WWE WrestleMania 29 PPV Evaluation
By Nathan Kyght, PWTorch PPV specialist

BEST MATCH – THE UNDERTAKER VS. C.M. PUNK

Simply fantastic. The Undertaker has seemingly been rumored to be retiring for years now, and there was speculation that he wouldn't make this year's WrestleMania. Everyone is fortunate that he did. Punk was outstanding here as well, mixing just the right amount of heel arrogance and "fear" of his opponent. The spot where Undertaker bounced off the ropes from the GTS and caught Punk in the Tombstone right away, as well as the nearfall after Punk hit Undertaker with urn, was just great pro wrestling storytelling. Every year, even though we all know that Undertaker won't lose, they manage to give us the glimmer of doubt. A truly worth addition to Undertaker's stretch of classic 'Mania matches, this is a must see. Here's hoping he comes back for next year.

WORST MATCH – RYBACK VS. MARK HENRY

Oof, not good. I wasn't expecting a classic, but nothing worked here. And the strangest part is that Henry wins, and the next night on Raw they set up Ryback vs. Cena as the next program. Huh?

BIGGEST SURPRISE – NO SKITS/CELEBRITIES

A massive part of WrestleMania has been, at last for the last several years, wacky backstage skits and celebrity involvement. This year, perhaps due to timing issues, there were only matches (and Diddy). It didn't hurt the show, but I fear that somewhere in MetLife Stadium, Ron Simmons is still waiting to walk in on something weird and say, "Damn."

BIGGEST LETDOWN – ENDLESS VIDEO PACKAGES

I've already purchased the show. You don't need to sell me on it. And three videos on Cena vs. Rock?!

BEST QUOTE – FANDANGO, SORTA

This is cheating, but it's my column. Having hindsight after Raw, I declare Fandango's theme song being sung to be the best quote of (the) WrestleMania (experience).

BEST MOVE – C.M. PUNK

The flying "Macho Man" elbow from the top rope to Undertaker who was on the Spanish announce table was greeted with a strobe light of flash bulbs. And then the table no sold it. Ouch.

BEST MATCH FINISH – UNDERTAKER VS. C.M. PUNK

21-0. That's enough to win this category.

OTHER THOUGHTS

- When I first saw Big E. Langston, I thought "Carlton Banks got JACKED."

- Anyone else wondering if Randy Orton is turning heel? Or for that matter, why the six-man with the Shield opened the show?

- The opening video of the Hurricane Sandy footage was definitely an odd choice. Now before I get angry emails, let me explain: It was a true tragedy, and it's honorable what WWE is doing. But, this video was certainly placed oddly. "These people lost everything...Now who's ready for WRESTLEMANIA!"

Speaking of losing their homes, did Diddy dedicate "I'm coming home" to people that lost their homes? Think it through, Sean. Think it through.

- Chris Jericho is awesome, and DDP Yoga is awesome. That is all.

- Psst, Triple H? Try an armbar. And then try it again. And then try it again. And then-

Kidding aside, apparently Lesnar was knocked out legit at the start of the match, so the plodding pace is all forgiven.

- I seem to be in the minority, but I liked Cena-Rock II better. And, Rock reportedly gutting out (literally) the match for the final 15 minutes after tearing his abdominal muscles is no small feat.

WHAT IT’LL BE REMEMBERED FOR

Everything. Not that it was an all-time great WrestleMania, far from it. But 'Mania goes down in the books. The spectacle, the lineage, and the build-up all have to be factored in. I thought it had no bad matches except for Ryback and Henry, a great match in The Streak, and a very good main event. But, you don't need my recommendation. If you skip WrestleMania, there's virtually no chance you thought to come to a wrestling news website in the first place.

UPDATED 2013 PPV EVALUATION RANKINGS

1 - WWE WRESTLEMANIA XXIX (2013-04-07)
2 – WWE ROYAL RUMBLE (2013-01-27)
3 - TNA LOCKDOWN (2013-03-10)
4 - WWE ELIMINATION CHAMBER (2013-02-17)
5 – TNA GENESIS (2013-01-13)

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