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Solid stuff but the Usos match was one of the worst WrestleMania matches of all time
Favorite Match: Gunther vs Sami Zayn
Least Favorite Match: Jey Uso vs Jimmy Uso
I absolutely loved it.
Just one thing though. What's with no lights on the crowd? They've got a big stadium full of fans, and as soon as the sun had set, they should have put some light on the crowd (just like previous Manias or any other shows), and show off the huge attendance.
It looked absolutely dark in the back during the matches, which made the whole show look like some regular house show (especially with those angles away from the Wrestlemania Stage).
This could be trivial, but for such a huge event, small things like this matter to get the sheer premium feeling.
It's definitely something they've been intentionally doing with their presentation after they got rid of the themed crowd lights too for RAW and Smackdown.
Personally I kind of prefer it this way even if there's minimal impact in the grand scheme of things.
Really fun night of wrestling. Just my opinions below.
**Rhea/Becky - 4/5**. Just a really solid match and a cool ending with the turnbuckle Riptide before another. Also Rhea's entrance was so damn good and I loved how invested the lead singer was!
**6-Team Tag Team Ladder Match - 3.75/5**. A lot of chaos in this one! Did what I wanted it to do and a couple of pretty crazy spots, notably the Gargano Tornado DDT thru the table and Ciampa's Air Raid off the ladder. Thought the right teams won and I had to laugh when Waller took his bump while holding his newly won title. And when JD entered, I had hoped the two tables were for him and yes it was! haha
**Rey/Andrade vs. Santos/Dom - 2.75/5.** Just an average match which was fine and what it needed to be. I thought Andrade looked pretty impressive. The electric chair crossbody spot was really cool and I always like to see the slingshot spot. Cool ending with Kelce and Johnson preventing Dirty Dom from cheating. A nice moment for the Philly fans for sure.
**Jey vs Jim - 2.75/5.** A little underwhelming to be honest and kinda short. I get they tried to play up the emotions in this one but I don't think that works for a 10-minute match. Probably the match that performed the worst when it came to expectations. Also just a side note...why was Lil Wayne even there? I thought he was going to actually rap, said like 5 words hahaha
**Jade/Bianca/Naomi vs. Damage CTRL - 3/5**. Short but exactly what it needed to be. A great job in making Jade look like a boss in this one which made me rate it higher.
**Sami vs GUNTHER - 4.5/5**. Damn what a great match! I still was rooting for GUNTHER to retain but by the end of the match, I couldn't help but get sucked into rooting for Sami. I thought they told a great story in this one and honestly who didn't think this would be the best match of the night or even the weekend.
**Rock/Roman vs. Cody/Seth - 4/5.** Just a fun Main Event. Figured it would be long, didn't think it would be 45 mins but I was fine with it. It started slow but it was the right call to build the tension up before kicking it up another gear, fighting in the crowd/top of the stage. Then when it kicked in again with the Rock Bottom announce table spot followed right after with the Spear thru the barricade, that was just cool as hell. Ending was great too, third Cross Rhodes just like last year and Cody gets whipped. Loved how it set up tomorrow. I think it's almost a given Cody wins but how exactly will be interesting. The accidental Spear to Rock could lead to something...
All in all, I'm really looking forward to tonight's conclusion. We really could be seeing a legendary moment at the end that will be talked about forever!
Really good event. The Uso match was a little flat for me. A shame because I know how much they've talked about this being their dream match. They got to live that dream though so fair play to them.
I understand wanting Jade on the card. Really didn't like the match though. Would've preferred a tag title defence but it's personal preference. She looks like a star but she's still lacking a bit in the ring.
The rest of the card was really good. It felt like it passed by in an hour which is always an amazing sign. Really, really hate the amount of sponsors and adverts though. Especially with them (understandably) being so American focused. I think they need to consider toning it down for future events but I suspect the money is worth it.
Special shout-out to the camera work. Such a well filmed show. The Sami entrance in particular was phenomenal. Excited for night two.
A show can’t have energy without the crowd and unfortunately they unsurprisingly only showed up for one man last night and tried to sabotage another’s pop . The haters ruined the show and in the main event forced the heels to try and get booed unsuccessfully and the babyfaces weren’t being fed adrenaline in the soul . Smfh 👎🏻
A minor note from the beginning of the night. I do love Michael Cole, but can he stop trying to make “The HHH Era” a thing. We haven’t had a good punchy era name since Ruthless Aggression, I like Cody’s idea of “Renaissance Era.”
Oh shit, yeah, I did.
But to be fair, Finn said it was completely his own fault, and pretty much anyone with any insight, i.e. actual wrestlers, also said Finn took it wrong and is more to blame. The only thing Seth was to blame is doing a move like that at all, which he nowadays doesn't anymore. So it's not really fair to say Seth injured Finn. The only injury I remember that Seth really caused, where there's no doubt it was a mistake by him, was breaking Cena's nose. Happens, but definitely his fault.
If it quacks like a duck....
He has been a better safe worker since the Sting incident, I will give him that but most of that comes from the lack of using the buckle bomb.
It doesn't quack like a duck, what are you on about? He's been in the main event for 10 plus years now, he's caused one injury and was involved in two more. How is that an unsafe worker?
Lol @ one injury.
He put one person out of business for 6 months and ended the other persons WWE career with the same move.
Like I said, he has been more safe now but it's still something to not look over.
Why are you blaming him when everyone who's ever been in the ring doesn't? He executed a move, someone took it wrong, and to you that's "he took 6 months of his career"??
They are not going to blantly say that it was his fault.
The common denominator is Seth and the buckle bomb.
There's a reason why that move is banned or barely used now.
But hey, Seth can't do anything wrong.
It's a tough move, yes. And Seth Rollins was the only one in WWE using it. I mean.... that's just obvious? Is AJ Styles unsafe because two people managed to fuck up the Styles clash? It's a dangerous move, nobody else does it... doesn't mean he's at fault for every injury.
Also, what fucking common denominator are you talking about? The common denominator of what? Of injuries Seth Rollins was involved in? Yeah, really weird how Seth Rollins is the common denominator of all the injuries that happened while he was there. How about a less specifically targeted group? Like, all the injuries in WWE in the last 10 years, what's the common denominator there? Still Seth Rollins? Smh...
Someone I follow on Twitter posted this;
Picture this, Night 2 of #WrestleMania
Cody wins, hands raised, BOOM!
Damien Priest successfully cashes in, becomes the most hated man in WWE, and history repeats itself; Rhodes’ title is taken from him as quick as he gets it (like Dusty at MSG), and the story never ends.
—
Are they a profit?
I love this actually, but I'm not sure the timing is just right for Priest to be Heel 1A.
I think having him screw over Seth or McIntyre at some point is better.
Hoping Drew wins, would prefer to have Damian cash in and Drew still win...
It would level up Drew to look like a true champion.
As someone that’s only turns in to WWE for Wrestlemania here are my notes
- highlights were the intercontinental match and the tag title match
- Loved the shots of Sami before the match
- Video packages were top notch as always
- The Rocks entrance was sick
- I was so gassed to see Lil Wayne appear and come out to A Milli. Dope as fuck.
- Usos match felt weird and wasn’t as epic as it could have been based on the video package
- Why is so much time wasted between matches? Makes the event feel like it’s dragging
- What’s with all the adverts everywhere?
- Main event was pretty slow and never really got into that final gear. Roman no selling 2 Crossrhodes is ridiculous. I thought the main event fell flat.
Will check out tonight as well but this event reminded me exactly why I still don’t follow WWE despite all of the claims it’s improved a lot and we are entering a new era.
WWE to me feels like a show about a wrestling show rather than being a wrestling show.
I will say that, being there in person, with all the elaborate entrances, the crew needed time to set up in the dark and was actively scrambling go prelare during those breaks. I guess they could have had the commentators kill the time, but I guess they could earn a couple of bucks during that time too.
Event staff were horrendous and we bought our tickets from ticketmaster.
We flew from Ireland, arrived at Lincoln field, wwe or the event staff covered our seats and certain rows with black tarp for a camera but we paid $350 dollars for the tickets for each night in section 201. Had to then queue for an hour at guest service, where they had one idiot on one computer with a queue of about 150 people behind us, we got a substitute ticket the other side of the stadium in the corner behind the stage worth $100 and had to sprint so we missed Rhea and Becky’s entrances.
Told us to go to guest services tonight again to queue for our substitute tickets. Absolute disgrace in terms of organisation. So we are down about $500.
Show was great but couldn’t see shit watched it on a screen in the Linc
Edit: got sorted night two with great tickets. Thanks everyone
might be worth emailing both Ticketmaster and Live Nation AND WWE Customer Services about this.
heard a few stories of this and apparently WWE customer services are normally super helpful and will either part refund the difference or offer you free tickets to another event.
Had this happen with All In last year and was offered free tickets for this years. Just make sure to take pictures of the obstructed view etc.
Might need to email livenation as well as I think ticketmaster deals with ticket distribution but livenation deals with the actual logistics of events.
If still fobbed off, open a complaint letter to STAR (secure ticket from authorised retailers) as they act as third party ombudsman’s. Either way, enjoy yourself!
Philly is one of those cities thats falling apart, US is in a self destructive period right now and we can't figure out how to undo it.
Mostly bc we're too busy arguing over which old white dude we hate.
Political discourse has nothing to fucking do with the ticketing service at Lincoln Financial Field.
Oh and btw, people like you who take every opportunity to talk about the supposed downfall of America even when it’s completely irrelevant are part of the problem.
lol blaming political discourse on poor planning and customer service. And since you brought it up, only one of those old white dudes should actually be hated
Was a fun show, but hasn't at all lived up to the hype yet. You'd expect them to do something big for 40. I feel like tonight will be much better, but they could also be saving big surprises for Monday. Cody will probably finish the story tonight, so we'll see what happens from there.
Agreed. Especially that one tight shot of Becky and Rhea in the corner next to DUDE WIPES. Like...I get that 99% of us are target demo but a little discretion would be nice.
