So I've purchased my subscription to the WWE Network, and I have lost a lot of my life as a result. You can watch every WWF, WCW and ECW pay-per-view in history. Even ECW Heatwave '98!! Along with all those shows, they put new originals and let the new generation shine with the premiere of NXT (their developmental system). If you are a wrestling enthusiast like myself, or a casual wrestling fan, you can't beat the price of $9.99 a month for all that wrasslin'. Now that my endorsement of the WWE Network is over, let's get back to Wrestlemanias six through ten.
Wrestlemania VI: April 1, 1990 - With over 67,000 people packed into the Toronto Sky Dome, the air of a new era can be felt throughout the night. The wrestling product was getting better. The best example of this was the Rockers (Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels) vs. The Orient Express. Fantastic tag bout, and a flare of new flavor. It was cool to see Ax and Smash become tag-team champions in beating the seemingly unstoppable Haku and Andre the Giant. Piper vs. Bad News Brown was interesting to say the least. I don't know how Piper got away with a lot of his promo work. It came off as a bit racist. The icing on the cake was when he came out to the ring, in half black body. Not just black face, but half his body was painted black. The match itself was pretty miserable, but the entertainment value was definitely there. This would never fly these days. The show was capped with the proverbial passing of the torch. The ultimate challenge. Hulk Hogan was the WWF Champion and The Ultimate Warrior was the intercontinental champion. Both were really hot, and both were good guys. There's never been a main event between two good guys fighting for the belt, so it had an interesting dynamic. If I were there live, I'm sure the atmosphere would have been electric. The crowd went absolutely insane when The Ultimate Warrior became champion.
Wrestlemania VII: March 24, 1991 - Well the Ultimate Warrior as champion experiment flopped. And they put Hogan back in the spotlight. This happens a few more times before he high tails it off to WCW. The main event is Sgt. Slaughter, america's second biggest hero, vs. Hulk Hogan. They decided to have Sgt. Slaughter become a bad guy and Iraqi sympathizer. This was right in the middle of the first Gulf War so fans were absolutely livid about his betrayal. I've never seen a more hated man in wrestling, it was awesome. Hogan eventually overcame the odds and beat Slaughter after being mauled for twenty minutes. He hulked up and leg dropped Slaughter back to the 80's. It's unfortunate that Slaughter was only champion for about a month and a half, but good must always triumph over evil. Legion of Doom had their first WM appearance beating Power and Glory. The Rockers had another spectacular match against the Barbarian and Haku. Finally, the Undertaker's undefeated streak by taking about the beloved Jimmy Superfly Snuka.
Wrestlemania VIII: April 5, 1992 - If you stopped this event right after the sixth match, Savage vs. Flair for the WWF Championship, I have claimed that this was one of the greatest Wrestlemanias of all time. Unfortunately it didn't, and we all had to suffer through Hulk Hogan vs. Sid Vicious in the main event. The main event ended with a disqualification, come on man. Why not put Savage vs. Flair on last?? It's for the belt! Oh well. A lot of great moments occurred on the under-card. Shawn Michaels has his first singles match after turning on Marty Jannetty, and eventually becomes Mr. Wrestlemania. Undertaker battles Jake the Snake Roberts in an awesome match, continuing the streak. Bret Hart beats Rowdy Roddy Piper for the intercontinental championship and starts his ascent to the top. Finally, a match that I've always loved. Ric Flair is the best villain to ever grace the squared circle. He can talk his way out of everything, and makes it sting when you fall for it. After coming back from "retirement," Macho Man sets his sights on gold. Flair makes it personal by forging lewd pictures of Miss Elizabeth, and that drives Savage into madness. Savage wins, him and Elizabeth are reunited creating a feel good moment that I can even get on board with.
Wrestlemania IX: April 4, 1993 - That breath of fresh air I mentioned earlier, is in full force when WM nine comes around. A new roster, a new look and wrestlers hungry to make a name for themselves makes WM nine special. With all the Caesar's Palace foolishness aside, this was a great show. I do want to add that Bobby the Brain Heenan coming down to the ring riding a camel backwards, makes this show. Everything he touches is gold. I've always been a Doink the Clown fan. Especially when he was an evil clown. Not the greatest gimmick, but he was an outstanding wrestler. He wrestled Crush on this event, which was ok, but I love hearing the evil Doink entrance music. Shawn Michaels retains his intercontinental championship against Tatanka. I was excited to see Razor Ramon vs. Bob Backlund just because I loved both of their work, but something didn't click there. Undertaker continues his streak with a horrendous match with Giant Gonzales. Man he is bad. Bigger doesn't always mean better. This was the only match Undertaker has won via disqualification at WM. The main event was our Canadian hero Bret Hart vs. the villainous Yokozuna. Yokozuna eliminated Randy Savage at the Royal Rumble to earn his championship match against Bret. The match itself was not bad given the limitations of a huge wrestler. Yokozuna shocked everyone by beating Bret Hart, even though it was controversial. Yokozuna would be the only bad guy to win the championship at WM up to that point. And then Hogan happens. He comes out with a shiner (and a lot of speculation how he got it) and beats Yokozuna in seconds with a leg drop. Way to make your champions look like crap. Hogan wins his last WWF belt before leaving for WCW.
Wrestlemania X: March 20, 1994 - The tenth anniversary of WM was pretty special in it's own way. Most of the wrestling was sub par, but the good wrestling was amazing wrestling. Bret Hart and Owen Hart had the greatest opening match in WM history. The story was stellar and the ring work was spectacular. Owen Hart gets the biggest win of his career when rolling up Bret for the three count. The main even featured a rematch from last year with Yokozuna defending his championship against Bret Hart. Yokozuna defeated Lex Luger in the night so both men would have wrestled once before their match. Bret's leg was injured in his match against Owen so all odds were stacked against him when challenging the all powerful Yokozuna. Shocking fans, Bret gets the win and becomes "the guy" in WWF. Finally WM X featured its very first ladder match with two guys who were out there to steal the show. Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels for the intercontinental championship. It's still regarded as one of the best ladder matches of all time. The new era was finally here after teasing change for a couple years. Vince agrees to stick with the future stars and it pays off in dividends.
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