OAO WrestleMania 23 Thread-April 1st, 2007

[goldengreek 0]

HBK Vs. Cena was basically HHH Vs. Cena from last year, except the crowd cared about last year's match, HHH's offense was better (the fucking knee? in the MAIN EVENT of WM? That crowd was SILENT.), and the match was nowhere near as good as HHH/Cena.

 

TERRIBLE placement as the main, since Taker/Batista actually wasn't bad.

 

Taker/Batista was better than HBK/Cena. I fully believe this.

 

Oh, who will ever forget the STUNNER ON TRUMP. HA. Try showing that on Raw.

The crowd did suck. As I already stated the 20,000 in Chicago embarresed the 80,000 in Detroit tonight

[goldengreek 0]

I think it's mostly that John Cena just isn't that good. I don't think much of anyone on here would say he shouldn't ever be WWE champion at all, but it's just tedious and stale seeing him constantly retain the title against guys who are obviously superior to him.

 

My thoughts exactly. He's beaten HBK. Angle. Jericho. Triple H. Benoit. All guys who are clearly superior to him. It's just fucking ridiculous. Let him chase and then win the title, I don't care. Pushing new stars is good. But enough with the fucking superman gimmick.

X2 !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

 

And there's Pasty Bob trying to ruin the main event.

[CBright7831 0]

Come to think of it...honestly....what does HHH do when he comes back?

 

I'm not sure how much longer this DX thing will go on, and if it does, I'm not sure who they can feud with. Edge and Orton will be feuding amongst themselves, McMahon will be feuding with Rey and Lashley, Kennedy will probably be feuding with Cena...I just don't know where to put him....unless he goes back into the WWE hunt, but then where does HBK go?...hmm..

I personally wish HHH would be a mid-carder for now on, but that's not happening.

[The Niggardly King 0]

Fuck, dudes wrestling matches start slow. 80% of the time, matches start slow. It's only shitty junior wrestling and lucha libre where matches start fast, or in the case of heated brawls. This was not a heated brawl. This was a competition, and competition takes time to get going. MVP/Benoit started slow. Almost all wrestling matches start slow. At least the slow start in this match made sense, and went somewhere. So please stop using "the match was slow." It's really weak.

[cabbageboy 0]

I was just reading the PWTorch and it was noted that Michaels does better in 20 minute type matches, rather than in stuff like tonight. If you give him too much time the match is very ponderous and dull and maybe has a decent last 5 minutes or so. Can we please declare moratorium on working the leg from this point on? HHH did that crap in matches against RVD and Booker during his reign from hell in 2002/03, and those matches all sucked. It's just boring to see a guy stomp someone's leg for half a match, especially when someone like HHH or HBK has no real finisher that requires such psychology. It isn't like watching a Bret Hart match where he spends the match working the legs and back to set up the Sharpshooter.

 

In all the time I've watched wrestling there were two guys I've seen that could really sell such leg work: Bret and Savage. Bret sold the leg damage from the Quebecers from RR 1994 all through WM's main event. Savage sold Flair's Figure 4 leg work from WM of that year all the way through to Survivor Series!

 

I already mentioned being a big RVD fan, but think about this. Wasn't his time as WWE champion a lot more intriguing than anything in Cena's reigns? Cena worked very well chasing the belt during that period of time, which was of course cut short. Edge's title runs were both a bit uneventful since it seemed a matter of time before he simply jobbed back to Cena.

[Guest NYR10]

Random Question....

 

 

 

 

Who's worse.....seriously....Giant Gonzales or Khali?

[JimmyHendricks 0]

One more thing and I'm out (maybe):

 

Undertaker should never lose at WM. Even if he ends up going 20-0. I feel they've gone past the point of his streak being in jeopardy with his defeat of Batista tonight. I felt that Orton would end it two years ago, and he didn't. Put him on there in garbage matches against idiots of Mark Henry's caliber if you want to extend the streak, but please, no more 'This is it the end of the streak! 1, 2, NOOOOOO!" nonsense. Let him have his undefeated WM legacy. If tonight wasn't the night, it never will be. I can't see anyone being big enough to deserve to end it.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Other WM Moments:

 

After HBK works on Cena's knee for eternity, Cena no-sells it and does several moves where he runs at Shawn, and then jumps around all "fired up".

