Wrestlemania Thoughts/Reviews (Obviously includes spoilers)

by Guest Mon 02 Apr 2012, 2:00 am

How to start this thread off?

What can I say?

HHH v Taker was epic. One of the best I have ever seen. It had it all, the story, the near falls, the brutal chair shots. What a match!

by Stonee21 Mon 02 Apr 2012, 2:25 am

It was an awesome match and the inclusion of Shawn was definitely the right call.

WTF was up with Bryan vs Shaemus? I honestly can't believe they did that to a guy who was becoming a main event player, the MiTB win and months of building just to end it all in a matter of seconds

by Guest Mon 02 Apr 2012, 2:34 am

I cant work out the DB situation.

He is either getting buried, or will be involved in a massive storyline. I dont know which!

by Guest Mon 02 Apr 2012, 2:38 am

You'd hope it was the latter, doesn't make much sense otherwise

The hell in a cell was so much better than I expected it tO be. Even though I think everyone knew taker would win, it was still shocking when he kicked out of all them chair shots and both finishers

by Stonee21 Mon 02 Apr 2012, 3:58 am

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES Yahoo

That is all

by HitmanOwl Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:01 am

Get in!

by statiksupernova Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:07 am

been made clear they will have another match its been left open for cena to want rematch

by DDT Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:15 am

Glad the Rock won clean, that's the first match I've seen Cena lose clean since HHH about 4 years ago. It wasn't a classic, but it never was going to be, down to the fact Cena is a terrible wrestler. He can't even sell a sharpshooter!

by The Awesome Giz Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:33 am

Maybe its the alcohol talking, but I enjoyed tonight.

by Dr Gregory House MD Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:39 am

First mania I've ever watched live and with other people, so I'll have a rewatch before I review this with an analitical head on, bu my initial impressions

Sheamus vs Bryan: Kinda gutted Bryan lost the way he did but this was kind of lost in the excitement that my mate called the finish before Bryan had got into the ring

Orton vs Kane: Decent match surprised Kane won clean

Rhodes vs Show: Good showing from Cody against a limited opponent, gutted he lost though

Divas: Fag break

Santino + Foley skit: Halarious

Streak: Epic match, couldn't call it right to the very end, marked out on the cut eyebrow like a randy young boy seeing the top of a thong for the first time, kinda ruined by a girl I was watching it with, who was a leathal combination of being a huge mark and proper dundonian, she hated HBK and was more concerned with hurling abuse at him for screwing Bret than the actual match

Johnny vs Long: Better than expected match, what did Otunga actually do? Ziggler stole the show with his bumping

Punk vs Jericho: Fantastic match, was worried the sloe build would peter out into a disappointment but the trading of submissions at the end was proper epic

Funkasaurus: A-W-E-S-O-M-E-!

Cena vs Rock: Didn't think the crowd were what I had hoped for, whether the venue didn't lend itself to the noise that was required or they just weren't that into it, this match needed a rabid atmospehere and it didn't recieve one, was never going to be a mat classic and one of our party took a gigantic whitey in the middle which diverted everyone's attention and made the match somewhat disjointed, with my 'smark' hat on I think the wrong guy won but I marked out for the finish

Overall I really enjoyed myself tonight but i'll rewatch it at a later date to see where I rank it among the best

by Dr Gregory House MD Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:42 am

PS Did anyone else see the guy we christened 'Fat Jericho' sitting in the front row? I'll have to highlight him at a later date, seperated at birth

by HitmanOwl Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:49 am

I'm happy that the rock won clean Wink

by DDT Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:50 am

Its funny how you see the same guys on the front row at every big PPV. There's always that big fat guy in the basketball t-shirt.

by The Awesome Giz Mon 02 Apr 2012, 4:59 am

Had some fat moron permanently shouting all night at the bar I was at. Overall a good Wrestlemania, I thought Orton vs Kane was a good match. Bryan vs Sheamus was a f*** you to the indys. Taker vs Triple H was a classic, considering they hardly used the cell.

That all said I'm going to have to watch it again on dvd or something, to really look at each match.

by DDT Mon 02 Apr 2012, 5:03 am

I don't know why they bother with HIAC matches anymore, if there not going to go on the roof.

by RinoGattuso Mon 02 Apr 2012, 5:17 am

Those Yes! sign were brilliant.

by SportOfWrestling Mon 02 Apr 2012, 5:36 am

I posted my review on my blog www.sportofwrestling.blogspot.com

by Adam D Mon 02 Apr 2012, 7:30 am

I like this reporter - this is the report I always read after shows:

WWE Wrestlemania 28 Results
BY MARK BROWN, ON APRIL 2ND, 2012
It sure was a roller coaster of a Wrestlemania. There were some pretty high highs, and some very low lows. The show was designed to reminisce the older Wrestlemania cards with the big match feel. And they successfully did that. John Cena vs. The Rock was all that everyone talked about. This show no doubt just broke the all time Pay Per View record for the most buys because of that match. They decided to emphasize the WWE Championship, and the “End of an Era” match as well, while making the rest of the show a true under card. It was actually represented so much as an under card that half the show was over in the first hour. Only three matches had emphasis put on them. And only those three matches were good.

