-- 8/15 WWE Summerslam PPV Reax

Christian B. of Spremberg, Germany, Student (2.0): Best Match: Team WWE vs. Team Nexus. Worst Match: Divas Match. My reaction to the second annual Summerfest...er...Summerslam 2010 is focused on two things: the co-main event and the main event. The rest of the show - exclude Miz's good promo - was some of the worst PPV action I've seen in a very long time. Hardcore Justice was better than that under-card. The return of The Undertaker was not surprising, but that Kane already Tombstoned him was good. Then, there was the main event. After Miz was called off the team, I thought it would be Triple H replacing him, but what a moment when it was Bryan Danielson on stage running by Miz. The match itself was very good until the last two minutes. Cena took a DDT on a concrete floor! Gabriel was eliminated after he missed the 450, then Barrett quickly tapped to the STF. It was Cena simply being Superhero once again. It was a big chance to make John Cena look human and more sympathetic, but that chance was missed. The only absolute shocking thing to make all that forgotten would be Nexus buying The Rock with "money from David Otunga" and connections through his wife. Sadly, that has a 0.00001 percent chance of happening.

Steve Rammond of Bolton, England (3.0): Best Match: Team WWE vs. The Nexus. Worst Match: Big Show vs. SES. WWE creative served up a messy and unsatisfying summer feast at last night's blue ribbon PPV event. The booking for the undercard was poorly considered and the main event too predictable. Where does the Raw Divas division go after Melina took the title from Alicia Fox just 13 days after returning from injury? A growing angle in the ongoing Straight Edge Society story is C.M. Punk's ire at his troops. I'm being generous about this piece of booking. What's next for Big Show? A fully-grown mountain gorilla? We get it - he's big. Sheamus vs. Orton plodded along and we were cheated into another false finish. This was the third on the card if you include Punk abandoning his troops and any chance of a SES victory. In Kane-Mysterio, the biggest pop of the night greeted Undertaker's return. We don't need a new Taker-Kane program, but Kane is getting over better as a decent heel rather than a half-assed face. ... I would have bet my house that Morrison and Truth would be the first members of Team WWE to be eliminated in the main event. I would have bet my mother that a lone Cena would face insurmountable odds and triumph. I would have bet my car that the seventh team member would be Evan Bourne or Triple H, and I'd be walking to work from now on. WWE threw a genuine curveball in Daniel Bryan, forgiven, it seems by all, for spitting in Cena's face on live TV. This match was good fair, but not enough to save a poor PPV. The comparison between Cena today and Hulk Hogan in the late '80s grows closer and I am antsy for WWE to find someone they're happy for Cena to put over 1-2-3 in the middle of the ring.

Richard H. of Wilmington, Ohio: Well, Summerslam certainly didn't suck. It didn't rock my world either. For every highlight (finally a good Divas match, Taker's return, Kane being the guilty party, a decent comedy match, two workmanlike title defenses, and some good swerves) there were just as many hiccups. Why did they have the Miz take an hour (okay, it only seemed like an hour) to join Team WWE? Why was Melina dressed like a Vegas showgirl, complete with flesh colored tights? Why inject Lay-Cool into her program, unless WWE has no faith in the other Divas? Kofi was screwed over again in a title match, not even getting to finish, although he did give a great example of why it is called a suicide dive. Show and SES were reduced to comedic filler. The mid-carders on Team WWE got no love, as Team Egos-R-Us hogged the limelight. Overall, the writers tied up a lot of loose lines while setting new ones in motion. We can probably assume Daniel Bryan feuding with Nexus, Cena vs. Edge and/or Jericho, Kane vs. Undertaker (casket match, anyone?), Melina vs. Lay-Cool, Miz vs. everyone, and the continuation of the Sheamus-RKO battles. Finally, I liked the spot with Taker in the casket, even though it was really given away early in the match, along with WWE actually going with the best choice for Team WWE's seventh man. Worth the pop, but barely.

Tyrone Dudley of Roanoke, Va. (5.0): Best: Daniel Bryan's return. Worst: Super Cena and Michael Cole. At Summerslam, Super Cena was brought to a whole new level I'm not a Cena hater. I don't boo the man, because quite frankly he makes money and really cares about his job as a wrestler, excuse me, sports entertainer. However, I just can't get over the fact that he recovers supernaturally from the worst attacks. When he was first beat down by Nexus, the next week he was running a full sprint to the ring. That does nothing for the offense of Nexus. When he was DDT'd on the concrete, I was thinking the match would go at least ten minutes longer just to sell the effects of the DDT. Nope. Daniel Bryan was outstanding; actually, the main event outside of Super Cena was outstanding. The young guys really stepped up. Michael Cole had to ruin my experience, though, with his constant ripping of Daniel Bryan, who tied Cena for the most eliminations in the match. Someone said that Cole couldn't bury Bryan any more if he had two shovels and a backhoe. The rest of the PPV was decent to good. I was frustrated with Kofi and Dolph getting little faith in their abilities even though it's pretty clear they are two of the very best athletes on the roster. We all know what being a great athlete does for you in WWE, right Shelton Benjamin? Rey-Kane was pretty good, but we all knew Taker was coming out. We all knew he'd implicate his brother. Show-SES did what it was supposed to do. Melina-Fox was all right at best. I wonder if Gail Kim watches these matches and regrets pioneering an entire women's division in another company. Miz was his usual great self. I think Michael Cole jumping on the Miz bandwagon is a way to make sure fans don't cheer him. It's not working, WWE. Orton-Sheamus was good, but non-finishes at one of the Big Four PPVs (I still refuse to believe Survivor Series is gone) is unfair to the people watching. Save the non-finishes for an off-brand PPV that builds to the Big Four. All in all, a decent PPV. Michael Cole and Super Cena pretty much dropped this from a 7.5 to a 5.0. I just want one thing: Todd Grisham gets a chance on a PPV. Striker works so much better with Grisham than with Cole and Lawler.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE PPV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on the PPV, click here.

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

WWE PPV REAX #1: "I wanted the biggest event of the summer to end with an exclamation point; it ended with a semicolon and a question"

WWE PPV REAX #1: Battleground finish generates mixed reactions...

WWE PPV REAX #2: In-Person Battleground Report on overall show, reactions, more