I think mentioning Vince was more surprising than mentioning Cornette. According to the dirtsheets, take them for what they're worth, they were given leeway to say what they wanted. Drew is super underrated.

It was overall a very strong episode, but my issue is that with both of the title programs, the champion seems like a third wheel. I'm more interested in Punk and Mcyntyre than I am in Punk vs Rollins. And I'm much more interested in Rock vs Cody than I am in Reigns vs Rhodes II. 

For the latter program I think that may be a part of it. They're building tension by having Reigns in the background and getting agitated at the Rock taking his place. It's great that the storylines have a lot of moving pieces and characters. But, at the end of the day, the main event of the show is going to be Cody and Roman, so you got to get the heat back there at some point within the next couple of weeks. Personal issues are great to add spice, but the championship should be the meat of the matter.

Seth really needs to drop the title.


Anyways I have a feeling we'll get any of the following if any....

-Seth betrays Cody on Night 1.
-Drew beats Seth on Night 2
-Rock betrays Bloodline and help Cody win or Stone Cold gets involved (assuming they can get him as the rumors state)
-Damien wont cash in for some reason or will cash in only to lose the briefcase/contract (they could swerve and make him win against Drew who won the title to make Drew a even more unhinged heel and turn Judgment day face - or Damien at least).
-CM Punk gets involved in the match between Drew and Seth (costing Seth the title and annoying the hell out of Drew in the process).

Agreed!
Seth will betray Cody and join Roman, I can feel it in my gut! :D
Not sure about The Rock, I actually do like him as a heel, a lot. Probably his best heel run, ever.

I wish I could post the video now, but Eric Bischoff is eviscerating Tony Khan, live. Basically taking Tony's criticisms of Eric and WCW, such as "not repeating the mistakes of WCW" - Bischoff saying something along the lines of "Bitch, I beat RAW, you struggle to keep on top of NXT." Then he points out that Tony copied his (Bischoff's) strategy, and failed. That Tony books like a 14 year old child, and doesn't know anything about putting together a story across a show. Makes fun of how he flopped with Will Osprey and others. Then Bishop started bashing Meltzer, had some nice (harsh) words for him.

EDIT:

On Tony's disrespect toward Ted Turner. "He created the network you're on."

I dont think Seth will join Roman per say.

It'll likely be slight against Cody and then he'll likely not be part of the storyline until him and Cody crosses each other again in the future.

For context, Bischoff tweeted about one of his podcasts shutting down. At 4AM, Tony Khan replied with something to the effect of it was a "Wise Choice" to shut the podcast down because Eric will look stupid when AEW has its rights renewal which Tony apparently expects will be quite good and validate what he's been doing. Bischoff then went off on Khan before announcing a new podcast called "Wise Choices". 

Honestly, seems like Bischoff was expecting that response. Either way, it's just... why? Doesn't make him look good, and it's essentially advertising for Bischoff. 

I think you guys are making things too complicated. At the end of the day, the good guys are supposed to emerge victorious. Disappointing the fans along the way is part of it, but they've done that by not putting over Mcyntyre, Zayn, Jey, or anyone else. Now it's time to just tell a simple story of the heroes slaying the dragon. 

If there is a betrayal, should definitely be on the Bloodline's end. But we've put enough obstacles in the babyface's path already. Crossrhodes, pin, all we need now.

Jade Cargill debuted on Smackdown... and she looks absolutely amazing. Those biceps are insane. Promo was just ok. She looks the part of a star, but we'll see what happens when she actually has to wrestle. Putting her in a 3 on 3 match with 5 incredibly talented women is a good way to protect her in the beginning, but eventually she will have to wrestle a good bell to bell match.

Super excited for Mania. Will be the first time attending one since Mania 20. I believe I managed to get some decent seats. As long as one of the pillars holding up the ring lighting isn't in my way.

Just for the hell of it gonna predict the winners of the card, and how good I expect the matches to be. We'll see if I get either right. Feel free to do your own!

Saturday

Cody Rhodes and Seth "Freakin" Rollins vs. The Rock and Roman Reigns- You can have the Rock and Reigns falling out on night one. Either with the Rock screwing over Reigns and revealing it was all a plot, or by having Roman turn on the Rock for trying to take the spotlight and declaring he doesn't need to Bloodline to beat Cody on night 2. But, the safer money is on Cody and Seth losing to stack the deck even further against Cody on night 2. 

