(The stage of WrestleMania 27, courtesy of Sports Entertainment Scoops, held Sunday night in Atlanta)
Here's the deal: I was going to run a live blog of this until the last minute when something more important came up, making me unable to write about the event as it was happening. Instead, I decided to DVR the replay of the original broadcast so I can do some kind of minute-by-minute diary instead. So, without further ado, here is my four hour long (as in, this pay-per-view event ran between 6 p.m./CT and 10 p.m./CT) recap/analysis of WrestleMania XVII, which took place on 04/03/11 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Background story before we get started: my height in interest towards the WWE, and professional wrestling as a whole, were between the years 2001 and 2008, beginning at the young age of seven. It began out of pure curiosity, and turned into an obsession. My older cousin of about a year, Jacob, was already a wrestling fan before me, and he would often turn on some WWE(F)- related program on the TV usually when we would see each other at some family-related dinner party, showing me footage of some of the action and even telling me the background and stroyline behind every match. Then, during one particular Saturday night in May, I was watching TV, surfing channels with the remote, when all of a sudden I stumbled upon the (now defunct) syndicated program WWE Metal, an hour long program which consisted of a recap of the major matches and storyline developments from the past week along with a few matchups featuring a couple of B or C-level wrestlers.
From that moment in time on I became instantly hooked, and for the next several years I would dedicate much of my young life towards following the WWE passionately. I watched every episode of Smackdown and of Monday Night Raw before my 9:30 p.m. bedtime, keeping up with all of the key storylines and upcoming pay per view matches in the process. I had a subscription to WWE magazine for almost two years., hanging up any poster(s) that they had of my favorite wrestlers in my bedroom. I played pretend matches with dolls and action figures under the premise that they were all under this fake wrestling organization known as the LWF, and I even had a WWE-themed birthday party when I turned eight. It was one of my biggest obsessions as a young child, two years before I even started to become an avid fan of actual sports and ESPN. A couple times, my parents actually had to ban me from watching wrestling for a couple of three to five month periods out of some mundane, yet understandable worry that wrestling distracted me from schoolwork and was affecting my grades at school. The only thing that I didn't do as a passionate WWE fan was watch a bunch of their pay-per-views live, with the only one that I did order being before this past Sunday being WrestleMania 22, and that was only because it took place in my hometown of Chicago.
But then, around three or four years ago, that passion and height of interest in professional wrestling died down, much like my interest over the years in Yu-Gi-Oh training cards, Nickelodeon TV shows, and professional golf (I could still name for you the winners of every PGA Tour tournament, major, WGC, or regular tour tournament, in the year 2003 to you by heart). Sure, I still checked it out once in a while and watched a few episodes of Raw whenever I didn't have anything to do (or to see how much the brand has changed since I stopped being an avid follower), but my fandom of the WWE could only now be described as pure casual.
Then, on the night of February 14th, 2011, The Rock made his fabulous and exciting return to the WWE in order to announce that he was going to host WrestleMania XVII, and I was instantly back on board, if only temporarily. The reason for that is simple: out of all of the wrestlers that I watched during my height in wrestling interest, The Rock was my favorite most of all. He really embodied what every great wrestler in this age of Raw and Smackdown should be: one with great athleticism and wrestling talents, fantastic nicknames and nicknames for nicknames, wodnerful signature moves, and a terrific on-stage persona that could capture the hearts of millions. Just click the link to his return and watch the pop that he brought from the crowd as his theme music started playing, if you don't believe me about his persona. Not many wrestlers, past or present, can make the fans stand up like that and cheer the way they did for The Rock. Add to the fact that The Undertaker was going to face Triple H and that Stone Cold Steve Austin was also going to return as a special guest referee, and I just had to get that damn $54.95 in order to watch it. The only difference between now and the WrestleMania that I ordered five years ago is that, this time (with the ten year anniversary of the start of my WWE fandom also fast approaching), I decided to write myself a running diary of sorts to remember it by. Here is what went down, from the time the event started live in the Midwest to its ending four hours later:
6:00 p.m.- So, here we are: WrestleMania, the grand daddy of the professional wrestling world - back for its 27th annual installment. So many great moments over the years, from Hulk Hogan flipping over the great Andre the Giant in WrestleMania III to Stone Cold Steve Austin defeating Shawn Michaels in WrestleMania XIV, to the epic TLC matches in WrestleMania's XVI and XVII, to the wonderful ending in WrestleMania XX with Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero hugging it out as the big winners of the night. What memorable moments, if any, will we see tonight? Which matches will end up being instant classics? These are the questions that will be determined in the next few hours. In the meantime, I'm sitting at the moment in the man cave of my home, sitting on the couch next to my fantastic Vizio HDTV, a bag of Tostitos, some Coke and my handy-dandy labtop to write a running transcript of the main happenings (and to maybe research a few things about the event and its wrestlers in case I ever get confused). This thing better be worth the $55 ($65 had I ordered the high-def feed) that had to be added towards by Dish Network bill.
