One of my favorite things in WWE history is Undertaker beating up David Flair and David asks Undertaker, "What are you doing? Undertaker responds, "I'm whooping your ass!"
I was there in Toronto that night. A few notes: 1. The Sunday Night Heat match was Rikishi, Scotty 2 Hottie and Albert vs. Mr. Perfect, Lance Storm and Test. This is the first and only time I ever saw Curt Hennig perform live. 2. The video of the Hogan-Rock match doesn't do the crowd justice. To this day, it's the loudest I've ever heard a crowd in a match from beginning to end. It was that perfect storm - it was a great match and great atmosphere. One of my favorite live matches in my 40 years of going to shows. 3. To this day, I don't understand why they didn't have Trish go over in Toronto. If they wanted to try and revive the crowd after that epic Hogan-Rock match, that would've been the way to do it. 4. As loud as the crowd was during Hogan-Rock, we were absolutely spent for Triple H-Jericho. It wasn't a horrible match, but it was a really bad decision to put them on last. I was debating leaving before this, but I had never seen a World title change hands live, so I decided to stay. Add to that the horrible angle with Jericho being Steph's bitch and treated as a complete afterthought - DESPITE BEING THE UNDISPUTED CHAMPION - the crowd just didn't care. As I said to my buddy at the time, "It was like watching porn after having an orgasm."
I was there too, and this is all spot on as far the crowd reaction goes for Hogan/Rock. 100% should’ve gone on last because the crowd was virtually dead for Jericho/HHH. Some people definitely headed out before the finish to beat the traffic. We showed up a bit late by the time it took to find parking etc. Definitely missed the 6 man tag as a result. 😢
@@stevenbryant8160I’ve been to two WrestleManias - this one and number 20. The triple threat at 20 is the best live match I’ve ever seen. Worst live March I’ve ever seen: Fred Blassie vs. Lou Albano in a steel cage. In 1995.
I normally don't comment but Brian posting this at this exact time is needed for me. My mom passed away today and I'll potentially be homeless soon so I need some escape. Thanks Z-Man.
@@WrestlingWithWregret thanks man. Today was an awful lot, but luckily the homeless part has been solved. My mom's landlord said I could stay until I found an apartment of my own with should be in the next few weeks to month or so. So, that's a bit of light in this dark time.
Prayers to you my friend . May your mother rest in peace and in the Mighty name of Jesus may you find solace and a place to stay . Reach out to the Lord and he will provide . Give Him a chance , what would it hurt . Regardless I will pray for you . If you live in Kentucky maybe I can help you .
5:39 It was actually Page's personal pink Cadillac. He got the part through Bushwacker Luke who was a regular at his nightclub and knew he had that car. He told Pat Patterson when the Federation was looking for a cool entrance for Rhythm'n'Blues and the rest is history.😉
I know it's played out to say but, blame Vince. I'm just saying there's a reason Sting stayed away from WWE for so long and in hindsight, he should've kept it that way.
@@redbigun Vince was bipolar. He made booker look weak in the invasion story and ddp 10 times weaker. But he made Jericho, Eddy, benoit and rey reach the most success of their careers. Makes no sense
@@thebrandamonium4642 before that even happened he was booked terribly. Made him into stalker and was made as a joke by the undertaker. This is the same ddp who was arguably the 2nd biggest babyface of the Monday night wars behind sting.
23:17 Jack Don with the SMOOTHEST spot with Kevin Nash is something that can’t go unnoticed, the slide perfectly landing where Nash could elbow dropped him!
Only slide that’s as good as Doan’s here is Charles Robinson flying down the Ramp in the main event of WM 24; he made a perfect sliding stop when he ran in to count for Edge.
I believe it's right after Taker & Flair topple over the announce table is the point where Taker admitted that he saw Flair still had reservations about whether or not he could still go as a wrestler, prompting Taker to literally say "You're Ric Flair!" to him, and according to Taker that was enough to finally convince Flair that he could indeed still be "The Man", resulting in Flair becoming a full time wrestler again until his "retirement" in 2008.
The shampoo angle should of been part of the Undertaker and Ric Flair match. Undertaker: I beat up Arn Anderson! Ric Flair: 🤷 Undertaker: I beat up your son! Ric Flair: 🤷 Undertaker: I got the Japanese shampoo commercial. Ric Flair: You SOB!
Tne guys a partisan hack. His wrestling content is good, buts he has essentially hit his peak unless he stops pushing his male feminism on the viewers.
19:25 Apparently, this was supposed to be a hair vs. hair match but Booker T refused because he was just starting to grow his hair out and didn't want to start over. So they did the Edge vs. Angle hair vs. hair match instead. (I remember this from Whatculture's 10 Fascinating Facts About WrestleMania X8 video from the pre-Cultaholic days)
I was there in the 5th row and to this day when someone talks about WrestleMania 18 at the sky dome I get chills down my spine and goosebumps. It was such an amazing time. You can see me holding up the yellow and pink sign at the 3-minute and 52nd what's my name Ken. That is so awesome
Man, Rock and Hogan is one of the best crowd matches ever. Talk about a white hot crowd reaction. Toronto going ballistic throughout. Seriously, should have been the main event. Also, that spinebuster by Arn Anderson *chef’s kiss*
I was so mad Flair lost. I couldn't care less about the streak I'm such a Flair fan. And yes the wrong match closed the show. I don't know what Tripl... uh WWE was thinking that any match could outshine Rock vs Hogan. And it wasn't like they haven't had WWE title matches in the middle of the show before (WM8; SummerSlam 92; King of the Ring 93 immediately come to mind) so that's not a justification. I'm actually surprised Rock and Hogan didn't use their pull to move that match up the card.
To be fair Trips had gotten the BIGGEST POP EVER in MSG in January. I know there's hot matches that had bigger pops...but Triple H was so awesome in 2000/2001.... He was my favorite WWE guy at the time. (My favorite WCW/WCW guys Steiner and Mike Awesome were at home or jobbed out by McMahon)
@@JimEdmonds-po9rx I'll concede all that is true but with 1) Hogan's mania return 2) The pillar of the Golden era vs the 1B in the Attitude era 3) they marketed it as "Icon vs Icon" and 4) the world title storyline was super underwhelming it's still surprising they didn't think Rock Hogan wouldn't be the match with the most juice going into that event
Fun fact about the Molly door spot: According to Molly, they had to do two takes. The first time they did it, the door fell off its hinges and onto Molly. They were hurrying to get the door off and she continued to sell it or no sold it from whichever perspective you want to look at it from.
I was 22 days old when WrestleMania 18 took place! So I don’t remember it, but my mom told me my grandpa sit me down and to watch the show and smiled the whole time!
Rock vs Hogan is a perfect example of what pro wrestling is and why it's popular. You could take literally any match that has gotten a 5 star rating or higher and it would have suffered the same fate as Triple H vs Jericho. Overall this is probably my favorite WrestleMania because of all that happened. All the titles were defended, DDP and the nWo were on the card for the first and only time, Ric Flair vs Undertaker was amazing and was the start of the streak, it just really clicked for me even though in retrospect there's some things I would change (Hogan vs. Rock should have ended the PPV, Austin should have been champ defending against Triple H, Jericho should have fought Angle, Kane should have been part of Booker T vs Edge).
I was at this show! It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life! The energy in that building was like nothing I've ever felt before, or since! This was at the height of my fandom, too. So I was just on cloud 9 that entire weekend!
Delicious scrambled brains is such a brilliant term 😂 Don't worry about Kanes lack of storyline though Brian because they have this incredible Katie Vick story line for him coming up 😃
Rock v Hogan is still one of the go-to matches for me to show people in my peer group to show how the theatrics of professional wrestling is what draws you in. Not everyone becomes a fan afterwards, but they all come away with an understanding of why people get invested. Easily one of my favortie matches of all time.
Absolutely. Meltzer has lost any shred of credibility because of his infatuation with being cool with the middle aged bucks. In his eyes, Angle has never had a 5 star match but everyone in aew has. That’s a joke.
I agree so much about the flair vs taker match, it's great. It's so 80s NWA in 2002 WWE. Also Flair's hair in 2002 was his second best hair after the 80s locks
I remember when Dave from Drowning Pool died. I was 8 years old, and when my mom told me about it, my response was "but he was just at Wrestlemania"... very sad memory, and one of my first shocking celebrity death experiences
I know people like to tout that Wrestlemania X7 was seen as the end of the Attitude Era, but I feel like X8 was underrated. Because not only was it really the true end of the Attitude Era knowing that a couple months later, they went from WWF to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era began but also it felt like the end of the Monday Night War (spiritually speaking after the end of WCW in 2001) since the nWo came to the WWE after The Alliance fell. Then Hulk Hogan turned face again and ended the nWo. Also, you gotta love Drowning Pool and Saliva as the theme songs at this Mania.
100% agree. Especially looking at the card, there's a lot of WWE guy vs. WCW guy matches. Maybe not all dream matches, but to me this felt more like what the Invasion should have been.
I think it was an in between WrestleMania, it was the bridge between attitude and ruthless aggression. Triple H ascends to the top, Cena, Orton, and Batista debut not long after
Ive searched for this for years just in case you released it without me noticing! So glad you have done it. One of the greatest matches of all time just because of crowd reaction.
I feel so bad for Jazz, Lita, and Trish. The crowd is visibly exhausted, there isn't even a decent pop for Lita trying to take her shirt off (including her bra breaking). The tough part for Austin is, who could he have faced if not Hall? Hogan and Jericho are taken, and no one else is on his level.
