Which 5 matches would you say defined each era?

[chatty]

This aint which is the best matches but the ones that defined that whole era.

Pre Hogan - I can't do, too young to have seen and don't know enough about it.

Hogan era:

Hogan v Andre - biggest match of the era, pitted the face of the company against one of the biggest stars in wrestling history
Savage v Steamboat - one of the greatest matches of all time and again showcased that the undercard could match in wrestling what Hogan and the main events brought in name.
Hogan v Warrior - a passing of the torch, not a great one in hindsight but still these guys were both huge and this was a huge match (and a pretty good one all things considered).
Hogan v Savage - probably the best built main event in the company's history.
Savage v Warrior - both guys were probably past their peak years but they delivered a great match in which the ending went down in history, not sure how much was expected of the match at the time but damn it delivered.

Next generation era:

Bret v Shawn (Mania 12), Shawn v Razor (Mania 11)
Bret v Austin (might be cutting a thin line on era's here but I see Attitude starting officially after Montreal)
Mankind v Taker (Boiler Room Brawl)
Bret v Owen (again, might be crossing lines but I think this was at the very start of the nex gen era)


Attitude Era:

Mankind v Taker (HIAC)
Rock v Austin (Mania 17)
Kane v Undertaker (Mania 15)
Hardy's v Dudleys v Edge and Christian


Ruthless Aggression (or whatever the era between Attitude and Cena is called:

Benoit v HHH v Michaels
Eddie v Brock
Edge & Mysterio v Benoit & Angle v Los Guerreros
Taker v Brock

Cena (PG) era:

Taker v Michaels
Punk v Cena
Jericho v Michaels

I'll edit in as I decide on the rest

[Cewsh]

Oooh, good thread. I'll have to do some thinking and come back to this.

[wardy]

Attitude Era

Undertaker v Mankind - KOTR 1998
Rock v Mankind - Raw January 1999
Austin v McMahon - Valentines Day Massacre 1999
Edge & Christian v Hardyz v Dudleyz - Summerslam 2000
Austin v Rock - Wrestlemania 17

[Hero!]

Hogan Era:
Hogan vs Andre
Hogan vs Warrior
Macho Man vs Ricky Steamboat
Macho man vs Jake the Snake
Macho Man vs Flair

Next Gen:
123 Kid vs Owen Hart
Bret vs Shawn Iron Man
Shawn vs Razor in the ladder match
Bret vs Owen
Bret vs Austin
(defined for the worst): Diesel vs King Mabel

Attitude Era:
Austin vs Rock (15 & 17)
Mankind vs Rock (I quit)
Triple H vs Cactus Jack HITC
Kane vs Taker inferno match
Hardys vs E&C Terri invitational
Hardys vs Dudleys vs E&C (all of their matches, really)
Jericho vs Triple H (phantom title win)
Hogan vs Rock

RA Era:
Brock vs Eddie
Brock vs Big Show
Angle vs Shane Mcmahon
Benoit vs Triple H vs Shawn Michaels
Triple H vs Shawn Michaels (Michaels return match)

Cena Era:
Cena vs Edge TLC
Cena vs Umaga LMS
Cena vs Triple H Wrestlemania
Cena vs Punk MITB
Shawn vs Taker I & II
Shawn vs Cena on RAW
Shawn vs Flair

NARROWING DOWN IS HARD

[Atty]

Fascinating thread idea.


Quick note, I agree that The Attitude Era really started in Montreal, but I would count Bret/Austin in that era. That match really started the ball rolling to the era to come, made Austin a legend over night and changed the tone of the product as a whole.

