Reverse Hipster's Reviews
Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair, Raw Women's Championship 7.5/10 C
This match had a few good spots like the Spanish fly and the powerbomb reversal. The right person won, but it's definitely their worst match. Something felt off the whole time. The action was clunky, and it felt like they had trouble finding a rhythm. There is a rumor Becky injured her arm, and that may explain how the match went awry. The Bayley, Iyo Sky, and Dakota Kai surprise at the end was really good. I'm glad Becky has turned face and helped Bianca, but I wish Bayley's new group would have attacked Bianca and Becky.
Logan Paul vs. The Miz 8/10 B-
This was basically just a chance for Logan Paul to audition for the WWE Universe. Miz got in minimal offense, and there were a few cheap tricks by Ciampa before he was taken out by AJ Styles, which made no sense. However, Logan Paul was very impressive. He pulled off good wrestling moves and surprising feats of athleticism that I didn't expect from him, like the frog splash from the ring to the announce table and the standing backflip. Logan Paul won the match and the crowd. He has potential.
Bobby Lashley vs. Austin Theory, United States Championship 7.5/10 C
Once again another rematch. Another match with a few nice spots and the right person wins. There isn't much to say about this encounter. It was a diminishing return from their awesome Money in the Bank encounter.
Judgment Day vs. The Mysterios 7.7/10 C
This match was made a little more exciting because of the level of competitors and the fact that it was no DQ. However, it was still a Raw TV match at best. Edge returned to help Rey and Dominik Mysterio get the win, but everyone and their mother knew the vignettes were for Edge, and the whole angle felt lukewarm.
Pat McAfee vs. Happy Corbin 7.2/10 C
This match came in with very little momentum because it didn't really matter who won. Whereas The Miz let Logan impress the crowd in their match, Corbin carried most of this match, but didn't do anything special. Pat was the right winner in this match, but there was nothing extraordinary about the match.
The Street Profits vs. The Usos, Undisputed Tag Team Championships 8.2/10 B
The match was good because these are two elite teams who aren't going to have a bad match. However, this match definitely didn't live up to their Money in the Bank match. The match wasn't well built, and Jeff Jarrett literally could have been any regular ref and it wouldn't have made a difference. Plus, The Usos won when it should have been The Street Profits moment. Ironically, this was still the best match-up on the card up to this point.
Liv Morgan vs. Ronda Rousey, SmackDown Women's Championship 7.3/10 C
Liv won the match, which was the most important thing. She showed a lot of resilience by breaking out of the arm bar three different times when most would have tapped immediately. Ronda dominated the match for the most part, but was pinned while applying the arm bar. However, the ref didn't see that Liv tapped out at two. Ronda snapped and turned heel, which is good for her character, but it wasn't a good match choice. WWE had the chance to tell an epic story of Liv finding a way to beat Ronda by taking all that passion and cashing in her puncher's chance to win. Instead, we got a short match that made Liv look illegitimate in service of Ronda, who didn't need that.
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar, Undisputed WWE Championship 8.45/10 B
Roman beat Brock with the help of The Usos. In the beginning, Brock dominated. Roman had some ugly moments where he debatably didn't make it back to his feet, but the ref counted him in anyway. The match really picked up when Brock lifted a corner of the ring with a tractor dumping Roman to the outside. From there, The Usos interfered, and Brock took them all out. Then, Theory tried to cash in, but he was taken out by Brock too. Brock took out Paul Heyman as well with an F5 through the table.
After that, Roman and The Usos ganged up on Brock, taking him repeatedly, but he kept getting back up until they buried him in rubble. This match was the best on SummerSlam, but it wasn't as epic as it could have been, especially for the last match in their series. Roman has been champ for over 700 days. At what point can he just beat Brock clean?
Rob’s Grades
Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch (Raw Women’s Championship)
SummerSlam started with a bang with this match, and these two started the match with a bang, beginning with insane technical sequences. The match followed up on the year-long story of Becky Lynch returning to steal the title from Bianca Belair, Belair winning it back at WrestleMania, and Lynch trying to end her recent learning streak. In the end, Belair earned Lynch’s respect, and Belair earned the fans’ respect too. Belair is the new Sasha Banks- she has everyone’s best match, and as such, it’s deserving for her to continue as champion. I think we can now safely say that the questionable booking of Lynch’s return is worth it- Belair is more of a star than ever, and Lynch aligning with Belair signifies a potential push as babyface again. Bayley’s return was expected but what wasn’t expected was the intriguing faction of re-signed Dakota Kai and maybe the best pure wrestler that could have been called up Io Shirai. Both had rumors that they were no longer with WWE, and their alignment with Bayley is huge for everyone involved and the entire women’s division. This had Triple H’s creative fingerprints all over it, and I loved it.
Final Grade: 8/10 (Match); 9/10 (Segment)
The Miz vs. Logan Paul
These two are WWE stars through and through: from the build to their entrance presentations to the match itself. This had such a different feel from the first match, but the story was just as entertaining. The Miz thought he could take it easy until Logan Paul started throwing everything at him. Independent of Paul’s fame as a YouTube star, he has all the makings of a big WWE star. Relatively smooth in-ring work and willingness to risk his body for a high spot should make him a hit with the fans. Paul’s win made sense for the story, and it gives them options for where to push him later. Miz isn’t hurt by the loss, and side antics with Tommaso Ciampa and AJ Styles set up a potential show-stealer for later.
