WWE Hell in a Cell 2016 Review: Top Highlights and Low Points

Every WWE event comes with its fair share of promotional grandiosity, but Sunday's Hell in a Cell 2016 may have been in a league of its own.

Typically, the "Big Four" pay-per-views of the year—Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Survivor Series—are the ones surrounded by the most pomp and circumstance, yet this B-level Raw showcase was advertised as something special.

WWE built this show as a three-match card in more ways than one, seemingly putting all of its eggs in those baskets.

Not only was this marketed as having a triple main event on its own, but all three of those bouts were set to take place inside the Hell in a Cell cage, and one of them was the first of its kind and a milestone.

Of course, in the end, what truly matters is the result.

Now that the pay-per-view is in the bag and the results are in, it's time to look back and analyze what managed to live up to the hype and what fell flat.

Did this turn out to be a show where only three matches were worth watching, or did other, lesser-promoted fights steal the spotlight?

Were Sasha Banks and Charlotte able to etch their names in the history books in a positive light, or will we look back on their match as a mistake?

Every WWE pay-per-view has the potential to be both fantastic, terrible or anywhere in between, so where does Hell in a Cell 2016 measure up when comparing the disappointments to the moments worthy of praise?

Let's look back on the results from Hell in a Cell 2016 and single out the biggest highlights and low points of the evening, presented in order of appearance.

Low Point: No Braun Strowman vs. Sami Zayn

Credit: SmarkOutMoment.com

One of the more interesting things on Raw of late has been Braun Strowman's quest for a challenge and Sami Zayn's attempt to stand up to the big bully, yet they were nowhere to be found on this card.

Considering the final lineup of matches, this was much more of a feud than the six-man tag team match that appeared on the pre-show and would have made more sense to be its replacement.

Strowman is finally taking steps in the right direction to become someone worthy of our attention, yet keeping him strictly on Raw doesn't do him any favors. Just ask Nia Jax how that's working out for her.

Likewise, Zayn is one of the most popular men on the roster. Ignoring Superstars with a lot of fans is never a good thing, particularly if there is an easy way to incorporate them into the event.

It's one thing to exclude these two because the event was overloaded or there was no feud set up in advance, but that just wasn't the case this time around. So why weren't they included in the fun?

If it were a timing issue, quick squashes are just a few minutes long, and there's plenty of time in the pre-show dedicated to pointless recaps that could have been shortened. If it's because WWE doesn't want them to have a true match together, why book their previous encounter to set it up?

There doesn't seem to be any reason for these two not to wrestle, so overlooking it and not doing it deprived the audience of another entertaining segment that could have very easily happened.

Highlight: Six-Man Tag Team Kickoff Match

Credit: WWE.com

Most pre-show matches aren't going to be must-see, and it was no difference when it came to this one, but it was still an entertaining fight to start things off.

For the most part, the Kickoff exists to catch people up on feuds and whet their appetites for in-ring action, so trotting out the cruiserweights to flip around accomplishes the latter in a fun way without annoying people who miss it.

All six men had a chance to showcase their skills to a crowd which may not have been too familiar with them yet, which is another positive for them going forward. The more we see of the cruiserweights, the more popularity they'll gain, particularly if the performances are on par or better than this one.

Bonus points for giving Cedric Alexander the win, as he's definitely one of the best in the division.

Low Point: United States Championship Hell in a Cell Match

Credit: WWE.com

By no means is this a low point in the sense that it was so horrible that we should all get our torches and start to riot, but considering how great Hell in a Cell matches used to be, it was disappointing.

This era in wrestling doesn't facilitate the same type of Hell in a Cell match, and when its watered down, the flaws of the gimmick are exposed.

In this match, for instance, the steel steps were a bigger factor than the cage itself.

Then again, a good amount of time was built around the use of a kendo stick, but that was a flaw in itself. Why was Rusev hitting Roman Reigns in his protective vest? Is that supposed to hurt just the same?

An argument can be made that since this was the first match on the card, WWE would naturally not want to make it too crazy, as the two future matches would look boring after seeing lots of spots, but this was basically a normal match.

