Since the blog launched, I've made no secret of the fact that this year's WrestleMania card is completely and totally uninteresting to me. The Cena-HHH-Orton match is the 900th meeting among these guys, with no storyline behind the overdone "I want your title!! Grrr!" The Money in the Bank match should be good for a few ooohs and aaaahs, but it'll be the same thing it's been the past few years -- nothing more than a way to get some midcarders on the WrestleMania card. And Big Show vs. Mayweather? This match is a reason for me NOT to order the show (and I don't plan on ordering it, by the way).
But the one match that has the feel of a big match, that could actually create some buzz for the company is Undertaker vs. Edge (company policy to list the babyface first, by the way). This match has an actual bigtime feel -- Taker's been around 20 years, Edge almost 10, yet they've never had a real high-profile match together. Add the fact that Edge has been the most compelling WWE character for the past two years, and Taker's undefeated streak at WrestleMania, and the World Title being on the line, and they actually have some real opportunity here.
The obvious finish is for Taker to go over, extending the streak, and getting the big post-WrestleMania title run he should have had last year before falling to injury.
But I've got a finish in mind that could set things in motion for the next year and could make for some serious dollar signs.
I'd do a double disqualification.
Bear with me on this ...
Now I know your first reaction to a double DQ in a WrestleMania title match is to groan. But remember we're in the age of the split titles now. I'd bet a million dollars that HHH/Cena/Orton is gonna be the last match of the night, and assuming they put the title on Cena, you still go home with your happy ending. Having two titles gives you the freedom to do non-traditional things in your first title match.
Let's say it goes to a double DQ, even maybe with Taker getting his comeuppance with a post-match chairshot or something.
Then Edge comes out on SmackDown, beaming from ear to ear. His new claim to fame -- he ended the Undertaker's WrestleMania undefeated streak!
Of course, the streak's not really over -- Taker neither won nor lost the match. The announcers can point that out. But now this arrogant heel Edge has a new claim to fame, one he'll rub in our face over and over again. Fans will hate him for it -- people love Undertaker's WrestleMania streak, and Edge's claim to being the dragon-slayer would be unbelievable heat.
Match 'em up again at Backlash, or whenever, and switch the title over then if you want. Or, do a storyline where Edge ducks Taker, claiming he's undefeated against him, something. Ultimately, the feud could lead to Taker-Edge II at WrestleMania 25, where Taker finally gets that big win, shuts Edge up after a year of yapping.
I definitely wouldn't give Edge the win; Taker's streak is a hugely marketable commodity, and as big a rub as it would be for Edge to be the first to beat him at WM, it means more financially in the longterm for the streak to be alive. And a DQ/countout win for Taker would keep the title on Edge and keep the streak alive, yes, but doesn't give Edge as much to hang his hat on as a double-DQ or double countout.
This way of booking keeps the streak alive AND gives Edge a huge heel hook for the upcoming months. Plus fans still get their happy ending with Cena at the end of the night (just a guess on my part ...)
You know, it's almost too bad Edge lost in the Money in the Bank match last year at WM, since he wound up with Kennedy's title shot anyway, and had he won, he would be 6-0 at WrestleMania, and they could have touted this as a battle of the WM undefeateds.
Still, bland as it might sound, a double DQ (or double countout or even a simple no-contest) could lead to a ton of intrigue and interest heading to spring and summer.
Just my two cents ...
Comments (20)
Generally ANYTHING would be better for this feud than the absolute nothing that they've done so far. Its so sad to see a Wrestlemania "world" title match being treated like its just another PPV outing. Generic "I beat up your cronies", "you beat me down thanks to the numbers", just isn't doing it for a feud of this magnitude.
You're right that this is the most interesting match on the card, and it is ridiculous that it is the one I'm LEAST interested in, if that makes any sense at all.
Virtually no angle ever written could justify a double DQ ending to the Taker/Edge match.
I've got to disagree about Edge vs. Undertaker being the only interesting match up. For some reason I'm interested to see Umaga vs. Batista! Not to feed into Vince's obsession w/ size, but if both are game this could be a fun hard hitting affair. Sometimes the simplest story(brand supremecy)is the most interesting. Plus if the rumors are to be believed it will lead to Umaga switching brands and fueding with Undertaker, which could be awesome.
Competition IS the best storyline of all, to have the title means to be the best, who does not want to be the best? Edge vs Undertaker is a very weak match to me, Edge is not worthy and is a 4 time transitional champ. I would've booked Ric Flair's career vs Undertaker's streak. This years card is lame. However I do think HBK vs Flair will stal the show.
