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Post by cornettesracket on Mar 14, 2024 17:53:28 GMT -5
Tonight 14th, march, 2004 Wrestlemania XX took place from madison square garden in New York.
I had special memories of this event for about three years and for obvious reasons it has been tarnished.
The match card for the record was
John Cena vs The Big show for the US title
Fatal four way for the raw tag titles with van dam and booker as champs
Christian vs Jericho
Evolution vs the rock and foley
Torrie Wilson and sable vs miss Jackie and Stacey Kiebler
Cruiserweight open with Chavo as champion
Goldberg vs brock and they stunk the arena out
Fatal four way for the smack down tag titles with too cool as champions
molly holly vs Victoria for the woman’s title in a hair vs title match
Eddie vs Kurt for the WWE title
Undertaker vs Kane with taker returning as the deadman
HBK and HHH are in a triple threat for the WHC.
so what are peoples memories of this ppv ?
did you watch it live ?
I watched it live on my own and it started at midnight Irish time I remember.
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Post by LiamMcDuggle on Mar 14, 2024 18:18:10 GMT -5
Is this the earliest Mania has ever been held?
I am guessing because the Knicks and Rangers are anchor tenants, they had it booked in later march and early April
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Post by jason1980s on Mar 14, 2024 18:18:41 GMT -5
I was getting back into buying WWE products at this time with them getting more into the "classic" things like Jakks Classic toys and the hall of fame coming back.'
I enjoyed seeing the hall of fame guys on stage after almost 10 years of not having it.
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Post by cornettesracket on Mar 14, 2024 18:27:54 GMT -5
Is this the earliest Mania has ever been held? I am guessing because the Knicks and Rangers are anchor tenants, they had it booked in later march and early April A quick google says it is by three days. The next earliest was 18 in Toronto which was held march 17th, 2002. WM X was the 20th of march in the same building. |
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Post by jason1980s on Mar 14, 2024 18:32:43 GMT -5
A quick google says it is by three days. The next earliest was 18 in Toronto which was held march 17th, 2002. WM X was the 20th of march in the same building.[/quote] This reminds me of some of the 1997 PPVs being held so early, like a few days into the month. But years later, I read it was because they wanted the PPVs early so it would beat WCW in case fans wanted to pick between them. |
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Post by Jindrak Mark on Mar 14, 2024 20:40:00 GMT -5
Even by Mania standards they hyped the hell out of this show. Normally they go into overdrive in January but with it being the 20th anniversary they started earlier. As early as summer 2003 they had the Mania 20 banner up in every arena and they were showing classic Wrestlemania clips every week on Raw. I believe it was also the longest Mania at the time, running 4+ hours.
Weirdly after starting all the hype so early once it got down to the final month it didn't quite feel as big. Brock v Goldberg was a huge match on paper but Goldberg had used up all the dates on his contract so after No Way Out he didn't even appear on TV and the final month felt like a Brock/Austin feud. Undertaker obviously didn't appear either so you got 2 months of the lights going out and creepy videos playing during Kane matches. Rock didn't show up until the 2nd to last Raw before the PPV and honestly most of the build called for a Foley/Orton match, not a tag (we obviously got that at Backlash). And Benoit got a great reaction at Mania itself but on TV in the build he didn't really feel like a huge star and the way HBK was inserted was weird and heelish.
I still enjoyed the show despite the Brock/Goldberg debacle, quite a few filler matches and personally I never thought Angle/Eddie was all that great. Cena's win to open the show was a great moment and basically a signal that he was going to be the next guy. Jericho v Christian is an underrated match and had a great heel turn by Trish. Evolution/Rock & Sock was really entertaining even if the build with Foley/Orton felt like the match needed less comedy and more blood. Undertaker's return with Paul Bearer was one of the greatest entrances ever. And the main event was obviously a classic even if got ruined 3 years later.
