Well, well folks, another Mania in the books and I have to say I am pleasantly surprised. With only 4 major beefs with the show, this might have been the best Wrestlemania, for sure the most surprising in terms of how good it was compared to how it looked on paper, in a long time. I am so glad to report that Kaedon was 100% wrong about how this Wrestlemania was going to tank. Now, a little about my yearly Mania ritual.
I…am a cheap bastard. I haven’t bought a new game system since PS1, I bought my car for 450 dollars, and if I get new clothes, they are gifts from friends and family. BUT, when it comes to Wrestlemania, all of that goes out the fuckin window. Well after I get to the bar where I watch the PPV for FREE. I sat down and ordered some appetizers and pounded that and a few beers before my friends started trickling in. I bought them a round of drinks before the show started. My friend Matt is pretty much a degenerate gambler. He dropped a few hundred bucks on the final 4 the day before and he was paying up on a debt he owed me. But he still wanted to gamble, like we usually do, on the outcomes of the matches. As we got into the PPV we all ordered a pub burger. After all was said and done; drinks, bets, food, I think I spent almost 50 bucks in 4 hours. But it was money well spent.
MITB Ladder Match
I took CM Punk or MVP to win because someone else called Christian (the obvious favorite) and let the rest of us pick 2 guys against his one. Boy was I lucky. What I loved about this match was the fact that everyone played to their strengths and no one tried to do something they couldn’t do. BTW, who else noticed the old school “Belfast Bruiser†jacket Finlay wore? Even that waste of space Mark Henry complimented the match. That WSS onto the ladder looked painful as hell. And speaking of ladders, I think this match was the most innovative MITB match ever. Aside from the insane, what I think was a real suicide dive from Shelton, these guys pulled out all of the stops trying to use ladders in some way in this match. Kofi had a great spot where he climbed straight up the ladder, Punk and Christian had the finishers spot on the parallel ladder, Shelton, once again, set the standard for the match by using three ladders at once! It’s fucking nuts. There were only two really glaring botches in the match, one being the Punk/Christian thing and then Shelton/MVP messing up the powerbomb spot. Other than that, this shit was flawless. I think the best part of the match was the theatrics employed. Kofi and Punk doing the “Me, you, suicide dive?†or the stepladder thing with Hornswaggle. That kinda shit made this match so good. And then we can talk about the finish. For a second I thought Kane was going to win the fuckin thing. Oh, the 3rd mess up was that botched chokeslam. Punk gets his leg caught much like I think Jericho did last year but somehow he comes back to win after kicking the big red machine off the ladder. Truly a surprise, and a nice sensical one at that.
Winner: CM Punk
Match Rating: ****
Ok, here comes major problem one with this PPV. Why the fuck did the WWE let this long haired, drug addicted, probably hep c havin asshole named Kid Rock take up precious little time on this show to trot out his bullshit music that NO ONE responded to? I mean if you want to have him play the divas to the ring, great, but you didn’t need to have him on for what, 15 minutes? And what COULD YOU HAVE SHOWN!? 4 of the hardest workers in the WWE. 3 of them are the best they have and the other is the Miz. Im coming around on him but I will NOT put him in the category of best of anything unless its hard work or being annoying. I wanted to see this match SO BAD, and I’m sure I will but what the fuck WWE, why build this up so much and then just go hudda hudda pbbbbbbbbbbtttttttt all over it?
Divas Battle Royal
This was what it was. I wish we could have seen more of the past divas but the ending made up for it. It was fucking hilarious.
Winner: SantinA(o) Marella
Match Rating: **1/2
Chris Jericho vs. The Legends w/ Ric Flair (Ricky “The Dragon†Steamboat, “Superfly†Jimmy Snuka, and “Rowdy†Roddy Piper)
Without a doubt, the match I had the lowest expectations for. And thank god, they did what was necessary. They, once again, played to everyone’s strengths and tried hard to cover up everyone’s weaknesses. I thought for sure that Piper was going to be the only one in game shape. Boy was I wrong. Ricky Steamboat came out and lit shit the fuck up. I was always under the impression that Steamboat’s back was hanging on by a thread, but after watching that shit, I guess not. The Dragon and Jericho made this match. Y2J sold like a motherfucker for everyone, and Steamboat had as much fire as anyone I’ve ever seen. But, in the end, Jericho hits a codebreaker on Ricky and gets the win.
