WWE Summerslam 2016 General Discussion & Reviews

[THTRobtaylor]

Realistically now Brock v Orton will headline... They'll capitalise on Brock's "bad boy" image from his drug fail... hypocritical considering their treatment of Reigns, but this is WWE... they do hypocritical better than anyone.

Rest of the card will be interesting as they have to give even time to both brands but also to some of the newer people/acquisitions coming in.

I can see the card shaping up like this now...

Opener

The New Day vs American Alpha - As we've not had new tag team titles announced, they could go across both shows... It makes sense for American Alpha to come in strong and beat everyone - including The New Day... although it could easily be Gallows and Anderson who beat them and Alpha become SD Tag Champions.

Miz vs Shelton Benjamin (Ladder Match for the IC)

With Shelton coming back with vignettes, it means he is getting a push. Probably not right to the main event but the IC title is a quick boost for him they can build on and start to build their midcard around... Let's face it if Ziggler is a #1 contender then Miz is also that level now... Shelton as IC champ opens up some interesting matches for that title with guys like Corbin, Crews and AJ Styles and winning it in a ladder match will allow for some of Shelton's classic craziness to show through and get fans excited about him again.

Bray Wyatt v Baron Corbin

This could come as a result of last night, with Corbin blaming Wyatt for his not going to the main event and Wyatt wanting to convert "The Lone Wolf" to be the new member of his family. At the outside if fit, and if Luke Harper is going solo, we could see him return to cost Bray the match in whatever new gimmick he has - I'm guessing they go with the "he was brainwashed" thing.

Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens & Sheamus vs Sami Zayn, Cesaro & Roman Reigns

The Roman Empire continues to crumble but traditionally there is always a big multiman tag match at Summerslam. I can see Zayn moving onto a feud with Jericho going forward... and perhaps Cesaro can get a bit of respite by facing familiar opponents and stealing the show.

Cruiserweight Championship

Winner of the CWC vs Neville

It might seem "off" but let's face it, Neville would have been in (and winning) the CWC had injury not ruined his chance. I am guessing if Ibushi signs, he wins the classic, so Ibushi v Neville could be a great match and way to kick off the division in the way Malenko did back in the day with Eddie and Beniot. Neville as their "cruiser champ" makes a lot of sense as he has the global pedigree and is over slightly more than Kalisto. His "return to win from injury" is also a great angle... as a leftfield, if the CWC winner isn't involved then Neville v Tajiri is a good shout.


Orton Beats Brock

AJ beats up John Cena

Balor wins over Rollins in a shock...

As for the rest of the roster - not seeing how they can all fit. I can only see going forward the traditional "big 4" shows being for the cream of the rosters rather than the whole kit and caboodle if they're keeping the usual format. The return of Squashes though does mean we could see those old style PPV cards of the late 80's and 90's like Mania's with 14 matches - 7 of them 3 minute squashes.

Now I can see why Ryback was worried and Sandow asked to be released...

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

I'm sitting here and I'm thinking that the Brock Lesnar vs Randy Orton match will probably close the show.

Meaning that they will have to follow:
1) Rollins vs Balor
2) Cena vs Styles (probably)
3) Ambrose vs Ziggler

Plus, since WWE won't punish Lesnar directly, I really hope he gets punt kicked into oblivion. Poor Roman got suspended and pinned clean 3 times in a row.

Also, CCC, controversy creates cash. I'd first have Lesnar lose to Orton. Then I'd have Lesnar return and beat Orton badly. An article on WWE.com would surface that says that Lesnar was found in possession of performance-enhancement drugs. Then the story would plan out, that Lesnar has been using those all along, except that one time he lost to Randy Orton. He says he will continue to take more and more of them and WWE won't do anything about it, because he's the draw.

Nuclear heat for Lesnar around WrestleMania time. Typical bad guy stereotype, using enhancement chemistry to grow big and bad and beat up the good guy.

An up and coming face comes and beats some sense into Lesnar at WrestleMania and WWE has a new top star.

 

[kadroan]

I'm sitting here and I'm thinking that the Brock Lesnar vs Randy Orton match will probably close the show.

