Summer Slam Predictions: Stephen "Arrow" Amell & Neville VS Stardust & King Barrett
This Sunday it will be a battle of the hero's (and King Barrett) as former NXT Champion, Adrian Neville teams up with Arrow Star, Stephen Amell to take on King Barrett and Stardust. I will be honest, I wasn't expecting this match to be the on the card. Of course I knew Amell would be competing but I honestly thought it was going to be a one on one between him and stardust. It was a thew months back that the two had their first encounter and their rumoured match was the first to be spoke about for the Summer Slam card. However, when Stardust started feuding with Neville things changed up a little and even though I don't get why Barrett is in the match I have fairly high standards for it and I cannot wait for this match up. In today's blog post I'm going to be taking a look at what Neville, Stardust, and Barrett have been up to over the past couple of months and I will also be telling you what I really think of Stephen Amell competing at one of the biggest events of the year. To close today's blog post I will be making my final bold predictions. So with so much to get into let's waste no more time and jump right into it.
Right, let's first look at Stardust. I will be the first to tell you that I absolutely hated the Stardust gimmick the moment it debuted. I thought it was a ridiculous idea with no potential and thought it catered to the younger audience way more than it did the older. I spent weeks, months even, tweeting and writing blog pot about how much I disliked the whole idea. I will be honest, it took me a very long time before I started to enjoy watching Cody work as Stardust and for me tog et into the entire gimmick. In fact it was only when he started feuding with Neville that I gained any interest at all. You guys know that I'm a major comic book fan. I have a huge collection at home and so if there is one way to get me invested in the stardust character and any work that he does it's by focusing he's character on a comic book villain and a comic book style storyline. Since he made he's return Stardust/Cody Rhodes has been one of my favourite characters to watch. I've been extremely entertained by he's work. He's cut some interesting promos that have grabbed my attention, I really enjoyed he's interview with Michael Cole a couple of weeks back, and he's matches have been pretty good too. I think what is so amazing about Cody is he's such a strong wrestler yet so underutilised. Over the years Cody has had some outstanding matches and some amazing moments throughout he's career but I still think he is worth so much more than what he has been given and deserves to be doing much much more. He has proven time and time again that he is a seriously gifted wrestler. He has shown that he can change he's in ring style at the click of he's fingers to match/suit a different character and that is such a special skill and something that is so so rare. There are not many wrestlers in the world that can adapt their wrestling style to suit a gimmick and he does that perfectly. I think the work with Adrian Neville has really helped change the way people see Stardust the character. It has allowed us to see him as more than just the weird, delusional gimmick and has actually given him a purpose and a reason for all the fans, young and old to be interested in he's work. He has played the crazy comic book villain down to perfection and I haven't had a bad word to say about it at all. I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting to enjoy it half as much as I have done. I've been surprised with just how well Stardust and Neville have worked together. The main reason I wasn't expecting much was because I wasn't sure how they would connect, how well the WWE would work the Storyline, and if it would have been done well. But I will admit, I was proven wrong and I have been so impressed. Stardust has been convincing and played the role so well and as a comic book super fan it has satisfied all my needs in the world. Pro wrestling meets, hero's VS Villains, comic book style. It's perfect. I'm glad that the WWE have put a great amount of effort and work into this storyline and as a result it's really paid off.
Now, I have no idea why King Barrett/Bad News Barrett is in this match. It's the most random, out of the blue booking decision of entire year and I'm not one hundred percent sure I know how I feel about it. I mean, I'm glad that Barrett is on the card and is getting to compete at Summer Slam but it doesn't make any sense what so ever. He's had no involvement in this entire feud and he doesn't fit into it at all. He's character is so distant from the other three and it just doesn't make sense. I get that he has a big history with Adrian Neville and they do have so much chemistry in the ring so I suppose there is something to go on there but I just feel like it's a little messy. Maybe I would have been more interested if Goldust was teaming with Stardust to face Amell and Neville but of course that was unable to happen. I'm going to try and look at the positives of the fact that Barrett is in this match and what makes me happy the most is the plain and simple fact that he is getting to compete at Summer Slam. The second biggest pay per view of the year. For the past two to three months, Barrett's booking has been dreadful. I cannot put into words just how bad it's been. The fact he had a one on one match with Zack Ryder and actually had a feud with R-Truth makes me unbelievably mad. I know I have said it a thousand times before but I have no idea what the WWE are doing when it comes to Barrett. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that he has everything it takes to be a top WWE superstar. He has amazing mic skills, he looks good, he has a strong move set, he's amazing wrestling ability, an awesome character, he connects with the fans, and has bags of charisma. Why they decide to not push him or do anything good with him is beyond me!They completed wasted making him King of the ring. There is so much that could have been done with him creatively after becoming the King Of The Ring winner but instead they did the complete opposite and sent him backwards. I'm hoping that even though he doesn't really have a place or reason to be in this match that he gets to have a great night and has time to stand out. He deserves to have some attention and time in the spotlight. I get that the attention lies elsewhere but he's in the match now and they have to make sure they give him some kind of role. Hopefully after Summer Slam we can begin to see some improvements in he's booking. Maybe this could be the first step forward.
