Showcase of the Immortals

The electricity of WrestleMania surges through floorboards and foldable chairs straight to the core of the thousands of fans in attendance. It is somehow intimate and communal all at once. It sustains the body to withstand the freezing cold. Chants reverberating so boisterously they bounce off the clouds. Opposing chants interjecting in response, so there's a dance in the ring and out of the ring.

I always dreamed of going to WrestleMania but it lived as a fantasy. I can't say why I never looked at ticket prices. Maybe it was so special to me, so other worldly that it didn't seem like a possibility for me. We used to watch taped Pay-Per-Views on VHS a day after it aired because we didn't have cable for a lot of my childhood. I used to hover around the boys in elementary when they were talking WWE to put my 2 cents in. I'm pretty sure I uttered my first curse word copying Stone Cold Steve Austin. I would dream of being in the locker room, going from city to city. As I'm typing this and watch Monday Night Raw, I am reminded why even in my dreams I never pictured myself fighting in the ring. What these men and women put their bodies through is absolutely insane. Respect on respect on respect for them. Becky taking those powerbombs from Rhea with fever and strep throat. Sacrifice. I get headaches and my back starts locking up just watching the matches.

I am going to interrupt my own rambling with a drawn out disclaimer. This will not effectively summarize WrestleMania because I don't think there are words for the Showcase of the Immortals. My hands are clammy as I press down on the keyboard. How do you describe the indescribable? Weeks leading up to WrestleMania I was preparing myself to not faint at the shows. I had 4 really great signs and I barely held up one of them. Partially due to the lack of space but mostly because of how transfixed I was on what I was witnessing. Before I got to Lincoln Financial Field I strategically scheduled my bathroom trips to ensure I didn't miss anything. I only went to the bathroom once a night, during each show, which is a feat for my notoriously weak bladder.

I had typed almost 600 words and then accidentally deleted this because I was trying to make sure the cover photo for the article was perfect. I'm still jittery just thinking about WrestleMania. Everything in me wants to just go to bed and pick it back up tomorrow but I have to get this out.

Beginning with WWE World at WrestleMania on Friday April 5, 2024, 'Mania XL was an experience. My brother and I darted around the SuperStore like children. I wanted everything. I needed everything. It was a sensory overload. Intro music playing, fans shouting their favorite wrestler's sayings, merch I'd never seen before, so many people in a tornado of excitement. The immersive interactive experience that followed was perfection. So well crafted and engaging that my mind didn't succumb to the severity of my cramps. I sat at the Head of the Table, went to Bray Wyatt's Firefly Fun House, knocked on the door of WWF's In Your House, watched The New Day play video games. It felt like running through another universe. They gave fans the opportunity to come out to their favorite Superstar's intro music. I was overwhelmed deciding whose entrance I could do justice, while being increasingly exhausted. We wound up just leaned on a wall enjoying other people's performances. WWE World at WrestleMania was a mood setter, a temperature checker, if you will.

To be able to maintain consciousness for Saturday and Sunday night I knew I had to ask myself one question.

Are You Ready?!

I was.

I was meant to be there and not just at WrestleMania XL but many 'Mania's to come.

We arrived more than 2 hours and a half hours before the start of the show both nights. Took some photos. A week later I'm realizing not enough. Floor Seats, section F15, row 25, seats 19 and 20. When the show started I quickly realized I'd be watching on the jumbotron above the ring because I'm too short to see over other standing people. Night 1 it was so cold my body was involuntarily shaking. The only plus for there being no space was warmth from shoulder to shoulder body heat. The fans were even more interesting than I had envisioned. A man I've donned the Brooklyn Cowboy sat ahead of us, taunting Cody Crybabies with tissues (obviously before Cody beat Roman), turning around talking non-stop, some spit landing on me from his shouting. As annoying as he was, he added to the experience. To my story. To my first WrestleMania. A weird political based chant broke out and died down quickly. Other annoying fans let their comedic bits run a little too long and we all just laughed. It was kind of special because you could feel everyone accept everyone for the type of fan that they were. You could feel everyone decide to be locked in to 'Mania. Reveling in the hysteria of it all. The fans deserve at least a paragraph of their own because just like no one understands the sacrifice of a wrestler the way a fellow wrestler does. You can't fathom the connection you feel to wrestling when you're a fan of it unless you're a fan of it.

Now to the matches. To the new era of WWE, which smartly includes some of the things we loved from previous eras. Tables, chairs, utilizing the space outside the ring, blood, cursing. People actively trying new moves. Banned moves coming back? There seems to be a concerted effort for everyone to further their story. So many worthwhile stories to grasp onto and see to the end.

Some predictions have been made due to the developments of the 2 Monday Night Raw and 1 Smackdown episode since WrestleMania XL.

