The Piledriver Report 04.12.13: WrestleMania Weekend Recap

Well, that was a weird show. I attended WrestleMania XXVIII last year in Miami, and with WrestleMania XXIX in my backyard (or 30 miles away if I was in one of those WrestleMania commercials), I was back again. It was my first back to back WrestleMania that I attended since I was at WrestleMania X and XI. Naturally, it’s only human nature for me to compare both shows to one another.

FAN AXXESS

Last year, I attended six Fan Axxess sessions. By the time I reached my sixth session, I was burned out on the Fan Axxess experience. That’s not a negative. I really enjoyed last year’s Fan Axxess. It took place in the Miami Beach Convention Center. Every attraction was located on a single floor. There were a ton of attractions to kill your time. There was the championship belt display case, a Rock showcase that featured The Rock’s wrestling, movie, and football memorabilia, a WWE entrance ramp area where you could walk out to your favorite performer’s entrance music, the Undertaker’s Graveyard, Money in the Bank photo area, Superstar autograph/photo areas, a Hall of Fame area featuring memorabilia of past and present Hall of Fame inductees, as well as a ring where matches and promos were aired live.

This year, I decided that I would only attend one session. I figured that once would be enough since I did the whole experience last year. I don’t think that this year’s experience compared to last year’s. The 2013 Fan Axxess took place at the Izod Center, which is an 18,000 seat arena. On the floor of the area was a wrestling ring where NXT performers wrestled, and interviews were conducted. There was a small ring filled with foam pieces for little kids to jump around in. The VIP autograph stage was off in the corner. The RAW/SmackDown! Stage was set up as well. The positive was that you could sit in the stands to watch the matches and promos, as opposed to last year when you had to stand. That was greatly appreciated.

Here’s the negatives. The line to get into the building was wrapped around the whole arena. I was shocked at the number of people that were attending the event. Last year, I walked in and out of the building with a very limited wait time. This year, I was not so lucky. I waited in line for about a half hour. Not a terribly long wait, but I was surprised nonetheless. Another negative was that most of the attractions were spread out in the concourse area of the arena. The concourse isn’t very large, which made moving around somewhat difficult- and very hot! Last year, the way everything was spread out, each attraction was easy to locate. This year, you had to circle around the whole concourse to find everything. Plus, many of the attractions from last year, like The Rock’s memorabilia station were gone. The Hall of Fame memorabilia section was cut down from having a ton of different exhibits to only featuring items from this year’s inductees. Despite the missing HOF items, I really loved the items that were on display from the Class of 2013. The other new attraction that I loved was the life sized statue of Andre the Giant. He was a big, big man! My head actually fit inside the palm of his hand!

THE HALL OF FAME

Let me start off by saying THANK GOD FOR THE USA NETWORK, and there decision to air the Hall of Fame ceremony on a separate night! Because of this logical decision, over the last couple of years, the WWE has done away with having those ridiculous time limits on the Hall of Fame speeches in order to have room for their TV editing. Last year’s Hall of Fame show was really good. This year’s was even better. It started out with my seats getting upgraded, because the WWE had a giant curtain covering up my whole section. What started out as upper deck seats turned into lower level viewing. Thanks MSG!

Mick Foley, who should have been the next to last inductee, actually opened the show. I’ve been watching wrestling since 1984, so I remember Bob Backlund and the importance of Bruno Sammartino. With that being said, I think Mick Foley should have been the been the co-main eventer to Bruno. Foley was incredible. His stories were funny, and it is very easy to tell why Mick is an accomplished author and now a stand-up comedian.

Trish Stratus had a very good speech. I loved the scroll that she unraveled which listed the names of every person that she wanted to thank. She also displayed the pen that Jim Ross gave her to sign her WWF contract with, where she covered up the F, as she “didn’t want to get the pandas pissed off.” For me, the highlight came when she wanted to thank her husband, and every one booed. When she finally was able to get through thanking her husband, Trish announced to the crowd that she is pregnant. To which the crowd turned her husband into a face by chanting his name, “RON! RON! RON!”