As for match quality, I think this should be very good. This has been probably the best built story they've done in years, so I imagine they'll keep it up here. Anticipating a match full of shenanigans and run ins by the entire population of Samoa, and that's exactly what it should be. ****1/2

Women's World Championship Match: Becky Lynch vs. Rhea Ripley - I'm going to go with the underdog and say Becky wins here. Rhea is already super over and needs a catalyst to make her turn babyface and allow the crowd to cheer her like they want to. So, perhaps you have Rhea lose, possibly due to some botched interference by Dominic, which encourages her to leave the Judgment day and focus on her quest to regain her title. 

As for the match quality, this should be excellent. IMHO, the two best women's matches in Mania history have been Bianca vs Becky and Charlotte vs Rhea. So, it's hard to imagine this not being a high quality match despite the build being just ok. *****

Intercontinental Championship Match: Sami Zayn vs. Gunther - Speaking of just ok builds... this one just isn't doing it for me. People (of which I'm one) really wanted Gable in this spot, not because he's necessarily better than Sami, but because it was a more fitting conclusion to the story. You need a couple of heel wins on this card, and this seems like as good of a time as any. If Roman loses, Gunther has a legit claim of being the top champion in the WWE. You can set up him Gable and Sami for Backlash, or even have Gable screw Zayn over and turn heel here. 

As for the match, again, both are really good. There could be a style clash, but Gunther has managed to adapt and work with pretty much anyone. In terms of match quality, this could potentially steal the show. ****1/2

Jey Uso vs. Jimmy Uso- Wrestling 101 dictates that Jimmy wins here to set up a rematch. So lets go with that. Should be a good match. ****

6-Pack Ladder Match for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship: DIY vs. Awesome Truth vs. The New Day vs. New Catch Republic vs. Austin Theory and Grayson Waller vs. The Judgment Day - Wow, six teams in this match, and I don't care about any of them. Tag division is not in good shape. This should be a fun spot fest regardless. Seems like an excuse to split up the titles with R-Truth grabbing one set and celebrating like an idiot before someone else grabs the other. ***1/2

Jade Cargill, Naomi, and Bianca Belair vs. Damage CTRL- One of only three women's matches on the card, so could also be doing a better job with that division. This seems set up to be a showcase for Cargill, so I'm not expecting a ton out of it. Damage control cheats to get the edge on Bianca and Naomi, makes the tag to Jade who just squashes them. Should serve its purpose, but I'm not expecting much of a real contest. **

Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee vs. Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio- Seriously though, why did Rey Mysterio choose Dragon Lee over one of the LWO members for this match? People keep turning on Rey because they don't think he's really loyal to them... and you know, they may have a point. I expect Carlito to be the latest to turn on Rey and join Legado Phantasma which will be promptly renamed the "He Man Rey Haters Club".

Sunday
Undisputed WWE Universal Championship Match: Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns - Can they really do anything else? I mean, we all thought Cody had to win at Mania 39 and they went "lol nope", but can they really do it again? I don't think so. Think the obvious will happen. As for match quality, it will be like Rock and Hogan. When the build is good enough and people are invested, it doesn't really matter what they do. They can decide they're going to settle this with a best out of 50 game of rock, paper, scissors and people will still be into it. Not saying they won't put on a great match, just saying it's pretty much a guaranteed ***** no matter what.

World Heavyweight Championship Match: Seth "Freakin" Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre- Drew McIntyre has been on a roll. You could have Seth wins to drive Drew even further into his heel mode, but I think letting him actually win and be a complete arrogant tool about it is the way to go. Hopefully Punk is ready by Clash in the Castle. As for match quality, it's hard to believe that Rollins and McIntyre won't put on a great match. ****1/2

WWE Women's Championship Match: Bayley vs. Iyo Sky - Another case where they just need to do the obvious and give Bayley the win. Bonus points if she comes out with the ponytail and inflatable tube guys. People would lose their shit. 

