For all that, I have tried to tell myself that the show could be better than my initial low expectations. With this is mind, I'll use this blog post to break down how the build for each match has progressed, as well as weighing up the prospects and predicting the results. So let's dive in.
Tag Team Title Match - Tyson Kidd & Cesaro (w/Natalya) (c) vs The New Day vs The Usos (w/Naomi) vs Los Matadores (w/El Torito)
The Build
Close to non-existent. There has been a low-level Total Divas-related rivalry between Tyson and the Usos, though this makes little sense unless you watch the E! Network spin-off. Immediately there's a problem, in that storylines should be self-supporting. You shouldn't need to watch supplementary programming to understand what happens on the main show. Even then, it's messy, given that Cesaro does not appear in Total Divas, so his presence in this rivalry is somewhat random. However, throwing in further bodies dissipates even this weak build-up. Los Matadores and The New Day are both very lame, one-dimensional teams conforming to lamentable racial stereotypes. They are merely making up the numbers, and are proving that WWE's tag-team division, which was healthy two years ago, has now run out of steam.The Prospect
The match is on the pre-show, so is unlikely to last more than a few minutes. Given the number of wrestlers involved, it's going to be hard for anyone to stand out. True, there might be crowd-pleasing moments with the Cesaro swing and the Usos' high-flying exploits, but this will ultimately be forgettable.The Prediction
Kidd and Cesaro to retain . They haven't held the title for long, so will probably be allowed to keep the belt a little longer.Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal - The Miz, Curtis Axel, Ryback, Fandango, Adam Rose, Zach Ryder, Jack Swagger, Titus O'Neil, Darren Young, Big Show, Kane, Erick Rowan, Damien Mizdow, Sin Cara, Goldust, Heath Slater, Mark Henry, Konnor, Viktor, Hideo Itami
The Build
You could argue that the build for this year's tournament started to fail straight after last year's match. Cesaro looked set for a big babyface run, but he lost all momentum following a dreadful run with Paul Heyman. Famously, Vince criticised the Swiss star for not reaching hard enough for the mythical 'brass ring', but the truth is WWE Creative had no idea what to do with a guy who has both indie cred and a powerful WWE-approved physique. Whatever, his dismal 2014/15 has severely diminished the standing of this whole tournament.It could be argued, of course, that a tournament like this is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it gives the maximum number of wrestlers a Wrestlemania moment. On the other, it reduces the prestige of the Showcase of the Immortals, which is supposed to be an exclusive club for the elite performers. No wonder this has been bumped to the pre-show. Thus, most of the midcard with prospects is in the ladder match on the main card.
That said, there is one great storyline hidden among the enhancement talent that is making up the numbers. The Miz vs Mizdow storyline has developed patiently and has been perfectly played by both, with crowd reactions basically turning Mizdow face. This should be the main story here.
The Prospects
Again, this will be rushed, unfortunately. There will be a lot of exits based on just a couple of pieces of offence, which makes no-one look good. However, it could do a job in moving the Miz/Mizdow storyline on its next stage.The Prediction
Damien Mizdow to win, after turning on The Miz and eliminating his hated employer. This will mark Damien's formal face turn and give the pair a proper rivalry leading to a showdown at Extreme Rules.Seth Rollins vs Randy Orton
The Build
This has occasionally been overplayed (Orton's extended beat-down of Rollins following his face turn went on so long, I almost started feeling sorry for the latter...) but has been built soildly. Orton's motivations for this grudge are easy to understand, and WWE did a sensible job in not rushing him back to action. He had become stale, and it was a good idea to let the memories of lacklustre previous runs fade before his return. Besides, he's looked a lot hungrier since coming back. Rollins, of course, has played an exceptional heel role, oozing evil from every unctous promo he delivers.I only have one serious disappointment here. Given this is a match between a seasoned main-eventer and a big rising star, it seems odd that it has no title implications at all.
