WrestleMania 25!
Apr. 5th, 2009 11:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hollybrooke(Or "I've been watching this crap for twenty-five years?!".....Well, twenty-three, to be honest. The earliest I can remember is WrestleMania 3 when Hulk Hogan bodyslammed Andre the Giant.)
....I'll be honest. It could've been better. I told Kevin this when we were leaving Hooters tonight. He gave me some excuse because of the recession and the WWE having to make budget cuts, but that really wasn't what bothered me. It was the card lineup. Just kind of lame and predictable. There were only three matches I wanted to see, and they weren't even legitimate title matches.
"America the Beautiful" was sung by that the lead singer of the groupNicole and Four Other Chicks the Pussycat Dolls, Nicole Scherzinger:
Wally was all, "Gawd, she's hot." I was all, "*scoff* Her?" And really? Nuh-uh. She tries too hard. And here's the thing with Nicole Scherzinger. You can tell she's REALLY gunning for a solo career and probably wants to tell Melody, Ashley, Kimberly and Jessica to just piss off because really, the Pussycat Dolls are just Nicole doing alllll of the singing with the other girls dancing behind her. Never mind that Jessica can actually sing very well--it's all about NICOLE!!!!
Just look at their new video for "Jai Ho":
Gah, you'd think whoever produced this could've taught Nicole to NOT say "Jay Ho." I wishthe Pussycat Dolls Nicole didn't do this cover because they've ruined the awesomeness of "Jai Ho" from the original movie. The Oscar performance was WAY better. But anyway, I digress. This video shows that they're trying REALLY hard to push Nicole as a solo artist, and I keep hearing there's all sorts of arguing between Nicole and the rest of the Pussycat Dolls during their tour as Britney's opening act. The sad fact of the matter is that while Nicole is a very good singer and performer, she will always be regarded as a PUSSYCAT DOLL and not have much of a solo career for herself, no matter how hard she tries. It's a cosmic joke.
I digress. Back to WrestleMania.
First match--Money in the Bank.
Winner: CM Punk.
Why CM Punk? With this match? Again? I would've thought since Christian is back, he'd get the chance. Or I kept hearing Kane was supposed to be getting a big push. Maybe CM Punk will have this be "his match" like how Edge is with "tables, ladders and chairs" matches or how Undertaker is with "hell in a cell."
Match 2: Divas Battle Royale.
Winner: Santina Morella
This match didn't even count, IMO. Hell, does anyone ever really take Divas matches seriously anymore? I should've known something was up since neither the Women's Title nor the Divas' Title wasn't up for grabs but the title of "Miss WrestleMania." Santina winning was like....Screech winnning Miss Bayside High on "Saved By The Bell."
At least Gail Kim's back with the WWE. Will they properly utilize her like TNA did? Probably not.
Highlight of the night: Kid Rock performing with his montage of hits, leading up to "So Hott" and segueing into the Divas entering the ring. THAT was pretty cool. And WWE very rarely does stuff like that anymore at WrestleMania. Last time I remember them doing it was when Limp Bizkit performed maybe five years ago. Or I dunno....didn't Motorhead come back and do an entrance for Triple H a few years ago?
Match 3: Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat/Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka/Rowdy Roddy Piper/Ric Flair vs. Chris Jericho
Winner: Chris Jericho
To be honest, I didn't really care who won this match either, because I knew it was another gimmick match. This is alllllll they've been doing with Chris Jericho lately, and it's really getting on my nerves. After the Chris Benoit murder/suicide incident, they bring Chris Jericho back (and for what I heard was a seven-figure deal), and they really haven't done jack shit with him. Don't get me wrong, my superfandom for Chris Jericho will never wane, and he makes a better heel than a face, but come on. At least get him involved in a storyline that makes him compete for a title so I don't always have to see freaking Triple H or Randy Orton or John Cena with the title. (More on this fuckery later.)
