WARNING: Spoilers for Wrestlemania 33 ahead. I give away the results of all the matches. If you haven’t seen it yet or are planning to see it, please read at your own risk.
You know something; I haven’t seen a Wrestlemania for years. The last Wrestlemania I remember seeing was the one with Hulk Hogan Versus The Rock (however long ago that was). But seeing that me and my bro have recently got back into watching WWE again, we figured that we’d at least give it a try as part of our quest to see the “Big Four” events of WWE.
Wrestlemania 33 was certainly an event that had its fair share of shocks, surprises – and heartbreak. And after getting about five hours sleep the night before, I decided to give my thoughts on this event. For this review I’ll be looking at the matches one by one and giving my view on each one.
Like with Royal Rumble, I didn’t see the pre-show matches – but I heard the results were as follows. Neville beat Austin Aries and kept his Cruiserweight Championship, Mojo Rawley won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal (really?) and Dean Ambrose beat Baron Corbin. I’ll try and catch up on those matches on the Network sometime.
I’m also not going to go into the storylines too much as some of them would take too long to explain. So hopefully you guys have an understanding of what is going on in WWE at the moment.
So to open Wrestlemania, we had AJ Styles VS Shane McMahon, in a match that some people had already written off. No one seemed to think that Shane would be able to stand up to AJ Styles – but BOY were they wrong! Shane has proven in the past he can hold his own with the best of them and he did right here, hitting AJ with a Coast to Coast, an elbow drop into a table – and even a shooting star press! Although AJ came out on top, both men put on one of the most energetic openers matches I’ve ever seen. I was kinda worried that the rest of the event would have too much to live up to after this, but for the first match this was brilliant.
Next we had Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho for the United States Championship. Both Jericho and Owens have had an amazing time together as both friends and rivals; and I would say they are some of the best workers in WWE at the moment. This match, whilst not as high flying as the last one, was straight up brutal and included some awesome moments – such as Owens doing a cannonball to Jericho when he was on the outside of the ring posts and his class pop up power bomb to the side of the ropes. Jericho even countered a power bomb with a Code Breaker, but he couldn’t quite out power his former friend, and Owens became the new champion. It was refreshing to see a heel win clean for a change and proved a pretty solid match. But I get the feeling their rivalry is far from over. I think Owens just made ANOTHER list!
Following that we had the WWE Raw Women’s Championship, fearing Bayley, Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Nia Jax, in a four way elimination match. This match was ok, I guess. And I did wonder if they would follow through on the “Will Sasha betray Bayley” storyline that they are building up to. However it turned out to be just a regular match, with Nia Jax going first, then Sasha being elimination and finally Bayley defeating Charlotte with an elbow drop. Not bad, but kinda felt like it finished before it really got momentum.
Next up was the tag team ladder match, featuring Enzo and Cass, Cesaro and Sheamus, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson – and a secret fourth match that was announced by the hosts of the show, The New Day. At first I thought it WAS The New Day, but then we found out it wasn’t. But who could be the fourth team in this match?
ONLY THE F**KING HARDY BOYZ!!! :D
Wrestlemania 33 was certainly an event that had its fair share of shocks, surprises – and heartbreak. And after getting about five hours sleep the night before, I decided to give my thoughts on this event. For this review I’ll be looking at the matches one by one and giving my view on each one.
Like with Royal Rumble, I didn’t see the pre-show matches – but I heard the results were as follows. Neville beat Austin Aries and kept his Cruiserweight Championship, Mojo Rawley won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal (really?) and Dean Ambrose beat Baron Corbin. I’ll try and catch up on those matches on the Network sometime.
I’m also not going to go into the storylines too much as some of them would take too long to explain. So hopefully you guys have an understanding of what is going on in WWE at the moment.
So to open Wrestlemania, we had AJ Styles VS Shane McMahon, in a match that some people had already written off. No one seemed to think that Shane would be able to stand up to AJ Styles – but BOY were they wrong! Shane has proven in the past he can hold his own with the best of them and he did right here, hitting AJ with a Coast to Coast, an elbow drop into a table – and even a shooting star press! Although AJ came out on top, both men put on one of the most energetic openers matches I’ve ever seen. I was kinda worried that the rest of the event would have too much to live up to after this, but for the first match this was brilliant.
Next we had Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho for the United States Championship. Both Jericho and Owens have had an amazing time together as both friends and rivals; and I would say they are some of the best workers in WWE at the moment. This match, whilst not as high flying as the last one, was straight up brutal and included some awesome moments – such as Owens doing a cannonball to Jericho when he was on the outside of the ring posts and his class pop up power bomb to the side of the ropes. Jericho even countered a power bomb with a Code Breaker, but he couldn’t quite out power his former friend, and Owens became the new champion. It was refreshing to see a heel win clean for a change and proved a pretty solid match. But I get the feeling their rivalry is far from over. I think Owens just made ANOTHER list!