The Prospects
It almost goes without saying that this should be a highlight of the night. Rollins is simply one of the best technical wrestlers in the company and he should produce a minor classic with Orton. The one thing I will say is that Rollins needs to set the pace here. Left to his own devices, Orton can fall back on a series of rest holds that drags down the speed of the match. He needs to ensure that the pace matches that of the excellent matches that Rollins has had with, for example, Dean Ambrose.The Prediction
Seth Rollins. He needs the win to maintain his aura as a top heel. Particularly if he features later on in the main event....US Championship Match: Rusev (c) vs John Cena
The Build
The whole storyline of the evil monster heel from behind the Iron Curtain is ridiculously dated, and just doesn't work properly in 2015. I mean, I doubt that most of the WWE's audience even knows who Vladimir Putin is. However, despite my better judgement, I have found myself enjoying this. Call it a guilty pleasure, I suppose. For one thing, I actually believe in the bulky Bulgarian as an effective wrecking machine, which says something given my usual antipathy to 'big men' wrestlers. The other selling point is, of course, Lana, who week after week steals the show with ridiculously sexy promos...or at least she did.The build-up here has still been a mess, but it's one I can work around. As the all-American boy, John Cena's promo work has been tinged with an unpleasant jingoism, and he's shown some apparent heel moves: torturing Rusev so that he agrees to a match, for example. Also, John, when you say you believe that the USA is the 'greatest country on earth', do you not understand how such sentiments play in every country that's outside America? WWE is an international company which needs to start behaving like one.
For all that, I find this watchable because I just reverse the roles. I see Rusev as a proud patriot standing up for his culture in a land full of xenophobic bigots who believe that only Americans are allowed to feel national pride. (Incidentally, I suspect that the reporters who handle the commentary for Russian TV spin the action in precisely this way. If they don't, they should....)
But one thing makes me angry. The delectable Lana has recently been missing and will doubtless be away from Wrestlemania too. The reason why? She's shooting a film for WWE Studios. Yes, that's right, just at the point when her client faces the biggest match of his career, she won't be ringside because of some straight-to-video b-movie which will probably just be the butt of a joke in Kayfabe News a few months later....WWE, your timing is ludicrously askew here!
The Prospects
It won't be a classic, but that's not to say it won't be enjoyable. Cena normally rises to the occasion in big events, even if he doesn't usually lose all his faults (the loud spot-calling, his notorious no-pressure STF), and Rusev will bring the aggression. I'll be relying on memory to imagine a blonde in a red suit yelling 'CRUSH HIM!!!!' on the sidelines, though....The Prediction
Cena, sadly, because the whole story is geared to supplying a big patriotic finish to Rusev's streak. I hope I'm wrong.The Bella Twins vs Paige and AJ Lee
The Build
Divas booking has been horrible for quite some time. Last year, I wrote a detailed takedown of why the Bella Twins storyline made no sense, and since then it's managed to defy logic even further, with the twins reuniting for no apparent reason, despite Nikki's humiliating treatment of Brie. Meanwhile, the oddball 'frenemies' AJ and Paige had a weird rivalry where the face/heel demarcation seemed arbitrary as they were essentially playing the same character.At least pitting AJ and Paige as faces supplies a logical twist here; they should be partners as they have so much in common. And there are signs that AJ's much-discussed #givedivasachance hashtag is having a positive effect. Last week's Raw feature a ten-minute plus match that may well have had the best in-ring action in any recent Divas match.
The Prospect
If it follows the pattern of the Raw match, this might surprise a few people. Of course, Paige and AJ are strong workers, and there are signs that the Bellas, though still lacking in their mic work, have worked hard to improve their ring work. Expect shenanigans at the end, leading to further friction between the frenemies....The Prediction
The Bellas continue to get the better of this feud, though they will cheat to win. This will continue the storyline, with either Paige or AJ getting a title match at Extreme Rules.Sting vs Triple H
The Build
I see what they are trying to do here, but it hasn't worked too well. By limiting Sting's appearances to the bare minimum, they've built up an aura of mystery around the WCW legend, but at the expense of clarity. What does Sting actually want from Triple H? The silence was maintained for just too long, and WWE threw some weird segments into the mix. Remember the fake Sting that shocked HHH, who was clearly taller than the real Sting and had a different hairstyle (apparently, this was actually Heath Slater)? Or that weird promo where they distorted Sting's voice so you thought it was another imposter? Then there's the fiction they've maintained that his basically been sitting on his backside for fourteen years. The commentators asked why it took this long for Sting to come over, but have been unable to inform the audience that the reason is that he was being paid a lot of money by Dixie Carter for all that time....Finally, Sting did finally arrive on Raw to talk about his motivation, and, yes, he's just basically pissed about the WWE defeating WCW in the Monday Night Wars. This feels like an anti-climax, as this is ancient history now. How relevant is this to a modern audience? to win
The Prospects
At the end of the day, this is a major singles match between two competitors whose combined age is 101, which speaks volumes about WWE's continued reliance on ageing part-timers in big events. That said, Sting's performances towards the end of his TNA run ranged from average to very good, and his body is in enviable shape. Triple H, meanwhile, had a great opening match with Daniel Bryan last year. so it looks like he's also in great shape. Add to the fact that weapons will certainly be involved (the sledgehammer and the baseball bat have both featured in the build-up) and this could be entertaining. I just hope they don't overbook too much interference from The Authority.The Prediction
Sting. This is a hard one to call, but HHH has shown willingness to put opponents over, and Sting winning would make for a bigger headline.Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match: Bad News Barrett (c), Dean Ambrose, Daniel Bryan, Luke Harper, R Truth, Dolph Ziggler, Stardust
The Build
I was pleased that this time the much-ignored midcard actually got a storyline of sorts. The problem was that the story was deeply silly, with Ambrose initially stealing the belt, before the rest of the contenders played pass-the-parcel with it and R Truth generally behaved in a nefarious fashion. This really isn't doing anything to aid the belt's reputation, plus it generally made Barrett look like a chump.....Regarding the presence of strong fan favourites, I can see both arguments. Yes, they might be better off in singles matches, but they raise the status of the match and this is an arena they can shine in.