Meaning that they will have to follow:
1) Rollins vs Balor
2) Cena vs Styles (probably)
3) Ambrose vs Ziggler

Plus, since WWE won't punish Lesnar directly, I really hope he gets punt kicked into oblivion. Poor Roman got suspended and pinned clean 3 times in a row.

Also, CCC, controversy creates cash. I'd first have Lesnar lose to Orton. Then I'd have Lesnar return and beat Orton badly. An article on WWE.com would surface that says that Lesnar was found in possession of performance-enhancement drugs. Then the story would plan out, that Lesnar has been using those all along, except that one time he lost to Randy Orton. He says he will continue to take more and more of them and WWE won't do anything about it, because he's the draw.

Nuclear heat for Lesnar around WrestleMania time. Typical bad guy stereotype, using enhancement chemistry to grow big and bad and beat up the good guy.

An up and coming face comes and beats some sense into Lesnar at WrestleMania and WWE has a new top star.

I'd hate the bad PR WWE would get for those tests. I wonder would Vince even consider that.

 

[Olan]

I am probably the only that is curious what they are going to do regarding the 6 Woman Tag match now that Eva is suspended.
I see talk of having a handicap match but unless there is a turn you would have the faces with the numbers edge and that is not usually how wrestling works. Do Natty/Dana bring in a 3rd party? If so who?

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

I am probably the only that is curious what they are going to do regarding the 6 Woman Tag match now that Eva is suspended.
I see talk of having a handicap match but unless there is a turn you would have the faces with the numbers edge and that is not usually how wrestling works. Do Natty/Dana bring in a 3rd party? If so who?

If it was me, I'd take the suspension and put into the story.

Eva got suspended, simply because she's still holding off her debut. It fits nicely into the story.

Then just have it as a 3-on-2 handicap to really follow the story.. of course the heels lose.

It really puts heat on Eva. Then, just don't have us forget her. Have her name constantly being mentioned on Smackdown, until her return.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

I really hope that Rollins ditches that gray outfit that he's wearing atm. It's really bad.

A red and black Finn Balor versus a blue and white Seth Rollins would be a perfect combination to really showcase how opposite this two superstars are.

Also Alpha Jesus White Rollins wouldn't be bad for me. Just anything other than the gray attire.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

I will probably discuss this more in detail later but this PPV felt like two different shows. The 1st half was really good with the Women's Match, the opening match, and Styles/Cena. After that it pretty much went downhill with the only other good match being Balor/Rollins.

Ambrose/Ziggler was terrible. I like Ambrose but Austin is right in the podcast that Ambrose needs to setup it up (though I think Austin should have said that privately) as World Champion his match with Ziggler is not going to cut it. Granted Ziggler wasn't a strong challenger for Ambrose to begin with, both guys should have been capable enough to have a good match.

 

[Gallops77]

I will probably discuss this more in detail later but this PPV felt like two different shows. The 1st half was really good with the Women's Match, the opening match, and Styles/Cena. After that it pretty much went downhill with the only other good match being Balor/Rollins.

Ambrose/Ziggler was terrible. I like Ambrose but Austin is right in the podcast that Ambrose needs to setup it up (though I think Austin should have said that privately) as World Champion his match with Ziggler is not going to cut it. Granted Ziggler wasn't a strong challenger for Ambrose to begin with, both guys should have been capable enough to have a good match.

I agree. I feel like after Cena/Styles the PPV fell flat.

Rollins/Balor should have been more exciting, but the crowd was more focused on the crappy Universal Title than anything else until the last few minutes of the match.

Having the last 2 matches end the way they did was horrendous. Not even having the Reigns/Rusev match and then a TKO finish? Should have been spread apart in the show. Have Rusev/Reigns be before Styles/Cena in the show. The finish for Lesnar/Orton was fitting for Lesnar as a character, but having it be back to back with another stoppage was just eh.

Ambrose has taken a step back since winning the WWE Championship. If he doesn't pick it up in the next few weeks, he may drop back to the midcard. I can see AJ Styles winning the title from him very soon. Ziggler proved why he's been in the midcard too.

To me, it was a pretty lackluster Summerslam overall. I think there were matches that should have been epic. Rollins/Balor should have been a MOTY candidate but it wasn't.

