LIVE SummerSlam thoughts - August 18, 2013

10:49 – You just KNEW something was going to happen.  When Triple H wouldn’t leave the win despite ALL of the celebrating, you knew something was going to happen.  Again, that’s what everybody thought would happen, but what’s the sense of it?  I will say this, though:  Triple H and Randy Orton BOTH desperately needed to turn heel, so this turn is probably a good thing.  And Daniel Bryan got a huge win and a huge moment, so I’m happy for him, too.  And in an ideal world, this is turning into a Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton feud.  Not Orton/Cena, not Triple H/Bryan.

10:45 – Near the end of that match, I thought to myself, “If they don’t have Bryan win, the audience is going to be SO deflated.”  He HAD to win, by the end.  And I loved the booking.  They teased the small package pin that everybody assumed would happen, and he DID end up winning clean as a sheet.  Cleaner than he’s ever put Punk over.

10:36 – We give the announcers a hard time sometimes (rightfully so), but I loved how Cole brought up the point that Bryan didn’t absorb any impact from the superplex by remaining on the turnbuckle.

10:20 – To those of you who wonder the value of John Cena’s status in the company, consider what a great foil he is as the established guard against these new up and coming hot acts.  I’m honestly not sure if guys like CM Punk and Daniel Bryan would have received so much momentum and emotional support from the audience if they were up against some traditional top heel.  He’s an extremely unique competitor who is willing to play that role.  While he may not lose cleanly all too often, his willingness to “play ball” in that regard is extremely valuable.

10:14 – The good news:  New gear for Daniel Bryan.  The bad news:  Still no ring jacket.  The silver lining:  He is wearing the great “The Beard Is Here” parody t-shirt, at least.  You can tell Bryan is on cloud nine right now.  Good for him – well deserved.

10:08 – Looks like the title match will get a lot of time.

10:04 – I love AJ, but I was glad to see Dolph’s team get the win here (especially with him making the pin).  The guy really needs some high profile, clean wins.  Hopefully he’s re-entering the title picture soon.

10:00 – I still find it odd that Kaitlyn doesn’t fight a more powerhouse style.  Chyna (and even Beth) used to toss people around.  I feel like Kailtyn just knocks them over.

9:57 – Odd that everybody BUT Kaitlyn got their own entrance.

9:56 – Really odd contest for Doritos to offer.  “Hey, this skinny kid can take a splash for our super intimidating and tough Superstar, and be just fine!!”

9:49 – Insanely brutal match that I suspect both men will be feeling tomorrow.  I actually don’t have a problem with Lesnar winning (even though he failed to do what both John Cena and Triple H were able to do) because Punk had numerous opportunities to win and looked awfully strong throughout.  So far, the match of the night.

9:41 – Somebody else on Twitter noted that Punk’s gear also matches the X-Men colors.

9:39 – Am I mistaken or is Punk using both ADR and Undertaker’s finishers?

9:26 – I like the black/yellow/blue color scheme.  As somebody on Twitter noted, they match this year’s SummerSlam colors.  Nicely done, Mr. Punk.

9:23 – Unfortunately, Punk still has those stupid sideburns.  But he does have new gear too, so that’s a plus.

9:21 – New gear for Lesnar.  This pleases me.

9:12 – The silver lining is that a hardworking and talented person who hasn’t been treated that great the last couple of years just got a PPV win on a major show.  So there’s that, I guess.

9:09 – My mistake, it’s on at 10:00 apparently.  At least you know I’m not editing myself, then!

9:06 – I don’t watch Total Divas, but isn’t it on at 9:00?  Which means that the only people interested in seeing this match won’t even be watching it?

9:04 – I could actually find it somewhat funny if Fandango came out and interrupted Miz everytime he had a segment.

9:01 – Odd post-match promo.  Did anybody else expect a run in or surprise interruption?

8:58 – Why wasn’t ADR’s being counted down when Christian rolled him over while he was in the armbar?

8:57 – Between his eye, his cheek, his ear, and his nose, ADR is looking a little worse for wear.

8:43 – Really cool new shirt for Christian, but I miss his old outlandish entrance gear.  Also looks like he has new attire, which is cool.  I do miss when he would wear more colorful tights, though.  And I DETEST how ADR wears a t-shirt for his entrance.  I don’t suppose there’s any chance Christian wins tonight, huh?

8:38 – Thrilled to see Cody win and for his push to continue.  Still upset about the mustache thing, though.  GROW IT BACK!!!!

8:31 – Devastated that Cody shaved his mustache.  It set him apart from everybody else!  I hope he grows it back.  Also disappointed that neither of these guys are sporting new attires.

8:21 – This was the result we expected, but was it pre-established that you had to win by pinfall or submission?  Anyway, I enjoyed how the Wyatts were thinking of various ways to get into the ring, showing that they’re not just stupid hillbillies.

8:13 – I love the unique and abrupt “cuts” that occur with the Wyatt family.

8:11 – Nothing says “crazy cult leader” like wearing a WWE Authentic  t-shirt!

8:04 – Odd that both the preshow panel and the opening video seems to put Cena in the villainous position.

8:01 – Oh yeah, that face turn brought great things to the Miz….didn’t it?  Oh, and the World Heavyweight Championship isn’t even considered a “main event,” even by obligatory name only?  Yet they want more people to watch Smackdown?  Maybe make people feel like their championship is, ya’ know, important.

7:56 – Is it me or did the preshow end a little earlier than usual?

7:50 – To be clear, we talked about the Divas match twice and the World Heavyweight Championship….never?

7:41 – The thing I hate about Shield interference is that you can see them coming and they’re in the crowd.  RVD easily could have hit that frog splash and gotten a three count before the Shield even arrived to the ring.  I can forgive it this instance, since Ambrose did use that brief distraction to roll out of the ring.  But why wasn’t he counted out?  The match was still active, Shield (and later Mark Henry and Big Show) was just walking towards the ring.  Why wasn’t he being counted out?

7:35 – The announcers are making so many references to Ambrose never losing the title, it makes me wonder if they’d consider doing a title switch.  I hope not.  I’d like to see the Shield remain strong, plus Van Dam should, ideally, be competing for a World title.

7:28 – Vickie seems a bit lost out there in that crowd.  Naturally, it would be tough standing alongside big, charismatic personalities like Shawn Michaels and Booker T, but she seems unsure of whether she should be playing a character or improvising.  How about putting somebody like Road Dogg out there instead?

7:24 – Part of me does think that Triple H is laying on the Pro-Daniel Bryan routine a bit thick.  Makes me fear a turn during the title match.  Don’t get me wrong – Triple H is FAR better as a heel.  But who wants to see a Triple H vs. Daniel Bryan feud?

7:20 – Speaking of Total Divas, I vomited in my mouth a bit when I read that report about how, despite being Divas Champion, AJ Lee isn’t considered the top of the Divas division – the Bella Twins are.  What BS.

7:16 – I got my hopes up too early.  When I saw that they had a Divas tag match at Axxess, I figured the match had been booted from the SummerSlam card.  I guess not.  Sadness.

7:08 – My bold attire prediction for tonight:  CM Punk wears his indy-style “CM Punk” shorts (similar to what MMA competitors wear) in tonight’s battle with Brock Lesnar.  And God help us, I hope he’s got a full beard again.

7:02 – I really like the new format of the PPV preshows, with a roundtable discussion of the matches on the card.  It’s something special.  I also LOVE Shawn Michaels’ epic beard.  I kinda love the fact that he has become this crazy mountain man hunter, but will still come out to “Sexy Boy” while dancing in the ring.  Man, that’s a great beard.