Smackdown
Date: October 9, 2020
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s a special night as we kick off the 2020 Draft. The roster is broken up into two pools so if you don’t see a big name mentioned tonight, odds are they’re only going to be available on Monday. This is always worth a look and we have Sasha Banks vs. Bayley for the Women’s Title as a main event. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Stephanie McMahon is here to announce the picks.

To Raw: Drew McIntyre

To Smackdown: Roman Reigns

Raw: Asuka

Smackdown: Seth Rollins

Raw: The Hurt Business

Seth Rollins is a little heartbroken because he will miss Raw but now he never has to look at the Mysterio Family again. So we’ve seen our first miracle.

Big E. vs. Sheamus

Falls Count Anywhere. Sheamus starts fast with a Regal Roll for two but Big E. is right back with the spear through the ropes for two on the floor. It’s time for some weapons with Big E. pulling out a kendo stick, only to walk into a jumping knee. Sheamus ties him into the ropes and unloads with the stick before going underneath the ring for some more toys. The delay lets Big E. grab some duct tape and tie his feet together, meaning it’s Sheamus getting hit with the stick as we take a break.

Back with Sheamus’ feet untied and the brawl having moved backstage. It’s time to go over to catering, with Big E. getting covered in flour and eggs. With Sheamus’ back covered in welts from the sticks, they fight into the office area, where Big E. gets in some shots with a broom. A few trashcan shots keep Sheamus down and they go out into the parking garage. Big E. stops for some hand sanitizer but Sheamus gets in a tire iron shot.

White Noise through a windshield has Big E. in even more trouble and Sheamus throws him into the trunk. Sheamus tries to slam the trunk on Big E.’s arm but Big E. kicks his way to freedom. The Brogue Kick hits the trunk, which goes flying off the car. Now it’s Sheamus getting sent through a windshield, setting up a Big Ending from the hood of a car through a table for the pin at 14:44.

Rating: B-. They were going for the brutality here, but that only works so well when you have the eggs and flour in the middle. It got a lot more violent when things moved over to the parking garage though and Big E. felt like he got an important win. This could have been better though and it felt like they were trying to put in too much lighthearted material.

Post break, Big E. is interviewed about his match but here are Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods for the big return. Woods talks about how they need their Tag Team Team Titles back, though Big E. isn’t as into it (which may be due to the whole violent match he just finished thing).

Here’s Jey Uso for a chat. He wants to know what the stipulation is going to be for his match with Roman Reigns but there is no Reigns to speak of. Paul Heyman pops up on screen to say Jey can’t pick the time when Reigns appears, but Reigns (not here) applauds his ambition. Those who become too ambitious and want to come up against the champ will receive this, which sends us into a package on the Clash Of Champions match.

We pan over to Reigns sitting next to Heyman, who says his father taught him to only believe half of what you see in wrestling. As for what Jey just saw though, you can believe that. Reigns tried to help Jey and all he had to do was say the words. Jey had to acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief, so now we are going to have an I Quit match inside the Cell. Reigns just wanted to help Jey because he loves him, but after Jey quits, there will be consequences.

Commentary congratulates Stephanie for topping Forbes’ list of Chief Marketing Officers. Topping, coming in second place, apparently the same thing in WWE these days.

Time for more picks.

Raw – AJ Styles

Smackdown – Sasha Banks

Raw – Naomi

Smackdown – Bianca Belair

Raw – Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler (allowed to wrestle on all shows as Women’s Tag Team Champions)

I like that Naomi/Belair swap as Naomi needs a fresh start and Belair needs a start in the first place.

AJ Styles says he should have been the first pick for Smackdown but he wants to get away from that cheater Jeff Hardy and the neckbeard Sami Zayn.

Miz/John Morrison vs. Matt Riddle/Jeff Hardy

This was made on social media as Riddle said he wanted to team with Hardy just in case they switched placed. Riddle starts fast and knocks Miz and Morrison outside as we take an early break. Back with Morrison cranking on Hardy’s neck but Hardy gets over for the tag to Riddle. That means a quick Broton and, after knocking Morrison to the floor, the Bro Derek finishes Miz at 5:31. Nowhere near enough shown to rate and it didn’t do much in the time it had.

Post match LARS SULLIVAN returns and wrecks Hardy and Riddle. The destruction doesn’t take long and Miz gets beaten up as well.

More picks, with Lars Sullivan being added to Monday’s Draft pool.

Raw – Ricochet

Smackdown – Jey Uso

Raw – Mandy Rose

Smackdown – Dominik/Rey Mysterio

Raw – The Miz/John Morrison

Wait…..the ROLLINS FEUD COULD CONTINUE???? WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME???? And Miz moves again! THE TRADITION CONTINUES!!!

The Mysterios are happy to be staying together and promise that it’s not over with Rollins. That’s not fair.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bayley vs. Sasha Banks

Bayley is defending and brings the chair with her. Banks goes after her before the bell and strikes away early, including a stomping in the corner. Bayley tries to leave but Banks grabs her by the hair and takes things back inside. The Bank Statement goes on but Bayley reverses into a rollup for two. Banks gets her own two off a rollup and it’s another Bank Statement, sending Bayley into the ropes again. That’s enough for Bayley, who grabs the chair and hits Banks in the ribs for the DQ at 2:28. That’s exactly what they should have done in this situation.

Post match Bayley misses a chair shot and gets sent face first into the chair. Bayley bails from the threat of more violence.

We look at Kevin Owens asking Alexa Bliss about the Fiend’s influence and getting Mandible Clawed for his efforts.

Alexa Bliss comes up to Kevin Owens and says let him in.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Cesaro/Shinsuke Nakamura

New Day, meaning Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, are challenging here. Woods starts running around Cesaro to start and slides between his legs, setting up a forearm in the corner. The Day Break connects for an early two on Cesaro and we take an early break. Back with Woods fighting out of the corner and hitting the Honor Roll on Cesaro.

Woods hits a dropkick through the ropes to Cesaro and a springboard DDT plants Nakamura. Kofi hits a tornado DDT to the floor but dives into Cesaro’s uppercut. The Cesaro Swing into the Kinshasa is broken up by Woods and there’s Trouble in Paradise to Cesaro. Nakamura kicks Kingston down for two but Woods makes the save. After dropping Nakamura again, Woods hits the springboard elbow for the pin and the titles at 8:22.

Rating: C+. Well dang man. I was getting into Cesaro and Nakamura as champions and now they lose them this fast? I’m really not sure what the point is in having New Day win the titles again, but we are long past the point where the titles mean anything for New Day. I’m not sure what they can do, but New Day is always at least worth a look.

Time for the final round of picks.

Raw – Kofi Kingston/Xavier Woods

Smackdown – Big E.

Raw – Dana Brooke

Smackdown – Otis

Raw – Angel Garza

You could feel the air going out of the building when the team was split up but….what else are they supposed to do together? If there has been a more successful trio in WWE history, they’re eluding me at the moment (they even beat Shield due to longevity and titles) but it’s not like they have anything left to do. It’s a risky move, but I can get the idea, especially if it means Big E.’s singles push is for real. That being said, Woods screaming “SAY E! SAY E!” after he and Kofi were moved to Raw was kind of heartbreaking.

Heavy Machinery is ready for Otis’ court case but Miz’s lawyer has filed a continuance so we’ll return to this later.

We look at the Women’s Title match from earlier.

Sasha Banks challenges Bayley to meet her in the Cell.

Next week on the Season Premiere: Roman Reigns defends against Braun Strowman and New Day’s final six man tag.

Kevin Owens vs. The Fiend

This is Fiend’s first ever match on television. Owens sends him straight into the corner to start and hits the Cannonball…but Fiend pops back up. The crossbody drops Owens to the floor and there’s a clothesline to turn him inside out. Back in and Fiend no sells another shot before knocking Owens outside again. Sister Abigail onto the announcers’ table has Owens down again and we take a break.

Back with Owens hitting three straight superkicks to knock Fiend down into the corner. Another Cannonball connects and Fiend stays down for a bit, setting up a third Cannonball. They head outside again with Owens hitting a DDT on the floor, followed by an apron splash. Owens hits the Pop Up Powerbomb through the announcers’ table but Fiend is right back up. The Mandible Claw goes on inside again so Owens hits a Stunner, which doesn’t break the hold. Owens is out at 9:59.

Rating: C+. This was much more an angle than a match as the idea was to reheat the Fiend. I’d call that a big success as Fiend looks unstoppable again (provided you don’t put him in there with someone who uses a spear). Owens has credibility and was easily dispatched, so what else can you ask for here? They did what they were trying to do and it worked out rather well.

Post match the lights go out and here’s Alexa Bliss to stare at the Fiend. They both look back at Owens and then stare at each other again to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. There are certain shows where your overall take is going to vary wildly and that is the case here. The wrestling was completely not the point on this show, as they were going for making a bunch of splashes. As a result, this came off more the post Wrestlemania show with returns, surprises and twists, all of which made the night fly by. I had a great time with this, if nothing else for the sake of it being so different. It may not have been a great wrestling show, but it was an entertaining night and that’s what you have to do sometimes. I can see people not liking it and I won’t argue that, but I had a good time.

Results

Big E. b. Sheamus – Big Ending through a table

Matt Riddle/Jeff Hardy b. Miz/John Morrison – Bro Derek to Miz

Sasha Banks b. Bayley via DQ when Bayley used a chair

New Day b. Cesaro/Shinsuke Nakamura – Springboard elbow to Nakamura

The Fiend b. Kevin Owens – Mandible Claw

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Smackdown
Date: September 18, 2020
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

We are coming up on Clash Of Champions and that means it is time to start getting ready for the pay per view. There are a lot of different things being set up, including a few more title matches. Tonight we might get a few steps closer to that but you never know around here. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open with the Dirt Sheet, with Miz and John Morrison promising to get all of the dirt on the biggest stories going on in WWE today. After a clip of Miz announcing Mandy Rose is on her way to Raw on Talking Smack, Miz insists that he is not trying to get back at Otis. No, instead he is trying to help Otis as a former Mr. Money In The Bank. Now that Mandy is gone, Otis can focus on cashing in the briefcase while the men on Raw can focus on Mandy. Morrison: “Isn’t Ziggler over there?”

Cue Otis to beat both of them up, with Tucker throwing both of them back in as they try to escape. Otis is so angry at Miz that he hits the Caterpillar, showing the height of his violence. He even strips Miz down to his underwear, which isn’t quite the biggest deal when he wrestles in the same kind of gear.

Post break, Miz makes a phone call and says they have a plan.

Gran Metalik vs. Cesaro

The rest of Lucha House Party and Shinsuke Nakamura are here too. Metalik headscissors him down to start but gets taken into the corner for the uppercut. The armbar goes on as Kalisto and Lince Dorado seem to argue at ringside. Metalik gets sent outside and the referee ejects the rest of the House Party. Cesaro is pleased but the distraction lets Metalik hit a big springboard flip dive and we take a break. Back with Cesaro getting two off a big boot but Metalik gets up top for a flip dive and his own two. The moonsault hits raised boots though and Cesaro Neutralizes him for the pin at 6:59.

Rating: C. The Lucha House Party’s collapse continues, even though they’re getting a pay per view title match. I’m not sure how good it is going to be to split them up because the trio doesn’t seem like the kind of guys that are going to get a push on their own, but tag teams exist to be split up in WWE so it doesn’t matter that much. Also, how random is that champion vs. champion match on Monday feeling? It really does seem to be just a one off instead of building to anything, which is a little odd.

After looking at a clip of last week’s main event, Jey Uso says he trust Roman Reigns tonight. At Clash Of Champions tonight though, one of them is leaving as the Universal Champion. They’ve been fighting since they were little, but now they aren’t little anymore.

And now, Know Your Bro with Matt Riddle. Matt demonstrates how many different emotions you can convey with the word “bro”.

It’s time for A Moment Of Bliss, with Nikki Cross as the guest. We look at Bliss giving Cross Twisted Bliss last week and walking away, only to have Cross win anyway. Cross and Bliss hug before Bliss can get to the question: why should we believe Cross can beat Bayley after losing to her all summer? Cross says she’s ready for Bayley and promises to win the title. Now that we have that settled, Cross has a question for Bliss: what is going on with her?

Last week she hit Cross with Sister Abigail, but Bliss can’t explain it. She doesn’t know how to handle it…and here’s (the rather not dead) Lacey Evans to interrupt. Lacey asks if this is the View with these women talking about their feelings. Cross should be thanking Bliss for helping her last week because Bliss threw Lacey off of her game. Besides, Cross can’t win if she doesn’t have a mean streak. The fight is on and they fight to the ring for their scheduled match.

Lacey Evans vs. Nikki Cross

Bliss is on commentary but hang on because Evans needs to sanitize before the bell. Cross kicks her to the floor and then takes it back inside to jump on Evans’ back. Lacey sends her into the corner and starts working on the arm with some hard knee drops. A running boot in the corner connects and there’s the slingshot Bronco Buster for two.

The chinlock doesn’t last long but Evans cuts her off again and starts pulling on the arm some more. Evans rams her head first into the mat and stays on the arm before hitting the standing moonsault. With Cross down, Lacey sprays the hand sanitizer in Nikki’s eyes, but she’s right back up with a hair takedown. Nikki hits a corner splash and finishes with the hanging neckbreaker at 7:12. Bliss seems rather pleased.

Rating: D+. The sanitizer deal was rather dumb here as Nikki acted like it was water in her eyes instead of alcohol. The rest of the match was Evans beating up Nikki in a match she had no chance of winning because Nikki has a title shot coming up and Evans has fallen through the floor. Nothing to see here, which shouldn’t be that shocking.

Post match Evans crawls over to Bliss while shouting about the Fiend. Bliss goes into the same trance as last week, hits Sister Abigail, and slowly walks off in the trance.

Paul Heyman narrates a video about the Anoa’i Family being perhaps the greatest wrestling family of all time. We see a lot of the members in action and dang there have been a ton of them over the years. Heyman talks about how it is a battle of the family at Clash Of Champions, but while they feast at the same table, there is one ruler of the dynasty.

We get a sitdown interview with Sasha Banks, beginning with a look at Bayley attacking her two weeks ago. Banks is nearly in tears and says she’s still here as we hear a lot of cheering noises. Cole talks about how Bayley used her and Banks knows that Bayley finds her useless now. She and Bayley used to walk these halls and talk about everything they have done together.

They had planned to take over the whole company together but now she sees these halls and, through tears, she sees all of the things she and Bayley did together. Banks gets a lot more serious and calls Bayley an idiot who is nothing without her. Now Banks is coming for the title. Bayley runs in and blasts her with a chair before wrapping the chair around Banks’ neck again. Some rather short people run in to break it up before Bayley can stomp on the chair. The idea made sense, but Banks isn’t much of an actress and the delivery hurt it a lot.

Sami Zayn vs. AJ Styles

Sami goes to insist that he is introduced as the Intercontinental Champion but AJ jumps him from behind to start fast. Sami gets in a few shots and stomps away before grabbing a quickly broken chinlock. As Cole manages to find new levels of annoyance by talking in that completely unnatural manner associated with WWE commentary, Sami kicks the post by mistake and falls to the floor.

The slingshot forearm takes him down again and we take a break. Back with Sami hitting a Stun Gun but AJ grabs a neckbreaker for two. Sami slugs away but the Pele kick connects to drop them both. The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Sami two and he suplexes AJ into the corner. The Helluva Kick misses though and AJ grabs a rollup, possibly with tights, for the pin at 10:18.

Rating: B-. Not too bad here but you can almost see the triple threat at Clash from here. Sami at least looked good after his long time off. AJ was a smart choice for the first opponent too as he can have a good match with anyone, meaning this was almost a layup. It’s hard to make heel vs. heel work but they pulled it off here.

Post match Sami jumps AJ and complains about the tights being pulled. Cue Jeff Hardy to take Sami out…and grab a ladder (oh freaking dang it). Jeff is tired of being called cheat and a fraud so let’s end it once and for all, with a ladder match. Good grief I’d give so much money to put a ban on ladder matches for a few years.

Otis is served with a lawsuit. Apparently Miz and Morrison are suing over emotional distress, creating an unsafe working environment (STOP MAKING UP STORIES ABOUT THAT BECAUSE YOU DO IT ALL THE FREAKING TIME!) and violating their First Amendment rights by interrupting their news program. Otis has a week to decide if he will forfeit the Money in the Bank contract or go to court.

Sheamus and King Corbin are ready for their Samoan Street Fight tonight. The guy who lured Big E. to the parking lot last night comes in to say Sheamus’ car is being towed. Sheamus goes outside and gets jumped by Big E. in disguise. Big E. beats up the guy from last week as well, including a Big Ending on the car and throwing him in the trunk, showing more seriousness than he has in years. Adam Pearce comes in to say Big E. needs to leave. This worked a lot better than I would have expected.

The mystery woman gets dressed behind a screen. She turns around but there is a mirror in front of her face.

Roman Reigns/Jey Uso vs. Sheamus/King Corbin

Samoan Street Fight and Paul Heyman is here with Reigns (actually present to start the match) and Uso. Before the match, Reigns says he didn’t want any confusing this week. This is his yard, island, ring and WWE. If you want to change it, come take it. Sheamus is a little banged up but still here. It’s a brawl to start and thankfully there are no tags here because thankfully they understand the idea of a street fight.

The villains are sent to the floor early on, where Corbin pelts a chair at Reigns’ head for a scary crash. Jey dives onto Corbin but a second dive is countered into Deep Six on the floor. Back in and Corbin grabs a chair but gets kicked in the head for his efforts. Reigns chairs Corbin down but Sheamus runs Reigns over on the floor. The beatdown is on and Reigns is thrown over the announcers’ table. A regular table is brought inside and Uso gets planted through it for a near fall.

Reigns is back up and throws an announcers’ chair at Corbin’s head for a pretty impressive power display. Sheamus knocks him down again and loads up the announcers’ table but White Noise is broken up. Reigns kick Sheamus low and Samoan drops him onto (not through) the table. Corbin is posted and Sheamus is speared through the barricade. Back up and Corbin jumps Reigns before throwing Jey over a bunch of stuff. Uso is back with a title shot to the face though and Reigns adds a spear. The Superfly Splash gives Jey the pin at 6:10.

Rating: B. This was a lot of fun and most of that is because of Roman Reigns. THIS is the Reigns that people had been wanting to see for a long time. He was like a bulldozer here and running through everyone in his path, which made for some really awesome moments throughout. That’s the kind of Reigns that looked like the star of the company and someone who could be the champ for a long time with a huge moment being needed to take it from him. I liked this a lot and Reigns came off as the monster they have been wanting for a long time now.

Post match Reigns doesn’t look happy with Uso. Jey grabs the title and teases posing with it but throws the title to Reigns for a smile. Reigns and Uso hug so Jey can leave, with Reigns glaring at him from the ring to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. They’re taking an interesting approach to Clash as the main event is little more than a formality but the story has been set up well. Reigns vs. Uso is much more like the next step in Reigns’ story as we’ll get to see what he is willing to do to family, which makes it a lot better than what it would have been otherwise. Then you have Bayley vs. Nikki Cross, which is the most throw away, lame duck title match in recent years. The pay per view is looking hit or miss, but this week’s show worked out well enough. Just enough with the lawsuits and ladder matches though, please.

Results

Cesaro b. Gran Metalik – Neutralizer

Nikki Cross b. Lacey Evans – Hanging swinging neckbreaker

AJ Styles b. Sami Zayn – Rollup with a handful of tights

Roman Reigns/Jey Uso b. King Corbin/Sheamus – Superfly Splash to Corbin

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Smackdown
Date: September 4, 2020
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the show after Summerslam and we get two big deals in one tonight. First of all, Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman are making their first comments since the revealed their alliance last week. In addition to that we have a four way match to determine the #1 contender for Reigns’ Clash Of Champions title defense. Let’s get to it.

Here is Payback if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Roman Reigns revealing Paul Heyman as his new…whatever term they are using for him, and Reigns winning the Universal Title two nights later.

Here are Reigns and Heyman to get things going. Heyman says as soon as you thought he was out, Reigns pulled him back in. Reigns is the one corrupting him and pulled Heyman back in from the ocean of obscurity. Now he is back on the island of relevancy because they did the same thing to Heyman that they did to Reigns. What happened to the thank yous and the appreciation?

Reigns over delivered during his life threatening illness and no one offered him any thanks. When Reigns needed some time off, they made him give up his title. A Fiend or a monster isn’t born to reign. Imagine turning on Fox News and seeing an interview with a growling man as champion. Roman’s reign as your champion has always been defined as what WWE wants you to like: family, tradition and legacy. Tonight there is a four way to crown a new sacrificial lamb.

Heyman isn’t going to say their names because he’ll let Anderson Cooper and Carmella’s latest boyfriend handle that. Heyman is outside council to your Undisputed Universal Champion, Roman Reigns. Roman says he is a man of his word and did exactly what he said he was going to do: he signed the contract, wrecked the other two and left as Universal Heavyweight Champion. He’ll face whoever wins tonight and all he has to do is show up and win. Really, really good stuff here as Heyman sounded ticked off and Reigns sounded like the serious monster that he has needed to be for years now.

Post break Jey Uso comes up to Reigns in the back and congratulates him. Heyman leaves and Jey asks what the deal is with Heyman and Reigns. Roman says he’s got this and Jey accepts, even saying he’s got Reigns’ back if he ever needs it. Reigns leaves and seems rather distant, which Jey notices.

Miz/John Morrison vs. Heavy Machinery

Otis runs Miz over to start and Tucker comes in for the standing double splash. Miz and Morrison are knocked to the floor and we take a break. Back with Tucker diving over both of them and making the tag off to Otis. House is cleaned but the Flying Chuck hits Otis to take him down. Morrison hits the Moonlight Drive on Tucker on the floor but Otis starts gyrating off Miz’s kicks. Miz is knocked down to set up the Caterpillar and a Vader Bomb (that’s better as he needed a new finisher) finishes Miz at 8:06.

Rating: D+. It’s kind of amazing how far Otis has fallen in the last few months and so much of that has to do with the crowd. It isn’t all from the crowd though, as some of it is over him not exactly feeling like a threat to the World Title. Can you imagine him cashing in the briefcase and actually being a real World Title contender at this point? Granted there very well could be some shenanigans to get it to someone else, and really, there almost has to be.

