How excited are you for Mania

[The Legend]

So last night was Fastlane, that means no more stops before Mania and tonight's RAW is the first of the shows leading into the biggest show of the year. Most of the card is already taking shape if not fully announced, so with that being said, how excited are you for the big show?

Here's the most likely matches for the show:

Universal Title - Goldberg vs Lesnar
WWE Title - Bray Wyatt vs Randy Orton (maybe Luke Harper, but not likely)
IC Title - Dean Ambrose vs Baron Corbin
US Title - Jericho vs Kevin Owens
RAW Women's Title - Bayley vs Sasha vs Charlotte
Roman Reigns vs Undertaker
AJ Styles vs Shane McMahon
John Cena and Nikki Bella vs Miz and Maryse
Andre Battle Royale
Maybe HHH vs Seth Rollins

Also, where do you think that leaves some of the holes in the card: CW Title, SD Women's Title, Tag Titles, Braun Strowman, Cesaro, Sheamus, Ziggler

[Hanley!]

Less than I ever have been.

Wrestlemania has been disappointing me for years, and this part of the wrestling calendar is usually my least favourite these days. Because the stories get worse, the style over substance mentality is at its worst, and the guys I like recede into the background while the older, duller stars take the spotlight. These old timers proceed to do nothing much with said spotlight, because they make too much per appearance to bring in for more than a couple of Raw shows, and don't need to do anything to earn a reaction when they do show up because they'll get a nostalgia pop and that's apparently enough.

That being said, there's always something on a Wrestlemania show that I'm excited about. Even if the entire show doesn't sound appealing to me, there's always something. Last year I was excited about seeing the women finally have a great show-stealing match at Wrestlemania, while being taken seriously as performers. It ended up being the best part of the show. I was also looking forward to seeing Styles have his first Wrestlemania match, which under-delivered a little on the night. But still, it was something that I was excited about.

This year I'm not excited about anything on the show. Literally. I think some of the pairings are bad, while others are just lazy and uninspired. Cena's match is ridiculous and shouldn't be on the card. Whereas the Rollins vs Triple H match could have hypothetically been a selling point for me, but they've done such a bad job with both characters and the story itself over the last year that I couldn't possibly care. Everything falls into one of those two categories for me, with the exception of Owens vs Jericho. That's the only feud that's been booked genuinely well and where there's a reason to give a shit about the outcome of the match at Wrestlemania.

But I can't quite say I'm excited about that either. Part of it is probably that the rest of the card has just killed my enthusiasm for Wrestlemania in general. But the fact that it's been demoted from the world title feud to the US title feud probably has something to do with it too. This has been the best set up for a Wrestlemania match by far this year. That the company thinks its better off as an undercard match so the part-timers can get it on in the main event, does deflate my excitement for the match. I can't help it.

I took a holiday from work the day after the Royal Rumble, largely because I had a day to take, but I chose that particular day because I wanted to stay up and watch the Rumble. Last night I couldn't sleep, but ended up watching Netflix while I was waiting to get sleepy, because I just didn't give a shit about Fastlane at all. That hasn't happened to me in a long time. I feel like I'll be the same for Wrestlemania. The hype during the week leading up to the show might get me just psyched enough to watch a little of the show, but I won't be making the effort to stay up and watch the whole thing live, and doubt I'd want to watch anything from it the next day unless there ends up being a killer match that everyone is talking about. But with the card we have right now, that doesn't look like happening.

I'm probably about a 1/10 on the excitement scale right now. I kinda hope that changes closer to the show, but another part of me hopes that it doesn't. I don't want to be hopeful about Wrestlemania, because that usually leads to disappointment.

On the bright side, the few months following Wrestlemania are often the best of the year in the WWE, so I am hoping for a possible change in direction leading up to the summer. The Road From Wrestlemania is something I actually look forward to these days.

