HeadLocker–Jay Shannon

Our resident philosopher, Jay Shannon, gives his after-thoughts on the “Grand-daddy of them all”, WrestleMania..

Well, Wrestlemania has come and gone. There were some serious swerves, but most of the matches were extremely predictable. In this edition of HeadLocker, I want to run down the results and my reactions to the booking.

Wrestlemania 24 Man Battle Royal

This match was a free “gift” to the fans. It had very few actual ECW stars battling to win a chance at the ECW World title. My original prediction was that Tommy Dreamer would help Colin Delaney win the battle royal. Colin wasn’t even in the match.

Kane has been on a major push, lately. He faced off against a few challenges and a ton of cannon fodder. In the end, the Big Red Machine took the win.

Grade: B

Kane d Chavo Guerrero
ECW Championship Match

This was absurd. Kane strolled in, hit a Chokeslam and walked out as the champion. That showed just how little ECW means to WWE. While Kane probably deserved the title after so many years of dedicated service, Chavo should have been allowed to put up some kind of a fight.

Grade: D

Beth Phoenix & Melina d Ashley & Maria
Bunnymania Lumberjill Match

I expected very little from this match and I wasn’t disappointed. Santino got his butt kicked by Jerry Lawler. Snoop Dogg acted like a moron. I question why he is considered such a celebrity. In the end, Beth surprised the critics and took the pin with her finisher, The Fisherman Buster. This was supposed to be a shocker, but no one cared.

Grade: C

Batista d Umaga
Brand Supremacy Match

The biggest surprise in this match was that the crowd cheered for Umaga and booed Batista. I expect a major face turn for Umaga. I’m hoping that he will take the title from Orton, but I doubt that it will happen. Batista should probably challenge Kane for the ECW title. If Batista could take that, then he and Undertaker could square off in a Unification Match at One Night Stand.

The battle was actually pretty good. Both men used a slew of brutal moves to try and destroy each other. Batista finally took the win over Umaga to the anger of the crowd.

Grade: B

JBL d Finlay
Belfast Brawl

This match was so completely mis-booked. JBL dominated Finlay and pinned him clean after the Clothesline From Hell. While Finlay losing wasn’t a surprise, the way that JBL totally dominated this match was disappointing. Finlay deserved so much better.

Grade: C

C.M. Punk d Shelton Benjamin, Chris Jericho, MVP, John Morrison, Mr. Kennedy and Carlito

Money in the Bank match

This one was so full of surprises and close calls. My original pick for this match was C.M. Punk. I hit the nail right on the head with that pick. No one was more surprised than I was. It seemed logical that one of the Raw or Smackdown stars would get the win. I picked with my heart more than with my head.

MVP might have had the win, if not for Matt Hardy rushing the ring to take out the US titleholder. All of the participants in this match looked good. In the end, it came down to Jericho and Punk. Punk got his tattooed fingers on the case just a split-second before a trapped Y2J could free himself from the ladder. Now, Punk gets his choice of a title shot. Most people might think that he will go after Kane to regain his ECW title. I’m hoping he chooses Orton. I’d love to see him, not Triple H or Cena, end Orton’s title reign.

Grade: A

Floyd Mayweather d Big Show
“Anything Goes” Match

This match was an even bigger waste than the LT/Bigelow match of so many years ago. As expected, Mayweather got the win. He used Gold-Plated Brass Knuckles to knock out Show.

What did this do for Mayweather? Well, it sent him home with $20 Million in his pocket (allegedly). As far as his career, it didn’t really do anything for it. They pushed the fact that Mayweather was risking his career by taking this match. The only way that Mayweather would have been hurt in this one would be if he was too stupid to know how to work a match. I was ready for that, but it didn’t happen.

Rumors were hot that Khali would interfere and cost Show the match. This could have set up a Battle of the Giants, but the writers chose not to go that way. This match didn’t mean a thing. It was more of a waste-of-time filler match than Bunnymania. At least Bunnymania had the ring surrounded by beautiful women. Moneymania was just a disgrace that should have never been booked. Shame on you, WWE.

Grade: F-

Shawn Michaels d Ric Flair
Career-Threatening (and Ending) Match

From one extreme to another, this match is almost a dead-lock for this year’s Match of the Year. This match was the most anticipated match on the card. People were solidly behind the “Nature Boy” in this one. Flair put on one of the best matches of his 35-year career on Sunday.

Shawn had the chance to end the match, early on, with Sweet Chin Music but he held back. That almost cost him the win. Ric talked with Shawn at various times during the match. It was unclear what was being said, but Shawn’s mindset seemed to change. In the end, Shawn whispered “I’m Sorry…I love you”. Shawn then used Sweet Chin Music to “pull the trigger” on Flair’s career. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as Shawn was announced as the winner. It was expected that Shawn would end up as a heel, but he will likely stand as a stronger face than ever.

Grade: A+

Randy Orton d John Cena & Triple H
Triple Threat WWE Title Match

Just about everyone expected Triple H to win this one. A few thought that maybe Cena might sneak in and take the title. No one expected Orton to retain. Orton surprised the wrestling world when he allowed Triple H to take out Cena with the Pedigree. Just as Triple H was going for the pin, Orton shocked everyone and hit his Running Boot to Triple H’s head to keep the gold.

This match was good. Each man was able to highliight his skill set. None of the three have anything to be upset about. I can only imagine that Punk is being prepared as the next challenger for Orton. I’d like to see Punk battle Orton and take the title. Punk could then run a series of matches against Carlito, Santino, Kennedy and others before facing off against either Cena or Triple H at Summerslam. While I questioned the booking, at first, I now feel that it might have been a good choice.

Grade: B+

Undertaker d Edge
World Title v Unbeaten Streak

This match was the number two match of the night, behind Flair and Shawn. Edge is the second most successful performer at Wrestlemania. The only man that is more successful is Undertaker.

As expected, Edge brought the troops with him. Ryder and Hawkins and Vickie all tried to help Edge retain. In the end, Taker took out the former Major Brothers with ease. Vickie was completely neutralized by the “Dead Man”.

Edge seemed to have the match won when he Speared Undertaker. Undertaker locked in a Submission Choke and Edge had no choice but to tap out. Not only had the Dead Man won his 6th World title, he had also forced Edge to submit. That added insult was the revenge that Undertaker had waited almost a year to attain.

Grade A

Final Grade: C+

Final Thoughts:

Wrestlemania XXIV was a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows. Shawn/Flair and Undertaker/Edge were amazing. Mayweather/Show, Kane/Chavo and Bunnymania were pathetic. Am I kicking myself that I didn’t spend the $55+ for the broadcast? No, I’m pleased that I resisted the temptation. I will rent the video when it hits the streets. I applaud the main four men on the card. As for the rest, learn from Shawn, Flair, Undertaker and Edge. Watching them in action will help you to become better wrestlers. Edge just earned his spot in the Hall of Fame, in my opinion. Shawn and ‘Taker are obviously going in, some day. Flair is, of course, right where he should be.

I hope to see Flair take some time off before returning as the manager of the “New Four Horsemen”. I’d include Punk, Triple H, Shawn, and Umaga. Triple H and Shawn could be the Anderson/Blanchard of the group. They could unify the tag team division and make it mean something, again. Umaga could be the Windham/Sid powerman of the team. Punk could take Flair’s spot as the technical wizard that amazes people with his ability. He would never be able to replace Ric, but he could carry on the legacy…at least until Reid Flair shows up.

–Jay Shannon
JayofPWD@SBCGlobal.net
(4/3/08)