{"id":1663,"date":"2010-03-16T00:01:18","date_gmt":"2010-03-16T05:01:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ringsidereport.com\/?p=1663"},"modified":"2010-03-16T00:01:18","modified_gmt":"2010-03-16T05:01:18","slug":"wrestlemania-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=1663","title":{"rendered":"WrestleMania: Part I"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>By John Pitroff<\/strong><\/p>\n

With WrestleMania coming up soon, I wanted to write about the entire aspect of what it means to the fans, and why it is really considered the biggest show of the year.\u00a0 In addition, as part of this, I would also like to cover the build for the matches at this year\u2019s show.\u00a0 Because there is so much to be said about WrestleMania, I figured I would break this into two different columns just as a flow of consciousness about how I feel about \u201cThe Showcase of the Immortals.\u201d\u00a0 So, here is part one of what WrestleMania means to a fan, and the reason many people, including the talent, consider it the \u201cGranddaddy Of Them All\u201d and the \u201cSuper Bowl Of Wrestling.\u201d
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\nWrestleMania time is always one of the best times to be a wrestling fan.\u00a0 Things always pick up, WWE makes its biggest efforts toward building a good show, and the fans seem genuinely interested in what is going on.\u00a0 It is the one time of the year, where as a fan, even if a long list of other things are annoying you or upsetting you about the state of wrestling, you can put that all behind you and attempt to enjoy a show you can only see once a year.\u00a0 For that reason, WrestleMania really is can\u2019t miss.\u00a0 If you miss it, you are missing out on the culmination of a year\u2019s worth of build.\u00a0 Despite better PPV cards on paper, and despite the fact that sometimes other PPVs from the year end up being better than \u2019Mania, it is the one show that wrestling fans will be talking about.\u00a0 It is the one show where you should be up to date on as a fan.\u00a0 It is a talking point amongst fans, and it is a time when even casual fans come back around in a bigger force to see what is going on with wrestling.\u00a0 I always thought to myself that even if were to ever stop watching wrestling, I would at least tune in once a year to watch WrestleMania to see where the company is at.\u00a0 WrestleMania is always a good barometer of what is going on in WWE.
\n\u00a0
\nNot every WrestleMania is great, some have been on the lower end of the PPVs for their respective year, but then again, every few years there is a defining show that has an amazing card, but also changes the landscape of wrestling forever, like WrestleMania X-Seven.\u00a0 You can\u2019t get that type of thing at Fully Loaded.\u00a0 I realize Fully Loaded hasn\u2019t been around in a while, but I like living in the past.\u00a0 Just like Honkey Tonk Man.\u00a0 WM is the one PPV of the year that big things are bound to happen.\u00a0 Angles culminate, ideas hit a crescendo.\u00a0 The show becomes the end all, be all for everything that it means to be creative in WWE.\u00a0 Writing is all built towards the point of \u2018Mania.\u00a0 Big feuds begin and end, stars debut and retire, careers are made and angles are ended.\u00a0 It is the one show where the most noteworthy things happen.
\n\u00a0
\nAt times, things don\u2019t always seem too noteworthy or history changing at the time.\u00a0 But, when one looks at the history of wrestling, the biggest show of the year is where a lot of historical things take place.\u00a0 Austin turning heel, the beginning of Hulk Hogan\u2019s face run in WWE, Austin\u2019s last match, Shawn Michaels last (at the time) match, Ric Flair retiring, Mick Foley being retired.\u00a0 OK, I won\u2019t get into the entire retirement angle thing because in wrestling, retiring seems to be as serious as a Sheamus WWE title run.
\n\u00a0
\nIn the new age of WrestleMania where they try to hold the shows at larger venues and well known arenas in an attempt to break attendance records, fans can expect at least one really good match every year.\u00a0 Marquee matches are given more time to develop and become something special.\u00a0 So, even if the show as a whole isn\u2019t the best of the year, you will most likely see a match of the year contender.\u00a0 That is what happens when the wrestlers put it all in the ring for one night of the year.\u00a0 Every year that WrestleMania gets a year older, it is another year of wrestling standards to live up to and another year of matches to attempt to be better than.\u00a0 That creates a lot of want and necessity in the minds of the wrestlers to outdo not only what they have done in previous years, but what others have done.\u00a0 WrestleMania creates a high standard of wrestling quality for the wrestlers involved.\u00a0 That is why Nathan Jones was taken off the card at XIX.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure of the logic in that decision, however, since they left both A-Train and Big Show in the ring.\u00a0 WrestleMania standards for wrestling?\u00a0 I didn\u2019t say in every match.
