7 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE WrestleMania 38 (Night 1)

'Stone Cold' is back; Cody Rhodes re-debuts; WrestleMania's first night clicks.

by Jamie Kennedy
WWE WrestleMania 38 Steve Austin
WWE.com

He's baaaaaaaaaaack.

Millions of 'Stone Cold' fans around the world probably winced a little when Steve Austin took a weak bump into the security barricade outside the ring. That, mercifully, was the only duff moment in a spirited talk-show-segment-turned-brawl between the legend and Kevin Owens.

WrestleMania 38's opening night was a successful one all in. WWE delivered big surprises (depending on how closely you follow wrasslin' news, at least), iconic comebacks and fitting sendoffs. Was it surreal to watch The Undertaker wave goodbye when Austin was on the comeback trail? Absolutely, but "surreal" could sum up most of the card.

No, some matches definitely didn't feel worthy of the 'Mania treatment, but everybody worked hard and tried to make the most of things. Overall, only the most curmudgeonly of fans could come away from Night 1 thinking it sucked.

AEW > WWE jumps, a proper "Final Farewell", more Stunners/beer drinking than some 'Attitude' era episodes of Raw, injuries, title changes and more - yep, WrestleMania 38's opening salvo was a fun ride that mixed future greatness with past glories.

Here's all the good and bad.

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Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.