WWE WrestleMania 23 vs WWE WrestleMania XXIV (24)

June 2024 ยท 3 minute read
tough call. both were pretty spectacular cards, IMO, and as stated in the OP, both were financial successes, which is always important.

23 had some good matches. i loved the Cena/Michaels match and, believe it or not, really predicted Michaels to win the title in this one. he was on such a role while Triple H was out due to injury and the build up was fantastic. i always felt that he deserved one last WHC run and that this would be it. the rematch in London that went an hour was fantastic and even won Match of the Year.

Taker/Batista was good, but i felt it was pretty predictable. not just because of the streak either. i just never thought that Batista was a credible threat, and i'm not just bashing the guy either. i enjoyed some of his feuds and matches. this one just didn't impress me as much.

Battle of the Billionaire's was pretty terrible and yet undeniably entertaining.

Benoit/MVP was a bit disappointing, but i did enjoy this feud.
Money in the Bank was pretty solid. great "dark horse" win here.
Kane/Khali was a terrible match and storyline, but i also did enjoy the history and allusion to the old Hogan/Andre setup.
ECW match was okay, but more just for nostalgia than actual quality.

WM 24 was pretty exceptional and will get the nod from me.

Taker/Edge was one of the best Taker @ Mania matches i thought. totally under rated and for sure better than the Taker/Batista match from 23. great feud and build up. i never expected Edge to win, but i always thought it was possible. after all, he is the Ultimate Opportunist and it was very believable to me that Edge could cheat his way to win, if only to end the streak and keep his title. great ending also!

Cena/Triple H/ Orton was fantastic. i know it broke the typical rule of "win the Rumble, win the title at Mania" that happened for several years in a row prior to this, but i never guessed Orton to win. i thought Cena might and that if he didn't, the Cerebral Assassin would find a way to outsmart the two opponents given his veteran instincts and experience advantage. but Orton prevailed and it was a very pleasant surprise. the following PPV saw a great fatal fourway match also that involved JBL with these three and two decent feuds to follow in Triple H/Orton and Cena/JBL. so this gets a nod from me.

Money vs. Big Show was not my favorite match but we usually see Show in a gimmick type match and come out on the losing side. props for the weight loss, face turn and new finisher that came from this. pretty entertaining if not the best quality.

i actually liked Kane winning the ECW title in 9 seconds. i'm typically not a fan of squash matches, but the sneaky veteran surprising another sneaky veteran was pretty classic and i love seeing the Big Red Machine with a title.

Batista/Umaga was okay for two big monsters. predictable, but not terrible.
Money in the Bank was solid again. i loved the clean win by Punk and even the later cash in against Edge.

Flair/HBK in the retirement match may have stolen the show, not just in the storyline and build up and ramification, but also in the quality.

great card over all and WM 24 gets my vote in a really close race. great thread!

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