10 WWE PPVs That Changed EVERYTHING
2. WrestleMania X-Seven
A fixture in almost any 'best pay-per-view ever' debate, WrestleMania X-Seven set a new standard in quality, with even the night's clearest low point (the goofy Gimmick Battle Royal) a perfectly acceptable slab of dumbness in context.
Its Steve Austin vs. The Rock main event is worth five of anyone's stars. A perfectly-built scrap between the Attitude Era's two biggest names, it was dramatic, attritional, and heated, capturing the ever-elusive 'big match feel' in a way only a handful of bouts had done in the past. But the bout had disastrous consequences, and in concluding X-Seven with Austin shaking hands with his devil, Vince McMahon, WWE helped nuke their own business.
Nobody wanted to jeer for the rebel they'd supported vociferously throughout countless wars with his evil boss, and the heel turn nosedived. So too did WWE. That handshake kickstarted a downturn, with buyrates plummeting, ratings tumbling, and creative taking an almighty hit, which, in the absence of competition, was the death knell for the industry's last boom period.
The rot would've crept in sooner or later regardless, but 'Mania X-Seven's conclusion accelerated it. Neither Austin nor WWE have been the same since.