Winner: Chris Jericho
Match Rating: ***
After the match, Jericho calls in Flair who obliges and gets beat down. He then calls out Mickey Rourke who hams it up but gets in the ring. I was kind of hoping Frankie S would have torn Jericho a new one, but alas Rourke got in, and laid out Jericho with one left cross. I guess Jericho has a glass jaw.
Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy (Extreme Rules)
I have to disagree with what I heard my esteemed colleague Soulpower said about this match. If he said it about MITB, I’d agree but this match DID have psychology and wasn’t just a spot fest. This was a match about vengeance, so you don’t necessarily go for the cover when a guy is down or do other things that you’d do in a regular match. This match was 100% better than the garbage build up for it. In fact, the only time the build up looked good was in the highlight package for it. Jeff Hardy comes out the aggressor to start and Matt Hardy plays chickenshit. BTB, who decided to give Matt tights? I guess it’s a good way to make him less of a face because for this whole good guy career he’s been in pants, but we will see. This guy sitting next to me named Pat said it best “This is the Hardy’s dream come true†and he was probably right. I can guarantee those two have thought over and over again, and talked about “Dude what if we had a match at Wrestlemania?†But the psychology of this match was there. Matt was the cold, calculating heel and Jeff was his usual balls out, go for it all self, only this time with a focused purpose. Early in the match Jeff went for the whisper in the wind which was blocked with a steel chair shot up his ass almost. What made this a good hardcore match was it wasn’t silly like we are accustomed to in the WWE. It’s good to see a nice change of pace. When matches like this and Edge/Foley come along, its something special. There were no bowling balls to the testicles, there was no hopping in a golf cart and driving away, this was just two guys who wanted at each other in the worst way. The only thing that came close to a comedy spot was the old garbage can over the head thing. Sadly, there was no blood in the match. Well not intentional anyway. Who else thinks Matt needed staples in his head after cracking it on the corner of the ringsteps? OUCH!
Jeff took over from here adding a nasty ass chair shot into the mix. Is it me or did almost everything, from chops to chairshots seem louder? I think they hooked up a few more mics for effect. I didn’t quite get the double table thing. If he was on top, Id get it, but in the middle? Really? Jeff then sends his bother into the ring and follows, but not before pulling out not one, but TWO ladders. One was 8ft, the other 12ft. I guarantee Jeff Hardy saw what Shelton did and was like “Oh yeah fucker? TOP THIS!†Jeff Hardy signals for the end and busts out a leapfrog leg drop but MISSES! Once again Jeff takes one too many risks. Even when he’s overcome with rage, he takes the highest risks. Now, here’s my question, did Jeff Hardy break his spine? Because if he didn’t, he’s got a rubber one. Seriously, that was fucking insane. Soulpower, this was not a spotfest, it was what the older vets called “controlled hardcore†like Terry Funk used to do and Mick Foley DOES. And then, to seal it all, the sickest cutter move I have ever seen as Matt Hardy put a chair around Jeff’s neck, opened it up, and WHAM nailed the TOF. Holy balls.
Winner: Matt Hardy
Match Rating: ****1/2
Rey Mysterio vs. JBL for the Intercontinental Title
Ok, first of all, best Rey costume ever. Mysterio even took the time to dye the peach fuzz on his head green. Just great stuff. Before the match even begins, JBL brutally kicks Rey Rey right in the head. I think he might have been trying to bust the little man open for effect. Anyway, Rey is asked if he wants to fight, he says yes, and the match starts. JBL gets caught off guard, gets a 619 and a Mexican River Plunge and that’s it!