Takeover: Brooklyn II I feel was better overall than Summerslam. Though it feels that's usually the case these days.

 

[Dragonslayer]

Watched the event with some friends live last night on the network, and we all ended up pretty disappointed with the event, particularly with the main event.

The upsides surprisingly were AJ Styles vs John Cena, which for me was the match of the night, the Charlotte vs Sasha Banks match (although I got worried halfway through after that botched sideslam(?) from the rope by Charlotte, as Sasha seemed legit injured) and Seth Rollins vs Finn Balor.

I was honestly surprised they put the title on Balor this early, but I guess if you want to push a new guy, you can go all out like this. Hopefully his arm injury isn't serious, as this could stop his push dead in its tracks. Now while the match was good, I was even somehow expecting even a little more from these two... but definitely not a point to complain about. Don't like the look of the Universal Title though, it looks pretty atrocious - all red everything just doesn't work; you'd think WWE would've realized that by now.

Ambrose vs Ziggler wasn't anything special, though I liked the intensity both guys brought to the ring... I was actually expecting a Ziggler heel turn here more than the "heeling-up" that Ambrose seemed to be doing. In any case, I didn't really expect Ziggler to win, so no surprise there. It was in all honesty what it was booked as: a mid-card match.

But well... then came the desaster that was the final two "matches" of the card. Now I kinda liked the way they went with Reigns, seemingly pulling off a heel turn here at the expense of Rusev (though obviously it would have been more effective against a face), but again good intensity from both men here, and the spear at the end looked brutal. Now I would have been fine with this "non-match"... if there hadn't been the atrocity that was the main event.

I have no idea what WWE was thinking here, putting a returning Orton, who was getting over actually really well with a new "tweak" to his gimmick where he was showing more emotion and was being more upbeat than in the past, into a match against Brock Lesnar, where Lesnar then just gives him the Cena-treatment and completely annihilates him, without Orton getting any offense in at all (except for the desperation-RKOs, obviously). Orton looked terrible in this match. And then the crappy TKO finish to top it off... I honestly was absolutely expecting a Goldberg run-in after the referee stoppage, when Brock wouldn't stop attacking Orton and Shane... but alas, no such luck - but hell, I'd have taken that mark-out moment for me personally any day over this crapfest finish, even though it's pretty clear that Goldberg at 49 years of age won't really bring much to the table anymore in the long run.

But that finish was disastrously anticlimactic, particularly in combination with the way the Rusev/Reigns match did (not) go down. I thought it was pretty terrible booking. If WWE was going to do that, then they really should have switched the Lesnar/Orton match with the Rollins/Balor match, to have the show end on a high note instead.

But well, it is what it is... overall definitely a bit of a disappointing Summerslam for me.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

This Summerslam had all the tools to be one of the best Summerslams ever. We had 3 dream matches, the two best tag teams fighting for the Tag Team Championship, the two best women fighting for the Women's Championship, plus 4 of the best talkers and showmen squaring off, plus a match that was supposed to steal the show, plus the two hardest SOBs in WWE fighting for the US Championship.

That's all they hype that was behind this Summerslam. Given the hype behind this and the actual result, the result is below average.

My review

Jeri-KO def. Enzo & Cass
Didn't see this match. It should have been good. My only problem: Since you wanted this match to open the show, why not giving the faces the victory? From what I understand they want this to go as a 2/3 feud. Enzo & Cass should have won here in order to get the crowd hot for the start and then have this feud continue. The heels would find a way to get a rematch. Also in a so heel-wins crowded SSlam, this was needed, IMO.