 

The timekeeper RINGS THE BELL as Lashley has a 2 count on Umaga.

 

Is Mickie pregnant? She was definately bigger and didn't take any bumps or punches.

[GreatWhiteNope 0]

Random Question....

 

 

 

 

Who's worse.....seriously....Giant Gonzales or Khali?

 

Khali.

 

Giant Gonzales never killed anyone in the ring.

[GreatWhiteNope 0]

The timekeeper RINGS THE BELL as Lashley has a 2 count on Umaga.

 

That's because the timekeeper interpreted the sound of Austin dropping down to the canvas as the first count.

 

It's happened before.

[goldengreek 0]

I was just reading the PWTorch and it was noted that Michaels does better in 20 minute type matches, rather than in stuff like tonight. If you give him too much time the match is very ponderous and dull and maybe has a decent last 5 minutes or so. Can we please declare moratorium on working the leg from this point on? HHH did that crap in matches against RVD and Booker during his reign from hell in 2002/03, and those matches all sucked. It's just boring to see a guy stomp someone's leg for half a match, especially when someone like HHH or HBK has no real finisher that requires such psychology. It isn't like watching a Bret Hart match where he spends the match working the legs and back to set up the Sharpshooter.

 

In all the time I've watched wrestling there were two guys I've seen that could really sell such leg work: Bret and Savage. Bret sold the leg damage from the Quebecers from RR 1994 all through WM's main event. Savage sold Flair's Figure 4 leg work from WM of that year all the way through to Survivor Series!

 

I already mentioned being a big RVD fan, but think about this. Wasn't his time as WWE champion a lot more intriguing than anything in Cena's reigns? Cena worked very well chasing the belt during that period of time, which was of course cut short. Edge's title runs were both a bit uneventful since it seemed a matter of time before he simply jobbed back to Cena.

RVD RULES!

[Dangerous K89 0]

So, Wrestlemania was, at best, above average. The star ratings people are giving along with the guys at pwtorch.com is pretty laughable, however. The crowd being mostly just low noise and never really being THAT hot until the end of Cena/HBK definitely helped kill a lot of enjoyment out of most of the matches. But, that's what you get for going from a "passionate" setting of 18,000 hardcore fans to 80,000 random fans and people.

 

Money in the bank was probably the most entertaining match on the card, but still not all that great. It would have been a lot better with a hotter crowd. Better than last year's, but the first MITB squashes it. The Jeff/Edge spot was nice, but I hope Edge isn't dead. I was pleasantly surprised with the time they gave it, though (20 minutes). They probably couldn't have done a better job with setting up the match with soooo many people in it. I liked it, but it would have been REALLY nice to see on TV, but not for $50.

 

The "morphing" set was pretty cool, but they didn't make great use out of it but for a few guys. Edge, Kane, Taker, Cena, and Batista had the only really notable, cool uses out of it. They just kind of threw something together for most of the other guys. Great contrast in Edge's entrance and all the other MITB guys' entrances.

 

Khali vs. Kane could have been worse, I guess. Even though I wouldn't want to see the match, I would have rather seen Flair/Carlito.

 

Benoit vs. MVP was shaping up nicely and then got it's legs cut off. Benoit got one of the biggest pops of the night during his entrance, though. If this match was given about 10 more minutes, it could have been one of the best matches of the night. But instead, about 3 minutes towards the end, they just threw out all the psychology they were building up with. Granted, the finish made sense, it was just sudden and didn't seem like a match ending move since EVERYBODY kicks out of the diving headbutt. I don't want to admit it, because I'm a mark for Benoit, but I can't remember the last great Benoit match in the past year that doesn't involve Finlay or Regal. Every Benoit match is just chop, chop, german suplex, german suplex, superplex, german suplex, throat slit, headbutt, chop, chop, german suplex, german suplex, crossface. Just, I dunno. To his credit, he threw in a bridging northern suplex the other day, though! Benoit matches used to be something for me to look forward to, but not so much these days.

