We continue with our stroll down memory lane today of WrestleMania, as today we will take a look at what I feel is going to be a fun topic - the best and worst ideas of WrestleMania history. Trust me, there has been some very good ideas in the history of this great event, and on the flip side - some really bad ones. Here they are as we keep rolling towards Mania 24.
5 Best WrestleMania Ideas:1. Hogan vs Andre - No better way to get over 93,000 in an super sized dome but to put two of the biggest stars in the history of a company in a match. Possibly the best part of the whole Andre-Hogan feud was the fact that they really did an excellent job of keeping these two away from each other until this match, with the only real physical contact being at a Saturday Night's Main Event when Andre threw Hulk out of a battle royale.
2. Allowing John Cena to Beat Triple H in Mania 22 - Yes, I realize that this is not a popular choice, but you have to admit, it either made you mad as you know what, or made you happy as ever to see Cena get over clean on HHH with a submission in a main event of Mania 22. We'll see what happens this year as it appears that from all indications, HHH will get his revenge winning the belt back.
3. Mr T. - The mohawked former bouncer was the biggest and best of the celebs in any of the WrestleMania's, and his involvement in the first two teaming with Hulk vs Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff in Mania one, and then boxing Piper in Maina two were a lot of fun. T really got the company in the mainstream those first two years to get the event over.
4. NOT Giving Lex Luger the WWF Title at WM 10 - Kind of a weird one, but the company was very much in the corner and on the verge of allowing Lex to win the WWF strap around the summer of 1993, and then it was thought he would win the belt at Mania in 1994. Instead, they put together a situation where Lex would have to beat Yokozuna first to win the belt, then beat Bret Hart later, but instead, they basically went over Luger's head to allow Yoko to beat him via DQ, and then later on Bret Hart won the title. Great decision in the long-run.
5. Money in the Bank - It's become one of the best matches on Mania over the past three years, and this year it likely will be again. It's also a very cool stipulation that the winner gets a title shot somewhere down the road. Not like they are going to anytime soon, but here is a vote they keep MITB up for years to come.
5 Worst WrestleMania Ideas:
1. The Hulk Hogan-Sgt.Slaughter Angle - The WWF at the time totally rushed this angle to take advanage of the Gulf War, which was as cheap as a way to try and get heat back in 1992 as you could get. The angle was that Slaughter was turning his back on America, and was now for Iraq. He then won the WWF Title from the Ultimate Warrior at the Royal Rumble, and the match with Hogan was on. Slaughter was a bump machine, and was well past his prime. The timing and the carry out of this feud was done in very poor taste.
2. The 3 Different Venues Idea for Mania 2 - The pull off of WrestleMania 1 was so successful, but then they rocked the apple cart by trying to do events in three different cities on the same night for Mania 2. You had four matches in each city, some of which were downright painful to watch, and the venues seemed a little not with it, as clearly there were seats available for each site. The announcing crews also were off, as you had Vince McMahon, Gorilla Monsoon, and Jesse Ventura as lead announcers, working with very "B" groups. It's an idea they should never do again.
3. WrestleMania IV's Title Tourney - This was just painful to watch. With the title vacant, the company decided to use their showcase event to do a 14-man tournament to decide the new champ. The only matches that anyone remembers is the Hogan-Andre battle in round two, and the finale between Ted Dibiase and Randy Savage. Everything else was like going to the dentist.
4. The Bret Hart-Shawn Michaels "Ironman" Match at WM 12 - I plan on getting heat for this one, and my only response to you is - bring it! This match went 1:01:52, and with no pinfalls till after the 60-minutes expired, I felt this was boring. Sorry mark for "pure techinical wrestling." This to me was one of the weaker main events, and it's becasue they simply had an hour to fill. Give me Hart and Michaels for 25-30 minutes, and it's a masterpiece.
5. The overuse of Celebrities over the years - There have been some pretty awful celebs at Maina, some of which include - Willie Nelson (his singing was pretty bad), Run DMC (the WrestleMania rap in Mania 5 was as bad as it gets), The "Where's the Beef" lady, Morton Downey Jr., and Vana White also deserve a spot on this list.
Labels: andre the giant, bret hart, hulk hogan, lex lugar, money in the bank, shawn michaels