Following that we had the WWE Raw Women’s Championship, fearing Bayley, Sasha Banks, Charlotte and Nia Jax, in a four way elimination match. This match was ok, I guess. And I did wonder if they would follow through on the “Will Sasha betray Bayley” storyline that they are building up to. However it turned out to be just a regular match, with Nia Jax going first, then Sasha being elimination and finally Bayley defeating Charlotte with an elbow drop. Not bad, but kinda felt like it finished before it really got momentum.
Next up was the tag team ladder match, featuring Enzo and Cass, Cesaro and Sheamus, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson – and a secret fourth match that was announced by the hosts of the show, The New Day. At first I thought it WAS The New Day, but then we found out it wasn’t. But who could be the fourth team in this match?
ONLY THE F**KING HARDY BOYZ!!! :D
After months of speculation the Hardy Boyz made a triumphant return to WWE – and it was, to quote Bobby Roode – GLORIOUS!!! The hairs were standing on the back of my head and my heart was pumping long into the match, which was by far the match of the night! It was like Jeff and Matt never went away and they had plenty of dare devil stunts – including the swanton from the top of the ladder. Fair play to the others teams though, they gave it their all – but in the end the Hardy Boyz became the new champions, showing us that they are here to stay. It was a fantastic moment and an absolute classic match. And we feel that, somewhere, Dixie Carter must be crying…
After that breathtaking match, we had John Cena and Nikki Bella against The Miz and Maryse. Despite the crowd seemingly behind The Miz, this match was obviously gonna go in Cena’s favour. And low and behold, Cena and Bella took them both out without too much trouble. Not a memorable match – but at the end John Cena proposed to Nikki. Kinda sappy, but actually it was a nice feel good moment – and considering what would happen later in the evening, this was one of the highlights. Oh I’ll get to that later.
Moving on we had Seth Rollings against Triple H in a Non-sanctioned match (why not just call it a NO DQ match?). And as per the last couple of Wrestlemania’s, Hunter just couldn’t resist an over the top entrance – this one featuring motorcycles and a police escort. Still smarting from his injured knee, Seth was in a tough spot as Triple H worked on his knee, hitting it with everything he had. It was a slow, methodical match where Triple H (and his wife Stephanie, who was at ringside) worked on Seth Rollins. But no matter what they threw at him, he continued to fight. It was a real “underdog” match, where Seth was attacked at both sides. At the conclusion of the match, Triple H was accidentally thrown into Stephanie as she tried to interfere – being slammed through a table that was planted there earlier, which I have to say was pretty rough, but kinda satisfying considering all the crap Stephanie has done here and on Raw recently. Seth Rollins was able to overcome the odds and win. All in all, a really good match and a satisfying outcome for the underdog.
The next match, between Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt for the WWE Champipnship, I was really looking forward to. Despite the goofiness of their current storyline, I do like both wrestlers and they always put on a good show. This one though, I was really disappointed in. :(. It had a few creepy moments, with the ring showing images of cockroaches and worms, but neither Orton or Wyatt seemed invested in the match and it just came across as slow. In the end an RKO from nowhere won the match, and the title, from Randy – but no one seemed to care. Huge let down and probably the worst match of the night.
For the next match, me and my brother actually timed it, seeing if Brock Lesnar and Goldberg could go more than two minutes. For a start, it looked like it would go the old way, with Goldberg spearing Lesnar into submission; but lo and behold, Lesnar fought back – including a cool moment where he jumped over a spear and also kicked out of a Jackhammer. He then took Goldberg to suplex city and finished it with an F-5 to take the Universal Title. Must say I was glad to see Lesnar get one over Goldberg for once and I was happy to see a proper match between the two of them.
The Six-pack Smackdown Women’s Championship was originally due for the pre-show, but fans complained and WWE moved it to the main roster. One has to wonder if it was worth it though, as the match was really chaotic. Beckly Lynch, Carmella, Mickie James, Alexa Bliss, Natalya and Naomi (recently returning from injury) are all extremely talented wrestlers, but here they didn’t seem to know what they were doing and just bashed into each other. In the end, Naomi beat Alexa with a submission to gain the championship in her home, but for all the fighting the fans had to get this in the main event, it really wasn’t worth it in my opinion. For such a huge match, you think it would have gone on longer than 5 minutes.