Why not Kurt Angle? It's not like Kurt needed to have his Mania match be in the mid-card against Kane? Although I suppose that had them feud not that long ago so they probably didn't want to do it over again?
@@gatchywatchyentertainmentb2090 Austin turned down facing Hogan because he felt it wouldn't have worked. Personally I think Austin vs HHH should've been the match at WM18.
Cornette said it best: “These guys tore the f*cking house down and neither one even came off the second rope.” It’s not about moves, it’s not about spots, it’s not about “having a banger” (I f*cking hate that term). These were two well established characters that people cared about that had a well built conflict that they were going to settle. Thats the essence of professional wrestling, right there.
I will never forgive this show, not because of the show itself, but that the GameCube game of the same moniker wasn't half as good as the last WWF game on a Nintendo console (No Mercy). I was daydreaming about that game and it was probably the biggest disappointment in gaming for me personally.
That game is interesting because it came out after they lost the WWF name so it really is WWE WrestleMania X-8 and I believe it also has two covers because Austin was on the initial one but then he walked out of the company
I got see this WM live. The whole day was one of the best ever. I had never seen so many people in one place. And just being to experience Rock vs Hogan live was something I'll never forget
Really love this channel! Everything from the “him bottom”, “d*** kick city”, and the in depth details. It’s all entertaining, thanks for your contributions! 🔥
"HE BEAT ANDRE THE GIANT WITH THAT MOVE!" is my favorite call of all-time. Just invoking his name in that context puts over Andre as this mythical, unbeatable giant. It puts over Hogan big time because... he beat him. And it puts the Rock over even bigger because kicked out. JR made 3 guys sound like Gods with one well-placed sentence. JR at his best was so far ahead of any competition that its like theres no competition at all.
This Wrestlemania holds a special place in my heart. My uncle owned this on DVD when I was growing up and I watched it on repeat and I do mean REPEAT! Thank you Brian and Zoroopy!
This is easily one of my favorite WWF paper views of all time. I had it on VHS as a kid and watched it so many times as a kid with friends and family. So many good memories.
Can't wait for Wrestlemania to come back to Toronto! It's been WAY too long! We've had 3 out of the big 4 PLE's.... so if we can't get Mania again...... maybe a Rumble to finish off the Big 4 checklist?! Another great review, Z-man!
Happy to say I’ve thrifted Aggression and Forceable Entry over the years. Now hopefully this is a step toward a classic W3 review for Forceable Entry in full. Couple of classics on that one (Just Another Victim, Whatever).
JR has yelled "BAH GAWD" at the top of his lungs enough to be on loop in my brain, but none of them compare to him just muttering "Oh, my God" in genuine astonishment at Hogan Hulking up for the first time in forever
This is my favorite Wrestlemania of all time, I don't know exactly why and I can't pin down the reason as to why, but what I can say is Rock vs Hogan, Kane vs Angle, and Taker vs Flair were the top three out of the show. I actually loved the set too, I loved the big giant X with the hanging lights, the LED monoliths going up and down. The two giant titantrons at the top. It's cool!
@18:16 😂😂 best part of this video! Laughed for a good 3 mins at the next 30 seconds of this point in the review. love the channel Brian! Keep kayfabe kitchen alive
18:30 I'm Japanese and even I found the "wrestlers fighting over Japanese shampoo" angle to be ridiculously campy. Jee, I hope WWE doesn't use another Japanese angle at a future Wrestlemania that has nothing to do with the city its held (Poor Big Show in Wrestlemania 21).
Spent the evening of my 21st birthday on that night, March 17, 2002 at my friends place as we and a few other friends of his watched the show at his place. It was his way (buying the PPV) of imparting a gift upon me and I have been eternally grateful for now just over 22 years.
Before anyone asks ... NO, I don't know why I kept calling Billy & Chuck "B&G" in my notes! 😄
Billy and Gunn, Z-Man. Sounds like a forgotten 70s cop show.
You good I calls them the Billy and Chuck like the Iron Sheik would call them. 😅😅😅😅😅
The BG's
Playing too much Baldur's Gate? 😂
Damn WWE F---ed Up DDP Real Bad He Gone From Stalker To Tony Robbins Wannabe.
One of my favorite things in WWE history is Undertaker beating up David Flair and David asks Undertaker, "What are you doing? Undertaker responds, "I'm whooping your ass!"
This was a solid review 👍
I believe the proper way it was said is “I’m (kick) kicking your a**, what do you think I’m doing?” 😂😂
Lol
I can't believe it took him this long to review this Mania. This shit was pinnacle of my kidhood. Great shit
And every late-era WCW fan cheered.
That Scott hall sell to stunner will always be iconic. RIP Scott Hall
He looked like he was jumping on a trampoline
Also crash holly.
Hall was an all-time seller. Look at his program with 123 Kid
Hall and Austin was tight irl. I genuinely believe The Bad Guy tried to make him look as good as possible here lol
And the ref slide 🎿
“He beat Andre The Giant with that move” is probably the greatest wrestling call of all time!