6:01 p.m.- And we're off, from the sold out crowd of what I assume to be about 70,000 or so in Atlanta's Georgia Dome! We lead off with the singing of "America the Beautiful" by the lovely and talented recording artist (my first cliche of the night!) Keri Hilson, a native of the Coca-Cola city herself. Apparently, the tradition behind the singing of "America the Beautiful" during WrestleMania, and not the national anthem, came during the second ever WrestleMania back in 1986. Vince McMahon, believed "America the Beautiful" to be a better song than "The Star Spangled Banner," and a result decided to play the song instead so as to further distinguish this event from other pay per views or sporting events of its magnitude for years to come (though there have been a few instances, like in WrestleMania VIII, where they ended up breaking with that tradition). I'd like to think its because Ray Charles, the singer of the song at WrestleMania II, decided to go rogue before the telecast went on air. Whatever the story behind it, I'm glad that it did happen. It's just one of those things that makes WrestleMania WrestleMania, you know?
6:07 p.m.- And there he is, the host of the evening; The Rock, making his first appearance. As usual, he's taking his time to bask in the glory of the moment while also creating some dramatic pauses between his opening monologue to create some sense of epicness to the moment. The crowd, as expected, is really into it, giving him a standing ovation and hanging onto every word. Hope that this enthusiasm from the crowd continues on throughout the night.
6:09 p.m.- The Rock promises tonight's show to be the greatest WrestleMania ever. Boy, I sure hope so. Eight matches, only two of them for any actual title (the Shaemus-Daniel Bryan match for the U.S. Ttitle was strangely moved to a dark match); no Money-in-the-Bank matches (one of my favorite aspects of WrestleMania since its origins six years ago); no hardcore matches; no matches involving a table, a ladder, or a chair; a match featuring Snooki of all people; and one match featuring Michael Cole in his first ever match. This isn't a ticket that one usually screams "best ever."
6:10 p.m.- It's great to see The Rock back and all, but the making fun of John Cena's "Fruity Pebbles" T-shirts have gotten annoying since about the first or second time he's done so. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that Post Cereal has secretly signed a deal with the WWE to include product placement of their cereals. That, or the writers and The Rock haven't found any other way to make fun of Cena.
6:11 p.m.- "This isn't just any water, this is...THE PEOPLE'S WATER!" Alright, settle down, Rocky. You've already got the audience in the palm of your hands. No need to go overboard.
6:15 p.m.- Good start so far. Not great, a bit goofy at times, but still fine. And now, time for the actual introduction of WrestleMania, because apparently the first one introducing The Rock wasn't good enough.
6:18 p.m.- Puzzling choice by the WWE in making the matchup for the World Heavyweight title the first of the evening. The matchup pits Royal Rumble 2011 winner Alberto Del Rio (under the Mexican aristocrat gimmick, as if his $100,000 Rolls Royce and the mansion in the background weren't enough to make that seem clear), who claims that winning the championship is his destiny, against defending champion and the "Rated-R Superstar," Edge, being introduced alongside his longtime friend, Christian (two days after the ten year anniversary of their epic TLC victory back in WrestleMania XVII). By the way, Edge's entrance music? Still remains one of the best theme songs in the WWE, and has been for the past five years.
6:20 p.m.- Your announcers for the evening are Michael Cole, continuing his role as the Paul Heyman-esque obnoxious douchebag of the group as shown by the fact that he has that glass wall separating him from the rest of the group, newbie Josh Matthews, and Cole's opponent later on tonight, the forty year veteran, Jerry "The King" Lawler. Interesting of both Cole and Lawler to both wear tuxedos tonight, despite the fact that they're going to face off against each other pretty soon. I expect to hear the both of them argue with each other plenty of time so as to remind the viewers that the upcoming match they're having is personal.
