It hasn't even started yet and already I hate it. LOL Seriously, the opening starts talking about Bret 'Hitman' Hart becoming such a "hated villain" then moving into a weepy, feel-sorry sob-story about how Michael Hickenbottom "lost his smile" and had to take time away...please. Like I said, it hasn't even started but they're already going to make this one about Hickenbottom...as most of the WWF pay-per-views have become. The opening match was yet another match between "Hunter Hearst Helmsley" vs. Mick Foley's "Mankind" character...and as usual, the bull dyke "Chyna" was there. For an opening match, however, this was quite unusual as it was a "steel cage" match and although these matches between these two have become somewhat tired and predictable (you know that "Chyna" is always going to get involved and Helmsley will slink away with some kind of tainted victory) this one was written a bit differently. The match was about as interesting as they almost always are but the conclusion was quite unexpected...and refreshing. It will be interesting to see what progresses from here going forward... Now we move into a very yawn-inducing segment where the WWF introduces - and lauds - the Governor of New Jersey. That couldn't end quickly enough, and then we're on to the match between the character known as "Golddust" vs Brian Pillman. (Almost feel sorry for Pillman after watching the documentary about his tragic life.) I wasn't expecting much from this match but it turned out to be much more entertaining than I had expected...with another great ending. Next up is a tag-team match between the "Legion of Doom" (Road Warriors Hawk and Animal) vs The Godwinn Brothers. By this time, the Godwinns have "turned heel" so the Legion of Doom (they were not allowed to use the tag-team name "The Road Warriors" as it was protected by WCW at this time) were understandably the "fan favorites". The match itself was mediocre; not having followed the pro wrestling scene for numerous years by this time, I'm unsure as to whether the WWF had toned the Road Warriors down deliberately or whether they (the Legion of Doom) had just lost that "edge" they used to have. In any event, it seems their matches are very scripted and professionally performed now; they don't seem to have that wild, brutal side they were known for in their earlier days. And it's hard to root against the Godwinns (of course, it's not easy to root FOR them, either) so this match could've gone either direction and it wouldn't have mattered. Next up was a silly little interlude featuring Sunny's well-oiled boobs and some kind of "Win A Million Bucks" contest. Time-waster. Then we go on to the "Dog Food" match between (fairly) newcomer Ken Shamrock vs The British Bulldog. Still being fairly new to the world of "sports entertainment", Ken Shamrock still comes off as very stiff in the ring, not all that athletic (and certainly not gymnastic, which is what a lot of these matches rely on) but I will give him credit: when the "dog food" thing happened and he had to pull of acting like he "snapped and lost it", he pulled that off like a champ. I actually found myself wondering if he really _had_ lost it in the ring, he was that convincing. Sadly, that was THE highlight of the match as the in-ring portion was just plodding and uninteresting. After Shamrock (eventually) exits stage left, we have a "melee" (heralded as an 8-man tag match) between two teams whom I know nothing about and care even less. Of course, you knew - during the storyline introduction - that "Farooq" (Ron Simmons) and his "Nation of Domination" would eventually get involved and just muddy the waters up even more, leaving absolutely no clear or convincing finish to this boring battle. Now we come to the more interesting parts of this particular SummerSlam: The match between Owen Hart vs "Stone Cold" Steve Austin...although I have to admit that, although the match itself was great, the conclusion was quite unexpected; I actually wondered if Austin got seriously injured during the match and the ref had to shut it down, with the ending as strange as it was. Watch closely and see if you feel the same way. And again, they insist on making this SummerSlam _all about_ Michael Hickenbottom. For once, I have to agree with Jerry Lawler (even though 99.9% of his material is scripted): _"Shawn Michaels' ego is so big that it has its own zip code. All he cares about is what his hair looks like out here tonight, and...Shawn Michaels, when he goes to a funeral, he gets upset because he's not the corpse. He wants to be the center of attention and tonight, in some kind of way, he will be the center of attention in this match."_ Hate to say Lawler is actually right, but this time, Lawler is spot-on, dead accurate. I give the storywriters credit, though: they came up with a unique ending for this match, one that I didn't see coming. [spoiler] UPDATE: Austin was, indeed, badly injured in this match. You can read the full story here: https://prowrestlingstories.com/pro-wrestling-stories/steve-austin-neck/ [/spoiler]