Has the Wrestlemania build up been kinda terrible? [Archive]

Anybody Thrilla

03-16-2013, 02:02 PM

I know it's Wrestlemania season, because I am constantly reminded of it by all of the sign-pointing and commentary references. There have been some really good matches spread throughout a few Raws, but as far as hype for the actual matches, I don't really feel any real excitement at all. I know we've talked about most of the outcomes being predictable, but I'd be OK with that if they gave me any real reason to give a fuck.

Maybe I should give it a bit more time, because I did enjoy the Heyman/Brock promo, and Punk/Undertaker seems like it could get pretty good soon...but I dunno. Isn't it only a few weeks away?

Your thoughts, please.

03-16-2013, 02:11 PM

3 weeks away.

I kind of agree though. Beyond the easily telegraphed main events (Rock/Cena, HHH/Brock, Taker/Punk) they haven't done much/anything to build interest in the undercard.

Orton/Sheamus/Show vs. The Shield should be fun, I guess, but Henry/Ryback and Del Rio/Swagger don't grab me.

Think there should have been more focus on setting something meaningful up for the IC/US/Tag champions.

Anybody Thrilla

03-16-2013, 02:16 PM

I think back to the Triple H/Randy Orton build. The match was whatever, but the build up was some good TV. Orton DDTing Steph and kissing her while Triple H was handcuffed/etc...Triple H/Batista felt like it definitely was about to be huge...I dunno, I'm just not really getting that feeling from any match this year.

whiteyford

03-16-2013, 02:28 PM

It doesn't help that Brock has very limited dates so it's all left to Heyman to carry his end, I love Heyman but it does take away from the build IMO. Pretty much the same thing with Undertaker/HHH/Rock, all three don't appear that regularly on tv for one reason or another so it comes across as kinda thrown together, all three matches were predicted months ago but for me still seem like really rushed builds.

Same with the other announced matches honestly, I think it should still be a solid card none the less though.

Corporate CockSnogger

03-16-2013, 02:33 PM

I think The Rock not being there along with them not being certain about The Undertaker up until last week kinda slowed things down. I'm expecting the Lesnar/Triple H stuff to pick up now after they've alternated weeks showing, hopefully Brock has enough of his contracted appearances left to show up every Raw between now and then.

Swagger/Del Rio has been built up pretty well, I think, despite the match coming right out of the blue (in terms of long term booking anyway). This is arguably Del Rio's first real feud that wasn't just "Give me that title" or "I'll feud with you just 'cuz".

The Shield/Ryback was being built up fine but they've seemingly changed direction with that now, probably not wanting to give Ryback another loss and them wanting to keep The Shield unbeaten as well. They've done well shoehorning Orton/Sheamus/Big Show into it though in my opinion.

They've done a bad job chopping and changing things as far as the midcard matches go, with them still not looking like they've settled on anything.

Savio

03-16-2013, 02:46 PM

THey really should just pull the plug on Ryback soon

Rammsteinmad

03-16-2013, 02:48 PM

03-16-2013, 03:06 PM

You'd think with Rock/Brock not being available every week and HHH/Taker on just reappearing, they've have made more effort to build the undercard, y'know, as they have more time.

Anybody Thrilla

03-16-2013, 03:09 PM

3 whole hours

Evil Vito

03-16-2013, 03:28 PM

<font color=goldenrod>Regarding the build to the main event matches...the Cena/Rock build has been pretty atrocious. Doesn't help that The Rock is barely around, but it's pretty clear they just figured Rock/Cena sells itself so the build has felt half assed to this point. I've really enjoyed the Punk/Taker and Brock/HHH builds to this point, though. Regarding the undercard - I've actually really enjoyed the Del Rio/Swagger build. I imagine the World Heavyweight Title match will start the show for the 3rd year in a row, and it should be a fun opener. The Shield build has also been really good - they've been built as credible threats and I love what I've seen. I love badass heel Mark Henry, but the Ryback/Henry build has been incredibly meh to this point.

Still 3 weeks to shore up the rest of the undercard - so I'll remain cautiously optimistic. Team Hell No's dissension had to be paused temporarily so that Kane could avenge Paul Bearer, but I imagine it'll be picked back up this week, possibly with a match being set. Jericho will certainly be placed into a feud and there really are a million directions they could go with him. I'm hoping both Barrett and Cesaro find ways onto the card.

Mind, they don't really have to "sell" me on anything. I've already got tickets and I'm going to WM for the first time. They could book whatever the fuck they wanted and I'd probably still be just as pumped.</font>

Keith

03-16-2013, 03:29 PM

This year's WrestleMania build-up has been subpar, no doubt.

I'm sure WWE will turn up the voltage as we get closer, but it's been kinda disappointing.

We have Swagger/Del Rio, Triple H/Brock, Punk/Undertaker and Rock/Cena.

I think Swagger and Zeb's schtick seems to be dying off somewhat (which I didn't think would happen), and the WWE Universe doesn't seem to care much for ADR.

Triple H and Brock can get uglier. I hope that's the case, that HIAC match is gonna be brutal.

We saw the Undertaker/Punk angle really get some steam last week and you'd think it's gonna get even better.

Rock/Cena, though, has been much worse than last year. This match is all about Cena getting his revenge. There has been no build-up, practically.

The Condor

03-16-2013, 03:51 PM

I actually no longer care for the main guys involved With the product. More interested in Barrett, Cesaro, Rhodes Scholars, Ryback, Henry, ADR/Swagger, Truth, Hell No than the 6 guys in the main slots. And those guys have taken no place in Wrestlemania buildup so my interest level is low. Just a wet blanket.

Skippord

03-16-2013, 04:11 PM

best part of the build to Wrestlemania has been Roman Reigns tossing Sheamus like a dwarf through a table

Anybody Thrilla

03-16-2013, 04:32 PM

You might actually be right.

