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Money in the Bank was one of the most anticipated matches of the card, so putting it first made no sense to me. I realize they wanted to get people into the show, but this was not the way to do it. I liked the match, but it seemed they just centered it around the one big spot (Edge/Hardy). The best thing from this whole PPV came during this match, and that was having Ken Kennedy win it. At least creative have some brains.
The Kane/Khali - Benoit/MVP - Diva matches were all boring. The only thing that kept me entertained during Umaga/Lashley is hearing Donald continually say, "Lets go, Bobby" every five seconds from the outside. That and Donald botching the stunner and Stone Cold blatantly laughing about it.
Lastly, the main event. HBK comes out to a very basic entrance, doesn't seem enthused. This is Wrestlemania! Show that you want to be there. Then we have Cena with such a STUPID car entrance. I seriously can't see why people want this guy as a champion. Him winning ruined Wrestlemania, as if it already wasn't. The last shred of hope I had was seeing Kennedy cash in the MITB at the end of the show and defeat Cena... since it ended with 25 minutes left. But nope. I was left disappointed.
WWE had to stretch everything out because they weren't smart enough to add more matches. I'm glad I didn't order this PPV alone because I never would have wanted to front $50 by myself for something like this. I should've saved the money and ordered Lockdown instead.
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Sometimes fans attending a live event feel great about a show regardless of quality because of the atmosphere and excitement of an ecstatic crowd, but it was heartbreaking to see fans leaving the arena with such disappointment on their faces. The build-up and hype for this WrestleMania was improved over previous years (last year especially), and I feel that hardcore fans and casual fans alike expected the show to be fantastic. But perhaps the hype was too much because the end product wasn't anywhere close to meeting expectations.
Those who grew up on the WrestleManias of yesteryear will remember a card that featured 13 to 16 matches, with match after match, and less filler. Obviously, the business has taken a turn at some point where meaningless vignettes and commercials are more important than matches and actual angles. Some people claim that eight matches wasn't enough, but I felt like we only got six matches, since the Kane/Khali and Women's Title Matches were glorified intermissions.
The Money in the Bank ladder match used up (arguably) the eight most entertaining superstars of the company. This, of course, means that instead of having (potentially) four entertaining one-on-one matches, we had to settle for one match with eight guys. The logistics of having eight men compete in this type of match must be a nightmare to try to organize, and it was obvious to the live crowd, because it was a disaster. While the folks at home had a camera pointing at anything of interest, the live crowd got to see three men competing at once, and the other five men stand around killing time and not actively participating. On top of that, the placement on the card was ridiculous. The match had very little substance and did not live up to the fantastic hype, and the ending came too soon. Just about the only positive aspect was that Mr. Kennedy won, because he appears to be on the brink of a major push, and this is exactly the right path to legitimize him as a main-event contender. The only other participant in the match that needed it more was CM Punk, but I'm sure he'll have his day soon, too, considering the monster response he got from the crowd.
Benoit vs. MVP was a great vehicle to avoid burying Benoit. I guess we're at the point where we can tolerate the fact that he's not getting a push, and we can be happy that they're not just burying the guy.
The Undertaker/Batista match was a great effort, and despite what my personal feelings were, I think a majority of the crowd got what they wanted. I will add, however, that I think a bunch of people were booing Batista and didn't know why.
The Billionaires match was everything that I expected it to be. Not a bad match, McMahon's head shaving was hilarious and as always, his facial expression was priceless. From start to finish, it was entertaining. I was most impressed that they let Lashley keep some of his dignity and not take a Stone Cold Stunner.
It's sad to see that the guy who held the ECW World title and WWE World title at once less than a year ago was relegated to being in this type of a match. Rob Van Dam can easily deliver the best match of the night, but like the MITB competitors, was put in a situation where it's difficult to shine. I think the most important thing here was that the ECW Originals got the win, so McMahon isn't a complete fool.
John Cena's match with Shawn Michaels was probably the best match of the night, simply because the live crowd was eating out of the palms of their hands. At every teased finish, at every near fall, the audience was at the edge of their seats. The two worked one hell of a match, and I feel that it truly delivered. John Cena's entrance, while unnecessary, was actually kinda cool to watch. Here's what I don't get. The fans, like last year at WrestleMania, completely trashed John Cena (with the exception of the kids and the ladies). John Cena is definitely one of the hardest working champions in WWE history. He appears on every show, wrestles almost every night, appears on SmackDown and ECW on occassion to wrestle, makes tons of appearances and signings, donates time and effort to charities, and is, despite what some people say, a solid in-ring worker with a tremendous "work-rate"... yet the fans HATE the guy. John Cena sets the right example and is a great role model not just for the audience, but for the rest of the locker room. It's difficult to understand what more people want from the guy, and I'm truly happy that those who don't appreciate his work got it right back in their faces when he won tonight.
On any given night, the show was great. But it wasn't any night, it was WrestleMania. You can't blame the wrestlers (well, besides Ashley Massaro and Khali) because they all did a great job, you've gotta blame the writing team for putting together the hype and not living up to it. If McMahon and his company want to claim that this is the pinnacle of wrestling, and if they want to get their Monday Night Raw ratings from the mid 3's to the mid 6's, then they need to deliver a show that will leave fans wanting more. Personally, I left the show wanting less.
Oneil Franso, Detroit
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First let me start off by saying that WWE.com needs to update their blast area listing. I went to my usual spot last night and there was no Wrestlemania to be found. Luckily I knew there was another place about 2 miles down the road that saved my ass.
Looks like we got another pretty darn good Wrestlemania. Production was off the charts.
Ok on to the matches.