 

The Vince segment with the baby just is one of those things where it really hits on the top of the nail just how delusional and batshit crazy this guy is in his own business.

 

To the show's credit, just seeing the huge arena, the ridiculously huge, awesome set....the spectacle that was tonight's show on a production value way of things, TNA will never, ever be somewhat close or even touch the WWE. Ever. And that's coming from a guy that vowed that if he was going to order any wrestling PPVs, it was going to be TNA stuff. But, it's just hard to be excited for TNA post-Bound For Glory 2006. Anyways, back to the topic at hand..

 

Damn Lillian was hot.

 

Batista vs. Taker was good, but I don't see this WOW, BATISTA HAD A BETTER MATCH THAN HBK thing. It was an above average match that helped protect the poor wrestler that Batista is, but it wasn't anything special and AT BEST ***. Not the **** 1/2 bullshit I've been seeing. If that match was really THAT close to being a perfect, five star match, then I'll quit watching wrestling tomorrow. Maybe you should remind yourself what an actual **** match is. Anyways, this match would have been a lot better in, once again, a smaller arena with a louder crowd. Which, this match had one of the only few audible chants of the night with "Undertaker" or "Let's Go Taker" or whatever it was. This match was as good as it could have been, but I won't be rewatching it, ever.

 

Undertaker's entrance was pretty bad ass, though. I might rewatch that.

 

The ECW match was...I'm not sure what that was. The only thing I got from the match is that I never thought Dreamer would have any Wrestlemania involvement ever after his world championship run with being the guy that pukes on people and eats weird things, so it was cool to see him get a lot of ring time.

 

He was the only ECW "Original" that got ring time...

 

Umaga vs. Lashley was decent. I was expecting more, I was expecting to see acceptable quality when compared to Finlay/Lashley, but Umaga is no Finlay to carry Lashley like that. The only thing I got out of this match is that it was nice to see Austin do more moves than a stunner and what connection that stunner had on Trump. Seeing Vince do what he calls "acting" while being shaved further cemented how out of touch and batshit crazy he is...but you don't need reminders to know that.

 

Melina vs. Ashley is what we expected and they kept it short. But it's a GIGANTIC step down from Mickie/Trish when that was one of the best matches on the card last year with the hot crowd. I'm not saying anything that hasn't been said with the Mad Mickie Love here, but it was sad to see her as just a lumberjac..jill.

 

Speaking of hot crowds, did I already mention that you will not find that in tonight's show?

 

The buildup video to Cena/HBK was really good. The match told a good story and had the hottest part of the crowd all night (not Madison Square Garden hot at WMXX or Staples Center hot last year, but as hot as they decided they could be). But, there was a lot of stalling after the asai moonsault from Michaels. Great ending 5 minutes, though. Had me on my feet feeling the only emotion the entire night. Yeah, it sucks that Smackdown is viewed as the second brand and stuff, but it was a great call on putting HBK/Cena last because I would have felt completely deflated and completely disapointed in Wrestlemania 23 if they went on last with as hot the crowd was not for the entirety of their match. Anyways, great last 5 minutes, but it put a damper on the night that Cena won. Mostly for my deep down kid markdom coming out for the first time for HBK since his return match at Summerslam 02, but that, of course, Cena won. Kind of puts HBK in a weird spot from a booking standpoint, because storywise he pulled out every single thing he had, stuff he wouldn't normally do as a face, but it still wasn't enough. As if he doesn't have it anymore from a storyline point of view. I would be a lot more positive on the show if HBK would have won, honestly when it comes down to it. But the ending still wasn't bad.

 

It sucks, but it's kind of good from a booking way of things. Creating a monster in Cena that can't be stopped, so when he is stopped and pinned CLEANLY, there's a chance that it could even create a new star. Either way it will be a BIG DEAL. Much like Triple H tapping out to Benoit. Not saying I enjoyed Triple H squashing EVERYBODY (it was terrible) but it lead to a great thing.