Rock n Wrestling (through WM 6):
Hulk Hogan & Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper & Paul Orndorf, WrestleMania
Hulk Hogan vs. Andre The Giant, WrestleMania 3
Randy Savage vs. Ted DiBiase, WrestleMania 4
Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage, WrestleMania 5
Hulk Hogan vs. The Ultimate Warrior, WrestleMania 6

Hogan Part Deux (through WM 8):
The Ultimate Warrior vs. Randy Savage, WrestleMania 7
Hulk Hogan vs. Sgt. Slaughter, WrestleMania 7
The Undertaker vs. Hulk Hogan, Survivor Series
The 1992 Royal Rumble
Randy Savage vs. Ric Flair, WrestleMania 8

Bret Era (Post WM 8 up to just before WM 13):
Hulk Hogan vs. Yokozuna, WrestleMania 9
Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon, WrestleMania 10
Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart, SummerSlam
Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon, SummerSlam
Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, WrestleMania 12

Attitude Era (WM 13 through WM 17):
Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin, WrestleMania 13
Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker, Badd Blood
Mankind vs. The Undertaker, King of the Ring 1998
The Rock vs. Mankind, RAW (Mankind's title win)
The Rock vs. Steve Austin, WrestleMania 17

Ruthless Aggression (the night after WM 17 through the night before WM 22):
Hulk Hogan vs. The Rock, WrestleMania 18
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H, SummerSlam 2002
Brock Lesnar vs. The Rock, SummerSlam 2002
Brock Lesnar vs. Eddie Guerrero, No Way Out 2004
Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg, WrestleMania 20

My Time is Now Era (WM 21 to WM 26):
Batista vs. Triple H, WrestleMania 21
Edge vs. John Cena, The Cash In
John Cena vs. Triple H, WrestleMania 22
Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker, WrestleMania 25
Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker, WrestleMania 26

Modern Era/Dumb Kids and their Social Networks (Post-WM 26 to Present):
CM Punk vs. John Cena, Money in the Bank
John Cena vs. The Rock, WrestleMania 28
Triple H vs. The Undertaker, WrestleMania 28
CM Punk vs. John Cena, Night of Champions
John Cena vs. The Rock, WrestleMania 29



Second Edit Note: Added two more eras and really shuffled things around. Below was written for initial list where I ignored the five limit altogether. My list of pruned matches is no longer accurate.

Most of mine revolve around WrestleMania, as that has really become their focal point for each year, leading to landmark encounters taking place there. RVD/Cena may seem like an odd one, but it brought back ECW for awhile, cashed in on the growing anti-Cena feeling of the era and featured the Edge/Cena feud that was so strong for years. There are some better matches in these spans that never really defined anything.

Razor/Shawn II is mention because it was in that "no chairs" period and had them working the match without using the ladder as a direct weapon. It was a fine line to walk, but really defined the period.

Likewise, Hogan/Yoko is an OBVIOUS mention to me as it really defined the Bret era, where they always seemed hesitant about running with him as "the guy." They brought Hogan back to break up his era. They packaged Lex Lugar as Hulk Jr. and tried to run him over Bret. They ran with Diesel when he got hot. Ultimately, Bret's era saw it's end when they pushed Shawn over him.

[EDIT]Matches I pruned to make it five per era:

Attitude Era (WM 13 through WM 17):
Triple H vs. Cactus Jack, Royal Rumble 2000
Triple H vs. Chris Jericho, RAW April 17, 2000 (phantom title win)
Triple H vs. Steve Austin, No Way Out 2001

Ruthless Aggression (the night after WM 17 through the night before WM 22):
Steve Austin vs. Kurt Angle, SummerSlam 2001
Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho, WrestleMania 19
REDACTED
Batista vs. Triple H, WrestleMania 21

My Time is Now Era (WM 22 to present):
Rob Van Dam vs. John Cena, One Night Stand
Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair, WrestleMania 24
Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker, WrestleMania 25
Edge vs. John Cena, Backlash
CM Punk vs. John Cena, Night of Champions 2012

[Tainted Eclipse]

Cool thread. For the Attitude Era I think wardy's list might be 100% right.