Emperor Smeat

03-16-2013, 04:47 PM

Been like that for the past several years where they focus everything on just 1-2 feuds and then fill up the rest almost at the last moment.

The only feud that's been built up well is the Shield vs Ryback/Super Friends. Everything else has either just started, struggling to build hype, or won't be confirmed until very close to Mania.

Cena vs Rock II is easily the worst main event build in years. The "redemption" storyline basically ignores everything Cena really did last year while both guys have barely confronted each other. Should have just made it a Triple Threat or kept the Rock-Punk feud going till Mania.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 04:57 PM

Rock-Cena doesn't need much. It's an old school ridiculously long build (as opposed to the new school blow through a feud in 2 months, move on, repeat method) that works because both guys haven't been interacting twice a week on free TV. And one of them doesn't even wrestle on free TV. It's good hype.

ADR/Swagger feels fresh and I'm enjoying it. It doesn't feel like a random "throw it on 'No Way Out'" match. They're being careful with the build and actually seem like they're trying to make it feel like a "WrestleMania match". I like it.

I hated the way Taker-Punk was thrown together through Punk winning a fatal four-way. Seemed like such a huge letdown after the intensity of the last four WM Taker matches. Last week was the goods though. Granted, Paul Bearer's death lead them to do something intriguing but hopefully they can keep it up.

I was against the Brock-HHH rematch because it does nothing for anyone to have a rematch but depending on the stipulation it could end up being a great spectacle. And the build has definitely not lacked. Another match that's been brewing for a long time.

That's four good "WrestleMania feel" matches to me. I always WANT to see them get really detailed and focus on making every little match from top to bottom feel "special" but considering what we're accustomed to, I'll take this.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 04:58 PM

You'd think with Rock/Brock not being available every week and HHH/Taker on just reappearing, they've have made more effort to build the undercard, y'know, as they have more time.

They've sucked at putting focus on stuff outside the main event for a while now. Not just during WrestleMania season.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 05:00 PM

The only feud that's been built up well is the Shield vs Ryback/Super Friends. Everything else has either just started, struggling to build hype, or won't be confirmed until very close to Mania.

I kinda doubt Ryback is gonna be involved in that match come WrestleMania. I think the consensus is he's gonna leave the team to face Henry. So scratch that.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 05:06 PM

Cena vs Rock II is easily the worst main event build in years. The "redemption" storyline basically ignores everything Cena really did last year while both guys have barely confronted each other. Should have just made it a Triple Threat or kept the Rock-Punk feud going till Mania.

You don't need guys to confront each other very often to build a feud. Do you realize how rare it was to see two guys in the main event of a WrestleMania confront each other back in the day? And it's not like early WrestleMania main events lacked intensity. I'd say they actually had more build because of it. I don't think anyone was going into Hogan-Andre saying "They BARELY interacted on TV! What a shitty build!"

I agree it would have been better if Cena had a shittier year but it's not like the guy was rolling character-wise. He definitely had his ups and downs and failed to win the title even with the MITB contract. The same title Rock came back and won in his first match in 10 months. And considering how huge the match was last year, I think the redemption story works fine.

Emperor Smeat

03-16-2013, 05:25 PM

I kinda doubt Ryback is gonna be involved in that match come WrestleMania. I think the consensus is he's gonna leave the team to face Henry. So scratch that.

Yeah Henry seems like the direction the WWE wants for Ryback at Mania. The Shield's feud has been the only big feud that's been given the long slow build to the point they've faced enough guys to allow swapping to occur without hurting it.

The other big feuds either just started or are using past incidents as the jump starts for their Mania matches.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 05:34 PM

Given how things have gone since, I have no idea why Ryback took the pinfall at Elimination Chamber and not Sheamus. Kinda makes Ryback seem weaker to not be able to beat the Shield, actually get pinned by them and then just avoid them in favor of someone else. Especially after how he left the ring after the match.

They could have transferred that "I need to fucking beat these guys" thing over to Sheamus by having him directly get one-upped by them. I really don't think they know what they wanna do with The Shield more than a month in advance. "Just throw three dudes at them" is getting repetitive.

Kane Knight

03-16-2013, 05:35 PM

Most recent Wrestlemanias seem to have had poor builds. I just assume WWE has assumed, rightly or wrongly, that Wrestlemania has basically reached max saturation.

Because honestly, who is going to buy Mania that's really going to be swayed by the card?

Skippord

03-16-2013, 05:57 PM

I would enjoy it if they called every group of three dudes they throw at The Shield the Superfriends

Evil Vito

03-16-2013, 06:26 PM

<font color=goldenrod>I could actually see a scenario where Ryback stays on his team against The Shield, but Henry and Big Show both get thrown into the mix and it winds up being an 8 man tag: Ryback, Sheamus, Show, and Orton vs. Henry and The Shield. Presumably they'd only do this if they realize there are a ton of guys they need to squeeze onto the card and as such decide to merge a few matches. Doing this would also allow Ryback to hit the Shellshock on Henry and get his "WM moment" with nobody on The Shield having to take the fall.

Would rather it not come to that, though. I don't want to see The Shield teaming with anybody else.</font>

Ultra Mantis

03-16-2013, 06:31 PM

There's nothing on the card I'm looking forward to. The marquee matches all sound fine on paper, but it's all so very underwhelming and business as usual. Most of my "favourite" guys aren't even on the card yet or even invested in anything that should be on a Wrestlemania card for that matter.

#1-norm-fan

03-16-2013, 07:17 PM

Forgetting Dolph Ziggler exists for the past couple months was probably a bad idea. There's no concept of momentum with this booking. It makes every "major" win end up meaningless. It looks like they might go with him and Big E going for the tag titles. Not exactly a great follow-up for the Money in the Bank holder who ended his last real feud by beating John Cena in the main event of a PPV.