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Match Rating: *** (yeah I know it may be over rated in most minds, but that shit was entertaining as hell)
After the match, JBL utters two words….I QUIT!!! Bwahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhahahahaha. LOOOOOOOSER!!! People at the bar I was at were giving him “the chopâ€
The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
For the first time, ever I think, The Undertaker was outdone before he even came out. That entrance was fucking awesome from HBK. In classic HBK fashion, he descended from the rafters wearing all white to a choir of chants a la Taker. This, I knew, was going to be a masterpiece. As JR once said about a different match, “this is Rembrandt and Picasso painting on the same canvasâ€. It was great how HBK did the small annoying heel stick and move thing. Shawn even tried to a possum ploy by holding his leg after a second rope leapfrog over Undertaker, who fell right into HBKs trap. Shawn even brought back his dreaded inverted figure 4 and slapped it on Taker. I love that move. Now, a lot of people are saying the match went to slow. Did you come in expecting this shit to be an x-division match? Or even the pace of Matt/Jeff? If so, you’re a moron. There are two memorable moments in this match for me. The first one, was clearly a REAL injury. Shawn Michaels went for his trademark top rope moonsault to the outside. Now I, like most other people, expected him to hit it. What did Taker do? He just moved to the side and THREW MICHAELS DOWN HARDER. Jesus Christ. And while he was down and Taker was playing to the crowd, I distinctly remember the ref getting down and popping HBKs dislocated shoulder back into place. Thankfully, I’ve never had to experience it, but from what I have heard, its no fuckin picnic. I think when the ref got down and asked HBK “Do you want to stop†it was more than just in a kayfabe sense. The next one came shortly after when Undertaker went for his patented suicide dive over the top rope and HBK pulled a dummy camera man into the path. Taker HAD TO have cracked his head. The way he was coming down, no way he didn’t. And man who else liked the CRUNCH sound that happened when the two collided? Oh man. That’s the kind of shit that makes matches better. The little things. Little sounds, little moves etc.
But the big story of the match, of course, were all of the false finishes. Now, there was someone on the forum who basically shit all over the match. The Dark Knight will deny this up and down, but he did. My favorite quote was “Any two guys can kick out of the others finishers.†Hey, guess what, that’s not what its about. It’s about doing the move at the right time in the right way to make people think its over. There were people in the bar around me who thought the match was over after HBK went down with the MONSTER of a chokeslam. Why? Because he SOLD IT TO PERFECTION. And that’s what made the match so great, especially this match. These guys pulled out all the stops. Chokeslam, Last Ride, Superkicks, Demons Gate, Flying Elbows, everything each other had. Remember how I told you I was placing little bets on these matches? I, for fun, took my friend Matt up on this match. I took HBK. Silly, I know, but its only a buck, who cares? I remember distinctly there were a few times during the match where I was handing over my money to my friend Matt and HBK would kick out. There were a few times he’d hand his money over to me, and UP comes Taker. The patrons of the bar were literally throwing shit up in the air when they thought their guy had won. And that’s how you know you have a great match. The fan reaction. Oh yeah, Taker won!
Winner: The Undertaker
Match Rating: *****
Edge vs. The Big Show vs. John Cena for the World Heavyweight Title
At this point I turned to Matt and Pat and said “there is no way in hell this match, or any other match can follow what we just saw.†And I was right, it wasn’t better, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad match. I will say this again, I think the guys in all of the matches sat in back, watched what came before them and said “Ok fuck it, were gonna out do them.†John Cena did a rocker dropper from the top rope TO THE FLOOR. Ok, you’re the bankroll of the company and you are basically jumping ass first onto the floor? Hey Trips, WATCH THAT!!! We also got to see the old school giant in the ropes spot. But instead of looking helpless like Andre and Khali do, The Big Show was like “HEY TIM (or whoever was the ref) GET ME OUT OF HERE!†I lmao’d at that. Chavo even got involved in the match when he tripped up John Cena. After that, Cena gave him the sigh “Attitude Adjustment on the floor. Much like the last match, the outcome was relatively obvious but the false finishes covered it up quite nicely. I loved how Edge took out Big Show on the outside. It was clearly an over the top kinda thing that has to be done to take out a giant. I also loved when Edge speared Vickie (as bad as it looked) because, well FUCK Vickie. Cena locks in the STFU and we get that overused “almost gonna tap until the 3rd guy stops it†spot. It was nice when it was used the first 150 times back around WM 20 and in the subsequent rematches and other times that was necessary. They got me back though where Show pushed Cena off the top rope right into a spear from Edge. The end came with Cena trying to F-U (Yeah fuck it, Im calling it that still) both Edge and Show, but Edge fell off. Cena then F-U’d Edge onto Show and gets the win.
