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I hope Shane McMahon is ok, but what an audible call by Snoop Dogg. Get that man in creative. Night two of Wrestlemania 39 was just as good as night one. Let’s not waste any time and talk about the big controversy at hand before we get to other moments.
The Kingdom Wasn’t To Be
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If you have asked me what my stone-cold lock for Wrestlemania weekend was, Cody Rhodes would be Universal Champion by the night's end. The story was laid out. The Usos had lost, and Cody beat Solo on Raw Monday. Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens came out and helped with interference. It was time for the Bloodline to lose its dominance.
Well, it didn’t happen that way. As expected, Roman and Cody had a great match with some amazing near falls. But the Tribal Chief came out on top. What? A lot of people around me looked like they saw a ghost. Roman is well on his way to over 1,000 days as champion, and Cody was just left to sit in the middle of the ring. Granted, Roman had help from Solo to pull this off, which could play into the storyline as we advance. It would be natural for Cody to want revenge on The Bloodline (and Solo, naturally).
The problem is that Cody has already ended Solo’s undefeated streak, so suspending disbelief is tough. Then there comes the question of Roman’s title reign, and I don’t know how to feel about it. It’s always good for wrestling to have an element of surprise. So, WWE creative zigged while we all zagged. I was happy, but then I said, “then who?” Who is going to beat Roman Reigns? Cody kicked out of a spear, Superman punch, and broke the guillotine, man.
Roman is the only person in The Bloodline with a title and needed an extra hand to keep it. There’s a story there, but do we go another year to figure out how to end it? It’s not so much that Roman has no challengers (rematch with Cody, possibly Randy Orton, AJ Styles) – the WWE is running through many significant moments.
Drew at Clash With the Castle. Sami in Canada. Now, Cody in Los Angeles. These were all believable moments where Roman could have lost the title, and it felt special. Unfortunately, you’re starting to run the risk of running out of time with that. However, Cody didn’t lose clean and looked like he would be the one to “smash the throne.” I don’t know. I feel in the middle about the whole thing.
Long Live The E.S.T.
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The RAW women’s championship match between Bianca Belair and Asuka may not have had the best build, but they delivered. There were some worries following the intercontinental title match, but all that disappeared when they got in the ring. Asuka used her craftiness and speed against Bianca’s power – making for a beautiful pairing. The women brought out the best in each other.
On the subject of Bianca Belair, she needs some new challengers. Hopefully, post-Wrestlemania provides some NXT call-ups or some people from Smackdown. I can’t picture her beating Carmella for the tenth time.
Big Men Doing Big Men Things
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There weren’t going to be any wrist locks, moonsaults, or Spanish flies between GUNTHER, Drew McIntyre, and Sheamus. Just three abnormally strong men were beating the hell out of each other. It might be my favorite match from night two because of how it was structured, and everybody was getting their moment. Unfortunately, Grand Slam Sheamus is not to be. Despite that, GUNTHER has elevated the Intercontinental title so much that keeping it on his is a good decision.
The Beast Was Not To Be Conquered
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Brock Lesnar versus Omos was short, sweet, and to the point. You came to see Omos throw Brock around a bit and put some doubt in him. Ultimately, it came down to the german suplexes and massive F5. It was a call to start the show with this.
South of Heaven
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What was the WWE music licensing budget for this weekend? Slayer, Kool and The Gang, and The Weekend. There was a scary moment in the Hell In The Cell match with Finn’s head getting busted open by the ladder. Given that, both he and Edge had a good, hard-hitting match. Most people might last remember the Demon persona from whatever the hell the ending to the Roman Reigns match was. Here, Finn redeemed it – even in defeat. Edge got the victory, and if he sticks around – I hope it means moving past Judgement Day.