A – Excellent
B – Good
C – Mediocre
D – Avoid
Release Date: October 27th
2014
Available From: www.wwedvd.co.uk
Price:
DVD £12.99
Blu-ray £13.99
(Prices from www.wwedvd.co.uk: high street prices will vary)
Format Reviewed:
DVD
(Also Available on Blu-ray)
What It’s About:
WWE’s
2014 SummerSlam event from the Staples Centre in Los Angeles, California on
August 17th, featuring John Cena vs Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight
Championship, Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins in a Lumberjack Match as well as
Paige vs A.J Lee for the WWE Divas Championship plus much more.
Strengths:
Hulk
Hogan opens SummerSlam in a nostalgic themed appearance but that’s the only
reason it’s here. Hulk Hogan says that SummerSlam is where legends are made and
gives the entire spiel that is usually associated with WrestleMania before
turning, predictably, to plugging the WWE Network. However, his promo isn’t as
dull as you’d expect and fans join in with the $9.99 chant as it seems to have
already caught on and it raises a smile. You can’t come out of this bout though
thinking that WWE could have saved more money on the Network without hiring
Hulk Hogan to do this. Still, nostalgia fans will love it.
The
Miz vs Dolph Ziggler for the WWE Intercontinental Championship is a sizzler of
a bout which crackles with life from beginning to end. Granted, it dips in the
middle when The Miz takes control but both men put on a memorable show. With a
great pace, Dolph Ziggler provides most of the highlights beginning with
cracking the turnbuckle chest first in a cringe worthy move which you can feel
through your television set. ‘You can’t wrestle’ chants bombard The Miz who
admittedly does try very hard to make WWE think higher of him, but no one can
deny that Dolph Ziggler is the star of this show. Selling like Shawn Michaels
in his prime, Dolph Ziggler evokes memories of HBK before contesting near falls
and excellent reversals with The Miz including a fameasser into a skull
crushing finale.
Paige
vs A.J Lee isn’t the greatest match either woman has contested but it’s
certainly not the worst. Fought once again for the WWE Divas Championship, it’s
hard to pick out a star as both women excel at the story they’re trying to
tell. As usual, Paige is sultry and her unstable charm is what makes her so
desirable whilst A.J Lee is the tiny, go-getter which you’d give literally
everything to have in your life. C.M Punk is a very lucky man indeed. As for
the action, Paige controls a lot of the bout and is methodical in doing so showing
just how far she’s come in such a short amount of time. A.J is a firecracker on
the comeback and her top rope clothesline to the arena floor sets this apart
from just a normal divas struggle. The match ending reversal which sees Paige
expertly reverse a black widow into the Ram-Paige is out of this world.
Following the bout, the unstable Brit hugs an unconscious A.J Lee in an
unsettling moment which male fans will find very acceptable.
Randy
Orton vs Roman Reigns comes close to taking match of the night honours. Randy
Orton had a lot of making up to do here thanks to enormous backstage heat for
not initiating Roman Reigns into the top flight the proper way and using rest
holds to mind numbing effect on house and television shows. Those same rest
holds are here but to a lesser extent. This bout will deceive you. It begins
slow and builds into a thrilling climax full of reversals and near falls. Randy
Orton does Roman Reigns a great favour but Reigns holds his own and comes out
of this looking like a star. Roman Reigns refuses to stay down, his tenacity is
what makes stars in professional wrestling and his apron kick is as delightful
as ever. However, it’s the final few minutes which really make this a special
occasion. Reigns’ Samoan drop from the top rope is divine, whilst Randy Orton
countering the spear with a power slam is just out of this world. Carrying the
series of reversals and counters on, Randy Orton counters Reigns’ superman
punch with a stunning RKO in the move of the entire match before Reigns
reverses a punt into a spear for the victory. Quite excellent indeed.
Stephanie
McMahon vs Brie Bella may not look much, but for two women who are very limited
in what they can do, it’s passable and somewhat exciting when it reaches its
climax. Stephanie controls a lot of the action, making Brie Bella who is the
wrestler here look like a complete novice. Fans are staunchly behind Stephanie
and are hostile towards Brie who tries to fill her husband’s boots
unsuccessfully. Brie’s ‘Yes Lock’ is terrible and a lot of the jeers she brings
on herself. The single moves are accomplished, especially by Stephanie but
neither can chain anything together and the bout is saved by its finale which
sees Brie nail Triple H with a dropkick through the ropes and stand over his
body leading a ‘Yes’ chant. Stephanie’s selling is flawless and Nikki’s heel
turn can be signposted but pops the crowd when it happens with yet another
‘yes’ chant.
John
Cena vs Brock Lesnar has to be awarded match of the night honours thanks to its
risk taking and content. As most of you will know by now, Brock Lesnar spends
the majority of sixteen minutes dismantling John Cena with hard yet rewarding
suplex’s of all varieties. Audiences find this a little tedious towards the
middle and can be heard chanting ‘boring’ at the pair but its clear they were
expecting something out of this world which John Cena is no longer capable of
producing. Working a gripping story into the time allocated to them, both excel
and apart from not selling any lasting effects on his few and far between
comebacks John Cena does do Brock Lesnar’s beating justice, mostly. It’s an
uplifting moment when Brock Lesnar drops John Cena with the final F5 for the
victory and lifts the gold in a bout which you feel has rewarded you for your
time.
As
for the DVD Extras: Rob Van Dam vs Cesaro in the SummerSlam Kickoff Match is a
thoroughly absorbing bout which builds into a scintillating conclusion.
