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Anyhow, The Rock’s show opening promo was something that I expected and long ago predicted. There wasn’t a better way to get the crowd hyped and set the tone then to have Rock make his first appearance of the night. I was shocked; however, that the first match of the night was the World title bout… Match 1: World Heavyweight Champion Edge (w/ Christian) defeated Alberto Del Rio (w/ Brodus Clay and Ricardo Rodriguez) in about 12-minutes (CMV1 rating - ***1/4) (CMV1 note – Quietly, these guys had a good feud leading up to the event, so I wasn’t surprised that the crowd was into it. I actually thought that the placement on the card was nearly perfect because it gave the match a chance to get the reaction it deserved. In recent years, the Taker’s matches have overshadowed at least one World title match. The way that they handled it this year, I thought it worked better. Edge and ADR worked hard and built to a good climax that saw them trade submission finishers and sell them well enough to create legit false finishes. Certainly not a great match, but a damn good one to kick off the wrestling portion) Match 2: Cody Rhodes defeated Rey Mysterio in about 12-minutes (CMV1 rating - ***) (CMV1 note – I personally thought that this match was much better than most seemed to, based on what I’ve read on the internet. I thought they worked a creative match and showcased what Rhodes was capable of doing. I enjoyed their storyline and was anticipating a good match. That’s what I feel like I got. That one spot where Rhodes did a delayed superplex was superb! I liked the story they told and enjoyed the finish. Nice effort from them both) The backstage segment with Snoop Dogg and Teddy Long mimicking the American Idol judges was entertaining. You come to expect stuff like that from Wrestlemania and Dogg has been such an avid fan and supporter of the WWE over the years that it’s smart to reward that kind of loyalty with a segment. Match 3: Kane, Big Show, Kofi Kingston, and Santino defeated The Corre in 1-minute and 30-seconds (CMV1 rating – ½ *) (CMV1 note – There’s really not much to say about the match because nothing really happened. They came, they performed fast, and they left all in the blink of an eye. Nobody got the chance to showcase their talents, but they did get on the card. It made me glad that Sheamus vs. Bryan didn’t make the card, for I fear it wouldn’t been given a similar treatment in terms of time) The backstage Rock segment with Mae Young and capped off with the Rock and Steve Austin shaking hands was well done. It was a mark out moment for all when Rock and Austin interacted for the first time in 8 years. Match 4: Randy Orton defeated CM Punk in 15-minutes (CMV1 rating - ***1/2) (CMV1 note – This was the second most anticipated match of the night for me and I thought it ended up being the second best match of the night. The Viper is one of the best in the business right now at selling and psychology and CM Punk showed on the grand stage in his biggest opportunity yet to show that he’s right there at the top in those categories, too. Punk working over the leg injury was smart and fit perfectly into their storyline. The crowd seemed into it, which was what I expected given the heat they had coming in. A good crowd can help elevate a match. There wasn’t that string of near falls at the end that would’ve pushed this to the four-star level, but that was pretty much all that was missing. The story told was very well done. Punk pushing out of the first RKO attempt was a nice spot, followed by an even better spot just seconds later) The Rock’s second backstage segment with Pee Wee Herman and Mean Gene was fun. Pee Wee isn’t the kind of celebrity that really does anything for me, so I hope that it did something for somebody. I would’ve preferred a segment between Rock and Jim Carrey – I think that would’ve had more impact. The annual Hall of Fame introduction was cool. I always enjoy that, especially this year since I saw them all get inducted live the night before. That was my first HOF ceremony and I urge you to attend one day. It’s a completely different atmosphere than a Wrestlemania. Match 5: Jerry “The King” Lawler defeated Michael Cole (w/ Jack Swagger) in 14-minutes, with the pinfall counted by guest referee Stone Cold Steve Austin. Then, the Raw GM reversed the decision (CMV1 rating - **) (CMV1 note – This was very difficult to rate for me. I honestly did not enjoy the length of the match. I thought it went way too long and it didn’t need to go that long. It could’ve been cut in half and accomplished the same goal. Cole is crazy over as a heel, but in more of a go the hell away kind of way. Swagger’s involvement was nicely done, but it took about ten minutes to get to the good part. You also have to take into account the post-match stuff in the overall presentation, as Austin’s “moment” was important and put asses in the seats. I was tempted to give it a lesser rating, but the entertainment factor and the payoff slightly outweighed the length issue, in my opinion) Match 6: Undertaker defeated Triple H in 30-minutes (CMV1 rating - ****1/2) (CMV1 note – Unbelievable match. The presentation with Triple H coming out to “For whom the bell tolls” by Metallica was absolutely awesome. It reminded me of that intro that HBK did two years ago. It’s just rare that someone’s entrance can match the Undertaker’s normal entrance. Then, one of my favorite matches in Wrestlemania history took place. That was easily the best match that I’ve seen at the Manias that I’ve been to – Mania 22 and 24 included. They basically just beat the crap out of each other for the first 14-minutes