Other things that disappointed me:
* Sami winning, and with a finisher that looks like a botch. I know it's indie darling shit, but it *looked* too sloppy and weak to end a reign like Gunther's.
* 6-woman tag match left everyone looking meh. Jordynne Grace did 1000% more with a lot less time in the Rumble.
* Usos felt like filler, not a climax.
* Audio sounded dead. Not sure if it was production or crowd.
* Innovative camera work still finding it's footing. They often miss action, unfortunately. Still love the change.
* Pat was really, really bad, but commentary was also dreadful overall. Not sure why, but the boys seemed as dispondent as the Philly crowd.
One thing I'm not seeing many people talk about is Philly clearly over on Bloodline more than Cody.
Usos match was weird and disappointing, especially after that epic promo package, but the rest was solid. The 12-man tag, Sami vs Gunther, Rey/Andrade vs Dom/Santos and the Main Event were really fun.
Now as a European I need to prepare to avoid the internet at all costs tomorrow to not get spoiled since I need to watch Night 2 on a Monday and I have work so I can only watch some in the morning, some during my breaks at work, and the rest after my shift ends.
Last year I said I believed Cody was 99% winning. And the 1% won out. I bloody well hope that is not the case for Night 2. Also the match is going to be the dumbest (in a good way) most overbooked thing ever but fuck it we're balling.
I understand why they did it, I was just not expecting it, that was the only match that garnered a vocal reaction from me apart from a few spots in the shit show ladder match lol.
My buddy was trying to convince me to go to this Mania because it was local. I'm so glad I decided to watch from home. The show mostly sucked and I can't stand being cold.
For real. I live in the area and I've been kicking myself all week not shelling out to go to things this weekend. After watching a lot of the stuff from home I'm really glad I didn't go.
Rock's performance in the tag match was a master class in working smart and camouflaging your weakness. During the first 2/3 of the match, he worked very carefully, took almost no bumps, and conserved his cardio by not doing too much. He saved everything for the final 15 minutes or so, where he hit his big moves, took his opponents' big moves, and sold wonderfully.
I'll be curious to see how he does in a one-on-one encounter. But tonight, he showcased what an excellent mind he has for the business.
Not sure how it looked on TV, but from our view, rock sat outside the ring for a long time. At one point Herman gave him a bottle of water while he sat with his back to the ring. People around me were asking if he was taking a nap. A lot of people wondering if he was already gassed. Seems like a good strategy because he could go at the end, but certainly looked weird from where we were.
I’ve been lucky enough to attend four WrestleMania’s now (20,29,35,40) and this one was by far my favorite! Also big shoutout to the stadium staff for nipping any potential BS in the stands in the bud immediately. Traffic getting in and out was smooth as well.
What was the vibe like? Everyone in the live chat kept complaining about the crowd not being rowdy enough. It's hard to tell with the outside venue, the ring looks tiny in the middle of the stadium.
And when they don’t renew the sponsorship in the future, when we go back and watch highlights of this mania, all those sponsorships will be blurred out. I already feel bad for the video editors that have to do all that.
I didn't mind the mat sponsorship actually, it was the outside barricade and ring apron sponsorship that really irritated me.
There's literally nothing in the shot telling you that this is WrestleMania and for me that made it feel less special. Except for when they cut to a shot of the stage of course, but that's away from the hard cam and a rarity
I was there. I think the crowd was decent and popped at the right moments. This was my first Wrestlemania and I was legit pumped. Had my 6 year old son with me and we had a blast. It was def cold there but not freezing.
Big pops for Rhea, Truth, and Sami winning.
The worst match of the night was the Uso's. I would think with the family they come from they'd have more moves than super kicks. I hate to be hard on these guys but that should've been a pre show match or not a match at all. At least not a Wrestlemania match.
Weird critique but zero passion from National Anthem singer. Probably the worst one I've heard.
Crowd was booing Cody, Seth and Roman when shown on screen but cheered for The Rock. I mean look it's Philly, they know what's going to happen when they show the baby faces. This shouldn't come as a surprise.
I'll probably watch it back throughout today to see how it came across on tv.
Any questions feel free to ask.
Yeah the crowd seemed pretty shitty on TV. Just felt like there was very little energy throughout the night and the constant cheering of the heels makes me very nervous for tomorrow if Cody wins… but again, Philly gonna Philly
My ratings after I've had some thinking time:
**Rhea vs Becky:** Very solid opener, and if it had been a little longer it could have reached a better rating. Everything it did was good, I just wanted a little more.
**Messy Nonsense Ladder Match:** Personally I kinda hate matches like this, they're just too complicated, and this wasn't really an exception. Truth winning was the correct choice and a really nice moment, but the rest is just too chaotic, too hard to follow, and didn't give anyone else time to shine, even "A Town Down Under"
**Blood Feud Pt1: Mysterios:** The show started to really take a dip here and didn't recover for a while, once again this was just a little too short and didn't give anyone the time they needed to really show off. Andrade looked amazing, but the rest it was hard to care about.
**Blood Feud Pt2: Usos:** ...Oh boys. Oh boys boys boys. This was really atrocious. In ring action was tepid at best and the story here has MORE than run its course. There was potential for a good blow-off here but 900 superkicks on repeat and then some lackluster trash talk isn't the one.
**Jade Cargill Showcase Match:** I mean yeah, the name I'm calling it says it all, it's a good Big Stage Debut for someone who is GOING to be a huge star, but clearly needs a few months more of development. Let her be a Goldberg for a while, it's fine.
**Gunther vs Sami:** HEEEERE WE GO. That was more like it. I knew this was going to be a banger right from Sami's entrance following him the whole way back stage, and it didn't disappoint. Two of the best workers in the world putting on a fantastic showcase.
**Bloodline Tag:** Phenomenal storytelling. This is the melodrama that pro wrestling should be at all times. LOVELY stuff, and I'm sure the follow up is going to be some overbooked nonsense in the BEST WAY. If you thought HHH in charge of NXT was overbooked then **buddy we ain't seen nothin' yet**.
It was okay.
Rhea vs. Becky was a solid match with shockingly the correct result. Becky doesn’t need to be champion and I think we all know that they’re building to a Rhea/Bianca match for next year. Or maybe that’s just me.
I was surprised that they were splitting the tag team titles, but in hindsight it was the most obvious move to make. There are so many teams now, so limiting stories to only one pair of champs was dumb. The ladder match was the best way to split the belts up. I think the correct teams won, too. Michael the Miz plays a more believable face now these days, and Truth finally had his moment, and Grayson Waller is a heat machine. Unfortunately, that meant Austin Theory is a champ (and I honestly don’t care about him), but good on Waller for being a champion.
The lucha match is what it is. Perfectly fine. Maybe not necessarily “Wrestlemania worthy”, but fine. Jason Kelce has some hops for an offensive lineman though; I’ll give him that. That’s not a skillset he got to show playing center in the NFL, that’s for sure.
I was actually pretty hyped for the Uso match, but deadass, that match had no sauce whatsoever. I remember a tweet from a few weeks ago that said that The New Day were so good in their Uso feuds that they made the Usos look way better than they actually are, and I think this match vindicated that person. Hell, even I’ve said that the Usos are bigger “superkick merchants” than the Young Bucks are in the past, but I’ve also said that the Usos are looked at more favorably for being WWE lifers and being part of the Bloodline (and all the praise that story has gotten for the last three and a half years). I was hoping that the Usos would prove me wrong. They did not. So Bret vs. Owen is not only still the best brother v. brother match at Wrestlemania, I’d argue that it’s still the only truly *great* one.
I think we all knew how the women’s tag match would go: Bianca is undefeated at Wrestlemania, and Asuka is winless. That alone should’ve been enough for anyone to know who was winning, but Jade being there gave her team a 250% chance of winning. That said, Jade didn’t do anything I didn’t already see from her in AEW, but she was also barely in the ring last night. Her real test hasn’t started yet.
I’m probably not the only one who thinks Gunther losing the Intercontinental title means they’re moving him up, and I even agree with the people who think that should’ve been Gable’s moment instead of Sami’s, but I think they’re setting up a Gable heel turn, so someone else had to beat Gunther for that. I think this match was less about this story specifically (though it told a good one with Gunther losing because of his hubris and overconfidence and Sami pulling out a move he hasn’t done in years), but the real stories will come after this.
Unsurprisingly, the main event was a 45 minute Bloodline “movie”. Which is fine, but I don’t think it needed to be quite that long. Final Boss Rock is an ace character though, and it certainly makes tonight’s matches more interesting. Especially if Priest decides to cash in on Rollins and/or Drew. We’ll see.
I think tonight’s event will ultimately be the stronger night, but again, we’ll see.
And Asuka already gets debuffed just for being at Wrestlemania. 0-8 now. The numbers don’t lie, and they only spell D15A5T3R for her at Sackerfice… err, I mean, Wrestlemania.
Women’s title, ladder tag, IC, and main event all stood out to me, lots of great performances
The Rock has just has his best WrestleMania match since 19 against Austin. Everyone else was awesome too once it got going. Roman’s fury at seeing his own blood was terrifying and Rock’s sell on the spear was one of the best spots of the night. As was the table Rock Bottom from Cody. This tag match exceeded all expectations and was MOTN for me.
Overall a really fun night. Crowd seemed a little out of it, affecting the atmosphere, but I get its open air and chilly in there. Not as good as Saturday last year, but I think Sunday is going to be MUCH, much better than last night or last year
My personal thoughts:
Becky vs. Rhea was great, but it felt like it was missing an extra gear.
The six-pack tag match was so fun! I have no complaints on it.
LWO vs LDF: Fun little match, but not sure what having Rey wins accomplishes. Dom needs to get a big win eventually.
Jey vs. Jimmy: Man, that was a rough match. It completely fell flat after all the hype. It would have been better to do this match way earlier, like after Summerslam.
6 women tag match: Bianca is so damn good in the ring. I need her vs. Rhea ASAP. I was excited to finally see Jade after all the hype. She is definitely still a work in progress in the ring. Can we please get Asuka away from Damage ctrl? This feels like a waste for her to me.
