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WWE SummerSlam Hits

Jeff Hardy vs. C.M. Punk TLC match: This was hands down the highlight of the show as far as I'm concerned. Hardy deserves a ton of credit for delivering a series of excellent matches before his likely hiatus. If this was his swan song, then he went out on a high note. Great performances from both men in one of the most entertaining matches of the year.

Undertaker returns: This was very well done. The majority of the live crowd didn't seem to notice that Taker had replaced Hardy until he reached up and grabbed Punk by the throat. This was a hot return that blows away the horrible way that WWE reintroduced Shawn Michaels.

DX vs. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase: Don't misunderstand what I wrote about Shawn in the paragraph above. I enjoyed the hot entrance and this match, but I was totally letdown by the lackluster way they reintroduced HBK on Raw over the last few weeks. The last 10 minutes of the match were great and I was thrilled to see Shawn and Hunter make Cody and Ted look strong in defeat. Here's hoping they follow up in a big way with Cody and Ted tonight. Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler did a nice job of selling the story that Cody and Ted pushed DX to the limit.

Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler: A hot opening match that got the pay-per-view off to a great start. Jim Ross and Todd Grisham did a nice job of telling the story that Ziggler is inching closer to capturing the Intercontinental Title. Much like Cody and Ted, Dolph was elevated despite losing the match.

JeriShow vs. Cryme Tyme: I liked the finish a lot with JTG reaching the ropes to break the Walls of Jericho, only to have Big Show appear out of nowhere with the big knockout punch on the floor. A solid match. 


Overall show: A strong show that featured a great main event, the return of Undertaker, a strong opening match, and DX reunited with the big entrance. WWE delivered nicely with their biggest pay-per-view of the summer.

WWE SummerSlam Misses

Randy Orton vs. John Cena: The restarts resembled the most overbooked TNA pay-per-view main events. Lilian Garcia didn't exactly help the cause by botching the explanation of what was taking place. These are the two big, young stars of the company, and I expected a better match and a much better finish. That said, I like the idea of having Brett DiBiase interfere as the planted fan who attacked the referee. It will be interesting to see how they follow up on this tonight during Raw.

Christian vs. William Regal: I was disappointed that the match lasted less than 10 seconds. However, I must say that I got a kick out of the creative finish that Regal can bitch about on Tuesday. Here's hoping they get a real match on television or pay-per-view soon.

MVP vs. Jack Swagger: The live crowd was hot for the opening match, but they didn't seem to give a damn about this match. The backstage interview beforehand was a nice touch, yet it wasn't enough to make the fans care. These two should be working with top stars who can give them rub rather than trying to get over in a feud against one another.

Kane vs. Great Khali: We all knew it would suck going into the match. They did as much as Khali is capable of doing. It was an attraction match, but it's nothing we haven't seen before. The match received a lot of buildup on Smackdown,yet no one cared. Just imagine if they had given that much attention to John Morrison and actually booked him on the pay-per-view. Too bad.

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