Charlotte def. Sasha Banks(c)
Really good match. I kinda expected Charlotte to win, in order to get a third a final match. But why win clean? That really bugged me.
Rating: 7/10

The Miz(c) def. Apollo Crews
Thank god The Miz wins here. No hate on Crews, but it's early for him to get any titles. The match was what it was. Nothing really expected here.
Rating: 3/10

AJ Styles def. John Cena
Match of the night. At some point Cena and Styles hit their finishers, but it really wasn't necessary to do so at that point, because it came early and the match was doing great without that. Both men executed moves that they haven't done before. It had great moments and this trully was the right result. As I said before, they had to show that Styles is a true main eventer and not in the same league as Kevin Owens or Bray Wyatt, who lost to Cena 2-1. Styles wins 2-1 (2-0 actually) and cements his place as a top star on Smackdown.
Rating: 9/10

The Club def. New Day(c) via DQ
Awkward match. Why was Stewart involved? This could have been way better had the Club taken out Stewart's balls. The match could continue from there, then have Big E come out, distract the Club and have New Day grab the win. Simple as that.
Rating: 4/10

Dean Ambrose(c) def. Dolph Ziggler
15 mintues of Zzzzz. Really forgetable match and it shows how much momentum actually matters when it comes to main eventing. Ziggler was a nobody 1 month ago and suddenly finds himself headlining Summerslam. Downvote #1. Then, this match had hype behind it, simply because of the promos leading up. This was supposed to steal the show. It didn't. It was like 5th or 6th best match of the night. Downvote #2. This is yet another underwhelming performance from a Dean Ambrose match at a big PPV. Is he to blame though? Time will show us. These two men had the chance to tear down the house and they didn't take it. In 3 months Ziggler will be moaning that he isn't treated the way he should be. But everyone will laugh at him then, because last night Ziggler had the chance to show that he really deserves to be at the top. He clearly doesn't.
This raises the question as to why wasn't Bray Wyatt added in this one, or why it wasn't Bray vs Ambrose alone? Bray would definately bring the crowd into the match, had the right momentun and could deliver a better match.
Rating: 5/10

Finn Balor def. Seth Rollins
The match was good. BUT, it never really felt BIG. And it should have been big because you have two guys fighting for a world title that could create a huge legacy in 20 years. The fans weren't really into it, the match really didn't feel that big. You know what I mean, it didn't have that vibe of a big fight feel. I don't know why. Good match though. I don't mind the result, but I don't really trust WWE to run with it. But let's see where this leads.
Plus, since you wanted to give the Orton vs Lesnar match that ending, why didn't you have Balor vs Rollins go on last? Balor's victory would send the fans home happy and all the crowd's frustatons would be washed away, and this match would feel bigger.
Rating: 7.5/10

Reigns fought Rusev(c) to a No Contest
a) Why was this after two world title matches?
b) Why didn't this shit happen on RAW, so that we could have a match here, like a No DQs match?
Cool segment and it moves the story forward, but WWE needs to stop treating PPVs like their weekly shows. The PPVs are for climaxes and the TV shows are for mini climaxes and build-ups. Wouldn't it have been better, had this happened on RAW in order to set this match on fire and then, have the actual match on Summerlam?
Rating: 6/10

Brock Lesnar def. Randy Orton via TKO
I don't mind the TKO, really I don't. But I have many problems with this match.
1) No F5 into RKO reversal.
2) 10 minutes for the ultimate dream match?
3) Again the same stupid formula: suplex, suplex, big spots on the tables, finishers and the end. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
4) Why wasn't there an actual match? Randy looked great when he countered the first suplex. Why didn't they continue with that formula?
5) It needed 10 minutes at least more. Remember Austin-Angle from SSlam 2001? What a great match that was, even if it had a DQ finish. Lesnar-Orton could have been better than that, if they actually had a match.
6) As far as I remember, beating your opponent like that, in a normal match results in a DQ. Right? That's why the ref always stops beatings like this. Plus, it wasn't only a beating, Lesnar was using closed fists and elbows. That's forbidden, as far as I remember, according to the fucking rules. Or else why have a No Holds Barred stipulation? This match was the biggest dissapointment of the night. I hope the F5 to Shane will lead to some RAW vs SD shit and we can have a rematch, a proper one.. but what difference does it make? The hype is gone.
Rating: 4/10 only because Orton is a total badass.