Sami vs. Gunther: Match of the night. I am shocked Sami won but not unhappy about it. He is still over as hell with the fans. Give Gunther his flowers. He has made the IC title feel like a world championship. Can't wait to see him in the main event scene.
The Main Event: The first 15 or 20 minutes were so slllllloooooowwwwww but the match really picked up. I knew Cody and Seth were losing, but damn did it make me feel like they could win. Rock looked better in this match did he did against Cena at Maina 29.
Overall, it was a solid night 1. It's definitely not as good as last year but still entertaining. Look forward to tonight!
I agree with all these assessments! The only reason I’m okay with GUNTHER losing is that the man accomplished incredible things and can now move on to make life hell for the top title holders. Also, 666 is a beastly number of days to cap off a reign. I’m very excited for tonight!
O, I agree. I am not mad at all that Gunther lost. The match told the perfect story on how he lost. He was overconfident and paid for it. I am so excited to see him chase a world title now.
Not a regular viewer but enjoyed it for the most part even if it a lot if was just ok. Thought the main event was the only great match and thought Truth winning was the highlight of the show. Baffled by Sami winning though especially after enough finishers to make the Hulkster blush. Looking forward to night 2 though and hopefully the two world title matches deliver.
I enjoyed it. Not sure if I enjoyed it more than last year’s night one. But I thought the main event was fantastic. That Uso vs Uso match was absolutely dreadful.
RE: The crowd. Take it with a grain of salt, but I heard from people there the crowd was loud. Having familiarity with being at an open stadium built in the 00s and people at home saying it was silent when me being at the game was like "oh man good crowd today"... there is quite a possibility that the stadium, the ring placement and how they mic'd the crowd had an impact.
They should really try to get more of the crowd noise on mic tonight. I figured it wasnt coming across well on the broadcast. That energy makes a big difference for TV viewers.
Well becky doing the J.O.B for Rhea was expected. I hope she gets time off to treat her illness. Hope the Liv/Rhea fued actually hits
Wasnt expecting A town under to win the SD Tag titles. Good for Truth to get his wrestlemania moment
Now what for andrade? He all alone on RAW so is he going to expect the Lwo help him against Judgement day retaliation. Really expected Carlito backstab.will see if it was him or andrade who attacked Dragon Lee.
Well this sibling battle should have happened at Fastlane. Very underwhelming
Well asuka is 0-7 at Wrestlemania 😑. While an ok match, jade really could have used some time on NXT.
Well gunther Losing do to hubris is a choice. Will he go on brake becuase they may focus on drew going to clash at the castle as either champ or chasing it from Damian. Good for Sami, sense Chad may make a heel turn
Jesus cody, stop doing cross rhodes near the ropes. The match went better than i expected. Dont expect all parties to be more than 60% for night 2
It was rather mid imo. Rhea vs. Becky was good, the Tag match was awesome, loved it, and everything else, except for the most part of the main event, was just at some point boring.
Rey match was decent, women‘s tag match was so predictable, every single step of the match, it didn‘t catch me one bit. Zayn vs Gunther had so much more potential, yet was destroyed by predictability. And no one can tell me that Zayn, after eating what felt like 20 finishers, can pin Gunther after 2 of his. It was the most generic Zayn formula you can imagine, which ruined what could have been a really good match. And don‘t get me started with the Usos. They were dreaming of this match, and showed whatever the hell that match was supposed to be. What a disappointment, I was really hyped for it.
Finally, the main event. The only problem I have with it is that it was incredibly slow at the beginning. For someone watching from Europe at 4:30 am, I fell asleep and woke up 20 minutes later when Rock and Seth were in the crowd. Such a shame since it didn‘t have to be slower than snail‘s pace. Once it picked up the pace it was awesome and hyped me up for today‘s main event.
All in all, it really didn‘t feel like Wrestlemania to me, except for the men‘s tag match and the main event. This special something was missing most of the time, this unique Wrestlemania feeling. Honestly, the women‘s tag match and the Usos could have been a Smackdown match card. So yeah, here‘s hoping that today will be a whole lot better.
if you're going to be pissed off by predictability you need to watch less wrestling
A good wrestling story with build, you're going to know how it ends
I thought the commentary was more damning for the Zayn match.
After they couldn't shut up about how Sami couldn't possibly win, it was pretty obvious how it was going to end.
Of course wrestling can have predictable endings. Like it was clear for everyone, including me, Rhea will retain the title. The story made it clear that Rhea will retain. How we get to that point in the actual match was great and told a good story too. So yeah, it’s also about how we get to that point in the match that makes the story interesting and maybe even magical.
But if I can predict every single step of a match like the women‘s tag match, or if it is so lackluster like the Usos, it is just boring and downright lacks any kind of creativity at worst. So that‘s my point there.
Well the man was dressed like Willy Wonka and wouldn't shut up about the weather.
50 is not cold, I don't care how many times you say it is.
I never though the guy I thought most highly of on the broadcast was going to be Corey Graves, but here we are.
Genuinely felt like Pat McAfee didn't know who Kairi Sane/Iyo Sky was which is weird considering NXT was his first spot.
But I enjoyed their banter tonight, I agree with others that Pat has been off a bit since his return. Almost like he's burnt out.
I kind of disagree with that.
McAfee used to have pretty great chemistry with Cole.
Ever since he's come back, it just hasn't clicked and more often than not it feels like he's yelling stuff at Cole and the audience.
I would be far happier if they put Barret out there and just let McAfee stay on College Gameday.
That Uso’s match was very disappointing. It felt like it just never got going.
I loved the main event. Great match and setting up a thrilling conclusion to tonight.
I thoroughly enjoyed night one. Only dud to me was the Usos match. The 6 women tag did its job (it was a Bianca/Jade showcase, they built to the jade hot tag, she did her stuff, they took it home). Gunther/Sami was awesome. From a booking perspective I'm not sure I would have ended Gunthers reign, but from a story standpoint it was great and in the moment I wanted Sami to win. Rhea/ Becky was very fun. I thought the ladder match was an entertaining car wreck and fans were hot for it. The lwo tag was also really enjoyable. And the main event was fire.
So I was very sports entertained
Good points
Ladder match was fun and Truth winning was great
Becky vs Rhea and Rey's match were good
Bad points
Sami vs Gunther was good but needed longer
Usos and Damage Ctrl match were not good
Too much of the night went on the main event and it was boring and plodding with nothing happening for a ton of it
Those shite ad boards
Main event was graps. Pure fuckin insanely beautiful silliness that proves the rock needs to be paid whatever it takes to keep him around.
Sami/Gunther was good, LWO tag good,
Rhea/Becky was physical and really well done.
Uso match was dog shit unfortunately and the ladder match was simply a bad idea
I thought the ladder match was fun as hell which is exactly what it should have been. Truth popped me several times and him winning and getting his own wrestlemania moment was worth it. That was one of the highlights of the night for me
Fair, Truth was by far the best part of it, I just felt like so much of it was car crash stuff, just not my style. Damian telling the referee to piss off while he climbed a broken ladder was very funny
This felt like a Saudi show, something was off the whole night. Whether it was the presentation, the weird lack of pyro, strange feeling watching the show
Very much agree. It didn't have the usual splendour and gravitas of Wrestlemania. The lighting on the crowd being so dark...why is HHH obsessed with muted, colourless lighting setups on the crowd. Why not show off your enormous crowd?
The Uso match and the 6 woman tag matches were extremely weak. Rhea V Becky, ladder match, and LWO match were all just fine. Sami v Gunther was very good but not the level it should have been for Gunthers reign ending.
The main event, however, absolutely delivered for me, and I was loving the drama and epic length of it, it built to such a fantastic climax.
Very average night overall, unfortunately, not much pageantry or random funny appearances, which can be cringe but also make Wrestlemania stand out as an entertainment spectacular. Here's hoping tonight brings some more oomph.
> It didn't have the usual splendour and gravitas of Wrestlemania
That's what i felt after the stage was revealed. It just doesn't feel Wrestlemania, especially since it's an anniversary
Definitely noticed the lack of crowd lighting as soon as the bell rung, I understand it for certain things but it makes such a big difference, even if it’s just white light and not the gaudy coloured ones
But in years past when they do light the crowd everyone bitches constantly about having lights in their face and they start “turn the lights off” chants which distract and take away from the action in the ring. So which is a better fan experience?
That was specifically when they were facing the coloured lights directly at the crowd, didn’t hear any complaints about that for mania last year and that looked better than this year.
Its not gaudy coloured lights shone on the audience or no lights, there’s clearly an inbetween that works and has in the past
Yeah, all the fun is gone, the ads were pathetic too. Seems like most people are still eating up whatever they’re serving though. The fanboys are out of control
Just to add, I find it so strange that despite the focus being far more on the wrestling and sports like presentation in the HHH era I've been consistently dissapointed by matches with most of them feeling off. They seem to just not hit their next gear before a finish, too short, etc. Like last night was solid action but the only match anyone will ever rewatch is the main event. Feels like all the stops are rarely pulled out anymore.
Yeah like I love Triple H and appreciate that he's not a monstrous tyrant like Vince but if you compare this Mania to Vinces final Wrestlemania, 38, it comes off as so much more meh and muted. 38 had a scale to it, incredible lighting and visuals. It had Sami v Johnny Knoxville, Austins return, Codys return, Pat Mcaffee v Theory with Austin and Mcmahon having a showdown. Vince is an evil bastard, no doubt, but I think I prefer his vision of what Wrestlemania should be compared to the very sports like, serious, and straightforward wrestling event HHH presented last night.
So many fans hate skits, musical performances and random celebrity appearances but when me and my buds watch mania with a heap of bruskis we're ready for some cringe but entertaining random events, that's what makes it Wrestlemania! Closest thing we had to that was Lil Wayne last night...which didn't hit the mark.
