Welcome to my debut as a columnist on WrestlingWithWords. I thought I would treat it like a wrestler’s debut and show up the first day after a main PPV, in this case, SummerSlam, and what better way than to recap what went down last night?
I was torn going into it. I mean, I was somewhat excited at the return of the Undertaker, the four title matches, and, of course, the fact that Edge was going to be in a Hell In A Cell. I was not really sold on Batista V. Cena, but I was interested to see what they would do with it. Overall, I wasn’t exactly disappointed, but I can’t say I was overly pleased with the show either. Let’s break it down:
JEFF HARDY V. MVP
This is exactly how a curtain jerker should roll. It was full of continuous action. I loved MVPs crossface adaption. This match featured the run in by Shelton Benjamin, but it was well placed, didn’t distract from the match, and really added to the contest. WCW could have learned a lot from a run in like this. Hardy was able to hit another high risk spot, allowing MVP to get the win. Everyone involved came off looking a lot stronger than they did going in, and it wasn’t regulated to a dark match, so everyone wins. This match totally got the crowd involved, and Indianapolis was rocking. Seriously, this is EXACTLY how a curtain jerker should be.
MICKIE JAMES/KOFI KINGSTON V. SANTINO/BETH PHOENIX
I didn’t like how this ended. Costing Kofi Kingston the IC Title when the men were not even involved in the finale is a big mistake and cheapens the IC Title. If that’s how this was going to go, it should have been the girls against each other with the men at ringside, or it should have been that the title changed only if that champion was pinned, and only that title changed hands. Beth deserves to be champ. Mickie hasn’t done anything with it. While I don’t think Kofi deserves the IC Title, I do think it was too soon to take it off of him. The best part of the match was the celebration at the end, when Santino was riding Beth’s shoulders. All in all, I would say this match was disappointing given the many directions it could have gone instead of what they did.
MARK HENRY V. MATT HARDY
What the hell was the point of this match? I really detest it when WWE spends PPV time promoting TV matches, and that’s exactly what this was. I would not be surprised if there’s a rematch at ECW and this happens again. This will be a build up to a tag match between the Hardys and Henry/Atlas, to keep promoting this feud. Could this be like Hardy’s US Title feud with MVP? This could just keep going.
SHAWN MICHAELS’ BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
Jericho finally returned to form with some of the best heel mic work I’ve seen in ages (not counting the almighty Edge). He hasn’t exactly been accepted as a heel since his return, but last night solidified his return in a huge way. I’m hoping Jericho claims that Michaels was dodging the punch and “forced” him to hit Rebecca. This whole piece delivered so much better than I was expecting it to. I could see Rebecca becoming the new Karen Angle. This should be exciting.
CM PUNK V. JBL
This match was a lot better than I expected. I was actually amazed at how well the two of them worked together. Punk became a legitimate champion last night by CLEANING beating JBL. He did not squeak by as James predicted. He dominated the end of the match in a way that he should. JBL came through on a level of showmanship that I was not expecting as well. This match was a delightful surprise compared to what I thought I was going to be putting up with.
TRIPLE H V. THE GREAT KHALI
The internet was all abuzz about how Triple H would make Khali look good. This match, however, was HORRIBLE. Not only was it clear that Khali still can’t wrestle, he managed to make Triple H look bad. The harder HHH worked, the worse he came off. The Pedigree at the end was horrific. The crowd was pissed. I wanted to call my satellite company and demand a refund. Your championship match of one of the top brands should NEVER draw “You Can’t Wrestle” chants from the crowd. And they were not quiet chants. They reminded me of the good old days of ECDub. They were deafening. I hope Vince was able to hear them. I’m sure Hunter was. This was the worst match I have seen in months.
BATISTA V. JOHN CENA
I’m amazed that John Cena lost cleanly. I really expected some sort of disqualification or no contest. At the very least, I expected one of these guys to pull a heel turn. This match should not have been given to us with so little buildup, but it definitely gave us some solid wrestling on the card. This match was amazing. If you missed it, you really missed out. The end was solid and made sense. Even though Batista went over, John Cena was not buried by any means. This feud should be long, drawn out, and amazing. These two are going to be giving us some solid matches for the next six months or so. It is definitely time for Cena to turn heel. The crowd was solidly behind Batista and solidly anti-Cena. Now is the time for the most gorgeous man in wrestling to pull out a chain and knock Batista’s face off.
EDGE V. THE UNDERTAKER – HELL IN A CELL
HHH V. Khali was the worst match I’ve seen in months and Edge V. The Undertaker was the best match I’ve seen in at least a year. OMG. I don’t even know how else to describe this match. This match is the reason I will be purchasing the DVD when it comes out. This was no wrestling match. It was a straight out brawl. And it was perfect from bell to bell. The spot fest that ensued was amazing. Crashing through the cage was great. Then the spear that Edge hit on Taker through the announce table made me literally jump up and cheer. The best spot of the match though, was the chokeslam from the top rope through two tables on the outside of the ring. The finale with the tombstone was perfect. I was so glad that it wasn’t the damned MMA move that Taker used to use. He may have been “reinstated” but hopefully the move has not. 
Like I said, it was great bell to bell. Taker should have just left, but instead, he returned to the ring and “chokeslammed” Edge from the top of two ladders through the ring. As if that wasn’t bad enough, they had to go overboard and the spot where Edge went through the ring burst into flames. I know he was “going down to hell,” but this was ridiculous and really spoiled an otherwise spectacular match. This match did not hurt Edge (well, maybe physically, but still), and it let Taker return strongly after being screwed in his last Cell match. Edge proved last night that he truly is “the best thing in wrestling,” as James is so fond of saying. He may have lost, but he came off looking more impressive than Taker did, in my opinion. Going just bell to bell though, I would say this is a solid MOTY candidate. That might just be me.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
I think overall, this pay per view was ok. It was like a yo-yo. It was either really great (the main event) or really terrible (Khali, I’m looking at you!). The two titles that did change hands were ok, but not great. CM Punk looked solid and I can take him seriously now. Trips… well, we all knew he was leaving as Champ, and it was bad for what it was, but at least it’s over. Batista/Cena was good, but not as good as I expected. I hope they get pulled apart and have that build up now. They can keep bumping into each other, but I hope this feud is allowed to simmer for a while. And, of course, the main event was spectacular, but the ending was unnecessary. Maybe I won’t feel that way after I see where it’s going. I guess it’s something to think about.
Tags: batista, Beth Phoenix, cena, Champion, chavo, CM Punk, ECW, Edge, guerrero, hardy, HHH, jbl, jeff, Khali, Kofi Kingston, mark henry, matt, McMahon, mickie james, mvp, no mercy, ppv, Raw, Santino, Smackdown, Summerslam, title, Triple H, Undertaker, unforgiven, Vickie, Wrestling, wwe, WWF