If this had been a feud fans were clamoring to see turn into a Hell in a Cell match, it might have been a different story, but it has dragged on too long and been too weak of a story. On top of that, WWE is intent on giving Reigns a title run seemingly against the wishes of most of the audience, so whenever he's victorious, a chorus of boos fills the arena.

Hell in a Cell matches used to be more brutal and reserved for feuds that warranted the stipulation, but things have been diluted to this point, which is just a step backward.

Low Point: Enzo Amore and Big Cass vs. Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows

Credit: WWE.com

Typically, one of the guaranteed highlights of the night is when Enzo Amore gets a microphone, but Enzo and Big Cass' pre-match promo was one of their weakest.

None of the jokes were really funny, resulting in yet another humorless segment revolving around Anderson and Gallows—something of a black cloud that has followed them around for months.

While it was a good thing that The Club came out on top, the match wasn't good enough to really enjoy, and this win won't mean all that much. There's a long road ahead for WWE to rehabilitate them as the threats they were when they originally debuted.

If you missed this match, you didn't miss anything worth checking out.

Highlight: WWE Universal Championship Hell in a Cell Match

Credit: WWE.com

While the previous Hell in a Cell match didn't measure up to the hype, this one excelled in many ways.

Of course, the biggest spot most will remember is the powerbomb through the tables, which was one of the best hardcore moments of the year. That alone was better than anything Roman Reigns and Rusev did, but this match was also more fun on a fundamental level.

The use of the fire extinguisher on the referee was hilarious and a great means to incorporate Chris Jericho into the match, adding a new dynamic and allowing Kevin Owens to retain without Seth Rollins looking bad.

When the fans start chanting, "This is awesome!" at several times, you know you've got a highlight.

Capping it off with a powerbomb through two chairs onto Rollins' previously injured back was a fitting end to a great match.

Highlight: Brian Kendrick Wins Cruiserweight Championship

Credit: WWE.com

This is a case of having the best of both worlds—a new champion was crowned, but T.J. Perkins didn't throw out his credibility by literally letting Brian Kendrick win the match.

Sure, he gave up, but it was a legitimate submission that he tapped out to; he didn't lay down and allow Kendrick to get the pin.

More interesting than anything else is the direction they'll go after this. Now that Kendrick has won the title, will his self-esteem going to shoot up, causing a change in character? And how will Perkins bounce back after losing the championship? He's been the top of the division since the Cruiserweight Classic tournament, and this will be his first true taste of not being the main focal point.

Many would consider this to be filler next to other championship matches, but compared to some of the other lower-card matches of the night like Bayley vs. Dana Brooke and Enzo and Cass vs. Anderson and Gallows, this was by far the best of the bunch.

Highlight: Raw Women's Championship Hell in a Cell Match

Credit: WWE.com

This was already going to be a highlight of the night just for the circumstances surrounding it.

Think about it: Not only was this the first women's Hell in a Cell match, but it also main evented the pay-per-view. This wasn't just historic; it was monumental.

There's an argument for putting the Universal Championship match on last, as that's the primary title that has been around the longest, but the Women's Championship should be viewed on the same level.

Having this be the final match of the night proves that WWE is indeed committed to taking steps in the right direction, having confidence in this to be the true main event over everything else.

Some of the little touches were great, too. Charlotte and Sasha had bigger entrances than they would have had at any event other than WrestleMania, and unlike the previous two matches, this had the proper "the cage is lowering" heartbeat drone, which is classic.

The crowd was firmly behind this match, chanting for Sasha before her entrance even started, and would have embraced her with cheers if she had been victorious, which arguably should have been the end of this match.

If the ending is what made you dislike this, then there's room for discussion, but everything that came before it and everything that will follow should make up for it in the long run.

For anyone who didn't love this, it's best to get over it as soon as possible, as it will be mentioned and shown in video packages from now on as one of the most historic events to transpire in women's wrestling. 

What do you think were the pros and cons of Hell in a Cell 2016? Is there anything missing that should have been included on this list?

Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.