Seth Rollins stands victorious over John Cena / Photo: wwe.com
[dropcap]O[/dropcap]h, Summerslam. The biggest event of the season, the second biggest PPV each year, and one of the Big Four. Given how incredible NXT Takeover: Brooklyn was, and how last year’s Summerslam was one of the best in the books, the bar was set fairly high this year. Did Vinny Mac and Co. clear it?
Well…..
What They Got Right
The Four Way Tag: Okay, to be fair, that entire match was Botchamania in the making. Xavier Woods constantly screaming at ringside did get a tad annoying. But for as much of a cluster as the match was, it was still incredibly fun. I’m not sorry, I’ve enjoyed The New Day from the very start. Is their gimmick stereotypical and covertly racist? Unfortunately, yes. But also, all three men within the stable are extremely talented and it’s a welcome change to see them be able to not only showcase those talents but also be allowed to let a little bit of their actual personalities shine through. I’ve been an Xavier Woods fan from the get, same with Big E. Plus, we got this gem at the end:
Go on, Kofi, go ‘head, get down!
Seriously, The New Day are just .gif worthy 24/7.
The Divas Elimination: now, I am all for this Divas Revolution. When Becky Lynch’s entrance music hit the night of her debut, I literally started crying tears of joy. Bayley vs Sasha at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn was monumental in terms of the overall state of women’s wrestling and how it’s handled within WWE. It’s no secret that the division has been a sham for years due to bad booking and outdated, sexist views still held against women by members of the Creative team (and then some, as far as rumors go), and that NXT is being viewed as the future layout of the main roster’s division. Honestly, I’d like to see more of a cohesive storyline now since we’re starting to get to the point where Nikki is getting close to breaking the record held by AJ Lee for longest Divas title reign. Personally, I’d love to see that belt get snatched off her at the last possible second, mainly because I legitimately do not like Nikki Bella (nothing against her talent, she’s become a beast in the ring), and think WWE is being petty for having lost AJ after essentially making her choose between her husband and her career, but hey, that’s just me.
But until we get to that point, we’re getting wrestling for the sake of wrestling and I am just fine with that. This match allowed the Divas to get a good showing of how far they’ve come in their work – with some exceptions, Alicia Fox still looked protected since she’s a few weeks removed from her recent concussion. Seeing Paige not get the Cena treatment (worked most of the match and then the Superman bounceback) was refreshing, and I adore Paige. I would have prefered to see Team B.A.D. get the win, since out of all three teams, they need it the most; Tamina has only been back for a few weeks and hasn’t quite shaken off the rust, and as much as I adore Naomi, she can be hit or miss, so it’s Sasha carrying the group. A win would have made them look a tad more credible. But I’m okay with Becky getting that pin. Also, I’m an Hibernophile, so I may be a bit biased.
The Arrows vs Stardust/King Barrett: Okay, straight off the bat, can we go back to BNB now? This King Barrett gimmick is bull and when he was BNB, there was more of a focus on his in-ring abilities.
Phew! Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way….
Like a lot of the fans, I’m not big on celebrity matches. Most of the time, it’s just to attract new audiences and put asses in the seats, or further a storyline no one cares about. This wasn’t half bad. I’ll reiterate what I’ve been saying all along: if you’re going to get a celebrity involved, Stephen Amell is a great choice. First off, there seems to be a lot of crossover already between the ‘Arrow’ fans and WWE fans. Secondly, he’s been a fan since he was a child, so he knows the product very well. Not to say David Arquette didn’t. But Arquette also wasn’t in quite the same shape during his title reign as Amell is right now. Was he protected and carried in the match? Oh yeah. He only had two weeks to get ready and though he’s used to doing his own stunts and he does parkour as a hobby, that’s not nearly on the same level as what most talent do on a day-to-day basis. But, he held his own and he did put himself out there. Plus, when is the last time you saw a celeb do a crossbody, which is a pretty high risk maneuver for someone who has never stepped foot in a ring? Exactly. All in all it was a fun match to watch.
Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens: wow. What can I say? These guys put on a clinic. Both know each other very well (considering their indy backgrounds), and there’s never a dull moment. Cesaro has gotten infinitely better at playing the crowd, something that Owens has always had an inherent grasp on. Can we just address this growing trend in big guys being incredibly agile in the ring? I’m McLovin’ it. Everyone assumes big guys equal big power moves, but to see someone of Owens stature fly off the top rope like Neville or even Owen Hart is nothing short of amazing.
What Seems to be Straddling the Fence
Rollins vs Cena: Can someone please explain to me why one person is holding a midcard and top card title? Shawn Michaels references aside, I’m still not getting this one. Plus, the way it was executed, the ending fell flat. One thing that the fans have been constantly bitching about is how Rollins has been showcased during his entire reign: how nearly every match he’s been in, he’s had assistance and he’s been booked to look like a bitch. Now I usually levied this argument with “classic heel booking blah blah blah”, but yeah, now he’s looking like a bitch. This match was stellar. I’m never NOT entertained by Cena and Rollins (and no, I’m not a Cena mark, I’m a Rollins mark). They know each other’s strengths and how to cover each other’s weaknesses. They bring the best out of each other. Hell, Cena learned another move tonight and actually locked on the STF properly! They were heading into the ending of this looking strong as hell and I get that they may not want to tie or break Flair’s record right now, but they could have done a better job of having Seth get the win by having JON FREAKIN’ STEWART run interference, especially given the angle worked prior to Wrestlemania with The Daily Show and Stewart’s appearance on Raw. They foreshadowed way too much going into this.