 

When it comes down to it, the show was enjoyable I suppose. Not $50 enjoyable. $20, I'd say so. Worth a download, but most of the enjoyment comes from it being live, though. Knowing HBK doesn't win while watching Cena/HBK takes away 75% of the entertainment from it. It's not worth a $20 DVD purchase since it has already happened. I regret spending half of $100 on this show, but I don't regret seeing it. It was a balanced Wrestlemania, but it won't go as one of the best.

 

Not by a long shot. Too bad we didn't get that Austin/Hogan match.

 

Oh, and Cena/HBK was the most dramatic/emotional match on the card and MITB was probably the best match on the card followed by Taker/Tista in somewhat distant third.

[JimmyHendricks 0]

The timekeeper RINGS THE BELL as Lashley has a 2 count on Umaga.

 

That's because the timekeeper interpreted the sound of Austin dropping down to the canvas as the first count.

 

It's happened before.

 

I know, stop acting like a timekeeper ringing a bell a half second early on what everyone knew was the decisive pinfall was a huge fuckup and ruined the whole evening or something.

 

It's fine if you don't like the show, but stop bitching about dumb shit like that. It's not like he rang the bell at the first pinfall attempt or something.

 

I guess that means Savage/Steamboat was a terrible match because the crowd thought Hebner dropping to the mat was a one count not once, but twice.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

"It's happened before."

 

So? It still looked stupid. But wasn't anywhere near the lamest/fakest thing to happen in that match.

 

And the timekeeper does not ring the bell until the referee signals him, so your point is irrelevant. It was awkward and botched.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Just what I think:

 

Money in the Bank III: *** 1/2

Khali/Kane: DUD

New Breed/ECW Originals: **

Benoit/MVP: **

Undertaker/Batista: ** 1/2

Lashley/Umaga: **

Melina/Ashley: DUD

Michaels/Cena: **

[JimmyHendricks 0]

"It's happened before."

 

So? It still looked stupid. But wasn't anywhere near the lamest/fakest thing to happen in that match.

 

And the timekeeper does not ring the bell until the referee signals him, so your point is irrelevant. It was awkward and botched.

 

You know, you're right. I'm never watching WWE again. That dumbass timekeeper ruined the entire night for me.

 

That, and RVD didn't use the tag rope. ASSHOLE!

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Just what I think:

 

Money in the Bank III: *** 1/2

Khali/Kane: DUD

New Breed/ECW Originals: **

Benoit/MVP: **

Undertaker/Batista: ** 1/2

Lashley/Umaga: **

Melina/Ashley: DUD

Michaels/Cena: **

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

I just mentioned that he rang the bell early. I never said that had anything to do with my opinion of the show. Read my post. And relax.

 

The show did suck, but it wasn't because of the timekeeper.

 

The timekeeper was just one of the tons of cherries on top of the crap pie.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

MVP looked really good today, he put on a much better performance then Benoit, and control the pace of the match.

[Guest Kesh]

just thought I would post my thoughts on the show

 

Money in the Bank was about what I expected. Really glad to see Kennedy pick up the win here. Some very sick spots involved here, and i really hope edge is alright. Gotta feel for Edge, the man who I thought was wrestler of the year for WWE in 2006 is rewarded with.....being put in an 8 man wrestlemania opener and having his win streak snapped.

 

Kane vs Khali, suprisingly better than I expected, though thats not saying much, it was watchable.

 

Benoit vs MVP was great, really deserved another 5 or 7 minutes

 

Batista and Taker had the MOTN for me, these two were definetly pissed they weren't on last and you could tell they had their working boots on in this one. Again, much better match than anticipated

 

Did not see Originals beeting New Breed tonight, decent match but to short to be anything noteworthy

 

Melina vs Ashley, DUD, the less said the better

 

BoB left me a little dissapointed. I was expecting a more from the match and McMahons reaction. Austin giving Trump a stunner was pretty cool

 

Cena and HBK..........great match, sour ending. For some reason I think making everyone tap gives Cena that superman feel everyone despises, I think it'd be alot better if he just pinned people, hes not a submission kind of wrestler, so dont shove that down our throats.

