iN Demand Pay-Per-View Promos (March 17-18, 2002)

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"'Mania Memories" is taking the week off for a different kind of 'Mania memory. And one I have to thank eBay, and specifically Dustin Hanson, for offering.

22 years ago, WrestleMania X8 was the first time I watched "The Showcase of the Immortals" live on Pay-Per-View. I had planned to record the event, from the Free-for-All pre-show (not Sunday Night Heat) all the way through the final bell. Right after the opening pyro and Jim Ross' introduction to the event, my cable box (black box, not digital cable) lost the signal to 'Mania. My next-door neighbor got on the horn with Mediacom, and it wasn't until the middle of Kane vs. Kurt Angle where the event turned back on my PPV box. But there were no more hitches for the rest of the night. I had no sense in taping the encore presentation that followed the live broadcast. It was also 11 pm my time and I had school the next day.

Fast-forward all the way to last August, and what did I happen to find online? A VHS recording of the same-night encore presentation of WrestleMania X8. Complete with promos from iN Demand Pay-Per-View (formerly Viewer's Choice), which I may or may not have planned on recording had I been able to watch/tape 'Mania live as it happened in 2002. Similar to when I found a PPV version copy of WCW/nWo Slamboree '98, this copy of 'Mania X8 contained promos before AND after the event's airing. Following the 'Mania encore, the movie "Kiss of the Dragon" was being shown.

A heck of a find online. A hell of a personal recollection. And, for this time of year and for me personally, an incomparable piece of childhood nostalgia. On my 34th birthday (February 24, 2024), I share this with you.