They decided to not use many backstage segments or videos this year. Which I liked. Although they had dozens of legends and Hall of Famer’s backstage such as DDP, Iron Sheik, Kevin Nash, Mike Tyson, etc… they only used Mick Foley as a guest in a segment. Only CM Punk had a backstage interview before his match. This was truly unique. They also decided to use a new format where they would have one participant enter the ring, followed by the highlight video, then the second entrance. I personally hated this concept. Hype videos should only happen before entrances. I felt that the separation in entrances killed too much tension.

Overall, it was a decent show. Decent. Three matches were very memorable. The rest was pure garbage. And I mean garbage. The terrible musical acts added nothing to the show, the backstage segments were very weak, and there wasn’t any nostalgia other than the Triple H vs. Undertaker match. Let’s take a look at the results for Wrestlemania 28.

Sheamus defeated Daniel Bryan to become the NEW World Heavyweight Champion- All of my followers will already know my reaction to this match. Pure anger. And I mean anger. The match lasted 18 seconds. Daniel Bryan had an epic entrance down the ramp to a gigantic pop from the crowd. There were dozens of “Yes” signs in the first couple rows. The crowd chanted Daniel Bryan very loudly. Then the crowd began to chant “Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes.” One of the biggest reactions of the entire night. Daniel Bryan then had his pre match kiss with AJ. When he turned around he was Brogue Kicked and pinned. That was it. I was in immediate shock. I first contemplated throwing my phone through the television. Then I contemplated turning the tv off and not watching the rest of the show. The main thing that angers me is how Daniel Bryan has been talking for years about how exciting it would be to be in a main event of Wrestlemania. I was immediately angry that they decided to put this match on first. I also hate how they denied us this match for two consecutive years. If you remember, this same match happened last year and was bumped from the Wrestlemania card. It was a dark match. I’m also angry that after an epic title run, Bryan lost his title quickly. The main thing that angers me was how great his crowd reaction was…and then the outcome. We were denied the chance to see an amazing show stealing match. No matter how great the rest of the card could have been, this Wrestlemania already left a bad taste in my mouth because I was denied of watching Daniel Bryan on the biggest stage of them all. I’m now going to make a shocking but completely true statement….The decision to have Daniel Bryan drop his title in 18 seconds at Wrestlemania 28 was the worst decision in wrestling history. I stand by that statement. This Wrestlemania was not great because the best wrestler in the world did not compete on it. We were denied from the best possible product they could have put on. I’ll have trouble sleeping tonight because of this.

Kane defeated Randy Orton- And he did it clean. The clean part really surprised me. The finish was a chokeslam off the second rope. Since my Raw Recap article on Monday I decided that Kane probably would win this match. I was thinking about how bad it would have buried Kane to lose to Cena and Orton on back to back Pay Per Views. Orton had nothing to lose by jobbing in this match. He’s been pretty successful during Wrestlemania the past few years. The match was pretty standard and boring overall. A basic psychology of Orton not being able to gain the upper hand. As the match continued Orton realized that he needed to do something big to put Kane away. When he went for that big risk off the top rope, he was caught in a chokeslam for the finish. I figured Kane would win, but I wouldn’t have guessed that it would have been clean. The match was pretty much a waste of time as we all expected. Orton vs. Ziggler or Orton vs. Miz would have been much better.

Big Show defeated Cody Rhodes to become the NEW Intercontinental Champion- This match should have been the 18 second one like I predicted. I honestly think that was the original plan. Once people like me figured out their plans they decided to change it. Hell they probably switched the Rhodes and Bryan 18 second thing in spite of me. Rhodes immediately ran out of the ring as the match started to kill the quick finish thing. From there the match was not very impressive. There were several botches. There was also an awkward moment where Big Show was groggy and had to spin around groggily because he was facing the wrong side. He hit a pretty terrible and botched spear for the turn. After that came the WMD for the finish. Another big waste of time.

Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos defeated Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres- This match was awful. The crowd chanted Daniel Bryan and “Yes Yes Yes” throughout most of the match. They actually chanted for Daniel Bryan during the first 4 matches on this card. Hopefully WWE got the picture on how much they dropped the ball on that match. Maria flopped around the ring in this match and was carried by the heels. Kelly Kelly actually used an impressive 450 Thesz Press off the top rope at one point. That was the only highlight of the match. They decided to job their Diva’s Champion who is supposed to be invincible, to a talk show host. Maria got the win via rollup. The crowd was pretty dead and the wrestling was pretty awful.