Booker T was next. His brother had a good introduction speech. Booker T’s speech was good as well. The only reason why I wasn’t into it as much as I normally would have been, is because I just finished reading Booker T’s autobiography a couple of months ago, and knew all of the stories. As a side note, for those who haven’t read his book yet, I highly recommend it. It’s a fascinating read.

Maria Menounos then inducted Bob Backlund. There was nothing wrong with her speech until she kept repeating “Bob Backlund is a man…” followed by a fact about Mr. Backlund. The first few times were fine, but then it started to get a little tedious. The crowd quickly booed her until Bob Backlund arrived on the scene. I’m not sure if Bob Backlund was playing a role, or if he really is nuts, but he played up the insane Bob Backlund several times during his speech. At WrestleMania XI, he refused to give me an autograph unless I named every US President in order. I never did get that autograph. Almost 20 years later, here was Bob screaming at the crowd to never quit. He just went on and on in typical Mr. Backlund fashion. Even without a time constraint, Backlund was pushing the boundaries of time. Vince McMahon snuck up behind Backlund, which was a cue to wrap things up. Bob got the hint, as he finished shortly thereafter.

The next person to be inducted was Donald Trump. I told my brother during the Bob Backlund speech that when Trump gets inducted, you would either be able to hear crickets, or the crowd would shit all over it with a chorus of boos. It was the later. Nobody wanted to hear a word from Trump. That wasn’t a surprise. He’s an egotistical multi-millionaire, who brags about his wealth and how great everything he is involved in is. That’s not a great way to get over to a mostly middle class crowd. The only pop that Donald received was when he introduced his very attractive daughter, Ivanka. One thing that I commend The Don is that he understood that he would get booed, so he kept his speech short.

The main eventer was obviously Bruno Sammartino. I liked his speech. He talked about growing up trying to flee the Nazis in Italy, and how heroic his mother was during this time. He talked of contracting rheumoid fever, and almost dying. Bruno also discussed headlining the Garden, and how it opened doors for him to headline in Japan. I wish that he would have detailed some of his favorite feuds and career moments. However, most of the people who were in attendance are probably too young to know who half of the names were. The other thing I was hoping to here was about his relationship with Vince McMahon Jr., but upon reflection, it was probably the wrong place and the wrong time. All in all, it was a great night.

WRESTLEMANIA XXIX

THE SETS

One of my favorite parts of WrestleMania is seeing the new set that the WWE came up with. I really liked last year’s set. All of the palm trees really gave it that Miami feel. I even liked the giant palm trees that they put up on each corner of the ring. Of course, if I was sitting in an obstructed view because of those palm trees, I may have felt differently. However, after seeing this year’s set, last year’s looks very simple and plain. This year’s set-up was fantastic. From the giant Brooklyn Bridge on the stage to the Statue of Liberty above the ring, it was one of the best set-ups that I have ever seen for a wrestling event. If there was one thing that I could criticize, it would be that there was nothing “New Jersey” regarding the set. As a native New Jerseyian, it is annoying that we are treated as New York’s bastard child. New Jersey is more than just a ride up the Turnpike to get you to NYC. It’s more than the fist pumpers on the Jersey Shore. It’s more than just the casinos in Atlantic City. New Jersey is a great place that doesn’t get the respect it deserves, even by it’s own sports franchises (aside from the Devils). At least the WWE called it “WrestleMania NY/NJ,” and didn’t completely bury the Garden State.