Also, I fear for Jericho who could easily have been put in a major angle and put another major match on the card. As it stands he'll probably be in an IC Title match in the best case scenario.

Mr. Nerfect

03-16-2013, 07:46 PM

I was just thinking the other day: Everyone (including myself) considers WrestleMania X-7 to be this legendary PPV. How good was the build for that, really? Austin vs. Rock were two icons that both wanted to be WWE Champion. Kurt Angle had a rookie year title reign that lasted a little while before he dropped the belt to The Rock on the last PPV stop before Mania. Angle then moved down the card to wrestle another wrestling machine, someone who had just lost a series of Intercontinental Title matches to the very over Chris Jericho, who was now feuding with the Commissioner and spent his time pissing in his tea.

Triple H and Undertaker literally had a match because Triple H had "beaten everyone else" and neither really had anything to do. Kane and Big Show were thrown into a Hardcore Title match with the entertaining Raven act. Test, who had squashed the Intercontinental Title challenger to win the European Championship was defending his title against Eddie Guerrero in a match that was just...there. The Right to Censor battled three faces that were pretty over just because. I'll give the WWE this: Ivory vs. Chyna and Vince vs. Shane both had really epic builds.

WrestleMania will no doubt be an entertaining PPV, but I'm hoping it far surpasses expectations.

Mr. Nerfect

03-16-2013, 07:58 PM

Henry and Ryback is shit. Sheamus/Orton/Ryback would have been much better, and made better sense.

Also, I'm angry that Cesaro likely won't be on the main card. This is what focusing 2/3's of the show on part-timers does. And once Wrestlemania season is over and Rock, Lesnar, Triple H, Undertaker etc go away until Summerslam or whenever they're ready to work again, WWE will be stuck with a loada midcard guys that nobody cares about, and then they'll be left wondering why ratings are down.

Ryback being taken out of the The Shield match means that it's possible The Shield can win without making Ryback look like complete shit for like the fourth time on PPV. They needed to address Ryback's issues with The Shield but move him on to something else without busting Ambrose, Reigns & Rollins' momentum -- this sideways move into the Mark Henry is pretty much perfect for that. Now Ryback can go 1-0 and The Shield can look like a dominant force on PPV (although I can totally see the face team going over).

I do wish Antonio Cesaro would make the card, but he will at the very least be given the pre-show spotlight (probably against Sin Cara). That's being realistic -- in my fantasy world, there are still two possible options for Cesaro to make the main card. The first is that Cesaro defends the US Title in what would probably be used as a buffer match between bigger matches. A "cool-down" spot on the card. Cesaro could make an open challenge on RAW or SmackDown and declare that he will face any American for the US Title at WrestleMania. This mystery spot can create speculation for the match and might even get a bit of a buzz going in the mid-card for WrestleMania.

Rob Van Dam would be my personal pick for this spot. RVD would still be pretty over and recogniseable to the WrestleMania crowd, and he's currently a free agent. Yes, RVD is probably in talks with TNA about returning and their schedule would seem to suit him more -- but a WrestleMania pay-day can be kind of alluring, and I'm sure the WWE could convince RVD to sign a short-term deal -- even if he only works WrestleMania, a couple of RAWs and then drops the US Title back to Cesaro at Extreme Rules. If you can't get RVD, Christian returning (despite being Canadian) and kick-starting a feud with Cesaro could be pretty fun.

Alternatively, since WrestleMania is a pretty big stage and Big E. Langston hasn't even wrestled an official match in the WWE yet -- it doesn't really seem practical or logical to give him a Tag Team Title shot at WrestleMania. He'll no doubt be involved, but maybe they can have Dolph Ziggler announce he is going after the Tag Team Championship and Antonio Cesaro can be his tag team partner? This can be used to create a bit of fan empathy for Big E., who Dolph brushes over in favour of the US Champion, but it also allows Langston to have the crucial role as the heavy for Ziggler & Cesaro in the match.

There is no evidential basis for any of this happening, but I have faith that Cesaro has impressed enough people to at least earn a filler spot on the Mania card.

Mr. Nerfect

03-16-2013, 08:00 PM

Oh, and the WWE is building their main matches at the moment. The mid-card talent are being used to put over the main event wrestlers. As the main event matches are solidified heading into the event, there will likely be more promo work between those guys, leaving the mid-card guys that have been used to put them over (Cesaro, Rhodes & Sandow come to mind) to take their spots.

erickman

03-16-2013, 08:10 PM

i am sure tna had a 90 day no going to wwe in rvd's contract, but then again how they screwed up roodes contract who knowes.

TheChamp

03-16-2013, 09:38 PM

It could've been better. Winning a match to face the Undertaker was just silly, although they did (unfortunately) get a saving grace in the form of Paul Bearer's death. Now that insta-feud has substance.

Rock/Cena II got another year-long build to the match going, with Cena's shot at redemption, both with winning the WWE title and defeating The Rock.

I'm liking the Del Rio/Swagger feud. Can't wait to see the crowd's reaction to it (do the Americans boo the American in favor of the Mexican???? OOOOOOOOHHHH!!!!)

Droford

03-16-2013, 09:44 PM

All Dolph has to do to have a match at WM is cash in the case.

Lock Jaw

03-17-2013, 12:56 AM

Christian hasn't been a part of it, so yes.

SlickyTrickyDamon

03-17-2013, 02:48 AM

The guy who thought up the "Taker match" was fired. Thank God.

So far I haven't been feeling the Road to WrestleMania build except for Punk/Taker and Brock/HHH.

I'd like for some of the under-card to get fleshed out on Raw and Smackdown this week. Maybe NAO Vs. Road Scholars from Raw last week can get into Mania or add Team Hell No to make it a Three Way for the tag titles.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 02:56 AM

The guy who thought up the "Taker match" was fired. Thank God.

... What match?