Cena Era:

Triple H vs. The Undertaker, Wrestlemania 28
- This is THE "sports entertainment" match as envisioned by WWE. Character driven and full of beyond-wrestling theatrics. Emblematic of the Undertaker's Wrestlemania run which has defined Wrestlemania since 2005 which is about where the Cena Era begins. I'm not a fan of this sort of wrestling-as-hollywood-blockbuster stuff and I don't care for this match at all, but there's no doubt this is a match that defines what WWE has been trying to do in this era.

Jack Swagger vs. Christian, 2009 ECW TV
- Seems like an odd pick but I think something needs to represent the strong uptick in quality TV matches this era has seen. This seems to be the best choice because it's one of the best and it happened on a B-show, which is where many of them have.

John Cena vs. CM Punk, MITB 2011
- Obvious, here. An era-defining feud coming off a super hot angle and indicative of the kind of workrate heavy main event epics which have been conspicuous in this era.

Daniel Bryan vs. CM Punk, Night of Champions
- I don't think WWE has ever been so indulgent of its smark base than during the Cena era, which is funny considering how much of a smark pariah Cena is. This match represents a lot: an increase of great "workrate" main events, the shattering of the glass ceiling for small indy guys after Benoit forced WWE to rethink a lot of its business practices, and the improbable arrival in the main event of the WWE of two mid-2000s scrawny indie Gods.

John Cena vs. Umaga, Royal Rumble 2007
- Can't have a list of matches definitive of the Cena era without the ultimate Cena overcoming the odds match. Helps that it's a done-up gimmick match. Helps that it's outrageously good and maybe one of the 5 or so best WWE matches ever.

[Atty]

Really hard to narrow it down to five per era. Especially the recent ones.

[Andy]

I think I'd have to include the famous 10 man tag in 2000 for the Attitude Era. It's a perfect match to watch to convey how over nearly every member of the roster was, the depth of the roster, the quality of the wrestlers, how fucking good and exciting Raw was, how perfectly booked things were at that point and how batshit mental the fans went.

I'd have to include Trips/Austin from No Way Out and of course Austin/Rock from Mania 17 is number one. I'd have to include one of the TLC matches, probably the Mania one. Narrowing it down to one more is very difficult but it's probably have to be Mankind/Taker in the cell.

[The Law]

I think the Attitude Era started the week before Wrestlemania 13, when Bret did the promo where he said "goddamn" and "bullshit" after he lost the Cage Match to Sid. I think it's wrong to say that the Attitude Era hadn't started when DX formed, or when Kane debuted, or Steve Austin became a top babyface.

I also think there's some cause to split the Hogan period into the Rock N Wrestling era, from early 1984 to Wrestlemania VI where he lost to Warrior, and then from Wrestlemania VI to King of the Ring 1993. Hogan losing to Warrior was meant to be a passing of the torch, though it didn't turn out that way. We had a very different group of guys on the top for the next few years than we had for the previous five: Bret Hart, Mr. Perfect, Flair, Slaughter.

I think we've definitely changed eras while Cena has been on top. I think the first Cena era was from 2005 to 2010, and it ended shortly after Wrestlemania 26. We had such a sea-change of top guys in a brief period of time: Shawn retired, Taker and HHH became guys who only wrestled a few times a year, Edge retired in 2011, Mysterio dropped down to the midcard. And we saw the rise of new guys: Punk, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, Ziggler.

[Atty]

If you split up the Hogan Era, I'd have Sgt. Slaughter vs. Hogan very much on the list. It felt so huge to the era and was the coming back to Hogan.

[chatty]

I think the Attitude Era started the week before Wrestlemania 13, when Bret did the promo where he said "goddamn" and "bullshit" after he lost the Cage Match to Sid. I think it's wrong to say that the Attitude Era hadn't started when DX formed, or when Kane debuted, or Steve Austin became a top babyface.

I also think there's some cause to split the Hogan period into the Rock N Wrestling era, from early 1984 to Wrestlemania VI where he lost to Warrior, and then from Wrestlemania VI to King of the Ring 1993. Hogan losing to Warrior was meant to be a passing of the torch, though it didn't turn out that way. We had a very different group of guys on the top for the next few years than we had for the previous five: Bret Hart, Mr. Perfect, Flair, Slaughter.

