Despite featuring a pretty talented roster at this point in their history, the WWE in this SummerSlam '99 event just doesn't match them up well enough to create a compelling card. Maybe this was a "pieces being moved into position" sort of event, but either way it falls a bit flat.
A few examples...
-Al Snow/Boss Man is an oddity all the way around. -Shamrock/Blackmon in the "Lion's Den" is such a tired gimmick, only started because of Ken's ties to UFC. -Test vs. Shane McMahon. Sure...okay. Test is starting to get a bit of a push, while Shane is working his way into a prominent role in the company as well. At this point, though, nothing special. -Big Show & Taker vs Kane & X-Pac may legitimately be one of the strangest match pairings I've ever seen. No really angle at all, just a bunch of talented wrestlers thrown together. Decent enough match, but not memorable in the slightest. -I feel the only reason Billy Gunn vs. Rock happened at all is because Gunn won the previous KOTR and thus was required to get a push.
The only two real highlights of SummerSlam 1999? The introduction of the Triple Threat Match (and even the performance itself was stale in this case) and the return of Jesse "The Body" Ventura (to his home state of Minnesota, no less!), who is always entertaining.
Other than that, though, this one is pretty much a dud. The talent alone keeps it from being truly awful, but absolutely none of the stories did anything for me.
A few examples...
-Al Snow/Boss Man is an oddity all the way around. -Shamrock/Blackmon in the "Lion's Den" is such a tired gimmick, only started because of Ken's ties to UFC. -Test vs. Shane McMahon. Sure...okay. Test is starting to get a bit of a push, while Shane is working his way into a prominent role in the company as well. At this point, though, nothing special. -Big Show & Taker vs Kane & X-Pac may legitimately be one of the strangest match pairings I've ever seen. No really angle at all, just a bunch of talented wrestlers thrown together. Decent enough match, but not memorable in the slightest. -I feel the only reason Billy Gunn vs. Rock happened at all is because Gunn won the previous KOTR and thus was required to get a push.
The only two real highlights of SummerSlam 1999? The introduction of the Triple Threat Match (and even the performance itself was stale in this case) and the return of Jesse "The Body" Ventura (to his home state of Minnesota, no less!), who is always entertaining.
Other than that, though, this one is pretty much a dud. The talent alone keeps it from being truly awful, but absolutely none of the stories did anything for me.