Competition IS the best storyline of all, to have the title means to be the best, who does not want to be the best? Edge vs Undertaker is a very weak match to me, Edge is not worthy and is a 4 time transitional champ. I would've booked Ric Flair's career vs Undertaker's streak. This years card is lame. However I do think HBK vs Flair will stal the show.
The WWE really is crap right now. I have zero interest for any of these matches and I think I know who will win in all of them except maybe the Big Show match.
HHH is obviously going to win.
Undertaker will obviously win.
I'm pretty certain on HBK, though I can see a Flair victory.
And Y2J is going to win the MIB match.
As for your storyline...I love this blog. It's awesome. But I hate the idea. First off...who knows what will happen in a year? They both always get injured. And Edge has never won a match clean. Never. If they truly want him to be over, win it cleanly. Otherwise, keep the streak alive. Though I'd like to see him lose it eventually.
"You know, it's almost too bad Edge lost in the Money in the Bank match last year at WM, since he wound up with Kennedy's title shot anyway, and had he won, he would be 6-0 at WrestleMania, and they could have touted this as a battle of the WM undefeateds."
Actually, I believe that technically, Edge didn't lose.
WWE's angle (at least last time I noticed it mentioned) is that he was removed fom the match before the decision (due to "injury"), thus he's still undefeated at 'Mania (though I'm not sure if WWE's playing that up much at the moment, since I don't have access to WWE TV this year).
I'm fairly confident that, given enough time and if taker is motivated enough, this will be the match of the night easily.
The problem with any fantasy booking of this year's Wrestlemania is that it's just dressing up a turd. Even the best writing at this point couldn't help the promotion, because it's so stale. All the characters are just variations on the Attitude theme.
This was the same problem that plagued the WWF in 93-96 - even the best parts of the shows were dragged down by the fact that the overall presentation hadn't changed since the mid-80s.
What it needs is to push guys with a different attitude (bad pun) - word that CM Punk might get a strong push is excellent news. He's of a different mold than the Attitude guys, who combined intensity with a smarminess that was entertaining initially (early Rock and DX stuff is still fun to watch) but has grown tiresome.
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The right angle can justify any finish, dbags. And think about it -- you see finishes quite often. When was the last time you saw a good angle stem from one?
99% of every WWE angle is either:
-- GM figurehead makes #1 contenders match to set up title match with champion;
-- Wrestler A takes on Wrestler B, and Wrestler C costs B the match, so now B hates C;
-- Wrestler A and Wrestler B respect the heck out of each other, and just want to know who's better.
Boring! The most interesting wrestling angles are those that stem from creative stories and booking. Like Vince used to tell us, "Tell me a f***ing story!" And to me, the story of that punk Edge escaping WrestleMania with his title and without losing to Undertaker and then claiming he ended a two-decade streak is pretty interesting.
The obvious finish is Taker pinning Edge, which is way predictable. The swerve finish is Edge pinning Taker, which is swerve for the sake of swerve and makes NO sense financially.
How would you all book the match?
"Since the blog launched, I've made no secret of the fact that this year's WrestleMania card is completely and totally uninteresting to me. The Cena-HHH-Orton match is the 900th meeting among these guys, with no storyline behind the overdone "I want your title!! Grrr!" The Money in the Bank match should be good for a few ooohs and aaaahs, but it'll be the same thing it's been the past few years -- nothing more than a way to get some midcarders on the WrestleMania card. And Big Show vs. Mayweather? This match is a reason for me NOT to order the show (and I don't plan on ordering it, by the way)."
I may have missed your explanation somewhere...but how can any wrestling fan over the age of 14 or so NOT buy the show which looks like having Ric Flair's last match on it?
Terry Funk aside, at Ric's age it's unlikely that when he retires it'll be anything other than a real retirement...I could see him, as a manager, getting dragged into matches at some point but this is pretty much the end of an era.
Fine, he's not what he once was - and I'm not suggesting that the match will steal the show (although part of me still hopes that he can pull it all out of the bag one last time), but just for the history value I can't imagine not watching it.
sorry you are off the mark for many reasons. edge should NOT be given this opportunity because he is horrible and a disgrace to quality canadian wrestlers. if someone should of done this...it should have been orton some years ago. edge is brutal. but thats what we get when wwe choses to push edge instead of christian.
i usually fast forward his segments due to prolonged levels of boringness.