The Condor

03-17-2013, 11:48 AM

... What match?

The 4-way between Punk, Sheamus, Orton and Show to decide who would face UT

Anybody Thrilla

03-17-2013, 12:10 PM

I assume he meant the 4-way from Raw a couple weeks ago.

Anybody Thrilla

03-17-2013, 12:10 PM

When I started viewing this thread, that Crazy Edgar post was not there. But yes.

James Steele

03-17-2013, 01:03 PM

Was it stupid when HBK won a match to face The Undertaker at WrestleMania 25?

Anybody Thrilla

03-17-2013, 01:17 PM

Yeah, kinda.

SlickyTrickyDamon

03-17-2013, 01:19 PM

Yes. The Undertaker should choose his opponent. Feels like a stupid WWE video game storyline.

Anybody Thrilla

03-17-2013, 01:20 PM

For the record, I will be watching Wrestlemania and I expect the actual show to be pretty good. I'm just not really pumped up for any of it though, and I usually am.

whiteyford

03-17-2013, 01:20 PM

I've actually said it in a couple of different threads but I think having an angle to determine who faces Undertaker at 'Mania is an obvious mini feud for a guys with nothing to do, just throwing it on a random Raw kinda gave it a meh feeling, having it be a mini tournament over the course of a few weeks, like the 'gold rush' tournament in wwecw could generate something for the losers as well.

James Steele

03-17-2013, 01:55 PM

dronepool

03-17-2013, 02:15 PM

Yeah, it has been pretty weak. It's like what 2 or 3 weeks before and we only know like a quarter of the card.

Rammsteinmad

03-17-2013, 02:15 PM

Gotta say at the moment, the only hype that I'm digging in the Punk/Undertaker one, and that's mostly thanks to Paul Bearer's unfortunate passing. But damn, Punk is so perfect as a heel, an absolute heat-machine, and nobody could pull off the 'disrespect Paul Bearer' angle better than him.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 04:54 PM

I just don't see why it is stupid. It would make less sense for The Undertaker to randomly pick somebody considering he hasn't had contact with anyone other than Triple H and Shawn Michaels in 5 years. It shows how important The Streak is and makes all of them look good for having the balls to fight for what is likely a WrestleMania loss.

Taker randomly picking someone wouldn't make sense either. That's where some writing comes into play. He's had these intense builds the past few years now at WrestleMania. They've set a standard. Punk wants to end the streak. What's Taker's motivation? A guy wins a fatal fourway and Taker's like "Hi! That time on the month! Just gonna wrassle a match!" Like STD said, it was like a lame, lazy video game storyline.

Punk coming out when Taker appears on old school Raw and complaining about Taker being just a worse version of The Rock, only appearing on the big shows, saying he wants to end the streak, degrading Taker and getting under his skin enough to get Taker to agree to the match. Would have been simple but at least there would have been some heat behind the feud.

slik

03-17-2013, 05:00 PM

The build thus far has been pretty weak to be honest.

I remember reading that's the reason Vince fired one of the top creative members last week.

I'm sure the show will deliver the goods, as it generally does, but it's been really lacking in it's build so far.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 05:05 PM

I feel like most of the overall hatred of the build is based on people's hatred of Cena and not caring for his redemption story.

I think Rock-Cena is fucking epic and they don't need to, nor should they interact on a weekly basis. Like I said earlier, not having guys interact constantly is a proven way to build anticipation. The story is there and it's been a great one built over 3 years. There's no need for constant segments just for the sake of having them in the same ring at the same time. It doesn't necessarily add anything.

slik

03-17-2013, 05:13 PM

I just don't care about the Rock-Cena feud.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 05:21 PM

This is probably the biggest WWE Title match as far as the guys involved since the brand split. It's gonna make the title seem like a huge deal at least for a while. Something WWE has failed miserably to do for years now. Not to mention the recent history between the two guys.

slik

03-17-2013, 05:32 PM

Personally, I've just never been invested in the feud between the two. I wasn't at WM27 or 28 either.

I think part of the problem WM has this year is it's very predictable in it's upper card.

Cena wins
HHH wins
Taker wins

And the undercard hasn't been really developed yet as it seems they haven't decided which feuds to settle on for a lot of wrestlers. I think it will be a good show, as it generally is, but the build hasn't gotten me super-enthused yet and usually around this time I start to really anticipate WM and get pumped for it.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 05:40 PM

I don't think HHH winning is a lock.

slik

03-17-2013, 05:46 PM

I think he'll definitely win.

Speaking of the undercard, I heard this was the rumored undercard at the moment:

Team Hell No v. Ziggler/Langston

Jericho v. Fandango

Miz v. Barrett

Team Funk/Cameron/Naomi v. Rhodes Scholars/Bella Twins

Layla v. Kaitlyn

Ryback v. Mark Henry (not him in the 6-man tag)

Sheamus/Show/Orton v. The Shied

and a pre-show match of:

Cesaro v. R-Truth.

Ultra Mantis

03-17-2013, 07:39 PM

I feel like most of the overall hatred of the build is based on people's hatred of Cena and not caring for his redemption story.

I don't even think its necessarily blind hatred of Cena that makes people not care for his redemption arc. Personally, it's the fact that the man himself didn't seem to remotely care that he lost and was beating Brock Lesnar clean weeks later and still main eventing every PPV even when he's booked in a squash match against Johnny Ace. Sure he can say it's his worst year ever but he's not undergone an inch of actual character development.

Cena is written in a similar way to Pete from The League. There's a group of friends who are huge dicks but they all have horrible things happen to them and through suffering you kind of root for them the way you'd get behind Larry David. Then you have Pete who is probably the biggest dick who rarely gets his comeuppance and even then whenever a bad thing happens to him he's upset for two minutes then suddenly he just doesnt care at all and is back to being a massive piece of shit. So why would you care that a bad thing happens to Pete? Fuck Pete.