Undertaker defeated Triple H- Excellent story. The match itsself was not great, but the story was amazing. Both men had epic entrances. Unfortunately the on set camera kept losing connection so most of Triple H’s was cut off. I’m not quite sure why the Hell in a Cell was really needed. There was only one spot where Triple H was rammed into the steel. Shawn Michaels was really involved in this one. He spent the early going being impartial. Triple H began to dominate with a steel chair. Multiple chair shots to the back of Undertaker. And I mean multiple. He must have hit him at least 20 times. It sucks that they aren’t allowed to use chair shots to the head anymore. That aspect was really missed here. Chair shots to the back just isn’t the same and doesn’t have as much believable emphasis. Triple H pleaded with Shawn to stop the match but he wouldn’t. So Triple H turned to the sledgehammer. He began to repeatedly beat Undertaker with the sledgehammer. There was a point where Shawn thought about calling for the bell to stop it. Triple H attempted a sledgehammer shot to the head, but Michaels stole it from behind. Undertaker choked him out with the Hell’s Gate because of his attempt to throw the match. Another referee came in but was chokeslammed. Michaels regained consciousness and delivered Sweet Chin Music to the Undertaker. That was a false finish near fall. Undertaker eventually took back control and began to beat Triple H with the chair. Then in reverse psychology from last year, Undertaker was in charge of putting Triple H down. Triple H realized that he was finished, gave the “suck it” sign, and walked into a sledgehammer shot. Shawn Michaels turned his back so that he did not have to watch the brutal finish. Undertaker put Triple H down for good with a tombstone to become 20-0 at Wrestlemania. The three walked out together and hugged on stage. That hug could have signified the last match ever in the careers of Undertaker and Triple H. What a classic moment these guys made tonight.

The Hall of Famers were introduced to the crowd. Edge had tears in his eyes. Mike Tyson kept doing the DX chop.

Team John Laurinaitis defeated Team Teddy Long- Each guy got their few minutes to wrestle. Kofi, Truth, and Ryder hit a pretty cool triple 450 splash to the outside. Great Khali was booed. Ziggler was pretty good. Mostly everyone else was pretty non existent. Zack Ryder was tagged in for the final shine. He took out both Ziggler and Miz. He was about to win the match when Eve Torres got into the ring to do the “Woo woo woo” fist pumps with him for the Broski Kick. When Ryder noticed she was in the ring he turned around to get her out. Miz connected with the Skull Crushing Finale for the win. I was very happy to see Miz get the pinfall. Well deserved. I was also happy to see Ryder involved in the finish. Instead of making Ryder a non factor, which I feared they would do, they decided to make him a focal point of the match. After the match was over Eve kicked Ryder in the balls. A classic heel move. I’m glad they decided to make the Ryder and Eve storyline more important than the GM storyline. This whole match was basically booked to put Ryder over as a face. Well booked.

Alex Rodriguez and Torrie Wilson were shown at ringside. I threw up. Way to ruin my night with a Yankee.

CM Punk defeated Chris Jericho- Match of the night. They put on a psychology and a wrestling clinic. Very stiff match. Every move had a purpose. A true classic. Jericho’s jacket added the colors red and green to it. That was impressive. CM Punk had a massive entrance with fireworks that were set off behind the arena in an open field. This is a match you must go back and see. An excellent striking and submission based match. The Walls of Jericho and Anaconda Vice counters were amazing. The chain wrestling was great. The psychology of the body was epic. This truly was match of the night and one of the best wrestled matches in WWE history. It was as good as I imagined it would be, plus more. The only downside was that a late stipulation was added by Laurinaitis where if Punk was disqualified he would have lost his title. Because of this new concept the beginning of the match was nothing but Jericho trying to get Punk to get himself disqualified. I was worried for awhile that this psychology would dominate and change the entire match. Thankfully those two geniuses in the ring decided to only use that as a match starter. It was a well wrestled match the rest of the way.

Brodus Clay came out and danced. Then he called his mamma. A whole crew of bridge club mammas came out and danced. It was funny. It was just very weird to see that right before the main event of Wrestlemania.