THE CARD

Before I talk about the card, I want to bring up a pet peeve of mine that I have with WrestleMania every year. TIME! They give WrestleMania an extra hour every year on pay per view. However, they ALWAYS seem to be short on time. Most years, the blame goes to numerous backstage segments and video packages. This year, there were surprisingly no backstage segments. Instead, it was a Sean Combs concert and the video packages that ate whatever extra time they had to use. The WWE does a masterful job with their video packages. My problem with these works of video art is that they are used to draw interest in people that makes them want to order the pay per view. If you are watching WrestleMania, you already ordered the show. You do not need these videos to take up precious time. Plus, it’s one thing to air a video for each major match. However, did they really need to show the John Cena vs. The Rock vide package on THREE separate occasions during the show? Talk about overkill! Plus, the Sean Combs mini-concert led to an eight minutes bathroom/food break where I happen to see Snooki’s fiancé near the men’s room! Not exactly a touch with celebrity. Because of this, the Tensai/Brodus Clay/Dancers vs. Cody Rhodes/Damien Sandow/Bella Twins match was cancelled. That should never happen when the WWE has FOUR HOURS allotted for a pay per view. They could have added the bumped tag team match, as well as an Antonio Ceasario match in that time, and still had time left over for all of the videos, and talking that they needed to do to hype WrestleMania.

The first match on the pay per view featured The Shield against Randy Orton/The Big Show/Sheamus. I enjoyed seeing The Shield. The WWE made the right move in giving The Shield the victory. It’s not time to beat them yet. My only complaint is that the WWE dropped the ball by having The Big Show being the person that “turned.” The Big Show was already a heel. He sided with the faces only because The Shield attacked him. Randy Orton has been dying to turn heel already. This was a perfect opportunity. An Orton turn would have made for a more compelling storyline. Nobody trusted the Big Show, but all along, it would have been Randy Orton that was the person not to be trusted. A much better story.

The next match featured Ryback vs. Mark Henry. While this wasn’t even a two star wrestling clinic, I went into the match knowing that it wouldn’t be. This was the first match that I incorrectly predicted the winner. I thought the WWE would give Ryback the win, because he really hasn’t been pushed as strong as he was last fall. I never expected Mark Henry to win. The ending sequence was surprising. From the stands, it looked brutal when Mark Henry fell on top of him. The after match shellshock was an impressive sight that provide a nice little WrestleMania moment for the undercard.

Match number two that I got wrong was the Daniel Bryan/Kane vs. Dolph Ziggler/Big E Langston match. I fully expected to see the crowning of new tag team champions, followed by Dolph Ziggler cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase to turn Ziggler into a dual World Champion. I enjoyed this match. How can’t you when you have Daniel Bryan in the ring against Dolph Ziggler? I was a little disappointed that the match was given less than seven minutes. Thanks P-Diddy and those damn videos again! Even though I wanted to see Ziggler win, it was really awesome seeing 80,000 fans chanting “YES!” in unison with Daniel Bryan.

The next match was Chris Jericho against Fandango. I was really looking forward to seeing this bout. By not having Fandango wrestle until WrestleMania, I was intrigued on how Fandango was actually going to do. After watching the match, I didn’t have a positive or negative opinion. It was what it was. Just an OK decent undercard match. Quite different from a year ago when Chris Jericho and CM Punk had a really good WWE World title match against one another. Will Fandango become a big star, or will the WWE give him a start-stop push? That’s still to be determined, as this match didn’t push the needle in either direction.

Next up was the Sean Combs concert. Enough said about that.

When the Combs concert was over, it was time for the Jack Swagger/Del Rio World title match. While I was not surprised that Del Rio beat Swagger, I was surprised at the clean nature of the victory. After the victory, the whole crowd was waiting for Swagger to attack Del Rio. There was no attack, and with the crowd chanting for Dolph Ziggler, there was no cash in of the briefcase either.

After that down moment came the main event. OK, not the official main event of The Rock vs. John Cena. It was the match that I felt should have been the match that closed out the show in the Undertaker vs. CM Punk. This was a tremendous match. The crowd was really into the bout. While I never thought that the Undertaker would lose the match, I thought that they did a great job of making it look like Punk had a chance to end the streak. When comparing this match to anything on last year’s WrestleMania XXVIII, I thought that CM Punk vs. Undertaker was the best match on both shows.