Swiss Ultimate

03-17-2013, 08:13 PM

I do not know because, I haven't been watching. Is Vader coming back?

#DTTSisbetterthanyou

Shadrick

03-17-2013, 08:33 PM

I don't think HHH winning is a lock.

Listen to this man. lol.

WWE definitely swerved me. For the first time at SS last year, they considered long term booking, something they haven't really focused greatly on. With that said, I'm pretty much anticipating mania just to see what surprises we get.

Heisenberg

03-17-2013, 09:43 PM

No matter how the build goes, it never hits me as hard as the few hours before the show starts. It gets me every damn time.

slik

03-17-2013, 10:05 PM

No matter how the build goes, it never hits me as hard as the few hours before the show starts. It gets me every damn time.

Same here.

The day of WM I generally feel pretty electric.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 11:01 PM

Listen to this man. lol.

WWE definitely swerved me. For the first time at SS last year, they considered long term booking, something they haven't really focused greatly on. With that said, I'm pretty much anticipating mania just to see what surprises we get.

I didn't think there would or should be a rematch period considering the match did what it should have done to make Lesnar look like a ridiculous beast by making a man who should be more concerned about the future of the company than putting himself over at this point. Now the rematch is booked. Lesnar beating him again doesn't do much. Triple H beating Lesnar is ridiculous and unnecessary. So there's a stipulation now. I can completely see Stephanie throwing in the towel, HBK costing him the match... basically just using the match to build to something not involving Lesnar so both guys can move on to something else. Just like HHH winning wasn't a lock the first time... it's not a lock this time. The long term goal here isn't necessarily for Triple H to overcome Brock Lesnar.

Shadrick

03-17-2013, 11:18 PM

I didn't think there would or should be a rematch period considering the match did what it should have done to make Lesnar look like a ridiculous beast by making a man who should be more concerned about the future of the company than putting himself over at this point. Now the rematch is booked. Lesnar beating him again doesn't do much. Triple H beating Lesnar is ridiculous and unnecessary. So there's a stipulation now. I can completely see Stephanie throwing in the towel, HBK costing him the match... basically just using the match to build to something not involving Lesnar so both guys can move on to something else. Just like HHH winning wasn't a lock the first time... it's not a lock this time. The long term goal here isn't necessarily for Triple H to overcome Brock Lesnar.

I agree it doesn't have to be. But we really have no idea what WWE's long term goals are concerning the feud, or if they even have any. I know that sounds pessimistic but...

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 11:28 PM

We really don't. And that's why you can't call anything a lock.

#1-norm-fan

03-17-2013, 11:29 PM

I'd lean toward Triple H right now but depending on the stipulation that's named tomorrow night, I could definitely see it go either way.

voncouch

03-18-2013, 09:52 AM

I totally agree. The WWE championship match has good heat, but with the Rock missing two Raws going into Mania, it really seems less important than it should.

Punk and Taker have a great story going at the moment with some fantastic heat, but only because WWE lucked out with Paul Bearer's death. While I'm sure they are sorry he passed, the writing staff has to be breathing a sigh of relief that he died when he did. If he hadn't, how could you build one of the biggest matches on the card with a goofy 4 way match?

The Shield is wrestling three other random guys, just like the last few PPVs. While I love the group, we've seen this match before, just with a few different people.

Del Rio and Swagger actually have the best thing going as far as storytelling from the start of the program, but nobody cares. Casual fans don't care, as Jack has only been back on TV for a month or so. And he lost the smarks when he fucked up with that DUI and nearly ruined his shot.

Those are the four officially scheduled matches at the moment. Of course Brock and Trips are going to fight, which should be fun to see. At least that story is fairly decent, and people care about it because Paul Heyman is a fucking genius on the mic. I guess they're putting Ryback and Henry together for the most boring big-man Wrestlemania match this side of Brock vs Goldberg.

But we're less than 3 weeks out from Mania and most of the undercard has no match or hot feud to bring them into one. And of those handful of matches they've actually booked, 4 of the guys aren't even full time. This year's buildup has been incredibly weak.

Mr. Nerfect

03-19-2013, 07:56 AM

The build for Chris Jericho vs. Fandango has begun now. We can all officially relax.

Mr. Nerfect

03-19-2013, 07:58 AM

Although it seems like it would be absolutely complete filler, having Planet Funk facing Team Rhodes Scholars & The Bella Twins would provide a pretty harmless Mania match. I really like Tensai and I'm glad he's found something to do, and if it takes him to WrestleMania, all the better for him. He and Clay could be a tag team for quite a while. They're over as faces now, but you could turn them serious monster heel and just stick a manager with them.

Arrogance

03-19-2013, 01:02 PM

The problem I have is that it's so goddamn predictable this year.

Cena is going over The Rock...there is absolutely zero reason why he doesn't. No build-up to another PPV, this is Mania. This is also probably not going to be a wrestling classic, as far as ring work goes. Rock not being available for RAW in the weeks before Mania is ridiculous...I know he's a busy guy, but really?

Taker is going over Punk...there is no way they do the entire Paul Bearer/Urn stuff and have a heel Punk go over to end the Streak/take the urn with him.

They can't figure out what to do with the Shield other than feeding random faces to them, and they've arguably beaten better three-man teams already.

Del Rio v. Swagger might be the hardest to call...it's the product of not knowing how much hot water Swagger is in (if any) and Del Rio being a mediocre face.

Trips/Lesnar has to end with Lesnar winning, as there's no way Trips is returning to a full-time schedule with his new responsibilities, and feeding Brock to him at this point makes absolutely no sense.

The biggest disappointment is the Punk/Taker buildup, not because it isn't entertaining but because the outcome is so obvious it ruins the "Will the Streak be ended?" feeling.