In terms of match quality... I keep waiting for Iyo Sky to wow me, and it hasn't happened yet. She's ok. Bayley is very good. So it should be a good match, but maybe not as good as the other title bouts on the card. ***1/2

Triple Threat Match for the United States Championship: Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens vs. Logan Paul - Another match where the build is just not clicking. Gotta have some heels win, so I guess I'll pick Logan. The match quality should be good. Paul is great for where he's at, and KO and Orton can definitely cover his flaws. But the meh build will make it a bit less exciting. ***

LA Knight vs. AJ Styles- The main point of this match is to ensure LA Knight doesn't lose all of his momentum, so should pick up the win here. I think Knight is a great character, but not a superb worker from what I've seen. Maybe with AJ Styles he can prove me wrong. ***

Philadelphia Street Fight: Bobby Lashley and The Street Profits vs. The Final Testament- Why is this on the card exactly? I get they're really trying with the Profits and Karrion Cross, but it's just not clicking. So many better things that can be put here. And the Street Profits and Authors of Pain would have probably both been better off in the tag title ladder match. The Authors of Pain could have looked scary and dominant and not been hurt by a loss in that environment, and the Street Profits are better than any of the teams in the match. So this is weird. Going with the Profits, because I flipped a coin. **

So there are my thoughts on who will win and how good the matches will be. We'll see how I do. 

I signed up for Peacock just to be able to watch WMXL. 

Will be my first time watching a PPV/PLE event for the first time (with any company).

My Wrestlemania XL predictions

Saturday Night

Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins VS Roman Reigns & The Rock

Winner: Roman Reigns & The Rock

Note - Possible distraction from Drew Mcintyre or a betrayal from Seth Rollins

Wish - Stone Cold somehow interacting in this match

Interest rating for myself: 100%

Rhea Ripley VS Becky Lynch - Women's World Match

Winner: Rhea Ripley

Note - possible interference or interaction with Dominik Mysterio and/or from another WWE Womens Superstar

Wish - I hope Rhea wins

Interest rating for myself: 65%

Gunther VS Sami Zayn - Intercontinental Title Match 
Winner: Sami Zayn

Note - possible interference or interaction from Chad Gable and/or Bronson Reed

Wish - I hope Gunther wins

Interest rating for myself: 75%

​Jimmy Uso vs Jey Uso

Winner: Jey Uso

Note - Bloodline interference (mainly Solo)

Wish - The Usos Reunite (face turn)

​Interest rating for myself: 80%

The Judgment Day vs. The Awesome Truth vs. The New Day vs. DIY vs. New Catch Republic vs. A-Town Down Under - Undisputed World Tag Team Title Match
Winner: The Judgment Day

Note - This match is a mixed bag, not sure who will win actually.
Wish - New Catch Republic to win
Interest rating for myself: 55%

Rey Mysterio & Andrade vs. Santos Escobar & "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio
Winner: Rey Mysterio & Andrade
Note - Expecting interference or a heel turn of Carlito possibly at the aftermath
Wish: Santos and Dominik winning
Interest Rating for myself: 60%

Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill & Naomi vs. Damage CTRL

Winner: Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill & Naomi

Note - Interference by IYO Sky and Bayley
Wish: Damage CTRL to win

Interest rating for myself: 65%

Sunday Night

Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes - Undisputed WWE Universal Championship
Winner: Cody Rhodes
Note - Major interference due to Bloodline rules - if Stone cold shows up/showed up the previous night, expect major interaction - if not, Rock will turn face and help Cody win
Wish: Cody Rhodes winning
Interest Rating for myself: 100%

Seth "Freakin" Rollins  vs. Drew McIntyre - World Heavyweight Championship

Winner: Drew McIntyre
Note - Either Bloodline interference will cause this match's result or CM Punk will somehow interfere
Wish: Drew McIntyre to win , Damian Priest to cash in or appear at least

Interest Rating for myself: 90%

IYO SKY vs. Bayley - WWE Women's Championship

Winner: Iyo Sky

Note - Interference from Damage Ctrl and/or Heel turn from Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill or Naomi.
Wish: Iyo Sky to retain title
Interest Rating for myself: 75%

Logan Paul vs. Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens - US title
Winner: Kevin Owens
Note - Not sure what to add
Wish: Kevin Owens to win, also wish LA Knight and AJ Styles was in this match
Interest Rating for myself: 70%

LA Knight vs. AJ Styles
Winner: AJ Styles
Note - Interference by Good Brothers (Heel turn)

Wish: LA Knight and AJ Styles should have been in the US title match

Interest Rating for myself: 70%

Bobby Lashley & The Street Profits vs. Final Testament
Winner: Bobby Lashley & The Street Profits
Note - Not sure what to add​
Wish: Final Testament to win
Interest Rating for myself: 50%

I honesty don't understand how this conforms to the laws of physics.

I gave up trying to figure out how Riho does this shit a long time ago. XD