An In Story Introduction to the WWE Roster for the First Time Viewer - Part 4

Hoping to get this series finished in time for The Royal Rumble on the 29th. I just finished watching every Rumble match from 1997 until now in preparation, so I'm good and ready. I may do a Rumble preview piece. For anyone who has never seen it, the Rumble is my favorite match of the year - a variation on an over the top rope battle royal where entrants come out every 90 seconds, and the last man standing gets a title shot at Wrestlemania. The only rules for elimination is that a wrestler has to go over the top rope, and both feet must touch the floor. At roughly an hour, and with thirty entrants, there is a chance to tell a tremendous amount of stories all within one match. It's a ton of fun, and if you're thinking of ordering it then this series will help get you primed on the players. You can check out parts 1, 2, and 3 here.

Daniel Bryan (Smackdown) - Daniel Bryan was an independent superstar, an internet sensation, and considered by some to be the best wrestler in the world - but there was tremendous doubt that he could make it in the big leagues of the WWE. He debuted as part of the first class on NXT, and was immediately singled out and hated by some for his independent experience, his vegan lifestyle, and generally being a nice guy - especially by lead WWE announcer Michael Cole and Bryan's NXT 'mentor', The Miz. Since then he's gone on to prove his doubters wrong by winning the US Title from the Miz himself, and then winning Smackdown's Money In The Bank. At first he declared he would cash in his MITB briefcase in the main event at Wrestlemania, being the first to do so, but was urged by The Big Show to cash in whenever the champ was weakest - specifically against the monster Mark Henry. Finally Bryan listened to Show's advice, and just seconds after Big Show beat Mark Henry for the title, Bryan cashed in his contract and did what many once thought impossible - he beat The Big Show to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Daniel Bryan has made it in the big leagues, much to the chagrin of Michael Cole.

But having the title has started to change him. Since winning the belt, Bryan has become like a modern day Gollum who will stop at nothing to keep his precious title - fighting, running, and manipulating. But who can blame him? He's caught between two behemoths in The Big Show and Mark Henry, and his cunning is becoming even more important than his arsenal of submission moves. He is dating AJ, who just told him for the first time the she loves him, only to end up hospitalized later that night after The Big Show accidentally mowed her down at ringside during a title match. AJ is the first woman to ever love Bryan - and while he hasn't said it back yet, he's dedicated keeping his title to her. It remains to be seen just how far the once virtuous Bryan will go to stay the best.

David Otunga (RAW) - A graduate of Harvard Law, Otunga now serves as legal adviser and general minion to Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim General Manager of Raw John Laurinaitis. Never without his bow tie or giant thermos of coffee, Otunga may be the most highly educated and over caffeinated piece of cannon fodder on the roster. Otunga has hitched himself to Laurinaitis' wagon in an effort to carve out a spot of power within the company, but that plan may backfire as his boss is under review for questionable decision making by the board, and will undergo a performance review on Monday courtesy of Chief Operating Officer Triple H - the man Laurinaitis replaced. Come Monday, Otunga may be out of a consulting job and will have to rely on his in ring skills to make a name for himself. For his sake, I hope he finds a new client soon.

Dolph Ziggler (RAW) - Dolph Ziggler loves to be a dick, and he thinks he's good enough to get away with it - no offense. And as number one contender to the WWE title he just may be be, though he's had some help. His business manager and former lover Vickie Guerrero has been guiding his career up the card for years, and her other charge Jack Swagger has recently been acting as some (sometimes unwelcome) muscle for the Zig Zag Man. Ziggler does not lack in confidence or in talent though, and he's convinced that he's the future of the business - and has no problem telling you. He held the World Title for a cup of coffee (less than an episode) due to a technicality last year and he's worked himself back into a title shot by winning matches, running his mouth, and not being afraid to take a shortcut when one is presented - whether he needs it or not. That dubious moral code may bode well for him on Sunday as John Laurinaitis is the special guest referee for his match, and has publicly stated he plans to screw CM Punk out of the title. Twitter may have to get ready for a lot of self congratulatory remarks with the #Heel.

Also, he once got knocked out by Wolverine on RAW, and stole Princess Leia away from Zack Ryder, going so far as to have her go down on him below the camera shot while he taunted Ryder about stealing his ex. Then he broke into Zack's house and knocked him unconscious, after finding the lost evil twin brother of Zack's buddy Scott Stanford and using the twin to frame Scott for beating up Zack's room mate Mike Chiapetta.

No, seriously.

Yes, that Princess Leia.

What can I say, dude's a dick.

Drew McIntyre (Smackdown) - Drew burst on to the scene with incredible fanfare, being anointed 'The Chosen One' by no less than Vince McMahon himself. Drew won the Intercontinental Title and made life miserable for Smackdown General Manager Teddy Long for a few months, but the pressure got to be too much for Drew and he faded into losses and irrelevance. He recently found his way back on to Smackdown for what he hoped would be a fresh start, but then Teddy looked at Drew's contract and was like "we're paying you how much to lose how many matches, Playa?" and demanded results in the ring. Drew choked four matches in a row, and was fired last week. If it sticks, people will mainly miss his sweet theme song more than the man himself. A story of unfulfilled potential.