The Rock defeated John Cena- I’m surprised. I really am. Didn’t see that one coming. Towards the end of the match I saw it coming though. The wrestling aspect wasn’t anything special, but it didn’t have to be. The hype of this match was so large that it could carry itself. Very good chain wrestling at the start from both guys. The Rock was impressive. From there it was pretty much a lot of big bumps with Cena targeting The Rock’s ribs. All of the moves in their arsenal was used. There were a bunch of false finishes. The Rock jumped off the top rope, was caught by Cena, and was hit with an Attitude Adjustment. I thought that was the finish. The Rock kicked out. Right then I knew that The Rock was being put over. And you could see it in Cena’s face that it had to be that way. He pretty much said, that’s all I can do to win now I have to put this guy over. Cena tried to steal The People’s Elbow and was hit with a Rock Bottom. That was the finish. I’m not sure if The Rock couldn’t put his ego aside for the betterment of the company, or if Vince McMahon just simply wanted to put The Rock over. Either way Cena looks like a million bucks for doing what he did. He showed a lot of class. Kudos to Cena. Job well done. You just built the biggest match of all time and put the outsider over with class.

Decent Wrestlemania overall. Everything was black or white. Either great or awful. 3 matches were great. 5 were awful. Plus the best wrestler in the world didn’t get to compete. I feel deprived. I’ll be angry about this for a long time. I sure am glad I didn’t attend this show in person.
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http://baltimoresportsreport.com/wwe-wrestlemania-28-results-26502.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=wwe-wrestlemania-28-results

by Mr H Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:23 am

Watched it live and really enjoyed it to be fair. Hell in a Cell totally stole the show for me, it was so much better than I thought it would be, epic match with an epic ending. Punk-Jericho was class, glad Punk got his big Mania win. Cena-Rock wasn't as good as I thought crowd wise. I expected Cena to get Chicago MITB like heat. Rock looked good though he's still got it.

I correctly predicted every winner but it was more enjoyable than predictable.

by The Best in the World Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:30 am

HIAC was amazing, all 3 men did everything they could to make it a classic and boy did they succeed, and that hug could signify the last match of HHH and Taker's careers.

by Marky Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:41 am

I don't understand the Daniel Bryan thing, why not just have a decent 15 minute match before Sheamus wins?!

by Marky Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:43 am

Having said that, three very good matches, Undertaker v HHH > Punk v Jericho > Rock v Cena, but i'm sorry to say;

Orton v Kane > 12 man Tag > Divas > Cody v Big Show > Sheamus v D-Bry

by MtotheC's Wrasslin Biatch Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:52 am

Really enjoyed the show. I thought it was class.

The opening hour was a bit of a non-event, but you can't have a four hour show travelling at 100mph the whole way; The crowd would be worn out from their 400 mile journey. That said, I was disappointed with Sheamus v Bryan though. Bryan got a great crowd reaction and I think if that continued throughout, it would have been one of the matches of the night. However, as the sun was still out at that time, maybe Sheamus is unable to wrestle for too long exposed, less he blister.

End of an Era was brilliant. Such good storytelling. And I even got a little emotional at the end, which is redic. as it was so contrived. Just goes to show how good they told it. Taker's new(ish) look was bad-ass.

I really enjoyed Rock vs Cena, I thought it was a good match. Agree the crowd wasn't as great as expected. I disagree with the article Adam posted - I think the musical performances added that little something to the main event feel, doing it's bit to raise the tension up to fever pitch. And Machine Gun Kelly generated some great heat - not sure how intentional?!? I was actually disappointed Cena didn't win - so once again, it proved how well the story was told as it had an effect on me.

And best of all, I genuinely marked out when Heath Slater made his appearance. And all the Pro-Slater bravado aside, I think he once again did a tiny bit to prove that he has the charisma to be a great heel. This time next year...

by Uryu Ishida Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:52 am

right, my opinions / review of WM XXVIII. I apologise if its small, i'm still tired n cant remember exact details of every match.

Pre Match: Usos v Kidd / Gabriel v Pimo / Epico ( c )

This was a good warm up match, high flying spots were good, ideally would have liked this on the card as opener instead of Divas. Champs retain.

5/10

Match 1: Shemus v Daniel Bryan ( c )

DUD. What a waste WWE made here by only making it 18 seconds, SCREW THE RECORD FOR FASTEST MATCH! I wanted to see a Bryan retain here with technical skill. Instead we get 1 AJ kiss and a Brouge Kick. Shemus wins in the 2nd dumbest fashion possible ( Fingerpoke is 1st ).

DUD/10

Match 2: Kane v Randy Orton

This was ok, kind of a standard match between them as I saw most of the standard Orton spots, Kane couldn't be put down so Orton tries a 2nd rope RKO only to be reversed into a chokeslam for the win. Crowd were chanting "YES!" and "Daniel Bryan" throughout. Nothing eye catching so far.

6/10

Segment 1: Foley, a Deadliest Catch Captain and Santino. Bad jokes, plugging a show and a Socko / Cobra moment breaking crab legs, Ron Simmons came in, said "DAMN!" and made Santino throw his food behind him. Sounds a bit silly but made me laugh.

