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| Two of the five candidates, atop a cage Photo Credit: WWE.com |
Prior Winners:
2009 - Chris Jericho
2010 - The Miz
2011 - CM Punk
And the nominees are...
Austin Aries - Aries began the year as the X-Division Champion, tasked with salvaging what was once Impact Wrestling's calling card that had fallen into irrelevance thanks to the company's negligence in replacing guys who had "graduated" from it like Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, and Christopher Daniels. It was clear he was too big to be contained within that box, and thankfully, the company realized it as well. We all know he has been blessed with the gift of gab, but where he really shone was in the ring against decidedly non-X-Division wrestlers. Sure, this late year feud with Jeff Hardy hearkens back to those X-days, but he's a seasoned main event guy himself. Impact Wrestling has improved so much in the last year, and a lot of that has to do with Aries' ascension as a bigtime player.
The Big Show - He spent the first part of the year stuck in a rut of being the funny guy who was too comical to be a giant but too big to be a glorified Snitsky. Even though he did have some moments prior to his big reemergence that were worthy of mentioning - his in-ring series with both Mark Henry and Daniel Bryan specifically - it was after he was given a purpose and a chance to lash out against the jolly giant role he had been saddled with where he really rose above the pack to a critical stature that matches his massive frame. As the a hybrid between CM Punk and the world's oldest rebellious teenager outside of the ring and a focused, motivated wrecking ball inside of it, Show held the Smackdown brand captive and was able to pry a decent story out of Sheamus during a year when the Fella became a racist parody of what made him special in the first place. Even now, Show doesn't get the respect he deserves, but right now, he is commanding it with his presence on the show. I'm picking up what he's putting down.
Daniel Bryan - Daniel Bryan doesn't have haters. In my experiences, even his most vocal critics can't help but dig him on some level. So what he's been doing this year wasn't really "proving the haters wrong," but it was more showing everyone that even the pale Vegan indie darling could captivate an audience. The spark was lit WrestleMania weekend in what was his nadir as a character, but he was sowing the seeds beforehand and afterward, he ran with the ball that the fans stole for him. Moving from one failed relationship with AJ Lee into this blossoming, passive-aggressive friendship with Kane has given fans a whole year to latch onto the REAL Best in the World, and he hasn't disappointed. That's not even taking into account what he's done in the ring where he's had classics both on PPV and free TV against opponents as diverse in profile as CM Punk, John Cena, and Sheamus down to Damien Sandow and the Prime Time Players. Anyone still doubting whether Bryan can bring it on all levels was in a coma in 2012. That's the only explanation.
Kevin Steen - Ring of Honor has not had a good 2012. They've rebounded nicely at the end, but the landscape hasn't been to bright outside of one guy, really. Kevin Steen tore through 2012 as an iconoclast and turned in some of the best performances in a company that needed them badly. He was the guy that the fans wanted to save them from the tyranny of an American Wolf-saturated main event scene. He spat in the face of Jim Cornette, and he seized a belt that was probably one or two years too late getting around his waist to carry it with maximum efficacy. That's not even getting into his dalliances into Chikara and his status as Head BAMF in Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. Mr. Steen has had one fine 2012 if you ask me.
Rachel Summerlyn - Anarchy Championship Wrestling is its own ecosystem, and there are a lot of star performers there, including the astoundingly amazing ACH. However, there's only one Queen of the Jungle. Her name is Rachel Summerlyn. In 2012, she was poison-kissed by a demonic alter-ego of her best friend. She was thrown off a balcony. She joined forces with her mortal enemy to take on an annoying menace to her Joshis. When the demons were exercised out of her best friend, she still had to feud with her because of resentment and anger. Then, finally, she was hand-picked to replace one of her mentors in a tournament where she won and finally laid claim to the top prize in her company. She did all of the above with style, ferocity, and passion. To anyone who doubts her belonging here, do yourself a favor and actually watch ACW from this past year. If you're not impressed, then I don't know what to say.