Post match, Morrison steals the Money in the Bank briefcase and celebrates with it.

Big E. and Drew Gulak are having a birthday party for the returning Xavier Woods and tell Lucha House Party to stay away from the cake. Big E. is ready to become #1 contender but someone comes up to say Woods has arrived. With the cake in hand, Big E. goes out to find him but gets jumped by Sheamus, who takes him down with a Brogue Kick. White Noise onto the windshield of a car likely writes Big E. out of the #1 contenders match.

Post break Big E. is injured and has to go to a local medical facility. Sheamus comes in and says that is tough to watch but he can’t take his eyes off of it. With Big E. being loaded up on the stretcher in the background, Kayla Braxton asks if Sheamus set this up because of the Payback loss. Sheamus claims self defense and thinks Big E. just got distracted by the idea of seeing Woods again. If you want to be Universal Champion, you need to be focused at all time. Now Sheamus has to go because he has a triple threat to get ready for.

Bayley and Sasha Banks are ready to win the Women’s Tag Team Titles back but Banks doesn’t like Bayley being asked about tapping out twice in a row. Banks talks about how great Bayley is and promises to get the titles back.

Adam Pearce says the four way is still on and the replacement will be named tonight. Heyman comes up and wants to talk to Pearce about something.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Sasha Banks/Bayley vs. Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler

Jax and Baszler are defending and we get an inset promo from Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro, talking about how this is going to be a car crash. Cesaro calls out Nakamura for being insensitive after what happened to Big E. They raise a toast anyway. The champs are sent outside for double baseball slides but Bayley and Banks get caught. Despite them locking hands, the champs swing them into the barricade a few times as we take a break.

Back with Bayley in trouble as Banks seems rather concerned. Jax grabs a chinlock before it’s off to Baszler to crank Bayley’s arm back for a nasty visual. Bayley gets over for the tag to Banks and it’s a Backstabber into the running knees in the corner to Jax. The top rope Meteora gets two and everything breaks down. Jax is sent to the apron where Bayley hits a Stunner onto the middle rope so Bayley can hit a powerbomb to the floor. Bayley suplexes her way out of the Kirifuda Clutch and it’s time to beat on Jax in the corner.

The Backstabber hits Baszler and Bayley starts going up but Banks covers for two instead. Now Bayley can hit the elbow for two more but Banks’ running knees only hit the post. Back in and Baszler takes out the bad knee. A spinning toehold is countered into a small package for two but Baszler is right back up with a shot to knock Bayley off the apron. Baszler stomps at the knee and tries a Muta Lock, only to have Bayley come back in for the Bayley to Belly for the save.

Banks grabs the Bank Statement instead of tagging and it’s Jax coming in to break things up. Jax gets the tag and tries a Stretch Muffler but Banks reverses into a sunset flip for two. Bayley saves Sasha from a super Samoan drop and a double powerbomb hits Baszler. Jax hits a middle rope crossbody for the double pin to retain at 15:38.

Rating: B-. They did a really good job here of making you think that the match was over and then finding a way to keep it going. The action was intense here too and the knee injury was a fine way to keep things going. I’m not wild on Jax and Baszler as champions but they had a rather solid match here so fair enough for one night.

Post break medics are checking on Banks…and Bayley kicks her in the head. Bayley sends her into the steps and then stomps the bad leg on the steps. Banks goes into the barricade and then back in to keep up the beating, including more kicks to the leg. Bayley yells at her a lot and then wraps a chair around the leg. Banks gets in some kicks but Bayley blasts her again and adds a bulldog driver. With Banks out cold, Bayley wraps the chair around Banks’ neck and Pillmanizes her, probably putting Banks out all the way until Clash Of Champions.

Post break Banks is taken away in an ambulance.

Here’s Sami Zayn for a chat. Sami does not like not being mentioned as Intercontinental Champion. He hijacks the headset and talks to the production truck for not including the fact that he is Intercontinental Champion. Apparently it wasn’t in their notes, but here’s Jeff Hardy to interrupt.

Hardy says all Sami had to do was ask for a title shot but Sami says it should have been Sami who was asking. Cue AJ Styles to say he’s back and healthy so Jeff says he’s ready to defend. AJ jumps Hardy and the fight is on with Sami joining in. AJ hits Hardy as well but Hardy gets back up, with AJ being sent outside. The Helluva Kick hits Hardy and Sami bails.

Jey Uso is replacing Big E. in the #1 contenders match.

Tucker can’t find Miz and Morrison to get the briefcase back. Otis is cool with it because he keeps the Money in the Bank contract in his mini lunch box. Tucker is happy but want to know what’s in the briefcase. As luck would have it, Morrison is ready to open the briefcase at that time and finds….a stapler, some Q-Tips and a sandwich.

Jey Uso thanks Roman for getting him in the match but Roman says it was Heyman’s doing. Reigns wants Jey to win one on his own and wishes him luck.

Riddle comes out for the main event and charges at Corbin’s throne on the stage to start the fight early. Sheamus and Jey come down and the brawl is on in the ring and on the floor. We take a break before the bell rings and come back with….the Firefly Fun House.

Bray knows that you are down in the dumps just like He is because He lost his favorite toy again. It’s cool though because next week a brand new friend is coming to the Fun House. BYE!

Alexa Bliss comes up to Nikki Cross in the back and doesn’t know what came over him. With Ramblin Rabbit in the background, Bliss hugs her and walks off.

Matt Riddle vs. King Corbin vs. Sheamus vs. Jey Uso

For the shot at Clash and we’re finally ready to go about ten minutes after Riddle’s entrance. It’s a brawl to start with Jey superkicking Corbin to the floor and Sheamus hitting a backbreaker on Riddle. Jey comes back in for the save but gets knocked down, leaving the big guys to brawl. Riddle gets in as well and it’s a double charge in the corner to Sheamus and Corbin.

They come back with the Irish Curse and Deep Six for a double two, followed by Sheamus running Corbin over. We take a break and come back with Sheamus hitting the forearms to Jey’s chest but Riddle is back up with strikes of his own. An exploder suplex into the Broton has Sheamus in trouble but he pulls Riddle into the Cloverleaf. Jey makes the save and hits some running Umaga Attacks to both of them in the corner.

Corbin gets in a cheap shot on Jey but Riddle and Sheamus throw Corbin over the barricade. Jey dives onto Sheamus and Riddle for the double knockdown but Corbin is back up to throw Uso into the video screens. The other three get back in and Sheamus Brogue Kicks Corbin. The Bro To Sleep sends Sheamus outside and it’s the Floating Bro to Corbin. Jey comes back in with the Superfly Splash to Riddle for the pin at 13:18.

Rating: C. Well it wasn’t expected. I’m not exactly going to believe that Jey Uso is actually getting the title shot until I hear the bell ring and I’m also not sure that the match is going to last more than about fifteen seconds if it does take place. The match was good enough and the ending was a surprise, though I’m not entirely convinced that it’s lasting, which is fine too. That being said, you have Riddle, Sheamus and Corbin in there and Riddle takes the fall?

Post match Jey says he made the family proud too and is ready to take Roman to the Uso Penitentiary.

Overall Rating: B-. The word here is energy, as the show felt like it was doing a lot of stuff that mattered (not everything mind you, but a good deal of it). Heyman and Reigns had a good promo to start, the Bayley/Banks angle was good and they threw in a big curve ball at the end. I liked the show more than I have liked Smackdown in a long time and that’s a nice thing to be able to say. Good start to the Evil Reigns era and now we get to wait and see what comes next. The fact that I want to see what that is makes this a success.

Results

Heavy Machinery b. John Morrison/The Miz – Vader Bomb to Miz

Shayna Baszler/Nia Jax b. Bayley/Sasha Banks – Double middle rope crossbody

Jey Uso b. Matt Riddle, King Corbin and Sheamus – Superfly Splash to Riddle

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Smackdown
Date: August 28, 2020
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves

It’s the fallout show from Summerslam and the go home show for Payback, meaning that we have a lot to cover in one single night. That could mean for a pretty busy evening, including the three way contract signing between the Fiend, Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman. let’s get to it.

Here is Summerslam if you need a recap.

We open with a look at Roman Reigns returning on Sunday and attacking new Universal Champion the Fiend and old Universal Champion Braun Strowman.

Agent Adam Pearce is in the back and talks to security about how they need to work together tonight because this is going to be tricky. Pearce goes into Vince McMahon’s office and, after being turned down for a handshake, fist bump and elbow bump, is told he has to get all three people to sign the contract. Vince even gives him a special uniform to wear, though we don’t see what it is.

Here’s new Intercontinental Champion Jeff Hardy but AJ Styles cuts him off in a hurry. AJ calls Jeff out for cheating last week and talks about the doctor clearing Jeff last week. That same doctor won’t let AJ wrestle tonight, which Jeff says is a shame because it was Open Challenge time….to anyone but Styles. AJ goes after him and gets punched down as we take a break.

Intercontinental Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Hardy is defending and Styles is on commentary, still ranting about last week. Nakamura starts on the arm but Jeff starts hammering away on the arm as well. An atomic drop into a Hennig necksnap gets two but Nakamura starts going after the knee. We cut to an inset interview with Cesaro, who says he stepped away for a second and Nakamura ran in to get the title shot. That makes him more impulsive, not more ambitious. Cesaro sounds bitter, as they can’t possibly be already teasing a breakup angle.

Back to full screen with Nakamura staying on the knee, which AJ describes as poetry in motion. Nakamura kicks at the chest, which Cole says could lead to Nakamura’s first Intercontinental Title. Man he was champion earlier THIS YEAR. You called the matches where he won and lost the title, which he held for over six months. Anyway, Hardy gets in a few shots and throws Nakamura outside, plus into Styles, as we take a break.

Back with Jeff hitting the legdrop between the legs and the Whisper in the Wind connects. Hardy comes up favoring his knee though and Nakamura hits the sliding German suplex. Kinshasa is cut off by the Twist of Fate, with Styles ranting about Jeff using the knee brace. The Swanton retains the title at 13:01.

Rating: C. Take two guys who know how to do a lot of things in the ring and give them some time for a perfectly fine match. AJ and the knee deal will be fine enough to set up a rematch and there’s nothing wrong with that. If nothing else, a ranting AJ is always worth a look and listen so this should be fine.

Post match Hardy limps up to the stage….and here’s Sami Zayn for the first time since Wrestlemania, complete with his own Intercontinental Title. Zayn talks about how he’s the real champion and an AJ distraction lets Zayn kick Hardy in the face.

Post break Sami is in the back, where Kayla Braxton asks why he jumped Hardy. Sami talks about how he has been gone for months and has seen Hardy and Styles running around with his title. He is from Montreal and, switching to French, talks about how he is a true intercontinental man.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House with Bray being glad to be back here with all of his friends. Bray thinks something is missing and thinks of a variety of evil things, before holding up the Universal Title. Neither of those nasty monsters can take it away this time either. We get serious for a second, with Bray saying it has been a long time since he has seen Roman. The doorbell rings and it’s Adam Pearce dressed as a mailman. Postman Pearce needs the contract signed for Payback and Bray agrees, knowing that it means signing some death warrants. Bray signs and Pearce leaves, with Bray saying let him in.

Video on Matt Riddle vs. King Corbin.

Here’s Matt Riddle for a chat. He recaps the King’s Ransom idea and thinks Corbin is just hiding from him. Why not come out here and do something about it right now? Post break Riddle is still in the ring and here’s Corbin to answer the challenge. He accepts the challenge….on behalf of Shorty G., who jumps Riddle from behind to start in a hurry.

Matt Riddle vs. Shorty G.

Gable starts fast with a tiger suplex for two but Riddle flips out of Chaos Theory. A knee to the face and the Bro Derek finishes Gable at 1:28.

Post match Corbin jumps Riddle and the brawl is on with Corbin bailing outside in a hurry.

We look at Miz and Big E. arguing about Big E.’s singles run on Talking Smack.

Big E. argued with Miz, John Morrison and Sheamus earlier today backstage but Heavy Machinery came in to set up a six man later.

Heavy Machinery and Big E. now have a Money in the Bank lunchbox with sausage inside. Bayley and Sasha Banks come in to say that looks like some men playing with their meat. Bayley says some people can only handle a Tag Team Title, which doesn’t sit well with Banks.

Adam Pearce (no longer the Postman) can’t get an answer from Roman Reigns.

Corbin says he’s beating Riddle up at Payback.

Here are Sasha Banks and Bayley for a chat. Bayley talks about how rough of a week this has been for them because of all their title defenses….but they’re amazing so it’s not something to worry about. Bayley slips up and mentions that Sasha lost her title on Sunday, which was just a mistake. Banks isn’t happy but Bayley takes responsibility for it, as she shouldn’t have let the whole thing get started. As her best friend, she should have remembered that Banks can never successfully defend a Raw title.

Noting Banks’ cow style pants, Bayley says we have to moooove on, meaning they can’t lose on Sunday. Banks agrees, and says they are still best friends, but here are Nia Jax (great, on this show too) and Shayna Baszler to interrupt. The week is about to get even worse and even though they can’t stand each other, it’s worth putting up with her to beat up Banks and Bayley. The champs are being held down by one loss and they’re leaving as Tag Team Champions on Sunday.

Pearce still can’t find Reigns or Strowman, with Drew Gulak wanting to find Strowman as well. Gulak sees Strowman and hits him in the back with a chair, which Braun doesn’t seem to notice. Gulak throws the chair to Pearce, who has to calm Braun down in a hurry. The only way he’s signing is if Strowman can get Gulak in the ring right now. Sounds like a plan to Pearce.

Cesaro says Nakamura needs to be in his corner tonight when Sami Zayn comes up to sing Reunited And It Feels So Good. Nakamura isn’t pleased with Zayn for not even calling over the last four months and Cesaro points out that they have won the Tag Team Titles with Zayn being gone. Zayn says it was all part of the plan and puts his title next to theirs, but Cesaro says they were in mid-conversation. It was a private conversation and they would like to finish it. Zayn takes the hint and leaves, though he doesn’t seem happy.

Drew Gulak vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman is in street clothes. There’s the beal across the ring and a running splash in the corner, followed by another splash to Gulak’s back. A backsplash sets up some forearms to the chest and the running powerslam finishes at 2:37.

Post match, Strowman signs.

The Lucha House Party isn’t cool with each other as Kalisto asks Lince Dorado to stay back here and watch how it’s done. Kalisto leaves and Cesaro and Nakamura run over Dorado and Gran Metalik.

Cesaro vs. Kalisto

Kalisto is alone while Cesaro has Nakamura with him. An early headscissors staggers Cesaro but he catches a springboard with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for one. Cesaro cuts off a comeback attempt and hits a jumping elbow for two. A dropkick to the knee and a pop up DDT from Cesaro’s shoulders give Kalisto two. Cesaro is sent face first into the bottom buckle but Nakamura gets on the apron. Cue Lucha House Party to take care of him but Cesaro rolls Kalisto up for the pin at 3:18.

Rating: C-. It was fun while it lasted, which isn’t surprising given who was in there. I’ve always liked Kalisto and it’s nice to see him getting something of a story. On top of that, it’s also rather nice to see Cesaro and Nakamura back on the same page, as I really don’t want to see them split up already.

Post match the House Party is ready to come to blows but Kalisto hugs both of them.

Pearce goes in to see Vince, telling him that he has 2/3 signatures. Vince wants the third, and says Pearce needs to knock Reigns’ door down.

Nikki Cross is holding a coffee mug, which was the first gift that Alexa Bliss ever gave her. Tamina tells her it’s ok but here’s Bliss, with her hair up differently. She is ready to change it up even more but Nikki thinks it would look like the Fiend. Bliss freaks out and slams the mug down to smash it to pieces.

Miz, Morrison and Sheamus have a plan for their six man: don’t let the their opponents in the ring. Sheamus doesn’t like it and says just follow his lead.

Pearce goes to see Reigns, who wants to read the contract first.

Heavy Machinery/Big E. vs. John Morrison/The Miz/Sheamus

Otis knocks Morrison out of the corner to start and hits a corner splash to bring in Big E. and Tucker. The triple gyrating sets up a running shoulder to Morrison in the corner to give Tucker two. Everything breaks down and Tucker hits a dropkick to Sheamus on the floor, followed by a big boot to Miz. Back in and Tucker runs Morrison over for two….with Sheamus ringing the bell.

We take a break and come back with Tucker fighting out of a chinlock but getting cut off from a tag attempt. The referee won’t let Sheamus come in as he didn’t see a tag though, meaning Morrison is back in to miss the Moonlight Drive. Tucker sends Morrison into Sheamus to knock him off the apron, sending Sheamus into a big rant. Sheamus walks out and it’s off to Big E. to clean house with the belly to belly suplexes.

There’s the Warrior Splash for two but Miz snaps Big E.’s throat across the top. The Rock Bottom out of the corner hits Miz but Morrison cuts Big E. off. Otis comes back in for the double Caterpillar, which only hits Morrison. Miz grabs the Skull Crushing Finale on Otis, only to walk into the Big Ending to give Big E. the pin at 12:02.

Rating: C-. So the solution to getting rid of Big E.’s reputation as a trios guy is to put him in a six man tag. Or to have him beat Miz and Morrison again, which he has already done since the singles run began. I’m not sure what Big E. is going to be able to do, but it seems like WWE didn’t exactly have an idea for him when this run started.

Reigns won’t sign but promises to be at Payback to win the title back. And that’s a spoiler…..as Paul Heyman is next to him. I don’t say this very often with WWE these days but WAIT WHAT??? That got me and it got me in a big way. As soon as Reigns said it my head popped up and I was actually surprised by what they showed. Nice job. Now follow up on it.

Overall Rating: C. That ending alone is enough to make me like this show as it’s the first time that a story has actually surprised me in a good while. They were teasing a heel turn on Sunday and this is about as guaranteed of one as you can get without actually doing it. The rest of the show was your usual “oh dang we have a show on Sunday” episode, which gets annoying in a hurry but they’re so used to it by now that they can pull it off.

Results

Jeff Hardy b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Swanton

Matt Riddle b. Shorty G. – Bro Derek

Braun Strowman b. Drew Gulak – Running powerslam

Cesaro b. Kalisto – Rollup

Big E./Heavy Machinery b. Sheamus/John Morrison/The Miz – Big Ending to Miz

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Summerslam 2018
Date: August 19, 2018
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Attendance: 16,169
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips, Jonathan Coachman

This time for sure, Summerslam edition! Yes believe it or not the main event is once again Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title because that hasn’t gotten old this year. Other than that….as usual I can barely remember anything on these shows as they run together so much. Let’s get to it.

Oh and due to the recent WWE Network update, I get to watch the Kickoff Show on YouTube. Well done with that one people.

Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega vs. Lana/Rusev

Rusev is on fire at this point and it’s a battle of the wrestling pairs. Andrade gets Rusev to chase him and it’s right into the double Tranquilo pose. Rusev and Lana shout at them but Andrade gets in a cheap shot to break up the chase. That’s fine with Rusev, who stomps him down in the corner until Zelina offers a distraction. Andrade posts him like a good rudo, setting up the armbreaker over the ropes. An armbar takes us to a break and we come back with Vega pulling Lana off the apron to prevent the tag.

The reverse tornado DDT gives Andrade two and the armbar goes on again. Another reverse tornado DDT is countered with a forearm (keeping it simple can work) though and it’s the hot tag to Lana. A bulldog lets Lana dance up and the neckbreaker gets two. Vega sends her face first into the buckle but Lana breaks up the running knees with a kick to the head. Andrade makes sure the Accolade doesn’t go on with a well timed distraction though and Vega grabs a rollup with her feet…..as close to the ropes as she can get them for the pin at 7:02. That was pretty adorable with Vega trying to get there and not reaching.

Rating: D+. What happened with Rusev and Lana? I know I ask that a lot but egads man. They’re married in real life, Rusev has more charisma than he knows what to do with and Lana is the walking definition of a blonde bombshell who can talk. A year later they’ve basically disappeared and I would love to know why. At least Andrade is getting a push, and with as much talent as he has, there is no reason for him not to. The fans are properly fired up now so well done on the job, even if the match wasn’t great.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Drew Gulak vs. Cedric Alexander

Cedric is defending in the first of NINE title matches because WWE has too many times and doesn’t get why that is such a problem. Gulak’s friends Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher are barred from ringside. Feeling out process to start with Cedric taking him into the corner but having his headscissors blocked. The Gulock is broken up in a hurry and Cedric hits a dropkick to take things outside.

Gulak gets in a big boot on the way back inside and Cedric has banged up his neck. The neck crank goes on and we take a break. Back with Gulak’s continued logical offense, including some clotheslines and a chinlock. Gulak throws him over his back and pulls on the neck some more (close to a Gory Special) but since that can’t last long, Cedric is right back with a springboard Downward Spiral. With the wrestling not working, it’s time to hammer away at the head before sending him outside.

The big running flip dive hits Gulak again but he’s fine enough to break up a springboard. The Gulak over the ropes is half and half on the logical offense theme but the regular version can’t go on. A hard elbow to the head rocks Gulak, who comes right back with the biggest right hand I’ve ever seen him throw. The Neuralizer is countered into the ankle lock but Cedric rolls into a cradle for two. Cedric’s Spanish Fly is countered into a rollup for two, which is reversed into a stacked up rollup to give Cedric the pin at 10:43.

Rating: B-. This was the well done match that I was expecting, with Gulak going after the obvious target but not being able to finish off the more well rounded Alexander. Cedric was kind of a dull character but he is more than good enough to have a fast paced match like this. Gulak winning the title here would have been a good moment, but Cedric was hardly a bad choice for champion.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: B-Team vs. Revival

The B-Team is defending because WWE would rather laugh than go with a team they have invested so much in already. At least we get the B-TEAM B-TEAM GO GO GO entrance. Dallas headlocks Dawson down over but everything breaks down in a hurry with a shot to Dallas’ leg. The Shatter Machine hits the illegal Axel and a missile dropkick/spinebuster (Hart Attack variation) gets three straight twos on Dallas. More leg cranking takes us to a break and we come back with more leg cranking.