I would probably enjoy it more if I wasn't a jaded, cynical-ass wrestling fan.

James Steele

03-19-2013, 01:19 PM

...will you still watch it though? If so, it can't be all that bad. Most of the matches will be awesome from an in-ring and atmosphere perspective.

Arrogance

03-19-2013, 01:29 PM

Agreed...I'll still watch it, it's Mania and it's always worth watching. I'm just nitpicking...hell, I'll most likely be proved wrong.

03-19-2013, 03:00 PM

I don't think it's certain that Lesnar will win now, you have HHH win so that he can retire on his own terms. There's nothing to say HHH winning = a full time return to the ring.

Ruien

03-19-2013, 03:41 PM

I don't even think its necessarily blind hatred of Cena that makes people not care for his redemption arc. Personally, it's the fact that the man himself didn't seem to remotely care that he lost and was beating Brock Lesnar clean weeks later and still main eventing every PPV even when he's booked in a squash match against Johnny Ace. Sure he can say it's his worst year ever but he's not undergone an inch of actual character development.

Cena is written in a similar way to Pete from The League. There's a group of friends who are huge dicks but they all have horrible things happen to them and through suffering you kind of root for them the way you'd get behind Larry David. Then you have Pete who is probably the biggest dick who rarely gets his comeuppance and even then whenever a bad thing happens to him he's upset for two minutes then suddenly he just doesnt care at all and is back to being a massive piece of shit. So why would you care that a bad thing happens to Pete? Fuck Pete.

You forgot the whole Edge having to give Cena a talk about needing to regain his confidence back. After Brock beat the shit out of him over and over.

Ultra Mantis

03-19-2013, 04:00 PM

That month of Cena's career was like the plot of a Tom Cruise movie.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OFal553wR3k#t=0m35s" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Edge playing the role of the good looking woman obvs.

#1-norm-fan

03-19-2013, 05:59 PM

The biggest disappointment is the Punk/Taker buildup, not because it isn't entertaining but because the outcome is so obvious it ruins the "Will the Streak be ended?" feeling.

When was the last time this WASN'T the case for a Taker WrestleMania match? And they haven't exactly been disappointing.

Rammsteinmad

03-19-2013, 07:26 PM

I dunno. Punk mentioned on Raw how he'd be the one to shoulder the burden of ending the streak. Could be ambigious. Of all the people who have said they didn't want the streak to end (didn't Randy Orton turn that offer down or something in 2005?), maybe Punk is saying he doesn't mind having to deal with people's expectations and being the guy who has no problem going over Undertaker at Wrestlemania.

Would be sweet, I'd love to see Undertaker lose just for that "moment" to see the streak end, and CM Punk doing it would be the second best thing ever!

The first, being if Chris Jericho ended the streak.

NormanSmiley

03-20-2013, 02:24 AM

yes

#1-norm-fan

03-20-2013, 02:31 AM

HBK ending it would have been the best actually.

#1-norm-fan

03-20-2013, 02:32 AM

I do wanna see Cena vs Taker next year though. With it being made official going in that it will be Taker's final match.

DAMN iNATOR

03-24-2013, 03:16 PM

I definitely have noticed a huge lack of hype. I don't mind too much, though. It almost kind of gives the matches with the least amount of hype even more of a "what will happen?" feel.

That being said this year's Mania card is definitely not as stacked as in recent years, they've done jack shit to make me care about either the World Heavyweight Championship or WWE Championship match since Rock will obviously be dropping the WWE title to Cena so he can go back to Hollywood and make more mediocre movies, and this whole "man of the people" (ADR) vs. "the real American" just seems like they're laying it on really thick, and it just seems sorta hokey to me, I dunno. Probably will be an anti-climactic "back 'n forth" match where the last guy to successfully slap on his submission will win the title via tap-out. I hope I am proven wrong.

The match I'm most looking forward to is the tag title match...would love to see them do something with Kane or Bryan turning on their partner and/or walking away from the match/screwing their partner over and allowing Big E. and Ziggler to take the titles by making something out of the stuff they've done with the Paul Bearer thing. Maybe have Kane snap and become a one-man wrecking crew heel type again.

Lock Jaw

03-24-2013, 03:23 PM

So the match you are most excited for is the one with the least amount of build-up and hype.

Lock Jaw

03-24-2013, 03:26 PM

Probably will be an anti-climactic "back 'n forth" match where the last guy to successfully slap on his submission will win the title via tap-out.

Dunno. That sounds like what you would want out of a match. Back and forth action, and then someone wins with their finishing maneuver.

What do you want instead?

DAMN iNATOR

03-24-2013, 03:30 PM

Dunno. That sounds like what you would want out of a match. Back and forth action, and then someone wins with their finishing maneuver.

What do you want instead?

LOL, TBH I hadn’t really thought about it that much. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate the match or anything, just pretty indifferent about it. Kinda feels like if ADR wins and retains, we get more sort of bland vanilla "man of the people" ADR as champ, and if Swagger gets the title, how can we be sure his 2nd reign as World champion will be any better than the first time, except possibly with Zeb sticking around and having him be the mouthpiece of Swagger maybe and having them antagonize everyone with their videos and speeches.

JimmyMess

03-24-2013, 04:09 PM

Well The Rock was on Jay Leno promoting..... oh wait. Nevermind.

That was a big time fuck up by the champ.

03-24-2013, 04:17 PM

What happened?

Next Big Thing

03-24-2013, 04:19 PM

The Rock was on Jay Leno promoting GI Joe and made no mention of Wrasslemania.

Blakeamus

03-24-2013, 04:25 PM

Rock didnt have to promote it, WM sells itself.

Anybody Thrilla

03-24-2013, 04:33 PM

He probably should have promoted it though, ya know?

Did he have the belt with him?

