Amidst both disappointment over the promotion of the card and a massive responsibility to book for the future, WWE presented a thoroughly entertaining and wholly successful WrestleMania Sunday.
The show, which featured the elevation of both newcomers John Cena and Batista into World Title territory, was successful at both portraying these title changes well and underwriting weak wrestling matches (of which there were a few) with classics. Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels, ****3/4, and the Money in the Bank Ladder Match, ****1/2, stand among the greatest matches in wrestling history and had an unsung role in bolstering weak matches that the company wanted to stand out more.
Mysterio/Guerrero could have used more time to develop and stood as a largely disappointing match to people who were expecting a repeat of their October 26, 1997 Halloween Havoc match at which Mysterio beat Guerrero for the WCW Cruiserweight title in an outstanding match of about 15 minutes. As it was, in the context of this show, the match was an exciting and effective opener and got things started on the right note.
The most surprisingly successful match of the night (save for the main event) was Randy Orton vs. The Undertaker, a fun and competitive match, which hit on all the necessary points. It was followed, in sequence rather than in quality, by a disappointing five-minute Hemme/Stratus match throughout which Stratus desperately had to underplay Hemme’s weaknesses. The sumo match between the Big Show and K-1’s Akebono was flat and useless, as was largely expected.
The good matches (the four aforementioned) served the necessary role of giving quality work to a card that, by necessity, needed to get over workers of limited in-ring skill and flexibility. Besides being entertaining and financially successful WrestleMania had a duty to create a booking situation that would, unlike last year, stabilize the company and form the foundation upon which feuds could grow and be self-sustaining. Last year was the fourth year in a row in which WWE has lost viewers and lost domestic business, a loss which they’ve had to make up through international tours, cost-cutting, and talent releases.
To that end, this show had to do something to create talent that would sell tickets for the year to come, as WWE moves from SpikeTV to its former home the USA Network and an ambitious PPV schedule continues. WWE decided, and did so well in advance, that the two people who would carry the albatross of burden would be John Cena, of the Smackdown brand, and clearly far more importantly to them Batista, of the RAW brand. Those priorities shown through at tonight’s event, where Cena’s title win capped a poor match with John Bradshaw Layfield, and where, in event that far eclipsed the modest celebration of Cena, Batista pinned Triple H in 22 minutes of a surprisingly solid and effective match for the World Heavyweight Championship.
Despite the underwhelming build, WWE did a good job at accomplishing its objectives and presenting a balanced card, and an entertaining show. Rather than falling into a mediocre place as the show after WrestleMania XX, this show will be remembered for two excellent matches and a card that retrospectively is more balanced than was last year’s show.
Trevor Hunnicutt
Writer, Figure Four Leglock