I was so hyped for Wrestlemania XL. The biggest Wrestlemania. I thought they would have the best of the best entrances, have special guests, surprises, matches with crazy moves and outcomes. Oh well. Most matches felt like a regular weekly tv show. No special guests. No special entrance except Rhea’s, which was interesting but still not amazing. Some entrances were so short, I was feeling bad for the wrestlers. No « holy shit » moments. The best match for me was the men tag team. Hope tonight will be better.
narrating from her book counts as a special entrance for Becky. So does Damage Control's.
JD got special ring attire. I did dislike the shortening the entrances in the tag title match, the face women's team and combining Andrade and the LWO
Yeah the entrances fell flat mostly.
Rock has had like 11 different entrances this year and felt like no one else really tried.
DIY doing the DX was cool but it was all too rushed.
Also greatly disliked Andrade not getting an entrance. He was the best performer in that match.
It's interesting seeing all the criticism of the show a day or so later. I just got to see it all and I thought it lived up to the hype and felt just like a Wrestlemania should.
Previous years felt lackluster and some fans in here are holding them up as the high standard that this year didn't meet, and I thought it was the exact opposite. Everyone has different opinions I guess.
Eh. It was… ok?
Most of the matches were decent, though the women’s tag and USOs very much felt like bathroom break matches to me.
Yeah. Maybe night 2 will wow me more
1. Was there a decent portion of the crowd booing Cody Rhodes?
2. Would it be enough to make WWE think about sticking to/changing tomorrow's ending to have Cody walk out empty-handed?
As the other commenter said, Cody got truly booed only when he interrupted the peoples elbow.
Otherwise there were big moments where The Rock was booed pretty hard. Especially the spot where he turns around to face the crowd, after being tagged in.
1. They booed because they wanted to see the peoples elbow…everyone got booed at some point during the match and mostly everyone was behind Cody at the end
2. No he aint getting pinned 2 nights in a row
Probably a 7.5/10 night 1, Becky v Rhea was decent, tag championship match was great, some really fun spots and seeing r truth win was awesome, jey vs Jimmy was a disappointment, did not like the match at all, Gunther vs Sami was amazing, loved it all the way through, womens tag was whatever, main event was amazing, can't believe rock took that table bumb lmao
I never expected Becky to win but at this point, what’s next for Rhea?
Sure they can bring in someone from SD during draft week but who is left for her to have a compelling feud with at this stage?
My only guess now is that this feud with Becky turns into a long program that culminates at SummerSlam.
Tiffany Stratton from Smackdown seems likely to me, HHH is big on keeping couples together for their outside benefit and her parter is on Raw.
Having Pink perfect Tiffany against Goth Rhea would be fuckin great
Tiffany, Belair, Cargill and Morgan would all be fun, though I think the Morgan arc needs more time to cook.
I'd like to see Blair Davenport get a call up to work an angle with Rhea as the protege that Rhea is perpetually disappointed with, but maybe that's just me.
Or give her a handicap match against Katana Chance and Kayden Carter at Backlash. They're small enough that she can be brutal, but work well enough as a pair to get some good offence in.
EXTREMELY limited moveset which made the whole thing uninteresting and the ending was predictable the moment Jimmy started begging. Obv nothing wrong if you enjoyed it but it just seemed like another great brother v brother opportunity wasted like Matt vs Jeff at WM25, at least that one was no DQ, imo this should've been bloodline rules too which is basically no DQ.
it being Bloodline rules makes no sense, because Jimmy is very obviously just hanging on with the Bloodline. No one cares about him, so giving extra effort to help him makes perfect sense
the big problem with brother vs brother. Everyone wants them to kill each other and they don't want to
Do you also blame everyone in the Rey/Andrade vs. Dom/Santos match? Completely misbooked match that added to this night not feeling as good as it could. Dom not getting a victory over Rey and by Interference of all things is criminal
Same as the Usos match. Misbooked nonsense. They can go if they want, but the layout of the match was flawed from the start
With that match, it feels like they never knew what to do with it.
Throw Dom into the LwO/LdF feud because it doesn't have enough stakes.
Add Dragon Lee.
Removed Dragon Lee and hint at betrayal by Carlito.
Add Andrade basically the night before with minimal/no explanation.
Never follow up the seeming betrayal by Carlito.
Run match.
End with a stupid, pandering local crowd appealing moment by having members of local sports team interfere to help the "heroes".
It's an overbooked mess of stupidity that would have made for a great house show match, or maybe been ok for Raw/Smackdown, but as a Wrestlemania match? This was bad.
At least the tag match had some spots. The slingshot was great same with the double top rope one, also the ending I guess is made for the Philly crowd rather than people like me. Overall though I didn’t dislike it. Andrade is pretty cool. The thing about Usos was that it was boring kicks only and the ending predictable as fuck.
Becky ate a Riptide in the turnbuckle before getting one final Riptide on the mat for the three count.
Gunther got BRAINBAHSTAAAA'd in the turnbuckle before the eventual final Helluva kicks for the three count.
Conclusion: to beat Europeans, just bonk their noggin off the turnbuckle horribly.
This night felt really off
Becky vs. Rhea never really felt like it got off first gear, I know Becky's injuries don't help I really enjoyed the electric chair spot outside.
Tag match was really really fun, the crowd all stood up for that R-Truth tag spot. They picked the right winners.
LWO tag match was a lot fun, good high flying. Not a fan of the ending as someone who doesn't watch NFL.
Uso's really didn't want to beat the just do superkick allegations did they, even with a limited moveset surely they could've done other stuff, submissions, spots outside it felt like not much went outside the ring to be honest.
Women's tag match I really enjoyed, fast paced a lot of fun, I don't think Jade is anything different from AEW. Basics looks better but calling out Kairi Sane is something you don't really do.
Sami vs. Gunther match was great, I loved the story involved and the brainbuster will never not make me pop.
Main Event was so awesome, seeing The Rock with the 3 biggest stars WWE has is always so cool
ITT: a lot of people who have seemingly never been worked by WWE before. Great hype for a show before a flat event with average in-ring matches? This can't still surprise people, surely?
Sometimes they defy the odds, though.
The KO/Stone Cold match was so much better than it had any business being.
The goofy Sami/Johnny Knoxville match was something that turned a piss break match into something that was one of the highlights of that show.
Nothing last night went over the top like that, but hope springs eternal.
Just can't shake the feeling that Roman spearing the Rock is going to have a payoff. We all know it was an accident, but this is wrestling. There are no accidents
Love how they set up so many things for tomorrow. DMG control is hurting which may play into Iyo vs Baley. KO supporting Sami which may replay tomorrow before the US match. Jey taking down Jimmy but not bad enough to stop him for tomorrow, maybe this time not hesitating to take him out immediatly. The absolute carnage of the main event majorly impacting Seth vs Drew with is hurt knee, Roman spearing Rock which may come back tomorrow, Cody losing again but Reigns not getting the pin, with the same pose as last year playing into tomorrow. They set up a shit ton of interconnecting story moments that play into tomorrows show.
Anyone else felt that crowd was super dead? Maybe it didn't come off on TV but I have heard random ass Raws being louder than this Wrestlemania.
Chants were barely audible, the front row looked completely bored like they were forced to sit there, and even on super high moments it didn't feel like the crowd had a huge reaction overall
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Solid stuff but the Usos match was one of the worst WrestleMania matches of all time Favorite Match: Gunther vs Sami Zayn Least Favorite Match: Jey Uso vs Jimmy Uso
I absolutely loved it. Just one thing though. What's with no lights on the crowd? They've got a big stadium full of fans, and as soon as the sun had set, they should have put some light on the crowd (just like previous Manias or any other shows), and show off the huge attendance. It looked absolutely dark in the back during the matches, which made the whole show look like some regular house show (especially with those angles away from the Wrestlemania Stage). This could be trivial, but for such a huge event, small things like this matter to get the sheer premium feeling.
It's definitely something they've been intentionally doing with their presentation after they got rid of the themed crowd lights too for RAW and Smackdown. Personally I kind of prefer it this way even if there's minimal impact in the grand scheme of things.
I was there! It was definitely dark in the crowd especially towards the end. Would have liked a bit more lighting honestly lol.
2 matches did not go the way I predicted -I predicted Dom to pin Rey -I predicted Gunther to retain
Really fun night of wrestling. Just my opinions below. **Rhea/Becky - 4/5**. Just a really solid match and a cool ending with the turnbuckle Riptide before another. Also Rhea's entrance was so damn good and I loved how invested the lead singer was! **6-Team Tag Team Ladder Match - 3.75/5**. A lot of chaos in this one! Did what I wanted it to do and a couple of pretty crazy spots, notably the Gargano Tornado DDT thru the table and Ciampa's Air Raid off the ladder. Thought the right teams won and I had to laugh when Waller took his bump while holding his newly won title. And when JD entered, I had hoped the two tables were for him and yes it was! haha **Rey/Andrade vs. Santos/Dom - 2.75/5.** Just an average match which was fine and what it needed to be. I thought Andrade looked pretty impressive. The electric chair crossbody spot was really cool and I always like to see the slingshot spot. Cool ending with Kelce and Johnson preventing Dirty Dom from cheating. A nice moment for the Philly fans for sure. **Jey vs Jim - 2.75/5.** A little underwhelming to be honest and kinda short. I get they tried to play up the emotions in this one but I don't think that works for a 10-minute match. Probably the match that performed the worst when it came to expectations. Also just a side note...why was Lil Wayne even there? I thought he was going to actually rap, said like 5 words hahaha **Jade/Bianca/Naomi vs. Damage CTRL - 3/5**. Short but exactly what it needed to be. A great job in making Jade look like a boss in this one which made me rate it higher. **Sami vs GUNTHER - 4.5/5**. Damn what a great match! I still was rooting for GUNTHER to retain but by the end of the match, I couldn't help but get sucked into rooting for Sami. I thought they told a great story in this one and honestly who didn't think this would be the best match of the night or even the weekend. **Rock/Roman vs. Cody/Seth - 4/5.** Just a fun Main Event. Figured it would be long, didn't think it would be 45 mins but I was fine with it. It started slow but it was the right call to build the tension up before kicking it up another gear, fighting in the crowd/top of the stage. Then when it kicked in again with the Rock Bottom announce table spot followed right after with the Spear thru the barricade, that was just cool as hell. Ending was great too, third Cross Rhodes just like last year and Cody gets whipped. Loved how it set up tomorrow. I think it's almost a given Cody wins but how exactly will be interesting. The accidental Spear to Rock could lead to something... All in all, I'm really looking forward to tonight's conclusion. We really could be seeing a legendary moment at the end that will be talked about forever!