6:26 p.m.- Cole is confusing me. First, he's raving about Del Rio, and now he's announcing this match like he has no favorite. You can either be a contrarian like Heyman was during his days as Raw announcer in 2001, or you can be the Michael Cole of old, but you can't be both, sir!
6:32 p.m.- The match starts out with Del Rio on the offensive, going after Edge's injured shoulder of which he previously hurt before. But then, Edge countered with a somersault knocking both of them off the ring and on the ground. Now, it's become a back and forth affair, with each wrestler looking like they almost had their opponent won every forty five seconds.
6:36 p.m.- An entertaining sequence of events to end the match. After Edge countered Del Rio's cross armbreaker by flipping him over to try for a three count, he goes over for a submission move. While this was happening, Del Rio's bodyguard, Brodus Clay, was DDTed by Christian after Clay tried to interfere. Del Rio gets out of Edge's submission hold, only to suffer a surprise spear attack. Edge gets the three count, he retains the title, and Del Rio's "destiny" is destroyed. A satisfying match, but it could've been better.
6:38 p.m.- As if the victory weren't enough, Edge decides to beat on a dead horse by beating Del Rio's Rolls Royce with a lead pipe, much to the delight of the Atlanta faithful. God, what a dick. That would be like Manny Pacquia defeating a boxing opponent, and then having the loser watch him have sex with their wife. I laughed at the line that Cole uttered when he said "now, how's he going to get home?" Like he doesn't have the millions to take a cab to the Hartsfield airport.
6:42 p.m.- Since when has being named a two time "Slammy" award winner been considered something to brag about?
6:46 p.m.- Next up is our second matchup of the night, one between Cody Rhodes and Captain America impersonator, Rey Mysterio. The feud began late last January when, during a match between the two of them on Smackdown, Mysterio did a 619 on his dashing face using his knee braces. Rhodes then had to have facial reconstructive surgery, ruining his "dashing" gimmick (certainly not from his father Dusty, who looks like he can eat Rey Mysterio, let alone fight him) for the past ten or so months while also making him wear a Rip Hamilton-like protective mask, turning him to the dark side. Only in professional wrestling can a rivalry start off from nothing as narcissistic as what I mentioned previously.
6:47 p.m.- In all seriousness though, in the past few weeks that I have been watching Smackdown as part of my catching-up process, I have actually been enjoying Rhodes's transformation. In fact, as a whole, I think that Rhodes is going to have a bright future in this business. If the WWE writers were smart (and judging from the storyline behind the Mysterio-Rhodes match, I think they could do better), they would skyrocket Rhodes's career from now on to become one of the company's top faces, or at least one of the top faces on Smackdown. In other words, have him fight in a few main events, maybe get a chance to compete against Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship, the works.
6:51 p.m.- Seems like the crowd has turned its suppor from the supposed face (no pun intended), Rey Mysterio, to the heel, Rhodes, pretty quickly. You can thank Rhodes himself for this, thanks to some notable showing of strength and a taste for the dramatics from him, most notably from that long pause he had when hanging Rey Mysterio in the air from the top rope before going with the superplex.
6:53 p.m.- Seven minutes in, and this has turned into quite a fun match. Good outing from both; really giving the crowd and the paying viewers at home a run for their money. It's just the kind of matchup that you would expect when you pit one young wrestler in the early stages of a promising career, and a veteran who makes up for his small and lean figure with great high flying, cruiserweight skills.
6:58 p.m.- Rey Mysterio did everything to try and win this match, even taking off Rhodes's protective mask and giving him a 619, but Rhodes still didn't budge. Finally, fed up, Rhodes uses Mysterio's knee brace (which he took off earlier in the match to avoid some kind of match disadvantage for him) when the ref wasn't looking (the storyline comes together!). He finishes Mysterio off with his signature move, the crossroads, and this match finishes with a Rhodes win. Nice showing from the both of them. Two down, six to go. And now Cole and Lawler are arguing with each other for the 72nd time in the past forty five minutes. God, just fight already!
