Retro Rowe: WWE Summerslam 2010 Review

WWE Summerslam - August 15, 2010
by SamoaRowe

-From Los Angeles, CA. Our hosts are Michael Cole, Matt Striker, and Jerry Lawler.

Intercontinental Championship:
Dolph Ziggler © (with Vickie Guerrero) vs. Kofi Kingston

Ziggler is the newly crowned IC Champion, having won the belt from Kingston with an assist from Vickie. Kingston cuts off Vickie’s mic work before the match. Kingston wants revenge and is aggressive in the early going. Kingston misses a suicide dive and takes a nasty spill into the guard rail. Ziggler is eager for a count-out but to no avail. Ziggler goes to work on Kingston’s neck. Kofi dodges a corner splash and mounts a comeback. Ziggler rolls through a springboard cross body for a near fall. Fame-asser by Ziggler also gets 2. Kofi catches Dolph with his educated feet and delivers a flying shot to the head. Trouble in Paradise misses and Ziggler applies the sleeper hold! It’s about this time when the Nexus runs in and draws the DQ at 7:04! The group tosses Ziggler over the ropes and surrounds Kingston. This was a solid opener until the non-finish, **¼.
No contest.

Wrestlemania XXVI thoughts.

I watched the show live last weekend with some friends. It wasn't the "greatest of all time" but it was still a fine show. It was also the first full wrestling event I've watched in HD, so I think I was noticing a lot more of the botches than I normally would, as there seemed to be quite a few scattered throughout the evening.

Unified Tag Team Championship: ShoMiz vs. John Morrison/R-Truth
You could tell from the opening bell that this was going to be short, as they wasted no time hitting their key spots and signature moves. The match only went a little over 3 minutes, so while obviously robbed for time, it was an enjoyable 3 minutes. I'm mainly glad that the tag titles weren't kicked down to dark match status. *1/2.

Randy Orton vs. Ted Dibiase vs. Cody Rhodes
I think I liked this more than most people, as the general perception is that Rhodes and Dibiase came off as the two biggest jobbers who ever jobbed before. They held their own up until Orton took advantage of their dissension and punted Rhodes in the head and RKO'd Dibiase for victory. The more troubling aspect here is how after two solid years of being pushed heavily that the crowd didn't care one bit for either Legacy member. **1/2.

Money in the Bank
Generally brutal and exciting, as usual, just missing the one or two really big !!! spots. The highlight was easily Evan Bourne's Shooting Star Press off a ladder. Sadly, Kofi Kingston botches a run up a ladder for a corner attack. I have to admit, that I did not see the Jack Swagger victory coming, nor did I see him cashing it in less than a week later. I enjoyed this and I liked seeing most of the guys in the match get a spot at Wrestlemania (though again, it's kind of sad just how not over Drew McIntyre is despite months of an aggressive push).

Triple H vs. Sheamus
A lot of folks out there are claiming that Triple H's victory here means that Sheamus is finished. That really isn't the case, as this was a competitive 12 minute match and the feud doesn't seem to be over. There is a big difference between HHH nailing the pedigree on Booker T and waiting an eternity to pin him and Sheamus eating the pedigree and getting pinned immediately after. This was about what I expected, **1/2.

CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio
Like the opening match, I could sense this was going to be quick just by how they were pacing themselves from the opening bell. They packed a lot of action into the 6-7 minutes they got. They even squeazed in a good story, with Punk outsmarting Mysterio most steps of the way, including numerous blocks/reversals of the 619. Ultimately, Rey got the win, so all the kids in the stadium got a feel-good moment. It doesn't appear this feud is over either. **1/2.

Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon
This was a mess. It went about 11 minutes, which was about 10 minutes too long. Normally these Vince at 'Mania matches are entertaining train wrecks, but it was like they didn't even try, especially with Vince carting out the entire Hart family and Hart Dynasty from the very beginning, claiming he had paid them off to betray Bret. Even Stevie Wonder could see the coming swerve, as it turns out they took Vince's money and decided to screw him. Bret awkwardly beat down Vince while the crowd waited patiently for the sharpshooter. No rating, but this was bad.