Winner: John Cena
Match Rating: ***1/2
HHH vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Title
We saw the evolution of something you used to se a lot back in the 90s and 80s in wrestling. Back in the day, two guys who wanted to end it quick would go for their finishers but always miss. Not here. Here, a little over a minute into the match Randy Orton hits the RKO. Shit! And Randy, like a good little heel, can’t leave well enough alone. It’s almost never enough for a heel to win, noooooooooo he’s got to put the exclamation point on it. Orton goes for the punt of doom (which I like) but misses and HHH hits a pedigree. Are you fucking me? My friends and I are like, wtf? We knew it wasn’t over but we were like “wow!â€. HHH, to his credit, fell right down and sold the RKO, as he should have. After this the match got a whole lot more slow and methodical. Orton took a bump into the steps and HHH took his “Ric Flair/HBK bump†over the guard rail out on the floor. Now back in the ring, Orton applies his chinlock. I’m begging you people (SP >_>) to tell me what is so wrong with his chinlock? I don’t really see everyone else using them as often as that knee to the back chin lock thing. In fact, Shelton is the only other one to use it on a semi-regular basis. Add to that, Orton locks it on and works it like he’s gonna rip the fuckin guy’s head off. So whats wrong with it? Anyway, HHH hits his spinebuster and sadly the match is pretty standard fare until the end. I take that back, I almost thought HHH was going to get counted out after he was DDTd from the table to the floor in a nice little spot. Orton, has the match won, AGAIN, but has to put a stamp on it. So what does he do? He goes for Sledgy. HHH avoids it, takes, it pounds Orton, hits the pedigree, and its over. The whole bar went…uhhh WHAT THE FUCK!?
Winner: HHH
Match Rating: **3/4 (I took it down after looking at it again)
So that’s what’s what. Even that match, was alright. It wasn’t great, but it was good. It was kind of a downer end to Mania, which, you should never have, but what can you do? Overall this was a great PPV and I will be adding this to my collection.
Now I know I was telling you I’d do a little dream match thing for you, but this review turned out longer than I had thought. So you will get that next week. I have chosen for a few and I will throw a poll up soon. LOOK FOR IT!!! Thanks for reading!
I…am a cheap bastard. I haven’t bought a new game system since PS1, I bought my car for 450 dollars, and if I get new clothes, they are gifts from friends and family. BUT, when it comes to Wrestlemania, all of that goes out the fuckin window. Well after I get to the bar where I watch the PPV for FREE. I sat down and ordered some appetizers and pounded that and a few beers before my friends started trickling in. I bought them a round of drinks before the show started. My friend Matt is pretty much a degenerate gambler. He dropped a few hundred bucks on the final 4 the day before and he was paying up on a debt he owed me. But he still wanted to gamble, like we usually do, on the outcomes of the matches. As we got into the PPV we all ordered a pub burger. After all was said and done; drinks, bets, food, I think I spent almost 50 bucks in 4 hours. But it was money well spent.
MITB Ladder Match
I took CM Punk or MVP to win because someone else called Christian (the obvious favorite) and let the rest of us pick 2 guys against his one. Boy was I lucky. What I loved about this match was the fact that everyone played to their strengths and no one tried to do something they couldn’t do. BTW, who else noticed the old school “Belfast Bruiser†jacket Finlay wore? Even that waste of space Mark Henry complimented the match. That WSS onto the ladder looked painful as hell. And speaking of ladders, I think this match was the most innovative MITB match ever. Aside from the insane, what I think was a real suicide dive from Shelton, these guys pulled out all of the stops trying to use ladders in some way in this match. Kofi had a great spot where he climbed straight up the ladder, Punk and Christian had the finishers spot on the parallel ladder, Shelton, once again, set the standard for the match by using three ladders at once! It’s fucking nuts. There were only two really glaring botches in the match, one being the Punk/Christian thing and then Shelton/MVP messing up the powerbomb spot. Other than that, this shit was flawless. I think the best part of the match was the theatrics employed. Kofi and Punk doing the “Me, you, suicide dive?†or the stepladder thing with Hornswaggle. That kinda shit made this match so good. And then we can talk about the finish. For a second I thought Kane was going to win the fuckin thing. Oh, the 3rd mess up was that botched chokeslam. Punk gets his leg caught much like I think Jericho did last year but somehow he comes back to win after kicking the big red machine off the ladder. Truly a surprise, and a nice sensical one at that.