But this was really all a setup for the BIG draw for WrestleMania this year. Because how appropriate was it this year, leading up to WrestleMania 25, that one of the best critically acclaimed films this year had to do with the wrestling industry?! And how much better was it that Mickey Rourke got a nod for Best Actor?! It's too bad he lost, but WOW! How about we have him start calling out that asshat Chris Jericho while on the red carpet, then have Chris Jericho just be a bigger asshat and start picking on some great wrestling legends?
It's been such a stupid angle for Chris Jericho to be working, but it's been the big setup for the big draw this year. Last year it was the Floyd Mayweather work with the Big Show. This year, it was definitely Mickey Rourke and Chris Jericho. And by the time Mickey got in the ring with Chris....I expected a little, uh I dunno, WRESTLING to go on! All Mickey did was get into a boxing stance and rough Chris up a little. None of his "Randy the Ram" schtick from the movie (and I would've loved for them to have busted out that 80s hair metal music).
Match 4: JBL vs. Rey Mysterio
Winner: Rey Mysterio
One of the highlights of the night was Rey Mysterio's mask, looking very much like the Joker. Very short match. At the end, JBL quit! And I hope he stays "quit." Don't come back to be a commissioner or some crap. (There's been lots of talk about how he's been ready to retire anyway.)
Match 5: Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy
Winner: Matt Hardy
I didn't really care who won this match, but this was one of the few matches on the card I cared to see. Love both Matt and Jeff, and it's always fun to see them going at it. Of course, if you know why this "feud" was started in the first place, then you know they just had to wrap up loose ends storyline-wise. Good match, though.
Match 6: Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Winner: Undertaker
DAMMIT. I was thinking 'Taker's winning streak would FINALLY be broken tonight. Good match, though. Another match I really actually cared to see, even though both 'Taker and Shawn need to retire.
Highlight of the night: Shawn's entrance, very God/Jesus-inspired, since he is a born-again Christian. Wearing chaps, coming out to his "Sexy Boy" music. Lawl.
Match 7: Edge vs. Big Show vs. John Cena
Winner: John Cena
Of course! He's John Cena, after all! The Golden Boy! Plus, he just had a movie come out!
Another match I really wasn't excited about. I like where they're going with the Edge/Vickie/Big Show line, and I think they're going to start pushing Edge as a face again (I hope so, as long as it involves him giving Vickie the heave-ho). I wanted either Edge or Show to win this match, to be honest. Just....you know, give someone other than John Cena the title! If they're going to let him have another title run with it, then have Cena have a run being a heel for a while instead of a face. (Just my two cents...)
Highlight: seeing John Cena hoisting both Show AND Edge up on his back. Shades of Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant @ WrestleMania 3 there.
Highlight: John Cena's entrance. Remember the video for "The Real Slim Shady" by Eminem?
"Will the REAL John Cena please stand up?"
Match 8: Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Winner: Triple H (Thank God.)
Seriously, thank God Triple H won this match. If Orton won, I would've probably have been done watching WWE for a while. I can't stand him.
Okay, onto my rant. I really didn't care to see this match because:
A) Wow, another Triple H/Randy Orton match. How many times have I seen them wrestle before? *yawn*
B) Can't someone other than Triple H or Randy Orton or John Cena get a shot at the title?! This is getting BORING!
The ending was a bit of a letdown. Triple H won, but really....for freaking WrestleMania 25, this match could've been more epic, especially considering the storyline and how much this had been pushed.
Highlight: Triple H's entrance, with the double-sided mirrors. It was a cool effect. And when he smashed the mirror with the sledgehammer, the big-screen at Hooters went out. Because Triple H is JUST THAT DAMN GOOD.
But the BIG highlight of the night? Best moment? The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. After they all come out, Stone Cold Steve Austin goes back....and then comes back out on a FOUR WHEELER ATV, zooming down to the ring, zooms around the ring, zooms back up the ramp....then backs back down to the ring, gets off of the ATV, grabs some beers from the commentary table, gets in the ring, downs some Steve-wisers....goes BACK to the commentary table, picks up the cooler of beer and tosses THE WHOLE THING back in the ring, gets back in the ring, grabbing beers out of the cooler, throwing beers left and right, downing some more. Audience is going WILD!!!! It's fucking Stone Cold Steve Austin in the Hall of Fame! HELL YEAH!
