It’s Sunday, Nation! That means we’ll be reconvening tonight for a SummerSlam live watch — 2002 and 1989 are tied in our poll, so make your voice heard.
Before that, make sure to tune in to travel Channel at 8:00 tonight for the Boneheads feature on Food Paradise, and see if you can catch our PTBN luminaries on TV!
SummerSlam 2015 just started on the stream.
I had no recollection that the Prime Time Players were tag champs at this point.
Nothing about that SummerSlam excited me… Looking at the card I just couldn’t bring myself to really care.
Going in I was thinking it would be the year that Cena passed Bret as Mr Summerslam.
Watched the MSG shows from 9/77 and 8/78… The feud between Rhodes and Graham was incredible. Graham has jumped up my GWWE list several times because of his work in the seventies… He’s currently in my top 10. He was such a mold-breaker.
Can you list out the key matches you think are worked checking out?
Yeah, for Graham hit these:
9/77 v. Dusty
10/77 v. Dusty
12/77 v. Mil Mascaras
1/78 v. Mascaras
4/78 v. Backlund
8/78 v. Dusty
He had others too; those are MSG matches from his title run I regard as very good to great. He brought amazing matches out of Mascaras especially.
I love Graham’s selling like he’s being beaten to death. The mouth gaping open. The lost look. It all works. He’s got to get some major points for influence too.
First heel champ in the promotion to have any sort of run, beat Bruno in another very good match, influential to the generation of TOP stars. I agree, he beat out Backlund on my list for these reasons.
Man I forgot about this stupid Team stuff they did with the Divas when they kicked off the Revolution.
That almost killed the whole thing dead. There’s not a credible team in the world that has the word TEAM before their names.
Yeah hearing the announcers say TEAM over and over again killed that entire thing for me.
Such a weird kick to get on.
Just saw Ric Flair is hospitalized with heart issues. God I hope he’s ok
Asuka’s title reign will reach 500 days later this week. That’s a crazy feat to have reached.
Travel Channel live watch at 8pm and then SummerSlam 2002 right after!
Have any of you guys checked out the Mike & the Mad Dog 30 for 30, I watched half of it this morning but got sidetracked, what I saw was pretty good though
I have been wanting to see it but it wasn’t on Watch ESPN last I checked. Is it up there now?
No it’s still not up there, I caught it on one of the ESPN channels this morning
Officially have now been on national TV!
Was it the first thing they showed? I put it on a little late.
Yeah right at the top. It looks like it will be online at some point, they have full episodes. Will got speaking time!
That place is great.
I just made that Hall & Oates shirt legendary, Barbershop Window owes me some cash.
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When is the live watch starting?
I’m queuing up, just say when
We can give it a few to see if anyone else shows up.
I’m ready to go also.
Joining the quorum
Let’s wait just a couple more minutes of anyone else to show and we can press play at 9:05!
OK let’s do this! One of the best SummerSlams of all time!
Ready
PRESS PLAY!
Best Long Island crowd ever? Probably has to be.
What an opener we are in store for!
I dig Kurt in the candyman gear.
Looks better than Cole.
These are my favorite Angle tights
Rey is so god damn fast at this point.
Rey almost didn’t make it, lost his mask under the ring before the match. How different things could have turned out if he didn’t find it in time.
Spoiler free as I legit forget who won this.
Even though creatively the year is messy, was the summer and fall of 2002 the most loaded the WWE roster ever was as far as in ring star power?
Pretty impressive for damn sure. This card alone shows the star power.
Has to be one of the most loaded WWE shows ever.
I was living in Brooklyn the summer of 2002, why did I not go to this?
Sick backbreaker.
These make me miss the way they used to fill the arenas with light. They looked so massive.
Angle is just chucking him around like a fucking rag doll.
Ref is the biggest heel in the match
Great dive by Rey over Koderas
I loved the backwards jump off the top onto Kurt’s shoulders. Fantastic.
Great job on everyone with that dive. Rey had amazing timing, and Jimmy was perfect position to not hit head to head with Rey.
What a toolbag security guard wanting the people to sit down after giving Rey a standing O after the dive
Koderas’ hairline is really bothering me.
Awesome match, still holds up… contender for GOAT WWE PPV opener.
