I became a regular wrestling fan in 2004, so this was my second Wrestlemania. By far, it's the best Wrestlemania I've ever seen. Filled with a stack of blockbuster matches as well as fantastic Hollywood trailers. The match of the night was clearly the Angle/Michaels match which has you on the edge of your seat throughout.

Wrestlemania Goes Hollywood!

I believe this to be one of the most underrated Wrestlemania's... and for the most part, it was highly exciting and entertaining. Only negative I would say is the crowd is strangely dead at times. I'll be giving a brief summary of each match and a total rating out of 5 for performance and quality of wrestling.

Opener-Match 1: Rey Mysterio Vs Eddie Guerrero
Great start to WM 21, a lot of high flying moves and amazing athleticism to wow the crowd. 4/5

Match 2: Money in the Bank: Edge vs. Benoit vs. Christian vs. Jericho vs. Kane vs. Shelton:
The first ever MOTB ladder match, and what a match this was. Shelton Benjamin gave one of his best performances in this match, with brilliant spots being used. Each man gave his all and the ending was pretty sweet too. 4.5/5

Match 3: Undertaker Vs Randy Orton
Good use of drama and wrestling from both men. A lot of hype was built up for this match and the match performances from both men justified that. 4/5

Match 4: Women's Championship-Trish Stratus (c) Vs Christy Hemme:
Now I hate to give this a low rating personally because Trish is a talented female wrestler who knows how to get the job done in the ring, but sadly, the same can't be said for Hemme. 2.5/5

Match 5: Shawn Michaels Vs Kurt Angle
Easily match of the night, must have been a contender for match of the year in the 2005 era as well. Both men fought to their very last breath, with high flying moves such as HBK's elbow and cross body onto the announcers table, and Angle's perfectly executed moonsault. Angle displayed his brilliant use of mat skills and technical abilities to ground HBK and showed great spots such as the Angle Slam from the top turnbuckle, Angle Slam into the corner, and more! In the end, the Ankle Lock proved too much for HBK but he was very resilient and took him a fair while to tap out. The crowd were pumped for this one! 5/5

Match 6: Sumo Match-Big Show vs. Akebono:
Well, it's not a Wrestling match so can't really give this one a rating. Although, it does add a bit of comedy into the show and doesn't last too long. It's nice to see a bit of variety here and there at Wrestlemania's. (No Rating)

Match 7:
WWE Championship-JBL (c) vs John Cena:
Not as bad as everyone makes it out to be... but I would say average at best. These two didn't seem to have great chemistry together in the squared circle, and the match seemed to end awfully fast. Repetitive moves from Bradshaw, only spot worth noting is a superplex. You probably know the outcome for this one. I have to say that Cena had a lot of respect back then when he wasn't his superman character, he celebrated by jumping in the crowd at the end which is great to see. You can tell it meant a lot to him winning the title.
3/5

World Heavyweight Championship-Triple H (c) vs Batista:
I actually rather enjoyed this match. Pretty much a slugfest from both men, but nice spots when they went outside the ring and HHH getting busted open by the ring post. Good use of drama as well with Ric Flair being at ringside assaulting Batista, and then getting a spinebuster for his troubles later on in the match. The crowd were more pumped up for this one than the WWE Championship bout and rightfully so, it was a much better match. Triple H and Batista seemed to have good chemistry in the ring as opposed to JBL & Cena.
4/5

Along with the main match card, you have some entertaining extra segments in between matches such as the return of Rowdy Roddy Piper in Pipers Pit with none other than Stone Cold Steve Austin! Plus, the return of the Hulkster who receives a tremendous ovation, and the class of 2005 Hall of Fame ceremony. Wrestlemania 21 is highly recommended, don't miss out!

Wrestlemania 21 was amzing and heres why....

Eddie gurreo and rey mysterio kicked off the show in a great match with some great high flying moves and it would be rey who would walk out with the victory. 7.50/10

The first ever money in the bank ladder match was next it featured chris jericho, chris benoit, chrsitian, sheltton benjiman, edge and kane.
This match was a great way to debut money in the bank every body did really well in the match loads of high flying and painful moves were in this match but it would be edge who would pik up the victory and win money in the bank. 9/10

Eugene got attacked by muhammad hassan and dalvari and hulk hogan would come out and save eugene.
This was an amzing wrestlemani moment. 10/10

Undertaker took on randy orton next in what i think is ortons best mania match yet so much action and greta counters were in this match one of the counters was a reversal to the chokeslam into the rko!
As you can tell the undertaker would of course win this match. 8/10