 

All in all, a solid Wrestlemania. I think the two title matches were great, MITB and US title were both good. everything else was kind of meh. I did enjoy the show alot though, and there really is nothing to complain about.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

I was really impressed with MVP tonight, he did a great job dictating the pace in the Benoit match, and looked really good.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

I like MVP a lot. He's charismatic, has a decent enough moveset (I don't really like the Overdrive/PotD, though), he just looks silly and thus, to new fans, who he needs to win over, I think he comes off as a comedy character.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

I like MVP a lot. He's charismatic, has a decent enough moveset (I don't really like the Overdrive/PotD, though), he just looks silly and thus, to new fans, who he needs to win over, I think he comes off as a comedy character.

 

So did The Rock in his Nation days and Chris Jericho.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

But they were more over and less generic talkers. Plus, each had already been heavily pushed and you could tell the company had total faith in them. MVP's biggest accomplishment to date is getting his ass set on fire. If they keep this "MVP matches Benoit move for move" stuff up, he'll be fine. Just lose the shirt top.

[zyon 0]

I thought the show was good, and since I don't post in this forum often I figured I would throw in my two cents. Really, I don't see how people can hate this show. Its not the best ever or anything, but most of the matches delivered and the booking was pretty flawless.

 

MITB III- I would have rather had MVP/Benoit open, but this was fine too. Fun match. More spots than the first MITB, but lacks the psychology and emotion as the first. So they are about the same. Hardy/Edge spot was insane and speaking of the production, the slow mo to fast mo replay of the spot was sick. The right guy went over and everyone came away looking strong.

 

Kennedy Promo- This wasn't even close to Austin's 3:16 speech, but I did get a strong vibe from this promo. His philosophy of nice guys finishing last and him not being a nice guy really lets his true character shine through. I really enjoyed this promo.

 

Kane/Khali- Could of been worse. The slam was cool.

 

Benoit/MVP- It would have been better with more time, but it was good just as it was. The match told a great story of MVP finally living up to the hype by arguably out wrestling Benoit, which is a great feat considering Benoit's background. The head BUTT finish made sense since it is Benoit's strongest non submission move in his moveset and MVP blocked both the Crossface and Sharpshooter. The ending allowed MVP to look strong by not allowing himself to fall into a submission, but it made sense considering the head BUTT is pretty lethal and always gets a pop.

 

The weird backstage segment- Just fun stuff. And I swear to god I thought Steamboat was Bischoff.

 

Taker/Batista- I agree with the placement of this match. A good moment is a good moment despite where it is in the card. Taker winning was a good moment. The match was a solid match, far better than expected. But I don't think it was as good as the Cena/Michaels match.

 

Vince Segment- Thought this was stupid.

 

Lashley/Umaga- Was what it needed to be. Runs ins, ref bumps, and all that other stuff was what this match was about. It was a spectical and thats what it was promised to be from the get go. Fun to watch, but the actual match was forgetable.

 

Melina/Ashley- Sucked. They didn't even use the stipulation.

 

Cena/HBK- I might be in the minority, but I thought this was great. The slow start was fine for me since that is what the WWE style is usually. The leg work made sense since everytime Cena decked Michaels, Shawn would sell his punches like death. Early on, Shawn the quicker wrestler dodges Cena's strong strikes. It was all about movement with Shawn who was using chops and forearms while Cena did his mindless brawling. However, when Michaels cuts Cena's leg out from him, his punches while damaging Michaels only landed few and far between. Later in the match when the match started to pick up, Cena stopped selling the leg which was dumb, but can be explained by Michaels never working on it again and that HBK isn't known for submission wrestling himself. The last ten minutes of the match were Fantastic and great wrestling by both men (That includes Cena.) and I have no qualms with the finish. It was clean and Michaels tapped to a move that has been presented as death despite how it looks. Its the WWE not some Indy fed. We should know by now that its about presentation not actual execution.

