It Really Was An End of An Era

*Excerpts from DieHard Pro Wrestling Blog*

In a match that was defined as "The End of An Era", The Undertaker continued his Wrestelmania winning streak to 20-0 by defeating Triple H in a Hell In The Cell Steel Cage Match featuring Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels as the special guest referee.

"As I woke up this morning, I had mixed feelings about this match. Perhaps I expected more. Perhaps I expected a swerve. And perhaps I got lost in creatively booking the match myself in my own mind."

"I had expected to see some sort of one night only DX reunion. But, that didn't happen. Instead, we got a slower paced and more dramatic encounter with Shawn Michaels not really playing a major factor in the final decision."

"This match wasn't about creative storytelling. This match was about saying farewell to what is arguably the greatest era of pro wrestling history - The Attitude Era.... And this match at Wrestlemania, was the one moment where we literally said goodbye to yesterday."

"Had Shawn Michaels gotten more involved in determining the outcome of the match, then it would have opened the flood gates of rumors and speculation that he'd be back for at least one more match."

"The match didn't need physical involvement. The story was told through expression....It was technically designed so that you would be able to hear audio bytes of conversations between the those involved. The close up shots of Taker and clear audio of him saying, "Don't end this match Shawn.. No matter what, don't end the match", were more effective than any swerve... The story wasn't in the punches thrown. It was in the facial expressions. And it's an example of the lost art in this business."

"One problem that I had with this match was the lack of blood...I understand the "no blood" policy for the PG-13 product, but this is Wrestlemania!"

"The finish was somewhat weak. Basic tombstone into a three count... Taker saw the end in Triple H's eyes and put the dying dog out of his misery."

"The final shot of Michaels and Taker carrying Triple H to the back was worth a thousand words. You can't put a price on that type of perfection. And while I feel the match itself didn't live up to the expectations, it told the story it needed to tell and ended one of the greatest wrestling books of all time."

This post is sponsored in part by Bay Club Bayside & Forest Hills Rentals