Dawson puts on a spinning toehold but gets kicked shoulder first into the post. Since Axel is still down (well done on making the Shatter Machine look awesome) though, it’s a backbreaker/middle rope knee for two more. Dallas grabs a hanging swinging neckbreaker on Wilder and now it’s back to Axel off the hot tag. Everything breaks down with the PerfectPlex being countered into a small package. Dallas shoves Wilder into the pile though and Axel winds up on top to retain at 6:12.

Rating: D+. This was the “let’s add a Raw match to the Kickoff Show because it’s for a title and people will care” theme and, as usual, it didn’t work very well. We’re three matches in and now the four hour Summerslam gets to start. It’s just one more thing added to the card that was completely forgettable and took a little bit more out of the fans. How does this make the night better?

Terry Crews is outside the Barclays Center and talks about the measure of success. You can feel the heartbeat in your chest to drive you and then you grind to find the moments that define success for you. Tonight, this is where dreams come true because all the world’s a stage. So what defines success and greatness and how bad do you want it? Go ahead and take a bow because we’ll let you take a bow because you’re about to bear witness to another great Summerslam. The things he was saying only kind of made sense, but sweet goodness that man can get you fired up for a show.

The CGI Empire State Building is over the ring again. You can’t see it live in the arena of course and that will mess you up when you see it on a monitor and not before your eyes.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Rollins is challenging with the freshly returned Dean Ambrose in his corner (because having him show up on Raw was far smarter than having him show up at Summerslam) to counter Drew McIntyre (because DOLPH ZIGGLER was the bigger prospect in 2018…..and kind of was in 2019 as well). As a bonus, Rollins is in Thanos inspired gear while Ziggler has a picture of the title over the front of his tights.

They go with the grappling to start with Rollins being backed up to the ropes, meaning it’s time for Ambrose to stare at McIntyre. The early superkick misses Rollins and Ziggler bails to the floor. That means a double staredown until Rollins throws him back in for some chops. Ziggler kicks at the leg to take over and we get a Flair Flip of all things. The chinlock goes on with Ziggler kicking the knee to keep Rollins down in a smart move.

Rollins’ comeback doesn’t last long as Ziggler backdrops him to the floor. Back in and Ziggler’s high crossbody is pulled out of the air but they crash to the floor again off of a suplex attempt (that’s always a scary looking spot). Back in again and Rollins gets two off a middle rope Blockbuster but Ziggler crotches him on top. Another superplex attempt is broken up and Rollins sends him outside for a suicide dive.

Rollins’ windup knee gets two but the buckle bomb is countered into a quickly broken sleeper. They fight to the apron with Ziggler kicking him into the post and nailing the DDT onto the apron for what should be a huge knockout. Since it’s this kind of a match though, it’s only good for two. Rollins hits him in the face again and gets his own two off the great looking frog splash.

Ziggler goes up top but Ziggler catches him with a reverse superplex into a reverse Falcon Arrow for a nice twist on the usual sequence. The fans give it a standing ovation so they seem to have some good taste. Hold on though as McIntyre sends Ambrose into the steps with the distraction letting Ziggler hit the Zig Zag for two. I blame the kickout on Cole declaring it over, which is the magical cure for a finisher. Rollins is busted open as he reverses a rollup into the buckle bomb. Dean gets back up and takes care of an interfering McIntyre, leaving Rollins to him the Stomp to get the title back at 22:02.

Rating: B. You don’t expect the opener to get this kind of time. The match was entertaining though it wasn’t quite the instant classic they were going for. It felt like the match was more of a collection of spots than a match that built on itself to get somewhere. That’s a great way to get an entertaining match and for what they were going for, I can certainly live with something like this. Maybe not the highest quality but very entertaining, which more or less defines Rollins.

Rollins and Ambrose celebrate a lot.

The Bellas are here to support their bestest friend ever Ronda Rousey, and to plug all their stuff of course. They might even get back in the ring at Evolution.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Bludgeon Brothers

Big E. and Xavier Woods are challenging and it’s almost weird to see Kofi around a Tag Team Title match these days. Rowan wastes no time by spin kicking Woods in the face to start. Harper hits a big boot of his own and it’s off to the Gator Roll into the chinlock. A running splash from Rowan sets up the head vice as it’s total dominance to start. Big E. gets knocked off the apron and Woods is sent outside to join him, but Rowan can’t powerbomb Woods onto the steps.

A hurricanrana sends Harper into the steps and the hot tag brings in Big E. Belly to belly suplexes on the floor abound (with Harper landing on his head and thankfully not breaking something), followed by the Warrior Splash to Harper inside. Harper is right back with a Michinoku Driver but Big E. sends Rowan into the post. Woods hits a dive onto Rowan and Big E. spears Harper through the ropes.

Rowan is back up with his own dive off the apron to Big E. and things finally settle down a notch. Woods can’t complete a springboard tornado DDT as Harper reverses into a powerbomb for two, meaning it’s time for Kofi to play cheerleader. Apparently not a fan of cheerleading, Rowan plants Kofi but walks into the Big Ending.

Big E. Rock Bottoms Harper off the apron into what was supposed to be a backstabber from Woods, though it was more like Harper just landed on Woods’ legs. Eh can’t hit them all. Woods makes up for it by dropping the big elbow off the top to the floor and Harper is actually in trouble. UpUpDownDown is loaded up but Rowan hits Woods with the hammer for the DQ at 9:27.

Rating: B-. They didn’t play around here and went with the all action match, which was the right call here. Let them do whatever they wanted and have an entertaining match as a result. New Day was throwing everything they could against the unstoppable monsters and came close to getting a win. That’s the kind of hope spot you need over a team like the Brothers as you have to have a reason to believe something could happen in the future. That being said, it didn’t mean anything in the end as Rowan tore his bicep and New Day would win the titles in two days.

Post match the Brothers destroy New Day with the hammer.

Jon Stewart is here.

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman. Owens said he was on a role and tried to get Strowman’s help to win Money in the Bank. Strowman didn’t like it when Owens inevitably turned on him and threw him through a bunch of tables before winning the briefcase. The Strowman destroyed Owens’ car and put him in a portable toilet, which he knocked off the stage. Owens “beat” Strowman in a cage match when Strowman threw him off a cage so now it’s a rematch for the Money in the Bank briefcase.

Money In The Bank Briefcase: Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens

Strowman is defending and can lose the briefcase by losing in any way. An early pair of running splashes in the corner sends Owens outside and Strowman runs him over again. Owens’ superkick just makes Strowman angrier and it’s a chokeslam onto the ramp. The running powerslam finishes Owens at 1:55. Well that worked and makes Strowman look like the monster, but HAHA if you actually thought they would put the title on him.

Clip of a Be A Star rally.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Carmella cashed in Money in the Bank at the Smackdown after Wrestlemania and has been put over one name after another, though she is still seen as in over her head. Becky Lynch has been trying to get back to the top and is getting the shot here. Then Charlotte saved Becky from a beatdown and got a match where she could be added to the match if she won. Since it’s Charlotte, OF COURSE she was added in, which Becky saw as someone else trying to steal her chance. Charlotte did get in a good line with Carmella “is a Diva living in a woman’s world.”

Smackdown Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte vs. Carmella

Carmella is defending and we get the Big Match Intros, with the hometown champ not being well received. As I continue to not understand why the title belt is shown inside what looks like the Elimination Chamber during the graphic, the bell rings and Carmella starts running her mouth. Charlotte gets sent outside so Becky can hit a running legdrop but the second misses.

Carmella isn’t happy with Charlotte breaking up the cover but it’s time to get crafty. She slaps Becky in the head and blames Charlotte, who says she’s innocent as they knock Carmella to the floor. Becky and Charlotte trade rollups and it’s a standoff for some applause. An armbar puts Charlotte down for all of two seconds but Carmella is back in because she can’t just go away.

Becky gets sent into the steps so Carmella can shout and dance a lot. Charlotte is whipped down as well and Carmella takes Becky inside for, you know it, more shouting. She does even things out a bit with a chinlock until Charlotte comes back in, only to be taken down by the hair. Now it’s Charlotte getting chinlocked as we see the wide range of Carmella’s offense. Becky makes her own save, gets dropkicked down, and Carmella shouts about being champion again. How can she be repeating stuff that many times less than six minutes into a match?

Carmella mocks Becky’s pose and ducks a shot from Charlotte, which hits Becky instead. Some fall away slams drop Carmella and Charlotte nips up but Becky knees her in the face. A double missile dropkick puts Carmella and Charlotte down again with Charlotte being sent outside. Becky gets caught on top for a hurricanrana to give Carmella two, leaving herself open to Charlotte’s spear.

Since we can’t go that long with Carmella being on defense, she knocks Charlotte into the corner and shouts that no one cares about her anymore. Another hurricanrana out of the corner is countered into a Boston crab (with Charlotte driving her down from the corner almost like a Styles Clash) before switching to the Figure Four. That’s broken up with Becky’s top rope legdrop and they’re all down.

Becky gets up first and hammers on Carmella, who of course knocks her outside because SHE IS THE CHAMP. A rather hard suicide dive hits Becky but it’s Charlotte coming off the top with the moonsault, which goes right between them and barely makes contact, as usual. Back in and Carmella breaks up the Disarm-Her so Becky gets two off a Rock Bottom, with Carmella making ANOTHER save.

Carmella gets two off a superkick with Charlotte making the very last second save. Charlotte gets sent outside so it’s another superkick to Becky, who shrugs it off without much trouble. The Disarm-Her goes on but Charlotte dives in with Natural Selection for the pin on Becky at 14:42.

Rating: C+. The action was good but the important thing here is that Carmella can go off to do ANYTHING but be in the title picture. Her reign showed the entire problem with using Money in the Bank as a quick rise to the top: Carmella was never viewed as a serious wrestler but she won a ladder match and stole the title so now she can hang with Charlotte and Becky? It never worked and this match exposed how limited she was in the ring, with all the shouting and superkicks getting old in a hurry. She is perfectly fine as the cheerleader type character and it fits her SO much better, as time has proven.

The match itself was pretty good with a lot of saves and back and forth action, but I kept wanting Carmella to fall in a hole somewhere so the other two could have a better match. The fans wanted to see Becky and having Charlotte get the title back wasn’t the most thrilling result. Becky’s frustrations are proven right again and things could get interesting as a result.

Post match Becky hugs Charlotte but completely snaps, beating the fire out of her and throwing Charlotte over the announcers’ table to one of the biggest face reactions in forever. WWE actually tried to treat this as a heel turn for a bit before realizing that it just wasn’t working and strapped a rocket to Becky’s back, leading all the way to the main event of Wrestlemania and the biggest push in women’s history.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe. AJ has been champion for about nine months and has beaten a bunch of challengers so he issued an open challenge for Summerslam. Joe choked AJ out and signed the contract before starting his real attack. He called out AJ for neglecting his family but promised to send AJ home by ending the title reign. Then he read a letter from AJ’s wife, saying that everything Joe said was true and how much she wanted Joe to win.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is challenging and the fans certainly seem to like him, though AJ isn’t exactly being booed. AJ’s wife and daughter are in the crowd so Joe breaks up the Big Match Intros and says hi to both of them, promising to send daddy home tonight. An early Koquina Clutch attempt doesn’t work and it’s a TNA chant for a little flashback. Joe gets in a cheap shot in the corner and then bails to the ropes as the mind games continue.

AJ takes him down with a headlock as they’re starting slowly (which is ok). Back up and a big shoulder sends AJ into the ropes as Graves explains the psychology in a rare bit of usefulness. They trade kicks to the leg so things can start picking up a bit. In what shouldn’t be a surprise, Joe wins the battle of the strikes at first but AJ keeps going with chops against the ropes.

The drop down into the dropkick has Joe in trouble and AJ knocks him outside. Since AJ isn’t that bright, he gets his leg kicked out to send him face first into the apron. Joe hits the big suicide elbow to send AJ into the announcers’ table, with Graves saying it’s like a flying school bus. Can someone explain to Graves that the Magic School Bus is fiction? Back in and a clothesline gives Joe two and the chinlock goes on.

That goes nowhere so AJ fights up and sends Joe outside for the slingshot forearm. Back in and the middle rope moonsault into the reverse DDT gets two but Joe is right back up with a middle rope leg lariat. A big boot into the backsplash is good for two more as Joe keeps using the power advantage. AJ’s fireman’s carry gutbuster hurts his own knee so Joe is right back with the snap powerslam (great one too).

AJ is right back up and manages the Styles Clash for two and the fans bought the near fall. The Rock Bottom out of the corner gives Joe a breather but AJ is right back with the Calf Crusher (remember the leg kicks earlier). You don’t put holds on Joe though and he slams AJ’s head into the mat for the break, quickly followed by the Koquina Clutch. A foot on the rope breaks things up so Joe takes it outside….and talks to AJ’s wife, saying AJ won’t be coming home but he’ll be her new daddy. You know it’s on now as AJ tackles Joe over the barricade and hits him with a chair for the DQ at 22:45.

Rating: B. This is one where the DQ finish makes sense to keep the story going, though I’m not sure why Joe, who has been very calculating this whole time, would do something like that when he was in control. It came off more like he was admitting he couldn’t beat AJ tonight and that’s not Joe’s style. What we did get was a solid back and forth match with AJ fighting his heart out and Joe using the power and size advantage to dominate the emotional champ. I’m certainly down for a rematch and that’s where this is obviously going.

Post match AJ beats the fire out of Joe with the chair, drawing a WHO’S YOUR DADDY chant. With Joe gone, AJ checks on his wife and daughter, the latter of whom says he’s bleeding. AJ: “I’m sorry.”

Here’s Elias for a song. Believe it or not, he was a child once but then he grew up and wrote a great album. That album included a song called Elias’ Words and knowing that the entire world loves you is an incredible feeling. Tonight we’re getting a new song and it might be his greatest yet. This song is dedicated to all of the New Yorkers out there tonight, because all of the dirt in their ears and mind and the harsh reality of living in this city is all about to be washed away. And then his guitar breaks. Well so much for that.

Miz runs into the B-Team backstage (why they’re still in their gear two hours after their match isn’t clear) but he doesn’t need their luck. Tonight he’s proving that he’s better than Daniel Bryan, but if they want to fetch the limo for the post match celebration, he’s good with that. They’re leaving actually because they have their own celebrating to do. They’re not the Miztourage anymore because they’re the B-Team. The B stands for Daniel Bryan and offer him a spot on their new reality show: “Total Fellas, but with a B, so Total Bellas!” Miz looks confused.

We recap the Miz vs. Daniel Bryan, which is eight years in the making. Miz was Bryan’s NXT Pro back in the day despite Bryan being much more experienced. Bryan broke away from Miz and turned into a star but never could shake the Miz, who thought Bryan was a huge fluke. Then Bryan got hurt and had to leave for years, with Miz taunting him after he walked away and retired. Miz called him out for being a coward and started using Bryan’s offense for years.

This included Miz’s incredible Talking Smack promo where Bryan called Miz a coward, sending Miz into an all time rant about how Bryan was the coward for not getting back in the ring while Miz was here every day. Then one day Bryan was medically cleared and everyone saw this match coming. Now it’s on the big stage as everyone is ready to see Bryan kick Miz’s head off. The theme is passion vs. fame and completely different ideologies about wrestling. It’s a natural rivalry and this match has more than earned a spot on this kind of a major show.

Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz

Miz’s wife and daughter are in the front row (who knew AJ was so influential). Bryan has talked for months about wanting to punch Miz in the face so he immediately balls up his fist, sending Miz into the ropes. Miz gets in the first few shots and fires off the kicks in the corner but the running dropkick is caught by the throat. Bryan gets to punch him in the face to a BIG reaction and now it’s Miz getting kicked in the corner for his efforts.

Another kick to the chest gets two but Miz takes him down for a surfboard. It turns out that Bryan knows how to escape that pretty easily and puts Miz in it to even things up. More YES Kicks (Graves: “Paying homage to the Miz.” Tom: “I swear to God.”) connect but Miz is right back with a hard clothesline to drop Bryan again. A cravate lets Miz hit some knees to the head and Bryan is back down.

The Reality Check gets two but Miz takes too long loading up the kicks, allowing Bryan to hit the moonsault out of the corner into the running clothesline. A hurricanrana out of the corner gets two and Miz is sent outside, meaning it’s the running dropkick through the ropes. The big dive to the floor drops Miz again and Bryan gets smart by tying him in the Tree of Woe for the kicks to the chest. The belly to back superplex gets two as it keeps getting worse for Miz.

Bryan misses the big YES Kick though and Miz hits a DDT for a breather. Miz’s YES Kicks just wake Bryan up so he catches a kick and hits Miz in the face (as promised). It’s too early for the running knee as Miz counters into a failed Figure Four attempt. The Skull Crushing Finale doesn’t fail though and gives Miz his next close two. With his chest looking very banged up, Miz’s running knee is countered with another kick to the head for two and they’re both dazed.

As tends to be the case at this point in a match, they had to the apron, where Bryan’s kick hits the post to give Miz a big target. He’s smart enough to go straight to the Figure Four but Bryan eventually turns it over to reverse the pressure. Miz isn’t smart enough to just unhook his leg so it’s a long crawl to the rope for the break. Bryan is right back on him by tying up Miz’s arm for the elbows to the face and then the YES Lock.

With Miz getting close to the rope, Bryan punches him in the back of the head for some good measure. Miz gets a boot on the rope and rolls to the floor, where Bryan hits the running knee from the apron. As luck would have it though, he winds up next to Maryse, who slips him something made of metal. Bryan tries a suicide dive but gets knocked cold with a shot to the head, allowing Miz to get the pin at 23:45.

Rating: B. It wasn’t the big, epic match they were shooting for but what we got was something that got pretty close to living up to the hype. The problem is it’s nearly impossible to live up to a reality that fans had in their heads after so long, but they did very well anyway. Miz being cocky the whole time but not being able to survive against the more naturally talented Bryan made perfect sense. The cheating leaves them wide open for a rematch and since Miz’s wife got involved, Bryan’s should as well, right?

Super ShowDown is coming, including HHH vs. Undertaker for the last time ever.

Video on Undertaker vs. HHH, which is quite the story.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

Corbin has been a jerk to Balor so it’s Demon time, thankfully in a complete surprise so we didn’t have to hear THE DEMON IS FINN BALOR’S ALTER EGO for a month. The entrance shakes Corbin, possible because he’s realized that he’s Baron Corbin. Balor dropkicks him to the floor at the bell and hits the Sling Blade. The running flip dive hits Corbin and Balor sends him into the barricade. As Coach tries to figure out why Balor doesn’t use the Demon more often, it’s a top rope double stomp to Corbin’s back and the Coup de Grace finishes at 1:22. Exactly what it should have been, assuming you absolutely have to have Corbin employed.

Brie Bella checks on Bryan and they’re not happy with Miz and Maryse. Bryan says his comeback has been a bust but Brie calms him down.

United States Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura is defending and this is your “it just sounds cool” match of the show, as well as a rematch after Nakamura won the title in six seconds after a low blow last month. Jeff has been dealing with Randy Orton as of late as well so you can probably pencil in the interference. There’s no major contact for the first minute or so, meaning we need a COME ON from Nakamura. Hardy charges into a knee but stops to dance like Nakamura, which doesn’t sit well with the champ. Neither does Hardy doing COME ON as things actually get going.

Nakamura knees him in the face and grabs an arm trap chinlock, which is broken with a rather quick jawbreaker. Some more kicks have Hardy right back in trouble and we hit another chinlock. Jeff fights up again and hits something close to a Sling Blade to put them both down again. Another kick drops Hardy again though as he can’t seem to figure out that he needs to avoid the feet. He finally gets the idea as a running knee hits the buckle, allowing Hardy to nail the Whisper in the Wind for two.

Since that isn’t the most high impact move, Nakamura is right back with the hard knees but the low blow misses. Jeff dropkicks him down to set up the Swanton for a delayed two. With Nakamura rolling to the apron, Hardy tries another Swanton but crashes back first onto the apron for his efforts. Kinshasa retains the title at 10:57.

Rating: D+. The chinlocks hurt this one a lot and you could feel the energy going out of the crowd. This was around the time that Nakamura was putting it in coast mode and there wasn’t much that could draw him out. His charisma is more than enough to carry him, but it would be nice to see some effort into his matches. Jeff continues to drift around, which is pretty much all he does as a singles guy these days.

Post match Orton comes out but instead of going after Jeff, he just hits himself in the head and leaves without doing anything else. He can be an odd guy.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss. Rousey had the Raw Women’s Title won at Money in the Bank but Bliss cashed in her briefcase to steal the title from Nia Jax. Bliss has been WAY too confident coming into this so Rousey has been suspended several times, yet still getting her title match here. Tonight Rousey is going to destroy Bliss and get the title for the first time.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Ronda is challenging and has Natalya, whose dad Jim Neidhart died a few weeks back (meaning she has her dad’s Summerslam 1990 jacket on for a great touch). Oh and the Bellas are here too because they’re stars. Bliss hides in the ropes a few times to start as she is trying to delay the inevitable for as long as she can. A cheap shot is blocked by a single right hand to send Bliss outside.

Back in and Bliss bails a second time so Rousey turns her back and sits down to let Bliss get in safely. Bliss comes in and tries a chinlock, not realizing that it leaves her arm exposed. Rousey picks her up for the yet to be named Piper’s Pit and Bliss is on the floor again. The chase lets Bliss get in a few shots….and there’s the stare. Rousey unloads in the corner and hits the judo throws (while talking trash), setting up the armbar (with Bliss popping the arm out of joint as only she can) for the easy tap and the title at 4:38.

Rating: C+. This is one where the presentation was all that mattered. Rousey was never in any danger and the match was a complete squash, which was the right call. There was no reason to pretend that Bliss could be a threat to her and they didn’t waste their time on anything stupid. Rousey is the biggest star in the division and one of the biggest in the company, so making her champion was the obvious move, especially since she’s here full time.

Post match Rousey hugs Natalya and the Bellas. Guess which two are booed. Her husband gets a big kiss as well. Rousey’s husband that is, in case it’s not clear.

