WWE's Era's - Your Favourite PPV

[AJ1981]

I have been a wrestling fan for almost 24 years and in that time I have had the pleasure or sometimes displeasure of seeing a great many PPV's. I was introduced to wrestling by the son's of the foster family that I often stayed with whilst my mum was in hospital. They were massive fans of the WWF and I soon became hooked on the larger than life characters and over the top action. It would be a few more years before I would discover WCW and ECW and from this childhood interest my preference has always been for WWE, although the other promotions put on some fantastic shows.

I have found my interest waning in recent years through several different reasons and sold much of my wrestling collection. The build up to Wrestlemania XXX rekindled my interest and I subscribed to the WWE Network. Over the last couple of weeks I have enjoyed going back and watching some of my favourite PPVs from the vast archive. It got me to thinking about what my favourite PPVs were from the different era's. This is purely personal choice and not meant to be a best of thread.

I think the Era's can be broken down as:

1) Rock'n'Wrestling aka Golden Era 1984 - 1993
2)New Generation Era 1994-1997
3)Attitude Era 1998-2001
4)Brand Extension (Ruthless Aggression) 2002-2003
5)Brand Extension (Single Brand PPVs) 2003-2007
6)Tri-Branded Era/PG Era 2007-2011
7)Reality Era 2011 to Present

My favourite PPVs are:

1) Wrestlemania 3 - This is purely for Savage vs. Steambout, an all time classic.
2) In Your House 16: Canadian Stampede - The 10 man tag team main event with its unreal atmosphere is A1 but the show had more to offer than that. The Undertaker & Vader had a great big man match for the WWF title, HHH & Mankind had a great brawl and The Great Sasuke & Taka Michinoku had a great aerial match for the time.
3) This is a tie between Backlash 2000 and Wrestlemania X-Seven. Backlash 2000 made up for the poor Wrestlemania 2000, Triple H vs. The Rock, Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho and Scotty 2 Hotty vs. Dean Malenko were great matches. WM X7 is still my favourite 'Mania of all time
4) Summerslam 2002 - This is practically the perfect PPV with the exception of Jericho/Flair and Undertaker/Test every match on this show is great. Rey Mysterio vs. Kurt Angle is a superb opener and the second best match of the night, Edge & Eddie Guerrero have a match I feel they were unnecessarily critical off, Chris Benoit & RVD has a great Japanese style match for the IC title, The Rock passes the torch to Brock Lesnar and Shawn Michaels stole the show in his comeback match opposite Triple H.
5) This is tie between Vengeance 2005 and No Way Out 2006. HBK vs. Angle, John Cena vs. Chris Jericho vs. Christian and Batista vs. Triple H rock at Vengeance and Kurt Angle and The Undertaker have a classic match for the WHC at No Way Out
6) Backlash 2007 - One of my favourite B shows, the Fatal 4 Way for the title is exciting, Undertaker and Batista continue their great feud and Benoit & MVP have a good match for the US title.
7) Money In The Bank 2011 - Another all time favourite John Cena vs. CM Punk had a big match feel rarely felt outside a Wrestlemania. Randy Orton vs. Christian was super heated and both MITB matches were excellent.

Like I said these are purely my favourite shows ever and not intended to be a best of. Over to you guys, what are your favourite shows from WWE's Eras

 

[AJ1981]

EDIT -

Can't believe I put WM 3 as my favourite Rock'n'Wrestling Era PPV. Wrote this while I was tired, it's actually Summerslam 1992. I was there that night at Wembley Stadium. I had just turned 11 and it was the first live wrestling show I'd attended. I remember being out of my mind with excitement seeing The Undertaker (my favourite) in person and the the WWF and IC title matches blew me away

 

[X]

Good picks man. If I were to list off my favorite PPVs, there would actually probably be a large amount of shows that other people would scratch their heads at because of lack of match quality, but they hold special places in my heart because of the nostalgic memory of watching them so many times as a youngster. There would be a lot of PPVs from the Attitude Era with terrible undercards and hot main events. Here's a few off the top of my head.


Fully Loaded 1999 - For a B show this one has a big time feel to it because of the main event being the final blow off to the epic Austin/McMahon feud. The undercard is actually pretty solid though with a hot opener from Jarrett and Edge, a fun brawl between the Acolytes and the Hardy Boyz (along with Michael Hayes of all people), an underrated strap match between The Rock and Triple H, and a really fun First Blood match that's a quintessential Attitude Era brawl with a hugely satisfying finish. It also helps that I was still young and gullible enough when I first saw this at the time to actually believe McMahon was going to be gone from WWF TV forever. Of course he was back in a few weeks, but it felt important at the time damnit. Lots of nostalgic love for this one and it's actually not a bad show at all wrestling wise.