Money in the bank-
Nice spot-fest. I was glad to see Kennedy get the win. So is Edge alive? That was one sick spot. One other little thing that made me happy was that who ever booked this let Booker come down and make the save on Sharmel, not every heal has to be a cowardly douche. So thanks for the common sense, it doesn't hurt every once in a while.
Benoit/MVP-
So-so match, nothing special, pleasant surprise to see the crippler win. MVP is just too green for my taste.
Taker/Batista-
My pick for the best match of the night. Never a dull moment. Taker carried the animal and showed why he is 15-0.
ECW-
This match wasn't booked to be important and it didn't come off that way on the show. Nice swan song for the originals.
Billionaires-
Pretty much what everybody expected. What else can I say?
Kane/Giant Gonzalez
Whooops I mean Great Khali.
Melina/Ashley-
A classic. Up there with Savage/Steamboat. 5 Star dream match up.
NoT!
Cena/HBK
Pretty good match. Really picked up as it went on. My only problem was that they used great ring psy. with Michael's working over Cena's legs, as the match went on I guess they miraculously healed somehow.
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I just returned to Toronto this afternoon from having a fun filled weekend in Detroit. I attended the HOF and WM23. I have seen recaps of both already, however, the main reason I am sending feedback for the 'fans' that attended the HOF.
First of all, on each of the tickets for the HOF, it clearly states "BUSINESS ATTIRE PLEASE". Now, what does business attire mean to you? Does it mean a t-shirt and jeans? Does it mean shorts and a tank top? I was disgusted with the way people were dressed at this event. It was supposed to be a special night for all of those great wrestlers that gave so much to the industry.
Second, when someone is giving a speech, do you not think it is impolite to yell at them?!?!? These guys are giving a speech from the heart and some obnoxious fan is yelling "I LOVE YOU DUSTY!" I was so livid as all I wanted to do was hear what they had to say. I wanted to hear the stories and all of the good times that they had.
To sum it up, I was appalled to be a wrestling fan that night. My buddy and I were dumbfounded at how many people will NOT give respect to the people that deserve it. Maybe I am being too hard on those people that had to make the evening difficult for the respectful fans. I don't know.
Other than that, WM23 was a great show to be at live and it is a fantastic venue. Absolutely amazing. The set and the fans were great at the show and people seemed to have a great time. I sure did!
Thanks for the excellent coverage and keep up the great work on the site!
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I was at the show live. My opinion: Two Thumbs UP! I enjoyed the show very much. It was very special to me as a Steelers fan, being that the event was in the same build where the team won Super Bowl XL and my seats were near the same end zone where Roethlisberger scored that much contested touchdown and where Hines Ward scored that touchdown thrown by then-Steeler, Randle El to seal the deal.
Best Match: Michaels/Cena
Worst Match: Divas and Khali vs Kane in a tie.
As I said, overall, very good show. I thought the show started out with an awesome Money in the Bank Match. All 8 participants worked very hard to put on a very good match. Of course, Jeff Hardy had to have his daredevil spot on my poor Edge. Great spot, nonetheless. I figured Kennedy would win this. Let's see how he is pushed now.
As I said, Best Match was Michaels/Cena. Nice slow build, but once it got rolling....WOW. Great stuff by HBK.....well, it is HBK, what else do you expect from him, especially at Mania? It is like watching Joe Montana or Terry Bradshaw in the Super Bowl....put him in that big time/game situation, and he just shines. I loved the match. Wasn't too thrilled with the result, even though Cena did work hard in the match. Vince has to stop pushing wrestlers with just 3 moves. Even his son in law knows more than 3 moves! I would rather see HIM pushed than Cena and I like Cena.
Worst Match has to go to either the Diva Lumberjill Championship Match or the Khali/Kane match. Take your pick. The Diva Match was hardly a match. Just a squash by Melina so everyone can see the other divas have a little catfight. Whoopeedoo! Who cares? Khali/Kane was a mess. Why Khali was put over, I have NO godly idea. He can not wrestle out of a paper bag. Horrible.
I was pleased to see Benoit keep his belt (US Title). I would have just puked if MVP got the belt. I was like "Please do not let MVP get that belt. I still wonder why Benoit has not gotten another chance at the top belt though.
I was pleased as punch to see the Undertaker go 15-0 at Mania. That was great. I would have put THIS match as the headliner instead of the Cena/Michaels match, but WWE is in love with Cena and in love with Raw, but oh well. I mean, where is their sense of drama? I mean, you have Batista putting up the title against Taker's streak....I just think that match should have been the final match. AT least you would have EVERYONE (or just about) cheering for Taker, unlike in the Cena/HBK match, it was pretty split, with a lot of booing of Cena. At least WWE would have had a definitive, undisputed "happy ending" to Wrestlemania, if the Taker/Batista match had gone on last and of course, you have Taker walk out, champion as he did Sunday night. I also thought it was a very good match as well.
As for the "Battle of the Billioniares," as for the actual wrestling, between Umaga and Lashley....that was so so.....I felt it was second fiddle to the Vince vs Trump battle....the wrestling was kind of a backdrop. Austin did his role and did it well. I felt this whole match/segment, whatever you want to call it was a lot of fun. I thought it was done well. Great to see Shane trying to help his dad, as I thought he would. I was thinking it would be Coach, but I would think Shane might stick his nose in it. Of course, Stone Cold did his stunners on Vince, and Umaga as predicted. I got a kick out of Trump's attempt at a clothesline......he better not quit his day job, let's put it that way. LOL That was fun. However, the highlight for me was not the shaving of VInce ( I figured that Vince was jobbing.) or any of that.....the highlight of that whole segment/match was when Stone Cold Steve Austin gave Donald Trump the Stone Cold Stunner!!! That was awesome!!
Overall, a very good Wrestlemania.
Terri Bey
