Daniel Bryan and Fandango - the "People Power" stars

How one can relate a ‘goat-face’ high flyer and a ‘ballroom dancer’ with chiselled looks? One is arguably the best technical wrestler in WWE, while the other is more known for his dancing moves than his wrestling prowess. So, how can these two be connected by a common thread? Both these stars are the products of “People Power”. The live audience (the so-called WWE universe) is the catalyst that has made the two a twitter-trend. Daniel Bryan and Fandango shot right to the zenith in an identical fashion – the WWE universe gave their “thumbs-up” to them at the WWE Raw show, the night after WrestleManias 28 and 29, respectively. What was the magic potion that made the people suddenly fall for them in just a night? Let’s have a look at their rise to stardom, individually.

Daniel Bryan

WWE has been a place for tall, well built, big-Herculean body wrestlers to be successful. Rarely do we see short-statured wrestlers make it big in this industry. But Daniel Bryan is an exception. He is barely 5’10″ tall (considering the fact that we find wrestlers in 6′-6’5″ range), but his wrestling moves overshadow this hindrance. The true hardcore fans have known him since his ROH days and there was not a shadow of a doubt about his technical abilities. But many feared that WWE might bury him as he doesn’t fit into the “Superman” category- portraying more of an ordinary man in the street rather than a comic book hero. He made his debut as a participant in the WWE program “NXT”, but failed to win the title of “Breakout Star”. Then he moved to the WWE main roster, wrestling his first match at Summer Slam 2010. WWE made him stick to mid-card matches, winning the US title. He was not looked upon as someone challenging the WWE title. But somewhere down the line, Vince had to accept Daniel’s growing popularity with the older section of fans.

Daniel got his first big break when he won the Money in the Bank briefcase in 2011 – a guaranteed World Heavyweight title shot. He went on to win the Heavyweight title in the TLC pay-per-view. Though he turned heel after his win, he brought a new catchphrase which is now in everybody’s lips. He would lift both his hands up and down rhythmically and continuously shouted “yes”. It didn’t take the audience’s attention at first – though some sections of the crowd caught on with this “Yes” chant. On the whole, the WWE Universe was not ready to accept it as a replacement for the “What” chants, till the WrestleMania.

In WrestleMania 28 at Miami, Daniel faced off against Sheamus for the World Heavyweight title – the first match of the show. There was huge support for the little man as loud “yes” chants from hundreds of Bryan fans filled the Sunlife stadium. Also, there were numerous “yes” placards. The crowd anticipated a breathtaking performance from Bryan’s first WrestleMania appearance. But WWE had other ideas. Sheamus gave his finisher – brogue kick – to pin Bryan in a match that lasted a mere 18 seconds to win the title. This was one of the shortest title matches. WWE may have thought that this 18 seconds loss will push Bryan to the lower rungs, but it totally underestimated the “people power”

Next night on Raw, the crowd vehemently chanted “yes” in support of Bryan and showed their angst to WWE for robbing them of Bryan’s performance. The chants started even before Raw was on air. For every move in a match, every sentence in a segment, the crowd gave their opinion by a “yes” or a “no”. Chants of “We want Bryan” reverberated throughout the arena. The production team did well not to bring out Bryan during the airtime as that would have blown off the roof. They got to see that as Bryan came out during the Dark match after the show and he got one of the biggest pops ever heard. Every kick by Bryan was greeted by a “Yes” and every offense against Bryan was followed by a “No”. Bryan thanked the audience for the support after the match. Outside the arena, people would not stop chanting “yes”. A new star and a new chant was born that night.

Sensing that Bryan’s popularity was growing everyday, and with “yes” shirts selling like pancakes, it may have jeopardized the poster boy, John Cena‘s popularity. So WWE made him ignore the “Yes” chants. Continuing his heel persona, Bryan would shout “no” in response to the crowd’s “yes” chants. But that didn’t dither his popularity one bit and in every arena, he was always greeted by a “yes” chant. The Daniel Bryan “Yes” revolution has not died down even after a year. This “yes” virus went to other wrestling promotions like TNA. With his in-ring wrestling performances becoming better everyday, he is now the most “over-the-top” guy in WWE. Heel or face, he is always a fan favourite. Even the young kids lent their voices in shouting “yes” chants. This goes to show no matter how much WWE tries to make us hate this guy, the WWE universe knows very well how to respect a wrestling talent.

Fandango

Fandango is another star born out of the people’s voice. This character is played by Johnny Curtis, who won the NXT season four competition. He has been in the wrestling fraternity since 1999, seen in various development promotions. He was chosen to play the Ballroom dancer gimmick – Vince’s pet project. Though first brandished as a failed project and was even thought to be scrapped off, Fandango’s success has given Vince a big smile.

Fandango is a fussy and exacting character, especially with respect to how his ring name is to be pronounced. In these moments, he typically signals out his opponents, hails and charms them before suddenly turning hostile because the said individuals can’t pronounce “Fandango” to his extravagant liking. He is always accompanied by a female dance partner (Summer Rae is now his permanent partner), twirling his body, showing some elegant dance moves which immediately strike a connection with the fans. He has a villainous look, taking no step backwards in ridiculing others’ lack of dance skills. Initially, the fans were not interested in this character as he gave the same routine excuses in forfeiting his matches. Chants of “you can’t wrestle” were riled at him. The storyline led him to face Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29.

At the Met life stadium in New Jersey, it was the same old picture of Fandango booed and nobody took it well when he pulled out the upset over Jericho. But the night after – whether it was because the smarky crowd was disappointed over a lacklustre Wresrtlemania show, or they just wanted to enjoy to the hilt irrelevant of whatever is happening in the ring, Fandango suddenly became the cynosure. Before he came to the ring, there was no subtle hint he would be ‘the’ talking point at the end of the night. To be honest, Fandango’s theme song “ChaChaLaLa”, composed by Jim Johnston, was the main attraction rather the man himself.

Everyone started humming the song and created a dance move as well. The fact that Jericho was cheered as he ambushed Fandango during the latter’s match showed that this “once in a lifetime” crowd will dictate its own terms. As the night wore on, people had less in-ring interest and continued humming the song to keep themselves entertained. “Fandangoing” became an overnight sensation. Youtube videos showing people singing the song in stations, bus stops, etc are a treat to watch. The ‘Fandango Train’ has been an internet viral.

So what were the effects of this sensation? The theme song shoot up the UK iTunes chart from 175 to a highest of 11, and the US chart also saw a phenomenal rise. This song suddenly became the downloadable song among music enthusiasts. The supporters of EPL team Everton requested the authorities to play the song after a match. Because of the song, Fandango’s presence was seen in talk shows and music concerts. His twitter followers kept on increasing everyday. He was given more screen time in WWE, and the fact that it is Vince’s pet project, the creative writers were quick to grasp on the ‘Fandango’ revolution.

But if we compare Bryan and Fandango in terms of wrestling skills, the latter is miles behind. He is good on the mic, but he needs to add a few moves to his wrestling bag so that the rub-off his song gave will remain a long time. Fandango is very much over in Europe, as the Brits were the pioneers of his making. But he has not struck a complete bond with the crowd in some parts of USA. Daniel Bryan has been a top notch guy not because of his comical antics, but because his wrestling is among the best in the business. Fandango has got a headstart towards fame by the WWE Universe. Now it is up to him to stay put at this place to be remembered for a long time.