10 Things We Learned From Attending WWE WrestleMania 35 Live
All the key lessons from 7+ hours inside the MetLife Stadium.
WrestleMania 35 is in the books, and it was every bit the bloated, over-the-top pro-wrestling carnival its monstrous 16-match lineup promised.
Fan service was in full effect as Kofi Kingston, Becky Lynch, and Seth Rollins all left the MetLife Stadium with World Titles around their waists (and in Becky's case, two). Women headlined for the first time ever. Kurt Angle actually wrestled Baron Corbin. John Cena turned to Thugonomics to banter Elias into oblivion. Samoa Joe squashed Rey Mysterio in a minute, and there wasn't a single sign of Dominick. The Undertaker missed WrestleMania for the first time in years. Triple H got super masturbatory in his well-built battle with Batista. The list of major talking points goes on.
A wrestling fan of 27 years, your writer was fortunate enough to see 'The Showcase Of The Immortals' live and in-person for the first time. It was a bucket list moment and an eye-opening experience. Going through this wild, wacky night in the flesh brought new perspective to a sport I have been watching since I was four years old, and thus, this rundown will take on more of a personal tone than usual.
Let's break down the night's biggest lessons.
10. Atmosphere Over Everything
The WrestleMania live experience is largely dependent on the atmosphere. It doesn't matter where you're sitting or what's going on in the ring: if the crowd are hot, you're going to have a good time.
Early in the show, when energy was high, WM 35 was an absolute blast. It peaked during Kofi Kingston vs. Daniel Bryan. This was an outstanding pro-wrestling match, and one of the best main roster bouts of the decade, with the fans firmly behind the spirited challenger. The MetLife was electrifying for it, and even those sat in the nosebleed seats behind the tron were buzzing.
Unfortunately, the energy levels nosedived thereafter. Perhaps this was because the crowd were spent after such an awesome match, but the decibels dropped with their enthusiasm, and matches like Batista vs. Triple H became even more tedious.
Sitting through these quiet periods wasn't a whole lot of fun, and the crowd even had trouble getting up for the non-Becky portions of the main event, which should have had a lot more heat than it did. That was probably a great match, but the lulls made it feel like a decent-to-good one in the building.