We recap the Raw World Title match. Roman Reigns has been chasing the title and the win against Brock Lesnar for the better part of forever, having lost at Wrestlemania XXXI, Wrestlemania XXXIV and Greatest Royal Rumble. Now we’re doing it again because these two are joined at the hip in an eternal chase. This time around they’re presenting it as Reigns is here and Lesnar isn’t, even though the fans don’t seem to think much of Reigns so his attendance doesn’t make much difference. They teased Heyman jumping to Reigns but it was dropped in all of ten seconds so Lesnar could beat Reigns up again.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Reigns’ CGI entrance is a big dog head over the Shield logo, which is rather terrifying when you don’t know it’s coming. Lesnar is defending and Paul Heyman handles his Big Match Intro. Hold on though as Strowman comes out to say he’s going to be cashing in on whomever wins. Reigns hits three Superman Punches and two spears in the first thirty seconds but the third is countered into a guillotine choke.

That’s broken up with a spinebuster and we’re just over a minute in. Brock grabs it again so Reigns uses the same counter. For once it makes sense to have them laying down this early as they’ve beaten each other up quite a bit so far. Brock takes the gloves off and counters another Superman Punch into the rolling German suplexes. The fans say the two of them suck and Reigns escapes the F5.

A missed charge sends Reigns through the ropes and into Strowman, who Lesnar plants with an F5 on the floor. Reigns is thrown back in and Strowman grabs Lesnar’s leg. That earns him a beating with the briefcase, which Lesnar throws up to the stage (egads that’s not normal). Lesnar unloads with a chair, walks back inside and gets speared to give Reigns the title at 6:09.

Rating: D. NOW NEVER FIGHT AGAIN! This feud went on forever and their matches were the same finisher fests over and over again. Strowman could have been anything from the Monster to a stray puppy as he only served as a distraction to cost Lesnar the title. Reigns winning here doesn’t feel like some major moment, though it’s nice to have Lesnar FINALLY lose the title. They should have done this at Wrestlemania at the latest though and by the time they got here, no one cared and there was no reason for them to. At least it was shorter this time around so there is one minor positive. Just get on to any other feud, please.

Reigns poses as Strowman is still down to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I had forgotten how good this show was as WWE managed to cut out a bunch of the nonsense and just roll with the awesome matches that have been well built up. It’s so frustrating to see what they’re capable of doing when they actually try because they don’t put in the effort so much of the time. This was an awesome show with nothing very bad (Reigns vs. Lesnar is more the result of everything that came before it between the two of them) and three or four matches that got time and lived up to it. Check this one out if you have the time, but completely skip the Kickoff Show.

Ratings Comparison

Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev/Lana

Original: D

2019 Redo: D+

Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Revival vs. B-Team

Original: D+

2019 Redo: D+

Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B

2019 Redo: B

Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Original: A-

2019 Redo: B

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B+

2019 Redo: B

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Original: C

2019 Redo: D+

Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: C+

2019 Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: A-

2019 Redo: A-

Most of them are in the same ballpark, but AJ vs. Joe and Reigns vs. Lesnar must have canceled each other out. Still a great show though and one of the better ones WWE has done in recent(ish) memory.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/08/19/summerslam-2018-they-can-still-do-a-thing-or-two/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Summerslam 2018
Date: August 19, 2018
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips, Jonathan Coachman

It’s the second biggest show of the year (I think) and that means we’re in for a stacked card. The big matches include Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title, AJ Styles defending the WWE Championship against Samoa Joe and, in the match that I think should close the show, Daniel Bryan vs. the Miz. Tonight has some promise so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev/Lana

Thankfully they waited a little longer before starting the first match this year, allowing some more fans to get into the arena. Last year was embarrassing looking but it’s a little better this time. The men start and it’s an early double tranquillo pose, earning Almas and Vega some Bulgarian roaring. We settle down to a RUSEV DAY chant and Rusev hitting a suplex. A missed charge sends Rusev shoulder first into the post and it’s an armbar to send us to a break.

Back with Almas getting two off a reverse tornado DDT. A second attempt is countered with a shove off the top and the hot tag brings in Lana. Vega has to come in as well and Lana kicks her down, setting up a Spinarooni of all things. A kick to the face cuts Vega off again but Lana stops to slap Almas, allowing Vega to roll her up for the pin at 6:55. They botched that one pretty badly as Vega was supposed to put her feet on the ropes but she’s so short that they couldn’t reach. Lana was barely struggling either and it didn’t look good.

Rating: D. I was really disappointed here as this could have been something very fun. What we got was a short match between the guys and then a bare bones match from the women. I don’t know if the stage got to Lana or what but this was the bad match that a lot of people have expected her to have. The finish was even worse though and made the match feel like a joke.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak

Gulak is challenging and everyone else is banned from ringside. Alexander has held the title since Wrestlemania and Gulak has been on a roll, making everyone tap out. Gulak takes him to the mat and then into the corner to start but it’s way too early for the Gulock (dragon sleeper). Instead Alexander rolls out and dropkicks Gulak down so it’s time to go to the floor. Back in and Alexander’s springboard is blocked with a big boot, followed by a neckbreaker onto the knee.

We take a break and come back with Gulak staying on the neck with a clothesline for two. Gulak cranks on the neck but Alexander is right back up with a bottom rope springboard Downward Spiral. Some right hands keep Gulak in trouble and Cedric followed him to the floor with a big flip dive.

Back in and Alexander catches him on the ropes, setting up a short form Gulock to really mess with the neck. A spinning elbow to the jaw gets Cedric out of trouble for the time being but Gulak smacks him in the face. Gulak reverses the Neuralizer into an ankle lock but gets reversed into a cradle. Back up and Cedric hits the C4 but Gulak turns it over into a rollup for two more. Another rollup gives Gulak two but that’s reversed into a stacked up rollup for the pin on Gulak at 10:42.

Rating: C+. They had a hot finish here with the rollups and I was actually surprised by the finish. That being said, I’m not wild on having Alexander keep the title and would have bet on Gulak picking up the belt here. There’s not much of a reason to keep the title on Alexander as he’s far from the most interesting guy in the world. At least the match was pretty good though.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: Revival vs. B Team

The B Team is defending and get taken down in the very early on with a dragon screw leg whip to Dallas. A Shatter Machine puts the illegal Axel down as well and it’s Dawson starting on in Dallas’ knee. Back from a break with Wilder staying on the knee and handing it back to Dawson, who gets kicked shoulder first into the post. Axel is still down from the Shatter Machine though and there’s no hot tag to be had.

Dallas’ knee is fine enough for the hanging swinging neckbreaker and now the hot tag brings Axel in. Axel cleans house and loads up the PerfectPlex but gets small packaged. The referee is with Dallas and Wilder though until Wilder snaps Dallas across the top. Dallas falls onto Axel and Wilder to turn the small package over for the pin on Dawson at 6:14.

Rating: D+. How can you not at least chuckle at these two schmucks? They’ve embraced the clueless putz characters and that’s all you can ask for. As ridiculous as they are, it’s not like the Raw tag division has anything else going on. Revival is a great team, but that doesn’t matter if they can’t get more than five minutes and a bunch of nothing opponents. This was the right call, which is better than I was expecting.

By the way, the total wrestling time on this year’s Kickoff Show: about 24 minutes, or just over half of last year’s. That’s a BIG improvement as there’s no need to have so much wrestling on a bonus feature before we get to the four hour pay per view.

The opening video features actor Terry Crews outside the arena, rhyming about what it means to be the best on the big stage. This was released earlier in the week.

There’s a big digital Empire State Building over the ring. That isn’t likely visible in the arena.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler is defending and has Drew McIntyre in his corner while Rollins has the freshly returned Dean Ambrose in his. The fans are very hot for Rollins here, especially BURN IT DOWN. Feeling out process to start with Seth being driven into the ropes but Dean is right there to cut Drew off. Back up and they run the ropes with Rollins nailing a hiptoss, sending Ziggler outside for a breather.

Seth follows him and it’s time for another big staredown. Rollins gets sent to the apron but stops to stare at Drew, allowing Ziggler to grab two off a neckbreaker. With Rollins seeming to favor his knee, Ziggler talks trash to Ambrose and then sends Rollins into the corner for a Flair Flip to the floor. Back in and the chinlock keeps Rollins in trouble for a good while. The comeback is cut off as Rollins grabs a vertical suplex over the top, only to fall out with Ziggler for a big crash.

Rollins hits a Sling Blade for two back inside and the middle rope Blockbuster gets two more. Ziggler rolls away from the threat of the frog splash so Rollins hits him with the suicide dive. The springboard clothesline sets up the ripcord knee for two and they’re both down for a minute. Ziggler’s sleeper is thrown off so they head to the apron with Ziggler saying this is it. Rollins gets shoved into the post and a jumping DDT drives him head first into the apron. That’s only good for a nine count as Rollins comes back in for the low superkick.

The frog splash hits knees though and Ziggler rolls him up for two more. Ziggler heads up top but Rollins is right there for a reverse superplex into a reverse inverted DDT (now that’s how you mix it up) and a near fall of his own. McIntyre sends Dean into the steps though, allowing Ziggler to hit the Zig Zag for the nearest fall yet. Dean is back up with Dirty Deeds to McIntyre and the bloody Rollins to avoid the superkick. The Stomp gives Rollins the title back at 22:01.

Rating: B. I know it won’t be, but I really could go for this feud ending already. It started a little over two months ago and feels like it’s been going on for a year now. At least Rollins has the title back and that’s all well and good, especially with the prospects of Ziggler and McIntyre being able to split up for good now. If nothing else, it’s nice to start the show with a good, long match for a change after last year took forever to get going.

The Bellas are here and are asked about their chances of appearing at Evolution. It turns into a list of plugs for their various projects before Nikki says they want to see Ronda Rousey win the Raw Women’s Title tonight. They’ll be ringside for the match tonight. And so it begins.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day

New Day, Big E. and Xavier Woods here, are challenging after having won a tournament. Rowan runs Woods over to start and gets two each off a big boot and splash. It’s off to the fists around the head crush, followed by a pumphandle backbreaker to keep Woods down. Woods finally kicks Harper to the floor and makes the hot tag to Big E., who drops to the floor to throw some suplexes.

Back in and the Warrior Splash gets two on Harper, who comes right back with the Michinoku Driver. The double spinebuster doesn’t work though and Woods dives over the top onto Rowan. Everything breaks down and Big E. is sent into the steps, though the Brothers look a little banged up. They’re fine enough to hit the double spinebuster for two on Big E. with Woods making the save and getting the tag. Kofi gets taken down so Rowan eats the Big Ending on the floor.

A blind tag brings in Big E. but Harper stuns him with a superkick on the apron. Big E. tries the release Rock Bottom off the apron into the Codebreaker from Woods but the timing is off and it’s more like Harper just landing on Woods. Harper is fine enough to roll away from Woods’ top rope elbow so Woods hits it on the floor instead. The pain is immense but Woods throws him back in for the tag to Big E. UpUpDownDown is imminent but Rowan uses the mallet for the DQ at 9:36.

Rating: C+. They were getting somewhere before the ending to set up a rematch either on Smackdown or in the Cell. It’s a good idea to make the Brothers seem vulnerable against a top team like New Day, who couldn’t quite finish them off. At the moment the Smackdown tag team division is all of four teams so it’s a good idea to not change the titles just yet, along with keeping this match going for another month. Nice match, with an understandable ending.

Jon Stewart is here.

We recap Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens, which started back in June. Strowman threw him off a ladder at Money in the Bank and then won the briefcase, so Owens tried to be nice to him. Then Strowman destroyed his car, threw him in a portable toilet and off of a cage, meaning it’s time for a rematch with the briefcase on the line.

Money in the Bank Briefcase: Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman is defending and can lose the briefcase by any means. The bell rings and Owens is knocked into the corner a few seconds later, followed by the run around the floor to shoulder him down. Strowman has so much fun that he does it again and a superkick just annoys him. A chokeslam onto the ramp knocks Owens silly and the running powerslam ends him at 1:56. Total and complete squash.

There was a Be A Star rally earlier in the week.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Becky Lynch beat Carmella to earn a spot but then Charlotte returned and did the same thing, earning her own shot. Charlotte and Becky then got in a bit of a passive aggressive fight over Becky being jealous of Charlotte being added. Fair enough, but WWE loves itself some triple threats.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Carmella vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte

Carmella is defending and gets double teamed to start. In a smart move, she slaps Becky in the back of the head and blames Charlotte. The wedge doesn’t last long as Becky hiptosses Carmella to the floor and tries an early Disarm-Her on Charlotte. That goes nowhere as Charlotte escapes but gets pulled to the floor. Carmella sends Becky into the steps and reminds us that she is in fact the champion.

Back in and we hit the chinlock on Charlotte for a good while as Graves sings the champ’s praises. Becky has to be knocked off the apron, allowing Charlotte to start her comeback with the chops. Some suplexes make it even worse but Becky is back in with a double missile dropkick. Charlotte gets knocked outside and there’s the Bexploder to the champ. She crotches Becky on top though and gets two off a loose super hurricanrana. Charlotte comes back in with a spear to take them both down for two each and grabs a Walls of Jericho of all things on Carmella.

The Figure Four goes on instead but Becky makes the save with a guillotine legdrop. Carmella is back up and sends Becky outside for a suicide dive, only to have Charlotte miss the corkscrew moonsault (she slapped Carmella and completely missed Becky) to put them bot down. Back in and Carmella has to break up the Disarm-Her, followed by a superkick for two on Becky. Charlotte gets knocked to the floor and the Disarm-Her goes on, only to have Carmella grab the rope. The hold is slapped on again but Charlotte runs in with Natural Selection to Becky for the pin and the title at 14:35.

Rating: C+. Much better than I was expecting here and they better turn Becky heel after that ending. Thankfully they took the title off of Carmella, but at this point either she or Charlotte has been champion since November. They need some fresh blood in there, which hopefully is a ticked off Lynch.

Post match Carmella leaves so Becky and Charlotte can hug, only for Becky to turn on Charlotte and beat the fire out of her to a HUGE YES chant. Becky throws her over the table, leaving Charlotte to take a YOU DESERVE IT chant. That was the only way to go as A, Becky has a legitimate complaint about Charlotte being put into the match and stealing her title and B, there isn’t anyone else for Charlotte to fight.

We recap the Smackdown World Title match. AJ Styles has been champion since November, becoming the longest reigning World Champion in Smackdown history. Joe signed the contract to face him, partially because there was no one left aside from maybe Miz. After the match was set, Joe started talking about how AJ was sacrificing his family to be champion. AJ tried to keep things calm, but Joe read a letter supposedly from AJ’s wife Wendy, saying Joe was completely right. In other words, AJ isn’t happy.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is challenging and even introduces AJ’s wife and daughter at ringside. It’s a feeling out process to start as AJ is a little more calm than (erg, especially after Joe’s comments) he should be here, even as the fans chant TNA. AJ grabs a headlock to slow Joe down but a heavy shoulder cuts him off. Some leg kicks have AJ in even more trouble but he’s right back with some forearms. The sliding forearm sends Joe outside and AJ tries to follow him, only to get kicked in the knee to take him off the apron.

A hard suicide dive sends AJ into the announcers’ table and one heck of a clothesline takes his head off back inside. We hit the chinlock, which makes you wonder why Joe doesn’t turn around just a hair and make it the Koquina Clutch instead. AJ gets up and knocks Joe’s block off with a right hand to the floor, followed by the slingshot forearm. Joe charges into an enziguri and the Phenomenal Blitz sets up another running forearm. The moonsault into a reverse DDT gets two on Joe and AJ puts him on top.

That doesn’t go well for the champ, who gets shoved down for a middle rope knee to a standing AJ for two more. The running big boot into the backsplash gets the same but AJ is right back with the fireman’s carry backbreaker. AJ is limping a bit and misses the Phenomenal Forearm, allowing Joe to snap him over with the powerslam for two more. A one armed Styles Clash gives AJ the same and they’re both down. Back up and they slug the heck out of it until a Pele sends Joe into the corner.

AJ makes the mistake of charging into the release Rock Bottom but is still able to put on the Calf Crusher. Joe’s solution: slam AJ’s head into the mat over and over. Joe slips over into the Koquina Clutch but AJ gets his foot on the ropes. It’s Muscle Buster time but AJ forearms him in the head. That’s fine with Joe, who hits one of the loudest enziguris I’ve ever heard to knock AJ outside. Joe sends him into the steps and grabs the mic. He tells Wendy that AJ isn’t coming home but he’ll be her new daddy. A suddenly bloody AJ tackles Joe off the table and through the barricade, followed by a chair to the back for the DQ at 22:46.

Rating: A-. You have to imagine that the Cell awaits these two and for once, the story would seem to fit that. AJ being able to do whatever he wants to Joe fits, but it would also seem to play much more into Joe’s hands. Anyway, of course these two had a great match because that’s all they know how to do. They were beating the fire out of each other and I want to see it again, which is the sign of a well done match. Really good stuff here, as expected.

Post match the beating continues until Wendy says that’s enough. AJ goes over to his family and his incredibly cute daughter says “daddy you’re bleeding”. AJ apologizes and hugs her before walking away with his family. Joe is TICKED as he leaves.

Here’s Elias to plug his album and talk about how awesome his songs are. He even has a new song, which he’s debuting right here in New York City. And then his guitar breaks. That’s too much for Elias, who throws the pieces around and storms off without saying anything.

Miz runs into the B Team and says if Bryan had followed his example, he might have lived off of Miz’s success like they had. For old times sake, they can fetch his limo for the celebration after. Actually they have their own celebrating to do because they’re the B Team and the B stands for Daniel Bryan. Dallas likes Miz and Mrs. (which he pronounces Mers) but they have their own show: Total Fellas. Dallas: “But with a B! Total Bellas!” Miz is stupefied as they leave.

We recap the Miz vs. Daniel Bryan. This one is over eight years in the making as Bryan came into WWE as Miz’s NXT rookie, despite being a top independent star. Bryan eventually defeated Miz a few times but they went on their own paths. Miz won a WWE Title while Bryan became the top star in the company, only to have injuries take him away for a few years. Now he’s back and healthy though, meaning it’s time for these two to FINALLY have the big match on the grand stage.

They’ve done a great job of setting up the culture clash here as Bryan is all about the love of wrestling and Miz is about becoming a star. Those worlds don’t jive and it’s made their feud that much better. The crowd reaction should be interesting, though Bryan is going to be the biggest face that ever faced around here.

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

Maryse is in the front row with a baby carriage. Miz hides in the corner for a bit before scoring with some YES Kicks. The running dropkick connects but Bryan grabs him by the throat and hammers away. The real YES Kicks rock Miz and a big one to the chest puts him down. Miz gets in a knee to the ribs and the surfboard goes on. Of course Bryan knows how to get out of that and starts kicking at Miz’s legs.

The REAL surfboard goes on and Bryan even bends back to get two off a bridge. Back up and Miz catches him with a hard clothesline, followed by a cravate with bonus trash talk. Miz starts firing off some knees to the head but Bryan is right back with right hands of his own. The moonsault over Miz sets up the running clothesline and the running corner dropkicks connect. A backdrop sends Miz to the floor and Bryan follows with two boots through the ropes and a top rope clothesline.

Back in and Miz gets caught in the Tree of Woe, which of course means more YES Kicks. One heck of a top rope belly to back suplex puts Miz down for two more but he’s right back with the short DDT. With Miz’s chest blood red, he fires off some NO Kicks of his own, which bring Bryan back to his feet. Bryan dragon screw whips Miz’s leg and hits the big kick to the head but can’t get the YES Lock. Instead a catapult into the post sets up the Skull Crushing Finale for two but Miz charges into another kick for another two.

They head to the apron with Bryan firing off kicks until the last one hits the post. That means a Figure Four back inside and Bryan is in big trouble. As usual, the solution is to punch Miz in the face and then turn the hold over. Miz lets it go and tries the Finale but Bryan kicks him in the back (the leg shouldn’t be able to do that) and goes with the heavy elbows to the head.

The YES Lock goes on and Bryan punches Miz in the back of the head as the aggression continues to come out. Miz makes the rope though and bails to the floor, only to get kneed in the head. That knocks Miz right in front of Maryse, who hands him something. Whatever it is knocks Bryan silly when he tries a suicide dive, giving Miz the pin at 23:30.

Rating: B+. I liked this one as much as I expected to and the ending does set up a rematch. You have to imagine that Bryan is sticking around given that finish as there’s a wide open door for the feud to continue. It was a nice, long match and got the attention that it deserved, but it didn’t feel like the final match throughout. The ending takes care of that though and everything is fine.

Replays confirm the object, with Graves going into full Bobby Heenan mode to talk his way around the cheating.

Video on Undertaker vs. HHH for Super Show-Down in their final match. To be fair they haven’t been ridiculous with the plugging tonight.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

THE DEMON IS BACK! FOR THIS MATCH??? This is the rubber match after Corbin started being mean to Balor for being small. It’s been a horrible story but the Demon makes up for some of it. Cole gets his Demon history wrong, saying it last appeared two years ago. It was last year Cole. You called the match.

The fans are VERY pleased and Corbin is told he has to face him. The bell rings and it’s the shotgun dropkick into the Sling Blade to put Baron on the floor in the smoke. Balor adds a flip dive and it’s another Sling Blade on the floor. Back in and Balor hits a top rope double stomp to the back, followed by the Coup de Grace for the pin at 1:29. NOW THAT’S MORE LIKE IT!

Bryan is ticked off when Brie finally remembers that they’re married and comes in to see him in his moment of need. He calls his comeback a bust but she gives him a pep talk which seems to work well enough.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Nakamura is defending after taking the title from Hardy last month. Feeling out process to start and of course Nakamura is over like free beer in a frat house in New York. Nakamura dodges a few early shots and tells him to COME ON. Jeff does exactly the same and sends Nakamura into four buckles in a row. That earns him a quick takedown and Nakamura slaps on a chinlock.

Nakamura hammers on him a bit more until Hardy, to the tune of a BROTHER NERO chant, comes back up with a Sling Blade. An atomic drop sets up the legdrop between the legs and a basement dropkick gets two. Jeff slips out of the reverse exploder but the slingshot dropkick is countered into Nakamura sitting him on the top. The running knee misses though and Jeff gets two off a Whisper in the Wind.