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Post by zero744 on Mar 14, 2024 20:44:35 GMT -5
Tonight 14th, march, 2004 Wrestlemania XX took place from madison square garden in New York. I had special memories of this event for about three years and for obvious reasons it has been tarnished. The match card for the record was John Cena vs The Big show for the US title Fatal four way for the raw tag titles with van dam and booker as champs Christian vs Jericho Evolution vs the rock and foley Torrie Wilson and sable vs miss Jackie and Stacey Kiebler Cruiserweight open with Chavo as champion Goldberg vs brock and they stunk the arena out Fatal four way for the smack down tag titles with too cool as champions molly holly vs Victoria for the woman’s title in a hair vs title match Eddie vs Kurt for the WWE title Undertaker vs Kane with taker returning as the deadman HBK and HHH are in a triple threat for the WHC. so what are peoples memories of this ppv ? did you watch it live ? I watched it live on my own and it started at midnight Irish time I remember. Tarnished? Why? |
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Post by ChitownKnight on Mar 14, 2024 21:31:33 GMT -5
Tonight 14th, march, 2004 Wrestlemania XX took place from madison square garden in New York. I had special memories of this event for about three years and for obvious reasons it has been tarnished. The match card for the record was John Cena vs The Big show for the US title Fatal four way for the raw tag titles with van dam and booker as champs Christian vs Jericho Evolution vs the rock and foley Torrie Wilson and sable vs miss Jackie and Stacey Kiebler Cruiserweight open with Chavo as champion Goldberg vs brock and they stunk the arena out Fatal four way for the smack down tag titles with too cool as champions molly holly vs Victoria for the woman’s title in a hair vs title match Eddie vs Kurt for the WWE title Undertaker vs Kane with taker returning as the deadman HBK and HHH are in a triple threat for the WHC. so what are peoples memories of this ppv ? did you watch it live ? I watched it live on my own and it started at midnight Irish time I remember. Tarnished? Why? The dude that won the main event was a child murderer. Which sucks cuz the celebration with Eddie after was IMO a top 5 wwe moment |
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MiLB Fan
Fry's dog Seymour
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Post by MiLB Fan on Mar 14, 2024 21:42:53 GMT -5
This was during the EZBoard days—anyone else remember that?—and in the weeks leading up to the show I recall us discussing a rumor that WWE would debut a new logo there. That would have tied in perfectly with the “Where it All Begins … Again!” tagline.
I remember that night because a day or two before, we got a new digital cable box and some of the channels on the electronic programming guide didn’t match what was onscreen. I ordered the show and got … nothing! Dad had to call Comcast and it finally came on just as the opening video ended.
I loved the entrance set. I know I’m in the minority but I never liked the small MSG entrance and the wrestlers entering from the top of the screen like an N64 game. This was much more fitting for The Grandest Stage of Them All.
My brother, who isn’t a wrestling fan at all, came downstairs for part of the show and correctly predicted Trish’s heel turn.
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EZ: Brainy Bae
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I be like SHEESH
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Post by EZ: Brainy Bae on Mar 14, 2024 21:57:12 GMT -5
Feels weird to say with Benoit so prominent but it's still one of my top 5 Manias. My friend circle in middle school was so excited for the card, and I FINALLY got Deadman Taker back after years of waiting.
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mo
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
"Here are the young men, the weight on their shoulders..."
Posts: 16,555
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Post by mo on Mar 14, 2024 22:28:46 GMT -5
Watched it live.
I remember being disappointed that Taker just came out acting like the deadman but with the American Badass look. Paul Bearer’s “OH YES!” was a huge markout moment though.
Was surprised when Evolution beat Rock n Sock
Damn shame what a legendary moment the ending was but has been stricken from memory for obvious reasons. Two beloved underdogs getting their big moment in the sun but both would be gone less than five years later under wildly different circumstances. The triple threat was a classic and Eddie removing his boot to win was a classic Eddie moment.
A good event overall but seems kind of minor considering what a game changer the next year’s Mania was.
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Post by Jaws the Shark on Mar 15, 2024 4:52:44 GMT -5
I didn't watch it live but I watched the DVD a fair few times. It's mostly a decent show, the undercard is a mixed bag but the two title matches are excellent and it's interesting that Angle and Guerrero had what was actually quite an old school match by 2000s WWE standards with the slow hold and counterhold buildup, the finish was very clever.
I think my biggest criticism is the big cluttered multi-man matches for both tag titles and the cruiserweight title. There was clearly nothing really going on with any of those titles and the matches were just used as a vehicle to get as many people onto the card as possible without a cogent reason, they felt like an afterthought. No disrespect to any of these wrestlers, but did Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak or Akio need to be on the card? If you haven't got a sound reason for doing something on a wrestling show, don't do it.