Trish stratus put her t womans itle on the line against chrisstie hemme in a decent match good for a diva match though and trish retained her title. 5/10

Shawn michaels took on kurt angle enxt in the best match of the night.
This match was a true classic loads of action and it was just incredible, shawn would have to tap out though to the angle lock. 10/10

Pipers pit was next which featured roddy piper, stone cold stev austin and carlito.
This was very funny and a great segment. 10/10

Big show took on akebono in a sumo match this match was bad and silly and suprisngly big show lost. NR

Jbl put his wwe title against john cena in the worst wwe title match at wrestlemania.
It was actualy ok until it ended it needed much more time and cena would win his first world title. 4/10

Batistia fought triple h for the world heavyweight title next in a good main event.
This match was fun and great to watch and it was great to se batistia win his first world title. 7.75/10

Overall wrestlemaia 21 was awesome only two bad matches but still this was great. 9/10

WrestleMania 21 was a truly great WrestleMania, from the Hogan/ Piper hall of fame to the supeb card that made this WrestleMania remembered for more then one match. The card was full of big hitters fighting each other for the first time. Alot of the riveries would flow though the year making 2005 a great year in WWE. The best thing about WrestleMania 21 for me was the
Hollywood film parody trailers which are all included within the dvd. Watching HHH as Mel Gibson still makes me crack up.

3 Best Matches

1st: Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels
2nd: Money In The Bank
3rd: Undertaker vs. Randy Orton

an absolutely brilliant wrestlemania!
eddie vs rey is a strong opener, the debut of money of the bank is also a memorable affair with some great spots.
taker vs orton is another strong contest for the deadman, brilliant match with a great hype around it. batista vs triple h is also a decent enough showdown but the match of the event undoubtedly has to go to kurt angle and shawn michaels for a 25 minute classic in showmanship and wrestling ability. fantastic, must-see stuff! the return of hulk hogan is also worth a little watch.
great extras, with the full hall of fame ceremony and all the hilarious promo-spots. a guaranteed BUY!

It was a exciting Wrestlemania and I think it got the Best Undercard ever. I will write a little bit about every Match:

Opener: Rey vs. Eddie
Quick Match, which was quite good and it got the right Winner: Personal Rating * * *

Money in the Bank: Egde vs. Benoit vs. Christian vs. Jericho vs. Kane vs. Shelton
The best Money ind the Bank till now, great Spots (Shelton ruled the Match!) and it was cool, how Edge won the Match. Personal Rating * * * * 1/4

Taker vs. Orton
Cool Match, I think it was 1 of the 5 Best Mania Matches from the Undertaker at Wrestlemania Personal Rating: * * * 1/2

Womens Championship: Trish Stratus vs. Christy Hemme
Match was OK, not good and not bad. Personal Rating * 1/2

HBK vs. Angle
Match of the Night, Match of the Year, Match of the Century (Maybe: Best Match ever!). That was a Hell of a Match, good Matt Wrestling,Nice Spots (Angle Slam against the Corner, HBK's Splash through the Announcer Table etc.) and the Finish: Michaels fought for his live in the Ankle Lock. Great Entertainment over more than 25 minutes!
Personal Rating: * * * * *

Big Show vs. Akebono
It was no Wrestling Match, but it was entertaing like a comedy part!
Personal Rating: No Rating

WWE Championship: Cena vs. JBL
I think, what I saw there, was the WORST Championship Match in Wrestlemania History. If you buy the DVD, please, don't WATCH this at home!
Personal Rating: 1/4

World Heavyweight Championship: Triple H vs. Batista
It was not good, but way better than the other World Title Match. It was a nice, when they fought outside the Ring.
Personal Rating: * * 1/2

The DVD is good, if you want to see a some good Matches (Opener, MitB, MotY & Taker/Orton) buy it, but please don't watch the Cena Match, after that you will hate Wrestling ;-).

