Wrestlemania 26 Thoughts…
Ah, Wrestlemania 26. Some of the matches exceeded expectations. Some met expectations. One didn’t come close. But all in all I enjoyed the event, even if my predictions were incredibly off. The whole show was fun to watch though, and I definitely think it was worth my money.
Stuff I liked:
Punk vs. Mysterio- the match was short and I would’ve rather seen Punk win, but it definitely met my high expectations.
Both title matches- I liked them!
Shawn vs. Undertaker- This pretty much goes without saying. Shawn’s always been one of my favorites, and I think this match was a fitting end to his career (however long he stays retired).
Stuff I didn’t like:
Brett vs. Vince- I don’t know why WWE felt the need to involve the whole Hart family, but I think their involvement and their swerve being explained through exposition rather than in the ring killed the match. My wife and I wound up playing with Batista and CM Punk action figures halfway through the match waiting for Bret to FINALLY lock on the sharpshooter.
Length of the Tag Match- Seriously, why bother if it’s that short?
Slim Jims- After eating them for the first time in years to try and get in the Wrestlemania spirit, I think I can safely put them alongside Hotpockets and beefaroni on my list of “foods I’ve outgrown.”
Stuff I didn’t expect-
How the Legacy Triple Threat match turned me into a mark for Orton. I’ve never cared for him before, but by the time he was going for his punt on Cody I was chanting RKO at the screen. Which is awkward when you’re one of two people in a room.
Jack Swagger winning Money in the Bank- I definitely think Swagger’s good enough to deserve the briefcase, but it was definitely a surprise considering not too long ago he was getting beat by Santino Marella.
Overall, I enjoyed it. There weren’t many OMG moments, but the matches were solid and impressed with storytelling. Frankly I thought that they could have taken a couple of minutes out of Bret’s beatdown on Vince and given them to either the tag team match (which felt like it was just getting going by the time it ended) or the divas match (and thus had some actual action beyond everyone hitting their finishers on each other… especially since almost every diva’s finisher appears to be a DDT or facebuster). Edge/Jericho was good, Cena/Batista wasn’t awful, and while I didn’t enjoy HBK/Taker quite as much as last year, it was still excellent. Face turn and push for Hart Dynasty is good. I thought Money in the Bank was very enjoyable despite being light on high spots, although I’ll be surprised if Swagger actually gets a decent title reign out of it.
sorry, h.b.k, but the Undertaker rocks! 18:0!
Unfortunately, hbk retired, but he always will be Mr. WrestleMania.