7:03 p.m.- Snoop Dogg guest stars in one of the first of what I assume will be a few more between-match "comedy" sketches to come, wherein he tries to find a wrestler that isn't performing tonight to sing with him on tour. Good Lord, that was awful! Why couldn't the WWE just have saved this sketch for when Snoop Dogg inevitably hosts Raw? Oh well, at least we got a "Rowdy" Roddy Pipper sighting.
7:10 p.m.- Blink and you may have missed the quick eight man tag team matchup between the Core and the team of Big Show, Kane, stereotypical Italian/speed walker extraordinare Santino Morella and Jamaican Kofi Khingston. It only lasted for about two minutes, when the Big Show chokeslamed Heath Slater, with Big Show's three partners knocking out the other three members of the Core with ease that could only be compared to Batman knocking out each henchmen and villain with two punches in "The Dark Knight." I assume this was done for time purposes.
7:12 p.m.- The day Mae Young is gone is the day that we can all breathe a sigh of relief.
7:13 p.m.- Fantastic confrontation between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin. You could feel the sense of bad blood and mutual respect that the two shared for each other during that minute-long meeting. Next up, we have the matchup between two excellent performers, turned pious C.M. Punk and Randy Orton, son of Cowboy Bob Orton.
7:17 p.m.- How weird is it that, at a time where sports like the NFL and, to lesser extent, MLB are trying to prevent concussions, this rivalry between Punk and Orton has been centered around nothing but head concussions? No wonder people in this business die before they can even turn 40!
7:28 p.m.- I'm not going to lie, I'm really enjoying this match. Both of these wrestlers are bringing their A-game, and you can really feel the hatred that these two have shared of each other since the Royal Rumble.
7:36 p.m.- Orton pins C.M. Punk after successfully executing his finishing move, the RKO, while Punk was in mid-air trying to clothesline him. Great match, LOFTY MATCH, as Peter King would say, and a wonderful job by both men.
7:37 p.m.- Watching the replays, I can't help but be impressed in Orton's RKO delivery. Half a second later, and it would have failed miserably.
7:38 p.m.- I'm sure the thousands of Pee-Wee Herman fans out there watching enjoyed his cameo. By the way, a second Fruity Pebbles mention by The Rock. Why hasn't Post taken advantage of it by having The Rock appear in a few of their adds? Anyways, I wonder which one gets more mentions by the end of the night: "Fruity Pebbles" by The Rock, or "retribution" from Michael Cole
7:41 p.m.- And now, the 2011 WWE Hall of Fame Class: Shawn Michaels, The Road Warriors, Sunny, "Bullet" Bob Armstrong, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and his random chanting of "U-S-A," Abdullah the Butcher, and...Drew Carey? Huh. So I guess he's now the Dave Bancroft of the Hall of Fame.
7:43 p.m.- Of course, Michaels receives the biggest applause. This comes as no surprise, what with him being one of the best wrestlers of the past twenty years. Interesting to see the crowd booing Carey. I know his induction is a bit questionable, but it's not like he's done any harm to them.
7:46 p.m.- And now, we have the matchup between the announcers, Michael Cole (fighting in his first match) and forty year veteran Jerry "The King" Lawler. Booker T is going to help out Josh Matthews with the commentary, along with...GOOD GOD, THAT'S JIM ROSS' MUSIC! JIM ROSS IS CALLING WRESTLEMANIA! GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! In all seriousness, it's great to see him back. He's like the Gus Johnson of fake sports, the Bob Ueker of the 21st Century, with his famous Oklahoma drawl and his legendary ability to make any match seem much more exciting. Hopefully he can redeem the announcing of these past 90 minutes.
7:48 p.m.- Michael Cole is coming onto the ring dressed like he's ready for a high school tournament , running his mouth. You know, I've gotta admit, even though I liked Cole back in the days when he was the announcer from Smackdown, I do think that he's been taking this heel turn quite nicely.
7:52 p.m.- And now here comes Stone Cold Steve Austin, legendary wrestler and the match's special guest referee (third WrestleMania which he has guest refereed, after WrestleManias XX and XXIII) in an effort to promote "Tough Enough", ready to raise some hell and have some fun. He rides down towards the ring with an RV. Of course he does.
7:56 p.m.- Now Cole is begging his way out of the situation, apologizing to Lawler after he knocked Cole's trainer Jack Swagger out cold whilealso hiding inside that glass cubicle that he's been using for the past few weeks. Lawler responds by banging Cole's head multiple times against that cubicle. So far, not so good.
