100 Greatest WWE WrestleMania Moments
27. Linda McMahon Stands Up (WrestleMania X-Seven)
Walking charisma vacuum Linda McMahon received a bigger reaction for standing up than most wrestlers do for hitting a Canadian Destroyer through a table or falling off something rather high. Nobody could've called the pop that accompanied Linda's 'Mania moment at X-Seven. This was Austin-esque. No joke!
The WWF's out there story before getting to Vince vs. Shane saw her erm...loving husband drug his wife and consign her to a wheelchair as he smacked the lips off rookie mega-babe Trish Stratus. Looking back, this was an uncomfortable example of Vince's personal power trips and perversions (booking himself in sexual situations with female talent). However, that very real future shock isn't the core focus on this occasion.
Linda's almighty pop is.
Come WrestleMania, a docile McMahon sat in the corner and watched Vince threaten to beat Shane senseless. Then, she stood up, and you'd think 67,000 people in the Houston Astrodome had just watched their favourite win the big one. Linda booted Vince in the nuts, and the live crowd ate it up yet again. Honestly, peeps in Texas were having the time of their lives watching Linda low blow the biggest heel of the 'Attitude Era'.
This one moment shows the true strength of storytelling and simple characterisation. Linda couldn't work a lick, and she wasn't particularly engaging on the mic. It says everything that the pieces around her fit so well that simply standing up and kicking her then-hubs in the balls spoke louder than a thousand words over the live mic could.
Goosebumps inducing stuff.