The Prospects
This could easily be the match of the night, given that it is absolutely stacked with exciting talent. Ambrose, Bryan and Ziggler are all accomplished aerial performers in particular, but everyone can contribute something of worth. Just try to forget the silly build-up and enjoy the daring high-flying action.The Prediction
Hard one to call. If the WWE is serious about rebuilding the belt's reputation, then Daniel Bryan is the obvious choice. However, if WWE is worried that DB is too injury-prone (surely the main reason he isn't in the main event mix), then they might shy away from giving the belt to him, and Dolph may be ruled out for similar reasons. In that case, Dean Ambrose looks like the best bet.The Undertaker vs Bray Wyatt
The Build
Bray Wyatt has delivered on the mic time and again, but the lack of the Dead Man's presence has harmed the build. Too often Wyatt has basically just been talking to himself, and there's no danger when there's just a solo performer out there. Also, with Wyatt rarely competing in the ring this build is all talk basically. For all that, a couple of nice theatrical moments have raised my interest. For one thing, when Taker accepted the challenge by sending lightning down to set fire to Wyatt's rocking chair was marvellous, not least because of Wyatt's reaction. Instead of being spooked, Wyatt started laughing, to recognise that Taker speaks his language. Great touch, that.The Prospects
I can't see this being anything other than awful, as Taker is in terrible state, as he proved against Brock Lesnar last year. Wyatt is good, but probably not good enough to carry him. This match will be heavy on theatrics no doubt, but it won't be enoughThe Prediction
Bray Wyatt has to win. It would represent the ultimate passing of the torch, with Wyatt now crowned as the strangest man in WWE.World Heavyweight Championship Match: Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) (c) vs Roman Reigns
The Build
This has been a mixture. Paul Heyman has been predictably stellar, delivering impassioned promos to explain why Brock Lesnar is the ultimate fighting machine. However, this hasn't worked well enough, and WWE now has to face facts; the Roman Reigns experiment has failed. He hasn't successfully looked anywhere near dominant enough, and the crowds know it. His promos often seem whiny and petulant, when he should be strident and forceful. Also, he hasn't wrestled enough lately. WWE needs to show us how strong Reigns is; instead they are trying too hard to merely tell us how good he is. He had a great Fastlane match with Daniel Bryan, so why not build on that success? Getting a string of WWE stars like Jericho and Ambrose hasn't helped as it's too obvious they are parroting lines fed to them from head office. Again, it's too transparent. Fans in 2015 will no longer accept being told who to like.Meanwhile, when Lesnar and Reigns faced off at the end of the go-home edition of Raw, it ended with a risible tug-of-war over the title. This had all the excitement and tension of watching two children arguing and claiming ownership of a One Direction pencil case....
Oddly enough the best piece promotion from Lesnar occurred outside WWE, when he admitted he'd signed a new contract with the company. Suddenly, the coronation of Roman Reigns seemed less certain.
The Prospects
A straightforward match between this pair offers little interest for me. This is likely to be the kind of lumbering big man match that I rarely find entertaining. There would be some peaks with the big power moves, but the likelihood is that there will be lulls in between. However, I suspect that there will be big shocks along the way. With Paul Heyman lurking, he may turn on his client, given his past record of treachery. Then again, Seth Rollins will be watching with interest as he clutches his MITB briefcase. Expect plenty of intrigue outside the ring.The Prediction
Seth Rollins cashes in his Money In The Bank contract on an exhausted Roman Reigns who has just defeated Lesnar.Of course, there may be surprises, such as the return of Sheamus, alongside the music interludes that act as toilet breaks. My main hope is that the show feels like an event, and not just a regular edition of Raw with extra bells and whistles.
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