Awesome line. Makes Andre feel like the mythic force of nature that he was.
It's like saying "he beat Jesus Christ himself and God too with that move!"
No it's nothing like that you blasphemous fool@@MrSuperdelf
It's gotta be right up there with "as god as my witness he is broken in half"
@@havensouljah Nah. That he's broken in half line has become a meme, IMO.
I was there in Toronto that night. A few notes:
1. The Sunday Night Heat match was Rikishi, Scotty 2 Hottie and Albert vs. Mr. Perfect, Lance Storm and Test. This is the first and only time I ever saw Curt Hennig perform live.
2. The video of the Hogan-Rock match doesn't do the crowd justice. To this day, it's the loudest I've ever heard a crowd in a match from beginning to end. It was that perfect storm - it was a great match and great atmosphere. One of my favorite live matches in my 40 years of going to shows.
3. To this day, I don't understand why they didn't have Trish go over in Toronto. If they wanted to try and revive the crowd after that epic Hogan-Rock match, that would've been the way to do it.
4. As loud as the crowd was during Hogan-Rock, we were absolutely spent for Triple H-Jericho. It wasn't a horrible match, but it was a really bad decision to put them on last. I was debating leaving before this, but I had never seen a World title change hands live, so I decided to stay. Add to that the horrible angle with Jericho being Steph's bitch and treated as a complete afterthought - DESPITE BEING THE UNDISPUTED CHAMPION - the crowd just didn't care. As I said to my buddy at the time, "It was like watching porn after having an orgasm."
Kind of annoyed that Mr Perfect was at WM18 but wasn't wrestling Kurt Angle, gonna be honest.
Kurt vs Curt.
Kurtain-Call.
Writes itself.
How many wrestlermanias have you been too and what the greatest match you ever seen if not this one ?
3.
Vince LOVED having wrestlers lose in their hometowns. He was obsessed with it.
I was there too, and this is all spot on as far the crowd reaction goes for Hogan/Rock. 100% should’ve gone on last because the crowd was virtually dead for Jericho/HHH. Some people definitely headed out before the finish to beat the traffic.
We showed up a bit late by the time it took to find parking etc. Definitely missed the 6 man tag as a result. 😢
@@stevenbryant8160I’ve been to two WrestleManias - this one and number 20. The triple threat at 20 is the best live match I’ve ever seen.
Worst live March I’ve ever seen: Fred Blassie vs. Lou Albano in a steel cage. In 1995.
"Arn Anderson? That old horseman ought to be in the glue factory!" Jerry Lawler was hilarious during this show🤣🤣
Daniel Tosh probably loved that line 😂
@@claymathewselevator8121 so much, he got a boner.
I normally don't comment but Brian posting this at this exact time is needed for me. My mom passed away today and I'll potentially be homeless soon so I need some escape. Thanks Z-Man.
Damn dude, sorry to hear! My sincere condolences, hope everything works out for ya!
@@WrestlingWithWregret thanks man. Today was an awful lot, but luckily the homeless part has been solved. My mom's landlord said I could stay until I found an apartment of my own with should be in the next few weeks to month or so. So, that's a bit of light in this dark time.
My condolences on your mother's passing, and I hope you can get a new place ASAP.
You have literally commented 21 times before.
Prayers to you my friend . May your mother rest in peace and in the Mighty name of Jesus may you find solace and a place to stay . Reach out to the Lord and he will provide . Give Him a chance , what would it hurt . Regardless I will pray for you . If you live in Kentucky maybe I can help you .
Al Snow crashing though the boxes with a golf cart will never get old lmao
Silly Al snow
@@Psycho-Crusher693 “Look at that idiot!” 😂🤣💀
5:39 It was actually Page's personal pink Cadillac. He got the part through Bushwacker Luke who was a regular at his nightclub and knew he had that car. He told Pat Patterson when the Federation was looking for a cool entrance for Rhythm'n'Blues and the rest is history.😉
The bushwhackers also came thru
Never forget that “Japanese shampoo commercial “ Booker t and edge were fighting over
Fighting over shampoo. Top 10 sign ever lol
Or that they revisited it on Edge and Christian’s Network show (still on Peacock)!
Let us also never forget that Kane & Chris Jericho fought over Coffee 😆
Meanwhile, the feud that actually involved a hair versus hair match (Edge vs. Kurt Angle) wasn't the one about shampoo.
It’s the Friday the 13th part 5 of feuds.
A fun fact: the door that molly holly hit actually fell on her and they had to reshoot it
That Stephanie attire is still in WWE
Games today.😂
Not so fun for Molly.
It was a fact but not very fun
Fun facts need to be off topic,ie: fun fact a door fell on me while I watched this
LOL'd at the Ric Flair "Yeth I do!"