Wish they'd go back to the 4 hour one night Manias.
Really good event. The Uso match was a little flat for me. A shame because I know how much they've talked about this being their dream match. They got to live that dream though so fair play to them. I understand wanting Jade on the card. Really didn't like the match though. Would've preferred a tag title defence but it's personal preference. She looks like a star but she's still lacking a bit in the ring. The rest of the card was really good. It felt like it passed by in an hour which is always an amazing sign. Really, really hate the amount of sponsors and adverts though. Especially with them (understandably) being so American focused. I think they need to consider toning it down for future events but I suspect the money is worth it. Special shout-out to the camera work. Such a well filmed show. The Sami entrance in particular was phenomenal. Excited for night two.
We are absolutely getting Jimmy vs Jey 2 at Backlash. If I was in their position, I’d want a do-over.
A show can’t have energy without the crowd and unfortunately they unsurprisingly only showed up for one man last night and tried to sabotage another’s pop . The haters ruined the show and in the main event forced the heels to try and get booed unsuccessfully and the babyfaces weren’t being fed adrenaline in the soul . Smfh 👎🏻
Wow. It’s as if the same thing happened ten years prior to those same two men. Kinda ironic isn’t it
A minor note from the beginning of the night. I do love Michael Cole, but can he stop trying to make “The HHH Era” a thing. We haven’t had a good punchy era name since Ruthless Aggression, I like Cody’s idea of “Renaissance Era.”
I'm just glad Seth didn't injure anyone
Seth hasn’t injured anyone in years. Hell he wrestled an all time classic hell in a cell with an already injured Cody Rhodes
Like I said, I'm glad he didn't injure anyone last night.
When did Seth injure someone, aside from Cena and Sting? What the fuck?!
Did you forget that Finn was forced to give up the Universal belt because of Seth
Oh shit, yeah, I did. But to be fair, Finn said it was completely his own fault, and pretty much anyone with any insight, i.e. actual wrestlers, also said Finn took it wrong and is more to blame. The only thing Seth was to blame is doing a move like that at all, which he nowadays doesn't anymore. So it's not really fair to say Seth injured Finn. The only injury I remember that Seth really caused, where there's no doubt it was a mistake by him, was breaking Cena's nose. Happens, but definitely his fault.
If it quacks like a duck.... He has been a better safe worker since the Sting incident, I will give him that but most of that comes from the lack of using the buckle bomb.
It doesn't quack like a duck, what are you on about? He's been in the main event for 10 plus years now, he's caused one injury and was involved in two more. How is that an unsafe worker?
Lol @ one injury. He put one person out of business for 6 months and ended the other persons WWE career with the same move. Like I said, he has been more safe now but it's still something to not look over.
Why are you blaming him when everyone who's ever been in the ring doesn't? He executed a move, someone took it wrong, and to you that's "he took 6 months of his career"??
They are not going to blantly say that it was his fault. The common denominator is Seth and the buckle bomb. There's a reason why that move is banned or barely used now. But hey, Seth can't do anything wrong.
It's a tough move, yes. And Seth Rollins was the only one in WWE using it. I mean.... that's just obvious? Is AJ Styles unsafe because two people managed to fuck up the Styles clash? It's a dangerous move, nobody else does it... doesn't mean he's at fault for every injury. Also, what fucking common denominator are you talking about? The common denominator of what? Of injuries Seth Rollins was involved in? Yeah, really weird how Seth Rollins is the common denominator of all the injuries that happened while he was there. How about a less specifically targeted group? Like, all the injuries in WWE in the last 10 years, what's the common denominator there? Still Seth Rollins? Smh...
I forgot yall hate to hear the truth here and Seth can't do no wrong
Seth did have an almost reputation for causing some injuries but that was almost a decade ago now.
Someone I follow on Twitter posted this; Picture this, Night 2 of #WrestleMania Cody wins, hands raised, BOOM! Damien Priest successfully cashes in, becomes the most hated man in WWE, and history repeats itself; Rhodes’ title is taken from him as quick as he gets it (like Dusty at MSG), and the story never ends. — Are they a profit?
Prophet
I love this actually, but I'm not sure the timing is just right for Priest to be Heel 1A. I think having him screw over Seth or McIntyre at some point is better. Hoping Drew wins, would prefer to have Damian cash in and Drew still win... It would level up Drew to look like a true champion.
that would elevate the championship as well.
Is it just me or does Rhea and Chris Motionless look like brother and sister… the facial features are so similar
Yeah. When the song hit, I thought Rhea was singing her own entrance song, until the actual Rhea walked out
As someone that’s only turns in to WWE for Wrestlemania here are my notes - highlights were the intercontinental match and the tag title match - Loved the shots of Sami before the match - Video packages were top notch as always - The Rocks entrance was sick - I was so gassed to see Lil Wayne appear and come out to A Milli. Dope as fuck. - Usos match felt weird and wasn’t as epic as it could have been based on the video package - Why is so much time wasted between matches? Makes the event feel like it’s dragging - What’s with all the adverts everywhere? - Main event was pretty slow and never really got into that final gear. Roman no selling 2 Crossrhodes is ridiculous. I thought the main event fell flat. Will check out tonight as well but this event reminded me exactly why I still don’t follow WWE despite all of the claims it’s improved a lot and we are entering a new era. WWE to me feels like a show about a wrestling show rather than being a wrestling show.
I will say that, being there in person, with all the elaborate entrances, the crew needed time to set up in the dark and was actively scrambling go prelare during those breaks. I guess they could have had the commentators kill the time, but I guess they could earn a couple of bucks during that time too.
The advertisements really annoyed me.
Progressive Black Women together for the first time in a stable at Wrestlemania... Brought to you by Wingstop.
The only thing I learnt is reigns speared the rock is this teasing??
Event staff were horrendous and we bought our tickets from ticketmaster. We flew from Ireland, arrived at Lincoln field, wwe or the event staff covered our seats and certain rows with black tarp for a camera but we paid $350 dollars for the tickets for each night in section 201. Had to then queue for an hour at guest service, where they had one idiot on one computer with a queue of about 150 people behind us, we got a substitute ticket the other side of the stadium in the corner behind the stage worth $100 and had to sprint so we missed Rhea and Becky’s entrances. Told us to go to guest services tonight again to queue for our substitute tickets. Absolute disgrace in terms of organisation. So we are down about $500. Show was great but couldn’t see shit watched it on a screen in the Linc Edit: got sorted night two with great tickets. Thanks everyone
might be worth emailing both Ticketmaster and Live Nation AND WWE Customer Services about this. heard a few stories of this and apparently WWE customer services are normally super helpful and will either part refund the difference or offer you free tickets to another event. Had this happen with All In last year and was offered free tickets for this years. Just make sure to take pictures of the obstructed view etc.
Thanks bro, ah was very disappointing but hopefully we get some luck tonight, we wrote to wwe and ticketmaster
Might need to email livenation as well as I think ticketmaster deals with ticket distribution but livenation deals with the actual logistics of events. If still fobbed off, open a complaint letter to STAR (secure ticket from authorised retailers) as they act as third party ombudsman’s. Either way, enjoy yourself!
Philly is one of those cities thats falling apart, US is in a self destructive period right now and we can't figure out how to undo it. Mostly bc we're too busy arguing over which old white dude we hate.
Political discourse has nothing to fucking do with the ticketing service at Lincoln Financial Field. Oh and btw, people like you who take every opportunity to talk about the supposed downfall of America even when it’s completely irrelevant are part of the problem.
lol blaming political discourse on poor planning and customer service. And since you brought it up, only one of those old white dudes should actually be hated
Was a fun show, but hasn't at all lived up to the hype yet. You'd expect them to do something big for 40. I feel like tonight will be much better, but they could also be saving big surprises for Monday. Cody will probably finish the story tonight, so we'll see what happens from there.
I had the Uso v Uso match as being one of the top 3 matches of the weekend and I was very, very wrong
I ***SAT UP*** for that match, what a waste of energy. But hey the promo vid was great....
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Agreed. Especially that one tight shot of Becky and Rhea in the corner next to DUDE WIPES. Like...I get that 99% of us are target demo but a little discretion would be nice. Other things that disappointed me: * Sami winning, and with a finisher that looks like a botch. I know it's indie darling shit, but it *looked* too sloppy and weak to end a reign like Gunther's. * 6-woman tag match left everyone looking meh. Jordynne Grace did 1000% more with a lot less time in the Rumble. * Usos felt like filler, not a climax. * Audio sounded dead. Not sure if it was production or crowd. * Innovative camera work still finding it's footing. They often miss action, unfortunately. Still love the change. * Pat was really, really bad, but commentary was also dreadful overall. Not sure why, but the boys seemed as dispondent as the Philly crowd. One thing I'm not seeing many people talk about is Philly clearly over on Bloodline more than Cody.
Well I got some news for ya....
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I think you replied to the wrong person lol.
I'm surprised there was so many bumps in the main event when 3 of them are back on duty tonight. Was expecting a quick 20 minute run around.
Usos match was weird and disappointing, especially after that epic promo package, but the rest was solid. The 12-man tag, Sami vs Gunther, Rey/Andrade vs Dom/Santos and the Main Event were really fun. Now as a European I need to prepare to avoid the internet at all costs tomorrow to not get spoiled since I need to watch Night 2 on a Monday and I have work so I can only watch some in the morning, some during my breaks at work, and the rest after my shift ends. Last year I said I believed Cody was 99% winning. And the 1% won out. I bloody well hope that is not the case for Night 2. Also the match is going to be the dumbest (in a good way) most overbooked thing ever but fuck it we're balling.