Nakamura is fine enough to catch him with another kick to the head, followed by the sliding knee for two. Kinshasa is countered into a failed Twist of Fate attempt but Hardy is ready for the low blow. Now the Twist of Fate sets up the Swanton Bomb for a delayed two as Nakamura grabs the bottom rope. A second Twist of Fate sends Nakamura bailing to the apron, so Jeff climbs the post and Swantons the apron because he’s that freaking crazy. Back in and the Kinshasa finishes whatever is left of Hardy at 10:55.

Rating: C. I have no idea how Hardy is still walking and I don’t think he does either most of the time. The match was fine enough and Hardy gave it a run but Nakamura needed this way more than Hardy did. If nothing else Hardy already has Randy Orton sitting around for their big pay per view match so the loss was the only option here. Not a bad match, but nothing great, especially on a long shot.

Post match Orton comes out, smacks himself in the head, and leaves without even getting in the ring. Ok then.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss. Rousey was about to win the Raw Women’s Title last month but Bliss interfered for a DQ and cashed in her briefcase to win the title. Bliss then made Rousey snap and got her suspended for a month. Rousey’s reward: a match for the title tonight.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Rousey is challenging and before the match, here’s Natalya in the same jacket her dad wore at Summerslam 1990. Bliss comes out and sneers at the Bella Twins, who are sitting in the front row. Rousey now has eye paint and her name on her shorts as she does the power walk to the ring. Bliss hides in the corner to start (smart) and a single right hand puts her on the floor. More stalling ensues so Rousey even turns her back and sits down so Bliss can come in with no problem.

Rousey closes her eyes and Bliss grabs a chinlock, meaning it’s time for the scary Ronda face. The hold is broken (Bliss: “No no no no no!” Rousey: “YES!”) and there’s the swinging Samoan drop. A chase lets Bliss get in a forearm and Rousey is just made angrier. Bliss gets flipped on her face and Rousey unloads in the corner, followed by some judo throws. Another swinging Samoan drop (Rousey: “ARE YOU READY???”) connects and it’s armbar time. The arm is twisted in a variety of angles (including Bliss popping it in and out of joint) and one hard crank makes Bliss tap at 4:39.

Rating: C+. What do you want me to say? That was exactly what it should have been as Rousey should be able to destroy Bliss in short order. I’m not sure who is supposed to take the title off of Rousey, but if she can hold it until Wrestlemania (which she likely will), there’s a heck of a dream match to be had with Charlotte. Total squash here and, again, Rousey looked like she’s been doing this for years.

Post match Natalya comes in for the celebration and the Bellas join them because reasons. Rousey goes into the crowd and kisses her husband for the nice moment.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns (again). As is usually the case, Reigns is whining about how Lesnar is lazy and doesn’t like the fans so he should get another title shot. Also as usual, the fans don’t seem to buy it and Reigns isn’t likely to be cheered here. There are a few options for the finish and that makes the ending a little more interesting than usual.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns

Brock is defending and gets no reaction (That HAD to be muted. No New York crowd has ever been that quiet). Hang on though as here’s Strowman with the briefcase. He’s not cashing in behind anyone’s back because he’ll be waiting on the winner. The bell rings and Reigns hits two Superman Punches and a pair of spears but the third is countered into a guillotine choke. That’s broken up with a spinebuster but Lesnar puts it right back on.

Another spinebuster breaks the hold again and they’re both down. Lesnar takes his gloves off and it’s Suplex City time. Three straight German suplexes draw a YOU BOTH SUCK chant and Reigns can barely stand. Reigns is back up with a missed charge that hits Strowman so Lesnar goes outside and gives Braun an F5 on the floor. With Reigns back in, Lesnar beats on Strowman with the briefcase, which he then throws from ringside all the way to the entrance, breaking part of the LED board. Strowman gets chaired down but Lesnar walks into a spear to make Reigns champion at 6:16.

Rating: C+. I know they repeat moves and I know the ending isn’t the most popular move in the world, but these two know how to make the matches feel big. I was wanting to see what happened and that’s more than you can say about a lot of matches. Reigns finally getting rid of Lesnar is a good thing, but I really wish they would just get rid of the briefcase already so it doesn’t have to be around.

Reigns poses to end the show with no cash-in.

Overall Rating: A-. That was a heck of a show and above all else it was about the pacing. They did a GREAT job of making this show stay at a steady pace with some hot matches and then a quick match to let the fans get back into it. That took place throughout the night and did wonders for the show, which never felt like it dragged. Compare this to Wrestlemania, which felt like it dragged every few minutes.

On top of that, the wrestling was solid all night long with good to very good wrestling, logical booking decisions and stuff being set up for the future. This was a very entertaining night and notice the crowd not taking the show over at all. That’s a nice change of pace and made the evening that much more enjoyable. Really good stuff here and the best WWE pay per view in a long time.

Results

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler – The Stomp

New Day b. Bludgeon Brothers via DQ when Rowan used the mallet

Braun Strowman b. Kevin Owens – Running powerslam

Charlotte b. Becky Lynch and Carmella – Natural Selection to Lynch

Samoa Joe b. AJ Styles via DQ when Styles used a chair

The Miz b. Daniel Bryan – Left hand with a foreign object

Finn Balor b. Baron Corbin – Coup de Grace

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Jeff Hardy – Kinshasa

Ronda Rousey b. Alexa Bliss – Armbar

Roman Reigns b. Brock Lesnar – Spear

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Summerslam 2015
Date: August 23, 2015
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Attendance: 15,702
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

This show was only a year ago and I barely remember anything about it save for the two main events. It really is amazing that these shows have just stopped standing out aside from Wrestlemania. Unfortunately we’re at the point where Summerslam is now a regular four hour show because three hours of pay per view plus five hours of TV a week and a two hour NXT show the night before this just isn’t enough. Let’s get to it.

Thankfully there was no pre-show match so we can get straight to the regular show. When you have three hours and forty four minutes on pay per view, you really don’t need an eight minute warmup match.

Here’s host Jon Stewart to open things up. Stewart hypes up the crowd and says it’s nice to be back in reality after spending sixteen years talking about politics. The WWE superstars respects their audience and they’re all ready to thrill this crowd. Jon lists off some names appearing on the show and of course Reigns and Cena are loudly booed. He’s not over the Streak being broken yet and is here to talk to Brock face to face about defeating the Undertaker.

Stewart isn’t crazy though and has brought some backup in the form of Mick Foley. Mick comes out and reminds Stewart that he only has one ear and thought Jon said he wanted to talk to ROCK. Stewart: “Are you telling me that the great Mick Foley is afraid of Brock Lesnar?” Foley: “Jon that’s exactly what I’m telling you!”

Stewart brings up the Cell match against Undertaker and calls it inspirational. Foley agrees that it was inspirational but also reminds Jon that IT WAS SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO. Mick has never been to Suplex City and he’s not starting tonight so he’s out of here. Stewart says on with the show to end this moderately funny bit. Above all else though, Stewart is clearly a huge fan and that helps so much in something like this. It felt like he’s here because it’s something he’s always wanted to do instead of just something he’s doing to promote a movie or whatever.

Opening video focuses on New York City (of course) and then goes into the main events.

I forgot how annoying that “We Cool For The Summer” song can be.

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

This is fallout from Sheamus attacking Orton when Orton had the WWE World Title won, leading to a failed Money in the Bank cash-in attempt by the pale one. Cole: “Speaking of Money in the Bank, Randy Orton has had a great career right here at Summerslam.” Eventually he gets around to tying that together by saying Orton cashed in his briefcase two years ago but that’s not the best statement to start out with.

The fans tell Sheamus that he looks stupid and he has to bail from a very early RKO attempt. Actually Sheamus grabs the mic and gets on the announcers’ table to say the fans look stupid, not him. Orton is willing to fight on the floor but Sheamus takes him down with a clothesline. Sheamus actually hits a top rope knee drop for a rare sight. The slow beating continues with Sheamus stopping to adjust the mohawk.

A chinlock doesn’t last long so Sheamus takes him right back down and puts on another chinlock. Randy finally comes back with a clothesline and the backbreaker, followed by a suplex over the top and out to the floor. Back in and Sheamus gets two off a powerslam to set up a modified Cloverleaf. That’s escaped as well (because other than Chris Jericho, heels can’t win with submissions) and Orton hits the elevated DDT.

Sheamus gets the ten forearms to the chest but slingshots right into the RKO. Orton has to throw him back inside though and that means it’s time for the Punt. Yeah don’t even bother at this point as I don’t think anyone buys it as a real threat. Instead White Noise gets two, followed by back to back Brogue Kicks for the pin on Orton at 12:24.

Rating: C+. This was a longer version of a Raw match with a surprisingly clean ending. You kind of expect Sheamus to lose here but Orton losing instead was a nice change of pace. The problem is these two really don’t have a ton of chemistry and they were just kind of trading moves until the finish.

Some fans won a contest from Draftkings.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores vs. Prime Time Players

One fall to a finish. For reasons I don’t want to know, the Prime Time Players are defending. New Day, still heels, offer to explain hip hop to the Brooklyn fans. We immediately get the New Age Outlaws strategy with Big E. trying to pin Kofi but only getting two. Instead it’s Kofi headlocking Cara down before Sin monkey flips his partner onto Kofi for two.

That means it’s time for Big E. who takes a Tajiri handspring into an enziguri. Young comes in to face Cara and things get WAY faster with neither guy being able to get anywhere before it’s a stalemate. Darren reaches over to get Kofi and gets a splash on the back from Big E. Los Matadores steal the advantage and hit a slingshot hilo for two on Darren. The yet to be named Unicorn Stampede gives New Day control again as Woods lists off their favorite breakfast foods. You can see the cereal schtick coming from here.

Kofi chinlocks Young for a bit before Big E. grabs a dancing abdominal stretch. Big E. hits a clothesline and Woods loses his mind shouting about tricep meat. Woods: “YOU CAN’T EVEN GET A HAMBURGER IN WWE BECAUSE BIG E. HAS THE MARKET CORNERED ON TRICEP MEAT!!!” Darren finally knocks Kofi away and makes the hot tag off to Titus for the house cleaning.

Everything breaks down and the masked men start with all their dives. El Torito’s double springboard dive is caught in midair by Woods (Torito really is small) so Young belly to back suplexes Xavier on the apron, only to have Big E. hit his spear through the ropes. He’s going to kill himself with that one day. Back in and Titus powerbombs the Dragons in the Tower of Doom, followed by the Clash of the Titus to Fernando. That brings Kofi back in to kick Titus in the face though and Big E. steals the pin on Fernando to get the titles back at 11:20.

Rating: B-. This started slowly with the normal problem of too many bodies at once but as usual it went away once they started tagging. The problem continues to be how weak the division is though as you have three middling teams and then the awesome New Day who was just begging to turn face at this point. It was clearly their time and there was no other option than to put the titles back on them here. Somehow they still hold the belts heading into the following Summerslam which just doesn’t happen these days.

New Day goes INSANE celebrating with Big E.’s hips defying gravity and Kofi bouncing around the match on his back.

Jon Stewart brags to Neville and Stephen Amell (celebrity here for a match) about being friends with Undertaker. The lights go out and Undertaker (or someone who looks a lot like him) walks past. The bragging quickly ends.

We recap Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler. Rusev threw Lana out so she hooked up with Ziggler while Rusev hooked up with Summer Rae. This led to several blonde catfights but tonight it’s the guys fighting alone.

Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler goes right after him to start but misses a charge to go face first into the buckle. The Russian/Bulgarian (whatever he is this week) stomps away and we hit an early bearhug. The fans cheer for Lana as Ziggler is planted with a spinout Rock Bottom. Rusev’s gorilla press (in case you thought Dolph was doing it) is countered into a DDT and it’s time for the running clotheslines required for all face comebacks.

For some reason Rusev goes up top with Ziggler faceplanting him down for two more. A sunset flip gives Dolph two and he grabs the sleeper but Rusev uses the powers of THIS ISN’T 1982 to escape. Dolph joins the twentieth century with a Fameasser for a near fall but walks into the jumping superkick to the arm. The Accolade goes on but Lana slaps Summer to distract Rusev into breaking the hold. The guys join them on the floor as Lana gets the loudest chant of the night. Rusev gets superkicked onto the announcers’ table and it’s a double countout at 11:49.

Rating: C. This was an extended Raw match with a non-finish. Lana definitely came off as the biggest star here, which is why they dropped her face push because of a wrist injury and TMZ reporting that she and Rusev were engaged. Naturally WWE had ABSOLUTELY NO CHOICE but to acknowledge this on Raw and punish her as a result. I’m in the small group that likes this story though some of that is due to Lana in her outfits.

Another catfight ensues.

We recap Stephen Amell/Neville vs. Stardust/King Barrett. Neville and Stardust had been doing a comic book inspired feud between a hero and a villain. One night Stardust shoved Amell (the star of the Green Arrow TV show) and a tag match was made with Barrett joining in due to having nothing else to do.

Stephen Amell/Neville vs. Stardust/King Barrett

Stephen comes out in his Arrow hood but wrestles in regular black shorts. Barrett gets hit in the face to start so Stardust comes in to face Neville instead. Stardust wants Amell though and Stephen gets a pretty good pop as he flips over the top to come in. A shove sends Stephen down so he nips up and knocks Stardust up against the ropes for a surprise. It’s off to Barrett who easily takes over on Amell. As odd as it is to see the celebrity getting beaten up, Neville has to be the one coming in to clean house when we get to the hot tag.

Amell finally gets in an enziguri and dives over for the tag to Neville. The rapid fire kicks set up the middle rope Phoenix Splash on Barrett but Stardust makes the save. The villains are sent to the floor and Stephen dives off the top onto both of them for the big spot of the match. Back in and the Red Arrow finishes Barrett at 7:34.

Rating: C+. Of course that’s on a sliding scale as Amell has no idea what he’s doing here and was just doing whatever he could. It’s not exactly a huge star out there but it fit the story well enough. Unfortunately Barrett takes the fall here, despite Stardust being the main bad guy in the whole thing.

Look at WWE taking over Brooklyn.

Intercontinental Title: Ryback vs. The Miz vs. Big Show

Ryback is defending and the other two have both taken shots at the title. Miz takes sanctuary on the floor but comes back in to try a double suplex on Big Show. Yeah I think you know what’s coming there, especially when you notice that Show would have broken his back on the turnbuckle if they had suplexed him from there.

They really need to find a way to stop telegraphing that kind of thing. Show actually hits a middle rope swanton (well forward roll) onto Ryback before chopping Miz in the corner. Ryback takes out Show’s knee and plants Miz with a powerslam for two. That’s enough being on defense for Show as he chokeslams Ryback onto Miz but the KO Punch is countered with a spinebuster. It was a bit sloppy but what can you expect when it’s to someone Big Show’s size?

The Shell Shock plants Show but Miz runs in with the Skull Crushing Finale for two on the champ. Miz covers both of them twice each but it only serves to tick Ryback out. Shell Shock is broken up with the KO and Miz makes ANOTHER save. Another KO drops Miz but Ryback clotheslines Show to the floor and steals the pin on Miz to retain at 5:34. Cole: “CLASSIC TRIPLE THREAT MATCH!” Oh shut up.

Rating: C+. This was just a Raw match but they kept things moving well enough that I was entertained throughout. It wasn’t anything we haven’t seen before but I liked Ryback copying Miz’s strategy to keep the title. Ryback was getting somewhere with the title and could have been something special if they hadn’t dropped him yet again. It’s no wonder he left less than a year later.

Jon Stewart goes to see Brock but gets cut off by Heyman. Stewart says wrestling fans were disappointed in the Streak ending and no one remembers the person who broke perfection. Heyman is probably happy to see the fans all crushed and destroyed like that because he likes giving coal to kids on Christmas morning. Paul sings about the glory of Lesnar in response. I’m with Heyman here. The Streak was amazing and will never be duplicated but it’s ridiculous to say it can never be broken no matter what because fans would be sad. Sometimes evil wins and there’s nothing that can be done about it.

Wyatt Family vs. Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose

Harper and Wyatt here. Bray targeted Reigns earlier in the summer and Roman was tired of getting beaten up so he got some help. It’s almost weird to see Reigns coming through the crowd instead of the entrance. Cole flat out says the feud isn’t ending tonight because it’s going to go on and on. Ambrose bulldogs Harper to start so Bray comes in, only to get punched in the mouth.

A suicide dive takes Bray down again and it’s already a wild brawl. Reigns dives over Ambrose to clothesline Harper in a cool spot before Ambrose runs all three tables to take out Bray as well. Things settle down with the Shield guys taking turns on Harper. Dean’s top rope elbow gets two but a Bray distraction lets Harper get a shot in. Roman goes after him but Harper suicide dives onto Roman, only to have Dean take them both out with another dive.

Harper kicks Dean in the face and Bray drops the backsplash to really take over for the first time. Bray gets creative with a suplex through the ropes to the floor. Back to Harper for something like a Crossface as Reigns is STILL down on the floor a good three and a half minutes after that beatdown. The referee stops to look at something in the corner as a ROMAN’S SLEEPING chant starts up.

Dean finally hits the rebound lariat as Reigns gets back on the apron for the hot tag. Him being down on the floor that long really didn’t mean anything but it’s not something that looks good, especially given some of the stuff Reigns has been laughed at before. A superkick and Batista Bomb plant Reigns but Bray spends too much time going up and gets Superman Punched. Dean plays Hawk in a Doomsday Device and the DoubleBomb plants Harper. Dirty Deeds and a spear put Bray down at 10:56.

Rating: B. That should wake the crowd up a bit. Other than Reigns’ latest nap, this was a good old fashioned fight with both teams looking awesome throughout. That being said, I’m so glad the feud is going to keep going after Reigns just pinned Bray. It should be the blowoff but why blow it off when you can just keep going with even more matches?

We recap John Cena vs. Seth Rollins in a title for title match with Cena narrating a video about how tough New Yorkers are. The video is a cool look at all the venues in and around New York City as it’s almost always about Madison Square Garden. A few weeks ago Rollins broke Cena’s nose in a NASTY looking injury so Cena is after revenge and to end Rollins’ joke (Cena’s description) of a title reign. He’s right to be fair as Rollins basically bowed down to HHH as often as he could and was getting squashed by Brock the previous month to make him look like a loser.

WWE World Title/US Title: Seth Rollins vs. John Cena

Winner take all. The JOHN CENA SUCKS song is out in full swing here as the people just do not like Cena. Rollins comes out in white, albeit with lines painted on that makes it look like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle shell. The fans are all over Cena again and it’s Rollins hitting a dropkick to take over and giving Cena You Can’t See Me. Oh yeah he’s the face in this match and everyone knows it. Cena grabs a belly to belly and we hit the chinlock less than two minutes in.

Rollins comes right back by sending Cena to the floor for back to back suicide dives and a big flip dive over the top. Back in and Cena’s finishing sequence is broken up with a headlock takeover but the second ProtoBomb works a bit better. Rollins is still able to break up the Shuffle but Cena comes back with a HORRIBLE springboard Stunner, basically making it look like he was reaching for Seth’s wrist instead of the neck. I think he retired it after this show and you can’t blame him after how bad that looked. Rollins comes back with double knees to the chest and a standing shooting star for two.

Cena is sat on top and then tied into the Tree of Woe for Alberto Del Rio’s top rope double stomp (which Seth makes look much better) for another near fall. Back up and the first AA connects for two and we’re not even nine minutes into the match. You think they might be trying a bit too hard?

They do the big slugout until Cena catapults him into the corner to set up a faceplant for another near fall. They’re certainly doing some different stuff tonight and it helps a lot. What doesn’t help is the announcers acting like this is the main event of Wrestlemania and that it’s been going on for half an hour instead of ten minutes. That’s not even a Raw main event yet.

Seth is right back in it by breaking up a super AA attempt and hitting a great looking frog splash. Rollins rolls through a crossbody and hits his own AA to an even bigger face pop. Back up and Rollins misses the Phoenix Splash, only to flip out of the AA. The Pedigree doesn’t work either and it’s Cena grabbing a Figure Four because RIC FLAIR.

Rollins reverses but Cena makes the ropes and goes up top with Rollins running the ropes for a superplex into the falcon’s arrow for a near fall. That really should be the finish but of course it’s only good for two. Another Phoenix Splash misses and Cena grabs another AA but the referee gets bumped. With Cena demanding another ref, Rollins hits the jumping knee to the face and here’s Jon Stewart with a chair. Both guys get up and Stewart gives Cena a shot to the ribs, setting up a Pedigree on the chair to give Rollins the US Title at 19:25.

Rating: B+. This was on the way to being a classic but the Stewart ending was a bad choice when Rollins and Stewart had been feuding for months. The explanation was that Jon didn’t want Cena to tie Flair’s record because IT’S RIC FLAIR! I’m fine with Cena not getting the title back as him wanting the US Title back made it seem all the more important. Unfortunately it also made the WWE World Title look horrible because Rollins had to lose to drop that title. But hey, Jon Stewart right?

WWE Network ad.

Pre-show panel chat and they have to talk over a THANK YOU STEWART chant.

We recap the Divas Revolution which means STEPHANIE TIME! For anyone who doesn’t get my obsessive hatred of almost all things Stephanie, this was my breaking point. For weeks, Paige had dealt with the Bellas and their numbers advantage with the idea being she would need help. Say, with the arrival of some friends from NXT?

Well that’s what happened, but only because Stephanie came out and announced they (as in Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch) were here. For some reason Stephanie put them into three women teams and a feud was started “for superiority”. Yeah superiority instead of the story they had spent months building up. But whatever. Story telling isn’t what’s important. It’s all about putting Stephanie, that pioneer of women’s wrestling, in the story so she gets credit for the (very) cool moment.

Team B.A.D. vs. Team Bella vs. Team PCB

B.A.D. – Sasha Banks, Naomi, Tamina Snuka

Bella – Nikki Bella, Brie Bella, Alicia Fox

PCB – Paige, Charlotte, Becky Lynch

This is under elimination rules, meaning the a single fall eliminates an entire team, making the match far less interesting from the start. Brie and Becky start things off as we hear about the history of Summerslam being in the New York area. Becky is sent into the ropes for a running knee to the face (with Brie shouting TEAM BELLA instead of BRIE MODE, which may or may not be worse) but Tamina tags herself in to superkick Becky in the jaw.