Winner: CM Punk
Match Rating: ****
Ok, here comes major problem one with this PPV. Why the fuck did the WWE let this long haired, drug addicted, probably hep c havin asshole named Kid Rock take up precious little time on this show to trot out his bullshit music that NO ONE responded to? I mean if you want to have him play the divas to the ring, great, but you didn’t need to have him on for what, 15 minutes? And what COULD YOU HAVE SHOWN!? 4 of the hardest workers in the WWE. 3 of them are the best they have and the other is the Miz. Im coming around on him but I will NOT put him in the category of best of anything unless its hard work or being annoying. I wanted to see this match SO BAD, and I’m sure I will but what the fuck WWE, why build this up so much and then just go hudda hudda pbbbbbbbbbbtttttttt all over it?
Divas Battle Royal
This was what it was. I wish we could have seen more of the past divas but the ending made up for it. It was fucking hilarious.
Winner: SantinA(o) Marella
Match Rating: **1/2
Chris Jericho vs. The Legends w/ Ric Flair (Ricky “The Dragon†Steamboat, “Superfly†Jimmy Snuka, and “Rowdy†Roddy Piper)
Without a doubt, the match I had the lowest expectations for. And thank god, they did what was necessary. They, once again, played to everyone’s strengths and tried hard to cover up everyone’s weaknesses. I thought for sure that Piper was going to be the only one in game shape. Boy was I wrong. Ricky Steamboat came out and lit shit the fuck up. I was always under the impression that Steamboat’s back was hanging on by a thread, but after watching that shit, I guess not. The Dragon and Jericho made this match. Y2J sold like a motherfucker for everyone, and Steamboat had as much fire as anyone I’ve ever seen. But, in the end, Jericho hits a codebreaker on Ricky and gets the win.
Winner: Chris Jericho
Match Rating: ***
After the match, Jericho calls in Flair who obliges and gets beat down. He then calls out Mickey Rourke who hams it up but gets in the ring. I was kind of hoping Frankie S would have torn Jericho a new one, but alas Rourke got in, and laid out Jericho with one left cross. I guess Jericho has a glass jaw.
Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy (Extreme Rules)
I have to disagree with what I heard my esteemed colleague Soulpower said about this match. If he said it about MITB, I’d agree but this match DID have psychology and wasn’t just a spot fest. This was a match about vengeance, so you don’t necessarily go for the cover when a guy is down or do other things that you’d do in a regular match. This match was 100% better than the garbage build up for it. In fact, the only time the build up looked good was in the highlight package for it. Jeff Hardy comes out the aggressor to start and Matt Hardy plays chickenshit. BTB, who decided to give Matt tights? I guess it’s a good way to make him less of a face because for this whole good guy career he’s been in pants, but we will see. This guy sitting next to me named Pat said it best “This is the Hardy’s dream come true†and he was probably right. I can guarantee those two have thought over and over again, and talked about “Dude what if we had a match at Wrestlemania?†But the psychology of this match was there. Matt was the cold, calculating heel and Jeff was his usual balls out, go for it all self, only this time with a focused purpose. Early in the match Jeff went for the whisper in the wind which was blocked with a steel chair shot up his ass almost. What made this a good hardcore match was it wasn’t silly like we are accustomed to in the WWE. It’s good to see a nice change of pace. When matches like this and Edge/Foley come along, its something special. There were no bowling balls to the testicles, there was no hopping in a golf cart and driving away, this was just two guys who wanted at each other in the worst way. The only thing that came close to a comedy spot was the old garbage can over the head thing. Sadly, there was no blood in the match. Well not intentional anyway. Who else thinks Matt needed staples in his head after cracking it on the corner of the ringsteps? OUCH!
