that they are still gonna be wrestling for another 35 minutes, but it doesn't help make it any more interesting. The 2nd fall is better. Bryan is pretty awesome doing work on top, methodically dominating Nigel & in a clear highlight he even busts Nigel's nose open early on with a nasty strike. Good shit. He also continues with the headlock stuff and it's amusing. The final fall before they hit the time limit draw is alright. Kind of like what I said about the first fall: solid wrestling (duh), but just doesn't have a hook or something to truly catch you. Overall it is a match worth watching if you're into Danielson and/or McGuinness, but it is definitely one of their weakest matches. It's still (obviously) extremely solid though as there's enough really good moments in there, such as the headlock stuff or Bryan busting Nigel's nose open & all the other callbacks to their previous 3 meetings, but it's not something I ever really feel like re-watching. ***
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