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History. That's what we all saw at WrestleMania 35. Kofi Kingston made history by winning the WWE Championship for himself and all those that have ever been underestimated or held down by the machine. Roman Reigns returned to form after his second battle with leukemia and was victorious in an emotionally exhausting match against Drew McIntyre.
For the first time in history, women main evented a WrestleMania pay-per-view and The Irish Lasskicker Becky Lynch walked away as the first ever RAW and SmackDown Women's Champion. History. There were demons, goddesses, vipers, legends, immortals and WWE Hall of Famers. A beast was slain and Triple H unleashed his inner animal.
This was WrestleMania, the greatest show on earth. A record six championships changed hands before the show was over and WWE headed into a brand new era in historic fashion.
Join us as we unpack the very best, worst, and downright ugliest moments in this special WrestleMania edition of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
The Good - The Seth Rollins Era Begins
The Seth Rollins era officially began in 2015 when The Architect left WrestleMania 31 as the brand new WWE Champion. The scene looked almost identical to the picture above and for a while, Rollins appeared to be unbeatable until a serious injury derailed his WWE championship run and forced him out of action for nearly a year.
To say Rollins worked hard to return to his place of prominence is an understatement. Rollins pushed his body to limits he never knew existed and finally earned the opportunity to fight for WWE championship supremacy by outlasting 29 other men in the Royal Rumble.
Rollins chose to face Brock Lesnar, the Universal Champion who was nearly impossible to vanquish, a competitor who has very much earned the moniker "The Beast."
Rollins had his doubters. How could he conquer Lesnar? Lesnar was too big, too fast, too strong. Before the match even began, those doubters appeared to be correct in their assessment, but the heart is the great intangible even when faced with sheer brutality. Rollins has a heart in abundance and wit to add.
While Lesnar attempted to gain an early advantage over Lesnar with unparalleled physicality, the man now known as The Beast Slayer hit Lesnar with a low blow and three curb stomps in a row. That's all it took. Rollins covered Lesnar for the three count and took possession of the coveted Universal Championship.
The latest chapter in Rollins' epic story has come to a close. The pen is now firmly in his hand as The Architect begins another chapter in his storied professional wrestling career.
The Good - KofiMania
They said it couldn't be done. He was labeled a B+ player and relegated to the mid-card, as WWE corporate went out of their way to ensure that Kofi Kingston would never receive a world championship opportunity. The supremely talented Kingston didn't whine, he didn't complain. He showed up to work each and every day, kept his head down, and performed to the best of his ability. Then suddenly there was magic and with the WWE Universe solidly behind him, Kingston earned a WWE Championship opportunity at WrestleMania.
The only problem was that one of this generation's greatest in-ring technicians, Daniel Bryan, stood in his way. Kingston kicked and clawed as if he was fighting for his own life. He fought like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders, but Kingston would never give in. He couldn't. Too many people were depending on his success. Kofi had been kept down for too long and clawing with all he had, he could now see the surface. There was light at the end of the tunnel and he could get there; if only he could muster something from deep inside.
Kingston did it with the support of his closest friends, who celebrated after his victory, hoisting the new hero upon their shoulders. Xavier Woods wept as one of his own was forever immortalized with the all-time greatest WrestleMania competitors. An emotional Woods could be heard shouting, "They said we couldn't make it. We made it to the top." He was right. This is the very top and no one could ever take this away from them.
WWE commentary summed it up with the following,
"No matter who you are, no matter where you come from, no matter what you look like, if you can believe, you can make it happen."
Kofi Kingston is a believer and he has made believers of us all.
The Good - Roman Reigns Is Back
Roman Reigns truly shocked the world with the announcement that he would be relinquishing his Universal Championship to focus on his battle with leukemia. He was too young, too strong. Cancer doesn't happen to people like that, to ring gladiators in the prime of their career, with chiseled physiques, and superhuman feats of strength. We were in denial and our tears clouded our judgment. Cancer affects everyone.
Reigns left wrestling for six months, but we all celebrated when he returned to RAW to announce that his leukemia was in remission. We were all jubilant, all of us with the exception of Drew McIntyre. McIntyre was supposed to be the man to carry the RAW brand in Reigns' absence, but that didn't work out according to plan and Reigns returned much sooner than anticipated.