Awesome opener, never let up for a second. ****
Keeps the ankle lock protected too. Great stuff.
2002 Steph isn’t one of her best looks
Hated GM Steph looks wise. 2000 Steph is still the best.
King still scared by Jericho’s pyro 3 years in
I bet those snarky fans these days wouldn’t dare pull that “ONE FALL” shit if Finkel was still announcing.
The King of World (well soon to be)!
This feud was fine but definitely one that felt like it should have been much better.
Flair was using his WWF knockoff theme during this time?!?
No, that was a DVD dub.
Ahhh.
Wow Flair’s hair wasn’t thinning terribly then.
It happens over night in early 2003… right around that Flair celebration ceremony…
Jericho is so gassed up here.
That was a nice vertical suplex, I will say that.
For fuck’s sake I’ve been stuck on the phone in the most insufferable conversation since this show started
Tell Glenn you have to go.
Damn lol
This has been a bit better than I remembered it as.
This match is good, just not a classic
Great low blow lol.
Tapped to the figure four…one of the few.
A fine *** match.
Not bad at all for a 2002 flair match.
I don’t remember too many PPV matches where Flair actually won with the Figure Four Leg-lock.
Austin Fucking Romine!
I go around ***1/4 for that. Told a simple story and good work with Jericho being overzealous and it costing him as Flair still can be wily.
Yeah I liked the story as well, nice match especially on a loaded card like this.
15 years later and just throw 50lbs on both these guys.
Paul E still looks really young here too all things considered
He was only 37 at the time.
Latino Heat! Finally!
Dirty scowl Eddie is the best.
I remember this being good… but the SD match weeks later is excellent.
Scott Keith lost his correspondence with Edge over this match.
Rough times on the internet.
Deport Eddie sign
“Deport Eddie” oh man, the signs.
Do I turn heel here by my discussing my thesis of Eddy being the most overrated wrestler of all time?
So he won’t be Top 15 in PTBN GWWE for you?
He may not be top 30.
Why you gotta be so heartless.
I did a quick tally and he will slot between 20 to 30 more than likely
I think he will be between 10-20 on the final overall tally.
Yeah I would think so. He finished at 12 on GWE which was higher than I would have guessed.
That would qualify as a heel turn yes
Top rope arm breaker was cool… I always enjoy when the shoulder gets worked over in a match.
Boy…Edge’s back looks an awful lot like Jinder’s today.
Just sayin…
The gas was heavily flowing from 01-05.
Edge had an interesting career… similar to a Bret or Shawn, someone that really worked his way up division by division and finally cracked through.
I wish we could have gotten Edge vs Daniel Bryan. I think it would have been special.
That is a great comparison. He really did follow that path.
Another good match.
I have no problem with Edge doing the spear with the bad shoulder. He worked through the pain and gutted it out.
That was the big bitching point on that match at the time right?
Yeah, like athletes haven’t fought through injuried body parts in competition before. He still sold the damn thing.
Big win for Edge.
Black Gold! Wut Wut!
Such a great tag team and saved Booker… he was floundering post Invasion.
And further evidence that Dustin Rhodes may be one of the greatest tag wrestlers of all time.
And one of the best overall wrestlers of all time
Likely in my top 30 for GWWE.
Yeah I think so for sure.
In other news, just finished S5 of Shameless. I am going to weep when all caught up.
Bobby Heenan would have had no problem cheering on the Un-Americans. But oh no, Jerry Lawler has to be against “these” heels.
If they had tits he would be all in.
*puppies
When did Christian drop the fishnet tank top?
When did Christian finally lose the fishnets?
I think in 2003 when he cuts his hair and changes his whole look.
Long stringy hair Christian looked like a low card goof. He needed that makeover big time.
Wild bump by Goldie over the post
A rare rip in the suit for Goldust.
Is this one of the better referee rosters? Jimmy Kordaras, Charles Robinson, Nick Patrick, Hebners, Mike Chioda, etc.
Loaded across the board for the whole company. Just stacked.
I like WCW in 89 or so with Tommy Young, Nick Patrick and Randy Anderson but this a strong crew too.
I agree with this. Three of my favorites right there.
This crowd, man. Was “off the chain” in use back then?
Why is the IC belt blurred?
Attitude logo still on there?
What a loaded roster and card.
I love use of both ring announcers.