Jeff took over from here adding a nasty ass chair shot into the mix. Is it me or did almost everything, from chops to chairshots seem louder? I think they hooked up a few more mics for effect. I didn’t quite get the double table thing. If he was on top, Id get it, but in the middle? Really? Jeff then sends his bother into the ring and follows, but not before pulling out not one, but TWO ladders. One was 8ft, the other 12ft. I guarantee Jeff Hardy saw what Shelton did and was like “Oh yeah fucker? TOP THIS!†Jeff Hardy signals for the end and busts out a leapfrog leg drop but MISSES! Once again Jeff takes one too many risks. Even when he’s overcome with rage, he takes the highest risks. Now, here’s my question, did Jeff Hardy break his spine? Because if he didn’t, he’s got a rubber one. Seriously, that was fucking insane. Soulpower, this was not a spotfest, it was what the older vets called “controlled hardcore†like Terry Funk used to do and Mick Foley DOES. And then, to seal it all, the sickest cutter move I have ever seen as Matt Hardy put a chair around Jeff’s neck, opened it up, and WHAM nailed the TOF. Holy balls.
Winner: Matt Hardy
Match Rating: ****1/2
Rey Mysterio vs. JBL for the Intercontinental Title
Ok, first of all, best Rey costume ever. Mysterio even took the time to dye the peach fuzz on his head green. Just great stuff. Before the match even begins, JBL brutally kicks Rey Rey right in the head. I think he might have been trying to bust the little man open for effect. Anyway, Rey is asked if he wants to fight, he says yes, and the match starts. JBL gets caught off guard, gets a 619 and a Mexican River Plunge and that’s it!
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Match Rating: *** (yeah I know it may be over rated in most minds, but that shit was entertaining as hell)
After the match, JBL utters two words….I QUIT!!! Bwahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhahahahaha. LOOOOOOOSER!!! People at the bar I was at were giving him “the chopâ€
The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
For the first time, ever I think, The Undertaker was outdone before he even came out. That entrance was fucking awesome from HBK. In classic HBK fashion, he descended from the rafters wearing all white to a choir of chants a la Taker. This, I knew, was going to be a masterpiece. As JR once said about a different match, “this is Rembrandt and Picasso painting on the same canvasâ€. It was great how HBK did the small annoying heel stick and move thing. Shawn even tried to a possum ploy by holding his leg after a second rope leapfrog over Undertaker, who fell right into HBKs trap. Shawn even brought back his dreaded inverted figure 4 and slapped it on Taker. I love that move. Now, a lot of people are saying the match went to slow. Did you come in expecting this shit to be an x-division match? Or even the pace of Matt/Jeff? If so, you’re a moron. There are two memorable moments in this match for me. The first one, was clearly a REAL injury. Shawn Michaels went for his trademark top rope moonsault to the outside. Now I, like most other people, expected him to hit it. What did Taker do? He just moved to the side and THREW MICHAELS DOWN HARDER. Jesus Christ. And while he was down and Taker was playing to the crowd, I distinctly remember the ref getting down and popping HBKs dislocated shoulder back into place. Thankfully, I’ve never had to experience it, but from what I have heard, its no fuckin picnic. I think when the ref got down and asked HBK “Do you want to stop†it was more than just in a kayfabe sense. The next one came shortly after when Undertaker went for his patented suicide dive over the top rope and HBK pulled a dummy camera man into the path. Taker HAD TO have cracked his head. The way he was coming down, no way he didn’t. And man who else liked the CRUNCH sound that happened when the two collided? Oh man. That’s the kind of shit that makes matches better. The little things. Little sounds, little moves etc.
But the big story of the match, of course, were all of the false finishes. Now, there was someone on the forum who basically shit all over the match. The Dark Knight will deny this up and down, but he did. My favorite quote was “Any two guys can kick out of the others finishers.†Hey, guess what, that’s not what its about. It’s about doing the move at the right time in the right way to make people think its over. There were people in the bar around me who thought the match was over after HBK went down with the MONSTER of a chokeslam. Why? Because he SOLD IT TO PERFECTION. And that’s what made the match so great, especially this match. These guys pulled out all the stops. Chokeslam, Last Ride, Superkicks, Demons Gate, Flying Elbows, everything each other had. Remember how I told you I was placing little bets on these matches? I, for fun, took my friend Matt up on this match. I took HBK. Silly, I know, but its only a buck, who cares? I remember distinctly there were a few times during the match where I was handing over my money to my friend Matt and HBK would kick out. There were a few times he’d hand his money over to me, and UP comes Taker. The patrons of the bar were literally throwing shit up in the air when they thought their guy had won. And that’s how you know you have a great match. The fan reaction. Oh yeah, Taker won!