Sasha comes in to a very nice reaction….and she’s back out in less than five seconds. It’s Naomi coming in despite almost no one caring about her whatsoever. The fans want Sasha so she’s back in, gets rolled up for two, and is back out in about thirty seconds. They head outside with Charlotte saving Sasha with a spear to Tamina, only to have Naomi and Sasha hit (well less so in Sasha’s case) flip dives.

The Bellas hit suicide dives, which Cole incorrectly calls something new. Paige and Alicia fight on the top until Paige knocks her off and dives onto everyone at once. Back in and Brie hits a super facebuster on Tamina for the elimination, taking a lot of the life away from the crowd who wanted to see Sasha. That’s being pretty greedy though as Sasha was in the match for at least 50 seconds.

Nikki hits a quick Rack Attack on Becky for no cover as Paige and Charlotte drag their partner back to the corner. A fall away slam sends Nikki to the floor but she Paige takes too long following her out, meaning it’s an Alabama Slam on the outside. Back in and a double flapjack plants Paige, setting up a Brie chinlock. The YES Kicks are countered into a rollup for two but Fox comes back in to work on a double arm crank.

Now the fans will settle for Charlotte as Paige gets double suplexed for two. A running knee to Fox finally allows the hot tag to Charlotte as the crowd FINALLY wakes up a bit. Everything breaks down with Nikki having to save Alicia from the Figure Eight. A double big boot drops Charlotte and Fox so it’s off to Becky vs. Brie but BRIE MODE misses, setting up a pumphandle suplex to pin Brie at 15:17.

Rating: C. Well that happened. It didn’t revolutionize anything, it didn’t change anything, it didn’t accomplish anything and it annoyed the fans when Sasha was eliminated in about five minutes. But hey, Stephanie got a focus in the pre-match video and Nikki gets a step closer to vanquishing AJ from the pages of the WWE record books. That’s all that matters right?

Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens

This started over the two of them wanting to face Cena for the US Title. Owens is coming in after a brutal ladder match last night at Takeover: Brooklyn. They slug it out to start with Owens sending him to the floor for a flip dive. Owens spends too much time jawing at Cole though and it’s Cesaro running back inside for a corkscrew plancha of his own. The Uppercut Train takes too long though and Cesaro is sent into the barricade to set up a cannonball.

The backsplash gets two inside and we hit the chinlock on Cesaro. A torture rack neckbreaker gives Owens two more and it’s time for a second chinlock. The powers of the OLE chants bring Cesaro back to life though and he knocks Owens into the corner to set up that weird modified Angle Slam for two. Cesaro’s gutwrench superplex gets two but Owens throws him down a few seconds later, only to miss a double springboard moonsault.

A superkick gets Owens out of trouble but the springboard corkscrew uppercut drops him again. The Swing sets up Cesaro’s Sharpshooter with Owens only a few feet from the ropes for the quick break. Both guys go up for something but Cesaro gets crotched and superplexed to set up the Pop Up Powerbomb for the pin at 14:17.

Rating: B. You knew this was going to be good with these two on this stage. They kind of had to give Owens the win here after he lost in his NXT farewell last night but it’s still not good to have Cesaro lose here either. That’s the problem with the way they book their midcarders: they’re bounced around so much with wins and losses all over the place that a loss on a big stage really cripples them all over again. At least the match was good.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker. Of course Brock broke the Streak at Wrestlemania XXX and Undertaker disappeared for a long time. Then Undertaker returned at Battleground 2015 to cost Lesnar the WWE World Title to set up this match. They actually billed this as being too big for Wrestlemania which was a good line, though I’m not sure how many people actually believed it.

Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker

Lesnar is actually smart enough to attack at the bell and I can’t believe no one else has ever thought of that before. Undertaker comes back with a boot to the face and Brock is sent outside as it’s time for the brawl to begin. The bell rings and Brock double legs him down, only to have Undertaker hit him in the face to take over. The dueling UNDERTAKER/SUPLEX CITY chants start up and Old School is countered into an F5 but Undertaker slips off the shoulders.

It’s Suplex City time though, or at least it would be until Undertaker sends him face first into the middle turnbuckle. A big boot puts Brock on the floor and draws some blood from his forehead. Back in and the chokeslam is countered with another German suplex so Brock cracks a smile. They head outside again and there’s an F5 to send Undertaker through the table.

Somewhere in there Brock got busted open much worse and stands in the ring with another smile on his face. Undertaker slowly crawls back in with Brock telling Undertaker that he’s going to kill him. Undertaker: “YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE TO!” That earns Brock a chokeslam (and a great selling job) and a Tombstone for a close two. Both guys are down until Brock sits up and laughs.

Undertaker does the situp and mocks Lesnar’s laughing so, while still on the mat, they just PUNCH EACH OTHER IN THE FACE OVER AND OVER. Brock gets the better of it and takes him into the corner for the Kimura on the second rope. Of course that’s not a DQ or even a count from the referee because that’s not what the story calls for, meaning Undertaker has to Last Ride him out for two.

The second F5 gets two and the second gets the same as I continue to hate how much WWE lets people kick out of finishers. I know it’s a big match but at what point does a finisher become just another move that someone uses? Both guys are spent but Undertaker pulls him into the Hell’s Gate. That’s reversed into the Kimura and the bell rings for the big surprise submission. Not so fast though as the referee waves it off, allowing Undertaker to hit Lesnar low and put on the Hell’s Gate again. Lesnar flips Undertaker off and passes out for the submission/knockout at 17:10.

Rating: B+. That ending (which we’ll come back to in a minute) brings down an otherwise great old school power brawl. Undertaker teasing a heel turn to get the big win is a big stretch as he reached bulletproof legend status well over ten years ago. I get the story they’re going for and it’s not bad, but the low blow wasn’t really necessary here.

The important thing here though was Undertaker hurt Brock. You can have Lesnar be the Beast and maul people but at some point someone has to be able to hurt him or there’s no point in bringing him out. Look at what he did to Ambrose at Wrestlemania XXXII or Rollins at Battleground 2015. It stops being entertaining and starts being the Brock Lesnar Show, which doesn’t do anyone any good but him. This was different though, and that’s a good thing.

We get a replay oh yes Undertaker does tap out. So yeah, it’s a screwy ending for the sake of setting up a rematch, just like in the other main event. That’s not a bright idea at any show, especially the second biggest of the year. Heyman declares Brock the winner via submission to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This is a really strong show with nothing bad and a bunch of good matches but the top two are ruined by the horrible booking choices. Above all else though, this show was ruined by the length. This show runs nearly three and three quarter hours with a lot of stuff that could have been cut.

I mean, was anyone needing Rusev and Ziggler to go ten minutes or a sixteen minute Divas three way? It’s a good example of a show that could have been trimmed quite a bit for its own good, which unfortunately is a recurring trend these days. This was a very good show otherwise but it’s not exactly memorable and that hurts it a bit.

Ratings Comparison

Sheamus vs. Randy Orton

Original: C-

Redo: C+

Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Los Matadores vs. Lucha Dragons

Original: B-

Redo: B-

Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler

Original: C

Redo: C

Stephen Amell/Neville vs. King Barrett/Stardust

Original: B+

Redo: C+

The Miz vs. Big Show vs. Ryback

Original: C-

Redo: C+

Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose vs. Wyatt Family

Original: C+

Redo: B

John Cena vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B+

Redo: B+

Team Bella vs. Team PCB vs. Team B.A.D.

Original: C-

Redo: C

Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro

Original: B-

Redo: B

Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: B+

Redo: B+

Overall Rating

Original: B-

Redo: B

That original overall rating is probably a bit high as I liked almost everything more the second time around. Being able to watch this in pieces instead of in a straight sitting helps it a lot.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2015/08/23/summerslam-2015-a-long-long-very-long-summer/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Summerslam 2015
Date: August 23, 2015
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

It’s the second biggest show of the year and the main event is a match too big for Wrestlemania as Brock Lesnar faces the Undertaker, who is looking for revenge after Lesnar snapped his legendary streak a year and a half ago. Also it’s title for title with US Champion John Cena facing WWE World Champion Seth Rollins. Let’s get to it.

There was no match on the pre-show.

Here’s special host Jon Stewart to open things up. He talks about all the people who will be here for the ten matches (meaning the Tag Team Title match will be on the main show) and lists off the people on the card, with Lesnar getting one of the strongest reactions. Stewart isn’t over the Streak being broken so he’d like to talk to Brock about beating the Undertaker. However, since Stewart is a mere mortal, he’d like to have a friend there when he does so. That friend is Mick Foley, who comes out to stand by his friend.

However, there seems to be some confusion. See, Foley thought Stewart wanted help interviewing Rock, not Brock. Stewart brings up Undertaker destroying Foley in the Cell and how Foley shouldn’t be afraid of anything. Foley: “THAT WAS SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO!” Foley has wrestled around the world but never visited Suplex City and isn’t stating tonight so Stewart is on his own. Jon says on with the show.

The opening video talks about every city having a story. This city’s story is about making legends, which leads to your standard well done videos hyping up the double main event.

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

Well they got to open the previous pay per view with a just ok match so maybe they can get all the way up to not bad here. The threat of an RKO sends Sheamus outside in the first ten seconds, just like it did on Smackdown. Sheamus gets on the announcers’ table to say the fans look stupid, not him. Orton comes out and sweeps Sheamus’ leg to move things along but Sheamus takes him down and drops a knee for two. Sheamus stomps him down and asks if the fans are not entertained. Fans: “NO!”

We hit the chinlock on Orton, drawing out HOW YO DOIN and OLE chants from the very vocal crowd. Randy fights to his feet and t-bones Sheamus out to the floor for a big crash. Back in and Sheamus tries a quick Cloverleaf but walks into a powerslam for two. Sheamus gets in a shot to the ribs and heads up top, only to have Randy pull him down with the DDT. Again the threat of an RKO sends Sheamus outside, but this time he’s able to grab Orton for the ten forearms to the chest.

Sheamus tries the slingshot shoulder but Orton catches him in midair in the RKO for a sweet counter. Since this match hasn’t dragged on long enough though, Sheamus rolls outside to keep things going. With the RKO not working well enough, Orton loads up the Punt, which almost never works but neither does this match so why not try it anyway? Sheamus catches him coming in with White Noise, followed by two Brogue Kicks for the pin at 12:11.

Rating: C-. The wrestling was the best these two have ever done but there’s one simple problem: I have no reason to care about any of this. These guys have been feuding for weeks but they’re still here for reasons I don’t get. Like, why is this feud continuing other than the script says it should? That’s bad writing and a problem that WWE has far too often. The main positive here: Sheamus won a big match completely clean. Now enjoy losing until like, Survivor Series.

Some fans won a contest and got to do cool stuff.

Tag Team Titles: Prime Time Players vs. New Day vs. Lucha Dragons vs. Los Matadores

The Prime Time Players are defending but New Day steals the show with their rendition of Jay Z’s New York, complete with some lyrics about how awful the rest of the teams are, unlike New day which rocks. One fall to a finish and you can tag yourself in. New Day tries the old New Age Outlaws play by tagging in both members (Kofi and Big E.) to pin each other but the Dragons make the save.

The Dragons come in with some fast double teaming followed by Kalisto kicking Big E. in the head over and over. It’s off to Darren vs. Kofi but Big E. splashes Young to put him in trouble. This match is incredibly fast paced so far. It’s Diego in to stay on Darren’s injured ribs but New Day makes their rapid tags to stomp Young in the corner. Woods rants about breakfast and the fans are behind New Day.

Kofi comes in for a chinlock to slow things down for the first time. It’s off to Big E. for the abdominal stretch, as Cole suggests that Woods tweet instead of talk. Cole: “He could use hashtag fatal four way.” Woods: “BIG E. HAS THE MARKET CORNED ON TRICEP MEAT! YOU CAN’T EVEN GET A HAMBURGER IN WWE!” As Woods keeps going about how entertaining this beating is, Darren finally escapes for the tag to Titus, who cleans all kinds of house.

Everything breaks down and Los Matadores are sent to the floor where Fernando dropkicks Sin Cara out of the air. Woods shoves Fernando off the top rope and faceplants Torito to a nice reaction from the fans. Darren drops Woods onto the apron but Big E. spears Young back to the floor. The Lucha Dragons’ double superplex to Diego is turned into a Tower of Doom by Titus, but Kofi sneaks in with a blind tag. The Clash of the Titus plants Fernando, but Big E. throws Titus outside so Kofi can pin Fernando for the titles at 11:20. Big E.’s dancing celebration makes this even better.

Rating: B-. I had a great time with this as they didn’t even try to keep this as a regular match and made the whole thing insane. Woods stole the show here though and sounded like a star. They’ve figured out the perfect formula for these guys and the idea of New Day getting to brag about being right is awesome. Good stuff here and the match that should have opened the show.

Jon Stewart is in the back with Stephen Amell and Neville. Stewart is a big fan but is really here for Undertaker, who passes by the three of them, silencing all three.

Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler

Lana left Rusev for Ziggler so Rusev injured Ziggler, triggering this match. Also Rusev has Summer Rae in his corner, who is now dressing as Lana. To counter, Lana is dressing like Ziggler. Got all that? Rusev starts fast and stomps Ziggler down before choking on the ropes. He kicks Dolph in the ribs and puts on a bearhug for a good while before the swinging Rock Bottom plants him again. All Rusev so far.

Rusev gorilla presses him up but Ziggler counters into a DDT for a breather. The Stinger Splash and neckbreaker get two for Dolph but Rusev comes back with the spinwheel kick for the same. Rusev goes up top so Ziggler can run the ropes into an X Factor. Ziggler tries a hurricanrana but has to settle for two off a sunset flip. There’s the sleeper to slow Rusev down but he’s quickly out, only to eat a Fameasser for a close two.

Rusev kicks him down again and puts on the Accolade but the girls get into it, freaking Rusev out enough that he lets go. Ziggler rolls outside but Rusev stops to stare at Lana, who gets decked by Summer. A quick superkick knocks Ziggler onto the announcers’ table and it’s a double countout at 12:00.

Rating: C. This was starting to cook before the lame draw ending. It’s a very interesting case here: Rusev and Ziggler have decent chemistry and Lana vs. Summer could be interesting, but Ziggler and Lana have some of the worst chemistry I’ve ever seen. It’s just awful stuff and they drag down every single scene they’re in together.

The guys keep fighting post match but Summer comes in, triggering a catfight. This almost has to lead to a mixed tag.

We recap Stephen Amell/Neville vs. Stardust/King Barrett. Amell is an actor who portrays the Green Arrow. Stardust has gone insane and thinks he’s a supervillain while Neville is billed as a superhero. King Barrett is thrown in there to make it a tag match and he has nothing better to do. As strange as this sounds, it’s actually been very well done and Amell looks like a great athlete.

Stardust/King Barrett vs. Neville/Stephen Amell

Amell comes out in his Arrow gear but is wrestling in shorts and boots. Neville flips away from Barrett to start and it’s quickly off to Stardust. He wants Amell and gets his wish, as Stephen springboards in and lands right in front of Stardust. Stardust shoves him down so Amell nips up and kicks him in the ribs. A hiptoss puts Stardust down again and Amell shoots an invisible arrow.

Barrett comes in for a kick to the ribs though and Amell is in trouble. Stardust comes back in but gets caught by an enziguri, finally allowing the hot tag to Neville. Everything breaks down with Neville cleaning house, including a middle rope Phoenix splash to Barrett, but Amell gets the dive off the top to drop Barrett and Stardust. The Red Arrow puts Barrett away at 7:37.

Rating: B+. That’s probably the best celebrity performance in the history of wrestling. Amell looked more polished that a lot of indy guys I’ve seen and was clearly having a blast out there. When his selling is already better than a good chunk of your main roster, it might be a sign that you need to make a few changes. I was very impressed here and Amell was awesome. And before I get a million complaints, yes this is on a very sliding scale.

Video on Summerslam week.

Intercontinental Title: Miz vs. Big Show vs. Ryback

Ryback is defending and this was supposed to happen last month, only to have Ryback get injured. Miz bails to the floor to start but comes back in when Ryback has Big Show in some trouble. Show suplexes both of them down and hits a middle rope swanton (yes you read that right) on Ryback, who Miz covers for two. Back up and Miz gets dropped, allowing Show to chokeslam Ryback onto him for two. It’s Ryback up first with a spinebuster and splash to Big Show.

The fans actually get into the FEED ME MORE chant and Ryback Shell Shocks Big Show, before having to kick out of a Skull Crushing Finale. Miz gets two on Show as well and then covers both guys for two more each, followed by a third cover on each for one. I liked that. Show KO’s Ryback but Miz breaks it up at two and gets his own near fall on Ryback. There’s a KO Punch for Miz as well but Ryback shoves Show outside and steals the pin at retain at 5:31. Cole: “Classic triple threat match!”

Rating: C-. Dang they’re flying through this show tonight. We’re through five matches in just over an hour and a half and this match was the fastest of all. They had an idea going here with the stolen pins but the speed hurt it a bit. I’m very glad Ryback retained though as he’s starting to make the title feel important and it would have been really stupid to put it back on Miz or Show for another lame reign.

Stewart tries to talk to Lesnar but gets Paul Heyman instead. Jon talks about being a wrestling fan and how people remember the person with the Streak, not the person who broke it. He goes on about Heyman and Lesnar giving the fans coal for Christmas instead of a puppy. Heyman: “Glory, glory, BROCK LESNAR! I guess we couldn’t get David Letterman to host the show.”

Bray Wyatt/Luke Harper vs. Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose

Ambrose and Harper get things going but everything breaks down in a hurry with the Shield guys taking over and Dean running from announcers’ table to table for a dive onto Bray. The Wyatts pop back up though with Harper suicide diving onto Reigns, followed by a quick superkick over the announcers’ table. Ambrose’ suicide dive is basically no sold and Harper kicks him in the face to really take over.

Things settle down with the Wyatts taking over on Ambrose in the corner with some loud chops. Ambrose gets tied up in the ropes so Bray can suplex him to the floor ala Orton’s hanging DDT. Reigns is still down at ringside. Dean crawls to the empty corner and realizes what’s going on. JBL: “You’re all alone Gilligan.” The Wyatts take turns on Dean, who finally clotheslines Wyatt down. Fans: “ROMAN’S SLEEPING!”

Reigns FINALLY gets on the apron for the hot tag and cleans house, only to have the Superman Punch countered for a sitout powerbomb. Bray says he has an idea but Roman backdrops out of whatever they had planned. It’s back to Ambrose for a Doomsday Device for two on Harper. The Superman Punch and a DoubleBomb plant Harper again, followed by Dirty Deeds to Wyatt. Dean tags Roman back in for the spear and pin on Wyatt at 9:54.

Rating: C+. Well it was certainly energetic. I was buying into the tease of a heel turn but it wouldn’t have made sense given that Reigns was there when Dean finally got free for the hot tag. Also, it’s kind of nice to not go with the turn when it seems the most obvious for a change. You don’t have to force things in wrestling but WWE has fallen in love with the idea.

We recap Rollins vs. Cena. The video has Cena narrating about how awesome New York is before Rollins starts talking about the knee, setting up the title for title match. They really started playing up Cena winning his sixteenth title near as Summerslam got closer.

WWE World Title/US Title: John Cena vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins is World Champion and Cena is US Champion with both on the line. Seth is all in white here. Cena grabs a headlock to start and the fans are entirely behind Rollins. Back up and we get a “Ce-na Sucks!” chant, followed by a Blockbuster from Seth. Three straight suicide dives make Rollins an even bigger hero but he has to get to the ropes to block the STF.

The Pedigree is countered and Cena totally misses the Springboard Stunner to get the crowd even more riled up. Seth’s standing shooting star gets two so he ties Cena in the Tree of Woe for a top rope double stomp. Back up and a quick AA gets two for Cena before they slug it out. The Pedigree is countered into a catapult, followed by a reverse powerbomb to give John two.

Cena’s top rope Fameasser gets two more but Seth comes back with the buckle bomb for the same. A frog splash of all things crushes Cena and Rollins busts out an AA of his own for two more. Rollins takes his sweet time following up and gets caught in the STF. Cena pulls him back to the middle but has to fight out of the Pedigree, meaning it’s time for a Figure Four on Rollins.

Seth turns it over to reverse the pressure and both guys are down. With nothing else to do, Rollins superplexes him but rolls through into a bonus falcon’s arrow. Back up and the AA connects on Seth but the referee is knocked outside. Cena goes to check on him but gets hit with the knee to the nose. Cue Jon Stewart with a chair (Stewart and Rollins feuded on his show for months) but he hits Cena in the ribs, setting up a Pedigree onto the chair for the pin at 19:27.

Rating: B+. Uh……well alright then. I’m not sure what to think about this one but it’s nice to see Rollins getting a win in a big spot like this. I’m fine with him holding the title a bit longer as there’s really no reason to put it back on Cena just yet. The US Title could go a few different ways now and that makes things more interesting. Good match here, though I’m not sure what the point of the ending was.

Preview of upcoming WWE Network shows, including Edge and Christian on the Stone Cold Podcast, plus Lesnar at another house show at Madison Square Garden on October 3.

The pre-show panel talks as the fans thank Stewart.

We recap the Divas Revolution. Here’s the short version: one team wins, the second team wins, then the third team wins. Nothing changes though because this isn’t about being champion yet.

Team BAD vs. Team Bella vs. Team PCB

BAD: Naomi, Sasha Banks, Tamina

Bella: Nikki Bella, Brie Bella, Alicia Fox

PCB: Paige, Charlotte, Becky Lynch

This is an elimination match with one fall eliminating each team. Brie and Becky start things off but it’s quickly off to Tamina to kick Becky in the face. BAD takes turns on Becky with Sasha only getting a slam before tagging back to Tamina. Everything breaks down and BAD hit flip dives (Sasha’s barely connected) onto PCB on the floor in a scary looking crash. The Bellas hit stereo suicide dives, which Cole incorrectly calls new. Paige flips onto the entire pile and all nine are down. Back in and Brie hits a quick Bella Buster for the pin on Tamina to get us down to two.