It never fails to amaze me how over RVD was.
And they are about to stick the nail in that in about a month.
HHH?
Yep. Unforgiven. Pretty much proves he wasn’t gonna get the title any time soon.
Benoit had legit no ring rust after a year off, was crazy.
Seemed like it was a little while before he started doing the headbutt again, but we’re talking, like, a few weeks maybe.
In retrospect perhaps he should’ve left that on the shelf.
Yeah or just used once in a great while in a big matches. Sadly wasn’t his style.
Memo this to Daniel Bryan.
Right. Honestly, I’m shocked his neck didn’t go before his brain. That style is NOT conducive to a fused neck, and as you said, he didn’t miss a beat when he returned.
Austin did the same shit in 2001… went balls out right after the surgery.
And he was DONE two years later. Running on fumes by the end of 2001, really. Benoit wrestled/lived (sigh) for another 5 years and I don’t recall hearing anything about him having recurring neck problems after the surgery. Maybe in another world, we would’ve been a year away from another Edge situation.
Benoit may have masked it and fought through it, would be my guess.
Entirely possible. Instead of Edge, maybe Angle’s the more likely example.
This match has some of the more compelling RVD mat work I can remember seeing.
Benoit having none of RVD reversing the crossface
I never liked when RVD’s pony tail came loose. Always looks… off…
Alright bed time for me but great first half of this show
And still some great shit to come. Legit contender for best WWE card ever.
Cheers, Chad. Have a good one.
I’m actually out too, early day tomorrow. I look forward to scanning the comments in the morning. Later guys!
Big spot for Test here…
I always forget about this match, but it’s fine. Just a testament to how strong the show is as a whole.
Right, probably the weakest of the night but still good.
Today we’ve become accustomed to those “great on paper” cards, but that is far from the case here. Every match gets time and goes balls-out. Never a dull moment or fuck finish.
This pretty much was Taker’s face turn right? That heel turn seemed long but really was relatively short.
Yes, he turned in December 2001, and here already is babyface again. I was just thinking about that when he came down the aisle.
Lol didn’t we have this discussion during the Vengeance livewatch?
Um probably. Ha.
He started feuding with the Un-Americans soon after dropping the title, so I guess it’s true. Not sure there was really a hard and fast turn so much as a gradual re-positioning
Right, he just defended the US and that was it.
At the time, I disliked the the Un-Americans for the usual broad strokes and lack of nuance you get with these stupid jingoistic gimmicks in pro wrestling, but literal Nazis just had a rally in my state this weekend so
Originally seemed like they were going to redo the Canada vs. US stuff and then it veered off…
And who was saying recently that it was originally being set up as a kind of Canadian Horsemen when Jericho was still in the mix? That was… somewhat unique.
It really seemed that way… probably would have been way better.
Fine match.
That it was. Kinda weird that Test made a strong showing earlier giving Lance and Christian the win, then losing clean here. Like he was trying to preemptively get his heat back, but it doesn’t work that way.
This begins the greatest comeback in wrestling history.
Seemed like we were lucky to even get this one match and then BOOM!
HBK had two Hall of Fame runs. ’88-’98 and ’02-’10.
I can honestly say I never thought we’d see Shawn wrestle again. Especially after the back surgery he’d supposedly been trying to avoid for so long.
Dig that “HBK Still Rules” sign too.
Why would an unsanctioned match have a sanctioned announcer and referee assigned to it?
I hate clean shaven Trips.
Clean shaved puffy face era HHH really is the worst, this match notwithstanding.
I definitely was cringing the whole time watching this match… just waiting for Shawn’s back to blow out.
Never has a backbreaker seemed so punishing.
I was too. Watching this again, seeing him testing himself. The slingshot cross body to the floor, skin-the-cat…going into that backbreaker. He was looking for a classic, and to see if he could go for a run.
Drama in terms of wrestling psychology and on the level of “I genuinely fear for this man’s health.” I loved that he was able to pull it off, but I’m not sure I WANTED to see him wrestle again after this. It was that convincing.
To this day I’m still not sure whether Shawn sold his injury as a career-ender for four years (I mean it’s not without precedent) or enjoyed a miraculous recovery. Probably somewhere in the middle.