The diamond cutter bit is my favorite bit on this channel
Shoulders back, chest out
But what about yapppipie….i love yapppipie
I liked the two part joke of "Edge hits his O-Matic" and "Hall hits his Edge."
Billy Gunn's sell of the Clothesline from Hell is so over the top that its hilarious.
He did that first at No Way Out
DDP could’ve been a lot bigger in wwe. He wasn’t a big ego guy so it sucks how his career just took a huge nose dive
I know it's played out to say but, blame Vince.
I'm just saying there's a reason Sting stayed away from WWE for so long and in hindsight, he should've kept it that way.
@@redbigun Vince was bipolar. He made booker look weak in the invasion story and ddp 10 times weaker. But he made Jericho, Eddy, benoit and rey reach the most success of their careers. Makes no sense
He broke his neck and had to semi-retire. Not sure how Vince had anything to do with that.
@@thebrandamonium4642 before that even happened he was booked terribly. Made him into stalker and was made as a joke by the undertaker. This is the same ddp who was arguably the 2nd biggest babyface of the Monday night wars behind sting.
@@hjgkhk-h2u the point is why not book him well ? A solid 2-3 years would’ve been fine.
23:17 Jack Don with the SMOOTHEST spot with Kevin Nash is something that can’t go unnoticed, the slide perfectly landing where Nash could elbow dropped him!
Reminded me of the old slip n slide commercials!
Only slide that’s as good as Doan’s here is Charles Robinson flying down the Ramp in the main event of WM 24; he made a perfect sliding stop when he ran in to count for Edge.
Booker T’s high school thesis…Einstein’s Theory of Relatives 😂🤣💀
That sounds like R Truth would say 😂
Reminds me of the rock roasting him. “Booker what’s 2+2? THOMAS JEFFERSON SUCKA!!!”
I believe it's right after Taker & Flair topple over the announce table is the point where Taker admitted that he saw Flair still had reservations about whether or not he could still go as a wrestler, prompting Taker to literally say "You're Ric Flair!" to him, and according to Taker that was enough to finally convince Flair that he could indeed still be "The Man", resulting in Flair becoming a full time wrestler again until his "retirement" in 2008.
I think he didn't follow through with the last ride because flair couldn't take a flat back bump
that and the many alimony payments....
The shampoo angle should of been part of the Undertaker and Ric Flair match.
Undertaker: I beat up Arn Anderson!
Ric Flair: 🤷
Undertaker: I beat up your son!
Ric Flair: 🤷
Undertaker: I got the Japanese shampoo commercial.
Ric Flair: You SOB!
🤣
None related but I’m shocked this brilliant channel doesn’t have 1M subs yet 🤦🏾♂️
Because the corny dude thinks everything is "tasteless" lmao
Tne guys a partisan hack. His wrestling content is good, buts he has essentially hit his peak unless he stops pushing his male feminism on the viewers.
Every time I think of Rock Vs. Hogan all I can hear is Brian say "The Rock puts on his terrible Sharpshooter" 😂
The shitshooter
From Wrestlemania 9 to Wrestlemania 21
We now have a complete Connection
Just need 17 and 21 to get unblocked
@@kenyonjjackson2000
Copyright Blocks
They are always a pain
Do 7 and 8 and we'll have the first 21
Just need 22 and 24 to make a complete connection to 27
Can't wait for the gap from Summerslam 94' to 97' to be bridged lol.
"Goddammit Mabel FUCK!"
Going back to Rock vs Hogan, that audience was louder than i remembered. I don't think I've seen a crowd this into a match.
19:25 Apparently, this was supposed to be a hair vs. hair match but Booker T refused because he was just starting to grow his hair out and didn't want to start over. So they did the Edge vs. Angle hair vs. hair match instead.
(I remember this from Whatculture's 10 Fascinating Facts About WrestleMania X8 video from the pre-Cultaholic days)
@Michael-cz6ob Whatculture had your reply in their "Top 10 Replies to Whatculture-referencing-comments"
And I don't think Booker's cut his hair since then
Good for Booker to refuse, shame on those who didn't.
@@str.77all your comments are awful
Kevin Nash was indeed super shredder
Fire movie, I don’t care what anyone says.
@@gatchywatchyentertainmentb2090agreed
Sheamus and Kevin Nash both fought Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
@@gatchywatchyentertainmentb2090 secret of the ooze is my favorite Ninja turtle movie next to the original
@@claymathewselevator8121 fun fact CM punk was originally supposed to be in out of the shadows
Jack Doane’s slide into the ring is one for the ages. Unfortunately it was immediately overshadowed by Hall’s selling of the stunner.
*23:17* That slide was smooth AF
I loved how Arn came out of nowhere to hit the Spinebuster in the Taker match.
It was amazing seeing this happen real-time(on PPV) with Hogan and The Rock.
Watching it on PPV and I will never forget the crowd. They made that match even more special.
My friends and I were 13 and would recreate the Rock and Hogan's face to face interactions.