[DBSoT]

If I was sitting at home and watching it from my couch, I would be very underwhelmed. I would probably give my excitement a 4/10. However, one of my groomsmen bought me WrestleMania tickets as a gift. The excitement of getting to be in Orlando during the whole weekend and watching NXT Takeover increased a lot. I am more excited for the vacation and event atmosphere, than the actual matches though. The actual card makes me kind of sad. WWE is going to lose these nostalgic wrestlers one day and they are going to be in massive trouble.

With that said, I know what I am getting into. I could boo Taker, Lesnar, Goldberg, Shane, Taker and all the other old fucks and it wouldn't make a difference. So instead, I will go and just enjoy the spectacle of it all. It's the same feeling I have for the Superbowl. I could couldn't care less who wins, but the event is so large and so ingrained in its fans, that it is just hard to stop watching.

[Everlong]

As someone who is just a casual viewer these days, there really isn't anything about the show that makes me want to tune in. Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt sounds like an absolute snoozefest of a title match to me, and Goldberg vs. Lesnar being for the title is a joke. I'd have rather seen another Cena/Styles match than either of those, for damn sure.

I dunno. There'll be a couple decent matches on the card but man if this doesn't feel like a dud to me.

[KaiserGlider]

Honestly, probably less excited than I've ever been. I can't believe they were basically served an incredible Wrestlemania card on a silver platter, and yet managed fuck up so much of it within the past two months. Seems like the only big match build that hasn't been derailed/screwed up by creative in some way is the Triple H match (surprise surprise), which is hilarious considering that Rollins got injured and could potentially miss the show.

That being said, I expect a pretty entertaining show with some cool moments and great wrestling here and there, hindered by some poor booking decisions. So kinda like last year.

[Messiah]

I realized a couple of months ago that apparently I'm the only person who actually is entertained by the WWE right now. I find it hard to believe that this year is the least excited people are for WrestleMania. WrestleMania 32 had a far worse build. A lot of those matches were thrown together in the last 30 days or so leading up to the show.

In comparison, damn near every match on this show will have months and months of build-up. Is it perfect? No, of course not. Things could be better. But the WWE has done a lot of great things and I feel like people are intentionally ignoring it. Or maybe they genuinely just don't like it I guess. Owens/Jericho should be for the World Title, but it's still an amazing feud. I'm still interested in where they are going with Wyatt/Orton and it will be a good match. Neville has been built up fabulously and his in-ring performances and character portrayal have gotten him over, plus they have been building up to his showdown with Aries for months. Just three matches off the top of my head that have been built up months before WrestleMania, we rarely see that nowadays. I just find it hard to believe that out of ALL the recent WrestleMania's, this is somehow the least excited people have been. I think it's just an issue of it being in the moment. I know for a fact people were less excited for WrestleMania 30 than this one. Everyone thought that card, even when it appeared they were going to give Bryan the title shot, was shit. There were like 4-5 matches on it and all of them were just lazily booked (Batista/Orton sounded awful, Undertaker/Lesnar was a HORRIBLE feud, Wyatt/Cena was actually a really good build because of the promos but at least 5 of the stories going on right now are better). Just because the show turned out to be great doesn't change that.

But like I said, maybe it's just me. There are a lot of problems but a lot of things I'm excited for. I think this is the best display of long-term booking we have seen from the WWE in years and I'm looking forward to seeing the conclusion of a lot of these stories.

Plus while there are things people disagree with, are people not entertained by Raw and SmackDown lately? Raw's 3 hours kind of hurts it and I never watch the full-show, but there are a lot of good things happening on it lately. And SmackDown is great damn near every week. How is this the LEAST EXCITED people are for WrestleMania in comparison to past years? I just find that unbelievable. I can see why people are disappointed or not looking forward to it. But the least excited?

[Messiah]

Cena's match is ridiculous and shouldn't be on the card.