Anybody Thrilla

03-24-2013, 04:36 PM

According to the story on the main page, speculation is that the G.I. Joe guys set up the appearance, not WWE, so he probably wasn't even allowed to promote it. Makes enough sense.

JimmyMess

03-24-2013, 04:53 PM

Didn't have the belt.... yeah I read the part about what was being promoted... but you'd think they'd adjust... or Dwayne himself would have thought "I should probably mention wrestling" it just pushes the notion that wrestling is a negative for his career.

Emperor Smeat

03-24-2013, 05:26 PM

Think that would be up to Jay Leno to bring it up if The Rock was only scheduled or paid to promote the movie. Probably could blame the WWE a bit for not getting involved or paying a bit to help co-promote stuff during his interview.

#1-norm-fan

03-24-2013, 05:34 PM

Kinda strange that it didn't come up. Paid to promote it or not, it's a major part of his professional life right now. It seems like they would have at least talked about it momentarily.

Lock Jaw

03-24-2013, 05:43 PM

If the production company tells him not to, nothing he can do about it. Nor Leno, who would be told to avoid it. They could go "off-script" and talk about it anyways, but whatever.

The Naitch

03-24-2013, 07:38 PM

THE ROCK IS JACKED

03-24-2013, 07:57 PM

Lol. After all that talk about how Rock as champion would be great as he could take the belt across mainstream media and promote the company/Mania.

Damndirty

03-24-2013, 08:49 PM

LOL, TBH I hadn’t really thought about it that much. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate the match or anything, just pretty indifferent about it. Kinda feels like if ADR wins and retains, we get more sort of bland vanilla "man of the people" ADR as champ, and if Swagger gets the title, how can we be sure his 2nd reign as World champion will be any better than the first time, except possibly with Zeb sticking around and having him be the mouthpiece of Swagger maybe and having them antagonize everyone with their videos and speeches.

ADR winning, absent some dramatic last minute changes to his character, will do nothing more for his career. Swagger and Zeb, however, are drawing alot of controversial attention, and the title win will help get him over as a bigger Neocon heel. With Zeb's agenda, I don't really see the Swagger of now as I had seen the Swagger of before; he's improved character byfar and I think it will go somewhere good.

RVDmark

03-24-2013, 10:07 PM

Brock vs Triple H - Saw it at Summerslam already, was pretty average. Part Timer vs Old Part Timer
Rock vs Cena - Saw it last 'Mania, was ok, but the hype is much less this time round as it's not Rock's first match in 7 years, and we know Cena will win this one. Part Timer vs Superman.
Taker vs Punk - Its a fresh fued, which is good, but deep down we know 'Taker is going to win. Old Part Timer vs Best in the world.

The 3 Main events are either rematches and/or we already know the outcome, and the Rocky hype isn't there because he has wrestled recently. Add to that 4 of the 6 main eventers are part time (2 because of age, 2 because of other commitments).

Wreslemania looks lackluster this year to me. But wow does the summer look even worse.

After 'Mania(ish) we are going to lose Jericho, Rock, Brock, Trips, 'Taker. Leaving us with Cena and Punk in the ME picture. Now Punk is good, Punk vs Cena was an ok fued, but 2nd time around wont make it better, and who else is left for them to fight that doesn't seem, like a step down to either of them. Ziggler is close but that's about it.

With all that said it is still possible we could get a stellar Wrestlemania this year. Just because it looks shite on paper doesn't mean it will be. But it will take something pretty special to make is stellar, more so than other years.

Kane Knight

03-24-2013, 10:13 PM

For the record, I will be watching Wrestlemania and I expect the actual show to be pretty good. I'm just not really pumped up for any of it though, and I usually am.

Promoting the theory that the build is unnecessary.

Mr. Nerfect

03-25-2013, 04:25 AM

Maybe John Cena will bring up The Rock not mentioning WWE in their next interaction and The Rock will be "Yeah, of course I didn't. You guys are all nerds," and everything will be fine.

Del Rio should go over Swagger at WrestleMania, by the way. But then Dolph Ziggler cashes in setting up a chase for Del Rio.

DAMN iNATOR

03-25-2013, 11:32 AM

ADR winning, absent some dramatic last minute changes to his character, will do nothing more for his career. Swagger and Zeb, however, are drawing alot of controversial attention, and the title win will help get him over as a bigger Neocon heel. With Zeb's agenda, I don't really see the Swagger of now as I had seen the Swagger of before; he's improved character byfar and I think it will go somewhere good.

That is true; however simply having a better gimmick than he had before and being a more charismatic heel than in 2010 doesn’t mean he’d necessarily have a better title run this time around. I hope he does, if he wins it, but I guess time will tell.

Blue Demon

03-25-2013, 01:02 PM

I almost forgot WrestleMania was in a couple of weeks :|

Shadrick

03-25-2013, 02:34 PM

Evil Vito

03-26-2013, 07:17 AM

<font color=goldenrod>8 matches now officially set in stone:

WWE Title: John Cena vs. The Rock
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker
No Holds Barred: Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H
Sheamus, Randy Orton, and Big Show vs. The Shield
World Heavyweight Title: Jack Swagger vs. Alberto Del Rio
Ryback vs. Mark Henry
Chris Jericho vs. Fandando
WWE Tag Team Titles: Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston vs. Team Hell No

8 matches is the same amount they had for the previous two WrestleManis - and that's with there being some retardedly short matches on the show (Sheamus/Bryan last year, The Corre match the year before, etc.) because they just killed SO much time with hype videos, entrances, musical performances, etc.

They did seem to suggest Kailtyn/AJ Lee will have another match. So that might bump it up to 9.</font>

Savio

03-26-2013, 08:47 AM

I'm thinking they might be invovled in the Tag...Cesaro will probably open up the pre-show.

Next Big Thing

03-26-2013, 08:52 AM

I wouldn't mind seeing AJ vs. Kaitlyn for the title. Maybe have Trish be the special guest referee. Seems kind of lacking to induct her into the HOF and not even feature a women's match on the card.

