WWE: Summerslam: The Complete Anthology (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)*****Nov. 2008 - I just want to go on record and say that I think SUMMERSLAM 2008 is a great PPV. I have a more detailed review somewhere in my Profile, if you'd like to read it. My ANTHOLOGY review is below. *****I'm gonna give you two reviews for the price of one:
* SUMMERSLAM ANTHOLOGY REVIEW
* AN EXTRA TWO CENTS ON WWE DVD SETS
[Better sit back. This is gonna take me a while. Hope you like!]
SUMMMERSLAM ANTHOLOGY REVIEW
---I'd wager that most haven't seen the first few SUMMERSLAM PPVs. While they're not very memorable, they're still worth a look. For example, from the first SUMMERSLAM back in 1988, everyone knows how Ultimate Warrior squashed Intercontinental champion Honky Tonk Man in 30 seconds. But hopefully, newcomers will be more awed by the excellent Tag Team Titles Match between The Hart Foundation and Demolition. Plus, the main event between "Mega Powers" Hulk Hogan & Randy Savage against Ted Dibiase's "Mega Bucks" team is an entertaining star-power showcase. 1988 was a solid event, and definitely warranted a follow-up the next year.
Sadly, I think 1989 is best remembered for its outstanding opener and for its cheap finale. The Hart Foundation against The Brain Busters (Tully Blanchard & Arn Anderson) is a classic that Tag Team fans will love. But I always thought that the main event (Hulk Hogan & Brutus Beefcake against Zeus & Randy Savage) felt like an expensive plug for the movie 'No Holds Barred'. Besides, it wasn't an entertaining match.
Ultimate Warrior and Rick Rude have a solid Steel Cage Match for the WWF Title for 1990's SUMMERSLAM, and Hulk Hogan against Earthquake ain't too bad of a co-main event, either. But Demolition and Hart Foundation once again stole the show with another Tag Team Titles masterpiece. Man, tag action was the real deal back then.
Bret Hart and "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig were never boring to watch. But in August 1991, their technical classic was one of their best ever. If Hitman wasn't yet a superstar, then August 1991 was his biggest push. His IC Title victory got people almost as excited as the main event: a 3-on-2 Handicap Match with Sgt. Slaughter's "Iraqi" team against Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior. Although Warrior's alleged backstage powerplay might cast a dark cloud over things, the match is quite entertaining in its own right. Oh, and I don't care what anyone else says...that Savage/Elizabeth wedding is touching...even if it was a few years late.
Big props to the World Wrestling Federation for letting Bret Hart and British Bulldog close the 1992 show with their IC Title masterpiece. Wembley Arena wanted to see this once more than any other on the card, and Hitman has always called this match his favorite. But another highlight you'll want to see is Randy Savage defend the WWF Title against Ultimate Warrior, a showdown I consider to be better than their 1991 Retirement Match. The storyline involving Mr. Perfect and Ric Flair is quite bizarre, but overall, it's good stuff. Also bizarre is some "no-face-hitting" encounter between Shawn Michaels and Rick "The Model" Martel. Don't ask...
So far, SUMMERSLAM has been an exceptional PPV series. But 1993's was probably their least successful at the time. There is some good stuff to watch, still. Mr. Perfect and Shawn Michaels delivered an outstanding IC Title Match. Bret Hart's grudge match against "Burger King" Jerry Lawler was hilariously delayed, as Hitman had to face Doink The Clown before he could get his hands on Lawler. Sean "1-2-3 Kid" Waltman's PPV debut against IRS is an admirable showing, as is Razor Ramon's opener against Ted Dibiase. Where most will disagree with me is on the Taker/Gonzales and Luger/Yokozuna matches. Even with his poor outfit and in-ring ability, I was never bored with Giant Gonzales when he faced Undertaker. And although I agree that Lex Luger never achieved the "American Hero" status WWF wanted, everyone got behind Luger during this summer. I think we all wanted to see Yokozuna dethroned of the title; at the time, Luger was the man for the job. This was a decent PPV amidst a subpar year for the WWF.
1994's presentation in the United Centre (my hometown of Chicago) was an excellent card, but also included two ridiculous scenarios. The first dumb thing is the Taker-vs-Taker main event. As Mark Calaway once said, "On paper, I thought it was a good idea, but we didn't get the mileage we wanted." The other problem is that Leslie Nielsen and George Kennedy bumble around trying to solve the mystery of The Undertaker......huh? This must've been a 'Naked Gun 33 1/3' promotion; I can't decide if I want WWE to edit this out or not. But the 1994 event features the priceless Bret/Owen Steel Cage Match; those two could steal the show by just looking at each other. Their rivalry remains a pinnacle among wrestling feuds. I also really enjoyed Razor Ramon challenging IC champion Diesel for his title, with HBK at ringside. A great PPV with a little WWF family-friendly garbage.