It's the title vs. the Streak. This is THE MOST INTERESTING MATCH on paper. We'd have to see where the Flair-Michaels match heads to say anything. Cena's NOT getting the win, making him 3 and 1 at Mania (remember, he's doing another movie.) But back to the subject at hand. Seth, I totally agree with you. The Undertaker is Mr. Wrestlemania. To lose to Edge is like the Knicks actually getting in the playoffs, it's gonna be a surprise, and I'm a Knick fan. Nonetheless, I don't think the Double DQ would work, because it would cause an uproar between the smarts and the marks in the IWC. However, they should just give Taker a definitive win and just keep this shit alive. But knowing the WWE, they'd do a Cena and bring Batista back into the picture ANYWAY, so I'm leaning towards a Double DQ or Double Count-Out. This is a rivalry that HAS to be maintained until SummerSlam or One Night Stand to say the least, ya dig?
I have figured out the problem. I would not have booked this match. Though to be honest, I cant think of a more interesting match. Not because this has any interest, but because none do! The only match that may have worked for me, is Face Cena vs. Face Batista.
Winner unifies belt. Then you can un-unify it later.
I Can't see Edge vs Undertaker running all the way to WrestleMania 25, or indeed to the end of the year, because we now know SmackDown is moving in October to a network with way less national coverage than they have right now - therefore I kind of expect WWE to load up RAW by moving -at least- one of SmackDown's main eventers across. I think I have an angle to execute at WrestleMania which could transition Edge back across to RAW for the summer season (when RAW's ratings go down normally and need something to kick them back up).
To start the angle, Linda McMahon should announce near the start of the pay-per-view that the winner of the Batista vs Umaga match later in the night will recieve a hand-chosen draft pick for their brand (Smackdown or RAW). Then, Edge is seen in Vickie Guerrero's office some time during the second hour telling her to stay backstage tonight for her own safety.
At the finish of the Edge vs Undertaker match, I'd have Vickie come to ringside, and inadvertantly distract Edge -allowing Undertaker to get the clean win with a Tombstone. After the match, I'd then book Edge to go into meltdown and start attacking WWE Officials, throwing chairs around, screaming at Vickie, etc. -claiming he will get his own back on her for costing him the World Title.
At the conclusion of the Batista vs Umaga match (which I'd put on directly after the World title match), Edge runs down to the ring -with the referee down- and spears Batista, costing him the match and allowing RAW to gain their draft pick. William Regal then decides that he is so impressed by what he has seen tonight in terms of dedication to RAW, that he chooses Edge. Post-WrestleMania, Edge feuds with Shawn Michaels and John Cena in a series of matches over the #1 Contendership, whilst Triple H beats Randy Orton clean in a rematch. Edge then eventually ends up taking the WWE championship again sometime during the summer season.
I'd put Edge over Taker cleanly. I'm usually pretty good at trying to get into the matches, but Taker's "streak" just doesn't seem like a big deal to me. It's why I can't really get into this match Edge claiming Taker's never really beat him, when it all boils down records mean jack squat because it's alla freakin' work. I didn't think Goldberg's streak was a big deal, but he was no nonense and beat the crap out of guys. THAT's what I want to see. Not "you've never beaten me!" because really what they're saying is "I haven't had to do a high profile job to you yet, luckily none of our fans read house show results"
Personally, I'd have someone (maybe C.M. Punk) screw Edge, to give 'Taker the win.
Undertaker keeps his streak, Edge gets to continue claiming that the Dead Man has never beat him (clean), and you have something to keep Edge busy for a while, before he goes into rematch clause time, during which time you feed some heels to Taker to defend his title against.
Keeps things moving, and gives you half a year of main event story all lined up, AND elevates whoever you decide to screw Edge up from the mid-card.
Personally, I'd have someone (maybe C.M. Punk) screw Edge, to give 'Taker the win.
Undertaker keeps his streak, Edge gets to continue claiming that the Dead Man has never beat him (clean), and you have something to keep Edge busy for a while, before he goes into rematch clause time, during which time you feed some heels to Taker to defend his title against.
Keeps things moving, and gives you half a year of main event story all lined up, AND elevates whoever you decide to screw Edge up from the mid-card.
Personally, I'd have someone (maybe C.M. Punk) screw Edge, to give 'Taker the win.
Undertaker keeps his streak, Edge gets to continue claiming that the Dead Man has never beat him (clean), and you have something to keep Edge busy for a while, before he goes into rematch clause time, during which time you feed some heels to Taker to defend his title against.
Keeps things moving, and gives you half a year of main event story all lined up, AND elevates whoever you decide to screw Edge up from the mid-card.
Personally, I'd have someone (maybe C.M. Punk) screw Edge, to give 'Taker the win.
Undertaker keeps his streak, Edge gets to continue claiming that the Dead Man has never beat him (clean), and you have something to keep Edge busy for a while, before he goes into rematch clause time, during which time you feed some heels to Taker to defend his title against.
Keeps things moving, and gives you half a year of main event story all lined up, AND elevates whoever you decide to screw Edge up from the mid-card.