#1-norm-fan

03-26-2013, 10:16 AM

They really should just throw Kaitlyn and AJ into the tag title match. Leave room for a Miz/Barrett IC Title match or something.

#1-norm-fan

03-26-2013, 10:17 AM

Hopefully where Miz wins the title. This face push needs a shot in the arm.

Savio

03-26-2013, 10:26 AM

Hopefully where Miz loses. This face push needs to be shot in the face.

SlickyTrickyDamon

03-26-2013, 03:54 PM

Updated Answer:

No, it hasn't been terrible.

Corndad

03-26-2013, 06:06 PM

Rock/Cena hype definitely a lot better now. Guess that happens though when both are actually at the show.

Liked Taker getting physical with Punk last night, believe that added quite a bit to the feud.

Fandango/Jericho has been excellently built last few weeks. Now I'm glad they held off on Fandango actually wrestling till Mania.

Tommy Gunn

03-26-2013, 07:14 PM

Fandango debut will save the card.

#1-norm-fan

03-26-2013, 07:55 PM

We at least finally have a good, intriguing undercard match. That's a rarity.

Corndad

03-26-2013, 08:18 PM

Miz/Barrett was added per WWE.com today as well.

Mr. Nerfect

03-27-2013, 02:11 AM

Don't really care about The Miz vs. Barrett yet. Hopefully they can get me into it. Love the idea of Trish being the Special Referee for Kaitlyn vs. AJ.

itsmeJD

03-27-2013, 02:27 AM

I couldn't give 2 shits about face Miz and his Figure-3 leg tangle. Wouldn't really matter who he was facing.

Corporate CockSnogger

03-27-2013, 05:53 AM

The Miz is the best. Needs to be going for the WHC though, not IC.

James Steele

03-27-2013, 08:11 AM

The Miz is an abhorrent pathetic excuse of a babyface.

itsmeJD

03-27-2013, 08:22 AM

Agreed.

James Steele

03-27-2013, 08:30 AM

He got over as a heel because he is very hateable. He is average at best in the ring.

Mr. Nerfect

03-27-2013, 08:50 AM

I think part of the reason The Miz has crashed and burned as a babyface (not the entire reason -- I honestly think he is very awkward in the role) is because he hasn't achieved anything since he's been a face. He turned and then, if anything, he has lost more and hosted more ridiculous talk segments. When Alberto Del Rio turned, he won the World Heavyweight Title from the biggest guy in the company.

I actually think a Dolph Ziggler vs. Miz feud could be quite good. Dolph's not as good as The Miz on the mic, but he's a better personality these days. He's also great at making dudes look great in the ring. The Miz could rag on AJ Lee and get some cheap heat that way. Ric Flair being involved in the storyline could be a lot of fun, too. He could betray The Miz when he finally gets his shot against Ziggler. If The Miz shacks up with Kaitlyn on the air, then it gives Cody Rhodes a reason to go after The Miz as well. Damien Sandow could also get involved. Have Ziggler cash in the Money in the Bank title shot before this all goes down and you have a pretty interesting 4-Way. Well, it has all the potential to be interesting. You could even throw Alberto Del Rio in there and make it a 5-Way (I've never been interested in a 5-Way feud before, but I'd like there to be a first time).

Corporate CockSnogger

03-27-2013, 08:57 AM

The Miz should've just gone with a Kyle Reese gimmick when he returned with the great hair.

Savio

03-27-2013, 09:18 AM

– WWE’s plans to hold the “World’s Largest Harlem Shake” at WrestleMania 29 appear to be off.Well i'm glad thats out.

Mr. Nerfect

03-27-2013, 09:22 AM

That segment should instead to used to showcase Antonio Cesaro and his greatness.

The Condor

03-27-2013, 09:38 AM

I concur, Cesaro is great.

Mr. Nerfect

03-27-2013, 10:07 AM

He really is. I'm not seeing the guy as immediate World Champion material or anything, but I'd love to see him continue his run as United States Champion. When he's about to become the longest running US Champion in WWE history, bring back MVP for a match against him, even if it's just for one night only. That could be a lot of fun.

Curd

04-02-2013, 03:54 PM

drave

04-02-2013, 04:06 PM

Some possible weather-related WrestleMania gaffes:
- Rain makes the ring too slippery for anything other than mat wrestling
- Wind gusts blow Fandango off the turnbuckle
- The cold makes Divas' nipples hard
- The clouds part during Sheamus' match such that he gets sunburn

Any of those would make the WM card 100x more interesting. This is the first time in over a decade I am not paying for it. I stream most other PPV's , but WM is usually money worthy. I r disappoint :-\

Lock Jaw

04-02-2013, 04:11 PM

I totally didn't even realize/think about Metlife Stadium not having a roof.

Lock Jaw

04-02-2013, 04:12 PM

I hope it rains. But only during Triple H and Brock Lesnar match to make it "ultra dramatic".

Lock Jaw

04-02-2013, 04:16 PM

Roof leaked at a house show in Mexico once:

http://img131.imageshack.us/img131/6219/4389158hv4.jpg

Imagine a dramatic face-off in the rain between actual somebodies.

DAMN iNATOR

04-02-2013, 05:08 PM

Any of those would make the WM card 100x more interesting. This is the first time in over a decade I am not paying for it. I stream most other PPV's , but WM is usually money worthy. I r disappoint :-\

Some possible weather-related WrestleMania gaffes:
- Rain makes the ring too slippery for anything other than mat wrestling
- Wind gusts blow Fandango off the turnbuckle
- The cold makes Divas' nipples hard
- The clouds part during Sheamus' match such that he gets sunburn

I remember the embarassing accident poor Maria Menounous had at WM last year, sorta funny but kinda felt bad for her too.