The People’s Column: Wrestlemania XXVI Live

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This past year I have had the privilege to go to more live wrestling events than ever before in my life.  I must begin by saying that I have never been to an independent show, and the atmosphere at those shows does not seem all that attractive to me.  I have however been to the major pay per view of the two biggest wrestling companies in the United States this year.

This is not a column to compare my Bound for Glory experience last October to Wrestlemania, as the two might as well be worlds apart.

It began with a long drive from Orange County, California to Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday.  After arriving and checking into our hotel (the awful Extended Stay Amerisuites, never again) my wife and I settled in to watch the broadcast version of the Hall of Fame.  Classy ceremony, but it was a little boring compared to how I remember most years.  They are just running out of HOFers and it is beginning to show.

The next night, I could barely sleep.  Since I saw my first Wrestlemania in 1998, I had always wanted to attend one.  The opportunities came and went in 2000 and 2005 with ‘Mania’s in Anaheim and Los Angeles.  Finally, the day was here.  My wife and I headed over to the University of Phoenix stadium and sat in traffic for about 20 minutes before we could park.  Nothing could dampen my spirits.

We arrived inside of the stadium and at our seats (upper deck, opposite of hard camera, row eight, about even with the ring).  The setup was gorgeous.  I was in awe of the set, before even seeing it light up live.  As the seats around me filled in, there was a buzz in the air.  We all knew that something special would happen tonight.  To me, it already was.  I was accomplishing a dream that I harbored for twelve years.

At 3:30pm, it seemed that the stadium sprang to life.  A video showing highlights from Wrestlemania 25 aired on the big screens and my excitement reached a peak.

Following a lackluster preshow battle royal, we were off and running with the pay per view broadcast of the showcase of the immortals.

It began with a rather terrible rendition of “America the Beautiful” by Fantasia.  I have never understood why people stand for this song, since it is not the national anthem.  Perhaps that is just me being unpatriotic, but I don’t think it is.

The opening few matches were unspectacular, but featured some great moments.  Seeing The Miz at his first Wrestlemania was an experience that I will not forget. I truly believe that he will be a breakout star in the same style as Austin and Rock, even if he never gets the mainstream popularity like they have.

From our seats, we could not see the circle-tron that hung over the ring for the first few matches, so I was quite amazed when it lowered after Randy Orton’s victory.  To be honest, I may have marked out for that piece of production equipment more than almost anything else on the show.  When it blew Edge’s smoke from the bottom of it, I was amazed.

As I have mentioned before in this column, ladder matches tend to be a little less spectacular live.  I don’t know why that is.  Perhaps the risk just doesn’t seem as great, or without the camera and replays, one realizes just how much laying around and waiting there is in these matches.  That said, money in the bank was not a bad experience live.  The Swagger win was unexpected, but not unsurprising.  What is surprising in the Smackdown Spoiler from Tuesday’s taping.

Triple H got a great pop for his entrance.  The crowd was behind Triple H and Sheamus got some great heel heat.  His moveset is over with the crowd, making his act viable.  This rivalry will likely make Sheamus, and this match was a huge part of that.

CM Punk’s promo had more heat on it than any part of the night.  That man is solid gold on the mic.  His act doesn’t get stale and people love to hate him.  His match with Mysterio never seemed to shift out of second gear, which was a little depressing.  They weren’t given enough time to do so.  This will be a great continuing program.

I wish I could skip past McMahon and Hart, but I will just say a few things about it.  Both men were over when they came over.  Bret’s entrance was a Wrestlemania moment in itself.  The rest of the match was what it was, just a little too long.  The result was the right one.

Edge and Jericho got a surprising lack of reaction as their match began, but won the crowd back masterfully, especially with the dynamite last five minutes.  They effectively built for the final two matches of the night, while giving a match that will continue their feud well.

The divas match was a bathroom break.

Cena and Batista were extremely over.  Their entrances were great descriptions of both of their characters.  This match really woke the audience up and the mixed reaction for both men effectively showed how most fans are reacting to this feud.  I love this program and believe that it will be a defining one in WWE history.  Like it or not, but this is the post-attitude era’s Austin vs Rock feud.  I hope that these two go on to main event another ‘Mania together, as they have freaky good chemistry in the ring and Batista almost always puts on a great show at Wrestlemania.

Last but not least, I was privileged to see the final match of my favorite wrestler of all time.  This whole experience felt special to me.  From the entrances, which were surprisingly normal, to the ending walk up the ramp.  The best wrestler of all time (a fact which I will debate, but refuse to change my opinion on) added another match to his list of five star classics.  I have never been a part of a crowd that reacted to every point in a match the way this one did.  In the end, I had lost my voice while yelling in support of the Heartbreak Kid.  This was the match that motivated me to go to Wrestlemania, and this will be one of the greatest wrestling related memories that I will harbor for a long, long time.

Seeing the final moments of HBK’s career was an emotional experience that made the one hour of stadium-leaving traffic bearable and the return to the world’s most crap-tastic hotel seem like a dream.  The drive home the next day was an attempt to beat the clock to watch Raw and see Shawn Michael’s retirement speech.  This was accomplished.  Please let me know about some of your Wrestlemania experiences!  I would love to hear how you experienced it and also some of your favorite Wrestlemania memories from the past.

Will is a 23 year old graduate student at UC Irvine. He is going to school for Stage Management and has always been passionate about pro wrestling. He began writing "The People's Column" in 2009. In 2010 he started his own wrestling blog, which is growing at an alarming rate. He is married to a beautiful woman (pictured on his profile) who accompanies him to most wrestling events that he goes to. Will is thankful for everyone who reads and interacts with him on Pulse and on his blog.