Nikki Rack Attacks Becky for two but Paige makes the save, only to take the Alabama Slam on the floor. Brie comes in for some YES Kicks and a weak Daniel Bryan chant before it’s off to Fox as the match is finally in a standard formula. We hit the double arm crank as the fans want Charlotte. Instead they get Nikki snap suplexing Paige for two. Back to Fox who eats a knee to the face, finally allowing the hot tag to Charlotte.

Nikki has to break up the Figure Eight on Fox but Alicia pops back up for a double big boot to put herself and Charlotte down again. Becky gets the hot tag to slug it out with Brie, who misses the BRIE MODE dropkick. Yeah it’s a dropkick this time. Lynch grabs a pumphandle slam for the pin on Brie at 15:17.

Rating: C-. So yeah, as you might have expected, Sasha gets no time after last night’s classic, the Bellas get to look dominant for most of the match, and then Becky gets a quick bit of lip service for the pin. Maybe now we can FINALLY get on with an actual story, but there’s a good chance we have more Bella promos to sit through first.

Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens

Owens said Cesaro couldn’t beat Cena but Cesaro called Owens out on quitting all his matches. Kevin starts fast and knocks Cesaro outside for a flip dive, only to spend so much time yelling at Cole, allowing Cesaro to connect with a corkscrew dive of his own. Owens is right back up though and sends Cesaro into the barricade for a Cannonball.

A backsplash onto Cesaro’s back gets two and we hit the chinlock, which is now just a regular chinlock because why should Owens be allowed to make a spot fun? For some reason Owens thinks it’s a good idea to talk trash so Cesaro powers up and fires off slaps and punches, followed by the reverse Angle Slam for two. A gutwrench superplex gets two for Cesaro but he can’t hit the Neutralizer. Because Owens is fat you see. Like, fatter than Big Show fat. Even though Big Show weighs like 150lbs more, Owens is fat so it means more.

Owens misses his springboard moonsault but gets two off a superkick. The running uppercut sets up the Cesaro Swing into the Sharpshooter but Owens makes the rope. Cesaro puts him up top, blocks the fisherman’s superplex, and hits a great looking dropkick to stun Owens. He tries…..something, but gets crotched and superplexed, setting up the Pop Up Powerbomb to give Owens the pin at 14:21.

Rating: B-. This was the old “let two guys hit each other a lot” style and it’s very nice to see Owens win another major match. Granted that pretty much ends Cesaro’s match as he came in fresh against a banged up Owens and still lost, but one of them had to lose here and I like Owens winning better.

We recap Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar. Brock broke the Streak last year at Wrestlemania but his agent Paul Heyman wouldn’t shut up about it, which angered Undertaker and made him attack Lesnar. That set up the rematch, where for reasons I’ll never understand, WWE is trying to make Undertaker a heel.

Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker

Lesnar goes after Undertaker during the entrance (has anyone ever done that?) but Undertaker fights him off and knocks Lesnar to the floor for the opening bell. Back in and they slug it out with Undertaker getting the better of it. Old School is caught in an F5 but Undertaker slips off the back, only to be driven into the corner. There’s the first suplex but Undertaker is able to send him into the buckle to block a second. Brock might be busted open.

Snake Eyes into the big boot send Brock outside and Undertaker drops the apron legdrop. They head back inside with Undertaker winning another slugout. See, I can live with that as Undertaker has been billed as the best pure striker for years. It’s not exactly HHH just throwing punches and being fine against Brock. The chokeslam is countered into another German and Undertaker is in trouble again.

They head outside where another chokeslam is countered into the F5 through the announcers’ table to knock Undertaker silly again. Undertaker gets back in at nine and Brock just smiles at him. Brock: “I’ll kill you.” Undertaker: “You’re going to have to.” Brock goes for him but walks into a chokeslam. Tombstone gets two but Brock is up first and laughing again. Undertaker sits up and they start punching each other in the face.

Brock remembers he knows submissions and puts on the Kimura but Undertaker is in the ropes, meaning he can hit the Last Ride for another two. Brock is up first for a second F5 and another near fall. Now Lesnar is getting frustrated and the third F5 is still only good for two. That gets it past the ending at Wrestlemania.

Undertaker suckers Brock into the Hell’s Gate but gets countered into another Kimura with a bodyscissors. The bell rings but the referee says he didn’t call for it. Heyman says Undertaker tapped and in the distraction, Undertaker hits a low blow and puts on the Hell’s Gate but Lesnar flips him off….and passes out to end this at 17:13.

Rating: B+. And now we get a third because trilogies are JUST SO FREAKING COOL RIGHT??? This was a good old fashioned fight but I’m really not wild on seeing Brock lose. We don’t need to see them fight again, but that’s exactly what we’re going to get because that’s supposed to be epic. Ignore the fact that Undertaker never beating Lesnar and the Streak will be gone, but why not take away the two interesting things for the sake of a TRILOGY right? Really fun brawl though and the match they were shooting for last year in New Orleans.

Replays show that Undertaker did in fact tap out in the Kimura when the bell rang, which was due to Lesnar’s shoulders being down for a count, but the referee only got to one. Heyman declares Brock the winner by submission to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I liked the show, but this is the problem with having a four hour show the night after a two and a half hour show and the night before a three hour show. I was worn out from hearing Cole and JBL talk about stats and where Summerslam has been held over the years and how big this year’s show was about an hour into this and it just never stopped. That’s draining more than anything else and it’s not a good thing.

Now that being said, the show itself was indeed pretty good. This felt like an old school Summerslam until the last match, with a lot of mini feuds being blown off instead of doing anything major. There was more than enough good wrestling to go around and they’re ready to go into the fall as we get ready for Survivor Series and then Wrestlemania season.

Rollins retaining the title is a good idea as beating Cena is a big stepping stone forward for him. The Stewart stuff I can live with as it gives WWE some publicity, and they can set up some stuff off of the ending as well. The other stories mean it’s time for some new stories though and that’s the best thing that could happen right now. It’s a good show, albeit not very memorable. As I said though, this just didn’t need to be four hours and it really hurt things.

And remember: the first Wrestling Bundle ends at midnight tonight so go check it out!

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2015/08/23/sunday-is-the-final-day-for-wrestling-bundle-1/

Results

Sheamus b. Randy Orton – Brogue Kick

New Day b. Prime Time Players, Los Matadores and Lucha Dragons – Kingston pinned Fernando after a Clash of the Titus

Rusev vs. Dolph Ziggler went to a double countout

Stephen Amell/Neville b. Stardust/King Barrett – Red Arrow to Barrett

Ryback b. Big Show and Miz – Ryback pinned Miz after a KO Punch from Big Show

Roman Reigns/Dean Ambrose b. Luke Harper/Bray Wyatt – Spear to Wyatt

Seth Rollins b. John Cena – Pedigree onto a chair

Team PCB b. Team Bella and Team Bad – Pumphandle slam to Brie Bella

Kevin Owens b. Cesaro – Pop Up Powerbomb

Undertaker b. Brock Lesnar – Hell’s Gate

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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Summerslam 2012
Date: August 19, 2012
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

It’s that time of the year again and I can’t say I particularly care about most of the show. The main events here are HHH vs. Lesnar in a match that has taken WAY too long to get to, Sheamus defending against Del Rio in a match we saw last month with Sheamus winning, and Cena vs. Punk vs. Big Show in a match that Show flat out does not need to be in. I’m not that fired up about this show again but hopefully they pull something off. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: US Title: Santino Marella vs. Antonio Cesaro

Antonio is challenging and has beaten Santino twice I believe in the past few weeks. Santino takes him to the mat to start and works over the arm with an armbar. Cesaro misses a charge and it’s Cobra time but Antonio knocks Santino down and kicks the Cobra to the corner. We hit the chinlock for awhile and the idea is now that the Cobra is in the corner and Santino needs to get to it. This isn’t exactly Jake Roberts but they’re trying at least. Cesaro rips the Cobra up and Santino gets all fired up. He fires off his usual stuff but misses the headbutt. The Neutralizer is countered and Santino has another Cobra. He loads it up but Aksana’s distraction allows Cesaro to hit him in the ribs and the Neutralizer gives Cesaro the title at 5:05.

Rating: D+. This was about what it should have been, stupid sock thing aside. There was only so much you could do at this point with Santino as champion so having him lose to Cesaro here was the right move. With all these new stars they’re pushing, they have to actually give a title to someone and Cesaro is as good as anyone else. Decent opener, but it kind of deflates the crowd before a show.

The opening video is about the 25 years of this show (even though there have only been 24 editions of it and WWE still can’t count) and the main events, mainly focusing on Lesnar vs. HHH of course.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho

Ziggler has pink sunglasses to go with the shirt now. Jericho is injured coming in and word on the street is that this is his last night or next to last night so that’ll likely come into play. The idea is that Jericho can’t win the big one anymore which is an interesting way to go. Ziggler runs to start but the old man chases him down and speeds thing up. Jericho slips on what I think was supposed to be a spinning crossbody coming out of the corner but it only gets two.

Ziggler gets knocked down again but he reverses a suplex and goes for the bad legs. Dolph tries to speed things up but gets backdropped to the floor for his efforts. Jericho loads up the springboard dropkick but Ziggler moves, sending Jericho crashing into the floor. Back in and Ziggler works on the ribs as you would expect him to do. After knocking Jericho down again he uses Jericho’s arrogant cover for two. That’s awesome stuff there.

A corner splash misses and Jericho dropkicks Ziggler to the floor. Back in and Ziggler charges into a boot followed by a double ax from the middle rope from Jericho for two. The Fameasser out of nowhere gets the same for Dolph and Vickie is freaking out. The Walls are countered but Jericho hits an enziguri for two. Jericho doesn’t seem like he’s selling the ribs at all here. The sleeper goes on out of nowhere but the Canadian escapes and puts Ziggler on the top.

In a cool spot, Jericho punches him in the head ten times while standing on the top rope before snapping off a top rope rana for a very delayed two. A jumping DDT out of nowhere gets two for Ziggler and now it’s Jericho in trouble. Jericho bulldogs Ziggler down but the Lionsault hits knees. Zig Zag gets two and the fans are getting into this. Ziggler goes to pick him up but walks into a Codebreaker, sending him to the floor. Vickie grabs Jericho’s foot as he throws Ziggler back in, giving Ziggler a small package for two. There are the Walls and Ziggler taps at 13:08.

Rating: B-. The selling in this was really getting on my nerves as Jericho didn’t seem like he wanted to sell at all. Based on this, I really hope Ziggler doesn’t cash in later to erase this match because it’s happened already. The match got better near the end but it wasn’t a masterpiece or anything. If the rumors of Jericho leaving soon are true, I don’t really get the idea of him beating Ziggler clean at all.

Time for a recap of Lesnar vs. HHH, this time being from Monday with Shawn getting his arm broken.

Heyman and Lesnar are in the back and Heyman says that tonight, it’s a fight to the finish, meaning the referee shouldn’t stop the match for anything. No word on if that’s the official rule or not.

Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

This is based off Bryan, Kane and Punk vying for AJ’s affections a few months ago. There was a month or so off in between there so the story didn’t quite follow up that well. Bryan tries to run from the monster to start but after the moonsault out of the corner, Kane slams him down and hits the low dropkick for two. There’s a big Daniel Bryan chant just before he gets his head kicked off for two. Bryan goes after the knee and kicks Kane to the floor where he hits the suicide shove, but Bryan might have hurt his shoulder. It seems to be ok though as Bryan hits a missile dropkick for one as he comes back in.

Kane starts his comeback with some corner clotheslines and a side slam for two before going up. Bryan escapes the chokeslam but gets uppercutted right down. For no apparent reason, Bryan punches Kane in the face and gets beaten down in the corner. It’s almost a DQ but Kane lets off because he’s mellow now. A kick to the arm looks to set up the NO Lock but Kane is too big and fried and freaky. The fans start driving Bryan crazy so his top rope headbutt is caught in the chokeslam for no cover. The tombstone is countered into a small package for the pin at 8:03 despite Kane’s arm clearly being off the mat.

Rating: C-. The match was ok but when you push the idea of this being a big deal of Bryan beating Kane, it might be better if they had had move than FOUR total matches (that’s ever, including a match on Raw like 3 months ago that Bryan won. This could have been the first hour main event on any given Smackdown.

Kane chases Bryan into the back and destroys Josh Matthews for talking to him.

Intercontinental Title: The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

Miz is defending because Rey beat him once on Smackdown ten days ago, which is all you need for an IC Title match at Summerslam. Rey is dressed as Batman for some reason. The blowup AWESOME balloons are back on the stage. Mysterio immediately grabs a rollup for two so Miz bails to the floor. AJ has tweeted that she’ll deal with Kane tomorrow night. Rey gets sent to the floor but he rolls through it to land safely. That was kind of cool.

An attempt at the sitout bulldog on the floor is countered by Miz throwing Rey into the barricade. Back in and Rey escapes a belly to back suplex into a cross body for two. Miz hits a kind of Abyss Shock Treatment for two which was a good looking move for him. Off to a cravate from the champion followed by the corner clothesline. Miz loads up his top rope ax handle but Mysterio crotches him to get a breather.

Rey heads up and hits the seated senton, only to get caught in a sitout powerbomb when he tries a rana. Rey kicks him in the head for two before countering a slam into a spinning DDT for the same. Rey ranas him off the top into the 619 but the top rope splash misses. The Finale is countered into a rollup for a very close two. And never mind as the Skull Crushing Finale retains the title for Miz at 9:13.

Rating: C. This was another decent match but it’s nothing that jumps off the page at you. Mysterio didn’t need to win the title here and Miz winning another match over a big name is certainly a good thing, but sweet goodness I did not care at all. The match came and went and most people didn’t care because there was almost no build at all. Nothing to see here although it wasn’t bad.

We’re roughly an hour into this and there’s nothing of note at all so far. It’s been the epitome of a meh show.

Eve and Teddy say nothing of note outside AJ’s office so Punk heads in to see AJ. After some exposition, Punk gets annoyed that AJ won’t respond to anything he says. He says he’ll retain the title tonight and AJ says nothing at all, nor does she move at all.

We recap Sheamus vs. Del Rio. Del Rio injured Sheamus’ arm before their match last month which Sheamus won clean. This month, Del Rio injured Sheamus’ arm before their match and then Sheamus stole his car. There’s nothing to this feud and no one seems interested at all in seeing it.

Smackdown World Title: Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio

Feeling out process to start with both guys going for finishers early on. Sheamus misses the Brogue Kick, allowing Del Rio to kick Sheamus to the floor. Oh and Sheamus is defending. Del Rio sends him into the steps and it’s back inside for a chinlock. A neckbreaker is countered by Alberto into some kicks to the face for two. We’re only a few minutes into this and it’s already dull.

Del Rio pounds his own chest and shouts BROGUE but charges into a double ax from the champ. A charge into the corner hits post though and Del Rio takes over for all of a second. The shoulder missile from Sheamus is broken up and a Codebreaker to the arm from the top gets two. The armbreaker goes on out of nowhere but Sheamus powers out of it into a kind of powerbomb. White Noise gets two and it’s Brogue Kick time, but Del Rio hides in the corner.

That’s fine for Sheamus as he hits the ten forearms to the chest followed by some punches in the corner. Del Rio drops Sheamus face first into the buckle and the running enziguri gets two. Ricardo comes in for no apparent reason and loses a shoe as Alberto yells at him. Sheamus blasts him with it and hits an Irish Curse for the pin at 11:21 but Alberto had his foot on the ropes. Geez we have to sit through this AGAIN next month?

Rating: D. STOP PUSHING DEL RIO BECAUSE NO ONE FREAKING CARES ABOUT HIM! I like Sheamus but my goodness no one cares about this feud and now it’s going to go on ANOTHER month because WE WILL CARE ABOUT ALBERTO WHETHER WE WANT TO OR NOT. I’m so bored of seeing these two fight when it’ll be another arm injury for Sheamus before Del Rio finally gets the title you know he has to get. The wrestling was fine and the rating is probably low but dang man, give Sheamus ANYONE else to feud with.

Some soldiers are here.

HHH told the referee earlier to only end it on a pin or submission. Let them fight apparently.

We’re looking at Tweets from Shawn throughout the night.

Tag Titles: Prime Time Players vs. Kofi Kingston/R-Truth

The Players are challenging despite losing clean to the champs on TV a few weeks ago. Truth is also injured coming in because that’s a running theme tonight. Truth and Young start things off and I guess Truth is ok after the emphasis they gave to him getting beaten down on Raw. Off to Titus who has a bit better luck, slamming Truth down and putting him in a front facelock. There’s the tag to Kofi and NO ONE reacts when he springboards in to attack O’Neal. Boom Drop hits but Young’s distraction breaks up Trouble in Paradise.

The challengers make Kofi chase them around the ring, which lets Titus clothesline Kofi down to take over. Darren puts on a chinlock followed by a powerslam for two. Titus hooks a quickly broken abdominal stretch but as he tries a spinning Rock Bottom, Kofi counters into a DDT. Off to Young vs. Truth and the fans don’t react again. Everything breaks down and Kofi dives onto Titus on the floor. Young gets two on a rollup on Truth before the Little Jimmy retains the titles at 7:07.

Rating: C. Why? Why in the world would you keep the titles on Kofi and Truth, who haven’t done jack with the belts in months. My only guess is because of AW, because clearly the Prime Time Players, a decent team in their own right, need to be punished for something their manager said. This show is getting worse and worse as it goes on and that’s not good.

We recap the events in LA before the PPV. Basically, BE A STAR!

HHH vs. Lesnar is main eventing. Is anyone really surprised by that?

We recap the triple threat match which is Cena vs. Punk vs. Show. Cena is there because Punk is tired of being overshaddowed by him and Show is there because we can’t just have Cena vs. Punk which is an interesting match and because we potentially need a fall guy for Cena to win the title without beating Punk.

Raw World Title: CM Punk vs. John Cena vs. Big Show

Cole gives the dreaded stats of Punk’s title reign, which are usually the kiss of death. Punk has pink trunks tonight which is a different look for him. Cole points out that Punk hasn’t main evented a PPV since December. Way to push your champion as a big deal there Cole/Vince. Then again that’s the idea of the angle but it doesn’t help much. Show takes them both down to start with his big man power offense and does the SHH chops.

Punk and Cena team up to beat on Show but he runs them over. Cole calls Punk and Cena an unlikely alliance. You know, because two guys against Big Show NEVER team up on him. The small guys finally put Show down but Punk can’t GTS him. Cena tries an AA but Punk breaks it up. Show takes over again and as you would guess, things slow back down. Cena gets knocked to the floor but Show misses a splash on Punk. The springboard clothesline is caught by Show and a slam gets no cover.

Show loads up the WMD but Cena goes after Show to break it up. Show spears Cena down for two and the small guys are down again. The Vader Bomb aimed at both only hits Cena but Punk saves the pin. Show and Cena go to the floor and the Big Bald catches Punk in mid suicide dive. He throws Punk into the ropes and heads back inside. Cena loads up his finishing sequence on Show to huge boos, only to get taken down by Punk.

Punk drops the elbow on Show for two. A kick to the head puts Show down and Punk throws on a Kofi Clutch but Show powers out again. Cena puts Show in the STF but more power escapes it for Big show. Cena’s middle rope cross body doesn’t work but the springboard clothesline from Punk puts him down. The running knee in the corner staggers Show but the bulldog is countered. Top rope Fameasser puts Show down and it’s a Koji Clutch and the STF at the same time for the tap.

Cue AJ who says restart the match. Show chokeslams both guys and gets two on both. Cena pops up and hits the AA on Show, but Punk throws him to the floor and pins Show to retain at 12:38 total.

Rating: C-. Nothing to see here for the most part, but I’m glad Punk retained….I think. One thing: what in the world was the point in the restart? If you want to go with Punk stealing the pin then that’s fine, but why in the world do the whole AJ thing? Anyway, this probably leads to Cena vs. Punk in Boston at Night of Champions, which is what this show should have been. Still though, the match was just ok at best, just like every other match tonight other than the opener.

Fred Durst, Piers Morgan, Rick Rubin (music producer), David Arquette and Maria Menounos are here.

There was a WWE Film premiere last night. It’s called The Day, which is another in the long line of great titles from WWE Films.

We recap the pre-show match.

Time for the annual Summerslam concert as Kevin Rudolph performs Be A Star. I have never heard so much silence when a musician takes the stage Some Divas come out and dance with him. The announcers dance too. This just came and went.

Time for the BIG recap of Lesnar vs. HHH.

HHH vs. Brock Lesnar

Brock charges to start ala vs. Cena but HHH punches his way out of the arm. Brock gets the arm hold on and even jumps onto a standing HHH with it but HHH punches out of it again. A clothesline puts Lesnar on the floor and a jumping knee puts Lesnar down again. Lesnar gets sent to the floor for the second time and this has been almost all HHH in the first two minutes.

Lesnar gets back in and takes his gloves off. He takes HHH down with ease and blasts him in the back of the head, which is illegal in UFC. Out to the floor and Lesnar hits a hammerlock slam on the table. Back in and another hammerlock slam hurts the arm even more. Lesnar wraps the arm around the ropes as this is basically a regular match so far. The F5 is countered but Lesnar hits a big German suplex to take him down again. HHH grabs a DDT to slow Lesnar down but it’s right back to the arm hold.

That doesn’t last so it’s hammerlock slam #3 followed by HHH being sent into the steps arm first. They head to the announce table and Brock jumps off of it with a forearm to the back of the head/neck. Back in and Brock uses a freaking small package of all things for two. Lesnar clotheslines him down and the match slows down again. The Game grabs a suplex to finally get himself a breather and both guys are down.

The Pedigree is countered and HHH gets to do his fly over the corner bump. Out to the floor again and HHH sends Lesnar into the table to slow him down. Lesnar looks hurt, like legit hurt. It looks like his groin or ribs. Lesnar shouts about his stomach and things slow WAY down. Oh never mind he was apparently playing possum. If so that’s the best selling Brock has ever done.