I think we've definitely changed eras while Cena has been on top. I think the first Cena era was from 2005 to 2010, and it ended shortly after Wrestlemania 26. We had such a sea-change of top guys in a brief period of time: Shawn retired, Taker and HHH became guys who only wrestled a few times a year, Edge retired in 2011, Mysterio dropped down to the midcard. And we saw the rise of new guys: Punk, Sheamus, Daniel Bryan, Ziggler.

Yeah I think for the end of Hogan to New Gen and end of New Gen to Attitude, for both the start and end could come down to opinions. I sort of look at Attitude starting around the time Bret left and they firmly decided on Austin becoming their main man but you could go anywhere back to KOTR 96 when Austin made his famous speech and seeds were firmly planted.

I have a tough time working the start of the new gen as again they started shifting it earlier but didn't fully commit until Hogan left at KOTR 93.

Theres definitely a new era started between Cena/PG and now but it's gonna be hard to fully define it until after its fully happened/near its end. Again seeds were planted early but I would say Summer of Punk probably was the main kickstarter of it.

[Andy]

For the Cena era my first match on the list would be his match against Punk on Raw just because it's his best match.

Rock/Cena from this years Mania would be there because it showed that WWE really wants us to think he is the best wrestler to ever step foot in the business.

[Ochoa]

I'd say Bret/Shawn from Montreal. No, not the greatest match ever. But one of the more infamous of all time.

[The Law]

Rock N Wrestling
-Hogan vs. Iron Sheik (Hogan's first championship win. Started it all. Not a great or even good match by any means, but still huge historically)
-Hogan and Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff (Main Event of the first Wrestlemania. Sold out the Garden, made the first Wrestlemania a huge success. If this match failed, who knows what would have happened.)
-Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat (Wrestlemania III. One of the greatest wrestling matches ever to that point. Still great today. A glimpse into the future of professional wrestling)
-Hogan vs. Andre (A very different kind of great. Put 85,000 people in the Pontiac Silverdome. Did a 10 buyrate, by far the best in wrestling history. Solidified the WWF as the top wrestling company in history)
-Hogan vs. Warrior (End of the era. Hogan finally lost. He hadn't suffered a clean defeat since returning to the WWF at this point. Great match, great aftermath with Hogan presenting Warrior with the belt and sadly leaving the ring, defeated).

Hogan Era, Part II
-Savage vs. Warrior (Wrestlemania VII. The times, they are a changin'. Savage is forced to retire from the ring.)
-Hogan vs. Slaughter (For an odd reason: It was the first time Hogan failed to draw. They wanted to fill the LA Coliseum, but barely sold out the Sports Arena. First sign of the market for wrestling softening).
-Royal Rumble 1992 (Fantastic Royal Rumble, maybe the best ever. Had basically every major star of the era in it).
-Flair vs. Bret (Bret's first WWF Championship. Definitely a sign of changing times. Really good match, amazing moment).
-Hogan vs. Yokozuna (King of the Ring 1993. End of the era. Yoko crushed Hogan and pinned him. And then Hogan was gone. Not quite forever, but for a long, long time).

New Generation
-Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon (Wrestlemania X. Definitely a different world. No one had ever seen anything like this before)
-Bret vs. Owen (Summerslam 1994 Cage Match. Fuck me, this was awesome. Basically, that's my reasoning)
-Diesel vs. Bret Hart (Survivor Series 1995. Really, really good match. Solidified that the Diesel experiment was over, and that Nash was on his way out).
-Bret vs. Shawn (Wrestlemania XII. 60 minutes of excellence. Not a perfect match, but awesome. Solidified Shawn as the new top guy).
-Shawn vs. Diesel (IYH: Good Friends, Better Enemies. A true hardcore match. A glimpse of the main event style that would come to dominate the WWF in a few years).

