Doink the Clown and Giant Gonzalez were heavily featured in two of WrestleMania IX's marquee matchups while "Macho Man" Randy Savage, one of the greatest wrestlers to ever lace a pair of boots, was relegated to commentator during what was a horribly booked event. The night got kicked off with the best match of the show, an Intercontinental Championship match between champion Shawn Michaels and top contender Tatanka. That match, for as good as it was, kicked off a pattern of awful finishes as the Native American competitor defeated Michaels by countout. Booking that finish to kick off any show is a major blunder but doing so to open WrestleMania is unforgivable. That Hulk Hogan's return to WrestleMania was marred by a disqualification finish, as was Undertaker's bout with the aforementioned, and awful, Giant Gonzalez. Those three matches were heavily hyped and all three featured unsatisfactory conclusions. That is not a way to reward the fans' faith, especially when the audience is dwindling the way it was in 1993. The fact that the remainder of the card failed to produce anything remotely above average did not help endear the show to fans. Bret Hart, the saving grace of Vince McMahon's promotion at the time, lost his title to Yokozuna in controversial fashion, then watched Hulk Hogan waltz right back into the main event scene and capture the WWE Championship in an impromptu show capper. It was a disheartening sight to see Hogan celebrating as if he had just wrestled the match of his life, all the while the future of the company was left to slink to the back, his eyes blinded by salt and his will broken by the backstage politics of the red and yellow.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
