This is another long one and I really only wanted to watch the Danielson/Aries part of it, but I had some time and went all in. NO FEAR. It didn't really feel like 40+ minutes so straight away we're onto a winner. First half is the elimination part and it was mostly decent stuff. The Colt Cabana/Mark Briscoe pairing to start us off was very Colt Cabana-ish and they did some parity stuff with quasi-WoS exchanges that I didn't have much use for. At one point Mark turned his back and started walking towards the ropes for no reason whatsoever and you're like "oh, they're setting up the next part of their routine. I see" and they did something or other and I really just wanted Homicide to stab someone with a fork instead, ideally Colt Cabana. Cabana has done very little for me during this little trip down memory lane, in case you were wondering. Danielson was spectacular in this entire thing and he was in a surly mood from the start. The few minutes where he took Briscoe's leg apart was particularly great. Aries was a weasel and in no hurry to get involved unless it was necessary, but the exchange with Joe was really good. Joe of course steamrolled folk and especially wanted to steamroll Homicide, who stabbed him in the face many times with a fork not too long ago, and then his surprise elimination came off great. Cabana acting like a full blown doofus after being the one to pin him ruled. We've all known a Colt Cabana and we all know how they'd react to taking a scalp like that. Strutting around like they're untouchable, zero humility, full of hubris, that inflated sense of self-assurance, just totally insufferable. That he was eliminated next was a great payoff, particularly while Mark Nulty on commentary solemnly speaks to "the highs and lows of an elimination match." Very poignant. Aries and Danielson get about 20 minutes to work one on one and shockingly enough it was excellent. I guess Danielson works a little more like the heel than Aires - the actual heel - but I thought it played out fine. Surly Danielson will stretch anybody and their granny so Aries is probably always going to be an underdog in that scenario, whether he's supposed to be likeable or not. Aries tries to match him on the mat and Danielson applies this brutal sort of full nelson hold where both of Aries' arms are key-locked. Aries' offence comes in bursts and all looks really explosive, though the one time he does manage to apply something on the mat it's awesome, as he grabs a crossface and about cranks Danielson's head around a full 180 degrees with a fish hook. He gets his first proper opening after Danielson misses a charge in the corner and tangles himself in the ropes, and while there's never really any specific and prolonged limbwork, there are at least moments where they'll both focus on something. There's Aries going after the leg a bit. At some point Aries gets split open under the chin so Danielson hammers him with uppercuts. Towards the end Aries keeps going for the brainbuster because, you know, it works so why wouldn't that be a viable strategy, while Danielson apparently wants to break Aries' spine. Not extended body part segments, but it doesn't feel haphazard and all fits together nicely. The finish is great. Danielson is just obliterating Aries with some of the meanest body slams you've ever seen, then he clonks him with a roaring elbow and applies a fucking bearhug! I've seen a goodly amount of Bryan Danielson matches where he's twisted someone in knots, but I don't recall him using a bearhug as a viable means of finishing a match. The crowd totally bought it as well, and the way he used it to eventually set up his disgusting Boston Crab variation was amazing. The Danielson/Aries segment is where the money's at, but the first half with all six guys involved was good and as a whole I thought it was booked super well, especially watching it in context and knowing the surrounding storylines.
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