8:02 p.m.- Turrible, turrible match. The King is showing the athleticism of Bert Coope while Cole is wrestling as bad as I thought he would be in this match. On the plus side, it's nice to hear the announcing of Jim Ross again. Also, Booker T? Much better commentator then Smackdown predecesor Matt Striker ever was. At this point, I'm just waiting for Stone Cold to start chugging beers and stunning every person in sight. Hell, everybody is waiting for Stone Cold to do it.
8:06 p.m.- Well, there you have it: the first Stone Cold stunner of the night, with Austin stunning Swagger after he refused to stop the match by the request of the "All American American."
8:08 p.m.- I can't believe that more time has been devoted to this fight than Orton-Punk.
8:09 p.m.- The resemblance between Michael Cole's heel character and Eric Cartman in that "South Park" episode where the boys went to Canada for Christmastime is uncanny.
8:12 p.m.- Well, there you have it. Lawler wins the match after Cole tapped out to his ankle lock, and now is being carried out of the ring by Swagger. Meanwhile, we have our second Stone Cold Stunner of the night with Austin stunning "Tough Enough" partner Booker T as he was drinking a beer after he came onto the ring to celebrate with Lawler.
8:13 p.m.- Wait, what?
8:15 p.m.- So, as if these past twenty minutes weren't bad enough, we've just learned via Josh Matthews that Lawler has been disqualified from the match after the anonymous general manager of Raw ruled that Austin was too biased during the fight, making Cole the official victor. And now, Matthews receives the third Stone Cold stunner of the night simply for being the messenger. Is this really the resolution that you're giving us, WWE? Giving Cole, a man who was never really hurt and never once received what many, including myself, an inevitable stunner from Stone Cold, the winner?!?! Ah well, at least we got to see Stone Cold again. Plus, now that Booker T, Michael Cole and Josh Matthews are gone, it means that it will just be J.R. and Lawler commentating for the rest of the night.
Now, when in the world does Undertaker-HHH start already?
8:18 p.m.- After showing clips from WrestleMania week, we are now about to see the most anticipated match of the evening: the no-holds barred match between The Undertaker vs. Triple H, two of the best wrestlers of the past fifteen years and one of the few wrestlers remaining from the wonderful Attitude Era of the late '90s and early '00s. The matchup was announced four days after both wrestlers made their return to the ring on February 21st, and promises to be another WrestleMania classic. For Undertaker, it's about retaining his undefeated streak at WrestleMania (18-0 entering tonight), easily one of the best records in the history of fake sports. For Triple H, it's about achieving the one thing that he has yet done in the WWE: defeat Taker at WrestleMania. I gotta admit, I'm actually feeling pretty giddy about this one.
8:20 p.m.- Since watching a match wouldn't be fun without having someone to root for, I'm going to side with the Undertaker, simply because I've enjoyed his wrasslin' slightly more over the years, and because of that streak. Last thing I want to do is to change the name of my "Lock of the Week" from my weekly NFL in-season picks column.
8:30 p.m.- Fantastic entrances by both men, ones that actually gave me some chills. For Triple H, it was an entrance that had him wearing a Conan outfit similar to the one that he entered with at WrestleMania 22, followed by him taking it off and walking down the ring with his usual entrance music, Motorhead's "The Game" (one of the sport's greatest ever), playing in the backgound. For The Undertaker, it was him walking down to the ring through fire and Johnny Cash's "Ain't No Grave" playing alongside. Alright men, let's get this started. Make up for that travesty of a match that was Cole vs. Lawler!
8:34 p.m.- I wonder which received more damage over the years: the WWE's Spanish announcing table or Mel Gibson's reputation?
8:42 p.m.- Grueling match so far. Men flung through Cole's previously used glass wall, Triple H throwing 'Taker to the barricade in high impact, unpredictability on top of the American announcing table and on the steel steps, Triple H throwing Taker onto the Spanish announcing table, Undertaker flying off the ring to clothesline him and later using a steel chair, two chokeslams, the crowd getting into it and chanting "Holy sh*t!" as if they were watching something on ECW- crazy stuff.