Moving onto Neville and he has had one very interesting month. Even though he has been feuding with Stardust we have continued to see him compete in some great matches. He's WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Seth Rollins at the start of the month was amazing and is set to feature in my top twenty of the month, witch you will see uploaded at the start of September. I'm so glad that even though Neville has been competing in a great feud with Stardust, they have continued to book him strong and in exciting matches. Since debuting on the main roster the night after Wrestlemania we have seen the former NXT Champion compete in some truly outstanding matches. He may not have picked up many victories but he has always grabbed our attention and it's refreshing seeing the WWE not rush an up and coming superstar and instead take the slow, patient approach, slowly building him up and it's really paying off. I'll be honest, I did't expect to see Neville feud with Stardust in a comic book style gimmick. Call my dumb but I didn't see it coming at all. But that's not to say that I don't like it. I think that it was a real clever way of keeping Neville busy, keeping everyone talking about him, and getting him on the Summer Slam card. It got to the point where there wasn't really anything strong for him and he was just competing in the odd match here and there, and while they were good matches there was no story or meaning behind them. With Neville's move set, he's entrance, and that cape I spent months hating it all made the feud between him and Stardust work and make sense. The hero VS Villain story is a classic but it works every time and this has been no different. We have seen Neville and Stardust work really really well together. Neville has played the hero role perfectly and has kept us all entertained in the build up throughout the storyline. Whenever they have been in the ring they have had some decent matches and Neville in particular has been the stand out in the matches. We can expect Neville to really push Stardust to his limits in the ring this weekend and that is why I'm hopeing we will see a pretty long match this weekend. It's great that Neville and Barrett have so much history and chemistry too because it adds that little more and means that there is a reason for Barrett being in the match. I am hopeing that after Summer Slam Neville moves onto something new and we see him slowly start entering the main event picture, picking up more victories and being booked even stronger than he already is.
Finally, Stephen Amell. I can honestly say that Stephen Amell is the first celebrity that I have genuinely believed will be able to put on a good match live up to the hype. I've been very open about the fact that I hate celebrity's coming to the WWE and wrestling. I have a serious disliking for the idea and I never ever seem to enjoy the story behind their involvement and the actual match they participate in. However, things could not be any more different this time around. For the first time in probably ever, I'm excited for a a celebrity guest match. For the first time ever I love the story behind the match and the build up. If there is any celebrity that could change my mind on these types of scenarios it would be Stephen Amell and if there was any storyline that could change my mind it would be a comic book style storyline. We saw Amell make he's first appearance at Monday night RAW a thew months back when he was seated in the crowd. There was some clear tensions between him and Stardust and the following morning the internet was full of rumours that the two would be competing against one another at Summer Slam. To be totally honest I wasn't sure on the idea back then. I thought it was interesting but because it was just the start and I still had my doubts on the Stardust gimmick I wasn't sure how I felt about it. But the fact that Stardust went on to feud with Neville while still feuding with Amell online it built the perfect story and Amell was put into the storyline at the right time and it all fitted together well. Amell is an amazing actor and he's just outstanding in Arrow. He impressed me a heck of a lot with he's little moment with Stardust last week and the backstage segment between him and Triple H. Like I said, it was the first time that I had been interested and excited for a celebrity to wrestle. For the first time, I actually genuinely believe that a celebrity could pull off a great match. Amell is a genuine fan of the WWE and is in great shape. You look at him and you actually think he could be a WWE superstar. He looks, sounds, and moves like a WWE Superstar and if he has been training hard then I honestly believe he could put on a great match this weekend.
I'm personally beyond excited for this match. I know that I am probably way more excited then most of you reading this are but I this entire storyline makes me unbelievably happy. I feel as though the build up has been strong and solid. It's been easy to get into and enjoy and it's been pulled off really really well. I still don't feel as though Barrett has any place in the match but like I said I'm glad he's on the card and the fact he has a history with Neville kind of gives him a reason to be in the match. I have high hopes for this one and I'm convinced Amell is going to impress us greatly. He's very athletic, he looks good, and he has amazing chemistry with Stardust. I doubt that the arrow star will compete a lot in this match and most of the action will be left to the professionals but when he is in the ring and he is competing expect him to show us some very very impressive moves and for him to showcase he's athletic ability. I honestly believe he is going to be raising a thew eyebrows this Sunday. I'd like it if Barrett was showcased a great deal too. He may just be there to keep the
numbers equal but I want to see him have a couple of stand out moments that make the entire WWE universe say "see, that is why you should be pushing him WWE". I did think this match was going to be a singles one on one between Stardust and Amell but I'm glad they have added Neville and even Barrett into the mix even if the king of the ring winner takes away the comic book feel a little. I'm excited about the outfits and the action we are set to see in this match and I'm actually allowing myself to get my hopes up witch I hope I don't regret. I'm predicting Neville and Amell get the victory. I'm hoping that Stardust is pinned just so it fits with the storyline. I'd love it if Amell made the cover but the closing moments are likely to see Neville and Amell work together to take Stardust down and Neville eventually hit the red arrow to pick up the win. I'm hopeing the match is a decent length and we get to see some amazing talent. But I want to know what YOU think. Leave a comment bellow or tweet me at @TezangiVictoria telling me what your predictions are and who you are backing this Sunday.
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