I was never a fan of the “filler” match, the under card match that serves as a buffer between one main match and another. I always believed that all of the main event matches should be one after another. After watching this show, I must say that I was dead wrong. I now see why you need a buffer match. I was shocked at how dead and drained the crowd was for the Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H. This is where we needed the missing tag team match or the Sean Combs concert to have been placed. Plus, I thought the match was very slow, too slow. I don’t think the stipulation of the match helped matters either. Did you really expect Triple H to retire? I know I didn’t. Maybe it’s that Brock and Triple H doesn’t mesh well together, but they really don’t have great matches together.

Then came the official main event. I was surprised that neither guy had a special entrance. As a matter of fact, only CM Punk and Triple H had the “WrestleMania” superstar entrance. I liked this match. I thought it was better than their WrestleMania XXVIII match. I thought they told a great story as a continuation of their first match where this time The Rock tried John Cena’s move, and John Cena later caved in and tried The Rock’s move. The only part I did not like was the spot where they kept going for their finisher over and over. People in the audience were getting impatient, and asking if either guy knew any other moves. I’m not even going to complain that John Cena won the match. Unfortunately, that was inevitable. What put the cherry on the disappointment sundae was having The Rock and John Cena show a sign of respect for each other with a handshake, salute, and arm raise. Nobody wanted to see that at WrestleMania XXVII. They didn’t want to see it at WrestleMania XXVIII in Miami. They sure as hell didn’t want to see it at Giants (MetLife. Sorry, no self-respecting Giants fan will ever call it MetLife) Stadium on Sunday night.

THE AFTERMATH

Once again, it was a weird show. The Rock/Cena match was better than last year, even without that dream match feel to it. The Undertaker/Punk match was arguably the best match of the last two WrestleManias. I enjoyed the show, and believe that this will not be the final time that a WrestleMania will be held in Giants (MetLife Stadium). However, the booking at WrestleMania XXIX was awful. While the Shield won, which was a good thing, I have one question. Who is John Cena’s next contender? CM Punk? He just lost to the Undertaker. Brock Lesnar? He jobbed to Triple H. Dolph Ziggler? He loses to everyone, and STILL hasn’t cashed in the Money in the Bank briefcase. Nobody was built up. Even Mark Henry. Sure, he won against Ryback, but the post-match shows that feud will continue. There weren’t even any surprises, no shocking turns, no sneak attacks, nothing.

At the same time, it was WrestleMania, and I was glad to be there. The Undertaker/Punk match alone made it worth every penny I spent. If I am able to, I’ll be in New Orleans for next year’s show. After all, it’s WrestleMania, and a WrestleMania moment can happen at anytime.

ONE FINAL NOTE

I just wanted to comment about Monday Night RAW for a moment. The crowd was unbelievable. That’s an understatement. I love the RAWs after WrestleMania. They are usually among the best of the year for both the action in the ring, as well as the crowd reactions. I have read comments where people are asking where this crowd was at WrestleMania. Some blamed the cold. However, being from New Jersey, I don’t think it was that bad. I believe the difference between the RAW crowd reactions and the WrestleMania reactions lies on two things. The first is that sound travels differently in a stadium. The sound travels up in a stadium, so it’s going to escape, especially in an open air stadium. Whereas, in the arena, the sound travels downward. The second reason is that the fans that attend WrestleMania are either diehard fans from out of town or a mix of diehard and casual fans from the local area. After spending a lot of money on WrestleMania tickets, the casual fans aren’t likely to also pluck down money for Money Night RAW (especially if these are parents, who took their kids to the pay per view). Therefore, RAW is filled with diehard fans, who let the WWE hear their voices. It makes the show just as special as WrestleMania. Plus, you are almost guaranteed to get a post-WrestleMania moment, like Dolph Ziggler cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase. It’s definitely worth attending if you get a chance.