WWE SummerSlam Review - August 19, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Andrade "Cien" Almas and Zelina Vega def. Rusev and Lana (Kickoff Match)

As I've said several times before, I haven't been all that invested in this feud whatsoever, so I found that it was right where it belonged on the Kickoff show. I wish Rusev and Almas could have made the main card, but to be honest, I would have been content with this not happening at all because it was pretty abysmal, especially once Lana and Vega were going at it. The finish looked botched, too, which didn't help matters. Aiden English not getting involved was a slight surprise, but I'm sure he will in the likely rematch this week on SmackDown Live.

WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander def. Drew Gulak (Kickoff Match)

It's cool the Cruiserweights were a part of the SummerSlam card, but it was quite clear that a majority of this Brooklyn audience isn't watching the new and improved 205 Live. They've told a solid and straightforward story with these two on the Tuesday night show, yet the crowd was quiet up until the final few minutes. They deserved a better atmosphere, but I applaud Alexander and Gulak for the effort, nonetheless.

Raw Tag Team Champions The B-Team def. The Revival (Kickoff Match)

I give The B-Team credit for organically getting over as underdog babyfaces, but I stand by my belief that they aren't cut out to be long-term tag team champions, nor are they doing the division any favors. Meanwhile, The Revival are a tremendous tandem that would be a fantastic fit for that role. Unfortunately, this was a nothing match that featured one of those silly "slip on a banana peel" finishes done to protect The Revival in defeat. Here's hoping they take those titles sooner rather than later.

Seth Rollins def. Dolph Ziggler to Win the Intercontinental Championship

There have been some stellar SummerSlam openers over the years, so it was wise of WWE to go with this as the first match of the night and set the tone for the rest of the show. It was better than their Iron Man match at Extreme Rules, yet not as strong as their series of matches on Raw in late June. The first half was slower than expected, but once they picked up the pace, it turned into a quality contest with a hot closing stretch. Rollins regaining the gold was the right move and I'm sure Dean Ambrose turning on him is only inevitable.

The New Day def. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Bludgeon Brothers by Disqualification

I've largely been bored by most of The Bludgeon Brothers' matches since their title reign kicked off at WrestleMania, so I appreciated this being an actual competitive contest that was fun while it lasted. My only nitpick is that the disqualification finish was lame. If nothing else, it keeps the feud alive and keeps New Day in chase mode. They're riding a wave of momentum at the moment and should be the team to ultimately dethrone Bludgeon Brothers as champs eventually.

Braun Strowman def. Kevin Owens to Retain His Money in the Bank Briefcase

Owens is incredibly entertaining, but not even he has been able to salvage this pointless program with Strowman. It was obvious Strowman was winning, so I can't say I blame them for want this to be short and sweet. That said, I wasn't expecting Owens to be beaten as decisively as he was. He deserves so much better than this, and sadly, he has never meant less. Unless Owens retaliates by costing Strowman his title shot (which shouldn't happen anyway), this was a waste of time.

Charlotte Flair def. Becky Lynch and Carmella to Win the SmackDown Women's Championship

The three-way formula worked wonderfully here because any one of them could have realistically walked away with the title and therefore there was suspense surrounding each nearfall. After crapping all over her matches with Charlotte and Asuka months ago, I have to give props to Carmella for her performance, but I'm glad she's no longer champion. Based off the finish, you'd think Charlotte would have been the one to turn heel, but instead it was Lynch, who is one of the most beloved characters in all of WWE. I highly doubt fans will side with Charlotte over Lynch, but time will tell.

Samoa Joe def. WWE Champion AJ Styles by Disqualification

Styles and Joe would have killed it against each other regardless, but the added intensity from Joe targeting Styles' family recently on TV made this match so much more meaningful. Styles' aggression was particularly refreshing and the crowd into everything they did. Doing two disqualification finishes on the same show (especially on a pay-per-view), but it made sense here and now we can see them clash inside Hell in a Cell next month.

The Miz def. Daniel Bryan

This was on the same level as Styles vs. Joe from an in-ring standpoint, but the crowd heat just wasn't there for some strange reason. Perhaps because it had to immediately follow the WWE Championship match, but the lack of reaction was disappointing. Despite that, this was a ton of fun and their chemistry is off the charts. Miz winning was crucial to prolong the program and give Miz something to brag about for the next few weeks.

Finn Balor def. Baron Corbin

No one, and I mean no one, gave a crap about Balor vs. Corbin coming into the event, so having this be as brief as possible was the best thing they could have done. Better yet, The Demon making a surprise appearance was a real treat. We haven't seen Balor's alter-go since TLC last October, and then SummerSlam 2017 before that. Balor was cold for a long while, but this gave him the boost he desperately needed.

United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura def. Jeff Hardy

I really enjoyed the encounter these two had on SmackDown Live last month, but this was a basic bout where virtually nothing stood out as special. I don't think it helped that fans had a feeling Randy Orton would interfere would and, oddly enough, he never did. Thus, Hardy winning in clean fashion came off as anticlimactic. It was also stupid for him to do that Swanton Bomb on the apron considering how beat up his body reportedly is at the moment.

Ronda Rousey def. Alexa Bliss to Win the Raw Women's Championship

Rousey is one of the biggest badassess in the entire company, so it would have been totally unbelievable if Bliss lasted more than a handful of minutes in the ring with her. I feared there would be interference at some point, but instead Rousey squashing her was fairly straightforward. I could have done without The Bella Twins hogging the spotlight afterward, though, and I hope the rumors of Rousey vs. Nikki Bella in the main event of Evolution aren't true.

Roman Reigns def. Brock Lesnar to Win the Universal Championship

WWE figured out a way to avoid the fans pooping all over the match (a la WrestleMania 34) by having Strowman come out before the bout and announce that he'd be cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase against the winner immediately afterward. Granted, that never happened because he was laid out at ringside by Lesnar, but good on WWE for making fans think it would. I can't really say much about the actual match because it was just a ton of spots and not much more, but Strowman's involvement made it more exciting than either of their encounters from earlier this year.

Overall Show

I had low expectations for SummerSlam based off how WWE has let me down before with past installments, but this was an overall thumbs-up show. Not everyone is going to be thrilled about the ending, but it was what needed to be done. Additionally, multiple championships changed hands and there were several above-average matches as well. It wasn't a home run of a pay-per-view by any means, but at least there are a few compelling stories coming out of the event.