Summer Slam, the signature event of the season for the WWE, kicked off its two-night presentation at MetLife Stadium. As unnecessary as making this event two nights is, the bottom line is, if they can sell twice as many tickets in a particular location, and get the city that hosts the show to pay a site fee, they are going to maximize the profit, even if it hinders the quality overall. The show had just six matches, but went nearly three and a half hours, which was a major factor because the pace of the show and the matches were designed to stretch as long as possible, even when there wasn’t a need for it in terms of the quality of the show.
An example of this was the opening tag team match of Roman Reigns and Jey Uso vs. Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed. Everything from the entrances to the introductions were done at a very deliberate pace. The match itself was fine, but more of a Raw main event than a featured bout at a pay-per-view in a stadium. Granted, it was the first contest of the night so they didn’t have to do anything other than play the greatest hits, and they probably shouldn’t have done more than that anyway given its position on the card, but it was still somewhat odd that Roman booked for the first match of a major event that was almost forgettable by the time the show went off the air.
Reigns and Uso got the victory, but I’m not sure the results mean all that much in the grand scheme of things, which was another aspect that made this seem like more of a TV main event than anything else. In some ways, it’s uncharted waters with how to use someone like Reigns after such an extended title run in the modern era, what else is there to do? I’m not sure what the answer is, but taking into account Roman’s extended absences at various points since he dropped the title last year, if the office wants to keep his star power strong, he’s going to need a firm direction as a character at some point. The Bloodline angle was very well done, but Roman in particular, has worked with and against almost everyone involved so it’s probably the right time for him to go in a different direction. The reason being, Roman appears to be there just to be there rather than to have a purpose, and that scenario could actually diminish the star power he brings to the table.
After the opening tag bout went just over 20 minutes, the women’s tag match was somewhat of a flat point, both in terms of importance and performance. As mentioned, Reigns has a certain level of cache just for his involvement, something that can decline if he’s not given the direction going forward, but the point is, at least for right now, Roman Reigns still have the mystique of a top guy. It’s a natural decrease to go from the longest-reigning champion of the modern era to a pair of thrown together tag teams. Ironically, Charlotte Flair was booked to do so much, partially to artificially get her close to her dad’s title record, so early in her career that by this point when she’s such a polished pro, it’s another situation where you have to wonder, what else is there for her to do?
The tag team with Alexa Bliss is new territory in a sense, but the pair was scheduled for this match just to give both of them on the card. As much as Raquel Rodriguez appeared to make some progress increasing her stock working with Rhea Ripley, she looked like a secondary performer in this segment. I don’t know the best way to explain it, but she doesn’t present herself in the most effective way, almost as if she’s somewhat timid as a performer. Instead of being the powerhouse that she was working with Ripley, she almost shrunk into the role of follow the leader with Charlotte more or less leading the match.
As far as the match itself, it was somewhat clunky and for whatever reason, it just didn’t get into second gear. The crowd wasn’t that invested in the action either and there were a few quiet moments for spots that were designed to try to get a reaction. It looked like there was a point there they got lost and the referee might’ve been relaying some information to them. Charolette and Bliss won the titles, and in the long run, this will probably be a successful duo, but for the moment, it was a thrown together tag match that still seemed like it went long even though it was under 15 minutes.
Sami Zayn defeated Karrion Kross in a bout that only went seven or eight minutes. There wasn’t anything wrong with it, but there’s not too much to say about it either. It was another TV match in a stadium. Since Kross’ contract status is still unknown, this might be another example of the office putting Sami over until they know if Kross is going to remain on the roster. It’s basically the same thing that I wrote about their bout at the Night of Champions pay-per-view, management doesn’t have a reason to push Kross until they know that he will be under a new deal. As far as Kross’ future, he might be in a no-win situation, as WWE management didn’t put much stock into him until he got himself over as somewhat of a cult favorite, and if he doesn’t re-sign to go to All Elite Wrestling, it’s almost certain that he would get completely lost in the shuffle in a matter of weeks.
Tiffany Stratton beat Jade Cargill retain the Women’s championship in about six minutes, which was about as long as this segment should’ve been given. This contest was tailored for the circumstances and it was a wise decision, as the office showcased the skills of each competitor without putting them in the ring too long to expose any weaknesses. This was a very good, albeit, very choreographed match and both athletes had a solid performance. Tiffany as a baby face is rather cringe worthy, but her athleticism is a valuable asset and she’s young enough that she has enough time to evolve in terms of in-ring quality so there’s no reason to rush her into longer segments unless she has an established veteran to work with. Jade’s biggest strong points and her most glaring weaknesses remain the same now as they were when she arrived in the WWE. She looks and presents herself like an absolute star. She’s also completely unpolished in the ring, and another six-minute PPV match definitely isn’t an indication that she’s ready for the next level, which might be why she didn’t win the championship.
Any celebrity involvement has the possibility to be hit or miss. Thankfully, Jelly Roll’s WWE debut was somewhere in the middle at Summer Slam. Some of the spots were very much a novice that hadn’t wrestled in front of a crowd before, but there were times that Jelly Roll made what he did work for the situation. It was somewhat of a wonky scenario, as Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre are two of the best workers on the roster, and they had to work within the context of the completely new wrestler of Jelly Roll and a still relatively new Logan Paul. The match was fine and had some memorable moments, but it was also a lot to juggle for the veterans in the match. Logan Paul pinned Jelly Roll, and besides the main stream publicity, it makes sense to put Logan over if he’s going to continue to be a semi-regular competitor on the roster.
Remember when I mentioned that the two-night format might hinder the overall quality?
Prior to the main event, you could see why a weekend of events might spread the roster too thin, as at this point in the show, it wasn’t necessarily anything subpar, besides the women’s tag match, but there wasn’t really anything spectacular either. Outside of the celebrity tag match, most of the card was a TV taping, not a signature pay-per-view. At the very least, this suggest that the two-night format will often have a B-show and that was definitely the case here.
With that being said, there was undoubtedly pressure for the main event to deliver not only quality, but also something memorable. It went over 30 minutes, which was a little too long and they could’ve easily trimmed a few minutes off while still being able to accomplish the same goal, but this was a very well done segment.
There are a few key lessons that should be taken from the Gunter/CM Punk bout, including how effectiveness is determined by how the talent works with anything involved, not necessarily the biggest bumps or over-the-top gimmicks. When Gunther chopped Punk, it was sold and put over as a brutal aspect of the segment. The narrative of the match was relatively simple, CM Punk was going to try to use technical maneuvers to wear down the bigger champion, and Gunther was going to try to smash Punk with brute force. They didn’t need to drop each other on their head or take unprotected chair shots to make the action meaningful and important. Basically, it’s a lesson in ring psychology that should be taken into account by some of the other performers of the modern era. Furthermore, the blood was used as a focal point of the match that ultimately led to CM Punk winning the title. Nobody bled buckets on a random TV taping that will be forgotten about in two weeks.
The conclusion of the pay-per-view was somewhat telegraphed, as it was difficult to believe that Seth Rollins was only going to appear on stage, especially with the speculation that he might cash-in the MITB contract, but it was still very well done. As mentioned, this card needed something memorable to truly boost its quality before it went off the air, and the quality main event, as well as the cash-in accomplished that. I’d guess that tomorrow night’s event will be the A-side of Summer Slam, but there’s no question that night one will be known for the memorable cash-in when Seth Rollins won the title.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
Email [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