Why is it ridiculous? Nikki is coming off a great feud with Natayla, Miz has been phenomenal the past couple of months, and they had a good segment on SmackDown. Not to mention they have been building up to it for weeks now with Bella accidentally hitting Maryse backstage and Cena ending Miz's chances at the title twice. Maybe you aren't interested in it but how is it ridiculous? What else should Cena be doing, challenging for the WWE Championship for the billionth time? And what should Miz be doing? It would be a disgrace to leave him off the card considering he has been either the best or 2nd best guy on SmackDown since the brand split.

In an ideal world, it should have been Styles and Cena III for the WWE Championship. But once they put a nail to that, Cena going at it with Miz was a good alternative. There isn't anything for Cena to do outside of that unless you are one of the people who want Cena/Undertaker. And honestly that would probably be a worse feud than Undertaker/Reigns because at least Reigns has an attitude/edge to his character. Not to mention I feel like he can get a better match out of Undertaker than Cena will given all Cena does nowadays is hit his big moves for 10-15 minutes (and I like Cena). Regardless anything Undertaker does nowadays kind of sucks. I don't know why anyone would want to see Cena/Undertaker though. The novelty factor I guess? But there would be nothing to come out of it. At least Undertaker/Reigns will put Reigns over as a despised heel because that is definitely what is going to happen coming out of this feud (I am not convinced Reigns is going to be a babyface much longer, especially after his interactions with Undertaker so far). You would never see Cena approach or disrespect Undertaker like Reigns has twice, already making it a more captivating (by Taker standards) feud than a Cena one would be.

[AkydefGoldberg]

I'm probably more excited to stay up into the early hours, not having to go to work the next day as I booked it off and chatting on here during the show! Sad, but I don't care..

As for the show, for me who doesn't watch as regularly, Goldberg v Lesnar/Undertaker v Reigns/Owens v Jericho/and what Styles does interest me the most. As I'm not as invested in some of the other angles, I might drift off for those but that's why - and it's not to say it's right - that the WWE throw so many old timers into the main events is to nostalgically live off the old days and draw in viewers like me, I guess.

Also wonder whether there'll be any surprises, in terms of old faces showing up. Angle to be involved somehow if he's to make a return in the ring or as an on-screen presence? Or some special segments like they had at Mania a few years ago with Rock/Hogan/Austin.

[prophet]

I'm looking forward to Owens/Jericho, the RAW Women's match, HHH/Rollins (to an extent) and seeing AJ in a high profile match (I know Steve disagrees with this but I don't hate Shane/Styles). I was looking forward to a potential Wyatt/Harper/Orton triple threat but since they rushed and botched Orton's betrayal I've lost all interest in that. I'm sure the Cruiserweight Match will either be Neville/Aries (yes please) or a Ladder spotfest (fun) so that should be okay to watch.

The problem for me is the main focus of the show is a bunch of part timers again. That's not good.

[Str8Shooter]

@Messiah got me fired up haha!

He makes a lot of good points. I can't help but think a lot of people who are disappointed or upset about this card are people who aren't watching the full shows week to week and are ducking in and out on youtube clips or what people say online or on podcasts. Last night's Raw built up quite a bit of stuff pretty well I thought.

I can understand people thinking the match ups on paper aren't the most ideal situation, and I'm sure that affects peoples excitement level for the stuff we are going to get.

Cena and Nikki vs Miz and Maryse doesn't sound sexy on paper, but if you're not going with a Cena/Styles, or Cena/Taker, I'm not sure how this is any worse than the rumoured Cena vs Baron Corbin match. Miz has been great all year and deserves a bigger spotlight, and Nikki needs something to do, even more so if this could be her last Mania.

The Rollins vs HHH build had been solid, once Trips showed back up anyway, he's had some great promos. Feels like real heat in this match.

Goldberg/Brock might not be everyones cup of tea but the build has been done pretty well to this point. Owens and Jericho have had one of the longer and better builds to a match we've seen in years. People thought this match would have happened months ago. As goofy as Orton/Wyatt been they at least seem top be putting effort into booking it.