 

So all in all it was a fun card with some solid wrestling. Oh and the conversation about the Cena character, just stay as is. Look, this isn't the first time he's been jeered, but then again look at who his opponent was. He was cheered in both matches against Umaga. When facing a legend like HBK or HHH you are more than likely going to get jeered. He's selling merchandise, has a CD, a movie, and is credible to audiences outside of wrestling. He is like a poor man's Rock...which is still better than anybody else when it pertains to a profit. Yes, he comes off fake and he's not that good of a wrestler, but in the last couple of main events he has delivered, and really thats all you can ask of the guy.

 

And really whats the point in getting mad over the guy, we all know he's going to eat a Pedigree sooner or later anyway.

[Enigma 0]

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Jeff Hardy vs. King Booker vs. Finlay vs. CM Punk vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy vs. Randy Orton vs. Edge

-- **½ ... 8 people is just too much. And in terms of creativity with the ladders, it was pretty barren. It's hard to top the amazing stuff Shelton Benjamin did at WM21 and WM22. I felt it climaxed too early. Save for a few of Mr. Kennedy's spots, the match was all downhill after the big bump by Jeff & Edge.

 

The Great Khali vs Kane

-- ¼* ... The match didn't suck near as bad as I thought it would, which is what got it's meager rating from me. Kane's bodyslam of Khali was very impressive as well. I was confused at why Khali ripped down the turnbuckle and proceeded to do nothing with it. The "attack" afterwards was also very tame considering Kane's supposed to miss a few months with knee surgery.

 

WWE United States Championship

Montel Vontavious Porter vs. Chris Benoit

-- ***½ ... This match was absolutely fantastic and by far MVP's best performance since coming to WWE in September 2006. His improvement has come so far and can only go farther. It was vintage Benoit tonight, but he didn't have to drag along MVP. MVP definitely brought the working shoes with him today.

 

World Heavyweight Championship

Batista vs. The Undertaker

-- ****¼ ... This was the match of the night in my opinion. For the first time since returning from his multitude of injuries, Batista didn't look like a slug out there. Although he was clearly being led by the hand by Taker, Batista brought it tonight and shut up his naysayers temporarily. Tonight's crime is that this match wasn't last.

 

8-Man Tag Team Match

Rob Van Dam, Sabu, Tommy Dreamer, & The Sandman vs. Elijah Burke, Marcus Cor Von, Kevin Thorn, & Matt Striker

-- *¼ ... The match was short and the crowd was dead for every part that didn't involve Van Dam. It would have been acceptable wrestling, but do we really want just acceptable wrestling when guys like Sabu & The Sandman are involved? This would have been a lot better suited to be an Extreme Rules match. How lame does the New Breed look when the Originals beat them in a regular wrestling match?

 

Battle of the Billionaires

Umaga (w/ Vince McMahon) vs. Bobby Lashley (w/ Donald Trump), Stone Cold Steve Austin as special guest referee

-- ** ... Another match where the crowd was totally dead without the involvement of one person, Austin in this case. This was the true definition of a sports entertainment match, although Lashley's dive to start the match was good. It was nice to see Austin sell the Samoan Spike as long as he did. It was a good thing that the stipulations were honored, considering the event took place on April 1 and everything. Austin's stunner on Trump was shocking, but looked terrible. I was also left wondering why Lashley escaped sans-stunner.

 

WWE Women's Championship

Lumberjill Match

Ashley vs. Melina

-- DUD ... Hopefully the news about Melina's job security depending on the quality of the match isn't true, or Melina could be looking for a new job soon. This was easily the worst match of the show and it wasn't Melina's fault. Melina busted her ass and attempted a solid rolling prawn for the finish. The problem is Ashley is so terrible in the ring, she is a vortex of suck for any talent that may be unfortunate enough to be working with her. Also, how embarassing and lame did Ashley come off crying and attacking Melina afterwards after getting beat clean?

