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Big Show Needs A Big Break In Feud With Daniel Bryan

Posted: Feb 13th 2012 By: CMBurnham

It's not easy when many events make you out to be something of a laughing stock. Especially when you're one of the largest athletes in the world.

The Big Show is known for many things. Some good (He's the only person to hold the WCW, WWF/WWE & ECW World Titles), more bad (He's lost to a sumo wrestler and a boxer at WrestleMania and his last World title reign only lasted 45 seconds). Recently, he's been trying to deal with what he insists was an accident. As part of a match against WWE Smackdown World Champion Daniel Bryan, Big Show collided with Bryan's girlfriend A. J., resulting in her having to spend time in the hospital and being forced to wear a neck brace due to some soft tissue damage.

Bryan holds Show responsible and seems to believe that the collision was intentional. Show insists that it was all an accident. The FACTS seem to be on Show's side as Bryan's actions since winning the World Title have been decidedly cowardly. He's a small man in a big man's world and his championship win has certainly caused his ego to outsize his body at this point.

Both Bryan and the Big Show made impacts this past week as the WWE rolled through Tulsa. On Monday, Show received a non-title match against Bryan on RAW from Oklahoma City. And once again, A. J.'s presence at ringside played a significant factor. Show kicked Bryan off the ring apron and exited the ring to pursue him. A. J. then interceded, trying to get Show to back off of Bryan. This let Bryan slip behind and clip Show. Show recovered and tried to charge into Bryan, but Bryan sidestepped and once again, there was near-disaster as Show and A. J. almost collided. But the look on Bryan's face didn't reveal concern so much as opportunity as he realised that he could hide behind A. J. and Show wouldn't come after him. So he used A. J. as a human shield and went back up the ramp, berating Big Show for once again trying to hurt A. J. all the while getting counted out and avoiding having to face the giant athlete again.

Things were a little different the next night as Show and Bryan was taped in Tulsa. Big Show joined Sheamus, Wade Barrett and WWE Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes in the ring during the opening of the show as they were all playing a verbal game of "Quien es mas macho?" As 3 of the 4 men were in the Smackdown Elimination Chamber, tempers quickly flared. Show told Sheamus he respected him and would gladly slap Rhodes' mouth shut. He proposed the idea of a Big Show/Sheamus match at WrestleMania (since Sheamus won the Royal Rumble) and said THAT would be a match worthy of a main event. Rhodes said that Big Show was like a reverse Undertaker and the question was always who he was going to lose to this year. Eventually things broke down into a brawl with Show and Sheamus clearing the ring. In the commercial break, General Manager Teddy Long ordered a match involving these 4 men.

That match saw Sheamus & Big Show team up against Rhodes & Barrett. The Rhodes/Barrett team had already suffered defeat the night before against two of the other men in the Smackdown Elimination Chamber match, The Great Kahli & Randy Orton. They were certainly looking for revenge and isolated Big Show, working him over for most of the match. When the hot tag was finally made, it appeared that Cody Rhodes had something planned for Sheamus, but he never got the opportunity to enact it as Big Show speared Rhodes and Sheamus hit the Brogue kick on Barrett for the win.

That wasn't the last we saw of Big Show, although if Daniel Bryan had had his way, it might have been. Bryan tried to get out of his match with Randy Orton in the main event after coming to the rescue of A. J. again. This time, it wasn't Big Show attacking her, but Michael Cole, who questioned her in the ring about her injury, her presence at ringside and her self-esteem. Bryan was outraged at Cole's remarks and tried to get Teddy Long to agree to let him have a personal day so he could get A. J. away from the arena and stop the attack. But again, this all seemed to be a ploy to hide behind A. J. and avoid a match with a top calibre opponent and Long wouldn't buy it, saying that if Bryan tried to leave the building before the main event, he would be stripped of the World Title.

So with Bryan's back to the wall and no A. J. to hide behind (as Long had offered to provide her transportation away from the arena since Bryan was "concerned"), it certainly came as no help to have the Big Show at ringside scouting the match and providing additional colour commentary. As usual, Bryan's tactics didn't seem to be able to overcome "The Apex Predator" and realising that, Bryan was once again willing to settle for a countout loss. He went outside to grab his belt, but Big Show was having none of that, cutting Bryan off and throwing him back in the ring. But to both men's surprise (and Bryan's glee), that earned a DQ on Orton from referee Scott Armstrong. This decision didn't sit well with Orton, who went outside to confront Show. A big brawl erupted outside the ring, culminating with Show throwing Orton back in the ring and delivering a thunderous chokeslam.

This was all unfortunate for Orton as he still had a Dark Match Streetfight against Wade Barrett and after the brutal beating from the Big Show, he didn't look to be in shape to do this. But to his credit, Orton held his own against Barrett until Daniel Bryan ran down to stick his nose in (and could not be DQed, due to the stipulation of the match). This brought the Big Show back out, who quickly chokeslammed Bryan, allowing Orton to hit the RKO on Barrett for the win. After the match, Show tried to patch things up between himself and Orton and it appeared that Orton was willing, but out of nowhere, another RKO was delivered, this time to The Big Show and he was left laying in the ring.

It's not like Big Show is intentionally trying to do the wrong thing. But as the old saying goes, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." At this point, it appears the only way that Show might redeem himself and end this feud is to win the Elimination Chamber match and become Smackdown World Champion one more time. His chances are 1 in 6 and he has no idea when he will be entering the match. Certainly he would love to get his hands on Bryan in the course of the match. But if he lets his rage take his focus away from the other 4 men in the match, it will once again cost him the redemption he so desperately needs.