5/10

Match 3: Big Show v Cody Rhodes ( c )

This one started a bit weird as Cody was striking Show early on to no effect, but it soon picked up with a Stinkface by Show. Cody hitting a Disaster Kick and going for a second only to be tackled in the balls....Show hits the WMD for the 3 count and is new IC champion. I can see Show elevating others whilst hes holding the belt but Cody must step up and challenge Shemus or hes gonna be falling fast.

6/10

Match 4: Eve Torres / Beth Phoenix v Maria Menounos / Kelly Kelly.

Why was this even on here? Maria I think hurt herself even more by being here as near the end she could barely get up the turnbuckle. Beth wore a weird hat. that was the best thing.

3/10

Match 5: HHH v Undertaker w/ HBK as ref.

EXCELLENT storytelling, I felt bad for HBK throughout this entire thing and he performed admirably. Undertakers hair was talk of the chatbox, i thought "so what?" Undertaker dominated early on until HHH countered Hells Gate with a powerbomb (?) and then relentlessly beat Undertaker with about 20 chair shots and 2 sledgehammer blows. HBK had enough and repeatedly stopped HHH going too far, HBK was going to call it but Undertaker locked him in Hells Gate and from there a reversal essentially happened. HBK Sweet Chin Music to Undertaker, who falls into a Pedigree from HHH to kick out at 2. After some recovery Undertaker hits HHH with 15 chair shots and a sledgehammer blow before HHH staggers to the corner and crotch chops him, resulting in 1 more sledge shot, tombstone, 1,2,3. All three hugged on the stage. Why was the cell here? it was barely used and if these guys were younger maybe it would have factored more. This really was brilliant and it took a lot out of me. JR calling it made it special.

8/10

Segment 2: Heath Slater and Flo Rida.

Keep Slater off my TV! I cringed at this because it was so bad...make him likeable, please? Anyway Flo just shoves him back into a wall and that justifies my score.

2/10

Match 6: Team Teddy v Team Johnny

Due to the awesomness of the previous match, this one kinda bored me, it was slow at first but then broke down, giving Ryder a chance to win for Teddy but Eve comes in to do the "Woo woo woo!" with Zack and while shes removed from the ring by Zack, Miz hits the Skull Crushing Finale for the win. Suprised Booker took the most punishment. After the match Eve booted Zack in his 'Broskis' and left.

6/10

Match 7: Y2J v CM Punk ( c )

Before the match, Johnny told Punk if he got DQ'ed he would lose the title. Why was this added? It was only used in the 1st 10 mins of the match with Y2J trying to get Punk DQ'ed before they went into technical heaven. Excellent counters by both guys as we saw the Liontamer used by Jericho, countered into the Alaconda Vice, into multiple roll ups, into the Walls of Jericho back into the Vice for an excellent tap out victory! Match of the night!

9/10

Segment 3: Oh dear god why here....Brodus Clay, Mama Clay ( fake ass) dancing before the main event...then we get singers...with Flo Rida getting 2 songs in. Brodus was used as a bathroom break, umm without his section wasnt the break between matches 5-10 minutes anyway? This failed to do anything for me except make me a little ill and bored. I would have taken Motorhead over this, heck I would have taken Vickie Gurrero singing over this!!

DUD/10

Main Event: Rock v Cena

Slow starting and it was needed, with Rock looking a little rusty he needed to get into gear but he did quite quickly. Cena throughout the match was acting the heel as he was mostly brawling but they tried to balance it out and it kinda worked. Cena at the end though made it obvious hes going heel as he tried to perform a Peoples Elbow only for Rock to kip up and Rock Bottom him for the win. Suprised Rock won but in my opinion this was the best we could hope for. A decent match but a bit slow.

7/10

Overall:

Taker v HHH and Y2J v CM Punk didn't dissapoint at all and went above my expectations. Rock v Cena was about my expectations as the rest was below them.
The first match, if it was longer, even 5 minutes then it would have bumped my score up overall but with stupid segments and standard matches like Kane v Orton this gets....

7/10

Needs less stupid....but worth getting for the 3 matches

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:55 am

I'm a huge DB mark but I'm willing to see where WWE go with this before I rant at the 18 seconds debacle, I've been hugely impressed with how WWE have used DB as champ so am wanting to see where they take it.

by Paul Mac 6CW Mon 02 Apr 2012, 9:56 am

Sounds like most of the matches will end feuds rather than prolong them, maybe Jericho/Punk but none of the rest

The DB farce must lead to something, surely Vince can't give as blatant a two fingered salute to the fans and expect to retain one of the businesses best wrestlers

I hope he sets his sights on Punk, that would be awesome

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 10:00 am

I thought that too, reckon that the few matches they had in the last few weeks was testing the water on reaction for a proper indyfest to see if mainstream fans would get it and they're going to go in that direction whilst I expect Rhodes to now be the main challenger to Sheamus on SD.

