WWE WrestleMania 39: Night 2 Review - April 2, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Brock Lesnar def. Omos

It was probably for the best to get this out of the way early. To their credit, this exceeded my expectations. Omos held his own, they only got five minutes, and it was what it needed to be. I expected Lesnar to hit multiple F5s on Omos to put him away, but I'm not complaining since Omos was positioned as an undercard competitor prior to this program and should be back at that level coming out of this event.

Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler def. Shotzi & Natalya, Liv Morgan & Raquel Rodriguez, and Sonya Deville & Chelsea Green in a WrestleMania Showcase Fatal 4-Way Tag Team Match

Despite not having any stakes, the men's WrestleMania Showcase match was an absolute blast on Night 1. Unfortunately, this was not nearly as fun and was the weakest match of Night 2 (if we're not counting the atrocity that was Snoop Dogg vs. The Miz). It wasn't terrible, but none of the teams seemed to be on the same page and the crowd largely did not care. Rousey must be still hurt if she did nothing for almost the entire match only to tag in at the end and win for her team. That was the most likely outcome if they're going to challenge for the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship soon.

Intercontinental Champion Gunther def. Drew McIntyre and Sheamus in a Triple Threat Match

I had high hopes for this and it did not disappoint. It just might be the best Intercontinental Championship match at WrestleMania in nearly 30 years, that's how much I enjoyed this. It was a hell of a hard-hitting affair with exciting action throughout. Any one of these three could have walked away with the title, so those nearfalls down the stretch were super suspenseful. I was really pulling for Sheamus to finally become champion, but considering he wasn't pinned here, fingers crossed we haven't seen the last of Gunther vs. Sheamus.

Raw Women's Champion Bianca Belair def. Asuka

Despite the bad build to this match, Belair and Asuka went out there and killed it as only they could. The crowd was into both babyfaces, though there were audible boos for Belair throughout. This was great stuff. Belair retaining was certainly unexpected. I preferred to see Asuka win simply to switch things up in the division, but it's all a matter of how they follow up with Belair and who she faces next. The problem is that there aren't any strong heels waiting in the wings to challenge her.

Snoop Dogg def. The Miz

Well, this turned out to be a total disaster. I figured it would be saved for right before the main event like on Night 1, but apparently not. WWE promised "surprises" throughout the weekend, and if Pat McAfee and goddamn Shane McMahon were all they had in mind, then that's disappointing. I know the crowd popped for Shane, but I just don't care anymore, especially after that terrible return in last year's men's Royal Rumble match. It's a bummer Shane got hurt here, and props to Snoop for saving the segment by filling in for him, but the fact Shane got a spot on the show over LA Knight is mind-boggling to me.

Edge def. "The Demon" in a Hell in a Cell Match

Edge was in Brood mode despite not coming out to the classic Brood music and not be accompanied to the ring by Gangrel like I hoped he would be. Boo! Balor entering to his old entrance music with the Demon getup was cool, but the match itself left something to be desired for me. There were some memorable moments and they really tried to make it feel like the culmination of a blood feud with all of the weapons, but it didn't reach that next level for me. At least it didn't go 30 minutes or more like a handful of Edge's matches have since coming out of retirement. I know Edge winning was the feel-good ending to their story, but Balor needed this victory a lot more than Edge did. If the Demon gimmick wasn't dead before, it absolutely is now.

Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns def. Cody Rhodes

First and foremost, this was a tremendous match and one of the best WrestleMania main events in the last decade if not longer. There were questions coming into the event whether their styles would mesh, but that didn't prove to be an issue at all. This had a big fight feel from the jump and, as someone who was in attendance, I can tell you that the energy in the stadium was palpable. Sure, it had a ton of smoke and mirrors with all of the interference and whatnot, but I was completely okay with that because it's basically been the story of Reigns' entire title reign and it would have been a fitting way for it to end. That said, I do feel Reigns beating Rhodes was a major missed opportunity and one of WWE's most questionable booking decisions in recent memory. Can Rhodes beat him in a rematch? Sure, but I personally don't think it will mean as much or get the same reaction as it would have on this show, especially when it was less predictable. The execution of that finish being almost an expect repeat of what we got in Reigns vs. McIntyre at Clash at the Castle was lazy as well. The Bloodline stuff has been amazing, but I don't think extending Reigns' run so he can reach 1,000 days was worth it.

Overall Show

What a weird show. Not bad, but weird. After such a stellar Night 1, WWE brought us all back down to earth with several deflating outcomes. One or two is fine, but none of the three titles changing hands was shocking, along with Edge beating Balor which I did not agree with. However, the in-ring action was mostly excellent, and the three title matches were on another level. All in all, it was a wonderful WrestleMania weekend, but it's a bummer it had to end on a down note (unless you're a massive Reigns fan, in which case you're probably over the moon right now).

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