You only need to watch 1995's SUMMERSLAM for the HBK/Razor Ladder Match. Other than that, you can just break this disc into pieces to sell as knockoff jewelry. It's that bad.
1996 features a very good HBK/Vader main event, and a pretty solid undercard. What might hold this one back is the Boiler Room Brawl between Undertaker and Mankind. While this remains an awesome rivalry, the action hasn't aged well. At the time, these 30 minutes of violence were off the charts by WWF's standards. But now, the overall atmosphere and shocking finish are the best highlights. Still, 1996 warrants a peek.
The very first live PPV I purchased was 1997's SUMMERSLAM, in which the new Hart Foundation had a stipulation for each of their matches. Brian Pillman is still a frightening individual, which helps keep his gold-dress angle against Goldust entertaining. The British Bulldog's dog-food-eating angle with Ken Shamrock wasn't too bad, nor was the match itself. However, the last two matches are the real reason to watch. Sadly, this was the night that Owen Hart accidentally broke Stone Cold Steve Austin's neck via piledriver. However, it's still a very good contest with a sad finish. As for the main event, I'm not the biggest fan of Bret Hart and Undertaker's matches together, but this is an exception. Perhaps it was having Shawn Michaels as guest referee. I dunno, but out of all of the Taker/Hart encounters, this was easily my favorite. Oh, I almost forgot about the HHH/Mankind Steel Cage opener...in a word, awesome! One more thing, I hope that WWE doesn't cut the cash-giveaway-sweepstakes that happened in the middle...it was corny and funny as hell.
We kick off the Attitude Era of the package with 1998's edition. I was never a fan of the Attitude Era, but for this one, I really enjoyed myself. While The Rock and Triple H stole the show with their IC Title Ladder Match, everyone can look forward to the best Undertaker/Austin encounter in history. Those two men must've had to bust their tails when they had to follow the Ladder Match; they succeeded and then some. Throw in an X-Pac/Jarrett Hair-vs-Hair Match and a good opener between Val Venis and D'Lo Brown, and 1998 is a year you can look forward to.
You can also get revved up to watch 1999's SUMMERSLAM. Jesse Ventura officiates the Mankind/HHH/Austin main event with no particular set of rules. If he doesn't like what he sees, "The Body" makes the wrestler win under fairer methods. Also on this card is the Greenwich Street Fight between Test and Shane McMahon, where Stephanie McMahon's relationship with Test is in jeopardy. That's right: The Billion Dollar Princess was romantically tied to someone on TV before Paul Levesque entered the picture. Basically, Shane-O-Mac never had a better match until facing Kurt Angle in a Street Fight a couple years later. One more compliment to the PPV: Doesn't Undertaker & Big Show against Kane & X-Pac sound like a terrible match? Trust me, it's a most enjoyable showdown. The card gets rough during the 0:30-1:30 time period, but it's still a very good event.
2000's card is also pretty solid. It includes the first triangle TLC Match (my all-time favorite Ladder Match). Also included is a kicking 2-out-of-3 Falls showcase between Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit. And the Angle/HHH/Rock main event, while mostly a one-on-one affair, is still entertaining. There are a few stinkers (like the repetitive and pointless Undertaker/Kane slugfest). But overall, I like this one.
The 2001 SUMMERSLAM featured the second PPV showdown between the WCW/ECW Alliance and the WWF. The "Invasion" angle has its critics, but the talent was rarely stronger, making this PPV one of the anthology's best. You get to see Edge's first singles title victory, The Rock's first WCW Title victory, Jeff Hardy and RVD in a Ladder Match...do I really need to go on? Well, I'll also let you get excited to watch Kurt Angle and Steve Austin just tear the house down. Angle (to my knowledge) has never received a stronger crowd reaction. Just watch the PPV; you won't regret it.
My favorite SUMMERSLAM of all time is easily the 2002 presentation from Long Island, NY. Kurt Angle and Rey Mysterio almost steal the show with their fast-paced opener. But even better is Shawn Michaels' return to the WWE, as he faces Triple H in a classic Street Fight. Nobody thought HBK could still deliver a match this great, let alone just survive without killing his body. However, my strongest praise goes to Brock Lesnar and The Rock for their stellar main event. They put in a lot of hype and build-up going in, and the two men delivered the blockbuster we expected. The crowd went nuts for this, and I...Read more›

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