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\nThe pageantry and spectacle of WM is something that WWE doesn\u2019t take light heartedly, and it shows.\u00a0 No expense seems to be spared for the one special night of WrestleMania.\u00a0\u00a0 WWE brings out the best in the firework displays, production quality, and set design.\u00a0 Turn on WrestleMania, and nowadays, you instantly know it is a bigger deal compared to the other shows of the year just by the look.\u00a0 The lighting is always better, including ground spotlights that go deep into the arena that you won\u2019t see on any other Pay-Per-View.\u00a0 The set is always more massive and in depth than usual, including a longer ramp to the ring.\u00a0 Seeing the wrestlers walk down that ramp from a high above shot makes the show as a whole seem more special than the average Raw, Smackdown, or PPV.\u00a0 Where would the world be without Ultimate Warrior sprinting down that long WrestleMania VI ramp?\u00a0 Or, without The Undertaker taking off on high speed on his motorcycle at X-Seven.\u00a0 The firework displays are always even better than they are on TV and PPV.\u00a0 I mean, the fireworks are so good, at WrestleMania XIV people nearly got killed over them.\u00a0 Now, that is a good fireworks show.\u00a0 Seriously, if you ever can\u2019t make it outside on the fourth of July, pop in any of the latest WrestleMania shows and watch the explosives.\u00a0 The display is probably better than what you will see in your lame backwoods town anyway.\u00a0 I must say this though, please WWE, don\u2019t burn the Undertaker.\u00a0 He\u2019s had enough of that this year already.
\n\u00a0
\nPageantry can also include celebrity guests.\u00a0 WWE likes to bring out celebrities to perform on the show, be in the audience, or make a special guest appearance.\u00a0 What other PPV can you hear someone sing \u201cAmerica the Beautiful?\u201d\u00a0 When else would WWE ever even bother?\u00a0 Seriously, the more I write about it, the more I realize just how much WWE puts into the idea behind WrestleMania.\u00a0 From celebrities showing up to do guest commentary, to special guest referees like Mike Tyson, and including Pete Rose dressed up like the San Diego chicken, one can truly never know what to expect from celebrities at WrestleMania.\u00a0 I mean, Pam Anderson and Jenny McCarthy have been at WM.\u00a0 Need I say more, gentlemen?\u00a0 Then again, Lawrence Taylor did main event at 13, and Floyd Mayweather seemed to be the biggest selling point behind XIV, but we all have our faults.\u00a0 I really don\u2019t even want to mention the terrible appearance by Mickey Rourke last year, but I had to.\u00a0 It was like the Big Show in the living room if I hadn\u2019t said anything.
\n\u00a0
\nI will get to more on WrestleMania in my next column, but I want to mention the build for this year\u2019s show.\u00a0 Here is my take on The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels:
\n\u00a0
\nThe build for this match actually started last year after they had such a good match.\u00a0 As soon as one sees an amazing match between two of the best at the biggest show of the year, of course, as fans, we want to see it again.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure minutes after that match happened last year, many fans were thinking, \u201cI can\u2019t wait to see them go again.\u201d\u00a0 So, WWE did amazing job building this match for the next year.\u00a0 Of course, it wasn\u2019t in the minds of fans all year, but when Michaels took the Slammy for match of the year, he mentioned how he wanted Taker at \u2018Mania again to prove he could beat him.\u00a0 And, with Taker as his sole purpose for the following months, it has made a strong build for a match that really doesn\u2019t even need it.\u00a0 I mean, these two could have a match of the year yet again without a storyline.\u00a0 This could be the storyline, right here\u2026ready\u2026 \u201cListen, folks, it\u2019s Michaels and Taker at WrestleMania, need we do more?\u201d
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\nNo, WWE doesn\u2019t need to do more, but they are really building this feud nicely.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t half ass their way through the feud because it would be easy.\u00a0 They put a storyline in place months in advance and booked it well.\u00a0 With Taker not agreeing to wrestle again at first, it just built the tension.\u00a0 It built the hype.\u00a0 I know I personally wasn\u2019t sure if they would actually get together again at Mania.\u00a0 That intrigue was nice.
\n\u00a0
\nWith the edition of the streak vs. career, this match should be epic.\u00a0 Even if it doesn\u2019t top last year\u2019s match in the ring, it might actually be even more important because it could mean the end of an era in that of Shawn Michaels career either being over, or at least him taking some time off.\u00a0 And, if Michaels wins, Taker finally loses his WrestleMania streak.\u00a0 Things just won\u2019t be the same for UT or HBK anymore once this WM is over, and that is just one more of the reasons that WrestleMania is seen as the biggest shows of the year.\u00a0 What other PPV would it matter if you had an undefeated streak at?\u00a0 Did you know that Triple H is undefeated at the Breakdown PPV?\u00a0 Did you know that I just made that up?\u00a0 Did you know that he didn\u2019t even compete at it?\u00a0 Did you know that no one cares?\u00a0 My point here is about Michaels and Taker and that is this; where else is the best place to go out than on top at WrestleMania?\u00a0 This match is going to be nothing short of amazing, just like last year.<\/p>\n

(Stay Tuned for Wrestlemania Part II, where I discuss more of the biggest event in professional wrestling.)<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Watch The Trailer For Family Secret<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By John Pitroff With WrestleMania coming up soon, I wanted to write about the entire aspect of what it means to the fans, and why it is really considered the biggest show of the year.\u00a0 In addition, as part of this, I would also like to cover the build for the matches at this year\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[337,606,652,707,773,775,778],"class_list":["post-1663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-boxing-news","tag-hulk-hogan","tag-ric-flair","tag-shawn-michaels","tag-tna","tag-wrestlemania-i","tag-wrestling","tag-wwe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}