HHH knees him in the ribs to escape the arm lock and does it again a few times for good measure. Spinebuster puts Lesnar down but the Pedigree is countered into an also countered F5. Pedigree hits on the second attempt but it only gets two. Lesnar hits HHH low but Armstrong (referee) won’t call the DQ as per HHH’s orders.

The F5 hits but only gets two, which only shocks about half the audience. The kimura (arm lock) finally goes on in full but HHH makes the rope….which means nothing here. HHH pounds out of the hold because that’s how tough he is or something. Out of nowhere HHH hits a second Pedigree but Lesnar no sells into the kimura. Lesnar cranks on it and HHH taps at 18:45.

Rating: B. Well, it’s safe to say they’ve lost the point of Lesnar already. This was a standard WWE main event style match with HHH getting in more offense in about 80 seconds than Cena got in through his entire 20+ minute match with Lesnar. Brock trying the arm hold about 10 times before getting it in good doesn’t make him look awesome or anything. It makes him look like someone with one move and no game plan at all aside from that. The match was good but when you go from Cena and Lesnar having a potential match of the year to this, it’s a pretty big letdown.

HHH gets to do the big “I don’t need medical help” stand up and walk out but the fans tell him he tapped out. They play it up like it’s his last match. Right.

Overall Rating: D+. This show wasn’t bad. It was the thing that’s far worse than bad: it was dull. The matches were all fine, but at the end of the day, pretty much nothing happened here. The only title change was on the preshow and it looks like we’re gearing up for more Sheamus vs. Del Rio next month, which is boring me to tears. Cena vs. Punk will be awesome but it could have been awesome here. The show wasn’t bad, but it was underwhelming. It’s a weak ending to a pretty good summer for WWE.

Results

Chris Jericho b. Dolph Ziggler – Walls of Jericho

Daniel Bryan b. Kane – Small Package

The Miz b. Rey Mysterio – Skull Crushing Finale

Sheamus b. Alberto Del Rio – Irish Curse

Kofi Kingston/R-Truth b. Prime Time Players – Little Jimmy to Young

CM Punk b. John Cena and Big Show – Pinned Show after an AA from Cena

Brock Lesnar b. HHH – Kimura

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Summerslam 2012
Date: August 19, 2013
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 14,205
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

The main story here is Brock Lesnar is back, having returned the night after Wrestlemania to start a feud with John Cena. That feud lasted for a month before Lesnar started going after HHH. It wasn’t until three months later, as in tonight, that they’re having their showdown. Other than that we have Punk defending the title against Big Show and Cena and Sheamus defending against Del Rio. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Antonio Cesaro vs. Santino Marella

This is one of those ideas that was brought back after far too many years off. Santino is defending and Cesaro has his HORRID dance music here. He also has Aksana who isn’t horrid at all, other than in the ring of course. Cesaro’s word of the day in five languages: greatness. Santino does the power walk to the ring and is as goofy as ever. Cesaro takes it to the mat but Santino actually spins out for two.

A judo throw puts Cesaro down before Santino power walks out of an Irish whip. Must resist country jokes. Santino avoids a charge in the corner and loads up the Cobra but Cesaro takes his head off from behind. The Cobra goes to the floor and Aksana throws it away. Off to a reverse chinlock with Cesaro pulling on Marella’s ears to keep him away from the Cobra. IT’S A FREAKING SOCK! I know Foley used one too but it didn’t seem to have magical powers.

Santino kicks Cesaro away but still can’t get the sock. The gutwrench suplex gets no cover from the challenger, as he would rather rip the Cobra to shreds. Santino pounds away but misses the headbutt. He counters the Neutralizer and pulls out another Cobra, proving THAT IT’S JUST A FREAKING SOCK! Aksana gets on the apron and the Cobra wants her, allowing Cesaro to hit the Neutralizer for the pin and the title.

Rating: D+. IT’S A FREAKING SOCK! Match was ok but the majority of the five minutes were spent on Santino trying to put a sock on his hand so he can use a neck attack taught to him by John Lovitz. I know he’s a comedy character but there’s a point where it’s stupid rather than funny. Santino half crossed that line years ago.

The opening video talks about the twenty five years of Summerslam, meaning we’ll have to hear about how this is the 25^th anniversary. The video is interrupted by talk of a storm called Brock Lesnar, which to be fair is the main draw of the show.

Jerry and Cole’s intro is cut off by Vickie’s screeching intro of Ziggler.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho

Dolph is Mr. MITB here and Jericho is freshly face after Ziggler accused him of going soft. Jericho has taped up ribs from an attack at Ziggler’s hands. The fans LOVE Chris and things start fast with the Canadian hitting the jumping back elbow to the jaw. Jericho slips out of the corner on a spinning clothesline but Ziggler escapes a suplex and kicks him in the ribs to take over. Dolph stays on the ribs for a quick two but gets backdropped out to the floor.

Chris’ springboard dive misses as Ziggler casually ducks, sending Jericho crashing to the floor. Ziggler hooks on a chinlock with a bodyscissors to stay on the ribs. A knee to the head gets two for Dolph and a neckbreaker, complete with hip swivel and ARROGANT COVER, gets two more.

Jericho gets a quick cradle for two but Ziggler takes him right back down with a clothesline. Dolph misses a Stinger Splash and Chris goes after him, only to be easily taken down by another shot to the ribs. Not that it matters as he pops up top for the ax handle but Ziggler kicks him in the ribs again. The Fameasser gets two but an enziguri puts Dolph down for two as well. Back and forth match so far here.

Dolph jumps over Chris in the corner and puts on the sleeper which looks horrid here. Jericho rams him into the corner to escape and rains down some right hands before snapping off a top rope hurricanrana. The ribs are damaged even more though, delaying the count by several seconds. A jumping DDT gets two on the Canadian and Ziggler is getting frustrated.

They slug it out with Jericho taking him down via the bulldog but the Lionsault hits knees. The Zig Zag gets two but Dolph can’t follow up. Instead he walks into the Codebreaker to send him to the floor. Jericho throws him in but gets tripped up by Vickie, allowing Ziggler to roll him up for two. Dolph misses a charge into the post and the Walls go on for the submission.

Rating: C+. The idea here was that Jericho couldn’t win the big one anymore. The problem here though is they would have a rematch tomorrow night with Jericho’s contract and Dolph’s case on the line. Why they didn’t have that match here is anyone’s guess but at least it was a good opener and the fans popped for the ending. They had some Shelton vs. HBK from 2005 in there with Jericho fighting a younger version of himself but using his maturity and experience to get the win.

Vickie freaks out over the loss.

We recap Brock breaking Shawn Michaels’ arm on Raw.

Heyman and Brock say Lesnar wins tonight.

Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

It’s amazing that this team started less than a year ago. The fans are already chanting YES and Bryan says NO. It’s amazing how a chant this simple carried Bryan so far. This was set up by GM AJ as revenge against Bryan for jilting her or something. Bryan fires off kicks to start but walks into an uppercut to knock him back. Daniel moonsaults over Kane in the corner but gets kicked in the face to put him down. The low dropkick gets two for Kane but the fans are all behind Daniel.

Another big boot gets two but Bryan comes back with the kicks to the legs, only to be thrown over the top and out to the floor. Bryan slides back in and hits the FLYING GOAT to put Kane down. The missile dropkick drops Kane again and there are more kicks, only to have Kane clothesline his way out of trouble. The side slam gets two and the top rope clothesline looks to set up the chokeslam but Bryan bails to the floor.

Bryan slaps him in the face like a knucklehead, sending Kane through the roof. Bryan is tossed into the corner and stomped down by a furious Kane. The referee drags him away, allowing Bryan to try the NO Lock. Kane powers out so Bryan kicks him in the head. Why overcomplicate things? The flying headbutt is caught in the chokeslam but Kane wants the tombstone, allowing Bryan to counter into a small package for the pin.

Rating: C+. Good match here and you could see the anger management stuff coming. Kane had Bryan beat but wanted revenge and let Bryan catch him off guard. These two obviously had chemistry together and the story would be a big boost to Kane’s career. Also the original idea here was Bryan vs. Charlie Sheen somehow. Thankfully that was never mentioned again.

Kane is going nuts in the back. Josh Matthews comes up to him like the schnook he is and is LAUNCHED off camera in a funny bit.

Intercontinental Title: Rey Mysterio vs. The Miz

Miz is defending and Mysterio is dressed like Batman. Rey grabs a quick rollup for two and the champion bails to the floor for a bit. AJ has promised to deal with Kane for attacking Matthews tomorrow on Raw. Miz throws Mysterio through the ropes to the floor but Rey rolls through to avoid pain. The champion sends him ribs first into the barricade to take over as this isn’t doing much for me so far.

Miz pulls on Rey’s face and puts on a chinlock before hitting something resembling Abyss’ Shock Treatment (torture rack backbreaker) for two. A boot to Rey’s head gets two and it’s off to a cravate for a bit. Miz hits the corner clothesline but spends too much time laughing at the crowd, allowing Rey to crotch him on the top.

Rey’s seated senton is rolled through into a slingshot sitout powerbomb for two from Miz. Rey comes back with a tornado DDT for the same result and a top rope hurricanrana sends Miz into the 619 position. The kick to the face connects but Rey misses the top rope splash. The Skull Crushing Finale is countered into a cradle for a hot two count. A second attempt at the Finale works though to retain Miz’s title.

Rating: C-. This took a long time to get going but it had a few nice moments at the end. Both of these guys fell so far in just a year as both guys were fighting for the world title just a year ago. The match wasn’t bad but it didn’t do much for me. It was one of those matches that came and went and I won’t think about it again an hour from now.

Teddy Long and Eve, the bosses of Smackdown, leave AJ’s office and seem to approve of what she’s doing. They leave and Punk goes in to find a smiling AJ. Punk doesn’t like the idea of being in a triple threat for the title tonight and thinks it’s happening as revenge for him rejecting AJ’s proposal. AJ just stares off into space and Punk accuses her of disrespecting him but she doesn’t move an inch.

We recap Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus. These two feuded FOREVER and Del Rio never did much of anything. He complained about Sheamus not being high class so Sheamus stole Del Rio’s car. Fake cops beat up Sheamus and that’s about it. It’s as boring of a feud as it sounds.

Smackdown World Title: Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio

Feeling out process to start with both guys tumbling out to the floor. Back in and Sheamus hits a quick neckbreaker and the rolling senton for two each. Sheamus puts him on the top rope for a belly to back superplex but Alberto gets onto Sheamus’ shoulder to escape. The buckle pad is pulled off in the process. Del Rio can’t hook the armbreaker so he kicks Sheamus out to the floor instead. Sheamus is sent knee first into the steps as the crowd is DEAD.

Back in and Del Rio hits a flying shoulder block for two before hooking the chinlock. A kick to the head gets two on the champion and we hit the chinlock. That goes nowhere so Del Rio mocks Sheamus’ chest pounding before the Brogue Kick, only to have Sheamus ax handle him in the head. Sheamus goes up but a kick to the let puts him down again. A kick to the arm gets two for Alberto and the armbreaker goes on, FINALLY waking the fans up.

Sheamus of course is barely phased by it and rolls onto Del Rio to break the pressure. He picks Alberto up into a kind of powerbomb to break the hold, earning himself a chant from the crowd. White Noise gets two and Sheamus avoids a charge in the corner, setting up the forearms in the ropes. Sheamus pounds down right hands in the corner but gets dropped face first onto the exposed buckle. The enziguri in the corner is good for two so Del Rio yells at Ricardo. Rodriguez throws in a shoe but Sheamus intercepts it to knock Ricardo out cold. The Irish Curse hits for the pin, ignoring Del Rio’s foot being on the rope. REMATCH!

Rating: D+. The match was decent but it never felt like Sheamus was in any real danger. The drop onto the exposed buckle and the enziguri got a near fall, but it didn’t feel like a close near fall; It felt like it was there because this is where we’re supposed to have a dramatic kick out if that makes sense. It’s not bad but this feud didn’t need to continue at all.

We hear about Mike Tyson and Piers Morgan having a Twitter war over the main event. I’ve got nothing.

We get a clip from the pre show where HHH tells the referee that the match isn’t ending on a countout or a DQ.

Tag Titles: Prime Time Players vs. Kofi Kingston/R-Truth

I don’t remember Kofi and Truth being champions AT ALL. Truth and Young get us going as the fans chant Kobe Bryant, referencing the joke that got AW fires. Young is taken down by an armdrag and a legdrop gets two for Truth. Truth has to fight out of the corner but gets caught in the face by a big boot for two. Back up and Truth hits a great side kick to take Titus’ head off and get himself a breather. Off to Kofi to speed things up as the crowd still isn’t all that interested.

Kofi chops O’Neil down but a Young distraction lets the challengers take over. Titus clotheslines Kofi down for two before suplexing Young onto Kofi’s back for two. A snap powerslam gets the same for Darren and it’s back to Titus for an abdominal stretch. That goes nowhere so Titus loads up a spinout Rock Bottom, only to be pulled dowin into a DDT. Hot tag brings in Truth to clean house and everything breaks down. Titus is sent to the floor and caught by a Kofi dive, allowing Truth to hit Little Jimmy on Darren to retain the titles.

Rating: D+. This could have been on any given Raw. The Players are a decent team but Titus is clearly the star with Young just being there. Kofi and Truth are just transitional champions before HELL NO would take the championships a few weeks later. Nothing to see here other than a filler before we get to the main events.

Video on Summerslam Axxess.

We recap the Raw World Title match. Punk won the title at Survivor Series but got angry over Rock vs. Cena being announced as the main event of Wrestlemania 28 a year in advance. Cena cashed in the MITB case at Raw 1000 but Big Show cost Cena the match. AJ made it a three way for the sake of tormenting Punk (now a heel demanding respect) for turning down her proposal.

Punk’s complaints about how the title should be the focus and how he wasn’t getting respect are why his heel turn didn’t go well: those are logical points and heels aren’t supposed to be logical. WWE failing to get this is the source of a lot of their problems. Heels are supposed to be bullies or maniacal in their delusions, not making thought out rational points.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. CM Punk vs. Big Show

Show knocks down both smaller guys as Cole talks about Punk not main eventing a show since December despite holding the title the entire time. Good point actually. The LOUD chop hits both Cena and Punk’s chests twice each with Big Show in total control. They finally work together but Show easily suplexes them both down. Cena is crushed in the corner, knocking him out to the floor so it’s Punk vs. Show one on one.

Punk wisely takes out the knee and fires off kicks to the chest as the fans are entirely behind him. The smart moves are canceled out though as Punk tries a GTS with the obvious result. Cena tries an AA but the powers of gravity take him down to the mat, crushing Cena’s head against the mat. Show chops Punk down in the corner and knocks Cena out to the floor. Punk avoids a splash but tries a springboard cross body like a schnook, earning that powerslam he gets.

The Final Cut puts Punk down but Cena breaks up the WMD, earning himself a spear from the giant for two. Show loads up a double Vader Bomb but only hits Cena, allowing Punk to springboard onto Show for the save. Everyone heads to the floor with Big Show chokeslamming Punk against the ropes, sending him back to the floor. Show drops Cena with a side slam but stares at the crowd instead of covering. Maybe someone was holding up a Twinkie?

Cena actually hits a belly to back suplex on Show and loads up the Shuffle, only to have Punk charge in for the save. The champion drops the Macho Elbow for two on Show but gets launched away. Since covering hasn’t worked, Punk puts on a modified Koji Clutch but Show easily powers out. The crowd has DIED for some reason. Cena comes back in and shoulders Show down, bringing them right back to life.

There’s the STF on Show but the big man stands up to break the hold. Punk comes in with a springboard clothesline to take Show down again, followed by three straight knees to the head in the corner. The bulldog is easily countered (of course) but Cena hits the top rope Fameasser to put the giant down.

We get a Koji Clutch/STF combo and Show taps, but we have no clear winner. This brings out AJ (Punk: “DO THE RIGHT THING LIKE SPIKE LEE! LET THE PEOPLE DECIDE! THEY CAN TWEET ABOUT IT!”) who eventually says restart the match, allowing Show to hit a double chokeslam for two on each guy. Cena ducks the WMD and hits the AA, but Punk throws him to the floor and steals the pin to retain.

Rating: C. The match was ok with the logical story but it was nothing we hadn’t seen before. The restart was pretty dumb as well as Big Show shouldn’t have had a chance to win the title after tapping out. Cena vs. Punk would continue for months which would make for some great matches, but this wasn’t anything special. Not bad at all though.

Various B level celebrities are here. Maria Menunos in a Bob Backlund shirt works very well.

Trailer for whatever WWE’s latest movie is at the point. The Day. Ok then.

We recap the pre-show match to fill in time.

Kevin Rudolf sings the theme song.

We recap the main event. Basically Lesnar tried to hold the company hostage by renaming Raw to Monday Night Raw Starring Brock Lesnar. HHH stood up to him and got a broken arm as a result. Brock broke Shawn Michaels’ arm as well to make it a domestic issue for HHH. This was one of those feuds that people weren’t all that thrilled to see but it could have been worse. More on that later.

Brock Lesnar vs. HHH

Every time I watch a Brock Lesnar match I remember how scary of a human being he is. We get spotlights for the big match intros in a cool idea. Remember that HHH told the referee to allow a lot of fighting tonight. Lesnar powers HHH into the corner to start and goes for a standing kimura (arm lock that he used to break the arm) with a jumping body scissors. HHH though is a MAN and powers out of it before clotheslining Brock to the floor. Back in and Brock pounds away, only to be clotheslined to the floor again. You know, because Cena can be in a war with Brock at Extreme Rules but HHH can easily stop him.

Brock comes back in and takes the MMA gloves off before taking HHH down to the mat with an amateur move. They head outside with HHH shrugging off Brock’s attacks and pounding away, only to be dropped arm first onto the announce table. Lesnar eventually drags HHH back in for a hammerlock slam. Back to the standing kimura with Brock wrapping the arm around the ropes and ramming it into the corner.

A release German suplex puts HHH down again but he comes back with a neck snap across the ropes. Brock is taken down by a DDT but he goes right back to the kimura and another hammerlock slam. They head to the floor with the arm going into the steps and the rest of HHH going into the announce table. Brock jumps off the table onto the Game before taking him back inside. Of all things, Lesnar busts out a small package for a one count. A hard clothesline puts HHH down but he blocks a suplex into one of his own to get a breather.

Brock misses a charge into the corner but blocks a Pedigree and throws HHH out to the floor. HHH sends him into the announce table stomach first, which is a weak spot due to some real life past illnesses which ended his UFC career for all intents and purposes. More shots to the stomach have Brock in trouble and a knee to the ribs puts him down. Heyman is losing his mind and Brock is in trouble.

The spinebuster puts Brock down and there’s the Pedigree for two. A low blow puts HHH down and Heyman screams that this was HHH’s idea. The F5 is good for two and Brock is stunned. I have no idea why, as you know you can’t get a win off one finisher in WWE. Now the kimura goes on again with a bodyscissors but a rope break means nothing. Instead HHH pretty easily punches his way out of it and hits another Pedigree. Thankfully Brock no sells it and puts on the kimura, breaking the arm again and drawing the submission.

Rating: C+. The match is ok but it has one major flaw: it’s BORING. You don’t bring in Brock Lesnar to have him go toe to toe with HHH. You bring him in to have him destroy small cities and eat villagers. That’s the issue here. We went from Cena surviving against an insane Brock Lesnar to HHH having Brock in trouble in a dull match. Lesnar didn’t seem insane here at all and it made for a much less interesting match. Also, Cena won with a Hail Mary shot, where as HHH can slug it out with Lesnar? That just doesn’t hold up at all. Somehow this would be the high point, as this feud went on another TEN MONTHS.

Naturally HHH gets the big heroic stand up in the ring, but instead of people giving him a standing ovation they tell him that he tapped out. HHH stands there until people finally applaud him. He apologizes to the fans and slowly walks out. I guess this is supposed to be like Austin at Wrestlemania 13 but it’s just failing. The speculation is that HHH is leaving for good. If you bought that, raise your hand to show how gullible you are.

Overall Rating: C-. This is an interesting show as most of the matches are ok but nothing goes beyond that level. Most of this show would be classified as ok at best and uninteresting at worst. It’s just kind of there with nothing memorable other than HHH DEMANDING to give us his moment at the end. Nothing to see here and not worth checking out.

Ratings Comparison

Antonio Cesaro vs. Santino Marella

Original: D+

Redo: D+

Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler

Original: B-

Redo: C+

Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

Original: C-

Redo: C+

Rey Mysterio vs. The Miz

Original: C

Redo: C-

Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus

Original: D

Redo: D+

R-Truth/Kofi Kingston vs. Prime Time Players

Original: C

Redo: D+

John Cena vs. CM Punk vs. Big Show

Original: C-

Redo: C

Brock Lesnar vs. HHH

Original: B

Redo: C+

Overall Rating

Original: D+

Redo: C-

It’s still boring.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/08/19/summerslam-2012-lesnar-is-a-wrestler-again-just-like-everyone-else/

We’re done with Summerslam now. It’s very different from Wrestlemania and that’s a good thing. Wrestlemania is the serious show of the year but Summerslam has a much lighter feeling. It’s called the Biggest Party of the Summer and it feels like that a lot of the time. The main events are usually big enough and the show feels important, but it’s definitely less serious than Mania. That’s a good thing too, as you’re simply not going to out-important Wrestlemania, so why try? It’s a good series, but like any other show there are some BAD years for it.

That’s it for the redos of the major shows. I definitely enjoyed coming back and looking at them again, but this is going to be the last time I do this. It’s a two fold reason: first of all, it takes WAY too much time. I spent eight and a half months doing these combined and it’s going to get even longer every time. At the end of the day I can’t do 100+ redos every few years. It’s just not realistic. The other issue is the same as it is for any show: I’ve covered them. There just isn’t anything left to say about a lot of these shows. I mean, how many times can I talk about a Natural Disasters match? It would get repetitive and that’s not fun.

However, I will be doing the count-ups every year and I’ll redo each year’s previous show for the Big Four each year. Maybe I’ll eventually do these series again, but it’ll be one a year and not all back to back. It just can’t be done and it takes away too much time from other stuff I could be looking at.

Anyway, thanks for checking them out and I’ll have new stuff up soon, probably by the time you’re done reading this.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6