Attitude Era
-Bret vs. Austin (Wrestlemania 13. Amazing match, one of the best the WWF has ever produced. Turned Bret heel and Austin face, went a long way towards making Austin the biggest star in the world).
-Austin vs. Shawn (Wrestlemania 14. Shawn is gone, Austin is the man. "The Austin era has begun" said JR. And so it had).
-Austin vs. McMahon (St. Valentines Day Massacre. The greatest rivalry of the Attitude Era. Damn good match).
-Hardyz vs. Dudleyz vs. Edge and Christian (Pick one. They're pretty similar, and defined how awesome the tag division was in these years).
-Austin vs. Rock (Wrestlemania X-Seven. End of the era. Great, great match. Looking back on it, I wish Rock had gone over, but he was leaving so it couldn't happen. Austin turning heel was a major misstep).

Ruthless Aggression Era
-Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H (Summerslam 2002. Shawn's back. This match blew my mind back then. Still does today).
-Rock vs. Brock Lesnar (Brock's on top).
-Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle (Was supposed to cement Brock as the man. Instead, this show drew a disaster buyrate and Brock was gone from the company a year later).
-Chris Benoit vs. Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels
-Randy Orton vs. Triple H (Unforgiven 2004. We thought Randy was going to be the man. Turned out that wasn't the plan. Or it was, but they went about it in such a moronic way that they had to pull the plug).

Cena Era
-John Cena vs. Triple H (Really solidified that Cena was their guy)
-Edge vs. John Cena (New Year's Revolution. Edge cashes in and wins his first WWE Championship. Edge was one of the defining stars of this era, and this was the moment he became a true main eventer).
-John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam (ECW's back! And this was fucking awesome. And then ECW fell to pieces. Just another false start in an era full of them).
-John Cena vs. Batista (Summerslam 2008. Top two stars of the era face-off).
-Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (Wreslemania 25. Perfect match, or at least as close to it as there is).

Reality Era
-John Cena vs. CM Punk (Money in the Bank 2011)
-Undertaker vs. Triple H (Hell in a Cell at Wrestlemania. End of an Era. But not really).
-Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena (Extreme Rules 2012. Brock's back. Awesome, awesome match).
-Rock vs. John Cena (Pick one. Both significant in their one ways).
-John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan (Summerslam 2013. The future has yet to be written).

[OD50]

Rock N Wrestling
-Hogan vs. Iron Sheik (Hogan's first championship win. Started it all. Not a great or even good match by any means, but still huge historically)
-Hogan and Mr. T vs. Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff (Main Event of the first Wrestlemania. Sold out the Garden, made the first Wrestlemania a huge success. If this match failed, who knows what would have happened.)
-Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat (Wrestlemania III. One of the greatest wrestling matches ever to that point. Still great today. A glimpse into the future of professional wrestling)
-Hogan vs. Andre (A very different kind of great. Put 85,000 people in the Pontiac Silverdome. Did a 10 buyrate, by far the best in wrestling history. Solidified the WWF as the top wrestling company in history)
-Hogan vs. Warrior (End of the era. Hogan finally lost. He hadn't suffered a clean defeat since returning to the WWF at this point. Great match, great aftermath with Hogan presenting Warrior with the belt and sadly leaving the ring, defeated).

Great choices. The sentimental part of me would love to include Savage winning the WWF title at WMIV.

[Hero!]

I'm trying to remember what year it was, but I think it was during the Hogan Era:

10 Team Survivor Series match. Talk about two things that were significant back then (SS matches & tag team wrestling) that are no longer a big deal. This match was fantastic had a great double turn. Anyone who's never seen it, really needs to give it a watch.

[Hotbeef-Injection]

Will we look at 2010 onwards as the 'social media era'? I know that sounds cynical but think about a the Youtube and Twitter stuff WWE is producing to add to their product.

[The Law]

I'm trying to remember what year it was, but I think it was during the Hogan Era:

10 Team Survivor Series match. Talk about two things that were significant back then (SS matches & tag team wrestling) that are no longer a big deal. This match was fantastic had a great double turn. Anyone who's never seen it, really needs to give it a watch.

They did those at the first two Survivor Series (1987 and 1988). Crazy to think that there was once a time where they actually had ten legitimate, established tag teams on the roster.

And now that I think about it I really regret not including Bret/Shawn from Montreal on my list. I'd probably take out the Hardyz/Dudleyz/E&C match.

[Hero!]

Yeah, I looked it up, the one I'm talking about is SS 88. Los Conquistadors, motherfuckers!

[Atty]

Will we look at 2010 onwards as the 'social media era'? I know that sounds cynical but think about a the Youtube and Twitter stuff WWE is producing to add to their product.

That would result in me editing my list again. I cut a lot of matches from my "Cena Era" to narrow it down to five. Much like if I split Hogan and Rock 'n' Wrestling, the list changes.

[lotjx]

I think I maybe repeating some of these, but I will go with my picks.

Wrestlemania I: Mr. T and Hogan vs. Piper and Paul Orendorf. This match cemented the Wrestling craze in the 80s and if it failed WWE would have gone belly up. Probably no match or PPV was important as this one.

Wrestlemania III: Savage vs. Steamboat. Defined the five star match in which all matches are viewed. Instantly made Savage, Miss Elizabeth and Steamboat into stars. No match has been recreated in kids' living rooms or basements as much as this one. It also got a lot of wrestlers we have today into wrestling.

Wrestlemania III: Hogan vs. Andrea. Not the wrestling clinic that Steamboat/Savage was, but as important. Hogan slamming Andre is the clip everyone plays when we talk about wrestling.

Wrestlemania VI: Warrior vs. Hogan. The first real passing of the torch match. Warrior was a God for about a year til Hogan came back, but the match is another cornerstone for a lot of wrestling fans and wrestlers.

Wrestlemania VIV: Bret vs Yokozuna. The end of Rock and Wrestling. Hogan coming in to save the day was the moment, wrestling fans got sick of Hogan and lead to the New Generation. Hogan won the title, but lost the fans.

New Generation.

Wrestlemania X: HBK vs. Razor Ramon ladder match. This match made Shawn Michaels into Mr. Wrestlemania and almost stole the show if not for the next match.

Wrestlemania X: Bret vs. Yokzuna. While in the same vein as Hogan/Andre, not a great match, but Bret winning the title was the apology for Wrestlemania VIV. It also lead to WWE switching gears from Gods and Monsters to Wrestlers.

SummerSlam in Wimbly Stadium. Bret vs. The British Bulldog. Even though the match is amazing, it showed WWE as a global presence where they could do a major PPV in another country and still do big business at home. WWE, today owes a lot to this gamble as we now have Raws in England.

Wrestlmania XII: Bret vs. Shawn. The other torch passing moment even though it would lead to the nuclear meltdown of Bret in the WWE. The Iron Man match made Shawn into The Man.

Wrestlemnia XIII: Bret vs. Austin. Much like Hogan at Wrestlemania VIV, Bret lost the fans. At least this time it was on purpose. Bret made Austin into the most bad ass person on the planet while turning himself into the worst person on the planet. The image of a bloody defiant Stone Cold not giving up in the sharpshooter would define the next era and the death of the New Generation which was built all around Bret Hart, hero of the people.

Attitude Era.

Survivor Series 97. Bret vs. Shawn. No match is more controversial than the Montreal screwjob. The real life firing of Bret Hart lead the way for evil Vince McMahon and gave nuclear heat to DX. Yet, in a bit of karma, Shawn would screw up his back a few months later in a casket match. This match is the start of the Attitude Era where reality became more of a part of wrestling than the insane bumps and spots of the time.

Wrestlemania XIV; Shawn vs. Austin. The coronation of Stone Cold happened while Mike Tyson made the three count. Austin became the force of the Attitude Era and on his back road the entire roster. A roster minus Taker that was not proven and had to relay on sex and violence.

KOTR 97: Taker vs. Mankind. The moment Mick Foley became a legend and Taker became the most cold blooded wrestler on the planet. The entire match sums up the Attitude. It is filled with massive spots, blood and human emotion. Mick Foley climbing back up after taking the fall off of the Cell made him, a hero. Even though the fall is replayed over and over again, the match is absolutely amazing testament to Undertaker being a ring general of helping a unconscious Mick Foley through the rest of the match.

Backlash 2000: After Austin went down with a year long injury, Rock, HHH and Mick Foley stepped up to the plate. Backlash should have been the end of the McMahon-Hemsley Era, but it went on two months too many, but this match made Rock, the People's champion. Rock's Rock Bottoming HHH and Shane through the table was another OMG moment, but the finish of Stone Cold Steve Austin saving the day has to be one of the loudest pops in the history of wrestling. Followed by the loudest of Rock pinning HHH and becoming the People's Champion.

Survivor Series 2001: WWF vs. WCW/ECW. Even though Invasion was not what people wanted, it was still a popular one. With Rock pinning Austin as revenge for Wrestlemania X-7, Austin would never be the same again. He would be put aside for HHH and Rock as well as a returning NWO. The inclusion of the WCW/ECW roster made for a mess of wrestlers and to the brand split after Wrestlemania. This would be the last great match of the Attitude Era and lead to what I call the Ruthless Agression era.

Ruthless Aggression.

Wrestlemania X-8. Hogan vs. Rock. The legend of Hulk Hogan vs the People's Champ may go down as the end of a lot of things, but in reality it leads to a new era. Both wrestlers would be and out for the rest of the year which it signaled the need for new wrestlers. The next night, Brock Lesnar would debut and nothing would be the same for like two years. Yet, for this night it was the collision of two eras and a crowd that was pro-Hogan, but cheered when Rock won. Rock became, the legend Hogan was.

SummerSlam 2002. Rock vs. Brock. Rock passed the torch to Brock in one of his best matches. While getting booed by morons in Long Island, Rock put Brock over as the monster champion. Brock would be the leader of this age until he got bored

No Way Out 2003. With Brock on his way out, Eddie Guerrero, a traveling wrestler with a troubled past became the heart of the WWE. His antics lead him to become beloved and a symbol for his Hispanic roots. Eddie beating Brock would lead to almost two day celebration for the fans who wanted nothing for the best for Eddie and Eddie did his best to embody, the persona of the funny loving champion who is smarter than anyone thinks.

Wrestlemania XX: Cena vs. Big Show. Before Super Cena, there was Cena, the Doctor of Thugamonics. While the main event would go down in history in both in a good and bad way, it was the opening match where a young Cena overcame the Big Show and was embraced by the fans as the next big thing.

Wrestlemania XXI; Batista vs. HHH. While Cena would became the face of the company, it was the rise of HHH's former Evolution teammate that would headline the show. Batista was a beast, but it seem to have a more laid back approach than Brock. Batista would dominate HHH which was something no one believed could happen. Batista would go to Smackdown and become the face of that side of the company much to his disappointment. Yet, for a few months, he was the man in the WWE and would be the champion for most of the fanbase that would learn to despise Cena.

PG Era.

Wrestlemania XXII. HHH vs Cena. What should have been the crowning achievement for Cena after a year long reign as champ with only a minor bump of losing it to Edge for a few weeks, it turned into a nightmare. HHH reasserted himself as the real man's man champ while Cena was the kiddie champ which still continues to this day. Even after winning Cena looks like a king whose crown is to heavy to wear.

Wrestlemania XXIV; Ric Flair vs. HBK. Even though, Ric Flair would go to TNA to wrestle for wrestling fans this was his last match. The story of HBK having to end his mentor's career due to a weird stipulation by Vince became one of the best told stories told in a wrestling match. Through out the match Shawn almost refuses to win, but realizing Flair's career could not go on forever, he says "I'm sorry, I love you" Then blasts Flair with a superkick to end his career. One of the most emotional matches of the PG era.