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 10:20 am

Also with DB, how did he win the title in the first place? In an extremely quick match v Big Show cashing in his MITB briefcase, his title then went full circle with the quick loss.

by MtotheC's Wrasslin Biatch Mon 02 Apr 2012, 10:28 am

I think it completely worked terms of the story, and I didn't hugely dislike the manner of the loss. I don't class that as a burial - that's opportunism by Sheamus. If you get hit with a Brogue Kick, you lose, no matter what time it happens. (Although this is the night where most other people's finishers don't work for some reason). I was only disappointed after seeing how fired up the fans were for that match, surprisingly so. It was a missed opportunity to put on a great match in an electric atmosphere. But they weren't to know that the reception for Bryan would be that great. Like I said, it surprised me.

It's testament to how well he has done of late. I was a massive doubter of his main event status (not his wrestling ability). I'm not anymore

by Beer Mon 02 Apr 2012, 10:31 am

Well, it's been a few hours and the dust has settled....

~ Opening match was shocking for the obvious reason. I don't think anyone really believed it. I think 'WTF?!' was definitely trending on the chatbox. When it was revealed that this has been planned for months i felt sorry for Bryan, but at the same time wondered what the whole point of this reign had been?

~ Kane v Orton was ok. Crowd seemed dead for it and i really didn't expect Kane to win. Be interested to see what happens with Orton now as this seems to be a bit of a slump. Maybe the injuries catching up to him.

~ Show v Rhodes could've been better. Rhodes has come on leaps and bounds and should be in line for a main event run now, especially with Barrett out of the picture. Seemed nothing more than a token victory for show so he can put someone over, decent match.

~ Wrestlemania Thoughts/Reviews (Obviously includes spoilers) 3559488474

Wrestlemania Thoughts/Reviews (Obviously includes spoilers) 3559488474

match. Maria Menononounononunounounounous is a bit of a hottie and Kelly 2 has improved, however she's too nice. I hate Eve, later in the night i was begging Brock to return and F5 her.; Beth carried this.

~ HIAC. Epic. I've thought about it since the match ended, it even kept me up till 5.30am, but i genuinely have no idea how you follow this for Taker. Just retire. Same goes for HHH. The storytelling was tremendous. The way the 3 men interacted. Everything...... well almost everything about this match was perfect. It didn't need to be a wrestling clinic. It didn't need some ridiculous ZOMG moment. Truth be told, it didn't really need the cell. It just needed to be what it was. Brutal. Epically brutal. They may have been hyping the main event as 'Once in a Lifetime', but this; this was it for me. Watching 3 guys who defined an era, gave me more Wrestlemania moments than i can recall over the last 4 years. Watching them carry each other to the back and embracing at the top of the ramp. That is what made this Mania for me. It was superb from the entrances, to the finish and it shows why these 3 guys are the end for that breed. But as i said, not everthing was perfect, 2 things...

1) I felt they over used the chair shots, even tough they looked good, it could've been mixed up.

2) HHH no selling the hair. Come on man!!!!

There was a tiny part of me that wanted Brock to appear, but on reflection that would've sucked.

~ Team Jonny winning was easily the most predictable match of the night. It seemed to be used more to further push Ryder as a face and remind us that Eve is a skank. Miz getting the pin must mean his doghouse days are behind him. Spot of the night went to Kofi/Truth/Zack. Definite MO.

~ Punk v Jericho i have to admit i didn't get into until the finish, but in fairness i was starting to tire. The stip ruined it for me. It took the edge off. You just knew Punk wouldn't lose to a screwy finish. I liked Jericho trying to get him to snap but you could just never believe it would happen. Finishing sequence perked my interest and was the right ending.

~ So the main event. A match of for the ages. You know, i try to put my hatred for Cena to one side to analyse the match, but it's difficult, because everything i hate about him was so prominent in the build up to this match. His no selling; it says a lot when you get taught how to sell by a ginger jobber with his one fan (Yes, Slater), his goofy faces, his ability to smirk his way through someone else promo's, the fact he has the audacity to bitch about Rock not putting back into the business and yet, the man at the forefront of the company, the face of the WWE acts like a complete bellend around him. Say what you want about The Rock, yeah he went away and made movies, but you know what? He's always been humble to his roots. Always acknowledged the wrestling business for putting him where he is. If it weren't for guys like the Rock, there would be no Cena. Guys like Austin, Taker, HHH, HBK, they took it from the old era, lived in their own era and brought in the new one. Cena maybe well be 'the man' outside the ring. I'd never knock his charity work, his dedication to the fans and the company, but he needs to learn humility, he needs to accept that not everything in the WWE lasts forever and have some respect.

