FEATURE: Adam Martin reviews WWE SummerSlam 2014

Adam Martin reviews WWE SummerSlam 2014

WWE SummerSlam 2014 PPV Review
August 17, 2014
By: Adam Martin of Wrestleview.com

The 27th annual edition of WWE SummerSlam is now in the books and was built around one of the strongest Pay Per View cards from WWE all year. Headlining the show was a rematch from 2012 between John Cena and Brock Lesnar.

The main event didn’t disappoint and neither did the rest of the card.

John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar brings the intensity

Remember this night the next time someone attempts to tell you with a serious tone that John Cena doesn’t lose. The intensity within the first few seconds alone with Lesnar giving Cena an F5 out of no where set an amazing tempo for this main event in Los Angeles. How could it not be intense? The last meeting between these two in 2012 following WrestleMania 28 was easily the most memorable match of that year and brought a unique atmosphere not seen in a WWE ring for well over a decade. Lesnar taking brief punishment from Cena and then just unloading with german suplex after german suplex was flat out fantastic.

Huge props to the commentary team of Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler and JBL putting over the significance at the end of Cena barely being able to put up a fight.

“That is the most dominating performance I have ever seen in a championship match in my life.” – JBL

“It wasn’t even close.” – Michael Cole

What’s the deal with Randy Orton?

Aside from you possibly reading that in a Jerry Seinfeld accent, seriously. What is the Randy Orton character right now? Sure, hitting an RKO out of no where pops the crowd. What else? I’m not exactly sure why I should care about anything he does. Hopefully the WWE can reevaluate Orton’s role on the roster and find a way to recharge his act. He went from a really fun babyface run to, well, what we have now. His loss to Roman Reigns will not doubt help the newcomer, but I’m curious where he goes from here.

Stephanie McMahon impresses with her return to the ring

From a visually impressive outfit to getting physical in a WWE ring for the first time in over 10 years, Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella had a fun build (minus the really awkward cheating thing they added in for some odd reason last minute) and culminated with another fun twist with Nikki Bella turning on her sister. I’m looking forward to where things progress next with Stephanie, Brie and Nikki. It’s nice to see The Bella’s getting TV time with a purpose.

Bray Wyatt puts in another star making performance

Chris Jericho finally slowed down. Bray Wyatt showed even more intensity. Just a flat out huge improvement over the match from last month at Battleground and it felt like it had a bigger impact without interference from The Wyatt Family at ringside. Wyatt has a bright future and Jericho helped this tremendously.

Ambrose vs. Rollins gives us more to look forward to

Remember how upset everyone was that this match got pulled from Battleground? It’s funny how that doesn’t even matter now with how fun the lumberjack stipulation was on Sunday night. The chaotic brawling sequence leading to the finish was very creative and built a wonderful story of Ambrose’s plan backfiring on him. These two have a bright future in WWE and I look forward to this series continuing through the rest of the year.

Hail Rusev

The act of Rusev and Lana is by far one of the strongest aspects of WWE programming right now. The character acting alone of Lana has been just flat out entertaining every week. Drop in some Zeb Colter, Jack Swagger and a fun “my ankle is hurt” psychology and you got a hell of a match at SummerSlam. The selling of Rusev at the end having to put pressure on his injured ankle to apply the Camel Clutch was easily the highlight of the night.

AJ Lee and Paige rebound big time

The girls had a rough match last month at Battleground. They made up for it and then some at SummerSlam. Paige has found stronger character depth as a heel and was something we just weren’t seeing post-WrestleMania 30 with her surprising title win upon her debut. Regaining the title in this form is the better way to go and it’s nice to see WWE rebound with her character after the initial path first taken in April.

Dolph Ziggler shines in Hollywood

After what seemed like a year of snide comments in interviews and “oh my god Ziggler is being buried” comments from the IWC, WWE has embraced the connection that Dolph Ziggler has with the WWE audience. Ziggler is a guy I’d have opening Pay Per View events the rest of the year. Despite the “YOU CAN’T WRESTLE” chants from the snarky snarks in Los Angeles, Miz’s new “Hollywood” character is a breath of fresh air for him and he most certainly can wrestle as displayed on Sunday night.

Overall impression

This was hands down the best WWE Pay Per View event of 2014 so far. Outside of the feel-good moment of Daniel Bryan winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 30, I can’t think of another event WWE produced this year that was this good from top to bottom. If you missed it, you missed a hell of a show.

Agree? Disagree? Let me know on Twitter.

Follow me on Twitter: @adamwrestleview

 

Total
0
Shares