Ambreigns vs Wyatt and Harper: I’ll be straight up, this feud doesn’t really seem like it has all that much of a point; it’s a poor man’s Shield/Wyatts 2.0. I’m fully convinced that the only reasons they haven’t turned Ambrose heel at this point is to ensure that Roman stays over as a face and also they know if they turn Ambrose, his ass is still gonna get pops! I’m happy to see Ambrose get a win (hellooooo, biggest fangirl on the planet here!), though it’d be nice to see more of that in a solo setting. I’ve never NOT liked Reigns, but I wish Vince would let Roman go for just a minute so he’s not working a limited moveset full of power moves. Wyatt just seems to get fed to people who need to look strong, and Harper’s in it for the ride. It’s a shame, because all men are capable of so much more. Still enjoyed the match, but it was there for the sake of being there.
What They Did Wrong
Sheamus vs Orton: this is the curtain jerk? Really? Oh boy! It’s Randy Ortzzzzzzzzzz…
Why can’t they seem to keep Orton fresh? He’s still a strong talent. When he’s on, boy howdy, is he on. But this feud just seems completely and utterly pointless and overdone and why oh why are we getting it?! Oh, right. MITB. TMNT. How many more acronyms can I fit in there? POS? Yeah, that works.
Big Show vs Ryback: again, why? I mean, I get that Ryback hasn’t gotten a real great start to his reign as IC champ due to the staph infection and having to take time off. No one can fault him for that. But this feud was never fresh to begin with. We already know that The Big Guy is a beast, you don’t have to put him up against Big Show to prove that. Plus, how many ninja turtles died for his outfit? And how many character turns has Big Show had this year now?
Rusev vs Ziggler: I had high hopes for this angle. SUCH high hopes…before they threw Ziggler into the mix. I loved what they were doing with Lana. The starting issue was that she was the main reason Rusev ever got over in the first place, then her popularity began to overshadow his. When the manager is more over than the talent, you need to fix that; they’re supposed to compliment each other. So naturally, they split them. Could the build to it been executed a little sooner? Yes. But having her portray the strong, independant woman role was amazing. At the time we desperately needed a woman in the company like that who wasn’t Stephanie McMahon, because let’s face it, the Divas were kind of failing, falling into stereotypical female roles or just kind of being used here and there as filler. But then they threw Ziggler into the mix by having Lana jump from Rusev to him, AND THEN they randomly tossed Summer Rae in. Like, seriously? I get having her in a managerial role at all times. But they could have played this out differently. Rusev is supposed to be a monster, a beast. If that’s the role they truly want for him and for him to remain a heel and cater to stereotypes, he could have gone the psycho stalker ex role with Summer Rae playing more the “Single White Female” trope, which she’s attempting to do and is doing a piss-poor job of it. Then, you can add Ziggler, but as backup at first, not as the boyfriend. Let that come later. That is how you build your sympathetic babyfaces. There’s virtually no chemistry here for…well…any of them, and it’s been apparent from the start. Lana, we know that you and Rusev are actually an item outside of the ring. But honey, you need to start playing the part here and try to sell your on-screen relationship outside of Instagram. This entire match was a waste, including the double count out ending, which should have been a clean win by Rusev just in order to end the travesty and because Ziggler won’t be hurt by yet another loss. Which actually leads me to…
Brock Lesnar vs Undertaker: What…the hell….was that ending?!?
The match itself was awesome, especially when we got memeworthy moments such as these!
‘Taker attempts to have the last laugh / Photo: ftw.usatoday.com
Brock’s true thoughts on The Undertaker / photo: sbnation.com
Now, some fans are calling this ending genius because it sets up for Undertaker vs. Brock 3.0. But honestly, we do not need that. Lesnar took the streak from the fans. That’s why they gave the win to him against Bray. That was purely for the fans. If you’re going to set up a revenge match, why would you wait until you’re fifteen months removed from the event and then throw it in with little to no build. If this is about revenge, we need that build. It is essential. Why weren’t the seeds planted at Wrestlemania? Both men were in the building, both had matches. We could have seen hints of this then.
Also, who is the face and who is the heel in this? Brock is being booked as a face this year. Undertaker is clearly a face now, has been for years. Is ‘Taker being booked as tweener? Is he automatically a heel because he’s up against Brock? Or is Lesnar the bad guy because he’s taking on a fan favorite, even though he’s now the fan favorite? You want face vs face, fine and dandy. This is not the match for that.
A theory that’s already being thrown around (and the IWC wasted no time in doing so) is that this is going to be ‘Takers send-off match. Which means he, yet again, has to put over Lesnar, since rarely does anyone ever not go out on their back. It’s an industry tradition. So what would be the point of building up to this? Not to mention, WWE has Sting under contract now and has done nothing with him since Wrestlemania. You have two of the most iconic wrestlers in the industry’s history under contract, and they have never faced each other, WHY WOULD YOU NOT START BUILDING TO THIS NOW!? Why would you bother with something we’ve seen and has been done and was finished? Yes, a match between those two may not be the greatest match ever since both Sting and Undertaker are well past their prime. But it’s not about the level of athleticism, it’s about the history, the prestige. That should be the retirement match, not a third round of Beast vs Dead Man.
There was very little that could be done about this match to not make anyone come out looking like a chump. Literally everyone looked just like that. That double countout I was bitching about? That could have been used here. Hell, the ending they did come up with could have been executed better if they had used two refs seeing two different results, not the timekeeper. WWE literally booked themselves into a corner, like they did with the whole Lesnar/Reigns saga. The main issue here is they didn’t have a saving grace like Wrestlemania’s main event had.
Do you feel that any of these matches could have been booked differently? Agree, disagree? Care to call the lynch mob on me? Sound off in the comments below!