Backlash 1999 - More nostalgic value for this one because I was actually there and it was the first wrestling show I'd ever been to. Maybe that's why I think it's so underrated, but the card is actually quite good for the time. Hardcore Holly and Al Snow have another fun hardcore match, the Outlaws have a solid tag title match against Jarrett and Hart in one of the latter's last memorable matches, Foley and Big Show have a unique and rather brutal (and without a doubt the best) boiler room brawl match, Triple H starts his rise to the top with a hot match against X-Pac, Undertaker and Shamrock actually have a decent match if you can believe it, and the main event is fucking awesome, perhaps the best match Austin and Rock ever had (well, X7 probably gets that honor, but it's damn close). One of the better '99 PPVs.

Summerslam 1998 - Yep, more Attitude Era. Can you tell what era of wrestling I love the most? The build to this show was great at the time and Austin/Undertaker was a big money match now that Austin was a bonafide mega star. Val Venis has maybe the best match of his career against D'Lo Brown in the opener, which is one of my favorite opening matches ever for some reason inexplicable reason (though the DQ finish hurts it). X-Pac shaves Jarrett's hair in a good match and finally puts the country singer gimmick to rest thankfully, Shamrock and Owen have a unique match in the Lion's Den, Triple H and The Rock have one of their all time best matches in a brilliant ladder match that immediately elevated both guys and lit a rocket under their asses, and the main event is the best match Austin and Undertaker ever had with a crazy leg drop through the announcer's table spot from Undertaker that provided an incredible visual. Undertaker soaring through the air with that leg drop was just insane to me at the time. Really good show both wrestling wise and from a nostalgic viewpoint.


Royal Rumble 2000 - The first PPV I ever convinced my mother to let me order, so again, big nostalgia points. Damn good show too aside from one horrifying moment of geriatric nudity that forever scarred me as an adolescent. Tazz makes one of the best debuts in wrestling history in MSG (what a pop) by totally decimating the undefeated Kurt Angle, looking like a complete badass and the next big thing (man did that not pan out). The Hardyz and Dudleyz have the first tables match, a highly influential and still-absolutely-insane-after-all-these-years match with a crazy finish. Then of course we have the amazing street fight between Foley and Triple H, perhaps the best match of Foley's entire career and certainly one of the most brutal. This absolutely blew my mind at the time and no matter how many times I rewatch it, it continues to blow my mind. A five star match all the way. The Rumble itself is pretty fun if unmemorable, everyone knew The Rock was going to win but they did a good job of teasing Show as a dark horse, and the ending spot is a highly dramatic one. Great show.


In Your House: Canadian Stampede - A required listing as it's truly one of the greatest PPVs ever as well as one of the craziest from a crowd reaction standpoint. This show must have been like walking into a warzone for the American wrestlers and was the high point of the entire Hart Foundation vs. America angle. The main event is fondly remembered for being perhaps the most heated match in wrestling history but it's also a crazy, crazy match that made everyone look like total stars. The undercard is fantastic though, with another good Mankind/Triple H match, an amazing match between The Great fuckin' Sasuke!!!! and TAKA that's easily the best match in the history of the light heavyweight division (with Malenko/Scotty 2 Hotty from Backlash '00 coming in a close second), and a shockingly good Undertaker/Vader encounter. Fun show all around.

I could probably be here all day explaining favorites, so I'll just make a quick list of honorable mentions as well:

King of the Ring 1993
Wrestlemania X
Survivor Series 1996
No Mercy 1999
Backlash 2000
Judgment Day 2000
Fully Loaded 2000
Summerslam 2000
Royal Rumble 2001
No Way Out 2001
Wrestlemania X7
Summerslam 2001
Summerslam 2002
Wrestlemania XX
ECW One Night Stand
Backlash 2009
Wrestlemania XXVI
TLC 2010
Money in the Bank 2011
Extreme Rules 2012

 

[Dragon Chief]

From the top of a head I can list a few PPVs that will always be memorable and great to me from top to bottom. Most the PPVs I consider my favourite are my favourites because I grew up watching them and are mainly from the same era;2002-2004. My favourite PPVs are as follows:

1). WrestleMania XIX - My first WrestleMania, loved the show from top to bottom and had no complaints. I can't even complain about Undertaker's match because his entrance was epic. My favourite match of all time also happens to be the main-event of this event, which also happens to be a bout between my two favourite wrestlers. Strange huh? No PPV will ever replace this one as my favourite.
2). WrestleMania XX - 2004 the year I started watching WWE on a weekly basis. I was super hyped for this event, everyone was looking forward to Brock Lesnar V. Goldberg but I was looking forward to Undertaker's return. As a kid, watching Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit hug it out at the conclusion of the event was the greatest thing I had ever seen. Like WrestleMania 19, this event will always maintain it's spot on the list for eternity due to nostalgia as well as being a timeless event.
3). WrestleMania XXX - I have been waiting for a WrestleMania like this for ages now, it seems the magic of WrestleMania kind of went away after WrestleMania 26, every WrestleMania after that felt like it was missing something to me, whether it be a good undercard or a refreshing match. This event brought the magic back, I can't complain about the Andre the Giant battle royal and the Shield squash match. This PPV has four big matches, all of which felt refreshing to me and all delivered more than I could have ever imagined. The ending of this WrestleMania felt so similar to WrestleMania 20 and it's just one of those PPVs that I can't change anything about.
4). SummerSlam 2002 - What can I say about this event that hasn't been said before? This match has so many great bouts it's hard not to put this on your list. Rey Mysterio V. Kurt Angle is probably my favourite opening match of all time. Brock V. Rock was a spectacle, the torch is being passed and what a way for The Rock to go out for a time being.
5). SummerSlam 2013 - Similar to WrestleMania XXX, this became a favourite of mine instantly after I watched it. The three main bouts were incredible, the results were great and I enjoyed the twist ending, reminded me of Austin/McMahon back in 2001. Good show.
6). Vengeance 2003 - Once again, this is one of my earliest PPVs I got to watch and I loved it. The theme "Staind - Price to Play" is amazing and like SummerSlam 2013, three bouts on this PPV made it incredible to me, enough to stand the test of time.
7). Vengeance 2002 - Speaking of firsts, this is my first PPV I ever got to watch, a lot of good and bad memories surrounding the process of me being able to watch this but I'm glad I got to. At the time, Hulk Hogan and Jeff Hardy were my two favourites so whenever I watch this event the matches that featured those two has a special place in my heart. The main-event however was the one that stole the show and made this one of my favourite PPVs. As a kid I was routing for Undertaker, watching this bout now makes me feel like the little kid I was once was. Also, how can you not like an event with "Trust Company - Downfall" as it's main theme
8). Royal Rumble 2003 - Kurt Angle V. Chris Benoit. Undertaker returns. Brock Lesnar beats the Big Show and then wins the Royal Rumble. That is all.
9). Royal Rumble 2004 - The Royal Rumble match itself was the main reason I put this on this list, didn't like much else about it other than the confrontation between Brock Lesnar and Goldberg, which was really cool but once again the Royal Rumble match itself was so good that it made the PPV good. If that makes sense?
10). Armageddon 2006 - Pretty forgotten PPV to be honest. The main-event had John Cena and Batista team up for the first time ever, which was the coolest thing ever at the time. We saw the inferno match return for the last time, a last-ride match and an amazing, surprising fatal-four way ladder match with The Hardys returning. As a kid this was one of the coolest things I got to see. Looking back now, the gimmick matches don't seem as a great to me but this is on here purely for nostalgia. The ladder match still stands the test of time though.

My list is rather odd, as there are better PPVs then the ones I listed but these ten hold a special place in my heart.

 

[X]

1). WrestleMania XIX - My first WrestleMania, loved the show from top to bottom and had no complaints. I can't even complain about Undertaker's match because his entrance was epic. My favourite match of all time also happens to be the main-event of this event, which also happens to be a bout between my two favourite wrestlers. Strange huh? No PPV will ever replace this one as my favourite.

I have no idea how I forgot to include this show, especially since I considered it my favorite PPV ever for several years just because of the sheer match quality. Jericho/Michaels, Austin/Rock, and Lesnar/Angle are all easy ****+ matches. I love that Jericho/Michaels match deeply and Jericho has never been a slimier, more detestable heel than when he fakes going for the handshake after the match but low blows Michaels instead. Absolutely classic shit.

I guess I just tend to forget it now because 2003 was such an otherwise forgettable year.

 

[Limitless]

Survivor Series 98 - I loved the Tournament PPV, and the fact that The Rock won. Solid matches with a lot of surprises... Need I say More?

Royal Rumble 2000 - Awesome showing from Hardys and Dudleys. The Rumble was pretty cool and the Debut of TAZZ... plus how about that Street Fight?

No Way Out 2001 - The Rock Wins the Title Back leading to the Best Wrestle Mania in my mind. Tables Match for the Tag Titles was cool, and that damn 3 Stages of Hell was simply amazing.

