Topic: WrestleMania XXVIII: Predictions, Live Discussion etc

[DocSavage]

This is the correct answer. The show was good and worth illegally streaming... I mean ordering.

I ordered it.

The only match really worth a damn was Punk/Jericho..  UT, HHH, and Shawn were saved by the psychology, but it was a shit garbage match.

And Rock/Cena was decent for what it was..  Three star match, give or take.  But Rock looked seriously rusty, needed a lot of rest holds, and it was obvious Cena was leading him through the match...

But what really brings this Wrestlemania down for me is the grandma dance and all the time devoted to celebrities at the expense of actual matches...  Despite paying all that money for the show, I flipped channels when those craptastic acts were pandering to their fans with the diarrhea that passes for entertainment...

[Zandrax]

I would expect that UT is done, but that's just me.

I think both are pretty much done. Also "End Of An Era" can be retconned into it being final closure on the four year stor between Shawn, Hunter, and Taker.

[FATSEXY]

Watched it at a friend's house, he works for the local cable company, so he gets everything free. So I watched it free, legally.

I thought it was great, overall, but a few things sucked. The women's tag match was possibly the worst match in history AND it had your champ getting pinned by a stick figure TV personality.

The UT/HHH match was fan-fucking-tastic, and if you're here to smark and show your genius by hating on the match, kindly f off and let me just say UN-DER-TAKER *clap clap clapclapclap*. What a damn match. I found myself wishing that I could watch Chris Masters sell a hurt leg to Tyler Reks during the whole match, but this one will do as an acceptable match, I guess.

Punk vs. Jericho was also great. I liked Jericho tussling Punk's hair after the match, but again, if you want to be Mega Smart, jump on Jericho's business exposing ass for destroying the whole match with that bullshit (but I still liked it, and thought it was kind of touching, "Here ya go, kid, you did it.".

Rock vs. Cena, I still think Cena should have gone over, I hope they don't bring in Brock to destroy Cena... I hope they have Cena beat Brock cleanly.

Has there been a Mania match before with the title match not being the main event?

I thought Cena's roll through and pick Rock up spot was great. I thought the Rock Bottom to finish it was great. Rock used The World's Worst Sharpshooter, twice, which was awful and great at the same time. I think he did it extra shitty just to fuck with Bret Hart. And I think Cena should have won since he's the flagship guy and he's gonna be there, ya know. But whatever. The Rock is big enough a star that it's not a hard thing to swallow, at least it's not LT beating Bam Bam.

Overall, I thought it was...

..what's that? The opening... fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuCKKKKKKKKHAAAA!!!

I hated the opening. Hated it. HATED IT!!!!

[FATSEXY]

I can see Cena going with "The ref was out to fuck me over.", because he kept asking about the count.

[FATSEXY]

Shit, Eve is hot.

Eve is a manly looking beat according to the Victoria's Secret models fucking crowd here at A1.

I'd let Eve punch me in the nuts if the tradeoff was... well, she'd techincally be touching my balls, so I'd just let Eve punch me in the nuts.

[FATSEXY]

again, this is great entertainment, but not a great wrestling match.

PROTIP: No pro rassle match is a great wrestling match. Go watch the Olympics if you want a great wrestling match.

[TH]

Trips isn't done, since he signed a new deal to continue on as a wrestler. Taker has also said he wants to keep wrestling.

[Zandrax]

Manias where the last match was not a title match

I - Hogna/T in a tag match

VIII - H0gna vs. Sid

the one with Bam Bam and Lawrence Taylor

26 - Taker/Shawn II

There may be more, but that's just off the top of my head.

[FATSEXY]

i liked where they were going with it when hhh was killing ut with chair shots, but it went off the rails quickly.  then they blew it with ut getting all the offense and then the win at the end.  kind of killed the drama.

and while the post match was a good thought, it went on WAY too long.  shouldn't have had ut sell that much after the match and it should have ended with the three of them in the ring.

"Derp derp the bad guy winning up until the end and then the good guy coming back to win is awful and should never be done derka derka!! I want OLD SCHOOL RASSLE!!"

[Zandrax]

 'Taker took a ton of chairshots, two pedigrees, a superkick, a spinebuster onto steps, and a couple hammer shots. HHH took his share of chairshots, at least one tombstone, and a bunch of other stuff I can't mention in one thought.  Considering the punishment everybody took in that match, I was just fine with the post match.