SUMMERSLAM RATING: 5/10

 

[MINISTRYrising]

If it was not for Cena VS Styles then SummerSlam would have been a let down, but that has to be one of the best matches I have seen in a very long time. It showed just how good both guys really are and it actually surprises me that people still can't bring themselves to cheer for John when he repeatedly puts on five star matches. Unfortunately the rest of the card pales in comparison, which is disappointing considering how the rest of the card looked. Sure Jericho & owens VS Enzo & Cass was a good match and Rollins VS Balor was okay, (though somewhat of a let down for two guys of there ability) but the rest of the matches really did disappoint. Ambrose VS Ziggler really was poor and with Dolph finally getting opertunity that he deserved I was expecting a lot more from the show off, but ultimately let himself down and I just hope WWE management give him another shot. The thing that disappointed me the most though had to be the finish for the final two matches. Now don't get me wrong the finishes themselves were okay (I especially enjoyed seeing Shane McMahon take a F5 from Lesnar) I just didn't think it was a good idea to have two finishes like this one after the other and I would have much preferred to have seen Rollins VS Balor Close the Show

RATING - 5/10

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

What brought me down was how shit the crowd was. I think they passed out downers at the gate because they were dead alot of the night. It's time to bring Wrestlemania and Summerslam back to Canada to show everyone what a real, awesome wrestling crowd is supposed to sound like.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

I have three problems with the show.

1 - Charlotte is champion. Again. For over 2 years, we've gone 3 weeks without a heel champion. Also Charlotte has no contender unless Bayley gets called up.

2 - Lesnar squashed a top star. Again. Orton looked like a joke. This was a pretty bad match and it's just the same old stuff. This MIGHT have been okay IF Lesnar would actually put someone over, but he's going to leave. Again. And them come back and squash another top star. Again. I don't get the appeal. (Don't forget the 17 suplexes.)

3 - Balor is champion after ONE MONTH on the main show. No one deserves this big of a push. Everyone booed Reigns for this, but Balor gets a pass? I don't get that.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

I have three problems with the show.

3 - Balor is champion after ONE MONTH on the main show. No one deserves this big of a push. Everyone booed Reigns for this, but Balor gets a pass? I don't get that.

Balor has also headlined NXT for a year and has worked in high profile singles programs and feuds. I know people will say NXT is not the main show NXT is also available in the Network so it's not like NXT is this hard to watch product and I'm pretty sure sizable chunk of the 1.2 to 1.8 Million subscribers have seen the show.

 

[Psykohurricane55]

I actually like this show better then wrestlemania because while this show was very long, non of the matches felt out of place, even the boring matches like the new day vs the club felt like they had a place o the card. The problem like any shows in a market like brooklyn is that you will get a vocal minority that will be lounder then everybody else and will take away from the show, but this wasn't as big of a problem compared to the crowd at the nxt show.

Personally, I would have put the cena match higher on the card if that what they wanted to do with the match since the match brought the whole crowd down and they never really recovered after that.

 

[Navi]

I have three problems with the show.

1 - Charlotte is champion. Again. For over 2 years, we've gone 3 weeks without a heel champion. Also Charlotte has no contender unless Bayley gets called up.

I think it was made clear after the show that Banks is taking time off. She just got married and apparently has nagging injuries that need time to heal. Better take a month or so off now than to have months off later on, or worse yet a short career. Charlotte was the only logical choice to take the title as no other woman on the RAW roster really deserves it right now. Bayley will get her shot later.

2 - Lesnar squashed a top star. Again. Orton looked like a joke. This was a pretty bad match and it's just the same old stuff. This MIGHT have been okay IF Lesnar would actually put someone over, but he's going to leave. Again. And them come back and squash another top star. Again. I don't get the appeal. (Don't forget the 17 suplexes.)

That is how Lesnar has been booked since he returned. Orton did get some offense in and I believe if the blood hadn't started pouring the match might have been more interesting going forward. Lesnar would have probably still won but Orton wouldn't have made it easy for him. As for the suplexes, that's what they think fans want to see.

3 - Balor is champion after ONE MONTH on the main show. No one deserves this big of a push. Everyone booed Reigns for this, but Balor gets a pass? I don't get that.

You seem to forget that Balor has had years of experience, Reigns didn't before he got the rocket push. Balor is also one of the most over wrestlers on the NXT roster and he's done his time there. It was time to bring him up and with the brand split why not give him the title. The fans didn't seem to mind.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Summerslam 2016

As with NXT Takeover Brooklyn II, it was my intention to get this review up sooner but have been busy in recent weeks. So, Summerslam this year returned to the same location again from last year. Overall this show was a step up from last year's. Let's get to it.