Like I said...it could've been better. And I just wasn't thrilled with the fight card either. I think![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
davidmasters05 over at ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
wwe summed it up the best: "It's great that Taker and HBK can still do that, but...it's also sad that those are the ones carrying a 2009 Wrestlemania. There's only so long you can act like this is the stage where people make history, when all you do is give us shit we've seen."
....I'll be honest. It could've been better. I told Kevin this when we were leaving Hooters tonight. He gave me some excuse because of the recession and the WWE having to make budget cuts, but that really wasn't what bothered me. It was the card lineup. Just kind of lame and predictable. There were only three matches I wanted to see, and they weren't even legitimate title matches.
"America the Beautiful" was sung by that the lead singer of the group
Wally was all, "Gawd, she's hot." I was all, "*scoff* Her?" And really? Nuh-uh. She tries too hard. And here's the thing with Nicole Scherzinger. You can tell she's REALLY gunning for a solo career and probably wants to tell Melody, Ashley, Kimberly and Jessica to just piss off because really, the Pussycat Dolls are just Nicole doing alllll of the singing with the other girls dancing behind her. Never mind that Jessica can actually sing very well--it's all about NICOLE!!!!
Just look at their new video for "Jai Ho":
Gah, you'd think whoever produced this could've taught Nicole to NOT say "Jay Ho." I wish
I digress. Back to WrestleMania.
First match--Money in the Bank.
Winner: CM Punk.
Why CM Punk? With this match? Again? I would've thought since Christian is back, he'd get the chance. Or I kept hearing Kane was supposed to be getting a big push. Maybe CM Punk will have this be "his match" like how Edge is with "tables, ladders and chairs" matches or how Undertaker is with "hell in a cell."
Match 2: Divas Battle Royale.
Winner: Santina Morella
This match didn't even count, IMO. Hell, does anyone ever really take Divas matches seriously anymore? I should've known something was up since neither the Women's Title nor the Divas' Title wasn't up for grabs but the title of "Miss WrestleMania." Santina winning was like....Screech winnning Miss Bayside High on "Saved By The Bell."
At least Gail Kim's back with the WWE. Will they properly utilize her like TNA did? Probably not.
Highlight of the night: Kid Rock performing with his montage of hits, leading up to "So Hott" and segueing into the Divas entering the ring. THAT was pretty cool. And WWE very rarely does stuff like that anymore at WrestleMania. Last time I remember them doing it was when Limp Bizkit performed maybe five years ago. Or I dunno....didn't Motorhead come back and do an entrance for Triple H a few years ago?
Match 3: Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat/Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka/Rowdy Roddy Piper/Ric Flair vs. Chris Jericho
Winner: Chris Jericho
To be honest, I didn't really care who won this match either, because I knew it was another gimmick match. This is alllllll they've been doing with Chris Jericho lately, and it's really getting on my nerves. After the Chris Benoit murder/suicide incident, they bring Chris Jericho back (and for what I heard was a seven-figure deal), and they really haven't done jack shit with him. Don't get me wrong, my superfandom for Chris Jericho will never wane, and he makes a better heel than a face, but come on. At least get him involved in a storyline that makes him compete for a title so I don't always have to see freaking Triple H or Randy Orton or John Cena with the title. (More on this fuckery later.)
But this was really all a setup for the BIG draw for WrestleMania this year. Because how appropriate was it this year, leading up to WrestleMania 25, that one of the best critically acclaimed films this year had to do with the wrestling industry?! And how much better was it that Mickey Rourke got a nod for Best Actor?! It's too bad he lost, but WOW! How about we have him start calling out that asshat Chris Jericho while on the red carpet, then have Chris Jericho just be a bigger asshat and start picking on some great wrestling legends?