[freud mayweather]

'Taker took a ton of chairshots, two pedigrees, a superkick, a spinebuster onto steps, and a couple hammer shots. HHH took his share of chairshots, at least one tombstone, and a bunch of other stuff I can't mention in one thought.  Considering the punishment everybody took in that match, I was just fine with the post match.

All of that shit and the match was still super boring because 2 part time 40yo wrestlers can't pace a match and SEXY BOY is a terrible actor. (Sorry Shawn.) Also, the outcome never being in question probably killed a lot of would-be dramatic moments. 

[TH]

All of that shit and the match was still super boring because 2 part time 40yo wrestlers can't pace a match and SEXY BOY is a terrible actor. (Sorry Shawn.) Also, the outcome never being in question probably killed a lot of would-be dramatic moments.

If you thought that match was poorly paced, I'd hate to think what you thought of last year's borefest.

[Zandrax]

I think the exaggerated facial expressions and gestures from Shawn were for the live crowd. These guys still have to move and act in a way that the people in the nosebleeds of an arena can still understand.

I also think the reason why the group I was watching with reacted so much is because WWE of course doesn't breakout the repeated chairshots very much. So seeing 'Taker get bruised up from chairshots was very impactful.

Plus like I said, I loved H's reaction at the end. He knew he couldn't win but he wasn't going to give up. Which is a throwback to the second Shawn/'Taker match, and again ties the last four years together.

[Chus-Kay]

My thoughts:
DB/Sheamus - very disappointed we didn't get at least a 10 min match.  they could have done this spot after 10 mins.  just have DB get the better of Sheamus, he gets full of himself, motions AJ up, gives her the kiss, not realizing Sheamus has recovered, and bam!  1,2,3.
Kane/Orton - Nothing really good here.  It was just kinda there.  Surprised Super Orton didn't win (both super heroes lost...is it possible WWE did this to say, "see?  super cena and super orton are a myth!!!")
Cody/Big Show - I don't care what Dylan says, this was a really good match.  Not great, but really good.  I liked how they showed that cody had a definite plan on how to deal with a giant.  it just didn't work. 
Diva match - This should have been dropped from the show.  Completely ridiculous.  FAR worse than last years Diva's match.  Bring back Snookie.  Who made the decision to have Maria play face in peril??
HHH/UT - I'm not as high on this as some others.  It was going really great and then HBK went into super over sell mode.  His crying just ruined it.  It got TOO drama-riffic.  There was some good wrestling, but all that other crap kinda ruined it for me.  I didn't care for the ending either.  UT gets the upperhand and keeps it.  Killed any drama.  At least give HHH a shot at the end.  It was just TOO clear he was going to lose and then his comeback is a weak attempt at a sledge shot which UT very easily stops.  Yawn.
I did like the end with all the mutual respect stuff, but it went on WAY too long.  Should have cut to a video package.
Teddy/Johnnny - This was a horrible match. WAY too many people involved.  There were almost as many people outside the ring than on/in the ring.  Way too distracting.  Not shocked that crowd was dead as it was too hard to follow.  After the big spot, it really picked up.  I'd rate the first half zero stars and the last half 4 stars (could have been 5 if it went longer).
Punk/Jericho - This was an awesome match.  I loved it.  It wasn't "great", but was really good.
Rock/Cena - This was the best match of the night.  Fantastic stuff from both guys.  Loved Cena heeling at the start.  I thought he was gonna go bret hart at that point.  Totally shocked Rock won.  Yeah, it was his home town, but unless they are heeling Cena, it seems weird not to do a pass the torch moment.
Overall, I really enjoyed WM so I'm glad I broke down and got it.

[Chus-Kay]

"Derp derp the bad guy winning up until the end and then the good guy coming back to win is awful and should never be done derka derka!! I want OLD SCHOOL RASSLE!!"

"Derp derp i like big strong guys who do strong things"
 
they could have had UT winning at the end, but give HHH a credible attack that UT stops or reverses.  his last gasp was just that.

eta: also, it's a match built on high drama.  you can't build a match based on all that acting and drama and crap and then take it all back in the final minutes.
 
 

[freud mayweather]

If you thought that match was poorly paced, I'd hate to think what you thought of last year's borefest.

