Which was the worst Wrestlemania of the 1980s?

[agent817]

I feel like I should have done this thread around this time last year when I did threads on the worst Wrestlemanias of the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s. Granted, there were only five Wrestlemanias in the 1980s, but some had stated that at least two or three of them stand out as not being good shows. Wrestlemania III was the moment it felt like a spectacle as it was the most successful one of that decade. However, some regard 2 and IV as bad shows. I personally haven't watched them, but I had heard one of the reasons that Wrestlemania 2 was bad was the concept it had of it taking place in three locations. Maybe I should watch the other ones like the first WM, as well as 5, and I hear people are mixed on WM1 and some say that Wrestlemania V was decent.

What do you think?

If you are wondering, here are my threads on the other decades.
1990s
2000s
2010s

[celtics543]

This might be a hot take but other than being groundbreaking the first Wrestlemania wasn't a great show. It's not super rewatchable or anything. Probably better than 2 but it gets a lot of leeway for being first.

[smokinvokoun86]

I would say the worst one was 2.

III is the clear timeless classic of the first five. The first one I feel was a great show for it’s day and will always be super important, even if it’s been surpassed many times. 4 and 5 are very long, but I do have a a soft spot for them.

[chronocross]

For me, WM3 is the best one and I'd say WM2 is the worst one, starting the show off with a double DQ is not the way to go.

[jason1980s]

I think 2 could have been a lot better at one venue and without so many celebrities. It's clear most, if not all, where just there for the pay day with no interest in wrestling. Some took away from the show rather than added to it and with three venues and jumping from one to the other for interviews it was messy.

I'd say the New York crowd got jipped with a non finish to two matches that should have been big. Chicago got the battle royal and tag match but they broke even with two very short matches. Los Angeles at least got real finished to all the matches.

1 was pretty much a house show until the second half but that's kind of what it was supposed to be. I loved 4 as a kid but I think if they take away the tournament and battle royal and make more single and tag matches, like 5 it would have been cool. But with the Hogan title loss and having to get the belt on Macho and beating a heel, the tournament made sense.

[chazraps]

WM2 I want to give a little leeway towards as it was soooooo ambitious for a second big show. Like, an attempt was made.

WM4, which it has a really great ending that kind of wipes away everything else wrong with that show, has really dreadful pacing for a company that had their television presentation down to an absolute science by that point. Like, your first time watching it may be fun, but by the very second attempt the warts really emerge.

[CeilingFan]

WrestleMania 5. It had 2 title changes but the rest of the card is forgettable.

[Aceorton]

I have to go with WM1, where so much of the undercard just feels like an average MSG house show.

WM2 had a shit-ton of problems (several outrageously short matches, brutal celebrity commentary, etc.), but the roster is pure golden-era WWF.

WM4 has so much good stuff from a wrestling/star standpoint, but the sheer, plodding length of the show and the dead acoustics of Trump Plaza make it hard to get through. That one is second-worst for me.

[James Fabiano]

I can't hate on any of the five, for various reasons.

1 is the weakest card-wise, as it was a typical MSG show with a big main event.

[auph10imitated]

I was going to go for 2 or 4, but if I am being honest I have to go with 1. I think it gets a free pass being the first, but there wasnt anything particulary great wrestling wise, and it feels like your average MSG show in all fairness.

2 had the 3 city gimmick and a good tag team title match.
4 had the tournament and was still a big feel show with a decent main event

3 & 5 both had stellar Randy Savage matches on them

['Foretold' Joker]

For me it's 4, sure the ending is nice, warrior is a great moment and the battle royal is fun but the tournament sucks (who decided to have all those byes and double count outs etc) ...

[clifford]

Wrestlemania 4 is so hard to get through on a rewatch.

[salz4life]

4 because it feels like a never ending show. I know it should be 1 for the lackluster card other than the last match, but 4 is just an absolute chore to rewatch.

[tafkaga]

1, for reasons others have given.

What's wrong with 2, really? It's a pretty loaded card. Lots of celebs. The battle royal was awesome.

I hear a lot of negativity about the main event, but it seems like it's usually from people who didn't grow up in that time period. Kid me saw Bundy as a monster and threat to Hulkamania. Would Hogan vs. Orndorff have been better in a cage? Yeah, but it's not an awful main event.

[msc]

3 is obviously a classic. So not it.

4, I can't ever hate. I love tournaments. I could do with a big old Deadly Game PPV right now. Someone beats Reigns post-Mania for the WWE title, Reigns snaps and "injures" them, oh no, we need a 16 man one night tournament on PPV. It's also got a Battle Royal!

2 is an utter mess at every level BUT it has some genuinely great matches. Bulldogs/Dream Team and the Funks v JYD and Tito Santana the most obvious ones. Oh and the most shiptastic Roddy Piper promo of all time: "If Mr T can knock me out, I will quit professional boxing, I will quit professional wrestling, I would quit tiddlywinks, I would quit dating girls..." before turning to hug Cowboy Bob and going "I'll stick with you though". Orton had been giving Piper a careful back massage the entire promo. Brilliant. The match sucked though.

This leaves 5, which has a Hennig/Owen Hart match, and Hulk Hogans best original run PPV match.

And 1. Which is vitally important to the history of everything we watch today in wrestling. But which, history and importance aside, has very little of interest to it. imo, of course.

[Futureraven: Beelzebruv]

I'd say 2, it's the only one you could erase from history and pretty much nothing changes.

1 kickstarts the whole thing and shapes the business in ways we feel to this day.

3 Had 1 of the best matches, and possibly the most Iconic of all time besides setting the template for a truly epic event.

4 was the coronation of an all time great, and started an incredible story that reached it's climax at 5.

2 doesn't have any of that.

Undercards all had their boring and terrible moments, alongside the occasional gem so for me they all cancel out.

[Milkman Norm]

Easily V, which took place in front of a papered casino crowd, had a bunch of heatless matches with bad finishes and it lasted about 9 hours, half of which was Morton Downey Jr & Roddy Piper going on about nothing.

[edgestar]

2 had the snake make the guy foam at the mouth. Super gross.

[tafkaga]

Mar 16, 2022 13:39:30 GMT -5 Milkman Norm said:

Easily V, which took place in front of a papered casino crowd, had a bunch of heatless matches with bad finishes and it lasted about 9 hours, half of which was Morton Downey Jr & Roddy Piper going on about nothing.

I always think I like 5 more than I did, but yeah.  The main event is the only thing really worth revisiting, and also I always liked Rockers vs. Twin Towers just because it's fun watching Akeem splash Jannetty.  Otherwise it's pretty weak, and I have always hated the location.

[Futureraven: Beelzebruv]

Mar 16, 2022 16:29:17 GMT -5 tafkaga said:

Mar 16, 2022 13:39:30 GMT -5 Milkman Norm said:

Easily V, which took place in front of a papered casino crowd, had a bunch of heatless matches with bad finishes and it lasted about 9 hours, half of which was Morton Downey Jr & Roddy Piper going on about nothing.

I always think I like 5 more than I did, but yeah.  The main event is the only thing really worth revisiting, and also I always liked Rockers vs. Twin Towers just because it's fun watching Akeem splash Jannetty.  Otherwise it's pretty weak, and I have always hated the location.

I can still go back to Warrior/Rude and like the Strike Force split, including the match, and even Perfect/Blazer, even though that match is a little disappointing.