Smackdown
Date: June 2, 2006
Location: Rose Garden, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
Things are certainly happening around here but I don’t know if I would call them interesting. We are a long way off from the Great American Bash, meaning we have all kinds of time for Rey Mysterio to lose but still hold up the title. The show is also in need of a replacement for JBL so maybe we can start that tonight. Or we could just go hard with King Booker. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: January 13, 2006
Location: Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 10,892
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
It’s a big night around here as we are finally done with the Chris Benoit vs. Randy Orton/Booker T. series for the US Title. It’s kind of interesting that so many fans (myself included) seem to remember more Benoit vs. Orton matches than there really were. I’m not sure what else to expect here but let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: November 4, 2005
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 10,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
We’re in the big city this week and it’s a show that was taped before this week’s Taboo Tuesday. I’m not sure what we’re going to be seeing this week but odds are it’s time to start the build towards Survivor Series. Batista and Eddie Guerrero are actually working well together so we’ll see where that goes from here. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: October 28, 2005
Location: Cow Palace, San Francisco, California
Attendance: 3,500
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
We’re on the way to both Taboo Tuesday and Survivor Series, with Smackdown being represented at both shows. Taboo Tuesday is primarily a Raw show but there will be a Smackdown match included. That’s likely going to be a focal point of this week, plus Roddy Piper taking part in a six man tag in his old stomping grounds. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: October 7, 2005
Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
It’s the go home show for No Mercy and that means the show needs one more push towards the pay per view. Last week Eddie Guerrero may or may not have hit Batista in the back with a chair on purpose. That’s the kind of thing that could go either way for Eddie and that is making the story more interesting. We also need to deal with the fallout from Monday, when Smackdown and Raw got in a big brawl at Homecoming. Let’s get to it.
Monday Night Raw
Date: October 3, 2005
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: 14,387
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman
It’s a special night as Raw is back on USA and it’s a three hour show, back when that was still a novel concept. The big idea is the return of a bunch of legends, including Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin and HHH, with the latter teaming up with Ric Flair to face Chris Masters and Carlito. Let’s get to it.
Monday Night Raw
Date: July 11, 2005
Location: Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Attendance: 9,000
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler
We’re a week removed from the earth shattering split of Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan, whose friendship dated back all of two months (with about six weeks off in the middle). Tonight we start the build towards what is almost guaranteed to be a big time Summerslam match, but there is one more important thing to deal with: one of the interchangeable women in the Diva Search is going home! Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: May 22, 2003
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
We’re past Judgment Day and that means it’s time to get ready for…well that’s not clear actually as we have Bad Blood as a Raw exclusive pay per view for June. Brock Lesnar is in need of a fresh challenger after vanquishing Big Show, which opens the door for a lot of people who don’t seem ready for the spot. Let’s get to it.
Judgment Day 2003
Date: May 18, 2003
Location: Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina
Attendance: 13,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler
Let’s get this over with. I don’t remember a time when the TV leading up to a pay per view has been this miserable and the mere idea of this show is making me cringe. Sometimes a show can throw in a surprise or two but I can’t think of a single match that actually gives me hope on this one. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: May 15, 2003
Location: 1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
It’s the go home show for Judgment Day and I have my notebook ready for all the questions I have regarding the Mr. America storyline. Given how little sense the whole thing makes if you listen to what everyone says, I’m likely to leave far more confused than I was when I came in. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: May 1, 2003
Location: Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
We’re past Backlash now and Brock Lesnar retained the Smackdown World Title against John Cena in the Smackdown main event. Therefore, it’s time to get a new challenger to the title and that scares me a bit. Odds are we’re looking at Big Show again, because that’s what you have nowhere else to go. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: April 17, 2003
Location: Norfolk Scope, Norfolk, Virginia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
It’s tournament night as we have the finals to crown a new #1 contender. John Cena will be facing Chris Benoit, which is pretty much the best final they could have gone for. Cena should be the favorite after having spent weeks taunting Lesnar but Benoit is one of those cases where it’s easy to see him pulling it off. Let’s get to it.
Smackdown
Date: April 10, 2003
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz
It’s tournament time and that means some bigger matches tonight. The tournament seems to be John Cena’s to win, especially with the FBI around to mess with Undertaker. Why he’s stuck with the FBI isn’t clear, but it’s also not clear why Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon is continuing. Let’s get to it.
–A video package quickly highlights the various WrestleMania’s. It is notable that celebrities are emphasized in this package instead of wrestlers, partly due to the fact that Hulk Hogan, competing in WCW, was in the main event of most of them.
–Vince McMahon and Jerry Lawler are doing commentary and they are live from Hartford, Connecticut. The Hartford Civic Center is probably the worst WrestleMania venue in history since it lacks the history and size of its predecessors and successors. Its selection is an illustration of the problems that the company was experiencing the mid-1990s.
It’s a busy-busy-busy week. Let’s start with the ECW Title match at Vengeance 2007 between CM Punk and…oh.
–Todd Pettengill narrates a video package that recaps the Lex Luger-Tatanka feud that has been going on since the summer of 1994.
–Jim Ross and Todd Pettengill are in the booth and they are still taped from South Padre Island, Texas.
We are 52 days away from WrestleMania 32. As we count down the days to the biggest show of the year, we will look back at how WrestleMania has changed since it debuted in 1985.
Instead of doing recaps of all the shows (a lot of other people here would do that a lot better than I would), I’m looking to create a Top 10 WrestleMania matches and see how that list changes over the years. We’ll also discuss some other highlights and lowlights of each show.
Taped from Phoenix, AZ
Airdate: March 1, 1986 (taped 2/15)
Attendance: 12,000
Hosted by Vince McMahon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
This reflection is sponsored by Hot Pockets. Thanks, WWE Network!
Taped from East Rutherford, NJ
Airdate: October 5, 1985 (taped 10/3)
Attendance: 8,000
Hosted by Vince McMahon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
At the onset of the program, “Mean” Gene Okerlund interviews Nikolai Volkoff who swears he will take the WWF title back to Russia upon victory.
Live from New York, NY
Airdate: March 31, 1985
Attendance: 19,121
Hosted by Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse “The Body” Ventura
Here we are–the very first WrestleMania that has spawned over three decades of supershows for the WWF/WWE. Let’s dig in to how the World Wrestling Federation got to this point: