So WWE’s annual Summerslam event has been and gone, so I thought I would take a look at each matchup and see how the event stacked up from top to bottom. This won’t be a traditional review that gives a blow-by-blow account of every move of every match. Instead, I’ll just be giving some quick thoughts about the matches, the people involved and the potential booking for each wrestler going forward.
The Preshow
American Alpha, The Usos and The Hype Bros vs FaBreeze, The Ascension and the Vaudevillains
While it’s nice to see so much former NXT talent here, the fact is that most of these teams currently lack direction, so I struggled to care too much about this match. That and the fact that the FaBreeze name reminds me of a cleaning product. They managed to work in a tower of doom spot, which is always both fun and contrived, before American Alpha struck Grand Amplitude, seemingly for the win. However, instead one of the Usos made a blind tag, hit a splash and essentially stole the victory. That was nice, if only because it gives American Alpha and the Usos the foundations of a potential program down the line.
The Dudley Boyz vs Neville and Sami Zayn
Why can’t we give Neville his Adrian back? This was a decent enough match for what it was, but it is so sad to see Zayn relegated to pre-show duties given that he has provided us with two brilliant matches this year against Nakamura and Owens. The Dudleyz lost after miscommunication, teasing further dissention in their ranks that may lead to the possible introduction of the Bully Ray character to WWE audiences. Personally I hope that D-Von returns to being the Reverend from the early-2000s as well.
Best of Seven Series – Cesaro vs Sheamus
We’re going to be getting this match six more times, which tells me the creative team are utterly devoid of ideas in terms of what to do with these guys. Still, this pair are willing to go in and stiff the crap out of each other so it’s not a bad thing. This first match was taken by Sheamus with a Brogue Kick and I see the others getting progressively better as they start introducing new stuff. A carrot at the end of the stick in terms of some type of title shot would make this series of matches mean more.
The Main Show
Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho vs Enzo and Cass
Enzo and Cass got a massive reaction from the Brooklyn crowd and they strike me as the best card-openers since The Godfather in terms of getting a pop and getting fans into the show. The newish tandem of Owens and Jericho won after a sloppy flapjack into a Codebreaker that damn near took Enzo’s head off. Fun, fast-paced stuff but I’m hoping that Enzo and Cass aren’t going to be relegated to jobbing constantly.
WWE Women’s Championship – Sasha Banks (Champion) vs Charlotte
Sasha naturally got a massive reaction, with Charlotte drawing the boos well. This match was good, but didn’t hit the heights of their Raw classic. Sasha, of course, damn near got killed during the match, as she always does, this time on what appeared to be a sidewalk slam off the top rope that went wrong, leading to her landing on the back of her neck. The sad thing is that Banks has lost the title so quickly, but there are rumours of both injury and a wellness suspension as reasoning behind that. This was the first legitimate shock of the night, though it paves the way for Bayley to explode onto Raw and challenge Charlotte.
WWE Intercontinental Championship – The Miz (Champion) vs Apollo Crews
Time was that the Intercontinental Championship match could be relied on to steal the show. These days it’s an afterthought, as demonstrated by the complete lack of build to this one. As impressive as Crews is as an athlete, there just seems to be nothing to his character barring him smiling a lot. The Miz, on the other hand, plays the slimy heel really well. This lasted five minutes, was inoffensive and offered nothing to extend the prestige of the Intercontinental title.
John Cena vs AJ Styles
Now this was a beautiful match. No interference, everything as clean as a whistle and John Cena takes the loss to end the feud for the first time since he faced off against Daniel Bryan in 2013. After this match Styles is made as one of the top guys in the company and will surely be challenging for the WWE Championship soon. This was hard-hitting from the start, with both guys busting out new offense. The overriding story, which had been sold well prior to the match, is that Cena has been looking for somebody to replace him as the top guy. Styles did that tonight by doing what Cena usually does; fighting through everything that his opponent had to offer until he got the win. This match is worth the price of admission alone and ranks up there as one of the matches of the year.
WWE Tag Team Championship – The New Day (Champions) vs The Club
The Club deserve so much better than to be in an extended comedy segment featuring Jon Stewart. As much as I enjoy Stewart’s other work, please keep him away from a wrestling ring. Not a lot happened in this match and it ended when The New Day’s Big E returned from injury to cause the disqualification and retain the titles.
WWE Championship – Dean Ambrose (Champion) vs Dolph Ziggler
As much as I love both of these guys as performers, I never bought Ziggler as a threat here because of the way he has been presented over the last couple of years. This time in 2014 he was on the cusp of superstardom, but times have changed. Ambrose retained his belt after a decent match that struggled to get the crowd invested, in part because the Cena vs Styles match had been absolutely draining. I can’t help but feel as though the seeds for an Ambrose heel turn are being planted here, as he acted like an arsehole for the entire match. Maybe a double-turn with Styles?
Becky Lynch, Naomi and Carmella vs Natalya, Alexa Bliss and Nikki Bella
Nikki Bella got a huge pop when she was announced, which is deserved given how hard she fought back from her neck injury to get back in the ring. She ended the match with a version of the TKO that appears to have replaced the Rack Attack as her finisher. The match was well worked but kinda just there, which is a shame as Lynch and Natalya deserve better. Carmella looked completely lost unfortunately and couldn’t draw a pop from the Brooklyn crowd, despite her past associations with Enzo and Cass. Why not draft her to Raw and have her link up with her boys, while working her slowly into the women’s division on that show?
WWE Universal Championship (No Disqualification) – Finn Balor vs Seth Rollins
This was to decide the first Universal Champion, which is still a bit of a stupid name. Balor’s demon entrance looked spectacular, though it’s a shame that they blew it on an episode of Raw beforehand. Why not tease the demon there and debut it to WWE audience’s here? Still, they worked a really good match that kept a high pace and managed to force some energy back into the crowd, which is damned impressive given the length of the show and the quality of the Cena vs Styles match. Balor took the crown after two Shotgun Dropkicks and a Coup De Grace, establishing him as a major player right off the bat. It will be very interesting to see where they go from here.
WWE United States Championship – Rusev (Champion) vs Roman Reigns
How on earth is this match after both of the main titles? Regardless, it never really got started as Rusev tried to attack early and Reigns just ran through him, destroying him for a disqualification, before returning to hit another spear. Rusev had to be helped to the back and Reigns looked like a cocky arsehole, which is no bad thing. It’s the character he was born to play and hopefully WWE can settle on that direction for the character instead of forcing him down our throats as the new face of the company.
Brock Lesnar vs Randy Orton
It always feels like a big event when Brock Lesnar shows up, so much so that he apparently supersedes all championships. Orton was also returning from a long injury layoff and I was hoping for a good match here. What I got was Lesnar suplexing Orton a lot, as usual, putting him through a table and then getting hit with a couple of RKOs in a hope spot. After connecting with an F5, Lesnar went to work on Orton with elbows and we got our first deliberate blood in WWE for who knows how long. The match ended in a TKO, as though that’s a thing in wrestling, with Orton laying in a pool of his own blood. Shane McMahon then came in to protect his Smackdown superstar, only to eat an F5 of his own. Looks like we might be getting Brock vs Shane, with possibly a long build into Wrestlemania?
Final Thoughts
I don’t think this was as cohesive a show as the NXT special that ran the day before it, but then it also ran for damn near six hours. There is a fair bit of filler, but nothing outright offensive. Cena vs Styles and Balor vs Rollins are both excellent matches that deserve a viewing, with Banks vs Charlotte also being a lot of fun, despite the sloppiness and Banks’ apparent determination to murder herself in the ring. Give it a watch, but be prepared to skip some filler.