Un WM qui marque une nouvelle ?re dans l'univers WWE .
Les + : Deux matchs de championnat charg? d'?motion, le premier MITB et l'un des combats les plus dur de la Streak de l'Undertaker, le match inoubliable entre Mysterio et Guerrero et bien sur le match d'anthologie entre HBK et Angle.
Les - : le match ?trange entre Akebono et le Big Show
Bilan : l'un des meilleurs Mania de l'histoire qui reste encore de nos jours un standart.
Note : 8/10

WrestleMania 21 was the twenty-first annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment. It took place on April 3, 2005 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, and basically WOW! Great Mania with superb matches coming all throught the night. Mysterio vs Eddie was one of my favourite Wrestlemania openers. Not mind-blowing, but still really good. Done what its was meant to and more. First ever Money in the Bank Ladder Match was awesome. New and incredible moves. The fans were on there feat the whole way through. You must watch this one, easilly a 9/10. Undertaker vs Orton was very enjoyable and one of the matches of the night. Not fantastic but really really good. Skip this one and your not a true fan. Kurt angle vs Shawn Michaels. One word= WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. This is not only match of the night it was match of the YEAR. Some of the stuff they do is awsome, one of both of these superstars best Mania matches. Just watch it, you will go mad with excitment, its that damn good. John Cena vs JBL was not Mania worthy and let the show down along with the Sumo Match. But Raw saved it with there main event Batista vs HHH. Not the best Mania main event but still a great showing. Very entertaining that you wouldnt want to take your eyes off.
Overall this might have been on of the best Mania's Ever if not for a few matches, but still a fantastic show that i gauranty you'll watch again and again.
BUY NOW!

This is a good Wrestlemania not one of the best though. The best matches on the night was Randy Orton vs Undertaker , Kurt Angle vs Shawn Micheals , Batista vs Triple H and The Money In The Bank Ladder Match. They were all excelllent matches. John Cena vs jbl has to be one of the worst Wrestlemania matches of all time , The Sumo Match was very boring and Carlitos appearence in Pipers Pit ruined the segment between Stone cold and Roddy Piper. There was a very good opener though between Rey Mysterio and Chavo Guerrero but all in all this is an alright Wrestlemania. PPV RATING 7.5/10

GREAT GREAT WRESTLEMANIA. If only the wwe championship match was good and there was no sumo match this quite possibly would be on the the best WM of all time!!!!! yet its still FANTASTIC.
WM21 went hollywood with a great vibe and great unique parody trailers gave this WM a unique feel. It wasnt a 70,000 arena but it was still epic. It also contained arguably the most anticapted mania main event in a long time, the 1st MITB and one of the greatest matches ever, HBK vs Angle!!
World Heavyweight Championship Match
Batista vs. Triple H-Wow, i have never seen such a perfectly done turn in my life! The anticaption for this match was through the roof. Batista had turn on his mentor, won the rumble and after months of waiting with minimal contact, these two went 1 on 1 at wm. Great entrance by triple h, cant say the same for batista lol. Anyways the match started really bad, and i mean really bad, i was worried this would be the worst main event in mania history, but thank god these two tore it up afta 10 mins, it was a back and forth, physical, bloody affair, in which triple h showed he can put on a great wrestling match. The final minutes were great, triple tried to go for the pedigree, but batista reversed it in a modified body slam and then the batista bomb for the win. Great, not the best WM main event but far from the worst-8.5/10

Hall of Fame - Class of 2005- great segment. These lbig legends were part of the period in the 80's when wrestling truly became worldwide

WWE Championship Match
John Cena vs. JBL-hmmmmmm. i really hoped, i anticapted this more than the other title match because of the great interesting story. though i knew it wont be a technical clasic, i hoped it would be a great brawl, but instead we got an anticlimatic, one sided affair in which jbl dominated for 10mins until john cen out of nowhere won with the FU. Not bad, but could of been sooooo much better-6/10

Sumo Match
Big Show vs. Akebono- the least said the better-1/10 1 for they ended it quickly

Stone Cold Steve Austin on Piper's Pit- great interesting segment. Anytime you get to see austin and piper is always entertaining. Carlito made this even more entertaining and as usual with every austin segment, he stuns someone, celebrates with a couple of beers with the other and then stuns him. Never boring lol

Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels- Stunning, perfectly done. The story, the hype, the build up, the promos, the match. Maybe this is the best 1 on 1 match ever. I unlike most expected this to be great, but it was UN FREAKIN BELIEVABLE. The stardown before the start just gave me goosebumps. The 1st 10 minutes was ok, but dragged on too log, and i almost gave it below 5stars because of that, but once they got out the ring , they pulled out all the stops. Springboard plancha on the table, angle slam on the ring post. Missed moonsault, Top rope angle slam, just some of the amazing moves pulled off. The ending was too much, the ankle lock was locked for 2 minutes until hbk finally gave up. I dunno if this is these twos best match ( 1st hell in a cell and vs benoit is hbks and angles best matches respectively) but the match was maybe the best match in mania history. Watch this instantly, the 1st 10 or so mins may disappoint you, but the rest will astound you-10/10 and that is RARE