I was there in the 5th row and to this day when someone talks about WrestleMania 18 at the sky dome I get chills down my spine and goosebumps. It was such an amazing time. You can see me holding up the yellow and pink sign at the 3-minute and 52nd what's my name Ken. That is so awesome
Man, Rock and Hogan is one of the best crowd matches ever. Talk about a white hot crowd reaction. Toronto going ballistic throughout. Seriously, should have been the main event.
Also, that spinebuster by Arn Anderson *chef’s kiss*
I was so mad Flair lost. I couldn't care less about the streak I'm such a Flair fan.
And yes the wrong match closed the show. I don't know what Tripl... uh WWE was thinking that any match could outshine Rock vs Hogan. And it wasn't like they haven't had WWE title matches in the middle of the show before (WM8; SummerSlam 92; King of the Ring 93 immediately come to mind) so that's not a justification. I'm actually surprised Rock and Hogan didn't use their pull to move that match up the card.
The fact it didn't go on last still baffles me.
@@kennyhunter23 Triple H would not allow that lol
To be fair Trips had gotten the BIGGEST POP EVER in MSG in January. I know there's hot matches that had bigger pops...but Triple H was so awesome in 2000/2001.... He was my favorite WWE guy at the time. (My favorite WCW/WCW guys Steiner and Mike Awesome were at home or jobbed out by McMahon)
@@JimEdmonds-po9rx I'll concede all that is true but with 1) Hogan's mania return 2) The pillar of the Golden era vs the 1B in the Attitude era 3) they marketed it as "Icon vs Icon" and 4) the world title storyline was super underwhelming it's still surprising they didn't think Rock Hogan wouldn't be the match with the most juice going into that event
Fun fact about the Molly door spot: According to Molly, they had to do two takes. The first time they did it, the door fell off its hinges and onto Molly. They were hurrying to get the door off and she continued to sell it or no sold it from whichever perspective you want to look at it from.
Fun facts need to be off topic.This is just a fact about the show
16:35. Seriously NOBODY does a better spine buster in history than Double A!
Booker T in his first year in WWE showed just how insanely funny and entertaining he could be
I look forward to whenever Brian reviews Judgement Day 2002 because of the Booker T and Goldust hotel skit from that show.
I was 22 days old when WrestleMania 18 took place! So I don’t remember it, but my mom told me my grandpa sit me down and to watch the show and smiled the whole time!
Slime?
@@bink Smiled! I suck at spelling
@@lastdayonearthmysteryman4849 🙂
I was two days old when this shit happened lol
I was 16 years old when this shit happen.Yall missed some good ass wrestling in the 90s The NWO,Shawn Michaels Bret Hart ect
And with that, Brian has now reviewed EVERY WrestleMania 10-19 on his channel!
And 20, btw.
That Molly Holly bump was spectacular, I know it's super easy to make that look harsh and it be super safe but it still looks amazing
Rock vs Hogan is a perfect example of what pro wrestling is and why it's popular. You could take literally any match that has gotten a 5 star rating or higher and it would have suffered the same fate as Triple H vs Jericho.
Overall this is probably my favorite WrestleMania because of all that happened. All the titles were defended, DDP and the nWo were on the card for the first and only time, Ric Flair vs Undertaker was amazing and was the start of the streak, it just really clicked for me even though in retrospect there's some things I would change (Hogan vs. Rock should have ended the PPV, Austin should have been champ defending against Triple H, Jericho should have fought Angle, Kane should have been part of Booker T vs Edge).
The pop for that Double A spinebuster was insane live
"He beat Andre the Giant with that move!" on top of the reaction to the Hulk Up sequence is probably my favorite call Jim Ross ever made.
Same
Read my mind with the "Nü Metal mania"
I also always thought of Raw from 02-05 as the Nü Metal show
Austin v. Hall was a great match!! Hall selling the final stunner was AWESOME! RIP Bad Guy!
I was at this show! It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life! The energy in that building was like nothing I've ever felt before, or since! This was at the height of my fandom, too. So I was just on cloud 9 that entire weekend!
I have only seen most of these PPV's once on their original run that you review Brian. Takes me down memory lane. Thanks for doing these.
Not going to talk about how smooth that slide was by the ref. Right in front of nash for that smooth elbow
Delicious scrambled brains is such a brilliant term 😂
Don't worry about Kanes lack of storyline though Brian because they have this incredible Katie Vick story line for him coming up 😃
Rock v Hogan is still one of the go-to matches for me to show people in my peer group to show how the theatrics of professional wrestling is what draws you in.
Not everyone becomes a fan afterwards, but they all come away with an understanding of why people get invested. Easily one of my favortie matches of all time.
24:38 the Vince McMahon documentary is going to be generational..
Indeed it is.
Not really sadly
That Big Show impression REALLY got me 😂 It was legit very good.