Damien Priest cashes in his Money in the Bank briefcase on Drew McIntyre after a classic match with Seth Freakin' Rollins. The moment was wild. Damian got Drew so high in the air it took the breath out my body. The trickle effect of this is stupendous. Damien deserves it. His title reign should be lengthy and filled with internal conflict down the road (Judgment Day implosion?) It can't be downplayed how in the pocket Drew has been as a heel. He's going to push further. Drew vs. Punk should be epic. Drew will be champion again. Punk didn't come back to the WWE for good rivalries. He wants it too. It all has to make sense, the payoff has to be calculated, then recalibrated as the tides shift.

And it needs to be stated that Rollins is HIM. He can't be Mr. WrestleMania because that's the Heartbreak Kid's title but Seth needs another moniker. After he comes back from his much needed break, will we be getting Architect Seth wrecking any and everyone?

I am genuinely sorry for how long this is. I'm trying to condense.

Sami vs. Gunther, tremendous physical storytelling. Best match of Night 1 ... after the main event, of course. Great ending to Gunther's historic title run. Intense, the timing was on point, the match swelled at the right moments. The crowd was in the palm of their hands. It's Sami's time to be Intercontinental Champion. Now the Gable vs Sami rivalry has begun. I called the Chad Gable heel turn on 4/8, by the way. That story is going to be solid. Gable has earned this moment.

I knew the Six Pack Ladder Match would be crazy but it was even better than expected. They had my stomach in my ass the whole match. Answering the fans call for tables over and over again. Appreciated! And of course, it was beautiful to be there for R Truth's huge WrestleMania moment. The crowd was completely with him. His ability to put smiles on thousands of people's faces for years, makes him a Hall of Famer. Also, that Little Jimmy storyline years ago was just genius.

It was nice to see how behind Jey Uso the fans were. With Jimmy out the Bloodline, do the Usos reunite or is Jey getting the push for gold?

The 6 woman tag team match was great. I don't think Naomi and Kairi Sane got enough of a pop though. Then again there were moments where all I could hear were vibrations. Jade and Belair were displaying their strength in a way that made me wonder are they going to be tag team champions and dominate or is one going to turn on the other sooner rather than later. There needs to be a Women's Intercontinental Belt and a Women's USC belt. There's too many talented women that should have gold. Also the Hardcore Belt should come back for men and women this time.

The 6 man tag team match had a fire surprise. Anytime Bubba tells somebody to get the tables you know you're in for a good time. Orton vs KO vs Logan Paul was memorable, a highlight in an already stacked night. Bayley and Iyo Sky were whooping each other's ass. Mysterio and Andrade vs Dirty Dom and Santos Escobar had so many dynamic, creative moments. Double stacked cross body off the middle rope onto two people outside the ring. Wild!

Now to the main event of both nights. The Bloodline/Rhodes saga. I'm going to reel this in. A spear off the ramp to the ring (which the Usos should have done Night 1 but I'm not complaining). Roman being so consumed with getting revenge he hits Seth with the chair instead of Cody. Chefs kiss. John Cena. The Rock. THE UNDERTAKER. I lost my voice the moment the lights went out and endearingly punched my brother several times.

There were 2 young brothers behind us one a Cody fan, one a Roman fan. When Roman loss, he threw his sign on the floor and kicked me in the back a couple times but I understood that disappointment. Took those kicks for all those who acknowledge my Tribal Chief. I also really appreciate a kid who likes heels. I can't even get my 72 year old mom to root for a heel, except Undertaker who pretty much transcends the heel/babyface archetype. Anyway, when your guy loses as a kid it is devastating. The most amazing thing with still being a fan as an adult is riding the wave. Knowing how it's going to turn out because you've watched it all your life and still living for every minute of it. I love Roman and Cody, knew it was Cody's time to be champion, and still cheered for Roman the whole match.

The Rock's coming back for Cody. Cody broke The Rock's heart? Will we ever get Roman vs The Rock? What is the next move for The Tribal Chief? Which direction will the Bloodline go? Usos vs Solo and Tama Tonga? So many questions.

It's 5 a.m. so I'm going to round this thing out now. Just have to give props to the mechanics of bringing something as epic as WrestleMania to fruition. An experience of that magnitude is a living thing, that has millions ... and millions of elements. The jumbotron went out a couple times and my heart stopped. The people started chanting fix the screen and we could see the ring again. The gear for Mania has to be iconic and fit each person's narrative.

WrestleMania had me more charged than any concert or basketball game I've attended. On Night 2 I had a customized chair in my hand. I was smooth and stealthy, unlike myself. Security decided that one more person taking a chair was unacceptable. A quick return to self. No chair for Jada. I always talk about how addicting it must be to get such visceral adoration/hatred from thousands of people, but being one of the thousands gives you a better understanding. I was high off it all and I was just in the crowd. I don't know if I can go back to watching it on tv.

I'm hooked. A fiend. WrestleMania XL and beyond.