Women's Championship Match
Christy Hemme vs. Trish Stratus- Not bad, considering christy was in this. Thrish was basically wrestling herself, and she showed why shes the best modern day female wrestler. Acceptable, but i wouldnt watch this again-5/10

Legend vs. Legend Killer
Undertaker vs. Randy Orton- Wow how the hell do people look down on this match, its the best taker mania match up to that point, and quite possibly up their with the top 20 mania matches ever!! seriously. The build up was good, but these two tore the house down! the pace was superb, and even though a fair share of moves were botched, the impact of each move was great. Great back and forth physical match that almost stole the show. Orton almost ended takers streak by beautifully countering the chokeslam into an rko for a close 2 count. and ortons father even interfered. In the end taker countered ortons tombstone into a tombstone of his own for the 3. Superb stuff-9./10 yes you dont see that often its that good

Money-In-The-Bank Ladder Match
Christian vs. Edge vs. Chris Benoit vs. Kane vs. Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin- Best ladder match ever! YES i said it, best ladder match ever. Non stop action, from even before the bell, just too many spots to name, but shelton really stole the show with his spiderman like movement and his amazing run up the ladder. Everyone played their part, and there was a good story in this. Benoit showing his determination to once again get the opportunity to wrestler for the title, while Edge layed the ground works for his "ultimate opportunist" role by staying away from the action right until the end, costing benoit. Watch this and you will never be bored, so many notable spots, one of my favourites being everyone one by one hitting high risk moves onto the outside, along with anything Shelton/Christian/Jericho did. Only hbk vs angle edges this out for match of the night-9.5/10

Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio- Great opener, possibly the best opener apart from owen vs bret at wm10. not as good as their halloween havoc match, but still fantastic, fast paced, high risk, physical match. It had its slower moments, none suprisingly when Eddie was in control, and he did seem to take some time applying a few notable submission holds, but these two should be proud of their efforts. Rey was his usual entertaining self, while Eddie showed his versatility and ability to play a believable character. Wonderfully done-9/10 notably Eddies last wm match

Look at the amount of 8.5 or higher ratings, jus astounding, Great mania, definently top 5, GREAT hall of fame, the best hall of fame to date, and a great selection of extras including a gd battle royal and the parody trailers. BUY THIS NOW

Awsome wrestlemania mazing, the ladder match is amazing alot of high flying and blood, the batter the hell out of eachover and its pretty awsome. The undertaker vs. ortan match was a good match it could of been beter but they did put on a hell of a show. The jbl vs. cena match was ok it was cenas first wwe title win i belive. the btistista vs. hhh match is a total brawl in and out of the ring and it sees triple h lose loads of blood and its awsome, the hbk vs. angle match is brill its one of those wrestlemania greats and hbk does be the show stopper. Vry good extras very entertaining night really enjoyed worth it buy it. Overall score 9.5/10

What a GREAT WrestleMania !!!!!
Batista vs. Triple H was a nice match, maybe not for a main event but since then Batista has improved.
WWE Championship Match with John Cena vs. JBL was great too.
Big Show vs. Akebono : I wish this one was not in WM but Big Show was entertaining :>
Stone Cold Steve Austin on Piper's Pit : I wish there was a Piper's Pit in every WM.

Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels : A CLASSIC !!!
Undertaker vs. Randy Orton : 13-0 was soooooo sweet !!!!

Money-In-The-Bank Ladder Match : As always a ladder match is GREAT !!
Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio : I wish they could still wrestle together :<

As far as the extras go, Wrestlemania 21 parody trailers were all for Oscars !!!
And the Motorhead Unplugged with Triple H was a nice backstage scene.
And last but not least the 2005 Hall of Fame !! All the Stars of the 80' with great stories that you never get bored to listen.
A DVD to add in any collection !!

Great Wrestlemania. HBK vs Angle was wonderful, Undertaker vs Randy Orton good and Batista vs Triple H a real main event. Then there are Piper's pit with Roddy Piper and the...stunning appearance of Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan who makes a gift to the Hulkamaniacs. This Wrestlemania is great like a Ronaldinho's goal and the Hall of Fame ceremony embellishes this DVD set.

WrestleMania 21 arena 2/5

This WrestleMania arena was good but did not feel like WrestleMania.

Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle 5/5.

Superb match you can feel the excitement when Kurt has HBK in an ankle lock. This match should be in the greatest superstars of Wrestlemania vol.2 if it comes out.

