Wrestlemania X-8


release year: 2002
genre: vintage wrestling pay-per-view
viewing setting: home DVD, 12/17/16

synopsis: This eighteenth annual wrestling mega-event was the 2002 edition, and featured some WCW stars' debuts/returns to WWF, and some big matches including Angle/Kane, Undertaker/Flair, Austin/Hall, Hogan/Rock, and Jericho/HHH.

where it happened: Toronto

impressions: As always, I won't go into great detail, but just mention the highlights: an impressive running time of almost four hours...some really crappy thrash-metal bands playing opening songs at several points...the last year they had to blur out the "WWF" logo on these DVDs...William Regal vs Rob Van Dam to open...Christian having a temper tantrum after losing to his former mentor Diamond Dallas Page...a funny interview where the Rock tries to force the interviewer to pray...a stupid hardcore match between Maven and Goldust where there were all kinds of golden weapons hidden under the ring, and where someone else suddenly ran in and took the belt, and then it changed hands several more times as random wrestlers kept getting it...a good athletic Kurt Angle vs Kane match...Jerry Lawler's overuse of the terms "head trauma" and "Olympic"...a stalker in the ladies' dressing room...a great violent Undertaker-Flair match...a boring Edge-Booker T match (I've never been a fan of Booker) in which Booker grunted and growled almost non-stop...Stone Cold Steve Austin taking on Scott Hall, which meant he also ended up taking on Kevin Nash...a somewhat boring quadruple tag-team match...Hogan vs Rock where the crowd REALLY got into it and Hogan became a good guy at the end, and he and Rock beat the crap out of Hall and Nash who ran in...a 3-way womens' match that was fairly athletic...Chris Jericho (with Stephanie McMahon) vs Triple H (with hurt leg) as the final match.

fun quote #1: 
Jerry Lawler: (after William Regal picked up the brass knuckles from the floor) "This guy is great...now he's picking up trash around the ringside! He does it all, doesn't he?"

fun quote #2: 
Jim Ross: "You know, King, this is perhaps the most unique championship in the entire WWF...defended 24 hours a day, seven days a week no disqualification, pinfalls count anywhere."
Jerry Lawler: "That's what I love about it! It's great!"

fun quote #3: 
Jim Ross: "Goldust with the inside cradle, but couldn't get three!"
Jerry Lawler: "You don't win a hardcore match with an inside cradle, J.R."

fun quote #4: 
Jerry Lawler: "What's Goldust going after- Ooo, a nice gold shovel. The golden shovel! Haha...this could be great, J.R. This could be really good."

fun quote #5: 
Jerry Lawler: "Well, as you see, Spike Dudley staggering around...and then out of nowhere, look at this, Hurricane comes flying in! He really can fly!"
Jim Ross: "It wasn't a bird, it wasn't a plane-"
Jerry Lawler: "It was Hurricane!"

fun quote #6: 
Jim Ross: "I don't know how Kane can stand it. His brains have got to be scrambled. Like those eggs I had for breakfast this morning."
Jerry Lawler: "J.R., you've gotta have a brain to have it scrambled. Come on...look at Kane. You know there's no brain inside there."

fun quote #7: 
Jerry Lawler: "Now you've made him mad...Kurt's gonna go Olympic on you!"

fun quote #8: 
Jerry Lawler: "I think they broke my headset!"
Jim Ross: "You're on."
Jerry Lawler: "I'm on?!?"
Jim Ross: "And Ric Flair is on...he's on Undertaker. He's all over the Undertaker."

fun quote #9: 
Jerry Lawler: "How could you argue with something like that, J.R.?"
Jim Ross: "Because I know Mr. McMahon, about as well as you do. I'm not in his fan club as you are, but that's neither here nor there."
Jerry Lawler: "I know you say I suck up, but J.R., it's not sucking up when you really mean it!"

fun quote #10: 
Jim Ross: "This is heinous."
Jerry Lawler: "What do you mean, heinous? I'm just enjoying what a sportsman the Undertaker is, he could've already won this thing but he's a sportsman...and the competition...the heart of a competitor, he gave Ric Flair another chance. That shows a lot of heart, J.R."
Jim Ross: "Who do you think you're convincing with this ridiculous drivel?"
Jerry Lawler: "Drivel?!?"

fun quote #11: 
Jim Ross: "The Undertaker's got that...wait a minute! There's Arn Anderson! With a spinebuster! Where the hell did he come from?"
Jerry Lawler: "Where did Arn Anderson come from?"
Jim Ross: "I have no idea, but by God, I'm glad to see him!"

fun quote #12: 
Jim Ross: "The Hard Rock Cafe, King, here in Skydome, is sold out as well."
Jerry Lawler: "Somebody bring me a cheeseburger!"
Jim Ross: "Just what you need, another cheeseburger."
Jerry Lawler: "There it is...there's the Hard Rock Cafe, right up there! Hey, everybody!"

fun quote #13: 
Jim Ross: "Scott Hall...he's tough enough one on one...you add that damn Nash into the mix...that's more than anybody can overcome."

fun quote #14: 
Jim Ross: "Hogan now getting some distance here...attempting to regroup somewhat."
Jerry Lawler: "That's right, let's face it, Hogan is a wily veteran. Fools rush in, J.R."

fun quote #15: 
Jerry Lawler: "He's biting him!"
Jim Ross: "Hogan is biting the Rock."
Jerry Lawler: "I don't know whether he needed to do THAT or not."

fun quote #16: 
Jerry Lawler: "Well, Hulk's been all over the world, he's been to many places, but he's never been checked into the smackdown hotel."

fun quote #17: 
Jerry Lawler: "Jazz is just too tough for me. I'll still never forgive her for messing up my wet T-shirt contest."
Jim Ross: "Well, you can't grieve forever."
Jerry Lawler: "Yeah."

final word: Pretty good one, although Rock/Hogan really should have been the main event.

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