World Heavyweight Championship: Chris Jericho vs. Edge
I really enjoyed this one and got sucked in by it. I was so happy when Jericho won, that it feels a bit more frustrating that he reign would end two days later at the Smackdown tapings. It was also surprising that Jericho got a semi-clean victory, as Edge had foiled his cheating attempts up until the Codebreaker finished things after about 16 minutes. I thought for sure that this was just going to be false finish, so when the referee counted 3 it got quite the surprised reaction from me. I have a feeling that repeated viewings will cause my heart to grow fonder of this bout, but for now I'd peg it at ***1/2.

Divas Tag
This worked a lot better than last year's disasterous battle royal, but still was not a good match by any stretch of the imagination. It was basically each diva hitting the one good move they each know until Vickie attempted a frog splash and won the match. Seriously, Vickie's splash is bound to go down in history as one of the all-time great bad moments in wrestling. *

WWE Championship: Batista vs. John Cena
Maybe it was the HD, but I found this to be largely sloppy and something of a mess up until things got hot down the final stretch. They packed in a lot of reversals and counters that might have been awesome if not for the fact they were so badly executed. Despite all that, I was pretty into the match, and the finish was satisfying. Repeat viewings might help this one as well, ***.

Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker
My sense as the bell rang here was that this match would make or break this show. The stipulations here added a lot, as I couldn't really imagine either man winning because what it would mean for the other. I enjoyed watching this more than I have any other live match in years. The final stretch, where Undertaker helped Shawn up, only to get slapped, and responding with a jumping tombstone piledriver was a fantastic moment and a fitting way for Shawn Michaels to call it a career. I liked this more than last year's Shawn/Taker match, ****3/4.

Wrestlemania 26 Predix!

Beth Phoenix, Eve Torres, Mickie James, Kelly Kelly, and Gail Kim vs Maryse, Michelle McCool, Layla, Alicia Fox, and Vickie Guerrero
Normally, I'd make some sort of joke about how useless the divas are, but there is enough talent here to keep things together. I'm glad to see Beth, Mickie, Gail, Maryse, and even Michelle getting a 'Mania spot. I'm guessing the face divas win, so they get a chance to royally humiliate Vickie and provide a good pop segment for the live audience.

Triple H vs. Sheamus
If Sheamus wasn't Triple H's bestest buddy in the whole world, I'd call for him to get squashed in under a minute (since every recent 'Mania seems to have one of those). I'm guessing we'll get a decent 10 minute bout that won't set the world on fire, but will still give Triple H a victory. HHH has done a lot of jobs at 'Mania, so I can see him wanting to pad his record, and Sheamus is still a newcomer, so he'll have lots of time to shine later.

Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk
With the stipulation being that if Rey loses, he must join the Straight Edge Society, I see Punk picking up the victory to prolong the angle/feud. I know Wrestlemania is supposed to be the big show where all feuds are blown off, but that hasn't been the case in a looong time. Hopefully they get at least 10 minutes, and these two are hard workers so it should be a solid addition to the midcard. I'm also glad that CM Punk gets to be on Wrestlemania in something other than Money in the Bank.

Randy Orton vs. Ted Dibiase vs. Cody Rhodes
After the solid year that Legacy had in 2009, I'm really glad that Dibiase and Rhodes have 'Mania spots this year. I'm guessing this match will be remembered more for big angle developments rather than match-quality, but the handicap match they had on Raw a few weeks ago was quite good and if they can match that, then we have another solid midcard addition. I see Orton picking up the win here, though I wouldn't rule out a surprise Dibiase upset, especially if WWE still regards him as the potential next big thing.