There’s your paycheck Paul 😂
This is my personal favorite WrestleMania!! I’ve waited for you to review this show!! I hope you enjoy it!!!
"WrestleMania, baby! WOOOO!" in your Big Show impression was what I was waiting for throughout this review and you did not disappoint, Zane! 😄
Hogan Rock is 5 stars. Not every match is about workrate and spots despite what Meltzer says.
Yep
Well said. It was easily 5 stars.
Absolutely. Meltzer has lost any shred of credibility because of his infatuation with being cool with the middle aged bucks. In his eyes, Angle has never had a 5 star match but everyone in aew has. That’s a joke.
That match wasn't that good, I saw it live on ppv. It was honestly boring. 4 stars tops
Much like Hogan/Andre from Wrestlemania 3 and Hogan/Warrior from Wrestlemania 6 it's more of a spectacle than a traditional match.
Are you kidding? The knowledge that Edge and Booker were fighting over shampoo makes that match even better!
I agree so much about the flair vs taker match, it's great. It's so 80s NWA in 2002 WWE. Also Flair's hair in 2002 was his second best hair after the 80s locks
Good lord that spinebuster by Arn Anderson was incredible😍
I remember when Dave from Drowning Pool died. I was 8 years old, and when my mom told me about it, my response was "but he was just at Wrestlemania"... very sad memory, and one of my first shocking celebrity death experiences
I know people like to tout that Wrestlemania X7 was seen as the end of the Attitude Era, but I feel like X8 was underrated. Because not only was it really the true end of the Attitude Era knowing that a couple months later, they went from WWF to WWE and the Ruthless Aggression Era began but also it felt like the end of the Monday Night War (spiritually speaking after the end of WCW in 2001) since the nWo came to the WWE after The Alliance fell. Then Hulk Hogan turned face again and ended the nWo. Also, you gotta love Drowning Pool and Saliva as the theme songs at this Mania.
100% agree. Especially looking at the card, there's a lot of WWE guy vs. WCW guy matches. Maybe not all dream matches, but to me this felt more like what the Invasion should have been.
I think it was an in between WrestleMania, it was the bridge between attitude and ruthless aggression. Triple H ascends to the top, Cena, Orton, and Batista debut not long after
No Monday night wars was over on march 26 2001 rewatch ur history bruv
@@ahmedmuharram3263 Well, it was over in spirit I should say. Considering that they brought the nWo just to end it there.
I agree. Wm 17 sucks though.
Ive searched for this for years just in case you released it without me noticing! So glad you have done it. One of the greatest matches of all time just because of crowd reaction.
I feel so bad for Jazz, Lita, and Trish. The crowd is visibly exhausted, there isn't even a decent pop for Lita trying to take her shirt off (including her bra breaking).
The tough part for Austin is, who could he have faced if not Hall? Hogan and Jericho are taken, and no one else is on his level.
I preferred the women's match over the main event and Hogan vs Rock
Take Hall and get him to face Rock and Hogan can face Austin. Nash can… Fight Himself. Everyone wins.
Why not Kurt Angle? It's not like Kurt needed to have his Mania match be in the mid-card against Kane? Although I suppose that had them feud not that long ago so they probably didn't want to do it over again?
@@gatchywatchyentertainmentb2090 Austin turned down facing Hogan because he felt it wouldn't have worked. Personally I think Austin vs HHH should've been the match at WM18.
@@BUPMY1 Sounds like some one didn’t wanna do the job.
Been waiting YEARS for this review!!
"That was my first exposure to saliva." Ok then.
“We’re Saliva! And we’re gonna spit all over you!”
"Will you stop?!"
If someone asked me what is a 5 star match I would show them Rock vs Hogan. That match is pro wrestling at its best.
Cornette said it best: “These guys tore the f*cking house down and neither one even came off the second rope.” It’s not about moves, it’s not about spots, it’s not about “having a banger” (I f*cking hate that term). These were two well established characters that people cared about that had a well built conflict that they were going to settle. Thats the essence of professional wrestling, right there.
Absolutely.
Meh
@@frankf684cry about it
I will never forgive this show, not because of the show itself, but that the GameCube game of the same moniker wasn't half as good as the last WWF game on a Nintendo console (No Mercy). I was daydreaming about that game and it was probably the biggest disappointment in gaming for me personally.
THANK you! I literally bought my GameCube on the back of WMX8 and was profoundly disappointed in it! (The game, not the Cube)
@@WrestlingWithWregret I'm so glad I'm not alone in this feeling. Thank YOU Brian.
it got better with day of reckoning
That game is interesting because it came out after they lost the WWF name so it really is WWE WrestleMania X-8 and I believe it also has two covers because Austin was on the initial one but then he walked out of the company
Terrible game, check out wrestlingbios review of it!
'Shoulders back, chest out...'
Not gonna lie, I half expected Brian to follow that up with '...and watch for the shoe.'
