10 Worst WWE SummerSlams Ever - According To Dave Meltzer
9. SummerSlam 1996 (2.37)
Bruce Prichard's podcast phenomenon 'Something To Wrestle' recently covered SummerSlam '96, with Prichard making the shrewdest observation at the very beginning of the discussion - it's a slow show.
There's very little to grumble about on the card overall, but it's an impossible show to love due to an anaemic atmosphere that highlighted how detached Vince McMahon's vision still was from his audience.
Owen Hart and Savio Vega's opener made it apparent from the off. Both were capable, but neither had a reason to fight, and the days of motivation-free matches making pay-per-view were passé. Similarly, a flagging feud between Marc Mero and Goldust resulted in the perplexing decision to unveil Mero's glorious 'Wild Thing' shooting star press...but then not win the match with it. In a brutally boring four-way tag team elimination match, Skip from The Bodydonnas failed even to tag in thanks to a neck injury, and a genuinely engaging brawl between Mankind and The Undertaker was hamstrung by an uncharacteristically lousy presentation of a pre-tape to the live crowd.
Even Shawn Michaels and Vader - two of the more reliable 'big match' performers - had an off night. An infamous flub from 'The Mastodon' put 'The Heartbreak Kid's nose out of joint early on, and their chemistry crumbled as a result.
The sad irony was how close the company were to their eventual saviour. Steve Austin was in the building that very night, but a 1:52 victory over Yokozuna on the pre-show wasn't exactly destined to change the game.