WrestleMania 17 - The Best of the Best!!!

King of the Ring 2001 - I really love this due to the Angle .vs. Shane Match. The whole thing had me on the edge of my seat. Plus the card was solid and the Main Event was pretty good too.

Survivor Series 2001 - I was only 13 when this was on PPV, and I was well into the hype leading in. I liked the card very much, but it was the ending that had me thinking... What if?

SummerSlam 2002 - Rock .vs. Brock was awesome... and I was a Rock fan at the time. After that night I was a Brock Fan for life, with Rock Walking away and Brock Dominating his future opponents. Triple H .vs. Shawn was great and the Angle .vs. Mysterio match was a great opener.

Survivor Series 2002 - The Tables Match and the Elimination Tag Team Titles Match was the icing on the cake for a already memorable PPV. The First Elimination Chamber was very cool, and is still the best one to date.

WrestleMania XIX - Is my Second Favorite WrestleMania of All Time... From Rock/Austin to HBK/Y2J. Hogan and Vince was even cool and that was a shocker for me. Brock and Angle, Two of my personal Favorites really putting it all out was truly special.

From here the PPV's fell pretty flat for me. After Brock Left and The Split PPV's, there was not much for me anymore. Cena took the top spot and I was going through a downward spiral.


WrestleMania 24 and 28 - Were Both Special To me, as I went to 24 Personally and was holding a Orton sign. I remember two kids in front of me cheering for Cena while I Cheered for Orton... There mom was pissed lol. Orton won and I was So Happy. Flair .vs. Shawn was epic as well.

28 was a solid card, but it was the surprise of The Rock Beating Cena that did it for me. I was a huge Rock Fan for so long, and to see him come back and still have that energy and charisma really reminded me of what wrestling is missing now.

 

[Wolf Pac]

Royal Rumble 1994

This was one of the first WWF PPV's that I bought on VHS, so it holds a special place in my heart. I enjoyed Bam Bam and Tatanka kicking off the show. The Harts vs. The Quebecers was a great match and a great setup to one of the greatest feuds ever. And the Royal Rumble match wasn't one of the best ever but it had it's moments like Diesel's dominance in the match, Bret's superhero comeback, and the double elimination with Luger & Bret. Ted Dibiase was also a treat on commentary. This PPV was pretty solid for how it built up Mania X.

Survivor Series 1998

The matches may not have been great but this is easily the greatest PPV of all time for storyline purposes. The night was full of shocking twists & turns.

Wrestlemania X7

A PPV stacked with great matches from top to bottom, great moments, an amazing crowd, electric atmosphere, and the most epic PPV theme you'll ever hear. This maybe the greatest PPV the WWE have ever delivered or maybe the greatest wrestling PPV of all time.

Survivor Series 2002

Another solid PPV full of great matches and great stories. It's funny how the two Survivor Series PPV's without any Traditional Survivor Series Elimination matches, are considered the best Survivor PPV's.

Wrestlemania 21

Great Wrestlemania that launched a new era in the WWE and created major stars out of Edge, Randy Orton, John Cena, and Batista. Angle vs. Michaels was a masterpiece and Orton's performance in the Streak match was fantastic. He actually had me convinced that he would end the Streak. Just those two matches alone make this one of the best Mania's for me. Eddie vs. Rey is an awesome opener, I would put it behind Bret vs. Owen and Bryan vs. Triple H as Mania's best curtain jerker.

Vengeance 2005

With the exception of Christy Hemme vs. Victoria, there wasn't a bad match on this card. Carlito vs. Shelton was a good opener. Kane vs. Edge was a nice revenge story for The Big Red Monster. Michaels vs. Angle was just as awesome as their first match at Mania 21 and had a good finish. Cena vs. Jericho vs. Christian was epic due to the crowd reaction for Cena - this was the PPV that started all the Cena hate from the fans. And the Hell in a Cell main event between Trips & Batista was a great blowoff to their feud. It was brutal and both guys damn near killed each other.

Other favourites include Wrestlemania X, Survivor Series 1996, In Your House: Canadian Stampede, Summerslam 1997, Wrestlemania 14, Over The Edge 1998, Summerslam 1998, Royal Rumble 2000, Royal Rumble 2001, No Way Out 2001, Summerslam 2001, Summerslam 2002, Wrestlemania 19, Royal Rumble 2004, Backlash 2006, ECW One Night Stand, Wrestlemania 24, Money in the Bank 2011, Wrestlemania 28, Wrestlemania XXX.