Edge & Christian’s world tag title defense at “SummerSlam 2000” wasn’t just a match – it was an institution, spawning a remarkable sequel and full-fledged pay-per-view in its wake.
This match and its aforementioned sequel are two of the most recognizable tag matches in professional wrestling history, standing head and shoulders alongside the main event of the inaugural “WrestleMania.” However, it was the original that set the precedent – erected upon months’ worth of groundwork.
The match’s namesake, “tables, ladders, and chairs,” originates from each team’s weapon of choice – taken to their most illogical extreme. In many ways, this match typifies the innately incendiary quality of the highly romanticized “Attitude Era.” This isn’t the “sport of kings” that Lou Thesz envisioned. It reflects the car crash television that was popularized in the 1990s. There’s something uniquely destructive about this match. Its currency is concussive force, forcing all six men to leave parts of themselves in the ring that dozens of teams have desperately tried to reclaim in the ensuing 25 years.
The beauty of this match is that there’s no pretense. In the intervening years, there’s been a preconception at the front end of any tag match that is rife with plunder needs a finite amount of highspots. Here, The Hardy Boyz and The Dudleyz put the pedal to the metal for 18 minutes and never let off – taking the fight to the champions.
The sheer lunacy of it all is only magnified by its urgency and precision. This is one of the most efficient matches of its ilk, executed with a steady hand that belied its unprecedented nature. It doesn’t feel like three teams stumbling from sequence to sequence. Instead, there’s an unmistakable confidence that’s indicative of three great teams.
The unsung heroes of this match are Edge and Christian, who squirm their way to victory. It’s their cowardice and opportunism that provide this match’s gravity – tethering the Hardy Boyz’ and Dudleyz’ high-risk, high-reward offense.
This match isn’t without its flaws. By virtue of its nature, it lacks a sense of finality. Of course, that would come six months later at “WrestleMania 17,” so this feels like another piece in the puzzle.
My other criticism is the ending. I try to shy away from the strange preoccupation with who wins and loses fake championships, but the Hardy Boyz and Dudley Boyz passively tried to kill themselves in this match and have nothing to show for their effort. It’s the epitome of an anticlimactic finish, in the Hardy Boyz backyard, no less.
I understand Vince McMahon’s general remonstrance towards home-field advantage, but the Hardy Boyz were all-world babyfaces in 2000, with few underdogs matching their universal appeal. Had Jeff or Matt Hardy been the ones to retrieve the tag title belts, the back end of this match just would have had significantly more dramatic weight.
Nonetheless, this still miraculously manages to live up to its reputation. Not only is it one of the better tag team matches in WWE history, but it’s a tremendous spectacle and triumph of efficiency.
Rating: ****½
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