The match itself didn't disappoint. It had a few botches, again, most of them from Cena, i don't know if he was working stiff or whether he is just shoddy, but you think you'd put the effort in for the biggest match of your life. To be honest, it wasn't until the last 5 minutes that i could tell Rock was winning. And when thinking back, you could tell. Cena's reaction, his body language and his look to the crowd basically told the story. He was putting The Rock over. I'll admit, i marked out. If it hadn't been for the time of the morning i would've shouted. But i couldn't be happier. See, for all the doubters and all the people that feel Cena should go over this was the right result. The only way a Cena win would've made sense is if he turned heel, and i probably would've marked out for that. In the long run, Cena will get a rematch, he'll win it, and the good money would be on Rock putting him over at WM29, which is probably the right thing to happen. I just hope by that time Cena learns to be a bit more professional, a bit more humble and turns up in the right frame of mind. For all his talk about wanting to fight 'The Rock' and not 'Dwayne' we got the Cena who bored us to death against Orton time after time, not the Cena that showed he could be great against Umaga at the Rumble, HBK and Mania and Punk at MITB.

Overall a good, solid Mania and a big improvement on last year for sure.

by **Crimey** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 10:54 am

The thing that annoyed me about the Sheamus-Bryan match was that nobody is put over that way, Sheamus would have much looked more impressive as world champion had he beaten Bryan after a good 15 minute match than from a quick sneaky finish. Cut out the musical performances and the ridiculous Brodus Clay segment and you have time for what could have been a really good match.

I think the Hell in the Cell match was by far the best match, I enjoyed more than any other by far. I really did think Undertaker was going to lose after the SCM and Pedigree, which is a great feat of making the audience believe anything can happen, proving that when they want to, the WWE can be great storytellers.

I actually think the Jericho-Punk match was a bit of a disappointment after the first match, I don't know why but I just couldn't get into it. I think I'm probably just not a fan of that style of wrestling, I felt it didn't have a big match feel to it, as if it could be a match at any PPV rather than for the world championship at Wrestlemania.

The Rock-John Cena match probably fulfilled the expectations, the match wasn't amazing, but it did it's job and the finish was really shocking. I was sure Cena was going to win, and there must be a rematch at some point because it can't finish with The Rock being put over.

by Gregers Mon 02 Apr 2012, 11:10 am

IHell in a cell was 10/10 in my opinion, probably the best match ever at mania. The drama and storytelling was immense and when taker got hit by scm and the pedigree I was sure that was that.

Punk vs Jericho took forever to get going but when it did it was a great match.

Cena vs Rock had the wrong result but was solid, yet another good match from Cena.

Kane/Orton was a very good little match and the ending was supreme.

I also loved the opening match as I'm a massive Sheamus fan and brodus was the icing on the cake.

Overall: 8/10

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 11:16 am

I fell asleep during Rock v Cena and missed the ending Sad

Very good Wrestlemania in my opinion,
Punk v Jericho - Best pure wrestling match
HHH V Taker - Best Drama
Rock v Cena - Best all round

by James_182 Mon 02 Apr 2012, 11:47 am

Overall a very good show and well worth staying up for.

Have to say like most I was absolutely gutted that they used D Bryan to be squashed, I would have been happy to see him lose after a decent back and forth match with Sheamus but to see his reign ended in seconds was a shocker, I just hope he doesn't go back to the mid-card as they guy is clearly well over with the fans.

The Orton vs Kane match was actually a little gem that I didn't expect, was expecting that to be a snooze fest but was very good story telling from both men.

I just hope those rumors re Brock are true as I would like to see a Cena-Brock feud which i think could be epic.

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 11:50 am

Cena has really bulked up lately, physically he is probably the best option v Lesnar now and it would be a good continuation of Cena's crusade v guys that left the business to better themselves.

by JamesLincs Mon 02 Apr 2012, 11:55 am

I didnt realise how much of a nerd i was until i stepped into riley's last night. however me and my chums didnt stay long as it was pretty poor in there, so we made our way to a friends house to watch it

great night, and a much better mania than last years. great atmosphere for a stadium event. dissapointed for bryan, but the crowd really were with him, and those signs at the front were great. how white does the outside make sheamus look! he looked like a wax work!

taker - h was fantastic, as everyone has already said. didnt seem to last that long. the chair shots were very good, as takers shoulder showed, ouch! he looked pretty badass too with his mohawk (what a homo) we also commented how he looked like 'big gay following' (do you fancy a bum?) anyway great ending with the embrace. but you get the feeling this story isnt over yet!