I actually liked their match last year, though I wasn't really paying attention until they started doing finishers. This year's match just dragged on and on to me. It also doesn't help that I had no interest in seeing either of those guys wrestle at all. I spent most of the match hoping an injury would end it quickly.

[Zandrax]

I actually liked their match last year, though I wasn't really paying attention until they started doing finishers. This year's match just dragged on and on to me. It also doesn't help that I had no interest in seeing either of those guys wrestle at all. I spent most of the match hoping an injury would end it quickly.

I dislike HHH as much as the next guy, and I figured deep down that 'Taker was winning. But I still bought into it a couple times that H might win.

[Niall]

Re: pacing.  I don't think Trips is the greatest at looking vulnerable, especially after he basically killed Undertaker earlier in the match.

The match probably would have worked better if Trips just simply got his ass handed to him after teasing like he was in control.  Shawn "saving" Taker sort of diluted the impact of Taker's win.  Still well done though.

[Niall]

But it still leaves the question open -- Is Shawn better than Trips?  They surely have to want to do that next year, and with some pushing, HBK should agree.

[Niall]

The tide is turning. My nine year old daughter Katie, once a devout Cena fan, has now declared her favourite to be...

[spoiler]

[/spoiler]

[Jef Leopard]

Why was Punk smiling and laughing while in his opponents finishing submission hold?   I sure didn't buy that as a finish.


I can only imagine the outrage if HHH was smiling and laughing while in a Hell's Gate false finish.


The main event was garbage.  Worse than Cena/Miz.

Rocky kept making John look like an idiot by not being in the right place.  Example:  When John spent a minute looking like a chump on the top rope waiting for Rocky to get in place for the legdrop.


Overall, a very disappointing show.

[FreebirdSTF]

First thought about this show of the morning, loved it when Cena went for the People's Elbow and ate a Rock Bottom.  The whole thing was well-done from Cena standing over the Rock deciding to do it to the Rock coming to life and catching him on the rebound.

[Niall]

The main event was garbage.
Rocky kept making John look like an idiot by not being in the right place.
Overall, a very disappointing show.

LOL.

[Habs_Junkie]

Am I the only one who wasn't crazy about the Taker/HHH match.

Don't get me wrong. the match was great but I HATE when wrestlers kick out of finishing moves. To do it once during a match for a near fall is great but to constantly keep doing it throughout the match just killed it for me.

Especially when you look back at "non-mania" events and taker gets pinned by a boot to the face yet he can survive everything he did here.

[Niall]

Just rewatching the whole show.

Punk vs Jericho was great wrestling, perfect pace and a really good match. Just lacked the drama.  The criticisms that it took the crowd a while to make some noise was valid in a sense, but not really relevant as they didn't lose the crowd either.  The crowd were just watching and their reactions lifted when the pace of the match lifted.  The finish was excellent and it shows where WWE view Punk.  He's not at Cena level yet, but he's clearly ahead of everyone else on that roster.

Trips vs Taker wasn't as good second time.  It was still very good, but nowhere near a rival to last year's match.  The reactions of HBK were just a bit too theatrical.  There's that thing of "Is it still a great match when you are watching it without the intrigue of what will happen?".  The theatrics of "Is Shawn gonna end it or not?" sort of evaporated watching it a second time.  Answers the question for me of Match of the Night.  I think it has to be Punk vs Jericho, but Trips vs Taker is the definite second.

Sean "Diddy" Combs coming out made absolutely no sense whatsoever.  I still don't know what that was all about.  And MGK's passionate hating on the anti-Cena fans was actually funny for all the wrong reasons.

Cena vs Rock was very, very good in a surreal way.  Watching it the first time, the feeling of "how will this play out?" sort of takes over, but when you re-watch it knowing Rock has won, it's amazing to see the level of commitment from both of these guys here.  Every series of moves were hit well and actually quite tight for the most part.  That Steinerline from Cena was one of the best standup moves I've seen from anyone in a while.  The pace was great.  Maybe a small credit goes to Mike Chioda who no doubt had a part to play in that.  Rock playing up the fatigue was good too, although he seemed legit blown up in the Miami weather hitting all his signature spots early.  The submissions did look awkward and weren't executed well aside from the "escapes", but everything else they did was as good as they could have expected.  It did have a feeling of Hogan vs Warrior about it -- and that is a big compliment to two guys who are not known for dictating the pace of a match on their own.