Summerslam - Good and Bad at the Same Time

After all the build up in the last weeks weren't you expecting a lot from WWE Summerslam? I sure did and did not really get the satisfaction I needed except in some moments. Let us think about what happened at the "Biggest Blockbuster of the Summer". Everything started with quite a good promo. I always did like the WWE wrestling promos. They are quite good and the one with the Undertaker opened a lot of possibilities. From some pictures I actually thought that the Undertaker would come back to the Ministry days, that would have been awesome but will never happen again! A lot of WWE fans want the whole Attitude Era back and more, including the masked Kane and not to mention some wanting a return of the Rock or Steve Austin. Although the last two things are possible the others are highly impossible unless with a huge bang. The WWE did have a flop with the Degeneration-X reunion and they do bring back The Brothers of Destruction once in a while but that is about all at the moment! OK! Let's get back to Summerslam 2008 because we can rant forever on such topics.

The first match of the night was a Jeff Hardy versus MVP match that was built up with less time than needed in my view. Both guys are pretty good when talking about wrestling skills but this is a feud that does need to either continue or never be mentioned again. Thumbs up on the finish of the wrestling match with the interference of Shelton Benjamin. That was quite unexpected and MVP won it due to that distraction. Given the fact that Shelton is a champion at the moment, it would be interesting to see a feud built up in these three wrestlers: Jeff Hardy, MVP and Shelton Benjamin.

Next we had the Winners Take All Match between Kofi Kingston and Mickie James versus Santino Marella and Beth Pheonix. It was kind of obvious that Santino and Beth would win it with Beth making the pin as it would only be logical. Unfortunately the match was not that entertaining and Santino does need some more ring wrestling skills. I do not know if he simply does not have wrestling moves in his arsenal or the WWE does not let him use them. On the other hand Kofi Kingston is incredibly athletic. It would be an incredible team of Kofi Kingston and The Truth Killings on Raw. Till that possibility the match was kind of short but most matches in the WWE that involve women are short. On the other hand Santino and Beth are pretty funny and I do laugh a lot when I take a look at Santino Marella. So, new champs!

We then had the Shawn Michaels retirement speech that also saw Jericho accidentaly punch HBK's wife. This storyline is quite interesting, leaving aside the eye injury storyline, which is quite stupid. On the other hand, Chris Jericho is a very good heel and he is much better than others like Randy Orton, for instance. Can't wait to see how this storyline continues!

Now the match for the ECW Championship between Mark Henry and Matt Hardy was simply a wrestling match that should not have been at a pay per view like Summerslam. The crowd loved it because of a small reunion of the Hardy Boys, probably a stunt to advertise the new Twist of Fate DVD.

Then we had the World Championship Match between CM Punk and JBL. It was obvious that CM Punk would win it and I think everyone is glad that there was no controversy when talking about wrestling in this match. CM Punk is sure to remain some time at the time due to the fact that any feud that includes him is fresh and would be original. On the other hand, at the next WWE pay per view, Unforgiven, there will be a special match that will see 5 men fight for the championship. If CM Punk wins that one he will probably hold the title for a long time.

Next the Great Khali versus Triple H for the WWE championship. The crowd was absolutely right when they were chanting "You Can't Wrestle" for Khali but hey, this is once again just business. This guy sells in a country with a lot of inhabitants like India so he needs to be involved in high angle matches. On the other hand, it would have been stupid for Khali to defeat Triple H, especially at the run he is having at the moment and the fact that he did not lose a Summerslam match in around 6 years, if I am not mistaken. A pedigree on The Great Khali and still champ, Triple H.

Now the next match was huge in terms of fans: John Cena versus Batista. A cute little storyline built on mutual respect and wanting to be the best and a match that was eagerly expected by fans. A huge mixed reaction to these two wrestlers and my pick for the match did win: Batista after a powerbomb and a Batista bomb. It is great to see that both Batista and Jena have more moves in their arsenal and I must say I really like the fact that Batista executes that Jackhammer suplex, one move I really like. I also enjoyed the Figure 4 although I will never understand why people work on the left knee and they lock on the FIgure 4 on the other leg.

The main event was the one that people really wanted to see and I do not think anyone would disagree with this. Edge versus the Undertaker, Hell in a Cell. Crazy Edge versus The Undertaker was a really intense Hell in a Cell wrestling match. What can I say? You have to see the match and I hope you did! Both wrestlers have stepped up high gears here and we saw The Undertaker executing the Last Ride, the Chokeslam, the Tombstone Piledriver, the ConChairTone, Edge's Spear, we saw three spears from Edge, camera hits, ladders, tables, chairs, stair steps and even Edge put through the ring and "burnt alive" by the Undertaker. There were so many near falls and I do think that Edge will be going on a break now. He was put into a lot of intense matches lately and I am quite surprised of the show these two professional wrestlers created. Both of them will surely be in the WWE Hall of Fame.