forameus Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Just like the olden days, thought I'd start up a specific thread for The Grandest Stage and Showcase of All Them Immortals. Only a few days to go to what could end up being the best show they've put on in a long time...or an absolute fucking disaster. You never quite know with WWE. As always with WWE, it's now become a whole thing with about 8 million shows pencilled in around another 8 million indie shows taking place in Philadelphia. It looks like they've done away with the idea of having "WrestleMania Smackdown" and putting the unlovable matches on that, but there will still be the usual weekly show. Friday Night - Smackdown and the Hall of Fame Ceremony Saturday Afternoon - NXT Stand and Deliver Saturday Night - WrestleMania Night 1 Sunday Night - WrestleMania Night 2 Monday Night - (The) RAW (After WrestleMania) WWE Hall of Fame Ceremony Not counting Smackdown, this is now the way you kick off WrestleMania weekend it seems, with this sandwiched in presumably after Smackdown. This year Paul Heyman (inducted by Roman Reigns) Bull Nakano (inducted by Alundra Blayze) Thunderbolt Patterson (inducted by Scott Spears) Lia Maivia (inducted by The Rock) The US Express (inducted by TBA) Muhammad Ali (inducted by Lonnie Ali) Not the strongest class they've ever had, but Paul Heyman is likely to go down famously in Philadelphia and should speak incredibly well if they give him the time. Interesting to see both of your biggest heels doing inductions ahead of participating in the biggest story WWE have had in years. Can't imagine they'll have Cody crash the speech and set about him. Other interesting note is whether Bray Wyatt will be brought up at all. Have to imagine he will be, with his father and uncle both going in. Guess they probably want to keep him aside to induct properly as a headliner, although I probably would have done it this year over others. NXT Stand and Deliver Bit of a shame now that this kind of show would probably be the one you looked forward to most on WrestleMania weekend as the best of the "indies" went out and put on a show that would easily best whatever Vince put together on the main roster. Still though, I think new era NXT has been underrated, and it's clear they're going to be pissing out stars over the next few years. This card though? Not as good as I thought it might be. I'm a slag for stipulation matches, so bit disappointing to not see the odd mad-shit match in there. I would've thought Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams would be some kind of no DQ, but it is their first match, so probably holding out. It'll be a decent show, but doesn't seem like there's anything in there that's must-see. Good little Saturday evening fare for us poor UK time zone people. WrestleMania Night 1 Apart from the obvious ones, I hadn't realised they'd set the days on which each match will happen, so the cards have taken shape Definitely looks like the stronger night. I assume things will kick off with the ladder match, and maybe never recover from that given the absolute lunacy that's likely to take place there. So much talent in there, and with 12 guys available, that may end up being a contender for match of the weekend. Also the extra wrinkle that each individual title needs to be retrieved, which seems to be pointing towards the titles being split again. Six-woman match and the Mysterio Madness Tag Team match seem to be the weakest of the lot, but all in all a very strong card. Gunther/Zayn should be a terrific example of how well Zayn can get battered, Ripley/Lynch should be good, The Usos probably can't help but mesh well together. Then the main event...could go either way. It might not be the greatest from an actual wrestling standpoint, but as spectacle it's going to be hard to beat. It also feeds massively into night 2 for all kinds of reasons, so... WrestleMania Night 2 Definitely seems a weaker card from a pure match standpoint, but the main event of night 1 is definitely going to feed in to two matches, and could become a running story through the night. I think the Bloodline win the main event of night 1, perhaps through a can-they-coexist situation that leads indirectly to McIntyre decimating a wrecked Rollins. Rhodes wins the main event. Surely. He has to, right? Right?! I feel a bit sorry for Bayley to be honest. That had the potential to be one of the best stories they'd tell, but it's been overshadowed not just by the Reigns/Rhodes stuff, but arguably by other stories too. Would be great to see her go back to being a face again and winning the title, and could see that opening. The rest of the matches I'm not really that jazzed on. They'll no doubt be good, and hopefully that street fight adds a bit of sizzle. Hopefully Logan Paul gets punted out of the stadium. Big question that remains...just how fucking shenanigans is that main event going to be? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyle Lanley Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 If Cody doesn't win the title on Sunday then he might as well head back to AEW. I think we'll get a couple of legends helping Cody on Sunday. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoon Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Really looking forward to it this year. Usually more excited for the shows going on around it, but good stuff on the WWE cards too. Bloodsport, Stardom, Hitchcock Memorial, DDT & Spring Break all look great, though a bit underwhelmed by ROH’s lineup. Would it make any sense? No, but they should absolutely have Stone Cold, Cena, whoever the hell they can get in Sunday’s main event. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludo*1 Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Absolute mental long shot, but MJF's first Tweet of 2024 is mentioning WWE. Surely not?! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameus Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 It's sad, but I imagine if by some miracle they were holding MJF back for this big WM debut, I don't think he'd get anywhere near the sort of pop that he'd deserve. Would from me though, as he's fucking brilliant. He must have this little black book full of tenuous links to other wrestlers, because it seems like everyone he feuds with he has some angle or story to make use of. It isn't going to happen, he's clearly working, but...can you imagine it? 3 hours ago, TheGoon said: Would it make any sense? No, but they should absolutely have Stone Cold, Cena, whoever the hell they can get in Sunday’s main event. This. Any kind of run-in outside of your standard Sikoa/Usos/Rollins doesn't make much sense (maybe Zayn I suppose) but f**k it. They've told an impeccable story, and if this is going to be some big conclusion before, presumably, the big Bloodline epilogue, then throw absolutely everything at it. Have the glass break and watch everyone go mental. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Connolly Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 19 minutes ago, forameus said: It's sad, but I imagine if by some miracle they were holding MJF back for this big WM debut, I don't think he'd get anywhere near the sort of pop that he'd deserve. Would from me though, as he's fucking brilliant. He must have this little black book full of tenuous links to other wrestlers, because it seems like everyone he feuds with he has some angle or story to make use of. It isn't going to happen, he's clearly working, but...can you imagine it? This. Any kind of run-in outside of your standard Sikoa/Usos/Rollins doesn't make much sense (maybe Zayn I suppose) but f**k it. They've told an impeccable story, and if this is going to be some big conclusion before, presumably, the big Bloodline epilogue, then throw absolutely everything at it. Have the glass break and watch everyone go mental. Make it like Backlash 2000. Have every fucker in the ring destroying Cody, the glass shatters, and out he comes to lay waste to everyone with a chair 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DA Baracus Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Nah, Cody needs to be winning it himself without any retired lads coming to help him. It would make him look like a bit of a bitch if he needed Stone Cold and John Cena to help him win the big one. Imagine if a retired legend helped out Stone Cold at Mania 14. The Backlash 2000 thing made some sense because Austin was still a wrestler and wanted revenge on a noted rival (even though we didnt know HHH had him run down, he'd still been feuding with him right up until that moment), but what beef does Austin have with Roman Reigns? Have they ever interacted? Just have the usual lads come even the odds with the daft interference and have them brawl to the back to leave Reigns and Cody in the ring for Cody to finish the story. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GNU_Linux Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Stardom, TJPW, DDT & Bloodsport for this bear. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Londonwell Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 1 hour ago, DA Baracus said: Nah, Cody needs to be winning it himself without any retired lads coming to help him. It would make him look like a bit of a bitch if he needed Stone Cold and John Cena to help him win the big one. Imagine if a retired legend helped out Stone Cold at Mania 14. The Backlash 2000 thing made some sense because Austin was still a wrestler and wanted revenge on a noted rival (even though we didnt know HHH had him run down, he'd still been feuding with him right up until that moment), but what beef does Austin have with Roman Reigns? Have they ever interacted? Just have the usual lads come even the odds with the daft interference and have them brawl to the back to leave Reigns and Cody in the ring for Cody to finish the story. I mean that all makes perfect sense and you’re right but still…give me that glass smashing and the you can’t see me man for the absolute buzz. Either that or in a perverse way I actually wouldn’t mind Cody not going over. The reaction would, quite rightly, be tear stained. Part of me would enjoy seeing that fallout. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 I'd fully recommend paying for one month of Triller+ or signing up for the 7 day trial, as you get all of The Collective shows with it. It's worth it just for Bloodsport alone. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoose Rice Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 The second last match of WM40 is fucking shite. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludo*1 Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 3 hours ago, DA Baracus said: Nah, Cody needs to be winning it himself without any retired lads coming to help him. It would make him look like a bit of a bitch if he needed Stone Cold and John Cena to help him win the big one. Imagine if a retired legend helped out Stone Cold at Mania 14. The Backlash 2000 thing made some sense because Austin was still a wrestler and wanted revenge on a noted rival (even though we didnt know HHH had him run down, he'd still been feuding with him right up until that moment), but what beef does Austin have with Roman Reigns? Have they ever interacted? Just have the usual lads come even the odds with the daft interference and have them brawl to the back to leave Reigns and Cody in the ring for Cody to finish the story. Nah, that sounds shite in comparison to the glass smashing. f**k your logical thinking. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoon Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 1 hour ago, Sherrif John Bunnell said: I'd fully recommend paying for one month of Triller+ or signing up for the 7 day trial, as you get all of The Collective shows with it. It's worth it just for Bloodsport alone. Just got on this! Excellent value 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djchapsticks Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 10 hours ago, DA Baracus said: Nah, Cody needs to be winning it himself without any retired lads coming to help him. It would make him look like a bit of a bitch if he needed Stone Cold and John Cena to help him win the big one. Imagine if a retired legend helped out Stone Cold at Mania 14. Middle ground for me. Folk should definitely be helping prevent the collaterals like Rock, Solo, Jimmy etc getting to Cody (even wheel out a few more extended family members on one time appearances to get involved of behalf of the family). Just every time someone tries something, somebody that the bloodline has shafted in the past comes down to prevent them. In that sense, Cena, Sami, Jey, Rollins etc would make sense. Austin? Well, what other explanation would you need other than it's Rock/Austin! Meanwhile, all this shenanigans around the ringside area and arena leading to prevention of interference means that it actually stays Cody vs Roman in the ring one-on-one after all. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 Back in the day, if you had guessed three guys from the peak Scottish scene to make it big in the States, I doubt anyone would have picked Wolfgang and the Coffeys. Fair play to them. Hopefully they end up on the Hydro card as well as Alba Fyre & Isla. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoon Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 Really enjoyed Bloodsport, one of the highlights of these weekends every time. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FifeArab Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djchapsticks Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 Too funny! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameus Posted April 5 Author Share Posted April 5 2 hours ago, FifeArab said: Hard to tell the scale of it, but that seems quite...understated for a WrestleMania. Not in a bad way, mind. Gives it a bit of an old school feel 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FifeArab Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 Watching ‘The best of Wrestlemania 2000’s’ on the network now. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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