WrestleMania VII

When various P.P.V events were issued on video back in the 1990s, most of the releases were heavily edited versions with footage removed from different matches. "Wrestlemania 7" is no exception to the rule but if you can find the unedited version on DVD, then this particular event is so much the better. Hulk Hogan's story angle with the champion Sgt. Slaughter had been accumulating a lot of heat for the past several weeks and promised to make for a highly charged and entertaining main event. The fact that the war in Iraq was raging at the time only added to the tension between the two wrestlers as Slaughter was portrayed as an Iraqi sympathizer. The match is the longest on the card but the time rushes by. Hogan - as the "squeaky clean" character - represents the United States as he carries the American flag to ringside. It is a bloody but exciting match and one of the best in either man's career. Originally, this Wrestlemania was supposed to have been held at a different stadium in Los Angeles. Potentially, about 100,000 people could have been accommodated but due to security concerns and poor ticket sales, this had to be cancelled. The resulting arena is on a much smaller scale. Mr. Perfect was the reigning IC champion for a second time when he was challenged by the Big Boss Man. The former corrections officer was involved in a story angle against the entire Heenan family during late 1990 to early 1991. Here we have a mixture of styles in the ring and the results are good. Curt Hennig (Mr. Perfect) was always great at selling the moves of his opponent and he does that just as well in this encounter. Tag team champions The Hart Foundation make their last appearance on P.P.V as a team in a tough title defence against a relatively new team, The Nasty Boys. In all honesty, I was initially stunned by the outcome but in the long term it made sense. The Nasty Boys would employ similar tactics against Legion of Doom - producing a somewhat different outcome. The match that some fans seem to remember the most, is the career ending match between The Ultimate Warrior and Macho King Randy Savage. A lot was on the line in this one and both wrestlers give 100%! It isn't the kind of match that can be summed up in just a few minutes and I'm glad it went on for longer. The remaining matches are mid card affairs and they range from being great to being average. The tag team of Demolition - once the most dominant team in the WWE - had been reduced to mid card status. Their match against a Japanese team is rather mundane and disappointing. The British Bulldog was at the beginning of a highly successful singles career and he takes on the monstrous Warlord. This is about power vs. power but Davey Boy Smith could add considerable speed and finesse to his ability. The Undertaker hadn't long taken on Paul Bearer as his manager when he fought "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka in a fairly good match. It doesn't last long but it is great to see the Grim Reaper in his first Wrestlemania. The Legion of Doom were rapidly becoming a force to be reckoned with since joining the company in July 1990. At Wrestlemania 7, they engaged in a squash match against Power and Glory. Hawk and Animal simply do what they do best and to perfection. Greg "The Hammer" Valentine engaged in a match against Earthquake and the result is predictable. The opening match between The Rockers and Haku and The Barbarian is a terrific one. There are a few twists and turns which lead to a great climax. The match between Virgil and "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase is a big disappointment in my opinion. From a story angle perspective, I understood why this all came about after what occurred between the two at the Royal Rumble that same year. However, the choreography could have been much better and the match on for longer. The rather stupid ending hardly helps. Rowdy Roddy Piper makes a welcome appearance as he comes to ringside in Virgil's corner. Kerry Von Erich against Dino Bravo is OK but nothing special. Both wrestlers were confirmed mid carders. The Mountie made an early appearance in his career at the WWE and quickly establishes himself as a considerable heel. His match against Tito Santana is very poor. Jake Roberts was in the middle of a feud against The Model Rick Martel when they had this blind fold match. It doesn't really work as the choreography is disrupted all the time. The result makes it worthwhile though. Overall, I would rate this Wrestlemania on the top 10 of the greatest of all time.

More than any other period to this point in Wrestlemania history, it seems as if the entire WWF roster changed from VI to VII. Yet, it is pretty much a change for the better, as older, less relevant wrestlers take a back seat to a whole new generation.

The highlights of this event for me include:

-The British Bulldog (always a fan-favorite) in a singles match with The Warlord. -The Hart Foundation (now solidly in the babyface camp) taking on the new Nasty Boys tag team. -The first WM appearance for The Undertaker (with Paul Bearer, of course!) -The epic "retirement match" between "Macho King" Randy Savage and the Ultimate Warrior. Probably the best overall match of the entire event in terms of both execution and excitement. -Mr. Perfect, one of the greatest technical wrestlers the WWF had ever seen, against the Big Boss Man, who could execute moves very well for a big guy and had a great persona to boot. -Even the Virgil/DiBiase feud was kind of fun.

Ironically enough, however, the reason I can't give Wrestlemania VII the full five stars is because the final Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter match just isn't very good at all. The buildup is incredible and it may have been one of the most publicized matches of all-time playing on the tensions surrounding the Gulf War at the time, but the match just doesn't live up to the hype. Nowhere near the Hulk/Warrior clash of a year earlier.

There is also a shakeup in the broadcast booth for this event, with Bobby "The Brain" Heenan replacing Jesse "The Body" Ventura beside Gorilla Monsoon. I have always thought that "The Body" was one of the best color commentators the WWF ever had, and while "The Brain" is okay, that great Monsoon/Ventura chemistry is no longer apparent.

Overall, though, this is a solid Wrestlemania. What it lacks in a "grand finale" it more than makes up for with an infusion of new, fresh talent into the business.

First off, yes, the Slaughter/Iraq angle was stupid. But the Heat for the main event was off the charts and, shockingly, Slaughter carries Hogan to a decent match! The Warrior vs Savage is one of the best booked matches in history, and to not enjoy it is a travesty! A 5 star classic for sure. Some other bright spots included a great opener between the Rockers/Haku & Barbarian. Bulldog/Warlord was also much better than expected! Surprise appearances for Elizabeth & Andre the Giant just added to the big event feel here!

Sure, there was a lot of filler at this show too, but its still a fun card and was the first Wrestlemania I ever got to see.

A must to see for sure!

This is a star filled mania some of the all time great single performers. hall of fame tag teams all the titles on the line ,careers on the line, blindfold wrestlers returning giants & pipers love story and a fight for the flag. Gorilla on the mic the brain ringside then on the mic action packed full of fun one of wrestling finest.

I do enjoy the classic WrestleMania's. But this one was not that good from start to finish. First you have to look at the fact that they only sold about 16,000 tickets and had to move the event to a smaller arena. Then they called it the largest Pay-Per-View audience in history despite the fact the buy rates were pretty bad.

As far as the matches go there were none that really stand out in my mind as classics. In fact Demolition vs Tenryu & Kitao is one of the worst WrestleMania matches of all time. The Savage vs. Warrior match is called a classic and it did have some good momentum changes but the Warrior required someone to give him a good match but Savage wasn't the guy to do that. The Mr. Perfect match was decent but it's hard to pull a good match when you are facing a man as big as Big Boss Man.

Finally there is the main event of Sgt. Slaughter vs. Hulk Hogan. I think by this time people were getting a little bored with Hogan in WrestleMania. The story for this match wasn't very good and the actual match itself was kinda boring. Had I seen this back in 1991 I would have loved but it now I realize that there are many better WrestleMania's than this one.