8:43 p.m.- Jerry Lawler: "You know, with all due respect to the Undertaker's undefeated streak, I don't think he's ever met a man as..remoreseless as Triple H is." He did: Triple H, WrestleMania X-Seven in Houston...or are we supposed to forget that ever happened?
8:46 p.m.- How has Triple H not used a sledgehammer in this no-holds barred match? Just sayin'
8:52 p.m.- Now that both of these men have stopped punishing their bodies outside of the ring, they have turned their attention to going after it with their best moves, only to fail in pinning the opponent. A pedigree from Triple H? Failed. A Last Ride from The Undertaker? Nope. A tombstone piledriver from The Undertaker? Not happening. A DDT followed by a second pedigree? Better luck next time. A third pedigree? Surprisingly, no. The crowd, meanwhile, continues to be the MVP of the night. With the exception of the Rhodes-Mysterio matchup, they have been really into it in every matchup.
8:59 p.m.-Jerry Lawler, after Undertaker survived Triple H's third pedigree and a tombstone piledriver: "He's not human." Well, yeah. That's his character after all. Has he always been this bad and I haven't noticed until now, or is it just tonight?
9:00 p.m.- I've just realized that we're three hours in and I have yet to see at least one ounce of blood spattered tonight! Not even in this so called "no holds barred" match where chairs have been beaten with repeatedly. Vince McMahon, I know you're trying to make the WWE PG-rated and you're worried about anymore criticisms that the brand has gotten in the wake of the deaths of wrestlers like Chris Benoit and Test, but this is pay-per-view we're talking about! Besides, your wife lost the Senate race five months ago! Would it kill you to give your fighters at least a few ounces of corn syrup and food coloring?
9:01 p.m.- Alright, so now the sledgehammer is being taken out by Triple H. I stand corrected.
9:05 p.m.- Just as Triple H was about to use the sledgehammer, the Undertaker escapes the pain just in time by locking The Game in a Hell's Gate submission move. Triple H is gasping for breathe, desperately trying to escape by picking up the sledgehammer and hitting The Undertaker. Alas, he drops the sledgehammer, and now taps out. The Undertaker survives "the excursion of hell" as Jim Ross puts it to win the match and extends his streak to 19-0. The fireworks are popped in celebration of the Dead Man continuing his streak. A fantastic match. Not HBK-Undertaker II great, and, yes, it did seem like the last ten minutes just had the two men lying down most of the time, but an instant classic nonetheless.
9:10 p.m.- The Undertaker is now being carted off the ringstage so as to make the match seem even more epic. The crowd responds with cheer and a chant of "Taker." Of course, the WWE follows this up with an ad telling viewers to not try their stunts at home. Perfect timing, if you ask me.9:11 p.m.- And now, we go to the six man tag team match involving Snooki. Why a tag team match involving Snooki, and not some more meaningful match like the Shaemus-Daniel Bryan fight for the U.S. Title that was bumped to dark match status? I...I don't know. The decision just baffles me still, though I assume that it's because Snooki fits the WWE female fanbase.
9:18 p.m.- Obviously, the team of Snooki, Trish Stratus and John Morrison is going to win this match, since celebrities have a better undefeated streak at WrestleMania than The Undertaker. This would be the perfect time for me to just sit back, maybe take a bathroom break, and try to see how many jokes Jim Ross can make about the absurdity of this match.
9:25 p.m.- And now, we're down to the last match of the night: the main event for the WWE Championship between The Miz (current champion, former reality star of MTV's "The Real World," always talks about how awesome he is), and John Cena (tonight's contender, the WWE's #1 promoted star). In the weeks before the event, there's been a feud going on not only between the two but also between them and The Rock, with each exchanging trash talks to one another. Should be interesting how that storyline ends tonight.
9:32 p.m.- If there's one thing that the WWE is the best at which boxing and MMA are not, its knowing how to make fantastic entrances for its fighter. The video package of The Miz watching his "Real World" and past career snippets with people hating on him, set to the tone of Nas's "Hate' Me Now"? Outstanding. A choir singing before John Cena rushes to the ring? Marvelous. Let's hope the match lives up to them like Undertaker-HHH a few minutes back.
