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#4. "Broken" Matt Hardy returns
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Matt Hardy was one of the veteran WWE wrestlers whose addition to All Elite Wrestling helped cement the company as a new, top-tier organization. Additionally, along with Brodie Lee and Christian Cage, Hardy's debut showed that All Elite Wrestling was a place for wrestlers young and old.
Not only could aspiring indie performers hone their craft, older wrestlers could help live out the last few years of their careers in truly epic fashion.
Prior to joining AEW, Hardy had made a somewhat successful return to WWE with his brother, Jeff. The duo's run as Tag Team Champions was enjoyable, but within weeks it was apparent WWE had no idea what to do with Matt's popular "Broken" gimmick he had created at IMPACT.
WWE tried introducing Hardy as "Woken" Matt, but it was clear that without Hardy's creative control, the gimmick just wasn't working. The moment he appeared in the rafters in AEW, piloting a drone, it was evident that the "Broken" Matt we all knew and loved was finally making his return.
#3. Bryan Danielson goes All Elite
The genius of Bryan Danielson's debut in AEW was how caught off-guard everyone was. On the same night he debuted -- literally less than five minutes before his music hit -- Adam Cole made his first appearance with AEW.
By every right, that would've a major highlight to end the show with -- Cole together again with his former Bullet Club stablemates. Then, an altered version of Danielson's "Ride of the Valkyries" sounded off, and fans lost their minds for the second time that night.
Like Cole and Matt Hardy, Danielson was a veteran wrestler who seemed like he would've chosen to end his career in WWE. He had scaled major heights in the company and could've been very comfortable in the World Title picture for the next few years.
However, Danielson chose to leave as he believed there was nothing left to accomplish in WWE. His decision to become All Elite illustrated just how much respect Danielson had for the company and its product, further legitimitizing AEW as one of the major organizations in the world of pro wrestling.