Beginning on the slow side, both men make sure the flow is kept at a steady
pace as to not become dull and Cesaro really impresses with his crisp suplex’s
and offence. As per usual, the commentators mercilessly plug the WWE Network
but it’s in the ring where the moments really matter. Cesaro counter three frog
splash attempts with flying uppercuts and an actual frog splash with a fourth
sensational uppercut to send the audience into raptures. RVD’s moonsault from
the apron is very well put together and the near falls are sure to please
everyone. This bout should have been included on the main body of the show,
although Cesaro’s star falls even further by losing to part timer Van Dam.
Weaknesses:
Jack
Swagger vs Rusev is a poor excuse for a flag match, which isn’t even fought
under traditional flag match rules. With the winner receiving his country’s
flag hung above the ring, this plods from one dull move to the next when it
should have sparkled with life. Both men are better than this and they know it.
The acting on show is somewhat cringe worthy as Rusev attempts to sell an ankle
injury although he does manage to pull it off at the bout’s conclusion, selling
it with conviction when applying the Accolade. Wisely, with American pride on
the line, WWE don’t book Jack Swagger to tap out and he passes out forcing the
referee to call for the bell.
Seth
Rollins vs Dean Ambrose will please man, but looking at it in the cold, hard
light of day, it should have been the match of the night. Instead, the
lumberjack match is slow to being with and only comes to life when both men
leave the ring and the lumberjack and make their way into the crowd. The
lumberjacks confine both to a mediocre exchange, stopping them from using their
ingenuity and to make matters worse even, for some reason, hold both men back
from fighting outside the ring. When Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins make their
way to a balcony for what promised to be a spectacular powerbomb from the
level, the lumberjacks once again halt the action unnecessarily stopping fans
getting into it. As the bout comes to its conclusion, the pace and tense nature
do peak with a stunning Dean Ambrose dive onto Seth Rollins who is being
carried back to the ring by the lumberjacks but its too little, too late. That
Seth Rollins wins this with aid once again tells us that no one trusts him to
do so alone.
Bray
Wyatt vs Chris Jericho is another mediocre offering from two men who should
have been on top of the world here. Apart from Bray Wyatt’s entrance which
looks amazing, nothing here really comes together. Chris Jericho appears to be
bored with the challenge at hand whilst Bray Wyatt looks on the verge of a
breakdown thanks to his poor usage by WWE. There’s nothing truly terrible here,
but for two men with a varied skill set and much talent this should have added
to what should have been a night of classic brawls. By the numbers and
uninvolving, there are better matches by both men to witness elsewhere.
As
for the DVD Extras: ‘A Special Look at Chris Jericho and Bray Wyatt’s Rivalry’
is merely a highlight reel which anyone could have seen in person had they watched
weekly television. However, it will provide some background for those who don’t
see WWE on a weekly basis but is lacking in depth.
‘Home
Video Exclusive: Nikki Bella Will Never be Forgotten’ is a short and useless
interview with the woman in question in which she says nothing of note. There
are moments of a heel character as Nikki explains her heel turn to the awaiting
audience but its done with no expression or interest.
‘Home
Video Exclusive: What’s Next for Roman Reigns?’ is in similar vein, where Roman
Reigns is interviewed about his match with Randy Orton and what comes next.
It’s all interviewer and not enough interviewee, and to top it all of Roman
Reigns says that it’s back to the drawing board. Why? You’ve just beaten a
former WWE World Heavyweight Champion, surely on the rise his answer should
have been Brock Lesnar and the gold which sat around his waist.
DVD and Blu-ray Special
Features:
SummerSlam Kickoff
Match
Rob
Van Dam vs Cesaro
A
Special Look at Chris Jericho vs Bray Wyatt Feud
Home Video Exclusive
What’s
Next for Roman Reigns?
Home Video Exclusive
Nikki
Bella Will Never Be Forgotten!
Blu-ray Exclusive
Extras:
Raw – July 21st 2014
4 on 1 Handicap Match
Nikki Bella vs Alicia Fox, Cameron, Eva Marie and Rosa
Mendez
Stephanie
McMahon Gets Arrested
Brock
Lesnar is The Authority’s Plan C
Raw – July 28th 2014
John
Cena Has More Passion Than Brock Lesnar
Raw – August 4th 2014
Stephanie
McMahon vs Brie Bella Contract Signing
Raw – August 11th 2014
Bray
Wyatt and Chris Jericho Face to Face
Brock
Lesnar Crashes Hulk Hogan’s Birthday Celebration
Conclusion:
Boasting
a host of gripping and entertaining bouts, SummerSlam 2014 surpasses 2013’s
offering by a country mile though its main event is on equal par thanks to
different qualities. Whilst many will purchase this regardless of whatever I
say because owning a pay-per view event is owning a piece of wrestling history,
I doubt anyone watching will be disappointed even though its not perfect.
Randy
Orton vs Roman Reigns, Paige vs A.J Lee, Dolph Ziggler vs The Miz and Stephanie
McMahon vs Brie Bella along with moments from Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins and
Bray Wyatt vs Chris Jericho all compliment the hard hitting and somewhat
shocking main event which sees Brock Lesnar completely annihilate John Cena in
a match which is bound to please John Cena haters not just thanks to the beat
down he receives but also thanks to the risks taken with Cena which wouldn’t
have transpired had WWE not needed to draw people to their Network.
Rating:
B
Next Time in Review
Corner: WWE The Attitude Era Volume 2 DVD and
Blu-ray
Onwards
and upwards...