He prodded at Reigns, provoking him with attacks on his family, and disrespected the returning legend by using leukemia as storyline fodder. This match was deeply personal for Roman Reigns, but would the legendary WWE Superstar be ready? It was six months since his last solo match, an eternity in the world of professional wrestling. After a battle with leukemia, what could he possibly have left? We would soon find out.
Reigns wasn't wrestling only for himself. As Corey Graves put it, Reigns was wrestling, "For anyone who has suffered, who has battled illness."
McIntyre is bigger than Reigns, more physically imposing, ruthless, and isn't afraid to express himself with merciless brutality. What he didn't account for was Reigns' true superpower: his heart. With a superman punch and a spear, Reigns was back and the Big Dog had put an exclamation point on his return from leukemia.
After the match, an emotional Reigns made his way to the nearest turnbuckle and with tears in his eyes, offered thanks because for Joe Anoa'i WrestleMania 35 was very much about faith and answered prayers.
The Good - WWE Women Make History
Progress doesn't happen suddenly. Progress isn't something that takes us by surprise or happens overnight while we slumber. Progress is the result of small steps and their cumulative inch by inch advancement over time. When I was young, in the 1990s, Alundra Blayze was the torchbearer for WWE's Women's Division. Blayze was way ahead of her time, a superb athlete with a take no prisoners attitude.
She seldom had more than a single challenger to her women's title and her championship defenses were too often afterthoughts or filler matches. It all ended with her famously trashing her title on an episode of Monday Night Nitro. She hoped for greener pastures on the other side but found none. It wasn't time. Flash forward to the late 1990s and 2000s and the women's division had de-evolved to pillow fights, dance-offs, and lingerie shows.
Alundra Blayze, a model for today's women, was gone and replaced with actual models who oftentimes had no wrestling ability. As wrestling fans grew more savvy and desired actual wrestling in their wrestling matches, women's matches became the bathroom break portion of the show. Fans could be seen leaving their seats at the start of the matches but had to hurry. The matches rarely lasted more than five minutes, which was rare. The old ways then began to pass away.
Then came Paige, and AJ Lee, and Natalya Neidhart. Things were changing and for the better. WWE was seeking athletes, professional wrestlers with technical prowess and in-ring acumen. Paige, Lee, and Neidhart made way to Sasha Banks, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch. The four wrestlers were known collectively as the Four Horsewomen. They became the calvary that fueled the Women's Revolution in WWE.
Meanwhile, in another sport altogether there was another revolution. UFC's Ronda Rousey was becoming a household name. With her physically imposing style and brunt force brutality, she frightened even the toughest competitors, who male or female knew that Rousey would destroy them in a fight. Eventually, Rousey would make her way to WWE and the rest is history.
Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and Ronda Rousey made history by being named the first women to ever main event a WrestleMania and they exceeded any expectations despite the burden of history on their shoulders. With literal blood, sweat, and tears the three history makers left everything in the ring. Ultimately, Lynch was declared the winner besting her two counterparts, but she wasn't the only one. Women won tonight and we are all better for it.
The Bad - Baron Corbin
Baron Corbin was victorious against Kurt Angle in what was the WWE Hall of Famer's last ever match. It's understandable that Angle would want to leave professional wrestling and do the old school thing, by putting over a younger talent. Angle wanted to invest in someone that would use the victory to catapult his own career and, in turn, give back to the sport he gave his life too.
Corbin; however, is the wrong person for the job. WWE obviously believes that Corbin has heat, but lacks big victories or big match experience. The thinking is that a victory over Angle would give Corbin both heat and legitimacy, but Corbin doesn't have actual heat, not the good kind anyway. Corbin has go-home heat; the fans no longer want to see him anywhere near a wrestling ring.
Corbin floundered on the SmackDown Live brand but moved over to RAW with a newly shaved head and a new Constable gimmick to add, but nothing took. Despite a preponderance of natural athletic ability, Corbin lacks the skill set for success in professional wrestling. He has no visible charm, lacks any sign of charisma, and shows a complete inability to get over in any meaningful way.
