James Caldwell, Torch Assistant Editor (4.0)

At some point around the 20-minute mark of the opening Birthday Bash segment, I determined this show was destined for a thumbs down. I figured 25 minutes on DX and McMahon would lead to little-to-no time for The Miz, Evan Bourne, Jack Swagger, Carlito, and Kofi Kingston on the Raw mid-card. Indeed that was the case. Miz won a basic match over Santino, Bourne babysat Hornswoggle, Swagger was put on Superstars and left off Raw, Grumpy Gus Carlito was sucker-punched by McMahon, and Kofi was pulled despite being advertised.

The second-half of the show was very strong starting with Chris Jericho and Big Show. Jericho is just amazing right now. His promos are great, his body language is great, even how he took the loss on Raw was great. Highlights of the night were Jericho talking tough standing next to Big Show after Show called out Mayweather and playing dead weight being dragged out of the building on Show's shoulder after they lost to Mark Henry and MVP.

The main event was great TV. We knew McMahon and DX weren't losing on Vince's birthday. And, without a sense of urgency to promote a PPV, we knew Orton wasn't going to look credible as a threat to prevent Cena from winning the WWE Title at the next PPV. Cue up the happy ending the night after Summerslam with DX standing tall after a compelling main event with a hot crowd. Even John Cena's appearance at the end was well-done despite him not having promo time earlier on the show to vow to take back the WWE Title after being screwed at Summerslam.

Greg Parks, PWTorch.com Contributor (5.0)

God bless the fans for being into everything on that show, otherwise, it would've been an even bigger chore to sit through. I'm assuming Vince was once again feeling vulnerable at getting another year older, thus had to incorporate his "I'm still fit no matter what my age" t-shirt and guns on the show. The opening segment was overkill, but unlike most DX skits, I found at least some of their jokes funny.

I'm intrigued about Orton apparently not giving the OK for the Brett DiBiase interference (at least, that's what he's saying) and I was happy Legacy interrupted the birthday celebration and got to look relatively credible in the main event. Floyd Mayweather was a "miss" as guest host, as he just doesn't have the range to really do anything. And for some reason, WWE refuses to play him as a straight heel. The Miz got a win and the Divas match was good, so those were two other positives in the first hour.

The mid-show tag match was fine and at least MVP and Mark Henry are being given something to do, at least for the short term. Until WWE stops with the guest hosts, I have a feeling the Chavo vs. Hornswoggle feud will continue....unless they put Evan Bourne in a feud with Chavo, which was hinted at. I understand those hating this show, as I'm sure most did, but there was enough positives in there to give it a thumbs-in-the-middle.

Lee Stevens, PWTorch.com Contributor (4.0)

What happens in Vegas should have stayed in Vegas. The birthday party had fun moments, but like many D-X segments, it went several minutes too long. I worried that Mae Young was in the cake and we got Big Dick Johnson. Is that a moral victory?

I enjoyed Legacy breaking up the celebration as it is the second week in a row they did the logical thing and attacked D-X while Triple H and Shawn Michaels were trying to be witty instead of paying attention. I also enjoyed the JeriShow vs. Mark Henry & MVP match. It's good to see another tag team formed and come out looking solid in the process.

The crowd seemed to enjoy seeing the birthday boy get the pin, but when did we decide to start cheering him again? Floyd Mayweather brought the same confusion as his WrestleMania appearance in that the fans weren't sure whether they were supposed to cheer him because he was going against The Big Show or boo him because he acts so pompous and arrogant most of the time.

Any momentum gained by SummerSlam was lost by this very expensive birthday present. Enjoy the Cirque du Soliel.

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