before doing the Tombstone and Pedigree spots. I was thinking, “Wow – they just hit their finishers – this is only going about 20-minutes.” I loved that Triple H took control and then just kept hitting finishers, but not always going for covers. It was like he knew he had to bring everything he had and then some to get the win, so he didn’t always bother with covers for the sake of covers. When Taker grabbed him by the throat, and he looked down at the Deadman and shook his head…I got goose bumps. That was the moment that I realized we were witnessing a classic match. Triple H actually connecting with the Tombstone was wild. That was the moment that I actually thought the Streak might end. I grabbed my wife by the back of her shirt and said, “They’re not really going to end it? Are they? Are they?” The finish was great – much like the one that I did in my Road to Mania series during the Andre-Taker match. Hats off to those guys for that performance. Triple H should’ve just silenced many of his IWC critics with that performance. That’s his second classic match at Wrestlemania and the one that should live on since the first one has been erased from memory. Taker has found a gear at Mania that only a very few others were able to find during their careers. He’s used the Streak to become one of the greatest in-ring performers in history. Arguably one of the top 10 matches in Wrestlemania history – time will tell) Miami will host next year’s Mania. At that point, it was honestly beginning to set in that Wrestlemania was nearly over and that it would not be all that much fun to be a wrestling fan for another 9 months. Match 7: Snooki, John Morrison, and Trish Stratus defeated LayCool and Dolph Ziggler in just under 4-minutes (CMV1 rating - *1/2) (CMV1 note – Trish and McCool did a nice job in the early going showing off what women’s wrestling could be in the WWE if they were to find a woman like Stratus to carry the division like she did in the past. People would take it seriously that way. Alas, they do not and this was little more than a vehicle for Snooki to do some flips – which admittedly I thought were cool and surprising for a short little fat chick – and get the win. I think the WWE was kidding themselves thinking she would earn them many extra buys. I hear that their goal was 1 million. I highly doubt that they will achieve that) 71,000 people for a card that many called “weak.” Hats off to the WWE for doing what was necessary to get people interested and people to make the trip. I think the build-up was really strong and I liked the card on paper, to boot. Match 8: WWE Champion The Miz defeated John Cena in 15-minutes via double count-out and then via pinfall after interference from The Rock (CMV1 rating - ***1/4) (CMV1 note – I suspect I might be in the minority on this one, but I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of Cena vs. Miz. I loved the pre-match introductions. It helped set the stage and make this feel like the real main-event and not just a pre-cursor to whatever Rock was going to do with his involvement. The match itself was not great, but I’m not sure Miz is yet capable of a great match. Instead, he performed well as he normally does and they built-up to a string of false finishes that I thought pushed the match to the 3-star level. Miz was not made to look like anything but Cena’s equal. The crowd has been called “dead” for this. I completely disagree. I have no idea how it played out on TV, but in the arena, people were very into it where I was sitting and all around. There were dueling chants that you come to expect from bigger paying customers. Anyhow, Miz retaining the title via double count-out was not something that I entirely liked. I hate double count outs. However, we all knew it was going to be the transition to Rock coming back out. Rock shut the GM up when it tried to get involved and ultimately restarted the match, just so he could cost Cena the match. Miz retained the title, which I thought was a great thing. The Rock celebrating to go off the air was pretty much the best possible scenario given the superstars of today. Cena is their guy, but he’s not going to send people home happy, as they’ve learned in previous years. Well done by all three guys) Backstage skits and interviews (CMV1 rating - ***) (CMV1 note – these were just what they needed to be) CMV1 PPV Rating System 0-1.5 stars = Demand a refund and don't take no for an answer. If it was this bad, they should pay you to watch the next two PPVs, at least. (Great American Bash 2005) 1.75-2.25 stars = A below average PPV that wasn't worth the money spent watching. (Survivor Series 2010) 2.5-2.75 stars = An average to above average event that was worth watching on that given night. (Royal Rumble 2011, TLC 2010) 3.0-3.25 = A really good show that you'd buy on DVD and watch again (Elimination Chamber 2011, Unforgiven 2006) 3.5 = This is how PPV should be done (Summerslam 2002) 3.75-5.0 = You never thought a PPV could be this good... Wrestlemania XXVII’s Final Score = **3/4 (CMV1 note – I really enjoyed this PPV. I think you always have to expect that there will be some fluff; some things will have to be cut on time in order to complete the overall presentation. With that being said and expected, this was a very enjoyable Wrestlemania. There were 5 matches, in my view, that reached the three-star level or better. Both title matches delivered, Rey vs. Cody was good, and then CM Punk and Orton stole the show until Taker and Triple H stole the year. The Rock’s involvement was unique and memorable and should spark some interesting stuff going forward with Cena and Miz)
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