One of the better Mania's, in depth review here -

Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

These two have faced off so many times over the years, of course having their classics together (their Halloween Havoc 97 is the best, I have it at ****3/4) and seems a good choice to open up the show. I should mention that although Eddie was technically the heel he was still being cheered by the majority of the crowd (no matter how good a heel you are, you are inevitably cheered by the smart crowds if you are respected, such as Eddie here, Angle and WM22 and Edge at the 2008 Rumble). Mysterio of course is a fan favorite and its mainly the women and kids who cheer him. Nicely medium/fast paced match with plenty of good
moves including Rey's springboard plancha, huge headscissors and of course the huricanrana (spl?) into a pin which wins him the match. Good action here, did its job to warm up the crowd, awful to think this is Eddie's last Mania but he can be proud of his last Mania performance.

***

1st ever Money In The Bank Ladder Match - Christian vs. Edge vs. Chris Benoit vs. Kane vs. Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin

A classic ladder match. This was the first of the (so far) four MITB's and to be honest, I buy Wrestlemania each year and ALWAYS look forward and get excited about MITB. Kane is jumped halfway to the ring and the match starts as it means to go on, with a frantic pace and with action going on at all times. There is almost too many spots to mention, but of course Shelton Benjamin
steals the match with an amazing T-Bone suplex off the ladder and follows that up with a midair clothesline to Jericho while running up a ladder, super stuff (and fuel for the Benjamin marks). Big ups to Kane also for jumping off the top onto 5 other guys and Benoits superbly done arm selling (and for the record, whatever the WWE might think Benoit is still a legend and still one of
the best 10 NA wrestlers of all time, I'll never forget his classic matches or his career highs and lows and how he overcame adversity to make it to the top). Wow, little deep eh? :p Edge gets the win after taking a chair to Benoits arm and ascending the ladder and taking the briefcase. Awesome match, not just another ladder match and Wrestlemania 21 is off to a flyer.

****1/2

Randy Orton vs. The Undertaker

I wasn't regularly watching wrestling at this point (1st time I saw this match and this Mania was in late 2007) but if I was I would have bet my parents mortgage Taker was losing his (overhyped and boring) Wrestlemania win streak. Taker has his usual epic Mania entrance and once the match is underway gets his signature moves in including a nice apron legdrop which I think looked great as Orton sold it beautifully. Orton then came back with a nice counter to Old School by dropkicking the Taker off the ropes, the referee is then bumped and BOB ORTON is here. He whacks Taker with his cast and the streak must be over, ref gets 1, 2...... kick out. A textbook near fall, great stuff. Bob gets KO'd and then one of the most amazing reversals I've ever seen occurs, Taker wraps his hand around Ortons neck, lifts him high into the air for a chokeslam, then out of nowhere... RKO, amazing stuff, and the end of Taker's streak for sure.
1, 2.......... kick out. Wow. Mick Foley said a good match is like a rollercoaster, and damn this beats Thorpe Parks finest :p, Orton tries to kill the deadman with a tombstone but it gets reversed into a Taker tombstone and we have a winner. Fantastic match and I can only think of 2 matches Orton had that were better than this up to this point (Summerslam 04 and Backlash 04). Super stuff.

***1/2

Women's Title - Christy Hemme (with Lita) vs. Trish Stratus

All good things have to come to an end and Mania 21's great start ends abprutly with this nonsense. Loads of botches and mistimed moves and to be brutally fair its only once in a blue moon a Womens match is worth getting excited about at Mania (the last being Mania 22) and
this one certainly wasn't. All 3 women look nice though (this was shortly before Lita's slut phase) and it doesn't last long. Trish gets the win after a Chick Kick. My rating is being kind.