9:33 p.m.- For what I assume was the sixth WrestleMania in a row, John Cena is greeted to the Atlanta crowd with as much boos as cheers. The reason, for those of you who aren't sure why, is simple. Some people, specifically those who grew up watching the Attitude era and WCW, have thought that the brand has dipped in quality, throwing away what made it great in favor of a more children-promoted, PG-rated audience. Cena, who has been the WWE's biggest and most-promoted star of the past five years, has been the poster child of this new era in professional wrestling, and these people (mostly between the ages of 17 and 35) like to spew their venom on him when they can, especially when its a pay-per-view event between him and a wrestler from WWE B.C. (Before Cena), like Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and more recently, The Rock. Also, a gangsta rapper from Massachusetts isn't necessarily a great character. Personally, I'm not part of that group. I think Cena is a fine wrestler with a stellar on-air persona (though I would like to see him turn into a heel again for the first time in, oh, eight years). However, I do kind of understand where they're coming from.
9:45 p.m.- I know this is random, but...in the front row, there's an energetic fan that seems to be into it the most. He on the far left side of the screen most of the time, and he wears a Cleveland Cavaliers jersey with Lebron James's old #23 purposely X-ed out.
9:47 p.m.- Ah, the ol' "referee gets injured at the most incovenient time" trick! Never fails!
9:48 p.m.- Nine minutes in, and this match has been pretty underwhelming for the most part. Only in the last three minutes has it been enjoyable with Miz's sidekick Riley getting in the mix and both men nuable to win the match with each of their signature moves.
9:50 p.m.- Now the match has been taken outside of the ring. with Cena twice knocking The Miz out into the stands. Since the second slam resulted in both hitting the hard concrete floor, it means that the referee has begun the process of counting out. Could a WrestleMania main event, one that has been hyped up for weeks, really end in something anticlimactic as a count out?
9:51 p.m.- Apparently, that seems to be the case. The count out has reached ten, which means that the match ends in a draw and The Miz remains champion. I don't buy it. The Rock has yet to enter the ring yet, and you know that he's going to, what with the constant back-and-forth between him and both of these men. Only a matter of time.
9:52 p.m.- Yep, just as I expected. The Rock has returned on stage. Obviously, this means that the do-over match is going to start very shortly.
9:53:20 p.m.- "Can I have your attention please...I just received an e-mail from the anonymous Raw general manager. And I quote: 'As Raw general manager: I think...(pause)" Here it comes...
9:53:37 p.m.- "It doesn't matter what you think!" There it is!
9:54 p.m.- The Fruity Pebbles hat trick!
9:59 p.m.- So, to the shock of only a small minority watching, The Rock immediately re-instates this title match-up, this time making it no disqualification. Now, here's where everything turns towards the stupids. After only ten seconds of actual fighting, The Rock reappears on the ring and hits Cena with a surprise Rock Bottom. The Miz takes advantage of the opportunity by immediately getting a three count to win the match and retain the title. So, let me get this straight: the match changes from The Miz winning by a ten second count to...The Miz winning again. This does not compute in my mind. Then, after the match is over, The Rock comes back to the ring, hits The Miz with a People's Elbow, and finally ends the telecast by holding him right arm up on the middle rope, staring at the crowd (at the three hour and fifty nine minute mark, almost like if the whole thing had been planned all along). I repeat, this does not compute. After all, if The Rock wanted to hurt both men, couldn't he just do that to both of them during the rematch, and bring some more dignity towards his actions? Just a messy, messy ending to an underwhelming WrestleMania, one that failed to live up to The Rock's promise up being the most memorable one ever.
So, what did we learn, boy and girls? Well, for starters, when you have a choice between a U.S. title match featuring one of your brand's rising stars, and a comedy segment with Hornswoggle rapping, definitely make sure to take the former everytime. Second, any match featuring two future Hall of Famers is going to live up to expectations. Third, when you're the writers behind the storylines in the WWE, and you created a plot involving the host of WrestleMania feuding with both wrestlers of the main event, don't put yourself in a corner to the point where you've decided to end it in such a questionable manner as we saw today. If the WWE can learn these lessons, and set up better matches as a result, then I think you have a chance of making the next WrestleMania, or any major WWE pay-per-view the likes of Surivor Series and Summerslam, even better than this one was.
Overall grade for tonight: B-
Thanks for reading, and sorry for any half-assed thoughts by me if you felt there was one. And now, I'm off to being a casual fan once more!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you just have any suggestions or
tips for my next blog entry, e-mail me at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mails are greatly appreciated.
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