I'm not sure the show is going to have a standout 5 star classic on it I'll give you, but once we get close to Mania weekend I'm sure more peoples excitement levels will rise.

[Hanley!]

I'm looking forward to Owens/Jericho, the RAW Women's match, HHH/Rollins (to an extent) and seeing AJ in a high profile match (I know Steve disagrees with this but I don't hate Shane/Styles).

I've said before on here that I want Styles to be in a high profile match, and would rather see him in a singles match against Shane than as part of a random ladder match with a bunch of other guys for a mid-card title. So the Shane/Styles match isn't the worst thing in the world. It's just the shittest high profile match they could have given hihm.

Why is it ridiculous?

- We've seen Cena vs Miz before.
- They have no chemistry in the ring.
- The outcome is painfully predictable.
- It's a match that nobody wanted.
- It has generated no buzz, nor will it.
- It does nothing for either character.

The WWE championship match at Wrestlemania should have been John Cena vs AJ Styles. We're in complete agreement on that much. WWE screwed up by blowing through that feud too quickly. But it's not like Miz was the next best option. There's a lot of space between those two matches.

The Miz vs Cena is a waste of John Cena. I'm not even a big fan of the guy, but it just is. Cena is one of the biggest stars in the company, if not the biggest. Putting him in a match that will neither draw interest or help to establish a potential future main eventer is ridiculous. I don't see an argument against that.

I'm not a fan of the Undertaker vs Cena match either, but it is something that people wanted to see for whatever reason. And it would have been a big star power match that we haven't really seen before between two guys on the same level. It would have made much more sense than Cena vs Miz.

They didn't have to go down that route either though. Cena and Ambrose were building some nice heat with each other on Smackdown and Talking Smack a few months ago, right before Cena's most recent sabbatical. The pissed off work horse of the company vs the disrespected veteran could have been a great feud to pursue for Wrestlemania. It would have been different, it would have been new, and fans would have been more interested in it. And they could have made this change without really impacting any of their other current plans. At least none of the ones that matter.

Samoa Joe could have debuted on Smackdown and Cena vs Joe could have been a match for Wrestlemania. That's a match people have been suggesting for a while and it had a bit of buzz about it. For similar reasons to Cena's clashes with Styles, this could have received a lot of heat. Instead Joe is on Raw now and isn't booked for anything solid for Wrestlemania right now. It doesn't look like he will be given anything important.

A brand vs brand, face vs face, past vs future match between Cena and Reigns was something that I thought could have been interesting, particularly after the two exchanged words on Twitter a while back and it gained some traction online. The crowd dynamic for this would have been fascinating at the very least.

Cena vs Corbin isn't the most inspiring choice, but it makes more sense than the Miz match. It helps promote Corbin, who they consider a potential player going forward. The match would have been better. And the two are just closer in terms of credibility. Not my first choice, but it was an option that was available to them, even if they wanted to use the bigger names in other matches.

I don't think this match even does anything for Miz. He's had a great run lately, I agree with that. I actually think he's the best talker in the company right now, bar none. But this is going to stall his momentum if anything. This match up makes him look like less of a star. It's not just that he's going to lose the match - it's that even the most casual of fans knows instantly that he's going to lose this match. This looks like a mismatch. Just seeing this on paper makes Miz seem more mid-card to me. Maybe I'm in a minority there, but I don't think this will be good for his current run.

Cena vs Miz (with or without their better halves) just doesn't accomplish anything positive. It's a waste of one of the company's greatest resources. That's why it's ridiculous.

[KaiserGlider]

I find myself agreeing with Messiah's post about the level of excitement for Wrestlemania this year compared to previous years. This card feels bigger in terms of star power and long-term build than the last few Wrestlemania cards. I would say that for all its faults Goldberg/Brock is still a more extincting main event than Haitch/Roman. There's lots of story build all over the card.