Final Grade: 7/10 Good
Bobby Lashley vs. Theory (United States Championship)
This match was exactly what it should be. Theory continued to get the heat as a Money in the Bank Briefcase-holding heel. Bobby Lashley handled him. Money in the Bank cash-ins notably come from briefcase-holders losing, so I think this was more to create intrigue later in the night.
Final Grade: 5/10 Average
The Mysterios vs. the Judgment Day
We have seen these teams wrestle a lot in recent weeks, so the most interesting thing was the no-DQ stipulation and how it played out. Rhea Ripley’s involvement helped the heels control the match until the expected return of Edge. Edge’s Brood entrance was awesome and matched the aura of the feud. Unfortunately, his involvement led to a Mysterio win, and I think the Judgment Day needed the win more. The faction was hot under Edge, but with Ripley’s injury and Edge’s departure, they need some help to stay relevant.
Final Grade: 5/10 Average
Happy Corbin vs. Pat McAfee
Somehow, WWE has found the perfect formula for celebrity matches like this one. Pat McAfee and Happy Corbin’s history made the feud interesting. McAfee understands the business perfectly, from storytelling to catchy chants to cinematic entrances like his choir singing for him. I think they should have let him come out to “Seven Nation Army” again, but I understand their decision to have it be a WWE song if McAfee is going to wrestle semi-regularly. Corbin was the perfect foe because he is so unlikeable, and he made the matchup with McAfee as safe and credible as possible. On the outside, I loved Michael Cole letting his emotions through for his broadcast partner. It made the whole story so much better, and the McAfee win was a sweet big event moment.
Final Grade: 7/10 Good
The Usos vs. The Street Profits (Undisputed Tag Team Championships)
If there was a moment to pull the trigger on the Street Profits, now was that moment. They had a special entrance and the whole crowd behind them. Unfortunately, this match wasn’t as good as Money in the Bank, but it was still good by all means. I think the match was most hurt by the forced gimmick of the guest referee. This match simply didn’t need it, and Jeff Jarrett’s persona didn’t match the energy of the feud. In the end, the Usos won, and I love a historic reign, but there is no end in sight. Montez Ford is a future WWE champion if they want him to be, and I think that will be the story coming out of this match.
Final Grade: 7/10 Good
Liv Morgan vs. Ronda Rousey (SmackDown Women’s Championship)
In a terrible situation, I think the women did the best they could and didn’t let it go too long. This is the toughest spot on the card, and booking-wise, WWE wasn’t willing to make Ronda Rousey look too weak or let fan favorite Liv Morgan lose the championship so soon. They worked a completely different submission style than any other match on the card, and Morgan sold the hell out of Rousey’s offense. Rousey’s attacks after the match give intriguing options to write her off, lean into a heel persona, or face other female stars. The dusty finish didn’t do the new champion any favors, though. I hate that WWE’s enforcement in these situations is inconsistent.
Final Grade: 5/10 Average
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar (Undisputed WWE Championship)
Wow! If this is the conclusion of this nearly decade-long rivalry, it was their best match yet. The decision to have the tractor involved was a creative risk, but it paid off huge. The spots with Brock Lesnar jumping off the tractor, dumping Roman Reigns’s body, and flipping the ring will be memorable forever. Likewise, the spots with The Usos, Paul Heyman, and Theory were huge and got a huge pop from the crowd. Both guys dealt and took as much punishment as possible. By the end, the entire arena was in shambles. It was sort of a disappointing finish, but Reigns winning was the right move because he has a historic reign going, and it doesn’t do anyone any good to transfer it to another part-time veteran in Lesnar. I’m glad Theory didn’t cash in here, as I think that would be best served for a surprise. Next month, we’re all rooting for Drew McIntyre, but for tonight, the crowd was treated to an epic here.
Final Grade: 8.5/10 Great/Amazing
Rob’s Final Thoughts
Are you not sports entertained? The show opened and closed with two of the best matches and biggest moments we’ve seen this year. Even a few of the worst matches were still average. WWE’s push to make Summerslam a WrestleMania-level show here was successful. It had celebrity matches and big moments to remember forever. I loved the venue for this year’s Summerslam, but if I had one complaint, I thought the crowd was lukewarm during huge moments. Maybe that is the fault of the open-air venue as well. In the end, WWE’s big shows are on another level. Triple H’s creative has huge momentum, and WWE just regained the momentum and edge it had after WrestleMania.
Final Grade: 8.5/10 Great/Amazing
Reverse Hipster's Final Grade 7.7/10 C
This premium live event did not live up to Money in the Bank, which is a shame because this is supposed to be the bigger show. There were four core problems with the show. First, the matches weren't well-built. Eighty percent of the card was playing catch up because the feuds weren't well-built. Plus, a lot of the card was rematches. Second, WWE arbitrarily excluded tons of great talent from this card. Alexa Bliss, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, Riddle, The New Day, and Sami Zayn all didn't have matches at SummerSlam. Third, whereas Money in the Bank had very smartly booked matches, SummerSlam lacked creativity and well-built match stories to help get these matches to the next level. Especially the finishes of the matches, each one was so bland. Lastly, the crowd was dead. The crowd didn't pick up these matches at all. Sadly, this premium live event breaks WWE's streak of excellent premium live events.
Drop a comment and tell us what you thought of SummerSlam. July Power Rankings coming soon!
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