Is it just me or does it seem like it’s taking forever for Summer Slam (yes, WWE.com, it’s two letters because you chose to capitalize both S’s, you leptons) to happen. And I don’t mean that as an anticipatory sentiment, I mean it as a “Ugh, I want this to be done already” sentiment. So it is with that enthusiasm that I move forward with this article…
Pre-Show United States Championship Match: Santino(c) vs Antonio Cesaro
Santino has been the joke champion long enough and I’m glad they’re finally having him defend it and probably lose it. This feels like a situation where WWE is really wanting to boost viewership for the pre-shows and having a belt change hands would be a good way to do that…especially for the next time around with that fans that felt like they missed out. It’s obvious they’re wanting to push Cesaro but he doesn’t quite have any momentum and so this is a good place to start (if one was to believe the US belt means anything anymore).
Tag Team Championship Match: Kofi & R-Truth(c) vs Prime Time Players
First off, this match features two teams that are nowhere near the top-performing tag team right now (I have to give that to Primo and Epico given their recent performances). Secondly, the firing of AW seems to have taken all the air out of this situation. Seriously, how awkward did it seem when Titus and Darren came out Monday on their own? I’m not saying that I was terribly interested in this match prior to AW’s firing but now it just seems like nothing is there and it’s a shame because this tag team had a lot of momentum. Titus and Darren can probably bounce back but AW gave them a lot of heat.
Intercontinental Championship Match: The Miz(c) vs Rey Mysterio
Sigh…
That’s about all I can really say, I guess. They came into the week and looked at the card and realized Mysterio didn’t have a match and wanted some mask sales and so here we go. Mysterio has looked terrible since coming back and I don’t think having a match with Miz is gonna do him any favors. Of course, Miz didn’t have a great match Monday but you have to put into account that Chris Jericho and Dolph Ziggler were also in the match. The past couple years, Rey has looked good but only against certain people (Punk, Jericho) and I’m just unsure about how these two are gonna mesh. That being said, I’m sure Miz will pull some heel shenanigans and come out the victor because I don’t believe WWE is ready for him to drop the belt yet..but then again, it is Mysterio…
Kane vs Daniel Bryan
This is the point of the night where I’m really scared of a Charlie Sheen interference to the surprise of no one given the amount of times “anger management” has been uttered since Raw 1000. It would be a shame too because it seemed like Bryan and Kane had a nice bit of chemistry a couple months ago and I think it would be interesting to see just these two guys go at it.
Chris Jericho vs Dolph Ziggler
An obviously choice for match of the night and I’m sure I’m not the only person to have this sentiment. This is a good move for a one-off because it prolongs Ziggler’s cash-in and gives Jericho something fun to do before he leaves again. There really isn’t much of a story here (minus the whole “can’t win the big one” thing) and that’s really okay because the match is really the important part. There could have been absolutely no story to this as long as the fans got this match. This one legitimately excites me and makes viewing this PPV somewhat bearable.
HHH vs Brock Lesnar
This should be interesting to say the least. I’m pretty excited to see it but I am kinda wore out with the whole build up to it. We really didn’t need all the months of teases where they didn’t the “will they? Won’t they?” dance. I believe it would’ve been just as good if this started at Money in the Bank. The HBK element wasn’t all that necessary but it’s Summer Slam and WWE is wanting (or attempting) to make this PPV a huge deal. As for the match itself, shouldn’t Brock win this decisively if we’re suppose to believe he’s an unstoppable (Kobe!) force until Wrestlemania with minimal appearances? Sure, he didn’t lose by much at Extreme Rules but this guy isn’t Chris Jericho and can manage to look great loss after loss. Common sense booking would have Brock demolish HHH (but not quite as much as Taker at WM28) and go into Mania as the monster WWE is trying to book him as.
WWE Championship Match: CM Punk(c) vs John Cena vs The Big Show
The collective facepalming could be heard around the globe when this match was booked but really, the only thing terrible about this match is Big Show drooling all over the place and forcing us to believe that he is good at what he does. If Big Show were to simply take a nap (a la Money in the Bank) during the meat of the match and left it just to Cena and Punk, I’d consider it a success. My one true fear about this match is the possibility of a Punk/Show feud afterwards and not even Punk could make that bearable. Of course, we’re all wanting Punk to hold on to the belt (at the very least it’ll add some importance to the Rock Rumble). At the same time, Cena hasn’t had a chance to stand victorious over both competitors like Punk and Big Show have and so in the back of my head there’s that little thought of Super Cena showing up and winning. I have this feeling that there’s gonna be something else go on with this…I don’t know what but I can feel it.
Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do twice,
Chris
The Answer: The only time Tensai legit scares the crap out of me