1/4*

Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels

Probably the cause of at least 1/4 of the Mania buys, this was being touted as a "dream" matchup featuring the "greatest amatuer wrestler" of all time against the "greatest pro of all time". For the record I do think Shawn Michaels is the greatest of all time, and since Kurt is one
of my favorites this match was GOING to be enjoyed. They didn't dissappoint. The match starts off fairly slowly with Michaels surprising Angle with mat-based technical manouvers (awakening memories of his Mania 12 performance against Bret Hart, which needless to say, I marked for) but starts to warm up and quicken at around the 8 minutes mark as it switches to a more pro wrestling style. Michaels goes for his big elbow but misses and Angle goes for an Angle Slam which is reversed into an arm drag. By this point the LA crowd is split straight down the middle, even though Angle is supposed to be the heel. Angle's mouth gets busted open the hard way after Michaels flies off the ropes into a crossbody onto a table (which painfully for Michaels didn't break). They both enter the ring again and Michaels is in charge, getting in plenty of offensive moves including a german suplex that Angle would have been proud of. He then attempts Sweet Chin Music but it's countered into an Ankle Lock, Michaels escapes but finds himself in the move again, but this time manages to roll through and score a 2 count. Its now Angle's turn to go on the offensive and he manages to connect with a (slightly mis-executed) Angle Slam, unsurprisingly, he also only gets 2, looking frustrated, Angle attempts a moon
sault of the top rope (as usual, he does it beautifully) but doesn't connect, as Michaels rolled out of harms way. Its then Michaels turn to go up top but is met with Angle and an Angle Slam off the top rope, incredibly, this also gets a 2 count. Looking annoyed, Angle starts screaming at
Michaels who very athletically hits Sweet Chin Music from almost nowhere. Its all over. But it isn't, Angle kicked out at 2 and 7/8 and the crowd hits fever pitch, Im sweating just watching this :D. Angle then applys the Ankle Lock and has it in for a good 2/3 minutes as Michaels frantically searches for a rope and does everything to escape it, but Kurt sits down on the hold and Michaels taps. From bell to bell, a classic matchup, I enjoyed this a heck of a lot more on second viewing, not sure why but one of the matches of the year, and match of the night.

****3/4

Well to be fair after that awesome "first-half" we needed a breather and here it is -

Pipers Pit segment (featuring Stone Cold Steve Austin)

Nice time warp with the Tartan carpet (shame Piper isn't actually Scottish, and doesn't speak like one),kilt and t-shirt combo. "Hot Rod" thanks the LA public for the HOF bash the previous night (although Im sure it ate him up being further down the pecking order than Hulk Hogan, his famous on and off screen rival) and gets down to business. Should be said that he slips up by saying "WWF" (which isnt actually on the DVD, but I've seen a youtube clip) and mumbles his way through a speech which leads to him calling out Stone Cold. Then promptly slaps him, Austin being a redneck slaps him back. Strangely Piper says how much respect he has for Austin, but tells him when he was a "little redneck" Piper was already raising hell for Vince McMahon. Carlito then appears saying how neither men are "cool" and tells them to go home, Piper (unfairly imo) nicks Carly's apple and spits on him, Austin then kicks out at poor Carly and proceeds to Stunner him. Beers are shared by both men until Austin hits Piper with the stunner (makes sense really) and exits.

Sumo Match - Akebono vs. Big Show

The one you've all been waiting for. Well maybe not, but this actually was
OK, Big Show looked decent in the sumo ring and even managed to pick up the grand champion, it was all in vain however as Show was uncerimoniously dumped from the
ring. The match looked like a worked-shoot and was probably as entertaining as possible.

*1/2

WWE Championship Match - John Cena vs. JBL

Over the years, there have been some classic WWF/E Title bouts (Austin/Rock at Mania 17, Angle/Lesnar at Mania 19, Flair/Savage from Mania 8 etc..) but this, especially in comparison to the ones listed above, was ABYSMAL. A shocking excuse for a Wrestlemania main event, it almost makes me feel sick to know that Angle/HBK could have had this spot (and consequently had a bigger payoff) and actually having earnt the privilege. This match was barely worthy of headlining Smackdown! let alone the biggest show of the year. JBL beat up Cena for about 10 minutes, getting a close near fall with a big suplex, Cena after kicking out came back with wrestlings phoniest looking punches, a spinny powerbomb thing and the 5 knuckle shuffle. JBL misses a clothesline from hell and Cena lifts JBL up into an FU position and slams and
covers him to win his first WWE title in a match you won't want to watch twice. Terrible.

1/2*

World Heavyweight Championship Match - Batista vs. Triple H (with Ric Flair)

It should be noted that 950,000 people bought Wrestlemania 21, making it the 2nd highest bought wrestling pay-per-view at the time (behind Wrestlemania 17). The main reason
was for this match. In my opinion, the best built up match in years and certainly a feud worth remembering on a boring day at school, this is how an angle should be done.
Saying that, it is a shame this match didn't justify the hype, although it very rarely does (Kane/Taker from Mania 14 is just one example of this). A drunk sounding Motorhead
played HHH to the ring and Batista came out to his bland Jim Johnson theme music, to a huge ovation it must be said. Batista got the better of the early goings but the combination
of Flair and the steel steps affirmed HHH's position in the drivers seat, H then hits a couple of big moves but only gets a 2 count on both a spinning neckbreaker and a spinebuster.
Searching for a 3, H attempts the pedigree but is reversed, he then goes for an even more dangerous pedigree, this time on steel steps but Tista catapults H into the ringpost, leaving
his head gushing with blood. The effervescent challenger is struck with a belt shot and a low blow but is still in the match by the time Flair gets KO'd, courtesy of a Batista
spinebuster. Another pedigree is attempted and blocked, in a move reminiscent of the RAW when Batista finally turned on HHH, Batista gives the thumbs down to the Game. One Batista
Bomb later, and we have a new World Heavyweight Champion. A good match, but not a patch on Mania 19 or 20's main events, or even 3 other matches on tonights card.

