The title of my blog pretty much sums up my feelings on last night's show. It was not a bad show by any means but I wouldn't exactly call it a great, or even good show. It was decent! Even though it's unfair comparison, I happened to enjoy Takeover much more than I did SummerSlam. However, that is just my opinion. I didn't say Takeover was better, because that's an objective statement, but I enjoyed Takeover more. With that being said, while there were a few downs, there were certainly several ups as well concerning the biggest party of the Summer. Let's get to it, shall we?
KICK-OFF SHOW
Mixed Tag Team Match - Rusev & Lana vs. Andrade "Cien" Almas & Zelina Vega
Before the match, Rusev and Lana were in the back, approached by Aiden English. Even though he apologized for his latest mess-up and offered his services, Rusev told him not to come to the ring. After that exchange, it made me question the match result when Rusev and Lana lost anyway, with it having nothing to do with Aiden this time. Once again, Almas and Vega got one over on Rusev Day, though Vega got the pin on Lana, thus keeping Rusev's credibility.
Cruiserweight Title - Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak
Since I do not watch 205 Live, simply because I can't find the time or even the interest, I have no idea what's happening in the Cruiserweight division. I haven't seen Cedric in action since he won the Title at WrestleMania. When the Cruiserweights were featured on Raw, I at least had somewhat of an interest but I believe 205 Live is a mistake that hinders these talented performers more than helps them in the long run. 205 Live happens after Smackdown is over, which by that time people already watched a two hour show and are starting to leave the arena. Tuesday is just the wrong night for this show. A better slot might be Wednesday, leading into NXT, for instance. The match was fine but I was not invested. I think Cedric is too good to be stuck in the Cruiserweight division. In the end, he retained.
Raw Tag Team Titles - The B Team vs. The Revival
Since Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel have been without The Miz, they started doing very well, getting themselves a winning streak, and eventually dethroning the Deleters of Worlds for the Raw Tag Team Titles. However, they're too silly of a team to take serious. In fact, both tag team divisions on Raw and Smackdown are a joke and tag team wrestling is not paid attention to. Sooner or later, the experiment will be over. The Revival will get their turn but last night just wasn't it, as I didn't think it would be either. Sadly, the B Team once again won by dumb luck more so than actual skill. The match itself was fine.
MAIN SHOW
Intercontinental Title - Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins
This was a fantastic way to start the show and I almost feel like it was a nod to how good the previous night's Takeover was in the kind of match we were about to see. As we saw last week on Raw, Dean Ambrose is back, jacked, and in Rollins' corner to combat Dolph's partner Drew McIntyre. The match was great and I think the focus on Ambrose made it even more exciting. Many were expecting Dean to turn on Seth but it did not happen. I think it will soon enough. Surprisingly, Rollins regained the Intercontinental Championship. This was a great opener. I can't complain. Although, I would have just kept the Title on Rollins the entire time if he was just going to get it back barely two months later.
Smackdown Tag Team Titles - Bludgeon Brothers vs. The New Day
This is the first of several complaints I have but it's very minor for this match. In fact, it has nothing to do with the fact that I dislike the Bludgeon Brothers gimmick and that don't enjoy their matches as much as I did when they were part of the Wyatt Family. The match itself was pretty decent and The New Day are always entertaining. The match ended in a lame disqualification due to the use of those mallets. While I appreciate the visual of using a foreign object like that, I would have preferred it either ended the match with the referee's attention elsewhere or after the match to continue the story. It seems to me that this feud is not over. It was a good match ruined by a weak finish.
Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens
One of the problems I had with this PPV was the unnecessary things it brought. For instance, there was no need for this match at all if it was just going to be a squash in less than two minutes. The fact that Braun's Money In the Bank briefcase was on the line made the match intriguing but I can't even rate this match. I would have left this off the card completely, making Braun's appearance later in the show seem all the more exciting.
Smackdown Women's Title Triple Threat Match - Carmella vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair
WWE redeemed themselves with this match, as I was expecting. I was rooting hard for Becky to win the Championship the entire match, hoping she would achieve that goal. I ultimately don't have a problem with Charlotte winning but it would have been nice to see Becky get her moment. However, I am glad the Carmella experiment is over. Becky had Carmella locked in the "Dis-arm Her," with the Staten Island princess about to tap at any moment. Charlotte took advantage of the situation and planted Becky with Natural Selection to win the Title. What happened next, specifically the reaction to it, makes me wonder what WWE's intention was. After hugging it out, Becky attacked Charlotte viciously to the enjoyment of the crowd. If it was supposed to be a heel turn, than it was a failure because I think it made Becky even more popular. I'm looking at it in the same vein as the Sasha Banks/Bayley story, when Bayley, completely out of character, attacked Sasha. Perhaps this leads to a singles match between Charlotte and Becky at Evolution! While I would have preferred a Becky win, the match itself was great.
WWE Title - AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe
In the last few weeks, Joe has made this feud very personal, bringing AJ's family into it. This match was almost surreal, in that we saw it many times in TNA but never thought we'd see it in a WWE ring. Joe had some words for AJ before the match, which I thought for sure would make AJ start the match much more aggressively than he did. The match was great and very hard hitting, with both pulling out all the stops. Joe grabbed a microphone to speak to AJ's wife and after what he said, AJ had enough and launched at Joe. AJ got so angry that he assaulted WWE personnel and hit Joe with a chair repeatedly, which got himself disqualified. Normally, I dislike endings like this. However, with the way this feud has been building and knowing Hell In a Cell isn't far behind, I was okay with it. While normally a DQ finish would cause me to take points off a match, in this case it made sense and extended the story. The PPV's these days are even longer now and if the show ended here, people would have been more invested in the rest of the matches.
Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz
The story between these two men is well documented and is eight years in the making. The video packages on it further enhanced the intensity. This was another good match, yet for some reason the crowd was dead for it. I don't quite understand that but maybe the crowd was a little burned out. Sitting at ringside was The Miz's wife Maryse, with their baby in the carriage. Later in the match, she slipped him something which he used to nail Bryan in the face with to get the victory. I wouldn't have expected anything less from The Miz. It just seems odd that Bryan's wife Brie Bella and her sister Nikki Bella were in the crowd as well, yet Brie didn't get involved when Maryse did. Although, it's only odd due to the Bella Twins involvement later in the show. As expected, The Miz got the win and this will not be the end of it. It's important that The Miz won, as it prolongs the story, hopefully leading up to Bryan's redemption. Depending on how the AJ/Joe story plays out, perhaps The Miz could end the year as WWE Champion, leading to a Daniel Bryan Royal Rumble win and main event at WrestleMania. Unfortunately, the crowd killed the match slightly.
Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin
Going into this match, I didn't care much, especially because I find Corbin to be a black hole of charisma, and because we saw this match already at Extreme Rules. Balor actually went to that dark place and brought out the Demon. Unfortunately, this was yet another less than two minute squash that was completely unnecessary, and frankly a waste of the Demon persona. I hope the person that painted Balor up got paid exponentially, otherwise it was not worth it. Not only that, I don't think a match with Baron Corbin of all people warranted a Demon appearance. This should have been left off the card if time wasn't going to be given. As happy as I am to see the Demon, this was a big waste.
US Title - Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy
On paper, this sounds like an incredible match but they completely killed any care people had with their "match" at Extreme Rules. Despite an amazing missed Swanton onto the ring apron by Hardy, it was just missing something. Many were thinking Randy Orton would get involved, as he has been a problem for Hardy since his return last month. Shinsuke won the match to retain. After the match, Orton appeared but did absolutely nothing and walked away. What the hell was that all about? If not for the fact that this was for the US Title between two guys that should have chemistry, it should have been pulled from the card or put on the Kick-Off show. The lack of chemistry and Orton's lack of doing anything made me not care as much about the match.
Raw Women's Title - Alexa Bliss vs. Ronda Rousey
Once again, we get a match that almost completely redeemed other prior mistakes on the card. If ever there was a squash that needed to happen, this match was it. Ronda stormed to the ring without her usual smile and went straight for Alexa. When the bell rang, Alexa did her best to dodge Ronda. Frustrated, yet understanding Alexa's fear, Ronda sat down in the middle of the ring and told Alexa she was free to take a shot. Alexa chose to use a chin lock on Ronda, who quickly laughed it off and brutalized Alexa soon after. In just four minutes, Ronda made quick work of Little Miss Bliss, making her tap out after nearly breaking her arm, to become the new Raw Women's Champion. What made the moment even sweeter was not only did Ronda dedicate this match to her idol the late Rowdy Roddy Piper, she won for Natalya. Nattie just lost her dad the legendary Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart and was even wearing the same jacket he wore at SummerSlam 1990 and when he and Bret Hart, the Hart Foundation, defeated Demolition to become the Tag Team Champions. A very happy Natalya celebrated with Ronda in an emotional display. The Bella Twins then got into the ring to celebrate with the new Champion, out of nowhere. Remember when I thought it was weird that Brie didn't involve herself in her husband's match? This is why! I heard rumors about Ronda vs. Nikki at Evolution that I hope are not true, as that would be an awful match. Regardless, Ronda Rousey is a freakin' star and now she is Champion. With the exception of the out of place Bellas, this was probably my favorite moment of the night.
Universal Title - Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns
Finally! Was this thing finally going to be over? Fans speculated many different scenarios going into this match, anywhere from Paul Heyman turning on Brock to another Shield reformation. Before the match began, Braun Strowman marched to the ring with Money In the Bank in hand. He informed both competitors that he would cash in on the winner. As we learned by the result of the match, Braun was only there to make sure the crowd wouldn't completely shit on the match as expected. It's a dick move but it's genius! We all got worked last night! Braun found himself involved when Reigns was launched out of the ring and onto him. Lesnar than hit Braun with the briefcase and threw it all the way up the ramp, followed by laying out The Monster Among Men with an F-5. This distraction allowed Reigns to follow up with a spear to pin Brock Lesnar and become the new Universal Champion. To WWE's credit, they didn't give him time to celebrate and briskly ended the show. I was expecting a Roman win but I frankly didn't. Despite Reigns being Champion, at least he'll actually be around to defend it, unlike Brock. All in all, the show was okay but the negative things during the show took away from it, as it could have been a great show. I still enjoyed Takeover more, but that's neither here nor there!
If you have any further thoughts on this topic, let me know in comments. Heck, let us all know on The WAR Report podcast, every Tuesday at 7PM EST on YouTube, brought to you by tagmeadate.com, the first and only dating site for wrestling fans. Go to askthewarreport@gmail.com or #askthewarreport. For TagMeADate members, our Android and Apple apps are vastly approaching so stay tuned!
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