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Post by EoE: Well There's Your Problem on Mar 15, 2024 5:05:30 GMT -5
Even by Mania standards they hyped the hell out of this show. Normally they go into overdrive in January but with it being the 20th anniversary they started earlier. As early as summer 2003 they had the Mania 20 banner up in every arena and they were showing classic Wrestlemania clips every week on Raw. I believe it was also the longest Mania at the time, running 4+ hours. I believe this was the first year of them hanging the WrestleMania sign in the arenas on weekly TV. |
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Post by Jumpin' Jesse Walsh on Mar 15, 2024 10:16:09 GMT -5
A simpler time when people thought WrestleMania going over 4 hours was too long.
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tirtefaa
Unicron
If you wanna know the truth, you gotta dig up Johnny Booth.
Posts: 2,830
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Post by tirtefaa on Mar 15, 2024 10:42:03 GMT -5
I skipped this Mania when it happened. Sounds weird, but I felt the build wasn't very good. Outside of Christian/Jericho...there wasn't many long term storylines. I figured Eddie would retain against Kurt, which I was a huge Kurt fan, so that seemed fine to skip. Benoit was never the same after his neck surgery, so it was hard for me to care about his journey, and Shawn vs. HHH had been done to death. The tag titles and the Cruiserweight title matches felt thrown together... because they were. I already knew Goldberg and Lesnar were leaving, so I couldn't care less about that. Kane vs. Undertaker was always going to be disappointing considering I was completely against Undertaker turning to the dark side again...I enjoyed him as the biker. As far as Evolution vs. Rock and Sock...I don't know, I just wasn't feeling it, felt like Rock was phoning it in, and knew he was disappearing afterwards anyway.
After I watched it later, I enjoyed the matches...but the stories never felt fully investable.
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4real
Wade Wilson
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Post by 4real on Mar 15, 2024 12:01:09 GMT -5
Loved this Mania at the time even though I felt it was a tad bit long even back then. Benoit’s win was probably the most I’ve ever wanted someone to win a match up to that point. The end is obviously tainted but still an emotional moment at the time it was perfect and it’s such a shame looking back.
Lesnar v Goldberg was a car crash but man what an event it was! Evolution v Rock & Sock was so much fun. Christian v Jericho is underrated with a shock ending. Undertaker v Kane is all about the Taker’s return and that “Oh yes” from Bearer beforehand. Cena v Big Show was the perfect way to start too.
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salz4life
Grimlock
Prichard is a guy who gets that his job is to service his boss.
Posts: 13,960
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Post by salz4life on Mar 15, 2024 12:14:12 GMT -5
My biggest memory is the show being over and thinking, at the end, the best part was the Trish turn. It was definitely a good show, but other than Benoit winning at the end (at the time I thought that was fantastic... now, it doesn't look so good obviously), it was just ok to above average for me.
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Muskrat
Wade Wilson
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Post by Muskrat on Mar 15, 2024 12:14:13 GMT -5
This was a big Mania for me. I went over and watched it at my friend's place, was 17. We drank a bunch of beers and watched the show. Undertaker return, Eddie retaining the belt, my personal vindication of saying Benoit was winning the belt the second he broke Paul Heyman's finger. It's one of my favourite wrestling PPV memories, although obviously some of the bloom has come off that rose
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Mar 15, 2024 12:18:21 GMT -5
Even by Mania standards they hyped the hell out of this show. Normally they go into overdrive in January but with it being the 20th anniversary they started earlier. As early as summer 2003 they had the Mania 20 banner up in every arena and they were showing classic Wrestlemania clips every week on Raw. I believe it was also the longest Mania at the time, running 4+ hours. I believe this was the first year of them hanging the WrestleMania sign in the arenas on weekly TV. Yeah, I think you were right, which is probably part of why I tend to think of this one as the first "modern" Wrestlemania, as in, how it'd end up being. |
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Post by Cyno on Mar 15, 2024 13:39:13 GMT -5
Goldberg vs Lesnar was hilarious for how the crowd hated it (and for good reason; that match was complete shit). Both world championship matches were pretty solid even though the moment of Benoit and Guerrero celebrating together is forever tainted by Benoit being a murderer.
Jericho vs Christian was also a really good match, along with Trish turning on Jericho after.
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