PWP Nation’s very own Eron Ramadanov explains six things we learned from WWE SummerSlam this past Sunday.
With the biggest party of the summer in the books, us wrestling fans can now get on our high horses and nitpick, judge and criticize the show from top to bottom, because… well, why not? So, here goes nothing.
Overall, after 6 hours of content, WWE SummerSlam was a very solid show, in my opinion. After NXT Takeover and just coming off an incredible G1 Climax tournament from New Japan Pro-Wrestling, I knew that sitting in front of my TV for 6+ hours straight of main roster WWE programming was not going to be easy. But after this show, I was pleasantly surprised. Most of these long WWE main roster shows tend to drag and I usually fade about half way through, especially with some of the match quality and writing. But SummerSlam felt different. It seemed to flow quite nicely, and we had several conclusive and decisive finishes which kept me very happy.
So, let’s get into what we learned from last night’s show:
Fans are sick of Charlotte Flair winning
Now, the title of this section might be a little harsh. Overall, I think Charlotte Flair is fairly well-liked among wrestling fans, but last night in Brooklyn, one thing was for sure: they were not happy to see Charlotte win the SmackDown Women’s Title. After months of storytelling, the fans clearly felt like Becky Lynch was going to come out victorious and rooting for her to come out on top.
Granted, this may be the beginning of bigger plans for Becky to eventually regain the SmackDown Women’s Championship and win it for a second time, but after hearing that this is Charlotte’s 7th Women’s title reign, WWE’s end goal is obvious. It seems like WWE has plans for Charlotte to one day surpass her father’s 16* World Title reigns and be immortalized in WWE’s revisionist history.
I’m not saying that I dislike Charlotte, but there is a feeling within the wrestling community where fans are starting to turn on her. This isn’t a good thing for WWE because they obviously view Flair as their centerpiece for the women’s division. I’m afraid she might begin to get the Roman Reigns treatment, especially if it begins to take away from other performers like Becky Lynch. And in actuality, some believe that this is already happening.
Carmella held her own at WWE SummerSlam and proved me wrong
As someone who is a legitimate critic of Carmella’s in-ring ability, I have to admit that she more than held her own against Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair, who both are incredible workers and performers. Personally speaking, I don’t see what WWE does in Carmella. I think her promos and microphone work is average, her in-ring work is basically rest holds and her selling ability is very poor. But in this match, something changed.
Granted, some might say that it’s because of being in the ring with Lynch and Flair, but we have to give credit where credit is due. Going into this match, I was sure we’d see Lynch and Flair for 90% of this match and Carmella would be discarded early and return later in the match towards the finish. That didn’t happen here. She was involved throughout the match. Not only that, but she took a lot of hard bumps and worked well with both Lynch and Flair. Yes, we relied on rest holds and typical punches and kicks, but she was also able to change things up and present a different side to her wrestling ability.
Carmella appears to have taken this match as a real challenge and wanted to prove to everyone on social media and her critics that she can go when the lights are on bright. Now, personally speaking, I need multiple appears like this match from Carmella to deem her as a “good worker.” Consistency is key and if Carmella can continue to improve, I will continue to praise her.
But I’m not going to pretend that this match erases the unwatchable matches she’s had in the past. This is a good start for her, now I want to see her build off of it and continue to improve inside the ring. As much as she doesn’t care about my opinion, nor should she, I will say that she really proved me wrong in this match. Now, let’s see what’s next for her.
The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan will only get better from here
Last night, we got the first match of many, as this feud has only just begun.
Personally speaking, I loved this match. I thought the pacing was great and Miz was really able to keep up with Bryan’s offense. I’m also really happy with the finish. I saw many voice their displeasure with the finish, but I thought it was perfect for where they’re going next. With most fuck finishes in WWE, the babyface is made out to look like a total idiot, which in turn makes up less invested in them. But in this match, Bryan was legitimately screwed out of a win and wasn’t made to look stupid. Miz gets a win, and Bryan gains more sympathy. It was perfect.
The element of Daniel Bryan questioning his return is a great part of this story as well. It’s a great mixture of character development, along with a real life angle. Bryan, in character, questioning his return after losing to the Miz shows that this feud is going to have many layers and this story can’t be told in one SummerSlam match.
I’m of the belief that this feud will see 3-4 matches at the very least. I believe we’ll see two more singles matches and eventually get a mixed tag match with Brie and Maryse being added to the mix.
Kevin Owens is the modern day Mick Foley
It seems like Kevin Owens isn’t learning from history. Granted, we don’t know how much say Kevin Owens has over the bumps he does and doesn’t want to take, but over the last 4-5 months, it’s become apparent that Kevin Owens will take any bump the company proposes to him.
At 34 years old and a history of back injuries, I just don’t know how great of an idea taking the bumps Owens’ has been taking. Off the ladder at MITB, off the cage at Extreme Rules and now a flat-back chokeslam on the ramp. There’s nothing wrong with taking hard bumps in moderation, but with Owens, it seems like he is doing it because he feels like he has too. Again, I’m not sure about what his role is in making these decisions, but from what Mick Foley has said publicly, he doesn’t want anyone having to go through what he is currently going through with his body and countless injuries.
And if Owens isn’t careful, he could be headed down that same road.
WWE still doesn’t get it…
Time and time again, when the focus should be on something in particular that is actually historic or groundbreaking, WWE always makes it about something else. After winning the WWE RAW Women’s Championship, Ronda Rousey was seen celebrating with Natalya in the ring, when it just so happens that Nikki and Brie Bella join in to take part in this celebration of… Ronda Rousey?
As many already know, there is a rumor floating around that Ronda Rousey is set to face Nikki Bella in the main event of the all women’s pay-per-view “WWE Evolution.” With that being speculated, this celebration further points to this story no longer being speculation.
With WWE trying to shed the perception that these women are no longer “Divas,” but “Superstars,” this certainly does not help their case. On a show where you crown Ronda Rousey as your RAW Women’s Champion, why put her next to Nikki Bella and Brie Bella, who are the exact opposite of her. Instead of focusing on Ronda’s big moment, it had to be shared with two women who are products of the generation that symbolizes “Divas” instead of “Superstars.”
Doing this shows that WWE doesn’t get it, still. It’s not about these women. This moment was about Ronda Rousey and they made it about the Bellas. Why? Heck if I know. Either way, it was a misstep in my opinion and continues to prove to me that WWE isn’t focused on the right things.
Roman Reigns makes the WWE Universal Championship attainable again
After 3 long and brutal years, Roman Reigns finally pinned Brock Lesnar and won the WWE Universal Championship. As polarizing as this decision is and continues to be, one thing is for sure.
This move is what’s best for the roster and overall TV product.
For over a year, Brock Lesnar has put a stranglehold on the World Title picture for the RAW roster. This hasn’t allowed guys like Seth Rollins, Finn Balor and others to have a believable shot at the World Title and therefore made them feel less important to many. Love it or hate it, Reigns now makes this title attainable to those guys, which also makes Monday Night RAW a much more watchable show.
Granted, we’ll have to see how long Roman holds onto this title for and what kind of way he’ll be booked, but overall, as much as I like Lesnar, Reigns being champion makes WWE TV a better overall product.
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