Winner: The Undertaker
Match Rating: *****
Edge vs. The Big Show vs. John Cena for the World Heavyweight Title
At this point I turned to Matt and Pat and said “there is no way in hell this match, or any other match can follow what we just saw.†And I was right, it wasn’t better, but that doesn’t mean it was a bad match. I will say this again, I think the guys in all of the matches sat in back, watched what came before them and said “Ok fuck it, were gonna out do them.†John Cena did a rocker dropper from the top rope TO THE FLOOR. Ok, you’re the bankroll of the company and you are basically jumping ass first onto the floor? Hey Trips, WATCH THAT!!! We also got to see the old school giant in the ropes spot. But instead of looking helpless like Andre and Khali do, The Big Show was like “HEY TIM (or whoever was the ref) GET ME OUT OF HERE!†I lmao’d at that. Chavo even got involved in the match when he tripped up John Cena. After that, Cena gave him the sigh “Attitude Adjustment on the floor. Much like the last match, the outcome was relatively obvious but the false finishes covered it up quite nicely. I loved how Edge took out Big Show on the outside. It was clearly an over the top kinda thing that has to be done to take out a giant. I also loved when Edge speared Vickie (as bad as it looked) because, well FUCK Vickie. Cena locks in the STFU and we get that overused “almost gonna tap until the 3rd guy stops it†spot. It was nice when it was used the first 150 times back around WM 20 and in the subsequent rematches and other times that was necessary. They got me back though where Show pushed Cena off the top rope right into a spear from Edge. The end came with Cena trying to F-U (Yeah fuck it, Im calling it that still) both Edge and Show, but Edge fell off. Cena then F-U’d Edge onto Show and gets the win.
Winner: John Cena
Match Rating: ***1/2
HHH vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Title
We saw the evolution of something you used to se a lot back in the 90s and 80s in wrestling. Back in the day, two guys who wanted to end it quick would go for their finishers but always miss. Not here. Here, a little over a minute into the match Randy Orton hits the RKO. Shit! And Randy, like a good little heel, can’t leave well enough alone. It’s almost never enough for a heel to win, noooooooooo he’s got to put the exclamation point on it. Orton goes for the punt of doom (which I like) but misses and HHH hits a pedigree. Are you fucking me? My friends and I are like, wtf? We knew it wasn’t over but we were like “wow!â€. HHH, to his credit, fell right down and sold the RKO, as he should have. After this the match got a whole lot more slow and methodical. Orton took a bump into the steps and HHH took his “Ric Flair/HBK bump†over the guard rail out on the floor. Now back in the ring, Orton applies his chinlock. I’m begging you people (SP >_>) to tell me what is so wrong with his chinlock? I don’t really see everyone else using them as often as that knee to the back chin lock thing. In fact, Shelton is the only other one to use it on a semi-regular basis. Add to that, Orton locks it on and works it like he’s gonna rip the fuckin guy’s head off. So whats wrong with it? Anyway, HHH hits his spinebuster and sadly the match is pretty standard fare until the end. I take that back, I almost thought HHH was going to get counted out after he was DDTd from the table to the floor in a nice little spot. Orton, has the match won, AGAIN, but has to put a stamp on it. So what does he do? He goes for Sledgy. HHH avoids it, takes, it pounds Orton, hits the pedigree, and its over. The whole bar went…uhhh WHAT THE FUCK!?
Winner: HHH
Match Rating: **3/4 (I took it down after looking at it again)
So that’s what’s what. Even that match, was alright. It wasn’t great, but it was good. It was kind of a downer end to Mania, which, you should never have, but what can you do? Overall this was a great PPV and I will be adding this to my collection.
Now I know I was telling you I’d do a little dream match thing for you, but this review turned out longer than I had thought. So you will get that next week. I have chosen for a few and I will throw a poll up soon. LOOK FOR IT!!! Thanks for reading!
. Good ppv overall but main events needs to be booked better on the 25th Anniversary of Wm
2 did, and you could make a case for 3.