 

WWE Championship

Shawn Michaels vs. John Cena

-- ***¼ ... This one had the makings of a quality match early on with the molasses slow pace and Michaels attacking the leg to take the FU out of play. But Cena completely forgetting about selling the leg for the rest of the match completely lost me. I also thought the referee bump was very unnecessary. This match would have been better served to have switched places with Batista/Taker due to the crowd reaction. Having this match with the booked finish broke a cardinal rule for WrestleMania: you ALWAYS send the crowd home happy and the crowd was 100% behind HBK for this match. I felt the crowd reaction not being hostile afterwards was like a feeling of defeat, as if to say, "Well, it was fun to hope, but we knew he was going to win anyways, even though we're tired of his schtick."

[RedJed 0]

Thought it was a pretty fun show tonight to watch, hard to say how it rates as a show overall compared to other Manias though, plus this was the first Mania since 18 I saw at home versus live in person so it was a different experience than usual for me. Wish I would have went again. As good of a show as I expected. Generally speaking alot of the finishes in the undercard matches came out of nowhere, that would have been my biggest negative on the show overall.

 

As before mentioned, the production on this show was just WHOA. Taker's entrance in particular was fucking top notch.

 

MITB was good, right winner went over, crazy spots, hard work from most of them - cant really complain about this one at all other than I might have expected some big OMG spot with Punk and Kennedy at the end but still it worked fine.

 

Khali-Kane was definately worst match of the night (or the women's match) but in both cases at least they were short and to the point.

 

I enjoyed Benoit-MVP and fine with the time constraints on it as I'm sure more time will be given to them in what could be a hell of a program.

 

BOTB was a mix of weird execution, botchiness, etc, but still was fun to watch, even if it was much like watching a car crash in some ways. Vince should scoop up Tara Conner though-she looked fine as hell tonight. Trump blew a surefire media video blitz spot with the stunner, but not sure how they could even send such sloppiness out to media outlets of that given how it turned out. What bothered me more about this than anything was that this really didnt help Lashley or Umaga much at all in the big scheme of things. Neither looked impressive during the match and ideally, the match itself should have been booked more as a street fight or something with weapons/props all over (well except ladders for obvious reasons) if you ask me.

 

ECW match was pretty sad - surprised Van Dam went over though. Again, if the desicion was made for no weapons or props for Umaga/Lashley, they could have been used here gladly. Or at least a tornado rules style match in the least.

 

The vignettes during the show were a mixed bag. The Trump/Boogeyman one was funny, dancing deal was alright, the Vince one was just plain odd.

 

Taker-Batista - nothing can be said more than already has been --- a very solid match, dare I say Batista's best showing ever, even beyond the HHH matches.

 

Cena/Michaels - I enjoyed a ton during those last 15 minutes. I gotta go with the consensus here about the BS with Cena not selling the knee though later in the match, that could have and should have been a factor in Cena maybe having issues applying the STFU completely, or at least Michaels trying to get out of the move by playing to that injury or something. I'm still waiting for someone to actually try to pin Cena when they are in that move simply by rolling Cena on his back when it's on. Thought it might happen tonight near the end there but nope. I wont lie - seeing Cena winning that match, albeit that it was an incredible match, in the exact same fashion as Mania 22 v. HHH was kind of a letdown to the end of the show though. I thought Michaels winning, a short celebration followed by Cena going full heel in "presenting" the belt to him would have been much more productive at the end though. This generated the same reaction as last year's Mania at the end, people were a bit ambivalant about it, but still were like "ok whatever" but two years in a row is a bit much.

[foleyfanforever88 0]

Something I realized the other night but just remembered..Undertaker has now beaten all 4 members of Evolution in singles matches at Wrestlemania.

[Enigma 0]

Dave Meltzer is reporting that Ashley was originally supposed to win the Women's Title tonight, but the plan was changed right before the show went on the air because they decided they didn't like Ashley's failure to get over and to improve as a wrestler.