Brooklyn Brawlin' 04.02.09: The Go Home Column for WrestleMania XXV

Posted by Dan Torkel on 04.02.2009

All that should happen at the Big Dance is just a click away...

There's less than one week remaining till the grandest spectacle in professional wrestling; Wrestlemania XXV. 411 has been chock full of countdowns, lists, reflections, and predictions about the upcoming event in this last month. This is a special column for me on a personal note, as my first ever column on 411mania debuted the week after Wrestlemania XXIV. I have come full circle and made it a year. So I will start by thanking all the readers, commenters, and emailers, and even the haters.

Raw Thoughts –

The go-home show for Mania was everything it should be previewing almost every match on the card. Here's a question: Why give away JBL/Rey for free one week before Mania and have the match end cleanly for the FACE? Rey should ask Booker T how that worked out for him in 2003 before WM XIX. If there's any truth to booking logic, Rey loses at Mania, but I have trouble seeing the long term potential in JBL.

Shawn and Taker continue their great build towards greatness, and the two title matches have reached an apex. I for one am not at all caring about the World Title Triple Threat match between Edge, Cena, and Show. The talent is there, but really what can we possibly see that we haven't already? Plus the build to this feud has been in one word, "eh." Conversely, Triple H and Orton have built one of the most heated and hate-filled feuds the WWE has done since… okay last year with HBK and Jericho. But this has all the history of Evolution and the 2004 heel turn/title switch to back it up.

With every one getting ready for Mania, this column will briefly cover some of the things we should be expecting and deserve to see out of Wrestlemania XXV:

1) BLOOD!!! Pardon the capital letters, but LET THERE BE BLOOD! We have not one, but two blood feuds at Wrestlemania in Orton/Triple H, and Jeff/Matt. I know the WWE has changed their direction towards a more kid-friendly atmosphere and tried to be PG -13, but the biggest show of the year should have zero censorship. I don't care if you call the FU the Attitude Adjustment and leave the "U" off the STF, but we need blood in these matches. And for anyone who thinks I am a gore-hound try going back and watching Austin vs. Bret from Wrestlemania XIII and think about that match's impact without the bladejob. I just rewatched Austin vs. Rock at WM X-7 on WWE 24/7 and that match was built on one month of heat and had tons of blood. Put yourself in Triple H's shoes. Would simply beating Orton 1, 2, 3 in the middle of the ring be justice or would you need to splatter his blood everywhere and anywhere around ring side?

2) A Texas Sized Showdown in the Main Event – Non- title matches have main evented the big show before. Hogan did not defend his title at the inaugural show, rather tagged with Mr. T against Piper and Orndorff. Hogan and Sid went last at Wrestlemania VIII with Warrior making his surprise and shocking return to end the night with a bang. LT and Bam Bam Bigelow went on after the Shawn/Diesel World Title match at WM XI. In the last 15 years however, the main event has been for a World Title. We have seen evidence where this was a mistake. Rock and Hogan sucked all the air out of the Skydome leaving Triple H and Chris Jericho to flounder in the main event of WM X-8. Some have argued that Flair's finale against Shawn should have sent home last year's Mania and at the beginning of Edge and Taker's match the crowd was burnt out.

With that said, Shawn and Taker should absolutely main event Wrestlemania. First of all, the Triple Threat match for the World Title has not been built at main event credible. When people think back to WM XXV and the long lineage of main events are we really going to include Edge, Cena and Big Show? Secondly, Randy Orton, a heel is chasing the WWE Title. He won the Rumble, and I for one am expecting the inevitable McMahon-swerve and if he is going to win, then it should NOT main event. Call me old fashioned but Wrestlemania is the end of the story and in the end the good guys should win. That is why we do not look favorably on WM 2000 where Triple and the McMahons walked away the evil winners. The final and most obvious reason: Taker and Shawn is a "can't miss" match in every possible way. They are both native Texans and thus it doesn't matter who wins in the crowd's eyes. They are legitimately Wrestlemania's 2 greatest performers and thus earn the right to main event a historic show. And possibly most important, the match will freaking ROCK the house. Mr. Wrestlemania vs. The Streak! C'Mon, if ever there was a year where a non-title match ended Wrestlemania, this is the year.

3) There better be some impressive returns in the Miss Wrestlemania Battle Royal. As of now, every important woman in WWE history has said "no thanks" to this and thus 25 years of women in Wrestlemania is composed mostly of today's Divas roster. No Lita, no Wendi Richter, and yet we have Alicia Fox. There are 23 names currently listed and 19 are current roster members with Victoria having just retired. So that makes 20 of 25 are current. Molly Holly, Sunny, and Torrie Wilson along with a returning Gail Kim are there but where are the big names. Want this to seem like a semi-big deal: Trish and CHYNA. That's right, bring back Joanie. If not it's just a bunch of Raw/SD/ECW divas that we don't really care about.


4) An ECW Title Match! This is a gripe since its obvious we won't get one, but wow Vince really is a fickle being isn't he. So apparently he hated Swagger's match with Finlay at No Way Out, and punished the rookie WORLD CHAMPION by leaving an entire brand's Title match off the card. Since bringing back the ECW Title, its WM street credit is a 7 second match where Kane chokeslammed and pinned Chavo last year. They have done a great job of building Swagger in the same way they did Kurt Angle back in late 99, when he was a goofy talker but great wrestler. Now they totally leave him out of Wrestlemania and worse off, put his three top contender (Christian, Finlay and Mark Henry) in MITB. This not only demotes the importance of the ECW Title, but makes the Champ look like a total ass as ECW gets 3 reps on the show and he ain't one.

All in all I feel this will be an entertaining Wrestlemania. There are 2 matches I am tremendously looking forward to, other that hold potential for being fun and good wrestling. It's Wrestlemania week, and as a wrestling fan, that's all I need to get excited. Till 7p.m. on Sunday, have fun storming the castle!