John Cena would have been a better choice but was wasted in a laughable promo spot with Elias. Cena brought back his Thuganomics character and rapped in an effort to "bury" Elias with his "golden shovel," but one of the greatest wrestlers of all time was present and not in a match despite his historical connection to Angle. The John Cena era began in a match against Angle and he inducted Angle to the WWE Hall of Fame, so why Baron Corbin?
If not Cena, imagine another younger, more talented, and deserving Superstar in Corbin's place. Could Mustafa Ali have better utilized the opportunity? What could he have done with a win over Angle and what might that have meant to his career? What about Aleister Black or Richochet or Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole, or even Pete Dunne? Yet, WWE found logic in choosing the man that everyone simply wants to go away.
The Bad - Carmella
The WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal was disappointing and not the match itself so much as its final outcome. The culmination featured the Riott Squad's Sara Logan alone in the ring only to be surprised by Carmella (who was hiding outside) and then promptly eliminated. It's nothing we haven't seen numerous times before in WWE's world of stale creative scripting, yet the powers that be thought it would be a good surprise finish.
Asuka, one of the greatest female Superstars of all time, was in this match on the Kickoff Show only weeks after holding the SmackDown Women's Championship. Ember Moon was also featured, returning from an injury the commentary team inexplicably failed to mention. The Riott Squad was in the bout, as were Mady Rose and Sonya Deville.
Dana Brooke has too often been silenced in WWE with her talents too often hidden. She was recently given the opportunity to tell her story on Lilian Garcia's Chasing Glory podcast and fans have been moved to support her. The crowd was solidly behind Brooke and even booed when she was eliminated, but this was all lost on WWE creative who still fail to allow Brooke the opportunities she has earned.
Then there was Lacey Evans, who wasn't even in the match. Despite working house shows, Evans hasn't wrestled a match yet on WWE television. She instead simply parades like a model and then promptly leaves the arena with no explanation. This has gone on for months now and while she was rumored to debut at the WrestleMania Women's Battle Royal, there was no such luck.
Carmella had her run as SmackDown Women's Champion and she was universally disliked by fans and WWE Hall of Famers alike. Shortly after dropping the title, Carmella changed her hair color and her character. She teamed with R-Truth and became a dancer of sorts, like a more exquisitely adorned version of a Bushwacker.
How will WWE build off this big win for Carmella? If WrestleMania 35 was any indicator, it won't be good. Carmella later appeared alongside R-Truth to lead the audience in a "7-second" dance break, which was nothing more than pure filler. Embarrassingly, most in the audience did not budge and there was almost no reaction whatsoever. Wrestling fans don't need dance breaks. We simply need a break from this kind of silliness.
The Ugly - 8 Hours
So, it wasn't exactly 8 hours, but it was close, too close for any semblance of comfort. There's a reason why the traditional workday is 8 hours. It's because the gods hate us and want to maximize our suffering. In all seriousness, no wrestling show should come anywhere near eight hours. It isn't fun, so much as it is utterly exhausting.
Between the Kickoff Show and the official WrestleMania 35 card, there were a whopping 16 matches. With matches in abundance, there is no possible way for every match to get its due, or to receive the proper crowd reaction and participation. After the fifth hour or so, the crowd is exhausted and rightfully so.
The show should be cut in half. A 4-5 hour show is plenty and WWE can do so by eliminating nonsense like 7-second dance breaks and B-list SNL celebrity appearances. Joan Jett is amazing, one of the greatest rock and roll performers in history, but do you think that even registers with an audience that just endured 8 hours of professional wrestling?
A month from now, will you fondly remember Samoa Joe vs Rey Mysterio? What about Finn Balor vs Bobby Lashley? It was a good match but lost in a card that was oversaturated in abundance. Is there a need for multiple tag team fatal 4 ways and multiple no rules oriented matches?
The Kickoff Show alone is two-thirds of what a traditional pay-per-view used to be. Can we at least shorten that some? A thirty-minute Kickoff Show with one match, instead of 4 would be much better and keep the audience more engaged for the main show. These are the matches most wrestling fans actually care about, so why is WWE hell bent in exhausting us before we even get there?
If WWE finds it absolutely necessary to cram eight hours of entertainment down the throat of wrestling fans, why can't they make WrestleMania a two-day experience with two separate main events? It would certainly help split the monotony up and give us wrestling fans a chance to be engaged in the action we all so passionately love.
