Opinions

Who the Heck is Danhausen?

The High Spot

 

Last night, a mysterious man was pulled from underneath the ring by Adam Cole during the main event of Dynamite. This man was none other than the very nice, very evil one himself — Danhausen.

For those who already know who Danhausen is, none of what I will write in this article will be a surprise to you. For those who are generally curious about AEW’s latest acquisition — welcome! Please don’t curse.

However, for those who complained on social media that  Danhausen is a Darby Allin clone, or posted the annoying “WHO?” meme, I will ask you nicely to be quiet. The grown-ups are talking now, and we understand that pro wrestling exists beyond the WWE Universe.

Anyway, without further adieu, who (or what) exactly is Danhausen?

 

Danhausen is a Viral Internet Sensation

Almost everything great about professional wrestling started in the Indies. This is the simple truth when you break it down. Even your most favorite mainstream wrestlers (WWE or AEW) likely had their start on the Independent Wrestling scene.

Danhausen is no different.

His YouTube Channel, Love That Danhausen, is full of goodies for fans of wrestling, gaming, and comic books. On occasion, you’ll even see other AEW stars appear in his vlog.

His “war” with Austin and Colten Gunn (whom he refers to as the “Ass Boys”) is as McMahon would put it, “such good sh*t”.  His vlog has spiked his popularity, and has spurned interviews with the likes of Chris Jericho and Renee Paquette (to name a few).

https://www.youtube.com/c/LoveThatDanhausen/videos

One of the great parts of AEW is wrestler vlogs. Not everyone has them, but ones that do offer a glimpse into what life is like for an AEW talent.

Ethan Page, Sammy Guevara, Allie “The Bunny”, Penelope Ford, and the O.G., Being the Elite, all have great vlogs worth your YouTube sub. Danhausen has been known to appear on Ethan Page’s vlog on multiple occasions, and has worked with Wrestling With Wregret’s Brian Zane.

 

His Character is a Monster Mash-Up of 80’s Horror Comedy and Classic Horror Films

In a very recent interview with Fangoria.com, Danhausen explains the inspiration for his character. It’s not a tortured soul like Darby Allin or Bray Wyatt, nor is it a goofy cult like The Dark Order. 

Danhausen’s inspirations lie in the 80s/90s comedy horror genre, but with an added layer of the classics. Think Evil Dead and Vampire’s Kiss crossed with Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. 

Hence the “very nice, very evil” phrase.

You’ll never see Danhausen spit up a pint of blood while setting his opponents on fire, but you might see him correcting Jon Moxley on his foul language (like last week) while adorning his Exorcist-inspired face paint.

His face paint was directly inspired by the main antagonist in The Exorcist movies, specifically, Pazuzu, when his face is fully revealed. As Fangoria writers put it, Danhausen is “The pro wrestling equivalent of Conan O’Brien possessed by a demon.”

 

He Sold the Most Merchandise for Pro Wrestling Tees in 2021

Yeah, he’s that popular with the Indies crowd. Soon enough, he will likely sit at the top of AEW’s merchandise sales.

Just take a peek at his page of t-shirts. How could you not want one of these?

https://www.prowrestlingtees.com/wrestler-t-shirts/danhausen.html

Whether you are an instant fan or not, the proof is in the pudding. This dude can move merch, and his fan base (and sales) is only slated to grow as he appears more and more on Dynamite.

Go buy his shirt already! You can help him become “very rich, very evil”…

 

He Worked Primarily for Ring of Honor

While Danhuasen is solid in the ring, his strengths come in the form of his promo. Mainly, interviews. Perhaps the fact that he would carry a jar of teeth with him to matches didn’t help his in-ring aspirations…

Either way, Danhausen’s early popularity landed him a ROH contract a few years ago, and now that Ring of Honor is unfortunately on hiatus, this left the fan favorite without a home.

An eventual interview with Tony Khan is going to be gold. Until then, here is some of his work in Ring of Honor by way of Wrestling With Wregret.

 

He is Not a Leader, Nor a Follower

Fantasy bookers may want to pair him with Darby Allin and Sting. Some will think he could be the new leader of The Dark Order.

I can say (at least now) that none of those are likely to happen. Danhausen is not a follower, nor a leader — he is just Danhausen.

He’s the equivalent of the comic relief Santino Marella brought — but actually funny, and not an awful stereotyped Italian with an terrible accent. Unlike Marella and McMahon, culture does play a bit of a part of Danhausen’s entire make-up.

If you don’t understand, nor appreciate, the wonders of horror movies through the decades, a lot of Danhausen’s schtick may be lost on you. That doesn’t mean there isn’t time for you, though!

Watching the aforementioned horror movies will help see into just what Danhausen is all about.

 

What’s Next for Danhuasen?

All the monies.

But in all reality, expect a lot of interviews with fellow AEW wrestlers to setup larger storylines. If I had to predict Danhausen’s first official feud (he can wrestle, but currently recovering from a leg injury), it would be with Jeff Parker and Matt Lee of 2.0.

However, if TK decides to bring his internet feud with Billy Gunn and the “Ass Boys” to AEW — it would be welcomed by most fans. A short video on this feud can be found at the end of the article.

I can also see a scenario where Danhausen tries to burn the FTW Championship because of it’s foul meaning…

Either way, Danhausen has arrived! He is very nice, very evil, and now very All Elite.

-JDB

Social media accounts and mail I rarely ever check:

Twitter: @theabachalypse
Hate Mail: abachalypse@yahoo.com