Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill

Killing Joke - Love Like Blood

Colt Cabana invites you to WrestleReunion! I wish I can go, but you definitely can! Tickets for tonight’s Dragon Gate USA Live Event start at 25 bucks!

WWE RAW 6/27/2005 - John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Hulk Hogan vs. Chris Jericho, Christian, Tyson Tomko (watch Part 2)

Notes: This was a Supershow TV taping; Raw was shot live, followed by that week’s Smackdown taped immediately after. Held at The Pond of Anaheim, now called the Honda Center. Once again, I attended this night with my brother and cousin. In case you haven’t figured it out, I live in Southern California. On an embarrassing note, I almost missed out on Kurt Angle vs. Ric Flair match due to me spending the entire commercial break after the RVD/Carlito segment in line for the restroom! I made back to my seat just in time to see most of the match & the finish —Naitch tapped to Angle’s Ankle Lock! Woooooo!

The video above was the Raw main event. Before the match, it was announced Cena & HBK would be teaming up with a “mystery partner”. I swear, everyone including yours truly thought it was going to be The Rock, especially since the heels made mention that they were “near Hollywood”. Hell, I wish it was The Rock —sorry Hulkamaniacs. Yeah, it was Hogan.

The place went even more nuts than it already was, with everyone on their feet, screaming loud and proud for the Icon returning to the squared circle for one more match. This is a Hogan post, so I will save my attention towards new-main eventer Christian and the suffering-to-be-loved John Cena circa 2005 for later entries.

Back to the Hulkster… I later read via dirt sheets he was injured at his WrestleMania 21 appearance & could not do his famous Leg Drop finishing move. Believe me when I tell you that I just freaked out when Hogan pulled the Leg Drop on Tomko! I’ve witnessed many sights in my short life, and can still envision that moment when closing my eyes today. This moment gave me flashbacks… remembering Hulk doing that same move on the Ultimate Warrior, only it was on TV and I was five years old. To see that live at age twenty was just a surreal feeling.

After this night, Hulk Hogan; the man, his legacy, career and attitude wasn’t the same, especially in my view. Another story for another time …brother.

WWE WrestleMania 21 4/3/2005 - Hulk Hogan returns to the WWE by saving Eugene from the treacherous Muhammad Hassan (w/Daivari). Being held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, I attended the event with my brother and cousin; honestly one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. Hogan got one of the biggest pops of the night, maybe the overall biggest response next to Stone Cold Steve Austin.

This was Hulk Hogan before Hogan Knows Best, before the smarks deemed him the most overrated worker ever; before his revelation that he is an asshole, before his ugly divorce, TNA, and TMZ made Terry Bollea infamous and Z-list (Granted, Suburban Commando & Thunder in Paradise made him a B-lister, but nothing below the Q-list!). This was the Immortal one, the Hulkster, making a comeback for what really was his “final run”.

On this night Hulk Hogan was celebrated; he was inducted the previous night to the WWE Hall of Fame (and in the process can claim that he indeed sold out the Gibson Amphitheater, formally the Universal Amphitheater, where the event was held) and had showed all the Hulkamaniacs around the world that yes, Hulkamania was indeed running wild …brother!

Peter Murphy - Final Solution

AFI - Totalimmortal