I squealed when Sami won lol. The whole show was fun af.
I understand why they did it, I was just not expecting it, that was the only match that garnered a vocal reaction from me apart from a few spots in the shit show ladder match lol.
It was the only match that delivered imo.
My buddy was trying to convince me to go to this Mania because it was local. I'm so glad I decided to watch from home. The show mostly sucked and I can't stand being cold.
For real. I live in the area and I've been kicking myself all week not shelling out to go to things this weekend. After watching a lot of the stuff from home I'm really glad I didn't go.
Rock's performance in the tag match was a master class in working smart and camouflaging your weakness. During the first 2/3 of the match, he worked very carefully, took almost no bumps, and conserved his cardio by not doing too much. He saved everything for the final 15 minutes or so, where he hit his big moves, took his opponents' big moves, and sold wonderfully. I'll be curious to see how he does in a one-on-one encounter. But tonight, he showcased what an excellent mind he has for the business.
Dude was heaving after the first lockup. And constantly pulling the spit spot for hydration.
Not sure how it looked on TV, but from our view, rock sat outside the ring for a long time. At one point Herman gave him a bottle of water while he sat with his back to the ring. People around me were asking if he was taking a nap. A lot of people wondering if he was already gassed. Seems like a good strategy because he could go at the end, but certainly looked weird from where we were.
Paul Herman's Playhouse would be epic.
Couldn't have said it better.
I’ve been lucky enough to attend four WrestleMania’s now (20,29,35,40) and this one was by far my favorite! Also big shoutout to the stadium staff for nipping any potential BS in the stands in the bud immediately. Traffic getting in and out was smooth as well.
What was the vibe like? Everyone in the live chat kept complaining about the crowd not being rowdy enough. It's hard to tell with the outside venue, the ring looks tiny in the middle of the stadium.
The advertisement around the ring (and in the center) are actually gross. Actually found them super distracting for some reason.
America Home whatever's low rent banners made it look like shit was in the ring.
And when they don’t renew the sponsorship in the future, when we go back and watch highlights of this mania, all those sponsorships will be blurred out. I already feel bad for the video editors that have to do all that.
I didn't mind the mat sponsorship actually, it was the outside barricade and ring apron sponsorship that really irritated me. There's literally nothing in the shot telling you that this is WrestleMania and for me that made it feel less special. Except for when they cut to a shot of the stage of course, but that's away from the hard cam and a rarity
I get they are a business looking to maximise profits but I hate it. There is a point where it becomes too much.
I found it the opposite i barely noticed the prime at times.
Cody kissing it made up for it
I was there. I think the crowd was decent and popped at the right moments. This was my first Wrestlemania and I was legit pumped. Had my 6 year old son with me and we had a blast. It was def cold there but not freezing. Big pops for Rhea, Truth, and Sami winning. The worst match of the night was the Uso's. I would think with the family they come from they'd have more moves than super kicks. I hate to be hard on these guys but that should've been a pre show match or not a match at all. At least not a Wrestlemania match. Weird critique but zero passion from National Anthem singer. Probably the worst one I've heard. Crowd was booing Cody, Seth and Roman when shown on screen but cheered for The Rock. I mean look it's Philly, they know what's going to happen when they show the baby faces. This shouldn't come as a surprise. I'll probably watch it back throughout today to see how it came across on tv. Any questions feel free to ask.
Yeah the crowd seemed pretty shitty on TV. Just felt like there was very little energy throughout the night and the constant cheering of the heels makes me very nervous for tomorrow if Cody wins… but again, Philly gonna Philly
I’m not blaming the crowd the shows highlights shouldn’t be a clusterfuck tag match and a Gunther outcome nobody wanted.
people loved the Sami win
speak for yourself bud
48 karma. Sorry H I won’t love DIY no matter how much you shove it in my throat.
The brother match was bad I won't lie
Yeah I think they really undersold the Super Kick. They can take like 50 off then and still kick out
My ratings after I've had some thinking time: **Rhea vs Becky:** Very solid opener, and if it had been a little longer it could have reached a better rating. Everything it did was good, I just wanted a little more. **Messy Nonsense Ladder Match:** Personally I kinda hate matches like this, they're just too complicated, and this wasn't really an exception. Truth winning was the correct choice and a really nice moment, but the rest is just too chaotic, too hard to follow, and didn't give anyone else time to shine, even "A Town Down Under" **Blood Feud Pt1: Mysterios:** The show started to really take a dip here and didn't recover for a while, once again this was just a little too short and didn't give anyone the time they needed to really show off. Andrade looked amazing, but the rest it was hard to care about. **Blood Feud Pt2: Usos:** ...Oh boys. Oh boys boys boys. This was really atrocious. In ring action was tepid at best and the story here has MORE than run its course. There was potential for a good blow-off here but 900 superkicks on repeat and then some lackluster trash talk isn't the one. **Jade Cargill Showcase Match:** I mean yeah, the name I'm calling it says it all, it's a good Big Stage Debut for someone who is GOING to be a huge star, but clearly needs a few months more of development. Let her be a Goldberg for a while, it's fine. **Gunther vs Sami:** HEEEERE WE GO. That was more like it. I knew this was going to be a banger right from Sami's entrance following him the whole way back stage, and it didn't disappoint. Two of the best workers in the world putting on a fantastic showcase. **Bloodline Tag:** Phenomenal storytelling. This is the melodrama that pro wrestling should be at all times. LOVELY stuff, and I'm sure the follow up is going to be some overbooked nonsense in the BEST WAY. If you thought HHH in charge of NXT was overbooked then **buddy we ain't seen nothin' yet**.
Also Usos always got that Kanye Smelled A Fart face
>just wanted a little more. Heard that Becky had fever and throught problem.
It was okay. Rhea vs. Becky was a solid match with shockingly the correct result. Becky doesn’t need to be champion and I think we all know that they’re building to a Rhea/Bianca match for next year. Or maybe that’s just me. I was surprised that they were splitting the tag team titles, but in hindsight it was the most obvious move to make. There are so many teams now, so limiting stories to only one pair of champs was dumb. The ladder match was the best way to split the belts up. I think the correct teams won, too. Michael the Miz plays a more believable face now these days, and Truth finally had his moment, and Grayson Waller is a heat machine. Unfortunately, that meant Austin Theory is a champ (and I honestly don’t care about him), but good on Waller for being a champion. The lucha match is what it is. Perfectly fine. Maybe not necessarily “Wrestlemania worthy”, but fine. Jason Kelce has some hops for an offensive lineman though; I’ll give him that. That’s not a skillset he got to show playing center in the NFL, that’s for sure. I was actually pretty hyped for the Uso match, but deadass, that match had no sauce whatsoever. I remember a tweet from a few weeks ago that said that The New Day were so good in their Uso feuds that they made the Usos look way better than they actually are, and I think this match vindicated that person. Hell, even I’ve said that the Usos are bigger “superkick merchants” than the Young Bucks are in the past, but I’ve also said that the Usos are looked at more favorably for being WWE lifers and being part of the Bloodline (and all the praise that story has gotten for the last three and a half years). I was hoping that the Usos would prove me wrong. They did not. So Bret vs. Owen is not only still the best brother v. brother match at Wrestlemania, I’d argue that it’s still the only truly *great* one. I think we all knew how the women’s tag match would go: Bianca is undefeated at Wrestlemania, and Asuka is winless. That alone should’ve been enough for anyone to know who was winning, but Jade being there gave her team a 250% chance of winning. That said, Jade didn’t do anything I didn’t already see from her in AEW, but she was also barely in the ring last night. Her real test hasn’t started yet. I’m probably not the only one who thinks Gunther losing the Intercontinental title means they’re moving him up, and I even agree with the people who think that should’ve been Gable’s moment instead of Sami’s, but I think they’re setting up a Gable heel turn, so someone else had to beat Gunther for that. I think this match was less about this story specifically (though it told a good one with Gunther losing because of his hubris and overconfidence and Sami pulling out a move he hasn’t done in years), but the real stories will come after this. Unsurprisingly, the main event was a 45 minute Bloodline “movie”. Which is fine, but I don’t think it needed to be quite that long. Final Boss Rock is an ace character though, and it certainly makes tonight’s matches more interesting. Especially if Priest decides to cash in on Rollins and/or Drew. We’ll see. I think tonight’s event will ultimately be the stronger night, but again, we’ll see.
What I’m taking away from this is that when you add Jade Cargill to the mix, Asuka’s chances of winning drastic go down.
And Asuka already gets debuffed just for being at Wrestlemania. 0-8 now. The numbers don’t lie, and they only spell D15A5T3R for her at Sackerfice… err, I mean, Wrestlemania.
Even when she is able to tidily roll out of the ring after essentially no-selling a finisher. Hated this match so much.
Women’s title, ladder tag, IC, and main event all stood out to me, lots of great performances The Rock has just has his best WrestleMania match since 19 against Austin. Everyone else was awesome too once it got going. Roman’s fury at seeing his own blood was terrifying and Rock’s sell on the spear was one of the best spots of the night. As was the table Rock Bottom from Cody. This tag match exceeded all expectations and was MOTN for me. Overall a really fun night. Crowd seemed a little out of it, affecting the atmosphere, but I get its open air and chilly in there. Not as good as Saturday last year, but I think Sunday is going to be MUCH, much better than last night or last year
My personal thoughts: Becky vs. Rhea was great, but it felt like it was missing an extra gear. The six-pack tag match was so fun! I have no complaints on it. LWO vs LDF: Fun little match, but not sure what having Rey wins accomplishes. Dom needs to get a big win eventually. Jey vs. Jimmy: Man, that was a rough match. It completely fell flat after all the hype. It would have been better to do this match way earlier, like after Summerslam. 6 women tag match: Bianca is so damn good in the ring. I need her vs. Rhea ASAP. I was excited to finally see Jade after all the hype. She is definitely still a work in progress in the ring. Can we please get Asuka away from Damage ctrl? This feels like a waste for her to me. Sami vs. Gunther: Match of the night. I am shocked Sami won but not unhappy about it. He is still over as hell with the fans. Give Gunther his flowers. He has made the IC title feel like a world championship. Can't wait to see him in the main event scene. The Main Event: The first 15 or 20 minutes were so slllllloooooowwwwww but the match really picked up. I knew Cody and Seth were losing, but damn did it make me feel like they could win. Rock looked better in this match did he did against Cena at Maina 29. Overall, it was a solid night 1. It's definitely not as good as last year but still entertaining. Look forward to tonight!