**3/4

The match did serve one purpose however, and that was to make Batista a star, as the show faded to black, there was a new big dog in town, and as of today he is a 3 time world champ. That was certainly more important than a star rating I could have given.

So there's Wrestlemania 21, a good show overall, but you cant help feel that with more solid main event action, I would be reviewing the greatest Mania of all time. This Mania
was half price on silvervision, but to be fair even at full price, its worth the buy for the classic undercard, and the majority of wrestlers putting on super performances.

Overall event rating - 7/10

Thanks for reading :)

Another outstanding ppv by the wwe , Shawn Michaels vs. Kurt Angle is considered the match of the decade yeah you HEAR RIGHT,an absolute masterpiece!Plus you have the first ever "Money in The Bank" Ladder Match wich was amazing!The Hall Of Fame was legendary to say the least!I?m a huge wwe fan and i already picked this 3 disc set, so what are you wanting for?BUY IT NOW!

*WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS*

WrestleMania 21 Goes Hollywood... what? At least it was better than being "all grown up" like at WM23. The 2 matches that would headline 2005's biggest PPV of the year were JBL Vs John Cena for the WWE Title and Batista Vs Triple H for the World Heavyweight Title. I was not looking forward to the JBL/Cena match, but I will admit I was looking forward to the possibility of Batista beating HHH for the WHC, as I quite liked Batista back then.

The under card for this event for what encouraged me to buy it; the first ever Money in the Bank Ladder match, Eddie Guerrero Vs Rey Mysterio, The Undertaker Vs Randy Orton, and Kurt Angle Vs Shawn Michaels.

This WrestleMania had to follow WrestleMania XX from the year before, which IMO had to be considered the biggest PPV and biggest WrestleMania of all time (I can't be bothered to explain why again, so look back and read my WMXX review ). Could it do it? Keep reading to find out!

Just watching the video package at the start of the show, and I never realised until now that they used Behind Those Eyes by 3 Doors Down, which is probably one of the best songs they have ever used for a WrestleMania ever, IMO. Pity it was only really in the background, and not played for that long.


Eddie Guerrero Vs Rey Mysterio

I was hyped for this match, as I had seen their WCW matches and knew exactly what they were capable of doing in the ring together. It may not have been the best thing for me to do, as I was now expecting a ***** match, and there was always a chance I could be disappointed.

I have to say though, I think it really sucks that Eddie was co-main eventing last year's 'Mania, and was now opening the biggest event of the year only 1 year later.

The match started off quick, as expected, then slowed down as Eddie tried to wear down Mysterio. Eddie takes his time trying to lock in a submission, which takes a little away from the match, as does the incredibly fake STF that Eddie applied to Rey. You can clearly see that Eddie wasn't even touching Rey's head at one point, and half the time when Eddie was leaning back as to make it more painful, Rey wasn't even moving back with him. The match then gets back on the right track, with some high flying moves from Rey, and some more moves from Eddie trying to wear down Rey once again.

Eddie goes for the 3 Amigos, and to my surprise, the crowd didn't pop AT ALL. They do pop for the Frog Splash attempt, but Eddie misses. 619 from Mysterio, and he goes for the West Coast Pop, only to be powerbombed! Nice looking move, and sounded sick when he landed. Then, from out of nowhere, Rey rolls up Eddie for the win.

Let me first say that this wasn't a bad match in anyway, but compared to their WCW matches, it didn't compare. Good opener for WrestleMania, and it was the start of a half good, half bad feud that produced some decent matches.

Rating: ***


Chris Jericho Vs Chris Benoit Vs Christian Vs Shelton Benjamin Vs Edge Vs Kane - Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Great start to the match, with everyone attacking Kane but to no avail. Awesome spot with Shelton doing a running flip over the top rope, followed by Kane flying from the top rope to the outside. Cool spot with Benoit avoiding a Chokeslam from the ladder and countering into a crossface, then locking the crossface on Edge before Kane "destroys" his arm with the ladder. More high flying stuff from Shelton, and a hige "Shelton" chant for about 5 seconds as he beats the hell out of Edge, including using a Stinger Splash with Edge leaning against a ladder in the corner.

