Wrestlemania 36 featured zero live fans clamoring for an encore. Regardless, WWE cranked up the violence volume, delivering a second night of punishing performances that reverberated through the entertainment realm.
Charlotte installed the first layer in night two’s cheerless wall of wrestling sounds, wooing in tribute to her famed father Ric Flair. Her hereditary gameswomanship failed to woo her stone faced, stone handed opponent Rhea Ripley. At 23, Ripley is one of Wrestlemania’s youngest participants. Age revealed itself as a number again, as the rookie gave the decorated veteran Charlotte a seesaw struggle. Experience triumphed, but Ripley’s outlook remains bullish. She currently sits under the learning tree of the best teacher, but surely graduates to vixen valedictorian someday. Immediate reactions voiced annoyance over Charlotte padding her gaudy title statistics, instead of jobbing to the newer act.
Pragmatism disagrees with passion. Establishing NXT as a third brand tops WWE’s to-do list. Charlotte’s name value and big match pedigree that earned her cache helps accomplish that major goal. NXT’s female division is as foreign to the masses as it is talented, so Charlotte bridges the important visibility gap and by extension, will raise the profile of all the new wrestlers she works with. Fresh faces reinvigorate Charlotte somewhat, given she worked with every relevant woman on the main roster multiple times.
Another act likely facing change is Lana and Lashley’s repugnant relationship. Lashley lost to Aleister Black during the next match via miscommunication with Lana. The eye-rolling angle’s potential death leaves nothing to mourn. Dolph Ziggler receiving comeuppance at the swollen hands of Otis gave fans another reason to smile. He won the affections of Mandy Rose after months of undignified courtship, but the embrace sorely missed a live reaction.
Edge joined Otis in having a Wrestlemania moment dulled by desolateness. Heyman may have been the only orating Paul at Wrestlemania, but the sound of silence blared at ungodly decibels throughout the Last Man Standing Match against Randy Orton. The allies-turned-adversaries combated the absence of a crowd with tangible physicality throughout the Performance Center, but the extenuating obstacles rejected hurdling. Commentary exacerbated the situation by resembling Jim Nantz at a golf major, rather than Jim Ross at a major wrestling show. PG guidelines and the natural blood ban restricted this match from being a slobber knocker. That said, many fans likely found themselves slobbering in sleep before nearly 40-minutes elapsed. Almost 40 minutes acted like 40 hours passed with a snail’s rapidity. The right man (Edge) winning with the right finish offered some solace.
Host Rob Gronkowski added a Wrestlemania win to his accomplishments. Afterward, the Street Profits retained the Raw tag titles against Garza and Angel Theory. The acceptable match allowed fans to visit the concession stands or bathroom.
Nothing crappy emerged in the following Smackdown Women’s Fatal Five Way for Bayley’s title. In fact, the final stretch between Bayley and Lacey Evans featured strong psychology. Physical storytelling showed Bayley mitigating the right-handed source of Evans’ finisher Women’s Right. Evans fought to the end as all Marines do, but Bayley’s measured offense superseded surges. Sasha Banks remaining loyal to Bayley raises an eyebrow, but though Bayley has held the title awhile and Smackdown desperately needs a leading female face, Banks performs best as a heel.
Firefly Funhouse festivities excoriated logic. Head-exploding hoopla visited cooky and captivating territory that Adult Swim could seamlessly annex. During what felt like Steve Brule’s (John C. Reilly) televised fever dream about wrestling sponsored by LSD, witnesses embarked on a tour of Bray Wyatt’s demented mind and WWE’s past. Cena and Wyatt resurrected old gimmicks in new scenarios, including Cena as a hypothetical heel in the NWO and Bray/Cena in Saturday Night’s Main Event. Fiend/Wyatt scored the pin, “winning” the most unique presentation in Wrestlemania history. The often-overlooked video department deserves kudos for the creative collage.
Drew Mccintyre’s coronation as new Raw ruler closed Wrestlemania in straightforward fashion. The “Scottish Psychopath” slew “The Beast” Brock Lesnar with three Claymore Kicks. Lazy finisher spam akin to Smackdown’s Universal Title switch monopolized the short match. While McIntyre winning felt nice, the noticeable effect lacking a crowd radiates reared its ugly head again. Regarding controllable factors, McIntyre’s career trajectory reaching its zenith serves as a strong example of a wrestler underachieving, reinventing himself physically and characteristically and maximizing a second opportunity.
As late pitchman Billy Mays hollered, “But That’s Not All.”
Fellow bearded familiar television face Big Show unironically challenged McIntyre to an immediate closing title match. Raw’s new champion accepted the gargantuan challenge against hefty odds. The gamble paid off when McIntyre slammed Show and nailed a Claymore Kick after playing the underdog for five minutes. Wrestlemania’s strange final surprise likely stems from two sources. Show’s Netflix series ingeniously titled “The Big Show Show” premiered Monday. Additionally, besting the grizzled giant after defeating Lesnar cements the new leader of Raw as a warrior in casual fans’ eyes.
Wrestlemania 36 did not save the best night for last. Part two realized the difficulty of conjuring a special recipe for success without the main ingredient. Regardless, WWE earned commendation for satiating global starvation for new sports entertainment.
Wrestlemania Night 2 grade: C
