Initial WrestleMania Thoughts

So I just finished watching WrestleMania, and as you can see, my predictions didn't go all that well (I correctly predicted exactly three and a half matches). Nevertheless it was a really, really good show, and really didn't drag for any noticeable period of time (pretty impressive for a four hour show). Pretty much every single match delivered.

One thing that struck me, though, was how absolutely dominating the Raw announce team was. I mean, JR and King called both JBL vs. Finlay and HBK vs. Flair, even though both of those matches involve one Smackdown competitor. Even stranger, though, was that the Raw announce team commentated for Big Show vs. Mayweather, even though Big Show is a Smackdown Superstar. Of the nine matches on the card, JR and King called 5. King also provided commentary for the Batista vs. Umaga match (with Michael Cole), and all three announce teams worked the Money in the Bank Ladder Match. That means that there were only TWO matches on the entire card that didn't involve a Raw announcer. And poor Joey Styles and Tazz only got to call a 30 second match.

I'm a bit of a uniform-mark, so one reason why I look forward to WrestleMania in particular is because the wrestlers tend to whip out pretty cool new uniforms. I was ESPECIALLY pleased that Ric Flair did so, even though he's now retired. For basically his entire second WWE run (which has been, like, seven years), he's only worn either his red or black trunks, red or black boots, or red or black knee pads. Actually, scratch that. There was a very weird period in Evolution when he'd wear his black trunks (with red sewn monogram), his lavender boots, and his purple knee pads. That was atrocious. Anyway, I've heard from numerous sources that he's donated a vast majority of his robes to charity.....but what about all those trunks? The blue ones? The green ones? The purple ones? This guy had quite the collection! So, with that said, I was glad he went all out and departed from the black or red variety.

Oh, and it's awesome that 'Taker brought back the sleeveless black leather trench coat. I've actually always found it his coolest entrance attire. Very nice.

Anyway, it's tough to pick a match of the night, because so many matches stood out for various reasons (HBK vs. Flair for the emotional significance, Money in the Bank Ladder Match for the crazy and innovative spots, Edge vs. Undertaker for its psychology, and Orton/Cena/Triple H for its overall suspense). If I had to pick one match, I'd probably go with Edge vs. Undertaker. The ONE thing that hurt it is that the ending was such a foregone conclusion, especially since Coach declared "the streak is over!" during any realistic Edge pin attempt, giving away that 'Taker would kick out.

Overall, though, it was an awesome match, and the right person went over. And I'm thrilled that this match ended the show, because Undertaker deserves it, it was a great moment for Edge, and it gives a lot of prestige to Smackdown.