It's been such a stupid angle for Chris Jericho to be working, but it's been the big setup for the big draw this year. Last year it was the Floyd Mayweather work with the Big Show. This year, it was definitely Mickey Rourke and Chris Jericho. And by the time Mickey got in the ring with Chris....I expected a little, uh I dunno, WRESTLING to go on! All Mickey did was get into a boxing stance and rough Chris up a little. None of his "Randy the Ram" schtick from the movie (and I would've loved for them to have busted out that 80s hair metal music).
Match 4: JBL vs. Rey Mysterio
Winner: Rey Mysterio
One of the highlights of the night was Rey Mysterio's mask, looking very much like the Joker. Very short match. At the end, JBL quit! And I hope he stays "quit." Don't come back to be a commissioner or some crap. (There's been lots of talk about how he's been ready to retire anyway.)
Match 5: Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy
Winner: Matt Hardy
I didn't really care who won this match, but this was one of the few matches on the card I cared to see. Love both Matt and Jeff, and it's always fun to see them going at it. Of course, if you know why this "feud" was started in the first place, then you know they just had to wrap up loose ends storyline-wise. Good match, though.
Match 6: Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
Winner: Undertaker
DAMMIT. I was thinking 'Taker's winning streak would FINALLY be broken tonight. Good match, though. Another match I really actually cared to see, even though both 'Taker and Shawn need to retire.
Highlight of the night: Shawn's entrance, very God/Jesus-inspired, since he is a born-again Christian. Wearing chaps, coming out to his "Sexy Boy" music. Lawl.
Match 7: Edge vs. Big Show vs. John Cena
Winner: John Cena
Of course! He's John Cena, after all! The Golden Boy! Plus, he just had a movie come out!
Another match I really wasn't excited about. I like where they're going with the Edge/Vickie/Big Show line, and I think they're going to start pushing Edge as a face again (I hope so, as long as it involves him giving Vickie the heave-ho). I wanted either Edge or Show to win this match, to be honest. Just....you know, give someone other than John Cena the title! If they're going to let him have another title run with it, then have Cena have a run being a heel for a while instead of a face. (Just my two cents...)
Highlight: seeing John Cena hoisting both Show AND Edge up on his back. Shades of Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant @ WrestleMania 3 there.
Highlight: John Cena's entrance. Remember the video for "The Real Slim Shady" by Eminem?
"Will the REAL John Cena please stand up?"
Match 8: Triple H vs. Randy Orton
Winner: Triple H (Thank God.)
Seriously, thank God Triple H won this match. If Orton won, I would've probably have been done watching WWE for a while. I can't stand him.
Okay, onto my rant. I really didn't care to see this match because:
A) Wow, another Triple H/Randy Orton match. How many times have I seen them wrestle before? *yawn*
B) Can't someone other than Triple H or Randy Orton or John Cena get a shot at the title?! This is getting BORING!
The ending was a bit of a letdown. Triple H won, but really....for freaking WrestleMania 25, this match could've been more epic, especially considering the storyline and how much this had been pushed.
Highlight: Triple H's entrance, with the double-sided mirrors. It was a cool effect. And when he smashed the mirror with the sledgehammer, the big-screen at Hooters went out. Because Triple H is JUST THAT DAMN GOOD.
But the BIG highlight of the night? Best moment? The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. After they all come out, Stone Cold Steve Austin goes back....and then comes back out on a FOUR WHEELER ATV, zooming down to the ring, zooms around the ring, zooms back up the ramp....then backs back down to the ring, gets off of the ATV, grabs some beers from the commentary table, gets in the ring, downs some Steve-wisers....goes BACK to the commentary table, picks up the cooler of beer and tosses THE WHOLE THING back in the ring, gets back in the ring, grabbing beers out of the cooler, throwing beers left and right, downing some more. Audience is going WILD!!!! It's fucking Stone Cold Steve Austin in the Hall of Fame! HELL YEAH!
Like I said...it could've been better. And I just wasn't thrilled with the fight card either. I think
davidmasters05 over at wwe summed it up the best: "It's great that Taker and HBK can still do that, but...it's also sad that those are the ones carrying a 2009 Wrestlemania. There's only so long you can act like this is the stage where people make history, when all you do is give us shit we've seen."