Hahahaha 🤣 I get that reference 🤣
Icon vs Icon indeed, especially one of the greatest WrestleManias of all time, cool review as always Brian 💯
"...just stomping away at Kane's dome and his delicious scrambled brains." Laughed out loud. Had to go back and listen to that line a couple times.
Yay finally getting this one covered
I got see this WM live. The whole day was one of the best ever. I had never seen so many people in one place. And just being to experience Rock vs Hogan live was something I'll never forget
One of my fav moments was the Double A Spinebuster on Taker just looked crisp asf along with jr on commentary underrated moment
That actually had u believing for a split second flair was gonna win
One of my fave moments of all time
Really love this channel! Everything from the “him bottom”, “d*** kick city”, and the in depth details. It’s all entertaining, thanks for your contributions! 🔥
"YO! Japanese people..." 😂😂😂
"His-o-Matic". Hell yes. As I always say Brian, keep the "His/Him" move names coming!! They are the absolute best.
23:16 that ref slide is the most impressive move in this entire show. Change my mind.
"HE BEAT ANDRE THE GIANT WITH THAT MOVE!" is my favorite call of all-time. Just invoking his name in that context puts over Andre as this mythical, unbeatable giant. It puts over Hogan big time because... he beat him. And it puts the Rock over even bigger because kicked out. JR made 3 guys sound like Gods with one well-placed sentence.
JR at his best was so far ahead of any competition that its like theres no competition at all.
Hogan/Rock was the REAL main event of this show. The crowd was into it the whole time, which is why it's an all-time classic.
Is it though?
@@frankf684yup, cry about it
This Wrestlemania holds a special place in my heart. My uncle owned this on DVD when I was growing up and I watched it on repeat and I do mean REPEAT! Thank you Brian and Zoroopy!
Finally you review wm18 2002
My favorite we all time
This is easily one of my favorite WWF paper views of all time. I had it on VHS as a kid and watched it so many times as a kid with friends and family. So many good memories.
that crowd during rock vs hogan is crazy we may never see something like that ever again
I've been waiting for this mania review for years!
Fun fact, according to Maven himself on his TH-cam channel, his match here with Goldust was originally meant for Test
He also got alot of heat from Vince for that botched drop kick
As he should. How dare he botches a dropkick on the grandest stage of them all?! 🧐
Can't wait for Wrestlemania to come back to Toronto! It's been WAY too long! We've had 3 out of the big 4 PLE's.... so if we can't get Mania again...... maybe a Rumble to finish off the Big 4 checklist?!
Another great review, Z-man!
Happy to say I’ve thrifted Aggression and Forceable Entry over the years. Now hopefully this is a step toward a classic W3 review for Forceable Entry in full. Couple of classics on that one (Just Another Victim, Whatever).
Everything about that Arn Anderson spinebuster was exceptional.
Thanks for the review Brian ❤
33:39 Does anyone know why The Big Show was not at WM 18? I could not find anything online.
I want a 90210 cut where Luke Perry is replaced by Christian Cage!!! The true father of the year.
JR has yelled "BAH GAWD" at the top of his lungs enough to be on loop in my brain, but none of them compare to him just muttering "Oh, my God" in genuine astonishment at Hogan Hulking up for the first time in forever
I'll always call this Mania as WrestleMania X8 and it will be one of my personal favorite manias in my VHS collection
Zane finally covers the WrestleMania I've always wanted him to review! Let's go!
This is my favorite Wrestlemania of all time, I don't know exactly why and I can't pin down the reason as to why, but what I can say is Rock vs Hogan, Kane vs Angle, and Taker vs Flair were the top three out of the show. I actually loved the set too, I loved the big giant X with the hanging lights, the LED monoliths going up and down. The two giant titantrons at the top. It's cool!
@18:16 😂😂 best part of this video! Laughed for a good 3 mins at the next 30 seconds of this point in the review. love the channel Brian! Keep kayfabe kitchen alive
Hogan vs Rock is easily a 5 star match in my heart, BROTHER!!
Agreed.
24:42 where can I buy that. I need that
18:30 I'm Japanese and even I found the "wrestlers fighting over Japanese shampoo" angle to be ridiculously campy.
Jee, I hope WWE doesn't use another Japanese angle at a future Wrestlemania that has nothing to do with the city its held (Poor Big Show in Wrestlemania 21).
Thank you for doing these reviews, Brian. I always look forward to Wednesdays because of you.
“He beat Andre the Giant with that move” might be Jim Ross best call ever
That’s a loooong list, but that one is definitely towards the top.
Spent the evening of my 21st birthday on that night, March 17, 2002 at my friends place as we and a few other friends of his watched the show at his place. It was his way (buying the PPV) of imparting a gift upon me and I have been eternally grateful for now just over 22 years.
Hogan vs Rock is my favorite Wrestlemania match of all time. They had that crowd eating out of their hand. Never will a crowd be that hype