I agree with this… I think it was legit to start and probably healed along the way. Once he got clean and started doing the TWA stuff he probably realized he may be able to go again.
I love Earl Hebner is the referee here.
Chapman throwing fucking diesel right now.
Where do you guys stand on Scott Keith’s on this match that they didn’t need to go all out like they did?
I mean, the match is fine but the problem is it’s TOO good *sarcasm*
I didn’t have a problem with it. In the story of the match, it made sense to me. HHH wanted to destroy HBK. Shawn wanted to prove he was the man still. If it was HBKs last shot, show them what you got.
I think that gets lost in this. Shawn thought he was one and done and wanted to go with a legendary classic.
One last middle finger to the world. With a broken back, I’m still the fucking Main Event. SUCK IT! haha I feel like that was his attitude if it was the last shot.
In fairness, the ending of the match with HHH going berserk doesn’t suggest the story was over. I definitely figured they’d hook up again in *some* fashion after doing that.
I think it was to get H’s heat back in case Shawn didn’t come back… instead of losing to a retired guy and getting nothing on it.
And that was part of SK’s beef. How the match supposedly didn’t help anyone. Except a.) who cares, it doesn’t hurt anyone either and this is a marquee show where you logically would want to slot a “special attraction” match and b.) actually, it rather does help HHH. He’d only just turned heel, and this immediately restored his cred as a monstrous bastard. Did he NEED it, not really, but whatever, it works and gives us an incredible match.
That finish left it open. Either Shawn was retired and gone, or revenge was coming after selling it. Obviously, the latter was expected, but wasn’t a guarantee then.
Keith did go back and rerate the match a full *****
That’s good to know, that was a tough criticism.
Earl snaps after holding the ring ropes?! Odd situation there.
This match isn’t known for its big, iconic calls but J.R. quietly does some of the best work of his career putting over Shawn’s tenacity.
Backbreaker on the chair is sick.
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Good God how many veins did HHH tap.
The Ric Flair tribute run is officially under way.
This might be his sickest bladejob.
I love Shawn’s “I must be nuts” bit right before the splash through the table.
How is that face after the ladder elbow not been a meme EVERYWHERE? lol
Worst ***** match EVAH! (Tm Scott Keith).
I love the way they filmed H attacking him, perfect.
And then they spent the next three years trying to eclipse that match and never succeeding.
Yeah they never had a chance… too much emotion here, perfect storm.
Lol yeah. It’s really an amazing case of diminishing returns
Trish Stratus! Don’t care this segment was stupid, it’s Trish! 😀
I don’t blame them for cooling the crowd a bit, that was a tough match to follow. Give everyone a chance to reset.
Of course, and to clean up the ring and ringside.
Yeah sure, like I’m gonna boo Fink over Lilian. I like her and all, but Fink’s a HOF’er.
They are playing Nakamura’s theme at Yankee Stadium right now.
The Rock/Brock build was so tremendous.
Brock sure does like beating up Samoans.
Happy Dance vs Happy Dance!
Rock being taken to Suplex Unincorporated Municipality!
I sort of felt like Brock/Rock was a bit of an afterthought at the time since it was fairly common knowledge Rock was going away again. But the match ended up being SO GOOD that it didn’t matter.
We can thank this crowd for being the spark that led to Hollywood Rock next year.
If there’s one thing wrestling fans can never resist, it’s an opportunity to turn on the Rock.
Is this Rock’s best non garbage style match? I guess the H Iron Man is in the discussion.
Vs Kurt at No Way Out too I’d imagine. And the first Cena match.
Yeah the Cena one is great
Mentioned below, but Angle at No Way Out was the first that came to mind for me as well. And H at Backlash, but that might be considered garbage style.
I’d have to re-watch, but wasn’t Jericho vs Rock one of his better matches around this time as well? No Mercy ’01 I believe.
Another good one.
Yeah the Jericho series was tremendous. That and the rematch at Rumble 2002.
Mania 19 vs. Austin is an incredible outing for Hollywood Rock
Best SummerSlam ever? Thoughts?
Hands down
Worst match is Taker/Test, which was what.. **1/4?
Yes and I feel even more generous towards that. Not a single bad match and two all-timers. The show goes by incredibly fast and is paced perfectly. Desert island viewing.
I can’t think of another overall, top to bottom. I’d have to say it was.