WWE WrestleMania 23 (2007)

Wrestlemania 23:The Ultimate Limited Edition:- as the WWE repeats over and over- Wrestlemania is the Super Bowl of Sports Entertainment and this year they staged their Super Bowl in the same building the NFL used to stage the Super Bowl.I enjoyed several of the matches- I thought the Batista vs Undertaker match was very strong and that the Cena vs HBK match built to a nice finish.The money in the bank ladder match was another good stunt fest.The billionaire bald match had some funny spots with Donald Trump & Vinny Mac.The DVD is chock full of extras including matches and promos before and after mania.One of the best parts of Wrestle Mania weekend is the Hall of Fame ceremony - if you spend the extra 10 dollars for the 3 disc edition you will get the excellent Hall of Fame ceremony - a mix of legends,anecdotes,vintage footage and tears and hugs- a must for any fan of old school rasslin'. The event itself was a decent card with some good matches- but the DVD collection is another solid addition to any wrestling fans library. A-

Money In The Bank Ladder Match This was a Money In The Bank match with not too many hight spots but more wrestling then you'd expect. Some pretty cool moments that included comedy. ***1/4Kane vs Khali This was much better then expected. 5 minutes seemed just right. *1/4Chris Benoit vs MVP This was a great match. Classic in my opinion but it could have been a lot longer say around 15-20 mins. But none the less, it was still great. ***The Undertaker vs Batista This was the best match of the night. It stole the show. Undertaker didn't even need to carry Batista to a good match, Batista did it all by himself not being carried. This was a great back and fourth type of match with a great spot of Batista doing a Running Powerslam from one announce table to the other. Just a great match and a great finish. ****1/4ECW New Breed vs ECW Originals I don't remember to much other then there was a lot of highspots at around the 5 minute mark. An OK match. Nothing special. **Bobby Lashley vs Umaga This was much better then I thought. The addition of Austin, Trump, Mr. McMahon and Shane McMahon all made it even better. Another great match. It was so memorable watching Mr. McMahon being shaved bald. ***1/2Melina vs Ashley I was eating. So I didn't see it, but from what I heard, it sucked hard, which it probably did. DUDWWE Title Match Shawn Michaels vs John Cena I have to say, I thought this would be the match of the night, but it really wasn't. This was all Shawn Michaels. John Cena did nothing but three moves all in 30 minutes. Just horrible. ***

This year's mania came from Detroit. To recap (heavy spoilers):Money In The Bank: Arguably the best match of the night. All 8 superstars gave it their all, and Mr. Kennedy emerged as the winner.Ashley vs. Melina (Women's championship): The shortest match of the night, not half bad. Melina retains her title.MVP vs. Chris Benoit (United States Championship): A good match with technical maneuvers involved. One of the better matches of the night, Benoit also retains his belt.Kane vs. The Great Khali: Didn't really expect much out of this one, just 2 big guys going at it. Homage to Wrestlemania III with Kane body slamming Khali, even though Khali ended up winning.ECW Originals vs. The New Breed: Not bad, but could've been better. The Originals take the win.The much ballyhooed Battle Of The Billionaires. Vince McMahon's representative, the Intercontinental champion Umaga, took on ECW champion Bobby Lashley, with Stone Cold as the guest referee. Shane McMahon tried to pull a fast one by posing as ref, but it didn't work. McMahon loses his hair. For all the hype, it was half decent.Undertaker vs. Batista (World Heavyweight Championship): Not bad, it was a relief to see Taker win the world heavyweight championship and stay undefeated for at least 1 more year at Wrestlemania.Shawn Michaels vs. John Cena (WWE Championship): One of the best matches of the night, HBK made Cena work. Terrible ending, though, with HBK not only losing, but tapping out to the STFU. Shawn deserves better.Overall 8/10.

I just ordered Wrestlemania 23 today & watched it with my neighbors, & let me tell you, I was not at all disappointed. Undertaker finally winning a championship in 5 years, Cena retaining his title again & Mr. Kennedy being known now as Mr. Money In The Bank.FIRST MATCH- RANDY ORTON VS. JEFF HARDY VS. KING BOOKER W/ SHARMELL VS. EDGE VS. MATT HARDY VS. MR. KENNEDY VS. CM PUNK VS. FINLAY IN A 8 MAN MONEY IN THE BANK LADDER MATCH WINNER GETS TO CHOOSE ANY TIME TO HAVE A TITLE SHOT IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS What a smashing, shocker way to open up Wrestlemania, an 8 man ladder match. This ladder match had so many sick spots, especially when Jeff Hardy nailed a leg drop off the top off the ladder on Edge who was on a ladder himself. Both men got so hurt, that they were sent to the back by medical people. Mr. Kennedy overcomes the odds, & climbs up & grabs the briefcase, as Mr. Kennedy is known as Mr. Money In The Bank. 6/10SECOND MATCH- KANE VS. GREAT KHALI I knew this match was going to be bad, but it did pick up the pace a bit. But the shocking highlight in the match was when Kane got his hook, & hit Khali in the groin with it. Then Kane picked up the big giant & body slammed him. But Khali fought back & nailed a big slam for the win. 4/10THIRD MATCH- CHRIS BENOIT VS. MVP FOR THE WWE UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSIP Lots of great technical wrestling here, also good counters. The match was a bit slow, but there is nothing really to complain about, only if there was more time for these two 2 wrestle. Benoit makes MVP tap out to retain his WWE United STates Championship. 6/10FOURTH MATCH- BATISTA VS. UNDERTAKER FOR THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP I can't believe that they put this match in the middle of the card, I mean it was supposed to be the main event. But this match was really great & exciting. Props to Undertaker doing a big dive from out of the ring right onto Batista. Undertaker even broke out of the Batista Bomb, while Batista broke out of the Last Ride & Chokeslam. Undertaker finally nails a Tombstone for the win & not only is 15-0 at Wrestlemania, but finally gets to win a championship for the first time in 5 years. Also thank God that Undertaker is the champion, because I cannot stand Batista as being the World Champion. 6/10FIFTH MATCH- ECW ORIGINALS {ROB VAN DAM, SABU, TOMMY DREAMER & SANDMAN} VS. NEW BREED {ELIJAH BURKE, MATT STRIKER, MARCUS DAR VON & KEVIN THORN W/ ARIEL} IN A 8 MAN TAG TEAM MATCH ECW superstars did pretty well in this match, which came as a surprise to me as ECW originally sucks. Great match in my opinion, but it needed to be a bit longer. But still great match. RVD nails a Five Star Frog Splash on Matt Striker to win. 5/10SIXTH MATCH- DONALD TRUMP {BOBBY LASHLEY FIGHTING FOR HIM} VS. VINCE MCMAHON {UMAGA W/ ARMANDO ELJANDRO ESTRADA FIGHTING FOR HIM} IN A BILLIONAIRE VS. BILLIONAIRE MATCH SPECIAL GUEST REFEREE: STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN THE BILLIONAIRE WHO'S REPRESENTATIVE LOSES WILL GET HIS HEAD SHAVED BALD Great match, really good. Stone Cold gets knocked down by Umaga, which leads to Vince & Shane McMahon to interfere as Shane nails a Van Dam Terminator on Lashley, then reveals that Shane is a referee. Just when Shane is about to count Lashley to 3, Stone Cold knocks him out. Stunners Umaga which leads to Lashley nailing him with a Spear for the win as Vince Mcmahon will get his head shaved bald. After the match Vince McMahon tries to run away, but Lashley catches him, puts him in the ring & Donald Trump & Lashley shave Vince's hair all bald in the most greatest Wrestlemania moment that I can remember. Then Stone Cold nails Donald Trump with a Stunner, before leaving. 5/10SEVENTH MATCH- MELINA VS. ASHLEY IN A LUMBERJILL MATCH FOR TE WWE WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP Okay Diva matches are boring yes, this one here is an example of how boring Diva matches are. I mean this match took like 3 minutes, didn't even go any longer. Melina wins to retain her WWE Women's Championship, although I didn't really see how. 2/10EIGHT MATCH- JOHN CENA VS. SHAWN MICHAELS FOR THE WWE CHAMPIONSHIP John Cena's entrance was him driving a cool Mustang, & slamming through the Wrestlemania arena as his entrance, really cool. Alright, the match started slow, then picked up a great pace at the end, both Cena & Michaels were busted open. Okay match, really nothing to complain about, as both these men tried to put on a great show, & successfully they did. Cena makes Michaels tap out to the STFU to retain his WWE Championship. Cena starts celebrating with fireworks all over the arena, as Wrestlemania goes off the air. 5/10Another great Wrestlemania, another Mr. Money In The Bank winner. Undertaker continues his winning Wrestlemania streak in a big way this time, winning the World Heavyweight Championship, & John Cena again retains his title in a hard match with the legendary Shawn Michaels, & Vince McMahon is now a bald billionaire, oh what am I kidding, Donald Trump is richer than McMahon. Thumbs up to another great Wrestlemania.Overall I'll give it 7/10 & a C+