3 ladders end up in the ring, with all the guys except Kane on them. Christian does an arm breaker to Benoit off the ladder, then Y2J is knocked off his ladder, and Shelton nails a T-Bone to Edge from the ladder. Nice continuous spot.

A ladder is then set up as a sort of ramp leaning against another ladder, and Benjamin runs up it and hits a flying clothesline to Jericho who was climbing the other ladder. Benjamin so far has been the MITB MVP.

Tomko comes into the ring now to help Christian out, but Kane sees to it that it doesn't happen, and pushes Christian off the ladder onto the outside forcing him to land on Tomko. Kane and Jericho are next to fall from the ladder as it begins to fall over as they are fighting for the briefcase.

Benoit, who is still selling his arm injury, climbs to the top of a ladder and hits a flying headbutt to Kane, and is busted open. Benoit and Kane continue their fight on top of the ladder, and Benoit gets the better of Kane. It looks like Benoit is going to win, but out of nowhere Edge hits Benoit's bad arm with a chair, climbs the ladder, and wins.

This match was awesome. I had high expectations for it due to the talent, and all of my expectations were met. Edge winning was a big surprise at the time, but he was over as a heel and probably did deserve to win (unlike how I felt at the time). So far the other 2 MITB ladder matches have not matched this one, and I will be surprised if this years does.

Rating: ****1/2


The Undertaker Vs Randy Orton

3 matches in a row that I was looking forward to; something VERY rare with any wrestling event. 1 had disappointed me, 1 had lived up to my expectations and more. I was a little unsure about this match, as Orton was still a little green IMO, though he had improved from the previous 'Mania. The Undertaker wasn't exactly at his best either, but he always steps it up at big events.

Around WrestleMania time, there were A LOT of rumors going around that Randy Orton had a very good chance of being the one to end the streak. Although any person who would end the streak would gain more credibility in one night than they could by doing anything else, I was hoping it was only a rumor. I personally don't think anyone should ever end the streak. It's kinda like Ric Flair having 16 World Titles. It is something that should never be surpassed, and it is certainly something to add to their legacies.

A highly competitive match throughout, with both men getting in a lot of good offense. I was very surprised at one point during the match, that Orton was able to escape the old "Punches in the corner reversed into the last ride" routine, but he did! Bob Orton then ran in to help out his son, which didn't exactly work. We then see one of the best counters to a chokeslam I have ever seen, when Orton reverses it into an RKO. At that point, even I thought the match was over, and so did the crowd. The crowed went absolutely crazy when 'Taker kicked out, and then finished Orton off with a tombstone. They were happy, and I was happy.

A great match, which exceeded my expectations. One of The Undertaker's best WrestleMania matches.

Rating: ****1/4


Trish Stratus Vs Christy Hemme - WWE Women's Title

So we go from 1 good match and 2 amazing matches... to this.

Rating: DUD


Shawn Michaels Vs Kurt Angle

Ever since Shawn returned in 2002, I was wanting to see this match. It took a couple of years, but we finally got it, and we got it on the biggest stage of the year.

Awesome match. I originally had this near to 5 stars, but have since dropped it down after a couple of re-watches. It still remains a classic though, but they would go on to do better at Vengeance 2005!

Rating: ****1/4


The Big Show Vs Akebono - Sumo Match

1 good match, 3 amazing matches, and now 2 dud matches.

Rating: DUD


John Cena Vs JBL - WWE Title

One of the few matches I was not looking forward to at all, and after watching the match, it's no wonder. Terrible match, and even worse that it was a co-main event at the biggest PPV of the year. I can't believe it, but I am actually giving a WrestleMania main event a DUD rating...

Rating: DUD


Triple H Vs Batista - World Heavyweight Title

I was kinda looking forward to this match, as I was a Batista fan of sorts during this time. He had been built up well IMO, and I was looking forward to seeing him take the belt of HHH.

The match wasn't too bad, but not WrestleMania main event worthy. Some good spots and a sick blade job from HHH, along with the title changing hands is all this match is really.

Rating: **3/4





Overall Show Rating: 7/10

While the 2 main events were awful, terrible, horrible, pathetic... I could go on... the under card makes up for it. 3 matches over 4 stars and a good opener make this WrestleMania a must have.