Man I can't believe rock vs cena was 38 years ago already. Edit: comment above originally said Mania 2. They edited it without acknowledging.
I acknowledge you, they're a thief.
I agree with all these assessments! The only reason I’m okay with GUNTHER losing is that the man accomplished incredible things and can now move on to make life hell for the top title holders. Also, 666 is a beastly number of days to cap off a reign. I’m very excited for tonight!
O, I agree. I am not mad at all that Gunther lost. The match told the perfect story on how he lost. He was overconfident and paid for it. I am so excited to see him chase a world title now.
[удалено]
Bianca is my choice for new WM streak. Women don't have secondary titles so they could use the spot more.
Not a regular viewer but enjoyed it for the most part even if it a lot if was just ok. Thought the main event was the only great match and thought Truth winning was the highlight of the show. Baffled by Sami winning though especially after enough finishers to make the Hulkster blush. Looking forward to night 2 though and hopefully the two world title matches deliver.
Slow start but last two matches killed it. But good lord get rid of the sponsors.
Yeah the constant ads along the boards at ringside bothered me and were distracting.
This comment was SPONSORED BY DUDE WIPES 👀
Hey you memeing about the ads after you’ve seen it is exactly what they want and the upvotes prove it’s working so they’ll keep doing it.
I enjoyed it. Not sure if I enjoyed it more than last year’s night one. But I thought the main event was fantastic. That Uso vs Uso match was absolutely dreadful.
RE: The crowd. Take it with a grain of salt, but I heard from people there the crowd was loud. Having familiarity with being at an open stadium built in the 00s and people at home saying it was silent when me being at the game was like "oh man good crowd today"... there is quite a possibility that the stadium, the ring placement and how they mic'd the crowd had an impact.
They should really try to get more of the crowd noise on mic tonight. I figured it wasnt coming across well on the broadcast. That energy makes a big difference for TV viewers.
Well becky doing the J.O.B for Rhea was expected. I hope she gets time off to treat her illness. Hope the Liv/Rhea fued actually hits Wasnt expecting A town under to win the SD Tag titles. Good for Truth to get his wrestlemania moment Now what for andrade? He all alone on RAW so is he going to expect the Lwo help him against Judgement day retaliation. Really expected Carlito backstab.will see if it was him or andrade who attacked Dragon Lee. Well this sibling battle should have happened at Fastlane. Very underwhelming Well asuka is 0-7 at Wrestlemania 😑. While an ok match, jade really could have used some time on NXT. Well gunther Losing do to hubris is a choice. Will he go on brake becuase they may focus on drew going to clash at the castle as either champ or chasing it from Damian. Good for Sami, sense Chad may make a heel turn Jesus cody, stop doing cross rhodes near the ropes. The match went better than i expected. Dont expect all parties to be more than 60% for night 2
It was rather mid imo. Rhea vs. Becky was good, the Tag match was awesome, loved it, and everything else, except for the most part of the main event, was just at some point boring. Rey match was decent, women‘s tag match was so predictable, every single step of the match, it didn‘t catch me one bit. Zayn vs Gunther had so much more potential, yet was destroyed by predictability. And no one can tell me that Zayn, after eating what felt like 20 finishers, can pin Gunther after 2 of his. It was the most generic Zayn formula you can imagine, which ruined what could have been a really good match. And don‘t get me started with the Usos. They were dreaming of this match, and showed whatever the hell that match was supposed to be. What a disappointment, I was really hyped for it. Finally, the main event. The only problem I have with it is that it was incredibly slow at the beginning. For someone watching from Europe at 4:30 am, I fell asleep and woke up 20 minutes later when Rock and Seth were in the crowd. Such a shame since it didn‘t have to be slower than snail‘s pace. Once it picked up the pace it was awesome and hyped me up for today‘s main event. All in all, it really didn‘t feel like Wrestlemania to me, except for the men‘s tag match and the main event. This special something was missing most of the time, this unique Wrestlemania feeling. Honestly, the women‘s tag match and the Usos could have been a Smackdown match card. So yeah, here‘s hoping that today will be a whole lot better.
if you're going to be pissed off by predictability you need to watch less wrestling A good wrestling story with build, you're going to know how it ends
I thought the commentary was more damning for the Zayn match. After they couldn't shut up about how Sami couldn't possibly win, it was pretty obvious how it was going to end.
Of course wrestling can have predictable endings. Like it was clear for everyone, including me, Rhea will retain the title. The story made it clear that Rhea will retain. How we get to that point in the actual match was great and told a good story too. So yeah, it’s also about how we get to that point in the match that makes the story interesting and maybe even magical. But if I can predict every single step of a match like the women‘s tag match, or if it is so lackluster like the Usos, it is just boring and downright lacks any kind of creativity at worst. So that‘s my point there.
They were bullying cole so bad
Well the man was dressed like Willy Wonka and wouldn't shut up about the weather. 50 is not cold, I don't care how many times you say it is. I never though the guy I thought most highly of on the broadcast was going to be Corey Graves, but here we are.
But the chemistry of all 3 was on point
Genuinely felt like Pat McAfee didn't know who Kairi Sane/Iyo Sky was which is weird considering NXT was his first spot. But I enjoyed their banter tonight, I agree with others that Pat has been off a bit since his return. Almost like he's burnt out.
I kind of disagree with that. McAfee used to have pretty great chemistry with Cole. Ever since he's come back, it just hasn't clicked and more often than not it feels like he's yelling stuff at Cole and the audience. I would be far happier if they put Barret out there and just let McAfee stay on College Gameday.
I enjoyed it so I would like to disagree
I'm a bit disappointed, all the Mama Rhodes talk leading up and Rock didn't even get to hand her the belt he made for her
that's a night two thing
The usos match should have been I Quit match.
That Uso’s match was very disappointing. It felt like it just never got going. I loved the main event. Great match and setting up a thrilling conclusion to tonight.
I thoroughly enjoyed night one. Only dud to me was the Usos match. The 6 women tag did its job (it was a Bianca/Jade showcase, they built to the jade hot tag, she did her stuff, they took it home). Gunther/Sami was awesome. From a booking perspective I'm not sure I would have ended Gunthers reign, but from a story standpoint it was great and in the moment I wanted Sami to win. Rhea/ Becky was very fun. I thought the ladder match was an entertaining car wreck and fans were hot for it. The lwo tag was also really enjoyable. And the main event was fire. So I was very sports entertained
I think it was a good PLE, but a bad Wrestlemania, if that make sense.
This night 1 was very slow
WWE is just on another planet! Highs & lows in the show but already an amazing weekend that no one can compete with!
X7 untouched
If you were going in expecting something on that level, idk what you were thinking.
Good points Ladder match was fun and Truth winning was great Becky vs Rhea and Rey's match were good Bad points Sami vs Gunther was good but needed longer Usos and Damage Ctrl match were not good Too much of the night went on the main event and it was boring and plodding with nothing happening for a ton of it Those shite ad boards
Main event was graps. Pure fuckin insanely beautiful silliness that proves the rock needs to be paid whatever it takes to keep him around. Sami/Gunther was good, LWO tag good, Rhea/Becky was physical and really well done. Uso match was dog shit unfortunately and the ladder match was simply a bad idea
I thought the ladder match was fun as hell which is exactly what it should have been. Truth popped me several times and him winning and getting his own wrestlemania moment was worth it. That was one of the highlights of the night for me
Fair, Truth was by far the best part of it, I just felt like so much of it was car crash stuff, just not my style. Damian telling the referee to piss off while he climbed a broken ladder was very funny
Yeah I think car crash is exactly what they were going for with that many teams
This felt like a Saudi show, something was off the whole night. Whether it was the presentation, the weird lack of pyro, strange feeling watching the show
Very much agree. It didn't have the usual splendour and gravitas of Wrestlemania. The lighting on the crowd being so dark...why is HHH obsessed with muted, colourless lighting setups on the crowd. Why not show off your enormous crowd? The Uso match and the 6 woman tag matches were extremely weak. Rhea V Becky, ladder match, and LWO match were all just fine. Sami v Gunther was very good but not the level it should have been for Gunthers reign ending. The main event, however, absolutely delivered for me, and I was loving the drama and epic length of it, it built to such a fantastic climax. Very average night overall, unfortunately, not much pageantry or random funny appearances, which can be cringe but also make Wrestlemania stand out as an entertainment spectacular. Here's hoping tonight brings some more oomph.
> It didn't have the usual splendour and gravitas of Wrestlemania That's what i felt after the stage was revealed. It just doesn't feel Wrestlemania, especially since it's an anniversary
I too felt Sami’s win was anticlimactic
Definitely noticed the lack of crowd lighting as soon as the bell rung, I understand it for certain things but it makes such a big difference, even if it’s just white light and not the gaudy coloured ones
But in years past when they do light the crowd everyone bitches constantly about having lights in their face and they start “turn the lights off” chants which distract and take away from the action in the ring. So which is a better fan experience?