And finally, we had Roman Reigns against The Undertaker and DEAR C****T did this make my blood boil! I was hoping that WWE wouldn’t be so stupid as to have Reigns win, considering the backlash they got for Reign’s win in Wrestlemania 32 – but nope! It was depressing seeing The Undertaker, who once stood up from anything thrown at him, barely getting to his feet from the moves Roman Reigns threw at him. Sure The Undertaker got in a few hits, Chokeslams and a Tombstone; but once Reign kicked out of that, he proceeded a beatdown on the Undertaker, hitting him with spear after spear and superman punch after superman punch. All the way through the crowd hoped that The Undertaker would mount some kind of comeback – it never happened. And a final spear from Reigns put the Deadman down for the count.
I can only repeat what I said on Facebook for this result. Roman Reigns… YOU. CAN. GET. F**KED!!! >:(
After the match was over, The Undertaker symbolically left his coat, gloves and hat in the ring as he walked away, the fans chanting “Thank you Taker,” as he walked away to the cheers of the crowd. At least we can take comfort in the fact that, though Reigns won the match, Undertaker won the respect.
***EDIT: Since writing this review there ARE reports and some pictures of Roman Reigns crying backstage and feeling remorse for beating The Undertaker - but frankly I don't care! Roman Reigns knew what he was getting himself into the same way that Shawn Michaels did when he ended Ric Flair's career, so I'm not showing any sympathy for him.***
***Yes I KNOW wrestling is staged, but I'm allowed to get pissed off with things now and then.***
All in all, Wrestlemania 33 was, I would say, at least 50% awesome, 40% meh and 10% complete bull****! We knew The Undertaker would be leaving us soon, but having him lose to Roman Reigns (one of the most hated people in wrestling since Vince Russo) was a slap in the face to all the fans. Seeing The Undertaker walk away was one of the most depressing moments in wrestling history – probably more so than the streak ending. But at least The Undertaker was able to walk away this time.
Another complaint is that some of the positioning of the matches was a bit strange. It seemed like WWE were trying to get the best matches in too early, this meant that the first half was brilliant, but the other half was underwhelming. It made it a long five hours. The matches ending were also predictable at times, so that made them a little bit boring to watch.
However, there WERE some great moments. AJ Styles and Shane McMahon was a fantastic opener – and the return of the Hardy Boyz was a dream for me and thousands of other fans. This was by far the biggest pop of the night. Another highlight was seeing Kurt Angle and the other Hall of Famers come to say hi to everyone. And JR and Jerry Lawler returning to commentary also brought a smile to my face. God I miss those guys! I’d rather hear these guys than Saxon and Otunga any day of the week!
All in all, Wrestlemania 33 wasn’t quite a disappointment, but it wasn’t a classic either. It had some solid matches, but also some duds – and a depressing ending that left most people deflated. Between you and me, I actually preferred NXT Takeover: Orlando, which was a much shorter event, but every single match was fantastic and exhilarating. It had more energy in two hours than Wrestlemania 33 had in the five hours it spread out. If you haven’t seen it, sign up to the Network and check it out!
After that breathtaking match, we had John Cena and Nikki Bella against The Miz and Maryse. Despite the crowd seemingly behind The Miz, this match was obviously gonna go in Cena’s favour. And low and behold, Cena and Bella took them both out without too much trouble. Not a memorable match – but at the end John Cena proposed to Nikki. Kinda sappy, but actually it was a nice feel good moment – and considering what would happen later in the evening, this was one of the highlights. Oh I’ll get to that later.
Moving on we had Seth Rollings against Triple H in a Non-sanctioned match (why not just call it a NO DQ match?). And as per the last couple of Wrestlemania’s, Hunter just couldn’t resist an over the top entrance – this one featuring motorcycles and a police escort. Still smarting from his injured knee, Seth was in a tough spot as Triple H worked on his knee, hitting it with everything he had. It was a slow, methodical match where Triple H (and his wife Stephanie, who was at ringside) worked on Seth Rollins. But no matter what they threw at him, he continued to fight. It was a real “underdog” match, where Seth was attacked at both sides. At the conclusion of the match, Triple H was accidentally thrown into Stephanie as she tried to interfere – being slammed through a table that was planted there earlier, which I have to say was pretty rough, but kinda satisfying considering all the crap Stephanie has done here and on Raw recently. Seth Rollins was able to overcome the odds and win. All in all, a really good match and a satisfying outcome for the underdog.