Chris Jericho & Kevin Owens VS Enzo Amore & Big Cass
A good choice to open up the show. I would have been fine with either outcome. A friend who watches with me who HATES Enzo and Cass (he might be the only one at this point who does) was quite happy with the end result.

Charlotte VS Sasha Banks [WWE Women's Championship]
This wasn't bad but it could have been better than it was. Even in retrospect after a couple of weeks have passed, the ending still bothers me.

Apollo Crews VS The Miz [Intercontinental Championship]
Boring. This was the worst match of the night. Crews is not ready yet for a midcard title and Miz still sucks at everything except promos. And no, his promo on Talking Smack recently on did not change my opinion on him.

AJ Styles VS John Cena
WHAT A MATCH. This was what their first encounter earlier in the summer wishes it was. No idiotic interference and AJ got a huge win. Definitely watch this if you missed it!

Anderson & Gallows VS New Day
Glad that New Day retained. I'm getting a little bored with Anderson & Gallows honestly. Stewart's involvement did nothing for me. I still can't stand the guy, and what makes matters worse is that him getting involved in two Summerslams in a row means he sadly may end up in the Hall Of Fame in its pointless celebrity wing some day. I cringe at the thought of that.

Dean Ambrose VS Dolph Ziggler [World Championship]
Good match although I still do not get why Dolph even got this title shot. I'm beyond sick of him right now. Ambrose retaining was the right call in every way.

Becky/Carmella/Naomi VS Alexa/Natalya/Nikki
I genuinely skipped this match. Only reason I cannot call it worse than Crews VS Miz is because I admittedly didn't even watch the thing. I was interested in seeing who would take Eva's place until the worst possible option was revealed. As much as I like Becky Lynch and Alexa Bliss, I went to the pantry for a snack once I saw Nikki. No thanks, not interested.

Finn Balor VS Seth Rollins [Universal Championship]
Silly names aside, I love the Universal Championship, in case my updated signature banner image did not give that away. This match was great and the 2nd best after Styles VS Cena. For the sake of history you should watch it if you missed it, and it was good too. Only bad part was Finn's injury, which in retrospect now that some time has passed something good did come out of it in Kevin Owens now being Universal Champion. That's for another discussion though. Good stuff here from both Finn and Seth. I wanted this to main event personally, Orton VS Lesnar was the only other logical option to close the show. Speaking of that match.... We'll get to that in a moment.

Roman Reigns VS Rusev [US Championship]
What in the heck happened here? WWE should have gone through with the match. Disappointed when it happened, and still am now as I type this. At least officially (kayfabe) HAVE the match.

Brock Lesnar (with Paul Heyman) VS Randy Orton
Well.... that happened.... That was my reaction at the time, and even now it has not changed. I give the WWE credit for trying really hard to make us care about this one. They promoted it well and hyped it up. Orton should have gotten more offense in here, and the ending just in general was a head scratcher. It made Lesnar look that much more "dangerous", but sooner or later SOMEONE has to be built up to stop the guy. And it shouldn't be Roman Reigns or any of the older guys. Someone like Seth (or Finn when he returns) should get the massive push in being the one to finally defeat Lesnar. The confrontation with Shane afterwards has me concerned. I've got zero interest in Shane VS Lesnar when Shane VS Taker (outside of the dive off the cage) was bad enough.

Overall Thoughts
All in all it was a fun show. For sure you need to go watch Styles VS Cena and the Universal Championship match if you missed those. I would have had the Universal Championship match main event the show (despite the injury Finn ended up having), they should still have had Reigns VS Rusev in a match before the scripted attack by Roman, and I would also have preferred a better ending to Charlotte VS Sasha as well as to Brock VS Orton. The show was certainly better than last year. Oh, and NOT having Jon Stewart get involved in any capacity would have helped too. We're moving into a month with two PPV shows this month where Raw will feature Clash Of Champions and Smackdown will feature Backlash. It's coming up soon and I'm in anticipation of both shows.