Money in the Bank: Christian vs Dolph Ziggler vs Jack Swagger vs Evan Bourne vs Kane vs Drew McIntyre vs Kofi Kingston vs Matt Hardy vs MVP vs Shelton Benjamin
Many folks are upset about there being 10 men in this one, but I don't think it really matters due to the trainwreck nature of the "every man for himself" ladder match. Also, it would be bothersome if most of these guys couldn't score a 'Mania spot. What I love is that there are no full-time main eventers here, or anyone who has had a meaningful World title run in WWE (sorry to former ECW champions Christian, Kane, Swagger, and Hardy). A few months ago, I would have pegged Kofi Kingston as the winner, but it seems the office has soured on him and he's lost his push. There is no clear winner in this group, but Christian just barely rises above the rest of the flock. There are lots of storyline opportunities for Christian to be Mr. Money in the Bank, it all depends on whether or not WWE is ready to push him to the next level.

No Holds Barred: Vince McMahon vs. Bret Hart
Come on, when has Vince ever won a match at Wrestlemania? Due to Hart's head condition and Vince's general old age, I can't see this being much more than a quick, nasty squash. Bret Hart wins and everyone gets to have a feel good moment.

Unified Tag Team Championship: The Miz and Big Show (c) vs. John Morrison and R-Truth
It's sad that I'm really hoping that Daniel Bryan gets involved in this somehow, so he can at least have had a 'Mania appearance. This will probably be one of the shorter matches on the card, but should be good while it lasts. Hopefully Morrison and Miz get a chance to play off of their history a little bit. I'm calling for Miz and Big Show to retain, especially since Morrison and Truth seem tossed together just so they could be a part of Wrestlemania.

Streak vs. Career: The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
I don't see this being as long as last year's 30 minute classic, due to Undertaker's physical condition, but I still see them pulling out all the stops to have another blockbuster. This could well be Shawn's last match as an active wrestler, so you know he is going to want to leave on a high note. This could be Undertaker's last match too, since he's been flirting with retirement for years now. This is just speculation, but I kind of feel like both men are regretting that they didn't retire after 'Mania last year, as in hindsight it would have been the perfect way to end their careers so they wanted to set up part two to make sure they are satisfied and not regret the way they went out. The stipulations here are perfect, because it's hard to imagine either man losing. Undertaker's streak has never been in more severe jeopardy. In the end, I'm calling for Undertaker to win, keep the streak intact, and go into retirement but open to coming back for certain big matches.

World Heavyweight Championship: Chris Jericho vs. Edge
If it weren't for the fact that a victory here would make Edge a 10-time World champion, I would say he was a lock to win this. I'm not sure WWE is ready to bestow that honor on Edge. Also, even though this is a World title match, there are at least 2-3 other matches on the show that are more anticipated than this, so this one could wind up in the middle of the show. Therefore, it doesn't need to have a feelgood ending. I'm going out on a limb and predicting that Jericho retains and continues to feud with Edge, saving the title switch for a higher spot on a lesser show.

WWE Championship: Batista vs. John Cena
Rumor has it that this match is going to close the show. Therefore, I have a hard time believing that the finish will be anything other than Cena standing tall with the belt. I haven't really dug the build to this match since No Way Out, but it was high-time that these two went toe to toe at Wrestlemania. They are arguably the two biggest new stars of the last five years, so this match really has the chance to define the era the way that Rock/Austin defined the Attitude Era and Hogan/Andre defined the 80's. What is also exciting is that the last time Cena and Batista locked up, it was a great match at Summerslam, which I rated ****. If they can match their last bout, and kick it up a few notches, we could have a classic on our hands.


All in all, this is the best Wrestlemania, at least on paper, since Wrestlemania X-7. Hopefully nothing screwy happens (a match getting bumped off the main show to be a dark match, a match getting less than a minute) and we really do have one of the greatest shows in history. I don't want to get my hopes up, but if there was ever a reason to hope, this is it!