The next match, between Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt for the WWE Champipnship, I was really looking forward to. Despite the goofiness of their current storyline, I do like both wrestlers and they always put on a good show. This one though, I was really disappointed in. :(. It had a few creepy moments, with the ring showing images of cockroaches and worms, but neither Orton or Wyatt seemed invested in the match and it just came across as slow. In the end an RKO from nowhere won the match, and the title, from Randy – but no one seemed to care. Huge let down and probably the worst match of the night.
For the next match, me and my brother actually timed it, seeing if Brock Lesnar and Goldberg could go more than two minutes. For a start, it looked like it would go the old way, with Goldberg spearing Lesnar into submission; but lo and behold, Lesnar fought back – including a cool moment where he jumped over a spear and also kicked out of a Jackhammer. He then took Goldberg to suplex city and finished it with an F-5 to take the Universal Title. Must say I was glad to see Lesnar get one over Goldberg for once and I was happy to see a proper match between the two of them.
The Six-pack Smackdown Women’s Championship was originally due for the pre-show, but fans complained and WWE moved it to the main roster. One has to wonder if it was worth it though, as the match was really chaotic. Beckly Lynch, Carmella, Mickie James, Alexa Bliss, Natalya and Naomi (recently returning from injury) are all extremely talented wrestlers, but here they didn’t seem to know what they were doing and just bashed into each other. In the end, Naomi beat Alexa with a submission to gain the championship in her home, but for all the fighting the fans had to get this in the main event, it really wasn’t worth it in my opinion. For such a huge match, you think it would have gone on longer than 5 minutes.
And finally, we had Roman Reigns against The Undertaker and DEAR C****T did this make my blood boil! I was hoping that WWE wouldn’t be so stupid as to have Reigns win, considering the backlash they got for Reign’s win in Wrestlemania 32 – but nope! It was depressing seeing The Undertaker, who once stood up from anything thrown at him, barely getting to his feet from the moves Roman Reigns threw at him. Sure The Undertaker got in a few hits, Chokeslams and a Tombstone; but once Reign kicked out of that, he proceeded a beatdown on the Undertaker, hitting him with spear after spear and superman punch after superman punch. All the way through the crowd hoped that The Undertaker would mount some kind of comeback – it never happened. And a final spear from Reigns put the Deadman down for the count.
I can only repeat what I said on Facebook for this result. Roman Reigns… YOU. CAN. GET. F**KED!!! >:(
After the match was over, The Undertaker symbolically left his coat, gloves and hat in the ring as he walked away, the fans chanting “Thank you Taker,” as he walked away to the cheers of the crowd. At least we can take comfort in the fact that, though Reigns won the match, Undertaker won the respect.
***EDIT: Since writing this review there ARE reports and some pictures of Roman Reigns crying backstage and feeling remorse for beating The Undertaker - but frankly I don't care! Roman Reigns knew what he was getting himself into the same way that Shawn Michaels did when he ended Ric Flair's career, so I'm not showing any sympathy for him.***
***Yes I KNOW wrestling is staged, but I'm allowed to get pissed off with things now and then.***
All in all, Wrestlemania 33 was, I would say, at least 50% awesome, 40% meh and 10% complete bull****! We knew The Undertaker would be leaving us soon, but having him lose to Roman Reigns (one of the most hated people in wrestling since Vince Russo) was a slap in the face to all the fans. Seeing The Undertaker walk away was one of the most depressing moments in wrestling history – probably more so than the streak ending. But at least The Undertaker was able to walk away this time.
Another complaint is that some of the positioning of the matches was a bit strange. It seemed like WWE were trying to get the best matches in too early, this meant that the first half was brilliant, but the other half was underwhelming. It made it a long five hours. The matches ending were also predictable at times, so that made them a little bit boring to watch.
However, there WERE some great moments. AJ Styles and Shane McMahon was a fantastic opener – and the return of the Hardy Boyz was a dream for me and thousands of other fans. This was by far the biggest pop of the night. Another highlight was seeing Kurt Angle and the other Hall of Famers come to say hi to everyone. And JR and Jerry Lawler returning to commentary also brought a smile to my face. God I miss those guys! I’d rather hear these guys than Saxon and Otunga any day of the week!
All in all, Wrestlemania 33 wasn’t quite a disappointment, but it wasn’t a classic either. It had some solid matches, but also some duds – and a depressing ending that left most people deflated. Between you and me, I actually preferred NXT Takeover: Orlando, which was a much shorter event, but every single match was fantastic and exhilarating. It had more energy in two hours than Wrestlemania 33 had in the five hours it spread out. If you haven’t seen it, sign up to the Network and check it out!
Overall, I give Wrestlemania 33 3 out of 5. Not a terrible event, but by no means a great one either.
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