Wrestlemania XXVI: HBK vs. Undertaker. The second of their two matches at Mania. Shawn as the possessed man trying to end the steak while at the same time putting is own career on the line. The match was full of near falls and emotion. Taker finally ends the career of Mr. Wrestlemania and true to his word, Shawn has not wrestled since.

Money in the Bank 2011. After a brutally honest promo by CM Punk against the WWE and Cena, he goes into a title match in his hometown against John Cena. After amazing match, CM Punk defeats John Cena after miscues from Vince and Johnny Ace. Punk wins, but Alberto tries to cash in his own Money in the Bank only to get kicked in the head by Punk. Punk leaves through the crowd, but not before blowing a kiss to Vince. Unfortunately, a month later, all would go down the drain thanks Kevin Nash costing Punk the title and the next month Punk losing to a part time HHH. Punk did get the title back and thanks to this match, the fans saw him as the number one guy even though the real life WWE does not.

Wrestlemania XXVIII: Cena vs. Rock. Ten years later, Rock reverse roles from his match with Hogan, as he is the legend and Cena is the Kiddie Champ. While the match is not a clinic, its high emotions and rapid fans make it memorable. While Cena loses the match, he gets the rub with being in the ring with Rock. This would start a return of the Rock as he would come back in 2013 to win the championship and lose to Cena in an ok match at Wrestlemania XXVIV. Yet, for one night, the People's Champ returned home.

[chatty]

I think the Montreal match is one of the most defining matches in wrestling history, not only was it the kick starter for the full on Attitude era but in that one match it cemented Bret as a legendary face, made Shawn and DX despised heels and probably most importantly it got Vince over as one of the most despised heels ever and put him in the perfect position to play foil for Austins super-face run.

People really related to that story as almost everybody has had a shit dickhead boss they would want to kick the crap out of and that further pushed Austin to the moon. I think Vince would still have made a good heel boss but the Montreal angle made that feud very real to a lot of fans and they played that up perfectly.

I personally see that match as the turning point in the Monday night wars and helped WWE defeat WCW, Shawn's story with Austin was elevated and with Tyson joining the fold it all came together, so much so it was like the whole thing was planned

[Hotbeef-Injection]

I think another interesting question would be this

What matches would you say "Ended" one era or "began" another?

[Andy]

Austin/Rock is about as definitive an era ending match as there is.

[The Law]

Rock N Wrestling Era began with Hogan beating Sheik to win the WWF Championship at Madison Square Garden. It would say it ended when Warrior beat Hogan at Wrestlemania VI. Warrior was of a different generation, more of a cartoony, kid-friendly character.

Hogan Era II ended when Yokzuna beat Hogan for the WWF Championship at King of the Ring 1993. Pinned the man with his own move. Definitive, and then Hogan was gone.

New Generation ended with Austin/Bret at Wrestlemania 13. Bret's babyface run had carried the New Generation, and then he turned heel. Suddenly, the foul-mouthed, black tights and boots wearing, beer swilling, "Don't Trust Anybody" ass-kicker was the babyface. And Bret, espousing traditional values and morality, was the heel. A different world.

Attitude Era ends with Rock/Austin at Wrestlemania 17. Austin/McMahon and Austin as the top face had been the constant throughout the Attitude Era, and now Austin's gone bad and joined with McMahon.

Ruthless Aggression Era ends with Triple H losing to Batista at Wrestlemania 21 and Cena becoming WWE Champion against JBL that same night. Two new champions and top guys crowned in the same night. Not the greatest Wrestlemania, but a very important one.

I would say the "Reality Era" or whatever you want to call right now ("Cena Era, Part II" would also be appropriate) started when Punk beat Cena at Money in the Bank 2011. Punk's pipebomb promo would probably be a better choice, but if it has to be matches than this would be it.