enjoyed punks win, delighted for him. hate all the fireworks though, i really do!

then the rock winning was perfection

the rest probably isnt worth mentioning

good mania though, enjoyable night. much better than last years

-------------------------

oh i forgot to mention, how poor cena was. he looks so awkward when trying to wrestle. he botched the rock bottom, again! and almost completely f'ed up the second one for the finish!! and then as usual, no selled it as he was looking only dissapointed right after the bell as he sat on the ramp. just go away cena....

oh, and how good did taker look on the whole! after he could barely move after last year, he looked pretty good imo and looks like he could still go another year or two. he looks tubbier however, but thats age for you

by Gregers Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:30 pm

I thought Cena was good in the main event... But then again its not cool to think Cena did a good job. Ending was odd with rock winning clean, interesting to see if the rumours of rock vs Cena 2 at summerslam and rock vs Cena 3 at WM 29 are true.

Just re-watched hiac, id like to change my rating to 11/10!

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:32 pm

Cena is a good worker, not great but good!
He has managed to put on some very good matches with some of the best over the years!

by Gregers Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:34 pm

Exactly olly, hbk/angle/hunter/rock/Orton/punk.... Not a bad list to have had your best matches against.

by MtotheC's Wrasslin Biatch Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:37 pm

I think the article Adam posted is spot on. He deserves so much credit for this past year. He carried a whole feud until the last month, then took the loss.

But then I also agree that it was written all over his face that he was losing from the beginning. He seemed a little sulky. It makes me wonder how long before the match they decided on the winner.

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:39 pm

According to the dirt sheets several sections of the show were rewritten on the day itself.

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:40 pm

Well if I was him I wouldn't be too happy!!!
Worked his butt off for the last 8 years and carrying this feud for the past year then loses the match to someone who is one of the best but was away pretty much all year and has been for the past 8 years making movies

by MtotheC's Wrasslin Biatch Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:43 pm

I agree Olly. I don't think it was the right decision... unless it acts as some kind of furtherance.

by **Hero** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:47 pm

I'd like to know who made the call on the result, Vince 100%? Or did Rock have a little say on the matter?

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Mon 02 Apr 2012, 12:48 pm

Electric Demon wrote:I agree Olly. I don't think it was the right decision... unless it acts as some kind of furtherance.

There must be something in the making for Summerslam otherwise it makes no sense to have your top player lose to someone who has only started wrestling again in the past year after a long time

by bretmeharty Mon 02 Apr 2012, 1:03 pm

Electric Demon wrote:I think the article Adam posted is spot on. He deserves so much credit for this past year. He carried a whole feud until the last month, then took the loss.

But then I also agree that it was written all over his face that he was losing from the beginning. He seemed a little sulky. It makes me wonder how long before the match they decided on the winner.

Where is this article Adam posted?

by Beer Mon 02 Apr 2012, 1:05 pm

bretmeharty wrote:
Electric Demon wrote:I think the article Adam posted is spot on. He deserves so much credit for this past year. He carried a whole feud until the last month, then took the loss.

But then I also agree that it was written all over his face that he was losing from the beginning. He seemed a little sulky. It makes me wonder how long before the match they decided on the winner.

Where is this article Adam posted?

Scroll up?

by MtotheC's Wrasslin Biatch Mon 02 Apr 2012, 1:05 pm

Up a bit...
Up a little bit more...
And a little bit more...
No, too much, down a bit..
Up a bit...
There it is!

by Adam D Mon 02 Apr 2012, 1:12 pm

bretmeharty wrote:
Electric Demon wrote:I think the article Adam posted is spot on. He deserves so much credit for this past year. He carried a whole feud until the last month, then took the loss.

But then I also agree that it was written all over his face that he was losing from the beginning. He seemed a little sulky. It makes me wonder how long before the match they decided on the winner.

Where is this article Adam posted?

The guy who writes it is a former referee from memory and worked with the WWE.

I often find myself agreeing with him and its usually quite a funny spin on it too. Might approach him about doing something with us!

by TopoftheChops Mon 02 Apr 2012, 1:12 pm

Brilliant Wrestlemania. Only negatives were the lengths of the first 3 matches, each of them could have had more time especially the whc match, I'm sure D.Bryan will come back from this.

HIAC was probably the best match at mania, even taking over HBK-Taker, the storytelling was fantastic.

Divas match was absolutely pointless

The match between Jericho and Punk was also very good, throughly enjoyed the counters of their submission holds

The reaction of the crowd after rock won was insane. Very good main event and one of the best Wrestlemanias ever

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