WWE SummerSlam Review
August 24, 2015
By: Adam Martin of Wrestleview.com
The question I was asked the most in the weeks leading up to SummerSlam was if four hours was really a necessity for the show this year in Brooklyn.
Sure, SummerSlam is one of the biggest events of the year from WWE and the market was hyped for three nights of the product in NXT, SummerSlam and RAW. Tickets sold out fast.
Yet, as we approached that three hour mark it became quite obvious that the answer to the question was yes. Four hours is a long time and Sunday was a learning experience. It works for WrestleMania in that over-the-top extravaganza environment. It didn’t seem to do this show any favors at the Barclays Center, even with a really hot crowd.
Confusion, tap outs and passing out
Brock Lesnar is still one of the most interesting aspects of WWE, even nearly three years since he’s been back. His mainstream appeal and overall presence just enhances WWE programming. You almost come off silly using the “part-timer” argument when you see the end result. Yet, this was the first time in a while where I wasn’t clamouring to see a Brock Lesnar match in WWE. Don’t get me wrong – I love Lesnar and The Undertaker. I just felt like that accomplished what they wanted to do at WrestleMania 30 by ending the streak.
Revisiting it again didn’t really seem that interesting, even with Paul Heyman doing an excellent job of hyping it up. I liked the pace that was set from the get go with Lesnar attacking Undertaker during his entrance. The action both in and out of the ring kept your attention. My only real issue was the end goal. It’s pretty obvious they want to setup a rubber match by putting emphasis on the fact that Undertaker tapped. It’s likely to happen at WrestleMania 32. Tonight was already a hard sell. Good luck selling a third match.
Jon Stewart keeps the John Cena boo birds happy
It’s 2015 and people still hate John Cena. Like, really, really, really hate John Cena. The Brooklyn crowd was clearly behind Seth Rollins on Sunday night and it made for another entertaining presentation. As usual, Rollins pulled off some pretty impressive offense and is continuing to prove to be a really good main event player for WWE. Cena just thrives in these kinds of hostile environments and Sunday was another great addition to an already impressive resume. I might be in the minority here, but I didn’t mind the Jon Stewart interference. Sure, it’s something for the boo birds to complain about. You’ll never, ever please those people so why bother. It’s clear WWE is ready to stick with Rollins for the long run and we could be seeing a lengthy title run heading into WrestleMania.
People are still booing Roman Reigns, seriously
I know the Northeast is a pretty snarky audience and over 13,000 of them packed the Barclays Center the night before for NXT. Yet, I was pretty surprised we are still being subjected to the whole booing for Roman Reigns stuff. After his performance at WrestleMania against Brock Lesnar and the great WWE Network special following him around, it started to feel like things were really starting to come together with his character. It almost seems silly to still be part of the group that is booing Reigns. Really, still? Brooklyn might have been an outlier when it comes to measuring reactions for Reigns in 2015. I still think the safe bet is to stick with Reigns in a main event scenario towards the end of the year. It might have backfired earlier this year. It sure feels silly to hold back now.
Quick Thoughts
* Kevin Owens continues to impress me with his athleticism.
* I still need a reason to care about Charlotte and Becky Lynch on WWE television.
* I still can’t get a good read on Ryback’s role or importance on the WWE roster.
* Stephen Amell did exceptionally well for a guy with limited in-ring experience.
* It was a good call to keep things going between Dolph Ziggler and Rusev.
* The New Day are by far the most entertaining act in WWE today.
* I quite enjoyed the brawling aspect to Randy Orton vs. Sheamus on Sunday.
Overall Impression
SummerSlam didn’t face plant by any means this year. The card was pretty stacked and everything for the most part kept your interest. It just reminded me of a decent movie that could have been a great movie cutting an hour out. The four hour experiment was a bust.
Agree? Disagree? Let me know what you thought of SummerSlam in the comments below.
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