Maybe it is just the heat of the moment, coming out of Fastlane. I think that show reaffirmed a lot of people's perceptions, mine included, that things just don't matter as much as they should matter. You had Braun's undefeated streak come to an end at the hands of Roman. You had Charlotte lose her PPV streak in awful/forgettable fashion. They squashed the world champion just to shoehorn the belt onto Goldberg vs Lesnar.

Heading into Wrestlemania 30 and 31, it was more like people were angry at Batista/Roman and wanted to tune in to either see a shitshow or to see WWE fix it and make them happy. Last year the amount of injuries and Roman vs Triple H being telegraphed for months made people have lower expectations, at least in my opinion. This year though it seems like people are just less emotionally invested in the outcomes of the matches.

For me it's mostly about lost potential. I was really hyped for Wrestlemania at the start of the year. I thought for sure we were headed for a great Wrestlemania. And maybe we still are. But so much shit has been tampered with, it's almost like the card has been deliberately sabotaged. Jericho vs Owens should have been the main event. They missed a great opportunity to establish Jericho as the top face and Owens as top heel. I'm not gonna say the Orton vs Wyatt story has been ruined yet, but I was never a fan of how quickly they put the belt on Bray just to have this match. No Cena/Taker. I'm mostly just disappointed I guess - kinda like I was when seeing Batman vs Superman after the hype I had for it. Like I said earlier, I still think it will likely be a good show. Maybe even great. Ask me again in 4 weeks, I'll probably be feeling more hyped.

There is tons of stuff to be positive about though, more than there has been in years. Aries, Joe, and Styles are all on the main roster, being treated like stars, are over, and are completely allowed to be themselves. Roode, Nakamura, and that guy VaderBomb really likes are coming up. We'll see Kurt Angle again real soon. Smackdown has been putting on a great product for months, PPVS are mostly really strong, and Raw has a lot of bright spots despite its many faults. 2016 was the best year for wrestling in a decade. Even if you hate this Wrestlemania season, in just 4 weeks it'll be over. It's think it's important not to lose sight of all that while we do what we internet wrestling fans love to do - bitch and moan.

[Hanley!]

I do appreciate that they've been developing some of their Wrestlemania feuds for a few months now. That's something I'd like them to do more often - it can be great when they sign post what we're getting in advance, because then it's satisfying and exciting when the elements start to fall into place. They do need to give the fans a reason to care about the match though, and I think they forgot to do that part with some of their feuds that have been building for a while.

Randy Orton is terribly cast as the babyface right now, considering what he did to Bray with very little provocation. The crowd's response on Smackdown proved that fans aren't really clamouring to see him win the title. I don't see why we'd be looking forward to seeing the heel Lesnar get his revenge on the face Goldberg. And Rollins vs Triple H suffered badly from being taken off the boil for so long. It was great that these matches were set up way in advance, but it's what happened since then that's dulled my enthusiasm.

Owens/Jericho was handled very well though, in fairness. That's how you pull one of these stories off.

I think Kaiser is onto something with his post. In many ways, the booking building up towards this Wrestlemania has been better than previous years. But it's just disappointing. A lot of the matches are fairly dull or uninspiring, but there's nothing to be really angry about. The last couple of years have given fans something to be angry about. And that was better for WWE in a way, because when fans are angry about something, at least they're being passionate. Apathy is a far worse emotion for their fans to be feeling right now, and this isn't a card that makes me angry. It's a card that makes me apathetic.

Though I do think that part of the problem is they changed around a few of their matches at the last minute too. Matches being added without fanfare such as Miz/Cena don't give the fans anything to be excited about, while pointlessly giving away pay offs to lengthy storylines such as Charlotte's pay per view streak sucks the momentum out of certain stories and performers.

As I've said already, I am looking forward to Wrestlemania being over, because I think we'll get some good stuff afterwards. There is a lot to be positive about with WWE at the moment. Their improved women's wrestling scene, their amazing talent roster. Wrestlemania somehow just rarely seems to be the place where we see these things used to their full effect.