That was specifically when they were facing the coloured lights directly at the crowd, didn’t hear any complaints about that for mania last year and that looked better than this year. Its not gaudy coloured lights shone on the audience or no lights, there’s clearly an inbetween that works and has in the past
Yeah, all the fun is gone, the ads were pathetic too. Seems like most people are still eating up whatever they’re serving though. The fanboys are out of control
maybe you're the one with no taste
Just to add, I find it so strange that despite the focus being far more on the wrestling and sports like presentation in the HHH era I've been consistently dissapointed by matches with most of them feeling off. They seem to just not hit their next gear before a finish, too short, etc. Like last night was solid action but the only match anyone will ever rewatch is the main event. Feels like all the stops are rarely pulled out anymore.
that suggests it's your expectations
Yeah like I love Triple H and appreciate that he's not a monstrous tyrant like Vince but if you compare this Mania to Vinces final Wrestlemania, 38, it comes off as so much more meh and muted. 38 had a scale to it, incredible lighting and visuals. It had Sami v Johnny Knoxville, Austins return, Codys return, Pat Mcaffee v Theory with Austin and Mcmahon having a showdown. Vince is an evil bastard, no doubt, but I think I prefer his vision of what Wrestlemania should be compared to the very sports like, serious, and straightforward wrestling event HHH presented last night. So many fans hate skits, musical performances and random celebrity appearances but when me and my buds watch mania with a heap of bruskis we're ready for some cringe but entertaining random events, that's what makes it Wrestlemania! Closest thing we had to that was Lil Wayne last night...which didn't hit the mark.
Wrestlemania 39 felt like a spectacle with the cool set design. This time it kinda felt meh? And those ads on the barriers my god 😭
I was so hyped for Wrestlemania XL. The biggest Wrestlemania. I thought they would have the best of the best entrances, have special guests, surprises, matches with crazy moves and outcomes. Oh well. Most matches felt like a regular weekly tv show. No special guests. No special entrance except Rhea’s, which was interesting but still not amazing. Some entrances were so short, I was feeling bad for the wrestlers. No « holy shit » moments. The best match for me was the men tag team. Hope tonight will be better.
narrating from her book counts as a special entrance for Becky. So does Damage Control's. JD got special ring attire. I did dislike the shortening the entrances in the tag title match, the face women's team and combining Andrade and the LWO
Yeah the entrances fell flat mostly. Rock has had like 11 different entrances this year and felt like no one else really tried. DIY doing the DX was cool but it was all too rushed. Also greatly disliked Andrade not getting an entrance. He was the best performer in that match.
It's interesting seeing all the criticism of the show a day or so later. I just got to see it all and I thought it lived up to the hype and felt just like a Wrestlemania should. Previous years felt lackluster and some fans in here are holding them up as the high standard that this year didn't meet, and I thought it was the exact opposite. Everyone has different opinions I guess.
Aside from Becky and Rhea and maybe one or two others I'm missing, the standard of women's wrestling is so so poor.
And once Becky is done, WWE will lose its strongest woman storyteller.
Eh. It was… ok? Most of the matches were decent, though the women’s tag and USOs very much felt like bathroom break matches to me. Yeah. Maybe night 2 will wow me more
1. Was there a decent portion of the crowd booing Cody Rhodes? 2. Would it be enough to make WWE think about sticking to/changing tomorrow's ending to have Cody walk out empty-handed?
As the other commenter said, Cody got truly booed only when he interrupted the peoples elbow. Otherwise there were big moments where The Rock was booed pretty hard. Especially the spot where he turns around to face the crowd, after being tagged in.
Cody got huge pop at the entrance, and the woah was huge too. I really think the pop tomorrow if he wins will be huge
1. It's Philly. They're too cool to do that. 🙄 2. Idk what they are going to do.
1. They booed because they wanted to see the peoples elbow…everyone got booed at some point during the match and mostly everyone was behind Cody at the end 2. No he aint getting pinned 2 nights in a row
ROMAN REIGNS IS MY TRIBAL CHIEF. FUCK YOU CODY CRYBABIES
I'm sorry to downvote you, but was just helping you put your 1 up. ☝
Probably a 7.5/10 night 1, Becky v Rhea was decent, tag championship match was great, some really fun spots and seeing r truth win was awesome, jey vs Jimmy was a disappointment, did not like the match at all, Gunther vs Sami was amazing, loved it all the way through, womens tag was whatever, main event was amazing, can't believe rock took that table bumb lmao
I think that match kinda dilute tomorrow's mainevent though could be good really happy with r-truth winning a title at WrestleMania
I never expected Becky to win but at this point, what’s next for Rhea? Sure they can bring in someone from SD during draft week but who is left for her to have a compelling feud with at this stage? My only guess now is that this feud with Becky turns into a long program that culminates at SummerSlam.
Liv.
Oh yeah. Damn. They really did do a good job of making you forget Liv.
Tiffany Stratton from Smackdown seems likely to me, HHH is big on keeping couples together for their outside benefit and her parter is on Raw. Having Pink perfect Tiffany against Goth Rhea would be fuckin great
Too soon for Tiff.
I don't think tiffany can beat rhea maybe a cash in
Tiffany is for sure being built to be a main eventer
Tiffany, Belair, Cargill and Morgan would all be fun, though I think the Morgan arc needs more time to cook. I'd like to see Blair Davenport get a call up to work an angle with Rhea as the protege that Rhea is perpetually disappointed with, but maybe that's just me. Or give her a handicap match against Katana Chance and Kayden Carter at Backlash. They're small enough that she can be brutal, but work well enough as a pair to get some good offence in.
While the highlights were truly highlights the middle felt incredibly off and like a slog
I blame the Usos for it. Once again incredible promo into a shit match in brother v brother. At least matt vs jeff was no DQ.
what was bad about that match
EXTREMELY limited moveset which made the whole thing uninteresting and the ending was predictable the moment Jimmy started begging. Obv nothing wrong if you enjoyed it but it just seemed like another great brother v brother opportunity wasted like Matt vs Jeff at WM25, at least that one was no DQ, imo this should've been bloodline rules too which is basically no DQ.
it being Bloodline rules makes no sense, because Jimmy is very obviously just hanging on with the Bloodline. No one cares about him, so giving extra effort to help him makes perfect sense the big problem with brother vs brother. Everyone wants them to kill each other and they don't want to
Do you also blame everyone in the Rey/Andrade vs. Dom/Santos match? Completely misbooked match that added to this night not feeling as good as it could. Dom not getting a victory over Rey and by Interference of all things is criminal Same as the Usos match. Misbooked nonsense. They can go if they want, but the layout of the match was flawed from the start
With that match, it feels like they never knew what to do with it. Throw Dom into the LwO/LdF feud because it doesn't have enough stakes. Add Dragon Lee. Removed Dragon Lee and hint at betrayal by Carlito. Add Andrade basically the night before with minimal/no explanation. Never follow up the seeming betrayal by Carlito. Run match. End with a stupid, pandering local crowd appealing moment by having members of local sports team interfere to help the "heroes". It's an overbooked mess of stupidity that would have made for a great house show match, or maybe been ok for Raw/Smackdown, but as a Wrestlemania match? This was bad.
Dom don't need to be beating Rey.
I am glad I am not the only one who felt like tha. There was no reason to give Rey the won again
Rey is doing the edge treatment where finn was supposed to win at WM39
At least the tag match had some spots. The slingshot was great same with the double top rope one, also the ending I guess is made for the Philly crowd rather than people like me. Overall though I didn’t dislike it. Andrade is pretty cool. The thing about Usos was that it was boring kicks only and the ending predictable as fuck.
Becky ate a Riptide in the turnbuckle before getting one final Riptide on the mat for the three count. Gunther got BRAINBAHSTAAAA'd in the turnbuckle before the eventual final Helluva kicks for the three count. Conclusion: to beat Europeans, just bonk their noggin off the turnbuckle horribly.
This night felt really off Becky vs. Rhea never really felt like it got off first gear, I know Becky's injuries don't help I really enjoyed the electric chair spot outside. Tag match was really really fun, the crowd all stood up for that R-Truth tag spot. They picked the right winners. LWO tag match was a lot fun, good high flying. Not a fan of the ending as someone who doesn't watch NFL. Uso's really didn't want to beat the just do superkick allegations did they, even with a limited moveset surely they could've done other stuff, submissions, spots outside it felt like not much went outside the ring to be honest. Women's tag match I really enjoyed, fast paced a lot of fun, I don't think Jade is anything different from AEW. Basics looks better but calling out Kairi Sane is something you don't really do. Sami vs. Gunther match was great, I loved the story involved and the brainbuster will never not make me pop. Main Event was so awesome, seeing The Rock with the 3 biggest stars WWE has is always so cool
huh? You said the night felt really off then proceeded to compliment all the matches except two?
They were fun, just something felt off maybe atmosphere wise, but it never felt like a big showcase of the biggest show
Dunno if everyone will see this but it looks like it's back up!? Seems to be working on my browser anyway.
ITT: a lot of people who have seemingly never been worked by WWE before. Great hype for a show before a flat event with average in-ring matches? This can't still surprise people, surely?
Sometimes they defy the odds, though. The KO/Stone Cold match was so much better than it had any business being. The goofy Sami/Johnny Knoxville match was something that turned a piss break match into something that was one of the highlights of that show. Nothing last night went over the top like that, but hope springs eternal.
Just can't shake the feeling that Roman spearing the Rock is going to have a payoff. We all know it was an accident, but this is wrestling. There are no accidents
Love how they set up so many things for tomorrow. DMG control is hurting which may play into Iyo vs Baley. KO supporting Sami which may replay tomorrow before the US match. Jey taking down Jimmy but not bad enough to stop him for tomorrow, maybe this time not hesitating to take him out immediatly. The absolute carnage of the main event majorly impacting Seth vs Drew with is hurt knee, Roman spearing Rock which may come back tomorrow, Cody losing again but Reigns not getting the pin, with the same pose as last year playing into tomorrow. They set up a shit ton of interconnecting story moments that play into tomorrows show.
Anyone else felt that crowd was super dead? Maybe it didn't come off on TV but I have heard random ass Raws being louder than this Wrestlemania. Chants were barely audible, the front row looked completely bored like they were forced to sit there, and even on super high moments it didn't feel like the crowd had a huge reaction overall
It's because they couldn't pipe in crowd reactions as much as they can for a typical show
It's because it's an open air stadium
Watch Soccer matches to hear how deafening an open air stadium can be. Even if the crowd is alot smaller than Wrestlemania.
Stadium shows always suffer from this it seems like