WWE SummerSlam 2015: Reactions & Review

Here’s our final review of WWE SummerSlam 2015!

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

Reactions: This wasn’t our pick for the opener, but it did a decent job of hyping up the crowd during its later portions. Both men’s physical exchanges started off after the entertaining crowd banter between Sheamus and the NYC wrestling fans. We’ve seen this type of match featuring both men a million times, so what they did here wasn’t exactly fresh or all that exciting. The match had its cool moments here and there. The 1st RKO handed to Sheamus and Orton top-rope hung DDT on Sheamus were cool to see. This match was just there, to be honest. An OK effort overall. The right man went over, though.

Rating: 2 & a Half out of 5 Stars

The Prime Time Players (Darren Young and Titus O’Neil) (c) vs. The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston, and/or Xavier Woods) vs. Los Matadores (Diego and Fernando) vs. The Lucha Dragons (Kalisto and Sin Cara) (Fatal 4-Way Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship)

Reactions: Now this is the match that should have started the PPV off! The New Day’s opening promo was filled with an “amazing” rendition of Jay-Z and Alicia Keys’ NYC anthem. Once the match got underway, the action never slowed down. There were several standout moments throughout – Kofi and Big E’s genius plot to steal the titles, Big E landing his apron body splash on Darren, Titus going on a tear against everyone in the ring, the over-the-top rope mayhem etc. This was a fun sprint from start to finish. The final moments of this match truly put it over the top. Titus pulled off a cool powerhouse move when he planted both The Lucha Dragons and Los Matadores. Kofi’s quick run-in made us overjoyed as it led to the most entertaining WWE tag team getting their championship titles back. This was great!

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

Rusev (with Summer Rae) vs. Ziggler (with Lana)

Reactions: We were expecting a lot more from this grudge match. While Rusev and Ziggler put on an OK bout, both Superstars are certainly capable of something way more entertaining. We’re guessing they saved themselves for the eventual mixed tag team match at the next PPV. They still managed to put forth a decent effort that got the crowd hype once Ziggler made his comeback. When Ziggler was in control, the match picked up the pace considerably. Rusev’s slow and crushing offense isn’t all that enticing to watch, to be honest. The crappy finish really didn’t do this bout any favors. We hope their next outing is what we expect it to be – better than average.

Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars

Stephen Amell & Neville VS. Stardust & King Barrett

Reactions: We gotta give props to Stephen Amell. He’s a pretty fit actor, so we knew he’d be able to look halfway decent in this tag team outing. While his initial flurry of moves looked far from pretty, he showed and proved as the match wore on. This was your typical tag team match on RAW, but with the added Hollywood presence of TV’s Arrow. A short and inoffensive matchup such as this one didn’t stand out, but it was fine for what it was. And hey, any match that features Neville’s Red Arrow is never all that bad.

Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars